Photos from Brooke
My friend, Brooke, came over today and took pictures of the kids. I couldn’t be happier with how they turned out! I highly recommend her!
Playing in the leaves
The boys have been asking for a chance to play in the leaves. Our trees don’t drop leaves that are any good for that, so we asked our neighbor of we could “borrow” theirs. J was kind enough to rake a pile for the boys to kick, jump and throw around. They had so much fun!
Sleeping baby & boys in the hammock
Ingrid is definitely her daddy’s girl. She sticks her tongue out just like her dad, uncle, brothers & grandpa. 🙂
While our little beauty was sleeping, the boys were out back in the hammock. Today it was being used more like a jungle gym than a place to relax.
Present from Aunt Kari & visit from Uncle Jason
Aunt Kari sent the boys a package a few weeks before Ingrid was born. We held off on having them open it until after she came home. They loved what they found inside the envelope. Although I have to admit, I think I ate most of their Raisinets. Sorry boys!
Uncle Jason came to visit tonight. He brought puzzles for the boys (which they love) and got to meet Ingrid.
Great Grandparents, Meet Ingrid
Great Grandma Lois & Great Grandpa Dale came to visit Ingrid today.
She’s their first great-granddaughter, so it was an extra special meeting for all of us.
Going home
After 2 days in the hospital, we packed up and headed home…as a family of 5. I really love the sound of that.
I know we’ve got some adjustments in store, but we’ll get through it. I can’t say enough about the care we received in the hospital. I’ve had great nurses each time I have delivered a child, my doctor is top-notch, and my husband is the greatest support person I could ask for. I may have rough pregnancies, but I think God treats me to “easy” deliveries. And for that, I am extremely thankful.
On our way home, Jake asked the boys if they thought we should get a birthday cake for baby Ingrid. They said yes, of course. We stopped at the grocery store and Jake ran in to get a cake. He picked a pink one and the lady behind the bakery counter wrote Ingrid’s name on it. We lit a “0” candle at home and let the boys blow it out before digging in. It was strawberry flavored…yum!
After cake, we took the first (of many, I’m sure) pictures of the 3 kids together. It’s so sweet to finally see them all together.
Nolan is absolutely thrilled to have Ingrid home. That, and after I’ve recovered, I can wrestle again.
She’s here!
I thought for sure I’d have a 10/01/10 baby, but she held out for one more day. That’s right, SHE! We had a little girl today and she is absolutely beautiful! I’m thrilled she’s finally here. The last days, weeks, months, ok most of the pregnancy was pretty rough on me. But as with the boys, it was totally worth it.
We went to the hospital about 4:30 this morning (our fantastic neighbor came over to sit in the house with the boys sleeping upstairs until my mom could drive over.) They decided to keep me after monitoring me for a couple of hours. Once in the delivery room, (the largest corner room they have in the place with a great view of a creek,) I managed to endure the contractions for another hour or so and then decided to have my nurse call in the anesthesiologist to provide me with some relief in the form of an epidural. I’m not one to endure pain for the sake of pain; I know my limits. So once the kind man gave me my numbing drip, I was able to rest/doze off and get ready to meet our new baby. My water broke on its own, shortly after, I pushed once, and at 12:19 P.M., little Miss Ingrid Anmarene was out!
When they announced to us that we had a girl to add to our family, I was in disbelief. Prior to her arrival, I had come around to the notion of having 3 boys. I just assumed that is what we’d have. But no, clearly God has other things in store for us – and we are so thankful for the newest gift He has given us.
My second moment of disbelief came when I heard how much my “little” girl weighed. I thought for sure they were a pound off, but no, she weighed in at 9 pounds, 12 ounces. That’s bigger than both of her brothers. All 3 kids were the same length: 22 inches. My little Sheck babies…they’re long ones! No “newborn” clothes are worn in our house. We skip right to the 3 month clothes.
Ingrid is the first granddaughter on both sides of the family and the first great-granddaughter of the 7 great-grandkids on Jake’s side of the family. Let the inundation of pink begin!
Paper bags
I’m not sure what my boys’ fascination with paper bags is, but they played with two different sizes today. First was the grocery sized ones that they had made in to masks at Nana & Papa’s house.
Later in the day they had fun with the environmentally friendly yard waste bags. They were so big, all you could see was their little feet as they waddled around the driveway.
Shiner #2
Last night we were at our friends’ house and Nolan got a little excited and bounced off their couch onto their circular coffee table. Unfortunately, circular tables still have hard edges and he ended up with a swollen & colorful eye when he woke up this morning.
Now both boys have had black eyes this year, so the score is settled. No need to have any more.
Family photos
I wanted to get one last “foursome” family photo before the baby comes. We set up the tripod in the middle of the street and snapped away. (One of the benefits to living on a quiet, rarely traveled street.) I can’t believe we’ll be adding another baby to the mix in a few short weeks.
