Un Mes!

Somehow as walking zombies we have made our one month milestone as a family of five. George is doing splendidly and I'm proud to say he has gained some serious weight. I love thinking of him taking all my calories away when I nurse him. You go right ahead and eat as much as you want George! At his two week appointment he was already 8 pounds. I always worry about bringing these sweet little nuggets home from the hospital after they have lost a little of their birth weight so we were thrilled to find he had gained it all back and then some.

We love our little George. Sometimes during a busy day I love to just sit and stare at his tiny little face. I love his little nose. I love how his lower lip slants to the side because his heavy cheeks drag it down. LOVE those chubby cheeks! He has his Dad's dreamy dark blue eyes. He has incredibly long fingers and has done remarkably well not scratching his face like most newborns do. Love his long feet and toes because they are the spitting image of his father's. Chase and I think of him as a mix between a puppy and a koala bear. He breaths like a puppy dog and snuggles like a koala bear while moving around his long fingers. He had a "friar tuck" haircut (just like Sadie did) so we gave him a little haircut with the clippers. Now he's just peach fuzz all over and we're loving his new look!

At, his four week check up George surprised us all and weighed in on the scale at 10 pounds!! Hooray for our little man and hooray for me because I kept him alive:-) He eats just about every 2-3 hours and keeps us up at night with the same dreadful routine. As is the life with a newborn. He rewards us every once in a while with a little smile and this kairos moment gets me through when he wakes me up again to eat at 4:30 in the morning. I do love snuggling with this little person. The first two weeks were a total blur as I was somewhat medicated and totally sleepy. We had a lot of sleepy afternoons together. He's also started cooing and I melt!

What can I say about George that I've learned these past 30 days. He LOVES to be held and will take any attention that comes his way. Sadie absolutely drools over him. She will get down on the blanket with him and say "hi" over and over again in a high pitched dreamy whisper. As I was making dinner this afternoon, she did a great job keeping him entertained. I was grateful for any distraction so the lasagna could be made with two hands. We tried it with one (George occupied the other) and it proved to be more difficult than expected (even for an expert like me:-)

Our day goes a little like this. 7 a.m I stumble into the kitchen to get Sadie off to school, feed Jack and then we watch Thomas the Tank Engine while I feed George. We all hang out until George gets grumpy. Jack isn't a fan of waiting around while I put George down so he goes upstairs and plays with his trains. We will get maybe a half hour before George wakes up again. He doesn't nap well in the morning and usually crashes in the afternoon. If we're desperate to make him happy, we'll swaddle him up tight and put him in the swing where he usually passes out for a couple of hours.

I took the little man to the doctor today because he's has a little cough and stuffy nose. I wanted to make sure RSV isn't in his lungs. The test came back negative which was a relief. I'm hoping that once this cold passes, he will be sleeping better. We've had a lot of sleepless nights as of late and I'm ready for a full 6 hours!!

Loving my new baby boy!!

Whoa!!

I forgot how hard those first few months with a newborn are. It really wouldn't be so bad if human beings didn't require at least 6 hours of sleep. We've been getting an inconsistent 5. George is great, don't get me wrong, but I AM SO TIRED!! Tackling three kids is more of a challenge than I thought as well. Before I usually stole at least an hour of the day for myself to either shower, blog, or take a little cat nap. There is literally NO time to do any of these things. As soon as I get George down for a morning nap, Jack wants to read books. I'll feed him lunch and get him down for his nap and am lucky if I have five minutes to eat something before George wakes up again. Eating has never been such a challenge. That's another thing that would make this whole experience a heck of a whole lot easier. If human being didn't require three meals a day, I would be in much better shape. NO TIME TO EAT!! Sometimes Chase will come home from work and I still haven't brushed my teeth yet. I usually still have my pajamas on too. NO TIME FOR HYGIENE!

It also doesn't help that this happens to be thunderstorm season. There was one night we had all the kids in our bed. Jack threw up on Chase's pillow and we were all so tired that the vomit splotches on the sheet were entirely ignored and slept upon. We are totally in survival mode around here.

George wakes up every 3 hours and doesn't sleep at all in the morning. He'll usually crash in the late afternoon and we're all grateful for a peaceful dinner with only Sadie and Jack's screams and whining to deal with. Chase said to me yesterday "how much would I have to pay you to go back in time a month ago?" Don't think I could put a price tag on that one. I'm just glad the sleepless nights are coming to an end, at least if George follows suit and sleeps through the night at 6 weeks as his older sibling did. Like I said before, "bliss and oblivion" all in one. We probably won't remember much of what happened since January 17, but I'll know that kids have been fed, diapers have been changed (sometimes too late in Jack's case) and we're doing our best to not fall asleep when reading books to the kids. We survived!!

The iPhone...somewhat addicted

I've always loved my iPhone. Frankly, I don't know how I lived with out it for the first 30 years of my life. I have grown to love my phone even more now that I am sitting down and feeding George 10 times throughout the day. With Sadie and Jack, I tried to read a magazine or a book but always found it difficult with one hand. The iPhone gives me the world at my fingertips. I can read articles, play my Mom in Scrabble, brouse Pinterest, and also take pictures....which happens to be my personal favorite feature.

These are only a select few of the hundreds of pics I have taken of George. Some were at 4 in the morning and others when we were all wide awake. Love that I can bond with George and stay up on my email all at the same time. Hooray for technology!!

Gratitude...

We have felt so much love and support from people far and wide. The Jefferies sent us flowers when Jack was born too. What great friends!! I bought a pack of 50 thank you cards from Target before the baby shower a month ago. The cards are all gone!! My last box I bought in Virginia lasted almost two years. Everyone here has been amazing!! Not only did we receive all those wonderful gifts from the baby shower but we had three full weeks of meals and I still have people calling to see if they can bring by anything or help in anyway. I am totally overwhelmed with love for this ward and our neighbors. They went above and beyond to not only make us feel welcome when we moved here, but have really stepped up to the plate for the birth of this baby. I'd like to think it's the blessing I get for serving in Nursery while 9 months pregnant:-)

NFP sent us such a beautiful flower arrangement. I was so sad when they died. They brought so much vibrance and color to the living room.

JoAnn's another friend that I can't thank enough for all she's done. She brought by this adorable little cake that not only looks amazing but tastes amazing too. Then, a few days after my Dad left I started getting really sharp chest pains in my left chest. I called the doctor and she ordered me to the emergency room immediately.

I drove myself there because I wasn't too worried. I thought I must have torn a muscle or something. They freaked me out when I got there because when I told them I was having chest pain, they immediately made me sit in a wheelchair, even after I told them I felt fine to walk. They worried that I might have a blood clot because labor and delivery can often be the cause of a post partum clot in the lung. They ordered a cat scan and told me that because of the dye going in through the IV ( noooooo...not another IV) I wouldn't be able to feed George for 24 hours. This sent me WAY over the edge and I was inconsolable.

I wanted Chase there but he was home with the kids. I called JoAnn and the second I asked her if she could go over to the house she said "the keys are in my hand and I'm leaving right now." Makes me cry to think about how willing she was to help us out. The cat scan came back negative and through the test they found what might be walking pneumonia which I didn't believe because I felt fine. Honestly, I think I subconsciously had a panic attack even though I felt totally calm and collected. I'm just glad I didn't break out into a rash like I did when pregnant with Jack. Stress does strange things to my body.

JoAnn had cleaned our kitchen and put the kids down for the night. I cried when I walked in and saw her there relaxed on the couch. What a saint to come over and help us so willingly! I feel so blessed to have so many angels here watching over our little (but growing) family.

LBJ Ranch

My Dad did a little research and found that Lindon B. Johnson's ranch was only about an hour drive away. We loaded up the car and crossed our fingers for an enjoyable (and peaceful) adventure with our new addition. George was great! He pretty much slept the whole time. Sadie and Jack, on the other hand, complained the whole time. I felt a little like one of those families we saw in D.C. that brought young children to see all the monuments. "Poor kids"..I thought. What kid wants to walk miles and miles around a city looking at monuments and reading plaques? I guess we were that family today because other than a cow and a couple of goats, Sadie and Jack were a tad bit disappointed especially after such a long car ride.

I loved the scenery!! I have a soft spot for ranches, barns and white fences. I could tell Grandpa was in heaven being the history buff that he is. This would have been George's first real outing. He didn't seem to mind the lack of water slides, cotton candy and horses to ride. He was simply content to be fed and held in my arms.

Maybe we'll try for some historical sights in a decade or so when Sadie, Jack and George can at least be bribed into having fun:-)

First bath

What an event! The whole family gathered in the bathroom to watch George strip down and experience his first submersion in water (disregarding the 9 months he was swimming in the womb). Like the other two chiddlers, George loved the nice warm water and and the sweltering hot bathroom due to the space heater I placed in there 30 minutes before the whole event took place.

Sadie loved washing George. She has really become a little mommy around him and I love how sweet she is. I can't say the same for her behavior towards her other brother, Mom and Dad, but at least she behaves well around one of us:-) Seems she has taken the arrival of George harder than anyone else, which totally surprised us all. Heaven forbid George get more attention than her!

It was such an event that George has been taking showers with Chase ever since.

Grandpa

Having my dad come for the birth of George was the greatest blessing ever! Everyone asked me if I had family coming to help and were surprised when I said my Dad was coming first. Usually the mom comes first but Dad coming was perfect for our situation. All the kids really needed was someone to play with and keep them busy. Dad was perfect for that. He gets down on the ground with them and really plays.

The did all the "messy" things I rarely do with the kids because I don't want to clean it up afterwards. He filled up the sand box with water, did finger painting, and said "the messier they get the more fun they're having." I'm just glad they had fun.

We still haven't put those darn leaves in bags because they're just too much fun to play in.

I loved having Dad here so much that I bawled my eyes out when he left. I got a whole week with him. We sent Chase to work because I wanted him to use his PTO time when I really needed him. Mostly I napped during the day and had great conversations at night. By the time he left I was really sad but also very well rested and taken care of. Thanks Dad! You saved us!!

Coming home

When Sadie was born Chase and I were TERRIFIED to take Sadie home. They practically kicked us out of the hospital after our two day stay. We were such rookies. We learned faster with Jack that being home is WAY better than being in the hospital, so with George we asked how soon we could leave. Nothing against the hospital, I just wanted my comfy cosy bed again and felt distant from the kiddos at home. Such a different feeling when you bring home your third child. There's hardly any anxiety and instead of fearing your baby will die in his sleep, you're more concerned about your sleepless nights for the next 6 weeks.

Welcome home George!! Here's to a month or two of complete bliss and oblivion!

Visitors

We loved Seton Southwest. If I could have had every baby there I would have. It was so quiet and after a massage therapist came in to give me a post labor massage I was ready to tell EVERYONE to deliver their babies there. They were also great about having visitors come and we had a lot of company to see little George.

Our first visitor was Melissa (i.e. life saver). She came down last night and slept at our house so we could leave early in the morning for the scheduled induction. She fed the kids, got Sadie off to school and played with Jack all day until my Dad arrived later that afternoon. It was extremely reassuring knowing someone we love and trust was there to take care of our other little ones. I was so worried that I would have to call a neighbor in the middle of the night to come sit at our house. I was also concerned about sleeping in the hospital at night by myself. I was TOTALLY relieved when my Dad said he would fly out the next day when I talked to him on the phone.

Dad literally saved the day. It was amazing to have him home with Sadie and Jack so Chase could sleep at the hospital with me. He was the perfect person to have come because the kids were in total HEAVEN. They love their Grandpa. He took care of everything and was such an amazing help.

Tiffany, JoAnn and Kristy were among the other visitors who came and brought me some goodies. I've mentioned this before, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE our ward here. Everyone has been so helpful and so giving of their time.

Sadie and Jack were the noisiest visitors of all! I had planned to have them come and we would all bring George home together but they were such a handful I had Chase take them home first then come back to retrieve George and me. Sadie was so sweet with little George. She looked like a little Mommy holding him and was totally "baby talking" with him. I overheard her say "hello handsome" which totally cracked me up. Jack was pretty much completely oblivious to the whole saga. He enjoyed playing games on my iphone while everyone was glued to George. Like always, he's just "along for the ride" and as mellow as can be. Just like his Dad:-)

GEORGE!!!

George has finally made his appearance into the world!! We are delighted to finally meet him and finally name him. It took us a few hours after birth to decide, but George Edwin Cannon it is. We were still loving the name Charlie but when we saw those chubby cheeks and his dark hair, we had no choice. His name was George. Funny how it just clicks.

We arrived at Seton Southwest Hospital at 6 a.m. (5:30 was virtually impossible, especially for anyone with the last name Cannon), was induced at 7 and George came out at 10:49 a.m. I've never been induced before. I wasn't sure what to expect but it was REALLY nice driving to the hospital sans panic and cried of desperation this time around. Everything was so calm and peaceful! We just hung out until the pitosin induced contractions made their way to the monitor.

Pitosin induced contractions HURT! I was told I had to take in a whole bag of fluid from the IV before they could administer the epidural. I don't think they thought I would progress faster than the stupid IV because by the time they FINALLY gave me that BEAUTIFUL epidural I was dilated to a nine!!

I'm just glad they still gave me one. I still don't understand why I can't get the shot first and THEN the pitosin. Those contractions made me weep like a baby. Poor Chase had to just sit and watch while I mutilated his hand. I don't really feel too bad for him though. He'll be just fine:-)

The epidural wasn't working fast enough and I was still in quite a bit of pain so I begged for more juice and once they gave it to me I was finally TOTALLY numb and TOTALLY relieved!! WAHOO!! That is always my biggest fear with labor and delivery, being able to feel the pain. I had felt enough and was ready for relief. I also HATE the IV but there's nothing you can do about that. They wouldn't take out that bloody IV until I was able to get up and go to the bathroom. Considering I was numb for the next 7 hours that IV stayed in WAY too long.

They cleaned George up and put him under the heat lamp. We always think it's funny how frantic they are until they feel that heat on their bare skin. George went from a screaming crazy baby to a lethargic sloth under that lamp.

One of the sweetest moments was before the anesthesiologist arrived and I asked Chase to give me a priesthood blessing. I was so scared of that needle and was needing some serious comfort. I was also very worried about George, because that's what mom's do...worry. Chase gave me an amazing blessing and I could completely feel such a calming spirit come over me. We were both in tears and realized once more that we are in the hands of a far greater being. Makes me feel so loved when I think of how blessed we have been to have another beautiful, healthy and heavenly child. I think that overwhelms me the most. I feel so incredibly blessed that I'm bursting with gratitude.

George has been such a sweetheart! He's eating wonderfully, pooping like a horse, and sleeping in our arms. We are TOTALLY in LOVE! It's amazing how fast your hearts become welded together. He is perfect and I feel there's an angel in our presence.

Last night as a family of four

I was a little impatient today. Up until now I haven't really cared that the baby wanted to stay inside a few extra days. They are so much easier to care for in the womb then on the outside. This is by far my easiest pregnancy. I sleep wonderfully and have had a TON of energy. You wouldn't believe the "nesting" that has been going on around here. For a while I was happy to have him stay inside as long as he needed to. However, five days is a bit much and I was growing restless. I went to the doctor and she explained that because I was dilated to a four, my chances of going into labor and progressing to0 fast would inevitably make it difficult to get my epidural. Well we wouldn't want that, now would we? Abby with out her heavy narcotics during labor and delivery would NOT be a sight for sore eyes. She talked me into a scheduled induction the next morning at 5:30 a.m. Why the heck so early? Who knows but it's cruel to deprive a soon-to-be-new mother of her precious sleep.

To celebrate the news that baby brother would be arriving tomorrow, we headed to Tarka for some fine Indian Cuisine. What a cute little family I have. Can't believe we will be five in number by tomorrow!!

Only in Texas

We should just make it a January tradition to wash the cars in our swimsuits. It's hot here!! I moved my lazy 150 something pound body out to a lounge chair to watch the festivities. I cheered them on from the sidelines.

Still waiting...

I told myself that if I was still pregnant on Saturday (2 days overdue) then I was getting a pedicure. Forget that it's winter and no one will see my toes. I deserve this!! Well, turned out Texas is awesome and the weather was in the high 70's so I arrived at the nail salon in flip flops. Jack had a birthday party (which I previously thought we would never make it to...) so we dropped him off and made it a Daddy-Mommy-Sadie pampering event!

Yep, that's right...Chase got one too. I think it's kind of lame they charge the same amount for him and he doesn't even get his nails painted. However, if you saw the state of his toes and heels you would have charged WAY more than an actual pedicure.

Sadie didn't want her toes painted so they did her nails. All but lasted about a day before those pretty pink fingernails started chipping. We're talking about a 5 year old. Do you know where those hands go and what the do all day?

Yesh, yesh, the nurses will be so impressed when they have my BEAutiful nails to distract them from my pasty white rear end:-)

Her "best" rainbow

Sadie brought this picture into my room and said:
"Mommy, because you're a little sick and you have a baby in your tummy, I colored one of my best rainbows for you."
I love her!!

Way to go NFP

I was informed a couple of days ago that Chase's co-workers wanted to throw him a shower at work. I was delighted but feared I might not be able to go, if I was in labor. Well, fate had it's way and the baby decided to stay inside a couple more days. It was so nice of them to celebrate the little man with us. We received TONS of diapers, wipes and gift cards. So generous!! Did I mention before how much we love the people Chase works with? NFP is an amazing company and we are thrilled he has a job there. Now, lets get this baby out so he can poop in all those diapers!!

P.S. I was thew dumb prego lady who walked in and asked if the cupcake display was of a guitar (assuming so because of Austin's musical history). Felt a little dumb when they told me it was actually a blue baby rattle made out of cupcakes. Yikes...this placenta brain is getting out of hand. The other day at the eye doctor I couldn't find Chase and asked the receptionist if he was being "examed." Examed? Really? I didn't correct myself in hopes that she was as dumb as I sounded and didn't notice:-) Grammar has gone out the window. I asked another friend the other day if she "knowed" someone. Thank goodness for spell check and autocorrect. I would be in serious trouble!

Bad Santa

Overgrown trees equals squirrels on the roof, which is so cute, right? Cute until those squirrely squirrels chew a hole in your attic and move in to have more squirrely squirrel babies. To trim the overgrown trees (and to hopefully get rid of the squirrels), our landlord hired some interesting, Austin-esque characters who somehow have a license to not only drive, but also to own a saw. Seriously, though, this guy was impressive: he could balance on a ladder, smoke, hang on a limb, and operate a chainsaw all at once. While watching his perilous actions cautiously from our kitchen window, Jack pretty much summed up the sentiments of us all when he said, with a tenuous and disgusted look: "I don't like that Santa, Mommy. He's messy."