I try my hand at posing!

I thought that I’d get some cute pictures of our girl at 5 days old.  Luckily, she is so peaceful that I was able to move her around without complaint.  While most of my pics turned out lousy, I did manage to get a few cute ones!

The second day of Summer

Here’s our album of Wednesday, taking her home and putting her to bed in her new crib.  It only took us until 10:00p.m. to get all the kids asleep!  :)

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Summer has arrived!

My water broke at 10:45pm, I had my first contraction, and we were off to the hospital!  Our kind friend Patty ( who was having her birthday on Tuesday) arrived to stay the night with the kids.  We delivered Summer Rosalyn Parrish at 2:37a.m. on Tuesday July 20th.  She was 7.0 lbs and 19” long.  She came out with the cord wrapped around her neck twice and with a true knot in the cord itself!  We are beyond grateful that she arrived full term and healthy as that condition is commonly fatal.  The name Summer seemed to fit her, and later Myles was joking about her doing somersaults in the womb.  She’s our little Summersault!  The kids both wanted Rosalyn (Rose).  We have been calling her both names since she’s been home. 

She is a beauty who looks like Addison from the nose up and Alivia from the lips down.  She has Liv’s cute jawline and chin and Addi’s eyes and head shape.  She is quite the peaceful and alert baby so far, and the kids are IN LOVE!  I was almost in tears when I saw Addison reading to her last night and Liv giving her night night hugs.  They were so loving with her.  Liv is just proud.  Summer doesn’t really cry yet as she has so many people watching her all the time!  Liv lets me know her every move. I must say that bringing home a baby to a house with kids is a different experience.  Summer is never alone and is getting lovin’ from every angle.  Our home is cheerful and excited with such a happy baby. 

Her first night yielded a 3 and then a 4 hour stretch.  I love how much they sleep that first week!  :) Myles and I are feeling pretty good today.  We realize that this may not last but are grateful for 6 1/2 hours on night one.

I wanted to thank Patty and Ann for helping out with our kids.  I also am grateful for all of your calls, support, dinners, and love!  She’s one lucky girl to be born into a big, wonderful family full also of good friends.

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Happy 4th!

It was a cold but enjoyable 4th of July!  I’m still not used to living in a climate where July can be cold, even though I’ve been here upwards of 16 years.  We spent the day with the Bradshaws and the Scolvilles, and had a rousing game of Acquire before eating some of the best Kalbi beef that there is to be had.  I tried a new recipe for Southern fried chicken –Thanks, Rob!- and it turned out well.  The day ended with our own fireworks show and then a show from the city of DesMoines.  I have to say that we had so much fun watching Liv enjoy the fireworks.  This was her first show; she usually is burrowed in my shoulder under a blanket.  She is not one for loud noises, but this year she was brave.  Way to go, Liv!!

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The fun of seeing the Sounders

We took the kids out to a Sounders game as a last hurrah, thinking that our baby would be born last weekend.  That was one week ago.  While there’s still no baby, we had a lot of fun and some good memories –the Sounders won!

  

Daisy girl

We went to a party for Myles’s boss.  He lives in a wonderful area with acres of wildflowers.  Of course, Alivia ran in to play amongst the flowers.  We made a flower crown, rolled down the hill, and kicked the ball around.  It was a beautiful day full of sunshine.  The kids had a marvelous time amusing themselves, and I was reminded of the time when my mom took pictures of me wearing a green dress, playing in a field of daisies.

 

We’re waiting with open arms!

We’ve been waiting for nine months, and Alivia keeps opening her arms to give her little sister a hug, but we’re still waiting!  Myles has two important meetings on Tuesday and Wednesday, so I guess we are hoping now that she’ll make her arrival after Wendesday night.  Lots of cramps, but no contractions yet…

Mom, I’ll give baby a big huggie!

 We love you, Rose!

The end of the Bear…

Addison completed his bear this year with Myles’s help.  He worked hard, had fun, and made some new friends!  Myles learned a lot about how to teach 1st graders; he had 11 kids in his den!  We still look forward to some summer rock climbing, but for now, we’ll take a break until the end of July when camp starts up.  Addison can’t wait for his first overnight with the boys!

Liv’s last day of preschool

 

Our girl is a schoolgirl at heart.  She thrived during her two months of school before this summer break.  We were able to put her in since someone moved, and she LOVED it!  She enjoyed the activity, the social aspect, and the writing activities.  She will definitely flourish next year!  She already is asking for her class to start up again.

Two cute prego mamas!

Monica and I are two months apart, so Myles decided it would be good to have a record of what I looked like in month 9 and her in month 7.  She thought she looked more pregnant than I, but I think I win.  This little Aubrey/Rose is getting ready to meet us.  I’ve had some Braxton Hicks contractions, but nothing yet that I am paying much attention to.  2 weeks left and counting!!!

Pickin’, throwin’ and restin’

We have had a stream of sunny days, so I decided that it was time to pick some berries!  The strawberries were a bit late this year, and the raspberries were a bit early, so we got lucky!  We headed off to Remlinger Farm with some of Addison’s chums from school.  They were focused for about 1/2 hour and then they decided that throwing dirt clods was more entertaining!  I was able to get some good pictures of the boys in action…

When it was all over, Alivia just had to rest in the van.

Lastly, it was time to show off the berries!

Addison had lots of strawberries to take home (jam time), but he had no raspberries.  There weren’t enough to make for easy picking, so Luke and I were the only ones to dig in deep enough for a pound of yummy fruit.

With all our strawberries –35 pounds in all!- I was able to make some freezer jam.  It mostly turned out, and we’ve had some awesome PB&Js this week!