New Playground

For about 3 months we have been trying to find Hallister an outdoor playground. He loves to be outside and loves to slide. I have been looking on Craigslist just about everyday and when I have called about something we like it has already been sold. Well yesterday I noticed a garage sale that had a playground for sale and in really good condition. I stopped to check it out and realized it was exactly what I had been looking for. I called my friend Sarah who lived close to see if she would get it for me with their Expedition. They were asking $75 for it, which was actually a good price since brand new they are $350. I stopped by Sarah's and then going through my envelopes realized I only had $59. I sent it with Sarah and hoped they would take it. Ten minutes later she pulled up with the playground loaded in the Expedition! To make a long story short Hallister loves it and I can't believe the awesome deal we got on it.

Brothers

Here are the brothers, Hallister 22 months and Preston now 3 weeks. Hallister is very sweet with him. When Preston cries Hallister brings us his pacifier. If the blanket is not on Preston when he is in the swing Hallister will put one on him. He also tries to swing the swing with Preston in it, but we have discouraged this since he can get it going pretty fast. Hallister has seemed to want attention when I am nursing Preston, mainly wanting to be held. We make sure to play with him as much as we can, and still do "big boy" activities he enjoys like going to the park. They are going to be great playmates.

22 Months Old

Well this update is a little late, but as you can imagine we have been a little busy. Hallister is becoming such a great helper. He cleans up his toys, most of the time without being asked. He now helps put silverware away out of the dishwasher by bringing it to us, and then closes the dishwasher. He really enjoys "swiffering" the kitchen floor. Hallister now says many words....please (which he says while doing the sign), thank you (he says after being given something he asked for), pizza, video, bless you. We were all in the car and Preston sneezed. Hallister said "Bless you", which sounds like "Bess you". It was so cute! We immediately gave him praise. He learns so quickly and it is obvious he is watching what we do and say, especially when he repeats it like that. He is trying more food. He now eats grilled cheese sandwiches and feeds himself yogurt and sweet potato baby food. He won't eat regular vegetables so this way we know he still gets his veggies. We keep him in the high chair until he at least takes one bite of new food. It has helped if we place it in front of him and instead of hounding him we go about eating ourselves. Once he does try new food we make sure we clap and say good job. His love language is definitely words of encouragement. We have decided to keep letting his hair grow. It is cute how it curls in the back. His favorite things are Thomas the Train and slides.

Two Weeks Old

Yesterday Preston turned two weeks old and we had a doctor appointment. He now weighs 9 lbs 12 oz and he is 21 3/4" long. He is eating well and already growing so fast. He has had a few nights of sleeping 4 - 5 hours, but they have not been consistent. Right now he is sleeping in our room in the pack-n-play at night. We keep it pretty dark and have our box fans blowing to block out noise. Thankfully he goes back to sleep pretty easily after waking up to be fed. During the day he sleeps in the swing in the living room without it even swinging. This way he gets used to light and noise and realizes it is day time. He is on his last package of Newborn diapers and ready for Size 1. He is such an awesome addition to our family.

Preston Conner Senn

He's here!!!!!!! So after a long, long, long, long wait our second son arrived July 6th at 4:39pm. I guess having an extra 10 days to cook allowed him time to grow another pound and a half. He was 8lbs 5oz and 20.5" long. Of course upon seeing him we immediately compared him to Hallister. He was shorter and chunkier than Hall, but most importantly very healthy. Birth Story - Let me back track though and tell you about his arrival. After our appointment July 5th it was decided that I would have a scheduled c-section at noon on the 6th. I was disappointed that Preston would would not be choosing his own birthday but we were very ready to meet him. So I wake up Tuesday morning to find that I am leaking water. This really excited me that we may shot at a VBAC. I called my midwife and she said to make sure the baby is moving but that contractions need to start so the baby will drop into position. She called back later to tell me that I needed to go ahead to the hospital to start the antibiotics for Group B Strep. This is something I have but it does not affect me, only the baby. I needed to go through 2 doses of medicine before the c-section. Upon arriving at the hospital I went to check in and was drinking water from a water bottle. The lady looked puzzled and asked if anyone had told me that I should not eat or drink after midnight. I said no. She said she would have to phone my doctor and that the c-section would need to get pushed back since I also had had breakfast. I got a room and they started to administer the antibiotics. I did have some contractions but they were not consistent. My midwife came in to check me at 3:30pm and said the baby was still not engaged in my pelvis. So on to surgery we went. I was glad at least this time I knew what to expect, although I received a spinal instead of an epidural, so I would not be able to feel from my chest down for 3 hours. The anesthesiologist was entertaining. He talked to us about taking his kids to go see Toy Story 3, even their 10 day old daughter. This was a nice distraction. Finally he told us they were about to pull the baby out. We heard the doctor and my midwife say Wow when they broke the water and were vacuuming it out. Apparently there was a lot still left. Then we heard the most awesome sound of Preston crying. He had healthy lungs that is for sure. Christy held him up over the drapery so I could see and I could tell he was going to weigh a lot. Finally Jonathan had him in his arms and brought him over so I could touch him. We then went to recovery and it was very hard to hear Preston cry. I was not able to nurse him until about an hour after surgery for risk of getting a spinal headache if I set up too soon since I could not feel my legs. Finally I was able to sit up just enough to at least hold him and then to finally nurse. He ate for 45 minutes! We finally got a postpartum room and got to enjoy just staring at our new bundle of joy and to study all his features. We feel very blessed. Name - Jonathan's Grandmother's brother was killed in WWII and his name was Preston, so that is who he is named after. I chose Conner for the middle name because it means wise. He is going to need wisdom having Hall as an older brother. :) We look forward to sharing more news on how our boys are getting along soon.

Tomorrow is the Big Day

Today I went in for another doctor's appointment where they did tests on me and the baby. We are both very healthy. (We got awesome pictures of Sweet P.) My midwife came to the conclusion that the baby's head is too big to fit down into my pelvis. That is why contractions have not started. So tomorrow at noon at Providence Hospital I will have a c-section. We are enjoying spending time with Hallister today and look forward to meeting Sweet P tomorrow. Thank you all for your prayers, encouragement, and support. This has been a long pregnancy and we are just ready to meet our son. At least now we know what to pray for for our next child......small head. We will share our son's name and of course his weight and length tomorrow as soon as we can. Now our prayer points are: quick recovery for me from c-section, healthy baby, Sweet P will have no problems breast feeding, and smooth adjustment for Hallister being a big brother. We are so excited and feel very blessed that tomorrow we will have two children!

8 Days Past Due....

I had a long doctor's appointment yesterday. They did a sonogram to look at my placenta and amniotic fluid. They did measurements on the baby and made sure he was breathing. Sweet P also had a stress test done on him. Thankfully he is healthy and so am I. After all the testing was finished my midwife shared news that was hard to hear. Usually the doctor's do not want someone going more than 10 days over the due date. It is possible I can still go into labor, but if the baby does not arrive by Tuesday, June 6th on his own, I will have to have a c-section. In a way it was a relief to know that there will be an end to this pregnancy, but on the other hand it was very sad to think of not having a VBAC when I so badly want one. Also, I am still dilated to 2 cm but the baby is not engaging my pelvis. My midwife said it may be that the baby's head is too big to fit in my pelvic area, and that may be why Hallister turned. It took me a while to process the news but I felt better once I started to thank God for His many blessings. We did not have trouble getting pregnant. The baby and I are healthy. I am thankful for how advanced medical technology has come and that I can have the baby safely without fear of I or the baby dying. And lastly I just looked at Hallister. God truly blessed us with a wonderful, joyful, and loving son. We look forward to seeing his reaction to Sweet P and know he will be an awesome big brother. So with all of this said, at the latest, by July 6th we will be the parents of two. We are excited about Sweet P coming into the world, no matter how that may be.

Train Table

We found this awesome train table on Craiglist. Hallister has been into Thomas the Train lately. Now he gets to enjoy playing with his trains while watching Thomas. The actual table is not pictured, it still needs a little work done to it, but it has slots for 6 baskets underneath to hold all the train pieces. This will also be a nice distraction once little brother arrives.