Settling In

Well we have been a family of four almost two weeks now. We are all settled in and enjoying life every day. Not having much of an agenda is pretty great. Some days I have a list of things I want to get done and most days not everything gets crossed off that list but that's ok! The visitors have slowed down, Daddy is busy with work, & Grandma Gina had her knee surgery. I look forward to sharing Everett's birth story but that shall be a completely different post. We have definitely had a busy last couple of weeks. No slowing down for this Momma. Everett had his very first outing at 4 days old to his first Drs appointment. We are going to Illini Pediatrics (Dr Cangas) in Columbia and the first visit was amazing. I am extremely happy we chose to go there for both kids now. This was pre knee surgery for my Mom and pretty much our last outing together. Margaret was kind enough to watch Lainey so that I could focus on the little guy for the day. He weighed 6 lbs 6 oz so he lost 9 oz since birth weight. I look forward to going back this Friday for a weight check and seeing what he is up to. After the appointment we did a Walmart trip and ate lunch at Imo's. Everett completely missed all the fun and slept the entire rest of our outing. Which meant he was an absolute angel and didn't wake up (ready to eat) until right when we got home. Perfect timing! We have enjoyed several visitors at our house since coming home most with food in tow. Thank you to everyone for that.

 I did my first outing with just Mommy and both kids over to Sparta to my work. I noticed that the veins behind my right knee were feeling different than they did during my pregnancy. Their was suspicion that I might have a superficial clot but had to get ultrasound to confirm. The girls at work very much enjoyed the visit and meeting Everett. I'm sure it was especially fun for Ashley who loved rubbing my belly bump every single day I was at work & had scanned him in utero. Afterwards we stopped for an ice cream at DQ and then at Rhett's grandmother's house. It was a wonderful visit. Lainey tends to get very shy and timid especially around those she doesn't see often. Before we got to Grandma Jefferson's I explained that she didn't need to be shy and we were going to visit Daddy's Grandma. Within minutes of being there she was holding her hand, whipping out cartwheels like no other, and running around the house like she lived there. I was amazed! Everett #41 great grandchild (YES that's right!) just slept the whole visit. Grandma gave us a very nice quilt as a gift and I really enjoyed our time visiting. Soon we were on our way to the next stop which was to see my Mom at the Red Bud Hospital. I wasn't keen on visiting two hospitals in one day bc of germs but honestly it was totally fine. At my work we didn't have to sit in the waiting room at all and he never even got uncovered or out of the car seat the second go around. Lainey has a pretty awesome immune system so here's to hoping so does Everett. Plus how could we not visit Grandma Gina after her surgery. It was a very short visit but glad we stopped to say hi. She needed her rest anyways. Now my Mom is home and already moving around like a pro. Lainey keeps stating that since she got a new knee soon Gina will run with her in the yard and jump on her trampoline! Our day wouldn't have been complete without stopping at the park and enjoying the nice weather and playground. I am sad to say that typically I am never the one to take Lainey to parks. We just don't take the time to go into town and hit them up. Although my mom often takes her to different playgrounds and knows which ones are her favorite. During my 12 weeks off this Mommy is going to learn her favorites too especially once the weather cools off some. We had a crazy busy day and I was exhausted but I did it! I ventured out by myself with both kiddos and it wasn't bad at all.

Old Man Scrunch Face

I also got peed on for the first time when changing Everett's diaper. I'm learning I must be much faster. It also takes a bit longer to get things done with two vs one but I'm learning how to balance things. My daily vice is a good hot hot shower and I try to make it a point to get that every single day. Even if moments of the day were stressful and I feel like I'm going to lose it a shower just refreshes me. Big thank you to Daddy for always helping me out to get that. Lainey is loving being a big sister. She is always wanting to help Mommy and singing to her little brother. She enjoys holding him for about one minute and then she's usually done until a few minutes later when she wants to hold him again. Overall she is adjusting great. Everett had his newborn session done with Forever Young Photography. We did the pictures at our home which worked out well. Lainey was not real excited about taking pictures but in the end she cooperated and did a great job. I just got the gallery and they turned out really nice. I am excited to share them with everyone soon. So far Everett is a pro at nursing. Before you know it he won't be my little tiny sack of potatoes any more. He is the sweetest little thing. He likes to scrunch up his forehead at moments. I call it his old man scrunch face. Yesterday he laughed for the first time. Lainey was playing on her play set while I held him as he slept. It was pretty darn cute. His umbilical cord just fell off so he is ready for a real bath. The newborn clothes fit perfectly and they are so tiny. Mommy, Daddy, & big sister are enjoying spoiling and loving him every single second. I have a feeling these 12 weeks are going to fly by because 2 already have!

My beautiful angel girl