Oh my!!!

So, obviously it's been way too long since I last posted here. I haven't neglected it intentionally, mind you - it just happened that way! Obviously MUCH has happened since mid-March (the last time I posted here.) To put it in a nutshell, I've had another niece born (Kyleigh Alyse), the fifth member of our family made his grand appearance (Levi Grant), and my best friend, Bethany had her 2nd baby girl - Claire Elizabeth! It's baby central around here! I also have 3 more friends who are expecting, as well as my sister! Add in there, VBS, and a trip to Missouri (Michael had a class at Ft. Leonard Wood, so the kids and I stayed w/my parents) and you have our summer! I have so many pictures I could post, but for now I think I'm going to limit them to our family's new arrival.

On June 25th, I began having relatively regular contractions - nothing too painful, just a bit uncomfortable. So Saturday morning we went to the hospital - around 9 a.m. the contractions began coming much closer together (about every 4-5 minutes) and they were definitely getting painful! At about 12:30 or so I was allowed to get into the tub to labor there for a while - I HIGHLY recommend this for anyone who is trying to give birth without an epidural. I really wish I could have been in it longer. The hospital where I gave birth is not approved for water births (bummer!), so the nurse was very clear with me that as soon as I started feeling pressure to push, that I needed to get out. Well, I'd only had about 3 contractions before I started feeling pressure, so I didn't get to stay in too long. At that point, they were telling me I was only dilated to a 7-8 which seriously upset me because I REALLY was ready to push! I breathed through a few more contractions then told the nurse she really needed to call the doctor because my body was pushing even though I was doing all I could to stop it. The doctor came running in basically in time to catch Levi! He was out in one big push (praise the Lord - good baby!). At 1:07 p.m. June 26th 2010 he was born - 9 lbs, 5 oz!!! I could not BELIEVE how big he was!! Jared and Laynie were 7 lb. 13 oz, and 7 lb. 9 oz., so I was NOT expecting anything much bigger than that. Also, I actually gained less weight with Levi than I did with either Jared or Laynie, so I had no reason to think he would be so big - I was just in shock! Needless to say it was love at first sight - he is absolutely precious beyond words. Something interesting - there was a "true knot" in his umbilical cord! The doctor said he must have been doing somersaults in there! Obviously it did not hinder his growth, thank goodness! Jared and Laynie just love their little baby brother - they're so sweet with him! He is by far my most laid back baby - very content! Here are a few pictures.

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Headed out the door!




All ready to go!


He's here!


Levi Grant


Mommy and Baby Levi



Daddy with Levi



Levi and big brother Jared



Levi with big sister Laynie



Daddy with all 3 kids



Family pic!