Help Around the House

I am being reminded how much time a newborn takes and how other tasks often don't get done.  Thankfully, the Wee Lad has stepped up to help around the house.

He vacuums.

He makes cookies and is pretty good about not eating too much of the dough.

He helped decorate for Gil's birthday and took his card making very seriously, using his drill and wearing his safety glasses.

He uses my hand pump to pump his belly button every morning to provide milk for his sister.  He uses my shirt holder as well because that's how I do it and that's how it should be done.

He cleans his bathroom

He does the laundry. (Seriously, he does everything except putting in the soap and folding the clean clothes.)

He comforts his sister when she is sad.  (That little girl looks just like her dad in this picture.)

Since he's been helping out so much, we went to the park to play last week for a break from household chores.  It was a new park and we both loved it!  What an awesome playground.  We'll be coming here again.

There was a splash pad next to the playground that we decided to test as well.  Wesley wasn't too keen on our splash pad back in CA, but he was in heaven at this one.  We will definitely be frequenting this and others like it as the temps continue to climb.

We adventured a bit in the mountains on the south side of the valley yesterday.  Wesley got up on this pedestal and said, "Look, Mom, I'm a statue!" 

This boy is amazing, so smart, so quick, and such a good natured and sweet child.  Sometimes it's hard to believe he's still only two (at least for another few weeks).  I am so glad he is my Little Man.

One Month!

Our Little Lauren is one month!  It went really fast!  We went to the Phoenix Temple grounds to take pictures.

Happy family of four!

This girl looks like her dad!

Wesley is getting more comfortable around Lauren.  He now likes to tickle her toes and tummy when she is sad and likes to hold her hand and talk to her.

Wesley insisted I take his picture "with the pretty flowers."

Hooray for a healthy and beautiful girl one month in!

Welcome Lauren Clements!

Lauren Clements arrived on Monday, March 21st, at 9:01 a.m.  7 lbs. 10 oz. and 20 inches.

She was extremely pale and had slightly labored breathing.  I got a quick glimpse of her before she was whisked away to the NICU.  Sweet girl was severely anemic, suffering from a fetal-maternal hemorrhage in-utero.  Over the next two days she received three blood transfusions and then was able to maintain her red blood cell levels on her own.  She wasn't on oxygen very long; the CPAP was more to help with her breathing but that was taken off after 24 hours.

Getting to hold my baby for the first time.  Sweet baby Lauren.

Looking good!  She kept her IV in her hand until Thursday just incase she needed another transfusion.  Her blood sugar was still low but her little body was working on that too.

Friday she was moved from her private room to a nursery shared with three other babies.  I was with her Saturday when the doctor made her rounds.  She was surprised by how well Lauren was doing and so soon and said there was no reason to keep her.  I was thrilled.  Finally unhooked from everything, dressed, and ready to go home at five days old!

Wesley looked at her when we walked in the door, then went back to doing whatever it was he was doing.  It's taken a bit for him to warm up to her.  Now that he is interested in touching and holding her, he's got a cold and I don't want him near her. Oh, the irony.  It has been a huge adjustment for him which is to be expected.  I know he will be a good big brother though.

"Sleep!  I surrender!"  She's a good eater and a good sleeper as long as she is held.  Photo is one of the rare times she did sleep on her own.

Welcome baby Lauren.  We are excited to have you in our family!

Random happenings

We went to the train park in Scottsdale again this last weekend.  Wesley rode the train four times and absolutely loved it.  We took a picnic lunch and had a grand day.

The park also has a carousel which was a big hit too.

We're excited to meet this new little person.  As of appointment this morning, doctor says it could be any day now.

Notice I'm brace free!  I was able to get a cortisone shot in each wrist which has helped out tremendously with my pregnancy carpal tunnel.  My fingers are still numb all the time, but I'm not in pain, I can complete routine tasks (e-hem - getting caught up on my blog), and my fingers aren't curled into fists in the morning when I wake up!  Wahoo!

Gil brought these old rolls of paper home from work and he and Wes had a blast making stilts and walking around the living room.  It was pretty hilarious.

This statue is in front of our library.  Wesley insists climbing on it every week after story time.

This boy loves his heavy equipment.  We were at a new park with some new equipment to try out and all he wanted to do was sit here and watch the backhoe loader churn up the volleyball court.

I love this!  I hope this never changes.  As soon as we get home from the library with new books, he likes to "read" them to himself on the couch.  He's memorized quite a few of our books and has started "reading" them to us at bed time.  Can't believe my little man is fast approaching three (and almost as long as the couch)!

Montazuma Castle and Tuzigoot

This past weekend we ventured north to check out some ruins.  Our first stop was Montazuma Castle.  It consisted of some pretty awesome dwellings built into the rock face.  It is managed by the National Park Service and they had a junior ranger booklet that had a very basic bingo/scavenger hunt for Wesley that he loved!  Every time he saw something, he got a big kick out of crossing it off in his book.

There was a lovely (for an 8 months pregnant woman) paved path that took us in a loop with excellent views of the ruins and other interpretive signs about the history of the people and the area.

Next, we went up the road a bit to Montazuma Well.  A natural spring, with high levels of arsenic so no drinking, with more ruins and more info on desert living, flora and fauna.  This trail was also paved but the boys took a few of the non-paved trails to explore other parts of the area.

Our final stop was Tuzigoot, another NPS site with ruins.  A very elaborate complex of living quarters up on the top of a hill.  We got to go in some of the dwellings and climb onto the roof which offered some great views of the valley.  Wesley loved helping push me up this steep path.

It was a bit longer of a day than we had anticipated but so glad we were able to get out and explore.  All our adventures are going to be a lot closer to home for the next little bit.

White Tank Mountain

We continue to adventure and explore our new home, taking advantage of the beautiful winter we're having and getting out as much as possible before baby sister arrives.

We took a Sunday afternoon drive last weekend that took us around the mountains on the west side of the valley.  I looked when we got home to see if there were hiking trails and found White Tank Mountain Regional Park.  A miscommunication between the driver and the navigator meant our first attempt to find the park was unsuccessful.  However, there was another trail system to the south of our original destination that was perfect for exploring.  We enjoyed a lovely morning and picnic lunch.

Gotta love that puffy pregnant face...

Sometimes I feel this way.  Embrace your own type of beauty!

Our second attempt at finding the park the following weekend was much more successful.  We were able to hike to a waterfall (that wasn't flowing) and had perfect weather and beautiful views.  Wesley decided he needed to stand on every rock and run his hands through any loose sand he found.  He had a blast.

The waterfall only flows after it rains but there was still some water in the basin.  

Even more puffy... this was the last time I wore shoes of any kind.  All that fits from here out are my flip-flops, and sometimes it takes a bit to get my puffy feet under the straps.  However, so thankful I'm able to get out and explore with my family.  I still get really sore and have trouble walking if I over-do it, but I'm learning my limits and Gil monitors me pretty closely.

 There is a fairly extensive trail system in this park and I can't wait to go back and explore more of this beautiful area!

Happy New Year!

 We headed to St. George for a quick visit with family and to get the rest of our stuff out of my parents' storage unit.

We spent the morning of the 31st at the St. George Children's Museum.  It was a packed madhouse but we had a blast.  One of the best children's museums I've ever been to.  Wesley could have spent the whole time grocery shopping.  This was a big hit.

He enjoyed working on the car in the garage.  Cars and tools are quite fun for him at the moment and putting these two likes together was heaven.

Dressing up as a mailman and driving the mail truck was also a big hit.  This was another place he could have stayed all day.  If he could, he'd have his driver license at two and a half.

We headed home on the 1st.  We stopped at Lake Mead and did some exploring and took a quick hike through a pretty slot canyon.  Wesley was a bit nervous when the rocks got close.

Looking up at the sky from the slot canyon.

Looking forward to all 2022 will bring!