Yesterday Clay and I got the kids outside for some fresh air since our house is beginning to feel a little stuffy. It was the first time for Rachel to be in her stroller, and after I took the picture I remembered us putting Ethan in the stroller for the first time. Here is Ethan at 10 days old, and Rachel at 2 1/2 weeks old:

On a different comparison note, after getting Ethan dressed this morning I came upstairs to check something out. I realized after putting his red Janie & Jack shorts on today, that this is the 3rd year he’ll be wearing the same pair of shorts…talk about getting your money’s worth!

This is Ethan in August 2005 at 10 months old:

This is April 2006 at 18 months old:

This is today at 2 years and 4 months:

Just a quick random story from the flu-infested SFB…

So, Thursday I had my 2 week checkup at the OB’s office, and all 4 of us went.  The appointment was at 10:30, and we got there just a few minutes early.  We sat down and when we had been there about 5 minutes, another family walked in – mom, dad and little girl probably around 3 or 4.  They sit on the other side of the waiting room, and within a couple of minutes, the little girl walks over and acts like she wants to look in the car seat at Rachel – no problem.  The mom says something about her daughter loving babies, and we of course let her look in.  She then walked back to her parents, and then came back over to where we were sitting a few times just to see what Ethan was doing (he had a big sticker book he was playing with).  After she went back and forth, we heard the mom say, “You need to sit down and stay there.”  The girl looks at her mom, and the mom then says, “Just sit with them in that chair.”  Yes, that’s really what she said.  We were sitting in a section that only had 3 chairs, so the girl scoots Ethan over and plops down in his chair.  Shortly after this, the mom starts reading a magazine and the dad falls asleep.  So, there we are with a complete stranger child taking Ethan’s stickers, scooting him out of the way, and coughing all over the place FOR 45 MINUTES.  I don’t even think the wait would have been so bad had it not been for this incident, but it was so awkward.  Clay and I just kept looking at each other wondering what we should do.  So, when the nurse finally called us back, all 4 of us went back into this tiny room just to get away from stranger girl.  While we’ve had some weird things happen to us, I think this one definitely makes the top 10.  So, next time you’re in a waiting room, don’t be surprised if someone comes and sits in your child’s chair.  WEIRD!

I guess that’s what we get for bragging. Friday evening Ethan starting complaining about his ear hurting. He’s not one of those kids to just make things up that hurt, so I kept asking him through the evening and yesterday morning if it still hurt. When he woke up yesterday he said it was “all bebber” (better) so he went on to our friend Jack’s birthday party (I mean, would an earache keep a kid from seeing Elmo Live! anyway?). Well, we got home and he slept for 2 1/2 hours (unheard of) and woke up VERY cranky. Right before bedtime he felt hot and had a fever of 101. So, we call the doctor and they said to bring him in this morning. So, Clay takes him to the doctor at 9:00 this morning and not only does he have an infection in both ears, but he also has the flu. Yuck. Praise God it’s Flu B which is the lesser of the 2 evils, and he did have his flu shot for the first time this year so it’s a very mild case. So, we’re staying indoors and trying to keep a loving big brother from kissing and hugging on his sister because the last thing we want is to have an infant with the flu. Now if we can just keep his breathing under control through this sickness we’ll be doing great.

But, despite the sickness, we’re doing great. I’ve put a couple of pictures of Jack and Josie’s visit last week, and also of Ethan showing Rachel how to play with her little gym. I put her under it Friday morning, went to my bedroom to get something, and when I came back I found both of them under it. I love how baby toys are much more interesting to Ethan now than they ever were when he was a baby. I have a feeling that works the other way around as well and Rachel will be much more interested in Ethan’s cars and blocks and things than she is in baby toys. Yesterday Ethan was dancing to his favorite Mickey Mouse cartoon and he stopped and said, “Look, Rachel! Ethan’s dancing!” He then got frustrated that she wouldn’t look at him, but it’s the thought that counts.

After many cold days, yesterday was absolutely perfect! Ethan, Rachel and I spent the day at my parents house and actually got to spend some time outside. I think poor little Ethan was about to go stir crazy in the house so many days in a row. Even though it was windy, it wasn’t too bad on the porch so Rachel got to enjoy her first of many outdoor days. Ethan was very busy with his Poppa – they brough in firewood, went for a long wagon ride (which involves more pushing and pulling of the wagon than actual riding), did some swinging, played baseball, played on the slide, looked at the neighbor’s dog and grilled some pork chops for dinner. I think my dad could be scraping bark off a tree and Ethan would think that was the most wonderful thing in the world and want to help. I have a feeling this summer will bring about the first of many fishing trips for the 2 of them.

And little Rachel is just doing great. She’s had an upset stomach for the past couple of days, but nothing too traumatic. I think she looks so different now than she did 2 weeks ago and I just can’t stop looking at her! She’s a good eater and a really good sleeper, and she’s just starting to have some good awake periods during the day where she looks around and takes everything in. I know it won’t be long before she’s being entertained by her big brother. While we did have a few trying days with Ethan in the beginning, he’s been very good with her and I’ve found that he’s very concerned with where she is. When he wakes up in the morning the first thing he does is see where Rachel is. Yesterday he thought she was in her room and I heard him in there crying saying, “Where’s Rachel?” over and over. Sweet boy.

So, that’s the scoop on the Starr family quartet for today. My mom and I will take Rachel for her 2 week checkup tomorrow and hopefully the doctor will just keep saying that everything looks great. Due to some scale differences at the hospital, we found out that her “official” nursery birthweight was 9 lbs, 14 oz. (seriously, how in the WORLD did 9 lbs, 14 oz fit inside me?!?) When we took her to the doctor Friday for a weight check she was at 9 lbs, 5 oz, and the doctor said he’d like for her to be back up to her birthweight at 2 weeks, so we’ll see. It’s quite funny because she already fills out most of her 0-3 month clothes, and obviously didn’t fit into any of her newborn outfits. I have a feeling she and Ethan (who still wears 12 month pants) will turn out to be 2 very different children.

Well, we have a one week old. She is eating great & gaining weight. She is sleeping fine…one night almost 7 hours! (too bad she didn’t fall asleep until 1am). Ethan is the one with the sleeping issues now. He is up 3-4 times a night now. He says he hears ‘mo-sthike-sthels’ and they ‘wate..etan…up’. Oh well, he’s 2.

Anyway, I know you’re here just to see pictures of the kiddos:

 

 

 

 

 

It’s official. Ethan loves his little sister (that is, until he realizes she is coming home with us for good).

Well….they do!

8:23 am

9lbs 8.3oz

21 1/4″

Lisa and Rachel are doing GREAT! Stayed tuned for more pics as the days continue.

After two phone calls today from friends and some “gentle” prodding from a certain aunt I’m finally posting some pictures of our little girl’s room (Dear Lord, please let it be a girl!).

I love her room and I already love being in there…so does Ethan! My mom made all of her bedding, the curtains, all of the pillows, the lamp shade and the runner on top of the icebox. About the icebox – this was actually my great-grandmother’s icebox from her old house and my parents have had it for years. I think it adds just the right touch to her room. I got out my box of keepsake things this weekend and put up some of my old dolls, blankets, shoes, my little Bible, a purse my great-aunt made me, and a couple of other things. It’s so weird to think that we’re really having a little girl in about 36 hours.

The dresser, rocking chair and crib were all Ethan’s. Clay repainted the dresser and added some new knobs and feet, and he also painted the rocking chair pink. As a Christmas present, my parents had the old blue rocking chair cushions recovered in the brown fabric and it’s gorgeous.

There are a couple of things left to do – Clay will be making wooden letters to spell her name so we can hang them above her crib. He’s also printing out some pictures from an old book Ethan has called “Prayers for Children.” The pictures are old and sweet and they’ll be perfect up on her walls. And then of course we’ll fill in with other pictures of her, but at least she has an almost complete room to come home to this weekend!

I had a doctor’s appointment this morning and he said she looks great and we’re still set for Wednesday morning at 7:30. I’m so thankful for the early time so I don’t have to go all day without eating or drinking. Ethan is spending the night with my parents tomorrow night, so I’m getting a little sad about putting him to bed tonight. Poor little guy doesn’t know his world is about to be turned upside down…but I know he’ll love his little sister.

We spent Ethan’s last sisterless Saturday doing lots of fun things for him. We watched Mickey Mouse cartoons on the couch, went to buy him a new train at Target, rode the carousel at the mall, ate at the food court, went to Build-A-Bear for the first time, went to one of his friend’s houses to play with all of his trains for a little while, and went to eat at Buck-n-Loons which Ethan loved because they have a game room. Whew – I’m tired just typing it all, but it was well worth it because we had such a great time. The child was hilarious at Build-A-Bear…of all the choices to pick from, he chose a cow. And to top it off, he chose a Superman costume for his cow. This obviously lead to the cow being named – Cow Kent. Clever, we know. So, thankfully we took some pictures so Ethan will always have proof (since he won’t remember) of what we did the weekend before Rachel came.

We’re just asking for prayers for a safe c-section and a healthy baby. We’re a little gun shy after our experience with Ethan, but have faith that everything will go smoothly and that we’ll be home Friday night or Saturday morning. Stay tuned – the hospital has wireless internet so Clay should be able to put some pictures up of her Wednesday or Thursday.