From 3 kids to 4!

Evan in the same receiving blanket that I came home from the hospital in 35 years ago!!!

First of all HAPPY 3rd week birthday to Evan!!! He's only 3 weeks but it still seems SO strange to see pictures of the 3 kids together (pre-Evan days)...I can't imagine our family any other way now!!! It is as if he was destined to be a part of our family from the very beginning. It just seems so very natural to see the 4 of them now.. It is so neat!

I'm also so surprised and touched by how much everyone LOVES their little brother. I was SO worried that Kaitlyn wouldn't like him or would be jealous of him, but she just ADORES him! When he is nursing she asks to pet his "fuzzies"...ie his soft hair and she is ever so gentle with him. And everytime I walk by with him in my arms and show him to her, she proclaims "Awww,,I LOVE HIM!"... She must say that 20 times a day! WHENEVER she sees him she just yells that out! It is SO precious!

I will say though... that bedtimes have been troubling these days to say the least. The big kids going down only at 10 p.m.!!! Other than that, there has been little difficulty in adjusting to their new little brother. Me on the other hand, nursing VERY often and having very little free time, it has been a BIG transition, but I wouldn't change my life for the world. He is SUCH a good baby and I know that for a newborn he is as easy as it gets!

Appointment with the Lacation Consultant

Yesterday we had an appoitnment with the lactation consultant at the clinic where I delivered. She was the one that saw us for the 10 day old appointment the week before. I called her this week because Evan's latch seems to be incorrect...he is making an enormous amount of noise when he eats and this translates into a lot of burping and spitting up. I also wanted to make sure the latch is correct because this is such an imporant element in breastfeeding.

The first thing she did was to weigh him in. To my delight he had gained 12 oz in only ONE week! He went from 3800 grams to 4150 in only 7 days! This is 50 grams a day---TWICE more than what is expected to gain! This was comforting, but the fact still remains that he is latching improperly...or so I thought. The lactation consultant after seeing us nurse, believed it was more of a forceful letdown reflex issue, and that he is struggling to drink so quickly. She belives that with time he will grow and adjust better to the fast flow of milk. For now I just have to keep my burp cloths handy because he is a SPITTER and a burper! Today we had a big spit-up and more milk came out than I ever could of imagined him drinking at this young age. He's a little "gourmand" as the French would say!!

So I'm happy to report that little Evan is growing beautifully and although there are some issues, the essential element is working and he is growing nicely! In a matter of weeks the latching issues and milk flow issues will be all behind us!

My 35th Birthday!!!

Well it came and went... the BIG 3-5!! I don't feel an ounce different or older. Still me, still the same. Strange to think that I'm rounding the hill now towards 40 though! It was a wonderful day and I was very spoiled by my family!! Here's the recap:

When I woke up I went downstairs (I was the first one down), and to my great surprise I found the family room decked out with flowers, balloons and streamers! WONDERFUL, SWEET Toomas had surprised me and got up in the middle of the night to decorate!!!! It was SUCH a big surprise! The boquet of flowers was magnificant! The HUGE 3 -5 on the windows was such a neat idea too!

Since it was Wednesday there was no school, but Krista had a trip to go on with her fellow altar girls and boys. They went for an ALL day excursion to a huge amusement park in Germany (called Europapark). It was a thank you gift from the Church for their service during the year. So I spent the morning with just Kaitlyn and Erik after Toomas went to work.

Erik and I started the day by cleaning and organizing the house. Erik was a big help, even doing the vacuum while I cleaned the kitchen! At noon Toomas came home for the day. He took a 1/2 day vacation so I could have a FREE afternoon! It was wonderful gift to me! He said I could do WHATEVER I wanted with my afternoon. When he came home we chatted a bit and then I put Kaitlyn down for her nap. I decided that it would be fun to go to Ikea for the afternoon by myself. It is easy to spend 2-3 hours there and always a nice way to pass the time (in air conditioning to boot)! It was in the high 90's here yesterday (35 C) so it was wonderful to spend the afternoon strolling leisurely around IKEA, with noone asking to go home! :)

For dinner we decided that instead of going out to dinner, we'd just order pizza. It can be a battle with Kaitlyn at a restaurant and I wasn't up for it. She really doesn't sit still for very long and food is NOT a source of pleasure for her, so she can not be "bribed" by food like many kids are in resturants (so that they will sit the 2 hours necessary to complete the meal). We decided it would just be fun to have dinner on the terrace chez nous!

After dinner I was SPOILED by gifts and cake! Toomas got me my FAVORITE "Foret Noire" cake that I love so much. It is a chocolate and cherry delight! He also got me blueberry pie, which I'll have to savor tonight!

Erik was the official photographer for the gift opening ceremony...Toomas' Mom sent me my FAVORITE chocolates--a huge box of various delicious Estonian pralines! Yummy!!! Next up were the lovely cards---Krista and Erik's handmade cards, vanaema's and one from Mom!! Those are always my favorite gifts! Toomas gave me a BEAUTIFUL silver necklace and earing set (my favorite brand 'Altesse'), a music cd and a book! I was very spoiled indeed! I also received phonecalls from Vanaema and Onu Jaan who called from Estonia to wish me a Happy Birthday! I enjoyed so much all of my emails and e-cards (Mom, Mike, Carrie) THANKS!!!

All in all, it was just a wonderful 35th Birthday!!! I am so thankful for the special blessings I have received in my 35 years of life. And a very SPECIAL thanks to my dearest husband for making my day(s) so wonderful!!! XO