Wiley-One Month

One month! I can't believe it's been a month already. It's amazing how time passes so quickly, and yet so slowly at the same time.

One month. It's hard to believe that 1 month ago I looked at you for the first time. I can hardly remember a day when I didn't get to look at those sweet blue eyes, tickle your baby toes, touch your soft curvy ears, or kiss your cheeks. Oh those cheeks! Everyone who meets you comments on your cheeks, when Pop Pop visited he liked to watch your cheeks jiggle in the stroller or the car as we moved. You have the best baby cheeks around!

You've had a busy month meeting friends and relatives, your cousin Betsy and Owie Owie (Aunt Katie) and Uncle Tony came the day you were born to meet you. Grandma Koschmann was next to come for a week to help out. Then Grammy and Pop Pop drove in from Chicago and then since Daddy had to leave for Texas the day after you turned 1 month, Grandma Koschmann came back to help and brought Grandpa with her! Everyone has loved you and enjoyed your snuggles.

You're sleeping well, napping throughout the day and sleeping in 3 hour stretches at night. Sometimes you wake more often, but usually you let mommy sleep 3-4 hours at least once during the night.

You're my gassy baby...you make the funniest burps and tend to spit up more than your brother or sisters ever did, we don't mind though. Your brother laughs so hard when you burp and once you spit up all in Lucy's hair...we call that payback for whatever she's going to do to you as you grow bigger! You got her at least once already!

Speaking of your brother and sisters, they can't get enough of you. Just a few minutes after waking up someone is asking to hold you. Not a day goes by that you aren't smothered in kisses, hugged till you cry and lovingly held by them. They're spending a few days in Wisconsin and I know when they see you again they'll be over the moon!

Murray loves having a brother. He adores sharing a room with you and asks when you're coming to sleep each night, if you fuss and he hears you I find him talking to you and shushing you in the middle of the night in the sweetest way. I love watching this brotherly bond growing between you.

Lucy loves you! She takes so much ownership in caring for you and while she already has decided one day you will be annoying "just like Murray" I know she will always love you, besides, I have this hunch you two will be my blue eyed kiddos... She loves to kiss and hug you and I have seen her grow so much in her maturity in this past month.

Ginny...oh Wiley, you made my sweet Ginny girl into a big sister! It was so hard for me to imagine while I was pregnant what Ginny would be like to you. I was so afraid she would resent you, I spent many prayers asking for her to love you. Guess what! She loves you SO much! Ginny thinks you are the sweetest and likes to give you kisses and hugs as well as point to your toes, ears, eyes, nose and hair. I am going to really enjoy watching you two get into a rhythm together!

In your first month of life you've had 2 ultrasounds, multiple doctor visits and a VCUG...hopefully you're in the clear and you won't have to continue to get things checked out like this! If we're lucky, we'll be done soon and you won't even remember the discomfort you went through! Your most recent doctor visit was for your 1 month check up and you weighed in at 11lbs 4 oz measuring at 22 inches long! You've certainly been busy growing this month!

We love you Wiley! You are truly my gift from God. I thank Him everyday for letting me be your mama and our family is full of more love than I could have ever imagined because of you. You William Reinhardt have already done great things in one month of life, and I am certain you will do much more in your lifetime!

Life with Wiley

37 weeks 1 day pregnant with Wiley!

 I've been absent from the blog...for almost 40 weeks I've hardly written. It's been a difficult pregnancy and I've sat down to write a few different times and have a few different meandering blogs written, none of which made it to print. I wasn't quite sure how to put this pregnancy into writing. It just seemed difficult to get the words onto the paper. 

Today is Wiley's due date. We've had him here with us for just over 2 weeks and I can no longer remember life without him. I CAN remember how miserable I was toward the end of my pregnancy (or the entire thing...let's be honest), but I vividly remember the moment he was placed on my belly and I fell totally and completely in love with him. I remember awhile later when they took him over to weigh him and warm him that I realized I felt completely better physically as well. It was literally that fast. Once he was born my body started to feel "normal" again. Of course, I then started the recovery of delivering a baby, but I'll take that over the awful sick feeling of pregnancy any day!

There is nothing like snuggling your newborn. Nothing like cuddling him close touching his tiny soft toes, hair, nose. Nothing like listening to the little grunts and noises as he settles into a really great nap. 

Life with Wiley is wonderful. 

There is no other way to say it. He fits into our family perfectly. 

I was so nervous about how Ginny would react to me snuggling a baby, nursing a baby, holding a baby. She is quite possessive of me with her older siblings. She has gladly and willingly shared me with Wiley. She does demand my attention and my cuddles, she often comes over to whisper a secret in my ear and give me a kiss, she'll stand outside at the door crying for "mama open it" until I can get to her to let her in, screaming at anyone else who tries to open the door for her. She is still demanding of me, but she's sharing with Wiley and for now, that is all I can ask of my sweet Ginny girl.

Murray "just loves him, he's so cute". This is what Murray tells me over and over again throughout the day. He is just head over heels in love with his brother. I look at the way Murray is with Ginny, so gentle, so loving and helpful and I can just imagine what Murray and Wiley will be like as brothers as they grow up together. I can imagine the lessons they'll learn together and the mischief they'll find. Murray already likes to joke around with Wiley and likes to hold him and talk to him. What a wonderful gift God gave Murray in giving him a brother!

Lucy...ahh Lucy. My oldest sweet girl. She has taken quite well to the "motherly" role that has been assigned to her. Some days it's a bit too motherly, but she is quickly learning. While I was thankful she had school to go to during Wiley's first weeks, I think now I am thankful she is home for summer. Settling into an all day routine with her siblings. Learning to balance playing with them and playing without them. She's eager to help and finds Wiley absolutely adorable. She's also learning to take on more responsibility and helping out around the house more...here's to hoping this lasts! I'm thankful Lucy gets another chance to have a baby in the house. She just loves babies, loves cuddling them, singing to them and caring for them. All too quickly they grow into squirmy babies who wiggle out of a big sister's arms and become more of a "bother" in play than a "doll" she can play with. I'm thankful she gets another chance to enjoy this newborn stage. I also am thankful that it's showing her how "big" Ginny actually is. She's learning ways to include Ginny in her play and noticing all the times that Ginny and Murray are copying her every move. 

Now onto Wiley. 

Wiley, I just love you. I think back to the moment I found out I was pregnant and the weeks that followed and I am SO incredibly thankful that God determined what was best for me and our family and didn't leave it up to me. I'm thankful for the way you worked your way into my heart. Thankful for the many ultrasounds we had that let me see you, made me anticipate your arrival to see if you would have lots of dark hair like your sister...you don't have quite as much, but you do! I love that as you grew in my belly my love for you continued to grow and as I said earlier, the moment you were placed on my belly I knew I'd love you unconditionally forever. You are my little man and you now own a piece of my heart. 

You've been an easy baby so far. I've had lots of help with the "big kids" so we've had lots of time to snuggle. I love the few times a day you open your eyes, I can't quite tell what color they'll be just yet, but if I had to guess, I'd guess they'll be blue. It seems to me they're getting a little more blue each day, a bit like Lucy's did. Only time will tell. 

You nurse like a champ! You had no issues learning how to eat and you enjoy every minute of it. You eat A LOT, just like your big brother and I love to look down and see milk dribbling down your chin as you eat, you can be a messy eater already and you're only nursing! 

You're definitely still a "sleepy newborn". You sleep most of the day and have started giving me longer stretches at night which I'm thankful for. But, I do love snuggling you in the quiet of the night, sitting in your room just imaging "my boys" and what each of you will grow into. 

Your daddy and I are so thankful for you. You are our exclamation point, our "bonus baby" if you will, and we can't imagine life without you in it. You've been such a gift to us already, completing our family and giving your daddy and I lots of time together to talk and catch up as we take you to the doctor. You're strong and healthy and that's all we can ask for, we're so thankful for that. You were born at 37 weeks 6 days and weighed in at 8lbs 15oz (a runt daddy said since you didn't quite make the 9lber club). BUT you showed your daddy who was boss because by Monday (you were born on a Thursday) you were weighing in at 9lbs 7oz, same as your big brother when he was born! You are 21.5 inches long. While I had contractions for days leading up to your birthday, I can never hold your labor over you...so don't let me! I didn't have regular contractions until 6:30 am on Thursday May 30th. Daddy and I went to the hospital around 8 am and you were born at 12:03 in the afternoon. It was relatively quick and since I decided to get the epidural it was a pleasant labor experience. 

We decided on your name for sure the morning you were born. Grandma Koschmann sent us the history of all the Williams on her side of the family, that combined with the Williams on my side of the family sealed the deal. You would be William Reinhardt. A strong German name for my strong guy. Our doctor loved it, and even started coaching me in German. I love your name William, but I also like to call you smiley Wiley :) I was so thankful you arrived in May! It would have been fun for you to be born at 38 weeks 2 days like your brother and sister were, but the doctor wanted you out. Your kidney was getting larger and he hoped that once you were born it would get a little smaller (it did...just a little, but it still did), and mommy wasn't doing super great with the pregnancy either. If you hadn't decided to arrive on Thursday we were going to evict you on Friday...I am SO THANKFUL you decided to come on your own. Much easier on Mommy! Also, now each of my 4 beautiful children has their own month for a birthday! We'll spend the spring and summer celebrating all of our birthdays, starting in April and ending in July! 

We love you William Reinhardt!

Salt and Vinegar

When I was pregnant with Ginny I tasted salt and vinegar potato chips for the first time...they were to say the least one of the most delicious things I had ever tasted as a pregnant lady. I was at a friend's house and politely ate a small serving with my sandwich. The next time I was at the store I bought myself a bag figuring I'd indulge at lunch every once in awhile...well, a few hours later the bag was empty and I went back to the store for some more later that week. 

It became a joke at our house to see how long the bag would last...totally out of character for me to indulge in such a junk food, but at the time when keeping food down was a challenge something that tasted good and remained where I put it was a welcome change. 

The kids hated the smell of the chips, just opening the bag would send them running...and Nick didn't love it either. When we went to a hotel and were overcome by a strong vinegar cleaning odor Murray cheerfully said "Mommy, it smells like your chippies in here!" 

Once Ginny was born I didn't allow myself to purchase a bag...EVER. So, I don't know if I actually only like the chips pregnant...I was always too afraid I'd eat the whole bag in 2 days again...something ok when you're pregnant, but NOT when you're trying to lose the baby weight!

So this October when I found out I was expecting the chips suddenly started calling to me at the store once again. I resisted...for many months I resisted, telling myself I didn't really like them...didn't really need them. Then one day about 2 weeks ago I just couldn't resist anymore. They were on sale again and they found their way into the cart. 


When I arrived home I hadn't even unloaded all the groceries before I opened the bag. The kids eagerly ran over to see if they could get a few chips, a rare treat at this house...until they got close enough to smell them...and then they turned up their noses and walked away from the bag...all of them EXCEPT Ginny that is. She happily reached into the bag and started eating the chips and came back for more. The chips have become a weekly purchase once again, but this time I can't say I've eaten the entire bag on my own...if left within her reach Ginny has often been found breaking into the bag and eating some chips at all hours of the day. Guess it's true that pregnancy cravings continue in the child...Lucy does love sausage and mandarin oranges and Murray can't get enough salad or pb&J...wonder what this little boy will love like that?!? Maybe salt and vinegar chips and mashed potatoes!

27 weeks

Tomorrow I'll be 27 weeks pregnant. It seems like this pregnancy is finally starting to pass me by. Those first few weeks dragged and each moment of the day was almost painful to make it through. Struggling physically and emotionally with a pregnancy is not an ideal situation. But our little guy hung in there with me while the Big Guy did some work on me...and now we're here. Just 8 days away from the 3rd trimester. No more than 11 weeks away from meeting this little man! 

My body must know something is changing, a sense of urgency to begin preparing the things I can prepare. This week alone I've starting collecting baby boy clothes, socks and hats for the warmer weather, I reserved our newborn cloth diaper rental and picked up the car seat we'll be using from a friend. There's more to do and I know nesting will kick in at a later date, but for the time being I'm embracing this pregnancy and savoring thoughts of warmer weather, baby snuggles and the occasional glass of wine. I can almost smell it if I close my eyes and wish it here. Some of the most delightful times in my life have been warm summer nights snuggling a nursing baby or sitting in the 3 season room on a warm evening talking with Nick while passing a new baby back and forth. 

This little man. This little man is proving difficult to name. We have a list, we have preferred names on the list, but no front runner...and to make it even more difficult this time around Lucy is offering quite the opinion. I hope she isn't upset when we tell her the baby's name at the hospital! For that matter...I hope Nick isn't upset when I snuggle this boy in his first moments of life and decide on his name. This baby boy is definitely mine to name! 

This baby boy who I've visited so many times on an ultrasound screen that I'm getting good at picking out the heart, the umbilical cord and the kidneys as the technician does her measurements. Little fingers and toes are always a joy to see and of course that sweet baby profile. While I'm not thankful for why we're having ultrasounds done so frequently, I am thankful for the visits with my little man and the presence he's making in our lives already. It may have taken a bit longer to get here, but this little man has crawled his way into my heart and is there to stay. 

MARBLE!

We've had a week of high fevers at our house for the youngest two, and while the fevers are gone we're still getting back on track, trying to get our routine going in the midst of runny noses and coughing. 

Yesterday I insisted that the tv get turned off and some quality playtime happen. There's no reason to just lay around when you're healthy. So Murray ventured into the game closet and picked out Marble Works. 

I was finishing up a few cleaning chores with Ginny asleep on my back. Murray couldn't wait any longer and began piecing together a track for the marbles. I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I let him keep at it. When I had finished my chores he had a great race track built and the marbles made it to the end! He was SO proud of himself and I was really proud of him. So we got down to racing. He had the 5 blue and green marbles, I had the 1 red marble (strangely enough...he kept winning). 

In the midst of our marble noise Ginny woke up from her nap on my back. I took her down and she watched the marbles carefully, looking down the pipes and pieces to see where they would go. After a few minutes she picked up a marble and started figuring out how to make it work. Within a few minutes she was clapping, laughing and doing her best to shout "go" as the marbles raced down the track. 

Murray decided to hook up the "marble slide" it's a piece that can be a bit tricky sending marbles shooting out all over the room, but he wanted to give it a try. Sure enough marbles went rolling, but they all landed safely and Ginny laughed and clapped. So of course, Murray did it again. 

A minute or two later Murray sent all 6 marbles flying down the slide at the same time shooting them across the room at Ginny. She smiled and clear as day shouted out "MARBLE!!!", then laughed and chased after them. 

The rest of the day we kept getting her to say "marble". She has a few words, Mama, Da, Na/No...but really hasn't started naming objects yet. She does lots of pointing, grunting, signing and sometimes screaming to get what she wants. Sure enough...she's just holding out on us! Marble is her first "true word". 

Love it! I love hearing her say it in her sweet little voice and I love how proud both Lucy and Murray are toward her. Prompting her to say it, clapping for her and Lucy even told me how "cute" it sounded when Ginny said it. I love watching these little people grow!

Quiet Giggles

On Friday mornings Nick walks Lucy to school and then takes Murray into work with him so he can spend the morning at preschool. Ginny and I are left home in the quiet...that's right...quiet. 

We often find ourselves going back up to my big bed with a bucket of books and snuggling and reading for a chunk of the morning. We then get up for a snack and do some playtime. Some quality mommy,Ginny playtime. This morning it was tents. She hid in them and played peekaboo, I stuck my hands in and tickled her toes and chased her around for almost an hour of giggles and hiding and just plain toddler fun. 

We watched the garbage man take the garbage away, we shared a few secret jelly beans and played with her baby doll. It was a glorious morning. 

Then she started watching out the window, pointing at cars and people passing. I looked at the clock and noticed on a normal Friday Nick and Murray would be coming in the door to share lunch with us and our quiet would end. Today, Murray was joining Nick at the junior high for lunch and we were on our own. So we made some lunch and sat at the table. Sharing a conversation full of "yum" and "more" and other chatter. 

It was in the midst of this lunch that I said to Ginny "I think it's going to be very quiet around here next fall with just you and a baby brother around." and then I chuckled. I laughed because it would be true, with two big kids off at school it will seem quiet and calm around the house...but the reality is that it will still be very full. Full of giggles and a crying infant and lovely moments of life. 

So we're just enjoying our last few moments of quiet around here before the boys come home and it's time to settle down for nap. 

Hope you get a few good giggles and snuggles today.

Anticipation

We're supposed to get a "January Thaw" later this week, temps as high as 48...if we're lucky they may even reach 50! I have to admit, I'm looking forward to it, hoping to go on a few walks around the block and send the kids out back in boots to slosh around on the swing set. 

While today wasn't warm by any stretch of the imagination, you could tell we're headed in that direction. The sun is shining and the roads were wet as the piles of snow starting to melt along them. 

It made me excited. Not just excited for the end of this week when we won't be fighting the bitter cold, but excited for spring. 

Excited to see plants blooming, grass growing and the ducks return to our stream. Excited for the sun on my face and grass in my toes and feeling warm inside and out. 

Mostly, I'm excited to meet this little guy growing inside me. I can't wait to count his fingers and toes, snuggle him close and find out his name. I can't wait to be finished with the pregnant stage of my life and enjoying our family with our newest addition. 

I'm sure hoping the groundhog doesn't see his shadow in a few weeks, because I'm not sure how much more winter this lady can handle! Hurry up spring!