What a month we've had!

I intended to start this post with the first four weekly pictures of Everett, celebrating his first month of life (which is still what this post will be) but what I did NOT expect was to be sitting here typing it in a hospital room with my little four week old guy lying next to me hooked up to oxygen and an IV drip while I wrote it.

Unfortunately he came down with a bad cold last Thursday (RSV, in fact, unbeknownst to us) which turned into a cough, which by Monday night had settled itself into his lungs and a nice case of pneumonia. After a scary, prayer-filled drive to the ER at 3 a.m. early Tuesday morning with a teeny tiny baby who was fighting to catch his breath, we're extremely grateful that God has indeed been gracious to us again!  Our prayers have been answered so immediately, as he's very nearly been weaned off the oxygen already and we're hopeful to head home tomorrow after only just fulfilling the mandatory 48 hour minimum they put on him upon admission!  Well, at least that's our hope, based on the reports we've been getting today!

We're not pleased, obviously, that our poor little guy is going through this so young, but to a certain extent we are grateful we've been through it before with Asher's hospitalizations (with RSV at 4 months and with pneumonia at 17 months) and kind of know what is going on and what to expect with a respiratory infection in the hospital.

So that said., let's celebrate his first month!


Here he is at 1 week...

My failed attempt to prop up a one week old. :)

2 weeks...  What a difference one week can make!  :) 

3 weeks...

4 weeks...  : (.

We technically didn't come to the hospital until the day AFTER his one month birthday (which just happened to be exactly four weeks because February is short) but we didn't get the picture taken on the day of and now we're no where near the yellow chair for a few days, so this will have to suffice unfortunately.  

Everett has been a huge joy and blessing in our lives.  I'm still adjusting to two and what that means in our daily routine, but he has done what he could to make it easy on me.  He's an awesome sleeper at night.  3 1/2 hours has been the minimum length between nighttime wakings and feedings, thus far!  Naps have been a little more stressful just trying to balance getting him settled somewhere semi-quietly while also not denying Asher too much attention when he's trying so hard to be patient and good.  I feel like I spend an hour trying to get him to sleep, and then an hour giving up on it while he chills and intermittently fusses and then finally puts himself to sleep.  I debate giving up the "trying" portion, but seriously should a newborn be awake for 2-3+ hour stretches and then absolutely crash for 3 hours?  Not sure about that one, but we'll get it figured out eventually, I'm sure.  Asher loves his little brother so much and has adjusted to him being around and needing mom's attention sometimes too... but it's still been a bit of a steep adjustment period for me.  I guess that has more to do with just their ages, and balancing things like disciplining and potty training, with newborn nursing and napping, and not feeling guilty for needing to love on and attend to one more than the other from time to time.   It'll settle down with time and experience, I'm sure... or at least I hope.  :)

Well I'd better go attend to my littlest.  We'd appreciate your prayers for Everett as he continues to heal. We're also extremely grateful for Grandma Anderson for driving three hours at a moment's notice to hang out with Asher this week... even though it's already her fourth or fifth time here since Everett was born four weeks ago.  She is a servant-hearted lady, that is for sure, and I'm so blessed to have her as my mom!

 

Feed the Birds

Thought you all might enjoy.  :)  

Welcome to the world, Everett Richard!

I should be sleeping right now, since both of my sons (I cannot get over the fact that I have TWO sons!) are currently napping and I only got four broken up hours of sleep last night... but napping is pretty much all I've been doing during every spare moment I could find for the last two weeks and my living room and kitchen are in complete disrepair (though that just happened in the last couple days since the grandparents left and I've been on my own), BUT not gonna deal with that now either, because my second child was born over two weeks ago and I still have not posted an introduction to my online "scrapbook" of a blog. 

So without further ado....

Introducing EVERETT RICHARD DOBBS!   :)    Born February 24th, 2014 at 8:30 p.m. at Mercy Hospital in Des Moines via successful VBAC (Vaginal Birth After Cesarean)!!!  Weighing in at 9 lbs 4 oz and measuring 21 1/2 inches.  Welcome to the world, little guy!  We're so excited to have to you here!    

Sweet SUCCESS! :) 

Asher has adjusted remarkably well so far and after a couple days of learning to share mom and dad's time and attention, is now constantly kissing and hugging "his baby."  He talks to Everett like he understands everything, tries to gets Everett to play with him, gets excited whenever Everett wakes up from a nap, and thinks doing "tummy time" together is now the greatest thing ever!  :)  He most frequently is asking Everett "Whas your name?"  To which he answers himself after a few minutes saying "You Baby Everett?"

Crazy to think we're now a family of 4!

We've been blessed to have a revolving door of the grandparents coming and going, and coming and going, and coming and going...  for the first two weeks of his little life!   I cannot thank them enough for all the meals cooked, laundry washed, and babysitting provided, so I could sleep, shower, recover, and just overall adjust to having a newborn at home again, only this time around with a two year old as well, who of course wants to jump in bed with me at 6:30 every morning, no matter how much sleep I got the night before. :)

Grandma and Grandpa Anderson

Everett Richard with his namesake Grandpa Richard!
(Asher Joseph was named for Grandpa Joey, who so far
has been unable to make it to see Everett, but will soon!)

Grandma Dobbs

             
We've been blessed beyond measure by our two sweet boys,  and while I've been teetering into a state of panic these last few "first days at home by myself" days, God has shown himself ever present and given me countless "saving" ideas that I know were not coming from anywhere in my sleep deprived brain.  Simple things like reading to Asher when Everett needed to nap in order to create a little calmer and quieter atmosphere just until Everett falls asleep (as he was having a hard time getting in to a deep sleep with Asher at full volume)... or just realizing that I could nurse Everett while I was putting Asher down for his nap rather than having to choose between delaying Asher's nap to feed Everett or leave Everett fussing while I put Asher down.  I feel like both of those ideas should have been obvious solutions, but they were some of the silly little things I was panicking over how to deal with, and so I'm crediting God for providing the necessary wisdom as I adjust to two little boys needs and schedules!

We're definitely feeling blessed, which pretty much sums it up.  I'm working on a birth story post and the first few weekly pictures of Everett that we'll get up here soon!  We've been taking the pics, just haven't gotten them posted.  :)   So anyway, here's hoping our newest arrival motivates us to a little more frequent blogging once more, but life is definitely in a constant state of adjustment for the time being.