Gavin has arrived!

Weighing in at 7 lbs 7.6 oz and 20 inches in length, our little Gavin has finally joined us! And....I have officially become the 2 %! After my anesthesiologist put in the spinal, I began to have heart blocks and cardiac arrythmia. Not a 2% I am proud of or even excited to be a part of. My doctor quickly and carefully performed the surgery to get Gavin out in hopes that my heart would return to a normal beat. Deven almost missed the delivery! I asked the nurse if my husband was going to be able to see the delivery (getting a bit frustrated that they had not called him in yet), so she sent another nurse to go grab him...he sprinted down the hall and barely made it in time. :/ Once Gavin was out, my heart started to return to normal and I felt that my lungs were no longer collapsing..yay!

Just after receiving the spinal...I had to immediately fight to stay awake and alert...my body lost all energy (unlike last time with Porter where I had all the energy in the world). I was pretty upset that this time was MUCH different than last...I don't know what they gave me but I sure do plan on finding out!

When the Doctor first saw Gavin's head, before he was actually out, the nurse mentioned that he had a 'big head' and 'a full head of hair.' I knew my mom would be happy:) She had been hoping for dark hair and LOTS of it! Lucky Grandma!!

*Another small detail--unlike with Porter's birth experience--when receiving the IV, I was only stuck once--as opposed to 7 times! Whew! Glad I got a professional this time!:)

My mom asked a nurse if my insurance would cover the full 3 days and she said no, only the first 48 hours...so I only stayed for the 48 hours and later found out from my Doctor that yes indeed, my insurance covers the full 3 DAYS!! Ahh--not too happy with that nurse, I needed that extra day:(

The biggest fear/concern I had while in the hospital (next the my heart problems) was the fact that these were my first nights away from my little handsome Porter. I missed him SOO much! I had a little emotional breakdown the second day in because he was having such a hard time at nights when mommy wasn't there. Not only that, but he was starting to act depressed, completely different personality and wouldn't eat for his grandma's. Thinking about it now still brings tears to my eyes. He has matured SO much since the day I went to the hospital--becoming more independent. It's tough having kids depend on you for everything but it's MUCH harder when they start to become more independent...ESPECIALLY when it's an almost 'forced' independence. I miss the bond that we had...we still have a bond-but, it's changed a bit. He knows mommy has to care for two now, so he doesn't come to me for everything anymore:/. Whew!

As for Gavin, because of what other mom's have said to me, I figured I wouldn't be blessed with another 'good' baby. Gavin has really exceeded my expectations. He almost NEVER cries--will sleep through the night except to wake up a few times to eat. He is SO calm! It's almost concerning..should I be concerned about a too perfect baby?? He has the most BEAUTIFUL hair color --I would probably describe it as a 'golden auburn'. And he has some of ME in HIM!! Yay!! I love my two boys SOO SO much!! I have been blessed with incredibly loving and beautiful children. Porter has really taken to Gavin, he says Gavin is Porter's baby:) Porter is always asking to hold Gavin and when doing so, tells Gavin that Porter loves him. He kisses him throughout the day and just adores him. What a wonderful big brother Gavin has!:)

My mom, and my mother in law have been SOOOOO helpful through all of this, my mother in law stayed for 4 1/2 days to watch Porter for me and meet Gavin. She sacrificed a couple nights of sleep (because Porter wanted mommy), put on a HUGE Easter egg hunt for my family and is basically being SUPER grandma. My mom has also been doing SOO much! From the day I went to the hospital to now (6 days later), she has taken Porter out to the park or zoo to play EVERY DAY. She cooks, cleans, watches Porter, holds Gavin.....everything! TWO SUPER GRANDMA's---I am SOO blessed!!

Well, it's been quite a while since our last blog. :/ We have had quite a lot happen in the past 7 months or so. For one, we had a....BABY! Most of you know, little Gavin arrived Easter Weekend on April 6th weighing in at 7lbs 7.7 oz. And he was 20 inches long. He surprised us with THICK RED HAIR!! That's right, we've got a ginger in our family...and we hope and pray that never changes. We LOVE his hair:) He was also born TAN! WHAT?? My son! ha! Lucky man, we all know it didn't come from his mommy;) I am LOVING my baby!! Porter took to Gavin really well. He had a hard time being away from me while I was in the hospital, and hasn't truly gotten back to his old self yet. This has been quite an adjustment for all of us, and it took a while to adjust to our new life as a family of four. Luckily, Gavin is an INCREDIBLY calm baby! I have truly been blessed. I wake up every morning to his smiling face and I can't get enough of it. I feel like I didn't enjoy his infancy quite as much though, I wanted him out of the fragile phase and fast! I was afraid of how fragile he was and Porter's desire to 'play' with him. 

Gavin Ray was blessed on April 10th, and luckily there was a lot of family and friends in attendance. :) Thanks everyone who came to support us on this special day!:) 3 days after his blessing, we all packed up our trailer and moved to Rexburg, Idaho to live with Deven's parents for just over a month while waiting for our apartment to open up. Porter had a hard time with all of the moving around and staying in Limbo, but, he LOVED spending time with all of his grandparents. He just adores them:)

We are currently in Moscow, ID and LOVING every BIT of it! We have an INCREDIBLE ward family. LOTS of babies, and plenty of children Porter's age. Deven is doing well so far in Law School. It's not quite what he was expecting, but, thus far it has been a good experience.

Porter is really enjoying feeding the horses that live near us. At first he was a bit cautious, but now, he 'owns' them. He has become fearless! Not sure I like that too much, but, it's an improvement right??

I have two courses left before finishing my BA. YAY! It's so close! Getting in the right set of mind for studying has proven to be quite difficult and nearing impossible, but Deven has helped to motivate me and keep me on track!

 Hoping to blog a bit more often...this is my start to that goal. Goodbye for now!

PICTURES!! LOTS OF EM!

The CUTE balloons you see are those that my mom and Susie Q made for my surprise baby shower. They turned out SOO good! I LOVE them!

The green stroller is a Jeep Double that my mom found for a great deal for me...Porter LOVES it! THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Deven and Porter at the Old Country Buffet having fun:)

Papa reading his favorite childhood book to Porter...love that Dr. Suess!

Porter and mommy riding the train at the mall:) He thought it was so cool, yet wanted it to stop??

Porter helping daddy make brownies (daddy's FAVORITE dessert):)

Also, forgot to mention...Porter had his 2 year wellness appointment and he is in the 40th percentile for weight and height. He weighs in at 27lbs and 30-something inches..can't quite remember...:/

What we've been up to....

Warning: This blog contains LOTS of pics!
So, it's been a while since my last post...lots has changed!! :) I am two weeks from my c-section date..yet, I don't feel this far along, my pregnancy has been going pretty smoothly for me! YAY!! I am so grateful that I haven't had to endure too many trials in this pregnancy:)

I am OFFICIALLY 24 now. It's funny though, since having Porter, my own birthday doesn't seem to be that big of a deal to me. House cleaned and happy hubby and babes is really all I want...and, I had the PERFECT birthday because that is what I got...with some extras:). Deven had planned to take me on a Ferry ride with Porter, then on the way home, drop me off for a MUCH wanted and MUCH needed facial/pregnancy massage!! OOooo I SO wish the weather wasn't bad all day long...we had to take a rain check on all of those plans. :/Something to look forward to though!!

The day before my birthday was a beautiful, sunny day....SO, my mom, Porter and I took a drive over to the Tacoma Zoo and Porter LOVED it! We saw a tiger, monkey's, octopus, sharks, fish, elephants etc. And, Porter's favorites?? The Octopus and sharks....really? I was totally guessing it would have been the monkeys and elephants. :) He had a great time though...especially in the kid area on the slides!!

After the zoo, we headed over to the Tacoma Mall. Boy did I learn a lesson! Never take a two year old shoe shopping with you. His shoes have been starting to fit a little snug lately so I thought it would be fun to take him with me to go grab a couple of new pairs. Well, his eyes happened to spot the UGLIEST pair in the store-- "CARS" shoes. After a LONG screaming fit, I finally gave in and bought them for him, and boy does he feel FAST in these shoes! haha...he makes car noises as he sprints in them...too cute! Afterwards, we all grabbed some lunch in the food court and Porter hears a train...well, you guessed it...we went for a ride! He chased it down to ride it, yet, once we were on the train he kept telling it to stop! haha....hmmmmmmm?? After the train ride, Gramma treated Porter to a trip to Build a Bear (which happened to be located RIGHT next to the train). He picked out a monkey and was able to help stuff it, put TWO hearts in it, choose a name, "monkey"--very original huh? ...and dress it. He loves his monkey. Thanks Grandma!

Overall, we had a great day! It's such a joy to be a mommy. I have the most enjoyable day when I get to see my little guy happy and experiencing new things.

Okay, now for the pictures....

Also, my mom threw me a SURPRISE baby shower...and let's just say I WAS SURPRISED! So much in fact, that I started bawling once I walked in the door and saw everyone there. Those women are soo amazing! Love them all!! To say I am grateful would be an understatement. Thanks to Danielle and Brooke! You two are the SWEETEST EVER!

Porter turns TWO!

Porter's 2nd Birthday was a success! We invited a few friends and celebrated at the YMCA. I figured we should do an activity Porter loves that we aren't able to do often....so, naturally, I chose SWIMMING! He absolutely LOVES the pool! His daddy is his #1 pool buddy, those two have SO much fun together! We had a small get together opening presents, eating cake and deli sandwiches prior to the swim event..then we all dove right in! It was quite a busy night for a Thursday but everyone sure had a GREAT time! He LOVES all of his gifts and plays with them each day. After opening his first gift (a chuggington choo choo from Grandma Terry, Porter took it straight over to his cake to attach it to the other trains already placed on his track. SUCH A SMARTIE!

At two years, Porter knows several shapes; square, triangle, circle, oval, star, diamond, heart. He knows several colors; black, white, brown, silver, gold, yellow, orange, green, blue, purple and pink. He can put a few words in a sentence. His favorite foods/beverages are: baked chicken nuggets, red apples, NUTELLA, MnM's, bread/toast, BACON, fishies, raisins, craisins, (he holds these in his cheeks for a few hours if he can get away with it), egg nog, pediasure, milk and water. He can count to 12 on a good day, recognizes letters A, B, C, R, E and T. Favorite toys/activities: choo choo's, coloring, playdough, and painting. Favorite shows: bubble guppies, little einsteins, backyardigans, mickey mouse clubhouse and go diego go.

This year Porter has hit several milestones and is known for being soooo stinking cute!! Love my little guy and we are so proud of him for all he has accomplished. He has been such an easy baby/toddler for us and he brings so much light and joy to our lives each day. We love you Porter! Happy Birthday!!