lucy's 1st bath.

>> December 31, 2011

It's funny how quickly you can tell the difference in personalities between 2 children. For example, this is a picture of Carter's 1st bath:And this is Lucy's:
Now I'm not saying that Carter is a screamer who is difficult to deal with. I'm just saying that Lucy is one of the most mellow babies I've ever known! She really is so content most of the time. Carter often cried with diaper changes, Lucy wiggles and squirms. Carter liked to be bounced to sleep, Lucy prefers to be rocked. It's been fun in just the last 10 days to pick up on certain personality traits that are different than Carter.

I suppose the crying bath picture could be due to the fact that we were first time parents who had no clue what we were doing. But, I'd like to assume there is a much deeper meaning than that!
She loved her bath!

We really love this cuddly baby girl. And her big brother too. Luckiest parents ever.

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mother/daughter love.

>> December 28, 2011

We are 8 days in. And what an amazing 8 days it has been. I am so in love all over again! Lucy has been the most mellow and calm baby and we couldn't be more grateful. With an overly excited 2 year old who often bounces off the wall during the day, Lucy has been such a cuddly, sweet baby. She still has her days and nights mixed up, but is getting better. Her favorite time to be awake is from 9pm-11pm, right when Matt and I are ready for bed. She is an amazing eater and was already 7lbs, 15oz at 6 days old (8 oz. above birth weight). We are adjusting so well and have loved having extra family time together with Matt being off work.

People keep asking who she looks like. She does look a lot like Carter, but after looking at baby pictures, she looks even more like me! This is my newborn picture:
And here is Lucy:

And, just because she is cute...here's another one.
Carter has been the best big brother. I was worried he would become very jealous but instead he has quickly learned that Mama needs time for Lucy sometimes and loves "helping" with her diaper changes and giving her many kisses (sometimes not so gentle, but he has good intentions!)
This is how we found him the other day during a nap...apparently a new baby in the house really wipes a kid out.
Probably the best 8 days of my life. Yep, definitely.

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Lucy Elizabeth

>> December 21, 2011

I'm going to do my best to capture what has happened in the past 48 hours. Please be kind, as there may be many typos and run-on sentences....I'm going on about 4 hours of sleep since she was born!

For the past 2 weeks Matt and I have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of our little girl. At my 38 week check-up I was 2 cm dilated and 50% effaced. My doctor was certain I would deliver just a few days later. Well, a week went by and at 39 weeks I had dilated to 3cm. She said again, she was certain I would deliver very soon. So when my due date came and past our excitement continued to grow and our patience grew a bit thin. We had both decided, though, to not ask for an induction. There was a reason our little girl was cozy in my tummy and we wanted to give her plenty of time. I went back to the doctor at 40 weeks and 4 days. We discussed my options and my doctor agreed to not schedule a medical induction but suggested to strip my membranes. I agreed since the countless hours of mall walking and spicy food hadn't made any additional progress. He said it can't hurt, but if it's effective I should notice some changes within 24 hours.
Well, sure enough, just 8 hours later my contractions started. It felt very different this time. With Carter I had horrible back labor, but this time it was mild and very crampy. I played with Carter, tucked him into bed and then Matt and I started thinking this could be the "real" thing! Matt took Carter over to our amazing nanny around 9pm so I could labor at home as long as possible without feeling the need to be quiet or possibly disturb a sleeping toddler. Right after Matt got back home the frequency and intensity increased. We spent the next 2.5 hours trying different positions and comfort techniques to see what might work once we arrived at the hospital. Finally, around 11:15pm we headed out the door. Luckily the hospital is a 2 minute drive from our house. I did have 1 contraction in the car but coped fairly well (knowing I shouldn't complain since many of my friends have labored in the car for a much longer time!).
When we arrived I was dilated to 4cm and a little bummed. I was hoping I was much further along. I knew I wanted to have a natural labor and had worked very hard throughout my pregnancy to prepare for that. Of course, the nurses wanted to get a 20 minute strip of my contractions and her heart rate. I did not cooperate. Before even getting officially admitted I was in triage on my hands and knees breathing and rocking as I ignored their request to lay still while they monitored me.
After an unsuccessful 20 minutes they agreed to keep me and we moved to room 16, just right across the hall from the main nurses station (more on this later!). They again tried to monitor me, this time for 1 hour. I just wasn't having it (and neither was baby girl!). The nurse had a hard time finding her heart rate and I had a hard time obeying requests. It was much more effective for me to slow dance with Matt and sit on the birth ball during each contraction and break. After an hour the doctor checked me and I was at 6 cm and fully effaced. She broke my water and we all agreed to get me in the shower for a little while.
Let me tell you, that was heaven! For the next 30 minutes Matt sprayed warm water over my stomach as I squatted and lunged with each passing contraction. At one point I got into such a funny breathing pattern I started lunging forward and hurling my body toward the opposite end of the bathtub (Matt later joked that it looked like I was in the middle of an intense work-out session on an elliptical machine). After 30 minutes I was starting to lose it. I left the shower and headed back to the bed for another cervical check. To much disappointment I was only at 7cm. At this point I lost it. I started to doubt myself and my ability to continue naturally. I begged for an epidural. Okay, let's be honest. I started screaming. Not the sad scream. Not the scared scream. But the full on moan/groan/scream "til it hurts and let everyone else know" scream. We later laughed that any other laboring mom coming into the Childbirth Center would run in terror when they heard me screaming since I was in the first room by the nurses station. I panicked and felt like a total failure. I even told the nurse I felt like a failure but desperately wanted relief.
As she quickly called the doctor my body suddenly began gently bearing down. It was the most fantastic feeling to actually cope with the pain (but yes, I still screamed). I had my eyes closed for the next 15 minutes but Matt said the room quickly became chaotic. As I continued to shout 4-letter profanities over and over again the nurse pronounced I was fully dilated and it was time to push. So I did!
Apparently at this point there was no delivery table in the room, no doctor and 2 hurried nurses scrambling to get things set up. I was completely unaware, eyes closed and focused on ending this pain.
4 incredibly fast minutes later I was holding my baby girl. It was the most intense, emotional moment of my life. The feeling of achievement, relief, love, excitement and pure joy overwhelmed my body and I just started to shake and cry. Quietly proclaiming, "I did it, I did it" and holding this beautiful baby girl was just too much. Matt's eyes teared up, nurses smiled and little Lucy Elizabeth Vance entered the world.
After about 2 minutes had passed my brain turned back on and I suddenly remembered all the screaming and cussing I had just yelled. I made sure to apologize time and time again for being "that girl" in labor. They, of course, all said "oh no, you were fine!" Haha....such nice hospital staff for lying to my face!

Lucy Elizabeth was born on 12/20/11 (5 days after her due date) at 2:12am. She weighed 7lbs, 7oz and 21 inches long. She instantly stared into my eyes, grabbed my finger and we fell in love. She is perfect. She is sweet. She is everything I could have ever imagined and more.

We are learning to adjust to a family of four. Day one was a bit hectic, as to be expected, but I think we will all learn our new normal. Carter was totally uninterested when he came to the hospital but since coming home he has loved giving her hugs and kisses and drinking big boy milk when she gets thirsty for mamas milk.

We now have one big chaotic, loving and exciting journey ahead of us and I couldn't be more happy.
(Pictures to come soon!)

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huntin' for a tree.

>> December 4, 2011

Well, we survived the weekend. Just barely. I don't think Matt and I sat down for more than 5 minutes all weekend. Between Santa Pictures (Matt working at them), going to see Santa, grandparents visiting, birthday party, more late night work for Matt, baking 5 dozen cookies, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, getting a Christmas tree, decorating the tree, building a gingerbread house, more cleaning, sending out Christmas cards, writing thank you cards and a little eating....we are exhausted!


In the midst of all the craziness we did have a lot of fun. Especially searching for the Christmas tree today. Carter loved choosing all the trees he wanted to take home. And was very clear which ones he didn't like, proudly saying "NO" each time he saw one that wasn't perfect.
And off he goes!
He got a little distracted with the sticks on the ground. And decided it was more important to look for sticks than search for a tree.

We finally found the perfect tree. Okay, so it's very small but just what we needed this year. Between all the new toys and a new baby we don't have much room in our house. But, we love it!
It took a total of 14 seconds for Matt to cut it down (yes, the trunk is the size of a toothpick!)
After we tied it to our car we spent some time feeding the ducks. Unfortunately, the ducks ran away as quickly as possible when we got near them. Oh well, maybe next year.
Tonight after dinner I had this great idea to make a gingerbread house. Because I hadn't cleaned the house enough in one weekend, I thought we should make another big mess right before bedtime.
The before shot.
And after!
And a sneaky little boy trying to steal candy off the house!
Yay for Christmas! Okay little girl...everything is now officially checked off our to-do list. You can come any day now!

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two.

>> December 2, 2011




Two years ago at about this very time my water broke. I had been having contractions most of the day, but then they stalled. So, after a brisk walk around the block I came home to have a puddle of water land on the floor. Thus began a marathon labor. Over 24 hours later, Carter was born!

I have been thinking so much about his labor/birth lately (for obvious reasons of course....I'm ready to go into labor any day now with #2!). How has it already been 2 years? He is my baby and watching him run, jump, yell and talk just amazes me now. How have we been parents for 2 years? We survived (although barely at times) and looking back it's incredible to think about all that has changed, how we have adapted to new phases and loved every second of this crazy ride.

Carter's current likes:
Wee wees (raisins)
Green beans and peas
Dat Dat (Big Bird - Sesame Street in general)
All things football
His big boy bed
Saying "no"
Giving us his big eyes
Milk
Tickle fights
Piggy back rides
Helping mama bake
Feeding the dog his food
Being as independent as he can be!

Carter's dislikes:
Sitting still
The dog eating his food (when he chooses not to give it to him!)
Getting lotion put on his face
Pants with buttons on it (he will only wear elastic waistbands...silly boy!)
Being rushed to do something
Juice

Carter Thomas Vance - my favorite two year old. You will never fully understand how happy you make us. From your early morning snuggles in bed to our bedtime routine at night, you are such a sweet, silly, caring little boy. I love the age you are at. You are talking more and I look forward to our conversations in the car every morning to Marmie's. You get excited to tell me the deer are still sleeping and are always sure to say goodbye to the pile of dirt by the side of the house. I love watching you play with your daddy. The way you too wrestle each other, laugh and just be boys makes me cringe in fear for you getting hurt but beam with happiness at your love for one another. I love your hugs, your open mouth kisses on my cheek and your silly facial expressions when we eat dinner. You are crazy. You are full of energy. You are non-stop. I love it. You love food (thank goodness, healthy food) and I love when you help me bake. You are becoming so independent, reminding us every day that "you" can do it by yourself. You are smart, already knowing 11 letters of the alphabet. You are caring and gentle and will make the best big brother. We love you so much Carter. Happy 2nd Birthday!

And, his 2 year stats: 35 lbs and 37.5 inches tall!

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Thanksgiving 2011

>> November 28, 2011

Matt and I were lucky enough to each have a 4 day weekend for Thanksgiving. We divided up our time between both families and managed to have a pretty relaxing weekend (well, the 2 huge dinners helped quite a bit too!)Carter got dressed up for the occasion.
He LOVED spending time with both sets of grandparents.
And after being a little scared of the rocking horse, he finally jumped on and never wanted to get off! So fun to watch him ride it.
We spent some time reading too.
Saturday we had some extra time to visit the Tacoma Children's Museum. It was fun to get out as a family and wasn't too crowded since everyone was at the mall shopping. Carter loved the Farmer's Market section....he just had a hard time understanding that all the fruit was "pretend."
Scooping up the pebbles.
Me looking ridiculous.
And Carter wanting to be just like his mama!
This magnetic wall was awesome. You could move these tubes around to make a maze for the ball to follow. It was so fun to watch him push the ball up the tube and follow it all the way to the bottom. Of course, he got to practice about 50 times!
Time for dress-up!
And a little reading too. Somehow the only book he wanted to read was this super creepy book about 10 little mice who almost get eaten by a snake. Needless to say, we will not be buying this book for at home!
Saturday night we spent the evening at my parents house and had another wonderful dinner. And, Carter loved his "Boppy" time (what he calls his grandpas).
My parents are leaving for an extended vacation after I have the baby. So, we celebrated Christmas a little early. Carter "helped" open up everyone's present. I think he's now ready for his birthday this weekend.
Love this picture. Such a mischievous little boy!
And...just for fun! I only have 2 weeks to go (or less....or more) before this little girl arrives. We are almost done with her room...here are a few updated shots.
It's hard to see, but the collage of pictures will have family shots of us throughout the years, plus a few of my favorite quotes. Still a work in progress :)

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Celebrating baby girl Vance.

>> November 23, 2011

My 2 sweet friends, Caity and Carrie threw me the most wonderful baby shower last Sunday. I felt so spoiled and loved and will always remember that special day. Caity thought of every little detail to coordinate the decorations with the "theme" of her room....pink and gray. She even made this beautiful ribbon wreath to give me afterwards so I could hang it up in her room (pictures of the nursery coming soon!). The food was delicious, games were fun and it meant so much to have so many of my favorite people in one room. Thanks girls!

Yummy food - the cream puffs were my favorite!
Pretty decorations.
Cute teacups.
Sweet baby Noah (and Emily!)
So much pink!
Ellie was my little helper for the day. She helped with each gift, showed me how to properly play with each doll and loved being at a big girls party!

How cute is she?
Caity and I. Thank you so much Caity!!!!
Ellie and I.
My friend Kaatri is due just 3 days before me with her first little girl. We even have the same maternity leave! It'll be so fun to get our baby girls together and share mom advice. So excited for her!
One of my best friends Katy is also due with a little girl in February. She drove all the way up to Bellingham to spend the afternoon with me. Thank you Katy....you're the best!
The whole group. It was such a fun day!

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