Boy, oh boy!

As of 11:38 a.m. on June 2, 2011, I am now out-numbered 3 to 1! Aaron and I are thrilled to announce the birth of Caleb Wilson Klingenmaier. He weighed in at a whopping 10 lbs., 10 oz. (so I guess it was a good thing I was scheduled to have him by c-section!) and was 22 1/4 inches long. He's a BIG boy, but more importantly than his size, he is a BIG blessing to our family!

We got to the hospital at about 7:30 Thursday morning, to check in for the c-section, which was scheduled for 9:30 a.m. But... due to labor and delivery being pretty busy that day, we got to wait. Apparently, the women who are in labor get priority over scheduled c-sections. ;) We didn't have to wait too long though, before we were brought back to get ready... which included getting dressed in our oh-so-flattering hospital gown and scrubs, (sorry, not too many pictures of that!) having an IV started in my hand, and then more waiting to be brought back to the operating room. They brought me in at about 10:55 and first thing they did was start a spinal block for my anestesia. It's almost the same thing as an epidural, but from my memory of the epidural that I had with Micah, the spinal block works a LOT faster! And it's just one shot, instead of having a needle stuck in your back for the duration of your labor and delivery. I felt a good deal of pressure as they stuck me and gave me the medicine, but once that was done I had about enough time to lay down on the table before I lost all feeling from the waist down!

They got the curtain set up... I can't imagine anyone really wanting to watch as their insides are exposed to bring a baby into the world... and brought Aaron in to be with me. He sat by my head and peeked around the curtain from time to time to see how the progess was going, and actually, we did have them lower the curtain a bit as they were bringing the baby out so I got to see his full head of hair before he was completely out. :) And before we knew it, Caleb Wilson was born!

Aaron got to cut the umbilical cord and had Caleb's footprints stamped onto his arm... which they also did when Micah was born, and I think that's one of the coolest things to have done! :) Aaron didn't wash his arm for a week after Micah was born, and has yet to wash it this time around. (though they were a little stingier with the ink this time, so the footprints are already starting to fade)

Then we were moved back to the recovery room, where I was FINALLY able to hold my new son. That's the only drawback to having a c-section... not being able to hold the baby right away. But I did say that I prefer the scheduled c-section to being induced, laboring for almost 24 hours and then having a c-section, because I actually remember a lot more of what went on this time around. After Micah was born, I was so exhausted I think I just passed out. I don't even remember being taken to the recovery room or Aaron calling our families or anything! This time was a lot different. I remember the ride from the OR to the recovery room and I got to be part of making phone calls to our family. :) And I got to hold Caleb a lot sooner than I got to hold Micah... at least as best as my memory can tell. Let me tell you, for as big as he is, he still seems tiny! I know there are 3-month-olds that are smaller than my 5 day old, but he is still a newborn, and regardless of size, needs a lot of care and attention. (which there is NO shortage of!) :)

After our time in the recovery room, we moved up to our room in the maternity ward and waited for my parents to show up with Micah. He's a resiliant little guy, but I know this is taking its toll on him. When they first got to our room, Micah wasn't too sure he even wanted to come in, which has been hard on me. Thankfully, it only took a few minutes (and a few prizes from baby Caleb to big brother and from Pops and Nee Nee too) and Micah was his usual self. And when Uncle Jim showed up, it was party time! :) I know we've got a big transition ahead of us, and we greatly appreciate your prayers for this adjustment time. But while I'm not expecting our life will settle into "normal" immediately, I have no doubt that Micah will be a GREAT big brother. He is already so affectionate... and has been all of his life... and loves to give his little brother kisses and lots of love. It melts my heart to see the two of them "interact". :)

But I think that's enough words for this post. Bottom line... we are thrilled to welcome Caleb Wilson into our family, we are all doing really well, and are excited to introduce Caleb to the world. :) Here are a few pictures so you can see our newest addition. Enjoy! :)

Our last picture as a family of 3 ~

Our BIG boy ~

Aaron holding Caleb for the first time... and I actually remember him bringing Caleb over to me as they were sewing me up. I don't have much memory of that with Micah.

Getting to hold my new son for the first time ~

Pops and his newest grandson ~

Nee Nee and her newest grandson ~

Our family of 4... and my FAVORITE picture of us so far ~

Aaron and his boys ~

Aaron's "tatoo" ~

Uncle Jim and Caleb ~

Uncle Jim and his nephews... I think these 3 could be trouble together :)

Meeting the Klingenmaier side...

Grandpa and Grandma K ~

Grandpa K ~

Aunt Tracy ~

Uncle Eric ~

Micah sure was a trooper during the time I was in the hospital. Unfortunately, there isn't much for a 17-month old to do on the maternity floor of the hospital... unless you think numerous trips to the ice machine sounds like fun. So, we were (and continue to be) very thankful that Micah's goofy uncles could come visit, and entertain him for a little while. :)

Fun with Uncle Eric ~

Hide and seek with Aunt Tracy ~

We are loving life as a family of four! God has blessed us with two amazing kids, and we are SO thankful for them!!

Welcome to our family, Caleb Wilson! We love you more than you will ever know!

What summer is all about ~

Now that it's the end of May, we seem to have skipped over spring and jumped right into summer. Not that we've seen the last of cold, dreary days, but we've had a few beautiful ones here and there and are starting to get a glimpse into what summer is really all about. :)

Splashing in the pool ~


Lazy mornings with daddy ~

And my personal favorite...

Corn on the cob!

Our aspiring photographer ~

While I realize these pictures are a little on the abstract side, I had to post them to show you what our aspiring photographer has an eye for these days. (they might also explain why some other pictures that have been posted lately look a little smudged... due to fingerprints on the lens!) :)

A thumb by our stairs :)

Our downstairs bathroom ~

Self portrait ~

Micah's foot ~

Fingerprints on the lens :)

Micah Doolittle...

For the past few weeks, Aaron and Micah have taken it upon themselves to feed the wildlife that we have running around our neighborhood. It's kind of cute to see the two of them outside sitting on the front step working together to fill the bird feeder every few days. Micah sure gets a kick out of it... though I'm pretty sure when he "helps" more of the birdseed ends up on the ground than in the actual feeder. :) One thing's for sure though... that makes the squirrels happy! Here are a few pictures of one happy squirrel saying thank you to Micah. I'm pretty sure they were somehow communicating about the amount of seed left on the ground, because both Micah and the squirrel sat there for quite a while just staring at each other. :) Who knows... Micah may just be the next Dr. Doolittle! :)

9 months can sure fly by!

Never in my life has 9 months gone by as fast as the last 9! Actually... I take that back. Ever since having Micah, I feel like life has been moving at "ludicrous speed", and we are getting alarmingly close to going to plaid. :) (for those of you who just read that last sentence and now know beyond the shadow of a doubt that I'm nuts... just watch the movie "Spaceballs"... I really haven't completely lost my mind!) :)

Now, here we are less than a week away from meeting our second child and I'm looking back on these past few months thinking, wow! that went by FAST! So, before our lives get turned completely upside down and I'm AWOL from blogger for a while as we get settled into being a family of 4, I thought I'd post a couple pictures to hold you over until I can work blogging back into my routine. :)

I feel bad for not doing more updates on how this pregnancy has been progressing... but at the same time, trying to keep up with Micah on a daily basis doesn't leave much time for updating our blog. I just hope that once this baby is born, I'll still be able to just sit and be amazed at the things he/she is learning and doing, like we did when Micah was first born. I know it will be different, having a 17-month-old running around as well, but this baby is no less of a miracle than Micah is, and my prayer is that we'll be able to enjoy every minute of this little life. :)

As I get towards the end of my pregnancies, I have the privilege (??) of getting to drive down to Evanston every week... and eventually twice a week... for non-stress tests, where they watch to see that baby's heartbeat is increasing after he/she moves and monitor any contractions I might be having; and a fluid check. While it's kind of a pain to have to drive almost an hour to Evanston a few times a week, I love being able to see our baby every time I go. These ultrasounds take less than 10 minutes, and most of the time there's not much to see because the technician is just focused on checking the level of amniotic fluid, but occasionally I'll get a technician who takes the time to look at the baby's face and print out a picture or two for baby's scrapbook. The down-side of a lot of these pictures is that they're hard to make out what they are. There's not a whole lot of room left in there for baby to move around in, and as the baby settles into the head-down position, it's harder and harder to get a decent picture of the face. These 3D pictures were from the end of April, and while I do have others I'll spare you from having to turn your head in all kinds of crazy directions to make them out. :) Once again, I'm amazed by the technology of the 3D ultrasound, and the detail you're able to see! And even more amazed by the Awesome God we serve, who has given me the blessing of being able to carry this baby... who we can't wait to meet!!!

This one cracks me up... looks like baby is holding his/her head and thinking, "what have I gotten myself into?" :)

T-minus 3 days until we meet this not-so-little one. (I'm scheduled for a repeat c-section because it looks like the baby will be at least 9 pounds!) We can't wait to share the news with you, but until then... any predictions on boy or girl?? :)

Here's a few belly shots to help you make your decision ~

Fun at the park ~

We have really been enjoying the nicer weather lately... though these past couple of days have left something to be desired. :) But Mother's Day weekend was gorgeous, and Aaron's parents were in town, so after church on Sunday we stopped at the park by our house for a little while to let Micah run around. Everyone had a good time... and I do mean everyone. :)

Enjoy the pictures ~

Micah and Grandpa K

See what I mean? Everyone had fun! :)

Micah and Grandma K

Rockin' on the motorcycle ~

Oooo... I wanna try that one!

Rockin' on the dinosaur ~

And back to the motorcycle with daddy ~

Micah's favorite park activity ~ the swings!

Micah with his paternal grandparents ~

First haircut!

On May 7, 2011, one week after he turned 16 months old, Micah got his first haircut! I wasn't brave enough to try and attempt this myself, so I took him to my cousin Traci, who has been cutting my hair for a while, and had her do the honors. :) It wasn't a drastic cut or anything... that wasn't really needed at this point in time... it just needed to be evened out a bit. Micah had been sporting a bit too much of a comb-over, in my opinion. :)

He really did great getting his hair cut. He had just woken up from a nap when Aaron brought him in for the cut, so he was perfectly content to sit on our laps and let Traci snip away.

And I did great too... didn't even shed any tears over my firstborn's first hair cut! We did save a little bit for his baby book, and of course took a few pictures to share with you. :) Our baby boy isn't such a baby anymore!