First week

Tomorrow will be 1 week since we added Corban to our family:) Things have been pretty great. I have had a ton of help and am VERY grateful it's not going to stop for a while. Aaron is the sweetest big brother ever. So far we have seen little to no jealousy from him. He is constantly telling us how much he loves baby Corban and asking us if we love baby Corban too. Any time he cries Aaron runs to find something to make him feel better...usually one of his animals. So far Corban is a really good baby. He sleeps a lot and LOVES to nurse. We are trying to get him to take a pacifier, but so far are pretty unsuccessful. Sleeping at night is about what I expected. He sleeps about 2-3 hours at a time before waking up to eat, but is not as easy to keep asleep as he is during the day...hopefully this will change soon. I am pretty tired, but not too bad. I know there will be worse days though. For now, I am happy. Mark has taken off 3 days this week and has been the stay-at-home dad...this is a pretty big change for Aaron...and Mark too I think. It's been good for them though and I am so grateful that he took the time off. Mom will be here tonite which means Mark goes back to work tomorrow. I have really enjoyed having everyday be "saturday" around here with Mark home...but it's time for things to start getting back to normal I guess. Having Mark home has reminded me how much I love my husband. He has been very selfless and wonderful. Raich is coming Friday which will be nice. Aaron has asked about her everyday since she left last Sunday. So overall the first week has been really good. We are so thankful for a new healthy baby boy added to our family. Here is a picture of the boys. I got a good one of both of them:)

Corban James

So the little guy is here! He is ADORABLE. He is 7lbs9oz, 21 inches long, born at 4:10pm. Very healthy and happy baby. Aaron loves him so much.

The night before...reflection.

So tonite is the night before our second son will be born. The beginning of our life as a family of 4:) I spent the day playing with Aaron as much as I could and basically giving him as much attention as possible just trying to make the most of our last few days of him being an only child. I have really enjoyed the last 3 years of it just being me and him. He is the sweetest, funniest, and most fun kid I have ever been around...not biased or anything. He is very easy going and loves to be with his mama! Hopefully I will do a separate 3 year post for him since I will have a lot of help in the beginning after the new little guy comes. It is now midnight and I have to be up in 4 hours so that we can get to the hospital by 5am for an induction. Why am I not sleeping you ask? For the past several weeks I have had insomnia and restless leg syndrome REALLY bad. Even if I could fall asleep, either my legs feel like they are running a marathon, or some part of my body falls asleep because I have been in the same position for over 20min. Oh the joys of pregnancy. So since I am no where close to sleep, I thought I would blog all of my jumbled up thoughts. Tomorrow is full of mixed feelings. Mostly excitement:) I CANNOT WAIT to see what this little guy looks like. I just want to stare at him and talk to him about our family. If I am being honest (which I am) I am in a much better place with this baby than with Aaron. I was more fearful and anxious with Aaron the night before my induction...mostly because I had no idea what to expect with the birth process or what having a child was going to do to our lives. It was a big adjustment. I have much more peace this time and an not so anxious or fearful...lots more excited and full of anticipation for the change. Aaron is so excited to meet his little brother. I have a few concerns about him adjusting to a new baby getting a lot of attention, but overall I think he will do great. He LOVES babies and is so sweet with them. I love to hear him talk about his little brother and all the things he will teach his little brother. He kisses and hugs my belly all the time, it's sweet. I am sure we will have some adjustments to work through, but that's normal...right? I also can't wait to see Mark with another little boy. He is the best, and I repeat, the BEST daddy ever. He is so fun and Aaron LOVES his daddy. I think I hear the phrase "when is my daddy coming home?" about 150 times a day. I really like hearing them play together, and especially love hearing Mark read and sing to Aaron. He teaches him new songs all the time and they memorize scripture together every night. He is always talking to him about helping people and teaching him how to love everyone. I really appreciate and cherish my husband for showing Aaron who Jesus is in his words and actions. I can't wait to see it with new baby too! To Aaron: Our first son. We love you. There are no words to describe the joy you bring to your daddy and my life. You keep us on our toes and are always making us laugh. We have loved the past 3 years of having you as our only child. We can't wait to see how you use your gifts God has given you for His mission. We know you will be the best big brother ever. To baby boy #2: Sorry you don't have a name yet...ha. We WILL name you, don't worry. God has blessed us with another little boy and we are so excited to meet you and finally see your sweet face. We can't wait to learn your personality and introduce you to your new life. Aaron has talked non-stop about you since we told him you were in Mama's belly. There are so many people that love you already besides your parents and big brother. They can't wait to meet you and love on you. Your daddy and I love you so much and will see you very soon. Please come quickly:) Here I am at 39 weeks preggo with baby #2. Definitely ready for it to be over:)

Aaron's preschool program 2012

Last night Mark and I went to Aaron's first preschool program. He is 'graduating' to the 3 year-old class. He has been excited all week about us coming to watch him sing with his class. I was pretty excited myself to see him...nervous too for him to actually stay up on stage with his class and not want to come sit with us. I didn't expect to start crying as soon as he walked in with his class to the stage...pretty emotional mama over here...he was just so stinking cute and grown up. He did great and once he spotted us he never stopped waving and smiling until the program was over. So proud.

"Mom, are they done yet???"

It's no secret that Aaron has a HUGE sweet tooth. No, seriously, this child asks for candy, chocolate, and cookies ALL THE TIME. I am about to throw out the Easter candy because I am constantly saying no to having 'another' piece of candy. He has now learned that after meals he is more likely to get a 'yes' to his never ending question of whether or not he can have a piece of candy. So it was no surprise tonite after dinner when he asked if he could have a piece of chocolate. I did say no to the chocolate, but decided to make some cookies. When I say 'make,' I mean that I opened the package and put the pre-made cookies out on the cookie sheet and stuck them in the oven. Mom, if you are reading this, I realize I didn't really 'make' the cookies, but when you are 8 1/2 months pregnant with an almost 3yr old nagging you about sweets, this is the best I could do. Don't judge. Aaron thought it was awesome!! Tons of questions had to be answered...of course the "Mom, are they done yet?" question came up about 15 times. After explaining the whole process of putting them in the oven and waiting to my sweet little boy, he asked to 'see' the cookies baking. I couldn't help but take a picture or two. He was so amazed at the oven and how the cookies changed that his daddy HAD to come watch with him. Yum!!

Animals

What if he loved his animals more??? Specifically dinosaurs. I know what birthday theme he is gonna want this year:)

Happy Easter 2012

This weekend was really busy...mostly traveling a lot. But we did manage to get home for Easter Sunday and enjoyed our day together. Aaron was full of questions when we talked about Jesus being alive and the whole story of what Easter is about. Then we hunted eggs. Aaron is old enough now to understand the whole 'hiding and finding' eggs situation. His excitement was almost too much. I am reluctantly posting a family picture since I am 8 months pregnant. Pregnancy is NOT nice to my face. I put it on here only because I want to remember our family now and what Aaron's last Easter as an only child was like. So Happy Easter everyone:)