Let's Play Catch Up!

So it has been several months since I last wrote here, I know shocker right?! Anyway, a lot has happened since my last post. We have all recovered since Maddie's surgery. We have been on our annual family vacation to Maine, which, was as usual, a wonderful time! We got to catch up with my whole family which is always chaotic, but fun. The girls have started preschool again.

This year they are going three days a week, and it is great to have them learning and it gives me time to spend with just Tanner, one on one. In the few short weeks that they have been going they have already learned to write their names, they could do part of them last year, but now they can write the whole thing! Tanner has sprouted two teeth and it appears that about four more might be trying to make their way out, I know one more for sure is because I can see it starting to cut through. He has also started to think about crawling.

He scoots a little and rolls, but more recently he has started getting on both knees and rocking a little and then if he can't reach he will just dive at whatever object he wants. It won't be long until he is fully mobile, something I am NOT ready for. I don't know why parents get so excited to have their children start crawling. For me it  is a stress to make sure he isn't eating a littlest pet shop piece or a critter tool. Grabbing trash of the floor, etc. But it is a stage we will get through just like all the others. I will say on the plus side of his mobility he can now crawl/wiggle into my lap when he wants me, that is pretty cute!

The girls finished playing their first season of T-Ball and we are on to soccer again. This season I think they are having fun, because two of their friends are the team and I am coaching them. Soccer is nothing new to me, but coaching 8, 4-5 year olds that is a little something new. Getting them to understand and to listen are a challenge, but I think we are all having fun!

In a nutshell that is what has been going on here. 

On the horizon stay tuned for a 9 month update on Tanner and the girls 5th birthday update, I know how can they be turning 5? I am not sure, but they are so I will be enjoying their last few weeks as four year olds! :-)

Just a small break please

Maddie

Things have been a tad hectic here lately, thus the delays in any posts. Last week Maddie had her tonsils and adenoids removed, new tubes put in her ears and her nasal turbinates shaved down. The goal here was to help her breath better and hopefully help with her snoring and sleep. She has always been a restless sleeper and always seemed tired. We are hoping this surgery will be the fix we have been looking for. The surgery in itself was easy and over within an hour. The recovery has been more than I ever anticipated. I knew she would be in pain, I knew it would be hard to watch and I knew it would take at least two weeks for her to heal. What I did not know, was the extreme pain she would be in. That she wouldn't have much of an ability to eat anything, (lately she has started to eat pretzels and will only drink water and chocolate milk from McDonalds...at least she is eating) I didn't realize how much weight she would lose. She initially lost 4-5 pounds, but has put 3 of those pounds back on  now that she is eating, hopefully the other two will come back quickly since she only weighed 33 pounds to begin with and we have fought hard to get her to that weight. I also did not know that her nose could get clogged with some of the thickest, hardest, grossest snot I have ever seen. We had to go to the doctor twice to have it manually removed. The first time some long tweezers were used to extract it, the second time I had to sit and hold her head while she screamed that she wanted it over and wanted to go home and the doctor literally used a small vacuum to suck the stuff out. The things that have come out of her nose are beyond gross and I had no idea things like this could come out of a person. We also had to make a trip to the ER because she couldn't keep anything down and we thought she was on the verge of being dehydrated. Luckily the were able to give her some Zofran and they changed her pain medication and she has been better since. We are currently on day nine after the surgery and she is finally starting to come around. Is trying to eat more foods and is up and playing more and her nose is clear!

Natalie trying out Maddie's Glasses

Natalie on the other hand has an ear infection and pink eye...good times let me tell you! So for now, I am hoping that Maddie continues to heal and Nat gets better fast and that the rest of us don't get the stinky pink eye.

Wow, Four Months Already

The last month has been crazy and most of it was spent travelling. We went to Florida in the beginning of April and then a mere week after returning from there we went to Ohio for Easter. Tanner is an excellent traveler and follows well in his sister's footsteps, which is a good thing since we travel several times a year. I always get a lot of looks when I travel alone with all three kids, some are looks of pity, others are awe. Travelling with children is really an art, and luckily I have this art down to a T. I am also lucky that all three of my kids are good travelers!

In other news Tanner is four months old already and a big four months at that! He is officially 17 pounds 13 ounces. Just 3 ounces shy of 18. He is 26 inches and is in the 90% for both height and weight and is wearing 12 month clothes already, but at least he is one happy and healthy boy! This month he has started to talk a lot, he coos and yells and laughs. He is very ticklish and his giggles, when we are dressing him are too cute. He is close to rolling from his back to stomach, but hates being on his stomach, so tummy time is a challenge and he hasn't shown many signs of going from his belly to his back. He has found his thumb, but still prefers his pacifier for sleeping, much to my dismay because sometimes he needs it in the middle of the night and finding it in the crib can be a challenge. We are still working on the sleeping "through" the night, and some days are better than others, but we are getting there to say the least.

The girls are still in love with their brother and it is really fun to watch the three of them "playing" together. They like to show Tanner his toys and now that he is able to sit in his exersaucer they like to show him the toys and laugh with him and it is nice to see their relationships growing. We also seem to have finally found a balance and more of a routine. The first few months were a little hard and I had immense guilt over not being able to help the girls with certain things and bed time was a challenge, but we seem to have found the balance we need and I am looking forward to the next several months and what they have in store for us as he starts to move and hit other developmental milestones. I am not wishing this time away though and even when I don't sleep I try to cherish every moment I have since he is our last and he is so fun and lovable!

MIA

So, I realize I have been MIA lately, but really what is there to report? Let's see the kids were sick, I was sick, we all were healthy for a day or two, the kids were sick, I was sick, we were healthy and repeat. I thought after this last round of sickness we would be able to make it until we got to Florida next week and we could air out, but nope, Maddie has another cold, and it seems like Natalie might be coming down with it as well. Now most people would think okay a cold no big deal, but it seems whenever Maddie gets a cold she also gets either an ear infection or a sinus infection so it is never just a cold. We are hoping this will all be remedied when she has her tonsils, and adenoids out in May. She will also be having tubes put back in her ears. A routine surgery, but one I am not looking forward too, because the recovery is a good 7-10 days and she has to limit her activity, which will be super hard on Natalie. At least Nat will have soccer and school to keep her occupied a few days. I am also not looking forward to it, because Maddie tends to be a little bit of a drama queen, not sure where she got that from :-) But she makes everything worse than it is, so I am sure she will milk this one for all it is worth. From what I understand she will have a pretty bad sore throat and some joint pain in her neck and around her ears from having her head tilted back, but hopefully we will be able to keep it down with tylenol and keep her comfortable and keep Natalie entertained.

The Girls at the St. Patrick's day parade

Other than being sick and visiting the doctor on a regular basis, Tanner has hit all of his three month milestones, which he isn't officially even three months until next week. He holds his head up pretty well and really likes to sit up with assistance. He even tries to pull himself into a sitting position sometimes when he is laying down. He has found his hands and sucks on them all the time, I keep encouraging him to find his thumb because I am not a huge fan of the pacifier, which he enjoys when he sleeps, but for the rest of the time could really care less about, which is good! He continues to grow steadily and is over 15 pounds 8 ounces, it has been a few days since we weighed him.

He does NOT like tummy time which is not the best because he is getting a nice little bald spot and it is supposed to help him strengthen his arms and neck, not sure if he will hit the rolling over around 4 months milestone since he doesn't like his belly, but we keep trying and some days he tolerates it better than others. All in all though the kids, all of them, continue to do really well and we are ALL looking forward to playing on the beach next week with their YaYa, that will be another post since I am travelling alone with all three kiddos, call me crazy if you want, but it shouldn't be too bad, the girls are great travelers and it is a short flight! Anyway, a belated Happy Spring and look for travel reports next week!

I'd say they are siblings

Not much to report, but I did find some pictures of the girls when they were about Tanner's size and I would say that my kids are siblings for sure! If they weren't captioned could you tell them apart? :-)

Maddie

Natalie

Tanner

62 Day Stats

Too cute for words really!

 Today, actually marks Tanner's 63rd day in this fine world, but since this is his "2 Month" status report, I am going with 62 day stats. On Friday Tanner went for his 2 month check up. He was a trooper for his shots, which he luckily only had to get two of! His official stats were 13 pounds 12.5 ounces and 23.5 inches tall. Putting him in the 90% for weight and 75% for height. He is a growing bean and we love it. Maddie weighed 9 pounds 15 ounces and was 21 3/4 inches, putting her in the 25% for both height and weight and Natalie was 9 pounds 8 ounces and 21 1/2 inches putting her in the 10-25% for both, so this a big change for us, but a positive one all the same!

Starting him reading at a young age.

 We are finally past the RSV and are over breathing treatments, which while he tolerated them really well, he would usually fall asleep, it is nice to not have to extend the night feedings or put him through them during the day. I was happy to find out that he shouldn't have any long term residual effects, like asthma or other lung problems, because of the RSV and hopefully he won't get sick again. It was a scary time and while it was nice that he slept a lot at night for those first few days, I didn't sleep, because I was terrified he would have problems breathing or would start to choke on the mucus.

Another little Colt's fan.

Since, lasts month's report, aside from the RSV and growing like crazy Tanner has started to smile and make cooing noises. It is pretty cute, he will just lay there and smile and smile and then start talking. I love it! The girls continue to be great help and they LOVE picking out what he will wear each day or each hour depending on the amount of spit up we are having on any given day. Tanner continues to be an angel and just goes along for the ride, usually literally as we are shuttling girls to and from school or to play dates, he just goes with it. Wednesday and Friday mornings are "our" time when the girls are at school, so it is nice that he gets a little individual attention. Tanner has also attended his first book club meeting and also has seen a movie. Yes, I was "that" person bringing my baby to the theater, but I sat on the aisle and was ready to run out if he started getting fussy, but he didn't make a peep and slept through the entire show, allowing me to have a little quiet time to myself.
Other than that we are still looking forward to warmer weather and our upcoming annual trip to Florida. That one should be interesting since I am flying solo down to Tampa to meet my mom with all three kids, but honestly I am not to worried. The girls are old hats at travel, so hopefully little bean will do well too! More to come soon I hope, I know you can't wait :-)

Declaring this the longest winter EVER

I have officially decided that this winter came be declared the longest winter EVER and I mean EVER. Between being pregnant and not being able to go outside at the end, for fear of falling and because I wasn't able to stand for long periods of time. To the cold, cold, brutal cold weather that is now keeping us indoors. To all of the sickness we have been suffering I am beyond over this winter. The girls have been sick for a better part of 2 weeks and now Tanner has RSV. We discovered this after a trip to the ER last night. He was a real trooper and let them do all their tests and what not without a fuss. They diagnosed him and then released us home. Today we went to his pediatrician, where they said, he was doing okay, but sounded a little wheezy. So now he is on breathing treatments every four hours, which he tolerated well in the doctors office, he fussed for a few minutes and then he actually fell asleep. Needless to say I am exhausted and ready for some fresh air, the bad germs to be kicked out and for everyone to be healthy and able to go outside! In other news Tanner is gaining weight at an amazing rate, he weighed 13.5 at the doctor today, he did have a diaper on that was probably a little wet, as well as his clothes, so he is probably closer to 13 pounds, but still that is at least a 5 pound weight gain in 7 weeks, he is a great eater and hopefully an eater that gets to feeling better soon!

34 Days

Tanner

So 34 days is actually the one month update, but I thought 34 Days was a tad more creative than one month, I know not really! Tanner is a growing machine. He currently weighs 10 pounds 15 ounce, yes he has gained 3 whole pounds in one month. The doctor said the average weight gain is 2 pounds a month at this stage, so he doing great. He is now 21.5 inches as well, so an inch in a month.These measurements put him in the 75% for weight and 50% for height, both of these I am not used to...the girls have NEVER been above the 25% for anything so this is a good difference to have. We joke that at his one year appointment he will weigh more than the girls do at their 5 year. He is outgrowing some of his clothes already, including all the new body suits I bought him, he barely got to wear them and a lot of his 0-3 month clothes don't fit either. We wake up a lot at night, but that is okay since it means he is growing and staying healthy. The longest stretch has been 4 hours, and he usually gots 2.5-3.5 hours at a time. I know that the bigger he gets the stretches will also get bigger, something I am looking forward to, at night at least. That is one thing that has been the hardest really is the night feedings and that adjustment of not sleeping, but we are making it through.

Other than that there really isn't much to report. We had a huge ice storm last week, that made us home bound, and then that was followed by about 5 inches of snow this weekend, so we hadn't been out of the house for over a week, which meant today's doctor appointment was a much needed excuse to leave and was followed by a trip to the craft store to get some activities. The girls continue to be great big sisters and they have been very helpful in getting things for me when I need them, hugging and loving on Tanner and just overall being great little girls. So that is all there is to report for now, more soon.

Three Weeks

Tanner 

We have made it to the three week mark. Actually, time has gone by really fast and I am sure it will only continue to do so. I have found that my desire to blog lately just doesn't exist, perhaps I have better things to do. I mean I do have three kids now and all :-) Speaking of which, the transition from 2-3 has been pretty easy, the lack of sleep has been difficult, but the actual balancing of the three kids hasn't been that hard. I am pretty sure that this transition has been easy, because the girls are at the same stage/same age. If they were not the same age, forget about it. I honestly do not know how or why people would have more than two kids if they did not have a set of twins in there somewhere. I think it would be a lot more difficult to balance and adjust if the girls were different ages, so I consider myself lucky. I also do not know why anyone would ever want to be pregnant more than twice! Thankfully, this is something I don't have to think about or worry about anymore since we are done. As for Tanner, he is an angel baby. I was always told I was so lucky with the girls, that they hardly cried, I could put them down and do other things and again, I have been blessed to have another little one who is just like that. He only gets really angry if he is hungry and that is when he turns into "angry Kitty." He gets so upset and yells so loud he sounds just like my crazy cat when she is freaking out, so we all call him angry kitty when he acts like that. Some of his other nicknames, are bean and monkey toes, both given to him by Maddie. I think bean is my favorite just because it is cute. He continues to grow and at the end of his first month I think he will be bigger and weigh more than the girls did at 2-3 months. Yesterday he weighed 9 pounds 5 ounces, he is an eating machine, but that is what he is supposed to do, so that is a good thing. After a few rough nights of him sleeping on me I solicited advice from my facebook friends and the resulting advice was to start swaddling him at night. This has worked like a charm and he is now sleeping 3-5 hour intervals give or take in his swing, one step at a time, but at least it isn't on my chest where I have restless sleep thinking I am going to drop him!

Maddie, Tanner and Natalie

The girls continue to go to school, which has been a good thing since this winter is lasting forever and has been so cold. They get to get out of the house and have a break from our every day lack of activity. I am looking forward to nicer weather when they can play on the swing set and we can go on walks and they can ride their bikes. I also look forward to summer swimming and picnics at the park....summer please hurry! So for now that is what is going on here. Look for a one month update in a little over a week after we have visited the doctor, official stats will be provided then :-)

Introducing Tanner William Stahl

Tanner

Here is the post you all have been waiting for...just kidding, but really here is the story of Tanner's arrival. Last week was a crazy week of final preparations and waiting. On Monday January 3 I started going into labor around 4:00 at 6:00 I had met my 6 contractions per hour limit and called the doctor. Even though I had an appointment at 8:00 they told me to go to labor and delivery. Tom and I both thought for sure that was it and we would be having a baby that day. My doctor had told me that she wouldn't stop labor once I had reached 37 weeks. Once we were at the hospital they gave me fluids and then a shot to stop the labor. I was a little upset, but at the same time I understood, he was still not "full" term 40 weeks or whatever, but still. So the labor stopped and I was sent home to rest. Wednesday I had an appointment with my doctor for my usual weekly visit. I hadn't been feeling very well for a couple of days and had a headache. Well my blood pressure, at the office was really high for me 158/104 or something crazy like that so they sent me over to labor and delivery again to monitor the baby and to do some initial tests to see if I had pre-eclmapsia. All of my tests started coming back normal and my blood pressure at the hospital was completely normal and level, not elevated at all. Very weird I thought, how is this possible? We began making arrangements to have someone come stay with the girls, because they decided they wanted to monitor me over night...THANK YOU Krissi for helping us out, you were a life saver! Well, shortly after Tom got back to the hospital I started having regular contractions again, I had been having a few, but they were getting more painful. Finally I asked for something to ease the pain because while they were irregular they were painful. At that point the nurse called my doctor and the next thing I know there are 4 nurses and the anesthesiologist  standing over me prepping me for the c-section. It all happened very quickly, and since it wasn't an emergency I thought this was odd, but my mom thinks that they probably use non-emergencies as practice for emergencies, which makes since. So we were all prepped and taken back and at 11:17 pm on January 5, 2011 Little Tanner William Stahl entered the world 8 pounds, 20 1/4 inches, pissed off screaming and urinating on all the nurses and doctors. He has a full head of hair and very healthy lungs! The rest of the procedure was over by midnight and we were wheeled back to my room to recover, always a pleasure! We spent three days in the hospital and were released on Saturday to go home. We are making the adjustment, the not sleeping is of course painful and Tanner does not like to lay on his back at night, he does during the day though go figure. The girls have been wonderful big sisters. They do not like to hold him, but they sit with me while we are feeding and they cover him up and bring him is pacifier and other things big sisters do. So for now that is the report and story and while he wasn't set to come for another week, I am sure glad he is here and healthy and we can move onto the next stage!