BABY'S COMING...

We took the kids to Wahoo's today for some delicious fish tacos (well, more like

quesadillas for the kids). The kids shared a Mug root beer, one of their favorite things. They were irresistibly cute, and I'm sure it won't be long until we add one more cute sibling to the bunch.

My contractions started up tonight. At first, I thought it was just a tease - but then I noticed the regularity of the contractions, and knew this baby was going to make things happen - it wasjust a matter of time. After I got the kids to bed, and finished doing some things around the house, I decided it was time for me to keep track of the contractions (with some not so gentle nudging from Scot). I put my laptop next to my bed and kept a log throughout the night so I would know what my contraction pattern was.

Here is my log (late night typos and everything):

11:25

11:35

11:50

12:00

12:07

12:15

12:24

12:32

12:40

12:45

12:52

12:57

1:05

1:18

1

[40

2{02

2:23

3:19

4”03

4{25

4{57

5”27

5.45

6=03

6;13

6[23 small

6;34 small

6;45/48\ small

7’00 small

7;10

7:19 small

7:25

7:35 small bathroom clock

7:42 bathroom clock

7:42 Mac computer clock

7:48 mac

7:58

8:01

8:06

8:09

8:14

Around the 7:00 a.m. hour, I woke Scot up and told him he needed to get up and get ready to go. We had invited my sister, Sarah, to come with us to the hospital for the delivery - and she opted to come...so we called Mom & Dad Woolley to come watch the kids.

and as we started to back out of the driveway, he turned and headed into the house.

They came over, Scot and Dad Woolley gave me a blessing, and we jumped into the car to head to the hospital. Ethan and Brynn stood with M&D Woolley at the front of the house to wave goodbye. Ethan was trying to be brave and hold his emotions back,

Talk about tugging on my heartstrings. I knew the kids were in good hands and that they would be heading to the hospital to see us shortly after.

We arrived at the hospital, got checked into the pre-delivery room. They monitored my blood pressure, the baby, (they figured out that I really WAS in labor), & they prepared to check me into the delivery room... it was go time.

I was in good spirits, feeling great...

Sarah was experiencing the "labor and delivery" process for the first time, and was a little nervous that she was going to get light headed. So far, so good.

Shortly after they moved me to the delivery room, the anesthesiologist arrived to give me my epidural - they knew it wasn't going to be long. Sarah left the room while they put in the epidural, and overheard one of the nurses at the nurses station saying something about how they'd never seen a someone able to joke around and laugh while in labor before...

COMING CLEAN

Ethan,

I have to be honest with you about something...bandaids are not recycled and put back into new boxes. Neither are balloons, boxes, or any other form of packaging etc. I told you that after we saw the movie Toy Story 3 because it made you worry that every toy, and apparently everything else, had feelings. I had to tell you that so that you wouldn't make me keep all of our garbage. Today when you asked me if you could recycle your plain, skin colored bandaid - I told you no, the manufacturer didn't need that one in the recycling, you insisted that they did so it could go back into a box that we could buy again. I had some feelings of guilt, and I felt it best that I get all that cleared up. I love that you're so tender hearted and worried about the feelings of every living and non-living thing. You are precious. Please forgive me for misleading you - it was for MY own good. ( :

I love you.

Mom

P.S. You and Brynn are such good friends - I love this shot from lunch at Wahoos... you were sharing your favorite drink with each other, Rootbeer. ( : (Note those bracelets on your arm. They're called silly bands, and they're all the rage right now. They come in all sorts of different shapes, and you love to collect them - but typically you wear them for all of about 10-15 minute increments before you have to take them off and play with them. Today was one exception).

EXERCISE

While trying to convince me that he should be able to play a video game he found in a storage closet this morning, Ethan says "You should let me play this mom. It gives me a lot of good exercise in my fingers." Ahhhh yes, finger exercises. Clearly we've been neglecting a few of the more important details around our house.

BRYNN'S FIRST HAIRCUT

I took the kids to Jack and Jill Salon today to see Hailey, our favorite kids hairdresser. It was Brynn's first experience actually being in a chair getting a haircut. She has watched Ethan countless times, so she knew just what to expect. Truth be told, she's never left the salon without a sucker and sparkle glitter spray in her hair before - but today, she felt extra pampered.

She chose to sit in the yellow jeep, the same car Ethan picked. She sat still, and was a perfect angel - a very

different first time haircut experience than we had with Ethan many years ago (thankfully). We left the salon with both of the kids looking positively perfect, and ready for the arrival of their brother whenever he should decide to make his entrance into the world. I have a sense he won't wait until his due date, but I've been wrong before.

When we got home, the new baby carseat had arrived, and the kids thought it made a great stool.

They watched TV, perched on this box for a little while. I loved watching them sit there together, they really were nice to each other today - which makes every moment of my day a little brighter. No teasing, no taunting, no torture - just two happy, adorable kids.

SPECIAL ERRANDS

I had to run a bunch of errands today and Brynn asked if I needed to go on an errand to the temple. So cute.

Ethan was in the restroom this afternoon. He had been sitting there for a while when I heard Brynn in the bathroom with him. I left the kitchen to go check on them, and told Brynn that she might need to give Ethan a little space while he did his business. Brynn looked at me and said "I'm helping Ethan to go poo." Moments later, she started squeezing Ethan's knees, and began grunting. Brynn's version of "helping" I suppose.

KEEPIN' THE DR'S OFFICES HOPPIN'

We went to see the Peds ENT, Dr. Peggy Kelley, that we were referred to for Ethan today. She said that from what she can tell, Ethan's tonsils are not overly large. She said that he does have a little bit of a nasal sound to his voice, and recommended that we try some nasal spray for 6 weeks to see if it makes a difference. Dr. Kelley said that the spray could help Ethan adenoids to shrink up and reduce in size... which may help us to avoid surgery. Interesting thought - we'll try it. When I went to pick up the nasal spray prescription, the pharmacist seemed a little skeptical that a child would use a spray, and she wished me good luck - so this should be interesting.

As for another baby update - I went in for my weekly appointment today, and I'm still dialated to a 2. We'll see what this next week brings.

I have been really enjoying the kids - they are adorable. They have a lot of personality AND they are sweet to watch at play with each other, aside of course, from Brynn scratching Ethan when she's frustrated. He has been left with a few scars to prove it. Not good - we're still

working with her on that.

Did I mention that Brynn loves makeup?? Well, a couple days ago she ended up in Aunt Sarah's room doing a little self application. It's a little difficult to see all the light pink color tones, but you get the idea.

...YOU KNOW WHAT I DO LIKE?

Ethan had a sleep study a little over a month ago that showed he had some obstructions in his breathing when he sleeps. His pediatrician referred us to a Peds ENT, but we opted to also see our friend, Dr. Clark Walker, who is the ENT that did Scot's surgery last year. (Two opinions can't hurt, and we happen to love Clark and know he's not just ANY Dr.). We went in for Ethan's appointment this afternoon, and when Dr. Walker was talking to Ethan about getting his tonsils out, he asked Ethan if he liked popsicles, ice cream, jello and pudding etc. Their exchange went something like this:

Clark: Ethan, do you like popsicles?

Ethan: Ummmm, yes.

Clark: Would you like to have ice cream for lunch?

Ethan: Yes.

Clark: Do you like Jello?

Ethan: No

Clark: Pudding?

Ethan: I don't think so...but I really like doughnuts.

The room erupted in laughter. I guess Ethan has a different idea of the types of recovery foods he'd be willing to explore. Cute kid. He was a perfect patient today - now on to the next question, when to schedule his tonsillectomy (but first, we'll see the Peds ENT for a second opinion). Should be interesting with a new baby.

- I don't want to forget this... We had the tv on this weekend, just waiting for General Conference to start, when Ethan heard the organ music from the kitchen and announced "It's time - conference is starting". I love that he can recognize that, just from the music. Sweet.

PROGRESS IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION

This morning, I had another Dr.'s checkup, but this time (about 3 weeks from my due date), they're doing actual exams to see where we are in the process. I'm dialated to a 2, the baby is in the right position, and all is well. Now, we'll see when he chooses to make his grand entrance - cause we all know who is in charge in these situations.

FIRESTATION

Today was Ms. Betsy's preschool's annual trip to the firestation. I was a driver for this event, which is something I love to do. It's fun to be a part of what my kids are doing, and I try to offer to attend as often as possible. This year, knowing that we'll have a baby almost a month from now, I probably won't have as many chances to tag along, bummer. When we drove up, the firefighters directed me to park in the handicapped spot - not sure why (other than the parking lot was packed full of cars and there wasn't really any other option), but I took it... I figured they told me to park there, we weren't going to be there long, there probably wouldn't be anyone else coming to the station, and I wasn't about to turn down a good parking spot. The kids were all lined up behind the pumper truck (large fire engine that pumps the water), meeting all the fire fighters at this station that were on duty, and then the guy assigned to do the presentation started. He was really funny and the kids seemed to love him. He went over what they do during the day, who is required to go on calls, how many people they usually take with them, where all the tools were etc.

After his presentation, the kids were able to get into the fire truck, see all the equipment, then a different firefighter put on all the gear and let the kids come feel how heavy their helmets are, etc. When the firefighter was in all his gear, he turned on the oxygen in his mask so that the kids could hear how it sounded, and then he invited the kids to come up and give him a high 5. Most of the kids were intimidated by him with the sound, the gear etc., but Ethan announced that he sounded just like Darth Vader, and he walked up and gave him a high 5. Note to self: Star Wars is beneficial when trying to teach kids to feel comfortable around search and rescue crews. ( :

Then the kids were able to walk through a fire fighter/ paramedic ambulance. They talked all about the machines they use when someone is hurt, how they check people's hearts in a trauma situation etc. I've been to my fair share of

Fire Stations, and have walked around a number of the trucks, but I've never seen them go through all the machines in such detail. It was great, and the kids loved it. Ethan used to be completely enchanted with fire trucks - so watching dvd's from the library, such as "Lots and Lots of Firetrucks" sure paid off when it came to his (and my) knowledge about the machines and their functions. Just for the record, those shows also taught all of us a number of catchy tunes, like "Dial 911, Emergency". Brynn even loved the field trip and stole the hearts of some of the fire fighters.

After we dropped the kids off at school, Brynn and I went to run some errands. We stopped to grab something at WalMart on our way back to get Ethan. While we were in the checkout, I kept seeing Brynn up on her tippy toes adding little treasures she wanted me to buy. I would remove them and put them back almost as fast as she put them up. The sucker in the photo was her last attempt. We didn't buy it, but I did get a picture to document just how funny it was.

PERFECT BEGINNING

Ethan's preschool class for this year. Aren't they all so cute? (Back row, LtoR: Ms. Betsy Mullison, Sophia, Brooke, Cole, Aiden, Ethan and Emy. Middle row: Sammie, Lucy and Lily. Front row: Reed and Andrew)

All things spiritual

- Ethan told me today, while working on his paper airplane, that it was "great and spiritual".

- We went to the Wildlife Experience museum today upon Ethan's request. As we were leaving, I asked Ethan and Brynn if they wanted their picture taken by this statue that they had been spending a lot of time looking at, and Ethan said "no, but I would like my picture taken by the Grinch at the front of the museum." Priorities.

ETHAN'S FIRST TAEKWON DO TESTING

He was AMAZING!! At times it's challenging to have a 4 year old boy focus on paying attention through an entire TaeKwon Do class - let alone an exam...but we had been working with Ethan to encourage him to stay focused and concentrated while they were conducting the test for advancement in his belt color. We had never been to any of the testings prior to this morning, so we had no way of knowing just what we were in for. I forgot to grab my big camera and camcorder (HUGE bummer). As we were headed for the freeway, I mentioned this fact to Ethan who said "Well, what are we waiting for - lets turn back around and go get it." Sweet, but I didn't have time to do that.

All the kids in the group shot were testing for different belt levels. The way the testing works, the children all test with people moving up within their skill level (or belt level). That said, Ethan only tested

with a couple other kids. We thought it would be ok for us to watch from the side so that we could snap a couple pictures - but as the testing began, we realized it was a bad move cause Ethan kept looking over at us. I'm sure it wasn't proper protocol, but when we noticed he was distracted by us, we made a b-line back to the viewer area. He focused through the remainder of the test and did everything perfectly - even moves that were above his level.

Brian Galke, the son of Grandma Judie's cousin, is the owner of the Tae Kwon Do school and also Ethan's instructor. After the testing, Brian said Ethan did everything perfectly, and was very impressed with his flexibility. Way to go buddy!

He should be awarded his yellow belt during his next class.

*UPDATE PHOTO: Ethan earned his yellow belt! Congratulations little bug!

During the testing, Brynn kept asking Grandma Judie to put items of makeup on her.

Blush, lipgloss, a little light eyeshadow - she looked like a dream, just in time to go with the crew to celebrate Ethan's accomplishment with donuts.

We ended the day on a completely different note. Brynn has been interested in all my spices lately. I keep most of them up in the cupboards out of reach, with the exception of the spice drawer that came with the house. Brynn helps herself to the spices in that drawer regularly - just for a sniff typically. She will open different spices, smell them, and then return them to the drawer.

Well, today I came into the kitchen to

find an empty spice bottle, spices all over the kitchen floor, and Brynn dancing in the middle of the mess. I know she looks a little concerned in this one picture, but she was dancing with complete joy. At least one of us was pleased. ( :

TEMPER TANTRUMS AND TOILET TRAINING

We've been working to potty train Brynn. I use the words "we" and "work" because I really mean it - it takes a village to break through the iron will that she has, but if it's her idea... At any rate, when she couldn't get anything to come out on the potty today she'd say "it's not working". Hilarious.

This morning, she wanted to get in the shower with me. I told her to try and go potty first...when I walked into the bathroom, she was standing in front of the toilet trying to pee like Ethan. The best part was when she added her new phrase "It's not working". I wonder why. ( :

What I didn't find as adorable today were all the temper tantrums we endured. Ethan didn't act at all like this when he was 2... but clearly Brynn is a different story. We'll make it through, but she's got the drama figured out (and honestly, she could earn an award for her acting - she can turn it off an on like a switch). I only hope she gets it out now, and doesn't have a relapse of this behavior when she's a teenager. She's still a keeper though - I love her, tantrums or not.

Ethan spent nearly his entire Tae Kwon Do class tonight with one hand up to his mouth. I couldn't figure out what he was doing. Turns out, something was wrong with his fingernail - but through his entire class, I was really wishing he would've excused himself for a moment to get whatever it was taken care of, or waited till after class. It's much less intimidating when you're only fighting with one hand. ( :

*This pic has nothing to do with the aforementioned stories, but I loved seeing the kids on Scot's lap the other morning, reading stories in their PJ's... or in Ethan's case, his Batman underwear.

WILL WE USE THE NEW EASEL?

Yes, we will - almost daily... unless of course it's windy. One day we use paintbrushes, the next day we do finger painting. We like to mix things up. It did take a while for the kids to get used to the idea of finger painting, but once they adjusted to the messy fingers it was game on. I love watching these kids in their creative mode, they are adorable. (I wasn't favoring Brynn in these pics, Ethan was actually at school while we were painting on one of the days).

BEAUTIFUL GIRL

I took this picture the other day and just love her sweet little face, and her pig tails. It's so fun to have a little girl. XO

DRIVING RANGE

What a fabulous day we've had. Our Stake put on a Community Preparedness Fair today - which was so much fun for the kids. They had all sorts of firetrucks, ambulances, snow rescue vehicles, SWAT team vans and equipment, a blow up house (looked like a bounce house) that taught about fire safety and what to do to get out if you were in a fire, played fire extinguisher games (where the kids could aim and shoot a fire extinguisher at balloons to see if they could put out a "fire"), etc. There was something for everyone, and if that wasn't enough, there were fresh scones, hot dogs, drinks & a whole lot of people. I do love scones and honey, and my kids were sticky enough afterwards to prove that they do as well.

This afternoon, we decided to take the kids to the driving range. It was a beautiful day, and the

early evening was even better. Scot bought Ethan his second set of golf clubs after thinking that Ethan might be favoring a lefty swing, so we packed both sets up in one bag and headed off to the range to give them both a try.

Turns out he seems to swing better right - which was where we started. Either way, it's good to know. Brynn loved every moment of it as well, she seems to be a bit of a natural. We got a small bucket of balls, which as it turns out is quite a lot when you're only 4 and 2, but eventually we made the most of them.

Scot did some driving with the mini clubs, Ethan decided that he would use the golf head covers in lieu of the actual club (which was hilarious), and Brynn decided after a while that it was more fun to chase the balls that Daddy hit than to try to hit any more of them herself. All in all, it was a fabulous night - we'll certainly hit the driving range with the kids much more frequently.

As we started to wrap up our driving range fun, Ethan hit panic mode because he had to go to the bathroom SO BAD. (He decided to wait to inform us until the very last possible moment). Scot took off with Ethan in the direction of the restrooms while I gathered the golf clubs and took Brynn back to the car.

Across the parking lot I could see Ethan and Scot talking to an older gentleman with white hair and a beard... turns out Ethan met Santa, and even got his business card (it was Santa Bryan at least - I'm sure he was trying to drum up some business). Ethan was so excited that he had actually met Santa, he couldn't stop talking about it. Funny...

SLEEP NEVER LOOKED SO GOOD

So, here we are - the long awaited day of Ethan's sleep study has finally arrived. Ethan had school today, then we ran a bunch of errands, followed by play time with the neighbor boys, Evan and Cameron, dinner & last (certainly not least) a trip to The Children's Hospital in Aurora for the main event of the evening. Sleep. Ethan has been rather anxious about this sleep study since his 4 year old Dr.'s appointment in April (in the nervous...not excited way). It has taken us 3 months to get in for the study, so he's had plenty of time to think, & dare I say worry, about it.

The hospital only allows one person to

accompany the child, so we told Ethan he needed to choose - Mom, or Dad. (Would it imply that the parent chosen was his favorite? In my opinion, it depended largely upon who he chose.) He flip flopped back and forth, and finally chose to take me along. (Yup, the favorite indeed. ( : kidding.) It was a tough decision I'm sure - but Scot was going to have to take his CPAP to sleep, and in my current state (at 35 weeks along), we figured it probably wouldn't matter where I tried to sleep... plastic couch bed was good enough (well, for one night anyway).

When we arrived, Ethan was still unsure of what it was going to be like, worried about making sure that I would stay with him the entire time etc. We got out of the car and headed into the lobby of the Children's Hospital, and Ethan ran over to these bunny statues and said "Mom, take my pictures with these huge bunnies". So far, so good.

We checked in, and waited in the sleep study waiting room until we were called back to get prepped. The nurse that was assigned to Ethan was awesome. She was so sweet and careful to explain everything to Ethan as she went along.

What she didn't know is that Ethan really does seem to do fine as long as he knows what is going on ahead of time.

Not only was she great at providing him with information, but she let Ethan choose a movie to watch (he chose Astro Boy) while she prepped all the wires etc., which he really seemed to enjoy.

When all was said and done, he had electrodes all over his head, in his hair, all over his face, a mesh covering to keep the wires in place, topped with gauze and tape around his head to keep everything in place. wires secured down the leg of his PJ's to the wires and tape on his feet and toes, belt around his waist and chest with sensors,They finished the set up off by placing a little tube in his nose and a sensor down over his mouth to watch his breathing.

It was quite a production - and with all those wires, I have to admit, I was worried that Ethan was going to have a hard time sleeping because he moves around so much. It was lights out before 9... which meant it was lights out for me too. Did I mention that the sleep rooms did not have a bathroom?

It wasn't the plastic couch pull out bed that worried me, it was the bathroom at this stage in

my pregnancy that seemed kind of important. I survived, and only had to make the trek down the hall to the bathroom a couple times during the night. At least Ethan slept well, but we didn't even get a chance to sleep in or anything cause we were sent packing at 6 am. Oh well.

Ethan slept through the night, which was much better than I expected. The nurse wasn't allowed to tell us about what she saw through the night, but she did say that Ethan didn't need oxygen - which was a good sign. We should have results within the week. [*NOTE: Verdict came back - Ethan has obstructive sleep apnea. We will now be heading to next steps with a Peds ENT at Children's Hospital].

Our nurse had been so worried about me sleeping that she offered me a bed in a room that wasn't being used. I had to reluctantly turn it down because I was worried about leaving Ethan alone in case he woke up and wondered where I was. After all, I HAD promised him that I would be right there the entire night, so I couldn't break my word. Have I mentioned how much I love this kid? He's the best.