Pictures this week

This is Emily after eating a plate full of food. Actually, she did not eat it, she spread it out all over her tray and sat in it.

Joseph updates

Above: Joseph at a 1 1/2 weeks. Joseph at 1 week old.

Riding home from the hospital. He didn't even cry!

In his bassinet at the hospital. Getting dressed to come home.

We took Joseph to the doctor on Tuesday. He's 8 lbs. 2 oz. and 21.5 inches long. I call him our little piggy. He eats every 2-3 hours. We're still working on his night time schedule. Last night he did much better, only waking at 2:30 and 5:30 for feedings and he went straight to sleep when he finished. He's a very happy and easy baby, which we're grateful for. He smiles a lot in his sleep and he heavily favors Brent. He's been a wonderful and natural addition to our family. We're so glad he's here and that he's healthy.

Updates

Sorry I've neglected the blog!

We have some serious catching up to do!

Emily walks all the time now. She has most of her teeth in and now that her hair is getting longer, we can tell that she too has curly hair. She's also becoming quite talkative. She says: here, hello, ball, bite and a few others that I can't think of right now. Of course, she only talks when it's absolutely necessary, but that's okay b/c she doesn't whine to get what she wants. She loves her brother and hasn't been a bit jealous. Wherever Joseph is, that's where Emily is. She loves to hug him and kiss his hands. She's been sick with RSV so I won't let her get close to his face!

The girls loved all the Valentines they received. Thanks for thinking of them. They were on a sugar high for probably a week. In this situation I did what I always do...let them eat all the candy they want so we can hurry and have it gone. They felt very loved! Allie is still loving preschool. Her friend Tyler invites her to his house fairly often. Tyler has toy trains and dinosaurs so Allie loves to play over there. Preschool will end in May and I know Allie is really going to miss it. I wish she could start kindergarten next year because she's really enjoying school and needs these kind of activities now that she's older. We're thinking about signing her up for soccer in the spring. Haley is also loving school, although she's usually very happy when Friday comes. She loves books and is becoming a great reader. We read every day for twenty minutes and I make Haley read to me for the first 10 minutes. She's very good at sounding out the words she doesn't know.

These pictures were taken one afternoon this week while Haley and I baked star cookies. Haley decorated them with yellow sprinkles and they turned out super cute and super yummy. She was so proud of them she carried them around to the neighbors. Grammy supplied the star cookie set and the aprons. Don't worry Grammy. We still have more cookie dough so we can make cookies with Allie. She was at Tyler's house.

Thanks Brent!

I finally got to look at the post Brent did of Joseph being born...Let me just "thank" my husband for posting such terrible pictures of me on the internet! Those are scary!!!

Joseph Alan Helms

Joseph Alan Helms was born on February 28, 2010 at 8:04AM MST. He weighed 7 lbs. 15 oz. and was 21" long. Laura has joined the "League of Extraordinary Women" by giving birth naturally without an epidural. She went naturally and did a wonderful job. Two pushes and we had a son.

It's about 9:15PM MST and she's up and walking. Joseph is breastfeeding well and the doctor says he looks "perfect." When he was born, the umbilical chord (spelling) was wrapped around his neck three times. The doctor called him a "superstar" and said he was showing off. He didn't have any problems breathing or adjusting to life outside the womb. He immediately bonded with Laura and they left him on her chest for nearly an hour. Enjoy the pictures. Videos are at the very bottom.

Pre-birth smile.

The blue graph were her contractions. See the big one that went off the chart, she was talking to her dad during it. However, she didn't do much talking.

Joseph Alan Helms was born at 8:04AM. This immediately after his birth.

Laura was relieved.

I cut the umbilical chord.

This was the only time we heard him cry. Ever since, he's been silent. He coos at Laura every time she holds him.

They cleaned him up and brought her to Laura. Then, they removed the blanket and laid him directly on her chest, skin-to-skin. They said it would help them bond and would also have some positive medical affects for their bodies. I guess it worked.

Taking his temp.

He was smiling. This was the tail end.

Look how small he is.

This was the chest thingy I was telling you about.

This was about an hour-and-a-half after Laura delivered the baby. She looks great for just having delivered a kid without an epidural. It almost looks like Joseph smiled for the picture.

He was saying "ROLL TIDE!".

Joseph's Rocky Balboa impression.

He smiled during his sponge bath.

They bathed Joseph in the room and Laura was happy, as evidenced by her smile.

Practicing gymnastics.

This was the first time he'd ever worn clothes.

He was preparing to double karate chop anyone that attempted to take him away from Laura. Notice his concentration.

Laura was talking to Haley and Allie. They were excited to speak with her.

Ann of Green Gables Tapes

Maybe this is why I never liked Star Wars as a kid.