Growing up too fast!

It's time to give Drew a little of the spotlight!  The past month has included a lot of change for this little guy.  He really wasn't sure what to think of baby Reese for the first week or so and with that some of his behaviors were new and he acted out a bit.  So... with pre-school just around the corner, Ronnie decided it was time to put Drew into a 6 week boot-camp!  Ha!  It includes us teaching him more manners, listening skills and empathy.  He has done a great job - he is such a sweet sweet boy!  

 

On Tuesday August 25th, he started his first day of part-time pre-school at Family of Christ.  He was so excited to go and so proud to march in with his backpack and lunch box (ok...so don't make fun of him because his "lunch box" is actually a small Madela breast milk cooler -- it's the only small cooler I could find in the house and his lunch box is not on order ;-) 

 

After day 1 he got a great report from the teacher, Miss Perla!  He told her when he had to go pee-pee, he "listened" (which has been something we have been working hard on) and he ate his entire lunch! 

 

They also said "wow - he knows a lot of songs!"  Well.. he sure does.  This kid loves to sing (and talk), and it amazes us how he can remember the words to all these songs and even the words in his favorite books.  Such a smart little cookie :-)

Such a big boy! First day of pre-school

His new cheesy smile! 

Very proud mama!

 

He also loves to do what Reese is doing and being close to her!

Let's all get in the tent!

Ever since Grandpa Butcher was here and let him have an ice cream cone right before bed -- he has had a love for ice cream cones!  YUMMMMMMY!

 

This kid is obsessed with baseball.  He knows more baseball terms than I ever knew up until I met Ronnie and just has love for swinging the bat and running make believe home runs (which include sliding into home onto the floor, a couch, a chair... whatever he can dive into or on)

 

With a little imagination anything is a bat - even the grill brush!

Or a toilet plunger....

One of his MOST favorite things to do right now is WATER BALLOONS (many thanks to Aunt Wendy and Grandma Lori!).  Of course we can't just toss them around - we have to hit them off the baseball tee! 

We love you so much little Mr. Drew!  You crack us up everyday and your love for life is just contagious! 

Reese turns ONE MONTH old!

One Month Stats 'n' Stuff:

Weight: 7 lbs 11 oz (she was 7 lbs 6 oz at birth and the doctor says her weight gain is good - nothing to be concerned about  - YAY!).  She is only in the 11th percentile, so just a little peanut still!

Height: Well.. debatable.  She was measured at 21 inches at birth, then 20 at her first appointment and 21 at her one month appointment. I think somewhere along the way there was a mis-measurement - so not really sure WHAT her true height is!

Eyes: Big and blue!

Hair:  Very blonde!

Sleeping habits: 
 - Daytime - she sleeps almost all morning until the early afternoon.  Then she eats (lots of cluster feedings) from about 3-8pm, with maybe a little catnap in between. 
 - Nightime  - she is an awesome sleeper!  She will go from about 10pm-2am, eat, then 3-6 or 7am, eat, then she sleeps all morning.  Mommy is happy... this give her time in the morning to get a few things done... like these posts! :-)  

Favorite things to do:
- She likes to walk around with mommy in either the Molby wrap or Ergo baby carrier
- She recently just started to love laying on her activity mat and looking up at the hanging toys
 - SLEEP!  She is such a little sleeper and loves her naps :-)
 - Bathtime  Unlike her brother, she loves her bath.  She is so calm and loves the warm water on her.

Things she does NOT like to do:
 - This baby doesn't cry very much!  The only time she makes a squak is if she is hungry or maybe needs to burp.  Other than that - she is a happy camper and we tend to call her "Angel Baby" often!

Things she has learned
 - She has learned to hold her head up really well.  This could be because she is always on the lookout for big brother Drew.  He loves to hold her and sit by her.

Things mommy has learned:
Mommy has learned that #2 is so much easier than #1!  Reese is also a VERY good baby and has made a lot of the typical newborn challenges much easier.  I have also learned that it's tough to split attention between her and Drew -- that has been one of the hardest things for me since I am breastfeeding and seem to be constantly with Reese.  It makes me sad that I can't do Drew's baths and read him books most nights.  I miss that but know that once Reese gets a little older I can do those things again. 

I have also learned....

1.  HOW TO RELAX!  This has been a really great maternity leave from work and I have loved being able to disconnect some and spend time with the kids and Ronnie (Raquel - if you are reading... thank you again for holding down the B-Lynk fort while I am away).  It's been a really great 4 weeks and looking forward to the next 4.  These are such special times! 

2. That there is nothing like the warmth and love you feel when you watch one child love and care so much for their sibling.  After a bit of a rocky start (Drew took some time getting used to having someone else get attention), now he has embraced the arrival of Reese and loves to hold her, kiss the top of her head and her hands and is always concerned with where she is.  "Where Weese at"?  are common words we hear.  It is so sweet and such a wonderful feeling to see him care and love her so much! 

Here are some fun pics from the month...

We love you Baby Reese!

Grandpa Butcher and Connie visit!

Reese had just turned 3 weeks and she got to meet Grandpa Butcher and Connie for the first time -what a treat!  Drew was also VERY excited to see them -- so excited he couldn't fall asleep for his nap that day :-)

 

As always, their trips are short and fun-filled!  They arrived on Friday afternoon and as soon as they got to the house, Reese was in Grandpa's arms!  I love this picture - you can just see the happiness in his eyes and smile. 

 

 

 

I do think the dad secretly wanted me to have a girl so that I could experience a taste of what he experienced with me growing up... and during my teenage years I know I was quite the "challenge" at times ;-)   BRING IT ON REESE -- nothing can get by your mom.  Ha!

 

Drew loved hanging out with grandpa and Connie.  We of course all had to watch Frozen (for the 5 millionth time)!

 

 

Saturday was POOL DAY!  After Drew's nap grandpa and Connie jumped in the pool with Drew.  Of course silly Grandpa Butcher had to show him how to be a shark.  And now, two weeks later we do the shark every time we get in the pool... Drew loves putting his face in the water and his hand up on his head like a shark!

Big jumps!

 

Grandpa just loves to look down at Reese and study her little features...he was very impressed with her ability to hold her head up and how active she was when she is awake (I have a feeling that has something to do with her little brother and the constant stimulus he provides for her - ha!).

 

Who knows what silly stuff he is telling her!

On Sunday Grandpa asked if we could go visit the Yankees complex in Tampa (this is where the big league team does their spring training and where their Low A-ball minor league team plays).  Of course Ronnie and Drew were all about this plan! 

 

Mom's thoughts.... hmmm.... Nordstrom Rack is just down the street from the complex, they could drop me, Connie and Reese off on the way!  Great plan - let's go!

 

Drew hitting in the Big League cages - this kid!

Seriously???  Do shoes get any cuter than this????  They were a must have on our shopping trip!

Grandpa, Ronnie and Drew had a great time - grandpa got a tour around the complex, went into the club house and the suite that George Steinbrenner used to watch the games from.  Pretty cool stuff! 

 

And the girls had a successful shopping trip!  Fun was had by all :-)

 

Sunday evening Ron and Cathy came over  - Reese was surely the center of attention!

Grandpa and Connie took off early Monday morning and it was sad to see them leave.  We miss them so much and look forward to these trips and the memories that are always made. 

It's not easy being so far - but we feel so fortunate that family comes down to visit and lifelong relationships are made with our kids and the grandparents -- thank you and we love you so much! 

Grandma Lori, Aunt Wendy and Ethan! What a crew!

Can't wait to post about Reese's first round of family on the Butcher side to visit!  Considering Reese is the first girl on the Butcher side, some serious "spoiling" was sure to be in store!

 

Mom (as Drew calls her "Gwama Worwi") and Ethan had plans to fly down on July 26th.  Mom rolled the dice when she booked her flights knowing that my due date was the 27th.  It worked out PERFECTLY since I was induced on the 23rd and we got home from the hospital on the 25th.  Just in time for one of the best visits ever!

 

Drew was also VERY excited to see everyone - having Ethan here to play with him for 4 days straight was such a treat and made my heart to happy watching the two of them becomes good friends. 

 

Once they arrived, it didn't take Aunt Wendy long before she was snuggling with Reese!  If she didn't have baby fever before she came, I'm sure she did when she left :-)  Reese was so good, she would make you want to have another one for sure! 

 

 

"Well hello there -- you're not my mommy but I like you!"

Ok - I'll open my eyes for this sweet aunt!

Ethan wanted in on the baby Reese action too.  He was so kind and gentle with her, what an awesome cousin!  Hard to believe that he is 5 1/2 years older than her!

 

Grandma Lori was all about baby Reese AND the pool and sure knows how to make it fun!  She couldn't wait to get in with Drew and Ethan.  While they were here, we got lots of rain mid-day / late afternoon so they snuck in the pool whenever the sun was out!  I think there were a couple days that Ethan got in 3 times :-)

 

Drew had the time of his life.  They did dives, jumps and all kinds of new tricks in the pool.  Oh, and Grandma brought a floating basketball hoop with her so they even shot some hoops in the water!

 

I can never get video to load right on my blog, but we have some GREAT footage of Grandma's new trick of jumping onto the pool float and gliding across the pool.  Drew thought it was like "sliding" into home plate (of course).

Fun with Grandma in the pool!

While Grandma and the boys were in the pool, me and Aunt Wendy had some major work to do in the closet of the nursery!  Look at this loot!  All of this brand new clothes came from Wendy and Grandma -- I am pretty sure that Aunt Wendy has officially bought 80% of Reese's entire wardrobe!  We have all sorts of sizes, styles and even some Iowa State gear in there.  SPOILED!

 

One afternoon while they were here, I decided it was time for a little one on one time with Drew.  He was definitely adjusting to having Reese around and needed some special time with mom.  I know this is all a big change for him...and before Reese he was attached at the hip to me.  It was like he sensed that something major was going to happen and that life would be changing.  Kids really are amazing.

 

So.... off we went to the Twisty Treat to get some ice cream!

 

 

YUMMY!  And mom doesn't even care that I am making a huge mess - woohoo!

 

Love this pic -- Reese is such a little snuggle ball!  She loves to curl up her legs like she is still in the womb.  It's looks like a little yoga pose!

NAMASTE!

 

Back to Drew...during mom and Wendy's trip we had to really work with Drew to keep him going to the potty on the potty.  This classic picture was taken after a trip to the potty (no diaper/pull-up on yet).  He decided to bring the toilet plunger out with him and swing it like a baseball bat. 

What?  I'm just improvising...anything can be a bat if you use your imagination!

After Drew would go to bed at night, Ethan got to stay up with us and watch movies and eat popcorn... oh, and do more snuggles with Reese :-)

 

 

Grandma Lori got her fair share of snuggles too -- she is the best at "holding her off" when she is hungry and mommy isn't quite ready to feed yet. 

 

From the pool with the boys straight to Reese!  Busy Grandma!

This is one of my favorite memories of their trip.  While I was nursing Reese, Wendy read bedtime stories to Drew and Ethan.  Then Grandma broke out all her bedtime songs.  Drew likes "This little light of mine" and "Zachias was a wee-little man"... It was fun because Wendy and I chimed in and sang along, these are all the songs mom used to sing to us when we were kids.  I love them!

Hi Grandma, I love you.

One activity I didn't get a picture of (only video footage) was the WATER BALLOON fun that Grandma started!  Aunt Wendy supplied the initial batch of balloons and wow -- was this fun!  Drew wanted to hit them off the tee with his bat... he had so much fun smashing them.  In fact, we can't even bring up the topic of water balloons because he will throw a fit if we don't go blow some up.  One of these days while he is napping I'm going to go blow up like 50 of them and surprise him when he wakes up!

 

 

What a good big brother!  He was really starting to warm up to Reese by the time mom left. 

LOVE!

It was so sad to see everyone go -- Wendy and mom were such great help around the house.  Cooking, cleaning, doing laundry and helping with Drew and Reese.  But aside from all the great help, I miss the talks and laughs... we live way too far apart!  Our next visit can't get here soon enough. 

Thanks Grandma Lori, Aunt Wendy and Ethan for making the trip - we love you so much! 

The beautiful Reese Catherine Merrill joins the lineup!

It was a GIRL!  Reese Catherine Merrill made her arrival on July 23rd at St. Joseph Women's Hospital in Tampa, FL.   It's slightly surreal to me still that we had a BABY GIRL!  It's been two and half weeks since her birth and two weeks and a day since we brought her home.  Life is wonderful and God is GOOD and surprises and amazes us in the most wonderful ways.

 

Her arrival was a moment that I will absolutely never forget.  It is right next to "yes, I will marry you", "I do" and the arrival of Drew Robert.  However - this time the moment that jerks tears was when the dr. presented the baby to Ronnie, I watched the look on his face and saw and heard the tears of sheer utter joy when he shouted "IT'S A GIRL"!  It was a beautiful moment full of pure love and joy.  I don't care what anyone says about waiting to find out the gender - there is no planning, organizing, shopping and preparation satisfaction that could even COME CLOSE to that moment of surprise and happiness.  I will never forget it for the rest of my life! 

 

Stat'n'Stuff:

 

Weight:  7lbs 6 oz

 

Height:  21 in  (but we measured 20in at our first check-up, then 21 again at our two week... so who knows how tall this baby girl is... somewhere between 20 and 21 in :-)

 

Hair:  Dirty blonde fuzz!

 

Eyes:  Blue!

 

Features that stood out:  Well... this little princess is a spitting image of her brother.  We are going need to keep her in pink with bows on her head!  Anyone that met Drew as a newborn says they look EXACTLY alike (and they do :-).  However, she does have beautiful long fingers and toes and her lips are different than Drew's.  They are very pretty - we can't wait to see her start to smile!

 

Story of her arrival:

 

Unlike Drew, "miss thing" didn't come on her own.  Because I turned 35 in April, I was considered "AMA (advanced maternal age), so my practice won't let AMA patients go past their due date and will schedule them in advance for induction.  Funny because I had pre-term contractions at 34 weeks, so the fact we were having discussions about inductions was so crazy to me! 

 

I have to admit I was not happy about this.  I really wanted to have her come naturally and I was already dilated to a 4 at my 39 week check up.  In fact, I think I walked about 8 miles around the loop in our neighborhood (keep in mind, this loop is only half a mile long..so that is a lot of laps) in the two days leading up to the induction date.  I was doing lunges in the hall at the house, carrying in heavy groceries, going up and down the stairs with laundry.  All the stuff  I was banned from doing 4 weeks ago had now made it back on the list of "to-dos"!  But nothing worked and at 5am on July 23rd we headed to the hospital.

 

By about 8:30am, they had my in my room with an IV and were getting the Pitocin started.  When I arrived at the hospital I was at a 5 - so halfway there.  Going into this delivery - I hadn't 100% made up my mind with what I was going to do in regards to pain meds.  I got an epidural with Drew, but thought maybe with Reese I would try try try to push her out on my own. 

 

Nope.  at 10am we got the epidural ordered and I napped through dilating from about a 6.5-8.5.  The doctor came in at 11:30 to check on my progress and let me know he had to do an operation on another patient and would be back in about an hour and a half to break my water.  He didn't want to break it then because baby was close!

 

So at about 1pm he was back, broke my water and said "ok, I'll make my rounds and be back in an hour unless I hear otherwise."  Well - he probably didn't get to the end of the hall before the nurse called him back.  This baby was close!  He came back in, they moved me down and TWO PUSHES later at 1:14pm baby Reese arrived! 

 

Proud mommy and daddy

Leading up to birth, I was just as excited to meet the baby as a I was for Drew to meet the baby.  I will write more about his reaction later - but I don't think anything could have prepared him for this!  He did a great job and his sweet (and curious) nature has made him a very loving and "helpful" big brother.

 

Drew meeting Reese for the first time!

Priceless picture.

My heart is full!

 

 

 

Here is a shot with my Dr.  (Dr. Ryan Neuhaus).  I go to an OB/GYN practice where there are 6 doctors that rotate, but I was fortunate enough to have him for both deliveries!  He helped me push for 4 hours with Drew, was so patient and didn't force me into C-Section like some of the other doctors would!  So with that... I was a little less reluctant to have the induction knowing that I would have a doctor that knew me.

Daddy and his baby girl

Man those nurses know how to swaddle! 

Doesn't this picture just make you want to snuggle with her and kiss those big cheeks??!!!

Snoozin' with dad!

So this little princess proved to be quite the sleeper (and still is)!  Ronnie and I had prepared ourselves for an experience similar to Drew (which did NOT include sleeping) so when we started to get to know Reese we really thought this is too good to be true.  We even asked the nurses if she was OK, because she doesn't cry and she sleeps.  HA!  There was one time when Ronnie looked at me and was like "Katie - I think we have one of "those kind" of babies."  Which is a joke with us because we used to go out and see these couple with these super quite babies that never cried or fussed and just slept all the time.  We were so jealous -- and now we have one!!!!!  Yay - we love you Reese for lots of reasons :-)

 

We ended up leaving on Saturday (but could have left on Friday if we wanted to).  We decided to stay and take advantage of the nurses changing diapers and us just laying around for another day  -- haha.  Plus, I wanted to make sure she was eating good (which nursing, by the way - is SOOOO much easier the second time around!  Like riding a bike!)

 

We had just a few visitors while we were there -- which was great.  It was nice and quite and we were able to relax before we left.  Ron and Cathy were keeping Drew for us and they came in right after she was born along with Titi Raquel. 

 

We also so Amanda Buffinton, a great friend of mine, during our stay. 

 

Here is a pic of the Merrill clan!

 

 

 

 

Here is the first official "outfit" that mommy ever "laid out" for little Reese!  I came prepared with the onesie and the pants, but the hat/bow and adorable socks were compliments of Titi Raquel!  She is quite the accessorizer!

 

 

And we're outta here! 

 

First car ride!

 

HOME SWEET HOME! 

 

These two are our world!

We couldn't be more excited to have Reese a part of our lives and are so thankful she arrived happy, and so very healthy!  What a blessing and a miracle babies are - we couldn't be more filled with joy and love than we have been in the last few weeks. 

We love you so much Reese and welcome to the world!