One week old

One week old and already, poor Liam is being "accessorized" by his big sisters. He does not look amused, does he? I predict a long road ahead of him...


Here they are, having a "sleepover."


And finally, the first photo of the five of us... taken at one week old. And as always, Liam is out cold.

It's been a good week overall. He sleeps for most of the day, and I literally have to wake him for nearly every diaper change and feeding.

For the past three nights, Liam has slept for 3-4 hours stretches. I've only been getting up with him twice per night, which is waaaaay better than the girls ever slept at this age.

The only time he ever cries is during diaper changes.

He is always happy and content, so relaxed, a dream baby. I hope this is an indication of how he will be as he gets older.

So sleepy!

Is he precious or what?

He spends most of his days sleeping, only waking if I change his diaper and feed him. I think he's got his days and nights mixed up and I don't know how to change that. Trust me, there's plenty of noise during the daytime that should rouse him but he sleeps right through it all.

The night before last, he slept for a 4 hour stretch. Last night, we got a 3+ hour stretch out of him but not until 3:00-6:30 am. Dave and I have been taking shifts but even that is not cutting it.

Mom, here's one of the outfits from you.

I'd like to write more but I just don't have the time. Here's one more picture, a rare shot of him with his eyes open.

Bundled up and ready for his first doctor appointment,
and his first time in the car other than the ride home from the hospital.

Video Birth Announcement

This afternoon I took advantage of some quiet time and created a short montage of Liam's first few days, basically a video birth announcement. I am pleased with how it turned out.

If I haven't already sent you the link, you can view it here:
(Hover your mouse over the area below and the link should magically appear.)
Liam's Birth Announcement

Here are a few more photos:

It's a boy!

William "Liam" Alexander Lindsay was born at 5:12 am on Saturday, 1/23.

I began timing contractions at 8:00 pm on Friday night, and by midnight, it became apparent that we were having this baby soon! Contractions were only about 3 minutes apart by the time we got in the car to drive to the hospital.

We arrived at the hospital after the fastest car ride ever, right around 12:30 am. By 4:30, I was completely dilated and ready to push.
After less than 5 hours in the hospital, he was born.

Tears were shed. We got our boy, and we are completely smitten. He has a bit of fuzzy, golden hair and is absolutely beautiful. He is already nursing like a pro and so far is a very calm baby.

Weight: 7 lbs. 14 oz.
Length: 20 1/4 inches

I'm feeling great, but extremely tired from being awake for nearly 30 hours straight. Amanda and Eva will be here shortly to meet their little brother and I can't wait for that moment.

Our family is now complete.

I will post pictures as soon as I am able.

Love you all!

Holy Cow!!

Today I am at the 39 week mark, due next Friday.

I had my weekly midwife appointment this morning and was completely shocked to find that I am 100% effaced and 4 cm dilated already!

I am still in disbelief, since I have not felt ANY pain up to this point. What I have felt is a lot of pressure and what I thought were Braxton Hicks contractions... but maybe that was the real thing after all.

I also had a quick ultrasound to confirm that the baby was head down, and sure enough it was in the proper position.

So, I guess things could start at any moment. I do hope the baby will hold out for one more day though. Dave has a full band practice scheduled tomorrow, with the hopes of rehearsing, recording and editing a few tracks. And I promised the girls that we would finally see "The Princess and the Frog" with Amanda's best friend, since our plans fell through the last two times!

Dave took a quick photo of the girls and I tonight, while we were having some special reading time together. Could this be the final picture of me with my baby belly?

39 weeks.. and ready to go!

Anyhow, I'll keep you all posted. Things are bound to get exciting in the very near future!

Recent Pictures

The girls and I are stuck at home today, nursing colds.

Because I don't have the energy for much more than this, I'll just post a few recent pictures.

Our snow frog

Our snow frog the next day, after we "spray painted" it with green water.

* *

Over the weekend, we decided to do a "family day" on the Cape. We had a great breakfast at IHOP in Bourne, where the girls loved sampling the strawberry and blueberry pancake syrups. Afterwards ,we made our way to the Cape Cod Children's Museum, which is housed in an old airplane hanger, in Mashpee.

We must have spent a good three hours there, and actually that's probably where we caught our colds! The kids had a blast, running from one thing to the next. Dave had an equally good time working his way through all of the advanced puzzles/brain teasers and successfully completeing them, while I followed the girls around with the camera.

Amanda, the pirate girl

Eva, the snowman

The rubber band board

Making valentines

The Lindsay Four

This could very well be one of the last pictures of us as a family of four! According to Dave's "baby countdown" program, we're at 9.5 days and counting. I just hope we're all healthy before it decides to come!

17 days and counting

According to the daily emails from the handy-dandy computer program Dave wrote, we have 16.59 days or 2.37 weeks until the baby's due date. (What would I do without these daily reminders!?)

Amanda took a belly photo for me this morning, and I have to say she's getting pretty good with the camera!

37 1/2 weeks...

I had my 37 week midwife appointment this morning and everything went well! I am measuring at 36 weeks - the same as last week, despite a 2 pound weight gain. The explanation for this is that the baby has now dropped into my pelvis. This makes sense to me because I definitely feel more comfortable now and breathing has become easier!

I have been feeling Braxton Hicks contractions for at least a week now, something I never experienced with the other two pregnancies. My midwife says that with each pregnancy, you feel more of these because your body "knows what it's doing by now." I have also been feeling some mild contractions and lots of pressure since yesterday, so I can only hope that I am making progress.

We are definitely feeling more prepared and ready for this baby to come than we ever have before. I am feeling extreme excitement and anticipation... and none of the nervousness that I felt with the girls. I guess this is becoming "old hat" to me. I feel surprisingly relaxed and confident that I can do this.

I packed an overnight bag for the hospital yesterday and made a list of the last minute things we'll need. I read the list to Dave and laughed a little at how high-tech we've become: camera, batteries, video camera, iPod, iPod charger, laptop. I also threw in some crossword puzzles, a deck of cards and the cribbage board to balance it out (although I think we took all of these things the last two times and never used them.)

The girls are also getting more excited by the day and I have noticed that they are playing with their baby dolls a lot more... feeding them, rocking them, changing the diapers, etc.

Part of me thinks that I will not make it to my due date. Dave agrees. Maybe that's wishful thinking, but either way, I am trying to remember and savor every last minute of this pregnancy because it will soon be over.

Stay tuned...

Still snowed in... but making the best of it.

The view looking out the barn's patio door

So here we are on Day #3 of Daddy being gone, and things are going amazingly well despite circumstances such as inclement weather!

Wouldn't you know it, Dave's trip just happened to coincide with a nor'easter snowstorm that seems to have caught even the weather forecasters off-guard. As of Thursday night when Dave was packing the car, it sounded like we would just get a dusting of snow... nothing major.

I was surprised to wake up to so much snow on Saturday! And when I got up at 4:00 this morning and looked out the window, I was even more surprised to see that the road was completely snow covered again! My heart sank, as I realized we probably have to cancel our movie/ice cream plans once again.

I bundled up and went out to shovel a path between the house and barn, only to see that the snow had drifted considerably with close to a foot of snow in some areas. Then the door to the barn was so frozen that I had to throw my weight against it several times just to get inside! The day was not off to a good start.

I tried digging the van out of the snow, but again there was close to a foot of snow in the parking lot and I quickly realized I wasn't going to be able to get out until the plow arrived. Resigning myself to the fact that we would again be "snowed in" for the day, I went back inside to warm up with some coffee and toast.

The plow finally showed up after noon today but I have not yet gone back out to dig out the van. Up until a few minutes ago, it was still snowing... and with my luck, if I shovel around the van, it will only cause another round of snow showers.

The girls and I have kept plenty busy in the meantime. So far today, I have gotten a ton of organizing done and managed to do some deep cleaning. And although Lego's are not my thing, I helped the girls build a Lego house. (I think Dave would be proud.)

Yesterday we had fun painting a tea set and making soap.

The pretty pink and purple "Princess" tea set

Homemade soap

I have to admit that it has been a lot of fun to just relax and play. It seems that too often we are hustling and bustling, trying to get somewhere on time, running from one place to the next. There has been none of that this weekend.

And now, here I go for another attempt at digging out the mini-van...

Flying Solo

Today was the first of my four days as a "single parent."

Dave left bright and early this morning, first picking up his brother and then driving down to North Carolina to help their father move to his new house in the hills of Tennessee. Because they were driving south, it looked like they would avoid the snowstorm that was predicted for our area. And with it being a holiday, the roads would most likely be clear and traffic-free for the 13 hour drive.

As it turns out, traffic was the least of their worries.

As of 7:30 am, the duo was already in Connecticut. By 9:45 am, they had made it to New York so they were clearly making good time and things were looking good.

However, around dusk, they realized that the car's headlights weren't working. After fiddling for an hour, they were unable to figure out the problem and had to check into a hotel in Virginia, a full four hours from their final destination. This means their traveling time is now limited to daylight hours only, unless they can somehow find an Audi dealership that is both open and able to fit the car in on a holiday weekend!

But on a more positive note, the girls and I had a fantastic day! We started the morning by making a lengthy list of fun activities that we could do while Daddy was away. And I am impressed with just how much we accomplished!

I am also surprised at how quickly the day flew by, probably because we were having such a good time! More than once, Amanda said,"I'm having so much fun, I don't even miss Daddy!"

Whew! Mission accomplished!

First we went shopping and bought an ottoman for the den. It will serve many purposes... a footstool for the couch, storage for all of the "quiet time toys", a seat to accommodate both kids at the computer and a surface for playing board games. That right there was enough to make it a good day in my book. You've gotta love a piece of multi-functional furniture!

We then did some light grocery shopping, and for a special treat, I let each of the girls choose their own box of cereal. Well, you would have thought it was Christmas all over again. Who knew such a simple thing could bring a child that much joy!? As we slowly made our way down the aisle of colorful boxes, I figured they'd each choose something with tons of sugar. But I was wrong. Special K with red berries for Eva and Berry Berry Kix for Amanda. Not too bad and they're actually cereals that I like too!

Finally, we stopped at a thrift store that I had never been to in hopes of finding some treasures. Once again, we scored big time: nice winter boots for both girls and 2 fuzzy blanket sleepers for the new baby for just $10.

After a lunch of leftover restaurant takeout from our New Year's Eve dinner, it was naptime for Eva and Quiet Time for Amanda. I used the time to wash all of the new baby's clothes and do a little more organizing. I think we've got all the rooms rearranged and figured out now and I'm feeling pretty prepared at this point. There's really not much left to do other than wait!

After the girls were sufficiently re-energized, we spent the rest of the daylight hours outside playing in the snow. We did some "snow-painting" with spray bottles and colored water, which was a big hit and loads of fun!


Then I pulled the girls around the yard in their sleds, both at the same time. What a workout that was! Probably not a great idea in hindsight because now my back is killing me, but the girls loved it.


And finally, we built our first snowman of the season. We used the traditional carrot for a nose and sticks for the arms, but were at a loss when it came to mouth and eyes material. Finally I went in and raided the forgotten Halloween candy that sits on top of the fridge, and found some jawbreakers and Hot Tamales. That did the trick, and actually the coloring melted right into the snow for a neat effect.


Amanda decided that the snowman might get lonely, so she quickly built a snowbaby. Pretty cute.

By the time our little snow family was finished, it was getting dark and time to go in for dinner. I decided on "breakfast for dinner": waffles with jam and freshly made whipped cream, smoked bacon, fresh pineapple and hot chocolate with marshmallows. How can you go wrong with that?

After teeth were brushed and the girls were in their comfy pj's, we snuggled on the couch, watched "Rudolph's Shiny New Year" and talked to Daddy on speakerphone. Bedtime was a cinch... not a single peep out of them after I blew the last kiss and left the room.

As for tomorrow and the next day, we still have plenty of fun options to choose from. The only definite plan we have is going to see "The Princess and the Frog" with one of Amanda's friends, followed by ice cream sundaes.

Other ideas we came up with:
- Making soap (from a kit courtesy of Uncle Josh and family)
- Painting a tea set (from a kit courtesy of Uncle Jared and family)
- Taking a bubble bath with the new Big Bird and Elmo bath gel from Santa
- Painting toenails (this is a HUGE deal, as Eva has never had hers done!)
- Making banana pudding parfaits
- Painting the Tinkerbell and Cinderella posters from Santa
- Making "books" out of magazine pictures
- Going to Build-a-Bear to use some Christmas gift cards (Again, something they've never done!)
- Making raspberry jello
- Making a trip to Babies R Us for last minute baby things (and letting each of the kids choose a special gift for the baby)
- Reading and playing with all of the other games, puzzles and toys from Christmas

I think it's going to be a fun weekend! Nonetheless, we will all be happy when Daddy is back home, safe and sound.

Follow-up:
Our "definite plan" of going to the movies has now been postponed until Sunday, due to the snow. We got more than they were predicting, so today looks like it will be a stay-at-home day.