We are having a great Valentines Day Weekend here at the Nelson house! We braved the mall yesterday and took both girls out with the double stroller- that was a crazy but fun experience. Then Karl took both girls out again and I was able to sleep for 3 HOURS in the afternoon. It was the best Valentines Day present a sleep deprived momma could have ever asked for. Sunday we went out to breakfast and ran to Target- another successful trip. This evening we will be grilling steaks and watching the Olympics.

The rest of my extended family was in Portland OR this weekend for my Grandfather's memorial service...although I wish I could have been there- we made the best of being here at home. The best part of this weekend is that Karl is off tomorrow for Presidents Day!! :)

Keeping Layna busy

YUM!
Watching them bake!

Yep...we eat the batter!! DUH!

I'm not proud to admit that Layna has probably watched more TV this past month than ever before! She is really good at playing by herself and helping with Claire but every once in awhile she just needs to be occupied by a Barney, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse..or THE PRINCESS MOVIE!! Layna had been getting IN AND OUT of bed at night since Claire was born..and mommy..being the good social worker that she is- decided to make a sticker chart! If Layna stayed in bed ALL NIGHT then she got a sticker on the chart- if she got 5 stickers then daddy would take her to get a prize! Daddy was suppose to just get her something of the $1 rack at Target but instead came home with a PRINCESS BARBIE MOVIE. Well...lets just say that we probably watch this thing atleast twice a day. And Karl and I sing the songs from the movie in our sleep at night. Point being..this is a post about a few of the things I have tried to do with Layna this past month BESIDES watching the princess movie! We have made muffins...and had a great time with Play Doh. Here's the pics!

The Girls!

Daddy and 'The Girls'

Mommy and 'The Girls'

Mary and 'The Girls'

Its only been 5 weeks and I already find myself referencing 'The GIRLS' often! I love the sound of that! Things are going well here..Claire has a little bit of acid reflux and just started taking Zantac last night. We are hopful that this will make her a little more comfortable. Layna continues to be an excellent big sister and I am adjusting to being home with my two girls. Most days are pretty crazy..but we are surviving! Here are some more pics of 'THE GIRLS' :)

Photo Shoot- 3 Weeks Old

Claire REALLY looks like Layna in this one!!

When Layna was first born I signed us up for a years worth of photo sessions with a private photographer out in St. Charles. Although she was awesome..and we have great pics of Layna- we are on a limited budget this time around. My good friend Laura was nice enough to come over and help me do a photo session with Claire. She has two boys Nick and Michael- so the boys and Layna also took part in the photo shoot! Although they are not 'professional' I think we still got some great pics. So even though we dont have the time or $$ to get professional pics taken every few weeks...we still think Claire is the cutest thing ever and will keep snapping away with our own cameras!! Enjoy!

Family of Four!

The Nelson family is adjusting well to having become a FAMILY OF FOUR!! I have been blessed with wonderful help these past few weeks and starting Monday I will be 'going it alone' with the two girls! I only wish some of my mom friends who also have two kids lived a little closer :) Layna is doing well and LOVES Claire- We are getting sleep (some of the time) and I am trying to watch my diet as Claire seems to be very sensitive to the things I eat. Wish I had time to type more...but I hear crying upstairs- thus ends my blogging session. Enjoy the pics!

ITS A GIRL!!

On December 29th at 6:13 am we welcomed Claire Elizabeth to our family! She weighed 7 lbs 5 oz and was 19.5 in long. She is just perfect and we are excited to be bringing in the new year by spending our first night home as a family of four.

So here's how it all went down...K and I were watching the Bears game in bed on Monday night when my water broke around 10pm. We called my parents and my dad came over to stay with Layna as we headed off to the hospital. We had to go to the evaluation unit to confirm that my water did infact break. Although it was very busy, they found me a room by about 11:30 pm. I was having contractions about every 5 minute and decided to get the epidural around 1:30am. Everything went well and I was glad that they didnt hit spinal fluid the way they had with Layna. At 3am the nurse confirmed that I was still at 2 cm and so they decided to start pitocin. By 5 am I was 7 cm..and 10 minutes later...yes...10 minutes..I was COMPLETE at 10 cm! The nurse quickly called the Dr. Alhering (who was the Dr on-call) and he barely made it in time. Once he arrived I push for about 10 minutes and Claire was born at 6:13 am. The nurse kept saying that the baby had lots of hair..so Karl and I were ready to see a black haired baby again...but to our surprise..she had beautiful reddish blond hair!

When Karl announced 'Its a GIRL' we were both so excited! I had a strong feeling all throughout the pregnancy that this was another girl and I was completely thrilled when my instincts were confirmed. I never had a sister growing up and I am so excited to raise two girls and experience the connection and bond between sisters.

I am feeling pretty good and Claire is doing great. She is nursing really well and is so tiny and sweet. Layna has been a wonderful big sister!! She calls her 'my baby' and wants to help in every way possible. Although we are a little overwhelmed by the idea of two kids at home now..we are blessed beyond belief to have these two beautiful girls!

Christmas!!

This Christmas was probably the most crazy/fun Christmas I have ever had! We attended church on Christmas Eve and then went back to the Zim's for some pizza. Christmas morning Layna was up at 5:30 and I think Karl was just as wired as she was so we began opening presents by 6:15. Watching Layna open her presents from Santa was a BLAST! She had been asking for a dollhouse for months and was so adorable when opening it. We then headed out to Karl's sisters house because Kurt and Bev got in town around 8:30. We enjoyed a nice breakfast (Thanks Sheri!) and then went to pick up G and G Fry. From then on we spent the day at Zim's for presents and an extended family party. We didnt get home until almost 8pm last evening. We were all exausted but had an awesome Christmas!! I thought Christmas when I was a KID was fun...but having kids of your own tops the cake! Cant wait till next year when I will have TWO to enjoy!