Winston Spencer Fillmore

My fifth pregnancy has been my hardest so far. I felt more tired and sluggish than I have with other pregnancies, especially the last few weeks. I'm not sure if it was my age, or the pregnancies so close together, or the fact that we moved during it, or all of them combined. One thing's for sure, my excitement to meet the new little guy, was higher than ever. My official due date was June 27th, but I was scheduled to be induced on the 20th.  
The Sunday before we had a nice dinner up at the Fillmore's house. Rachel, who is pregnant with twins, and I took lots of belly pictures. You'd think that I was the one having twins from the looks of this picture.

I really love how this picture turned out. It the last picture that I have of me pregnant.

On Tuesday night, I had a bee in my bonnet about getting my bag packed and charging the batteries for all the cameras. On Wednesday morning, the 18th, I was determined to get my car registered which was the last thing on my list before the baby came. It turned out to be a lot more work and running around than I'd imagined. I finally came home at about 4pm. I was tired and in a rush trying to get some dinner ready when the boys told me that there was a bird in the front room. We have been battling the birds all summer, and this was the final straw for me. I opened the front door and told the boys to push it towards the door, but instead the bird came flying towards me. I guess I imagined that it would just fly out the front door, but I was wrong. I got scared and ran into the kitchen, tripped and fell, landing right on my belly. I laid there for a few minutes crying, worried about the baby. I called Sterling at work, then my doctor, and then headed out the door to the hospital. I could feel the baby moving but contractions started almost immediately.
My SIL Brandi met me at the hospital and took the boys to her house. I got to the hospital and they hooked me up to the monitors and baby was doing ok. My SIL Rachel walked in minutes later to come sit with me until Sterling could get there. The baby's heart rate was going down a bit with each contraction, which made them and me nervous. I was having steady contractions about every 3-4 minutes. They called my doctor and decided to keep me. I new that the baby was coming and that I'd get to meet him that night, and that he'd be ok.

 Sterling got to the hospital soon after they told me I was staying and I have never been happier to see him. My sister Becky got there about 45 minutes later.  I was on oxygen for most of the delivery since his heart rate kept going down so much. I got my epideral at about 8pm. I really loved epidurals btw. It doesn't completely put me out, but it sure takes the edge off.

 Then the waiting game began for the next couple of hours so Sterling went and got some food. This is sort of our baby tradition. I labor, while he eats!

I had invited Becky, Mom Fillmore, and Rachel to be there, and it was really great having so much support there. At this exact moment, I was in a LOT of pain. The epidural doesn't help too much with back pain. I had a similar experience with Gouverneur, so I knew this baby would be posterior.

About 30 minutes later, I knew it was time to push. Dr. Jones came in and after about 3 big pushes, out popped the most beautiful little boy with a head full of hair, just like our other boys. Born at 11:??pm, on June 18, 2014.

He looked smaller to me than our other boys, and sure enough. He weighed in at 7lbs 15.6 oz., officially making him 8 lbs. and 19 inches long. We weren't sure on the name at first, but later decided on Winston Spencer Fillmore.

This is the most amazing part of having a baby. All the pain, lack of sleep, nausea, extra pounds, and bad moods are all worth it for this one moment.

Sterling is such a darling daddy to our boys. I love to see him hold our babies. I hope each one turns out just like their daddy.

Israel David Fillmore

It's taken a bit of work to get this post up. For some reason, we've been really crazy busy around here. It might have something to do with preparing for Sandy/Frankenstorm and then our internet and power being out. Now it's on and here is the story of our little Israel.

My original due date was October 29th. I have never gone into labor with the other boys so I definitely didn't plan on it this time. I have been induced each time and had an induction set for the morning of the 29th. 

On Sunday, the 21st, we went to bed as usual. I had a crazy feeling that maybe I was going to go into labor. Not because I was having contractions, but I just sort of felt it. Sure enough, I woke up just before 3am to my water breaking. I wasn't quite sure if that is what was happening but after a call to my doctor and me waking up a bit more, we decided to head over to the hospital. My neighbor came over to sit with the boys and off we went. 

We luckily snapped this picture as we were walking out the door. I have steered clear of the camera for months so this is the real deal. 39 weeks pregnant.  Check out that belly! I think I look pretty calm for going into to labor for the first time.

We got to the hospital and checked in and sure enough, things had started. I was at a 2 which is sort of a big deal for me. Sterling and I both couldn't believe that it was really happening.

After my epidural not working with Gouverneur that was my next priority.  After I got my epidural I was able to relax. At 8am my doctor came in and hooked me up to some petocin to get the baby moving. By 11am, I was only at a 5 but I could tell my body was ready to have this baby. The contractions got pretty intense after that and I was super nauseous. At about noon, I told the nurse that I was ready to push. She went and called the doctor and after what seemed like forever, my doctor walked in casually eating an apple. I told her that this baby was ready to come and I needed to push. She ditched the apple and got ready to deliver this baby. After three very short pushes, our darling little boy popped out.

I'm always amazed at how fast things can happen. One minute, I was going to bed, and 12 hours later, my baby was born.

Israel David Fillmore

8 lbs. 12 oz.

21 1/2 inches 

Born at: 12:38pm

He screamed from the minute he was born. We've never had a baby cry so much. He is our biggest baby, outweighing Sterling Henry by two ounces.

 He settled down a bit when they wrapped him up. 

This staff was an all female team and it was a lot of fun. The anesthesiologist was a woman, my two doctors on call were women, and all the nurses of course were women. Dr. Lashgari, on the left,  was the one that delivered me.

Sterling left pretty soon after to go check up on the boys. My bff Sarah was watching the boys for us. (Thanks Sarah!)  Sterling got the boys and brought them in later that night to meet Israel.  These pictures are just darling. The boys really have been very excited to meet the "new" baby for quite sometime. Even Gouverneur seemed to like him.

Our new not so little family of six. I feel like one lucky momma to be surrounded by so many darling boys.

Sterling is such a proud, cute, daddy.

Here is the sweet little lamb right after his first bath in the hospital. He was super alert and calm for the first time that day.

 

Sterling spent the next day with the boys while I got to spend a lot of time by myself with Israel. I love the quiet one-on-one time that you get in the hospital. I'm usually quite anxious to get out of there, but this time it was very enjoyable. I just sat and snuggled this cherub all day long.

Sterling brought the boys in on Wednesday to bring me and the baby home. I was so happy to see my boys. I missed them so much! They were excited to see me and to bring the new baby home.

Sterling always dresses the new baby to take him home. This time I hadn't bought a coming home outfit so Sterling took the boys to the store and they picked one out.  He did a great job.

I am in love with these pictures of the boys watching dad change the new baby.

Israel is so lucky to have three big brothers to look up to.

Here we are in the car already to go home. We moved Gouverneur over and put the baby's seat in. I love this view of my two babies.

We always take a picture of Sterling with the new baby in front of our house. This daddy brings home the bacon and the babies.

The boys were happy to have him home as well. I still can't believe we have four boys. What a dream!

Grandma Hawkins flew in later that day to come take care of us. She will be here for a month and something tells me that we are going to need her.

All in all I would say that Israel's delivery was perfect. It was really fun to have my water break and go into labor. It was fun that it happened in the middle of the night. I love that my epidural worked perfectly. And most importantly, he arrived safely.

We spend all our time at home with grandma, snuggling our darling new baby. I'm not sure when we'll leave the house again, but that's fine with me.  We love you Israel and are so happy that you are in our family!

Nesting

 To say that I'm nesting with this pregnancy would be a bit of an understatement. I've gotten more accomplished in the last six weeks, than I've done in the last year. This pregnancy has been my hardest so far. I've had some complications and then tack on the hottest summer in history and a power outage (no A/C) and there you have it. The last six weeks have been dreamy with the weather and I've really enjoyed things a lot more. We are beyond excited to meet this little guy. We have just a week left.

I made a long nesting list about three months ago and almost everything has been checked off or is in the process. I'm going to brag about a few on them so that in a few months when I'm getting nothing accomplished, I can look back and feel better about things.

It all started with the boys Halloween costumes. I made these capes for the boys one weekend when Sterling was gone on the Father and Sons campout.  They are double sided with a different hero on each side. I finished their masks and shirts this week. So costumes are totally ready.

I started these little bootties for the baby this summer in Florida and only got one done. I threw in the towel when the summer heat hit in full swing. But after finishing the capes I was really motivated and finished these. So glad I did. I love them. I've made lots of pairs for little girls but these were my first boy pair.

With all the fabulous boy clothes my sister Becky gave me, I really needed to organize and sort everything I had. I bought a ton of new bins and spent two nap times sorting. I have everything perfectly sorted form 0-3 months up to 6 years. Before I had three bins that were all mixed and scattered. I got rid of anything that was worn and gross. This got me really excited for the baby to get here.

I was about to buy a new carseat canopy and decided I could make my own. This project took 25 minutes and I love it. It's blue minky on the inside and it matches my Bundle Me that my sister Marilee gave me when I had Sterling Henry. This little boy is going to be comfy and cozy all winter long!

We took two weekend nights last week and completely cleaned out and organized our basement. We have an unfinished/storage that has been the one room we close the door on. Now I love it. It has a few things left but it's almost completely organized. My food storage finally has a place that I can get to and see what I have. When I say we cleaned this out, I mean Sterling. I sat on a chair and he did it all. He rocks like that.

We're switching the boys rooms this weekend and moving the big boys both into big boy beds. Then we'll have a big boy room and a baby room. So fun to think of Gouverneur getting to share a room with the baby. He's going to love it!

I got my Romney sign out. This wasn't on my list but it should've been. Feels good to have it out. 

I went to the ballet with some friends over the weekend. We saw the Russian Mariinsky Ballet's Cinderella. It was a modern version, but very enjoyable. It was fun to be out since I'm pretty sure this won't happen again for a while. Or ever.

I did plan on having all my Christmas gifts done as well. They are not even close to being finished but I'm not too worried. Now that all the other stuff is done, the Christmas gifts and holding a sweet new baby is all I need to accomplish in the next two months. My mom gets here on Wednesday. We are all looking forward to her arrival.

We are all overly excited to meet this little guy. He cannot even get here soon enough. There is something so sweet and special about having a new baby in the house. They bring such a strong spirit with the home. We can't wait to meet you baby boy!

Baby Boy Fillmore #4

This darling little boy will be arriving October 29th and we couldn't be more thrilled. We got to see him again today.

He waved this time!

This pregnancy has been so completely different that I thought for sure it was a girl. But after a rough two weeks and two ultrasounds, we were thrilled and relieved to see a healthy little boy in there.

The boys are all thrilled. Sterling Henry has come up with lots of names. His current favorites are Jet, Tractor, and Mac. He has also thrown out Water, Ducky, Pancake, and Light. It's fun to see him so excited. He calls the baby the "New" baby. Gouverneur is now called the "Old" baby.

We do love our boys and look forward to meeting this little guy!

Family Fishing.

We took the boys fishing on Saturday and it was a lot of fun. I was originally going to stay home but was convinced last minute to go. I am so glad I went. It was a lot of fun to watch the boys. We only stayed for about 45 minutes and didn't catch a thing but had a blast. Sterling Henry was completely drenched by the time we left. All in all it was a complete success!

Sterling Henry was not very interested in holding dad's pole. He was too busy holding this stick and throwing rocks in the water. I love the smile on his face!
He loved having a bit of freedom and being able to climb all around.

Dellin hung out in the stroller for most of the time. He was pretty happy as long as he had snacks.

I use to think that I looked more uncomfortable than I feel. I think it is now even.

I love this proud dad smile!
We had to completely strip Sterling Henry down for the ride home. He didn't seem to mind at all.
I think my boys have got it good. They have lot of fishing trips to look forward too in the future!

BRING ON MAY

We had a fabulous weekend and happily welcomed May. I am happy to say that the baby is coming THIS month. Now when people ask when I am going to "pop", I can tell them SOON!

We had a great weekend. I love everything about the weekends but mostly just having Sterling around. The boys and I are much happier to have dad home.

I started the weekend early on Friday morning by watching the royal wedding. I was up before 6am and watching. The plan was to make popcorn but I couldn't bring myself to eat that early. (Surprise. Surprise.) I loved every second of the wedding. I can't figure out how people didn't love it. Kate's dress, her smile, William, I could go on and on.
On Saturday we ventured out to the new Cafe Rio that opened that week. It is in a tiny town called Olney, Maryland and it is abour 35 minutes away. It was packed. There were tons of people there wearing BYU and UTAH gear. We also ran into several people we knew. This Cafe Rio has been long awaited. (You may notice that I wear the same thing in every picture. I have moved into my "last weeks of pregnancy" outfit. I have this shirt in pink and blue and I wear that same skirt almost everyday.)
The boys loving their food.
I have been dreaming of this salad. I usually can only eat about 1/2 which is why I normally get the tostada. I polished this baby off and had no regrets!

We then headed over to Bass Pro Shops to see the fish and get Dellin a new hat. The boys love the fish tank as you can see.

They were having a boat show and Sterling Henry got to sit in each one.
My mom comes exactly 3 weeks from today. YIPPEE!

Baby Boy #3

Baby boy #3 will be here in just over three weeks or so. We are so excited that we can't even stand it! This pregnancy has flown by and he will be here so soon. I keep getting asked if I am ready for #3. I feel just as excited and ready for #3 as I did #1. I might even be a little more excited for this one. I realize that things are going to be crazy and everything is going to take more time and be a little harder, but I can't wait. This is what I have always wanted. Lots of kids close together. You are never going to here me complain about being able to have babies because it is a huge blessing. Yes, I have been pregnant for the last 3+ years straight and yes, I am tired but I wouldn't have it any other way.

There were a few things I needed to get done before he gets here.

1. New Onesies. I love new onesies. I sort of feel like each kid needs brand new white onesies that are bright and fresh. I also got some cute colored ones for the summer.


2. Binkies. I love the Nuk brand of binkies. I love getting new ones for the new baby. I couldn't resist these sport ones.

3. New blankets. Sterling Henry had tons of blankets and I only got a couple new ones for Dellin. Since this baby is going to be a spring/summer baby, I got some new lightweight ones. I LOVE the Aden and Anais brand. My aunt Pat gave me one when I had Sterling Henry and I have loved it. I got this 4-pack for baby boy since they will be great for summer. If you haven't tried them, they are amazing!
4. Baby quilt. I have made a baby quilt for each of my kids. Here is baby boy's quilt. I just need to get it quilted and we are done.
Basically this boy can come tomorrow and we are ready for him. We are so excited to meet baby boy!