BC's First Hike

Last weekend we ventured out for quick hike. It was BC's first outdoor adventure. She was all snuggled up in the frontpack and slept the entire time. Our first attempt proved unsuccessful when we drove up the the "Covered Bridge Hike" and the road was quite obviously closed (see pic above). BP was very disappointed, so Daddy saved the day with another hiking location nearby. BP is quite the outdoorsy type. She really surprises me because she is such a girly girl also. BB just goes with the flow and follows her big sister's lead. They have become really close since BC was born...really close. I have watched them become friends and really bond in the last month. I love it!

Anyway it was nice to take a deep breath and take in the fresh air. Cannot wait to go back when some of the 30" of snow we just received melts. Tomorrow is March 1st...Yeah!!!

1 month

Baby C is 1 month today!

Her adorable outfit compliments of our friends M&M, BP's best buddy and her mommy.

You have to see the other adorable items Makie Clothier makes and sells in their boutique in the city. Check out http://www.makieclothier.com/ for simple, but very chic baby and kids clothing,

Small, Medium, and Large

Flashback: Valentine's Day

I am about two weeks behind with my blog posts. Sorry!

Just a couple pictures from our Valentine's Day. It was simple...just how I like it. We spent the day with friends and family.

Above... BP's Valentines she made for her class. Cupcake liners with decroations and then a ribbon to hang. I saw this on Martha Stewarts website and happen to have all the supplies so it was perfect. She made 32 of them for each child in her class. She shortened her name half way through.

And a picture of our roses. Daddy surpirsed us all with 4 dozen long stem red roses. Once for each of his girls. So sweet!

FOOD, INC.

We watched this the other night. If you haven't seen this movie you must. It really makes you think about what you buy and put in your body. You can also check out their website http://www.foodincmovie.com/

Pancake Date

Baby C and Baby A, born one day a part, in the same hospital. He lives just ten minutes away with his mommy and daddy, our good friends, Jessica and Brian. We met on Valentine's Day at a local pancake breakfast. Their first outing since coming home from the hospital. It will be so much fun for them to grow up together!

Canyon Ranch Turkey Chili

A delicious recipe from the famous health spa...I tweaked it just a little bit because I always do. I have a hard time following a recipe.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup chopped sweet onions (I use a red onion)

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1/4 cup orange bell pepper

1lb ground turkey

1 (28 oz) can crushed organic tomatoes

1 (16 oz) can red kidney beans drained and rinsed

1/2 can navy beans drained and rinsed

1 (16 oz) can petite diced tomatoes and sweet onions

1 (16 oz) can sweet corn

1 tablespoon chili powder

2 tablespoons sugar

1 box chicken stock (low sodium)

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon hot sauce

11/2 tablespoons sea salt

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

In a large skillet saute onion, pepper, and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until onions are translucent. Add ground turkey and cook until browned. Then transfer to a large pot and add all the other ingredients. Simmer for 1 hour stirring occasionally.

This recipe is not just healthy but REALLY, REALLY YUMMY!

The navy beans, corn, and orange bell pepper were my additions to the original recipe. I like color and lots of veggies in my chili :)

It is perfect with a loaf of fresh bread on a cold winter day! Enjoy!

Yellow

My favorite color = Yellow

Yellow makes me happy and for that reason I have a little yellow in almost every room of our house.

Right now I REALLY love yelllow because it makes me think of Spring, which I am hoping is right around the corner...

Here are some yellow accessories I am loving right now...

Dish Towel from Anthro

Butter Dish from Anthro

Apron from Anthro

Suitcase from JCrew

Sandals from Boden USA

Ring from Old Navy

Placemats from Anthro

Coin Purse from Anthro

Who's Who???

See if you can figure it out...I have a hard time myself.

Big Sisters

Just a couple recent pictures of BB and BP.

#1 Playing Hair Salon

#2 Baking Cupcakes

#3 Getting ready to go run errands

They take the Big Sister role very seriously and they adore their baby sister!

Note: The girls are both into dressing themselves lately. It makes for some interesting outfits that I like to think I have the ulitmate veto power over, but we are also trying to encourage the "Montessori Independance" so I am attempting to relax a bit. It isn't easy.

The Nanny...

So I mentioned that BP is slightly obsessed with her new little sister, right? It is so sweet and really shows the loving nurturing side of BP. It is just the way she is and always has been. You can see it in her face in the pictures above. It was love at first sight. She was the same way when we brought BB home from the hospital. She considers Baby Claire not just her little sister, but HER baby. When Baby Claire cries in the middle of the night, guess who wakes and comes running to help change her and feed her? Yes BP! She is by my side for the 2-4 am shift because our little peanut thinks this time of the night is party time. We are working on this... And hopefully the thrill will wear off for BP because she really needs her sleep.

Nursery in progress...

Baby Claire's nursery is a work in progress. We painted three yellows on the wall and asked everyone who stepped foot in our house to vote on their favorite. The middle shade won. It is called "popcorn kernel" by Benjamin Moore. So now she has a yellow room with touches of green and a coralish pink. We still have to get her a bookcase, rug, mobile, and some artwork. In time it will all come together. She has an awesome view of the surrounding landscape and dairy farm on Swiss Hill. I have to thank our friends Jess & Brian for the use of their rocker. They have the matching one for their little boy who was born the day before Claire. The smaller rocker was mine as a kid. BP and BB sit and read in it or rock their babies. BP was breastfeeding her baby in it tonight, which made us all crack up. Oh, and the antique nursery scale is from my mom. And the pink pillows with the little daisies are are from my Aunt Kim. They are Laura Ashley and close to 15 years old. Still love them! Lots of special items and Baby Claire's nursery is slowly coming together. I will post more pics when it nears completion.

Birth Story...

It was a typical Wednesday. The girls and I left the house at 8 am to bring BP to school. We said our good-byes, kissed her, and then drove to Daddy's office. BB and I dropped something off, visited for a little while, and left to run errands. We saw Keri for a couple minutes because we had an envelope to give her. We dropped off some long overdue Christmas presents at Annie and Grace's house. We went to the post office to mail a couple other presents and pick up the mail. Then we returned home for lunch. All through the morning I was having contractions, but never really timed them. I was also very crampy and uncomfortable. BB and I ate lunch and the contractions / pain kept getting worse. My gut instinct told me something was up and I called my doctor. They told me to come into the office to be checked.

BB and I jumped into the car and sped off to the office. I almost got pulled over by a trooper who followed me for a while and then must have decided against it. Eric and Papa met me at the doctor's office. We ran in while Papa stayed in the car with a snoozing BB. In the office the contractions were getting more and more uncomfortable. Lying still attached to the monitor was difficult. I was wiggling all over the table. The Dr. checked me and I was 1 cm. She suggested going to the hospital because I appeared to be in labor and since it was to be my third c-section they did not want to risk full labor.

Everyone in the office wished us good luck and we left for the hospital. Papa took my car and went to pick up BP from school. By the time we got to the hospital I was 3 cm and the doctor on call said, "book the operating room we're going in". That was around 3:30 ish and they wheeled me in at 5. Baby Claire was born about 20 minutes later. As it was my third c-section in four years...yikes!!! I knew what to expect, knew the prep, knew the drill, but it did not keep me from freaking out at one point. That point was when my sweets went to change into scrubs with my doctor, and the anaesthesiologist went to work on me. I was shaking from head to toe. Then as I laid on the operating table waiting to see him return, my blood pressure dropped and I started to black out. They gave me oxygen or something and I felt better immediately. But then I felt very nauseous and just as I did with BP and BB I started throwing up while strapped to the table. It figures since I vomited through all three pregnancies that I would do so again until the very end. I must have warned the OR staff because later as I apologized for vomiting, they laughed and said at least you warned us. Because of the medicine it gets fuzzy, but I remember seeing Claire, asking a hundred times if she was alright, and kissing her as she, Eric, and the nurse left for the nursery. It was not long before they were wheeling me back to my room to be with Claire, Eric, and our parents.

Today Baby Claire is one week old. Wow...time really does fly. She has eaten her way back to her birth weight and is a happy, very content baby. She reminds me of BP in looks and disposition. As I said before I feel complete with our three little girls...a little tired, but complete!