Babies!

This is my newest niece, Caroline.



She's Dave and Lauren's darling new baby, and we're so excited to have her.  Plus, in true Anderson-brother form, Mike and Kelly had their baby the very next week (one week apart--best cousins ever!), and Rob and Kasey should have their baby any time now.

Because of the miracle of Facetime on John's phone, we got to see that baby "live" when she was just two days old.  I called for me; I thought I was the most excited to see that tiny baby and watch her do that new baby squirm.  However, I found my enthusiasm completely overshadowed by this girl.



Thirty minutes (but only a couple minutes are shown here).  She kept cupping her hands and saying "Beebee hands" because she wanted to hold that tiny baby in her little hands.



I'm not kidding.



And she could have gone all day.  And all night.  And then she did it again when Baby Wendy was born.  And now that Dave has put up some videos of Caroline on the interwebs, I just have to push replay over and over again while I work on the dishes.  She never gets sick of talking about the baby.  Ever.  Plus, she thinks all of us should be every bit as excited as she is, for as long as she is.  That's a girl with an obsession.

There are days. . .

. . . when it's 4:00 p.m., and it's too much work to even think about finishing the Snoopy Easter book you love so much.

 Too bad you wasted all that energy throwing the tantrum about desperately wanting the Snoopy Easter book that your older sister had.  If you'd just waited until she was done instead, you might have been able to look at the whole thing.

Crazy Baby

This baby won't eat cheese in any form, other than pizza.  She hates macaroni and cheese and despises chicken nuggets.  She barely tolerates hot dogs and grilled chicken.  Rice, pasta, and un-peanut-buttered bread get dropped off the edge of her tray.
However, she consumes black beans like a person possessed. . .

 . . . smashing them all over her face in an effort to get MORE of them into her mouth FASTER.

The same thing happens whenever she is offered a banana.  I stopped slicing her bananas months ago because she'd prefer me to just hand her an entire unpeeled banana to devour in under 30 seconds.

Seriously.  Maybe she was meant to be born in Brazil.

To Answer the Hair Question

I think our babies are getting gradually hairier.

Exhibit A:  Olivia
Not bald, but nearly.  (And it took FOREVER for that child to grow some bangs.)

Exhibit B:  Naomi
A little more hair, especially above the ears, in lovely old man fashion.

Mimi was not the most attractive newborn.  (She's gorgeous now, so I feel okay posting that publicly.)

Exhibit C:  Annabel
Certainly a fuzzy baby, and her hair was distinctive in that it refused point blank to lay down.

Exhibit D:  Madeline
Hairiest baby ever.  I need to take some more pictures because she is much cuter now.

Introducing. . .

Madeline Susanne

Born 8/22/10

10:33 p.m.

6 lbs 12 oz

20 inches long

Having convinced myself that I was going to be overdue with this child, I was unprepared to go into labor (on my own--apparently my body is actually capable of that!) on Sunday.  I had contractions all Saturday night (annoying, but not really uncomfortable), contractions all through church (uncomfortable, but liveable), contractions as I sent John out to his moonlighting assignment (45 minutes away), contractions on my Sunday afternoon walk with the girls (quite uncomfortable), contractions when John came home and I was cooking dinner (I couldn't talk through them very well by that point).  I couldn't emotionally set myself up for disappointment by considering that I could be in labor EIGHT DAYS EARLY.  I was trying to tell John that he was going to be fine a) going in to deliver his patient who was laboring in the hospital, and b) completing another moonlighting assignment in the ER that night.  Fortunately, John was better able to contemplate the possibility, and he set up contingency plans for his responsibilities.  

Lucky he did.  By 7:30, I was pacing the rooms during contractions (in John's words) "like a caged animal".  We hurriedly set up child care for the night (thank you, Larisssa!!) and were admitted to the hospital by 8:30.  Even as they were putting in my IV (with me jumping off the bed every time a contraction would hit, trying to move my way around the pain), I couldn't believe that I was actually going to have a baby that night.  I got my epidural at 9:45 and finally believed it.  Also, I finally relaxed.   Ahhh. . . epidural.

Relief lasted 35 minutes.  Pushed two? three? times with the assistance of my lovely nurse, Cheryl. . . 

. . . and met Madeline.  My doctor had said, during one check earlier in the process, that this baby was probably going to be bald.  He was almost right.  :)

Her sisters love her.

We all love her.  

What a lucky family we are.

How Sweet!

John loves to tease about the "residency patient population", and he has a point. Patients who have a resident for a doctor are often people who have burned their bridges with many other doctors. However, there are bright spots. One of John's sweet older patients showed up at the clinic last week with an enormous gift bag full of darling things. John had mentioned to her at her appointment that we were having our fourth little girl, and she kindly contributed this generous gift of new things to the stash of hand-me-downs we have already.
That afghan is hand crocheted--that's a lot of work for a baby she is not likely to even meet. I was stunned and touched.

Mango Baby

Baby Quinn, the only Anderson nephew to date, is one of the favorite topics of conversation at our house. He lives in Texas, so we usually have to get our Quinn fix via blog. This video, filmed by my brother Dave, is Bella's favorite to watch. She calls him "beebee Teen", and she talks to him while he is eating the mango seed.

So, in homage to this favorite little video, and with the luck of delicious mangoes from the hospital cafeteria, we filmed this remake. Luckily, [please insert a sarcastic tone here] no one in our family likes to butt in on the video action. Or the talk-to-the-baby action. Or the pace-around-the-house-while-you-talk-to-Uncle-Dave action. So the two videos are basically identical.


If you listen closely, Bella says "Teen" here, in reference to Baby Quinn. She was actually pretty excited to be eating the same thing that she had seen Quinn eat so many thousands of times.

It's another girl!

Cletus the Fetus is a fetusette. She was very cooperative and not terribly modest, and the ultrasound tech has very little doubt as to the gender of #4. (Plus, our due date of August 30 was definitely corroborated.) So, now we're looking for names. Our girl list is getting shorter and shorter. Do you have any suggestions? (My brother Dallin has offered up his favorite choice of "Dallerina.")

Baby Shower

As has been established before, I love a good party. And I think baby showers are some of the most fun parties. You get to buy clothes that you don't have to fit into and fun toys and books--definitely books. So I was very excited to plan a shower for Pat and Jeannie's upcoming baby girl. (Pat is a classmate of John's, and Jeannie may be the nicest person in the whole world.)
She looked lovely and elegant, even 8-1/2 months pregnant. And that's pretty tricky--I haven't ever accomplished it. (Sorry about the blurriness. I was worried about my camera batteries giving out before I had taken the pictures I needed.)
We embroidered onesies. I was VERY impressed with the ladies' creations. Everyone acted like they'd never done it before and then they whipped out some expert-level sewing skills.
I used the Martha Stewart tissue paper pompoms to decorate the dining room. (Aren't they cute? And so easy and cheap. Perfect!)
These are two of my favorite efforts. I loved the way the carrots and celery looked, sitting in their votive cups with cucumber-dill dip at the bottom. And can you see my cake plates? Well, you can't really, because I'm a crappy photographer (again with the rushing battery), but I made those! From thrift store candlesticks and glass plates, and E6000 glue (smelly, but awesome!) Just glue the plate on top of the candlestick, and you have an instant cakeplate. For less than the cost of a cake mix.
And while the ladies were sewing, chatting, and eating (three of my favorite things), John took our little ladies and met a friend with his little ladies, and they all hit the park. Where Naomi demonstrated the parasol-use of her new pink umbrella.And John relaxed in the shade.And Olivia climbed and swang and slid until she could hardly see straight.Whereupon they hit happy hour at Sonic. (Is there a better invention than half-price slushies? Definitely not.
It was a wonderful day for everyone.

Three Months

Annabel is now three months old. (I do recognize that these monthly posts might be boring, but I want them in my blurb book when I get my blog printed, so ignore it, if you wish.)My pictures were terrible yesterday, to say the least. Bella kept trying to lean forward into the camera, and I was trying to push her back into place and take the picture without my hand. (And the overcastness of the day didn't help. I had to turn on that classy lamp in the background to get enough light.) She's wearing one of my old dresses. It's adorably smocked (just my mom's style), but it's sized 12-18 months. And it is barely long enough to cover her bum. I'm glad we've changed the fashion to make our babies more modest, even if we're letting everyone else show all the skin they want.
Here's the shot with Pedro the Bear. Apparently, my legs looked horrifying.
Luckily for me, I had a darling friend, Bonnie, who took much better pictures of Annabel this month. I love this one of the feet. It's fram-worthy. (Couldn't you just nibble those toes?)And obviously, I'm obsessed with this costume. I love having a baby pea. So stinkin' cute!And one in her blessing dress and bonnet. My mom got this bonnet in Italy for Olivia's blessing, and I love it. Unfortunately, it was very difficult to catch Bella smiling while she was wearing it.At three months, Annabel:
*knows how to laugh. She just learned last week, and it's my new favorite hobby trying to coax it out of her.
*will stick out her lower lip and whimper if she hears a sympathetic voice say "Oh. . . poor Bella."
*is still an absolutely delightful baby.
To compare her to her sisters, I have their pictures below.

Can you believe this is the only picture we have of Olivia at three months old? Crazy. (And she's the oldest. Bella will definitely be my best documented baby, probably mostly because of the blog.) Look at those cheekies! I miss that sober baby.
And this is one of three pictures we have of Naomi at three months old. She loved the binky, but couldn't figure out how to keep it in her mouth. This was John's solution one Saturday while we cleaned the apartment. Go ahead. Be shocked at our terrible parenting. But it worked!

Boden Mystery

The most delightful thing happened to me today. When Olivia walked in the door from school, she was holding an armful of mail. (Isn't she wonderful? She picks up the mail on the way in from the bus.) A polka-dot package was conspicuously exciting (I love packages), and upon closer inspection, I exclaimed, "I think that says Boden!" I racked my brain. Had I ordered something from Boden? I love Boden. I have publicly declared my love for Boden, and I would certainly have remembered ordering something.
Upon opening the package, I discovered this:And this:
(Not the babies, but the coat and the t-shirt.) Are these not among the cutest things ever seen on the face of the earth. And won't my Bella look adorable in a few months?
However, there is a little mystery. The articles above were addressed only to "Bella Boo Baby Wells" with no indication of the kind sender. None. I want to thank this delightful person, or persons, but I don't know where to direct my squeals of delight. (ABSOLUTE delight). If you are out there, please let me know who you are.
On a side note: If you have a story you wish to share, please comment in the post below. You have until tomorrow.

What I'm learning. . .

I am learning that even though three kids doesn't feel that much harder than two kids, my time seems more slippery somehow, like I look up and it's been three weeks since I last blogged, or two weeks since the lawn was last mowed, or um. . . let's not mention how long since my bathtubs were scrubbed.
We had John's mom and grandma come to visit last week. It was absolutely lovely. I learned that even when you already have 40 grandkids and 51 great-grandchildren, you still have enough room in your wonderful grandma heart to dote on one more. (It was wonderful to see you again, Grandma. Thank you for such a great visit.)

I learned (and am willing to admit) that the cuteness of my children is not only due to their Anderson genes. (Sorry, Grandma, for springing the camera on you late at night after you had already put your pajamas on and gone to bed. We had to get a three-generation shot.) It also dawned on me that with an opera singer for a great-grandma there was bound to be a little drama in my sweet Naomi.
I am learning that there is nothing that will encourage the comments of passersby more than an tiny head with a shock of stand-up-straight dark hair. I must hear "Look at that hair" 10 times a day.
I learned that just because you have a mom that is allergic to cats doesn't mean you will love your friend's cat any less. In fact, you may just love it more, especially when it is as calm and tolerant as Phelps (Sara's cat, named after, you guessed it, our fabulous gold-medal swimmer).
I don't usually like cats, given that they make my eyes swell and my nose run and my throat hurt, but this one. . . well, this one won my heart. Such a sweet cat. (Plus, the addition of Zyrtec to my arsenal was fantastic.)
I already knew that I loved Sara and her family. They are so sweet and welcoming, even when I call last minute and need a break and tell her that I will be bringing all my kids. "Can I commandeer your weekend?" And she always says yes. I learned, however, that she'll say yes even when she'll be babysitting two extra kids starting the day I leave. What a sweet friend!The little girls played tea party.

The big girls ran through the sprinkers, even though it got quite chilly.And when, for some reason, they tired of running, they stood in the sprinklers, holding their faces. Over and over and over again. You know, I was five once, but sometimes I still don't understand what they're thinking.

Sister Love

Mimi: Mom, I thought you just had a whole bunch of food in your tummy, but it was really a baby! I'm so happy because I love babies more than food.

Later:
Olivia: Babies can't eat anything except milk until they can sit up. (She learned this at a sibling class we took at the hospital.)
Mom: That's right. So don't try to feed Annabel anything, please.
Olivia: But [she cocks her head and puts on her most worried face], I'm afraid she is going to get really, really HUNGRY.

And thank you all for all your lovely comments on John's posts. I'm glad he didn't get the opportunity to take any pictures pre-epidural ("Squeeze my hand harder, John, HARDER.") because those wouldn't have been nearly as pleasant. Annabel is a delightful baby, and we are so happy to have her home and healthy. I am even more happy to not be pregnant anymore.

Introducing Annabel Rebekah Wells (Bella Boo Baby)

After much mind changing and calling out names to see what the baby best responded to we would like to introduce Annabel Rebekah Wells.

Deliverance was Nigh

So here's Emilee at 5:30 AM getting ready to have this baby. She scores a 0 on the Escala de Dolor (pain scale for those of you who don't habla espanol)
This is pre-pitocin (which was originally made from the urine of pregnant mares) and would soon result in contractions though it didn't take much.
Post Epidural.....I don't think I can add more to this picture with words.
Wells Baby Girl and Mom.
Wells Baby Girl. So far in her first 30 minutes of life she's been very calm and a good baby.
Here's a little nanner nanner look at me and my coordinated tongue. Oh, I weigh 7lbs 12oz.

Disclaimer: Emilee was concerned about the perceived modesty of some of the shots but I assure you all it's only shoulder.