4 weeks old

Dear Jett: Your 4 weeks old!! Such a big boy! These last few weeks have been part wonderful part exhausting but what can we say - that is the life of a newborn. We havent taken a ton of pictures...strange but thats the way its been. You still seem to sleep a lot better during the day then at night so your dad and I have are splitting the nights up. Hes up till 1 or 2 in the morning and I get you after that. There is no rest for the weary as I have to be up for the day by 6 anyway with your big brother. Ive decided that if you get up anytime after 4 am there is no point in trying to go back to sleep so by about 8pm im done for the day! You have been officially diagnosed with GERD, and acid reflux and the only good thing about that is our insurance is helping to pay for your EXPENSIVE formula. We are still very grateful that even though you are often fussy and dont sleep for long you dont cry too often. In reflecting back to Tristan who was screaming and crying most days and nights we feel very lucky. Both Elijiah and Tristan love you and shower you with lots of kisses, however neither want to help much with diaper changing lol. Tristan has been especially difficult with your arrival- claiming he doesnt get any attention but that is also to be expected...and as I said even though hes not the center of attention anymore, he certainly loves and cares for you. You are eating about every 3 hours and sleeping about 2-3 hours at a time. Not long stretches by any means but we are getting by. There has been one or two times in the last few weeks that you have gone 4 hours but that is not the norm. You have some very specific holding and sleep preferences which we have figured out...its hard as I think about leaving you to grandma that anyone else but me will be able to take care of you. I know that is silly though. It will be fine. * Other household news: Jonathan is leaving his current job of 2 months..for Ancestry! Super excited for him. Dream job. Elijiah won a class competition to represent his grade for geography. Hes studying up for the school spelling bee as well. Basketball is going great- its his new love!

2 weeks old

Dear Jett: Two weeks ago today exactly you were born. I was getting admitted to the hospital about now... My how our world has been turned upside down since your arrival. Tristan is impossible, Elijiah is a doting older brother, migraines have returned with a vengence due to lack of sleep...but I wouldnt trade you for anything in the world. You have had some bumps in the road, which we are trying to figure out...but in all the Colic demon has skipped our house so far which in itself we are eternally grateful for. Your dads anxiety levels are high, any time you cry hes unable to think rationally as hes worried sick about you. But as far as I can tell things are fine. You weigh exactly 8 lbs. Still have your night and days mixed up a bit...tend to sleep longer during daylight- hopefully that will change soon. I cannot imagine life without you. Youve buried yourself deep within my heart and a girl? No way....Im so happy with my 3 boys. My soul is complete, and I wouldnt want it any other way. Thank you Jett for coming to our home. For choosing our family, Jonathan and I as your parents. We are so happy your here to be with us forever....Love, Mom

Jett's Birth Day

A week ago today Jett became a part of our family. I don’t know what it is about new babies, but it’s a magical time. Veil is thin, and time stands still. Despite all the pain…and yes my labor could have been worse ( but it could have been better) and during the process I wondered why I would ever do it again, or have done it 4 times…but as everyone knows…its all worth it. I still stand by my feeling that our family is complete now, its just hard to think about no more babies. Jett Devenney Bechtold was induced November 19, 2012. After 5 hours of labor he was born 8:02 pm, 7lbs 5 oz, and 21 inches long. He is beautiful. Already we have our fingers crossed that he wont have colic. By now Tristan hadn’t had much success with sleeping, had a cold, and was fussy and crying a ton. Jett sleeps well, eats well, and is very mellow. Jonathan commented that hes still in awe. I told him this is what it should be like  My mother was with me and Jonathan during the delivery….it was incredibly nice to have her there. Fitting as she was there with my first, and now my last. I have so many emotions over this journey, and Jetts arrival which I will keep in my private journal, but I had to document to some degree this monumental event. Jett continues to amaze me and being a new mother always is humbling. I cant imagine doing this without Jonathan as he is an incredible father. So eager to help, contribute, be there in whatever way he can, and support both me and the kids- I am so lucky.

The big 10!

Happy DOUBLE DIGITS Elijiah! 10 years I cant hardly believe how fast these last few years have flown by. Seriously…you have less time with me on this side then before( till your out and grown at 18) so Ive been pretty sad thinking about that…however what to do…just enjoy these next 8 years and hopefully not think too much about it!

Lets see where to be begin? This past year has been a good one…we moved one last time ( I PROMISE) you have settled into our new house well, made a couple of friends, did another year of soccer which you did awesome, skied all last winter and finished up 3rd grade at Rosecrest. You did so well in fact that all the administration at the school with your dad and I discussed what to do with you. Skip 4th grade, move you up for math and reading? So many decisions we had to come up with for school…ultimately we moved you back to Lourdes and so far you are doing great. You miss the lax public school schedule, and free dress, but you are challenged and have been welcomed back with open arms…so far you have continued your straight A avg! Piano and basketball this winter along with skiing so in all you tend to stay pretty busy! Your addiction to books is hard to keep up with…literally you can go through a book a day. And we aren’t talking about short books…no- Harry Potter length. Right now all that you want for Christmas is books or cash to buy books which makes things easy but whats hard is trying to find books that are challenging enough for you to enjoy reading but don’t have the content which is to old for ya…

You were excited to hear when we told you we were going to have another baby…this time around I think it will be good..you are definitely older and hopefully be a great helper! You continue to have a love/hate relationship with Tristan- he follows you around and wants to do all that you do…at times you guys play really well and other times, well not so much. But it always warms my heart to see you two together  We moved you out of your own room so that Jett would have his own bedroom. You and Tristan are now sharing and its actually working out well. You have plenty of room for your stuff and so I don’t think its going to be a big deal. A few more years and then we will switch you back, but for now…

Thank you Elijiah for being so amazing. You are still a stinker at times, but likewise I absolutely love spending time with you. You are smart, hardworking, loving, kind to others, sensitive, and I can see a the young man you are becoming. I am so grateful to be your mother and I look forward to what year “10” brings to you!!! Happy happy birthday!!!

Blog catch up- Halloween

Halloween was all our Tristan could think about for months....and with it carving pumpkins...Elijiah wasnt much in the mood for any of it which is why I havent posted pics...however in attempt to catch up and keep posting pics...here are some of our pumpkin carving night :)

House full of boys

With one week to go till our newest addition joins our family, I had a mini break down sat.  I blame it on lack of sleep, exhaustion as that typically creates a perfect blend for me to loose my cool.  I have generally been very exited about our 3rd boy joining the family.  The initial disapointment of not having a girl wore off and we moved forward with embracing a life of chaos with 3 boys.  Now I know its not a house of 4,5,6 boys that some families are blessed with- I know that.  Its just 3 kids.  So im not asking for any sympathy here. 

My sadness came from reliving my first borns adoption and how I got through some of those darkest hours.  Giving Noel up remains one of the top 3 most difficult things I have ever done in my life.  However in the back of my mind there was always the thought that I would have another opportunity to have a little girl.  Experience gymnastics and dance classes, french braid her hair, have a shopping buddy, prom, boyfriends, take her shopping for her wedding dress, there when she had her own children....and so on.  She would grow up - we would be best friends - talk to eachother everyweek etc.  Now I do realize that those things may never happen with a girl...but that was a fantasy of mine.  So Sat, I was talking with a friend about not having a girl when I suddenly started to cry.  Its very rare that a boy- well adjusted and independent- wants to live near, have over, talk to daily, to his mother.  I actually think that would be odd.  So in a way ive prepared myself for "loosing" my sons after they leave home...and just hope that they pick extraordinary wives/girlfriends so I have some insight to their lives :)

I will miss out on numerous "girl" things...and I realize that my 19 yr old self will not have another chance at raising a girl....but at 36 I have the opportunity to raise 3 incredible incredible boys who I hope, will be amazing husbands and fathers.  I am obviously still working through the loss of the opportunity of having a girl, but at the same time equally excited about baby boy bechtold coming so soon...

Which brings me to my next topic.  BABY BOY BECHTOLD's Name.  We had a girl name picked out and ready to go.  It felt right. We knew it was it.  Coming up with a boy name has been painstaking, difficult and actually a touch annoying.  NOTHING was fitting, nothing felt right. We searched every online baby name that we could find.  Went through lists and lists....still nothing.  Jonathan and I went through our ancestry to see if there was a family name that sounded right....and again nothing.  We did agree however that family names were probably most likely to work for us.  Sentimental, meaningful, historic in nature.  We had a name that we were happy with- finally but then we both ended up feeling it wasnt the one.  In a car trip I turned to Jonathan and suggested a name...one that I had liked, but also knew was a difficult association for his family.  He thought it over and agreed it had potential.  Jonathan decided to reach out to ask for permission to use the name and see what the response was.  Thankfully it was a "yes" and we had official go - ahead.  I wont share the name as of yet....and I know we have had some mixed feelings about using the name given the situation- so there is some sensitivity around using it.  However Jonathan and I both feel that using it is a way to carry on a name that means a great deal to Jonathan specifically, and will be a great tribute to his namesake.  SO family - whether you agree or disagree about the name we have ultimately chosen - we are happy about it.  We feel this is a perfect name for our little one.

7 days and counting till he will arrive and we are very very excited!!!

2 weeks and 1 day to go....

Ive been unsure if I was going to take "pregnancy" pics which are all the rage...however my brother said that he would take a few and I was game....however the day of I had a change of mind( which was actually yesterday). I mean I didnt want to pose bare belly, or on a couch, or with Jonathan kissing my belly LOL---anything...and I wasnt sure how they could work without doing some of the traditional pregnancy pic stuff..well I got talked into a few and Im really glad I did. Cory did an awesome job and now I have some pictures of me being pregnant for the last time. Our little one is just 2 weeks away from being born and Im counting down the days as one can imagine!!!

New Tattoos!

 

 

Gotta love some good Uncle Cory bonding time!  

Soccer photos

Before the time got away...I wanted to post the pictures that Jonathans dad took of Elijiahs soccer game. We were blown away by the action shots he was able to capture. Elijiahs team did exceptionally well this season, and he sure does love playing which makes it fun for us all to go and cheer him on.

Pallet Art

With all the pallets we have around here, I thought I would join the bandwagon and create some art with it.  There are tons of examples on Pinterest, and the web, so we decided to go with the sunray theme and give it a try.  Jonathan as usual makes everything come together. Have to say we are both pleased with the results!!  The nursery is coming along and with a month to go...we are counting down the days till our little one joins the family!

8 months

Officially 8 months +

Happy Camper!

You cant imagine my excitement when I came across this '74 Hard top- Apache camper!! Its Christmas everyone! As our family is expanding-- tent camping became more difficult...tons of stuff, and a large tent which was annoying to set up. I always wanted a SMALL camper. Preferably one that was vintage and I could fix up. These hard top campers are difficult to find and while needs some TLC will be a fun project for us come spring. Lots of things to do: new curtains, paint, fabric and some minor repairs but Im looking forward to it all. It sleeps 7 so plenty of room for us and light enough for the minivan to tow. :)

Evolution of the backyard 2012

Spring 2012 dawned and with it- our summer project. THE BACKYARD. Here are the pictures from start to finish. As we mentioned before- next year we will complete it with the deck, flowers, plants, bushes, trampoline and ground cover...but in all- we are very very happy with the progress!