Oh the Places We've Been!

It has been an exciting month! On September 1st, we moved out our tiny little apartment.  And while I really will  not miss the tiny bedrooms, no AC, and no cable (I know we were crazy!), I will miss the apartment that we brought our baby girl home too.  So many wonderful memories of Oaklyn's first few months happened there.  Colin's parents came to help us pack up and move (for the fourth time in 2 1/2 years).  They are absolutely wonderful to us.  Colin and his dad packed up the trailer as compactly as possible.  After all, our crap stuff wasn't just going down the road or across town, but across the country! All the way to Georgia. 

First of all, look at the gorgeous Idaho sky! I am really going to miss it. I think the boys did a pretty good job making it all fit. 

Miss Oaklyn was such a good girl, she sat and watched momma and grandma run around crazy trying pack up last minute things and clean.  I was relieved she chose to be good that day and take good naps.  We had been struggling with that all week.  She wouldn't sleep so she was cranky ALL.DAY.LONG.
We got everything loaded in the trailer and the apartment cleaned by 6 p.m. then it was off to Twin Falls for the weekend.  Colin stayed there until Monday morning when he set off for the long 347 hour trip to Atlanta (okay, it was more like 30 hours). 

Oaklyn sure missed her daddy... And I'm pretty sure he missed her too. 

 Baby girl and I stayed at Grandma and Grandpa's until the 13th, when we all flew out to Atlanta together.  While we were in Twin, we went to the Twin Falls County Fair. 

Oaklyn had a pretty fun day, full of smiles, kettle corn, and deep fried snickers.  But, was pretty cranky and tired by the end.

 Oaklyn had her first experience in a big girl swing where. We call it the "big girl" swing because she has to sit upright like a "big girl".  We also went to Cooper's first football game of the season.  Oaklyn had lots of fun watching people. 

When Oaklyn and I FINALLY made it to Georgia, her new big girl bed was already waiting for her.  She took her first nap in her bed as a true southern belle, with her fanny in the air!

Colin's cousin Chase got home from his mission in South Africa the day after Oakers and I arrived.  The whole family was there to greet him. The girls worked hard on the signs that were waving in the air as he walked through customs.

 Chase even had 3 gorgeous single girls waiting for him! What a ladies man!

We are so excited that we are finally starting our new lives in Georgia! And that we get to live with Chase and his parents as he gets home from his mission.  Colin is especially excited to be living here with Chase and helping him transition back from mission life. 

So far, Colin is still searching for a job. He's had a phone interview for a bag handler with Delta and has a face to face interview this Wednesday with Express Jet for a Flight Crew Schedule Supervisor.  We have our sights on Express Jet (better pay and hours), but anything that will allow him to get his foot in the door would be perfect! I get to stay home with Oaklyn and am so grateful I can.  This week I would have had to go back to work at the Plasma Center had we stayed in Rexburg.  We keep praying that everything will work out, so far it has.  But, no matter what, we are sure happy and grateful to be where we are and that we have each other!

What... 25?

That's right.  This momma is now 25 years old! That's how old Colin was when we first started dating... and to me then, it seemed sooooo old.  It's crazy where the time went.  I started the day with a good snuggle with my girl.  I usually don't sleep with Oaks in bed, but I was just craving me some momma time, so we took a nap together that morning. Plus, it was her 8 week birthday too and I knooooow that's what she wanted to do for her birthday too :) Then, I slowly got ready throughout the afternoon.  Colin looked so surprised that I actually had both my make up on and my hair done (I usually only get half way through the make up and give up for the day).  We went to Applebee's for dinner to use the gift card my mom had sent me.  Oaklyn charmed all the waitresses and other patrons as she usually does.  Then, we stopped by Walmart to get my present... a new camera! I wanted one of those expensive, professional cameras but at $600, it seemed a little ridiculous for our budget at the time, so we settled for a Nikon digital camera.  Much more affordable, still takes quality pictures, and compact to fit in my already shoulder breaking heavy diaper bag.  When we got home, Colin rocked Oaklyn to sleep while I enjoyed a nice, long, relaxing bubble bath! It was an absolutely great birthday! Here's hoping for another great 25 years!

Rigby Rodeo

Our family went to the Jefferson County Amateur Rodeo held in Rigby, Idaho this August.  Our friends, Dan and Kristi, invited us because Kristi organizes the rodeo every year.  It was so much fun.  I just love those Idaho summers.  There's nothing like sitting in the stands with a slight cool breeze as the sun goes down , while watching a good rodeo! The muttin bustin' is always my favorite;  I just love watching those little guys hang on for dear life (I know, it's a bit mean).  Even Oaklyn had a good time.  She slept most of the time, but woke up just as they turned on the arena lights.  She sat for about 15 minutes and stared out at the lights and the cowboys and horses riding around in the arena. We watched Kristi in barrel racing and our other friends, Cortney and Holly, in Ribbon Roping. Cortney roped the calf and Holly had to run on foot out to where he roped the calf, pull the ribbon off its tail, and run back.  It was very funny to watch!  Cortney didn't the calf roped until the clear other side of the arena, then Holly had a hard time getting around the calf to get a hand on the tail.  When she finally did, she had to run all the way back! I swear we saw her cussing out Cortney as she ran.  It's a pretty fun event; lots of husbands and wives working together (or husbands who talk their wives into it and wives who really didn't know what they got themselves into).  I found some cute cowgirl boots for Oaklyn and some jean overalls that were supposed to be for 3-6 months, so they didn't quite fit her but they will someday.  And it sure made for a cute picture.  We put her in something else for the actual rodeo because she looked a bit uncomfortable in that over-sized cowgirl get up. 

Blessing Day

We blessed our precious girl on July 29th in Colin's parents' ward in Twin Falls.  Our bishop would not let us that day because it was not a Fast Sunday.  My family was going to be up that weekend so we really wanted to do it then so that they could be there.  Grandma and Grandpa Sorensen's house is pretty central for everybody and can accomodate everybody, so it was more convenient to do it there.  Plus, Oaklyn LOVES visiting Twin Falls with grandparents and all her cousins!

That day was so special from the very beginning.  I had to wake up early to shower and get ready (hello, 10 a.m. church is impossible with a newborn). When I came out of the bathroom, I found that Colin had gotten Oaklyn out of her bed and had laid her on my pillow next to him and covered her tiny feet with the blanket.  The two of them were fast asleep.

Oaklyn was a perfect gem through sacrament meeting.  She fell asleep in the car on the way and stayed asleep the entire time.  I could tell Colin was a little anxious, but also excited about giving his girl a blessing.  He had been very thoughtful that morning and during the announcements and opening song.  He just sat, holding his girl and looking at her.

Colin was joined in the circle by his dad, his two brother in laws, and his mom's cousin.  We wish that other family members and friends not only could have been there, but could have stood beside Colin in the circle.  The blessing was strong and tender at the same time.  The Lord truly works through worthy priesthood holders.  And while her earthly father was the one giving the blessing, her Heavenly Father was inspiring him with what to bless her with.  She was blessed to be born at this time and was sent here now for a specific purpose.  As troubles come into her life, she will know to turn to the Lord and to her parents.  She will choose a worthy companion who will take her to the temple.  I have come to love listening to Colin give blessings. And it was so special listening to him give her a blessing.  While Colin is tough, rough, masculine, strong... basically a manly man, he has a very tender heart.  We are so excited for the life Oaklyn has ahead of her and just hope and pray that we will be the kind of parents she needs to help her live up to her potential.

Coming Home

Well we have officially been home for about a week.  This new little life has brought a lot of adjustment, patience, and ups and downs for us.  We were very ready to get home with our little girl. 

 She looked soooo tiny in her carseat.

 Yes, that is wrapping paper on our door!

 Oaklyn's very own lifesize bear.  (well, her size bear)

Oaklyn loooooves cuddling with daddy.  Actually, she loves cuddling with just about anybody.  She loves to be snuggled  and held.  So far, over the past week, she has been a pretty good little baby.  She's already got her own little 3 hour schedule going.  She wakes up, eats and poops (usually at this same time, I keep telling her that's gross, but she doesn't seem to mind so much, as long as she gets food) and then checks out her surroundings or watches the person holding her for about 20ish minutes until she falls asleep again.  Most nights she goes down to sleep around 11 and only wakes up once, around 3, to eat and then goes right back to sleep until about 7.  Hopefully this keeps up, I may have an all night sleeper pretty soon here.  Overall, she is pretty content and easy to take care of.  We've had a few outings and she does really well in her carseat or stroller.

Her first doctor's appointment was this past Tuesday.  Everything sounded and looked good, according to doc.  She lost a few ounces of weight, but that is normal.  The doctor even cut off what was left of her umbilical cord (it was not looking very good).  It is basically healed now, there's just a little scab left that is so close to falling off.  I also had my doctors appointment on Thursday and everything looks great for me too.   I am healing really fast.  According to my midwife, pregnancy doesn't agree with me, but giving birth sure does!

Birth Story

Miss Oaklyn has FINALLY arrived! Well... not so much finally. She made her appearance at 38 1/2 weeks but I was definitely ready!

Wednesday night I got home around 830 and had felt great all day.  I worked that day and had even less Braxton Hicks contractions than usual.  We watched some episodes of Prison Break and headed to bed around 1030.  I wasn't tired so I decided to soak in a bath.  I came to bed around 1050 and had my first contraction at 11.  It felt at first like a Braxton Hicks contraction (like a period cramp or gas cramp) not at all like what I had imagined a real contraction to feel like, but it lasted about 30 seconds and was more intense than the pain I had been having.  My second contraction came 15 minutes later and my water broke with this one.  I thought I had just peed my pants.  I went to the restroom and changed my pants, came back to bed and had another one about 15 minutes later.  I had read that your first few hours of labor are spent at home so I decided to get up and see if I could start some laundry or eat a snack or something to keep me occupied because sleeping was NOT an option.  But, over the next hour the contractions got more intense and closer together.  I was in denial that it was time to go to the hospital but I was in a lot of pain.  I woke up Colin around 1230 and we decided to go to the hospital.

After we parked the car and started walking in, I had the most intense contraction.  It was so bad that I threw up.  My vomiting was so bad that I peed my pants.  The contraction lasted so long that I couldn't walk.  I sat on a bench while Colin went to get help, sort of freaking out at how much pain I was in.  If this was only the beginning, I could not even imagine the amount of pain that I was in for as my labor progressed. He came with a wheelchair and pushed me into the Labor and Delivery.  It was 1245 in the morning so people were scarce. Finally, we found a nurse who took us to an exam room.  She checked me and I was already dilated to an 8!!! Colin's one job (besides the obvious of supporting me and comforting through delivery) was to make sure I got an epidural. At this point he told (not asked) the nurse to get me my epidural and FAST!!!  Since we had not pre-registered, they had to ask me a million questions and get me admitted before they could give me the epidural.  Basically, the nurse anesthetist was all ready to go and the second I was admitted, he asked me his questions, had me sign the form and stuck that sucker in!

I started feeling some relief a few minutes later, but could still feel the pressure of the contractions.  My midwife and the midwife she was training arrived shortly before my epidural.  They were wonderful (along with my hubby) at keeping me calm and focused through the contractions before the epidural.  They let me labor naturally with the epidural to help start stretching things out before I started pushing for about a half hour. When I started pushing, I had only been in labor for a short 3 hours.  I started pushing, the midwives had me try a few different positions to find the position that worked best.  Eventually, we found that laying flat on my back worked best.  Pushing was not that bad except for the last half hour.  I could feel everything and was feeling a lot more pain. Colin stood by me the entire time and held my limp right leg (the epidural worked better on one side than the other).  He was great at telling me how wonderful I was doing and making sure the midwives were telling me how I was progressing.  The midwives were great about giving me words of encouragement, telling me what things to do to help push better, and when my contractions were coming (for a little bit, I couldn't tell when the contractions were).  It was surprisingly positive and calm in the room. 

At 4:17 on June 28, 2012, our sweet baby girl was born.  They laid her on my chest and rubbed her dry.  I couldn't believe I had actually done it and that she was actually here.  They let her lay on me while they finished up with me.  I couldn't get over how much she looked like Colin.  She has blond hair, deep dark blue eyes, and the most perfect pink skin.

Oaklyn did so well with her first bath, she let out a single squeal and a couple of grunts, then decided she kinda liked it and was pretty quiet the rest of the time.

We were pretty exhausted by the morning, but couldn't have been more excited about our cute bundle of joy.

 Colin was on diaper duty in the hospital since it was pretty hard for me to get in and out of bed.  But, he never complained once, even in the middle of the night when he was exhausted. 

 Oaklyn loved having her grandparents come visit.  And we especially loved having Grandma. She stayed for 4 days and made the coming home transition so easy! We sure appreciate how wonderful she is to us. 

Oaklyn is so curious about the world around her.  She opened her eyes quite a bit in the hospital to check out her surrounds and the people who came to visit.

Our happy little family.