Mother's Day and more

First, Happy Mother's Day weekend to all mom's, expecting mom's, grandmas, and great grandmas! This will be my 5th Mother's Day and first as a mom of three :) As my "present", Kyle took the kids camping (in the new camper) today and tonight while Tate and I got some Mommy and Tate time alone. Honestly, so far this day has been so nice. I have gotten more accomplished today than I have in the last month. Kitchen cleaned top to bottom, shopping trip to Madison and some new clothes for the kids and I, my closet got a good spring cleaning, laundry folded and put away, and bathrooms cleaned. Phew- and it's only 4 pm! Tomorrow we will celebrate mothers day at my sister in laws as it is also my niece's, Maddy, birthday.
Last weekend we went to Mothers Day tea with my mom at her church. It was a cute little program and Reese, Tate (the only boy there), and I really enjoyed ourselves.

 

Tate turned a month old this past week, and he celebrated by finally waking up a bit more. He is such a sleepy baby (and I am NOT complaining) but this week he has been up more during the day and has been so much more alert, smiling and cooing now when you talk to him. He is still a great eater. He weighed in at 11 lbs 4.3 oz at his check up which is 2 lbs more than Preston at 1 month and 1 lb more than Reese at 1 month. He is a big baby! Already in 3 month clothes. He was 23 inches long (born at 20 1/2) so he is growing like a weed! I have also been successful at baby wearing with him. Neither of my other two liked to be put in a wrap or baby carrier, but Tate loves to snuggle up and get comfy. 

Reese is doing great in school, coming home everyday singing her Kindergarten graduation songs they are practicing for her June graduation. She started soccer last week (and is actually enjoying it this time around) and still in gymnastics twice a week. Preston is just, well, Preston. He keeps me busy and on my toes all day long. He is still going to preschool a few days a week and loves to see his teacher and his friends. He is also a big fan of Tate. He always wants to know what Tate is doing, and loves to talk to him and help me out with whatever I need. Reese is more indifferent and could give or take Tate. I think once he starts becoming more mobile and can play with her, she might be more interested. 

 Last week, the baby I watched, Husdon, turned one! We visited him and took him his birthday presents. Hudson was all about Tate. I am taking the summer off, but we start up watching Hudson a few days a week again in September when my kids go back to school.

Adjusting

We are 3 1/2 weeks in being a family of 5 and I must say we are adjusting so much better than I had anticipated. It may be because Tate is such a good baby, or it may be because the kids are are bit older and can help out, or it might be because this is our third rodeo and we might now know what we are actually doing :) The kids are such a good help with him, and have been very understanding when I have to feed him and can't play or help them at the very minute they want me to. Tate is a great eater and has been a pretty good sleeper as well. The past few nights he has been up eating every 2 hours instead of 3-4 like he had been, but I'm attributing it to a growth spurt and hoping we get back to 3-4 hours soon. Of course, he chose to wake up more at night when Kyle is in Colombia this week for work. He gets home tonight, and I am very happy to get two more sets of hands to help out with the kids. I have officially put away the newborn clothing (tear...) and we are in 0-3 month clothes at 3 1/2 weeks old. I'm sure he is over 10 lbs now because we have also transitioned from newborn to size 1 diapers.
Last weekend my sister came to visit and we had such a good time. Aubrey was supposed to join but had a cold, and we weren't going to chance getting the baby sick, so she stayed home with Kyle and Aidan. She gave Tate lots of snuggles, and played with R and P so I could get a little break. It was so nice I offered her a full time nanny position :) She cooked, entertained the kids, and basically took care of Tate the whole weekend. We can't wait for her to come back over Memorial Day weekend- bringing Aidan and Aubrey to meet Tate! Here are some of our pictures from last weekend.
On Saturday we went to Eugster's farm for their Lambing days. We got to see all the animals, feed the fish in the pond, play in the play area, and pet baby lambs. Preston fed the goats and Reese fed the chickens. It was a great day and the weather was perfect! Saturday afternoon my parents came up and Courtney made us all dinner. It was a fun day!

 

Helping Aunt Courtney pick rhubarb to make crisp for dessert

 Kiddos lending a hand in rhubarb crisp making

 Aunt Courtney wore me out!

 Our "new to us" swingset we got set up on Sunday. The kids love it and I am going to love the entertainment it provides for them this summer! :)

Tate Brandon Montgomery - 4.4.16

I look back at my last blog post, and little did I know less than 12 hours later we would meet our little guy. Last Sunday went on like any other day. I never once had an inkling that I would be going into labor that night. Kyle's parents were here most of the day helping us trim our grapes out in our mini vineyard and we spent most of the day outside. Around 8:45 that night just after I sat down to watch tv before bed, contractions began. I had been having contractions on and off for a few weeks, so I didnt chalk it up to much. I started timing them a little after 9:00, and they were every 9 minutes apart. I decided to take a shower and see if they were going to stick around or if it was just another fluke. Well, when I got out of the shower, they were about every 7-8 minutes apart. I woke Kyle and said he might want to pack his bag. He called the hospital and they said it was up to me at what point I wanted to come in. I laid down for a bit, but once they got to every 5 mintues apart (which was only about 10 minutes later) I decided it was time to go as they were getting very painful. We called Kyle's mom and told her we needed her to come up and spend the night with the kids. She lives about 35 minutes away, and I knew I wasn't going to make it that long. Thankfully my friend Jenna only lives about 7 minutes away, so I called her at 10:30 and asked her to rush over. By this point, they were every 2-3 minutes apart and super painful. She arrived and we took off. Once in the truck, I was getting them every minute and it was the longest 20 minute ride to the hospital in my life! I thought at one point baby would be joining us on the side of the road. Luckily, we made it to the hospital around 11:30, they got me in my room, and Tate was born less than an hour later. Since labor was SO fast and intense, I did not have the chance to get any pain meds. But believe me, I begged for them. At that point, they said all it would do would "drug" the baby and I would get no relief. I do have to say, an all natural birth was not my game plan. I was not prepared mentally for it and I think I made it harder on myself than I needed too. Let's just say I give MAJOR kuddos to those women who have done an all natural labor more than once, or who choose to do it. None the less, Tate (A BOY!) arrived at 12:28 am weighing in at 8 lbs 10 oz (one oz more than Reese making him my biggest baby) and 20 1/2" long. He looks like a mini Preston. Long fingers, long toes, and a pretty happy baby. Unfortunately, our first 4 days with him were spent in the hospital. His jaundice levels kept rising, so he was on a bili blanket 24 hours a day, with his blood being taken every 6 hours to check his level. His poor little heals were all poked and sore. Finally on Friday afternoon, we got news that we could go home! My parents and Kyle's mom were able to help out with Reese and Preston all week, with Kyle staying at the house at night, so with the shuffle, we made it work. But boy were we glad to get home!
This past weekend we spent relaxing and adjusting to being a family of 5. The kids are really good with Tate, and are interested in him when he is awake. We went back on Saturday morning for another blood draw to make sure he could sustain on his own without the bili blanket, and his levels were within normal range- whew!
Tate is a pretty content baby so far. He hates diaper changes and baths, but overall only cries when he is hungry. He is also giving me 3-4 hour stretches at night- which I hope he keeps up!  Here are some pics from our last week...

Kyle's first time holding Tate

Meeting Poppa

 and Nana

 The first meeting. Preston was in awe of how little he was - I just love his expression here.

 Checking him out

Meeting Grammie

 Pretty proud big sister

 And then there were three...

 Meeting cousin Mekenna

 A visit from big sister after gymnastics

 That silly bili blanket is interfering with our cuddles!

 Hanging with Dad- passing the hours in the hospital with lots of snuggles

Poor babe all wrapped up

Finally, off my blanket!!

 Time to go home!!

 First night at home- pajama party :)

 One week old

Kyle left today until Friday for work in Indianapolis. I am a bit nervous, but know we will be ok. With school drop off and pick ups, and gymnastics, I pray that Tate goes with the flow :) Keep us in your thoughts!

4:3:16

Due date. 4.3.16. A day I have been waiting for for the past 40 weeks. It's here, and baby is not :) Little babe is just comfy and cozy in there.I head in to the doctor again tomorrow and at that point we will discuss how much longer I'll go, or want to go. These past 3 days have been really uncomfortable. I'm at the point where it's no fun to walk, no fun to sit, and no fun to bend over :)
I had a few friends tell me about Raspberry Leaf tea and how when women were around their due date, drinking the tea helped put them into labor. Worth a shot, right? I got some on Friday, had 2 cups before bed, and 4 cups yesterday. Clearly, I was not one the tea was made to work for. :) The lady at the shop where it was bought had said she was 10 for 10 of women drinking it and putting them into labor...looks like I broke her record, haha. Luckily it tastes really good, so it wasn't an awful thing to try.

4.3.16 40 weeks

 Raspberry leaf tea

We did add a new member to the family, but not a baby. A camper! Kyle has been talking with a guy who is selling his camper for a few weeks now, and it was a deal he couldn't pass up. Kyle can't stop talking about camping and how excited he is. Like a little kid. It is in GREAT shape. The kids are also excited to be able to go camping this summer.

Mid week check-in

39 weeks. 4 days. I am hanging in there! I went to the doctor on Tuesday morning and they stripped my membranes (technical term) to prepare and get ready for labor. I was 3-4 cm and the hope is that stripping the membranes naturally dilates you so you can go into labor on your own (my goal!) I went back this morning and I was 4-5 cm, so it worked. Now it's just a waiting game until regular contractions start. The doctor said since I am almost 5 cm, the labor should be pretty quick if everything goes as normal as can be. My due date is Sunday, and I scheduled an appointment for next Monday in case I don't go into labor over the weekend. They will let me go as long as I want (or up to the end of next week) before we have to discuss induction. The told me it was completely up to me, but I want to wait it out as long as I feel like I can in hopes to avoid a medication, induced labor.

Besides the rain today, we have had the best weather this week for spring break. Monday and Tuesday were AMAZING! Reese spent Monday with Kyle's mom and her two cousins, and the had a great day. Bowling and ice cream were checked off her list so she was a happy camper. Tuesday the kids, Kyle, Krista (sister in law) and the cousins went to Cave of the Mounds outside of Mt Horeb. I had my doctors appointment that morning, and was having irregular contractions, so I decided to hang at home and get some relaxing in for a bit.
Preston had an awesome Monday with us, and we spent the whole day outside. Sidewalk chalk, kite flying, bike riding, soccer playing, and running around.

Swimming was also on Reese's list, so with the crummy weather today, Kyle took the kids to the hotel here in town where you can pay for a day pass to swim. I think all we have left to do is go to a movie (she wants to see Zootopia) and roller skating (which might not happen.)

Kyle, who took this week off, has been busy outside with yard work and yesterday worked on getting our small vineyard ready and pruned for the grapes this summer. We have 3 rows of vines that produce concord grapes. We also know two people who make wine :) Works out nicely for us. Last year when we moved in, the grapes were ready to be picked, and we just didn't have time to get to it, so Kyle had a family friend come and pick them and he made 30 gallons of wine from them. This year, we hope to take care of them and be able to pick on our own, getting it made by friends who live near us. They are mostly all pruned up and ready for a good harvest this summer! I am SO excited to be able to enjoy a glass (or bottle) soon :)