An UNprofessional Photo Shoot

Most teachers roll their eyes at the saying, "those who can't do, teach." But I'm here to tell you that I taught plenty of things I didn't know how to do. For example, the two years I taught at the jr high were spent running the stage crew. At the time, my stage experience was limited to a couple musicals in high school. I had absolutely no idea what I was doing when I was given the assignment. My goal was to stay one day ahead of my students, but often I found myself scrambling for a lesson 5 minutes before the kids showed up (ironically some of those last-minute lessons were some of my best. Go figure.) Somehow I sort of figured out the lighting board, the sound mixer, the curtains, and even some set design. And if I do say so myself, the 2 musicals we pulled off while I was there were a smashing success. (I'll never forget Galinda the good witch and her bubble wand. And figuring out how to make Peter and Wendy fly. Good times.)

My new job at the high school included being the yearbook adviser. Again - I had no clue what I was doing, and faking it in front of high school students isn't quite as easy. What are all yearbooks full of? Pictures. How much photography experience did I have? Absolutely none. Again, I sort of made it work (mostly thanks to my amazing students) and my last yearbook actually won an award (I'm shamelessly proud).

All of this is just to say that I am NOT a photographer. We couldn't take the typical newborn photos while Owen was in the NICU, and since I still can't take him out in public, we were limited to the photography equipment we had at home. Which is none. So I took these with my iPhone - they're not perfect, but since Owen is the subject they are perfect in my eyes. And just fyi - these were taken shortly after we left the NICU - I promise he's much bigger now!

Be still my heart!!

3 Months

It's so wild to think that 1/4 of Owen's first year is behind us. Crazy!! Not only did we hit the 3 month mark but he also finally outgrew his Newborn-sized diapers this weekend. :)  He usually only spits up on me about once a day (I'll take it) and for the most part has kindly stopped going wee wee during diaper changes (that a boy!)

My sista gave me the great idea on how to take some cute monthly photos, and I finally got around to touching up his 1 and 2 month pics.  (He was pretty fidgety for those, and I think my camera was on a weird setting, but we're slowly figuring it out.).

*Quilt made by my amazing aunt Barbara. I'm in love with it (especially the colors!)

*Quilt made by an old family friend. It's so soft and luscious.

*Thanks to Jaime for this adorable print :)

Owen's Baby Blessing

We just came out of an incredible weekend. Saturday and Sunday were spent listening to inspirational talks from our prophet and other church leaders. Sunday was Easter. We didn't do anything traditional for the holiday - I didn't even make deviled eggs this year (gasp!) But Easter is one of my favorite holidays because we get to devote an entire day to celebrating the blessing and gift of eternal life. Because of Him we will be with Lydia again. So amazing. And in the midst of all that, we managed to have Owen's baby blessing. It was a day full of immense gratitude for the miracle that he is and the joy that he has brought into our lives. He is such a good baby and during his "debut" his behavior did not disappoint. :) He was awake and alert and just LOVED being around all his aunts, uncles and cousins (we kept the invite list limited to immediate family to limit his germ exposure - even then I was still a nervous wreck).

Thankfully you can't see the side of Dan's head where I had a "whoops" moment when I cut his hair. :)

The proud Daddy-O. Let it be noted that I had some really cute baby booties for Owen to wear. Totally forgot to put them on. Mom fail.

The Spjute fam. Minus the Ball clan. And we can't wait for Owen's little bestie cousin to be born in (hopefully) a few more days. :)

The Ditto fam. Minus the Sara on her mission in Canada.

The Spjute cousins who were SO excited to see "baby Owen" for the first time. This whole sequester thing is kind of (really) the worst.

And a couple more family photos (minus Lydia of course). The good weather was perfect so we could be outside for the festivities.

This boy knows his Mom (and I kind of love it)!

A very happy UN-birthday

It's hard to believe that my almost two-month-old was due TODAY (March 6th). For his un-birthday gift to me, he decided to spit-up ALL down my back after breakfast this morning. Lovely. (I guess that's what I get for not using a burp rag.) 

I was trying to explain his whole "coming home on oxygen" business to my sister the other day, and she told me I should take pictures because it sounds complicated (it's really not too bad).

One of our first days in the NICU, I saw a couple leaving with their baby. Attached to the baby were cords and intimidating equipment and I could tell they were going home with oxygen. It looked scary. I told myself (and Dan and probably several of the nurses) that I would NOT be taking Owen home on oxygen. Well, I obviously ate those words. It's amazing what 34 days in the NICU can do to you. By his fourth week there, I was so ready to come home that I didn't care at all if the oxygen tank was coming with us.

This is his giant oxygen tank. It weighs over 50 pounds. We were given tubing that is 50-feet long, and thankfully we live in a small apartment because when we're home we can pretty much take him anywhere in our place thanks to the long tube.

That 50-foot tube eventually connects to his cute little face. The flesh-colored "stickers" on his face are to help hold it in place (he hates the oxygen and is constantly pulling at it). The stickers are the worst - they totally irritate his skin and we have to switch them out every couple of days (which he hates).

This is his monitor. The red number is his oxygen percentage and the green number is his pulse. If either number goes out of his "ok" range, it beeps. LOUD. You know the annoying beep your car makes when you don't put your seatbelt on? Multiply that by 1000 and you've got this thing. It doesn't stop beeping until he's back to normal. On one hand, this thing is a paranoid parent's bff. I don't have to wonder whether or not he stops breathing, because this thing will alert me if there is ever a problem, so I have plenty peace of mind when I leave him in his crib at night. On the other hand, it's super annoying because when it goes off, he is usually back into his normal range within 10-20 seconds, and we don't have to do anything other than dive for the silence button to make the beeping stop.

The sensor that is attached to his foot is how the monitor gets its numbers. (There is a red light on the sensor, which is why it looks like his foot is glowing.) If the sensor comes loose at all and can't read his numbers, the monitor beeps at us until its fixed. Again, super annoying because this kid likes to kick it off. The other annoying thing about the monitor is the cord is only about 3 feet long. We don't have the luxury of the 50-foot cord like we do with the oxygen tank. Which means wherever he goes, we have to carry the monitor with us. Having a squirmy newborn AND a monitor in your arms at 3 in the morning when you're trying to heat up a bottle can be a good time. The monitor also has to be plugged in to a power source most of the time (it has a battery, but its short-lived.) So when we need to change his diaper, we have to unplug the power cord from the monitor, and carry both him and the monitor to the changing table.

Oh yeah, and if we have to take him anywhere (which only happens once a week when he goes to the doctor since he's not allowed to be out in public until JUNE), we get to switch out his 50-foot cord for a shorter one and attach it to one of his portable oxygen tanks. I get pity looks from the other moms in the doctors office when they see me carrying a car seat, the oxygen tank, the monitor, and the diaper bag. It's quite the sight. 

But there is a light at the end of the tunnel-he should be completely off oxygen by next week! Taking care of a newborn without a mess of cords and beeps is going to be amazing!!

There's no place like HOME

We got released from prison - I mean the NICU - on Friday the 13th. It was our lucky day (I was SO done with that place.) I cried as we walked down the long hallway out of the hospital. I cried again most of the car ride home (and of course I rode in the back seat with Owen - he was out cold the entire time). And then I cried again when we got home. Post-pregnancy hormones sure are the worst (or . . . maybe I'm just one happy momma to finally have my baby home with me).

We adopted a couple of friends - a giant oxygen tank and an oxygen monitor (more about that later) but Owen doesn't seem to mind one bit. And now my days are spent nursing and napping. Aka - bliss. :)

The car seat looks huge with him in it!

Giddy smiles that we are finally leaving WITH our son!!

My boys napping on Valentine's day. Whoever came up with the idea of putting giant images on the bums of baby clothes is pure genius. Isn't that bear bum the cutest?!

For Your Viewing Pleasure

A few pics of our little mister. He's up to 5 pounds 4 ounces and we *should* be heading home sometime this week. Hoorah!

When he's deep asleep his mouth is wide open. It's adorable.

Handsome like daddy!!

His first bath. This boy was in h.e.a.v.e.n. Pretty sure he was mad when we took him out (but then we wrapped him in 3 heated blankets and all was well). And the swaddle method for bathing is awesome.

The proud dad.

A family pic. I'm still super pale from all the blood loss, but otherwise I've recovered just fine :)

Owen = Young Warrior

The night Owen was born was a crazy night. Once all the family left, we realized Husband needed to run back home to get a few things (we definitely did NOT have a "hospital bag" packed). By the time he made it back, I was coherent enough to demand we give our "baby" a name. I was tired of praying for my "baby," and knowing many others would be praying for him as well we knew it was time to make a decision. Husband was sent to visit him in the NICU with our list of potential names (it was long) and was told to come back with it narrowed down. I did the same thing from my hospital bed. We both narrowed it down to the same couple of names, and after a bit of discussing we were 99% ready to go with Owen. But we thought we'd look up the meaning of the name  just to be sure. The meaning just sealed the deal - Owen is definitely our "young warrior." This kid has been through more in his 16 days than most people deal with in a lifetime. He is tough stuff and we are so glad he fought to stay here.

I thought I'd post pics that show his development in the past 2 weeks. (And sorry to those who have been waiting on more pictures - since I finally get to hold my son I would rather spend my days snuggling with him than updating the blog.) Lucky for you I have to give husband some snuggle time as well (which inevitably leads to them napping together) so while my boys are snoozing you get an update. :)

Day 1 - c-pap machine for breathing, sunbathing for jaundice, and a whole bunch of other cords to keep him alive.

Then he was intubated. Not fun.

Back to the c-pap

Doing the super man pose.

Back to being under the jaundice lights. Sigh.

And now he is one happy kid with only a feeding tube. And I am one happy mama because we get to snuggle all the day long! :)