To Grandmother's House We Go

Because she hadn't seen him yet, we took Sutton out to Rockwall to meet Grandma, Travis' grandmother and our kids' great-grandmother.  Grandma fell in love with her only great-grandson, and the girls had fun visiting with everyone!

You Be the Judge

I've taken these pictures of each of my babies during their first precious days at home.  See any similarities?

Great Big Sisters

Grace and Ella have adjusted really well to Sutton.  Grace constantly wants to hold and smell him.  She thinks he smells like the hospital, which I'm not sure is a good thing :)  Ella kisses his head every 5 minutes and likes to point out all of his body parts.  She constantly talks to him: "Hi, baby!" "Baby's night night!"  "Bye, bye baby!"  She's so quick, however, and I haven't been able to snap a picture. 

The girls really seem to love Sutton, and he fits right in around here.  The other day, Grace told me she was going to watch Sutton, and here's how I found her...

When Ella saw this, she got her own chair and starting watching him, too.

Grace was so excited to accompany me and Sutton to the park this week.  She pushed Lamby in her stroller right next to mine.  We got lots of smiles from our neighbors.

They've also had a great time with all the extra visitors this week.  Ella was especially excited to see Murse and even recognized her and called her by name.  I think Murse was even more excited because for some reason, Ella used to cry every time she saw her.  I'm so glad Ella's gotten over that!

Ella got some extra loving from Bubba and Chachi.

Grace has enjoyed having Dory here this week.

It's so cute to see them acting in concert together.  Ella wants to do everything just like Grace, and Grace is getting even better about trying to include her.  When Grace brought home a collection of doodlebugs, she proudly showed them off to Ella...

Sutton doesn't know how blessed he is to have such great big sisters.  I look forward to watching their relationships grow!

Sutton's First Week

Meet Mr. Dream Baby...

I don't know if my memory is just foggy because I'm post-partum (or because I've had three kids), but I don't remember Grace and Ella being so easy during their first weeks.  Sutton is good at everything:  eating, sleeping, being cute and cuddly, etc.  I guess all my babies have been good eaters and took to nursing right from the start with no problems.  And, most babies sleep all the time in the beginning, but something about him just seems so easy.  He only cries when he's having his diaper changed.  That's it.  When he's hungry, he just makes little noises and moves around a lot, but no crying.  He has a really peaceful and sweet spirit, and we are completely smitten!  

Sutton spends most of his time asleep in someone's arms...

Most of the time, he's in my arms, and I LOVE it!

Travis has been jokingly giving me a hard time about this, but I told him I'm going to enjoy every minute of it.  Sutton is my last baby, and this is the last time one of my babies will ever be this tiny.  So, I'm going to hold him as much as I want.  And, in my defense, Sutton has also spent time his swing and bouncy seat.  

We even joined Grace, Ella, Gabby and Dory at the park this week.  The girls had a ton of fun playing and loved that I got to play with them, since I'd been unable to keep up with them for the past few weeks.  Sutton seemed pretty content sleeping in his stroller.  Any time someone would go up to take a peek, Grace would quickly tell them, "He's my baby."  Ella also kept a close eye on him, and I'm sure she was thinking the same thing.

I still think Sutton looks like Travis, and he definitely looks more like Grace than Ella.  His hair is dark, but photographs much lighter.  It's the same color that the girls had at this age, although theirs turned blond pretty quickly.  I have a feeling his will do the same.  Sutton is also built more like Grace.   I think this picture of him shows just how long and skinny his little legs are...(note: his feet don't look that big in person, but he definitely has big hands).

Today, Travis took Sutton and me to lunch.  We're big believers in taking your kids to restaurants so they know how to act in public, and at the Spillman house, we start early!  Grace was 9 days old the first time we took her out, and Ella was just shy of a week.  We consistently take our kids out to eat at least twice a week, and they behave so well.  Apparently, our strategy is working.  We'll see what happens with three kids...

The thing I've been feeling the most this week is awe.  I'm in complete awe at God's goodness and the favor He has shown on my life.  I'm in complete awe that Travis and I have had three beautiful, healthy babies in three and a half years.  I'm in awe that I have three kids at age 30. I'm in awe that this week has been so smooth.  I'm in awe that Grace and Ella have adjusted so well to having a newborn in our home.  What a blessing all of this is.  What a week!

Grace's End of Year Program

Grace had been looking forward to her end of year school program for a while.  She never tells us much about school, but she started singing "God Bless America" and Louis Armstrong's "It's a Wonderful World" at home, so we figured that would be part of the show.  Travis and I were excited about watching her perform, but Sutton had other plans.  Yep, her show was last Thursday, May 14--otherwise known as Sutton's birthday!  Thankfully, Gabby, Grambi, Poppy and Dory made it to the school to watch her.  They couldn't see her very well because she was positioned behind some other kids, but they noticed that in true Gracie fashion, she did everything she was told.  Here are some pictures my dad snapped:

Gracie is so excited about school being out for the summer, but she's even more excited that I don't have to go to work until August!

Belated Anniversary

What a busy few days:  Ella turned 18 months on the 13th; Sutton was born on the 14th, and on the 15th?  Travis and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary!  We'd made dinner reservations at our favorite restaurant, but obviously, we had a slight change of plans.  Not that we minded :)  

After 10 years together, and 5 years of marriage, I'm more in love than I ever thought possible. We've accomplished so much together, and I look forward to many more years of wedded bliss. I love you, Trav!

Day 2 and Going Home

We had a really good first night with Sutton.  He ate and slept really well, and Travis and I were able to sleep, too.  Meanwhile, at home, Ella started off her morning with a walk in her pajamas...

Then, my parents brought Grace and Ella up to the hospital for a visit.  When they arrived, I was up and Sutton was in his bassinet.  Ella looked at me for just a second, but then, her eyes started wandering--she was looking for her baby :)  As soon as she spotted him, she said, "I touch?"  So, she touched.  And, then she said, "I kiss?"  And, she kissed.  It was too sweet!  I know the girls were happy to see us, but I think the best part of their morning was the donuts they got for breakfast.

Grace did NOT like that we had to stay at the hospital.  She called me crying the night before, and told me that morning that she wanted me to come home.  Sutton's pediatrician said he was perfect, and my doctor called Travis and I "seasoned veterans."  So, because I was recovering well, we were released to go home! 

Everyone was napping when we arrived around 3 p.m., but when they woke up, they were happy to see us.  It felt wonderful to have all three of our babies under one roof!

A Baby Story, Plus Lots of Pictures

Sutton's birth story is pretty short and sweet, so here it goes...As I mentioned, I had contractions basically all day after my 39-week check up.  I had an inkling that something big was happening, so that night, I finished packing my bag for the hospital, laid out the girls' stuff for the next day, and took a shower and dried my hair.  Travis and I watched American Idol, and I went to bed around 10:30 with a digital watch in hand.  My contractions were about 8 minutes apart, but not terribly painful.  Still, I didn't get much sleep.  Travis came to bed around 11:00, and at that point, my contractions were closer together and more painful.  He easily fell asleep, but I woke him up at 11:30, and said, "It's time!"  We started getting our things together, and then, my water broke.  Luckily, my brother lives just around the corner, so he was at our house quickly and we headed off for the hospital.

When we got there, I gave them all the vital info and we got checked in around 12:30.  My doctor was not on call, but the resident checked me and confirmed what I already knew--this was the real thing!  Thankfully, my epidural was AMAZING this time.  Instead of just working on the right side, it worked on both sides and made me very comfortable.  I wanted to wait until my doctor arrived (because he's incredible), but this baby was ready.  Less than 6 hours later, it was time to push.  I pushed for less than 5 minutes, and Sutton was born!  He exercised his lungs right away--what a beautiful sound.  It was love at first sight, all over again!

Sutton, Travis and I were able to enjoy a pretty quiet couple of hours together before our families arrived.  And, then the fun began....

Ella was a little unsure about why I was holding a baby

Poppy meeting Sutton

Curious sisters

Grambi meeting Sutton

Gabby is excited about having a boy to care for

Chachi meeting Sutton

Dori and Grace admiring Sutton

The first of many kisses

Pj, Dori and Grace are in love

Ella finally warmed up to my hospital bed

The crew headed home after lunch, and we got some much needed rest.  I'd been awake since 6:30 Wednesday morning and was exhausted.  After dinner, we got another round of visits.  

Ella was a little more confident

Grace was thrilled

My three babies

Our sweet (and creative) friend, Ashley made this sign for our door

What a wonderful first day with our precious boy!