Christmas has come and gone and our time at home over this winter break has brought an actual winter. In many ways this has been a blessing, offering many new activities to enjoy while at home. In other ways, it means we are stuck to some degree. We’ve made the best of what we have so far this Christmas season and I couldn’t ask for anything more.

Rewind to our Christmas weekend just a bit. For Reese’s last day at school before break, her school had a pajama party where they got to wear their favorite PJs to school and bring in their favorite stuffed animal. Reese wore her white PJs with red floral print and brought in her moose stuffy. Bryan and I savored one last day at home with just the two of us there plus Brooke, gearing ourselves up for a week plus with Reese at home.

On Christmas Eve, we had invited Sarah and Lottie over for dinner but had a surprise guest of Sarah’s mom that also joined us after flying in a day earlier than planned. Reese was excited for Lottie to come over and we were excited for the company. We did a simple but special dinner of Dungeness crab, asparagus, potatoes, bread, and salad. We finished off the meal with Bryan’s favorite grasshopper pie. The girls certainly enjoyed one another and got to open each other’s presents to one another, shortly before the entire tube of Lottie’s Hershey kisses were concealed and eaten under the dining room table between the two girls. They were definitely amped up post candy and for the rest of the night. We opened up our family pajamas just before bed and then Reese definitely had a difficult time going to sleep with the excitement of the next day awaiting.

Christmas morning began in our bed. Reese slept in hers until we were all ready to get up and superdad Bryan went with Brooke in arms to go get big sis to start opening presents. We opened each of our stockings first in our bed. Reese was excited for all of the candy, new undies, gloves, and a slinky that has been a big hit. We then moved downstairs and Reese was the first to see her new purple swing and bike next to the fireplace. Reese thoroughly enjoyed opening ALL of the presents, including our presents. She got lots of clothes and books this year, a necklace bead kit, a puzzle, and lots of other great presents. We snacked on some crumb cake after opening presents and let Reese come down from the high of opening presents and then bundled up to take her new bike for a cruise in the neighborhood, being that cold weather and possible snow was in the forecast for us. She was a little unsure about the balance bike at first, so we pushed her up the gradual climb up 27th Ave and let her balance with her feet on the bike but on the way back really got the hang of it. Once home we also strung up the swing on a tree out front and she was excited about the swing. We enjoyed the rest of Christmas Day indoors, Facetimed with our families, and then Bryan finished off Christmas dinner with a truly excellent New York roast with a bourbon cream sauce, truffled mashed potatoes, green beans and a salad. Bryan and I also enjoyed one of his cocktails before settling into bed.

The next morning, when I woke around 5:30 am to feed Brooke, I couldn’t help myself by saying, “Oh my god!” when I sat next to our big window upstairs in the glider. We had several inches of snow already on the ground and it was still coming down. The blanket of white was so shocking to me and so unexpected from the weather forecast. When Reese woke that morning Reese was equally surprised and excited. After breakfast and coffee we broke out our winter wear and the sled and Bryan got first turn at taking Reese sledding for a few runs on our hill. I came out with Brooke to follow them around. We got paid a visit by Reese’s friend Vivienne from school who lives just up the hill and the two girls played for a bit at our house. After Reese’s nap, with Brooke still asleep, I took the opportunity to take Reese out sledding with me. We made a few good runs, with Reese giggling the whole time, and then came back to the house to build a snowman in the front yard. Bryan took Reese for a few more turns before calling it a night.

The rest of the week was not much different. On Monday, Reese and Bryan did some sledding in the morning, Vivienne came over for another short play date, and the weather stayed cold and the snow remained. I got out of the house for a walk with Brooke while Reese napped and enjoyed the fresh air and sunny skies. Tons of people have been out walking these days which makes it a lot of fun as well. On Tuesday we hadn’t gotten out of the house other than Bryan to do some shoveling of snow but we finally got snow ready and set out for an evening walk to the Arboretum with the sled. Reese swung for a bit in the Arboretum playground before grabbing a slice of Pagliacci’s Pizza for Reese that she could eat in the sled on the way back home. On Wednesday we walked up to Lottie’s in the morning after breakfast and Bryan and I took the two (well, three) girls over to Miller Park to sled, swing, slide, and build a snowman before returning to Lottie’s for lunch and then heading back home.

And today we got more snow! Yippee! Just kidding, I am over the snow by this point, as pretty as it is, we’ve now been stuck for several days. We got a few inches over night and this was the first that I heard Reese ask to get the car out, up until now it had just been me asking for it. Reese has entered boredom stage which means that her creative juices are now flowing and she is actively engaging in more independent play as well. We are going out with our neighbors to walk over to the retention “pond” for some more sledding this afternoon and are planning on getting takeout from Kin Dee Thai for dinner.

And for the last day of the year, our plans to watch the big football games with friends was botched, thanks to snow and their sick kids. We will be coming up with a Plan B, either walking/bussing somewhere to watch the big game (or a half of it probably) or doing something at home and drinking champagne. I’ll be ready for 2022 even just for the weekend weather to drive the snow away and free our car out of the driveway! It’s been a pretty quiet week at home but overall it’s been very nice. I’ve certainly loved the sunny skies and I am very grateful that I had a bunch of meals prepped in the freezer and that we also live within walking distance from so many grocery stores (not that we have even needed to go during this week, other than to stock up on more gummy worms!).

Here’s to 2022! Now I need to work on my “22 for 22” list. Should be interesting since I feel like I have had zero hours in the day to do anything besides, eat, sleep, clean and watch these girls.

Chelsea

The past week has been quite enjoyable, still some work and still getting used to our new routine, but enjoyable nonetheless. After a slew of visitors last week, we had a few nights just the four of us at home at the end of the week. Bryan and I were able to steal away for an afternoon of wine tasting at our beloved winery Novelty Hill-Januik. In addition to the reserve tasting, we were hand delivered multiple additional pours thanks to Brooke being with us and our connections with FareStart. We had a blast to say the least.

And Friday we decided to take advantage of the “rain free” day and walk to get Reese and then walk downtown to take in the lights before getting a delicious dinner at Din Tai Fung. What we didn’t predict was that we would get rained on the whole walk back home. It was a fast walk back, stopping only to get Reese the largest slice of cheese pizza I have ever seen her eat in one sitting.

Saturday was a rainy mess of a day and we spent the whole day inside. It was my first experience really handling both girls by myself for awhile and although not easy, I survived and it was an enjoyable day at home. Sunday was a beautiful day but we had a few items on the calendar. Reese had her second gymnastics class which Bryan took her to and then enjoyed a walk around the neighborhood and got a coffee while Reese was in class. I took Brooke on a brief walk around our neighborhood and to get a few last minute things for our cookie exchange party. I spent the rest of the day finishing up the chili, baking cornbread muffins, and baking off my contribution of the peppermint chocolate cookies.

We managed to get to Optimism Brewing in Capitol Hill right around 4 pm and got a nice big table to set up the chili dinner and the cookies before our friends arrived. We had three other families join us for beers, to exchange cookies, and have dinner. Between the four families there was three girls (all about Reese’s age) that ran around our table like crazy for the full duration we were there, three infants, and a toddler. We have a nice big cookie platter that might last us until we get to Christmas (maybe!). I think Reese had the best time of everyone.

Last week for Reese at school for the year! Her school is decorated all cute for Christmas and Reese is just now starting to ask frequently if she can open up her presents. Most presents are wrapped and we have settled on meals for Christmas Eve and Christmas. Snow is even forecasted starting on Christmas Day as of right now with much colder temperatures expected next week. This week is really just a low key week at home, waiting for Christmas Day to arrive, although it still does not feel like Christmas to me. Bryan has still been busy getting his brew setup all ready to go for his first brew day, now planned for 12/29. Many of Reese’s friends are gone through break so I’ve been trying to brainstorm what playdates we may be able to get in or any excursions we might be able to do all four of us for the week that Reese is off of school.

So like I said before we are starting to get settled into a routine of sorts. Brooke has still been sleeping pretty well at night, waking two or three times on average (almost always at 1-1:30 am and then again around 5 am. Reese has adopted a big girl attitude almost over night and is now only wanting to sleep in her bed. But this does mean if she wakes at night then she wants someone to come lay with her again. Some nights she sleeps through the night and other nights she wakes two times. Brooke has been eating and sleeping well throughout the day. She’s certainly exceeded her birth weight and takes a pretty solid nap most days starting around 11 am or so. She definitely gets cranky when she’s sleepy but otherwise she has still been a pretty content baby. I feel like I am back to juggling a toddler in arms while eating dinner again and we have had some pretty good blowouts, most coming at night.

But ready or not, Christmas is almost here!

Chelsea

This is a much overdue post as we have been busy getting acquainted and settled in with our new baby girl, Brooke Isabelle, and our new family dynamic of four. Honestly, so far everything has been easier than I had expected and there have been so many precious moments that will forever be engrained in my memory, or at least I hope so.

Saturday, December 4th started much the same; Reese and I woke to watch Frozen and then Bryan made us bacon and pancakes for breakfast. However, I was already having the lightest of contractions as soon as I was awake and it was about 10 am that I had a feeling that this was going to be the day, or at least the day in which labor started, maybe not the actual delivery of our new baby. It was a rainy day and the three of us moved throughout the day like usual, playing with toys, taking a nap (Reese fell asleep on me which is not her usual but was oh so sweet), for me reading a book and for Bryan working on his home brew setup. Things were slow moving to start but around 3-4 pm things started picking up speed and intensity. We communicated this to Sarah, who was going to be taking Reese for the night, and started getting ourselves ready to leave for the hospital. We met Sarah and Lottie at the hospital as they had been north already at a friend’s party, and I gave Reese a big hug and kiss goodbye. You could tell she was nervous but in good hands with her best friend and an adult she knows extremely well.

Bryan and I headed to the childbirth center and checked in at about 5:30 pm and moved in to our palatial labor and delivery room where we sat in anticipation for a bit while also watching the beginning of the Big 10 Championship Game between Michigan and Iowa. Bryan may or may not be thrilled that his first photos with our newborn were wearing maize and blue! We had our favorite midwife on duty and the same midwife that helped us through labor with Reese. We also were greeted by our labor and delivery nurse, Ann Hathaway, who was something else and a whole other story. We were told to go ahead and get settled, order dinner before it was too late for that, and I was brought out a birthing ball to sit on to get things going.

That ball and dinner worked as by the end of the meal my contractions were much more intense and I wouldn’t have been able to stomach eating anything at this point. I was working through contractions with my support of Bryan by my side until about 9 pm and was checked again and was at 6 cm. At this point I was working through the pain but was ready to get the epidural before it was too late to do so. Once I had the pain relief I had about an hour of comfort and then started feeling the contractions heavily again, now understanding that this was due to the baby moving down where the pain blockers are no longer as effective. At about 10:40 pm I said that I was feeling the urge to push and the midwife checked me and that I was. I pushed for 8 minutes and then was handed my new baby girl who was placed in my arms. In comparison with the delivery of Reese where it seemed like we had 10+ people in the room with us at the time of delivery, we had two nurses and a midwife in our room at this point. It seemed surreal at how peaceful everything felt.

Brooke seemed so much smaller than Reese did and much quieter but in reality Brooke weighed in at 7 lbs 3 oz and 20″ and Reese weighed in at 7 lbs 10 oz and 19.5″. We had some time with the first nursing session and checking of her vitals before we were both cleaned up and then helped moved to a smaller postpartum room. We spent the next day and a half resting, recovering, and getting to know one another. Brooke took to breastfeeding without any problems. We got our celebratory dinner and quietly opened up a good bottle of red wine to celebrate our new daughter. My mom was able to come visit for some time in the room with me but we were only allowed two guests per day so she was the sole visitor aside from Bryan. Bryan helped retrieve Reese from Lottie’s house and get my parents settled at home before coming back to join me. And after only about 90 minutes of sleep that first night, both Bryan and I fell asleep at 6:30 pm, post dinner, and managed to get some more sleep after a few nurse’s wakeups. We were discharged from the hospital at about noon on Monday the 6th. Reese did so well while we were away, getting treated to a spaghetti dinner at home with my parents and watching the Incredibles before bed. She went to school Monday and Bryan and I were eager to pick her up from school before bringing her home to meet Brooke. I was so excited to see my big girl and give her a hug again.

Back home Reese got to meet her new baby sister. She was hesitant to hold her at first but that was the last time she was hesitant. All day everyday she wants to hold “Baby” and she does really a great job holding her and is getting better by the day. She’s not shared any signs of jealousy towards Brooke but was definitely more emotional the first week with everything going on. This has seemed to die down and she has been telling Brooke how much she loves her all the time and wants Brooke to lay in her bed with her at bedtime every night.

With my parents in town for the week we had several great homemade meals and a few takeout meals as a family. Blessedly, Reese sat at the table with the family and did well eating (she has a new cushion for a booster seat that I think helps) and Brooke slept or laid quietly in her swing every night to allow us to eat meals in peace, something Reese never let us do early on. We kept Reese home on Tuesday to spend the day with us and she got to go to the Gymnastics Academy with Bryan and my parents for their Indoor Playground which she loved but didn’t want to leave. We also took a big excursion out as a family, getting a quick dinner of dumplings in Bellevue and breaking out the double stroller to walk over and watch our first parade at the nightly Snowflake Lane celebration. Reese had a blast, even though she was freezing, both with the dumplings and then getting a light up balloon and waving at all of the parade participants. Definitely a worthwhile trip for all of us.

Reese also elected to stay home with everyone on Friday which ended up being a great day of going to her favorite park with the blue slide and later getting Pagliacci’s Pizza when Sarah and Lottie came over to have dinner with all of us and meet Brooke. We tried to take her to the Inflatable Zone on Saturday morning but the Zone was full so the girls and my parents went to the Magnusson Park playground instead and took a walk since it was actually a rain-free morning. And finally, Reese got to start her new gymnastics class on Sunday morning and even though the parents are not allowed to stay and watch, Reese’s first comments to me when I picked her up was, “Mom, I had fun!”

We said goodbye to my parents on Sunday around noon and then we were truly a family of four. We’ve had visitors every day since though and it’s been nice to see people and has brought with it meals and a playmate for Reese. Bryan and I have enjoyed some peace and quiet the past two days while Reese has been at school. Brooke is truly easy at this point so we’ve been able to shower, read books, clean, and go on walks. We have another week and a half of these days before Reese is off for a holiday break and then Bryan will be going back to work for two months while I am at home. Cherishing these days with his company! Fingers crossed things keep going as well as they have been for us.

Chelsea

We’ve reached and now passed our theoretical due date which was Monday, 11/29/21. I’m not surprised and feel like no one should be really with Reese coming two weeks past her due date but I’m also keen not to go the full two weeks past my due date this time around. I’m still patiently waiting and letting nature run its course for now but its the strangest feeling wondering when and where it will happen!

While we have been waiting, we had a nice low key long weekend at home over Thanksgiving. We had pretty much four straight days of drizzly dreary weather and spent the majority of the weekend at home. We did go over to our friend’s house on Thursday for the big dinner and that was enjoyable, delicious, and most importantly hassle-free for me in terms of preparations of the actual dinner. There were five adults and one Reese and she really did quite well sitting at the table with the adults and entertaining herself and others while we were with our friends. For dinner we had the necessities and they were all well executed: heritage turkey with caramelized onions, green bean casserole, cornbread muffins, dressing, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberry sauce and a delicata squash, feta and candied pecan salad. The dessert, featuring a chocolate pecan pie and a bourbon “pumpkin” pie with fresh whipped cream and Washington Dairy pumpkin ice cream, were some of the best pies I have had ever!

After the big meal, on Friday morning, we decided to use the break in the rain to get our Christmas tree from City People’s down the street. Bryan is great at picking out the perfect tree and we brought home a brilliant 6-7′ noble fir and a wreath. The whole event took no time at all. We got the lights strung on the tree Friday afternoon before having Lottie and Sarah over for homemade beef stroganoff and apple pie a la mode. The girls played so well together and it was nice to have some more company on an otherwise quiet day.

Saturday and Sunday were again quiet and rainy and spent indoors doing both holiday activities, enjoying lots of cuddles, and Bryan tackled a lot of items around the house. But first, we had the Michigan vs. Ohio State game to watch and what a game! Michigan came out actually pumped and prepared and with a lot to prove and it was wonderful to see. Even if they hadn’t won I would have been proud of their playing. Fortunately we got the victory, the first in ten years time! Throughout the game Reese and I put up decorations on the tree and Reese really enjoyed doing this (so much so that she wanted to take them off and put them back on on Sunday, which we did not do). We needed to get out of the house Saturday evening so we decided to use our BOGO dinner at Eastlake Bar and Grill. We were essentially the sole table in the entire dining room (a few parties in the bar) so it felt like we had the restaurant to ourselves. We had a great meal and got to watch a little more football.

Sunday was more playtime and things around the house but Reese and I did take her scooter out for a spin to walk and get Lowrider Cookies after her long nap. Reese enjoyed her cookie sitting outside with me at the cookie counter and we brought Bryan one home. Bryan helped Sarah and Lottie get their tree, which was eventful enough for his day, and we had homemade mole chicken enchiladas for dinner to round out our long weekend.

Being that Monday was our due date, Bryan came with me to my midwives appointment. There was nothing really big to report from the appointment but we left knowing that we would keep patiently waiting, at least until next Monday, before deciding anything else. We got to hear baby on the non-stress test and baby was sounding alert and active. Since we weren’t presented with baby yet, Bryan and I took one last opportunity to go out for a date night dinner. This time we walked down the street to sit at the bar counter at Harvest Vine. We had another amazing meal of their roasted cauliflower with salsa verde, sea bass with peppers and crispy jamon, and the now famous cuttlefish with aioli and squid ink fideo pasta. We also had bread, some complimentary serrano ham from the kitchen and I stole a few sips of Bryan’s wine. We talked more about names, although still not settled on a boys name so it could be anyone’s guess.

And taking advantage of slow days at work and still waiting for baby we ventured south to our friend’s new house in Kent for dinner at their house and to enjoy their company. We picked up Reese early and arrived just in time to see their yard before it was too dark. We got a tour of the new house and Reese had a blast playing with their two girls. We had a fabulous meal and good entertainment with a full on dress up show by the three girls during dinner. We didn’t leave until nearly 9 pm but somehow Reese stayed awake the whole ride home.

We have zero plans now these next several days so just still waiting and seeing…I give Reese a big hug every morning when I drop her off at school and have been prepping her that it could be mommy and daddy picking her up or she might get lucky and get to go over to Lottie’s house. Time will tell…but if there is any better sign, my one and only pair of maternity jeans ripped through the crouch pretty good last night and are now in the trash.

Chelsea