wardrobe malfunction

WARNING:  This story is not for the faint of heart.  I'll start by saying that Elliot Claire has not pooped regularly since she was born.  She goes 3-4 days in between poops.  Poor little thing is always pushing, but she just can't make it happen.  Chris and I take pictures and text them to each other whenever the joyous event finally happens.  I've never seen anything like it.  Imagine 4 days of built up newborn poo.  It's insane.  We had Elliot baptized this weekend.  Such a precious moment for our little family.  All Elliot's great grandparents were there, which was so special.  Elliot wore the same dress that was made by her great grandma Brostrom, and was worn by 2 of her aunts, 2 of her cousins, and her big sister.  It is such a cool family heirloom.  Sunday morning happened to be day 4 of Elliot's no pooping spree.  I knew it would be happening soon. When I was ready to walk out the door, I decided it was safe to put the dress on Elliot.  Getting her dressed must have stimulated something, because it happened.  Yep, poop was everywhere.  I was so frazzled.  I couldn't believe it.  We were going to be late, and the vintage christening gown was poo stained.  Luckily, Chris texted Pastor Rusty during the sermon and asked him if he could extend the sermon a bit to make time for us to get there.  So grateful for our Pastor and the fact that he lets the congregation text him during worship, and he reads them!  Thanks Rusty.  P.S.  Dreft stain removal spray is made by angels.
 

 XOXO
Stacey

Nunya business

There are so many qualities in a newborn baby that I truly appreciate.  For one, they don't eat your food.  In these last few weeks of being home with just Elliot, I have eaten breakfast and lunch and not had to suffer the risk of my food being taken.  LP loves to steal my food.  She tells me she doesn't want something, until I make it for myself, then she's all over it.  I didn't realize how amazing it feels to be able to eat without the risk of thievery.  Chris and I have both learned how to eat candy without rattling the package and pretty much without moving our mouths at all.  (It's a talent, it takes work)  Recently, before Chris had perfected this talent, Leighton saw him chewing on a mouthful of Runts candy.  She said, "Daddy, what are you eating?"  He said, "Nunya."  She responded, "I wants some Nunyas please."  How the heck could we resist giving them to her then?  Needless to say, Runts are now called Nunyas in our house.  Gosh we love that girl.  Here are some recent pictures.  I created a book of all my blog entries last year, and there were only 2 pictures of myself in all my entries.  Yikes, I have to change that this year.  I am not just the narrator, I DO exist!!!    

my kindred spirit

smiling for Aunt B

XOXO
Stacey

LP and EC

It has been a very crazy 6 weeks.  We have a very rambunctious 3 year old, and introducing a newborn into the mix has been, well, interesting, to say the least.  Leighton has put makeup on Elliot's face, smashed food in her hair, and shaken her out of sheer excitement to the point that DHS would not be happy.  All I can say is Elliot is going to be one tough little girl.  Who knows what will happen when she can defend herself.  Yikes!  As much as I want to cherish this time while Elliot is a newborn, I envy the day when I can leave the room with my girls in it and come back to not find something that makes me scream in horror.  I'm sure I will look back and laugh about these days, however, they are pretty stressful at the moment.  Every time Elliot cries, Leighton tells me what she wants:   "Momma, Elliot wants her bite chew (pacifier), "Momma, Elliot wants her arm out of the blanket, "Momma, Elliot wants your boobie."  (That's my favorite, especially when she yells it in public places, Ugh) 

All else aside, Elliot is an angel baby.  She started smiling at 3 weeks and is just so sweet.  I love the smiles that are all gums.  Sweetest. thing. ever.  She just chills and takes the world in.  I pray that her and Leighton's opposite personalities will complement each other as they grow up together.  When Leighton says, "Hey Elliot, let's jump off this cliff, it will be sooooo fun."  Elliot's response will be, "Now Leighton, yes, it might be fun, but let's really consider the consequences of this choice."  A mom can dream,  right.  Here are some pics.

 

I only left the room for 2 seconds.  Yes that is a moving toy that is aimed at Elliot's head.  No worries, I stopped her just in time.



Elliot and mommy





my babies




my mess



A special thanks to my friend Rebecca for all of the beautiful professional photos above.  The rest are just iphone pics. 

XOXO

Stacey

New normal

So, I am now the mother of 2.  It's very surreal.  Saying, "the kids" when speaking of my offspring is the strangest thing ever.  Elliot Claire Tracy may be the best behaved baby ever.  I have no doubt that God knew that I could not handle another spitfire like Leighton Paige Tracy.  There is only room for one of those in the family. 

Elliot was born on November 27th and weighed in at 9 lbs 7 oz.  She was 21 inches long.  Leighton weighed 7lbs 14oz and was 21.5 inches long.  I have no idea why my second baby was so incredibly large.  My doctor even said that most 2nd babies only vary about a pound from the first.  Elliot must not have got that memo.  Her birth was far from boring.  The doctor barely made it in the room in time to deliver her.  Her heartrate dropped and she was ready to come out.  Her shoulder got stuck and she wouldn't breathe when she first came out (I think because of the trauma of her being stuck.)  They rushed her to the newborn intensive care unit in order to get her breathing.  It was the scariest 3 minutes of my life.  The nurse came back in to tell me that she was screaming, which meant she was breathing, and I could too.  I kind of felt like all of that happened in slow motion.  I am so grateful for my doctor.  He stayed very calm, therefore, keeping me calm. 

Leighton LOVES her little sister.  She loves her so much that I am afraid she is going to squeeze the breath out of her.  This was expected though.  LP is very demonstrative, just like her daddy.  I just think Elliot is going to end up being a very tough little girl because of her big sister. 

Chris is absolutely in love.  He adores LP too, but she would barely allow anyone to hold her but me when she was a baby so Chris is loving how laid back Elliot is.  She just lays on his chest and chills.  He wants to hold her all the time, which is so sweet.  I am really grateful that he is getting to experience a different kind of baby. 

It's almost Christmas and LP sang "We wish you a Merry Christmas" at her Christmas program at school yesterday.  When it was over, Santa came to visit.  Leighton stood in line, but when her turn came, she said, "Momma, I like Santa, I just don't want to sit on his lap, but I like him though."  She wanted to make sure I was aware that she had nothing against him.  I said, "That's okay, I wouldn't want to sit on his lap either."  Maybe that wasn't the right thing to say, but you know what, we teach our kids to not sit on strange men's laps, so I am proud of her.  Plus, he was creepy, as are most Santas. :)

Here are some pics of the past few weeks:

This picture speaks a thousand words. :)

XOXO-Merry Christmas
Stacey   

give thanks

I am 40 weeks pregnant, and you would think that it would be fantastic to be pregnant on Thanksgiving, as did I.  However, when you are 40 weeks pregnant, you can eat a snow pea and feel so full that you can't even breathe, not to mention the intense heartburn that accompanies anything that goes in your mouth.  So tomorrow, instead of a day of gorging, will be a day of reflection and togetherness, as it should be. 

So much has happened since I last blogged.  I have learned that the people that you love the most in this world will also hurt you the most.  This is just something that is so hard to accept, but so true.  Humans are flawed.  We all know this, but it isn't until you are betrayed by your loved ones that you realize that people are so messed up.  All we can do is help each other through this life and put our complete trust in God, not humans.  We are all broken, we are all sinners.  Acceptance of that is extremely hard.  I'm working on it constantly.   

On another note, Elliot Claire Tracy is scheduled to enter this world on Sunday November 27, if she doesn't decide to make her grand entrance during my turkey dinner tomorrow.  Never tried induction before, but I hear you get your epidural right when you get there.  Amazing!!  I won't know what to do if I am able to have a child without 12 hours of excruciating pain.  Praise God for modern medicine and anesthesiologists!

On the eve of this Thanksgiving, I want to reflect on the many things that I am thankful for in my life: 
1)  a healthy 40 week pregnancy
2)  a healthy rambunctious 3 year old
3)  a great job
4)  a large family that loves me and supports me
5)  fantastic "TRUE" friends.  The kind that would stand by me no matter what and are more like family.  The kind that love me for me, the deep part, not the surface, shallow part.  In saying that, I am also grateful to be one of those "TRUE" friends to others.
6)  I am grateful that God gave me the wisdom and the personality to keep my mouth shut.  I've learned that this is extremely difficult for alot of people.  I am grateful that this is not my struggle.
7) I am grateful also that God made me trustworthy.  My husband has always told me that he loves that I am so loyal.  I personally think that this is the way we are all supposed to be.  We are not supposed to hurt each other.  We are supposed to stand by each other and do whatever it takes to support each other.  This life is hard and there is absolutely no need to make it harder on our own account. 

There is so much more, but I'll stop on that note.  Next time I blog, I'll have a newborn.  YIKES!!!  Not sure if I am ready.............

dancey dance party

We had LP's 3rd bday party at our house this weekend.  Thought I would share some pictures from the day.  Leighton had a great time and was so excited when she opened her gifts.  Yo Gabba Gabba was the theme and we even had a special appearance from DJ Lance (aka Chris).  I have no pics of him though because apparently my camera wasn't cooperating.  I'll WILL get some pics though.  I'll post those later. 

XOXO
Stacey