Sweet Little Bell

 

Being Tinkerbell is tough.

The Many Faces of Christian

We were outside, enjoying the nice weather this weekend and Christian wanted me to take some pictures of him.  He put on some of his best faces--complete with Kool-aid 'stache. 

This kid cracks me up!

Juliana's Baby Blessing

 This last Sunday (Mother's Day!) we blessed out sweet Juliana.  Cubby did a wonderful job and (gasp!) Juliana stayed sound asleep the entire time!  (A first for our family!)  She looked so darling in the dress that my mom made--both Emily and Kari have worn it as well and each of their names and birthdates have been stitched inside of the bottom hem.

 After sacrament meeting, we went over to my mom's house for some cake and lemonade.  It was a beautiful day and we were so happy to be able to spend it with so much family.

Here is a big group shot.  We are so fortunate to have so much support and love from our family.

Dancing Queen(s)

Next up for busy week post-baby:  Emily's dance recital!  This year Emily worked very hard and this year performed both ballet and tap numbers.

The theme of the recital (or "concert" as it's properly called) was "Alice in Dancerland."  Emily's ballet dance was the first number of the show and the girls were Alice; "Through the Looking Glass" was the song.  It was DARLING.

For her tap number, they were playing cards (as part of the Queen of Hearts from Alice in Wonderland); the song was "You Gotta Have Heart."  The girls all sounded really crisp and clear--not too bad for 1st and 2nd graders!!  Emily had a great big smile the whole time and I was just amazed at how much she's improved over the year!  (It also helps that her teacher is the owner of the studio and has been an AMAZING teacher this year!)

 Here is the whole group that came out to lend their support to Miss Em.  (We were all there at Christian's graduation too, but I didn't get a group shot then--Juliana woke up and was a very hungry girl.)  Grandma and Grandpa Lindseth planned their visit so that they could see both kids' big events and help out at home too.

Emily wasn't the only one loving the dancing scene.  Kari was completely enthralled with the whole recital.  After each number, she would tell my mom (who she was sitting with), "More dance!"  Oh, and on a side note, we have some hilarious video of her dancing at Christian's graduation.  There was a slide show set to music and she just couldn't help herself--she just had to get up and dance!  (Kari gets to start dancing not this fall, but next.  She'll definitely be ready!)

 

And, a final sibling shot.  Cute stuff!

Way to go, Emily!  We love watching you dance!

Preschool Graduation

 This past week has been a busy one!  First up, Christian graduated from preschool!!  The kids were so cute and very happy to be the center of attention. 

They sang songs that they'd learned through the year and each got a little "award" from their teacher.  Christian's was "Best Storyteller" because apparently, every Monday morning, Christian had a very big story to tell Mr. Joey about what he and his family did over the weekend.  (Who knew we led such an exciting life as to elicit a big story each week??) 
Here is Christian and Mr. Joey.  Christian told me today that he misses Mr. Joey already.  So sweet! 

The year went very quickly and I can't believe Christian will be a kindergartener in the fall!  Thank goodness I still have some time to prepare for high school graduation--the way time flies it'll be here before I know it.  (Yeah, can't think about that yet...preschool graduation was tough enough!)

Meeting the Family

Miss Juliana had many visitors.  Here are a few pictures that show her meeting some very important people!

Great Grandma Carolyn

Big Brother, Christian

Big Sister, Kari (Yes, she insisted upon wearing one of Emily's old dance costumes.  She calls it her "swimsuit".)

Big Sister, Emily

Snuggling with Grandma Karen

Our new family of six!

Welcome Juliana Karen!

 DISCLAIMER:  BIRTHING STORY AHEAD!

She's here!  As we thought, this little girl was so cozy she was not coming out on her own.  So, at 8:30 pm on Monday, April 30th, Mommy, Daddy, and baby-to-be walked into Midlands Hospital, ready for action!  After getting settled, the nurses started me on cytotec (sp?) to get more regular contractions going and to soften up my cervix.  Cubby stayed around for a bit (and we got to watch "Castle" together) before heading home for the night.

During the night, contractions came, but weren't too strong or uncomfortable.  I didn't sleep much, but it wasn't as bad as it has been in the past.  Around 6 am, the nurse started me on pitosin (sp?) and that really kicked me into active labor.  I let her know that as soon as the anistesiologist got there, to send him up!  Thankfully, he arrived just before 8:00 and just as he was going to begin, Cubby got there and so I could squeeze his hands to death instead of the nurse's!

The epidural kicked in just in time!  Some women's bodies don't respond well to epidurals and it slows their labor down.  Mine does exactly the opposite!  Pre-epidural, I was dialated to a 2.  Ten minutes after it took effect, the nurse checked and I was at a SEVEN!  And, while she was checking me, she just happened to break my water!  Once that happened, I suddenly felt this HUGE pressure (like I had to use the bathroom) and things started happening very quickly!  I had asked Cubby to make me a bagel and so while he was down the hall, my doctor was called over and everything was set up.  He was a little surprised when he got back and I told him, "I don't think I'll be eating that bagel, I'm going to deliver!"

Sure enough, once everything was set, I pushed for maybe a minute or two and out she came!  (Dr. Schropp even said, "Now THAT'S the way to deliver a 10 lb baby!"  It was amazing.  Since the epidural hadn't been in for very long, I was able to feel a LOT more than I had with any of the other children.  Thankfully, it was enough that it took the edge off, but still, I was sooooo grateful once she was out!!  Again, it was incredible.

So, here is Miss Juliana Karen Lindseth!  (When Cubby snapped this picture of her on the scale, it was still going up--it finally stopped around 9 lbs. 14.9 oz and Dr. Schropp said we could officially say 9 lbs. 15 oz. :-) .)  She was 21 1/2 inches long and her head measured 14 inches around.This little girl was not only very big, she was very pink!  SUCH great coloring--absolutely beautiful.  She also has a GREAT set of lungs on her!!  Juliana came out yelling and HUNGRY.  Seriously, until she figured out how to latch on, she was crying...loudly.  But, she settled down once she got a little something in her tummy and so far, things have been going pretty smoothly.

Juliana also has very big feet!  They took up the entire box when her footprints were taken.  It was quite funny.  We're not sure who the "looks like" just yet.  (We think she may have Emily's (Cubby's) shape of eyes, Christian's cheeks and Kari's lips.  I guess time will tell!

Juliana has been warmly welcomed by all--more pictures to come!