Baby Mania!

Here is my attempt to give an update on all of the kids and our recent trip to Nebraska in a short time before everyone wakes up from naps!
We survived the 12 1/2 hour (each way) trip to Nebraska for my grandfather's funeral over Easter weekend.  I won't talk much about the drive because we are finally recovering and I don't want to scare Jared away from driving up there again this summer!
We had a nice time with family including all of my siblings and their kids, grandparents, great grandma, aunts, uncles and cousins from the Jones side of the family and a visit from the great grandparents on my mom's side.  With the recent baby boom in my family, we had one two year old, two one year olds, three four months olds and a one month old!  It was a busy household!  Julia and Kai loved hanging out with their big cousin, Izzy.  We look forward to having them all grow up together being so close in ages!  Here are some pictures!

Kai loves his babies!

Grandpa Jones giving Smarties to Julia & Kai

Younger sister, Erin, with twin girls

Grandma (great) Jones w/ Isaac

Bath time giggles!

Four baby cousins!

Cute babies!

Easter pic

Gilbertson family

Mankin family

Kai w/ Uncle Zach

Busy grandparents!

Easter Egg Hunt

Julia is getting the hang of it!

The funeral service for Grandpa (Lloyd) Jones was very nice.  Some of the family members got up and told stories about grandpa.  We also watched a video that my aunt Starla made a few years ago.  It was heart warming to see and hear my grandfather talk.  It brought back many memories of him when he was still feeling well and was sharp mentally.  I am so blessed to have known and love/be loved by him.  My grandma is doing well and enjoyed seeing all of the family.  We look forward to seeing her (along with the rest of the Jones family) again in July.
As for updates on the kids, Isaac is doing really good and is growing so fast!  We had him weighed in Nebraska and he was 11 lb 6 oz, which means that he's gaining close to a pound a week!!  Yikes...he may become quite the chunk!  He has lost some of his hair in the front...our babies love the old man, receeding hair line look!  He is nursing well and only gets up once in the middle of the night and then goes straight back to bed.  He is really strong and holds his head up while on tummy time and when held by mommy and daddy.  He is becoming really tough as he's survived balls being thrown to him, toddlers accidently falling on him, and being poked in the face.  Poor guy!
Julia is such a big girl!  I have started a list of all of the words that she says.  I am adding new ones daily and she is well above 50 words.  She babbles a lot and loves to sing.  Her favorite song is "Jelly Man Kelly" by James Taylor.  I plan on posting a video soon of the kids singing to it :)  She is also our "condiment girl" and will eat ketchup, ranch dressing, honey, caramel by the spoonful.  She is very expressive and she keeps us laughing all the time!
Kai has become a very independent little boy.  He wants to do everything by himself and won't even take my hand when walking outside.  He is loud and still wakes up squealing with delight (most of the time).  He's very active and is now walking, running and trying to walk up and down the stairs, which makes me kind of scared.  He has had some problems the past few months with bladder infections and constipation.  We will be seeing a new urologist this week and hope to get some help in that area.  Kai and Julia are both very rough and love wresting with daddy or anyone else who dares lay down in the middle of the room!
Kids are up and dinner needs to be made. More later.......!

Memories

As I look at Kai laying on the ground next to Isaac (he just ADORES him!) I am reminded again of how fast time flies.  It seems like just yesterday that Kai and Julia were that small (or smaller) and were snuggling together in their boppy pillow or in a bouncer chair.  All the memories rush in.  It also reminds me of God's faithfulness.  That first year of the twins life was filled with good memories and a lot of scary ones.  I remember being uncertain if Kai would make it through surgeries, and if he would, would he develop normally?  Would he be able to walk and run with Julia and all of the other kids?  Would he have any brain damage and be able to learn truth?  Today Kai is a walking and talking example to us of God's goodness and mercy.

One Month Old! 

Many other memories have been brought up this past week after learning that my grandfather (father's dad) in Nebraska was sick and might not make it much longer.  Grandpa ended up passing away on Friday morning.  Although grandpa was not doing very well the past few years, I can easily remember all of the "good ol' days" when he was strong enough to golf, go dancing with grandma, and bike around the lake.  I have many memories of him pulling us kids behind the boat on an intertube or water skiis (we thought we would die several times after we fell in the lake and he didn't notice for several minutes!), teaching me how to golf, attending all of our sporting and school events, telling me stories of how he and grandma met along with other stories, taking us to Nebraska football games, sitting in his basement watching golf, baseball, football, or whatever sports season it was, playing cards, pulling my pig-tails, or just walking down the street watching him hold my grandmother's hand.  I was so blessed to grow up with my grandparents nearby.  Even during college brakes, when I would return to Nebraska, I found comfort sitting with grandma and grandpa in their basement.  While everything else in my life was changing, their love and support was always constant.
I am glad that he was able to meet Kai and Julia (along with my sisters' kids).  They will grow up hearing many stories of Great Grandpa Jones.  Although we will miss him, his legacy will live on. We will be headed up to Nebraska this weekend and the memorial service will be on Monday.

Party of Five

Wow, how time flies!  I have been planning on updating the blog for weeks and am just finding the time to sit down and do it.  It's crazy that I'm busy all day long, but still nothing gets crossed off my to-do list!  Maybe I need to add things to my list like:  change 20+ diapers...check! feed hungry kids three meals plus snacks...check!  nurse Isaac every 2-3 hours while keeping Julia and Kai occupied....check (although the twins seem to get into trouble during this time)!  clean up after the kids.....never quite done!  give Kai medication and take care of medical needs every 4 hours...check!
We just completed our first week at home without grandparents around to help.  We sure enjoyed our time with family.  My parents came down and watched Kai and Julia for the first few days that I was in the hospital.  My mom stayed for the rest of the week and was a huge help as I continued to heal from the c-section and Jared returned to work.  Grandma Jones had never spent this much time with the twins at one time.  She has a lot of good memories and a lot of exhaustion to show for it!  She did help me get out of the house a couple of times that week to run errands and get Kai's hair cut.  I'm not sure how I'm going to get out of the house without any help any time soon!

As Grandma Jones flew home to Nebraska, Papa and Nana Christianson were flying into Dallas from Washington.  We enjoyed a lot of play time while Jared and Papa worked hard doing home improvements to the house and yard.  They got window treatments hung, doors installed to the gameroom, fixed the gate outside, painted the garage ceiling, raked up leaves, mowed the lawn, etc.  As they were working outside, they found a bunny nest including four baby bunnies.  Julia and Kai loved seeing the bunnies along with lizards, and the next door dog in our back yard.  After Nana found one of the baby bunnies the next day without it's head, we have realized that there might be even more critters that come into our backyard : (

Baby Isaac is over three weeks old now and is such a sweet baby.  He has already seemed to figure out night and day.  He still wakes up every 3-4 hours to eat at night, but he has no trouble falling right back to sleep after eating.  I was concerned about nursing, since we didn't have much luck with Julia and Kai. But now I figure that it is going well since he is so content, goes through a ton of diapers, and gained a whole pound in a week!  At the two week mark, Isaac had surpassed his birth weight of 7 lb 13 oz and was 8 lb 8 oz.  We asume that he is over 9 pounds now considering the size of his cheeks and his double chin!
Julia and Kai absolutely adore Isaac.  They love giving him kisses, patting his head, and pointing to all of his body parts.  They are usually really gentle, but we have to keep a close eye on them.  Julia has reverted back to all things baby and has been caught with Isaac's pacifiers in her mouth and has climbed into every swing and bouncy seat that we have in the house.

Julia being silly

Although we have only lived in Texas for four months and have been busy, we realize that we have met more people than we had realized.  We have had people from our church, from our playgroup, from the Mothers of Multiples club, and neighbors bless us with meals and offers for help.  I think we will be having meals arriving at our house for another three weeks.  We feel so blessed and appreciative since there is little time for cooking meals!

Well, now that I've documented all of this, it's time to take a nap before everyone else wakes up!

Baby Life

Now that baby Isaac is sleeping well and I am healing from the c-section I will attempt to give more details about what's going on in our house and at the hospital!

Yes, Isaac James was born on Friday morning at 7:50 am.  We were surprised to have such a big baby (7 lb 13 oz) since the doctor was predicting a 6 lb baby!  He is a healthy full term baby, which is such an adjustment for Jared and I.  Our experiences in the NICU following Kai and Julia's birth is like night and day compared to Isaac's birth and first few days of life.  There is no stress, the baby actually stays with us in the hospital room (unless we ask for help fromt he nursery), the baby nurses well, we get to cuddle as long as we want, there are no monitors hooked up to the baby, there are no scary surgeries to prepare for, and we don't have to go home without our baby(ies)!

Isaac is so sweet and easy going so far.  He's pretty sleepy, but has moments of alertness when he'll look all around and make cute little noises at us.  He is also trying to lift his head up when he is resting on me in a reclined position- such a strong little boy!

Jared and I had a hard time naming Isaac.  We considered a lot of different names throughout the pregnancy and actually made the final decision the night before he was born.  The name Isaac is Hebrew for, "He will laugh."  We thought that was appropriate for our family.  We have a lot of laughter (and crying/fighting) in our household and pray for joyful children!  We also love the birth story of Isaac in Genesis.  Isaac was the promised son of Abraham and Sarah. At the time of Isaac's conception Sarah was consisdered "barren" and was past child-bearing age and Abraham was 100 years old.  Only God could "open her womb" and provide this miracle child for Abraham and Sarah.  We believe that each of our children is a miracle.  Isaac's conception and birth reminds us of God's faithfulness and goodness to us considering all of the infertility issues and miscarriages we have had the past five years.  The doctors told us that our chance of conceiving without medical help was close to impossible.  But with God all things are possible!  And on a more practical note we liked the way that Isaac sounded with Kai and Julia and it is a fairly short name with a long last name! 

It is so quiet up here at the hospital that I keep referring to it as the hotel, not the hospital!  I haven't gotten this much rest in 22 months!  My parents from Nebraska have been at home watching Julia and Kai while Jared goes back and forth to the hospital and home.  My mom is staying until this Saturday when Jared's parents fly in from Washington.  We are so thankful for all of the help!  My parents are loving the time they get to spend with Kai and Julia, but they are already exhausted!

Kai and Julia seem fairly indifferent to Isaac so far.  That will probably change once we come home and the baby is still with mommy!

Julia and Kai are both doing great.  They seem like such big kids all of a sudden!  Julia is really into taking care of her stuffed animals- feeding them a bottle, changing their diapers, and giving them loving. I think she will be a great big sister and a helper for mommy.

After a bout of constipation that required medical help last week, Kai is a new man!  He is walking EVERYWHERE and doesn't want to be held.  He is so loud and I can hear him coming down the hall saying "DaaaaaDD!!"  I still get tickled to see him walking into the room and being so independent and confident.  I am so proud of him!  Julia also seems to notice the change in him and they enjoy playing more physical games with eachother (tackling, etc!)

We will be coming home tomorrow and look forward to getting settled into our new routine as a family of five.  Thank you so much for your prayers!

Christianson - Party of five

It's our joy to introduce to you Isaac James Christianson, born today March 18th, 2011 at 7:50am.  He weighed 7 lbs 13 oz, and was 19.5 inches long.

He has dark skin, dark hair, and seems to be very content so far.  Michala is doing well after the C-section, and has experienced very little pain.  We'll hopefully get to go home by Monday Morning.  Thanks for all your prayers, as we are so blessed to have a healthly baby boy.

Elmo, Birthdays, and More!

We have had a fun couple of weeks as we've attempted to fit everything in before the baby comes!  Jared and I wanted to do something special with the kids before we become a family of five, so we got tickets to Sesame Street Live in Dallas.  Julia and Kai are obsessed with Elmo ("Melmo!").  I don't know what it is, but they loved Elmo before they even watched a single episode of Sesame Street.  They have Elmo summer shirts and Julia used to drag hers out of the hamper so that she could wear it again and again!  Kai loves looking at his Elmo characters on his diapers, which actually makes diaper changing time much smoother!
As we got ready for Sesame Street Live to begin, we were thinking that the kids would love it or they would be completely terrified of giant monsters on the stage.  Well, they ended up loving it!  They sat mesmerized for over 1 1/2 hours.  They clapped, yelled "Melmo!" and said "bye" everytime a character left the stage.  It was a success right until the time to leave came.  That was a long trip home!

The following week, we celebrated my 30th birthday.  The kids and I enjoyed some shopping and lunch.  Then Jared and I ventured away from the suburbs and went to a nice dinner in Dallas followed by a huge Ben & Jerry's ice cream cake creation.  I'm noticing that the day's highlights were food and family, a few of my favorite things!  

I was remembering this week of a silly dream that I have had since I was in highschool/college.  As I thought ahead and dreamed of my future, I told myself that I would be so happy to be married to the man of my dreams and have three children (or be pregnant with my third) by my 30th birthday.  Even though it was just a fascination, and one that I would never believe could have been true just 2 1/2 years ago, I am so thankful that the Lord has given me more than I could ever "ask or imagine!" 

As we realize what God has entrusted us with, we are reminded of how dependent we are on Him as we raise our children.  Now that the baby stage is almost over with Kai and Julia we have been faced with a lot of discipline and character issues as we try to "shape" them into people who love the Lord and bring delight to Him.  We pray for a lot of grace!

Speaking of children, we are looking forward to meeting baby #3 this coming Friday!  We have scheduled a c-section for the 18th, which is just four days shy of 40 weeks.  The doctor and nurses are surprised that I have made it this far.  Praise the Lord!  I have actually loved being pregnant and will be sad that the pregnancy is over.  It is such a special experience that I am so thankful to have.  Besides not being able to sleep well because of seasonal allergies and a very active baby, I have not been very uncomfortable.  But, I will be ready to meet him in just five short days!  Jared has been amazing as he has been preparing for the big day.  He has almost painted every room in the house and is now doing yard work outside.  He will be thinking that he's on vacation once the baby gets here!  I think that it's funny that Jared is disturbed by the thought of a living being living inside of me and doesn't like to watch and feel him move around, but he is totaly fine with watching the entire C-section and looks forward to it again.  Crazy! Unfortunately he only has 3-4 vacation days built up since starting his new job.  He will be able to take a few days off and then we'll be dependent on grandparents to make it through the next few weeks!

We will update the blog soon to introduce you to our new son!  Stay tuned........!

"Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen."          -Ephesians 3:20-21