Welcome, Baby Asher!

OK, so my second son is already 16 days old and I'm just getting a blog posted. Welcome to life with two kids!

The past two+ weeks have been busy with getting to know and love our new addition. We spent his first 4 days of life in the hospital, thanks to the emergency c-section I had. It was the scariest hour of my life, since Asher's heart rate was dropping and so was my blood pressure. But I was in the hands of a great physician who works for the Great Physician! Now we are all recovered (mostly, at least I get to drive now!) and enjoying life at home.

We enjoyed visits from Grandma and Grandpa Mires for the first week, followed by Gram Owens (my mom) this past week. After a few days of trying it "on our own" as a family of four, we will welcome my Dad and Stepmom for this weekend. Asher is quite a popular little guy. But although he was born little (7 lbs) and lost 10 ounces in the hospital, he had gained it all back at his checkup four days later! He is growing too fast, I love snuggling with my "peanut".

Big Brother Eli has been spoiled by his visitors as well, and we had an initially rough adjustment period. But he is a great helper and truly loves his baby brother. Yesterday when he got home from Ms. Wendy's (daycare/preschool) the first words out of his mouth weren't "Hi Mom!", but rather "Where's Asher?"
Guess that's a good sign that all are adapting well in the Mires family of 4. Jon and I certainly appreciate that Asher is a good sleeper. We joke that had Elijah been as good at night, we would have had a second child sooner!

Baby Blizzard

The title would imply that this was a "small" blizzard, which it wasn't, really. But we are grateful that as of this writing at 9:50 pm I am not yet in labor. Didn't think I'd be saying that at this point in pregnancy, but it would not be fun to contend with these weather conditions in an emergency!

Jon, Eli, and Kip enjoyed our first big snow in the "new" back yard, braving the single-digit wind chill temps. Kip seemed to love it more than everyone, as evidenced in the mid-air jump picture. He is really quite an agile dog!

Tomorrow Eli wants to go sledding so I suppose that will afford he and daddy some more bonding time. The blizzard warning should be lifted by6:00am so I'll be ready to deliver again. At least we have an induction date set for the 31st, so there is an end in sight!

Swimming!

Fun in the fountains!

Happy guy following his lesson :)

Well, as time creeps up on us before the arrival of baby EBS (any day now, although the technical due date is the 29th), we've been quite busy!

Eli started swimming lessons at the rec center across from our house two weeks ago. He loves playing in the water and his teacher, Ms. Carolyn. We are hoping that this special time for him makes the transition to being a big brother a little easier. Once he finishes with these lessons, we'll probably take a break to adjust to our new family before signing up Eli for another sport (t-ball,maybe). He's such an active child, it is nice to give him a natural outlet for his energy.

Christmas Adventures

We enjoyed a busy holiday season filled with travels to see family around the country. On Dec. 17th, we flew to Nashville to visit "GG and PaPa" Cross. On our way out, it began to snow heavily so we sat on the runway for 1.5 hours waiting to de-ice. Although frustrating for us, it didn't bother Eli as he took in the free DirectTV. I was just relieved we didn't encounter a situation like what happened two days later: the plane slid off the runway and burst into flames! Once we arrived in Nashville, another great surprise awaited us. Standing at the gate ready to board the plane we'd just exited was our dear friend from Denver (who recently moved to Phoenix) Nicole! Unfortunately we only got to chat for a few minutes, but it was such a serendipitous experience. What are the chances?

After safely arriving at Whitney's grandparents' in Monticello, KY (2 hours north of Nashville), we kicked back for a relaxing week there. We were joined by "Grandma Mel", Grandpa Cross, and Uncle Paul and Aunt Chrissy over that weekend and enjoyed a beautiful Christmas celebration together. Unfortunately, even though Eli got a digital camera, I have no pictures of the fam from the week, at least not fit for this post :)

On our way back to the Nashville airport on Christmas Eve, we stopped by the famous Opryland Hotel. Our dear friends and former neighbors who now live in Nashville, Holly and Miranda, joined us for a delightful lunch and stroll through the beautiful resort.

Jon's parents and our dog greeted us at the airport to take us home to our first Christmas in Colorado. Eli awoke to a plethora of gifts from Santa, including his favorite, the Smart Cycle.

After a few days with the Mires grandparents, we spent some time around the house and running errands around town. Then, on New Year's Eve, we ventured east again. The last night of the year was spent in the pleasant company of old friends and their families in McCook, NE. After cheering on the Huskers to a bowl victory on New Year's Day, we were joined by Aunt Janet, cousin Angela and our new baby cousin Myles from Topeka. Myles is adorable and Eli demonstrated great big brother potential around him.

The next two days we drove back and forth to Atwood, KS to visit with extended family and celebrate Christmas once more. We had a great time watching all the kids run around with each other.

We returned home to Colorado on the 4th and were greeted by a few inches of snow! Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to change the fact we had to go to work the next day. But it's been a good week back after a long and relaxing break. The only complaint I (Whitney) have is I gained 6 lbs over that time, and it was NOT all for the baby! Our family had a lot of good food to enjoy over the holidays!

It's a healthy baby!

We went in for the "review of systems" ultrasound today. Even without reason for worry, I had "normal" mommy fears that something could be wrong. During the 40+ minute ultrasound, the tech showed us all the baby's parts (with the exception of the gender-revealing ones!) and it was truly amazing to see everything in place and functional.
Later, during my doctor visit, Dr. Bergstrom asked if I was scared by pregnancy. I knew what he meant and admitted my fears.
He added that it's amazing that as many pregnancies are uncomplicated as they are, given all the potential things that could go wrong. What a blessing it is to have our friend and brother, Dr. Roy, alongside us again during this miraculous process.
I'm still in awe of the miracle of it all! We are so blessed with a healthy 3-year-old (who just had his first bout of strep this week), and now a healthy baby! Although I'm really hoping for a girl, I'm delighted already in having a "normal" child. God is so good!
Technology is so amazing too. We got a disc of the exam with selected pics and videos. The baby is very active and in this clip "waves" for the "camera". We're excited to meet baby "EBS" (Eli's baby sibling) around the end of March/early April (hopefully not a Fool)!

Leaves!

Unlike at our old house, we actually have leaves to rake this fall. Of course, one can't rake a pile of leaves without inviting a kid to jump into them! Eli loved it, and even got his "girlfriend" next door, Chloe, in on the action.

Fall fun

Fall has always been my favorite time of year, even if it is so short. Fall in Colorado finds me missing the amazing colors of the midwest, but loving the unique Aspen features in our mountains.
Last weekend we took advantage of the great weather to visit the Colorado Railroad Museum for a "Day Out with Thomas". Eli and his buddies Caleb and Micah and their families had a blast riding the train and exploring the sights.
This weekend we ventured west to the gorgeous mountains of Glenwood Springs and Aspen. We stayed at the Hot Springs Lodge in Glenwood, which is conveniently across from the world's largest hot springs pool. It was fun swimming in late Sept. in a 90+ degree pool! It was the highlight of Eli's weekend.
The highlight of the trip for me was visitng the beautiful Maroon Bells outside of Aspen. My pics just don't do it justice! Jon had to work at the college fair all day, so Eli and I enjoyed the chance to explore the outdoor "playground" (he kept asking where the swings and slides were). I told him that the playgrounds that God makes don't need those things. (I did end up appeasing his desire for a playground with a slide when we ventured back into Aspen).
On Saturday we rode the gondola up Aspen (Ajax) mountain to an elevation of over 11,000 feet. Although it was cloudy and drizzly at times, the views were still amazing.
After such an amazing weekend, it's hard to get back to work. But stay tuned for more fall fun as I'm hoping to get us to a corn maze/pumpkin patch soon.