Oliver Lee

On Wednesday, October 15, 2014, we welcomed a little BOY into this world. Oliver Lee Vanderwal arrived at 3:52 pm and weighed 7 pounds- 7 ounces, and was 20 inches long. We are so in love with him already.
Here is a summary of what happened. On Tuesday, the 14th, I had my weekly appointment with Dr. McKay and although there had not been much progress she thought it would be best if we went in that night to be induced. That threw us for a little loop since Kevin was planning on coaching his volleyball game that night. So I went back to work for a few last minute things and left about noon to come home and finish packing, doing laundry, and other nesting. Kevin picked up the girls from daycare after school and then we waited for my parents to arrive so we could head to the hospital. We stopped at Qdoba on our way and then got checked in and settled into our room.

Tuesday night was pretty calm but I was having contractions every 1-3 minutes although I could not feel them. Over the night and the next morning they gave me some drugs to kick things up and around noon I got an epidural. There ended up being a couple C-sections that the doctor had to do before she could deliver our baby--so by the time she came we were ready to go. It seemed like I only had to push a few times and out he came.

Although we did not find out ahead of time whether it was a boy or a girl, we were both a little surprised that it was a boy. This pregnancy seemed so similar to when I was pregnant with the girls and since we really only know girls, we kinda just assumed this would also be a girl. It was so fun to have the doctor flip him over and say "OK dad, what do we have?" Kevin then said, "It's a boy!" Good thing he got it right ;) We knew if it was a boy we would name him Oliver. We love the meaning--faithfulness, fruitfulness, and a symbol of peace. My middle name is Lee and my mom's middle name is Lee so we really wanted to use that for this child as well because it didn't work with the first names we chose for the girls. Lee means "healer" so maybe he will be a doctor some day. :)

We got up to our postpartum room about 7:00 pm and my parents brought the girls with to meet little Oliver. They think he is pretty neat and love to give him kisses and any squeak or noise he makes they rush to bring him a blanket or paci. We had a quick stay at Avera and were able to come home late Friday morning.

I actually started this blog post the Sunday after we got home and it's now 3 weeks later. :) We are all adjusting well and my days at home are flying by. Oliver's room is right across the hall from ours so we wanted him to get used to his crib right away. After 2 or 3 rough nights Oliver is starting to sleep great. He goes to sleep about 10:30 pm and wakes up around 2 am to eat and then again between 5 and 6 am. I can't complain about that at all. It actually works out great because then I can quick see the girls and help Kevin get them ready for daycare (although his pigtail skills have improved greatly). They have gone to daycare all but one day so far--they love it there and I feel it's important for them to keep a routine. Because Kevin has volleyball practice after school, I head into town about 3:30 to pick the girls up. It's nice to get out a bit each day and gives me a reason to shower ;)

A lot of people have asked if it's a lot different having one this time. It really is! Everything from the labor and delivery to getting out of the house is just a lot easier.

Here are some pictures of our new little buddy.and their big sisters.

Just waiting :)

Daddy checking out his new mini me

 

Auntie Heather happened to be on our floor for clinicals.

Singleton vs Twins

Our fall is in full swing and flying by. I am now 37 weeks with Baby V so technically I am full term. I am actually farther along this time than I was with the twins and I think this pregnancy has gone by faster. I wanted to take a moment to record some of the other differences and similarities between these pregnancies. Last time I started swelling in my legs (and everywhere else now that I look back at pictures) really bad the last month or so. I would come home from work and put my feet up and chill on the couch for most of the night. This time I am not swelling and I do not have the luxury of sitting on the couch until about 8:30 or so. We are in the thick of volleyball right now so I drop off and pick up the girls each day from daycare and we get home and play outside and then go in and make supper. Kevin usually gets home just in time to eat with us. After that there are dishes, baths, and laundry to do, followed by bedtime routines, more cleanup, etc., and then I can sit. :)

Having two babies inside of you there is always a lot of movement, but you can't always tell if it was Baby A's arm or Baby B's leg. With just one, I feel like the kicks are almost harder and more defined, I am guessing because there is more room. I can feel the baby stretch all the way out and find it fascinating to watch my belly. Baby V gets the hiccups 2-3 times a day, which the twins also did.

People ask me quite often if it's different carrying just one. Of course it is. With 2 my belly felt so heavy--that's what  happens when you have 13 pounds of baby + everything else in there. With one I can say that my belly doesn't feel quite as heavy. When I carried twins I just had myself to look after. With carrying one, I also have the twins to look after.  I would say I am equally if not more tired this time than last. I am not complaining at all, just trying to remember exactly how I am feeling.
I don't think many people say this but I would be just fine if I go a week or two overdue this time. I like being pregnant and feel like it went a little too fast. Ask me again in 3 weeks and I could be saying something totally different ;)

My sister-in-law Kristen had twins in May and also has a two year old. We are anxious to compare stories as our kids get older and see what is easier.....having a newborn singleton with twin toddlers or having twin newborns with a singleton toddler.

Here are the latest two pics of Baby V.

We ask that you continue to pray for Baby V and his or her growth. I did have an ultrasound last week and a couple of the measurements are still on the small side. So prayers for a growth spurt and that we last til 40 weeks would be appreciated. Overall though the estimate was that Baby V weighed just under 6 pounds so that is encouraging!

And here are a couple of our twin lovelies:

Love having picnics on the deck!

Q Bear

Love Miss A's smile

Trying out the curlers

Enderby 2014

In the Vanderwal house summer is basically over, which is sad to me because its only mid August. We just returned from a wonderful trip to Enderby to visit our Vanderwal family in Canada and we knew that upon our return, things were about to get (even more) crazy. Now that we are back, Kevin started in-service at school right away this week and volleyball starts on Thursday. We are only 9 weeks out from a new addition joining our family which is also blowing our minds. It will definitely be a busy fall but we are excited. We have decided we need to be organized and try to tackle a few tasks in the evening when we can so that our to-do list doesn't pile up for the week before Baby V is due and volleyball is in full swing.

Over the last couple of weeks since my last post Kevin and Nate have been working so hard to get all of their construction projects finished up. They are so close and we are very thankful for all of the work they were able to line up this summer. My work has also been crazy busy with large projects but I continue to love what I do as well. The girls are doing well at Amy's house and we are so thankful for her and all they are learning there.

As I mentioned we just got back from Canada. We worked half a day on 7/31 and then took off for Winnipeg. We tried something different this year to see how it would work and we drove to Winnipeg and then flew from there. Overall the girls did well on both the trip there and back as well as on the flights, I would say it was a success. We only had one meltdown because a sticker ripped and mommy couldn't fix it....regardless, I say it was a win!
We had a great time in BC seeing family and introducing the girls to their cousins. It's so fun to watch them interact and they were a lot more outgoing this summer than last. Now that we are home we hear "Where's Owen?, Where's Shea, Where's Baby Beckett?" all the time! The girls did a lot of swinging, we got some beach time in, and Kev and I even snuck in a flew floats down the river during nap time! Here are some pics from our trip:

Hotel room fun on the beds in Winnipeg:

 Checking out the planes:

 Quinn loved the touch screens:

 Big girl Amelia sitting so nicely in her own seat:

Being silly in mom and daddy's bed in our trailer:

 This picture makes me laugh cause I think she looks like a real 4H girl or something by the calves:

Loving the sand, getting used to the water slowly but surely:

Amelia loved to go in the calf hutches like it was a fort...just her size!

 Miss Q and her Fancy Dance:

 Having a yogurt snack on the new picnic tables daddy and Uncle Dan made:

 Checking out the babies again:

 Kevin hiked to the top of the Enderby Cliffs with Dan and Elliot. So pretty but they are also pretty sore.

 It wouldn't be a trip to Canada without Nutella on our toast:

And in true SD style we returned home to humidity and a funnel cloud not far away:

 It was a great trip and we can't wait to see our Canadian family again soon!

In Baby V news I am 31 weeks already. I had an ultrasound to check on the growth and baby is measuring a bit behind so please pray that he/she continues to grow and is nice and healthy. I will have another ultrasound in 4 weeks to see if everything is on track. Everything else is looking good though and my doctor is not too concerned. In fact she told me to eat some more ice cream and steak! OK...twist my arm!
My 31 week sign is kind of hard to read but it says that Baby V gets the hiccups a lot! I love feeling them and all the other movements!

 Hope everyone is doing well!

Chapter 2

So it has been 7 weeks since I have posted. Summer is flying by for us as I am sure it is for most of you. Last summer I posted a summary of what most of our days are like and I thought I would do that again cause I don't want to forget. Our days begin at 4:41 am where we debate through our tiredness if we will get up to work out, do devotions, etc. If sleep gets the best of us we reset our alarms to 5:20. To be honest, sleep wins most days and for now I am OK with that. Next I get in the shower while Kevin has breakfast, watches the news, and gets his stuff ready for work. Shortly after 6 I am up for breakfast and to get dressed. By 6:15 Kevin goes in to wake up the girls if they are not already awake and to get them dressed. After they are dressed Kevin sends them into our room to sit with me while I finish getting dressed and then we go across the hall to the bathroom for piggies and ponies. Then its time for shoes and we are out the door shortly after 6:30. I have been doing drop off and pick up to daycare  while Kevin is doing construction so we usually get there about 6:50 and I am at work at 7 or shortly after. Over my lunch I usually have a pre-mapped out game plan of errands to run or a doctor appointment to go to. At 4 I take off and pick up the girls. We are usually home around 4:45 and play outside until 5:30 when we come in to eat supper. Depending on how long Kevin works he usually gets home while the girls and I are eating. We then go back outside, to the park, or play downstairs until 7-7:30. Then Kevin will read a story to the girls and they are out by 8 pm. We then usually have tons of other things to do around the house like laundry, dishes, and who knows what else. By then I am ready to sit down. :) This is probably why summer is flying by. Busy but GOOD!

Last weekend was Fourth of July Weekend. Kevin and I both had Friday off so we headed up to Lake Okoboji with the girls on Friday morning. After an iffy ride up there, where we debated about turning around, we had a great rest of the weekend. The girls didn't nap the best but they played and slept hard. I got to chill at the pool two days in a row and Kevin read a book and took 2 naps. They got up early Sunday morning so we enjoyed a great HyVee breakfast and headed back to Sioux Falls. It worked out well because we felt like we still had almost a whole day at home. The girls took a 3 hour nap and then we joined some friends at a wading pool. Pretty great weekend!

This past week our "babies" turned TWO! And the truth is they look and act so much like little girls instead of babies. We woke them up a little earlier than normal and had them open a few gifts and then we went out side and took some pictures in the adorable outfits my mom made for them. I think they felt fancy in them :) They had a great day at Amy's house and brought giraffe and butterfly rice krispie bars and they had a Dora party there with cupcakes. Sugar rush for sure! We brought the girls to Red Mango for frozen yogurt after supper and then it was time for bed. Such a great day!
Thursday was my dad's birthday and yesterday was Kevin's birthday so we had a party to celebrate birthday week. We started out the day by Kevin and I taking the girls to Perkins for breakfast...Kevin and I LOVE breakfast and the girls are following in our footsteps. We then went to the butterfly house/marine cove. The girls thought it was pretty cool. Amelia loved the quail that roamed around the butterfly house and Quinn was obsessed with the stingrays. Later my parents, Reid and Lauren (and Lauren's sister), and Heather, Elliot, and Mason came over and we did some grilling and playing outside. Even though it was Kevin's actual birthday I planned a Chapter 2 themed party for the girls and have a ton of the pictures below.

As far as Baby V goes I was 27 weeks as of yesterday. WOW this is flying by. Overall I am feeling well. By the end of the day my tailbone starts to hurt but sitting on the hitting pad and getting a good night of sleep seems to help a lot. It's quite different to only carry one baby--while I feel movement it's nothing compared to the movement I felt when I carried two babies. Next week I have the glucose tolerance test and at week 31 I will have another ultrasound to check on the growth of the baby just to make sure he or she is growing as expected.

Amelia & Quinn are hilarious. Over the last few weeks they have gotten into Minnie Mouse, Dora, and Doc McStuffins. They have Minnie and Dora babies that they carry everywhere. These two girls talk nonstop and copy almost everything we say or do. They do the actions to Arky Arky and This Little Light of Mine and love to listen to them over and over. They are adorable and hilarious.

We are looking forward to heading to BC in just a couple of weeks. The girls are looking forward to seeing Bep and Grandpa as well as their cousins! We can't wait to see everyone either. Would have been fun to celebrate with all of them yesterday too but we will celebrate again in no time! We feel very blessed to be the parents of these crazy fun and smiley girls are thankful for the two years we have had with them. We cant wait to see what this next year holds.

Anyway, here are some pictures of their Chapter 2 party.

I made a Table of Contents for each of the girls with their favorite things and other things we wanted to remember about the time they turned 2.

Having a pre-party cookie with Mamma. 

Quinn and Uncle Reid

Loving their new Barbie bikes from Uncle Reid and Aunt LoLo

Time for cake!

 

Checking out the new table and chairs from Grandpa and Grandma.

Reading a new book with Grandpa

Here are some other pictures of what happens in the Vanderwal house.

Quinn only wants Baby and her blankie when she sleeps. Even if she asks for Minnie or Dora when we put them down, before we go to bed and check on them, they have all been thrown out of her crib.

Meanwhile....Amelia says the more the merrier. 

Amelia has really started to like water!

Cuddles with Daddy!

This picture is 5 weeks old but I am still craving cantaloupe and candy! :)

This is 2 weeks old already so I will have to do a new picture this week.

These were from their actual birthday.

Have a great week everyone and who knows, it will probably be fall by the time I have another post. :)