2 Disaster!

Nate has taught Allie how to drink out of the hose, however, she hasn't quite mastered it. She was sucessful the first time, but pushed her luck & shot the water right in her face the second time.

She sure does love thoes strawberries though!

1 a New Mommy Haircut

Today I got a new 'mommy' haircut. I went a bit shorter than normal, but it is a hot summer & we will be spending a lot of time on the lake. Nothing is worse than hair that is too short for a ponytail, but long enough to blow in your face when your riding on the boat. I really like how it turned out. The best part is my backyard neighbor (who is a hair dresser) did it at her house, so it was no big deal to take the girls :)

0 Paint Toe

A few weeks ago I painted my toes in preparation for going to the hospital to have Kylie.
I did Allie's toes for the first time then. She was proud of her 'paint toe'.
When she came home from Rexburg this week nearly all her polish was gone - worn off from a lot of hard playing with cousins.
So, after bath time today (to get all that lotion out of Allie's hair - see below)
I painted our toe nails again. She was so proud to show daddy when he got home!

4 When things are too quiet...

Nursing Kylie has given Allie a little time to herself. This morning it was a little too quiet for a little too long. When I went to find to find her, this is what I found: Allie on the bathroom counter with about 2 cups of blue lotion in her hair. She said 'mess'. Can you say 'bath time'?

0 Kylie's take on her first real bath: "Mad as a Wet Hen"

To celebrate Kylie's bellybutton falling off, we gave her a bath in the sink tub. Allie was very intetrested & tried to help by handing her sister a dirty cup & spoon that were in the sink. Needless to say Kylie didn't appreciate the gifts.

UPDATE: Kylie LOVED her second bath. I think a full tummy might have made a difference.

5 a Train Wreck in My Body

Well, that pesky stomach fly bug, that kept Maren from delivering Allie, hitched a ride to Smithfield regardless. Nearly every member of our extended family has had a run in with this bug and/or its friend the upper respiratory bug. Although the stomach flu seems to only last about 24-36 hours, it is NASTY! I felt like a train had run over me. What a condition to start adjusting to being the mother of two. Allie was a little less than understanding. Thank goodness I feel better today. I hope nobody else has to contend with this ugly bug.

This photo was taked pre-stomache flu.

This is my first trip out with both girls. We went to the post office to buy stamps. It was a quick trip, but they were good girls.















Here is Allie reading her beloved Curious George books.

2 Allie is HOME!

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

Thanks to all you who helped out with Allie in Rexburg over the past 8 days. It has been very hard to be away from her, but we have known that she was well cared for & having a blast. Much better than being here, with us so focused on Kylie during this first week. Never the less, we are very glad to have our 'little' girl back.

The plan was for Maren to drive Allie home today, leaving her kids with the grandparents, & she would stay overnight to 'play' with me a bit. However, the stomach flu bug has hit those who were in Rexburg over the weekend. Poor Maren (& Abby, Bailey, Emma, ...). Thankfully, Grandpa Paul came to the rescue! He brought Allie home to us, despite my insisting it wasn't necessary. "I'm a big boy and what are you going to do to stop me?" he said. He also argued that we need to allow others to serve us, so that they can receive blessings. How was I to counter that? So Allie is back with us. I am a very grateful mommy.

My mom was right (big surprise). Allie seems so grown up now. Her skin is different. She is heavier. Those diapers are huge! Her vocabulary has expanded drastically. I feel like she was gone for 8 months, not 8 days.

It feels so good to have our little family back together. I'm sure it will take us a while to figure out a new routine, but I'm excited to get started.

0 Scrap organizer

This week I used my 40% off coupon at Michael's to buy this organizer for some of my scrapbooking supplies that I always seem to have scattered on the table when I work. I've been eyeing it for a while. Hopefully I'll get a change to use it soon...although, I would rather play with my darling daughter who is coming home TOMORROW!!!! WE MISS HER BUNCHES!!!!

Maren has posted some pics of Allie and the cousins on her blog (see the link to the left). The cousins seem to be having a blast! I'm so glad Allie has had the chance to build thoes relationships, especially while we have been tending to Kylie's needs, but it is definatly time to get Allie home now. I am so greatful for all of my family who have stepped up to help this week. Everyone has been at the 'Moody Manner' (grandparent's house) for the long holiday weekend & I know they have all helped out. Allie & Kylie have so many people who love them. Each & everyone enriches their lives! THANK YOU SO MUCH!

2 Stawberries & Ice Cream...

...the best that summer has to offer!

One good thing: with Allie in Rexburg, Nate & I get to eat some berries ourself.
The only bad thing: we eat them too fast.

I thought that with double the plants this year we would be set, but we are eating them on ice cream, cereal, pancakes, ect.

I hope we still get to eat some when Allie comes home...she is quite the little scavenger in the berry patch!

0 Kylie's "Room"

While the basement is still underconstruction, we are designating this corner of the family room as Kylie's room. Nate is too light of a sleeper to have her in with us & I'm not sure i'm ready to throw her in with Allie just yet. For now it works.
The beautiful gowns handing above the cradle were made by Grandma Martha. Isn't she amazing!!!! The one on the right is Allies & the one on the left is Kylie's.

2 Blue?

Nate's parent compant in SLC sent some beautiful flowers congratulating us on...a boy?

0 Sisters

My younger sister Maren & I are 2 years and 2 days apart, so I am very excited that my daughters are 2 years and 10 days apart. I hope that they are as good of buddies are Maren & I are today!

0 Glad week 1 is over!

Big sister Allie, who was born nearly 4 weeks early, developed jaundice & was treated with 4 days and nights on a special phototherapy light bed. Although this home treatment is much better than re-admitting baby back to the hospital, it is not easy. We had hoped that little sister Kylie would avoid the same issue, since she was full term...however, that was not to be. (jaundice is quite common in newborns, but especially preemies)

The treatment itself only requires the infant to lay (wearing only a diaper) on a light bed, similar to a tanning bed, 24 hours a day…besides feedings, changing diapers, & daily trips to the hospital to draw blood to see if the bilirubin levels have dropped. We were given strict instructions that Grandmas & Grandpas would have to wait to hold her. (most had already had a chance, since the treatment started a day after we came home from the hospital) Poor Kylie’s heals look like pin cushions from having her blood drawn every day this week.

Although the lights are painless, newborns don’t like to be naked & pinned to a bed. It is very hard to comfort a tired baby when you can’t pick them up! In Kylie’s case we were unaware she was also ‘tongue tied’ (had a restrictive or tight frenulum that impairs the ability of the tongue to move properly to effectively breastfeed – VERY painful on mom!), so she was constantly fussing due to hunger. She had a hard time sucking from a bottle, taking in more air than fluid. For me, a hyper-emotional in pain post-partum mommy, it was a constant guilt war – to get her out of the bed or not. On one hand, she needed to stay under the lights as much as possible to help break down the bilirubin. On the other hand, she needed to eat to help flush the toxins out & she always seemed to be hungry. PLUS she wanted to be swaddled & snuggled!

Finally, Wednesday night I found information matching Kylie & my symptoms on the internet. It turns out that there is a very simple procedure to ‘clip’ the thin band of tissue connecting the underside of the tongue to the bottom of the mouth. It is nearly painless, doesn’t bleed, & makes an immediate difference for baby & mother. However, since this was once overdone, many physicians refuse to do anything since the tissue usually stretches & retracts over the first year.

Thursday morning I went to the clinic determined not to leave till Kylie had the procedure. What a day! Our pediatrician (who we LOVE) was out of town and the only one in the office refuses to do the clipping procedure. Thankfully his wonderful nurse called several offices and finally found a throat/ear surgeon in the same building that would see Kylie that afternoon. So we came back that afternoon and had it done. Although the results were not immediate (Kylie didn’t know what to do with her now freed tongue for a few feedings) they have been wonderful. AND we got word Thursday afternoon that she could come off of the lights.

We are all doing much better now!!!! She is getting plenty to eat now & we can hold and love on her all we want. With her full tummy sleeping is also going better. Friday & Saturday nights she slept from 10:30 pm to 8:30 am with only one feeding at 4:30am (after which she went right back to sleep). OH WHAT A DIFFERENCE A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP MAKES! Now we just need to get big sister home.

4 Kylie meets the family

We were so glad that Grandma Martha was able to attend the birth. She helped me breath while I waited an hour to get my epidural (due to an emergency c-section).

Despite Maren's best efforts, Grandpa Paul just couldn't wait to meet his new granddaughter. He and Ellen drove up to Logan on Sunday to spend just a few hours. It was great to get to introduce Kylie to so many family members so soon.

I didn't get a photo (drat!) but Abby & her girls stopped by yesterday (Wednesday) on their way to Rexburg. Abby brought the BEST baby gift...a dozen candy bars for me!!! What a sister!

I know Maren is dying to meet Kylie, but she will have to wait till she brings Allie back to us...which may be sooner than later, as we miss her BUNCHES!!!

0 Dr. Allie M.D.

Big sister Allie checks out her favorite monkey, Curious George.

0 ...and then there were FOUR!

We are pleased to announce the arrival of daughter number two.

Kylie Anne Schwartz was born May 19 at 1:04pm.
She weighed 6 pounds & 14 oz and was 19 inches long.

Mamma & baby are home resting & recovering while big sister Allie plays with cousins in Rexburg.