First off today-

I went to the doctor's office today to weigh Andrew. I wanted to make sure that he is still gaining weight like he should be. Today he should be 7 pounds 11 ounces, if he were gaining one ounce a day like he should. And his current weight today is...

TA DA !!! EIGHT POUNDS !!!

He has gained eleven ounces in the last six days! Hurray!

The next thing today is-

My sister, Jolene, put 100 things about herself on her blog about a month ago and wanted me to do the same. I told her it might be awhile before I got to it, since I was due to have Andrew anytime. Well, today is finally the day. I must say, trying to think of one hundred things about myself was challenging. It took me about two weeks.

Here are my 100 Things-

1. I like bananas but I hate anything that is banana flavored.

2. In high school I could type 60 words per minute and I could bench press 60 pounds.

3. My favorite colors are cobalt blue, chartreuse, and tangerine orange.

4. The only time I have ever fired a gun was a few days before my 14th birthday. It was a black powder rifle and the kick from it picked me up and threw me back about 10 feet.

5. I am an emotional eater that loves carbs.

6. Math was always one of my favorite classes/subjects in school.

7. I like long walks by myself in the cold.

8. I would rather not wear shoes.

9. Most of the time I don't enjoy the same music as my husband.

10. I avoid conflict as much as possible.

11. I am a creative wannabe.

12. My favorite time of day is between midnight and six a.m.

13.I love chocolate marshmallow milkshakes.

14. I don't mind changing messy diapers or cleaning up puke off the floor.

15. I have collected tens of thousands of recipes, but I never know what to make for dinner. I always end up making the same six or seven meals over and over.

16. I am afraid of bats.

17. I am generally not good with change or surprises.

18. In high school I collected super balls and green and yellow m&ms.

19. I think Mick Jagger and Willie Nelson are both creepy.

20. I would like to run a marathon (or at least a half marathon) before I'm 50.

21. I was hit by a car when I was 4 because I was trying to be cool and I only looked one way. As a result, I cracked my pelvis and my left ear is on crooked because it was torn off.

22. I really admire all my sisters. They all work full time and have families to take care of. I don't know how they do it.

23. I love my calling as Primary Secretary.

24. I wish I was a better mother.

25. If I could live anywhere in the world, I would live in Newport, Oregon.

26. I enjoy sewing, crosstitch, taking pictures, writing, scrapbooking, and cardmaking.

27. I hate wearing hats.

28. I love paper. At the moment I have four different notebooks in my bag.

29. I wish I was closer to my brothers and sisters and that I knew them better.

30. I am not very good at making friends and keeping them.

31. I wish I was like my brother Eric - no regrets, only learning experiences.

32. I am the oldest of 8 children, four boys and four girls.

33. The farthest I have been from home (Utah) is Washington DC, Edmonton Canada, or Miami Florida. (I couldn't find my atlas to figure out which is farthest.)

34. I learned to drive in the car I was brought home from the hospital in when I was born. A gold 1967 Chevy Impala.

35. I have never liked my body, although I think I have nice eyes.

36. I have been pregnant nine times and have -by choice- given birth naturally four times.

37. One day I will graduate from college.

38. I hate shopping, but I love to wander around looking at things.

39. I was one of only four women pregnant at my 20th high school reunion. The other three were spouses who were younger than their husbands.

40. I really enjoy a super cold cherry vanilla Dr. Pepper now and then.

41. This is how old I will be this year on my birthday - August 2.

42. I am pretty handy. I have fixed our dryer, the garbage disposal, changed the battery in our car, replaced a broken pipe under our house, and countless other things.

43. I have owned a guitar for 17 years and don't know how to play a single note on it.

44. I also own a flute that I played for three years in Junior High.

45. I would live in my pajamas if I could.

46. I am technologically illiterate. I don't have a cell phone and if you asked me to text someone or to meet you in a chat room I would have no idea how to do it.

47. I have never questioned that the LDS Church is true. I have just always known it.

48. I was a nanny in New Jersey for nine months. I turned 20 while I was there. (Before I went to New Jersey, the farthest East I had been was Evanston, Wyoming - See#33)

49. I was once a bodyguard for Wayne Newton and the Osmond's Second Generation.

50. I once took apart a piano, cleaned it, put it back together, and started to refinish it.

51. I made my own wedding dress. It cost $73.00.

52. I took classes at Princeton and I saw Brooke Shields once at the Library there.

53. My favorite flowers are hydrangeas, lilac, and daffodils.

54. I love newborn baby toes.

55. I like doing puzzles. Word puzzles, number puzzles, tabletop puzzles, all kinds.

56. I would rather be too cold than too hot.

57. My room-mates at BYU were convinced that I had a tattoo. I do not.

58. I would love to take classes in photography and design.

59. I am in awe of Mike's sister-in-law Kati. She has so many great ideas, she runs her own businesses, takes awesome photos, is always happy, and her kids are always clean. And, she's really cute.

60. I had braces for about 3 years then wore a retainer for almost 5 years after that.

61. I don't like emptying the dishwasher.

62. I hate the feel of sand under my fingernails.

63. I love Mexican food. I would be happy to eat it everyday.

64. My favorite authors are Mary Higgins Clark, Anita Stansfield, and John Grisham.

65. I will see the Northern Lights one day.

66. I don't like playing sports, but I enjoy watching them.

67. My favorite kinds of pizza are pepperoni with pineapple and supreme.

68. I can't use most kinds of soaps or lotions. I am allergic to something in them.

69. Some of the movies I can watch over and over are: "Sweet Home Alabama", "The Italian Job", and "Just Like Heaven".

70. I like most vegetables I've tried, but I HATE lima beans.

71. I don't like to dance.

72. I try hard.

73. I'm really good at making desserts, but I cannot make a good apple pie to save my life.

74. My favorite computer game right now is Bejeweled 2.

75. I think it is ridiculous when people put clothes on their pets.

76. My ideal temperature is between 60 and 65 degrees.

77. I like black licorice.

78. I have been to both Canada and Mexico and I have stepped in both the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans.

79. Mike and My song is "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel.

80. The only pregnancy that I had cravings with was my first. I craved lemons and sour cream, not necessarily together.

81. I have eaten a snail.

82. I have seen "Better Off Dead" at least 50 times.

83. All the boyfriends I ever had were younger than me except one.

84. Mike and I used to work in the baptistry in the Provo Temple every week.

85. Before I was a teenager, almost every one of my birthdays was spent at either Bear Lake or in Oregon at Grandma and Grandpa Ballard's house.

86. I am a horrible salesperson.

87. I am a big fan of chocolate - the darker the better.

88. I always feel like I talk about myself too much in conversations with others.

89. I love my in-laws. We get along great.

90. I think the pacifier is one of man's greatest inventions.

91. I wish I was more organized.

92. I dye my hair. Not because it's gray, but because I like it when it's red.

93. My favorite trip I've ever been on was to Washington D.C. to visit my in-laws for four days.

94. I would love to learn to blow glass and make stained glass. I don't know what I would do with that knowledge, but it would be a cool thing to know.

95. I was assistant director for "Our Town" when I was in high school and I've been in "Our Town", "The Wizard of Oz", and "My Fair Lady" among other things.

96. I do not speak any other languages beside English, even though I took two years of French and a year and a half of American Sign Language.

97. I am really bad at staring contests.

98. I like ironing but rarely do it.

99. I have never taken an art class but I would love to sometime.

100. My family is one of the most important things to me and I always want to be with them. I hope they know that.

I would love to know more about anyone who reads this blog, but I know making a list like this will take some time so I am not going to formally tag anyone. However, if you want me to get to know you better, feel free to consider this a tag.

So. I guess it's time I get back into the blogging habit. It has been three and a half weeks since Andrew was born. During that 25 days I have been in the hospital with Andrew for five of them and have taken him to the doctors office twelve times. After all the problems he had with his bilirubin, the doctor weighed him (at his two week check-up) and found out that he had lost two ounces in two days. He's supposed to be gaining about an ounce a day, so the doctor said we needed to supplement the feedings with formula. I felt like he was saying that I was a bad mom because I wasn't feeding my baby enough and he was starving. Of course he wasn't saying that, and I know in my head that my ability to produce enough food for my child has nothing to do with my worth as a mother. But, with my extra hormones and what we had already been through with him, this news sent me to a place I would rather not talk about. I'm sure Mike was glad to go to work each day and get away from this bizarre weeping woman that he suddenly lived with. I am glad to report that now I am okay with things. I seem to be past the post partum depression I was feeling, Andrew is gaining weight, and things are looking up. At his follow-up weigh-in he had gained seven ounces in seven days. He was 7 pounds 5 ounces last Wednesday (April 9). Now the only thing I need to deal with is feeding him every hour and a half. (I stepped up the feedings rather than supplementing. It was just too painful for me to give him a bottle.)

In other news, Mike is trying to kill everything in our backyard today. Under the three feet of snow that melted a few weeks ago we had a nice lush carpet of weeds growing. It actually is kindof pretty. It's those little purple flowers, but I would rather have a nice lush carpet of grass so Mike is spraying. He's also been re-digging the trenches for our sprinkler system. They kindof caved in over the winter, and now that it's warmed up it is time to get serious about installing the system and reclaiming the other half of our garage that's been filled with pipe and such.

Also, many many thanks to Tom and Barbara for watching our kids last night. You were a godsend in a time of need. You guys are my heroes.

Great News!

The pediatrician's office just called (1:40pm, Saturday, March 29) and they said that Andrew's bilirubin count from this morning is 13.7. Hurray!!

We just need to watch and make sure that he is eating often, having diapers that need changing often, and that he isn't looking yellow. We also need to go get his blood checked again on Monday morning to make sure it is still low. We'll let you know how it's going.

Here are some more pictures of our little guy -

(face bruised from trying to come

out arm first)

On Monday we went for a follow -up doctor visit. Our doctor thought he looked yellow so he sent us to the lab for a bilirubin check. We then decided to run some errands. Mike's cell phone rang at about 2:30 pm and it was the doctor. He said that a regular bilirubin count is about 15ish, they start to get a little worried when it's around 18 or 19, and Andrew's was at 25. He said that Andrew needed to be admitted to the hospital as soon as possible. We took the groceries home, I fed Andrew, and then I took him to the hospital. We were checked in at 3:15pm and were there until Tuesday at 5:00pm. Since then he has had three doctor appointments and has been poked in the foot for blood three times. He had blood drawn this morning again, and his bilirubin is back up to 18.8. (It was 16.2 when we left the hospital.) They are sending over a suitcase with lights in it for Andrew to be in for awhile. Hopefully the lights will work. If not, and his count goes up again, he will have to go back into the hospital. While he was there, they had two banks of lights on him. One had four lights in it, and the other one had eight lights, plus he was on top of a blanket that was a light. So, he had a total of 13 lights. This is what he looked like. His eyes had to be covered so the light wouldn't damage them, and the bandage on his arm is his IV.

They just brought the suitcase thing for him to be in. Here he is-

We are supposed to keep him in there all the time, except to feed him and change him. Then we get to take him to the lab and have his blood checked again first thing in the morning. This case only has four small lights, so it isn't going to be as effective as the ones in the hospital so it may take longer to get his number down.

Now for some good news, at least good for me.

I weighed myself on the scale at my doctor's office today. It's the scale I've been weighed on this whole time. I am proud and excited to say that since last Monday (when I was last weighed) I have lost 12 pounds! Yea! And I have lost 14 inches off my waist! Super Yea!

We'll keep you updated. Have a great day!

A Few More Pictures

I couldn't get these to upload with the last batch so here you go!!!!

The Little Man Has Arrived!!!!

Greetings to the BLOG world!!! I am writing because the standard author of the site is currently recuperating in the Davis Hospital after the amazing birth of Child #6. We are thinking about starting a BORG collective. The will be 8 of 8. The morning started with Belle getting up and getting going at about 5:00am. She claims she slept last night but I doubt it. She got me up at 6:15 which is amazing that the dead can rise. Michelle's mom, Diann, was here to help with getting the older batch to school and making sure that our at home child, Aaron, was well cared for and loved. We made it to the hospital which is a complete wreck. They are adding a new wing(what hospital doesn't add a new wing each year?) and the parking is insane. You then have to walk through the maze of hallways in order to find the admitting desk. This is the fabulous place where they tell you how much this experience is going to cost upfront. They do give you 10% off if you pay up front. We then were booked into the Labor and Delivery area which I have come to learn is L&D. We are branded with the bracelets so they can tell that you belong and aren't there to swipe a kid. We then waited for 30 minutes until a nurse came in to help us. Apparently they booked 13 ladies for delivery on Tuesday. Belle got the IV a-runnin' and then came the bag of contraction starter fluid, "potatoeskin". I don't know how to spell it or say it. The whole hook up took until about 9:30 and then we started getting some contractions. At this point in the tale I would like to express my undying love and gratitude for my sweet, amazing, super, tremendous, and incredible wife. I would also like to thank my Heavenly Father for making sure I came out a guy. I don't know how women do this thing. I saw my sweetheart in pain for the next three hours. She was incredible and finally asked for medication at Noon. of course it takes 15 minutes for the nurse to get the drug and put in in the IV. By this time Belle and molded my hand like clay and she is at her wits end. She asks for more of the pain meds but by this time the nurses and her doc have got all the stuff put together to get this kid down the pipe and into the world. Belle give it everything she has and gets our little one almost out and then pushes so hard that she forgets to breathe and nearly passes out. At this point THE LITTLE MAN APPEARS!!! Belle's doctor puts him up on Belle's stomach for her to look but there is to much pain and she can barely see because she has almost passed out. He had his arm up on the side of his head so he has a bruise on his face and on the inside of his little arm. The nurses are awesome and get him warmed up and bawling his head off. The nurses are weighing him in at 7lbs and 3 Ounces and he is 18.5 inches long. He has a crop of hair and those bruises make him look like he has been in a boxing match. The doctor asks me to cut the cord which I have to say is a really crazy ritual to hand a father who is about to faint a pair of sharp scissors and ask him to perform a medical procedure. The doc is getting Belle cleaned up and I am grateful that I get to stay over with the nurses or I would have passed out. Finally the nurse brings the babe back over to Belle and the get about 3 minutes before he is rushed to the nursery for tests and other fun stuff. I get to go with him and watch them get him warm again and later I get to give him a bath and clean him up. He was not to keen on the scrub down but he really like having his hair washed. My parents showed up and got to take a good look at him and then they had to leave. At 5:30pm it was time to go and save Diann from the horde so I went home and loaded the Family into the big bus and we went to the hospital for the kids to see their bro. Aaron was a little concerned at first but he warmed up to his baby brother. All the kids got to have a hold and then they whispered to Belle what they thought the name should be. And so the day ends with me bringing the troupe home and getting homework and housework finished and calling my soul mate for one last thought for the night. I am moved to say that this experience always opens my eyes to the love God has for us. I looked at my dad and father-in-law and realize that we have been blessed to have the same experiences as a loving Father in Heaven. I look at my soul mate and my mom and mother-in-law and realize that we all married up and that being a mother in this day is an amazing challenge that is filled with blessings from above. I saw today the miracle of life and I am so grateful that God gave me this chance. Look for yourself. I happen to think this one is a keeper!!! (NAME SOON TO FOLLOW, HE HASN'T TOLD US YET)

Here are just a few of the things that are

waiting patiently for the beginning of next week-

And here is a picture of me in all my 51 inch waistline glory.

I can't believe I'm that big. I guess I should've included a sentence beforehand warning of the upcoming picture in case some of you didn't want to see that.

Here is the scoop. I went to my doctor this morning. I am dialated to a one and a half. The baby's head is down, and the doctor seems to think it will stay that way. I am going to see her again on Monday morning and she will do some things to me that my husband says I shouldn't talk about. They are labor inducing things. She seems to think that I am ready enough that this may put me into labor and I won't need to be induced. Nevertheless, I am still scheduled to show up at the hospital at 7:30am on Tuesday, March 18 to be induced. So, unless he comes on his own earlier, he will be born on Tuesday. I guess we are ready for his arrival. We have all the things we need, the crib is up, and the siblings are anxious. I don't know if I'm ready. I'm not ready to share him. I'm not ready to not feel his movements all the time. I'm just having a hard time letting go a little. I am ready to get to know him better. I'm ready to see what he looks like, and I am ready to sleep a little better. I hope he's like all my other babies. They only (on average) woke up once during the night around two or three for about a half an hour or so. I guess we'll meet him in a few days and have a lifetime to get to know him.