Miss Independent.....

My sweet, determined 2 yr. old Anna has been growing up before my eyes this past week. In one week she has decided she wants to be potty trained and she has learned how to climb out of the crib. I was not ready for either of these cause you know our world just changed with Mary arriving 23 days ago. I know that P.T. and using a big girl bed require lots of energy and discipline. However, she's the type of kid that if she sleeps in a big girl bed once it will be the end of the crib so that is what is happening tonight. She's in Ellie's bed because Ellie is currently in trouble for getting out of her bed way to many times tonight so it worked out well. Ellie is sleeping in the guest bed in Mary's room. I'm guessing it will have to be this way for awhile until we have the time to look for Anna a bed. She is such a climber and I'm pretty sure with her stubborn determination she will be in some sport to get all of her energy out!

When she climbed out she told me "it's tall and I brave"! I am really hoping the P.T. will be easy cause with Ellie it was quite the long process. I'm not going to really stress to much about it and give it a week or so to make sure she is really ready to try it.

We went to visit my brother's family over the weekend in OKC and it was lots of fun! The girls got to play with their cousins which was a blast for them. It was really fun for my mom to see all 5 granddaughters together. Mary did great in the car, but the 3.5 hour trip was for sure an extra 1.5-2 hours longer with the stops for the 3 girls! It was a good change and I am so glad we got to all go! I hope you are all having a great weekend!

Life with Three.....

Well, as you can tell my blogging has been kind of absent lately. I'm so sad as well cause Mike is at camp with our computer so I can't update with pictures. However, we are doing really well. It seems like Mary has been here forever and the adjustment time is now pretty much over for the girls. I am still adjusting with little things like getting everyone in the car etc...! Mary is so sweet and is just like she was in the womb which was very calm. She's going with the flow so far just as many mom's of three expressed that their third was really laid back. She seems similar in many ways to Ellie and Anna especially with her tiny little features on her face and tiny little feet. I have been so blessed with lots of help so I'm sure when everyone has left it will be more difficult. Mike's family was here right after she was born for a week. Ellie went to VBS at Prestonwood Baptist along with 4,000 other kids! It was craziness, but such a blessing as Mike would take her every morning and Mike's parents would watch Anna while I slept! We had lots of fun with Mimi and Granddaddy. We had a week alone which went well as both girls went to VBS last week at the church where they go to preschool. I've loved VBS that is for sure! My mom came late last week and will be here till the first of July while Mike is on a trip to Camp Barnabas in MO with the students. Ellie will be flying home with my mom for 2 weeks so it will be a nice little break as Anna still naps for 2-3 hours every afternoon. I am excited for Ellie to get lots of attention and do all kinds of "big girl" things with Nana and Papa! It has been a great way to transition into being a family of 5!

Mary has been pretty easy so far. I cannot imagine if she was really difficult as my main focus is still E and A. I am thrilled that nursing is going better this time and she seems "full" most the time! She loves her crib and the bouncy chair. She's not a fan of the swing. She likes it quiet can you imagine why? I try to put her in the crib in her room when we are home so she can get a nap in peace. There have been lots of funny things have happened so far and she's survived them all! Here's a few:

Ellie for some reason thinks she should put her hand over her mouth when she is crying so she will be quiet.

Ellie has stuck her finger in her mouth lots of time instead of the paci. (yuck)!

Ellie was very confused by the "pump". After, I was done she said "mommy can you hook me up to that and proceeded to lift up her shirt".

The girls found a sticker book today and Mary was very decorated with stickers and she slept through the whole thing.

Both girls are very into her "spitting up" and insist on helping her immediately.

Some hard things:

Getting everyone into their car seat is beyond exhausting and I think we need a new plan. It might be that the girls argue over who can have the blue car seat in the back of the van. I've taken all three quite a few places, but not the grocery store. I really don't ever want to do it for a very long time!

Nursing time is interesting cause Ellie is very into sitting right next to me the whole time and patting the baby. I don't want to discourage her loving spirit, but I am a little touched out by the end of it.

There is not much alone time these days so I really have to pray throughout the day to have patience and joy in the midst of it!

I am so thankful for all the help we have received and Mike has been amazing. He was somewhat nervous about doing it all, but he has stepped right up and done awesome! I am so proud of him and we had a great Father's day together!

Quick Slideshow of Our Girls at the Blueberry Farm!

Blueberry Farm from Mike Shelton on Vimeo.

Mike has been taking LOTS of pictures with our new camera lately, and so here's a look at the trip we took today to a really fun blueberry farm outside of Dallas...

Mary Caroline's Birth Story......

                                                                        Mary Caroline

7lb. 12 oz.

20 inches

3:34 P.M.

I went to the doctor on a Monday and  I was 3cm dilated. He said my body was ready for labor and that if I wanted to I could get induced later that week. I was a little hesitant, but knew it would be easier with someone watching the girls etc... We decided to go ahead and schedule it. I was induced with Ellie and was not with Anna. I felt like I had experienced both and was did not favor one over the other. The only weird part is trying to get to sleep the night before knowing what you are doing the next day! 

I got to the hospital at 8 A.M. and around 9:15 they started a slow drip of pitocin and I was still 3 cm when we arrived.  The pitocin did not do much to me except start regular contractions about 5 minutes apart.  I was not in any pain and the plan was for the doctor to break my water around noon. 

Dr. H came to break my water at 12:30 and I was 4 cm. He said to get ready cause on most third children they come really fast after the water is broken. I started to be in pain around 1:15 and so I asked for the epidural. I was 6 cm when the epi was inserted. Mike is always amazed at how the epidural does not scare me. He sees the needle and almost passes out. However, if he only knew as a woman you see the epidural as an amazing gift! I felt much better after the epi and then it was just time to relax a little bit. I was not feeling to much at this point. I progressed really quickly and by 2:30 or so they said we would have a baby within the hour. I was 8 cm at this point. I started to feel a little more pressure and at around 3:00 I could feel quite a bit and realized I could move and feel my legs. I asked the nurse if I should be feeling pressure etc... she checked the pump and it was time to change the batteries?!!!! I did not want to hear those words. She changed the batteries and gave me an extra dose, but at this point the doctor said it was time to push. I for sure felt different than with Ellie and Anna. I am so glad that I only pushed for 15 minutes or so, but the doctor said it was pretty much all natural. I can now say I've pretty much experienced it all in child birth and it is still one of the most amazing things I've ever gone through. It goes so fast and before you know it you have another precious baby in your arms that you cannot imagine loving so much. I am so thankful for my wonderful doctor. He is a Christian and was always so kind. I felt so comfortable with him in any situation. I could totally trust his judgement especially when Mary was breach. He always took his time to visit with us and prayed with us after her birth. I've had 3 different doctors with all the girls and I think he was my favorite. I loved the others as well, but Dr. H is a really special person who has a gift and calling to be a OB/GYN.  

I am so thankful that God was in control the whole day and I can say He was my strength the whole pregnancy. It was a really long 9 months and it really felt like I was training for a marathon and just wanted race day to come. I can say that chasing two toddlers and being pregnant is really hard. You have no energy left at the end of the day to do anything else and it was really overwhelming emotionally. I was so relieved on June 4th that I did it and that Mary was here healthy! 

                                                            

                                                        

The hospital stay.....

Mike and I really enjoyed our hospital stay which might sound a little strange. However, it was pretty much just the three of us the whole time. It was really sweet to get such alone time with Mary and also time with Mike. We talked a lot and watched lots of TV and movies. Our hospital was amazing. It is a small hospital that almost looks like a clinic. My Dr. is only there one day a week and I was able to get induced on his day where he works in Frisco. The hospital is really unique in that the women's unit was designed by doctors and how they wanted to do extra things to make it different. I think the best thing was that the nurses station had a camera to where they can see into your room so if you had visitors or were asleep they didn't bug you about taking your blood pressure etc... It seemed like we were not bothered from 10 P.M. till 7 A.M. cause they took all my vitals before we went to sleep. They also were really fast about picking Mary up to take her to the nursery etc.. and it didn't seem like you were annoying them. 

Mike's favorite thing was the food cause it seemed like we were on a cruise ship. It was incredible and if you didn't like what they were serving that meal you could have them go downstairs to the cafeteria and order anything off the menu. Mike was given a meal every time I did so we enjoyed it together. Your last night at the hospital they serve you a "congratulatory" dinner of steak and lobster. It was really yummy and I especially loved the chocolate cake!

I really cannot think of one negative aspect about our stay and the fact that we both slept better there than at home was impressive. However, we also didn't have someone coming into our room at 7 A.M. to ask for breakfast!

Big Sisters.....

Ellie and Anna are doing great at being big sisters and the adjustment has not been as difficult as I thought it would. I would say the first couple of days they were a little confused and out of sorts (mainly cause of mommy being in the hospital). However, it seems like Mary has always been with us and I cannot imagine her not being a part of our family! Ellie has been very interested in all things baby related and Anna doesn't seem to care very much. They have both been very gentle and I am so thankful that they have not been jealous when I am holding her. Ellie loves to throw away diapers and get the paci for me. Anna loves to tickle and give hugs. I've had some interesting conversations about nursing. Ellie really thought that babies only got bottles so I've had some explaining to do in which I am not sure I've done a great job at it! They are also very intrigued by her umbilical cord and I have been a little nervous that they will touch it. I have noticed that once I put Mary in her crib that they kind of forget about her so she rarely takes a nap out in our living room. I'm sure she enjoys the quiet of her room! I am so proud of the girls and it is really fun to have three little Shelton girls!

Johnny and Chachi...at Willow Creek!

Tonight Mike's boss is performing at Willow Creek's worship conference with his friend Rob as Johnny and Chachi. They've been making videos for years now, and lately they've been getting requests to do some of their stuff live! Here's one of their videos...funny stuff!

Mary Caroline Slideshow

mary from Mike Shelton on Vimeo.

We had too many pictures of Mary's first day of life to try and post here, so here's a little slideshow :)
Mike and Holly

She's coming.......

Well, I'm making progress according to my doctor and a lot has happened in the last week. I had the apptmt. last Monday to turn the baby from the breach position. It was a surreal feeling because you have to check in at Labor and Delivery. They hooked me up and gave me an IV etc....My Dr. came in and checked the sono machine and she was still breach. Then another Dr. came into help him as I learned it was a 2 person job! I laid back and they put the sono jelly all over my stomach and basically it felt like a massage. They each put their hands and moved her clockwise till she was in the right position. It took all of 2 minutes! I am so glad I did it and most likely won't have a C-Section. There were no side effects and I felt really good all last week. I was 1 cm at that appointment and it was really fun to have a week with the girls without preschool and other responsibilities. I think sometimes I try to freeze the moment in my mind of my two sweet little girls who are getting so big. I know having a new baby sister will be fun for them, but also an adjustment. It seems like all our bedtime stories and prayers have been getting dragged out a lot longer lately! Mike and I got to go on one last really fun date. We used a gift card to this yummy restaurant called "The Palm". It was amazing and so much fun. He has been sooooooo helpful this pregnancy and I could not have done it without him. I know he is equally ready for me to have this baby girl. So that leads me to today's appointment. I am 39 weeks now and due on June 10th. The baby is still head down which was very exciting that she didn't go back breach! The doctor said I was 3 cm and 70% effaced. He does not think I will make it much longer, but also for peace of mind with the kiddos etc... I can be induced on Thursday at the hospital I prefer and he would be there! I was induced with Ellie and it was a good experience, but long. However, it would have been long no matter what most likely. I think they told me 12-18 hours with Ellie. Today, my doctor thought all he might have to do is just break my water and that she would probably come within 4 hours or so. He also cautioned me that since Anna came so fast and my body is very ready to get to the hospital as fast as I can! I really don't want to get stuck in Dallas traffic or miss the beloved epidural. I am feeling pretty different today so we will just have to wait and see, but please pray for us. Pray for my sweet girls to adjust well.... etc....The other positive is that Mike's parents booked a flight today so our friends won't have to help to long with our kids. I am so thankful that we are going to have lots of help this summer!
We are also 95% sure on the name.... can't wait to share it with you all! I can't wait to see this sweet baby girl and share her with you all!