Aunt Mary and Uncle Bernard

Thanksgiving always makes me think of my Aunt Mary and Uncle Bernard. I haven't seen them in years, but I sure do miss them!

This is what Gabs and Zekey do when Mommy is feeding Baby Ivan

And here I was afraid they would feel neglected! :)

Brothers

I was really worried about how Zekey would do with having to share me with a new baby. I have to admit, I spoiled my little Zekey from the day he was born and he was extremely attached to me.
But he's done amazingly well. He's so loving with baby Ivan. There's only been a few times when he's wanted me to hold him while I'm feeding Ivan. They're already great buddies.

Ivan Thomas

November 1 was a very happy day for the Watson family. Our little boy entered the world :)
My labor and delivery was awesome. I had a great nurse and things moved faster than I thought they would. I was going to try to do it without an epidural, but once the contractions really started, I remembered what it was like without the epidural, so I decided to go ahead and get it. And I'm very glad I did. I could still feel pressure and contractions, but it wasn't nearly as bad as it would have been without an epidural. I did standing abs all throughout the pregnancy and it definitely paid off- I pushed him out in a few minutes. I always want to start breastfeeding right after the baby is born, but the nurse who came in after the good nurse left was incredibly slow. She was very nice, but she took him to weigh him and then she wouldn't give him back. I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown not being able to start nursing him. But I finally got him and he latched on right away and has been perfect at breastfeeding from the start. I told Nathan that I wasn't looking forward to breastfeeding, but he reminded me that once I get started with it, I really love it. And I do. I think it's such a special bonding experience.
Ivan is almost 9 days old. He's already grown and changed. The kids love him and we're all adjusting really well. I was worried that Ezekiel would have a hard time, but he really hasn't. He isn't jealous of Ivan at all. He tries to sit on my lap when I'm feeding the baby though :)
People used to tell us that once you have 3 or 4 kids, anything after that isn't a big deal. But adding one more is a lot harder than I thought. Five kids is a lot. He is a wonderful, easy baby. But we definitely feel the difference between four and five kids.
When I was in the hospital, all of the nurses went on and on about how he was such a good baby. They said that he was so silly and were making them all laugh when he was in the nursery. He has such a strong personality for being an infant. I think he's going to be our little comedian. He makes us all laugh and he brings so much joy into our family. I'm so glad our little blessing is finally here.

I'm Ready to Have a Baby!

I was hopeful that with as active as I've been throughout this pregnancy, the baby would want to come out a little early. But it looks like he's quite content in there. I had a doctor's appointment today. I'm still only dilated one centimeter, but he's really low. I had her strip my membranes to try and kick start labor. I've never had that done before. It wasn't fun to say the least. So after she did that, I took Gabs and Zekey to Walmart and walked around for an hour. And then we came home and skipped nap time and I've been cleaning the house for the past hour and a half. I've had a few contractions, but mostly just feel really crampy. I'm really, really hopeful that he'll come this weekend. But if he doesn't, I'll be induced a week from Sunday. So at least the end is near!


Gabs took a break from her doggie costume so she could dress up like a ballernia. She insisted on having Zekey in the pictures with her. I can see why people always mistake him for a girl! :)

Little Fi Fi

I spent the day Saturday looking for Halloween costumes. The only ones who really needed them were Malachi and Aylah. I found nothing for them, but I did find a pink dog costume for Gabs. I didn't know if I should get it for her, because she had already decided to be a cat and use the costume the other kids have used in the past. BUT her favorite color is pink and she pretends to be a dog all the time and I found it at a second hand store, so I had to get it. It has a name tag on the collar that says "Fi Fi". The child literally lives in this costume. Not only does she wear it all the time, but she never breaks character. Woof woof!

Almost Baby Time

I can't believe it's already been a week since Ezekiel went to the hospital. It's been a fast week, but the days that we spent in the hospital felt like an eternity. We're so happy to have our little guy back home and even happier that he's doing so well and besides his cough, he's pretty much back to normal.
I had a doctor's appointment today. When you get to the end of pregnancy, the appointments seem so pointless. All they do is measure you and listen to the baby's heartbeat. For some reason, my doctor's office always runs behind, so I ended up waiting for an hour and half. With Gabs and Zekey. They were wonderful- as wonderful as a 3 and 2 year old can be in the doctor's office. By the time it was over, I was so stressed out I started having contractions. Which have since gone away. But I wouldn't mind if they came back and I went into labor. I've gotten so much done in the past two days. Things that don't really matter too much- like organizing and cleaning. But it makes me feel so much better and I definitely feel ready to have the baby. Although I still haven't packed a bag. I'm going to do that tonight- just in case :)