He's Home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not only is he home, we have been living life as a normal family again!!!!!!  This post is full of the most recent happenings in our lives.

William came home at 9 lbs.    He's no light weight, and he's precious.  He came home on September 10th, 2012.  Some of the nurses were reluctant to let him go.  I finally had to put my foot down and let the NICU know that I needed for him to come home.  I had six other kids at home and traveling back and forth to the hospital every day, several times, was getting, well, crazy.

I cornered a nurse practitioner, after the first one told me "she couldn't wave a magic wand to make William ready to come home," and asked her if I could come to all of his feedings during the coming weekend, if all went well I asked if I could bring him home.  She was great and said yes.  Of course all went well, he took all of his feeds by breast and bottle no problem and here we are ready to bring him home.....

 

on the left I am asking him if he's ready to come to his home, which I also refer to as "crazy town."
 

Over the last several weeks of having him home my other baby Summer, who is just one and a half has been adjusting....you'll notice a pattern in the pictures, basically she has become attached to me, literally.  I am eating dinner and nursing and she had to climb into my lap.  The whole time I was thinking, a few years back I would have been annoyed by this, just wanting my space.  But, now I love it so much.  She is so precious, just wanting to make sure I still love her the same as before.  I love being a mom.
 

She loves the baby too.  A little too much, but were working on that.  The baby is having "tummy time," and so she is too, almost directly on top of him.  :)
 

One of the favorite past times of the older kids is to sleep with him.  They all love him so much.  Although, I have to note here that my oldest daughter Gwyneth recently asked me if she had to get married and have children.  She confided that seeing me with all of the kids seems so hard and that she would prefer to just go to college and then travel the world.  Can you believe this? This question is more for me really.   I was dying.   I told her the feelings that come with wanting marriage and family have not come to her yet.  But, that raising these children is hard work, not going to lie.  What's funny is that most of my kids have said they think they want smaller families, maybe two or three kids, smaller compared to ours that is.
 

And then there is Georgia.  She spends most of her day holding William.  She tends to him and holds him the most.  She adores him.    She asks me on a regular basis when she gets to be a mom.  She burps him, dresses him, she's almost ready to change diapers.  She's going to be six in February.  She's very impressive.
 

This weekend was Conference Weekend!!!!!  For Mormons, every six months one weekend is devoted to a world wide broadcast where the Prophet and his Apostles speak to the world.  This conference was history in the making.  Our Prophet announced that the missionary age for boys was changing from 19 to 18.  And young ladies can serve now at 19, in the past they had to be 21.

I told Kalen we might as well say our goodbyes now.  Not really, but this means he will leave for his mission in six years...six years.  That is a blink of an eye.  But, I think 18 is a better age.  They get done with high school and get right to business of serving their mission.  No time to hang around for a year, until their nineteen.  I'm excited for this change for sure.
 

Below the girls are walking to the second session of conference which we spend at my in laws, just across the street.  They are dressed as pioneers in honor of our Mormon/Pioneer heritage.  Not really, they just dress up like this all the time.  I just think it's the most precious thing, especially seeing as my oldest daughter is almost ten.
 

The kids are playing conference bingo.  They listen for key words in the talks and can get bingo, which means they go to grandma for candy.
 

After the last session I was walking home with Shane and Summer and they had me on a wild squirrel chase.  If you look closely you can see the squirrel on the tree in the left picture.....
 

it went into the Ivy......
 

and up the tree.  Shane thinks it's so funny.
 

On the home front, before William came home my dad came to our house and spent about a week and a half beautifying our home.  He redid three of our upstairs bedrooms with paint and base board and did the entire upstairs hallway.  We now have matching baseboard through the whole upstairs.  This is our guest room and where Summer now sleeps.  Her crib is on the other wall.  This was my mom's bed in her guest room before she passed on.  My dad painted it the prettiest shade of light lavender  it's so relaxing.   I love passing by this room because it reminds me of her.
 

He also landscaped our backyard.  He put the flower garden in and replaced the wood surrounding the garden.  On the other side of the yard it has white rose bushes lining the fence.  My husband then pulled up all of the pavers and leveled the backyard and replaced them so that there would be no space between them. It's so pretty-I love it.
 

Meanwhile we got a trampoline!!!   I have wanted one for years.  But my husband never gave me the go ahead for all kinds of reasons.  We use to have to store the bikes in the back because my brother in law lived with us, that was the main reason.

This has been such a blessing, which sounds weird.  But, living in a town home, I don't want the little kids playing out on the front lawns where there are lots of cars zooming by.  This keeps them in the backyard, safe, and it's great fun and exercise.  They have loved it.  It's a Spring free Tramp, so the entire top is utilized.  It's eight feet around.
 

Their dad also got this for the littler kids too.  They of course love it.  There is a little kitchen inside and all of the red knobs unscrew and screw back on, so they can use tools with it.
 

And this wraps up our lives in the past four weeks.  (The home renovations were done a month and half ago).  So back to baby....here he is.  These were taken today.  This is what he looks like now, a perfect angel.  We love him so much, and are blessed that he has endured his first part of life so well.