September

Yes, Claire is pretty excited to be featured on our blog.  The photo above is actually what I wanted to use as her passport photo, but apparently you can't have your arms up in the air, so we had to go with a boring boyish one.  Shame.  It looks like she loves to travel - what's wrong with that?

September was a great month!  It began with a trip to Utah to visit family.  Jason went backpacking for the weekend while the girls and I hung out with the grandmothers.  Mid-month we celebrated my birthday.  Then at the end of the month, we had our parents in town for Claire's blessing.

Gabby's first Chucky Cheese experience.  She was very proud of herself for giving a large rodent a high-five while she was there.

Sisters.

Gabby and Claire were able to visit with their cousin, Zoey.  They are all best friends now, baby doll included.

Mémé got some good smiles out of Claire.

This pretty much sums up how Claire feels about Gabby.  Distrust.

 While we were busy taking pictures, Jason was out backpacking to Kings Peak with his family in the Uintas.  Kings Peak is the highest point in Utah, not an easy hike when your headlamps burn out, you get lost for several hours pre-dawn, your campground freezes overnight, and illness and injury abound.  But they all made it back and claim it was a great time!

 We also finally managed to take a few pictures of Claire this month.

Just hanging out.

 Claire is a great smiler and if you smile at her, you are almost guaranteed to get one in return.  We realize that as a second child, she has to be that way or she would likely end up completely ignored.  :)

While the weather has still been nice, we have been exploring the neighborhood events, like this little family day at our open-air mall.  Gabby's favorite activity was playing at the sidewalk chalk station.

At the end of the month, Claire was blessed.  It was wonderful to have family and friends join us in celebrating her life.

Oh, and I forgot to mention in my August post that Gabby is a huge fan of camping.  She went with Jason to our church campout and still hasn't stopped talking about sleeping in a tent and eating tons and tons of food.

Failed Photo Shoot

Some of you may recall the drama that took place when we attempted to have family pictures taken last year. Not the easiest process. This year, when Claire was two weeks old, we decided to use another free photo shoot. I am not sure why I believed that although we cannot force one child to be photogenic, perhaps we can force two children simultaneously. Not an option. Basically, our 20-minute scheduled shoot turned into an hour of at least one child screaming at every moment before we finally gave up. These two pictures were the only ones we managed to capture. The reason Claire is making a funny face is because she just had a pacifier pulled out of her mouth and was a split-second away from her cry of disapproval. The question now is whether we should even attempt a family photo this year and add yet another person to the photo who doesn't like his picture taken....

Wanted: Blogger and/or Nanny

It turns out I am not so good at having two children and blogging at the same time. Of course, it is always when you have more to blog about that you don't have time to actually blog, which is why during my chaotic mornings I dream of hiring a blogger or nanny or a housecleaner or all of the above. Until that dream comes true, I may have to forgo my long essays in blogs of the future and let the photos speak for themselves. Below are some things I failed to post in August:

My mom came in town to help during our first weeks with Claire. Also pictured here is my grandmother, who gets crazier (and more entertaining) by the day. :)

Having so many guests in town her first month apparently was a little confusing to Claire.

Gabby continues to be an awesome big sister. She overdoes it a bit on hugs and kisses, but generally, she has not shown any signs of jealousy and loves having Claire around, even when she's "making noise".

Gabby's highlight of each week is going to Primary at church, where she takes home many treasures like the crown below.

She also loves to have play dates with her best friends.

And there is nothing better than hanging out at the park with Mémé and Daddy.

Introducing Claire

(The above proof is a photo we bought from the photographer who took pics at the hospital.)

Claire Evelyn Boyer has finally arrived! (Okay, it was a week ago - July 30th - but it took me a while to find any time to post, let alone sleep.) We chose the name "Evelyn" after two of Jason's grandmothers. After deciding on "Claire", we discovered that his maternal grandmother's name was Evelyn Claire and his great-grandmother's first name was Claire. It was meant to be.

If you have any interest in the random details leading up to Claire's birth, read on. If not, just scan ahead for more pics. (I have a tendency to give more info than anyone actually cares about.)

Wed 4pm: OB appt. on my due date. Dilated to 4cm. Schedule induction for Friday morning at 5am!

Wed 5pm: Call Jason’s parents. They schedule flight to come in Thursday night. Jason has office reschedule all of his patients for next Thursday & Friday.

Wed 11pm: Go to sleep with the comfort of knowing that no matter how much pain and discomfort I am in, I only have to make it 1 ½ more days.

Thur 11am: Dr.’s office calls to schedule check-up for Monday. I explain that I am being induced tomorrow, so no need for an appt. They inform me that no, they are not sure why they told me that the schedule was completely open for me to be induced, as it is actually completely full. I will have to be induced next Wednesday instead.

Thur 11:05am: I freak out. You don’t mess with a pregnant woman like that. The thought of waiting another 6 days is not an option. I had mentally prepared myself for tomorrow. The in-laws bought their tickets. Jason’s patients have all been rescheduled. But most importantly, my emotional state is not stable.

Thur 6pm: My body convinces Claire that we are not waiting another week. The time has come, whether they can schedule me in or not. Contractions begin about 10 minutes apart.

Fri 12am: Jason’s parents arrive, just in time to watch Gabby.

Fri 4am: Contractions are finally 4-5 minutes apart and more and more intense. We leave for the hospital.

Fri 4:30am: As soon as I lay down on the bed for them to measure my contractions, they are suddenly farther apart and less intense. They look at me like I don’t know what I am doing and send us home. They do not seem to care that when I stand up to leave, a huge puddle of blood appears on the floor. “Maybe we’ll see you later this weekend,” the nurse says. Eh?? Later this weekend? I don’t think so.

Fri 5:30am: We drive home with me in agony. I have not eaten or slept all night and I am urgently craving a sausage and egg muffin. The restaurants are not open yet. My pain doubles at the disappointment, which is clearly a personal attack from the restaurant industry.

Fri 7:30am: Okay, so this is what they were talking about when they said labor pains are one of the worst pains a person can experience. Contractions are 2 minutes apart. The thought crosses my mind that maybe I should just deliver at home to prove to them that they should not have turned me away. On second thought, there is a slight chance that my plan may be much worse on me than them. Fine. Off to the hospital again.

Fri 8am: Arrive at hospital with contractions 1 minute apart. I am a true disaster complete with tears and I tell myself, “At least I will never see anyone here again.” Then the nurse comes to rush me to my room. She leans over me in the wheel chair. “Jen?” – perfect – an old friend from high school that I haven’t seen for 13 years. She will be my nurse through the entire delivery. Needless to say, I am not much for reminiscing and small talk as she helps me undress. (No offense, Mey, I was just in a little shock, but you were an awesome nurse.)

Fri 9:55am: Claire Evelyn Boyer arrives before I have time to realize that I am in the hospital. She is perfect! And, I admit, the pain instantly seems trivial once I see her face and hold her in my arms. Welcome home, Claire!

The first few moments of Claire's life.

8lbs, 8oz. 20inches. Thank goodness we did not let her grow another week!

Jason experiments with his wicked photography skills.

The Boyer cheeks prevail again!

The sisters meet each other. Gabby has been such a gentle and loving sister. [Note: That is Gabby's arm around Claire, not my runt arm, as it appears.]

More pics from the photographer at the hospital:

Our growing family arrives home. (I promise, despite the illusion, this is the day after Claire's birth and I am not actually 7 months pregnant again.)

Curiosity.

Jason's parents keep Gabby busy with things like hiking to Bridal Veil Falls.

Gabby had a great time with Noni & Papa B and we ate better than we have for a LONG time. Thank you for all of the help!

I will get back into photo mode and take some better pictures of Claire soon. And I may even eventually post them....

As We Wait...

Although Baby Boyer #2 has yet to make her big debut (her womb expiration date is a mere 5 days away), we have been keeping busy with fun summer activities, as seen below.

Lots of grilling with Jason's Father's Day gift.

(I promise he is happy here, he just has to pretend to be to be tough & manly while grilling.)

We had a great 4th of July weekend.

We began with a breakfast at our church, where the kids also decorated their bikes for a miniature parade.

That afternoon, we went to the lake with a big group for a picnic. Gabby is finally back to loving sand instead of being too distracted by the fact that she is getting dirty.

At a friends house, we managed to introduce Gabby to her first hands-on fireworks. She was much more impressed with the snakes and the parachuters than the sparklers.

Gabby has certainly discovered some best friends recently. She and her friend Van get giddy every time they get to hang out. Here they are in the water during a day on the lake.

Um, ya. Like I said, the dirt doesn't seem to bother her anymore....

Gabby & Tori - two friends that now hold hands everywhere they go.

Van's 2nd Birthday party. The cutest decorations and lots of fun for everyone!

The party included a water balloon toss. Gabby wasn't quite sure what to think of that.

She did enjoy the idea of hitting the pinata as hard as she could with a stick, though.

And here are the two trouble-makers, sneaking into the blue M&Ms.

We adults have also had a few chances to go on some dates, pre-baby. We had a great time at Cirque du Soleil several weeks ago and last week we made it to a Barenaked Ladies concert. Below, Jen & I remember our concert-going days. Wow, how the crowds have changed....

We will keep you posted on the new baby. We are excited to meet her. Gabby is already being a good sister, giving frequent hugs and "bisous" and saying, "Baby coming soon!" (please let the SOON part be true!).