Clarification

Mason: 12 Months

2017-11-14T12:15:00.002-08:00

Mason turned one over a week ago, and I am now just getting around to doing his update. He had his doctors appointment, and we were quite surprised by his stats: He weighed in at 23 lbs (74%) and is standing 29.5" tall (31%).

Over the past month Mason has grown up so much! He is completely done nursing and just takes one bottle a day, right before bed. He naps twice a day, at 9 and 1:30. His morning nap is usually 90 minutes and his afternoon nap is around 75 minutes. I've had him just take one middle of the nap day twice, and he slept for 3 hours, so I'd be ok transitioning him to one nap anytime now :)

Big news! Our one-toothed wonder now has FOUR teeth. He was a great teether- the teeth just popped out of no-where. Mason is very happy and go-with-the-flow kid until it involves food. He also figured out how to throw tantrums, which isn't my favorite development thus far. He likes to throw food or his cup off his high chair if he gets super mad. Or if he is on the floor he will rock back and forth shaking his head. It's actually kind of entertaining. Luckily he gets over it super fast.

Mason loves his food: his favorites being meat and fruit (Paleo baby? Maybe it's because I did Whole30 when I was pregnant with him haha). If we have dinner (say a deconstructed salad) he will eat the fruit, meat, veggies and then the grains verrrryyyy last.

He has zero interest in walking. He will walk along furniture, he loves to stand up and play with his toys and sometimes he will walk with a walker. If we ever stand him up and try to get him to walk to a person or object he collapses right a way and just crawls on over.

His vocabulary is still just "mama" and "dada" sometimes we will get him to mimic noises. He loves to make an "ooo" noise and face when he gets excited or drops something. It's probably my favorite thing he does. He loves to give kisses and hugs and to do things on his own time frame.

During is twelfth month of life he went to San Diego for the first (two) times, went to SeaWorld, San Diego zoo and San Diego Safari Park. He had his first Halloween and experienced his first Fall with plenty of Fall Festivals and Halloween Parties. He cheered on his parents and friends during the St. George Marathon and made us fall more and more in love with him. We've loved watching you grow Mason Robert! You were the perfect addition to our family.

Mason: Eleven Months

2017-10-10T20:58:00.002-07:00

"Mason-Man" or "Masaroni" is just getting too big. Where the heck did my baby go!? He is just too fun these days. He really is the happiest baby until food time rolls around. He loves to play with Calvin and crawls around looking for him so they can play chase. Speaking of.... Mason went from his army crawl to crawling normally pretty much overnight, just a few days after he turned 10 months.

As for the biggest news this month....HE HAS ONE TOOTH. That's right, just one. He got it about 2.5 weeks ago and we have yet to see any other teeth emerge. He loves that one tooth though; he smiles and smiles when I give him a piece of apple and he just chews it with that one tooth and smiles when he does it.

In other news, Mason dropped to one liquid feeding right before two days after he turned 10 months, and then about 5 days before he turned 11 months I stopped nursing him before bed and he just takes a bottle, half of my pumped milk we had in the freezer mixed with whole cows milk. He seems fine. I was training for a marathon and with traveling and such it was just easier to not have to pump for the one night feeding when I wasn't getting more than a few ounces anyway (I was getting 3-4 and he eats about 8)

Mason walks along furniture, crawls up the stairs, falls down the stairs, and can stand for a few seconds on his own. A few of his favorite activities are pulling out all the silverware from the dirty dishwasher as I am trying to load, eating crumbs off the floor and from his high chair and tipping over the garage can to see what scraps he can find in there. Needless to say, our kitchen needs a gate around it.

Mason loves going new places and trying to charm as many people as possible (with a 99% success rate). He can say "mama" "dada" and "more" and gets angry if I try to make him sign. He babbles his own made up language about 99.5% of the time. He is still a champion sleeper for nights and for naps (I can't remember the last time he woke up in the middle of the night).

During his eleventh month of life he had a lot of firsts: He went to S. California for the first time as well as Disneyland. He went on his first cross-country flight to visit Washington DC where Robert was doing a rotation and residency interviews. While in DC he went to his first zoo and we discovered this little guy is obsessed with animals. First time spending more than 24 hours away from Calvin and more than 2 days away from Robert.

Mason: Ten Months

2017-09-12T10:15:00.004-07:00

Mr. Mason Robert is now ten months old and has grown so much! We went to the doctors for a check-up and he has grown! He is 21 lbs 1 oz (66th%), 29.1 inches long (66th%) and has a head size of 17.9" (58th %) He was in the 50th percentile for so long for all areas, so it's fun to watch him grow out of that. Sadly, he is also growing out of 6-12 month clothing and he fits into quite a few 12-18 month clothing items already. So many tears.

Mason is still a gummy, but I swear some teeth with break through here soon! He is gnawing on everything and can eat anything and everything. So, not having any teeth doesn't seem to bother him! He still does his one-armed wounded soldier crawl, but is also pulling himself up onto everything and is standing for longer periods of time.

Mason has two liquid feedings a day, one right when he wakes up and one right before goes to sleep for the night. He has been acting uninterested in his morning liquid feed less and less, so I may start skipping that soon. He'd much rather have some solids. Mason goes down for the night around 7 or 7:30 and sleeps till about 6:45-7 the next morning and is ALWAYS ready for his morning nap by 8:45 and sleeps till Calvin and I wake him up around 10 or 10:30 because we need to leave for our morning activity. He takes a second nap around 1:30 for a good 2 hours.

Mason has started clapping for himself, says "mama" and "dada", signs "more" and "water" and is an absolute water baby. He LOVES going swimming and going down the water slide at our pool. He is also really into music (like his brother) and dances when he hears music. All it takes is a glance in his direction to get an ear to ear grin from him and is the sweetest happiest babe unless he is hungry, then all is lost. We are pretty lucky to have this happy baby! He is also the center of attention wherever he goes, he knows how to swoon allllllll the people.

During Mason's 10th month of life he went camping for the first time, saw his dad off for his first away rotation, got another hair cut, went to Lake Tahoe a few times, celebrated our 6th anniversary with us, and ate one too many otter pops.

Mason: Nine Months

2017-08-11T14:38:00.000-07:00

Our little munchkin is nine months old! No doctors appointment this month, so no stats. He is in 6-12 month clothing, some onesies are getting a little snug, though. He also has the most scrumptious thighs in America. I love it. Mason is just a delight to have in our home. He smiles his gummy smile if you look at him, and flaps his arms and legs with delight when he is happy or excited to do something (like get out of his carseat). He still doesn't have any teeth, but I feel like he is teething every other week. I am ready for gummy here to get some teeth! I will miss that toothless smile, though.

He is crawling everywhere and even learned how to go from laying down to sitting up on his own! I looked in the monitor one morning and he was just sitting in his crib like it was no big deal. He also waves "hi" "bye" and claps for himself. He knows the signs for "food" "water" and "more". He still sleeps from 7:30 pm-7 am. He wakes up and nurses/bottle and goes to sleep with a liquid feeding and thats it. He would probably be fine weaning now, but I still think its a little young.....I guess I do have like a months supply of milk in our freezer. Stay tuned next month.

He naps twice a day; for a combined total of 3 to 3 1/2 hours. His morning nap is about an hour and a half and his afternoon nap is usually longer, closer to 2 hours. He loves getting his blanket for nap time and is a super easy baby to put to sleep (like his brother used to be. Sigh).

Mason LOVES food (which is a huge understatement) and would eat and eat and eat. He still gets hoppin mad if he sees food and it's not in his mouth, but he is getting better (as in going to the grocery store isn't the most miserable experience of my week). He still is a great eater and will eat anything we give him, but he definitely has his preferences. He will always eat any fruit first, and everything else after the fruit is all gone.

During his 9th month of life Mason went to Lake Tahoe for the first time (and he went twice!), went to food truck friday for the first time, had a lot of family visitors and found a new love for the hammock. We love this little guy!

Mason: 8 Months

2017-07-11T10:06:00.003-07:00

Muchkin man here is 8 months old! We took him the to the doctor yesterday for his well check and shots (a week late). Here are our boys stats: 27.9" long (51%), 19 lbs 7 oz (57%) and 17.56" (50%) for his smart brain. He also got his shots and cried for 10 seconds and then just smiled his gummy at the nurse ("Look at this cute smile, you can't give me another shot if I smile....") . I think he has started to catch on that usually people give him whatever he wants if he smiles cute enough. Such a ham.

Mason is still a gummy and doesn't appear to have any teeth even close to cutting through, or even forming in his gums. Even though he doesn't have any teeth, it doesn't stop him from eating everything in sight. I can tell he is starting to show preferences, but he will still eat everything we give him. He definitely loves fruit the most, with watermelon taking the #1 spot. The other day I made a PB&J smoothie and he would cry and cry for more but then once we gave him more he would scream because it would give him a brain freeze. It was sad, but entertaining to watch. Once we have in 15 minutes to melt he drank it up in about 1 minute. He was a fan.

Milestone- he can sit 100% on his own and he is a proficient army crawler. One day I looked over and he was just army crawling away. Robert refers to it more as a caterpillar crawl, but either way. He is mobile! He also isn't a fan of being still. We are in the middle of the game when I put him down to change his diaper and he rolls over.

He can also do the signs for "more" and "water"!

He recently dropped to just three liquid feedings a day; once in the morning when he wakes up, after his afternoon nap and right before bed. He would probably be happy if he weaned right now since he loves food so much, but I feel like 8 months is still a tad too early. He takes two naps a day, morning nap is about an hour and half and the afternoon nap is about two hours.

Mason is the smiliest baby, and I love it. He will just stare at people until he can get their attention and he just smiles and coo's when they look at him. When people look at him first and try to get his attention he will get eye contact and he turns into the biggest flirt. On the bright side, taking pictures of him is the easiest thing in America.

He is still the happiest when he can be outdoors; playing in the grass, going on a walk, touching leaves or feeling the wind. Nature is his happy place, and he is our happy place. I've loved watching him grow up!

During his 8th month of his life he got his first pair of sunglasses, went for his first wagon ride, learned to drink out of a sippy cup, had Grandma and Grandpa Davis come and visit and had his first weekend alone with dad (while Calvin and I were in SF with Micah)

Mason: Seven Months

2017-06-07T15:23:00.000-07:00

On Saturday Mason turned seven months old! About two weeks ago we took him into an appointment and he was 16" (but I think that is off because two weeks before that he was 16.25 inches...) and 16lbs 11 oz (28%). We have a small guy on our hands! He is in 6-12 month clothes now, and in brands that do 9 month, he is in 9 month clothes. He also has super small feet because he is still in size 1 and brands that do sizes by month, 3-6 month still don't fit those tiny little feet.

Our brunette turned into a 100% blondie this month (just look at his 5 month picture). Even though he is the same little boy, now that he is blonde I just perceive his personality in such a different way than I did when he had a head full of dark dark hair.

Mason is still sleeping like a rockstar; he is usually asleep by 7:30 pm and wakes up for the day anywhere from 6:40-7am. He takes two 1.5-2hr naps, one around 9 and the other around 1. He dropped his dream feed at 10:30, so he only has 4 liquid feedings a day (7/11/3/7), but I suspect he will drop down to 3 here any day because he is such a fan of solids.

Homeboy is a FOODIE. He will let you know when he wants food, and it's usually anytime he sees food he decides that he will literally die of starvation if that food isn't in his mouth within 10 seconds of seeing it. You can only imagine how grocery shopping goes, even if I do feed him before we leave. A big milestone for this month- he can wave "hi" and do the sign for "more" and "food". He does the sign for food for both, ahah, BUT it makes meal time so much more peaceful.

Mason is a HUGE fan of the outdoors. He loves touching leaves, and now that it's warmer outside (he didn't like the cold), he would be happy if we spent alllllll day outside basking in the sun.

Mason is still a huge thumb sucker, mostly when he is falling asleep for a nap or if he is getting tired. He is still a very pleasant (except when he is around food) and smiley little boy. You just look at him and he is all smiles. If a stranger even glances in his direction he goes from meltdown to smiles and laughs. He likes to put on a show for people "me? I would never cry. Look at this gummy smile".

He still can't sit up 100% on his own, although he is getting better and will sit up for 10-30 seconds on his own before he flops to the side. He also graduated from the wrap to the cart for shopping trips- but only at Costco, because Im terrified to go shopping with Calvin not in the cart.

While he isn't the greatest at sitting on his own, he is a rolling machine, and is getting better at schootching little distances to grab toys.
Mason still thinks his brother is the greatest human being in the whole world; lets just give it a few years an hope that doesn't change.

During his 7th month of life Mason went on his first hiking trip in our hiking backpack, went to his first Davis family reunion, visited his first national park, had his first overnight babysitter while we ran the RTO (thanks Oma!), and met his cousin Graham for the first time. We love watching this little munchkin grow!

Mason: Six Months

2017-05-04T09:58:00.001-07:00

Our little Mason is a half-year old! Fastest six months, ever. We went into the doctors a week ago and our little munchkin is 26.25" (44% ile), and 15 lbs 13 oz (23%). He is close to being out of 3-6 month clothes. He still has a few we can squeeze him into. The brands that run 6-12 months are still way too big for him, so we are in an awkward in between stage.

Homeboy went through a naughty phase and was waking up in the middle of the night for about a week, but now he is back to sleeping through the night. Praises all around. No major developments this month; he is rolling a lot more and is getting better at sitting up, but can't sit up on his own for any amount of time.

He eats around 7:15 and is asleep by 7:30 and will sleep till about 6:45-7:15 the next morning, with a dream feed at about 10:30. When he wakes up in the morning- or from a nap- most of the time I don't know he is awake. I turn on the monitor and he is just rolling around smiling and playing with the slats on his crib. It's pretty cute.

He takes 2, 2-21/2 hour naps a day, sleeping partially unswaddled for naps, and in the woombie for bedtime. He will nap in his crib and in his carseat. He WILL not fall asleep if someone is holding him, or in a bouncer, on his play mat, etc.

He has 5 liquid feedings a day: 7/11/3/7/10:30 and he gets HOPPIN mad if he sees someone eating real food and he doesn't have any. Needless to say, we ended up really starting solids about 2 weeks ago, going with the "baby led solids" route like we did with Calvin. He doesn't hate baby food like Calvin did, but we give him it if we are eating a meal that doesn't have anything he can eat (like protein pancakes or a smoothie with protein powder or a nut butter in it). And when I say he gets hoppin mad, I mean he has like a full on tantrum and screams till he eats solids. We mostly started him on solids so we could have peaceful meal times. haha.

Mason has such a sweet disposition and personality. He will just smile at someone until he gets their attention- especially strangers. Or if I just look at him he was grin from ear to ear. Mason is a huge thumb sucker, and spitter-upper (as in 15 times a day. It's the worst)

Mason LOVES his brother the most, and will track him around the room until Calvin acknowledges his presence and gives him a hug. Calvin also likes to give his brother lots of aggressive love; 90% of the time Mason loves it, the other 10%- not so much.

During Masons 6th month of life, he celebrated his first Easter, touched his first frog, flew on an airplane for the 2nd time, participated in his first fire pit experience, and swam for the first time.

Mason: Five Months

2017-04-05T13:37:00.000-07:00

Our Mason is five months old. No doctors appointment for stats this month! But he is slowly outgrowing his 3-6 month wardrobe and getting some chunk-alicious thighs.

Biggest news for this month: a few days after he turned 4 months he dropped his middle of the night feed and is sleeping through the night! So many praises. He did it for about two weeks straight and then for a week he woke up in the middle of the night screaming because he rolled from his back to his stomach and was too out of it to roll back over. For the last few nights he finally outgrew that stage and is sleeping from 7:30-7 again. He definitely prefers to sleep on his stomach but doesn't like it when he wakes up and realizes he is on his stomach. I don't understand.

He has become a major thumb sucker. He actually started sleeping through the night when he started sucking his thumb, so it's definitely a catch 22. He sucks that thumb HARD when he is falling asleep.

Mason stretched his feeding out to every 4 hours. 7/11/3/7. He gets terribly distracted when Calvin is around and he is trying to eat, so we have had to ban Calvin from the room when Mason eats. Poor Calvin. Mason takes two 2-2.5 hr naps a day and one cat nap around 5:30 for about 45 minutes. He has tried a few solids the past few weeks; his favorite thing is to gnaw on carrots or celery. He gets hoppin mad if we are eating at the table and he is just watching. He has definitely gotten to the age of wanting to be involved and hates being left out (especially when it involves food).

See him staring down that ice cream cone?!

Mason is generally happy until he is either bored or tired. If he is fussy at all after he has eaten it is generally because he needs a change of scenery or change of activity. He loves going outside and going on walks in the wrap or carrier and playing in his little play center/gym. He also really likes to join in on the reading fun when I read to Calvin. I think we have ourselves another avid reader.

He also LOVES his brother Calvin. If Calvin is in the room Mason just looks around until he finds him and will just stare at him until Calvin looks at him and Mason just giggles and smiles in return. It's adorable.

A few days after he turned four months he learned how to roll from his stomach to his back. Apparently that is a skill they are supposed to learn first, but this guy has done it backwards. Bad news is he is very talented at rolling from back to stomach and isn't very good (still) at rolling from stomach to back. He has done it a dozen or so times but not on a regular basis.

During his fifth month of life he celebrated his first St. Patricks Day, went to California and the beach for the first time, swung in a swing, graduated to a big boy seat in our stroller, and had his first family visitor (Auntie Layney).

Mason: Four Months

2017-03-06T14:19:00.002-08:00

On the third Mason turned four whole months old. We went it for his 3 month check up a week before he turned 4 months (ha,ha!) so here are his stats as of 3 months and 3 weeks old. He is 24.76 inches long (48%-ile), and 13 lbs 15 oz (27%-ile). He is completely in 3-6 month clothes, some of which are actually getting too small.

Mason has started looking around until he finds the source of a noise. He loves hearing his brother and will roll and twist until he sees him. He loves sitting in his bumbo on the table while we have breakfast and lunch and he just chats and chats and Calvin.

Mason has given us a little giggle here and there, but has yet to do a full belly laugh. So far the only one who has been successfully able to get Mason to laugh. Mason thinks Calvin is the coolest and finds him hilarious.

Mason eats every 3, but usually 3.5 hours. He stays awake for anywhere from 90 minutes to two hours after he eats. He takes three hour and a half naps and one cat nap around 5:30.

He goes down for bed between 7 and 7:30, either Robert or I dream feed him before we go to bed for the night and then he wakes up once between 3:45-4:30 to eat and then wakes up for the day between 7 and 7:30. If he isn't up by 7:30, then I go and wake him up. He is the happiest baby and never cries when he wakes up. I just hear him talking to himself and looking around. I love getting him from his crib when he wakes up because he is SO smiley and happy to see me.

He started rolling over from back to stomach the day after he turned 3 months, but screams until we roll him back over to his back. He DOES not like tummy time. So that is an exercise we participate in sparingly around these part.

He loves being in the Solly Baby and going on walks with big brother. Lately they are short lived because he is a man after my own heart and doesn't love the cold. He is very patient, as he gets lots of squishy love. Emmeline has called him "Peter" since she has met him and absolutely loves to hold him and try and help him smile. Calvin will lay next to him (sometimes on top of him) and say "mom, I will just give him a little love. Not too much!".

In his fourth month of life he had his first non-family babysitter (thanks Danae!), celebrated his first Valentines, was given his first nibble of food....a piece of sugar cookie dough (thanks Ed,haha).

Mason: Three Months

2017-02-15T13:02:00.002-08:00

Although this is a few days late, Mr. Mason is three whole months old. I blinked for too long and he is becoming a baby, no more an infant!

We don't have a doctors appointment until the end of the month, so I don't know how much he has grown, but I know he has grown A LOT. I mean look at those cheeks and thighs. Boy loves his food. A few days before he turned 3 months I had to clean out his wardrobe and pull out all the 3-6 month clothes (except for jeans).

Mason is pretty much the ideal baby. He took to a routine very easily which makes him incredibly predictable. He wakes up everyday at 7, sometimes 7:30. He eats and is awake for exactly an hour and fifteen minutes. He yawns once and I know it's time for a nap; I swaddle him up and his is out in a flash. He sleeps for exactly 37 minutes, squaks for 1-2 minutes and fall asleep for another hour.

He eats every 3 hours, and in the afternoon it stretches to 3.5 hours. He takes 3 1.5 hr naps and one 20-30 minute cat nat while we eat dinner. He is ready for bed between 7-7:30 and Robert gives him a 6.5 ounce bottle (he likes his food) of pumped milk. He dream feeds at 10:30 and sleeps till 3:30 for a middle of the night snack and is out till morning!

He LOVES baths, and the most smiley and happy when we lay him on his changing table. He kicks his legs like a mad man and just smiles and talks. It's adorable.

During his third month of life he took his first airplane ride, and solo trip with just mom and Calvin. He also adjusted to his dad being back at school/work for the full day and learned to smile when he is happy!

Mason: Two Months

2017-01-08T22:05:00.002-08:00

On the third Mr. Mason turned two months old! He is slowly catching up; he is 22 1/4 inches long (13%-ile), and 11 lbs 5 oz (23%-ile). Nothing in the newborn department fits him, and generally speaking 0-3 month clothes fit him well, although a few things are still a little big.

Mason is still dearly loved by his much bigger older brother. Let's just say Mason will be able to hold his own once he grows up. He's put up with a lot from Calvin (example, Calvin likes to do Mason sandwiches). With that said, Calvin is a great helper and loves it when he hears Mason wake up from a nap so he can go greet him.

Mason eats every 3 hours still. In the afternoon it stretches closer to 3.5 hours. Robert feeds him a bottle every other night and he eats great and loves bed time with dad. Bed time routine is usually bath around 7, a book with big brother, eat around 7:30 and down for the night after that. He eats once or twice per night and is up for the day by 7 or 7:30 (he isn't sleeping through the night yet :( Calvin slept through the night so early that it makes me sad I am still getting so little sleep at 2 months, but we are working on it!).

We are falling into a more of a routine now that Mason is 9 weeks old and stays awake for longer stretches after he eats; about an hour after he eats he is ready for a nap. If I wait too long to put him down for a nap then he takes longer to fall asleep and fights it- but if I catch it after the first yawn I just swaddle him up and put him in his crib and he is out in a jiffy.

He has learned to recognize Calvin's voice and foot patters from a mile away and his eyes get really big if Calvin runs up to him too quickly. He's learned quickly. (see picture above).

In the past few days we've had a "wonder week" and little pint now has figured out his hands. He sits in his bouncer while I cook and he always has his hands in front of his fast twisting them around looking at them. It's pretty cute.

In his second month of life Mason has moved from Las Vegas to Reno, celebrated his first Christmas, had his first snow fall, rode the AMTRAK train for the first time, had his first 2 road trips (and was a CHAMP!), went on his first hike, and visited temple square where we all saw Elder Holland for the first time at City Creek.

He is definitely a great addition to this Wixom-Davis party.

Mason: One Month

2016-12-08T21:09:00.002-08:00

Mason turned one month on the third of this month; he went in for his check up and a shot a few days later. He weighed in at exactly 9 lbs (24%) and 21 inches (23%) with his smart brains at 36.5 cm (25%). We can conclude he is pretty normally proportioned between all three.

Mason is such a wonderful addition to our family and loved by all, but loved the most by Calvin. Calvin definitely forces his love aggressively upon his brother, and means well. Mason is the receiver of a lot of kisses, toys, blankets, water bottles and food from Calvin. Hopefully the sharing on Calvin's end sticks around for the next 20 years.

As a newborn he slept about 23 hours of the day, but by about 3 weeks he was staying awake for longer periods. At this point he is eating every 3 hours during the day like clock-work and will stay awake for a about an hour after he wakes up and eats. He goes down for the night at about 8 or 8:30 and wakes up at 1 and 4:30 to eat and wakes up for the day at 7.

Sadly he is out of newborn diapers, and is coming close to outgrowing all his newborn clothes, although 75% of 0-3 month clothes are still a tad too big. He has loved baths from his first bath at 6 days old (when his cord fell off!) and it's also big brothers favorite part of the day when he can help give him a bath.

During his first month of life he celebrated his first Thanksgiving, met A LOT of fun new cousins, went on a lot of walks, went on the Christmas Express train, helped his dad study for his OB/GYN SHELF exam, helped set up Christmas and was blessed by his father.

We are so glad you joined our family Mr. Mason Robert!

A Birth Story: Mason Robert Davis

2016-11-17T21:50:00.000-08:00

We are happy to finally introduce the newest member of our family:

Mason Robert

Thursday, 3 November 2016

3:42 pm

18 inches

7 pounds 3 ounces

By my 35 week check-up I was staring to get that feeling of being done with my pregnancy. I was tired, achy, and I was feeling more and more ready to have my body back and meet this baby boy. I decided to wait till I was 36 weeks to have my doctor check me so I didn't get too anxious and jump-start the waiting game.

The day before my 36 week check-up I was at Target and had about a 10 minute episode of really bad back labor. The next day I went it for my appointment and told about the back labor and she decided to go ahead and check for dilation. Much to my surprise I was already 2 cm dilated, 80% effaced and his head was at a +2 station. She told me I would probably make it to my 37 week appointment the next week, but she was 100% sure I wouldn't make it till my due date on the 17th.

Once I got home I called Robert and told him the new status; he was still in the middle of his OB rotation and wasn't set to take his exam until the 4th of November. He decided to call his OB/GYN clerkship director and tell him that I may have this baby early and they were able to work out a plan if baby decided to come before or (heaven forbid) during his exam. Once that was settled I spent the next week in full baby prep-mode. Packing bags, finishing the birth plan, finding last minute baby items, etc.

Much to my despair, at my 37 week check-up I was still at a 2, but had softened a little bit. The week between my 37 and 38 week check-up seemed to go on FOREVER. I was so convinced that he was going to come on Halloween, and I was paranoid that my water was going to break in public. The whole week I was on pins an needles, and so was Robert; everyday Robert would text me when he was going into surgery and give me an emergency number to call since he wouldn't have access to his phone. Every time I texted him or he felt his phone go off while he was scrubbed into a surgery he got more and more paranoid he was missing something or leaving me stranded without a way to get to the hospital. It was a really long week.

We finally made it to my 38 week check up. It was a Wednesday (the 2nd), two days before Robert's big OB/GYN shelf exam. We were ok if our little man came early, but we wanted him to come a week before the exam, or the afternoon after Robert finished his exam. Psych.

At my appointment I asked my doctor to go ahead and check to see if I had made any progress. That morning I did my 4 mile run and a session of Insanity to see if I could work this baby out. Apparently it helped a little bit! He said I was at a 3 1/2, and about 20 seconds later he did something slightly painful and said "and now you're at a 4". As he was leaving he concluded with a "I'd be surprised if I didn't see you tonight!". Fabulous.

About 2 hours after I left the office I started having pretty intense contractions. They weren't something I could time, nor were they so painful I couldn't breath through them so I figured we were still safe. That night I made dinner, we got the hospital bags all squared away and had a good bedtime routine with Calvin. I spent the rest of the night trying to distract myself with "This Is Us" while Robert tried to study. Right before bed Robert gave me a beautiful blessing that gave me a sense of peace and composure (which is exactly what I needed since I was feeling really nervous about this delivery). At about 2 am I woke up and realized I could start timing contractions. I timed my contractions for about 90 minutes before I decided to wake Robert up. They were consistent, coming at 4-7 minute intervals. Calvin came so fast that we were both REALLY paranoid that we wouldn't get to the hospital in time for this little man so we decided to err on the side of caution.

At 4 am we woke up my dad and mom and told them that we were off to the hospital. We got to the hospital at 4:40 and once I was in triage they checked and I was 5 cm dilated. After monitoring contractions that were about 4-5 minutes apart they decided to get the room with a birthing tub all set up for us. Everything happened so fast with Calvin I really wasn't mentally prepared for how long and boring labor can be! Once we got set up in our room I just looked at Robert and was like....."so what now?". My contractions were strong, but were still 4-5 minutes apart so I had adequate time between each contraction to rest up and lounge.

We had a nurse change at 7:30 am, and I was so sad to be losing our first nurse. She loved water births, and we just seemed to click really well; when she brought in the new nurse to meet us I was a little bit disappointed, but she ended up being JUST what we needed. At 8:30 I was feeling pretty anxious to get the ball rolling with this baby. Both Robert and I were convinced that this baby was going to be here by 9 or 10 am since Calvin had come so fast! I had the nurse check and I was only at a 6 and -1 station. The day just seemed to keep dragging on and on. The hours just seemed to tick slowly by and I honestly felt like I could have been doing this for days on end. Robert and I spent HOURS walking the hallways and the nurses at the nurses station would joke around with us trying to get us to do wind sprints. At 10:30 Dr. Harter came by to check on me; I was at a 7 but he was getting nervous because I was progressing so slowly and he had a scheduled C-Section at 4 at a different hospital, but he wanted to be there since I was planning on a water birth. He offered to break my water since my experience with Calvin was a super fast birth once my water broke.

He left the room so Robert and I could decide what to do, and our amazing nurse talked it over with us. She looked at my birth plan and encouraged us to stick to our initial "non-intervention" birth goal. She knew it's what we would be happy with in the long run. I was SO grateful that she was willing to take the time to talk everything through with us to help me make a decision that wasn't just out of pressure from our doctor. and anxiousness to meet the boy. We decided that if boy wasn't born by about 3 pm we would have my water broken so Dr. Harter could still deliver and I could do the water birth.

Time continued to tick slowly by, and I was getting more and more stressed. WHY ON EARTH WAS I PROGRESSING SO SLOWLY!?! I honestly felt like I could keep the pace I was at for a few days. The contractions were really really strong, lasting 45 seconds but still only coming every 4-5 minutes. One pm rolled around and I geared up for another check, only to disappointedly still be at a 7. Dr. Harter came by a few times during the day, anxious for this water birth to happen and always standing by for a green light to break my water. He was really good about keeping his anxiousness to himself, which I appreciated.

Finally at 2:45 our nurse rushed in and gave us the low down. She said "all hell has broken loose out there!". At this point because the L&D floor had gotten so busy we had two options, 1) we could either keep chugging away at our slow pace and not have a water birth, probably not have Dr. Harter there to deliver, but not have any intervention like we wanted, OR 2) we could have the on-call Dr. break my water, I could have a water birth, Dr. Harter could deliver, and in all likely-hood we could have this baby with-in 2 hours.

We talked about it with my nurse for about 10 minutes and we all decided to have this baby! She was the best. "Claire, I promise I will be your doula, we will get our Hypnobirthing Rainbow Relaxation room going on. Robert will be there, and we are gonna have this baby!"

Dr. Tuggle (the on-call doc) came in around 3 to break my water, and they had to monitor me until I had two contractions. While they were monitoring me they filled back up the tub (they drained it since I wasn't really going to use it till delivery); it took almost 20 minutes before I had another contraction and it hit me like a ton of bricks. They were definitely a 10 on the pain scale, and coming every 3-4 minutes. The nurse checked me at 3:20 and she said I was a 7 but closer to a stretchy 8 (whatever that means).

The contractions were noticeably switching to my back, and much to my chagrin I was having back labor, which I had which Calvin. I got in the tub right after she checked me and a few contractions later (around 3:35) my nurse came in and I told her it was definitely feeling like I was going to have to push soon. She told me that once I started feeling like that between contractions she would call Dr. Harter.

She left and the very next contraction I lost all my Hypnobirthing composure. I yelled for Robert's hand and said something like "HELP! Robert it hurts! I have to push." and then VERY loudly I yelled "HELP! HE'S COMING!" Robert looked at me and was like "Claire, no you're fine, you can do this" and then he and I both looked down as switched to laying on my back in the tub when we saw a head of hair crowning, and then a tiny body. Right at that moment 3 nurses sprinted in and yelled "NO! DON'T PUSH". Too late.

At that moment I had so many thoughts running through my head:

**In the moment of pain when I was pushing: WHERE IS ROBERT!? HE HAS TO FIX THIS!! HE CAN MAKE THIS BETTER.

**OH MY GOSH! I just delivered my own baby.

**He has hair!! I can see hair!

**AH! There are so many nurses in here right now, but they're a little late.

** Wait, I just delivered my own baby. I need to hold that baby!

Robert was bending over the tub to finish delivering the boy (he was 90% delivered at this point) when the on call Dr. ran in with one hand gloved and grabbed our boy and unwrapped the cord from around his neck. Keep in mind this all happened in about 25 seconds. He came out in one push at 3:42 pm, with no one but Robert in the room and me in the tub. I got to hold him for about 3 minutes while I was still in the tub, and then they took him to get him weighed while I got out of the tub and onto the bed.

Dr. Harter ran into the room just as I was moving from the tub to the bed, about 3 minutes after Mason was born. I can't remember what he said exactly, I just know he was slightly laughing, probably finding the whole situation humorous (which it was), and then said something like "so how'd you like THAT water birth!?". Once the placenta was delivered, I was stitched up (I hardly tore) and it was just the three of us in the room Robert and I had time to process the fact that I just delivered my own baby without any help, AND we had this new little bundle of joy, straight from heaven. So many emotions.

Although I was at the hospital for almost 11 hours before Mason joined us, I still consider Mason to have come quickly. My water was broken at 3, and I went from a 7 to having a baby in my arms in 42 minutes. Robert was again my super hero during all of this. During the earlier few hours he mostly studied while I tried to rest up between contractions to keep my energy levels high, but was always a trooper to walk semi-aimlessly around hospital hallways for hours on end, distracting me with random OB facts or stories during contractions. I loved how excited he got when he heard nurses talking and he was able to "decode" it for me, or when reading the charts, explaining the why's and what's of everything they were looking for.

I would do a water-birth again in a heart beat. It was such a cool experience, and it helped tremendously with the tearing (I tore terribly with Calvin, and I almost wept when Dr. Harter told me that I hardly tore), and it helped most with back labor. But above-all, I am just grateful for a supportive husband, a healthy baby boy, and a loving toddler who has adapted so well to being a big brother. We are just feeling beyond blessed and loved.

Snowshoe Tahoe

2016-03-18T20:30:00.001-07:00

Last Fall we bought a spiffy hiking backpack with Calvin. We have used it a handful of times, and we both absolutely LOVE it. We decided it was about time that we pulled it out again. Over Valentines/PResident's day weekend both Robert and I had an extra long weekend so we took advantage of our time off and snowshoed up to Incline Peak. At the peak you could see the whole of Lake Tahoe- absolutely breathtaking. It was about 6 miles round trip and Calvin did great. He even slept half the way down, and thought it was the greatest when we would run down the hill. I loved hearing his little giggles from Robert's back.

January 2016

2016-03-18T20:15:00.003-07:00

The beginning of this year was an exciting one.
First we had the wedding of one of Robert's close med school friends, Mark. They had been dating since before Mark and Robert even started medical school, so it was incredibly heart warming to go to their sealing and then the reception. They are darling together; but I never got picture of them. #fail

Calvin loved going to a sit down dinner and getting the chocolate sucker all over the table linens (insert eye roll here).

Calvin's spiffy new suspender and bow-tie set.

Two days before I was supposed to go back to work my mom had a concussion, so Calvin and I hopped on a plane and flew down to Vegas for a week! No pictures, though.

For Christmas my mom and dad got Calvin a wagon, and it's definitely the new favorite mode of
transportation around these parts. It's not a complete and fulfilling day until we go for a wagon walk and ride.

Out to eat at our new favorite hipster restaurant, Laughing Planet. They have dinosaurs on the tables, and it's perfect for our little toddler.

Calvin's 5th -and much needed- haircut:

Calvin's new backpack from my dad. He loves is "pack-pack"

His little friend Amelia's 1st birthday:

And lastly, Calvin's new sleeping routine. At first he just needed his blanket. Then at the beginning of January he needed his blanket and water bottle. About a week later he needed his moose, and then a few days later he needed his owl. That's where we set the limit. So here he is with his nap and sleeping squad.

T'was a great month!

Winter Girls Night Gift Exchange

2016-03-18T19:54:00.003-07:00

This Christmas, my party planning parter (and life partner, ha!) and I planned a fun winter girls night. We had a hot chocolate bar, and a gift exchange (kind of like a classy white elephant). It is always nice to have a nice get together with friends, and I've got some fabulous ones!!

Christmas 2015

2016-03-18T19:48:00.003-07:00

Yes, I am fully aware this is 3 months over due; but, better late than ever, yeah?

Heading on our loooonnng drive to Pine Valley.

This year we spent the holiday with Robert's family at a cabin in Pine Valley, Utah. It was a fun filled time with lots of snow, food, reading, and snow play.

Calvin loved bonding with his uncle Richard.

Nativity wise men.

Cookie decorating.

Christmas morning! It really was magical watching this little elf wake up. I love Christmas magic.

Pre-Christmas Festivities

2016-01-30T21:10:00.000-08:00

The two weeks After Thanksgiving, leading up to Robert's Christmas break were packed full of Christmas partying. Calvin and I just had a blast packing in so much Joy and Merry-ness before Christmas!

Calvin built his first snow man, and his favorite part was taking off the nose and eating the carrot. Silly boy. He definitely came to learn to LOVE the snow.

One Saturday afternoon Calvin and I met our friends to ride the Santa Express down in Carson City at the Nevada Railroad museum. It was absolutely darling and Calvin loved meeting Santa, and REALLY loved getting a "nany cane" from "Sana!".

Later that day we went down to our local park to go to a Brass Christmas ensemble. It was SO much fun and Calvin wouldn't stop dancing. He loves music and it was perfect.

Alisa and I hosted a Christmas Story time (that I ended up not being able to go to due to a sick little Calvin), and I was in charge of the sugar cookie station. While the kids were sleeping I finished cutting out and baking the cookies. They woke up while Alisa and I were chatting and they got eerily quiet. I noticed the silence after about 5 minutes and we walked into the two yay hoos hitting the gold mine of cookies. They are good.

There were a few snow days before break and Calvin and I got to run snow day errands together.

Our local library had a big North Pole day when Santa came to visit. They had coloring and games and a little story time set up in one of the rooms while you waited to see Santa. It was darling and perfect. Calvin was a little bit suspicious of Santa and I didn't want to set a screaming child on Santa's lap; he decided that getting the candy cane from Santa was more than enough bonding.

Alisa and I also hosted a fun Winter Girls night gift swap, which I'll post about later!

18 Months

2016-01-30T20:42:00.000-08:00

Last Saturday our baby boy turned 18 months! The time between his 12 months mark to his 18 month mark really flew by quickly. It just amazed me. The saddest part about this is now he is in nursery! I knew it would happen but it just really solidifies how old your babe is once he isn't causing havoc next to you for all 3 hours of church.

He is 30.2 lbs (90%ile), and 33 5/8 inches (85%). He has a pretty large vocabulary (about 30-ish words) and always knows exactly what he wants. He is also daily independent and has to do everything by himself or he gets all sort of angry.

His BFF is Emmeline. He spends about 30-35 hours a week with her, and when he isn't with her, he is always asking for "Emm.line". He loves to hold her hand when they're in the car, dump water on her in the bathtub, as well as try and help wash her hair.

His favorite foods are always changing; he is a great eater if we don't let him snack excessively, or too close to dinner time. Being confined in one place for long periods of time is not his forte, so even if he is still hungry he will usually say he is all done just to get out of his chair. With a lot of work he has gotten really good at listening to guidance like "Calvin, you can get down as soon as you eat the rest of your (blank)."

He is mischievous and knows exactly what he is NOT supposed to be doing. In the picture below he is trying to throw his food through the hole and onto the floor without being caught. So much naughtiness.

The child got a wagon from his grandparents for Christmas and loves to go on wagon walks multiple times a day. Whenever he gets out of the car he dashes to the wagon and does a nose dive in and says "wagon walk!" over and over again. Half way through he usually wants to get out and pull the wagon himself.

Even thought it's probably a good thing, he hates TV. He says he wants to watch "George" and then will walk away after the theme song. Sometimes it would be nice so i could get a few things done....oh well. He loves books and his favorite books are "Moo, Baa, LA LA LA" and "Spot".

He got a "pa-packkk" recently and loves being able to carry around his little day pack. He is also a pro at saying "CHEESE" whenever I pull out my phone to take a picture.

He loves playing peekaboo

Recently he discovered the joy of cleaning and LOVES to help me clean around the house. I do love that he understands cleaning so he can learn the importance of cleanliness in the home, but he also has to do everything, so vacuuming takes 25 minutes instead of 10, and scrubbing the toilet usually means mopping the floor right after. But thats ok:)

Calvin is still a fabulous sleeper, going down around 7:30 and waking up at about 7 (unless he is teething, then he wakes up at 6:30. *sigh*). He takes one nap around 12:30 that lasts anywhere from 1:30-2 hrs.

About a week ago Robert put Calvin down as normal and 10 minutes later he screamed "water" until we brought him his water bottle. Robert tried to get him to drink it but he just grabbed it, put it under his chest and curled up with it and fell asleep instantaneously. Three nights ago he screamed "moose!" until we brought him his moose (along with his blankets and water bottle). Last night we packed in his water bottle, two blankets, and moose for bed. Ten minutes later he screamed "owl!" Until we brought him his owl. Now he refuses to go down for a nap or bed until his has his two blankets, water bottle, moose and owl. He usually feeds his moose some of his water as he is laying there. It's adorable.

Sometime in the last week this little munchkin has become a super high maintenance sleeper.

Thanksgiving

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This year we spent Thanksgiving with my parents, 5 sisters their respective spouses, and 5 nieces/nephews. Originally Robert wasn't going to come because of an exam schedule the Monday right after Thanksgiving, but they changed the schedule last minutes (much to his chagrin), and he was able to make it down to Vegas for my favorite holiday!

Calvin and I flew down the Monday before to spend some time with my sisters and their kids who came down from Idaho. I hadn't met my niece Eliza yet, so I was glad we got to have some bonding time. Calvin hadn't flown since the end of July, and his new favorite noun is "air plane". He gets so excited whenever he sees an airplane, so I was hoping he'd be a trooper for this flight, and he was! His favorite part was waiting to board and watching all the airplanes.

We got to my house by about 7 that night and after dinner Calvin was wondering around from room to room and found Eliza's travel bassinet..... I walked into the room and found him like this. My heart melted. After I took the picture he turned to me (I thought he was asleep), and said "nigh nigh mama".

We went to the Bellagio, the Children's Museum, and ran around like mad women trying to prepare for the Thanksgiving festivities. The children also bonded, pushing Emerson around :)

Our Thanksgiving day always starts off with a 5K run. This year I broke my PR (23:40) and took 2nd place for my age group. It was a great feeling! Calvin loved the race, and ran some of the way. Once he got to the finish line he heard the music and wouldn't stop dancing; it was a classic Calvin.

The Thanksgiving Feast:

Since we weren't going to be together for Christmas this year, we had our "Express Christmas" evening. We opened up our Pajamas from mom, had our white elephant gift exchange, and then went to Ethel M's christmas lights.

This is about the best you can do with 2 3 year olds, a 1 year old, a 2 month old and a 13 and 11 year old.

It was a fabulous Thanksgiving and I was incredibly grateful that this husband of mine sacrificed a lot of study time to spend the holidays with us!

The Happiest Autumn

2015-11-11T16:09:00.000-08:00

This Fall has been one of my favorite Fall's since I can remember. Having a little kid makes everything so much more magical. I can't even tell you how excited I am for Thanksgiving and Christmas with this child.

Celebrating the season with Calvin and friends has been an absolutely memorable. We went to pumpkin patches, halloween story times, Fall festivals, Halloween parties, Trick or Treating, and 'Meet the Turkey" days at our local park.

Andelin Family Farm
When Collette and Justin were here the week before Halloween, Collette and I took Darwin and Calvin to a local Pumpkin Patch. It was so well done, and the kids had an absolute blast. They even had a "train" made out of barrels!

Somersett Fall Festival
Calvin was able to experience his first costume wearing experience at one of our good friends neighborhood's Fall Festival. Calvin's favorite part was jamming to the music, but he and Emmeline were definitely the cutest pumpkins in the patch.

Halloween Story Time

This gem of a picture is the best we could do with a 3 2 and 1 year old.

Halloween
Calvin and I partied in the morning with some jack o lantern quesadillas. Later in the evening we went to our friends house and had a little party after we took the kids trick or treating. Our parting consisted of a lot of festive treats, chili, and Halloween episodes of Brooklyn 99 and Community. We are wimps.

We do love our friends, and holidays!!

Rancho San Rafael Meet the Turkey
Our last festive activity (before it snowed and turned the seasons from Fall to Winter), was a nice run down to our local park. We were going to let calvin play and enjoy the beauty of the colors, but then it turned out there was actually a Meet the Turkey event. Calvin had a lot of fun seeing the turkeys, but his favorite was definitely petting the bunny!

Happy Fall Y'all!

Yosemite

2015-10-07T13:20:00.001-07:00

Two weeks ago Robert took his first final of MS2 year. Wohooo! A few of our friends here in Reno invited us to tag along on their camping trip to Yosemite. We were 1000000% on board. Plus we (I) completely splurged on a hiking backpack for Calvin, so we pretty much had to go.

We got there on Friday afternoon and hiked to a beautiful waterfall. Side note- we thought we were going on an easy 1.5 mile little stroll. False. Every hike in Yosemite, no matter how far the distance is going to be STEEP! You've been warned. But it's completely worth it.

After our hike we got to our campsite and had a lovely time setting up. Calvin was in heaven running around and rolling in dirt. That was until he was crawling into his little camping chair and flopped over and gashed his head down to the school on the corner edge of a cement brick.

We were very blessed. I am not going to go into all the details, but the clinic was closed and the angel PA heard about it and came and stitched up our little babe in the middle of the night, saving us a 6 hour trip with a bleeding child. That night, once we got back to the camp sight he fell asleep and slept like a rock until 7:30 the next morning.

We had a fabulous following day, hiking to Yosemite Falls. It was a 5 hour hike and Calvin did fabulously. Our hiking backpack was COMPLETELY worth the splurge. It was incredibly comfortable and the babe even took two naps in it during the hike.

San Francisco

2015-08-30T20:39:00.003-07:00

Since Robert was at Navy Officer training for my birthday this summer, he mailed me a birthday card and promised me a trip to San Francisco. I was already a little bit sad that we have lived so close for a YEAR and still hadn't made it over, so naturally I was ecstatic about this weekend getaway.

We got there on Friday afternoon, and stayed until Saturday evening.
Friday we spent the afternoon (4 1/2 hours) biking around Golden Gate Park, Presido, biking over the bridge, and around Saulsalido (and then back). Biking San Francisco is NOT for the faint of heart; but it was definitely my favorite part of the trip!

That evening we walked around Fishermans Wharf and had delicious chowder in sourdough bread bowls, and Fish & Chips.

On Saturday we woke up and went to the Cal Academy of Sciences. We could have spent a whole day here for sure, but Calvin was getting tired, so after 4 hours, we decided to head over to the Sutro baths and hang out at the beach.

It was a fantastic trip. Until next time, San Fran!

Calvin's One Year Pictures

2015-08-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

When we were down in Las Vegas over the summer, we had one of my old friends take Calvin's one year pictures. She is very talented, and I absolutely love them! They really capture Calvin's personality. Thanks Jane!

Calvin's First Birthday

2015-08-06T10:23:00.000-07:00

In case you missed it, our dear boy turned one on the 23rd of July. His celebrations were split into a few different days.

On his actual birthday, he woke up to his birthday chair (where some of the balloons had sadly deflated) with his favorite breakfast of eggs and pancakes.

We then had a fun day at the Bellagio and Children's Museum and finished the day off with pizza, a few gifts, homemade cherry cheesecake ice cream and a backyard movie night.

A few days later, on Saturday, we had a big birthday swimming party, BBQ bash.