More of the Littlest . . . .

Here we are bringing little man home.  We were so ready to be out of the hospital and be back to my Mom and Dad's house.  The staff at the hospital were FABULOUS and as much as I am ready to go home after having a baby, it's always a little scary to leave behind the medical staff that are there for you 24-7.  I actually had some weird chest pain and breathing issues one morning in the hospital and it was really scary.  One second I was telling the nurse I couldn't breathe and started getting panicky and the next second every hospital person you could think of was in my room!  Nurses, doctors, pharmacist, anesthesiologist, radiology.  It was quite the experience and I'm grateful it wasn't anything major.  My point is that after all of the craziness with this pregnancy, birth and hospital time, it was a little nerve-wracking heading out into the real world.  (Technically though I was still in the calm and comfort of my momma's house)  :)

As you can see, Boston was apparently a little terrified of the real world too.  He was NOT happy to be in his carseat heading out. 

Grandpa Cuff got to come and meet Boston the day we brought him home.  Isn't Boston the luckiest kid around?  Talk about being showered with love and attention.  Oh - and I got showered with love and attention too!  I had a bit of a nervous breakdown one night and my mom and sister came to the rescue by setting up a "spa" in the family room.  Oh how I love them.

The one picture we have of Boston's first bath in the sink.  As you can see on the right, Boston managed to potty all over Kai.  Doesn't he just look broken up about it?  It was hilarious.

Random pictures from our stay in Utah.  We got out the slide and invited my cousin's cute kids down to play.  It was so fun to get together with him.  And as far as the picture on the right, yes, it is the creepeist thing ever.  After Kai's day of fun he just fell asleep in the tub like that.  Looking at the picture you just don't know whether to laugh or cry.

Bos had jaundice and so just like his sister, we turned him into a glow worm.  This is the one time he actually left his little eye thing on.  He HATED it!  I don't blame him, but I am so grateful for all of the modern day technology that can take care of these things!

My sweet little man and my sweet big man.  I always manage to get a picture of my kiddos and their daddy snoozing.  So precious.  I am also just loving the picture of my mom with V and Bos.  V is blissfully unaware that Grandma is protecting the baby from all of her "love." 

Perfection . . . .

He is here and he is perfect! Boston Stoddard Cuff arrived on June 25, 2012 at 12:41 pm via c-section - 12 days early. He weighed 8 lbs 14 oz and was 20 1/4 inches long. He has the cutest little dimple in his chin and looks JUST like his brother and sister, especially Kai.

The c-section was originally scheduled for July 2 by my OB in Vegas, but I made a last minute decision and headed to Utah to be with our family to have the baby.  With my track record, I knew that this little guy would come early and my Vegas OB just wasn't on the same page.  The c-section was then scheduled for July 29th with an appt. set up for July 25 with Dr. Bailey. Well, my water broke about 9:30 am on the 25th and we headed to the hospital!

 My pregnancy with Boston was not fun. The beginning was miserable thanks to the jitters from a previous miscarriage, the middle was miserable because of numerous problems they found on the ultrasound which could indicate a chromosome problem, and the end was miserable because I couldn't breathe and was in a lot of pain and still didn't know if my baby would be healthy. Not the best 9 months I've spent pregnant.

On the morning Boston was born I was in the shower wondering how I could go 3 more days. This kid kicked and punched like nothing I've felt before! Well, prayers are answered because it was only a few minutes after that when my water broke. We went in for the c-section which is the most nerve-wracking thing to know that you are going in to be cut open! We could not wait to meet him and see what the situation was.  Well, he is a perfect little angel, but we were prepared and ready to deal with anything that would come! We knew that he would be loved more than anything no matter what the outcome.

This surgery was far more uncomfortable than my other 2 for some reason and as soon as he was out and healthy, the anesthesiologist put me out for the rest of the procedure which was heaven sent!   Meeting him in the recovery room was so emotional for all of us.  Here are some pics of his arrival and our time spent in the hospital. I get teary eyed just looking at these pictures because it makes me realize how lucky we are to have this new sweet spirit in our home. Not only that, but we have such amazing, supportive families and are so blessed to be surrounded by such wonderful people. These pictures don't even show all of the love and visits we received from everybody! We are truly blessed and so grateful.

I love my hubby.

Our first family picture and the three most amazing kids I know!

Aunt Jessica, RN :), Grandma Annie, Papa, and Daddy checking Boston out.  I was happily in dream land at this point.  And how about those neck rolls?  My kids are chunks!

Meeting my sweet baby boy.

Of course Grandma Cuff was there!  Boston is grandbaby number 16 for them!

Meet and greet with Ava and Kai and lots of family! (Yes - Kai is wearing his hospital mask around his calf - not sure if that keeps germs out)

Seriously!  The amount of love in this hospital room was unreal!  I have to say that Aunt Alecia was a little ticked that I had him early because she had a perfect schedule set up to arrive just in time for his birth 3 days later.  Needless to say, she shelled out a little cash to arrive only a few hours after his arrival.  I think Boston totally appreciated it.  The entire time I was in the hospital I was so grateful I made the decision that I did.  I had my sweet sister as my nurse, even if she wasn't actually working - my cousin Robyn and Aunt Kris as my other nurses, even if they weren't actually working, my family 5 minutes away and my in-laws an hour away so I knew everybody was in good hands at all times.  Plus, my wonderful Grandma and Grandpa Warren were able to meet Boston right after he was born.

Robert is now an uncle to 4!

Heaven Sent!

Kindergarten Graduation!

Ava graduated Kindergarten last week and I swear it was harder than dropping her off at the beginning of the year! (which was really hard by the way)  She had such a great school year with her wonderful teacher Mrs. Mattson and learned so much! She was excited about graduation, but not excited about not going to school for the whole summer. :) They wore these DARLING cap and gowns and she looked so beautiful and loved singing and dancing in the program they had prepared.  She also got the "fastest girl in kindergarten" award and was very proud! 

I, of course, had to take pictures of her last day of school.  I just have this need to document everything!

Ava gave her teacher a plant that said "Thanks for helping me grow this year!" and wrote her a very special card that took a loooooong time to finish.  She wanted it perfect.  It says, "Dear Mrs. Mattson- I will miss you.  Thank you for being my teacher.  I had fun and learned a lot.  Have fun with your new baby this summer.  I loved Kindergarten."  :)  Funny thing is that her teacher is due the exact same time as me.  I also had to put a picture in of Ava waving to me from the Kindergarten playground.  We did it all year and Kai would get so upset if she ran off with her friends and forgot to wave to us.  I'll tell you what, there was ONE time the entire year that I forgot to wave to her and it did not happen again!

Ava performing and receiving her diploma!  Daddy also got her a fresh flower lei and she was the only lucky one to have one! 

Kai and Zion loved doing the "chicken dance" and itsy bitsy spider with the Kindergartners.

Our sweet girl.  We are so proud of her and know that this is just the beginning of many successes and accomplishments!

The day after graduation she got to go to field day and had a BLAST!  She has not quit talking about it since and thought it was so awesome that they had to take their shoes and socks off so that the teachers could spray them all with a hose!  She is such a positive girl and enjoys everyone and everything!

Happenings . . . .

We all went to Ava's school for her Literacy Picnic a couple of weeks ago.  The wind forced us to stay inside the lunchroom, but Ava was super excited to have us there. 

 Then my friends threw me a diaper shower for Baby Boy.  It was a lot of fun!  This picture is with my friend Amber.  We had a combined party because we're only a couple weeks apart.

 And of course, we have had plenty of backyard time.  On Memorial Day, we (meaning super-pregnant me), didn't want to travel anywhere, so Randy turned the backyard into a water park with the slide, water balloons, floaties, and basically anything you could think of.  It was a really fun day with our little family that ended with the kids watering all of the desert plants which I'm certain didn't get enough water from our water festivities that day. :)  Oh - and I just had to document how much easier it is to have a boy when it's potty time and we're all soaking wet outside.

 These pictures go to show that Ava NEVER gets cold and Kai isn't quite as resilient.  I don't know if he'll survive if we move back to Utah because I'm pretty sure it was 105 degrees outside when he was all wrapped up in his towel.

Yearly Interview

I decided to start a new tradition this year and interview the kids with 20 questions.  It was so fun to chat with them and hear their responses!  You think you know what they're going to say, but then they surprise you! They crack me up!

Kai - 2012 - Age 3

1. What is your favorite color? Blue & Yellow & Purple

2. What is your favorite toy? The Dragon (Yellow and Purple from a Kid’s Meal)

3. What is your favorite fruit? Strawberries and Blueberries
4. What is your favorite tv show? Bubble Guppies
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Macaroni and Cheese

6. What is your favorite outfit? Blue Basketball Jersey and Daddy’s old #1 “Cuff” jersey.

7. What is your favorite game? Candyland
8. What is your favorite snack? Fruit Snacks

9. What is your favorite animal? Monkey
10. What is your favorite song? Alphabet and Mulan – Be A Man
11. What is your favorite book? Truck Books
12. Who is your best friend? Mikey

13. What is your favorite cereal? Lucky Charms

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play with my motorcycle that’s a bike and Play baseball
15. What is your favorite drink? Apple Juice
16. What is your favorite holiday? Easter

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? My pillows and my Blankie (brown and blue)

18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Eggo Waffles
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Macaroni and Cheese

20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Dad and a Doctor

Ava - 2012 - Age 6

1. What is your favorite color? All of the Colors (Especially Light Colors)
2. What is your favorite toy? Michael – (The Gigantic Baby)

3. What is your favorite fruit? Blueberries & Watermelon
4. What is your favorite tv show? Max and Ruby & LazyTown
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch? Peanut Butter and Honey Sandwich

6. What is your favorite outfit? Pretty Dresses

7. What is your favorite game? Matching Games & CandyLand
8. What is your favorite snack? Yogurt

9. What is your favorite animal? Koala Bears
10. What is your favorite song? I Want Candy
11. What is your favorite book? That’s a Hard One. Grandma Cuff gives me LOTS of books. J Rainbow Book
12. Who is your best friend? Abby (Next Door to Grandma Annie)

13. What is your favorite cereal? Rice Krispies (The stuff that whispers)

14. What is your favorite thing to do outside? Play Baseball
15. What is your favorite drink? Juice – All of the Juices
16. What is your favorite holiday? All of them, but I like Christmas the most

17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night? Heart Blankie and Little Purple Hippo Pillow Pet
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast? Cinnamon Rolls
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday? Pancakes and Fried Eggs
20. What do you want to be when you grow up? A Mom and a Doctor that helps animals, but I’m going to be a Cheerleader first.