Brighter Days Ahead

I never thought I would ever get a full night's sleep again. About 2 weeks ago Warren slept until 3:30, and then the next day he didn't wake up until 5:30! It was so amazing to wake up, and see that it was light outside. I couldn't believe it!! He is sleeping around 7 hours now from 10 pm- 5:00 am.

On May 23rd he had his baby blessing. My mom was able to make him the cutest little outfit for it. I was worried it wasn't going to fit, but it actually was perfect. It was so nice to have all of our family there. After wards we held a luncheon at Barry's sister's home in Rigby. The original idea was to have it in the clubhouse of our apartment complex, but we had to quickly come up with a plan B when we found out it is closed on Sundays. But it all worked out, and it was so fun to visit with family and friends!
We made a spontaneous trip down to Utah a few weeks ago. Barry had 2 days in a row off, and I have a friend in LDS Hospital in Salt Lake that I had been wanting to see. She was diagnosed with Leukemia last November when she was about 5 months pregnant. She had been through quite a bit in the past year...but she is pushing through it and is in remission. Whenever I think I have a hard life I think about her and her husband, and I remember how good I've got it. They have been awesome examples to me of staying so positive in those rough times, and it's also been amazing to see how much Heavenly Father has really watched over and taken care of them.
We were also able to spend time with each of Barry's siblings and their families. It's so fun to see how all of the kids just love Warren: They can never get enough of him! It's definitely a big change for him from our quiet little apartment to houses filled with energetic kids running around. And it's always fun to see his 'twin' cousin Mason. It looks like they are still pretty much the same size. Although Warren has a much bigger head!
It has been so nice, since the weather here has finally started to warm up! I love it!!!!! I have been trying to spend as much time as possible outside soaking up all the sun. I try to take Warren to the park everyday. On Thursdays in Rexburg they have outdoor concerts in the park and Fridays there is a local farmer's market. Next year he might be able to enjoy the splash park. Barry is, of course, taking advantage of every opportunity to go dirt-biking.
Warren is starting to smile a lot now, and is even working on his laugh. It's soooo cute! Before I get him
out of bed in the mornings I will talk to him for a minute, and he will just sit and smile at me. Those are the moments that make it all worthwhile. I was so excited the other day when I was able to catch a smile with the camera on my phone.He has also started to roll over. He isn't totally consistent, but he has done it completely on his own a handful of times. Sorry I tried to upload a video of him rolling over, but it wasn't working.


Last December we decided to sign another year contract on our 1 bedroom apartment. We thought we could make it until next December with the baby in our room, but it's been 3 months and we are pretty ready for him to have his own room. We were able to sell our contract, but we aren't moving out until September. On the upside it will give us time to pack up and find another place to live. We are hoping for a bottom floor this time. Warren is now 14 lbs and I am feeling every one of those lbs when I carry him up and down 3 flights of stairs.

We've started putting him in his exersaucer. I think he is still a little small for it...but he still seems to like it. Hopefully this will help with his thunder thighs!

The Daily Routine

We find that instead of having Warren fit into our 'schedule' we are fitting into his 'schedule'. He is still eating about every 2 1/2 hours, but he is staying awake during the day more and more. It has been fun to watch him play. He is currently working on strengthening his neck muscles (he's got to...i mean check out the size of his head!), kicking his legs, and he keeps trying to roll over. He also loves to look at lights. I've noticed that his legs are starting to straighten out. It's so cute...I will hold him up, and he will press his feet on the ground and step like he is walking.

We've had to formula feed him instead of nursing, because of my lack of milk. It has been a little bit of a bummer, since formula is so expensive and his stomach has had a hard time digesting it. Last week he just cried and cried...it was so horrible! He was pretty constipated, so I took him to the doctor: She suggested switching to a sensitive formula that is easier to breakdown, and it has been working out fairly well. Thank goodness!!

For some reason I thought that we could make the trip to Winco and back without any problems. Oh boy was I wrong. He made the car ride there just fine, but as soon we got there he wanted out of his carrier. So I got him out and carried him around the whole time. I could empty the grocery cart with him in my arms just fine, but I had to put him back in the carrier while I bagged the groceries. He just cried and cried...and then cried a good portion of the way home. Poor guy...it was the longest car ride of both of our lives!

Next time Barry is going to Winco, and I'll stay home.

It's definitely much easier to just stay home than pack him around. I just need to find things now to do around the house to make my time more productive. I bought a sling to wear that Warren seems to like. We've been taking walks during the day while the weather has been nice. I also used it last weekend when I went with my sister-n-law, Rachel, and the kids to the Rexburg Farmer's Market. He just zonked out.

This weekend will be Warren's baby blessing. We are excited to have all of our family in town. Barry is of course planning a dirt-biking trip with his brothers, and I am looking forward to spending time with my mom.

First Time For Everything!

So I finally decided to sit down and figure out how to set up my own blog. I'll totally admit that I have sat for long periods of time reading everyone else's blogs, and I have even found myself a little bummed when people haven't updated theirs. I have just been too lazy to ever make my own.
But now that I have a baby I have been informed that it has become a definite must-have!

On March 30, 2010 our baby was born! His name is Warren Barry Christensen (named after his great-grandpa Warren Newton Shelton pictured below).
I checked into the hospital the night before at 8pm, so they could help get my cervix dilated. I wasn't dilated at all, and I needed to be at a 3 before they could break my water. That night was the longest night of my life! But luckily it was worth it, because by 8 am the next morning the doctor was able to break my water and get things rolling. They told me to let them know as soon as I felt like the pain from the contractions was getting bad, so there would be time to get the epidural before it was completely unbearable. It was probably only like a half hour before I was begging for the epidural.

I don't know what it was exactly but after that I was so nauseated! I threw up 3 times... and all I had had to eat was some grape juice and a little bit of jello. What made it worse was that I couldn't get up at all because of the epidural. The first time there wasn't a bucket anywhere around, and it just came up without anywhere to go except all over me. Barry thought it was hysterical. I'll admit I was laughing the first time, but I was definitely not laughing by the third time!

At about 5 pm I was ready to start pushing. By then I had a slight fever and the baby's heart rate had gone up a little. The doctor was getting concerned and told me that we needed to get the baby out right away which meant there was a good chance we would have to do an emergency c-section. That was not what I wanted to hear! I pushed with everything I had to get that baby out!!! And at 6:34 pm there was a baby to show for it.

Having a baby has been better and harder than I had ever imagined. He eats about every 2 hours (yes even at night). Sometimes in the middle of the night or I guess early morning when I am feeding him I begin to wonder if I am ever going to get a full night's sleep again. It's not looking promising... But when I look down at that precious face my heart just melts, and I can't help but squeeze him a little tighter and kiss him on the head! I LOVE him so much!

Barry has been so awesome at helping, and it has been fun to watch him play and care for the baby. He is still working full-time, picked up at class this semester, and is trying to get his own business up and going. Although he is already exhausted, he is always trying to find ways to help me! I LOVE him so much too!
I didn't realize how long this post was, so just to wrap things up here are some more pictures...because really that's what everyone loves the most anyways.