Name Those Genes

I was just trying to decide who Brooklyn looks like and thought I would see what you think. A lot of people have said they think she looks like Cameron, but I'm not so sure. When Cameron was born I thought he looked exactly like Adam. I remember wondering if I got any genes in there at all! :) I don't know if I would say Brooklyn looks exactly like me, but I don't think she is as much her dad as Cameron was. Anyway, here are some pictures to compare. I don't have one of Adam, but seriously, Cameron's baby pictures look so much like Adam's it is a fair comparison.

Brooklyn

Cameron

Tiff (i.e. Mom)

Look at that hair!! I can't believe I was born with enough to curl! Too bad I didn't pass that on. Brooklyn has a good inch and a half in the back, but is almost totally bald in the front. :)

So, there you go. Now you can decide for yourself. Let me know what you think.

I think Brooklyn did get more of my personality than Cameron. Cameron has always been like his dad, easy going and mellow. Brooklyn isn't a fussy baby at all, but she is more awake and alert than Cameron was at this age and she is much more opinionated. Most of the time she eats a ton and definitely lets you know if she needs more, but then sometimes she barely eats anything and her lips are sealed tight - when she is done, she is done! And, she has already decided that she isn't going to sleep even for a minute from 7-10 pm - she wants to play! I don't mind at all. Cameron is asleep by then and so we get some one-on-one time. I run the shower to warm the bathroom up and she just loves "naked time!" She is eyes wide open, legs kicking like crazy the whole time. Plus, she continues to sleep two 4 1/2 - 5 hour stretches at night! How did I get lucky enough to have two great kids? My mom thinks her having my personality might cause problems as she gets older, but I can't imagine why! :)

Baby Sitter

Cameron is such a great big brother! It has been so fun to see his excitement over his "baby sitter" and so far he has done great with the transition. He runs to check on Brooklyn whenever she makes a peep, wants to help and is great and getting diapers and of course putting every pacifier in his mouth. :)




Last night Adam and I took advantage of my parents being here to watch Brooklyn and took just Cameron with us to Target. We got a treat at the food court and did a little shopping. We bought Cameron on of those big bouncy balls for like $1.99 and he was thrilled! When we got in the car to go home we were talking about taking the ball home to play with and out of nowhere Cameron said, "I Happy!" It was the cutest thing! And, when we got home the first thing he did was yell "catch!" and throw the ball to his sister! :) What a great big brother!

So far the transition has been great for me too. Brooklyn has been sleeping 4-5 hour stretches at night and is very fun to have around. My parents left to go home today, so I am a little nervous to do it all on my own, but I am enjoying the new experience!

Thanks everyone for your sweet comments and support! Boy, life is just good!

Coming Home

Here are just a few quick pictures of the day we brought this beautiful little girl home from the hospital. We are absolutely loving being home and together as a family!

 Yay for little girls, pink, and pretty bows! :)

A Girl in a HURRY!

Brooklyn RuddJanuary 18, 2008, 9:38 am7 lbs 1 oz, 20 in

Hello everyone! We just made it home from the hospital and Brooklyn and I are doing great. Here is the report of our wonderful and crazy weekend...

We checked into the hospital at 5:30 am, signed all the paperwork, got all settled, and they started my iv of antibiotics and fluids at 6:30. The doctor decided to go ahead and start pitocin and break my water at 7:30. He said that they would do another round of antibiotics at 10:00 and then she may be ready to deliver by lunch time. :) When he broke my water he said I was between a 3-4. I was surprised that I didn't start contracting until about 8:10 or so. At about 10 to nine I decided that the contractions were strong enough for me and asked if we could start preparing me for the epidural. I joked about being a big baby and honestly, the contractions were still "bearable" (Now for those boys reading this - don't think that means they didn't hurt really bad! :), but as long as I was getting an epidural, why deal with the pain, right? So, they got me ready and the anesthesiologist came in at about 9:10. They sat me up to do the epidural and the contractions got a little stronger. I remember commenting to Adam that even though I said I might want to try a delivery without an epidural some day, I didn't! Anyway, they got the epidural inserted, but hadn't hooked it to the pump with the drugs yet, when I started feeling the urge to push. The nurse checked me, did the much feared shocked face, and called for the doctor! I was completely dialated and her head was crowning! The anesthesiologist gave me a small "test dose" (the amount they start off with to make sure your body reacts okay) and apologized profusely! The doctor ran in and told me it was time to start pushing. I was terrified! We laugh now, because the last thing I did was look at Adam and say, "I don't want to feel this!!" My sweet doctor just said, "I know honey, but once you get her out the pain will go away." So, 3 pushes later - she was here! My legs started to tingle about 5 minutes after she arrived - so at least the "test dose" took the edge off while the doctor did one little stitch. :) Wow, talk about a crazy experience! Now that it is over, I can say that I am glad to have had the chance to have a "natural" delivery! (How can they even say that - nothing about delivering a baby feels "natural"!) I am pretty proud to say I survived! From first contraction to delivery was only about 1 hr and 20 min and after all that I didn't even end up with one full round of antibiotics! Luckily though, Brooklyn has a clean bill of health, and I feel fantastic! I don't know if it was the short delivery or no episiotomy, or probably both, but this recovery has been great!

Here are some more pictures of our sweet little Brooklyn...

 

 

Anyway, we are thrilled to have our beautiful little girl here and Cameron is so excited about his "baby sister!" What a great weekend!

Last Post as a Mom of One!

Well, we made it! It has been a crazy few days trying to make this girl wait. She has dropped a bunch (not my favorite position she has been in :), and the contractions have been coming off and on all week. I pretty much put myself on bedrest and just took it east for a few days. Boy am I ready to get going! My parents arrive this afternoon, and then we will head to the hospital tomorrow morning. We will try to let everyone know the news as soon as we can, but it will probably not be until later in the day. Even though we go into the hospital early, I will be on antibiotics for 4-8 hours before they even induce labor. Hopefully things progress as quickly as they did with Cameron - it is going to be a pretty boring day! :) We can't use our cell phones in labor and delivery, but feel free to call whenever. If we can't answer, we will call you back as soon as we can! Anyway, here we go! I can't wait to see our little girl and especially hold her in my arms! Next time you hear from me I will be a mom of two!! Yikes! :)

P.S. I realized that I haven't put many pregnant pictures on here. I figure the second time around you don't have to take as many, right? Anyway, Adam snapped a few of Cameron and I chatting about the baby last night before I left for YW. I can't wait to work on getting back into shape, but here I am - remember I am two days before delivery, I am allowed to be huge! :)
This next one looks a little funny, but he is giving kisses to his baby sister!! He is going to be such a great big brother!

All Boy & Girly Girl

I haven't written a lot about Cameron lately and he is such fun kid, he definitely deserves it! I have absolutely loved being a mom to a little boy and Cameron is about as BOY as they come. Just like his dad he loves cars, motorcycles, and bikes! And, the two of them love to wrestle! Here are a few of the other fun things he is doing lately...

• His latest funny sayings are, "Mommy, I need it!" - he uses this when he asks for almost everything and in the cutest voice, it is hard to resist, and "Fries tonight!" Over Christmas break we went to Burger King twice to eat and let him play on the indoor playground. He had so much fun that since then every time we drive by he yells, "Fries tonight!" Too cute!
• Cameron loves to draw and describes everything he draws. None of it actually looks like what he says, but his descriptions are so cute. This morning he drew "Snowmen at night" (from one of our favorite books) including eyes, nose, hat, and buttons!
• Our friends have a little girl Cameron's age named Kaylee and Cameron loves to play with her. When it has been a few days he will walk around the house calling, "Kaylee, where are you?" Hint-Hint mom!
• Cameron will randomly start singing songs - especially in the car. His renditions of "Twinkle, Twinkle," "Monkeys jumping on the bed," and "Elmo's World" are some of our favorites!
• One of Cameron's new favorite games is "b-ball" - Actually, he loves anything involving a ball. We have created our own games using a laundry basket for basketball and a two-liter pop bottle as the bat in baseball! These are almost a daily occurrence and we have a great time!
• I love waking up in the morning to hear Cameron calling, "Mommy, where are you?" He is always ready with a hug and kiss and is always trying to get us to smile and laugh!

I could go on and on! Cameron is such a great little boy and he is going to be an awesome big brother!

Could he be any cuter? Seriously, I have loved being a boy mom! With that said, the girly side of me is very excited to have a little girl in the house! I have had fun getting ready - making bows, headbands, and even crocheting some sweater/hat sets! I can't wait to play dress up! Here is a picture of the girly things I have made...

One More Week!

I had another Doctor's appointment today, so here is the baby girl update. Adam and I had a good talk with Brooklyn and hopefully have convinced her to wait until next Friday. This week I am a 2+, and still only about 20% effaced. The baby has dropped some and the doctor said I will definitely be ready to induce on the 18th. He kept saying, "But, I wouldn't be surprised to see you sooner!" - but, like I said, we talked to her and let her know she needs to wait! :) This is actually the most pregnant I have ever been. Cameron was born at 38 weeks - I will be a little over 39 when he induces me next week. I am still feeling great, but am getting excited to not be hugely pregnant anymore. Not excited enough to want her to come sooner. I am such a planner and just love the idea of how perfectly convenient the 18th sounds. :) Anyway, I am almost feeling prepared and my to do list is getting smaller. Just one more week and we will get to hold this little girl in our arms!! Here are a few pictures of the nursery. I still have a few ideas on decorating, but not anytime real soon. Hope she likes it!

Great Date Night

Adam and I had the best date night on Saturday. One of my pregnancy cravings has been onion rings (pretty funny since at one time I hated them). So, I got online and found a recipe and we made incredibly delicious homemade onion rings, grilled some burgers, and had Stewart's Cream Soda!! Then we put Cameron to bed and watched a movie together (Adam even let me get a romantic one!) It was the classic dinner and a movie except the food was better (and a whole lot less expensive), and the big pregnant lady was comfy laying in bed for the movie. Plus, we didn't even need a babysitter! Having Adam home for the past 2 1/2 weeks has been so much fun! Cameron and I are both going through withdrawals today. The first thing Cameron did this morning was walk all through the house yelling, "Daddy, where are you?" It just about broke my heart! Anyway, here is a picture of our classic drive-in meal - we were so proud, we just had to take a picture!

Oh, this weekend we also took a tour of the hospital where I will deliver - Methodist Germantown. We were very happy with what we saw. It took us almost 40 minutes to get there (a big change from the 2 minutes it took us in Logan), but everything was very nice. They even do the meals for mom "room service" style. Instead of regular meals, you get to call in whenever and order what you want. Pretty cool. They even do a special "stork meal" for both the parents one night - your choice of shrimp or filet mignon (Adam was pretty excited about this one!). And, one other perk that we didn't have the first time around is a bed for Adam to sleep in! It is just a pull out sofa, but it is better than the chair he slept in when Cameron was born! One thing that was pretty funny was the nurses face when I asked if my son coming to visit would be an exception to the no visitors under 2 yrs old rule. She looked completely shocked and said, "You have a baby under 2? Twins!" I can just imagine what she would have said if I told her we planned it that way!! :) I'm pretty sure no one would have been shocked in Utah. Anyway, we are looking forward to the 18th! I still haven't reached the "terribly uncomfortable" part of the pregnancy and am surprisingly still feeling really good. I am huge so nothing is really all that comfortable, but I have no complaints! Hopefully I'll feel this great right up to the big day - only 11 more days!!

P.S. I have had a few requests to see pictures of the nursery, so I will get some taken and posted in the next few days!

*Update*

We just got home from the doctor, so I will do a quick report. For any guys reading this, you may not want to read the details - just skip ahead a little! :) Apparently, the contractions I have been having aren't doing as much as they feel like they are. I am only dialated to a 1+, and a little thinned. This is actually good news, because like I said before my doctor and I would both prefer an induction. We talked more about it today and he was so great to work with us and our schedule. He would be inducing for medical reasons, but was totally willing to consider our needs with Adam's schooling, etc. So, we have scheduled an induction for Friday, January 18th. The doctor doesn't seem to think I will make it that long, but we are really hoping I will. That way my parents could be here to help with Cameron, and Adam would only have to miss one day of school but would be able to be with us all weekend. So, although I feel great and have actually had tons of energy I think I will try to take it easy for the next few weeks hoping that will hold her off until the 18th. I know these things don't always go as planned, but it sure would be nice if it did! :) Anyway, there you go. That makes our actual countdown 14 days. Wow, I better get back to my "to do" list! :)

P.S. I was also excited when the doctor asked how big Cameron was (7lbs 3oz) and then said he really didn't think she was going to be that big. Not that 7lbs 3oz is that big, but I'm sure my body wouldn't mind her being a little smaller! :)

Okay, let the countdown begin...

It has been so interesting to see the differences between this pregnancy and our first. I have been just as excited about this baby, but for some reason I think I was in denial about how close we were getting. With Cameron, the nursery and all the fun baby stuff was ready months in advance! With this baby I kept thinking we had plenty of time. I have been contracting with this pregnancy for a month or so, but for the past few weeks they have started coming stronger and more often. Then we started talking with the doctor about induction (for medical reasons my doctor would really like to induce me instead of letting me go into labor on my own), my mom and I started talking about flights and how quickly they could be here, I started thinking about Cameron and where we can take him if my parents aren't here yet...Anyway, I basically realized I was not even close to ready!! So, all of a sudden I went into panic-nesting mode. Poor Adam has been dealing with a crazy and very pregnant wife! But, thanks to his help, we have gotten so much done! The nursery is pretty much ready, her clothes are clean and put away, and we have a few friends lined up to babysit if we need it! There is still lots more on my "to do before the baby comes" list - seriously you should see how long it is, did I think this baby would just never come? But, I will just keep working on it and maybe some of it will have to wait until after. Well, here goes...despite all of all the panic, I am really looking forward to meeting our baby girl! We will keep you updated as it gets closer!

P.S. I have decided to make the writing on the blog pink this month in honor of our baby girl's birthday - whenever that may be!

Happy New Year!!

Happy New Year Everyone!!! We have been having so much fun with Adam home, I haven't had time to even post some pictures from Christmas, so here I go...

We had such a great Christmas here in Memphis! We missed family and friends, but still enjoyed it very much. We had an awesome Christmas Eve dinner of steak, potatoes, and veggies (thanks to my brother and sister-in-law's awesome gift box from Omaha Steaks). It was my first Christmas meal (I felt so grown up! :) so I decorated and set the table nice and everything. Christmas morning we enjoyed sleeping in a little and then after a breakfast of Eggs Benedict (Yummy!), we had a great time opening gifts. We all got very spoiled and it was fun watching Cameron's excitement over his gifts. After opening each gift all he wanted to do was play with what was inside, so it took some time to get through them all! He was so cute to yell "thank you" after each of the gifts. Sometimes he even says, "thank you, your welcome!" Having a toddler just makes everything more fun! Anyway, here are a few pictures of our Christmas...

Our fancy Christmas dinner! :)

Boy are we spoiled, or what?!

How cute is he - he got these pj's a long time ago as a gift, but they finally fit and we thought they made great Christmas pj's!

Pure JOY!!

Now, we can hardly believe 2007 is over! It was a big year for our family including Adam's graduation, the big decision of what school to attend, moving twice, deciding to expand our little family...Looking back, we can't believe how absolutely blessed we have been. We have felt the guiding hand of the Lord so much this past year. Through all the big decisions and changes we have felt such peace in knowing we are where we belong. We have been so happy living here in Memphis with a great ward, great neighbors, and great friends! Life is so good!

We rang in the New Year by playing games with a great group of friends. The party didn't exactly go to midnight - actually it was over by 9:00 (we all have kids! :), but we laughed a ton and had a great time. We got together again this morning for the traditional trip to I-Hop (my family has always gone out for breakfast together on New Years). What a great way to welcome in another year! I just know it is going to be another great one!! We hope the new year finds you all as happy and blessed as we are!