Merry Christmas!

A few shots from Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

Me and the boys after church on Christmas Eve. Surprisingly, Thomas didn't mind wearing the bow tie. . .it was the navy blazer he refused. Too bad, it really completed the outfit! Jay of course, was a great sport, and loved his Christmas sweater.

Thanks, Aunt Ju Ju!

Piper and Thomas with their blankets, waiting to open presents on Christmas Eve.

Christmas morning! Santa brought T a new fire station and fire truck.

The aftermath.

Crazy cousins on Christmas night!

One Month Stats

Another tall boy!

Weight: 10 lbs 15 oz (75%)

Height: 23 1/8 inches (90%)

Tiny Dancers

Just a little something to get you in the holiday spirit.
12 more days 'til Christmas!

Gingerbread Men!

Thomas and Aunt Gammy had a fabulous time making gingerbread men. Mommy and Gaga had a fabulous time supervising and taste testing. Baby Jay slept through the entire event.

Baby Jay--The First Few Weeks

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

More milk, please.

Sweet baby Jay

People ask me what Thomas thinks of the baby...well, this photo pretty much sums it up.

2 Year Stats

I can't believe my first baby is TWO!

We went to the doctor on his birthday (in hindsight, not smart--who wants shots for their birthday?) and here are his stats:

Weight: 32.5 lbs (90%)
Height: 36.5" (95%)

And his head is catching up--in the 50% now.

Thomas' Birthday

Thomas turned two four days after Jay was born. My lack of sleep did not stop me from making my boy his birthday breakfast--

a homemade cupcake

And then later that night we celebrated with lots of family, and lots more cupcakes!

"Happy to you. Happy to you!"
(Happy Birthday, the way Thomas sings it)

Happy Birthday, John Warren!

He's here!

John Warren Sigler
11/09/09
8 pounds, 14 ounces
21.5 inches

Welcome to the world, John Warren!

So this is how it all went down on the morning of the 9th:

I woke up with crampy contractions around 5 a.m. and chose to stay in bed to see how they progressed. They were pretty regular from 5 a.m to 7 a.m., coming every 10 minutes. They were pretty tolerable, so I wasn't sure if they really were the real thing (I was induced w/ T., so never knew what it was like to go into actual labor). So I go about my morning, get T out of bed, etc. Contractions started getting closer and as they were coming, I actually had to stop and concentrate on them, and breathe. BUT, I still wasn't sure because in between them, I felt totally fine and normal!

I called my mom and told her to be on the alert. After I hung up the phone, the contractions just kept coming, ranging from 10 to 6 to 4 minutes apart. No real pattern, so of course, I'm still unsure.

I proceed to read Thomas a book.

During the reading session, more contractions. I have to put him down to focus. He is repeating everything I say out loud, including "one second, one second" and "ow ow ow ow."

Call my mom back to tell her she better come over.

I get in the shower, still in disbelief. Contractions two minutes apart!

Out of shower, contractions go back to being 4 to 6 minutes. Hmmm, decide to call the doctor.
Doctor tells me to go to the hospital.

Now Thomas is saying, "Get baby. Get baby." Ha ha, so cute. So my mom arrives and we leave. I STILL do not believe I am in actual labor, even though the contractions are painful. Painful, but tolerable.

I enter the "critical decision unit" of the maternity ward, and I am hooked up to a monitor. Contractions are every 4 minutes and it is determined that I am 5 cm!
Admitted.

Receive epidural.

5.5 hours later, Baby J arrives on the scene, posterior, of course:

All 8 lbs and 14 oz of him!

The doctor could not believe he was not 9 or 10 pounds, and ordered multiple weigh-ins!

Delivery team Rothman and nurse Sasha

Proud Dad!

and Mom!

Due Date

Going, going, gone. . .

A trip to the Pumpkin Patch

The weekend before Halloween, we went to a "Pumpkin Playground" near our house. Lots of activities for Thomas, and I think he had a good time!

Climbing on the hay bales.

A truck!

Super slide with Daddy.

Animals...

and a pirate ship

And of course, he got his own little pumpkin at the end of the outing

All tired out!

Shiver Me Timbers

It was a rainy and muggy Halloween night, but it didn't stop the Pirate from collecting his booty. Surprisingly, Thomas loved the event, and probably wonders why we don't knock on our neighbors' doors every night for candy--or as he says, "CA-EEE!"

Here we are, getting ready for Trick-or-Treating. Please note my huge belly in the right of the photo.

Morgan, our first Trick-or-Treater of the night, stopped by to have some chili and to play before heading out to the rest of the neighborhood.

Thomas wouldn't wear the hat that went with his costume, so I did, and went as a pregnant pirate. I originally wanted to go Trick or Treating as a pregnant woman in labor, but that didn't really work out. Yes, I am that big, the camera is not adding 10 lbs.

Aunt "Ju" and cousin "Pi" (I mean, Tinkerbell) pose with Pirate T.

The Trick or Treating process went something like this:

Thomas walks up to the door (by himself), knocks, and says "trick treat." When offered candy, he holds up his bag with one hand, while grabbing a handful of candy with the other. Then he proceeds to let himself into the house, making himself at home with a big "HiYo!" One of the adults would then have to grab him and coax him back down to the sidewalk. Not shy at all.

Hope everyone had a happy Halloween!

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Special video birthday message from Thomas:



Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Oyster Roast 2009

Last week we held our "annual" oyster roast amidst the coldest weather in mid-October since 1935. Seriously. No matter, I think a good time was had by all.

This photo sums it all up:


1. "Aw Shucks," as in, yes, the weather was rainy and miserable AGAIN this year. Oh, and freezing cold.
2. Nuts. Was I nuts for having this party at 37 weeks pregnant? I think so.
3. Lemons. When life hands you lemons (did I mention how crappy the weather was?) make lemonade, or um, spiked hot cider (not pictured).

The Host with the Most, Sir T.


T: "Fire up the grill, and get those oysters roasting!"

Mmmmm. The oysters--ready for consumption.

A closer look. Did I mention how delicious these things were?

Braving the rain, enjoying the oysters.

Thank goodness for tent rentals. . .

and a basement full of toys.

T: "So Claire, do you think the party was a success?"

Special thanks to everyone who helped me pull it all together.
And very special thanks to Christy and the Food Matters team for the yummy food and drink!

Baby Update

Had my 37 week appointment today. All is well and head is down, but "floating." No other progress, not even a centimeter! I was hoping for at least two. Wishful thinking and wanting an October baby. I'll keep you all posted.

Happy Birthday, Jillian!

A little delinquent in posting, but we celebrated my sister's birthday over the past two days. On Sunday (her actual day) we had a pizza party at our place. Last night we had a family dinner at my mom's. The photo below is not so great because I took it with my cell phone.

Special birthday message from Thomas: "Dear Aunt Ju Ju, I am so glad we could celebrate your birthday two nights in a row...especially since I LOVE cake and frosting."

Happy Happy!

The Workers

Thomas and Daddy work on sprucing up our shed. It's kind of beyond repair, but that's another project for another day, so we're just doing what we can to make it look tolerable until we can replace it. . .