We have successfully made it through the first 3 weeks at home with Olivia. We were finally just starting to get the hang of dividing our attention between the two girls and we have just been faced with our first hurdle. McKenzie came down with the flu this weekend. Saturday I stayed home with both the girls while Bobby happily made the journey down to Lincoln for the Husker game. Not sure how that happened. Let me tell you, it was tough having them both during those 6 hours. McKenzie was getting sick about every 15 minutes and Olivia was crying nonstop for a good hour and a half at at ime. I think that I was being tested!! Well, I got through it. Everyone is still in one piece. McKenzie is still sick but Olivia has been sleeping on Bobby's chest pretty much all day today. Apparently Olivia is just as big of a football fan as Bobby. He finally found someone in our house to sit and watch football for hours straight.

At Olivia's last doctor's appointment, we learned that she has grown 2 inches and gained some weight. She is up to 8.3 lbs now. She's starting to acknowledge us. We can get her to stick her tongue out at us and follow us with her eyes. She's doing great with McKenzie but but they seem to scare each other at times. McKenzie gets scared sometimes when Olivia cries, thinking she did something wrong. Olivia gets scared when McKenzie yells or jumps around her or whatever crazy thing McKenzie is doing at that time.

McKenzie is doing soccer still. We had a game yesterday morning but she refused to play. Come to find out she was sick. She did participate in the warm up games though and I've posted some photos of that.

Other than that, we don't have a lot of exciting news right now. We are just hanging in there getting used to having two kids now and balancing the activities we have to run to.

Update

We just got back from the doctor. Kari is doing fine. No flu which is what she was most worried about. That would mean she couldn't touch her new baby girl which had her in tears. No infection of the incision either. Looks like it's just one of those weird post-pregnancy things that women have to deal with the week after a c-section/delivery. They basically said that for the next few days she could get fevers and chills while she is healing and that it will be more of an annoyance than anything. Fun stuff!

Our New Arrival

Announcing our new arrival:

Olivia Jean Byers

Born September 5th, 2008 at 7:32am
7lbs 14 oz
18.5 inches

We are very excited to be home with Olivia. Kari and Olivia are both doing well. Olivia has a bit of jaundice that we are fighting but seems to be doing great. Kari is taking it easy while she heals from the surgery. She has been a bit sick running a fever and chills. We aren't yet sure if she has flu symptoms or if she has an infection from the surgery. She has a doctor appointment today so we'll find out. Other than that, she has a hard time sitting still.

McKenzie has been doing great as a new big sister. She wants to help out with diapers and feedings and putting the baby to sleep. She helps us pick out clothes for the baby to wear and always runs around to find the binky when Olivia cries.

Bobby has been home for the week taking care of Kari and Olivia. He runs errands, picks up lunch and brings home movies to watch. Kari tends to like to go along on errands when she can so she doesn't develop cabin fever. Lately though this has turned into one errand a day to get out of the house.

It's been really great to have the family together this week so far. McKenzie got to stay home from school on Monday to have a "family day." This sounded really fun for her until we took Olivia to the doctor and ended up getting McKenzie a flu shot. She's been asking to go to school every other day this week.

That's about all going on at our house right now. Once we get Kari healthy again, we'd love to see everyone and show off this new baby. Don't be shy, give us a call.

The big day is right around the corner. We can hardly believe it has already been 38 weeks. Only a week more to go. I couldn't be more ready! September 5th can't come fast enough for me. I'm just ready to be comfortable again. I really can't complain because it hasn't been all that bad, but of course I still do. It's been a tough road getting here (not to mention long) but it's all worth it and we are very excited.

McKenzie can't wait to be a big sister. I'm not going to lie, I am nervous for the day. I know she is used to having all of our attention and I'm sure the excitement will wear off for her quickly. Once we are settled in though, she'll do just fine. She loves to help us clean or cook or do whatever it is we are doing so I'm sure she will love to help with the baby as well. She often times will run up and hug my belly and give the baby kisses. I'm know the love will continue to grow for her and the baby as they grow up.

Lately we have been working on getting the house in order to bring in another family member. We've moved our office to the basement which actually turned out to be more functional for us anyway. The old office is now the baby's room. We finally have gotten all the furniture and bedding and now I'm just waiting on Bobby to hang things on the wall. Call it nesting if you want but I've been on a cleaning spree. We've had the carpets professionally cleaned and the kitchen and bathrooms have all gotten a deep clean (although one more time before the big day won't hurt!!).

The Byers and Zimmerman women have done a wonderful thing for us. They got together and made us some frozen dishes to help us once we get home from the hospital. I'm talking a lot of food here! We won't have to worry about cooking for a while once we get home from the hospital and we are excited! I never cook (unless it comes out of a box) so home cooking for us is a treat! The only downside is I think we may gain more weight after the baby than we did in the past 9 months!! We really appreciate it though and it will be nice and easy cooking after my second c-section.

So, I've been asked numerous times now how I know that the baby will be here September 5. The reason is, almost 4 years ago, our first stubborn baby refused to turn and I had to have a c-section since she was breech. Come to find out, the cord was wrapped around her neck and if I would have gone into labor with her, it could have possibly killed her or put major stress on her. Luckily we scheduled an early c-section and all was good in the world. Since the first was a c-section, it is best that I have another. There are many risks trying to have a natural delivery after a c-section that just make it not worth it. My doctor and I have talked this over and she believes the safest thing for me and the baby would be a repeat c-section. Yes, I know this is major surgery and yes, I know that the recovery time is longer, but weighing the options, I'd rather have the surgery and not risk the baby or my own life than worry about a longer recovery period. Yesterday I had an ultrasound and it looks like I have yet another stubborn child. She refused to have her picture taken and can't seem to move in there to turn so the c-section is definite. I have Bobby to help me the first week home and my mom has offered to help out the second week. We've had many offers from several people to just let them know what we need and they will be there to help and we appreciate it! Don't be surprised if the phone rings!!

Bobby started coaching soccer. McKenzie is on his team of course. Out of six kids the first game, four of them were crying. McKenzie is really good at kicking the ball into the goal. She's usually always straight in. She does however have a problem with picking up the ball. During the first game, she went to pick up the ball and Bobby said, "No hands!" Well, she thought she was getting yelled at and became the fourth on the team to start crying. Bobby ended up calling the game short and the kids all had their snacks and drinks. I think a half hour was all he could handle of four crying kids that day. It was their first day to meet their coach though and play with kids they had never met so what can you expect?

Also, we have had a lot of birthdays to celebrate this month. Happy birthday to my sister Nicki, my friend Lacey, my Dad and Carter. We have had a lot of celebrations. It's been a good month.

Congrats Jenny!!

We hope everyone is having a great summer. Ours has been busy but we have packed in a lot of fun. We are finally beginning to slow down a bit and relax as we get ready for the new baby to come. We have about 4 more weeks to go and I can't tell you how ready I am. Summer is brutal on the pregnant body! It's mostly indoor activities for me lately.

I want to congratulate my older sister Jenny. She passed her boards and is now a Nurse Practitioner! We are all so proud of her. It's been a very long journey for her to get to where she is now but she did it! The only bad part is that she has accepted a job in Mankato Minnesota and will be moving soon with her family. We are going to miss her very much but I'm sure we will be able to see each other often.

Yesterday was a great time for us. Bobby's aunt Barb and cousin Jenny were in town from CO for an "End of Summer BBQ." It was really great to see them again as usual and have the family together. McKenzie especially had fun running around with the kids. She thinks Will and Ben are just hilarious. She also got to play with Emmy and Finley which gave her a little practice around the smaller kids, getting her ready for the baby.

McKenzie has finished up some of her summer activities. She recently had her last T-Ball game and has also finished "Princess Camp." Princess camp is basically a week long dance camp but everything is princess related. McKenzie absolutely loved it. She would barely say goodbye to me when I would drop her of at camp. She was ready to go as soon as we stepped foot in the door. Here's a short little 3 min video of her last day performance. She's in the back row in black with pink tights. It's pretty cute!


Next on the list of to-do's for McKenzie is soccer. Bobby once again will be McKenzie's coach. Although he tries to act like it's such a pain, I know he secretly loves it. He loves getting out there with the kids and teaching them the fun in the sport. He was given many compliments by the T-Ball parents about how patient he is with the kids and how well he did teaching them. We had some really neat kids on McKenzie's T-Ball team and can't wait to meet the kids on her soccer team. McKenzie has gotten all the gear already (of course, it is all pink) and she's excited to get started. Bobby's just hoping that he can still make it to some Husker football games this year since soccer will be on Saturdays now.

Our First Bloody ER Visit

Although we have been to the ER once before for McKenzie for a dislocated elbow, this weekend was the first for us dealing with blood. On Saturday, we were at the Byers' house for a small family gathering having a great time. McKenzie went tubing (this year is the first year for her) and she got to spend a lot of time in the lake swimming. During her time in the lake, she decided to float on her back by the "chinese horseshoe" game. I'm not sure if that is what it is called, but you have a bottle on top of a pole in the water and throw a frisbee (McKenzie calls this a "crispee") at the pole to knock the bottle off into the water. As she was floating there, minding her own business, having a great time, the bottle fell and ended up hitting her above her left eyebrow.

Luckily for me I was inside at the time and did not see the bloody part. ( I don't tend to do well in those situations - that's Bobby's territory) Once I was informed my child was hurt, the blood had been slowed and she had been cleaned up. It wasn't all that bad once the bleeding was under control but the nurses in the family felt we should take her to the ER to get a stitch or glue. McKenzie did great. She didn't cry and she cooperated with the nurses and doctors very well. It was Bobby and I that had the hard time at the ER. Try explaining to the ER staff that your three year old may need stitches because she was hit the face with a beer bottle! After two hours of sitting in the ER, she got the laceration glued together and we hurried back to the party for the big 3-D Hannah Montana concert that was on the Disney channel. Missing that concert might have been worse for her than the injury!

Other than that, we have been finishing up T-Ball. Bobby has had a great time this year coaching. McKenzie really enjoys playing but with the heat lately, the kids get distracted and tired quickly. The games have been averaging to about 30 minutes tops in the past few games. The kids love to get together, play a couple innings and then they are all pumped to find out what the snack is that day. It's fun to watch them all run after the ball and tackle each other for it. When they run bases, it's funny to see where they go. Some will hit the ball and then run after it. Some will run to first and stay there while others just keep on running. And some, we just aren't sure were they are going. LOL It is definitely an entertaining 30 min for the parents and family members who come out to watch. Thank you to everyone who has come out to support McKenzie. She just loves it when people come to watch her.

More Summer Fun