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Sunday, September 22, 2013

Alexander Lake Lodge, Grand Mesa, CO

Had to get out and check out the view
on the way to Alexander Lake Lodge, we were above the clouds it was enchanting




there are a million lakes up on Grand Mesa
Lily holding Talmage, she is a few days older than Hudson, we are in betrothal negotiations


Hudson let me snuggle him, so wonderful!
Huds was not so sure about that elk up there:-)


after lots of sugar and no napping, this happend around 10



Good Morning Alexander Lake, we were up on the 3rd floor in a darling room where all four of us ended up in the bed by morning, there are four of us wow!








This boy can run, unfortunately I had to carry him back about a mile.

It was quite a bit cooler but sasquatch was banned thankfully!
Huds is still taking about Baily and the boat.




He was quite the rower!
After a torrential downpour

We are so lucky to be friends with the Larsen family, they invited up to their lodge last Saturday and we had no choice but to accept.  It was a much needed get away from the world.  We didn't even have wifi access till a couple hours before we left, I almost wish we didn't but who can resist wifi access.  It was a great time to strengthen relationships, breath even fresher air, eat good food, and enjoy the cooler weather.  I had time to feel, it was wonderful.  I love and enjoy my family daily but there was something heavenly about being up there that intensified everything.

Talmage Dean






















Talmage Dean, need I say more?  Here is his first month of life.  He's as perfect as can be.  He loves snuggling his momma all the time.  He cracked his first smiles the morning after birth and on his 6 week birthday started looking in my eyes and smiling. To me it's kind of hard till they start doing that, I know they are babies and it's nothing personal but that smile helps me know, ok yep I am your favorite and maybe I'm doing something right.
Love this guy!

Thursday, September 5, 2013

I had another baby!

Phew, two kids two and under keep you busy!!!  On Aug 8th I had a really fun shower which entailed a bunco game night.  I wish I had taken pictures, it was so cute and had lots of my favorite ladies there! Of course as it was a baby shower women started telling labor stories and I got super pumped to have my baby, so pumped that I went into labor.  I started having contractions, normal ones, not back labor like I did with Hudson.  They were about 15 mins apart.  They did however start about the same time of evening Hudson's did.

So I went home and did some last minute packing.  Went to bed and woke up at 3am, the contractions were keeping me up by that point, just like with Hudson, so TJ dropped my dear sweet Huds off at a friends and we drove to Grand Junction to attempt a vbac, since I had a csection with Huds, they were the nearest hospital that allows such things.  When we were almost to the hospital I made TJ stop at Denny's for breakfast, because I remembered starving and in turn becoming exhausted with Huds labor, (they don't feed you once your admitted as active labor).  I'm sure I created quite a scene pausing every 5 mins to work through a contraction.  This is us at Denny's.

We checked in the hospital around 5am and got the most amazing nurse ever, her name was Suzie, and she was a nurse, angel, doula all wrapped into one.  I strongly feel without her things would not have gone so perfectly.  I am praying I have Suzie for my next labor.  My labor took her whole shift 12 hours bless her soul!  I also had my neighbor friend who is studying to become a doula, who was great but honestly mainly acted as my photographer, because I had Suzie and TJ I didn't really feel the need for a doula, but a photographer, yes.  TJ was my greatest support this time around though.  I actually walked around the hospital till I was a 9.  Dancing with TJ through many of my contractions, seriously, it's a great position to make it through a contraction!  Then they broke my water and oh buddy things started moving and I'm pretty sure I was transitioning, but at that point I wanted to throw myself of the floor and cry, so instead I got an epidural, and I'm so glad I did!  I didn't push the botton at all, and I feel like I had the perfect dose so I could still move my legs but not feel any pain!  Last time I was instructed to push the button as often as I could which left me with numb legs, bad advice trust me!  They let the baby descend for a couple more hours and then TJ got to help deliver the baby, I actually was afraid that the same thing was happening as with Huds, so I pushed so hard he flew out with his umbilical chord around his neck, the Dr was working on that and TJ really did catch the baby.  No one told me to stop pushing.  And here we have adorable and fiesty little Talmage Dean Connolly 7lbs 12 oz born at 4:12 pm on August 9th, 2013 19 1/2" long.  He was 11 days early and I'm glad he was because by his 2 week appointment his head was in the 90th% which may have put me much in the same situation as Huds.  The first 3 days recovery were akward, but about a week later I felt pretty much normal, unlike the c-section recovery where you feel like you have a stab wound for months.  I'm so grateful it worked out for me!

Sunrise over Grand Junction

Walking in the Peace Garden

TJ and my Dr gearing up!







I highly recommend having your shower right before you go into labor, your hair will look great and you will be pumped for it!