The One with the Annual Evans Family Reunion Day 1

Saturday, August 11, 2012

I'm going to write these posts and publish them as if I were writing and publishing them at the end of the day they actually happened. FYI. If that makes sense. Moving on.

This morning, Saturday August 11th 2012, Jane woke up to eat at 3:30am. My alarm was set to go off at 4am (and actually, I had set it for the wrong day, so it never would have gone off anyway). I woke up Chris, we got ready, finished packing everything, woke up the kiddos and got them ready, and were on the road at 5:30am bound for Salem, Oregon. 923 miles away = 15 hours. No biggie... haha. What the heck were we thinking going on a 900 mile road trip with a 2 week old?!?!?

Fox completed a 14 hour car ride back in April and he was really good so I wasn't too worried about him making this trip. And I've been told that infants sleep during long road trips so I wasn't worried about Jane either. Turns out Fox was good and Jane was bad. She doesn't like her carseat already... But everything worked out in the end.

The sunrise was beautiful.

A few seconds later sunrays showed up.

Jane was having a hard time and she was so schlumped over in her carseat, so I decided to move from the front to the back. We made our first pitstop in order to make the switch.

Fox does a new thing. When I say, "Hey Fox! I'm going to take your picture!" he pulls out his pacifier. Those few seconds are so nice cuz he looks so cute without that piece of plastic in his mouth :)

We hung up Jane's quilt in the window to keep the sun out of her eyes.

Jane wore a fox onesie as a cute tribute to her big brother.

We watched Toy Story 1, 2, and 3, Dumbo, Lady and the Tramp, and Toy Story a couple more times... Desperate times call for desperate measures!

Fox loves this cat and kept putting it on and behind his head like a pillow.

At looooong last we arrived in Salem at Bethany and Peter's house. Peter is currently at boot camp, so he missed the reunion for the second year in a row - bummer! And Nick is on his mission in Mexico so he'll be gone another year.

Their house is so full of character and beautiful things!

Bethany arranged for us to sleep in the basement and had a pack'n'play set up for Fox, a bassinet, rocking chair, boppies, and everything we needed and more all ready and set up for us. Thanks so much for your hospitality Bethany! And sorry that Fox destroyed your house in .03 seconds flat...

It was about 8pm when we pulled up to the driveway. I showered and got ready for bed and unpacked some stuff. Fox didn't go to sleep until 11:30pm. Routines go out the window on vacation! I'm glad we made it safely and without incident to the reunion. Fun times ahead!

The One with My Unofficial 3rd Child

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

We have a dog. His name is Joey, after Joey Tribiani of FRIENDS. He's a Shiba Inu. He was born on September 11th 2009. I flew up to Seattle to get him from a breeder who lives just two miles from my parent's house and brought him back to sunny SoCal on Halloween 2009.

How can I say this nicely... Joey is... a pain in my tooshie lately! Ever since we brought Jane home he's been lashing out irrationally and demanding more and more attention. He's like a toddler in dog form! He always wants to play; he eats all of Fox's food; he barks incessantly whenever the doorbell rings and accosts anyone who comes in; he purposefully finds things he shouldn't have (pacifiers, diapers, toys), looks at us to make sure we see he has the off-limit item, then runs away and destroys it; and he's all up in my business all the time!

Let's think of some good things to cancel out the bad...
He's cute.
He is great around kids and has never once showed aggression towards Fox or Jane.
He's a good source of entertainment for Fox.
When we do play with him, it's fun to bounce the big rubber ball off his nose.
He's a good "fetcher".
He travels well, just sleeps the entire time.
I love his thick, felty ears.
He finds the weirdest positions to sleep in on the couch.
He basks in the sun and looks so content whilst doing so.
And that's about it.

Here's hoping Joey grows out of this "terrible 3s" stage and stops being so jealous of our kiddos :)

The One with What Else?

Monday, August 6, 2012

To quote my husband, "Do people really expect you to blog about anything except your kids now?" I hope not :)

This little girl has us completely wrapped around her teeny tiny fingers. We are enamored. In love. She is just so much fun. She only cries when she's hungry (which is like every hour, but still, as long as she's full, she's happy). Her cry is the cutest so sometimes I want to let her cry, but don't worry, I don't. I'll have to capture it on video.

On the Fox front, he's had a high fever for the past three days. It spiked to 104.4 on Sunday morning so Chris rushed him to the hospital. He has a virus so there's nothing we can do but keep him medicated.

As long as he has his drugs, pacifier, and dinosaurs, he's a happy boy. I've emailed his doctor though because I'm worried about how long this fever has lasted. Don't you just love his facial expression here? Such a boy.

One of Fox's favorite things to do is go into my closet and pick me out some shoes. Most of the time they're sparkly and high heeled and very impractical for going outside on walks. And they don't even fit right now cuz I'm still sporting pregnancy cankles...

Life is good.

The One with Operation: WEIGHT LOSS

Saturday, August 4, 2012

I so do not even come close to fitting any of my pre-pregnancy clothes. Thus begins OPERATION: WEIGHT LOSS. I'm hoping if I make my goals public knowledge I'll stick to them.

Starting weight: 165

Goal weight: 120

Date to reach goal: January 1st 2013

Weeks to accomplish goal: 21

Average pounds to lose per week: 2.14

Goals for this week: Don't eat after 7pm (brush teeth at 7pm) / No candy / Limit food portions / Eat fruits and veggies instead of chips and crackers

Reward: Overnighter to Vegas!

Once I can start exercising in five or so weeks I hope that will help burn off the pounds. I also want to get a membership to the YMCA around the corner once Jane is old enough to be in the daycare unit. Until then, I'm hoping the calories that it takes to breastfeed will do some good and I'll try to minimize the calories I take in.

BEFORE

UPDATES
8.4.12 - 165
8.10.12 - 158.6 (-6.4)
8.18.12 - 157.9 (-0.7)
8.25.12 - 156.3 (-1.6)
9.1.12 - 155.3 (-1.0)
9.8.12 - 155.3 (0)
9.15.12 - 151.9 (-3.4)
9.22.12 - 150.6 (-1.3)
9.29.12 - 148.6 (-2.0)
10.6.12 - 144.8 (-3.8)
10.13.12 - 145 (+.2)
10.20.12 - 142.1 (-2.9)
10.27.12 - 141.4 (-.7)
11.3.12 - 137.9 (-3.5)
11.10.12 - 138.4 (+.5)
11.17.12 - 136.7 (-1.7)
11.24.12 - 136.3 (-.4)

And, just because I can't go a day without posting pictures of the lights of my life:

The One with Chris' 27th Birthday

Friday, August 3, 2012

Chris' 27th birthday was a bit overshadowed by a new member of our family.

Luckily he's easy to please and the only thing he requested was a cherry pie. Your wish is my command!
(PS - I don't cook.)

Pay no attention to the wacky crust... I put the pie crusts in the freezer as soon as I got home (I didn't know that's a no-no!) which made for a tricky dilemma when trying to unthaw them and shape them...

Look at me, giving birth naturally, baking pies... I feel so domestic! :)

Chris got some shirts from me, some books are on the way from my dad, a humorous card from grandparents, etc.

Chris is such an amazing dad, husband, brother, son, uncle, friend, and more.

Happy 27th birthday Chris! Hopefully we can make it a BFD next year :)

The One with the First Few Days

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Babies are worth every second of sleep deprivation, going through 9 months of pregnancy, getting covered in milk at night, dozens of daily diaper changes, etc. All of it - completely, totally, 100% worth it. This girl has brought me so much joy in the short 5 days that she's been with us. Every time I look at her I smile and get all warm and fuzzy inside. I can't believe we made her! She's ours! She's beautiful! She's an angel! She's perfect! I just wish she would stay this small and tiny forever :)

Nicknames we have for Jane:
Girly girl
Baby Jane
Angel
Little Bean
Princess Potent Poop
(her diapers STINK but there's only ever a little bit of mess!)
Sweetie Swoo

We went on our first family outing yesterday to the South Pasadena Farmer's Market and then walked around the library where my mom snapped a few pictures of us. Here we are, an official family of four!

Poor Jane is all shlumped over and Fox is sucking on his pacifier like there's no tomorrow. But, we're happy, healthy, and in love and that's all that matters!

My mom is gone now and Chris is at school all day every day - so I'm on my own! Let's see if I can do this mother of two thing!

The One with Evans Party of Three - Last Call!

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Jane was just waiting to be properly documented in my belly before making her grand entrance into the world merely 5 hours after these were taken. Thank you Malm for your photographer's eye and Allie for editing them to perfection: