Musical Preferences

You'd think that a 3 years old's taste in music would revolve around Disney songs, nursery rhymes or anything with a relativly good beat. If that were your thought, you haven't met Cooper.
Even when he was an infant, we could calm him in the car with Josh Groban. If you think this is universal for all babies, don't worry, it's not. We've tried it on our other two without success. Now that he's older, he has specific Josh Groban favorites. He's narrowed it down to "the spanish one" and "Say you love me". When I play my tabernacle choir CD it's a different story. He must hear "how they grow" (AKA Consider the Lillies) to be appeased. I have a CD that is just a compilation of songs that I like and Cooper has favorites on that one as well. Ever heard of 'Viva la Vida' by Cold Play? Yeah. He likes Cold Play.
This is how it goes when we get in the car:
Cooper - "turn on the music mama."
Me - "Ask nicely please"
Cooper - "Please turn on the music?"
I turn on the radio
Cooper "not that music, the spanish one!"
I put in the Josh Groban CD (any one of the 3 we own which all have a minimum of 5 spanish songs).
Cooper - "Not THAT spanish one!"
I find the appropriate spanish one
Cooper - "Turn it up mama, I can't see it."
(I don't think he has all his senses sorted out at this point. He often complains of not being able to "see" the music)

Oh Blessed Marshall

Marshall was blessed in our ward today. You'd think that this being the 3rd time for Jesse he would not be nervous anymore, but when he sat down and handed over Marshall to me his hands were icy cold. I smiled, knowing that icy hands meant nervous Jesse. Sweet. BTW, he did a great job :) Annie showed up early to get some pictures of the little man.And Dave took some too:

Life after Baby

I get asked a lot how things are going now with 3 kids, and really, it's not so bad if you cheat :) By cheat I mean that Jesse's mom takes the 2 older kids for a few hours several times a week so I really don't feel like I've had a full dose of 3 kids yet. I think last Friday (Marshall was 2 weeks old) was really the first day that I had them all day by myself and it really wasn't that bad. It might have had something to do with Jesse taking a 2 hour lunch to get Cafe Rio and take us all to the park.... but I think I'm just really good at this mom thing.All 3 of my mens (me and Leila are outnumbered!) :
Marshall's umbilical cord fell off last week and the little plastic thingy from his circumcision, so we celebrated with his first real bath:
And for Father's Day we took the Callahan men up to Pine Valley for a dutch oven dinner. We found a dirty old baby doll in a tree and Leila adopted it as her own before we could sneak it away from her and throw it away.

Marshall enjoyed the outdoors and camp-fire smoke... how could he not? It's in his blood!
Also this week, nap times have been irregular so... this is the result:
Anyway, so far, so good. Some days are better than others. Nights seem a little longer now, but I'm hoping some sort of schedule will emerge soon. The other 2 kids are doing wonderfully well. Cooper helps by running to get me a diaper sometimes or bouncing the bouncy chair when I don't have a free hand. Leila is taking it the hardest I think because she has less snuggle time and she's not the baby anymore, but she's a great little momma and loves to help comb Marshall's hair (she thinks his baby brush is a tooth brush and tries to brush his non-existent teeth) and pokes my boob when I'm nursing to help him drink his "muk" (milk). I'm sure it will get harder before it gets easier, but for now it's going well and I have a great support team to help!

The "official" Birth Story of Marshall Jay Callahan

I really can't start the story without mentioning how Marshall did NOT come a week early like his 2 siblings, and how he didn't even bother to come on his due date, he was, in fact 5 days late! Or without including how, even though I was appointed to be induced on Wednesday the 10th, I was pushed back to Thursday the 11th. So here's how it all went down:


Thursday morning, I wait patiently for a call from the ever-so-busy labor and delivery section of the hospital and finally, FINALLY, at 11:20 AM we got a call from a nurse asking if we were ready to have a baby and if we were could we please arrive at 12:15. At that very point in time Jesse was pulling out of the refrigerator the makings of tacos for lunch. We screamed and hugged and celebrated and while I went to put on my makeup and pack my toothbrush in my hospital bag, he continued on his preparations and proceeded to eat 8 tacos, I ate 1 (for energy, and they smelled good, and I was hungry). I mention this not only for accuracy in the story, but also to point out the differences in this delivery, namely an induction, compared to the others, you know, the ones where the contractions come AND THEN you go to the hospital? Oh, and then Sara took this picture for us, and then we left for the hospital! (Yeah, the twins were basically LIVING at our house for a few days awaiting the time we were to go to the hospital and we'd leave them in charge of our other 2 babies)
On the way to the hospital (again, I mention this only in the name of accuracy) Jesse was on the phone arranging things for the cabinet shop and completely missed the turn to the hospital and went 2 blocks too far and continued on the phone as if nothing had gone awry. I stared at the clock which read 12:14 and then glared at him and when I could take it no longer I said "Get off the phone." He ended his call and we arrived at the hospital.

We got to skip the room that they put you in for an hour to wait and see if you're "progressing" and were whisked immediately to our very own delivery room. Every single thing we needed was already laid out and waiting: my arm bands with my name on them, the appropriate paperwork to initial and sign, all my IV paraphernalia, gown, and a great big IV bag chalk full of pitocin (it almost made my uterus hurt to look at it). The nurses took their time to explain everything to me and to put my IV line in the arm that did not belong to my dominant hand (no one ever asked me that before!). Twenty minutes later the pitocin drip was started at a very low level and I was "checked" to see where we were starting from. One week prior to this I had been at a very definate 2 cm, but the baby's head was still very high, so when this nurse checked I was sure to be at least a 3. My jaw almost dropped when the nurse checking me turned to the other and said "I think she's about a 1/2 cm".
"um..." I said "at my last appointment I was at a 2 so..."
"Well" she said " sometimes they check in the wrong spot."

They check in the wrong spot?! I was confused to say the least. Luckily my Doctor was there within another 20 minutes and checked again. He looked up at the nurse and said "What did you put her down for, 3-ish?"
"uh, no." She said, looking sheepish "We put her down for 1/2"
"Well I uh... I think she's at a 3" He said knowingly with a smile. So with that I was out of the gate, off and running. The contractions started coming, and they were welcomed because I knew with every one the baby was closer and with him came the end of pregnancy! They left us alone pretty much and came back to check a few hours later to find I had only progressed to a 3+. By 5 they were preparing to change shifts and I had at least gotten to a 5 and the baby's head was low enough for the Doctor to break my water. 5:30 the water was broken and the contractions became as intense as I've ever felt. I asked if the anesthesiologist was close and the nurses said he was, but he was working on another patient and might be a few minutes. After a 45 minutes I was completely broken, the contractions were right on top of each other and took all of my energy to get through, I'm not sure how I would have done had Jesse not been holding my knees, Annie rubbing my back, and my mom stroking my hair. The anesthesiologist came at 6:45, almost an hour and a half after my water had been broken, and not a moment too soon. He was quick and efficient and I was pain free in about 20 minutes. In that time I had gone from 5 to a 7 and couldn't have been more relieved. We all relaxed and watched "so you think you can dance" to see who got eliminated (for accuracy people). The nurse checked me close to 9:00 and said "you look pretty good, lets see what happens if we do a test push" I did and she stood up briskly, "I'll call you're doctor, you're ready" He was there within 10 minutes and 2 1/2 contractions later (I only know because I looked at the monitor, I could feel NOTHING!) little Marshall emerged ( 9:32 pm) and they placed him up on my belly. My first thought was: Wow! He is REALLY HEAVY! Indeed he was, 8 pounds 10 ounces and 21 inches long. Almost a full pound heavier than the 7lbs and 11 oz. Cooper and Leila were.
My second thought was: He really does look like a Marshall!

In my recovery room Jesse wrote on the white board "Congratulations Laura and Marshall, you did it!" Indeed we did Marshall, 5 days late, but we did it!

Marshall with other babies

He's only been here for 6 days and already he has friends! Eric and Miranda's baby girl Regan (?) came Sunday night and was delivered by the same doctor as Marshall! Here are the proud papas:

Last night Candice brought Elijah over to meet his new cousin, here's Elijah (4 months) and Marshall (5 days):

All of the cousins on Jesse's Family's side (3 of them are mine):

Cooper (3 years), Leila (18 months), Elijah (4 months), Marshall (5 days)

5 days late!

Sorry it's taken so long to get something up here! Marshall Jay Callahan came 5 days late on June 11, at 9:32 pm. He weighed in at 8 lbs. 10 oz. and was 21 inches long. He just got circumcised today and everything's going well! I'll have the full story up in a few days!

No Baby Yet

I guess I should clarify: There's no baby OUTSIDE of my belly. There is plenty of baby INSIDE my belly. I was scheduled to be induced today and I was rather excited because I was having contractions last night and everything and they were getting kind of hurty. I called Labor & Delivery at 3:30 this morning to see if they'd take me even if I wasn't in full on labor and the lady was like... please don't come in, we're slammed and I have to go do 2 c-sections right now, just take some tylenol and try to rest. I did, and the contractions went away. So I waited faithfully all day for my call from the hospital telling me that I could come in and be induced and they finally just called me and said that the delivery floor and recovery floor are COMPLETELY FULL and they can't do any elective inductions today (I was the only one scheduled). They called my doctor and he moved me to tomorrow. They sounded pretty confident that they would be able to call me first thing in the morning (like 5:30). I guess here's hoping they actually do!

Stuck

We went to the doctor today, but that's not the exciting part. On the way to my appointment we got stuck in the elevator! Jesse called the front desk in an effort to avoid notifying the fire department and causing a scene, but the lady at the front desk said "Oh you're stuck in the elevator? I'll call 911." I guess this kind of thing happens frequently so they're used to it. In about 15 minutes of increasing temperature and me wondering if I'd have to try to deliver my baby in an elevator along with a 5th grader and his dad we heard some banging on the doors and heard a St. George fire fighter saying "You guys in there?" He wrenched open the doors and we were free! But in the basement, so we had to take the stairs up to the 2nd floor, which, if you've been keeping up with my blog, is nothing because I've been walking like 3 miles every other day! I guess now I know how Marshall feels, being stuck in there like that (I hope we don't need a firefighter to pry him out too)! Come on out baby!

Beach Huts and a Rainbow

It was Annie's turn for FHE this month and she had this cool idea to make graham cracker beach huts. I think originally the idea was to entertain the kiddies but it turned out to be a competition between the grown-ups as well. The kids didn't really take interest until they were done playing and noticed all the candy. This, for instance was Alan's hut on stilts:

Daddy helped Cooper make this one: (I didn't get a picture of the one Jesse made by himself, I'll just tell you it was a tank and let you imagine it.)You can slightly see the rainbow that showed up to the left of Annie:

I can't believe how bright this rainbow was! I didn't even get a picture of the whole thing, but it was a complete "bow" accross the whole sky. From the way I took the picture it looks like it lands right on Jesse's head! There's my pot-o-gold!

P.S. Still no baby. AND I walked 3 miles last night. AND I'm due in 3 days. This is the longest I've ever been pregnant and it's driving me nuts!

Memorial Day at Zion

We wanted to get out and do something fun for Memorial Day since I feel like I haven't been able to do anything for weeks, so we headed up to Zion Park and hiked up to weeping rock. Only 1/2 a mile, but at least it was something!

Painting over Outdoor Outlet

So probably everybody knows by now that my parents closed their store at the end of last year and have been slowly moving on. The painting over of the building and Outdoor Outlet sign was just one more step in that process. They let Jesse paint over most of the lettering, I think he was the only one with the heart to really do it.

We finished up the last bit just on Saturday, finally painting over the "SAVE! 25-50%" I've always wondered if that really made a difference to have that permanently painted on the building.
Chris was up from Phoenix and lucky enough to help. Here he is with Jesse and Dad on the roof:

I'm sad that my kids will never know how awesome it is to get outdoor stuff for wholesale price and that now I have to pay full price for Chaco's, Camelbacks, tents, and sleeping bags... just like everybody else. But mostly that this chapter in our family's life is closed. It's kind of like saying goodbye to our childhood.

Walking

So this baby is driving me crazy and I'm doing everything to get him to come! I walked up Formaster Ridge a few days ago, and guess how many stinking contractions I got out of that? 3! Just 3! I think next time I'll do it twice in a row.
Last night me and Jesse took the kids on a new trail down by the river. It's a relatively mild trail except for the 3/4 of a mile of 12% downhill grade at the beginning, so however far you go on the trail, you have to come back up that steep, long hill. Jesse was pushing both kids in the stroller and still beat my 9 month preggo belly up the hill. Oh, and how many contractions did I get out of that? NONE! Not a one people! All it did was make me feel like someone beat me up when I got up this morning.
And now Cooper is telling me I can't do stuff because my belly is too big. Like such: "Mamma, I need to push Leila in the stroller, you can't do it because your belly's too big." I guess we know who is taking care of whom.

Ladies and Gentleman: Brian Regan!

Brian Regan came to Tuacahn for 3 nights and tickets were sold out for all 3 shows! Luckily we heard about it early enough and got tickets for Saturday night with our friends Kelsi & Ryan and Eric & Miranda (funny that all 3 of us women are pregnant!). I thought he would do bits from clips I've heard online or old stuff, but it was all new material and completely hilarious! The minute he came on stage I was almost rolling out of my seat (literally rolling because I am so round now!). That was pretty much my limit though, if I go to anymore shows like that I'll for sure go into labor!Also, I'm not usually that swollen in the face, but throw in that heat and BAM! I could almost feel myself swelling up! That's my belly at 36 weeks, only 4 more!

Jesse can cook!

Jesse outdid himself again this year for Mother's Day with a 5 course gourmet dinner! He organized the whole dinner for me, Annie, Kelsi, Candice, Nikki, Monique, my mom, and my grandma Syphus, PLUS he wrangled in all their husbands to help him! Feeding that many people + kids is not so easy, but he just whipped on his apron and pumped it out like he did it every day! It surely does make a wife proud to know that her husband is capable of such feats.
Thank you Jesse, my stomach is still recovering :)

Cooper's #3 Party

Cooper didn't get into his birthday very much last year, but looking at the pictures sure sparked his enthusiasm (especially the pictures of his tractor cake, which he's been making me show him every week for the past 4 months). So it was way more fun to plan his party (even though he wanted a tractor theme again), he even helped me decorate the cake!

And he got a new bike, which he is still learning how to pedal without suddenly putting on his brakes. We'll see how that works out.

3 years ago today....

I cannot believe that it's been 3 years since this little man made his entrance.

We've learned so much from him...and laughed until it hurt.

and learned that the most beautiful thing in the world is his smile :)

We also learned to laugh in situations like this:
and thought we were cool parents when we took him places like this:

I hope we didn't screw up too much Coop, sorry you had to be the practice child. You've been great! Happy 3rd Birthday!