Happy Valentine's Day!

Maverick's belly cord fell off today :) He'll get his first REAL bath tomorrow!



We've had a GREAT weekend, with lots of visitors and fun! I'll post some pictures :)

Big Foot & Little Foot

Look how much growing happens in 2 short years :)

Maverick's Photo Shoot

Maverick and I had a little photo shoot this morning. Isn't he the cutest? :)

I think you might see these reappear in his birth announcement...so just pretend you've never seen them! They are just too good not to post.

The little guy FINALLY slept on his own in the bassinet in our room last night (rather than in my arms), only waking every 3 hours to eat. It was REALLY nice to sleep in my own bed for the first time since the 31st; Maverick and I have been spending our nights in the recliner in the living room. Hopefully this is a trend he'd like to continue...I know I would!!!

Baa Baa Black Sheep

Mitchell LOVES to sing these days :) Baa Baa Black Sheep is one of his favorites! He leaves out a few lines, but it's cute nonetheless. Apparenly he doesn't want to give any of his wool to the master or his dame.

Mitchell funnies...

1. I don't think I posted this one over the holidays, but it's still one of my favorites. While they were visiting for Christmas, my step-dad asked "Mitchell, are you married?" Mitchell responded "No, I'm Joseph." :)

2. Before the coin flip on Sunday's Super Bowl, my dad asked Mitchell if he wanted Heads or Tails. Mitchell responded "I want Veggie Tales."

3. When he grew tired of me holding Maverick, Mitchell asked me to "Put Maverick on the floor and come play fast cars with me." I fulfilled half of his request. Maverick and I both went and played fast cars.

4. While riding with Grandma in the car last week, Mitchell offered up some unsolicited facts. "My Mommy's name is Mandi. My Daddy's name is Jacob." Jacob is not a fan of Mitchell calling him "Jacob" rather than "Daddy". I, however, think it's kind of cute and usually chuckle when I hear him do it...on second thought, maybe that's why Jacob is not a fan :)

Maverick's First Super Bowl

My Dad and Sherri joined us for Maverick's first Super Bowl. We took a cute picture of my Dad and Mitchell 2 years ago at Mitchell's first Super Bowl, so we did the same for Maverick. Who says there are never as many pictures of the 2nd child? :)

My Dad and Maverick - 2010

My Dad and Mitchell - 2008 (yes, he purposely wore the same shirt)

Here is how Maverick spent the majority of the exciting game! :)


The little guy is super spoiled and doesn't like to be put down (which is going to be interesting this week without my mom's hands around!). Mitchell even took his turn holding his baby brother.

The Folks men & Maverick's first bathtime

I'm surrounded by Folks men....and I love it :)



Brotherly love


Maverick had his first bath at home the other night! As you likely suspected, he was not a fan :( I'm sure they will grow on him, as they did his big brother! Here is a link to Mitchell's first at-home picture.

Our pediatrician always recommends keeping newborns indoors and away from crowds for the first six weeks, especially during cold & flu season. I think Maverick will be quite content with that plan, but I think Mitchell and I are already getting cabin fever! Mitchell will go to school the next few weeks, so I'm looking forward to some bonding time with our little man. :)

Many faces of Maverick since we've been home.

He's 5 days old today! We are really enjoying the little guy and things haven't been unmanageable largely due to my mom's help! What will I do next week?!?!? :)

Here are some of the many faces of little Maverick.


You're kidding me, right?

You know what's coming next!



Doesn't it look like there's a giggle under that hand? :)

Maverick's impersonation of popeye!

We're home!!!!

We're home from the hospital. I must admit the rest and relaxation of the hospital was kind of enjoyable, but we were anxious to get home to see Grandma and Big Brother Mitchell! Maverick was a little clingy during his first night at home, only wanting to sleep while being held, but we survived :)


We did it! :)



It looks like Daddy's already got a little admirer :)

Jacob has been SOOOOOO helpful the past few days. He's such a great husband and Daddy!

This carseat swallows me!

The new family of four.

Mitchell still isn't quite sure what he thinks about Baby Maverick. He is a little jealous of the attention the little guy is getting and seems to conveniently want "only Mommy" to read him books during feeding time, etc. He is very gentle with him though and likes to touch, kiss and tickle him. Maverick will grow on him!

Announcing the arrival of Maverick David Folks!

Our timely little fellow arrived on his due date! Maverick David Folks was born at 5:25pm today, January 31st. The big guy weighed in at 9 lbs, 2 oz, coincidentally the same birth weight as yours truly! He's 20 inches long, only a half an inch shorter than his brother's birth height. He has a full head of DARK BROWN hair and gorgeous baby blue eyes. Some claim his looks just like his big brother, excluding Mitchell signature red hair, but time will tell.

His delivery was 100 times easier than Mitchell's. My water broke at 4am and I was ready to begin pushing 12 hours later at 4pm. We waited an hour for the doctor and had our little beauty in our arms a few minutes later.

My Dad brought Mitchell up to the hospital to see his new little brother tonight and he wasn't quite sure what to think! At one point he said "He's cute!" At another point, he said "I don't want him." Oh, the struggles we are about to encounter :)

Why Maverick David, you ask? Our lucky little kiddo has 2 Grandpa's named Rick, one of which is my father. He has 3 Grandpa's/Great-Gpa's named David, one of which is Jacob's father. He will have such strong namesakes to live up to!

We feel VERY blessed to have another beautiful, healthy little boy! I look forward to posting some pictures when we get home from the hospital on Tuesday. Thanks to all for your encouragement along this pregnancy journey! We are so blessed to be surrounded by such caring friends and family.

Now I will try to get a half hour of shut eye before the nurse comes to prod on me and the baby is ready for his next feeding!

Turkey is done

Poor Mitchell wasn't feeling too well last night. He had a little bit of a fever and a blotchy red face to match :( Luckily, it was nothing a dose of Tylenol and some love from Daddy couldn't fix!


My turkey is done - that's right, my innie belly button has "popped" itself into an outie. I will spare you a picture, and would've spared you the fact in itself except for the funny conversation that came as a result.

As I was changing my shirt in front of Mitchell, he pointed to my belly button and asked "Mommy, what IS that?"

Thinking the answer was pretty clear, I responded "What do you think it is, Mitchell?"

Mitchell "A pee pee?"

Through a chuckle, I quickly ensured him "It's not a pee pee. It's my belly button."

After a few seconds of deep thought, he said "It is NOT a belly button."

Hopefully it'll be back to its normal state soon! :)

Baby update

We had our last scheduled doctor's appointment this afternoon. I remember when I made the appointment months ago thinking "oh, surely I'll have had the baby by then!" Unfortunately, I've made only slow progress this week.

Last week:
2 cm dilated
20% effaced

This week:
Barely 3 cm dilated
50% effaced

The baby still sounds great and is as active as ever. He hasn't dropped any lower than last week, so apparently he's happy as a clam in there. I would really like to give this fellow ample time to come on his own before inducing, so we scheduled an induction for the week after next. If he doesn't come on his own beforehand, we'll start the induction at 7am on Tuesday, February 9th. That seems like an ETERNITY to wait at this point! The doctor doesn't really think I'll make it that long, but he didn't think I'd make it this long either!!!

For the first time, the doctor predicted what he thinks the birth weight will be - 8 pounds, 4 ounces. Mitchell was 7 pounds, 10 ounces. We'll have to see if he's right!

There's a full moon on Saturday. I'm hoping the old wives tale works to draw this little guy out. :)

25 Months!

Mitchell is 25 months old today! He certainly is starting to have his "2" moments - temper tantrums and the like, but for the most part, he's a very happy, ACTIVE little boy :) He talks constantly and continues to amaze us with the things he says, remembers and comprehends.

We try not to let him watch too much TV, but do allow him to watch his favorite two shows now and then - "Dora the Explorer" and "Go, Diego, Go!". He LOVES them and will barely move his eyes from the screen when they are on.

We call this his "Dora stare".

He is also very into singing these days. Here is a little video of him singing his ABC's...I especially like the last line where he substitutes the "next time won't you sing with me" with "HIJKLMNOP" - I never realized it was the same tune :)

Mitchell continues to enjoy and thrive at school. He loves his teacher and his classmates. He is especially fond of one other little boy named Brady. Brady is 2 weeks younger than Mitchell and they are the best of friends :) We plan to keep him in school through February to allow me time to get accustomed to the new baby and then I'll keep him home with me in March and April. I plan to return to work at the beginning of May. Jacob will take his 2 months of paternity leave during May and June. We'll start both boys back in school/daycare after the 4th of July holiday (for which we plan to go to Maine again!) Mitchell will be 2 1/2 by then, so he'll be officially starting preschool - wow how times flies!

I went through this phase a month or two ago where I was for some odd reason saddened thinking about Mitchell having to share us with his little brother...but that quickly faded. Some say the best gift you can give a child is a sibling, and I certainly agree. I LOVED growing up with my sisters and can't wait for Mitchell and the new little guy to have the same bonding experience. I know my parents get much joy out of the fact that we continue to stay close friends. I don't have any memories of my life before my younger sister, Kelli entered the world...and I wouldn't wish it any other way. I know Mitchell will say the same thing some day.

All of that being said, I can't pretend that I haven't tucked Mitchell into bed each night this past week wondering if this is the last night that he'll be my one and only little boy. Luckily, between Grandpa Michel (my Dad) and Grandma Bays (my Mom), who will be watching Mitchell while we're in the hospital, Mitchell will be as spoiled as ever :)

Mitchell - Happy 25 months! This next month is going to be a big month for all of us! You are going to be such a great big brother! We couldn't pick a better role model for your little bro. The love and joy you have brought to our lives inspired us to want to have another child. I think that is why we were so excited to learn that we were having not only another child, but another boy! We realize he won't be a carbon copy of you, for you are unique and special, but we're hoping he'll pick up some of your most endearing traits. Please be easy on the little guy because he's got some big shoes to fill!

Love - Mommy & Daddy

Time on my hands...

As you can see, I've got some time on my hands while continuing to wait on this little guy.

5 days left and counting...

Passing the time

So the weekend has come and gone with no baby yet! Just what did we do to pass the time, you ask?


We made a snowman with our remaining snow pile. When we finished him, Mitchell said "We need to make him a baby brother." I guess I'm not the only one with his baby brother on the brain :)




We practiced Fu Manchu mustaches with chocolate pudding, which Mitchell pronounces "poo-DING".



We painted our upstairs bathroom - a project we've been putting off for months. As always Mitchell was lots of help! :)

I think I've got less than 10 things on my "would love to complete before baby arrives" list (and none of them are crucial), so I give him permission to come anytime now! Hint, hint :)

Baby Update

I had my 39 week appointment at the doctor yesterday. Things are slowly progressing - dilated 2 centimeters this time and 20% effaced. We've still got a long way to go. It certainly could be another week or so, but we'll just have to see! We're waiting patiently as the days tick by towards the 1/31 due date. We'd really like this one to come on his own vs. being induced (like I was with Mitchell). The doctor said he'd let us go up to 42 weeks, but we're hopeful that we won't need that extra time....although that would make him a Valentine's Day baby :)

Sharing

Isn't it strange how both pets eagerly watch Mitchell at mealtime? It surely can't be because they are hoping to get a scrap, can it? Maybe all of this "sharing" with the pets will help prepare him to share with his little brother! :)

Here are some funnies that Mitchell has said about his baby brother lately:

As he is sitting on the couch eating a cracker "Baby Brother is going to share my crackers."

As he is laying in bed "Baby Brother is going to sleep with me."

In the car "Baby Brother is going to ride in the car with me"

and my personal favorite....

When I asked him if Baby Brother would be big or little "Little. And I have to be very careful with him!"

No blog worthy news yet! We're taking a day at a time, hoping to have some exciting baby news to share sooner rather than later! The hospital bag is packed, infant car seats are in the cars, the nursery is Mitchell-free and ready for the new little one - we're just waiting for him to decide to make an entrance! I'll post an update after Thursday's doctor's appointment.

38 Weeks

38 Weeks

Two weeks to go - whoo hoo! We had our 38 week check up and the little guy is still in the right position! I guess we just needed to be a little more patient with him! I'm dilated to 1 centimeter, which is MUCH more than last time! With Mitchell, I was finally induced a week over due. I checked in the evening of December 26th to receive some cervidil and started pitocin at 5am on the 27th. As of noon on the 27th, I still was only dilated 1/2 centimeter (he wasn't budging!) Luckily things progressed nicely through the afternoon and he was finally born at 9:57pm. Hopefully this little guy will come on his own! :)

The doctor said that if he had to guess, he'd guess that I will not make it to my due date (Jan 31st), but thinks it'll at least be another week. E&Y gives us 2 weeks off prior to our due dates, so my last day of work was YESTERDAY! Although I'm anxious for his arrival, I could use a little time to rest, relax and make some last minute preparations! We still get 12 weeks off from his birthday, so I'll be off somewhere between 12 and 14 weeks. Sounds like a nice winter/spring to me!

An Angel Gets Her Wings

My beautiful friend, Amy lost her battle with breast cancer today. She and I have gone to school together through junior high, high school and college. We shared lots of fun times, but especially bonded in 2007 when we had our boys. Harrison is a few months older than Mitchell. She fought a long, hard battle starting back in July of 2008 and we thought she had it beat numerous times just to continue to have the cancer resurface in other places. :( Her friends and family have spent lots of time at her bedside the past 5 days as the nurses predicted each of the days to be her last. I am very comforted to have watched her family feel very peaceful about her passing. Amy has had a strong group of friends by her side through this struggle, including our close-knit group of high school friends. We have supported each other through some unthinkable things through the years, but never imagined we'd support ourselves through the death of one of our own this early in life.

Each of the last few days, we've been beckoned to Amy's side for what they have been predicted to be her final breaths, but I knew today's call was different. When I left Amy's late last night, I knew that I was telling her my final goodbye. Instead of rushing to her bedside again today, I did what I knew Amy would've suggested. I picked Mitchell up early from daycare and brought him straight home to cuddle on the couch and read him book after book until he was smoothered from my kisses. I called Jacob to remind him how much I loved him and invited my only in town family member (Dad) to come spend some quality time with us.

I did venture over to Amy's later this evening to help prepare things for her memorial service. It's been an emotional week and I think all are looking forward to have a little closure after Monday's service.

Amy was a sassy gal, never afraid to speak her mind! I can't think of a better advocate to have in heaven - what a beautiful angel she will make :)

Frosty the Snowman

Mitchell loves singing lately! His favorites seem to be "Frosty the Snowman" and "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer", although "The Itsy, Bitsy Spider" would be a close runner up! He likes to take turns singing then he demands that I sing and then Daddy sings. Fun times :)

He is sleeping in his big boy bed like a champ these days. He has literally all but forgotten about his crib. He stays in there all night and even stays in it and reads himself some books when he wakes up in the morning. Yesterday, I heard him rustling around on the monitor, so I poked my head in only to hear "Mommy, go back downstairs. I'm reading my books." Well, okay - you don't have to ask me twice to go back to bed! :)

He's a gymnast!

I reported to the Labor & Delivery unit this morning at 7AM for our external version procedure. Every once in a while this procedure can actually put you into labor, so they check you in as a patient just in case. The last step in the process was to hook up the ultrasound to check on the baby and what did we discover???? He was already head down!

Apparently he flipped between Thursday afternoon and Monday morning, but I have no idea when...nor do I really care at this point :) We will go back again on Thursday for our 38 week check-up and make sure he's still head down. I sure am relieved!

37 Weeks


Now we're back to playing the waiting game to see when the little gymnast arrives!

Stubborn Baby

We had an ultrasound at yesterday's doctor's appointment to confirm our suspicion - the baby is breech. :( He looked very cute and comfy in there, but he doesn't appear to want to come out! We are scheduling the external version procedure for Monday in hopes that our Doctor can get him to turn.

If he doesn't turn, we'll schedule a c-section for the week of January 25th.

If he does turn, we'll patiently await his arrival!

Kaleidoscope with Kate

We joined our friends and their adorable daughter (Kate - 2 1/2) for a trip to Crown Center's Kaleidoscope. They both enjoyed the crafts, although we steered them clear of the painting area! We enjoyed catching up with old friends and meeting their newest daughter, Kelsey.

Mitchell is successfully transitioned into his big boy bed now! Yeah! We haven't heard the pitter patter of little footsteps into our room for a few nights now and he has quit beckoning us up to his bed at all hours of the night. Uninterupted sleep, what a beautiful thing!

Here is a short conversation we overheard Mitchell saying over the monitor the other night....
"Superman!" "Super Mitchell!" "Super Me!"
How funny :)

The new baby is as active as ever, and with 3 1/2 weeks remaining until his due date, I can only hope that he's kicking himself into his arrival position! We'll see! I'll update you after Thursday's appt.

Happy 2010!

Two exciting happenings since entering the new year:

1. I can finally say that I'm due THIS YEAR AND THIS MONTH when posed with the question no less than 10 times per day! Four weeks from today...not that I'm counting! Now we just need to coerce the little guy to get into the right position! At 34 weeks, he was still laying sideways across my tummy. I have my next appt on Thursday and am fairly convinced he hasn't budged, so I think they will do ECV (external version) to try and turn him into place. Sure hoping he decides to turn on his own before Thursday!

2. Mitchell has slept in his big boy bed for 3 nights now :) He napped it in yesterday too. It certainly takes a bit more time & patience to get him down, but he seems to be getting used to it. It is particularly worrisome for us because his room is upstairs and our room is downstairs and the first 2 nights he wandered down the stairs in the middle of the night by himself into our room to inform us "Mommy, Daddy...I'm awake" at about 3am. The first night he demanded to go back to sleep in his crib rather than his big boy bed. The second night he finally went back to sleep in his new bed after convincing him that all of his toys were sleeping :) Last night, he didn't come down to our room at all! He did summons me up to his room 3 separate times though. I guess this is the practice that I need for the sleepless nights to come! :)

We have been spending our recent days off working on the house doing those nagging house projects that have been on our list for months. Here's a bare bummed Mitchell helping Daddy with one of his projects. :)