happy birthday jenna!

After several delays and an anesthesiologist who mistook me for a pin cushion, we finally got the show on the road and Miss Jenna Marie Campbell joined us at 3:28 pm. She weighed 7 pounds, 7.8 ounces and measured 19.5 inches.

She looks very similar to the way Tyler did but she is much smaller, blonde and has very long slender fingers and toes. Her ears are also much more petite and her mouth and chin look similar to mine as a baby.

She's been a great breastfeeder from the start and has such a sweet and pensive personality. Oh, and at delivery we discovered she was head down. Figures! We didn't check prior to surgery.

one day to go

Jenna is scheduled to arrive tomorrow. I can hardly believe the time has come. The entire family is excited. Tyler says, "I so ess-cited! Mommy, clap your hands!" I'm both excited and a tad nervous to see how he will respond to seeing Mommy in the hospital and having a new sibling. To ensure that he is not overshadowed by the attention going to his baby sister, he will soon receive a bike as a big brother gift!

2 1/2 already

What a big boy! At 2 and a half years, Tyler is full of stories; he's a comedian; he's a good helper; and he's a curious and happy boy. He loves to help put the groceries away and he scoops up the plastic bags and rushes them into the hall closet organizer. He'll rush back and yell, "I did it!"

39 weeks, 1 day

Four days until D-day!

mother's day

This was a really special Mother's Day. In addition to Jenna's upcoming arrival (less than a week away), Tyler understood the holiday and gave me lots of hugs. He and Daddy also came up with some great surprises. Not only did I get a pretty birthstone necklace, but Tyler picked out a frame for me, with Daddy's assistance, and painted it all by himself. Love it!

silly Tyler

This is Tyler helping me organize Jenna's room and taking a closer look at a few items from his past.

sprinkle

My friends threw me a "surprise" shower (a.k.a. a sprinkle for a second child) today. What a treat! Good food, good times and good friends. Thank you so much to all of my friends for helping me celebrate Jenna's near arrival.

cool dude

Look mommy, I have your sunglasses!

montana grizzlies

Alex returned from visiting the Univ. of Montana for work. He said everyone there was SO friendly and his rapport with his potential clients was so positive that upon returning from a break, a gentleman gave Alex a toy bear for Tyler! Can you imagine, how absolutely thoughtful?!!

sorry jenna

There have been a few times when Tyler gets overly excited and accidentally kicks my belly. I've paused and told him that he cannot kick my belly and without skipping a beat he says, "Sorry Jenna!"

smanuth

My dad always used the word "smanuth" to indicate a spill. It may be one of several Welsh words he used - but regardless it became ingrained in my vocabulary. I was so proud at dinner when Tyler spilled some applesauce and pointed it out with a clear, "smanuth!" So cute!

set a date

Baby Jenna has adjusted herself into a breech position again after weeks head down (an amazing feat since I'm over 38 weeks and there can't be a lot of room in there). I didn't feel her rotate this time, so she must have done it in my sleep. But I did notice that between this weekend and Monday morning, the kicks moved south.

So we scheduled a cesarean section for Friday, May 15 at Howard County General Hospital! After scheduling it, I found out that my grandmother's birthday was May 14 (Jenna's middle name, Marie, came from her). Happy coincidence.

more room prep

I spent some time this weekend painting and organizing details for Jenna's room. The vine artwork was a design from some wallpaper that was in the background of a photo in a magazine. I recreated it and then added a big J in the center just above her bed. And the bears are back from Tyler's nursery!

may day

The beginning of May was marked by the downpour of cherry blossoms from our frontyard tree. Each year Jenna's birthday will be ushered in by the pink flowers - a nice way to celebrate our baby girl! (until they are tracked into the house and turn brown)

potty try

Tyler sat on the potty at daycare today and waited for a pending poop. He commentated, "Not coming... not coming." So no luck on pooping on the pot, but I was amazed he even tried it since he rarely shows any interest in potty activities. Ms. Debbie agreed he wasn't quite ready for potty training which I am not even entertaining the idea of until we are set with our new routine with a new baby in the house.

hitting no no

While huddled with his playmates at daycare waiting for the mommies and daddies, Tyler hit his buddy. According to Ms. Debbie, Tyler's most feared punishment is being separated from his buddies. So when I arrived he was seated on the other side of Ms. Debbie and his eyes were red and still welling with tears. Thankfully, Tyler is very good about apologizing and has not continued the bad practice!

filling daddy's shoes (uh, shirt)

Alex bought some new shirts and Tyler was so pleased to model them! Maybe a tad big.

drink my finger

Sometimes moms just gotta use what they have on hand to solve some of the most simple, but sticky, situations. In a bind I've sucked on Tyler's fingers to rid them of stickiness when we didn't have a sink or wipes nearby.

This evening I gave Tyler a lollipop for dessert. When finished I was inspecting his fingers to make sure the sugary concoction remained in his mouth rather than on his hands. I'm sure referencing the finger-licking practice, Tyler offered his finger and said, "Drink it!" Better than "pull my finger," right?

creative truck

Tyler has a MegaBloks dump truck that he was pushing around. At a certain point he opened his MegaBlok bag and pulled out a red block and affixed it to the top of the dump truck. Then he pointed out to me that his dump truck was now a FIRE TRUCK and fire truck noises ensued!

sing song

Tyler loves to sing songs. Recently he has started with "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star," "Happy Birthday," and "Turn Around." Not sure where he got that last one!