It's a MIRACLE

The miracle is two fold...we are all still alive and well (what, isn't life a miracle when you really think about it...mmhm) and I am BLOGGING!! I didn't know if I ever would again.  Not that I don't like to blog...right now in fact I am thinking oh I missed that wri ting voice in my head...I haven't hear her for awhile and she is kinda fun. Its that all the fast easy social networks have taken over my blogging needs...kinda.  Intagram is so INSTA and it feels like I am keeping track of things kinda...I'm not so great at documenting our life.  Its mostly pics of my girls playing on the kindle or of me holding Juliet while she nurses or naps, because well...it's pretty much our life.  And I usually enjoy it.  At least I'm honest. Juliet is at a really cute and really exhausting stage right now...aren't they always!?  She is 10 months and the sweetest faced little hairy morsel of cuteness. We adore her.  She is on the move and as squirmy as the come!!!  She is crawling, standing and trying to choke on everything and shock herself and get her hands in the to9ilet.  She is a little stinker and its a dang good thing she is CUTE.  She gives the most adorable slobbery kisses and bonks and I swear she says "baby" and "mama" and "dada" but its still debate-able. Scarlet is grown up girl but still my baby girl and will let me steal her form her imaginary grown up life for some snuggle time.  She loves school and it thrills me to see all that she is learning and to hear her read and figure things out is awesome.  Rosie is a fireball that keeps us grinning.  She can be the sweetest little thing and the next minute a little stinker.  She is clever and full of ideas and questions and you never know what to expect from her 3 and a half year old brain. I cut my hair and dyed it platinum and love it.  I might go shorter for fun...why not.  I tore my mcl a few months back but its doing much better so I am back to soccer HALLELUJAH!! Dave is still doing his thang but has decided we need to relocate to Hawaii. I am on board.  Oh and we have a new house. so there it is.  Summing up the past 9 months nothing to it! some pics for dessert...I think yes.

Picture party

Juliet's blessing day.  We were able to sneak a quick photo shoot with Dave's sister Shelly before we left for church.

We love this kindergartener.  Scarlet is loving school and is learning so much. She writes all her letters and getting really good at reading!!  Its so fun to see how much she is learning.  We went to her parent teacher conference and she is doing great, she is way ahead on her writing and right on with everything else. The only thing her teacher said needs work is for her to stop chatting to her neighbors.:) I feel ya Scarlet. I'm pretty sure that was my biggest challenge in school...until MATH came along! Our three girls are just as fun as ever. Juliet is 3 1/2 months old and doing really great.  She is full of smiles, drool, and jabber.  She is 13lbs and we are just Crrrrazzy about her.  She is so alert and has to look around with her big wide open eyes trying to get it all figured out.  We are all enamored by her and can't believe there was ever a time we didn't have her here in our home!

catch up time...

 New baby, 3rd b day...and life in between. It has been a wild month.  Juliet Pearl St.Julien joined the crew on my birthday, June 15th. It was the most memorable b day yet, to be sure!!  The birth was amazing.  In short I woke up feeling contractions around 3:30 in the morning.  We weren't convinced it was labor because the contractions were super close together...we decided it had to be the real deal and headed to the hospital around 5.  By the time we got to the hospital I was in serious pain!!  They took me into the admitting room and I was dilated to a five.  Which was NOT what I was wanting to hear.   I was sure all that pain was doing ALOT more than one centimeter of progress.  Thoughts of ACTUALLY going natural were quickly dissipating. I started panicking and yelling all sorts of crazy things.  I was desperately trying to convince everyone I couldn't do this, I was begging Dave to forget everything we had decided and get me that DANG epidural NOW!!!  He was trying his best to decide if he should listen to the pre laboring wife or the screaming wild animal in front of him.  Then my water broke and some how we made it to the delivery room and I was all kinds of CRAZY.  I was still only dilated to a 6 but I was feeling the urge to push sooo strong. So I did and my midwife luckily made it there in time to give me the go ahead to push.  I was STILL begging for drugs and the nurses finally said "If you get an epidural it will be at least 10 contractions before you feel it, and chances are that baby will be here before you feel any relief."  NOT what I wanted to hear, but at that point I realized I was gonna do this thing whether I wanted to or not.  And I didn't want to anymore!!!  

I had all these visions of how my labor would proceed.  In my minds eye I was walking around calmly with Dave trying the different positions we researched to reduce pain .  I pictured getting in the tub, or sitting on the birthing ball.  In my mind the pain would be there but it would be manageable.  BOY was I WRONG!!  All I was able to do was grip that side bar on the hospital bed and scream like the dickens!!  I didn't have to push for long...it felt like longer than it was. And there were a few times I really honestly thought "this is too much,  I will NOT do this anymore!! I am going to reach down, push that babies head back up and GO HOME!!!!"  But instead I pushed harder. Somehow, I did it. That dark head finally came out and I have never been more relieved of ANYTHING in my life. I don't know that I felt that feeling some people talk about, of like a euphoria.  Mine was exhaustion and RELIEF!!! 

Juliet was born at 6:30am, three of the longest most memorable hours of my life. It was fast and furious, but thankfully she was a healthy 7 lb wonder.  We were in love immediately.  We are still baffled by this mop of dark hair.  She didn't have a name for the first day, we were trying Juliet on for size.  The next day we figured it was as good a name as any and she would grow into it.  We decide on Pearl for her middle name because it's the June birthstone.  Our girls are smitten with her and we are excited to get to know her as she grows.  Looking back at the birth experience, the further away I get the more fond I feel about it all.  I am glad everything went the way it did.  Dave and I laugh at how loud I was yelling and how I literally screamed so hard that after things had calmed down my guts hurt.  That's what screaming your guts out feels like. I don't know that I will try going unmedicated again, Dave will tell you NO WAY.  But I am undecided.  I am glad I know what it feels like.  And I am glad Juliet is here and healthy. Welcome little lady...

   

Rosie turned three!! We are crazy about our three year old.  She is just the best.  We get such a kick out of this girl.  She is still just so funny and unpredictable.  She is so intense one minute then sweet and loving the next.  I don't know that there is a cuter face in this world!!  I just stare at her face and those green eyes and dimples and I am enamored!  She is no angel but we love every single bit of her and are so glad she is part of our family.  She just adores Scarlet and lately they will just play and play together in their little make believe world.  It's the BEST.  There are so many things Rosie says and does. I wish I could capture them all and remember everything.  But I don't think I will be able to at the moment. We love you Rose bud!!

 Thanks to everyone who came!  Special Thanks to Katie and Dustin for bringing the whopper hopper!! And for the great photos of the party and of Juliet.  (all the fancy pretty pics are from Katie, the dark boring ones are all me.)