Improvising

There aren't many places in our house where Trenton can't reach the baby. We're having to get creative around here!

Dear Mom, do you want to come back? :)

Um, Mom, now I miss you even more. It's 4:30am and I have not gotten more than 15 minutes of consecutive sleep yet. Chase is determined tonight! How is a girl supposed to care for an 18-month-old and a 1-week-old on ZERO sleep?

Sorry to vent, but I actually feel a teeny bit better now. Right now I'm going to go lay my sleeping little one down and pray that he stays asleep for more than 10 minutes out of my arms. Bye!

We Owe You, Mom!

Today was my first day alone with the boys. Scary! All in all, I'd say it went better than I was expecting. My mom left this morning after spending a week with us. I cannot describe what a lifesaver she was. She basically took over being Trenton's mom for a week, which is no small job in itself. But add to that making daily delicious meals, stocking the fridge to feed a small army, scrubbing both bathrooms, vacuuming daily, and taking night shifts with Chase—she was indispensable! Because of the night shifts she took, she and I basically got the same amount of sleep each night. I kept telling her SHE needed to rest, or at least seriously crash when she gets home, and she kept reminding me that she was here for the "sprint" and I'm in it for the "marathon." Can't argue with that!

Thank you, Mom! Trenton kept looking around for you today. We miss you already!

The Boys

Here I am, blogging at 3am. Gotta love it.

"Baby Trenton" looks like a giant now compared to Baby Chase! The big brother is doing well so far with all the changes. He can already say Chase's name ("Shees") and point to his little brother when we ask him where Chase is.


As I was changing Chase's diaper today, Trenton decided he needed to be right up next to him on the couch. When Chase started crying, Trenton grabbed the baby's pacifier and started sticking it in Chase's mouth. I'm pretty impressed that he hasn't been trying to steal the pacifier for himself! What a sweet big brother!

We love these boys!

The Birth Story

Without further adieu, the birth story. (Hopefully this isn't too much information!)

My water broke Thursday morning at 1:15am. With Trenton my water broke 11 days early (and he arrived two days later); with Chase, my water broke 15 days early. I can hardly imagine what it would be like to make it to a due date! :)

We called the doctor and decided to wait at home to see if contractions started. At 7 we dropped Trenton off with my wonderful, amazing friend Holly, who has a daughter just three months older than him.

We arrived at the hospital around 7:30am, started pitocin around 1:15pm, and delivered the baby at 6:44pm. My one regret is that I wasn't more insistent about getting the epidural earlier. My doctor always told me to request it whenever I was in pain. However, he wasn't there—my nurse was. She apparently was more of a naturalist than I am and kept encouraging me to try to wait a little longer. (Blech!) By the time we convinced her to call my doctor, he said, "Is she in pain? Get her that epidural!" Thank you! Chase arrived smoothly about 45 minutes later, and suddenly every minute was well worth it.



It took us a couple of hours after his birth to decide on his name. While in labor, we wrote our list of potential names on the white board and spent the day experimenting with the names and slowly narrowing it down. Once he came, we held him, studied him, and started crossing names off. Before long, we knew his name should be Chase. Kenneth (the middle name) is Ryan's grandpa's name, and he married us in the Salt Lake City temple. (In case you were wondering, the other contenders for the first name included Tucker, Talmage, Asher, and Jonah.)

So far, things are going well. The first week is a crazy time, full of emotions, fatigue, and incredible love! I don't know how I'd do it without my whirlwind of a mother here to help. Thank you, Mom!

Welcome to the World, Chase!

We're happy to announce the birth of Chase Kenneth Nielsen, Thursday, February 18th at 6:44pm. He weighs 6 pounds, 15 ounces, has a head of fuzzy brown hair, and loves to be cuddled. Wish us luck in the next few days! More to come...

Water Boy

Trenton is obsessed with water. Our sinks are becoming a real problem for us. (The perpetual puddle by our car is another problem for us.) He is constantly begging to be up beside the sink, playing in the stream of water from the faucet. I let him play to his heart's content while I work in the kitchen, but just this morning his daddy let him get a little taste of the bathroom sink. Oh boy.


But on a long, rainy afternoon, when we're trapped in the house, I can't say I mind too much. Right now I especially don't mind that we don't pay for our water. :)

Sorry, Environment. Don't worry, though. His attention span is pretty short.

Cold Turkey

We're going cold turkey with the pacifier! For the majority, Trenton has just used it for sleeping, but it has also sometimes been a (beloved) crutch for me when he's freaking out in the car or stroller. If I had gotten rid of it a month ago, he probably would barely have noticed it, but since then, I've noticed him getting more attached to it, so I knew it was time to say audios.


I consider this an experiment, and I won't be too hard on myself if we fail. A part of me wonders if keeping the pacifier for a few more months would help Trenton get through the first few months with a new baby in his room. Plus, he might get jealous when the baby gets a pacifier and he doesn't. But for now, I figure it can't hurt to try.

He was a bit lost without it yesterday, pawing through my diaper bag looking for one, and freaking out every now and then for no reason at all. But today he hardly seemed to notice. He was a delight today; it was the kind of day we mothers rely on. Just keep your fingers crossed that the cold-turkey success continues!