Birthday Wish and Preston Update

First, I want send out a Happy Birthday to my sweet sister, Tracey! I hope you are having a terrific day!

Second, here is another Preston update: Since Peyton's arrival, we have been trying to give Preston some special time with daddy or some other friends. Last week, Poppa (Steven's Dad) took Preston to the Zoo for the morning so that Steven and I could 'try' to sleep. The weather that day was beautiful which made for a great day at the Zoo. Here are few pictures that Poppa sent me and I couldn't help but post them. Thank you, Poppa, for caring for Preston and our family that day.This photo was taken the day Peyton was born. Preston spent time out at Grammie and Poppa's house and they had a picnic lunch that day. Thank you, Grammie.

Sweet

I just love taking pictures of our little girl. Here is another one I thought I would share. Now, time to take a nap.

Great Grandma's Bag

This morning I pulled out my Grandma's bag from a bin in the basement. I have been holding on to this bag for years hoping that I could either use it myself or make use of it in some photos. Today, the bag came in very handy for a fun photo shoot with our little girl. Oh yes, my Grandma's name was Mildred Louise Sullivan Denton. Peyton acquired her middle name from this lovely lady and her family. I love and miss you, Grandma.

Today is better than Friday

I love my son. He is a curious, intuitive, intelligent and energetic little boy. As you can see from the photos he loves playing outside or with his trains inside.

He will also smile most willingly for the camera (a photographer mom's delight)

I love our time together reading books, playing with trains and exploring outside. Since the arrival of our little girl, I also love snuggling with her and taking care of her. I look forward to doing many fun activities with her as well. While I cannot give focused attention to both kids at the same time, this has already created some competition for 'time with mommy'.

I enjoy posting pictures and random items about our family life on our blog. Sometimes I wonder if people think that our life is happy and wonderful all the time. Sure, our pictures are cute and we have a lot of fun together, but our life is far from perfect and happy all the time.

I want to take a moment to share about my experience with Preston on Friday evening. Friday was rough. Steven had to leave to meet with a friend for a bit and I was left to take care of the house and kids. It was only going to be 2 hours...not that bad...I can handle this...what could go wrong... What ended up happening was a bit of a mommy and Preston melt down. The first hour went well. Preston played with his toys, I read him some books, I fed Peyton, I snuggled with her, etc... As dinner approached, and our hunger increased, things started to melt down at the Dalbey home. I had to feed Peyton again and Preston decided that it would be OK to take a pillow and try to hit me and his sister on the head - not cool. He also decided to take some packaging and tear it up into many little pieces. In general, Preston was upset, disobedient and would not listen. I tried to remain calm. I tried to speak gently with him. I tried to ask him nicely to listen. I tried putting him in time out. After a while, I just lost it. I raised my voice to him and it scared him. It also scared me. I had vowed never to yell at my kids and just because I was tired and wanted Steven home, I took it out on my son. This was not a good moment.

What happened next was that we both started crying. I was crying because I was upset at myself. I think Preston was crying because I scared him. I held Preston in my arms and apologized to him for not speaking gently with him. I told him I loved him and asked for his forgiveness. He forgave me and the last 15 minutes of our time together went well. To be honest, I think the poor kid was hungry and I was simply exhausted. I am learning that life adjusting to two children is hard. I am also learning how to help my son adjust to all the changes that have taken place in his life the past week. All things considered, he is probably doing very well for a 2 and half year old. I continue to make extra efforts to extend grace to myself and plan special time for Preston and I to be together. I want to remind him that I love him despite the changes in his life. Here is a picture of some time we spent together this morning playing. So, today is better than Friday and I hope that each day continues to improve.

First Bath

We gave Peyton her first bath yesterday. At first, the girl did not like the bath one bit. Notice the arms out to the side as if to say 'get me out of here'.

Daddy continued to wash her tummy, arms, legs and hair and she started to settle down a bit.

By the end of the bath we think she was ok, but still wanted out.

We think she prefers to be wrapped up in a blanket and nice and warm. Who would blame her - I like the same thing.

Notice the two Giraffe's in her bed. We decided to make this her toy of choice and buy an extra one just in case. We know how much Preston loves Mr. Frog and thought Peyton might like Ms. Giraffe. I noticed her reaching for Ms. Giraffe this morning so I think we are off to a good start.

Spring?

I love Spring. A few days ago I was enjoying the look of green grass in my front yard, my forsythia bush looking happy yellow, the beautiful daffodils blooming and other spring items. Here are a couple photos.

I was at Walmart the other day picking up a few items and even pondered buying some flowers for the 2 pots on our front porch. Well, I am glad I didn't buy and plant any flowers because this is what I saw outside my window this morning.

Snow! Are you serious? This wasn't predicted...no one even mentioned a chance of snow. I thought it was going to slightly cool down to about 50 degrees compared to the 70 degrees we have been enjoying the past few days. Whatever. I guess I will just have to wait a little longer for spring to take hold of our area. In the meantime, I will enjoy this little bundle of love and warmth!

Singing

Today we had some singing time at the Dalbey house. Preston loves music and we wanted to sing to little Peyton while she was awake. We continue to have some sweet time at home together. Here is Preston helping daddy play the guitar.

Here is little Peyton listening to daddy and Preston's music.

Dalbey Four at Home

Here are just a few pictures of our time here at home the past few days as the Dalbey Four.

We feel loved from our visitors

Since Peyton has been born we have welcomed many family members and friends who have come to visit. We are so thankful to have such wonderful people in our life and we appreciate all their love, kindness and support. Here are a few photos of our visitors.

Here is Aunt Tracey

Miss Carolyn

Miss Sarah, Margaret and Kaylie

Miss Maggie and Anna

Cousins Ben and Erin

While we have had many more visitors, these are just the ones I remembered to snap a photo at the time. Again, thank you.

Preston Update

While most of our attention has been focused on Peyton, we are made extra efforts to make sure Preston feels special and loved. We have been giving him special 'mommy' or 'daddy' time throughout the day to help in the midst of the transition. I think he is doing well...as well as any 2 1/2 year old would be doing with a new addition to the family. Steven took Preston for a bike ride yesterday and today and has plans to go to the sky zone. I took Preston to Trader Joe's today and has plans to take him to a park on Friday. We have also been reading a lot of books, making up many new stories and enjoying many family dinners together. Overall, I think we are all enjoying a little more time together.

4 days

Peyton is 4 days old and doing very well. She is sleeping and nursing very well, takes great photos and is a joy to everyone. Preston continues to love his little sister and wants to see her/look at her all the time. He also talks about her all the time. I will post more on his response to the baby soon.

I have been thinking... I think God knew that I needed an 'easier' baby after all the stress in my life the past 6 months. No, my stress was not due to my pregnancy but other things. I am truly thankful for this little blessing in my life as she reminds me of how beautiful and sweet life can truly be. Well, thats all for now.

As always, enjoy the photo. Notice how she is holding up 4 fingers!

Good Morning

The Dalbey Four are doing well and having a nice morning at home together.

First Photo Shoot

Preston Meeting Peyton

It was a very sweet moment to watch Preston meet his new sister, Peyton. He was very sweet and very excited. While his attention to his sister didn't last long, we captured some sweet photos and look forward to watching them grow closer over time. We are confident that Preston loves his little sister.

Here is Preston spending a little time with mommy before meeting his sister.

Here is Mommy introducing Preston to little Peyton.

As you can see, Preston was very gentle and sweet.

Daddy stepped in to look at Peyton too.

Peyton gave Preston a sweet gift - Huckle Cat and Lowly Worm from the Richard Scary books.

I am sure we will post a family photo soon :)

Peyton's Story

Here is Peyton's Birth Story: I started having contractions on Wednesday morning and throughout the day. They felt, lets just say, yucky. I went home from work around 4pm and started having contractions that hurt around 6pm. Thankfully, Preston was with Steven's mom that day and she decided to keep him at her house. This was a wise decision because my contractions continued into the night. At 3:30am on Thursday morning, we finally decided to head to the hospital b/c my contractions were 8-10 min apart and they really hurt. They admitted me to the hospital because I was 4cm dilated and progressing in labor. Thank goodness for the epidural! I continued to dilate to 6cm and then my water broke around 6am. My labor started to slow down so they gave me a little pitocin around 8am. I quickly, very quickly, fully dilated. I could feel the baby move down and told the nurse I thought I was ready. After a quick check I was indeed ready to go. This was at 9:15am. I started pushing around 9:40am and Peyton was born at 10:15am. Yeah for a St. Patrick's Day baby! I am so thankful for a quick labor and a peaceful hospital environment. Our time here has been going very well. Here are a few photos. This is me at 3:30am. I am exhausted and in pain.

Here is mommy and Peyton soon after she was born.

Here she is all bundled up and with her cute hat :)

Grammie stopped in to say hi and meet here newest Granddaughter.

Here is a happy mommy and daddy with our little girl.

We continue to love getting to know our little girl and spending time together. Preston also met his little sister yesterday. He was and is very excited. I will post photos in just a bit.

Peyton Sullivan Dalbey

Peyton Sullivan Dalbey was born this morning at 10:15am. She weighed 7lbs and is 20 inches long. She is super sweet and we are in love with her. Here is a photo from earlier today and more photos will be posted soon. We are thankful for everyone's love and prayers.

Family

This may be our last Dalbey Trio Family photo before we become the Dalbey Four. Thank you, Kaylie, for yet another excellent photograph. We will continue to keep you updated on Peyton's arrival.