Citizen of the Month

We were SO proud when Tuttle came home on Friday with an "Ashford Park Citizen of the Month" button pinned to his shirt! I texted his teacher to get more details, and she explained that one student is chosen each month from each homeroom to get the honor. These students always work hard at school and are a friend to all. Jay and I are thrilled that the teachers appreciate what we see everyday at home. :)

As part of the honor, Tuttle received a certificate for a free kid's meal at Newk's, so we enjoyed lunch there today. Way to go, Tuttle!

And just because this might be my new favorite picture...

We have the best kids.

One-On-One

I can tell how our lives are going to be much busier with three babies vs. two, so it is already very clear to me that one on one time with Tuttle and Maggie is super important. Daddy was able to take Tuttle to see the new Star Wars movie on Friday evening while Maggie and I spent a little girl time getting our nails done on Sunday afternoon. 

Maggie has been requesting to go to the nail salon for weeks now. I do not blame her- getting pampered is always nice. :) Everyone is always very impressed how patient and still Maggie is during our visit. I explain that Maggie got her first pedicure on her first birthday. She is a pro now!

We made it to church on Sunday! I was extremely proud of this accomplishment, especially since I tackled all three kids during the service by myself. Tuttle and Maggie decided they wanted to go to "big church."

Unfortunately the weekend seemed to catch up to Tuttle by Sunday. He took a nap (which never happens!) and was running a low grade fever. I decided to keep him home from school on Monday just to be on the safe side. Honestly I enjoyed having him home. After taking Maggie to preschool, we spent three hours chatting and playing. I rarely only have Tuttle with me. (Jacob was present, but he was sleeping 90% of the time!)

I think all my years keeping three kids through my nanny jobs have paid off. 

The transition has been pretty easy. I know. Famous last words. :) 

My Favorite Pictures (And People!)

We have successfully and happily made it through a week at home with a newborn. Jacob, or as Daddy likes to call him "Get Along Jacob," fits right into our crazy schedules. Tuttle and Maggie are so sweet to him and are constantly kissing his little head. Maggie refers to him as "her baby." My favorite moment this week was when I walked into my room after a shower to find Maggie singing, "I love you, my baby Jacob" to our little boy while hugging him on the bed. I think we will keep all three kids, for now. :)

Aunt Peach and Holland brought us lunch and played! :)

We are about to have a pretty yucky weekend, and schools are even closing early today due to rain and a potential for freezing temperatures. Luckily I have a lot of sweet babies (and a pretty handsome hubby) to snuggle with and keep warm! :) 

Coming Home

We have really been enjoying our new normal as a family of five! Luckily my recovery has been pretty easy, so we have returned to our regular routine with a cute little addition in tow. :)

Our first night home went very smoothly, but our second night was a little more exhausting. Daddy ended up sleeping with Jacob in his recliner. We are both so in love with our little boy and see so much of Tuttle in him as a baby. It brings back a lot of sweet memories.

I am really trying to soak up these newborn days with Jacob. I honestly do not remember Tuttle and Maggie at this age, and it is so much more apparent how quickly it flies by.

Tonight we are enjoying our first movie night as a family. Considering how much Jacob liked to kick in my tummy, I think Tuttle made a great choice in his selection. 

I guess I need to work on changing the blog name: A Tale of FIVE Thornes!

Introducing Jacob Corbitt Thorne

The blog has been rather quiet for a few weeks, but we are back in action now to announce the arrival of Jacob Corbitt to our family! He made his debut into the world on Monday, January 11 at 7:37pm weighing 8 pounds and 3 ounces (our biggest baby!) and measuring 21.25 inches.

I went for a regular OBGYN appointment on Monday to check for any progress and to schedule my induction. The doctors had agreed to induce me at 39 weeks, so I was expecting Jacob's birthday to fall on the following Monday. While I was at the appointment, I joked with the nurse that she could fib that my blood pressure was high and send me directly to the hospital. Much to my surprise, she told me dreams do come true, and my blood pressure was actually high. After the doctor checked me, she discovered I was already 3cm dilated and told me to head home to pack a bag and head to hospital. Jay did not believe me when I called him at work and told me that we were having a baby that day! :)

We checked into the hospital around noon, and things started happening around 2pm. The hardest part of the entire delivery was getting my IV in place. I absolutely HATE needles, and the nurse could not seem to position the IV correctly. At one point she had to remove it on one arm, and another nurse had to position it on the other arm. Needless to say, it was not the most positive start to my delivery! 

Luckily the rest of the process went very smoothly. I was nervous that the on-call doctor wanted to start the Pitocin before giving me an epidural, which was NOT the original plan. I was scared that the dilation would move so quickly that we would not have time to get the epidural, but my contractions started pretty mild and regular, and I got the epidural sooner than I thought I would. I labored with the epidural for a few hours before pushing. I had to work a little harder than I did for Maggie (She came out with two pushes), but Jacob was a much bigger baby. I pushed about 4 rounds, and Jacob arrived! :)

Jacob was showing signs of grunting while breathing which can indicate fluid in the lungs, so he went to the transitional nursery for about 4 hours before coming to our room. We experienced the same thing with Tuttle, so we were not as nervous this round and were just happy that the hospital was taking such great care of our little boy. 

We had a smooth night and could not wait for family to arrive to meet our newest addition. We kept it simple this time and just had immediate family. Grandmommy and Grandaddy arrived first followed by Gram with Tuttle and Maggie.

Tuttle and Maggie were both so sweet to their little brother. Maggie was her normal initially shy self, but she quickly warmed up to Jacob and even wanted to hold him. 

Tuttle would kiss his little head and sit by him, but he was not big on holding him. This was a big improvement from the day that Maggie was born because he would not evenstay in the room that day! :) 

Although I was still SUPER SWOLLEN with wet hair and no makeup for this photo, I am so proud of our new family of FIVE!

Gram snuggled with Jacob, too. She has been such a lifesaver already. She helped get me through the IV drama, managed Tuttle and Maggie's transportation and care for the last two days, and is committed to helping everyday after Daddy returns to work. We could not survive without her! I timed getting pregnant with her retirement perfectly! Hehe

Aunt Peach, Uncle Drew, and Holland came by around lunchtime with sushi, my request. The hospital food was less than appealing this visit, and I devoured our delivered food in no time. I got such a kick out of Holland and Jacob meeting. For once Holland looked HUGE! After being born at 34 weeks, she has not looked big at any point until she met our new little one. I know Jacob and Holland will be fast friends and get into all sorts of trouble!

Our time at the hospital flew by, and today we took our new baby boy home to officially start our life as a family of five.

We are very blessed and know our life is only going to get more exciting with our newest addition, Jacob Corbitt. 

Back to Routine While We Wait

I think everyone was ready to return back to school, work, and a regular routine this week after our two week winter break for Christmas and New Years. Daddy headed to work on Monday, Tuttle went back to school Tuesday, and Maggie will start to preschool again today. I keep thinking everything will be back to normal now until I remember that I am HUGELY pregnant, and everything will change once again when Jacob arrives! :) 

I have been nesting like a crazy person. I think this is one reason that Jay was eager to head back to work- I kept adding to his "To-Do" list at home! I reminded Tuttle during carpool this morning that he was going to try on all the pants in his dresser after school to see what fits. Let's just say that he may not be eager to jump in the car this afternoon! Even Gram is helping with my craziness- she is coming over this afternoon to help me clean bathrooms since I cannot get down to scrub the tubs. I am so lucky to have her nearby AND retired! :)

Maggie has been practicing her new role as a big sister. She was so proud to wear her shirt yesterday and use her boy doll in Jacob's room to try out his new equipment.

We have less than two weeks until I get induced, but I will be shocked if Jacob camps out until then. Come on, little boy! We are ready to meet you! :)

Wrapping Up The Holidays

We celebrated out last Christmas celebration this past Sunday with the Corbitt family at Larry and Beth's house. It was a success, as usual, but I think my favorite part was watching Maggie and Tuttle play with Gwen and Silas. It has taken a few visits for the crew to warm up to each other, but they were playing and running around like best friends all evening. It is perfect timing since the Giordano family just moved back to Atlanta from Philadelphia.

I am in FULL nesting mode right now and took down our Christmas tree even before we celebrated on Sunday, but on Monday was my big day to organize the new toys that Maggie and Tuttle received from family and Santa. Tuttle had been selected by his karate instructor to attend their winter camp for free due to his good attitude and dedication during his classes, so Maggie helped me organize. I was thrilled with our "Before" and "After" pictures!

We are so proud of Tuttle for his commitment to karate, and I discovered that he had won a sparing tournament at his camp when I picked him up on Wednesday! He loves karate and is improving each week. He is our favorite karate kid!

Since Tuttle was at camp, I signed Maggie up for gymnastics camp on Wednesday and Thursday, as well. Jay and I were able to fit in a little lunch date on Thursday at one of our favorite spots, Souper Jenny. 

Daddy took the week off, and he has been able to get a TON of things done around the house. We both saw this week as the last opportunity to get ready for Jacob's arrival. Daddy set up his crib and video monitor in the nursery and the pack-n-play in our room. It is definitely not organized to the last detail like it was for Tuttle's arrival, but Jacob will have a place to sleep, diapers, and formula. We are just trying to stay true to "Third Child Syndrome." :)

We are looking forward to 2016 and our lives as a family of FIVE!