Fun weekend

We had a fun Memorial Day weekend. On Saturday Ryan ran a garage sale to help raise money for the boy scouts' trips this summer. He stayed up all night on Friday to get everything set up. Blue, Cannon, and I took a walk to the garage sale to check it out. They had so much stuff that people from church had donated. Towards the end, they started giving things away for free. Since it would have gone to Goodwill anyway, this worked out because they had less to clean up. Between the garage sale, car wash, and breakfast, they raised over $1000! Ryan was completely exhausted when he got home.

On Monday, Cannon and I headed over to Baby Earth to get the miracle blanket. Sadly, it was closed, so we ended up at the outlet mall. I got a couple things for myself and an outfit for Cannon. Cannon was great and slept the whole time. After we got home, I fed him and we dropped him off at Kristina's house while Ryan and I saw a movie. This was our second date night. We saw Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (just your typical chic flick) and then got ice cream. Baskin Robbins peanut butter and chocolate! Cannon was good for Kristina and she said that he downed the 5oz bottle I had pumped and he wanted more! She was able to stall him with a pacifier until I got back. She also said that she was holding Cannon when she went to get Cole from him nap. Cole stared at Cannon and Kristina, like he was wondering what mommy was doing holding another baby.

On Tuesday, Ryan had to go back to work. Cannon had another visit with the pedi because she wanted to look at his umbilical cord again. His umbilical cord had fallen off on Saturday, but it left another stub that was pink and hard. His pedi said that it was still part of his umbilical cord and she put some more silver nitrate on it. She also commented that Cannon had the thickest umbilical cord she has ever seen. So I still can't give him a normal bath yet! Oh, when she was listening to Cannon's belly with the stethoscope, he started to smile. Usually he fusses with that thing, but I think it tickled him. It was really cute. He also weighed in at 9lbs 8.5oz, which is just about at the 50th percentile. That was another 1.5lbs in 2 weeks. He is gaining weight so quickly! After the pedi visit we went to Subway, the post office, and Baby Earth. Cannon slept the whole time. I was able to get the miracle blanket, a crib mobile, and a bigger bottle that holds more than 5oz. I ended up feeding Cannon in the car. We found a nice shady spot in the parking lot. Then we headed over to Ryan's school so his students could meet Cannon (they have been dying to see him!). They were all so excited to see him! Then Ryan and I went to dinner at Mighty Fine Burgers. They were pretty good, but I think Ryan's favorite part was the hand washing apparatus and the super fast hand dryer. Later that evening we ended up going out for ice cream, again. This time we went to Marble Slab and I had the sweat cream with raspberries and chocolate chips. Yum! Ryan had been very busy last week and we hardly saw him, so it was fun to finally catch up on some quality Ryan time! Oh, by-the-way, Cannon hated the new bottle I got him. He wouldn't take it when Ryan tried to feed him. I had to put the milk in the old bottle, which he took. Even after taking 6oz, he wasn't settled. His tummy was definitely full, but he is just not satisfied with a bottle. I made the mistake of feeding him a little more when I thought he was ready to go to sleep and he threw up all over his new miracle blanket. I learned my lesson.


The other day I picked up Jade and T from school. This was Jade's first time to hold Cannon, at her request. Typically she doesn't like really little babies. She prefers them when they are bigger. So either Cannon is looking much bigger to her or maybe she was just in an adventurous mood that day.


Sunday story time with Daddy. Cannon was enthralled with the black, white, and red pictures in the book. He studied every page.

Jade and T

1 month old today!

Cannon is one month old today and his umbilical cord, still attached, is going for a world record. Last week at his well-check, his pedi applied some silver nitrate to his cord to help loosen it. It has loosened it some, but it still has a ways to go. I am anxious for it to fall off so he can have a real bath and so he can wear size one diapers without folding down the top.

In other news, it has been a wild ride for us around here. Last week my Aunt Sharon passed away. We were expecting this as she had been suffering from Huntington's Disease and was in the end stages. The funeral was held last Saturday and I have to say that Cannon was an angel for the whole day. It was a beautiful funeral. Ryan and my cousin's wife, Amber, sang How Great Thou Art. Ryan never admits to having a beautiful voice, but he does. He has a wonderful talent for singing. They did a wonderful job on the duet despite having only practiced together just one hour before the service. I owe Ryan big time, as I was the one who volunteered him! We had a lot of family come into town from out-of-state and it was fun for everyone to see Cannon. No one can believe that my dad is a grandpa!

Then on Monday my dad had a heart attack. The paramedics took him from his home that afternoon. At first they weren't sure if it was a heart attack and they ran some tests. Then at midnight he had another one and they took him to the ICU. Cannon and I went to the hospital Tuesday morning and waited for the news. Luckily, they found only one artery to be blocked and they were able to put in a stent. After his procedure, they sent him back to the ICU. I wasn't allowed to bring Cannon into the ICU, so people took turns holding him in the waiting room while I spent time with my dad. He was supposed to go home yesterday, but they had a difficult time stopping bleeding at the site where they went in to insert the dye. They kept him in the ICU for another night and then yesterday he was able to be moved to a regular unit. We went and saw him again last night and this time Cannon was able to visit too. That made my dad happy to see him. My dad is feeling much better now and hopefully he will be able to come home today. After he gets home, Cannon and I will be hanging out at his house so we can take care of Grandpa.

Here's some more pictures of Cannon that I took yesterday. Also, Cannon has his own website so you can see all of his pictures. http://cannontaylorrees.shutterfly.com/


Here he is, sleeping like a baby, while I mowed the lawn. I was able to mow the front and back, do the edges (front yard only), and take a shower! Thanks, little man.










He looked cute in this outfit until he peed all over himself.

Fat boy

Okay, so Cannon is not that fat, yet. He had another weight check today and he is 8lbs! He gained 1.5lbs in 10 days. He went from being in the 5th percentile to 10-25th percentile. If he is anything like me or Ryan he will be in the 90th percentile in no time! They didn't measure his length. We won't get that until we go back for his 2 month well-check in June. I knew he was getting bigger because he hasn't been leaking from his diapers (he used to leak everyday) and his newborn onsies are getting too tight.

On Wednesday Cannon smiled, for real! I think it was for real. He always smiles in his sleep, but this time when I picked him up and talked to him he looked me right in the eye and smiled. It wasn't gas (believe me, you would know!).

Vote for us!

I entered a photo of Cannon and me for a photo contest. We won for that day, but now we're up for the grand prize. The picture with the most votes win. And since I think we have the best picture, we should win. So vote for us!

http://www.whattoexpect.com/photo-contest/index.aspx?contestId=15

The picture of us is the sepia one where I am kissing Cannon. You have until May 20 to vote. Thanks!

More pictures of Cannon

I don't really have much to say, so I thought I would just post some pictures of typical life around here lately. Oh, I do have a story about Ryan. We spend five hours in the ER on Monday night. Here's what happened. After we got home from Blue's obedience class, Ryan went out back to play with her. Our ground is bumpy in the backyard and there are some shallow holes. Well, Ryan stepped in one of those holes and he twisted his ankle. All of a sudden I heard him call to me in a calm voice, "Jefra, get a back of ice." Thinking I heard incorrectly, I went to him outside and found him lying in the grass. Immediately I knew something was wrong because we don't sit in our grass for two reasons: 1)it's Texas grass; 2)we have fire ants. He hobbled inside and I iced and elevated his foot. I asked if he wanted me to take him to the hospital and he said to wait and see. His foot was swollen and bruised. I gave him one of my prescription ibuprofen's from when I had Cannon. Ryan started to go into shock and that's when I decided to take him. Also, this was Ryan's right foot, the one with the metal plate. So that made it more concerning to me. The ER was super busy that night and after five hours of waiting, the x-rays revealed a sprained ankle. We got home at 3am, just in time to feed Cannon. Ryan is fine. He denied the crutches, so he had to teach standing up.


Here is Ryan resting his foot. Notice Cannon's long chicken legs and his long feet.



A family picture right before church on Mother's Day.


Classic Blue.



Cannon's cousins, Jeremiah and Cole.



I was trying to get a good picture of Cannon with his eyes open. This is an ok picture. His eyes are starting to get so big.



Blue is allowed limited supervised licks with Cannon.

Date night!

I really surprised myself after having Cannon. I thought I would be all about the baby for the first couple months. But earlier this week I realized how much I missed Ryan and spending time with him, so we decided to plan a date night for Friday. Cannon's pedi gave me the green light to introduce him to the bottle. So yesterday I was able to pump out 4oz for him and I fed him right before we left. My mom, Nanna, stayed with Cannon. Ryan and I went to the Alamo Draft House to see the Soloist. We were met by Ryan's friend Wes and his girlfriend Amber. It was really nice to get out and to start to feel normal again. At one point I forgot I had a kid, but later on in the night I started to miss him. On the way back home we stopped at Shakes for a delicious treat. My masterpiece creation there is a sundae made with chocolate custard, then you add hot fudge and raspberries, that is topped with whipped cream and a cherry. Delicious! When we got home Cannon was hungry again. He had downed the 4oz and wanted more! My mom said his eyes got really big when she gave him the bottle and he realized he didn't have to work as hard to eat. It was fun to have a date with Ryan and I think we will make this a regular event.

I love my baby!

Last night was our best night ever! Cannon ate and then went to bed at 10:45. He stayed asleep until just after 4:00 am, ate, and went back to bed until 9:00 am! It was wonderful! I hope this is a new trend.

Yesterday Cannon had his two week well-check. Here are the stats:

Weight: 6lbs 8oz (5th percentile)
Length: 21" (75th percentile)

So he is long and skinny! He was not a happy boy for the doctor. They had to take more blood for all the metabolic screeners and he did not like that.

Here are some recent pictures.


This was Cannon after his ordeal at the pedi's office.



Ryan and both of his babies!


A rare picture of me. I'm showered, dressed, and I'm wearing makeup!


Robert and Bev brought the kids over to meet Cannon. Jeremiah LOVES babies. He loves to hold and pet them. However, Jade was reluctant to hold Cannon. She prefers babies when they are older.


My mom, a.k.a Nanna, is in town for two weeks. She has been a big help for all of us!


Blue, with a guilty look on her face. This has been a common expression for her these last couple of weeks.


Ryan and Cannon.

Quiz about me

I saw this on Stacey and Heather's blog and it looked fun.

1. Last beverage→chocolate milk
2. Last phone call→Elena Robinson; she wants to come over and see the baby
3. Last text message→Shae; to tell her happy birthday yesterday
4. Last song you listened to→Your Call
5. Last time you cried→yesterday

HAVE YOU EVER:
6. Dated someone twice →no
7. Been cheated on? →no
8. Kissed someone & regretted it? → No
9. Lost someone special?→Yes
10. Been depressed?→Yes
11. Been drunk?→Nope

LIST 3 FAVORITE COLORS:
12. Turquoise
13. Tiffany Blue
14. Light blue

THIS YEAR HAVE YOU:
15. Made new friends→Yes
16. Fallen out of love - No
17. Laughed until you cried →Yes
18. Met someone who changed you→ Yes
19. Found out who your true friends were→Yes
20. Found out someone was talking about you → Yes, but in a good way
21. Kissed anyone on your friend's list→ No

TRUTH
22. How many kids do you want to have→Ask me again in a year!
23. Do you have any pets →Yes, 1 dog Blue
24. Do you want to change your name→Yes, but I would never actually do it
25. What did you do for your last birthday? My mom came in to town that night, so we picked her up at the airport. Then that Sunday we had a family party.
26. What time did you wake up today? 9:40 am, Cannon slept in!
27. What were you doing at midnight last night?→Feeding Cannon
28. Name something you CANNOT wait for→to fit into my regular clothes!
29. Last time you saw your father→Yesterday
30.What is one thing you wish you could change about your life→ I wish we owned our house
31. What are you listening to right now →the sound of the washing machine
32. Have you ever talked to a person named Tom →Yes
33. What's getting on your nerves right now? →nothing at the moment

PERSONAL:
34. What's your full name →Jefra Taylor Rees
35. Relationship Status →Married
36. Zodiac sign →Sagitarius
37. Male or female→ Female
38. Primary School→Rosslyn Heights
39. High school → Jordan
40. Hair color →Brown
41. Long or short →Long
42. Height →5' 8"
43. Do you have a crush on someone? →My Ryan
44. What do you like about yourself? I leave lasting impressions on people
45. Piercings →ears
46. Tattoos →None
47. Righty or lefty →Righty

FIRSTS :
48. First surgery →none
49. First piercing →I was 2 when I got my ears pierced
50. First tattoo →none
51. First best friend →Megan
52. First sport you joined- soccer
53. First pet →Meho
54. First vacation→Sun Valley, Idaho
55. First concert →Alanis Morrisette
56. First crush→Will
57. First alcoholic drink→None

RIGHT NOW:
58. Eating →Nothing
59. Drink → Water
60. I'm about to → Take Cannon to the pedi for his 2 week well check
61. Listening to →the quiet house
62. Waiting for →Blue to stop biting
63. Want kids? →yeah, we'll have more
64. Want to get married?→already married
65. Careers in mind? →something I haven't yet done: play therapist, child life specialist, or hospital early intervention specialist

WHICH IS BETTER:
66. Lips or eyes →Eyes
67. Hugs or kisses →I like both
68. Shorter or taller →taller
69. Older or Younger →older, but Ryan is younger than me
70. Romantic or spontaneous →Romantic
71. Nice stomach or nice arms → Stomach?
72. Tattoos or piercings?→None
73. Sensitive or loud →Sensitive
74. Hook-up or relationship →Relationship
75. Trouble maker or hesitant→Trouble maker

HAVE YOU EVER :
76. Kissed a stranger →No
77. Drank hard liquor →No
78. Lost glasses/contacts →I have better than perfect vision
79. Cried yourself to sleep→Yes
80. Danced in the rain→Yes
81. Broken someones heart →Probably
82. Had your own heart broken →Yes
83. Been arrested → No
84. Turned someone down→Yes
85. Cried when someone died → Yes
86. Liked a friend more then just a friend →Yes

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:
87. Yourself → Yes
88. Miracles → Of course!
89. Love at first sight →Yes
90. Heaven → Yes
91. Santa Claus → Yes!
92. Kissing on the first date →sure
93. Angels → Yes

ANSWER TRUTHFULLY:
94. Is there one person you want to be with right now? Ryan
95. Had more than one boyfriend/girlfriend at one time? →no
96. Do you believe it’s possible to remain faithful forever?→Definitely
97. Where is your favorite place to vacation? Dominican Republic
98. What's the one thing you cannot live without?→My family
99. What is your biggest pet peeve?→Crowded grocery stores
100. One thing that most people don’t know about you → having a baby is harder than I thought it would be