Week of "Firsts"

We have now been home for 10 days. I can't remember life without having Trent around, but it did seem like it was a little simpler :). We love our sweet boy and have already encountered many "firsts" in the past few days:

First bath:
He loved his sponge bath. The warm water soothed him and he laid there looking as if he were in Heaven.




Bye, bye umbilucal cord:
This just came off yesterday. It is always nice to not have to worry about that thing anymore!

First trip to "Target:"
Okay, I am not a child-abuser :). He is my third, so I might be a little more laid-back, and we were right by a "Target" getting his PKU shot, so we stopped by for a couple of things. For the record, he didn't like it very much. I guess I will have to get used to doing my shopping when Matt can watch the boys at home.



2 trips to the doctor:
He had his first trip a couple days after he was born and a weight check a few days later. The doc, Matt and I were pleased with little, Trent's weight gain--surpassed his birth weight by 3 ounces!



2 big goodbyes:
Trent's first goodbye was for my dad who flew into town to meet Trent when he was born. The next goodbye was for Gary and Shirley. It was hard to have them go. The minute Matt called to tell them I was in labor, they packed their things and drove down. The stayed over a week and we COULD NOT have done it without them! They were so helpful and this was a hard goodbye. Thank you so much, you guys, we love you!


(Trent waving goodbye!)

A first for Wade too:
Wade graduated from preschool this week! He has had the best year with such a great teacher! He loves school so much and I am excited that his education has started off so positivley. He will begin kindersteps (offered at the local elementary school) in July--we can't wait! (this pic is with his two best buddies who will join him at kindersteps)

Baby Trent

Our sweet, sweet baby boy is here! We are thrilled to have him and report that all went well during delivery and both he and I are home and happy. Trenton Gary Roper was born Wednesday, May 14th at 9:53am. He weighed 7lbs 9oz (my smallest baby!) and is 20 1/2 inches long. He shares his b-day with his Aunt Mar!

He is the sweetest boy ever. Today has, actually, been the first day we have heard him cry and I would barely call it a cry it is more of a high pitched, little yell. The consensus is that he looks just like Seth--a little different through the nose, but everything else is the same.

I don't know if it is because he is my third and I know how fast this time goes, but I have been spending a lot of time just enjoying him. I love to hold him, smell him and watch him sleep. Words can't describe how much I love him. I feel so blessed to have another healthy little boy in our family.
The boys are enjoying him as well. They LOVE our newest addition. Wade is very cute--super protective and gentle. He is always sure to wash his hands before asking to hold him and loves to touch and kiss Trent's little head.
Seth is also, surprisingly :), gentle! I think he got a lot of practice at being gentle while I was pregnant. He was always very "soft" with my belly and has kept it up. Seth loves all the baby equipment that is lying around now. He wants to crawl in and out of the bassinet and swing and loves to find Trent's binky and anything else he thinks would be a fun toy for his new brother.
Matt is thrilled as well. He is such a good daddy and always ready and willing to help. Matt loves to hold our babies until they fall asleep on his chest-it is fun to watch.
We are a happy bunch. I am thankful this little guy is healthy and not inside me anymore :).
We have been so blessed with help from our family and friends. Thank you so much to everyone for being here (whether it is physically or through the phone and email) and supporting us, it means so much!

Anniversary

Post Disclaimer: This post is longer and cheesier than my usual posts, so it won't hurt my feelings if you skip reading it :)!

Today marks 7 years since Matt and I were sealed in the Salt Lake Temple. When I think of 7 years, I think it seems like we have been married so much longer, but I also think that time has flown by so fast, especially since I can remember our wedding day like it was yesterday.

Matt and I met at SUU and were friends for a couple of years before we, officially, started dating. Ariane and Mandi (followed by Jess, later on) can attest to some crazy stories that finally led us down the dating path. To keep it simple, I (yes I) told Matt that I thought we should be "more than friends" TWICE (yes TWICE) before he agreed.
( first picture taken together: October 1999)

I have to say he was worth the wait and I am so glad I was courageous enough to pursue him! In the end, though, it was Matt who had to do the asking and earning of my love :). Our friendship was wonderful and created a perfect foundation for our marriage and eternity and I feel so blessed to be married to such a wonderful man.
(Engagement pic)

Since it has been 7 years, I thought I would list 7 silly (not so serious) things I love about Matt and 7 more serious things I love about him too.

Silly (not so serious) things:

1. I how much he loves the Phoenix Suns. Basketball has always been my favorite professional sport to follow and Matt loves it more then I do. It is fun to cheer on a team with as much excitement and passion as I did when I was growing up!

2. I love that he loves "The Pizza Factory" in Cedar and "Training Table" as much as I do. Going out to eat is one of my most favorite things to do and Matt and I take going to these restaurants, while visiting Utah, very seriously.

3. I love that he thinks I am the best cook/ baker ever. In the end it only matters what my family thinks of my cooking so I am so glad they approve.

4. I love our college memories and friends. There is nothing like being around our SUU friends, I love that I share this with him.

5. I love his singing voice. He was in "Madrigals" in high school and his entire family is very musically talented. I wish he did more with his talent, but do enjoy hearing him sing the hymns in sacrament meeting and LOVE to hear him sing with our boys as he puts them to bed.

6. I love that he takes Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas so seriously. He has dreams of decorating our house "Griswald style" at Christmas time and loves to start and carry out traditions and make these holidays so much fun for our family.

7. I love that he tries to be organized. Since the day we have been married, I have been working on Matt's organization. He has come a long way. He used to leave his wet towels on the bed, lose his keys/ wallet everyday, etc. He NEVER puts a towel anywhere but the towel rack and has improved in so many areas. The best is when he organizes something and can't wait to tell me about it! I am so thankful he knows and accepts how OCD I am about most things and has worked so hard to change his ways.


Serious things:

1. I love how he loves me and our family. I know that his first priority is ALWAYS me and the boys. I know he thinks about us, worries about us and works so hard each day for us. He has spent our entire marriage showing this to me--never changing or coming up short. We are so proud of all his accomplishments.

2. I love how he loves our extended family. My dad, sisters, grandparents, etc all love Matt with all their hearts! I can rarely have a conversation with any of them without them saying so. I also love how he loves his family. His nephews and nieces adore him as do his sisters and parents. Family is everything to both Matt and I. He was raised by some incredible parents who value family immensely so I am thankful he has carried this on.

3. I love how he plays with our boys. They adore him and, seriously, count down the minutes until he gets home. They wrestle, run around and do what boys do best!

4. I love how he loves the gospel. I love that we were married in temple. I love that he served a mission. I love how he knows the stories of the scriptures by glancing at a lesson title. I love how he teaches the gospel to our children and to the children in our ward. I love how he supports me in my callings and allows me to be as involved with them as I want to be without any question. I love how we have family prayer, family home evening and scripture study.

5. I love how he wants to succeed and continues to have ambitions and dreams. He has worked so hard for his success and continues to work hard--never taking anything for granted. He is always looking for another challenge or another way to better our future.

6. I love that he appreciates me. He is so good about telling me thank you for the things I do. He always thanks me for making dinner and prompts our boys to do the same. He will thank me for doing the laundry, doing the dishes or any other simple task that is easily taken for granted. He respects me and is teaching our boys the way they need to treat their future wives.

7. I love how he loves me. He knows me better than anyone and accepts me with all my flaws and loves me unconditionally. He knows when I am having a bad day and need a break, he can read me like a book--knowing what my certain facial expressions really mean, etc. He wants me to be happy and will do anything in his power to make that happen. He is nurturing and loving in just the way I need.

I am so blessed to be married to my best friend and share this life and eternity together. He is not perfect, I am not either, but together we do okay and I am thankful I have him. Happy Anniversary Matt, I love you!

Baby Shower

If I haven't mentioned it before, I live in the most amazing ward/ neighborhood. We feel so blessed to have such great friends, neighbors, ward members and of course, the Bryner's, close by! Even though I am having my third child (of the same sex), some of my friends and Jess insisted on giving me and my friend Kristy (due with a boy 3 weeks after me) a baby shower. I know, I know, you are probably thinking that sounds crazy, but in my ward it doesn't matter if it is your 1st or 10th child--you get a baby shower!

Cute cake, huh? Kristy's friend, April, made it for us!

It was a lot of fun to eat yummy food and chat with some of my favorite people for a night! I also got some darling gifts (they make the CUTEST baby stuff now-a-days.)

Thank you so much, it was the best!

After the shower, I really jumped into high gear and got serious about getting organized for this baby to come (I know--it is about time.)

I purchased my new bedding ("Circles" by Dwell at Target--so cute, in my opinon--pictures to come), washed (or re-washed) all the baby clothes, moved Seth's stuff into Wade's room and even bought newborn diapers. The only thing I have left to do is paint the boy's room and the nursery and they are small (10x10), so it shouldn't be too bad. I also have a little bit of decorating to do in each room. I would like those things to be done before baby gets here, but at least the important things are taken care of.

So, how am I doing? If you are watching my baby counter, you know I only have 12 days left. This may be too much information for some of you, but I am dilated to a 2 and 75% effaced. My next OB appointment is on thursday and I am HOPING for some really good news--like: "you are dilated to a 10, lets get to the hospital :)! It would be the best ever if I didn't even make it to my appt. and had the baby in the next couple of days (ha, ha, yeah right.)

I promised myself I wouldn't even THINK about going early because with Wade I was a day late and with Seth I was just 3 days early so it is better for me to be realistic and plan to be pregnant for 40 weeks. I am just teasing myself if I think otherwise. But, I know ALL of you mommy's out there can realte--the last few weeks of pregnancy are TORTURE--it is so hard to think about anything but having the baby come! SO, I will keep you "out-of-towners" posted, but don't plan on much for another week and a half (sorry dad :)!)