Heaven Blessed

Chunky Little Baby! Natalie is growing so fast, I don't know how we'll keep up with her. She already weighs 16-17 lbs! I wake up every morning, look at her, and say "I'm so glad you're so chubby!" It's awesome!
Natalie is one of the happiest babies I have ever seen. Here she is smiling at Nonni Rogers. She loves it when people talk to her, and she makes sure that me and her have at least three face to face conversations a day. Natalie will just coo away.
Don't make fun of her cubbiness...or she'll come get you!

One thing I am so grateful for is the fact that Natalie can put herself to sleep, as shown above and below. She's a thumb sucker. Katie would never do that!

Love that smile!
Our family on Natalie's blessing day.

You can see more pictures at
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=101617&id=586776244&l=e5f95dff24
and
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=91663&id=586776244&l=c829c07216
Enjoy!

Man! I have not been able to post in a long time! These two girls of ours definitely keep me busy. The only time Josh and I have is when they sleep, and then we tend to relax. Two kids is challenging, but I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world!

Natalie is such a wonderful daughter! She is such a calm, happy girl. Katie just absolutely adores her, and kisses her every chance she gets. Katie is such a good little helper! I love the fact that Natalie is just a chunky baby (Katie was so skinny). Natalie has barely had any colic or screaming problems. The only exception is when she was about a month old and we found out she has a dairy allergy, to which I've had to make a few adjustments to my diet. But everyone is happy now. Natalie even sleeps through most of the night (HOORAY!) We are so blessed to have this little girl.

Katie continues to grow everyday, and I'm absolutely floored by her vocabulary. She's putting words together, and speaking incoherent sentences. We can usually get out of her what she wants to do by asking "Do you want to do 'this'", and she'll respond "Yeah!" I attribute this not only to our reading to her everyday, but also to PBS. The educational programming has taught her so much. She knows many letters of the alphabet by sight and sound, and she's been picking up new things continuously. I can't believe in four months Katie will be two years old. My how time flies!

Isn't She Lovely, Made From Love

Katie sympathizing with me before delivery.
Don't worry: Natalie is not a screamer! She cried for the first couple minutes, and is now a very mild tempered baby.


Our new addition!
Josh came up with his own version of our goals before being discharged from the hospital. The nurses enjoyed his sense of humor.



(just yawning...)



Look how long this girl is!

Well, we finally did it! It was a long, hard nine months, but Natalie Rebekah Grosek is finally here! She is such a blessing in our lives, and we are so grateful to have her.

Here's the story:

Last Sunday (the 29th) I reached my breaking point after being sent home yet again for false labor. I got a blessing and we decided to talk to my doctor the next day. She scheduled me for an induction for the following day. We finally got a room at 2pm, and at around 4pm, they started me on Pitocin. My contractions began about 6 pm or so, progressively getting worse, but still no closer to delivering this baby. They upped my dosage of Pitocin, and after a while I received two doses of a pain med to help take the edge off. Just when I was about to recieve my third dose of that med, the nurse told me I was too far along to recieve any further assistance. So no epidural, nothing, I was on my own. I screamed like Katie for the next two hours. Thank goodness Josh, my mom, Larissa, and the nurse kept telling me I could do it, because I wanted to give up with each contraction. I'm such a wuss when it comes to pain. Soon, it was time to push, and luckily, I only had to three times before Natalie was in my arms.

Natalie Rebekah Grosek was born April 1, 2009 at 5:47 am. She weighs a whopping 9 lbs 12 oz and is 22 1/2 inches long (the doctor had been etimating about 7 1/2 lbs! My mom had told me though that Natalie may not have been coming because she was so big...)! She cried for only the first three minutes or so, and now she is such a mild and quiet child. The only time she really cries is when she's extremely hungry or is cold. I've been trying not to compare her too much to Katie, but they are real opposites! Josh and I really enjoy having her!

Katie is a great big sister. She'll stroke Natalie's head and give her tons of kisses. I think she'll love having a little one in the house.

Josh has been a great support to me through all of this. He was encouraging in labor, and is very supportive here at home. He's been taking care of all three of us, and I just want him to know how much I love him and how grateful I am that our eternal family keeps growing. I love you, Josh! You're such a wonderful husband!

Pregnant Me!

Here is our Natalie facing the camera. These were taken at the beginning of December.
Natalie's profile.
Me all BIG and pregnant!

Boy it's been some trip the past couple months. Things have definitely gotten harder in this pregnancy, especially when you have a 17 month old child on your hands. Natalie and I are doing just fine. In fact, I was due two days ago, and I'm probably the most impatient person when it comes to this. I think I've tried about everything in the book to get her out. But I'm holding on as best as I can, and everyone has been really supportive. Please say a prayer for us!
I don't think I posted it on here, but Josh and I plan on naming this little girl Natalie Rebekah. Josh finally had to give the naming rights over to me because we couldn't agree on a name. I think Katie will be a great big sister and that she'll be so excited to have a little one in the house. I just can't imagine how it's going to be having two!
I'll be sure to post some pictures when she arrives!

Play That Funky Music

Recently, I got a kazoo at Hot Topic. When Josh started to play with it (he took it from me because I cannot get the hang of a kazoo...he he), he let Katie try and she did so well! She's very musically inclined: what with her playing the piano, the kazoo, the drums, and not to mention her operatic screaming voice! The next video is of her playing the drums, but for some reason my camera would only record for four seconds. Enjoy!

Hey if anyone has a suggestion on a girl name, please let us know! Josh and I can't agree on anything. He likes more traditional stuff and I like more modern. It's driving me mad that we don't have a name for this little girl yet!

Dance the Night Away

We hope you enjoy this video of Katie dancing recently. I was listening to music in my car, bobbing my head, when I turn around and see her moving her head too! She only dances within the first couple of seconds, but it's still so cute to watch! Whenever Josh and I are driving, we can usually catch her bobbing along with the music. We love it!

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Hi Everyone! We hope that you all had a fantastic Christmas and will have a wonderful New Year. I posted some pictures on my Facebook account tonight. Check them out!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=68664&l=9589c&id=586776244

Remember to eat lots of goodies as we ring in 2009! Hope you find someone to kiss at midnight!