June 2011 - Welcome Baby Nico!

On June 2nd we welcomed Nico Ryan Stewart.  He arrived at 8:07am, 8 lbs 2oz and 20" in length.  I had a scheduled c-section so we had a good night's rest, our bags packed, alarm set.woke up and headed in to the hospital.  We strolled in to a very birght eyed and bushy tailed group of nurses checking us in as if it were a hotel stay...hahahaha...well not quite a vacation style visit but anyway.  It went as planned and he was here within minutes.  Capri met and warmly welcomed her little brother.  We did venture out on the boat with Nico at two weeks.  The remainder of June was a big of a blurr as is per usual with a newborn.  ;-)

Our new family of four!

Capri's first introduction to baby brother with Grandma

Not much stops us from boating...two weeks later!

Snuggle time

3 days old

3 days old

Capri mimicking mommy, hands full, cell phone in hand...

May 2011 - 2nd Birthdays & Baby #2 Preparations

In May, we made our last voyage away from home before Nico's scheduled arrival on June 2nd.  I thought for sure I would have him earlier than planned because I was getting so big and quite uncomfortable.  We headed to Omak for the celebration of Capri & Claire's 2nd Birthday bash with the family. Below are a few pictures of the birthday girls (not sure why I didn't manage to get many with smiling birthday girls because they actually were quite thrilled...really)!

Birthday Princess #1

Birthday Princesses #1 & #2

Capri looks ecstatic to get some cake!  Claire looks like she is ready to pounce! Hahaha...

Claire sharing her birthday cake with Capri

The birthday girls in birthday wrapping!

Always time for bubbles no matter where we go! 

A peek at Nico's room

A peek at me toward the end of my growing stages!

Side profile! One more month to go!

April 2011 Art Auction

In April, Capri's school put on an art auction with art from each child and then collective pieces from each classroom.  Each classroom chose an artist and then the teachers organized it so each child could contribute to the master piece replica of Van Gogh, Eric Carle, Monet, etc.  I failed to get photos of the collective pieces but they were actually VERY impressive.  I did get a picture of Capri's art, of which we purchased and have displayed in our house. All proceeds went to the Children's Hospital so it was a fun event that contributed in a productive way to the community.  I love that and continue to love the school she attends!

 The creative mind must eat and drink to continue creating!

Capri's master piece all inclusive with a certificate of authenticity.

 

First trip to the Aquarium and to the Beach!

I'm going to be playing catch-up until I can get the blog up to current events. I'll head back to March 2011 of which we experienced a couple of firsts with Capri.  It was our first trip to the Seattle Aquarium at the beginning of the month and then toward the end of the month we joined our friends, The O'Byrnes on a trip to Manzanita (Oregon Coast).  Josh and Krista O'Byrne have a little girl, Kennedy, who Capri loves to play with and refers to as "Kenney."  In usual Stewart fashion we usually have something planned every weekend so between the Aquarium and the Beach, we headed East to Lake Chelan, where Capri is pictured playing at the park.  During one of the weeks, Capri and I baked our first batch of cookies together and she also found it amusing to stuff her pajamas so she looked like me while pregnant.  So off we go! 

Capri really enjoyed the trip to the Aquarium where she enjoyed looking at all of the fish, octupus, and even had the opportunity to touch starfish.

Capri at the park

 

Capri helping with the first batch of cookies...they turned out quite good!

 

 Capri's impersonation of me while pregnant.

 Later in the month we joined the O'Byrnes in Manzanita to explore the beach with Capri and Kennedy. They had a lot of fun together. Capri loved chasing bubbles and they both really enjoyed playing in the sand with their beach tools that Krista found for them.

 



So much to catch up on so little time!

Updates coming soon!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star - Capri's Debut

During bath time tonight, I decided to use the video camera on my phone to capture some of Capri's singing.  It's long because she just kept singing but her words continue to become more clear.  She has taken a new interest in singing the songs she's been hearing for months so it's pretty fun.  I forget that I have music that kicks in when you open the page so go down to the bottom of the page and hit pause so you can hear once you hit play on this.

We're having a boy!

We found out on January 21st that the little one growing inside is a little boy!  Capri will have a little brother, a little blue room next to hers. :-)  After doing the big name game when pregrnant with Capri, we considered doing it again this time but we were struggling with clues so I guess the only thing I can say is we both love the name and are pretty settled on it (assuming another name doesn't sneak up on us last minute).  Best yet, Capri can say it quite well so I think that means we have her vote too.  It's funny how your mind plays tricks on you.  Before we had Capri, I always imagined I would have a couple boys, so boy, boy, boy was on my mind before finding out Capri was a girl.  We find out she is a girl and I'm surprised and realize how much I just must have been thinking boy.  So this time, after having Capri and enjoying having a girl so much, I think, it's definitely another girl.  The pregnancy feels the same, I've got all of the girl clothes and pink gear, it just has to be a girl.  Guess again!  Boy it is!  The bottom line is you just never know what the next little surprise is around the corner and a pleasant surprise they always are!  Ryan and I feel so fortunate to be able to experience having a daughter and a son and we're really looking forward to building onto our current adventure with another little one. 

On a side note, I was watching a recorded episode of Oprah the other day when she had Celine Dion on for the 27th time.  This time she was interviewing her since she recently had her twin boys.  Celine has one older son (maybe 10-12 years of age).  She said something along the lines that she has no "me" time these days but after having her older son and realizing how fast he has grown and how fast the baby stages flew by, she doesn't care to seek the personal time like she once did and is soaking up the time with the babies because she knows there is much more "me" time ahead.  I'm not saying I don't seek or need my personal time because believe me there are days it sounds and is devine but it was a nice thing to hear and to put things in perspective.  It is true, they do grow fast.  In fact we are already approaching Capri's 2nd Birthday!  Her 1st Birthday seemed to arrive quickly but it seemed more comprehendable, but 2 years...pure craziness! 

She brings smiles and laughs to us daily and we're always amazed by her. She is up to three word phrases and is infatuated with her phone conversations which go something like this..."Hello! Yeh!  Yes! Sure! Bye!"  She is also expressing interest in potty training so we're just going with it when she is interested.  Oh all of the experiences ahead!  Oh did I not mention the boy's name we chose?  Silly me!  This little guy's name is Nico Ryan Stewart.  For some reason the ultrasound pictures are not scanning very clear so if I can't figure it out, then the biggest surprise will be what he looks like. :-)

Capri dancing on the deck in Manson

 Knock Knock

 Capri & Cousin Claire playing on the deck

 Snow day at home with Daddy!

 Here I am in all of my pregnant glory!

 Nico's current habitat

 Cousins with bedhead hair dos