Happy 40th Anniversary!

Frieda and Paul - 1970

Somehow the grandparents got stuck with the grandkids at their anniversary dinner.

The gang, minus Matt and Sarah

Shooting targets with Grandpa

The Sunday before Hannah was born, we celebrated Mom and Dad's 40th Anniversary. We knew that we would be a little busy for their actual anniversary (today). We let them pick where they wanted to eat and they chose Red Lobster. All-you-can-eat shrimp. YUM! No one was sad about that choice! Except maybe Andrew, who isn't a fan of seafood. (He had chicken.) The food was delish and dinner out at a real restaurant was a treat!

We got them three Maple trees for their yard to represent their children. I haven't had a chance to see them yet, but I'm hoping they are in full color! Unfortunately, Hannah hasn't allowed us much time to get to Hutch.

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad! Thank you for modeling a great marriage and relationship! We Love You!

First Bath and Sibling Love

Hannah did not love her first bath.

She has since grown to like them and no longer screams like we are trying to kill her!

6 days old

Jonathan giving Hannah some love. Notice her face. She's not so sure about all the love.

Hannah - 3 Days Old

Proud big brothers

The boys came home Sunday afternoon and were so excited to see Hannah. They fought to hold her and then showered her with semi-gentle hugs and kisses. It's hard to discipline them to love her less. I know in the not-so-distant future, we'll be disciplining them to show more love to each other. So for now, we'll monitor the love to make sure it is gentle.

Hannah - 2 Days Old

Aunt Sondra, Uncle Chad and Luke meeting Hannah.

Luke wanted to hold Hannah, and he did not want to give her up! He held onto her outfit when Sondra took Hannah back and told him it was Chad's turn. So cute!

Ready to go home in her new car seat.

A little snuggle time with mommy while we waited to be discharged from the hospital.

Trying to wake the sleepy baby to eat.

She's already mastering the "Ayotte Scowl."

Girl time!

Sondra, Chad and Luke visited us in the hospital Saturday morning. Luke was fascinated by Hannah and wanted to hold her and didn't want to give her back. And then we came home Saturday afternoon. Hannah was officially 2 days old and ready to see her new home. We had a quiet afternoon and it was so good to be home! The boys were still at Grandma and Grandpa's house, so the house was very quiet. Jill brought us a yummy dinner from Ted's. (I love their hamburgers!) And we enjoyed more girl time.

Hannah - 1 Day Old

Auntie Jill brought Hannah this cute headband.

Auntie Jill also bought her this adorable hat.

Auntie Jill and Hannah

Grandma Jan and Hannah

Hannah's first day was pretty quiet. She had a few visitors, Jill and Jan, and took a bunch of naps. Jill had planned to come to town to have a girls' weekend for my birthday before Hannah arrived, but we ended up having girl time in the hospital instead. We both commented that we had more uninterrupted conversation in the hospital than we have enjoyed for years! Thank you Jill for coming and hanging out with me! Loved having you here for Hannah's birth and can't wait to see you again!

First Visitors

Grandma and Hannah

Hannah and Grandpa

Jonathan, the proud "big brudder"

Our new crew

Andrew showing off his new Super WHY! flyer from Hannah.

Grandma and Grandpa brought Andrew and Jonathan to the hospital to meet their new sister. The boys were very excited and kept fighting to hold her. If last night was any indication, Hannah is going to be loved to death by her big brothers.

I asked Jonathan what the baby's name was just to see what he'd say, and he looked at me with an ornery grin and answered, "Cinderella." Not sure where he came up with that name. Leave it to Jonathan.

Earlier in the day, Grandpa asked Andrew what he thought the baby's name would be and he said, "Flower." When asked why, he said, "Because she will be as pretty as a flower."

Introducing...

Hannah Elizabeth Julia Ayotte

Born: Thursday, Oct. 14, 1:54 pm

7lbs. 5 oz.
19-1/2 inches long

Proud Daddy!

Oh, dear. A little thumb sucker already.

Hannah and Mommy calling friends and family.

First bath. She was not a big fan of being cold and wet.

Hannah surprised us by deciding when she would like her birthday to be. We had a planned induction for today (Oct. 15) but Hannah already has a mind of her own and chose Oct. 14 instead. Keith was getting ready to leave for work and the boys were jumping around in the bed with me. Things didn't seem quite right and as I went to get out of bed, I quickly realized what was happening and yelled for Keith to grab me a towel as my water was breaking. Andrew caught on that something was happening and asked me if I was peeing in bed. Not exactly.

Keith told the boys to go downstairs and play and for once they listened the first time they were asked to do something. I'm guessing there was a certain tone in our voices that told them something was up. Keith brought me a phone and we started calling in reinforcements. My mom was at work and I called her to tell her what was going on. She immediately called dad and he jumped in the car and came to our rescue.

Fortunately, I wasn't contracting yet, so I had time to take a shower and pack. Yes, I said pack. It was on my list for the day. None of my babies have ever come early, and I didn't expect this time to be any different. So I procrastinated. I don't recommend it!

After dad got to the house and we gave him some quick tips, we left for the hospital. We arrived around 9:30 am and with a little help from my friends Pitocin and Epidural, we met our sweet baby girl at 1:54 pm.

And yes, Hannah does have two middle names. We had trouble deciding between Hannah and Julia and were still going back and forth on the way to the hospital. Shortly after I was settled in my delivery room, I noticed a Gideon Bible open on the side table. I asked Keith if he had been reading the Bible when I wasn't paying attention and he said no. He picked up the Bible and it was open to II Samuel. I said, "Do you know who Samuel's mother was?" "Hannah." And then we had our answer for what we should name our baby girl.

Calvin & Hobbes

Can you see what my children are reading, or rather studying like an instruction manual? Yes, it is Calvin and Hobbes comic books. Does this frighten us? More than we can say. Is Andrew obsessed with these books? To say yes is an understatement.

The other day he was explaining to me how Scout, his stuffed dog, can talk to him, but sometimes can't hear very well. I thought maybe Andrew's hearing issues were manifesting themselves through Scout, so I asked if Scout has trouble hearing mommy and daddy. I was given The Look, which he has mastered at age 5 and which I'm sure I will see throughout his teenage years, and then he patiently explained that Scout is like Hobbes and is only alive when Andrew is around.

Keith and I are coming to the scary conclusion that we are raising Calvin. Perhaps we should hide the Calvin and Hobbes books for awhile...

UPDATE:

Today Andrew came home from preschool with this little pumpkin guy. They are learning about pumpkins this week and today his teacher dug out the "yucky stuff with her hand and a spoon" to show the kids the inside of a pumpkin. Anyway, as soon as Andrew ran out of the classroom with his papers, he told me his pumpkin guy was named...Calvin. Of course. What else would it be named?!