Photos by Elizabeth Jenson

I took Isabella to get pics taken with Elizabeth Jenson, here and here , and the pics turned out great. Elizabeth has a new indoor studio that is fabulous. She was EXTREMELY patient with Bella's dislike of being undressed and is an extremely talented photographer. If anyone is is the market for a photographer I highly suggest checking her out. She is having mini sessions for the next while that are worth looking into. She is also having a drawing for two free sessions. I am dying to have her take pics of my boys. Here are a few pics!

I didn't go with the intention of being in any photos...but I love this one...in black and white...

Time Flys!!

Sweet Bella is now 2 weeks old. She is growing so fast and changing every day. She is up to 9 lbs and is 22 1/2 inches long. Yes, she has grown 3 and 1/2 inches since she was born...IS THIS POSSIBLE!!! No wonder all of her NB stuff doesn't fit anymore. Her MD says she is the picture of health and he couldn't believe that she only nurses every 4 hours, throws up tons and still has grown so much. I must have super-duper-whole-plus milk...

I always say that the first few weeks are the break-in period. All babies seem to be content with eating and sleeping. Then...the personality comes out! So far she seems to LOVE to eat...but not as vigorously as her brothers...almost dainty...if that is possible. She has had an innate need to suck from the moment she was born. Thank goodness for a Binky's! She also doesn't like to be cold and loves to lay in front of her small heater after her bath. She is very specific about what blanket you wrap her in. It has to be soft, fluffy and warm. She is just so fun to love and cuddle. The boys have done surprisingly well. They love having her around.

Looking around!

Sweet face!

Such a life...eat, rest, cuddle....poop!

Big eyes! They are still a little yellow, but it is getting better.

Mother's Day-Preschool Style

Caleb's preschool class held a mother's day picnic today and we had a great time. They did a short program and then we had a picnic lunch outside. It was super cute and we had tons of fun. You can see the "short" program on the video link.

Caleb said that he was "very scratchy"...hillarious!

Random Pics

1 week old

Ouch!!

On Monday the boys were playing in the backyard when we heard a scream. Caleb came running in covered in blood and dragging Joshua behind. Per Caleb...he says they were playing by/on the window well when it broke (???) and he fell in. He was able to climb out covered in blood and then dragged Josh away so he wouldn't fall in too. He ended up having stitches and bruises on his jaw, chest and neck. We are still finding sore spots as the days go on.

Needless to say, August called our landlord and let him have it! The window well covering was improperly installed and we had told him before that it needed to be fixed. We will see...

Poor Baby!

On a lighter note...Bella is doing great. Nothing like an elevated Bili level to keep her sleepy and quiet...j/k. She sleeps in 4 hour blocks and then eats and goes back to sleep. We have had to go to the hospital for daily lab draws since coming home on Saturday. Thankfully, her level finally peaked today and will hopefully keep dropping.

She was cuddling with August while he was playing the Wii.

Pink, pink and more pink!

She is my little doll. This pic isn't the greatest, but moments later she puked all over her dress.

Hold her...hold her!!...as Josh would say. Gotta love the smile...makes me crack up!

First Pictures!

On the day of induction we were extremely excited and ready. I had been having really strong contractions all night and had been awake since 1:30AM. We were told that we would be called to come in around 9AM, but never got called until 12:30 and told to come at 2PM.

Last Picture of me EVER pregnant the morning before she was born.

At the hospital ready to get things started.

Minutes after birth.

Labor was fantastic! Strange I know. I am built to give birth, just not to carry them for 9 months. I arrived at the hospital and was already 4 cm dilated. They started the pitocin at 2:30 and things progressed VERY rapidly. The entire time--from Pitocin started--to the birth--was 3 hours and 15 minutes. A majority of the time was spent trying to slow the contractions and wait for the MD to come break my water when clinic was over. When he arrived at 5:05 I was comfortable with my epidural and he then broke my water. I went from 5 cm to 10 cm in 25-30 minutes. It was identical to my boys (super fast dilation after water is broken and epidural is in). After the MD had arrived and prepped it took 3-4 cycles of pushing she was born at 5:43PM. It was great to have August, my mom and my sister with me at the time.

She weighed 7 lbs and 13 oz and was 19 cm long. She looks like an exact replica of her brothers at birth...only with girl parts!

Joshua is very sweet and keeps calling her Danner or Kael...his cousins. He is constantly telling her that she is cute. He loves her cute outfits and bows!

Caleb is in 7th Heaven! He was very involved this pregnancy and has been the cutest big brother ever. He has to hold her at all times and is unbelievably gentle and protective. He is constantly reminding Josh that she is asleep and that he needs to be quiet.

She is adorable and we love her soooo much.

Proud Papa!

Letting us know that she has pipes! She has a girly cry and can scream with he best of them!

Heading home.

Happy to be home in her own bed.

The entire experience was better then I could have ever planned. It is very surreal to be a mother of three. I feel very blessed and privileged to be given such a huge responsibility. It is crazy how you can love another child and it doesn't diminish your love for the other's, just magnifies it.

Love you Ella Bella! Welcome to our family.

Welcome Isabella!!

Isabella Elyse Spangler was born on Thursday, April 23rd @ 5:43pm after 3 hours of labor.



She weighed 7 lbs 13 oz and was 19 inches long.



Danielle is doing great and is excited to have a baby girl.



We are extremely excited to have her in our family. Danielle will upload some photos when she is dc'd from the hospital.

39 weeks

Well, I have made it to 39 weeks. I can hardly contain the excitement that we will have a baby in a few days. I am being induced on Thursday the 23rd and am VERY excited. I am 5th on the induction list and will probably have her sometime late afternoon/early evening...pending everything goes OK.

Wish us luck! I will have August post a little something when she arrives! Otherwise, give us a call on our cell phones for updates!

38 Weeks

Well, I have made it to 38 weeks. Things are looking...from a medical standpoint...great. I, on the other hand, feel like I am carrying a 10 pound baby. Here are the latest stats:

Dilation: 2 cm...still

Effacement: 60%...up slightly

Contractions: Almost took me to the hospital (were 5 minutes apart for 4 hours) but didn't increase in intensity...so I stayed at home and then they fizzled...practice, practice, practice! BRING ON THE PAIN!!

Induction date: I am being induced on the 23rd! Yippee!

I am ready and willing for a baby anytime, any day...except today (Friday). August is in CA (again) for the day (excellent timing...I know...but we couldn't pass up an excellent job opportunity!!). He doesn't get home until 7ish so baby needs to stay nice and safe until then. But as soon as his plane lands my schedule is open...too bad babies can't read blogs!

So, everyone needs to put in their guesses for the baby's stats...weight and height. Here are some helpful hints:

Caleb: 7 lbs 5 oz & 20 inches @ 39 weeks and 5 days
Joshua: 8 lbs 4 oz & 20 1/2 inches @ 39 weeks and 2 days
Danielle: 7 lbs...something oz
August: 8 lbs...????? I am guessing/can't remember

My guess is: 8 lbs even, 19 1/2 inches long and bald as can be!

Easter Morning/Day

37 Week MD Appointment

2 cm dilated

50% effaced

-1 Station

Contractions: Irregular

Induction date if baby doesn't come: April 23...Yeah!

Family Update

Baby:

We can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. We know that within a few weeks we will have a baby. But, the waiting game is tortuous! I am to the point that I am now second guessing every twinge, cramp, contraction, and other "signs" of labor. Is it labor? Could it be labor? Is she ready? Are we ready? Is it tomorrow or is it in 4 weeks? These are the questions that fill my waking thoughts.

We have decided upon the name: Isabella. The middle name is proving to be more difficult. The boys were easy...Caleb August...and Joshua Daniel. The names were connected to something or someone. I originally was going with "Anne" as the middle name. It is my Mom's, Grandma's and Great Grandma's middle name. It may even go back further but I am not good at remembering genealogy! However, my brother-in-law...who shall remain nameless...Wayne Dupin...is great at coming up with every nickname possible connected to a name. He thinks of the good, the bad and the ugly. Well, after hearing the name "Isabella Ann" he gave us a nickname that is so bad that there is NO way I can use it because I will think of this nickname every single time I say it. So, needless to say we are still thinking.

Here are the few we have thought of:

Elise
Nicole
Any more suggestions?

Caleb:

Caleb is growing up so fast. He will be 5 this summer and start Kindergarten in the fall. He goes to preschool 4 days a week in Alpine and LOVES it. I really miss him when he is gone. I love dropping him off in the morning and watching him wave goodbye and walk in alone. If he sees me watching him he will come back, open the door and tell me that he is fine and I can leave now. I crack up!

He is my big helper. The other day he folded an entire load of towels, cleaned my bathroom (not an easy task) and also cleaned my bedroom. Strange chores, but these were the only rooms that needed any sort of cleaning and he was trying to earn Spangler Bucks in order to purchase TV sticks to use to play the Wii. Spangler bucks are our family's system of rewards. We have had them now for an entire year and have proven absolutely necessary for rewarding good behavior and teaching about consequences. It is also great motivation to help me!!

Joshua:

Joshua is growing and changing everyday. He can tell you exactly what he wants and his verbal skills are excellent. Especially..NO WAY...STOP IT...and all of the other things that he yells at his brother.

He plays really well alone and is learning how to play with Caleb. They now build forts, make messes and get into trouble quite well together. He is doing OK in nursery. He screams when we drop him off but quickly adjusts and has tons of fun.

He is still very much a mama's boy. I hope that he adjusts to the new baby without any difficulties. I worry because he still seems so little...maybe because he loves to cuddle, for me to rock him for naps and hold him at any given moment throughout the day. Wish us luck!

August:

August is recovering well from knee surgery. He is almost 4 months out and is continuing to strengthen his knee/leg in order to get rid of his limp and get back to normal activities.

Work is work. He works a lot, but the hours are pretty good and very family friendly. He is a great dad and husband. We are very lucky to have him.

Danielle:

I am still fat/pregnant and miserable. That about sums it up! J/K. But the impending birth does consume me most of the time. I am very excited to have another girl in the house. I just can't wait!!!

I was laid off from my Triage RN position in March. I was already planning on taking time off at the beginning of April so it just sped things up a month. It has been great having no ties on the weekends, but equally as painful not having the expendable/play money it provided. I hope that sometime this summer I can find a similar position that allows me to stay at home, make money and use my nursing skills. We will see.

Family:

Our family is very thankful for the Gospel. It guides us in all of our decisions and actions. I am just so thankful everyday that I have a Testimony of Jesus and that it gives our family direction and purpose. With Easter around the corner we have tried to take time to remember the sacrifice that was made and how important it was and is.

I hope that everyone enjoys our update and finds time to update your info/blogs with how your family's are doing. We love reading and keeping updated!

Bella's Room

Bella's room is coming together. It is tons of fun getting ready for a girl. The colors are coral-pink, cream and a brown. I still need to find some cute decor type stuff. Here are a few pics.

I love the bedding set, but am going to have my sis-in-law do a "girly" skirt in the same fabric as the brown. She does fabulous bed sets. Here is her link for an example of the puffy skirt I want:

http://www.bedebye.net/bebabega.html

Changing table/dresser.

Rocker and table.

Bassinet. It use to have blue bows. I changed them out to match her room. Should it bug me that the buttons are blue? Because it does!

More new posts below! Keep scrolling!

Fire Day

Caleb's preschool had fire day on Friday. One of the little boy's Dad is a firefighter and brought all of the gear, an ambulance and a fire engine. Joshua was lucky enough to participate and both of the boys had a blast.

Caleb and Joshua are in the middle.

Caleb testing out the...whatever it was. (Water sprayer...is that a word??)

It was yellow day at school. Caleb is on the left.

Shoe Fetish

Joshua is a shoe boy. In the car we can't keep his shoes on. However, at home it is a different story. He LOVES shoes. He has them on all day and always a different pair. He loves all of our shoes and doesn't fail to disappoint! Here are a few examples of his style:

The "after bath, naked, high heel" look. (Dad was REAL happy)

Matching? Who needs matching. I am a BOY!

Lunch with a cousin? Nothing better then snow boots on a sunny day. Just in case of course!

And, yet again his fashion sense is exemplified with mis-matched shoes and a diaper. Spring fashion?

March Update

This is more an update then anything. I haven't been much into taking pictures. Maybe because we haven't done anything too exciting.

Isabella is growing big...too big. Sometimes I wonder how she fits. At night I feel that I am on the movie "Spaceballs"...the cafe scene where the alien pops out of the person's stomach. I get really freaked out with the crazy movements and wish I loved it...but I don't. It freaks me out. I just can't wait until she is cooked and ready to come. Then I can kiss and cuddle her without thinking of alien invasion. If I could pay the MD to induce me, I would. He has said my blood count is REALLY low and if it continues to cause problems he will induce me early. One can only hope...pending mature lungs and everything:) My hospital bag is packed and ready to go. Just waiting.........

We have been dealing with the stomach flu this week. Yuck is all I have to say about that. Everyone has it...all of my extended family and everyone at August's work. I don't know how people in Utah make it to church during the winter. With four of us, one has been sick about every week since January. Then, the cough and runny nose lingers forever. In order to avoid the nasty looks by other's, you can't even take your kid to church with any remaining symptom. Which, I agree with, but it makes it difficult to feel a part of the ward and active. Cheers for living in Utah during cold and flu season.

I have recently deactivated my facebook account. I got very tired of the spam, strange friend requests from people I either didn't know, didn't care to remember or included very freaky messages. I also did not want the "worm" that was reportedly circulating. So, now I am unplugged but wormless! So, please leave us messages/comments on our blog or update your blog so I know how everyone is doing. I am always available on email! If you don't have it, leave a message and I will find ya!

Anyway, that about sums up our life recently. Hope everyone is doing well.