Puddle play

Michael certainly enjoys playing in puddles...even when it is cold. Who am I to deny him such fun?



I mean really, who could say "no" to this face?

From Michael Year Two+

-R

Sawyer's Tricks

Well Sawyer had his 4 month appointment today....he is 15.5 lbs and 25 inches long, which makes him normal. He is no longer on track to be a behemoth...which is a good thing. Here are a few of his latest tricks...enjoy!

HALLOWEEN!

From humble beginnings...



...plus some glue...



...plus some paint...



Wall.E!

Dad was pretty proud of himself.



Here is Michael in action....



To the first house...






Michael with his loot.


He actually got much more into it than I thought he would. He had a blast with all the other little kids too. Thanks John, Leigh, Madeline, and Johnson McGuire for inviting us over to your neighborhood!

And not to be outdone by big brother Sawyer went as an incredibly cute (but very sleepy) dinosaur...



-R

Michael + sidewalk chalk = Big circles

Better late than never. Michael had a great time visiting "Gra" and "Pa" in California back in August. He especially liked getting to draw on the driveway. Of course this meant that everyone had to help, especially to make "beeeeg cirrrcules" (big circles). This is a tour of most of the results with narration from Michael at the end. As you will also witness his little knees discovered blacktop as well.



-R

The Two Brothers Meet

Here is the initial introduction of Michael to his new baby brother. He was very careful to check and make sure all the fingers and toes were there. He has been very sweet so far. Micheal will check on Sawyer when he cries, likes to offer him things to eat (got to watch this one), and won't go to bed until he has "kiss baby". I know this will all change once Sawyer gets more mobile and starts getting into all Michael's "stuff". Until then we are content to pretend that they are going to be the best of friends...

-R

A Healthy Happy Baby Boy

By now hopefully all our friends and family have gotten the news that our second little boy arrived yesterday at 10:36 am. We named him Sawyer Emmerich Birkhead. We both just liked the name Sawyer and of course Emmerich is a family name from my mom's side. Sawyer weighed 9 lbs 13 oz and is 21 inches long. Nice big guy.










The real purpose of this post is to thank all those involved and to brag about Chelsea. After having to have a Ceasarian for Michael she was determined to try for a natural childbirth this next go around. Let me just say that it was an amazing experience and I am so impressed with Chelsea, and the human body (thank you hypothalmus for endorphins, and collagen fibers for their ability to stretch!). Trust me when the delivering doctor says "Whoa...that's a big baby!" you know she did some work.
GO CHELS!!

The first difficulty was finding a natural childbirth class in our area. Fortunately Chelsea heard about a Bradley instructor in Auburn. I must say I was nervous about taking a natural childbirth class, but the Bradley classes we took really were a big help (http://www.bradleybirth.com/). So our first big "Thank You" goes out to Linda Kerr our Bradley instructor.

The next goes to our friend Sean Graham who drove us to the hospital at 4am and then helped get little Michael to daycare the next morning so Chelsea's parents could be at the hospital with us.

Which leads to Mike and Fran. Though we had not planned to have any family in the room with us during delivery, Mike and Fran came to see us and as things progressed they got more and more involved with the actual delivery. Fran was great and got right into the thick of things once the pushing started. I am so glad that they were able so share the experience with their daughter. It truly was a beautiful moment.








Which then leads us to Cynthia Clearman. She was our nurse through the delivery, and I am not sure it would have been such a great experience without her. Not all hospitals are too open to having an unmedicated birth much less a "higher risk" birth like a VBAC. She was so supportive and reassuring through the whole process. Chelsea was not dilated fully by the time she wanted to start pushing and Cynthia calmly got in there and talked us through it. Had she not stepped up at that point I am convinced it would not have gone as smoothly as it did. Of course we have continued to get great care and support from all the doctors, nurses and staff here at EAMC.

Finally to all our family and friends a big "Thank You" for all your well wishes and support!!

Mom and Baby are now resting well and we are all really excited about getting home and being a family. We just can't wait to tell Michael he is a big brother!

We will keep you posted on our latest adventures!

-R

Michael's latest tricks

Michael just turned 2! and along with all the wonderful things that go along with turning two (lots of new words, a sense of adventure...tantrums...) Michael has been surprising us with new tricks!

He is an excellent dancer! (He must have gotten lessons from Uncle Donald)

He loves to 'get stuck' in places and then clearly exclaim "I stuck!"

Jump in puddles....

...and perform guitar solos complete with applause, bows, and "Thank you, thank you" at the end.