Lisette Alicia Quinn

Born May 27th, 2009 at 11:23 a.m. Weight is 6 lbs. 13 oz. and she is 19 inches long. She was born 27 days early and is doing well. They have kept her in Special Care Nursery over night, just to make sure she's not contracting an infection or having any breathing problems. Soon we will know if she can come home today, or if they want to keep her one more night. If that's the case then I'll be allowed to stay tonight with her too. Franklin has been staying with Aunt Greta and her family and doing lots of fun things since school is coming to a close, and summer is upon us. Greta and Adam have loved having him, and enjoying his chatter, dancing and laughter. Stephen and I have been missing him like crazy and can't wait till the whole family is together at home.


We didn't take pictures right away because we were stuck in surreal mode since delivery was very fast, and since pregnancy wasn't easy we couldn't believe she was here. I only pushed 3 1/2 times till my doctor told me to stop.











She's already won over many hearts; nurses, family, and even some strangers. We were told last night that another couple was visiting their infant who slept next to Lisette. As they were holding their little girl they were asking the nurse about Lisette, how she was doing, if there was anything wrong, and that she looks so sweet and wonderful. Obviously she couldn't disclose any information to them about her. I hope you enjoy these pictures, and we'll get more soon!

May in pictures

Fun things do happen here

On Tuesday I saw my doctor. It was the first time the pains happened during a check up, and he definitely saw the pain in my body language. What a change! This whole time I haven't been happy with my doctor, but this one visit he was compassionate, and listened to us. He also said that if I go into labor at any point now, they won't stop me (even though I'm not yet 36 week). Overall the pains have been letting up, but because I'm in the clear, so to speak, I'm not staying on strict bed rest anymore, and therefore aggravating the pains. I no longer feel the need to remain helpless, and have done some cleaning, cooking and I actually went to my sisters and visited for a little bit. Also, Stephen and I took some adventures this week. Now for the fun stuff.

We've been contemplating on getting a more family friendly vehicle for a very long time. We've discussed our options over and over for months. Every time we found something that excited us, we got the feeling to hold off and wait. We thought of ways that maybe we could get out of our truck loan to take away the hesitation. But we love our truck. Its just the back seat isn't comfortable and two car seats don't really work. Now with baby #2 almost here, we've been trying to make up our minds. So these last 2 weeks Stephen has really stepped up the car search. I started to humor him by looking online. There was something I liked, and he agreed to go look at it for me. When he went to that dealership, that exact car was on a truck to be hauled to another location, so he went to the dealership across the street and instantly found something he loved.

He agreed to look at other places too, but we weren't happy with our search results. I agreed with Stephen to travel up to Sandy to look at this car he loved so much (taking the chance to really get out of the house). The dealer had this car at a tent sale, hoping for one last effort to sell it before they resorted to auction. Stephen said I would love it, and I did. We made them a deal for well under its value. We drove home in two separate vehicles that night, getting home at 11:00 p.m. Poor Franklin, but Stephen said that he was singing most of the way home.

He loved getting in and out of other cars, and was a great sport the whole time. He really enjoys our new-to-us car. Its a 2006 Mercury Mariner Premium 4WD V6. It has low miles, and whole lot of luxury features. Franklin enjoys climbing in (with a tiny bit of help) and gets in his car seat all by himself; HUGE help for mommy!! And we still have our truck!! We'll post some pictures soon.

We've also been doing a lot of research on car seats. We got rid of Franklin's old one because we ended up hating it. It was very frustrating to use, and he out grew it fast. We've been trying to be very choosy, and thought we found something we liked. I didn't even bother reading reviews till we were about to purchase. There are so many problems other people had that we decided we needed to look up what had the highest praise. We also want to make sure it wasn't gender biased (we don't want to have to get a new car seat for every infant). It made it even better when I found a code online to take to the store and get 15% off. Stephen's very enthusiastic about this seat too, and now our little girl can come any time now. We are definitely ready for her. With the excitement in the air I couldn't resist asking Stephen to let me get a "Welcome Home" dress.

And to top it off, all 4 of Franklin's canines are definitely cut through! He has gone back to sleeping in his own room all the time, and sleeping through the night, and taking naps that are long enough. He's also showing signs of tanning, more than me, and has one freckle on his right arm. And I have to add that the weather is great, and Franklin can't get enough. I think he's really catching on that something big is about to happen. Oh, and he's completely obsessed with the Muppet's. We finally ordered 2 other movies because I'm so sick of watching Muppet's from Space all the time, but he is so fun to watch when he gets into it. I think its all the soul music they play on it that he likes so much.

Just so that a date is out there, we are hoping that on August 2nd we can have our little girl blessed, as well as have a little birthday party for Franklin. He'll be 2 this August, my how time flies! We are inviting friends and family to join in the fun. Let us know if you'd like to be counted in!!

The last stretch

This past weekend was very long, very dramatic, and very exhausting. Franklin has always been a late teether. His first 2 teeth caused a lot of trouble with playing peek a boo and teasing us. His canines, all 4 of them at once, are giving him (and us for that matter) more trouble than the rest of his teeth. He ran fevers all weekend. He'd been waking up in the middle of the night since last Wednesday. Finally, Friday night, poor Stephen is at his wits end. My pains had picked up with a vengeance Thursday night so between Franklin and myself, Stephen is worn out. I told him that the first time Franklin wakes up, just bring him in bed with us.

Friday night was still very long. Franklin would get upset when I had to get up to visit Mrs. Murphy (my Grandma Reed's name for the toilet, always would make me laugh, she has hilarious names for all sorts of things). Saturday wasn't much better. He was burning very hot. Because he had no other flu symptoms I didn't take his temperature. Sunday was hard for both of us. My pains have been making me writhe in pain that the only thing stopping me from going to the hospital was the fact that Franklin hasn't been sleeping well, and he was already in bed. So Monday I spoke with my sister about my dilemma. Franklin slept better with us on Monday night, and he had fewer fevers at that point. We're still struggling to get him to eat solids, but most of you know how hefty he is so we're not too concerned.

So yesterday Stephen and I headed over to our hospital in the afternoon with Franklin in tow. We had packed a bag for him, and a bag for me, just in case and Greta was on stand by to come get him in case we were going to be there a while. It was so wonderful to be listened to, and be taken seriously. They did some tests, and an exam. I am at 34 weeks, and dilated to 3 cm (don't worry, it doesn't mean I'm going to have this baby anytime soon) and I have a bladder infection. Other than the pain from the infection there isn't anything they can do about the rest of my pains, obviously.

Last night was better; less pain, and even though Franklin woke up 3 times, he would put himself back to sleep within minutes. He stayed in his own bed all night, that made us both happy. We are determined to make it at least 2 more weeks for me, and then I'm ending my bed rest. I see my doctor next week for my regular check up, and we'll keep you posted on any changes for me. Franklin hasn't had a fever yet today, and Stephen is able to catch up on sleep again as well.

The update, finally

Taking the bed rest seriously has been helping. However I will admit that its not been easy to sit aside and not do anything. Everytime that I try to do something I definitely pay for it later. I've been spending a lot of time reading books, and being entertained by Franklin and the cats. Stephen continues to be amazing and incredibly patient.

Franklin has been cutting his canines for several weeks now, and finally some of them are actually visable. He continues his own chatter, and has a lot to say all the time. He climbs all over everything, and the only time he gets in trouble is when he crawls on me. He is definitely his mothers' son. He tries to roll, sit on, and jump on Rizzo, and his mommy. He also loves to poke at my belly. He'll move my clothes so he can see my tummy, and very softly rubs, pats, or pokes my belly. I try not to react when he rubs over my scar (I have no feeling over it, so it is a weird sensation, and sometimes gives me the willies).

Stephen has been working long days with the weather getting better. Last week we actually had some snow. Thankfully it didn't stick due to all the rain we were getting. Now the sun is heating things up nicely here. It won't be long till it's as hot as Sierra Vista, AZ here. Yes, it gets very hot here; our elevation is the same as where my parents live in Arizona, so close to Mexico. Stephen is very much looking forward to the heat; it means better pay, so why wouldn't he be excited!

We recently decided that we can't move till after the baby is born. We haven't been too thrilled about that decision, but have no choice because I can't help pack, or clean the place when we are moved out. I'm not about to make Stephen do all that work himself, its just not fair. However, some good news came our way yesterday. Our landlady told us that her roommates (the very noisey tenants that live above us) have moved out, and this week they will officially be gone. Stephen thought it was the best birthday news ever! We can also tell that our landlady is very relieved, and happy about that news herself. Things have been far more stressful for everyone under this roof. And yes, Stephen's birthday is tomorrow, the 4th. Its amazing how fast the time goes! This is his 5th birthday the two of us have spent together!! Happy Birthday to the most amazing man I know!!