Introducing....

Jackson and Quinten are proud to announce....

Calia Lisette Chisholm

July 4, 2009
10:09 am
6 lbs 5 oz

Despite being scheduled for the 6th, our little girl had other plans, so early on the 4th I called the doctor and she told me to head on in. She was already on call that weekend so it worked out well. We werent there that long and they were getting us ready for my c-section. At 10:09 our beautiful and perfect little girl was born. All during my pregnancy I had a dream that she was dark haired and looked like Quinn, as it turns out, I was quite right. She came out with darker hair than either of the boys, less than Quinn but more than Jack and she looks a LOT like Quinn although she does have quite a few Jack "looks".

Catching up...Jackson...

Jackson quite possibly has had the most go on...I suppose that is how it gets when you get older. He finished up his first year of school...hard to believe that he is going to be in FIRST GRADE in just a few months. We really loved and appreciated his teachers Mrs. Fuson and Mrs. Erickson. They have amazing patience that I could only wish for. They taught him so much. Just a few weeks ago, I realized he could read. Now its not to say that we didnt pay attention to him, but he would pick out words he knew...then one day, I realized he was in his room reading out loud. Since then he has just been devouring the books. It is just truly awesome. (See picture picture below of him reading to Q and Oma--my grandma)



He also lost his first tooth! He was so excited...he called everyone in the family. The tooth had been wiggly for only like 2 days...and he lost the tooth just after he got home from school one day.



He also turned 6!!!!!!!! This goes right along with the reading and the tooth losing. Hard to believe he is old enough for all of this. He got 2 cakes...the first cake was an ice cream cake that Oma picked up for him while we were in Ohio visiting...he was amazed by the ice cream cake since we always have "regular" cake. Of course Momo made exactly what he wanted for his birthday cake...a rocket ship cake with blue icing and (star) sprinkles. What would we do without a momo to make the perfect cake every time?

6 years ago...he was 5 lbs 6 oz and 19.5" long. Now at 6, he is 46.5 lbs and 45" tall. He is turning into quite the helper, he will take out the trash, do the laundry and help corral his brother. He is very excited for his sister and will tell anyone who will listen all about her. I can't wait to see how much he changes in the next year!

Thanks to everyone who came to his party (Grandma Paula, Aunt Mandy, Uncle Andy, Steven, Brooke, Momo, Papa, Mimi, Andy, Chrissie, Kenzie, Raegan, and Madison). You made his birthday VERY special!

Catching up...Quinten...

Oh, our little monkey. Larry was over at an friend's place catching up while all of our kids played together. This particular friend is a father of three lovely little girls...and said to Larry "I didnt know your kids were infused with monkey DNA". This phrase has come up numerous times since then...because its true...Quinten is quite the little monkey.

He is also starting to grow up before we can realize whats going on. He's asking questions all the time, learning to share much better, and I hesitate to say...he might actually be growing! It was just a few months ago that I got sick of his 24month/2T stuff that I put it away and just dealt with the baggy 3T stuff and just yesterday went through his drawers and put away a whole box full of stuff that I know wont fit when the colder weather hits.

If you ask most kids they WANT to be big kids...not Quinn...he says he is a "little boy". We have made sure to tell him that he has a VERY important job when babygirl gets here...he's a little brother AND a big brother. I think he's pretty excited at that prospect. But it will be a big adjustment for our little boy...even if he is excited.

Catching up...the baby....

The picture is from the ultrasound we had on 5-20-09 at our doctor's office. She was concerned about the baby's size as I was measuring consistently "ahead" (in their magical doctor measurements where they use a measuring tape and measure the outside of your stomach) for like 3 appointments. Babygirl of course measured perfectly where she should be and coincidentally, I was measuring "behind" at that appointment. Figures...right?

Babygirl is always moving in the evenings after her brother's go to bed. Its apparently her time to show off and get attention. The boys are still VERY excited about her and they both sing and talk to her practically every day...sometimes to the point where I just ask them to leave her (and me) alone for 5 minutes.

We are working on getting everything together for her. The clothes have been washed (thanks, Papa!) and put away, the crib has been put together...but still more to do. I finally finished the quilt top for her room and it is on its way to one of my mom's friends to be quilted together. Can't wait for it to be done!


We are VERY excited about her arrival...which...should be no later than July 8th. I should have a better idea later today after my appointment about her scheduled c-section date. Last night, Mimi (my sister) called AT 11 PM to tell me that I needed to have a conversation with my daughter because of people being out of town...my mom is going to Honduras from June 26-30th and my sister will be at camp from June 28th-July 3rd. Yah...because babies are great at following plans...I'll get right on that!

Oh the time we have spent talking about names....

Well...middle names. Her first name (yes its still pretty much a secret!) was decided long ago. But the middle name...gosh...it seems every time we talk about it...the list gets longer. Want a sneak peek?

Elise/Elyse (eh-LEES, Short form of Elizabeth (God is my oath) that is now commonly bestowed as an independent given name)
Juliette (joo-lee-EHT, A French diminutive form of Julie (downy-bearded, youth)
Jayne (JAYN, English cognate of the French Jehanne and Jeanne, which are feminine forms of Jean, a cognate of John (God is gracious). )
Violette (pronunciation up in the air... Vee-oh-let or Vi-oh-let but for sure not Vi-let, From the Old French violette, a diminutive form of viole, which is derived from the Latin viola (a violet). )
Isabelle/Isobel/Isabel ( I-zə-behl, A Spanish variant form of Elisabeth (God is my oath).)
Sienne (See-ehn, not sure of origin or meaning...Larry was the one who suggested it)
Renee (maybe) (reh-NAY, Feminine form of the French Rene, from the Late Latin Renātus, which is a direct derivative of renātus (reborn, born again).)
Marie (maybe) (mah-REE, French cognate of Mary, which is derived from the Hebrew Miryām, a name of debated meaning. Many believe it to mean "sea of bitterness" or "sea of sorrow." However, some sources cite the alternative definitions of "rebellion," "wished-for child," and "mistress or lady of the sea.")
Ryan/Ryann (RIY-in, From the Irish surname O'Riain (descendant of Rian). Rian is an ancient Irish name believed to be a diminutive form of rí (king): hence, "little king.")

I like them all for different reasons, I think some sound better than others, but I'm not drawn to any one in particular. I'm fine with waiting but I do analyze the names on a regular basis. My thoughts?

Elise/Elyse - Love the name, I think its a bad transition from her first name.
Juliette - Was my original favorite I do still love it, nothing really negative to say about this one
Jayne - People either love it or hate it. It fits well, but dont want to hear "plain Jane" out of anyone!
Violette - Sounds nice, gives her a less used initial like the boys each have, dont want to have to constantly correct people about pronunciation
Isabelle/Isobel/Isabel A name we have both always liked, sort of a weird transition from first name, and its sort of popular
Sienne - Might be nice to not have a name to spell and pronounce for everyone, so this may not be a great option
Renee We dont do family names...and not necessarily a blood family member, but is the middle name of a little girl who is only a year older than babygirl.
Marie See previous discussion about not doing family names, this is my middle name, I hate to use it because it sounds like filler but it still flows really well.
Ryan/Ryann Her first name is VERY girly so a name like this really balance our the girly name.

The days are flying....

Holy gosh...I swear it took 3 years to get from 4-20ish weeks...now all the sudden...I'm looking at 31 weeks (so yes this picture is 2 weeks old). I think she must have been laying funny because I looked extra pregnant that day! We are looking at 8 weeks left until we have her...thats 8 weeks to finish up her room, get a ton of other things in order, let Jackson turn 6!!!!

I cannot believe how quickly the days are flying by!

I made it all the way through the month of April....

while pregnant and didnt get into a car accident!


WOOOHOOOOOOOOOOOO!