Introducing...

Tanner Reed Clark

born 10/20/2011

weighing 7lbs 7ounces

I must say the second time around was soooo much easier! As you read previously I was scheduled to to be induced on October 20, however that morning I woke up around 3 am with labor contractions and we headed straight to the hospital. It could not have worked out better because we had just picked up my mom and sister at the airport only a few hours before. Tanner must have known that the 20th was meant to be his birthday and if he was going to come out he wanted to come out on his own terms.

I've never been in so much pain! I praise all those who've had natural births, because that hour before I had an epidural was the longest of my life! After the epidural everything went so fast and smooth, by the time I had to push I only had one big push and started to push again when the nurse kept telling me to stop because the baby was coming out and the doctor was not ready (he was putting his gloves on and getting his tools ready) however Tanner was ready and was coming out even without me pushing. The nurse started to panic thinking she was going to have to catch the baby. Luckily the doctor turned around in time to catch Tanner.

Dr.
The proud papa:
Mom's first time holding Tanner

My mom and Marilyn brought Carson later that day to meet his new brother. Carson was so sweet and soft with him. He kept giving him kisses, saying hello, or telling him to wake up. The way he says Tanner is cute too it sounds like he is saying "tire iron" really fast. The video at the end of this post is Carson meeting Tanner for the first time.

Our most updated family picture:

Playing in the hospital roomPlaying "train" with Grandma My boys!Going HomeTanner has been the sweetest baby and never cries. He didn't cry when he came out, when he got the circumcision, when he wants to eat, or anytime he had to get pricked. I know it won't last, but for now its quite nice. He's only been in our lives for a little over a day, but we already love him to pieces and are having so much fun with our newest addition.

The end is in sight

We got scheduled to be induced on Thursday! So unless by some miracle I go into labor in two days, it looks like our boys birthday will be 10/20/11. I did ask the doctor today if we could just have him NOW, but this actually works out great since my mom gets here on Wednesday and will be able to watch Carson. We are so excited! Only two more days as a family of 3. Wish us luck!

The waiting Game

My water broke 10 days early with Carson. Today marks 10 days until my actual due date. So I'm sure it will come as no surprise to you that I've been hoping and thinking all day that my water will break or that I'll go into labor. This waiting game sucks. I don't remember being so impatient with Carson, and then my mom reminded me it was because I worked up until I had him so my mind was concentrated on that. Where as now I'm sitting at home all day watching the clock. I've been trying to fill my days with going to the zoo, the park, or the mall, but the days still seem to be dragging on.

It seemed as soon as I hit 37 weeks the days have gone by slower and I am so much more uncomfortable. Plus you should see me walk. Apparently its quite funny or pathetic take your pick.

Here's hoping that the days go by faster!

Maternity Photo Shoot

I never did a maternity shoot when I was pregnant with Carson. We lived in Morenci and well there was just not a lot of options there. I'm lucky to live in a ward that has many photographers, one is my home teacher. So when they asked the typical "is there anything I can do for you?" I asked if he wouldn't mind taking some nice low key maternity shots. The one picture that I wanted the most-Carson kissing my belly: Carson has been so cute lately giving me lots of extra hugs and kisses. Of course when it came time to actually taking a picture of it he didn't want to. He was having too much fun playing with all the new toys.

Here are just some cute ones of my little boy:

I know theres a lot, but its hard to pick my favorite one. Thanks again John! They turned out beautifully!

Comparisons

Remember how I said I didn't take very many pictures when I was pregnant with Carson? Well this next picture was taken at 34 weeks and is the last picture we took of me being pregnant with Carson. So once again I decided to see the comparisons of the two pregnancies side by side.

I think I look a lot bigger this time around! Plus I've already dropped with this baby so maybe thats the reason why I look so much bigger. At any rate its been fun comparing the pregnancies, but for the most part its been pretty much the same. I do think this baby is a little more active then Carson was, but not by much. Plus looking at the ultrasounds I think they are going to look the exact same. I might just have Carson 2 in there (my friends little girl even thinks I should name the baby Carson 2).

At my ultrasound appointment today he is currently weighing in at 5 lbs 14 ounces and already has some hair. Aren't ultrasounds amazing? They can see absolutely everything!
Don't his checks and lips look adorable? Just 4 1/2 more weeks (but hopefully less)!

Good News Update

I had my monthly ultrasound and my weekly non-stress test today and it was confirmed that the baby no longer has a heart arrhythmia! The doctor told me that in most cases it would correct itself, and I am glad to say he was right!

Unfortunately I still have to go in for my weekly stress test, because of the single umbilical cord, but I'm happy that his heart is healthy. He continues to grow strong and is currently weighing in at 3lbs 14oz. The ultrasound tech said he takes after his dad and has very long legs. Brad made the comment that he'll probably be taller then Carson in a year or two. Only two more months to go!

An Update on Us

Well I thought I'd write a quick update on us for a change. A post without pictures (gasp)!

We'll start off with Brad:

Brad has basically dropped off the face of the earth the past month. He had a huge Master's comprehensive test that was over 300 questions. Needless to say he has been studying non stop for this test. I didn't even see him on the weekends (except for church). I'll admit I wasn't the most supportive wife and complained, BUT his test was on Thursday and he passed! So to celebrate and take a much needed break we got a babysitter, and Brad and I went to a nice fancy little restaurant.

So I have somewhat of a husband back. At least for now. Poor Brad has a busy rest of the year ahead of him and that test was just the start. He not only has work, he still has one more semester left, a baby due in October, a thesis to write, and his MAJOR certification test in November. And when I mean major test, I mean this test is an 8 hour test and has a 25% pass rate. All of Brad's colleagues have had to take it more then once. Its that hard of a test. I should be seeing Brad in December when he graduates.

Emily:

What can I say. I stay at home with Carson all day and go to doctors appointments. LOTS of doctors appointments. This little baby I'm growing keeps throwing us curve balls. At my 20 week ultrasound appointment where we found out he was a boy we also found out that we have a complication with the umbilical cord. I have what is known as a single umbilical artery, meaning that instead of 2 arteries and 1 vein, I have 1 artery and 1 vein. Don't worry everything else looks perfectly healthy, but we just have to have monthly ultrasounds to make sure he is growing.

Then a month ago we found out that the baby has an irregular heartbeat. The doctor said in most cases it will correct itself by the time the baby is born. However, I do have to get a non-stress test once a week (it was twice a week, but we've now upgraded). This has been the biggest pain, because I can't take Carson with me (they won't allow anyone in the room with me while I get tested) so I've been relying on my gracious ward members and friends who've watched him while I drive 40 minutes, one way, to the hospital to get this test done.

And on top of all that I still have my regular doctors appointment every other week. So we've been doing a lot of driving.

Carson:

We started to get the rooms ready for our new arrival. So we put the crib in the new nursery and we gave Carson his new big boy bed. He kept trying to escape the first night so we switched the locks and locked him in his room. He cried for about 10 minutes, but then went to sleep, and he has done great! Well I guess I shouldn't get too excited its only been two days, but he's been sleeping in till 9:00 am so he must be getting a good night sleep. The only problem we are facing, and my biggest hesitation for not wanting to get rid of the crib, is naptime. He'll stay in his room quietly and "play" for about an hour, but doesn't sleep. His room is then a total disaster by the time I give up and let him out of his room.

He is also talking a lot and his new cute saying is "mom...how it goin?" It always puts a smile on my face.

Baby:

Growing and kicking a lot. As you can tell he doesn't have a name yet. Not by my lack of trying, Brad just has commitment issues when it comes to naming babies, I've decided. So we have a list of names and we'll just decide at the hospital again. I have a feeling its going to be like this with all our kids.

So there you have it. Pretty boring and busy at the same time.

The Bump

Per requests {cough, Emily} here is the latest and greatest, baby bump picture at 28 weeks.

A new one for ya!

Sorry if you're sick of these pictures, but I had another ultrasound today and we got a better look at his cute face so I thought I would share. He looks so much like Carson in this picture!

More Ultrasound pictures!

I am so fortunate with this pregnancy to see my little guy once a month. Everything is looking great, and yes, he is still a boy. According to the ultrasound technician, "he isn't shy and likes to let it hang".

And for an added bonus today my ultrasound tech took some 3D pictures just for fun. I was just in awe of the 3D pictures. Its amazing how much detail they can see. I loved seeing his precious little face and his very cute little nose. I just can't wait to see him in person!

Here he is giving a peace sign on the left and a thumbs up on the right.

For fun the technician decided to put some cool shades on him.

22 Week Comparison

When I was pregnant with Carson I didn't take very many belly bump pictures. I'm trying to be a little better at it this time around. I noticed that one of the few pictures I did take when I was pregnant with Carson was at 22 weeks, and since I am currently 22 weeks along I thought I would take a comparison picture. I'm even wearing the same shirt to see if you can tell any noticeable differences.

How do I look? I think I'm pretty much the same what do you think?

What a Pregnant Woman does when She is Bored

I was going through some of my old blog posts from when I was pregnant with Carson and came upon this post. I laughed thinking the picture was funny and remembered my first impression as being "this baby looks like a bully". So I thought I would compare a picture of Carson to the picture the "Make me Babies" website came up with.

Its not an exact match, but I was quite shocked to actually see some similarities such as the nose and eyes. So I thought I'd try it again to see what they think our Baby #2 will look like. Here's what they came up with:

I think the picture is hilarious! He almost reminds me of that E-Trade baby on commercials. I guess we'll see in another 4 months!

One Fish, Two Fish, Pink or Blue Fish?

We are excited to announce that Carson is going to have a little brother! It was so wonderful to see him! He is weighing in at 11 ounces (at this stage Carson weighed 12 ounces) and is expected to arrive on (or around) October 21.

It was a great birthday present to Brad. We had such a fun day filled with going to the zoo, shopping, and a wonderful birthday lunch. We are just so excited to meet our new little guy in October!

His "I'm a boy" picture:

The soon to be Big Brother:

Poll Results

Well it was a close race there for a while with the boy and girl votes each at 6, but then the past few days the boy vote crept up and the final score is 9 votes for boy (60%) and 7 votes for girl (46%). I hope I didn't bias the results by saying that I wanted a boy... but it was just for fun and tomorrow we will know the REAL verdict of our little one. I can't wait!

Poll Time

Its that time in the pregnancy to guess either boy or girl!

Its been no secret that I have been wanting another boy. (gasp!) Yes, people have thought I'm crazy. I mean shouldn't I want a girl since I already have a boy? I do want a girl...eventually, just not in this birth order. I want a boy so Carson can have a little buddy and partner in crime with.

With Carson I felt right away that I was having a boy. I haven't felt one way or another with this one. Although every time I start planning for a baby I start planning as if we are having a boy. Brad has even said he would be very surprised if it is a girl, but I guess time will tell.

I'm very excited for the sonogram. Its the best part of the whole pregnancy. To see your little baby's face and hands for the first time. Its so surreal. So just for fun lets try and guess what I'm having! You have until June 1st (Brad's birthday! What a good birthday present, huh?) to cast your votes!

Perks

I love being able to park in these stalls again. It makes me feel special.

Details

I have to apologize about my last post. Apparently on some computers the font I used appeared as symbols not letters. I hope I fixed it so everyone can now understand what it says.

So to fill you in on the details. I am currently a little past 12 weeks and am due October 22. Unfortunately that means I have to be pregnant all summer, but by October the weather will be just perfect. Plus the baby will come just in time for my brother to get home from his mission.

I have been feeling about the same as I did with Carson. Constant nausea (with a few mishaps) and fatigue. So nothing that I'm not used too, I just feel bad for Carson who I think I have gotten addicted to TV. The one noticeable difference is that I'm already having to get up in the middle of the night for bathroom breaks. I didn't do that till my third trimester with Carson. I'm almost out of my first trimester and have already started to feel a little better although it still comes and goes.

I have been reading up on my past blog posts about my pregnancy with Carson, and it feels like that was forever ago. It also reminded me that being pregnant is such a short time and before I know it we'll be a family of 4. It seems crazy to be back in this stage again, but we are looking forward to our newest addition. Plus Carson really needs a sibling. He is horrible at sharing.

Carson's Nicknames

Carson has been called a lot of names. Here are just a few:

Cars, Monkey, Stinker, Carson the Martian, hey you, little Lizard, BABE, my little Baby, mini Brad, Big Boy, cutie, Handsome, my Little Man, squishy face, silly, CRAZY, booger nose, munchkin, SLEEPY HEAD, Wild Child, wiggle worm, shorty, Punk, Ketchup boy, messy, Cars Bars,Mister, Carsonator...

Pretty soon he'll have a new nickname:

BIG BROTHER