A Happier and Healthier Hannah

Hannah's Second Cold

Poor baby...

Maddie Turns Two!!

To avoid holiday craziness, and just craziness in general, we had Maddie's birthday party on the 6th of December. Only grandparents, aunts, and uncles were present this time around but that didn't stop Maddie from being spoiled. She got new pots and pans for her kitchen, a lunch bag, creatively made by Auntie E, and Elmo bedding. And that wasn't all. There were swings for the new swing set, books, and a laughing doll (which Maddie won't go to sleep without).

Hannah Banana

Isn't she a cutie!!

Thanksgiving!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving the old Townsend crew got together for lunch. It was nice to catch up and give the kids an opportunity to play with each other.

I'm still trying to find the photos I got of Maddie and Ciara playing together. Roberta is missing because she intentionally dodged the camera. I'm not sure about Erin and Carla. Ryan, too, is among the missing.

The Swing Set!!

I was getting home from work one night and as I pulled into the driveway I spotted a swing set in the yard. Grammie and Grampie had come to put it up, and boy oh boy what a surprise! Needless to say Maddie is thrilled and Hannah will be when she's old enough to know better. Thank you!!

Hannah

So here is my baby. I'm returning to work tomorrow and am sad to be leaving her. Brian pointed out that even though I had 3 months with Maddie I worked a far busier schedule. Still, it is hard. For those of you who don't know, I had a very rare tumor removed at the time of Hannah's birth. The majority of my maternity leave was thus spent going from doctors office to doctors office, getting second opinions, anxiously awaiting lab results, undergoing CT scans... For anyone who has gone through something similar I would not wish it on my worst enemy. Suffice it to say though that all is well. Labs are normal, the CT scan was negative, and the tumor is now a thing of the past. As one of my physicians put it, "Although anxiety provoking, over time this will fade into the background of your life". Still, I wish I could have my time back with Hannah, those quiet, reflective moments you are supposed to have with your baby.

I'm a planner and have always had an eye toward the future - but to a fault. This has been a learning experience and will continue to be, I'm sure. Nothing changes overnight. But, I really understand the importance of living in the Now. I have the most amazing friends and family. I hope you know how much you are all appreciated. Brian - you are my rock. Your sense of humor will get us through anything :)

On a lighter note, I contemplated putting Hannah's feet on the Halloween post. Check those babies out! They are scary - even bigger than Maddie's when she was born.

Auntie E visits!!

Halloween Continued

Also among the missing: my dad, Jess, Butch, Lois, David, Erika, and Ken and Christina. I must say Ken and Christina are a convincing Hermione and Mr. Harry Potter. I did a double take when they came up onto the porch. It was a lot of fun guys. I hope we can do it again next year. Thanks for all your efforts.

Halloween

So Brian and I decided to have an open house on Halloween so our families and neighbors could hang out and see the trick or treaters, including Maddie who was dressed as a frog, and Ella who was a princess. Phoebe is shown here as a ladybug.

Paul finally felt confident enough to hold Hannah. In his defense there is a BIG difference between 6 and 10 lbs. Poor Brian had a crazy day. He drove up to Rockland, ME to get our new renters situated and drove back the same day. He returned home sporting the mullet you see here. There were lots of other people at the party but we were all having so much fun that we forgot to make better use of the camera. Jane brought her amazing apple pie and my mom made a spider cake.

Flower Girl For Rent

Well, if anyone has any upcoming wedding plans and is in desperate need of a flower girl, consider yourself lucky you know us because we have the girl for you!
Miss Madeleine had her FGD (Flower Girl Debut for those not in the know) for Uncle Paul and Aunt Jess' wedding this past weekend and let me just say that it was exciting, to say the least! Although a little shy initially--first time in front of a crowd!--Maddie finally came around once the reception began. To be fair, she probably didn't know what all the fuss was about but one of the guests did compare her high-pitched middle-of-the-aisle sobs to the heavenly sounds of an angelic choir!
All in all it was a good time. Our best wishes for the new couple. We hope you can forgive us!

And the baby's name is...

Despite some awesome ideas--Hannah Solo (thanks Me)--and awesome suggestions--Hannah Danger (thanks Brad)--Shara and I debated about flipping a coin to decide, then neglected to do so, and finally chose Hannah Jane, a name I agreed to weeks ago. So, all that "Why don't you make a list" and "Would you please pick a name and stop fooling around" junk could have been avoided. At any rate, baby and Mom are doing beautifully. Shara is angling to get out of here tomorrow afternoon. She's been up and about and Hannah has been all a newborn baby could be. Maddie came up to visit last night and tonight. At first she seemed apprehensive but eventually gave her several kisses and showed Hannah some of her gifts. Tonight she held the baby with some help and seems to be adjusting well. Maddie will rejoin us tomorrow when we head home--hopefully--so we can spend the weekend together.
Here are some photos--enjoy!

Brand New Baby

Well, the day finally arrived. Shara went into surgery bright and early this morning. I was able to go in after they'd started and sit with her. At 8:17 our beautiful new addition arrived: 6lbs, 13oz, 19 1/2" tall. We don't have a name yet--we're working on it--but hope to by tomorrow. Shara is well and all the worries we had seem to have worked out for the better. I also did not pass out in the operating room--a BIG fear--and we were able to hold her right away. Here's a photo of her straight from the OR, maybe 15 minutes old.
We'll keep you updated on the name status.

Baby

So a word about our little girl who is due to be here rather shortly....

Brian and I are still struggling with a name. There is a short list but we think we have to see her before we will know just what to call her.

Despite the whole bed rest bit, it turns out I am actually going to have a C-section on the 16th of September. I'd explain, but it's gotten rather old having to talk about it. Let's just say this pregnancy has been more than a little challenging.

I'm back at work and packing in as many shifts as I can handle before the big day. It's good to be doing some of the things most of us take for granted, like driving my car, going for a walk, or even going for a swim at my parents....I can now fulfill my nesting instincts without any guilt. The house is spotless, the nursery is done, and now we wait... I owe those of you who put up with me while on bed rest an enormous debt. You know who you are.

P.S. The Shandrowskis, the LaPointes, and the Seymours all came out for a surprise baby shower. We also got to see Ryan, Lauren, Rory, and Will, and Lois drove down from Maine for the bash. We loved seeing you all and it really helped to boost my spirits. Thank you all. We are well stocked with diapers. Now if we can just get Maddie out of hers.....

Maine

Hi All! Now that I'm off bed rest, Maddie, Brian, and I were able to escape to Maine for 3 days. It was a lot of fun, but from my perspective - HOT! Maddie is a water bug and loved the waves at OOB. Since we've returned home she says "Maine" (but with a southern drawl) and cries that going to the ocean is not on the day's agenda. Here are some pics of our little vacation.

Sweet Fancy Moses

Anything I attempt to write will only detract from the sheer awesomeness of this video.

Related clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5xi4O1yi6b0

She's Got Her Father's Rhythm Too!

So last Wednesday, Shara and I discovered a free-on-demand animated version of "The Wheels on the Bus" sung by Kevin Bacon of all people. Well, after five consecutive viewings, Maddie was hooked and immediately learned to say "bus" but with a little slur/lisp at the end: "buhsh." Awwwww....

Anyway, we went to watch it the next day and it had been pulled from the free offerings. Maddie's continued cries of "Buhsh? Buhsh?" were met with disappointed frowns by her parents. How could Charter have done this to us? Maddie soon learned to say, "Buhsh, gone." Awwwwww...

Well, I was able to find it on Netflix so I sent in whatever movie I had on hand but the new one didn't arrive until today. Our weekend was filled with whimpered "buhsh, gones."

Well, Maddie was excited to have the buhsh back and we watched it who knows how many times. The song grows on you, Mr. Bacon sounding nothing like you thought he would. Maddie found it in herself to do some interpretive dance. Anyone see a little Axl Rose?

In the second video, I have returned with Maddie's baby so she can dance with it. Let me just say that Maddie's care of her baby is NOT representative of how Shara and I have cared for Maddie. We do not just toss her onto the carpet and head out for a night of dancing. And yes, that is Maddie's real hair.

For those unsure of what she's doing at about 55 seconds, when she raises her right shoulder to her ear: she's blowing the doll a hug.

It appears I spoke too soon in my last posting....My latest doctor's appointment revealed that our little girl is very anxious to make her way in to the world. I am now 27 weeks pregnant and have been placed on strict bed rest by my physician. Trish has already been by, and amazingly was juggling Maddie, Ella, and Charlotte all at the same time while I lounged around on the couch. Luckily, Brian is off for the summer and both sets of parents have promised drop in to give us a hand. I'm armed with movies, the internet, and lots of books. Also, our living room has turned into a camping area, complete with sleeping bags and pillows so I can be at Maddie's level when we play together. I apologize for missing any of the fun summer events that will be taking place - my brother's wedding shower, b'day parties, bbqs, and the like....I would much rather be at those gatherings, believe me....But because my family and friend know me all too well, I've had to take an oath to behave myself. When all is said and done it will be worth it. I've got lots of time on my hands so stay tuned for more postings :)

House Party

Hello Everyone.  Things have been busy, naturally, because of our move, but we are finally feeling settled in.  Here's our new house with Maddie on the front porch.

I am entering the last trimester of my pregnancy now and it feels good to have all of the boxes unpacked and the nursery set up.  The nesting instinct took over and Bri and I had the house organized, and ship shape in less than a month.  For those of you who didn't know we are having a little girl.  The earlier complications we faced have resolved and it appears that all is well.  Thanks to all of you who were supportive during tough times earlier this year.

I also wanted to post some pics of the house party Brian, Maddie and I had this past weekend.  Despite the rain we had a great time.  It was a baby bonanza! Nice to see you all and thanks for helping us celebrate our new place.  Among the missing: Trevor, Syd, Erin, Ed and crew, Elys, Sandy and Avery, Juan, Berta, and Colin.  Did I forget anyone?

Two weeks ago Brian and I caught up with Brad, Katie, John, and Dee.  They couldn't make last weekend's event and so we felt fortunate to see them the weekend prior.  Good food and good company....Brad has provided Bri and I a list of must haves to start our own beer brewing. Since we can't yet finish the basement and Brian is lacking a "man town", we feel this is the best way to make use of the space.  Maybe we can have everyone out after the first batch is done.  I'll keep you posted.

Brian got to it first.

So the good news is out - a new baby on the way. I'm due at the end of September. Despite having been pregnant once already I did not know I was carrying our little one until I was greater than 9 weeks along. In fact, with the stress of buying a house, I thought I had a stomach ulcer. The morning sickness needless to say, did not occur until late in the afternoons. Go figure. We had a scare several weeks ago with the emergency room visit Brian made mention of, as well as the car wreck, but all of my ultrasounds since have shown that the baby is doing well.

We are moving into our new house about a week from now and I wanted to show you all pictures. For those of you who have seen our house in Maine, you will quickly recognize a huge difference.
Follow the link below:

http://www.beangroup.com/real_estate/listings/Homes/NH/Brookline/693884

New Baby!

I think most of you know already but...
The title pretty much says it all but here's a couple of pictures in case it doesn't.