Puppy...what?

Do you remember playing Monopoly? I can remember playing, but I can never remember anyone ever winning. Well, Jacob and Kyle got this game for Christmas. It's called Puppyopoly. The rules are fairly similar to Monopoly, except instead of owning properties, you own puppies, and instead of paying money, you pay treats. It's actually a cute little game and both Jacob and Kyle are reading well enough to be able to play the game without anyone helping them. They actually take turns being the baker (this game's version of the banker).

They took out this game on Saturday and set it up in the office on our card table. They were not able to finish it all in one sitting...they played some Saturday, some more on Sunday, and then finished it up on Monday and cleaned it all up (okay, that part took a little prodding). They rarely fight about the game and in order for someone to pay them their treats when they land on their puppy, they have to bark how many treats they are supposed to get, so all I hear from the other room is usually barking and some other silly puppy stuff. It's nice that they are getting to the age where they cannot only play a game by themselves, they have enough memory to go back to a game that they didn't get to finish. Hopefully this will get even better as they get older. Oh, the wonderful things there are about twins!

B

Alyssa Update-2 weeks

Just thought I should let you all know how our little girl is doing. I think this picture pretty accurately describes what the last two weeks have been like.

After having Zachary who never slept, I have been getting nervous that she sleeps too much. She is rarely awake during the day. However, we were at the doctor today. She is up to 7 lbs. 7 oz. (that's 7 oz. abover her birth weight) and the doctor is very happy. Last night she slept for 7 hours straight-no waking up. We might be able to get some of our lost sleep back. I'm not counting on this continuing, but the doctor told me that I don't have to wake her to feed her at night anymore! She has also grown 2 inches since she left the hospital. I think that maybe the hospital staff didn't quite stretch her out as much as they could have, but it looks good on paper! When she is awake, she is starting to look around and really focus on faces.

Other than that, the boys say that all she does is eat, sleep, pee, poop, and cry. She is starting to get a little fussier in the evenings, but I know that this is expected of her. Hopefully it will help her conk (spelling?) out and sleep for long periods of time at night. During the day, she couldn't be easier (am I jinxing myself here?). She eats, then is awake for a short period of time and then sleeps all on her own. I said that I just wanted a kid who slept in the car seat and on her back, and it looks like maybe that's what we have. We'll keep you posted. In the meantime, here are a few new pictures to keep you satisfied!

B

This is how little girls do blue!

Jacob really loves his little sister. What has been really surprising is how calm he is when he holds her. Even when something would normally upset him, he doesn't really show it while holding her. Maybe he just has to hold her all the time!

Alyssa's first bath. Daddy gave it to her and she really hated it. However...

she calmed down once she was wrapped up and was ready for a good meal!

Pictures!

Okay, here are the long awaited pictures of our dear Alyssa and how she's getting along with the rest of the family!

This is her hospital picture. To see more hospital pictures, go to http://www.bellababyphotography.com/. Click on "website." Click on "new client." Then use 0210alyssatukker as the username and password. No capital letters or spaces.

Kyle loves to hold her! Too bad she quit taking the pacifier right after this picture was taken!

Jacob too wanted to get in on the action. However, he was also watching Kyle play the Wii. It was hard to tell which was more exciting for him. However, he stayed very calm while he held her.

Zachary just loves to kiss her!


These are two shots of our cutie in an outfit that her Aunt Jill gave her. Just wanted to make sure that she saw it since she may outgrow it before Aunt Jill sees it.

There is just something so angelic about babies when they are sleeping. This was our attempt to wake her up and feed her. However, it took a lot more than just a flash in her face!

All in all, we are adjusting. Looking at my older three sleeping so peacefully reminds me that these sleepless nights won't last and that she'll only be a baby for a short time and I should enjoy it. So far she has been pretty good, but I know that there is fussiness yet to come. We're just trying to take it all in stride!

B

I'm in Labor...She's Here!

Sorry it has taken me so long to write this. I can't believe that almost a week has passed since this beautiful little miracle has entered my life. What follows is my experience of the night she was born. This is the long of the long, so feel free to skip it if you want.

Here it is...the birth story of Alyssa Diane Tukker:

I had been having contractions since Thursday and a few times had actually thought that this was it. However, each time the contractions would subside and I would continue to wait. I hadn't gotten much sleep in about five nights because each time I would lay down I would have contractions that would keep me awake.

Finally, Monday night I went downstairs in the middle of the night because the contractions were so strong. I actually had to walk around because sitting hurt too much. However, by early Tuesday morning, everything had become disorganized (that was my word--I wanted my contractions to "organize"). I layed on the couch most of the morning since I hadn't slept really at all the night before. However, I still wasn't having regular contractions. I would go entire hours without having one, so I thought that I would just continue as I had for the last five days. I even took the kids to Pizza Hut for lunch and contemplated going to the zoo. The temperature was in the 60's. I did take some walks around the block--once with Zachary on his tricycle, once with him in the stroller. I was trying to do anything I could to get labor started.

Anyway, I was outside talking to my neighbors that afternoon, I made dinner for the kids. By about 6:00 or so, I was starting to have serious back pain with each contraction. I needed my hubby to press on my lower back as I leaned on a counter, so I called my mom to come over and give the kids baths and put them to bed.

We had the kids to bed by 7:30 or so and we started to watch The Biggest Loser. My mom stuck around because I had invited her to be in the delivery room with me and we were kind of waiting to see if this was it. The show was two hours from 7-9 pm and we were watching it a little on DVR delay. However, we had pretty much caught up by the end. The contractions still were not coming real regular. They were roughly every 5 minutes or so, but I would have periods where they would go 10 minutes apart for several contractions in a row. I was starting to get discouraged, yet again.

About 9:00 I decided to call the doctor. I thought that maybe I could at least go to the hospital and see if I had dilated at all or if all these contractions for the last five days were so subtle that they still were not doing anything. I had been dilated to one for the last three weeks. The doctor said to go to the hospital, but to take my time, and not to rush. I'm sure that he was thinking that he would be sending me home or that he had a long night ahead of him.

At about 9:15 we started packing up the car. Luckily I had my bag packed. My mom called my dad to come and watch the kids and she was going to wait for him and then come to the hospital to be with me. As I started getting my coat on, the contractions started coming more and more often. I didn't even make it across the kitchen before the next one started. I was not excited about the ride in the car.

As we started driving, I realized that I needed the seat put back as far as I could put it. I layed back and put my feet up on the dashboard and tried my best to breathe through the contractions. My hubby tried to talk me through them and was rubbing my leg. About five minutes into the 15-20 minute drive, I felt this incredible need to push. I have never felt an urge so strong that I couldn't stop it. I started to scream. My poor hubby--he stayed so calm (He told me later that he didn't think that I was really that far, that I was just being my normal, hysterical self--God bless him!). At the next stoplight, I felt my water break. I really didn't think that I was going to make it to the hospital.

So the entire trip to the hospital I'm screaming and convinced that this little girl is going to be born in my pants. I'm worried about the car being wet from my water breaking and I feel what I think is p**p coming down as well. All I could think of was "Great, when I get to the hospital, not only are they going to have to clean up my water breaking but the other thing as well." Fortunately I found out later that what I was feeling was the baby's head making her way down.

We got to the hospital and my hubby ran to get me a wheelchair. I was convinced that I was not getting out of the car. He said in a very firm voice, "Yes, you are." and he helped me between contractions. He rushed me through the lobby into the elevators, with three other people in them. I warned them that I may scream. Then we made it into labor and delivery. Four or five nurses rushed me to a room as I screamed all the way down the hall. They got me in a room and stripped my lower half. I heard the nurses say, "Membranes ruptured," and then heard them say that they were just going to check me when I heard, "No need, she's there," meaning that my baby was crowning.

All of the sudden there was a doctor in the room. He was not my doctor, as my doctor was not there yet. He decided that if I said I needed to push that I could push. I still had my shirt and sweater on. I had been in the room all of about 2 minutes. I pushed until the contraction I was having stopped. The doctor then said that she was so far down that I could push between contractions. I pushed a couple more times and her head was out. All I know was that my hubby was holding my hands above my head as I pushed. I don't even remember if this was comfortable or not it was all over so fast. I'm pretty sure that she was born within five minutes of getting in that room. This is not an exaggeration. And with that, we now had our baby girl, Alyssa Diane, weighing in at 7 lbs. even and measuring a petite 18.5 inches. I'm not sure how long she'll stay that petite with the genes in our combined families.

My hubby had left the car running so at this point, after he had cut the cord, I sent him downstairs to deal with the car. He got a very stern warning from a security guard who had turned the car off for him not to leave his car running anymore. We still kind of giggle at that.

I had a small tear that had to be stiched up, but even that was done before my mother could get there. I am still a little sad that she didn't make it for the delivery, seeing as this is our last one. She walked in about 15 minutes later with a few tears in her eyes. My hubby was on the phone making calls to all the people who wanted to know when I was in labor and there hadn't been time to call. In fact my mom had still been at my house waiting on my dad when the baby was born. If I had waited for him like I wanted to then this baby would have been born at my house and we would have had to call 9-1-1.

About 15 minutes after delivering her, my doctor finally showed up. Since I had no IV, I had to have two shots in my leg. That was all the poking and prodding that I got. While it wasn't quite the birth experience that I wanted, I did get to do it with no drugs and quickly, just a little more quickly than I would have liked.

I moved up to the mother-baby unit and there I stayed for a day and a half until Thursday morning when I was discharged and came home. It was such a relief to come home and I only missed kissing my boys good night once.

My hubby was wonderful during the entire experience, yet I know that he is grateful that it is all over and that we don't have to do it again. It is a bit chaotic around here, but we are all surviving and looking forward to each day as it comes with our newly completed family. God has been so good to us!

B

Makin' Valentines

Okay, so Jacob & Kyle have their valentine's party tomorrow at school. Since this baby is due the day before, I decided that we ought to have our valentines ready. So about three weeks ago, I found this really cute idea on a website.

The boys made their own valentines this year. I printed out on the computer little cards that said, "To My Friend. Happy Valentine's Day! From, Jacob (or Kyle)." Then on the back, we made a glue heart and then sprinkled Jell-O powder on it like glitter. The result was that we got these cute valentine's that smell! Then we glued a Hershey's kiss in the middle. Jacob and Kyle and even Zachary had such a good time making them, and the bonus for me is that the valentine's are done and ready to go. Now, as long as we don't forget them tomorrow...

B

Overheard

Sorry it's been so long since I posted. Hopefully I can get some other things down in the next few days as well.

Heard this this morning on the way to drop everyone off at school. Now, what you have to know is that there are two different ways that we tend to go to school and one stoplight usually determines which way we will go. It's a pretty short light and if I miss it, I will usually turn.

Kyle: Are we going to go straight or turn?
Mom: Well it depends on what the light looks like when we get up there.
Zachary: I think the light is a circle.

I just laughed and laughed!
B

Jacob's Star Day

Okay, so I know that I was supposed to post this a long time ago, but I have a couple of minutes right now, so I thought I would get it done.

Jacob had his star day on December 8. It was a lot of fun. We got to go to music class with him, help his class with a lacing craft (very hard for 4 & 5 year olds), and then I got to listen to him practice for his sing-along with the parents. Here are some pictures that we took.

This was Jacob's poster that he made. He had wanted it to look like a star-just like Kyle's. Unfortunately, Kyle's teacher made his and Jacob's mommy had to make his. However, he did do all the writing himself, with very few mistakes!

This is Jacob and his teacher sharing his poster. He did a great job remembering everything this year. Last year it had been kind of tough!

Then the class got to ask Jacob questions. I wasn't sure how he would do being "put on the spot" like that, but he did great!

Finally, he got to share a special Show and Tell. He brought in his Bear Hunt game. It was lots of fun to teach the teacher!

Again, I am impressed at what these teachers do all by themselves. They have ten students in a class and no assistant. The kids seem to love being there and I love watching them grow each and every day. I can't believe how fast these days are flying by!

B