Happy Birthday Baby Eli and Welcome Home!

After only 3 1/2 hours of labor and arriving only 12 short minutes after we got to the hospital, Eli Daniel was born on April 15 at 9:12 AM. He weighed 7 lbs, 2.4 oz and was 19 1/2 inches long. It was a crazy, whirlwind start to our morning, but the day got even more surreal when we were told that he was born with a birth defect called an imperforate anus. We got to spend only a couple hours with our new baby before he was whisked away to Toledo Children's Hosptial. Chris left Flower Hospital to stay with Eli and thankfully I was discharged a few hours after that so I could join them too. Eli spent the next week in the NICU where he underwent a colostomy and was tested for a variety of other possible defects that are associated with an imperforate anus. We were incredibly relieved when all his tests showed that he was healthy in every other way and he recovered like a champ from his surgery. He's our little trooper. We got to bring him home on April 21 when he finally got to meet his big brother Colin. Colin was so excited to meet his baby bro and immediately wanted to hold him and kiss him. He is absolutely in love with Eli and is incredibly sweet with him. We're still trying to adjust to life as a family of four, but we're so happy to at least have everyone home together.

Happy Birthday Eli!

Enjoying some time together before Eli was transported to Toledo Children's Hospital

Eli with Daddy in the NICU

Our sweet baby all hooked up to monitors, IVs, and a feeding tube

Finally off the monitors!

Ready for discharge :)

Colin *loves* his new baby brother

Eli

Colin

Happy baby

Welcome home!

Happy Easter!

We didn't have big plans for today because we weren't sure if Eli would have decided to join us yet, but just in case, I asked the Easter Bunny to swing by and drop off a few treats for Colin. As soon as he came downstairs he ran into the family room and excitedly ripped into his basket, instantly knowing it was filled with treats (I still don't understand how a kid who is rarely given candy or desserts can always recognize sugary confections for what they are). He was a little unsure at first about searching for eggs, but once he realized that there were treats inside that he could eat right away, he had a blast. He ran around the family room and as soon as he found an egg would rip it open and inhale the fruit snacks. I realized a little too late that maybe one fruit snack per egg would have been enough, but hey, what's a holiday without kids on a sugar-high? The rest of our day was very low-key, but Colin did get another treat after dinner. His first Peep! Yum. :)

Coloring Easter Eggs

This was our first year coloring Easter eggs with Colin and I really wasn't sure what to expect. I think I was hoping that he would be really excited to play with the dye and make a huge mess and giggle the whole time. Not really the case. After forcing him to wear one of Chris' old t-shirts as a smock, he was a little mad at us and refused to participate until Chris and I had already colored about half the eggs. His curiosity finally got the best of him, but even then, he was more interested in eating the eggs than in actually coloring them (which is interesting because he doesn't really like eggs). He didn't make too much of a mess, most of the dye ended up on his fingers because he wanted to eat it - good thing it's non-toxic! After they all dried, he enjoyed putting stickers on the eggs. Overall, I'd say the experience was a success. Our eggs are a little sad-looking, but I think it's the start of a tradition.

The smock.

Looking thrilled.

Cheese!

Hmmm, maybe this could be fun...

Yay stickers!

The finished product.

Chris' 35th Birthday

Happy Birthday Chris!! With Eli's arrival still pending, we were able to celebrate Chris' birthday as a family today on his actual birthday. We enjoyed Chris' choice of a delicious (if I do say so myself) dinner of eggs and sausage and had chocolate cupcakes for dessert. Colin loved helping me frost the cupcakes and seems to be getting his smile back for the camera (yay!). He also did a great job of singing Happy Birthday Dada despite his protests earlier this morning to wish Chris Happy Birthday.
Chris/Dada - We love you and hope you enjoyed your special day!!

Before we go, we also want to give a birthday shout-out to Ellen! Hope you also had a great day today and enjoyed the park!

Colin's 2nd Birthday

Here are some pictures from Colin's 2nd Birthday parties. We celebrated 4 times - maybe a little excessive for a 2-year old, but still lots of fun.

First we had a party at Chuck E. Cheese. We celebrated with his two buddies, Colton and Ethan, because they all have birthdays within a week of each other.

Next we celebrated with the Cumming clan. Colin shared his birthday celebration with his cousin Sabina who turned 4. First we started at the Ann Arbor Hands-On Museum, then it was on to Grandma and Poppy's for cake, ice cream, and presents.

Unfortunately, Colin was (is) going through a phase of not wanting to smile for the camera.

Next, Colin had a little celebration with Mom and Dad on his actual birthday.

There's a smile!

Last, but certainly not least, we celebreated with the Ring fam. Colin shared his celebration with his Aunt Kara. He had a super cute Blues Clues cake and had lots of fun running around with his cousins.

Can you say sleepy?

Thanks so much to everyone who helped us celebrate this year!!