A summer full of activities and getting dirty...

The summer is full of activities. Since we are away from our house a good portion of the year, most of our time involves being outside working in the yard. Cairo tries to be a big help out there with daddy. Key word- TRIES to help. I think that Cairo ends up having a lot more fun than anyone one else.

Notice the dirt smudges on her face-


Cairo helping rake up hedge clippings-

Entertaining and kissing Sienna-

Helping daddy weed-

Helping Daddy water... actually, it is more like watering Daddy-





This summer Cairo is also going twice a week to free swim with her daddy at the local pool. Cairo is much more comfortable with the water this year. She likes to practice kicking her feet, paddling her arms, blowing bubbles, and jumping into daddy's arms. The next step is getting her comfortable putting her head underwater.

While Erik and Cairo are spending quality time together outside, Jonah and I are holding down the fort inside. It seems as though he spends most of the day nursing and I am stuck on the couch. I know it is am exaggeration, but I am itching to get outside to work on the yard. It is probably best that my little boss, Jonah, has me, more or less, on house arrest because otherwise I would probably be overdoing it instead of recovering. Thank goodness we have a nice big window facing the backyard. At least I can see what it going on out there!

Here are a few pictures of Jonah at various points during our day.

Right after tubby time-
Sleeping in the Low Chair-

Toddler Bed

Cairo has been sleeping in her toddler bed for the past week. Last night I went in to check on her before I went to bed and I found her half in bed and half out of bed, dead asleep! I was able to click some pictures and move her back onto bed without even slightly waking her up. Asleep on her tippy toes...

Jonah's Second & Third Week

Jonah had a pretty busy second and third week. Not only did Jonah meet lots of his family and friends for the first time, he also took his first big car trip up north to Arcata.

Jonah went in early for his two week check up and we were happy to see that in the course of one week he gained a full pound... and that check up had been just a week before. Now, Jonah is most likely over 10 pounds. Ten pounds or not, he still seems small. During his second week his umbilical cord fell off, his circumcision healed, and he started losing his hair. I have to say that I am a bit sad about him losing his hair, I really like how it spikes up itself into a very stylish faux-hawk with golden tips.



There isn't much to share about Jonah. He continues to be a very good, kick-back baby. He eats, sleeps, poops, and looks around. He doesn't fuss, rarely cries, likes to hang out on his own in the bouncy chair, low chair (a high chair from Japan that has the ability to lean all the way back and rock), or bassinet. Unlike Cairo at this age, he doesn't need to be constantly held.



Over the past two weeks Jonah has met lots of new people. Some family stopped by on the 7th to visit. Jonah actually met his Uncle Danny for the first time on this day (Uncle Danny was staying away due to a cold).

We headed up north a few days later and spent the night at my Nana and Papa's house. In two years, my grandparents have acquired their first 5 great-grandkids... four of which are under the age of one year! Of course, both Cairo and Jonah were thrilled to visit with their Nana and Papa. Cairo has become very familiar with her Nana and Papa and adores them. I think that Jonah is on the same path. Here is Jonah cuddling with Papa.

One of those five great-grandkids Nana and Papa have happens to be just two days older than Jonah. My cousin Katie had Lexie on the May 27th and Jonah was born on Katie's birthday two days later. We, of course couldn't pass up the opportunity to meet the new addition on our way north. So, we stayed in Santa Rosa in Katie and her husband Jeff's RV overnight. While we were there we got to see most of the Steis gang. We also met my cousin Kyle's daughter Alyssa for the first time. I completely forgot to get my camera out until about 10 minuted before we left. Here are some pictures of Katie, Lexie, Jonah, and I.

The next day we finally made the final leg of our trip to Aracta. Up in Aracta, we had Uncle Nick, Aunt Kyoko, Mei, and the rest of the Dedini/Tipple family all excited to meet Jonah. We went down to Ferndale a few days after getting back to visit Erik's granparents. We were excited that Jonah had the chance to meet is very amazing Great-Grandma Dedini who is currently battling Lymphoma. Though I know he won't remember meeting her, I am glad to have pictures of the two of them together that we can show him when we tell him about this amazing woman and how much she loved him. This picture is courtesy of Uncle Nick.
This appears to be the time of babies. Not only has my cousin recently given birth to a new little girl, but my best friend had baby Lilian Bradford two weeks before I had Jonah. Here is Auntie Katie holding Jonah and Lili. This picture was closely followed by both my and Katie's agreement that we were glad we didn't have twins! What a handful of babies!

There are many more people to meet and many more places to see. Jonah's first few weeks have been pretty full and we are looking forward to settling in for the summer and enjoying our time as a new family.

Jonah getting ready to go out and do yardwork in his sunhat (which didn't fit Cairo until she was almost three months old).

Little Monster

I would like to introduce you to my little monster. She didn't used to be a monster, but has evolved into a very large one in a relatively short amount of time. It is amazing to this change happen. One day we had a sweet little girl, who listened to what we said, rarely whined, loved both her mommy and daddy all the time, and was fairly independent and the next day we have a little girl who doesn't listen to a thing we say, fake cries and whines constantly, falls apart at just about everything, and only likes daddy and especially mommy on occasion. Needless to say it is a little frustrating and grating on one's nerves after a while. Since Jonah has been around, we have seen a definite digression- she no longer wants to use her fork and spoon, is no longer interested in the potty, decided that she want to suck on a binky, and always wants to be held. She constantly follows her daddy around with arms out saying, "hold you?" This is her way of saying, "hold me."

To celebrate this new monster, Cairo has received monster bedding for her new big girl bed. She loves the bedding and blends right in with all the monsters.








Grammy and Bapa were nice enough to whisk Cairo and Xander away for a day at Disneyland and gave Erik and I a much needed break from our new and improved (?) first born.

Here are the kids at the entrance to California Adventure Land.
A is for Alexander...

C is for Cairo...

Jonah's First Week

Today Jonah turns 1 week old. The week has passed by quickly and I am thankful for that. That means that I am one week into my recovery, we are one week into forming our new routine, and one week closer to going back home to Arcata.

Jonah has been amazing! So far he is a sweet, cuddly, and EASY baby... Cairo, well, not so much. I wouldn't say that Cairo is having trouble adjusting to Jonah; rather, she is having trouble adjusting to being a two year old (which she soon will be).


Here is a small glimpse at Jonah's first week of life.

Friday- Day 1: Jonah was born before eight in the morning. He didn't sound too happy to leave my nice warm belly, but it was time. He came out gurgling and crying and didn't stop. In fact, when Erik and the nurse took him into the other room to clean him up and check him out I could hear his cries loud and clear. By 11 am we were settled into our room in the hospital- what I keep mistakenly call my hotel room. Grandpa Lee, Ba-chan, Bapa, Grammy, Ta Ta, Xander, Uncle Paul, Cousin Carri, and, of course, Big Sister Cairo all came to visit throughout the day. Cairo got to meet her baby brother and finally see and, hopefully, understand what mommy meant when she said there was a baby in her tummy. Cairo was gentle with him and gave him kisses. We will just have to remind her to be gentle for a while. Jonah's pediatrician came in to check him out and said most everything looked good. Jonah did have a slight heart murmur, but it wasn't something that was all that uncommon in newborns and she said she would monitor it over the next few days to see if it went away.

That first night was a long night. Jonah was great, but it seemed that if Jonah didn't wake Erik and I up for a feeding then it was one nurse or another coming into take check up and take care of either Jonah or I every hour. Plus, Jonah wasn't quite ready to sleep alone and wanted to snuggle close to his mommy all night long. I was pretty exhausted by the next day. Not to mention, I was craving an In 'N Out burger and all I was getting was one meal after another of clear liquids!

Saturday- Day 2: This was probably the longest and hardest day of all. Erik and I were both completely exhausted from the night before. I was able to get out of bed and eat real food. I definitely had pain from my incision, but it wasn't horrible. It did, though, convince me that having two kids was plenty. As fabulous as it is to have children, I don't think that I want to go through the entire process again. Jonah spent the day eating, pooping, peeing, and sleeping. It's a hard life. The family came to visit again. Cairo found the hospital room a little too interesting and exciting to contain herself. With all the buttons to push, chairs to sit on, and various paraphernalia cluttering different surfaces of the room, Cairo became a bit to much to manage and didn't stay long. By mid afternoon Erik and I settled in for a much needed nap. Jonah, being the fabulous baby that he is, let his mommy and daddy take a two and a half hour nap- uninterrupted! That night was much better. We all went to sleep earlier and despite the interruptions during the night, we managed to squeeze in a full night's rest.


Sunday- Day 3: Erik, Jonah, and I were up and moving before eight in the morning. We didn't have much to do and there wasn't really any place we could go, so we rested and cuddled with Jonah. We all squeezed in some naps and Erik and I read magazines, browsed the internet, and watched videos on the computer. Erik was a little stir crazy, but he knew that I needed him close. He did manage a few walks out to the car and down to the cafeteria for food. Grammy, Bapa, and Cairo all came to visit that afternoon. Cairo came pushing her baby in its stroller. It was really cute to see her talking her baby doll, which is about the same size as Jonah, on a walk down the hall with me and Jonah. Cairo is such a little mommy and loves to imitate the things that we do with her, Xander, and, now, Jonah. Jonah, once again, was a fabulous baby. He got a much needed bath (he screams his head off whenever we get him naked to change his dipaer it give him a bath), lots of naps... and formula. My milk had not come in and my colostrum was gone. With Cairo, we tried really hard to just nurse and unknowingly were pretty much starving her for a few days. I wasn't about to let that happen again. Jonah was on the borderline of losing too much weight, the whites of his eyes were yellow and the jaundice was spreading downward. Erik and I happily supplemented with formula while I monitored my supply and Jonah, a pump, and I tried to help my milk come in.



Monday- Day 4: We were all up early again anxiously awaiting for our doctors to make their rounds, Jonah to get circumcised, and the nurse to give us our release papers. After three full days and nights in the same room Erik and I were both itching to get out of there early. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Jonah's heart murmur had quieted down since our pediatrician first checked him, but was still not gone. To be cautious she wanted to have a echo cardiogram done on him to make sure that all was well. She warned us that it night take a while for the cardiologist to get back to her with the results of the test, so we should be prepared to stay a few hours longer than we originally expected. Right after that, Jonah was rolled to the nursery for both the echo cardiogram and his circumcision and came back to us an hour later, eyes wide open and very calm. Poor baby. Jonah then fell asleep and refused to wake up for his next feeding, despite Erik, the nurse, and I all trying various ways to wake him up. So, with a baby who was completely out not needing out attention, Erik and I sat and waited and waited and waited and waited. Finally, at five we got the okay to leave. Jonah's heart looked fine and I was healing surprisingly fast. So, after a Hepatitis B shot for Jonah (not a good day for him) we packed up and headed for home. We were greeted by a very excited Big Sister and yummy Manacotti (compliments of mom).





Tuesday,Wednesday, Thursday- Day 5, 6, & 7: These days were much the same. Jonah wakes up about 2 times in the night to eat and have his diaper changed. In fact, once he has a nice clean diaper, he immediately seems to fill it one more time. So with each nightly feeding we seem to change his diaper, feed him, he fills his diaper in the process of being fed, and we feed him again. I thought I was really smart last night so I decided to wait until after I fed him to change his diaper. Well, he wasn't fooled. A minute after his diaper was changed he went ahead and filled it again... Daddy got to change that one. Erik and I both do not get solid sleep, but we aren't super exhausted either. I haven't felt the need for a nap much during the day, though I did take an quick half hour nap each day.


During the day Erik and I each jump at the chance to take care of Jonah as opposed to our running, screaming, jumping, climbing, loud mouthed almost-two-year-old. Jonah is so chill. He only cries when he's hungry and when his diaper is being changed. He is quickly soothed, snuggles right in, and either looks around or just falls asleep. He hasn't had any fussy times and he it is easy to figure out what he wants. He sleeps great in his bed, though he would be just as happy falling asleep snuggled close to his mommy and daddy. On the other hand, Cairo is bouncing off the walls, getting into everything, and really testing the word "no." Needless to say, she has had a few more time outs over the past few weeks. I don't think that I have seen a kid take the time outs so seriously. If you put her in time out, she stays there. Of course, she cries and calls for us, but she doesn't move until we come and get her. Erik and I have been trying really hard to spend quality time with her and make sure that she feels included with Jonah. She is a BIG help and loves to do small chores with us or for us. She is great about bring burp clothes, running bottles to and from the kitchen, getting the diapers and wipes for diaper changes, and giving Jonah pat-pats. On Tuesday, Erik and Cairo spent good, quality time together at play group and running various errands together.







On Wednesday we took Jonah for a check up at the pediatrician. He was still losing weight, still yellow, and my milk was only just starting to trickle in. So, we upped the amount of formula he was getting. Other than that he looked great. On the way home from the pediatrician it began to rain and with that a nice thunderstorm followed. I love it when we get thunderstorms that actually last. This was was going, on and off, for four hours or so. Jonah got his first glimpse of rain and Cairo enjoyed running around saying "boom" just like the thunder did.



We have in no means established any time of routine, but Erik and I do a great job tag-teaming. It is nice to have such an amazing husband who is always right there pulling half the weight and even more when needed. He does a great job with the kids and taking care of me. Without having to discuss anything we easily switch off with Jonah and Cairo during the day, making sure that he other gets breaks, sleep, and cuddle time with the kids. Somehow, this second time around it almost seems easy. We are not sleep deprived, we are able to get things done, I am feeling great, and, aside from the chaos everyday in the Biggle household brings, all is smooth and (dare I say) calm.



Friday- Day 8: I have fabulous and amazing parents. Bringing a newborn home isn't always easy and Erik and I are lucky enough to have a set of live-in parents. The extra helping hands have really made this transition easy. Bapa spent a few mornings this week making breakfast for Cairo so that we could sleep an extra half hour or so, my mom stocked the fridge and cupboards with yummy food, has been doing all the dishes, and has made most of the dinners (excepts for the amazing, yummy meal the Mussers/Marshalls made for us last night!!!!), and took Cairo to Disneyland today so that Erik and I could have a quiet day with the baby. What saints they are!





Jonah continues to be consistently fabulous. I am just waiting for it to change. I know that this can't possibly last, but I hope that it does. He is still getting a formula supplement, but doesn't need very much and without a doubt is putting back on the weight. This first week has been great. Erik and I are completely in love with this new little guy. I can't wait to see him grow and hopefully become as fabulous as his dad is.

So now we head into week two- a week full of new adventures...

Jonah Skye Dedini is here!

On Friday morning at 7:53 am, Erik and I welcomed a bouncing, or better yet, kicking baby boy. We expected him to be large, but his size exceeded our expectations... and I think the expectations of the doctors in the OR.

Surgery started right on time. I had a fabulous anesthesiologist who was quick about giving me a painless spinal and was fun to chit chat with while I was being stitched back together. Once they cut open my uterus, I heard a definite gush (sorry for the details, but I want to remember this, too). I didn't remember hearing the same sound with when Cairo was born. I had a fountain of amniotic fluid come out... in fact, they needed to get extra buckets to get it all. Apparently, the fluid doesn't typically geyser upward like mine did. After some pushing and pulling they finally managed to pull him through my incision- my 8 pound 15.1 ounce baby boy. He got a few bruises on his face in the process, but other than that all was well. It was a welcome relief for me, even before the spinal wore off, to have all that weight lifted off my lungs.


For the first few hours of his life he was known as Baby Boy Dedini. After having a chance to look him over and try a few names on him, we decided that Jonah Skye fit him perfectly. The middle name was no real question and I had been leaning toward Jonah more and more in the last few weeks. Unfortunately for Jonah, a career in fishing might not be feasible... especially with superstitious fisherman who know all to clearly the story of Jonah and the Whale. I am okay with that. Fishing is a dangerous career.



Cairo meeting her baby brother for the first time.