A Look at Ryan at the start of 1st Grade

• Easy-going. . .Ryan is a happy, go-with-the flow kind of kid. He has a great attitude (unless he's really tired!)
• Wants to be in control ALL the time. . .this may come from being the oldest (by 6 minutes), but Ryan wants to control all situations and be the boss. Most of the time Brandon is ok with this, but it can wear on Bran's nerves after a while. Ryan has also decided he wants to be the boss of me too. . .that doesn't go over so well.
• Favorite color is still blue. . .He picked out all blue shirts when we went Back-to-School shopping.
• Wants to be EXACTLY like his dad. Ryan has always gravitated a bit more toward Nate, but just this past year Dad is WAY cooler than Mom.
• LOVES being a big brother. Ryan loves to help with Brooklyn and is a great help to me when I need it.
• When asked to make a decision, Ryan will make his choice and then ask, "What did my brother pick?"

A Look at Brandon at the start of 1st Grade.....

• Is all about having fun!! Brandon is always up for a good time as long as he's playing with friends, swimming, boating, or playing sports.
• Has already lost 8 teeth. He must be the richest kid on the block :)
• Favorite color is still red. I'm not sure this will ever change. I took the boys school shopping and Brandon came back with an entire pile of red clothes.
• Loves a good joke.
• Enjoys football and soccer. . .Brandon attended our church soccer camp this summer and he's now in flag football.
• When asked to make a decision, Brandon always answers with "What did my brother pick?" and then Bran makes his choice (usually the same one as Ry).
• Makes friends easily, but has a little bit of anxiety about new situations.
• Drama Boy. . .Brandon still seems to need a great deal of attention when he hurts himself, doesn't get his way, or is being bossed around by his brother.
• More of a follower. . .Bran definitely let's Ryan take the lead, but Bran often gets frustrated when he's pushed around too much and then WATCH OUT!!!! It's not a pretty sight.
• Very Passionate. . .When Brandon is super excited about something you can tell. He starts talking really fast with the biggest smile on his face and then his voice gets louder and louder.
• Although Bran still usually comes to Mom first, he's growing up and wants to hang out with dad a whole lot more. Pretty soon. . .I'm gonna get ditched!

First Grade, Here We Come!!

First Day of School. . .2011-2012

Ryan and Brandon are SO excited for school. This year they are in Ms. Unger's 1st Grade Class. Both boys are in the same class and a few of their favorite friends are in their class too, Tyler and Ripley. They've already decided that it is REALLY cool to eat hot lunch so they are going to do that every day and riding their bikes will be their favorite way to get to and from school.

I can't believe that this day has come. I'm so excited we have kids that are truly excited for this new adventure, but it's a bit sad to realize that someone else is going to spend more time with them than I will. I guess they aren't little boys after all. . .

Settling in at Home

How are we doing the first week with baby?

• Brooklyn sleeps ALL the time (of course). It's what newborns do best.
• Brooklyn is a champion nurser!!
• Ryan wants to help with EVERYTHING!! He's super interested in feeding time (a bit weird since it involves him staring at my boob), wants to help change her diaper (would do it himself if I'd let him), and doesn't understand why I won't let him carry Brooklyn all around the house. He loves giving Brookie snuggles and cuddles.
• Brandon wants to know why we never get to do anything any more and he's not too excited about snuggling with his new sister. . .actually he's kind of kept his distance.
• Brooklyn got to sleep in Nate's and my room for about 3 nights before Dad kicked her out. I will admit it's a bit hard to sleep with a baby in the room.
• We are ALL so in LOVE!!

Brooklyn Meets her Brothers

Once Nate, Brooklyn, and I were settled into our hospital room, we called the family to come visit. I was anxious to see how Ryan and Brandon were going to react to their new sister. They were so excited in the days leading up to her birth, but you never can tell what their true reaction will be.

Unfortunately, Ryan was under the weather so he had to gear up before he came in to see Brooklyn. I think it was love at first sight for Ry. He immediately wanted to know EVERYTHING about his sister. Then, Brandon came in, looked at Brooklyn, and sat down on the hospital floor to play with the new car that Grandma Connie had gotten him at the dollar star. Hilarious! I guess it's just going to take him a bit to ease into his Big Brother role.

Introducing. . . Brooklyn Michelle Lowry

Nate and I got to St. Luke's this morning at 7:00 a.m. to check in for our induction. Once I had my I.V.'s put in and the baby monitor on, the nurse came in to give me the gel to begin contractions. The morning was off to a good start. My contractions began half an hour later and as with most inductions, were very strong. I was also lucky enough to experience back labor. Holy crap. . .It is SO much worse than regular labor. I spent a lot of the morning breathing, concentrating, sitting in the bathtub. Finally, I decided that I didn't need to be a hero since I was going to get an epidural anyway. My epidural came at 12:00 and Dr. King broke my water around 1:00.

Brooklyn had some problems with my contractions after my water broke. Each time I had a contraction, there was a marked drop in her heart rate. The doctor noticed that when she broke my water, there wasn't much amniotic fluid that drained. I also wasn't dilating as quickly as Dr. King would have liked. With Brooklyn in distress the doctor began discussing the possibility of having a C-section with us. I really wanted to try to avoid this, but the most important thing was making sure that Brooklyn was o.k. They had Nate get scrubs on just in case.

We Have a Date!!

Last picture of the Lowry family of 4

Summer Adventures

The rest of our summer seemed to fly by. . .we had one last cabin trip at the end of July. Ryan and Brandon continued working on their water sports. . .by the end of the summer, Ryan learned how to ski and surf and Brandon was able to get up on skis. We enjoyed time together as a family while preparing for our "highly anticipated" new arrival.

Ryan and Brandon Get Ready for Sister

Ryan swaddling his lion. Brandon did a great job with his monkey. Look at Ryan change a diaper!!

Good work, Brandon!

The boys also got to prepare for sister in August. Ryan and Brandon went to a Sibling Preparation class given by the hospital. They went on a tour of the hospital, learned how to change their stuffed animal's diaper, learned how to swaddle their stuffed animal, and were able to ask any questions they might have about the new baby Mommy and Daddy were bringing home. I think I still had to answer the hardest question, "Mom, how are they going to take that baby out of you?"

Baby Room

Nate and I were much more laid back about getting our baby room finished this time around; however by August "Mommy" felt the need to start nagging "Daddy" just a bit more about finishing things up. Nate did a great job of refinishing the changing table and painting the room. I think we've got a room fit for our little princess :)

Jeff and Angie's Visit

We were so fortunate to have Uncle Jeff and Auntie Angie come and visit us in July. The boys had been counting down the weeks, then days, until they arrived. We were able to make a lot of memories while they were here. We went to Roaring Springs Waterpark one day and Jeff and Angie took the boys to see Cars 2. Over the weekend, we headed to the cabin to get in some fishing, boating, and dirtbiking. We had campfires, visited, soaked up some rays and came home happy and tired. The visit was entirely too short, but I'm so thankful that the boys and Nate and I were able to spend time with my brother and sister-in-law.

A Brand New Blog

Well, I'm once again attempting a blog to help keep family and friends up-to-date on the happenings in the Lowry family. I figured with a new baby on the way, now was as good a time as any to get started. . .although, things could be a bit hectic for the family. I hope that you will check in from time to time to find out what is new in our world :)