An Update-Seriously!

I know that this is going to be a shocker, but we are actually posting an update! I will take ownership of the delay on this one as Amanda has been very good to remind me that it was (and has been for quite some time) my turn to do the update. I will say that trying to be a great dad, a good business owner and a good husband, has kept me very busy and from being able to update this blog, but I hope that I am at least getting the important things right. Unfortunately for Amanda, I am afraid that the latter of the three is probably the one that is lacking the most.

Alright, I feel the best place to start this one is to put in the following disclaimer:
Although the owners of this blog have every intention of updating this blog with regular updates, pictures and videos, nothing within this blog should be misconstrued as a promise or guarantee of the aforementioned. Nothing stated within this blog will bind the owners of this blog to provide any updates, photographs or videos in a timely manner. There are no guarantees, expressed or implied, of any promise to update any information contained herein.

Now that this has been taken care of, it is pretty hard to figure out where to start and pick this back up. So much has happened since Easter when this was last updated and Clare is changing daily. She has been quite the traveler lately. Seems like we were barely home this summer! Since Amanda has been on summer break, the girls have become my traveling partners when I have to go anywhere on business. One time on the road to Oklahoma City they both were sleeping in the car so the radio was pretty much off, I did have the thought cross my mind if this was better than traveling alone. If I was traveling alone I could have atleast had the radio on...and listened to something good! All kidding aside, I completely love having my girls with me when I travel and miss them both dearly now that they are not at home with me during the day since Amanda is back at work and Clare is back at “nammy’s house”.

Miss Clare was also able to take her first trip on an airplane to Colorado and she was amazing! I know that this was not luck, but was due to the careful planning of my wonderful wife. This little tike fell asleep at take off and would then wake up shortly after landing. I think the best part of all of it all was probably watching Mom & Dad acting as pack mules to carry all the luggage, stroller and car seat across the airport. We had such a good time in Estes Park hiking. It was so beautiful and great to have some time to relax. One day, we rode the tram to the top of the peak that was still in town. Clare was strapped to the front of me, which was good since I was also responsible for the backpack. I am still not sure what Amanda was in charge of... We fed the chipmunks peanuts from our hands at the summit after getting off the tram and hiked all the way to the top of the peak. Clare loved it so much that we turned her around so that she was facing me and she slept the entire hike back down! Needless to say, I think that we have a traveler on our hands and can’t wait for all the family trips to come!

She has started cutting teeth, belly laughing, rolling/scooting all over the place, drinking from a straw, emptying all the toys out of her basket, smiling with her nose scrunched up, blowing bubbles with her spit and is even making “ba-ba”, “da-da” and “ma-ma” sounds. Now that we have Amanda covered….what can I tell you about Clare? Sorry, I couldn’t resist.

Most recently, Clare went to the hospital to welcome her new friend, Nora Courtney Davis to the world. She was the cutest thing with so much dark hair (yes, I know I realize I just used the word cute….) and it was so cool to see Clare interact with her. They are going to be great friends!

I am constantly amazed by the miracle of life daily and feel so blessed to have an amazing daughter and wife. They both can turn the most stressful and darkest moment into something to treasure. Every day is filled with laughter, wonder and amazement. I wish this same feeling to everyone and can’t wait to see you all again soon!

In the "jumper" at Nammy and Poppy's house ( 5 months old)

Happy all the time...6 months old

Clare loves to swim! (6 months old)

Good times at the St. Louis Zoo (6 months old)

Feeling comfy in Great-Grandma Steffensen's arms (6 1/2 months old)

Maggie, Timmy, & Clare in their new cowboy hats after going to Dixie Stampede in Branson

(6 1/2 months old)

Dad & Clare hiking the mountain (7 1/2 months old)

Mommy & Clare just hanging out on the mountain top (7 1/2 months old)

Clare in Colorado...such a big girl!

Helping mommy get ready for school! If only she could pick up the scissors and cut out the lamination!

Clare reading one of her favorite books, Pat the Bunny! (8 months old)

Happy Easter!

Just thought I would post a few pictures of our lil' bunny! We were getting ready to leave the house one day and I decided I better get a few Easter pictures quick or the holiday would be over before I got to it. I told Chad I was going to run to the basement quick and look for props and he should undress her and put her in the little skirt and ears. I was back in less than 5 minutes and he said, "Clare told me while you were gone that she thinks this is a ridiculous idea and she doesn't want to do it." ha! I let both of them know they didn't have a choice! I have today and Monday off of school and I am excited to be at home with her. Hope you enjoy the pictures and have a beautiful Easter!

Happy Easter!

Long Overdue...

Greetings from the Browns!
Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Apparently I have waited way too long to update the blog because I even forgot my login information...ha! It was my goal to update this frequently to keep friends and family far away in the loop, but this might be as good as it gets. :)

Things around our house have been BUSY! I went back to work on February 1st and it has been an adjustment for all of us. My kids were very excited to see me back so it made the transition pretty smooth. The days at school just fly by so it keeps my mind off wanting to be home with Clare (and of course Chad too). Clare is doing fabulous at daycare...she gets to spend her days with Grandma. I don't know who is enjoying it more...Clare or Grandma. I know she is in great hands when she is there, so it makes being at work much easier. She also gets to spend lots of time with her cousins, Timmy and Maggie. They are always excited to see her. I think the person who has had the hardest time adjusting is Chad. I guess his biggest adjustment is being able to actually get work done again since we aren't in the house with him. I'm sure he misses us coming in to his office to fill his coffee cup, check in on him, ask him where we should go for lunch, update him on tv shows, and just harass him. He did say it was lonely during the day without us....not sure if I believe him or not! ha!

Clare is such a wonderful baby! We are so lucky. She is sleeping in long stretches at night, but not quite through the night yet. Many nights she falls asleep at 7:30 for the night and won't wake up until 2 or so. Then we feed her and usually we have to wake her around 6:45 to get her dressed and fed before heading out the door at 7:15. I'm learning to live on less sleep, but some nights I find myself going to bed when she does. It makes for a pretty short evening when I get home around 5:00 and go to bed at 7:30. ha!

She is growing like crazy and we can't wait to see how much she weighs at her 4 month appointment in a few weeks. At her 2 month appointment she weighed 11 pounds 9 ounces so she is "filling out." Clare smiles and makes all sorts of noises! She loves her daddy's silly noises and games. She is an active baby and loves to just lay and kick.

We have had a busy month so far and it will continue to be busy the rest of the month! Chad's sister, Beth, finished her last session of chemo so that was a huge milestone for our family. She had such incredible strength and faith throughout the entire thing. We traveled to Branson for a couple days a week ago. Chad's brother-in-law passed away unexpectedly. Luckily, Clare fell asleep as soon as we left town and she was still asleep when we pulled into the hotel 4 hours later. Ahhh! This week I am on spring break so Clare and I went along with Chad on a couple business trips. We went to Wichita, KS and then to Oklahoma City. She did an amazing job in the car and sleeping in the hotels. Next week we leave for 5 days to head to my brother's wedding in eastern Iowa. It will be lots of fun to get to spend time with family! Clare will get to meet her Great Grandma and Great Grandpa for the first time. What a special time! I think I counted up and we will be sleeping somewhere other than our own beds 8 nights this month. Whew!

I've rambled long enough! Hopefully I can update this more often so I don't have to make the posts so long. We hope this finds you well! Enjoy the pictures of our little muffin below! We think she is pretty cute!

This would be one of the times we interrupted dad during his workday! Oops! I think he enjoyed it though.

Maggie, Timmy, & Clare

Snuggled up with Dad in her big girl jeans

A stroller ride up town to the post office! We love to take walks!

Ready for summer...

Better Late Than Never...

I know Chad wrote in the last post that we would do our best to update the blog and that we might be doing this during late night feedings....well it isn't that we haven't had any of these...I am just too tired to type during those times! :) It has taken me longer to get this updated than what I had planned. Oh well...here it is...

Things are going well! We are adjusting to having a little one around the house and it seems like each day gets easier! There are a few times when things have been a little rough. I had the 24 hour flu one day and felt terrible. Poor Chad was in charge because I was good for nothing. Thank goodness he is comfortable taking care of Clare. He also did a great job taking care of me! We are definitely thankful to have family close when we need an extra set of hands. Chad's mom has saved us a few times that is for sure. Thanks Marty!

Clare is growing like crazy! She is changing so quickly. One of the first things people notice is that she is starting to get some little chubby cheeks. They are pretty cute! She smiles all the time and makes lots of noises. Clare sure is an active little one...she is close to rolling over! When she wakes up, I never find her in the same position in the crib that I left her. We love just laying with her in the mornings and listening to her make her noises and smile. She gets so excited! So much fun! (It isn't quite as cute when she decides her morning play time should be at 3:45!...oh well, we still lay around and laugh at her!)

We feel very blessed to have such a healthy little girl! She has been a pretty easy going baby and hasn't been too terrible to us at night. :) By no means is she sleeping through the night, but she does sleep in decent stretches so we are able to catch some sleep. Even though I have been home from work, Chad has been an amazing help at night. I would be a Zombie without him! It is amazing what is on tv at all hours of the night. We find ourselves usually watching "Teen Mom"...ha! I used to require quite a bit of sleep but I have amazed myself at how little I can get by on now. I haven't even been drinking caffeine. :) This will probably all change when I go back to work in a week. I think I am in for a major adjustment!

Maternity leave has been wonderful! If you would have asked me the first couple of weeks, there were some days that I would have paid to go back to work! ha! As time has gone on I have adjusted and think this stay at home stuff could be a good job for me. :) I never run out of things to do. Chad has enjoyed having us here with him during the day but I know he will be a little relieved when I go back to work. ha! He claims he will miss us ,but I think he will enjoy the peace and quiet and having the office to himself! My 8 weeks has flown by....I return to work on February 1st.

Hope all is well with each of you! We will try to update this in a few weeks! Maybe that post will include some of our funny first time parent stories! :)

I'm putting some pictures below of our little muffin! You will see how she is really changing!

Clare and her great grandma, Clarine, at Christmas!

This is one of her morning smiles! What a beautiful thing to wake up to!

Look at these cute pink boots! A little big yet... but we had to try them on! I think she was tired of pictures during this shot and wondering if I was ever going to quit!

WELCOME HOME CLARE!!!

Well, as I am sure many of you already know, Peanut officially completed our family just one short week ago. We hoped to have this post up sooner, but it seems fitting that on the night of her one week birthday we are able to reflect back on the blessing and miracle of life we experienced. This may be a little windy, but thought that for those of you that are not close by to us might enjoy reliving the day with us.

One week ago today, Amanda was induced at 5:30 AM at North Kansas City Hospital. I don't think that either of us slept much the night before in anticipation for the day to come. Before leaving the house on an early December morning, my sister Courtney called me just as bubbly as ever and having a hard time containing her excitement about becoming an Auntie. As we were circling around the hospital to the admitting parking lot, we came to a pedestrian crossing where there was a lady bundled up in her stocking cap and overcoat that appeared to be crossing the street in front us, but was very slow to do so. Me being the polite and cordial driver that I am, slowed down and allowed her time to cross. She did not and looked just as confused as when we first pulled up, so I blurted out, "Come on you kooky lady, cross the street!". About this time, we were close enough to see that it was indeed Courtney who had made Dad get up at 4am to get to her to the hospital before us so we could have a picture coming to the hospital!

Upon arriving, we got checked in and as soon as they told us our room number on the 7th floor, I knew that everything was going to be okay. We were assigned to room 717 for our delivery, which for those of you that don't know me that well, 17 has been my soccer number my entire life and is my lucky number. Obviously, the good Lord was giving me a sign that not only was my wife and daughter going to be okay during the labor, but that I too was going to be able to be the support that she was going to need.

They started the pitocin drip shortly after getting into the room and by 8am, the Doctor came in to break Amanda's water. We were very blessed to have the most unbelievable delivery nurse named Mary. She is a traveling nurse that was from close to Goshen, Indiana (where Amanda has family), was our age and just "fit" with our personalities. We spent lots of time just chatting and laughing with her throughout the day...I'm sure people thought it was weird when they heard laughing coming from our room during many parts of the day. Mary was a HUGE part of why our experience was simply wonderful!

Around 9:30 or 10:00, the contractions become much more intense and painful. This is when we decided to get going on the epidural, which was not a quick process. Knowing that Amanda wanted (and needed) the epidural, Mary looked out for our interest and did not check to see how far Amanda was dilated so that the anaesthetist would not have a reason not to give it to her. He showed up around 11:30 and completed the process about noon. The time up until the medicine kicking in was probably the hardest part of the day and my amazing wife breezed through it. At one point when she was in pain, my mom was in the room with us and she gave her permission to say anything to me or call me any names she wanted, but Amanda's reply was just how much she appreciated and loved me (now she claims it is because she knows that Momma Marty would let her say it then, but never let her live it down afterwards!).

Immediately after the epidural was in and the doctor left, Mary checked Amanda and she was at a 10. (No wonder she had been in so much pain!)My mom thought for sure Amanda was going to end up having the baby before she got the epidural. We attempted to contact our families and let them know where we were and that things were moving along fairly quickly for a first time mom. I think that it was before we got to the pushing that we discovered the Foster's had car trouble on the way down and were going to be delayed in getting to the hospital.

Luckily, the epidural slowed the labor a little and we just had the most peaceful and perfect birthing experience. I think most people have probably picked up on the fact that retaining consciousness during the process was a concern for me, but everything was just fine. I ended up being a much more active participant than I had ever imagined. When Amanda started pushing, the nurse asked me to sit on the bed and hold one of Amanda's legs while she held the other. Of course I was a slightly nervous about this but from that point on, I witnessed the most beautiful and miraculous thing that these eyes have seen.

The nurse called the Doctor in shortly after 4:00 and with a few short pushes, Clare Elizabeth Brown was born at 4:22pm. She weighed 7lbs 7ozs and was 20.5 inches long. Again, I have to give all credit that I can to my wife because she was absolutely and utterly amazing. I cannot even put into words how to express my thoughts and feelings for both my girls, but it is very humbling and aweinspiring to witness!!

The Foster's made it in time to spend time with their first grandchild and niece when we were moved up to the 8th floor. It was fun to see their excitement. We went home right at noon on Friday and have settled in now at home! It was great to be home. Clare had her first doctor's appointment on Tuesday and everything went well. She was almost back up to her birth weight..she is a good eater. :)

For those of you that do not know, Clare is named after some very important people in our lives. She is named after her two living great grandmothers, Clarine and Elizabeth, and her Aunt Beth (my sister). Not only does she share a birthday month with her old man, but also his initials.

We were graced with loving visits from family and friends while we were at the hospital and even now! We feel so lucky and blessed to be surrounded by such incredible friends and family.

We thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. We love you all more than we can say and hopefully we will be able to add more frequent updates during late night feedings, etc.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Update...

Hello to all! We had our 38 week appointment today and found out that I am dilated to a 3 and 50% effaced! My stomach measured 37 weeks...the same as last week. Guess the information I should probably share is that while the doctor was checking me today she said she thinks I have a "solid" baby...you can imagine how many questions I had for her after that comment! She just let me know that she didn't think that I would be having 6 1/2 lb baby or anything!! ha! Needless to say, I'm going in tomorrow for a sonogram to get an estimated weight. We are anxious to know!



Below is a picture from a baby shower we had a couple weeks ago! This isn't a most recent picture but thought I would include it so you could see the belly! It is definitely there! (Apparently with a "solid" baby inside!)

It is Big Papa's turn!!

I have wanted to add my own entry here for quite some time now, but I keep having a hard time finding the free time to do it. The sad thing is that everyone I talk to is telling me that if I think I don’t have time now…..just wait!! So, in that spirit, I made the time.


First and foremost, I want to give some recognition to the one person that has been absolutely phenomenal these past 9 months and who has made this first pregnancy a breeze. Yes, that is right, I want to give that person a well deserved pat on the back ….so, I will give myself a quick pat right now! Just kidding. I have to give all the praises possible to my wife.


Most people probably don’t know this, because she has not even acted like she was carrying a child, but she has truly been amazing these past 9 months (correction…ALMOST 9 months). The complaints that she should and could have vocalized are silent. Any discomfort, pain or unease is always masked with a smile and laughter. She also faced one of the biggest life changing events we can experience with grace and stability that I am in awe of. I just pray that when I am called upon to be her partner for the delivery that I am able to give back to her some of the strength that she has shown me. I am very blessed to have her by my side in this life and thank God that Peanut will have the privilege to call her mother.


To sum up the past month, I would say the theme has been…..getting ready. Although I dropped out of Boy Scouts at Webelos (don’t even know if I am spelling it right) I am sure that Amanda made it all the way through the program and became an Eagle Scout because we are going to be prepared thanks to her. We celebrated Halloween this year by getting our house decorated for Christmas! We have cleaned the house from top to bottom and have the furniture, swings, etc. ready to roll for the little one’s arrival. I quickly have learned patience in putting together toys and that I can no longer throw away the useless paperwork such as a warranty card so that we can be notified of any pending product recalls.


This past weekend we attended the one day crash course for labor and delivery that was put on by our hospital. I think that Amanda learned several strong breathing techniques and is going to be a great coach and partner in getting me through this experience! I am happy to say that we did make it through the whole class and I was also able to keep the majority of my comments to myself. I practiced good restraint and would make my comments to Amanda to gain approval before blurting anything out to the class. I think that the only thing that the lady teaching the breathing and relaxation techniques accomplished was raising 18 pregnant ladies blood pressure!! We also got the cupboards stocked so that we can be ready to go with some quick and easy meals after Peanut joins us. I lovingly joked that we did grocery shopping for Peanut’s first 18 years of life!


This upcoming weekend brings a class on infant care at the hospital and the soon to be Foster Grandparent’s to town. They will be completing the furniture additions by bringing down a rocking chair that Leigh has recovered and refinished, so we are excited for that. Plus Julie is going to doing some baking with Amanda for some Christmas treats that everyone can enjoy when they come to see Peanut, but that is if Leigh and I don’t polish them off on Sunday.


We hope that everyone is doing well and will be in touch soon with the details of Peanut's birth!!