More photos...per Mandy's request

Here are some new photos of the boys. Hope you enjoy them. You might notice that we're all wearing pajamas a lot these days. It certainly cuts down on laundry...one day we'll go back to being decent, clothes-wearing folks, but for now we're enjoying being casual (and warm!).

Happy birthday, indeed!

Well, my birthday gift to Dan this year was a wheel barrow that he's been asking for. Let's just say I have been outdone once and for all. I'm pretty sure I can't top the birthday gift he just got. Anthony Jacob Ripley came flying into this world at 5:36pm on Dan's 38th birthday (the 12th). He weighed 7lbs, 7oz and was 20.5 inches long. He has been an absolute dream baby so far. He latched on right away and has nursed fantastically. I haven't had hardly a moment of pain since the moment he was born (the moments before he was born, however, are an entirely different story).

We had a babysitter for Vince up until right after AJ was born and then Dan's best friend Artie came over and stayed with Vince a while longer. I spent the night at the hospital with just me and AJ and it was perfect. I was able to bond with him just one on one, and I feel like we really needed that because once we throw Vince into the mix, it might be a bit different. Vince met his baby brother this morning and was very ... I can't even think of the word ... curious, maybe?

We left the hospital as soon as we could so that we could get settled. We got home around 9pm tonight and we are so happy to be home. We had terrible reception in the hospital room, so if you were expecting a phone call sooner, I apologize. Thank you to those of you who have tried to call but been cut off due to the terrible reception. You're welcome to call any time and if we're not too busy with the boys, we will be happy to chat with you.

Anthony Jacob Ripley...home at last!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!

Nope, not to AJ, but to Dan. Today Dan is 38 and as he is fond of saying, he just gets better with age, like a fine wine. We are looking forward to hanging out and celebrating as a family today and having lunch together before Dan goes to work this afternoon. I'm still hopeful I can give him a baby for his birthday, but if not, hopefully the full moon tomorrow will help pull this baby out!

Still no baby

Overdue

Nope. No baby yet. Try again later.

Baby Ripley Update

For those of you who may be placing wagers on baby Ripley's arrival:

I went to the dr today and I have not made much progress since a week and a half ago. I have been having a few contractions per day, but I don't think they're anything to get excited about. I'm dilated to 1cm and thinning. The baby has begun to descend, though, which was nice to hear. I was told once this week that I had dropped (I can't tell, myself), so the dr confirmed it!

I am more pregnant now than I've ever been, since Vince was born by this time in my last pregnancy. I am really looking forward to having a completely natural birth, so I am praying that the baby will come on his own...soon. The dr said that they will want to induce me if I go to 41.5 weeks, which means we are praying for AJ to arrive on or before Nov 17. Feel free to join us in praying for this! But we do trust that God has a perfect date all picked out for AJ to makes his appearance and are just trying to enjoy the last few full nights of sleep we all can get.

Vince and Dan and I got our last photos of just the 3 of us today. We had a lot of fun and we're really looking forward to getting the prints at the end of next week. They aren't the quality of Sarah Hedman Photography (www.sarahhedmanphotography.com), but we'll take what we can get.

Hope you're enjoying your first days of November. Don't forget to vote!! (As if I had to remind you.)