Happy 5th Birthday Gavin!

It is amazing how fast time flies. Gavin's 5th birthday was last Thursday and I am finally finding the time today to post pictures. We enjoyed a visit from Grandma Kohl (and Uncles Todd and Jordan) for the past 5 days and now that they are gone we are trying to get back to our normal schedule. I have thought about posting about Gavin's birthday since last Thursday, but just haven't had a chance. Anyways, here are some pictures of a fantastic fifth birthday. **WARNING** I am posting tons of pictures!

Birthday Boy!

Thanks Dad for the cool cake!

We made our first trip to Chuck E. Cheese. Now hopefully we never have to go back. (At least until Liam requests going there for his birthday!) :)

Gavin planned his own party and it included a game of Quidditch. He got his first birthday present, a firebolt broom, to use for the Quidditch match.

Thanks to Uncle Todd and Uncle Jordan for being good sports and playing in the Quidditch match!

Then there were presents, too many presents!

Finally the eating of the cake!

I'm not sure how I already have a five year old, but I'm sure glad to have him!

Happy Birthday Gavin!

Three weeks...

I'm not sure how Ashlyn is already three weeks old. The last three weeks have been a bit blurry, so I'm glad to have them behind me. Here a few pictures my sister took of Ashlyn on Tuesday. I thought they turned out better than anything I have taken, so I thought I would share. The first picture is Ashlyn with her cousin Bethany. Aren't they cute! Thank Sis for the great pics!

Two Weeks and Two Days

Ashlyn had her two week check-up yesterday. Of course it just had to be raining/snowing for her first outing since the hospital, but we made it o.k. She weighs 8lbs 6oz and measured 20 1/2 inches. I was happy to find out that she had surpassed her birth weight. With the way she eats I was sure she had to be at least 8lbs by now. The dr. said everything looks great. I feel so blessed to have a healthy (and cute) baby! I tried to get some good pictures today, but realized that it is impossible to get a good picture when she is awake because her hands and head are moving constantly. So here are the best pictures I could get.

Happy Easter!

Don't worry, we are alive. I just haven't had the chance to post anything. Suddenly all my free time is gone! :) We are surviving here in the Kohl household. It has been an adjustment to have a new little one around, but we love her. The boys just can't get enough of her. They are constantly in her face when she is awake. I haven't had too much loss of sleep yet. She sleeps usually about 4 hours at a time, so I only get up with her twice a night. I'm sure it will all change, but for now I will take what I can get.

We are having a great Easter today. The Easter bunny held off hiding eggs until Nate and the boys were at church. The boys had a great time finding their baskets and eggs. The Easter bunny also brought a gift for Mom and Dad. A new video camera! We have wanted to get one for awhile, so I guess having a new baby made Nate justify getting one. I have a bunch of pictures to post of what has been going on the past week or so. Here they are!

Here is Ashlyn at one week old. I am realizing as I post this that she will be 2 weeks in two days, so I guess I will have to take another picture and post again in a couple days.

Coloring Easter Eggs

Finished Product

This is what Ashlyn was doing while we were coloring eggs.

Easter morning before church. (Don't mind the black glove Gavin is wearing. It is a Star Wars thing he is hooked on right now) :)

A normal smile would be nice. :)

Eating the spoils from the Easter bunny

Gavin was stuffing candy in his mouth like he had never had candy before. We had to remind he repeatedly that his candy wasn't going anywhere and to stop eating it all.

Hope you all had a Happy Easter!

More Ashlyn pictures...

I knew if I left the baby posting up to Nate that it would be creative. I'm so glad to know I have a drunken baby! :) Anyways, we are home and doing o.k. It is always to nice to be home and not in a couped up in a hospital room. Here are a few more pictures.

Blood, Sweet Pitocin, and Tears

In the great tradition of Kohl childbirths, Shauna and I trekked over to the hospital yesterday and did a whole lot of waiting. (I guess a few more hours tacked onto the end of nine months--well, technically, it was more like eight months and two and a half weeks--is just a drop in the proverbial bucket, but to a woman on the cusp of postpartum it matters very little.)

The carousel of Labor and Delivery nurses and sundry staff started spinning around 6:30 yesterday morning when we arrived, What-To-Expect-When-You're-Expecting-recommended delivery bag in hand, at the local hospital. And after hours of a gradually quickening pitocin drip, a crackerjack management of Shauna's fickle blood pressure, countless pelvic exams and even countlesser episodes of every iteration of Law and Order imaginable, Shauna and I were surrounded by quiet. It amazes me how quickly everyone vacated the delivery room after the labor itself was over, leaving us with our only Y-chromosome-difficient offspring. Ashlyn Irene Kohl was born at 5:21 pm on Tuesday, March 31, weighing in at a lean seven pounds and 10 ounces and measuring an average 20 inches. (If you'd like to engage in a discussion regarding the trustworthiness of these infant measurements in the comments section, please be my guest. I'll never understand how Liam was 19 inches when he was born and a whopping 22 inches the following week.)

For those disappointed by my lack of visual output, more pictures will come a little later. (When I was considering what to post, I realized that the only other good pictures I had taken yesterday also included one very tired mother, who would be very unpleased if I posted anything with even a pixel of her in it.) As you can see, Ashlyn looks pretty much like every other newborn. To those Y-chromosome-difficient readers who inherently find a swollen, bloody, and disoriented child "precious" and "cuddle-worthy," please do not be offended when I say that to me she pretty much looks like she just awoke the morning after a drunken bar fight somewhere in Sanpete County. And I lover her forever for it.