Introducing James

Two weeks ago today, I was still pregnant. It's amazing how one day can change your life.

"Baby New" is now officially James Israel Arciniega. He was born on November 17th weighing seven pounds, 10 ounces (almost a pound bigger than Katelyn).

Here he is all puffy just minutes after delivery.

His delivery story was not the planned one, but one we won't forget. I called Israel around 2:00 saying he might want to head down towards my mom's house (30 minutes from his work). I finally got around to timing contractions and they were about every four minutes. It's funny how when you have a toddler wanting attention, it's harder to watch the clock. I skipped a few contractions and for a small moment I thought about calling Israel to have him turn around and go back to work. Glad I didn't! Israel got there, we swung by our house to pick up the bag, and drove to the hospital in The Woodlands.

We got there at 3:35 and James arrived at 4:11! Needless to say, I didn't get my epidural. The nurses had to coach me on breathing, so I would wait for the doctor to get to the triage room. "Just wait for the doctor to get his gloves on."

We love our new baby. One of my favorite "Mommy moments" was when my parents brought Katelyn to the hospital to meet James. She was adorable and so loving. One of the first things out of her mouth was "mine!" She was full of kisses, hugs, and smiles.

One Proud Daddy

Israel was extremely supportive through the whole process. He adores James, and I love watching him interact with our children.

Now all the heart burn makes sense--look at that hair!


My cousin, Brianne came up the next day to meet James.

This is me ready to go home. I get so antsy when they've told us we can go, but the discharge process takes forever long. I can't get too upset, they did let us leave at 9:00 at night instead of making us stay another night.

It was so good to be home with both my babies.

Our New House

Here is some video of the home we are buying.





Click on the links below to see some video.





Entry: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55juLlux3vk


Kitchen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8KW5s1KlpY


Gameroom: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4llfXNm30iA

Master: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zb3ZZBK0xYU


Katelyn's Room: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlfjLjG6f5c

Introducing Baby New

This post has been in the works for a few months. Never quite sure when to share our exciting news with the world, but the time is here and probably way past due...

Back in March:

While I was out of town in January, Israel must have missed us one day. We came home to the ABC magnets spelling our names interwined (Israel calls me Mia at times). Well, the morning I took the pregnancy test, I hadn't bought anything or done anything creative. I knew we needed pictures of me telling him since Katelyn has a 2 page spread in her baby book of how I told Israel. This was as creative as I could get before the urge to just run in the room and tell him got the best of me.

Back in April:

I had my first appointment with ultrasound. You know the blob one. At some point, Israel started calling the baby, "Baby New." The name stuck. I actually had an ultrasound at the beginning of May as well, but the images are just way too dark to post. It was incredible to see the growth in four week. What looks like a blob in the first ultrasound looks like a baby in just four short weeks. It was amazing!

In July:

The long awaited ultrasound complete with gender check!

This little one loves to curl up in a ball. Notice the toes by the mouth.

Instead of posting a "between the legs" shot, Katelyn now has a baby doll with a new onsie.

IT'S A BOY!

Easter

We started Easter morning out in true Arciniega fashion--in our pajamas. After reading a "Jesus book," Katelyn dove into her Easter basket. It was filled with sidewalk chalk, Easter eggs filled with jelly beans and Goldfish crackers, packages of mini cookies, bubble bath, a V-tech phone, a lift the flap book, and play-dough toys. She examined each item very carefully.

Katelyn loves the books by this author.

After church, we headed over to the Stewarts for dinner and a cousin Easter egg hunt.

We wanted some pictures of her in her official Easter dress, so we took her over in that dress, but changed her for dinner and the egg hunt.

Notice how my shoes aren't on all the way. They announced the egg hunt and there was no time for buckles. You have to move fast!

The Rest of March

Here's my attempt at staying current on the blog. Here's a glimpse of what's been going on with us. Katelyn finally got her first haircut. She did a great job--didn't cry, fuss, or even wiggle that much. I guess that's why they put a TV at every station. Before During After

My brother and family finally get to be together in their new home in Georgia. My brother has been doing all his army training, and his family stayed here. Now, he's stationed at Fort Benning and they moved this past month. We watched the kids while Matt and Falicia packed and cleaned their apartment. We took them along with a friend from the neighborhood to a pizza joint. Katelyn loves pizza and you can see it all over her shirt in these pictures.

The big kids played laser tag while the little ones played in the kiddie section.

Totally last minute (talking about the night before), I decided to throw a "Green Party" for the cousins. I couldn't have pulled it off without Brianne's help though.

Cute Little Leprechauns

Katelyn loved wearing this headband. She wore it in the store, on and off through out St. Patrick's day, and then wanted to put it back on the next day.

A leprachaun left behind his box with all sorts of treats including "green potion."

We used that green potion to finger paint with whipped cream.

Bri cut out the parts for these adorable hats.

The leprachaun left a clue to start out the treasure hunt. The kids were all over the place--up and down the stairs, outside.

My mom actually wrote the clues. She has a talent for making things into cute little rhymes.

The kids were so excited when they found the pot with gold and other goodies. We also read some books and searched for all the green toys in the toy room.

My big achievement for the night was making corned beef and cabbage. I was a little nervous, but it turned out all right. Thank goodness for Crock Pots.

Katelyn looks like she is picking her nose, but the kids had macroni and cheese with a little green potion, cucumbers, and grapes.

Brianne made these adorable rainbow cupcakes. It was a fun night!

In the next few months, you will see a lot of zoo pictures. We bought a membership, so I have to use it! Katelyn and I went with a bunch of moms and babies from library time. Katelyn totally got excited this time. In February, she really didn't seem to care she was there. The minute we walked through the gates, she was pointing and making noises.

Again in February, she didn't want anything to do with the goats. This time around she grabbed a brush and went around to every goat she could get to.

Aren't they cute?

The babies loved the fish.

Another day, Brianne and I took the kids up to The Woodlands for a boat ride. They loved sticking their heads out the window. We also got up close and personal with some ducks while we waited for the boat. Afterwards, we played at the mall playground and went and got some frozen yogurt.