He is Here!!

Please help us welcome our new addition, Kiran Whitney James Harmeling! Born Wednesday, May 25 at 3:55 and weighing in at a hefty 8lbs!

The short story:
Kiran was born via c-section after a quick decision was made by Dr. Nakamoto that it was time for him to come out (the sooner the better). Within an hour, I was in the operating room and little Kiran made his way into the world!

He had some initial breathing difficulties due to fluid in his lungs which gave his daddy a good scare and prevented his very anxious and impatient mommy from being able to hold him for several (and I mean several, looong) hours. He made a complete recovery, though, and is doing great! During that time I did get to sit in my wheelchair by his bassinet in the nursery and touch and talk to him which helped me get through to the time of being able to hold and nurse him. I got this pic- our first handhold!


Big brother Lance made it up to visit and meet Kiran on Thursday morning and it was pretty much everything I had hoped their intial meeting would be.

We are happily home now and are all recovering well. We are adjusting to being a family of six- the dogs are doing well and Moses has resumed his role as the den mother. Lance is doing great for the most part but has had a few out of character break downs and seems a little confused about why I can't pick him up and play with him like usual. So far, though, so good. We are incredibly grateful to have another healthy boy in our arms.

For those of you wondering about his name, Kiran is pronounced like "keer-an" and means light, or ray of light. He has two middle names, both after important people in our lives. Whitney is after one of Stef's oldest and best friends, Fabian Whitney Chichester. James is after Stef's older brother Jimmy, his Uncle Jim (Dan's identical twin), our nephew James, and my dad's dad James McLaughlin. And so we proudly introduce you to Kiran Whitney James Harmeling, our newest addition.

Due Date

Well, it's May 23 and there are no signs that little number two will arrive today... or anytime soon, actually! The good news is that he has to come out at some point and I'm still feeling pretty good so I am enjoying the last days of being a mommy of one and trying to rest up a little for the labor that will be here before we know it. Send your thoughts and wishes for a healthy delivery. We can't wait to meet our new addition!!

Swimming Update

Lance is still loving swim lessons. He and Stef get in together every Saturday morning and this week Lance discovered a new area of the pool- it's a ramp that gets deeper and deeper which he loves to run down until he's so deep that he plunges right in and tries to swim on his own. A little scary, but pretty amazing to watch! The first time, Stef led him down, but after that, he was all over it! Lance is also trying his hardest to jump off the side and loves pushing off the wall underwater with Daddy and being tossed into the air.
Here are some pics and video:

The Magic of Aunt Linda

Surprise packages arriving in the mail decorated with bright colors, stickers, and stamps can only be from one person: Aunt Linda. A total treat for Lance this week, and that was just the outside of the box! Inside we found a book on one of his favorite topics- tractors!!
When he turned to the page featuring photos of a tractor he happens to have, he had to search the house until he found it so that he could do the side by side comparison.
Needless to say, the book is a hit and I'm feeling relieved to finally know the official names of all the different types of diggers and loaders. Thanks Aunt Linda!

Almost There

Just a few days shy of 39 weeks along. Here we are!
When, oh when, will the little guy make his grand debut?

New Playset(s)

One of the items on my list of things to do before the baby comes has been to find a playset for Lance. I know that we are going to be spending a lot more time around the house in the coming months and I've been determined to find an outdoor entertainment center for the big brother.
Not an easy feat in Hilo where the only new playsets to be found are for sale at Costco for almost $2000...

I've been asking around and half-heartedly looking on craigslist- so imagine my delight and surprise when not one, but TWO playsets surfaced in the same week!

The whole fam was set to drive up to Waimea to check out the wooden swingset with playhouse from the ad. But at the last minute, Lance and I decided to stay home due to a terrible cough that the poor guy has been fighting for the past four weeks. So, my faithful husband willingly spent an entire Saturday dismantling and loading our new guest house onto a flatbed trailer because he knew how much I've been wanting this for Lance. Neither of us had ANY idea how enormous this thing was and... well... it's HUGE. But Lance loves it already! And the best part is that even though we're losing our guest room, there's plenty of room in the playhouse for those of you who don't mind camping out! :)

I wasn't kidding about the size... here's a pic with Lance showing the scale

A fresh coat of stain, rearranging the planters in our yard, and a small army to help us move it is all we need before it's ready to go! Don't worry- I'll post some pics when it's up and running.

Our second score was given to us as a hand me down and is perfect for Lance's current speed...

More Easter Fun

Dying eggs and a second egg hunt completed the Easter festivities this year!