First Day at Church

Today was Gideon's first day at church. We were even able to get our first picture of all the kids together before we headed out the door to church. Gideon did extremely well at church. He is really spoiling me. I didn't even have to feed him until about halfway through the 3rd hour so I was able to enjoy all of church. It was wonderful to have Mom with us and Joshie loved being with Grandma. He is so cute with Grandma and has really become attached. He doesn't want anyone else to put him down for naps or bed except Grandma. The kids all took turns holding Gideon throughout Sacrament Meeting and he just slept in their arms being passed from brother to sister. I love being together as a family at church. It is such a reminder that our families are what is truly important in this life. After church I enjoyed a long nap on the couch with Gideon. I felt so lazy sleeping like that but it really felt so good too. Mom is definitely spoiling me!

We love Gideon

It's been so fun to see the kids love their newest little brother. They always want to hold him, kiss him, and give him loves. Thomas loves to lay down with him and has even fallen asleep twice with him on the couch. This is unusual for Thomas because Thomas never takes naps. Joshie loves to hold him and find his eyes, ears, nose, anything. Mary thinks he is her doll and so we have to watch her closely with him but she loves him so much. It has been so wonderful to have my mom here as well. The kids love having Grandma around and she just knows exactly what we all need. He is such a sweetheart and such a dear blessing to our family. I love my time to cuddle with him and sleep with him on my chest. I love his little coos and grunts. When he stretches he looks like a little turtle poking his head out with a skinny little neck. I know this time will go so quickly and I wish I could just freeze time. We love you, Gideon!

"His head fell off!"

Thursday evening when we got home from trick-or-treating my mom put Gideon's carseat up on the counter. Mary was standing on the bench wanting to see Gideon and couldn't see his face through the opening of the carseat cover but she could see his shoulder. Grandma told her she needed to start getting her PJ's on and she said, "But Grandma, his head fell off!" We laughed so hard when we realized what she meant. His head had slid to the side and could not see be seen. Now whenever we see his head off to the side we joke that his head fell off again. Look below to see what Mary saw!

Coming Home with Gideon

I was able to convince my doctor to let me come home on Thursday. I was so excited to be home. We got home while the older kids were at school and the little ones were napping. One by one the little ones woke up from their naps and came downstairs. It was cute to see their reactions as they saw me on the couch. They would smile big and come to me but what they really wanted was to see Gideon and have their turn holding him. When Thomas and Spring came in from the bus they were talking with each other and my mom called out hello to them. When Thomas walked into the room and saw me on the couch he said, "Mom, you're home!" He came over and gave me a hug and then asked if he could hold Gideon. Spring ran to the bathroom and then wanted her turn too. It has been so great to be home and spend time with them. That evening we went to a friend's house so the kids could go trick-or-treating since our town has trick or treating on Sunday night. Gideon did great on his first outing and the kids loved showing him off. It was a great first day home with him and I think he was in someone's arms all day. I don't think he has been set down for more than about 10 minutes since we have been home.

Meeting Gideon

Here are some more pictures of our sweet boy from this afternoon after his bath. He is so sweet. I just love cuddling with him and holding him close. This time is so precious and goes so quickly that I can't seem to get enough of it. I love the smell and softness of his skin and the gaze of his beautiful eyes as he looks up at us. What a sweet blessing these children are from our Father in Heaven.

My mom brought the kids to meet their new brother this evening. They were all so excited to hold him and see him and touch him. He is adored already. Joshie looked like such a big boy holding his new baby brother and he was so proud and wanted lots of turns even though they never lasted for long. Mary was so sweet with him and Sammy just loved to hold him and say, "Hi Gideon. Hi boy." Thomas is an old pro and looks so grown up at this point as he held Gideon. Spring is so gentle and loving...a natural and my big helper! It was so special for me to have my mom here too to meet our little one. This is the first time she has been able to be here so soon and it was so special for me to see her holding our little one. How blessed I am to have her here. I am truly blessed!

Welcome to the World

Gideon Joel Biggs

Born this morning at 9:32 am

6 pounds 14 ounces

20 inches long

Our little miracle arrived this morning healthy and strong. We are so excited to have him with us and we can't wait for him to meet his siblings and Grandma in a few hours. The C-section went great and I am now waiting for them to bring him back to us after his bath.

Birthday Pictures

With the move this summer I was a little slow getting Spring's 7 year old pictures taken. Last week I finally got these done along with Joshie's 2 year old pics, and Sammy's 5 year old pics (since he will be 5 in about a week).

Thomas' Expertise

Thomas had to write a "How To" paper for school. He needed to think of something he was really good at and write the instructional steps to perform the task. I laughed when I saw his choice of topic, "How to Change a Poopy Diaper." His teacher told him it was a unique topic to which he replied, "Well, I'm the oldest of lots of kids so I've had my practice at this." Enjoy his instructions!

Another Inside Peek

My doctor was again concerned because I am continuing to measure small and she wanted to be sure the baby was OK so she had me go in for another ultrasound on Monday. The picture isn't the greatest because his head is really low so harder to capture a good image. It was still so fun to see. At one point it almost looked like he was smiling! All is well and they are predicting his weight as of Monday to be 6 pounds 9 ounces. So, as of today, I have 5 days until the C-section! Any guesses on how big this guy is going to be?

Mary's 1st Haircut

Yes, that is right, Mary had her very first haircut today! She is only 3 1/2 years old! She has never had much hair and it has taken a very long time for it to come in. Lately it has been driving me crazy because it never looks like I brush it. It is always in her face and messy. I wait to brush it on Sunday until we are about to walk out the door to church and before Sacrament Meeting it doesn't even look like I brushed it that morning. I finally took her in to get it cut because I didn't know what to do with it. She was very nervous and did not want to get it cut but she did so well. She sat amazingly still (I think because she was scared to death!). Afterwards I told her how proud I was of her for getting her hair cut to which she replied, "I know Mom. I was so brave getting my hair cut!" She looks so different to me now and I love how "kept" it looks even with just a couple clips in her hair.

I forgot to mention something Sammy said there. As we were leaving an older gentleman was coming in for a haircut. Sammy asked, "Mom is this place just for getting hair cuts?" I said, "Yes." trying to figure out what else he thought you would do there. Then he said (as he is standing right next to this gentleman), "Then why is he coming in here? He doesn't even have enough hair to get a haircut!" I hurried them out the door hoping nobody heard him or if they did they couldn't understand him.

Fall Leaves

Sammy has been so excited about autumn leaves. He is in awe of the bright colors of the leaves on the trees and loves watching them fall to the ground. Above everything, however, is his love and excitement for all the leaves on the ground. All day long he wants to go outside and rake leaves. Yesterday, Joel was out with him after work. I came outside to see Sammy, with rake in hand, by a huge pile of leaves. I asked him, "Wow, Sammy! Did you rake all those leaves by yourself?" With a huge smile and look of total satisfaction he replied, "Yep! Good thing Daddy used the leaf blower to blow them all over here. That made it much easier for me!" I love the excitement this little man of our's has for simple things in life. He is crazy and requires a lot of attention and direction; but it is so worth it when we are blessed with his overwhelming joy in the little things of life.

Concertino Piece

Thomas loves this new piece, Concertino in D Major. His teacher's teacher composed the music. She told us she has never had a student so young learn this piece and never had a student learn it so well so quickly ever. He plays this all the time. He is still perfecting portions of it and then he will perform in duet with his teacher on this piece. His teacher has 2 grand pianos in her studio so they are both playing on different pianos together. It is quite comical to see how giddy he gets about this song and the opportunity to perform with his teacher.

Our Week

Sammy has really enjoyed building with his TRIO blocks lately. He builds different contraptions and asks me to take pictures of him with them. We continue to have fun with Cub Scouts. There is a great group of boys that are so enthusiastic about everything we do. Thomas has some great boys as friends. He and Kaiden, in particular, are inseperable at school and any other time they see each other. It has been fun to see their friendship blossom.

We have hit the cold weather of fall; however, today it warmed up to the 70's. I had spent all morning at the Licensing Department still trying to get a new driver's license since my purse was stolen last week. I have still not been successful in providing all the "correct" documentation that is required from California. I wonder sometimes if it would just be easier to take the driving test and written test than try to prove that I really do have an active CA driver's license. But, then I worry that I may not pass the driving test! :) After the frustrating morning I decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather to get our lawns mowed (probably for the last time until spring). I was secretly hoping it would put me into labor knowing full well that really will never happen with me! Then this evening we all went outside to rake leaves, trim bushes, pull weeds, and other last minute fall prep of the yard. It was so fun to work together outside as a family. There were times the kids were throwing leaves at each other, later a frisbee was brought out for Dad to play with the kids for a while, crab apples were tossed around and shook down from trees on top of heads, the kids jumped and played on the trampoline, and through it all we really got a lot of work done with smiles and good memories. We didn't come inside until almost 7 pm and then had to have dinner. That is a late night for our kiddos and we are so grateful we took advantage of the beautiful weather to enjoy our time working and playing together.