What Language do babies speak?

The other day Levi was babbling. I asked Lucy "What is Levi trying to say?"



She answered in a matter of fact voice, "I don't know...he is speaking spanish."



Wow! What a smart baby I have!





Today on the way home from church Lucy started making a big fuss "Why did you put that in my face?!!" She asked angrily.



Both Dave and I answered in unison, "What did we put in your face?"



"The sun" she declared, and we laughed and then explained that the sun did what it wanted to.





I'll be honest...the other day I got mad at Lucy. She went in to Levi's room while he was sleeping and blew the recorder in his ear.

She started crying when I got mad at her and then said through her tears "You need to be nice. Why are you listening to Satan?"

Serious blow to me. Of course, I started crying and apologized. Then she came and hugged me and looked up at me through her tears and said sincerely "It's okay Mommy. I still love you."

What if everyone could be so forgiving instead of holding such grudges. I think this is what the scriptures mean when they say to be like a little child (as opposed to running around screaming and destroying the entire house in 5 minutes).

I am so thankful for the life and atonement of Jesus Christ, especially so that I can be forgiven, after getting mad at such a sweet little girl.

Smiles!!!

I finally caught some good smiles on camera yesterday. I got some on video a few weeks ago, but haven't really tried that hard with the still camera because the lighting isn't very good at our house and I don't stalk Levi with the camera like I did with Lucy...ha ha!

He sure is a smiley guy! He started smiling at 3 weeks and I'm not talking one measley smile. He was smiling all the time, right up at you. Now he smiles and babbles with you. I think he will be quite a social guy, although he is very independent. Sometimes he starts crying because he wants to be put down. Lucy never did this and it has come as quite a shock. I got in the habit of carrying Lucy everywhere, because she pretty much cried if I put her down. Levi just gets annoyed because I tend to carry him, then he stops fussing when he can wiggle on the ground. Wow! That's cool!


Lucy thinks it is hilarious to take pictures with her tongue sticking out. I guess Levi does too!



Yesterday I was struggling to get Lucy to take a nap. I finally said "Where do you want to sleep?" She answered "Right here" then I responded "Okay, then lay down" and she did! I was laying down on the bed and the next thing I knew I woke up an hour and a half later and she was asleep on the ground. She is always full of surprises!


Lucy Moment: At church on Sunday the topic in Sacrament meeting was Reverence. I was asking Lucy about it and then reminded her that while we fold our arms we also think of Jesus. Then I asked her "What are you thinking about Jesus?"

She answered "I think I will share my toys with him. Where is he? I don't see him." As she looked around the congregation for him.

Now that is true devotion right there! Hey, sharing toys is big in the life of a three year old! I love her!

Lucy and Levi

Caught some love on camera yesterday!








Lucy is really obsessed with her baby brother. She loves him sooooo much! The problem is she loves him soooooo much!

When he was 3 weeks she got him out of his swing and put him on the ground. I try not to imagine his little head flopping around. He did start screaming, but calmed down pretty quickly. Somehow I managed not to freak out and yell at Lucy (only because Dave was there to help me).

Last week Dave left Levi in his crib for a little while and came back and Lucy was sitting in it with him.

I have told her the rules - no picking up, no touching face and not to give him little things, but she still says "Don't worry Mom, I'll go get him" when we hear him wake up on the monitor.

She wants to help me wash him and change his diaper and smother him with cuddles! I keep telling myself "Babies were made to withstand siblings." Let's just say, Levi has already had a much different upbringing than Lucy. Lucy was only ever touched very gently and probably cried without help from a parent for a total of 30 minutes in her whole first year. Levi just has to cry sometimes and gets attacked with love, but I'm sure he will turn out fine!

I guess it could be a lot worse. She could purposefully be hurting him...

Here is a one month old pic, taken on October 14
He had a doctor's appointment on October 11 and he was already 11 pounds! I am so proud of my big boy! Wouldn't it be great if we all put on two pounds per month! Or better yet increased our weight by 20%!!!! (That was a very rough calculation)

Levi loves the bath. He gets really smiley, but of course I couldn't get it with the camera. I don't know if you can tell how he is getting chubby little arms and legs. He even has some creases. I love it! I really miss Lucy's chub and am excited to have some chub again.
I have gotten some great videos of his smiles. He started smiling really early, around 3 weeks. I kept thinking he was too young to do that, but he really did it in response to looking at him and talking to him. I guess he is just a happy little guy! Don't get me wrong, he screams when he is hungry. He goes from 0-60 in one second. He is smiling at you, babbling and then the next minute yelling "Feed me now."

He has been sleeping pretty well. He usually sleeps from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. eats and goes back to sleep until 7 or 8. Lucy would do 6 hours when she was about 2 weeks old, but then she was up for a long time. The going back to sleep part makes a big difference in my happiness! Actually I have been extremely happy this time around. 2 kids is way easier than I had anticipated (It's not easy, I just thought it would be completely overwhelming). I even catch myself thinking about how soon we could have another baby, which I'm pretty sure with Lucy at this stage I was thinking, "Maybe one child would be just perfect." It's not really Levi's personality vs. Lucy's, I think I just have accepted my role as a mother and already know how to take care of a baby. Now, I am not shocked when I have spit up in my hair and poo all over my clothes, instead I am pleasantly surprised when I don't have anything gross on me. I used to think I didn't like babies, but i loved kids, so i had to do the baby thing, but now I really do love having a baby. I love being a Mom. I am so blessed and so grateful for my sweet kids and awesome husband. He is always putting me first, even when he is dirt tired at 4:00 a.m. It's amazing!


I have so much to say, but so little time...so I guess this will have to do!

I love Halloween!!!

I think I have a post with this title every October...but I really do love Halloween. I am whimpy and don't like scary stuff, so it doesn't really make sense. I just love dressing up and carving pumpkins and eating candy. I am so glad Lucy is finally old enough to get candy, so I can eat it!

We painted pumpkins last week (which is much better than carving for a three year old), and made lolly pop ghosts this week. Halloween crafts are the best! Plus get a sneak peak of Lucy's Halloween costume. She wants to be Ariel, surprise...!!!! It's the one princess costume we didn't have, of course! She is insisting that Levi be Flounder, Dave is Prince Eric, I am Sebastian, her Papa is King Triton, and Heidi is Ursula. We will see how it goes!

Ever since we got this Ariel costume, it is all she will wear, and we have to call her Ariel at all times! She was disappointed that she couldn't wear her fin in the bath. What kind of fin is this? You can't wear it in the water? I have finally convinced her that Ariel has special waterproof panties that she wears under her fin because she wouldn't wear panties the first few days. She kept saying "Ariel doesn't wear panties. They will get wet in the water." I have always been a big believer in never lying to your kids to get them to do things. This doesn't really count, right? I think this one just goes in the imagination category. There is no proof that Ariel doesn't wear waterproof panties under her fin!!!



Whoa, Lucy just ate 3 whole apples, skin and all. Where did this kid come from?

First Outings

We took Levi to the beach for the first time on Saturday night. He loved it. Of course, who wouldn't?

I took him again today, since it is incredibly hot here! We had so much fun! He just ate and then napped in the tent for 2 hours, while Lucy played with a friend she had just made.

I am so happy to be raising my kids here. I felt very confused raising Lucy in the snow. I never really knew what to do, except stay in the house, which was kind of miserable (I am not a home body).

I also took the kids to the park on Saturday morning (since Dave had to work and I had to get out). I am so proud of myself when I leave the house, since it usually takes a whole hour to get everybody ready (and that doesn't mean looking good, we are talking fed and clothed, not necessarily matching).

Anyway, here are the cute shots from the beach:

Sunday Morning

Sunday morning I decided to sleep in with Levi and rest one more week before getting back in the full swing of things. After I couldn't sleep any longer, I did a photo shoot (What did you expect me to do in my free time?)



Lucy was really happy to see me and Levi when she got home from church. She wanted to snuggle Levi. Oh, precious.

Oh, I just love little feet...


Gotta love that little man!

Can we keep him?

Lucy is always thrilled to come see her brother in the morning. It's as if she is surprised every morning that he is still here and its all real. The first thing she said this morning as she came to look at her brother was

"Mommy, can we keep him?"

I answered "Yes, we will keep him forever."



How sweet. I am glad she loves him. I was wondering what stemmed that thought and realized we have recently been telling her the story of Rapunzel. Maybe she is worried someone will take him away just like the witch did.

Levi continues to impress us all! He slept 8 hours last night from 10:30 p.m. to 6:30 a.m.! Of course, he ate every 40 minutes from 6:30 p.m. to10:30 p.m., but I think it's a pretty good trade! Where did this child come from? I feel sooooo good and am soooooo happy!


I knew Dave would love having a son, even though he said he wanted another little girl. Oh, I love these boys!

The First Week

First, Here are some pictures:

Bringing Levi home on Wednesday night, September 15


Lucy welcoming her brother home


Me and my kids (I love saying "the kids")


I think they are going to be best of friends



Our first family car ride to the Pediatrician on Thursday Morning, September 16.


Lucy finds her own Boppy!! Funny Girl!


Levi's first tummy time! (I think it made his umbilical cord bleed a little, so we will wait a few days to try again)


Lucy is trying out Levi's bathtub. She is enjoying all the fun new baby things around!!


The first week has gone by in a flash! Surprisingly, I have loved it. With Lucy it was a really hard and shocking adjustment for me, but this time I love it. Maybe it is because Dave didn't even let me change one diaper until he was 4 days old (he is the best father there ever was!), or that I already know how to breastfeed, or perhaps it is because Levi just came home from the hospital sleeping at night. I kid you not, I don't know how it happened (okay, actually I prayed a lot for it while I was pregnant), but Friday night he slept 4 hours, woke up and ate and went right back to sleep for 3 more. Saturday he is increased to 5 hours, quick feed, back to sleep for 3. Sunday night was 6 hours (from 11:00p.m. to 5:00 a.m.), quick feed and awoke again at 8:00 a.m. Last night (Monday night) 7 hours!!! He went to sleep at 12:00 p.m. and woke up at 7:00 a.m., quick feed and back to sleep until 10:00 a.m.!!! Hallelujah!!!! With Lucy I am pretty sure I didn't want to have any more children after the first week of newborn care, but this time I am so happy, I am already ready to have another one! (Okay, not quite yet!)

My Favorite moments this week:

Watching Lucy hold her brother and kiss him softly and then rub her cheek on his head. She is so good at calming him. She even started calmly singing "I am a Child of God" to him when he was fussing. He stopped fussing and it was a very sweet moment!

Every morning when Lucy wakes up she wants to come see "her baby" and give him a kiss.

Levi spit up and Dave called out to me because he needed a burp rag, "He's spitting..." Lucy then asked inquisitively "Does he need a time out?" So funny! (She went through a little spitting phase and got time outs for it).

Answering Lucy's questions about birth. She asked how the baby got out. I told her he came out my bottom and responded "That's silly!" and hasn't asked again.

Telling Lucy stories about me and my little brother Brian and what we would do together. Lucy seemed kind of annoyed that she couldn't play with the baby yet, so I told her first they have to grow and then they will be lots of fun. I told her all the adventures I went on with my little brother and she loved it. Now she asks all the time "Can you tell me about your little brother, Brian."

Lucy found a neck pillow and used it as a boppy to feed her baby doll! Hilarious!

When Levi cries Lucy consoles him by saying: "It's okay little man." I guess she must have heard me saying that.

Lucy keeps asking if she can have some milk (as in breastmilk). I told her "Sure, you can try baby milk," but then she chickens out and says "That milk is for babies, not older sisters." I am so glad she came to that conclusion on her own without me forcing the issue or letting her try any.

Last night Lucy was helping me burp Levi, and he burped while she was patting. She was so proud. It was precious.

Levi had a weight check on Monday and was 9 lbs 5 oz. Yay he gained 5 oz! I am so proud he is on his way to becoming a big and tall athlete!

Yay! His umbilical cord fell off just a few minutes ago! (11:00 a.m. September 21)

I love being a Mom of two!

The Real Labor Day!

Levi David Pendergrass has arrived! He was born on Tuesday, September 14th at 9:37 a.m. He weighed 9 lbs and is 21.5 inches long. I am so proud and hoping this means he will be a big, tall and handsome athlete, just like his Daddy!

Here are a few pictures of Levi's first days in the hospital. I also wrote my labor story because I know a lot of people are interested in that, but I put it after the pictures, because I know a lot of people are definitely not interested in that. So enjoy if you are the curious type!








Here is the Labor story! Feel free to skip it if you aren't into that kind of thing!

September 13th before bed I started bawling. I can't really explain it... I just knew I was going to have the baby the next day and these were my last few moments with only one child. Lucy had predicted about a month ago that the baby would come on a Tuesday. I asked her when the baby was coming and she said matter of factly "Tuesday in September." The 14th is my Grandma's Birthday and I had told her I would have the baby on her Birthday for her. Now it was here, and I knew it. I was worried about Labor and taking care of a newborn and not being able to spend as much time with Lucy. When we decided to have a baby is was 9 months away and so unreal, now it was here and I still didn't feel ready so I just got overwhelmed. Eventually I got over it, realized there was no real other way out of being pregnant and went to bed around 11:00 p.m.

September 14th

3:00 a.m. Wake up to a nice, real contraction. Pretty sure it was real. I wait to wake Dave up. He will need sleep. I stay in bed through a few more contractions coming every 10 minutes.

3:30 a.m. Okay the bed is not comfortable anymore! I get up and go get some breakfast. Going to need my strength today!

4:00 a.m. I am tired. Maybe I can sleep in between contractions. I go get back in bed through 2 more contractions. Dave wakes up. I wish he could have slept longer. I tell him calmly that I am in Labor for reals.

4:30 a.m. Dave and I jump in the shower. Got to look good for my little man's first day on earth! Just kidding. I did it more to feel good, but I do think it helped the pictures turn out a little more to my liking.

5:00 a.m. My shower has turned into a bath. I call the midwife from the bath tub and tell her I can't remember when I was supposed to call and when I am supposed to go to the hospital, but currently contractions are 7 minutes apart lasting 50 seconds. She said I could wait until contractions are 4-5 minutes apart and 1 minute in length, but I could go sooner if I felt like I should. I stop timing contractions because it is annoying. I figure I will know when it is time.

5:30 a.m. I finish packing my hospital stuff. Dave packs some snacks and I eat some ham and cheese sandwiches. I go snuggle Lucy while she is sleeping, wishing I could tell her goodbye, but not wanting to wake her. Contractions aren't too great while lying down, so I sadly stop snuggling her.

6:00 a.m. Dave calls my parents. At this point I have found that my favorite position for contractions is standing hugging Dave or kneeling at the couch like I am praying (or really praying).

6:30 a.m. My mom arrives. We talk for a little while. She give me some good last motherly encouragement.

I can't believe I have already been in Labor for 4 hours. It went by really quickly and was uncomfortable, but not unbearable by any means. Just felt like I was working out really hard and in between contractions I was happy as ever.

7:00 a.m. We leave for the hospital.

The freeway is jammed up, so we decide to take the coast route to the hospital. As we are nearing Moonlight Beach I have an uncontrollable urge to go walk in the water. I beg Dave to please take me to the beach. He asks if I am sure I shouldn't be at the hospital. I tell him "I think I will know when I am about to have the baby. Don't worry about" He jokes about catching the baby on the beach and how he will quote that for forever. We are cracking up which kind of hurts during a contraction while riding in the car.

7:20 a.m. We arrive at the beach, take our shoes off and go stand in the water. I felt overwhelming happiness wash over me. I can't explain how amazing it was. I really wanted to just kiss Dave the whole time we were there, but he kept it appropriate because there were a few joggers and such. I could have cared less. I was so scared the night before, but standing in the water in the early morning sunlight, holding the man I love and thinking about having a new little man to love, just made me start crying. I was crying because I was so happy. I knew I could do it. I knew I would love our new baby. I was crying because Dave had been such a good labor coach, even though he couldn't come to any of the classes. I was crying because Labor hadn't even gotten hard yet. In fact, I wondered if we weren't going in to the hospital a little early. I had stopped timing contractions long ago. To make a long story short, there is no better place to labor than sunrise at the beach with your feet in the water. It was so beautiful. I know it sounds crazy, but I actually cherish these moments being in Labor.

7:50 a.m. Okay, I guess we had better leave. We get in the car and start driving. Labor is so much better at the beach than in the car! Dave and I realize neither of us has ever been to the hospital from this direction and we end up going the wrong way. We were laughing. I wasn't worried. The contractions still weren't unbearable so I figured I was still a few hours away.

8:20 a.m. We check into the hospital and apologize for our sandy feet. They put me in a wheel chair, which I didn't think I needed, but it is always fun to be pampered. The nurses were nice. They doted over me and told me I looked beautiful. They sat me down and hooked me up to the monitors, but didn't give me an IV because I asked them not to. They did put a lead in my wrist just in case I needed emergency blood afterward. They check to see how dilated I am. I get really worried all of a sudden, because last week at my Dr. Appointment I wasn't dilated at all. I told Dave, if I am only at a 3 or something, I am going to just cry, wishing we hadn't left the beach! The nurse says to me "Looks like you have already done all the work. Good job! You are dilated to a 9 with a bulging sack of water. I will get the Dr. in here" I absolutely can't believe it! Was it really that easy? I can't believe I am still happy, talking, joking with the nurses and Dave. In shock that it's not that bad. Okay, I am only talking and happy in between contractions, (during contractions I am completely zoned out, breathing deeply and working hard) but they still aren't unbearable and Dave is shocked that everything is calm and I'm not yelling at him like in the movies (Although I was really tempted to, just for fun, while we were in the hallway!).

Sometime between checking in and Birth: A few more contractions, the Dr. breaks my water, okay. Now the contractions are intense. I was ready to push and on all fours and the Dr. asked me if I wanted to push like that. I said "I don't know" because at this point I felt like I didn't really know what to do, although I had planned to push on all fours or in a squatting position. Somehow the Dr. talked me into lying on my side, because he knew I wouldn't lay on my back. My emotions were confusing at this point. Before I felt like I knew what I wanted and was calling the shots. All of a sudden I felt like I didn't know what was going on, some animal inside me was taking charge and my logical side was gone. It felt scary, but actually really good to become so uninhibited. It was completely just me and my body and my baby, and I didn't care anymore that I sounded like Tarzan roaring in the jungle. The pain was not what I expected and really hard to describe. It felt very natural and unlike anything I have ever felt before. It is not like falling and getting hurt or like a really bad headache. It's more like when you are exercising really hard and pushing yourself to your total capacity, harder than you ever have before. So hard that some higher power takes over for you and you aren't thinking about what you are doing anymore. It was definitely really hard, but it was also an incredible feeling that my body could really do that. And really cool to actually feel your baby coming out.

9:37 a.m. Anyway, I pushed through two contractions and then had a little man! I was a little sad because I wanted him to come right to my arms, but he was blue and not breathing, so they had to cut the cord right away, take him to the table and then called on the intercom "I need help in room 4." Which worried me. The Dr. assured me he was okay, but you wonder all the same. I prayed in my heart for him.

The Dr. told me at first that I didn't tear, but then when he checked again found a little one. He said it was small and he didn't have to stitch it, but it might heal nicer asked what I wanted. I let him stitch it, but regretted that shortly. I am not going to lie. That sucked. I don't know what kind of numbing agent he used, but it seemed like I felt everything and it took too long. And it is a sharp pain, not a muscular pain like labor. I think I deal a lot better with muscular pain, than needles and pokes. I squeezed Dave's hand more while being stitched than in labor!

And then it was over. My baby was okay and they finally brought him to me. We cuddled and nursed and I knew I would love him forever. And that is the beginning of Levi David Pendergrass.

The recovery is going great! I feel ten times better than I did with Lucy. I appreciated Labor being easy because of the epidural with Lucy, but it felt really weird and was a much slower recovery. This time around, I loved being able to walk around and move right after delivery and I felt so happy afterward and still do. With Lucy I felt kind of weird and confused and cried a lot.

Now that I have had both experiences, epidural and natural, I can say that I loved the natural birth experience and will definitely choose it again. It has increased my appreciation for my body and it's amazing ability. My knowledge of God's grand design, the miracle of life and the creation of woman has deepened. I feel honored to be a woman and mother.

Hopefully it is really Labor Day!

I just realized that I never posted any pregnancy shots this entire pregnancy, so now that I am due in 2 days and in honor of Labor Day (Ha ha) I better do it quick! Just took these a few minutes ago(well Dave did, not me). I am really sticking it out in this one, so I figured I better include one with normal posture, too...
I really meant to post a few shots along the way...let's face it I will probably always be a procrastinator. A few minutes ago I got a strong contraction and what did I think about... oh no I never took any real pregnancy pictures or posted them, quick Dave get the camera...you would think I would be more worried because I haven't even packed a hospital bag yet! As if Labor wouldn't be exciting enough if you were prepared...

The funny thing is my water broke at 11:50 p.m. on Labor day three years ago. I was sooooo excited. I had been hoping to go into Labor on Labor day all day and had finally given up. Let's see if we can make this Labor on Labor Day # 2!

HAPPY LABOR DAY from your friend who hopes she is in Labor!