Happy Birthday Isaac

I have been working on this post for a whole month... for some reason it is proving to be a challenge to me, but I am determined to finish it and get it posted. I want everyone to see My Isaac and share in my joy over him.



My Isaac! 3 Years Old! I can hardly believe what a big boy he has become.

Isaac's first day 4 April 2006

Isaac's first birthday 3 April 2007

Isaac's 3rd birthday 3 April 2009 (Where is 2008? I don't know... I looked and looked and looked!)

Isaac Lorin Bangert was born on 3 April 2006, (weighing 6 lbs 1 oz, and I think 19 inches long), after 24 hours of the worst labor I have had, followed by an emergency c-section. He had been doing somersaults a couple of days before and gotten himself tangled up in his umbilical cord to the point where he had become unresponsive. The Holy Ghost had told me that something was wrong so I went in to have a non-stress test done and ended up being admitted and induced. My pregnancy itself was pretty simple, I only had morning sickness for the first 4 months, a great improvement over the 9 months of it I had with Jeremiah. The worst thing was the cold I caught during the last trimester, I just couldn't get rid of it and it pretty much made me miserable day and night. Other then that there was the results of that blood test that is supposed to tell if your baby will have a genetic disorder like Downs Syndrome. I tested a high positive, so they monitored Isaac throughout the pregnancy. The plus side to that was that we got to see him more often then usual on the ultrasounds. And although it was heart breaking to think that our beautiful angel might be born with Downs our desire to have another child was way greater then any fear or sadness we experienced, and our faith in the Will of the Lord was pretty strong too. We trusted that Isaac would be exactly as he was meant to be, and he was. As you can see he didn't have Downs Syndrome after all.

Now back to the delivery... OK, so he was tangled in his umbilical cord, we were in labor for 24 hours and no progress was being made, my epidural kept failing and either having to be adjusted or redone, they kept pumping me full of fluids to the point that my mom was beginning to do calculations and ask questions like, "don't you think that's a little too much?" When a Nurse with almost 30 years of experience starts asking questions it makes me nervous, besides I was afraid that I was going to pop! Finally, after 24 hours they said "OK any time you need to push call us and we'll get that baby out!" So of course I went into "Yes, it's time to push" mode... they shift changed and the new staff came in and said, "Nope your no where close to ready yet. Looks like we are going to have to restart your epidural and up the patosen (spelling?) again." At that point I flipped out and told them what I thought about everything, made them get the doctor in the room and told him that he'd better find another solution... I came in because my baby is in trouble, no one seems to care about that except me, so find another way to get him out because I am not doing this any more!" So he left and when he came back he brought all the staff necessary for prepping for the c-section. I was so relieved. At that point I knew that everything was going to be OK.

This picture is pretty self explanatory I think!

I have no idea how long it took from then until the blue little face was shown to me and I felt that pure burning love that a mother feels for the first time seeing the perfection of her baby and knowing the perfection of Heavenly Father's Creation and Divine Plan. I was finally at peace, the crisis was over, Isaac was safe and born, and I knew that there wouldn't be any complications, I had no fears... but my ordeal wasn't over, I was so bloated with fluids that my IV came out and it took 4 nurses and 20 or so puncture wounds later to get it back in, now I was bloated and black and blue. Then 2 days later when I was being discharged the fluids that were trying to be absorbed into my body somehow got infected and weren't being absorbed like they were supposed to. It felt like a fire under my skin and there was a visible water line that the Dr. was tracking and monitoring for several days to make sure nothing serious was going to have to be done, my poor stomach looked like a water balloon and it was soooo painful, worse then the c-section itself... But my baby was healthy and in my arms and everything was almost wonderful... you see James, my dear devoted husband who had stayed by my side throughout the entire event and most of the time while we were still in the hospital, he finally brought Isaac and me home, then sat down on the couch to relax and started to cough painfully. So my mom took him to the ER... turned out he was suffering this whole time from bi-lateral pneumonia! My mom sure had her hands full taking care of Jeremiah, Isaac, me and James for a few days! Thank you Mom!!!!!!!



Isaac looked just like my mom when she was a baby! He even has the Millet ears, which is pretty ironic because we named him after my Grandfather Lorin Elmer Millet, and that is who he resembles, my mom and her dad. My Grandpa could actually wiggle his ears, not up and down like so many people can do, but flapping front to back... I really hope that Isaac will be able to learn to do that too, I think it would be great! I love his ears.




My absolute favorite things about this little boy are his Huge eyes and Brilliant smile. When he laughs or smiles the sun shines out of those eyes and that smile fills his whole face with light. And then you add his funny vampire teeth, he calls them Dinosaur teeth to it and you just have to laugh and you want to cry because there isn't anything in the world better at that perfect moment... unfortunately when I am trying to discipline him it works against me every time, I sure hope it will be a long, long time before he figures that out and starts to flash that smile to get his way, so far it is pure innocence and guilelessness. Isaac means "He laughs," James was totally inspired when he picked that name!

Isaac often has this look on his face! I wish I knew what he was thinking!


Have you ever seen Batman look so good?


Isaac has always been the quiet child, he talks very softly if he talks at all. He is just as happy going off on his own to play as he is to be playing with his dad or brother, and often seems to prefer being alone. He only recently, really, has begun voicing his opinions about anything... like which superhero he will play. Before he would always play what his brother said he should, but about a month before his birthday he started to say, "No, I'm Ben Ten." And this month he has added Scooby-doo and Batman to that list of superheros. He also started voicing his opinion about whether he wants Ranch or Ketchup to dip his food in, what cup he wants to drink out of and what park he wants to go play at. It is so nice to be able to start seeing more clearly how his brain works and what he likes and dislikes, since for the last 3years I have been guessing and totally mystified when it came to just about everything dealing with this boy.

This was Isaac's first walk! Those little legs are so adorable.

There were always some things though that were never a mystery. He hated breast milk from the start. He has always loved Chocolate Milk. He has always disliked food, although that is finally, slowly starting to change (I can finally get him to eat a peanut butter sandwich! Hurrah) He hates waking up in the morning, especially if the lights in the house are on. He loves his daddy, Eden, Jeremiah and me. And of course his first and greatest love is his Grandma Bryson. He was so thrilled that she was able to come and spend his birthday with him this year, and every day he tells me that he misses her and loves her. She was the first person that he smiled for as a baby and I think she was the first he laughed for too. No matter how long he goes between seeing her, no one has ever taken that spot in his heart that is reserved for her.

We gave him Humongousaur and Swampfire for his birthday in honor of his love for Ben Ten (see the birthday cake above...)

Isaac is the one in our family who really thinks about what he wants, at the toy store he might change his mind 2 or 3 times making sure that what he gets is what he really wants, then he will actually be committed to that toy for months and even years. I haven't yet figured out exactly how he chooses his toys, he likes cars and firetrucks, dinosaurs and animals, trains and superheros, but not consistently. It's more like he chooses a toy based on quality of material and craftsmanship rather then category or type. He will pass over one firetruck and love another when to me there is very little difference. I have a feeling that these are really good qualities that will be beneficial to him in the future. He really thinks things through and rarely ever ends up regretting his choices.



Isaac is also the protector in our family. Last November when we went to take pictures at JCPenneys, as we were waiting in the lounge, another boy walked up and pushed Jeremiah, totally unprovoked, I was shocked but didn't know how to react, the boy's mother wasn't paying attention, and I think only James and I saw what happened. Well, Isaac didn't have any reservations, he instantly came from the other side of the room, arm pulled back, fist ready and hit that boy with a real solid punch, saying, "Don't push Jeremiah!" Of course James grabbed Isaac, thanked him for having his brother's back and tried to impress upon him that we don't punch or fight other kids. Then of course James turned to me, when Isaac was off playing again, and told me how proud he was of Isaac for doing what he did, protecting his brother like that. A couple of days ago at a playground I found Isaac protecting Eden from another baby. The little girl was maybe 3 or 4 months older then Eden and was kind of crowding her, trying to play, but being pushy. Isaac saw Eden get irritated so he rushed over and placed himself between the baby and Eden, with his arms out like a wall around Eden and his back to the girl. But Eden wanted to play and the little girl kept following her, so Isaac just kept rushing over and positioning himself protectively between them. Again I was very proud of him for looking out for one of his siblings. We just hope that he wont get into a lot of fights in school and get expelled and get broken noses and things like that. Hopefully we will be able to help him find a happy medium between protecting and fighting.

This was Isaac's Blessing day.

This was Isaac's first hair cut!

Now, Isaac is looking forward to starting preschool next fall. He loves learning, and I think it will be a very good experience for him. He also has started potty training too, and so far we have had a lot of success, I think we are on day 3 now.

I love you, My Isaac! I am so grateful Heavenly Father sent you to be with us! Happy Birthday!

Jeremiah's new glasses

In December, Jeremiah, who is 4 1/2, had an assessment for a preschool program, during which he was given a simple eye exam.... which he failed with flying colors. So we made an appointment with an eye doctor to get a more detailed exam and a prescription if necessary. Sure enough, it was necessary. Jeremiah, just like his mommy who got her first pair of glasses at 5 years of age, has an astigmatism. Unlike his mommy though, Jeremiah looks Awesome in his glasses which he picked out himself to look like his daddy's. He is pretty happy to have his glasses, he thinks he looks great, and better yet, he really enjoys not being blind.

Mischief

The other day, after lunch, I had taken the juice cups from the table and put them on the counter next to the sink in preparation for washing the dishes. For one reason or another I had had to leave the room, and when I came back, this is what I found. Eden, who is now 13 months old, had discovered that if she opened the bottom drawer she could use it as a stool and reach the coveted juice cups! Unfortunately, that drawer is broken off its rollers now, so I am going to have to call maintenance to come put it right again.

We went to the Kohl's Children's Museum in Glenview, Illinois, last Saturday. It is a wonderful interactive museum designed to teach kids about pretty much everything in their world. This picture is from the child care exhibit. Eden saw the "Babies" laying in their little bassinets and immediately claimed one to "Mother". She sat and rocked the baby for maybe 5 minutes, until her brothers got bored and wanted to see something else. Eden is a natural Mother-er, she loves to help her brothers get their shoes and coats on and off, or "help" give her brothers medicine or blow their noses, or change diapers (what she Thinks is help of course ISN'T). She is such a sweetheart.

Happy Birthday Eden

It is so amazing and wonderful how a Little Bundle Of Joy can suddenly become such a Big Little Bundle Of Joy! She was just born wasn't she? And now all of a sudden she has had a birthday! I find myself wondering sometimes where she went and where she is going?

(This is Eden on her birthday 15 Jan 2008)

Eden Caroline Bangert, was born January 15, 2008. She weight a whopping 7 lbs and was 21 inches long. She was definitely my biggest baby, and the only one to actually have rolly-polly, dimply wrists, elbows and knees, hands and feet, and even cheeks that you just have to kiss and pinch all the time. She wasn't born with a lot of hair though and even 1 year later she only has some very fine wisps of hair too short and thin to even think about being able to do anything with... at least she has a very feminine face that leaves no room for wondering "is it a boy or a girl?"

(This is Eden on her birthday 15 Jan 2009)

Eden's birth was actually the most pleasant of the three we have been through. It was a scheduled C-section, the only complication was that my spine just wasn't designed for epidurals and it took what seemed like forever for the anesthesiologist to get it in. But once it was in... WOW, I was cold but euphoric! I actually told the surgical team and whoever else was in the room that I loved and appreciated them and how pleasant they and their work was, and that I was so grateful that they were there... who knows what else I must have said but I probably proposed to all of them my undying affections. And then in a blink of an eye, relatively speaking (Isaac took over 24 hours of labor and C-section) there was Eden! She was so beautiful! I would have known she was a girl just by looking at her lips and eyes and cheeks even if they hadn't already announced her. Her daddy looked so pleased and scared and tired and in love with me and our baby girl. And I was overwhelmed with love and gratitude.


Of course, as with all my kids and myself, she was jaundiced... she had to go spend a night in the pediatric ward under the billy lights. And for a month or 2 she had a tinkling heart murmur which my mom said sounded like a little bell. Happily she out grew both those conditions. Now she is a happy healthy little angel some days, and a happy healthy bully other days. She loves being sweet and flirty, and the little Princess in our house, but she likes equally well to start fights, push buttons, wrestle with Daddy and her big brothers, and run around screaming at the top of her lungs. We have actually seen her push and punch Isaac just to egg him on. And she loves to turn off the TV and run whenever anyone is watching it.


(Here Eden is "Holding down the fort" with her brothers' pop-guns. She'd been walking for only 1 month at this point and did a great job with such awkward guns in her hands. She is showing one of her "tough" sides.)


Another thing she loves in FOOD! Yippee! I finally have a child who loves food. Of course now that she is a whole year old she is starting to express preferences, and generally if it is food she will eat it, and if it is food and you are not sharing it she will eat YOU alive!


(This was her birthday cake, yeah I know pretty cheep, but it had been a very busy day... and she loved it... that's what counts, right?)

On her birthday she weighed in at 20 lbs and 30 inches. Her arms are long like her daddy's and eyes are big like his too, but blue like mine only better! I can't help but wonder how she will grow and develop and next year when she turns 2 who it will be that I describe. I am so grateful for my precious Baby Eden, the Bangert Princess, and my Little Peel. Our lives are definitely better for having her in them.

(This is Eden's first contact with snow! She actually started to like it after a few minutes, it sure was scary at first though.)

(Eden is actually laughing in this picture... her evil "I am having a blast! Well done, Slave!" laugh. Imagine if she where angry...)