The here and now

Have you ever felt like literally allergic to your blog? I just can't even stand the sight of it these days. My camera cord is lost so I can't post pictures and it ends up giving me guilt and anxiety that I'm not documenting my family's moments.

So here are a few short facts to get updated:

Mosa: I'm so obsessed with this little guy. At five weeks he weighs a whopping twelve pounds! He's gained a pound a week. He has rolls on his thighs and the back of his neck and I want to eat it all! He is my first baby who hasn't slept through the night so this is an adjustment to me. He wakes up every two hours to eat and nurses for almost an hour. I'm hoping this end soon. very soon. He is still on his lung and heart monitors for two more weeks at least. I think it depressed me to find out he had to stay on them because I associate it with him being unhealthy but the truth is he is doing great. He has re-flux which I'm so hoping he will grow out of. He is such a happy and content little boy but I can tell when he is struggling with the re-flux because he thrashes around and groans. Breaks my heart. I am so grateful for him. I almost cry every time I think about him growing up. He is such a blessing to us.

Alilia: She has been amazing as an older sister. She is patient and so loving to her little brother. I thought we would be dealing with jealousy but that is not the case at all. She has a special high pitched voice she uses when she talks to him and it makes me laugh because she is still a baby to me. She asks me everyday if she can start school yet and if I will buy her a backpack. She wants to be able to do everything. She is so dang smart. We are working on potty training. I cherish every moment she will cuddle with me.

Tatiana: My baby is growing up. She loves preschool and her teacher. She is loving this age where she can play with her friends. She loves Justin Beiber and is going to marry him. She is so loving. She's going through a stage where I can tell she really wants to please me. She also is testing her limits though. I think it is an attention thing and George and I need to make sure she is getting enough. I adore her and how she give her heart out so freely.

George and I are just adjusting to having three kids. I would love for him to find a job that appreciates him more and pays more. Mostly, I just want him to be happy. I'm back to doing hair and crossing the little kiddos. Besides the lack of sleep I really haven't found that three is that much harder than two. (knock on wood) I love that I can look in my rear view mirror and she three chubby brown haired babies smiling back at me. I love our little family.

Thank You Big Time!

September is over and I couldn't be more happy! It was a long, hard month for us. I really am so grateful to the people who have helped us out so much. We were so lucky to have neighbors bring us dinners and watch the girls and give them rides. I hate asking people for help. HATE IT. So I am so grateful to the people who just did it. Our niece, Ilana, helped us out so much and I could never express how grateful I am for taking the girls over night and letting us spend that time with our little baby. She has been amazing and such a support. People are wonderful and I hope they know that!

Mosa in the house

My son is finally here. After a month of having contractions, they decided to deliver me at 37 weeks. Mosa'ati Mohekonokono Tupou was born September 29th at 1:28pm. He was our little guy weighing in at 7 pounds, 6 ounces and 19 inches. I seriously laughed when they told me how small he was. I could have sworn he weighed like 20 pounds in my belly. Because of the stress of the contractions, his lungs were not fully developed. I barely saw him for a second after my c-section before they wisked him away. I kept asking for him and George would just tell me he was fine and getting a bath and all the normal stuff. Finally, after 5 hours the doctor came in to tell me about his lungs and that his heart had stopped a few times and that he had to be in the NICU with constant monitors on. I really was in shock. I hadn't expected any complications considering both girls were born before 37 weeks and were perfectly fine. 11 hours after giving birth I finally got to touch and hold my son for the first time. It was such a strange experience to have people supervising you with your own son and for him to have a heart monitor, oxygen and all these things hooked up to him. He was in the NICU for a total of 6 days. I know many people have gone through this same situation if not worse, but this was really hard for me. I felt like I couldn't bond with him since I could only go in for feedings. I was worried he would forget my voice. The only way I really survived was that I was blessed with the kindest nurses in the whole world. My nurses were so awesome. They made my life a whole lot easier. Mosa's nurses were so kind and loving I felt good leaving him with them. I hope they all knew how truly grateful I was to them. We came home yesterday. He is on a monitor. I was so worried I wouldn't be able to take care of him and the girls. George had to go back to work today (grrr...) so I was just kind of thrown in the mix right away. It is only morning but I can say it has been really positive so far. Mosa only woke up once at 3 to eat and then at 8. His monitor hasn't gone off. I have held and kissed and cuddled him to my heart's content. He couldn't be more perfect. I am so in awe of what a precious little human being he is. The girls have been great. Tati loves to "coo" him and mommy him. Mostly she is just glad her mommy is home. When the nurses would ask if she was here to see her little brother she would matter -of -factually tell them, "No, I'm here to see my mommy. She's my best friend." Alilia had been really good too. I was worried. She always asks were baby Mosa is, sometimes forgetting and calling him baby George. She talks to him in a high pitched voice which I think is hilarious. And, she did miss me. She called me a few times at night and as soon as I would talk to her she would cry for me. She has been pretty amazing. I'm just so grateful for my little family. I love my girls even more with the birth of their little brother. God has blessed us so much.

Going Private....

I've decided to make the switch to private. If you would like an invite send me your email in a comment or at Tupoufamily@gmail.com . Thanks!

What a great weekend!

Saturday was George's 39th birthday and it couldn't have been more perfect. I made homemade egg mcmuffins and orange cinnamon rolls for breakfast. My sweet husband then let me take a nap while he took the kids to a rugby game. When they got home we all went swimming in the Lehi pool and it was so fun! We came home, showered and headed out to meet family for dinner at Chilli's. To end the night we skyped family in Australia and chatted for awhile. It was such a fun filled, peaceful day.

Sundays are the only day I actually get to follow my doctor's orders and rest the whole day. It is so great to just sleep the whole day. George takes the girls to church and takes care of them the whole day while me and bubba dream away. Glorious!

Today, Labor Day, was a great day as well. George golfed with some friends and then we had dinner at a friend's house. All I could do was sit around but it was good company and good food. Then I realized I needed to go buy Tatiana a notebook and some pencils for school tomorrow. When I came home my good friend Melanie came over with cupcakes and Dr. Pepper. My two favorite things:). It was great to catch up since I have been a hermit lately.

Tomorrow my baby starts preschool! This could be her second year but we opted not to do it last year. I'm sitting here thinking how much I going to miss Tatiana for the five hours she is going to be gone this week. She asked me if she could take a picture of me in her backpack so if she missed me she could pull it out and look at it. Could I love that girl anymore???? I just don't know if I'm ready for this day......

We are almost outnumbered....

Three more weeks people! Well, actually seven but if I can make it three than that will be good news. I went to the doctor's yesterday only to hear her say that I seriously need to be on bedrest. Bedrest meet my two kids? What? You don't like each other? Yeah, I didn't think so. I have been having bad contractions the past two weeks but I'm praying it will all work out in the end and my son can wait another three weeks. I'm so excited for him and yet not ready at the same time. We have been so consumed with passports/ paperwork/ plane tickets that we haven't even set up his crib or cradle yet. I finally packed some of my hospital bag the other night when my contractions were so strong. I was shoving stuff in there like a mad woman.

Alilia sprained her arm the other day. I have no idea how. She was playing in her room and started crying and when I came in she was stuck between the bunk beds and the wall. I pulled the bed out and she was free but she didn't move her arm for a whole day. This sounds really bad but I loved it. She wanted me to hold her all day and cuddle. Even the following days she was Mommy's girl. Usually she is all over Daddy so it was so nice to spend that time alone with her.

Tatiana has her preschool orientation tomorrow and her first day on the 7th. I feel like all the other kids have started already. I'm so excited for her. This is her first and only year since we didn't do it last year. I have yet to figure out my emotions on her growing up so fast. She started soccer again last week. I'm so happy because she has improved so much. She scored 3 goals her last game. She is doing great with her dribbling and kicking. Everytime, she scores a goal she jumps up and down doing fist pumps and yells to me, "I did it Mom!". I'm a little overjoyed:).

We have been spending lots of time on Skype talking to family in Australia. It's been so great to at least see them if it is only on the computer. My father in law has gotten so skinny. I just pray he stays alive until we get there. If you read this can you say a prayer for me too? My husband really needs to be able to see his father alive and spend some time with him.

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True to our family, there is always a crisis going on. Awhile ago, George's dad got pneumonia and was hospitalized for 6 weeks. While draining his lungs they found cancer. He went on Chemo but his body was just too weak from the pneumonia that they had to take him off. The other night he became unconscious and was rushed to the hospital. His lung had collapsed. They basically told us he has less than a month to live. I'm having this baby in 4-6 weeks. We are waiting for George's renewal on his resident card. So we are stuck here in America for awhile. Which is heartbreaking since we want to be in Australia right now spending every minute we can with family. I've been a huge mess. The tears have been nonstop. My poor husband. He is trying so hard to be strong but I know he is just a wreck inside.