Christmas at our house was perfectly simple and sweet this year.
How couldn't it be when I got to spend it with these cuties.
Instead of our usual Christmas Eve jammies we decided to do slippers and sleeping bags this year. Of course the kids had to put their new sleeping bags to good use and have a sleepover with Daddy out in the family room. 
As they were snuggling up in their sleeping bags to go to sleep, we heard Santa's sleigh bells outside our house (thanks Grandpa Val). It had the desired effect on Mason as he jumped in bed, squeezing his eyes shut and whispered to Brynn, "Hurry, close your eyes and pretend to be asleep!" Brynn on the other hand started crying because she was scared of Santa and didn't want him to come. It was nothing that cuddling up with Daddy on his bed couldn't solve. Soon the kids were sound asleep and Santa did come!
Thankfully,the day I had Miles I had gone out and finished all our Christmas shopping just in case the baby decided to come between then and Christmas.
Instead of our usual Christmas Eve jammies we decided to do slippers and sleeping bags this year. Of course the kids had to put their new sleeping bags to good use and have a sleepover with Daddy out in the family room. As they were snuggling up in their sleeping bags to go to sleep, we heard Santa's sleigh bells outside our house (thanks Grandpa Val). It had the desired effect on Mason as he jumped in bed, squeezing his eyes shut and whispered to Brynn, "Hurry, close your eyes and pretend to be asleep!" Brynn on the other hand started crying because she was scared of Santa and didn't want him to come. It was nothing that cuddling up with Daddy on his bed couldn't solve. Soon the kids were sound asleep and Santa did come!
Thankfully,the day I had Miles I had gone out and finished all our Christmas shopping just in case the baby decided to come between then and Christmas.While "Santa" was setting up Christmas, this little elf decided he wanted to be a part of it and was more wide eyed then we'd ever seen him.
The next morning the fun began. It was so much fun to watch the excitement and joy Brynn and Mason had with each present they opened. 
Despite Mason's prediction that Miles would hear the wrapping paper and want to open his eyes to see the presents, he was content just to sleep in Grandma's arms. 
Brynn absolutely loved the doll house Santa brought her.
Mom and Dad did give her the pink helmet she had randomly been asking for and apparently she really did want it because she wore it for most of the day.
Another favorite present was the tea set from Grandma Nancy that has provided hours of entertainment.
Mason was shocked when Santa not only gave him the Optimus Prime sword he had asked for, but also the Optimus Prime Cyberblaster that was a close second on his wish list. He must have been a really good boy this year.
Grandma knows him very well and gave him a real Batman costume to replace the makeshift one he has been using that was a blue dishtowel with eyes cut out of it.
I loved having Christmas on Sunday because we got to take a break in the middle of opening presents and Scott took the kids to church while I stayed home with Miles. Brynn and Mason both loved the musical program they had at church and I'm glad they were able to stop and think about Jesus on Christmas day.
The next morning the fun began. It was so much fun to watch the excitement and joy Brynn and Mason had with each present they opened. Despite Mason's prediction that Miles would hear the wrapping paper and want to open his eyes to see the presents, he was content just to sleep in Grandma's arms. Brynn absolutely loved the doll house Santa brought her.
Mom and Dad did give her the pink helmet she had randomly been asking for and apparently she really did want it because she wore it for most of the day.
Another favorite present was the tea set from Grandma Nancy that has provided hours of entertainment.
Mason was shocked when Santa not only gave him the Optimus Prime sword he had asked for, but also the Optimus Prime Cyberblaster that was a close second on his wish list. He must have been a really good boy this year.
Grandma knows him very well and gave him a real Batman costume to replace the makeshift one he has been using that was a blue dishtowel with eyes cut out of it.
I loved having Christmas on Sunday because we got to take a break in the middle of opening presents and Scott took the kids to church while I stayed home with Miles. Brynn and Mason both loved the musical program they had at church and I'm glad they were able to stop and think about Jesus on Christmas day.When they got home we finished opening all the presents under the tree and enjoyed the rest of the afternoon being together as a family.
At the end of the day the kids got more presents than they needed, but they loved and appreciated every single one. It has been so great having all the new and exciting toys to keep the kids busy while I still am spending a lot of time feeding and taking care of Miles each day.
Miles had quite the Christmas for someone who had only been around for 6 days. We weren't planning on doing much more than the few presents that Brynn and Mason had already put under the tree for baby brother, but Mason's first response when he found out the baby was coming early was, "He must want a present from Santa." That put the pressure on Santa to bring something. Santa being the practical man he is brought Miles much needed diapers and burp clothes. He left it up to Grandma and Miles' aunts to put cute clothes under the tree for Miles. I could tell Mason felt really bad for Miles and all the boring presents he got. Who would want diapers from Santa?
Scott and I got a Kindle Fire from Santa (aka NuSkin) this year and I look forward to using it during Miles late night feedings. Scott spoiled me as always and put many surprise gifts under the tree for me. He on the other hand was left with only the things he knew about since his was the only shopping I hadn't completed prior to having Miles. I'll make it up to him sometime.
I am so grateful for all we have and the wonderful Christmas we were blessed with. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas, too.
All the cousins, minus Miles, in their matching jammies. Youngest to oldest from left to right.
To say we are surprised to be holding sweet little Miles in our arms so early is an understatement, but our surprise is nothing compared to the gratitude and relief we feel to have him here healthy and safe after several unexpected things led to him coming early. I haven't talked to very many people about the circumstances surrounding Mile's birth mostly because It was all such a whirlwind it hasn't really sunk in that it really happened until I brought my baby home today. So for anyone who cares, here is my attempt at a brief recap of Miles' birth story. It all started on Tuesday December 13 when I had a fall. Nothing more than a stupid pregnancy moment when I tripped on a crack in the sidewalk with my arms full and was unable to regain my balance or catch myself before my stomach took the entire impact of the fall. It was painful and scary, not to mention humiliating, and it earned me 6 hours of being monitored in the hospital that night. Baby looked great the entire time, an ultrasound showed no sign of rupture in the placenta, but it appeared to have put me in labor. After several hours of contractions increasing in frequency and strength they were talking about giving me medication to stop labor, but then things started to settle down on their own. So I got to go home relieved not to be having a baby at 36 weeks. The next few days consisted of me continuing to feel pretty lousy and periodically contracting, but not enough to merit any real concerns so life continued on as normal. Then Monday December 19 rolled around and I started experiencing sharp shooting pains through my abdomen. These pains were nothing like contractions I had ever had. I was a little worried, but didn't want to call and make a big deal about nothing. Later that evening I went to the bathroom and had a spurt of bright red blood. It was just a little bit, but definitely fresh bright red blood. I hesistated to call because I really didn't want to end up back at the hospital where I felt like I was wasting everyone's time, but Scott insisted that I call and go get checked out. Sure enough I was sent to the hospital where all the nurses remembered me from the week before and I felt stupid despite all the "it's better to be safe than sorry" reassurances I got from everyone. They hooked me up to the monitors and baby looked great but the doctor still wanted to do another ultrasound to check the placenta. As soon as I returned from the ultrasound several nurses came into the room and informed me the Radiologist called and said my placenta was abrupting (pulling away from the uterus) and that they needed to prep me for an emergency C-section. I couldn't believe what I was hearing and started bawling. The nurse told me the on call doctor, Dr. Haskett, was on his way and I needed to call my husband immediately. I called Scott and tried to explain the situation to him through my sobs as one nurse was starting an IV in one hand and I was signing a pile of consents with the other. Thankfully this was the one night my parents weren't at a party of some sort and were able to drop what they were doing so my dad could stay with our kids and my mom came to the hospital with Scott. Dr. Haskett arrived and said the baby was still looking great on the monitors so we could wait for Scott to arrive. I had never met Dr. Haskett before and at first I was nervous not to be with Dr. Watabe who I know and trust, but Dr. Haskett was great and quickly lightened the atmosphere and put me at ease. As soon as Scott walked in they handed him his awesome marshmallow suit to get dressed in (he somehow forgot to get a picture of himself in it) and he was able to give me a quick kiss before they took me to the OR to give me my spinal. After the fact I learned that abruptions often times result in a crash C-Section where they won't even wait to give you a spinal they just put you out under general anethesia and you miss the whole thing. I am so grateful I was at least able to be awake for my baby's birth even if I did feel robbed of the rest of the birthing experience. Before I knew it I was preped and ready and Scott was at my side. Just a few minutes later at 9:29pm Miles was born. It was the weirdest sensation I have ever had feeling them tug and pull each layer of my abdomen back. It felt like they were playing a game of tug-a-war with my stomach. They were able to pull baby Miles out without any difficulty. Hearing his cries was wonderful, but it was so hard not being able to see and hold him. 
I got one quick peek and a kiss before they took him to the nursery to be evaluated. I sent Scott with him while I got sewn up. After they left I lay there in tears as I felt like a part of me was missing. It was so hard to not even know if he was doing okay or not. Since I was just shy of 37 weeks, making him preterm, I knew there was a chance he'd have a hard time breathing. I soon got word that they had to put him on CPAP to help him breath a little bit and had to start an IV to give him a fluid bolus because he was volume depleted due to the abruption. 
The doctor kept saying how lucky I was that I had come in as soon as I did because he rarely saw babies looking as strong and good as Miles had when there was an abruption. When he removed the placenta there was about 400 ml of blood behind it. He said it would have been only a matter of time before Miles would have been in distress. He says lucky, I say blessed. I truely feel we were being watched over and that's why I got that little spurt of blood as a warning before the serious bleeding began. 
Scott gave me a reassuring smile and thumbs up to let me know he was doing okay. Finally after 4 hours of being apart I was reunited with my sweet baby boy. They brought him to me in a Christmas stocking which was very appropriate since he was the best Christmas gift I could get.
He looked pretty beat up and brusied that night thanks to the CPAP. 
We weren't able to hold him very much that night because his breathing was better when he was lying flat, but his breathing got stronger and stronger throughout the night and by the next day his coloring was looking much better. We had no idea what his name would be before he was born. We had come up with a list of possible names which we had taken Miles off, but then threw it back on at the last minute. Our favorites included Cooper, Connor, and Maddax so we were surprised when after one look at him we both knew Miles was the perfect fit. We tried it out for the night and the next day knew it was the right name. 
The next morning he finally got to meet his older brother and sister who were dying to see him. Mason is completely obsessed with him and has to be forced to put him down. Brynn thinks he's cute and is excited by the idea of him, but is too busy to actually stop and notice him. We had to bribe Brynn with a glove to get in a family picture. You'll notice I get more and more swollen as the days pass thanks to the many liters of fluid they dumped in my IV. 
Words can't describe how in love Mason is.
And I love hearing Brynn's little voice call him Baby Miles. She is handling his arrival really well.
We started with a new paint color (Excaliber from Kwal for anyone who wants to know) and replacing the old aluminum blinds. I got to pull the pregnancy card on this one and Scott was left to paint the entire room himself. He did a great job and we really like how it turned out.
Brynn might not have been a fan of the helicopter or Santa, but she loved the balloon we got there, so the outing was a success. 
I let Mason have a sweet little chat with Santa before trying to get Brynn to at least get close enough for a picture. 
The closest she got was arm's length away just long enough to take the candy cane from his hand then she was back in my arms. He asked her what she wanted for Christmas and she did respond loud and clear she wanted a doll house. When our turn was done she would stand in the doorway for a picture with Santa in the background at least. 