A few weeks ago, we were all like...

This.

 and this.

and this.

But as if by some kind of crazy magical miracle, and unlike a short 2 weeks ago, we are a family of four now.  Or six, if you count the four-legged kids.  Me and RA, two boys under two, and two geriatric, yet still wild and crazy weimaraners.  And a partridge in a pear tree*.

*No partridges or pear trees were harmed in the writing of this post

Gulp.

I won't go into too much detail on the birth itself other than to say a few things.
1.  When Ruth Ann says it's baby time, it's baby time.
2.  Laboring through the night is an oddly different experience than laboring during the day.  I'm not sure why this is, but it was, I don't know, quieter?
3.  Ruth Ann is a professional baby deliverer.  We checked into the hospital at midnight and welcomed Stone at 5:12 AM.  15 minutes of pushing.  Wham, bam, thank you ma'am.
4.  I survived the delivery (again), stayed completely conscious and was able to cut the cord.  Those that know my track record with all things needle-y and blood-like know what a great personal accomplishment this is.

When it was all said and done, we were left with a 6 pound, 12 ounce bundle of joy.

Hello world, I'm one minute old.

And man, it's just been a whirlwind ever since.  This humble little blog post has been in the works for more than a week, but it's just tough to squeeze out the time to put together more than a couple coherent sentences.


...sorry, I dozed off there for a quick minute.  I'm back now, and I'm really going to finish this thing.


First of all, I know you're not supposed to compare your kids, but I think this is an acceptable exception.  That's Avett on the left and Stone on the right, sporting the same duds.  Brand spanking new.

 

And I think everybody wondered how Mr. Cool, almost always laid back Avett would react to being a big brother.  Short answer: very well.


Very well, indeed.

Avett has started off his journey as a big brother like a pro.  He loves "'tone, 'tone", and can't seem to get enough kisses and pat-pats of his new bestest pal.

And what about Mommy?  Yeah, she's doing pretty well too.  And looking great, if you ask me.

Didn't quite make it to 40...

And those dogs?  If they could talk, I think they'd be saying something like "Seriously you guys?!?  Again?"

Me?  I'm doing what little bit I can to pitch in and help keep the family machine well-oiled and operating as efficiently as possible.  I'm re-honing my baby whisperer skills and do steal a snuggle when I can.  Don't judge me.

Finally, here are the obligatory "yard stick" pictures of our fellas, just a shade under 21 months apart.


And there you have it, our new and improved family unit.  It's louder, busier, and powered by less sleep (at least for now), but it's pretty great.  Here's to the journey (in a minivan, no less)...