Christmas Morning with the Arlo Elf

Magnus Montage

Keep in mind he's only six weeks old!  This is about as exciting as it gets ;)

Merry Christmas!

Visit with Santa

Arlo told Santa he wanted a present.  What kind of present?  A BIG present!

sounds of a baby

Magnus is a very vocal guy.  Aside from the requisite wail (trust us - he's got good lungs) there are a number of sounds he makes that can only be described by their animal equivalents.  Here's a sample:

• the sheep - when he's really upset he gets going in a continuous "baaa-aaa-aaaa"
• the goat - slightly less upset (pre-sheep); sounds like  braying goat
• lambie - a quieter, milk protest of discomfort
• the deer - at night, I wake up to deer snorts (short, abrupt exhales, almost like a cough) = "I'm hungry!"
• the donkey - Magnus is a very noisy eater. He makes a crazy "hee-haw" as he inhales and exhales and gobbles his milk.
• an elephant - we've not figured out the meaning, but he's occasionally made an elephant trumpet
• the cat - early on (less so now that he's "grown up") he made lots of little soft mews like a cat
• the dog - there were also some good doggie barks in there but those seem to have dissipated lately
• the mouse squeek - high pitched squeal; on second thought it's more of a pig perhaps

More Magnus

A few more pictures of  Magnus for his loving audience :)

Birth Story, Part 2

(Continued)   We arrived at the birth center just after they opened at 8 am Monday morning and I got checked out - blood pressure, baby's heart rate, dialation, etc. Since I still had a ways to go before being fully dialated, and walking helps labor to progress, Sam and I decided to go to the neighboring Annapolis Mall to do a few laps with the mall walkers. We did some window shopping and talked about the baby while getting passed by the other walkers...just before stores opened up I was getting some stronger contractions and getting tired and we decided to go back to the birth center.  There I got into the tub where I spent the next 3-4 hours.  The tub is great for labor and helped me relax through contractions.  My labor seemed relatively easy and short this time, and I feel like I knew what to expect and how to get through it.  By the time I got to the final few centimeters of dialation - known as transition, and typically the hardest part of labor pains - things seemed to take on a life of their own. The urge to push came quickly and within about 15 minutes of that, Magnus was born. 

I had wanted to try a water birth with Arlo but got out of the tub and delivered him on the bed.  With Magnus, I don't think I could have gotten out if I wanted to! It all happened very quickly.  The only downside for the H2O delivery was a lack of leverage while pushing - nothing to work against or pull on but Sam's arm.  When he was out, there were several seconds when Magnus wasn't breathing while the midwives rubbed his back and suctioned his mouth.  He sputtered to a cry (and we breathed again too) and gained color (from blue to red) as his first breathes filled his body with oxygen and get the lungs in use.  Oddly, it took me a few moments to realize I hadn't heard the baby's gender yet and to learn we had a son, I was so fixed on seeing him pink up and ralley to life.  And then he was suddenly in my arms, right where he belongs.
All in all, with Sam as my birth coach and the help of two excellent midwives, it was a simple, natural birth and again I'm feeling blessed by the fact I was able to have the birth story I wished for, with no complications, no drugs, and a healthy mamma and baby.  We were home later that afternoon, as with Arlo, and enjoying our newly expanded family in the privacy of our home.  Arlo met Magnus and took it all in stride; the kitties circled to check things out; and we cuddled and smiled feeling the blessing of our new son.

Our Favorite Blanket

My Resume *by Magnus*

Yeah, sure, I wasn't supposed to arrive until today, but I had things to do so I showed up a little early. But look at all I've been able to see and do in the world in just 11 days! It's like a head start.

I went to soccer with my big brother, watched him get a haircut at the mall (what's up with that place, huh?), and got to hang out while hosted a playdate.

I've been out for pizzas and beer, visited mom's office, and even got to be the guest of honor at something called a "shower" (even though there didn't seem to be much water involved.) That was cool cause I got lots of presents even though i was asleep most of the time.

I've had lots of visitors, been to an art gallery, taken some nice walks bundled up with mommy, cuddled up for a few hockey nights with daddy, figured out how to skype, been to the doctor twice, and modeled for dozens of photos.

All in all, I've really enjoyed these extra days and I think my family has too!

Let's Not Forget About This Guy

Arlo has been great with the arrival of his kid brother. And with mommy and daddy spending more time with little one, Arlo has to find new ways to keep himself busy. Recently he's discovered getting up on his chair. No where is safe.

Stop-gap Measure

The best I can do when Whit is busy is to offer Magnus a finger to satisfy himself with until she returns. He seems to like it.

Mag Pix

First visit from Chris and Anya (Day 2)

Our friends Chris and Anya were the first visitors when Arlo was born (on his birthday!) and now the same is true with Magnus. Thanks to them, we were well fed for the first few days :) Can't wait to be able to return the favor when their little guy arrives next spring.

Visits and hanging out

On Saturday our friends Jesse, Mike and Margarita visited and treated us to some wonderful Thai food. There's also an assortment of other pictures here and a video of Magnus checking out the world in one of his waking moments.

Magnus's Birth Story (Part 1)

I can't resist telling whoever will listen about my kids' birth stories. We studied the Bradley Birth methods when I was pregnant with Arlo, which involved "husband coached birthing" and essentially provided a lot of great info all about what was happening during the birth, what might happen during the birth, how to have a natural birth, how to relax and cope with the pain, and of course a lot about pregnancy health so both mom and baby are well prepared.

Arlo and Magnus were both born in a birth center - Bay Area Midwifery - with only midwives and Sam present. In both of their births I was in the same room, which is set up like a bedroom with a big tall four poster bed in it and a bathroom attached with a large jacuzzi tub (where I spent most of my time). The center is in a medical center which is attached to the hospital in Annapolis, which is great in case of emergency. However, this birth center is completely independent of the hospital so I never had to deal with any doctors or the hospital itself (since both times everything went great). This is the closest experience to a home birth without being at home - I guess I just wasn't that keen on all the cleanup and liked the extra safety of going to the center. The midwives have been great there and I couldn't be happier with the decision we made to work with them - it allowed me to have beautiful birth experiences with both my boys.

Another similarity with Arlo's and Magnus's births is the fact that my water broke before anything else was happening. In Magnus's case, it broke about 4 in the morning and woke me up (last Sunday night / Monday morning). Contractions started pretty quickly and we got up and got to work - Sam was cleaning and vacuuming and preparing food for Arlo to take to our friends' home. Arlo woke up early too and got in on the morning surge of energy. I double checked my bags, emailed my boss that I wouldn't be in, and gathered up everything we wanted to take.

Mr. Mini Mag

It's been nearly a week since we woke up with the signs of labor, and it's been a great time so far. Magnus is doing great - we can't get over his little bitty parts and how darned cute he is. He looks a lot like Arlo did - similar features and long limbs and digits - with a lot more hair that seems to have some nice copper tones in it. We'll see if the color lasts :)

As with most newborns, Magnus is sleeping a LOT right now and I'm getting a decent sleep at night despite his feedings every few hours. For now, we are camping out in Arlo's bedroom and Arlo is using the "baby's" room where the crib is set up as a toddler bed for now. That will last through the holidays so we can have visitors stay in Arlo's room for now.

"Mini Mag" (my current nickname for him) is also awake a bit every day and spends a good deal of time quietly looking around and contemplating the world. He is a pretty peaceful guy. At first he would let out some good cries when getting his diaper changed, but now he's mostly quiet even then. With the amount of sleeping and his mellow nature so far, he's hardly impacted Arlo's happy little world. Thus, Arlo is getting along pretty well with his new role as a big brother - not much jealousy yet and he's gotten a lot of attention what with Mommy AND Daddy home.

Lastly, I am doing pretty well and feeling good. Like I said, I've been able to sleep pretty well at night and nursing is going GREAT this time around - I feel really really lucky to have had such a great delivery and easy time with the nursing, since so many of my friends haven't had that kind of experience. We're also, of course, so happy and grateful that our kids have both been healthy. It's pretty awesome having our family grow and getting to spend this family time with all four of us here while I'm on maternity leave. Can't wait to get into the real "adventures" as we venture out more and more!

Signing off with a big ole smile on my face ~ Whit

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Magnus's or Magnus'?

It's already come up: how do we make "Magnus" possessive. If you read the googled excerpt below, you'll learn the traditional Magnus's and the alternative Magnus' are both acceptable. The traditional "Magnus's" will work because that how we'll say it: "Magnus-es."

Singular nouns ending with an “s” or “z” sound:

Many respected sources have required that practically all singular nouns, including those ending with a sibilant sound, have possessive forms with an extra s after the apostrophe. Such sources would demand possessive singulars like these: Senator Jones's umbrella; Mephistopheles's cat. On the other hand, some modern writers omit the extra s in all cases, and Chicago Manual of Style allows this as an “alternative practice”. Generally, Chicago Manual of Style is in line with the majority of current guides, and recommends the traditional practice but provides for several exceptions to accommodate spoken usage, including the omission of the extras after a polysyllabic word ending in a sibilant. Rules that modify or extend the standard principle have included the following:

* If the singular possessive is difficult or awkward to pronounce with an added sibilant, do not add an extra s; Such sources permit possessive singulars like these: Socrates' later suggestion; James's house, or James' house, depending on which pronunciation is intended.
* Classical, biblical, and similar names ending in a sibilant, especially if they are polysyllabic, do not take an added s in the possessive; As a particular case, Jesus' is very commonly written instead of Jesus's – even by people who would otherwise add 's in, for example, James's or Chris's. Jesus' is referred to as “an accepted liturgical archaism”

Happy Birthday Magnus!

Magnus Russell Augusta was born Monday, November 8th at 2:03 pm weighing 7lbs 10oz. Both mom and baby are healthy and doing fine. He was born in the same room at Arlo with one of the same midwives attending, although this time it was a water birth. Whit did a great job. The midwife said she made labor look easy.

Arlo is proud of his new job as big brother, but needs more time obviously to adjust. He got to hold Magnus yesterday and had a big smile on his face.

Halloween Week

We've had a big week and lots of fun. Arlo and I hosted Tuesday playroup and I painted the house all day Wednesday while Arlo was at Emi's. Cousin Jamie Elliot stayed with us this weekend while she was in town to run in the Marine Corps Marathon. We had dinner Saturday night with Jamie and other Vogelhuber cousins Linda and Tyler Jug, plus six of Tyler's friends. Arlo had a blast playing with Tyler's and his friends' three large dogs, who were all really friendly.

Sunday we hosted neighbors and friends for our annual toddler Halloween Party. Whit made lots of yummy October treats for the Dragons, Tigers, Pumpkins, Athletes, and Elephants. It was rather hot for a morning in late October, and the kiddos loved the new sandbox and all of Arlo's ride-on toys.

Friends Debee and Alex had us over for dinner and trick-or-treating on their street Halloween night. Arlo (as a railroad engineer) and Emi (as an elephant) had a great time together and Whit (as a nun) even said how much fun it was to go trick or treating with our kids. We lit our jack-o-lantern when we got home and Arlo and I sat out and gave candy to the later tick or treat crowd.

We just got back from the vet with Sherlock, who was bitten on the head several days ago (he'll be fine). He still doesn't understand that alley cats really are tough.

Coming soon: baby #2.

Arlo in the Hay

Fall Pics

Doesn't she look great!