No, he hasn't come yet! So, it's been awhile since we've updated our blog, but we have been crazy busy lately! With school, play dates, babysitting, and of course getting ready for little "Chad Jr." (no, that's not his name....just thought we'd clear that one up since many of you asked). But it's been a lot of fun. One of Ella's favorite things to do lately is have her friend, Savannah over. Ella told mom that Savannah is her very best friend. They are adorable together and so very silly. Here they are watching a video, wearing Daddy's socks.
A big huge thank you to Shelene, Grandma (Eileen), and Brenda for putting together a baby shower for us. It was a lot of fun and we were given some adorable clothes, blankets, and much needed items for "Chad Jr." And although Angie Fennemore from our ward was not able to attend the party, she brought over a gift for the baby and for Ella! It was a kit, containing a magic wand, tiara, journal and purse to decorate. Ella was so excited, but it had to wait for a few weeks because she was insistent that all three of us decorate them together!
It took us awhile to find the time, but we managed! Mom decorated the tiara and purse, Ella did the journal, and Daddy decorated the magic wand. And a lovely magic wand it is! Thanks Angie! It was a hit! Another gift was a new baby doll and bottle from Grandma Thelma and Grandpa Jerry. Ella was so excited, and for several days, she didn't do much except take care of her babies! She feeds them often, puts them down for a nap, and we have to whisper when they are sleeping so that we don't wake them. Even though their clothes are pink and purple, they are both boys, and since there are two of them, Ella thinks it would be neat if we had two babies too!
No thanks! We'll just take one at a time!
Yesterday we took Ella on one last "only child" trip to the Living Planet Aquarium in Sandy. She loved the jelly fish, sharks, "nemos", and "dorys". She was even brave enough to reach out and touch a starfish in one of the touch pools. Then, that evening, we saw our first snow of the year! That's right! About a week ago, we were still in the 80's and then all of a sudden the temperature dropped like crazy!
It snowed enough to stick and Sunday after church, we put our snow gear on and went out to play! We make a giant snowman, snow angels, had a snowball fight, and then topped it all off with mugs of hot chocolate when we came inside. We don't think the snow is going to stick around for much long since we are supposed to hit 70's again by the end of this week, but it sure was a fun preview of winter!
Well, this is a very exciting time for us as all of you know, since we are anxiously awaiting the any-day arrival of "Chad Jr"!
Mom and Dad of course are pacing the floor for the big day, but Ella is just as impatient. Just this evening, Ella announced to us that she was going to say a prayer for her brother to come, and sure enough, she did and she prayed that he would come "very, very soon, like the day after tomorrow." So I guess we'll just have to wait and see how her prayer is answered! We will try our best to keep you all updated, and we apologize in advance if we overlook anybody! If we do overlook someone, it's not that we don't love you, it's that the arrival will have Mom and Dad both just a little scatter-brained! Thank you to all for your love, support, and beautiful gifts! Don't forget to check out our baby's week by week development (39 weeks) and our book of the month.
Mom and Dad were not home for more than a hour when her water broke and we were on our way back! Things really got going then and Mom was able to handle the labor until about 3am and then she broke down and asked for the epidural. Boy was that fabulous! Mom, Dad, and Grandma Wyckhuyse were able to nap for a little while until the nurse and doctor started expressing a bit of concern for Brock's condition. Each time Mom would have a contraction, Brock's heartrate would drop down a little bit lower than where it should be. 
So the doctor presented the idea of a C-section and said they would monitor Brock's condition for a little bit longer before a decsion was made, but they wanted us to know that it was a strong possibility. But fortunately, he hung in there, and his heartrate went up again. So by the time Mom was ready to push, the doctor said we could proceed as planned. Whew! Everyone was so impressed with Mom's fabulous pushes and after only 40 minutes, we had a baby. 
As Grandma Wyckhuyse explained it, after his head was out, the rest of him just kind of fell out! We discovered the reason that his heartrate would drop during contractions was because his ambilical cord was wrapped around his neck once, but the doctor had it under control and fixed the problem before we even had time to worry about it. Of course, as Mom and Dad looked at our new baby, they couldn't help but be amazed at the little miracle we had just taken part in! And Dad and Grandma were just so amazingly supportive the whole time, Mom could not have asked for a better support team! Shortly after Brock was born, we found out that our friend and neighbor, Tia, was just around the corner from mom with her baby girl who had arrived the night before. 
So, Mom and Tia had fun going back and forth throughout the day to visit with each other, and hold each other's new babies! Brock passed all of his newborn tests with flying colors and we are all so happy now to have him home with us. We are all doing well, and Ella is so happy to FINALLY have her brother. She loves to sit and hold him, give him kisses, brush his blonde hair, and help in any way that she can. Last night, Mom was feeding Brock and was supposed to be singing Ella bedtime songs, but she was falling asleep! So after a few minutes, Ella decided she ought to take over and began singing lullabies to Brock. It was so cute and almost made Mom cry! Words cannot express how happy and gratefull we all are, not only for our new baby boy, but for Ella and for the joy that she brings to our family every day. 
Thank you again to all of you for your continuing love, support, and well-wishes. We are so blessed to have so many people to share our joy with. A big, giant thank you, to Dad, for being an amazing support to Mom before, during, and after the whole labor and delivery process. He is taking such good care of us all! Another big thank-you to Grandma Wyckhuyse for being there with us, and one to Shelene for sending out pictures to everyone right away. We love you all!
