Being a Grandmother

Shortly after I got home from Oklahoma, I stopped by to visit Scarlett --and also those other people who live with her-  :) .  As I held Scarlett, Chantel was telling her that this was her Grandma Hall who loved her.  For some reason, it was one of those circle of life times---I can remember talking to my children about their Grandma Giberson and Grandma Hall and how they loved them so much.  I wanted them to know and make those connections with these two great women.  Now Chantel was doing the same thing and I was the grandmother.  Yes, Scarlett and Niki, I am now your Grandma Hall and I do love you so much--love cubed!


This week I got these two beautiful pictures through text from Chantel and Tosha:

Scarlett--six weeks old

Niki-two weeks old

Welcome to the world little ones and we truly loved you before you were born and will love you to the moon and back!

A week with some firsts........

Jena is now a senior----and she is thrilled.  As we walked up to the door of school, many of the class officers were standing there and called out hi to her and welcome to school, etc.  We know several of them and so we chatted a second and I commented that no one was probably as happy to start school as Jena.  They all agreed.  Jena is one happy Clearfield High Falcon.

First day of 12th grade

My first on Monday was the first time I "babysat" Scarlett.  I called Chantel earlier and asked if she needed to do anything that day and she offered to go to the gym so that I could come and be with Scarlett.  Scarlett was asleep when I arrived but Chantel said she would wake up in an hour.  Nope, she slept through the whole time and in fact didn't wake up until an hour after I left as well.  I got a cute video from Chantel that she took of Scarlett waking up.  I did get to watch her on their baby monitor and hear some cute little noises and I did get some reading done for school so it was okay.  We will have lots of days to spend together.  This was just the first one.

Then on Tuesday, I had my first day of graduate school for my masters in Social Work.  I have class from 5:15 to 10:30 each Tuesday night in Kaysville.  My program is through Utah State.  The program is three years long and will include internships the final two years of about 16-20 hours a week.  I guess I am really doing this.

Off to school

Wednesday we attended the Open House for the rebuilt Ogden temple with a family from our neighborhood.  It was fun to share that experience with someone who had never been inside a temple before.  I had been there before when I cleaned but it was also Gary's and Jena's first time inside.  We took a few pictures before our friends arrived on the east front of the temple.

Heading to the temple

Gary is trying to hid in this picture!
Silly Dad!

Although I have grown to love the Bountiful Temple and feel like it is home, it will be nice to have the Ogden Temple back and busy again.  It will relieve a lot of the pressure on the Bountiful and Brigham City Temples and maybe no one or two session waits in the chapel.  The two temples are actually almost the same distance from our house travelwise.

For comparison here are two pictures we took shortly before they began taking down the old Ogden Temple:

Jena in March 2011

The Ogden Temple in March 2011

I think I caught up with a bit of housework during the week but it was quite hit and miss as there was so much to do after being gone most of August.  And our garage is still filled on one half with items drying from the party over a week ago.  Perhaps I will get to that tomorrow but I have to finish my homework first.

Jena had another first on Friday as she served as a model for Julia Crist who is doing her senior project on Down syndrome for her fine arts degree in photography.  She came and took pictures of Jena for about an hour as Jena showed her things that she likes to do.  Jena also has to write a one sheet essay about herself which will be posted by her picture when the whole display is hung at BYU-I.

It is probably not the first time ever--but on Friday BYU did win their opening game of the season.

And finally, our first Hall dinner with Scarlett on Saturday--It was a simple get together--pizza and salad, conversation, and a round of Telestrations (for everyone but Scott who took baby duty).  Mostly it was getting your turn to hold Scarlett or watching whoever was holding Scarlett.  We really missed Tosha, Austen and Niki but I know we need to continue to get together even without them.  How great it will be when they all will be here together.  We can't wait for Scarlett and Niki to meet each other in person.

 

And it is Sunday again--my favorite day.

I subbed in Gospel Doctrine--Jonah and the Big Fish lesson

Had home teachers over

Caught up with the Blog most of the day!

Went on a short walk and visited with friends and family!

 

And now I am heading to bed!

 

Busy week ahead--filled with the usual things and also a very fun and exciting trip to......

 

Austin, Texas

for two big football games

(my nephew's high school game on Friday night and that other game on Saturday night)

and fun with three of my brothers, my dad and Karla, and my sister Valerie and her husband!

There will be lots of game playing in between those two big games.

 

Have I mentioned that life is so good and sweet!

 



A 2-Event Saturday......

I don't know if you have seen any youtube videos of the song "Happy" but we decided as a foundation to film one using kids and adults with Down syndrome.  August 23 was set as our filming date at Gateway in Salt Lake City.  Sharae Chisholm our marketing person was in charge and did an awesome job getting it set up. 

However Friday it rained most of the day and as late at 4:00 a.m. Saturday morning there were still thunderstorms and lighting going on throughout the Salt Lake Valley.  We had determined to move forward and try to film inbetween downpours if we needed to.

Fortunately the weather cleared and the Gateway was bright and clean with rain puddles here and there.  It was a perfect backdrop to a fun few hours of filming.  We had around 75 kids and adults along with family members.  I have seen the almost final copy and it is amazing.  I will post it after it is shown at our UDSF conference in November.

Waiting for their turn to dance and sing

Friends--Conner, Kaitlyn and Jena after filming

Actually there were three events for Jena anyway as I dropped her and Kaitlyn off at Macy's for a fundraising activity for Special Olympics--"Shop for a Cause".  I was busy getting ready for our Ward Party that evening so I missed this event.  I think this is the fifth or sixth year we have been involved with it.

It was hard to get too "into" putting together supplies and food for an outdoor party when it was storming most of Friday which meant that I was scrambling to put things together on Saturday.  I don't know what I would do without Gary.  He is the best right hand man in the business.

This was our Walnut Grove Family BBQ and Water Fun Night at the park attached to our Stake Center.  We had the usual BBQ potluck food and then we had games set up all over the field in addition to paper rocket launching with Gary (a huge hit, as always.).  We had a under 6 area with a water blop, water pool, fishing pool and duck races.  We had water balloon tosses and "Drip, Drip, Spray" and "Blind Beach Ball.  We had a display set up on water storage ideas because the goal of the activity was to remind each family to get enough water for 14 days (1 gal. per person--more for babies and people pregnant or nursing or poor health.).  No pictures, but we had a fun night and the weather although a bit cool for water fights was perfect for a summer BBQ.

Thank heavens for Sundays.....I needed a nap!

We hit the floor running

and I don't think we have stopped until today.  Thank heavens for Sundays!

We got back in the car on Wednesday to head to Salt Lake for an orthodontist appointment for Jena and then hurried back again for Special Olympics Basketball and then YW.  Thursday was UDSF Lagoon Day.  I was there at 10:445 to hand out tickets and spend until 3 doing that and talking with our new director about his first 3 weeks on the job.

Jessica, Elessia, Gary and Jena arrived in the afternoon and we had a great day and evening at Lagoon.  Jena is getting braver about rides and I even rode some new ones this time.  I am not sure why I didn't get any pictures of Jessica and Elessia although they left earlier than we did.

 I know we are at Lagoon and this isn't a ride.  In Pioneer Village they have a barn with a train collection.  Gary and I both love model trains (as does Austen I found out) and hope to build something like this in our backyard (when we are retired with nothing else to do).

Gary rode on the Cliff hanger for the first time.  He couldn't convince anyone else to try it.  He got soaked!  It circles around and the water falls all over you from the foundations shooting off.

It was a beautiful day at Lagoon with overcast skies and around 75 degrees.  After a lot of rain storms we were glad for a great day...now if the weather would hold for a few more days.

And then farewells........

It was hard to leave--It is like you want to be in two places at once--in Utah and in Oklahoma City.  We took pictures and tried to get Niki to be awake and happy.  But this time he just wanted to sleep. Jessica and Tosha got some darling pictures which they might share at some point.

 

The following two were from Saturday which I forgot to post:

 

And fortunately I could go home and see Scarlett.  (I told her about you, Niki, and she is excited to meet you.) Chantel was so good to send me pictures and videos while I was gone so that I could see her grow and change.  How great it is that you can send messages and pictures in an instant.

And some group shots to mark the occasion:


Jessica, Uncle Scott, and Jena 

Austen as photographer

Scott as photographer

We gave our final hugs and goodbyes and see you laters and off we went.  We made a very brief stop in Amarillo to visit my  sisters and share pictures of Scarlett and Niki and then on to New Mexico for Monday night and home to Utah on Tuesday. 

That was the longest Gary and I have been separated in about 24 years and I don't think we want to do that again, but it was right for this time and this trip and this experience.  Thanks to Tosha and Austen for being such great hosts and hello and good bye again, sweet Niki until we see you again.

Sunday Homecoming

The original plan had Jessica, Jena, and I heading back to Utah on Sunday.  We were planning on driving part of the way Sunday including a stop in Amarillo to visit my sisters, Robin and Lynette and then heading home the rest of the way on Monday.  Jessica was scheduled to be back at work on Tuesday morning.

With his arrival early Saturday morning we all wanted a change in plans.  Of course we would have loved to stay another week, but at least Jessica was able to arrange to go back to work on Wednesday so we could be here for his first night home.

Saturday night we finished every inch of laundry and any (very little) housework so that her house was ready for them to come home.  I headed to the hospital to be  ready to take them home (five hours later we finally can go home--typical hospital time especially on the weekends.) and Jessica and Jena decorated the house with posters.  Tosha and Austen kept wanting to be home with everyone and Jessica and Jena were so excited for us to come home....I just tried to hold Niki as much as I could.

Getting ready for his first car ride

The Russell Family

It is amazing how much stuff you gather
after just a couple of days at the hospital!

Moms ride in the back seat!

Tosha and Austen were delighted to see this balloon on their apartment building and see Jessica and Jena waving from their balcony on the third floor.  I was surprised myself as we had not gotten the balloon.  It turned out to be from my brother, Scott, who had driven up from Austen to spend two days with us.  He had arrived a bit earlier and was sitting in his car waiting for us to arrive as he didn't realize Jessica and Jena were inside.  (No room in the car for everybody with the car seat.)

Home at last

 At one point in labor, Austen asked Tosha if there was ANYTHING he could do for her.  She smiled sweetly and said, "I want to pet turtle."  (I know, I have a family of animal lovers.)  We decided we would help Austen out by getting a toy turtle for her.  Jessica drew this habitat for Fernando.

Shortly afterwards, Scott rang the door bell and we really started the party, complete with a little bit of game playing.  Mostly it was holding Niki or watching someone else hold Niki.

Austen and Tosha had some friends who stopped by as well --to hold Niki--so we watched them hold Niki, too.  It was great to share my grandson with my brother.  I was so glad that he had come.  He was able to stay until Tuesday morning when he had to leave for a meeting in Dallas.  That meant when we left on Monday afternoon, they still had some family support.

We shared a sweet experience, my brother and I.  We both were sleeping out in the living room and throughout the night we could hear Tosha, Austen, and Niki up and down as little babies and new parents do.  About 3:30 a.m., I knocked on the door and asked if I could hold him for a little bit while they slept.  As I walked back into the dark living room, my brother asked me if he could hold him for awhile while I slept.  I handed Niki to him and headed back to the air mattress.  For the next hour or so as I would wake and then sleep, I could hear my brother humming to my grandson.  It was a sweet and tender moment as I recognized familiar Primary songs and other songs and felt his love for this sweet boy.  The great thing is knowing that it could have been any of my siblings or my dad or Karla.  We are all so thrilled to add to our family.  I know this because I know how I feel about my nieces and nephews and their children.  There are just connections that define logic.  It is what we call Family.

Then it was my turn and I held Niki and we slept sitting together until he was hungry and needed his mom.  A few hours later, I laid in bed with him and Tosha took this picture.  I am not a fan of pictures of me, but I actually love this one for some reason.  It was a grandmother moment.

Hello, Niki!!

NIKI JAMES RUSSELL

HAS ARRIVED!

Birthday:  August 16, 2014; 1:19 a.m.

 

Here he is at about 20 minutes old, I think.

 

Weight:  7 Lbs. 15 Oz.   Length:  21"

 

 

It took a while to get him here, but even Tosha (who did all of the hard work) said it was worth it when she got to see and hold this sweet little baby for the first time. We think he is adorable and perfect in everyway.

 

Tosha did awesome in labor.  She was in labor all through the night so Austen and I took turns being up with her and sleeping when we could.  Poor Tosha didn't get any sleep that night (nor much the few nights before either when she was having contractions.)  Their car was in the shop so I drove the two of them over to the hospital Friday morning.  When they checked her out, they said that she was in labor but hadn't made much progress.  She could either go home (if she wanted no medical intervention to speed up labor) or stay in the hospital if they would consider using the Pit or having her water broken.  At that point, staying in the hospital seemed important so they agreed if she didn't make progress that they would discuss options later in the day.

 

That decision made I went back to their apartment and got Jessica and Jena who were going to be part of Tosha's "pit crew".  We gathered together and settle in in Birth Suite One at the end of a very quiet hallway.

 

Labor and Delivery is Tosha's story to tell, but here are some pictures that Jessica, Jena and I took along the way.

 

Jena spent some of her time drawing a picture
for Niki.

Teamwork

Almost here--
this was not their regular doctor who was still
on vacation but the person on call.
They turned out to really like him and
if they have another baby in Oklahoma City will probably go
to see him.  I thought he was great as well.

He will love this picture in the family history!
What a cute face even when getting his mouth suctioned.

Jena headed over to get a closer look at her new nephew.

 Tosha had indicated that she was great with Jessica and Jena both being there when the baby was born but I wasn't sure what I thought about Jena being there.  It is a personal and intense experience and I didn't know if she was ready for that.  We had made a plan for her to sit in some chairs outside of her room if she got too distressed and decided it would be a "game time decision".  At one point she and I were out of the room together and I asked Jena if she remembered how babies are born (having two babies on the way had provided some opportunities to have these discussions with her).  She paused, gave me a look, then replied, "From Tosha" then started laughing.  I thought that was funny too.  Then she added: "From her tummy where the baby is."  With that and a few other pieces of information, we headed back.

It turns out that Jena takes life in stride.  She was calm and peaceful and very proud of herself and the help that she gave Tosha during labor.  For a couple of hours, Jena sat on a stool next to Tosha's bed holding her hand while she slept.  Occasionally, Tosha would open her eyes and  tell her thanks and Jena would be so happy.  Did I say that sisters are the best!

More early moments with Niki:

Niki's pit crew and fan club

 Seriously. I think that Tosha and Chantel are two of the prettiest women for just giving birth.  Their coloring was both good and they looked so great.  I remember feeling like I had just gotten run over by a truck.

This is Tosha at 1:30 a.m.  Niki was wide eyed for most of the first few hours of life.  His eyes seemed brown that morning but they are a little lighter now and more in that grey range.

Aunt Jessica



Aunt Jena

We stayed until around 3:30 or so.  Tosha and Austen stayed up until about 5:30 when Niki finally closed his eyes and slept for a long period of time.

The next day, I read him his first book: "I Loved You Before You Were Born".  I started crying before I even started.  In fact, I couldn't even start reading for a minute or so.  The feelings I felt were so strong for him and for Scarlett that the tears just flowed.  I was so grateful to my great friend, Robynn, who had sent me this book after finding out I was going to be a grandma.  Mostly I was grateful to my Heavenly Father for Scarlett and Niki.

And I hope that I will be able to read this book to each of my grandchildren as they arrive in this world--hopefully in person on that first day of life.  If not, I will read it to you the first time I see you.  Truly, I loved you before you were born!!!

So it really happened, I have a "Okie" for a grandchild.  He was actually born in the University of Oklahoma Edmond Hospital--can't get more Okie than that.  It turns out that I have a lot of relatives who were born in Oklahoma on my dad's side so he will fit right in.  (However I do hope to train him to cheer for BYU over Oklahoma!)

As a side note:  the hospital is located on Route 66.  For non-history buffs, this is the famous route people traveled during the depression to look for jobs in California.  Several movies and books made it even more famous.  My mom taught us to appreciate that when we lived in Amarillo which is another stop along Route 66.  I liked that.  It made my mom seem closer.  I know that she loves Niki too.

Speaking for myself,  I was really happy to head to bed on Saturday night and get a real night's sleep!  We left Tosha and Austen to enjoy their interrupted night of sleep with Mr. Niki at the hospital.