Three amigos or Three Musketeers? Too early to Tell

Monday morning at 1:38am we got the best Christmas present anyone could ask for! Little Ian Dale Kelley made his entrance into the world.

Ryan & Nathan woke up Monday morning to Papa sleeping on the couch and to find out that their little baby brother had been born while they were sleeping! They came to see Ian and were so excited. As the week has gone on, they have become even more excited. They are our "big helpers" always wanting to help take care of Ian and to hold him. Little Ian will be spoiled by his brothers, at least until he is old enough to play and annoy them!

We will have to see if they will be the Three Amigos or Three Musketeers!

No peeking 'til after Christmas...But He just couldn't wait!

After deciding to wait until AFTER Christmas to have Ian, he decided he just couldn't wait. This is his story!

I started having contractions on Sunday during church. I made it through primary with a few contractions that made me cringe, but didn't think much of them. Right after church we went to my parents' house to have Christmas with my family. As I was helping set the table and prepare food I had a hard time standing and walking. Again didn't think much of it other than I was glad I only had a week left! As we did our festivities I hit a wall and became really tired and really ornery. I couldn't wait to leave and go home, which never happens at my mom's house. On our way home I had 5-6 contractions and a few were accompanied with cramps and back pain. I finally realized I was in the labor. Was it the beginning or middle of labor that I wasn't sure of. We got home and got the boys into bed and we sat and counted the contractions. About an hour later we decided we better go in to be checked. A neighbor came and sat with the boys until my dad could get to our house.

Once at the hospital they hooked me up to the monitors. I wasn't dilated at all, but they watched my contractions for about 30 minutes. Sure enough I was having consistent contractions and they were consistent and getting stronger. They called my doctor to give him a report and said I'll be there soon and do the c-section. The nurses came in and told Matt and I and the craziness began. I was prepped for surgery and off I went to the freezing cold OR room. I was given my spinal block, laid on the table, got a little sick and the c-section began. A few minutes later the nurse told Matt he could stand up and watch as they pulled little Ian out. As they started to pull him out, Matt told me he had a lot of black hair (at least darker and more than either of the other boys!) I heard him cry and there he was! Ian weighed 7lbs 60z and was 18 1/2 inches long.

All three of the boys have been born via c-section, so I've never been able to hold them right after they are born. With Ryan I didn't even get to see him, with Nathan I got to see him as they held him over the shield for just a few seconds. This time I was able to touch and really interact with him within just a few minutes of him being born. Because I was feeling sick and queezy, I was able to have my hands curled into my chest (as long as I promised not to touch my tummy), which meant that my hands were free. So when the nurse came and set Ian next to me, I was able to play with his hair and really talk to him. The nurse was awesome. She put Ian right up next to my face and leaned him into me so that he gave me kisses! She did that several times and I got to talk to him for a few minutes before they took him and Matt to the nursery. That was a special moment that I will never forget!


We are so blessed to have a healthy little boy to add to our family. He is already a huge blessing and he is only 6 days old!

New month, New car

December 1st was like any other day. Ryan went to school, Nathan took a nap (or at least had quiet time) and dinner was done, some goodies in the oven and we were awaiting Matt to get home from work.

I was starting to wonder where he was, when the phone rang. It was Matt. He had been in a car accident just down the hill from our house! The first thing he told me was that he was ok, but the Explorer was totaled! I have to admit, when I got off the phone with him I was livid. That was the car we were planning to put all the boys in, when Ian came and there was no way we could get all three boys in the Corolla. I hadn't planned to go anywhere that day, so I was even more mad that he had taken the car that got the lower gas mileage to work! About 30 minutes later he called and asked me to come and get him.

I didn't see a picture of the Explorer until the next day. When I actually saw the car in person, I was amazed that Matt walked away from the accident with nothing more than a scratch and a few sore places on his body.


After we returned home from running errands Thursday we decided to just see what was on KSL in the way of used vans. We came across a 2001 Honda Odessey that was in our price range and looked well taken care of. We called the owners and it was still available to our amazement. We told them we would be there (Alpine) in about an hour to an hour and a half. We fed the boys real quick and tried to find someone to watch them, which was not a success, so off the 4 of us went. When we got there we looked over the van and took it for a test drive. We fell in love immediately and made an offer. The guy gave it to us for even less than we offered. I think he realized our situation and was very very generous! We took the offer and asked if he would hold it until the next day so that we could get the financing for it. He was more than willing. We bought it from an older couple and I think they fell in love with the boys! It was a fun experience. The man told us that several people had called and made appointments to come see the van, but never showed up. We were the first! What a blessing!

The next day Matt and I got the financing for the van and handed the check over and off we drove with a new car! Nathan wasn't so sure about the van at first, but once we told him he could be the big helper with his baby brother in the van, he was excited to have it!

We were so blessed with how everything fell into place and that Matt walked away from the accident! We are truly blessed! And what a great time of year to remember how blessed we are!