Brenna's Room

Brenna's bedroom is almost complete!  We love the bedding and the colors!  Daddy did such a great job on the chevron pattern!

 Look how many people already love Brenna!  We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our life!

Four Generations of Women

Great Grandma Mary Ann Lantrip - 82
Great Aunt Linda Snyder - 63
Grandma Jacque - 53
Me -33
Brenna - 2 weeks old

Firsts and Fashion

Brenna's first bath at home!

 The boys and I love dressing Brenna up and having fashion shows - as you can imagine, some of the things they put her in aren't cute and don't match!  Below are Mommy's fashion show pictures!

Baby's Best Friend - Remi

My biggest fear with bringing Brenna home was that Conner and/or Drew would feel left out.  Fortunately, they both seem to be doing very well  (so far) and I truly believe that they do not feel any different than they did before Brenna arrived. However, I think Remi has been a totally different story. Before Brenna came, Remi was the one everyone played with and wanted to hold and fought over.  Now, it is all about Brenna.  It really makes me sad.  The amazing thing with Remi is that, different from a human, she has embraced the person that took all of her attention away.  Honestly, it is really an amazing thing to watch.  Remi is with Brenna or by Brenna every minute of the day and night.  When Brenna is swinging, Remi is under the swing.  When I am feeding Brenna, Remi lies under the boppy or right night to Brenna.  Even during night feedings, Remi is the first one out of bed.  As I slowly get up, Remi is on the floor waiting: she follows me as I carry Brenna to her room to change her and she lies down and waits at the doorway.  Then, I walk Brenna out to the couch to feed her and Remi cuddles up right beside us.  When Brenna is done eating, Remi follows us back to bed.  

I remember my first best friend, Schultzie.  I loved him with my entire heart and soul because he was always there for me - he too followed me everywhere and let me play with him like he was another child.  I am excited that Remi wants to be Brenna's best friend too!

Wrestling Season

 Conner's practiced with the Plainfield wrestling club all winter long - and this year he did amazingly well (especially compared to all of the tears last year).  By watching him at practice you could tell that he was really mastering certain moves and learning many new moves - but most importantly his self-confidence was growing.  Therefore, when CYO practices started, he was ready to go and super excited.  He got to his first meet of the season with no tears.  He wrestled his first match and pinned his opponent - he was so excited (still - no tears).  He went on to his second match and was up by 6 points when he fell - not only did he fall but all of his weight fell on his arm as well as his opponent's weight.  The result - a broken arm and many, many tears - not so much because of the pain but more for the fact that he couldn't wrestle this season.  We are so proud of Conner for doing so well and mostly for developing his confidence.  He loves wearing his cast too (I am sure you can imagine - it makes a Kindergartner the center of attention for quite some time).  He has had all of his friends sign the cast and he loves showing it off.  When they casted his arm, he asked for camo.  The doctor didn't have camo but gave him the next best color in Conner's world "hunter orange".

Brenna Grace McClellan - January 22, 2014

We are so excited to announce that Brenna Grace McClellan was born on January 22, 2014!  She weighed 7 pounds 1 ounce and was 20 inches long.  (So much for Jason's bet that she would weigh between 10 and 13 pounds - I still have not forgiven him for that guess!) We anticipated her arrival with much excitement as well as anxiety.  We didn't know whether Brenna would be a boy or a girl.  Also, with complications at the beginning of my pregnancy, we truly prayed only for a healthy baby. Even prepping for and getting wheeled into surgery, I prayed over and over that she would be healthy.  The surgery took a lot longer than it took for the boys, mostly because of the amount of scar tissue.  I heard the doctor tell Jason to get ready to take pictures after about 20 minutes.  Jason stood up and I heard Dr. J say that the baby had "little girl parts" - I quickly asked, "Is it a girl?"  Everyone laughed and said yes!  I was in and out of it all through my surgery.  I knew that they took Brenna aside because she was having trouble breathing.  Jason went with her.  I tried to speak loudly saying over and over, "Jason, is she healthy?"  But he couldn't hear me - my voice wouldn't carry.  Finally, the anesthesiologist said, "She wants to know if the baby is healthy".  Jason came over and said she looked perfect.  The nurses and doctors explained that she was having trouble breathing on her own but otherwise, she was healthy. The hospitalist explained that he had looked her over and over and assured me that she was healthy! I prayed again - still not believing that I had a baby, let alone a HEALTHY baby GIRL!  I couldn't wait for the boys to get to the hospital.  They were so excited!  Even with the pink bow in Brenna's hair, the boys did not put it together that she was a little girl!  They had tons of questions about the baby - her hair, her umbilical cord, her toes.  They also had questions about me - my hair, my IVs, my leg cuffs.  They couldn't wait for me to hold them and for each of them to hold Brenna.  As always, Jason was awesome with me, the boys and the new baby.  I am blessed that he loves us with his whole heart and his entire soul.  The boys brought the baby and me flowers, candy and a card.  Brenna brought them monster truck tickets all the way from heaven! (It was cute, the next day, Conner, who is very intuitive, asked why the tickets weren't wet if Brenna lived in water in Mommy's belly - very smart kid, huh?)  Even though we are still struggling to believe all of the blessings we have been given - all five of us (FIVE OF US) are doing very well.  The boys are adjusting well and Brenna is a great sleeper and eater (for now).  We are truly blessed!