Nicole Loretta Sucher

After a long (LONG) summer we finally moved to Puyallup Washington on August 5th (a little less than a month until my due date!) Jeff found us a great place on a fun street that has five members on it and a lot of kids. We were really really blessed to move here one of the girls that I first met here is SO nice and has introduced us to most of the street and at least half of the ward (ok, not that many people in the ward because it is HUGE...I am talking two primaries and four councilors in the Relief Society and two secretaries!) She is great and so knowing that she was down the street if I went into labor I at least knew ONE person to help!

Our doctor in Denver said she would induce us because I have really short labors. SO, I just assumed that the doctors here would do the same, but that was not the case. I met with two doctors and they both had said that was not a good enough reason to induce (I get not inducing for silly things but I was really worried that I would deliver along side the road because our hospital was in downtown Tacoma) and the second appointment I had found out I tested positive for group B strep which could be dangerous for the baby if I wasn't on antibiotics for a least four hours before I delivered (with my last pregnancy I was only in labor for three hours!) so at that point I REALLY thought they would induce be but the doctor wasn't concerned. Honestly I don't think she knew much about it because I asked her a few times what would happen to the baby if I didn't get any medicine and she said not to worry the pediatrician would take care of it. Nice. Anyway a week before I was due I met with another doctor and had brought Jeff along and we told her our concerns and thank goodness she was sympathetic and said she would induce us that Sunday (it was Thursday when we met with her.)

SO, I called my mom and told her the plans and she went out and bought a ticket and we picked her up on Saturday. It was so nice to know that I wouldn't need to call a neighbor I barely knew! (My sweet sister in law lives up north about and hour away and would come pick up my girls so they wouldn't be with neighbors all day long!)

We went in Sunday morning at 6:30 a.m. and got checked in and then we just hung out in our room until about 9:00 a.m. when they FINALLY hooked me up to the antibiotics. Two hours later they started the pitocin and gave me a balloon catheter to dilate my cervix quicker - not pleasant....at all... About thirty minutes after that I started feeling some painful contractions so I figured I may as well get my epidural, why sit through anything more uncomfortable if I don't have to. :) It. Was. Great. The anesthesiologist was so nice and talked us through everything (and more) he, the nurse, Jeff and I just talked and hung out for a while, it was nice to not feel so rushed and just enjoy the experience. With Morgan and Whitney everything was so fast so it was a good change.

Nothing really happened until about 4 p.m. I was starting to get worried because I had never just waited like that during labor and I started getting concerned that I was going to be in labor for days and maybe we shouldn't have gotten induced but then they came in and broke my water and I went from a 4 (I think) to a 10 in and hour and a half. I was just sitting there watching a show with Jeff and all of the sudden I felt her just slide into the birth canal (if that was even possible) I told my nurse I was ready and she checked me, sure enough I was ready. She called the doctor and the doctor wanted the nurse to have me do a practice push, so I pushed and she told me to stop and that the doctor needed to come now. SO, the doctor took her sweet time getting there (not new, we spent a lot of time waiting for this lady). She took her time getting ready (seriously she was slow, I am not exaggerating!) Finally she was ready, meanwhile I am trying as hard as I can not to push. She sat down and said push...I pushed and Nicole was here! One push, it was crazy!

She was here a perfectly healthy baby girl! Jeff was still holding out hope for a boy, the first thing he said before anyone said anything was "it's a GIRL!" Don't get me wrong Jeff loves our girls, but I am sure it would be nice for him to not be so out numbered!

Everything has gone so well (knock on wood), she eats great, she has slept better than my other two, and the girls have been great big sisters. I was nervous especially that Whitney would struggle with it but she has been a peach, I think maybe Morgan has had a harder time, she loves Nicole but I think she is struggling with not having all her friends here and the 'social life' we had in Denver. We will figure out something to keep her occupied though.

My mom was here Saturday until the following Sunday and my sister came the Thursday until Tuesday the week she was born. It was SO fun to have them both here. I was spoiled rotten. I got naps and didn't have to cook and they played with the girls. It was great, I could get used to that! While they were here we took a quick trip to Portland to see my Grandma and Aunt and Uncle. I don't know if it was a great idea to take a newborn on a road trip, but my sister hadn't seen her in years and we thought it was a good idea at the time. :)

Here she is, 6 Ibs 11 ozs and 20 inches long

The view from our room


I look awesome I know :) Oh well, she was worth it!


Whitney LOVES to hold Nicole and talks in a high sqeaky voice whenever she talks to her, CUTE!


My girls!


My sister and Nicole, but I completely forgot to get a picture with Nicole and my mom!


Four generations


My cute Grandma

Here is the scoop.

Hello! Long time no post! :) Well, since the last time I posted a lot has been going on! I will just highlight a few more for my sake so feel free to skim. :)

~My little brother went on his mission for the LDS church to Winnipeg Canada so we drove to Idaho for a quick trip to see him speak in church. He is awesome (don't ever tell him I said that) he really has been an inspiration for me for a long time now and I am really proud of him. Unfortunately I didn't take ANY pictures! WHAT! I know I don't know what I was thinking, obviously I wasn't.

~Easter was great, Morgan and Whit loved looking for eggs. We had a great dinner at our friends house..mmm

Dying eggs

Morgan showing off her loot

Whitney searching for eggs

~May started off with Jeff being gone for two weeks to Washington to open a new office up there. That was fun...not really. It was long. BUT, one of my best friends came to visit for a few days which was a BLAST! Lawanda you are great and I miss your face. Again, I forgot to take any pictures! I am pretty sure I am losing it this pregnancy! My girls LOVE LOVE LOVE her, so we played and ate and talked and shopped. It was pretty great!

~When Jeff got home he was here for four days then we ALL took off to Washington for about six weeks. The first week and a half we were there we stayed with my cute sister in law at her house. Bless her heart, she was already housing her brother in law and then we show up PLUS her family AND she is staging her house to get it sold! She is a saint. After that time we went to my grandparents home on Whidby Island. Their house isn't to far from Shelly's but you have to cross part of the Puget Sound to get there on the ferry which the girls loved, but it takes about 45 minutes to an hour extra to get there. SO Jeff stayed at his sisters house during the week and came over on the weekends (from his office it is about two hours). SO when he was there we had a great time! Farmers markets, touring the island, eating good food. But when he wasn't there it was a little lonely. Then the last week we headed back to my SIL's house (my grandparents rent their home out and it happened to be rented that week) and after that I decided to drive to Idaho to spend some time with my parents.

This is a picture I remember from when I was little, I THINK my grandma put it all together it is sea shells and things from the beach. It was the only thing left at my grandparents house of theirs.

The view when you first walk in the house

My grandparents house

The girls taking a bath, beautiful view but a little awkward because their were no blinds. :)

Every Friday all the cruise ships would pass by the house, it was fun watching all the ships go by

While I was there I was going a little stir crazy so I got some fabric and made a blessing dress. It turned out ok, I don't think I am in love, but at this point I am to busy to fix it so it will have to work.

I also made a baby blanket (thanks Shelly for letting me use your sewing machine!)

There were deer in the yard all the time, we also saw a raccoon, hummingbirds, chipmunks, quails (and baby quails, so cute!) and bunnies.

One of the awesome sunsets from my grandparents yard.

~We drove from Seattle to Rexburg (14 hours) and the girls were great. We celebrated the 4th with my parents and my brother and his wife and their kids. We went to the Rexburg parade and had a BBQ with lots of friends and family. It was great, but I was pooped! SO Sunday morning we headed off to Denver...(12 hours) and Morgan was great...Whitney, not so much. It was a long drive and I wanted to cry when I got home! :)

The girls were so done, this is us at the picnic on the 4th. Pretty much sums up how we were all feeling at that point! :)

Grandma was so nice to help Morgan go get candy during the parade while I held onry Whitney :)

~NOW, we are officially moving to Washington for who knows how long! :) It could be anywhere from 4 months to a year, who knows! So for the last two weeks I have been packing, blah. All I have to say is I have amazing friends and family who keep calling asking what they can do...everyday, I am not kidding. They (you) are GREAT!!! I want to cry every time someone calls (I am pregnant and super hormonal :) ) We are VERY VERY VERY sad to leave but excited for the new adventure at the same time!

~OH! We are still pregnant :) I am 33 weeks and we are having a GIRL!!! Surprise! :) Ok, I wasn't to surprised. We actually went to our ultrasound and they were not able to tell. The tech said if she HAD to say one or the other she was say MAYBE 60% a girl. I was a little disappointed that they weren't able to say for sure, and JEFF was so funny, he was just pacing the floor the whole time. He finally after a few weeks got me to go to a fetal photo type place and find out for sure. SO, it IS a girl. I am really excited but really nervous at the same time. Three girls! DRAMA! haha I don't know how I will handle it! My pregnancy has gone great (beside the first 23 weeks of throwing up and nausea!) I really am grateful, but I am STRESSED with everything going on, I am excited to get settled and really get ready for this baby girl!

~One more shout out to my husband who is still in Washington poor guys has only been home for four days since May! :( He is doing so well up there AND because of all of this craziness he was not able to walk for his Masters degree. I think (ok I know) I was more upset about this than he was. He worked so hard and then didn't get to get the pictures and the memories of walking. :( I may rent him an outfit just so I can take pictures! Or maybe I will convince him to get his doctorates! haha I think he will have to convince me before I convince him. BUT again, good work hun I am so proud!

These are just some random pictures:

Whit was so tired one day she just crashed on the couch like this.

Morgan just sharing the whippers with Whitney...mmm

Morgan was in the bathtub with her swim suit on and it started raining really hard so I got her out and got her umbrella and rain boots and she was LOVING playing in the rain.

Sporting her new headband that I made from a tie.

Diddo

I LOVE these shoes!

Morgan was jumping on the couch and fell and knocked a tooth loose. SO she had her first trip to the dentist, everything was just fine and Morgan did great.

Morgan got this set of beads and hair things which she loved playing with...

Until she thought the hair clips should be earrings! :)

Morgan flying her first kite in Washington at the beach.

This is Whitney actually flying the kite. This is the best picture I could get of her since I was holding her, but she LOVED it.

Sorry for any misprints, it is late and I am tired. It has been a little crazy the last few months, but fun times. Hopefully I keep up a little better from here on out...we will see. :)

Yes, We Are Still Here

While my dear, pregnant wife is driving home this July 4th afternoon, I realize it is time to update the blog. We have had a great time up in Washington and will be up here for another few months as I get my new warehouse/office going. So here is a pictorial of our time thus far in WA and the good times we have had. On a side note, my wife is the best. She is a true trooper following me all over the place and never complaining. I am not sure what I did right to deserve such a marvelous spouse, but something was certainly on my side helping me when I managed to swoop her from the BYU-I dating pool. Now on to the show:

Morgan and Whitney pray like their Aunt Stephanie when we get ready for prayers.

Morgan was intent on watching for whales out of Grandma's window. The home we stayed in was Kim's grandparents on Whidbey Island and it looked out on to the Puget Sound. What a beautiful view and a blessing to be able to stay there.

Whitney loves the water. She was ready to go and dive right in. She loves to play in the dirt and sand and yet once she is done, hates to have anything dirty on her hands. Something is going to have to give because Kim and I are getting tired of always having to keep her hands clean.

Morgan on the other hand can't stand to be on the beach at all with flip flops on because she does not like sand on her feet. I had to carry her over all the driftwood to get her back to the van and wash off her feet. But overall, a good time was had by all.

This was the sunset off the back porch at Grandma's house.

Parker and Whitney having a good time in the stroller.

Morgan and Grandma Sucher

Grandpa and Grandpa Sucher with the grandkids.

My parents

A Lighthouse in Langley

We went to a park last weekend for a picnic and they had a perfect climbing tree. We were able to get all the kids in there and Morgan was loving it.

Despite the less than desirable weather, Washington has been good. I love all the green grass and tall trees. It reminds me of the spring I had in Juneau in 1999 on my mission. Anyway, there a little snap shot of what we have been up to.