nathan's arrival

nathan keehoon kim arrived on november 24th, 2009. his birthday is 4 days before older brother, caleb's bday. he weighed in at 7lbs. 14 oz. and measured 20 inches long. he was almost a pound heavier than caleb was at birth.

so for those who don't know by now...i gave birth at home. haha...yeah...
i gave birth in a birthing tub. i wanted to give the home experience a try without any meds. it was a great experience, but wow, super painful. thankfully, my labor was super duper short. i don't know if i would have been able to do it if it had been longer.

i was frustrated and uncomfortable with being overdue...i went to my doctor's appointment on tuesday at 4:30pm. i told the doctor to check me to see if i had dilated at all...i said that i had some minor cramping. little did i know...i had actually been in labor the whole week without even knowing it! she checked me and said...wow! you're already 8cm dilated! for those who don't know...10cm is when you are ready to push and give birth. she said that she's done 200 births and this has never happened before. so we hurried and met back at home by 5:30. we set up all the equipment and i began to feel the pain...i got in the tub and after the most intense hour and a half of my life, nathan was born at 7:15. jun got to experience catching the baby as he came out. after all the cleanup and newborn check, caleb and the grandparents came upstairs and met nathan for the first time. the best part is i got to stay in my bed and recover...
recovery has been much better this time, but i'm still in bed and taking things easy as of now thanks to my mother in law who watches caleb and prepares food for me. i am so thankful. all i really need to do is feed nathan, which is every 2-3 hours. what do i do once my dear mother in law leaves? oh my....

the hardest part of this whole experience is not being able to be with and interact with caleb to the degree i use to. he gets sad sometimes and so do i...but i think he's slowly adjusting. jun's been doing a lot of the things i use to do with caleb like all the bedtime routine stuff...they've definitely bonded even more through this experience.
having two is really crazy! i can't wait til things settle down!

i am so tired and still physically kind of weak...so i'm going to end here and get some rest before i need to feed nathan again. i'll end with this...i love my boys so much. they are so precious, including jun.

caleb's 2nd birthday. grandpa and daddy took him to chuck e cheese. i was so sad i couldn't be there.

caleb's birthday cake that he chose with daddy...
grandparents got to sing happy birthday to caleb
enjoying his cake
daddy napping with nathan
an outing with daddy and grandpa
before grandpa left for korea...they took a picture with their grandsons...
caleb loves blowing out candles and us singing the happy birthday song, so we did it again with his leftover cake.
caleb and nathan
daddy and nathan
daddy, grandma, and the boys...
grandma wanting to get a picture with nathan while his eyes were open...
grandma loving his grandsons...
caleb posing with his brother
daddy setting up the christmas tree
enjoying some family time...
caleb looking at nathan. he says his name very well now!
nathan doing what babies do best...sleep :)
wide awake!
brothers...
caleb was very happy that day...

caleb kisses nathan all the time!
my boys...
grandma spending time with caleb and nathan...
hello!
our little one...
i can't believe we are a family of four now.
caleb's christmas pjs...from grandpa.
reading before bedtime...
bye bye....til next time!

before the baby arrives...

the baby is a couple of days overdue and i am so uncomfortable. my stomach is really ready to pop! that is my update. hey, at least i got one more post in before the baby, like i mentioned in my previous update :) our second son's birthday is going to be sooo close to caleb's birthday. caleb will turn 2 on the 28th...aww...growing up so fast. love that little guy.

just wanted to update some pictures of what we've been up to while waiting for the baby. jun's mom has been in town and jun's dad arrived not too long ago as well. we're all just...waiting...

for now, enjoy the pictures until our next post of our second bundle of joy :) can't wait to share him with all of you....will keep you all posted!

caleb just up from his nap...he was a little out of it, that's probably why he stood there and let me take a picture of him. we took jun's mom to good indian food and i got to take a picture with my baby...
jun with mom...
it's been so gloomy, cold, and rainy...but one day...the sun was out and the weather was beautiful, so we took mom to pike place market...
the gum wall...pretty disgusting and cool at the same time. turns out well in pictures because of all the colors. look at my tummy...oh my oh my...
caleb fascinated by the gum wall...
posing with daddy and grandma...
a family shot, too bad you can't see the background very well because of the sun...
caleb loves his daddy...
grandma, daddy, and caleb coloring...
coloring some thanksgiving pictures...
building blocks with grandpa...
cutting some wooden bread. this was a gift from auntie stacy :) thank you, he loves it!
caleb watching video clips with grandpa and grandma while eating snacks....
grandparents enjoying time with their grandson...
caleb was throwing a fit, so we put him in time out...
he didn't want to look at the camera while he was in time out...
grandma thought time out was a great photo opportunity! haha...
caleb getting ready to eat at duke's chowder house....
caleb makes grandma very happy!
grandparents...
caleb loved the sourdough bread...yum yum.
i love my boys...and one more to come...
we thought it was so interesting how caleb learned how to hold the phone on his shoulder like this....
we ate by the water....it was cold and gloomy, but they thought it was a beautiful photo opportunity...
jun with dad....
i try to get a picture with caleb whenever i can...it's always very forced because he can't stay still!
caleb being silly. thanks, auntie mi-yeon for the cute outfit!
lovely girls at church. they love on caleb sooo much. caleb's a lucky kid to receive all this love.
happy thanksgiving, everyone. thank you for following our blog and for being important people in our lives. we are thankful for you.

october...a month of blessings...

october has truly been a month of blessings. we moved into our new house on october 1st and for the first couple of nights...we would just lay in bed and be in awe of the new place. until now, we are still so thankful and cannot comprehend the fact that we have a house...we hope that not a day will pass by without us giving thanks for this gift and privilege.

Needless to say...it's been hectic trying to unpack these past few weeks. i've been tired and just got over the flu...however, i keep wanting to get things done before the baby. it's been really pretty hard on my body. i'm so tired and caleb requires a lot of time and energy as well. juggling him and moving into a new place while being sick has not been easy. i feel much better now and most things are pretty much done, except for some boxes in the garage and den...but those can wait a little. my next project is to get all the baby stuff ready once november hits. baby's coming! i can't believe it. when i wake up in the morning, i think to myself...it won't be long before i have to wake up every 2 hours to feed a little baby! i've been spoiled by caleb...who has slept through the night since 3 months and has never given us trouble in the middle of the night, unless he's sick. he is such a good boy.

last week, we purchased a full size bed for caleb. we wanted to just leave it in his room for him to get familiarized with it. but jun decided...hey, why not try putting him there now and see how he does! so, we put the crib against the bed as a rail and laid down with him for a little bit and left the room. he did great and slept through the night. we went to get him in the morning and he was exactly where we left him the night before. he slept on in for nap time as well and we are so proud of him! he still seems so little on that big bed :)
he's starting to eat by himself...makes a huge mess, but....no complaints. we tried to start potty training him, but it's getting so cold here that we can't really strip him naked. before shower time, we just take off his diaper and see if he wants to go sit on the potty. so far, he has pooped and peed in it :) that's a start. however, for most of the day, he still tells us he pooped after he already went in the diaper.

another event for the month is my wonderful husband's milestone birthday. he will turn 30 tomorrow. however, caleb and i already threw him a surprise bday party last weekend so that he won't be suspicious. it turned out great. he was super surprised and our church family was there to celebrate with him. that was my gift to him this year...and i also put together a book of letters from his close friends and family members who weren't able to be here to celebrate with him. he was touched by everyone's words.

wow, to think i've known him for half his life already and we have two kids together. he just keeps getting better....
we love you so much, my husband and the father of our two sons....thank you for being an amazing person. 30 is just the beginning :) happy birthday.

we have a halloween family event at church. caleb's going to be a pumpkin. we'll see if he can handle wearing the costume all night and i'll try to get some good pictures if he cooperates and post them next time. hopefully i will post one more time before our second son is born.... :)

some pictures from this month....

caleb on a sunny sunday afternoon...

caleb sitting on our couch...
watching a dvd. he loves watching dvds now!
our family room...i will try to post more pics of the house in the months to come.
kitchen/breakfast nook...
notice the green chairs :) love em!
pictures from jun's surprise 30th birthday party...






a rare post of a video clip. caleb laughing during dinner while daddy made farting noises :) notice he says "ahba funny..." meaning daddy's funny. haha...our little cutie.

a nice getaway

it's been another long while since my last post. things have been hectic around here, but things have been good. we just got back from our la trip. it was so nice to be "home" where everything felt so familiar and so many people we love surrounded us...oh and not to mention, the best chinese food besides in taiwan :) good times. however, since we were living out of a suitcase and didn't really have a "home" there, we knew that washington was truly our new home. it was indeed a refreshing trip and we are so thankful that we got a 2 week break.

since getting back, we have just been busy packing...yes, we are moving. jun is doing most of the hard work because i get tired so easily! he can finish 5 boxes in the time i finish up my first box! there's 2 more months to go in my pregnancy and we are still working hard to pick out a name for caleb's little brother. we know it will come to us soon...hopefully.

here are pictures from the la trip.

still in washington...caleb and daddy playing with the itouch...oh my two handsome boys!

caleb getting ready for la...helping us pack!
we were on the same flight as john. his iphone was caleb's entertainment...kept us sane too! caleb is getting very active and does not like to stay in his seat, so thank god for uncle john's "toy."
our first night in la...dinner with the family. we ate at an amazing and fancy steakhouse :) yum yum.
how can we be in la without some pool time? caleb had lots of fun in the pool!
meeting friends....

family dinners...
spent some time with one of our favorite families...so great to be in each other's company again.
in-n-out baby....it was so delicious....so not overrated! haha...
a day at disneyland with jun, caleb, and my mother in law....
what an expensive day! but well worth it :)
waited in a loooong line to meet mickey.
caleb went on this 2 times :)
caleb right before falling asleep....
before we left the park...
late dinner with young and caroline...
we welcomed our little nephew, ian ko....
caleb loved kissing his little cousin, sometimes a little too much!
the lee family :)
chinese breakfast...mmm...mmmm..mmmm....
i absolutely love california beaches...caleb had a blast!
digging a hole with daddy...
the hat...yummy pastrami...and great company.
yogurtland...
my little sisters...
jun's previous high school students...now all grown up.
caleb and his second cousin, sadie. so cute!
more second cousins :)
caleb enjoying the slide at kylie's 3rd birthday party.
going down the big slide with daddy...wheee!
happy birthday, kylie!
caleb and josie...
caleb was desperately in need of a nap! look at all the kids staring at my fussy baby!
i love my shiao rong jeh jeh :)
jun loves his mark guh guh :) haha...
the 2 kim families....
to end on a sweet note...once again, our nephew ian at a few days old....

hotness!

so believe it or not...it was the hottest week in the history of seattle last week...that and me being prego did not mix well! i was in a bad mood and we only have one fan that caleb got to use. jun and i couldn't sleep at night and when we went out looking to buy another fan...they were nowhere to be found! they were either sold out or they had stopped carrying them for the season. oh and my poor friend, mi-yeon, had to experience it while visiting from la...she was trying to get away from the heat to find that it was hotter than la for once! luckily, we borrowed a fan and she survived! most of the pictures i am going to post this time are from mi-yeon's camera, so you can thank her for the many pictures of caleb kim :)

quick update on my pregnancy...doing well now, just getting bigger, so have a harder time breathing and sleeping...plus, the back pain is still lingering around...3 more months and baby boy #2 arrives! still no names yet....but i'm sure it'll come to us...hopefully...hehe...
he's moving a lot these days and caleb rubs and kisses my tummy all the time....such a sweet boy.

this week is cool again. it's in the 70s now and it feels so nice! we will be visiting la in a month and we just can't wait to see people and eat food we miss. also, my sister in law will be having her baby then too!

ok, well...onto pictures...caleb is definitely growing...still kind of short and small, but he went through a growth spurt and all of a sudden, all his shoes don't fit!


just taking random pictures of caleb around the house...
eating cheerios...
he has so many expressions! such a character now!
a very forced smile :)
hello?
walking on the pebble beach with daddy...
picnic lunch with john. notice caleb "smiling"
when he sees the camera, he tends to automatically do this...
john and me...
me and my wonderful hubby...
caleb throwing rocks with uncle john...
one of his favorite things to do...throw rocks.
check out the temp! yes, it says 107!
we had great food when mi-yeon was visiting...
this is some soul food...the mac and cheese was amazing!
caleb wandering around the house with his pjs...
caleb loves books!
happy sitting next to auntie mi-yeon!
we went to a little breakfast shop and waited 1.5 hours! caleb was a trooper :) he got hungry so we gave him a snack.
finally sitting at our table...waiting for the food. meanwhile, caleb ate ice cubes to keep himself cool...
where's my food?
yay! yummy yummy....
caleb posing with the lolipops...
it was so hot that we roamed around target...
caleb in his little executive chair :)
running around target aisles...very happily i might add :)
i love this picture that mi-yeon took, he's actually smiling with his eyes :)
oh, and notice he is covered in his blanket in 100 degree weather!
the ds lite kept him entertained for a little...
caleb holding onto daddy...
we went to eat at a revolving sushi place...
i love my baby...he brings me so much joy!
jun with all the plates we finished! jun looks...uncomfortable...haha...
mi-yeon really hit it off with my other friend from here, helan...yay!
lovin' the jamba juice!
we don't know where he got this from, but he draws lying down like this with his head tilted....

i'm sure you got your share of caleb pics today :) haha...

birthday

it was my birthday not too long ago and just want to say thanks to everyone for the cards, gifts, texts, fb messages, flowers in the mail ;) and calls. i really appreciate every little thing. thank you!

caleb is majorly teething! he has 8 teeth and it's been awhile since he has gotten any new ones. but now, 8 new ones are coming in altogether! he has a slight fever and is a little fussier than usual, but still a good boy. poor guy, it must be irritating!

we don't know if caleb really understands the concept of a baby in mommy's tummy, but he is so sweet, he hugs and kisses my tummy all the time and says "baby." even if he doesn't quite understand, it still makes me happy :)

i am going to be 6 months (24 weeks) next week. i can't believe it...
the little guy is moving a lot these days and my tummy is definitely getting bigger and bigger. we are still kind of having trouble with names, but i think it'll come to us as the time gets closer.

my lower back or sciatic nerve is killing me this time! sometimes i even have trouble walking without limping a bit. i try to stretch and it helps, but man...it's painful. hope it subsides soon.

well, here are some pictures from the past couple of weeks.

caleb playing with the water table...playing with blocks while wearing daddy's tie...
ok, so this picture is the story behind my broken camera :( i took caleb to play with rocks at the beach and my friend was taking pictures of us. caleb had so much fun throwing rocks into the water that i thought it was so cute. i turned around and let go of caleb for a few seconds (literally) to get the camera from my friend because i wanted pictures of caleb playing...

while i was reaching for the camera, caleb had ran into the water excitedly and got swept away! he seemed so far out. he was in a panic and struggling in the water. i was freaking out! so, i swam into the water to get him, with my camera in my hand. we were both soaking wet and crying when i got him out of the water. my flip flop broke and we both had minor scrapes from the rocks. devestating experience and it goes to show you can't take your eyes off your child at all!

therefore, for my birthday, my wonderful hubby and siblings got me a new camera :) i'm so happy, thank you! but i do miss my old one though.
caleb was happy in the car that day...
at a bbq with daddy...
we love playing with his hair during bath time!
he always falls asleep in the car after a long sunday at church...such a big boy now!
throwing rocks with daddy
some father and son time...
it's so bright!
don't know why caleb is fascinated with rocks :) but it's fun to see him play.
i tried to get a picture with him, but of course, his eyes were closed...or is he just smiling? when we ask him to smile, he shuts his eyes and squints his nose...
i love this picture that someone from church took of him!
jun and i had a date night on my birthday! two lovely ladies volunteered to babysit for us :) they are so good with caleb that we didn't think twice :)
prime rib, well done of course...for the prego lady :) oh, and there's the loaded baked potato :) yum!
mud pie for dessert!
sunset at a park after dinner.
when we came home, a few of the girls from church surprised me for my bday...balloons filled the house...cupcakes, a banner, and a gift :) thank you! it was very unexpected.

here's jun, me, caleb, and baby brother :) haha...
yummy cupcakes...
enjoying the cupcakes :)

thanks again, everyone.

announcement

we are having another BOY!!! yeah..our minds were kinda set on having a girl just because we don't have one...BUT jun and i kinda had a feeling it was going to be a boy again and we are totally happy and excited. we think it'll be fun to have two brothers growing up together. we just wonder...will this one look as much like jun as caleb does?? haha...
the ultrasound was exciting and jun actually saw the "boy part" before the technician did and he just couldn't stop smiling, so i asked him, "what?! is it another boy?" he answered yes, very happily...and the technician took another look and confirmed it. it was a cute experience :)

that's the only big news around here. there aren't too many pictures this time because my little camera broke, so i always have to use the big fancy one, which means i end up taking less pics because it's hard to carry around. no worries, we'll buy another one soon :)

the weather in washington has been very nice...no rain and very clear and sunny. i'm enjoying this while i can...because i hear summers are short here.

pregnancy has been ok. i am still so tired all the time and my sciatic nerve gets to be very painful at times...lower back pain is not fun. i still get very light headed and need to take things slow...but i am trying to enjoy my second trimester. i am 5 months as of this week.


one of the few pics i have taken with caleb since my pregnancy, so i love this one and it wasn't even from our camera.
focused on the computer screen...he only gets to watch the wiggles music dvd once a day.
a shot of his bathtime...
he's starting to use his chair a lot more these days.
we took a nice long walk at greenlake ....
auntie helan and uncle yong took us to the seattle aquarium with their prime card :)
caleb was fascinated and especially liked the starfish...maybe because he was able to say "star"
a family pic at 4 1/2 months prego...
caleb playing with felt fish...
with helan...
caleb looks so much like his dad...
with yong...
i made this for jun for father's day....
before...
after....
smile! he does this everytime he sees the camera...so funny.