Introducing Jonas Rico Libby

Jonas Rico Libby

7 lbs. 7 oz

20 inches long

It has taken me 3 weeks to do so and many of you have already seen him on FB but here is the little man...officially...Jonas Rico Libby. The little man decided to make his debut 5 days earlier and his delivery went really well. He was born on Monday, Nov. 7th. My water broke on Sunday at about 5:30 pm. We labored at home for a little bit and were at the hospital about 10:30 that night. I got my epidural (I had already delivered without one of those...been there, done that, got the t-shirt...was SO happy to get the epidural this time around!) about 1 am and delivered Jonas at 8:55 am on Monday. Though the delivery was smooth and quick, the cord was wrapped around his neck which made his delivery a bit scary. His heart rate dropped rapidly during delivery and just about every nurse on the floor was in the room to help. Jonas came into the world very purple and didn't cry right away but God is SO good and he kept our little guy safe and healthy. When we found out he was a boy, we were first thought, "Oh no, we are not set on a boy's name!" I don't know why we struggle with boy names! So for about an hour or so, Jonas was Boy Libby. After Dave and I talked for awhile, we decided to stick with Jonas which was our choice for most of the pregnancy. We weren't sure of a middle name for the entire pregnancy but once Jonas was born, we thought it would be special to name him after my grandfather, Americo, who passed away just last December. His birth was a special experience and no matter how many children we have, it still amazes me to see the miracle of 10 little fingers and 10 little toes. It never gets old.

We are slowly adjusting to life as a family of 6. Christmas is around the corner and we are gearing up for an exciting season celebrating with family. Homeschooling is getting back on track, I am 2 weeks away from being done with my class, Dave's parents are coming for a visit next week and I am thoroughly enjoying being on my maternity leave with my kiddos. I am praying for a blessed season with time to enjoy my kids and get to know our little guy. Thank you all for your thoughts and prayers as we welcome our new little one into our lives. Can't wait for you to meet him!

These kids were so excited to meet their little brother! When Auntie Donna had first told Josiah it was a boy, he cried. He had his mind set on a girl so that our family would be "even". But once he realized he could play cars and sports with Jonas, he was ok and happy to have a brother...

Our first family photo as a family of 6

Jonas was there for the preparation of the turkey. This picture cracks me up with his arms looking just like the legs!

"Hmmm...am I going to get to eat that or is it going to eat me???"

Powerless...

Snowtober is what they are calling here in the Northeast. A perfect way to end October...with a snowstorm. We got about 8 inches and it felt like a December day. We should have been carving pumpkins but were shoveling snow instead. Honestly, it was not even exciting. That first snow of the season is usually highly anticipated and such a fun time together of snuggling up, watching movies and drinking hot chocolate and it also usually takes place in December...around Christmas. But not this year. I do have some pictures of the kids helping daddy shovel on Sunday morning but we have been with power since Saturday night so I can't upload them right now. Thankfully, my brother didn't lose his power and I am here catching on some work and laundry. The rest of the family is still without power so Rick's house has been the "hub" for warmth, showers, food and comfort. Thank goodness for family!
But it's amazing how much you depend on electricity. I mean, we have been without it for a day or so but this has been difficult. The kids don't understand why they can't sharpen their pencil (not, we don't even have an old fashioned sharpener!) or watch TV. Hannah actually cried a couple of times when I told her she couldn't watch Dora for awhile. The poor little thing just didn't get it. It came to a head a little bit this morning with no milk in the house for cereal or toaster to make waffles or toast and an empty frig. The nights are not horrible to sleep since we light about 40 candles in our bedroom before we all go to sleep...in the same room. It's the morning that's the worst. The goal is to get the kids out the door as fast possible and get some food in their bellies (something more than dry cereal is the goal).
We are told our town should all have power by Friday at midnight. In the meantime, I have felt so powerless. Powerless over my house because I can't control our electricity. Powerless to keep my house the way I want it because I can't keep up with it because we are either not home or it's too dark to do anything when we are home. Powerless to know when our newest will arrive and praying that he/she stays in another week or so...who wants to bring home a newborn to a 55 degree house??? But in being powerless, I am reminded that we have to know that Jesus is all powerful. He knows just what he is doing in us not having power in our house. He knows that I needed to be out of the house today to laundry at my brother's and just hang out with my kids. If I was home today, would I have hung out with my kids? Probably not. Would I have cuddled up and watched a movie with them? Doubt it. I truly believe that God gives us these times to take a step back. Our lives have been so busy these last couple of months and we have barely slowed down. Now we have to. And I have to admit, while I was in the bathroom getting ready one morning this week, I realized how much I enjoyed the quiet. No TV on, no computer games, no bright lights throughout the house. Just quiet. It doesn't happen often enough and I realize that it needs to happen more in our home.
Yes, it stinks not having power but I realize that it could be much worse. So many have lost entire homes through earthquakes, tornadoes and tsunamis this past year. It's just no electricity. It's difficult but we have had people reach out to help and that is a blessing. In fact, today a friend offered us a small generator to help us out a bit. We will use it for our pellet stove so hopefully that will help a bit with our lack of heat. I will keep you posted and post pictures when I can.