Friess Family Zoo

Sunday evening a number of family members came to visit and it was a ZOO in our little room. And it wasn't even half of us! The cousins were all so excited. Especially Bailey who was either cuddling with Paxton or with me the entire evening. She took her job very seriously as she held him and stared lovingly into his eyes. Both Addie & Sarah can say "Pax" which was very exciting.

Alyson & Beth came to visit amidst the chaos. It was still great to see them even though they decided not to stay too long.
Grandma & Grandpa made the trip up from Salem too. What a lucky little boy to be surrounded by so much love!

Meeting His Brothers & Sister

The kids were so excited to come and meet Paxton the following morning. Sarah squealed with delight. She LOVES him so much that she cannot keep her hands off of his eyes, out of his mouth, etc. The boys both had lots of turns holding him. This baby will have a lot of love!



My mom was thankfully in town and helped with the kids for several days. They really enjoyed having the time with Nana. And it was great to know that the kids were in good hands while we were away.

Welcome Paxton Beckett Friess!

Paxton Beckett Friess was born on September 19, 2009 at 9:34 pm. He had been teasing us with lots of contractions for several weeks, so when the time finally came, he came quickly. Contractions started around 4:45 in the afternoon. Mom and I took the kids the park because I didn't want to sit around the house waiting to be disappointed again. But this time the contractions kept going and got steadily stronger until we decided to head home. By the time we reached the house about 6 pm, I could no longer walk through the contractions. We packed up and headed to the hospital. The contractions were so intense that I made Mark push me upstairs in a wheelchair (a first!) Just after 7 pm, I was 6 cm dilated. My water broke an hour later.

I had decided to have an epidural. My babies had all been posterior, so I figured my chances were extremely high for it to happen again. I wasn't emotionally and physically up for birthing without drugs again. However, the nurses were nervous that there would be time to administer an epidural. So we called Endre, our wonderful doula & friend, who gladly came to the hospital even though she was over 40 weeks pregnant herself.

Thankfully, the doctor did not have a chance to check my cervix before the anesthesiologist came. The contractions were extremely intense and I knew I was going through transition again while he was inserting the needle (just like with Bennett). As soon as he was done, the doctor cleared me to start pushing. My doctor was stuck in traffic on the way home from a football game, but the doctor on-call did a great job. I only pushed for 45 minutes (compared to 2-3 hours with all the others). And yes, he was born posterior! Must be the shape of my pelvis or something.

At 7 lbs. 12 oz. and 21 inches long, he was practically perfect in every way. We are so thrilled that he has arrived!


First moments with Paxton.

Calling the family to let them know the news!
Our wonderful doula, Endre Richards. I would highly recommend her! (For more information, visit her website.)
First bath with Dad.

First Day of Preschool

Bennett started preschool this week. He was so excited! There were no nerves, like last year. He just walked right in and started working. He wasn't even worried that his best friend had not arrived yet when we left. He is loving it! It's so wonderful to see your kids happy.

Seven Planet Grand Opening

Mark's brother, John, opened a new store in Old Town Portland today -- Seven Planet. The whole family went down the big grand opening celebration. I apologize that I uploaded all the photos backwards so if you want to start from the beginning of the event, you'll have to scroll down.
John's grand opening speech. You can view the entire 7 minute song & speech, here.
What a cute family! John, Wendy & Caden -- soon to be four.
Dramatic ripping of the sign!
Family gathered outside the store.

Outside the store prior to the opening. I think it's fun that the store is located in the same building, around the corner, from Mark's office.

We also had another family launch this weekend. Dan took OttaScoot to the Portland RV Show. Mark went down to see the display yesterday. The pictures he posted were fantastic. It looked great! (They are posted on Mark's twitter account or on the OttaScoot posterous account.) We are so excited to see these family projects moving forward. Next we are waiting for the Journey Gym big launch. It's a family of entrepreneurs. We wish everyone big success!

Baby Belly

We are trying to patiently wait for our little man to make an appearance. (He isn't due for two more weeks so I have no excuse for not being patient, but I'm still anxious!) Last night we took advantage of the situation and had a fun belly photo shoot. This was our favorite one. What cute little hands!

Hood to Coast 2009

Mark organized a family team for the Hood to Coast "Mother of All Relays" this year. Almost all of our family members participated in some way. It was a crazy and fun weekend.