Kentucky Derby Fun

We had lots of fun during Derby this year. Evan got to ride a horse at preschool and he also had a Derby party. We took Evan to The Great Steamboat Race as well, which was lots of fun. (Preston was too little to go to the boat race, so Melinda Arbough watched him for us. We missed Preston, but it was nice to have some special time with Evan.) Carl got to go to Churchill Downs several times with work, which he really enjoyed. On Derby day we relaxed here at the house. Bonnie Mom, Grandpa, Aunt Rachel, Uncle Teddy, Caroline, Terri, Levi, Luke and David came to visit and watch the race. We had a really good time, even though no one picked I'll Have Another as the winner of the race.

Evan liked riding the horse at preschool. (I had so much fun going to watch him!)

Evan enjoyed his class party. He had fun playing lots of different Derby themed games and eating ice cream. He was most happy that I was able to make it to the party though!

Evan and Daddy sat down to watch the boats begin the race.

The Belle of Louisville

We cheered for the Belle of Louisville to win the race. (It must have worked because she won!)

Evan was so excited to ride the helicopter again this year! He had LOTS of fun!

Evan enjoyed the rides at the boat race. He rode the fun slide LOTS of times!

I had so much fun riding the Ferris wheel with Evan.

Carl and I enjoyed Derby Day. (I was really happy because I fit into my regular clothes and felt great!)

Preston and Mommy

Preston had fun getting all dressed up for his very first Derby.

Evan learned how to swing on Derby Day! What an accomplishment!

Thunder Over Louisville and Preston's Early Arrival

We were very excited to be able to go to Thunder Over Louisville this year. (We were unable to go last year because Evan was very sick.) Evan loves the planes and fireworks and I was excited to spend some quality family time together. We headed downtown early in the afternoon. We parked on River Road and then took a leisurely walk downtown while watching the air show. We arrived at Waterfront Park, where there were LOTS of rides, so we let Evan ride for awhile and then headed over to get a snack at The Chow Wagon. We purchased our Derby pins and were thrilled to find that they were both GOLD! Unfortunately, we couldn't enter The Chow Wagon because we had food and drinks in our bag, but that was o.k because we were really happy about our pins! We then walked over to Carl's building where we watched more of the air show and relaxed. At dinner time we went over to Impellizeri's for pizza, which was really good. After dinner we headed back to Carl's building to watch more of the air show.


Evan was really happy to see all of the cool planes during the air show! (Carl and I were pretty impressed too. Those planes are pretty cool and the pilots are very talented!)

The rides were super fun for Evan this year. He had a blast!

The service at dinner was slow, so Evan got to play some video games while we waited for our food. He was REALLY happy when he won the mini games!

Watching the air show after dinner and waiting for the fireworks turned out to be VERY exciting. My water broke! After gathering our belongings and making a few phone calls, we headed downstairs to try to get to our car. Unfortunately, no one was able to help us. They just wanted to call an ambulance, which was not necessary. Luckily, I saw a taxi and it was available. We hopped in and the driver tried to get us to our car. By this time lots of the roads were closing and it seemed like we were not going to be able to get to the car. I was starting to be pain, so we just asked the driver to take us to the hospital.

When we arrived at the hospital, Evan was still pretty bummed at not being able to see the fireworks. Heather comforted him and then Grandpa arrived and took Evan up to the hospital roof to see the fireworks. (Grandpa really saved the day!) I got registered and then settled in the triage area. Dr. Bilotta explained that they wanted to try to let me digest my recently eaten dinner before the c-section. That meant we were going to try to wait until about 4:00 in the morning for Preston's birth. We were taken to a nice labor and delivery room where I was given an epidural to help with the pain. It was then time to sleep, so we said goodnight to everyone and tried to rest. (It was REALLY hard for me to say goodnight to Evan. I knew he was in great hands with Grammy and Granddaddy, but he was so sad to leave. I felt better when Grammy and Granddaddy called to say Evan fell asleep before they left the hospital.) Carl was able to sleep a bit, but I was just too excited to sleep! I was REALLY excited when the clock in the room said 4:00 and the nurse came in to start getting me ready!

During the next hour and a half, Carl and I got ready for Preston's arrival. Carl didn't have too much to do, other than get on his fancy operating room outfit. (The zipper broke, so he was able to wear scrubs instead of the Elvis jumpsuit!) I got lots more medications, including more medication from the epidural. Dr. Evans arrived and I was super excited to see her. (She came in on a day off to deliver Preston!) I was soon wheeled into the operating room and before long Preston was delivered! He was born at 5:31 a.m. He weighed 7 pounds and 11 ounces and was 20 1/2 inches long. I was SO happy that he was healthy! (Evan was quickly whisked off to the N.I.C.U after his birth.) The rest of the surgery went well and we were soon take to the recovery room.

I enjoyed getting to hold Preston in the recovery room for the first time. Both Carl and I said he looked a lot like Evan, just with dark hair. We also enjoyed seeing Barbara Shallcross, who was a bit disappointed that she wasn't at work when Preston was born. (She was my nurse with Evan's birth and was going to be my nurse for Preston's birth when he was scheduled to arrive on May 1st.)

Once I was in my regular hospital room, everyone came to visit. Carl and I were especially excited to see Evan! He was REALLY excited to see Preston. He held him for awhile and happily posed for pictures. (He was a VERY proud big brother!) Of course, we were happy to see the rest of our family too, who all came that day to see Preston.

I was SO excited to FINALLY be at the hospital! I was also REALLY excited that Preston would be arriving soon!

Evan was excited to meet Preston. (He did not want to leave my side!)

This was the sign outside of our operating room. It was so cute!

Carl and I were so happy to meet Preston!

Daddy and Preston

Mommy and Preston

Preston

Evan was excited to meet Preston on Sunday morning. Here is our first photo as a family of four.

We should note that Carl's dad said we should not go to Thunder Over Louisville in case I went into labor. Dr. Evans said it wouldn't be a problem for us to go and since I was still about 3 weeks away from my due date, we decided it would be safe to go. We were all shocked that I actually did go into labor that night! It does make for a very interesting birth story for Preston and we will never again go to Thunder over Louisville without remembering this very special night!

Here is a copy of what Carl sent to his co-workers. I think it is pretty funny and sums up the night.

Preston arrived yesterday morning at 5:31! Though he came a little early, both he and Rachael are doing great! He weighed 7 pounds 11 ounces and was 20.5 inches long.

His early arrival made for an interesting weekend. As such, I wanted to thank a few folks that helped us get through the night:

Thanks to the girl that sold us two Pegasus pins (both gold!) who was evidently trying to tip us off that it was our lucky day.

Thanks to Alan for letting us use his office to watch Thunder, but apologies for the state of the chair that Rachael was sitting in when this whole process started.

Thanks to Erminia for cleaning up after us while we rushed out of the building.

No thanks to the police who would not help us get to our car and said the only option was to get an ambulance.

Thanks to the cab driver that took us to the hospital.

Thanks to Evan, who had to settle for watching the fireworks from the roof of the hospital but didn’t hold it against Preston too much.

And most of all, thanks to Rachael, who didn’t kill me despite that fact that I wasn’t exactly sober during much of this.

In the above e-mail I would have expected Carl to thank me for having Preston too. =)

Here is a copy of what I sent to my co-workers.

Preston Matthew Koontz is here! We were a bit shocked that he came early, but we are so grateful! He weighs 7 pounds and 11 ounces and is 20 1/2 inches long. I think he looks like his brother Evan. =)

Easter 2012

We had a lot of fun this Easter. Evan started his celebration at preschool with singing, a special snack, and an Easter egg hunt. Grammy got to attend the celebration, as well as Aunt Heather. Everyone said that Evan had lots of fun. On Saturday we ate breakfast with the Easter Bunny and had an Easter egg hunt at Hunting Creek. The biggest celebration was on Sunday. Evan got his Easter basket and had one final Easter egg hunt on Sunday morning. We also went to church and then had dinner and more Easter fun with Grammy and Granddaddy. It was a busy day, but we had a great time!

Evan had fun showing off his special hat that he wore at his preschool celebration.

Breakfast with the Easter Bunny was a lot of fun. Evan liked eating pancakes and seeing the Easter Bunny.

Evan and the other children his age raced to find the eggs that were hidden.

Evan showed off the eggs that he found. He was VERY proud!

The Easter Bunny knows Evan well. Evan had lots of Star Wars items in his basket!

Evan found LOTS of eggs on Easter morning!

Easter Sunday was kind of warm and Evan REALLY wanted to go swimming. Since we couldn't do that, we let him play in the hose and sprinkler. He had a blast!

After dinner we placed flowers at the cemetery and then fed the fish in the pond. The kids probably thought that feeding the fish was one of the best parts of the day. They were really excited!

Evan and Granddaddy always have fun together. Of course, Easter was no exception!

Crazy Contractions

I started having contractions last Thursday afternoon while I was at school. At first it wasn't much of a big deal. The contractions were short, irregular and not painful. As time passed, the contractions got close together, longer and were painful. Additionally, I was having constant pain in my lower abdomen. After talking with Bill, we decided we needed to go to the hospital to make sure everything was o.k.

When we arrived I started feeling a bit better, but I was still having contractions. I was hooked up to the monitor, which showed that I was contracting every two minutes. Thankfully, I was not showing any other signs of labor and the medicine that they gave me stopped the contractions. I was VERY relieved. After an ultrasound and some additional monitoring, we were sent home later that night. I was VERY relieved that Preston was not making his appearance at only 35 weeks!

My Contractions

I was very happy to have the contractions stop and get to go home!

Evan's Gymnastics Show

Evan has taken gymnastics at preschool since last fall. He absolutely loves it and looks forward to going each week. This past Tuesday they had their last class and family members were invited to come and watch the kids show off their new skills. Aunt Heather went to watch Evan and Caleb's "Gymnastics Show." She said both boys had a blast. The best part of the day for Evan was that he got a "golden trophy" for his skills!

I just love both of these pictures! I am so grateful that Aunt Heather was able to take them for us, so we could see how excited the boys were!

Evan was THRILLED to receive his "golden trophy."

Evan and Caleb were both VERY proud of themselves and very happy to receive trophies.

GO CARDS!

Our U of L Cardinals made it to the Final Four of The NCAA Tournament this year. We are SO proud of them! It has been a lot of fun to cheer for them as they worked to win The Big East Tournament and then advanced through the NCAA Tournament. Sadly, they did not make it to the final game, but we are still happy to have had such a great end of the season.

Alpha Gam Weekend in Bowling Green

Our annual Alpha Gam Weekend was last weekend in Bowling Green. (Although I was not too sure that a weekend in Bowling Green was going to be much fun, we had a blast!) We began the weekend on Friday night with dinner at Puerto's. We ate yummy food and had LOTS of laughs. We then went back to the hotel where we watched a bit of basketball while talking/catching up.

On Saturday we all had breakfast and then headed out to go shopping and to the spa. The spa was little, but everyone had fun and it was nice to relax and sit around and talk. We all ate dinner at Mariah's that night. Once again, the night was filled with lots of talking and laughing! The best part of the night was stopping by the Alpha Gamma Delta house. Several of the girls were home and they let us tour the house. It was so much fun! They updated us on the chapter and also showed us some new cheers! Afterwards, we went back to the hotel where we spent the evening watching basketball and talking some more.

I had so much fun with my sisters. I am so glad that we all still keep in touch and that we are such close friends!

Dinner at Mariah's

Dinner at Mariah's

Terri and I had fun seeing our old room. It was fun to be roommates! Stacey and I got out picture taken in the room we used to share too, but it did not turn out very good. =(

Touring the house was lots of fun! The girls we nice and happily took our picture on the stairs of the house. It was just like old times!