Dear Daniel Tiger,
Thank you for keeping both boys entertained, quiet and stationary while I got dressed this morning. And the fact that you had an episode on about listening to adults and being well behaved was just a cherry on top. MUCH appreciated!
Forever grateful,
Kristi 
A brief look into life over the last two weeks: 
Our new wheels. Feels a bit like pushing a VW down the street but it works well with two kiddos and a mommy who wants exercise!
Last Wednesday was my first day without outside help from grandparents, Andy was back to work in the city and Andrew was also home from school. So it was me and two kids….alone!
Well I’m pleased to say that we all survived and even had a fun day! We read books, played trains and went for a drive in the morning (yes this was motivated by a Starbucks drive thru). After nap we went to the nature center and played outside before dinner. All in all a success and a good confidence booster for this new mommy of two! ?
Love our local nature center! Andrew is mildy obsessed with seeing the fishies so it’s a good bargaining chip to encourage good behavior! 
The welcome committee continued! Grandma and Grandpa James came to New Jersey to meet Teddy and provide some much needed support during our first few days home. We’re so blessed to have such a strong and loving support system around us! 
The weather was shockingly warm (almost 70 degrees!) over the weekend so we all ventured out to Liberty Park for some playground, train spotting and duck feeding. Even Teddy got in on the action! 
Big brother feeding the ducks:
Little brother waiting patiently: 
We were sad to see them leave on Sunday but look forward to getting the whole PB&J family together in just a few weeks!
Teddy received a warm welcome home as we settled into life as a family of 4! A special thanks to Coco, Papa and Aunt Kiki for helping smooth the transition for Andrew while we were ‘preoccupied’ at the hospital. 
And we’re home! Andrew insisted on holding the baby. We’re loving his interest and excitement about his brother…just trying to ensure he doesn’t break Teddy in the process.
Singing happy birthday to baby Teddy! Andrew will happily jump on any reason for cupcakes, candles and singing!
Hello old friend. The jungle mat is back!
Daddy and Teddy. And big bro didn’t want to be left out…
Welcome Teddy! Thank you for completing our family! 
Daddy sleeps. A nap well deserved! I know moms and babies get all the focus thus often leaving dads feeling left out and neglected. Well let me go on record and say that we have one awesome Daddy in our house. He’s been an amazing partner with seemingly endless patience and understanding. I couldn’t be more grateful to travel this parenting journey together! 
Teddy meets Coco, Papa and Aunt Kiki!
We busted out a little early and were excited to head home to see Andrew and start this new life outside of the hospital! 
Welcome to the world Henry Theodore Phillips! We are elated to finally meet you….and learn that you are actually a HE!
Little man Teddy was born EXACTLY on his due date; February 18, 2017 at 2:18 am in Morristown, NJ. He weighed 7 lbs 13 oz and was 21 1/4 inches long. He’s ever so slightly larger than his brother at birth although currently possesses a lighter more ‘Kleinfelter’ shade of hair. But like his big brother, he has wonderfully blue eyes.
So, how did it all happen?! Well the story is much shorter and less painful than his brothers’ but here it goes. Around 7pm on Friday February 17, 2017 I started with contractions. Instantly the contractions were long enough (1 minute in duration) and close enough (5-8 minutes apart) which put us into the ‘zone.’ After the required 1 hour of consistent contractions we called the doctor. While we could have waited slightly longer, I now knew the power, beauty and wonder that is an Epidural and did NOT want to miss my window. So we called the doc, shared our data (again tracked by the appropriate app) and were given the green light to head to the hospital.
I kissed Andrew goodbye (an obvious new step in the process from last time) who was already in bed, hugged my parents and off we went. I was admitted to the hospital around 10 pm- at which point my contractions were consistently 2-3 minutes apart and I was 5cm dilated. By 12 am I was in my room being visited by the miracle man, aka the anesthesiologist, with my Epidural. After his stop in delivery room 12, I was in my happy place. But I was still having some intense pain in my back so the doctor gave me a ‘bolster’ which took me then to my VERY happy place. Afterwards I felt nothing, no where.
Slightly after the happy drugs the doctor broke my water which consequently kicked my contractions up to 90 seconds apart. At 1:55 am the pushing began and by 2:18 am on February 18, 2017 Henry Theodore Phillips joined the world, completed our little family and filled our hearts with endless love! 
So were we surprised that HTP was a boy? Simply put, ‘yup.’ Both Andy and I were non-committal on Teddy’s gender during pregnancy but deep down thought he would be a she. I mean how could the Chinese gender chart, ring test, heart beat analysis and various other old wives tales be wrong?! It’s practically science. BUT we are blessed to be the parents of two cute little boys and can’t wait to start this new chapter in the Phillips family adventure! Bring on the planes, trains, diggers, cars, and all things little boy!
And why Henry Theodore? Henry is a family name on Andy’s side and Theodore, well we just loved the name Teddy. So why not name a boy you adore with a name you love?!
