New Arrivals

We are moving into full blown countdown mode here at the Winn house. Baby Emilzoomius is supposed to arrive in 2 weeks, but Lix is really hoping for that always elusive Winn early arrival. She has been going through boxes of baby clothes marveling at how on earth we accumulated so much stuff for such a little person. Based on my calculations, if we change the baby 4-5 times each day there is a slight chance that she will be able to wear each outfit once before she outgrows them. Lix got two baby showers for #3, one from Jarom’s coworkers and another from her local friends. Both were wonderful events and we got lots of nice gifts from very generous people. The highlight from the work shower would probably be a stroller to put the carseat into. For Bo, we simply stole Nate and Kenzie’s, but they’ve still got Callie so we had to find a new solution. The top gift from the local shower was undoubtedly Alixa’s new diaper bag. Jarom says that it is crazy to add a 5^th diaper bag to the rotation, especially at a cost of over $150, but you really can’t reason with pregnant women, and it was a gift anyway. Jarom did manage to squeeze a free round of golf out of the deal, so he’s thrilled. All in all, a big thanks to anyone who was nice enough to get us a gift. We are very lucky to have so many nice people in our lives.

And because learning how to handle two new babies is always better than one, we are also working on training Sonic. He is in his early teenage stage right now, where he has too much energy and sometimes plays a little too rough. We have transitioned his home base from the laundry room to the garage, and are slowly introducing full outdoor life to him. At first he was very skittish and basically just stood at the door until you let him back in. After all, there are lots of new noises and things out there that he has never seen before. But he is getting the hang of it. He loves to climb trees and is pretty good at it, even though his first attempt got him stuck 12 feet up and Jarom had to climb up and save him, much to Jenna’s amusement. When he isn’t pouncing and chewing your hand he is a very good cuddle buddy and we all really love having him around. There are a pair of spray bottles kept in the house that get used fairly regularly for when he climbs on the table or gets too feisty.

The other thing that Lix has been yapping about for a little while is her “push gift.” Apparently this is a real thing that women have tricked their way into getting in return for having a baby. I guess the miracle of birth just isn’t enough for some women. Jarom has never gotten Alixa one of these gifts, so he decided to make up for it and get a great present this time. Before I tell you what the gift is, I must put out a warning: Jarom doesn’t care that you think his gift is terrible, which many of you will. Jarom doesn’t care if you are not pleased with his lack of imagination and romanticism when it comes to the gifts that he gives his wife, whether it be for Christmas or a birthday or as a reward for getting rid of a parasite. Jarom is perfectly content with his pragmatic, reasonable approach to gift giving, and if Alixa is bothered by it she is welcome to look elsewhere for her presents, because he isn’t going to change anytime soon. Now back to the gift. One of the things that we all really loved about this house is the hardwood floors that run through the main floor. There is also some tile that Alixa hates in the kitchen. And ever since we moved here those floors have been a pain in the butt to keep clean, because we have messy adults and messy kids and the only vacuum that we had to clean the non-carpeted area was a little $15 stick one that did about the job you would expect for that price. So Jarom decided to get Lix a Dyson. They’ve talked about this purchase for a long time, but as anyone who knows Jarom and is familiar with Dyson’s price point could guess, they’ve never made the leap. After the first time she used it Lix walked around in her bare feet and was overjoyed that she couldn’t feel anything but the floor. So despite its hefty price tag, the yellow machine will be sticking around a while.

One other event that happened a little while ago but escaped me was a visit from Jarom’s long lost high school buddy Aaron. He went to the Air Force Academy and has spent the past decade flying US cargo all over the globe, but recently decided to switch and become a flight trainer. That means that he had to spend a few months in San Antonio and he was bored enough there to make the drive up for a day. They got some subs with Nate and Kenz, Aaron ate two of them, and they talked about their lives and caught up. Jarom has had a few chances in the past few years to see old Delaware friends, and it’s always been a good time. It reminds him that he is getting old because lots of them are married and having kids (who does that?) and he talks with them about how his body is holding up and whether or not he can still play sports with the young’uns. Jarom was recently wondering how old he will be when Bo is able to beat him at basketball. Any guesses out there? Old people, how old were you when your kids passed you athletically? At any rate, it was great to see Aaron and find that he is doing well, and hopefully it won’t be another ten years before they cross paths again. And next time I write it will hopefully be a birth announcement.

Editor’s Note: Mitch wrote this Thursday evening, but I was very tired when I got home from playing ball and failed to put it on the interweb. And so now I should probably mention that a healthy 6-pound baby girl arrived this afternoon and that Mom and Baby are both doing well. Mitch will elaborate on the whole experience as soon as he can.