Mason Ryan Sandstrom

Here's baby Mason Ryan Sandstrom.

I think he looks so much like Sadie. Of course a much manlier version. I think he has a Low nose, Karen's lips (whatever side that came from), and the rest is very Sandstrom to me. (I actually think overall he looks a lot like Laura.) What do you guys think?


Karen and her babies. (Sadie is actually trying to smile in this picture. I think I just caught her in the middle of trying to say "cheese")


The happy new parents.


Like Father like Son.


This is while Mason was warming up under the heat lamp and he was quite content to sit there and hold on to my finger. We stayed in this position for about 30 minutes.


Here's Mason about 30 seconds into life. He was born at 5:05pm Feb. 12, 2011. He weighed 7 pounds, 9 ounces. He was 21 inches, 10 toes, 10 fingers, and very healthy.


Saying hi to mom for the first time


Already comfortable in mom's arms 2 minutes into life.


Speaking of Mama, Karen is doing great. We are sure happy that he is here! He was due on February 21 but it was a pleasant surprise to have him come to us almost a week and a half early.


Here's a good profile shot.

Well, if you can't tell, Karen is usually the one that does the blog posts. I would take the time to try to figure out a better way to arrange the pictures to make it more story-like, but I haven't slept in 48 hours and so I think the random array of very cute pictures will do for tonight.

I will say though that the circumstances of this delivery was amazingly similar to when Sadie was born. When Karen was pregnant with Sadie, we went to the doctor's office and he said that there was no way that Karen would go into labor for a week. So, the doctor went on a vacation for a few days. Later that night, however, Karen starting having contractions. Karen called the doctor and the doctor said that there there was nothing to be concerned about and that Karen should just take a bath. So Karen took a bath and the contractions actually got worse. So, we decided to go into the hospital just to see what they would say. All of the nurses said that she looked fine and that she probably wasn't going into labor. But, just to be sure, they checked her and amazingly found out that in fact she was going into labor and admitted her. But as I mentioned, her doctor had just gone out of town. Then within 6 hours of being admitted, Sadie was delivered by the on-call doctor.

Well, the story could not be more identical today. Karen got checked yesterday and the doctor said she was fine and that she wouldn't go into labor for a week or more, so the doctor went on vacation. Then within a few hours Karen was having contractions. Again, Karen called the hospital and they told her not to worry but like last time the bath didn't help and things continued to progress and so we decided to go to the hospital to see what they would say. Literally every nurse that we spoke to on the way into the hospital reassured Karen that everything was fine and she didn't look like she was going into labor. However, they decided to check her and go figure she had progressed significantly in only a few short hours. So they admitted her and within 6 hours, the on-call doctor delivered the baby. The best part is that next to both hospitals, the one in Omaha and the one in Payson, Utah, there is a tiny, hole-in-the-wall Mexican restaurant named Fernandos. No relation to each other and because a guy named Fernando simply runs each one independently, they are not connected in any way. That coincidence was the icing on the cake. Oh ya, and they both have amazing Horchata.

I realize that that was the long version and I know that you are all probably thinking that it is ironic that I just gave the long version after saying that I needed to do this post quickly because I was tired. Oh well, the amazing coincidences of the two deliveries probably outweigh the irony of this post.

Everyone is doing great and we are really excited to have baby Mason finally here with us. We'll post more pictures soon.

Posted by Ryan, taken from the Swendsen Family blog

Christmas and stuff

After offering up an "I'm not tired" during dinner, a la David after the dentist, Sadie is down early tonight because of a missed afternoon nap. And with Ryan out playing tennis, I figured it was high time I crack my knuckles and finally get down to some serious blog catch up. Is it so sad that the main thing keeping me from posting was a dead camera battery for about 6 weeks? Now we're all juiced up and ready to go, so I really have no excuse.

Starting all the way back in December, BYU came and played Creighton in basketball, which we had to go see. It was really fun being in the alumni section in the arena. Sadie figured out the B-Y-U chant pretty quick, and says it anytime there is basketball on tv. After the Game we were allowed to go down court side and take pictures with the team and ask a few questions. However, once they realized how many people came, they only had Jimmer and Coach Rose say a few things, and then they had to hit the road. There were at least 300 people that hung out for the Q and A, so that was pretty neat to see. I guess with graduates all over the country/world, you can get a pretty decent following wherever you go!

Up in our seats near the end of the game. Sadie was much more enthusiastic earlier, I promise

Down court side. I'll admit, I got a little starstruck.

For Christmas, it was absolutely the best being back in Calgary. Sadie got plenty of play time there with all the cousins, referring to the girl cousins as their names, and all the boys were "buddy" until she figured them out. I'm not really sure where she picked that up, because we don't say "buddy" all that often. Maybe once there is a little boy around here, we will.

We got a chance to go see the beautiful zoo lights, which had a fun section orchestrated to "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas". Other outdoor activities included the nativity pageant on the 23rd (not pictured).

I think Dad was taking the picture, but he was there too

All bundled up

Shots from Christmas eve, where the bulk of the talent show were performances from the grand kids. Rachie and Dad also contributed stellar numbers.

All the kids in their cute Christmas jammies

Christmas day! A pretty quiet day, until Rachel opened up an iPhone case.

Grandma and Grandpa taking it all in

Sadie opening some presents. If I had to pick her favorite things, it would be the doll that all the girls got, and the super fashionable skirts that Laura picked out. Immediately after opening the box, Sadie needed to change the diaper on the baby. She kept asking it, "you stinky? Yeah..."

Sadie wanted her skirt on right away

A combo shot of Sadie's favorite items. She kept that skirt on basically all day.

Of course, she likes the box just as much as the toy that came in it

Dad, giddy as a school boy. That was Rachel's gift, by the way. It actually moves and makes sounds, and I'm not sure if they figured out if it can shoot torpedoes. Give me a ping, Vasili. One ping only, please.

Sadie loved hanging with Rachie, Gamma, and Banter (her version of grandpa). She took to all the extended family just fine, and played a lot with Grandpa Low when they were there for Christmas day. It was quite fun to watch actually.

After Christmas, we spent a couple of days up in Canmore, and did some touring in the mountains. Ryan had never been to Lake Louise, and since we're already married, it couldn't have any effect on our relationship (as it has been the death knell for many others). It was really gorgeous and snowy, and thankfully not that cold. Mom, Dad, Rachel and Jojo joined us in Canmore for dinner one night before they left for Texas.

Sadie quite liked the castle, and sliding around on the ice

She even found a little seat just her size. She's obsessed over having her own seat!

Loved the touque and jammie ensemble

We didn't spend too much time in Canada, as I realized my green card was about to expire, and we had to get back into the US before that happened. So we joined mom and dad in Texas for Christmas part II, and got to see all the rest of the family. We had lots of fun playing at the church, going out for lunch with the siblings, golf for the boys, and lots of late night games. Dan and Scott put on an impressive fireworks show, with explosions so big you could have sworn they were illegal! They were so big, it was scary-close watching them on the driveway. I don't have much picture evidence from Texas, but here is one cute shot:

And the vacation doesn't end there. Ryan had nearly a full month off in between semesters, so we left Texas for Arizona to see one last bout of family. We were so fortunate to get to see everyone on both sides of the family. Again, nothing from Arizona by way of pictures, but it was lots of eating fresh oranges and puzzles.

Eventually we made our way back home. Sadie's pose here says it all. It was nice to travel around and get to see everyone, but there's nothing like lounging back in your Dora the Explora bed and winding down with a sippy cup of diluted apple juice. Love you all and miss you more! I'm feeling just dandy, and can wait for the baby to come until Mom arrives in a week and a half.