The Catalina Crew

So what do the boys do when mom goes overtown to hang with her girlfriends?…… Its time to build a SuperFort!

So, Jared and Jacob’s hair is getting a little bit long and Tristan already has a stylin’ doo… The natural solution of course is to trim Dad & Jacob to match the little guy! Bring out the kitchen chair and a set of hair clippers and we can get down to business. Dad trims Jacob’s head, Jacob trims Dad’s head (with mom’s help), and Tristan just sits there and looks cute!

It has been a crazy few weeks! We can hardly believe that Tristan is already 2 months old. He is growing quickly and putting on the pounds. After surviving a month of pretty serious hardcore colic that drove us to the brink of utter despair (especially Suzanne because Jared has to be away from the house for work way too much), we made some changes to his diet and now we are sailing through what could be an “average” infant temperament. Though sometimes Interspersed with fussy/colicy moments here and there, it is like he is a completely different person.

Tristan is a wonderful child. He demands his meal about every two hours like clockwork but when he is in a good mood he pleasures us with never ending smiles and rather intelligent sounding coo’s, goo’s, and N’gaah sounds. He will even sit still on occasion in his bouncer, swing, or play gym for an hour at a time, watching the action around him. (Something that number one NEVER EVER did!)

We went “overtown” for the weekend a while ago and spent some time with Grandma & Grandpa Parrette. Jacob LOVES G&G Parrette and is constantly asking if we can go over to their house for a sleepover. Whenever we go overtown, he asks if we are going to see them.

Any excuse for a beach day is a good excuse for a beach day, so that same weekend we hooked up with the Neff’s (Sue’s sister Stephanie and family) who just happened to be in the neighborhood and hit the beach. Jacob was, of course, overjoyed to get to spend some time playing with his cousin Gabe. The thing he misses most about Salt Lake City is playing with his cousins.

Jacob loves his little brother beyond belief and the two are obviously developing a special bond already. One of the first things Jacob does each morning is search out Tristan for a hug and nuzzle. His 4-year-old enthusiasm scares Mom & Dad sometimes and we are constantly having to tell him “be soft”. Jacob is always eager to help out with his brother and is quite active in making sure that spit-ups and crying are brought to Mom or Dad’s attention and dealt with rapidly.

Jacob & Dad went out to the pier to do a little fishing the other night. They arrived to find several old guys muttering about how poor the fishing was and complaining about not catching anything because the tourists were throwing too much fish food in the water, spoiling the fish. Well, we put a couple of “magic” green beans on Jacob’s hook and tossed it in the water. Within about 15 second, Jacob had a fish on the line! With Dad shouting in excitement and a crowd of onlookers gathering around, Jacob calmly reeled his line in and pulled the lucky Calico Bass up onto the deck. At about 8 inches, it wasn’t a monster, but it was just pan sized and Jacob decided then and there that we were going to have “Fish & Chips” for lunch!

And last, but not least, to finish up this post with the “cute factor,” here is a quick shot of Tristan enjoying a bath in the kitchen sink.

Well, the much anticipated event has occurred and we are now a family of four!

Tristan William Ruplinger
7 lbs, 6 oz. 20.5 inches

Because there are only limited medical facilities in Avalon, the majority of children are born in Long Beach rather than on the island. After a single false alarm, many trips “overtown” for checkups, and several weeks of waiting, the doc said we had best prepare for an induction as the baby was getting to be somewhat overdue and the risks associated with going back to the island to wait were too high. We checked in to the hospital guest house on the afternoon of the 22nd, took a swim in the pool, and ate some dinner. Jared’s sister Danielle was fortunately able to come up from San Diego to watch Jacob while we were at the hospital. So they went to sleep around 9:30 while Jared & Sue began to get ready to go in and “have a baby.”

It appears that Tristan, like his big brother, is not about to be forced to do anything, so at around 10:15 he decided to get things moving on his own and Sue began to have mild contractions. By around 12:00 midnight when we were walking over to the hospital for our “appointment” to begin inducing, the contractions had gotten much more intense and it was obvious that no induction would be needed! In the 20 minutes it took us to walk the hundred yards from the guest house to the hospital doors, the contractions had increased to only 5 minutes apart and becoming more powerful. We hurried as best we could up to the maternity ward and by 1:00 or so were checked in to a very nice and cozy delivery room. Contractions increased rapidly and were beyond powerful. I was amazed when Jacob was born, and I was even more amazed this time at the strength and endurance that Suzanne possesses and the unbelievable pain that she had to go through to deliver these boys. Although Tristan’s labor was shorter than Jacob’s, I have little doubt that the combined intensity of all 30 hours of Jacob’s labor were packed into the two hours that Sue was laboring for Tristan. Whenever I think about it (many times each day right now!) I am in total and absolute awe. But then, before you could scream the word “epidural” twice, Sue was pushing, Tristan was crowning, and then there he was! (About 5 minutes later, our Doctor made it to the hospital!) We had an absolutely incredible nurse, Evelyn, who was there with us for the whole time and helped with the delivery along with two other nurses who rushed into the room just as Tristan was emerging. It all happened so quickly that even the attending physician did not have time to get to the room.  Suzanne and Tristan are both healthy and doing great, and we all made it back home to our island together.