Forgive me while I try to figure out what is going on with blogger. I have not updated since September, so I have no idea what is going on in here. If my post looks strange, sounds strange, or is strange . . . . I blame blogger. Ha! It's really going to be a random post of little things that make me laugh, smile, or scream.
To sum up, everyone is growing and changing all the time except us parents. I'd like to say that we are growing and changing, too, though - just in different ways.
Oh, and we moved in January.
I can't believe Soren will be a freshman in high school in the fall. I suppose he will be considered a freshman much sooner than that. . . . you know, like in 6 weeks (!!!!) when school is out for the summer. It's hard to take sometimes, but other times I look at him and am so impressed with the amazing young man that he is. Other times I want to strangle him because he's a teenager. Ya know? Sigh. I enjoy the moments we get to spend together, but he's so busy that they are few and far between. I know it only gets worse from here!
Caroline is .... Caroline. Yesterday she seriously did a flying ninja kick to Henry's head. I could not believe it. And yet, I could. Those two are crazy. They love each other to bits, but boy do they enjoy tormenting each other. Classic! And Soren is in on the trouble, too. The other day while we were eating dinner and Caroline was being a stinker, he looked at us and said, "Why is she so annoying??" HAHAHA! We both laughed.
I downloaded a goofy app to IPad the other day with all of these voice clips from My Little Pony (Caroline's favorite show in the whole wide world.... right now). I was showing it to Alan after 10pm and suddenly I hear Caroline on the monitor in our bedroom. I go in to tell her to go back to sleep and she looks at me and says, "Mommy, I heard ponies!!!" I had to stop myself from laughing and put her back to bed. I played maybe 2 or 3 clips for Alan, totaling less than 30 seconds, and she woke up. "Mommy, I heard Pinkie Pie!" Oh, boy! She has quite the ear for the things she loves.
Henry is talking in sentences. I can't understand them, but he sure knows what he's saying. Sometimes I catch bits and pieces. Yesterday we were at a friend's house (Jasmine is her name and she's kind of amazing), and as we were leaving he fully said goodbye to her and I believe followed it with see you later or I'm going home or something like that. I have never met a toddler who talks as much as he does. Holy COW the kid does not shut up!!!
And that's the time I have. There is so much more to say, but this is a start in updating. At least I hope.
:)
Friday, May 4, 2012
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Time to dust off the blog . . .
Here we are again.
See, here's the thing. I don't have time to be on the computer. I get it now. And I apologize to all of my friends who I may have mocked for not checking their email more or updated their blogs more or whatever. Two kids ages 2 and under makes that pretty stinking difficult. So, here it is:
I am very sorry.
There is way too much to update on, but I will do my best to start adding some fun back to this dusty, old, forgotten corner of the internet.
It will come as no surprise to you if I say that all of my children are growing like weeds. But I said it anyway. Ha!
Soren has most definitely passed me up in height. He seems to have flung full force into a growth spurt that can't be stopped. This year was the start of 8th grade for him and, loser that I am, I missed that "first day of school" picture. I suppose he is getting too old to be bothered by them anymore, but I am sad I missed it. Bad mommy! The school schedule this year was adjusted a bit, 5 periods instead of 6, so that threw us for a day or two. He is working hard already and I expect that trend will continue. Two of his classes qualify for high school credits, so he only has a little bit of stress to get awesome grades. . . . haha! This year he is doing wrestling for the first time and has plans to participate in basketball, and track. I'm also attempting to find some soccer team for him. Piano lessons started in October as well as Jazz band. This is where I would toss in a picture of him, but unfortunately they are on my phone and . . . yeah, I am not smart enough to get them onto the computer right now. Let it be noted that he grows more handsome and grown up every day but I still can see that mischievous twinkle in his eye that he's had since the day he was born. LOVE THIS KID! Erm, I mean . . . young man.
Caroline . . . where do I start with this girl. WOW did the Lord ... erm... bless me... with ... her? She is my challenge. Every. single. day. I love her to bits, but she and I definitely butt heads. Frequently. I am learning to choose my battles and yet still teach her valuable lessons (like that mom is the boss! haha!) every time we have a struggle. We still have a few issues now and then with the potty, but we really are through the tough part (I hope)! My princess will be three years old on Friday and that pretty much freaks me out. I can't believe how fast (sometimes) it has gone. It is fun to see her really begin to embrace pretending and playing. She also is in a pre-ballet class, which is like heaven for her. It seems like she has a smile on her face the entire time she is dancing. LOVE IT!
My baby boy, Henry, is just an absolute joy and his smile is the sunshine that starts my day (usually earlier than I want to be up, but that smile seriously saves him - and me!). He is huge - just over 20lbs, and loves people. The kid smiles at anyone and tries desperately to catch the eyes of strangers at the store so he can give him a grin. He is working on cutting tooth number 4 (so close!) so we've had lots of tears and even more drool!! Henry is very aware of all the people in the house - he knows daddy and will almost leap out of my arms while saying "dadadada" if Alan is in the room. Soren is bababa (brother) and they adore each other. Caroline is not an easy word to say and neither is sister, but he knows who she is and I can see his little brain calculating ways to outsmart her so he can get his hands on the many toys she tries to hide/take from him. I think he is plotting a takeover and it will begin the minute he is a stable walker, but maybe before! I figure he will outweigh her in 3-6 months easily, so that will help in his battle. Crawling is just around the corner, but for now he is scooting around, rolling around, and rocking around on his knees/hands while he tries to figure out the coordination that crawling will involve. LOVE my Henry!!!
So that is a quick run down of the kiddos. Alan and I both are working hard to keep things running as smoothly as possible here at home. Our house was hit with various illnesses for pretty much all of October, but I think we're all on the mend now and hope to be able to fight off the sickies for the holiday season.
I did have an interesting (to me anyway) thought today as I sat on the floor, Caroline in my lap and Henry crawling around me. Caroline was watching Toy Story and I was contemplating how much laundry I needed to do, how badly the floors need to be swept/washed, and how desperate I was to get the laundry room organized (again) when it hit me . . . 100 years ago - even 50 years ago - the day to day responsibilities in taking care of a home were much more complex. There weren't nearly as many conveniences to help with things like laundry, dishes, cooking, etc. I believe that one of the reasons we have the many time savers that we do today is to allow us to spend quality time with our children. They need us more now than ever. The world is a scary place with so many twists and turns that will pull our children down paths that no one should be on! It is so important for them to get the guidance, love, and care that they need in order to arm them before they walk out the door - either each morning or when they leave our homes to live on their own. I'm grateful the dishwasher is washing the dishes this morning so that I was able to love on my kiddos. I am so happy to have a washer and dryer to do laundry while I put puzzles together and play peek a boo. I love my crock pot because it makes the hours after 4pm a little more bearable on the days I remember to load it up and plug it in.
Anyway, those are my thoughts this morning! :) Hopefully next time I update I will have lots of pictures to throw on here, too! Today, however, words will have to have to suffice!
See, here's the thing. I don't have time to be on the computer. I get it now. And I apologize to all of my friends who I may have mocked for not checking their email more or updated their blogs more or whatever. Two kids ages 2 and under makes that pretty stinking difficult. So, here it is:
I am very sorry.
There is way too much to update on, but I will do my best to start adding some fun back to this dusty, old, forgotten corner of the internet.
It will come as no surprise to you if I say that all of my children are growing like weeds. But I said it anyway. Ha!
Soren has most definitely passed me up in height. He seems to have flung full force into a growth spurt that can't be stopped. This year was the start of 8th grade for him and, loser that I am, I missed that "first day of school" picture. I suppose he is getting too old to be bothered by them anymore, but I am sad I missed it. Bad mommy! The school schedule this year was adjusted a bit, 5 periods instead of 6, so that threw us for a day or two. He is working hard already and I expect that trend will continue. Two of his classes qualify for high school credits, so he only has a little bit of stress to get awesome grades. . . . haha! This year he is doing wrestling for the first time and has plans to participate in basketball, and track. I'm also attempting to find some soccer team for him. Piano lessons started in October as well as Jazz band. This is where I would toss in a picture of him, but unfortunately they are on my phone and . . . yeah, I am not smart enough to get them onto the computer right now. Let it be noted that he grows more handsome and grown up every day but I still can see that mischievous twinkle in his eye that he's had since the day he was born. LOVE THIS KID! Erm, I mean . . . young man.
Caroline . . . where do I start with this girl. WOW did the Lord ... erm... bless me... with ... her? She is my challenge. Every. single. day. I love her to bits, but she and I definitely butt heads. Frequently. I am learning to choose my battles and yet still teach her valuable lessons (like that mom is the boss! haha!) every time we have a struggle. We still have a few issues now and then with the potty, but we really are through the tough part (I hope)! My princess will be three years old on Friday and that pretty much freaks me out. I can't believe how fast (sometimes) it has gone. It is fun to see her really begin to embrace pretending and playing. She also is in a pre-ballet class, which is like heaven for her. It seems like she has a smile on her face the entire time she is dancing. LOVE IT!
My baby boy, Henry, is just an absolute joy and his smile is the sunshine that starts my day (usually earlier than I want to be up, but that smile seriously saves him - and me!). He is huge - just over 20lbs, and loves people. The kid smiles at anyone and tries desperately to catch the eyes of strangers at the store so he can give him a grin. He is working on cutting tooth number 4 (so close!) so we've had lots of tears and even more drool!! Henry is very aware of all the people in the house - he knows daddy and will almost leap out of my arms while saying "dadadada" if Alan is in the room. Soren is bababa (brother) and they adore each other. Caroline is not an easy word to say and neither is sister, but he knows who she is and I can see his little brain calculating ways to outsmart her so he can get his hands on the many toys she tries to hide/take from him. I think he is plotting a takeover and it will begin the minute he is a stable walker, but maybe before! I figure he will outweigh her in 3-6 months easily, so that will help in his battle. Crawling is just around the corner, but for now he is scooting around, rolling around, and rocking around on his knees/hands while he tries to figure out the coordination that crawling will involve. LOVE my Henry!!!
So that is a quick run down of the kiddos. Alan and I both are working hard to keep things running as smoothly as possible here at home. Our house was hit with various illnesses for pretty much all of October, but I think we're all on the mend now and hope to be able to fight off the sickies for the holiday season.
I did have an interesting (to me anyway) thought today as I sat on the floor, Caroline in my lap and Henry crawling around me. Caroline was watching Toy Story and I was contemplating how much laundry I needed to do, how badly the floors need to be swept/washed, and how desperate I was to get the laundry room organized (again) when it hit me . . . 100 years ago - even 50 years ago - the day to day responsibilities in taking care of a home were much more complex. There weren't nearly as many conveniences to help with things like laundry, dishes, cooking, etc. I believe that one of the reasons we have the many time savers that we do today is to allow us to spend quality time with our children. They need us more now than ever. The world is a scary place with so many twists and turns that will pull our children down paths that no one should be on! It is so important for them to get the guidance, love, and care that they need in order to arm them before they walk out the door - either each morning or when they leave our homes to live on their own. I'm grateful the dishwasher is washing the dishes this morning so that I was able to love on my kiddos. I am so happy to have a washer and dryer to do laundry while I put puzzles together and play peek a boo. I love my crock pot because it makes the hours after 4pm a little more bearable on the days I remember to load it up and plug it in.
Anyway, those are my thoughts this morning! :) Hopefully next time I update I will have lots of pictures to throw on here, too! Today, however, words will have to have to suffice!
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
April is over?
(If you are viewing this via facebook and can not see any pictures, please head to my blog at ladyshanae.blogspot.com)
How in the world is time flying so quickly?? Didn't I just update this blog? Guess not! Haha!
April was a great month for our family! Henry was blessed on April 10th and we were able to have lots of family here for the event. Both of my brothers were there and 6 of the 8 kids in Alan's family were able to be here with their families as well as Alan's parents. We were so thrilled to see all of them and missed those who weren't able to come - including my parents who are over in the Philippines.
Here are some pictures of the big day!
The group of us (sans my one brother and his wife who had to leave early):
Our family with a cranky 2 year old:
A few shots of Henry, our happy little handsome boy:
Oh my goodness, don't you just want to eat him up? He's so flippin' cute. Ok, here's one more:
My parents sent this outfit from the Philippines and it looked adorable on him - even if the shorts were a little off season. It was such a special day and we loved being surrounded by family.
I wish I had taken pictures of all the fun we had while the family was here. They started arriving the Friday before the blessing and the last ones didn't roll out until the Thursday following. Caroline LOVED having cousins here and Soren enjoyed it as well, though I think he had the most fun with his uncle Stephen, who is only a few years older than him. Henry enjoyed all the cuddles and smiles! And Alan and I enjoyed visiting. Good times!
Soren has had a few band concerts and one of these days I will upload all of the video footage we have of him. . . he's kind of amazing. I tried to upload one via blogger, but it took hours and didn't work, so I will get some up on youtube soon. He is loving playing the piano in jazz band, though I think there are times he longs for the trumpet. I think in the past month he has had 2 jazz band concerts and a regular band concert as well! It wouldn't surprise me if Soren is really looking forward to the summer. He's been very busy the past month or so with band, track, scouts, and other responsibilities. I sure love him and all that he does. He's an awesome kiddo.
Caroline has turned a corner in the land of potty training. What a relief for all of us! She also has been showing so much love and affection to her "Baby Henry." It's adorable!
Just look at the love on that girl's face! While I'm trying to enjoy every second of Henry's "babyhood," I also am looking forward to the time that I can watch the two of them play together. Caroline is also becoming more and more independent. When we ask her if she needs help, we often here, "No, I good," or "No, I got." Rarely does she say these things in any kind of mean tone, just very matter of fact. And a lot of times she does "got." Haha! It's fun to watch her grow and learn!
Our little Henry is not so little anymore. I mean, yeah, he's still a baby, but wow is he getting big and heavy! At his 4 month checkup he was nearly 14lbs and 26 inches long! Lugging him around in his carseat is definitely akin to a work out in the weight room. Geez! I love his little chubby legs and cheeks and tummy! He's also started "talking" to us. Sometimes when he's eating he'll just stop and look at me and start making noises. Too cute! And when he gets angry he sounds like a little tiger cub. Hard to take that seriously . . . hee hee! We are slowly working on spending more time on the floor so he can learn to roll over, but I know that will come eventually, so I'm not worried. He can take his time.
As for me, I'm tired most of the time - still trying to learn to juggle two little people as well as keep up with my almost teenager. (OH MY GOODNESS . . . Soren is going to be an officially REAL teenager in 2.5 months. UGH!) I try to keep up with housework, but it often falls by the wayside. Still working on finding a balance in life. I know I will get there. I've been trying for months to finish 2 books. I'll keep trying. And whenever I can find an adult conversation, I am there! Although socializing with telemarketers generally makes for an awkward afternoon. I much prefer to chat with friends. :) I'll get our new normal figured out soon and hopefully that will free me up to do some things for me - aside from sleeping and eating (when I remember).
My little tiger cub is complaining. Time to go!
How in the world is time flying so quickly?? Didn't I just update this blog? Guess not! Haha!
April was a great month for our family! Henry was blessed on April 10th and we were able to have lots of family here for the event. Both of my brothers were there and 6 of the 8 kids in Alan's family were able to be here with their families as well as Alan's parents. We were so thrilled to see all of them and missed those who weren't able to come - including my parents who are over in the Philippines.
Here are some pictures of the big day!
The group of us (sans my one brother and his wife who had to leave early):
Our family with a cranky 2 year old:
A few shots of Henry, our happy little handsome boy:
Oh my goodness, don't you just want to eat him up? He's so flippin' cute. Ok, here's one more:
My parents sent this outfit from the Philippines and it looked adorable on him - even if the shorts were a little off season. It was such a special day and we loved being surrounded by family.
I wish I had taken pictures of all the fun we had while the family was here. They started arriving the Friday before the blessing and the last ones didn't roll out until the Thursday following. Caroline LOVED having cousins here and Soren enjoyed it as well, though I think he had the most fun with his uncle Stephen, who is only a few years older than him. Henry enjoyed all the cuddles and smiles! And Alan and I enjoyed visiting. Good times!
Soren has had a few band concerts and one of these days I will upload all of the video footage we have of him. . . he's kind of amazing. I tried to upload one via blogger, but it took hours and didn't work, so I will get some up on youtube soon. He is loving playing the piano in jazz band, though I think there are times he longs for the trumpet. I think in the past month he has had 2 jazz band concerts and a regular band concert as well! It wouldn't surprise me if Soren is really looking forward to the summer. He's been very busy the past month or so with band, track, scouts, and other responsibilities. I sure love him and all that he does. He's an awesome kiddo.
Caroline has turned a corner in the land of potty training. What a relief for all of us! She also has been showing so much love and affection to her "Baby Henry." It's adorable!
Just look at the love on that girl's face! While I'm trying to enjoy every second of Henry's "babyhood," I also am looking forward to the time that I can watch the two of them play together. Caroline is also becoming more and more independent. When we ask her if she needs help, we often here, "No, I good," or "No, I got." Rarely does she say these things in any kind of mean tone, just very matter of fact. And a lot of times she does "got." Haha! It's fun to watch her grow and learn!
Our little Henry is not so little anymore. I mean, yeah, he's still a baby, but wow is he getting big and heavy! At his 4 month checkup he was nearly 14lbs and 26 inches long! Lugging him around in his carseat is definitely akin to a work out in the weight room. Geez! I love his little chubby legs and cheeks and tummy! He's also started "talking" to us. Sometimes when he's eating he'll just stop and look at me and start making noises. Too cute! And when he gets angry he sounds like a little tiger cub. Hard to take that seriously . . . hee hee! We are slowly working on spending more time on the floor so he can learn to roll over, but I know that will come eventually, so I'm not worried. He can take his time.
As for me, I'm tired most of the time - still trying to learn to juggle two little people as well as keep up with my almost teenager. (OH MY GOODNESS . . . Soren is going to be an officially REAL teenager in 2.5 months. UGH!) I try to keep up with housework, but it often falls by the wayside. Still working on finding a balance in life. I know I will get there. I've been trying for months to finish 2 books. I'll keep trying. And whenever I can find an adult conversation, I am there! Although socializing with telemarketers generally makes for an awkward afternoon. I much prefer to chat with friends. :) I'll get our new normal figured out soon and hopefully that will free me up to do some things for me - aside from sleeping and eating (when I remember).
My little tiger cub is complaining. Time to go!
Thursday, April 7, 2011
The Latest....
Oh, life. How I want to enjoy you daily!
Life pretty much consists of chasing a toddler to the bathroom and feeding a baby. And sometimes attempting both at the same time.
Caroline is still struggling with potty training, but I know she'll get it eventually. We had a really good run where she was only having trouble with #2 and #1 was easy peasy lemon squeezy. No pun intended. However, then we had some major trauma with #2 and she is now struggling with both again. We are working on solutions and I'm trying not to lose my mind. However, I will not be putting her back in diapers, so please don't suggest that ;) Otherwise she is such a cute little source of laughter and joy in our house. I love it when she gets excited about something and her eyes light up. I love that she still wants to snuggle with me still. I love to watch her with her brothers. I love listening to her cute little voice requesting things. I LOVE listening to her recap her day for her daddy when he gets home. I love watching her play with her toys. I love reading books with her. I love chasing her around and listening to her giggle. I just love this girl, stubbornness included! She wouldn't be Caroline without the added dose of spice!
Soren is a pretty amazing kid. Heavenly Father sure blessed me something crazy with this guy. Most of the time he jumps up without complaint to help out with almost anything he is asked. This makes the times he rolls his eyes, sighs loudly, or asks why a little frustrating, but I'm grateful that they are few in comparison to how much is asked of him. He is a great kid and I love him. Soren has been fighting with allergies and some nasty virus for a couple weeks now, but that hasn't stopped him from working hard with his school work and continuing to excel in band. I love listening to him perform and I really need to upload some of his concert footage. I also really enjoy listening to him tinker on the piano. His piano teacher is out of commission (she just had a baby) for a while, but that hasn't stopped him from taking the initiative to learn a few songs on his own. Not only that, but Soren also pitches in when it comes to cooking and baking. And to top it all of, he is very helpful with his siblings. It's so fun to watch him with Caroline and Henry and see the joy on his face (most of the time haha).
Henry is now 3 months old and when he isn't hungry or tired he is full of smiles and laughter. Most of the time he sleeps wonderfully - plenty of naps during the day (even with all the screaming that his sister serenades him with) and he has generally been sleeping well at night, though we have some off days now and again. He is growing like crazy! I think I am too late on a few of his 3-6 month outfits . . . the kid is LONG! Not that surprising, though. This weekend is extra special for our Henry! This Sunday he will be blessed at church. This is the longest we have waited to bless one of our kiddos, but worth it because so much family is able to be here. Hooray!
So that's the latest. Alan's still working hard, I'm still being a momma. And while it's challenging, the rewards are worth it.
Life pretty much consists of chasing a toddler to the bathroom and feeding a baby. And sometimes attempting both at the same time.
Caroline is still struggling with potty training, but I know she'll get it eventually. We had a really good run where she was only having trouble with #2 and #1 was easy peasy lemon squeezy. No pun intended. However, then we had some major trauma with #2 and she is now struggling with both again. We are working on solutions and I'm trying not to lose my mind. However, I will not be putting her back in diapers, so please don't suggest that ;) Otherwise she is such a cute little source of laughter and joy in our house. I love it when she gets excited about something and her eyes light up. I love that she still wants to snuggle with me still. I love to watch her with her brothers. I love listening to her cute little voice requesting things. I LOVE listening to her recap her day for her daddy when he gets home. I love watching her play with her toys. I love reading books with her. I love chasing her around and listening to her giggle. I just love this girl, stubbornness included! She wouldn't be Caroline without the added dose of spice!
Soren is a pretty amazing kid. Heavenly Father sure blessed me something crazy with this guy. Most of the time he jumps up without complaint to help out with almost anything he is asked. This makes the times he rolls his eyes, sighs loudly, or asks why a little frustrating, but I'm grateful that they are few in comparison to how much is asked of him. He is a great kid and I love him. Soren has been fighting with allergies and some nasty virus for a couple weeks now, but that hasn't stopped him from working hard with his school work and continuing to excel in band. I love listening to him perform and I really need to upload some of his concert footage. I also really enjoy listening to him tinker on the piano. His piano teacher is out of commission (she just had a baby) for a while, but that hasn't stopped him from taking the initiative to learn a few songs on his own. Not only that, but Soren also pitches in when it comes to cooking and baking. And to top it all of, he is very helpful with his siblings. It's so fun to watch him with Caroline and Henry and see the joy on his face (most of the time haha).
Henry is now 3 months old and when he isn't hungry or tired he is full of smiles and laughter. Most of the time he sleeps wonderfully - plenty of naps during the day (even with all the screaming that his sister serenades him with) and he has generally been sleeping well at night, though we have some off days now and again. He is growing like crazy! I think I am too late on a few of his 3-6 month outfits . . . the kid is LONG! Not that surprising, though. This weekend is extra special for our Henry! This Sunday he will be blessed at church. This is the longest we have waited to bless one of our kiddos, but worth it because so much family is able to be here. Hooray!
So that's the latest. Alan's still working hard, I'm still being a momma. And while it's challenging, the rewards are worth it.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Frustrated
Let me preface all of this with saying that I love my family, I'm grateful for them, and I know I have many blessings. But sometimes it just feels good to vent.
1 - Potty training is horrible and is ruining nap time which just creates a cycle of drama that culminates in me feeling like a failure by the end of the day.
2 - Newborns who wake up to eat then go back to sleep without much of a problem in a crib are great. Until they decide that they don't want to be put down to sleep anymore but would much rather be held. And then if you put them down they wake up really angry because they are tired and you put them down and now they are awake.
3 - Toddlers who finally figure out there is someone smaller in the house have a tendency to suddenly need mom more, want to be "up" all the time, and decide that, if that doesn't work, they'll just start hitting everyone. It's awesome.
4 - Nearly 3 months into sleep deprivation, mama's temper starts to come out more and more.
5 - Toddlers who know how to push mama's buttons tend to do so just to see the angry monster come out. As a parent, it sucks when it works and you find yourself irrationally angry at a two year old.
6 - Feelings of inadequacy suck, too. Don't even get me started on the feelings of inadequacy. I can't count how many times I have felt sorry for Alan and Soren when they've walked through the door after work/school.
7 - Being a mom is hard work. Really hard.
8 - Crying is therapeutic, but I still hate it.
I know this is just a moment in time, that it will pass. I know that in a few short years I will be longing for the time when my kids were small. But right now each day seems very long. And on days like today, I wonder how my kids will remember me. Right now I just feel like an angry, grumpy, emotional tyrant.
*sigh*
1 - Potty training is horrible and is ruining nap time which just creates a cycle of drama that culminates in me feeling like a failure by the end of the day.
2 - Newborns who wake up to eat then go back to sleep without much of a problem in a crib are great. Until they decide that they don't want to be put down to sleep anymore but would much rather be held. And then if you put them down they wake up really angry because they are tired and you put them down and now they are awake.
3 - Toddlers who finally figure out there is someone smaller in the house have a tendency to suddenly need mom more, want to be "up" all the time, and decide that, if that doesn't work, they'll just start hitting everyone. It's awesome.
4 - Nearly 3 months into sleep deprivation, mama's temper starts to come out more and more.
5 - Toddlers who know how to push mama's buttons tend to do so just to see the angry monster come out. As a parent, it sucks when it works and you find yourself irrationally angry at a two year old.
6 - Feelings of inadequacy suck, too. Don't even get me started on the feelings of inadequacy. I can't count how many times I have felt sorry for Alan and Soren when they've walked through the door after work/school.
7 - Being a mom is hard work. Really hard.
8 - Crying is therapeutic, but I still hate it.
I know this is just a moment in time, that it will pass. I know that in a few short years I will be longing for the time when my kids were small. But right now each day seems very long. And on days like today, I wonder how my kids will remember me. Right now I just feel like an angry, grumpy, emotional tyrant.
*sigh*
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Lots and Lots and Lots . . .
So I have a minute to breathe and update life, so here goes!
Henry is TWO months old!!! How did that happen?? Anyway, he is now starting to give us some smiles and giggles. His sleeping patterns are starting to emerge, but he also has been a pill the past few nights. We need to figure that out. And boy, oh boy, he is growing like a weed! At his 2 month appointment he was 24.5 inches long (2.5 inches longer in 6 weeks!) and nearly 10.5lbs (over 3lbs gained in 6 weeks!). He is actually heavier and longer than Soren was at 2 months. Impressive! We are loving having this little guy around - such an easy going kiddo!
Caroline has big things going on, too! We are on the potty training ride right now. I hate potty training. However, she is doing remarkably well. Today is day 5 and she has managed to take herself to the potty successfully twice without any help from mom. Well done, big girl! I'm hoping we'll keep making progress because not having to change her diapers is awesome. Other than potty training, Caroline has also discovered her little brother. She has also decided she loves him. This is fabulous for all of us!
Soren continues to amaze & impress me. He is doing very well in school, trying very hard to take the initiative with his school work & keep his grades up. This year he participated in National History Day again. For his project he created a website (last year he did an essay). He won first place at his school and 5th place in the region, missing out on going to state by one place! I was so proud of him, especially because Alan and I were so busy during the prep time for his project that we were of little help to him - he did this mainly on his own with the help of his teachers. Such a fabulous job! Soren also continues to amaze me with his musical talents. He had a jazz band concert at the beginning of February and played not only the piano, but then ran across the stage twice to play his trumpet with solos and everything. This past weekend he also performed in a duet and an ensemble for Solo and Ensemble - a state wide music event. For middle schoolers, they perform and are adjudicated. As you progress to high school, however, it becomes a judged competition with scoring and all of that. I participated in Solo and Ensemble in junior high and high school so it is fun to see Soren doing the same, even if it is for trumpet and not for voice! Soren continues to be an amazing kid, even when he acts like a teenager. Haha!
I love my kiddos and right now my life pretty much is them. I'm okay with that, though. I'm so very blessed to have the three of them in my life and even more blessed to have an amazing husband who continues to help me every single day and love me even when I'm falling apart.
Life is pretty stinkin' good right now, even with a toddler, newborn, and tweenager. It's not great at every moment, but overall I really can't complain.
And it's a good thing I'm writing this post today and not yesterday because I would have been singing a whole different song! Haha!
Videos and pictures coming very soon. However, there is a certain little guy who needs a fresh pair of pants and a little more food. :)
Henry is TWO months old!!! How did that happen?? Anyway, he is now starting to give us some smiles and giggles. His sleeping patterns are starting to emerge, but he also has been a pill the past few nights. We need to figure that out. And boy, oh boy, he is growing like a weed! At his 2 month appointment he was 24.5 inches long (2.5 inches longer in 6 weeks!) and nearly 10.5lbs (over 3lbs gained in 6 weeks!). He is actually heavier and longer than Soren was at 2 months. Impressive! We are loving having this little guy around - such an easy going kiddo!
Caroline has big things going on, too! We are on the potty training ride right now. I hate potty training. However, she is doing remarkably well. Today is day 5 and she has managed to take herself to the potty successfully twice without any help from mom. Well done, big girl! I'm hoping we'll keep making progress because not having to change her diapers is awesome. Other than potty training, Caroline has also discovered her little brother. She has also decided she loves him. This is fabulous for all of us!
Soren continues to amaze & impress me. He is doing very well in school, trying very hard to take the initiative with his school work & keep his grades up. This year he participated in National History Day again. For his project he created a website (last year he did an essay). He won first place at his school and 5th place in the region, missing out on going to state by one place! I was so proud of him, especially because Alan and I were so busy during the prep time for his project that we were of little help to him - he did this mainly on his own with the help of his teachers. Such a fabulous job! Soren also continues to amaze me with his musical talents. He had a jazz band concert at the beginning of February and played not only the piano, but then ran across the stage twice to play his trumpet with solos and everything. This past weekend he also performed in a duet and an ensemble for Solo and Ensemble - a state wide music event. For middle schoolers, they perform and are adjudicated. As you progress to high school, however, it becomes a judged competition with scoring and all of that. I participated in Solo and Ensemble in junior high and high school so it is fun to see Soren doing the same, even if it is for trumpet and not for voice! Soren continues to be an amazing kid, even when he acts like a teenager. Haha!
I love my kiddos and right now my life pretty much is them. I'm okay with that, though. I'm so very blessed to have the three of them in my life and even more blessed to have an amazing husband who continues to help me every single day and love me even when I'm falling apart.
Life is pretty stinkin' good right now, even with a toddler, newborn, and tweenager. It's not great at every moment, but overall I really can't complain.
And it's a good thing I'm writing this post today and not yesterday because I would have been singing a whole different song! Haha!
Videos and pictures coming very soon. However, there is a certain little guy who needs a fresh pair of pants and a little more food. :)
Tuesday, February 22, 2011
Infertility & Motherhood (Part Two)
Part two has been a long time coming, but I have good reason! Not only have we been adjusting to life with a third kiddo in the house, but I've also had LOTS of visitors. So here's the rest of the story (I hope).
If you remember, I mentioned that I agreed to do a Clomid Challenge test with my ob/gyn to assess the quality/quantity of my egg supply. I wasn't overly worried about it - I was busy working 4 jobs, not including the job of wife & mother, and didn't really have time to worry! But the day the doctor called with the results it was very obvious that the news was not good. His tone of voice told me before he did that it didn't look good. I was told that the only way we'd be able to have more children was if we did InVitro Fertilization with donor eggs - that mine were no good.
I don't remember exactly what happened next - I don't remember if I was crying before or after I hung up the phone. I don't remember if I called Alan and told him or if I just sent him an instant message. I do remember lots of crying. Sobbing, really. I vividly remember sitting at my desk in my home office unable to catch my breath because I was crying so hard. I finally got it together enough to say a very long, heartfelt prayer - I knew it was the only way I'd get through the day. Not only did I have work at home to finish, but I had to physically go to work (another job) that afternoon. I needed the strength to get through the day and I knew it wasn't going to come from me - I was emotionally spent.
Thankfully the Lord stepped in and seriously carried me through the rest of that day. He also prompted me to immediately seek a second opinion - to finally get myself to a fertility specialist (also known as a Reproductive Endocrinologist or RE). I'd had appointments with them before, but had to cancel them due to insurance or financial issues. My sweet ob/gyn sat on the phone with me as we went through every RE on my insurance list, giving me his opinion as to where he thought my best fit would be. I am forever grateful for the time he took out of his day for me.
That horrible day occurred January 15, 2008.
To illustrate miracles . . . I had a positive pregnancy test on March 22, 2008 which resulted in our little Caroline.
And while I could say that was the end of the story - it isn't, really. Having two kids 10 years apart has had its own challenges. One of the more odd ones is that I still didn't feel like a normal mom - my experiences were still very different than those of my friends. I went from not fitting in because I only had one child to not fitting in because my two children were so far apart in age. So for 2+ years I felt almost like I fit in and yet I didn't really feel I did. I had two kids, but it was really like I had two families of one kid each. There was still so much I could not relate to or subjects I couldn't really join in on because I did not have experience with two kids close together in age . . . and there were times I still felt like I was in between worlds - the world of the infertile woman and the world of mother.
And then we headed in for another round of infertility treatments in April/May of 2010, hoping we'd be able to finally have something resembling the family we'd both pictured in our mind for years. Quite frankly, I was shocked when the treatments worked! And now we have our baby Henry.
I won't pretend I didn't get a little annoyed with all the comments about how I'll finally know what it feels like to have kids close in age or how I finally get to deal with all of those horrible things - like fighting, sibling rivalry, trying to potty train a toddler with a baby running around, etc. etc. etc. Yes, I am starting to learn for myself what that is all about. And there are days I feel like I want to pull my hair out. But then there is that part of me that smiles when both little ones are screaming because I finally have that in my life. Finally I can join in conversations, maybe not right now - but soon, about all of the things those "real moms" have talked about for years. In so many ways, I finally feel like a "real mom," even though I know I've been a mom for over 12 years.
(And today is one of those days that I needed to post this so I could remember to be grateful for the screaming toddler, the unpredictable newborn, and the hormonal teenager that were all making me crazy! They are all blessings, right? Right!)
If you remember, I mentioned that I agreed to do a Clomid Challenge test with my ob/gyn to assess the quality/quantity of my egg supply. I wasn't overly worried about it - I was busy working 4 jobs, not including the job of wife & mother, and didn't really have time to worry! But the day the doctor called with the results it was very obvious that the news was not good. His tone of voice told me before he did that it didn't look good. I was told that the only way we'd be able to have more children was if we did InVitro Fertilization with donor eggs - that mine were no good.
I don't remember exactly what happened next - I don't remember if I was crying before or after I hung up the phone. I don't remember if I called Alan and told him or if I just sent him an instant message. I do remember lots of crying. Sobbing, really. I vividly remember sitting at my desk in my home office unable to catch my breath because I was crying so hard. I finally got it together enough to say a very long, heartfelt prayer - I knew it was the only way I'd get through the day. Not only did I have work at home to finish, but I had to physically go to work (another job) that afternoon. I needed the strength to get through the day and I knew it wasn't going to come from me - I was emotionally spent.
Thankfully the Lord stepped in and seriously carried me through the rest of that day. He also prompted me to immediately seek a second opinion - to finally get myself to a fertility specialist (also known as a Reproductive Endocrinologist or RE). I'd had appointments with them before, but had to cancel them due to insurance or financial issues. My sweet ob/gyn sat on the phone with me as we went through every RE on my insurance list, giving me his opinion as to where he thought my best fit would be. I am forever grateful for the time he took out of his day for me.
That horrible day occurred January 15, 2008.
To illustrate miracles . . . I had a positive pregnancy test on March 22, 2008 which resulted in our little Caroline.
And while I could say that was the end of the story - it isn't, really. Having two kids 10 years apart has had its own challenges. One of the more odd ones is that I still didn't feel like a normal mom - my experiences were still very different than those of my friends. I went from not fitting in because I only had one child to not fitting in because my two children were so far apart in age. So for 2+ years I felt almost like I fit in and yet I didn't really feel I did. I had two kids, but it was really like I had two families of one kid each. There was still so much I could not relate to or subjects I couldn't really join in on because I did not have experience with two kids close together in age . . . and there were times I still felt like I was in between worlds - the world of the infertile woman and the world of mother.
And then we headed in for another round of infertility treatments in April/May of 2010, hoping we'd be able to finally have something resembling the family we'd both pictured in our mind for years. Quite frankly, I was shocked when the treatments worked! And now we have our baby Henry.
I won't pretend I didn't get a little annoyed with all the comments about how I'll finally know what it feels like to have kids close in age or how I finally get to deal with all of those horrible things - like fighting, sibling rivalry, trying to potty train a toddler with a baby running around, etc. etc. etc. Yes, I am starting to learn for myself what that is all about. And there are days I feel like I want to pull my hair out. But then there is that part of me that smiles when both little ones are screaming because I finally have that in my life. Finally I can join in conversations, maybe not right now - but soon, about all of the things those "real moms" have talked about for years. In so many ways, I finally feel like a "real mom," even though I know I've been a mom for over 12 years.
(And today is one of those days that I needed to post this so I could remember to be grateful for the screaming toddler, the unpredictable newborn, and the hormonal teenager that were all making me crazy! They are all blessings, right? Right!)
Thursday, January 20, 2011
Infertility & Motherhood (Part One)
You would think that since I've had three kids now this whole "mom" thing would be old hat. However, my journey through the realms of motherhood has been colored with infertility, which makes everything different.
Soren's first year of life was fabulous. He was a great infant and an energetic toddler. I was juggling school and some part time work and Alan wasn't home a lot (he was juggling work and part time school), but we made it. I remember chasing him around the house, playing outside in the fall leaves, filling up the swimming pool in the backyard and letting him run around naked in the summer . . . lots of smiles. But by the time he turned two, we headed to our first specialist appointment to figure out why, after a year of trying, we did not have a new baby on the way. Unfortunately for all of us, the rest of Soren's young years would be tarnished by the tears, stress, anxiety, and frustration of infertility.
There were days when I would grab hold of Soren and never want to let go - wondering if he'd be our only child and wanting to cherish every second I had with him. There were other days when I wanted to be left alone in my misery, crying and pleading with God - wondering what I had done wrong in my life, in my marriage, or in my parenting that God was keeping us from having more children. It was a tough time - especially the first 4 years. I remember sending Soren off to kindergarten and forcing myself to take on a project (painting the interior of our house) to keep myself from sobbing. It wasn't supposed to be like that - I wasn't supposed to be putting my oldest child on the bus and coming home to an empty house. That wasn't the plan - that wasn't supposed to be my life.
I was stuck in this weird place. I didn't belong with the infertile women - I had a child. How could I possibly relate to those that had none at all? And I wasn't a full fledged mom because I only had one and couldn't possibly understand what it was like to juggle a household of children. I didn't have 2-3 kids screaming for my attention or fighting with each other. I didn't understand. No one purposely left me out (to my knowledge), but I felt very isolated.
The isolation increased once we moved to Washington, DC. At this point, Soren was in school all day, so I wasn't invited to any of the mommy groups, trips to the park, etc. (though I don't know if I would have gone anyway). All the women my age were in those groups and I was on the outside. It was a very difficult time for me and I slipped in to what was probably my worst depression to date. I felt as though I had no friends, no connections, no one to relate to or confide in that would remotely understand what I was feeling.
Secondary infertility (unable to conceive after the birth of one or more children) blows. The pain is different from primary infertility (unable to conceive and carry a child to term). I would NEVER say it was worse, it's just different. You just don't fit anywhere. Or, at least, you don't feel like you fit. I never felt like a real mom because there were too many times I'd actually be talking to other mothers and they'd invalidate my opinion (not in a purposely mean way) because I only had one child. That was hard to deal with because in so many ways, I didn't feel like a mom. I didn't have the full picture of motherhood, just a small piece of it. It made those moments where I did actually have a conversation with another mom tainted with feelings of inadequacy. I might technically be a mom, but I wasn't a real mom.
There came a point around the time that Soren turned 8 that I think Alan and I accepted our fate. We'd done 6 cycles of Clomid and none were remotely successful. We decided to put it all behind us and just move forward and enjoy the family we had, however small it was. We started talking about all the benefits of having only one child. Believe me, when you sit down and think about it, the list can get pretty long! And, as a result, our attitudes started to shift. I started being more open to talking about our situation and not being ashamed of it - it was just fact now. I started to embrace who I was, accept it, and move forward. It was during this time that I started to love me. And wow, did I need that! Infertility taught me many things, but most of all it forced me to confront me, accept me, and love me.
When Soren was 9 1/2, I went into my ob/gyn for my annual checkup. He brought up Clomid again and, on a whim, I agreed to do what is called a Clomid Challenge Test to determine egg quality and quantity. This is when our world took a huge turn. This test would forever change our lives and our family. And, seeing as Henry is about to wake up again, I'm going to have to leave the rest of this story for another day.
But getting just that much out has been very cathartic.
Soren's first year of life was fabulous. He was a great infant and an energetic toddler. I was juggling school and some part time work and Alan wasn't home a lot (he was juggling work and part time school), but we made it. I remember chasing him around the house, playing outside in the fall leaves, filling up the swimming pool in the backyard and letting him run around naked in the summer . . . lots of smiles. But by the time he turned two, we headed to our first specialist appointment to figure out why, after a year of trying, we did not have a new baby on the way. Unfortunately for all of us, the rest of Soren's young years would be tarnished by the tears, stress, anxiety, and frustration of infertility.
There were days when I would grab hold of Soren and never want to let go - wondering if he'd be our only child and wanting to cherish every second I had with him. There were other days when I wanted to be left alone in my misery, crying and pleading with God - wondering what I had done wrong in my life, in my marriage, or in my parenting that God was keeping us from having more children. It was a tough time - especially the first 4 years. I remember sending Soren off to kindergarten and forcing myself to take on a project (painting the interior of our house) to keep myself from sobbing. It wasn't supposed to be like that - I wasn't supposed to be putting my oldest child on the bus and coming home to an empty house. That wasn't the plan - that wasn't supposed to be my life.
I was stuck in this weird place. I didn't belong with the infertile women - I had a child. How could I possibly relate to those that had none at all? And I wasn't a full fledged mom because I only had one and couldn't possibly understand what it was like to juggle a household of children. I didn't have 2-3 kids screaming for my attention or fighting with each other. I didn't understand. No one purposely left me out (to my knowledge), but I felt very isolated.
The isolation increased once we moved to Washington, DC. At this point, Soren was in school all day, so I wasn't invited to any of the mommy groups, trips to the park, etc. (though I don't know if I would have gone anyway). All the women my age were in those groups and I was on the outside. It was a very difficult time for me and I slipped in to what was probably my worst depression to date. I felt as though I had no friends, no connections, no one to relate to or confide in that would remotely understand what I was feeling.
Secondary infertility (unable to conceive after the birth of one or more children) blows. The pain is different from primary infertility (unable to conceive and carry a child to term). I would NEVER say it was worse, it's just different. You just don't fit anywhere. Or, at least, you don't feel like you fit. I never felt like a real mom because there were too many times I'd actually be talking to other mothers and they'd invalidate my opinion (not in a purposely mean way) because I only had one child. That was hard to deal with because in so many ways, I didn't feel like a mom. I didn't have the full picture of motherhood, just a small piece of it. It made those moments where I did actually have a conversation with another mom tainted with feelings of inadequacy. I might technically be a mom, but I wasn't a real mom.
There came a point around the time that Soren turned 8 that I think Alan and I accepted our fate. We'd done 6 cycles of Clomid and none were remotely successful. We decided to put it all behind us and just move forward and enjoy the family we had, however small it was. We started talking about all the benefits of having only one child. Believe me, when you sit down and think about it, the list can get pretty long! And, as a result, our attitudes started to shift. I started being more open to talking about our situation and not being ashamed of it - it was just fact now. I started to embrace who I was, accept it, and move forward. It was during this time that I started to love me. And wow, did I need that! Infertility taught me many things, but most of all it forced me to confront me, accept me, and love me.
When Soren was 9 1/2, I went into my ob/gyn for my annual checkup. He brought up Clomid again and, on a whim, I agreed to do what is called a Clomid Challenge Test to determine egg quality and quantity. This is when our world took a huge turn. This test would forever change our lives and our family. And, seeing as Henry is about to wake up again, I'm going to have to leave the rest of this story for another day.
But getting just that much out has been very cathartic.
Saturday, January 15, 2011
Blessed
If I stop to think about all the blessings that have flooded our lives over the past 6 months or so, I start to get all teary eyed. But I often find myself stopping and thinking about them and then I have to pull myself together or I'll be in a pool of tears - but at least they are happy tears! :)
When we arrived home on the 6th, we were brought dinner by someone from our church. This continued for days on end. In fact, we have only had one night where someone didn't bring us dinner since our return. How blessed are we?? It's been so nice to not have to worry about dinners, especially as Alan has had to take over everything around the house, for the most part. He's enjoyed the break from cooking.
I continue to thank my Heavenly Father for the job that Alan has now. It was a long road getting there, but the blessings are overwhelming. He was given the entire first week of Henry's life off from work - paid and none of it counted against his vacation time. As a results, he was able to be at the hospital with me every day and night. This past week he was allowed to work from home OR take a vacation day - depending on what we needed on our end. How fabulous is this job?!?! As an added bonus, he really does like it there and, if I haven't mentioned before, it's 2.5 miles from our front door. Goodness sakes with the blessings!
And as if all of that wasn't enough, I have had a flood of visitors - usually at least one per day - who come to chat, hold the baby, and keep me from feeling isolated from the outside world. One visitor is a sweet friend from middle school who I hadn't actually seen since I was 16! (LOVE FACEBOOK!!) I also have two dear brothers & their families who I know are there to help if I call (and have helped already). I have a sister who is coming to help me the last week of this month and another who is going to try and come as soon as she is able. I also have a dear friend who is ready and willing to come as well, we are just figuring out logistics. The love I have felt since Henry joined our family is seriously overwhelming. But I'm handling it just fine, thank you very much! Haha!
Henry is an absolute joy. Again, we have been very blessed to have a new baby who allows me to sleep for 2+ hours at a time (sometimes even 4!), who eats well and consistently, who poops and pees just like he is supposed to, and who rarely cries. After my sweet Caroline put me through the ringer with all of the above, I seriously am close to tears when I think about how good Henry is. If I had a difficult baby on top of a c-section, I dunno what I would do. I'd handle it, I'm sure . . but I'm glad that, at this point, I don't have to figure out how I'd handle it. Haha!
I'm also very blessed to have a wonderful husband who has sacrificed basically his entire life the past two weeks to turn himself into Mr. Mom as well as caretaker of Mommy. He makes sure I'm fed, well-rested, and not doing too much. He lets me watch Gilmore Girls ad nauseam. Basically he really is my knight in shining armor and I love him. :)
Soren & Caroline are adjusting to things as best as they can. Soren's schedule hasn't been disrupted too much, so he's plugging along, trying to get in time with his new little brother as much as he can. Caroline is slowly adjusting to the new presence in the house, though she has yet to hug, hold, or kiss him. Baby steps.
Overall, I am feeling so much love and so many blessings it's kind of ridiculous. But in a good way. :)
When we arrived home on the 6th, we were brought dinner by someone from our church. This continued for days on end. In fact, we have only had one night where someone didn't bring us dinner since our return. How blessed are we?? It's been so nice to not have to worry about dinners, especially as Alan has had to take over everything around the house, for the most part. He's enjoyed the break from cooking.
I continue to thank my Heavenly Father for the job that Alan has now. It was a long road getting there, but the blessings are overwhelming. He was given the entire first week of Henry's life off from work - paid and none of it counted against his vacation time. As a results, he was able to be at the hospital with me every day and night. This past week he was allowed to work from home OR take a vacation day - depending on what we needed on our end. How fabulous is this job?!?! As an added bonus, he really does like it there and, if I haven't mentioned before, it's 2.5 miles from our front door. Goodness sakes with the blessings!
And as if all of that wasn't enough, I have had a flood of visitors - usually at least one per day - who come to chat, hold the baby, and keep me from feeling isolated from the outside world. One visitor is a sweet friend from middle school who I hadn't actually seen since I was 16! (LOVE FACEBOOK!!) I also have two dear brothers & their families who I know are there to help if I call (and have helped already). I have a sister who is coming to help me the last week of this month and another who is going to try and come as soon as she is able. I also have a dear friend who is ready and willing to come as well, we are just figuring out logistics. The love I have felt since Henry joined our family is seriously overwhelming. But I'm handling it just fine, thank you very much! Haha!
Henry is an absolute joy. Again, we have been very blessed to have a new baby who allows me to sleep for 2+ hours at a time (sometimes even 4!), who eats well and consistently, who poops and pees just like he is supposed to, and who rarely cries. After my sweet Caroline put me through the ringer with all of the above, I seriously am close to tears when I think about how good Henry is. If I had a difficult baby on top of a c-section, I dunno what I would do. I'd handle it, I'm sure . . but I'm glad that, at this point, I don't have to figure out how I'd handle it. Haha!
I'm also very blessed to have a wonderful husband who has sacrificed basically his entire life the past two weeks to turn himself into Mr. Mom as well as caretaker of Mommy. He makes sure I'm fed, well-rested, and not doing too much. He lets me watch Gilmore Girls ad nauseam. Basically he really is my knight in shining armor and I love him. :)
Soren & Caroline are adjusting to things as best as they can. Soren's schedule hasn't been disrupted too much, so he's plugging along, trying to get in time with his new little brother as much as he can. Caroline is slowly adjusting to the new presence in the house, though she has yet to hug, hold, or kiss him. Baby steps.
Overall, I am feeling so much love and so many blessings it's kind of ridiculous. But in a good way. :)
Saturday, January 8, 2011
Happy New Year & Happy New Baby!
(Warning: This post is long and contains the birth story of our little guy!)
Can I just say I'm glad to see the end of December?? What a month that was! I wanted it to end almost before it started. And now we are in a new month and a new year! As I type this, I am trying to keep my eyes open because I'm sleep deprived and full of drowsy drugs, but I want to get this all down before the memories start to fade.
After an awesome New Year's Eve party and a busy New Year's Day getting bags packed and the house clean, it was almost time to go to the hospital to welcome baby #3 into the world. I debated about going to church on Sunday, as I assumed I'd be up all night and would need some rest, but decided to go and, in the end, am very glad I did!
That night we headed to the hospital leaving our other kiddos in the trusty hands of my amazingly wonderful sister in law, Kim. She is amazing and I love her for taking care of Soren and Caroline for nearly 3 full days!! Plus my other sister in law, Sarah, pitched in as well as my sweet friend (also named Sarah). This doesn't even touch on the number of people who offered to do anything we needed over the week! We are so blessed to have such awesome family and friends!! Ok, that was a tangent - now back to the story of our little guy!
Admission to the hospital went fairly quickly; no pile of paperwork, just a few things here and there. Then the real fun began! Not knowing how many different drugs I might need for delivery, I needed two IVs thingies (catheters?) put in - one in each arm. Last time I needed a butt load of drugs because of all the complications I had, so they wanted to be prepared. It only took two nurses an hour and a half plus the use of an ultrasound machine to be successful. Apparently I have crooked veins. Who knew? I now am sporting some pretty awesome bruises on my left arm, though. Sweet!
After the IV debacle, we settled in for a night of what we hoped would be a progressive induction. Caroline had taken 36 hours to get the hint that it was time for her to come (for her own safety), so I was preparing for things to take at least that long but hoping it wouldn't! Haha . . . be careful what you wish for!! Anyway, the plan was a Miso tablet to help move things along, then another after 3 hours, then we'd move on from there to Pitocin and a baby!
Miso tablets, apparently, cause a lot of cramping. Sleep didn't really happen because every time I'd doze off, I'd wake back up in pain. Not major pain, mind you, but just annoying enough to keep me from sleeping. Then, of course, the nurse came in quite a few times to check baby and blood pressure and all of that fun stuff. After 2 rounds of Miso, it was time to hook up the pitocin. My nurse changed around 7:30am, but not much else changed. I wasn't progressing very quickly, so they were slowly turning up the Pitocin.
Generally I am pretty tolerant of pain, but during labor I feel like a big wuss. The sooner I can get something to stop the pain, the happier I am. However, no matter how many times and ways I mentioned that I would sure like something for the pain, I didn't get anything. Finally the doctor arrived to assess the situation and I asked her what the general protocol was for giving me drugs. After checking to see how baby was progressing, she told me she wanted his head to be a little closer to the exit before we put in the epidural. I trusted her opinion (she's a great doctor from what I've been able to ascertain), so I went with it.
Shortly thereafter I began to disagree.
I've been induced with each of my pregnancies, so I've done the whole Pitocin thing before. I know that the pain associated with Pitocin (and labor in general haha) sucks, but I was experiencing some nasty, nasty pain. With Caroline, my epidural stopped working 45 minutes before she was born and I went through the final bit of labor without anything to kill or dull the pain. The contractions I was feeling this time were more painful than that. I'd get one contraction, it would start to fade and then before it went away, another one started. Then I'd get about 20-30 seconds before it all started again. This is when I started whining to the nurse! Around 11:30am, after watching me and my contractions disagree for quite a while, she turned the Pitocin down. It was heaven! For all of 5 minutes, anyway. I was expressing my joy at the relief when I felt something familiar. I looked at the nurse and told her I was pretty sure my water had just broken.
Hooray!
Except then I was worried that I'd have to do the labor without drugs again because after my water broke with Caroline, she came VERY quickly! I braced myself for it, but after the nurse checked things out, she looked slightly concerned. She told us there was some blood and she wanted to check with the doctor on the next step. After maybe 2 minutes, she came back in and that's when the crazy started. Apparently I was dripping blood - everywhere. I couldn't see it (thank GOODNESS!!!), but there was blood all over my bed and literally streaming onto the floor, creating a puddle.
The look on the nurses face told me that things were not good. And suddenly there were at least 6 other people in the room. I had an anesthesiologist in my face (his name was Doug and he was super nice, actually) going through the risks and warnings, I had my nurse telling me they were doing a c-section asap, I had a doctor (not mine, of course - she was already in surgery) telling me her name - which I promptly forgot - and saying she'd be performing the surgery, there were papers being tossed in my face to sign, and then I was being rapidly wheeled down halls to an operating room.
By this time I had lost so much blood I was having trouble keeping my eyes open. I tried to do what they told me to so I could get the spinal block and they wouldn't have to knock me out completely. If there was one thing I remembered from the anesthesiologist, it was that if they had to knock me out completely, Alan would not be able to be there with me. I was not ok with this and I knew he'd be pretty upset as well. Thank goodness I was coherent enough to get the spinal block! Before I knew what was happening, the nurses and Alan were trying to inform me that our baby was here.
And he was beautiful.
Our little guy, Henry Alan Tullis!!!
Arrival date: 1/3/11
Arrival time: 12:21pm
Weight: 7lbs, 3oz
Height: 21 1/2 inches
I wish I'd been more coherent . . . I was too weak to even hold him - I didn't trust myself, but I gave him a kiss and told him I loved him. At that point I just wanted to sleep. The nurses needed to take Henry to the nursery because his blood sugar was a little low (and I was in no position to feed him! Haha!) and he was having a little bit of trouble fully figuring out the whole breathing thing. Alan stayed with me while they finished with the surgery. I think it was at that point that the doctor told us that my placenta was torn and that's where all the blood was coming from. Later we were told that it wasn't a "traditional" tear - the placenta hadn't pulled away from the uterine wall or anything, it had just torn during labor. Apparently this happens in less than 2% of pregnancies. I'm telling you, my luck with medical stuff is amazing!!!
Anyway, after they sewed me all up, I was wheeled over to a recovery room where I shook so much I think I caused a minor earthquake. I remember shaking a lot after my Gallbladder surgery, but this seemed more intense. They finally gave me some Demerol and the shaking went away. After about an hour hanging out in recovery with both my nurse (KC was her name, by the way) and our friend anesthesiologist, Doug, they finally let me go back to my room. I think I slept, but I can't really remember.
After over 6 hours, the nursery finally released Henry and he came into the room. I held him and didn't want to put him down or share or anything!!
We were blessed with many visitors at the hospital, but two of our favorites were Soren and Caroline.
Overall, the nurses and doctors were impressed with my recovery. My doctor was almost certain I would need a blood transfusion, but I was very blessed and my red blood count did not dip down low enough to require it. My blood pressure remained low during my entire stay. I was up and walking around within 24 hours of the surgery. Things just looked great and continued to for the rest of my stay. And our little Henry, even though he dropped nearly 10% of his birth weight, was doing really well!
I was released on Thursday afternoon and able to come home and be with my family.
So that's the basic run down. It's time for me to feed our little guy ad then get a nap. I'll be sure to write more about our first week with Henry in our home!
Can I just say I'm glad to see the end of December?? What a month that was! I wanted it to end almost before it started. And now we are in a new month and a new year! As I type this, I am trying to keep my eyes open because I'm sleep deprived and full of drowsy drugs, but I want to get this all down before the memories start to fade.
After an awesome New Year's Eve party and a busy New Year's Day getting bags packed and the house clean, it was almost time to go to the hospital to welcome baby #3 into the world. I debated about going to church on Sunday, as I assumed I'd be up all night and would need some rest, but decided to go and, in the end, am very glad I did!
That night we headed to the hospital leaving our other kiddos in the trusty hands of my amazingly wonderful sister in law, Kim. She is amazing and I love her for taking care of Soren and Caroline for nearly 3 full days!! Plus my other sister in law, Sarah, pitched in as well as my sweet friend (also named Sarah). This doesn't even touch on the number of people who offered to do anything we needed over the week! We are so blessed to have such awesome family and friends!! Ok, that was a tangent - now back to the story of our little guy!
Admission to the hospital went fairly quickly; no pile of paperwork, just a few things here and there. Then the real fun began! Not knowing how many different drugs I might need for delivery, I needed two IVs thingies (catheters?) put in - one in each arm. Last time I needed a butt load of drugs because of all the complications I had, so they wanted to be prepared. It only took two nurses an hour and a half plus the use of an ultrasound machine to be successful. Apparently I have crooked veins. Who knew? I now am sporting some pretty awesome bruises on my left arm, though. Sweet!
After the IV debacle, we settled in for a night of what we hoped would be a progressive induction. Caroline had taken 36 hours to get the hint that it was time for her to come (for her own safety), so I was preparing for things to take at least that long but hoping it wouldn't! Haha . . . be careful what you wish for!! Anyway, the plan was a Miso tablet to help move things along, then another after 3 hours, then we'd move on from there to Pitocin and a baby!
Miso tablets, apparently, cause a lot of cramping. Sleep didn't really happen because every time I'd doze off, I'd wake back up in pain. Not major pain, mind you, but just annoying enough to keep me from sleeping. Then, of course, the nurse came in quite a few times to check baby and blood pressure and all of that fun stuff. After 2 rounds of Miso, it was time to hook up the pitocin. My nurse changed around 7:30am, but not much else changed. I wasn't progressing very quickly, so they were slowly turning up the Pitocin.
Generally I am pretty tolerant of pain, but during labor I feel like a big wuss. The sooner I can get something to stop the pain, the happier I am. However, no matter how many times and ways I mentioned that I would sure like something for the pain, I didn't get anything. Finally the doctor arrived to assess the situation and I asked her what the general protocol was for giving me drugs. After checking to see how baby was progressing, she told me she wanted his head to be a little closer to the exit before we put in the epidural. I trusted her opinion (she's a great doctor from what I've been able to ascertain), so I went with it.
Shortly thereafter I began to disagree.
I've been induced with each of my pregnancies, so I've done the whole Pitocin thing before. I know that the pain associated with Pitocin (and labor in general haha) sucks, but I was experiencing some nasty, nasty pain. With Caroline, my epidural stopped working 45 minutes before she was born and I went through the final bit of labor without anything to kill or dull the pain. The contractions I was feeling this time were more painful than that. I'd get one contraction, it would start to fade and then before it went away, another one started. Then I'd get about 20-30 seconds before it all started again. This is when I started whining to the nurse! Around 11:30am, after watching me and my contractions disagree for quite a while, she turned the Pitocin down. It was heaven! For all of 5 minutes, anyway. I was expressing my joy at the relief when I felt something familiar. I looked at the nurse and told her I was pretty sure my water had just broken.
Hooray!
Except then I was worried that I'd have to do the labor without drugs again because after my water broke with Caroline, she came VERY quickly! I braced myself for it, but after the nurse checked things out, she looked slightly concerned. She told us there was some blood and she wanted to check with the doctor on the next step. After maybe 2 minutes, she came back in and that's when the crazy started. Apparently I was dripping blood - everywhere. I couldn't see it (thank GOODNESS!!!), but there was blood all over my bed and literally streaming onto the floor, creating a puddle.
The look on the nurses face told me that things were not good. And suddenly there were at least 6 other people in the room. I had an anesthesiologist in my face (his name was Doug and he was super nice, actually) going through the risks and warnings, I had my nurse telling me they were doing a c-section asap, I had a doctor (not mine, of course - she was already in surgery) telling me her name - which I promptly forgot - and saying she'd be performing the surgery, there were papers being tossed in my face to sign, and then I was being rapidly wheeled down halls to an operating room.
By this time I had lost so much blood I was having trouble keeping my eyes open. I tried to do what they told me to so I could get the spinal block and they wouldn't have to knock me out completely. If there was one thing I remembered from the anesthesiologist, it was that if they had to knock me out completely, Alan would not be able to be there with me. I was not ok with this and I knew he'd be pretty upset as well. Thank goodness I was coherent enough to get the spinal block! Before I knew what was happening, the nurses and Alan were trying to inform me that our baby was here.
And he was beautiful.
Our little guy, Henry Alan Tullis!!!
Arrival date: 1/3/11
Arrival time: 12:21pm
Weight: 7lbs, 3oz
Height: 21 1/2 inches
I wish I'd been more coherent . . . I was too weak to even hold him - I didn't trust myself, but I gave him a kiss and told him I loved him. At that point I just wanted to sleep. The nurses needed to take Henry to the nursery because his blood sugar was a little low (and I was in no position to feed him! Haha!) and he was having a little bit of trouble fully figuring out the whole breathing thing. Alan stayed with me while they finished with the surgery. I think it was at that point that the doctor told us that my placenta was torn and that's where all the blood was coming from. Later we were told that it wasn't a "traditional" tear - the placenta hadn't pulled away from the uterine wall or anything, it had just torn during labor. Apparently this happens in less than 2% of pregnancies. I'm telling you, my luck with medical stuff is amazing!!!
Anyway, after they sewed me all up, I was wheeled over to a recovery room where I shook so much I think I caused a minor earthquake. I remember shaking a lot after my Gallbladder surgery, but this seemed more intense. They finally gave me some Demerol and the shaking went away. After about an hour hanging out in recovery with both my nurse (KC was her name, by the way) and our friend anesthesiologist, Doug, they finally let me go back to my room. I think I slept, but I can't really remember.
After over 6 hours, the nursery finally released Henry and he came into the room. I held him and didn't want to put him down or share or anything!!
We were blessed with many visitors at the hospital, but two of our favorites were Soren and Caroline.
Overall, the nurses and doctors were impressed with my recovery. My doctor was almost certain I would need a blood transfusion, but I was very blessed and my red blood count did not dip down low enough to require it. My blood pressure remained low during my entire stay. I was up and walking around within 24 hours of the surgery. Things just looked great and continued to for the rest of my stay. And our little Henry, even though he dropped nearly 10% of his birth weight, was doing really well!
I was released on Thursday afternoon and able to come home and be with my family.
So that's the basic run down. It's time for me to feed our little guy ad then get a nap. I'll be sure to write more about our first week with Henry in our home!
Thursday, December 30, 2010
I suppose I should document this . . .
Nope, sorry - this isn't a Christmas post! Although I have to say, we did have a splendid Christmas! It was quiet and beautiful and relaxing! Cherishing those while they last!
Instead let me tell you a little about my month. Aside from the pneumonia. I've been heading to the doctor 2-3 times a week for appointments, ultrasounds, and non-stress tests. This week I also had some blood work done, partially at my request and partially at the doctor's request. Which doctor? Who knows? I have seen a total of 8 during this pregnancy (including two perinatologists!), one of which may or may not be the delivering doctor.
Most of these appointments have been low key, everything looking good, lots of pics of our new little guy (he's adorable, by the way - his cheeks are to die for! I hope they stay chubby!!). Today things took a turn. First off, my blood pressure didn't want to cooperate. Secondly, I was down a couple of pounds (I know, you're thinking - how lucky are you? No, this is not good... it happened with Caroline and if you read her story, you know it only goes downhill from here). Thirdly, well - the results of the blood tests were back. And they didn't look good.
You see, Christmas Eve something happened. Itching. And not the normal pregnancy itching that comes with an expanding tummy, but intense itching on the palms of my hands and on my feet. This is one of the only signs that accompany a condition called Cholestasis. This is the same thing I had with Caroline and there was a 90% chance it would happen again. When the itching started, I knew what it was but I also knew there wasn't anything the doctor could do about it this close to the end of the pregnancy. So when I went in the following Monday, I mentioned it to the perinatologist, who ordered the blood work. That's the blood work that came back today. And it was positive.
Not really a big shocker, but I was hoping to make it to 39 weeks. Oh well!
The blood pressure situation is still up in the air. More test results should be available tomorrow.
So, the big news is . . . I'm heading in for an induction on Sunday, January 2nd! Stay tuned for more news and pictures!
Instead let me tell you a little about my month. Aside from the pneumonia. I've been heading to the doctor 2-3 times a week for appointments, ultrasounds, and non-stress tests. This week I also had some blood work done, partially at my request and partially at the doctor's request. Which doctor? Who knows? I have seen a total of 8 during this pregnancy (including two perinatologists!), one of which may or may not be the delivering doctor.
Most of these appointments have been low key, everything looking good, lots of pics of our new little guy (he's adorable, by the way - his cheeks are to die for! I hope they stay chubby!!). Today things took a turn. First off, my blood pressure didn't want to cooperate. Secondly, I was down a couple of pounds (I know, you're thinking - how lucky are you? No, this is not good... it happened with Caroline and if you read her story, you know it only goes downhill from here). Thirdly, well - the results of the blood tests were back. And they didn't look good.
You see, Christmas Eve something happened. Itching. And not the normal pregnancy itching that comes with an expanding tummy, but intense itching on the palms of my hands and on my feet. This is one of the only signs that accompany a condition called Cholestasis. This is the same thing I had with Caroline and there was a 90% chance it would happen again. When the itching started, I knew what it was but I also knew there wasn't anything the doctor could do about it this close to the end of the pregnancy. So when I went in the following Monday, I mentioned it to the perinatologist, who ordered the blood work. That's the blood work that came back today. And it was positive.
Not really a big shocker, but I was hoping to make it to 39 weeks. Oh well!
The blood pressure situation is still up in the air. More test results should be available tomorrow.
So, the big news is . . . I'm heading in for an induction on Sunday, January 2nd! Stay tuned for more news and pictures!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Road to . . . . somewhere?
December has only just begun and I'm ready for one of two things: A do-over OR a skip-to-the-end! What a month!
Last week we had the Furnace Saga. After at least 4 trips to various locations for the part we thought was the problem and then two visits in two days from two different technicians, the furnace was finally fixed. We only had two full days without heat, so it wasn't the end of the world. However, the money we had to put out to repair it was not in our plans, so that was a bummer. The past week we have made a lot of positive comments about the warmth of the house. We are very grateful that we were able to get it repaired and now have a functioning furnace. And we'll be sure to open an empty package of warm air on Christmas morning to remind ourselves of that! Haha!
Now on to the sickies. The last week of November both Caroline and myself came down with something nasty.
It took Caroline two weeks to shake it. She actually still has some fluid in her ear, a minor cough, and a slight runny nose. I'm supposed to take her back to the doctor in 3-4 weeks just to make sure it has all cleared up. And speaking of the doctor, she's been there twice in the past week or so. On Dec. 1st she went in for her 2 year old check up. The good news? She's finally back on the growth chart! You go, girl! However, she's still just a teenie little peanut. In the past year (yes, YEAR), she has gained a grand total of 4lbs. I've got to come up with some Supernanny worthy tactics to get this girl to eat. Caroline's second doctor's appointment was due to me. Mentally I know I am a good mom who tries to do what is best for my kids. But emotionally I feel horrible for yoinking her arm the wrong direction and pulling her elbow out of socket.... again. So we had to rush over to the doctor yesterday to pop that sucker back in. Could I do it myself? Probably. But I have such a hard time with that kind of stuff. And to think - at one point in my life I wanted to be a nurse or doctor. HAHAHAHA! That seriously makes me laugh now.
My version of the evil sickies that Caroline shared with me (hey, she's learning to share so I can't be too angry, right?) was beyond stupid. After talking to nurses, a doctor, and a pharmacist, I was given plenty of ideas on how to deal with it sans meds. I thought I'd made a breakthrough and was on the road to recovery, but alas . . . it all turned south again. This time I went into the doctor and told her I couldn't do it anymore - I was done, wiped, exhausted, over it . . . and finally was able to get some antibiotics. Less than 24 hours later I can report that I am feeling almost human again. Aside from the plethora of bathroom trips last night, I actually slept without coughing, sneezing, or blowing my nose every 20 minutes. I look forward to the next few days when hopefully all that keeps me awake at night is a kicking baby and/or trips to the bathroom.
And now I need to do all those things that fell by the wayside when I was sitting on the couch/in bed with a box of tissues in my lap. I still have things to mail, things to order, and things to decorate for Christmas. Whether or not they will all get done, I don't know. I'm going to do what I can and try very hard not to beat myself up if they don't.
And that is my summary of December thus far. We also had Soren's piano recital (I missed it), a Christmas party or two (I went to one but left early), lots of homework/projects to finish before the holiday break, and preparations around the house for our new addition. It's been quite a month already. Hopefully the remainder of the month can be a little more uneventful! :)
Last week we had the Furnace Saga. After at least 4 trips to various locations for the part we thought was the problem and then two visits in two days from two different technicians, the furnace was finally fixed. We only had two full days without heat, so it wasn't the end of the world. However, the money we had to put out to repair it was not in our plans, so that was a bummer. The past week we have made a lot of positive comments about the warmth of the house. We are very grateful that we were able to get it repaired and now have a functioning furnace. And we'll be sure to open an empty package of warm air on Christmas morning to remind ourselves of that! Haha!
Now on to the sickies. The last week of November both Caroline and myself came down with something nasty.
It took Caroline two weeks to shake it. She actually still has some fluid in her ear, a minor cough, and a slight runny nose. I'm supposed to take her back to the doctor in 3-4 weeks just to make sure it has all cleared up. And speaking of the doctor, she's been there twice in the past week or so. On Dec. 1st she went in for her 2 year old check up. The good news? She's finally back on the growth chart! You go, girl! However, she's still just a teenie little peanut. In the past year (yes, YEAR), she has gained a grand total of 4lbs. I've got to come up with some Supernanny worthy tactics to get this girl to eat. Caroline's second doctor's appointment was due to me. Mentally I know I am a good mom who tries to do what is best for my kids. But emotionally I feel horrible for yoinking her arm the wrong direction and pulling her elbow out of socket.... again. So we had to rush over to the doctor yesterday to pop that sucker back in. Could I do it myself? Probably. But I have such a hard time with that kind of stuff. And to think - at one point in my life I wanted to be a nurse or doctor. HAHAHAHA! That seriously makes me laugh now.
My version of the evil sickies that Caroline shared with me (hey, she's learning to share so I can't be too angry, right?) was beyond stupid. After talking to nurses, a doctor, and a pharmacist, I was given plenty of ideas on how to deal with it sans meds. I thought I'd made a breakthrough and was on the road to recovery, but alas . . . it all turned south again. This time I went into the doctor and told her I couldn't do it anymore - I was done, wiped, exhausted, over it . . . and finally was able to get some antibiotics. Less than 24 hours later I can report that I am feeling almost human again. Aside from the plethora of bathroom trips last night, I actually slept without coughing, sneezing, or blowing my nose every 20 minutes. I look forward to the next few days when hopefully all that keeps me awake at night is a kicking baby and/or trips to the bathroom.
And now I need to do all those things that fell by the wayside when I was sitting on the couch/in bed with a box of tissues in my lap. I still have things to mail, things to order, and things to decorate for Christmas. Whether or not they will all get done, I don't know. I'm going to do what I can and try very hard not to beat myself up if they don't.
And that is my summary of December thus far. We also had Soren's piano recital (I missed it), a Christmas party or two (I went to one but left early), lots of homework/projects to finish before the holiday break, and preparations around the house for our new addition. It's been quite a month already. Hopefully the remainder of the month can be a little more uneventful! :)
Thursday, December 2, 2010
WARNING - WHINE POST
I have much to be thankful for, I know that. But sometimes, you just have to whine.
Currently I am sick and I have been sick for almost a full week. Caroline has been sick for nearly two full weeks. Yes, she has been to the doctor. I went to the doctor last week before this all settled in to annoy me. Do we know what it is? Nope. Is there anything that can be done? Nope. She's 2 and weighs next to nothing (but hey, she's back on the growth chart at least), so there isn't much over the counter that she can take. I'm pregnant and run into the same problem. So whatever this nasty junk is, it's hanging on for dear life to both of us making us tired, sick, and cranky! I broke down today and called my new clinic to ask if I could take Mucinex. The nurse told me it's better to be safe than sorry and to avoid it (none of her charts were showing that it was okay). So I am going to try Sudafed, which I hate taking because it leaves me in a fog of stupid. I could try Benadryl as well, but even the children's version of that knocks me out cold. So I'm annoyed that I'm sick basically. And I'm annoyed at how long it is lasting.
The furnace stopped working at some point on Tuesday night. Yesterday we had no heat and Alan and I investigated and think we have pinpointed the problem. Alan left work early to rush over to a store that closed at 5 to get a part. Which didn't end up fitting in our furnace. Ugh! So we went all night without heat again. Alan had meetings this morning and then was going to be a gem and go out part-hunting again. I'm not sure how long his meetings will go and what obligations he has at work, so I am trying to huddle down into blankies and stay warm. I think furnaces should not be allowed to break in December or January. Isn't there a law about that somewhere? Alan is trying so hard to fix this to keep the cost down. I sure love him.
Now we come to the eating part of life for me. Nothing looks good or sounds good. Everything - and I mean everything - gives me heartburn. I had crackers this morning at 6am when I woke up from yet another terrible night of sleep and 20 minutes later I needed Tums. So basically I don't want to eat and I'm hungry all day because I don't want to eat. This happened with Caroline as well. And I lost weight and the doctor scolded me. But seriously - I have plenty of stored fat to share with baby, so I don't see what the big deal is. Except that when I don't eat I am very cranky. Probably because my body needs food. Bah!
I love this new baby we have coming, but he could really create a much more cheerful momma if he repositioned himself. I don't really care for the lower back pain nor am I a fan of the tailbone pain. I try not to complain too much about this because we obviously are thrilled that we are able to have another baby, but it really is very painful and makes walking, sitting, standing, and basically any type of moving very difficult.
I think above all else I feel horrible for how much Alan is having to do because I'm such a mess. He is doing it and not complaining (out loud), but I know he works hard all day and then to have to come home and fix dinner (most nights), load the dishwasher, take care of me, help with the kids, fix furnaces, etc. . . . I just feel bad. This is one of those times where I wish I had the money to hire someone to come in and give the house a good scrubbing. I know I can't do it right now. I can barely get out of the house for an hour or two without paying for it the rest of the day. And I know I have friends who are more than willing to come help, but with all the germs flying around here I don't want to risk getting them sick.
And I won't even get started on the situation with insurance and doctors. That's a whole 'nother whine tangent.
So basically I just needed to dump. And there it is.
Currently I am sick and I have been sick for almost a full week. Caroline has been sick for nearly two full weeks. Yes, she has been to the doctor. I went to the doctor last week before this all settled in to annoy me. Do we know what it is? Nope. Is there anything that can be done? Nope. She's 2 and weighs next to nothing (but hey, she's back on the growth chart at least), so there isn't much over the counter that she can take. I'm pregnant and run into the same problem. So whatever this nasty junk is, it's hanging on for dear life to both of us making us tired, sick, and cranky! I broke down today and called my new clinic to ask if I could take Mucinex. The nurse told me it's better to be safe than sorry and to avoid it (none of her charts were showing that it was okay). So I am going to try Sudafed, which I hate taking because it leaves me in a fog of stupid. I could try Benadryl as well, but even the children's version of that knocks me out cold. So I'm annoyed that I'm sick basically. And I'm annoyed at how long it is lasting.
The furnace stopped working at some point on Tuesday night. Yesterday we had no heat and Alan and I investigated and think we have pinpointed the problem. Alan left work early to rush over to a store that closed at 5 to get a part. Which didn't end up fitting in our furnace. Ugh! So we went all night without heat again. Alan had meetings this morning and then was going to be a gem and go out part-hunting again. I'm not sure how long his meetings will go and what obligations he has at work, so I am trying to huddle down into blankies and stay warm. I think furnaces should not be allowed to break in December or January. Isn't there a law about that somewhere? Alan is trying so hard to fix this to keep the cost down. I sure love him.
Now we come to the eating part of life for me. Nothing looks good or sounds good. Everything - and I mean everything - gives me heartburn. I had crackers this morning at 6am when I woke up from yet another terrible night of sleep and 20 minutes later I needed Tums. So basically I don't want to eat and I'm hungry all day because I don't want to eat. This happened with Caroline as well. And I lost weight and the doctor scolded me. But seriously - I have plenty of stored fat to share with baby, so I don't see what the big deal is. Except that when I don't eat I am very cranky. Probably because my body needs food. Bah!
I love this new baby we have coming, but he could really create a much more cheerful momma if he repositioned himself. I don't really care for the lower back pain nor am I a fan of the tailbone pain. I try not to complain too much about this because we obviously are thrilled that we are able to have another baby, but it really is very painful and makes walking, sitting, standing, and basically any type of moving very difficult.
I think above all else I feel horrible for how much Alan is having to do because I'm such a mess. He is doing it and not complaining (out loud), but I know he works hard all day and then to have to come home and fix dinner (most nights), load the dishwasher, take care of me, help with the kids, fix furnaces, etc. . . . I just feel bad. This is one of those times where I wish I had the money to hire someone to come in and give the house a good scrubbing. I know I can't do it right now. I can barely get out of the house for an hour or two without paying for it the rest of the day. And I know I have friends who are more than willing to come help, but with all the germs flying around here I don't want to risk getting them sick.
And I won't even get started on the situation with insurance and doctors. That's a whole 'nother whine tangent.
So basically I just needed to dump. And there it is.
Monday, November 29, 2010
Where did November go?
Looks like November is almost over! Some events of this month included:
*Caroline's birthday - she's TWO!
*Our first snowfall of the year! We don't get much snow here, so anything we see is exciting!
*Thanksgiving with lots of yummy food and good company! I'm grateful for wonderful family that hosted this year! Thank you, Rob & Kim!
*A visit from Alan's brother, JT. I sure love that guy - he's awesome! It was nice of him to be willing to just hang out and relax. I still am hoping we weren't too boring for him!
*Our first family sickness - it started with Caroline, then me, and now Soren seems to be under the weather. We are all hoping Alan stays strong and avoids it.
*Caroline has moved into a toddler bed! So far she is doing pretty well, but she definitely is enjoying the freedom of moving around her room once the door is shut. We are reminding her that bed time means to stay in bed. I'm sure this is something we'll be discussing for years to come with her - especially if she is anything like her brother.
*Halloween decorations came down, Autumn decorations went up! Then autumn decorations came down and Christmas decorations are in the process of being put up. I didn't realize how busy November is in the decorating department!
*Baby boy continues to grow and make momma rather uncomfortable. His most recent hangout has him applying some insane pressure to my lower back & tailbone. So if you ever hear me say that he is being a pain in the butt, I literally mean it. Ha!
*I've been knitting like crazy - a giant scarf for Alan's Christmas present. And I'm not joking about giant. It's about a foot wide and will eventually be 6 feet long, not including the tassels. Alan has a very long torso - that is where a lot of his 6'7" height comes from - so a "normal" scarf doesn't fit him. I am so excited to finally be able to make this for him and he is, too! My next post will contain pictures of all the knitting I've been up to since I started learning.
I think that about covers it for us. No pictures in this post. I'm too sick and tired to do anything that advanced right now haha! Now I shall go turn something mindless on the TV and get back to knitting. Or napping.
*Caroline's birthday - she's TWO!
*Our first snowfall of the year! We don't get much snow here, so anything we see is exciting!
*Thanksgiving with lots of yummy food and good company! I'm grateful for wonderful family that hosted this year! Thank you, Rob & Kim!
*A visit from Alan's brother, JT. I sure love that guy - he's awesome! It was nice of him to be willing to just hang out and relax. I still am hoping we weren't too boring for him!
*Our first family sickness - it started with Caroline, then me, and now Soren seems to be under the weather. We are all hoping Alan stays strong and avoids it.
*Caroline has moved into a toddler bed! So far she is doing pretty well, but she definitely is enjoying the freedom of moving around her room once the door is shut. We are reminding her that bed time means to stay in bed. I'm sure this is something we'll be discussing for years to come with her - especially if she is anything like her brother.
*Halloween decorations came down, Autumn decorations went up! Then autumn decorations came down and Christmas decorations are in the process of being put up. I didn't realize how busy November is in the decorating department!
*Baby boy continues to grow and make momma rather uncomfortable. His most recent hangout has him applying some insane pressure to my lower back & tailbone. So if you ever hear me say that he is being a pain in the butt, I literally mean it. Ha!
*I've been knitting like crazy - a giant scarf for Alan's Christmas present. And I'm not joking about giant. It's about a foot wide and will eventually be 6 feet long, not including the tassels. Alan has a very long torso - that is where a lot of his 6'7" height comes from - so a "normal" scarf doesn't fit him. I am so excited to finally be able to make this for him and he is, too! My next post will contain pictures of all the knitting I've been up to since I started learning.
I think that about covers it for us. No pictures in this post. I'm too sick and tired to do anything that advanced right now haha! Now I shall go turn something mindless on the TV and get back to knitting. Or napping.
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Birthday Girl!
The past Thursday we celebrated Caroline's 2nd birthday! And as the old cliche' goes - I can't believe she is already 2!
Here she is at about a week old. So tiny! It's still strange to think about how small she was. I'm glad that she is bigger now - even if she is a petite little princess!
Caroline is about 6 months old here, give or take a few weeks. I loved this purple dress on her! Part of me was a little sad that she had so many dresses to choose from because it meant that she didn't get to wear most of them more than once or twice. However, it was (and still is) fun to dress her up each Sunday in something new/different!
And here she is at one whole year old. I loved this shirt her Aunt Sarah made for her with a giant one on it! She wore that a lot during the first few months of her being one.
And here she is around 18 months old - already full of spice and sass! This is her "Mom, put the camera down already, okay?" look. Oh, and she finally started getting some hair at this point.
And now, she's TWO! And already very good at it!
She's showing off the ponies she received, as well as her blocks (which are, of course, all over the family room floor now). She had a great birthday, surrounded by family. We had homemade mac and cheese, applesauce, and juice! A perfect Caroline meal. Then we had cake:
Don't worry, at least SHE knew it was supposed to be Cookie Monster . . . and that's the point, right? I've never decorated a cake with tips and fancy junk before, so this was a whole new territory for me. However, it was fun! Who knows what I will attempt next year! Probably a sheet cake from the store. HAHA!
All in all, it was a good day. After we sang to her, she melted down into a puddle of tired screams and took a good nap. Then she opened presents which included 2 ponies, a book (If You Give A Pig A Pancake), 3 balloons, and Duplo blocks, from mom and dad as well as a coloring book, crayons, 2 toy bottles for her baby doll, a book (Sesame Street counting book), and 2 more balloons from her brother. What a lucky girl!
We are sure grateful for our Sweet Caroline. She has added so much to our family! I love watching her learn and grow and I also love seeing Soren get to be the awesome big brother I always knew he would be! Even if our little princess is full of spice and spunk, she is a sweetheart and we love her so much!!! Happy Birthday, big girl!
Here she is at about a week old. So tiny! It's still strange to think about how small she was. I'm glad that she is bigger now - even if she is a petite little princess!
Caroline is about 6 months old here, give or take a few weeks. I loved this purple dress on her! Part of me was a little sad that she had so many dresses to choose from because it meant that she didn't get to wear most of them more than once or twice. However, it was (and still is) fun to dress her up each Sunday in something new/different!
And here she is at one whole year old. I loved this shirt her Aunt Sarah made for her with a giant one on it! She wore that a lot during the first few months of her being one.
And here she is around 18 months old - already full of spice and sass! This is her "Mom, put the camera down already, okay?" look. Oh, and she finally started getting some hair at this point.
And now, she's TWO! And already very good at it!
She's showing off the ponies she received, as well as her blocks (which are, of course, all over the family room floor now). She had a great birthday, surrounded by family. We had homemade mac and cheese, applesauce, and juice! A perfect Caroline meal. Then we had cake:
Don't worry, at least SHE knew it was supposed to be Cookie Monster . . . and that's the point, right? I've never decorated a cake with tips and fancy junk before, so this was a whole new territory for me. However, it was fun! Who knows what I will attempt next year! Probably a sheet cake from the store. HAHA!
All in all, it was a good day. After we sang to her, she melted down into a puddle of tired screams and took a good nap. Then she opened presents which included 2 ponies, a book (If You Give A Pig A Pancake), 3 balloons, and Duplo blocks, from mom and dad as well as a coloring book, crayons, 2 toy bottles for her baby doll, a book (Sesame Street counting book), and 2 more balloons from her brother. What a lucky girl!
We are sure grateful for our Sweet Caroline. She has added so much to our family! I love watching her learn and grow and I also love seeing Soren get to be the awesome big brother I always knew he would be! Even if our little princess is full of spice and spunk, she is a sweetheart and we love her so much!!! Happy Birthday, big girl!
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
Halloween (Finally!)
There were a lot of Halloween celebrations this year for our family! First came our ward (congregation) Halloween party at church! Caroline and Soren won an award for Most Original Costume(s). I am going to miss it when Soren won't dress up anymore.
Soren wanted to dress up as Calvin, so we dressed Caroline up as Hobbes! They were so cute! This was the only time I bothered with the makeup. I still don't know how I managed to get Soren made up as a clown when he was 2! It was nearly impossible to get Caroline to sit (sort of) still enough to put that nose and whisker mess on her face. All in all, it was a good time - even if Caroline lost it shortly after 7:30pm. She loves her bed time and, quite frankly, I am ok with that.
(Caroline in one of her Halloween outfits. She enjoys emptying out the shoe basket and sitting in it. Also, she loves playing with all of the shoes. Lately she has mastered the art of slipping my shoes on and walking from the hall into the kitchen to show me. What a silly girl!)
Our next party was at Alan's work! OH how I LOVE his new company! They had a fun little haunted house (or haunted cubicles) set up for kids to wander through and explore. Soren and Caroline stuck together for a while, but then things became a little scary at certain parts, so Soren went up to the front to get a better view of it all and Caroline hung back with mom and dad. It was fun and boy did we end up with a lot of candy!
For this party we sprayed Soren's hair with color. That was fun! I also dressed up, but failed to get a photo. I had a t-shirt on with a "1-Up Mushroom" (from the Mario Bros. games) over my baby bump as well as a Mario hat.
Our last party was on Halloween itself. We had some friends over and ate a yummy meal! Here are pics of our feast:
Bean dip and chips! Yum!
Deviled Eyeballs! Soren had a blast putting all the red lines on these.
Jello Jigglers in fun Halloween shapes. The kids had fun cutting these things out.
DELICIOUS Rootbeer! We discovered this when we lived in DC and were so happy to finally find it here! Yay!
And the tables were decorated:
I forgot to get photos of a few things, including our Candy Corn Chowder (no Candy Corn was used in the making of that!). Silly me! But here's our pumpkin cheesecake dessert:
I couldn't get the picture to rotate, so this is what you get it!
Overall we had a great time! I wish that I'd had more energy to do a few more things, but maybe next year!
So that's my update on Halloween... finally!
Soren wanted to dress up as Calvin, so we dressed Caroline up as Hobbes! They were so cute! This was the only time I bothered with the makeup. I still don't know how I managed to get Soren made up as a clown when he was 2! It was nearly impossible to get Caroline to sit (sort of) still enough to put that nose and whisker mess on her face. All in all, it was a good time - even if Caroline lost it shortly after 7:30pm. She loves her bed time and, quite frankly, I am ok with that.
(Caroline in one of her Halloween outfits. She enjoys emptying out the shoe basket and sitting in it. Also, she loves playing with all of the shoes. Lately she has mastered the art of slipping my shoes on and walking from the hall into the kitchen to show me. What a silly girl!)
Our next party was at Alan's work! OH how I LOVE his new company! They had a fun little haunted house (or haunted cubicles) set up for kids to wander through and explore. Soren and Caroline stuck together for a while, but then things became a little scary at certain parts, so Soren went up to the front to get a better view of it all and Caroline hung back with mom and dad. It was fun and boy did we end up with a lot of candy!
For this party we sprayed Soren's hair with color. That was fun! I also dressed up, but failed to get a photo. I had a t-shirt on with a "1-Up Mushroom" (from the Mario Bros. games) over my baby bump as well as a Mario hat.
Our last party was on Halloween itself. We had some friends over and ate a yummy meal! Here are pics of our feast:
Bean dip and chips! Yum!
Deviled Eyeballs! Soren had a blast putting all the red lines on these.
Jello Jigglers in fun Halloween shapes. The kids had fun cutting these things out.
DELICIOUS Rootbeer! We discovered this when we lived in DC and were so happy to finally find it here! Yay!
And the tables were decorated:
I forgot to get photos of a few things, including our Candy Corn Chowder (no Candy Corn was used in the making of that!). Silly me! But here's our pumpkin cheesecake dessert:
I couldn't get the picture to rotate, so this is what you get it!
Overall we had a great time! I wish that I'd had more energy to do a few more things, but maybe next year!
So that's my update on Halloween... finally!
Monday, October 25, 2010
Before I forget . . .
We always are having funny moments with our kids . . . . here's two from Caroline:
Yesterday we were all getting ready for church. Caroline was dressed and pretty much ready to go. She found her purse, put some things in it, put it over her shoulder, and yelled, "Boys! Go church!" Cracked us all up! She is such a momma hen sometimes!
Today I was looking at a few things online, including a milk pitcher with an ad for Pillsbury cookies. Caroline saw the ad and her eyes got all big and she yelled, "COOKIES!" So silly!
One of things I love about having kids is that they always keep me laughing. Sometimes I have to remind myself of something funny they said or did because at that moment maybe they aren't making me laugh, but overall it's lots of silliness.
In other news, my blood pressure took a spike over the weekend and I went to the doctor today because I was kinda freaked out - I hadn't seen numbers like that for quite a while. Luckily we've just done some medication adjustments and hoping that will resolve the issue for the time being. Just give me 4 more weeks to get the house in order and the holidays settled. And a dinner with my hubby at The Melting Pot. Then I will feel much better about being stuck on bedrest or in the hospital! Not that I want that, but if it's going to happen - just give me 4 more weeks!
Ok, my little climber is trying to wreak havoc. Time to go!
Yesterday we were all getting ready for church. Caroline was dressed and pretty much ready to go. She found her purse, put some things in it, put it over her shoulder, and yelled, "Boys! Go church!" Cracked us all up! She is such a momma hen sometimes!
Today I was looking at a few things online, including a milk pitcher with an ad for Pillsbury cookies. Caroline saw the ad and her eyes got all big and she yelled, "COOKIES!" So silly!
One of things I love about having kids is that they always keep me laughing. Sometimes I have to remind myself of something funny they said or did because at that moment maybe they aren't making me laugh, but overall it's lots of silliness.
In other news, my blood pressure took a spike over the weekend and I went to the doctor today because I was kinda freaked out - I hadn't seen numbers like that for quite a while. Luckily we've just done some medication adjustments and hoping that will resolve the issue for the time being. Just give me 4 more weeks to get the house in order and the holidays settled. And a dinner with my hubby at The Melting Pot. Then I will feel much better about being stuck on bedrest or in the hospital! Not that I want that, but if it's going to happen - just give me 4 more weeks!
Ok, my little climber is trying to wreak havoc. Time to go!
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Halloween Traditions!
For some reason, I just love Halloween. It could be the theatre geek in me that loves the idea of dressing up in costume (or dressing others up in costume!). It could be that hidden side of me that enjoys some of the more gruesome aspects of the holiday (I love creepy looking food, the idea of haunts and ghosts, and getting to channel into that for a short few weeks of the year). Or it could just be that I'm a little crazy. Either way, it's a holiday we celebrate with gusto at our house.
Last night we went beyond the decorations in the house and the cute little outfits - we completed phase two of the Tullis Halloween Tradition: Halloween Sugar Cookies! Some people are into Christmas Sugar Cookies, but not us! I think I have one cookie cutter for Christmas. For Halloween I have an entire pumpkin full! Yay! I tried out my grandmother's sugar cookie recipe for the first time and was very impressed. It was super easy and very tasty - not too sweet, so just right for a bit of decorations on top to give it that extra kick of sugar. Yum!
It was great fun - we all were involved in the process. This was the first year in ages that I made the dough and not Alan. And this was also the first year that Caroline was really able to participate. We had so much fun - especially when she commandeered the pumpkin cookie cutter and wouldn't let it go. She LOVES pumpkins and points them out wherever we go (especially all over the house, which gets old after a while).
Alan tried out an orange glaze for the topping instead of a frosting this year. It needs some tweaking, but it turned out pretty good! And I got to toss sprinkles on after he glazed them. Yay! Most years we only get to frosting a few, so I have a build up of sprinkles sitting around. It was fun to get to use them! Here's the finished product:
Next phase? Pumpkins!!!
Oh, and we finally decided on Halloween costumes for this year. But that, my friends, is for another post. :)
Last night we went beyond the decorations in the house and the cute little outfits - we completed phase two of the Tullis Halloween Tradition: Halloween Sugar Cookies! Some people are into Christmas Sugar Cookies, but not us! I think I have one cookie cutter for Christmas. For Halloween I have an entire pumpkin full! Yay! I tried out my grandmother's sugar cookie recipe for the first time and was very impressed. It was super easy and very tasty - not too sweet, so just right for a bit of decorations on top to give it that extra kick of sugar. Yum!
It was great fun - we all were involved in the process. This was the first year in ages that I made the dough and not Alan. And this was also the first year that Caroline was really able to participate. We had so much fun - especially when she commandeered the pumpkin cookie cutter and wouldn't let it go. She LOVES pumpkins and points them out wherever we go (especially all over the house, which gets old after a while).
Alan tried out an orange glaze for the topping instead of a frosting this year. It needs some tweaking, but it turned out pretty good! And I got to toss sprinkles on after he glazed them. Yay! Most years we only get to frosting a few, so I have a build up of sprinkles sitting around. It was fun to get to use them! Here's the finished product:
Next phase? Pumpkins!!!
Oh, and we finally decided on Halloween costumes for this year. But that, my friends, is for another post. :)
Friday, October 15, 2010
Haircuts!
After fighting with the mullet look for far too long on my sweet Caroline, I finally broke down while at a play date on Tuesday and asked my friend to cut her hair. (Thank you, Addi!) It was the first haircut for the princess and while I do miss her gorgeous curls that were nearly past her shoulders, she looks more like a little girl now and less like a hillbilly. I've also noticed that her hair still has plenty of curl post tubby-time, so I'm hoping to see those ringlets again soon. Here are some pics of the occasion:
She did really well - not a scream or a tear. I just told her we were going to play with her hair. Between that, her mouse, and the adorable zebra print apron thing, she was good to go!
The result:
Clean and tidy and cute! Maybe, if I get a chance, I will take a pic of the rest of her outfit. It's another Halloween number - the pants are adorable!
In Soren news, he tried out to play piano for the 7th grade jazz band (aka "Stage Band") and is now being challenged with some tough music! It's good for him, though. He's going to grow a lot this year - musically I mean. He'll probably grow a lot physically this year, too. We are around the corner from him passing me up in height. I've been very impressed with his adjustment to school this year - much better than last year! He's a great kid and we are lucky to have him around - even when he continually forgets what "take the garbage out" means. Haha!
Alan was offered a full time position at Nautilus, Inc. this week. That's right, folks - he's working for the makers of Bowflex and the Treadclimber! The biggest bonus in all of this is that it is a 6 mile round trip to and from work - no bridges to cross, no traffic to deal with, and - best of all - he's home early at night! He also is able to come home for lunch a few times a week which is awesome. They are working him hard, but he is glad to be there - learning and growing. We are loving the added time we have with him at home. Yay, Alan!
As for me, things are plugging along. I keep trying to get that final room of the house sorted. Maybe this weekend. Haha! We are nearing the end of the second trimester of this pregnancy and moving into what was the worst trimester for me last time around. I keep hoping and praying that things will go a bit more smoothly this time, but I'm planning for the worst. We'll see how it all goes! I'm trying to scale back my activities and take it easy as much as possible! That's not easy with a tweenager and a toddler, but we're doing our best around these parts.
Speaking of toddlers, someone wants attention! Be on the lookout for upcoming Halloween posts. I'm currently in the planning phases of our feast!
She did really well - not a scream or a tear. I just told her we were going to play with her hair. Between that, her mouse, and the adorable zebra print apron thing, she was good to go!
The result:
Clean and tidy and cute! Maybe, if I get a chance, I will take a pic of the rest of her outfit. It's another Halloween number - the pants are adorable!
In Soren news, he tried out to play piano for the 7th grade jazz band (aka "Stage Band") and is now being challenged with some tough music! It's good for him, though. He's going to grow a lot this year - musically I mean. He'll probably grow a lot physically this year, too. We are around the corner from him passing me up in height. I've been very impressed with his adjustment to school this year - much better than last year! He's a great kid and we are lucky to have him around - even when he continually forgets what "take the garbage out" means. Haha!
Alan was offered a full time position at Nautilus, Inc. this week. That's right, folks - he's working for the makers of Bowflex and the Treadclimber! The biggest bonus in all of this is that it is a 6 mile round trip to and from work - no bridges to cross, no traffic to deal with, and - best of all - he's home early at night! He also is able to come home for lunch a few times a week which is awesome. They are working him hard, but he is glad to be there - learning and growing. We are loving the added time we have with him at home. Yay, Alan!
As for me, things are plugging along. I keep trying to get that final room of the house sorted. Maybe this weekend. Haha! We are nearing the end of the second trimester of this pregnancy and moving into what was the worst trimester for me last time around. I keep hoping and praying that things will go a bit more smoothly this time, but I'm planning for the worst. We'll see how it all goes! I'm trying to scale back my activities and take it easy as much as possible! That's not easy with a tweenager and a toddler, but we're doing our best around these parts.
Speaking of toddlers, someone wants attention! Be on the lookout for upcoming Halloween posts. I'm currently in the planning phases of our feast!
Friday, October 1, 2010
A View from the Top
Yup - that's my boobs and my belly. And my table with this weeks tablecloth.
Now quit looking at my boobs.
Instead, look at this cutie pie:
Yes - we are all decked out for the month of OCTOBER! It's a family favorite around here! Or at least it's one of my favorites and therefore I push it on the house and the only person in it that I can dress up (besides myself, of course!).
HAPPY OCTOBER!!
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