Blessed

Sick... and tired

2011-12-05T13:05:00.000-08:00

For pete's sake I've caught the plague from the children. Started last week with stomach pyrotechnics (I won't go into details, use your imagination), body aches, chills, fever. Now it has morphed into some nasty respiratory thing that has settled in to my sinuses and chest. Pounding headache. I am not pleased. Not one bit. My poor babies have all been suffering from the same thing. I am debating a trip to the doctor. But I hate going in and being told that we all have viruses. Then receiving a hefty medical bill to add to our stack of bills for said visit. So tough it out we will.

I am proud that I had the energy yesterday to do a North Pole Breakfast. Wish I could say the same about today. So far I've managed to dress the kids and change their diapers. We've all had breakfast (cereal) and I am now sitting like a zombie in a chair unable to move. Cadence is jumping away in her jumperoo and Ethan is watching whatever is on Disney. This mom is ready to go back to bed. YUCK. Wake me up when it's spring, OK?

Christmas Wish List '11

2011-12-04T12:33:00.000-08:00

I've been getting lots of ~~pressure~~ requests for our Christmas wish lists. Do you know how hard it is to come up with a wish list for FIVE people. FIVE. lol. For this slacker it is tough. So here we go...!

Mike:
White T-shirts size L or XL, Hanes tagless, round neck
Beef Jerky or Pepperoni Sticks
Movie Gift Cards (Regal Cinema)
The Office Season 6
Barnes and Noble Gift card
iTunes gift card
Seahawks hat
Seahawks anything

Christy:
Barnes and Noble Gift Card
Nook Cover
iTunes Gift Card
New eyemask to block the light - and earplugs
2011 Family Christmas Ornament
Santa Frame for the kids santa picture
Snowman Christmas Decorations
Travel Coffee Mug that doesn't leak
Starbucks gift card - or starbucks ANYTHING

Mackenzy:

Junie B. Jones Books
Sewing supplies (fabric, thread, ect)
Scrapbooking albums
Scrapbooking supplies
Pictures for her scrap books
Crafts supplies (paints, paper, crayons, ect0
American Girl doll and clothes
iTunes Gift card
Hair things (headbands, ect)
Shoes size 3 (big girls)
Winter boots size 3
Snowpants size 9/10
Long Sleeved shirts size 9/10
Leggings (she already has brown, black, yellow)
Bathrobe

Ethan:
Pants/Jeans size 4 with adjustable waist
Long sleeved shirts/sweaters size 4
Winter Coat size 4
Trains to go with his Geotrax set
Kids Christmas DVD
Games to go with his Innotab (V-tech)
Nerf "bullets" to go in his Nerf guns
Books
Bathrobe

Cadence:
Jammies size 12 -18 month
Board books
Chewie toys
Blocks
Any clothing (warm winter) size 12-18 month especially onesies
Hair pretties (baby headbands)
Baby's first Christmas ornament
Ladybug artwork for her room (pinks/reds)

North Pole - The Sunday Morning Feast

2011-12-04T11:56:00.000-08:00

Well Fred out did himself! He cooked up a special North Pole breakfast fit for 2 wonderful kids and even a sweet little baby.
Mackenzy ran excitedly upstairs to get me out of bed. "Mom, come see! Santa and Fred left us breakfast"

- Oh really? Are you sure??

Yes! It's true!

Oh boy!!! Look at all this magic!!! How did he do it?

*shrug* who cares! We have DONUTS

"I love Fred, he's the best elf ever" said Mack.

(I took that as a personal compliment)

Did I see him **WINK** ?

mmmmm. This may be the last year Ms. Mackenzy really goes for all this {magical stuff}

Mike thinks she is just humoring me and playing along. That's ok. Someday soon whenshe asks I'll tell her the TRUTH

But for now she is my little girl. *sigh*

Ethan is in love with the magic and this year he is finally old enough to "get" it.

Sipping some yummy Reindeer Orange Juice.

Did you know that Reindeer make orange juice?

Neither did I! *wink*

Our littlest little - Cadence had her first donut... er I mean snowball this morning.

I think she liked it. A LOT

Look mom! More donuts!

Thanks mom... er FRED. Can't wait to see what else you have planned.

North Pole Breakfast 2011

2011-12-03T22:52:00.000-08:00

December is here and with it we have a new guest in our house. Our house elf Fred! He arrived from the Northpole the day after Thanksgiving and has been creating mischief since he arrived. So far he's sat and observed the kids from the shelf and a wreath on the door, had a snowball fight with our Christmas teddy bears, took a ride in Barbie's convertible (and stole Daddy's keys!) and now..... he has prepared a feast! This will be our first North Pole Breakfast.

Oh Yum! Fred has outdone himself. What a clever little guy! We have an array of sugary goodies that would make our dentist cringe.

We have Snowball Donuts, Hot Chocolate with Icebergs (mini marshmallows), Gingerbread cookies, Chocolate Elf Kisses, Reindeer Orange Juice, Gumdrop Yogurt and of course because she's a mom, Mrs Clause sent us some fruit. hehe

Yes, Fred is mighty proud. He took a bite of a snowball after his hard work. Such a little guy needs calories!

I can't wait to see the kids reaction in the morning!

Oh Pinterest

2011-10-12T23:51:00.000-07:00

How I love thee. Let me count the ways...

1.

Source: someecards.com via Beth on Pinterest

Source: natalieskillercuisine.com via Beth on Pinterest

Source: etsy.com via Angel on Pinterest

Source: someecards.com via Dawn on Pinterest

Source: None via Christa on Pinterest

A 3 year old birthday boy!

2011-10-03T03:29:00.000-07:00

Someone had a birthday party, oh my!!!

2011-09-15T09:38:00.001-07:00

Wubbanuba something... = awesome

2011-09-15T09:28:00.001-07:00

We just got a delivery from UPS. I love amazon prime 2 day shipping. Because 1) It's FREE and 2) I only have to wait TWO days to get my item. Not a week.

So this morning the doorbell rang and my first thought was "Shit, who's here". Mainly because I am sitting in my jammies... So of course Ethan hollers out "What's that noise?". SHhhhhhh!!!! Whomever is at the door might hear us and we are HIDING!

Then I hear the UPS truck start up. I tiptoe to the window and peak out and nobody is standing there. Thank goodness!

The package at the door is my Woobanub. Or something. It's a stuffed toy with a binkie attached. Supposed to make it easier to keep the binky in the babies mouth. Yes, I'm a lazy mom. This is baby #3 and the days of popping the binky repeatedly back in a baby mouth have grown old and weary. I want help. So thank you Wubbanubba whatever. Thank you. :)

Visitors

2011-09-15T01:23:00.000-07:00

I am fascinated by the gadget that shows me locations of the people that visit my blog. Someone from the Russian federation visited 6 days ago. Seriously! lol. Weird and cool. So to my Russian Federation visitor: Hello .--------> привет!

Sitting - not for the faint of heart

2011-09-15T01:10:00.001-07:00

She is 6 months old... and change. :( Mommy is not handling the aging of the baby well. Her latest trick? Trying to tripod and sit up. She does baby crunches a lot. She can sit up for approximately a millionth of a second before toppling. Or she bends so far over her little forehead nearly touches the floor. Cue the spit up!

I'll try anything...

2011-08-18T08:35:00.001-07:00

To get out of teething hell. Tylenol, Motrin and Orajel aren't cutting it. So when things get tough who do you turn to?

Sophie?!?! How can this strange toy help you ask? Apparently baby chews on this poor unsuspecting giraffe and all your teething woes are washed away.

So what if Sophie isn't enough? Can she really do the job? She is just a giraffe after all.

A baby wearing a necklace? A teething necklace. But not to chew on. This is no ordinary necklace. This is made of Amber which apparently has some magical quality that controls pain. We shall see. I have one being shipped from e-bay as I type. I have left no stone or bead un-turned in my quest for relief from the hell of teething.

What if the above methods fail? What then?

That should do it. For me anyway!

Progress

2011-04-05T16:48:00.001-07:00

I finally got an hour to myself to finish making my burp cloths! Next on the list: bills and taxes. FUN times.

The time a homeless man bought us lunch

2011-04-01T11:22:00.000-07:00

Ok I promised some that I would eventually tell this story. It's time. Funny now but at the time it was mortifying!

I was discharged from the hospital on a Friday. My mom and Ethan were there to pick me up. Mike was with baby Cadence at the NICU and the plan was to join them. I was horribly emotional because I pictured myself going home with a sweet baby girl. Not leaving to go visit the NICU downtown, drugged up on pain killers and feeling like death. The nurse was kind enough to wheel me to the car because I was still hurting quite a bit. I'm holding it together at this point. Then we stopped at the pharmacy and picked up my pain meds and rented the breast pump. I'm still doing OK. We are hungry because it's afternoon so we decide to stop at McDonald's since it's right next to the freeway. I should note - this is also NOT what I pictured after being discharged from the hospital. lol. I pictured going home to snuggle a sweet baby. Not sitting in a McD's trying to hold on to my sanity.

We get seated inside. Ethan is in a highchair and I'm sitting with him while my mom goes to order. While she's gone I notice there are about 5 homeless men at the 2 tables next to ours and they are arguing and being kind of beligerent. Awkward. I try not to make eye contact, but at the same time I'm concerned about Ethan and myself at this table and wondering if I had to could I pick him up and run? (remember it's been 3 days since I had my insides ripped out of me and stuffed back in). I look at my phone and check my e-mail to distract myself. There's an e-mail from my boss about shared leave and mentioning that I could reapply given Cadence's condition. Ok now there is a lump in my throat. Things are breaking down. Now the men are yelling at each other. One of them starts yelling "I'll kick your @ss if you don't get out of here!". Stuff like that. OMG. My mom finally comes back with our food and sits down. Then asks if things are getting tense with the homeless men. I nod. So she immediately gets the manager who throws them out. One of the men remained to finish his lunch (he was the only one actually eating).

I don't know what happened to me. I think it was the combo of the pain meds, the yelling and fear I had of the rowdy homeless men, realizing that I'm sitting in a McDonald's while my little baby girl is in a NICU downtown when she should be WITH ME, and the e-mail I just read. HORMONES. Don't you love them?

I bit into my food and then burst into tears. Tears are streaming down my face. I try to wipe them away but they just keep coming. So pathetic to be sobbing in a McDonald's. And embarrassing. OMG soooo embarrassing. I finally pull myself together and then the homeless man that stayed to finish his lunch comes over and tries to hand my mom some money. He keeps saying "I'm so sorry" "It got way out of hand" ect. And insists that she take the money even though we tried protesting several times and telling him that it wasn't really his fault I was crying. How could he possibly know why I'm crying? My mom finally accepts the money so that we don't insult the guy. We say thank you. What else could we do?

And that my friends is how to get a homeless man to buy you lunch. I don't recommend it. ;) I still feel bad that he gave us his cash. But I think it made him feel like he did an honorable thing and maybe that is worth more than a little cash?

Cadence Julia's Birth Story

2011-03-22T14:58:00.000-07:00

Cadence Julia's birth story (warning: very long)

Sorry I'm just now getting around to this. It's been a very long week for us. So here is the full story. I went for my 37 week check up with my OB/GYN. Actually I was 36 weeks 6 days. I'd taken my last nifedipine dose that mornign and ironically after a month of contractions I wasn't having any contractions at all. I did notice that morning that it felt like Cadence had dropped. I was feeling some pelvic and back pressure but nothing to make me feel like things had really changed significantly. I did notice that morning that I'd actually woken up without the rib pain and felt more comfortable than normal.

So I get to my appointment and they hook me up to the monitor. Cadence's heart rate was up in the 130's range and very flat. No accelerations to be seen. Kathy the nurse was concerned so she had me drink a cup of soda. Then we waited and watched. Still no real variability. So she got my doctor and I turned more up on my left side. They were both kind of shaking and poking my tummy, we were trying to get her to "wake up". I'd also noticed a lot less movement over the weekend but thought that was normal end of pregnancy stuff. She was still doing at least 10 kicks so I wasn't terribly concerned. Anyhow, my doctor was worried enough about the lack of variability to send me to L&D. He also checked my cervix and I was dilated 3-4 cm which shocked me because I hadn't had hardly any contractions that morning. So I am still not terribly worried, just a little freaked because of the dilation! I hadn't packed a bag or anything because I was pretty convinced that I wasn't in labor that morning.

So I leave the doctor office and go to L&D. I called Mike to let him know that I was going to L&D for more monitoring and I was a little nervous. I asked him to leave work and come to the hospital even though I was "pretty sure" I wasn't in labor. I think I was in denial about the situation at that point. I got to L&D and hooked up to the monitor again. Still very flat heartrate but steady in the 130's. The nurse had me drink some cold water, cranberry juice. I hadn't eaten lunch so we thought maybe some sugar or food would get her HR up again. So I ate a banana and a muffin. Still no improvement. By about 5 pm the doctor shows up again and we are starting to talk about whether to break my water and get labor going. I'd had a few contractions on the monitor but nothing regular. He shook my belly HARD and she had a HUGE deceleration. Then in the next half hour or so the decelerations continued. He ordered stat labs because of my history of low platelets. Then they brought the ultrasound machine to my room and did a bedside ultrasound. The tech was looking for what seemed like a very long time and was mumbling to my doctor things like "No points for breathing" ect. Making me really nervous! Cadence scored a 2/10 on the biophysical profile. Not good. She also hadn't really engaged in my pelvis so they were concerned about the cord coming down if my water broke. So then we started trying to decide if I could try labor with the OR set up for a "crash" c/s if needed or just go straight to a c/s. I was bawling at this point because of my traumatic almost emergency c/s when Ethan was born. We decided ultimately that labor was too dangerous given her poor BPP score and decelerations. I had written out a birth plan explaining my previous experience with my spinal not working and almost getting a c/s. So the anesthesiologist was very very good about explaining everything and trying to calm me down.

She did a great job with my spinal and almost instantly I felt my legs go numb. My OB pinched me really hard with the clamps and I felt nothing. OMG so relieved at that point. I was still crying from nerves. Mike was right by me the whole time and I just tried to focus on him while they worked. I know it was just minutes but it felt like forever. Finally she was out. I heard my doctor say "It's a girl!!" and then I heard her screaming immediately. Such a relief.

Cadence Julia Pena was born on March 8th at 9:01 pm. Weighing 5 lbs 6 oz and 18 inches long.

There was meconium in my amniotic fluid so she was definately in distress. We don't know why yet. Her cord was small and my placenta looked "unhealthy" per my doctor. It was sent to pathology so I'm hoping to get some answers in the next week or so.

Her apgars were 8 and 9 and she was doing pretty good initially. They brought her to me for a second and I gave her little cheek a kiss. Mike left to the nursery to take pictures while they weighed her. It seemed like forever while they stitched me up. My platelets were pretty low but luckily the bleeding wasn't an issue, my doctor said I clotted off really well. They wheeled me back to my room and I waited for them to bring the baby to me.

Finally the nurse came in and said they would be keeping Cadence in the nursery overnight because her blood sugar was low and she needed oxygen. I cried because this wasn't what I had planned. I was to numb to be able to get out of bed to see her. So I waited for feeling to come back to my legs... but they did a really good job on the spinal. My legs were dead numb! My friends came in and distracted me for awhile. Around midnight my friends had all left and Mike and i were sitting there when my nurse came in. She was crying!!! So my heart was in my throat. She said that she didn't know exactly what was wrong but that they were working on Cadence. What?!?! I was sobbing. Still to numb to get out of bed and go see... I told Mike to get down there NOW and see. So my nurse stayed with me trying to say reassuring things while I just layed there and sobbed hysterically. An HOUR AND A HALF later we finally had some info. Neonatologist came in and told us that Cadence had acute respiratory distress and was intubated and that they were transferring her to Swedish down town. More sobbing hysterically from me. This was like a horrible nightmare. They promised I could see her before they transferred her. A bit later they rolled her isolette into my room and I could see her little face but that was it. She was covered in wires and tubes and I was sobbing again. I was still to numb to get up but I managed to sit up enough to see her. Then they were gone.

I spent the next 3 days in the hospital trying to get my pain under control and crying most of the time because I was worried about Cadence. I couldn't believe this was happening. Cadence was intubated for 2 days, getting IV fluids, IV antibiotics. They did and echo and her PDA was still open but otherwise her heart was normal. Her pulmonary pressures were very high in the beginning. After 2 days they were able to wean her off the inhaled nitrous oxide and the ventilator and put her on CPAP mask. She was under the bili lights for a few days also. They started tube feeds on day 3 and we worked to get her sucking on a nipple. She tired pretty easily but each day got a bit stronger. They finally weaned her to nasal cannula and eventually room air. We spent 1 day in the special care nursery after she was deemed stable enough to leave the nicu and then I convinced the nurse practioner to send us home. She is breastfeeding like a champ now. Her respiratory issues are resolved and we are just so fortunate that everything turned out OK in the end.

Pictures for Destiny

2011-03-04T08:55:00.000-08:00

We participated in a video slide show made by the HH moms for Krystal to honor her sweet baby girl. Sending all our love to the VanRysell's this week.

Angel in Heaven

2011-02-27T22:41:00.000-08:00

Last night a mom from my online playgroup held her sweet baby girl for the last time. I can't even imagine what that must feel like. I really admire her courage and strength through this terrible situation. Baby Destiny was born with a congenital heart condition called HLHS and fought the battle of a lifetime.

Tonight I hug my babies a little bit tighter and count my blessings that they are healthy. We take these things for granted and we really shouldn't.

An angel in the Book of Life wrote down my baby's birth & whispered as she closed the Book: "Too beautiful for this earth"

Please pray for healing and comfort for baby Destiny's family tonight.

My Crafty Side

2011-02-24T13:20:00.000-08:00

I've been feeling extra crafty lately. Maybe it's a part of nesting? Here are some things I've made so far for the baby.

I decided to recover the car seat to give it a little girly flair. Not sure I'm brave enough to tackle the canopy. We'll see.

A burp cloth (more of these to come)

And a boppy cover!

different fabric on each side:

I even managed a zipper!

This gorgeous fabric finally arrived in the mail and I plan on sewing a few more burp cloths with it.

35 weeks and counting

2011-02-24T12:59:00.000-08:00

Well I've made it to 35 weeks! I have gained a total of 14 pounds and my ankles are still there but puffy. My baby girl kicks constantly and has decided that she loves sticking her little feet up into my left rib. OW. It hurts like a son of a gun! Yup. It does. I am starting to get used to being uncomfortable. I'm trying really really hard to just treasure these last few weeks of pregnancy because I know myself and I'm crazy. I'm so crazy that I know I will actually miss all of this someday. My appointment was kind of a bust this week. The doctor wasn't in the office because he was delivering a baby. I guess that's the way it goes in the world of labor and delivery. So I was hooked up to the monitor and Cadence's heart rate wasn't showing very good variability with a rate only in the 110's. I started to feel anxious and nervous. I didn't pack a bag or even consider what *could* happen if she didn't look good on the NST. The nurse gave me some nasty soda to gulp and within a few minutes her heart rate was much more variable and the rate was up a teeny bit. Shew!! It got me thinking that I might want to pack our bags and just keep them in the car. I have lists of things I want to do before she's here. I've been chinking away at it slowly all while trying to lay down as much as possible to keep the contractions under control. The other night I had contractions every 3-4 minutes for over an hour and finally with the breakthrough pill I was able to get them to stop. But it is a reminder that she is in there and she WILL be coming out soon. We are shooting for 37 weeks at least.

Here is my view looking down. Yes I can no longer see my feet!

Here is another one of my horrible bathroom shots!

Nesting

2011-02-22T13:45:00.000-08:00

Not so much, In fact I can totally relate to this picture. It made me giggle.

Pill Popper

2011-02-22T10:41:00.000-08:00

So the horrible thing? I pop pills all day long. Even worse? Sometimes I forget and end up needing to play catch up. That is no fun. It's 10:30 and I just realized I forgot to start my day off with my synthroid. This one has to be taken on an empty stomach. Oops. Then I have all these stupid vitamins I'm supposed to take along with my procardia. Then if I forget my zantac I am screwed! Same with the zofran. I am sitting here thinking, gee why is my esophagus burning and what's up with the nausea? Oh yeah. It would help if I had taken my morning pills. Hmph. You'd think being a nurse I'd be better at this. I am great at keeping track of pills for others but for myself I just don't give a flying flip. Unless I start to notice I feel "off". Great huh? So I just popped all my morning pills. Lined 'em up and shoved 'em down the hatch. I will be in so much trouble if I ever get really ill and need to take this crap long term.

I'm bored...

2011-02-18T11:28:00.000-08:00

Yes I'm bored. So here are some baby bump pictures. These are not the best quality. I really should have Mike take a nice one before Cadence arrives. These bathroom mirror shots have GOT to stop.

32 weeks

33 weeks

What a difference a week makes!

Footed Jammies

2011-02-18T09:40:00.000-08:00

Is there anything cuter than a toddler wearing footed jammies?

There is a sweet innocence that reminds me of my own childhood. Curling up in my jammies to watch morning cartoons.

Knowing that all is right with the world and that you are cozy and protected... I love footed jammies. I hope Ethan never outgrows this stage. Or if he does that he stays young and innocent.

That's my preggo sentimental rambling for the day. Thanks for looking!

Burp Cloth

2011-02-14T11:02:00.000-08:00

Here is my burp cloth that I made last night. Ugh. Need to take one with the good camera, the cell phone pics aren't very nice.

Getting Crafty

2011-02-13T22:24:00.000-08:00

Today I attempted a boppy cover using an online tutorial. It didn't quite work out. It was way to small. :( So I wasted a yard of gorgeous Alexander Henry fabric and I'll have to give it another try. I did however have enough left over to make 2 burp cloths for the baby. I also have Canyon Flutter material coming in the mail (hopefully tomorrow) so I can make some more burp cloths. Here is one of my handy dandy creations for today. Note: the hubby went WITH me to JoAnn's today with no complaining. I was impressed.

Delightful Sunday

2011-02-06T09:07:00.000-08:00

It's super bowl Sunday. *gag*. Can I say the only thing I'm looking forward to is the food and also the END of football season and the return of my husband on Sunday afternoons! I see productive weekends ahead. I see days no longer filled with screaming and shouting at the TV. Yippee!! I can't wait for a football free weekend. In honor of this special occasion I am making monkey bread. It smells delightful! My mouth is watering and the fact that I have borderline GD will not stop me. I am going to gobble some monkey bread, run to the hospital to get my labs drawn (pesky platelets) and get back here in time to go to the brother in laws house for a super bowl "party" in which I will consume whatever junk food is in front of me and wish I could be home cleaning my house and getting the last of my projects done. *sigh* There's always next weekend for that. I guess....

No more hair

2011-02-02T10:27:00.000-08:00

Ok this mama is tired and fed up with cat hair. It is everywhere! I can vacuum and minutes later my clean carpets are again covered in clumps of cat hair. Ugh. It's not the cat's fault. She has long hair. Cat's shed. It's a fact of life. But I'm pregnant and tired and dang it she's clogging up my vacuum with her mane. So the solution: clip it. I took her to the groomer yesterday and she did surprisingly well. She had never been groomed before. Ever. I thought once the clippers came out that I was going to be covered in cat scratches. She was very good. She layed there on the table and let us torture her. The only time she tried to bite was when they clipped the hair on her front legs. That was fun! She managed to nip me once but luckily not the groomer. Is her new "do" pretty? Absolutely not! She looks really really ridiculous! Is it functional and going to help with my hair problem? Absolutely! (don't worry she is an indoor only kitty so she doesn't need a fur coat. I promise she won't freeze) Here are some shots of our new Jewel. (sorry darling)

Before: (taken a few years ago) look at all that hair!

After:

Anemia

2011-01-31T19:13:00.000-08:00

I mentioned a few posts ago about anemia from this pregnancy. Today I have been at the end of my rope. Part of that is from being uncomfortable. The other part is that I woke up at 5 am after very poor sleep and I am so so tired. My entire body feels heavy. In fact I feel so sluggish it's kind of how I felt before I was taking my thyroid medication. Like I could sink into the couch cushions and never get up. Hard to explain. Just dead tired. So I looked up the symptoms of Anemia on WebMD.

Symptoms common to many types of anemia include the following:

Easy fatigue and loss of energy - check
Unusually rapid heart beat, particularly with exercise - sometimes, not very frequent
Shortness of breath and headache, particularly with exercise - um yes, all the time. But I have been blaming that on the pregnancy. It could go either way. But even at rest I feel sort of "starved for air" if that makes any sense?
Difficulty concentrating - check
Dizziness - check
Pale skin - check (however I do live in Seattle, I'm always pale)
Leg cramps - check
Insomnia - OMG YES! Insomnia! And usually I sleep so well.

I am getting my CBC redrawn on Sunday with a follow up appt. on Monday. I am very curious to see what the labs are. To bad I can't blame my irritability on this. Guess I'll blame that on the insomnia and hormones. Ok gonna go make a snow cone.... FYI I did start an iron supplement this week but so far I don't feel any different.

losing my mind!!!

2011-01-31T08:49:00.001-08:00

I've been up since 5 am and everything is driving me insane today. The cat has been meowing non-stop. I'm about to drop kick her out the damn door! That is all for now. UGH

Big Boy Bed

2011-01-29T21:44:00.000-08:00

Wow what a day! Today we put together Ethan's big boy bed. Sounds simple right? Ha! Like anything is ever simple for us. Here's how it went. First we tried just rolling the crib out of his room. Didn't fit through the doorway. So we took off the door. Still not budging. So Mike took one side rail off and while he was at it he raised the mattress back up for the new baby. Got it as far as the hallway turned up on one side and then we couldn't get it to fit through the baby's room. Next Mike tried taking off the door to the baby room and the hinges wouldn't budge. Grr! (Imagine the words coming out of his mouth... my 2 year old said the "F" word today... but that is another story for another day) So then we had to just go ahead and dismantle the entire crib. This crib is the biggest PITA. There are so many screws. Then he had to reassemble it. By this time it has been well over an hour and it is almost 2 pm. Note that is 2 hours PAST Ethan's nap time. Things are spiraling downhill fast. Then my poor hubby gets to put together the "big boy bed". Again so many screws and pieces it'd make your head spin. Does it really need to be this complicated?

By almost 3 pm we finally have the bed together, sheets and blanket on, pillow pet and teddy bear ready to go. Get Ethan hyped up for his nap and he comes running in to his bedroom, trips, falls and bursts into tears. Now he's hysterical because he's overly tired and he bumped his tummy on the toy he was carrying when he tripped. I start to tuck him in. He's clawing at my neck saying "No thank you! Don't want it!" and crying. Um.... mommy guilt kicks in. Here I am forcing my baby to grow up so that I can have his crib for the new baby. Now this mommy is in tears. Ethan is in tears. I try to put on a brave face and hide the fact that I have a lump the size of New York City in my throat and my eyes are brimming. Darn preggo hormones. I hold him for a little while and finally tuck him in, tell him to stay put. He looks at me with those big puppy dog brown eyes and nods. His face is streaked with tears. I flee the room so I can lay down on my own big girl bed and cry my broken mommy heart out. Ha ha! It's funny now. He did settle down and actually nap. I consider that a victory now that my judgement is better. (mommy took a nap too)

Tonight at bedtime he is all smiles when I tuck him in. I take a picture of him posing proudly on his bed saying "Cheese". Adorable. Of course my ~~damn~~ memory stick didn't hold onto the picture. It is lost somewhere in a big black hole of lost pictures. Stupid technology. I will try to get a picture of him on his big boy bed for tomorrow. Here are a few crummy ones from my iPhone without Ethan in them. Tonight has been a long day. I'm sure there are many more days like this to come. This mommy doesn't do change well and it's so bittersweet watching my babies grow up.

Ethan's big boy bed. The teddy bear was mine, given to me as a baby from my Grandma Kathy

Cars and progress

2011-01-29T02:34:00.000-08:00

So so excited to have this comforter finished. I think I actually love it more than the one I was going to order. It ended up costing me more than the store bought one but it was so worth it. Thanks to sleeping all day I'm not tired so what better use of my time than to stay up late sewing a comforter for my little boy. Tomorrow we set up his "big boy" bed and put his new sheets and comforter on. Crossing my fingers that he will love it and actually sleep in his new bed. This was the first step to preparing for the baby. Once Ethan is in his new bed we can move the crib into Cadence's room and get her things set up and put away. Hurray for having the whole weekend to do it and for having a husband that is also home to help with all the heavy stuff.

Rundown: Update

2011-01-25T22:34:00.000-08:00

Interesting that I posted how run down I've been feeling. Today my doctor called me to inform me that I do in fact have anemia. ~~Crap!~~ I mean Awesome! ha. Meaning I get to start taking iron. Guess that means my insides will turn to cement until after this baby is born. Yup pregnancy is so glamorous! Oh and my platelets are low. 98,000 down from 120,000 a few weeks ago. So PIT here we come. For those of you who don't know that's Pregnancy Induced Thrombocytopenia which is a fancy way of saying low platelets caused by pregnancy. Fan-freaking-tastic.

Here's another fun vocab word: Contractions. Plenty of those to go around too. I'm at 31 weeks and my uterus hates me. :) For family and friends that read this blog this is my update. I spent the afternoon at L&D yesterday for contractions that persisted for about 7 hours. Luckily with 2 bags of IV fluid they dropped from every 3-5 minutes down to about every 10-20 minutes. I am not dilating and my FFN swab was negative. (Did you know you need a medical degree to read this blog entry?) Fetal Fibronectin is a protein they check to see if you are in danger of pre-term labor. So negative is a good sign. I got the green light to continue working as long as I don't do ANYTHING while I'm at home except lay on my side. {insert hysterical laughter here} Yeah.... Um that's so not going to happen. I'm trying though. My house looks like an explosion of cat hair and toys. I'm literally climbing the walls I need to vacuum so badly. I also have so much more I want to do. Here is my to-do list that nags at me constantly:
1. Sew Ethan's comforter - I ordered fabric today but darn it I want it here right now
2. Put together Ethan's toddler bed and rearrange his room. Get rid of excess toys.
3. Transition him to his toddler bed. I'm scared of this step!
4. Clean out the spare bedroom and move the crib in.
5 Clean out spare bedroom closet.
6. Arrange Cadence's room and decorate
7. wash all her clothes and put them away
8. Put together bassinet
9. Finish up buying some of the last minute essentials. Diapers, wipes, changing table pad and cover, pump parts, all that fun stuff.
10. Clean out the cars to make room for a 3rd child!!
11. Pack hospital bag. Buy coming home outfit for Cadence.(yeah I'm being picky on this)
12. Try not to go insane while my house falls to shambles around me from neglect while keeping the kids happy, fed and clean. Oh and clean the house! Make sure we all have clean clothes to wear. Continue to work so we have money.... ummmmm
13. Deliver a healthy full term baby

Can you see I'm feeling overwhelmed and behind? Trying not to tear my hair out here. So will someone PLEASE tell my uterus to behave so I can work on my to-do list? Thanks!

Rundown

2011-01-25T11:52:00.000-08:00

Wow. Ever feel like your head is just floating and you are just kind of hanging on trying to stay awake? I'm having one of those days. Maybe because I was up early yesterday? My head is fuzzy and my patience is at an all time low. I'm thankful I don't have to make a trip to the doctor today since I saw him yesterday. But nap time can not come soon enough. *zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Insomnia

2011-01-24T04:23:00.000-08:00

Ok. This is insane. It's 4 am and here I am wide awake. Blogging from my iPhone because I just can't sleep. Ironically Cadence is fast asleep so i can't even blame this on baby kicks. All I can do is lay here and think about that darn comforter I want to sew for Ethan. If I had the material I needed i'd just get up and do it. Unfortunately the local joanns doesn't sell my Riley Blake wheels fabric. I have to order it. And wait. Patience is something I'm running very low on these days. So is sleep. Maybe my body is preparing me for the months of sleepless nights ahead? Maybe it's just night shift messing with my sleep/ wake cycle again. The more I want to sleep I can't.

Snow!!!

2011-01-20T14:06:00.000-08:00

Not outside, in my house. What? Yup! We have a fancy handy dandy snow cone machine. Ethan and I enjoyed 3 bowls of shaved ice this morning. Plain. Don't worry it's safe. :) I am in loooove with this little beauty. I will no longer have to worry about breaking a tooth and having major dental expenses by the time I deliver this baby. Also I'm sure the kids will get great use of this in the summer time. Best pregnancy splurge ever! Well it was only $30. No worries my feet are on the ground.

Toddler Bedding

2011-01-20T00:27:00.000-08:00

I am thinking of making Ethan a comforter for his new toddler bed. I have fallen head over heels with "Wheels" by Riley Blake. I figure I can use the measurements HERE to make this:

Blast from the Past

2011-01-19T19:13:00.000-08:00

Taken back in October 2007. When Mack was my "only". I have a ton of fond memories of our trip to the pumpkin patch that day.

Awww this was at the airport on her first trip to CT to see grandma Barby. She was 7 months old

Melt. She's always had daddy wrapped around her finger

To Wash or Not?

2011-01-19T16:24:00.000-08:00

These frequent several times a day blog posts will stop once I'm back at work tomorrow. But I'm bored and nesting. I am torn on whether to wash Cadence's clothes. I have this naggy feeling of paranoia that I'm going to take all the tags off and wash stuff only to find out at our next u/s that she is a he. I know it's stupid. I never felt this way with the other 2. I pulled off those tags with careless abandon. Why am I nervous about it? Girlie bedding has been ordered, girlie clothes pile up in her soon to be room. I even embroidered her Christmas stocking. I think with the other 2 kids I'd had at least one more ultrasound at this point and had it confirmed at least twice. I haven't seen her since my 18 week ultrasound which seems like ages ago. So maybe that's playing into all of this. Plus I don't know when the next ultrasound will be. I don't know if I'll face pre-term labor this time around and then be feeling sad and irritated that I didn't get all this stuff done NOW rather than waiting until I'm ordered to bed rest. I'm not saying that's going to happen. But what if? Ugh. UUUUUUGGGGGHHHH. I wish I had $200 to shell out on a fancy 4D ultrasound. Just to fulfill my shallow need to know. I wish I had the stomach to even think about paying that much for a few ultrasound pictures even if I did have that $200 just laying around.

Sunshine fever

2011-01-19T14:12:00.001-08:00

Could it be the blinding sun and blue skies? I feel wildly productive today. Like I could clean the whole house and bake/cook enough meals for a week. It's funny how you don't realize how deprived of light you are until the sun finally pokes itself out from behind the clouds and the rain stops for a day. I'm sure by tomorrow we'll be back to the same old winter drizzles. But for now I'm gonna bake some Cherry Cake and work on dinner, fold some laundry, vacuum, dust. Heck I might even pull the tags off of Cadence's clothing and wash it. Go me!

Cherry Cake Pudding

2011-01-19T00:32:00.000-08:00

The Pioneer Woman. She is evil for posting this. How can I not want to eat this? Oh the sugar content....

Cherry Cake Pudding

Baby Cuteness

2011-01-18T19:38:00.000-08:00

Oooooohhhh my goodness! OMG. I need one of these. Cadence NEEDS this! Ok, her crazy mommy needs one. Well, really really wants one. Why is it that I have such expensive taste? Boo on the price tag. Booo!

Gasp! I love the polka dots

That's it! I've got to save my dimes!! I need one of these bad boys.

Changes!

2011-01-18T16:35:00.000-08:00

Wow, my last update was way back in June. I'm such a horrible blogger. Sorry about that. I'm almost 100% sure nobody reads this anyway. ha ha
Most know we are excitedly expecting baby #3 due in March. I just am feeling huge these days. I really am. I'm 30 weeks pregnant and my tummy is overtaking my body. Here's a comparison that I find amusing. This was back in September when I was about 14 weeks pregnant.

Here I am a few short weeks ago at 28 weeks. Notice the intense look? Yeah, long night and miss Cadence was "standing on my spine" as Kristen McD so eloquently put it. I need to do an updated photo soon.

Is it horrible that the bulk of my belly shots this pregnancy have been taken in the bathroom? And most with my iphone? I need to get some nice pictures done before I pop.

Slugs n' Stuff

2010-06-25T20:37:00.000-07:00

Wanna know what fascinates a toddler?

From June 2010

I'll give you 2 guesses...

It's worth doing a pseudo-headstand over:

From June 2010

It's squishy and slimy (gross!)

From June 2010

If it could run, it would!!! A screaming almost 2 year old boy is scary. The poor thing was probably frozen in terror.

From June 2010

It kind of looks like a piece of poo from the distance. It's not. It's a slug.

Big sister needed a piece of this action:

From June 2010

Okay... cheap summer entertainment. Check

From June 2010

Our Kids Are...

2010-06-25T19:58:00.000-07:00

"Awesome". The exact words out of Mike's mouth tonight. I couldn't agree more. I love them! They are all that and a bag of chips. Today Mackenzy worked with Ethan on his "word book" and got him to say a completely new word! He said "banana"! Great job big sis. She is such a great big sister. Helped me fetch things while I was feeling yucky with my migraine today. She fetched me a blankie and then snuggled her brother on the couch. What a good girl. Watching them together is one of my favorite things.

New tricks

2010-06-14T18:18:00.001-07:00

Who said a 7 year old couldn't learn new tricks? I looooove this one!! Be still my heart.

One less thing I have to do around here!

Pimp my blog

2010-06-14T17:28:00.000-07:00

I just pimped my blog. again. Except I can't seen to get the darn border out of my header image. Drat!!! Ack!!! I want to chuck this computer out the window. However since I know that doing that is extremely counterproductive I'll refrain for now. Guess the neighbors won't find out how nuts I am, not today anyway.

Anyhow, this blog started out with project 365 and that has fallen by the wayside. Why? Well... let me tell you! I've been busy! Work and kids have caught up with me and some days I feel like I'm treading water with my chin barely above the crashing waves. *gulp* I'm drowning. DROWNING! Ok that's being dramatic. I'm also lazy. But I think I'll go with drowning as my excuse for now. Cue the violins. We took some fabulous pictures of the kids yesterday. They were splashing around in the pool, running around the yard. It was so nice and warm! Of course today we are back to the clouds. Boohoo! Oh June, why do you tease us so? Pictures can be found HERE you have to be my friend of facebook to view them. I'm assuming if you made it to this blog you are on facebook? hmmm. :)

mud

2010-05-20T15:14:00.001-07:00

mud, originally uploaded by christakp.

Just remembering a rainy day not to long ago. Someday I'll miss these things... or not. lol. This photo makes me smile. I think I'm gonna frame it and put it on my night stand. You know, for those sleepless nights when the little guy won't go to sleep? Then I'll remember why I love him so much. He's wild and fun and unpredictable. Being a mom is my favorite job.

April 12th, 2010

2010-04-12T08:44:00.001-07:00

Sweet Salvia, originally uploaded by christakp.

Jumping back on the bandwagon. this is a picture of the salvia we planted in the backyard. Hope we can keep these purple beauties alive!

2010-04-07T18:30:00.001-07:00

March 16th - Let them eat cake!

2010-03-16T14:26:00.000-07:00

So this project 365 thing is kind of flopping. Life is getting in the way... But I will continue to try and do a daily picture. It's been a whole month since my last post. Oops.
This is a yummy zucchini cake I made today and ate for lunch. Yeah, don't judge me. I deserve it! And so do you!!! Go eat some cake!! Ethan had some for lunch as well... hey it has cream cheese (dairy), zucchini (vegi) and pinapple (fruit). Good enough, right? Click here for the recipe

And the photo (drumroll please)

February 17th - Sweetheart

2010-02-18T16:25:00.000-08:00

February 16th- Sassy girl

2010-02-16T16:45:00.000-08:00

Mackenzy posing in the kitchen

February 15th - Truckin'

2010-02-16T16:44:00.000-08:00

Ethan playing with his dump truck

February 14th - Valentine's Day

2010-02-16T16:43:00.000-08:00

This is the lovely rose that my daughter picked out for me. What a sweety. :)

Tough Lesson

2010-02-13T19:55:00.000-08:00

I have learned a hard lesson this evening. Procrastination is a bad thing. A very very bad thing. Sadly I have lost the past 2 weeks of photos. That's 13 days of my life I will never get back. I have been faithfully snapping at least one but usually many more photos per day. I had over 300 pictures on my memory card and tonight when I pulled it out of my camera to begin my catch up and upload them to my computer, the card was blank! Blank!!! I put it back in my camera and got an error message. Card is unreadable. What!?!?! Noooooooooooo! How can that be? I just looked at the photos yesterday. I just uploaded a few from Mackenzy's award assembly. Ugh. At least I did that much. So a big speedbump in my project 365 which is more like project 365 - 14 days. :(

I need to go buy a new memory card tomorrow and then I can resume. Lesson learned.

January 31st - Eating with a fork

2010-01-31T16:24:00.000-08:00

January 30th - Orange soda

2010-01-31T16:23:00.000-08:00

The picture explains it all!

January 29th - What's not to love?

2010-01-29T16:32:00.001-08:00

Seriously. I love kissing those cute little cheeks.

January 28th - Reader

2010-01-28T17:07:00.001-08:00

I'm so proud of my little girl. She can now read an entire book all by herself.

January 27th - blanket

2010-01-27T16:59:00.000-08:00

Ethan loves his blankie.

January 26th - coffee cake literally

2010-01-27T16:54:00.000-08:00

Courtesy of the pioneer woman. It's really really yummy

January 25th - family

2010-01-27T16:50:00.000-08:00

What I miss out on when I'm leaving for work. sigh.

January 24th - Football Sunday

2010-01-27T16:47:00.000-08:00

Guess who gets dressed up to watch football with daddy?

January 23rd - Pretty girl

2010-01-27T16:38:00.001-08:00

She loves to pose. All the time. :)

January 22nd - Get me out of here

2010-01-27T16:35:00.000-08:00

He wants down. Can you tell?

January 21st - peanut butter and jelly

2010-01-27T16:33:00.001-08:00

Is there anything better than watching a toddler enjoy a PB&J sandwich? I think not.

January 20th - Nursing in my shoes

2010-01-20T16:18:00.001-08:00

January 20th - Nursing in my shoes, originally uploaded by christakp.

These are my shoes. My nursing shoes to be exact. Well worn and stained. They are the most comfortable pair I own. They keep my feet safe from God only knows what inhabits the hospital floor. They are with me during those long 12 hour shifts. If those shoes could talk...

Anyhow, here is a nice poem I found. :)

Sometimes I forget why I'm a nurse
And what's really in my heart.

Sometimes I'm just too busy
I don't know where to start.

Then someone holds my hand,
And greets me with a smile.

They ask if I could stay with them
For just a little while.

If I can calm a sorrowed heart
Just because I'm there.

Then I'm reminded why I'm a Nurse
It's all because I care.

Author unknown

And a fun one for us night shifters (true too)
If you waken a patient at night,
Please be gentle, don't give him a fright.
And stand back from the bed.
If he's out of his head,
He might try to punch out both your lights.

January 19th - Self Portrait

2010-01-19T13:34:00.001-08:00

January 19th - Self Portrait, originally uploaded by christakp.

A self portrait for today. Here is the view my kids have of me most of the time. They know to stop and pose. Well Mackenzy does anyway. Ethan tends to run away at that perfect moment when I'm on the verge of capturing that perfect moment.

January 18th - Barbies

2010-01-18T18:18:00.001-08:00

January 18th - Barbies, originally uploaded by christakp.

So my darn camera is playing evil tricks on me. I took several great shots of Ethan and Mackenzy but for some reason when I put the card in the computer the pictures were gone! Ugh!!!

This one stuck though. Here is Mackenzy doing one of her absolute favorite things. She loves her barbie dolls. She is using her Hannah Montana closet as a house. Cute. Also, she's wearing the new shirt from Jenny and Chelle. Thanks girls! So cute!

We went to lunch with Jenny today who was nice enough to drive all the way down here to the middle of nowhere. Thanks for lunch miss!

Week 2 Scrapped

2010-01-17T21:39:00.000-08:00

Yes! I'm keeping up! Yay me!

Look alike?

2010-01-17T21:37:00.001-08:00

Look alike? , originally uploaded by christakp.

What do you think? I think we look a lot alike! :) Had to share, this made me smile.

January 17th - cousins

2010-01-17T21:32:00.001-08:00

January 17th - cousins, originally uploaded by christakp.

Mackenzy holding her cousin, Izabella. Bells is 6 months old and such a delight. We got to babysit her for a few hours today while grandma went to a movie. Nice to get the baby fix!

January 16th - football Saturday

2010-01-17T21:31:00.001-08:00

January 16th - football Saturday, originally uploaded by christakp.

Enough said! Thanks for the bunny ears Uncle John John. :)

January 15th - our view from the porch

2010-01-17T21:30:00.001-08:00

January 15th - our view from the porch, originally uploaded by christakp.

Ok so I'm catching up again. Here is our view from the porch. Not bad, right? I tried to catch a sunset the other day but missed it by the time I grabbed my camera. Now we're back to cloudy drizzle. Ahhhh winter... when will you leave?

January 14th - getting into trouble

2010-01-15T10:21:00.001-08:00

January 14th - getting into trouble, originally uploaded by christakp.

So yes I know I've posted a lot of Ethan pictures this week. It's easier because he's around more during the week and Mack is in school all day. Here's his latest dangerous act... drawer surfing! Will he ever be safe? I feel like I need to buy this boy a helmet and some pads.

January 13th - little charmer

2010-01-13T17:28:00.001-08:00

January 13th - little charmer, originally uploaded by christakp.

Quite possibly the cutest little guy in the world. What? I'm not biased. lol. Not me!!! He was doing this thing where he squats down and looks up at you. So funny!

Well put!

2010-01-13T16:54:00.001-08:00

I love this post and had to link it up here. I'm the mom of an intact little baby boy and I'm tired of explaining why. Even my OB/GYN had several "stern" conversations with me about it. To him and all judgementals *read it*

Circumcision is for weiners

Week 1 scrapped

2010-01-13T00:28:00.000-08:00

January 12th - baby got back

2010-01-13T00:01:00.001-08:00

January 12th - baby got back, originally uploaded by christakp.

I just love his little diaper hanging out. So cute! Only a toddler can get away with this.

January 11th - helping mommy

2010-01-13T00:00:00.001-08:00

January 11th - helping mommy, originally uploaded by christakp.

she loves washing dishes! Wonder if this will last...

January 10th

2010-01-12T23:56:00.001-08:00

January 10th, originally uploaded by christakp.

Ethan trying on Daddy's hat.

January 9th

2010-01-12T23:54:00.001-08:00

January 9th, originally uploaded by christakp.

Mackenzy playing in her new room!

January 8th

2010-01-12T23:53:00.001-08:00

January 8th, originally uploaded by christakp.

Home sweet home!

January 7th - sweet sibling

2010-01-12T23:38:00.001-08:00

Day 7, originally uploaded by christakp.

I'm finally back online and catching up on my posts. I've been taking my daily photos and now I get to share them. I love this picture. Ethan often climbs onto his big sisters lap and she loves to hold him. What a good big sister she is!

No posts for a few days

2010-01-08T18:54:00.000-08:00

Well sadly in the move we are without internet for a few days. Why don't you just take away my oxygen? lol. I'm still doing my pic of the day and will post them all in order when we are back online and connected to the outside world again. The modem and install guy are set to arrive on the 11th.

January 6th - Sick Little Girl

2010-01-06T10:17:00.001-08:00

January 6th - Sick Little Girl, originally uploaded by christakp.

Day 6 and now both kids are sick. :( January is off to a rocky start isn't it? She's home from school and has been tossing her cookies this morning. Ethan has been fussing and all of his breakfast came up. I'm up to my ears in things to do but am currently housebound. Lord please make my children well. Please?

January 5th

2010-01-05T21:58:00.001-08:00

January 5th, originally uploaded by christakp.

Ethan climbing up the stairs in the new house. I looked everywhere for a decent baby gate and the one I bought is a piece of crud. It is so hard to put together. Guess I'll have to return it tomorrow and find a better one. Meaning I'll have to bite the bullet and drive ALL THE WAY to babies R Us.

So I spent all of January 5th unpacking and moving. The POD is empty I'm happy to report thanks to Raymond (brother in law) and Steve (father in law). I have tons of unpacking to do and the house is a mess but at least I can call and have the POD picked up.

January 4th

2010-01-04T06:23:00.001-08:00

January 4th, originally uploaded by christakp.

Starting January 4th early, very very early. We're talking 2 am. Yes Ethan was up all night hugging the bowl. Poor baby. We were also up all night with him. His monkey beach towel spread out on the bed underneath us and a poor unsuspecting blue bowl to keep us safe from a huge mess. The little guy tossed and turned all night long. I'm exhausted and there is so much to be done today.

Today we are signing our lease for the new house. I was envisioning a picture of the house as day #4 but I think this is more memorable. lol

I'm up before dawn because today I must make an appointment for the lease signing, get Mack up and off to school, re-hydrate Ethan, go get a bank check and oh yes ~ make it to the vehicle licensing agency driving a car with expired tabs without getting caught and ticketed. Wish me luck!

January 2nd

2010-01-03T21:18:00.001-08:00

January 2nd, originally uploaded by christakp.

Posted a day late of course! Ethan having a "chat" with his big sister. Consisting mostly of babbles and hand gestures. He's our sweet little boy and will most likely be competing with his sister for blog space on this project.

January 3rd

2010-01-03T21:15:00.001-08:00

January 3rd, originally uploaded by christakp.

Ethan riding on his new radio flyer rocket that he received for Christmas. Being the daredevil that he is (yes even at 15 months) he spends a lot of his time trying to stand and balance on it, much to my terror.

Family 2010

2010-01-02T09:10:00.000-08:00

Here is a fun scrap page I made today using a freebie from Polly&Rufus Designs

A New Year

2010-01-01T20:31:00.000-08:00

Project 365 - Day 1

2010-01-01T12:37:00.000-08:00

It was hard to choose a photo but I have to start somewhere, right? I'm going to post one of my gorgeous blue eyed beauty. :) Love her! I took this photo on Auto settings with my little Kodak, this shot is SOOTC no editing done. Imagine how much I could make her eyes pop with PS editing? I may have to play around with that later.

Edited to add a photoshop version of the picture. I love it in black and white!

Oh and while I'm at it here is a picture of the view from my mom's deck. It snowed yesterday and I caught a shot before it all melts away.

Happy New Year

2010-01-01T08:26:00.000-08:00

Wow, this is my first post since March 2008! I guess I'm a blogger slacker. My resolution is to try and keep up with this and be a better blogger. I've finally figured out how to get a background on here, yay!!! It only took a whole day... not bad, right?

Sooooooo New Years..... yeah. What have we done today? Not much. A load of laundry in the dryer, both kids bathed and one down for a nap. Mike has been reading all day. We are kind of boring. Oh well.

I'm going to also start project 365 today. I've been looking around trying to figure out what the heck is worth a picture today? Hmmmmmm..... I feel all this pressure to post a really great picture today because it's the very beginning of this 365 day project. Is there anything worthy? I'll be posting one tonight so hopefully I'll find inspiration somewhere. Welcome to 2010!

12 weeks ~ a little baby emerging!

2008-03-25T21:50:00.000-07:00

Today was my 12 week check up. I was measuring 12 weeks 1 day but I am sticking with my original due date of Oct. 9th since I suspect it will change with each visit. The baby was screened for downs syndrome ect. and I had a few genetic tests to screen for risk for Down's, Cystic Fibrosis, ect. The heart was still beating nice and strong, about 155 beats/minute. Baby is now measuring 10.5 cm and was very active. Baby kept covering his face with his hands (I'm only saying "he" out of wishful thinking, we have no idea if it's a boy or a girl yet). It was very cute to watch.

This is my favorite picture from the ultrasound today. You can see the face, little tummy and legs. Looks like baby has made him/herself comfortable.

The ultrasound tech was really nice and gave me several shots. Here is a nice close up of the face and the ear. Baby is waving at us!

Here are a couple more good profile shots:

9 weeks!

2008-03-07T11:00:00.001-08:00

Here is a picture of the baby at 9 weeks. Everything looked good at the appointment and the baby is healthy. The nurse told me that at about 12 weeks she'll try and listen for the heartbeat. Exciting! We could still see the heartbeat nice and strong on the ultrasound. The picture is a little blurry because of movement but the baby looks good. Our little alien... awww....

8 weeks 5 days!

2008-03-04T11:38:00.000-08:00

Well it's almost 9 weeks now. I have been feeling super tired and crabby these past few weeks. My morning sickness is still hanging around but I feel ok if I wake up slowly and take my Zofran first thing in the morning. Usually I have to lay down for about 40 minutes after taking it before the urge to toss my cookies passes. I've been luck though, this is much milder than it was when I was pregnant with Mackenzy. Hopefully it will pass soon and food will be more appealing. Tomorrow is my 2nd doctor appointment and hopefully we'll get to hear the heartbeat! I also anticipate another ultrasound so I'll post a picture as soon as I can.

7 weeks and we have a heartbeat!

2008-02-23T13:19:00.000-08:00

Here is the first ultrasound of our little bean. Actually he/she looks more like a little blob. But on the ultrasound we could see the heartbeat fluttering away! It was 146 beats/minute. Next time maybe we'll get to hear it. :)

We're Expecting!

2008-02-19T12:10:00.000-08:00

It's true! We are expecting our 2nd baby! Mackenzy is convinced it will be a girl. The other day she drew a picture of Me, Daddy, Mackenzy, and a little baby wearing a dress. Mike is convinced it's a boy and I don't really know. I'd be happy with either one, but a boy of course would be great since we already have our little princess. :) Our due date is Oct. 9, 2008 and we have our first ultrasound appointment this Thursday. I'm a little nervous but will feel much better once we see the heartbeat. This week I definately feel pregnant. My nausea is rearing its ugly head! So far I've kept it under control with my Unisom/B6 combo at night and a Zofran every morning. I'll be sure to post a picture from the ultrasound!

Dancing girl

2007-12-16T10:56:00.001-08:00

Mackenzy had her very first dance recital on Saturday. She did awesome and danced her little heart out. I wish you all could have been there to see it, it was so cute! She is the one on your far left with her back turned at the beginnning then she waves right before it starts
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2007-11-01T22:40:00.001-07:00

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