little christmas update

Hey ladies!  I hope you are all enjoying holiday time so far!  Shea just finished his last week at school and I have been enjoying break (although busy with gatherings, holiday projects, and church stuff!) from school.  I am so glad that after this week of christmas and family craziness I will have a whole week before school starts and Jeremy will have 3 days off during that time and no Christmas stuff to be preparing or working on.

I am really looking forward to Christmas this year -the kids are so excited and it was so much fun making and gathering things for them to make it special.  We decorated the house a little more than last year and Hailey has such a good concept of what is going on, it is so fun.

Anyway, I just thought I would update with a few pics from the last few weeks and see what I remember ha ha.

We 5 new chickens a week or two ago.  Our old landlord was giving them away, so we went down and picked out 5.  We got two pretty brown ones that lay blue eggs, a big dark one that lays a chocolate egg, and two white fluffy little chickens called silkies.  They are adorable and almost look more like a poodle.  BUT the other day I went out, and one was gone and a trail of feathers went into the woods.  Some sort of animal broke into the run and carried it off.  I was so sad, because I love those little white ones!  Papa came over and secured the run, so hopefully we won't have that problem any more.  I really don't want to lose another silky - the kids love to hold it.

SNOW - this is back from when it snowed after Thanksgiving.  Hailey did not like the snow.  Shea enjoyed it more than her but he is not very impressed in this picture.  I loved having the white background for a few days even though it was cold!

Hailey was playing peek-a-boo in her santa hat yesterday. She has been wearing this little dress that was a hand-me-down from her cousin and I love seeing her in it. She calls it her "doggy party dress" and she is a princess in it, according to her.

Last Sunday we had a birthday party in the afternoon and then we rushed back for the Indianola children's party.  It was so fun this year!  They did a great job planning it and Shea had several classmates there and his teacher, so he had a blast.  Hailey was scared of Santa and Shea now believes Santa is real because he knew his name.  Afterward, Shea went on a hayride through our neighborhood and had fun for about 5 minutes before he got too cold and bored. 

The other day the kids were just so HYPER...I think a big part of it is the weather, because we haven't been outside as much.  So I randomly said, "lets make some angels with glitter!"  Glitter works every time.  They had a super fun time and afterward mellowed out for their afternoon rest.  Mom win.  Hailey is twirling in the top most right picture below. She is ALWAYS twirling.  I love it.

Some of our Christmas decorations.  I made a garland for our banister out of lights, scented pinecones and tree clippings.  I love the smell as I walk up the stairs.  Our little christmas village is in our window this year, with a new lego snowman addition we got Shea as an advent gift.  I finally updated some picture frames and re-did our photo wall.  I love having new and old pictures there (and the blank space was driving me crazy before!) .  Our cozy living room!  We got two new rugs (one isn't pictured, but is a cozy shag like rug in front of the fire place - the kids love to snuggle on it with our big cushions and read books and play) and the big red one.  One a lady we know was going to throw out (I think because it sheds a little) and the red one Jeremy's parents just had lying around at the church so they let us have it.  We just need to get a pad for it.  Anyway, I love how much cozier and brighter it feels now in here.

1. Hailey's new stocking.  I pulled out the stockings and she goes "where is mine? Mine is PINK!".  Well, last year when I made hers she didn't have an opinion, so I went ahead and made this pink oen for her.  She is thrilled and calls the pink fringe at the top a "tutu".  2, Shea's artwall and our avent "wreath".  We haven't lit any of the candles because we have been gone every Sunday of advent so far, but we plan on doing something special on Chrismas eve.  3. our other fuzzy rug.  4. Our seasonal chalkboard.  Shea put some creations on my candle pillars, ha.  And 5. Jeremy's dad found this wood holder at the recycling center and it has been SO nice to have!  Usually we can only stack a little wood inside and it is always really messy.  Now we can stack quite a bit and I don't have to go outside during the day to keep the fire going.

And these were some pictures I took of the kids.  I only got Hailey to do it by putting up pink paper in the background. I love the first picture of Shea, too.

Yesterday, we had my side of the family's Christmas.  We did it at my sister's house in Renton.  My youngest brother, Matt, and his girlfriend were not there because she was having brain surgery in Arizona (she is doing well and they are flying home today!), and my other brother decided he didn't want to be a part of the family Christmas this year.  It was short and sweet and a little overwhelming, but the kids did great and it was nice seeing their cousins.  We had to rush back because Shea was in the kids play at our church in the evening and it ended up being a late night as we stayed to watch the end of the football game (READ:  Jeremy watched the game with his brothers while I supervised the sugar hyped cousins for a couple of hours).

This first picture is actually from the Kingston Ferry terminal - they have a huge light display there this year, so we made some cocoa and took a walk around the other night.  The kids had so much fun.

This was the best picture we could get of the cousins on my side of the family. Hailey didn't want anything to do with it.

This is Shea as an orphan in the play last night.  I made 14 of those newsboy caps, holy sewing!  I'm so glad we had netflix to watch while I sewed.  My new machine got a TON of use this month.

Anyway.  Today we are relaxing a little. The kids are playing with their new toys and I am sitting in my workout clothes so I will work out eventually, ha ha.  I have lost almost 5 lbs in the last 4 weeks!  I haven't been able to lose the last bit of weight since Hailey until now, so I am feeling really good and Jeremy makes comments about how skinny I look every day.  I don't think I probably look that much different to most people, but its enough that my pants and clothes fit comfortably and I feel good, so thats all that matters to me!  I have been doing Jillian Michaels workouts almost every day and eating smaller lunches, hardly any sugar, and no snacks after our early dinner.  I got really motiovated because we went and all weighed ourselves at the old scale at the indianola store and I weighed like 2 lbs MORE than Jeremy (he is short, so its easy to do, but still, I had gained weight and I freaked out).  Mostly I'm just happy because I was really moody and discouraged for a while, and since this last month I have been energetic and feeling way more positive about things.

The house is a bit messy right now so I am hoping to start getting things cleaned up and ready for Christmas.  Last night, Jeremy and I were up commiserating over getting through Christmas with his family.  It is insanely overwhelming and I always forget about how bad it is until right before and then I start freaking out a little bit.  Ah well.  I am trying to be a good sport this year (again) and hoping for change eventually.

This is a long post.  I guess that is what happens when I write a little bit every day for a few days.  MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Life

It was so nice to have Candice and Callum here!  So nice to cook for someone besides Joe too =P  I sure miss you guys but I know you were missing Justin so I'm glad you got to go home.  And super excited that I get to see you *again* in a few months!


Fostering/Adopting...still waiting on Joe to make a decision.  He asked me to work on keeping up the house responsibilities as if we already had kids, because he's concerned the MS will affect that.  I asked him how he thought I was doing and he said fine, and that now he just wants to wait till he had a job with a regular schedule...to be honest, this kind of deflates my spirits because he's been off-and-on looking for a regular job ever since we got married.

Gym - Goal is to go 3x/ week and I have been (except I only went twice when Candice was here).  I love it when I run into Angela.

Legs - Oh my gosh, so strong!  Unbelievable...this morning I did the stairs two at a time because I was in a hurry, and didn't even realize until I reached the top!  It was FUN!  And exhausting.  But seriously!


While I wait to see if Joe decides to foster, I'm spending 1-2 hours a day on 7 Cups of Tea as a listener.  It's a site where people can anonymously come and talk to people who listen.  Pretty fun and rewarding.  =D 

I was going to start taking more pictures but then Joe took the camera back upstairs...so we'll see if I think to grab it ;)  I do want to show you our pretty tree!

Life feels crazy!! ...but good.

Hi!! I'm excited to be posting because I always think about posting when I do things during the day and take pictures, so it feels good to be sharing about life because I feel like there is so much to talk about! Where do I start?

Our big news is that Justin got a new job! It's in London, Ontario, which is an hour and forty minutes west from where we live now.  So that means a move, he starts Dec. 1st, so I start packing tomorrow!  This Saturday we're heading to London to look at places, so far we have two lined up already.  I have bittersweet feelings about moving.  We've lived in Oakville for two and a half years already and we're finally feeling like we're connecting with people in our church and community, now it's time to uproot again.  The exciting part is that this is the kind of job Justin has been waiting for (it's more policy planning instead of development processing), and he'll be working for the city, so a great employer.  The catch is that it's an "up to three year" contract, so it's a bit of a risk, but he'll have access to internal postings and it sounds like they are pretty sure there'll be funding for the three years (it's a bit political that way).  Another exciting thing is that it's in a city where we'll be able to afford to buy a house in the next few years!  The city we live in now is nuts, a house three doors down from us sold for 1.4 million, and it's a new but regular house.  We're also hoping to be able to rent a place that has a real yard, which will be great for Callum next summer.

ANOTHER thing that has made this feel crazy is that I am visiting Seattle!! BUT I'll be there from Nov. 24-Dec 3rd, right when we'll be moving! Justin had had the interviews when I bought my ticket, but he had had interviews in the past and I didn't want to wait too long because I wanted to come for Thanksgiving and ticket prices kept going up.  So, I have three weeks to pack up, which is doable, but juggling that with a baby will be interesting.  My sister-in-law, Chara is coming over tomorrow afternoon to help me start packing.

So yes, I'm visiting, and I would love to be able to get together with everyone! Justin isn't coming, it's just Callum and I.  I'm so excited for him to meet everyone!

I can't believe it's been 7 weeks since Callum was born.  It's been crazy, fun, amazing, and overwhelming at times.  My sister came and visited for two weeks, which was such a big help.  I feel like I'm learning more and more how to take care of him and keep our house running.  The other day he would fall asleep but kept waking up whenever I put him down, I tried the swing, bassinet, carseat, etc.  Then it dawned on me to try our Ergo carrier, and it was great!  I was able to cook dinner with my two free hands and Callum had a great nap.

One thing that has been a struggle is breastfeeding.  Callum has never breastfed.  Because of his tongue and lip tie in the beginning, his mouth was so restricted and he couldn't suck.  In the womb, his tongue just went up and down and created an indentation in his pallet, really messing up his sucking.  Since the revision, he's learned how to move his tongue around and the doctor told us his pallet can still smooth out as he develops.  Now his sucking is great, but he won't breastfeed.  I've been to the breastfeeding clinic five times, and they told me they've done all they can and I just have to keep trying and see if he'll take to it eventually.  We also took C to an osteopath to relieve tension in his jaw, which was restricting his mouth too.  We went three times and noticed a big improvement right away (he actually went on the breast with a nipple shield for about a minute), but since then there hasn't been any real progress.  It was getting so bad that he would start crying/screaming whenever I got him into the position for breastfeeding.  I took a break from trying for a while, and have started to get back at it.  Callum has been getting only breast milk though because I'm pumping.  Thankfully I have a great supply and have been able to pump enough for him.  It's a lot of work though and a bit tricky when we are out, but I've learned how to make it work.  I had really hoped I could get him to breastfeed before our trip to Seattle, but I'm not so sure that's going to happen.  Speaking of pumping, I have to leave in half an hour for youth group, so I should pump before I go.  

It's my turn to photo dump! 

This last photo is Callum meeting his cousin, Henry (held by Justin).  Henry was born on Halloween and I know they are going to be the best of buds!

Life is busy, but full.

I feel like time is flying past me and my baby just keeps getting older and older in super speed. Being a mama to a 9 month old is so much fun.  I think every age is more and more fun, I can't believe it just keeps getting better.  I mean, he still wakes up at 4 or 5 am for the day, but I look forward to seeing him as long as I am rested as well!  He has been going to bed at 5:30pm (he wakes at the same time every morning even if I put him to bed at 8pm) so I have a few evening hours to myself and then try to be asleep by 9pm every night. 

On Friday we had our buddy Isaac over for the day.  Isaac and Eli are 11 days apart and had so much fun together. They always wanted to play with the same toy, when one was being held the other one wanted me too, they ate snacks together. Oh my gosh I loved having twins for the day!  Isaacs parents pay for daycare at the gym so I was able to take both boys, get my workout in and lay in the hot tub for a few minutes and not have to pay any extra, talk about awesome!

Eli is walking EVERYWHERE.  He took his first two steps on October 1st and then two weeks later was walking pretty much everywhere but still falling quite often. Now he rarely falls unless he tries to run, which is also pretty adorable!  

Eli also eats EVERYTHING.  The only thing he doesnt really like, but will still eat is plain yogurt. He looks at me like "mom, what the heck is this" so I usually give him some flavored with homemade jam since that's what I do for myself.  Speaking of yogurt, I have been making my own for months now and I never want to go back to eating storebought yogurt.  Yogurt made with whole milk, and strained to be my own greek yogurt is absolutely amazing. I have streamlined the process so the heating and cooling of the milk and clean up takes probably 20 minutes each time I do it. 

I have been dressing Eli up more often now that I actually put clothes on him. I always thought Becca was crazy for saying boys were more fun to dress than girls, um she is so right. There are cute dresses and girly stuff everywhere but you kind of have to come up with boys outfits and it is so fun! 

I gave Eli his first haircut (I had trimmed around the ears a few times already) and he looks so grown up!  He actually needs a trim again but his hair is getting so thick I need to figure out how to not make it look like I am giving him a bowl cut! 

These pictures are so out of order its ridiculous.  Eli loves playing peek a boo around the doorway with daddy.  Sadly since Eli has gone to bed so early for the last 2 weeks he doesn't get to do this anymore because he goes to bed before Paul even gets home.  I also have taken the handles off my drawers since these pictures were taken.  It is so nice not having Eli be able to get into the drawers but still be able to open them! I wish I would have thought of this a month earlier! 

New succulent I got at Costco!  I have always wanted a succulent garden but with each succulent being so expensive I didn't know how I would ever do it.  Well in comes costco with this beauty only costing 11.99, so I treated myself and am so happy I did!   

I have watched a friends baby girl a few times so mama could take a nap.  Eli is such a good "big brother".  It was so fun having the two of them, but I must admit, its actually easier to take care of two the same age than a 4 month old and a 9 month old.  I think there is a reason there is 10 month gestation for humans, we need the time! 

Eli was making some noise and then began fussing. I walked around the corner to find he had gotten himself under the stool like this and couldn't figure out how to get out haha. 

1. With Azaria on our second evening walk while her mama slept 

2. Helping Daddy study.  Oh Paul passed his interview to become a store manager so now when a store opens up that he is interested in he will be able to apply. This whole having to move is becoming a more real possibility. 

3. Isaac and Eli are so fun together!

4. My little hipster baby 

The end!  Eli was up at 3:55 this morning and I couldnt get him back to sleep. Needless to say I am quite tired today as I didn't go to bed early enough last night! 

Love to all.

Time is going so slow right now

The title of this post contradicts the title of becca's last post...but this is how I am these days.  Strictly because in three days the controls get installed on my van and I can start practicing driving.  With the session I had with the instructor, I feel confident I could drive to Angela's house, the local grocery store, my cousin's apartment, and of course my in-laws.  It'll take a bit before I can venture out more, but I will be able to practice the moment I get the controls. 

Seriously, I think about this every hour and I've been counting down the days and getting more excited each time.  I'm going to get a gym membership and do my PT in the pool; going to visit Heather and Sam, my parents, my grandma in Whidbey, drive to church by myself, do church ministries and church groups and Bible studies...plus if/when we get kids it'll be so convenient to be able to DRIVE.

SOOOOOO excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

time is going by so fast right now.

I have enjoyed reading everyone's posts, even though I haven't had much of a moment to comment or post myself.  I have a few minutes to write now, though! September FLEW by.  Shea started preschool and has been absolutely loving it!  He is so social and gets along with everyone and adores his teachers.  We haven't had any issues so far, and he has a few new "best friends".  I am starting to think more about what he will be doing next year for Kindergarten.  As much as some times I think I want to just send him off to school 5 days a week, part of me really feels like I should be more involved than that, so I'm looking into some programs to mesh homeschooling with more support and social involvement.

The week I started fall quarter, I attended my first two births!  I was on-call for two moms.  Their due dates were Sept. 14 and October 2nd...they both went into active labor on the SAME night! I drove an hour north to the Port Townsend hospital for the first.  Thankfully, her labor was really quick (I was there about 2 hours) and then I left and drove an hour and a half to Bremerton, hoping I would make in time for the other mom.  She was a first time mom and had a long labor.  She didn't give birth until close to 5am.  So, I left at 7:30PM that Wednesday night and didn't get home and crawl into bed until 6:30AM the next day.  I was so beat, but I am so glad I got to do it.  Jeremy started later that day, so he let me sleep for a little bit before taking off, and I took it easy that day.  I got a really bad cold that is just now gone.  This meant that both Jeremy and I were sick on my birthday, and we didn't do anything at all, but that's okay.  I wish I could share a few pictures with you from the birth, but I haven't received the release form yet for one, and the other is still approving what pictures she wants me to use.

I got a few pictures off my cell phone to share.  I lost the cord to download my pictures, so I can only email them to myself which takes forever, so here are a few, anyway!

This is my NEW sewing machine!  My mom inherited some money from her dad when he recently passed.  She was able to use it to pay off a bunch of debt and also wanted to give a portion to each of us kids, but she decided to buy me and Kaitie each a new sewing machine.  We went shopping on Saturday and picked this out.  I haven't gotten to use it yet, but I tried it in the store and love it!  I never thought I would own such a quality sewing machine and I know I am going to have it for a long time.  It looks really simple, but it is so fast and powerful and made to last.  Other pictures are of a trail walk I did with a friend and her kids and the kids walking the dock last month.

Hailey is getting so big now. She feeds her babies on a regular basis and talks so well now, it is kind of crazy to me how old she is.  She is also obsessed with putting on these necklaces and bracelets I kept from my childhood (she calls them "treasures"), she wears them ALL day long.  Shea has been riding his bike a lot (yes, I'm a bad mom and didn't make him wear his helmet, because we going like 0 miles per hour he is so slow.  On the way back, he somehow crashed and nearly hit his head into a mailbox post, so helmet is required now).  And he was excited to wear a firemans helmet and climb in a real firetruck at a kids day fair we went to.

Since we moved, I haven't really re-arranged any furniture, but the other day, I went a little crazy.  I have been in a purging like crazy mode and also, we have been trying to figure out how to bring in the TV from the garage.  We always have to watch DVDs on our computer in the office, so its super uncomfortable, but the TV doesn't fit well almost anywhere.  I figured out to move our small couch into the playroom and put the TV in there in a closet, so we just close the curtain during the day and the kids don't see it and ask me a million times to watch it. We watched a movie last night and it was the coziest we have gotten to be while watching one since before we moved in!  The picture of our new "tv/sitting area" is still in progress in this picture, but now it is all cleaned up and cozy.  It is also nice because we can turn out the lights in the living room (which we have discovered helps Hailey fall asleep SO much faster), and we can sit in there to read or work or whatever without disturbing the kids.

Monday night I babysat the cutest little 5 month old for a couple in the area. They are 15 years old (YES, 15) and had a baby this past summer.  We met them because the dad was working at the church over the summer to earn some money.  They have really taken up the responsibility of their baby so amazingly well, though.  They are homeschooling themselves through a program in the school district so they only have to go to class one day a week and they can even take the baby with them.  And even though they can't drive, they walk miles and take the bus to doctor appointments and anywhere they need to go.  They live with his dad and he seems fairly supportive, but I don't know what their home life is really like.  They needed someone to babysit because they wanted a few hours to do homework, so I GLADLY took their super happy beautiful baby.  The kids loved having her around and were both adoring her and so gentle and Hailey keeps asking me, "Where is your baby??" now.  She is the easiest baby ever, but it reminds me why I am not eager to have another one right now and I LOVE that instead I can bless this young couple by taking care of their little one.  Oh and having a 5 month old sleep in my arms?  I forgot that feeling.  And the baby smell. mmmmm.

Anyway.

What else?  School has been going really well this quarter.  I love my classes and the style of the teachers I have, and it hasn't been stressful at all.  My sister is 37 weeks pregnant right now, so she could be having her baby any day and I am hoping to be there to take pictures/give support and also she is hoping childcare works out so that I can spend an extra day to help around the house after baby is born.  Jeremy has thankfully still been getting hours at work, even though they are heading into the slow season, it seems we are always provided for.  And Hailey is going through a period of really bad sleeping.  It is so hard!  She just got a new bed, which I hoped would help so she wouldn't be falling out, but she just is never comfortable and I don't know how to help her, she wakes up SO much and I am so tired, it's like having a newborn again but without the feeding part.  Jeremy thinks I should ignore her more.  Maybe he is right, but I am not very good at it because I want to help her.

And Shea is going to be FIVE years old in a couple of weeks.  He is trying to convince me to throw him a superhero birthday party.  Also, he wants to be slinky dog for halloween, so I'm trying to figure that costume out.  You should google "slinky dog costume". There are some pretty awful diy attempts.  Enough!

October 13th...

...is the day that I train to drive a car with hand controls, then I can get them installed!  Hopefully I can get the hang of it in the first session (a few hours!)

Car

Today we go and pick me up a Toyota Sienna!  We sold the Mazda to a friend yesterday.  We'll get hand controls installed on the Sienna which involves getting a consultation as to what kind of hand controls I should get, special training, then retaking my driving test and getting a new license.  It doesn't seem like it should be too long before I can drive.  It's been over a year!

We're getting a minivan for a few reasons.  Joe's main reason is that the wheelchair easily fits in the back.  I love the space in the front, and I grew up with a minivan and I like big cars.  I'm hoping someday we'll fill the seats with kids!  And I also convinced Joe that if we go on a vacation someday, say, to Ocean Shores, with kids, a small car will not be able to accomodate the wheelchair plus luggage.  And suppose we get a baby someday?  Then we have even more gear!  He said I have a point.

Kids wise...we've had a few opportunities come up and Joe has said "no."  Each time it has broken my heart.  Currently we have a girl who is a friend of a friend who might be coming into the system, in which case Joe has volunteered to take her for an emergency 30-day placement.  She's in the hospital right now though.  We were asked to take her in before she went to the hospital, but we said a resounding NO!  We cannot take in a child outside of the legal system, even though it's not perfect!  We need to be protected, the kid needs to be protected, the birth parents need court orders that set boundaries for them...anyway.

I bought a baby jail thing because Eli comes and visits and gets into everything and poor Angela has to chase him around.  Also, at least once a week Heather visits with her baby and another friend visits with her baby.  They're too young to get into stuff but it won't be long before they're exploring!  This is what I got and I love it!  It seems fairly big to me even without the extensions.  Eli loves it (and Angela and I love it too, hehehe).  I wanted something sturdy enough that he can pull himself up on it.  It's very sturdy.  And easy to wipe down which was important to me since Heather is so careful not to get Zari sick.  I also wanted something I could set up by myself and I think I can if I'm running at 50% or higher.

Time for us to leave for the dealership!

I am so tired.

I have made two trips to Salem since I last blogged. The first trip was because my grandfather wasn't doing well and I wanted to see for myself how bad he was actually doing, and if it looked as it sounded get hospice set up for him.  Well he did look bad, and we ended up getting hospice set up the day we arrived with the help of an awesome nurse and his dr. (after a facility nurse had told my aunt we needed to take him to the ER on the weekend to get orders for hospice, don't even get me started on how ridiculous that is!)

My mom came over to Auburn and we drove down to Salem together. Wow are long car rides way more work with a little munchkin.  We had to pull over once because somebody was screaming, and then again because the other two somebodies had to go to the bathroom. But we made it in one piece!  My grandpa didn't even recognize us the first day we were there, but the next two days he at least opened his eyes and even remembered Eli, which was so special seeing as he has had pretty bad dementia and short term memory loss since long before Eli was born. 

The man patting Eli's head is Sam, Sam loves babies and wanted to hold Eli every time he saw him, melt my heart. 

Right before we went down to Salem my college friend I hadn't seen since my wedding, Michele, said she was driving super close to my house on her way from Portland to Canada where she is now living.  She is doing her internship as a large animal vet, and was going to move to Australia in a few days to finish it there.  She came over less than an hour after she texted and we got to catch up for a few hours, it was so fun, so random, and one of the huge blessings of being SAHM right now is being available!

Paul and I finally got down to his grandparents house so they could visit Eli, it had been more months than I can remember since they had seen him, it was so precious to see Nana leaving over and smothering Eli with kisses. 

Eli loves the fridge, and by loves I mean any time he hears it open he drops whatever he is doing to crawl as fast as he can and stand inside it. He cracks me up.  I had to move the soy and hoisin sauces because he likes to suck on them like a bottle!

This last month has really brought out the mischeviousness in Eli. Climbing in the dishwasher, taking food out of the fridge, climbing all the stairs, knocking over plants, tearing leaves from succulents, it pretty much never ends!  He also walks super well now behind a walker and he is so proud of himself for it!  I wish you ladies had instagram because I post a lot of photos and videos of him over there :) 

Eli and I tagged along to the Harvest festival in Seattle a few weekends ago.  Eli loved the band that was there (hence the huge smile) and loved seeing all the animal they had.  Both babies, Eli and his buddy Meli, slept the whole way too and from Seattle, it was a miracle! 

Eli practices brushing his teeth with me, he is getting so active and observant and he just keeps getting more and more fun!  He is also eating like a teenager lately, he still nurses the same but the amount of actual food he consumes is incredible!  I have started having his bottle with water in it all the time for him.  I just ordered some cups with straws and we are going to try that for him when he is sitting in his booster. 

We went out to breakfast at one of our favorite places, Sunrise Cafe, a few weeks ago.  We took along Eli's booster and bib and it was the best thing we ever did!  He enjoyed some of the amazing and HUGE omlet with us and he couldn't escape!  I don't know who designed the high chairs for restaurants but who made them so deep and wide, Eli can escape the seatbelt no problem.  McDonalds on the other hand has awesome high chairs, which I am embarassed to admit I know that.  I don't actually know the last time I ate anything besides a dipped cone there though, so thats a plus. :) 

Paul and I having a relaxing moment while Eli slept. Seems these are few and far between because Paul is always working or has something going on.  I can't wait for a more predictable schedule and normal life when he becomes a manager.  He has a manager interview in a few weeks and I am praying Gods will be done.  I have full confidence he will pass, but only if it's the Lords will.  I have peace God has a plan for us, and I will just ride the waves of whatever happens.  

Eli looks at Paul with such awe and wonder these days and I was so happy to have captured it while he was sitting on the bed.  I sure do love these two boys in my life, they definitely have me wrapped around their finger. :) 

I have still been loving bountiful basket, and Amber has been getting them lately as well!  I just order hers along with mine and drop it by, which means I get to see her almost weekly! :)  Amber can't have peppers though so I ended up with a TON of bell and chili peppers this last time.  I roasted them all in the toaster (convection) oven and froze them in half cup packs.  I am excited to have them available for lots of cooking this winter! 

I did Jamberry nails for the first time.  I have had them on for 1.5 weeks now and they are holding up so well!  They are more work to put on than the advertisements let on, but so cute and work so well.  I also could probably do my nails 3x from a package instead of the 1x I thought. 

My walking, climbing, crazy dare devil of a boy!  He has so much energy these days.  He just went through a growth spurt, which I am so glad is over.  He sleeps awful on vacation anyway, so combine being away from home for a week with a growth spurt and just getting over his second bout of croup, it meant I was up 3-4 times a night.  Paul went hunting and was gone for 5 nights so all the wake ups were on me.  Oh I was so tired! We are sleep training again this week and it is already getting better. Phew! 

Swinging at my parents house in the same swing my mom swung my brother to sleep in as a baby.  My brother is now 21!

While in Salem this last weekend for my grandpas memorial (he passed just a day after we left town, he knew we said our goodbyes) we went and visited my other grandparents.  Grandma Shirley loves being on the floor and playing with Eli even at 80 years old!  The only two times grandpa Bob has smiled in the last 6 months is when Eli has visited him. The power of a baby is incredible!   The guy on the right in the football picture is my grandpa that just passed away, he was such a stud!

Paul had the day off yesterday and we went to Flaming Geyser State park.  It is just about 15 minutes from our house, and we only stayed for about a half hour, but it was a fun family adventure, and Paul even agreed to a few family pictures! 

Eli made the rough transition from 3 to 2 naps this week so I am having to get  creative with fun things to keep him up between naps.  He used to only stay up 2 hours at a time, but started refusing his last nap of the day meaning he was up for nearly six hours before bed, um that was torture and he was super grumpy!  So I switched to keeping him awake for 3 hours at a time between naps and not only has he not refused a single nap, he also naps way better than he was.  It is also helping him sleep longer at night, still with wake ups that we have to pat him back down, but hopefully those will go away soon.  He now sleeps in till about 6:15 or 7am which is so so so much better than the 4 am that we did for a month! 

Hope all is well with you ladies! 

Happiness

Ahh! I wrote a whole thing about my birth story and then my computer died and I lost the whole thing! I'll have to write about it later.  I'll share some pictures for now.  About a month before Callum was born I got a smart phone and have been able to take a lot more pictures.

This is my sweet little boy, I just love watching him sleep.  He's so precious! We had a midwife appointment today and he is doing so well! He's gained 12 oz in the past 5 days and is now up to 8 lbs 5 oz.  We had been waking him up to feed in the night because I was worried about him gaining, but now I know he's totally fine and I can let him sleep more!

Five days after Callum was born we found out that he had a pretty severe tongue tie and upper lip tie. A pediatrician was able to cut the tongue tie initially, but behind it was another one and he said that it needed to be cut my laser.  Thankfully there is a dentist who specializes in this not too far from us and they were able to see us right away.  It was so hard to watch as they numbed his mouth, the hard part was after the procedure because his breathing sounded horrible.  The numbing had gone down his throat he couldn't control his saliva until it hit his windpipe and then he would cough it up.  Justin was so good at holding him.

The night after he got the revision was tough.  He hasn't ever latched because his mouth was so restricted, so I've been working on breastfeeding, but he gets fed by me pumping and a bottle.  That night he had trouble even taking a bottle and would get so upset when we tried to give it to him.  We ended up using a spoon to feed him.  Thankfully things have been slowly getting better since then.  Sometimes he forgets how to suck and gets frustrated with the bottle, but today has been really good.  After every feed we have to stretch the skin under his tongue and upper lip so that he doesn't reattach to where it was.  It's so hard because Callum cries and sometimes screams when we do it.  I also have tongue exercises I have to do with him so that it moves around more.  

On a happier note, we went to church last Sunday and had so much fun showing him off to all our friends!  He slept the whole time.  It was so fun to dress him up in dress clothes! 

Beatrix has been really good with Callum.  She gives him little licks on the head and cheek.  She doesn't seem to be jealous yet, so I'm hoping it continues to go well.

It was so fun to see Callum's cousin with him!  

This is from last night, I just love watching him eat and sleep.  It took about 10 minutes for him to start sucking on the bottle, I was so glad once he finally took it! 

Waiting for Baby

Yay I'm finally posting! Even though I don't post very much, I often think about how I need to post about things that I'm doing, and then it doesn't happen.  But it is today.

Pregnant.  I feel like this is my defining attribute at the moment.  I didn't really understand it when women talked about being sick of being pregnant until a couple weeks ago.  I've been blessed with an easy pregnancy and it's only lately that I've been feeling a bit done with it.  Mainly because I'm not as mobile or have as much energy as I would like to.  I also want to just hold our baby!  I know that God will bring this baby in his timing, so that has helped a lot.  I've had enough time to get everything ready, have I told you guys that I'm doing a water birth too?  We've had the tub for 3 weeks already.  I really hope I get to use it and don't end up going to the hospital.

Angela and Becca, I have you to thank for choosing the water birth.  Both of you had such positive experiences that I decided to go with it.  It's something I had thought of before, but knowing women that have actually used it and loved it is really reassuring.

 I don't feel tired of waiting for this baby yet.  It's helped a lot to have my mom here and keep me busy.  We do something everyday.  I haven't even had time to work on my last sewing project for the baby.  I want to make a new cushion cover for the rocking chair.  My plan is to start on it today, hopefully it doesn't take too long.

Here are a couple pictures of my mom and I visiting a historical mansion in Toronto last week.

It was a really hot day, but it was so nice to have my mom around to take care of me and buy me cold drinks when I was overheating.  

I do have to show off one project I finished.  I finally finished the baby quilt for my sister-in-law who is due end of October.  I really wanted to get it done before our baby came.  I gave it to her last week.

I was also really blessed to have a baby shower a week and a half ago.  My mother-in-law and two sisters-in-law spent a lot of time putting it together.  They spent all day Saturday cooking.  It was so fun to have a party to celebrate our little one coming! 

Two of my former students were able to make it out from Toronto, it was the first shower my Japanese friend had ever been to.

With my sister-in-law, Emily.

I have a midwife appointment today.  I'm curious what she'll say.  Two weeks ago she said the baby still had a lot of room to move around.  

Maybe next time I'll blog I'll have a baby-or not.  ha, I'm trying to be realistic.  I know babies can take their time sometimes.  I just want the baby to be here before the 11th because that's when my Dad is coming and I want my parents to have some time with the baby before they head back to the Philippines.