Monday, March 1, 2010
So Embarassed!
I am so embarrassed that I haven't put up a new post all year! And it is already March 1st!! The year has literally flown by! I keep making lists in my head of all the things I want to blog about - and then I never actually get around to posting them!
So to recap our year a little bit for you...
The biggest experience of this year has been with Justin's job change. He was laid off from Cameron around Thanksgiving of last year. We were so stressed when we first found out, but little by little God continued to provide. we ended up with a great severance package that neither of us expected and that helped fill in the gaps from job to job. Justin worked hard from his first day without a job to his last. He filled out application after application and dropped off resume after resume. He quickly got hired at the casino for valet and worked 4 nights a week from about 6pm to 3am. Justin stuck it out with this rough schedule for most of December and January before he was hired on at Henry Production, a small oilfield company out here. Its a temporary position for now but we are praying it leads to something more permanent. Although we lost the benefits from his old job (medical, dental and 401(k)) this transition has actually been blessing. Hourly Justin is making less than he was, but overall he is working about twice as many hours as the guys who stayed on at Cameron. Its so sad how many families are struggling right now due to the economy and we feel very fortunate that things fell into place relatively quickly for us. The situation really was a blessing in so many ways - you never really know how much you love someone until you face opposition together. I think Justin and I have come out of this trial stronger than we have ever been. His working at night during his weeks at valet were hard on us all but it helped me bond with our children in ways that i had not before. Although we are still not sure what the future holds for us (but really, who does?) we have so much to look back on as proof of God's faithfulness.
to be continued....
So to recap our year a little bit for you...
The biggest experience of this year has been with Justin's job change. He was laid off from Cameron around Thanksgiving of last year. We were so stressed when we first found out, but little by little God continued to provide. we ended up with a great severance package that neither of us expected and that helped fill in the gaps from job to job. Justin worked hard from his first day without a job to his last. He filled out application after application and dropped off resume after resume. He quickly got hired at the casino for valet and worked 4 nights a week from about 6pm to 3am. Justin stuck it out with this rough schedule for most of December and January before he was hired on at Henry Production, a small oilfield company out here. Its a temporary position for now but we are praying it leads to something more permanent. Although we lost the benefits from his old job (medical, dental and 401(k)) this transition has actually been blessing. Hourly Justin is making less than he was, but overall he is working about twice as many hours as the guys who stayed on at Cameron. Its so sad how many families are struggling right now due to the economy and we feel very fortunate that things fell into place relatively quickly for us. The situation really was a blessing in so many ways - you never really know how much you love someone until you face opposition together. I think Justin and I have come out of this trial stronger than we have ever been. His working at night during his weeks at valet were hard on us all but it helped me bond with our children in ways that i had not before. Although we are still not sure what the future holds for us (but really, who does?) we have so much to look back on as proof of God's faithfulness.
to be continued....
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Bath Time
Just had to post these of my sweet little girl in the bath tub :) She is loving life so much now, it seems like everything I do with her she just loves. She has been eating oatmeal and doing great with it, she is so easy during the day when she lays on her play mat and talks to her toys. She goes to bed amazingly and sleeps through the night and she absolutely loves her bath time!
Happy Birthday Jesus!
We had a somewhat unconventional Christmas this year. Justin was laid of at his job shortly after Thanksgiving and has been working valet at the casino at night. There have been several downfalls to this job one of them being that he had to work on Christmas Eve, so we decided to start a day early this year. We made our cookies for Santa and left them out on Christmas Eve Eve :) and opened our gifts Christmas eve morning. Jack was really excited this year which made it extra fun for the rest us. In the course of taking pictures and looking back at them, I realized I am becoming that mom. You know the one who makes her kids where coordinating outfits for family photos and forces them to take ridiculously cheesy pictures in front of the tree... yep that's me.
Christmas Oops...
This happened on a different day during "nap time".
Sweet tooth? Chocolate Chips, 2 Kool Aid packets, marshmallows, fudge, a candy cane, 2 jars of sprinkles and powdered sugar.
Every present under the tree was opened a week before Christmas!
All I have to say is next year there will be no presents under the tree until Christmas. Also I will not leave Jack home while Justin is napping - even if he is supposed to be napping too.
Harper's Surgery
Harper's most recent post-op belly button shot :)
Little Miss Smiley right before her surgery. That tiny hospital gown broke my heart!
This was her what her belly button looked like two days after surgery, the first time we took the bandage off.
The golf ball sized belly button before surgery :(
Well, its already been three weeks, but I thought I would post a re-cap and update about Miss Harper's "Belly Button Surgery".
On Dec. 7 of this year Harper had a surgical procedure done to fix an umbilical hernia her developed shortly after birth. These types of hernias are not uncommon and generally don't effect the overall health of a baby. Typically they heal on their own by the time they are 2 or 3, however Harper's had grown to the size of a golf ball and I believe it was causing her some pain. Her doctor, surgeon and I all agreed it was unlikely that the hernia would heal on its own, and even if it did, in the mean time she would be stuck with her intestine protruding out from her little belly.
The day of the surgery (along with a few prior to it) I was a wreck. I knew in my heart everything would be fine, but it is such a terrifying feeling for me to have to put Harper through this. I honestly wasn't worried about the surgery itself, I knew it was pretty basic and I trusted her surgeon, but the scariest part for me was that she would be under a general anesthesia. I anticipated the hardest parts would be letting her go and be put under, and seeing her afterward - I was prepared for a pale lethargic baby, with Iv's and tubes all over the place. I was right in thinking that letting her go would be awful, however our anesthesiologist was great, (the same one who did my c-sec in September) he made us feel as comfortable as we could given the circumstance, and even Harper was giving him big smiles as he talked us through what would happen during and after surgery.
From the time we handed her to Chris, the anesthesiologist, and walked into the waiting room with our little pager, to the time the Dr. McCray came out to tell us she was all done a full hour hadn't even passed yet. He took Justin and I back to the recovery room to see her and I could barely keep myself from running to her. Before they even opened the doors I could hear her screaming, it was such a wonderful sound since I was prepared to walk in on a drowsy drugged up baby. Aside from the fact that she managed to pull out her IV and there was blood soaked gauze wrapped around her arm, she looked amazing! She wasn't lethargic in the slighted and she looked so strong as she tried to fight off the nurse who was bandaging her up! It turned out that they didn't need to give her any drugs to wake her up from the anesthetic which is uncommon and through the entire process her vitals stayed absolutely healthy. Both the doctor and the anesthesiologist said she couldn't have done better.
We were able to take her home that same day only about 4 hours after we arrived at the hospital. She was pretty jumpy and disoriented that afternoon and spent a lot of time screaming and crying. I expected this to go on or at least the next couple days, but the following morning she woke up in the greatest mood and has been perfect everyday since then. Prior to her surgery she was very gassy and fussy and would cry almost every time she pooped. I was hardly ever able to put her down at home and she was waking up several times at night. Since the day after her surgery she sleeps 8 to 12 hours at night waking up only once to eat and go right back to sleep. She doesn't nap much but I don't mind because she is content now to play on the floor or in her swing, I only have to hold her when I feed her and when I just want to snuggle :)
We were SO blessed to have our prayers answered and exceeded! God has been so faithful in
keeping this little girl healthy, even when when I had only been pregnant with her for 6 weeks and the doctor told us we lost her when I had a cyst rupture in my uterus. Thank you Lord for our wonderful little miracle! And thank you to all of you who kept us in your thoughts and prayers as we went through this!
Monday, November 23, 2009
Thankful - Part 2 - A Mother's Confession
After reading the list in my last post about all the not so typical things one mother is grateful for regarding her children, I felt like I should confess some of my ungrateful behaviors over the last couple days.
Like I said before I do love my children more than I have ever imagined being able to love anything, but I am not a patient person. I am also not usually a very flexible person, so when I get an idea in my head or have a vision of the way a certain event should go, its hard for me to accept anything different. So over the weekend when I had an opportunity to get a good deal on holiday photo cards I threw the kids into their outfits (which I have had set aside for the past month or two especially for Christmas pictures) and set them up in the living room expecting perfectly posed portraits of the two. Ha.
I really am ashamed to admit how frustrated I got with my 2 month old and three year old for not looking right in their pictures! Jack would put on this cheesy, toothy grin with his nose wrinkled up and eyes shut tight, while I tried to move Harper into some position that hid at least a couple of her chins. I was so busy and worried about making them look like the kids you see in magazines that I couldn't even see how beautiful and amazing they actually are. Cheesy and Chunky :)
I am making sound silly and it was, in the midst of my scolding and re-positioning I did laugh a little bit, but I really wish I would learn to enjoy these moments more and not try so hard to make every thing fit into the mold I have in my head. There are so many things I can learn from them if I would just admit that I don't know it all already. My kids are who they are and I wouldn't want them any other way. I just wanted to post a few of the shots I did get and say that I am grateful for these adorable, perfect blessings I am so lucky to have in my life.
Thankful - Part 1
I saw this on my friends blog this morning (I think she got it from another friends blog) and it moved me to tears. I love my kids more than anything but I don't think I have ever thought about them in this context before. Thank you Megan for posting this! It truly turned my day around :)
Thanksgiving usually inspires parents to start a diet. But if you’ll indulge with me for a while, I’d rather list a few things I’m grateful for as a mother.
I’m grateful my children demand I talk to them when I don’t feel like talking, feed them when I’m not hungry, and change their diapers even when I’m all dressed up and ready to go somewhere special. I don’t think I’d discover the world outside my own needs without them.
I’m grateful my children haven’t learned how to hold back their tears when they’re sad, laughter when they’re happy, or screams when they’re frightened. They constantly remind me that emotions are for sharing.
I’m grateful my children have broken nearly everything in my home and used a crayon or ink marker on the rest. They’ve taught me that things aren’t important, but people are.I’m grateful my children start out small and helpless so they don’t become aware of my incompetence until they’re teenagers. By then, we’ve both grown so accustomed to each other, we somehow manage to make it through the rest of life together.
I’m grateful my children get their pants dirty, pick their noses, burp without saying “excuse me,” and quarrel in public so I’ll never be able to get too arrogant, proper, or judgmental of other people’s children.
I’m grateful my children sometimes call me names like “weird” because sometimes I am “weird,” and it helps keep a person humble to be told they’re “weird” when they’re acting weird.I’m grateful my children occasionally miss the bus at the precise moment I’ve stepped out of the shower, contemplating the well-planned, organized day ahead of me. Experiences like jumping into the car after throwing on whatever’s handy and racing to school have a tendency to loosen rigid plans into something better known as spontaneity.
I’m grateful my children always need new shoes, piano books, prescriptions, haircuts, fieldtrip money, tuition, food, toothpaste, and underwear. That way, I don’t have to waste my time thinking about a new sofa. It’s difficult to get wealthy and think about luxuries when you have to buy toilet paper and milk by the truckload each week.
I’m grateful my children know how to play. My five-year-old asked me to come downstairs so he could “teach me how to play” with his plastic animals. While Jacob demonstrated the subtle techniques for sinking a rhinoceros into couch cushions while pretending it was quicksand, I realized my young son was right. I really do need someone to “teach me how to play.”
I’m grateful my children question my every command and giggle when I get angry. It’s difficult to feel too powerful or self-righteous with kids around to remind you of how funny you look when you’re pointing your finger.I’m grateful my children insist I hug, kiss, rock, or put my arms around them often. Otherwise, I think I’d forget how the sense of touch is so healing.
I’m grateful each of my children is unique when the same strange, inexperienced mother raised them. Somehow they don’t seem to let me ruin them much.
And lastly, I’m grateful for the gift of children in my life. God willing, I’d like to fill the rest of my days with those interesting people who call me Mom (yes, and sometimes “weird”) but eventually “weird grandma.”
List by Janene Wolsey Baadsgaard
Click here to read the original article.
Thanksgiving usually inspires parents to start a diet. But if you’ll indulge with me for a while, I’d rather list a few things I’m grateful for as a mother.
I’m grateful my children demand I talk to them when I don’t feel like talking, feed them when I’m not hungry, and change their diapers even when I’m all dressed up and ready to go somewhere special. I don’t think I’d discover the world outside my own needs without them.
I’m grateful my children haven’t learned how to hold back their tears when they’re sad, laughter when they’re happy, or screams when they’re frightened. They constantly remind me that emotions are for sharing.
I’m grateful my children have broken nearly everything in my home and used a crayon or ink marker on the rest. They’ve taught me that things aren’t important, but people are.I’m grateful my children start out small and helpless so they don’t become aware of my incompetence until they’re teenagers. By then, we’ve both grown so accustomed to each other, we somehow manage to make it through the rest of life together.
I’m grateful my children get their pants dirty, pick their noses, burp without saying “excuse me,” and quarrel in public so I’ll never be able to get too arrogant, proper, or judgmental of other people’s children.
I’m grateful my children sometimes call me names like “weird” because sometimes I am “weird,” and it helps keep a person humble to be told they’re “weird” when they’re acting weird.I’m grateful my children occasionally miss the bus at the precise moment I’ve stepped out of the shower, contemplating the well-planned, organized day ahead of me. Experiences like jumping into the car after throwing on whatever’s handy and racing to school have a tendency to loosen rigid plans into something better known as spontaneity.
I’m grateful my children always need new shoes, piano books, prescriptions, haircuts, fieldtrip money, tuition, food, toothpaste, and underwear. That way, I don’t have to waste my time thinking about a new sofa. It’s difficult to get wealthy and think about luxuries when you have to buy toilet paper and milk by the truckload each week.
I’m grateful my children know how to play. My five-year-old asked me to come downstairs so he could “teach me how to play” with his plastic animals. While Jacob demonstrated the subtle techniques for sinking a rhinoceros into couch cushions while pretending it was quicksand, I realized my young son was right. I really do need someone to “teach me how to play.”
I’m grateful my children question my every command and giggle when I get angry. It’s difficult to feel too powerful or self-righteous with kids around to remind you of how funny you look when you’re pointing your finger.I’m grateful my children insist I hug, kiss, rock, or put my arms around them often. Otherwise, I think I’d forget how the sense of touch is so healing.
I’m grateful each of my children is unique when the same strange, inexperienced mother raised them. Somehow they don’t seem to let me ruin them much.
And lastly, I’m grateful for the gift of children in my life. God willing, I’d like to fill the rest of my days with those interesting people who call me Mom (yes, and sometimes “weird”) but eventually “weird grandma.”
List by Janene Wolsey Baadsgaard
Click here to read the original article.
Thursday, November 19, 2009
Friday, November 13, 2009
More Harper Smiles :)
Holy cow its been two weeks already since our last post!! Baby girl has changed so much even since then!! She's sleeping great now... 10 to 3am then 3 to 6! So nice for mommy! We also met with her surgeon about a week ago and decided to go ahead with the surgery for her little tummy. Its an outpatient procedure and only takes and hour or two, and the doctor assured us she will be back to normal in just a couple days. We're really excited to see our little girl with out a golf ball on her belly. He also said it may help with her gas issues, which will be wonderful, since I have now cut out all dairy, CHOCOLATE, and anything greasy or fried, from my diet in hopes of relieving her from some of her gas pains :( Anyways here's some new pics of the happy girl...
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Trick-or-Treat
Happy Halloween! Well our Halloween got off to a rough start Friday when Jack woke up with a fever and a cough and had to miss his costume party at preschool :( But, as the day progressed he felt better and better and by Saturday morning he was back to normal. We stayed in for most of the day and then around dinner time headed up to my parents house for some Halloween chili and cornbread... oh yea and trick-or-treating too! Jack really got into this year and was very excited about the loot he collected! Now he just has to hide it from Mom and Dad!! Hope everyone else had a great Halloween too!
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
First Snow
Throwing snowballs at the school buses! What a boy!
Checking out his "snowy pumpkins".
Love this face!
Our first snow of the year was pretty major! I think we got close to 8 inches! Jackson was so excited, I got him out of bed this morning and opened his window and he couldn't believe it! He also couldn't wait to get out and play in it, so at 7:15 this morning we bundled him up and sent him out in the front yard. This year is going to be so fun with him in the snow, I think he will really enjoy sledding and building snow men, and having snowball fights! Just as long as we can keep him somewhat warm and dry! Which means we will be snow boot shopping asap! Looks like its the begining of a long white winter! I love the changes!! I forgot how beautiful everything looks covered in white :)
Christmas Gift Ideas - Jackson
UP! Movie
Preschool-age board games (ex. Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders etc.)
TV Chair
Any games or books that help children identifiy letters and numbers.
Preschool-age board games (ex. Candy Land, Chutes and Ladders etc.)
TV Chair
Any games or books that help children identifiy letters and numbers.
Monday, October 26, 2009
My Baby Got Shots! :(
This was right after her doctors appt, she slept four a couple hours like that.
This one is for Uncle Ryan, Justin says she's throwing up gang signs :)
The doctor took another look at Harper's belly button, which is herniated for those of you who don't know, that's when the walls of a baby's tummy muscle don't close up all the way around the umbilical cord and tissue from inside the abdomen protrudes out around the belly button. Some can be small and heal by the time the child is 2 or three, but Harper's is huge! The hole its self is about the size of a nickel and the bulge coming out is bigger than a ping pong ball! So Doc referred us to a female surgeon who we will meet with in the next week or so. From what I have researched the procedure is done while the baby is under anesthesia (asleep and pain-free) and the doctor pushes the tissue back into the abdomen and either stitches up the hole in the muscles or places mesh over the top of it. I'm sure I will learn more once I talk to the surgeon and at that time we will decide whether it is worth it or not.
I'll keep everyone posted on what we find out!
Harpers stats :)
8 weeks old
12 lbs 4 ozs
24 inches long
Head Circ. 14 in.
Super Cute!
Super Cute!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
Christmas Gift Ideas - Harper
Blanket Sleepers
Toys with lights and sounds (Harper loves to look at lights :)
Ocean Wonders Aquarium - This looks really cute and I think it may help Harper sleep in her bed rather than on my chest :)
Product Description: The Soothing Seas Aquarium by Fisher-Price is a crib-attaching infant soother that captivates baby with the mesmerizing effects of water. Wrap-around design offers baby a better water view than ever before. Mama Fish has a realistic motion as she appears to be swimming through the water, followed closely behind by her baby. Their little crab friend plays peek-a-boo behind the coral as the seaweed sways gently in the waves. There is a light underneath the action and soothing blue lights fade on and off overhead. Lovely classical music or sound effects play while bubbles rise upwards to the surface. Features up to 18 minutes of continuous musical play - 4 classical-styled songs, 2 sound effects. There are 3 modes of use: (1) Sounds, Lights and Water/Swimming Motion, (2) Sounds and Lights, (3) Sounds only. An included remote control allows mom to activate the soother from the doorway
http://www0.shopping.com/xPO-Fisher-Price-Fisher-Price-Fisher-Price-Ocean-Wonders-Aquarium-With-Remote-Control~linkin_id-8046646
* I am estimating that by Christmas, Harper will be needing clothes in size 6-9 months or larger since she is already growing out of 0-3 and is pretty well stocked in 3-6 besides jammies.
Toys with lights and sounds (Harper loves to look at lights :)
Ocean Wonders Aquarium - This looks really cute and I think it may help Harper sleep in her bed rather than on my chest :)
Product Description: The Soothing Seas Aquarium by Fisher-Price is a crib-attaching infant soother that captivates baby with the mesmerizing effects of water. Wrap-around design offers baby a better water view than ever before. Mama Fish has a realistic motion as she appears to be swimming through the water, followed closely behind by her baby. Their little crab friend plays peek-a-boo behind the coral as the seaweed sways gently in the waves. There is a light underneath the action and soothing blue lights fade on and off overhead. Lovely classical music or sound effects play while bubbles rise upwards to the surface. Features up to 18 minutes of continuous musical play - 4 classical-styled songs, 2 sound effects. There are 3 modes of use: (1) Sounds, Lights and Water/Swimming Motion, (2) Sounds and Lights, (3) Sounds only. An included remote control allows mom to activate the soother from the doorway
http://www0.shopping.com/xPO-Fisher-Price-Fisher-Price-Fisher-Price-Ocean-Wonders-Aquarium-With-Remote-Control~linkin_id-8046646
* I am estimating that by Christmas, Harper will be needing clothes in size 6-9 months or larger since she is already growing out of 0-3 and is pretty well stocked in 3-6 besides jammies.
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Christmas Gift Ideas - Disclaimer
Just wanted to let everyone know I am compiling a list of ideas for Christmas gifts for the kids. These are just suggestions as much for myself as anyone else and are not requests! :) I've just had a couple people ask and thought I would post them as I think of things that the kids may want or need. I am able to go back and add things to my post so these lists will likely grow as it gets closer to Christmas, so you can check back by searching the blog archives on the left hand side of my blog.
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