Labor Day Weekend 2015

Labor Day Weekend 2015

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Braxton Hicks...I think I know how this works...

I wish I could communicate directly to my uterus.  That I could tell it to do or not do something and it would not only listen, but also obey.

Basically I'm starting to feel a tinge of annoyance with my body due to the seriously un-necessary number of braxton hicks contractions I get when doing almost anything.  I literally get up out of bed to pee and have one.  I take my dog for a walk and get like 6 (on a 15 minute walk!).  I go grocery shopping and I have to shift my pace from normal to slow every other isle.  It's seriously getting annoying and to me certainly unnecessary.

Unnecessary? You may ask...well to me, yes.  They are meant to be a "warm up"; "practice run" for your uterus.  It's "practicing" for the "big dance".  Well... I've had a lot of "big dances" with my uterus in the last four years and I don't think I need any more PRACTICING! (can you sense the slight sarcasm mixed with exasperation???)

Anyways, this, as with most of my blog posts, has been rolling around in my head for days and I needed to get it out and put it somewhere, so it ended up here.  Sorry you had to read about it ;).

Until Next Time...

Home Visit - Heck Yes!

I'm 35 weeks - 2 days today.  On Thursday, while I won't be getting a green light that day for a homebirth, we do have our home visit!  This is a very exciting day for homebirthers  because it's when we get to show off how prepared we are (lol..well we have supplies anyways ;) )

It's also the time where our midwives go through the "what to do if baby comes fast!" procedures...mostly this is for Broghan and who knows how fast it WILL go.  I've had a 3 1/2 hr birth, a 32 hr birth, and a 14 hr birth...could be anywhere in between or outside of those!  They also spend time asking him about his preferences.  Since we're 2nd timers (soo experienced in homebirth :O) (jk of course) but really...they ask about his experience last time and what he'd like to have the same and/or different.  I really love the personalized care we get with this system of care.

We also enter our final countdown to get the "go ahead" for not only a full-term birth but also a homebirth! Up until now..it's simply been a "planned" homebirth..and while it technically continues to be considered that until the actual date of delivery (you never know what could come up); after Sunday (36 weeks) it shifts just enough to make my excitement levels sky-rocket!

I've also (finally) ordered my birth kit...which really we only needed a handful of supplies that we couldn't find or needed to be sterile...and the birth pool liner.  All of which should be here by the end of the week.  C R A Z Y.  I'm going to be going through the process of getting this baby out and we're going to become parents (protectors and guardians) of THREE other people.  Yikes. Okay, maybe excitement levels will sky-rocket, but so will nervous energy levels. LOL.

And...I'm rambling.  Point is, birth is near - house is ready - parents are ready - and my midwife is soon to be on board with letting us go ahead with this crazy plan of having a baby at home! YIPPEE!!

Until Next Time...

Lets just get past Saturday please...

So similar to the ubber long update I posted about Lucy, I've been shying away from writing this post. Even though its been tugging at me for a long time now.  Honestly, the title says it all in terms of my mentality at the moment.  I just want to get to Sunday and get past Saturday.  Okay, actually I want to get past Sunday & Monday too...lets just get to next Tuesday as fast as possible please.

Random is probably what you're thinking, but I promise, it makes a lot of sense in my head why these upcoming days are so dreaded by me.  I looked back and I think I've done a pretty good job at keeping myself busy and not focused on the issues that were expected to be brought to light with this pregnancy.  The last time I actually talked about these hesitations, fears, concerns, worries, etc. was way back in July actually. Side Note: Looked again, and okay, I did mention some issues with movements in early October.

Anyways, here's the backstory to this post.

{1} Madison (my first pregnancy) had an EDD of 12/29/08.  This baby, has an EDD of 12/30/12.  They are one day (plus four years) gestationally different in terms of "dates" on a calendar.

{2} I lost Madison the weekend of Thanksgiving 2008.  This past weekend I was super grateful for being able to be home with just us four (plus baby) to share the holiday.  I'm not sure I'd had mentally coped with being around a lot of people again.

{3} I delivered Madison on December 1st, 2008 (This is Saturday).

{4} She as 36 weeks (This is what I'll be on Sunday)

{5} In 2008, that was on a Monday (Hence, why let's just get to Tuesday).

I can honestly say that with Lucy's pregnancy (Keller only lasted until 33 weeks remember); I didn't have this kind of hold up at the 36 week mark.  Part of me feels like I'm making it into a big deal when if I'd just allow myself to feel comfortable with the timings, these notions would disappear...but really, I'm way too detail-minded for that and I totally over-think most things.

Also, honestly, I know deep down I'm not actually scared. I trust my body, this baby and above all God that things will work out; but I can't seem to stop fixating on these coincidences.

And not to shift gears with all of this, but since that post in early October about baby movements, I've now had two other "scare" moments where this little one went nearly 48 hours with little to no movements that I could feel.  I have determined and am convinced that my placenta is a bit anterior (towards the front) and this little bugger likes to lay side-ways and facing back...meaning I can't and wouldn't be that sensitive to movements anyways.  Thankfully I have an awesome Midwife and a strong husband who both have given me reassurance and strength through those moments.

Anyways, I've now put out there my biggest "issues" - which I know are normal and somewhat expected - but still I will be so gloriously glad to get past these next few days.

Did I mention that our home-visit is on Thursday?! Talk about something to be excited for!  *Don't worry...this is going to get its OWN post* ;).

Thanks for listening (reading).

Until Next Time...

Birth plan??

So I'm sitting in class...super engaged right? Yea...not right now..

Anywho, doodled my birth plan and wanted to share it. Facebook felt too public somehow, so I'm sharing it here.


New Hair cut - Me!

Hardly ever do I make a post that is just for me.  Really, even my baby bump photos aren't about me...they're about the bump! lol.  But I recently got my hair cut, probably a few inches off...to be honest, I really don't even know how long it was before I got it chopped since I never had time to straighten it.  But here is - post cut.  Nice and straight and combed! I'm hoping the shortness will help me keep myself feeling human for the last few weeks of this pregnancy. 


Until Next Time...

Hard at work.

Might was train them young..right?! Just kidding of course.  As a gift to Broghan's parents we purchased Adirondack (sp????) chairs that simply needed some sanding, staining and then assembling.  These were the pics of the kids helping to put together the second chair. Excuse the undies/diaper looks...its how they roll in the mornings ;). 





Yes...that is Keller "hammering" with the vacuum extension pieces..lol.

Until Next Time...

Sibling Love!

I was looking to get good head shots of the kiddos for some Christmas projects I was working on...in the process of doing that I also captured them loving on each other and playing in their hockey nets.










Belly Shot - 33 Weeks

I'm posting this 2 weeks late but didn't want to NOT get it up on here.  My belly picture at 33 weeks, 2 days I believe. 

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Excuse the mess in the background...I was in full-on wrapping mode for some Christmas presents :).

Until Next Time..

My little Lucy-Fish - UPDATE

I've been mulling over these updates for a while now and figure that since I have a few minutes to myself while the kids finish up their naps, now is going to be my opportunity for this.  I've been posting a lot of picture updates for these little ones lately but have been reluctant? to post a written update.  Not sure, probably just the time and energy it takes to do this but there has been so much growth in both Lucy & Keller recently that they deserve and my memory will appreciate having this later on.


So to start, we'll shine a light on my little Miss Lucy.  God I love her.  I can't express that enough.  She is just an amazing, smart, funny, witty, (bossy..lol), adorable, loving child.  She brings a level of joy to my day that I never expected.

At this moment, she is just over 19 months old.  She is a typical #2 girl child in that she has advanced in language skills faster than I ever expected or sometimes wished.  We are fully in that stage of tantrums though so when she isn't getting what she wants or is struggling to communicate, the screaming and flinging of self does occur.  HOWEVER, thanks to the advanced language skills, she is typically able to calm herself down and when we ask her to use words, she does. This makes getting snacks, figuring out discomforts, or getting her to sleep much easier.

She also seems to be a on a path of potty-training earlier than I anticipated.  Just last night she requested her diaper be removed and then trekked to the bathroom - pointed at the light and said "turn on" then signaled to be put on the toilet...which she then proceeded to do her business.  When done, she said "all done" and assumed the position kids do when they want their bottoms wiped.  She's learned this system from watching big brother I realize, but I was utterly astonished that her diapers when removed were dry.  She was controlling it all! lol.  Such a smart cookie.  We're obviously still using diapers and not holding any expectations of this continuing, but I could get used to having a child day-time trained by age 2!

Just as Keller did, Lucy does have some favorites going strong.  While we thought we had successfully weaned from the Pacifier - "Paci" has made a comeback and is being requested all throughout the day.  She still wakes early in the mornings, hungry for something to fill her stomach.  Typically a banana will do it; however, "bar" or "happytot" are also big on the list of foods she enjoys.  She does love beans, avocados, grapes, pineapples, apples, etc.  Unlike her big brother she does NOT enjoy salad items but DOES enjoy mangos.  She enjoys our cocoa covered almonds too..although she tends to just suck the cocoa powder off and spit out the almonds ;).

As for toys, she is a whiz when it comes to puzzles or things to be put back together.  Her and Keller really enjoy building towers out of our legos or blocks and while she isn't as infatuated with anything sports/ball related like Keller was, she certainly likes to play with him and support him in those adventures.  She often takes the roll as the ball-getting-girl in those instances.  On her own, she really likes to try to ride bikes and kick balls though.

She likes to try to sing along to songs on the radio and to me while I do my best to sing them to sleep.  She also is starting to finally enjoy reading..or at least listening to us reading books. She doesn't always sit through them all the way or care if we actually say words, just as long as we flip through the pages she is happy and content.

And last but not least in any way, she is in LOVE with two particular things: Baby and Blankie!  Blankie being top priority at almost every moment of the day.  We are lucky to escape the house without it in tow, but I have to admit, its super cute when she realizes its not within eye sight and wanders around calling and looking for it.  Baby is similarly important but not quite as much. She is much more willing to leave baby-doll behind than blankie...or similarly, to share baby as opposed to sharing blankie.

As for sleeping, I feel like we've almost 100% transitioned to 1 nap/day and she is up to doing solid 11-12 hrs/night.  She still gets a little tired in the evening hours, but with the sun going down earlier and earlier each day, it makes getting to an earlier bedtime much easier. :).

So I think I hit it all...I'll conclude this lovely update with some pictures I've captured recently of the little lady.

Until Next Time...







Friday, November 2, 2012

Happy Halloween!!

I put the good pictures first...it took me a while! They had already been in their costumes on Monday (10/29) for our office's haunted house and then all day on Wednesday - Halloween...so I think by this point they were a little over it all but still were excited to walk up to a few neighbor's houses to say "trick or treat!" (okay, only Keller said it...Lucy had no idea...but isn't she just the cutest Butterfly?!)

So here is my little bear cub and my beautiful butterfly!





First BUCK of the year!

So typically you'd think that this was going to be a story about how my husband went out hunting and was able to shoot a deer...and typically, I'd be super happy to share a story like that.  However, this is not that story.  This is again, a huge random blessing that was given to us..second time in three years too!  

So while this day (Sat. 10/27) Broghan DID go up to Boyd all day and hunted; he didn't actually see much of anything while out in the woods.  He did however see something on his way home.  As he was driving along the interstate towards our house, he passed by a cop and a big truck...the truck had apparently just struck this very large buck.  Broghan noticed the deer (obviously) and got home a.s.a.p. and swapped cars and drove back...just in case he could nab the deer.  As luck would have it, the cop and truck were gone, but the 9-pt buck remained! From an outward view, it looked in perfect condition; however, you could tell that it had sustained some serious injury to its front-right arm/leg/whatever.  It must have died instantly from shock or internal bleeding because otherwise it looked great.  So he loaded it up and brought it home!  Sounds strange for many, but for deer hunters, its really a great "treat" lol. 

It was the biggest deer I had seen him get in all the years he's gotten something; and we actually had to use the van to get it hung up to skin/quarter.  :).  The last picture here is about 1/2 of the meat we procured from the deer.  A large part of the meat we sent off to be processed in to venison bacon :) yum yum yum!!!  But its safe to say I've got enough stew meat, steaks, roasts, tenderloins, and soon to be bacon & ground meat to last us a while!!






More leaves...

So earlier I posted a picture of the kids playing in a pile of leaves...we did a great job cleaning the yard that day and actually had it pretty well cleared...then we had a week of rain and wind and this is what we were left with...a blanket of leaves!  As you can see we made some good progress and Keller helped with his "rake" (really a broom), except I think he got confused since he was actually trying to clean the dirt road...:/...hrm..







Rockin' the pink cowgirl boots!

Dad did a fantastic job dressing Ms. Lucy this day! She has also been fascinated with the whole pockets thing...she says "pockets" and then shoves her little hands into her coat pockets...its really cuter than it sounds. ;) Love her!



Belly Shots - 30 Weeks

Lucy showing off her belly...
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From a distance (the way I like it at this point)



A little closer...this baby is sitting lower IMO...

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Keller demonstrating how to feed a baby ... all together now... "awwww!"


Just a beautiful fall day!

Our tree FINALLY shed its leaves and with the warm weather we were blessed with in mid-October we did what we could to spend our free time outside (and take advantage of the quickly diminishing day light hours!).



I see a plane!




Everytime he'd come running at the pile, he'd stop short - like he is in this picture - thinking I wanted to get him looking at me.  SO FUNNY!





Cool sky and throwing leaves!





Keller was trying to get Lucy into the leaf pile.


A little basketball that day too!