Should have been posted in June...

So I wrote this back in June but didn't get it posted...Oops. Anyway, here it is. I'll try to do a quick update later this week about the last 3 months.

June 9, 2015

Our Blessings

Meant to do another May post but didn’t get around to it. We have been very busy around here getting ready for our new baby’s arrival...HE’S HERE!!!! J

My actual due date was June 10^th, but at the 18 week ultrasound we were told that I had a slight problem. The placenta was partially blocking the birth canal. My Dr. said that 90% of the time women like me no longer have a problem by 27 weeks so we scheduled another ultrasound. It was still blocked, so we scheduled another one for 33 weeks…still blocked. My doctor said that we needed to schedule a c-section at 37 weeks with another ultrasound the day before to check that it was still necessary. We scheduled the c-section for May 21^st. On May 20^th the ultrasound showed that there was no longer a blockage but that the placenta was still a bit close. If we wanted we could try to let things go on as normal, but there was up to a 75% chance that we would end up with an emergency c-section. If we wanted to still do a c-section we could wait until 39 weeks. We were relieved to be able to wait to give him a little longer to grow and develop before birth. Due to the high risk of having an emergency section, we chose to have the scheduled one at 39 weeks instead of waiting. Our boy (I haven’t figured out a blog name for him yet!) was born June 2^nd! We are both doing well. I will write more on his birth story in a later post.

Getting Ready

Since we originally thought he’d be born in May we worked on some projects and tried to get things ready early. This year my hubby isn’t teaching any summer classes so he will be home most of the time. That is a great blessing especially right now as I recover. The beginning of May, he finished a building project he had been working on for a while. Then, he got part of the playset he built last summer stained. Since we ended up with a couple extra weeks before baby he started building a twin size bed for Princess. He’d been telling her since January that if she did a couple things he’d make her one. At first she was excited, but not enough to do what he told her, then she started saying that she didn’t want the bed, Buddy could have it. But around the time baby was first scheduled to come, she did what he told her she needed to do before he’d start on the bed. He finished painting it the day before Little One was born. That day he also stained another large section of the playset.

We set up a pack and play in our room as Buddy isn’t quite ready to give up the crib. We also thought that it might be easier these first few weeks to have him near us.

Family Fun

The kids have really been enjoying having him home though at first I think they were confused about why Daddy wasn’t going to work. We also did a number of things as a family in May. We went to the zoo twice, took the kids to the park, and did outings with them. Princess and I went on two Mommy/Daughter dates! Princess really enjoyed the library and going to Culvers. We ended up doing that two Friday’s in a row. Meanwhile Daddy and Buddy also had special time together. The first time they walked up to McDonald’s for lunch, I think they also went to the pet store. The second time they walked around a small lake north of town and went to Red Lobster as we had just discovered that Buddy might be able to eat many of the items on their kids menu. Hubby had been wanting to eat there again so he took the opportunity to do so with Buddy! We didn’t notice a reaction from him so I’m sure we’ll go there again sometime. While Hubby was working on the bed he made a number of trips to the hardware store and often took one or more kids with him. They always love to go places with Daddy, but especially the last month or so as Daddy “spoiled” them with a special treat when they went with him! J

Cute Things

The end of April Buddy started waving to any family members that were visiting when he was going down for a nap or bed time.

Buddy’s been adding new words all the time. He still isn’t real understandable but every week it’s easier and easier to figure out what he is saying.

Buddy loves to help out around the house. He loves to sweep and help. Sometimes his help isn’t really help but he tries so hard and is so proud of helping. There have been times when he tried to throw out something that shouldn’t be thrown out.

A couple weeks ago we went out for pizza, the next morning we took the kids to get haircuts. (It was Buddy’s first, he had some great curls and they hid how long his hair really was. But his hair was starting to show its length.) On the way there Princess talked about restaurants. She said that there are a lot of restaurants, there are chicken nugget restaurants and chicken strip restaurants. Hubby asked her what kind of restaurant we went to the night before. She replied a PIZZA restaurant!!!

Princess had her bangs trimmed by someone other than family for the first time. She was a little scared but did very well over all. Buddy did great! He sat on daddy’s lap and didn’t fuss. Near the end he got a little squirmy, but not bad. We lamented that we walked into the place with a baby/toddler and out with a little boy! He looks so much older with his hair cut. He seems to be getting taller too!

That night at supper Hubby said something to Princess about the ketchup on her plate. She said that she didn’t have any ketchup. Hubby pointed to the ketchup and asked her what that was. To which she responded, “that’s barbeque sauce!” Hubby was a little stunned at her quick wit. He then turned to Buddy and said, well at least I’m still smarter than you. Buddy shook his head NO, as Princess shouted out NO!

They keep us on our toes!

YAY, March is over!! Opps so is April!

May 8, 2015

After reading my previous post Hubby said “are you sure these are our kids? They sound so sweet!” He was referring to the fact that often within minutes of their cute and kind actions they are taking something from the other or upset. I don’t mena to make it sound like they are all sweetness and light, but I did say the purpose of this blog was to remember the cute and funny things they do. J I didn’t say anything about remembering the times I want to pull my hair out or run screaming from the house or fantasize about taking off as soon as Hubby gets home from work and just driving around or going somewhere to wander and be alone!

This year has been very rough on me emotionally. I don’t know if it’s the preggo hormones or extra stress or what, but I have struggled with my temper more than I have in over 14 years! I know there have been times when I was unfair to Princess and harder on her than I should have been. I am trying to work on this, especially as she has started yelling at her brother. I often feel like I am completely failing and how can I be a good mom to 3 kids when I haven’t been handling 2 very well! I better figure it out because it is about to become a reality! Seriously though, I know that I am not the only one who feels frustrated and guilty about my parenting mistakes. I know I am not perfect and much of the pressure on myself is self-inflicted. I know I need to rely more on Christ and less on myself. HE is the only one who can give me the grace and strength I need to accomplish the task HE has given me in raising these children to love and honor HIM—of course Hubby has a part too, but I am dealing with me here! There are changes I need to make I am just not sure how to make them or stick to them.

Anyway, the main reason I haven’t posted lately is I didn’t want to be too negative. March was really rough with stresses and disasters every 3-5 days! Some of them included Princess having strep, overflowing the laundry room sink (I did this) which had water flowing down into the unfinished part of the basement, finding out a week later that the water also flowed under the baseboards into our family room, Hubby going on a week-long trip—really tough on the kids especially Princess as she is now old enough to realize how long he was gone! Also, many other things caused me to think and say often “will it ever end????”

However, there were a few cute things that happened in March.

          From Hubby’s FB page:

            March 2, 2015

Yesterday, I showed Princess a video of children seeing their parents that were in the military after the parent had gotten back from deployment. I explained that their daddy's had been gone and were just coming back. Since then, Princess insists on playing a game where she has me stand on one side of the room so that she can run into my arms for a big hug. The funniest part is that when I get home from work she feels the need to choreograph her greeting. She has me stand in different places so that she can run into me arms and welcome me home multiple times J.

Buddy started copying his sister and trying to pray at meals. Usually we couldn’t understand any of the words except for “daddy” but he was really earnest and very sweet.

Hubby’s parents came the weekend after the basement flood and helped us with the last few things needed to get it all back in order. They were a great help.

          Hubby’s FB Post:

          March 15, 2015

Today Buddy received his first answer to prayer. We went out to eat at a restaurant (not fast food) with my parents. While waiting for our food, the waitress would come-by to see if we needed anything. After we told her, we were fine and she would leave, Buddy would call after trying to get her attention and clearly trying to communicate something to her. We jokingly said that he was trying to get her to bring him food. Well after a couple of times, Buddy bowed his head, folded his hands, and said something. Almost immediately, the food came and Buddy was delighted.

One thing Hubby didn’t put in his post was that after the second time she left he growled at her! We all were trying very hard not to laugh so that we wouldn’t encourage him, but it was very hard!

            From my FB page:

            March 26, 2015

Today Princess asked if she could lay on the couch for rest time instead of going to her room. I told her we could try it, but that she needed to stay on there for an hour. She said "okay, Mom, set the timer." After about 13 minutes she was calling for me, wanting a book. I told her that she could get a book but that she wasn't to ask me for anything else or get off the couch until the timer went off. 
About 30 minutes later, I peeked around the corner and found her ASLEEP!!!!!! Score!!! (She only naps about twice a week now). She is in a super uncomfortable looking position though, don't know how she does it.

She often asks if she can sleep on the couch now. I let her a couple times a week and she actually sleeps about half the time.

April flew by very fast. Not much happened that month. The kids are doing well and Buddy is trying to talk more and more. He tries so hard to communicate we just can’t understand most of what he is saying. The words we can understand often have to do with food! He says things like: Hungy {hungry}, candy, eat, more, I like that, yummy, need, want, etc. Some people might think that we never feed the child the way he reacts to food! Guess he is just a growing boy. J He still has the tendency to shove as much as he can into his mouth, though he is starting to eat smaller bites.

One day after lunch he went over to the pantry where we keep the snacks and treats. He pointed up at it and said: “need candy”. I replied that he didn’t need it he wanted it. His response was: “want candy please!” He definitely has his daddy’s sweet tooth!

The K4T club Princess was part of finished up at the end of April. We dropped the ball on working with her on to memorize scripture this semester. However she managed to memorize a good bit just by working with the leaders on Wed nights. About a week before the final program she started asking me the questions that go with the doctrines they were studying and then giving me the answers! She has continued to do so the last couple weeks since it ended. The week before the final program they had a practice, Hubby said that Princess was terrified and he wondered if we should even go. We decided that we should. I’m so glad we did! She did a terrific job! She sang part or most of every song, did many of the actions, and answered the question with her friends that her level was supposed to answer! What a huge change since the Christmas program. J

This Year is Already Going by Fast!!

February 24, 2015

Well let’s see what has been going on here? The second week of January I had an Ultrasound. Hubby wasn’t able to come with me this time as we didn’t have a babysitter at the last minute due to health issues. My sister was going to come up, but a few days before that she got chicken pox. L She had a tough time with them as they were even in her throat. Anyway, I called a friend about watching them. She agreed, but the night before the ultrasound she called to say that her kids had been exposed to the flu and one of them was acting like he didn’t feel well. We agreed that it was best for her to stay home. Therefore, Hubby had to stay home (many of our friends from Church also had sick kids that week) and not be there for the gender reveal. Later when I got home he was excited to find out that he had been right this time (in the past he always thought the opposite of what we were having). We are having another BOY!! So Buddy will have some help around here. J Princess wasn’t too disappointed about not getting a sister. Later that day Hubby told her that she has two brothers…one named Buddy, and the other Baby-we-don’t know. Off and on for the next few days she would repeat a version of this.

Buddy has been climbing/crawling up the stairs for a couple months, really since before he could walk. But he couldn’t come down them by himself. He tried going down on his bottom but his legs were so short that he couldn’t reach the next step so he’d try standing, but again his short legs hindered him. He loves to go up to the top and then put out his arms to be carried to the bottom. J In the last few weeks he has been able to come down them on his own. Though I haven’t seen him do more than a few, I have heard him upstairs with his sister (she is always letting him through the gates so he can play on the steps with her), then a few minutes later they are both back down and playing with other things.

One of Princess’s favorite things to do is teach Buddy Bible School. She directs him to the steps and has him sit there while she tells him about things she has learned in Sunday School.

They both love getting books out (especially some of mine with NO PICTURES) and sitting next to each other turning pages. I’ve tried to get them to read their own and am sometimes successful, but they always return to mine. Another thing they like to look at is magazines, any magazines. They do especially enjoy their own though. For Christmas my Grandma got them each a subscription to Highlights for their different age groups. They like their sibs magazine as much as their own! J

Buddy isn’t talking much but has a way of making himself understood. J Usually through pointing and grunting! He has been doing better in the sleep department (his doctor thinks his skin issues are a major factor in how he sleeps) but rarely sleeps through the night for more than 3-5 days. Then he’ll do 3-5 days of waking up, wanting to drink some milk, before going back to sleep. Then he’ll repeat the process. He has always been fairly easy to get to sleep he just doesn’t stay asleep most nights until recently. (Princess was hard to get to sleep when she was little but usually stayed asleep—except between 12-15 months.) But I guess I shouldn’t complain since I do get to sleep some nights without getting up. That is IF Princess doesn’t have a bad dream or lose her paci. Yes, she still has it at night. I want so much to get rid of it the rest of the way (we never intended it to still be here) but we are in the process of potty training and that is hard enough without adding this. (She seems to be clinging to it more lately.) We’ve been really trying this time for about 6-7 weeks now. There are days when it seems like progress is being made and then the next day she acts like she has never heard on a toilet. Her doctor told us that the biggest obstacle for Princess and us would be Princess’s will and that seems to be true. Princess CAN do it (often completely by herself), she just often says she doesn’t WANT to!!! ARGG!!! I know this will pass but some days it is really hard. I know that there are people who potty train in a few days and there are also those who take forever, but eventually they all get there…or this is what I tell myself.

A couple weeks ago, Princess and Daddy went on a date for donuts and to pick out a bday present for me. When she walked in the door she announced “Mommy, I got you a necklace, want to see?” She then pulled it out and gave it to me. So I got a present about a week early. J She loved that I put it on and wore it the rest of the day. It’s not really something I would have picked out but I will wear it sometimes because she got it for me. Hubby said he had to steer her away from some more outrageous choices! On my birthday, Hubby came home early to pick Princess up to help him pick things out for a party. It was very important to her that I have a cake, so Hubby was trying to figure out how to work that since Buddy can’t have store-bought cakes. He looked into ice cream cakes but wasn’t sure Buddy would be able to eat them either as they probably have soy in them too. Anyway, I don’t really care for cake, but it was important to Princess and I knew Buddy would like it so, we decided I’d make a cake from scratch while they were at the store and Hubby and Princess would decorate it later. While they were out they bought heavy cream, to make whip cream frosting, and plates and napkins, as well as balloons. Princess was so excited to show them to me. J They also picked up a pizza. Buddy couldn’t have the pizza, but I made him something else and he was fine with that that night. (He has started noticing and protesting if he is eating something different than we are.) When he saw the cake he said “Yummm”. We’ve only had one two times in the last few months but he remembered!!

A few days before my birthday, my sister came up to watch the kids and we were able to go out. For the first time when she watched them, Buddy didn’t throw a big fit when we left. (He hadn’t done it a couple weeks before when my parents watched them either!)  He often displays separation anxiety when we leave, hopefully he is starting to understand that we’ll be back.

Of course he also loves his food. He tries to put everything we put on his tray in his mouth all at once as if he thinks we are going to take it from him. If we put too much on his tray he gets overwhelmed and starts scrapping it unto the floor until the is a reasonable amount in front of him. He is getting better about this, so maybe he won’t do this long. He does really well with most things and LOVES his vegetables, especially peas, corn and carrots. Lately, he hasn’t been eating many green beans, I’m not sure why. If we have a meal without veggies, he is okay, but if the next one doesn’t have them he is unhappy. (This sometimes happens on the weekend.) He’ll just eat a few bites and then makes sad noises. If we have them available I’ll zap them in the microwave and he’ll eat A LOT of them. Sometimes as much as a cup!! Glad they are good for him. J

From Hubby’s FB

January 19, 2015

This morning I was holding Buddy, and I was trying to get him to go to mommy. First, I say "Mommy will give you hugs and kisses" (I pause, no response, still clings to me), "and some breakfast." Buddy utters a grunting affirmation and lunges towards mommy. I guess we know what he really loves.

Lately Princess has been making up words and wanting me to repeat them. Most of the time, I can’t understand what she is talking about when she does this. She has always been very clear when she speaks so this can be a bit frustrating. One Sunday, while getting lunch ready, she started up again. I said something like “speak normally; I have no idea what you are talking about.”

Hubby said “should we get someone to teach you Chinese, Princess, so that even if we don’t know what you are saying at least it would be real words?”

Princess looked over at her daddy and said “Are you insane?”

It was so hard not to laugh when she said that. We couldn’t figure out where she would have heard something like that. Somehow, kids pick up on things that we wish they wouldn’t. It’s such a responsibility and we need to remember to be careful.

A couple weeks ago Princess was supposed to be picking up some of her toys, when she realized that a few of the pieces of play food she was picking up were under the loveseat. She became focused on those pieces. She wanted me to get them out so she could put them in the bucket. I explained that I couldn’t right now and that she needed to pick the others up and not worry about the ones under the loveseat. After talking about them for several minutes and continuing to order me to get them, she just walked away and didn’t pick up anything else. After putting the kids to bed Hubby and I were talking about it when I realized that part of her problem with this (and some other things we’ve been dealing with) is that she gets tunnel vision and so focused on something to the exclusion of all else. Later that evening Hubby told me that he’d been thinking about what I said and that he thought I was right. Not only that but he thinks she gets it from him (true!). Then he said “why do our children have to inherit those things we wish they wouldn’t?” It’s all Adam’s fault!!

2014 Christmas Letter and Update

Well, it's been awhile. This summer was crazy in a good way. My computer got hijacked by hubby for awhile as his quit and then I was out of the blogging mode and felt so far behind that it was hard to convince myself to start back up. 

So, I will be posting our Christmas letter (after I edit names--or as my SIL says "dragnet it"!) Also I’ll add a few things that didn’t make it into the letter and then we’ll close the books on 2014 and start over with 2015!

Dear Family and Friends,

We hope you have had a wonderful 2014. We had a good year. We didn’t do many “exciting” things, but our year was filled with many moments. We had everything from scary moments to happy joy-filled moments.

Buddy struggled all year with eczema, we discovered some of the triggers but there were times when we had no idea why he was having a problem. The last couple months have been better so maybe some of it was seasonal. We hope that next year will not be as rough on him.

April brought many moments. Hubby took a short business trip and we all missed him a lot. Then a couple weeks later Buddy’s doctor sent us to Iowa City as she was concerned about the shape of his head. She thought that the plates in his head were fusing. That was a very scary couple weeks with all the possible scenarios running through our minds and thinking he might need surgery with months of recovery. We are very thankful to God that it turned out to be a false alarm. Turns out his odd head shape was caused by my thyroid problem and he is fine. His head is looking more normal all the time and he should have no problems in this regard. J Even during all this there were happy moments as Princess and Buddy played together and learned new things.

Also, in April Hubby received official word that he had been granted Tenure. He worked long and hard for this.

In June we participated in a parade to promote the Vacation Bible School program at our Church. Hubby was the VBS director this year. This was Princess’s first parade and she got to be in it! She enjoyed riding in a wagon with a little friend of hers and throwing candy to people. Buddy wasn’t very impressed though he did like his stroller ride. The VBS was held in July and was a very busy yet fun week for us.

The week after VBS my sister and her daughters visited from FL. We went to the zoo with them and enjoyed spending time with them; though we missed the last half of their visit as we headed off to Montana to see Hubby’s brother and his family. It was a long trip for the kids but overall they did very well. While there we enjoyed hanging out with them, watching our niece participate in a race, watching a parade (Princess thought receiving candy was pretty neat), going to Yellowstone and seeing Old Faithful erupt twice, swimming at the lake, and watching all the cousins have fun together.

In August Hubby, my two brothers, and my dad built a playset, that Hubby designed with help from my brothers, for Princess & Buddy’s birthdays. Princess really liked “supervising” and watching her ship being built. Both Princess & Buddy enjoyed the swings and slides a lot. Though we took the swings down for winter they were using the slides this past weekend! Yes, it was 50+ degrees out, but even with snow on the ground Princess wants to play!

In September Princess turned 3 and we had a big party with many friends. She enjoyed playing on her playset with everyone. Buddy liked the swing and one little girl who wasn’t quite 3 liked to give him underdog pushes. It was very cute.

October brought Buddy’s 1^st birthday! He loved his homemade chocolate cake, pizza, and ice cream! The gifts were pretty great too. J

Shortly after Buddy’s birthday we found out that we are expecting! We will be welcoming another blessing into our home in June of 2015. J At first Princess didn’t have much of a reaction, but lately she has been telling us which kind of sibling she wants. We won’t find out what we are having until January (if the baby cooperates!)

October also saw another visit from Granny & Grandpa B. While they were in the area we went up to MN to see Hubby’s grandfather who turned 102 in November! This was the first time Great-Grandpa had seen Buddy. Princess & Buddy enjoyed exploring his apartment and entertaining everyone.

We are looking forward to spending time with many family members over Christmas and New Year’s.

We wish all of you a Happy New Year and a very Merry Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. Who went from the manger to the cross. Died, was buried and rose again on the third day paying the penalty for our sin.

Merry Christmas! 

In Sunday School this summer Princess learned about creation. She loved taking the little picture cards out and saying “God made the birds, and the fish, and the dolphins…and it was ALL GOOD!!” She had another card with land animals on it including a zebra. Somehow this summer she got mixed up in how to say zebra, she now calls it a breezza. A couple weeks ago she found one of the cards and started saying all this again. She always says it the same way every time no matter how much time has passed! J

Our Church has a kids program called Kids 4 Truth (K4T) that teaches them doctrines and some of the verses that teach each doctrine. It is for children 4 yo thru 6^th grade. This fall they decided to tryout a level for 2-3 yo, whose parents work in the K4T program and are ready to learn verses. Hubby is the game leader this year and I have been helping out in the nursery. We decided to put Princess in the class. She loves it!! She has learned several verses and asks a couple times a week if she can go to K4T. The last few weeks have been a break and she hasn’t liked that she can’t go to K4T. Though we knew that she knew the verses we didn’t know if she would actually say them to her teaches. One Wednesday night toward the beginning of November we were surprised when her teacher told us that Princess got right up in front of the other kids and helped the teacher lead them in the verse. She said that Princess knew the whole verse and did very well. J

The second Sunday of December was the SS Christmas Program at Church. Princess had been excitedly singing the songs at home and asking when she got to do the program. (Later I was told that she always sang really loud in practice downstairs every Sunday.) The day before the program Hubby took her to the dress rehearsal. He said that she was terrified when she got on the stage. The night of the program she marched in with her class and got up on stage with all the other kids. Her class had three songs. She didn’t sing the first one though she did do a few of the actions. We could tell that she was very intimidated by all the people. The second song they rang little hand bells. She was very enthusiastic with her bell ringing, but didn’t sing at all. I couldn’t see her well during the third song but I don’t think she sand it either. Overall she did very well. The next day she was singing the songs at the top of her lungs and talking about being in the program. J Last year she stuck her fingers in her mouth and watched the other kids, so she improved a lot! Wonder what next year will be like. I bet she is still scared as that is her personality in large groups. That’s okay I am the same way.

This Christmas Hubby’s brother and family came to visit. It was neat to see the kids playing together and how much they had all grown from August. Buddy was a little intimidated by all the kids running around but he enjoyed chasing after them. Originally Hubby’s parents were going to join us the 26^th but they got sick so were unable to come. We are looking forward to seeing them in February if all goes as planned.

A few funny things we had posted to fb and I am reposting here:

October 4, 2014

Shortly before my parents and sisters left this evening:
Hubby: Buddy, can you tell everyone thank you for the presents you got?
Princess: Thanks everybody for the presents we got!!

December 10, 2014 (from Hubby’s FB)

Background: Princess went shopping with mommy a couple of days ago to buy a Christmas present for daddy. 
On the way to church tonight
Princess: "I went shopping with mommy and I got you a present. It's a water bottle & caramel corn." 
Me: "Is it a surprise?"
Princess: "Yeah, it's a surprise."
Oh well, at least she kept the secret for 2 days.

     (Also, that same night):

Emily on the way home from church tonight thought that all of the cars heading the opposite direction from us were going the wrong way and needed to turn around.