Annie is convinced we are having a girl. And she's happy to help name the baby.
Her suggestions: Flipper or Olivia.
It's a tough call.
(Oh, on the off chance it is a boy, not that she'll commit to the idea at all -- she's found a name she likes. Issac. Issac Flipper Icicle, to be exact. We can call him "Icicle, Flippy or Issac Flipper Icicle," she told me.)
Ellie got in on this and wanted to contribute too.
Her idea for the baby's name:
Jesus.
They are very helpful, and we'll take their suggestions under advisement.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Friday, January 29, 2010
Lest We Forget
Last night it was my turn to say family prayer. I listed some of the stuff we're thankful for, and asked for an appropriate number of blessings, then ended my prayer and said 'amen.' Only to open my eyes to see Ellie glaring at me, arms still defiantly crossed. She angrily growled one word at me, "Grandpa."
"Oh, did I forget to mention Grandpa in our prayer?"
"Yeah," she said seriously, arms still crossed.
So, we said another prayer, this time specifically mentioning Grandpa. Again, I ended the prayer with an 'amen', this time to open my eyes to a happy Ellie, who enthusiastically threw her arms open and shouted, "Amen!"
Don't mess with this kid's Grandpa. She's kind of obsessed with him right now.
"Oh, did I forget to mention Grandpa in our prayer?"
"Yeah," she said seriously, arms still crossed.
So, we said another prayer, this time specifically mentioning Grandpa. Again, I ended the prayer with an 'amen', this time to open my eyes to a happy Ellie, who enthusiastically threw her arms open and shouted, "Amen!"
Don't mess with this kid's Grandpa. She's kind of obsessed with him right now.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
We All Have Talents
Annie was on the phone with my Mom earlier.
"Yeah, Mommy is in doing a graphics job . . . she likes doing graphics."
My Mom explained, "You know, your Mom is very talented on the computer doing graphics. Do you know what talented means?" She went on to explain talents, and what some of the different talents in our family are.
Later I heard Annie and Ellie talking while cleaning off the table. Or, more accurately, spraying the water bottle on the table and getting it soaking wet, and mopping it up with equally wet rags. They enjoy 'cleaning' in ways that only make my life more difficult. :-) "Ellie?" Annie asked, "What is your talent?" Ellie continued to move water around the table. "You are very good at doing that 'Broooo' (elephant) game on the computer! That can be your talent! You know, everyone has a talent. [Long pause]. Although some people's is drinking water."
"Yeah, Mommy is in doing a graphics job . . . she likes doing graphics."
My Mom explained, "You know, your Mom is very talented on the computer doing graphics. Do you know what talented means?" She went on to explain talents, and what some of the different talents in our family are.
Later I heard Annie and Ellie talking while cleaning off the table. Or, more accurately, spraying the water bottle on the table and getting it soaking wet, and mopping it up with equally wet rags. They enjoy 'cleaning' in ways that only make my life more difficult. :-) "Ellie?" Annie asked, "What is your talent?" Ellie continued to move water around the table. "You are very good at doing that 'Broooo' (elephant) game on the computer! That can be your talent! You know, everyone has a talent. [Long pause]. Although some people's is drinking water."
Breakfast Nutrition 101
I try to feed my kids a pretty health breakfast. Many mornings, I whip up some eggs, milk, cinnamon extract, cinnamon, vanilla, and pumpkin pie spice, and dip some wheat bread in and cook up some french toast. It's quite tasty. Then comes the tricky part -- sweetening the whole deal. We use peanut butter for half of the toast, as that's a fan favorite in our house. On the other half, I let them use syrup (a sugary evil that I kinda curse their father for introducing to them -- seriously, 220 calories a serving!!) But, since I'm trying to keep in low in sugar, they get about a teaspoon of syrup drizzled on their plates, that they'll rub their toast into the same place on the plate long after the bulk of the syrup is gone.
I was explaining to Annie this morning why we don't get a lot of syrup ("Like Dad does," were her words). I explained that the french toast was made with healthy stuff like eggs and wheat bread, but that the syrup was all sugar. So a little bit is OK, but not much. She thought about this for a second, then responded, "Yeah, 'cause we don't want to be wasteful . . . and unhealthy . . . and other stuff . . . " Well said, Annie. I'm glad we're on the same page here!
Of course, the other day I was feeling a little sick in the morning, so we melted cheese on saltines for breakfast. Ya can't win 'em all.
Then, just 'cause I love it, I'm gonna include my recipe for breakfast (the girls share this with me, and love it). I make a smoothie most mornings. (Or, I'll eat a piece of french toast with the girls, then make a smoothie as a snack around 10AM). I blend together 1-2 cups of spinach, a half cup or so of plain yogurt, and some juice (orange juice seems to sweeten best, but lately I've been using one of those V8 Fusion drinks, and it's good too). After that's all liquified, I throw in frozen fruit and a tablespoon or so of ground flaxseed. I keep frozen bananas, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, mangoes and pineapple on hand most of the time (the giant Costco blends of frozen fruit contain most of these). I blend it 'til it's sweetened up and almost shake like consistency, then enjoy! I love it, 'cause it tastes almost too good to be healthy!
I was explaining to Annie this morning why we don't get a lot of syrup ("Like Dad does," were her words). I explained that the french toast was made with healthy stuff like eggs and wheat bread, but that the syrup was all sugar. So a little bit is OK, but not much. She thought about this for a second, then responded, "Yeah, 'cause we don't want to be wasteful . . . and unhealthy . . . and other stuff . . . " Well said, Annie. I'm glad we're on the same page here!
Of course, the other day I was feeling a little sick in the morning, so we melted cheese on saltines for breakfast. Ya can't win 'em all.
Then, just 'cause I love it, I'm gonna include my recipe for breakfast (the girls share this with me, and love it). I make a smoothie most mornings. (Or, I'll eat a piece of french toast with the girls, then make a smoothie as a snack around 10AM). I blend together 1-2 cups of spinach, a half cup or so of plain yogurt, and some juice (orange juice seems to sweeten best, but lately I've been using one of those V8 Fusion drinks, and it's good too). After that's all liquified, I throw in frozen fruit and a tablespoon or so of ground flaxseed. I keep frozen bananas, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, mangoes and pineapple on hand most of the time (the giant Costco blends of frozen fruit contain most of these). I blend it 'til it's sweetened up and almost shake like consistency, then enjoy! I love it, 'cause it tastes almost too good to be healthy!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
I was very productive this morning. By 8:00AM I had cleaned my kitchen, scrubbed the microwave, disinfected all countertops, vacuumed and mopped the entire main floor, and even washed some walls. The secret to my success -- I turned on the TV in the front room, blasted one of those 'music only' channels on cable, the 'Kids Music' one -- filled with Hannah Montana and the like, and Annie and Ellie have been happily dancing and bopping for the last 45 minutes, pretty much uninterrupted. Why have I not done this before?!
Of course, despite their huge energy output, neither of them seem any closer to wanting to take a nap, while I'm just exhausted.
In other news, yesterday was my 18 week check up -- here's the highlights:
• We scheduled our ultrasound for next Friday. It's gonna be a long week and a half, but I'm so excited. (Sorry Amber, I'm just not strong enough to not find out :-). Even though I do think it'd be awesome to find out the sex at birth (and to keep everyone else annoyed and in the dark for the next several months). Maybe I could find a middle ground -- find out for myself next Friday, and just not tell anyone else 'til birth! :-) Nah, that would cut down on too many shopping months for my Mom to start spoiling the unborn grandchild. And if we get a boy this time, I'm gonna need all new stuff!)
• The baby kicked the doppler a lot again, but eventually we heard a strong heartbeat in the mid- to high-150s. My midwife said, "Sounds like a girl to me. And I'm right at least half of the time."
• I only gained three pounds this last month. Quite an improvement over the NINE I gained the month before. I was kinda shocked, as it appears I've put on 15 pounds just in my stomach in the last four weeks -- I don't know how I gained only three. It doesn't appear to have taken the weight from anywhere else!
The three vs. nine pounds thing probably has a lot to do with my nausea starting to get under control, so I no longer feel a near-constant compulsion to eat crackers and white bread around the clock. As well as the holidays being over.
• I totally forgot to ask the midwife what I can do about my gigantic cold sore outbreak all around my mouth. Seriously y'all, I have about 15 cold sores right now, all around one side of my mouth and along my lip line. It's pretty much the most disgusting, uncomfortable thing ever. I break out in cold sores my entire pregnancy, but this is ridiculous. This is not one of those things they tell you about in all those pregnancy books.
• The morning sickness appears to finally be letting up. I still feel crappy and fatigued off and on, but the nausea has only reared its ugly head twice in the past week. Yay. And, it's about time!
Of course, despite their huge energy output, neither of them seem any closer to wanting to take a nap, while I'm just exhausted.
In other news, yesterday was my 18 week check up -- here's the highlights:
• We scheduled our ultrasound for next Friday. It's gonna be a long week and a half, but I'm so excited. (Sorry Amber, I'm just not strong enough to not find out :-). Even though I do think it'd be awesome to find out the sex at birth (and to keep everyone else annoyed and in the dark for the next several months). Maybe I could find a middle ground -- find out for myself next Friday, and just not tell anyone else 'til birth! :-) Nah, that would cut down on too many shopping months for my Mom to start spoiling the unborn grandchild. And if we get a boy this time, I'm gonna need all new stuff!)
• The baby kicked the doppler a lot again, but eventually we heard a strong heartbeat in the mid- to high-150s. My midwife said, "Sounds like a girl to me. And I'm right at least half of the time."
• I only gained three pounds this last month. Quite an improvement over the NINE I gained the month before. I was kinda shocked, as it appears I've put on 15 pounds just in my stomach in the last four weeks -- I don't know how I gained only three. It doesn't appear to have taken the weight from anywhere else!
The three vs. nine pounds thing probably has a lot to do with my nausea starting to get under control, so I no longer feel a near-constant compulsion to eat crackers and white bread around the clock. As well as the holidays being over.
• I totally forgot to ask the midwife what I can do about my gigantic cold sore outbreak all around my mouth. Seriously y'all, I have about 15 cold sores right now, all around one side of my mouth and along my lip line. It's pretty much the most disgusting, uncomfortable thing ever. I break out in cold sores my entire pregnancy, but this is ridiculous. This is not one of those things they tell you about in all those pregnancy books.
• The morning sickness appears to finally be letting up. I still feel crappy and fatigued off and on, but the nausea has only reared its ugly head twice in the past week. Yay. And, it's about time!
Monday, January 25, 2010
Baby Brother or Sister
"Mom," Annie asked, "you want a baby boy, right?"
"Well, I'd be happy with a boy or a girl, Annie."
"Not me. I'd only be happy with a baby sister."
FYI -- I have my 18 week appointment tomorrow. We'll schedule the ultrasound then. We should know in the next few weeks if it's a boy or a girl. That is, if the baby cooperates, I guess.
"Well, I'd be happy with a boy or a girl, Annie."
"Not me. I'd only be happy with a baby sister."
FYI -- I have my 18 week appointment tomorrow. We'll schedule the ultrasound then. We should know in the next few weeks if it's a boy or a girl. That is, if the baby cooperates, I guess.
Annie-ism
As we were leaving Church yesterday, we were talking about Annie's experience in Primary. Annie so far has been, well, underwhelmed with 'Sunbeams' (the 3-4 year old class) after attending Nursery the last 2 years. More sitting, less playing, no toys and, apparently, no snacks. She does get to sing more though, and that at least makes her happy most of the time. And she got to keep the same teacher, and her best friend Sarajayne is there with her, so at least there's no tears when we drop her off.
Since she hadn't eaten in hours, and we were driving a half hour to go to a dinner that wouldn't be ready for a little while, I was worried about how long we'd go without her eating. So, I asked what she'd eaten for a snack (trying to gauge her hunger level, to determine how little of a snack I could get by with on the drive, as to not spoil dinner, but keep her from freaking out -- all while not realizing they didn't do snacks anymore). Annie informed me they had eaten cookies the first week, but there haven't been snacks in weeks, and that they just sing a lot instead. She sighed and said, "I hope this isn't going to be a pattern."
Since she hadn't eaten in hours, and we were driving a half hour to go to a dinner that wouldn't be ready for a little while, I was worried about how long we'd go without her eating. So, I asked what she'd eaten for a snack (trying to gauge her hunger level, to determine how little of a snack I could get by with on the drive, as to not spoil dinner, but keep her from freaking out -- all while not realizing they didn't do snacks anymore). Annie informed me they had eaten cookies the first week, but there haven't been snacks in weeks, and that they just sing a lot instead. She sighed and said, "I hope this isn't going to be a pattern."
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Pretty Princess Panties & Other Potty Antics
First, the Annie story:
I was giving the girls a bath this morning, when I asked my extremely helpful husband to go and get them clothes for the day. Greg'll happily help with anything he's asked, but I've found it's most efficient to be very specific. "Grab them clothes, socks and underwear . . . " I called out after him. "Yeah," Annie loudly called out to her Dad, "and I want pretty ones, not freakishly Elmo panties!"
Next, the Ellie milestone:
Just to preface, this will be one of 'those' blog posts. Where the mother to two small children wields words like 'poop' and 'potty' all willy nilly. In case you didn't get that from the blog title.
So, Ellie has quite helpfully taken to telling us she is 'poo poo' when she needs a diaper change. Or when she's going to need one shortly. And unfortunately, since the poor kid is currently suffering from a nasty bout of intestinal issues, our poopy diaper count is hovering around 16-18 a day the last few days. It's been fun, let me tell you. Which means Ellie's new favorite word, 'poo poo', is being tossed around dozens of times a day. It's a main point of conversation at our home as of late. Ellie will often tell us she is 'poo poo', but this is sometimes just a warning, and she'll run in and sit on the little potty for 10 minute stretches. Then she'll get up, walk around for a few minutes and then actually need her diaper changed. Sometimes she insists on actually getting undressed for such attempts. This has ended with either a 20 minute stay in the bathroom, finally being able to talk her into getting dressed, and then having to change a poopy diaper approximately 2 minutes later. OR. My bathroom floor gets pooped on.
Until this morning, where after about her 5th poopy diaper of the morning, she came up to her Dad and informed him 'poo poo'. Since he'd changed her diaper about 30 seconds before, he figured she wasn't poopy again already. (I would not have been so sure, having been the one home with her the last few days). So, he took her in and put her on her little potty. Where she proceeded to poop in the potty like it was no big deal. There was much rejoicing and congratulating and cheering. Then she pooped on the bathroom floor about a minute and a half later. We were still very impressed nonetheless.
Edited to add: Just an FYI -- we are in no way trying to potty train Ellie. The mere thought of potty training a 20 month old nearly gives me a panic attack. It's just been something she's been interested in lately. Probably on account of pooping 20 times a day.
I was giving the girls a bath this morning, when I asked my extremely helpful husband to go and get them clothes for the day. Greg'll happily help with anything he's asked, but I've found it's most efficient to be very specific. "Grab them clothes, socks and underwear . . . " I called out after him. "Yeah," Annie loudly called out to her Dad, "and I want pretty ones, not freakishly Elmo panties!"
Next, the Ellie milestone:
Just to preface, this will be one of 'those' blog posts. Where the mother to two small children wields words like 'poop' and 'potty' all willy nilly. In case you didn't get that from the blog title.
So, Ellie has quite helpfully taken to telling us she is 'poo poo' when she needs a diaper change. Or when she's going to need one shortly. And unfortunately, since the poor kid is currently suffering from a nasty bout of intestinal issues, our poopy diaper count is hovering around 16-18 a day the last few days. It's been fun, let me tell you. Which means Ellie's new favorite word, 'poo poo', is being tossed around dozens of times a day. It's a main point of conversation at our home as of late. Ellie will often tell us she is 'poo poo', but this is sometimes just a warning, and she'll run in and sit on the little potty for 10 minute stretches. Then she'll get up, walk around for a few minutes and then actually need her diaper changed. Sometimes she insists on actually getting undressed for such attempts. This has ended with either a 20 minute stay in the bathroom, finally being able to talk her into getting dressed, and then having to change a poopy diaper approximately 2 minutes later. OR. My bathroom floor gets pooped on.
Until this morning, where after about her 5th poopy diaper of the morning, she came up to her Dad and informed him 'poo poo'. Since he'd changed her diaper about 30 seconds before, he figured she wasn't poopy again already. (I would not have been so sure, having been the one home with her the last few days). So, he took her in and put her on her little potty. Where she proceeded to poop in the potty like it was no big deal. There was much rejoicing and congratulating and cheering. Then she pooped on the bathroom floor about a minute and a half later. We were still very impressed nonetheless.
Edited to add: Just an FYI -- we are in no way trying to potty train Ellie. The mere thought of potty training a 20 month old nearly gives me a panic attack. It's just been something she's been interested in lately. Probably on account of pooping 20 times a day.
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Annie-ism
During dinner, Annie was excitedly telling Uncle Cody about her day (field trip to Smith's!) and how tomorrow we would be going to our "Mom & Me Group". She suddenly turned and looked at me and clarified, "I am the me, you are the Mom."
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
Happy Belated Birthday, Mini-Me!
So, yesterday was my sister Talina's birthday.
Happy Birthday Beans!
I know, I know, I suck that this is late (she's called me a few times to let me know I'm slacking), but I've felt pukey and sick and exhausted and wiped out and I'm growing a whole new little person in my uterus, so I'm allowed to be a bit behind on birthday blog posts.
So, anyway. Talina is 25 now! (Am I allowed to say that? I don't ever worry too much about 'outing' the age of anyone younger than me.)
Which is only half of the age Annie guessed, "Aunt Talina's 50 now, right?" (Ha ha ha ha ha!)
Beans (which is what I call her, whether she wants me to or not) is really accomplished for her age. She graduated from BYU a few years back or whatever with her Master's in something that basically makes her like a molecular biologist or a super smarty-pants who grows stuff in petri dishes while wearing a lab coat. By far and away, she's the most driven of my parent's spawn. Talina was the kid who was giving herself ulcers over 2nd grade spelling tests (literally, ulcers -- I was there for some of the ER visits). She's really uber-competitive (and really good) at the sports she plays -- soccer, racquetball, basketball. She was the Salutatorian of her high school graduating class (stupid gym classes pulling down her 4.5 or whatever GPA). She had a near perfect ACT score. Her and Greg like to make weird, nerdy physics jokes, or figure out math problems and stuff, while the rest of us mock them and their left brains. She puts the rest of us to shame. And it's no wonder she's totally my parents favorite. (It's true, nobody but my parents even try to deny it. She's totally my grandparent's favorite too. Old people just like her a lot.)
Talina is my own personal Mini-Me. She's like me, but 30% smaller (maybe even a little smaller than that now that I'm lumpy and pregnant). She even has a smaller head than me (but somehow, her brain operates at a higher capacity despite it's apparently child-like size.) Like all of my sisters, she looks a lot like me, and I've had old high school friends of hers come up and shockingly congratulate me on my two kids . . . I have to inform them I'm not Talina, I'm actually her older sister and she hasn't just really let herself go (and doubled the size of her head.) You'd think having my own Mini-Me would be motivational for me -- just to be able to look at her and think, "If I just lost some weight, that's exactly what I'd look like!" But instead I just stare and her and think, "My head would look ginormous on that body," and go back to eating Mini M&Ms.
Talina is one of my best friends. One of my go-to people when I want to randomly call and talk with someone during the day. Unfortunately, she has a job, which means she's not as available as I'd like her to be. But fortunately, her job involves a lot of stuff like 'watching yeast grow', so she can talk more than my other sisters can during the day. Most of you who know me well, know that my social circle tends to consist of people who are blood related to me (or who have married into the craziness), and Talina's a huge part of that. It's been fun, having Talina and her husband David come over and play cards on Friday nights. It makes it so Greg and I have actual 'couple' friends -- even if we are related to them. Talina & David are also extremely dedicated in their roles as 'Aunt & Uncle' to my girls. When pulling up Talina's name on my computer to get pictures for this post, there were about 9 folders that had pictures of Talina and my girls in them, just in the past two months. And that was even with Talina and David out of town for Christmas! I love spending time with Talina and the rest of my family, and look forward longingly (and possibly delusionally) to a time when we'll all live within a few blocks of each other, rather than this half way across the valley crap we have going on now.
Happy Birthday Beans!
I know, I know, I suck that this is late (she's called me a few times to let me know I'm slacking), but I've felt pukey and sick and exhausted and wiped out and I'm growing a whole new little person in my uterus, so I'm allowed to be a bit behind on birthday blog posts.
So, anyway. Talina is 25 now! (Am I allowed to say that? I don't ever worry too much about 'outing' the age of anyone younger than me.)
Which is only half of the age Annie guessed, "Aunt Talina's 50 now, right?" (Ha ha ha ha ha!)
Beans (which is what I call her, whether she wants me to or not) is really accomplished for her age. She graduated from BYU a few years back or whatever with her Master's in something that basically makes her like a molecular biologist or a super smarty-pants who grows stuff in petri dishes while wearing a lab coat. By far and away, she's the most driven of my parent's spawn. Talina was the kid who was giving herself ulcers over 2nd grade spelling tests (literally, ulcers -- I was there for some of the ER visits). She's really uber-competitive (and really good) at the sports she plays -- soccer, racquetball, basketball. She was the Salutatorian of her high school graduating class (stupid gym classes pulling down her 4.5 or whatever GPA). She had a near perfect ACT score. Her and Greg like to make weird, nerdy physics jokes, or figure out math problems and stuff, while the rest of us mock them and their left brains. She puts the rest of us to shame. And it's no wonder she's totally my parents favorite. (It's true, nobody but my parents even try to deny it. She's totally my grandparent's favorite too. Old people just like her a lot.)
Talina is my own personal Mini-Me. She's like me, but 30% smaller (maybe even a little smaller than that now that I'm lumpy and pregnant). She even has a smaller head than me (but somehow, her brain operates at a higher capacity despite it's apparently child-like size.) Like all of my sisters, she looks a lot like me, and I've had old high school friends of hers come up and shockingly congratulate me on my two kids . . . I have to inform them I'm not Talina, I'm actually her older sister and she hasn't just really let herself go (and doubled the size of her head.) You'd think having my own Mini-Me would be motivational for me -- just to be able to look at her and think, "If I just lost some weight, that's exactly what I'd look like!" But instead I just stare and her and think, "My head would look ginormous on that body," and go back to eating Mini M&Ms.
Talina is one of my best friends. One of my go-to people when I want to randomly call and talk with someone during the day. Unfortunately, she has a job, which means she's not as available as I'd like her to be. But fortunately, her job involves a lot of stuff like 'watching yeast grow', so she can talk more than my other sisters can during the day. Most of you who know me well, know that my social circle tends to consist of people who are blood related to me (or who have married into the craziness), and Talina's a huge part of that. It's been fun, having Talina and her husband David come over and play cards on Friday nights. It makes it so Greg and I have actual 'couple' friends -- even if we are related to them. Talina & David are also extremely dedicated in their roles as 'Aunt & Uncle' to my girls. When pulling up Talina's name on my computer to get pictures for this post, there were about 9 folders that had pictures of Talina and my girls in them, just in the past two months. And that was even with Talina and David out of town for Christmas! I love spending time with Talina and the rest of my family, and look forward longingly (and possibly delusionally) to a time when we'll all live within a few blocks of each other, rather than this half way across the valley crap we have going on now.Anyway. Sorry this is late Talina. Happy Birthday!
Saturday, January 16, 2010
Annie-ism
Earlier today, Annie was happily playing with the dollhouse she got for Christmas. She proudly showed me how the baby bassinet had a mobile that spun. She sighed happily and said, "I don't know why Santa just likes me so much!"
It's Amazing it's Not More Uncomfortable . . .
There's this "9 Month Miracle - Fetal Development" tool on some University Medical Center's website. I came across it when I was first pregnant with Annie. It's fascinating to me . . . it illustrates fetal development, as well as what's happening inside a Mom's body while the baby grows.
Here's where I'm at now, around 16-17 weeks -- which explains my new found 'baby bump'. (Seriously, one day I looked like I was putting on some weight, the next day, BAM, I'm obviously pregnant. Crazy.)
Here's 28 weeks . . . notice all the organs being squished and shoved up into like a third of the space it all used to be in. Is it any wonder so many women suffer from heartburn in pregnancy?!
And my favorite -- 40 weeks.
Um, where did all this poor woman's organs go!? It really is amazing to me that pregnancy isn't more uncomfortable! Or that our spleens, livers, stomachs, intestines, etc., don't suffer permanent damage! (Although, it was during pregnancy that my gallbladder freaked out and later had to be yanked out.)
How crazy looking is that?! It's amazing what the body does and just how much it adjusts.
For instance, starting here at 8 weeks, when the uterus is just double it's normal size, here is where all the mother's organs are located -- with plenty of room for everything.
Here's where I'm at now, around 16-17 weeks -- which explains my new found 'baby bump'. (Seriously, one day I looked like I was putting on some weight, the next day, BAM, I'm obviously pregnant. Crazy.)
Here's 28 weeks . . . notice all the organs being squished and shoved up into like a third of the space it all used to be in. Is it any wonder so many women suffer from heartburn in pregnancy?!
And my favorite -- 40 weeks.
Um, where did all this poor woman's organs go!? It really is amazing to me that pregnancy isn't more uncomfortable! Or that our spleens, livers, stomachs, intestines, etc., don't suffer permanent damage! (Although, it was during pregnancy that my gallbladder freaked out and later had to be yanked out.)How crazy looking is that?! It's amazing what the body does and just how much it adjusts.
This, by far, is one of my favorite pregnancy online 'tools'.
Friday, January 15, 2010
How to Decorate Cookies
Bake sugar cookies. (And I do just mean 'bake', as there was no other preparation. I used the already frozen in my freezer Pillsbury kind in this case -- in fact, they had pumpkins on them, 'cause I'd bought them on clearance after Halloween and stuck 'em in the freezer. 'Cause that's how I roll.)
Mix up a couple different colors of frosting.
Fill cute little cupcake cups with various toppings and sprinkles.
Let the kids loose.
Give up from trying to stop your one year old from shoveling the blue frosting in her mouth by the spoonful.
Watch helplessly as sprinkles are scattered over every inch of your kitchen floor.
Take pictures.
Spend 30 minutes vacuuming up sprinkles and another 20 minutes to clean up the one year old.
Be grateful you hadn't spent extra time making cookies from scratch!
Someone ended up with far more sprinkles and frosting on them than the cookies did!
Mix up a couple different colors of frosting.
Fill cute little cupcake cups with various toppings and sprinkles.
Let the kids loose.
Give up from trying to stop your one year old from shoveling the blue frosting in her mouth by the spoonful.
Watch helplessly as sprinkles are scattered over every inch of your kitchen floor.
Take pictures.
Spend 30 minutes vacuuming up sprinkles and another 20 minutes to clean up the one year old.
Be grateful you hadn't spent extra time making cookies from scratch!
Someone ended up with far more sprinkles and frosting on them than the cookies did!
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Yay!
My computer is alive and well.
Best part -- the place that fixed it (Oh, and Lena, I took it to ExperCom . . . no way was I hauling a computer all the way downtown, then lugging it, Ellie and my ever expanding midsection all over the Gateway!), they had the computer ready to go in just over 24 hours, it's working perfectly and they only charged me $80. It was like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one.
But, now I'm suffering from writers block and nothing else to share. Except that I'm happy to have my computer back. Yay!
Best part -- the place that fixed it (Oh, and Lena, I took it to ExperCom . . . no way was I hauling a computer all the way downtown, then lugging it, Ellie and my ever expanding midsection all over the Gateway!), they had the computer ready to go in just over 24 hours, it's working perfectly and they only charged me $80. It was like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one.
But, now I'm suffering from writers block and nothing else to share. Except that I'm happy to have my computer back. Yay!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Hiatus
So, apparently my computer had had enough. I tried to restart it this morning, only to watch it sit there for 30 minutes with the apple on the start up screen and that little clock looking thing ticking around furiously. This is basically a Mac's way of flipping you off.
So, my computer is off to be repaired. For who knows how long? (Or for how much? Eeek.)
So, my computer is off to be repaired. For who knows how long? (Or for how much? Eeek.)
So, excuse my absence for the next little while. Keep your fingers crossed that our Christmas pictures survive the hardware freakout!
Monday, January 11, 2010
Dear Santa
Dear Santa,
I don't know what you were thinking bringing all of that lip gloss, chapstick and nail polish for my girls. I have run out of nail polish remover cleaning off countertops and bathroom floors (the bathroom being the only place Annie's allowed to paint her nails), and I need to carpet shampoo the three different rooms in my house where gobs of dried lip gloss dried into the carpet (just since yesterday!)
And I'd say 50% of Ellie's caloric intake this last several weeks has been in scented lip gloss.
I've been hiding them as I find them, and throwing them out as they're emptied . . . but they still seem to keep popping up every time I turn around.
Maybe next year, you could think through this before stuffing their stockings full of the crap.
Thanks,
Hilary
I don't know what you were thinking bringing all of that lip gloss, chapstick and nail polish for my girls. I have run out of nail polish remover cleaning off countertops and bathroom floors (the bathroom being the only place Annie's allowed to paint her nails), and I need to carpet shampoo the three different rooms in my house where gobs of dried lip gloss dried into the carpet (just since yesterday!)
And I'd say 50% of Ellie's caloric intake this last several weeks has been in scented lip gloss.
I've been hiding them as I find them, and throwing them out as they're emptied . . . but they still seem to keep popping up every time I turn around.
Maybe next year, you could think through this before stuffing their stockings full of the crap.
Thanks,
Hilary
Stubborn Talker
Not the biggest shocker, but, Ellie can be stubborn. Never more so than when it comes to spoken words. The child communicates better than some adults I know, never leaving a single question to what it is she wants or is asking for . . . the nonverbal communication skills that kid has are amazing. But she seems to have almost zero desire to speak. She uses names -- Anna, Mom, Dada, Ampa, Gam-mah, Baa (her stuffed lamb), Broo (her stuffed elephant), Woof (her stuffed dog), Nam (her stuffed kitty -- it used to be "Meow", but she got lazy and now it's just Nam), and a few more. She says 'thank you' and 'bye'. (Oh, and she just started coming up and saying "diaper poopy" to me when she needs to be changed. That was kind of a shocker.) But beyond that, she won't use many words. If she wants a drink, she'll point and mime drinking or whatever it takes for whomever she's with to ask, "Do you want a drink?", to which she enthusiastically replies, "Yeah." But, ask her to say 'drink' or 'water' (words she has said before, so we know she can), she just repeats the word 'yeah' until you give in and get her a drink. She'll have an entire room of people saying, "Come on Ellie, say 'ball' . . . say it, say 'ball' . . . ba-ba-ba-ball . . ." and she'll just stare at us curiously, walk over and grab the ball and walk out of the room. Words she said months ago have never been heard from again. She's just stubborn -- I swear there's a bit of "I'm not going to say it, just 'cause you want me to."
This is all very reminiscent of her big sister though, so I'm not worried about some of her 'delayed' verbal skills. Annie stubbornly refused to talk much up 'til about 20 months, then it suddenly exploded. From 21-24 months there were literally dozens of new words every single week. And I ended up with a two year old who spoke in complete sentences, using words like 'actually' and 'practically' and 'probably'.
So, I'm really excited for the next several months of Ellie's development. I can't wait to hear what she has to say!
Edited to add: Fitting with both this post and the last, Ellie said her first sentence today! She had been very fussy all morning, (she doesn't seem to be feeling well, even going down for a nap before 9:30AM) and was crying in my lap, when I asked, "Ellie, do you want to nurse or do you want a drink of water?" "I want to nurse," Ellie replied pretty clearly. I was shocked. It was almost kind of ironic to have that be her first sentence after writing these last two posts! :-)
This is all very reminiscent of her big sister though, so I'm not worried about some of her 'delayed' verbal skills. Annie stubbornly refused to talk much up 'til about 20 months, then it suddenly exploded. From 21-24 months there were literally dozens of new words every single week. And I ended up with a two year old who spoke in complete sentences, using words like 'actually' and 'practically' and 'probably'.
So, I'm really excited for the next several months of Ellie's development. I can't wait to hear what she has to say!
Edited to add: Fitting with both this post and the last, Ellie said her first sentence today! She had been very fussy all morning, (she doesn't seem to be feeling well, even going down for a nap before 9:30AM) and was crying in my lap, when I asked, "Ellie, do you want to nurse or do you want a drink of water?" "I want to nurse," Ellie replied pretty clearly. I was shocked. It was almost kind of ironic to have that be her first sentence after writing these last two posts! :-)
Friday, January 8, 2010
The 'Extended' Version
Being faced with a few more months of flu season, and having been hit with the actual flu in my own kids awhile back, I spent my fair share of time looking some stuff online. Ellie fared so much better than her big sister with swine flu, and my reading pretty much confirms my gut instinct: it's because she was still nursing. While Annie was running a 103.5 degree fever, she refused to eat or drink anything. I forced her to take little sips, and bribed her with popsicles she barely made a dent in. Ellie, on the other hand, did what comes naturally to babies who feel like crap, she nursed. And nursed. And nursed. Almost every hour at the height of her illness. In stark contrast to her big sister, she was lively and energetic and cute as a button as she happily jumped on beds and danced to music while being our family's youngest swine flu victim. (Even when her fever was over 103.) Our doctor told us she typically treats children under two with Tamiflu, but that Ellie obviously didn't need it. She was being treated by breastmilk, something that not only treated her symptoms, but helped her own body fight the disease.
This all happens to be one of the very reasons I'm an 'extended' breastfeeder.
I'd always planned on nursing. Probably for a year or so, if it worked for us. Give or take. I knew I wanted to avoid buying expensive formulas if at all possible. So, I planned on nursing, you know, 'til my kids just weaned. Magically. That's how it worked in my head. My Mom had nursed all of her kids, and all of them had weaned themselves (with no encouragement on her part) around a year. They were just done. So, around the year mark with Annie, I kept expecting her to like wake up one day and be done. She was only really nursing once or twice a day at the time, so I imagined it would just happen sooner or later. But, it didn't. Then as we closed in on 15 months, and I was starting to feel some pressure to wean, we were getting ready to go on a Caribbean cruise, and I liked the idea of being able to nurse her to calm her down on the plane, and in other countries in case she got sick. So, at 15 months, we were still nursing (Annie screamed the whole flight anyway) and when we came home I felt like I had a decision to make. How much longer were we gonna do this?
I wasn't getting a ton of pressure to wean, just a few negative comments here and there. My Mom had nursed all her kids when it was seen as a bit of a 'weird' thing to do and had to deal with a ton of horribly negative comments, people accusing her of starving her children by denying them formula, even including many comments from my Grandmother who asked her at one point if she was planning on going to Kindergarten with my younger sister to nurse her (the baby was less than a year at that point). She said she'd never regretted a second nursing her children, and had been sad when her last few weaned earlier than she'd been expecting. So, I'd had some very positive breastfeeding examples in my life, and I'd had an easy and good experience with nursing thus far (and I totally realize how lucky I am, I know breastfeeding can be an incredibly stressful and even hard thing for some people), but I'd never expected to nurse this 'long'.
But, at the same time, nothing felt more natural than feeding my baby girl. Every morning Annie would wake me up earlier than I wanted to get up, I'd go in and get her, and we'd curl up and nurse and both drift back in and out of sleep. My babies are not cuddly kids -- nursing is pretty much my only chance to just cuddle with them, curled up in the crook of my arm, and there was part of me that knew I'd miss those morning moments with Annie. But, I was now pregnant with Ellie and thought I 'should' wean. So, one morning, rather than curl up and go back to sleep with Annie, we just got going for the morning. She didn't even seem to notice we hadn't nursed. That day she was a little fussier than normal, and ended up throwing up throughout the evening. By the next morning, she was throwing up a lot, but refused to drink any water. I was in tears, not being able to get my tiny toddler (about 16 months old at the time) to eat or drink anything, when Greg (the more logical of the two of us) asked, "Um, why don't you try nursing her?" I was all, "Um, 'cause we've weaned now. Duh." He responded, "Less than a day ago, I'm sure you still have milk . . . " I felt kind of stupid that I hadn't even thought about it. I nursed her though. And she didn't throw up. She'd kept something down. The next 24 hours were a blur, 'cause I was nursing her almost hourly, just trying to get my milk back in. The next month and a half were a nightmarish time of vomiting and intestinal issues that threatened to land my baby in the hospital. We were at the doctor's constantly, running tests and getting her blood checked, and each and every time my doctor would tell me that any other baby would be in the hospital on IVs. He was shocked that this child wasn't dehydrated. They'd check her blood, convinced her levels would be so out of whack, and each time they were perfect. She barely even lost any weight, and she nursed almost exclusively the whole time she was sick. It was our miracle. They finally pinned down the parasite that was terrorizing her system, got her pumped full of the right drugs, and a few weeks later I weaned. And it felt right. I had accomplished something amazing by nursing, I had kept my child healthy during a horrific time. And now we were both done. We weaned. And I was good with that. No regrets.
So, when Ellie was born, I wondered how long we'd nurse. I was no longer 'weirded out' by breastfeeding during the second year. When I was younger I remember a family friend who nursed her three year old, and I was freaked out. I think I've matured since then. Personally, can I imagine nursing my three year old? No, not really. But I can't discount anyone else's decision to do so. At one point I would've thought it was a little weird to nurse a 16 month old (despite almost all major health organizations outside of the U.S. encouraging breastfeeding through 2 years old age . . . even our own country, not the biggest supporters of breastfeeding, advising feeding through the first year and beyond), but when they were my own little babies, these tiny little girls that just wanted to cuddle and be comforted and feel better when they were teething or were just hungry. Nothing felt more natural than nursing my kids. And I think each day that both a mother and child are both still interested in nursing, it's normal and natural. Kids will lose interest at different times, some kids are completely done with nursing at 7 months, despite their mother's protests . . . others may want to nurse 'til they're two or even longer. Mothers should have a say too, of course . . . nursing can be wonderfully fulfilling for some, and a huge stressor or pain in the butt for others. My opinion is, as long as it's working for both parties, what's the problem? I still get occasional comments about nursing Ellie. Not many, as most people don't realize I still do it. I'm not hiding it by any means, I just believe Ellie's old enough that there's no longer a need to nurse her while we're out. She's one and a half, she can make it through Church or out shopping for the day without nursing. In fact, she usually just nurses in the morning and/or at bedtime at this point unless she's sick. The most common thing I do hear though is, "I think breastfeeding is fine, until the baby can ask for it, then it's just weird!" OK, I have to say, that makes absolutely no sense to me. I mean, I get that in a culture where breastfeeding isn't as prevalent as it could be, it can make people uncomfortable to have a baby pulling at their Mom's shirt or sticking their hand down Mom's blouse. But really, once a baby can ask for it, 'it's weird'? We start teaching our kids sign language around 5 months these days, just so they're able to tell us what they want! We don't stop giving them bottles 'cause they reach for one. Before Ellie could say the word, she'd walk into the kitchen, point up to the corner countertop where we kept bananas and just point and stare until someone retrieved her yellow prize. What was I supposed to say, "Sorry kid, now that you can tell me specifically that you want a banana, that kinda freaks me out. Strawberries for you!" In every other aspect of their lives, we look forward to these milestones of communication, but as soon as they can tell us they want to breastfeed, we should be done? That one is just baffling for me. Ellie being able to communicate with me has never played any role in deciding when to wean.
Ellie's now 19 months old. And I don't know how much longer we will or will not nurse. There are days I feel done with it, but a big part of me, probably due to a touch of PTSD over Annie's extreme illness around this age, leads me to want to keep nursing (at least once a day, to keep my milk up) through cold and flu season. 'Cause what if Ellie needed me, and I couldn't provide for her? Her tiny 20 lb. frame wouldn't do well with extended illness, ongoing vomiting, and I have the power within me to help her to be healthy. I'm not ready to give that up yet. So, maybe Spring. We'll see.
Random, probably-should-be-unnecessary-but-just-in-case disclaimers:
• Basically -- the point of this post obviously wasn't to comment on anyone else's breastfeeding choices or decisions. Not to be 'all about me', but hey, it is my blog -- and this was all about my decisions surrounding breastfeeding. And why they're cool for us. :-)
And how people who makes negative comments about the fact I still breastfeed are weanies. Think it's weird, that's fine, I used to too . . . but to actually say something mean about it is just, well, mean. :-)
• My doctor, my midwife, and our pediatrician are all perfectly OK with me nursing while pregnant, and are in fact, very supportive of it. (In fact, Ellie's pediatrician is over the moon about the fact I still nurse -- she asks me each time I come in if we're still nursing, then squeals in delight when I say we are -- she told me she would love to see more 18 month check ups with nursing babies. She's especially happy that teeny, tiny Ellie is such a good nurser -- Ellie won't drink milk to save her life, so her continuing to get the protein and calories from nursing is one of the best things we could be doing for her.)
• I'm all for breastfeeding, I think it's an miraculous, wonderful way to feed my kids. But, I'm grateful that there are amazing and healthy alternatives for the Moms and babies for whom breastfeeding doesn't work -- whether for physical, emotional, time, preferences or stress related reasons. Not everyone can nurse (although, I think with more support and education, more women who were told by their doctors that they 'can't' nurse would find they could), or wants to, and that's cool too. And some women nurse 'til 2 months and some 'til 2 years . . . both decisions are personal and should be judgment free.
• I am a tad defensive of breastfeeding -- not because I think there's anything 'better' about a Mom who breastfeeds, or for how long, but that I find it so frustrating how much the medical community can be unsupportive of, and even work detrimental to, successful breastfeeding. I had one friend who was basically told at her son's two week checkup that she obviously wasn't built for breastfeeding, he wasn't gaining enough, and she should just stop for the good of her son. The problem here, she was dirt poor and couldn't afford the formula. So she stuck with it. Within just a few months her son had literally doubled his already hefty birth weight and by 6 months he was well over 20 lbs. Having never had a single thing but his mother's milk. And she was supposedly not 'built for breastfeeding' according to the doctor she trusted and went to for advice. My last pediatrician told me to start supplementing Ellie at 6 months because he didn't like that her weight gained had slowed down -- despite all the research showing that a healthy breastfed baby often follows a curve of weight gain that includes rapid weight gain the first several months, then a 'stalled' or slowed period where they may even plateau for a month or so. And they're perfectly healthy and gaining just how they should. I decided not to supplement (plus, I didn't see him offering to pay for the added expense of formula) because I knew she was healthy and well fed. And she's perfectly fine. I just wish more healthcare providers were more supportive of, and more knowledgeable of, breastfeeding.
I understand that it can be a frustrating, even painful, experience for many, but I am personally of the opinion that if there was more upfront support, education and if our culture overall was more supportive of breastfeeding, there would be fewer problems for fewer women. It would at least give more women the option of trying it, prepared and knowledgeable, before they made the decision if it works for them and their family. But I think overall, our culture is definitely headed in the right direction.
• Again, I can't stress how lucky I've been. It's come pretty easy for me, my children have latched on from the get go without problems, and I'm at home all day with them. I'm in pretty much the most ideal set up one could ask for. I have a friend who worked 50+ hours a week from 6 weeks on, and pumped for a solid year, pumping sometimes three and four times a day, often at work, to make sure the daycare freezer was filled with enough milk to last her daughter all the way through the first year. I honestly can say -- I could NOT have done that. I wouldn't have even wanted to. But I reminded myself at times, when I wanted to whine about late night feedings, that I had it about as easy and blessed as once could have it in a nursing situation.
• In my not-always-s0-humble opinion, nursing should be culturally acceptable as long as it is working for both child and mother -- whether that be 3 weeks or 3 years. There are so many factors, so many past experiences, so many preferences, so many personalities that nobody that is not personally that mother or that child has the right to judge another's breastfeeding decisions.
This all happens to be one of the very reasons I'm an 'extended' breastfeeder.
I'd always planned on nursing. Probably for a year or so, if it worked for us. Give or take. I knew I wanted to avoid buying expensive formulas if at all possible. So, I planned on nursing, you know, 'til my kids just weaned. Magically. That's how it worked in my head. My Mom had nursed all of her kids, and all of them had weaned themselves (with no encouragement on her part) around a year. They were just done. So, around the year mark with Annie, I kept expecting her to like wake up one day and be done. She was only really nursing once or twice a day at the time, so I imagined it would just happen sooner or later. But, it didn't. Then as we closed in on 15 months, and I was starting to feel some pressure to wean, we were getting ready to go on a Caribbean cruise, and I liked the idea of being able to nurse her to calm her down on the plane, and in other countries in case she got sick. So, at 15 months, we were still nursing (Annie screamed the whole flight anyway) and when we came home I felt like I had a decision to make. How much longer were we gonna do this?
I wasn't getting a ton of pressure to wean, just a few negative comments here and there. My Mom had nursed all her kids when it was seen as a bit of a 'weird' thing to do and had to deal with a ton of horribly negative comments, people accusing her of starving her children by denying them formula, even including many comments from my Grandmother who asked her at one point if she was planning on going to Kindergarten with my younger sister to nurse her (the baby was less than a year at that point). She said she'd never regretted a second nursing her children, and had been sad when her last few weaned earlier than she'd been expecting. So, I'd had some very positive breastfeeding examples in my life, and I'd had an easy and good experience with nursing thus far (and I totally realize how lucky I am, I know breastfeeding can be an incredibly stressful and even hard thing for some people), but I'd never expected to nurse this 'long'.
But, at the same time, nothing felt more natural than feeding my baby girl. Every morning Annie would wake me up earlier than I wanted to get up, I'd go in and get her, and we'd curl up and nurse and both drift back in and out of sleep. My babies are not cuddly kids -- nursing is pretty much my only chance to just cuddle with them, curled up in the crook of my arm, and there was part of me that knew I'd miss those morning moments with Annie. But, I was now pregnant with Ellie and thought I 'should' wean. So, one morning, rather than curl up and go back to sleep with Annie, we just got going for the morning. She didn't even seem to notice we hadn't nursed. That day she was a little fussier than normal, and ended up throwing up throughout the evening. By the next morning, she was throwing up a lot, but refused to drink any water. I was in tears, not being able to get my tiny toddler (about 16 months old at the time) to eat or drink anything, when Greg (the more logical of the two of us) asked, "Um, why don't you try nursing her?" I was all, "Um, 'cause we've weaned now. Duh." He responded, "Less than a day ago, I'm sure you still have milk . . . " I felt kind of stupid that I hadn't even thought about it. I nursed her though. And she didn't throw up. She'd kept something down. The next 24 hours were a blur, 'cause I was nursing her almost hourly, just trying to get my milk back in. The next month and a half were a nightmarish time of vomiting and intestinal issues that threatened to land my baby in the hospital. We were at the doctor's constantly, running tests and getting her blood checked, and each and every time my doctor would tell me that any other baby would be in the hospital on IVs. He was shocked that this child wasn't dehydrated. They'd check her blood, convinced her levels would be so out of whack, and each time they were perfect. She barely even lost any weight, and she nursed almost exclusively the whole time she was sick. It was our miracle. They finally pinned down the parasite that was terrorizing her system, got her pumped full of the right drugs, and a few weeks later I weaned. And it felt right. I had accomplished something amazing by nursing, I had kept my child healthy during a horrific time. And now we were both done. We weaned. And I was good with that. No regrets.
So, when Ellie was born, I wondered how long we'd nurse. I was no longer 'weirded out' by breastfeeding during the second year. When I was younger I remember a family friend who nursed her three year old, and I was freaked out. I think I've matured since then. Personally, can I imagine nursing my three year old? No, not really. But I can't discount anyone else's decision to do so. At one point I would've thought it was a little weird to nurse a 16 month old (despite almost all major health organizations outside of the U.S. encouraging breastfeeding through 2 years old age . . . even our own country, not the biggest supporters of breastfeeding, advising feeding through the first year and beyond), but when they were my own little babies, these tiny little girls that just wanted to cuddle and be comforted and feel better when they were teething or were just hungry. Nothing felt more natural than nursing my kids. And I think each day that both a mother and child are both still interested in nursing, it's normal and natural. Kids will lose interest at different times, some kids are completely done with nursing at 7 months, despite their mother's protests . . . others may want to nurse 'til they're two or even longer. Mothers should have a say too, of course . . . nursing can be wonderfully fulfilling for some, and a huge stressor or pain in the butt for others. My opinion is, as long as it's working for both parties, what's the problem? I still get occasional comments about nursing Ellie. Not many, as most people don't realize I still do it. I'm not hiding it by any means, I just believe Ellie's old enough that there's no longer a need to nurse her while we're out. She's one and a half, she can make it through Church or out shopping for the day without nursing. In fact, she usually just nurses in the morning and/or at bedtime at this point unless she's sick. The most common thing I do hear though is, "I think breastfeeding is fine, until the baby can ask for it, then it's just weird!" OK, I have to say, that makes absolutely no sense to me. I mean, I get that in a culture where breastfeeding isn't as prevalent as it could be, it can make people uncomfortable to have a baby pulling at their Mom's shirt or sticking their hand down Mom's blouse. But really, once a baby can ask for it, 'it's weird'? We start teaching our kids sign language around 5 months these days, just so they're able to tell us what they want! We don't stop giving them bottles 'cause they reach for one. Before Ellie could say the word, she'd walk into the kitchen, point up to the corner countertop where we kept bananas and just point and stare until someone retrieved her yellow prize. What was I supposed to say, "Sorry kid, now that you can tell me specifically that you want a banana, that kinda freaks me out. Strawberries for you!" In every other aspect of their lives, we look forward to these milestones of communication, but as soon as they can tell us they want to breastfeed, we should be done? That one is just baffling for me. Ellie being able to communicate with me has never played any role in deciding when to wean.
Ellie's now 19 months old. And I don't know how much longer we will or will not nurse. There are days I feel done with it, but a big part of me, probably due to a touch of PTSD over Annie's extreme illness around this age, leads me to want to keep nursing (at least once a day, to keep my milk up) through cold and flu season. 'Cause what if Ellie needed me, and I couldn't provide for her? Her tiny 20 lb. frame wouldn't do well with extended illness, ongoing vomiting, and I have the power within me to help her to be healthy. I'm not ready to give that up yet. So, maybe Spring. We'll see.
Random, probably-should-be-unnecessary-but-just-in-case disclaimers:
• Basically -- the point of this post obviously wasn't to comment on anyone else's breastfeeding choices or decisions. Not to be 'all about me', but hey, it is my blog -- and this was all about my decisions surrounding breastfeeding. And why they're cool for us. :-)
And how people who makes negative comments about the fact I still breastfeed are weanies. Think it's weird, that's fine, I used to too . . . but to actually say something mean about it is just, well, mean. :-)
• My doctor, my midwife, and our pediatrician are all perfectly OK with me nursing while pregnant, and are in fact, very supportive of it. (In fact, Ellie's pediatrician is over the moon about the fact I still nurse -- she asks me each time I come in if we're still nursing, then squeals in delight when I say we are -- she told me she would love to see more 18 month check ups with nursing babies. She's especially happy that teeny, tiny Ellie is such a good nurser -- Ellie won't drink milk to save her life, so her continuing to get the protein and calories from nursing is one of the best things we could be doing for her.)
• I'm all for breastfeeding, I think it's an miraculous, wonderful way to feed my kids. But, I'm grateful that there are amazing and healthy alternatives for the Moms and babies for whom breastfeeding doesn't work -- whether for physical, emotional, time, preferences or stress related reasons. Not everyone can nurse (although, I think with more support and education, more women who were told by their doctors that they 'can't' nurse would find they could), or wants to, and that's cool too. And some women nurse 'til 2 months and some 'til 2 years . . . both decisions are personal and should be judgment free.
• I am a tad defensive of breastfeeding -- not because I think there's anything 'better' about a Mom who breastfeeds, or for how long, but that I find it so frustrating how much the medical community can be unsupportive of, and even work detrimental to, successful breastfeeding. I had one friend who was basically told at her son's two week checkup that she obviously wasn't built for breastfeeding, he wasn't gaining enough, and she should just stop for the good of her son. The problem here, she was dirt poor and couldn't afford the formula. So she stuck with it. Within just a few months her son had literally doubled his already hefty birth weight and by 6 months he was well over 20 lbs. Having never had a single thing but his mother's milk. And she was supposedly not 'built for breastfeeding' according to the doctor she trusted and went to for advice. My last pediatrician told me to start supplementing Ellie at 6 months because he didn't like that her weight gained had slowed down -- despite all the research showing that a healthy breastfed baby often follows a curve of weight gain that includes rapid weight gain the first several months, then a 'stalled' or slowed period where they may even plateau for a month or so. And they're perfectly healthy and gaining just how they should. I decided not to supplement (plus, I didn't see him offering to pay for the added expense of formula) because I knew she was healthy and well fed. And she's perfectly fine. I just wish more healthcare providers were more supportive of, and more knowledgeable of, breastfeeding.
I understand that it can be a frustrating, even painful, experience for many, but I am personally of the opinion that if there was more upfront support, education and if our culture overall was more supportive of breastfeeding, there would be fewer problems for fewer women. It would at least give more women the option of trying it, prepared and knowledgeable, before they made the decision if it works for them and their family. But I think overall, our culture is definitely headed in the right direction.
• Again, I can't stress how lucky I've been. It's come pretty easy for me, my children have latched on from the get go without problems, and I'm at home all day with them. I'm in pretty much the most ideal set up one could ask for. I have a friend who worked 50+ hours a week from 6 weeks on, and pumped for a solid year, pumping sometimes three and four times a day, often at work, to make sure the daycare freezer was filled with enough milk to last her daughter all the way through the first year. I honestly can say -- I could NOT have done that. I wouldn't have even wanted to. But I reminded myself at times, when I wanted to whine about late night feedings, that I had it about as easy and blessed as once could have it in a nursing situation.
• In my not-always-s0-humble opinion, nursing should be culturally acceptable as long as it is working for both child and mother -- whether that be 3 weeks or 3 years. There are so many factors, so many past experiences, so many preferences, so many personalities that nobody that is not personally that mother or that child has the right to judge another's breastfeeding decisions.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
80s Dance Party at Our House
Take note of some of these sweet moves -- you may just find some new dance moves for your own dance arsenal. (Like whenever you hear the words "Walk like an Egyptian" just start into a zombie like stroll around the room. It's awesome.)
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
It Doesn't Look Good For Greg . . .
Annie got out her little doctor's kit this evening, and started checking Greg out.
"Oh no," she said sadly as she looked into his ear, "You have cavities in this ear."
"Cavities?" Greg asked.
"Yeah," she shook her head disappointed, "I better check this other ear too." She got right to work, then sighed sadly again, "Yeah, cavities in this ear too."
"What do we do about the cavities in my ears?" Greg worriedly asked.
"Nothing," Annie said sadly, "there's nothing I can do. I better listen to your heart."
So she rigged up her stethoscope and started to listen, then, "Well, that's not good . . ."
She tried taking his temperature a few times, then checked his ears again. Looked like a terminal case of ear cavities. "What can we do about these cavities, Doctor?" Greg asked.
"Well, we do your blood pressure . . . but I don't think it'll work."
We thought for a minute, that this blood pressure cuff had worked it's magic and the cavities were gone, but upon a secondary examination, Annie returned to the sighing and said, "Your ears are not very good. They don't feel healthy."
"Why does Daddy's ears have cavities Annie?" I asked.
"Because he's probably eating lots of food he shouldn't be eating," she answered and then turning to Greg, added, "and your ears still have blood pressure.
"Your heart doesn't sound so good either. You might have to stay here for awhile."
A few minutes later:
"I better check your mouth. Yep, cavities. Oh, and your hands have cavities too. Your shoulders have cavities. Let me check . . . um . . . yeah, this one has cavities too. I need to go get some other stuff," and she shot up and ran to her room.
"Wow," Greg said to me, "I have cavities everywhere."
"Must be all that food you're not supposed to be eating . . ." I lectured. And we both started to laugh.
She just showed back up with a pair of construction gloves on her hands. She held up her hands and said, "OK, I'm ready." I busted up laughing when I saw this. She poked around a bit, then did a happy little dance and exclaimed, "All the cavities are gone! You can go home!" Then a sudden, "Oh no! They're on your tummy and back now. I think you need a shot, but I can't find one." So, Annie, Ellie and Greg just took off to Annie's room to find the syringe among the toys. Annie approved her patient's trip though, assuring him that "Your feet don't have cavities, you should be OK to walk . . ."
(I was typing furiously throughout their exchange. It was hilarious to see how sincere Annie was in her pessimistic doctoring. We don't know if Greg'll make it through the night, what with terminal cavities and all, but we're so grateful to have a qualified doctor on premises.)
Edited to add:
The doctor's visit just keeps going, complete with a consult with another imaginary doctor on a pretend doctor's phone, Annie determined the best course of action (repeated shots) and Greg was getting better. (She was going to wait for the other doctor to show up and treat him, but he couldn't be here 'til 5:00, so she just gave him the shots, and listened to his heart again, on her own.) Until poor Greg relapsed (repeatedly). It's gonna be a long night at this particular doctor's office . . .
Now she's given him four shots, each time moving the plastic bandage from one spot to the next, finally leaving it on the last one and instructing her patient, "You can take this one home with you, but you'll need to bring it back to my office later."
And not even kidding, she's now dictating her notes on an imaginary doctor computer . . . I heard her saying, "He needed 7 shots . . . " while typing furiously midair.
"Oh no," she said sadly as she looked into his ear, "You have cavities in this ear."
"Cavities?" Greg asked.
"Yeah," she shook her head disappointed, "I better check this other ear too." She got right to work, then sighed sadly again, "Yeah, cavities in this ear too."
"What do we do about the cavities in my ears?" Greg worriedly asked.
"Nothing," Annie said sadly, "there's nothing I can do. I better listen to your heart."
So she rigged up her stethoscope and started to listen, then, "Well, that's not good . . ."
She tried taking his temperature a few times, then checked his ears again. Looked like a terminal case of ear cavities. "What can we do about these cavities, Doctor?" Greg asked.
"Well, we do your blood pressure . . . but I don't think it'll work."
We thought for a minute, that this blood pressure cuff had worked it's magic and the cavities were gone, but upon a secondary examination, Annie returned to the sighing and said, "Your ears are not very good. They don't feel healthy."
"Why does Daddy's ears have cavities Annie?" I asked.
"Because he's probably eating lots of food he shouldn't be eating," she answered and then turning to Greg, added, "and your ears still have blood pressure.
"Your heart doesn't sound so good either. You might have to stay here for awhile."
A few minutes later:
"I better check your mouth. Yep, cavities. Oh, and your hands have cavities too. Your shoulders have cavities. Let me check . . . um . . . yeah, this one has cavities too. I need to go get some other stuff," and she shot up and ran to her room.
"Wow," Greg said to me, "I have cavities everywhere."
"Must be all that food you're not supposed to be eating . . ." I lectured. And we both started to laugh.
She just showed back up with a pair of construction gloves on her hands. She held up her hands and said, "OK, I'm ready." I busted up laughing when I saw this. She poked around a bit, then did a happy little dance and exclaimed, "All the cavities are gone! You can go home!" Then a sudden, "Oh no! They're on your tummy and back now. I think you need a shot, but I can't find one." So, Annie, Ellie and Greg just took off to Annie's room to find the syringe among the toys. Annie approved her patient's trip though, assuring him that "Your feet don't have cavities, you should be OK to walk . . ."
(I was typing furiously throughout their exchange. It was hilarious to see how sincere Annie was in her pessimistic doctoring. We don't know if Greg'll make it through the night, what with terminal cavities and all, but we're so grateful to have a qualified doctor on premises.)
Edited to add:
The doctor's visit just keeps going, complete with a consult with another imaginary doctor on a pretend doctor's phone, Annie determined the best course of action (repeated shots) and Greg was getting better. (She was going to wait for the other doctor to show up and treat him, but he couldn't be here 'til 5:00, so she just gave him the shots, and listened to his heart again, on her own.) Until poor Greg relapsed (repeatedly). It's gonna be a long night at this particular doctor's office . . .
Now she's given him four shots, each time moving the plastic bandage from one spot to the next, finally leaving it on the last one and instructing her patient, "You can take this one home with you, but you'll need to bring it back to my office later."
And not even kidding, she's now dictating her notes on an imaginary doctor computer . . . I heard her saying, "He needed 7 shots . . . " while typing furiously midair.
More Old Pictures
I was going through some more old pictures, and I just had to share a couple more.
Then, this picture has always just amused me. This is my Grandma Betty (my Dad's Mom) as a baby. Sitting in a bowl. On a chair. In the middle of a dirt road. Of course.
This is my Dad's parents, my Grandma Betty and my Grandpa Rex sometime after getting married. We don't have a ton of pictures of my Dad's side of the family . . . I was like 18 before I ever even saw the above picture of my Grandma as a baby, and I only recently came across this one.
Awww, baby pictures! My Mom, Karine, is the first baby and my Dad, Robert, is the second one. How cute are they!?
Growing up, you could not convince my little brother that this wasn't his picture. It's actually a picture of my Dad at 6 years old, but if it wasn't for the b&w coloring and the dated shirt, any one of us would've guessed it was my brother Cody. (It's been said before, and it'll be said again -- my family is a bunch of freakish clones.)
This is a school dance picture of my cute parents while they were young and dating. Really young!
Here's another picture of them while dating.
This is the picture from their wedding announcement. I have no idea what my Dad is looking at . . . :-)
Then, just for fun . . . this is me. Ellie recently saw this picture of when I around 19 months old, the same age as she is now, and there was no convincing her it wasn't "La la" (what she calls herself.) It is quite clear where she gets her hair from (check out that cool traingular sweep of hair on my forehead . . . that is exactly Ellie's hair right now.) The funny thing is Annie's the one I think of as looking more like my family . . . and yet, when I'm this age, the pictures of me are much more Ellie-reminiscent.
This one is my Mom's Dad, my Grandpa Pennell. (It is so intensely weird for me to refer to my grandparents by their first names, we always used last names when I was growing up (which is weird in it's own way), but since I avoid using last names on the blog, they're all listed by first names on these pictures.)
Anyway, here's Grandpa Pennell, or Pete as he's called by people who probably made him cry by calling him Penny when he was young. (Really, how would you shorten Pennell?! Also, his twin brother's name was Parnell. Parn? I'm not sure which has the more unfortunate name.) :-) He's 16 in this picture. Really, 16?! He looks like an older, B-list movie star to me! How did one accomplish such a 'wave' in their hair without modern hair products?
My sisters and I once asked my Grandma who the hunk in her wedding pictures was . . . then we laughed for like 20 minutes. I'm sure Grandpa appreciated our humor.
Anyway, here's Grandpa Pennell, or Pete as he's called by people who probably made him cry by calling him Penny when he was young. (Really, how would you shorten Pennell?! Also, his twin brother's name was Parnell. Parn? I'm not sure which has the more unfortunate name.) :-) He's 16 in this picture. Really, 16?! He looks like an older, B-list movie star to me! How did one accomplish such a 'wave' in their hair without modern hair products?
My sisters and I once asked my Grandma who the hunk in her wedding pictures was . . . then we laughed for like 20 minutes. I'm sure Grandpa appreciated our humor.
Then, this picture has always just amused me. This is my Grandma Betty (my Dad's Mom) as a baby. Sitting in a bowl. On a chair. In the middle of a dirt road. Of course.
This is my Dad's parents, my Grandma Betty and my Grandpa Rex sometime after getting married. We don't have a ton of pictures of my Dad's side of the family . . . I was like 18 before I ever even saw the above picture of my Grandma as a baby, and I only recently came across this one.
Awww, baby pictures! My Mom, Karine, is the first baby and my Dad, Robert, is the second one. How cute are they!?
Growing up, you could not convince my little brother that this wasn't his picture. It's actually a picture of my Dad at 6 years old, but if it wasn't for the b&w coloring and the dated shirt, any one of us would've guessed it was my brother Cody. (It's been said before, and it'll be said again -- my family is a bunch of freakish clones.)
This is a school dance picture of my cute parents while they were young and dating. Really young!
Here's another picture of them while dating.
This is the picture from their wedding announcement. I have no idea what my Dad is looking at . . . :-)
Then, just for fun . . . this is me. Ellie recently saw this picture of when I around 19 months old, the same age as she is now, and there was no convincing her it wasn't "La la" (what she calls herself.) It is quite clear where she gets her hair from (check out that cool traingular sweep of hair on my forehead . . . that is exactly Ellie's hair right now.) The funny thing is Annie's the one I think of as looking more like my family . . . and yet, when I'm this age, the pictures of me are much more Ellie-reminiscent.
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Christmas Eve: Take Two
My sister Talina and her husband David had the opportunity to go back to Omaha to visit his family for Christmas and New Years. Which means we celebrated Christmas with them once they got home. As sad as it was to have them gone on Christmas, it worked out well for all of us Utah-bound, since Mom made her famous "Christmas Eve" dinner not once, but twice! My girls were especially thrilled to have one last go at this whole Christmas thing . . .
Here my girls are, helpful as ever, offering their assistance to Uncle David while he was opening his presents.
Talina got some new pearls -- Ellie felt so pretty when she had them on her head like a crown that she started dancing like a princess around the family room.
Aunt Star and Annie (with Grandma Karine in the background).
Uncle David got some Snickers bars from Annie -- Ellie was very determined to get into the bag. I threatened the life of anyone who actually helped her open it.
Crazy looking Ellie reading a book with Aunt Star.
Ellie shocked to learn about the sheer size of the walking stick bug pictured in the book.
Aunt Star, Ellie, and Ellie's beloved gorilla . . . by far her favorite new toy at Grandma's house.
Here's Ellie, putting on some of Talina's makeup from her Christmas stocking.
(And Ellie's cheek is the result of a sledding run gone bad -- she biffed it on the ice, cutting up her cheek and lip.)
(And Ellie's cheek is the result of a sledding run gone bad -- she biffed it on the ice, cutting up her cheek and lip.)
Here my girls are, helpful as ever, offering their assistance to Uncle David while he was opening his presents.
Talina got some new pearls -- Ellie felt so pretty when she had them on her head like a crown that she started dancing like a princess around the family room.
Aunt Star and Annie (with Grandma Karine in the background).
Uncle David got some Snickers bars from Annie -- Ellie was very determined to get into the bag. I threatened the life of anyone who actually helped her open it.
Crazy looking Ellie reading a book with Aunt Star.
Ellie shocked to learn about the sheer size of the walking stick bug pictured in the book.
Aunt Star, Ellie, and Ellie's beloved gorilla . . . by far her favorite new toy at Grandma's house.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Getting Ready for Church
The girls were really into getting ready for Church yesterday. Probably has something to do with the SIX full hours we're awake and waiting to go now that we're on the 1:00PM schedule. (Not that I'm bitter.)
Annie did her own hair (these pictures were taken after I'd snuck approximately 15 bows out of her hair), plus she accessorized with sunglasses, a necklace (the ever classic green mardi gras beads), and a 'scarf' (her name for anything she can find to wrap around her neck, her favorite being ribbons). Ellie was in love with her pink full dress, and kept twirling around and 'vocalizing' like a Disney princess or something. It's like we're surrounded by little girls or something!
Which reminds me. The other day my Mom had asked Annie whether she wants the new baby to be a boy or a girl. Annie responded that she'd want to have another sister, because then we would have four girls in our house. My Mom asked, "What about your poor Daddy, he'll be all alone." Annie looked at her, perplexed, then responded, "Grandma, us four girls would be with him!"
Annie did her own hair (these pictures were taken after I'd snuck approximately 15 bows out of her hair), plus she accessorized with sunglasses, a necklace (the ever classic green mardi gras beads), and a 'scarf' (her name for anything she can find to wrap around her neck, her favorite being ribbons). Ellie was in love with her pink full dress, and kept twirling around and 'vocalizing' like a Disney princess or something. It's like we're surrounded by little girls or something!
Which reminds me. The other day my Mom had asked Annie whether she wants the new baby to be a boy or a girl. Annie responded that she'd want to have another sister, because then we would have four girls in our house. My Mom asked, "What about your poor Daddy, he'll be all alone." Annie looked at her, perplexed, then responded, "Grandma, us four girls would be with him!"
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Dynamic Duo
All morning (and I do mean all morning, now that we're on the much dreaded 1:00PM Church schedule) Annie kept asking, "Is Sarajayne going to be there? Is Sarajayne gonna be there? Will Sarajayne be there?" and so on and so forth. I couldn't make any promises, as Sarajayne misses Church from time to time with colds and such, just like every other preschool aged child, but I reassured her I was 'pretty sureSarajayne would be there.' As we were pulling out of our driveway I pointed out excitedly to Annie, "LOOK! Sarajayne's garage door is opening! They must be on their way to Church!" All through Sacrament, Annie kept turning around trying to spotSarajayne's family in the congregation. She was starting to get worried, but became one very happy little girl when we spotted their family as we were leaving Sacrament meeting. Annie rushed up to her best friend, and they were soon met up with by another neighbor around their age, Lily, and the trio so adorably looked like a pint sized version of gabbing women catching up between their Church meetings. :-)
Today was a big day at Church for Annie, as it is the week she would officially graduate from nursery (which kids attend from 18 months old through the end of the year in which they turned three), to Primary (and specifically, their "Sunbeams" class, which they start the year they will turn four years old.) I knew we had a lot of kids that age, but I was surprised to see the Sunbeams list with 19 names on it! Because putting any one or two adults in a class with 19 three yearolds in it would be cruel and all, they split the group into two separate classes. My worst fear was on one of the lists that was printed up -- with Annie in one class andSarajayne in another. Annie would be heartbroken, this was her best little friend, and every day of preschool and Church was prefaced with the questions of, "WillSarajayne be there?" How could I tell Annie that Sarajayne would never be in her class at Church? But, there was a second list printed right next to the first, with Sarajayne's name listed in the same class as Annie. I was confused, but hopeful that the list they were going off of would have the two girls in the same class for the year. As soon as Church was over, I rushed to pick up Annie from her class, and was excited to hear about her first day in 'real' Primary. I got there after most of the other parents had picked up their children. I couldn't wait to hear about Annie's first Sunbeam experiences, but the first question I asked the teacher (who had also been Annie's nursery teacher, who 'moved up' with them) was, "IsSarajayne in your class too?" I was overjoyed to hear that the two best buddies were in the same class again this year. I told her how I'd been so worried about them being separated when I'd seen the two different class lists, and she told me, "Oh, originally they were put in different classes, but my husband told the Primary that these two girls couldn't be separated!"
I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees how adorably inseparable these two friends are!
(Um, yeah . . . I think Annie's understanding of 'personal bubble' is possibly still a bit immature -- she's constantly grabbing Sarajayne's hand, throwing her arm around her, hugging her enthusiastically). :-)
Today was a big day at Church for Annie, as it is the week she would officially graduate from nursery (which kids attend from 18 months old through the end of the year in which they turned three), to Primary (and specifically, their "Sunbeams" class, which they start the year they will turn four years old.) I knew we had a lot of kids that age, but I was surprised to see the Sunbeams list with 19 names on it! Because putting any one or two adults in a class with 19 three yearolds in it would be cruel and all, they split the group into two separate classes. My worst fear was on one of the lists that was printed up -- with Annie in one class andSarajayne in another. Annie would be heartbroken, this was her best little friend, and every day of preschool and Church was prefaced with the questions of, "WillSarajayne be there?" How could I tell Annie that Sarajayne would never be in her class at Church? But, there was a second list printed right next to the first, with Sarajayne's name listed in the same class as Annie. I was confused, but hopeful that the list they were going off of would have the two girls in the same class for the year. As soon as Church was over, I rushed to pick up Annie from her class, and was excited to hear about her first day in 'real' Primary. I got there after most of the other parents had picked up their children. I couldn't wait to hear about Annie's first Sunbeam experiences, but the first question I asked the teacher (who had also been Annie's nursery teacher, who 'moved up' with them) was, "IsSarajayne in your class too?" I was overjoyed to hear that the two best buddies were in the same class again this year. I told her how I'd been so worried about them being separated when I'd seen the two different class lists, and she told me, "Oh, originally they were put in different classes, but my husband told the Primary that these two girls couldn't be separated!"
I'm glad I'm not the only one who sees how adorably inseparable these two friends are!
Here's some pictures from October of the two of them . . .
(Um, yeah . . . I think Annie's understanding of 'personal bubble' is possibly still a bit immature -- she's constantly grabbing Sarajayne's hand, throwing her arm around her, hugging her enthusiastically). :-)Saturday, January 2, 2010
Who Taught Her That?
Annie surprised me yesterday when she was looking at the digital clock on the front of our DVD player and suddenly said, "Look Mom, it's 10:42!" For a long time she's been into what time it is, I've been hearing, "Mom, it's nine-two-four," or "It's seven-three-nine," for quite awhile now. But to hear the words, "Forty-two," coming from her mouth with no help or prompting kinda shocked me. I mean, she's been counting, sometimes all the way to 100, on her own -- so I've heard her say words like "Forty-two" before, but I had no clue she knew how to put the numbers together on her own. Then, just to prove it wasn't a fluke, this morning she was checking out the time ('cause for some reason she thought 8:30 was the magical time I would suddenly let her have gum), and she proudly announced, "OK Mom, it's eight thirty-two! Time for gum!" She was annoyed when I rejected her time/gum logic, and would continue to point out when it was "eight thirty-three" "eight thirty-four" "eight thirty-five."
It blows me away some of the stuff they pick up without anyone ever really explaining it to them!
It blows me away some of the stuff they pick up without anyone ever really explaining it to them!
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