Just Sharing . . .

My birth story (with Isaac) is featured on the Hypnobabies website today!

I've already had the story on here before (or at least a similar one, this one focuses more on using the hypnosis techniques), but if you want to check it out, feel free!  :-)

Attack of the Clones

It's been discussed on here before that I look a lot like my siblings.  And I'm not the only one.  Greg's siblings all 'look like siblings' too.  His brother James and him are even a little clone-ish.  I don't think he looks that much like his brother Chris (they look like brothers, but not interchangeable or anything), but apparently I'm in the minority.  We were at his Mom's work party last night, and several of her coworkers walked up to say hi to 'Chris'.  We had to correct several people that this was Greg, not Chris.  The guy we were sitting down next to at dinner had made the Chris/Greg mistake initially.  I commented, "Oh, no, this one is Greg -- but they confuse a lot of people."  Greg chimed in with something like, "A lot of people think we look alike, but it's nothing like her family -- her and her sisters look like clones."  I just laughed and made a comment about how people confuse us a lot too.  Then we turned to random dinner conversation you have with people you just met.  How many kids, work, that kinda stuff.  When suddenly, about 3 or 4 minutes into our budding friendship, the guy suddenly blurts out, "Wait!  Do you have a sister named Star!?"  Ha!  I cannot even tell you how many times in my life I've heard the phrase "Do you have a sister/brother names Star/Talina/Lacy/Cody?!"  Sure enough, he knew my sister (used to be neighbors) and said that I sounded and looked so much like her that he's shocked it took him even just a few minutes to realize the connection.  It was funny though, here I am at my mother-in-law's work party, and a complete stranger recognizes my sister in me.  Small world, huh?

Yeah, the genetics run strong in our families . . .

Chris, Andrea, Greg and James -- and I don't think this picture does justice to how similar Greg and James can look.  Poor James has had many of my family's friends walk up to him at work and start talking to him like he's Greg.  And Greg and James worked at the same grocery store in high school, and even with both of them working there, some people never could tell them apart.

Lacy, Star, Cody, me and Talina -- and I realize I've posted this picture before, but it's one of the best of all of us together . . .

Many Faces of Ellie (and Isaac)

Ellie wanted to mug for the camera this morning . . . and she proceeded to mug for said camera for the next 25 minutes :-)

To Swaddle or Not to Swaddle: There is No Question (for us)

All of my babies have had to be swaddled to sleep. Oh, how I wish it were another way. There was never a chance for them to find their own hands and fingers to self-soothe, as they were tied up tight in large receiving blankets any time they needed to sleep. I dislike the feeling of them swaddled when I hold them -- there's no cuddling, no tiny baby curled up against my chest, just a large stiff burrito of a baby unable to even wiggle.

But, alas, there was no sleep if every one of my babies weren't tightly swaddled. REALLY, REALLY tightly swaddled. In fact, anytime I swaddled them, they'd sleep an hour or so at night, then wake up screaming and half escaped from their blanket. Greg, on the other hand, is a master swaddler. Like, he should teach classes or give seminars or tutor nursery nurses or something. His swaddle is legendary. It's so tight that when he'd swaddle Annie, our first baby, his Mom could scarcely watch, so convinced he was torturing her tiny granddaughter in a blanket-y death grip. Greg was good to start with -- but when it became obvious our children would only sleep tightly swaddled for MONTHS AND MONTHS of their lives, it became necessary for him to be able to swaddle the baby so tight that even a strong five month old would be unable to break loose for hours on end. (I would often whisper reminders to him when he was swaddling newborn Isaac, "Um, hon, he's not going to be able to break out, he's a week old . . . that's probably tight enough." )

I TRIED to not have to swaddle Isaac. Oh, how I tried. For weeks I resisted. "Look," I'd tell Greg, "he's sleeping! Not even swaddled! Like a regular baby!" But after a few weeks it became obvious that swaddling Isaac (at night, at least -- we rarely swaddle him during the day) was the only way to achieve a four hour or better block of sleep at night. I wonder sometimes how long we'll need to. I'd love to be done by winter, as I vastly prefer sleeping babies in 'sleep sacks' during the colder months -- I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

Just as a final 'testament' to Greg's swaddling ability -- here is Ellie at over five months old, being supported in the standing position by nothing but the tight swaddle she was encased in . . .

Home, Sweet, Home

The firefighters who saved almost all of the homes around this mountain were nothing short of heroes and miracle workers!

It is good to be home again. My house smells like an ashtray, my every last possession stinks to high heaven, my eyes and throat are scratchy and raw; but my children are healthy and well, we have more friends and family than we could've possibly ever utilized to take us in and shelter us, and very few of our neighbors were faced with any serious damage to their homes or property.
It could've been a lot worse.
So left staring up at our burnt, black, smoking mountain, I'm grateful for the many miracles, big and small, that are bringing most everyone back to nothing more than a stinky house.

Tech Savvy

Annie was barely two years old when she passed up her Great Grandpa with her technological prowess -- she mastered using the computer mouse. While my Grandpa refused to hook one up to his computer for years and played solitaire entirely with shortcut keys.

Somewhere between two and three, she passed up her Grandpa Robert. He was looking at his new phone and asked aloud, "How do you take a picture with this?" Annie sighed, walked over and took a picture, saved it and handed the phone back without saying a word.

At four, she's gaining on (and possibly passing up) some of her Aunts and Uncles . . . today, without any help, she sent me a picture message from my brother's phone. She took the picture, got in to the 'send' area, typed in my cell phone number (which she has memorized) and sent me the picture.

So, I'm thinking by 5 years old I can forget about paying for any tech support on my computer, 'cause she should be able to handle that for me, right?

Utah State Fair

The Utah State Fair almost passed me by this year! We've gone every year since Annie was born, but this year (with the new baby) despite hearing people talk about it, for some reason it never clicked for me 'oh yeah, we should go to that!' So, when Greg's parents asked if they could take us to the fair, I was really glad we hadn't ended up missing it altogether! Last Tuesday, we met up with Ruth & KC at the fair grounds and enjoyed another year of Utah State Fair fun!

Here's Ellie looking in at the sheep. She was fascinated by all the animals, and happily would get up as close as we'd allow her. At one point my father-in-law, KC, asked, "Is she afraid of anything?" The answer to that is, "Only loud noises." (The child cries every time she hears a motorcycle or the garbage truck. From a couple blocks away. Other than noises, she seems fairly fearless . . . like she doesn't even notice she's the teeniest thing around.)

Grandpa KC showing the girls the sheep's wool.

Grandma Ruth and Annie checking out the baby pigs . . .

The pony rides are always a huge hit with my kids . . .

Food is a pretty big hit too.
(I also got a snow cone -- and it made me insanely happy. What is it about flavored ice that makes me all giddy?)

One of the highlights of the fair trip was going to see the art. Because Greg's mother is an extremely talented artist -- and won 2nd place in the Professional category with her "Heavenly Blue Morning Glories" picture!
(This is one of only a few pictures of Isaac too -- he slept in the sling the first half the time we were there, woke up and nursed and then fell back asleep not long after. He wasn't an overly active participant on our fair trip.)

The Merry-Go-Round was another big hit.
Here's Daddy and Ellie posing for Grandpa's camera -- I really liked the shot I got though!

The girls loved giving Grandma and Grandpa 'fives' every time they went past . . .

Annie always knows where the camera is :-)

Per usual, Greg's parents spoil our kids (and Greg and I!) rotten -- and we're really appreciative of it! Thanks for making sure we didn't miss the fair this year, KC & Ruth!

Little Man

I've been meaning to for weeks, but last night Greg and I finally got a few pictures of Isaac in his little white tuxedo (made by Grandma Karine for his blessing last week). He's going to grow out of it any minute now (it's already a tight squeeze), and I wanted some pictures of him in it by himself (since we only had pictures of people holding him on his blessing day). I feel better having the pictures done now, and Isaac will be glad we never have to squeeze him into it ever again. :-)

But first, I have two pictures of him taken earlier yesterday -- I loved his expressions as he looked over Daddy's shoulder.

And back to the tuxedo . . .

This bow tie was so hard to get to lay just right . . .

This one was just to show off the tails . . .

Then he started to get annoyed with this whole photo shoot thing . . .

And I actually covered his quivering lip in this one (although, this was not the most pathetically sad he looked during picture taking, just the best photographic evidence of his sadness . . . )

And one comparison picture -- here's my little brother Cody, 19 years ago, wearing a very similar tuxedo (also made by my Mom). Isaac looks up to Cody for fashion advice . . . (which probably means wearing a LOT of American Eagle Polo's in the future . . . )

Little Miss Polite

Ellie is adorably polite. She says 'thank you' and 'please' constantly. Sometimes excessively.

She says 'please' anytime she wants anything.

And 'thank you'. Her excessive use of thank you makes me even feel guilty at times. Usually in situations where I'm mid-diaper change or something with Isaac, and she'll ask me for something, and I'll kinda blow her off, "Not now, Ellie . . . I'll get it for you later." Sometimes said with more impatience in my voice than I normally like to confess to (especially to myself). And it's always met with, "OK, thank you Mommy." (Then I feel bad for being annoyed by her initial insistence.)

Or her sweet, "Sorry, Mommy." If I catch her and her sister fighting, Ellie's always the first one to turn and quietly offer a "Sorry, Mommy". If I get upset by the latest mess she's made, she quickly and with head bowed down apologetically, whispers, "Sorry, Mommy." (Then, again, I feel a little guilty if I reacted even the littlest bit harsher than I should have.) So basically, her politeness keeps me in check as a Mom. :-)

The latest though, is the most amusing to me. Almost every time she has coughed or sneezed this last week (which has been quite often with this current cold terrorizing our household) she says, "Bless you Lala." (Lala is her name in Ellie vernacular.) But only when she sneezes.

Home Away From Home

Ellie came up to me this morning and asked, "Where Daddy?"
Greg's funky work schedule lately makes his routine less predictable for the girls, but since I'd told her the night before he had to work the next day, I tried to gently jog her memory by asking, "Where do you think he is?"
After a long pause and some serious thinking, Ellie asked, "Home E-po?"
I laughed and explained that Dad was at work, not Home Depot. But it was a good guess.

Bouncy Chair Bliss

To whomever gave us the barnyard bouncy chair at Annie's baby shower:

It's been a huge hit. We've gotten years of use out of it! Thank you!

Annie at almost three months old.

Ellie, almost four months old.

Isaac, almost 11 weeks old.

And, Annie again, at around 18 months old . . .
Plus, both of the girls have used it frequently since Isaac's birth -- we just don't have pictures.

Even not counting the life-saving months that Annie slept in the thing (until she was about 4 months old, with the vibration going), it's been well utilized by our three children!

Isaac's Blessing Day

We had Isaac blessed today. It meant a lot to us to have our close family come out for it, with most of the kids' Grandparents and Great-Grandparents come out for it, as well as most of their Aunts & Uncles (with just a few out of town and had-to-work exceptions, and Greg's sweet Grandma Verla, for whom traveling isn't that easy.) The girls picked out matching dresses (something they like to do for special occasions and, you know, days that end in 'y'.) :-) I wanted to get a bunch of fancy-pants-posed-and-pseudo-professional pictures of Isaac in his sweet white tuxedo (that's right, a full on white tuxedo . . . complete with tails and blue bow tie and cummerbund . . . my Mom made it for him. It makes me smile.) Alas, the boy slept right up until it was time to go to Church, and then was kinda fussy afterwards. So, we got some pictures of him in it right after Church in the arms of everyone who made it out to see him (except my sister Talina and her husband, who were self-quarantined. Or, at least, avoiding the baby, since Talina's been pretty sick until really recently). But we quickly changed him into something more comfortable, since babies (and pretty much everyone else) get a little cranky after an hour or two in a polyester tuxedo.) We'll have to do a mini-photo shoot another day. But another day soon, as he was pretty much busting out of the 0-3 month tux. It was hard to keep his buddha-belly covered for pictures. :-)

The girls were happy to pose for a couple pre-Church photos.

This pose of Annie's just makes me smile.

Greg and his girls. I love this picture. Everyone looks so happy, and Ellie's sporting her trademark just-a-sliver-of-eyes-showing-grin.

Ellie did get a bit pouty during photos though. So I pulled a similar pout.

Which cheered her up a bit, and amused Annie to no end -- thus, a smiling photo of all three of us girls.

Greg took this photo of Ellie and just loves it to pieces -- he declared it his favorite picture from the day (although there was a serious contender: a picture I took of Ellie napping on his chest. It'll show up later on.)

Here is my family, right after Church. Ellie was less than cooperative and laid down for pretty much every picture. But usually with her legs up in the air showing off her diaper, so this was one of the better shots. :-) Have I mentioned this poor child hasn't had a decent nap in two days? :-) It contributed to a bit of moodiness throughout the day.

Greg and I with our baby.

Greg's parents with the little man of honor.

Greg's sister, Aunt Andrea, with Isaac.
(You can see where my girls get their curls from!)

Grandma Ruth and the grumpy boy.
He's not even pretending that this tuxedo is comfortable and he's happy about wearing it. :-)

Great Grandma and Isaac.

Isaac with another Great Grandma and his only living Great Grandpa. Ellie just calls my grandfather by his nickname, 'Pete.' It cracks my siblings and I up -- none of us have ever really called him by Pete, but Ellie heard it one day and has called him just 'Pete' ever since.

My sister Aunt Lacy with Isaac.

Another of my sisters. Aunt Star with Isaac.

My Dad with Isaac. Ellie has also taken to just referring to him by his first name too, or more accurately, his nickname. A nickname that, again, NONE of us refer to him by but Ellie still somehow picked up and calls him.

This is 'Bobby'. My sisters and I giggle everytime she calls him that.My Mom, Grandma Karine (or "Neen" as Ellie calls her), with Isaac in the tux she made for him.

Mommy and Isaac.

My baby brother, Uncle Cody (or 'Doh-doh' or 'Doh-dy' if we're sticking with Ellie's names for people.)

My sweet Aunt Judy and Uncle Jerry, who have always been there for everything throughout my whole life. When I was telling Ellie, during her bath that morning, who was coming for the blessing, I was listing people off when she suddenly interrupted me and asked, "Uncle Jerry?" I assured her that he and Aunt Judy would definitely be there. :-)

Uncle Cody, Annie, Ellie and our friend Jovanny played out in the sandbox -- the problem was that all of the kids had been in Church clothes with no spare clothing to change into. So, they were all promptly stripped down to underwear and diapers -- except Cody, he had clothes to change into :-) There were so many cute pictures of them all -- but with the whole not wanting to put nekkid picture of my kids on the internet, I'm not going to post 'em. Except this one of Annie mostly hidden behind a sand castle. It was all modest and showed off one of their many cool sand castles :-)

Cody trying to spray me even though I'm holding my very nice camera. Weanie-head. :-)

Greg's second favorite picture -- Ellie crashed out from sheer exhaustion, right on his chest.

Grandpa Robert and Isaac again.

Aunt Lacy and Isaac again.

Aunt Star and Isaac again. Now I'm feeling bad for poor Talina and David who faithfully avoided infecting baby Isaac with Talina's nasty pseudo-whooping-cough-germs, and therefore aren't in any pictures. Sorry!

Lacy and Annie were battling with the Dora baseball bat and the plastic golf club.

Annie was getting really into it.

Lacy and Star were trying out poses for potential "Awkward Family Photos" -- this one was fairly effective.

Happy baby boy! (Much happier in cotton than polyester) :-)

After the family party, Cody walked home with us and hung around to watch the girls ride the 'big girl bike' . . . Annie loves to wear her helmet. (And her cute piggy tails were sticking out the side of it.)

Uncle Cody helping Ellie get a ride on the bike

This is Annie on her bike, riding right past Dad while he takes a picture -- we had to tell her later to keep her eyes ahead of her from now on :-)

Ellie playing on the fire hydrant.

All in all, it was such a fun day. I love having the family get together -- I'm especially fond of times when we're able to get 'both sides' of our family altogether in one place. I love for my girls to see their family as 'their family', not just 'this side' or 'that side'. I feel so lucky that we are able to have so much of our immediate family with us at these fun and memorable times of my childrens' lives!