Tiny Talk Tuesday

If you guessed that the picture yesterday was Anna's tooth, then you guessed correctly:)

Funniest thing was that she didn't want the Tooth Fairy to take it. LOL... we've read a few books about tooth fairies, but we've never talked about whether we'd do the whole "tooth fairy" thing... we don't do the Easter Bunny or Santa, either!

Anyway, I helped Anna find a little satchel to put her tooth in and she started getting worried about the tooth fairy... then she said really fast and in session...

"Why am I worried about the Tooth Fairy? There is no Tooth Fairy. I don't believe in the Tooth Fairy!"
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Chris was trying to ply with Nate this weekend. He started to reach for him and then pulled his hand back and said, "I can't touch his face, but I can rub the back of his face." And he rubbed the back of Nate's head:)



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The afternoon of Anna's party we got back into the house later in the afternoon. And we had let the kids watch some PBSkids while we did some cleaning up.



As we prepared to crash for a little bit, Lydia walked into the kitchen and announced....



"I not taking a nap today because it's already past my naptime." LOL!!
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As I prepared to change Nate's diaper, Lydia leaned over him and said to him in a "talking to a baby voice" ," You a poopie little boy!" LOL!

Nate's 4th Week, New Trick & Can you Guess??

Saturday with an audience watching... Nate rolled from his tummy to his back!! We were soo excited and even more excited that he did it again (even as he was fussy) so we could get it on video:)

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

After a rough start to the week with his sleeping/fussiness at night, we have had a few easier nights with a few more moments of sleep for Mom and Dad. So that has been nice... I think making sure he sleeps (so he doesn't get overtired), gas drops and keeping him from getting too hot has helped.


Nate's also making more noises... some coos, some fussy talk. It's soo sweet to hear and see him make eye contact and then try to talk with us:) Speaking of eye contact, Nate LOVES to be talked to and have eye contact with us!! And Brian and Nate were copying each other... coos and sticking their tongues out:)

He feels heavier/thicker to me this week. I did the "mommy weigh" this week to check his weight. The difference between my weight with him and without him was 12 pounds!!!

The acne is still active. Poor little baby!! Today it seemed like it was "drying up". I read though that it could last months.... so we'll see.

We head to the pediatrician this week for Nate's one month checkup. It's amazing that he's a month old already!

OK.... off to something different...

can you guess what this is???

I'll tell you more Tuesday:)

Now that I'm 6!!

Anna celebrated her 6th birthday at the end of last week!

It's amazing that she's already 6...

I remember waiting for her arrival and holding her those first few days wondering how quickly my life had changed from "me" to doing everything possible to take the best care of my little baby girl!!


May 27, 2004



May 27, 2010
(in the AM to use her scooter, hadn't even brushed her hair yet... too excited!)

So what is Anna like as a 6 year old???

Anna is 46.5 inches tall and weighs 45.5 lbs!

Her favorites:

• Color : Yellow & Pink
• Food : Hot Dogs & Tacos
• Treat: SweetTarts
• Subject : Math
• Animal: Monkeys, Red Panda (at the zoo)
• Do inside: Color
• Toys: Barbie Scooter & Barbies
• Song to Sing: "songs that I make up"
• Restaurant: Sonic (for slushies)
• Book: Mr Putter series by Cynthia Rylant
• Movie: Little House in the Prarie series, Snow White
• PBSkids Show: Clifford, Dinosaur Train, Maya & Miquel

Goals for her 6th year: Ride a horse and learn to read and write cursive!

And when you ask her what she wants to be when she "grows up" she'll respond "a math teacher"!

Acne and Lack of Sleep

The last few days little Nate's face has really broken out... like really bad... he has enough pimples to get his drivers license!!!!

In an effort to confirm our guess that it was indeed "baby acne" and not a reaction (like Anna was insisting), I did a little searching online:)

One of the 1st paragraphs of an article was a perfect description of us and Nate right now:

To many parents' dismay, their beautiful newborn's face breaks out with red bumps. One of the most common causes for red bumps on an infant’s face is baby acne. It tends to occur at about the same age as the baby's peak gas production and fussiness. How attractive! (This all coincides with parents' maximum sleep deprivation.) Parents are often quite concerned both about how these bumps look and about their significance.

Here's where I got it from: http://www.drgreene.com/qa/what-baby-acne#ixzz0p45fm6BQ

Yes... we had a feeling "gas production and fussiness" had peaked... ummm, especially at night!!! Man oh man....

The 1st 2 weeks, Nate spoiled us at night. There were times I got 5 hours of sleep at time!! But then since Saturday or so, Nate has wanted to eat and scream all night...

seriously, for a couple of nights I had maybe 2-3 hours of sleep all night. I DON"T function well with only 2 or 3 hours!!!!!! Just ask my family.... or don't!

Anyway, we were very thankful that Nate had a better night last night. We had a plan all ready.... I keep Nate, Brian sleeps somewhere else then lets me sleep in. But we didn't even have to resort to "survival mode".... Nate nursed every 3 hours BUT didn't scream for hours inbetween feedings! Must have been the gas drops!

Anyway, maybe we have finished the "peak gas production and fussiness"... maybe!!! Oh, it would be nice because we have a BUSY weekend with family (parents and siblings) coming in and Anna's 6th birthday:) We have plenty to do!

WW: Just wanted to Share

A cute picture of Lydia and Nate from this morning.


And we're making our list for Anna's birthday party...

It's harder this year... not only because little Nate has now made us sleep deprived:) But also because Anna cn now read... so we have to use "code"!

Tiny Talk Tuesday

The kids love little brother... although they have recently told me to keep Nate quiet so they could watch their TV show... LOL!!

But one thing I wasn't expecting was how possessive they are over Nate:) Twice last week as sweet friends were holding Nate away from the house, the kids spoke up....

Lydia or Chris (both hve done it) told one of our friends,"Give my mom back her baby!"

Picking.... but NOT Jamming

Last week we went strawberry picking!! I was all excited to be bringing the kids and stocking up on some berries for eating, storing and jamming;)And it was such a nice morning when we went!!

Too bad I missed the "memo" that after 2 days of rain (and 2 days of drying out) strawberry picking was awful.... they are scarse, wormy and mushy!

But the kids still had fun hunting for those perfect berries.

And there was "some" sampling... thank goodness the patch we go to is very "kid"- friendly!!

The kids DID find some "pretty" berries!!

When we checked out, Chris admitted where he got some of his nice berries......

he got off the ground!!! LOL!!

The berries were $1.25 lb when we pick them. But at the store, we found strawberries for $1.50lb... no worms, or mush! Anyway that got us thinking about whether it was really cost effective to make our own strawberry jam.

SURE... I know it would taste better. And it's better to purchase locally! But we were amazed that when we really crunched the numbers with all the prices of the stuff we needed (and we already have the jars, and pectin)....

making our own jam would actually be the same price as purchasing already made jam... generic, not on sale, no coupon!

So... considering the busyness of our house right now. And the sleep we are loosing nightly:) The store brand jam is probably our BEST bet this year:(

To be honest, I'm a little relieved!! It's a lot less work for this busy time. But I'm also disappointed because I was really looking forward to making the jam! It's soo much fun to make it from "scratch" and eat homemade jam. It's also nice to have a cupboard full of jars of jam!

Nate's 3rd Week

We're all hanging in here..... I"m not blogging or on the computer as much... there is just soo much to do. And when it's quiet, sleep is required!!!

Nate seems to have changed this week.

He's developed some baby acne :( all those hormones from Momma has caused him to really break out.

He still naps often!! And when we're out of the house or in the early evening... he is zonked!! He likes sleeping on his belly (so we let him do it when we're close by!).

At night, Nate has been waking more often! Like last night he was up wanting to eat every 2 hours!!! So I'm thinking he is either going through a growth spurt or building up my milk supply.


It seems though that he's been awake a lot more. After eating and getting bubbles out, we get to enjoy such sweet moments! He definitely is spoiled and loves to be held! But he's also pretty content in the bouncy seat... especially after Brian put in batteries;) He also loves to be worn... he's done well in all the different carriers/gear I've worn him in... we'll have to do pics soon:)

He's also reaching out more. He touches our faces. Grabs ahold of my necklaces. And pulls the girls' hair... they are so cute saying,"that's what babies do".

But he seems to also have something bothering his stomach :( So we've had plenty of screaming sessions.

We call this the "raisin face"! He scrunches his little face soo tight! Can't you HEAR the scream in this pic??

With the other kids I kept a journal of what I ate so I could figure out their food allergies. But with Nate I've elminated the "allergy" foods and so I haven't been keeping track. If the screaming sessions continue... I'll have to start!! Poor little boy!!

While we're talking about eating. Nate is still nursing well! He's making me melt... LOL... really though, between the dietary changes (due to the food allergy concerns) and nursing, all the pregnancy weight has melted away. Too bad, I'm still healing and am not 100% just yet!

Loves the Tummy Time

None of my other kids have liked "playing" on their tummies.... with the others tummy time would scream after seconds...

Not Nate! He loves it!


And I was amazed how high he lifted his head. He's a strong little man:)



So while we had the camera out, I played with manual some more. The pictures aren't as crisp as I was hoping... but they are an attempt at the You Capture challenge this week at I Should Be Folding Laundry.

Here's another of Chris and Nate! Our baby is definitely LOVED by his siblings! And this morning Chris even changed one of Nate's stinking diapers!!

WW: $1 Dragon Glasses & Adjustments

We have been soo thankful for how much the kids have enjoyed their little brother... but there has been some "adjusting" too!!!

Maybe it was because we left for the hospital without waking him from his nap, or maybe because he had swimmers ear and didn't feel well when Nate came home, or maybe because he is a sensitive kid...

but Chris really brought us through a tough first week and a half!!! We can already see a change in him... thank goodness... it was rough on us all!!

We kept him next to us when he didn't want to play nicely (an idea adapted from Raising Godly Tomatoes).

We gave him "fun- helper" jobs around the house and then lavished on the praise when he completed them sweetly (he loves folding cloth napkins!!).

And then we've tried to make time with the older kids... Brian jumping in the trampoline with them or riding bikes,etc!

Well a fun $1 purchase of some Dragon sunglasses became a fun opportunity for Chris and I to be silly together;)

Out and About- Just the 5 of us!!

So today I got OUT.....

I really wasn't feeling any "cabin fever" but with the 2nd day of rain and some busy kiddos "LIBRARY READING TIME" sounded like a dream come true;) LOL!! We did miss at least one session and our library books had been read and re-read... so it was time!!


I have to admit I was a little worried. The kids usually do very well during library reading time but this time I was REALLY, REALLY outnumbered, plus not feeling 100% yet (I'm just over 2 weeks postpartum and dealing with some cold/allergies???)!!



The kids did SOOOO well:) I was soo pleased. They even were very well-mannered while choosing books and checking out which was such a blessing;) I wore Nate in the ring sling during our library visit since I didn't feel up to dragging in the stroller or attempting to carry the baby carrier. He slept the whole time!



Since they did so well at the library we picked up lunch and then met a bunch of other moms for lunch. We usually eat at the restuarant which gets too busy and hectic... so Andrea volunteered her church's fellowship hall and then the kids migrated to the nursery/toy rooms;) It was more relaxed.... um, very LOUD though;) That's what we get for having 14 kids 5 and under together!!!



While the kids played, Andrea helped me figure out the BECO carrier. I was given one to review from babysnazz.com for SIMPLE. And I have worn Chris and Lydia (toddlers) in Andrea's BECO. But this was the first time I tried to wear Nate (an infant). When I finally got him in and snug...


it was great:) I'm actually looking forward to grocery shopping... it's going to be soo nice with the BECO:)

Did I mention Nate slept through all the noise, playing and trying to get him in the BECO?? Nate slept the ENTIRE trip... from the house, library, drive thru, lunch, playtime, BECO fitting and then car ride home. He woke only when his siblings left the van for naptime... I guess the van got tooo quiet... LOL!!

So our outing - just the 5 of us - went well. I did nap!! And hoping to get into bed early tonight!

Nate's 2nd Week

It's hard to believe that Nate has been with us for 2 weeks now.... in soo many ways it seems longer and in other ways it seems like we brought him home yesterday:) But I thought I'd share some 2nd week highlights;)

Sweet Baby Sleep!!

Nate is a solid sleeper;) He is still sleeping a good bit during the day but has been GREAT at night. He's giving a couple of nights with 4-5 hours between feedings!!! And even when he wakes, he feeds and is back to sleep:)

And yes, he is sleeping with us. With nursing it gives Momma more sleep! We started co-sleeping with our little babies to survive those first few months when we had Chris!! We'll see how long Nate stays with us... they usually stay until they sleep through the night without Momma!

Momma Has Helpers

Chris asked to help with one of Nate's baths this week... and Momma let HIM!!! He was very gentle and it was the first bath that Nate didn't fuss during! I know Chris enjoyed helping to care for Nate!

Oh, and check out Nate's belly button... the core stump is gone;) Then Momma let the girls dress Nate! Anna worked on the clothes and Lydia kept Nate entertained:)


This week Nate's hands and feet started peeling? His hands finished already, but his feet still have a bit of dry skin on them:) Anna would want to point out Nate's little "piano toes".

Nate loves his hands! We've actually already seen him touch his own hands together! And he has batted at hanging toys on his swing as well as touching our faces and pulling hair;) It seems like he is a little more coordinated than we thought:) Smart little guy!

While Nate does sleep a good part of the day... he is having more "awake" time. Like today he was zonked at our Awana picnic but stayed awake for 4+ hours through church, choir practice and a feed or two;)

And he has become quite the sharp shooter!! LOL!!! This little boy has great aim during diaper changes. We have had a running joke that Daddy is a "soft target" since Nate has gotten him soo many times! But just this weekend Nate got Mommy more!!

And I'm working hard to take a picture of a smile!! Nate has such sweet, sweet happy smiles! They are soo precious and adorable! I just don't have the camera next to me or I'm just too close enjoying the smiles myself!! This is the closest we've gotten thus far:)

And this is the face we see most often!!

The wonder and questioning in his little eyes.... makes me know that he's soaking EVERYTHING in and will be ready to join in on the normal antics going on in our house soon:)

Nate's Birth Story

Nate's labor story was WAY different than we had previously experienced. With Anna and Christopher when I felt my first contractions they were regular and 5 minutes apart... contractions, call doctor/midwife, head to the hospital!! And we went into labor at night!

You all know part of the labor story, just from keeping up with us during those last days:) Thursday and Friday! But basically after being checked on that Thursday I was soo crampy and ready:)

Then Saturday, I felt decent so I took a couple of pictures of our church participting in OIAM. The kids and I visited with some friends at their house. Then I fed the kids lunch and jumped back into taking some pictures.

About 2:30ish, I'm back at the house getting the kids in bed for naps. I finally crash in bed with the computer getting a few emails done. And then I lay back to sleep..... and a contraction!!! A REAL contraction...

So until 3:30 I timed the contractions and they were only 10 minutes apart. But since they were regular and walking made them come a little more quickly I got Brian. Knowing that I was having contractions... Brian immediately got on the phone to make arrangements;)

Within minutes we had church members at the house ready to keep the kids for us.

I felt bad going to the hospital.

Really!!!!!... the contractions I felt were strong. But they were 10 minutes apart. Longer when I would sit down. I really thought that they were just going to send me home.

Since I wasn't in active labor we stopped for food (needed to eat a little dinner before labor!) and attempted to visit a commuinty member in the hospital. I finally got checked into the hospital about 6-6:30ish.

I went into triage and my midwife was there. When she checked me I was 6-7cm dilated and she said my water was bulging... ready to burst! Hmmm, all the pressure I had been feeling... so obviously they wanted to keep me.

So from 3 to 8:30pm my contractions stayed about 10 minutes apart. When I did have them they were STRONG!

Brian said I was really hyper during those hours... really talkative! I like to think I was psyching myself UP for the real labor!

At 7:30 they started to give me the antibiotic for the Group Strep B. And then we had to wait an hour before my midwife would break my water to give the antibotic time to work. I was VERY fortunate that she was willing to just give the antibodic without keeping me hooked up to the IV the entire time!!!

After walking and waiting around (getting paperwork done with the nurses), we got ready for LABOR at 8:30pm when my midwife broke my water.

Like I thought, the contractions came on STRONG and regular and we got started laboring to meet Nate!! During actual labor once my water was broken I stayed pretty in bed trying to relax!!

I've never experienced back labor before.... but whoo buddy!! My back had soo much pressure and I felt it up and down my spine. Which is why in many of the "laboring" pics that Andrea took, my midwife was rubbing and applying counter pressure to my back.

My labor progressed like my midwife had predicted.... but what slowed us down was actually PUSHING!! (which was actually a blessing since we were able to get a 2nd dose of the antibiotics into my body, so Nate didn't have to have blood drawn and tested!)

I usually look forward to the time when I can start pushing... it usually feels a "little better" than the contractions. But not pushing NATE!!!

We had a couple of things hindering us all because of Nate's position. So I tried all sorts of positions to try to get Nate to move so he could be delivered!!!! Honestly, if I would have had an epidural I wouldn't have been able to move and attempt to change Nate's position..... the Dr would have had to manually turn and move him.... OUCH!!!

I have to share that it was in the middle of pushing that my MOmma walked into the delivery room!! She was there for Anna's birth! She has her own labor experience as well as Anna's and Hannah's births... funny how a MOmma's presence is always comforting.

Anyway, we tried all sorts of positions and finally Nate moved. I tell you one of the most painful things was when the midwife was pulling my belly to the right (since Nate was laying on my left side) during a contraction and attempting to push. Whoo-hoooo!!

Nothing was better than after 1.5 hours of actively pushing to have Nate placed on me!!! He was soo sweet and big :)

There is always a feeling of relief especially since I had been pushing soo long and had gotten really tired. And the on-call doctor had also made an appearance, so I know that they were getting a little worried.

When the nurses took him to be weighed. They first asked everyone in the room how big they thought he was.... LOL!!! I don't remember all #s that were shouted out, but I remember my mom saying that he couldn't be bigger than 9 lbs because he looked smaller than my brother who was 9 lbs!!

Imagine our surprise that he weighed 9 lbs 13 oz!! He was a chubby monkey:)

Andrea was there and took some great pics;) Here's her slideshow of the delivery!! We are blessed to have such as sweet friend willing to travel soo late to capture Nate's birth!

And I had the BEST staff!!! I loved my midwife;) I love how "granola" she is and was willing to let me labor without being hooked up to the IVs the whole time. And she was also very willing to let me push in ways I thought would be beneficial and then suggested new ways.... she's a super hero in my eyes since her final suggestion was what got Nate out;)

The head nurse and her "shadow" were soo encouraging and friendly. They took good care of us the rest of the night as well as the following night;) They totally let me shower as soon as I got out of bed in the wee hours of the morning;)

I'm sure I left out something....

But I am sooo fortunate to have had a GREAT labor. Even with the GSB and antibiotics, I had very little medical intervention.... no IVs. I could move around:)

And more importantly..... Nate was such a healthy little guy!! And that he's here now and always ready to be snuggled;)

Nate's Newborn Photoshoot:)

Andrea came over Wednesday afternoon to capture some of Nate's newborness before it quickly passes :(

She had first hand experience with how sleepy and "easy" he usually is (I'm writing this late and he's fussing right now... yes, Andrea it does happen!!) I'm really starting to understand why Nate was soo "quiet" in my belly and thinking it really does have something to do with his personality....

seriously, if he's warm, fed and comfortable... he's good! He's been such an "easy" baby... I mean, I still need to feed him 8+ times every 24 hours. And we need to keep him in clean clothes, bathe him and burp him. He's the pee-pee and stinky king... his diaper is ALWAYS needing to be changed:) But personality wise he's a content and laid-back baby:) And oh, soo snuggly:)

He's not on a schedule yet. But he's given me 3 nights soo far this week where he slept in 4-5 hours blocks and I"ve gotten to sleep!! Makes such a difference in how I feel that next day, especially since I"ve been trying to take care of the kids and the house more.

Andrea posted some of her amazing pics on her photography website;) here's the link:)

I totally understand why people would drive hours to get to a professional natural light photographer.... just their experience and equipment makes for good pictures. But then throw in someone like Andrea who can choose ordinary spots and use ordinary props to make some beautiful pictures;)

My only regret was that I didn't pull the whole family outside for some pictures of them with Nate!

WW: Nursing "coma"

Nate is soo content after nursing. He just falls sleep while we attempt to burp him or even keep him awake for a bit:)


You can find some other picture posts at Wordless Wednesday, 5 Minutes for Mom and Go Graham Go!!!

Tiny Talk Tuesday - school and prayers

Thanks to Mary @ Not Before 7 .... I just love recording and remembering what my kids have said each week;) Here are some more!

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Lydia asked for "orange juice" one morning. Trying to expand her vocabulary (or teach her our lingo), I said, "Lydia sometimes we call orange juice, OJ. Can you say OJ?"

Lydia proudly responded back "OJ, D-I-A (like she was spelling it), OJ!!"
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Lydia (3 yrs old) asked to pray for our lunch this week and this was her prayer:

"Dear God, Tank que for Anna, Christopher, Mommy and Daddy. Tank que for me lunch. Tank que for all da people in da world. And tank que for what we eating. Amen"

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Anna and I have been practicing her math addition and subtraction facts since she has finished her math work for the year already. (As a trained high school math teacher I think knowing math facts is sooo foundational!!) Anyway, we still need work since she's still using her fingers for some of them.

I show her "11-5 ="

And she says out of frustration, "MOm!! How can I do that one? I don't have eleven fingers!"

LOL!! See we have some work:) But I thought it was really funny:)

Nate's First Week

Coming home from the hospital!


Lots and lots of sleep.... especially during the DAY!! LOL!!


Looking at the time... wondering when my next meal is;) I"m a great nurser!!


And I love smiling when people are talking sweet to me.


My siblings love my little toes;)











I have been outside a few times... yes, even took a snooze while Christopher made mud cakes:)


And I had my debut over on SIMPLE.... check me out! And there is a giveaway to go with my cute little face... ooops, I mean the ring sling my mom got to try out:)