S&K Rock the Itsy Bitsy Spider

Sister love, part II

Sammy just came up from the basement carrying a small toy, and said, "Mama, I want to take a bath with my turtle." Katie was following. I said, "Katie, Sammy wants to take a bath with his turtle. What do you want to take a bath with?" She said, "I want to take a baff wif............. Hmmmm............ BENNY!!!!!"

I'm not sure what Katie loves more...

... her little brother, or getting in front of any camera she sees!

Benny just chillin'.

Random cuteness

Benny sleeping in Daddy's rocker.

Katie and MawMaw reading a story

The adorable monkey outfit from Mrs. Erin & Camryn.

Benny Photos, 12 Days Old

Mom is great...

...she give us da chocolate cake!
(But for dinner, not for breakfast.)
(2 points if you can guess what that's from, BTW.)


They couldn't decide which kinds of sprinkles they wanted - blue, dinosaurs, or cars. So we did 'em all!


The little monkeys couldn't leave the cooling cake alone. So it was rather distressed even before it got frosted.


It was YUUUUUUUUUMMMM-MEEEEEEE!!! (And yes, we did eat a real dinner afterwards.)

Baby in the Land of Giants

(messy giants!)

Brief update

Not spending much time at the computer, still. Here is what's going on.

• Benny is off the bili-lights as of Friday, his 1 week b-day. I was glad I remembered to take his 2nd PKU lab slip with me so we got 2 labs out of the 1 prick, and are DONE with the lab!
• I REALLY enjoyed not having to go anywhere yesterday. (Especially since I didn't feel up to it.)
• I dubbed yesterday "(Insert my last name here) big kid underwear day." I actually turned out to be "(Insert my last name here) big kid naked day." Katie made at least 3 #1s on the potty. Sammy made at least 3, on the carpet. And a #2 on the toddler bed mattress, which for some reason was out on the floor in their room. (And I'm glad, as it was a lot easier to clean up than the carpet!!!)
• Today we had "The Great Potty Contest" - 1 sticker for #1, 2 stickers for #2. Sammy earned 3 stickers right off the bat by not emptying his whole bladder two different times. Pretty impressive for someone who wouldn't go near a potty 48 hours ago. He wouldn't go near it for his poop, though, and I had to clean it off the carpet. Yuck! Katie only earned 1 sticker. She just didn't care about the contest. And perhaps wasn't feeling well today, as she cried through half of my massage tonight and fell asleep on my lap at 8:30. (She is my little night owl and usually stays up until 10 or 11)
• I started doubling up on my vitamins (taking every 12 hrs instead of 24) on Wed and felt much better Fri. Then I forgot to take any Fri and felt crummy again yesterday. I must be depleted in something or another. (And I guess that is why the recovery is so much harder this time...) At least I've been able to get through a couple of days with no nap, though.
• In 1 week I get my house (and all its chores) back to myself. And my kids get their room back. I am both happy and sad about this.

Last night with Bili-light?

My little glow-worm! His bili levels were 13.0 today. They were as high as 18.4 a few days ago. We will be glad to be rid of these lights soon!

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

Milk face!

This baby by far has the greatest sucking need of any of my kids. He will keep on nursing, until he is REALLY asleep, letting the milk dribble out the bottom of his mouth... his arm... his Boppy... his Mommy...

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

I have 3 babies!

(Still pretty surreal for someone who wondered for a decade if she'd ever have any...)

Baby Benny

(I forgot I could do this from my phone!) His name is William Bennett. Born 1/16/09 @ 1:45 a.m. 19.5", 6 lbs 14 oz. Photo from Sat afternoon. Lots more pics to follow once he's off the bili lights & I'm feeling up to sitting at the computer.

This message was sent using the Picture and Video Messaging service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, QuickTime� 6.5 or higher is required.

Baby is here. For some

Baby is here. For some reason, the hospital blocks blogger access. So I can't post from here. :-( Will update when home.

Happy Birthday Lilly Claire!!!

My sweet little niece is 1 year old today!

Sweet baby miracles

My son just came and sat next to me at the computer (laptop on tray @ my bed), leaned into me, put his head on my shoulder, and fell asleep. I remember when he was the newborn, and how much I loved to watch him sleep. I still do, truth be told, I just don't take the opportunity to do it very often. It's hard to remember in the midst of all the diaper-changing, breaking up fights and teaching them to share, feeding, entertaining, teaching them; just what little miracles they are. In the quiet of a snuggly sleep, though, you can't help but notice. Right this moment I'm in awe that I was even blessed with one. Much less two, nearly three!

39w3d

OB check today. Still "2 & soft." She wanted to talk about induction today, but kindly put it off for me until my appointment next week. Please pray with me that we won't come to that point. (TMI alert: Been wiping a decent amount of mucous every time I go to the bathroom, so there's a good chance it won't.) I have an acupuncture appointment later this afternoon. I hope that gets things going again. It gave me all kinds of wonderful, regular contractions last time, but in the middle of the night they just stopped. Maybe this time they won't... My dad leaves very early Friday morning, so we are still hoping the baby gets here by tomorrow night. At this point, if the baby does come, I won't be out of the hospital before he leaves...

I've been reminding myself to slow down and enjoy this time... Who knows if I'll ever get to experience it again. Yeah, it's a little hard/uncomfortable to move, but it is such a miracle... Gotta keep that thought in the forefront!

39 weeks

As of 2:00 this afternoon, I am more pregnant than I have ever been.

I hope this baby comes in time to meet his PawPaw. He has to leave on Friday morning.

Baby Belly

Things that might coax the wee one out

This topic has come up about 5 times in the last week, so I thought I'd list here the things I've heard of to help get labor going. From what I have heard, these should only work if the baby is actually ready to come out. (But just in case, I wouldn't try most of them until you were sure both you and the baby were ready! Definitely not before 37 weeks!) I am not going to explain why they work or how to do them, just list them. If you want to research it more, I'm sure Google would be glad to help you.

• Seamen on the cervix (yes I spelled that wrong on purpose, in hopes of keeping pervy commentors away) My doc likes to call this one "husband-induced labor"
• N!pple stimulation (substitute "i" for "!", same reason as above)
• Drink lots of raspberry leaf tea
• Foot & ankle massage (a fairly aggressive one, not a relaxing one); make sure to hit 4th & 5th toes & the area above the inner-ankles
• Massage the muscle next to the loose skin between your thumb & 1st finger
• Evening primrose oil vag. suppositories
• Chiropractic adjustment of the pelvic area
• Acupuncture (There are specific points that need attention, so make sure you find someone who is has experience with what you are trying to do)
• Walk, walk, walk!
• If you live near a mountain, take a drive to a higher altitude (short enough that you can make it back to your hospital if you need to!)
• Have your OB "strip your membranes" (Warning: not exactly a fun experience!)

It's great to have friends!

One of my friends that I met through the local FlyBaby group called me this weekend and asked if I wanted help with moving stuff or cleaning anything before my parents got here. She said something of theirs got cancelled and they had some extra time to hang out in town between events. She shows up on my doorstep yesterday afternoon with not just her daughter (our usual mommy's helper/babysitter) to entertain my kids like she'd promised, but 2 other FlyBaby friends and their kids. For a minute I thought they were throwing me a surprise shower. (This group seems to do that a lot.) But they said they were here to help.

It couldn't have happened on a better day. I was tired and my brain was so fuzzy I couldn't hold a coherent thought for more than about 3 seconds. And I was TOTALLY overwhelemed by the mess that was all over the floor and every flat surface, where the house had been pretty darn clean (relatively) 4 of 5 days before. I was literally wishing I had a fairy godmother to come waver her wand and make just ONE ROOM clean. (I had forgotten Amy had arranged to come over!) They helped me move all my books out of the (now Jeff's) office down to the basement bookshelves. They helped me take down the Christmas tree and get everything back in the boxes. They picked up a bunch of stuff (main floor AND basement) and swept the floor... One of them arranged my bookshelves very nicely, whereas before I had just kinda thrown stuff on them, intending to arrange it once I had all the books down there. They left one room - the living room - completely clean. They were only here for an hour, but there is sure power in numbers!

AND

They brought me a gift for the baby. A Visa gift card for a very generous amount, from them + 3 others from the group. Almost enough to buy the Beco baby carrier that have been drooling over since I was first introduced to them a year or so ago. Plus the promise of tearing down and reupholstering the 2nd- (or 3rd-?) hand chair and couch in the basement once I acquire the fabric.

Wow! I am just floored! And thankful. No, grateful. Indebted. Wow! Thanks you guys!!!

38 weeks

Today is the day in Katie's pregnancy when I got induced. (At least according to the Dr. & u/s. That was back when I was good about charting, though, and I *know* it was 37 weeks.)

We are getting closer and closer. The BH contractions, while still very irregular, are getting nice and strong. Some of them are strong enough to make me be still until they are over. I am starting to feel some pressure way down low and will be *really* surprised if I am still at 0 on Wed.

Something is different today. I tried to make a "tunnel" for Katie on the stairs (put both my hands and feet on the stairs, 3-4 steps apart, and she crawls under me) like I always do and it was very uncomfortable. My belly and my thighs were competing for the same space, and neither one of them were happy about it. It felt like he had popped "out" more, away from my spine and out in the front of me.

I am not feeling as anxious about the name thing this morning as I was last night. It must have been a side effect of being up too late!

The Daddy and I did the first half of the baptism class at church yesterday morning. It doesn't seem like that long ago we did it with a 3 week old baby boy in tow... They've changed the format of the class, and I am definitely looking forward to the 2nd half next weekend.

Afternoon nap time has become something of a requirement for me the last week or two. My big kids, however, quit napping about 5 minutes after I got pregnant. So I lie on their bed and pretend to watch a movie with them (latest favorites are Madagascar and Over the Hedge) but really I sleep. That's OK. I appreciate every little bit I can get. I know I will soon have a month or two or three where sleep will be a long-forgotten thing of the past.

The MawMaw and PawPaw arrive some time on Wed. That is also when my next checkup is.

If I had anything else to say, I have forgotten it...

No, in fact, we haven't picked a name yet...

(And thanks for not asking, because I was getting tired of the question.)

Actually, that's not true. We've all 4 picked a name. But they are all DIFFERENT names, and we cannot all completely agree on a name...

• The Daddy, who thinks it is very important to name kids after relatives, likes "Calvin" after his grandpa John Calvin (Grampy's dad). The Catholic mommy just cannot bring herself to name a baby Calvin. Even if it is really after his own great-grandpa.
• The Mommy, who thinks it is very important for kids to have a good saint or biblical name, likes "John Paul" after Grampy (John Richard), both the Daddy's grandpas (John Calvin & John Jefferson), the Daddy's grandma (Pauline, Grammy's mom), the last pope, and the NT Bible writer who has inspired her the most. The Daddy, being the only non-John male in his family, understandably doesn't want to name his son John. Even though the Mommy planned all along to call him "JP" or "Pauly" or "Paul"
• The Brother likes "Calvin" the best. But he also likes "John Paul"
• The Sister's favorite is "Benny" after the Mommy's grandpa Eldred Ben (MawMaw's dad) and his son (MawMaw's brother) Ben who died of lukemia at age 1. And she is already calling him Benny. But she also really likes both "John Paul" and "Calvin." (Her exact words about both were, "Mama, I **WUV** dat name!!!")

Since the Brother named the Sister, the Mommy thinks it is only fair that the Sister should get to name Little Brother. (But, the Mommy should probably admit that she only started thinking this once the Sister decided she liked Benny better than Calvin. At one point Mommy was outvoted on Calvin 3-1. Before that everybody but Daddy liked JP and Daddy was outvoted 3-1...) The Sister, who now understands that her Brother named her, also jumped to this logical conclusion herself. (Pretty impressive critical thinking for a 2.5 year old, if you ask me!)

If we do go with Benny, will he be Benjamin (like Mommy likes)? Or Bennett (like Daddy likes)? Or Benedict (like the uncle suggested, only he was being silly and meant the traitor, whereas we would mean the Pope)? Or just plain Ben? Then what middle name would go with it? Mommy likes Benjamin Paul, but when she suggested it to the Daddy, he said "Yeah... we could call him BP" (And pronounced it "beepy." And I bet he would, too.)

Mommy's next choice would be to name him William Ireland after the Jesuit martyr who is a great-great-...-great uncle in the (Protestant) Daddy's ancestry line. Other names the Mommy would agree to: Paul, Andrew, Joseph, Thomas, Michael, Daniel, David, Jacob. (Matthew was also high on Mommy's list, but a close friend due a few weeks after us picked that name for their little boy.)

Grandpas we could draw names from: Steven Mark, Samuel Bernard, Eldred Ben, Stanley Louis, John Richard, John Jefferson, John Calvin. We could also name him Gerald or Paul after the Daddy's grandmas Geraldine & Pauline.
Uncles & Great-Uncles we could draw names from: Scott Micheal, John Richard, Daniel, David, Tommy (both sides), Richard (both sides), Ben, Tracy

The Daddy's input is severely lacking (except for smart-alec remarks to names the Mommy really likes)...

The mommy is getting more and more stressed about not having a name...

Feel free to comment. (Sometimes commenting on other peoples' baby names can be more dangerous than commenting on politics, but I would like to hear what some of you have to say...)

"Yes, it's true...

...I'm so happy to be stuck with you!" -- Huey Lewis & The News

There was no way I was gettin' outta this one with out help! (But I have to admit I didn't even ask for help until my legs started falling asleep!)




(please excuse the mess. Even when I have the energy to pick it up, it is so hard to bend over...)

Diaper Envy

BumGenius! has some new colors and I want some!!!

Happy New Year & 2009 Goals

I hope 2009 brings all of you more peace, love, joy, happiness, and whatever else it is you're looking for.

A friend on one of my email lists inspired me to write down my 2009 goals that have been floating around my subconscious. Some of them are repeat goals from 2008. Or 2007. (There may even be one in there from 1996 or so. Hey, I'm far from perfect!) Some are new. Anyway, I just thought I'd share them.

1. Establish a regular prayer schedule (first for me, then for family)
2. Emanate peace to everyone I encounter
3. Be nicer to my kids (hopefully will be easier w/o pgcy hormones)
4. Research upgrading vehicles & replacing sliding glass door
5. Promote my business
6. Read 1 book a month
7. Get my heart rate up at least once a week
8. Cook healthier meals for my family
9. Go through all the boxes of stuff that got packed up for thebasement remodel, find a home or donate
10. Get my craft room organized
11. Scrapbook at least twice a month/work on big kids' baby books andkeep up with new baby's baby book
12. Learn to do more with less/spend less
13. Paint some walls & make the upstairs as pretty/fun as the basement

I enjoy reading other peoples' goals, too, so if you have some, do share.