School's Out!

Today was the last day of school! The kids got out early even, which was fun. We go in Monday morning to pick up his meds and report card, but we're pretty much good for the summer. We are all so excited, and can't wait to take some down time, hang out as a family.

I may even play with some flowers and stuff again this summer. Mark decided that we can fit 4 boys into this house, and I agreed to give it a shot. Mostly because I can't turn in the paperwork, he has to, and he just wants to stay here. Maybe we'll stay and save up some money, look into getting a house or something. It'll be tight, but we'll see how it goes. I'm thinking the 3 older boys in the big room, a toddler bed and a bunk bed. Just for the 1st 6 months, until the baby is a bit older. Then William and the baby will be together, and the two older boys will share. Not sure who will get which room yet.... I'm a little nervous about having William in with a bunkbed, the kid has no fear, but we'll try it and see.

So that means that I get to enjoy all my perinials getting a whole lot bigger this year, some of my flowers I put in the first summer we got here and they are getting so big! Others, like the rose bushes I put in last year, are sure to suprise me with how they do. My pansies are spreading under the tree we sprinkled them by, and all my echinacea plants are sprouting everywhere. I let some of the pods go to seed and fluffed them everywhere, just for kicks. Pretty! (I'm trying to see the good side of having to squeeze 6 people in this house.)

And along with Steph's news of her little one moving around today, I'm having a blast with junior! Ever since the ultrasound, he's just been a little livewire! Rolling all over the place. Wakes up about 10pm every night, just dancing around in there. Hopefully when he gets here he'll realize that nighttime is for sleeping... :-)

Picture Time!

The ultrasound went very well this morning! Our technician was very nice and printed off lots of pictures, so I scanned in the best ones to post here for you.

Everything looked great. I was worried about the heart, from the diabetes stuff, but that was fine. Also, we got a good lip shot, and no cleft. So far we aren't sure on the actual palate, the angle wasn't great, but our chances aren't phenomenally high or anything so I'm not too worried. Baby was very active too, and it was so fun to see and feel the movement at the same time!

Here we a picture of an adorable little foot, with the toes nice and clear. The other foot was just as cute, but baby didn't bring it down until after she took this shot and hit print.

A nice profile shot. We had a hard time getting this angle, so they had me get up and use the bathroom. No problems there! I had been drinking lots of water just in case, so was mildly relieved to have that excuse. This was right after we got a great view of baby's lip, which looked great. Baby has an arm up underneath the chin, that's the solid white by the chest.

And what everyone is waiting to see!

Ha Ha! Just had to draw it out a bit, because of course it was the first shot we got and was very clear.

Okay, here ya go! Um, lets just say there is no doubt what this little guy is. At all.

I have to admit, I was the tiniest bit dissapointed for a second. But we are just thrilled that everything is formed the way it's supposed to be. He measures exactly on my due date, which means that I'm doing well on my diet. He weighs about 10 oz, and his heartrate is a solid 150. Absolutely perfect! Boys are so much fun, and I am glad the Lord is entrusting me with another sweet spirit, and hopefully future missionary! Just think, somebody has to have boys to send out into the world and teach people about his love and word. And I am lucky enough to get 4 of them! Who knows, maybe this time I'll get that redhead I keep hoping for? Plus, I already have everything for little boys, and I am a whiz at changing their diapers in the middle of the night. :-)

Now I just have to wait another 20 weeks to hold him and kiss him and smell his sweet baby smell.....

What a great day!

It's a fantastic day today! The sun is shining, we found the right parking garage, I didn't have to have a full bladder.... What more could you ask for?

Well, I guess you could ask for pictures and stuff from our morning at the doctor, and although I do have pictures to post for you, I have to run to Oren's school and drop off treats.

So I'll post pictures a little bit later today.

But I will leave you with a teaser. We are having a.......... healthy.........active.........adorable little feet-ed........... human offspring! That's right! We are letting you know that it's definitely not a cat, dog, or watermelon. :-)

Good to go!

I got a call back from the doctor's office this morning. They checked over my referral and talked to the lady who does all the tricare billing and all that. I guess it's all inclusive for any OB care I need! Any scans and any tests, all that stuff. So we're still set for Friday!

Cross your fingers this little one isn't shy like Oren was.... Amanda will kill me if I don't find out. I think she's more excited than I am. She wants to go shopping and plan my baby shower!

And of course I will post pictures for all to see, I feel bad I haven't taken any for a while but I've just been tired and my brain isn't really working right lately or something.... :-)

Another Week Gone

It never ceases to amaze me how quickly a home can get trashed. I spent all of Saturday cleaning up because Mark's dad was passing through on his way to Washington and needed a place to stay the night. Now, only Monday, the only thing still clean is my bedroom. Oh well.

Mark was an absolute angel and dragged the propane tank to the gas station to fill it for our barbeque. I was in heaven and did up some yummy steaks and homemade mashed potatoes for dinner that day. I forsee lots of grilling out this summer since I don't have to mess with charcoal, and it's yummy, and quick. We didn't fill the tank last year and just used charcoal, which was annoying. The grill and tank were both free, and it was only $13 to fill it. Yeah!

And we've found some foods that our little baby loves! Peanut butter and jelly sandwich with milk. Ramen noodles. Powerade. Lots of fun! Apperantly the kiddo doesn't like when Mommy blogs about him/her, and kicked the keyboard. :-) Hopefully the insurance authorization will come through and we'll be able to keep our appointment for Friday. Oren has been counting down the days, and even Mark is getting excited! (Baby also does not appreciate sneezing....)

It's been a pretty uneventful but still somehow busy week, and we are all getting ready for school to get out for the summer in a couple weeks. The temperature is finally feeling like spring, although today was 99 degrees for the high. I knew it was hot, and even got out some gaucho shorts, but I didn't know it was that hot! Whew! Luckily it'll be a bit cooler tomorrow, but still, this does not bode well for the summer and I envision lots of time spent inside for Mommy, who burns better than an egg on the sidewalk.

The Big One!

I got a wonderfully exciting call from Fetal Medicine, the ultrasound clinic today. I had called my doctor about some scheduling issues withe ultrasound versus my regular OB checkup, and he sent in a new referral. They can now get me in at 18 weeks, instead of waiting until I'm 20! Hurray! So our big ultrasound is scheduled for next Friday morning, the 22nd. Here's hoping this one's not camera shy....

I told Oren at bedtime today. We are not having him go to school that day, he would be very sad to miss seeing the baby. And Mark will be going to the office is fine with it. I even pointed it out on the calendar. What does he do? Starts bawling like crazy that he has to wait all the way unti then, and couldn't we do it sooner, and he doesn't want to wait that long.... Meds were very worn off, and it had been a long and tiring afternoon. Too funny though. I shut the door and didn't hear another peep!

I am exhausted so I am glad I snuck a nap. Picked up Nathan from the bus at 2:30. Ran over to the school to pick up Oren and Amanda's daughter, who I watch after school until her daddy gets off work. We ran over to the park and played there until 4, when we had to go to piano lessons. The kids played while I taught until about 6. Enrichment was tonight at 6, which meant Burger King macaroni and cheese with apples and milk for dinner, and a lovely grilled chicken salad for me. They ate that during our first class and headed to the nursery. Boy, was I glad I had gone for the healthy options, because they had a doctor doing a class on women's health issues, and what was he talking about when I got there? Eating well and nutrition, and diabetes. Hee hee!

Then there was a class on depression that turned into idea sharing on how to get your kids to stay in their room at night and various other topics. Somebody's bright refreshment idea was cookies and brownies, so after a quick sugar check I indulged in a very small pumpkin spice with mini chocolate chips thing, which tasted really good. Everybody was loading their plates and were so impressed by my self control. It's amazing what the thought of a 10 lb baby will do for you.... :-) We didn't leave until after 9, since my kids disappeared and I had to walk the church tracking them down. That was a bit scary- for once they were playing quietly in a room with the door shut instead of making a racket so I could hear them. That church never seemed so big!

And now, because it's nearly 11, I will go take my meds like a good girl, eat a cheesestick so I don't go unconcious during the night, and get myself to bed!

?????????

No idea what to title this.

Actually, no idea what to post at all!

Happy Mother's Day yesterday to all of you. Wouldn't it be nice if husbands were legally required to present you with flowers, goodies, and gift certificates for massages or tiny boxes with earings in them? Wouldn't it be awesome if children automatically behaved all day, did not hit or poke or punch or race and knock each other over or scream at the top of their lungs that they want food now? And wouldn't it be sweet if husbands took over all cleaning and cooking duties for the day?

Pity it doesn't work that way.... But I did recieve a very nice book at church. All the church art compiled into one book that will be nice for primary lessons or FHE. And a 10 minute nap while everyone was outside taking the training wheels off a bike we traded a crib for yesterday.

A chapel downtown was playing a game called "bigger and better" on Saturday. You start with a penny and trade it for something. Then you trade up for something better, and it goes on for 3 hours. Everybody meets at the end to vote who basically got the neatest stuff for a penny. A gentleman came by our street and Mark was spraying weeds, introduced what they were doing and asked if we had anything we would trade for a kids bike. Amanda bought me a new crib at the thrift store so I wouldn't have to worry about painting ours white to match the dresser we'll be using, so I have an extra crib. We kept the bike and they took the crib away. I would have had them haul off the 100 yr old piano in the garage, because it is gorgeous other than needing new insides (about $1500 which is why we just bought a different piano) but the thing literally weighs a ton and his truck had a camper cover on it, so it was too big.

At least Nathan has a bike big enough for him now! Oren got the "new one" and Nathan inherited Oren's. Which is a better one anyway, because the tires are solid rubber.

I think that's about it. I should be getting a call by Friday from the ultrasound people with the June schedule, and get my big ultrasound scheduled. I hope!

messed up morning plans

I have found that with our particular children, one should always be open to last minute things coming up. For instance, our trip to the hospital this morning!

I got the boys up and dressed, and Oren ended up being very late since his brothers were dragging their feet today. Ran him to school and then headed to town for Nathan's therapy. When we got there I went to hand Nathan a tissue to blow his nose, he's been stuffy/runny nose for a week or so now with what I think is allergies. What is that on your face? Oh great.

Lots of tiny, pimply looking bumps. The same ones he had last time he had a stuffy nose from allergies. The same ones that signaled the arrival of impetigo, a nicely contagious infection usually found in the nose/mouth area. So we turned around and went back to base, the therapist laughing at us good naturedly, because I was cracking up myself. They weren't there when he woke up! And they were worse by the time we got home.

I dropped William off with Mark and ran over to the Urgent Care Clinic, because pediatrics was completely out of same-day appointments. All these poor people there with aches and pains, dizzy, hurting.... and here was Nathan bouncing off the chairs and climbing all over everything. As they were getting us triaged/ checked in, the lady at the desk ran in and told me peds just called and they had a cancelation for 20 minutes from then. I grabbed that up! May as well leave the beds for people who really need them, you know?

We saw the doctor whose children I teach piano to, and he agreed with me that it was the start of an impetigo infection. I love being right. He also prescribed some zirtec for Nathan and William to maybe help with their allergies. We'll see. So after at least an hour in the pharmacy we left with an antibiotic ointment he'll use until it clears up, and some allergy meds. It shouldn't take long to clear, we caught it at the very beginning. Last time, I didn't know what it was and let it go until it was crusting and oozing, all gross..... Oops!

All in all, it was a long morning in the hospital, but at least we caught it literally right at the beginning. I love how they just all of a sudden appeared! And although it means I probably won't make it to the grocery store, it's important to be flexible in our house for sure!

must have.....

Fajitas!

In keeping with Steph's food craving post, I must add one of my own. I was chatting with her this morning while looking at the Today show and caught them cooking up the most amazing fajita thingy. Steak, done medium rare, cilantro, avocado, and a bunch of other stuff that just looked like something I had to eat. Mark was resistant to running to the store in town, but I don't think he understood the force of the food calling me.

After picking up the kids I took advantage of the fact that Amanda's daughter lives in town and took her home for her dad, who had a commander's call (briefing) today and would be working late anyway. Then a stop at a store where I walked out with flank steak (on sale because it needed used or frozen today), tomatoes, fresh salsa, avocado, a lime, cilantro, and black beans.

I threw together a rub of salt, pepper, garlic powder, smoked paprika, and cumin, and broiled the meat with the rub and several squirts of lime juice until medium in the middle, for the kids' safety. Cooked the black beans with sazon goya, a seasoning found in the hispanic section. Smushed up the avocado with lime juice, garlic powder, and a bit of ranch dressing. Cut up a red pepper and piled everything on a carb control tortilla with plenty of cilantro. Heaven! I was full after one, but they were so good I just had to eat another!

Mark was very glad I went to all that trouble when he came home for dinner to that lovely fajita smell. Besides the fact that I haven't cooked anything fancy for a while because I have either been too tired, too busy, or nothing really sounds good. I don't know what's for dinner tomorrow, but I know I enjoyed it tonight!

We're busy, try again later....

I am so glad school is over soon! That will be at least one thing I can be done with..... for a few months at least. We just jumped in with both feet coming back from our little vacation, and finally made it all the way to Sunday.

This week:

I discovered I don't need a nap everyday anymore!

Oren's meds were increased a tad to help with mornings at school. Which I was only comfortable with because he finally crossed the 40 lb line! And he turns 7 in a month, sad....

William started pummeling Nathan instead of the other way around all the time.

Oren put groceries away by himself, without being asked, in the correct spots! He is becoming such a gentleman, and is my biggest helper. He also reads stories to his brothers, and hauls William out of the laundry room for me.

Mark turned 30 on Friday. but because he had to work that night we had his birthday date on Saturday instead.

We went to the BEST restaurant I have ever been too! Nothing needed salt at all, which is amazing. Tucano's Brazillian Grill. (Rachel, I highly recommend while you're here, it's in Boise) It's an all you can eat buffet, with a humongous salad/soup/veggie/fruit/pasta/bread/beans/rice/all-sorts-of-stuff bar in the middle of the restaurant. Pretty much everything but meat. Fried bananas, quail eggs, cheesy bread bite thingies, pasta salads, bean and corn salads, fried potatoes..... (Mark wasn't too hot on the quail eggs, I didn't try them.) Amazing drinks, non-alcoholic stuff like mango and passionfruit mixes and stuff. And then there's the meat service. The servers come around to all the table with gigantic skewers- about 2 feet long- with these different sorts of brazillian meats. You tell them what you want and how much and they put it on your meat plate. So you can sample all these things and then have more of what you like if you want. We were there for over an hour enjoying some of the best foods I have eaten in while. We will definitely be going there again.

And Rachel, you'd be so proud. We got a free ice cream there, because it's Mark's birthday! I just had to embarass him, so I told them about his birthday, and when they brought his ice cream, they also brought half the servers and a big loud drum parading through the restaurant shouting in portuguese. They announce, full volume, that they were going to sing him a song, which they did also in portuguese. Too cool! We went home happy and very full....

But we have hit Sunday with a relaxing breath, ready to start another busy week. Full of finger pokes, dirty diapers, lawn mowing, house cleaning, school runs, piano lessons, shamu-style baths, dishwashing, laundry doing, toy throwing, and maybe a little cooking on the side!