Monday Morning. Another Week.

Traditionally, Monday is when I do my thankful list, but I am going to change that today and do a little catching up on the blog.

The kids are fed, the dishwasher is unloaded and kitchen cleaned, and the laundry is going (beds are not made yet, I confess), so I am grabbing this moment to blog.

What has been happening with us lately?

1.  Ada started ballet last Wednesday.  She is thrilled to be back at it.  All summer she has asked when ballet will start again.  When ballet ended in the Spring. Ada was dealing with her extreme fears and it was a battle to get her to go into the classroom each week.  I am relieved and thankful  that those fears are gone.  On Wednesday, she pranced into the classroom and never looked back.  Thank you, Lord.

 (Ada goes barefoot for ballet.  I think she will get some ballet shoes for Christmas)

(by the way, we do have a yard with grass, I just always end up taking pictures in our parking area)

2.  On Thursday, a group of us went on our first official homeschool field trip.  My first, I mean.  It was homeschool day at the train museum in Duluth, and there we were in all our glory ;)  Overall, it was...okay...

John held it together until the end, but once he was done, he was done.  But we did it, and I know these types of things are good for Ada.  The field trip ended with a really bad train ride.  It was so slow and random.  But, we did ride a train.  And it was fun to tour old passenger trains.

 (there was a sheet for the students to fill out as they toured the museum)

(the very slow train ride)

3. On Friday my parents came for the day.  I have no pictures of this.  It was a really fun day, though.  They needed to pick up some furniture that we no longer have room for, and we made a day of it.  Mom brought lunch, and we just hung out around the house.  Ada and John loved it, of course, and it was fun for me, as well.  Plus, mom brought lots of food, so that took care of meals for us all weekend long.  Yay.

4.  On Saturday, with all of its glorious fall weather, we headed to a local "fly-in."  We have a neighborhood of pilots here.  You know, where everybody owns their own plane--and the father of the girl who teaches Ada's ballet class is one of the pilots in that neighborhood.  So, around lunch time on Saturday, we headed over there so that Ada and John could see the air planes and enjoy being outside.  I thought that Ada and John would love seeing the airplanes, but they were only mildly impressed.  Still, it was a fun outing.

 (Ada sitting in an airplane)

(playing on the playground)

 (Ada spends her life dancing)

And, of course, we wrapped up the weekend with the huge Auburn win--War Eagle!!!!  And a family walk around the neighborhood.  We are trying to soak up as much of this wonderful weather as possible.

And so begins another week.  I continue to feel a bit overwhelmed by life, but I am putting one foot in front of the other, and reminding myself...

This is the day the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it

Psalm 118:24

From McDonalds

I am definitely blogging from McDonald's right now.

For who knows what reason, our internet is not working.  Our phone is working, but not our internet.  Scott will hopefully be getting that fixed tomorrow.  But...the grocery list couldn't wait.  And I am now lost without my favorite coupon websites, so after Ada and John were tucked into bed, I ended up here in order to make a grocery list with coupon match-ups.  We have been eating waaaaay too much fast food over the past couple of days, so I am desperate to get to the grocery store first thing tomorrow.  Our budget and our health can't stand any more eating out.

We do have bread, peanut butter, eggs, and almond milk (what Ada drinks in place of regular milk), so really we could survive, I guess.

We also now have our Christmas tree--woo-hoo.  Ada is thrilled, and she even has her own tiny little artificial tree sitting in her room.  It's officially Christmas at our house.  Tonight we kicked the season off by reading about Gabriel telling Mary that she would have a baby--"You shall call his name Jesus, and He will be great!!"  (this is one of Ada's AWANA bible verses, so she was able to chime in at that part).

Ada was into the story, which was exciting because we read straight from the ESV bible, and usually we use her story book bible.  She asked some great questions, including how does a baby get into a mommy's tummy.  Several times we have gone over how the baby gets out, but this was the first question about how it gets in.  I took Ann's lead and told her that a baby can only get in a mommy's tummy if God puts it there, and she was satisfied with that.  She also wanted to know if one day she would have her baby in a hospital or a farm (you know, like Jesus).  I told her, that I assume she will have a baby in a hospital, not a farm;).

Anyway...just wanted to touch base.  We are still battling lots of sickness over here--pink eye, colds, and some strange rash all over John.  He is on an antibiotic for the pink eye (this is the second round of pink eye).  I am wondering if the rash is a reaction?  Hmmm...

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and is ready to fully enjoy the Christmas season.

Recovering

I am feeling much, much better, but I am now dealing with the aftermath of being down and out for a few days.

You know, sanitizing this germ infested house, rescheduling tutoring sessions that I missed while sick, and praying, praying, praying that John doesn't get sick, etc. etc.  At the same time I am trying to make sense of the millions of piles of baby clothes that I have lying around as John keeps outgrowing things left and right.  I still haven't dealt with 0-3 months and he's wearing 12-18 months.  Piles are everywhere.  Not to mention making the seasonal clothing switch.  Ahhhh---OVERWHELMED.  But, I am chipping away at the tasks.

Plus, we have a busy weekend ahead.

Scott's parents are coming into town for John's baptism, and Ada is thrilled.  John would be thrilled if he ever got thrilled about anything;)  Actually, he has started laughing out loud if Scott or I tickle his ribs, so that's major improvement for my little melancholy, breath-holding baby.  Who, by the way, is on the verge of pulling up.  I can tell he's dying to.  He gets himself up on his knees, but he hasn't worked up the courage/effort required to pull all the way up.  Big boy.

Okay, just wanted to give my blog a little attention.

Home Again

We have been away, vacationing.  Which, I quickly learned that with five children, five and under (Ellie-5, Luke-4, Ada-3, Andrew-19 months, John--7 months), vacation might not be the appropriate term;)

But I think that all the cousins had a wonderful time, and I am so thankful that we were able to go.  What a gift.  We certainly didn't think that we would be going on a family vacation this summer!!! (Fall?)

Anyway...today we are dealing with the aftermath of being away from home for 5 days, plus John is suffering from a cold with fever.  John is already a rather "fussy" baby, so when he isn't feeling well, it isn't pretty.  I hope to blog more about our trip, especially when I get more pictures from Ann...but you know, the best laid plans. 

Until then, here is a snapshot of the little sickling.

Sunday Evening

It is a rare Sunday evening at my house.

John is in bed, and strangely, Scott and Ada are at Six Flags for the afternoon and evening, so I am sitting on the couch enjoying the quiet, and the almost clean kitchen and living room.  Plus,  I am feeling quite rested because John and I took a THREE HOUR nap this afternoon!!  What a lovely Sunday afternoon it has been.

It is almost 7:30, and I would be worried about Scott and Ada, but he just called and let me know that Ada is loving Six Flags, and since this is a once in a blue moon opportunity we are letting her stay out a little later than normal.  Scott's office was having family day at Six Flags, which I don't fully understand how that works.  All I know is that Scott and Ada only had to pay 10.00 total to go to Six Flags for the day and food was included.  Scott loves Six Flags, so he was thrilled to have the chance to take Ada, even if it meant only child rides this time.  As you can imagine, Six Flags tickets are not typically factored into our budget ;)

I have lots that I want to blog about, but life just keeps getting in the way. 

I want to tell you about my birthday present from Scott--what a surprise it was!!  But I don't want to tell you about it without pictures and Scott has the camera, so that will come later.

I also want to let you know that John's neurologist appointment went well.  Again, they really think he is only having "breath-holding spells," not seizures (which is what they were checking for), but they are surprised by his young age, especially since these "spells" started at week one.  Again they predict that he may have a major tendency towards anger--yikes--but I will take it over seizures for sure!!  We do have an EEG scheduled for the 26th, just to be sure.  Again, his young age is throwing them just a bit.  We also have to have a bit of blood work done.  But, we are sure that all of this will reveal what we have known from the beginning, he just gets so angry that he holds his breath.  We are in for a wild toddler ride, perhaps.

We are enjoying/melting our way through these last few weeks of summer.  I know that school has started for everyone else, but not for us.  The heat outside tells me that summer is still in full swing.  In fact, we have a beach trip planned for September--exciting!!  A friend of Steven and Ann's offered them the use of their family beach house, and we are tagging along.  We are beyond thrilled because this will be our first family vacation.  We are headed to Orange Beach, so hopefully the oil won't be too big of a problem.  If so, there is a pool.  We are also hoping that the late date means no summer crowds.  Ada will be sharing a room with Ellie and Luke, and I think she is more excited about this fact than the beach itself.

When we return from the beach, I plan to start an at home preschool curriculum with Ada.  Preschool is another thing that is not factored into our budget at this point, and since I plan to homeschool anyway (and we are making that decision one year at a time), it makes sense to start by doing preschool at home.  I told Ada that we were going to school, and she asked where.  I said, "well, probably in our kitchen."  And she said, "can I bring my backpack?  It's where you keep your paper and your balls."  So, I think she will be packing her backpack each morning to make that long trek to the kitchen ;)

So...that is a long post but a shortened version of what is going on with us.  And in case you don't feel like reading, but you do want to see some pictures, I am stealing a few photos of myself as a baby from my mom's blog.  Do you think Ada and John look anything like me?  Everyone says that John is Scott's twin, but can you see any resemblance?  I am not sure--other than the chunkiness.  I guess he gets that from me.  I think Scott was a skinny baby.

What do you think?  Can you tell he's my son?

Dear Blog

I am sorry that I have neglected you so.   Please forgive me.

These two munchkins are taking up all my time.

And, in the very rare moment when they are both asleep at the same time, I am usually sleeping too.  So that leaves little time for you, little blog.

I promise, I will return later today to give you the attention that you need.

don't give up on me.

--LB

Same Old Story

No internet still.  I mean, I have internet, just not wireless, which means no way to post any new pictures to this blog.

John is crying right now, for no apparent reason.  He was sound asleep at 8:30, after eating for a good 20 minutes, but why not wake up an hour later and cry?  I love him so much, but he is so unpredictable compared to Ada.  I can't believe that at four months I am still struggling to get him on a schedule.  It's about to drive me crazy, but at the same time I am so thankful for all this milk and all this nursing.  Such a contradiction.

Anyway...just wanted to say hey.

I am worn out because we all, all four of us that is, tackled Kroger tonight, and the grocery list was long.  After eating out of the pantry for most of the week, I had lots to buy.  I didn't have to spend lots, though ;)  Thank you coupons.

By the way, the transition back into tutoring has gone surprisingly smoothly.  John has been very willing to eat right before I leave, so there has been no fear of him getting hungry while I am away, and my new student is shockingly well-behaved.  It makes for a very pleasant hour, and I just like anything having to do with education.  Tutoring not excluded.

And one more thing.  I finished Pride and Prejudice, and I too can't believe I had never read it.  Wow.  I am starting Sense and Sensibility now, only because the book is from the library, and it is three Austen novels in one.  Thanks for the suggestions, though.  Please keep them coming.  While a student and teacher, I spent much time on Shakespeare and Chaucer, and even the more ancient works such as Beowulf, but I never quite made it to Austen's era.  Though I love to study and to teach Shakespeare (particularly Macbeth), I must confess that Austen is much more enjoyable to read, so again, keep the suggestions coming.  I might have missed some of the best "reads" out there.

Still Here...

Good news--I found the camera.  I am so relieved about that one. 

I was sitting there last night, ready to fold a basket of laundry, and looking for the remote control.  I stuck my hand down into the couch cushions, thinking I would pull out the remote, and instead, out came the camera.  I was so excited!!  Thank you, Lord.

Also, something I haven't mentioned on the blog (I'm not sure why I haven't mentioned it), our downstairs air conditioning hasn't worked for several weeks now.  We have had someone out to look at it, and he couldn't figure it out, and we were discouraged that it was going to be really difficult to fix it.  Plus, we felt discouraged by the fact that the air conditioner is only two years old.  But...the same guy came back yesterday, and it was a very simple procedure that he overlooked the first time.  So...ta-da...we have air conditioning again.

I was in a great mood last night.

The only negative is that he had to cut the power for a minute to work on the air conditioner, and it messed up our wireless internet somehow.  I am able to use Scott's lap top at night, but I am still unable to post any pictures to the blog, leaving me very unmotivated to blog.

Other than that, things are moving along, same as always. 

I am still reading The Shaping of a Chrisitian Family, and I continue to be encouraged by it.  For fun, I am reading Pride and Prejudice for the very first time (can you believe it?!!!), and I can hardly put it down.  I read Wuthering Heights earlier in the summer, and it was such a dark story, that I had to force myself to finish it.  Not so with this one.  I am loving it.

Ada is still being her almost three year old self.  She is trying my patience every minute of every day, and I find myself having to ask her for forgiveness often.  We are really working on obedience, and it is one battle after another.  I am exhausted at the end of the day.

John is still eating around the clock, though I am letting him cry if he wakes up before the three hour mark.  I know that he could probably go longer without eating at night, but my milk supply is really flowing, and I want to keep it that way.  I think when we have a few more months under our belt, I will see if he can go for longer stretches at night.  For now, I am thankful for all of that wonderful breast milk that he is getting.

And I think that's it with us.  Hopefully in a few more days I can begin to blog with pictures again.  Until then...

Touching Base

It is not like me to go so long without blogging, but my  mind is a bit foggy these days from lack of sleep.  It's harder for me to think of what I want to say, and it's even harder for my words to actually make sense;)

We are closing in on the magical six weeks, but it's not looking like John is going to do a six hour stretch at night to go with the big six week birthday.  We'll see.  He does 4 or 4 1/2 for the first stretch at night, so that helps, but I think six hours at once would be just glorious.  He is crying a lot this week, which I think is to be expected.  Isn't five weeks supposed to be a rough one?  Luckily, Ann is here this week, and her presence is helping so, so much.  I have napped when Ada napped, and Ann even got up with John this morning, and I was able to sleep an extra hour.  An hour here and there really makes a difference.

It's been a good week!!  Monday, my friend Jane Boutwell, came to visit with her children--Elisha and Anna, and Elisha and Ada played wonderfully together.  No fussing at all.  Plus, because Ann is here, another friend came on Tuesday, so I have had lots of adult interaction.  That makes a huge difference in my mood!!  Adult conversation and a sympathetic ear are so encouraging. 

Plus, Jane is letting me borrow her moby wrap until I get my own stretchy fabric, and it has allowed me to "wear" John during this fussy week.  It helps so much, and he loves sleeping on me.  Tonight, during the 5:00 fussy hour, he slept soundly on my chest while I ate dinner.  So nice.  And it leaves my hands free.

I wish I had more to tell you.  But like I said, my mind is rather blank.

I hate a post without pictures, so I am including some very long overdue pictures from the big snow back in February.  While Ada played outside in all that white, Scott and I were battling our way through Atlanta traffic to get to John in the NICU.  The snow really complicated things, seeing that we live in the South and everyone goes a bit crazy when snow arrives.  But Ada was back at home with "Near and Sarah," and as you can see, she loved her first big snow experience. 

Baby John

Well, Baby John (as Ada calls him, never just John), continues to make me one sick woman. I am curious if this has anything to do with it being a boy pregnancy rather than girl...hmmm...it really has been so different than my pregnancy with Ada.

I was sick all day yesterday, and I eventually had to cancel a tutoring session, and then I woke up at 5 am this morning because I was so sick to my stomach. I went to a friend's baby shower, and once I got home I immediately climbed back into bed and promptly fell asleep for four hours. I didn't feel tons better when I woke up. Ada and I were supposed to go to a birthday party this afternoon, but I slept right through it.

I am guessing that this has something to do with indigestion? Maybe as John gets bigger, I get sicker? I don't know, but it's no fun.

What are happier things that I can tell you? Not so happy, of course, is the fact that Alabama is now the SEC champion. The good news is that Ada continued to scream "War Eagle, hey" throughout the game, and I certainly didn't tell her that Auburn wasn't actually playing. I am glad that she knows where her loyalty lies;)

Happy, positive, what do I want to say? A four hour nap is pretty positive. I am so thankful for Saturdays and Sundays when Scott lets me sleep for as long as I need to in the afternoons. And I am thankful that he is dealing with the dinner dishes as we speak. Thank you, husband, it is much appreciated.

Also good news--my mother made me the stockings and garland that I wanted from Etsy. She says the garland is not exactly like the Etsy one, but I am still excited!!! She is putting it in the mail on Monday.

And...Ada continues to keep me laughing. Though I spend much time praying for patience, she also makes my days so much fun. She is one big party--we spend much of the day dancing, singing, joking, laughing, and the list could go on and on and on. She truly never stops. In fact, I know it is nap time or bed time when she becomes even more wound up than usual. She has no off button--except for when she feels shy, then she becomes attached to me.

Anyway, nothing much to report here, but I felt like checking in. I hope you are all enjoying your Saturday night!!!

Checking In

Hi everyone.

As usual when I have been away for awhile, I felt the need to check into the blog for a second.

We are vacationing away in Alabama. We spent the weekend with Scott's parents and siblings and other extended family, and now Ada and I are here at my mom's house enjoying the company of sisters and cousins.


It's always good to be with family, and Ada loves her Mae-Mae, Pop, Near, and the rest of the crew.

Remember our plan to transfer the furniture? Well, we woke up to a downpour yesterday, and our transportation was an open bed truck, so plan B immediately went into effect. We are now going to rent a U-Haul sometime during the Christmas holidays and make the move then. In the mean time, Scott promises that we will get the painting done. Will you join me in holding him accountable;) For some reason, I can't imagine why, he just isn't as worried about our house decor' as I am.


What else, what else, do I want to tell you?

We are getting a real tree this year. I am super excited about that, but I am also nervous that our marriage won't survive the purchasing and putting up of the tree. I have heard that things can get a bit testy when a real tree is involved:)

But before all that, there is a Thanksgiving feast to be eaten. Ours will take place Wednesday night, so that Sarah and Kate will have Thursday to travel back to Auburn in time for the Iron Bowl. Have mercy on the Tigers, right? I predict that it's not going to be pretty.


Scott and I will also get out of dodge, since we are in a divided family, and it is best that we don't all watch the game together.


Happy Thanksgiving, my internet friends (real life and otherwise). Enjoy the food and let the Holiday Festivities begin.