Baby and Dog (Food)

Before I was Mom

Before I was a Mom,
I never tripped over toys or forgot words to a lullaby.
I didn't worry whether or not my plants were poisonous.
I never thought about immunizations.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never been puked on.
Pooped on.
Chewed on.
Peed on.
I had complete control of my mind and my thoughts.
I slept all night.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held down a screaming child so doctors could do tests.
Or give shots.
I never looked into teary eyes and cried.
I never got gloriously happy over a simple grin.
I never sat up late hours at night watching a baby sleep.

Before I was a Mom,
I never held a sleeping baby just because I didn't want to put her down.
I never felt my heart break into a million pieces when I couldn't stop the hurt.
I never knew that something so small could affect my life so much.
I never knew that I could love someone so much.
I never knew I would love being a Mom.

Before I was a Mom,
I didn't know the feeling of having my heart outside my body.
I didn't know how special it could feel to feed a hungry baby.
I didn't know that bond between a mother and her child.
I didn't know that something so small could make me feel so important and happy.

Before I was a Mom,
I had never gotten up in the middle of the night every 10 minutes to make sure all was okay.
I had never known the warmth,
the joy,
the love,
the heartache,
the wonderment,
or the satisfaction of being a Mom.

I didn't know I was capable of feeling so much, before I was a Mom.

My Littlest Reindeer

Yes, it's from my cruddy camera phone, but he's cute beyond that. Merry Christmas!!

What We're Doing at My House Today...

Aren't they cute? BB's new trick - pushing up on his arms and looking around. He can also roll himself around to get where he wants to go. Seems like he's anxious to be MOBILE, man!

ANNOYING Song in the Home

It's cute, yes, but hearing it over and over and OVER again is getting a bit on the O-L-D side. It's a scout song, see, and those just get older over time. Still, it keeps the baby quiet...

Sing along everyone!!

(Point to the body part and clap or stomp feets at boom-boom.)

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my top-notcher, ya mama dear. (Top of head)
Top-Notcher, top-notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, boom-boom.

I points to myself , Vas is das here?
Das is my sweat browser, ya mama dear. (Wipe forehead)
Sweat browser, top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself , Vas is das here?
Das is my eye winker, ya mama dear. (Eye)
Eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher; ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my soup strainer, ya mama dear. (Upper lip)
Soup strainer,
eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my luch eater, ya mama dear. (teeth/mouth)
Lunch eater,
soup strainer,
eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my chin chowser, ya mama dear. (Chin)
Chin chowser,
lunch eater,
soup strainer,
eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my rubber necker, ya mama dear. (Neck)
Rubber necker
Chin chowser
lunch eater,
soup strainer,
eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my chest protector, ya mama dear. (Chest)
Chest protector
Rubber necker
Chin chowser
lunch eater,
soup strainer,
eye winker,
sweat browser,
top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my bread basket, ya mama dear. (Stomach)
Bread basket
Chest protector
Rubber necker
Chin chowser
Lunch eater,
Soup strainer,
Eye winker,
Sweat browser,
Top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das wot I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

I points to myself, Vas is das here?
Das is my foot stomper, ya mama dear. (Foot)
Foot stomper
Bread basket
Chest protector
Rubber necker
Chin chowser
Lunch eater,
Soup strainer,
Eye winker,
Sweat browser,
Top notcher, ya mama dear,
Das what I learned in der school, Boom, Boom.

(As an alternate, Motivator may replace foot stomper)

Hip, Hip... HURRAY!!

Gas prices have finally dropped in our area. We're down to $1.91 at the cheapest place in town. So when I filled up my gas loving van today, I only spent $29.80! MUCH better than that $60 mark a few weeks ago.

For some reason it has taken longer for the gas prices to drop here than elsewhere. Being right on the pipeline hasn't helped the prices. Gouge, gouge, gouge gas people!

I'm teaching home ec right now, five days a week at the charter school my kids attend. It's only an hour a day and it's the 2 6th and 7th grade classes as well as the only 8th grade class. Today will be the first day we actually COOK, and as the classes are being held in the classrooms instead of the kitchen (it being lunch time when we teach), it should be fun. On today's menu: No Bake Cookies. I've heard some very interesting alternate names for this: Chocolate Haystacks, Moose Droppings, Bear Poop - very appetizing, huh?

BB and The Boy are getting along well together. BB loves to laugh at his big brother. BB is finally coming into a schedule at 4 months (knock on wood!) and is a very happy baby. My girls are doing well in school and when the report cards came home last week, I was very pleased.

Okay, I've got housework waiting that has been put off for far too long. Enjoy your day!

Almost 4 Months

Soon I'll write about visiting San Diego with BB and seeing my little brother get married! Pix of that soon. For now: Here's my precious little man at almost 4 months. Time is FLYING!



I also got some Linky Love from World 4 Blogs. Thanks!! Be sure to check it out.

Baby Joys

My little man BB refuses to sleep tonight. All night long he has been twitchy and wanting to nurse more frequently. I'm attributing this to gas and growing. I'm sleepy and blogging - is that like drunk and dialing?

I'd include pictures but my camera is DOA right now. Sorry, Marla!

Off to try and convince my son to sleep. Then maybe I can? Or is that too much to hope...

Siblings are FUN!

I'm calling this one "LET ME OUT!"


BB and Oldest Girl bond with the Mei Tai.

So Blase about it

When baby BB starts to fuss, The Boy nonchalantly tells me "Oh mom, give him num nums" because he knows that this will make it all better.

What better advertisement for breastfeeding is there?

8 Weeks and Menu

I'm trying to take a picture each month with BB and this cute little bear. Here's his 8 weeks shot - not so great because he's sleeping, but still cute.



He's smiling and laughing now, and sometimes even at me! He graced Oldest Girl with some of the first real smiles (the bum) but has progressed now to smiling at the whole family, even daddy, who mostly gets cried at.

Yes, even though I'm not posting menus just now, we're still eating. Tonight we had Fish Tacos courtesy the Rachael Ray website. We'll be having, in no particular order, Sour Cream Meatloaf, Fuss Free Swiss Steak, Chicken and Artichoke casserole, leftovers, Easy Beef Stroganoff and I can't remember what the last thing was... I also indulged in Iowa Zucchini bread this weekend and some easy apple crisp. I think you can find some of these recipes on my food blog.

Have a wonderful week!!

My blog is dusty!

Yes, I know, it's been a while. I'm still trying to get myself in the swing of things and get up before 11 am. Which is important since the kids go back to school in just 6 days.

Meanwhile, here's some baby cuteness to fill in some space. BB's baptism, complete with godparents.

Yeah, tha's how it was...

Don't Hate on Me

My little man got circumcised today, at 3 weeks of age. Dr B likes to wait until the feeding pattern is well established and the baby is back to birth weight before doing the circ. BB is gaining about 1/2 oz per day and is looking great!

I felt so badly about the circumcision that I dragooned Hubbers into attending the procedure. Honestly Hubbers had no problems with it, good man that he is, and he was able to hold and comfort BB. There was very little crying to be heard, as I craned my neck from the other room to hear, which is very good.

I know that this is a very controversial procedure, so no matter what your personal opinion is, don't hate on my blog about this. I will very liberally take control of the comments section and void any that aren't what I deem "right". It's my blog and I will censor if I want to!!

Meanwhile, everyone else is good and school is a mere 2 weeks away! Whoo Hoo!

Too Quiet

How was I ever the mom of just one kid? It's so very quiet around here with only BB and me all day. The house is so quiet. I'm relishing the extra time with him, but I'm missing the big kids so much. They will be home on Sunday and I know that means more stress and less sleep, but I am ready to have them back.

One kid = too quiet. No wonder I had the TV on all the time then!

Not a Born Sling Lover

I'm pleased to say that my son has made it to the 2 week mark and I'm still alive, still (mostly) sane, and finally learning to use the sling better. BB is not a born sling lover. In fact, in order to get him to settle down in it today (pressing that I fold towels or NO showers!) I had to plop him in and walk around outside in the sunshine before he'd relax and sleep. At least it worked.

I'm also pleased to report that after a very sleepless Monday, BB slept a four hour stretch last night! While I was so happy to have that sleep, my poor breasts were a bit unhappy. Four hours at a stretch makes for engorgement. Yeeouch.

To make up for my lack of posting, here's a gratuitous kid shot:

Prayer Request

I have a horrible time post partum. After the birth of Roo Boo I had such bad PPD that I was ordered to seek care. I missed the first three months of her life, sadly. With The Boy I knew it was coming and had my MIL come care for me for a week. With BB, it's like I totally forgot that this was a part of my life.

I feel crumby. General anxiety and plain old sadness are upon me again. At least this time I don't feel like getting out of bed will kill me - that bed is simply where I must be. I've spoken with my Dr and changed my meds (upped the dosage) but it takes about a week to kick in. I hit my "week" on this coming Monday and am praying for relief.

On the advice of another PPD mom I also hit the herbal store and started taking Red Raspberry, Blue Cohosh and Ginko Biloba.

As the baby starts to fuss for me again, I must sign off. Please pray for me, my friends. I need His strength to get through this minute by minute.

Baby Love

We proudly announce the birth of our second son on Wednesday, 9 July 2008 at 1.20pm. Baby Boy weighed in at 7 lbs 3 oz and 20 in long.

Posing with a new big brother

He is beautiful, of course, and a great nurser - all the time!! The kids are all thrilled with him, wanting to hold him all the time, to change diapers, change clothes, and so on. They seem to love baby brother tons!

You'll have to excuse me for being MIA for a while. The beginning of post partum is pretty difficult for me.