Silly Saturday

Yesterday we took the kids to Target for a quick trip. The two 2 year olds were in one shopping cart, each with a wooden toy helicopter from the $1 bin. Those two played and pushed and laughed and giggled for over 30 minutes. It was funny to watch them play. Of course there were a few moments of "get him/her off of me" but those never lasted long. I pushed them all over the store playing and giggling. It was a hoot to watch.

I can't wait to see these four kids grow up. L is 4 months younger than AJU5, and D is 7 months younger than AJU6. As long as the military doesn't send our friends overseas again, I have a feeling the kids will be closer than they are to their cousins (who live just as far or farther away).

Thankful Thursday (A Few Hours Late)

I am definitely thankful for friends. We have friends our ours in town for the weekend, and it is great to spend time with them. The daddy in the family basically lived with use for about 6 months almost 4 years ago. Since then, they have been stationed in the UK for three years and are now back in the States. We saw them in July on our road trip, but before that we had only seen them once in over three years.

They have two kids close in age to ours (4 and 7 months younger than our two), so it will be fun to watch them grow up together. AJU5 and the older boy already have had a blast playing together. AJU6 has tried to play with the 4.5 mo, but that little guy is nt sure about AJU6 - probably because he is fairly defenseless!

And of course I am thankful for my other friends. There are those in town that I love to talk to. We share our hard times and our blessings together. We unload our burdens on each other, and they are lifted up in prayer. I don't know what I would do without them.

And of course there are my blogging friends that I love tp "talk" to. We get to share the silly and little things in life with each other - and there is normally at least someone who can sympathize with during the crazy times of motherhood.

And as to why this is late: I got a new contact for my left eye this week. It is a hybrid lens meaning there is a hard contact wrapped in a soft contact. It definitely is taking time to get used to. Last night I went to take it out, and it was stuck. It took a long time, and by the end of it my left eye was on fire and I had a headache. So I took Advil. On an empty stomach. That led to almost throwing up. So, I just went to bed!

July Trip 2010 - Part 2

From the in-laws, we traveled to see some friends. We hadn't seen them in almost three years since they were stationed over seas with the military. The last time we saw them, both families were pregnant with their first child. Now we each have two. We were there for just over two days, and since their youngest was only 3 weeks old, we didn't do too much. We went to a park with a spray area on Friday and then just hung out on Saturday (well, the guys went window shopping for electronics, but the kids and moms stayed home). AJU5 and AJU6 loved playing with different toys, so all was good. It was really fun to see AJU5 interact with their 2 year old (4 months younger than her). Those two were a hoot! And since our friends now live within a days drive, I bet we will be seeing more of each other for sure!

AJU1 with AJU5 and Boy leaving the restaurant.

AJU6 on a trike.

AJU5 and AJU6 checking out Boy's toys before he got up on Friday.

AJU6 and boy at the spray area (AJU5 barely got near the water).

Feeling Good!

First, Jersey #2 is feeling pretty good. She even startled the nurses this morning by getting out of bed all by herself (and tried to get back in alone too, but they caught her). She is really recovering well from everything, but there are still a few hurdles to cross before she can come home!

Second, a friend and I have been walking on Tuesdays and Thursdays. It has been great. The walking is making both of us feel better, and having a chance to talk to another adult is also nice. We stop at the park near the end to let the kids play, so there is an added bonus for AJU5 there.

In other news, AJU6 can now roll over. This is a mixed blessing. First, once he crawls he will be truly mobile (and he is getting close). Second, when I lay him down to sleep, he rolls over. And of course he doesn't want to sleep on his stomach, so he cries. I had to flip him three times this afternoon before he finally fell asleep. At least he isn't cranky like he was yesterday. What ended up being a 2.5 hour visit to the service shop for my car got him off schedule. He was cranky as all get out yesterday afternoon - refusing to eat because he was so tired but refusing to sleep because he was hungry.

What has been making you feel good lately?

Ramblings

First, thanks for the prayers for Jersey #2. She made it through surgery just fine, and just a little while ago she had her breathing tube removed. She is showing her strength and joy with lots of smiles and requests for food and drink (no drinks for a few hours and no food until tomorrow).

Second, AJU6's second tooth popped through yesterday. Hopefully we will have a little break before the top teeth come in. He handled the teething fairly well, but a non-teething AJU6 is less work for sure!

Third, my brother-in-law is giving me a little bit of a math work-out. He is taking college Calculus I, and I am tutoring him. We spent 3 hours last night on Skype working problems together. Unfortunately I didn't know how to do one problem (well, one part of one problem) and it wasn't in AJU1's or my calc books. Oh well.

AJU5 wants a bath - so I am bring pulled away. Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Prayer Request (and Milestone)

If you ever read the comments on my blog, you might recognize the name Coach Mom. She is an IRL friend. Tomorrow, her daughter (Jersey #2) will undergo a five hour open heart surgery to replace a heart valve. Jersey #2 was born with Tetraology of Fallot, and underwent an even longer and more difficult surgery at almost 3 months old. Now she is 6.5 years old and in need of another surgery so she can be active again. Please pray for this family. Tomorrow many of us are wearing either crazy socks or rainbow colored clothes in honor of Jersey #2, as this is the type of clothing she loves to wear. If you join us, send me a picture so I can pass it on to her mom. They are going to show Jersey #2 all of the pictures to pass the time when she is stuck in bed.



In other news, AJU6 has a tooth now. You can't see it really yet, but I can feel it. I knew it was coming, but I was still surprised to feel it this morning. Hopefully he will sleep well tonight...

Week Wrap-Up

VBS was a blast this year, which is good because the theme was Beach Blast! Now, juggling a toddler and games wasn't always fun, but I managed with the help of the teens. Well, the last rotation I was normally dead by, but that was the oldest group and they had all been to our VBS for the past two years! So, they were old hats at this.

AJU5 did well too. She didn't participate in games, but she did participate in lesson and craft when she wasn't napping mostly. And, when she didn't want to participate in lesson, she was content doing the craft she missed! So, I think she will do well in Sunday School in the fall. Her and her buddy are moving from the nursery to class together, joining the buddy's brother in the preschool class (yeah, our church is that small). I am looking forward to being able to pay attention during class until Junior makes his/her arrival!

We also went swimming yesterday. This was the first time I had taken AJU5 to a city pool. She had swam 4 times in a hotel pool, but that is it. I grew up with a pool in the back yard, so city pools are somewhat foreign to me. Well, that is a lie - I lifeguarded at a few for three years. But, I learned they can be crowded and not too much fun. Luckily, the pool we went to wasn't crowded at all. We went with the other moms that helped with VBS as well as some of the teens, so I thought even if it was crowded we would have fun with friends. We spent an hour and a half in the baby pool - longer than I expected she would last with only a 30 minute nap! Only problem - I didn't put sunscreen on myself of AJU5's back. I am in pain now... It is mostly my back/neck/shoulders that don't get sun. AJU5's back is a little red still, but it isn't as bad as mine... Lesson Learned!

Oh, and a follow-up on the last post. AJU5 and I leave teh house daily. At the very minimum we go outside n the backyard and play. We often walk around the neighborhood as well. Other days we go shopping or head to the park. I was just referring to scheduled things that I might want to avoid. As Sarah said, it will be harder with two, so I don't want to get her too used to having something every day :)

MIxed Feelings

One of our friends from church gave birth to her son this week. She was due a week before with (with Junior #2). It is hard to believe that if I hadn't miscarried, I would have a baby in my arms within the next few weeks. I think being pregnant again is helping me not be sad over this. I can feel Junior #3 move around. I got to see him/her yesterday at my 20 week ultrasound (we are waiting until birth to find out the gender). I know this is the baby God wants me to raise, not the one we lost 7 months ago. But, I still feel weird about it - not sad per se, but, yeah, I don't know...

Then I found out last night someone I knew from grad school (he was an undergrad) died. From Facebook, I figured out he was sick, but that is all I know. The messages about him being sick are less than a week old, so I know it wasn't a long fight. He was a Christian. We were friends at a campus ministry. He was about four years younger than me an recently married. I guess it was a wake up call to me. Life as I know it can change in a second. We don't know when our life here on earth will end. So, we have to make the most of every minute we have.

Happier post to come next!
I will get back to the product review/home improvement things next week I bet.

Returning to Normal

Ah,, life is back to normal for a few days. The last week was a blast, but boy was I behind on sleep this morning before a four hour nap!

Last Saturday we had friends over for the Fourth. They arrived around 5:30, we had dinner at 6, let the kids play until 7:30, put them down for the night, and played games until midnight. AJU5 woke up around 100:15 because there were constant fireworks going off in our neighborhood. Luckily, we were able to get her back down after the friends left (with only a few whimpers between then and 2 when the fireworks stopped). Sleep lost: 2-3 hours

Sunday we got up and went to church. Immediately following church, we left for the VBS trip. So, there was no sleeping in! We got to our destination around 4, hung out at the hotel, and then went to church there (6-7). After church there was a meeting with all the groups doing VBS that week and then headed to Carl's Jrs for dinner. After dinner, I planned on putting AJU5 down for the night (it was around 8:30), but she had other plans. She wanted to play with her friends! SO, we went to the late=night meeting and returned to the room around 9:30. She refused to sleep in her bed (pack-n-play), so it was a fitful night with her in bed with me! Sleep lost: about an hour

Monday AJU5 didn't nap well. We had the morning off and then went door-knocking to invite kids to VBS. I tired to get her to nap before lunch, but she refused. She did nap some in the van along the way though. That night we went to dinner around 6 and she fell asleep on the way back to the hotel and stayed down all night. Sleep lost: None (minus a possible afternoon nap)

Tuesday was the first day of VBS. We left around 8:45 in the morning and returned to the hotel around 1:30 each day. AJU5 always napped on the way back to the hotel, but she never slept more than an hour or so. As for bed, I was hoping to repeat Monday. We went to dinner earlier because the teens were going hiking that night, so I guess 6 was too early for bedtime. It wasn't until about 8:30/9:00 I got her to sleep in my bed (again, pack-n-play refused). So, another fitbul night of sleep for me sharing a bed with her! Sleep lost: About an hour

Naps for Wednesday were the same. But, we had church at night! We didn't get back to the hotel until 8ish. And again, she "required" my bed and body to sleep. She didn't drop off until after 9, and like almost every other day was up by 6:30. Sleep lost: About an hour

Thursday morning we packed up 90% of our things before VBS. We didn't leave VBS until later because we had to clean and take everything down. So, we didn't get back to the hotel until about 2:30. I finished loading our car and we hit the road. Luckily for me, she fell asleep about 30 minutes into the trip home. That was 30 minutes of crying, but she did crash. We got home around 5, and had 3 hours before my sister and her family arrived. AJU5 got a bath and then we hung out and watched TV for a little bit. I tired to get her to bed around 7:30, but she had none of it. Finally, around 9, she went down (after eating some more and playing with her cousins). The rest of us went to bed around 10:30. Sleep lost: about 1.5 hours

Friday we went ot he park and played and then hung out inside for the afternoon because it was quite warm outside. AJU5 napped some after breakfast, but then refused an afternoon nap, probably because her cousing was napping the in the same room and he had two of her stuffed animals! After dinner, she was more than willing to go down for bed. But, her cousins woke her up when they went to bed because they were not happy about it (crying). We tried to get her back down, btu she treated it like she had had a nap! Finally around 11, we sent the pack-n-play up in our closet and she crashed. We didn't go to bed until almost 1 because we were up playing Eurorails - a very long game which we just stopped because we were all exhausted! She woke up 3 hours later and came into bed with us. Sleep lost: about 4 hours

So, this morning I was dead tired! I laid ont he couch until my sister and her family left around 8. Then I went back to bed until almost noon! It wasn't 4 hours of constant sleep, but it was still 4hours of resting. I feel so much more awake (although I could still take a nap if I wanted to). Life will be fairly normal around her now. My prents come in this next week for a few days, but it shouldn't affect AJU5's sleep and hence mine much at all. We don't have any other trips planned until August. So, hopefully we can get back on schedule!

Okay, that was a very long post! Pictures to come sometime :)

Busy and Fun!

So, I am on a mini-mission trip right now. We are working a VBS for an unrepresented area (Native American chapter). We left Sunday after church, and AJU5 and I will return on Thursday (the rest of the grou is coming back on Friday).

Yesterday we went door knocking yesterday and did VBS today (three days this time because we thought we were going to be outside but ended up not). It is going fairly well. AJU5's friends from church are with us, so she is having a lot of fun playing with them. She actually spends about 2/3 of her hotel waking hours in their room playing!

THe only downside of this trip is that it has gotten her off schedule totally. Sunday night she didn't go to bed until 9:30 because we didn't get back to the hotel after church until 8:30 and then had a meeting (that she wanted to go to because her friends were going). Needless to say it wasn't a great night sleep (in bed with me). Then she didn't want to nap before the door-knocking. She did nap in the van (with her friends), but it wasn't the normal length! She crashed on the way home from dinner last night and slept the whole night in her bed! She did sleep after VBS this morning in the van again, and she is going strong so far. I bet she will crash in the van after dinner again!

So, off to dinner! I will blog about the fourth later :)

Hope everyone is having fun!

Busy First Two Days of the Week

It has definitely been a full two days so far.

AJU1 left Monday for a one-night work trip. So, AJU5 got to spend a tiny bit of time with him before he left (his flight was early enough going to work was pointless but late enough that he left later than normal). I think she liked that, but she didn't like saying bye to her daddy.

Then, Monday afternoon we went to a friend's house. The mom and I had to get some planning done for our VBS's, and her kids and AJU5 are good friends (well, other than the 9 month old that AJU5 just gets jealous of if I play with). We got the schedule, crafts, worker assignments, and goodie ideas planned, so we were happy. AJU5 got to play and burn off all the energy she had. There were only two issues while we were there. First, a little tikes play house thing fell down on AJU5. I think she was pulling on it, which caused it to fall on her. Luckily, she wasn't hurt at all - just a little scared. Then, not too long after that, their dog stole a cracker out of her hand. He had snuck in when we went to rescue AJU5 from the Little Tikes incident, and stole the cracker very gently. It was just sad for AJU5 to have her cracker stolen! After we got home, she ate a little and was in bed before 6!

Tuesday started off early. She was up before 6! Luckily, after some food, she was ready for a nap before 7. After the nap, we got ready to stop by my work to pick up exams and go to Costco. She made me carry her 95% of the time in Costco - my left arm was killing me by the end. The only rest I got was when she gnawed on a spoon from the apple pie sample (she didn't want the apple pie though for some reason). After Costco, we went home and ate lunch. I then put her to bed for a short rest (she didn't sleep) before we headed to the spray park. This was our first visit there, but she had experienced spraying water both at the zoo and in our backyard (sprinklers) and loved it. We were meeting friends (the ones from Monday as well as another boy and his grandma). She had a variety of reactions to the spray park. At first, she just stood in the water enjoying it spray on her. Then she got very cold and needed to warm up, so we snuggled in the sun. Then she had a snack with her friends and enjoyed being outside. I tried to get her back in the water area, but she wasn't so sure about it. Finally, she was willing to go walk around with her friends (the bigger ones) and rediscovered the spraying-water fun. After another warm-up time/snack time, she was ready for one more excursion into the water before they closed. two hours at the spray park definitely wore her out. She fell asleep in the car on the way home and took about a 2 hour nap (I got about an hour nap even). She stayed up a little later than normal, but I didn't mind.

We don't have big plans for the rest of the week though. We have a few errands to run, but that is about it. Hopefully she won't get bored having to be home in the afternoons :)