RBC Women's Retreat

I headed to my churches women's retreat last week. What a wonderful time away before I dive into parenting 2 kids. Thanks so much Geoff for being willing to take on a weekend of boy time with Miles. We spent the time relaxing, studying the book of Ruth and of course eating. At my OB appointment this week they said I gained 2 pounds over last week! I knew exactly why... Here are some pictures.

Pregnancy Update

I am now 5 days away from my due date. Wow so soon. It has really hit me. People have asked if I'm nervous about the whole thing, especially with trying for a natural VBAC (vaginal birth after Cesarean) and I've always said no. But after yesterdays OB appointment I'm not so sure I can say that. It's not that I don't feel ready. I am just reminded how much the doctors and I don't see eye to eye on the small issues. Each appointment they seem to add another thing. I knew from the beginning we didn't see everything the same, but now as the date looms it is bothering me more.

For example for a natural vaginal birth the best thing you can do is stay home as LONG as possible before being checked into the hospital. The longer you are at the hospital the more they will want to intervene and not always with necessary procedures. Wait well into the first stage. However now, as of the last visit, they want me coming in right away because of the "risk" a VBAC posses and labor in the hospital. This counters everything I've learned about a successful natural process. What do I do? Why are they mentioning this, among other things now? Why do they have to challenge the idea of letting a women, her body and her baby follow the natural process so much? Why isn't there a middle ground between a home birth and a hospital birth? I find I have many questions now swirling around in my head. In the end I know my main goal is still 'happy baby, happy mother' just like with Miles. But I do hope in the end I do not regret the decisions I made or are about to make.

Pregnancy Stats:

• Due Date: March 16th, 2010 (according to docs office)
• Timeline: 39 weeks, 2 days.
• Sickness: Nauseousness is back to very high. All day and night long. Ugh.
• Sleep: 2 out 10. I'm up most nights for hours at a time.
• Overall Feeling: Lets get this done.
• Visitor Hospital Policy: They lifted the restriction last week so Miles can now come visit us in the hospital! Ya!

Valentine's Day Meal

On valentines day Geoff and I cooked a new and fun homemade meal together. We had such a great time and Miles was a super star throughout it all. We pulled up his high chair to the counter in the kitchen and he sat watching us and reading a book the whole time. We made gluten-free meatballs with pesto pasta. Then had a layered strawberry banana fruit parfait for dessert. Yum! So good! If only we had the time to cook like that every night.

Pregnancy Update

At the Air and Space Museum

Only 1 month left! I SO cannot wait. 30 days and counting down...

So I have some good news. I went to my 35 week doctors appointment and found out baby is head down!! So for now we are on for trying for a VBAC (vaginal delivery after c-section). At 35 weeks it is very likely baby will stay in it's current position until birth. If baby was breech (head down) my doctor would be giving me the scheduled c-section discussion. But as of now I don't have to have a c-section! It is only one step closer towards a natural delivery but a big one.

Right now Miles and I are sick with colds so it made for a tough week. We cancelled most of our activities last week. Hopefully we can get better soon and back into the swing of things. Also Miles is getting all 4 of his cuspid teeth right now so it having a hard time with it.

Hopefully he will be in tip top condition by next Tuesday for his trip to Oklahoma with his Dad and Grandma. They will all be gone for 4 1/2 days. So I will have some downtime during week 37 of the pregnancy. I'm thinking it might be good to find a emergency back-up incase I go into labor early. :)

Snowmaggedon

Here are some pictures from our crazy snow these last two weeks. The biggest dump giving us 32 inches at one time. The government and business' seem to be running part time. And the schools seem to be closed permanently. At least to those with kids at home for a week straight!

So the question is how many snow storms do we need to have in a row for them to figure out how to plow a road? They are horrible here! (You MN snow plowers are awesome!) You will be driving down a road and suddenly your lane ends with a big pile of snow in the middle. Or some roads they just skip.

Miles New Room

Here are some pictures of Miles' new room. We decided to make the office into a toddler room for Miles and keep the nursery the same. With the baby coming in 2 months the plan is to slowly transfer him. So far all his clothes, toys and a new mattress are in the toddler room. So we do everything there but sleep. Next we plan on moving the crib into the room. Then once he is comfortable sleeping in the new room we will move him to the mattress. We'll let you know how it goes!

Playing on his bean bag. We decided to get a bead bag

instead of chair hoping he'll play with it longer.

Playing with his toys & shoe box. The armoire holds most of his clothes.

This is one kid who loves soft things so the new bed and pillows were a hit.

There is a walk-in closet to the right of the bed.

Latest Books Read

I got the reading bug lately so have finished some great books in the last month. I actually went to the library and got 17 books between Miles and I! (Seven of them were kid board books.) Here is a list of my most recent favorite reads. I found all of them engaging, thoughtful and insightful. I hope to post some some reviews and/or notes I took from the books in future posts.

• "Born to Run" by McDougall
• "Siblings Without Rivalry" by Faber & Mazlish
• "Experiencing the Spirit" by Blackaby
• "Whining - 3 Steps to Stopping It Before the Tears and Tantrums Start" by Ricker & Crowder

If anyone has some favorite reads I'd love to hear about them. Post a comment on the blog or email me directly.

Home Pre-Preschool Idea

I've been giving it some thought, I don't think Geoff or I are ready to send Miles off to (pre) preschool. I am surprised how many people in this area send their 2 year old off to pre-preschool. Others are already checking out preschools and they are only 1 1/2 years old.

A few questions to weight: Is there such a thing as spending too much time with your own kid? Would it be good for a 2 year old to get a break from mom and other siblings (Baby 2)? How much time do you want others to spend with your kids? How much can we afford to spend on childcare/preschool at this point in time? Would I want to go back to work more? Would I want to be responsible for teaching him all the pre-preschool lessons and values?

So I am tossing some ideas around in my head. My latest thought is starting up some type of home pre-preschool. Maybe if I can get a group of 5-6 kids together around the same age. The idea would be to rotate homes each week. It would be a mix of crafts, lessons, games, and playtime. First week I would teach, second week I would assist then the rest of the weeks I would drop-off until the rotate starts over again. I think it would work out and I am sure others are already doing something similar.

We'll see what I come up with, I have half a year to figure it out. :)

Tornado of Chaos

Coming into the kitchen where Miles was playing this is what I found. Total chaos over the previously cleaned kitchen floor. Never did I realized how much chaos and disorganization could be caused by a 1 1/2 year old. Goodbye organized and orderly house for many years to come!

Going Thru unread messages in Gmail

So I've had over 300 unread messages in my gmail account. Gets old seeing that many unread messages. They are messages I either want to keep but don't need to read now or I want to delete. So I found the easiest way to go through them. If you type the following in the search mail text box it will bring back only your unread messages. Then you can easily delete or use the 'Mark as read' button from there.

is:unread

That's it!

Snow Pics

Here are some snow pictures. The weekend before Christmas we had a snowfall around 22 inches! We all headed out to do some shoveling and playtime.

Third Trimester Here

Ya! I have officially started my third trimester. I am starting week 29. The fact Christmas has just come and gone makes me feel like the weeks have gone by fast! Baby is growing big and kicking tons! I haven't taken any belly pictures this time around.

I am doing great except the nauseousness. I feel sick almost all of the time, from when I wake up to when I go to bed. I try not to let it get to me but it is hard. I only get a bit of respite when eating. Right now I am eating a pack of Clif Shot Bloks for the relief.

At times I am saddened that I am not giving Miles the best experiences as a toddler because I am so nauseous. So many times I wish I had the ability to play with him more, go on more hikes, pick him up, or be more creative in his learning. But some days I feel so sick I find it hard to accomplish the small things like making lunch or changing his clothes. I tell myself I am doing the best I can and God has a reason for why I am going through what I am. So thanks God for a wonderful family and the trials that make us grow stronger.

Picture of me from 2nd Trimester

Family Weekend Trip

Last month we took one of our first family weekend get aways since Miles birth. Geoff, Miles, the two dogs and I piled in the car and headed down to Charlottesville for two nights at an Eco friendly resort. The resort was located 20 minutes outside of town where we stayed in a small cabin on a lake, in the woods. Here are some pictures of the trip clockwise from top:

Miles & me at Thomas Jefferson's home after the tour.

Miles playing in a mud puddle at the grass fed beef farm. We hung out there and saw a new baby cow, pig and two loud hens among other animals.

We purchased some grass fed beef steaks that were fabulous! We plan on ordering meat from them in the future.

Geoff rescuing the dogs on our hike. We tried to go off trail on a step section because the trail was flooded due to a high river. Dogs ran ahead and got themselves stuck.

Three pictures of us hiking. Miles did great and hiked about half the time.

Month in Review

It has been some time since I have post. Mainly because I feel so nauseous. It is hard to get the basics done, including my wonderful responsibility of taking care of our toddler, yet alone posting on my blog. Same with goes with the lack of picture taking... So let's see a bit of review for the last month.

Last week I came back from a two week trip to Minnesota to visit family and friends and attend my best friend from high school's wedding. Afraid I didn't take many pictures this time as I decided to only bring my small camera. Being 5 months pregnant, with a toddler and laptop in tow, in the airport seemed like enough to carry. Congratulations Karen on a beautiful wedding. I had a great time. I laid low most of the time due to getting sick and being nauseous. The weather was surprisingly mellow for November in Minnesota allowing me to get out on some runs and hikes.



Geoff finished up his Cyclocross season this past weekend. He successfully raced 12 weekend in a row, some with double races. Yep, that was three months of cross racing every weekend! Talk about a passion for the sport! He had a great time and is sad that it is over. He is taking a week completely off then time for him to start focusing on Ironman Lake Placid in July 2010.

Miles is full of life and growing like a weed. He is full of expressions and loves running around. Uh-oh, the little guy is up. I can hear him jumping up and down in his crib upstairs. I better run. Until a later time....

Cheering Video

This is my all time favorite video so far. Miles is cheering Geoff on at the All Hallow's Cross Race on Halloween. It was a cold rainy race but Miles still wanted to get out and cheer. Geoff finished second in his race. :)

Two other images from the weekend. First picture is Geoff's cheering crew. We decided to switch off between the dogs going to the race as it gets to be tons of work for me chasing a kid and managing two dogs. This was Austin's turn. Second picture is Geoff crossing the finish line.