Easing into routine

What a great day - of doing relatively little. I don't think I've indulged this way in a looong time. The kids were all at school so I went back to sleep with Baby M for an hour - woke to feed and back to sleep for another hour. Off and on feeding (and changing), catching up on blogs and reading. Back to sleep for another hour and then the kids got home. We went to Mitchell's first doctor appointment (he's up to 8lbs 6oz) and then took Matt to play practice, and then home for a late dinner. I have to admit I am now a bit sore and ready to sit for a while. Neat how the day prepared me for that though.

I was saying to Drew that this schedule looks like it might work well - I have every other day where I can nap more if needed since the kids are at school and the baby and I will be alone, and the opposite days are longer with the extra kids. By the time the kids are out of school in June we should have a better night time routine in place that will coincide more with the kids and the daily routine. Oh how I hope so! Otherwise, so far so good!

We're Home!

Well we have made the transition from a family of 5 to 6 (except that Cierra isn't here right now) and we are so glad to be home! I have to say that it was so nice to look around at the living room Drew prepared that I shed a quick tear. Don't get me wrong - the hospital was fine but there is just something about home.

Drew transformed the living room into my own little haven for the next week or so. I am going to try to be good and not use the stairs very much for at least a week (although I will need to shower!). I guess just because I'm not stopping the daycare I want to reduce the stress on my body in other ways as much as possible - and I also think the bed might be more difficult to get out of then the couch. That and Marlee still joins us regularly in bed and I'm not sure how this will work with Mitchell. I also know that once I allow myself to start going up and down the stairs, it won't be long before I regularly want to use them. So Drew got the couch ready for me to sleep on, the pack and play with the diaper station all ready and he even brought down the tv from our bedroom. It's quite a sweet deal.

We were able to leave the hospital around 12:30 and made a pit stop at Taco Bell take-out for lunch (I'm sure that is comparable to the ducosate sodium I have to take LOL!). Drew got us settled and then he went back to work. The kids were so excited to see us home after school, it was really sweet. I think Marlee in particular found me being away a little hard. She was a little emotional at times but held her own well. Again though, just glad to be home. Grandpa John brought them home and stayed at the house until Drew got in - a little odd for me to be waited on but I could get used to having someone do the dishes, prepare the snacks, tidy up - you get the idea!

So this is the plan for the next couple of weeks - I have someone in every day to help with the older kids and to do the drop-offs and pick-ups for school. All in the hopes of taking it easy for a few days so that I am really ready to do the walking. It does allow me some time to rest and get back into things slowly. It is so nice to have such willing friends and family to help out.

Now if I could just get Drew to stop making me laugh!!!

Welcome Baby M-3!

It's a BOY!!! Welcome to baby Mitchell Alexander - born Thursday, March 25th at 8:30am via c-section and weighing in at 8 lbs 8oz. He is perfect - and did I mention a BOY?

Everything went very smoothly - again a surreal experience knowing that when we arrived at the hospital at 6:45am that within a few short hours we would be parents yet again. This was a much better experience then with the other two - I lost a lot of blood with Matt and then with Marlee I remember being so cold - and shaking a lot. This time other then feeling a little nauseous right after getting the spinal (which is normal), I was alert and involved the whole time. Drew and the doctor talked real estate, I looked around at what was happening (I could see some of the action in the ceiling). The anesthesiologist chatted with me and answered my questions. He was very informative!

When everything was said and done Drew went with the baby and I went into recovery. The hospital was short on beds so I had to wait there until around 10:30 before I was taken to a ward bed for a few hours. At that point we had a few family visitors and those friends with pastoral privileges. Later in the day we were moved to a semi-private room until a private room came available.

To say that Marlee and Matthew are smitten would be an understatement. Matt seems to have a perm grin and both can't stop touching his hands. It's so sweet. They were both able to hold him rather quickly and stay for a good amount of time during our stay. They were both anxious to pass on gifts and new clothing from their aunt for him.

At that point we were still not completely sure on the name for him. Both of us (although we hadn't voiced it) had had a feeling I was carrying a girl. I guess not. We had narrowed it down to a few names for boys and finally decided on Mitchell Alexander. Not for any particular reason other then it was an M name and we liked it.

A little history...

The boy's name Mitchell \m(i)-tche-ll, mit-chell\ is pronounced MITCH-el. It is of Middle English origin. Variant of Michael, via the Norman French Michel. Surname used in the Middle Ages, and transferred as a given name in the 19th century. Band leader Mitch Miller.
Mitchell has 4 variant forms: Mitch, Mitchel, Mitchill and Mytch. It means Who is Like God.

Baby names that sound like Mitchell are Michele and Micheal.
Mitchell is a very common first name for men (#222 out of 1220) and also a very common last name for both men and women (#41 out of 88799). (1990 U.S. Census)

The boy's name Alexander \a-lexa-nder, alex(an)-der\ is pronounced al-ek-ZAN-der. It is of Greek origin, and its meaning is "man's defender, warrior". From the Latin form of the Greek name Alexandros. The name was probably coined originally as a title of the goddess Hera, consort of Zeus. Alexander the Great (356-323 BC) conquered and ruled the greater part of the known world before his death at the age of 33. History describes him as a man of high physical courage, impulsive energy, and fervid imagination. It was a royal name in Scotland. Alec and Zander are modern offshoots. Sandy is a Scottish pet form; Alessandro is an Italian form; Alexandre and Alixandre are French. See also Lexer. English poet Alexander Pope; American statesman Alexander Hamilton; actors Sir Alec Guinness, Alec Baldwin; American Secretary of State Alexander Haig; Soviet writer and dissident Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn; writer Alexandre Dumas.

Marlee was a little unsure of the name we picked. She has a classmate who's name is Mitchell who she is actually really good friends with and who lately has wanted to "kiss" her. She's not too impressed with that and was concerned that he would think she liked him and chose his name for the baby. We had to reassure her that she didn't pick the name but she could tell him that WE did. It actually worked out well because the next day he was sick anyway and she was able to get used to the name before telling him.

Grandparents and other family were able to finally see him around 10:30 when I was able to get over to the other wing. The security and visiting regulations have been beefed up significantly since we were last there to visit friends with a new baby in July. We had brought the kids to see her in the family visiting room. Now only 2 significant others are allowed from 7am-11pm, grandparents are allowed from 7am-8pm and siblings during this time for limited amounts of time. Other friends and family are limited to 4-8pm. A friend tried to come earlier and was denied - even after trying to pose as the flower delivery person for me. Did I mention that they have security cameras too? I think in retrospect the new rules are good - really just looking out for the interest of the patients. Now if they could just work on how often the nurses interrupt you...

It's amazing how quickly they just become a part of us. Welcome Mitchell!

Before and After

Before the room purge...


And after....
Wow - what a transformation. I have been wanting to help Matthew clean up his room for at least a few months now. His desk has been covered with loot bag toys, papers and books for at least as long. It took some doing but once he got going his phrase became "yep - I think someone else could use this". We got rid of two laundry baskets full of boxes, papers, toys and junk. I keep reminding him not to be like his mom... I'm not sure if it is helping or not. Maybe if I actually got rid of some more stuff??

My Husband is actually pretty funny

Today when Drew and I went on our usual thursday nite "date" nite, which this week consisted of a trip to Zellers and No Frills, (I know fun date eh? you take what you can get) , He actually made me laugh out loud---on more than one occasion--- I often forget how funny a person he actually is. This comes up every now and again when we meet new people- they seem to think and say "you must laugh all day at home with that guy" I usually respond with a very stoic "ohh yeah, ........yeah I sure do" But every once in a while he really does make me laugh.........not sure what he said tonite........but I know that it was funny, rather, funny, funny enough for me to LOL!! I LOVE THAT GUY!

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Happy St Patrick's Day to you all! We were a little more downscaled then last year but we did have a few decorations up and the kids asked for green pancakes for breakfast. They forgot about the lucky charms - which is good because I forgot about buying some. We did all wear the requisite green. Hope it was a lovely green day for everyone!

Barefoot and pregnant and in the kitchen

Drew seemed to get a big kick out of this cliche moment... and doing the dishes none-the-less!

The boy loves trees!

We stopped at the park on the way home from a few appointments and Matthew immediately wanted to climb the trees he did last year at the Terry Fox Run. No way. But this one was closer to the playground and a bit more accessible. He has also been trying Andrea's tree as well as the one at school (until he is told otherwise). I hated climbing tees as a kid - we had a great one in our backyard that my brother climbed. I wish there were more that Matt could try out but for now he will have to suffice with these few.

Gut-busting laughter

Katie the scrapbook lady today had a Memory Monday - laughing so hard your face hurts - and it made me think of some of those laughing times in my life. The memory that comes to mind goes back to grade nine with Kristy. We were in geography class and one of the other students in front of us used to stand with his bottom sticking out a bit. There were some mornings while we sang the national anthem or were quiet for the Lord's Prayer that we were just struck by it. Nice? Probably not - although I don't think anyone actually knew why we were laughing. I can recall it happening on several occasions though - that gut busting, I can't stop laughing time. Man that seems like such a long time ago!

Thanks for the memories Kristy and I'm so glad we're still friends!

Marlee learned to ride her two wheeler today! Just before our first snow in the fall I realized that she was pretty much balanced on her bike and the training wheels were air born. We talked about taking off her training wheels and then we got snow. With the sidewalks finally fairly dry this week we gave it a go. She took maybe two walks with me beside her and then she was off. And so calm about it! She hasn't wanted to go up the hill which is understandable but even the last bit you could tell she was getting tired and I just said - "What do you think - should we finish up now - are you tired?" She agreed and that was it. Man she's growing up fast!

Diaper discussion

I met today with a woman who I plan on signing up for a cloth diaper service with. She came to the house to show me her product and tell me about her washing service. I am totally excited! I had been debating about how to go about this whole issue since we found out about the baby. I really felt that cloth would be the way to go this time - especially since we can't recycle or compost the diapers through Small Planet anymore. I read some really good posts about cloth diapering on Simple Mom but have honestly left things till the last minute. I then came across an article in the paper about Munchkin Bums and put it on the back burner - still thinking I'd just do it myself. This week I went around to the used clothing stores and realized that there really aren't a lot of used diapers to get out there. Enter the service again - and when I asked Drew, he was totally on board with using a service and not doing anything ourselves. Works for me!


So anyway, I met with Lisa today, who apparently MAKES all of the diapers herself! They looked to be of great quality and the price is comparable to buying disposables. I am still totally on board with trying to go as diaper free (using elimination communication) as much as possible but I realize that I still have to have something around. I can't wait to see how this works out.

2 more weeks!!!

I had my last appointment with my Ob/Gyn today before DDay. He is gone next week on March Break. All in all everything has gone really well. I' was thinking today of how I had really wanted to use this blog as a way of recording my pregnancy and it's progression. So much for that. I find by the end of the day, I'm just pooched and this is really one of the last things on my mind. Oh don't get me wrong, during the day I think of all sorts of marvelous things to say - but they are out the window after 6pm. But enough of that.

My doctor was impressed with my weight gain (25lbs in total) and that it has been stabilized over the time period he has seen me. My only complaints right now are numbness in my hands when I eat or write (carpal tunnel syndrome which should disappear after birth), general fatigue and numbness in my upper chest. He attributed that to the fact that the skin by your belly button is the thinnest in the body and as it gets stretched out over the belly, the pressure causes more numbness there as well. There IS a lot of pressure. The vericose veins and associated itching are a lot less then they were a few months ago. Now it's just lower body pressure. I really need to sit down and do a comparison of all three pregancies. I have such poor recall it would be geat to see it in front of me. Do I see a scrapbook page coming on?

A lot of people are just beginning to notice that I am pregnant at all. It has been such a warm week that I've worn a vest outside and well, you can't hide it anymore. Daily, I am having someone ask if I am indeed pregnant and are shocked that I only have 2 weeks to go. I'm shocked too.

As for the actual DDAy - our doctor is actually on call so we are to go to the hospital for 8am and wait until we are called in. Matt and Cierra will still go to school and Marlee will stay home with YaYa and the other kids normally here on Thursdays. From there we will see. Still no idea on the gender and still not conclusive on the names. But time is ticking!

Tremblant getaway

Our trip to Tremblant was great! When I can join the kids skiing again I think I will be in for a big surprise. They will have long outdone me. They did mostly blue squares and some black diamonds - areas I'm sure I would not have had the courage to try. Marlee had a few wipe outs but thankfully kept persevering. She did opt out of Sunday's ski as her ankle hurt so we had a nice quiet time at the condo together.

There was plenty to do - from the skiing to hot tubbing to just hanging out at the condo. If we'd had time we could have done dog sledding, free snow tubing, ice skating or just wandering around the village. Most of the time the kids just wanted to go hut tubbing when they weren't out skiing - that or play Trouble. They all got along amazingly well - especially for it being the first time away together. The condo had lots of room and was certainly fine for me to just hang out. They didn't seem to be away skiing for too long periods anyway so I never had time to get lonely (not that I do anyway) - I had books and scrapbooking - which I never got around to - and Drew got the wireless Internet running by Saturday.

Anyway - all in all a fun trip and surprisingly I'm not feeling any ill effects from the long car ride yet. Hopefully it will stay that way. Most people when they found out I was going at 9 months just said that they could tell it was our third. I guess they are right!

Another LOAD recap and a new direction

Another LOAD has been completed! Again, this one worked out wonderfully for me - very little stress, easy layouts and lots of geat inspiration and comments.

Here are my accomplishments!

28 days

34 pages/ items uploaded

15 digital layouts

3-8.5x11 pages

4 mini album pages

5- 8x8 pages

7-12x12 paper layouts

185 photos scrapped!!!

Since I didn't upload my layouts every day I'll give a brief summary of my top 5 favourites!

#5 I finally got my Israel Top 10 photos layout done - that felt good! It was only a year late but my only regret is not having more space to journal.

#4 I really like how this one turned out of Cierra. I want to do the paper version that is similar to Matt and Marlee's but I'm almost wishing I'd done this version instead - it just suits her (it also received 11 comments!)

#3 I do so few layouts of Drew - so I like this one. He needs more pages - and what can say - all that is on it is true.

#2 I really like how this one turned out. The colours, the simple story, the overall layout.

#1 These photos just speak to me. I love the look on Marlee's face and I'd been wanting to do a layout with these photos ever since they were taken. I'm glad it is finally done.

This was a great LOAD for finishing up a few stories that had been on the back burner. I loved playing around more with the digital layouts - some were so fast yet got the look and story I wanted to tell.

I am really finding that the digital layouts are helping with these stories. I find that I haven't been developing a lot of photos lately - more of them tend to be for Project 365 and I briefly tell the daily journalling. In the past I have developed photos for layouts that I then found to be the wrong size so I have slowed down until I knew what I really wanted. I'm finding digital to be the answer. I can plug them in - adjust the size - add background photos... It's actually encouraging me to do some layouts I probably never would have done. The development at Costco isn't bad either - $2.49 each! Well worth the savings of the aggrivation. Oh don't get me wrong. I can't completely give up paper scrapbooking - I have way too many supplies to do that. Plus there certainly is an allure to that type of crafting.

I have my theme albums I still want to pursue like Halloween, Christmas, year-end month-to-month, birthdays, Christmas cards received, and School of Life. There is also the flexibility that using Drew's laptop is now bringing. I found a 16GB flash drive to store all of the digital supplies on. I hoping this will allow me to do more in front of the tv or away. I recently looked back at the last several years of photos and made a new list of some layouts to make. I'm getting my mojo back! Actually I've already signed up for May's LOAD - and then realized yesterday that we will be in Ottawa for the last few days for Drew's run. I'll be trying to upload from a hotel - hope I can do it!

BTW - check out the picassa album at the side to see other layouts.

February 2010 Recap

Time for my monthly recap! I find these posts so helpful for my organizational style. I recently went back through my notes all the way to when we were married (12 years ago) and did yearly recaps in a similar format. I have no memory recall so this helps so much!

Exercise – I’m still did my weekly 52 card pick up with Rina and I’m definitely counting my daily walks to and from school (Although I have driven more lately =()

Books/ Magazines Read – scrapbooks etc magazine; CK magazine; reading Diaper Free

Entertainment - TV/ Movies Seen – Masada, LOST, Horton Hears a Who; Olympics; Survival Special;

Special Events – kids skiing lessons on Sundays; parent council (2nd), Church hiring committee; church storage meetings; Winterfest (6th); Superbowl Party (7th); Family Day (15th); Dinner out with friends; Marlee – birthday parties to Grace (20th) and Isabella (27th); Matt to John’s birthday party (28th);

Travel – n/a

Significant Purchases/ changes – garage loft done;

Health – Cierra – eye appointment (8th); kids sick (14-15th); 32-35 weeks pregnant – general fatigue (not bad); itchy; swollen hands developing (Carpal tunnel); heartburn in last week; some sciatica

Accomplishments – LOAD Feb2010 (See LOAD post)