Since we've been home...
Doctors orders...
...instead of being under the billirubin lights,
Bentley's pediatrician asked us to have him sunbathe in in-direct light through out the day
for just over a week until his jaundice went away.
He LOVED it!
Bentley's pediatrician asked us to have him sunbathe in in-direct light through out the day
for just over a week until his jaundice went away.
He LOVED it!
Bentley was a real sport during bath time the first week or so around the house;his brothers would crowd around his little tub each morning and make such a fuss while I tried to bathe him.
They ALL wanted to help.
3 sets of busy hands, 30 extra little fingers, poking him in the eye or the nostril...
dousing him with sudsy water after mom just dried him off.
Bath time was a real circus
until the novelty of bathing Bentley wore off
and the boys were distracted by something going on elsewhere.
(b.t.w. just in case you were wondering,
yes I photo shopped this picture and added that yellow star to cover up Bentley's man parts;
I didn't want to embarrass the poor kid already).
The older boys didn't only insist on helping during Bentley's bath time;they wanted to help ALL the time those first couple of weeks after his arrival.
In the picture below Cohen thought he'd do Bentley a favor
and remove the blanket that Dad just wrapped Bentley up in...
BIG MISTAKE!
Bentley was very upset Cohen woke him!
So Cohen tried to calm Bentley by giving him his pacifier...it was a good honest attempt and I think it could have worked...
...if only Cohen had put the pacifier in Bentley's mouth and NOT his eye!
My parents came to town to meet their newest grandson.Bentley is their 20TH grandchild.
They arrived late Friday evening, just before midnight,
(same day Bentley and I came home from the hospital)
and stayed with us for just over a week
(correction: my dad left two days later, on Sunday evening leaving my mom to stay longer).
I was grateful to have both my parents around, particularly my mom;
I needed an extra helping hand here on the home front that first weekend;
Spencer left early that Saturday morning (August 15TH) and caught a flight down to Orange County
to attend his mission companion's wedding.
He stayed in California all of Saturday and then returned later in the afternoon on Sunday.
They came bearing gifts...
My mom brought Bentley his own giraffe blankee;
now each of the boys have their own "raffe" (as the older boys call it) to cuddle and sleep with...
we can tell the "raffes" apart
by letters my mother kindly stitched onto each one by the tail.
My mother also picked up another growth chart from the San Diego Zooso we can follow Bentley's growth over the course of his childhood...
My parents also brought these BEAUTIES with them!7 ships,
handcrafted, replicated after actual ships that once sailed the seas...
made by MY grandpa.
(yeah, my grandpa is so much cooler than your grandpa!)
My grandfather built 27 ships over the course of some 30 or 40 years. The work he put into each ship is incredible!!! After buying a ship's blueprints to construct it, he'd get to work on measuring and cutting the wood for the boat, sanding it, then he'd bend and shape the wood, stain the wood, paint the anchors and/or cannons along with any other fixtures that were on the boat, glue them all in place, tie the sails and ropes... sometimes my grandmother would sew and stitch sails to go onto the different boats...My grandpa spent HOURS, DAYS, WEEKS and even MONTHS at a time working on his boats.
He was PASSIONATE about building these ships.
After he'd finish one, my grandparents would find a place for the ship either on a mantel or a shelf, then it wouldn't be long before he'd begin work on another boat.
About a year ago, my grandparents, at the ripe ol' age of 88, decided it was time they move from their estate in Barker, New York to an assisted living home in Lockport, New York. Barker is a tiny little village just off the shore of Lake Ontario(one of the Great Lakes). Barker is a BEAUTIFUL, serene, quiet town... my father was raised there; my grandmother grew up there and so did her parents... our roots are in the village of Barker and the town of Somerset. It's been bittersweet seeing my grandparents move from their place there; I have so many memories of visiting them at their home and old lake house every summer as a child, teenager, and 3 years ago I had the fortune of being able to take Noah back there by myself for two weeks at the end of summer. Winters in Barker are brutal, but Spring, Summer and Fall are gorgeous seasons!!! In the fall, Cat Tail and Jack-o-laterns grow wild EVERY WHERE; all the lush trees burst with leaves yellow, orange, brown and red in color. In the Spring, all the flowers, including Queen Annes Lace which grows wild there, are full in bloom; and in Summer you can find the BEST fresh produce sold in makeshift stands situated on the ends of neighbors driveways. For a small penny you can buy fresh squash, eggplant, cabbage, lettuce, carrots, zucchini, cucumbers, lima beans, greeen beans, yellow beans, corn and berries of all sorts! The summers there are a little warm- never too hot- and a little muggy; everything is GREEN and there's always a nice, refreshing lake breeze blowing by. Dragonflies dart about in numbers along the waters surface of the lake by day, and fireflies fly illuminate the night canvas while a symphony of crickets, grasshoppers and other beetles of sorts serenade you to sleep. Barker is about 40 minutes outside of Lockport, an hour, maybe hour and a half from Buffalo; one hour from Rochester and Palmyra and a 30-40 minute drive away from Niagara Falls.
fs
I will miss having an excuse to visit Barker now that my grandparents no longer reside there; though... they do still own their home there and have not yet put it up for sale...
I've considered it more than once, and have weighed the idea of moving there myself with my own family; Spencer and I have always talked about moving some day back to Ohio where he served his mission (I'm never sure just how serious he is though about it); what about Barker??? it's not much different than the countryside of Ohio and it's only a couple hours driving distance away...
...Nevertheless, my grandparents move from Barker last year was a little upsetting but life must go on... I'm lucky alone just to still have them in my life.
My grandparents had to downsize A LOT in their move, so they took only the necessities and left behind a houseful of memories, keepsakes and heirlooms that their children have been sorting through for the last year; a lot of the things have been hard to part with. As for the 27 ships that my grandfather built and displayed through out their house, those too have been placed in other homes.
My grandparents took one boat with them to their new place,
my aunt was given a few,
my uncle from Boston and his two daughters selected the boats they wanted,
my grandpa's niece received one,
my grandparents donated one to the Barker Library
and a few close friends and neighbors asked to keep some boats for themselves...
the last 7 or 8 ships were spared for my family.
My grandparents wanted each of their children
and their grandchildren to all have a boat of their own.
my aunt was given a few,
my uncle from Boston and his two daughters selected the boats they wanted,
my grandpa's niece received one,
my grandparents donated one to the Barker Library
and a few close friends and neighbors asked to keep some boats for themselves...
the last 7 or 8 ships were spared for my family.
My grandparents wanted each of their children
and their grandchildren to all have a boat of their own.
We of course wanted the boats my grandparents offered to give us, but it was a challenge deciding just HOW to get the boats safely out west to where we all lived without damaging them in transit. The boats are too big to fly with and hold as "carry on" items; they're too fragile to box up and ship cross country UPS or FedEx; simply the only way we could transport them was if someone were to drive them safely cross-country to us.
My parents were the ones who decided to do that (thanks again Mom and Dad!).
Because there were so many boats my parents needed to bring back west with them, my parents had to rent a moving truck. My dad spent about 2 or 3 days in Barker building special crates to hold each ship; the fear was that if they hit any pothole or bump or took a corner turn to quickly on the trip out here, the ships might fall over and something delicate could break off... the Tuesday night before Bentley was born, my parents left Barker, New York with all 8 ships in tow and headed West to Utah. They made the long, boring drive through Nebraska and Wyoming going the maximum speed of 60mph!!! (talk about slow! it wasn't their fault though- the moving truck didn't go any faster than that!) and finally, by 11 p.m. Friday night (August 14TH) they arrived just outside my door AND... all the ships they brought with them were unharmed during the commute!
I had first dibs, before my other sisters since I was the first to see them.
I was really tempted to keep this ship below.
It is beautiful and very nautical/Ralph Lauren looking.
I LOVE the sails on it especially...
... but I turned it down.
(my sister Celeste actually decided to keep this boat and it looks lovely in their house).
I finally ended up choosing this ship below to keep for our little family; it's one of the smaller models my grandpa made,
some of the boats he constructed are nearly 4 feet in length and 3 1/2 feet in height;
this particular boat is probably 2 ft. x 2 ft.
I decided on it because it had beautiful details aboard the deck of the ship,
cannons on its side and AMAZING ropes that my grandpa painstakingly, but patiently tied,
AND OF COURSE
I thought it resembled an old grandeur pirate boat...
sort of...
and you know how my boys love pirates!
It's called "La Couronne"
(French for "crown")
it was an emblematic ship of the French Navy built by Richelieu in 1636.
While sorting through boxes of things in my grandparents' basement,my parents found this family Bible...
instead of tossing it, they decided to keep it and offered it to me.
It has aged beautifully;the history behind this sacred book is also quite interesting.
This particular Bible was printed in 1864.
It belonged to Rho Ludlow, my great grandmother's brother.
He was either 11 or 12 years old when it was given to him on November 4, 1900 by an aunt;
before that the Bible belonged to an uncle or great uncle of some sort that died in 1875.
It's sort of neat thumbing through a copy of an old Bible that has belonged to our family for so long....
stuffed in between a few of the pages,
I found some cards explaining the signs and symbols Masons used during meetings...
very interesting is ALL I can say...
my forefathers were Quakers and quite a few were Masons.
(below is a photo of the inscription in the Bible)
I also inherited this other family Bible.It once belonged to my great grandmother, Ethel Ludlow.
It was printed in 1901;
Ethel received this Bible at age 13 as a gift for Christmas on December 25, 1904
from her brothers Rho & George.
My dad found this old camera stored away in my grandparents basement.The Kodak Vigilant Six-20 Diomatic medium format camera
was manufactured between 1939-1949
and originally sold for US $38 (about US $560 in 2007).
The camera belonged to my grandmother and my dad used it quite a bit as a teenager.
I doubt it still works, (I'll have to take it into a camera shop and get some help)
but I'd love to snap a few photos with it just to see how they turn out.
Nevertheless, I thought it looked like such a neat camera
and couldn't bear to part with it when my dad offered it to me.
(Thanks Grandma and Dad!)
It's funny, in light of inheriting these family Bibles and my grandmothers old camera, I've started to devote more time lately to doing my family genealogy; I'd given up doing it these past 4 years since we've had children, but something about thumbing through Rho's Bible and looking through the view finder of my grandmothers old camera has sparked a curiosity to find my ancestors long since deceased and do their work for them. It's not an easy job, and it's not just a quick task, more rather tedious and very frustrating, but WOW! I think it's fair to say, my ancestors were pretty amazing people with incredible life stories; they can teach me more than "just a thing or two" about life's valuable principals.Spencer and the boys spent many afternoons entertaining grandma (my mom) with SWORD FIGHTS!!!
what did you expect?!
Puppet shows and tea parties.
NAW!
They're boys and boys like to wrestle, rock out to music on guitars and SWORD FIGHT!
what did you expect?!
Puppet shows and tea parties.
NAW!
They're boys and boys like to wrestle, rock out to music on guitars and SWORD FIGHT!
Ian takes his sword fighting quite seriously!and Cohen could definitely save a damsel in distress.
Spencer's a little "weak sauce" and needs Noah to brush him up on "Sword Fighting 101".
(oh, and just in case you were curious, yes, a few eyes and noses got poked by swords,
but overall, the boys fought together pretty fairly.)
Grandma Truesdell (my mom) spent a lot of her time holding and cuddling Baby Bentley... she doesn't often get that opportunity since we live so far away from her.
She even babysat all four of our boys for us one afternoon
so Spencer and I could go and look at houses with our Real Estate Agent.
Exactly one week after Bentley's birth,Noah started preschool at Learning Dynamics.
(read more about his preschool here).
A couple of the days,
while Noah's been at school,
I've taken the others boys,
Cohen & Ian,
over to the park to play, soak up sunshine and enjoy a picnic lunch.
It's been nice having a couple of hours, twice a week, to be alone with just the younger boys.
Since 2 of Trish's kids go to the same preschool as Noah,
at times we carpool
(actually, I'm not sure I can fairly call it a "carpool" if I'm not the one giving the rides as much as she is....
she's been really helpful taking Noah to and from school for me when I'm running behind with the other boys).
Sometimes the kids get together after school and play together
(along with their other siblings)...
The boys LOVE their cousins and every moment they get to be with them!
I smile at the idea that they're not just cousins,
but really best friends!!!
They're finally at that age where they all actually understand the CONCEPT of games...
...well, sort of...
(note to family: please notice in this picture below and many of the other pictures Noah is in,
how often he's got his tongue sticking OUT of his mouth!!!
Just like mom (me) he does it naturally anytime he's trying to concentrate).
Trish and I met and let our kids play together at Discovery Park
after the kids first day of school;
Spencer and my mom also joined us.
It was our first official family outing with all four of the boys;
Bentley was exactly one week old.
(read more about his preschool here).
A couple of the days,while Noah's been at school,
I've taken the others boys,
Cohen & Ian,
over to the park to play, soak up sunshine and enjoy a picnic lunch.
It's been nice having a couple of hours, twice a week, to be alone with just the younger boys.
Since 2 of Trish's kids go to the same preschool as Noah,at times we carpool
(actually, I'm not sure I can fairly call it a "carpool" if I'm not the one giving the rides as much as she is....
she's been really helpful taking Noah to and from school for me when I'm running behind with the other boys).
Sometimes the kids get together after school and play together
(along with their other siblings)...
The boys LOVE their cousins and every moment they get to be with them!
I smile at the idea that they're not just cousins,
but really best friends!!!
They're finally at that age where they all actually understand the CONCEPT of games......well, sort of...
(note to family: please notice in this picture below and many of the other pictures Noah is in,
how often he's got his tongue sticking OUT of his mouth!!!
Just like mom (me) he does it naturally anytime he's trying to concentrate).
Trish and I met and let our kids play together at Discovery Parkafter the kids first day of school;
Spencer and my mom also joined us.
It was our first official family outing with all four of the boys;
Bentley was exactly one week old.
Alauna & Tori, are FABULOUS helpers!
With 6 younger siblings of their own,
they've got the whole "keep an eye on the kid thing" mastered!
My boys LOVE their company!
Need not forget that Bentley was born in August,it was still summer and HOTTER than "you know where" here in Utah.
We needed to "cool off" some
and the boys were anxious to get back in the water and swim
so I left Bentley at home one afternoon with Spencer,
(he was only about a week old),
and my mom and I took the 3 older boys to Seven Peaks Water Park.
Trish met us there with all 8 of her kids
(seriously I don't know how she manages by herself with all of them and still LOOKS Grace Kelly'esque in her bathing suit, shades and fancy hat!
I'd be a frumpy mess-
...in fact
I was that day, so that's why there's no picture of ME in a bathing suit here).
After taking a dip, before heading home, we stopped by J Dawgs for some tasty dogs in buns;or in my pathetic "gluten intolerant" case, just the dog without the bun.
(It's actually a business my old mission companion Heidi owns with her husband;
it's a VERY POPULAR HOT SPOT food place in Provo that students, faculty and Utah County residents, all alike, flock to for comida).
One evening after naps,my mom and I took the two older boys,
Noah & Ian
out to Salem Pond to feed the ducks.
My mothers family (the Sabin's) originally settled parts of Payson and Salem before moving to Arizona;
in fact
a pioneer ancestor of mine used to own and operate a saw mill that generated its power
from the water in the pond and stream.
They used to also own and care for what is now known through out town as The Sabin Orchards.
(it's a popular fresh produce farm where outsiders can come and pick apples and others vegetables and fruits during harvest).
I LOVE these two pics of Ian with his lolli.My mom found these ginormous lollipops for the boys!
Feeding the ducks bread, pb & j and oyster crackers(the pb & j sandwhiches were really for the boys but they wanted to share them with their duck pals)!
We had such a great time while my mom stay with us!
I can't thank her enough for the help she lent us those 9 days after Bentley's birth. ...
sometimes my house can feel like such a zoo with our four boys!!!
my mom made an excellent zoo keeper.
I can't thank her enough for the help she lent us those 9 days after Bentley's birth. ...
sometimes my house can feel like such a zoo with our four boys!!!
my mom made an excellent zoo keeper.
But there were a few times the animals (a.k.a. the boys) got a little too wild and out of control!...
(I promise they're not beating her up in this picture even though that's what it might look like).
The boys just have this cRaZy way of crowding around and smothering people
when they want to give hugs and kisses.
Spencer and I have been busy taking the boys to fun places
for learning and enjoyment;
I get a little "stir crazy" being cooped up in the house after having a baby.
For F.H.E. one evening we took the kids to the aquarium in Sandy;
it's not Sea World, but the boys don't the difference...
...they enjoy petting the sting rays, seeing the sharks and watching the "jellies".
Noah has been extremely lucky as a child
to have had so many opportunities over the last few years
to visit theme parks, museums,
aquatic centers, etc. on multiple occasions for FREE...
but NOW that he's four,
he's considered one extra little person we have to account for.
He received his very first membership EVER
when we went to the aquarium.
He's wanted his own i.d./membership forever
and he was so thrilled to have his picture taken and printed onto his own little card.
His smile was a MILE wide in this picture!!!
In the picture below, the boys are exploring the new rain forest exhibit at the aquarium;
it's way cooler than the other exhibits because it has an anaconda snake, alligators, an electric eel and piranhas!
I've taken the boys to the zoo a couple of times over the last few weeks.
In the picture below Noah is performing a very dangerous circus act for the rest of us...
only the bravest of brave little boys dare to do this trick at the zoo.
it's way cooler than the other exhibits because it has an anaconda snake, alligators, an electric eel and piranhas!
I've taken the boys to the zoo a couple of times over the last few weeks.In the picture below Noah is performing a very dangerous circus act for the rest of us...
only the bravest of brave little boys dare to do this trick at the zoo.
...who's on exhibition here??? ...the Colobus monkeys or the two Campbell boys???
We "ooohed" and "awwwed" when we saw all the new baby animals that were born at the zoo...
The female baby elephant is only a few days older than Bentley.Here she is trying to balance on her big red ball!
Both times we've gone to the zoo,we met up with Trish and her three youngest children, Daniel, Bella & Izzy.
The kids all worked up a little sweat running around the zoo one afternoon so they chilled off with slurpees.
One afternoon, we visited Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point.
We LOVE all the fun things there are to do at Thanksgiving Point;
it's too bad our passes just expired.
Time to renew them
otherwise I won't make it through our long winter days here
with out taking the boys to the Dinosaur Museum every week!
Like the zoo, there were even A LOT of baby animals that were born on the farm during summer.
it's too bad our passes just expired.
Time to renew them
otherwise I won't make it through our long winter days here
with out taking the boys to the Dinosaur Museum every week!
Like the zoo, there were even A LOT of baby animals that were born on the farm during summer.
We were actually at the farm the day the cow above on the left was born.It's cRaZy how big the thing grew in just a couple of months!
These calves hatched a plan to drink Cohen's bottle of milk
that was on the side of the diaper bag hanging from the back of our stroller.
The little brown cow distracted Cohen by giving him sloppy kisses on his feet
while the black and white cow guzzled down Coey's milk!!!
Very clever calves.
The boys rode ponies.Ian's the real deal cowboy...
Sabin blood must run pretty thick through his veins
because he loves riding ponies!
(my grandpa Sabin was really a cowboy and a rancher who used to tame wild mustangs).
...I can't say the same about Noah though.
The first Saturday in September we had ticketsto go and watch the U.S.A. Mens Soccer Team play El Salvador
in the World Cup Qualifiers...
Spencer was supposed to go with me to the game,
but realized that B.Y.U.'s first game of the season against O.U. was also on the same day
and being the true B.Y.U. football fan he is
he opted to stay home and watch the game with his buddies...
No prob....
I prepared some snack for the guys,
set out plates, utensils and napkins,
pulled the flag out of the closet for Spencer to hang outside
(I LOVE game days when we get to hang this flag up; I also love hosting football parties for Spence and his friends;
frankly, I just love any good reason to plan and host a party!)
and just before I left,I warned his buddies to keep their food and sodas OFF the carpet
(didn't want to come home to a sticky mess on my floors),
then I was off to watch the soccer match.
I dropped 3 of the boys off at Trish's house
and took Ian & my niece Tori
with me to the game.
My sister in law Megan and her husband met us there and had seats next to us.
Our seats were AWESOME!
Probably half the crowd was there to cheer on El Salvador;
some of the fans sported horns on their head,
carried drums and blow horns,
some wore blue lucha libre masks
and others waved around the countries flag.
The crowd was pretty intense the first half when El Salvador scored the first goal
Ian really had a fun time at the game!
He got wild with all the fans!
Tori and I enjoyed it too but were a little less enthusiastic...
I'll bet you almost forgot I had a newborn back at home I still had to take care of...yeah, well Bentley has been growing so fast since being home from the hospital
it's difficult to see him as a newborn anymore these days.
He's such a good baby, lucky for us.
He just sleeps and eats,
only making a fuss when he has a messy diaper, is hungry or has the hiccups.
He's very alert and likes to coo and babble a lot already too.
I'm trying to enjoy his "easy ways" right now
because if he's anything like his older brothers,
he'll be "busy" and mischievous by the time he starts walking!
He doesn't LOVE "tummy time"...
but then again I can understand why..."tummy time" always turns into "smother time".
His brothers just can't leave him alone!
Bentley is 6 weeks old in the picture below.I'm loving this little cardigan set my in laws found in Uruguay last spring.
It's hand knit and keeps him warm and comfy on chilly days.
(it may have kept him too warm on this particular day, I spot a sweat breaking out across his forehead in this picture).
The kid TOTALLY looks like a Truesdell;don't you agree???
On a totally different note;
Mr. B (Bentley)
was born with a birthmark on his chest that has had us greatly concerned
and we've been probing for answers about it nearly since his birth.
In the beginning,
the birthmark was maybe only an inch in diameter
and it was slightly pinker than the rest of his skin.
We didn't think much of it,
until I started to notice it began to change colors;
it went from being pink, to more reddish, than almost purplish.
I checked with his pediatrician at his 2 week check up just to confirm that it
really was just a "normal" birthmark;
"yup" he said, "nothing to be suspicious of",
but then
when Bentley was about 5 1/2 weeks old,
the area where the birthmark was began to blister!
We took him in immediately to see his pediatrician
who was just as confused about the blistering mark on his chest as we were,
so he gave us some ointment to keep the open blister from getting infected
and then referred Bentley to be seen by a pediatric dermatologist
at Children's Primary Hospital in Salt Lake.
The "birthmark" continued to scab over and blister repeatedly
until our meeting with the specialist last week...
The dermatologist took one look at Bentley's blister/birth mark and
immediately she could tell this "birth mark" of his was actually a solitary mastocytosis,
otherwise known as urticaria pigmentosa.
It's a skin disease that produces lesions and intense itching;
if you rub the lesion, hives may develop
and in some younger children (such as Bentley)
if the lesion is scratched or irritated,
a fluid-filled blister will appear.
His entire body also becomes flushed.
The specialist told me that when too many white blood cells gather in that spot on Bentley's chest,
they start to form the blister,
and if and when the blister pops,
histamines are sent rushing through his little body,
similar to an allergic reaction.
Poor kid.
She gave me a prescription for some steroid creme to rub over the lesion
and told us that generally urticaria pigmentosa goes away by puberty
in about half of the affected children.
Symptoms usually get better in others as they grow into adulthood.
We may need to ask his pediatrician for an EpiPen
we can use in the case of a bee sting as he gets a little older;
bee stings may also cause severe allergic reactions in some patients with urticaria pigmentosa.
Spencer and I are happy to finally have a diagnosis for Bentley's skin problems
but the worry hasn't gone away completely.
We have to be extra gentle with the marking on his chest
and watch for infection any time the lesion blisters and pops.
I've discovered the best way to keep the lesion from getting irritated
is by keeping it bandaged.
(this is what the marking looked like one afternoon after
Spencer delicately bathed him with a wash cloth;
the soft terry cloth irrated the lesion so much so it blistered and looked like this for 3 days!)
(additional note concerning the matter: just in case you were wondering where the marks were on Bentley in all the other pictures I've posted of Bentley shirtless, I edited them out with Photoshop).
P.S. Bentley's beginning to get pretty chunky!When I took him to meet with the specialist a week ago at 8 weeks old
he was almost 11 pounds;
he had gained over a pound in just 1 weeks time!!!
Here's our first official family pics since being out of the hospital with Bentley.
We decided to troop it and take all the boys out one eveningto watch Mountain View High School's Homecoming football game.
(Mountain View is Spencer's old high school...
he used to actually be the mascot for the school;
how funny is that?!
He said he did it just so he could ride on the same bus as the cheerleaders to all the games).
The boys had fun at the game;no fits or tantrums were played out for those in the crowd to watch,
Spencer and I were actually able to enjoy the game.
I decided though after that evening that teenagers are a real menace to society;
so many of them are real twerps
(was I really like that?!)
Moving on with my story...
Noah & Ian have become quite industrious lately...
Noah has learned how to tie his little army men onto makeshift parachutes,
then launch them off the balcony of our 2nd floor,
or even tie the men onto the end of a string from a helium balloon to watch him float away...
the boys work pretty hard putting together fancy block towers
and they're always looking for new ways to make their towers and buildings indestructible
(Cohen has quite the knack for totaling his brothers creations).
The boys are also quite curious these days,
which leads us to weekly science experiments!
Spencer's the teacher and Noah & Ian are his students.
On this weeks agenda
the boys will be using food coloring and water to mix colors
to see just how new colors are created.
Ian looks so smug in this picture below;
don't be fooled by his "cuteness";
he's been sort of a "trouble maker" lately.
He ABSOLUTELY refuses to keep his diaper on during naps and bedtime!
He prefers to sleep in the nude
and WORSE
he likes to do "poo art" all over his bedroom wall
or amuse his younger brother Cohen,
when the two of them should be sleeping,
and fling poo terds across the bedroom floor like in a game of jacks!
Just for the record, I am not fond of his new obsession!!!
It's just plain right disgusting.
When I find him after nap,
with "poo art" on the wall
and ask him "why???" he's done it again
he responds by simply saying "just cuz".
Hmmm....
I don't think that's still yet a valid excuse,
and I won't support him in his habit
SO...
I asked friends and family with help on this matter
and the majority seemed to agree
A. He's ready for potty training
(which by the way is something we're working on but the kid can't go to sleep with a toilet on his bed)
and
B. try duct taping his diaper on him or put his jammies on his backwards.
Duct tape really?!?
I wasn't sure if people were really serious,
but I was desperate to put an end to this madness
so I bought a roll of duct tape in lime green
(you'd be surprised to learn of all the colors it comes in now).
The kid's Houdini reincarnated.
We thought surely he wouldn't figure out a way to unzip his pajamas if we put them on him backwards
or even manage to take his diaper off when it's duct taped,
but the little squirt proved us wrong!
He knows how to do both tricks!
It drives me NUTS!!!
For now,
we've settled the problem with a safety pin;
only after duct taping a diaper on him,
then putting him in backwards jammies,
we proceed to secure the zipper with a safety pin
and finally he's ready for bed.
I heard a noted figure once say
that couples should stop having kids
once they reach the point
in which they begin calling their children the wrong names...
in retrospect of that theory,
if it is true...
Spencer and I should have stopped having kids after Noah was born.
I can't even begin to tell you how many times a day I call the boys by the wrong name;
it's gotten so bad that I call Noah "Spencer" some times!
Perhaps we should have just named Bentley, Cohen #2...
I call him Cohen more often than I call him his correct name.
I even hear Spencer calling the boys by the wrong name more and more lately
We laugh about it now,
but do you think this is going to some how
psychologically damage our children for the future???
How can you really blame us though,
when they look like this???
Strangers mistaken these two ALL THE TIME for being twins
when in reality they're 20 months apart in age!!!
Even I can't tell them apart sometimes when I take a quick glance at them
or when they zip past me!
Ian's finally caught up to Noah in height and weight
and they both wear the same size clothes.
For now, they both sport the same haircut and their hair is exactly the same color too!
Oh what a pair Noah & Ian make!
Onto more interesting news...
Spence experienced a real HIGH a couple of weeks ago
when he had the opportunity to go and listen to his favorite band PEARL JAM play live in concert in Salt Lake.
I usually enjoy most the music Spencer enjoys listening to for listening pleasure,
but I REALLY don't like Pearl Jam.
(correction: I do like the sound track Eddie Vedder made for the movie "Into the Wild",
but otherwise,
I still hate their whiny grunge, mopey music).
I promised before the concert that if Spencer came home with any of their stickers or shirts
I'd take and give them to D.I. or Goodwill first thing the next morning...
... well,
not only did he buy a shirt at the concert,
but he also purchased one of their hoodies!!!
Okay,
honestly,
I haven't had the nerve to throw them out yet,
but give it a few months,
after he's forgotten about them,
THEN is when I'll raid his closet and throw them out!
He won't even know they're gone. ;)
He went to the concert with his friends Dave, Jimmy and Matt.
(just for the record:
I overheard Spencer tell Jimmy,
the one on the far right,
just before they left for the concert,
that he broke a cardinal rule for concerts by wearing a shirt with the bands name on it to their own concert.
He was totally serious about what he told Jimmy and obviously sort of disappointed Jimmy didn't already know that rule about concerts,
so somehow,
he coerced Jimmy into turning his tee shirt inside out and wearing it that way for the concert.
On Spencer's behalf, I apologize Jimmy...
At times he can be really ridiculous ).
(another note for the record: I'm not responsible for snapping the pictures of the guys at the Pearl Jam concert or the pic of Spencer and Noah below; Spence's friend Dave actually took these awesome pics and posted them on his Facebook, so I snatched them from off there. Thanks Dave!)
Spencer and I were actually able to enjoy the game.
I decided though after that evening that teenagers are a real menace to society;
so many of them are real twerps
(was I really like that?!)
Moving on with my story...
Noah & Ian have become quite industrious lately...
Noah has learned how to tie his little army men onto makeshift parachutes,
then launch them off the balcony of our 2nd floor,
or even tie the men onto the end of a string from a helium balloon to watch him float away...
the boys work pretty hard putting together fancy block towers
and they're always looking for new ways to make their towers and buildings indestructible
(Cohen has quite the knack for totaling his brothers creations).
The boys are also quite curious these days,which leads us to weekly science experiments!
Spencer's the teacher and Noah & Ian are his students.
On this weeks agendathe boys will be using food coloring and water to mix colors
to see just how new colors are created.
Ian looks so smug in this picture below;
don't be fooled by his "cuteness";
he's been sort of a "trouble maker" lately.
He ABSOLUTELY refuses to keep his diaper on during naps and bedtime!
He prefers to sleep in the nude
and WORSE
he likes to do "poo art" all over his bedroom wall
or amuse his younger brother Cohen,
when the two of them should be sleeping,
and fling poo terds across the bedroom floor like in a game of jacks!
Just for the record, I am not fond of his new obsession!!!
It's just plain right disgusting.
When I find him after nap,
with "poo art" on the wall
and ask him "why???" he's done it again
he responds by simply saying "just cuz".
Hmmm....
I don't think that's still yet a valid excuse,
and I won't support him in his habit
SO...
I asked friends and family with help on this matter
and the majority seemed to agree
A. He's ready for potty training
(which by the way is something we're working on but the kid can't go to sleep with a toilet on his bed)
and
B. try duct taping his diaper on him or put his jammies on his backwards.
Duct tape really?!?
I wasn't sure if people were really serious,
but I was desperate to put an end to this madness
so I bought a roll of duct tape in lime green
(you'd be surprised to learn of all the colors it comes in now).
The kid's Houdini reincarnated.We thought surely he wouldn't figure out a way to unzip his pajamas if we put them on him backwards
or even manage to take his diaper off when it's duct taped,
but the little squirt proved us wrong!
He knows how to do both tricks!
It drives me NUTS!!!
For now,
we've settled the problem with a safety pin;
only after duct taping a diaper on him,
then putting him in backwards jammies,
we proceed to secure the zipper with a safety pin
and finally he's ready for bed.
I heard a noted figure once say
that couples should stop having kids
once they reach the point
in which they begin calling their children the wrong names...
in retrospect of that theory,
if it is true...
Spencer and I should have stopped having kids after Noah was born.
I can't even begin to tell you how many times a day I call the boys by the wrong name;
it's gotten so bad that I call Noah "Spencer" some times!
Perhaps we should have just named Bentley, Cohen #2...
I call him Cohen more often than I call him his correct name.
I even hear Spencer calling the boys by the wrong name more and more lately
We laugh about it now,
but do you think this is going to some how
psychologically damage our children for the future???
How can you really blame us though,
when they look like this???
Strangers mistaken these two ALL THE TIME for being twins when in reality they're 20 months apart in age!!!
Even I can't tell them apart sometimes when I take a quick glance at them
or when they zip past me!
Ian's finally caught up to Noah in height and weight
and they both wear the same size clothes.
For now, they both sport the same haircut and their hair is exactly the same color too!
Oh what a pair Noah & Ian make!
Onto more interesting news...
Spence experienced a real HIGH a couple of weeks ago
when he had the opportunity to go and listen to his favorite band PEARL JAM play live in concert in Salt Lake.
I usually enjoy most the music Spencer enjoys listening to for listening pleasure,but I REALLY don't like Pearl Jam.
(correction: I do like the sound track Eddie Vedder made for the movie "Into the Wild",
but otherwise,
I still hate their whiny grunge, mopey music).
I promised before the concert that if Spencer came home with any of their stickers or shirts
I'd take and give them to D.I. or Goodwill first thing the next morning...
... well,
not only did he buy a shirt at the concert,
but he also purchased one of their hoodies!!!
Okay,
honestly,
I haven't had the nerve to throw them out yet,
but give it a few months,
after he's forgotten about them,
THEN is when I'll raid his closet and throw them out!
He won't even know they're gone. ;)
He went to the concert with his friends Dave, Jimmy and Matt.
(just for the record:
I overheard Spencer tell Jimmy,
the one on the far right,
just before they left for the concert,
that he broke a cardinal rule for concerts by wearing a shirt with the bands name on it to their own concert.
He was totally serious about what he told Jimmy and obviously sort of disappointed Jimmy didn't already know that rule about concerts,
so somehow,
he coerced Jimmy into turning his tee shirt inside out and wearing it that way for the concert.
On Spencer's behalf, I apologize Jimmy...
At times he can be really ridiculous ).
(another note for the record: I'm not responsible for snapping the pictures of the guys at the Pearl Jam concert or the pic of Spencer and Noah below; Spence's friend Dave actually took these awesome pics and posted them on his Facebook, so I snatched them from off there. Thanks Dave!)The WORST sporting season (in my opinion) is just around the corner...
JAZZ BASKETBALL season.
Before the season starts the team plays in a few scrimmages.
Spencer took Noah to one of the games about two weeks ago.
Spencer admitted to me that he's been bribing Noah to enjoy the games
with things like root beer, hot dogs and cotton candy!!!
Maybe the bribe is working, just look at that smile on Noah's face!
A week ago this last Tuesday,
the Jazz had an open practice night
so Spencer and I took ALL four of the boys
(yes even the two babies, Cohen & Bentley)
to watch the hour-long event.
We were a little nervous taking all of the boys,
and we had good reason to be
since we'd be out numbered;
but the boys actually behaved themselves.
THANK GOODNESS!
Yes, life at home might be a zoo, (sometimes)
but at least in public the kids don't act like animals.
This kid is a stud!
Cohen may only be one,
but he wants to play like the big boys
and do EVERYTHING his older brothers are doing.
He LOVES to dance and race his brothers around our kitchen and dining room;
he likes to rock out on the harmonica
and throw balls!
He can even hold his own in a wrestling match against either of his two older brothers;
sometimes he even manages to pin them!
He's a bit busy,
when he's not napping;
he's a little "spit fire" and he's not afraid to be brutally honest with the truth...
when he doesn't want to be bothered he'll tell you
"Go away!" in the deepest voice possible.
(He's been telling us to "go away" since he was 10 months old;
they were his first words).
But he's not usually hostile...
he's always game for a good cuddle.
I LOVE this little man.
He can be a bit of a goofball at times;
(usually his brothers will put him up to it)
He keeps me smiling on those "less than fab days"...
I LOVE Cohen's eyes;
he has dark baby blues,
and thick, lush, long dark brown eyelashes;
they remind me of "falsies" every time I look at them!
Women are jealous of them.
They're gorgeous!
At his 15 month check up
(he was actually closer to being 16 months old at the time of the visit)
little man weighed 22 pounds putting him in the 25TH percentile for weight;
he was 32 inches long which is the 78TH percentile for height
and his HEAD circumference was 19 inches!
which classifies him in the 92ND percentile!
The kid is an orange on a toothpick!
Just like his father was...
They were LOVELY!
Noah told me that he asked Daddy (Spencer) to stop at Costco so he could buy me some flowers.
Precious & thoughtful!
Though, I think the flowers were really a piece offering.
Noah and I have been at WAR these last few weeks,
battling sleep.
I want to sleep and he doesn't!
For weeks he would stay awake well past his bedtime (which is 7:30);
sometimes I'd wake up around midnight to feed Bentley
and Noah would still be awake and out bed!
Many nights I'd wake up to find him wandering around the house at 2 or 3 in the morning.
For a week or so he set up camp in our bed.
It's a king sized bed,
made for a king,
and the kid thinks he's the king of this house!
What really upset me was that while he was up at night
alone wandering the house,
he'd raid our pantry and help himself to candy & marshmallows
(all the yummy stuff I use for baking).
He eats some of the goodies in the middle of the night
and then hides the rest of his stash under our ottoman,
even under our dressers in our bedroom,
or under the school bus in his toy room!
He thinks he's clever
and doesn't think I know when he's been into food he shouldn't be eating
but the kid forgets to always clean the evidence off of his face!
I can't tell you HOW MANY TIMES he's walked into our bedroom in the morning
with chocolate smeared across his face!!!
SERIOUSLY,
what barely 4 year old do you know that raids and hides stashes of candy through out the house at night?!!!
Noah's used to getting between 13-15 hours of sleep a day,
between naptime and bedtime,
but for a good month,
the kid was only getting maybe 4 or 5 hours of sleep a day;
he tried to tell us at night he couldn't go to sleep because of the monsters in his room
but we told him
the only monster in the house was him when he didn't get his sleep!
Oh that kid!
He's as stubborn as both I and Spencer put together!
Thankfully,
after a month or so of NO SLEEP,
he's relented his bad habit and has begun to sleep like normal again.
Now if only Bentley would begin sleeping through the night for good...
(none of this leading me on like he has been;
he'll sleep through the night for 3 or 4 nights in a row,
and then the following night he'll be up EVERY OTHER HOUR to eat!)
It's about time I start getting some good zzz's.
Speaking of time...
I'm always in a race against the clock.
I can't seem to beat it;
I always feel rushed through out the day,
but there are moments,
blessed moments,
sometimes during a day when I can sit down and read a good book
(I just finished reading The Time Travelers Wife a couple weeks ago
and now I'm looking for another "good read")
or grab a quick nap
(I LOVE a good power nap).
I've resolved to start making more "ME TIME"
during the day;
I need to get back in the game and begin exercising again
to shed the extra 40 pounds of baby weight I'm still carrying around.
I just need my own "ME TIME" each day to start feeling better;
unfortunately,
I came to the conclusion the only time
I can have real "ME TIME" during the day
is early in the morning,
before all the boys wake up.
I've never been much of a morning person,
but that is about to change.
The more "ME TIME" I want,
the earlier I'll just have to wake up.
Spencer has been busy with his business he owns with his brother
and class and homework;
he's about half way through his program for his Masters degree;
come August and he'll be completely done.
He's been a tremendous help around the house
and often watches the two younger boys for me
through out the day
so I can run errands
or take the older boys out for some fun adventure time.
He'll have his hands a bit full in 2 weeks
when I take Noah & Ian down to San Diego for a week
and leave him to watch the two babies;
but don't worry too much about him,
he'll have some help from his family and my sisters.
Still no word on the house we're trying to buy.
We've been under contract with the sellers for 6 months now
and still have yet to find out whether their bank they have their mortgage thru
will accept our offer.
(it's a short sell).
We heard their mortgage company finally got a B.P.O. on the house
so maybe soon ??? we'll get an acceptance or counter offer to our offer.
JAZZ BASKETBALL season.
Before the season starts the team plays in a few scrimmages.
Spencer took Noah to one of the games about two weeks ago.
Spencer admitted to me that he's been bribing Noah to enjoy the games
with things like root beer, hot dogs and cotton candy!!!
Maybe the bribe is working, just look at that smile on Noah's face!
A week ago this last Tuesday,the Jazz had an open practice night
so Spencer and I took ALL four of the boys
(yes even the two babies, Cohen & Bentley)
to watch the hour-long event.
We were a little nervous taking all of the boys,
and we had good reason to be
since we'd be out numbered;
but the boys actually behaved themselves.
THANK GOODNESS!
Yes, life at home might be a zoo, (sometimes)
but at least in public the kids don't act like animals.
Funny tid bit: The boys did actually spill popcorn down the back of our neighbor sitting in front of us; it was either Noah or Ian holding the bucket of popcorn and he stumbled over my bag as he was going to take his seat and the popcorn poured down this big dudes back!
This kid is a stud!
Cohen may only be one,but he wants to play like the big boys
and do EVERYTHING his older brothers are doing.
He LOVES to dance and race his brothers around our kitchen and dining room;
he likes to rock out on the harmonica
and throw balls!
He can even hold his own in a wrestling match against either of his two older brothers;
sometimes he even manages to pin them!
He's a bit busy,
when he's not napping;
he's a little "spit fire" and he's not afraid to be brutally honest with the truth...
when he doesn't want to be bothered he'll tell you
"Go away!" in the deepest voice possible.
(He's been telling us to "go away" since he was 10 months old;
they were his first words).
But he's not usually hostile...
he's always game for a good cuddle.
I LOVE this little man.
He can be a bit of a goofball at times;
(usually his brothers will put him up to it)
He keeps me smiling on those "less than fab days"...I LOVE Cohen's eyes;
he has dark baby blues,
and thick, lush, long dark brown eyelashes;
they remind me of "falsies" every time I look at them!
Women are jealous of them.
They're gorgeous!
At his 15 month check up(he was actually closer to being 16 months old at the time of the visit)
little man weighed 22 pounds putting him in the 25TH percentile for weight;
he was 32 inches long which is the 78TH percentile for height
and his HEAD circumference was 19 inches!
which classifies him in the 92ND percentile!
The kid is an orange on a toothpick!
Just like his father was...
We've had our fair share of doctor visits recently due to concerns regarding Cohen's health...
Early in the summer, we found a small lump on the left side of Cohen's neck... we were so busy through out the summer, I forgot to mention the lump to his pediatrician until the day I delivered Bentley and he was in screening him. Our pediatrician asked me to bring Cohen in to his office as soon as I possibly could to have the lump looked at; so... after being home and settled with the babe for a few days, I took Cohen in for an evaluation. On the drive down to the doctors office (it's in Provo), I had a strange intuitive feeling that the doctor would look at it and possibly suggest it was Leukemia. Who thinks that?! Now I'm not a hypochondriac, I swear, and I would NEVER want to hear our pediatrician tell me that's what he thought the lump on Cohen's neck was, but that's the thought that came to mind; I personally felt the thought came to mind because the Spirit whispered it to me; preparing me for what I would later hear during the doctors visit. I decided right then and there how I would react if that's what the doctor was to suggest the lump was; instead of panicking or breaking down and bawling (because it wouldn't do me any good) I was going to ask a few important questions, stay strong and not break down, get a game plan in place with the doctor and follow through and have Cohen tested and HOPE for good news. Sure enough, Cohen's doctor took one look at the lump on the left side of his neck and looked worried.
He told me it could be 1 of 3 things: Cohen's lymph node could be swollen due to a virus; but this probably wasn't the case since he'd had the lump for nearly 5 months and none of his other lymph nodes were swollen, but just in case, he asked me to take Cohen over to radiology to have his chest x-rayed to check for abnormalities with the lymph nodes in his chest... the doctor also asked to do a tuberculosis test on Cohen thinking maybe that is what caused the lump to grow on his neck... and lastly, the doctor suggested that it could be LEUKEMIA! YES, he said EXACTLY what I thought he would! No mother wants to actually hear a doctor suggest that her child may have cancer, particularly because Cohen is so young, and I had only been out of the hospital with my newborn for a week! my emotions were still a bit fragile because of my wacky hormones!... BUT... I think I received the news rather well, because I had prepared myself before hand. I asked him a few general, but important questions about the cancer and it's symptoms, and then we hatched a game plan... deciding how to test him for it. I wasn't going to panic, I wanted to be strong. Delivering the news to Spencer wasn't so easy though; fear of the worse began to consume his thoughts; he wasn't mentally prepared to hear this about his son. I reassured him that the doctor wasn't sure whether it actually was leukemia and we just needed to keep calm till we had results back from the lab. I wanted to be optimistic and hope for the best... but I couldn't just hope; I had to get busy and put the game plan in action; I began by taking Cohen in for some x-rays. He had a few full frontal x-rays of his chest done to check on his lymph nodes in his chest; we found out a few days later that everything looked normal as it should. After eliminating the possibility of a viral infection in his lymph nodes, I moved onto the next step in the plan. I took him back to the doctors so he could have his skin pricked to check for tuberculosis and then we had to go back into the doctors office 2 days later to have it checked; everything looked fine and he didn't have the disease (we never really thought he did, but the doctor didn't want to rule any possibilities out with out checking). And last but not least, I had to take Cohen into the hospital lab to have blood drawn so that they could screen it to see if he had leukemia. The wait for the results was just over a week, and in this sort of event, waiting for those lab results was PAINFUL!
Finally, one afternoon we received the call from the doctors office and Cohen's pediatrician told us that his blood work came back normal and Cohen DID NOT HAVE LEUKEMIA! WHAT A RELIEF!!! but then, there was still that lingering question on top of everyones minds, if it wasn't any three of the things his doctor thought the lump could be, WHAT then was the lump from??? Cohen's pediatrician referred me to an Otolaryngologist, otherwise more commonly known as a Ear Eye Nose Throat specialist, whom we'll consult with in a week and hopefully we'll be able to get a final answer or diagnosis.
Now allow me to change the direction this post is headed, back to more happier news...
Early in the summer, we found a small lump on the left side of Cohen's neck... we were so busy through out the summer, I forgot to mention the lump to his pediatrician until the day I delivered Bentley and he was in screening him. Our pediatrician asked me to bring Cohen in to his office as soon as I possibly could to have the lump looked at; so... after being home and settled with the babe for a few days, I took Cohen in for an evaluation. On the drive down to the doctors office (it's in Provo), I had a strange intuitive feeling that the doctor would look at it and possibly suggest it was Leukemia. Who thinks that?! Now I'm not a hypochondriac, I swear, and I would NEVER want to hear our pediatrician tell me that's what he thought the lump on Cohen's neck was, but that's the thought that came to mind; I personally felt the thought came to mind because the Spirit whispered it to me; preparing me for what I would later hear during the doctors visit. I decided right then and there how I would react if that's what the doctor was to suggest the lump was; instead of panicking or breaking down and bawling (because it wouldn't do me any good) I was going to ask a few important questions, stay strong and not break down, get a game plan in place with the doctor and follow through and have Cohen tested and HOPE for good news. Sure enough, Cohen's doctor took one look at the lump on the left side of his neck and looked worried.
He told me it could be 1 of 3 things: Cohen's lymph node could be swollen due to a virus; but this probably wasn't the case since he'd had the lump for nearly 5 months and none of his other lymph nodes were swollen, but just in case, he asked me to take Cohen over to radiology to have his chest x-rayed to check for abnormalities with the lymph nodes in his chest... the doctor also asked to do a tuberculosis test on Cohen thinking maybe that is what caused the lump to grow on his neck... and lastly, the doctor suggested that it could be LEUKEMIA! YES, he said EXACTLY what I thought he would! No mother wants to actually hear a doctor suggest that her child may have cancer, particularly because Cohen is so young, and I had only been out of the hospital with my newborn for a week! my emotions were still a bit fragile because of my wacky hormones!... BUT... I think I received the news rather well, because I had prepared myself before hand. I asked him a few general, but important questions about the cancer and it's symptoms, and then we hatched a game plan... deciding how to test him for it. I wasn't going to panic, I wanted to be strong. Delivering the news to Spencer wasn't so easy though; fear of the worse began to consume his thoughts; he wasn't mentally prepared to hear this about his son. I reassured him that the doctor wasn't sure whether it actually was leukemia and we just needed to keep calm till we had results back from the lab. I wanted to be optimistic and hope for the best... but I couldn't just hope; I had to get busy and put the game plan in action; I began by taking Cohen in for some x-rays. He had a few full frontal x-rays of his chest done to check on his lymph nodes in his chest; we found out a few days later that everything looked normal as it should. After eliminating the possibility of a viral infection in his lymph nodes, I moved onto the next step in the plan. I took him back to the doctors so he could have his skin pricked to check for tuberculosis and then we had to go back into the doctors office 2 days later to have it checked; everything looked fine and he didn't have the disease (we never really thought he did, but the doctor didn't want to rule any possibilities out with out checking). And last but not least, I had to take Cohen into the hospital lab to have blood drawn so that they could screen it to see if he had leukemia. The wait for the results was just over a week, and in this sort of event, waiting for those lab results was PAINFUL!
Finally, one afternoon we received the call from the doctors office and Cohen's pediatrician told us that his blood work came back normal and Cohen DID NOT HAVE LEUKEMIA! WHAT A RELIEF!!! but then, there was still that lingering question on top of everyones minds, if it wasn't any three of the things his doctor thought the lump could be, WHAT then was the lump from??? Cohen's pediatrician referred me to an Otolaryngologist, otherwise more commonly known as a Ear Eye Nose Throat specialist, whom we'll consult with in a week and hopefully we'll be able to get a final answer or diagnosis.
Now allow me to change the direction this post is headed, back to more happier news...
... my four year old, Noah, came home one afternoon from preschool with these flowers for me!
They were LOVELY!Noah told me that he asked Daddy (Spencer) to stop at Costco so he could buy me some flowers.
Precious & thoughtful!
Though, I think the flowers were really a piece offering.
Noah and I have been at WAR these last few weeks,
battling sleep.
I want to sleep and he doesn't!
For weeks he would stay awake well past his bedtime (which is 7:30);
sometimes I'd wake up around midnight to feed Bentley
and Noah would still be awake and out bed!
Many nights I'd wake up to find him wandering around the house at 2 or 3 in the morning.
For a week or so he set up camp in our bed.
It's a king sized bed,
made for a king,
and the kid thinks he's the king of this house!
What really upset me was that while he was up at night
alone wandering the house,
he'd raid our pantry and help himself to candy & marshmallows
(all the yummy stuff I use for baking).
He eats some of the goodies in the middle of the night
and then hides the rest of his stash under our ottoman,
even under our dressers in our bedroom,
or under the school bus in his toy room!
He thinks he's clever
and doesn't think I know when he's been into food he shouldn't be eating
but the kid forgets to always clean the evidence off of his face!
I can't tell you HOW MANY TIMES he's walked into our bedroom in the morning
with chocolate smeared across his face!!!
SERIOUSLY,
what barely 4 year old do you know that raids and hides stashes of candy through out the house at night?!!!
Noah's used to getting between 13-15 hours of sleep a day,
between naptime and bedtime,
but for a good month,
the kid was only getting maybe 4 or 5 hours of sleep a day;
he tried to tell us at night he couldn't go to sleep because of the monsters in his room
but we told him
the only monster in the house was him when he didn't get his sleep!
Oh that kid!
He's as stubborn as both I and Spencer put together!
Thankfully,
after a month or so of NO SLEEP,
he's relented his bad habit and has begun to sleep like normal again.
Now if only Bentley would begin sleeping through the night for good...
(none of this leading me on like he has been;
he'll sleep through the night for 3 or 4 nights in a row,
and then the following night he'll be up EVERY OTHER HOUR to eat!)
It's about time I start getting some good zzz's.
Speaking of time...
I'm always in a race against the clock.
I can't seem to beat it;
I always feel rushed through out the day,
but there are moments,
blessed moments,
sometimes during a day when I can sit down and read a good book
(I just finished reading The Time Travelers Wife a couple weeks ago
and now I'm looking for another "good read")
or grab a quick nap
(I LOVE a good power nap).
I've resolved to start making more "ME TIME"
during the day;
I need to get back in the game and begin exercising again
to shed the extra 40 pounds of baby weight I'm still carrying around.
I just need my own "ME TIME" each day to start feeling better;
unfortunately,
I came to the conclusion the only time
I can have real "ME TIME" during the day
is early in the morning,
before all the boys wake up.
I've never been much of a morning person,
but that is about to change.
The more "ME TIME" I want,
the earlier I'll just have to wake up.
Spencer has been busy with his business he owns with his brother
and class and homework;
he's about half way through his program for his Masters degree;
come August and he'll be completely done.
He's been a tremendous help around the house
and often watches the two younger boys for me
through out the day
so I can run errands
or take the older boys out for some fun adventure time.
He'll have his hands a bit full in 2 weeks
when I take Noah & Ian down to San Diego for a week
and leave him to watch the two babies;
but don't worry too much about him,
he'll have some help from his family and my sisters.
Still no word on the house we're trying to buy.
We've been under contract with the sellers for 6 months now
and still have yet to find out whether their bank they have their mortgage thru
will accept our offer.
(it's a short sell).
We heard their mortgage company finally got a B.P.O. on the house
so maybe soon ??? we'll get an acceptance or counter offer to our offer.
1 comments:
Stephanie: WOW!
You are super blogger! I loved the photos & the commentary. Thanks for your family's update! Sorry to hear about the stresses with Cohen's lump and Bentley's skin, I hope they both clear up with no problems.
Bentley is a doll--you & Spencer sure do make CUTE KIDS!! I loved the sword fighting shots, the baby pics, and the science project shots.
I don't know how you do it...keep your house so lovely, your kids so happy AND busy with so many fun activities!
Good luck on the house as well!!
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