Sickies

This has been somewhat of a difficult week since one by one we have each gotten sick with a bad, mean cold complete with fever, aches, chills, headaches, sinus pressure, and a perforated eardrum for Gabriel (again).  So, for what must be the 12th time, Gabe is on antibiotics (he's not a huge fan, just picture bright pink amoxicillin stains on shirts, pajamas, carpet, etc.) and we are all drinking tons of fluids, taking naps and continuing to take our vitamins as usual.  It has been hardest on Gabe although he has improved tons; BJ was sick for several days but is now starting to feel much better too; I am a few days behind and since I can't really take much medicine am just waiting to be able to breathe again.  It's hard for me to think of sickness as just part of life.  It seems like we are always fighting something, and it kind of gets me feeling frustrated and wondering what more we can do.  We try to wash hands, use sanitizer, keep things clean, get all our vaccines and stay away from people we know are sick, but with regular flu season just barely starting (yes, it's late I know, we just got out of H1N1 season and RSV season) it seems inevitable that we are exposed to something.  I don't mean to complain so much, but surely other parents out there have felt similarly at times?  What do you do to either stay healthy, or to deal with all the sickness with a more cheerful attitude? 

A normal week

This week has been a pretty normal week.  I had my 25 week prenatal appointment, and everything is going smoothly.  The baby is measuring right on 25 weeks, with a normal heart rate of 154 bpm, and I am not experiencing any swelling or high blood pressure like my last pregnancy.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that that continues to be the case. 
BJ continues to be busy with work, occasionally working nights and other random times since he is on call to keep web servers running for his company. 
Gabriel has been his normal cute self, getting in to everything and making us smile.  We have been working with him on identifying people he knows, and he seems to have regressed somewhat in that he will NOT say or sign "mama" and rarely points to me when asked where I am.  He knows how to make the sign, and he has pointed to me plenty of times before, although he has yet to even make an "m" sound.  Lately, though, when asked where his mommy is, he just stares blankly, or turns around to play with his toys.  What am I, chopped liver?  Seriously, I feel like I deserve to at least be properly identified!  I keep telling myself that he will learn it soon enough.  Right?
We are enjoying our day off work today by doing... errands!  Wahoo!  I think it is great that BJ and I have the same day off (not always the case).  By the way, for those who are interested, I have posted tutorials on my craft blog for a shirt to maternity shirt refashion, and a highchair re-cover.  Check it out if you are interested.

18 months old

Our family has been pretty busy this last week, but I didn't want to wait to long before writing about some of the things Gabriel is doing.
Gabe loves to "talk"!  He jabbers all day, with all sorts of gesturing and expression.  He says a few words we can recognize, such as "dada", "aaath" (bath), "dud" (good), "ahhhhffff" (soft), "ki- ka" (kitty cat), "fff-fff" (could be hot, fire, or woof), and a lot of other things that sound suspiciously like real expressions (i.e. he will pat himself on the chest while saying "ahdidi"- I did it?!).  He doesn't verbalize a lot other than that, but he sure does understand things.  He can pick the animal that makes the sound- moo, quack, meow, neigh, woof, and sometimes he will imitate the sound.  He waves "bye-bye" and will run for his shoes and coat if I tell him we are going bye bye or in the car.  He will come hold my hand and pull me to his room if he has a messy diaper and I ask him if he wants a diaper change.  He has also been going to sit on his potty chair (although he doesn't know what to do there yet).  He mimes brushing his teeth when you ask him if it's time to brush teeth. He will run to give hugs and kisses when asked (and sometimes without being asked).  He can point to his head, hair, eyes, ears, mouth, nose, cheeks, chin, shoulders, belly button, elbow, knees, legs, feet, toes, hands, fingers, arms, socks, and shoes.  He will also identify people in pictures, including Jesus, Daddy, Mommy, Gabriel, and occasionally others.
We have been working on better communication when Gabe wants something, and he does the signs for eat, drink, more, please, thank you, bath, mommy, daddy, ball, help, cereal, and baby.
Music and dancing are some of Gabe's favorite past times right now.  He also loves to see himself in the mirror,  "read" books and be read to, shut open doors and drawers, explore any area that is off- limits, help turn off lights, and push laundry hampers and baskets up and down the hall when I am doing laundry.
We are working with Gabe on being gentle and soft when he touches people and delicate things.  He is usually pretty good, but he likes to grab your arm to get your attention, and he sure sinks those fingernails in- ouch!
Gabe is a pretty happy boy, especially when his tummy is full, and he is well rested. We love having him in our family- he adds such fun and joy to our lives. 
Here are some recent photos.  The ones of our family, where we are dressed in red and green were taken before Christmas by BJ's dad Ron, and the ones of Gabe in his Sunday clothes were taken a couple of days ago by BJ.

Craft Blog

I just thought I would let you know that I have been and will be posting most of my crafty stuff on my craft blog that I am doing with my sister Marissa. The first half of the posts are actually crafty posts from the last year or so that I imported from this blog, so it won't be anything new, but there are several more recent posts. I will probably still occasionally post some of the things here for those who are interested, or post a link to a certain post on the other blog, in case you're like me and already have a bazillion blogs you check and don't have time/ don't remember to check one more.
Anyway, here is the link: Home Sweet Homebodies

Happy New Year!

We had a great Christmas and New Year's Eve with my family in Oregon, and now we are back home, in the swing of things. We go back to work tomorrow and life goes on. This year will bring a few changes for our family, most of which revolve around the baby boy coming to our family around the end of April.
With each new year comes the potential of a new start, which is so... refreshing. There are so many possibilities. Which is probably why many people make new year's resolutions. Sometimes I let the time slip by, not wanting to set lofty, unreachable goals that will cause great disappointment after going unmet. Other times I feel like I could do anything I wanted to do, and I start the year with the best of intentions, some of which will be fruitful.
This year I do have some resolutions, and some are even specific, though I don't know if they could all be considered "measurable". I won't write all my goals here, but I will share a few:
-Work on eating more vegetables. The recommended number of servings of vegetables per day is 5. That seems like a lot, but if you consider that 1/2 cup of raw or cooked veggies is a full serving, it seems a little more attainable.
-Learn some new recipes. Cooking and baking have never been strengths of mine, and so I have never done a great job of having "real" dinners consistently ready for my family. I would like to feel more comfortable cooking (and therefore cook at least, oh, three times a week- haha!), instead of completely overwhelmed at the prospect of fixing anything more complex than scrambled eggs and toast. That last part was a joke. Kind of.
-Be more organized. I have been working on this one for a while. I think I would specifically like to find a way to keep the office and master bedroom looking neat. I guess that means I will need to do some decluttering and maybe look into some organizational/ storage solutions. We have a lot of stuff, and not a lot of room. I expect that will become more pronounced with our family's upcoming addition. Any suggestions out there on how to save space and be organized when you have 2 under 2 (or 3) years or age?
-Live gracefully. And by that I mean take a chill pill. I tend to want to have every little detail planned out and to know exactly what is going to happen and when. I have started to learn that that kind of attitude is not very healthy for a single person to have, much less a married person, much less with a baby, and, I'm guessing, much less with 2+ children. I want to be able to roll with the punches (pardon my use of cliches, they just work so nicely!) and not be flustered by every little change in plans. My hope is that by just taking a deep breath and accepting whatever comes with the best attitude I can muster, I will be happier, my husband will be happier, and my children will be happier.
I suppose those are plenty of goals to post. I do have a few other goals that are more personal, ongoing goals, but these are the goals I want to add to the mix this year. I do hope that they will bring satisfaction and not disappointment. I plan to print them out to have them accessible to me to read often, and think about my progress.

Christmas

Here are some pictures from Christmas in Oregon, courtesy of my dad. I was bad an took hardly any pictures the whole time we were there. We had a great time with everyone there (with the exception of Tayler who is serving a mission in Australia, but we got to talk to him on the phone for an hour) including Marissa and Richard, due to a weather-induced change of plans.
One of my favorite new traditions for Christmas time is the "gifts of the heart" gift exchange. We do this Christmas night, after all the other festivities of the day. All of the siblings draw names and focus on creating a special gift for the person they chose. There aren't any set rules but the idea is that it is something that you spend time and effort on, rather than money. It is very fun to see what everyone does for each other, and this year was no exception. I know I had tons of fun putting a gift together for Marissa, and I think everyone else had a good time preparing and watching each other open these gifts as well. Incidentally, some of the gifts were hilariously funny while still thoughtful. Please indulge me as I share:
Anna gave BJ a fleece "babysitting vest" complete with extra pockets sewed on and stuffed with matchbox cars, board books, snack containers, toys, and even a pacifier on a velcro-removable ribbon.
Collin gave Tayler a recording of some of his songs on the piano (I'm not completely sure about this, because we were not privileged enough to hear it- it was in the mail I think) and a magic tricks kit that he could carry around with him to do for kids he meets as a sort of ice breaker.
Cara gave Anna a beauty advice book, with tips about fashion and beauty tailored for Anna's age and some of the things she already has. She wrote about matching, accessorizing, and face/hair care to look really put together. We all wanted to read what was in that book!
Tayler sent a package home that we got on Christmas Eve, and we opened while we were on the phone with him. He sent an assortment of gifts to everyone. He also included a beautiful pair of hand carved wooden earrings that were representative of the local style for me as a special gift.
Marissa created a custom scent for Collin, called "Eau de Man" (pronounced You Da Man) and it truly was the epitome of manliness. It was made of sweat, pine needles, gasoline, dirt, etc. It pretty much smelled the way Collin smells after working outside for several hours. Too funny.
Richard made some cool earrings for Cara out of buttons that he found at the store. Some of them he even painted, and of course they were safe for sensitive ears. They were definitely a chic addition to Cara's accessories.
I put together a pamper basket for Marissa full of things I made, including scented rice therapy packs for the neck and eyes, a shower cap, a bath mitt, and a manicure kit cover.
BJ made a calendar for Richard, with each month featuring an edited celebrity or superhero picture of Richard. Click here to see what I mean! It was a hoot.
I don't know if we will always be able to continue this tradition the way we are doing it now as our family grows in number, but it has sure been a fun part of Christmas the past few years that we have done it. I think it definitely fosters the true spirit of Christmas.