Firsts...

Some parents chronicle 1st steps, 1st smiles, and other typical milestones.

Me, I like 1st emergency medical intervention...

On Thursday night, as I was feeding Jack, Miss Ava started monkeying around. As she climbed on the chair, I gently told her, "Ava, get down." Which she did. And then she got right back up again.

Up. And down. Up.

And.......bam! Backwards fall off the arm of the chair onto the floor. Screaming ensued.

Knowing our diva, I figured if I could calm her & get some food, all would be well. Not so this time.

So, we loaded up and headed off to our local, friendly ER. After a very brief wait, we were shown back to a room where we waited. Luckily Mommy NP (from pre-school) was working that night & checked Ava out head to toe. X-rays were ordered & completed.

Then we met Dr. Broken Bones. He decided that we needed to splint Ava's arm because she has a teensy little fracture in her humerus right by the elbow. So, her arm is wrapped from armpit to wrist for the next 2 weeks. Then, we see where we're at!



It slowed her down for a day-ish. Other than climbing, though, she's pretty much back to her usual feisty self.

Are We Crazy?

Before you answer.....read further:

A couple of weeks ago we realized we hadn't taken Jack to get any pictures done. Poor little guy was already falling victim to 3rd child syndrome! So, armed with adorable coordinating outfits and a gift certificate to the photo place, off we went.

We made sure everyone was fed/clean & had toys to play with while we waited. Everyone did well during the wait.

We started off the session with individual portraits. Here's what we ended up with:

Cute, yes?

Then there were the group photos.....

Then, it all went downhill.....here it is in photos. I think they speak for themselves:

I said a quiet blessing for our photographer. Let's just say it will be awhile (maybe years) before we go for family pictures again.

Being a Mom

There are some things that make you a mother. The first time you hold your first baby. The sweet smiles your newborn gives you with his toothless mouth. The innocent open-mouth kisses your toddler gives you.

Then, there are the things that make you a MOM. Sharing any and every meal/snack with your children. Using your own spit to clean their face or hands. Sleeping on a corner of the bed because 2 of your 3 children are in your bed.

This weekend I engaged in a "mom" activity. I bought a mini-van. And, I have to say, it's nice to have room for all of us. Of course, convincing Blake that we don't need to watch a movie every time we get in the car may take a while.....but it's so worth it!

Aahh...

There's nothing like:




a boisterous ACLS class with friends (one of whom has "accidentally" charged the training defibrillator before),



relaxing pedicures with co-workers,




and a yummy margarita to kick off a weekend.





Now if only the kiddos would sleep in tomorrow. One can dream!

Heigh-ho, Heigh-ho....

It's off to work I go!

I head back to work on Monday, after exactly 6 weeks off. I'm torn because while I enjoy the freedom to take a nap, I REALLY miss the adult interaction. So, as an attempt to potentially give myself a complete breakdown, I get back one week before our trauma survey (like an audit) hits. Let's just say it's going to be a very busy 1st 2 weeks back.

On another note, we're keeping our fingers crossed that the new childcare situation works out. Although we were delighted with our babysitter, when she was offered a job that included benefits (and her husband had been out of work for a few months), she understandingly jumped at it. It happened to coincide with my return to work. After some fast searching, we have found a small center that we are excited about. Jack will be the youngest baby in his room & should receive lots of cuddling. Ava will be in the toddler room, along with our sitter's daughter & another kid from there.

The next few weeks are going to be hectic as we try to get our routines back in order. But, I think I'm officially ready! Now if only I could take a nap at work.......

The New Addition

Though it's taken a little while to get the pictures up....our little guy is here!

Here's Jack Ira Holwerda:



Born March 15, 2009 at 6:39pm. 7lbs 5oz, 19 inches

We had a fairly fast labor that ended in an incredible, unmedicated delivery. Danny was awesome & supported me the whole time.


Here's all 3 of our little darlin's together. How sweet are they?



We are so thrilled that Jack is here & can't wait to see how he grows & changes!

Changes

We are getting things ready for Baby E (as he is affectionately known by his big brother) & things are almost good to go. We are still lacking the actual installation of a car seat base in either one of our cars, but that's fairly inconsequential at this point. We've put enough in that we can almost do that blindfolded.

Now we all have to do is sit back & wait. But, it shouldn't be too terribly far out from the blessed event. We found out today that I'm 3cm already. Now, while there's still 7 cm to go before we meet this little guy, this is definitely a good start!

Just have to get some good sleep & finish up the last little details........we'll be seeing our little guy before we know it!

Sicko

Know what's worse than having a horribly nasty head cold that nothing seems to remedy?


Being 35+ weeks pregnant while having a horribly nasty head cold that nothing seems to remedy.

True Love...

I think I've truly reached a new point in my life. My view on love has changed....perhaps to be more in alignment with that of a child's. But, then again, sometimes being a pregnant woman in her 3rd trimester is like being a child all over. Thankfully, Danny is catering to many of my whims. Here's some of the wonderfulness that has gone on lately.....

• Danny rubbing my hugely swollen belly with calming lotion, etc.
• Danny rubbing my back/hips whenever they hurt.
• Danny getting up with the munchkins on the weekends so I can sleep a little more.
• Danny replacing the kitchen faucet.
• Danny folding all the laundry in the house.
• Danny running to go get me a snack late at night. (Or ordering one to be delivered.)
• Danny offering to get someone to scrub the baseboards for us.
• Danny encouraging me to buy some new stuff for the baby.

Some people want hugely romantic gestures, but I'd say that rubbing my feet would equal that these days.

Inspiration

In all my interneting (is that a word?), I came across a recent source of inspiration. So many of my friends are busy mommies that I am amazed by them. However, I think I have found a clear winner....Becca Edwards! I realized that if she can consistently, thoroughly, and humorously blog while working on her dissertation AND successfully raise 2 boys under the age of 2, then I can at least be better about blogging myself.

On that note, if you don't know what's gone on in our lives since I've last posted, then that's OK. No lengthy catch-up notes here. Just jumping back in with two feet.

I'm (we're?) 32 weeks pregnant with a boy and planning on meeting him some time between the end of March and the beginning of April. Other than the fantastically hot cankles I'm growing, nothing huge to report on that end. Poor little Ava is about to have her world rocked....thank goodness she's enamored with her big brother.

More to come in the future, along with the possibility of some humor along the way!

For Lindsey

Hey Linds....'Sup!

Thought I'd throw this out for you. :) Nothing inspirational or exciting to write about, but I thought I'd try to appease you.

For everyone else, yep I'm still preggo. 30 weeks. T-minus 70 days & counting 'til my due date. Of course, we've never made it to a due date yet.....so we shall see. If I get brave, I'll eventually take a picture & maybe even post it.