Fall or Winter?

This weekend was really strange.  First of all, we had no plans.  None.  And thank goodness for that as Mother Nature dumped her winter wrath on us.  But I have to say, as the snow flakes fell and we had a fire going in the fireplace and the PSU game on TV with a pot of white chili cooking on the stove, it didn't feel so horrible.  Our thoughts were certainly on those whose plans were altered, or who were doing something important this weekend that were inconvenienced.

Saturday I accomplished the unthinkable.  I actually had a 3 hour period of time where I could honestly say that all of the laundry baskets in the house were empty- clean, dried, folded and put away.  And those three hours were glorious.  I'm pretty sure that won't happen again in my lifetime, at least not my lifetime with little children, but I surely did enjoy it while it lasted.  I actually considered putting the kids to bed in their play clothes just to keep the streak going for the overnight hours.  (I'm kidding.  Sort of.)

We were thrilled to be up and about on Sunday, since Joshua was finally feeling pretty much back to 100% after a week of ick.  We headed to church and the kids went into their classroom (this time without a single tear from Lauren....amazing!) and I got to enjoy another sermon.  What a blessing it is to go to church and actually get to be in church.  The past two years have held so few uninterrupted services for me that I'm really appreciating being able to participate.  It won't be long until I start my nursery running again, so I might as well enjoy this while it lasts.

Here were a few pictures from the weekend.  Please don't miss the food all over Lauren's face in the close up.  But I was so happy to see them both eating a good dinner on Sunday night after a horrible week of neither of them eating much at all besides popsicles. 

To say that Joshua was ready for school this morning was quite an understatement.  First of all, it's Halloween.  And, for whatever reason, Halloween seems to rank right up there with Christmas for our first born.  He couldn't wait to get up and get ready this morning to be able to go back to school to see his friends.  To add to the fun, we went on his field trip this morning to a local farm.  I'm pretty sure when this was planned, the teachers weren't figuring on the thermometer reading 27 very chilly degrees when we pulled out of the school parking lot this morning, but we soldiered on.  The kids had a chance to see some animals- horses, cows, goats, pigs, sheep and even a few (quite large) turkeys.  A few of the parents and I decided that today really was the deadline for seeing a real, live turkey before Thanksgiving.  That was a little uncomfortable for me.  The kids got to have a snack and go on a hayride and then pick out their own pumpkin to bring home. 

We had some seriously frozen toes and noses by the time we got back home, but I think the kids had a good time.  For Joshua, I think he was just happy to be back with his friends and be feeling well enough to go to school.

 Here's the whole K4 class...all bundled up!

 This was on the hayride.  And I can't honestly explain why Blogger won't let me put it right side up.

We're ready for our family Halloween celebration tonight--- Mummy Dogs for supper (Joshua's favorite!) and then some Trick or Treating at the church's Trunk or Treat.  We'll see how warm everyone is after that and maybe head back into our old neighborhood (just beside the church) or come back to Turbotville and trick or treat around the neighborhood there.  Either way, cute costume pics tomorrow!  Can't wait to see everyone else's cute kiddos!!!

Just another day (I mean, week) in paradise.

This is a week that just might go down in history.  And not for good reason.  When we last met, you may recall I shared that Joshua took a turn into the sick department on Sunday evening following his birthday party.  And as the night went on, and night turned into day on Monday, I realized that we weren't dealing with an overload of Frankenstein cupcakes.  An email that we had received from the school nurse on Friday said that there had been an outbreak of hand, foot and mouth disease in the preschool classes.  And I have to admit that when I read it I actually thought to myself, "Phew.  Glad we missed that one."  I felt exactly the same way last year when we heard about the head lice epidemic.  Well, I believe I "phewed" too soon.

Joshua didn't seem to have the tell tale ulcers and blisters in his mouth that would indicate hand, foot and mouth, but he was screaming in agony any time anything would touch his mouth.  Included would be any liquid of any kind.  So, thus began a whole entire week of Tylenol, Motrin and coaxing to get him to at least drink something.  He was fevered, miserable...and a HOT MESS.  I considered it great success when he ate a bowl of ice cream for supper on Monday evening.  And a popsicle.  Anything wet.

When Wednesday rolled around and things weren't looking up, I decided I would make him an appointment at the pediatrician's office.  In my "experience" as a mom, I have calmed down slightly about rushing to the doctor's office at the first sign of a sniffle.  But we had been working this program for a few days and I feared there might be more to it.  One look into his mouth and the nurse practitioner said, "Oh Mom, he's got strep."  At which point I felt like a real jerk for making him wait it out so long.  She did a strep culture but sent us on our way with antibiotics because she was so sure that was the culprit.  And since Lauren was at home with a 102 fever saying her throat hurt, she said once we had a positive strep test for Josh, she'd call something in for Lauren as well.  I suddenly felt better that we could at least give him something to help him get better.

Until Thursday morning when I called for the strep test results and was told they were negative.  Scrap the antibiotic.  Pour that $18 down the drain.  And continue to treat the hand, foot and mouth virus (code for: "there's nothing you can do to help your child feel better other than to wait it out") with Tylenol and wait for it to run its course.  7-10 days.  Awesome.  And you KNOW I was calculating out another 2 weeks with Lauren just seeming to be at the beginning stages of it.  Wouldn't you know, just to mock the $65 I had just spent on the sick visit + whatever the strep culture is going to run me, Joshua started with visible blisters on his feet that evening. 

So, Joshua had a whole week off of school this week, but is finally starting to perk up a bit today.  He has eaten a little more, is drinking well and I think (I pray) will be able to resume normal activity tomorrow as a non-contagious member of society.

As for Lauren, she seems to be teetering on the edge of whether she has it or not.  She has a rash on her bottom, but no other blisters, and doesn't seem to be letting any pain in her mouth (if she has any) interfere with snacking.  That's my girl.

Oh yeah, and in the midst of this on Tuesday, I found out I failed my 3 hour glucose test and now have to go on the gestational diabetes diet.  Talk about torture for a pregnant lady in her last trimester of her last ever pregnancy.  Now you're going to take away my food?  Around the holidays?  Is there no justice?  So I'm now on a low carb mission (my strategy has been to eliminate just about everything good) and so far I've managed to keep my carb intake to just about what it should be.  I meet with the dietician on Monday and will find out more at that point about what I should and shouldn't be eating.  And then I'll begin blood sugar testing to see if my own self-imposed dietary restrictions are doing what they need to to keep me and the baby in safe ranges.  On a good note, this will probably help with the weight loss struggle I am sure to have on the back end of this pregnancy if I take 11 weeks of gaining away.  But it is oh so sad.

After all of this terribly depressing news, I will share two pictures from Thursday evening.  Joshua and Lauren were cracking up at the Charlie Brown Halloween special.  They hadn't done much smiling all week, so it was camera worthy.

And now, with the first snow fall of the year about to begin, I can only hope that a fresh coating of snow will kill any remaining germs in the air and get us back to a regular routine next week.  And is it too much to ask that this snow be the worst one we see all winter?  8-10 inches forecasted here today.  I'm just hoping that I'm not completely homebound with no contact from the outside (and really I mean grown-up) world after the baby comes.  And with an early January baby, I'm pretty sure I'm out of luck there.  But here's to hoping.

Five???!!!???

I'm finding it a bit hard to believe that today marks the 5th anniversary of being a Mom.  There have been days among the 1,825 that I have held this title that I've wondered how God deemed me equipped to handle the challenges of motherhood.  And there have been more that I've felt so overwhelmed with blessing that I don't have the words to describe it. 

Joshua celebrated his big fifth birthday on Sunday with a small gathering of family and friends at our house.  He had asked for a spooky Halloween party, although he critiqued my level of spookiness and declared  that he thought I should kick it up a notch on Sunday morning before we left for church.  In the end, I think he was satisfied and had a really fun time with his friends.  In the party excitement, we did forget a few things- like the "mummy" making game we were going to play to dress the kids up as toilet paper mummies and the ice cream (how do you forget ice cream?) but all in all, I believe our little buddy felt special and loved and celebrated.  That he certainly is.

Unfortunately, poor Joshua hasn't been feeling well ever since his party on Sunday.  He has been complaining of a super sore mouth and hasn't been able to eat or drink much since the party.  We're not sure what is going on, but he has been home the past two days and isn't feeling super hot on his birthday.  And if anyone remembers the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad third birthday that we had with the swine flu, you know that I'm flashing back to not-so-good memories knowing that my birthday boy isn't feeling 100%.  He was super disappointed that he couldn't take his birthday treat to school today to share with his friends, but given the report I've just received from Grandma, it's a good thing we didn't try to send him because he is capital M miserable right now.  The only good news is that so far, Lauren is fine, and I haven't heard reports from any of the other kids at the party that others are feeling as crummy as Josh is.  And let's pray it stays that way.

I do know this--- the past five years have held more learning, more blessing, more laughter, and more tears than any other 5 year period in my life.  Even middle school.  And that's saying something about the tears.  Nothing has ever made me want to be a better person than the love I felt for Joshua from the first moment I laid eyes on him.  Joshua, you are the sweetest boy with the purest heart, and I love you so much.  Being your Mommy is the best thing that has ever happened to me. 





 Joshua and Cooper inspecting some new superhero toys!

 This was a beautiful moment.  Please notice all of the kids were playing nicely in the playroom together!

 Lauren's love affair with Baby Kinley continues.  If she's half as interested in her own baby sister in a short 11 weeks, I'll be beyond grateful.

 I'm not ashamed to admit that the only way we got them all sitting still and looking at the camera was to bribe them with Frankenstein cupcakes.  But you can't argue with success.

 Joshua, look how BIG you are!!

And let's just compare the diffrence to 5 years ago... here is wee little baby Joshua just a few days old.  Unbeliveable.

Alright October, slow it down a little bit!

I love October.  Everything about it makes me happy.  And the way that our schedule is shaping up lately, it certainly appears that we have been taking advantage of all of it!  The only problem is that it really seems to be zipping by super fast.  Perhaps it is all of the preparation that needs to be done at our house to gear up for the baby's arrival in just under 13 weeks.  Or perhaps it is just that we're too busy for our own good.  Either way, I'm wishing October would take its sweet time finishing up!

Here are highlights from the past week.

On Saturday, while Daddy was at work, the kids and I headed into Lewisburg for the Woolly Worm Festival.  I felt like a bum as our Kiwanis Club orgainzes the manages the festival, but having the kids has made it a little difficult for me to help out for the whole day's affair.  They had a blast.  It didn't hurt that we ran into Emily and the kids there--- the Mowry's are fast becoming Joshua's favorite crew to play with.  They painted caterpillars, rode ponies, bounced in the bounce house, went into the petting zoo, ate some hot dogs, listened to some funny songs by Eric Sundberg and played some games.  See?

It didn't take long until we were all completely played out and needed to head home for some down time.  I was hoping for a nice nap from Lauren, but it didn't go that way.  Instead, we spent the afternoon together at home.

On Sunday after church (and yes, Lauren went with Joshua to kids church again with only a few tears at the doorway) Emily and I took the kids to Subway for lunch and then to their house to bounce out their energy in their bouncer.  It was a beautiful afternoon, so it felt good to enjoy some sunshine, chatting and staring at baby Kinley on their deck.  The Daddies were golfing in the morning, so we even caught up with them a bit that afternoon.  This marked Lauren's 2nd day in a row without a nap, and I can tell you that it starts getting a little ugly on day 2.  She is 2 now, after all.  But the outside play time was worth it.  I think.

Yesterday, I had a date with the cutest almost-five year old.  After school was over, I picked Joshua up and we headed out for lunch (Subway again...his favorite) and then to Williamsport for the Max & Ruby show at the Community Arts Center.  Although he doesn't weigh quite enough to hold the seat down (trust me when I say my 27 week pregnant self doesn't share his issues), he sat so patiently as we waited for the show to start.  And once it did, I swear he didn't stop smiling until it was all over.  He couldn't believe Max and Ruby were actually there on the stage.  This was his first live performance experience with anything, so he really seemed to get a kick out of it and I was thrilled that we could do it together.

Busy weekend ahead again.  Nana is coming for an overnight visit tonight into tomorrow and the kids are super excited.  When I told Lauren she said, "Ooooooh Nana's coming?  I love see Nana!  Josh, don't you love see Nana too?"  So I think she'll feel very welcomed when she arrives this evening.  And then we have a whole lot of birthday party prep to get ready for next weekend when we celebrate Joshua's big #5 birthday.  I already can't believe that one.  Might take my whole week to wrap my head around the idea that my baby is going to be 5.

I hope you're enjoying October as much as we are!

Taking Advantage!

First, let me say that I fully intended to post this on Wednesday.  And Thursday.  But now it is Friday and I'm just grateful this didn't get pushed into next week.  I had a post in my head, but now that it is so far past when I had intended to write it, I'll just go with the update of what has been going on instead.

We have spent the past few days taking advantage of the beautiful weather.  After the monsoon conditions we've recently suffered through, just seeing sunshine has been such a welcome surprise.  And five days of it in a row is almost too good to be true.  Sadly, week 25 of pregnancy has begun the transition into my running out of energy again, so as much as I would have liked to have had the kids to the park or something else fun, we've just been playing around outside.  Honestly, it's been so long since they've been out, I don't even think Joshua and Lauren missed the playground.  They were just grateful for fresh air!

These were a few pictures of our outside play time on Wednesday evening.  The kids ran and played until they couldn't run anymore.  I had to snap this last picture of Joshua's chalk art (which, by the way, covered our entire driveway!) because I thought it looked a bit like a tombstone.  But Joshua quickly corrected me and told me that it wasn't a tombstone, it was the Ten Commandments.  That makes much more sense.  Since Josh had the rest of the family names all figured out, I only wish he would have figured out what we should name his baby sister.

Otherwise this week, we have been chasing our tails a bit.  On Tuesday, Lauren had her 2 year checkup at the doctor and did so well.  For as strong of a personality as she has, she really knows when and how to turn on the charm.  Where Joshua would have been screaming bloody murder as soon as the nurse called his name, Lauren is as calm as can be.  We saw a few tears at her shots, but they were quickly replaced with requests to go see the fish in the waiting room.  She now weighs 28 lb 3 oz and was 35" tall.  They were pleased with her developmental progress and sent us on our way.  Every time I leave the doctor's office with a good report, I always feel so grateful for the health of both of the kids.  I just cannot imagine the agony that parents go through when their children are having trouble. 
We are geared up this weekend for a visit to the Woolly Worm Festival to see the worm races and the petting zoo and pony rides.  Lauren is thrilled with the idea of a pony ride, although Joshua feels the need to let her know that it's not the same as the horsies she rides on at Knoebel's.  One thing is for sure--- we are going to enjoy this wonderful weather while it lasts.  January and February are going to be looooooooong cold months stuck inside with a newborn and two other stir crazy kiddos.  I need all the fresh air I can get now!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend to celebrate Fall!

Where's the next party?

When you're two and you love gaboons (balloons) and Elmo, we decided to have a little Elmo party to help Lauren celebrate her birthday.  We were so lucky to have both of our families and the Mowry's come over to help celebrate.

Lauren loves, loves, loves balloons.  And it cracks me up every single time she calls them "gaboons".  She likes the purple ones the best because they are her "favorite".  So we made sure that we had some balloons to help make the place look a bit more festive.  Joshua was a great helper on Friday afternoon and helped me get the balloons where they needed to be.  When Lauren got up from her nap, she exclaimed "Gaboons!  For my party!  Yay!  I love gaboons!"  Mission accomplished.

If these present opening pictures appear a bit chaotic, there would be good reason for that.  The kids had a great time digging through her treasures.  Lauren is a lucky girl- she got a play kitchen, a new baby doll that eats bananas, another baby that rides in her car seat and a stroller, a Dora dress that she loves, and a shopping cart/food.  She got right to work trying out her new goodies and hasn't slowed down since.  I'm getting the idea that Christmas might be fun this year!

I was proud of this picture because I got all of the kids in the same frame.  Of course, none of them are looking at me, but that's OK.  At least all of their little precious heads are accounted for.  (Except Kinley, but I think she was having a bottle right at that moment and probably wanted nothing to do with this mess!)  Please notice that she is wearing her Dora dress on top of her Elmo shirt--- she loves it!

I loved this picture of Lauren and Aunt Libby.  How did that little baby I posted the picture of in the last entry turn into such a big, pretty girl?  And those curls! 

Because of the whole peanut issue, one of my many titles at home is "cake baker".  And when we decided to have an Elmo celebration, I thought I should try my hand at an Elmo cake.  So here's the finished product.  If you look carefully, it is far from perfect and I won't be quitting my day job anytime soon, but it did the trick.  I will say that I would pay big bucks for someone who could guarantee a peanut free bakery to save me this trouble for each of the kids' birthdays.  But until someone comes up with something like that, I guess I'm stuck being the chief cake baker. 

Here's the birthday girl and her cake before we devoured it.  She seemed to love it when we all sang to her and she did a wonderful job blowing out her candles.  She had been practicing for days leading up to her birthday!

And as if all of that partying wasn't enough fun, we headed off to Lewistown the next morning to be on hand to yell "Guprise!" (Surprise) to Uncle Zig at his 30th birthday party that Aunt Libby and some other family members were throwing for him and two of his cousins.  Suffice it to say that when the DJ started playing, my two were among the first on the dance floor.  See?

And after two nights of partying, we crashed at Nana and Pap's for the rest of the night.  The kids got tubbed and curled up on the air mattress with bowls of popcorn and some milk and watched Peter Pan together.  Joshua crashed first (not surprising after all of the air guitar he had been playing).  He and Brooke shared the air mattress until about 4 am when they apparently crashed into each other and both started to cry.  So Joshua relocated to the communal bed upstairs where Lauren and I were already fighting for space (a co-sleeper I will NEVER be) and thus began a few hours of miserable sleep for all three of us.  Nana rocked Brooke back to sleep downstairs and all was well there.  This was Brookie's very first ever sleep over at Nana's and she did awesome!  We were so proud of her!

So, who's having a party this weekend that we can come to?  Just kidding!