Recap of September 2009

So I thought I would do a "fast-forward" recap of the last 9ish months." Time has given me perspective to see the big picture and I think I can look back a bit more clearly now through the fog to give an overview of our first 3/4 year with Luke. So here goes:

September

I gave birth to Luke 13 days past my due date. So, instead of being the youngest in his grade, he will now be one of the oldest (cut-off for schools here is a strict Sept. 1). He's a smart lil' fella already!

Luke was born big at 9 lbs 4 oz. We felt fortunate he didn't loose much weight and didn't have jaundice like Colin. We actually made sure the nurses stuffed him like a piggie for the 5 hours we sent him to the hospital nursery each night. It was a "full" six days before I was actually able to provide a food source for this hungry boy, who ate 3 oz bottles the second day his was born, so we just ran with it!

During the month of September, Luke had visits from both Grandmas, as well as two of my highschool friends. He also joined me at my MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) meeting and on trips to take brother to/from the school bus.

At night, Luke adjusted to getting back to sleep fairly quickly after a feeding, as we put him in the swing all night -- thank goodness for rechargable batteries and that papasan swing. Such a lifesaver! He is definitely a swing/swaddle baby!

Lastly, we found a pediatrician we really like. At his first office visit we saw someone we had never met and instantly clicked with her (a Christian, as well.) Looking back I can see how important it was going to be to have someone on our side as we worked through a number of issues in the coming months.

Here are some pics from our friend Kellie that were taken the very first Saturday of his life:

Funny Colin Story

Conversation with Colin yesterday:

Colin: "Mommy, you remember when you went to the hospital to have Luke?"

Me: "Yes"

Colin: "And Daddy and the doctor pushed Luke out?"

Me (a little perplexed at his understanding of giving birth): "Well honey, Mommy pushed Luke out with their help."

Colin, "No Mommy, when Grandma and I came to the hospital I saw Daddy and the doctor pushing Luke in the cart."

Ahhhhh! I then realize he is recalling the very first time he ever saw Luke. He and Grandma were just getting on the elevator to come up as Dad, Luke, and a nurse were taking him to the NICU for a blood panel to be done. And thus they were "pushing him at the hospital." Funny how we can read things in to what our kids say without realizing their point of view...

I'm Still Alive!

After a huge maternity break from the blog I thought I would re-visit it to see if it's still alive. Yep, still here!

I still spend a significant amount of my day sitting in a dark room in a rocking chair feeding Luke, and I have composed many a blog post in my head. This guy is a slow, SLOW eater and my fanny probably logs several hours a day in that chair. Now if only those mental posts transferred to the computer without having to re-type my thoughts.

I'm not promising a big return to the blogging world. I do have mixed feelings about sharing lots of stories about my family only for their teenage friends to read them someday, but I also love to keep family and friends updated, as well as to go back and remember funny stories I might not otherwise remember.

And my computer hard-drive is almost full, so I need a new plan for external storage before I'll be downloading and sharing any recent pics, so stay tuned for more!

Suncadia

For Christmas 2009 we decided to take the boys on a little adventure to Suncadia Resort, just over the mountain pass about 90 minutes away. They have a WinterFest each year with plenty of fun activities all at the resort, which is ideal since one of us needed to be with Luke who still sleeps away much of the day and was recovering from an ear infection.

We started off the weekend with a breakfast at the Inn with Santa and Mrs. Claus. Then we spent the remainder of the day dashing from one fun activity to another, including snow tubing, Gingerbread House making (house already built and with lights -- all Colin had to do was decorate), Sandy Candy Making, Bear Factory making (Colin chose to make Frosty the snowman and decked him out in a Santa Suit), lots of eating, story time, and a elf tuck-in visit/bedtime story from one of Santa's elves, named Glitz.

It was nice to get away together and we plan to make this an annual Christmas tradition. Colin was so excited about the trip and kept saying, "I love Suncadia!" over and over.

More Pumpkin Patch Pics

4th Annual Pumpkin Patch Outing

A few weekends ago before the heavy rains hit, we made our annual trek out to Jubilee Farms Pumpkin Patch. Colin was so excited to get to ride the hayride, which was pulled by a tractor. When we arrived at the patch we took a few quick pics and then Colin spotted his own pumpkin.

This was a super fast trip to the patch, as it was very windy and a bit chilly, and Luke was not amused by our attempt to photograph him in his first hunt for a pumpkin with big brother.

Blog Maternity Leave

Hello, yes, it really is me! After composing many a blog post in my head at 3 am when nursing a hungry child, I finally decided to download a few of my thoughts. I have taken some "maternity leave" from my blog, and during this time I have debated how much I will continue to write. It is indeed fun to go back and read stories and to share them with you, as well, so I have decided to keep writing....for now.

These past 6 1/2 weeks have gone really well in some regards. Luke now sleeps from 8:30 or 9 pm at night and wakes for a 2 am feeding (which my wonderful husband does....) and then he wakes around 5 or 6 for me to feed. At that point I am up for the day, and sweet baby Luke goes peacefully back to the land of nod. We give one bottle a day so that Luke will be able to take a bottle. He doesn't really like it, but I REALLY don't want to be his only source of food. I don't want to be tethered to him in the evenings for the next year. A girl needs to get out every now and then, even if it is just to run to the store.

Son #1 has been, well, lets just say....he's been a huge challenge for Mommy and Daddy. Fortunately he adores Luke and is so cheerful when he gets to see him. He hasn't retaliated in any way related to Luke, but he is indeed 110% 3 years old. I'll leave it at that, as I am starting to see glimmers of my former sweet big boy. Other veteran moms tell me that the pleasant child eventually re-emerges, so we are hopeful. And needless to say, God blessed our sanity with 4 morning-a-week preschool for this little guy.

Speaking of preschool, Colin seems to be doing really well. He now comes home and tells us some of the things he has done at school that morning. This preschool is part of our local school system's program, so it academically prepares them for kindergarten and combines ages 3-5 in the class. I was sceptical at first, but I have seen how well he does at home with things like his letters, letter formation, counting, and colors. They also work with him on social interactions related to sharing and turn-taking, which I think all 3 year olds struggle with! He also has time in and out of class with his speech therapist, and he is progressing really well. He tells us things now that sometimes really astound me, especially his use of various phrases that I think, "where on earth did he learn that?" Things like protesting following directions by indicating, "I can't do that....it makes me tough that way." (What??)

Fortunately during this time Matt has had very little overnight business travel, and he has been a huge help in the transition to having 4 family members. We were also fortunate to have my mom here a few days before Luke came and then for about 5 days afterward, and then my mother-in-law came out for another week. And the meals from friends after that have been such a huge help. I think I'm going to have to actually start cooking again soon. It's been a nice break from weekly meal planning!

So that's a quick recap. Next I'll post some pics (if blogger cooperates; Facebook is MUCH easier) and a few other stories, as well.