Sure, I like church

But I'd be lying if I told you I was disappointed to have three hours to do nothing but care for this cute baby who's sleeping on my chest.

Thank heavens Guy's doing better in nursery now.

Stupid Things Stupid People Do

I just read Dr. Laura's book Stupid Things Parents Do To Mess Up Their Kids Lives.

It was an interesting read, albeit you could tell it was really just a book length rant. Oh, and rant she does! It's Dr. Laura's signature style, although I far prefer her other books which are less angry.

She essentially takes 250 pagrs to say the following things, which you can infer from the table of contents itself.

1) Don't have kids if all you want to do is have other people (read: day care workers, after school programs, etc.) raise them. Kids need parents who care about their lives and are engaged and paying attention to them.

2) Moms who choose to have babies without the husband part are selfish.

3) Don't even dare think about not disciplining. Instead of a self-confident kid, you'll end up with a nightmare that you've unleashed on society.

4) Don't give your kids what they want. Even teenagers are rarely mature enough to make the best decisions for themselves. Which is why God gave children parents to raise them.

So, spare yourself a depressing read, and remember that your kids need you to care about them.

Pretty straightforward.

And now? I'm reading How to Behave So Your Preschooler Will, Too. I'm only 30 pages into it, but I've already learned a ton of strategies for teaching a toddler how to listen and respond when appropriate. Book review forthcoming, once I've finished it, of course.

Black Friday

Well, it started out foggy and cold, but the sun has come out and both of the boys are napping AT THE SAME TIME.

Woot.

So I need to call the lab, bake a loaf of bread, call Mom's bishop, and eat some more food. Eventually I'll make dinner and do some dishes, and I'll probably read some more. But all things considered, it should be a pretty low key day.

I hope anybody who went shopping found some awesome deals!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I'm grateful for lots of things today. Most of all I'm grateful for my beautiful sons, one of whom is sleeping peacefully in my arms right now.

I'm grateful for Josh, who occupied Guy so that I could get a two hour nap snuggled up to Leo who was fussing until we cuddled up together.

I'm really grateful for leftover chicken stuffing casserole (thanks, Mom!) which ended up being our Thanksgiving dinner. I had had plans for roast chicken, stuffing, potatoes, and a salad, but after doing homemade burgers and fries for lunch that sounded like too much work.

Then we were going to pick up a pizza, but it turns out anywhere to get a pizza in Provo on Thanksgiving Day was closed. Who knew?

Good thing those leftovers were tasty :-)

Tired

So, I've stayed up way too late chatting with Mom the last two nights. I need more sleep.

And apparently taking a nap in the afternoon, instead of leaving me feeling refreshed and cheerful, finds me waking up angry and frustrated and ready to cry at the drop of a hat.

Great.

Leo's bilirubin is back up, so he's back on the lights. We're off to the lab again Friday. At least they're not making me take him to the ER to get it checked tomorrow. Ugh.

And Guy didn't nap today, either. That makes two days of yelling at me from his crib. Nothing like an angry two-year-old yelling your name to make you feel loved.

Are you kidding me?

With Thanksgiving this week, perhaps I should be more grateful and less whiny.

Thanks, Mom, for doing my dishes and mopping my floor!

*whine alert* Okay, seriously, what's the deal with sucking once, releasing the milk's fury, and then pulling off and squirming so that I end up with sopping wet clothes? NOT COOL, kiddo.

And Guy went down late for a nap due to various reasons, and now is yelling at us from his crib. I managed a 40-minute nap, but just woke up with a headache and feeling angry.

This doesn't bode well. I think I need a deep breath.

12.4!!!

Baby Leo is off the lights and being cuddled by his doting momma. :-)

One last heel prick on Wednesday and then we *should* be home free.

Monday, Monday

Still waiting on the call from the pediatrician's office regarding Leo's bilirubin levels. Hopefully he'll be off the lights soon so we can cuddle him more! In the meantime, I'm grateful he's being so well behaved for us.

We made it to the lab again this morning, and I've done most of the stuff on my to-do list for today. Mom is helping with laundry (there's so much of it! spit-up is not my friend) and Guy and Leo are currently sleeping peacefully.

Which means I really should take a nap, but I'm having such a good time being awake with no kids hanging off me! Decisions, decisions.

Welcome Baby Leo!

 
 
 

Jaundice

Yep, that pretty much sums up my day yesterday.

Two trips to the lab, a light bed that the baby is FINALLY sleeping in (little sucker hates that thing).

BUT! I managed six and a half hours of sleep last night. Mostly because for 3 hours in the middle of the night I took Leo out of the light bed and wrapped him up warm and cozy and let him sleep.

Heaven.

Sleep

We got more than expected last night. Guy got a full 12 hours, Josh got close to 7 or 8, and I ended up getting about 4 1/2. I feel pretty good all things considered, but I'm going to go take a nap while Mom and Guy are at the playground and Leo is sleeping.

But we're home safe and sound, and Guy is starting to warm up to our newest family member.

Did I mention?

I finished the New Testament Monday morning. Which was great to accomplish that goal, it really helped me during labor believe it or not.

So goals for today:

A nice bath
Clean clothes
Take a nap
Finish the birth certificate application
Go home and eat pizza!!! (And see my Mom, I hope)

Should be a good day.

New Arrival

I'd upload photos of my adorable baby, but unfortunately I cannot as I forgot the cord at home. Oh, well. At least I remembered the camera!

Birth went like a dream. I'm not the biggest fan of Pitocin, but I am a big fan of anesthesiologists. I had an epidural for the last hour or so and it made the experience a lot more relaxed and happy at the end instead of crazy. The coolest part was still being able to feel the baby's head crowning, without it being painful.

His name is Leo August Coyne, he was born after about 7 hours of labor at 11:19 p.m. on Monday the 17th, and weighed 7 lbs 8 ounces, 21 inches long. He's got dark hair and is fuzzy all over like his big brother, and for anyone wondering does not have hypospadias.

It was love at first push, I tell you :-) He's cute as a button, but the little turkey doesn't want to eat anything. He hasn't nursed since 1 a.m. or so, but his blood sugar is at a good level.

I'm going back to sleep (I've slept a total of about 4 hours--just haven't been able to doze much) until our little one wakes up.

If anyone wants to come visit, I'm in room 113 at Orem Community, or you can call me at 714-3113.

Yup. Still pregnant.

Still waiting.

I had a complete mental breakdown in Relief Society yesterday. It was a little embarrassing, but I got several answered prayers out of it. I've had sisters offer to make dinner for me (which honestly yesterday I'd been praying I wouldn't have to cook dinner after church), and lots of sisters are signed up to take Guy for a couple hours each morning this week.

Non-stress test this morning, I'll let y'all know how it goes.

And here's a question for you: how is it that I slept for 11 hours last night, and I'M STILL TOO TIRED TO DO ANYTHING?

Still pregnant.

I kinda hoped the baby would be born today. I thought it'd be cool, since it's Josh's dad's birthday. Not looking likely, unless I go into labor right quick and it goes super fast.

I'm absolutely exhausted. I'm wondering how well I'm going to handle labor this time, because my body feels so darn tired from hauling around an extra 45 pounds. And caring for a two-year-old. Guy must be teething with how whiny he's been lately.

This morning I would've been more than happy to let him veg in front of the TV for a few hours watching Sesame Street from the 70's. But it's Sunday, and we've committed to not watching Sesame Street on Sundays.

Josh tried taking Guy home teaching with him, bless his heart, after making me breakfast. Guy didn't do so well, so now he's here, crying.

Two-year-olds are fun. Fun, but hard.

So. Tired.

I took two naps today, that's how tired I am.

My only goals were to do a load of laundry and wash some dishes, and even that's not going to happen.

My body? Pretty exhausted at this point. And I hit that point where I can't eat very much but I'm always hungry and always have heartburn.

Woo hoo for being almost done.

Message ends. So that I can go have another lie down.

Happy Due Date!

I'm convinced it will be Thursday that I'll have the baby. Don't ask why, it's just what I'm thinking.

I've completely relaxed about all the things on my to-do list. Most everything is done that I wanted finished before the baby came, and I'm enjoying taking my time doing not much of anything.

Dishes, laundry, playing with Guy and visiting with friends. I'm truly blessed, and live a great life.

Josh is a little stressed with school and the coming baby, and then going off to training in January, but the wonderful man has let me sleep in several mornings this week which was a boon to my pregnant (read: aching) body.

Still pregnant

Really, really pregnant. I'm up to 45 lbs total weight gain. And I feel awful today.

UGH.

At least I know this baby is coming sooner rather than later, right?

It's Raining, It's Pouring

Lots of rain. Which means lots of mud. The access road that runs in front of our apartment building? Completely torn out. Nothing but mud. And six-foot deep trenches. That move every day.

I'm glad they're working quickly, but with this rain it is awful trying to get anywhere with a two-year-old. It makes me want to stay inside and cuddle up with a good book all day long. Which would be great if I could read more than two sentences before being interrupted.

Ah, well. No news about the baby. Although a gal in the ward who was due more than a week after I'm due had her baby a few days ago. Guess I'm bucking the trend to have my baby before his due date.

Oh, and if you could pray for my sister-in-law in Japan, she just lost her baby at 17 weeks. It's a trial that I'm sure is extremely difficult.

Progress Report

I'm getting crazy. I've cried twice today, and three times felt really super frustrated and angry.

I decided to just let things go today and relax. I'm not going to stress about my to-do list, I'm just watching America's Next Top Model while Guy naps. And eating chocolate. Of course.

I saw the midwife this morning. 39 1/2 weeks, and nothing new to report. I'm only a teeny bit more dilated and a teeny bit more effaced. Monday will be a non-stress test if the baby hasn't come, and then Tuesday I'll probably have my membranes stripped to see if that will jump start labor.

Hooray. Getting closer.

I am acting so . . . PREGNANT

I just tried to re-make the appointment for Guy that I had to cancel last week because Medicaid was being slow in sending out insurance cards.

The pediatrician's office won't let me, because he's not close enough to being 2 for a well baby check.

Excuse me? I already had an appointment last week. Why was this not a problem before?

So what do I do? Eat chocolate and cry my eyes out. Because that's the logical reaction.

Gordon Ramsay

I love watching this guy on TV. Gordon Ramsay is seriously fun to watch. His accent is awesome, he's a straight shooter, and the food he cooks always looks so good.

Hell's Kitchen only runs in the summer, but now that he's on the second season of Kitchen Nightmares there's somewhere else I can get my Gordon Ramsay fix.

Some day, when Josh and I actually have some money, we're going to go to one of his restaurants. Some day.

Post number 150

Yesterday for the first time, I felt like I was ready to be done being pregnant. This evening? Even more so. Swelling, aching, fatigue, and general discomfort. Woo hoo.

With church at 2 p.m., Sundays feel like a marathon to me. Up at 7:43 this morning (thanks to Guy, who let me sleep in a bit!) I made breakfast for Guy and myself. We played and listened to Music and the Spoken Word. I made a second breakfast (for Josh and me this time). I did dishes. I made lunch. I showered and styled my hair. I packed bags for everybody for church.

Then we went to church, came home, ate dinner, put Guy to bed, and went back to the church for a fireside. 8:30 and we're home and can finally relax. So I'm in PJ's, and am going to read more in the New Testament and then go to bed.

Our RS lesson today was about the Second Coming and the Millennium. We talked about the prophecies, and the signs of the times, and a lot of the stuff is scary. But someone shared an insight that I really appreciated.

"Whether we live or die, if we're righteous then we know we'll be all right in the end."

With a husband who's signed up for military service, this is an enormous comfort. It's not just about this life. It's about eternity.

There are my profound thoughts for the day. Thank you, and good night.

BIRTHDAY!

And what an awesome birthday it was.

I turned 23 today. I'm 23 now. And I have a husband, and a degree, and a toddler, and a baby on the way. I'm very satisfied with my life. Not everyone is so lucky as to be able to say that truthfully.

This morning I went to Enrichment, then we went and had pancakes (that I didn't have to cook!), I went to Costco, took a two-hour nap, went to my favorite Italian restaurant, heard Stairway to Heaven played on the accordion, and spent four hours with some of my favorite people (thanks for the gift card, Amy!).

It was a really great birthday. Despite the fact that my blender broke halfway through a green smoothie :-(

I guess I know what I'm using my birthday money for, Mom!

And tomorrow is Sunday! So Guy, the lucky fellow, gets to go to nursery again. He's been asking about nursery all week. Every time we drive by the church he gets so excited, hoping he'll get to go to nursery. Love that kid.

HAIRCUT!

I decided I wanted to get my hair cut before I have a baby. I'm hoping it helps with the postpartum blahs. You know, where you feel dumpy for weeks on end. We'll see how well it works.



This is also a good time to showcase the baby belly. Guy wanted to be in the picture, too.



There's an awesome gal in my ward who does $10 haircuts, and she's really good. I'm most definitely pleased, and I think it's cute. BONUS: It's just long enough to pull back.

I seriously love being this little boy's mom. If you look in the picture that we're both in, he's got his arms around my neck. He loves to pull my head in close to his and snuggle, and it's one of the best feelings in the world.

Being a mom is hard, especially when wooden blocks are getting thrown at your head and you're crunching cornflakes into the carpet. But I LOVE it.

Snow!

I was going to take a picture, but it melted by the time naptime came around. And of course I can't pull the camera out without a fit from Guy while he's awake.

It was quite a bit of snow this morning, but surprisingly the construction workers outside have been going strong all day. At least they're diligent.

I don't have much to say about the election. I'll pray for Obama, that he'll make good decisions for our country.

That's about all I have to say. Now? To laundry. And I'm going to make some soup, I think. It's a good day for soup.

Oh! And I have 5 of 8 Christmas gifts completed. Just one more store, and a few more hours of work (mostly on Josh's) and I'll be done. We'll see if I can swing it before this kid arrives!

Curiosity got the better of me

Less than 1 cm dilated, 60% effaced, baby's at least -2 station. According to good ol' Mr. Bishop, I would be unlikely to deliver even if induced at this point.

So we're still just hanging out waiting for a baby sometime in the next two weeks.

Like I've been saying all along--who knows when we'll have this kiddo, but we'll meet him before Thanksgiving.

VOTE

Please.

It'd mean a lot to me.

Really, it would.

Heck, I'll even watch your kids for you if it means you'll get out there and vote.

So do it.

For me.

Playgroup

So we went to playgroup this morning. It was . . . interesting.

When you've got 12 little kids running around it's bound to be a bit chaotic, but this morning was just plain hard. Guy was clingy, then running around, then crying, then running away, then whining, then wanting to go outside. What happened? He's usually so good.

We split into two groups, younger kids and older kids, last week. It went really well, and I taught the younger group. This week? Guy wouldn't have anything to do with the younger kids (probably because I promised Addi would be there and she wasn't).

So after 10 minutes of chasing, crying, consoling, and bedlam I convinced Guy to join the older kids' group. He was good for about ten minutes, then was off again. *hangs head* I'm tired. It was frustrating.

Hopefully next week will go better. I want him to be comfortable enough and well-behaved that I could leave him there without me when the baby comes, but today was a struggle.

Oh, and did I mention that Sienna threw up, meaning Tyrus went a little crazy? So then I was trying to keep Tyrus from pulling the fire alarm, and then consoling him that his mother was indeed coming back, and trying not to gag from the smell of vomit in the hallway.

So now? I'm going to watch America's Next Top Model online and finish Jackie and Shauna's Christmas presents.

Lists, Lists, and more Lists

I'm a big fan of lists lately. I have a list of things to pack for the hospital, my list of tasks for the week, my daily to-do list, and lists of all kinds of things.

They tend to help me think through my life in a more prepared and purposeful manner. Heaven knows I can always stand to be more purposeful in what I say and do.

So I'm getting closer to getting everyone's Christmas gifts done before the baby comes. Katie is done, Guy is done, Mom is done, and Jackie needs about 5 minutes. Shauna needs about an hour still. I'm not sure about Dad's. I haven't started on Josh's yet, but that's because he's home a lot, and during naptime I tend to relax or watch TV online. One more errand and I'll have Dennis and Connor taken care of, too.

Another pre-baby goal was to finish the New Testament. I'm already through Romans, only 150 pages or so to go! Definitely doable as long as the baby doesn't come too early.

This week there's plenty to keep me busy. We need to register the car, vote, I have a midwife appointment, and Guy has his two-year checkup. Yeah, I know, he's not two yet, but I don't want to have one more thing to do AFTER the baby comes. So I figure 23 months is close enough. :-)

Message ends. Time to go get ready for church.

NaBloPoMo

That's it, right? I can't remember for sure.

Anyway, I can't very well miss the first day, Shauna, now can I? So, here is my post for the day.



It'd be nice if I said something interesting, huh? Well, we went and saw a movie tonight in anticipation of celebrating my birthday next weekend (just in case the baby makes a surprise early appearance). We saw Mamma Mia! at the dollar theatre and laughed our tails off. It was funny, upbeat, and had lots of great music and dancing. A little too much cleavage for my taste, but other than that a ton of fun.

Nothing like Meryl Streep and Pierce Brosnan crooning away at each other to make you feel romantic. :-D

I wouldn't buy it, but I might borrow it and watch it while sewing or something like that. Very enjoyable. Makes me want to go and buy ABBA's greatest hits album.