Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Happy 7-Months Rowan Maverick!!



I have treasured every moment these past seven months! I am certainly lucky to be this little guys mommy! He is such a joy!



Rowan Maverick .... you are already crawling (way to early for this mommy) ... but you are also so content to just sit and play. You are just starting to pull yourself up ... but get annoyed when you fall down because your legs just are not ready to hold you up yet:) You love watching your big brothers play and would rather join in than sit and play with 'baby' toys. Your smiles and giggles light up everyones lives. I love that you still snuggle in to mommy face to face and breath on me sleeping at night (unless of course you are nursing) .... I love gazing at your beautiful eyes and precious face! You are a reminder of God's grace each day ... and I treasure each moment with you my sweet Maverick!!



Saturday, June 1, 2013

NAME THAT BABY

I have A LOT of updating to do on this blog ... but I am ready to start blogging again:)
Soooo ... to kick it off ... I thought I would post my boys baby pictures and see if you can guess who's who:)  


#1 is....


 #2 is....


 #3 is...


 #4 is....


Saturday, October 22, 2011

Breast-feeding journey

So those of you who know me well ... know that I am passionate about a few things .... one of them being BREASTFEEDING!
I LOVE breast feeding my children ... there are so many things that I love about it! Of course, there are the health benefits for them, but my favorite is just the connection that it brings as a mommy!
I never read even one book on breast feeding .... not because I thought I knew it all, I just figured it would come naturally (since it is a natural thing:) ... I also was so committed to breast feeding that I knew baby and I could make it work.
I was so blessed! My first baby latched on with no difficulty and nursed every 1 1/2-2 hours for almost a year (seriously, the kid still doesn't sleep) ... he loved to nurse! And although I did get mastitis and breast infections multiple times (8 to be exact!) due to having an overproduction issue ... I still kept on because I knew it was best for my child and also for myself.
When my second baby came ... we also had a great nursing relationship ... And because I knew my history of overproduction ... I was able to pump over 300oz a month (yes, you read that right) in order to avoid any infections ... it worked and I was able to help another mommy who needed milk for her baby:) And Quinn ... well, Quinn LOVED to nurse too:)
Then came baby #3 ... my dear Lochlan Raymond ....
He also loved nursing when he was born ... and was quite happy for about four months .... however, my production was certainly not what it had been with past babies. I really didn't think much about it as I was able to provide for him. I really only had time to pump minimally anyway. And then suddenly at about five months ... little Lochlan was not a happy little boy and wanted more to eat ... and I didn't have enough milk.
We are continuing to struggle with breast feeding and it has been a stressful journey that has brought me to tears many times:( But I am committed to make this work ...
I have done all the things that you are supposed to do to increase milk supply (I did the opposite with the other boys:) and have not had much luck. I continue to work hard at it ... and am thankful that today is the first day in a long time that I have not had to supplement ANY other milk ... I am so grateful ... since he has allergies to any of the other formulas or milks that we have tried.
As I have prayed and am struggling through this ...I have realized that as a mother I want to provide what is best for my baby and I will do whatever it takes ... and yet how much more God loves me and want to care and provide for me (although he doesn't struggle to do it ... rather I struggle to let him care for me:)
So as I struggle on this journey ... I am learning to let my Abba Father and Provider care for me!

Breast-feeding my little man!!!


Saturday, October 8, 2011

Unplanned!!!






Heads up ... this is going to be all over the place ....
So yesterday after his nap ... Liam started with a slightly croupy cough that by bedtime was causing him difficulty breathing. We spent a lot of time through the night in the bathroom with the hot shower running. We got thru the night, however, I really didn't like how his breathing sounded this morning so I contacted the doctor and scheduled him to go in.
We also had Q's 2nd birthday party planned for today .... so Todd and I decided we had to divide and conquer (or at least try:). My mommy heart had a really hard time letting Todd take Liam to the doctor, but after detailed instructions .... his papa took him. Well, the doctor was concerned also about his breathing, so wanted him to have a steroid ... however, the amount is too high to take orally for a 3 year old ... so papa needed to take him to the hospital for an injection .... :( When Todd called to let me know .... I cried and said I will be right there, mind you Todd was 2 minutes from the hospital as I was 20. I then pulled myself together (somewhat) ... KNOWING that his papa is fully capable of LOVING him thru it! But my heart was crying inside and out! This would be his first shot ever! Todd called me as soon as they were finished and Liam was awesome .... a slight reaction, but he did great!!!
I then continued to finish the final plans for Q's party ... while calling the friends with kids and letting them know of Liam's illness ....
It was a small party .... due to Liam being sick, but Grandpa Jim and Grandma Jane were here from Iowa and that made the boys happy:) We are so blessed to have them in our lives!!!
Liam was a trooper and got thru the party ... now he is having difficulty sleeping due to the steroid ... but is breathing so much better. We have to go in tomorrow again.
So although this day definitly did not go as planned ... and we are all experiencing a lack of sleep ... I am so thankful that at the end of this day I have an amazing family that I am so grateful for!
Happy Birthday Quinn ... hope you had a great day!!!

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Happy 2nd Birthday Q!!!!

Dear Quinn
It is amazing to me that two years ago tonight a perfect almost 9lb 'smurf' baby was cuddling on my chest! That was a long night ... but snuggling with you made my heart full! I am so glad that God chose me to be your mommy! We are truly blessed to share an amazing gift that you are! I love staring at your adorable blue eyes that have the cutest looks that make us melt. It is a joy to hear your adorably LOUD voice when you wake up in the morning ready to play baseball! You are a talker ... papa was worried you wouldn't talk ... boy, was he ever surprised once you did:) You adore your older brother and want to do everything he does ... and have become very gentle with your baby brother caring for him tenderly. Thank you for all your love and cuddles! Listening to you pray for your family while falling asleep at night is so precious!
I am so thankful that God created you and that he gave you to us! We love you Baby Q!!!! You are a joy and bring lots of laughter to our hearts!

Happy Birthday Q
Family Celebrating Q's 2nd Birthday
Birthday Dinner at Red Robin ...
Q LOVED the balloons on his ears and clapping while they sang happy Birthday to him
Hugging mommy




Sunday, September 25, 2011

Badger Blast!

Papa is very excited to go to the Badger game with our family .... and this year ... the boys were VERY excited!!! We are blessed to have some indoor tickets ... so it is a rather cozy time ... and the food is YUMMY!!!
The game was a lot of fun .... the Badgers making so many touchdowns made it exciting ... the boys loved clapping and cheering. Their favorite is watching for Bucky .... it keeps them busy as he is an antsy Badger:)

Lochlan could not keep his eyes off the field

Liam enjoying his lemonade
Mommy, Quinn & Lochlan (who is watching the game on TV)
Family photo at the game (Lochaln would not keep his eyes off the field again:)

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Actually! Definitely ! and more ....

This cute kid has quite the vocabulary recently .... and he is very articulate about where he is using the words in a sentence! I need to stop and write some of the words that he comes up with during the day ... because by the time I get to blogging, my brain is mush and I forget:)

But what he said today when I picked him up from preschool was precious! He ran and hugged me and when I asked how school was today, he looked at my eyes and said " I definitely missed you today mommy"!!!! And of course ... I missed him too!
And then he shared how he learned about Autumn today and we MUST go to an apple orchid tomorrow because it is fall and all the leaves are going to turn orange, yellow and brown:) So guess what we are doing this weekend????

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