I Love La Leche League International But Do I Want It To Be My Life? That is the question. I received a phone call last week from one of our local leaders encouraging me to think about becoming one myself. I was quite flattered, and a part of me really thinks it would be fantastic. I LOVE breastfeeding and think it is so very important to mother, baby, and the rest of the family. I think I would be a good leader. I love helping other women with breastfeeding, and recommend LLL to all my nursing mama friends. But of course, becoming a leader is a lot of work, and it is all volunteer work. Nothing wrong with that, but if I'm putting so much time and energy into something like this, I feel as though I should be doing something to help bring in an income.
There are other factors too. I know Eve was an exception to the rule, but while I love nursing her (still going strong there!) there was a lot of difficulty with it too, as any nursing mom knows. And I'm not sure that I totally agree with all of LLL's stands. I take what I like from the meetings and leave the rest. So I don't know if I'd even qualify. But this past year I've also toyed with the idea of becoming an actual lactation consultant and being an LLL leader would certainly help on the path towards that goal. I don't know. Part of me feels like this is the kick in the pants to actually start doing something. Then again, maybe I'm reading too much into it. I don't think Richie wants me to do it. Mostly because I think he is uncomfortable with the amount of liberal boobness it would bring into the house. But it's not really like that. Both of the other LLL leaders are LDS moms. So, there it is...what my mind wanders to these days...
Eve turned One last Wednesday and Saturday we had her Birthday Party! Thank you to Grandpa and Grandma Peterson, Aunt Karen and Marina and Maisie for making it a very fun and happy birthday for Eve. She got lots of presents--shoes, books, clothes, puzzles, stuffed animals, dolls, money, and lots of other great stuff. She had fun eating her birthday cake and like it when we all sang "Happy Birthday" to her.
Today was her one year well check appointment with the doctor. I recently realized that I never vented about our not so fabulous pediatrician. Without going into too much detail I'll say that while he was a good doctor, he was also negative, defensive and encouraged formula feeding rather than breastfeeding. Eve's nine month appointment left me enraged and crying. So, we now have a family doc that seems pretty cool and relaxed and positive. He said Eve looks beautiful and healthy and didn't make me feel like a terrible mother for her being so small. Needless to say, we like him so far. Eve had to get SIX shots today! She cried so hard! But not for long. She is such a good babe. I love her to death. Here are her stats:
12 Months
16 lb. 3 oz.
27.5 inches
On the adjusted scale she is 5th percentile for weight and 25th percentile for height. On the normal scale she is 1 percentile and 10th respectively. She is doing really well!
Exciting news...Richie turned 31 last week! Oh wait. That's not so exciting. The really exciting birthday was yesterday. It was Eve's FIRST Birthday! She is now One Year Old. Yesterday we went out to dinner (she loves Indian food) and then went swimming. Logan has a very poor selection of indoor activities for winter months, espeicially ones that are conducive to a non-walking one year old's needs. So I thought swimming would be fun. The closest and most affordable pool is at USU and they do have a decent facility, only that, sadly, the water was too cold for little Eve. We got in and I could tell right away that she was cold and not having much fun. Nothing we did made her smile, and she could've cared less about any pool toys. When we took her out her feet were blue, her teeth were chattering, and she was shivering. So we returned to the locker room and took a long hot shower. She was fine after that. We also stopped by to say hi to the NICU nurses, but only one that we knew from last year was on duty. But I think she enjoyed the day. Saturday we are having a little party for her with cake and presents and such, so good times still ahead. She also has her one year well baby check on Feb. 1st, so I will post all her stats then.
Blowing out birthday candles with Dad. She looks really excited about his birthday, right?
I wish there was a kiddie pool open during the winter in Logan. There is one at the community pool, only that it is an outdoor pool, so obviously closed right now. I mean, why in the world would Logan want an indoor community pool? It's not like it averages below freezing six months out the year here. Stupid stupid Logan.
Eve on her birthday. She looked cute! Clapping is her favorite new trick.
I don't have television and don't usually know what's going on in the world around me, but I am aware of the screwy NBC prime time line-up and the subsequent hullabaloo it's created. They want to move The Tonight Show after the Jay Leno Show (which I can't believe is still on--it's not funny people!) and Conan thinks it will destroy the show, so he won't do it. I read his full statement, and I just have to say that I appreciate humble, funny celebrities that can get a point across without name calling or swearing or being basically spoiled and classless. I've always been a fan of Conan O'Brien and I think he is handling this disappointment with grace and wit. He'll always have a fan in me.
#2 In Defense of Diapers
Several people have mentioned how crazy I am to use cloth diapers. In all honesty, I love them. I don't think I'd use them with a newborn, because they are pooping all the time, but once the child is a little older and their BMs are more similar to adults', well, what's the big deal? Eve either pees, and I stick it into the pail, or she poops, which I put into the toilet, flush and then wash. She hasn't been using her diapers a long time, but she's definitely made some good messes and so far the diapers come out perfectly clean, smell perfectly fine, and we start over again. I don't use them when we go out or on trips. And I was concerned about the extra amount of water and soap and energy it takes the washing machine to wash them on a double cycle, but actually, it's a small load, I'm only supposed to use a quarter of detergent that I normally would, and one cycle is hot, the other cold. So really it equals out to one large warm load with less soap. The only problem is that I only have six. I need a dozen more!
#3 A Funny Primary Story
I teach the 7-8 year olds in Primary, the children's Sunday school at my church. We switched classes at the beginning of the year. Last year I had twin boys in my class that were difficult to work with. They came from a pretty unstable home and weren't real active and had a lot of attention problems. But by the end of the year they were living with a different parent in a much more active, stable home. I grew to love them despite our initial rocky start. They are very sweet, good boys.
After church on Sunday I was putting chairs away and they came up to me to say hi. I talked with them a few minutes and then Zach said "Jayden's growing a beard!" I said, "What?" And Jayden said "Yeah, I'm growing a mustache!" I refrained from laughing but smiled and said "Really? That's great! I love mustaches! They're cool!" He nodded in agreement and then said "Do you want to feel it?" I rubbed my finger under his nose--smooth and soft. "Wow," I said, " I can already feel it coming in. You'll have a mustache in no time." He was smiling as he walked away, and so was I.
Last September I entered an essay contest themed "When Did You First Realize You Are An Adult?" And guess what...I didn't win! That's okay. I was expecting that, although I will admit that as January 3rd past without a congratulatory email from the editors of Real Simple, I was a teeny bit heartbroken. I mean, I think anyone who submits anything creative and heartfelt to be judged by strangers is a little dissapointed when it doesn't win, even when one is expecting to lose. And the pain is compounded when you know your essay is good. But, it had been a long time since I'd written anything, and at least I tried, and it was fun and a good creative exercise for me, especially over this past summer when Eve was still so little and we didn't much. Ut's an annual contest, so maybe this year will be the winner. Below is my essay. I know it looks long. but it is a short read, honestly. It's up to you!
Eve, the Beginning
By Renée Barkume Peterson
The first time it happened was in Target, as I stood gazing in slack-jawed wonder at the shiny blue housing of a vacuum: my first “adult moment.”
Adulthood, by definition, is a biological or cultural standard shared within an individual’s community signifying maturation—a girl starts menstruating, a boy silently endures corporeal mutilation, a teenager becomes old enough to vote. Ultimately however, the definition of adulthood is as complicated and individual as the person to which it is applied.
It wasn’t until flipping through the pages of Real Simple that various adult moments distilled into clear focus and I realized—I am an adult! The fact that I had to stop and contemplate the possibility sent simultaneous waves of juvenile horror and smug self-satisfaction through my brain. As a child, adulthood was synonymous with freedom, and how I wanted to revel in that freedom! However, I had also simplified an adult into a humorless, worried, wrinkled individual—a vague future I would escape.
I married when I was twenty-one; quite young by contemporary standards. By no means did I take my marriage as a sign of adulthood. I considered my husband an adult—loyal, cautious, clean and three-years-older-than-me Richard. But I was still the wild child of my teenage years, full of idealistic dreams, happy to live on our meager budget and maintain our single life social calendar. Yes, the sudden obsession with getting a decent vacuum cleaner as a wedding gift and the unnatural desire to have a matching set of plates was “adultish,” but I was not worried. My body still looked as young as it felt, and I had every possibility open to me.
After graduating I took a job as a receptionist at a law firm because we needed to make money quickly before heading to Oregon for my husband’s graduate school program. I have long dreamed of graduate school. I wanted to earn my doctorate degree and teach college, travel, write, enjoy a comfortable level of notoriety. But we also wanted a family, and we wanted me, the mother, at home with our children. So I postponed my academic goals in order to support my husband as he accomplished his, working various nondescript jobs. We moved several times before we finally settled down last year and my husband went to work, having graduated with his Master’s degree. I began preparing to apply for graduate school when we discovered that I was pregnant with our first child.
It was raining hard when I looked at that pee-soaked plastic stick and saw the double pink lines. We had been trying for a year to get pregnant, and I was somewhat stunned. I was also excited, terrified, but mostly, I was conflicted: despite my desire for a child, every precious minute of my independence was going to be gone within months. What about my life? A discovery that was precious also enveloped me in distress. Ironically, the moment the pregnancy test transferred from my hand to my husband’s, a bolt of lightening lit up the early morning sky and a roiling boom of thunder immediately shook the ground. An ominous sign, for sure.
Thus began the Summer of Giving Up, despite the immense Gaining I was physically experiencing. We bought our first house—now am I an adult?—but it just felt like a giant game of dollhouse. It wasn’t real. Even the baby inside of me didn’t make me feel especially grown-up, just…old.
Our little girl was due March 17th 2009. At nine pm on January 26th I began hemorrhaging from between my legs. When I was admitted to the ER my legs and feet were so swollen they looked like grotesque sausages in socks. My blood pressure had spiked dangerously high. Contractions started coming every three minutes and my cervix was dilated three centimeters. I started painful back labor. Nurses struggled to find my baby’s heartbeat on the fetal heart monitor. Suddenly, I felt something warm and heavy pushing out of my body. I yelled to the nurses. My OBGYN went down and pulled out a blood clot the size of a pear. She reached inside of me, each time coming out with fistfuls of blood clots.
Once I was stabilized my doctor put me under observation. Up until this point, I thought that somehow, something could be done to stop my labor, fix things up, and we would wait out the rest of my pregnancy—seven weeks—just as I had planned. But as my doctor left the room, she informed me that if my contractions didn’t stop, she would deliver the baby by cesarean. It took me several minutes to process this statement. Panic and fear set in. By 11:30 pm my contractions were stronger than ever and I had lost two liters of blood. My baby was coming, regardless that neither of us was ready. I was whisked into the operating room.
I usually find medical procedures and the intricacies of the body fascinating, but that night I didn’t want to see or hear or know anything. Nurses scurried, doctors shouted orders. I laid on the operating table, focusing only on the reflection of my body on the unlit lamp above me. I was spread out naked, arms outstretched like I was being crucified. I watched the distorted image of a nurse slopping iodine over my belly and thighs. A mask covered my face, and without even knowing if my baby was still alive, I lost conscienousness.
When I awoke an hour later, I was remarkably clear-minded. The nurse by my side asked me my baby’s name.
“Eve. Eve Belén Barkume Peterson.” My husband would not tell anyone her name until I was awake and able to name her first. Richard came in and showed me pictures of Eve on our pediatrician’s iphone. She was breathtakingly beautiful, a truly perfect little human being. She was born seven minutes after midnight, weighing 3 pounds, 14 ounces and measuring 17 ½ inches.
I didn’t meet Eve until that afternoon. After pumping breast milk, vomiting, and listening anxiously to my husband’s heart-swelling descriptions of Eve, Richard finally wheeled me down to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. When that incredibly tiny person—my daughter—settled into my arms, my swollen body shook and I cried. With a tentative finger I stroked her cheek…
There is something about becoming a parent that can instantly vault a person into adulthood. I do not think it is an instant qualification, nor is it a requirement. But for me it was. It took a fragile, four pound human being to escalate me into adulthood. It is not by mere virtue of the fact that Eve was born and that I am her mother, however. I now realize that an adult is someone who not only accepts responsibility, but welcomes it, and as such, chooses to live for someone else.
My husband looked at the announcement for this essay contest and asked me if I was going to write about Eve.
“Of course,” I said. Then I thought about why.
In Eve, I see every possibility for a glorious, happy life. In Eve, I see the indescribable joy of being a family. In Eve, I experience a love so unfathomable I cannot begin to describe its genesis and cannot contemplate an end. She expands the love I feel for other people, for other children yet to be born. Six months ago, I was in a hospital fighting for my life and the life of my child. I suffered blood clots, painful medications and other health issues to give my child life. And yet most days, I forget all that. Even the seven inch scar below my belly is still surprising.
These are the days ahead of me: trips to the zoo, afternoons spent searching for bugs. Countertops splashed with finger-paints, jam stained clothing, cloud gazing, oatmeal-covered kisses, temper tantrums, bedtime stories. For me, enjoying the simple and innocent pursuits of a child is the core of a fulfilling adult life. As a mother I will be able to re-experience childhood and actually appreciate the freedom that comes with youth, that same freedom that seemed so out of reach as a child. And I will enjoy it hand in hand with Eve.
I still have dreams, ambitions, a certain kind of life I want to live. Only now, along with the travel, the education, and the notoriety, I have someone who takes me places I’ve never dreamed of, who teaches me things I’ve never understood, and with whom I will experience not notoriety, but something far more substantial: motherhood, the opportunity to raise, teach and love the better part of myself. I think of the absolute wonder of my own childhood and recall it warmly, thankfully, sentimentally. But if every adult is required to give a secret password to gain entrance into the “Adults Only” clubhouse, there are many I can choose: “Stretch marks.” “Elastic waistbands.” “Hoover Wind Tunnel Technology.”
Here is what is on my mind. My blog. It's too happy. Too cute. Which, since I primarily created it to share Eve with her grandparents and friends, is easy to do because let's face it: Eve is just too cute, too happy, for words. That's why I like pictures. Which is another problem. I don't really like to post unless I have some photos to illustrate my point, usually that Eve is too cute. When I'm moody and cynical and depressed and have argued with Richie for the umpteenth time in the DAY I don't have any pictures to go along. Which is too bad, because then my blog would be The Most Hilarious Thing In The World. And if anyone has ever read Winnie The Pooh, then you'll be able to tell that I am currently reading it to Eve, and thus my Peculiar Writing Style tonight.
I digress...so, I really like blogging. I like the fact that every blog I've gone to eventually blogs about blogging because then I feel somewhat like a Real Writer, writing about their own particular writing method. Writing on writing. Blogging on blogging. It's all so metaphysical. Kind of.
But here is The Problem: I also think most blogs are not real. I mean, they exist, but it's all happiness and "look at me and my perfect life and kids," and such nonsense. There'll be the occasional hint of something rotten, but it's never fully discussed. So Here It Is. And I've followed suit. Because as my friend Chelsea's husband Matt says, "When you try to keep up with the Jones's, you never really knew what went on, but now you check their blog and see exactly what's happening" and then you either feel like crap and are jealous because you can't do what they're doing or you do keep up with them and end up making yourself and everyone around you unhappy.
But if I make this blog Real, then my poor sweet in-laws will probably think that I hate their son and also it's one thing to vent in a private journal and another bring everyone down with you. I don't think it's healthy to dwell on negative things, though I am a big fan of venting. So I'm not really sure where to leave this conflict. Plus, I have no pictures of this inner struggle. Which is fortunate because I'm sure I look pathetic and overweight in the picture if it existed.
Just to keep in the spirit of things, here are some crappy things that have happened to me lately:
My cycle has started up again and returned with a VENGANCE!
For the past three days I've earnestly and happily tried to do my workout video and something always hinders me, things that are beyond my power.
Yesterday I went into the basement to help Richard clean up and we got into a fight and I threw the kitchen timer on the ground and broke it. Then said some swears.
My house it continually falling apart and because Richie's health insurance plan changed, we have even less money each month. . How are we supposed to get a new water heater?
It's cold outside. Like, really really cold.
Okay so that's a pretty dumb list. I couldn't think of anything too cynical. But here are some pictures to cheer you up :)
Eve and her yoga moves...she loves doing the downward dog all the time. It cracks me up!
Eve found my camelbak and started drinking from it! Like mother like daughter.
She's ready for summer hiking!
One Last Story: the other day after dinner we were all hanging out playing and I told Richie that Eve liked to knock over stacks of blocks. He built a tower and Eve, being on the other side of the room smiled a most devilish smile, then crawled at Full Ramming Speed to the tower of blocks and BAM knocked it down with her head. We laughed for a long time and I wish that I had captured it on video. She wouldn't do it again, but it was FUNNY.
Look at this, two posts in one week! As I mentioned earlier our dear friends the Newsomes recently returned to Utah after living in Texas for a while. They have a baby boy that is just about month older than Eve. He is super duper cute and huge! His mom and dad would tell us how big he is, but I just couldn't tell until I saw him in person. I think these pictures help illustrate. Granted, Eve is very small for her age, which just makes the difference that much greater and funnier. He is in the 95th percentile for weight and height I think. He is 13 months and 26 pounds. His brother is 3 1/2 years old and 29 pounds. It's so much fun to see how two siblings can be so different. But they're both darling boys and we're so glad that they're back!
By the way, I finally have some good video of Eve crawling, but now the new blogger won't let me post it. Plus I think that adding photos is even more frustrating than ever! Does anyone else agree?
If you wanted to see some explicit nudity and read racy anecdotes from my night of hedonistic debauchery, then you came to the right place!
Just Kidding! My New Year's Eve was quite pleasant but conservative, with my parents and sister sharing a crab leg and spicy shrimp dinner, opening presents from a fore mentioned family, putting a very tired and cranky 11 month old to bed, a boisterous game of Pit in which I cheat my sister (only a tiny bit) and then settled in by the fire to watch Star Trek the movie and drink Martinelli's at midnight. And I got a midnight kiss to boot! Sound ideal? It was. Jealous? You should be. So come next year and let's see how we can improve upon the night. Ha ha, I know, it will be hard. But let's try any way. I have a good feeling about 2010. It is the future, now!
So I really do have some Naughty New Year's Eve pictures. Feast your eyes on this:
Eve unfolding all the folded laundry. She stood up there on her own!
Eve pulling out all her books from the bottom shelf. She loves to look at her books.
That is about the extent of Eve's naughtiness. Perhaps someday Eve will have a blog of her own, with her own naught New Year anecdotes; I'm assuming she'll go to college after all. But hopefully those are far far down the road. For now, I'll take book pulling and snowshoeing as a grand way to ring in the New Year.
My husband recently started a blog called "International Pudding." He thinks that is hilarious. I really wish it was about pudding! It is the ugliest and funniest blog that I've seen. Richie really is quite funny. My blog focuses more on my sweet daughter than anything else. I think this is the first time I've mentioned pudding. So here are a few pics of Eve. I don't have our Christmas photos on the computer yet, but I will post those soon.
Some exciting things that have happened this month:
Eve turned 11 months old, is crawling, standing and talking a lot!
The Chemist and I celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary
Christmas came and I like everything that I got!
Richard liked everything that he got!
Our good friends Jonas and Phyleen and their family moved back to Utah
I co-hosted an Ugly Sweater Party
With all the social engagements, I only had to cook dinner a handful of times!
Many people loved the various recipes I made and brought to said social engagements, and that always makes me feel good
Eve started wearing cloth diapers
We had full hearts and a warm house together as a family, and celebrated the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ
Despite my good intentions of blogging weekly, obviously I do not get to it more than once or twice a month. We had Thanksgiving at our house this year, and it was so much fun! I loved doing it, thought it was stressful. But then afterward you have a nice long weekend with your family, no other holiday obligations, and tons of delicious leftovers. Except of course, not enough pie.
I believe Eve is getting in some molars. They haven't popped through yet, but she is a serious spit spigot (say that five times fast). And the last week she has had a cough and runny nose, and sometimes I can't tell where the snot stop and the spit starts, or vice versa. Gross! The weather outside has been frightful. I've decided I don't like winter all that much. I suppose it has it's charms, but really, does it need to be colder than 50 degrees outside? The rest of our doings and goings are posted as photos. Mostly Eve just being cute, as always. I love my good baby.
Butts and bubbles in the bath. Eve's mouth is open not to smile, but to emit guttural dinosaur growls--all week long
They're hard to see in this picture, but Eve is wearing antlers on her head and she loved them. She thought they were hilarious. I also am now receiving help with the dishes--I fill the dishwasher and Eve bites it.
The video below is not at all exciting. Eve was sucking on her toes and it was funny, but as soon as I started filming she quit. Grandparents will like it though. I apologize for the poor and hideous lighting in her room.
This is what I am married to. Every single day of my life. Sometimes I love it. Sometimes...
Richie's cousin took some Peterson family pictures for us. They turned out alright. I like my touches to them. We also had some professional pictures taken of our immediate family, and they were gorgeous, but whew! how expensive! We never would have done it except that I won a free sitting at the county fair and thought that we could afford it. Oh well. We just called it our anniversary present. And night out. For the next three years. But my oh my, doesn't Eve look darling?
Here are some better pictures of the costume. The one of her in the bowl isn't the greatest of Eve, but it really shows off the sparkly tail. I really wanted to take her to the river in the costume and photograph her on the bank, but I would need an assistant just in case she decided to roll into the water and swim away, and I wouldn't have time to come off the bridge and rescue her! And with the Daylight Savings change, it's too dark by the time Richie comes home from work.
The video I posted is actually quite boring. Recently Eve has been performing a little hip thrust workout when she gets excited or wants to move. It cracks me up and looks cool in her fish costume, but she wouldn't do it for the camera. But I thought I'd post it anyway for the grandparents. The weird noises are of me pretending to eat her hand. She usually loves it and cracks up, but she was not feeling well today and didn't emote much for the video.
A very happy All Hallows Eve. Eve was a smashing success in her goldfish costume. I'm so glad that my mom raised me in the homemade halloween costume tradition. It's rather a treat these days to see homemade costumes on the little ones. I took Eve trick-or-treating in downtown Logan and I have to say, she stole the show. Everyone commented on how cute she was. And she was. She also turned nine months on the 27th. She didn't weigh as much as I was hoping she would at her doctor appointment, but she is a happy and health little thing, and that ain't bad. She is on the verge of crawling, eating lots of finger foods and trying to figure out the true purpose of a sippy cup. Below are some photos of Eve at the pumpkin patch hill and a little video of her first experience with snow.
Pretty cute, don't you think? I don't know why I even try to wear long hair. And why are men so attracted to it?
In which, Eve Cuts New Teeth
This whole past week Eve has been her grumpiest yet! She is cutting four new teeth at the same time. Now she is up to eight teeth! Almost half way there and not even nine months old. But along with the teeth has come diahrreah, uncontrollable crying, seperation anxiety, and worst ever diaper rash. It's so sad and raw that her whole crotch looks like a burn victim. :(
In Which, I Burn Myself Quite Badly and Quite Stupidly
Last night I was making a little thank you gift (a mini scrapbook) for our cousins in Illinois. My hot glue gun was not pumping out the glue very fast, so like the idiot that I am, I push the glue stick from behind and a huge glob of 400 degree glue rushes out and burns my hand and fingers. My thumb and ring finger got the worst of it. I had to keep my hand in a bowl of cold water until 3 AM. Then I took it out because I couldn't stand it being in the water anymore. It hurt so bad that my hand just shook on it's own for hours. By morning most of the intense pain was gone, but my fingers have been very sore all day, and I didn't sleep One Wink. And today Eve constantly grabbed my thumb while she was nursing because she wanted to see the bandage but she kept squeezing the blister and boy! did that hurt!
In Which , We Spend a Week in McNabb, Illinois
"Where is that" you say? Somewhere in the middle, surrounded by corn and soybeans. I give McNabb a hard time, but really, it was a great vacay. We flew into Chicago on Sunday, and then drove two hours to McNabb, where Dan, my father-in-law, grew up. All his side of the fam is still there. We stayed with Richie's cousin Eric and his wife Michelle and their three kids, Mackenzie (8), Emma (6), and Jacob(2). So that I don't bore you with a tedious description of each day, I will now list most of the major events of our trip:
A. Attended the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, ate lunch there and walked down the Magnificent Mile in which I slobbered over the decadent shopping impossibilities and wandered jealously through H&M and bought cheap hair accessories and socks.
B. Went to the old Quaker cemetery in McNabb where Richie's grandparents and other family members are buried. It's really pretty and quiet, just like an old rural cemetery should be. There is a semi-famous abolitionist buried there and some semi-famous ancient oak trees. Yay family history! Then we went to a bird sanctuary and wetland reclaimed from corn fields. Also ate at Smitty's in Leonore. Which is smaller than McNabb. Which is almost impossible. Richie's Uncle Larry bought me a Smitty's t-shirt.
C. Checked out a really pretty and fun orchard and farm called Tanner's. TONS of delectable goodies for sale and a bakery and cider brewery and get this, even a goat boardwalk that runs two stories about ground and ends in a tree house just for the goats! I would have taken a picture of it because it was hilarious, but Richie had the camera to take a picture of his huge fishing catch:D. Played Scrabble and cooked the Edens dinner. I creamed Richie at Scrabble. Heh heh.
E. Drove to Springfield and did all the Lincoln stuff, which was really neat. His tomb is a very sacred spot, and at the presidential museum they had his actual stovepipe hat on display. It even had finger marks worn onto the brim from him tipping his hat for years. I liked that.
F. Took a pretty walk through the timber and then the Edens took us out to a place called Rip's. It is famous for its fried chicken, which is the only thing on the menu. As appetizers they give out pickle slices and the fried crispies that flaked of the coating on the chicken and settled on the bottom of the deep fryer. The chicken in served with french fries and a piece of buttered white bread. That's it. It's so famous (and yes, the chicken was delicious) that people come from Chicago two hours away and stand in lines around the block to eat there. Uncle Larry was pretty upset that Richie didn't buy a t-shirt from Rip's. And you'd think that Americans would have obesity problems! After dinner we went bowling, where I bowled very very badly, but it was fun.
G. Sunday we came home, but that morning we attended the Lutheran church that Richie's family goes to. It was interesting. Eve was being fussy so Richie took her out, and afterwards everyone was soooooo excited that a baby was there and they were upset that we took her out! They should join the LDS church. We have babies at church coming out the wazoo. On the airplane Eve cried for a long time, and she exploded her diaper. It is NOT easy to change a baby on a plane.
That's it. I loved it. Eve took a nap every morning, and Richie got to golf and we just relaxed, enjoyed being with family, and had a good time. It was a great vacation. Thank you Peterson/Edens! Thank you Thank you!
I don't have anything specific to say. Just wanted to say hello. Sunday we leave for Illinois! I am excited because this will be our first real, and only, vacation this year. We are going to visit Richie's family that we haven't seen in five years! Of course, mostly to show off Eve. Just kidding...sort of. Don't worry, I will post pics when we return home.
I'm not sure what game Sebastian and Eve are playing, "Doctor" maybe? But I thought the picture is funny
This is how I found Eve after her nap one day. Those are her feet sticking out of the crib in the pic below. She slept that way through her whole nap.
Eve is awake right now in her crib. She missed her morning nap, and now it seems, she will skip the afternoon one as well. She was taking naps really well there for a while. Oh well. At least she's not crying, right?
fruits of our labor
Yesterday Eve turned 8 months old. Yes, Time does pass quickly, but my baby does not grow so fast! She is currently wearing 3-6 month size clothing, and is probably around 14.5 pounds. She is just a tiny thing! But I don't think she's too far behind. I'm hoping that by a year she'll be around 17 or 18 pounds (average is 20). I'd be happy with that.
This past month has been much busier than I anticipated! Well, that's not entirely true; I knew it would be busy, but I was much more overwhelmed than I had planned on being. My good friend Starr was married over Labor Day weekend, and I went down early to help prepare. Marina and Necia, my other good friends from high school came and it was the first time we'd all been together for a long time! Marina came up and spent a night in Logan with us too. Then I hosted book club and a baby shower at my house the next week. We also made a trips to Bear Lake and the Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, and this past weekend I spent preparing my primary lesson, preparing a Sharing Time lesson, and building a compost bin out of wooden pallets. I also made peach jam, raisins, four different pie fillings, and dehydrated a ton of fruit, tomatoes and herbs. I do not want to see another fruit or veggie for a while. Unless someone else cooks it for me. We also purchased a quarter of a Steer from a local rancher here, and ate some steak last night. It was soooo yummy! It was so much more fresh and tender, and looked and smelled amazing. Although I will never love Logan itself, I LOVE MY LIFE! And I'm ready for a vacation! Two weeks until we're in Illinois!
Yeah, pie pretty much is one of the best reasons to stay alive. Family is definitely my personal numero uno, but pie and other baked delights are in my Top Ten. If you can't tell, I am of the "live to eat" variety, and quite frankly, I'm glad. Richie was trying to explain to me the other day how he forgets to eat. He might as well have spoken martian, it was so out-of-this-world incomprehensible to me.
Not much else to speak of at the moment. I gave you all my good stories in the previous entry. So here are some cute pictures of Eve. I hope they make your day a little happier.
I haven't updated my captivated audience for a while because we have been very busy, and have many stories to tell! I can't relate all of them right now, especially because it is late and I won't do them justice, but here are a few to correspond with pictures. Enjoy!
Story Un: Smokey Skies
Earlier this week there was a thunderstorm, and the lightening started a forest fire near Bountiful, about 80 miles south of us. Eve and I spent the early afternoon at the Cache County Fair manning the La Leche League's Breastfeeding Cafe (yay National Breastfeeding Week!). It was a pleasant, mild day. When I got home I noticed an eerie, apocalyptic glow in my living room and went outside to see the east sky against the mountains beautiful, sunny and clear, and the west sky brown, smoky and tempestuous. The sun was red, and looked really freaky reflected in our flooded garden:
Story Deux: C.O.P.S.
This is the condensed tale of our next door neighbor, Bruce; a nice man with a sad history. He is a Vietnam Vet suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and in the past few years has become very reclusive and paranoid. While we are not afraid that he will hurt us, he has told us somewhat scary stories of people breaking into his house, police fights and other assorted things.
Several months ago I received a phone call from a neighbor across the street asking if I knew that there was a cop in my front yard with a semi-automatic rifle. As soon as she said that I knew it had to do something with Bruce. I looked out the kitchen window, where there was indeed a cop with a large gun, and there were also several in our backyard similarly equipped. Down our street was a row of five (5) cops cars, an ambulance and a fire truck, with cops and lawyers running around the whole block.
Turns out, Bruce had the flu and had tried to starve it out of himself. When that didn't work, he contacted the police for help, but he has a strained history with the Logan Police, every time they respond to his calls they have to be "prepared" for anything, hence all the cops everywhere with drawn weapons. His door was locked and they kept yelling to Bruce through the windows that he needed to open the door, but he was too weak to move. Finally he managed to unlock the door and they took him to the hospital.
Well, a week ago this morning Richie and I awoke to the sound of smashing glass at 3:30 AM. It went on for quite a while and sounded like someone smashing hundreds of glass botttles. We tried to see what was going on, but it was too dark. We then heard someone moving around, but then that stopped. We were trying to decide what to do. It was bothering me that I hadn't called the cops, when about 15 minutes later they did come, quietly, but again swarmed our house and yard with rifles and flashlights, tyring to figure out what was happening. They entered Bruce's house, and after a while we saw someone wheeled out to an ambulance. Then we saw the cops talking to our neighbor on the other side of Bruce, and Richie went out to talk to them. Our neighbors had called the cops when they heard the smashing glass, and when they arrived, they found Bruce in their driveway covered in blood, holding a board. He bled all over their stoller and other stuff and was totally incoherent. The cops asked Richie what he heard, and if he had heard other people besides Bruce at his house. They also said that they thought he was in California (rumor was that his son was going to put him in a psych assisted living facility), which was odd because we had heard that he was in jail, and that the police had impounded his car. Now we don't know where he is or what is going on.
The moral of the story is that his house is for sell, and someone can get it for really, really cheap. And I know what it feels like to film an episode for C.O.P.S. "Bad boys, bad boys, whatcha gonna do?..."
Story Trois: Dam It!
So you can't tell from the picture, but this little gem of a resevoir has some great cliff jumping on the east side of the lake. July 25th all the Petersons, my parents, and Richie's uncle Larry and his two kids descended upon us here in Logan and had a family get together. All the men played golf in the morning, then we met up for lunch, swimming, cliff jumping, then came back to our place for a weenie roast and potluck. It was a great time together except for one incident at the lake that sort of put the kibosh (spelling?) on our nautical fun.
Just as we were arriving, another group was setting up a zip line that ran from a tree up on a cliff to the opposite beach, the intent being that you let go and fall into the water half way between the two shores. The line was above all the cliff jumping spots, probably between 150-200 feet, and ran about 10-15 feet over land before it came to the water. Richie, his two cousins, his sister and niece, and myself all swam over to do some jumping. We had taken a jump from about 10 feet and wanted to go higher. Richie and his cousin Josh were on the edge of the cliff and I was back a little ways, when I heard everyone start to scream. Richie and Josh were both wearing shocked faces. A boy had started down the zipline, only to have something malfuntion and he fell before he reached the water. He had landed on a pile of loose rocks and shale from 200 feet up and them flopped into the water. For a good half minute no one could see him. People were yelling "Someone just died!" "Call 911!" "I'm gonna be sick, I can't believe I just saw someone die!" Everyone was shocked and were all just standing at the edge of the cliffs, looking down. I tried to get to the water, but was blocked. I know CPR and remember bits and piece of emergency First Aide from my lifeguarding days, plus I'm a strong swimmer, so I wanted to help. But quickly enough about six guys jumped into the water and went to the kid.
He never lost consciouness, but he didn't make noise at all. He had compound fractures in both legs, and must have ended up losing a lot of blood, but he was so much in shock that he never screamed or cried or anything. In fact, he joked around with the EMTs when they finally arrived 45 minutes later. Meantime, the boy had to wait in the water because no one had a big enough board to serve as a body board.
I didn't see the fall itself, but I heard it and saw the resulting drama. Richie and Josh both saw it, and Richie said it was really disturbing to watch, in part because it didn't look real to watch a body fall from that height and hit ground. He felt like he was watching a movie. Needless to say, though everything turned out alright (as much as can be in that situation), it dampened the mood quite a bit. After about 45 minutes people resumed jumping, but it didn't have the same lighthearted thrill to it. I felt especially bad for Josh. He is 16 and really excited to do something so crazy as cliff jumping, since he is from Illinois where there are no cliffs. He wanted to earn major bragging rights, which I can't blame him, though he will still have a pretty good story to tell all his buddies when school starts again.
Nicole wasn't there, and it wasn't until several weeks later that I told her the story. "Wow," she said, "that's pretty crazy. Do you want to know the rest of the story?" She then told me about a missionary couple at the MTC that she has been tutoring in Greek in preparation for their mission to Greece. She doesn't know Greek but was using a new tutoring system. The MTC found a Greek tutor for them the last week they were there, so Nicole didn't get to see them leave. A week or so later, she ran into a coworker that asked if she had heard what happened to the Bells. She said "No." The other tutor then said that they had to postpone leaving for Greece because their son was seriously injured in a zipline accident at a lake near Logan two Saturdays ago! Nikki started freaking out because she knew we were there that day! Isn't that crazy? Everything is connected, someway or another. I guess Scotty Bell is still in the hospital in critical but stable condition.
Story Quatre: In Which I Am The Most Amazing Cook Ever and Bake a Pie With Buttery, Perfectly Flaky Crust and A Filling of Freshly Picked Local Raspberries, and We Eat It All, and It Is Incredible, Amazing, Lifechanging; Richie Begs For Another Pie, and I Make a Second Pie That Is Equally Awesome and I Fear That My Superpower Will Now Be Used For Evil Instead Of Good But I Must Not Let That Happen.
As one can surmise from the title of this last story, it is not really so much a story as a declaration of fantastic homemade pastry and the love and obsession that it spontaneously ignites from a pudgy blonde woman. Is it sad when pie rocks your world?
Eve is the most complete study of Absolute Cuteness that has ever existed. It is definitive and far reaching, a scientific matter of great import. And to top her cuteness, she is oh so happy and mellow most of the time. So much so that I had no idea she was even teething unitl I felt a sharp little chip in her gums while she was chomping away on my finger Friday! My baby is cutting her first tooth! I was stunned. I wasn't expecting this for another couple of months. Friday was also her four month adjusted birthday, and next week she'll be six months old. I can't believe what a big girl she is already starting to be! These aren't feeling that are supposed to occur for several more months, right?
It never ceases to amaze me however, the love that I feel for Eve, and the love she seems to feel for me. Her face lights up everytime I look at her, and I can't help wondering how I came to be so lucky to have such an adorable daughter.
Eve at the park with Daddy. It was her first time in the swing!
Last weekend we went down to Cedar City to celebrate Independence Day with my parents and sister. To tell the truth, I was not too keen on going because the last time I went down there, I was without Richard and Eve was sick, so it was not a fun trip. So I am happy to report that it was an excellent trip! Just what we needed to get away from Logan and life a little bit. Richie golfed and fished for three whole days, I had someone else to help with Eve and hung out with my mom and sister, and Richie and I even went on a real date! Very fun and relaxing. I even wish we could have stayed another night or two. I didn't get to play Settlers of Catan like I wanted to, but did play some terrible, awful, fun volleyball, lit illegal fireworks and generally appreciated all my freedoms and rights as a citizen of the United States of America.
At Cedar Breaks National Monument, about half an hour up the canyon from my parents' house. Several people asked if they could take pictures of Eve, because she's so irresistably cute in her hat and sunglasses (no sunburns for her!) Of course I said yes!
On a patriotic sidenote, upon pondering the 4th of July and it's significance, I am very truly grateful to be an American, to be born at the time I was, and to have the life I lead. My dad is a Vietnam veteran, and I am very proud of him and his service to our country. I often snicker and roll my eyes at uber patriotic people, such as those who listen to country music that tout the absolute supremecy of the US, Texans and whatnot, but I am glad to be American, and realize that America does play a very significant and positive role in the world, in politics and policies, and that for all its faults and imperfections, there probably has never such successful, peaceful or opportune country, well, ever. And despite whether or not I agree with the government's actions the past eight years, I will always support those soldiers and volunteers that sacrafice so much for me and my family, so that we can continue on our path of happiness, and will never take my rights for granted.
Well, I'll stop my preaching and getting to posting pictures! Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July weekend!
How I wish that was Eve's beanie! Unfortunately, it is one that my sister picked up in Peru for her own future children. Sigh...
unflattering pictures of me, I know, but I was attempting to get some of Eve in my lap with her little "driving"toy (the cloth donut in front of her race is really a steering wheel)
I don't know why I am blogging so much so suddenly, but I guess I just want to share my world with the world. It is starting to get hot here in Logan (yuck) but I'm just glad that it's not winter! (it lasts so long in Logan). I really don't like Logan, but I really really really love my house and yard and neighborhood. With all my heart. When we first bought our house I thought, "what are we going to do with all this land?" (We have a quarter acre). Now I'm trying figure out how to squeeze in all the things I like into the backyard that we have. I thought that I wanted to make improvements on the interior of our house, but now I just want to landscape everything!
I always feel a little jipped when I read a blog entery sans pictures, so here are some to accompany my happy moment:
I finally feel like Eve's room is very near completion--at least until she starts crawling. I made the crib skirt and glider cushion covers myself, and also made the origami crane mobiles above her bed. I love them--they're beautiful, they slowly twirl on their own, and Eve loves to look at them. They're even hung on chopsticks!
We have lots of rose bushes at my house, which is nice because apparently it is hard to get roses to grow in Logan. They seem quite old fashioned and charming to me. I see these out my kitchen window.
Come on, who doesn't LOVE baby fat rolls and naked bums? They're soooo cute!
So a few posts ago I was complainging about paying for things, because generally, things are always tight around here. Of course, I'm sure most people feel the same way. And would I love to have enough money that buying the $169 magazie holder from Pottery Barn would be nothing at all? Well, yeah, sure. (Just to make things clear, I would never ever spend money on a magazie rack of any quality, no matter how rich I was. I was just using that as an example).
But the other day Richard, Eve and I were returning to our house from an evening walk. And I just realized how happy I was. I have a very sweet, well-tempered baby that makes me laugh and giggle and cry a little and cuddles into me; I have a husband that is not only willing but enjoys cleaning the house, doing the dishes and shares yard work with me, all unasked and uncomplaining; and he is willing to go to work everyday so that I can be home with Eve! We have a great house in a great neighborhood, and there really isn't anything that I am lacking, except maybe tact and humility. And patience. But otherwise, my life is perfect. If only I could remember it constantly so that I don't complain. But I think it is important to remember the times you are happy, especially when they come upon you for no reason at all, but are just sweet little gifts that life gives you.
Wow! It's only been a little more than a month since I last blogged, but it seems like a long time ago! I've missed you, cyber space! And many apologies to the three faithful followers of my blog. We moved our computer to the upstairs loft, and the internet connection there was awful. We finally switched providers, so here we are, back up and running.
eve was shooting me especially cute glances before her bath (although she won't smile when I have the camera up to my face)
A lot has been going on lately. Being a nursing mother is a weird mixture of being insanely busy and doing nothing (or at least, not accomplishing many tasks). On May 3rd Eve received her baby blessing in church. Basically, it is a formal presentation of her to the church, and then Richard gave here a name and a blessing, which was very beautiful. Of course I was crying throughout the whole meeting. It started with the opening song and didn't stop till the meeting was over. We had all our immediate family with us, and some friends, aunts, uncles and cousins. It was lovely.
blessing day feast; eve with daddy
We also planted our garden. It was looking fantistic for a while, then two weeks ago the bug population in Logan exploded and all our tender little plantlings have played salad to a whole army of bugs. I'm trying to avoid using anything poisonous on our plants and soil, but it doesn't seem to be working and I don't want to lose my garden. Any organic gardening suggestions would be most welcome.
My first Mother's Day was absolutely wonderful, all thanks to Richard and Eve. I wish everyday could be Mother's Day! Richie made me breakfast in bed and dinner--scallops, veggies, sparkling cider, and homemade strawberry shortcake! It was divine and oh so delish! I love having a wonderful husband and sweet daughter.
he even used the nice china!
Eve is doing well. She got her first cold on a trip to Cedar City to see the grandparents, but she is doing just fine now. Baby colds are the worst! She didn't gain any weight while she was sick, so she's a little behind what her current trend has been, but she's happy and healthy and learning new things everyday. She sucks her fingers and loves to hold onto things and explore her clothes and surroundings. She loves to watch and absorb people and events around her. She is very good natured and usually quite happy and smiley. At her 4 month doctor's appointment two weeks ago she was 10 lb 9 oz and 21 3/4". So she is a tiny thing, but cuter than anything else I have seen on this earth, and I've seen a lot of cuteness. Sorry all those out there that disagree, but it's true. I'm never wrong, just ask the Chemist.
eve tries eat most of the things she picks up; below, she's apparently trying to do the can-can, and thoroughly enjoying every minute of it
...sucks. I'm reading "Little Women" to Eve right now and I can totally sympathize with the March girls and their lack of luxury. Then Marmee comes in and smacks you upside the head with guilt trips that would make a grown man cry. I should be more grateful.
eve in her bear jacket that aunt annette gave her...I love the little ears!
We just got local phone numbers. I guess we really are living here!
So, I am going to discuss something that has been on my mind for a while: my beef with so called "doctors." Well, I guess they're real doctors.
I have become well accquainted with my OBGYN and to a slightly lesser degree, our pediatrician, not to mention countless nurses, social workers, lactation consultants, medical billing specialists etc. I also have many friends in med school, or whose spouses are in med school, or PAs or what have you. And I can definitely understand the pressures of doctors, the expense of becoming a doctor, and the always exasperating futility of dealing with stupid, stupid people. In fact, I'm sure doctors see more than their fair share of stupid people. That being said-
The relationship that is created between doctors and their patients is one of the most important artificial relationships that a person becomes involved with. And it leads to feelings similar to that a real relationship, at least, for me it does. I experienced some of the highest of the high moments with my OBG, definitely my most terrifying moments, and some of my lowest of the lows. And all this leads to a heart-rending "on again off again" rollercoaster for me.
At one point, you are the center of their universe, and nothing could ever be more important than YOU. And then the next week, when you go in for your umpteenth blood draw appointment, they barely have time to smile at you. Not less than three times did my doctor (her nurse actually--god forbid a doctor acutally talk to a patient!) forget to call me with test results which led to me not taking proper medicine. I had many many questions for her, and I couldn't get ahold of her at all. I asked the nurse to have her call me, or at least address some issues. I didn't ask for her home phone number or anything like that, I'm not stupid. I just wanted to ask the professional I'm paying thousands and thousands of dollars to answer my questions. One phone call. I have never even spoken to her in her office. And the same goes for my pediatrician. He didn't even come into the NICU the day Eve was discharged! And none of the nurses at his office know what is going on with Eve, so they never correctly answer my questions, even when I tell them the whole story.
I guess what I'm tring to say is this: when dealing with non-stupid people, or in my case, very intelligent people, don't treat them like they're dumb, or unimportant. Don't forget to talk to them and answer their questions. Just because I chose not to go to med school does not mean that I am less of a person. In fact, I'm confident with a month's training, I could correctly perform most minor surgeries. But I digress. I am always sad when I realize that I will never be as important to my doctor as he/she is to me. It's the classic unrequited love story. I give and give and give, and they say nice/terrifying things to get you into the proverbial bed, and then "forget" to call you the next day.
If doctors are like this because they are overworked, then I think it's their duty and obligation to established patients to reduce the workload, thus allowing them to better diagnose and heal. If doctors act like douches because they are selfish and think they're better than their patients, then they need to spend some time performing douches on themselves to clean out all the crap.
I love my doctors. But they hurt me emotionally. They have the unfair advantage of being the only option when it comes to serious medical matters, people become dependant, the cycle continues...
okay, I'm done complaining now.
Here are some cute pics of Eve:
Eve and I on our first stoller walk!
I never thought I would put my baby in a bonnet. But I did, and it's cute!
Eve in her Easter dress. She kept making goofy faces. This is the most normal of them.
Richie took this picture. He calls it "Crazy Eyes."
Eve in a beautiful sleeper dress that her aunt Heidi and cousin Katrina gave her. I want her to be blessed in it if she'll still fit it in three weeks!
Today is my sister Nicole's birthday! She is the big 25--a quarter of a century. She is quite the darling girl, and I am excited for her blogspot debut. My birthday was on the 26th of March, so we are exactly 2 years and 5 days apart. Nicole has led the life that I dreamed about living: she has visited and lived in many exotic climes including Peru, Costa Rica, China and Hawaii to name a few. She recently returned to the US after serving an 18 month LDS mission in the Netherlands, so she knows how to speak Spanish and Dutch as well as English. She graduated with a BA in Business from Westminster University. Yep, she's pretty much an all around spectacular person. As her older and only sibling, I feel her next step is find the perfect man (if anyone can do it, it's her). The question now is: what man dares to align himself with such a strong woman? One who knows how to roast her turkey and eat it too?
No joke! this is really how she eats every meal!
Eve at the birthday party last Saturday (3/28)
Eve had her two month/two week doctor's appointment today. She grew two inches and gained 7.5 ounces! Her stats are now 7.7 lb, 20.75 inches. We are so excited! She is doing well. Also, the best news of all is that she no longer has to be on the pulse oximeter! YAY! We hated that thing, although I nursed her without it and I was very nervous without that yellow, digital reassuring beep that she was breathing and maintaining her sats okay. Here are a couple of little video clips of her first bath in the NICU. They are part of a much longer video, and I tried to put together a shortened version, but didn't have enough room on the drive(?) It was only a 3 minute clip, it has to work somehow, but I will deal with it later. For now, here are just two little blips of it.
Eve's due date is today! With her adjusted age, she is now at the ZERO mark. So all developmental stages start here at this sort of ground zero place. But as you can see from some pictures this morning, she has already started developing a highly acute and funny sense of humor. Sometimes she is a sneaky leprechaun, other times a screaming banshee, but always my sweet bonny lass.
Eve's biggest modeling infulences include Calvin from "Calvin & Hobbes" and Ben Stiller in "Zoolander"
In order to get my blood thinner, I had to take a shot in the stomach twice a day for over a month. Thankfully, that is over now, I just have to take a pill. But during the last week I was on the shots, Richie accidently knicked one of my veins and I got the most gnarly, disguting, painful bruise. It actually looks pretty good in these pictures--I should've taken some while it was still at its worst stage. But these give an idea. I'm actually proud of it--a war wound of sorts. Please ignore my jello-like post-partum stomach. That's scarier than the bruise.
I wrote a couple of haiku about my bruise:
scarlet petaled bloom tattoed across the belly multi-colored pain
a shot to the gut silently enters and bursts-- rainbow punch smears hard
I've been trying to get a good picture of Eve so I can make and mail birth announcements. Every time, every time, I try to do a photo shoot with her, this is what happens:
Eve loves her baths about 90% of the time. Otherwise, she's screaming. She's going to be a water baby like her mama. She actually looks like a real baby with chunk rolls! Or at least, the beginning of fat rolls. On Friday she weighed 6 lb 5 oz. Tomorrow is her due date--she'll be seven weeks old tomorrow too. She's grown out of her preemie clothes, but is still too big for newborn stuff. But I am sad to see my tiny daughter move on--she's so cute and small!
I have plenty of photos to post of Eve, and some really cute video too. (But it needs to be edited. I don't think you, my dear reader, wants to see 20 minutes of her cooing and giving gas grins; though she is sooooo darling when she does!)
But I need a break from talking about my life. So today I'm throwing down a quote from the TV show "The Office." Proof that it is THE most hilarious thing on television. I'm so in love.
A list created between Jim and Dwight while trying to plan the ideal birthday party for Kelly in the office:
beer fighting to the death cupcakes blood pudding blood touch football mating charades horse hunting
Readers, my heart has never been swollen with more joy, nor have I ever been so exhausted in all my life! After nearly five weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit, our daughter Eve has come home! What an unimaginable journey this has been, and will continue to be, I'm sure.
in her carseat for her ride home!
Eve was originally scheduled to come home last weekend, but as Murphy's Law would have it, our pediatrician went out of town that weekend, and Eve decided to start choking on her bottle feedings, causing her heart rate to drop and her oxygen saturation levels to drop. She had been put back on oxygen to see if that would help her desats (dropping oxygen levels), which it did to some degree, but not as much as we hoped it would. After she started her choking spells, I knew she wouldn't be coming home last weekend, which made me very sad and frustrated. However, a neonatologist from Odgen came up to Logan on Thursday, and took a look at her. He has been a neonatologist for over 30 years, and he said that he thought nothing was wrong with Eve, but that she is just a preemie, and she's doing what preemies do: taking a little extra time to work things out. We've decided that her desats were caused by reflux, even though she doesn't spit up much. He thought she might be a week younger or so than originally thought, which would explain why she wasn't growing out of her bradycardia (heart rate suddenly dropping). But he suggested taking back off the oxygen and seeing how she did her feeds.
she loves her new play n' pack bassinett
with dad after her bath--note the darling, tiny ducky outfit--Eve looks pretty good too
For the most part, she feeds excellently. She will still desat sometimes, but we have oxygen here at home so that if she needs it, she can have it. She is also on an oxcimeter (spelling?) which means there's a little probe on her foot connected to a machine that will beep if she falls below a certain oxygen level. But no more stickers, tubes, needles, IVs, or anything else on her face and body! I had never seen her face without something stuck on it or in it until yesterday. And hopefully her reflux will not be a problem as she gets older. I'm am hoping she gets off the machine soon, because it beeps ALL THE TIME.
i love her preemie outfits--polka dots and giraffes are tres chic
Let's cross our fingers that we'll never step foot in the NICU again. Eve is home! I am finally a real mommy! She is home, she is home, she is home!
kangaroo care with mom--also the first day she nursed!
These are the first pictures/the first time I saw my baby:
Our pediatrician took them with his iphone the night Eve was born. I woke up from the anesthesia at about 1 AM. I remember having a fairly coherent conversation with the nurse attending me, but I can't remember what was said. I think I asked if my little girl was okay, and the nurse asked me her name. Apparently, Richie wouldn't tell anyone her name because he wanted me to be the first one to say it. Richie came in and showed me her pictures. I started to cry because she was so beautiful. She had all ten fingers and toes; she was perfect in every way imaginable. After carrying her for 33 weeks, I knew we were going to be good friends, but I had no idea that she was going to be so beautiful, and touch my heart so deeply. The rest of that night was blurry, all I know is that the nurses kept checking in with me every hour or so, so I didn't sleep much. Later that morning they had me pump for the first time, which made me vomit afterwards. I can't even remember that last time that happened! But that was the effects of the anesthesia. You will be happy to know that I now pump constantly and have been able to keep my cookies untossed.
At two in the afternoon I was able to go down to the NICU to see Eve for the first time. Richie wheeled me into her room and I gasped to see how small she was! Pictures, even with other references there to compare size, do not fully give the sense of just how tiny this little girl is. Her fingernails were the size of sesame seeds. A nurse wrapped her in a blanket and set her in my arms. She was connected to various pieces of equipment and there were about 4 or 5 tubes or cords attached to her, which makes it awkward sometimes to hold her, but she was not on oxygen anymore (her lungs are awesome). But holding her for the first time was incredible. I couldn't believe that this little person was my baby. The love one feels for their child the first time is impossible to explain. It's something that you feel so instictively and so deeply that you almost don't realize that you feel it until you try to quantify it or at least acknowledge it. All I can say is that there were many tears shed at that point. In fact, I'm crying as I write this, so tears are still being shed, and will most likely continue to be shed until I die. If you can't tell, I'm still a little emotionally vulnerable.
(I would post a picture of me holding her for the first time, but my face was still so swollen that I look positively putrid and will spare myself the embarrassement. I still don't have a good mother and baby shot, I need Richie to become a good photographer! )
Eve was doing quite well despite her rocky start until Wednesday morning. Dr. McKenna (our pediatrician) came into my room quite solemn. Eve's stomach was disstended and she was in the radiology department at that moment having x-rays done to figure out why her stomach was expanding. It turned out that her bowels were plugged up with mucous and meconium, and so she couldn't pass anything out of her body, causing her belly to swell painfully. She had to have a barrium enema, and then she was on suppositories the next few days (one every three hours!). It was so sad! We got to see her after she came back from the enema, and her stomach looked fit to burst. The skin was hard, tight and red. She was not happy. But she eventually started to pass stools (a little bit here and there) and returned to normal.
I, on the other hand, was a complete basket case that day. I could not stop sobbing. They sent a social worker student to me (I think they were afraid I'd really start to freak out) but really, I just needed time. I sobbed the whole day Friday when I was discharged from the hospital and I went home without my baby. That was a very hard day. I also noticed that my calf was sore, but it felt just like a slightly sore muscle. When I woke up on Saturday however, it was very very tender and painful. I called the hospital, but the on-call doc asked if I had any other symptoms of a blood clot, which I did not. The whole weekend it was very sore however, and on Monday, a NICU nurse said that I should definitely see my doctor about it. So on Tuesday (exactly one week after having Eve) I went to get my blood pressure checked and I told the nurse I had to see a doctor about my leg. I didn't get to see my doctor, but the one I did see told me I needed to get an ultrasound done on my leg.
I went to the hosptial that night for my ultrasound. I didn't think they would find anything, but they ended up discovering two different clots in my left calf. So then I had to be admittted into the emergency room. The whole process took about four hours. I am now on Coumadin, a blood thinning pill, and Lovenox, a shot Richie has to give me twice a day in the stomach. Interesting fact: the ER doctor told me that coumadin is literally rat poison. Did you know that rat poison basically causes rats to hemorrage and bleed to death? That is terrible! Thank you, ER doctor, for keeping me so informed. As if I wasn't freaked out enough already.
So, there is happiness to the end of this story. At least, so far there is. Eve is doing awesome! She's just over three weeks old, and has gained almost a whole pound. She is now over 18 inches long and weighs 4 lb 13 oz. She is eating and pooping just fine, and I am even able to nurse her twice a day, which is amazing. We are hoping to bring her home soon! (Though she might be coming home with oxygen and a heart monitor, but we'll just figure that all out when the time comes.) She is a very special girl, and we are so blessed and happy and excited and a little terrified to have her in our lives. And we'd also like to thank everyone, all of you, who have prayed for us and thought of us and served us as we have started this epic journey. Thank you thank you! We love you all.
One can already recognize the flicker of a mischevious nature on her face. That must be one of the reasons why she came SEVEN WEEKS EARLY! cheeky monkey...
Monday, January 26th started out as a normal day. I had my lazy morning, did some grocery shopping, watched The Notebook made dinner. Actually, it was a lazier day than normal because I had been feeling unwell all weekend; just blah, very low energy, not much appetite, and my hands and feet had started swelling to uncomfortable proportions. My right hand had actually started to go numb. I called the doctor's office that day to see if they wanted me to come in, but they said that all they would do would be to take my blood pressure, and I decided that since I had a doc appointment later that week, there was no need to go over there. The last few appointments I had high blood pressure, but none of the other symptoms that go along with toxemia or eclampsia, so I wasn't too worried about it.
That night we went to our Lamaze class and (ironically) toured the hospital and watched c-section video tapes. We came home a little after 8:30. At nine I went upstairs to change into my pajamas. I was pulling my shirt off when I felt a gush a warm liquid between my legs. I got scared, but thought that it was amniotic fluid. I pulled my pants down and saw blood EVERYWHERE. I was in shock! I screamed Richie's name a couple times. All I could do was just stand there, staring at the blood. Richie came upstairs. Now, Richie hates blood and guts and needles and that sort of thing, so I thought he was going to freak out more than me, but he saw the blood, grabbed my hand and very calmly said, "let's go, right now." So we dashed to the car and drove to the hospital.
That 10 minute ride to the hospital was the longest car ride of my life. I was not in any pain, but very very scared and I could still feel the bleeding. We went to the emergency room, where I think they thought we were idiots because it was hard to see all the blood through my dark jeans. I think they thought that my water had just broken and we were freaking out for nothing. They wheeled me over to the labor and delivery section of the hospital. When I stood out the wheelchair, there was a huge puddle of blood and the girl just went "oh," like she finally realized just what we meant by "she's 33 weeks pregnant and bleeding between her legs!"
As I changed into my hospital gown I looked down at my legs and realized that they were grotesquely swollen. My blood pressure was extremely high, and they were having a hard time getting the fetal heart rate monitor to pick up Eve's heartbeat, and that was very distressing. Richie was getting pretty frustrated. They called my doctor and set up an ultrasound, but they said the machine was old and that they really didn't know what they were looking at or looking for. Finally my doctor came in and found the heartbeat, and got an ultrasound tech to come in and help her decipher what they were seeing. As this was going on, I started to have regular back pains, which turned out to be contractions. I couldn't feel my uterus contracting at all, but the back pain was bad. I also felt something firm and warm slip out between my legs and I started yelling "there's something coming out between my legs!" My doctor reached down and pulled out a blood clot about the size of a pear. Richie said "oh!" and looked a little green. After that, Dr. Blackett had to keep reaching up into my vaginia and pull out fistfuls of blood clots. That really hurt. She also checked my cervix and I was dialated to a two.
All this time, I never thought that I was going to have my baby that night. I thought for sure that they would figure out how to stop the bleeding, and the labor, and even if I was in the hospital for the next two months, I never thought I would have the baby that night. The ultrasound showed that my placenta had "abrupted," and part of it had pulled away from the uterine wall. Dr. Blackett checked my cervix again and I was dialated to a 3. She told me that they were going to monitor me to see if the bleeding and labor would stop. "If not," she said, "we're going to have to have to deliver her by cesarean section." For some reason, I thought the monitoring would be over the course of days. But she said "no, we'll monitor you for about half an hour, so the surgery will be tonight."
That was the point that I started crying. Up until then I was very scared and frustrated, but pretty calm and collected. After everyone left the room however, and it was just me and Richie, I just started crying. I was not ready for this baby to come! We had nothing for her, not even a car to take her home in. I had a bunch of material at home that I was going to sew into crib bedding. I had a birth plan, I was so prepared for a natural vaginal birth in March. I was so excited to have a Spring baby close to my birthday. I did not want to have this baby in January, seven weeks early, by c-section. And mostly, I was so worried that she would die, or that there would be some horrible complications. And also, I was a little worried that I would die. I mean, surgery is surgery--it's always a big deal. I had never been in the hospital for anything my entire life! I was a healthy woman.
Richie held my hand and talked to me. He also gave me a blessing of health and safety. Richie was a stalwart husband and very caring and worried. I am so so grateful for him. I don't know how I would have survived this experience without his constant love and support.
About 11:30 Dr. Blackett came back into my room with the anesthiesiologist (sp?). There was no change in me, and because my placenta was not functioning, they would not stop the labor. They had to deliver my baby. Dr. Blackett wanted to give me a spinal block, but the anesthiesiologist decided that because of my blood loss (I lost over 2 liters of blood that night) it was too risky and I had to go under general anesthesia. I had never had surgery before, and it was the most surreal experience to be wheeled into the operating room with it's bright lights and scrub-clad nurses everywhere. I remember being lifted onto this very skinny table, with my arms stretched out to the sides like Jesus on the Cross. The only thing I could see was my reflection in the light glass above me, and I saw nurses painting iodine or something brown all over my naked belly. The face mask thing was put over my mouth, and I heard everyone talking about how they were going to cut me open. I said "I'm not under yet!" And that is the last thing I remembered until I woke up.
Eve bottle feeding with Dad. She's a good sucker! Her face is so tiny!
I never thought I had the potential to be a crazy cat lady until we adopted Lucy. I seriously love this cat more than most things in life. She is the GREATEST! When Richie moved to Logan last year leaving me in Oregon solo, I was so grateful to have her little self there at home to welcome me back from work, watch Lost DVDs with me until the wee hours of the morning, and generally remind me that I was loved. Pets are fantastic. I will always feel pity for those out there who just don't value the love of a good animal.
No, we do not dress our cat. Lucy has allergies (to what remains the big mystery. We think they're food allergies.) which cause her to continuously lick herself raw. It is very sad, and occasionally the outbreaks will be bad enough that she has to wear a cone or an "Elizabeathian collar." This is her in her collar when we first adopted her. I eventually had to sew tulle around the edges, making this look like even more of a fancy dress, because she figured out a way to lick her belly. During this phase we called her "Space Cat." Yes, there was a song.
Lucy always has been and will always remain a giant bed hog. She looks grumpy. Shouldn't have awoken her from her 18 hour cat nap.
Likes: yogurt, ice-cream, string cheese, Planet Earth dvds, the fish tank, exploring outside, the laser, neck rubs, chin scratches, drinking from my glass (or any liquid container that is not her water dish), the heater vent under the bed, cuddling, attention
Dislikes: her cone, cold/wet weather, cat nip, children, the vaccum, loud cars, being left alone, baths, pills, most cat toys
I like the snow for about two months. Maybe even three. But after February, really, it's time for Spring. I LOVE Spring! It is my favorite season. So why in the world am I lving in frozen ice-world Logan? Yesterday, at 10 am, Richie came into the bathroom as I was getting ready for church and informed me that it was currently -4 below zero outside. Lovely.
We went hiking (why we didn't put our snowshoes on is a mystery. I was okay with my snowboots, but Richard only had tennis shoes) on Saturday up Logan Canyon. During my whole pregnancy I can honestly say that I have never felt "fat," just pregnant. But after looking at this picture, I can't believe how big I'm getting! I look totally fat! But at least I don't feel fat. I still feel fabulous and pregnant, not fat. Only 11 more weeks to go!
First, apologies to my total lack of communication for the month of December. Yes, I know that many of you were placed into fits of worry, lighting icon candles in prayer for my health, but don't worry. It was only my severe lack of energy from the holiday struggle that kept me from journaling my thoughts electronically for all to consider.
I finally took picutres of my house, at least, the main floor. I will post the basement and loft when the nursery is finally done (hopefully soon!).
But before I shower you, my delightful readers, with envy-inducing evidence of my AWESOME house, I need to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY to my wonderful husband.
We celebrated 5 years of pure bliss on December 27th. I can't believe it--five whole years married, to each other, monogamous, happy (for most of it)! We didn't do too much in way of celebrating. Earlier last year I wanted to make travel plans for Belize, but then pregnancy and home ownership came into play (I'm not complaining). We went down to Cedar City for Christmas, so we drove up to Salt Lake on our way home Saturday and ate at The Roof in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and walked around Temple Square afterwards to see the Christmas lights. It was quite pleasant except for the fact that I over ate by about 5,000 calories (the dessert buffet is INCREDIBLE) and wanted to vomit for most the walk. But it was beautiful, fun, and very reminiscent of when we got married. I did let the Chemist know however, that if we weren't out of the country in another five years, with diamond studs in my ears, we won't be celebrating an 11th anniversary. Just kidding...maybe...
Oh, don't we look so happy and cold? Okay, on to the house...Featuring the Living Room, Bathroom, Kitchen, TV Room, Guest Room/Study
Happy New Year! 2008, you were great; 2009, looking fine!
November has been awesome to me. I must share. Obama won the Presidential election, the University of Utah Utes thoroughly destroyed the evil, self-righteous BYU Cougars (I hate them so much...) in the Holy War, our OB appointment went well, my sister Nicole returns home on Thursday from her 18 month LDS mission to the Netherlands, and...we moved into our new house!
That's right, we are now home owners. I have been experiencing many mixed emotions about it the past two weeks (that's how long we've been in the house and the main reason I haven't written much). While I am very excited to finally be in my own home, I have much anxiety over money (the not having enough of it part), fixing the house up, leaky dishwashers, boxsprings and other pieces of furniture not fitting in stairwells, and the like. I have felt really guilty too, because while it is by no means a palace, it is quite large, actually bigger than what we really need, and all that space is intimidating. I feel like we might be living beyond our means, and that really we should have bought a much cheaper, smaller house. But I shouldn't complain, right? I should be grateful for the many blessings I have in this house, and believe me, I am. I am soooooo grateful.
So is it weird that I have these anxious, guilty feelings attached to my joy? I think part of it is the time of year. I hate cold dark winters. Just hate 'em.
The house was built in 1948, has three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, a huge basement and quarter acre lot with a great, big backyard. It was built by a brickmason. I promise I will get more pictures, but I want everything to look perfect in them, so for now, here is a pic of the front of the house:
So I see it is pretty typical in Hollywood to glory in the "baby bump." Since I would like to be rich and infamous some day, I will follow suit. I am expecting People Magazine and TMZ paprazzi to be at my door any minute! I am at the end of my 4th month (not sure what week exactly. 17? 18?).
I wish Richard knew how to take a really good subject photo. And I wish I knew how to pose for a really good subject photo. That is why I am usually the one behind the camera. For whatever reason, Richie really wasn't into taking my picture with Maude. He takes really good landscape photos, but I guess I am not as interesting a subject. Will someone please come take artsy, legendary pregnancy photos of me? Please?!
Here are a bunch of pictures representing the many fabulous and fun things The Chemist, Maude The Fetus, and I have done the past couple of months during this gorgeous Autumn (warning, they mostly involve all, or parts of, pumpkins). We didn't do anything fun for Halloween this year. It was quite sad really, but when you're only friends have tiny babies/children, and you don't drink, there aren't many reasons to get the house decorated, dress-up, and rock it all night long with the ghosts and the ghouls. Maybe that's a defeatist attitude, but next year, next year will be awesome. We'll have a baby, a place to party, and I'll make sure Richard has a kick-ass costume. As for candy, well, I consume enough of that on a daily basis as to ensure I don't need more on Halloween.
We went kayaking at Tony Grove Lake, which is up Logan Canyon. It was really fun, but the lake is quite small, and after about half an hour, we had already explored the whole thing from the water. We also ended up hiking the little trail that circles the lake. It was a perfect day: sunny, warm, slight breeze. But that also meant there were loads of other people up there too.
We went to a u-pick pumpkin patch in Paradise for our jack-o-lantern pumpkin. I love pumpkin patches. Isn't Richie cute? It was cold and snowy that day!
We went on a hike in the Left Fork of Blacksmith Fork Canyon. It was quite pretty, but the road was unpaved and very bumpy, and we forgot that it was deer season. Every other person in that canyon was hunting (and there were quite a few of them) and the slight few who weren't were at least wearing bright orange. Maybe it wasn't so smart of us to go on a secluded hike while pregnant in the middle of hunting season, but we went anyway, made lots of noise, and fortunately didn't get shot at (that we know of). The colors on the hike were actually very blah and brown, so the picture of the foilage is enhanced to trick you. I don't know why I took Richie's picture in the shade, but in black & white it actually looks spooky, like he's on a haunted hunting trail.
Today is my mom's birthday! What a great time of year for a cool birthday party. She loves Halloween. She is the most wonderful mother. I love her! All my friends in high school (and those that knew her in college as well) love her too. They all call her Mom or Mom Barkume. I wish I had more pictures on my computer, but here is a little montage to celebrate the many (but not too many) wonderful years of her life, the best being the ones with me.
On the hike to Angel's Landing, Zion NP.
Out to dinner with my Dad.
Both this picture and the first one on top were taken at the beach near Bandon, Oregon.
The internet poll has prophesied correctly: Maude is the clear winner, and thus we will call our unborn girl child Maude until she really enters this world in style. I can't wait for all that pain and tearing and screaming. She's making me work for her, that's for sure!
I wish our ultrasound picutures were a little clearer, but she is quite the squirmy baby, and apparently my placenta is right in front of her, so the images weren't as focused as some I've seen. But she looks healthy and is right on target for size, which is a great indicator that everything is developing correctly. We got to see pictures of her brain, bladder, spine, and watch the blood pump through the four chambers of her heart. It was amazing! I can't imagine being pregnant and not getting to see that! Even when my mom was pregnant with me, which wasn't too long ago, this sort of technology didn't exist. That is crazy to me. I love living in the 21st Century--what a blessing!
Clearly, the "girl"part of her. Nothing poking out between those legs! Her bum is on the left, the mouse is pointing to the labia, and her feet are to the right.
I think these pictures of her feet are just...sigh...too wonderful and amazing. She's really in there!
The best picture we got of her spine. I only wish her profile wasn't blurred.
Here is a picture of our baby at 11 weeks. This ultrasound was done at the end of the August. It looks like an alien, I am aware of that. But it's our alien, and that makes me happy. Everyone needs an extraterrestrial of their own to grow and love, right?
When my mom found out we were having a baby, she thought that we were going to name it Otto. Not that I don't like that name, but I have never really considered it, and since we don't know the sex of the child, I don't know why she assumed that we would name it that. My dad then wryly suggested that the middle name should be "Matic." Very clever. But then I thought, Automatic Peterson, that's a good, funny name for a sexually undetermined fetus. And henceforth our babe has been known as Auto around these parts. It's much better than Richard's suggestion of Cletus the Fetus. Eeeewww...I hate both those words.
Now my mother-in-law, on the other hand, has really been gunning for Gus since the moment we got married almost five years ago. Can you imagine hearing about Baby Gus for five years? I said "absolutely not! That's the name of the fat mouse on 'Cinderella.'" There's no way I'd ever name a human being that came out of my birth canal Gus. But Richie loves it. He uses the mouse voice from "Cinderella" and says "GusGus" really fast. Sigh. This child is in for a lot of weird nicknames.
I've also had some Oregon inspired suggestions, like Rainesong, Snowbright, and Moonstar. So now I'd like to open it up to suggestions from the audience. The new poll to your right will have my top five suggestions, but please feel free to post other options as well; nothing will be turned down on the path towards the moniker that will label one for life.
I know it has been up for some time now, but, Pirates win the poll! Richard was upset by the results (he was the only one that voted for ninjas). I love ninjas too. They're so sneaky (there could be one in my kitchen right now and I wouldn't know!) and if pirates had the same code of ethics or the same sense of duty and shame, ninjas would definitely win in hand-to-hand combat. But we all know that after getting slapped around, a pirate would just step back and rocket a bullet into the ninja's belly, and not even feel bad about it. That's while pirates rock. Not to mention that they live on a ship and sail around the entire world, and have hidden, cursed treasure. And scurvy. I mean, whoever heard of Ninja Treasure? Or some sort of ninja vitamin deficiency? Family Honor or a nod from the Emperor is probably the only reward that ninjas receive. Maybe a cool sword too. But I want gold me mateys, lots of gold. It's the only stable financial standard in today's economic mess. Okay, since I am new to blogging and not too technically savvy yet, I couldn't figure out how to post youtube videos (although I know it can be done, somehow) here are some links to some funny ninja videos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=muLIPWjks_M This is for "Ninja Cat" which never ceases to crack me up. It even made the Chemist laugh.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JdLCEwEFCMU I don't condone the use of the word "fag" but this video is still pretty funny and covers all the basics of becoming a ninja. Is it racist when Asian Americans use a really bad Japanese accent?
I tried to find some cool pirate videos, but none that tickeled my fancy, arrrr....
Tomorrow look for a new poll concerning our babe. She (we think) needs a name, and she needs your vote.
It has been blustery and stormy all weekend, and though it snowed both Saturday and Sunday, it was still a surprise to wake up and see nothing but white out the window. I am so grateful that our landlord believes in keeping a warm house!
Luckily, the weather is supposed to bounce back up into the 60s for the next few weeks. I am definitely not ready for winter, and not done with beautiful Autumn. Winter can wait a little while longer. I took this picture this morning from my front porch. I didn't quite get the effect of the snow like I wanted, but I live across the street from the Logan LDS Temple, and it was a particularly lovely view this morning with the bright sunlight and smooth snow lawn.
More importantly, I am happy to announce the results of the St. George Marathon! Richard not only reached his goal time, he smashed it to bits as he finished the race in 3:33! His time for the SLC marathon was 4:24, so he took off more than 50 minutes! And in pouring rain I might add! I was so excited for him, even though I wasn't prepared to take pictures and video-I thought I had another 10 minutes at least to get the camera ready. I wanted video of him actually crossing the finish line. Afterwards, Richie was only minimally sore for two days. He felt fine all last week. The real secret to his success is this: don't stretch before any runs, drink lots of carbonated beverages, get minimal sleep, and shave body hair into aerodynamic coiffitures, as seen below:
What a sexy Fu-Man-Chu! He was going to put his hair into a mohawk, but the rain prevented that from being successful. My mom got a really big kick out of the moustache. When she first saw him she choked on her lunch. But she recovered enough to snap this photo:
I'll leave this entry with some more images of the wet marathon. My parents and I did the "Mayor's Walk," which was the last 2.2 miles of the marathon course and ended at the finish line. Hopefully, the next marathon will be a Boston qualifier!
Jonas Newsome is Richard's best friend. They've been friends since they were 12. At least, they were wellwishers, in that they wished each other no specific harm. But Jonas has been a very important person in our lives and we love him and his family very much!
Jonas turned 30 a few days ago, and I'd like to say Happy Birthday Jonas! I'm posting a video of him swimming at Alsea Falls in Oregon. He and his wife Phyleen and their baby Bridger came to visit us a year ago. I also put up some pictures of him to preserve a bit of his dignity. He really is a great guy. I hope you don't regret giving us this video!
My good friend Laron also had a birthday recently. Happy Birthday Laron! Laron is one of the most beautiful people I know in every way: beautiful mind, beautiful heart, beautiful soul. I have some great photographs of Laron, but unforutanely, none that are digital. This picture I'm posting is the only decent one I have of him on my computer. We are at the top of Mt. Timpanogos in Utah. Please ignore the way I look. We took off for the hike at 4 am and didn't get back home until 7 pm or so! It's a steep 13 miler, but totally worth it. Laron of course, didn't even break a sweat.
I help with two different gardens, and as usual, the zuchinni plants runneth over. I figured that there has to something else besides zuchinni bread and stir fry that incorporates large amounts of this prolific squash. I saw this recipe on the news the other day, and decided to try it out. It is amazing! I think it is my new favorite cookie! And it doesn't even have chocolate in it! You know it must be good if something sans chocolate can trump a cocoa suffused delight. Without the frosting, these would work well as scones. But the frosting adds a "zip" and a zest that the cookie alone is missing!
Lemon Zuchinni Cookies
2 cups flour 1 tea baking powder 1/2 tea salt 3/4 cup sugar 1 egg 1 tea lemon zest 1 cup shredded zuchinni 1/4 cup butter, softened 1 cup chopped walnuts 1 cup powdered sugar 1 1/2 table lemon juice
Stir together flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In large bowl cream butter and sugar until light. Beat in egg and lemon zest until fluffy. On low speed add flour mixture until dough is smooth. Stir in zuchinni and walnuts. Drop onto greased cookie sheets. Bake in preheated 375 F oven, 15-20 minutes (very light brown). While still warm drizzle with Lemon Glaze. Cool on rack. Frosting:mix powdered sugar and lemon juice together.
I'm going to introduce you to the many lovely and beautiful people in my life, because I am sure I will be referring to them not an infrequent amount. The first person I'd like to present for your consideration is my husband, Richard.
The Man
We have been married 4 years, 9 months, 3 days, and 10 1/2 hours (approximately). My husband is one of the funniest, sweetest and intelligent men I know. I love him! He has been especially good to me since moving us here to Logan, because he knew how much I loved my past life in Oregon. And now that I am pregnant, I still get all the attention! So I wanted to pass on some love to him here. He is probably the only faithful reader of this blog.
He is an organic chemist at a small lab here, and is doing swimmingly! He graduated with his Master's degree in Organic Synthesis at the University of Oregon. What a scholastic and scientific stud. He is, after the Sports Illustrated website addiction, quite adorable and quite, enthusiastically estatic to become a father; and what a wonderful father he will be. I'm so grateful to have him in my life.
The Race
This Saturday Richard is going to be running the St. George, Utah marathon. 26.2 miles of grueling, bone-crushing, soul-dessicating downhill flight. This is his second marathon. His training has seemed to be easier (as if easy is a word that can be applied to marathon training), or rather, smoother, than the first time around. Maybe running when it's not 10 F degrees outside is a good thing.
Here's to Richard's running success. I know he'll reach his goal and still be able to walk the next day!
Richard running the 2006 Salt Lake City marathon. He was awarded a finisher medal!
Spring is my favorite season of the year, hands down. However, my husband repeatedly reminds me that Spring does not start in Logan until June. This makes me sad, though it does make me appreciate Autumn all the more! Cache Valley is surrounded by beautiful mountains from the East, West and South, and all the trees are starting to turn red, orange and yellow! It truly is gorgeous. And the weather has been PERFECT! I couldn't ask for a more glorious season this Fall.
Richie and I went for a hike last Saturday up Logan Canyon. I failed to get new batteries for our camera, so no pictures, which is a slight tragedy because it was stormy that day, and the sun peeking through the clouds, illuminating groves of trees brighly lit with color and sunshine was amazing.
I also forgot to send a birthday shout out to my cousin Raschelle. She turned 21 on the 21st! Happy Birthday Raschelle! I know you were well taken of that day. The pictures here are of my friends' new babies.
Well, I'll stop my preaching and getting to posting pictures! Hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July weekend!
I finally feel like Eve's room is very near completion--at least until she starts crawling. I made the crib skirt and glider cushion covers myself, and also made the origami crane mobiles above her bed. I love them--they're beautiful, they slowly twirl on their own, and Eve loves to look at them. They're even hung on chopsticks!
eve and her daddy like to play "flying baby!"
Eve bottle feeding with Dad. She's a good sucker! Her face is so tiny!
No, we do not dress our cat. Lucy has allergies (to what remains the big mystery. We think they're food allergies.) which cause her to continuously lick herself raw. It is very sad, and occasionally the outbreaks will be bad enough that she has to wear a cone or an "Elizabeathian collar." This is her in her collar when we first adopted her. I eventually had to sew tulle around the edges, making this look like even more of a fancy dress, because she figured out a way to lick her belly. During this phase we called her "Space Cat." Yes, there was a song.
Lucy always has been and will always remain a giant bed hog. She looks grumpy. Shouldn't have awoken her from her 18 hour cat nap.
I am at the end of my 4th month (not sure what week exactly. 17? 18?).
I wish Richard knew how to take a really good subject photo. And I wish I knew how to pose for a really good subject photo. That is why I am usually the one behind the camera. For whatever reason, Richie really wasn't into taking my picture with Maude. He takes really good landscape photos, but I guess I am not as interesting a subject. Will someone please come take artsy, legendary pregnancy photos of me? Please?!
We went kayaking at Tony Grove Lake, which is up Logan Canyon. It was really fun, but the lake is quite small, and after about half an hour, we had already explored the whole thing from the water. We also ended up hiking the little trail that circles the lake. It was a perfect day: sunny, warm, slight breeze. But that also meant there were loads of other people up there too.
I think these pictures of her feet are just...sigh...too wonderful and amazing. She's really in there!
What a sexy Fu-Man-Chu! He was going to put his hair into a mohawk, but the rain prevented that from being successful. My mom got a really big kick out of the moustache. When she first saw him she choked on her lunch. But she recovered enough to snap this photo:
I'll leave this entry with some more images of the wet marathon. My parents and I did the "Mayor's Walk," which was the last 2.2 miles of the marathon course and ended at the finish line. Hopefully, the next marathon will be a Boston qualifier! 
Laron has some gorgeous photographs posted on Flickr. If you'd like to check them out, here is the link: 
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