More Photos and The Cadbury Egg

I forgot to mention in the previous post (it was late and I was falling asleep at the keyboard) that I had also updated our photo site with more recent pictures of Joshua and Abigail. I also made a new "album" for pictures with both of them in it. It's the first album in the list. One of the photos in there is of all of us on the ground. It's a favorite of ours and so I'm including it here.

A funny story happened on Thursday that I also kept forgetting to mention. Lisa had bought a few Cadbury Eggs to enjoy last week. Thursday morning (Lisa left later that day), Danielle noticed there was one left in the frig and decided to leave it on top of Lisa's suitcase for her to enjoy later so that Danielle wasn't tempted to have it. Note that the suitcase was standing upright against the back of the loveseat. She went upstairs to change a diaper and when she came back down, she noticed some colored foil on the ground and sure enough, no Cadbury Egg on the suitcase.

G O L D I E ! ! ! ! !

Yes, it seems our dog ate a Cadbury Egg. Not sure how the chocolate will affect her, if at all. She does seem a little happier though...

Fingerpainting

For the past couple months, a high schooler from our church, Katie, would come every week or so in the afternoon and take Joshua to the park and otherwise play with him. The benefit for us, and especially Danielle when I'm at work, is that it gives her some time to rest or get some things done - provided Abigail's cooperating. We've had other friends of ours come and do the same thing. But Katie's come probably half a dozen times or more. It's truly been a blessing.

So, Danielle had this idea that Joshua should do a fingerpainting project to show his...or really her...appreciation for coming so often to play with him. It was the first time Joshua's been able to really do some serious fingerpainting and he had a ball as did Danielle. I, on the other hand, had to try very hard not to stress about the mess that was being created, both on him and on the kitchen floor. But he had a blast and it was fun watching it.

Now we just have to figure out how to present it to Katie.

Friends, Family, Smiles and Words

The past few days have been relatively eventful. But I suppose having two kids will always result in eventful days and weeks...except not everything that happened this week were centered on the kids. Anyway, this past weekend, we had a friend from out of town visiting us. So, we splurged a little...like going to the Original Pancake House and Tommy's, ordering pizza a couple of nights, etc. The girls (Danielle, Lisa, our friend and another girlfriend) went to a dayspa to get massages, facials, pedicures, etc while daddy took care of the two kids. So, it made for a good weekend though we were sad to have her leave.

Lisa leaves tomorrow (Thursday) to go back to the ship. So, the past couple days have been a whirlwind of activity getting her ready to go. She's had to pack up all her stuff again, both things to stay with us and things to take with her. That alone took up the most time. It'll be sad to not have her here as she was also a big help with the kids. But it'll be good for her to be back on the ship doing what she loves to do.

Abigail has been fun to observe recently. She's starting to smile. She has the most adorable smile and sometimes it gets really big. She had already begun to smile when she was asleep, but these are when she's awake. It also seems that she's more aware and alert as though she's really studying the things she's looking at. She's still not cooperating with us in getting her on a routine. But we'll keep working on that. Although, the other night, she did sleep 7 hours. That's good. No...that's VERY good. Oh...and let me tell you how much gas she has! She makes her daddy proud :-). I remember with Joshua being able to pump his legs and pushing out the gas (which was loads of fun, especially getting 5 in a row). But with Abigail, I can't do that. She releases it on her time table, not mine. Nonetheless, it's impressive.

Joshua is doing so well. He is getting much more confident in his walking abilities and can go up and down our stairs with ease...as long as he doesn't get distracted. He's also getting much more interactive and expressive. He'll point at things and let loose with a string of gibberish that is oh so cute. We can ask him where things are and most of the time, he'll point at it correctly...including people. And it even sounds like he says "Right there" when he points. The first time I saw him point at me after someone said "Where's your daddy", that was one of the best days of my life. To see him acknowledge me as his dad was incredible. At times, it also sounds like he says the words "Dang it!" And he's really warming up to his sister more and more. Here's a picture of him. Yes, we posed him. But he didn't put up a fight either. Danielle says when he first was given Abigail to hold, he seemed nervous about doing so. But he did a great job.

A Restful Sunday

Been meaning to post about our day on Sunday, but hadn't had time (or energy). Sunday was quite the day. I guess it's really not much to write home about, but in the thick of it, it was crazy.

In the morning, we went to church. We actually were considering not going because we felt so tired. Not to mention this was one of those days Joshua decides to sleep in till 8 and Abigail was actually sleeping well. But we got up and raced to get to church by 9 (which we didn't make), especially since Lisa was presenting to the children and had forgotten the candy she was going to use. So, we had to get there to bring her the candy.

At Noon, Danielle needed to be back at the church to notarize documents for the youth going to Mexicali this year (she's done that the past couple years). And I needed to be back at Noon for a missions committee meeting. So, how to do that with Joshua and Abigail when Joshua usually goes down for a nap around Noon? We got home around 11 after church, Danielle fed Abigail and about 11:30, I went to put Joshua down for his nap. Lisa would be home to be available if Joshua woke up, but we were leaving before she would be home. So, our neighbor came for the short time we needed before Lisa got home.

After that, we got home about 2:30 and Joshua had just woken up. So, I fed him and Danielle fed Abigail. Sundays, we usually go grocery shopping using The Grocery Game. I still had to go through and cut coupons, sort them, etc. So, Joshua and I left about 4 to do that. Got back about quarter after 5 and put the groceries away. Started feeding Joshua and left about quarter after 6 to go to a membership class back at church while Lisa helped again by bathing Joshua and putting him down for the night.

And I didn't even get a chance to read the funnies until I went to bed! Sheeeesh!

Other News for a Friday night

Danielle took the kids out for breakfast on Wednesday along with Danielle's mom. First time to do that since Abigail's birth. Fortunately, it was relatively non-eventful. Tonight, the four of us went out for dinner and while it wasn't a nightmare, it wasn't entirely pleasant either. Abigail fell asleep in the car, but quickly came out of that once we sat down. Couldn't calm her down till we realized she had soiled her diaper. But even after changing it, she wouldn't be calm unless someone held her. So, Danielle held her while we ate. Moms are amazing that way. Joshua did okay...he had his moments, but that was mostly before the food came. All in all, it was an okay experience and we're not too deterred from doing it again soon.

Other stimulating family news from this week:

• Joshua's beginning to enjoy pulling his shirt up to show his belly. Of course, we sort of coax him to do it, but that's beside the point.
• Abigail has THE WORST gas. First you hear it...maybe even feel it. Then you smell it. You're convinced she pooped, but you check and there's nothing. We've had several people who hold her come to us and say she pooped because they smell or hear it. But there's nothing!
• Joshua turned 17 months on Thursday...as though that's some big milestone. I know...I know...after 12 months, they're just 1. Maybe 1 1/2. But until he's 2, I'm counting by months, thank you very much.
• I could go even further and say Abigail turned 5 weeks today. But I guess no one truly cares about that either.
• We did our taxes. It's been a little different the past couple years due to the stock options I've exercised. But Turbo Tax is pretty darn cool and helps you take care of that stuff.

I guess that about covers it for now. Good night and good luck.

Sharing with the family

It's been an interesting week. About Wednesday, it seems the whole family started getting sick. I would blame Joshua for it, except none of us have thrown up like he did. I think I may have it the worst, but that's only because I can express it in words. Joshua and Abigail can't yet express what they're feeling, so we can only go by what their symptoms appear to be. Nonetheless, it's great to be in a family that shares things with each other.

Tonight, Joshua threw up again. But again, I was able to anticipate it and catch it (literally) before he threw up in his crib. I was actually downstairs with Abigail while Danielle tried to get some much needed rest before the next feeding. I kept listening to Joshua cough and cough and sometimes wheeze. Finally, I just had to go in and check on him. So, I went into our bedroom, put Abigail in the bassinet, told Danielle I'm going to check on Joshua, went into the bedroom and picked Joshua up. No sooner had I taken him out of his crib that he started throwing up. Not a whole lot yet...that was just the start. Danielle heard him and rushed in with a spit rag which she put under his mouth right when the next wave came. Basically, we went through about 4 spit rags, two towels and his pajamas before we were done. But I didn't have to change his bedding :-)! Danielle and I make a great team!

Breast feeding workshop follow up

We had such a rough weekend with Abigail that Danielle wanted to go back to the worshop today and discuss our experiences over the weekend and get some assistance. She had a really good visit. One of the points that was made at the initial visit on Friday was that we should stop giving formula and strictly breastfeed now that her weight is relatively normal. So, today, when she was weighed, she came in at 10lbs 10oz which is 4-6oz more than Friday.

Some other highlights Danielle shared:

• They helped Danielle fine-tune her technique with breastfeeding Abigail.
  
• Helped identify what a sloppy/lazy eater Abigail is since she was on a bottle nipple for so long.
• Help define more what's normal and not normal for babies.
• Encouraged that we're still doing a good job.
• Learned that there's really no foods that you have to stay away from including caffeine. All within moderation of course. If anything, any food that does cause discomfort in the mother probably should be avoided. But that's it.

Special thanks go out to Trish and Tracy for coming by this afternoon to watch Joshua so Danielle could go to this workshop. Let's hope they don't get sick with whatever Joshua had tonight.

Joshua threw up tonight...

Had no idea he was feeling sick. Actually, in hindsight, yesterday he didn't seem himself either. Very whiny and extra-clingy. But we still didn't see this coming. We had a normal dinner, normal bathtime, normal bedtime routine and he went down fine. But within the first hour, we started hearing him cough loudly...a very dry sounding hack almost. In my mind, I started thinking from experience how that sort of cough could result in a little spewing (or a LOT of spewing). But I didn't think he was really sick, so why worry about it. Instead, after a few more of these types of coughs, we thought we'd bring some water (because it was so dry sounding). As I walked in, he sat up and started hacking more and it seemed clear more was coming. So, without thinking, I cupped my hands under his mouth and caught the first bit that came out. I called out to Danielle, who I was hoping would hear me through the baby monitor, to come help me and she ran up and threw me a spit rag. I put that under his mouth and out came the next wave. Danielle then came up with another spit rag and yelled, "Switch!" At which point I took my rag full of vomit, set it down and helped Danielle with the next wave. It got on his pajamas, but fortunately not on his bed - which was really my goal.

I love being a team with Danielle. Had she not been there, who knows how messy it could've been. I cannot imagine how single parents can do it.

Passive Agressiveness

Of all the members of this family who is having a hardest time with the new baby...it's Goldie. For those unfamiliar, Goldie is our 5 year old cocker spaniel. She was the first princess of this home. When Joshua came home 17 months ago, we experienced some transitional issues. But once Goldie realized that Joshua is someone who could feed her things, she became much more tolerant and accepting of Joshua.

Now that Abigail is here, we're sort of going through the whole process again. Although now, there's another princess in this home and Goldie needs to share the duties. And Joshua and Goldie aren't necessarily best of friends either. He still taunts her a lot and they both have a lot to learn about sharing.

So, what's this all got to do with passive agressiveness? One of Goldie's ways of dealing with this seems to be with her output, both liquid and solid...and it's not being done outside where it's supposed to. We've tried to be good about making sure she gets plenty of opportunities to do her thing throughout the day. But sometimes it's just not possible to do that when you're taking care of two needy children. Not only that, but she's gotten more bold about it. Normally, she'll take out this agression while we're out somewhere. When we come back, we notice a present at the garage door or near the front door. Those have been her two favorite spots.

So, a few days ago, I'm sitting at the computer and Danielle is upstairs. Out of nowhere, Goldie does #1 in the living room just a few feet away from me. I didn't even notice since I wasn't looking that way and Danielle came down and saw it. And it's not like Goldie makes any noise when she does it.

Then a day or so ago, we're sitting down for dinner. Recently, Goldie's gotten a little more "skittish" when there's food around. So, for our own sanity, we keep her behind the gate we use to keep Joshua from getting to the stairs. She whines a lot, but ultimately gets over it. This time, however, I could hear her go upstairs (her collar has tags that make a clinging noise) which rarely happens while we're eating. I actually had the weird thought that she was going upstairs to do some business, but figured she wouldn't. Sure enough, later on, when we're taking Joshua upstairs to get ready for bed, there's three small logs in front of the kid's bedroom door and another larger log right in front of Joshua's crib! You can't tell me that wasn't done on purpose.

Weighing at the supermarket

Talking about weighing reminded me that we took Abigail to the supermarket yesterday to weigh her on the produce scale. We did this with Joshua when he was a month or two old so we could get a clearer picture of how heavy he was. Someone gave us the idea of using the produce scales but can't remember who. Using these scales allows us to get the pounds AND the ounces rather than using a bathroom scale.

I think when we did this with Joshua, I was a little more tentative about it wondering what people might think or whether the produce workers would get upset. But I think I realized this time that I didn't really care what people thought and if the produce workers said something, we wouldn't do it. Perhaps it's the "it's easier to ask for forgiveness rather than ask for permission" syndrome. So, we just confidently walked up to a scale, put the blanket on it and then Abigail, took pictures and were done. There was even a produce worker working nearby with his back to us. Near the end, we could hear over the loud speaker, "Code 501 in produce". We couldn't help but think that "code 501" meant "Crazy parent weighing their infant on the produce scale". Nothing happened but maybe we left before anyone could get there to scold us.

Breast feeding workshop

Danielle went to a workshop through St. Jude hospital for new moms dealing with breast feeding issues. Of course, other new baby issues can and do get discussed. It sounds like it was very helpful. One of the things they did was do a few weigh-ins for Abigail to see how much she weighed before and after a feeding and even weighing the diaper to see how much output there was. Never thought about weighing the diaper before. Not sure I'd ever want to either. Found that she was 10lbs 4oz with nothing but the diaper on before feeding. Then after feeding, she was 10/6. Later they weighed the diaper (compared to what a new diaper weighs) and it showed 1.5 ounces of urine output. I guess that's good.

But to hear that she was around 10lbs 4oz was nice since that means she's gained 10oz in the past week. Granted, I hope she doesn't continue to gain at that rate (let's see...10oz a week, that would put her around 42lbs by the end of the year...no, that wouldn't be good). But it's nice to hear she's gaining weight better than she was overall.

Updated photos finally!

Click the Great Photos of the Family link to the right to see some updated photos of Joshua and of Abigail. Here's a sample of one of the cute pictures of Abigail. Actually...all pictures of Abigail are cute I suppose.

This is not what we expected

As though we really expected a smooth transition...which we didn't. But this is much harder than we expected. Maybe we're just wimps. It's not like we're the only couple to have two kids in the history of mankind, let alone having them 16 months apart. What makes it harder is Abigail not cooperating with us (yes, that was said tongue firmly planted in cheek).

We loosely followed a concept called Babywise with Joshua and it worked brilliantly in terms of his sleep habits. It has been a HUGE blessing that Joshua sleeps as good as he does. He takes a relatively solid 2 hour nap most days and about 11-12 hours at night.

So far, this isn't working so well with Abigail. The general idea is to have a mealtime followed by waketime and then sleeptime and then back to mealtime. She currently sleeps during most of mealtime and most of waketime, then is awake during sleeptime. She seems to crave being held or at least having some sort of human contact and cries bitterly when she's not. There've been times she cries so hard that it's as though she loses her voice. It'd be really sad if it didn't sound so funny when she did it. Probably the only silver lining right now is that she has slept 5-6 hours the past couple nights.

I was realizing today, however, that even if she does sleep 6 or even up to 8 hours at night, I'm so behind in my sleep that it's not going to make much of a difference for awhile. But such is life with a newborn and a toddler. Don't get me wrong, I love my children and I can't imagine life without them. But the reality is...this is pretty hard.