I recently learned of a very heart-breaking turn of events in the life of a girl I went to high school with. Both the Des Moines Register and Channel 13 have done stories on this, so local people may already know. Just after his 2nd birthday, her son Bradley went to the doctor several times for what was initially diagnosed as an ear infection, then strep throat, then vomiting...and finally, a brain tumor was found. He has already undergone two major surgeries and is now going through chemo. I cannot imagine any of my own young children undergoing this type of intensive illness and hospital care....when they are so young you just cannot explain to them why they must do all those painful things. It breaks my heart in every way. Not to mention the fact that their other three children are in the care of family while they remain at his hospital bed. I just watched a short video tribute to him on YouTube and haven't stopped crying since. Anyone interested in learning more can visit this site: Bradley's Story, or read the DSM Register article here: Ankeny Toddler Battles Rare Form of Brain Cancer. There is also a Facebook group and information on both pages on how to donate any amount to his care.
What a sweet, sweet boy who has a long, terrible road ahead of him. My heart goes out to this family.
2.26.2010
2.11.2010
Valentine's Festivities
Jack had a preschool Valentine's Day party today, which Benjamin, Gavin and I attended. They sang songs and decorated cookies, made photo frames and put their valentines in each others' boxes. It was so cute.
making valentines for his friends
party
decorating his cookie
would you like some cookie with your sprinkles?
singing songs for the families with miss kelley and mrs. v
"going on a bear hunt"
when we got home, he was ready to look through his box of his valentines from his friends
Jack loves preschool so far. Never a problem leaving him. He is one of 2 boys in the class, out of six children. It's nice he's learning to play with girls at school since we don't offer that in sibling relationships ;) We really love his preschool. It's a good thing, too, since we'll be paying them preschool tutition for the next SIX years (jack leaves, benj goes, benj leaves, gavin goes...)
Little Gav Man continues to be a great sleeper and a sweet, patient, easy-going boy. He's in 12-month sleepers now since he's at the 95% for length. He's pushing up on his arms and kicking his feet a lot, rolling all the time. We are starting to accept the possibility that he may crawl in a couple months. Yikes, baby gates AGAIN.
In fun, we looked out the window the other day, and it appears that shawn johnson's family has a new security system:
seriously, look at those things! i wouldn't attempt getting to their door, that's for sure....
making valentines for his friends
party
decorating his cookie
would you like some cookie with your sprinkles?
singing songs for the families with miss kelley and mrs. v
"going on a bear hunt"
when we got home, he was ready to look through his box of his valentines from his friends
Jack loves preschool so far. Never a problem leaving him. He is one of 2 boys in the class, out of six children. It's nice he's learning to play with girls at school since we don't offer that in sibling relationships ;) We really love his preschool. It's a good thing, too, since we'll be paying them preschool tutition for the next SIX years (jack leaves, benj goes, benj leaves, gavin goes...)
Little Gav Man continues to be a great sleeper and a sweet, patient, easy-going boy. He's in 12-month sleepers now since he's at the 95% for length. He's pushing up on his arms and kicking his feet a lot, rolling all the time. We are starting to accept the possibility that he may crawl in a couple months. Yikes, baby gates AGAIN.
In fun, we looked out the window the other day, and it appears that shawn johnson's family has a new security system:
seriously, look at those things! i wouldn't attempt getting to their door, that's for sure....
2.08.2010
one of these brothers is just like the other....
long-time blog readers will remember that i posted similar photos of jack and benjamin at the same ages on the blog, to compare similarities. i thought it'd be fun to do it again with gavin....
which of these is gavin and which is benjamin?
give up?
the first is gavin, the second is benjamin.
uncanny, eh?
and for comparison, here is jack at 5 months (we did not have the same outfit for him):
which of these is gavin and which is benjamin?
give up?
the first is gavin, the second is benjamin.
uncanny, eh?
and for comparison, here is jack at 5 months (we did not have the same outfit for him):
1.31.2010
20 things that have made me Happy this week
1) Sending off a deposit to a local CSA for the coming season's bounty
2) Meeting and purchasing chicken from another local CSA farmer
3) A moon so full it made our yard look as if there was a blue neon light over the house
4) Jack hearing Josh Groban on the cd player this morning and saying, "That's daddy!"
5) Fitting into my non-maternity jeans for the first time in 4 months
6) Corresponding with my cousin-in-law, mommy-to-be, about the wonders of babywearing and breastfeeding
7) Doubling the running page count on my last dissertation chapter
8) Enjoying a hot cup of coffee and some homemade peppermint meltaways on my "Free Day"
9) Having friends over for dinner two nights in a row, and enjoying much needed and missed adult conversation
10) Reading the CaringBridge updates from my sister-in-law, who is undergoing cancer treatment for the second time
11) A mother-in-law who agrees to rearrange her work schedule whenever needed to help take care of the boys when we have problems finding a sitter
12) Eating Little Ceasar's pizza for the first time in over a decade
13) Feeling so thankful for a husband that will use a week of his meager vacation time to stay home with 3 kids while I wile away in the basement with the computer and a few books
14) Knowing spring is just 2 months away...
15) Gavin's 4-month "birthday", Holden's 1-month "birthday", and Sarah's actual birthday
16) Seeing calve muscles while shaving in the shower
17) Hearing my boys have an "I love you" screaming contest
18) Waking up next to the most beautiful, peaceful sleeping baby in the universe
19) Taking Benjamin to a music class for some special mommy&middle child time
20) Feeling balanced for the first time in a long time
2) Meeting and purchasing chicken from another local CSA farmer
3) A moon so full it made our yard look as if there was a blue neon light over the house
4) Jack hearing Josh Groban on the cd player this morning and saying, "That's daddy!"
5) Fitting into my non-maternity jeans for the first time in 4 months
6) Corresponding with my cousin-in-law, mommy-to-be, about the wonders of babywearing and breastfeeding
7) Doubling the running page count on my last dissertation chapter
8) Enjoying a hot cup of coffee and some homemade peppermint meltaways on my "Free Day"
9) Having friends over for dinner two nights in a row, and enjoying much needed and missed adult conversation
10) Reading the CaringBridge updates from my sister-in-law, who is undergoing cancer treatment for the second time
11) A mother-in-law who agrees to rearrange her work schedule whenever needed to help take care of the boys when we have problems finding a sitter
12) Eating Little Ceasar's pizza for the first time in over a decade
13) Feeling so thankful for a husband that will use a week of his meager vacation time to stay home with 3 kids while I wile away in the basement with the computer and a few books
14) Knowing spring is just 2 months away...
15) Gavin's 4-month "birthday", Holden's 1-month "birthday", and Sarah's actual birthday
16) Seeing calve muscles while shaving in the shower
17) Hearing my boys have an "I love you" screaming contest
18) Waking up next to the most beautiful, peaceful sleeping baby in the universe
19) Taking Benjamin to a music class for some special mommy&middle child time
20) Feeling balanced for the first time in a long time
1.28.2010
this kind of stuff makes my blood boil
from an OB nurse at a typical U.S. hospital, on a typical U.S. maternity ward:
http://omgdgms.com/2009/11/10/chop-shop/
http://omgdgms.com/2009/11/10/chop-shop/
1.24.2010
Slow Parenting
I'm loving this article:
The Growing Backlash Against Overparenting (Time Magazine)
I'd LOVE to have a discussion on this with fellow mommies. I constantly find I'm trying to walk a thin line between attachment parenting and free range parenting (to choose some named styles), AKA, how to be an involved parent...but not too involved. On one hand, I'm all for stepping back and trusting my kids, and letting the village help raise them. On the other, I hate it when I go to the playground and see parents engrossed in a magazine, while their kid runs a muck, creating trouble with other playmates. Where is the line between letting a kid figure things out on their own and work out their own struggles, and providing a secure amount of guidance and monitoring that they feel that they can venture out into the world with a good attachment to fall back on? Is this age-specific? Personality-specific? Context specific?
The Growing Backlash Against Overparenting (Time Magazine)
I'd LOVE to have a discussion on this with fellow mommies. I constantly find I'm trying to walk a thin line between attachment parenting and free range parenting (to choose some named styles), AKA, how to be an involved parent...but not too involved. On one hand, I'm all for stepping back and trusting my kids, and letting the village help raise them. On the other, I hate it when I go to the playground and see parents engrossed in a magazine, while their kid runs a muck, creating trouble with other playmates. Where is the line between letting a kid figure things out on their own and work out their own struggles, and providing a secure amount of guidance and monitoring that they feel that they can venture out into the world with a good attachment to fall back on? Is this age-specific? Personality-specific? Context specific?
Boxing champs
The boys are really enjoying my boxing gloves:
I'm not sure how I feel about them doning them and saying, "Fight! Fight!" (though admittedly, that is from Wii boxing, not my gloves.) Yet they do it in the name of fun, so I guess I'll take it as is for now.
I'm not sure how I feel about them doning them and saying, "Fight! Fight!" (though admittedly, that is from Wii boxing, not my gloves.) Yet they do it in the name of fun, so I guess I'll take it as is for now.
1.21.2010
a day brightener
little gav man is always full of smiles. he can wake up from a deep sleep and the minute he opens his eyes and sees me, he bursts into smiles. it's always the silver lining on an otherwise grey (icy, snowy, cold...) day.
(dang, they do look alike, don't they?)
(dang, they do look alike, don't they?)
1.20.2010
Iced In
Will spring EVER come? Is it only January? I can't stand this much longer! We're running out of indoor things to do--especially those activities that work the major motor muscles for the boys. They are, quite literally, jumping out of their skins. In a cute moment, I found the older two upstairs in Benj's room after changing Gavin. They had made a bed on the floor and were reading together:
As with everything else, it quickly turned into this:
And then, somehow, back to this (briefly), again.
No other news here. Mike is taking off all of next week so I can work on my dissertation, which is starting to feel irrelevant. I just paid yet another $985 to the University of Iowa to be enrolled this semester. I'm now kicking myself for not requesting a "leave" last fall after Gavin was born, as a sort of maternity leave, and saved that money. Now I'll have to pay for summer term as well, since I won't graduate at least till then. Farrell's is going well--I really like it. If my scale is calibrated correctly, I've lost 7 lbs in 9 days. Crazy stuff. I'm determined to get out of these maternity jeans!!!
As with everything else, it quickly turned into this:
And then, somehow, back to this (briefly), again.
No other news here. Mike is taking off all of next week so I can work on my dissertation, which is starting to feel irrelevant. I just paid yet another $985 to the University of Iowa to be enrolled this semester. I'm now kicking myself for not requesting a "leave" last fall after Gavin was born, as a sort of maternity leave, and saved that money. Now I'll have to pay for summer term as well, since I won't graduate at least till then. Farrell's is going well--I really like it. If my scale is calibrated correctly, I've lost 7 lbs in 9 days. Crazy stuff. I'm determined to get out of these maternity jeans!!!
1.14.2010
Farrells
In response to Samantha's comment on my last post, I figured I'd be less vague about my new fitness adventure. Here's the link, Samantha (and anyone else interested): Farrell's Extreme Bodyshaping.
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