Our Life

Here's what we've been up to lately:

Ruthie is growing like a weed and in 3-6 month clothes now!  She was 13 lbs, 4 oz last week and 25" long!  She's on the chart compared to other 4 month olds!  She is in the 33rd percentile for weight and 70th for height and 29th for head circumference!  At her 2 month well-check, she was in the 4th percentile for weight, 23rd for height and 3rd for head circumference!  So she has made a huge leap in the last 2 months!  

She smiles all the time and has even started talking!

George is just as sweet as can be (most days).  He enjoys trains, animals and letters.  He loves to sing and dance and he is just a little sponge who absorbs every song he hears!  He loves to watch "Georgie Videos" and would seriously do that all day long if I let him!  We went to the playground yesterday and he decided that he was bored with the toddler section!  It's funny when he tries to be a big boy... because he still loves his binky and his blankies and his crib.  He will still let me feed him his yogurt or oatmeal when he is tired and he likes to snuggle.  He's in a weird spot where he is torn between being a big boy and a baby.  He will probably sleep in his crib until he gets married.  He acknowledges the toddler bed is there, but he won't fall asleep in it.  Some nights, Steve puts him in it after he is asleep.  We might as well just put Ruthie straight into the toddler bed.  Here is a video of when he re-discovered the play-mat the other day... (I don't know how to put it the right way, so just bend your head!)

Steve just hit 1000 hours in the plane and is working on finishing his multi-engine rating (hopefully soon)!

Lately, I have been lazy and re-watching old seasons of Gossip Girl on Netflix.  I'm noticing a lot of inconsistencies.  This show is obviously not supposed to be watched all in one month.  I also started meal planning and I am doing a lot better at actually making dinner (although I haven't followed it exactly-to-the-day, we ate 5 of the 7 meals that I planned last week).  Next month, I will write the plan in pencil.  I got a lot of good ideas from Pinterest. 

For your information, nothing comes up when you search "how to annoy an upstairs neighbor" on Pinterest.  Are we all pretending to be nicer than we really are?  Seriously, the Little Drummer Boy (he really is about 5'3") upstairs is really getting old.  He manages to find EVERY nap time.  I know that they stay up really late, so I am considering putting a stereo up to the ceiling early in the morning and playing toddler music.  The internet says that you don't even have to play it loud if the speakers are close to the ceiling.  Wish me luck!

16 Year Old Me

While avoiding the sink full of dishes, I spent some time on Pinterest last night.  I found some of those "questions to ask your spouse" blogs.  I would probably never just sit down and try to force a conversation like that... I like to think that we don't need much to get a conversation going.  Anyway, they might be fun someday if we ever run out of things to talk about, so I re-pinned it.

Then I found one blog where a girl was going to devote 30 days to answering 30 different questions.  Day 4 was, "list 10 things you would tell your 16 year old self."  This got me thinking.

So I did the dishes and I thought about the question.  And I have 9 answers (I couldn't think of a 10th.  They are in no particular order):

1.  You are never going to be tan.  Ever.  Put on the stupid sunscreen and save yourself all of the pain.

2.  Be yourself.  It's easier and it tends to work the best for you.

3.  If being someone's friend is exhausting, it's not worth it.  Seriously.  It took me way too long to learn this one.

4.  Pay attention in church and seminary.  Develop better habits.  Foster a better relationship with Heavenly Father.

5.  You won't marry Justin Timberlake.  You will marry someone a million times better!

6.  Pick a better major in college.  Tell me--what does one do with a degree in Political Science?  Exactly.

7.  Learn better study habits.  Barely glancing at the books might work in high school, but it won't cut it in college.

8.  Don't dye your hair.  You will never find a color that suits you better than your natural color.

9.  You're a good kid... keep it up (so that I don't discourage my 16 year old self with all of the criticism).

So what would you tell your 16 year old self?

Thanks, Pinterest!

Thanks to Pinterest, I now have meals planned through the end of the month.

Also thanks to Pinterest, I have not worked out, cleaned, or showered this nap time.

But I have meals planned.  And I have my shopping list written down.

You can't win 'em all.

Donating Milk

While Ruthie was in the NICU, I accumulated a freezer full of extra milk.  And then it out-grew the freezer in our kitchen and we had to buy an extra freezer.  So by the time she came home, that freezer was full, too!  About 2 months ago, I looked into donating our extra milk.  There is no way that I was going to be able to use all of that before it went bad.  So, about 2 weeks ago, I got an email that I was approved and could start dropping off milk!  Last week, Steve and I labeled it all with my donor # and packed it all up!  We had TWO coolers full of milk!

So we dropped it all off at the closest location (a hospital with a 45-bed NICU!  That's huge!  Our NICU had 6 beds and an overflow.  Plus, this hospital's parking situation was ridiculous.  It really made me appreciate our hospital!).  I was really disappointed that we didn't count how many ounces that we donated!

Now, our chest freezer looks like this:

There is actually room for food!  Plus, we still have lots of milk that I couldn't donate (milk has to be free from medicines... and although I could nurse on an antibiotic, I can't donate it).

Yesterday, I got this email:

630 ounces!  That is crazy!  That is almost 5 GALLONS of milk!  I love knowing that milk is going to needy babies instead of going bad in my freezer!  I want to add an extra 370 to this and make it an even 1,000 ounces by September!  I better get back to pumping!

If you are nursing a baby under 1 year and have extra milk, check out the Mother's Milk Bank!  Even if you don't live in the area, you can send it in!

(PS-  I'm not a crazy hippie... but having two preemies, I know the importance that breast milk plays in the growth and overall health of nicu babies!)

Four Months!

I cannot even believe that Ruthie is four months old.  I can't believe that it has been four months already... and also, I can't believe that it's only been four months!  I know that may not make much sense, but the first two months of her life were the longest two months of my life!

As of last Wednesday, she was 12 lbs, 4 oz.  As of about 2 weeks ago, she was 22.4" long!  That's up 8.5 lbs and 5" from birth!  She is smiling all the time and loves to be held so that she can see what is happening!  She is starting to "coo" and slowly outgrowing her 0-3 month clothes (starting with the one-piece pajamas).  Tonight, I washed up some 6 mo. pajamas and they looked huge.  They fit her a lot better than (I feel like) they should!  I can't believe how much she has grown!

She likes:  smiling, baths, being held, her big brother, soft blankies, being swaddled (but she will deny this one), her binky, mommy's milk, sleeping, prune juice, tv, her hands, laying on Mommy & Daddy's bed.

Dislikes:  tummy time, getting out of the bath tub, waiting more than 10 seconds for food, sitting by herself when she is awake, prevacid, when the swing stops while she is sleeping.

George loves her so much and is always quick to tell me when she is smiling, "talking," or crying.  If she cries and I don't get to her within 2 seconds, she has about 3 binkies piled on top of her.  George is very concerned with her comfort!  He always wants to tell her "hi" when he wakes up in the morning or from a nap.  He gives her kisses and plays "so big!" with her.  He is constantly talking about her... and about how "cute" she is!  His favorite phrase lately is, "Ruthie-girl is a cute boy!" (We're working on this boy/girl thing... but I don't think he gets it!)

Here are some of my favorite Ruthie pictures from the last two weeks... enjoy!

This Time I Got This...

Remember last year's resolutions?  Well, I failed.  Miserably.  So, I guess I can try again this year?  Because I have all of the same resolutions.

I really need to eat better.  We all do, but I especially do because I am the worst at it.  I thought I ate like crap after George was born, but now Ruthie is really getting the bad end of this bargain.  I need to eat better so that she gets what she needs.  As far as George goes, he might be a lost cause but I am still trying to get him to eat things other than crackers/yogurt/applesauce/chicken nuggets/other assorted "kid foods."

Also, I am really going to try to exercise.  Like the qualifier in that sentence?  I really liked Jillian Michael's 30 Day Shred.  I lots 4 lbs the first week that I did it and I felt great.  Then I got sick... and after that I got tired and lazy.  So, I am going to put forth an honest effort to hang out with Jillian at least 3 times a week.  And I'm not going to put off those 3 days until the end of the week because that doesn't work.

I bought a book.  Two, actually.  I have good intentions, but this will probably be as far as I get on the whole "reading" thing.  As Sweet Brown says, "Ain't nobody got time for that!"

I am trying really hard to study the scriptures and conference talks.  There is definitely room for improvement from last year.  Also, I am going to actively participate in Sunday School and Relief Society.  Now that I don't have a child to chase around (for the time being), there is no excuse for me to not pay attention.  I get really restless back in grown-up classes after being in Primary for a few months, so this will be a big task for me!

And now, I have a kitchen full of dirty dishes to clean.  I have been trying to keep things cleaner now that I am not pregnant/getting some sleep/disgusted by my surroundings.  I have been doing a decent job.  Last night I folded a load of laundry on the SAME day that I washed it.  That is huge.  Like I should get an award.

And now, just because my kids are cute:

George vs. Water Fountain

This video isn't as funny as it could have been had I gotten the camera going a second earlier.  George pushed the chair up to the water fountain and tried to drink.  He would push until the water started and then it would turn off as he leaned forward!  He was so confused, it was hilarious!  This went on for a minute... then the got the hang of it!  Darn! Haha

Officially Two Years!

I was supposed to finish these posts last week, on George's actual birthday!  That was my intention... but the reality is that we were just having too much fun!  That's the way it should be, right??

Two years ago (last week--on the 8th), I woke up from my narcotic-induced heavenly sleep to worsening contractions!  The labor had not progressed much over night (probably because of the pain meds), so the doctor had me walk the halls.

A few hours later, the doctor broke my water.  The first thing I yelled after that was "I NEED AN EPIDURAL!"  The doctor said, "You didn't have an epidural??" and then looked at the nurses and said, "Why didn't she get an epidural??"  They told him that I didn't want one.  They were right, but that was while my water was still in tact.  Once my water broke, the pain intensified by about a million and I was really regretting that decision.  Luckily, George was born about an hour later at 1:15pm.  He was 5 lb 13 oz and 18 1/2" long.

They whisked him into the corner and he was surrounded by about 10 people.  I saw Steve go over and watch and give him a blessing.  I didn't know what was going on.  Then, they went to rush him out of the room.  My mother in law said, "Does the mommy get to see her baby??" and, almost as an afterthought, they shoved him in my face for a second and ran him out the door.

I didn't get to see him for a few hours, but Steve brought pictures back from the NICU.  It was two long days before I got to hold him.  He was home from the NICU in 10 days, which felt like the longest 10 days of my life (up to that point... little did I know how short that amount of time really was).  He came home from the hospital on December 18 and it was a great little family Christmas with just the 3 of us!

That 5 lb 13 oz baby grew and grew and grew!  He grew and now he is 2 years old and 32 lbs!  We sang to him over pancakes (his favorite breakfast) and opened presents.  We had a great family day at the zoo!  I can't believe he is 2 years old!  I don't know where the time has gone!  We sure do love this crazy little boy!

Two Years [Part 2]

Two years ago today was a pretty productive day.  I cleaned the ceiling fans and even took a shower and managed to fix my hair!  I painted my toe nails while sitting on the bathroom floor.  I finished hanging up baby clothes.  My mom flew in and she and my aunt finished unpacking our apartment (we lived here for two weeks).  

I started feeling contractions again in the late afternoon and they didn't go away when I laid down.  My mom started timing my contractions and they kept getting closer together and more intense.  Steve got home from work and we ate Ritz chicken.  It was delicious... mostly because I didn't have to make it!  Steve went out with the missionaries from church (and I was not happy... but I have since realized that I was being ridiculous).  He came home and showered (again... not happy).  We packed my bag and Santa drove through our neighborhood on the back of a fire truck.

We left for the hospital after 9pm.  I was all settled in my room by 10.  I immediately had Steve turn on the tv because "16 & Pregnant" was on.  The nurse was totally disgusted, but whatever!  The nurse also seemed nervous that I was only 35 weeks along.  This was the first time I even thought that there might be a problem, but I was in too much pain to really think about it too much.  They didn't do anything to stop my labor, but they didn't do anything to make it progress, either.

This happened technically on the 8th, but my contractions started to get unbearable around 2am and I got Stadol (a narcotic).  I fell asleep within 10 seconds of that going through my IV and that was the best 4 hours of sleep I have ever had in my life!

to be concluded.....

Two Years [Part 1]

On Monday, I reminded Steve that two years ago, he put the crib together in George's room.  I remember this date because of this picture:

Taken right after I said, "Do you realize we could have a baby in as little as 2 1/2 weeks??"

Skip forward to two years ago today... I had a check-up, and omitting the personal details, my OB told us this baby would definitely be here before Christmas. (My due-date was 1-11-11).  He reminded us how to time contractions and when to go to the hospital.  We went home and Steve went to work.  I folded baby laundry and put it away.  I started feeling regular contractions, so I laid down and they went away.  I spent the rest of the day/night watching tv on the couch.  My mom freaked out and booked a one-way ticket for the next morning... intent on staying until the baby arrived... even though my due date was over one month away!  Little did we know what was coming.....  

To Be Continued.........