My Life

six weeks.

I realize I've been away, and I know I'm going to regret this hole in my book after this year is over and I've printed out my journal to be bound. But, such is life...and I will say for posterity, life is so good. I'm so in love with my little family, and despite how busy things are, they're just working really, really well. I am so tired every single night and am running constantly every day, my house is a mess and my laundry is piled to the ceiling...but things are really wonderful. Hopefully I'll find a day in the next few weeks to play catch up so I can have some of these memories on paper for later, but if it doesn't happen, at least I can know that the reasons I'm not here have everything to do with how much we're enjoying life right now.

And a picture for six weeks...This boy couldn't be sweeter and easier to keep happy. I am so thankful for good sleep!! He's growing too fast...don't you just want to kiss those cheeks?

 

two weeks.

Where is the time going! It's already moving too fast. It's just so busy around here, and the days are flying, and I can't seem to slow them down. But thankfully I'm finding a little bit of time every day to lay down and snuggle this sweetie, and enjoy his quiet, tiny newborn noises, and kissing his little cheeks. The boys are getting acclimated to him, we're not hearing the concerns and complaints every time he cries or is frustrated, which takes a lot of stress off my mind. Jude is completely in love with him, following me around the house begging to hold and kiss him, which I haven't been able to accommodate the last week because he's had a runny nose and a cough and I DO NOT want the baby to get sick. It's hard for Jude to understand...he tells me several times a day "But Mom, I'm all better!". Poor guy. I hope he gets well soon so he can kiss and hug Ewan again. He's having a rough time dealing with the lack of attention I normally pay to him, and I'm making sure to spend Ewan's sleeping times trying to give each of the boys a little one on one.

The last few days have run pretty smoothly, but I can see that keeping on top of the house is going to be my challenge. I have laundry piled high in the playroom, it's so wrinkly from sitting all week that I think I have to put it back through the dryer again. Ugh. Can't we all just have two outfits? I'm trying to get the kitchen cleaned each day, and the front room picked up, and that helps me feel like things aren't too out of control. Thankfully I've got dinners in the freezer so we've been eating pretty well, and I'm trying to get my chore chart finished up so there's a set schedule of things the boys need to accomplish each day, that should help a lot. I'm not too worried about it though, I don't have any plans for dinner parties at my house anytime soon, and I'm hoping anyone that stops in will be understanding and not look too closely at the dust accumulating on everything and the floors that desperately need a mop. :)

We have our echo and ultrasound coming up this next week with the Seattle Cardio team, and we're hoping for some great news and a clean bill of health with his heart problems. He's back up to birth weight as of Tuesday and is eating and sleeping better than any baby we've had yet. He's so sweet and relaxed and just wants to have us around him all the time. Whenever Elijah speaks in a room he cranes his neck to find the voice, and he cuddles up tight in my neck when I hold him. We love him so much! 

We are so thankful for EVERYONE and for all the meals, emails, calls, sweet gifts, and thoughtful things that have been given to our family the last two weeks. Thank you, thank you! We appreciate it so very much.

I hear a baby waking...so over and out!

ewan macinnis stanfield.

We are happy to say we've finally given this boy a name...

He's named Ewan for my Pop-pop Manning, (Ewan is the Gaelic form of Eugene), and MacInnis is Elijah's mother's maiden name. It's said "you-in", if you're having a hard time with the pronunciation. :)

We love this little Ewan boy...he is absolutely the best baby, and having him here makes our family feel so much more complete...can't imagine life without him now!

More pictures coming Sunday. Elijah and I are going to spend some time shooting with him this weekend SANS big boys. Took me about 3 hours to get everyone out of the room and quiet long enough for this ONE shot. HA!! :)

home.

So much to catch up on from the last few days! He's finally here, and everything went great. I started some updates but am going to take the opportunity I have right this second to lay with a sleepy baby to get some rest. I'll post them all later tonight or tomorrow. Meanwhile, we're still sorting out his name and should have that decided by tonight...I have to turn in the birth certificate tomorrow. Oh the name. We really never intended for it to be this way, but who knew naming your 4th boy could be so hard? What drama... ;)

Long and short of it...we're all doing great. We got released quicker than we expected, the Baby is doing much better than expected, I'm feeling fab, and the family is thrilled to be all back together in our house. So now we're going to relax and enjoy a quiet Sunday all together!

 

Mama and Boy....after delivery 10/23...

quick update.

Got a call from Dr. O late last night. He called in for my labs and said my white count was way too high and I had some issues with my iron being severely deficient. I don't get the iron thing...but whatever. Since I still had a fever and was STILL having regular contractions he sent me back to L&D at about 8:30 last night to go get on the monitors and get checked out by the Dr who's on call for him. The baby's heart was actually a little low this time, and my contractions were about every 4 minutes, so after the initial 45 minutes they decided to keep me on for another hour to watch. They gave me a bucket (REALLY!) of cranberry juice to drink to wake him up and to see if my contractions would slow down.

The nurse was very sweet...but while adjusting my monitors she casually mentioned that once the baby checked out they'd send me down to the ER to be looked at for the fever. I completely panicked and let her know if she was planning to take me there she might as well just take me to the front door because I was NOT going back to there for the second time in a week, and that they had already determined I didn't have strep, or any type of flu. I told her I've just had a fever for four days now and the only reason I was in L&D was because I was having contractions and slow movement, both of which most likely were being caused by the FEVER, and the ER didn't have the equipment to check the baby out, so they wouldn't be able to help me at all. Plus, who wants to go back to the same place, and wait for two hours just to be told I have a virus or infection and they don't know what it is but to "get out of here quick because everyone's got the FLU!".

So she did an amazing thing. SHE ORDERED AN IV AND LABS FOR ME up in L&D, gave me fluids and after the labs came back the OB on call decided to give me some antibiotics, watch the baby for another hour, and once he perked up, then they sent me home. YAY! My CBC today looks much MUCH better than yesterday's, and so whatever I had I'm starting to kick, plus my contractions are back to only 1-2 an hour now. It's amazing what a little fluid can do for a girl. I've been drinking like a fish, but my fever has been so constant it's been near to impossible to keep up with what I'm losing. I woke up this morning feeling 100% better than I have since Monday, and I think I might actually be able to get off the couch and do some dishes and MOM work today. Thank goodness...because my house is needing it! The baby is moving around like normal again, and my plan is to just continue to drink lots of water and juice, and try to get outside and . I have a handful of things that need to be accomplished still before I go in next week, and Elijah is home now for the next few weeks to be my wingman. Hooray for that! 

I've officially quarantined my house and family for the next four days until I go in, no one comes in, and we're not going out except for essentials. Everyone around us has something and with the hospital being so strict I can't chance not having Elijah with me during labor because he's got a cold or a cough! So we're laying low. I really can't remember a fall like this ever, with so many people being sick with something or another. I feel like I'm having a baby during the bubonic plague or something. :) 

Time to fold some laundry!

almost done.

Well, I did it.

I made it to the end, and of course I'm STILL pregnant...but that's ok because I'm sick, and who wants to have a baby when they're sick? Not me.

My Dr went out of town yesterday, so I'm trying to hang on through this weekend and then I'm on the schedule for Wednesday to be induced. It's been an interesting few days.

I went into the hospital on Tuesday with a concern that the baby hadn't moved all day, and I had a fever and contractions, but no other symptoms. My OB's office asked me to go in to the hospital since they were closing and my Dr would be over there delivering. After being monitored for a few minutes and told that the baby's heart rate was too high, I was suddenly kicked out of OB with a mask and a wheelchair and stuck into the ER full of sick, dying, hacking people. This was because I "had a fever and the OB nurses didn't want me on their floor if I MIGHT have the flu". I tried hard to be really understanding, I wouldn't want sick people around the floor if I was delivering. They said they wouldn't let me back there until I tested negative for H1N1. So I sat in the ER for an hour surrounded by moaning, masked, sneezing individuals, and then 3 more hours of waiting for test results and Dr's to come talk to me about them, I was given a clean bill of health, no flu or strep and discharged back to OB so they could figure out why the baby wouldn't move. Ironically, then OB refused to take me because now I'd been down with all the sick people. Yeah, thanks guys...YOUR FAULT. Seriously, the nonsense that goes on in this particular hospital is crazy. The ER Doctor was so mad at OB he was about ready to spit. He couldn't believe they sent me down at 40 weeks pregnant into the ER just because I was running a low grade fever. He said "Lab could have run the swab with you sitting in OB exam!".  I had NO other symptoms. No tickle in my throat, clean lungs, clear nose, NOTHING. Thankfully that Dr. was wonderful to me and put me in a new corner of the hospital that was empty and as he put it "a lot more germ free than the rest of the hospital". He gave me a few bags of fluid to help me feel a bit better, and my contractions went away completely.

I never got OB to allow me back to get monitored, so finally my Dr got out of surgery and he set me up for a non-stress test and an an ultrasound to check the baby out down in radiology. The baby's heart rate had come down considerably, but he still refused to move even when poked by me or the radiologist's transducer. Finally I mentioned to her that I hadn't been allowed any food and the last time I'd eaten or had something to drink was at least 5 hours prior...so she ran and snagged me a few cans of juice and some crackers. As soon as I ate it, he started to wiggle around and he passed his test just fine after a few more minutes. They said they're assuming the fever I'd had all day just sort of caused him to hibernate, and it probably didn't help that I hadn't had any calories for 7 hours. Gee thanks.

ANYWAY. It's always gotta be something...doesn't it?

So since I was sitting in the ER with all the hordes of H1N1 people, my Dr went ahead and put me on Tamiflu, so I should be done with my course of that by Sunday. I went back in yesterday for a bunch of other tests to try to figure out the fever which keeps coming back. I'm trying my best to keep on top of my liquids so I don't get dehydrated again. I'm so NOT having this baby while my OB is gone!

This weekend I'm just going to take it easy and stay off my feet as much as possible. Elijah will be home and is going to get the kids out since they've been holed up all week here with me. The weather is supposed to be beautiful, and I hope we can open the windows and get some fresh air before the cold sets in again. I'm not QUITE ready for it to be winter.

Thanks for all the emails and phone calls, sorry I'm slow to get back. I promise we'll be swift to update when things get going. For now plan on hearing sometime around Wednesday!

ten days.

And then we'll be a family of 6!

Typepad has been down for me the last week and a half. Probably good, because I'm getting to that point where there's not much to do but wipe counters down thirty times a day and feel sorry for myself! Ok, not really, I'm actually doing fine. My biggest problem right now is the lack of sleep I'm experiencing, which is something new for me this time around. I usually sleep fairly well until the end, but I'm lucky to get in a few hours here and there the last few weeks. It's frustrating, and makes me super grouchy which is hard when I have to turn around and be with three little rambunctious boys all day, every day by myself on very little sleep.

I'm due in three days, but since there's a discrepancy between my date and the ultrasound date, we were waiting at the pediatric cardiologist's request until the ultrasound date, before we induce, which is the 20th. They want him to go full term. I was secretly hoping I'd go on my own before then, but today my Dr let me know he's now going out of town from tomorrow until next Tuesday, so they won't be inducing me until next Wednesday. I'm such a planner I went out of the office really disappointed, there's so many different things that have to make this labor/delivery work out just right. In my mind I can't deliver without him or I'll most likely end up with the C-section I'm supposed to be having, so I sort of felt panicked in the office today. But, it's just two more days, and I'm sure everything will be fine. I know I need to just relax and not be so worried about everything being perfectly planned. I just want things to go well, and this has been such a long pregnancy for so many reasons. I just want it to end on a good note. I'm going to make myself a new list of things to accomplish this week and keep my mind off of everything else. I'm sure it will all be fine. Just think how SPOTLESS my house will be come next week! ;)

I took the boys to my final Ultrasound this morning to see the baby, and although they were pretty fidgety, they seemed to think seeing his face was pretty fun. He was super pouty, and he had his fists up covering his eyes the whole time. He looks so cute and chubby. They're predicting from the ultrasound he's already weighing over 7lbs, so it seems he'll most likely be my biggest baby yet. I think just by the ultrasounds he looks the most like Milo, but we shall see. We are all so excited to have him here, and I am SO EXCITED to sleep on my stomach again! HOORAY!

My friend Kimberly is throwing me a shower this week, which should be a fun distraction. I'm hoping to get out also with some friends for dinner, maybe one last date with Elijah, and I'll probably do a bunch of walking hoping to make things go smoother during labor next week. Everything is packed, my bags are finally ready, and the baby's crib and things are all washed and put away. I AM READY. :)

We'll update the blog first with any news or changes, and get pictures up here as soon as we have anything. Elijah has an incredibly busy week ahead working some late nights, and then we'll be able to take it easy next week and get this baby here. 

That's it for now!

september

It's almost the END of September. That's just downright crazy to me. I can't believe how fast the last few months have flown by. The pool closed, backpacks and new jeans came out, and we're well into our new fall schedule. I'm happy with it...although the house seems a little chaotic still because we have less activities outside of the house, and the messes are more frequent IN the house, I think it's going to work out just fine. Liam is in third grade now, and Milo is in first. We stayed with the program we did last year, they're gone 1 day a week to school, and then the remaining four days in the week they do work here. It's a challenge having them all home ALL the time, and I relish Tuesdays because it feels like the only "break" for me to actually get something done. But I also love having the boys around me all the time, and after the baby is settled in I think I'll have more energy to keep up with everything a little better. We spent the evening out on the tramp last night and I made everyone stick their heads in for a picture...I can't believe how fast these little men of mine are growing up. And yes, that was the only face we could get out of Jude. He's not one to cooperate with photographs... ;)

We had a big surprise last weekend when the boundaries were changed in our area and were told that we'd have to start going to a different ward. We don't know anyone in that ward, and the change at this time when everything else is so crazy really didn't make me very thrilled. Elijah and I were both released from our callings, and I'm trying to see that as a good thing...we will have a little break from our busy church responsibilities to focus on our growing family, and it will be nice to sit together in church once again. Elijah's been such a trooper the last almost four years taking care of all the boys by himself while I played organ for the meetings, and I think once I get past the discomfort of being the new person that I'll be able to accept the change a little better. Eeek.

In baby news the time is ticking by fast. Less than four weeks to go. I decided last weekend I REALLY needed to figure out what I had and what I needed so I had my sister in law drag his dresser down to the driveway, I sprayed it all nice and lovely white, I got all his things washed, folded and put away. I have to say folding the tiny things really got me excited...it's so close now. I can't wait to welcome this guy OUT OF MY BELLY and into our family. We're still without a name, and I don't see one coming to us anytime soon, so hopefully we'll have some sort of epiphany when he's born. Tomorrow I go for my final paperwork at the hospital and the tour of the birthing center, and then I have an OB appt. Things have been going pretty well the last few weeks, I'm tired and so very sore, but he seems to be doing really well. He's still on track growth-wise, and is constantly kicking away. I made a list of the things I still need and I'm going to work on that this weekend. I also need to take a run to get a few little things for me for the hospital...I really like my bag to be well packed, and I need a new pair of pj's so I don't frighten all the staff with my faded yoga pants and husband shirts. Besides that, it's just make a few more meals for the freezer and try to convince the kids to PLEASE KEEP THE HOUSE CLEAN so I don't have to spend what little energy I can muster up in a day's time cleaning up unnecessary messes. (as I type this I see about 67 matchbox cars in a line from the couch where I'm at all the way down the stairs...haha!) I can't wait to sleep on my stomach, I can't wait to take a shower BY MYSELF, I can't wait for the heartburn to settle down, and I can't wait to hold our little guy. I actually adore the newborn stage when they need you so much, and I'm looking forward to getting to know him.

It sounds like everyone is asleep now...so I'd better take advantage of that and head to bed myself. I'll report back after my appointments... :)

easton harker.

Newest nephew...one of three boys to be born this year in the Stanfield clan. This is about 8 hours after he was born and he sat the entire time staring up at me with big, wide eyes. I don't think I've ever seen a newborn that alert. Such a cutie! He was 7.2 and 19.5 inches long...just the size Jude was at birth. He'll be getting two new boy cousins in a few weeks...my sister in law Becky and I will probably deliver our boys within days of each other, and since we all live close by it should be fun to see these three grow up. Taking a few shots of him at the hospital has made me all antsy to photograph my little guy...can't wait for a built-in subject! Better get my camera cleaned and my lens tuned!

family update.

I have so much to catch up on, and such a backlog of pictures to share. But in the spirit of not getting any  more behind I'm moving forward and will try and get up the past stuff later. Yeah right. ;)

School is here!! The boys are so excited, and I can't believe it. The summer went so fast. I will be honest and say I'm glad though. Partly because being pregnant through the summer heat was a little less than enjoyable, but also after spending every day in June and July and (part of August) at the pool, I sort of fizzled out of dealing with the wet towels, sunscreen and snacks.  I started taking the kids to the new library every day instead...Air conditioning + zillions of books + 15 new computers= happy boys. The pool is closing next week, and school starts for us the following Tuesday. We went to all our parent/teacher meetings and got all signed up for classes this week. I still have lots of supplies to get and materials that aren't here yet, but Elijah and I have once again moved things around and are hoping to get the schoolroom all set up and ready this weekend. We play musical rooms a lot it seems, but I think this set up will work really well. I've sent boxes and boxes to Goodwill of clothes, toys, and STUFF that has been collecting in the closet, and next week I'm going to go through all of the baby clothes I have and figure out what's missing so I can get that taken care of too.

Our garden has gone crazy the last three weeks, we have enormous watermelons, cantaloupes coming out our ears, zucchini, yellow squash, and tons and tons of cherry tomatoes. I was surprised my Early Girl tomatoes didn't do too well this year, and I got almost no romas, but the little tomatoes fill a big bowl almost everyday. I'm simmering a batch of tomato sauce as I'm sitting here, and I hope to get at least a few flats of salsa canned before the summer is out. I've spent a lot of time plotting out how to make our garden better next year and planning for the things I want to grow that we didn't have time for this spring. Elijah has worked so hard to get the gardens built, and I can't wait to use them to their full potential. I didn't do any fruit canning this year besides a few jams and jellies, but after doing about three trillion batches of apples last year I doubt I'll need to for awhile. My shelves are stocked downstairs and the freezer is packed with Cherries, Strawberries and other assorted fruit we froze for smoothies. Should be a tasty winter. :)

We are spending the holiday weekend "Laboring" around the home front, getting projects finished inside and out, and putting everything where it belongs. YAY! Here's to a clean and tidy house...Happy Labor Day to you!

baby update.

Whew! It's been a busy month. I'm so excited that September is here and I can finally say I'm having this baby "next month". I know it's strange but it makes a big difference mentally. We pregnant women take all we can get!!

So, what's new? Well, a few things. The last month we've been in sort of a holding pattern, waiting for some info back about the babe. I sent a letter out a few days ago to most of the fam, but I'm missing some email addresses, and I know most of you check here, so here's the info. :)

During one of our weekly ultrasounds about a month ago the tech noticed something going on in the baby's heart. We had to wait a long time to get into the maternal medicine and then the fetal cardiologist, but after a visit last week with him, and then a visit today with the neonatal cardiologist it seems we finally know the details and have a good plan in place, so I feel comfortable talking about everything and settled that we're heading in a good direction.
The baby has two abnormalities in his heart, an aneurysm of the foramen ovale, and a secundum atrial septal defect. In layman's terms he has a small hole in his heart, and also the little flap that closes at birth to allow his heart to function properly is in the wrong place and not long enough to do it's job. These issues are not affecting him at all right now, because fetal hearts function differently than they do once born, so at this point he's perfectly fine. His echo cardiogram shows that he's getting plenty of oxygen to his brain and his body measurements are all perfect. There's no enlargement of his heart which is a good sign, and he looks good everywhere else. However, these problems can affect him once he's born, causing the blood to flow improperly in his heart and an overworking of the left atrium. If left untreated it could be something to worry about, but since they've found it this early they have no concern that it will get to that point where it could be a big problem. The surgery (percutaneous) can be done now by going up through the circulatory system into the heart via a catheter that has been inserted into his leg, so it won't require open heart surgery. The cool thing about this procedure is they leave the hospital post surgery with a band-aid on their leg instead of a huge chest scar, and the pain of having their ribs displaced for surgery. (OUCH!) We were told there is also a 6% chance that it can actually "seal itself", apparently a phenomenon that happens occasionally in the cardiac world, so we're FOR SURE not putting that possibility behind us at this point. 

There have been a lot of questions about the delivery because my OB's office was concerned about stressing his heart out if I have one of my long labors, but both the fetal and neonatal cardiologists agree that the only issues will be after his birth, not before or during. So they are allowing me to deliver him however I choose at our local hospital, and he'll just be moved to the NICU right after birth to be monitored for 48 hours. 10 days after his birth we'll go to the children's hospital in Seattle where he'll receive an echo cardiogram and then we'll be able to see exactly how his heart is doing. If they see it struggling they'll set up surgery immediately, otherwise they will simply monitor him until he's 25-30 lbs and then do the surgery. There is a little girl in our ward who was born with the exact same problem about 5 years ago, and she had her surgery right around her 3rd birthday. Two years later she's doing great, and is perfectly normal. I'm scheduled to be induced on October 15th, that date may change as we get closer, but that's the plan for now.

And that's the gist of it. I should probably also say here that Elijah and I are feeling extremely relaxed about all this, possibly because Jude's past few years have scared all the "scare" out of us! :) At this point we feel very settled and happy that we know exactly what is going on, and super grateful that this baby is coming into our family at a time when we have the very best of medical benefits to take care of anything he needs. He'll be just fine, and we have a good plan in place that we feel comfortable with. The neonatal cardiologist told me to concentrate on "what color to paint the baby's room", "finding that kid a name!!" and not to worry at all before he is born. I appreciate his advice and am feeling good about it all. I have a lot to do in the next 6 weeks and we are all getting really excited to have him here.

In other news, HE DOESN'T HAVE A NAME.
                                                                 ....suggestions welcomed...   :)

just a picture for you today.

This is a picture from Monday's 4D ultrasound. 3lbs 15oz. He's starting to look more like a Stanfield baby in there...if you look past all the weird blobby-ness. LOL. Fourty-seven days left until D-day....not that anyone's counting. ;)

I'll be back soon for a real update. It's been a busy three weeks... 

he's a keeper.

Elijah and I were getting ready to go out to a reception Friday night. Being pregnant, and especially THIS pregnant usually stirs up irrational emotions in me when it comes to getting dressed. I've reached the stage where I can no longer stretch my regular shirts over my belly without looking completely ridiculous, and because I haven't been this far along in the summer all my third trimester stuff are long sleeved sweater type things. Not gonna work when it's triple digits outside. But then I'm also to the point where I don't have that much longer to go, so the idea of spending $30 on a maternity shirt really rips my shorts, so for most of the days I dig in Elijah's drawers for his soft comfy falling apart t-shirts with holes and spots on them that fit comfortably over my belly. This is pretty much my uniform if you stop in to see me any time during the day....

Anyway, after finding a working pair of nice jeans, I pulled a shirt out of the closet and put it on. It wasn't a maternity shirt, but it was a blouse that was still just long enough that it covered my belly and really stretchy so I thought it looked just fine. Elijah confirmed that it looked good (a tough test to pass!), and we were ready to go. But I can't ever leave well enough alone...

I started feeling like maybe the sleeves were a teeny bit too tight. I asked Elijah (...like he's going to say "yes honey, those sleeves are TOOO tight on you! Whatever!), and he said they were fine. I made some comment about them "maybe looking like sausages"...and I kept pulling at them. I went into the bathroom to do my hair. Of course when I got to the mirror I pulled a little more, shifting them up and down, and just thought "Maybe they're a little tight because the shirt hasn't been worn since it was washed and dried". So I gently tugged a tiny bit on the hem of the sleeve thinking I'd loosen it up a bit. Immediately the sleeve ripped SIX inches up to my shoulder seam. RIP! Perfectly in half. Just like that. Sleeve gone, shirt wrecked.

I started bawling immediately, and when Elijah came in to see what was wrong I informed him I had "Incredible Hulked" out of my shirt, and NOW WHAT WAS I GOING TO WEAR....WWWWWWWWWWAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!. I also said plenty of other irrational things about "never ever finding a shirt like that again...it was my favorite" and "Sometimes I wonder why we have to feel so GROSS when we're carrying kids" and "there's not a single thing in the world that could look good on me right now", but most of it made no sense and was just silly talk.

I've come to realize from gestating a handful of children that we women are really blessed with the fortitude to carry on despite being the most uncomfortable, awkward and odd shaped we've ever been, and plagued with every ache and pain we think possible. But more importantly to me, our husbands are given their own special gift of patience and knowing the right thing to say and do. This is the thing that keeps me going when I'm feeling miserable. I'm so thankful for it, probably more than he'll ever know.

So...Elijah hugged me, helped me get untwisted from the ripped up shirt, and told me he'd take me to buy a new shirt right then and there. "Let's go."

I went and put on one of those old, comfy t-shirts, and we went off to the store to find a new blouse.

One with sleeves that were not *quite* so tight. :)

beach rewind.

So our much needed (and long time coming!) trip to the beach has come and gone. It was terrific. I think this picture of Jude pretty much sums up everyone's feelings on the vacation... : :)

We left early Friday morning and drove by way of The Dalles to Portland, where we hit some nasty traffic. Then we went about an hour out of our way to hit Camp 18, the Stanfield family's favorite restaurant. It's a huge log cabin that serves "Lumberjack" food all day long, and it's really a fun, tasty place. You wouldn't believe the portion size they put out! After leaving there we decided since we were running a little late that we'd cut down Highway 18 towards Rockaway beach instead of driving down the Ocean hwy the whole way from Seaside. Good decision, because we saved an hour's driving time, but I have NEVER in my life been so carsick. I had my hands over my face for 45 minutes trying not to lose my lunch. It was awful. The roads wind around and whip up and down, and I was in rough shape. I've driven that road one other time and it made me feel sick then...but being pregnant this time totally did me in.

We got to the beach house and met up with our friends about 6pm, and then we all went down to the beach. The kids were going nuts with excitement, and despite the 60 degree temps and our cautions to stay out of the FREEZING water and stay dry, the kids were soaked and jumping in the waves within 5 minutes. They had a ball. I cannot say enough about how much I love the beach. The smell, the feel of the sand, the humid air...it's so great. It reminds me of being a little girl, and I'm so excited that my kids can have the chance to go there occasionally.

The house was GREAT, it's the best house that we've stayed in yet, and I'll choose that house from here on out any other time we go. It was spacious, and clean, inexpensive, and had all the amenities we needed for our stay, ok...except some ESSENTIAL items like A BROOM (!), any cleaning supplies, and a few kitchen items. OH. And toilet paper. :) But otherwise it was a quick 2 minute drive to the beach access and it was more than enough room for all of us. We did this trip on a budget, sharing a big house with our friends to cut the per-night cost in half, and packing tons of food so we didn't eat out. Yeah, I really over packed the food...LOL. I guess at least we weren't hungry...

On Saturday we decided to hit the Tillamook Cheese Factory for some ice cream and a cheese tour. I haven't been there yet, and it was a cool place. When we pulled in we found out that it was their 100th anniversary party, and there was no parking due to the crowds, so we ended up parking a few miles away and taking a shuttle back to the factory. The crowds were crazy, but they had $1 ice cream cones and tons of fun stuff to do. We ate grilled Tillamook Cheese sandwiches, and we went back twice for ice cream. PRETTY GREAT if you ask me. We ended up going back again to the factory over the next few days for ice cream which made me happy. Tillamook Oregon Strawberry is about as good as it gets for me these days. I'm so into ice cream right now...LOL. 

Sunday we went to Cape Meares to see the lighthouse and the Octopus Tree. I ended up staying in the car with a sleeping Jude for the majority of that trip, but after all the walking I did through the weekend it was probably good for me. I've been so tired lately.

Monday we went back to the beach for the morning before we checked out of the house, and we did some exploring at the "secret beach". It's a little beach that you can only really go to when the tide is at a certain level. You get there by walking through a cave, and you come out on this really cool, rocky beach. The kids loved it, and I was pretty impressed myself. That was the point I started really started wishing we'd paid for a week instead of just a weekend, things were so fun and relaxing.

As cliche as it sounds, I have to say the best part for me was spending time all together as a family. We've had such a wild couple of months with work schedules and other commitments that it was so good to just talk for HOURS and laugh and not be stressed. Our cell phones didn't work except for when you hung out one window in the back of the house, so it was quiet, and we didn't have all the normal daily distractions making our days crazy. I love being around Elijah...he's my favorite person in the whole world and he makes our family so happy and fun. 

The drive home took forever because Jude figured out that any time he said he had to go potty we HAD to stop to make sure, so after about the 30th stop we finally made it back to the house. We'd turned OFF the air conditioner instead of turning it DOWN (ooops!), so when we got back and the house was 104 degrees at 7:30 at night we called Nana and let her know we were coming over for a sleepover. Luckily the house made it back to normal by lunch the next day so we finally came home after spending a few hours relaxing and visiting with Nana. :)

Such a fun trip...I'm sad that it's over, but I'm already mentally planning our next trip back!

(Of course...I took way too many pictures, so I pulled 30-40 of my favorites, and you can check them out here.)

seven months.

Heh. If you're thinking you might find a picture at the end of this post, don't hold your breath. :) I try to NOT be photographed at all while pregnant...there's a reason I'm usually behind the lens.

But today I'm seven months. Happy days. This last month was a blur and the next two weeks should be full of fun for our family spending time with Elijah and hopefully me getting away for a break now and again...it seems like it's been months (oh wait! It HAS!) since I've been able to get out and go grocery shopping by myself, or just run a few errands. I have so much to accomplish in the next few weeks, and I'm really excited about it! School supplies, baby duds, purging the house to prep...I'm really thrilled to get some things done.

Today's baby appointment was slightly tainted with the fact that I have possibly the worst sinus/chest infection I've experienced in some time...it was a nagging tickle the last few days that blew up last night and it's been a fairly miserable 24 hours. Luckily the Boss was around to send me to bed with a bucket of water to drink. When I got to the Dr late this afternoon I sat myself in the outside hallway so as to not infect the other poor suppressed immune system mommas in the waiting room, and waited to be called. I called ahead of time to let the nurse know she could reschedule me if she'd rather not have me hacking and gagging all over them, but they wanted to see me anyway, and it was a great visit.

Highlights include:

1. The ultrasound showed a very happy bouncy boy, which made me happy because his host body is sort of crapping out on him, so I'm glad to see he seems to not be worse for wear. My coughing DOES seem to startle him as indicated by his hands FLINGING OUT each time I hacked during the appointment. Poor thing!
2. ALSO, and more importantly, the ultrasound showed NO PLACENTA PREVIA! I'm considered low-lying now, but there isn't even a teeny bit across my cervix. Can we get a woot!? WOOT! That takes away 99% of my concern of getting stuck again on bedrest to avoid him damaging the placenta when he's dancing across it for the next few months. Bedrest has equaled a very sad me, so I'd like to not go down that road again.
3. BECAUSE of the placenta being moved, and then also after my Dr consulting with the surgeon who did all my repair work after having Jude AND the surgeon who's seeing me for my herniated disc issues, my Dr said that he is leaning slightly AWAY from doing a c-section now, because he feels the recovery with my back problems will be harder if I go the section route now. He and the back Dr worry about more damage to my back in the weeks postpartum because I'll be using them to compensate for the surgical scar I'll be dealing with in my abdomen. He said he spent a lot of time pouring over all my info, and if I were 38 weeks today he'd just do a gentle, slow induction to guarantee no rips, tears, etc. He said that he could still change his mind, but to mentally put a normal birth BACK on the table. I'm SO SO EXCITED! I'm willing to accept that it might still not happen, but just having the possibility of being able to go that route is so cool for me. I've had a lot of anxiety about a cesarean, and I think this will help me a lot to be restful and calmer the next few months. Now I have to hope that this boy doesn't stay comfy in his breech position for the next little while and decide he's happy there! 

So that's my happy news. And I'm really thrilled. Now I just need to get myself well so I can get some projects tackled with Elijah and have some relaxing time in the next two weeks. :)

Now to celebrate with some Tylenol, guaifenesin syrup and Honey/lemon in hot water!!