It’s hard to believe, but we’re only one week away from our delivery date. These last few weeks (well, months!) have just flown by, and I can hardly believe we’ll be meeting Avalee in just one week!
We’re very excited, but a little anxious too. Although Z seems to be taking everything pretty well most of the time, he has moments that concern us. He will get jealous if Colin talks to A and sometimes tells us he’s a baby, not a big boy. We’ve been trying to prepare him as much as possible, and of course spend as much time with him as we can. Last week, he and I went on a ‘date’ to McDonalds. I explained to him what will happen before A comes, and that he will stay with Grandma and Grandpa while Colin and I are in the hospital. He told me he wanted to stay with me, and not to leave him. That broke my heart, but I told him he can come to the hospital every day, that we’ll still read to him and that Daddy will take him out to lunch even.
We have also told him he gets to be the first person to hold her (after Mom & Dad) and he seems very excited about that.
Monday, we’re going to take a tour of the hospital to show him where we will be staying and let him take a peek at the new babies.
I will miss our little family of three, but I’m so excited to start a new chapter in our lives as a family of four!
So, Friday is the big day and everyone is welcome to come visit us after the surgery. We should be settled into a room by noon, and welcome visitors. :0) We will most likely leave the hospital on Monday.
Hope to see you soon! :0)
Friday, December 5, 2008
He’s three, right??
Last night, Z decided he needed his froggy backpack (who knows why…). It was downstairs and we were already upstairs for the evening. We told him he could go down and get it, if he came right back up. Well, after several minutes he hadn’t come back, so Colin went to search for him. He found him, candy cane in mouth sitting under the Christmas tree. They came upstairs and Colin told me what happened. Z was listening carefully and watching our reactions closely.
He then says, “I don’t want to call Santa (we’ve told him we have Santa’s phone number and can let him know if Z is being naughty). I’ll get new candy canes for the tree.” Trying to hold back our laughter, we asked how he would do that. Without missing a beat, he says, “I will go to Wal-Mart. You’ll drive (pointing to Colin) and I will sit in the little seat in the cart.” Now, at this point, we’re trying incredibly hard not to laugh. We ask him how he’s going to pay for the candy canes and he says “the girl at the store will give me money.” We’re not sure who this mystery girl is, but we’re a little concerned that he’s already got girls paying for him and he’s only three!
He then says, “I don’t want to call Santa (we’ve told him we have Santa’s phone number and can let him know if Z is being naughty). I’ll get new candy canes for the tree.” Trying to hold back our laughter, we asked how he would do that. Without missing a beat, he says, “I will go to Wal-Mart. You’ll drive (pointing to Colin) and I will sit in the little seat in the cart.” Now, at this point, we’re trying incredibly hard not to laugh. We ask him how he’s going to pay for the candy canes and he says “the girl at the store will give me money.” We’re not sure who this mystery girl is, but we’re a little concerned that he’s already got girls paying for him and he’s only three!
Monday, November 17, 2008
36 Weeks
It’s hard to believe we’re already this far along. I keep thinking back to when we found out we were pregnant, and I think it doesn’t seem so long ago, but it was March!
The months, weeks (and soon enough days) are just flying by. It would be nice for time to stand still, but on the other hand I’m very excited to meet my little girl.
It’s been a very busy pregnancy for me, but I have loved all of it. From outings with Z to holidays, football games, birthdays and showers, it seems like I’m always going.
We are working on the nursery now, but it’s already painted and Colin put the crib up this weekend. Now, we just need to put up the border (which we don’t even have yet…any takers? ;0)) and get everything put away.
Still, I think most of the busyness is over now, so I’m taking some time to just catch my breath. Thanksgiving is the next big holiday, but I’m going to let everyone else do most of the work. ;0)
After that it’s the home stretch! Only three and a half weeks to go. :0)
Here are some pictures of Z 'helping' paint the nursery, and the latest pregnancy/belly pics. :0)
The months, weeks (and soon enough days) are just flying by. It would be nice for time to stand still, but on the other hand I’m very excited to meet my little girl.
It’s been a very busy pregnancy for me, but I have loved all of it. From outings with Z to holidays, football games, birthdays and showers, it seems like I’m always going.
We are working on the nursery now, but it’s already painted and Colin put the crib up this weekend. Now, we just need to put up the border (which we don’t even have yet…any takers? ;0)) and get everything put away.
Still, I think most of the busyness is over now, so I’m taking some time to just catch my breath. Thanksgiving is the next big holiday, but I’m going to let everyone else do most of the work. ;0)
After that it’s the home stretch! Only three and a half weeks to go. :0)
Here are some pictures of Z 'helping' paint the nursery, and the latest pregnancy/belly pics. :0)
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Number 3
Z turned three on Sunday. It’s hard for me to believe my little guy is already three, but it meant I got to throw him another cool party. :0)
His birthday theme this year was pirates and it was so much fun to plan. From the invitations to the activities, I had such a blast with it all! Of course, I had to let go of some of my control issues (there Colin, I said it!) and let people help me. It’s not like I had much of an option with this darn belly in the way! ;0)
Zavion had a great time and so did all the other kids, which made me proud. He refused to let me take down the decorations though, so I gave him one week. I told him it was his ‘birthday week’ which made him happy. :-D
His birthday theme this year was pirates and it was so much fun to plan. From the invitations to the activities, I had such a blast with it all! Of course, I had to let go of some of my control issues (there Colin, I said it!) and let people help me. It’s not like I had much of an option with this darn belly in the way! ;0)
Zavion had a great time and so did all the other kids, which made me proud. He refused to let me take down the decorations though, so I gave him one week. I told him it was his ‘birthday week’ which made him happy. :-D
Sunday, September 28, 2008
A Great Loss…
On Friday we lost our beloved kitty, En Fuego.
He had not been eating and had lost a lot of weight. When I took him into the vet, she said he was dehydrated and his kidneys were shutting down. She said it could be any number of things causing it, including a parasite, sudden onset of diabetes or even cancer. They immediately started him on an IV with fluids to help with the dehydration. In order to have an idea of what was wrong and “possibly” fix him though, he would have had to undergo a lot of tests and procedures. Besides that being long and possibly painful, it was also very expensive (at least $1,000). Even then, we still might not know what caused his decline and more importantly, it may not work.
Colin and I made the very painful decision to let our kitty go. We were able to spend time holding, petting and talking to him. We let Z come in to say goodbye, because we knew he would always wonder what happened to his “Fuego” if we didn’t. He told the kitty he loved him and kissed him on the head.
We buried him in our backyard yesterday. Mercedes made a headstone from a river rock and it was perfect. My mom planted some beautiful orange flowers (that matched En Fuego perfectly) next to his grave. He will always be with us now, and we can visit him whenever we want.
The past few days have been very difficult. He hasn’t been there waiting by the door when we come home. He’s not there to get in bed with us at night or jump on my lap for love.
I can’t help thinking back to when he adopted us…
He would sit on our car when we went to my parent’s house. When we got ready to leave, I would pick him up to get him off the car and he always ‘hugged’ me. I kept threatening Colin I was going to bring him home and one particularly cold night, I made that decision.
Colin chose his name; “En Fuego” was a phrase used by a sportscaster on ESPN and since he was fiery orange (later we discovered, it also fit his personality too) it was a perfect fit.
He definitely had a unique personality and he fit in with us perfectly. :0) He was your typical cat in some ways; standoffish and aloof. But, he also loved to ‘play.’ His idea of playing though was to wrestle and often used his cat-like skills to his advantage. ;0) He also loved hiding and pouncing on unsuspecting ‘victims’ as they walked by (especially in the dark). This led him to have a reputation of being mean or scary, but that just wasn’t so. He was just very playful and full of energy. Another activity he enjoyed was playing fetch, usually with our socks or the cap to a water bottle. He also really enjoyed getting into our socks and leaving them in areas he knew we would find them. Usually it was my socks, and although I occasionally got annoyed, usually I found it amusing and sweet.
When Z came along, we were worried kitty wouldn’t take too well to a new person. But, to our surprise he became very protective of him. One day, just weeks after we brought Z home, we found the kitty standing guard over Z’s bassinet. We knew if Z needed us before he did, because En Fuego would come running in and start ‘talking’ to us. The two of them eventually developed a sibling-like relationship.
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They would constantly vie for our attention and fought like any siblings. But in, not-so-rare, moments we would find Z stroking the kitty’s head or the kitty rubbing up against Z’s legs. In their short time together, they really came to love and respect each other.
Over the years, En Fuego didn’t pounce or wrestle as much, but he still had his fiery spirit. And he was always that loving ‘Kitty Shmitty’ we will remember.
We all miss him so much and will never forget the joy he brought to our lives these last seven years.
.jpg)
He had not been eating and had lost a lot of weight. When I took him into the vet, she said he was dehydrated and his kidneys were shutting down. She said it could be any number of things causing it, including a parasite, sudden onset of diabetes or even cancer. They immediately started him on an IV with fluids to help with the dehydration. In order to have an idea of what was wrong and “possibly” fix him though, he would have had to undergo a lot of tests and procedures. Besides that being long and possibly painful, it was also very expensive (at least $1,000). Even then, we still might not know what caused his decline and more importantly, it may not work.
Colin and I made the very painful decision to let our kitty go. We were able to spend time holding, petting and talking to him. We let Z come in to say goodbye, because we knew he would always wonder what happened to his “Fuego” if we didn’t. He told the kitty he loved him and kissed him on the head.
We buried him in our backyard yesterday. Mercedes made a headstone from a river rock and it was perfect. My mom planted some beautiful orange flowers (that matched En Fuego perfectly) next to his grave. He will always be with us now, and we can visit him whenever we want.
The past few days have been very difficult. He hasn’t been there waiting by the door when we come home. He’s not there to get in bed with us at night or jump on my lap for love.
I can’t help thinking back to when he adopted us…
He would sit on our car when we went to my parent’s house. When we got ready to leave, I would pick him up to get him off the car and he always ‘hugged’ me. I kept threatening Colin I was going to bring him home and one particularly cold night, I made that decision.
Colin chose his name; “En Fuego” was a phrase used by a sportscaster on ESPN and since he was fiery orange (later we discovered, it also fit his personality too) it was a perfect fit.
He definitely had a unique personality and he fit in with us perfectly. :0) He was your typical cat in some ways; standoffish and aloof. But, he also loved to ‘play.’ His idea of playing though was to wrestle and often used his cat-like skills to his advantage. ;0) He also loved hiding and pouncing on unsuspecting ‘victims’ as they walked by (especially in the dark). This led him to have a reputation of being mean or scary, but that just wasn’t so. He was just very playful and full of energy. Another activity he enjoyed was playing fetch, usually with our socks or the cap to a water bottle. He also really enjoyed getting into our socks and leaving them in areas he knew we would find them. Usually it was my socks, and although I occasionally got annoyed, usually I found it amusing and sweet.
When Z came along, we were worried kitty wouldn’t take too well to a new person. But, to our surprise he became very protective of him. One day, just weeks after we brought Z home, we found the kitty standing guard over Z’s bassinet. We knew if Z needed us before he did, because En Fuego would come running in and start ‘talking’ to us. The two of them eventually developed a sibling-like relationship.
.jpg)
They would constantly vie for our attention and fought like any siblings. But in, not-so-rare, moments we would find Z stroking the kitty’s head or the kitty rubbing up against Z’s legs. In their short time together, they really came to love and respect each other. Over the years, En Fuego didn’t pounce or wrestle as much, but he still had his fiery spirit. And he was always that loving ‘Kitty Shmitty’ we will remember.
We all miss him so much and will never forget the joy he brought to our lives these last seven years.
.jpg)
Wednesday, August 27, 2008
23 Weeks
Well, we're over halfway there! Everything is going pretty well. I'm very happy the heat wave is over though. That was not a comfortable time for me. :(
Avalee is doing well and is moving up a storm. I joked to Colin she must have really liked the gymnastics during the Olympics, because every time it came on she was doing her own backflips!
Z is always asking what's in my belly and when I ask him what he thinks, he says "A baby sister!" He talks to her all the time saying, "Hi Avalee. It's me Zavion. Your big brother. I love you." It's super-cute and I don't think I'll ever get tired of it, though I suspect it's just a stage and soon he will start getting annoyed with all the baby talk again.
Tonight Z was playing football with Colin and suddenly decided to stuff the ball under his shirt. I thought it was adorable, but Colin was (of course) alarmed. ;0) We asked who he looked liked and he said, "Mom!"
Avalee is doing well and is moving up a storm. I joked to Colin she must have really liked the gymnastics during the Olympics, because every time it came on she was doing her own backflips!
Z is always asking what's in my belly and when I ask him what he thinks, he says "A baby sister!" He talks to her all the time saying, "Hi Avalee. It's me Zavion. Your big brother. I love you." It's super-cute and I don't think I'll ever get tired of it, though I suspect it's just a stage and soon he will start getting annoyed with all the baby talk again.
Tonight Z was playing football with Colin and suddenly decided to stuff the ball under his shirt. I thought it was adorable, but Colin was (of course) alarmed. ;0) We asked who he looked liked and he said, "Mom!"
Sunday, August 10, 2008
The Trifecta
I would love to think of a word more suited to Z than ‘precocious’ but for now, I’ll stick with that.
This past week has been an interesting experiment in raising an almost three year old. Actually, I feel like my job as a parent is now more about keeping him alive and out of the hospital than anything else.
I’ll start with the most recent incident.
Yesterday, we went to the Pow Wow at the coast and decided to stop by the factory stores on the way back home. We had the jogging stroller but opted to let Z walk since he had been stuffed in the car seat so long. Our first stop was Carters to check out the cute baby clothes. Z decided he wanted to play his new favorite game, hide-n-seek (“You count, I’ll hide” he instructed) and immediately dove under a clothes rack. We indulged him for a minute, and then told him to come out. He wouldn’t budge. Mom, Dad and Grandma all told him again to come out but he stayed put. Grandma tried getting him out and said he seemed to be stuck. We looked underneath and he had both index fingers stuck in small holes on one of the bars! His little arms were as stretched as far they could be (in a crucifix-like position) and his fingers were very stuck, past the knuckles. We tried pulling, which resulted in Z screaming. The store clerk, Kelly, came over to check it out then ran back to get some lotion. We started dismantling the rack and poured lotion all over, but his fingers were still no budging. Each time we tried pulling, Z would let out a blood curdling scream. He was really panicking and crying hysterically. I was down on the floor with him, trying to hold him up so his arms didn’t get so sore and Colin was trying his hardest to get Z’s little fingers out. Grandma had the good idea to run next door to the book store to get a book for Z, as a distraction. In the meantime, the store manager came over and did what she could. We all finally agreed it was time to call 911 to cut him out. We explained to Z a fireman would come help him and he seemed to calm down a little. Kelly’s quick thinking to grab a box Z could stand on to relieve some pressure, helped as did Grandma reading his new book. The fire department came, and an extremely kind firefighter named Steve came in. He talked to Z a little, explained who he was and started pulling his fingers. Z was in awe and just stared at Firefighter Steve with a silly grin on his face. And, just like that, he was free! We think it was a combination of standing on the box (which helped relieve the pressure) and that a real firefighter came to save him. :0) So, Steve invited Z outside to look at the fire engine. The EMT came and quickly assessed his fingers then gave him a stuffed puppy and asked if Z would ever do that again. Z said “noooo” and waved at everyone. He was left with a couple small cuts on one finger and a little swelling, but was otherwise ok. The rest of us were obviously quite shaken and relieved!
I have to say the staff at Carters was extremely understanding, kind and helpful. Kelly and her manager Fran went above and beyond to do everything they could to help. And, the Lincoln City Fire Department was amazing. Those guys were so personable and engaging, Z calmed right down.
So, thank goodness all ended relatively well! :0)
We were all a little busy to take pictures during the ordeal, but I got a picture of the EMT giving Z the stuffed puppy.
A few days before the Carters incident…
Z and I had just finished lunch when he bumped his head on the dining room chair. I kissed it better and he moved on…or so I thought. I was in the kitchen cleaning up, when I noticed he was unusually quiet. Then I noticed the sound of rustling paper. Well, as any parent of a two year old knows, those two sounds together are very bad news! When I went to the couch where Z was sitting, I noticed the box of bandaids and a bandaid wrapper, but no bandaid. I asked him where the band aid went while I scanned his entire body (nope, not on the arms, legs, face…). He then turned his head and said “It’s right there” pointing to the back of his head. And, sure enough there was a Diego bandaid stuck to his hair on the back of his head. I tried pulling, but Z has my hair (very fine) and his screams convinced me there was only one way to get it out. I grabbed the scissors, much to his dismay, and started cutting. He was very upset (I’m not sure if it was more because I was cutting his hair or ruining his bandaid) and screamed the whole time. After several minutes of snipping and telling him to hold still, I got the bandaid out. Besides the poor bandaid being cut in two, Z was missing a fair amount of hair (luckily he has a lot, so it wasn’t too big of a deal). Once again, I asked if he would ever do that again and his response was a vehement “no!” We’ll see…
Then, just two days before that…
Z likes to run behind the couch between the window to ‘hide.’ He usually announces he’s there, so it’s no big surprise, but he enjoys the game. This time I noticed he had ran back there, and was too quiet. When I checked, he had a package of gum in his hands getting ready to open it. I took it away and decided since I was there, I would open the window. Z was leaning back with his hands on the window sill, until I started opening the window. For some reason, he put his hand on the track at the same time I was sliding the window open. He started screaming and his face turned white. I picked him up and ran to the couch to check him out. He had a huge chunk of skin off his pinky and was bleeding all over. I grabbed a washcloth to clean him, but when he gets hurt he won’t let anyone touch him. He cried and screamed for about 15 minutes while I held him and tried to keep him calm. I knew when Colin got home, between the two of us we could get it cleaned and bandaged. He calmed down just before Colin arrived, and was happy Daddy was there to give him love too. While Colin distracted him by putting a tattoo on one arm, I cleaned and bandaged the finger on the other. A week later, and he still has a big mark on his pinky which I’m sure will leave a little scar. I’m sure it won’t be the last though; I have a precocious kid. ;0)
This past week has been an interesting experiment in raising an almost three year old. Actually, I feel like my job as a parent is now more about keeping him alive and out of the hospital than anything else.
I’ll start with the most recent incident.
Yesterday, we went to the Pow Wow at the coast and decided to stop by the factory stores on the way back home. We had the jogging stroller but opted to let Z walk since he had been stuffed in the car seat so long. Our first stop was Carters to check out the cute baby clothes. Z decided he wanted to play his new favorite game, hide-n-seek (“You count, I’ll hide” he instructed) and immediately dove under a clothes rack. We indulged him for a minute, and then told him to come out. He wouldn’t budge. Mom, Dad and Grandma all told him again to come out but he stayed put. Grandma tried getting him out and said he seemed to be stuck. We looked underneath and he had both index fingers stuck in small holes on one of the bars! His little arms were as stretched as far they could be (in a crucifix-like position) and his fingers were very stuck, past the knuckles. We tried pulling, which resulted in Z screaming. The store clerk, Kelly, came over to check it out then ran back to get some lotion. We started dismantling the rack and poured lotion all over, but his fingers were still no budging. Each time we tried pulling, Z would let out a blood curdling scream. He was really panicking and crying hysterically. I was down on the floor with him, trying to hold him up so his arms didn’t get so sore and Colin was trying his hardest to get Z’s little fingers out. Grandma had the good idea to run next door to the book store to get a book for Z, as a distraction. In the meantime, the store manager came over and did what she could. We all finally agreed it was time to call 911 to cut him out. We explained to Z a fireman would come help him and he seemed to calm down a little. Kelly’s quick thinking to grab a box Z could stand on to relieve some pressure, helped as did Grandma reading his new book. The fire department came, and an extremely kind firefighter named Steve came in. He talked to Z a little, explained who he was and started pulling his fingers. Z was in awe and just stared at Firefighter Steve with a silly grin on his face. And, just like that, he was free! We think it was a combination of standing on the box (which helped relieve the pressure) and that a real firefighter came to save him. :0) So, Steve invited Z outside to look at the fire engine. The EMT came and quickly assessed his fingers then gave him a stuffed puppy and asked if Z would ever do that again. Z said “noooo” and waved at everyone. He was left with a couple small cuts on one finger and a little swelling, but was otherwise ok. The rest of us were obviously quite shaken and relieved!
I have to say the staff at Carters was extremely understanding, kind and helpful. Kelly and her manager Fran went above and beyond to do everything they could to help. And, the Lincoln City Fire Department was amazing. Those guys were so personable and engaging, Z calmed right down.
So, thank goodness all ended relatively well! :0)
We were all a little busy to take pictures during the ordeal, but I got a picture of the EMT giving Z the stuffed puppy.
A few days before the Carters incident…
Z and I had just finished lunch when he bumped his head on the dining room chair. I kissed it better and he moved on…or so I thought. I was in the kitchen cleaning up, when I noticed he was unusually quiet. Then I noticed the sound of rustling paper. Well, as any parent of a two year old knows, those two sounds together are very bad news! When I went to the couch where Z was sitting, I noticed the box of bandaids and a bandaid wrapper, but no bandaid. I asked him where the band aid went while I scanned his entire body (nope, not on the arms, legs, face…). He then turned his head and said “It’s right there” pointing to the back of his head. And, sure enough there was a Diego bandaid stuck to his hair on the back of his head. I tried pulling, but Z has my hair (very fine) and his screams convinced me there was only one way to get it out. I grabbed the scissors, much to his dismay, and started cutting. He was very upset (I’m not sure if it was more because I was cutting his hair or ruining his bandaid) and screamed the whole time. After several minutes of snipping and telling him to hold still, I got the bandaid out. Besides the poor bandaid being cut in two, Z was missing a fair amount of hair (luckily he has a lot, so it wasn’t too big of a deal). Once again, I asked if he would ever do that again and his response was a vehement “no!” We’ll see…
Then, just two days before that…
Z likes to run behind the couch between the window to ‘hide.’ He usually announces he’s there, so it’s no big surprise, but he enjoys the game. This time I noticed he had ran back there, and was too quiet. When I checked, he had a package of gum in his hands getting ready to open it. I took it away and decided since I was there, I would open the window. Z was leaning back with his hands on the window sill, until I started opening the window. For some reason, he put his hand on the track at the same time I was sliding the window open. He started screaming and his face turned white. I picked him up and ran to the couch to check him out. He had a huge chunk of skin off his pinky and was bleeding all over. I grabbed a washcloth to clean him, but when he gets hurt he won’t let anyone touch him. He cried and screamed for about 15 minutes while I held him and tried to keep him calm. I knew when Colin got home, between the two of us we could get it cleaned and bandaged. He calmed down just before Colin arrived, and was happy Daddy was there to give him love too. While Colin distracted him by putting a tattoo on one arm, I cleaned and bandaged the finger on the other. A week later, and he still has a big mark on his pinky which I’m sure will leave a little scar. I’m sure it won’t be the last though; I have a precocious kid. ;0)
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