Great days!

We have been having a good week! I don't know what Grandma Vawter did to the kids, but since she was here on Tuesday the kids have been acting really good! Grace is doing better about not saying no and whining all the time. And if she does I just have to remind her that she told us she wasn't going to say it anymore (or threaten to call grandma!) LOL Grandma also talked to them about wearing underwear to bed and not wetting the bed.....Grace asked to try and the last 2 nights she has worn panties to bed AND STAYED DRY!!!!!! I know it may take Michael longer just because he's a boy, but this morning he told me he was dry at nap time yesterday, but not last night. So, we just try it tonight just to see. I just hope he doesn't start feeling bad if he can't do it. Grace has also been trying to tie her shoes already! She is doing good. Michael on the other hand always puts his shoes on without having to tie them so I guess we need to make him untie his shoes when he takes them off so we can teach him too. :-)
They have been playing very well today.....even played with play dough for a long time.
Ok, well now that I've probably jinxed it I am going to stop! Thank you God for my kids!!!!

Wow so much going on!

Two months since my last post! I guess it's not like I'm sitting on the couch eating bon bons. :-) Really I shouldn't even be posting right now, but just wanted to let you all know I'm still here and I have been thinking of lots to blog about, but just haven't been able to sit down and do it.

Just real quick (before the girls get into something else or the little guy wakes up).....Michael went with daddy this morning to check out Faith Christian Academy in Williams Bay. They are on their way home now so I can't wait to hear all about it. He ate breakfast really fast then got his coat and gloves on. He was headed out the door and we had to stop him because daddy wasn't even dressed yet! :-) Paul has been texting me and sent me a picture....he was having a really good time and fit in like he'd been there all year! He didn't want to leave! Unfortunately, now he will have to wait till August to start school, but I know he will love it!

Oops!

I knew in trying to keep the previous post short (although it didn't end up short) I would leave something out. I did think about this part, but then didn't get it in there. While Abbie was fixing Thanksgiving dinner and we were on our way to Children's my parents were on their way to our house to help out with the kids. They came up and stayed until Sunday. They brought Michael, Grace and Lydia to the hospital on Friday to see Levi and us. They also bought Michael an oreo ice cream cake from Culver's for his birthday since I wasn't able to make him one. Thanks mom and dad for helping out!

And just so I don't get a message from the other grandparents.....Paul's parents were able to stop by the hospital on Friday on their way home from MI. Then they and Abbie came to the house on Saturday to celebrate Michael's birthday. They each provided something for supper. :-)

(Sorry dad, I left you out). :-)

Arrival of Levi Grant

Baby Levi at birth


So, it has been two weeks and I am finally getting on here to post about the arrival of our 4th child. One of these days maybe I will get on a schedule so I can keep updated on here.....but don't hold your breath for it! LOL

I am going to try to make a long story short since I don't want to sit here forever writing it all out and I don't want you to have to sit so long and read. :-)

I had been having contractions for the last few months of my pregnancy. Nothing to be concerned about, but wondered if it would mean a shorter labor and maybe earlier. I guess I was hoping, but didn't really think it would happen. Well, there were days that I felt like I was "nesting" but I kept telling myself (and my mom kept telling me) that it was too early. But, the day before Thanksgiving I started showing other signs that I was maybe going into labor and it seemed that my contractions were getting stronger. They weren't really close together or stopping me so I didn't really think it was early labor. I did call my midwife though to let her know what was going on (especially since she was going to be leaving that day to go to MI for Thanksgiving). We talked and she said she was going to believe I wasn't going into labor and was going to go ahead to MI. I also knew that Carole had already left for MI for Thanksgiving and I did think about calling her to tell her I was showing signs of early labor. But, I knew if I called her she would try to talk Wayne into turning around and coming back. I didn't want her to do that because I would rather she go on to MI and I have the baby than have her come back and then I not have the baby. So, even when she texted me at nap time I didn't reply (not really intentionally but I didn't right away because I didn't want her to know and then I forgot). :-) So, I did lay on the couch most of the day or in bed....the midwife told me she wasn't putting me on bed rest, but wanted me to lay down as much as possible. Later that evening I went to soak in the tub. In the other 3 labors any time I got in the shower or tub my contractions would slow down or stop so I thought this might help. It didn't. I was still having contractions while soaking so I finally got out. Then sometime around 9:30 or 10 pm my contractions did stop and the other signs also. So, I thought it would be a few more days or weeks. Oh, in case you didn't realize...my due date wasn't until Dec 18 so this was about 3 1/2 weeks early. So anyway, throughout the night I was up to go to the bathroom (which wasn't unusual at this point). Around 3:30 am I woke up and realized I was having contractions again. I got up to go to the bathroom and realized the other signs were back too. I thought the contractions were stronger, but wasn't real sure at first. Then after having another one or two I realized they were stronger and they were coming regular. So, I started timing them. I timed them for a 1/2 hour and they were coming 5 minutes apart and lasting about 1-2 minutes. I finally woke up Paul after the 1/2 hour and told him I thought we should call the midwife. He called her and since she was in MI she called her back up. She told us it would probably be about 2 hours before the other midwife would get here. By this time my contractions were getting even stronger. Paul called his sister to have her come over to help with the kids when they got up. We had already planned to have Thanksgiving at our house and she was coming over for that so she had her stuff together for dinner. Oh and to back up again for a minute....I had just gone to the store on that Wednesday morning (before I laid on the couch) to get the stuff for labor that we needed. Now I'm glad I didn't decide to order the birth kit! Ok, so about 5:30 am the midwife and her assistant (student) arrived. Sometime shortly after that Abbie arrived. The midwives came in and started getting things set up. That's basically all they had time for.....at 6:28 am Levi Grant came into the world!! He cried just a little and was laid on my chest. He weighed in at 7 lbs. 6 oz.!! If he would have gone full term he would have probably been the biggest baby! The midwives checked him out and everything was good. They even scored him a 9 on both Apgar test. We didn't notice some blue around his mouth so the midwife did some consulting with our midwife and another doctor. We were all comfortable with just staying home and keeping an eye on him. Around 9 am when the midwives were getting ready to leave they checked his vitals one more time. At that point his heart rate was down to low 100's. This gave us great concern and we immediately decided to go to the ER. We left Abbie home with the other 3 kids and we left for the hospital. We were so thankful for Abbie's help! At the ER they immediately called Children's Hospital in Milwaukee and they arranged to transport him. They were thinking if it was something with his heart then he would need to be there. Since I had just had a baby they wouldn't let me ride in the ambulance, but I of course couldn't drive either so we had to let him go in the ambulance alone. That was the hardest part. Paul had run home to get things for us while we were waiting for the transport team. We live only 5 minutes from the hospital. When we left to go to Children's we ran home again to drop off the other car seats and grab a couple more things. We cried all the way to the house and then we walked in and Grace asked where Baby Levi was. Ok, so I was wrong....that may have been the hardest part. I broke down again as I tried to explain to them why he wasn't with us and that mommy and daddy had to leave again and may not be home for a couple days. Abbie was great and even fixed Thanksgiving dinner for her and the kids! When we got to Children's they were still getting Levi checked in and settled so we had to wait a few minutes. The nurse came out pretty quick though and told us we could go back. Ok so I know I said long story short and this is getting pretty long.......so..................the short of it..........I was envisioning being there and not being able to hold or nurse Levi. But, it was quite the opposite....they let us hold him as much as we want and I was able to nurse him like normal. After all the tests and 2 nights at Children's they basically decided that since he was a little early he was just being lazy with his breathing and his heart rate is just slower than other babies. Also, the doctor determined that the blue around his mouth was just bruising. He also had a bruise on his forehead, nose and both eyes. By the time we went home you could tell from the coloring that it was just bruising. We made it home Saturday night just in time to have supper and birthday cake for Michael's 5th birthday! They were all so excited to see us home and that Levi was with us. I don't think they have quit kissing him since! LOL

So, yea long story short....hahaha.....we then had to deal with getting him tested for jaundice since he was yellow. Then we had to have him on the blankets and re-tested just because it was up just a touch. Finally we are through all of it and he is doing much better! He has already started filling out some and is getting some chubby cheeks. :-)

Lydia is my little baby monitor...."crying, crying" or "crying again". LOL She also thinks that kissing him will make him stop. They all love to hold him, but Michael is the one that will sit the longest and hold him. He has already talked about him playing with his cars and trains when he gets bigger. I think he is going to enjoy having a brother!

This is a picture of Levi getting ready to leave Children's. Can you tell how proud the older 3 are of their baby brother?! LOL

cloth diapers!

We are once again considering using cloth diapers. When we look at the cost of disposables we just hate the number. So, if we can get together some money we are going to be buying Fuzzi Bunz again! I found a great web site today and they have a couple stores here in Wisconsin. They are both about 1 1/2 hours away, but may be worth going to one day just because I want to go to an actual store! :-) If you cloth diaper or are interested in cloth diapering go check out www.nickisdiapers.com.

Story

So, the other day Paul brought this story home to me. I am wondering if he realizes this is how I've been feeling! LOL Of course, he knows!!! But, this is also why I soak in the tub after the kids are in bed. But, I really needed this to show me how often I act like my 2, 3 and 4 year olds and that I'm not alone (meaning I'm not the only mom that deals with this). :-) I read this again this morning after Paul left for work. I had heard the kids asking him this morning if he was going to church by himself or if we were all going. He told them that he was going alone this morning and that we would all go later. I laid in bed listening to that and was a little jealous that he gets to go to the church to be alone and have quiet time. Oh well, I'm sure there HAS to be times that he is jealous that I get to stay home with all the noise! LOL

Alone Time for Mom by Crystal Kirgiss

All I needed this morning was a half-hour alone, thirty minutes of peace and quiet to help preserve my sanity. No mom-do-this, mom-I-need-that, mom-he-hit-me, mom-I-spilled-the-juice-on-the-couch.

Just me, a hot Calgon bath, and nothingness.

I shouldn't dream so big.

After getting the two oldest off to school, I settled the youngest in front of Barney and said, “Honey, listen closely. Your mommy is going to crack. She's losing her marbles. She's teetering on the edge of permanent personality damage. This is because she has children. Are you following me so far?”

He nodded absently while singing, “Barney is a dinosaur in our imagination....”

“Good. Now, if you want to be a good little boy, you'll sit right here and watch Barney while Mommy takes a nice, hot, quiet, peaceful, take-me-away bath. I don't want you to bother me. I want you to leave me alone. For 30 minutes, I don't want to see you or hear you. Got it?

Nod.

“Good morning boys and girls....” I hear the purple wonder say.

I headed for the bathroom with my fingers crossed.

I watched the water fill the tub. I watched the mirror and window steam up. I watched the water turn blue from my bath beads. I got in.

I heard a knock on the door.

“Mom? Mom? Are you in there, Mom?”

I learned long ago that ignoring my children does not make them go away.

“Yes, I'm in here. What do you want?”

There was a long pause while the child tried to decide what he wanted.

“Um...can I have a snack?”

“You just had breakfast! Can't you wait a few minutes?”

“No, I'm dying! I need a snack right now!”

“Fine. You can have a box of raisins.”
I heard him pad off to the kitchen, listened as he pushed chairs and stools around trying to reach the raisin shelf, felt the floor vibrate when he jumped off the counter, and heard him run back to the TV room.

“Hi, Susie! Can you tell me what color the grass is....”

Knock, knock, knock.

“Mom? Mom? Are you in there, Mom?”

Sign. “Yes, I'm still in here. What do you need now?”

Pause. “Um...I need to take a bath, too.”

Right.

“Honey, can't you wait until I'm done?”

The door opened just a crack.

“No, I really need to take one now. I'm dirty.”

“You're always dirty! Since when do you care?”

The door opened all the way.

“I really need to take a bath, Mom.”

“No, you don't. Go away.”

He stood in the middle of the bathroom and started taking off his pajamas.

“I'll just get in with you and take a bath, too.”

“No! You will not get in with me and take a bath! I want to take my own bath! I want you to go away and leave me alone!” I began to sound like the three year old with whom I was arguing.

He climbed onto the edge of the tub, balancing carefully, and said, “I'll just get in with you, okay, Mom?”

I started to shriek, “No! That is not okay! I want my own bath, all by myself! I don't want to share! I want to be alone!”

He thought for a moment and said, “Okay, I'll just sit here and you can read me a book. I won't get in, Mom, until you're done.” He flashed me a knock-down charming smile.

So I spent my morning-alone-time reading “One Fish, Two Fish” to a naked three year old who sat on the edge of the tub with his chin resting on his knees, arms wrapped around his bent legs, slight smile on his face.

Why fight it? It won't be long before I have all the alone-time I want. And then I'll probably feel bad about not having any more together-time.

News and updates

Wow....here I keep thinking I'm going to get back into blogging on a regular basis. Where does the time go?!

Ok, so the big news......Carleta and Danny are adopting twin boys!!!!!! They are due around December 17 (I'm due the 18th). Since they are twins we are thinking they will be coming any time. Last weekend the girls and I went down to my parents' house so we could go to the baby shower. We had such a great time. It was fun seeing all the gifts she got and all the support and encouragement she is getting. It was even more fun to go over to their house Sunday night to look at everything closer and be able to help her decide what else she needs. I love that she is asking me for advice! :-) We can't wait for Carson & Carter to arrive!!! Unfortunately, no matter when they are born I won't get to see them till Christmas (unless they make a trip up here!). ;-) It is going to be a wild Christmas though with 3 new babies and 3 older kids! Watch out grandma and grandpa cause here they come!!! LOL

Today Paul put Lydia in the toddler bed for nap time. It is the first time she is in it. So far so good. We'll see how well she sleeps though. She has also started going potty on the big potty some. We're not really pushing it, but she loves doing it. They are all just growing up so fast. Michael already has another tooth coming in so he has 2 loose ones now. Grace is becoming such a "mommy". I am hoping she is going to be a big help with the new baby....but first we have to take care of this attitude problem! :-/

The people at the church have been so welcoming and accepting. We now have two freezers full of food!!! It so awesome how they take care of us! We have started doing a family meal time and a kids' group on Wednesday nights. We are seeing more people coming for it. The ladies have been so great to me! They gave me a gift certificate for Blessings Unlimited (I may have mentioned that before...I can't remember). I finally placed my order and it arrived on the weekend while I was gone. I didn't even get a chance to open it yet! I hopefully will this afternoon.

Paul's brother, Andy, and his wife welcomed the arrival of their new baby girl this last week! She is so adorable! We've only seen pictures so far, but can't wait to meet her! I received an e-mail from Amie today with the birth story and it was so neat to see all the details of how Azalea arrived. It sounds like it was a great birth! Congratulations!

Well, I think that's all for now......now time to lay down for a little bit.