ZooLights and Pajama Party

We went to see Zoolights tonight for FHE. I have never gone before so it was neat to see what it was all about. We had a fun time. The kids started asking us for treats, riding the merry-go-round, light-up toys, you name it the moment we walked in the zoo. I turned the tables on them and asked if they brought their money. They were free to buy those things with their own money, but we were only there to see the lights. That shushed them up pretty fast. They asked a few more times, but I kept asking right back. Anson thought maybe 2 quarters would be enough to buy a light up toy. I don't think so!

We had a "pajama party" when we got home. That basically just means you get all ready for bed, put on your pajamas, and watch a movie. We watched The Princess Bride which I got for Christmas.

Project

I have a new project I am going to make this week - a pack and play netting cover. I'm not sure exactly how yet. I don't believe there is a pattern - so I'll have to figure it out as I go.

Katie has been a big trouble maker lately as far as getting out of bed goes. I gave up putting her in her crib and put an extra crib mattress that I had on the floor of her room for her to sleep on. She does the same thing with a pack and play. Unless she is SO tired, she will just keep getting out of it and get into whatever happens to be in the room.

We are planning a family vacation soon and I am very concerned about the aforementioned problem. So I have determined to make something to keep her in bed for naps and at night. We don't need any wandering, cranky toddlers on vacation!

I am thinking of using the type of netting they use for laundry bags. I thought maybe I would stretch it tight over the top and somehow attach elastic to each corner to put around the legs of the pack and play to keep it on. I'm not sure how well it will keep her in - will she be able to get enough "give" to climb out? What other options are there? If you have a great idea, please let me know!

I did find a commercial product last night. It is about $68 and there is a risk of the toddler undoing the latches and getting their head stuck as they try climbing out. I'm not too interested in that!

We'll see how the project goes. I hope it works. The sanity of our vacation depends on it!

Presents and Such

We had a wonderful Christmas yesterday. We planned for each person to get 2 gifts - one from Santa and one from Mom and Dad. Everything went as planned - until Christmas Eve day, around 3:30 pm. Aaron came into our room and quietly told me that there was a problem with the presents. You see Santa was getting Rebecca an American Girl Doll (the Rebecca doll) with some outfit changes and a few accessories. So there was kind of a "present stack" for that gift (7 packages to open all together). The problem was that Anson didn't have a "present stack". He was getting 2 presents to open.

I was all for unwrapping all of Rebecca's presents and wrapping them all up again in one package. Aaron didn't want to do that though. He wanted to go to the store and get more. Noooo! Well, he got his way and off to Walmart he went (with Katie, thank goodness). Luckily he mostly got food items - like fish crackers, handi snacks, and cereal. Anson felt like he opened Christmas presents on Christmas, and I have a pantry full of snacks for the next couple of weeks. I guess it all worked out.

We kept pretty close to the 2 present rule - only adding in a computer game for each kid and a movie in their stockings. So here is the gift list:

Rebecca: American Girl Doll w/ clothes and accessories, roller skates, Mozart's Magic Flute Computer Game, and the Kit Kittridge movie.

Anson: Baseball Glove and Ball, Remote Control Monster Truck, JumpStart Preschool Computer Game, The Legend of Frosty the Snowman (which we threw away - we don't recommend it).

Katie: Baby Doll that Laughs and Cries (I've pretty much just heard it cry so far - I hope the laughing starts soon), Doll Stroller, Little Bear Computer Game (you push any button and something is supposed to happen), and Care Bear Movie.

Spencer: Sit and Stand Stroller, Prince Lionheart Seat (like Bumbo - off Craigslist for $12!), Life is Beautiful Movie.

Aaron: Fancy Remote Control Monster Truck, Garmin Heart Rate Monitor, Salad Spinner, Casablanca Movie

Andrea: Sweater, Coat, High Heels, Shoe Organizer, Frying Pan, Large Mixing Bowls, Glasses (as in cups), Princess Bride Movie.

I seriously get spoiled every year. Aaron just can't help himself. I was only supposed to get the sweater and the frying pan. At least he pretty much kept to things I needed this year!

I'm hoping to do a homemade Christmas one of these years. This was not my year for it though. I have been way to busy and/or just plain unproductive. At least as far as getting anything done goes. I give myself the excuse of having 4 kids under 5 1/2 years old. That counts, right?

Ice Cream Man

Anson has informed me that he wants to be an Ice Cream Man when he grows up. He is going to be very generous with his ice cream. He is going to let everyone in our family have one. He even said he would give Rebecca 4 ice creams.

Taking a Drive in Good Ol' C.G.

When I downloaded my pictures in September, I found a few that I didn't recognize. These are in the order that I found them on the camera. Take a look:

Can we guess who our mystery photographer is yet?

Can you guess where she went with daddy? I'm really not sure, but you know you have lived in C.G. awhile if you recognize most of those places! Kind of crazy, but I do miss it.

Playing Pirates

Rebecca and Anson came up with a game earlier this year. It goes like this: Take all of the cushions off the couches in the living room. Pile them all on the big couch. Climb on top. Pretend to be Pirates! Also, try to get mommy and daddy to climb on top too. The End.

Mr. Turtle

This is a picture of the kids and Mr. Turtle this last summer. They had TONS of fun using the apple peeler to make yummy treats for Mr. Turtle to eat. Much more than he could handle as you can very plainly see!



Unfortunately, Mr. Turtle met his demise this summer while we were on vacation in Lake Tahoe. He got caught in Anson's soccer net and in his attempts to free himself, he got caught tighter and tighter in the net. Luckily Aaron found him while mowing the lawn and the kids didn't have to see their beloved pet in death. He is now buried somewhere deep in the landfill.

You were a wonderful pet Mr. Turtle. We didn't have to do anything to keep you alive (except we should have untangled you, but we weren't around and didn't know you were tangled). You cared for yourself, yet we could say that we had a pet for the kids to watch over. We will miss you eating our crickets!

Blessed

I smell big yummy ginger cookies. I see Anson wiping off the patio table with a towel after the rain last night. I hear the baby crying. I feel love for these wonderful blessings I have been given.

New Calling!

I recieved a new calling on Sunday. I am the new cub scout leader for the bears in our ward. FYI, those are the 9 year old boys. I have no idea what cub scouts (or boy scouts in general) is all about at all. My brothers are 10 years younger than me, so I was pretty much out of the house by the time they were going through all of this stuff.

I do know that there are a lot of meetings. Weekly meetings with the boys, monthly pack meetings, monthly roundtable meetings, and monthly cub committee meeting. I'm used to Aaron having all of the meetings, so this will certainly be a change.

I'm kind of overwhelmed with it all so far. The Primary 2nd Counselor met with me today to explain some of what I am supposed to do, but I think it is going to take a while for me to really understand what I've just gotten into! I'm actually really excited that I get to learn what to expect for Anson and Spencer before they are in Scouting.

Aaron hasn't gotten his calling yet. I'll be sure to keep you updated!

Tucson

Aaron and I were able to get away Friday and Saturday for "El Tour de Tucson". We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves at the J.W. Marriott Starr Pass Resort on Friday night and Saturday. We ate a delicious dinner at Primo, one of the restaurants at the property. We had a very interesting salad while there. It doesn't sound very good, but I was amazed at how delicious it was. It was a beet salad with goat cheese. Sounds gross - but SO good!

On Saturday we slept in (if you call 6:30 AM sleeping in!), and got Aaron to the starting line of the race just as it was starting. I don't like Tucson roads at all! It seems like you can't go any faster than 30-40 miles/hour on any of the roads. Even the really major ones! Really annoying.

So Aaron rode his bicycle for 66 miles. It took about 5 hours, including stops for food and rest. He said he started getting tired of it after 40 miles. When he first started riding his bike he was tired of it after only 5 miles, so he is getting better anyway. He still hasn't gotten the clips for his pedals, so it was all Aaron Power pedalling away. We need to get him all decked out with a Triathlon bike and equipment in the next week or two.

I seriously had no idea there were so many different kinds of bikes a year ago! So pretty soon Aaron will have a regular "touring" bike, a mountain bike, a road bike, and a triathlon bike. Does anyone know if there are any other kinds of bikes out there? I hope not! Bikes are beginning to take over around here!

I forgot to mention that I got a pedicure at the Spa at the resort while Aaron was riding his bike! Yay for me! I sure got spoiled! It was really a nice break to get pampered for a while. Now back to real life!

November = Enduring, 2 Month Update

If October was all about being on the move, November is all about enduring (for me anyway). In October I literally moved everything in my whole house, I got up and down in the middle of the night, and drove up to the valley a LOT.

Now it seems like I'm just trying to endure this month of November. Enduring through the weeklong sickness of Katie and Anson. Enduring the packing boxes being all over my house. Enduring this new sickness of Spencer's (he threw up at Maria's house yesterday!), and enduring Spencer's cries in the middle of the night (only if it is before 4:30 AM and if he is not sick - I do bend rules for sick babies!).

Hopefully we can move on from this "enduring" trend for the second half of November.

On another note, we had a fun day yesterday at my sister-in-law's house and at the Veteran's Day parade in Mesa. I enjoyed the high school marching bands, and the kids enjoyed the candy that was passed out!

Spencer's 2 month stats update:
Weight - 15 lbs. 10 oz. - just off the chart
Head Circumference - 16 cm. or in.? - average
Height - 26 1/2 inches - way off the chart

Summary: Spencer's head is average for his age, and his height and weight are off the chart. We have one BIG baby here!

Sleeping, Moving, School, and Saturday

Spencer slept from 8:30 PM to 6:00 AM last night - all on his own! Go Spencer! He actually slept until 6:00 AM the night before too, with a little crying fest around midnight. I was NOT going to get him up after only 4 hours of sleep when I knew he could for sure go until 4:30 - which he has done a few times. So I let him cry. You are probably thinking I am a bad mother. But I don't care. I NEED my sleep! I'm a worse mother when I don't get it!

I am kind of starting to get settled into the new house. With 2 sick kids last week (they were sick for a whole week!), tons of boxes to unpack, a talk to prepare (can you believe they asked me to speak 1 week after moving in, before even officially going to church? I had missed the first week because of the sick kids!), its amazing I got anything done at all!

Rebecca started 1/2 day kindergarten last Monday. She is doing great. The school had their Fall Festival on Saturday, and we had a great time playing games, bouncing on bounce houses, eating snow cones, and riding the train ride.

We went to Rebecca's first soccer game on Saturday too. We missed the actual first game because of the move. It is pretty entertaining watching 4-6 year olds chase after the ball.

Aaron completed his 2nd Casa Grande Triathlon on Saturday as well! We sure had a busy day on Saturday! He did it at least 15 minutes faster than last year. Good job Aaron!

Moving On

The time has come for moving on. We attended our last week of church in our ward today. We are moving to a new home about 30 miles away on Saturday.

Actually we will be moving all week long. I have empty boxes all over my entry way and packed boxes in Aaron's office and my office already. I can't wait for this week to be over so I can be done with the packing and the messes!

It will sure be sad to leave after 4 years. I love the slow pace, the down to earth people, the wide open spaces, and all of our friends. I won't miss the long drives though! Anson has gotten to the point that he will start complaining if I turn down the "long" way when we go somewhere.

I'm excited to be closer to my Doctor's offices, shopping, more school choices, and family. I'm also excited for the sidewalks and grass in our new big backyard. There is plenty of room for a swingset, plus the kids have sidewalks to ride bikes all around the yard. Now that it is finally cooler outside, I'm hoping they'll spend lots of time out there.

We also got an unexpected, though most welcome surprise a couple of weeks ago. A friend in our ward called up Aaron and asked if we were interested in keeping her baby grand piano at our home for a while. She is getting divorced and her living situation is up in the air for a while, so she wouldn't have anywhere to keep it. We just happen to have the perfect place in the new house for a baby grand - we were even thinking about saving up for one - so we are so excited to have a beautiful instrument in the house. Now we'll have to get one of those locks to keep the cover over the keys so the kids won't get into it...

So at this time next week I will be settled (at least somewhat) in the new house. Wish me luck this week! I'm going to need it with 4 kids (one of which is only 8 weeks old - so I'm still waking up in the middle of the night to feed him), a house full of stuff, and just one little old me!

Katie

Katie is my adventure girl. She is in to everything, wants to know about everything, and isn't scared of anything (well, almost anything - she didn't like my sister-in-law's bird that bit daddy's finger!).

So Aaron's brother and family came over to our house a week after Spencer was born. All of the kids were playing outside when Rebecca came in and told me that Katie was muddy. When Katie started coming in a while later, we had to get Rebecca and her cousins to keep her outside for a while. She was absolutely FILTHY! Her church clothes were covered, her hair and face, and hands, and feet, and any other surface of her body/clothes were FILTHY! Here is a sampling of what she looked like after her church clothes were removed. She was sure LOVING IT!!!

Here's a sampling of Katie having some fun in the sun. She is so cute and has so much personality! She has never really been a "baby", and lately she just seems more and more grown up. She does like to be babied when she is tired though. She was definitely tired today after 3 hours of church and 2 baby blessings in 2 different wards! It's tough being dragged around with mom and dad! Enjoy the pictures of our Little Miss "Kate, Kate"!

Spencer

I took Spencer to the Dr. on September 16 for his 2 week (and 1 day!) well visit. He weighed in at 10 lbs and was 22.5 inches long. So he has gained 15 oz. and 1.5 inches since his birth. Way to go Spencer!!!

I don't think Anson could be any more pleased that he has a brother now! I had to include this picture even though Anson's eyes are kind of closed because you can see on his face how proud he is to be a big brother to another BOY!

These girls love their brother too. Katie loves to put her cheek on his, sometimes with her hair all over his face! Rebecca is my big helper with Spencer and helps me burp him, carries him to me when he cries (even when I don't ask her to bring him to me - a little too helpful?), and keeps her brother and sister away when they are being a little to rough around him.

On another note, he has been sick all this week. It started with Katie throwing up in her crib on Sunday. Then Anson came home from church, took a nap, and woke up throwing up in his bed. They were both feeling really well Sunday night. On Monday, Rebecca complained of her stomach hurting, but I didn't think too much of it - just thought she ate too much or something. On Tuesday Aaron, Spencer and I all had the stomach flu. Luckily my stomach hurt like Rebecca and that was it for me. Aaron and Spencer didn't fare quite as well. Spencer threw up all day Tuesday, most of Wednesday, and a little on Thursday. We are now throw up free since yesterday. Hooray! I can finally start getting dressed and doing my hair somewhat again. These things had stopped since I knew I would probably be getting back in the shower in a short time anyway to clean myself off from Spencer's "messes".

6 Years!

Aaron and I celebrated our 6 year anniversary on August 28. We celebrated by doing some family sealings in the temple and having dinner at Fogo de Chao in Scottsdale. Fogo de Chao is a Brazillian Barbecue restaurant. It is all you can eat, but not a traditional buffet at all. The servers bring a brazillian bread, fried bananas, polenta, and potatoes to the table. Then they have a salad bar with lots of different kinds of salads, cheeses, olives, and even some things that I don't know what they even were. There were also guys that came around to the tables with different kinds of BBQ meat. There were so many different kinds to choose from. Lamb, chicken, pork, beef, etc. It was really good. Aaron even asked the manager to show us how they cook the meat and he took us to the back to show us. It was pretty cool.

My parents had Katie spend the night at their house, and Rebecca and Anson spent the night at their cousin Tate's house for his birthday party, so we had the house to ourselves. Then my in-laws took all of the kids the next day. We spent the time very industriously - we cleaned out our closet (7 or 9 trash bags full of stuff!), cleaned off the back patio and yard, and did miscellaneous errands. Aaron got his hair cut while I dropped off dry cleaning, then we had lunch at Subway. Sounds crazy, but I really enjoyed getting everything done on Saturday. I have been trying to get Aaron to get rid of some of his stuff forever, and finally we made some headway. Hooray! He had a hard time letting some of his stuff go, but I don't think he even remembers what he got rid of now. And our closet is a LOT cleaner!

Aaron - My Twice Over 1/2 Marathon Man

Aaron ran his second 1/2 Marathon in Flagstaff in August. His first 1/2 Marathon was in Sedona in February of this year. I have to say that he did much better after this 1/2 marathon than the first one. After the 1/2 marathon in Sedona, his body was kind of in shock or something from so much running, and he was really exhausted. This time he just seemed to take it in stride. Aside from some foot aches from pounding the ground, he was just fine afterwards.

Aaron also did a Reverse Order Sprint Triathlon in Anthem last weekend with his friend Robert. That was 4 days after I had Spencer, so I didn't witness it. Aaron's parents took Rebecca and Anson and took some pictures which I need to get developed soon.

Next Event: Open Water swim in one of the lakes here in AZ. I'm not sure how far he swims or which lake. Swimming is his best event, so I'm sure he will do well.

Anson - My Hardworking Man

Anson decided he was going to "fix" this box. He got out Daddy's screw driver and hammer/mallet thing and went to town. I'm not sure that much was accomplished, but he sure was busy for quite a while!



Now if only he could actually fix something for real around here. I'm sure I could find some jobs he could help me with!

Spencer has Arrrived!

My little guy is already 4 1/2 days old! I can't believe he came 9 days early. That is pretty unheard of for me! So here is the story.

Aaron and I went to the Dr. on Tuesday, Sept. 1. My appointment was at 3:40 PM. The Dr. talked to me about being induced if I hadn't had the baby by Thursday (39 weeks). I really didn't want to be induced - I wanted to go into labor on my own because things go pretty quickly for me, but I also didn't want a 9 1/2 lb. baby. So I was considering it. The Dr. did all of his checkups and asked me if I wanted to strip the membranes. I told him that my other Doctors had tried it before and it doesn't do anything for me, but go ahead anyway. He took that as a challenge and was VERY aggressive with stripping the membranes. It was kind of painful, but not too bad. We set up an appointment for the next week as we left the office.

As we were driving to my mom's house to pick up the kids, I started having labor contractions. For some reason I can't really tell when I am having contractions until I am in actual labor. It has happened all 4 times so far. So I continue to have contractions as we're picking up the kids, as we eat a quick dinner at McDonald's (Aaron has missionary work on Tuesday evenings so we needed to get home quickly), and as we begin the drive home. Just before the exit that would take us to the hospital, I decide that I could possibly be in labor (though it feels rather weird because the first 3 times I woke up in the early morning in labor - never in the afternoon when I'm already awake!). I mention that maybe we should stop by the hospital and see if I really am in labor- though I'm pretty sure I am.

As we drive up to maternity entrance, I see a familiar car and familiar faces. My sister in law, Carrie, had her baby on Sunday, and she and her husband Jonathan were checking out right then! It was kind of funny to see them leaving as I'm entering the hospital. It was about 5:30 PM by now. Aaron stayed in the car with the kids while the nurses determined if they were going to keep me or not. I was at a 5 in triage, and they decided to keep me there in triage for a while to see if there were any changes. I was still having lots of contractions, but they didn't feel that bad. Aaron took the kids to my mom's house and then drove back to the hospital.

When Aaron got to triage, the Dr. on call (Dr. Linnerson) decided I could be admitted to labor and delivery. Brittney, my first nurse, and Dr. Linnerson broke my water shortly after I got to the room - about 7 PM. I was still at a 5 or 6, and the contractions really didn't feel that bad. I decided I would wait for the epidural until it was beginning to be too much for me.

The next time I was checked, I was at a 7, and still doing pretty good. We talked to Brittney about possibly doing a natural birth. She is a big proponent of doing it that way and told us all about how the hospital was going to change some of the rooms to natural birthing rooms. Aaron has always wanted me to do one, but I have always refused because it is so painful just at a 6 usually. Since I was already at a 7 and still doing well, I thought I might be able to do it. I could always ask for an epidural if I needed to.

So I decided to take off the monitors and take a shower around 10 PM. Brittney left around this time, and Tammy came on as my new nurse. I sat in the bathtub for a little while, which felt good, but I later learned the warm water helped start things along again. I got out and had a hard time getting the gown back on because the contractions were now VERY painful! I asked for the epidural when I came out, about 10:30 PM. I wanted it NOW!!!

I had to have a full bag of fluids before they could give me the epidural, so they put it in as quickly as they could. It took 10-15 minutes to get it all in. So now my hands and legs and feet felt tingly from all of the fluid. I didn't want to move at all. I sat on the edge of the bed and Aaron squeezed a pressure point by my knees whenever I had a contraction - which was practically all the time. They had brought in a birthing ball and a rocking chair, but I didn't want to move. So I sat there, making Aaron squeeze his hands out for an hour while waiting for the epidural that wouldn't come.

Apparently the anesthesiologist (sp?) kept putting people ahead of me that were at an 8 already. Aaron tried to get me to let them check me, but as I already mentioned I didn't want to move, and it hurt every time they checked me. The nurse sided with me and wouldn't check me which didn't make Aaron too happy. They really should have made me do some of these things I didn't want to do. I probably would have felt better in the rocking chair or on the ball, but nobody made me move, so we'll never know. I guess it is hard trying to work with a woman in labor. They really didn't want to mess with me!

So finally Aaron suggests that if they check me and I am at a 9, then I'll move up in line. So I let them check me, and sure enough, I'm a 9, and Aaron can see the head starting to come through. Lori, the head nurse or something, came in around this time to check on me (I guess my screaming was somewhat disturbing?). She asked if the Dr. had been called (he hadn't). She sent Tammy to call the Dr. and helped me breathe. It was so much easier with her coaching. Tammy wasn't really helpful at all. It was just at this point that the anesthesiologist came in to give me the epidural. Too late. He was coming. I pushed for about 10 minutes. They grabbed a Dr. to come in and deliver the baby as the Dr. was not at the hospital yet. Spencer bruised his face on his way out since I did it so fast. It was surprisingly kind of cool in a weird, painful sort of way to push him out all on my own.

(I took this picture while laying on the hospital bed, so Aaron had to look way down.)

Spencer Don Manning was born at 11:41 PM weighing 9 lbs. 1 oz. He was 21 inches long and his head was 14 cm.

Dr. Linnerson had to go deliver another patient, so I had to wait for an hour - an hour and a half for him to come back and deliver the placenta. I'm kind of hazy on the details after I gave birth. I had the nurse give me some Staydol (sp?) right as I was delivering. Not a good idea. I felt all sleepy and out of it for at least an hour after I had Spencer. Of course it was in the middle of the night too, so who knows how much of it was the late hour and how much was the drug? So the Dr. finally came back and I was finally able to get some pain killers for the cramps I was having. Seems like the cramps get worse after each pregnancy.

(I tok these pictures today - 4 1/2 days old.)

I sent Aaron home around 1:15 or so to get some sleep. I got to the recovery room and had Spencer taken to the nursery around 3AM.

Since we weren't planning on having the baby that day, we didn't have anything we needed - including a camera. We bought a disposable one at the hospital, so hopefully we'll have some decent pictures after they get developed!