2008 in pictures

A photo review of the last 12 months....

January

Joseph Robert was born at 6:24am on January 11th. After only 2 hours of labor (woohoo!)

February

It was cold. We had a new baby. We didn't leave the house much... Oh and Rachel took her first steps!

March

Easter - it was so cold that day

April

Joey was baptized!

May

Warm weather!

June

Rhode Island for Rob's GREAT-Grandma's 100th birthday celebration!

July

Ryan went to Vacation Bible School for the first year

August

Joey and I went to Denver for a wedding!

September

Ryan started school

October

Halloween!

November

We are so thankful for our family

December

No words necessary!

It was hard to pick just one picture from each month since many months contained multiple exciting events! At any rate, it was interesting to watch the kids get bigger as the post got longer and longer! Happy new year to everyone!

YEAR in review and new blog content!

So I haven't posted since July!!! Sorry! We've been busy, but here is the Cliff Note version of the second half of 2008
August: lots of fun summer activities!
September: Ryan started school, we went to Myrtle Beach, and our nanny quit!
October: Ryan turned 4, Rachel no longer qualified for speech, Joey was 9 months old!, our new nanny started
November: Rachel finished music class (which she loved), we had a lovely Thanksgiving
December: Ryan's first holiday concert, first snow day and the biggest Christmas to date!
I'll post a photo review of 2008 later, but I am changing my blog!!!
I have decided that in 2009 I am not making resolutions, just goals (yes I know, semantics!). Anyway, I will be using my log to track my goals for the year so here they are....
1. Try a new (hopefully family friendly) recipe each week
I will post the recipe, source (where possible) and review on the blog each week. This ensures at least 52 entries right?
2. The standard weight loss
Honestly I don't want to whine about it but I will keep my weight loss ticker on here for my own records
3. Organize my house
Top to bottom, every room.... This comes from the fact that we had a fleeting chance to buy a new house but, in addition to the market sucking for us to sell ours, we couldn't even fathom cleaning it all out! I'll be starting with the attic this weekend and need to have the attic and basement done by the next weepeats sale (which I think is April)

So those are the 3 biggies that I will be blogging about. Except gratuitous kid pictures as well (they are so darn cute!). I guess that is about it for now!!!

Week in review

It has been one of those insanely, crazy busy weeks! I am so glad I have nothing planned for the weekend!
Monday
Monday morning Nanny K started. She was on time, eager and excited to start working for us! Rachel, however, was less than enthused about her presence. She cried a bit when I left but I thought it was because I had Ryan with me and she was jealous that she had to stay home (it wasn't since she cried Tuesday as well).
Ryan started Vacation Bible School on Monday. We chose to send him to my in laws church because it is a great program and my MIL was dying to have him go (and offered to help get him there and back, etc). I opted to take him on his first day:

First day!
So we drive the 15-20 minutes out there without incident (or a ton of traffic) and we are stopped waiting to make a left into the parking lot and the guy behind us apaprently didn't see us and plowed right into the back of the van! Thankfully we were all okay (as was the other driver). Ryan was funny - when he asked what happened and I told him her shouted "maniac!" about the other driver! He says that my Uncle (who takes the kids out frequently) calls other drivers that :)
So after all the insurance exchange, etc. it turns out the other driver does not have a valid license! Oops for him! Thankfully the car was insured and we have taken care of filing the claim, etc.
I spent a better part of the morning trying to find an ambulance or fire station that had a car seat tech working to check out the seats, but I was unsuccessful in such a venture. Since the seats did not meet the criteria for needing to be replaced after an accident, and they need to be taken out anyway when we get the rental, I just checked them out myself (tightened some straps but otherwise they are fine).
Also on Monday I decided that I should really see a doctor for my ankle. You see, 2 weeks ago I slipped outside Rob's restuarant (it was rainign really hard!) and fell. Thought my ankle was broken but I was able to walk on it so I assumed it wasn't and just hobbled around for 2 weeks....
yeah, so it is broken! Thankfully it is not a displaced fractured and they gave me a brace which really helps it feel better. I am supposed to wear that for 2 weeks and then go back.
After Monday the rest of the week was uneventful! Ryan stayed with my in laws Monday night so they could take him to VBS Tuesday. he stayed with my sister Tuesday night so she could take him Wednesday. We took the opprotunity to go out with just the 2 littlest kids and had ice cream!

The rest of the week with the nanny was successful! She seems to enjoy her job, the kids like her. They play outside, she makes them nice meals, they nap and only watch a few minutes of tv (sadly much less than when I am home!). she is on vacation next week but Rob is all closes so we are okay in the childcare area.
Tonight is Ryan's VBS concert! I am so excited to see my little guy in action. He has informed me that he is going to sing "Scooby Doo" instead of whatever his class is performing! Well there has to be that kid huh?

just adding....

for my records since I already posted about Joey's visit to the pediatrician
Rachel went for an (uneventful) 2 year visit!
she is 33 inches and 22.4 pounds (25th for height and 10th for weight). No physical concerns and.... NO DEVELOPMENTAL CONCERNS!!!!! This is the very first well child visit she has had that hasn't ended with a specialist or a visit from Early Intervention - HOORAY!!!

A year ago, a year from now....

Got this from Giselle...
One year ago... I had an almost 3 year old who had just potty trained and thrown up for the very first time (in my car, spaghetti-os - a scene I'll not soon forget!).
I also had a just one year old! She was getting physical therapy once a week and had just learned to sit! Funny how her unborn brother has mastered that skill almost exactly one year later!
I was14 weeks pregnant with the baby "we didn't know we wanted but can't imagine life without". Still thought he was going to be our second daughter, our Reese Marie! I was just starting to show

Rob was getting ready to open the restuarant and was very excited about the possibility of advancement there (HA!)

One year from now...
Ryan will be preparing for Kindergarden!!! This should be no big deal since he is going to full day pre-K on a bus this year, but it is in my mind!
Rachel will be 3!!! She will have no therapy as she is almost done with her speech ad her other issues seem to have resolved themselves enough that we seem to be escapting any OT. She will hopefully be potty trained! Maybe have enough hair for a real pony tail?

Joey will be 18 months! A real walking, talking toddler! Now the real fun begins!
Rob will probably still be at the same job and hopefully happier. I'll be at the same job but hopefully only working 4 days! Same house, same cars. We are boring people!

Joseph

What an amazing little guy he is!!
Last Friday was his half birthday! 6 whole months old (which also means that 2008 is half over already!)
As of Monday he weighed 15 pounds even. He is somewhere between 23 3/4 inches and 25 inches (the nurse got 24 1/2, the doc got 25 and I got 23 1/4 this morning!). Picture of health but a lousy sleeper! He still wakes to eat 2 times a night. UGH! The pediatrician says he is probably just too distracted to eat more during the day and he gets the calories he needs at night (he must since he is almost 3 pounds bigger than he was 2 months ago).
He is a developmental wonderkid! He can conbat crawl, rock on his hands and knees, and as of Monday evening sit himself up!
He loves to laugh - mostly at his big siblings who just crack him up!
He loves to eat - we have yet to find something he didn't like
and he loves to snuggle with mommy!

10 quirky things about me....

in response to Kara's post:
1. I get the willies from styrofoam. If something is packed in styrofoam I wanted to cringe when I have to open it!
2. I hate to look at unpainted or chipped toe nails! Seriously, I feel like if you don't have a good polish job please cover them up! They look naked to me
3. I can't combine food. I eat all of one thing at a time on my plate. I even rotate my plate as I am eating
4. I used to suck my hair when I was a kid. It is so disgusting to think about now but I did it.
5. I can't use tampons. They skeeve me out big time!
6. I can't sleep touching or facing anyone. I literally cling to the edge of the bed
7. I count stairs as I am going up or down them (in my head only!)
8. I can not sit still and talk on the phone. I need to be walking around - my ex bought me a thingy that could turn your cordless phone into a headset. It was dorky but I loved it
9. I never thought this was weird but my sister says it is - I wash my hair last in the shower
10. Not sure if this is quirky or just my wacky sense of humor but I LOVE to introduce my husband as "my first husband, Rob". He is my first and my only :)

Early Evening Gown GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!

Early Evening Gown GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!
ahhhh, like a fairy princess....

Ice Cream Social Frock Giveaway!!!!

Check this out: Ice Cream Social Frock Giveaway!!!!
I sooo want this!!!

Rachelisms

I feel like I do a lot of talking about her these days but she is just so darn funny!!!
This morning she was hanging out with me while I put my makeup on and then she disappeared. I didn't think anything of it until I went downstairs and she was standing in front of Joey in his excersaucer putting purple eye shadow all over his face! He was laughing of course! Oh, she also made up herself and would not let me wash it off! "MY make-up" she said. Whatever, angel....
In addition to today's make up she has colored Joey with a blue crayon and when I asked her if she did it she said "yep" and when I asked her with what she got me the crayon! She has also attempted to make him look like a member of KISS by drawing what appeared to be a star around his eye with a marker! (My husband will be sad to hear that I can not recall who it is with the star around his eye - Paul Stanley perhaps?)
Ryan was taunting her at the table Saturday night by calling her a baby and apparently she had enough! She stood up in her booster seat (why oh why does she do that???) and yelled at him "I not baby!". You go girl....
Her current phrases - phrases, yes! At 18 months she said 4 words, at 2 she is using sentences:
"what doing?"
"Who here" said in response to the dog barking
"No Nico MINE!" said anytime the dog looks in her general direction
"Why _____ (insert Ya-yan, Doey, etc) fryin'(crying)?"
She sings "Scooby Doo" and "Where is My Hairbrush" all the time. Such a sweet voice!

It's the little things....

Over the weekend I had the kids at the playground. Rachel was going down the little slide that she loves so much and then tentatively tried the big twirly slide. I let her being that incredibly brave soul that I am and she did it! For over an hour - up the steps and down the slide, up and down. Another mother asked me how old she was and when I said 2 she replied "Oh, she's very advanced!"
ADVANCED! Rachel! After 14 months of PT, being labeled as "severely delayed" in her motor skill development, heck at one point there was even talk of her having cerebral palsy!!! And now? Someone thinks she is advanced! Just to have her be normal made me teary!!!

So many new and exciting things...

Recently we decided to make a change in our daycare situation. As much as we loved our current DCP there were a couple of things that were less than fantastic about the situation. Coupled with the ungodly amount of time I spent getting everyone ready each morning and out the door and then back home again AND the fact that Ryan will be in Pre-K this fall (and that is a post for another time!) we decided to hire a nanny!
I had thought a lot about this but I never thought Rob would agree to it but he did!
I ran an ad on Craigslist and got 10 responses! 8 were legit, 5 worth meeting and 2 that I really liked. We chose to go with the younger, less experienced girl because she was very enthusiastic and the kids seemed to like her.
Now, with only 2 weeks left until she starts, I am very nervous! What if it doesn't work? What if she can't handle the kids (hell, there are days I can barely handle them!!!). UGh, it's just worry worry worry with me I guess....

You would think in my boredom....

I would be able to post more!!!
I have a lot to say but I guess I am too bored to even write it out!!!
So for now I present a video in honor of my little girl's 2nd birthday:

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

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Rachel

Rachel. My daughter. My "easy" kid.

Rachel was my girl baby. The smallest of my kids at 5lbs 3 oz (4 lbs 12 oz at 2 days old). She was 6 weeks early and her courageous battle in the NICU taught me how strong I was (and what a kick ass little girl I had!). She spent 2 weeks struggling to learn how to breathe but once she figured it out that was it. She has continued to learn like that. She starts everything off slowly but once she decides to do it she just does. Like walking. After 9 months of seemingly unproductive physical therapy she just walked one day (at 20 months old). After being silent for her first 18 months of life, one morning she just began talking. 2 days later she was putting words together. I think Rachel senses when we are getting concerned about her not doing something and just begins to do it!

Likes

Stinky & binky (her blanket and pacifier!). Stinky is a light green fleece blanket that we got when she was born from the hospital. She was wrapped up in it for days because she couldn't regulate her body temps very well. After she came home we continued to wrap her in it because it smelled like the NICU and it comforted her. Somewhere around her first birthday I realized that she loves this blanket and sleeps with it every night! Stinky never left her crib until a few months ago when Rachel decided that she needs both the blanket and the pacifier all the time. I still try to limit her use of them, but come on! The girl started walking, talking AND got a new sibling all at the same time???? Heck, I could use a comfort object and I am 31 years older than her :) Oh the blanket gets it name from well, the stench of it! Rachel hates having it washed and sniffs it to clam herself down (can we all say ewwww together?)

She also likes: the Very Hungry Caterpillar book. It is handed to me every single night. She will tolerate another story if you read that one first!, playing with her brother's toys - most noteably the sit and spin - she loves that!
Dislikes

Her older brother most days! Being disciplined, peas, and messes. Rachel loves to clean up and put things away! I need to write that down so when her room is a disaster when she's a teenager I can remind her of how she used to be!!! She also seems to dislike barrettes since she takes them out all the time!

Will grow up to be:

An Engineer! Rachel loves to examine everything! She is quiet and methodical. She enjoys fitting things together (puzzles, etc) and analyzes all situations before reacting. Maybe she'll be an astronaut!!!

When her new brother came home Rachel immediately developed a "maternal instinct". She is always patting his head, giving him pacifiers, blankets, and doll bottles. If he cries she makes sure every knows it!

She is sweet and kind. Always been an "easy" kid - sleeps well, eats well, plays well. Of course she has also had 11 months of physical therapy and is on month 3 of her speech therapy which would make her seem like a high needs child but she really isn't.

Oh, and I am glad I have a daughter :)

Mothering the Woody doll

With Stink & Bink on Easter

Ryan

In an effort to post more regularly I thought I'd start with a post about each of my babies, starting with the oldest

RYAN

Born - 10/8/2004 after 36 hours of labor and 3 hours of pushing!

My biggest baby at 8lbs 3oz

Likes: Veggie Tales - more specifically, Silly Songs With Larry which we listen to almost continously in the van, Spongebob, watching hockey with Daddy, pizza with Mushrooms, the color red. Also likes to bargain and argue with me

Dislikes: sleep! Naps! Sleeping in his own bed! Being told no! That's pretty much it

Will grow up to be: A lawyer! Most likely a litigator given his propensity for arguing and his sense of fairness - I can not tell you how many times a day I hear "That's not Faiiiiiirrrr"

Ryan was my fist born. The one who showed me that my heart could break wide open with love. He is also my mini-me! He not only looks so much like me that upon finding a picture of a 3 year old me said "I don't remember having long hair and wearing a dress", he has my personality which is stubborn and agrumentative. We get into dead locked arguements sometimes and I frequently hear myself in him. It is funny (sometimes).

He is also the sweetest love bug EVER! He constantly hugs and kisses all of us and tells us he loves us (ignore the hugely pregnant lady in the picture)

When I was pregnant with Joey Ryan also had a baby in his tummy. HIs baby was named Jack and liked grapes! Ryan also reprimanded the fetal Joey for kicking me complete with a threat for a time out!

He adores his brother. Wants to hold him, kiss him, and (yikes!) carry him all the time!!! I am so grateful for the love he shows for them. As for his sister? Well, he likes her but doesn't like when she plays with his toys (which is all the time - her toys are no good aparently!) or when I direct my attention to her!

Ryan is 3 and half. He'll be going to VBS this summer and then preschool in the fall - how did that happen???

STILL ALIVE!!!!

WOW - what a long time it has been since I posted on the old blog. I feel bad because I really like to use this as a record of all the cute things the kids say and do!
So, let's play catch up shall we?
Otober - December:
Uneventful 3rd trimester marred only by a panic trip to L&D for what I thought were ruptured membranes but turned out to be very weak bladder control (I am still SOOOO embarassed by that!) and the fact that I had biophysical profile ultrasounds every week because, yet again, the level of amniotic fluid was low. Low enough to warrant concern but not another preemie - YAY!
Also in December - Christmas day to be exact, Rachel learned to stand unsupported at exactly 18 months & 1 day! I was so proud of her!!! Her physical therapist was as well but was also very concerned by how she pronates her feet (a bilateral pronation to be exact!) and we were off to the orthotist for ankle foot orthotics (AFOs - sounds like a cheesy band from the 90s doesn't it?).
January - what an eventful month!!!
1/7 - Rob's grandma passed away. Christmas morning she had blacked out in her bathroom and once she got to the hospital they discovered some issue with her bowels. I believe that they were dying off. She had surgery and was doing better. My MIL left Detroit and came home on the 6th. She dies the next morning.
Funeral was scheduled for the 10th and I really wanted Rob to go BUT I was 38 weeks pregnant! The day before the funeral I had an U/S and midwife appointment so he tagged along. The deal was if I wasn't dilated at all and the fluid was okay (meaning no induction) Rob was going to go.
1/9 Well, I had my first internal of this pregnancy and I was..... 3cm, 90% effaced, and the midwife could feel Joey's head! So yeah, Rob wasn't going anywhere :) She stripped my membranes and sent me home to have the baby!!! Honestly I was suprised I was dilated - I had been having inconsistent contractions for a week (I had some the weekend before that had us packing our bags!) but I was suprised I was that far along! Left the office and went back to work! Started getting regular contractions (every 7-8 minutes) towards the end of the day so I headed home. Of course they promptly died after I got home
1/10 I chose not to go to work because I was honestly afraid my water would break there. of course, I had zero contractions that day
1/11 4am - I woke up to STRONG contractions - REALLY strong and REALLY close!!! I woke Rob, called my mom to come watch the kids, called the midwives, and waited. Most of this morning is a blur but I do remember throwing the address book at Rob and telling him to call our neighbors and that I would be in the car waiting. I felt like I couldn't wait for my mom any longer. I was sweating and naseuous with each contraction and in some serious pain! I remember telling Rob when he woke up that we were going to meet our little guy before lunch, when I was in the car waiting for him I realized it would be before breakfast!
Rob get sin the car and we got the first red light on our way. He must have known I was not kidding about needing to get to the hospital when I told him to just run it! I also felt the need to throw up and told him NOT to pull over! I puked in one of his dirty chef coats that was in the car (I guess I owe OG a new chef coat now!).
Rob says that he didn't realize how serious I was until we got to the hospital and I asked for the wheelchair (I had gracefully walked to L&D each time before!)!!!
So we get to triage and I get hooked up. About 3 minutes later there was a whirlwind of activity. The nurse was paging for someone, anyone, to come check me (she tells me later because the contractions were right on top of each other - duh! I could have told her that!). A staff midwife came to check me at 5:55am and informed that I was right, I would not be getting an epidural as I was 9 cm and ready to "go"!!!
6:00 we get to a LDRP room and in the process of transferring me from gurney to bed - POP! my water broke. Of course, G3 had decided to poop before birth so they called the NICU team (incluing one of our faves from Rachel's stay!). My midwife showed up and had no sooner finished washing her hands when I gave a mighty push and this is what we got:

Allow me to introduce....
Joseph Robert G, born at 6:24 am (after 2 hours of labor!)on January 11, 2008
He was 7 lbs 2 oz and 19.5 inches. It took me 3 tried but I finally got my medium sized, on time baby with a natural delivery (that I seriosuly didn't want at that point - the delivery not the baby!!!!)
Crazy? Yes, but life has been insane every since!
In the 3 months since Joey's birth the following has happened:
- Rachel got her AFOs and started cruising
- my grandmother passed away (1/20)
- Ryan started music appreciation classes and Loves them!
- Rachel started walking (about the last week of February). She was 20 months old at the time!
- Joey is a great baby :) He had a little bit of a slow start on breastfeeding but is quite the champ now! He is snuggly and smiley and we can't imagine ourlives without him!
I want to get back into blogging so I'll save the details on all the kids until later. Now I'll leave you with some pictures:

Ryan meets Joey

Contrary to the look Rachel is giving she really does seem to love her "baaabee"
Ryan incorporates Joey into arts and crafts time!


Rachel FINALLY has enoug hair for pigtails!!!

Joey at 10 weeks - what a little clown!