Weekend Away

We weren't planning on doing much for our anniversary, but a couple of weeks ago my mom offered to come out and babysit Isabella for the weekend so we could get away. We took the opportunity and went to Sioux Falls for the weekend. It was a great time of shopping, catching a movie, and lots of eating out! We had a lot of fun, but I did find myself missing Isabella. Last night I sat in the hotel room and scrolled through pictures of her on Monte's cell phone, yikes - you'd think it had been weeks since I'd seen her! She was excited to see us today, but had a great time with Grandma.

Five years ago today

I married my best friend! We have gone through so much in the past five years, but it has only made us stronger (Although I don't wish to repeat any major health issues any time soon). I love our life together, and I love watching him with our daughter, what an awesome daddy!

Christmas with three 1 year olds

Cousins and best friends

All the grandkids (I think there's a couple that aren't crying) :)

Hmmm, I think you've got something in your eye, let me help you out with that!

This Christmas was -

exhausting, chaotic, and FUN!

Merry Christmas!

I will be away from the blog until after Christmas, I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas!

Big Day

Isabella called me "Mommy" for the first time today, and has about 500 times since because I praised her so much the first time. Let me tell ya, there is nothing like the feeling you get when your child calls you Mommy for the first time. I'm still recovering emotionally! :)

Signing

For anyone interested, I found this good website about infant signing. I'm excited to start doing this with Isabella. This morning I showed her the sign to have her diaper changed, and she did it right away (she's such an imitator) I'm sure she probably doesn't know what it means yet, but she can do it. I picked out some that I want to teach her besides diaper change - hungry, thirsty, bed, help me, thank you, and daddy. This should be fun!

Growing Up

Isabella seems to really be growing up lately, I still like to think of her as a baby but I suppose she's not, really. It seems like her birthday was quite a while ago, it's hard to believe that the day she was supposed to be born (her due date) was only a couple of days ago! She stands up without holding on to anything and I'm sure will be walking by herself any day now. She's been done with her bottle for about a month now, which I was so worried about, but it was actually a very easy transition. She refuses to eat any sort of baby food and has moved on to all "real" food. She eats all by herself with her little fork, which is very nice for me! We opted to start giving her organic whole milk, as it is not from cows that have had growth hormones. I've never bought so much milk before, she drinks SO much! Another thing that is nice about her getting older is that she can communicate with us much better, I actually know what she wants. She points at everything she wants. She also lets us know when she is all done eating, all done playing in the bath, or just plain all done being up because she wants to go to bed. She does the sign for all done which works so good, I think I should teach her some other signs. Has this worked well for anyone else? I don't really know too many signs, but I'm sure it would be easy to look up on the internet. She says a few words other than her ma ma and da da that she's been doing for months. She now says "baby". However, besides referring to herself as baby, all animals are also babies according to her. She also says "bye bye" and "nye nye" for night night. She gives us hugs and blows kisses, can show you wear her ears, nose, and tummy is, but as much as I love this little girl that is growing up right before my eyes, I miss the tiny, helpless, little baby that couldn't do anything. It just makes me realize I could totally do this all over again.

Here we go again

This time it's me that's sick, and I pray Isabella doesn't get it! I feel so bad because Isabella and I were supposed to leave today to go stay at my sister's house for the week. I was going to babysit my niece until Thursday. I was hoping maybe I would be feeling better tomorrow, then we could go. However, she just called me and said she's got someone else lined up for the week, she doesn't want us bringing germs right before Christmas. I don't blame her, I wouldn't want that either! It's really not too bad, I have a fever and feel pretty "blah" but that's about it. Isabella is doing a really good job of playing by herself while I lounge around, so that helps.

So Creative

Isabella is obsessed with walking behind her little walker. However, she keeps having one small problem, anything she sees has to come with her while she is walking. This has become quite the problem as it looks very hard to try and hold on to the walker as well as a blankie, a teddy bear, a doll, various puzzle pieces, jars of baby food, my coasters, etc. So being the wonderfully creative mommy that I am (ya right! :) ), I fashioned this for her

As you can see, I have made her a lovely basket to keep all of her "treasures" in. What is it you might ask becuase you would like to have one for yourself? A ziploc container and electrical tape. She's absolutely tickled about it!

Learning New Things

This probably isn't of much interest to anyone, but I find it so interesting. I just received a book that I ordered about Crohn's Disease. Living with a husband with a chronic illness makes me want to do everything I possibly can to help him feel good and live a normal life. I feel that some of the things I can do for him are to always cook very healthy, made-from-scratch foods and try to do everything I can to reduce his stress level. Since diet and stress have a huge affect on Crohn's. So after skimming through this great book (I'll hopefully have time to actually read it after Christmas) I've learned that I'm not doing much good for the poor guy! The book states that healthy foods, such as anything with whole wheat, whole grain, etc are terrible for people with Crohn's Disease. That's about all I buy is whole grain everything! There is something in their gut that normal people don't have that makes them unable to digest and process these products. There is also a long list of certain fruits and vegetables that they can't tolerate as well, along with dairy, which we knew and he hasn't had in years. I'm bummed because many of the fruits and vegetables are our favorites that we have all the time. Yet I am very glad to know about them. So . . . we finally know why Monte feels absolutely horrible when we go to my parents and he feels great when we go to his parents. My parents eat the healthiest of anyone I know - all whole grains, all fruit and vegetables, all the time, and practically nothing else. On the other hand, Monte's parents, well - let's just say they are not the healthiest of eaters. It's so crazy because he always makes comments about how he always gets really sick at my parents and feels wonderful at his parents. He's somewhere in between here. So now I need to find a happy medium, I don't want to cook seperately for him, but I probably will have to sometimes. I still want Isabella and I to get the healthy whole grains and fruits and vegetables. I'm so glad to know this information!

Why?

Why do I do this to myself? I feel like I've gained five pounds in the last two days. Seriously. I've made five different kinds of Christmas cookies since yesterday, and I feel like I've eaten as many as I've made. And why did I have to pick up an extra bag of Hershey's Kisses, I knew I wouldn't need them all for the peanut blossoms. Oh yeah, and that bag of chocolate santas, well I had a coupon so I HAD to get them, right?!? I suppose, I better roll myself back into the kitchen and clean up my sugar cookie mess. Ugh, I'm not feeling so well, maybe it was too much frosting . . . or kisses . . . or chocolate santas . . . or it might have been the bon bons . . . or

Photo Session

I admit - I take a lot of pictures. I just love taking pictures, it has become quite the hobby for me, and I'm trying to learn a little bit more about photography. Here are the latest. If I didn't already have a family picture taken for our Christmas card I think I would definitely use one of these.

Busy, Busy

We arrived home from my parents on Thursday. It was so nice to go home and spend time with my family, I haven't done that in a long time. Unfortunately I didn't get to see my brother and his family because they all had the stomach flu, so I was disappointed about that. I was really looking forward to spending time with my niece and nephews. We went to see my grandma one day, and went Christmas shopping another day. I was a little worried about the car ride there and back. I have never driven that far (4 hours) alone with Isabella. She did okay on the way there, kind of whiny on and off and I stopped once to give her a snack. But on the way back, she literally never made one peep. I kept looking back thinking she was sleeping but she was just looking out the window. She doesn't sleep much in the car, I don't know why. She takes 3 hour naps at home, but even if I'm leaving right before nap time, she will only sleep about 30 - 45 minutes in the car. A little odd for someone who loves to sleep! Isabella loved playing the piano at Grandma and Grandpa's house, hopefully someday I will have a piano of my own. I miss playing so much. I don't realize how much I miss it until I go home and get to play.

Yesterday we went to town so Monte could get his haircut, he dropped Isabella and I off at Wal-Mart. I do not recommend going to Wal-Mart on a Saturday during the Christmas season. You might not come out alive! Luckily we escaped without any serious injuries. :)

We have some busy days ahead, as I have yet to do any Christmas baking and I told my mom I would bring all the cookies for Christmas. I have this week to do it, then we are celebrating Christmas with Monte's parents next weekend. The week after that Isabella and I are going to my sister's to take care of her little girl. Then it is Christmas! Advent seems to be flying by, but baking, shopping, etc. are not what's really important about preparing for Christmas anyway.

Wonderful Weekends

I have been home full time with Isabella for exactly one month now. I would have to say what I am enjoying the most are my weekends. The first weekend after I quit working felt so weird (but in a good way), Monte and I were both trying to remember the last weekend we spent home together as a family. We honestly could not remember when we had spent a weekend at home together!! It seemed I worked most weekends, and when I wasn't working we would try to cram trips home to visit family. Isabella and I made a trip to the bank this past Thursday to visit former co -workers, and now friends. Everyone I talked to asked me the same thing, "Do you miss working?" Ummm, let me think about that, NO. I answered honestly and told them ,no. I wonder if they thought that was weird! I don't miss getting up early, I don't miss the 50 minute drive, I don't miss the rude, mean customers that used to yell at me and threaten me for things I had no control over ( sure there were nice ones, too of course). I don't miss the drive home in the dark, always worrying about hitting a deer or some other form of wonderful South Dakota wildlife! And I especially don't miss only seeing my Isabella Ann for about an hour a day when I worked! I do miss most of my co-workers, some of whom I have become very close to, but we call, email, or visit each other so even that doesn't bother me. I am loving this time home on the weekends, relaxing with my husband and daughter. It's been four years since I haven't had to work on weekends, I am living the life I have always wanted, and I thank God for that everyday!

I may be on hiatus for the next week. Depending on the weather, Isabella and I plan to make the four hour drive to my parents to visit for the week. They live in the stone ages, as they don't have the internet! :)

Curly Q

I can't believe it, Isabella is finally getting hair!! It still doesn't look like much from this view

But look at all the curls that are showing up in the back!

- 1

That is the temperature here right now. I think winter has arrived!

Monte's first day went well, he said his brain hurt from all the new stuff there is to learn. I know what he means, I remember when I started working at the bank. I thought I would never learn everything, I felt so stupid. But after a while it just gets easier and easier. Isabella missed her daddy yesterday, he's been home with us for the last week. At one point during the day she crawled around from room to room yelling "DA DA DA". It made me sad. Then when he got home she was SO excited and hyper! She was an absolute goofball showing off for him, we had such a good time. Monte was concerned about driving to work when the weather gets bad because we live about 20 miles from where he works, and it takes him almost two hours to snowblow when we get a lot of snow. His boss told him not to worry about it at all, that they don't expect him to come when the weather is really bad because work is not that important. He told Monte that God and family always come first. I thought that was really neat, what a great boss!

First Day

Today is the first day of Monte's new job, it is going to be quite the adjustment for all three of us. We are so excited about his job, but it is going to be a little hard because we are so used to having him home quite a bit. He worked from home a lot with his old job, so he was usually home around 1:00 or 2:00 in the afternoon. Some days he worked from home all day. But even though he was working, Isabella and I were so used to him being here, so it's going to be very different, and I know she's going to miss her daddy. He got to set his own hours with his old job, and now it's strictly 9:00 to 5:00. The one thing that will be nice, though, is he can leave his work at the office. No more making phone calls and faxing all evening from home. He is worried he won't be able to spend much time with her because she goes to bed between 6:30 and 7:00. But I guess even though he won't be home as much, the time that he will have at home will be more quality time with his family which will definitely be nice!

This morning before work.

Isabella started feeling much better on Wednesday afternoon so we were able to go to Monte's sister's for Thanksgiving from Thursday - Saturday. It was a great time, his whole family was there. I hope everyone else had a good Thanksgiving as well!

It was bound to happen

I should have known that Isabella going 11 months without even getting so much as a sniffle would catch up to her. She was healthy for a whole three days after her week-long intestinal virus. Now she has had a fever/bad cough/runny, stuffy nose since Sunday night. Monte ended his old job on Friday and starts his new one this coming Monday, so we had all sorts of fun plans for his week off. Of course we haven't done anything other than take care of a sick baby. We were also going to leave today to go to his sister's house for Thanksgiving, (about 3 1/2 hours away) that didn't happen either. We still are hoping to be able to leave tomorrow morning as soon as Isabella wakes up. I pray she's better tomorrow! We took her in to the doctor today -he said it just has to run it's course. If it could hurry up and run its course a little faster that would be okay with me!

It's Beginning to look a lot like Christmas

The snow was falling all day yesterday - a perfect day to decorate for Christmas!

Isabella was so excited to watch me put up all the decorations yesterday. I thought maybe it would be a challenge keeping her away from the tree and all the other Christmas decorations, but so far she hasn't even gone near them, she likes to just admire them from afar.

Crafts

Now that winter is approaching I'm so excited to get back into some of the "indoor" activities that I love. Today Isabella and I went to this awesome store called The Knit Nook. My intentions were to buy everything I needed to teach myself how to knit, but I admit when I got there and started looking through everything, I got a little intimidated. It seemed confusing. So since I know how to cross-stitch I got a neat cross stitch project to work on, and I also got some new crochet hooks. My grandma taught me how to crochet when I was pretty young, but I've hardly ever done it. I'm going to try to teach myself how to do that all over again, so we'll see how that goes!

The Walker

Just what I needed

I absolutely love staying home with Isabella, but sometimes it's really good to get out by yourself (especially after being home for a week with a sick baby). Last night my friend, Susan, called and we went out to eat and left the kids at home with their dads. It was wonderful to get out and chat with my dear friend. After supper we attended another friend's At Home America party, I had never been to one before. I am so excited about my purchase, I got this nativity set, which I love because it reminds me of the Willow Tree Angel nativity set - only it's a fraction of the price. We were given a nativity set for our wedding, but it broke last year. Now I feel rejuvinated after last night and I am ready for the week, clingy baby and all!

Permanently Attached

That's how I feel about Isabella right now. She's doing much better! She wants to eat today for the first time in a week. So far this morning she's already had a jar of baby food, some banana, and some cheerios! That's a lot for her. I totally babied her while she was sick, so now that she's feeling better she doesn't understand why I'm not holding her and rocking her 24/7. She's never been attached to me like this - I think it's going to be a long week.

To the doctor and back

I was definitely wrong the other morning when I said I thought Isabella was getting better. The poor thing has hardly eaten anything in 6 days!! Last night we had to wake her up at midnight to change her diaper, clothes, and sheets. Then I put her in bed with us, and at 3:00 this morning, while she was cuddling with me, she proceeded to throw up all over my face!!! The thought of anyone doing that to me absolutely grosses me out, but it's funny when it's your own child, I didn't even care. I just felt so bad for her. We took her to the urgent care clinic this morning where the doctor said it's a mixture of a virus along with her teething. She said since she's not in daycare she's not too concerned about it being rotovirus, but even if it was there's nothing they could do since it is a virus. She doesn't seem too dehydrated so they sent us home and said to offer pedialyte every half hour. I'm SO concerned about her not eating, but the doc said it's more important that she's getting fluids and she'll eat when she's ready. I hope that's soon!

Feeling a little better

She's doing much better than yesterday, but still not 100 %. Yesterday she just wanted me to hold her, she didn't "talk" or want to play very much. Today she is cheerful and wants to play. She still doesn't have an appetite, but is drinking her pedialyte good. This picture is from yesterday when she was really sick. And on another note she said her first words last night, other than ma ma and da da. She said "bye bye" before she went to bed.

Mommy let me have my passy during the day since I was sick.

Sick

My little angel is sick. This is the first time she has been sick since she had a bad cold when she was three weeks old. She's hardly eaten anything the last couple of days and had diarrhea really bad. This morning it was so bad we had to cut her onesie off of her! She was up at 6:00, which is early for her, but back in bed by 7:30. Hopefully she sleeps a while longer yet. I sent a list with Monte for him to pick up after work today - Huggies overnight diapers, pedialyte, and when I called the nurse this morning she said to get some special formula that helps with diarrhea. I don't know if we'll use it, but might have to to get some calories in her. I'm desperate, and I know she's already lost weight. I think we'll be doing lots of cuddling today, hopefully she feels better soon.

Growing Girl (kind of)

Isabella had her 1 year checkup today. She seems to be slowing down growthwise. She weighs 19 pounds and is 28.8 inches long. She's only grown 0.8 inches and gained about half a pound in three months. The doctor said she is doing really good, though, so I'm happy. She wears twelve month clothes now! She hasn't had much of an appetite lately, so I've been concerned about that. He said it's more than likely a phase or else it could be related to all the teeth she's getting.

Cookies, Cookies, Cookies

I received this in my email the other day. I think it is so neat!

If you didn't realize Christmas is less than 2 months away! Happy Baking!!!

Just click on the name of the cookie and bam the recipe is there.


1-2-3 Cookies 7 Layer Cookies Allie Nelson's Famous Snickerdoodle Cookies Almond Crescent Shortbread Amish Sugar Cookies Andies Candies Cookies Angel Crisps Angenets Applesauce Cookies Apricot Fold-Overs Aunt Edy's Molasses Crinkles Auntie Linda's Ginger Gems Bakeless Dream Cookies Banana Drop Cookies Best Chocolate Chip Cookies in the World Biscotti Biscotti Blueberry Cookies Boiled Chocolate Oatmeal Drop Cookies Bronwnies Brown Sugar Shortbread Brownie Cookies Brownie Delight Brownies Buccaneer Snowballs Buried Cherry Cookies Butter Cookies Butter Nut Balls Butterballs Butterscotch Haystacks C.O.P. Cookies Candy Cane Cookies Candy Cookies Caramel Shortbread Cheesecake Brownies Cherry Buns Cherry Crowns Cherry Winks Chewies Chewy Noels Chinese Chews/Haystacks Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars Chocolate Chip Cookies Chocolate Chip Meltaways Chocolate Chip Peanut Butter Cookies Chocolate Christmas Trees Chocolate Cream Cheese Squares Chocolate Crinkles Chocolate Mint Snow-Top Cookies Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies (no bake) Chocolate Snowball Cookies Chocolate Streusel Bars Chocolate Sundae Cookies Chocolate Walnut Crumb Bars Choco-Scotch Crunchies Choose A Cookie Dough Recipe Christmas Crackers Christmas Crunch Bars Christmas Ginger Snaps Christmas Macaroons Christmas Mice Cookies Christmas Shaped Cookies Church Window Cookies Coconut Cookies Congo Squares Cookie in a Jar Corn Flakes Cookies Cornflake Christmas Wreaths Cowboy Cookies (oatmeal) Cream Cheese Cookies with Apricot Filling Crème De Menthe Chocolate Squares Crème Wafers Crescent Cookies Crispy Crunchies Date Nut Balls Date-nut Pinwheel Cookies Diabetic Peanut Butter Cookies Disgustingly Rich Brownies Doodles Double chocolate chip cookies Double-Chocolate Crinkles Eatmore Cookies Eggnog Cookies Elizabeth's Sugar Cookies Elves Quick Fudge Brownies Emily Dickinson's Gingerbread Cookie Recipe Emily's Best Brownies Famous Oatmeal Cookies Firemen Cookies Fluffy Shortbread Cookies Forgotten Cookies Frosted Peanut Butter Brownies Fruit Cake Cookies Fruitcake Squares Fry Pan Cookies Gems Ginger Cookies Ginger Crinkles Gingerbread Baby Gingerbread Cookies with Butter Cream Icing Gingerbread Men Gingerbread Men Ginny's Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies Glory's Golden Graham Squares Glory's Sugar Cookies Gramma Chapman's chocolate coconut drops Grandma Elsie's Zimt (cinnamon) Cookies Grandma J's Butter Cookies Grandma Olson's Parkay Cookies Great Grandmothers Sugar Cookies Gum Drop Cookies Gumdrop Gems Haystack Cookies Ho-Ho Bars Holiday Cereal Snaps Holiday Chocolate Butter Cookies Holiday Raisin Walnut Bars Holly Cookies Hungarian Cookies (Little Nut Rolls) Ice Box Cookies Irresistible Peanut Butter Cookies Italian Cookies Jacob's Peppermint Snowballs Jam Bars Jessica's Famous Brownies Jessie's Chocolate Chip Cookies Jubilee Jumbles Juliet's Peanut Butter Blossoms Jumbo Chocolate Chip Cookies Kentucky Colonels Kiefle (cream cheese cookies with jam filling) Kifflings Kiss Cookies Lacy Swedish Almond Wafers Lemon Angel Bar Cookies Lemon Bars Lemon Cake Cookies Lemon Cream Cheese Cookies Lemon Squares Linzer Tarts Log Cabin Cookies Luscious Lemon Squares M&M Cookies Magic Cookie Bars Melt in Your Mouth Cutout Sugar Cookies Melting Shortbread Meme's Cream Cheese Cookies Milk Chocolate Florentine Cookies Mincemeat Cookies Mincemeat Goodies Molasses Cookies Molasses Forest Cookies Molasses Sugar Cookies Mom Mom's Crescent Cookies Mom-Mom's Ginger Cookies Mom's Nutmeg Sugar Cookies Mom's Old Fashion "Puffy" Sugar Cookies Monster Cookies Moravian Christmas Cookies Nana's Famous Soft Southern Cookies Nitey Nite Cookies No Bake Chocolate Cookies No Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies No Bake Cookies No Bake Cookies No Bake Peanut Butter Cookies No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies No-Bake Cookies Norwegian Sugar Cookies Nut Balls Oatmeal Bars Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Nut Cookies Oatmeal Coconut Crisps Oatmeal Cookies Oatmeal Scotchies Old Fashioned Sugar Cookies Ooey Gooey Caramel Chocolate Dunk Ooey Gooey Squares Orange Slice Cookies Parking Lot Cookies Peanut Blossoms Peanut Butter Bars Peanut Butter Blossoms Peanut Butter Cereal Cookies Peanut Butter Chewies Peanut Butter Chocolate Bars Peanut Butter Cookies Peanut Butter Cookies Peanut butter fingers Peanut Butter Reindeer Peanut Butter Surprises Peanut Marshmallow Cookies Pecan Puff Cookies Peppermint Snowballs Peppernuts Persimmon Cookies Persimmon Cookies Petey's Yummy Spicy Almond Thins Pfeffernuesse Pffefferneuse Cookies Pineapple Filled Cookies Pizzelles Potato Chip Cookies Potato Flake Cookies Praline Cookies Praline Strips Pterodactyl Nests Pumpkin Bars Pumpkin Bars Pumpkin Chip Cookies Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies Pumpkin Cookies Queen Biscuits Quick Cookies Raised Sugar Cookies Raisin Filled Oatmeal Bars Raspberry Meringue Bars Really Peanutty Butter Cookies Reese`s Brownies Reese's Peanut Butter Bars Rich Flavor Christmas Cookies Rich Lemon Bars Ricotta Cheese Cookies Royal Almond Christmas Bars Rudolph Cinnamon Cookies Russian Tea Cookies Russian Teacakes Samantha & Kelsey's Chocolate Chip Cookies Sand Art Brownies Santa Claus Cookie Pops Santa Claus Cookies Santa's Butterscotch Melts Santa's Shorts Santa's Special Squares Scotch Cakes Scotch Shortbread Scotcharoos Scotcheroos Seven Layer Cookies Short Bread Cookies Shortbread Skor Squares Snicker Doodle Cookies Snickerdoodles Snickerdoodles Snow Balls Sour Cream Apple Squares Sour Cream Christmas Cookies Special K Cookies Spice Cookies Spicy Oatmeal Raisin Cookie Spritz Cookies Stained Glass Window Cookies Stir & Drop Sugar Cookies Sugar Cookies Sugar Cookies Sugar Cookies Swedish Pepparkakor (Pepper Cake) Cookies Swedish Sugar Cookies Sweet Marie's Swiss Treats Taralle (Italian Cookies) Tea Time Tassies Texas Brownies The Best Shortbread in The World Thumbprint Cookies Thumbprint Cookies Toffee Squares Traditional Christmas Sugar Cookies Traditional Gingerbread Men Cookies Triple-Chocolate Chip Cookies Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies Vanilla Waffer Balls Walnut Butter Cookies Walnut Crumb Bars White Chip Chocolate Cookies Wild Oatmeal Cookies Will's Famous Apple Jack Cookies Yummy Yummy Peanut Butter Blossoms

The Birthday Girl

Happy Birthday to my baby girl!

Where did this time go?? In one way, it seems like you were just born. In another way, haven't we had you forever? I love you more than I ever thought possible. Loving and caring for you is my purpose in life, for so long I struggled with what I wanted to do with my life - now I know. I was put here to be your mommy.

Teddy bears and seas of blue

Smiling in honor of you

An infant, not long ago

Now, one candle is aglow

You are growing up so fast

How quickly a year has passed

You are special, sweet, and wise

A present before our eyes.

For a year, I’ve watched you shine

An angel I can call mine

Sent from Heaven, just for me

Filled with hope and dignity

A blessing, now and always

You brighten all of my days

Precious child, I love you so

More than anyone could know.

Baby’s breath and sun-filled skies

Ladybugs and lullabies

Starry nights and bright moonbeams

Tender hearts and lasting dreams

Each, a gift within your view

During this time, made for you

May only good things come your way

On this, your very first birthday.

© 2007 – Jill Eisnaugle’s Poetry Collection

It's Official

Today was my last day of work, yay!!!

First Halloween

I'm not a huge fan of halloween, but I thought it would be cute to dress Isabella up and take her to a couple of the neighbors' houses. She got a box of animal crackers at one house, and a book at the other. They also gave her some awesome toys for her birthday, they spoil her!

In case you're wondering - she's a baby doll. It was a very cheap costume, all I had to do was buy some yarn!

Our Little Miracle

Isabella's upcoming birthday has got me doing a lot of reminiscing lately. There are a lot of people who have amazing stories about how they became parents, and the struggles they went through to have a family.
This is the story of my sweet baby girl.

We were so thrilled to be pregnant after Monte's health problems. For three years we didn't know if it would be possible due to the drugs he was taking. But when he finally got better we very quickly found out we would be parents. I didn't expect anything out of the ordinary to happen. Then one night when I was driving home from work everything changed! After a very stressful day at work, I started feeling contractions on my drive home - I was only 24 weeks pregnant. How could this be happening? We called the hospital, then both Monte's and my parents, who both stayed up late into the night saying rosaries for us. The next day at the hospital they were able to stop my labor with some injections of a couple of different drugs. They sent me home and put me on bedrest along with some medication to stop contractions. I seriously thought I would be fine in a week or so and go back to a normal life. Silly me. From that time on until Isabella was born at 34 weeks I had constant contractions anywhere from 2 - 10 minutes apart! I was hospitalized 6 different times. I actually liked hospital bedrest better than bedrest at home - I felt more safe in the hospital and I had lots of people around to keep me company. During one hospital stay I came down with Shingles due to the stress, which besides childbirth was definitely THE most painful thing I have ever experienced. During another hospital stay, my doctor felt the baby would be coming very shortly. They transferred me by ambulance to the only hospital in the state equipped to care for babies born before 34 weeks ( I was at 31 weeks). I was an absolute wreck when the ambulance came to get me, I was so scared. But when the EMT came in the room, I knew everything would be okay, he was wearing the Miraculous Medal! It was so shiny, it was the first thing that caught my eye and it gave me such a good feeling. I felt so bad for Monte, driving by himself the whole way behind the ambulance and not knowing what was going on. Things slowed down once I got to the new hospital, but they kept me there until they felt it was safe for the baby to be delivered at my hospital. My goal was to get to 34 weeks. From what I had read and what the neonatologist told us, there was a good chance the baby would not have to be on a feeding tube any time after 34 weeks. We had been home for a few days, when at 34 weeks and one day, my water broke in the middle of the night. We arrived at the hospital around 7:00 in the morning. My labor went pretty fast due to the months of contractions I had. (I went from being 4 cm dilated to 10 cm and having her completely pushed out in 15 minutes!!) However, the scariest was to come. They were unable to pick up her heartbeat on the monitor before she was born. When she came out they announced we had a little girl - but there was nothing, no crying, no moving, just nothing! She had no heartbeat, and she was not breathing. Monte and I watched as a team of 7 doctors and nurses were franticly working on her, breathing for her, hooking her up to all sorts of machines. How could this be happening? How could I lose my precious girl after all I went through? I remember saying the Hail Mary over and over again as I layed there and watched them work on her, it's the only thing that came to my mind. Then after the longest seven minutes of my life, we heard a faint little whimper. They immediately took her out of the room at that point. Monte got to go with but I didn't get to see her for about an hour. It was so sad, they had her hooked up to all sorts of machines and had tubes coming out of her. But she was here, and she was alive, and I was a mom! She did so well, though, she was breathing room air on her own only an hour later. We had to give her bottles right away since she was a preemie, and the doctor didn't want her losing weight. Unfortunatley she was never able to nurse, so I pumped for the first 3 months. But I feel like I really missed out on something special with her. Her lungs were underdeveloped so she literally never cried for the first few months, and very rarely after that ( I think she just never knew how after going so long without). She also slept A LOT more than normal and still does. Other than that she has been a completely normal, healthy, happy little girl. We are so blessed to have her in our lives, she has changed us forever. The whole experience has made my faith SO much stronger. My doctor tells me with each pregnancy these problems are more likely to happen and the baby is more likely to be born even earlier each time, but I guess we'll worry about that when the time comes.

Really, in the end, it doesn't matter what the story is - every single baby is an absolute miracle from God, made perfectly in His image and loved more than anything else in this world.

Finally - A tooth!

It looks like we won't have to get baby dentures after all! :) She has her first tooth, and one more popped through today. Also, about 3 more look like they are going to pop through any time now! I thought they usually get their bottom teeth first, but these are all on top. She hasn't been acting any different and is sleeping great still, so they must not be bothering her too much. Although she does have a bit of a diaper rash for the first time, I've heard that can be caused by teething. Now, if we can just start working on growing some hair . . .

Home Sweet Home

I realized this weekend that going on vacation is not really a vacation when you take a baby with! Well, it's not very relaxing is what I should say. We went to the Twin Cities for a few days. Monte, his dad, and brother-in-law went to aVikings game yesterday. The women (my mother-in-law, sister-in-law, and I), Isabella, and our niece and nephew went to the Mall of America. Isabella did great the whole time we were gone, and she loved shopping. It's just that she has such a routine (which is wonderful at home) it makes it hard to go places. She didn't get her usual naps in, and definitely didn't make it to bed at 7:00 each night. She seemed to handle it quite well, it was probably worse for me. I'm sure she'll sleep a lot for the next couple of days! Overall, it was a good weekend, we got to spend a lot of time with Monte's family. Shopping was fun, and exhausting. But I like to be home, no more washing baby dishes in a hotel bathroom sink, carrying mashed up food everywhere I go, and no more having Isabella strapped into either a car seat or stroller ALL day long. She can finally get on the floor and move around. I think she's glad to be home too!

Praise God from who all Good Things Come

That is the song I have had in my head lately, and it's a very fitting one I might add. We are SO thankful for Monte's new job. Some of you don't know about our "rough" couple of years we had. Monte was diagnosed with Crohn's Disease shortly after we got married. For two years he was unable to work, and was in and out of the hospital. The Mayo Clinic wanted him to be part of a research study, but at the last minute told him he was even too sick for that. I watched my husband lose 50 pounds which he didn't have to lose in the first place. On top of all of that, his insurance would not let him renew his policy due to him being diagnosed with a disease he'll have for the rest of his life. Also, my insurance would not allow me to add him because of this. It was all a very low point in our lives together, I didn't realize when I said "for better or for worse, in sickness and in health" that we would be living the "worse" and "sickness" parts in our early twenties! The Mayo Clinic agreed to see him without insurance (something they don't always do, I guess) however they required a large cash deposit before they would even see him, then before every test he had (MRI, CT scan, etc.) they required the entire test to be paid for beforehand! And they charged WAY more than they did for people with insurance! Thank goodness Monte's parents helped us out, and also the doctors helped out by "sneeking" him in to have tests done without letting the business office know. To make a very long story short, Monte's very small hometown got together and had two benefits for us. They raised enough money to pay for all of our Mayo Clinic bills, all his other health bills, and all of the bills he has had since. Also, mine and Isabella's hospital bills were over $100,000, which of course my insurance paid for, but we still had some bills for that, and the last of his benefit money helped us out with those. I honestly don't know what would have happened to us if they wouldn't have done that.

Fast forward a couple of years to Monte being in MUCH better health, he still struggles with Crohn's and always will but it is nothing like it was. We can have a normal life now. And what has finally helped him is different natural things that he has tried, supplements, probiotics, etc. Some drugs helped, but most did not. He was on a chemo drug for a while, and that did nothing.
Ever since we got married, I was saying novenas that Monte would get a good job so that I could stay home with our children. I thought they didn't work. Monte's current job is a good job, however he does not get insurance with it, and mine and Isabella's insurance is so expensive we couldn't afford to add him IF they would even accept him. So out of the blue about 6 weeks ago, a guy that knows Monte professionaly came up to him and asked if Monte would be interested in taking over his insurance agency!! How ironic is that, after years of no insurance we will eventually own our own insurance agency!! God's hand was all over this, that's for sure! He starts in a few weeks, and 90 days after that we will all have great benefits. Yay! When I called my mom right away to tell her the news, I couldn't believe what she told me. She was in the middle of a 9 day novena, praying that Monte would get a good job with great benefits so I could stay home! And when Monte was offered the job, the guy even told him he would pay him enough so that I could stay home if that's what we wanted. If that's not Divine Intervention I don't know what is! And as for all the novenas I've said in the last almost 5 years since we got married, my mother-in-law just told me about a book she was reading that talked about how novenas are always answered, sometimes not the answer we necessarily want, but in many cases they can take years to be answered!

Happy Birthday to my hubby!

We dug into the cake a little early (yesterday), Isabella enjoyed it!

Two Week Notice

That's what I gave my employer today!!! Yay! I'm trading in suits for sweats, I get to do what I have ALWAYS wanted to do - be a stay at home mom. When I handed my boss my resignation today she tried to entice me into staying, no thank you. The bank has been SO good to me, giving me over 6 months off (almost 3 months of bedrest and over 3 months of maternity leave) with no questions asked. They were so surprised when I actually came back that they gave me a raise and a bonus, so I have to admit that a tiny bit of me feels guilty since they have done such nice things for me. Our prayers have definitely been answered, Monte has a new job opportunity which is why I can stay home now (more on that another time, I'm too tired tonight). I can't wait to start my new "job"! I have a feeling it will be the best job I've ever had!!!

Kids and TV

Before Isabella was born, we decided we would not let her watch TV when she was little and would limit her viewing as she got older. I'm glad we have stuck to that after reading all sorts of articles like this. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no TV before the age of two. This includes "educational" videos such as Baby Einstein. To summarize many articles that I have read - the fast scene changes on TV are damaging to a child's developing brain. After watching TV, children become bored with real life. Many experts feel this is causing a huge increase in ADD, ADHD, and other neurological disorders. It is much, much better for them to interact with people. I will admit, Isabella gets to watch the 5 minute show "Go Baby" every few days while I clip her nails. It makes her sit still so I can clip them.

So just when I thought I was being a good parent for not letting her watch TV, I learned something new. My new issue of Parenting magazine came in the mail today, the first page I opened it to (I was obviously supposed to read the article) was about babies and TV. It said that having a TV on in the background, even if kids aren't paying attention to it, is worse than the baby actually watching TV. Monte and I are guilty of this, not that we have it on all the time. I do love to have the Today show on in the morning (all three hours of it). And it's not that I necesarily watch it either, sometimes I just like some background noise. The article stated that having a TV on in the background makes the child lose his/her ability to focus as well as giving them poor language skills. Our TV is in a cabinet that allows us to close the doors and "hide" it. So that is exactly what I did today, I shut the doors. They will not be opened until 7:00 tonight when Isabella goes to bed.

Here it is . . .

the recipe you've all been waiting for. :) I'm sure not many of you have the need for a sheep cake, but I thought it was cute for a first birthday party. I'm going to make it again for her actual birthday, the theme will be "Happy birthday to ewe!" I know, so clever!! Isabella actually baa-ed when she saw the cake the other day. So here it is, I changed it a little bit by adding pink to make it more "girly". I also used this recipe for the cake, which I highly recommend. They also have a cow and pig cake on that website which are very cute.

A couple of funny things about the cake . . .

When I was making it, my sister looked at the picture and thought the sheep was laying on it's back with all four feet up in the air, she thought the ears were feet. She thought it was much cuter once I explained it to her.

When I told my 8 year old cousin we were having a sheep cake, he got a terrified look on his face. He thought it was a cake made with lamb meat not a cake that looks like a sheep. Gross!

Party Girl

We went to my parents' house this weekend to celebrate Isabella's upcoming birthday with my family. We are having Monte's family come to our house for her actual birthday and this was the only weekend that worked for my family. It was a great day, both my brother and sister and their families were there. My grandma and most of my aunts, uncles, and cousins also came. Isabella was in desperate need of some toys. She has been so sick of her "baby" toys that she hasn't been interested in them for a while now. Monte and I agreed we wouldn't buy her toys except on her birthday and Christmas, we have stuck to that pretty well (of course there has been a couple of exceptions :) ) and I'm glad we did. After this weekend she has so many fun toys to play with, and it's not even her birthday yet! I'm going to put some of them away for a while so she doesn't get overloaded with new toys and then get sick of them, then I will rotate them every once in a while.

This is definitely the first sheep cake I've ever made.

My mom's friend made this rosary for Isabella, I love it and so does Isabella! It's the perfect thing to take to church for her to play with.

Pictures

I don't have anything too exciting to post about, so here's some pictures -

See, I really do have some hair!

Doesn't this look comfortable!

Mommy is trying to decide what I should wear for my one year pictures.

What I did Today

What Isabella did today

Baby Girl

This precious little girl was born yesterday. She was 6 weeks premature (same as Isabella) but she only weighs a little over 3 pounds and is 15 inches long. Her cleft lip and pallette are quite severe, she also is missing most of her nose. They don't have the results back yet from the CT scan, so they don't know about any brain damage yet. They are hoping for a miracle, that she won't have any brain damage. Please keep this precious baby and her family in your prayers.

Silly Girl

I was getting something out of the drawer under her crib when she started laughing at me - that's how it all started! Oh my, the things we'll do to entertain our kid!

11 Months Old

How is it possible my baby is going to be one in another month! Wow, that went fast! She has learned to do so many things. She "talks" all the time, mostly jabbers of course, but she does say ma ma, da da, and ga wa wa wa for grandma. She loves to imitate what other people are doing, she also loves to be read to, dance, and go outside. Most of her day consists of pulling herself up to stand. She still loves to sleep, although that may change when she starts teething. That's right, no teeth yet, not even close! (She's doing something weird with her tongue in this picture, kind of makes it look like teeth). I keep saying she's going to need baby dentures. :)

Stress Relief

I have been a little tired of work lately! Hopefully there will come a day (and soon) when I can stay home with Isabella all the time. I don't mean to complain, I know I am lucky to work part-time, but I miss Isabella! I work this Thursday- Sunday and next Thursday-Sunday. She goes to bed SO early, so she is usually in bed by the time I get home. Tonight I was home about an hour before she went to bed (that is all I saw her the whole day), and she just wanted to be with me all the time. I wonder what she must think. Getting back to the subject of my post, we went for a quick drive around a lake close by tonight. I was looking forward to it all day - good, quality family time. I couldn't ask for more!

Miss Anti-Social

My sister and niece were here for a couple of days to babysit. Isabella, who has always loved her cousin, is now terrified of her. I don't know what is going on, I'm hoping it is some sort of phase she's going through. It may have been that my niece enjoyed hitting Isabella on the head with all sorts of objects, but even when my niece was wanting to give Isabella a toy so they could share, she still would start crying. Isabella didn't even want her coming near her. She wasn't really herself the whole time they were here. They left when Isabella was napping. Monte said when she woke up she looked all over the house, and when she realized they were gone she immediately became her usual, happy self again. Anybody have any experience with this? I'm a little worried she won't play well with other kids.

One of the rare happy times.

Productive Weekend

It's finally done, our house is painted! It's only taken 5 months! I've learned that things take A LOT longer when you have a baby. I knew we had to get it finished because the weather is getting colder. On Saturday both Monte and I painted. He painted the places I refused (or was scared) to paint.

Isabella watched, and thought Daddy looked so funny up on the roof!

On Sunday, Monte stayed inside with Isabella because the weather wasn't very good. I started painting as soon as we got home from Church and finished right before it got dark. I didn't mind painting the actual house, but the back porch was a pain. I felt like I was getting nowhere, and then a little voice in my head said "offer it up" (I'm pretty sure it was my mom's voice, I heard that a lot growing up) :)

I can't even describe what a good feeling it is to get this done, now I feel like I can relax without having that in the back of my mind all the time.