first shoot

this'll be a quick one, since it's late and i am BEAT. i think the photo shoot went pretty well, being my first one... it's MUCH easier to position teens than babies. like that's not obvious... anyway, she knew what she wanted, which was good for me, since i'm not 100% comfortable with telling people what to do. i'm hoping that they're at least partially satisfied, enough to settle on a pose or two, anyway. it was fun, i have to say- despite being really nervous about it for the past few days, i did enjoy myself, and it was a WONDERFUL day for an outdoor photo session! i was also invited to drop off my resume at a photo studio here in town (i emailed them, wondering if they'd be willing to take on someone who wants to learn just about everything), so i've got that to look forward to. now, my biggest job is editing ALL those shots... fun!!! (seriously- i like editing... and enhancing...). oh, and after the shoot, mom, cole and i headed over to the valley (she watched cole for me- thanks SO much again!) to have lunch with grandma p., aunt mary and two of mom's cousins, and then we went on to oshkosh to hit the outlet malls. it was a successful trip- cole got a few things for winter and mom found some stuff too. even the baby got a few outfits! see, she's a shopper already. i got underwear (how very exciting, tmi???) and two sets of glasses to match my dishes. one set is to replace the set i broke, the other is for the second set i never got... i now have a full 8-place setting (minus 4 juice glasses, i couldn't find those there). it took over 6 years, but i have it! ha. and now, i am going to bed.

uh-oh...

...i just got a call from the realtor i'm taking property photos for; one of the houses i was at was badly vandalized. she wanted to know if i had noticed anything while i was there... i guess the door was wide open and there was all kinds of paint and whatnot inside. yikes! i was there almost a week ago and the door was tightly shut and locked and i didn't see any indication of a break-in. crazy...

"the brave little toaster": the lost episode

our toaster really is brave. the poor thing has to be plugged in on the floor in the dining room (no outlets in the kitchen- literally), so on the days that i have toast for breakfast, it's the main attraction for a small boy who cannot curb his excitement. he hasn't touched it yet; between very close supervision and constant reminders that it's hot, all he really does is squeal and prance around it. i know that cole is just ITCHING to get his little hands on it, but he knows better... but for some reason, it's just unbearably exciting when mommy uses the toaster. honestly, this kid is a real mystery sometimes...!see, he can hardly stand it- if only i had video of it, you could hear the excited screeches that go with the photo. seriously- he gets so worked up that he literally quivers!

i got the call on my bloodwork from yesterday... i'm surprised that they even got a sample to test, since i'm pretty sure the phlebotomist i had was a vampire dressed as a lab tech, judging from the bruise she left. i never bruise much- just a little bit, if any. so yeah- blood sugar levels are fine, i'm anemic (i figured as much) and was advised to remember my vitamins (duh) and take it easy. love that last bit... hahahaha! oh, and i just remembered- yesterday while we were waiting to be seen, the clinic had a fire drill. i didn't know they did that (although it makes sense that they'd have to), so it was pretty exciting. cole was in shock, i think, between the strobes and the noise. i got a good laugh at all the employees who were obviously a little embarrassed to be rushing through the waiting room with real fire extinguishers on their way to put out an imaginary fire... and then the comment one made after the "fire" was out. she said, "well, the fire's out, but who's supposed to save the e.r.?" for some reason it struck me as pretty hilarious, don't ask me why. hormones, maybe? that's the universal explanation for everything these days... and lastly, mom is coming tomorrow to babysit cole for a little bit. i've been hired to do a senior photo for a girl from greenville... i know that i have no good equipment or anything, but apparently she was really impressed with what she saw (my sample work with cole's photos). this will give me a chance to start a portfolio... in the mean time, i've listed some furniture on craigslist (that we're not using and really don't have room for) in hopes that it will sell really soon and i can get a good camera. i found a GREAT price on a package deal through digicombo.com.... hopefully it won't change before i can get the money for it. needless to say, i am a bit nervous about the shoot tomorrow, considering it's my first and all of a sudden i feel like a total fool for even attempting it... i had nightmares the other night about it. yeah.

28-week appointment

well, this one was interesting, that's for sure! for beginners, not only was it the "long appointment" (glucose tolerance test), we had cole with us. last time, of course, it was just me... thankfully kelvin was able to get there for this one. since my biggest concern was my weight gain, i never considered any of the other things that could pop up, like, say... protein in my urine sample. yay. that's a first for me... however, my blood pressure was fine. this time i measured ahead of schedule (by a week and a half- maybe she WILL come around the holidays after all...), and she was NOT happy about having her heartbeat listened to. first she wiggled around trying to get out of range and then she just plain kicked at the transmitter. what a goofy girl. i'd say we have a bit of a feisty one on our hands; maybe she'll have red hair. anyway, since i was so worried about it, i'll share: despite being careful with what i was eating for the last 4 weeks, i still managed to put on 10 pounds. what the...??? my clothes don't fit any different than they did for the past 2 months, so whatever. yeah- not too happy about that one. like i said before, the only thing i can come up with is a slow metabolism. again. we also had a tour of the birth center, even though that's where cole was born- we ended up checking out the exact same room he was born in! brought back memories... *sniff*. i also got a flu shot at the gentle urging of the nurse, and now i'm just waiting for the results from the glucose test. i'm not too concerned about it, but i AM a little worried about the protein thing. hopefully nothing will develop from that... other than that, it's all good!

who IS this???

cole is obsessed with phones. namely, cells- i don't think he knows that there's any other kind, haha. after months of ignoring kelvin's old flip phone, he's now completely and occupied by it- he gets into this "zone". nice for me, because he stays out of trouble for record lengths of time... yay! thanks to chase for encouraging this little phone thing- no, really, i mean that! thank you!

so proud of his phone...

whoever he was talking to said something funny. wait- who WAS he talking to???

cole's other new form of entertainment is rearranging furniture (read: dining room chairs). he takes after me that way; or maybe he got some infantile form of couvade and is sympathetically nesting with mommy? who knows... but i am constantly tripping over chairs that have mysteriously placed themselves in the middle of high-traffic areas. unless, of course, cole's on the phone- then the chairs stay put. hmmm. eerie!

today is my 28-week appointment, which involves my glucose test. yay. i scheduled it for 3 pm, so kelvin could be there to take cole (he's currently at the sara lee plant in new london, which is literally a few blocks away, and he's been getting out at 2.30). for some reason, this time i'm dreading the scale more than usual. i've been keeping track of my wonderful poundage and it seems to have not crept up as fast this time. still- we women and our weight... my metabolism seems to come to a stand-still when i'm pregnant, because i don't eat much more than when i'm not pregnant and the pounds seem to just pile on... seriously- i eat pretty much the same amount as usual. frustrating. guess i'm just not one of the lucky ones that can eat all they want and hardly gain an ounce. oh, in a perfect world.... *sigh*. anyway, since the weight gain has been surprisingly minimal in the last 4 weeks, i have no idea why i'm so much more afraid of the scale this time. must be the hormones, eh? :)

ooze-boy?

cole still isn't feeling the greatest- lots of oozing, for lack of a less-disgusting term. poor little guy, his nose is getting red and raw from the combination of goobers and constant wiping. so of course, he's still a bit testy... not that it stops him from getting into mischief. cole got ahold of some paper towel and decided to "help" clean the floor. it kept him occupied for a LONG time... now there are tiny bits of paper towel EVERYWHERE; the kitchen, the dining room, the living room... oh well, i should probably vacuum anyway.

yesterday we had to run out and get more baby wipes, so we took the opportunity to stop at bucholz park in town. it's pretty small- a few swings, a slide, some trees... i took some photos of cole and kelvin, and cole had fun in the leaves, once he stopped crying. we didn't stay long because it was cold (there were flurries in the air) and we didn't want cole to feel any worse than he already was.

our son's never-ending fascination with cell phones... no matter how far back from the edge of the table i put my phone, it seems that he almost always gets ahold of it. don't ask me how, he just does. that usually keeps him quiet for a little bit too... he has two of our old ones to play with but it seems the thrill is gone with those two. he'd rather play with the ones that make mommy and daddy jump up and come a-runnin'.

oh, i should probably mention that cole did NOT get up last night- yay! you'd think i'd have gotten a good night's sleep, but the pizza i had for a snack took care of that one. oh fun.

this and that...

the past two and a half weeks have not been the greatest for cole... besides fighting a cold, i'm sure he's teething. he has to be- he only has 6 teeth; from what i hear, kids usually get more than that, so one could deduce that he may just be pushing up a few more. they're sure taking their sweet time in coming through... which makes things a bit on the miserable side here.

(a quick shoot outside- it was too cold to take many photos)

sarah came and spent the night friday night and stayed till early afternoon on saturday. obviously, friday night was a bit on the late side for obvious reasons, and to top it off, cole woke up every two hours from 11.30 on. i didn't get up, but i couldn't go back to sleep until he was quiet again, meaning that i didn't get much real sleep. saturday night was worse- he was awake every hour, on the hour... all night long. he'd just wake up and grumble a little, talk himself back to sleep and then start all over again. last night was a nightmare- i didn't fall asleep till about 11, then cole was awake and crying at 11.30, so i had to get up. i could tell he wasn't going to go back to sleep on his own. i got up, rocked with him for about a half-hour until he fell asleep, then crept back to bed. i was in bed for about 2 minutes and he started all over again; this time kelvin got involved (he rocked him for about 10 minutes)- cole got motrin (he was really restless, like he was uncomfortable and we're out of teething tablets, so motrin it was), a sippy cup of warm milk, all that... it was almost 4 before i was confident that he'd stay asleep if i put him in his crib. he stayed asleep till about 7.30 and here we are... up for the day. i'm exhausted. i thought in the beginning that if he came into bed with me, he'd settle down and sleep enough that i could get at least a little shut-eye, but he just wanted to crawl around and play once he was in our bed. talk about frustrating... this is how it used to be almost every night in arizona... the whole time we were there. i have no idea how i survived.

(i used the b/w setting on my camera- i really like it!!)

anyway, we stayed home from meeting yesterday- kelvin had to work and with cole being pretty cranky and congested, none of us got out. it's obvious that cole's got plenty of wonderful drainage... in the afternoon, i laid down for about an hour hoping to nap while kelvin watched cole (didn't happen- he was so cranky, constantly fussing that i couldn't sleep), and when i got up, i noticed that there was something on cole's pants, like he'd walked in something that spilled on the floor. it was orange, which i thought was strange, so i smelled it. puke, it was puke. turns out that he'd upchucked a little on the floor (thank goodness for hardwood floors!) while he was playing with kelvin and had walked thru it before it was all cleaned up. i was told it was only a little bit, so i wasn't concerned. he's been fine since, so i'm still not worried. that, i can handle, amazingly. it's the constant crying and whining and tantrums that are driving me INSANE!!!!!!

new job!!

even though it's not much, it's a bit exciting for me... i just got a new job! i'm working for a lady who is an independent real estate broker, taking photos of properties that will be listed. almost all of them are bank forclosures, many of them vacant... and it's all exterior photos for the most part. should she require interior photos, it'll be only on houses that are vacant and have a lock-box. the pay isn't anything to sneeze at, but it's a little extra cash and if for some reason i can't get to a property, i can decline. i'm going to be doing the clintonville, marion, shawano and bear creek areas, and of course will be reimbursed for gas/travel. this is neat for me, because i can take cole (and the baby) with me so i don't need a sitter. it's also good because i can now get a little experience taking photos for someone instead of taking pictures that go nowhere. it's only properties and real estate, but it's for someone besides me... i'll get the chance to take photos for someone else. i know that so many others are already doing photography, so i feel like a copycat in attempting to start as well... but since i like taking pictures i might as well try my hand at it. honestly, i feel a bit foolish in thinking that i should even try, but since everyone's style is different, maybe there's someone out there who will like my work. of course, i'm nowhere near professional, but even the best had to start somewhere. despite feeling nothing short of inadequate, i would really like to give photography a try. i just hope that nobody who's already doing it gets offended that i'm hoping to jump on the bandwagon... :)

yesterday in a nutshell

ahhh, the joys of sick kids. i have no idea what kind of a bug this is, but it's really hanging on. poor cole has been out of sorts for the past two weeks, almost, and now kelvin and i are definitely feeling it coming on. or maybe it's just sympathy for our baby... nah. i'm leaning toward us having the same thing- you know, close proximity and all.

cole woke up a bit on the whiny side......then it escalated to this...

...and finally i got a glimpse of his true self. good to know the cheeseball still exists, deep down!

so yeah- other than a sick kid and the rest of us feeling a bit yucky as well, there's nothing to report here, really. oh, it's rainy here, but that doesn't really count now, does it? i guess i could mention that my favorite (only, but still favorite anyway) nephew is three weeks old today... elissa, you think he's growing fast now, just you wait. any mom will agree... :)

games at the dinner table...

today, cole thought that peek-a-boo was more interesting for lunch than his meal. i guess when you're 14 months old, a bib can be a fun source of entertainment. hiding (or avoiding eating, i'm not sure which)
there's that sweet little face!

cole DID eat most of his lunch, so i'm pleased with that. i know he hasn't been feeling the best the past week or so, with a runny nose and now he's got a little hint of a cough. one of those clingy colds, i'm guessing. he's walking almost all of the time now... i can hardly believe, less than three weeks ago he took his first independent steps! wow- they get the hang of things really fast. anyway, i realized the other day that i no longer hear the constant "slap-thud" of little hands and knees on the floor- now it's a gentle "pad-pad-pad". sometimes i don't hear him coming and just about jump out of my skin because there's this little less-than-three-feet-tall person that appears out of nowhere. very sneaky indeed. so- the walking has progressed rather nicely, and now he's into trying to get things off the countertop. those little fingers can just reach the counter and table tops, so we're running out of safe places to put things. he's not far from figuring out how to scale the baby gates, too- he knows that he can get a little leverage if he puts his toes up on the latch bar. ooooooh boy. i think my days of occassional sprinting are numbered, soon to be replaced by constant running.

our weekend

this weekend was the annual gun-practice weekend at mom and dad's... this usually involves "the krisher boys" and their families, and whoever else wants to join. basically it's the guys going out and popping off some rounds and sighting in their rifles while we womenfolk sit and chat and whatnot. as always, there's plenty of good stuff to eat! this time there were brats and burgers on the grill- yummmmm! also, there were some other small kids running around, which was great for cole! cousin erin posing for the camera. what a natural!
one of the old baby dolls was unearthed from the dark realms of the basement... cole was somewhat interested in it. he found the baby's belly button to be of particular interest. this might be a great way to get him familiar with the concept of babies and how they should be handled...
...or not. yikes!
sunday morning- cole tried his hand at feeding himself with his spoon. we've attempted it a few times in the past week, but in his little world, whoever has the spoon is the one that does the feeding, not the eating!
but he got the hang of it- we found that we got better results if he was given a pre-loaded spoon instead of an empty spoon, full bowl and some hand-over-hand guidance. for some reason, he does NOT like having us guide his hand (spoon, crayon, etc).
and the end result, of course, was oatmeal all over his face. i can proudly say that cole only put one spoonful of oatmeal on the floor, and that was half accidental! i'm thinking it's beginner's luck. anyway, he thought it was neat to 'run' the spoon for awhile, but got a bit tired of it before too long. practice, practice... i made some homemade applesauce last night and this morning, so maybe we will do a taste-test as an excuse to encourage the self-feeding. once again, i'm amazed at how proud you can be at your child's accomplishments and at the same time, wish they'd stop growing so fast already!

the man of the house has spoken...

... actually, 'screeched' would be the more appropriate term. anyway, we decided today to do the name thing and let cole pick. we each chose our three favorites and stuck them in one of cole's bowls so that he could choose... the first one out of the bowl was the one we'd go with. trust me when i say that there is no gloating involved here, but cole chose "madison", one of my picks. even though this is the most fair way to go about settling on a name, i still feel guilty that it wasn't one of kelvin's choices! but hey- rules are rules. if she's born looking nothing like a madison, then we'll pick something else, but for now, madison it is!

cole picking the winner...

yes, there is another name under the scribble. i had originally had "riley" as one of my picks, but then replaced it with madison.

taking pieces of paper out of the bowl was SO much fun, we had to let the 'game' continue. i love the look of confusion on cole's face as he stares at the bottom of his empty bowl. silly kid!

AND... since it's been a long time since the last belly shot, here y'all are. almost 27 weeks. thanks to elissa for lending me a few of her really cute maternity tops... great taste, sa-sa! anyway, a name and a belly shot; this post has it all. ha. i should probably add that cole is still his cranky, boogery self to top it off. at least he's not constantly dripping anymore- he's graduated to thick nasty stuff, and his voice is a bit scratchy, so he's still obviously not feeling the best (as if his attitude didn't tip us off. what a crab) and hopefully it won't be long before he's on the mend. at least there's no fever or anything. would i be a terrible mommy to say that a little lethargy on his part wouldn't be all bad at the moment? i'm pooped... he's full of energy, as usual, but totally irritable and dissatisfied with just about everything. not a good combo. on the up-side, though, he's doing a lot more walking around! way cool... :)

(in case anyone wants to know, the other choices for names were as follows: payton, danielle and hailey for kelvin's picks and hadley and marley for my other two... just fyi!)

introducing "_____"!

after promising weeks ago that i would post scans of our ultrasound, i have finally gotten to it. the main reason was that until the computer desk was set up, we had no safe place (emphasis on 'safe' for obvious reasons...) to set up the printer/scanner. yesterday kelvin and i got the desk up from the basement, and i cleaned it off and set it up in the living room so we'd have a place to work on the computer sans the little fingers constantly pressing assorted buttons and keys.

here she is- this was about 6 weeks ago, so i'm sure she looks a lot different by now, meaning she has gained more weight... i think that in this first one, she kinda looks like my grandpa krisher. hmmm.
it just amazes me every time i see these, how small and perfect babies really are!
the techs were laughing at this shot... you can see her two little fingers poking out, like a peace sign. or maybe she's resigned to the fact that she's #2, or possibly she's already got that shopping gene and is thinking, "i'll take two of those, please!".
oh, so peaceful!

because we are having a dilemma with choosing a name (kelvin is stuck on peyton, which i like, but we're having issues with the middle name, AND there are several other first names i really like), we've come to the conclusion that cole gets to pick the name. we're going to write down two or three of our individual favorites, stick them in a bowl, and the first one cole takes out is what we'll stick with. we figure it's the sanest and least arguementive way to settle this, plus it will make for an interesting story someday, if anyone ever asks this little peanut why/how she got her name!

in other goings-on, i think mother nature is much kinder with the nesting thing the second time around. instead of letting it hit all of a sudden at the last minute, it stretches out over the last trimester. or maybe i'm just lucky... it's great, so i won't argue it! i've been on a roll: yesterday i cleaned our mattress, scrubbed the kitchen floor, we did the desk thing (thanks to my uncontrollable urge to just do stuff), today i've already made a big batch of chicken and rice soup to freeze and i plan to make several batches of pie crust dough for the freezer as well. mom has this recipe for swiss cheese quiche that's always been a favorite of mine... it's easy but the most time-consuming part is making the pie crust for it, so i figure i'll get a head start on that. wow, i feel energized... wish cole felt the same! he's still fighting this cold bug he's had for about a week- runny nose, VERY crabby, all that... i think it's a late convention cold. at least there's no fever or coughing, just lots of drippage, itchy nose and major crankies.

photo-editing phun...,

i just HAD to play around with this one... it's a photo from cole's first steps! that was a mere 9 days ago, hard to believe. now, he's taking off across the room (although he is still doing plenty of crawling) and keeping his balance so well.after i got rid of the red-eye (pretty bad in the original), cropped and sepia-toned it, i had some fun with the painting tool and really like the way it turned out. i don't know if there's a less time-consuming way to colorize certain areas, but that's ok- i like to color in individual areas, even if it takes a little more time. that zoom tool comes in really handy for the little areas... anyway, just though i'd share the product of my "fun-time"!

ps- i have no idea what everyone else is seeing for prices at the pump, but tonight we saw $2.98 here in town... yippeeeee!

the last few days in photos...

... i haven't had a chance to post pics from the past 2 or 3 days, between having a bit of a hectic schedule and the fact that it takes eons to upload one photo. stupid charter... "lightening speed", my rear. anyway, now that they've finally uploaded, here's the last few days:cole with his new toolbelt from kelvin's parents... he wouldn't keep the hat on though. i think the combination of a toolbelt and tools with a diaper is just plain hilarious...
this morning i needed to clean the bathroom, and i try to save the exersaucer for when there are no other options, so i buckled cole into his highchair and gave him some paper and crayons.
he was really into it, at first...
... and then thought that tearing up his "canvas" was way more expressive. guess it's not as extreme as van gogh, thank goodness. so yeah- paper taped to the table + crayons on the floor (due to one mad little boy) = ripped paper.
and since the coloring nicely at the table idea didn't fly the first time, i wasn't about to launch a second episode, so in order for me to get a shower in, i had to haul out the exersaucer. being on the petite side is coming in handy for cole- he can use that thing longer! as expected, there was the sound of cole having fun (albeit begrugdingly) sprinkled with intermittent outbursts of frustrated screeching. then it got silent, and i figured he'd gotten into something... either he'd pulled something off the table or had figured out how to take one of the toys off the exersaucer. after i got out of the shower, i started talking to him and got no answer; i guess artistically expressing one's self proves exhausting, because he was fast asleep. what a goof! i even turned on the camera and snapped several shots without so much as a twitch from him. poor kiddo- it was almost lunch, so i had to wake him up and the look on his face was priceless: confusion mixed with "i wasn't sleeping, honest!". after a bit of a protest to eat lunch (bananas were a hit again, but he wanted nothing else), it was off for a real nap. and that's where he is now... ahhh, peace and quiet!

walk to remember

for those of you who don't know, october is pregnancy and infant loss awareness month. every year, the remembering through sharing support group (through theda) holds a memorial walk and tree-planting at bubolz nature center. they also have a candlelight memorial service in december. we've gone to the walk every year since 2003, and we were really anticipating going again this year. so yesterday before leaving for meeting, we made sure that we had the stroller, walking shoes, etc. and planned on grabbing a quick bite in town before heading over to appletone for the walk. we were doing great, running a little short on time but figured we'd still make it- that was, until we discovered that county a was closed for road construction. we could have gone all the way through appleton to get there, but we'd have been 20 minutes late, at the earliest. sadly, we didn't get to go this year. at first i was really bummed, but then i remembered that the tree will get planted whether we're there or not, and it will be there next year for us to see. at least we TRIED... so we ended up going to mom and dad's a little earlier than we'd planned, which was fine. anyway, if anyone wants the contact number for the support group (either for themselves or for someone else), i'd be happy to pass it along. we never get to the monthly meetings anymore, since they are on wednesday nights, but it's nice to know that there's people out there who are ready and willing to be supportive- sometimes it's easier to talk to someone you don't know instead of another who you might be really close to. strange how that works...

so while i am still bummed that we didn't get to help plant the memorial tree for this year, i know that we have the candlelight memorial to look forward to in a few months. that one, i never miss. even if i have to go by myself, i won't miss it. last year it was just cole and i since kelvin was working out of town. it's just a little something we can do every year for taylor and london, since we don't get to celebrate birthdays or anything... this is what we have for them!

more messin' around!

yeah, i just can't help myself! the novelty may or may not wear off sometime during this decade- time will tell, haha! anyway, i was looking through more photos of cole from our day at the park awhile ago, and this one jumped out at me, begging to be messed with. how could i say no? i should probably clarify that i haven't wasted the entire afternoon playing around... kelvin took cole to the park (not as much fun this time, since he seems to be coming down with a cold... seems all he really wanted to do was ride in the stroller) and i thought i'd use that time to actually sit down and relax. instead, i spent that whole time cleaning up the dining room. now we can all sit at the table... i'm embarrassed to say that there's STILL a lot of stuff that i need to do, but for those of you who've moved with a toddler, you know how long it can take to get everything unpacked and in order. once the essentials are out, cleaned and put away, everything else just sits and waits for that one day or two where you'll have nothing better to do. yeah... how many of you are COMPLETELY unpacked and organized? i thought so! it's all good- that's part of being a mommy; lots of things get put on the back burner, but who cares, because someday the kids will be grown up and out of the house and then we'll be looking for something to do to pass the time. do i have that right? although there are some days i would gladly trade a perpetually crying child for a totally clean and organized house. but only for a day...

we're back in business!

thanks to the wonderful sale at best buy this week, we once again have our photo editing software! at 40% off, the deal was too good to pass up, and even included a usb drive and other little extras on the installation cd. needless to say, i'm in photo heaven! the best part is that i don't have to count the days before the trial period ends, because now it's ours... i've tried all kinds of other photo editing programs, and didn't find anything i really liked- photoscapes, picnik, gimp... all those are great, but just didn't get the results i was looking for. this, i know how to use, and the possibilites are endless. we knew we were going to eventually get the software, but wanted to wait till it was a little cheaper. lucky us- it was such a good deal this week!just for fun, i took a photo from a few weeks ago and messed around with it... i got cole's one-year photo edited, but i don't want to post it, since i plan on printing it out. eventually. we need ink, so once we get that, then i can hand out his pics. they change so fast the first year, monthly pictures are almost a must. it's hard to believe that i don't have to keep up from month to month with him anymore. i have a few free months, then begins the monthly pics with our little girl. can't believe how fast that's coming up... it's like a dream, we're already 26 weeks. how time flies...

my first baby

1. Were you married at the time?

Yes

2. What were your reactions when you found out you were pregnant?

scared (after two miscarriages, i had the right to be freaked), excited, happy... after trying for over 4 years, this was a dream come true!

3. How old were you?

24

4. How did you find out you were pregnant?

on a whim, i bought a $1 test at dollar general, then bought two ept's from walmart, just to make sure!

5. Who did you tell first?

mom, then kelvin... i don't know why i did it that way, probably because mom was my biggest support in dealing with our losses and trying to conceive.

6. Did you want to find out the sex?

of course!

7. Due date?

september 11, 2007

8. Did you deliver early or late?

3 1/2 weeks early

.9. Did you have morning sickness?

nope, just the occassional but tolerable queasies at night, and only for the first 9 weeks or so.

10. What did you crave?

nothing in particular until my second trimester, when the ice cravings hit, big time!

11. Who irritated you the most?

i think it would have to be the people who felt the need to ask me if i was sure i wasn't having twins. or the girl at mcdonald's who just outright asked when the twins were due and was i having one of each... what the...???

12. What was your first child's sex?

a bouncing baby boy (how's that for cliche...)

.13. How many pounds did you gain throughout the pregnancy?

too many...

14. Did you have any complications during your pregnancy?

other than mild anemia, no.

15. Where did you give birth?

new london family medical center

16. How many hours were you in labor?

22

17. Who drove you to the hospital?

kelvin

18. Who watched?

kelvin, my sister, my dad, kelvin's parents and sister, two nurses, a student nurse and the doctor. NEVER AGAIN!!!! i should have sold tickets...

19. Was it natural or c-section?

natural

20. Did you take medicine to ease the pain?

the nubane didn't do much, and i had two epidruals because the first one didn't take on one side... despite my efforts to go drug-free. i blame the pitocin.

21. How much did your child weigh?

7 lbs, 13 oz.

22. What did you name him/her?

cole ryan

23. How old is your first born today?

almost 14 months.

24. Where did your water break?

first in my own bed, then it was re-ruptured in the hospital. how fun...

Okay mommies, repost this as 'My first baby' send it to all the other mommies plus the mommy who sent it to you.

Have a great day!!!

fat fingers and a round of applause...

i was hoping that with the "major" part of this pregnancy being in the fall and winter that maybe, just maybe, i'd escape the puffy feet and fingers. not so... yesterday after my shower, i left my wedding bands off, since they didn't want to go back on. i figured it was probably just a result of a warm shower (in denial, since i very well knew that my feet were already getting a bit swollen), but they've stayed off ever since. i don't want them to get stuck really bad again like they did last summer. that was NOT good! so- to be on the safe side, they're staying off for now! and the one downfall of not being preggers in the summer? getting away with flipflops. actually, that's the only downfall that i've come up with so far... i'll have to start investing in clown shoes.

this is cole, very proud of himself for eating most of his lunch today. yes, he's clapping. he's been on a bit of a strike lately- most everything is turned down. like yesterday for example... he usually loves a peanut butter sandwich, but he had about 4 or 5 bites and started throwing it over the side of his tray. and the applesauce? he shoved the spoon away after about 3 bites, and then fell asleep in his chair. easiest nap i've ever seen him take... but anyway, we wound up going to appleton yesterday afternoon and evening (kelvin had to go pick something up) and we went to fazoli's for supper. i was sure cole would be starved, since he ate next to nothing for lunch, but after eating only two of his cheese ravioli, he wanted it out of his sight. out of desperation, i tried giving him a piece of broccoli from my fettuccini (i had no expectations at this point, especially since he blacklisted veggies about a week ago). he ate it. and then he ate more. wow. i let him eat most of my broccoli because a) it's good for him and b) he was actually eating something! i know that kids go thru phases like this, so i'm not worried, just a bit frustrated. i want to make sure he's getting enough but that his eating experience is still somewhat pleasant so he doesn't start associating mealtime with torture. he always eats pretty well for breakfast and more often than not, he gets oatmeal, so at least he eats a healthy breakfast! for lunch, i made him some alphabet pasta and mixed it with a little bit of crushed tomatoes and some cottage cheese. he ate more than i thought he would, and i have to say, it makes a pretty good "big people" food too! i also found a way to make bananas an easier finger food; most mommies probably already know this, but i crushed up cheerios in a bag and then shook up the banana pieces with it, kinda like a shake-n-bake. WAY easier for him to eat, since they weren't slippery anymore! and he thought it was pretty cool that he got to successfully feed himself bananas. then i got to thinking of all the cereal that i could crush up to coat his bananas with- rice krispies (cocoa krispies for a bribe, haha), honey-nut cheerios, yogurt burst cheerios, the possibilites are amazing. glad i didn't think of it till AFTER i went grocery shopping; i'm proud to say that i kept the bill under $60 and still have enough to last a week! yay! it's now become a challenge for me... how low can i go and still get enough for the week? fun.

it's always something new

yes, life with a small toddler is never dull (for long, anyway)- there's always something new! take this morning... it's only 8.30 and already it seems cole has put in a full day. he got up an hour ago... we rushed to have breakfast since he didn't get his snack last night. he ate almost a whole serving of oatmeal which is more than he usually eats. and after tearing around the living room with his toys, he's now standing at the window saying "tuh, tuh" really quietly. there are some construction vehicles going in and out of the daycare/school/church across the intersection, so it could very well be that he is, in fact, saying "truck". then again, he sees daddy come home almost every day, so maybe he's watching for kelvin. on the other hand, he could just be making random noises... who knows. time will tell, i guess!

last night during meeting, cole was a total munch... he started out really well, then had a massive dirty diaper during prayer and after that, things went downhill. he was pretty restless, and i had a tough time reaching the diaper bag on the floor (hmmm, could it be the belly??) and by the time we got home, i was so relieved that he was asleep that we skipped his bath and snack and i just replaced his jeans with some soft cotton pants and stuck him in his crib. he slept the whole night! this morning, he melted my heart... i went in to get him up and usually we play a round or two of peek-a-boo over the side of the crib. i put hy hands on the rail to start playing, as usual... he grabbed one of my hands and put it against his side, under his arm, then did the same with my other hand. he looked up with this sweet innocent expression- guess he knows how to get his point across! there was no mistaking what he wanted; i had no other choice than to pick him up and squeeze him and got a huge hug back. oh, what a sweet little boy!!!!

first word?? maybe...

kelvin was watching some hunting thing on the computer last night, and cole thought he should sneak a peek too. actually, he more or less tried to jump into it... guess it was just that realistic!i love the look of concentration on cole's face...

watching the school traffic out the window this morning; it keeps him totally quiet for a long time! typical little boy, fascinated by cars and trucks!
i have NO idea what he was this excited for but it makes a good photo. anyway, i don't really know for sure if it's really a word or if he's just making random sounds, but sometimes it sounds like cole is saying "truck". he makes this little "tuh" sound, but it's not necessarily when he sees a truck. i don't know- maybe it's his first word, maybe not. either way, it's sure cute! what's not as cute is when i say "cole, say mama. where's mama?" and he looks at me, gets a big grin and says "dada!!". ok, so it's downright adorable, but i swear, this kid will NEVER say mama, the way he's going! however, the walking thing is going really well... we've had his thomas shoes on since the floor is usually pretty chilly and they're not slippery like his socks, but today he was cruising around pretty well with just his socks! it's better for his feet and development if he doesn't have his shoes on, but he's constantly bumping into things, part of me wants him in shoes to avoid any more bumps and falls than he's getting already... this kid is a total klutz! takes after me that way... actually, he's not that bad, he just gets too excited and gets ahead of himself. or something like that! amazingly, his only bad boo-boo was from his fall on saturday; everything else seems to be pretty superficial, most of the time leaving only a red mark for an hour or so. and the tears usually last a minute or so... he's pretty tough!

yikes!

so- this pregnancy has brought some new symptoms (new for me, anyway). for example: nosebleeds. never had that with cole! then there is the intense pelvic pressure, which may or may not be connected to the extra strain on my back from doing too much yesterday. whatever the case, there's no other signs or anything that make me concerned; apparently, feeling like you're carrying an anvil in your colon can be normal. uncomfortable but normal (??). as for the backache, i'm SO lucky this time around- i remember having intense back pain from day one with cole. actually, i had it for some time before even getting pregnant, thanks to my job at the time. i've gotten off easy this time around, which i guess has made me a bit wimpy... i wonder if they'd consider letting me have an epidural just for the backache? ha. that, my friends, was a joke... an icepack will do fine. i can hardly believe how fast it's going this time around- already in our 25th week, it seems surreal. but, there's been a lot happening to make it fly by too- moving home, getting settled back in to the house, convention, our new little nephew, the every-day things that go along with having a small toddler ruling the roost... no wonder!

anyway, if anyone else out there has dealt with early pelvic pressure, any tips would be welcomed... like, is there any way to sit down without feeling like you're about to lay a very large, very heavy egg? i think i know how chickens feel, and i sincerely sympathize.

just stuff...

it's been a tad bit boring here since the weekend, so there's not too much to report. i made a batch of bran muffins yesterday, which kelvin really raved about. funny- they're just ordinary bran muffins; i never get a reaction like that over anything else i make. huh. anyway, like father, like son, because cole really likes them too. he had a bit of mine last night with supper and had about half a muffin for a snack before bed (he was too tired to eat the whole thing, hahaha!) and then had a whole one for breakfast this morning. hey- they're good for him, and he drinks a LOT of milk when he eats one, so that's a bonus. cole and his bran muffin for breakfast... he had to get EVERY LITTLE crumb!!
hmmm... maybe they tickle his tummy?

starting yesterday, i got a burst of ambition, to finally start getting all the stuff done that i wanted done LONG before now. the one thing that's holding me back? my son. he likes to "help", which usually means trouble of some sort, and if i contain him, he's not happy (and i feel super guilty). so... slowly but surely i'm getting it done, little by little. i have to clean out the guest room, which is currently housing junk (junk we're keeping... it's WAY better than it was when we first moved back) and stuff. one thing i need to do right away is get a box and throw everything of kelvin's into it... i keep putting stuff of his in little piles and telling him to put it where he wants it when he gets a chance. there are little piles all over the place.... so a box would do better, i think. then, i have to get cole's closet painted and organized, the computer desk needs to come up from the basement so i can wipe it off and use it, our closet needs a little attention... the list is s-l-o-w-l-y getting shorter. the only time i really get to work on anything is when cole is napping, or once kelvin gets home, but he's been spending a lot of time in the garage after work. hopefully his projects will be done really soon, and then i can get going on mine. if i'm lucky, my great lot of ambition will still be hanging on by a thread! i'm taking it easy today, since i think i did too much yesterday, according to my aching back. seriously, i could hardly get up the stairs last night... one of the joys of pregnancy! but on the upside, i can take time to watch my belly squirm. that's always fun!! and i can work with cole in his walking- he know how, but thinks crawling is much easier. which it is, i'm sure... i just love to watch him take those sweet baby steps, though! i'm addicted.

these boots were made for walkin'

ok, so thomas tennis shoes can't really be categorized as western wear, but they walk as well as boots do! much to our excitement, cole has taken his first solo stroll!!the very first steps were from sarah to me (two steps) and then three from me to kelvin... that's when i sat on the mantle and sarah sat on the couch to see if cole could make the 6-foot span between us.
he did- several times! back and forth, back and forth; i'm sure we looked hilarious, sarah and i with our arms way out, poised to leap up at a second's notice, chase and kelvin with cameras, shooting away... hey, kids only take their first steps once!
thanks to daddy, we have this super shot of what cole thinks about his new-found freedom... i LOVE his expression!

so, this whole amazing event took place at my mom and dad's... kelvin went there friday and spent the night so he could go bowhunting, and cole and i drove up after lunch to spend some time with sarah and chase. i knew it would be soon that he'd endeavour those first steps by himself, but i wasn't really expecting it to be yesterday, at mom and dad's. of course, i ignored my gut instinct and didn't bring the camcorder... but at least i brought the camera! good thing too, since mom and dad missed it- mom's in montana with elissa, logan and sweet little coy, and dad was in southern wisconsin for the world dairy expo. they both got phone calls, though, so they were able to share in the excitement that way. of course, cole still finds crawling the easiest form of transportation, but that will soon change. i find myself wondering if it was his fall down the stairs that made him decide to try walking... maybe he realized that it's less painful if one takes the stairs with their feet instead of their noggin? whatever the case, he's on the move and life has just gotten WAY more interesting. my little baby boy is growing up way too fast!!!

*sniff*

good morning??

ah, yes... the morning started out pretty well; cole slept till 7.30, which is late for him. he was in a good mood, ate most of his breakfast and then set off to play and entertain mommy. he beat on daddy's lunchbox in the kitchen while i made a batch of chicken salad and then i went to throw in a load of laundry. this is where the morning took a slight turn...

since the washer and dryer are still in the basement, i have to run down and leave cole upstairs for a minute or two. of course, i always make sure that all necessary doorways are closed or gated and that there's nothing he can get into trouble with. he always waits in the kitchen for me and usually ends up throwing around our shoes. this is a constant source of entertainment for him... why, i don't know. the last thing i do as i go downstairs is to make sure that the kitchen door (the one by the stairs to the basement) is tightly latched. it was, i double-checked. so, i was quickly throwing everything into the washer when i heard a pretty big thump. the first thought that crossed my mind was that cole had gotten some record distance in shoe-tossing, until i heard screams that were NOT coming from the kitchen above me. seems our little einstein has figured out how to turn doorknobs, and there he was, sprawled on the landing on the basement stairs. no broken bones or anything, thank goodness.

but this is what the tumble did to his noggin... he's got the big owie on his head, with a small scrape running down to his nose, between his eyes. poor baby- i was in tears myself! it must have really shook him up, since all he wanted to do was sit in my lap and snuggle close. usually he's off and running after getting a bump or scrape...
... and it was an excuse to finally get "cool" bandaids! so we made a trip to pamida, where we had a choice of scooby-doo, diego, spongebob or pooh and tigger 'tattoo' bandaids. i showed him all four boxes and he picked out the spongebob ones all by himself. good thing daddy wasn't along, or we would have had to get the scooby doo ones, no questions asked. and so far, cole's acting ok, no whining or favoring anything, so other than the nasty boo-boo on his head, he seems to be ok. wow- it makes my heart stop just thinking about how much worse it could have been. i think we're going to have to invest in some childproof doorknob covers. although, who knows how long it will take him to figure out how to work those, too... for someone who can barely reach the doorknobs, he knows exactly what to do (i am sure of this, because i took him to another door and he managed to get it open too). this kid is amazing... nothing is safe anymore!!!

finally: part 2

for those of you who don't already know, the first picture of coy has been posted on logan and elissa's blog, so if you haven't seen it yet (or want to see it again because he's got the most precious cheekers), head on over and check it out!

in other news, cole had a nice nap this afternoon- much needed, but cut a little short, thanks to the homecoming parade. yay. i'm not that big on school spirit, so i don't see the need for three fire engines and several squad cars ALL blaring their sirens. maybe on main street, but not on a residential corner! at least he got most of his nap in. kelvin went to mom and dad's to bowhunt (or something), so he'll be there tonight. we though about going too, but cole needs as many full nights as he can get... we might hop over there tomorrow, though. i did the grocery shopping and spent less than $65... i even splurged a little! i got honeycrisp apples (oh so good for twice the price), i found a great deal on chicken (almost 6 lbs of boneless for just under $10) and then i saw that edy's holiday ice cream is out, so i just HAD to get some pumpkin ice cream. i'm proud of myself- i got a lot and then some for pretty cheap... it's amazing how one can budget when it's crucial to do so. since i'm doing a lot more baking and stuff now, i'm surprised at how much of a difference it makes, even right off the bat. speaking of baking, i finally turned off the oven after supper. it's been going all day: 2 butternut squashes, a package of chicken, and a batch of cookies. yes, one batch... i make a big recipe and then freeze it in ready-to-bake balls. really handy, since i don't have to worry about them getting stale, and i can make one or two at a time if i feel like a fresh cookie or two. the squash took the longest and i didn't get started till late morning, so that's why the poor oven has been going and going. i got 1 1/2 quarts of squash out of it though, and since kelvin refuses to touch the stuff, it will last cole and i quite awhile! now that cole's had his supper (like, an hour ago), i think it's MY time to eat and sit down for a bit before we start the nightly bath battle. bed will feel great tonight... especially since i've noticed it's starting to take a little more energy to run around. hmmm. wonder why... haha.

cute, but...

... there's a reason he's sitting in the chair.
cole earned himself his first time-out today. i don't think he really understood it, but i'd had enough of the fits and deliberate shenanigans this morning. it was kinda funny earlier... he closed the stairway door (it already had a gate across it) and couldn't get it back open, so he screeched really loudly, banged his head against the door several times, then finished off the tantrum by flopping on his belly on the floor and trying to bite the floor. mind you, he's pretty vocal this entire time. so yeah- the first tantrum was amusing, since after he wound up on the floor, he crawled away as if nothing had just happened. he was pretty content for awhile, then got an attitude... long story short, after his attempt to hit and bite mommy, he wound up getting a swat on the rear and a minute in the chair. i couldn't pass up the opportunity to take a picture, but i did wait until he'd been calm for a few moments. it didn't take long- maybe time-outs will work for him? at his 12-month visit, our dr said that he's old enough to start time-outs, so if it works, i'll try it!!

i know...

... three posts in one day... but this is a special day! two of those posts are for coy, so i guess we can let it fly this once, hahaha.

so, the biggest thing here, of course, has been our new nephew/cousin, which is pretty obvious! other than that, today has had it's share of interesting events. for starters, cole greeted me with his usual smile, hug AND a kiss! and he only bit a little, which was a major thing for me. he skipped his morning nap, since the afternoon ones seem to be the most crucial; he didn't want much to do with lunch (homemade mac n cheese) so i figure he's started the toddler appetite swings. he usually eats pretty well for breakfast, gets a small snack (only if he's acting like he wants one) and eats fairly well for supper, so i'm not too worried. as long as he doesn't start losing weight, i guess he knows what he feels like, so i'll let him be the boss. lunch was cranky time for mr cole, too- he screamed a little, threw his cup, dumped his spoon, and then fell asleep in his highchair. he couldn't even keep his eyes open while i changed him (clothes and diaper, since he leaked). he fell asleep in record time, needless to say. which gave me the chance to get my shower in before we had to leave for my ob/gyn appointment. the shower was extra nice, since i spent a good 15 minutes going through a very full garbage can looking for my engagement and wedding bands. i took them off yesterday to make bread and forgot to put them back on, and somehow over the course of the day and evening, they wound up in the trash. nice. which meant that i had to dig through old pear peels, cold oatmeal, quite a bit of cole's uneaten lunches, and other miscellaneous cold, slimy gross stuff, but i found both of them. they were promptly scrubbed and put on my finger where they belong. i blame the hormones- first for forgetting to put them back on and second, for allowing them to slip into the trash un-noticed. but, good news- we're almost 25 weeks, so the hormone thing will be coming to an end seemingly before we know it. at least, the worst part of it will be over... i'm measuring at 25 weeks (good) and baby's heartbeat is in the mid 140's (also good), and there were no concerns or anything. my next visit will be the glucose test. yay. so- that's that for our end of things... and like everyone else, i'm just as anxious to see photos of coy. can't wait! keep checking elissa and logan's blog, because i'm sure they'll have some posted before too long. they'd better... !

coy aaron braaten

8 lbs, 8 oz.

21 inches

born at 3.11 (mst) on 10.02.08

congrats again, logan and elissa!

ps- when i was talking to elissa i could hear him squeaking- WAY too precious!

finally!!!!

i don't haver permission to post any stats yet, but.......this is what cole thinks about having a new cousin!!

once i talk to elissa, i'll post more info. i have NO idea when that will be, since i'm sure she's pretty tired and elated... i called around 8 or so and left a message, so now we wait until she calls back! i'm super anxious to see pictures, whenever that might be... and yes, my mom is on her way out. she flew out of appleton around 6 this morning, and she'll get in sometime tonight. good- i'm glad she'll get to see the baby right away. so- wait patiently (or not) and i'll dish more info as soon as i can!

congratulations, elissa and logan!! we love all three of you!

busy busy boy

cole's taken it upon himself to "help" unpack all the toys that i put away... the ones that he's outgrown. considering how much stuff we still haven't unpacked or put away yet, it's not really setting me back any, and he's having a blast! it keeps him occupied and out of the way, which is good since i've been busy making bread, cutting up pears for his snacks, stuff like that.

multitasking; he's eating a chunk of pear AND unpacking the box of baby toys!

this was only the beginning! now, if we could teach him to put stuff away as well, we'd have it made, hahaha! actually, i'm pretty lucky; he's got such an imagination in that little head of his that he'll play by himself for quite awhile. as long as i'm not moving around from room to room or anything, he's more than happy to occupy himself in his own little world. hopefully this will continue once the baby is born, since it would make juggling two small children a tad bit easier!

oh, and we got to run an errand this morning in the new van! we had to get milk before breakfast; cole was a pretty good sport about not having his oatmeal right away after getting up and being changed. i think he likes riding in it- he can see out the window a LOT better, so that's cool for him. it was weird, looking out the window and seeing a van in the driveway; the first thing that crossed my mind was "who in the world is here at 6 in the morning?". give it a week and i'll get used to it... i won't be able to remember what it was like to have the car parked there. which is a good thing- makes my back ache just thinking of how i had to move to get cole in and out!