Clara and Clayton's Crazy Kingdom

The nightly wind-down

2012-01-24T21:50:00.000-05:00

So each night before bed the children have to blow off the extra energy. I videoed the romp tonight. It isn't anything exciting, but I am always amazed at how long it lasts. This video is just a small sample of what lasts about 15 minute each night.

Clara isn't actually trying to knock Clay down; she wants to play tag, but doesn't seem to remember how new he is to walking. I'm waiting for the day when he gets pushed and turns around and pushes her right back. I know she'll look at me to object, but I'll just pull out videos like this to show her where he learned it all ;)

Clayton is 1 year old!

2011-12-16T11:00:00.000-05:00

I can't believe it, but Clayton is 1 year old.
He isn't walking yet, but he is cruising around the furniture like a pro. I think he'll start walking when he forgets and lets go. He has the balance, but not the confidence. He also can climb like you wouldn't believe he pulls himself up onto chairs, tables, and anything else that will stand still. As for verbal development he 'says' some words like 'stinky', 'no', and 'dada', but his most impressive feat is the way he sings "Diego, Diego, Diego, Go Diego, Go" from the show's theme song. He doesn't enunciate the words very well, but he is pitch perfect on the melody.

Get Out Of Bed Sleepy Head

2011-11-05T10:46:00.001-04:00

So this morning I had let Clara sleep in for a while, but Clay and I decided it was time for her to rise and shine. I let Clayton wake her up... she can be kind of grumpy with me, but not so much with him. This first picture his him trying to say "shhhhh" with his finger in front of his mouth.

Ah-ha... target acquired!

Shhhh... you have to approach the subject with caution.

And now....ATTACK

Success!

Once everyone was awake, the playing began...

Its Fall

2011-11-04T20:13:00.001-04:00

Fall is officially here. The weather is cooler, the days are getting shorter, but most importantly the leaves are falling. Today I decided to tackle some of the raking with my trusty side-kicks.

So, Clara enjoyed this a little more than Clay. Here is a picture of him ready to come in!

Playtime with Paw-paw

2011-10-22T20:30:00.000-04:00

Clayton has really started to take up with his Paw-paw. Here is a little video of some of their fun and games.

Just a Little Bit of History Repeating

2011-10-19T22:03:00.000-04:00

So many, many moons ago (think 1991), my little brother created his own snow storm inside his bedroom using baby powder. I was 12 at the time, but I still remember clearly walking into his room and seeing him squeezing the powder bottle with glee through a dusty white plum of the stuff. Given this memory, you would think I would have been more careful where I left the powder after the kids bath tonight, but...

Apparently, poor Pluto had the dusting of a lifetime. I vacuumed everything up as best as I could. Including vacuuming Pluto himself, but when I tossed him across the room into the toy bin he still made a puff of powder when he landed.

Playing in the Tower

2011-10-17T19:51:00.001-04:00

Clara and Clayton had a great afternoon playing on their tower toys. I was fortunate to have the camera both close at hand and charged so I filmed some of their fun. I can't tell you how much I enjoy watching them interact.

Also heard today (but not caught on film) was Clara's new excuse for everything - I'm just pretending:
Clara: Mom, you so crazy!
Me: Clara, it's not nice to call your Mom crazy.
Clara: Oh, Mom, I just pretending.
But what was great was the sarcastic attitude she had during the exchange. Boy am I in trouble.

Mossy Creek Festival

2011-10-16T17:51:00.000-04:00

Yesterday Grandma Dayna, Grandma Selma and I took the kids to the Mossy Creek Festival in Perry, GA. It is a rustic arts and crafts festival. Clara enjoyed the petting zoo and her first horseback ride. The petting zoo was a nice cap to our latest school lessons about farm life. Clayton liked riding up front in the double stroller where he could flirt with passers-by and see all of the action.

I've never seen a tortoise at a petting zoo before, but Clara liked this one...

The bunnies weren't to interested in the food Clara had to offer.

This turkey was the scariest of the animals in my opinion. Every once in a while it would stick its neck out and gobble really loudly without any warning. But even though it startled me, it didn't phase Clara.

Clay didn't come in the petting zoo, but he did have a great place to watch with Grandma Dayna.

Did I mention he really wanted in with us...

Clara really liked her first horse ride. A few of the kids got a little scared when they were lifted onto the horses, but not my little trooper.

Clara and Grandma Selma taking a little break from all of the walking.

Clay riding up big and tall in the double stroller (thanks, Kelly).

Peek-a-boo!

Clayton is 10 months old

2011-10-16T07:03:00.001-04:00

So, Clay is now 10 months old. He is amazing and doing very well. Physically, he is crawling everywhere very fast, pulling up on furniture (or me if I stand still), cruising around the furniture, but not walking yet. He can balance standing up for a second or two, but then sits down so he can start crawling to his next destination.

He has 4 teeth (2 center bottoms and two vampire fangs on top), but I think the 2 top centers will be in soon. His gums are pretty white up there and he has been a little fussier than usual, which I hope to attribute to teething.

With his 4 teeth he eats just about anything...crackers, apple slices, mac and cheese, corn dogs, pickles, pizza, fajita beef. OK, that doesn't make his diet look too balanced, but that is just a sampling. Basically he will gnaw on whatever I'll give him. And he still nurses, but mostly for comfort. But boy does he find it comforting.

He baby babbles a lot. His favorite 'words': Dada, no (which he pronounces do), and occasionally a bye-bye accompanied with a little wave. He also likes to squeal...a lot. Whenever he gets excited or wants my attention he will scream the shrill little squeal and then smile at me looking very proud at the noise he has made and his ability to get my attention.

My favorite thing about him right now is that he is getting more interactive with Clara. He watches everything she does and tries to imitate a lot of her actions. They are starting to play together, and Clara has even told me he is her best friend (along with Aidan and Mei-Mei).

Having two children close together in age hasn't been the easiest decision to live with as a nearly single parent (Patrick is still gone in Sacramento and has been since the end of April, but should be home for a visit in November), but one of the main reasons we wanted to have our children close in age was the hope that it would foster a close relationship between them. So far, that seems to be the case, and it warms my heart to see them enjoy each other.

All tied up

2011-10-10T19:50:00.000-04:00

So, what have we been up to lately (since it obviously hasn't been blogging)? Well a few weekends ago we had our multi-generational family garage sale. Here is what that looked like:

And this last weekend I went to a community fair in Jackson, GA with my mom, grandma, and kiddos. The one thing that I saw that I really liked were hairbows for Clara, but man were they spendy. And being as crafty as I am, I said to myself, "Self, you could make bows for Clara at a fraction of the cost" and after spending about 3x what a bow costs on supplies I've managed to make this:

But on the bright side I have tons of left over materials and will be able to make many more; both for Clara and possibly to sell at the next consignment sale I participate in.

Mom painted my hallway for me during the garage sale...we sort of hid out in the house while Dad and Grandma worked the crowd... the painting (and the kids) gave us a nice excuse to stay inside. And speaking of kids, they are still doing great. Growing, playing, laughing and learning. I may be going crazy trying to keep up with them, but we are having a fun trip to the nut house.

More ballet class

2011-09-27T18:53:00.000-04:00

I caught a little more of Clara's ballet class on video today. She really is enjoying it, and I must admit that I am pretty proud of her. She has been working very hard and listening to her teachers.

Clara and Clay greet the day

2011-09-24T15:46:00.000-04:00

This morning Clara and Clay both woke up in great moods. I caught a little of their morning play on camera.

Clayton's First Word

2011-09-23T10:58:00.000-04:00

Last night before going to bed Clayton said his first word to Clara and Grandma: "bye-bye" accompanied by a wave. He did it over and over when he got such a great reaction. This morning I was able to get him to repeat the act.

As for Clara, we are still going strong with home school. This week she has been working on an Ocean theme and focusing on the letter 'H'.

She has also been working on writing her name. She has been able to spell it outloud for a while, but has just recently started to write it herself.

She loved making paper octopuses, but we've had a time keeping them away from Clay.

Weekend Project

2011-09-19T09:56:00.000-04:00

Well, we had a productive weekend. I finally got the floors installed in our front hallway. I had been dreading this particular room becuase it has 9 doorways and three closets which meant lots of measurements and cuts, but it actually went in surprisingly fast with the efforts of my father and brother. Mom and Grandma Selma were also on hand to help with the kids so I could work on the floors.

I still have the kitchen floor to lay, but after that our entire upstairs (less the sun porch and bathrooms) will have new flooring. Plus, now that most of it is down we are no longer tripping over boxes of planks everywhere.

To finish the hall I still need to cut a few thresholds, caulk and paint the trim, and finalize the wall paint color; but the end is near!

9 month and 3.5 year checkups

2011-09-16T12:36:00.001-04:00

So today was a big day for doctor visits. I knew it was Clay's 9 month check-up but when we got to the doctor's office they reminded me that Clara hadn't had her 3 yr check-up. Luckily they were able to squeeze her in while we where already there. Both kids got 2 immunizations (Clara was great for the first one, but after that wanted nothing to do with a second. Poor Clay cried for both, but quickly recovered).

Everyone is growing well. Clayton has a head circumference of 18.5 inches (95%), weighs 19 lbs, 4.75 oz (55%), and hold on to your hats: is 30 inches long (100%)! I still can't believe he is so long for his age - no wonder he is already into 12 month clothes.

Clara is 38 lbs (90%) and 39.25 inches (75%). I was a little concerned that her weight percentile was higher than her height, but the doctor assured me that is normal in toddlers who often grow in spurts. The only suggestion she had was to replace some of her apple juice with milk to cut down a few empty calories and promote bone growth. You got it, Doc.

Ballet Class week 2

2011-09-13T21:12:00.002-04:00

I didn't have my camera with me for Clara's first week of ballet, but this week I was ready. Unfortunately, one of the little girls was crying so they closed the door during the class so she could focus and not see her mom. That meant I couldn't really video much. I did get a little of Clara going into class and coming out. And for a few seconds I cracked the door and caught a little of the action.

Apple Picking Time

2011-09-11T22:50:00.000-04:00

It's that time of year in Georgia - the apple harvest is in. We were planning to go to the orchard later this month, but when a beautiful and un-seasonally cool weekend came our way we made impromptu plans with the Hess family to start the apple picking early. This year we tried an orchard in Blue Ridge. It was great fun for the kids. We rode a tractor pull into the orchard (much to Marian's dismay). Once there we roamed the trees gathering as many as we could cram into our bags. I was surprised that so many different varieties were ready for harvest so early, but the orchard crew said that it was due to the unusually hot summer. After picking time, we perused the gift shop and snacked on fried pies and apple cider (YUMMY). A really wonderful time!

Finally feeling better

2011-09-07T22:10:00.000-04:00

After the last few weeks of sick, snotty-nosed children who where anything but photogenic, I am happy to be back with new pictures of my little darlings. This morning (before they had a chance to spill anything on their clothes) they were in particually good moods so I snapped a few shots.

Seriously adorable! If only they were this happy (and clean) all day long.

Ballet Class

2011-09-06T18:55:00.000-04:00

Clara had her first ballet class today. Thankfully she is all better after a week-long cold. She had a wonderful time. The class has about 12 little girls, all 3 years old. She will be doing ballet and tumbling for one hour a week now through May. I was pleased that Clara followed instruction pretty well (or at least as well as the majority of the little girls). They learned first position, how to plie, and danced like different kinds of animals (cat, frog, snake, monkey, etc). But perhaps the highlight of starting ballet was getting to go shopping for the wardrobe. The class specified the tutu, tights, and shoes so all of the girls will match for their recital later this winter. They were adorable.

All ready for class

After class we enjoyed the first cool day of the season by going out on the back patio for some bubble blowing and trike riding.

Sick kids

2011-09-01T08:35:00.000-04:00

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. The kids both have colds this week. That is no fun for anyone... and certainly not photogenic. I hope they are on the mend not only because I want them to feel better, but also because this weekend is DragonCon and I really want to be able to take them. I know Clara will love seeing all the costumes and hub-bub.

Clayton is Eight Months Old

2011-08-19T22:31:00.000-04:00

Wow, I can't believe he is already 8 months old. Clayton is doing great. We won't have another doctor's appointment until next month, but from how fast he is out growing his clothes, I can only assume he is getting bigger and healthier everyday. We have a pretty good routine going. He is up around 7 (Clara usually joins us around 8) we then get dressed, make beds and have breakfast. Around 10 we head to the gym where I get an hour workout and a shower (oh, how I love taking a shower without worrying about who is making a mess). The gym has a lovely children's room that is usually staffed with the same two ladies everyday. Both of them seem to really take good care of my kiddos. After gym we come home and have lunch. Clay usually falls asleep around 1 until about 2. Clara and I start our at home preschool work during his nap time. When he wakes the kids play together and we continue working in school activities as attention spans allow. Then usually around 5 Clay goes down for another 30min to hour nap. When he wakes we start dinner, then the kids have their bath, followed by jammies. I've been getting Clay to bed around 9 and Clara starts story time as soon as I have Clay down, and she too is asleep by 10.

Clay has been sleeping the night through on about 85% of the nights. The other 15% I contribute to teething pains that wake him, but even then he usually doesn't wake up until about 5am and I'm able to nurse him down for another few hours. As for teeth he has been holding at the two bottom ones for a while now, but from the chewing and drooling I have to assume the number 3 will be making an appearance soon.

Activity wise, he is very mobile. He crawls fast and hard, pulls up and cruises on anything, even my own legs when I'm trying to walk. He likes to explore my cabinets and draws, put anything he finds into his mouth (his latest chew toys have been the rubber ends off the doorstops...that's one none of the babyproofing manuals mention, but Clay loves them.), and bite chins. I'm not sure if the chin biting is his way of kissing, but with those 2 little razor teeth of his, it hurts.

As for his diet, he is still breastfeeding on demand, but he also loves table foods. His favorite is pizza crust, but any roll or bread stick will do. He'll eat baby foods, especially fruits, but prefers table foods that he can finger and feed himself. Today we celebrated Uncle Mason's 22nd birthday and Grandma Dayna let him have a little cake (not a mom-approved table food mind you, but when I saw him I had to grab the camera, becuase...Surprise - he loved it).

Start of Preschool week 2

2011-08-09T09:13:00.000-04:00

Our first week of preschool went great. Clara loves it and kept asking all weekend if we could 'do school'. This week our theme is "All About Me". And we will also focus on the letter B, number 2, Color White, Shape Square, and sight word 'We'.

Clara loved our first craft this week. We made a 'B'utterfly out of a toilet paper tube. And she was pretty proud of her activity sheets for the day.

Clayton hasn't been missing out on the fun either. He has been busy making messes wherever he goes. His uncle Mason has been calling him the WarChild because there is no peace when he is around. Clay has been a little grumpier than usual. I think he may be cutting his third tooth. But despite the grumpier attitude I was still able to get some giggles at dinner last night.

Clara's First Day of Home Preschool

2011-08-01T17:13:00.000-04:00

For those of you who don't know I have been wanting to try homeschooling with Clara for a long time. Our local public school system is known for its poor quality, and private schools in our area are quite expensive. Plus I just want to be involved when the light bulbs of knowledge go off in her little head. So to that end we have offically started our year of home preschool. I figure we'll start now and that way if it blows up in my face there is still time to look into other options before kindergarten.

The Plan: Each week we will focus on one letter, one color, one shape, one number, one sight word, and one theme. For our first week I have chosen: A, Black, Circle, 1, 'the', and seasons.

Luckily for me there is a ton of lesson plan ideas available on the internet. We are doing worksheets, art projects, story time, songs, and games. Basically I am trying to keep it fun, but a little more focused than our regular play. Above and below our two of Clara's 'A' art projects.

And here she is coloring a sorting worksheet that let her glue big, bigger, and biggest objects. She loves gluing!

We took a little break mid-lesson today for some tower building.

Perhaps you've noticed that her cheeks are chapped red. As it would turn out, my great plan of a glorious first day of school was brought down a peg when Clara came down with a cold yesterday. She is a runny-nosed mess, but at least since we are having school at home she didn't have to miss her first day. Also, you may have noticed that she is doing her lessons in a pink leotard. That is because today we signed her up for a year of ballet/tumbling lessons at the local dance studio. Class doesn't start until September 6th, but I have a feeling she will be wanting to wear her hand-me-down leotard (thanks Marian) every day until then.

The dance class is one of my two regular social activities I have planned for her since that is the one key area that home school will fall short on when compared to normal preschool. The other social activity is an hour and a half each morning at my gym. They have a great kids room and staff that Clara just loves... unfortunately we missed today because of the sniffles.

Clara's Art Gallary

2011-07-26T20:01:00.002-04:00

Clara has started drawing 'people'. Here you can see our gallary (the fridge) covered with her latest creations. The top one is a picture of her grown up, Clayton grown up and Daddy. The one below is Daddy, Mommy, Clara, baby Clay, and George the cat. I love how she can now verbalize to explain her drawing to me... cus' without her help I usually get them wrong.

In Clayton news he cut his second tooth yeasterday. Now he has both center bottoms.

Macon Children's Museum

2011-07-23T23:03:00.000-04:00

So the day started out with the arrival of a Metal Chicken that turned out to be the Hess Family. We decided to take the kids to the Macon Children's Museum so they could tear that place up instead of one of our houses. They had an amazing time. There was lots of pretend play...

Royalty is something you are just born with...

Even Clayton found some of the exhibits just his size

Clayton enjoyed riding in the minivan because he could laugh at mom crammed in the backseat between Aidan and Marian's carseats.

Clara doesn't look so sure about eating the squash that Marian has prepared.

I call this one: Two Mermaids Waiting for a Bus

And of course: Two Mermaids Making Change

"We didn't Start the Fire..."

Clara made sure that Flat Dad wasn't left out of the fun.

Clayton's First Tooth

2011-07-01T22:49:00.000-04:00

Clay has cut his first tooth. It is his bottom, right, center one (sorry for not knowing my proper tooth designations Aunt Sue). It certainly helps explain his fussiness the last few days. He has also pretty much given up the belly slither crawling for true up on hands-and-knees crawling.

We are all super excited because Patrick is coming home next Tuesday. He graduated his railroad conductor certification program today (with the highest marks in the class). But he already has homework assigned for the Locomotive Engineer program he starts July 11th. We'll have him home for about 4 days then he's headed back to Sacramento until Nov 19th. It is such a long time. I'm hopeful that I can take the kids out to visit him at least once during that period since he'll be too busy to come home.

I just hate that he is missing so much of Clayton's babyhood, but on the bright side it is forcing me to be more diligent about the blogging. Can't let Dad miss out on a milestone like a first tooth!

Clara's Van Gogh Potato Heads

2011-06-27T14:56:00.006-04:00

So Clara made an army of Potato Heads that would make Van Gogh proud. Eyes, mouths, noses any which way; but, she had a great time with them.

The boy gets around

2011-06-26T16:49:00.004-04:00

So Clay is now just a little over 6 months old, and he is tired of just lying around. Now he is on the move. He can sit up unassisted, crawl (on belly and occasionally up on his knees), and he pulls himself up to standing whenever he can get a hand hold on something. Additionally he has learned to navigate the single step between our family room and sun porch both going up the step and down. And what's the worst part... HE IS FAST! I can hardly keep up with him. The minute I turn my back to tend to Clara he is off to find mischief (or his favorite... the cat's water and food bowls). I really hoped to have a little baby for a few more months. The only bright side is that he is so very proud of himself and entertained by his new found freedom that he has been a lot less fussy.

Clayton's 6 Month Check-up

2011-06-17T20:43:00.000-04:00

Clayton has already reached 6 months. It is amazing how fast the time has gone and how much he is changing. To recap our visit he had 4 shots and one oral immunization which was not fun for him at all, but Clara did enjoy getting a lollypop and a sticker from the doctor. He is growing just fine with the following measurements: Length 28 inches (95%), Weight 17.8 lbs (55%), and head circumference 17.5 inches (85%). Other fun from the visit, Clara was watching the physical exam of her brother and out of blue says "Otoscope". Sure enough Dr. Sims was using a otoscope to look in Clay's ears. I could imagine her knowing the word 'stethascope', but 'otoscope' shocked me. I remember an episode of Blue Clues used that word. It is amazing what they pick up. Also as we were leaving Clara pointed up to a water tower located next to the office and said "Look, Mommy, the Eiffel Tower". Now I know that wasn't quite right, but I was still impressed by the comparison. Thank you Little Einsteins for that one. Gotta love educational television!

As for Clay's other development his latest tricks are pulling himself up to standing and sitting upright unassisted. The biggest problem with him pulling himself up is that once he is up he can't figure out how to get back down so he'll either get tired and fall down, or fuss until someone helps him get back down on the floor to crawl. Sitting also is still in development; he can't get himself into a sitting position from crawling - he has to be placed on his bottom. And he does still loose his balance from time to time. Other than that he is a fast little army-man crawler. He will get up on his knees and rock back and forth or rotate in a circle, but rarely goes forward in that position; instead he will drop back onto his belly and take off. He also still likes to bounce in his jumper or walk in the walker, but not for as long has he used to. The freedom of crawling is more his thing right now.

He has been on baby foods for a while now and does okay with them. He is not the eater that Clara was. You have to put on a very funny baby show to get him to open that mouth. And he has learned to blow the food back out. He seems to do it not because he doesn't like the food but just because he thinks it is a funny trick. More than baby food he really seems to like table food. At Grandpa's birthday lunch last week Clayton went to town on a piece of Mellow Mushroom pizza crust. Even without teeth he managed to gnaw it down. He also likes to gnaw on carrot sticks and celery. He can't eat them without teeth of course, but I'm hoping it at least gets him used to the flavors.

Sleeping is pretty good. We spent the last 5 days up in Marietta visiting Grandma Mary and the Hess family. That messed up our schedule, but now that we are back home I'm going to work on getting us back to normal. On our regular schedule Clay sleeps from about 9pm till 7am. Wakes to nurse and then goes back down until about 8am. Plus he still usually takes 2 naps each about an hour long. One around 11am and the other around 4pm. That works well for us both.

Clay is almost 6 months old

2011-06-15T22:29:00.003-04:00

Clayton has graduated from his baby bath tub to the kitchen sink. He seems to like it.

Yesterday I couldn't find Clay where I had left him. Silly me, he had crawled into Clara's play fort. I didn't know he could make it over the plastic threshold, but I shouldn't have doubted it.

Clara has a new friend. He is about 6 weeks old and currently staying at my Mom's house. He had quite a day yesterday- he was introduced to a 3 year old and had his first bath.

Some June Pictures

2011-06-12T10:49:00.003-04:00

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of weeks. This first one was taken at Blakely Hayes's first birthday party in Columbus. It was great to see my old college roommate, Jennifer, again.

Next we have the party girls - Clara and Marian. After the Hess family vacation to Disney World, they stopped by our house on their way home. The Disney magic was still strong! And to think, that is only water in those sippy cups.

This one is of Clay at Blakely Hayes's birthday party. He actually wasn't the youngest guest.

Clay has been trying to crawl. So far he can get up on hands and knees and rock. That doesn't stop him from getting around though; his preferred method is an army style slither. It sort of looks like he is doing the breast stroke.

I love this one. It is always great to get a picture of them both smiling at the same time.

Clay is almost 6 months old. He can sit up on his own for a few seconds before he loses his balance. Here he is practicing sitting up like a big guy.

Clara answers some questions

2011-06-03T19:38:00.002-04:00

My favorite part is when she draws a complete blank when I ask her what mommy does. Nice to know that all of my hard work is appreciated. Ha!

Selma's House Revealed

2011-05-29T19:46:00.000-04:00

The following are video clips of my Grandmother's reaction to the home we remodeled for her. She purchased it as a foreclosure needing A LOT of work. We fixed it up while she was still living out of state. We where all excited to see if she would like it as much as we hoped she would.

Clayton Slithers

2011-05-26T14:23:00.001-04:00

Clay hasn't quite learned to crawl, but he can certainly get around by slithering on his tummy.

Flat Pat's New Ride

2011-05-25T14:01:00.001-04:00

Clara painted Flat Dad a new car. I guess when he is done with our family he can be a cabbie. It was one of the first paintings that she has made without being prompted. I just set out the paints and she chose to make a car.

And here I am with my little man. He is getting so big. He smiles as long as he is the center of attention, but on the flip side he will cry the minute he realizes that he isn't.

Flat Dad Feeds Clayton

2011-05-17T12:34:00.000-04:00

Better watch out, Flat Dad, baby boy can get awfully stick. You don't want to mess up you stylin' clothes.

Happy Birthday To Me

2011-05-16T11:13:00.002-04:00

Flat Pat and Clara wishing me a happy birthday. Thanks guys!

Clara's New Sundresses

2011-05-15T12:12:00.004-04:00

So I've been squeezing a little sewing into my busy schedule. Nothing fancy, but I have had the chance to sew a few sundresses for Clara. And the best part for me is that she just LOVES them! This one is an owl motif and her best friend Marian has a matching one. And the Easter bunny brought both girls matching owl purses. Too cute.

This one has a psychedelic sixties flower power vibe. Lots of fun.

And on this last one, it is hard to see but those are little watermelon seeds on seer-sucker fabric. It was cute to start with, but I think the black rick-rack really makes it work.

Help Around the Kitchen

2011-05-15T12:07:00.003-04:00

Flat Pat has been so much help around the kitchen. Here he is starting water for our spaghetti dinner. And he has been keeping such a great attitude lately. What a gem!

Clayton's first set of wheels

2011-05-14T10:13:00.000-04:00

Flat Dad goes cruisin' with Clayton in the baby walker.

Friday Night Crash Night

2011-05-13T12:33:00.002-04:00

Flat Pat is all ready for Friday Night Crash Night!

Clara and Flat-Dad's Fashion Show

2011-05-12T10:43:00.000-04:00

Flat-Dad enjoyed a rousing playdate with Clara today. Nothing beats dolly dress-up!

Flat-Pat Plays Fetch

2011-05-11T08:59:00.003-04:00

Kaylee has come to visit from Mom and Dad's, but Flat-Pat doesn't mind the company. Here they are playing fetch:

Flat Pat makes the bed

2011-05-10T09:59:00.002-04:00

Flat Pat surprised me this morning by making the bed. See him there showing off his work...

Flat Pat just loves throw pillows!

Introducing...FLAT-PAT

2011-05-09T13:22:00.001-04:00

Today we had a new arrival we would like to introduce. This is Flat-Pat 2.0 (AKA Flat-Dad 2.0). He came to us from the Society for a Better World with the following message:

Dear Pecunia Mom and kids,

Recently we were made aware of your familial interruption following the departure of Patrick Pecunia, husband and father, upon his enrollment in Modoc Railroad Academy. We are pleased to be sending you our latest creation; the answer to your loneliness and boredom; the companion/father figure you’ve been looking for…. FLAT-PAT (aka FLAT-DAD).

Enclosed you will find your customized replacement Patrick. As you can see we spared no expense…Flat-Pat has it all: Patrick’s winning smile, Georgia Tech T-shirt, and Flip-Flops. He really is a companion for all needs, and will keep the kids laughing with his witty repartee. And, Mrs. Pecunia, we haven’t forgotten you… you’ll be pleased to find that Flat-Pat loves doing laundry, dishes, and regular household cleaning. He is a wiz in the kitchen, and a tiger in the bedroom .

But wait, that’s not all. Flat-Pat 2.0 has an important upgrade from the original Flat-Pat. After complaints that Flat-Pat was just too 2-dimentional with his one glowing facial expression, we upgraded Flat-Pat 2.0 to include his look for when he is just barely putting up with your S*@t. Notice on the reverse side of Flat-Pat 2.0 is “Not-Amused-Flat-Pat”(NAFP). NAFP has many of the same great features as the original Flat-Pat (Georgia Tech T-shirt, cargo shorts, and flip flops), but he has a few upgrades. NAFP has a half smile to imply that he doesn’t really think you are all that funny and the crucial sunglasses to hide his eyes when they are rolling back into his head. Yes, Flat-Pat 2.0 has it ALL.

We hope that you enjoy Flat-Pat 2.0 and look forward to seeing blogged documentation of all of his adventures while he is with your family.

Sincerely,

The Society for a Better World

Modoc Week 1

2011-05-03T08:39:00.005-04:00

So we've been a split family for a week now. To make things easier, the kids and I have been at my parents' house this last week. They are renovating a small house for my Grandmother. She will be moving in at the end of the month. It is a mess over there, but that doesn't stop the kids from having a good time. Clara 'helps' out (aka- gets in the middle of everything) and Clay enjoys hanging around watching the action. His favorite vantage point is the baby pouch, but the next best place is the Johnny Jump-up...

In other news this week Clay has recently started eating solids. So far he's had sweet potatoes, carrots, green beans, sweet peas, squash, apple sauce, pears, and bananas. All mixed with rice cereal and breast milk. I know that I am supposed to wait 4-5 days between introducing a new food, but I haven't been. So much for my 'mom of the year' award. He hasn't really gotten the hang of eating off a spoon yet. I sort of cram it in and he pushes it out, and I cram it in again; but by the end of things most of it usually goes down.

My favorite thing to report is that for the past 2 nights Mr. Clayton has slept through until at least 7:30. I don't count it as sleeping through unless the sun is up before he is. The consequential downside is that he is taking shorter and fewer daytime naps. Oh, how I miss those.

But at least he still is keeping a sense of humor about all of the upheaval.

Here is Clara flaunting it at Grandma Selma's new house. Apparently proper construction attire includes a red cowgirl hat... So that's what I've been missing...

Also on the Clara front, we've been inching our way closer to potty training success. So far she is pretty good about the pee-pee, but she keeps having accidents with the poop. Well, a couple of days ago she finally went poopie in the potty so to celebrate I took her to the local playground. And we were in luck; there was just one other child... a three year old girl. They played together great- running, sliding, and frolicking until... Clara all but peed on the girl! They were climbing through a tunnel and Clara stopped. I asked if her shoe fell off, but then noticed the tube was dripping! I was humiliated. The other little girl was right behind her. They came out to the tube and went down the slide before I could get her. I appoligized to the other parents since there sweet and potty trained little girl has just slid down the slide through the wet trail my 'darling' had left. They didn't seem as mortified as I was, but maybe they were just being polite. We haven't been back since... I'm so afraid I'll run into them again. The only upside is that was 3 days ago and she hasn't had an accident (pee-pee or poopie) since.

And somehow, even with everything else going on, I have managed to make some more clothes for Clara. Here is the latest. A dress I made yesterday. It is a size too big, but I wanted to make sure it would fit all summer and at the rate she is growing that still may be too small.

And finally, my parents' town of Monticello has about 3 resteraunts. Our favorite being the local Mexican one. And at the checkout of that resteraunt they have a bins of candy. It has become such a tradition of getting a tootsie pop after dinner that I don't think I could have a margarita without one. Well, Clara likes that tradition, too (the lolly pop one, not the margarita one). The only problem is that after a margarita I'm not always the most observant parent. So somehow I got her ready for bed and into bed without noticing that she still had her tootsie pop... let's just say we found it the next morning.

Don't worrry... it came out without scissors.

The Next Chapter: All Aboard

2011-04-25T11:54:00.004-04:00

Well, first off, we had a very nice Easter. My mom and dad came to join us, along with Uncle Mason, for a lunch of grilled chicken, corn on the cob, baked beans, deviled eggs, and peanut butter jello no-bake dessert. Easy and tasty. Then following lunch we let Clara hunt eggs in our front yard. She has enthusiasm, if not talent, at egg hunting.

But that was yesterday... today Patrick left town for what will be either 9 weeks of railroad conductor training or 6 months of railroad engineer training in Sacramento, CA. We haven't decided which program Patrick will go for, but the conductor training is a prerequisite for the engineer training so we are starting with that for now.

We are still hoping to hear from the City of Savannah regarding a job he applied for a couple of weeks ago. They are looking for a civil engineer with exactly Pat's qualifications, and have emailed him saying they "may be calling him for an interview". Not exactly useful since they haven't called yet and he has to be in California by Saturday night for his training orientation. So instead of waiting around for a call that my never come, or may not result in a job Patrick went ahead and left.

Oh, one more completely unrelated thing. Clay slept from about 10 last night until 7 this morning making it the first full night of sleep for me in MONTHS. What a great feeling.

Clayton's 4 Month Check-up

2011-04-16T10:53:00.000-04:00

Clayton had his 4 Month Check-up today and he is doing well. A quick rundown of his measurements: HC 17 inches (90%), Length 26 inches (85%), and Weight 15 lbs, 11 oz (60%). We have also been given the go-ahead to start solid foods. Other than that he has just been a delightful baby. He is getting bigger and stronger all of the time, and he seems to have a great sense of humor. We all just love him.

Jobs, Careers, and other means of employment...

2011-04-12T20:46:00.004-04:00

Who moved my cheese? Patrick quit his job last week. He hung in there as long as he could, but finally it was time to break loose and start looking for something else.

I'm still unemployed as well. I've been off since we moved to Georgia last summer. It didn't make much since to get a job with maternity leave just around the corner since I was pregnant with Clayton. I had planned to work part time after his birth, but not until I had him up a few months older than he is now. I know in light of what has happened I should go back to work now, but I just cry when I think of leaving the kids. I just can't do it yet.

So, what are we going to do??? We are both looking for jobs now. I'm focusing on pharmacy remote order entry jobs that would allow me to work from home, but they aren't very plentiful. Patrick has applied to a few civil engineering jobs with emphasis on stormwater management, but so far the only ones we've found aren't within daily driving distance from our house in Macon.

He has also signed up to attend Modoc railroad academy in Sacramento, CA. They offer a 9 week conductor certification course and a 6 month locomotive engineer certification course. Both have had 100% job placement for every graduate over the last 6+ years. They don't guarantee a job, but they nearly could. Unfortunately the jobs aren't necessarily in Georgia. We haven't decided with program Pat will pursue, but either way it will be a hardship to have the family split up for so long (not to mention the lack of income and extra expenses of schooling).

To distract us from the horrid reality of our circumstances we have been spending a lot of our time up with my parents working on the forclosure property they purchased for my grandmother. It needs new EVERYTHING. We just got done helping install new kitchen cabinets, and Patrick primed lots of wood trim. It is progressing nicely, but there are still lots of projects we hope to help with.

Clayton is 3 months old

2011-03-16T21:22:00.000-04:00

Well, we’ve reached three months already. Clayton is really coming along. He is now much more cognoscente of his surroundings. He watches everything and smiles at the slightest provocation. He can sit up tall and proud with assistance and can now roll over from back to tummy.

Our biggest problem now is that he can’t roll over from tummy to back. So he’ll roll over and get himself stuck on his tummy, then start to fuss or cry when he wants rolled onto his back. In fact, his favorite time to roll over seems to be in bed at night, and this had led to an increase in wake-ups. He has been waking himself up on his tummy about 3-4 times a night. Then he gets himself all worked up and I have to nurse him to calm him down and back to sleep.

He has also been enjoying his bouncer and activity mat more lately. He has started to reach and grab at the toys more on the mat. And the bouncer puts him at a good vantage point for watching Disney Jr. and PBS kids shows with Clara. I hate that he is already developing a TV habit, but having them both focused on a show is the only way for me to keep them happy and out of trouble long enough to make the beds/do dishes/wash clothes/etc. At least it is educational.

Clara is enjoying being a big sister more and more. She loves to make him smile, and she imitates me all of the time like a little mother.

She still loves to wear tiaras all of the time, and has assumed that Clayton must share her passion. At least she shares... here she is with 'King Clayton'. Poor baby. I know someday I'm going to be held accountable for subjecting him to pink tiaras, but for now I'm just happy that she is sharing.

Great Grandma Selma's Visit

2011-03-07T09:37:00.002-05:00

Clara and Clayton were sure excited when they learned that Great Grandma Selma was coming for a visit from Illinois...

Grandma Selma made fast friends with Clay. He likes to sit in laps, and this one seems to have plenty of baby-holding experience.

Marian's Birthday Party

2011-03-06T21:46:00.000-05:00

Clara went to her first birthday party today. Marian is her best friend and she turned 4 years old. Clara was so excited to go shopping for her present. At the party she and the other little girls got to dress up with boas, hats, and beads. They had a great time. Clayton came along, too, and was checking out all of the attractive older 'women'.

Clayton's 2 Month Check-up

2011-02-16T09:07:00.000-05:00

Clayton just had his 2 month check-up. He is doing great. I had guessed that he weighed at least 12 lbs now... boy was I under estimating. He is now 14.1 lbs (95%) and 24.5 inches long (95%). He is healthy and happy, except when he got his first round of immunizations. Poor guy got 3 shots yesterday and those did bring out the tears.

At home his routine is pretty much the same as last month. He is awake a little more during the day, but I still get a few hours of naptime out of him in the mornings and afternoons. At night he is in bed around 8:30pm til 8am, but getting up about 2 times... usually around 1am and 5am.

Our pediatrician says he is big enough to start sleeping the night through and wants me to work with him on that. We have had two fluke nights where he did sleep for about 8 hours straight. I've loved them, but I may not be working as hard at sleep training as Dr. Sims would like. I just hate the idea of not holding him when he cries.

For activities we have introduced him to the bouncer. He is a little small for it, so we've had to put a book underneath to help his feet reach. His head is also still a little wobbly, so I don't leave him in it for too long... as soon as I notice him bobbling, I figure he is getting tired so he comes out.

The only trouble we've had is he squirms a lot. He wants so badly to be able to move, but all he accomplishes at this point is wiggling into uncomfortable positions in his stroller or crib. The past few mornings I found him in bed with his head up against the bars of the crib because he pushes with his feet trough the night and scotches up until he hits a barrier. I think he'll be a lot happier once he has more control of his movements, but with all his practicing that shouldn't be long.

Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T12:25:00.000-05:00

A Valentine's Day message that says it all...

Clayton's First DIsney Vacation

2011-02-05T10:06:00.000-05:00

Well, we're back from another great Disney vacation. We went Jan 31st-Feb 4th and had great weather and low crowds. This one was Clay's first trip. He seemed to have a good time, but not as much fun as Clara. She loved the rides this time, and we had a special brunch at Chef Mickey's where she got to see Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Minnie, and Pluto. Grand Mary met us in Orlando and had an adjoining room at the Disney Pop Century resort.

This one is of Clara at a parade. We saw two during our stay... one at Animal Kingdom and one at the Magic Kingdom.

Clara's first time on the Tea Cups. She loved it and we rode several more times.

Clara's first roller coaster ride. She was finally tall enough for Goofy's Barnraiser. I thought she would chicken out at the last minute, but she surprised me and loved it so much that we rode it two more times.

Clay started smiling just before this trip. I love seeing him grin.

Too much Disney for Mr. Clay. Good thing Grand Mary was around to lend a hand.

Clara drumming at Animal Kingdom... and no. she will not be getting a set for at home ;)

Pluto at Chef Mickey's.

Minnie at Chef Mickey's... They gave all the children cupcakes right before the characters came by... Clara kept licking icing off her fingers so many of my pictures have her fingers in her mouth.

A kiss for Donald.

And a big hug for Chef Mickey.

Clara and two Goofy Guys.

Clara used to cry if I put her on a carousel horse... now she cries if I take her off of one.

Probably Clara's favorite ride... Dumbo! And for the record Clay was with me in the next elephant. He enjoyed it, too.

Bright-eyed and ready for a day at the parks.

Before our trip I asked Clara if there was anyone she would like to see at Disney World, and the one character she named was Sleeping Beauty. We lucked out in Epcot's France. There was Aurora herself with only two other children in line. She was great. She asked Clara if fairies made her dress, and if she was a princess, too. She spent a lot of time talking to Clara, and to every question Clara would reply "Yeah!" I think she was a little Star Struck.

We managed to catch Minnie with a short line at Hollywood Studios... I guess it was before she was due at Chef Mickey's to help cook.

A fun trip for all...

Clayton's Nursery

2011-01-17T10:59:00.002-05:00

It has been brought to my attention that I haven't had any pictures of Clay's nursery. So here you go. We've gone with a celestial theme that I hope is whimsical enough to seem like a nursery without being over-the-top juvenile. The only thing we have left to do is install the hardwood floors. We are still slowly adding hardwood floors to all of the rooms of our home, but with two little ones our progress has stalled out a bit.

Clayton is 1 Month Old

2011-01-16T10:29:00.000-05:00

So today Clayton is one month old and I wanted to take a minute to record all he has been up to. He is nursing and sleeping most of the time. We have started to find our daily routine. He gets up around 8am, nurses, and is up an alert for a couple of hours. Then around 10am he nurses again and goes down for a little nap. Usually from about 11am to 1pm he is up, alert and taking little nursing breaks. Then he generally takes a nice afternoon nap until about 4 or 5pm. He then is nursing and up again until around 8pm when he watches Clara take her bath, then has his own. We shoot for bedtime around 9pm.

Nighttime has our family doing some bed hopping around the house. Because we have a split bedroom plan, for the first few weeks I was sleeping in the daybed in his room, but I found myself bringing him into the bed with me to nurse. That just wasn't working - It isn't very safe for him, it sets a bad precedent, and I wasn't sleeping very well with him rooting and grunting next to me. So now I have started to sleep in Clara's room across the hall from Clay's nursery so I can be close for nighttime feedings, but not hear every noise he makes. Clara either sleeps in her own bed with me, or migrates to the master bedroom with Dad. Clayton gets up about 3-4 times a night to nurse, but as soon as he eats he goes right back to sleep in his crib.

He can hold his head up pretty well now, but it still wobbles after a while. He has started to track objects with his eyes and often turns toward noises. He it pretty noisy - lots of grunts and squeaks. He kicks his legs a lot, and will push up to help support his weight if you hold him over a flat surface. Still no true smiles, but the hard, grumpy old man, baby grimace is starting to fade away to a more relaxed facial expression. And he'll blink his big eyes around with curiosity and seems more engaged in his environment.

When he is awake Clayton's favorite activities are being held, laying under his activity gym, relaxing in his sling chair, or swaying in the soothing station... oh, and of course, nursing.

Clara's first snow

2011-01-10T11:11:00.000-05:00

Macon didn't get a very big snow compared to the northern part of the state, but it was still Clara's first time to experience the white stuff, and she had a blast. And it was awfully pretty to wake up and see everything glistening and white.

2 week check-up

2010-12-30T13:12:00.000-05:00

Clayton has just had his 2 week check-up and he is healthy as can be. Here are his latest stats: weight - 10 lbs, 7 oz. height - 21.75 inches. head circumference - 14.75 inches.

As for Clara, she is adjusting pretty well to being a big sister. She wants to be involved and constantly is saying "I hold her." Apparently the obvious anatomical differences between them hasn't quite translated into her vocabulary because she also often says, "baby brother so cute. I love her". Also fun: she likes to let me know "baby's crying" or when I'm nursing to let me know "baby hunger. He's drinking milk from your boobies". So helpful to have a two year old informer around. I would hardly know how to be a mother without her help ;)

Clayton James Pecunia: A Birth Story

2010-12-19T09:05:00.000-05:00

Even though I am unlikely to ever forget the details of Clayton’s entry into this life, I wanted to make sure to record them while all is still fresh in my memory. Sorry it is a little long, but this is more for me than for anyone else.

After my pregnancy with Clara went two weeks overdue I was fully prepared to wait for this baby, but I wanted to avoid the 3 days of induction that I endured. So I was thrilled when my cervix ripened and started to dilate without medical intervention. And I was willing to wait if it meant avoiding induction... and wait I did. I waited 3 weeks past my due date for this little one.

By Monday, December 13 I was at 4cm and 90% effaced. I had been having mild contractions since Saturday night about every 10 minutes so I was hopeful that real labor would start soon. Wednesday, December 15^th at noon I had another appointment with Jeri. She found me still at 4cm, and stripped my membranes in hopes of starting my labor. We also made an appointment to have my membranes ruptured at the hospital on Thursday morning if labor didn’t start naturally.

After my appointment I went to lunch with my mom, Mason, Amanda, and Clara. They were planning on going shopping so I had decided to go along to see if that would get my contractions going. I had been crampy ever since the membrane stripping, but nothing too bad. At the end of our lunch I had my first ‘real’ contraction since my OB appointment right around 3:30. We headed to Kohl’s right after that.

While we shopped around Kohl’s my contractions started to get stronger and closer together. I had to take breaks during them to rest or sit down. Clara was starting to act up so Amanda took her to the toy department while Mom and I helped Mason find some new clothes for school. Finally around 5:00 I decided I needed to go home because my contractions were coming about ever 5 to 8 minutes and were pretty uncomfortable.

Mason still had shopping to do so we left him and Amanda and Mom took me and Clara home. Clara put up quite a fight leaving the toy department empty handed, and I was not in a condition to handle it, but Mom managed to get her, kicking and screaming, into the car.

Once home, Clara fell asleep and I watched TV with Patrick while my mom went back to Kohl’s to finish shopping. By 6:30 my contractions had moved to every 4 to 6 minutes and came regardless of if I was sitting or standing. I called Mom and told her to get Mason and Amanda moving because she needed to come back to the house. By about 7pm they got home (after bribing everyone in the checkout line at Kohl’s to let them move ahead in line).

Mason and Amanda took over watching the then sleeping Clara while Patrick, Mom and I headed for the hospital.

I checked in at 7:20pm. Mom had to wait in the waiting room while I went through assessment. In assessment they had me put on a gown, give a urine and blood sample and answer a bunch of questions while they hooked me up to monitor to have my contractions and the baby’s heart rate monitored. My contractions were coming at about every 3 to 5 minutes and were peaking at about a 4 (on a 10 point scale) for intensity. A nurse checked my cervix and I was still at 4cm. Bummer… I really thought that 4 hours of regular contractions I would have dilated a bit more. Anyway, they decided to go ahead and admit me after about an hour of monitoring.

Once in my room, Patrick got our bags from the car and Mom came got join us. All of the excitement seemed to slow my contractions and I was starting to feel a little foolish for coming to the hospital. My nurse, Ray, came in to do my admit assessment, but she got called away because one of her other patients was ready to push. A second nurse came in and finished my admission then said I could go for a walk to try to get things moving. Oh, and I called Kelly. She was going to come down to be my labor coach, but Atlanta had suffered an ice storm so I told her to stay safe and stay home. She said that the forecast was for thing to melt off in the morning and she’d come down then.

Mom, Patrick and I walked around the floor for a while, then I was monitored again for about 15 minutes. My contractions were still about every 3 minutes, but not very strong. We repeated the walking and monitoring a couple of times, but by 11pm things hadn’t really picked up.

Mom and I told Patrick to go home. He had been working for half of the day Wednesday, and I thought that if he could go home and get some sleep he’d be better able to help out in the morning when they ruptured my membranes as scheduled. Plus Mom is more of a night owl so she could stay up with me and keep me company. Anyway, there was only one couch-bed so it seemed wrong to have them both stay and try to share it. We promised to call him if my dilation progressed.

At midnight Ray came in and checked my cervix again. Dr Barnes was on the phone and wanted to know if it looked like he could go to sleep. I was still at 4cm (damn). I figured this was a sure sign I was in for a slow labor. Dr. Barnes advised me, via the nurse, to stop walking and jus try to get some sleep. Sounded like a good plan. Ray said she needed to get one more monitoring strip in before I went to bed.

During that midnight monitoring my contractions became more uncomfortable… still not too bad, but they were harder to manage when I was strapped to the bed by the monitor. After the strip I went to the bathroom because sitting on the toilet helped ease the pressure in my back, and I kept feeling like my bowels needed to empty.

It was around 12:30 or 12:45 by now and the contractions had started to get much stronger. I found myself grunting and moaning during them. The noises just sort of came out and they seemed to give me something to focus on. Somewhere around my 8^th very miserable contraction I decided that it was time for drugs. My goal was to have a natural birth, but being at 4 cm for 3 days with no progress was eating away at my determination… and now I was tired and in pain. All I really wanted was some sleep so I’d have the energy to handle the birth that I assumed was in my future for the next morning.

I asked Ray if I could get an epidural. She said that I would need to get IV access and a liter of LR on board first. “Fine. Whatever. I’m ready. Lets get the drugs on board.” So then she disappeared for a while. I assume to call the anesthesiologist on call and to get my fluids and IV set ready. But while she was gone the contractions kept coming. Steady and strong, about every 2 to 3 minutes and lasting about 45 seconds. It doesn’t sound that long, but they felt like knifes being shoved into my back. And all I could do was moan through them.

At 1:20 am Ray came back and started my IV. She also wanted to get another monitoring strip done, but sitting still on the bed was virtually impossible. Sometime during this another nurse, Christine, came to see if I was ok. She had heard all of the moaning. Most of the floor had probably heard me, but I was in a primal place where I didn’t give a damn about anything except getting through each contraction. Christine helped my with my breathing and encouraged me to try different positions. Nothing really helped ease the pressure in my back, but it gave me something to focus on while we waited for my LR to infuse.

By about 2am the anesthesiologist showed up to administer my epidural. Thank GOD! I had had enough by then and all I could think about was getting my drugs to make the pain stop. So much for a natural birth. By now I had been enduring about an hour and a half of miserable labor. And I just new I couldn’t do hours more… even minutes more sounded like too much.

The doctor asked me a bunch of questions about my allergies and medical history. I just wanted him to stop and give me the meds. Finally he was ready to put in the epidural catheter. Christine helped me get into position, but it was so hard to sit still during each contraction. I wanted to crawl out of my skin.

Finally the line was in and the doctor administered the test dose. No problems there, no relief either, but at least my blood pressure and the baby didn’t have any problems. More contractions came as they administered the full dose. Still no relief! Why?!?! Why was my miracle drug not working? I needed relief desperately. The nurse said it could take up to 10 minute to ready full effect, but with Clara’s birth I felt my epidural almost instantly. And after 5 minutes I still felt everything… my legs, the pain during contractions, and all of the pressure. I said so. The nurse and doctor seemed to perk up when I mentioned the pressure.

I didn’t think anything of it. I had been having pressure and pain at that magnitude for over an hour… hence the moaning and screaming… duh. The anesthesiologist then asked the nurse when my cervix had last been checked. Ray said I was at 4 cm 2 hours ago. He said to check me again. Christine did and sounding shocked said “she is full and at plus two station. Get the resident in here.” Mom asked how long we had and Christine said “maybe 15 minutes”. Then asked me not to push. I saw my mom grab her phone to call Patrick, and I saw everyone else jump into action.

A couple other nurses had joined Ray, Christine and my Mom. They were getting ready for the baby. I was between contractions, and feeling thrilled at the prospect of getting things over with. When my next contraction started I had to push against the pain and pressure. They asked me not to since the resident hadn’t arrived. But I couldn’t help it. Christine said to do what I had to do, told my mom that she had delivered babies before and could again if she had to. She also told my mom to stand to the side of me because my membranes were still intact and could rupture at any point.

After a contraction or two more the resident did show up. I never learned her name, but she was a young, black woman. She quickly got to work She ruptured my membranes. Luckily the fluid was clear. She then told me to push with the next contraction… as if I had any choice in the matter. When the contraction came, the baby’s heart rate dropped down. She said she needed to do an episiotomy to help get his head out and that otherwise I was going to tear in several places. I would have rather been allowed to tear, but at that time I wasn’t going to argue with anything that would help get the delivery over with. In fact, I even remember irrationally thinking that I would let her amputate a toe if it meant the delivery would be over.

So she made a cut, and then on my next contraction I was able to push out the head. They suctioned the baby, felt for a cord around his neck. There was none. Then on the next contraction I pushed out the shoulders and felt him slide the rest of the way out. The relief I felt at being done was amazing.

A few seconds later they must have cut the cord because I heard him cry out. To be honest I was so relived at being done with the contractions and pushing that it hadn’t even occurred to me that I hadn’t heard him cry. They carried him to a crib beside my bed for a quick assessment. About that time Patrick arrived. I felt bad that he had missed the birth, but again, the most powerful emotion I was feeling was still relief to be done.

My mom came over after taking a couple of pictures. She was crying. I remember thinking how silly that seemed. I was done. He was here and the pain was over. I was way too happy to cry. Sometime around then I delivered the placenta and the resident began sewing me up. My legs started shaking… the only effect from the epidural. I still had feeling in my legs, felt the lidocaine injection I was given just before the repair stitching began, and I had felt the whole delivery. I still don’t know they pharmacology behind the failed epidural, but I can attest that it didn’t work at all.

Anyway, to distract me from the stitching, they brought the baby over for me to hold. He was beautiful. He hadn’t been measured yet, but everyone kept saying that he must be at least 9lbs. He began nursing almost right away. The nurses also seemed impressed by the weight of my placenta. They were passing it around in a plastic bag, hefting it, and saying ‘wow’. They passed it to Patrick who looked a little squeamish and quickly passed the bag along to the next nurse. Dr. Barnes showed up just as the resident was finishing sewing me up. He told her to add a few stitches here or there, but otherwise did nothing. So glad that I’ve paid for his services ;) Oh, and I can’t wait to see the charge I’m getting for the non-functioning epidural.

So I wanted to have a natural birth before I went into labor, then during it I wanted the drugs, but as luck would have it I ended up getting the natural birth I had wanted. I am amazed and proud to know that I did it. I labored and delivered a healthy 9 lb, 5 oz boy without any chemical induction or pain management. I won’t do it again if I can help it, but it is a wonderful since of accomplishment, and Clayton James is well worth it.

Introducing Clayton James Pecunia

2010-12-16T21:44:00.000-05:00

He is finally here. Clayton James Pecunia joined our family on Thursday December 16th, 2010 at 2:44 am. He made his appearance so abruptly that his daddy missed it by just minutes, but there will be more about his birth story in a later post. For now just know that he was 9 lbs, 5 oz; 21.5 inches long, and had a head circumference of 14 inches so a nice big boy, but we expected that considering he was born 3 weeks after his 'due' date.

Wait, wait, wait

2010-12-14T08:19:00.002-05:00

So here we are...19 days overdue. Awesome! I'm starting to get a little stir crazy about the whole thing. I want to do this as naturally as possible and allow him time to be born in his own way, but this is starting to go beyond 'fashionably late'.

I've been having mild contractions for the last 2-3 days about every 10 minutes when I'm moving around. They stop when I rest, but at least that way I've been able to sleep at night. Yesterday we had another OB appointment. I am now at 4cm and 90% effaced which I am quite pleased about. His head is down low and she said I could go at any time. Hopefully when things finally do get underway they will go smoothly and quickly.

My amniotic fluid level is 11 which according to Jeri, my midwife, is better than many women have at 40 weeks. The NST showed great movement and heart rate spikes for the little guy, too. The only problem was my initial blood pressure was 150/100. YIKES! But when they rechecked me at the end of the appointment is was back to normal. Apparently the fear of induction and fighting with the doctors really ups my BP. I'm not sure why I worry so much about it since Jeri has been super supportive.

The plan as it stands now is to have another appointment tomorrow (Wednesday) at noon for another NST and Jeri will strip my membranes (again). Then if still no baby by Thursday morning she would like me to go to the hospital for AROM. She is confident that with so much progress already breaking my water will result in labor onset. Another cool thing is that even though she is not on call Wednesday night she said that she will come in if I go into labor.

Overdue...again...

2010-12-06T06:39:00.003-05:00

So, here we are somewhere between 8 and 12 days overdue depending upon which due date estimate you choose to use (first ultrasound said Nov 25th, the second ultrasound and LMP pointed to Nov 28th). But either way we are well overdue, especially for a second baby.

Tomorrow I have another OB appointment with NST. Last week when my midwife checked me the non-stress test showed the baby to be doing well. I also had an ultrasound that said my fluid level was 11... she said we wouldn't worry unless it got down around 4. My cervix was somewhere between 2-3cm and 60-70% effaced.

Now overall I am happy with the progress I've been making. I remember being 14 days overdue with Clara and having my midwife say my cervix was 'closed tight'. So at least this time something is going on down there. But, I just thought things would go faster this time...

Even though my midwife has been very supportive in not pushing me about induction, I feel like the clock is ticking. She told me that although she isn't usually on call this coming weekend, she will be due to a college's vacation. She said she could sweep my membranes this Friday to see if that got things moving or could have me come into the hospital on Saturday for AROM. I definitely don't want to go the AROM route because I know once they have me in the hospital with ruptured membranes then they won't let me go home without a baby even if it means pitocin and/or c-section. So that would in effect end my hopes for a natural labor.

If I don't have the baby this weekend, I 'll be past 42 weeks by my first ultrasound dating or just at 42 weeks by the second. I remember 42 wks being when the induction pressure really sets in. So if no baby this weekend, then my midwife will be off call for a few days and I'll be past due and dealing with the MD's in the group who aren't nearly as supportive. I know I can just hold my ground, but why does having a baby always mean a fight for me. Why can't it just been easy?

And maybe I'm just being silly. Afterall most women these days seem to prefer being induced. They even ask for it. I could just fold, accept the induction and another epidural... do things the 'easy way', but I really wanted to see my body handle childbirth on it's own the way nature intended. Plus I wanted to allow my child to be born without the risks meds introduce to him. Am I just being stubborn?

And this doesn't just effect me. I also have my mom, Patrick, Kelly, and Mary all waiting in the wings since they are my support team for labor and Clara's care during the labor. I'd love to be able to give them at least a decent time frame to expect this baby, but I can't unless I opt for induction. I hate inconveniencing everyone when it is within my power to get the ball rolling. But should it be my choice? Shouldn't my baby and body decide when his birthday is?

I think I'll let her sweep my membranes on Friday, but as long as baby and I are doing well, we'll just keep waiting without any intervention that is more invasive. Or maybe labor will start on it's own this week. Wouldn't that be a shocker.

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-29T07:34:00.003-05:00

Well, Thanksgiving marked my due date according to our first ultrasound. I tried to tell my OB that it was too early and he wouldn't be making his appearance just yet. Looks like I was right, but at least it allowed us to have a nice Thanksgiving dinner outside of a hospital.

Dinner preparations went pretty smoothly. Patrick and I made turkey, stuffing, mac&cheese, and iced tea. Mom and Dad brought cheese carrots, mashed potatoes, and ham. Mary and Pat brought deviled eggs, salad, crescent rolls, bread, ambrosia, pumpkin pie and seven layer bars. So we had a huge spread!

Our new dining room held it's first big dinner. We all fit comfortably... the white carpet made it through unblemished...but the day after Thanksgiving Patrick ripped down all of the wallpaper. He said he couldn't stand another meal with all those vines on the walls.

Me and my little ones resting after our big meal... and no, that belly is not all turkey and stuffing ;)

A belly profile as of my due date.

Clara helping out

2010-11-15T09:41:00.002-05:00

Now that we are back in Georgia we have had to start dealing with leaves again. Clara has enjoyed this since falling leaves are all new to our little Floridian. We don't have a rake her size, but she enjoys helping out with her broom.

After an afternoon of hard work, we couldn't help but give Clara a little treat - her very own ballet tutu. She loves it. Now the only problem is figuring out how to get it off of her ;)

Halloween 2010

2010-11-01T07:31:00.000-04:00

Clara began her Halloween celebration by some tummy painting. She helped paint her own tummy and mine (containing baby brother).

For trick-or-treating Clara dressed as a fairy princess and visited our new neighbors for plenty of treats. Clara also went Trunk-or-treating at our church where she got a spider ring, glow-in-the-dark bracelet, and s'mores treat in addition to a stash of candy.

While Clara and I painted tummies, Patrick headed up the carving of the family pumpkin... but Clara got the winning vote on the pumpkin subject matter - Mickey Mouse of course.

Clara's 'Tea' Party

2010-08-04T21:00:00.000-04:00

So today Clara came to the kitchen and asked for a 'butter sandwich' AKA a peanut butter sandwich with no crusts if you please. I made one for her and expected her to take it into the family room to watch Curious George which was playing on the TV. Instead I saw her head with the plate in hand toward her bedroom. She has never had any food in her room before so I was curious what she was planning.

After a few minutes I went after her and found her hosting her own little 'tea' party. She had pulled a doll table and chair set off of her chest of drawers and set it up to share her sandwich with one of her Little People. I loved the look of everything being completely out of scale, and how pleased she obviously was with herself.

Fairy Clara

2010-08-03T20:55:00.000-04:00

Look what Grandma Dayna and Pawpaw brought back from Las Vegas... Fairy wings, crown, and wand!

And of course, no fairy costume would be complete without sparkly shoes... actually, Clara is on a kick where no outfit period is complete without sparkly shoes, or as she calls them 'my my slippers'. I guess maybe I've let her watch Cinderella one too many times.

Clara's Thoughts on Friendship

2010-08-02T11:55:00.005-04:00

Today Clara came up to me to discuss her relationship with Aidan and Marian (May-may) Hess, the children of my best friend, Kelly.

Clara: Aidan, May-may my my friends.
Me: Yes they are your friends. And their Mommy, Kelly, is my friend.
Clara: Yes, Keh-wee your your friend. (then to my Mom's dog) Big dogs your your friends puppy.

We (Clara, me and the dog) visited Kelly and family last week. And while Kelly, the kids and I are all definitely friends, I think that Clara was stretching the comparison a bit when she included the dogs. Kaylee, my mom's Pomeranian spent most of our visit yapping and growling at Kelly's indifferent, but much larger dogs... not exactly friendly. But I still thought it was cute that Clara is drawing these comparisons and humanizing the dogs' relationship.

Other Clara interests of late:
*Sweeping Booty (aka Sleeping Beauty). She wants to watch it at least 3-4 times a day, but covers her eyes when Maleficent is acting particularly scary. She also runs around the house yelling "pink, blue, pink, blue" from the dress changing scene.
*Fashion. Clara wants to change her cloths and shoes multiple times a day. Currently she is wearing a Tinker Bell costume and pink polka dotted house slippers, but soon she will take me by the hand and lead me to her closet saying "Closet light on, pweese".
*Playing keep away from my mom's dog. We have been dog sitting Kaylee this week. Clara has enjoyed having the dog around, but hasn't mastered the ins-and-outs of playing fetch... particularly the throwing part The dog prances around with its ball, Clara snatches it then runs through the house with the dog trailing behind her yelling "I got da ball, I got da ball. No puppy, my ball". Kaylee waits for Clara to throw it, but usually only gets a chance at the ball when Clara gets dizzy from running in circles and falls down, dropping the ball in her fall.

Clara in July

2010-07-30T09:14:00.000-04:00

I feel a little bad that I am letting such a precious part of Clara's life go by so fast, and with so little documentation, but considering we bought a new house this month, moved our stuff from our GA apartment and FL house, had a broken water heater for almost 2 weeks while we went in circles with our home warranty company I'd say it is impressive that I caught any shots of her this month.

It's gonna be a Boy!

2010-06-30T10:19:00.002-04:00

We had our second ultrasound yesterday and they confirmed that our next little baby has all the parts of a healthy baby boy. They have also adjusted my due date back to Nov. 25th (Thanksgiving Day) though I'll believe that when I see it. If he is as stubborn as his sister I won't be looking for him until sometime in December. But if he is on time it will make for quite a thankful Thanksgiving.

Clara in June

2010-06-25T12:49:00.002-04:00

Clara loves the swimming pool. Mom and Dad love the naps that come after swimming.

I told Clara we needed to get ready to go shopping. While I was gathering shoes, purse, shopping list, etc... Clara was getting herself ready to go.

After shopping we went to lunch at the local Mellow Mushroom. It is nice to be in Macon where both GT and UGA are appreciated.

Baby 2's First Photos

2010-06-02T07:56:00.003-04:00

We had our first ultrasound on Baby 2 today and B2 looks healthy. The only thing is they estimate the age as about 2 weeks farther along than I think I am. I think they are wrong, but we'll see. For those un-initiated with fuzzy black and white photos, I'll try to explain what each image is showing:

This is looking down on the baby's face. Ooops! Looks like I'm having an alien - nope that is what we all look like at this age. The white line on the left is the baby's right arm and hand.

The photo above is a side profile of the baby facing up. The head is on the right, body in the middle, and the legs are curled up on the left.

This one is a side profile of the baby facing down. The upper right 'c' shape is the right arm and a big thumbs up for Mom and Dad. The white curve on the left is the right leg.

This one is the left hand waving.

Two feet. The toes are pointing to the upper left corner.

And the 'money' shot. This one is pointing up between the baby's legs as if the baby is sitting on the camera. The white mass on the upper right corner is the baby's bottom with the legs jutting off to the left/lower left. The arrow is pointing at the genitalia. We were told that it is too early to make a definitive gender determination, but we have a pretty good idea. What do you think? Time to buy pink or blue?

Where are the Clara picture?

2010-06-01T08:11:00.000-04:00

I feel a bit guilty for not having many pictures of Clara lately. Here is my list of excuses: 1) it is hard to get a picture of a 2 year old. They are fast! and while you find the camera, they find trouble. 2) She doesn't like to smile nicely right now. She says "Cheese" and scrunches up her face all silly. Or ducks and hides from the camera 3) We are living in two states and I'm only around half of the time, and who wants to spend that precious time trying to find the camera and charger. 4) Last week she got a mosquito bite on her eye lid. It swelled up to the point that she couldn't open her eye. Not very photogenic.

All of that being said, I did manage to get one picture this week of her in front of my mother's hydrangea bush. But even in this one she is acting a bit silly. Ah, 2 year olds!

May you live in interesting times

2010-05-28T11:09:00.002-04:00

So I know this is Clara's blog, but this is a post just to update everyone about the craziness that is going on in our whole family right now. Since it affects Clara, I think it is still appropriate for her blog, and frankly I want to be able to read this later, and be like "wow, remember all of that, I'm sure glad it's all behind us." Not that any of what is going on is bad, in fact we are pleased about all of the changes, but the process of change is still exhuasting. So here's what's up.
1) Patrick has been at is new job in GA for almost 2 months. It is going well, but with any new job there is a learning curve, and he is used to being the guy who had the answers, not the one with all the questions.
2) Megan is still working night shift in Florida and commuting every other week to Georgia to be with Patrick and Clara. It is an 8 hour commute. Lots of miles, lots of gas, lots of time. She gave her notice at work and will be going down 3 more times over the next month and a half. And lets not forget about the guilt being away from Clara every other week can cause!
3) Clara and Patrick are living in a 2 bedroom apartment. It is nice and contains most of the family's worldly possessions, but it is also full... but the house is Florida is not empty. Problem? I think so.
4) Megan is pregnant. The first trimester is just about over, but the nausea has yet to completely resolve. Everyone is happy that the family is growing, but honestly the pregnancy isn't getting the attention it deserves because there is just too much else to think about before nursery plans or even naming ideas can get underway. Oh, but be sure this baby is not to be ignored - (s)he has already got Megan looking like a super Blimp. Thanks, little one!
5) Grandma Dayna and Grandpa Chris are trying to get one of there houses on the market, so any 'free' time the family has is spent trying to help finish the basement construction and empty the house out and into the new one. Nerves are getting fried and we all just hope that it is sold soon.
6) Speaking of selling houses, Patrick and Megan need to get the Florida house sold soon, too. But how do you list a home on the market when one of the owners sleeps all day. Not ideal to show the home and have a sleeping pregnant woman in one of the bedrooms. So even though that house needs to sell, it is going to have to wait until Megan is done working and the last of the junk can be unloaded.

So again this is not to be construed as a series of complaints about our current situation. We are excited to have the changes in our life, but they have kept us busy. So we are sorry if our communication have been missing or massively delayed. It's not you, its US!

Big, big mess

2010-04-20T19:07:00.003-04:00

So moving is a messy, ugly business. As I mentioned in a previous post we moved a 26ft (the largest we could get) moving truck with MOST of our worldly possessions to Georgia a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, we couldn't fit it all, and now I'm left dealing with the odds and ends (AKA crap that I have no idea what to do with).

The only method of attack I could come up with was to pull it all out of the closets, the attic, and cabinets and put it in one place (my otherwise empty living/dining room area) for sorting and packing. This resulted in a mess A LOT larger that I had anticipated (who knew that much 'stuff' could hide in closets, cabinets and an attic?!?).

When I brought Clara home from preschool she walked into the living room, put her hands on her hips and said "Big, big mess" with more disdain that I would have thought a 2 year old could muster. I swear she made me feel ashamed for creating such chaos. But if you look at these pictures I think you will see that her assessment is dead-on.

Where in the world are the Pecunia's

2010-04-10T20:22:00.002-04:00

Life has been a little busy for us lately. Last week we moved most of our stuff up to Macon, Georgia in anticipation of Patrick's first day at his new job this Monday, April 12. For now our stuff, Patrick and Clara are in a two bedroom (aka - small) apartment in Georgia while I stay in Florida to work and hopefully sell our house... but we don't even have it on the market yet. I miss my little girl (and yes, even my husband :) oodles, but it looks like we have several months of this split living ahead of us. Luckily the Grandmas are stepping up with the Clara-care and I have every other week off to run up and visit everyone.

The move I am sorry to say somewhat overshadowed both Easter and Clara's 2nd birthday. We still celebrated, but unfortunately my camera was lost in the moving shuffle so I have no pictures to post. Grandma Dayna has some birthday pictures on her camera that I'll try to get soon. Easter was not documented at all, but rest assured, Clara had a very nice egg hunt around her new apartment and despite the move that 'ol Easter bunny still managed to find her and deliver a nice basket of goodies.

Baby meets Brownie

2010-03-19T19:03:00.003-04:00

Okay... this may make me a bad mother. I know about salmonella risks from raw eggs, but to this day I love brownie batter more than just about anything. And it seemed wrong to deny my daughter one of life's simple pleasures. After seeing her enjoyment, it looks like brownie batter passion is an inherited trait.

Story-time with Clara

2010-03-14T11:23:00.000-04:00

I caught this video of Clara 'reading'. She really loves her books, and this I Spy one is a favorite. I can't understand everything she is saying, but she sure is enjoying herself.

2010-01-24T21:55:00.000-05:00

This weekend was our January Disney trip... I know we have an addiction. And it isn't going to stop anytime soon. We renewed our annual passes and our good to go through May 2011!

I don't know why this on loaded sideways, and I can't seem to get it to rotate, but it was too cute to leave out of the lineup.

We spent Saturday at Animal Kingdom and Sunday at Epcot. Here is Clara taking a little snack break. Grapes where the food of the weekend. Clara likes to pick one favorite food and that is all she wants to eat for a day or two (or until you go to the store and stock up on it) then she changes to something completely different. But for this weekend it was grapes. Luckily Disney sells grapes (I won't tell you how much I had to pay for them, but believe me it was worth it to keep our little princess smiling).

This one is in a Zen garden in the China at Epcot. I love that the zen vibe even calmed Clara...for a while.

Somewhere around Germany Clara found this donkey. At first she was too timid to touch him. I think she thought he was real. But she warmed up to him and soon wanted to ride...

She got upset when I told her he wasn't for riding. Poor girl.

We stayed at the Pop Century Resort for the first time on this trip. We all loved it. Clara was especially into the swimming pool. But it was still pretty cold... January isn't the best swimming weather, even in Florida.

I had already been in and knew that the water was mighty cold, so I had the camera ready to snap Patrick's expression when he first waded in. Love it!

Clara loved it, and didn't seem at all bothered by the cool water. "Swim, swim" she said every time we walked within sight of the pools during our trip.

We convinced Clara to join us in the regular pool. It was quite a bit warmer than the kiddie pool.

We loved the decorations around the resort. I think this is the biggest Mickey we've ever seen. He certainly caught Clara's eye.

And right outside our room Clara found the souvenirs she wanted to take home. And don't feel sad, Dad... there is one for you, too.

Bubble Bath Beauty

2010-01-20T22:49:00.001-05:00

Clara has really started to enjoy her evening bath. I had to grab the camera tonight because she was so spirited... splashing, giggling, and playing with the bubbles. The only trouble now is getting her out before the water gets cold or she turns into a prune.

Belated Christmas in Georgia

2010-01-12T15:29:00.000-05:00

Clara and I spent a belated Christmas in Georgia January 6th through the 11th. Clara loved her new presents. And Great-Grandma Selma was also in town so we all had a nice visit. Clara even got to see her first snow. Even though there wasn't any accumulation, it was pretty to watch it fall through the sky. Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip:

Clara didn't want to stop playing for anything... even the call of nature. I guess it is good that she is learning to multi-task early.

She also delighted in pushing her new baby stroller all around the house as she said "walk, walk, walk"

Tea for two, anyone? This doll table and chair set belonged to Grandma Dayna. Clara didn't seem to notice that it was for dolls and not girls.

Great-grandma Selma gave Clara her first tea set. She played tea with it for quite some time, and then when that was over she started throwing the pieced through the cat door down the stairs to the basement. Fun! Prehaps we'll wait a bit longer before turning the glass tea set back over to her.

What I love most about this picture, besides the fact that is has 4 generations of my family, is the fact that you can't tell how utterly exhausted we all were. This picture was taken at the end of the trip when I realized that we hadn't gotten a shot of all of us together. Mom and I had spent the prior 3 days laying over 1000 sqft of laminate flooring in the basement while Great-Grandma Selma entertained Clara upstairs. I don't know how we had our eyes open, much less the energy to smile.

Grandpa Chris had to work a lot of our visit. Unfortunately he and I work opposite weekends; the busy life of pharmacists ;) But at least he was able to come up on Monday and spend the day with his Granddaughter.

Clara and Claus

2009-12-20T09:55:00.002-05:00

I was able to get Clara doing her 'ho, ho, ho'...

Ho, ho, ho

2009-12-18T11:46:00.000-05:00

Today in the car on our way to school I was trying to get Clara to say "Santa Clause" becuase he was going to be at her school for their special Christmas luncheon.

Me: Say 'Santa Clause'
Clara: Ho, Ho, Ho

So she may not want to say his name, but she certainly knew who I was talking about. Too, cute! She kept on 'ho, ho, ho'ing all the way to school. I never did get her to say Santa Clause though...

Santa Hat

2009-12-15T17:02:00.006-05:00

Inspired by the professional photo collages I've seen around town, Clara and I had a photo shoot at home with the 'ol digital camera and our Santa hat. I'm pretty happy how they turned out. I'm going to get a collage frame to put them all together.

P.S. - Kelly hooked me up with a photo editing tool that allowed me to make my collage. Awesome!

Getting Ready for Santa

2009-12-06T13:54:00.002-05:00

Now that we are back in town it is time to decorate the Christmas tree. We didn't want to leave Mary on her own to defend the tree from Clara and George (the cat) during our trip. So we are doing our decorating a little late this year. I never realized how challenging it would be to keep all of the glass and delicate ornaments out of Clara's reach. Really, trees should be inverted so you have more limbs to decorate at the top where kids can't reach and fewer at the bottom (it would also leave more room for presents ;)
Clara is actually putting an ornament on the tree. Odd since she spent most of the time pulling them off. I think I'll be finding ornaments scattered around the house now til Independence day.

Even though Clara doesn't remember Christmas from last year, she is still starting to feel the excitement of the season.

Back from Vacation

2009-12-04T17:43:00.001-05:00

Patrick and I just got back from celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary. We took a 5 day cruise out of Miami on the Carnival Imagination Nov. 30-Dec.5th. It was great! And, it was our first vacation without Clara. Grandma Mary came down and stayed with Clara while we were gone.

Our ship went to Key West, Florida and Cozumel, Mexico, and had a day at sea. We spent our day in Cozumel on the ship enjoying all of the ammenities while the other cruisers were off ship. We when on the water slide, played putt-putt, and had the pool and hot tub pretty much all to ourselves.

On the last day at sea, we played Back Gammon, ate, ate and ate some more, enjoyed complementary drinks at the farewell party. We also won a Slogan Trivia game and got a Solid 24k (plastic) Gold Trophy.

The last day at sea was also our anniversary. It was a fun and romantic trip. Just what we needed.

November in Pictures

2009-11-30T14:04:00.000-05:00

November went by in a blur. We had a lot of fun, but I didn't seem to find much time to blog... so here is a photo recap:

Clara learned the wonders of the Ipod. Mom and Dad learned how to upload Curious George and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. Now Clara is techno-savvy.

We went to Disney World and had some of the best weather all year. It was a last minute trip, but turned out to be one of our best.

Opps, we forgot to bring her booster seat to the condo we rented. So Dad helped Clara eat her macaroni and cheese in the bathtub. Necessity is the mother of invention!

Clara learned to say 'cake' and she said it so much that I couldn't deny her. She helped me whip up a for-no-reason-at-all cake. And boy did she enjoy the frosting.

Dad and Clara still are best friends. She loves him almost as much as the goggles she found. She wouldn't take them off for anything.

This month we introduced play-dough. What a mess, but she does enjoy it.

We went back to the beach, but Clara is old enough now to be scared of the waves. She was ok as long as Dad didn't set her down.

We also found time to visit our favorite park.

And finally, Clara must have some New Orleans blood in her because this little girl LOVES her beads!

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-31T20:14:00.002-04:00

Clara has really started to try to talk more lately. Today she said a pretty passable version of "pumpkin" and "trick-or-treat".
After her Halloween party at school, we came home and carved our pumpkin to welcome the Trick-or-Treaters. Clara was lots of help, of course.

"Whatcha got there, Mom"

Clara helps me transfer the pattern onto our pumpkin.

Dad works on the carving.

Clara shows off the family Jack-o-Lantern.

I think he looked pretty good!

Ghoulish Gathering

2009-10-31T15:04:00.000-04:00

Clara's Montessori School had a Ghoulish Gathering Halloween party today. There was lots of fun with face painting, hay rides, a miniature pumpkin patch, bouncy houses, and games.

Clara found a chick-and-pumpkin water squirter in the haystack game. It turned out to be a favorite toy today. I would squeeze it so that it blew air at her and she howled with laughter.

It was almost 90 degrees out today so the mouse nose and whiskers sweated and smeared away, but she was awfully cute for a little it lasted.

Clara made a little pumpkin decoration which she carried around as a purse all afternoon.

They also served pizza at the party. I couldn't believe it... Clara ate 1.5 slices. Great big adult size slices. What flavor for our little mouse? Why, Cheese of course!

Disney With the Hess Family

2009-10-19T14:04:00.003-04:00

We stayed at Fort Wilderness Campgroung at Walt Disney World. The kids enjoyed watching the wildlife...and being a little wild themselves.

Clara had dinner at Chef Mickey's. Here is one of her photos just before she had a major meltdown from too much vacation.

The things I have to do to get a family photo...

Mom and Clara at Epcot

Patrick with Aidan and Clara

18 Month Check-up

2009-09-30T11:26:00.000-04:00

Well, Clara is feeling better, but today we still had to go back to the pediatrician's office. This time for Clara's 18 month check-up. She is still growing well and is still 80% in weight at 26.5 lbs, above 97% in length at 34.5 inches, and her head circumference is 95% at 19 1/4 inches. Both the nurse and the doctor commented on how smooth her growth charts have been. They were pleased.

Clara still has a bit of fluid behind her ears so we got a perscription for another 5 days of oral antibiotics, and she had one immunization which she didn't like at all, but other than that she got a clean bill of health.

Icky-Sicky

2009-09-16T08:44:00.003-04:00

Well, Clara has been fighting a cold since August 27... 4 days after she started pre-school. Talk about your predictable incubation period. Anyway, it has just been a cold. Runny nose for a few days, then cough for a few weeks... now the nasal symptoms are back. It has been so hard knowing when to send her to school since the symptoms seem to wax and wane. I kept her out 2 days 2 weeks ago when they called to say that her runny nose was pretty bad. Yesterday they sent a note home that again said the nose is too runny for school.

I don't want to be the evil mom who sends her kid to school to contaminate the rest of them, but I also don't want to keep her away any longer than necessary. We are paying a pretty penny for this toddler education and she does seem to love going to school now.

The good news is she seems to feel great. She is still running around, eating normally, sleeping well, and there has been no temperature. I took her to the doctor's last week when the school was pressuring me a bit becuase her cough had not improved. The doctor said she has a...cold. Surprise, surprise, and also said that he would prefer not to prescribe her an antibotic because he didn't think it would help for what appears to be a virus.

So for now she is home with me, which I enjoy, but I do wish I wasn't paying for childcare that she isn't using. I'm planning to keep her home the rest of the week. Maybe we can focus some more on the potty training. Hopefully she'll be well enough to return to school next week.

adventures in potty-land

2009-09-13T20:16:00.003-04:00

Well we are getting closer to pottyland. It seems to be a long journey, but that may just be because we are taking it slowly.

Today Clara pulled off her diaper so I took that as a possible sign that she wanted to use her potty. I got it out and sat her on it and nothing happened :( It turned out she took the diaper off because it was wet...and because she seems to like to run around naked, but that is a story for another posting. But then about 45 minutes later she pulled her new diaper off and went to set on the potty without my coaxing. I thought she was just playing a game with me, but no... she did indeed need to use the potty.

By the end of the morning she had taken her diaper off and used the potty 4 times. I had no idea a kid could pee so much! At that time I had to go to bed and Pat took over the childcare duties. He said he didn't have any luck in the potty department this afternoon, but I'll take my small victories as they come.

The Newest Mouskateer

2009-09-07T21:19:00.000-04:00

We spent Labor Day weekend at Disney World with Grand Mary. Clara had a great time even though she and Dad are fighting off a cold. Day one was spent at Downtown Disney and around the pool. Day 2 was at Epcot, and 3 was at Animal Kingdom. Clara got ready to meet her Disney pals...

We actually had several strangers stop us at Epcot to take her picture. Baby's first paparazzi!

Clara rode the Nemo and Friends ride with Grand Mary.

Dad and Clara waiting in line to meet the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse crowd.

Mom's favorite misunderstood duck, Donald!

It was like looking in a mirror for Miss Clara!

Clara at School

2009-08-31T08:54:00.002-04:00

Here is Clara at her new school working with pegs.
She seems to really enjoy it, but I sure miss her at home.

First Day of School

2009-08-24T13:46:00.002-04:00

Clara started Montessori School today. She looked so cute when I had her ready to go.

It's Potty Time

2009-08-23T17:51:00.002-04:00

My baby girl peed in her potty today for the first time. When she woke up from her nap her diaper was still dry so I sat her on the potty in front of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse with a sippy of apple juice. After a few minutes she got up and low and behold she had peed.

For those of you non-parents out there, you may be disgusted by my story, but the rest of you can understand my sheer excitement! Now I know we have a long way to go before she wants to go and will tell me, but at least she now knows that she can potty somewhere other than a diaper.

Breaking Out

2009-08-22T15:54:00.001-04:00

This afternoon we put Clara down for a nap in her crib, but she had other ideas. She wailed and screamed from her crib, then the next thing I knew she opened her nursery door and came to find me in my bedroom.

After a while I finally got her to take a nap, but only in my lap.

Ut-oh... that means Baby can now escape her crib. Good thing most of her afternoon naps will be taking place at Montessori school starting Monday.

15 Month Check-Up

2009-07-15T00:26:00.000-04:00

Clara has completed her 15 month check-up and is (as expected) doing great. She weighs in at 25.3 lbs (80%). She is 33.5 inches long (above 97% - the highest the chart measures). And her head circumference is 19 inches (95%).

The doctor seemed pleased with her social and emotional development as well as physical. But she did have to get two more vaccinations. Ouch!

Next check-up is scheduled for 18 months. At that one she will get the last of her vaccines until kindergarten. What a relief!