Drama on the Playground

Bella: Mia wasn't talking to me today.
Me: Why wasn't Mia talking to you today?
Bella: Because I was playing with Cash (a little boy in their class).
Me: She didn't like that you were playing with Cash?
Bella: No, because Cash was my baby.

Oh. my. goodness.

Here's another one from the church playground this weekend. All the kids including Bella were outside after the service, playing, running, climbing on the equipment. Charles and I went out to collect Bella, so we called to her and she came running over in tears.

Me: What's wrong? Why are you crying?
Bella: Because all the other kids keep playing with Brandon.
Me: Honey, you're all playing together! It's ok...
Bella: But I want to play with Brandon!

Meanwhile, Brandon has come over and started tickling her as she tries to squirm away.

We walk away and she says, "I want to see Brandon again!"

What is going on?!

Why am I Surprised?

Why am I so surprised that God knew just what I needed this weekend?

Saturday I was feeling exasperated, out of patience, at my ropes' end, helpless, hopeless, and full of self pity. Attractive, right?

Work has been incredibly stressful due to recent events at the hospital. All of us in administration have been operating in crisis mode, knee-jerk reactions, bottom lines, and damage control. My hours have been long, the work endless. The projects and committees continue to form.

My body has been tiring, slowing. It has been getting more difficult to help Bella get dressed, get on and off the potty, play. Sleep is elusive.

And, to top it off, Charles' unexpected injury which put him on the bench for several days.

I just felt like I couldn't be pulled any more and I felt like a disappointment.

That night, Charles felt well enough to keep Bella while I went to a women's outreach event with the girls from church.

Sometimes, all you need is a little perspective. The women's shelter facilitator came to speak to us about the ladies that come to the drop-in center, their struggles, their stories, and their successes.

Abuse.
Desperation.
Homelessness.
Abandonment.
Addiction.
Their children taken away.

Perspective.
God knew just what I needed to yank me from my hole. Surprise, surprise.

I quickly took stock of all the wonderful things in our life and counted all my blessings as I put together care packages of socks, deodorant, shampoo, etc for women who had real struggles.

My mountain turned back into an anthill -- maybe even smaller.

30 Weeks

I had my 30 week check up on Friday. I should find out early this week about my glucose tolerance test. No signs of preterm labor. The only thing she did say was that I was measuring small for being 30 weeks. She ordered an ultrasound for Thursday to get more accurate measurements. It didn't occur to me to be worried about it until I came home and Charles asked if we should be concerned. So, of course, I started googling and web MD-ing...and needless to say, I'm worried.

Have I been eating right?
Is my placenta doing it's job?
Did I eat something dangerous?
Intrauterine growth restriction?
Low amniotic fluid?

And that's not even the tip of the iceberg.
Four more days until the ultrasound...

Go, Team, Go!

I couldn't resist buying this outfit! I went to Walmart (I hate going to Walmart), but I was buying things to make care packages for a women's shelter. Anyhow, came across this WSU cheerleader outfit -- the only one in a sea of UW gear (boo, hiss). Wasn't cheap, but Charles never balks at WSU paraphernalia. I think she's flipping adorable in it! Charles agreed, but saw a flash forward image of her 16 years from now! Yikes!

The Tendon Repair

Here's Charles immediately after his procedure. Still pretty groggy in this picture.

Here we are heading home. Bella was a little afraid of hurting daddy's arm.

Charles' surgery went well. The doctor was able to reconnect the tendons with a solid connection and little else was involved. He repaired the cut artery as well. Though it was just a minor surgery compared to many, we're always relieved when it goes without a hitch. Charles has months of rehab ahead of him with a goal of being able to carry our new baby by the time BH2 arrives. For the next several weeks, Charles is not to lift more than 1/2 - 1 pound with his left arm.

Though this has been an unfortunate slip up and minor bump in the road, I like to think of it as a forced rest period for Charles. He's been going at 150 mph since he started this job, 24/7 and friends, coworkers, and I all think this will be a good respite for him.

Today he's managed to squeak out a couple of work e-mails, but for the most part, he has rested, slept, and taken advantage of his pain meds.

This will be a nice change of pace.

Cuts Like a Knife

Our Sunday night was progressing quite typically; Josh was coming over with his girls to play and hang out. I was in the bathroom with Bella getting one leg in her pull up -- when all of I sudden I hear shouting from Charles and hear him running to the kitchen sink.

I leave Bella (one leg in and one leg out) to see what the commotion was and just saw his right hand clenching his left and blood spurting between the fingers. I quickly went into nurse mode and tried to figure out what happened. He tells me he stabbed himself - lots of blood splatter. He's holding so tight that his right hand's knuckles have gone white... in the meantime, Charles has also gone pale as a ghost though he's not squeamish with blood at all. He started to break into a cold sweat. I grabbed a chair and sat him down before he could pass out (though he didn't thankfully).

At this point he won't let go for me to see it or dress it. His thumb, where he's finally told me he stabbed himself, was blue at the end from the pressure. Apparently, Charles was rewiring behind the TV and cutting some cables when the knife slipped. I examined the living room and found blood splatter as far as the other side of the room and in various places on the floor. (The CSI freak in me confirmed the blood was arterial based on blood splatter; he had cut an artery.)

I called Josh to tell him to turn around because we would need to head to the ER for stitches. He offered to come over anyway and watch Bella since the girls really wanted to see each other. They arrived and Charles finally recovered and let me bandage his wound. (We've got the coolest first aid bag, by the way).

The funny thing is that you'd think we'd go to Charles' ER. Not so, my friends, not so. Charles, always thinking of work like he is, wanted to go to his competitors free standing emergency department. (For those of you that don't know, Charles proposed, planned and is building a free standing ED in Redmond.) So, we passed his hospital by 20 minutes just to go check out the competitors. Sheesh. (Bonus: this place was near the Krispy Kreme...)

Stitches, antibiotics and a recommendation to follow up with the hand doctor is what we left the emergency room with. Charles still cannot move his thumb at all and we worry he has damaged the tendons some how. I'm crossing my fingers (haha) that it's just the inflammation that's preventing movement.

I left Charles to get ready to leave and I assigned Bella to keep an eye on daddy. As I left the room, I hear Bella ask, "Daddy, are you ok? You have an owie?"

Careful with sharp objects, kiddo.

Emergency Preparedness Fair

Charles and his team host an emergency preparedness fair annually at his hospital. Bella and I, devoted child & wife, always make an appearance to support daddy. We learn about disaster planning, collect bags of freebies from vendors, check out emergency vehicles, and watch demonstrations. Fun, fun. Bella was actually crying in this picture, wanting to get down. Smile, and you can get down. Mommy wants a picture.

Dear BH2

We can't wait to meet you.

Your sister is especially excited, but I wonder what in her mind she has conjured up thinking about you. She talks about you all the time and already, she is protective of you. She hesitates to hug me because she doesn't want to squish you. Do you know that that's your sister giving you raspberries - that thunderous noise you hear randomly throughout the day, yeah, that one. That's your big sis. She also gives you kisses. When she comes home from school, she runs up to me and lifts my shirt up so she can see how much you've grown. She calls you her baby. She says, "Mommy, you have my baby!"

About your sister... you'll have to cut her some slack. She's had us all to herself for three years. She may not share well right away and she may be a little rough with you. But I'm guessing you're a pretty tough cookie (like your sister). Bella may over hug and over squeeze, but in time she'll learn that she's got to be gentle with you. She's been practicing with her baby Sally and so far, Sally's in pretty good shape.

I wish there was a way to catch you up on all the places we've been and all the things we've done, all of our little family's history. Someday we'll show you all the pictures and share with you all the memories from before you came -- I'm sure you'll grow tired of the same old stories one day. Except for pictures, I'll soon not remember life before you, just as I can't imagine life without Bella.

I can't wait for all the new memories our little family of four will make. I picture you and Bella together all the time -- in the backseat on a road trip, at restaurants, at playgrounds, on rides, sitting on Santa's lap. My imagination runs wild with thoughts of all four of us laughing and playing, giggling and holding hands and I turn into a sappy, happy pile of mush. (Which I'm sure you'll grow weary of as well... every time you have a first...)

I know my schedule hasn't been easy on you (then again, you're not exactly taking it easy on mommy either!). I'm up early and on the go all day; I know I don't get enough sleep. My job is stressful and emotional and perhaps you'd like some more balance and regularity in there. I enjoy you poking and playing with me during meetings; I'm sure my colleagues wonder what I'm smiling about. People at work are always asking me if I'm ok, because I've always got my hands on my belly. If only they knew we were holding hands and high-fiving. I love having you with me all day.

Your daddy is amazing. He's super excited to meet you. What you'll learn about daddy is that he's got banks of energy like nobody else. He works hard and the gears in his mind are always turning. Daddy likes to make up silly songs and they'll stick with you until you're old. Daddy's pretty much a natural at being a dad. When you get stronger he'll roll around on the floor with you, toss you in the air, have tickle wars, and he'll teach you many things that I can't teach you. He loves you fiercely.

We can't wait to meet you.

28 weeks

Side ruching = seriously flattering. My bump looks half the size than in my other clothes. Maybe if I wore ruched tops all the time people would stop guessing that I was due any day now!

BH2 Update

Let's see if I can come up with baby's first list of 10:

1. Baby is most likely a fox trotting boxer and a soccer player - simultaneously.
   
2. Baby is most active at night - just as I'm trying to sleep. Starting early!
3. My belly is measuring a centimeter smaller than it should be. (Take that all of you who gawk at the fact that I still have 3 months left!)
4. Baby feels like he/she's super low, really putting the pressure on my bladder.
5. Baby and I have our glucose tolerance test next week.
6. Baby is wreaking havoc on my hips and back.
7. Baby is giving me heartburn!
   
8. If Baby is a boy, we've got his name set.
   
9. If Baby is a girl, we've got a first name and we're still working on a middle name.
10. BH2 already has his/her first package of newborn swaddlers waiting for him/her. (Thanks to cousin Josiah who couldn't use them!)
11. Baby is already soooooo loved by soooooooooo many!

Phew.

A Bella Update

1. We buy her tops in 4T, her pants in 3T, and her shoes in 8 - 9. Such a big girl!
2. Me: "Bella. Knock, knock." Bella: "Come in!"
3. She tells me stories about her friends at daycare. For example, she came home the other day and said, "Claire was throwing dirt. I don't like her throwing dirt. She got a time out because she was throwing dirt. Throwing dirt is not nice."
   
4. She also tells on her friends, i.e., "So and so pushed me by the car and he got a time out. We don't push or we get a time out."
5. Bella asks if she can play her games on "Daddy's iPad".
   
6. At bedtime, I usually read her a book and then she likes to read it back to me. It's super cute how she flips the pages and tells me about the pictures.
   
7. Bella tries to postpone us leaving her room at bedtime by calling to us (as we walk out), "Mommy, I have a kiss for you!" (and of course I have to go back in and get my kiss!)
8. She loves to give my belly raspberries "to wake the baby up".
9. We're currently giving her eye medication twice a day. She had been telling us "there's a bump in my eye", so we pulled her eyelid down and saw that she had a large inflamed, red area under her eyes. We took her to her pediatrician and we tried allergy meds for a week, to no avail. So, we got a referral to a pediatric ophthalmologist and now we are trying steroid eye drops for a week. On another note, she got a complete eye exam and we learned Bella has 20/15 vision! She passed all her eye exams with flying colors!
10. Potty training update: if we take her every half hour to an hour, she does not use her pull ups. However, she still will not tell us she needs to go. We need to try harder - it's just hard not being home for long stretches. It doesn't help that our friends of older girls and multiple children are now advising us to just wait since Bella will most likely regress once baby is born anyway. Biggest. Frustration. Ever.
    
11. Bella's uber snuggly. Not sure if it's a regular stage or a result of baby coming... No matter what the reason, I'm really loving snuggly Bella and enjoying precious moments with her.
    

It All Catches Up

It was bound to catch up to us. Hard and full work weeks sandwiched between busy, fast, and sleepless weekends finally got us. This past weekend Town Hall was down for the count with cold symptoms. Boo. Friday was restful as we stuck to our evening routine. On Saturday Charles and Pastor Fred headed to Covington for an outreach seminar. I had originally planned on going as well - we even had a sitter in place (Pastor's girls were going to watch Bella), but I was on call, so I had to cancel. However, I did take the girls up on the babysitting for some much needed "momma" time.

I felt a little guilty, but I convinced myself that errands and shopping would be more efficient if I went alone. Plus, Bella loves playing with Kendra & Claire. Getting her in and out of the car and in and out of carts - the thought overwhelmed me. (See? I'm still trying to convince myself that it was ok for me to take some time to myself...) I ran about town adding to my maternity wardrobe - quite successfully, I might add.

I picked Bella up after about 4 hours and we went home, snuggled, and fell fast asleep. Charles came home shortly after and we simply hunkered down as we all were starting to feel sick. Same can be said for Sunday after church.

And, now we're back to the grind just two days into our work week... hopefully we'll be able to enjoy this coming weekend!

Weekend Recap: Sept 25-26

The Halls had another jam packed weekend full of friends and festivities. On Friday, after work I sped home to Mill Creek to ready the homestead for girls' night. Of course, I prepped too much food, but in the end it turned out to be a good thing considering I burned an entire batch of feta bruschetta. The ladies brought plenty of other appetizers to suffice and we enjoyed an evening of margaritas and pina coladas (with an occasional mocktail for Laura and I) until well past midnight. Exhaustion eventually overcame us and the husbands called with an S.O.S.: "We're out of brownies and Barbie movies, are you coming home soon?" Charles and Bella had a father-daughter date to the movies and she came home talking non-stop about it!

Since this mama isn't used to late nights after a busy work week, I slept in (thanks to Charles and Bella) and then we proceeded to lounge in our jammies until the early afternoon. We eventually got dressed and headed out for some "back to school" shopping. After successfully replenishing Bella's wardrobe with better fitting fall attire, we headed onto Grandma Joan's for a birthday dinner for Josh, Melina, and Rico and into another late evening.

Sunday morning brought church and a great sermon about remembering that we are God-made, not self-made. That we are not self-made success stories, but rather, God-made. Great reminder that we should always point our blessings and successes toward God rather than ourselves. After church, we had friends and their 5 kids over for barbecue and football! Talk about a full house of kids. Bella has taken a particular liking to one of their kids, Brandon. They look for each other at church and then attack each other with tickles as soon as they can escape their pews. The kids must have run a thousand miles in our house!

After the game, our friends left and Charles headed to the office to get some work done and Bella and I were left to resume our Sunday evening routines.

Phew. Keep the busy weekends coming - I love it! This coming weekend brings a church conference on outreach (which I'll attend with Charles if we can get a sitter) and then another favorite fall fair: Issaquah Salmon Days. Love, love, love.

I Must Have Been Momentarily Crazy

I can't believe I put Bella on a roller coaster ride. The entire time, my heart was beating outside of my chest. As she slid across the seat with each sharp turn, I held my breath. Lindsey and I sang a chorus of "Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh..." until they were through.

A glimpse

As we were out "back to school" shopping for Bella, I caught a glimpse of myself in one of the mirrors (and Bella) and caught it to share.

Our Glee Was Free...

...at the Puyallup Fair!

View all

Get your own

That was the theme to this year's fair and also this region's largest fair. This weekend's plans initially entailed a quiet Saturday of lounging, napping, cleaning up, and laundry - but around noon we decided to hit up the Puyallup with a group of friends. Our friends were originally planning on going Sunday, which eliminated us since we already had plans. But with an 80% chance of rain threatening on Sunday, they decided to go on Saturday instead -- hooray, we could go!

So, imagine 5 little girls who were mobile (various ages from just over 2 to 4), 2 infants (4 & 6 months old), my womb child, and 8 parents trying to navigate and herd our children to and fro throughout HUGE crowds and uber stimulating rides. The head counts were endless. At one point I thought we had had 8 children and started to panic at the thought of losing some. Blame it on the pregnant brain. We had 2 wagons, 2 strollers, and 2 ergos. All the mobile girls had brown curly hair and they were all just barely tall enough to ride the rides. The day was long, but full of laughing (both adults and kids)...ZERO NAPS, 5 faces painted, 3 elephant ears, 2 bricks of curly fries, lots of barbecue, highly coordinated potty breaks, and a few meltdowns were had, but we made it. Did I mention it was sprinkling/raining the whole time? It's amazing how much $$ you spend at fairs - but it's almost obligatory, you can't go and not have fair food and ride the expensive rides!

By 9 p.m. Bella was falling over in the wagon as she passed out and it was raining buckets - so we laid her down in the wagon, covered her in rain coats and made the muddy trek to the car. I was glad to have an excuse to leave because my feet were on fire and my back was screaming in agony by 9 p.m. and I could hardly walk to the car. The next morning I felt like I'd been in a car accident.

Sunday offered no rest for the weary. I'd planned on making my dish for our friend Laura's baby shower on Saturday night, but the Puyallup obviously took priority. So, Sunday morning I achingly got up, made the dish, got Bella ready, and made it to church (a little late). The men and the kids all went over to our house for beer, pizza, and football while we girls enjoyed showering Laura with baby girl gear! It was fun to see what's been invented in the last three years! The shower was adorable and super enjoyable.

Post - shower I went home to see what damage was done to the home front (surprisingly not much considering all the kids and men-folk) and Charles, Bella, and I all took a nap on the sofa.

What a weekend. I'm exhausted just writing about it!

BH2: 24th Week

In 24 weeks my net weight gain is 12 pounds. I didn't gain weight in my first trimester, but I've made up for it and can feel it. Everything is measuring just right and moving along just as it should.
I'm getting really excited to meet this tyke!

Charles and I wandered up to the Mother/Infant unit after my doctor's appointment and because Charles is who he is, the manager jumped at the chance of giving us our own private little tour. Sometimes it's nice to have connections. The rooms and equipment brought a wave of memories and emotions to the front of my mind and suddenly, it became real real. I can't wait to have this baby!

I didn't wear scrubs today because I was planning on a half day (for my doctor's appointment) and three, THREE, people stopped me to say, "I had no idea you were pregnant!" So you thought I was just large and waddled all this time?! I'm going to think positive and believe that the scrubs just concealed my growing soccer ball.

Baby is throwing jabs and kicks left and right at all hours of the day and I enjoy it as if it were the first time each time. I still have zero inclination about a gender and haven't really thought about it much - I'm super excited to be surprised again. It's the way to go if you ask me!

Feeling good, just lacking in the sleep department. The pillows, rolls, lumbar support and neck pillow have all been deployed this week with varying results. Some nights I manage to stay in bed and other nights I have to get up, pace around the house, read a few pages of a book before I can fall asleep again. All part of the deal!

Our next appointment is in 4 weeks and that will involve the whole exam to check for signs of pre-term labor and the glucose tolerance test... After that appointment, we meet again in 3 weeks, then every 2...

Church ladies are planning to throw a baby shower - which is only slightly awkward because we've only been going for 9 months or so and I don't feel like I've gotten to know the ladies other than the 30-somethings. Laura (who's baby shower is this weekend) and Julie (who's youngest of 5 is just a few months old) are the driving forces and have insisted that I don't have a choice in the matter - they want to throw a shower. My only choice is, before or after the baby comes? So, in an effort to decide, I went online to browse and perhaps start a registry but I didn't get very far. We don't need much of anything in the way of baby gear... we've got the pumps, the bottles, the nipples, the furniture, blankets galore, bedding, bags -- I could hardly think of a dozen things. There are a few big ticket items we need before baby comes (car seats since we sold Bella's stroller/car seat system) and some "luxury" (not necessary) things that would be nice. So, if baby's a boy, it would be nice to have the shower after to get some boy clothes and things... Or, they suggested it could be a diaper and gift card shower if I choose before... decisions, decisions. What would you do come baby #2?

Yikes!

We picked up Bella at school today and I was floored - floored - to find her first ever permission slip for a field trip in her cubby. Really? Is she old enough for a field trip? I just stared at it and read it repeatedly.

Must resist temptation to take day off and be a chaperone...
Must let Bella grow up just a bit...

This is where they are headed: http://www.south47farm.com/

For two hours, they will be off-site...she will be in a vehicle driven by someone else...she will be supervised by someone else in a large, public place... scary!

Saturday Drive

Again, love, love, love exploring this state. This past Saturday the fam loaded into the Jeep for a leisurely afternoon drive. Our destination was Ross Lake in the Northern Cascades. It was supposed to be a 3 hour drive out. We left at one. Didn't get home until midnight. We stopped a lot and explored a lot of scenic viewpoints. We saw one beautiful scene and waterfall and glacier lake after another. Breathtaking.

On another note, Bella is an incredibly great road tripper. She's never created a fuss on road trips. Never. She can go hours and hours and hours in the car without so much as a complaint or whine. Even when Papa Goofy took her on day-long drives during his last visit he commented on what a good road tripper she is. We don't even have to give her anything to do! She just talks and sings and points things out along the way. We. are. lucky. Who knows how BH2 will travel...

Bella's Class

Here's Bella's class! Most of these kiddos have been with Tree of Life since Bella started. The girls are inseparable. It's so cute!