Arizona

Our visit to Grandma's in Arizona was WONDERFUL! I'm so glad we made the decision to go out there and see her. I hate leaving and miss her terribly again already.

On the way there we had a connection in Minneapolis. The plane was late getting to Indy and was delayed arriving in MN so that we literally had to run through the airport (picture me holding Nate and Michael pushing the stroller with all the bags loaded on it) to make our next flight. But we did, and that was probably the worst of all our traveling. Which was surprising, because I thought it was going to be a disaster traveling with a baby. Nate did so well. It took more work to keep him entertained and I was exhausted by the end of the day, but with only one minor melt down the whole time, it was amazing. So if anyone asks, you can fly with a baby, just be prepared!

We spent a week there. We didn't really go out and do much. One, it's just too hot, especially for little Nate, but most importantly, we just wanted to spend time with Grandma. We played Scrabble and card games, ate good food (really good food and too much of it--I think I gained 20lbs!), and had good conversation. Michael has never been out west and I wanted him to experience some of it, but he took one look at the landscape and said that it was everything he had been living for the last year and so it was fine that we didn't do any sightseeing.

We went to my cousin's hockey game one night. One afternoon we went to an art gallery. And we spent one of the days down by my Uncle Nicky; he cooked burgers on the grill and we went swimming in their pool. Desperate to make Nate a water baby I put on his swimming trunks and we went in. The water was as warm as bath water and so I thought he would love it. But we got in and he started fussing. I think it might be the sensation of all that water. So I took him to the edge to sit on my lap and slowly introduced him to the water, dipping his feet, then hands, then lowering myself so his butt was in it. Before long I had him back out in the pool, swishing around in the water. He really liked it. Success!

All in all, it was a wonderful week and exactly what we needed. Just some time to get away from our daily life and stresses and visit with Grandma.She makes everything good.

Benny

I knew I forgot something in my "catch up" post. We recently gave Benny to my brother Matt. Several reasons but the two big ones: he was constantly escaping the back yard (in the process tearing up the chain link fence) not to run away but to run up to the front porch so he could come back inside AND he has recently become aggressive. The vet said it might happen at this age, showing dominance. He was never mean to us or anyone he knew, but strangers, look out! And he actually bit a contractor we had come out to the house. That's when I said enough was enough. I wasn't sure if Matt would still want him, but he did. So last Friday we met him in a city just south of Rockford, IL. Which, on a side note was a good test run at having Nate in the car for a long drive before we make our way up to WI at the end of July (he did great).

So far it is working out well with Matt and he says he is doing good. I miss Benny and it's strange not having him here anymore. It was hard and it finally hit me when we got home that night. Sammy was sad for a few days, just lying around not wanting to do anything, but I think she's cheering up now, back to her old self. I think Benny will find a better fit with Matt and they will be best buddies. I hope so anyway.

The Zoo

We decided to head up to the zoo yesterday. It was cooler and just beautiful outside and seemed like the perfect day for something like that. So we packed up and headed up there in the morning. This is another reason that I love living where we live. We are close enough to all those fun things without having to live in the big city.


None of us had ever been up to the Indy Zoo and this was Nate's first trip to any zoo. I was excited to see how he would react to the animals. Most the time he was more interested in his toys or the trees, but when we went to the ocean exhibit, he loved it. He kept trying to touch the fish through the glass and his face just lit up. I could have stayed there forever watching him. We saw all the different animals and went to the dolphin show. Next time we go up I'd like to feed the giraffes and see the elephant show.

He did really good all day (we were there 6 hours), napping in his stroller conveniently during lunch time so we were able to grab something to eat. I brought formula because I didn't have any stored milk to bring. Well, he wouldn't have it so I ended up finding a place off to the side and feeding him there.

And of course, it wouldn't be a complete outing with Nate if we didn't have a blow out. And this was the king of all blow outs. I bent over to check him in his stroller and, how do I say this without being too disgusting...well, let's just say that it was too much for his diaper to hold and had come out the side and out of his shorts into a big pile in the stroller next to him. He was sitting there looking around and playing in it. Yep, that's my son, playing in his poo. It was so gross. We immediately pulled off to the side of the path and proceeded to use every wipe we had with us (I'm so glad I packed an extra stack in the stroller before we left). Saying that the mess was everywhere does not even describe how large the mess was. But finally, after some sympathetic looks from other parents and disgusted looks from kids, we got him cleaned up.

Yes, it was a good day at the zoo, minus the poo. :)

Playing Catch Up

I thought when Michael got home, we would have a couple of crazy weeks and then things would slow down and we'd be trying to find things to do. That didn't happen. And I thought the same thing after we got back from Arizona, but so far it hasn't been slowing down at all. There's always something to do or some place to go.

So, I'm going to try and summarize the last few weeks the best I can.


We helped my sister move out of her house and into their rental house that they'll be living in until their new house is built. Jaime, Nate, and I stayed at the house gathering/packing the stuff up while Michael and Jeremy loaded it all. Nate did an outstanding job the whole day. And it turned out to be a very long day. They are all moved in now and getting settled. It will be weird to visit them in a different house, and although I am probably the only one feeling sentimental about the old house, I am super excited for their new house to be built. I know a lot of new memories will be created there as well.

Michael's cousin Gearry is moving to Georgia for a new job and so we went to a cook out at Lake Monroe. It was good to see family again and eat yummy food. It was SO hot so we went down by the lake. I dipped Nate's feet in the water and he instantly started crying. I knew he would the second I felt the water, it was nice and refreshing for me but I knew it would be too cold for him. Disappointing because I wanted him to be a little water baby and play in the pool all summer.

We got Nate's 6 month pictures done. I did wonderfully and we got several good shots. He's such a good, happy baby. We are very lucky. Now he's 7 months old. Still a big boy but I think his growth is starting to slow down. He's exploring things all the time and gets super excited to reach things. Well, he gets excited at nothing too. We joke that he's our simpleton because sometimes it doesn't take much to keep him entertained. He's not crawling and actually gets up on his hands and knees less than he used to. He is trying to sit and is doing a lot better with it, but still not good enough to leave him unprotected-still doing the faceplants into the ground. He's loving eating solids (well, most of them anyway) and I've been enjoying feeding them to him. It's a mess but so much fun.

We went to Arizona to visit my Grandma, but I will go more into detail on that trip in another entry.

My job search is continuing, but mostly just to reach dead ends. It's hard when there's over 300 applicants applying for the same job. I really want to work, I love teaching, but if it doesn't work out that way, then I will probably be staying at home again this year. Which I will love too. It's just hard to not get discouraged. I've never applied for a job that I really wanted or really loved before.

I know there's a million other things that I'm forgetting, but I guess that's the way it goes. I can barely remember what I ate for dinner tonight, let alone last night! Now we're just getting things done around the house--fixing the dryer and stove, repairing doors, putting up new blinds, etc. etc. The list is never ending and constantly getting longer. But it just means that have a home and family to take care of and for that I feel blessed.

Family Get Together

On Saturday we went down to Michael's parents for a homecoming cookout. It was really good to see family we don't see very often and catch up. Michael's dad opened the pool up and the kids all went in. I dipped Nate's feet in and it must have been a little too cool still for him because he would instantly cry. Hopefully he'll warm up to it because I had big plans for him and pools this summer (and his papaw bought him a cute little floaty I really want to use!).

I fed Nate mangos for the first time tonight and he loved them! He ate the entire jar, which I usually use one jar for two feedings. He's just like his big cousin, Lucas, who also loved mangos when he was a little guy.

A Preview of Our Life?

Michael and I watched my sister Jaime's two boys today. Does it make me want to reconsider having 3 kids? Honestly, no. The day actually went better than I had thought it was going to go. The hardest part was probably running on empty since Nate was up ALL night last night. I swear it's getting worse. Although it may be because I'm trying to get him back on a schedule AND I'm not giving in to his cries for night time feedings anymore. We had started that when he was sick because he was only eating a couple of ounces at a time and he needed his meds in the middle of the night. Since then it's just been easier to give in and I've decided we have to stop and get back to normal--not that he ever slept through the night, but he was definitely not getting up every 2 hours either.

The day was filled with arts and crafts, a walk around the neighborhood, some tv, lunch, play-doh, computer games, and toys. We balanced everything quite well and I was surprised how well Michael did. He helped make bottles, play with Lucas and the babies, make lunch and snacks. Especially considering this daddy stuff is still relatively new to him.

At one point all the kids were down for their naps. When Michael put Nate in his bed we ran downstairs and crashed on the couches. Our "naps" probably lasted a total of 5 minutes before the UPS man came ringing the doorbell. After that neither one of us could sleep. Oh well, at least there was peace in the house for a little while before they all woke back up.

It was a very full, non-stop day, but overall it went well. I love my nephews and was glad that I was able to spend some time with them.

On a side note, Nate's eye infection has had some lasting effects. His eye is cleared up and looks a lot better, however we did have to take him back to the doctor's office last week because he broke out in a horrible rash. The doctor said it was an allergic reaction to the medicine, which I didn't think about until later, but both Nate and I started and stopped our medicine at the same time so now I don't know if it was my Augmentin or his Clyndamycin that caused the reaction. It did clear up in a couple of days, but was extremely uncomfortable for him, making him itch like crazy. Another wonderful result of the antibiotics is a horrible diaper rash. I mean bad. It's starting to clear up now, but it was so red and raw and he would just scratch at it and kick his legs and twist his body; you could tell he was just so uncomfortable. We tried so many different ointments but the thing that seems to be doing the best is plain ol' Vaseline. Poor baby just can't catch a break these last few weeks.