Spring thread

[Amy]

Welcome to spring, ladies!

[tif333]

Woo Hoo! First response on the new thread!

Kathy - There is a camera on the kids 24/7? Can you watch it online or something? That sounds really cool.

AODW: No, I will not be doing any gardening. You can't really garden in the Phoenix area. It is too hot in the summer so everything dies off. My DH's aunt just moved here from Iowa and brought wonderful homemade salsa and everything in it was grown in her garden. I was a little jealous because no one here has gardens!

[JenniferShafer]

Hello Everyone!
Good to see so many posts! Easton weighed 15 lbs and 2 oz and was 24 and 1/2 in. on March 26th. He is getting so big! Hard to believe he had trouble gaining weight and was SO sick! He sure caught up! (And some!) He does so many new things now. He can sit for a bit on his own but I have to be right there because when he gets tired he just plops over! He plays with toys and laughs! I can't believe how fast time flies! What happened to my little newborn? I sure wish he would stay little for a little longer.
We had Eastons pictures done and they should be back soon! I can't wait. They are so cute!
We are so busy right now, all three kids are in spring soccer and Brayden is also in t-ball. We have practice every day of the week and 4 games on Saturdays. My Mom and I are also the directors of VBC this year and it is crazy trying to get everything done for that. I also am in charge of the kids school rummage sale on April 18th. It is hard to get parents to help on a Saturday! I hope I am not the only one there for it!!
My Dad is slowly getting better, he still has quite a bit of pain, but each day gets a little better. I can't remember if I had told all of you his injuries or not, but he has a broken ankle, bruised lungs and a pneumo thorax, 7 broken ribs and 2 broken cervical vertebrae (c2, & c3). Besides all that the rest of him is really banged up. His entire body was covered in bruises. They are now all starting to turn really funky colors! I guess what doesn't kill us makes us stronger. (yeah right! If that were true we all would be Wonder Woman!)

Amy- So sorry about DH leaving- But so glad you are going to be near family I will pray for all of you especially for your DH safety.
Allison-so sorry that this year has been so tough! I guess after all that, they rest of the year will be a breeze!
Kathy- That is so cool about the camera! I bet that really helps you feel more at ease.

AOTD-Yes I will be planting a garden. I live in the high desert and it get about 120 in the summer here so I really have to water a lot. But I love to garden. I will be planting tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, carrots, Peppers (Sweet and hot), cucumbers, and probably more that I just can't think of right now. I also always have a big herb garden also, with almost every kind of herb! We still are expected to have a cold spell so I can't plant yet. I am worried about our fruit trees because they all are in bloom and we may have another stretch of freezing temps. We have peach, apricot, plum, cherry,apple and almond.

I have a kids to share with all of you:
My daughter Jocelyn (who is 8.) came to me the other day and asked if she gets to pick what she wants to be when she grows up or if your parents do. I told her "you do". Then I asked her what do you want to be? She at first said a Gemologist, which is typical of Jocelyn, she loves rocks and gemstones (She has more gemstones than I do!). Then she said I changed my mind, I want to be the person who puts plastic on the ends of shoelaces. I just looked at her and did not know what to say. I finally said Is that even a job? She said "Sure, they don't just put them selves on." LOL!!! Kids are so funny!

[Mom-to-Luke]

Tiffany - I do love being able to see Kate on my computer during the day. It is a real time video so I can check on her whenever I want.
Here is a snapshot of what I see at Kate's school... It is hard to tell who is who. But with her I just look for the color of clothes she is wearing with dark hair.



Jennifer - I pray your father recovers quickly. Sounds like it was a bad accident. Luke is playing soccer and doing Cub Scouts - we only have activities 2 nights a week and 1 game on Saturday. I don't know how you do it with every night and 4 games. I think maybe you are Wonder Woman.

Amy - Luke had soccer practice last night so we just had pizza for dinner. We took him and 13 friends to see Monsters Vs Aliens this past weekend. They loved it.



AOTD - No I will not be planting a garden - I do not have a green thumb. But I would love the fresh veggies and herbs.

[tif333]

Oh wow, that is one of the coolest things ever! I am so paranoid about leaving my baby anywhere, but I could totally get on board with that!

[Mom-to-Luke]

I am paranoid too - but this has really put me at ease with leaving her during the day. I am still uncomfortable leaving her with anyone other than dh, my mom or sister. And ds has her hands full with her twins. So we don't have many options. In fact this weekend for Luke's birthday party, my dh stayed home with Kate. She was suppose to go to my sister's and my dad and grandma were going to help with the 3 babies. But Kate got her first cold and we couldn't infect the others.

[Mom-to-Luke]

Are any of your babies losing their hair? Kate started with a full head of dark hair and now it is falling out on top. She kind of has the old man balding ring on the top of her head with a little patch of hair near her face. I'll try and take a picture this weekend. Looks like we are in for a stormy weekend here. Which is fine - Duke and Luke are going to visit his mom and Kate and I are going to a princess birthday party... depending on how we sleep tonight. She was up for several hours last night so I'm pretty exhausted today.

How was your Easter? Ours was great - I love the Easter Bunny. He leaves a scavenger hunt for Luke. He loves playing detective to find his gifts. Here is a picture of us from Easter.

[JenniferShafer]

Easton was born with a full head of hair also! He had so much you could not see any skin at all it was as thick as mine! HE HAS LOST ALL OF IT!!! He has peach fuzz now! It came out all of a sudden, every day I would have to use the lint roller on his collar because he had so much hair on his clothes!!! I was constantly pulling hair out of his mouth or from his clenched fists! His hair was almost black before and not it looks like it is coming in much lighter. Which makes him look more like our other kids (all are blond, Jocelyn ans Soren both have/had very strawberry red hair.Jocelyn has/ Soren had..)

[Amy]

Nicholas and Zachary both have bald spots on the back of theur heads, so I think it's normal.

Our Easter was nice. It was the first holiday that was just us. I've been inviting some of the unmarried soldiers over for holidays bc they're here alone. It was quiet for once!

[tif333]

Kathy - What a beautiful family you have

Our Easter was good too. It was much more low key than the other holidays have been in recent years. We just had my mother in law, sister in law and her 2 kids over. So there were 4 guests intead of 30 something like usual! DH is out fishing tonight with my dad so I'm home with the kiddos. They are in bed so I think I am going to try to upload some pics to photobucket so I can post them here for you.

[tif333]

Here are some pics! (Okay, not some pics, a million pics! )

[Amy]

Cute pics, Kathy and Tif! I need to figure out how to upload some on here.

We had Matthew's b-day party pn the 18th and Chuck E Cheese. It was a lot of fun for him but WAY too loud for me! I'd never been there before but I'm glad that we went.

Nicholas is fussing... I'll try to check in later!

[JenniferShafer]

Hi everyone!!! How are you all doing? How are all the babies???? We are doing good here. Easton is getting so big! I was weighed a couple of weeks ago and he was 18lb 3 ozs. He is so cute! I just got pictures back of him and they turned out so cute! I will have to scan them so I can show him off! I can't believe what joy he has brought back into our lives. There is still a sadness in my heart but the joy that he has brought us sure helps my heart.

Last Sunday was relay for kids That is always an emotional day for me. We do it in Sorens memory and I get to share his story with so many people and spread awareness about CHDs. I feel like I am keeping his memory alive. I miss him so much. Thank-you Amy for your donation to the LLRMH.

[JenniferShafer]

Anyone still around?

Easton had his 6 month check up and he weighed 18 lbs and 2 oz. He is 26 and a 1/2 inches long. Hard to believe he was a prime and problems with weight gain and that he was so sick in January that we almost lot him. He sure has caught up! He is right on schedule with everything and just gets more and more adorable every day!

How are all your LO doing?

[tif333]

Hi Jennifer - I still check in every so often to see if anyone has posted. It has been beyond dead though. Do you remember the Tossed Turkeys thread on the old BBC? They have a board on a different forum now so I keep up with them and post over there. If you want a more active board, you could join us. It is completely locked down though and you have to be sent a membership invitation to join. Things are good here though. Ryan hasn't had his 6 month check up yet, but I weighed him at home a few weeks ago and my scale said he was 17.5 lbs. I believe he is around 29 inches long. He was 27" at his 4 month appt but I haven't measured him lately. We may be moving to Tucson, AZ (about 2 hrs south of where we are now). DH may get a promotion. If he gets it, the raise would be pretty significant so it would be hard to say no. But, I really don't want to move 2 hrs away from all of my family and friends. Not to mention the fact that we just built our house less than 2 years ago and would have to try and rent it out. That is what's going on in my world lately! Anything else new with you?

[JenniferShafer]

Tif-This have been ok here. I have had some health issues. The Friday before Mothers day i had to go to the er because I was in so much pain. Turned out to be kidney stones again! It was awful. I ended up passing it on Mothers Day. Not the Best Mothers Day, it was a painful one. I also had a 10 year IUD placed and it may be causing some problems. I don't know if it is IUD or something else but I am having periods less than a week apart and at times it is so heavy it is like I am hemorrhaging. I do not have insurance right now. ( When we found out about Sorens heart problems we knew we could not afford the medical bills so I went on Medi-cal and stopped insurance through my husbands work, then I got pg with Easton so quickly I had not received the letter from Medi-cal so I could be reinstated on my husbands so I had Medi-cal with Easton also. Because of some mixup I never received the letter after I had Easton so I can not get on my husbands insurance till October.) We are trying to buy a private policy so I can get medical care in the meantime. I hope to be able to see a doctor real soon. I have become very anemic. (Found this out because I tried to donate blood and it was real low so I could not donate. I donate in Soren memory because he used so much while he was here and I know so many heart babies need it.) I have started taking iron to help with this. I hope it is working. Other that that things have been great.
Spring soccer is over, t-ball is over and we have about a 2 month break before soccer starts again! Woo-Hoo! A break will be nice. Although Jocelyn starts hip hop dance on Friday and Brayden is starting hockey. But that is still less than all of them in soccer and Brayden also in t-ball. That that was hard.
School is out and I am already ready of the new year to start! I love having them home, but I can't seem to get them to stop fighting! I constantly hear "Mom "someone" messed with my ______" or "Mom, "Someones" in my room" or any number of other scenarios! I am going crazy! I just keep telling them is it really worth fighting about! We do have a lot of fun too. We are all doing wii fit together. I am looking forward to seeing some results from that!
Well I am sure I have taken up enough of your time! I was good to hear from you!!!!
Jennifer

[Amy]

I really miss all of you hope that everyone's doing well! PLEASE start posting again!

23 days until dh deploys...

[JenniferShafer]

I am so sorry that DH is leaving soon. You and your family will be in my prayers! I can even imagine my husband having to leave. I don't know what I would do.

Easton is getting so big! He is taking a nap right now. I still find myself worring that something will happen. Sometime I wake up at night and count his resperation just to make sure he is ok. I hope some day I will be able just to enjoy him and not constantly be worried that something will go wrong. He looks so peaceful right now.

Hope you all are doing OK.
Jennifer

[Amy]

Thanks for your prayers... We need them!

Nicholas and Zachary are getting really big, too. Zachary is crawling already and Nicholas is right on his tail. I worry a lot, too. I'm constantly checking on them during the night like you do.

Is Easton crawling yet?

[JenniferShafer]

No Easton is not crawling yet. He is a bit behind the doctor said it is due to being born early and being hospitalized and almost unconisious for around 3 weeks when he had RSV. So he is right on schedual if you take a month and 3 weeks off his age. So he is doing great considering. He is sitting up pretty well now and is trying to feed him self now, but I am not ready to let him do that yet. His teeth are coming in and he gets a bit grouchy because of it . But he is such a good baby even with teething pain.

[tif333]

Hi Amy and Jennfer! Ryan is growing so fast too. Faster than I remember Kaitlyn growing! He already has 2 teeth and is HUGE! My DH has been working about 2.5 hrs south of where we live. We may end up moving down there. But for now, he goes there during the week and comes home weekends. It really sucks to be a single married mother! I am so sorry you will have to experience that soon Amy. Is anyone else even checking in now or is it just the 3 of us?

[Amy]

Jennifer-Teething is no fun, that's for sure! I can't believe that Easton's trying to feed himself already... My boys aren't doing that yet.

Tif- I think that it's just the 3 of us... I'm sorry that you're alone so often!

AFM- Dh leaces in 18 days. I'm still in denial a little bit. Today we have the final pre-deployment briefing and Matthew's sick, so that should be loads of fun to sit through!

[Mom-to-Luke]

I will start checking in more again - I miss you guys. I too find myself worrying about Kate. We finally moved her upstairs in May when she reached 15lb and was too big for the bassinet. We have a video monitor that we can hook up to the TV so I find myself waking up to watch her breath throughout the night. I'm afraid to turn it off - that if I do something will happen so I am not sleeping well - even though she is sleeping through the night.

Amy - I am so sorry that your DH is leaving so soon - did you find a place near your family?

Tiff - Glad Ryan is getting so big. Sorry you are alone so much.

Jennifer - We noticed Kate's first tooth this weekend. Kate isn't crawling either - she rolls everywhere. That is amazing Easton is trying to feed himself. Kate tries to help me feed her but often results in getting food all over her face and clothes.

[tif333]

Hi Kathy! Glad you are still around. I just moved Ryan to his own room a few days ago. Kaitlyn was only in our room for about 2-3 months. But at the time her room shared a wall with ours so it wasn't a huge deal. Now we are in a much bigger house and Ryan's room is on the opposide side of the house from ours. It is more than a little nerve racking! I also don't want to admit that my sweet little baby boy is growing so quickly. When he is in our room it means that he's still really little. But when he's in his own room, it means he's getting to be a big boy!

Ryan isn't crawling yet either. He pushes up on his arms and he also pushes up on his legs with his little tushy in the air. But he hasn't gotten the hang of doing both at the same time yet. He rolls everywhere too though. He had his 6 month appt today and is 28.5 inches and weighs 18lbs 5oz.

[Mom-to-Luke]

Tiff - Luke and Jake were only in our room for about 8 weeks but Kate I just couldn't move. We had actually talked about bringing her crib downstairs to our room for the first year. But after I got the monitor - it is so clear I can see her just as well as I could with her in our dark room. Are you doing ok with Ryan in his room. It was hard for me the first few weeks - I made many trips up and down the stairs even with the monitor. Kate had her 6mth appt at the beginning of the month - she was 15lb 9oz and had an ear infection... we went back this Monday and got her shots and she is now 16lb 4oz. It is amazing how fast they grow up. I can't believe six months has past so quickly...
Are you guys thinking of moving to be close to dh work? Do you have family where you are now?

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