God is good. I am loved.

We have been talking a lot lately about being made in the image of God--what that means and what comes along with it.  We are working on memorizing Ephesians 2:10 and even added some cool new artwork in their room to go with it:

And a bonus panoramic view of their room because I was playing with my phone.  I love their room and so do they and that makes me happy. :)

Ephesians 2:10 (which is what is on the painting in the middle) says: "For we are God's masterpiece.  He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago."  I love the phrase "God's masterpiece" and what it speaks into us self-image wise.  It is perfect for my little artists!  And for Lydia apparently meant many jewels were needed for our "masterpiece" picture frame project. :)
One of the biggest reasons we homeschool is so that we as parents can have the loudest voice speaking into them as their self-image develops, which is a responsibility and privilege that I don't take lightly and one that I want to continue to be more intentional about.
The more we get into homeschool and the more research I do (which is quite a bit, because I just love it), the more I like the Charlotte Mason method.  There is a lot of her ideas that I just do naturally, and some that I am working on implementing more into our days. Her motto for students of "I am; I can; I ought; I will" really strikes a chord with me.
I wanted to see what Noah would say with the statement "I am...", so we did a little finish-the-sentence/word association thing where I told him to finish the sentence I started.  I began with really concrete things that I know he likes, "Minecraft is..."  "Legos are..." and then moved on to more concepts, "Learning is..."  "Family is..." etc.

When I got to "God is..."  he finished it with "good".
When I asked him to finish "I am..."  he said "loved".

Well, my mama heart felt pretty amazing after that.  If he goes through life with the foundation of "God is good.  I am loved.",  I think I have done my job well.

So to anyone reading this, let's all yet again learn from a child and go back to those truths that no matter what is going on around or inside us, God IS good and you ARE loved.

Prematurity Awareness

November is Prematurity Awareness Month and today in particular is World Prematurity Day.  (Have you seen any pictures of buildings lit up purple today?  That is why.)  Although we are pretty aware of prematurity every day over here, it is especially meaningful to make Noah pose for pictures like this today. :)

Can you believe he will be 6 in just a month?!  In some ways the NICU seems worlds away, and in some ways I can still picture every detail. 
I must admit I'm not entirely clear on the goals of the whole "awareness day" thing. . .  The numbers being shared today are that 1 in 10 babies are born too soon, and that complications related to preterm birth are the largest cause of infant mortality worldwide.  So there is that.

But here are some much more personal things when I think "awareness" and prematurity.  Some I am very glad for, and some not so much.
I am aware of:
-What things like surfactant and TPN and EPO and PICC lines and so on are and what they actually do.
-What it is like to hear your phone ring and it be instantly connected to wondering if your baby is okay.
-The horrible feeling of not being able to hold or care for your own baby.
-The awesome awesomeness of NICU doctors and nurses.
-What it is like to thank someone for saving your child's life.
-What it is like to receive gift after gift and be able to do nothing except say thank you.
-What it is like to be part of a special little community that you can only be a part of by going through the same thing as the others in it.
-What it is like to be able to say "I understand" in a very difficult circumstance and actually mean it.
-What it means to be "emotionally exhausted".
-That the phrase "the power of a mother's touch" is more than just a cliche.
-What it is like to literally just sit and listen to your child breath and be thankful for each and every one he takes.
-A new level to what it means to be part of the body of Christ and to be "lifted up in prayer".
-That you can be really, really excited about words like "normal" and "ordinary".
-That the combination of snuggling, breast milk, and countless prayers can have a result that looks like this:

Third trimester, baby!

 28 weeks!!!  Third trimester!!!  We officially made it!

Based on my appetite and bump and Baby Sidekick's internal organ kicking skills, he has been doing some good growing!  An ultrasound today confirmed that he is around 2 1/2 pounds, right where he should be, and still very healthy and very active.  My doctor said they put in the numbers and if he continues to growing at the rate he has been, he will be right around 7 pounds at delivery (Lydia was 6 lb 15 oz).  We'll take it. :)
My blood pressure continues to look good and overall I have been feeling pretty good.  I also did the nice sugary beverage glucose test today and passed that fine, so that is another little piece of good news.  Also, shout out to my OB nurse who did immunizations today.  (Last time I got the flu shot it was not so good and I could barely move my arm for a few days...)  I am very thankful for my skilled doctor and nurses!  Oh, and I don't have to have another ultrasound and such for another month, just like a "normal" pregnancy.  I believe that word was even used today!

Well, I am off to celebrate by looking at baby things online and buying the crib set I have been looking at for months.
Also, I came home from my long appointment today to this:

Life is good.

Baby Sidekick

Well, I figure there's no better reason to bring back the ol' blog than for more baby updates!  Hooray for Baby #3!  The first name Noah suggested for the baby was "Sidekick" because of course, this baby will get to be his sidekick, so that is the fun nickname so far. :)

I am 25 weeks now and feeling great!  And already feeling big.  It is crazy to think that this baby is already right around the size Noah was when he was born.  We have had one ultrasound already where the description "very healthy and very active" was used.  We will still be closely watched come the 28 week mark, but the chances of something happening again are extremely low since Lydia's pregnancy was fine.  If everything continues to go well, Baby Sidekick will make his arrival on January 27.

I am so happy to get to experience pregnancy again.  (Um, I don't know if I would have said that during the first trimester, but that is all behind us now...)  The first pregnancy was what is was; the next time I was comparing every little detail to that first time around; this time I almost feel like a "normal" pregnant lady. :)  I feel like I know my body and what to expect so much better and am not stressing and over-analyzing each little thing.

We also found out from that first ultrasound that it's a BOY!  Noah says he knew all along that it was a boy, just how he knew Lydia was a girl.  Or maybe the fact that he reaaaally wants a brother has something to do with it. :)  He is such a sensitive and loving kid; yes, he wants a boy to play with and like the same things as him, but he did phrase it one time that "if the baby is a girl then Lydia will like her more and no one will like to play with me."  I am excited to see him get to have a brother. :)

If her feelings right now stick, Lydia is going to be the best big sister ever.  She asks at least once a day if our baby is here yet.  Usually at some point during the day she will say, "I am excited!" and when you ask why she will say "for the baby!"  And one of her favorite things to do is list all the ways she is going to help with the baby when he is here.  My mom said I did that same thing before my brother was born. :)

Once in a while Noah will say things about how I won't have as much time to play with him if I am taking care of the baby, but overall they are both genuinely excited and happy that we are going to have another person in our family.  They love telling other people that we are going to have a new baby.  It just warms my heart, and reminds me what the reaction to a new life should be.
I won't go into a giant rabbit trail about the sad, sad state of how our society views children, but passing from that magic "1 girl and 1 boy American dream" territory makes me even more aware of it.  We have gotten a few comments that imply along those lines of "why would you have another one if you already have a boy AND a girl."  Oh, the silliness.  Look to the reaction of the 3 and 5 year olds here; a new baby is something to be happy about.  Don't get me wrong, there is certainly part of me that is terrified of being outnumbered. :)  And I don't think there is anything wrong with stopping at 1 or 2 and we would have been perfectly happy with 2.  And thinking of the diapers and sleepless nights isn't something that I am bubbling with excitement about.  But I am VERY excited to welcome Baby Sidekick to our family and for all the adventures we will have together. 

And A Half!

                                                          Dear Lydia,
This week we celebrated your half birthday!  It's hard to believe you are already halfway to 2!  You are such a big girl now--using so many words and trying to say most things that you hear, eating pretty much anything we put in front of you (your favorites are cheese, fruit, noodles, and chocolate), getting pretty much anywhere you need to go (some favorites are your brother's room, up on the coffee table, watching "tweet tweets" out the window, recently up onto the kitchen chairs, and into your family's arms for big hugs!).  You are still such a sweet and happy girl!  You always have a hug or "love you" for your family, give Daddy the best send-off and welcome home every day, and must have your hugs before you go to bed.  You have energy and smiles to spare, and have a great laugh.  You already have wonderful manners; it is so cute and makes us so happy.  You always say thank you, even when we change your diaper (which usually goes something like this: "Thank you, Mama!  Thank you... poop.  Thank you, Mama, poop.")  You have even picked up on "sorry" and "excuse me" and use them appropriately.  One of your new favorite things to say is "oops!"  You aren't sure if you should call yourself "A-djia" or "Baby" because your brother still insists on calling you GirlBaby most of the time.  You love your family so much and we love you!  Anything you see is given a role in a family, either a mama, daddy, baby, "O-ah", or Lydia.  I would say your favorite thing to do is look at books!  Right now your favorite is an "animal encyclopedia" that was mine when I was a little girl.  You are getting pretty good at saying many of the animal names (and of course if they are a dada, mama, or baby).  Some of your other favorite things are: wrestling and chasing, coloring, dressing up, playing with your babies, dancing, watching Little Einsteins (which  you call "pat pat.")

 You still absolutely adore your brother, and he is a very good brother to you.  (You know quite a bit about Star Wars and Rescue Bots thanks to him.)

Now, when I say we celebrated you half birthday, we actually did celebrate your half birthday.  Your brother and I love to throw parties!  We even had a cake and a half, which I wanted to do but Noah though of by himself too. :)

I will always be the crazy and slightly over-the-top party and picture mom that celebrates things like half birthdays.  I hope you guys are okay with that.  It's not just an excuse to make cake and get out decorations (although that is fun).  It is because I really, truly think you are worth celebrating.  I say my life is better with you in it, and I honestly mean it.  (Even when at a year and a half you are just starting to sleep through the night, like to stand up on furniture and watch me come running, and could win awards for drama.)  I call you a blessing because that is what you are.  When I say there isn't any other way I would rather spend my days, it is because right here watching you grow and being the one to take care of you is exactly where I want to be, and it is all worth it.  So get ready to have lots more pictures taken and more half birthdays and anything else we come up with celebrated.  We are so glad that you are part of our family, and I love being your Mama.  Happy Half Birthday, Lydia.  I love you more than I know how to express.

He's FOUR!

We officially have a four year old in the house now!  Happy Birthday to my sweet baby boy!
We celebrated with a Star Wars Angry Birds birthday party, complete with a Piggy Death Star pinata lovingly made by Mama and Noah and exuberantly smashed to bits with a lightsaber.

Here are some fun things about our four year old:
-He weighs 31 1/2 pounds and is 40 inches tall.
-He is amazingly healthy overall.  He seems to be catching a lot of bugs this year, probably because we are actually doing more activities out in public for the first time...  But he always bounces back quickly and we continue to be so thankful and sometimes just amazed at his health and development when we think of where he started.
-He loves to talk.  His grammar is pretty much spot on and uses better vocabulary that many high school students I know.  Words that are heard on a regular basis include: perhaps, I believe, rather, prefer, actually, although.  I attribute this to reading so much, particularly classic Winnie-the-Pooh. :) Oh, and of course: why?  And one that is his own invention that I don't ever correct because it's just too stinkin' cute and actually makes perfect sense: amn't.  In sentences like "I amn't cold" "I amn't hungry" etc.  Can you tell what it means?  See, it makes sense.  He also says, "as a quarter of fact" instead of "as a matter of fact."
-He tells us that he loves us many times a day.
-His favorite stories are David and Goliath and Joshua and the battle of Jericho.  In the words of Noah himself, "I guess I just like stories about things that fall down!"  (This has also rubbed off on his little sister, who will fall to the ground whenever she hears the word "down.")
-His favorite thing is Star Wars Angry Birds and Star Wars characters, which he always calls "Star Wars Edition."  We have let him watch some clips from the movies and he picks up lots from the game and he loves it all.  He always calls Darth Vader "Dark Vader" and for some reason doesn't like to say C3PO, so calls him Cassiopeia (as in the constellation; he is very into outer space overall too), and his very favorite is Yoda.
-The things he notices, remembers, and puts together are crazy.
-Often quietly narrates what he is doing as he is playing.
-Loves to read.
-Loves to wrestle and roughhouse.
-Is definitely a firstborn and likes to know what is happening, have a plan, and be in charge if possible.
-Is a very good big brother overall.  Lydia gets into pretty much everything, and he does not like it when she gets to close to something he is working on, but is usually willing to share his things with her and is pretty patient with her.
-Is pretty emotional and puts on quite the dramatic responses for things...
-Says that he wants to be an artist and has reached the coloring stage, as in he will actually sit down and color or draw for a long period of time.  It is wonderful. :)
Four year old Noah in four words:  inquisitive, perceptive, sensitive, imaginative

I love my four year old!

She's ONE!

Sorry little blog and anyone who actually reads it.  The crazy time of year (school starting) been full swing and there are only so many hours in a day.  But even though it is late, I have to post some pictures and a little tribute to the fact that our baby girl ONE!  A whole year old!  She is our spunky, happy little lady and we are so thankful that she is a part of our family!  We had a fun farm theme birthday party to celebrate, complete with new sparkly pink cowgirl boots for our little shoe-lover.

At a whole year old Lydia...
Loves: Mama, Dada, Noah, grandmas and grandpas, shoes, chapstick, cows, cats, books, being outside
Doesn't like: sleeping (she still wakes up a couple times each night and usually takes 2 catnaps during the day...), getting her face washed off, slowing down for too long
Weighs 23 pounds, which is just about what her brother weighed at age 2
Crawls very quickly, cruises, and has started standing on her own a little bit, climbs, loves stairs, considers any furniture an obstacle to be overcome
Says quite a few words in her own adorable little way: Mama, Dada, more, all done, amen, trees, hat, the end, moo, meow, woof, neigh.  Let's be honest, quite a few of those sound very similar but I usually know what she means and she is definitely trying.  She also communicates very loudly is words that I don't understand...

Of course among all the birthday festivities I though back quite a bit to her birth.  And then back to Noah's.  And then kind of thinking, "why in the world did we even attempt the whole pregnancy thing again?!"  Because let's just be honest, the first time around it was really not good.  Like life-threatening and dramatic and awful.  But I am oh so glad that we did, and grateful beyond words that we were given this precious gift:

 I love my one year old!