This Crazy Love

Brothers doing tummy time

It's hard to believe it's been a month and half since my last post.  The weeks are steam-rolling by in this whirlwind of babies, work, and more babies.  A lot has happened in that time, and since my life seems to be currently measured by how old Ezra is in weeks.....

Ezra's life, Week 5:
 - Andrew's parents came to visit and see the new grandbaby!  We had a great 10 days with them here, and Isaiah definitely loved getting some extra loving and attention!
 - Ezra started taking 45 minutes naps.  Gone are the days of me having to wake him up for every feeding.  Isaiah started this around 6-7 weeks old ( and didn't stop until 6 months old), so I must say, I was disappointed to have it begin earlier.  It did then, and still does, stress me out, but it is what it is.
 - This week I also started a grain-free diet in an effort to help Ezra's digestive system.  I take the boys to a chiropractor (usually every other week, but every week for the first couple months after they are born), and when we went that week she noticed alot of things regarding his digestion that were giving him trouble...I think it was the beginning of silent reflux.  Anyway, after one week of me not eating grains (GOOD-BYE wheat, oatmeal, rice, and pretty much all other kinds of deliciousness...), she noticed a huge improvement in him.          
      So, I am now finishing up week #4 of this, although I have added back in small amounts of oats and rice, and very small bits of wheat products here and there.  Still, it's been a MONTH since I had a piece of bread....a grilled cheese or PB&J sandwich pretty much always sound amazing these days.  However, if it's helping Ezra, I am game.  When he's around 3 months old I will start to add it back in more and see if he does ok with it...the older he gets, the more his digestive systems matures, so there is still hope for me (us).
    Not surprisingly, it is also helping me tick off those baby weight pounds....I mean, when a girl has to bypass the cake, cookies, cinnamon rolls, pastas, and delicious breads surrounding this holiday season, how can you not lose weight?!  Anyway, for that I am most appreciative.

Hmm, yep, that was all week 5!

Week 6-8 were all about smiles and tears!  Ezra is full of smiles almost anytime someone smiles at him.  Of course, he is particularly fond of me. :)  I have loved seeing his big toothless grins come out more and more readily, and during this time he also started to coo and giggle frequently.  I don't think there are any sounds more beautiful to my ears then the first giggles of my children.

The tears, oh, the tears.  Weeks 6-8 were challenging in that Ezra started having alot of trouble feeding 1-3x a day.  It would take be between 20-50 minutes to get him to even start nursing, though he was clearly hungry, and usually during that time he was crying hysterically.  This is hard enough to deal with on its own, but it was very challenging trying to take care of Isaiah at the same time - an active toddler wanting attention, and a screaming infant needing attention.  It definitely reduced me to tears of my own a few times.

Week 8-9 (last week) seemed to be a breakthrough.  Ezra's fussy times were worst when he was overtired from short naps and once he got worked up it was hard to get him actually calm, plus I think there was some trapped gas that would contribute to all that.  Anyway, I have been working harder to help extend his naps, and nursing him still swaddled, straight from sleep.  It seems to be working, as it has been pretty much a whole week without any trouble nursing.

Perhaps another contributing factor is his sleeping/eating schedule. I had been doing a late night feeding with the hopes that his longest stretch of sleep at night would be from that feeding onward, but it didn't seem to be helping him.  I stopped that last week, and since then he has been sleeping from his bedtime (7/7:30pm) between 8-10 hrs, with a feed and then back to bed until 7:45/8am.  It has been wonderful....we get more sleep, he gets more sleep, and he seems to be much happier eating less often at night.

I am enjoying discovering Ezra's personality, likes, and dislikes.  It seemed so difficult to do that with Isaiah because everything about babies in general was so new.  This time around, it has been so much easier to problem-solve, try different things, and be able to apply past experiences to the situation at hand.  For that, parenting a second child has been much easier!

Ezra, 9 weeks

Weeks 8 & 9 have also been all about love.   The more I get to know this new member of our family the more I can't imagine life without him.  My love for him seems to be growing each day, and there are some days where I can barely stand to take my eyes off him. He is so precious, so sweet, and such a beautiful little individual.  What a blessing he is!

Isaiah modeling his new outfit for a Christmas banquet

And then there is my eldest.  Oh, Isaiah.  The last month has been hard for him.  He is realizing more and more he no longer has my undivided attention--that it is shared with another.  He's also gotten two of his two year molars (ouch!), had some viruses, had a growth spurt, and jumped another month closer to being TWO (think 'terrible two's).... He is testing us more and more, wanting independence one moment and then desperate for help in the next.  Deliberately being disobedient one moment, and then offering big hugs and kisses in the next.  There are sweet moments of laughter and giggles, snuggles and cute little words, now inter-mixed with whining, some screaming tantrums, and rebellion.  I like the sweet moments the most. :)   It's a whole new phase of parenting that I don't feel like I quite know how to handle yet.

The sweet moments - Isaiah coming in to give Mommy a face mashing kiss!

With the highs and lows that come with each day, as we tuck them into bed each night I am always amazed at how blessed we are to have two precious boys.

I am crazy in love with them!

Today: Isaiah 23 1/2 months, Ezra, 10 weeks

Mommy Meltdown

Saturday, November 2nd.

When I first started this blog, my goal was to be honest in my writing --with myself and with others.   After all, what's the point of writing for 'therapy' if I don't even tell it to myself straight?

So here it is--a day of my mommy-hood journey that I hope is not repeated.

Today was/is a bad day.  Not with Ezra, not with Isaiah, but with me....in my head.  Today was one of the first days I truly didn't feel like being a mom.  It had nothing to do with my sweet children--whom I never once will ever wish were not here.  It was just me.

Me being tired - physically, emotionally, and mentally.  Tired of changing poopy diapers.  Tired of coloring. Tired of reading Winnie the Pooh. Tired of trying to convince my newborn that a feeding needs to be more than 5 minutes from one side.  Tired of playing with balls, and cars, and trucks.  Tired of repeating myself. Tired of this slow cesarean recovery. Tired of the post-baby weight. Tired of all the messiness that recovering from pregnancy/birth/breastfeeding involves.  Tired of being tired.

 Tired of a routine that today seems very, very mundane.

I dwelt on the winter months looming in front of me, the small room my toddler, baby, and I will spend the majority of our days in, and panicked. I thought about how many years I will need to continue with the poopy diapers, the coloring, the reading of Winnie the Pooh, the trucks, balls, and constant direction to my growing children....and felt desperation.

Today each hour of taking care of my children felt more like a duty than a privilege.

There have been lots of tears today.
Moments of hopelessness mixed with guilt that I even dare have these feelings.

Tonight I pray that tomorrow being a mommy to my precious babes will not be a duty, but a joy once again.
That I will dwell in the rich promises of Christ, not in the deception of the evil one.
That I will walk forward knowing that Christ will sustain me, and that He will give me the strength and love I need to raise these beautiful boys.

Oh, and they are so beautiful.

Ezra, 4 weeks old

Morning snuggles (Isaiah 22 months, Ezra 3 weeks)

Isaiah loves his little brother!

Ezra's Birth

Well, it's been 3 1/2 weeks since Ezra was born.  I decided I better write out his birth story before all the memories get fuzzy and muted. Watch out, it's lengthy!

The date was Friday, October 4th.  Andrew and I went in to the hospital for a non-stress test, because since I was 8 days late they wanted to be sure that the baby was still doing fine and that the womb was still a happy and healthy place for him to hang out in.  Everything looked great, so we came home.  My induction date was set for Monday, the 7th, if he hadn't come yet.

At this point I did feel like I was going to be pregnant forever.  After days, no, weeks, of expecting to go into labor every night/day, Andrew and I both felt numb to the idea...as in, this is just never going to happen, so why keep waiting expectantly?

With Isaiah I didn't have any pre-labor signs, no contractions, no nothing--my water broke first, and then the contractions started shortly after, so I expected it would be the same this time around.  I had a hint of an idea that something was going to happen soon on Friday evening ( this is a good part to keep vague, haha!), but still wasn't super hopeful.

I woke up at 12:15am that night with contractions.  They seemed fairly short, and manageable, so I let Andrew keep sleeping and tried to keep resting myself.  I had a 16 hr labor with Isaiah, and didn't feel there would be a huge rush this time around either. The hospital is an hour and 15 minutes away however, so the timing is kind of important.

Around 1:15 they seemed to be coming closer, so I woke up Andrew. He timed four - they were 90-120 seconds long, and 3-4 minutes.  Okay, not so short after all!  We needed to get moving.  We called our neighbor who was going to spend the night at our house with Isaiah, and started to get ready to go.  After another 20 minutes or so I started to get the idea that this labor might be a quick one.  It was starting to get intense.

And then....the car ride. I knew it wasn't going to be fun being strapped into a moving vehicle, but the first 30-40 minutes were crazy. The contractions became unbelievably painful, and I felt like I was really losing control. The relaxation and breathing I had practised seemed impossible to implement. Then everything settled down, and I was able to relax and regain some sanity back for the second half of the ride.  I started getting nervous though, because there was a few times I started to feel the urge to push, which means that the end is close. We just needed to get there!

After making our way to the Maternity triage, standing in the hallway waiting for a nurse to show up while telling Andrew "I need to push!" (and feeling like I was going to have Ezra right there if a nurse didn't show up soon!), and finally getting checked, I was 8-9 cm and excited that I had only been in labor for a little over 3 hours.  But seriously, can't we do the paperwork and formalities later?  I am ready to have a baby, people!  The nurses didn't seem to catch my sense of urgency......

We got in our L&D room, and I had to get into the bed so they could monitor the heartbeat.  I wasn't planning on getting an epidural, so the nurse kindly read our birth plan and seemed on board and supportive of our wishes.  Another 10 minutes or so passed, and then my water broke, and I wanted to push.  The nurse came in to check me so she could give me the go ahead to do so...and then everything went a bit crazy.

"You said this baby was head down?", she asked me.  "Um, yes!"  "I need to go get the doctor. Don't push."  Out she went, and I knew right away that everything about our situation had just changed--somehow, someway, Ezra's head was not down any more.  So there we are, waiting, and me not pushing.

  ***If you have ever been in labor with a child and having the urge to push, you will know how incredibly awful it is to not push when your body is screaming at you to 'PUSH!'  It is an overwhelming need, that is almost involuntary.  This was not fun. The closest thing I could compare it to, that I know and have experienced, is having the definite need to throw up and being told to hold in it for a good long while. Yeah, right. Not lovely or pretty, I know, but pretty comparable.***

She came back with a couple doctors, who confirmed Ezra was now in a breech position.  They told us that while a normal delivery is possible, there were not any doctors there or on call who have enough experience doing them to feel comfortable with it.  Therefore, the only safe option was to have a C-section.

We were kind of in shock, and I immediately felt disappointed because I knew I was not going to get to push....ever.  I had actually really been looking forward to the pushing stage of labor, because from my experience with Isaiah, it is the most enjoyable part of the whole labor.  The end is in sight, you can actually do something to contribute to the whole process, and the pain is negligible in the sense that it actually just feels so great to push.

Anyway...I digress.  We said a definite ok to the C-section, and at that point I just wanted it done as soon as possible, because I was still 10 cm dialated, still having strong and very close contractions, and still needing to push. I basically was feeling desperate to have this baby out of me.

This part of the whole event is a beautiful part of the story.  Yes, my drug free birth just went out the window. Yes, I was going to get an IV, an epidural, and a C-section. Yes, I had been terrified of the three aforementioned items for both of my pregnancies, and very much didn't want any of them. Yes, I had absolutely no idea about what a C-section entailed and the recovery from it, because it was so far from my mind as ever being a needed option I never looked into it. And YES, in those moments I felt the total, all-surpassing, beyond understanding, peace of God that totally overwhelmed me with His goodness and grace. I had no nerves.  No quickened heartbeat.  No butterflies.  Nothing but a complete sense of calm and rest (while still in active labor and not pushing....) in the middle of a drastic alteration of all my  hopes and plans.
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I am doing a Bible study right now by Beth Moore calling Stepping Up: A Journey into the Psalms of Ascent.  That morning (Friday),  my day of homework in the study was on Psalm 121.

I lift my eyes toward the mountains.Where will my help come from?

My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth. 

He will not allow your foot to slip; your Protector will not slumber.

Indeed, the Protector of Israel does not slumber or sleep.

The Lord protects you; the Lord is a shelter right by your side.[a]

The sun will not strike you by day or the moon by night.

He will protect your life. Lord will protect your coming and going both now and forever.

This is from the HCSB version she used.  The study that day focused on the Lord being our Protector.  The first two verses of the psalm came to mind with the very first contraction, and I repeated them over and over through many contractions.  As the whole C-section unfolded, the Lord reminded me of the lesson from the day and of these verses - that He is my Protector, and that He was protecting me and Ezra.  What beautiful words of comfort and security.  I was then, and continue to be, amazed and so very thankful at how the Lord arranged the entire thing.  The c-section was not a part of my plan, but it was in His, and with it He blessed us with peace and reminders of His promises.

So it happened.  My relief was very great when the epidural took effect, because then my urge to push and all the pain from not doing so vanished.  Wow, I can really understand why women like epidurals--I must say, it was like pure bliss in that moment....  :)

All in all, it was about 40 minutes between the time they realized Ezra was breech and the time he was born--just 4 hrs and 45 minutes since my first contraction. I felt totally coherent and with it during the surgery, and could feel them make the cut, pull, push, and tug around (but without any pain), and got to hold him almost right away. They sewed me up, and we were all deemed healthy and well.

We had a son!  I was so glad it was all over and he was with us.  The question remained though - what on earth happened?  On Monday and Thursday, both my doctor and chiropractor were 100% sure Ezra was head down and engaged.  On Friday I had an ultrasound and though nothing specific was mentioned, the doctor who did it certainly didn't reference a breech baby - in fact, he went over my induction date with me, and said something like, "If labor starts before then, don't wait! Come right in."

I kept being asked if I felt him turn, because apparently it is quite noticeable by the mom, and is usually accompanied by nausea and all sorts of things. I kept saying no, because I really didn't feel anything unusual.  I actually didn't know that that even happened - I knew sometimes breech babies turned down at the last minute, but I didn't know they turned up!  Apparently it is quite rare, but does happen.....yeah, no kidding!

So we finally figured it out.  Ahhhhh, the car ride.  Those crazy and wild contractions for 30-40 minutes on the way to the hospital that all of a sudden calmed down and got manageable again?  That must have been when he flipped.

In the end, I am so grateful for the way it happened.  Obviously the Lord had his hand on us both - perhaps it was even the direct hand of the Lord that turned Ezra.  We have no way of knowing what would have happened or how things would have gone (for him or for me) if I had birthed him naturally as we intended.

We just trust that the Lord knows best--for He does--and thank him for bringing Ezra safely into this world.

Fresh out of surgery, and feeling good (of course, everything was still numb, ha!).

So happy to hold our new little man!

Ezra Caleb

Ezra: Helper  Caleb: Wholehearted, Faithful

Ezra, 1 week old

Meet Ezra Caleb Dusing!  Our sweet second son was born at 4:57am on October 5th, 2013 - 9 days 'overdue', but yet, right on time.  He weighed in at a surprising 9 lbs, 4oz, and was 21 inches long. He gave his mom and dad quite a story through his labor and delivery, but came out healthy, beautiful, and so very loved.

I can't believe he is almost 2 weeks old already. Wow, it goes so fast!  Often during these last few days I keep thinking back to Isaiah's first couple weeks of life, which were hard and full of challenges -- not because he was a difficult baby (he wasn't!), but because the whole parenting thing was new, scary, and overwhelming, plus with lots of difficulty with breastfeeding and L&D recovery on my end. This time, while the recovery of his birth has been quite hard on me again, it has been so much less stressful welcoming Ezra into our family. We are already used to getting up in the middle of the night, feeding a baby, changing teeny diapers, swaddling wild, flailing, tiny humans, soothing upset tummies, and a host of other baby things --plus, are much less stressed in general by the sound of a baby crying.  

Of course there have been plenty of challenges along the way, but I am feeling so blessed and thankful at the way we are all adapting to life as a family of four.

Isaiah loves, loves, loves to kiss and hold his baby brother.  He is good at being very gentle with Ezra, not super good at being quiet when he's sleeping, and overall a great helper with stuff involving Ezra.
Ironically, Isaiah has been waking up more in the middle of the night than his newborn brother this last week! Not sure what is going on with that, but we are hoping it will pass quickly.  They tend to not synchronize their waking up at night time either...  :)

We actually have been super blessed by what a good night time sleeper Ezra has been so far.  He is up only 1 or 2 times, eats, and goes right back to sleep. The nice thing about having a big baby is that you don't have to worry about letting them have longer stretches of night sleep early on.  I have been feeling way more rested since we came back from the hospital than I did the last two months of pregnancy--I am for sure getting more and better quality sleep!  It's a wonderful thing.

That's all for now. This mommy of two is filled with thankfulness for God's hand being upon us and with us, and for the blessing of our healthy baby boy, Ezra.   

Welcome here, sweet child. We're so very glad to have you in our family!

Brand new!

1 day old

Isaiah loving on his baby brother!

Waiting

Please notice the date.

October 2nd, 2013.

And no baby.

Whew.

It wasn't until a couple days ago that the thought even occurred to me that having a baby in October was a possibility, and now, it will be a reality!

In all honesty, it hasn't been an easy week of waiting.  With how I was feeling in early/mid-September, I was pretty sure he was going to be early, so we've been expecting me to go into labor for quite some time.

Then, last week my parents came from the States to be here to take of Isaiah during the birth, and to be around to help in the first days.  This morning, Andrew took them to the airport for their scheduled departure.  We had a great visit--lots of fun playing cards, taking walks in some beautiful fall weather and eating good food--and it was great for Isaiah to get to know them.  But still, no baby.  Each day the waiting seemed more difficult, mostly for the pressure I felt upon my self (not given by them, but by me), for this baby to come while they were here.  After all, that was the reason they came!

Last Thursday, my due date, I was up early around 5:15 am, not sleeping well and feeling anxious to have this baby. I spent some time in Psalms 130-131 that morning, which have been the perfect reminders for me this week.

Psalm 130: 1-2, 5-7.
 "Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord; O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.  I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope.  My soul waits for the Lord, more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.  O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption."

Psalm 131
"My heart is not proud, O Lord, my eyes are not haughty; I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul; like a weaned child with its mother, like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore."

First, I was convicted - how many nights of poor sleep this pregnancy have I waited for the morning to come, with so much more desperation and passion than I have been waiting for--and upon--the Lord each day?  Too many.  How much have I concerned myself with own plans (and timeline) for this baby, rather than quieting my soul before the Lord and resting upon His plan?  Far too much.

The words brought comfort, rest, and peace to my anxious soul.  The Lord has used those words over and over this week to remind me of His promises, and to keep my impatience in check.

Monday I had an appointment with my doctor--an appointment I had really not thought I would need (because the baby would already be here....), and I was terribly anxious for it.  Since she had asked about it the week before, and I had said no, I thought she would put some pressure on me to let her sweep my membranes this time, which is supposed to speed up labor starting.  The week before she had practically already scheduled my induction date, which was also making me anxious because she was so quick to intervene instead of just letting this baby come when he is ready (and with both of us still being fine and healthy).   Anyway, I had been back and forth on what to do about the membrane sweep for a couple days, and was literally at the point of tears in car.  I was going to go ahead with it, then not, then yes, then no.   For some, I know it's not a big deal, and others I know aren't fans of it being done.  My level of anxiety seemed to far outweigh the actual situation.

So twenty minutes into the drive, my heart cried out in desperation, 'Lord, what should I do?'  The answer came very clearly from the words of Psalm 130:  Wait for the Lord. Wait. 

"Wait" continued to echo in my head.  All the reasons I maybe should do it swirled around, but all I could keep hearing was 'wait'.   Andrew affirmed me to just not do it, and that together we would be prepared to stand against my doctor if need be.

The Lord is good.  My doctor didn't even try to ask me again, just an 'Ok, well I won't sweep them today since you don't want that" matter of factly, plus some great steps on her part to work with us towards an agreeable induction date, plus an induction method that I actually feel pretty good about.  We were blown away at how much she seems to get and be ok with our desired type of birth, and totally saw the Lord's hand over it all.

If baby isn't here, I will have a non-stress test on Friday, with a tentative induction date for Monday, the 7th. We would appreciate your prayers for health and safety for the baby, that the Lord would bring him forth at the perfect time, and that we would continue to wait upon the Lord, putting our hope only in Him.

The last pregnancy picture I took was at 40 wks + 1day.  Today I am 40 wks + 6days, and you know what?  I seriously doubt I will take another picture.  Some things just don't matter any more.  Come, little one, come! We are so excited to meet you. :)

Done

Done, done, done.  That's how I feel about now.

DONE - with our long to-do list of preparations (which included car improvements and building projects) before this baby's arrival.  We finished the list this weekend!  There are only the smallest of things left to do, like last minute cleaning and straightening, etc.  What a great feeling.

DONE - ok, *very nearly*, with a long list of things I needed and wanted to get finished for work before baby comes.  I was just telling Andrew yesterday that there are so few things left on my to-do list for work it seems strange...whatever am I going to do with my time now? (Obviously, blog and nap, ha!)

DONE- with being pregnant.  I am 38 weeks today.  I'm over it.  I am hot, uncomfortable, sleeping poorly, uncomfortable, and just saw a very sneaky stretch mark appear on my tummy a couple days ago.  Not good!  I am ready for this baby to be out of my belly and into my arms! We are so excited to meet him, and ready for our family of three to become a family of four.

I don't have too much else to say now, but I wanted to make sure I got in at least one more post before baby arrives. Next time I post I may have some newborn baby pictures to share. Can hardly wait. :)

Cherished

Written Thursday, August 15th:
Last night, Andrew and I got to go on a date in the city. We shared a very simple, very delicious picnic in a park that brought us back to our dating years, went to see a movie, and stopped for ice cream (and coffee for Andrew) on the way home. Being the good wife that I am, I napped pretty much the entire hour of the car ride home. :)  It was a wonderful evening.

Anyway, it was late when we got home.  We went to sleep around midnight (veeery late for us these days), and woke up to Isaiah coughing and crying at 1:30am.  The sound was terrible.  He would cough, cry, and then his breath in was this awful wheezing, strained, constricted noise.  Followed by a scared cry, more awful breaths in, more coughing, etc.  He got the cold that we did last week, and just in the last couple days it moved a bit into his lungs, but this sounded really bad.  Andrew went to Isaiah's room and picked him up, and the poor little guy just draped against him, arms around Andrew's neck, breathing these little wheezing breaths.

Breathing troubles are scary.  Very scary.  We don't even know how much so, as he doesn't even have asthma or anything chronic like that, but a few months ago there was a week of about the same as last night (following this terrible cold that went around), and then again last night. Isaiah calmed down quickly, but still couldn't sleep.

Two and a half hours later....

4 AM. Finally, he was asleep, and stayed asleep until morning came--after much back rubbing, singing, water, and the like.

During those 2 1/2 hours (on which we were operating on 1 1/2 hrs of sleep), we both thought about many things.  Should we take him in to the hospital? (Closest one is 45 minutes away, would most likely have to wait up to several hours to be seen unless his breathing was super bad at resting level....welcome to health care in Quebec.)  Should we take him in to the Children's Hospital in Montreal? (1 hr 15 minutes away, would probably be seen sooner.) Or do we just wait it out until morning since he seems to be not so bad when he's relaxed?

In the alternating shifts of singing/rubbing we took last night, I was reminded of how precious and delicate life is.  Of what an incredible gift Isaiah is to us.  Of how much I cherish each little part of his body and personhood.  Of how I would do anything for him.  Of how blessed we are to get to take care of him. Of how much he is in God's care.

And as I prayed over my sweet little boy, while singing yet another verse of Amazing Grace, I remembered how utterly dependent we are on the Lord for each breath - literally.

There have been other nights like this one, where he just wouldn't sleep for 1-3 hours in the middle night, and those nights we are usually frustrated because nothing seems to be wrong, and we are very tired.  This night though, there was no frustration (ok, except for a couple minutes when I really needed to empty my bladder, which pregnancy has reduced to the size of an almond)--just a desire for him to be healthy, comfortable, and to get the rest he very much needs.

Parenthood is not an easy road, but oh, it is such a blessing to be apart of this precious child's life.

Now, a couple days later, he has been sleeping much better each night, and is improving each day. Whew.

We love you, little buddy.  You are so dear to us.

When One Becomes Two

Here I am, 33 weeks pregnant.  Let's face it - the romanticism of pregnancy is long gone, and has been replaced with poor sleep, almost constant tiredness (from the poor sleep), achy limbs, the beginning of swollen feet, shortness of breath, and a general discomfort within my entire body.  I am confident that I am not alone in these symptoms--that a large portion of other pregnant women in their 3rd trimester can say all this and more.

This has been a pretty miserable week to be pregnant.  I am on day 6 of a cold.  Now, I have had many colds that have been much, much worse than this one.  However, this little virus has sapped what small amount of energy, motivation, and will to do anything that I have managed to retain during this 3rd trimester. It has left me day dreaming of resting at almost all hours of the day ( I say day dream, because who has time to rest when there is a 19 month old to play with and work to be done?).  It has left me wondering how in the world am I going to manage a newborn and a toddler at the same time, when I'm so tired I can barely see straight.

*****INSERT PAUSE****

That was yesterday.  I realized at that moment that Isaiah was sleeping, and I needed to be too.  My 20 minute doze helped substantially to make it through the rest of the day.

Today, I feel better. Wahoo!  The cold is on the way out, I am happy to say.  I will not continue my pregnancy lament, though the symptoms of advanced pregnancy are no less true than they were yesterday! Haha.

But really, this coming baby is on my mind. Constantly.  And the closer his arrival is, the more I really do wonder what life is going to be like with two.  How will it work?  How will I take care of both, (and hopefully well), when some days one child seems almost too much?

The other thing I think about is activities for Isaiah.  Where we live, the winters are long and cold, and we have a teeny little house for him to be in the bulk of the time. This winter I am looking at how to have a newborn and an active toddler in our house for several months.  He's at an age where I feel I should be doing plenty of learning activities with him, but this also poses a challenge to me.

I am not a kid person. Being around kids wears me out, and I usually do not enjoy playing with them. Obviously I love Isaiah tremendously, and I have realized how great it is to love the child I am with all the time, because I do find true joy in watching him discover, learn, and try new things.  It has been a wonderful gift to discover in parenthood.

Anyway, I'm convinced I should be doing all kinds of crafts, activities, and the like with him, and the older he gets, the more of this type thing we should do.  This is where my mind starts spinning--and not with ideas! The words CRAFTS and ACTIVITIES fill me with trepidation and a huge sense of being overwhelmed -- they are so far from my comfort zone I literally have no idea where to begin.  I have spent more than a couple hours researching appropriate learning activities, and I have a couple books on it too, but it seems so difficult to actually put something together.

So please, by all means, if you have any simple learning activities you have done with small children (18-24 months), I would love to hear them!

I know it will all be ok.  I know that Isaiah will not suffer intellectually *too much*  if I do not figure out the perfect age appropriate learning activities to do with him.  I know, *somewhere inside me*, that not being a kid loving, crafty person does not make me a bad mommy.  I also know that the Lord will equip me for the task that He has set before me--raising two children.

I believe that.

And I cling to that promise.

In all that, summer continues, and Isaiah remains crazy cute as usual!  Here are some pictures of our fun:

Fun in the kiddy pool!

What to do when it's 90F at 8am? Have some naked water fun on the porch!  

Isaiah loves to brush his teeth.  All 14 1/2 of them.

His rainsuit always makes me giggle. Always.  :)

Joy Child

My sweet little babe is almost 18 months.  Um, what?!?  How did that happen?  I notice more each day how grown up he is getting to be, and I continue to be amazed at how much joy it gives me watching him discover and learn new things.

A little about Isaiah:

For the most part, his sleeping is great.  He takes a short catnap in the morning, and a long nap each afternoon.  The morning nap will soon disappear, but I, for one, will be sad to see it go, so I will put him down for it as long as he is willing. He sleeps around 11 1/2 hrs each night, and for the past month has rarely woken up at all in the middle of the night.  For a few months he would consistently wake up at some point, cry out a couple times, and put himself back to sleep.  Since our house is tiny, we always woke up when he did, so it's been lovely to only be waking on my accord and not his. (I am 7 months pregnant after all....the days of me sleeping through the night are long gone. Ha!)

He is also developing his cuddle-bug side, something we haven't seen much of in his younger months.  We LOVE this.  There are few things as wonderful as a small child wrapping his arms around your neck, laying his head on your shoulder, and snuggling in for singing before nap and bedtime. He is also usually happy and eager to give hugs and big smacking kisses when asked, and if we are both there, if Daddy gets a kiss, then Mommy gets one too.  He doesn't like to leave one of us out. :)

Isaiah is passionate about the great outdoors.  This boy loves to be outside!  I have to be careful about even mentioning the word 'outside' in casual conversation, because the next thing that usually happens if I do is Isaiah bringing me my shoes to put on, his shoes to put on, patting his head asking for his hat, and pointing for his sunglasses.  All in about the span of 60 seconds.  He also comes up the idea himself. We can be doing anything from playing with cars to doing laundry, and all of a sudden he will bring me shoes and set them in front of my feet, and then point to the door and pat his head for his hat. (We almost always put his sun hat and sunglasses on when we go outside in the sun, so he is always very excited to wear them...it means we're going outside!)  He has never brought me Andrew's shoes - they are always mine.  If I tell him I'm going to wear my sandals instead, he will go and get those for me.  It's very cute!

"Who am I? " "Ma-ma!"

He loves to slide! It's like a roller coaster each time. :)

Learning to catch a foot ball.

He also loves to eat, and as of yet is not that picky.  (Being outside and loving food...yup, sounds like a mix of me and Andrew!)  He did great eating every kind of vegetable under the sun until I stopping making him purees a couple months ago. He hasn't quite overcome the change of texture in eating chunks of certain veggies, but we're working on it.  Other than that, he is happy to eat pretty much whatever we're having. He seems to prefer beans over meat, but will eat both anyway, and enjoys food seasoned in a whole variety of ways, and even a bit spicy. No bland food here!

The amount of food he eats continues to be impressive.  We've noticed in only the past two weeks that his intake is going down slightly, but still.  He eats an adult-sized bowl of oatmeal each morning (aka, the same serving Andrew or I  have, plus he has a bunch of fruit and milk mixed in), and then some.  Maybe half a bagel with cream cheese, a whole piece of fruit, a piece of toast, etc.  Basically the same amount of breakfast we have, if not more.  Lunch can be a 1/2 cup of vegetables, a full burrito, a fruit, and a few bites of something else. The other day at dinner he ate 1/2 a sweet potato, a full chicken wrap, his fruit, a few bites of whatever else we had, and then an entire 1/2 of a PB&J sandwich that I made him because all the food was gone and he kept asking for more!  Anyway, we don't worry that he is getting enough food, that is for sure.

In the past three or four weeks he has become very good at using his fork.  He loves to feed himself.  I need to let him use the spoon more, but I'm not great at letting him get messy, and things that need to be eaten with spoons are.....messy.  He has had several people comment in the past week at how good he is with a fork.  I've never been around 18 month olds before, so I don't know if it's unusual or not, or even when they typically master self-feeding.  I just enjoy the pleasure and pride he takes in spearing that elusive blueberry, slippery noodle, or piece of meat.  He even enjoys eating dry cheerios with a fork at snack time sometimes - who knew that a cheerio could be speared without breaking? (I didn't!)  Let me tell you, spearing one cheerio on a fork at a time is a looong process, which I don't mind because he is so well entertained by it. :)

Isaiah is very obedient...in certain areas.   If he is reaching out to grab or touch something (from a rock, piece of garbage, pen, or a very tempting electronic device), we can tell him "No, that's not for Isaiah" in a regular, pleasant voice, and 8/9 out of 10 times he will just leave it alone and walk away.  Often times I am amazed how well he listens, responds, and isn't even phased by it.   If he already has something he shouldn't in his hands, it is a bit trickier.  Sometimes he will be fine to hand it over nicely.   Recently he was around a couple times when some toddlers threw things in a fit when their parents asked them to give it back.  And so, now he has done that a few times.  I'm pretty sure he picked that up from them, because he never threw things before he saw these older kids doing it the past couple weeks.

It is interesting (and annoying on my end), to see how quickly he is starting to pick up behavior from other kids. Last week he and I saw a little girl hit her mother in a tantrum -- later than day he came up to me, frowned, and hit me on the leg...totally out of the blue. What?!?!  It gives me a glimpse of some challenges that would come from having your child in daycare, when they are around other kids all day who may not get very good discipline at home, have lots of attitude problems, or whatever.  Isaiah isn't around kids his own age very often, so I feel like up to this point most of his behavior has been influenced and directed by us, rather than by his peers. I know it's only the beginning!

Probably our biggest challenge right now is learning to "Come" when called. The past few months, an "Isaiah, come here please" means him running away laughing, like it's a game.  The past couple of weeks he has stopped running away, but will only come straight away maybe 1/4 of the time.  Needless to say, this is something we are working on alot now. Coming when called (on the first time!) is such an important thing to do and know--for safety reasons, and also for submission and obedience reasons.  I have been trying to read up on some pointers online and in books, but do any mommies out there have some good suggestions?

Snacking on cereal, sitting on Raffy the Giraffe, watching a veggie tales silly song.

Isaiah loves to people watch.  He is not super outgoing, but it not necessarily shy either.  He watches, observes, and then is usually interested enough to try and join in with what's going on.  With a lot of strangers around, he moves quite carefully.  When he knows a few familiar faces, he is comfortable walking around large areas and checking out the activities.  Since we live at a Bible school/conference center, he has tons of opportunities to meet many new people, but also still has a large base staff and students who remain fairly constant in his life, and with whom he is very comfortable.  He is definitely not a mom or dad clinger child.  Just the other day I was sitting at the picnic tables near our house, and he was wandering around.  A couple minutes later, I saw him walking waaaay across the large field to the sand volleyball court with one of the staff's kids -- hand-in-hand -- not a care about where his mommy was.   I'm not sure yet if he would go that far alone, but....I know now to keep a close eye on where he is going!

He loves to laugh.  My goodness, I really don't know if there is a sound more beautiful in the world to me than Isaiah's belly laugh. It is soo precious, and it's one of the things that I feel the most sad about being so far away from his grandparents and relatives--they don't get to hear him laugh.  Where we live, there are lots of mosquitoes and black flies. (If you have never heard of a black fly, be thankful.)  A couple days ago we were in Andrew's garden, and I swatted away a mosquito on his arm, going, "Aaaah, mosquito!"  Well. Apparently, 'mosquito' is a hilarious word.  He laughed so hard he almost fell over!  On the whole way back home, just a quick word of  'mosquito!' sent him into hysterical fits of laughter.  It was SO funny to watch! Tonight was a similar experience trying to squash bugs.  Love, Love, Love.  I can never hear his laugh too much.

Happy about the picture he drew!

Super excited to get in the pool for the first time!

There are many more things I could talk about, but that is enough for now.  This is such a fun age of discovery, learning, and fun.  He is such a joy to be around, play with, and grow with. 

He is truly our joy child!  

The Naming

Isaiah: God is Salvation.  Benjamin: Beloved, son of the right hand.

Isaiah Benjamin, 5 days old

Giving Isaiah a name was easy.  From about the time I was 13 weeks pregnant, I started to think it was going to be a boy, because the only name that I liked--and that was stuck in my head--was 'Isaiah Benjamin'. I had never thought about what I would name my kids before, because for some reason I tend to not like many names when looking at them.  When the names belong to people, they're great, but on paper, unattached to a personality and character.....mehhh.  Not many stick out to me.
       I had been reading and pondering the book of Isaiah for about 6 months a couple of years previously, and I learned so much about the character of the Lord and who He is from that time in Isaiah.  It really made an impact in my life, and the name seemed a beautiful reflection/reminder of what the Lord had taught me. The name Benjamin just kind of appeared, and fit so well with Isaiah.
      As we named our first child, and now are working on a name for our second child, I have discovered that the meaning of the name(s) is very important to me. I feel like it's a declaration of my hope for them and their future--a prayer bestowed on them from birth.  And so....this criteria immediately narrows down the vast possibility of names for our children.
       We do not  yet have a name for our second son.  It is tricky this time around! The other quirks we have about choosing a name is that: 1) We don't want to it be a very common name. 2) We don't want it to be too weird or unusual though either. 3) We (ok, mostly I), am not fond of nicknames - so we want our child to be called what we name it. That means it's harder to pick a name which is sometimes automatically shortened by the general population. I.E. Matthew - Matt, Nathan - Nate, William - Will etc.  This is also why I liked 'Benjamin' for Isaiah's middle name - I liked the name alot, but if it was his first, he would undoubtedly end up as 'Ben'.
      Add in the desire for a strong, Biblical meaning, and Voila!--we have greatly limited ourselves. :)  There have already been several names discarded (though very much liked by both of us) due to its meaning or strong leaning towards being shortened.
     And so, the quest for the 'right' name continues, and with it our prayer that the name we choose would be a gift to our son, a statement of God's faithfulness, promises, and hand over his life--just as I pray now that Isaiah would know God as his salvation, and that the Lord would be his beloved, as he is the Lord's.

The Weaning

April 28th was a big day for our family.   Around 10:30 that night, right before bed, I pondered the past 15 months--with all the struggles, the tears, the triumphs, the joys, and the snuggles....and cried.  It was over.  All that we had fought for, all that we had accomplished and succeeded in, was over. We had done it, and that part of our life as mother and son would never again be experienced.

I didn't really think I would be this sad about weaning Isaiah.  Since the early weeks of this current pregnancy, nursing has again been uncomfortable at best, painful at worst.  Isaiah didn't seem too attached (no pun intended) to his daily nursing routine, and I was getting less and less so as the discomfort persisted.  Thoughts of a several month break between nursing children sounded great, as well as the rising hope for a couple Andrew-and-Lisa-only get-aways before the second baby comes.

I thought to take it slow - dropping one feeding a week, which would take four weeks.  Week 1 & 2 went great, and only the wake-up and going to bed feedings were left. A few days in to week 3, reading books or playing with Daddy became way more interesting than nursing with Mommy.  Perhaps my milk dried up too, in the process, for one day Isaiah took one try, looked at me funny, and wanted to get up.  'All done', he signed insistently.  And that was the end. All done.

It was weird the range of emotions I experienced.  Relief - I no longer need to be there for my son before he goes to bed, or when he gets up (as he still wasn't drinking milk from any other source...).  Sadness - was I really ready for this?  I will miss our time to sit together quietly and snuggle. It feels like he doesn't need me quite as much anymore. Pride - for the rough and rocky beginning that it was, we made it one day shy of 16 months.  Fear - on a small degree, as I realized that 'needing to nurse Isaiah before bed' has been a good way out of things I didn't want to do sometimes. Now that is excuse is gone. :)

These feelings caught me off guard because I know many moms who had no qualms about weaning, felt no sadness whatsoever, and didn't see it as a big event in general.  I thought I may be same--nope.

Life goes on, however, and so we continue in our quest to get Isaiah to drink milk.  For a few different reasons, we have started him on goat's milk.  He doesn't mind it, but I think he would just as rather have water most of the time. Apart from nursing though, he hasn't ever just sat and drank milk out of a bottle (or sippy cup now), so the idea is foreign to him...and he is usually too impatient to take more than a few sips at a time.  Thankfully I have read many places and been assured by some experienced mothers that milk really isn't necessary at this age, as long as they are getting their calcium and vitamins from other sources.  We work towards that end.

Why nurse when I can play?  My big, busy, 16 month old!

Rocks are awesome!

Getting in some morning reading

Learning how to kick a ball! 

Expansion of Hearts and Bellies

I'm pretty sure that everyone who would read this blog already knows the big news of the Dusing family, but in case you missed it:

We are having another baby!  Yup, I am 17 weeks pregnant with our second one-of-a-kind Andrew/Lisa combo.  This sweet little bundle of love is due the last week of September, and we will find out in a mere two weeks the gender!  We are so excited about this addition to our family, and I can't wait for Isaiah to be a big brother.

This second pregnancy has been different for me in many ways already than the first, and although I haven't pondered it too deeply, I have been surprised about my lack of eagerness to put the news on our blogs.  Why? I have no idea. Perhaps some news is better kept closer to home for a while. ?

Anyway, I thought it'd be fun to write down a few of these pregnancy differences.

      -Morning sickness:  With Isaiah, there were a few weeks of nausea, but not too bad, and best dealt with by eating and snacking pretty much all the day.  If I got hungry, I was on the verge of puking instantaneously. With Baby #2, it was the same, except on a heightened scale, and also accompanied by a general feeling of un-wellness and yuckiness that plagued me throughout the days.  It's not often that I don't feel good, so these few weeks were pretty miserable to me. It started around week 7 and ended around week 11 or so.  While I don't feel nauseous much anymore, there are still plenty of foods which I usually enjoy, that remain undesirable to me during this pregnancy--such as foods with strong garlic tastes, most kinds of cooked potato, and ground beef in almost any form.
 
     -My Growing Belly: With Isaiah, I could not WAIT to get a baby belly!   I was proud of my teeny little bump, and was anxious to highlight it's growth each week.  I didn't mind the upward climb of the scale either, because it was all about the baby.  With Baby #2, I have NOT been excited about getting a baby belly (and gaining baby weight in general).  I know this is because for several months I had been working out faithfully trying to get rid of all the extra and unnecessary weight I gained with Isaiah, and I had not yet reached my goals.  Therefore, gaining baby weight means, once again, not fitting into my clothes, and, once again, facing the expansion of my belly and multiple other parts of my body.
    I am determined to gain a normal-to-low amount this time around, but am still faced with the doubts about my self-control that stem from my first experience.  Somehow, it seems like being pregnant should let you eat as much as you want whenever you want. Ha!  Bad information, people, unless all you want are fresh fruit and vegetables.  Somehow my pregnancy cravings included more words like cool and creamy, melty, gooey,and buttery, rather than fresh, raw, or crunchy.
    I am encouraged that I am on the right track thus far, and intend to remain so.  If only I could get Andrew to give up his 8:30/9:30pm super snack/second supper, maybe the temptation would lessen....haha. :)

-Counting the Days:  My, oh my, did the days and week of the first pregnancy drag on forever!  We were waiting for this impending date-of-birth that we would knew would radically change our lives forever--we just didn't really know how.  It was both exciting and nerve-wracking as we faced this unknown thing called parenthood. Each week was spent reading on how our baby was growing, changing, developing, and moving, spreading the news among our friends and family that the baby was now the size of a blueberry! a grape! a lemon! an avocado! a mango! an onion! a cantaloupe!...and so on and so forth.
  The development of form and life which is happening inside me right now is no less incredible and miraculous this time than the last. I continue to enjoy my weekly emails from BabyCenter, "Your Pregnancy: Week __ ", and I usually remember to share the details of what's happening with Baby this week with Andrew, but that's about it.
  It seems like this pregnancy is speeding by, and I'm pretty sure it's because we are already busy with and enjoying Isaiah.  We are not waiting for parenthood to come upon us, we are in the midst of it--with all the ups, downs, joys, frustrations, and uncertainty that come with raising a pre-toddler who is developing a mind of his own. We know that Baby #2 will once again change our lives, but the radical part of going from not being parents to being parents has already happened, and that is a huge step.

-The Knowledge of Love:  The first time I held Isaiah, I knew that I loved him--in my head. I mean, I had loved him the whole time he was developing in my womb, but it was strange loving someone that I had never seen or known before.  So when he was born, I loved him, but the emotional connection to him in my heart did not come in the instant I laid eyes upon him.  He was ours, and we loved him, but he was also this complete stranger--whom we were solely responsible for...We didn't know him or what he liked or disliked, how he liked to be held, or any of it.  The first couple of days felt like we were (must be!) taking care of someone else's baby. (I mean, how fast does the reality of parenthood really sink in for any first-time parents?!)  The emotional connection came after a day or two, and with it a love so big I could scarcely comprehend it; after all, how was it possible to love someone so small so much?
   This time, even though the little person growing inside of me will be a 'stranger' at the beginning like Isaiah was, I now know the love a mother has for her child, and I know my heart will expand to love this second baby just as much as Isaiah. It will be a love that will not take from the other, but a love that will give both child their own full measure.
 
How can I understand the fullness of love God has for me?  I know I cannot every fully grasp it, but having a child has given me a glimpse into the vastness of the Father's love for me--His child.  What a gift that is!

"And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God." Ephesians 3: 17b-19

On a final note...
The first week of April we enjoyed a week's vacation to Capernwray Harbour on Thetis Island in British Columbia. We had a great time hanging out with friends, and enjoying the beautiful property and green grass!

Oh you know...just reading a book like a big boy after a bath.

Watching the cows in the field...Isaiah's favorite activity of the trip

Fun with Mommy at the park.

Laughing in the Ergo on a hike

Bravely petting Smoochie, the resident llama.

Motivation

....or lack of it.  I just recently noticed it has been over a month since I last wrote anything, and truth be told, I don't feel much like it now.  Sometimes, words just get stuck.

In trying to remember when I didn't feel like writing in February, I read over last month's post, and went,  "Oh yeah".  I had mentioned 2 blissful weeks of sleep.  Well, February hit, and it turned into almost 3 weeks of crazy nights, weird naps, and much frustration as to why all-of-a-sudden Isaiah wasn't sleeping good.  Which meant we were definitely not sleeping good either.  I don't like being tired, and seeing much of February was spent tired and sick from a few viruses going around, I didn't feel much like writing.

Ok, ok. I will move on.

Isaiah is walking! A couple weeks ago he just started grooving along, and now walks far more than he crawls.  He has this stiff-legged thing going on, which is quite adorable. It makes him seem so grown-up to be walking around everywhere.

This is such a fun age.  He just turned 14 months, and it is amazing at what he comprehends! He hasn't said any real words, but babbles and chats to himself frequently.  The last week or so, he'll spent 10 minutes in crib at each naptime, before he falls asleep, talking quite loudly, singing, and trying out various new sounds.  It's pretty funny to listen to.

I am remembering often the phrase about this age (and onward) that I read recently:

More is caught than taught.

Which means, it is more about what I do--how I act and behave and show him by example--than what I tell or try to teach him verbally.  I see this all the time:  If one of us playfully bonks him on the head with a spoon or what-have-you, the next thing he does is hit himself in the head with whatever is in his hand, with sometimes painful results.  If he sees us brushing our teeth, he wants to brush his teeth.  If we put something in the trash can, he will pick up little bits of dirt off the floor and walk over to the trash can and wait for me to open the lid so he can throw something away. 

I realize more and more, that as I am stating sentences, explaining what we're doing, giving instructions, or asking him a question....he is actually beginning to understand what I am saying! For so long I have talked and talked and talked just to expose him to vocabulary, help him gain understanding of what goes on around him, and teach him all the things a baby much learn, that it is very weird to see that he actually knows what I'm saying. I am having to be more careful about what it is I'm blabbering about, because no longer can I give him instructions and move on because he doesn't understand. 

Now comes the teaching, the training, the follow-through, the consistency of instruction.  It is the stage of teaching obedience, and ooh-la-la, can it be challenging!

I love this boy!

Isaiah is a sensitive little soul. (Which makes sense, as his mommy is too!)  Gentle correction is usually all that's needed - he does not like for us to be displeased with him, though he is obviously learning and testing his boundaries.  We saw this again the other morning - Andrew was praying with Isaiah before breakfast.  We hold hands when we pray, and Isaiah always holds Andrew's left thumb(it's very cute!). Mid-prayer, he leaned down and bit Andrew's finger!  Obviously, this startled Andrew, who sternly told Isaiah, "No, we do not bite. We do not bite." Isaiah was taken aback by this response, and began to wail, with huge tears rolling down his cheeks.  He looked so pitiful and sad, and it took a while before he could calm down enough to eat....and we're still working to get him to hold our hand again while we pray!  Andrew's correction was perfectly fine and not overdone, but I was just reminded at how much Isaiah does not like for us to be displeased with him.  I am glad we are aware of this now as we move into the correction/discipline age, so that we can deal with him as suits him best.

He is no longer a baby -- he is a little boy, and we see that more and more each day.  Today his first molar came in fully, with another close behind.  It has already been fun the last couple months to be able to feed him pretty much whatever we're eating too, so we are looking forward to him having in some good chompers so he can continue the discovery of yummy foods.

 I was trying to teach him what it means to take a 'bite'.
 He was giggling and proceeded to shove the entire piece of banana in his mouth...

It is the start of the sugar season in Quebec, which means the maple trees are all tapped and the sap is running freely, soon to become maple syrup.  Next week we will be going out for supper (with our co-workers and the students at the Bible School where we work) to a Cabane a Sucre, or "Sugar Shack", where they make the syrup.  Basically it's a multi-course meal where everything is doused in real maple syrup or sucre a la creme (white maple fudge) sauce, including the soup, main dishes, and dessert, followed by making maple taffy in the snow.  Yes, a total sugar overload.  Last year we took Isaiah when he was about 9-10 weeks old

In Quebec, they start 'em on the maple syrup young! haha...

This year he will actually be able to eat the meal with us (yes, we have decided to let him have a teensy-tiny bit of maple syrup too...he was born a Canadian, after all!) , which will be fun.  

Here are a few pictures as of late...I've been having trouble getting his cute grins in focus because he is always on the move, so I haven't posted many lately.

Sunday afternoon fun with Daddy: building a cardboard house/fort! Watching the knife action...

Playing hide-and-go-seek, our new favorite game for giggles!  Here he was coming to find me.

Watching the 'big' boys play in the snow fort

Weekend fun - family sled rides through the snow.

Isaiah saw the park and wanted to go swing!  But the swing are buried in 4 feet of snow....
Have I mentioned we have a lot of snow here?

Spring is in air! May you enjoy the warmth of March as much as we are!