News

Today I received a call from my OB who said she had looked over our ultrasound pictures carefully and is pretty sure the baby has club feet. She has referred us to a perinatal specialist where we will have more extensive ultrasounds to figure out the severity of it. From the little research we've done it sounds like the baby would be having weekly casts for the first 6 months or so and then maybe a minor surgery. We would appreciate any prayers you could send up for us. It's interesting... we're not worried. I feel a supernatural calmness about it (which is so not me). Ryan and I were talking today and both said that we feel an extra special connection to this baby somehow.

Knowing this will be our last child, I've been excited at the thought of getting rid of baby things once we're done with them and looking forward to the "big kid" stage. However, I find myself grieving the loss of teeny robeez shoes and footie pajamas. Oh well, there are lots of cute onesies out there (he'll most likely wear those for the first 6 months.

In other news, Ryan and I celebrated our 9th wedding anniversary on the 24th. Every year he buys me one red rose for every year we've been married and one white one for the year to come. Isn't he romantic? I know it's coming, but it always surprises me. They are beautiful.

Behavior boot-camp has been going well. The kids love the schedule and I'm having a much easier time.

Funnies

Amelia got a new back pack that has wheels. The other morning she asked, "Mom, where is my roller-coaster pa-pack?"

The other day we went to see the "reptile lady." The kids were sitting pretty quietly and at one point Amelia leaned over and said, "Mommy, can I give my mouth a cough?" I said, "If you need to cough, honey, its okay." She proceeded to cough (a real one, not just a fake I wanna cough cough).

Today I was bending over and tying my shoes when Amelia said, "Mommy, I tink you are (s)quishing the baby."

The Summer Abyss and Behavior Boot-Camp

Those of you who know me well, know that I struggle (I could even say dread) summertime. Don't get me wrong, I love the sun and I do LOVE my kids. The problem is, I have trouble when I don't have a schedule. You may not be able to understand this, but it scares me. However, after 8 years of teaching I'm putting my skills to good use to help myself and my children cope with and maybe even (gasp) enjoy this time. Tonight I made schedule cards to rearrange each day so the kids (and I) know what we are doing (They were very excited about this). On the left is a sample day and on the right are other activities to add into the day. It also helps that I'm teaching swimming again this year at the club so that gives us an outing every day from 10ish to noon (and the kids get swim lessons). I'm really excited about this new plan. Having said all this, I so wish that I was like my blog-friend Allison who gets giddy every moment she gets to spend with her kids. But, thats another one of my guilt-complexes that I'm working through.

Behavior Boot-Camp: I've decided to crack down on the whining, fussing, bickering and tantrums that have been happening around here. For miss Jekyll/Hyde aka. Amelia, I printed out some pictures of things with their corresponding consequences so she can have a visual when she is having trouble with her tantrums and following directions. I forget how much pictures help kids.

On another note, Amelia was so proud of herself because she got dressed all by herself this morning. Here is what she looked like:

Amelia's new haircut