Back to School

Ack! Where did the last six months go? We’re up late tonight, trying desperately to gain control over what will happen in our respective classrooms on Tuesday. I am playing around with wordle. I’m thinking that I’ll have my students fashion their own low-tech word cloud (using markers and paper) to highlight themselves and the things that are important to them. Here’s my sample. Enjoy fall!

I’m a bit obsessed…

Since my maternity leave started in March, I have developed a new passion second only to the adoration I have for Marin and the boys.  I have become an avid reader of craft blogs, and I have gained so much inspiration from all of the creative, crafty, thrifty, and fun folks out in blogland.  I have started an idea notebook just to keep track of projects I want will do when time and money allow. 

Anyway, I was reading one of my favorite blogs this morning, and I was overjoyed to learn that they are giving away a Shilouette cutting machine.  This machine could catapault many of my ideas into the realm of reality.  I’ve never been one to use this blog to promote other blogs or products, but  this product is truly amazing, and the blog is so much fun to read. (Plus, I get an entry in the giveaway if I blog about it!)  Wish me luck!  Oh! And check out Little Birdie Secrets and the Shillouette!

It’s Complicated

What’s complicated?  Well… right now, everything.

As I write this, I’m balancing the computer on one knee with Marin sprawled across my (still very flabby, squishy, saggy) belly.  She’s out cold, and I’d like her to stay that way, so I am not planning to put her down any time soon.  I have three bags of groceries in the back of the van while two bags of produce items are strewn across the kitchen.  Marin was frantically hungry when we got home from the store, so I threw the freezer items in the garage chest freezer–thank goodness I bagged them all together  at  the store–and tossed the items that would spoil if they sat out into the refrigerator quickly before nursing my hungry little one.

There are toys all over the house in the wake of Evan’s curious nature and incessant need to be doing something.  His latest obsession is Scrabble.  No, he doesn’t know how to play, but he is learning his letters, and the tiles make him happy.  I’m sure this game will be missing pieces, but as it was a garage sale find, and he keeps himself happily occupied while sorting letters, pretending he knows what he’s doing, I’m happy to let him play with it. 

There is laundry in various stages of completion all over the house.  It’s really hard to fold laundry with one hand, so as I hold Marin, I’m really good at cycling the laundry through the washer and dryer, but that’s pretty much where it ends.  Poor Josh ends up folding six to eight baskets of laundry at a time.  This usually happens when he is out of t-shirts, pants, underwear, or whatever it is he needs in order to be presentable for work on any given day.  I hardly notice the lack of clean laundry as it is rare for me to even attempt being presentable enough to leave the house.

The critter living in our walls has now become so bold as to scratch and thump during the day–I just heard it now.  I fear what we’ll discover if we look into the problem, so we just try to ignore it…

As if simply living were not complicated enough, I have run into some complications in my recovery.  Some of you may know that after my c-section my hemoglobin mysteriously took a nosedive.  We didn’t discover this until late in the evening on the day Marin was born.  My nurse came in and said it was time to get up and try walking around.  She was going to start with a trip to the restroom so I could freshen up.  I was dizzy when I stood up, but she helped me, and I made it to the bathroom where I promptly fell off the toilet as I nearly blacked out.  All that excitement lead to me getting two units of blood in an effort to raise my hemoglobin and get me back on my feet–literally.  It worked, and I felt better by the next  morning.  The doctor couldn’t explain why this happened… until now. 

When I went in for my six-week postpartum appointment, the doctor said, “Hm… this doesn’t feel right.”  Yeah.  Just what every gal wants to hear when her feet are in the stirrups.  Anyway, she ordered an ultrasound, and we got some pictures taken.  I tried not to let my imagination get the best of me as we waited for the results.  When she called back, she reported that I am walking around with what seems to be a pool of blood inside of me.  She, being a family practitioner, did not perform my c-section, so she wanted to get in touch with the OB-GYN that did the procedure.  Of course, he wanted to see me for himself, so we did that this morning.  Another ultrasound and internal exam later, we have learned that I have a large blood clot–the equivalent of about three units of blood–sitting inside my such and such cavity.  I can’t remember the exact name.  Anyway, the doctor believes this is why my hemoglobin dropped, and that this clot is actually much smaller than it was seven weeks ago.  (This would explain why my left side was so much more sore than my right and why I had a hard time lifting my left leg more than an inch or two for the first few weeks post-op.)  So… since I’m not in pain, and since there is no evidence of flow (no leaks, just a clot), we do nothing.  I go back in four weeks for another ultrasound to see where things are.  Hopefully we’ll see that the clot has gotten significantly smaller on its own.  I don’t really want another surgery… Time will tell, I guess.

In spite of all of this, I still feel blessed by my crazy, beautiful life. I have two beautiful kids, a husband who loves us unabashedly, a nice house (albeit a messy one), and so many other reasons to  be thankful.  I know that life happens in “seasons,” and this one shall pass.  I want to get out of the habit of wishing my life away.  I will try to relish each chaotic, complicated moment for what it is.  I believe this is the secret to truly living life well, and I’m going to give it my best.

For those of you not on Facebook…

Here are the proofs from our annual family portrait sitting. 

She’s here!

Marin Julia Wallestad joined our family on Thursday, March 11. She weighed in at nine pounds, nine ounces and stretched 22.5 inches from head to feet.

Our world has been rocked by this sweet, snuggly, precious little one. Her big brother adores her–so far–and mom and dad think she’s pretty swell too.

Big News

And by big, I mean our baby!  We had a consultation with the OB that did my c-section when Evan was born, and he did an ultrasound.  I knew baby girl was getting big as I measured 2 cm ahead at my last doctor’s appointment.  The email I got from Baby Center yesterday said that at 32 weeks, baby should weigh in at 3 pounds 12oz.  However, our sweet girl has hit 5 pounds 10oz already, and we have seven weeks to go.

I’ll spare you all the details, but after looking at the old incision, scar tissue, the placement of the placenta, etc., our doctor advised us that another c-section would probably be our best bet.  I agree.  So, unless baby has other plans, her birthday will be March 11, 2010.  I am predicting that she will surpass her big brother’s birth weight and tip the scales at over ten pounds.  She seems to be growing bigger faster than he did.  Everything looks great, though, so we couldn’t be happier.  Well… I could be happier.  In about ten weeks (3 weeks post op), I’m sure I’ll be a lot more comfortable than I am today.  It’s all worth it though!

That’s our big news for now.  Perhaps I’ll update more between now and the time I go on maternity leave, but let’s face it.  I don’t have a very good track record in this area. 🙂

Alright, alright…

I know. It’s been forever. And a day. Life has been crazy. We found out early this summer that we are expecting a little sibling for Evan. We found out today that we are having a girl! Finally, we have achieved gender balance in our house. Baby looked great on the ultrasound, and we even noticed a resemblance to Evan when she gave us a glimpse of her face. She yawned and she “waved.” What a miracle.

Otherwise, nothing new is happening around here. Work is work, the house is a mess, and we’re still living the sweet life on Kandi Circle.

Maybe I’ll get around to posting more often… maybe.
😉

On the Go

So, our summer has consisted of packing and unpacking suitcases so far.  We started out with a nearly 2-week jaunt to the northland to see family.  We came home for about a week, and then we were off for another family gathering in Grand Marais for a week.  We’ve been home for a week, and now we’re repacking for a trip to visit family in Colorado.  When we get back, I am looking forward to staying put for a few weeks before the craziness of another school year sets in.  Of course, that will happen way too fast for my liking.

Speaking of school, I have some things to accomplish before we leave due to a meeting the day after we return.  I’d better hop to it.

I hope you are having a more relaxing summer than we are.  All of the things we are doing/have done are wonderful and fun, but this homebody really needs to stay home for a while…

Is it summer yet?

We enjoyed a balmy evening after school last night.  It was so warm that we all got into our shorts and went outside to play.  I can’t remember another more perfect Friday evening.  We gathered wood, made a camp fire, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows, went to a park, and capped the whole evening off with ice cream from DQ. 

 

 

Evan’s highlight was probably the park.  A dozen or so girls from my school were playing there, and Evan had a blast flirting with them.  One time, while he rocked on one of those springy animal things, he shouted, “Hey girls!  Watch me go!”  This morning, one of his first comments was, “We played at park with girls yesterday.”  What a ladies man.

This morning is a bit chilly, but we’re enjoying the weekend nonetheless.  This afternoon, we’ll head out to Monte for one last dinner with Dave, Carrie, and Isaac before Dave deploys for Iraq Sunday morning.

Weekends like this make me long for the long, lazy days of summer.  I know they’re coming!  Hopefully you are enjoying your weekend, too!

Evan’s Birthday

Make a Smilebox scrapbook