Everyday before heading into work, my husband puts on a bulletproof vest. He also straps to him an enormous gun belt that holds an asp, a gun, extra bullets, hand-cuffs, and a flashlight. As I look at him in all of his official police officer attire, part of me cringes because I'm afraid of what his job could possibly entail, but mostly, I'm proud.
As soon as John leaves, I pray for his safety and ask that God would protect him from all of the dangerous things that he may encounter. Then, I send him a text message telling him just how much I love him and how I hope that his night goes great. The most important part of our "goodbye ritual" is that we never leave an argument on the table and we always let our last words be words of love and kindness.
Throughout John's evening at work, it seems as though I rarely hear from him. He tries to call as much as he can to check in on us and to tell me that he loves me but mostly, he's busy pursuing criminals, pulling over vehicles, answering complaints, etc. My husband often drives at fast speeds, goes into the homes of absolute strangers, and encounters uncertain situations. There are extended times when I cannot get in touch with him and I wonder if everything really is okay with him but I try to not let my mind wander. It is not healthy for me to think those thoughts.
I try so hard to stand by my husband courageously and act like the dangers of his job don't kill me at times... But they do. I try to act like I'm full of faith in God and like I truly believe that my husband's safety is in His hands... But I don't always. I try to pretend like his job is not dangerous... But it is.
It's hard for me to handle and accept that John's job may require him to give his life for another and it scares me to death to know that to adequately support my husband is to "approve" of that. Really though, I'm in awe of my husband's positive attitude towards his job and it amazes me to watch him.
Sometimes I wonder why God didn't call John to be an accountant or an office manager or a teacher or a computer technician or... Anything else! But, this is what John feels as though he is being called to do with his life and I am slowly learning to let go of him and realize that his safety is not my responsibilities. It's God's! Something tells me that it won't always be easy to trust in this area but I have a lifetime of learning ahead!
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Friday, October 9, 2009
4 Kids- Aged 3 and Under
My sister and her husband had a wedding to go to tonight and my parents, who usually help out with babysitting duties, are away on their anniversary trip to Seattle. My brother and his wife were also invited to the same wedding, making them unavailable to babysit, so I volunteered to watch my niece, Jenna, and nephew, Nathan. I knew in my head that it would really be a big undertaking but I decided that it would be fine. John was initially supposed to help me but when his schedule got switched up, he no longer had this date off. Thankfully, my trusty sister-in-law, Sarah, came over to help me out. Boy, she was a lifesaver!
Let's face it, when you have a 3 year old, a 2.5 year old, a 10 month old, and a 4 month old all together under one roof, it's going to be crazy no matter how you slice it. Even though each kid was truly at their very best tonight, it was still pretty hectic around here! The kids were dropped off at around 3 and I had a nice snack waiting for them... Sliced apples with peanut butter to dip it in. Jenna just had plain apples and cheerios because she's still too young for the peanut butter. Anyways, that was a great way to kick off our time together because it occupied the kids for a while!
After snack time, the kids played and played and played some more. I must say, they all interacted really well together and there were only a few quarrels between the oldest two... Brooke and Nathan. Everyone shared great and the babies were just awesome and content the whole time! We had a super kid friendly dinner of chicken nuggets, french fries and green beans and all of them devoured it! YAY!! I think Jenna had THREE chicken nuggets and tons and tons of green beans. I love a baby who likes to be fed:-) Lol
Bath time was really another one of those activities that was my saving grace because it occupied the three older kids for a good while. They all had so much fun splashing and playing together and truthfully, I was just happy to have them all contained in such a small space!!
Bedtime was going awesome. Perfectly smooth and wonderful, actually. Adrienne had fallen asleep and Jenna followed shortly behind her. To wind down the big kids I had a movie night planned- We made popcorn, drank juice boxes, each kid had one thing of Smarties, and we snuggled up in my bed to a Christmas movie (it's never too early)! Then... Jenna decided to wake up. The rest of the night was history from there... She was bright eyed and wide awake until her mommy and daddy came at 10:30. Thankfully, all of the other kids slept great, though! Actually, I was able to spend some rare hours of alone time with my precious niece that I wouldn't have ordinarily been able to enjoy.
The night really couldn't have gone any better! I'm so blessed to have 4 wonderful babies in my life to make me smile and laugh constantly. As wonderful as they are, I'm wiped out so I'm going to put my feet up and rest now! Goodnight, world!
Let's face it, when you have a 3 year old, a 2.5 year old, a 10 month old, and a 4 month old all together under one roof, it's going to be crazy no matter how you slice it. Even though each kid was truly at their very best tonight, it was still pretty hectic around here! The kids were dropped off at around 3 and I had a nice snack waiting for them... Sliced apples with peanut butter to dip it in. Jenna just had plain apples and cheerios because she's still too young for the peanut butter. Anyways, that was a great way to kick off our time together because it occupied the kids for a while!
After snack time, the kids played and played and played some more. I must say, they all interacted really well together and there were only a few quarrels between the oldest two... Brooke and Nathan. Everyone shared great and the babies were just awesome and content the whole time! We had a super kid friendly dinner of chicken nuggets, french fries and green beans and all of them devoured it! YAY!! I think Jenna had THREE chicken nuggets and tons and tons of green beans. I love a baby who likes to be fed:-) Lol
Bath time was really another one of those activities that was my saving grace because it occupied the three older kids for a good while. They all had so much fun splashing and playing together and truthfully, I was just happy to have them all contained in such a small space!!
Bedtime was going awesome. Perfectly smooth and wonderful, actually. Adrienne had fallen asleep and Jenna followed shortly behind her. To wind down the big kids I had a movie night planned- We made popcorn, drank juice boxes, each kid had one thing of Smarties, and we snuggled up in my bed to a Christmas movie (it's never too early)! Then... Jenna decided to wake up. The rest of the night was history from there... She was bright eyed and wide awake until her mommy and daddy came at 10:30. Thankfully, all of the other kids slept great, though! Actually, I was able to spend some rare hours of alone time with my precious niece that I wouldn't have ordinarily been able to enjoy.
The night really couldn't have gone any better! I'm so blessed to have 4 wonderful babies in my life to make me smile and laugh constantly. As wonderful as they are, I'm wiped out so I'm going to put my feet up and rest now! Goodnight, world!
Thursday, October 8, 2009
More Sickness:-(
We cannot seem to stay healthy over here. It's getting old very quickly! I have a nasty case of asthma as it is so whenever I get a cold or a cough, it's bad. It almost always turns into a respiratory infection or bronchitis and it takes a lot for me to get over it.
After coughing for weeks and constantly reaching for my rescue inhaler to be able to catch my breath, it all came to a head on Monday night. John was at work and I had just put Adrienne to bed. Brooke was in the tub when my sister, Alison, called and I could hardly talk to her without having to take a breath every few seconds. She was concerned but I hung up the phone with her and took a breathing treatment, in hopes of some relief. I hardly even noticed a difference after taking the treatment.
A few minutes later John stopped by to grab some dinner and at that point, I was dizzy, my fingers were tingling, and breathing was extremely painful. He was the only car on the road at that time so he couldn't leave work to take care of me. Luckily, his mom had just stopped in to drop something off at our house and she was able to watch Brooke for me so I could go to the emergency room. John's mom called my sister and my mom to take me to the hospital. One of them was going to stay here with Adrienne so she could sleep but we didn't know how long I would be and we didn't want her to wake up hungry... Especially since I had no milk in the freezer or anything.
After getting to the hospital, they injected me with a steroid shot and then gave me three breathing treatments in an hour. I left the hospital about 2 hours later feeling like a completely new woman. They said it was bronchitis, and like I said, that coupled with asthma is rough.. Especially when you're an idiot and you let it go untreated for so long! I'm on an oral steroid and an antibiotic now to continue to fight this and I'm so thankful to have my lungs almost back to normal!
On top of my issues, Brooke has a nasty, nasty cough and runny nose and all of that. Luckily, she's acting more like herself today, which is great. Hopefully the cough continues to disappear so she can sleep more soundly. She's been coughing a lot at night.
John called in to work for the first time last night because he was running a fever, had a throbbing headache, and was achy all over. It sounds a lot like the flu so we were kind of nervous about that. He still doesn't feel great but he's going to go to work tonight. I hate having him sick but I LOVE having him home.
Hopefully Adrienne stays healthy and we all start to feel "normal" again. If not, it's going to be a LONG, LONG winter. Wish us luck!
After coughing for weeks and constantly reaching for my rescue inhaler to be able to catch my breath, it all came to a head on Monday night. John was at work and I had just put Adrienne to bed. Brooke was in the tub when my sister, Alison, called and I could hardly talk to her without having to take a breath every few seconds. She was concerned but I hung up the phone with her and took a breathing treatment, in hopes of some relief. I hardly even noticed a difference after taking the treatment.
A few minutes later John stopped by to grab some dinner and at that point, I was dizzy, my fingers were tingling, and breathing was extremely painful. He was the only car on the road at that time so he couldn't leave work to take care of me. Luckily, his mom had just stopped in to drop something off at our house and she was able to watch Brooke for me so I could go to the emergency room. John's mom called my sister and my mom to take me to the hospital. One of them was going to stay here with Adrienne so she could sleep but we didn't know how long I would be and we didn't want her to wake up hungry... Especially since I had no milk in the freezer or anything.
After getting to the hospital, they injected me with a steroid shot and then gave me three breathing treatments in an hour. I left the hospital about 2 hours later feeling like a completely new woman. They said it was bronchitis, and like I said, that coupled with asthma is rough.. Especially when you're an idiot and you let it go untreated for so long! I'm on an oral steroid and an antibiotic now to continue to fight this and I'm so thankful to have my lungs almost back to normal!
On top of my issues, Brooke has a nasty, nasty cough and runny nose and all of that. Luckily, she's acting more like herself today, which is great. Hopefully the cough continues to disappear so she can sleep more soundly. She's been coughing a lot at night.
John called in to work for the first time last night because he was running a fever, had a throbbing headache, and was achy all over. It sounds a lot like the flu so we were kind of nervous about that. He still doesn't feel great but he's going to go to work tonight. I hate having him sick but I LOVE having him home.
Hopefully Adrienne stays healthy and we all start to feel "normal" again. If not, it's going to be a LONG, LONG winter. Wish us luck!
Monday, October 5, 2009
Pumpkin Farm!!
Today we took the girls to the pumpkin farm and had a wonderful time. We look forward to going there very Fall and we always enjoy ourselves so much when we go. The weather was absolutely perfect today, too. There was just a nip in there but it wasn't freezing. I'm all about that!
Brooke got to feed goats, baby pigs, and bunnies and she really got a kick out of it. She's hilarious because she's petrified of hay so any time she had to go remotely near it she would cringe. She's such a girly girl. What can I say?
Adrienne was her happy, content self the whole time and just took it all in. She's at that stage now where she stares at a certain object and if you move her, she'll do whatever it takes to not take her eyes off of it. I love watching the world through her eyes (and Brooke's, for that matter)! I'm really looking forward to next year because she'll most likely be running all around by then. I can't wait for that!
Brooke picked out her annual pumpkin for herself and then she picked out Adrienne a tiny, tiny one. It's funny because if you look at our front steps there's this enormous pumpkin next to a tiny pumpkin that's like the size of an apple. It's the thought that counts, right? Lol! As for me, I got all of my gourdes and pretty corn to decorate my house with. Things are looking pretty festive around here, I must say.
It was an overall great day! Now it's time to unwind with my husband and watch a movie. Happy Fall, everyone!
Brooke got to feed goats, baby pigs, and bunnies and she really got a kick out of it. She's hilarious because she's petrified of hay so any time she had to go remotely near it she would cringe. She's such a girly girl. What can I say?
Adrienne was her happy, content self the whole time and just took it all in. She's at that stage now where she stares at a certain object and if you move her, she'll do whatever it takes to not take her eyes off of it. I love watching the world through her eyes (and Brooke's, for that matter)! I'm really looking forward to next year because she'll most likely be running all around by then. I can't wait for that!
Brooke picked out her annual pumpkin for herself and then she picked out Adrienne a tiny, tiny one. It's funny because if you look at our front steps there's this enormous pumpkin next to a tiny pumpkin that's like the size of an apple. It's the thought that counts, right? Lol! As for me, I got all of my gourdes and pretty corn to decorate my house with. Things are looking pretty festive around here, I must say.
It was an overall great day! Now it's time to unwind with my husband and watch a movie. Happy Fall, everyone!
Saturday, October 3, 2009
You Only Get ONE Chance
I read something today that really made me think. It's a seemingly obvious and simple statement, but I think it's pretty profound... "Remember, your kids only get one childhood." While everyone really knows that, how often do we sit down and think about what that means? When raising kids, it's so easy to get caught up in the mundane things of life that you just start going through the motions. After reading that statement, though, I'm going to really, really start focusing more on giving my girls amazing childhoods that they will look back on fondly one day.
For me, it's easy to be so schedule-oriented and so worried about accomplishing things that I miss opportunities to laugh or be silly. Of course I laugh with my kids and have fun with them, but when I'm trying to meet their needs, I often snap into "work mode." There are obviously times and places to be focused on being productive, but there needs to be a fine balance between that and the times of total and complete goofiness. I need to learn to take life much less seriously and realize that some things are just not that big of deal.
I also need to learn to pick my battles more wisely. Sometimes Brooke wants to wear black shoes with brown pants and in the grand scheme of things, that does NOT matter. If I choose now to be lenient on things of absolutely no eternal importance, then I really that my kids won't feel as though they're incapable of making any decisions for themselves. Besides, why would I want to start a fight over shoes when there are real issues waiting just around the corner??
I also want to focus on being more intentional in things that I do with my kids. I said it a few weeks ago, but Brooke and I have been baking a lot together and I've been including her during my cooking time. Because of something so simple, she and I have spent countless hours laughing and working together. As my children grow, it will be important for me to foster their interests and abilities. Also, I want them to know that I choose to do things that they enjoy because of my great love for them.
The list of how I can give my children wonderful childhoods could go on and on. What it boils down to, however, is that they know how loved and valued they are by their mom and dad. John and I can never, ever show them that too much but we're sure as heck going to try!
For me, it's easy to be so schedule-oriented and so worried about accomplishing things that I miss opportunities to laugh or be silly. Of course I laugh with my kids and have fun with them, but when I'm trying to meet their needs, I often snap into "work mode." There are obviously times and places to be focused on being productive, but there needs to be a fine balance between that and the times of total and complete goofiness. I need to learn to take life much less seriously and realize that some things are just not that big of deal.
I also need to learn to pick my battles more wisely. Sometimes Brooke wants to wear black shoes with brown pants and in the grand scheme of things, that does NOT matter. If I choose now to be lenient on things of absolutely no eternal importance, then I really that my kids won't feel as though they're incapable of making any decisions for themselves. Besides, why would I want to start a fight over shoes when there are real issues waiting just around the corner??
I also want to focus on being more intentional in things that I do with my kids. I said it a few weeks ago, but Brooke and I have been baking a lot together and I've been including her during my cooking time. Because of something so simple, she and I have spent countless hours laughing and working together. As my children grow, it will be important for me to foster their interests and abilities. Also, I want them to know that I choose to do things that they enjoy because of my great love for them.
The list of how I can give my children wonderful childhoods could go on and on. What it boils down to, however, is that they know how loved and valued they are by their mom and dad. John and I can never, ever show them that too much but we're sure as heck going to try!
Friday, October 2, 2009
Potty Training Envy
I distinctly remember a night in the church nursery when Brooke was just a couple of months old. A couple of the other moms and I were talking and I was mentioning how Brooke hadn't rolled over yet. At that moment, I decided that I wasn't ever going to put my kids on a "time table" or get stressed about when they accomplished things but that I was just going to accept if they were early or late bloomers. I also decided that I would never use my child as a source of competition and that I wouldn't compare their abilities to the abilities of others. Brooke has always been an early bloomer.. She crawled early, walked at 9 months, has always had amazing verbal skills, etc.. So really, I've never had place to become frustrated at her time table. Until NOW, that is.
We've been casually working on potty training for a while now. Brooke went through a stage a couple of months ago where she was really into potty training and of course we encouraged it! Just when she was starting to succeed, she got sick and now she refuses to wear panties anymore. That is so extremely frustrating because I know that she's ready.
I had planned on not letting this set-back get me down and I figured that Brooke would eventually regain interest in the potty. Then, we went to gymnastics and I realized that a bunch of the other little girls around Brooke's age were wearing panties. I love my daughter so much and am so extremely proud of her, but I found myself growing slightly envious that she wasn't potty trained.
I feel like I'm in a tough spot here. I can push Brooke to use the potty, even though she's adamantly opposed to it right now. Or, I could wait until she's ready and risk buying her diapers until she's 4, which I'm NOT willing to do. I want to encourage her enough so that she's excited but not so much that she's totally turned off to the idea.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this???? Remember, I'm a newbie in the world of potty training!
We've been casually working on potty training for a while now. Brooke went through a stage a couple of months ago where she was really into potty training and of course we encouraged it! Just when she was starting to succeed, she got sick and now she refuses to wear panties anymore. That is so extremely frustrating because I know that she's ready.
I had planned on not letting this set-back get me down and I figured that Brooke would eventually regain interest in the potty. Then, we went to gymnastics and I realized that a bunch of the other little girls around Brooke's age were wearing panties. I love my daughter so much and am so extremely proud of her, but I found myself growing slightly envious that she wasn't potty trained.
I feel like I'm in a tough spot here. I can push Brooke to use the potty, even though she's adamantly opposed to it right now. Or, I could wait until she's ready and risk buying her diapers until she's 4, which I'm NOT willing to do. I want to encourage her enough so that she's excited but not so much that she's totally turned off to the idea.
Does anyone have any thoughts on this???? Remember, I'm a newbie in the world of potty training!
Thursday, October 1, 2009
4-Month Check-Up
Adrienne had her well baby visit today and everything went great! She weighs exactly 15 pounds and is 25.5 inches long. Brooke, at 4 months, weighed slightly more at 15 pounds, 6 ounces and she was an inch longer. It's so much fun to compare the two girls for some reason!
As expected, Adrienne had to have two shots:-( Surprisingly, she only fussed for a couple of seconds with those. The roto-virus vaccine, which is given orally, was the worst for her. She hates medicine and she was gurgling and gagging on it. While it was pitiful for her, it was almost comical to watch because she was just livid about having to taste the stuff. Brooke would drink medicine if you let her but not Adrienne!
When Adrienne had her shots at 2 months of age, she took it pretty hard... She spent the whole day being grumpy and miserable. Well, today has proven to be the same thing. She screamed for about an hour straight this afternoon and has rotated between sleeping and fussing. I hope that my normal Adrienne returns in the morning. One can hope, right?
It was so cute because Brooke was in the doctor's office with us and we kept telling her that the doctor would give her a lollipop if she behaved for Adrienne's appointment. He's so good with the kids and he is always giving them lollipops! Anyways, he was looking over Adrienne and Brooke was just staring at him with this enormous smile on her face. In his thick Indian accent, the doctor asked Brooke if she would like her lollipop and she gave him this face like, "I thought you were never going to ask." Lol! It was priceless. I wish I had had our camera or something! No, it doesn't take much to make Brooke happy!
Alrighty, I've got some work to do around the house. I just wanted to rave about my healthy little girls! :-)
As expected, Adrienne had to have two shots:-( Surprisingly, she only fussed for a couple of seconds with those. The roto-virus vaccine, which is given orally, was the worst for her. She hates medicine and she was gurgling and gagging on it. While it was pitiful for her, it was almost comical to watch because she was just livid about having to taste the stuff. Brooke would drink medicine if you let her but not Adrienne!
When Adrienne had her shots at 2 months of age, she took it pretty hard... She spent the whole day being grumpy and miserable. Well, today has proven to be the same thing. She screamed for about an hour straight this afternoon and has rotated between sleeping and fussing. I hope that my normal Adrienne returns in the morning. One can hope, right?
It was so cute because Brooke was in the doctor's office with us and we kept telling her that the doctor would give her a lollipop if she behaved for Adrienne's appointment. He's so good with the kids and he is always giving them lollipops! Anyways, he was looking over Adrienne and Brooke was just staring at him with this enormous smile on her face. In his thick Indian accent, the doctor asked Brooke if she would like her lollipop and she gave him this face like, "I thought you were never going to ask." Lol! It was priceless. I wish I had had our camera or something! No, it doesn't take much to make Brooke happy!
Alrighty, I've got some work to do around the house. I just wanted to rave about my healthy little girls! :-)
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