The Man Cave

You know, where our little man cubs will sleep.

I took these photos at night because during the daytime, the sun comes through that window and creates a terrible glare in all of the photos.

HERE is the post where I revealed Patton’s nursery when I was 26 weeks pregnant with him.  That was at our “old house,” off-post.

HERE is the post where we tour Patton’s room in this house.  A couple of weeks ago, we swapped Eden and Patton’s rooms because Eden had the bigger room and we didn’t have a shot in “you know where” of fitting all of the boys’ things in Patton’s original room.  To say that our home has been in a state of upheaval lately would be an understatement…switching rooms is a big job!

Photos first, explanations second.

From the door at the hallway…

From the closet/Patton’s side of the room…

From the window/center of the room…

From the center of the room, looking toward the door…

Close-ups of some of my favorites…

Explanations now, yes?  Yes.

Patton’s “stuff”:

The sheets and bedskirt came from Walmart.  Better Homes & Gardens has a line of bedding for Walmart and I absolutely love it – good quality, cleans well, and very affordable.    The bedskirt is Mainstays brand; again, very affordable.  This waterproof mattress pad is from the PX, but we have one from Target that we like, too.  The blanket we had in the linen closet already.  The comforter was purchased at Ross; it’s Laura Ashley brand and reversible.  I like it because it is fairly gender neutral…and it’s the one I skipped out of the store with because it only cost $12.  The headboard I found on Craigslist for $15 and spray painted dark brown for $5 (Micah was shocked at how well the headboard turned out…is he saying that he underestimated me?!).  The safety rail is “Safety 1st” brand and we love it (I’ll expand on that more in a minute).  The blanket with his name on it I made while pregnant with him.  The shelf above his bed is from Hobby Lobby for $10.  He originally had two in his room, which worked out well because I put one over his bed and one over JohnReagan’s.  I painted the “Patton” painting over his bed, and a coordinating one for over JR’s.

JohnReagan’s “stuff”:

The crib was Eden’s, and then Patton’s…actually, it has been the sweet sleeping place of four babies before ours, too!  The children’s godparents, The Olives, gave us this crib when we were expecting Eden; their daughter, MaryClare, was just transitioning into a big girl bed.  We are so grateful to them for the crib (and the matching dresser) because we were young and not able to afford a crib on our own when we were expecting Eden.  The crib has held up beautifully and – thankfully – is still up to today’s safety standards despite being almost 20 years old!  Also, it’s a crib that transitions into a toddler bed, day bed, and then a full size bed.  We are so blessed!  The sheets I found at the PX, Carter’s brand.  Land’s End is my normal go-to for crib sheets (I love me some good jersey knit), and theirs held up so well…so you can imagine my dismay when I went to their website and discovered that they no longer make them!  We’d had Land’s End sheets for both Eden and Patton, so I was disappointed but determined to find an equal replacement.  These fit the bill (and the bed!).  The blanket with his name on it I started and finished last Wednesday.  The name painting matches the one I painted for Patton.  I was inspired by a mobile I saw on Etsy…the one on Etsy wasn’t quite what I’d envisioned, so I combined ideas and came up with this one.  It’s composed of a grapevine wreath ($3.50 from Walmart, BH&G brand), twine ($4 at Walmart), leaves cut from fade-proof cardstock ($5 at Hobby Lobby), little red birds/Cardinals made from felt and stuffed ($1.50 total for all three), and brown ribbon to hang it ($1 at Hobby Lobby).  It turned out better than I’d expected and – dare I say – it might be my favorite piece in the room!  The shelf is one of the two from Patton’s room and it matches the one over Patton’s bed.

Mutual “stuff”:

The deer silhouette I painted, along with the raccoon silhouette (hmm…I wonder where the “raccoon idea” came from…).  I also painted the Bible verse between the two silhouettes; it was originally in Patton’s nursery.  The framed item in the top row is a poem written by my great-grandfather about a tree weathering the seasons [of life].  It is so special to me and I love that it’s hanging in my boys’ room; it even includes a little note in his own handwriting.  The tile on the left is a quote by General Patton about courage; I bought it while expecting Patton from the “Little Bit of Bliss” gift shop here on post.  The painting in the middle was done by Eden when I was expecting Patton and it says “Love from Your Big Sister.”  The tile on the right is a bedtime prayer that I bought from the Serra Retreat Center gift shop when I was in Malibu this past October.  We weren’t certain yet if JR was a boy or a girl, but it is very versatile.  {Also, even if we were having a daughter this time around, she and Patton would probably still share a room, I would have just brought out more of the yellow tones that were in Patton’s original nursery.}  The bear silhouette was purchased at Hobby Lobby (I can’t remember the cost, but I don’t buy anything there unless it’s on sale!) and I use it to hang their hats…you know how I love hats on my boys!  The changing table/dresser matches the crib and was a gift from the children’s godparents.  When it’s done being used as a changing table/dresser, you simply flip it over, take out the drawers and flip them, and it’s a dresser!  Patton’s clothes are the only ones in there right now…but that is going to change in the next week or two.  The toy organizer is Martha Stewart brand from Home Depot.  If you didn’t know, you could probably guess – I love Martha Stewart.  I love these toy organizers, too; we have a total of four of them in our home, plus the bench that matches them.  They’re really reasonably priced compared to others on the market, as are the fabric bins that accompany it.  The lamp and lampshade are from Walmart for a total of $15.  You can’t see it in this photo, but we purchased a large area rug for both of the kids rooms, we got each of them for $30 from Walmart.  We already had one in our living room and we like how well it’s held up, so that’s what we went with.  I was insistent on rugs for the rooms because we do not have any carpet in our house and that can make things very chilly, especially in the boys’ room it seems; plus, a rug just adds a certain “homey-ness,” no?

Window treatments:

Y’all are either going to think that I’m completely crazy and cheap, or resourceful and creative!  Are you ready for my biggest confession about this room?  The curtains are actually made from a twin-size, flat bed sheet.  I got the idea from Pinterest (which happens to be the site for the majority of my crazy/resourceful ideas…can you relate?)  In any case, I cut the fabric in half, sewed the appropriate seams, then added the ducks at the bottom.  The sheet was $5 from Walmart and the duck fabric I bought at Jo-Ann fabrics from the clearance rack…I think I got 2 1/2 yards for about $8.  If you think I’m totally nuts, you can join my husband…although he ended up being quite impressed, and likes these curtain more than the old ones (I do too!)

The bed rail:

If you don’t think I’m completely cuckoo after reading about my bed sheet curtains, you’ll definitely think that I am after I rave about this bed rail from Safety 1st.  Or you’ll think that I don’t get out much…both of which could be true.  In any case, the one thing about having Patton in a big boy bed that I absolutely dreaded was the bed rail.  They are a complete and total irritation to assemble, they don’t stay in place, they make it difficult to make the bed (especially with this belly), and on and on…but, I love this bed rail.  It doesn’t anchor to the other side of the bed, and yet I feel like it’s even more secure than that other style.  It has a built-in bottom rail so that little arms or legs can’t slide down between the mattress and the rail.  Lastly, it just so happens to “go” with the color scheme of the room…not that that is a selling point by any means (safety first, after all!), but it doesn’t hurt either!

The mobile:

I know that I already explained the mobile, but I wanted to show some different photos of it in case you want to create one of your own…plus {I’ll be honest}, I’m really tickled with how it came out and I love seeing it as I come down the hallway.  I can’t wait until there’s a little man cub laying in the crib with this view!

This not-so-little-anymore man cub has done so well in adjusting to his big boy bed!

The first night, he cried…almost inconsolably.  We did everything we had done with Eden as far as introducing the bed, talking about it and how special it is, then following through with our regular bedtime routine.  But he was having none of it.  With Eden, our biggest issue was getting her to stay in the bed, and stay in her room, so we put a gate up at the door; she could still hear us and see us, but she couldn’t get out.  Yes, she would come to the door and cry and wail and try any tactic necessary to get our attention, but we would ignore her (unless, of course, she really was endangering herself).  So, we decided to just put the gate up with Patton from the get-go.  Well.  We should have known, based on how different their personalities are, that what worked (or was necessary) for Eden would not be so for Patton.  Breaking all of our own personal parenting rules, we stayed in Patton’s room and leaned over his bed, rubbing his back, neck and head, soothing him to sleep for the night.  We did the same thing for nap time the next day, but it didn’t take as long; and, we did the same thing at bedtime and he was out very quickly.  That also happened to be the night that Eden woke up with the stomach flu, the hustle and bustle of which also woke up Patton…but he was actually able to self-soothe and go back to sleep with very little fuss.  Since then he goes to nap/bed just as he normally would.  He sits in there and sings himself to sleep, just like he did in the crib (yes, it’s as sweet as it sounds!).  He has only gotten out of his bed once; it was within 30 minutes of laying him down and because his diaper had somehow sprung a leak.  When he wakes up in the morning, he sits in his bed and sings or reads his books until one of us comes to get him.  No gate necessary because he stays in his room; and he likes to have his door three-quarters of the way closed, but not completely shut.  Can I tell you what a huge difference this is between him and Eden?  Eden used to get out of her bed and make such a mess in her room with her toys, then pass out somewhere on the floor.  It was such a disaster area that when we looked in her room, we had to actually search for her among all the toys.  I’m optimistic that Patton will continue with this good big boy bed behavior…but I’m also realistic that it may change.  Until then, we’re enjoying it!

It’s a little surreal to see the crib raised up so high again, and to see half of the room prepared for another sweet baby boy.  Surreal, and fun.  Fun to imagine the boys sharing a room as they grow up, and what good little buddies (we hope!) they will be.  The “baby” frame on JohnReagan’s shelf has held ultrasound and baby photos of both Eden and Patton, and ultrasound photos of both babies that we lost.  Instead of taking the photos out and replacing them, I “layer” them, putting the latest in the front.  When I was putting JR’s in, I found one of Patton’s ultrasound photos and it was so neat to compare.  If you didn’t look at the dates, I’m not sure you would know who was who.

I just can’t wait to see and kiss his little face.

No more yucky medicine?

This is Eden’s new favorite question.  She’s been on Augmentin (an antibiotic) for the last 10 days from the terrible, horrible, wretched ear infection and drum perforation that solidified our decision to have tubes put in her ears this past Thursday.

Can you believe this is her first ear infection – ever?  I can’t help but feel that she’s making up for lost time because this infection was a doozy.  Pink eye was always her illness of choice, and I thought we had – by some miracle – side-stepped the ear infection path.  Many of her doctors have even been surprised because kids born with clefts are especially susceptible to ear issues.  Oh well; it was a good run.

On Wednesday afternoon, I called the surgeon’s office to confirm her arrival time at the surgical center.  7am.  Nothing to eat or drink after midnight.  We fed her good that night because she usually wakes up ready for breakfast…having to skip it would be no fun.

We arrived, checked in, and waited for about 45 minutes, during which I hauled out the coloring books.  If her hands are busy, she’ll be less likely to think about using those hands to eat.

Do you see that man-leg in the background of the photo?  That kid (I say kid, but he was probably 19) was passed out cold.  I don’t know if he was the patient…but if he was, I hope his surgery was a tonsillectomy because he was snoring like a bear.  It was hard not to laugh at him!

We started talking to Eden about the surgery on Tuesday.  We didn’t want her to be worrying about it for a whole week, but we didn’t want to walk into the surgery center the day of and say “surprise!.”  She seemed really calm and relaxed about it…until about five minutes before they called her back for pre-op.

She was uneasy about everything the minute she passed through the waiting room to the pre-op area.  She didn’t like the gown, she didn’t like the socks, she didn’t like the bed.  She seemed a little suspect of the nurses…then the nurse gave her a dose of Versed to “relax her before surgery.”  Let’s just say that that little dose of Versed was probably a good preview of Eden on her 21st birthday…within about 10 minutes, she had that glazed over haze in her eyes and loved everything.  It was hard not to laugh about it…and even harder not to laugh about it when she laughed along with us!  The anesthesiologist and the surgeon both stopped by to do their last minute chat about what would be taking place.

Sidenote – As we were sitting and waiting for them to wheel Eden back, one of the other anesthesiologists walked past our curtained area, then backed up and asked Micah if he played guitar, to which Micah answered “yes.”  He said, “I knew I recognized you; I go to St. Michael’s too!”  Then he told our anesthesiologist to take good care of us because he’d have to face us in Church if there were any mishaps.  It was funny and such a coincidence!

They wheeled her back for surgery and her favorite toy from Christmas got to come with her…it’s a little dog that barks, whines, sleeps, etc…cute (and just a little annoying when you really don’t want to hear it).  In any case, that helped with some of the anxiety, too.  We weren’t in the waiting room for 10 minutes before they called us back to sit with her in Recovery.

Doesn’t she look so sweet and vulnerable?  Poor baby.  The hose up by her face is just a little bit of oxygen.  And do you see her puppy?  It’s name is “Petal” and they’re practically attached at the hip.

About 30 minutes later, she came out of the anesthesia and wanted to sit right up…not a great idea, but she did not want to lay down.  So, I sat with her in the bed…and I have to agree with her that the bed was not very comfy.  The post-op nurse brought her a popsicle; upon seeing hers, Patton just had to have one, too.

Apparently the JohnReagan belly is a good place to rest your weary head.

Once she finished her popsicle – by the way, I’ve never seen it take Eden so long to finish a popsicle! – she was more than ready to get her “comfy clothes on and go home.”  So that is just what we did…except for a stop at McDonald’s for a chocolate milkshake.  She happened to remember that Micah had promised her one, and she wasn’t going home without one.  One of the nurses got Eden into a kid-sized wheelchair and Micah pulled the car around front; Eden definitely was in no condition to walk on her own.

We spent the afternoon cuddling, watching TV, coloring, and playing with the string and beads we bought her last week.  They had given her a dose of Tylenol at the surgery center, and then I gave her another one around 12:30pm, for some mild discomfort.  She was basically back to her normal self by about 2pm, but just more tired than usual.  She went to bed around 5:30pm, after we made a little trip to Dairy Queen for ice cream.  It isn’t every day that you have tubes put in your ears – ice cream was in order!  She woke up the next morning and it was as if nothing had ever happened!

All in all, it was a good experience.  We feel like we have a great doctor, and the surgical team was very helpful, knowledgeable and compassionate.  Eden did just as well as we had hoped/expected and we are looking forward to improved hearing test results and no more ear infections (hopefully!)

Tidbits

I’ve scheduled posts for this next week about Eden’s surgery (it went great!), and the “room reveal” for the little woodsmen of the house.  In the meantime, I’m starting off the week filling in some random little tidbits of life in the Stedman house…

Do you remember me telling you about celebrating my friend Ashley’s birthday?  We went to At the Clayground for some paint-your-own-pottery fun.  Here’s how my “Celebrate!” plate turned out…

Micah will be the first to use it when he turns 28 on February 16!

At a recent MCCW Friday, we made something super fun that one of my friends, Susan, found on Pinterest – the tea wreath!  It came at a really good time because I’ve been dealing with laryngitis/sore throat/fever this weekend.  The kiddos are getting very familiar with the sound of my tea kettle whistle, and even Micah heard it and said, “So, which tea will it be this time?”  Here’s the link to find it on Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/pin/226376318739238711/  And here’s how my wreath turned out…

I forgot to bring my ribbon with me…then I got home and discovered that I didn’t have any green ribbon, so I went with blue.  I may still change it if I get a wild hair.  It was a really fun project to do with a group because we each brought tea bags to share, so we ended up with a nice variety.

Apparently getting crafty is a theme around here because this is what my kitchen usually looks like in the late afternoon while I’m making dinner…

After Patton’s nap time, we have snack and play time.  By the time I’m making dinner in anticipation of Micah being home, these munchkins are just starting to get a little clumsy and tired…and a little rambunctious.  On most days I pull out something fun and quiet that they can do at the counter while I cook.  We can chat, I can see them/they can see me, but they aren’t running around like little banshees while I’m cooking over a hot stove.  Patton is just starting to enjoy coloring {aka making marks on the paper}, and a common phrase is, “No, Patton, not in your mouth!”  On this particular day, he bit off a pretty good piece of the blue crayon and under my breath I said, “Child, you’re going to poop the rainbow.”  Eden thought it was hilarious.  About twenty minutes later, as I lifted Patton from his chair, we found the green crayon and it had been broken in two.  Eden found it and said, “Look, Mama, Patton really did poop the rainbow!”  Oh my.

This little raccoon…

…decided that he needs to start his Army career early if he wants to make it to General by the time he’s 30.  Do you see the food in those cheeks?  Raccoon, I tell ya!

Please tell me that you’ve picked up a bag of conversation hearts?

I have been eating them like they’re going out of style.  I bought two bags at the PX recently and the cashier asked if we were making treat bags for Eden’s classmates (Eden was with me)…I nodded yes, but inside I was thinking, “Yeah, right, like I’d let those kids get their paws on my candies.”  Shameless, I know.  My favorite are the orange ones, which presents a slight problem…the orange ones are Eden’s favorite, too.  We usually let her have a small treat after dinner and her latest request has been, “3 candy hearts.  Two orange, one pink, please!”  The nut doesn’t fall far from the tree.

About once a week, while Eden is at school, I take an hour or so to wade through my email inbox, call and make appointments, etc.  The computer is in our master bedroom, so Patton tags along and plays with the basket of toys that I’ve conveniently placed back here.    Lately, though, he’s been wanting to sit on his Mama’s lap.  He’s perfectly content to sit and watch me type.  He loves when I open up the “Pictures” folder on the computer; he smiles his sweet little grin looking through all the photos.  He also likes to help me with my “to do” list, and occasionally make up his own…

I’m pretty sure his list includes, “Eat bananas, Check the promotion list (after all, he is trying to make Captain!), and Get through Green Eggs & Ham just once without falling asleep ten pages in.”  He has his priorities straight!

 

Oh January, Round Two.

So.  Apparently January read my post and decided to wrestle a little more.

On the evening that I wrote “Oh January,” Eden woke up screaming at 3am, telling us her right ear hurt.  I haven’t seen her in that much distress and pain since her surgery at 8 months old to correct her soft cleft palate.  She was in so much pain that she didn’t want to take the chewable/meltaway Tylenol tablets and I ended up giving her the medicine in liquid form, instead.  She was able to get back to sleep, but I think Micah and I both slept with one ear open for the rest of the night.  I called the ENT’s office as soon as they opened and they got us an appointment for 10:40 am.  I kept her home from school, we had a leisurely breakfast and then went to the appointment.  She saw the Physician’s Assistant (who we love!), and the Audiologist (again).  Long story short, she perforated her ear drum on the right side and both ears were full of infection.  {Just two days prior, the doctor said that we could forego giving Eden the antibiotics if we were going to schedule tubes surgery… we now definitely feel that skipping the antibiotics – despite having surgery scheduled – was not the best course of action in hindsight.}  So, we put her on antibiotics and are still going forward with the surgery this Thursday morning.  I felt so terrible for her and I feel like all that pain could have been avoided; however, the silver-lining of this is that Micah and I feel like it solidified our decision to have the tubes surgery in the first place.

Can I just vent about our pharmacy situation for a moment?  At the outpatient pharmacy, patients have to walk to a small screen and choose from one of three categories – Active Duty in Uniform, Other Beneficiary with new prescription, or Refill prescription – and then a number slip is printed out accordingly.  Obviously, we fit in with (B) Other Beneficiary with a new prescription.  We waited for over an hour just to have our number called and get to a window; when we arrived there were 14 customers ahead of us with new prescriptions.  In the meantime, 90+ customers with refills were provided with service.  I completely understand that new prescriptions take longer to process through the system than a refill; but – let’s be honest – a large majority of the refill customers are retirees that have more time to wait.  Not that my time is any more valuable than theirs; but, when you have sick children {did I mention that Patton has a respiratory infection?}, you’d just prefer to be at home cuddling than have them standing and waiting at a pharmacy, potentially spreading those germs {despite the OCD use of Boogie wipes, kleenex, and hand sanitizer}.  I now feel that, instead of trying to save $10 by getting the prescription filled on post, it would be worth every penny to have it filled at a civilian pharmacy where the doctor can phone in the prescription and it could (potentially) be ready by the time I even reach the pharmacy!  Rant over.

Thursday finally felt like a good day.  Back in our school and work routine.  On Friday, I attended MCCW and had such a fantastic time.  On the way home, I thought to myself what a lovely day it was – beautiful sunny skies, great fellowship, etc.  I was finally feeling like things were looking up.  After lunch, I put Patton down for a nap, let Eden watch some PBS, threw a load of clothes into the dryer and brought my lunch (starting with Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal…don’t judge!) back to our desk so I could multi-task (answer emails and eat at the same time).  Just as I sat down, I heard the panic alarm of a vehicle going off in the neighborhood.  I thought, “Hmm.  That’s strange.”  Then I thought, “Wait a minute, is that my vehicle’s alarm?!”  Sure enough.  I grabbed the keys and pressed the “Panic” button on my keyless entry pad and it stopped.  I thought it was a fluke until I was headed back into the house and it started again.  What in the world?!  Press the “panic” button again.  Back to the computer and I start googling my issue, wondering if I’m alone in this…alarm again…press “panic” button again.  I got on the horn (pun intended) and called the local dealership to see if they know what could be causing it, and if they could fit me in.  They don’t have a clue why it’s happening and tell me that I have to bring it in.  I’m the only adult home, during nap time, with two children that are not 100%…so I called Micah and begged for him to come home, which he did without hesitation.  (Have I mentioned lately that my husband is a rock star?)  When he arrives home, he finds me sitting on the bench next to the front door with my bag packed with snacks and a book (because who knows how long I’ll be waiting at the dealership), and the keys on my lap (waiting to press the “panic” button the next time the alarm goes off).  We kiss hello/goodbye and I’m off to the dealership…

At the dealership, they are severely short-staffed and each work bay is full.  I’m told by the service manager, Ruben, that the earliest they can get the Jeep in for investigation and servicing is Monday afternoon, despite even having full Saturday hours from 7:30 am to 5:00 pm.  They are just that busy.

Dear, poor Ruben, bless his heart.  He didn’t even see it coming.  I burst into tears right there at his desk station.  Full-on boohooing.  I probably should send him a big apology note and a big thank you basket.  I’m quite certain that he thought I was a total nutcase and I wouldn’t blame him.  You see, I just couldn’t let any of this dark cloud January messiness invade another week.  I couldn’t go back home with a random panic alarm, possessed vehicle.  I just couldn’t do anymore stress!

Sweet Ruben gave me a shop rag to dry my eyes…apparently they don’t use kleenex in the bays?…and asked me to describe the exact situation for him.  I tell him:  ”Panic alarm goes off, I press the “panic” button to turn it off, the cycle continues but not at random intervals.”

Voila!  Light bulb moment for Ruben.

If the alarm is going off and I turn it off by pressing the “panic” button, then it isn’t the car initiating the alarm, it’s the key.  If it was something wrong with the vehicle where it was initiating the alarm, pressing the “panic” button would do no good, I’d have to press the “unlock” button instead.  Ruben took apart my key and felt like the best course of action would be to replace the “guts” (aka, the circuit board) and to clean it.  My boohoos had subsided somewhat, but I think Ruben didn’t want a relapse, so he offered to replace the circuit for free.  Kind, smart Ruben.  Five minutes later, I’m out the door and headed home and Ruben is mopping the floor and wringing out the shop rag from my tears.

No more random panic alarm episodes.  No more tears.

Let’s move forward to Saturday morning, shall we?  I’m finally remembering to fold the clothes that I’d thrown in the dryer the afternoon before.  I’m down to the last two pairs of jeans – Micah’s jeans - when I hear something rattling around in the dryer.  What could it possibly be?

A key.  Micah’s Jeep key.

And that’s when it all comes together…the random honking was happening because Micah’s key was in the dryer and the key sensor was being triggered.  So I did what every woman in my situation would (hopefully) do…I laughed.  I laughed until I had tears running down my cheeks (again), because if I didn’t laugh, I’d probably cry (again).

I check all pockets for things before I put them in the wash, so I’m not sure how I missed the key, but I did.  And yes I did sweetly remind my husband how important it is that he empty his pockets, too, before throwing things in the laundry.  Lesson learned.

I’m pretty sure that when I laughed about the whole crazy fiasco, that’s when the black cloud moved on.  We had a really fun weekend and this week has started off on the right foot.  Maybe the January I know and love is back in business.

JohnReagan: 32 Weeks

Truth:  I have the Baby Center app on my phone so that I am reminded of how far along I am.  Another truth:  When people ask me how far along I am, I often have to stop and think for a moment.  That never would have happened with Eden’s pregnancy…in fact, I’m pretty sure I was able to break it down to week & days.  Poor JohnReagan.

We’ve finally gotten back into some “normalcy” around here and picked up the camera for a belly photo.  Oh, another truth:  Setting my husband loose with the camera can be hazardous…

He does this every single time and thinks it’s hilarious.  Obviously, me laughing while he does it doesn’t help the situation.  Just had to keep it real for you lovely folks!

Back to the Little Man -

How far along:  32 weeks.

Maternity clothes:  Yep.  Although the shirt in this photo isn’t maternity…it is billowy though, so it works.  I’m happy that we’ve had such warm days (in the upper 60s/lower 70s) because I don’t have to worry about wearing a jacket as much anymore…those definitely didn’t stand a chance at zipping up.

Medical updates:  I had a doctor’s appointment on January 4th, which feels like it was months ago already.  My next appointment is February 1st, after which I’ll be visiting Dr. V every two weeks (and then, obviously, more often than that as we approach his birthday).  At my most recent appointment, the ultrasound looked beautiful and John is growing right on schedule…a little ahead, actually!  Still, knowing how active I am – and have to be, with two little ones at home already – Dr. Velazquez told me that I can feel completely free to eat as much and as often as I’d like.  I figure there are only so many times in my life that anyone will tell me that, so I might as well enjoy it.  Still trying to do my 2 hour afternoon “feet up” time; it doesn’t happen every day, but I can definitely notice a difference when I don’t.  My only real “complaints” are the occasional pain due to round ligaments stretching; and, some Braxton-Hicks contractions.

Movement:  The boy loves to stretch his legs out.  Can’t say I blame him!

Cravings:  Oh my Lord.  I would have killed someone this past week just to get a taste of fried chicken, mashed potatoes and coleslaw.  And Dr. Pepper.  Micah was home sick, we’d just gotten through the circus that was the ENT’s office and pharmacy, and it was 2:30 pm and none of us had eaten lunch yet.  I’m pretty sure that we weren’t even out of the Popeye’s drive-thru yet and the kids and I were tearing into the bags.  Many, many weeks ago, before I’d even “announced” that I was pregnant on the blog, I had the same craving for fried chicken…as we sat eating it, I think I shed a tear or two.  It was just so good.  Other than the fried chicken dinner, I am pretty much just enjoying all food.  Put it in front of me and I’ll eat it – and love it.

Sleep:  A couple of weeks ago, this was an issue.  It was middle-of-the-night insomnia…for some unknown reason, I was waking up at almost 3:15 on the dot for four nights in a row, and I couldn’t get back to sleep until around 6:30, which was a real bummer considering that I need to be up by 7:00 at the latest.  On the morning after the fourth waking session, I was telling Micah about it and about how frustrated I was.  He, so very sweetly, told me wake him up, too, and that we could talk and maybe that would help me fall back to sleep.  I explained that I didn’t see any point in both of us missing out on sleep and that I had a plan.  My plan was to get up and clean the baseboards of the house.   You see, it desperately needs to be done and I can sit and do it.  I’m sorry, that’s just genius!  Upon hearing this plan, Micah just smiled and said, “Or you can really just wake me up”…then he turned his head {where he thought I couldn’t see him} and mouthed “Wow.”  It still makes me laugh just to think about it.  This pairs well with…

Nesting:  Aside from wanting to take my scrub brush and water pail to task on the baseboards, the OCD tendencies have been focused to the kids’ rooms.  It is so surreal to have Patton in a big boy bed and have the crib set up directly across from it, just waiting for another sweet little boy.  I’ve been working on making curtains and artwork for both rooms, and I’m making JR a quilt similar to the one I made for Patton.  I easily work myself up with anxiety when I see the number of days left on the countdown…it’s at 53 days..but probably less than that considering what Dr. V and I have discussed.  When I say “I’m 32 weeks,” that means that I have 7 to 8 weeks to go, which sounds like a lot to me…but when I think “I have 47 days until there’s a new baby in this home,” I get a little knot in my stomach (which now feels like it’s up in my rib cage, by the way).  I feel way behind in preparing for JR; I had everything ready except for purchasing pacifiers and car seat strap cozies for Patton by this point.  Oh well – Head down to the wind and power through!

Baby gear:  We aren’t purchasing anything new because – I think – we have everything already (ha!).  I mentioned before that the motor for our swing had died.  I’m so glad that I discovered that as early as I did because Patton really loved that swing and I wouldn’t want to be without it when we bring JR home.  In any case, the swing was past the warranty by about 5 months, but the very kind woman at Fisher-Price did a “complimentary extension” of the warranty for me, sent the recall update kit – and - she shipped it 2-day shipping via UPS.  It arrived this past week and we got it all fixed and set up, so that is a relief!  Thank you, Fisher-Price representative!  {FP redeemed themselves after a little Christmas present fiasco…}

Before I go…just for the sake of comparison, I found the photos of myself at 31 weeks pregnant with Eden and Patton.  I know I’m a week off, but it’s close enough for me!

31 weeks with Eden -

31 weeks with Patton -

 

32 weeks with JR -

One thing is for sure – my hair has gotten much longer!  Oh, and I had fewer gray hairs and wrinkles.  We’ll call the wrinkles “laugh lines” because I’m sure that we didn’t laugh nearly as much then as we do now with these two, almost three, monkeys!

 

 

Oh January

Y’all, January is not messing around…and we’re only halfway through.  Is anyone else experiencing this phenomenon?

This post has zero photos.  Zip, zilch, nada.  But, I figured it was time to blog when my mom asked…

I feel like all I’ve done is run, run, run…and then fall into bed at the end of the day.  I think this call for bullet points, no?

• I had an OB appointment on the 4th and everything looks great.  Dr. V told me to keep on keepin’ on with the afternoon 2-hour bedrest; and, she gave me full permission to eat as much, and as often, as I want.  JohnReagan is growing slightly ahead of schedule, and we want to keep him that way!  I may have been using this as an excuse to eat lots of “fun extras” that I wouldn’t normally eat…but it appears as though it’s going straight to the belly, so I’m okay with that!

• Patton had his {belated} 18-month check up the following day and he is a healthy little man, just as we predicted!  He even moved up some percentile points on the growth charts.

• On the 8th, I joined my friend Ashley in celebrating her birthday.  We went to At the Clayground for some creative time and then to Taco Cabana for dinner.  Fun and yum!  I love going to At the Clayground, but I find that I need some inspiration, otherwise it makes me crazy.  The night before the outing, I went into our big pantry and took “survey” of my serving dishes to see what I was missing.  I ended up painting a “Celebrate!” plate for us to use when celebrating birthdays.  I’m very excited to have it back soon…we have a birthday coming up {Micah!}.

• I’m not sure if I’ve mentioned it here before now or not…in November, I was approached by a few ladies from MCCW about stepping up to the MCCW-Worldwide Board to be the Editor of the Grapevine {our newsletter – turned magazine}.  I took a few days to pray and talk to Micah about it; it’s a big responsibility and I don’t want to drop the ball in my other commitments.  I decided to accept the offer.  We set right to work with finding just the right “look;” we changed it from more of a basic newsletter format to a magazine format.  I put so much time, energy and love into this first issue and I’m so pleased with the finished product, which was published yesterday.  Care to see it?  Here it is - Grapevine January 2012!  You might just recognize a few of the photos…

• This past week was especially stressful.  On Thursday morning, I had an OCSA Board meeting while Eden was in school, so Patton also stayed at the CDC for the morning.  It was his first day in the “big boy” toddler room, and I was excited {and a little sad} for him to be around the bigger kids.  Long story short, when I arrived back at the school to pick up the kids, Patton was not in his classroom.  Apparently the door of the classroom hadn’t shut quickly, and he wandered out right behind some other parents.  He had been in the courtyard area for about five minutes, unattended by CDC staff.  After discovering this, I went to the room he was supposed to have been in and they were completely oblivious that he was missing.  The Assistant Directors, Micah and I have had a couple of meetings regarding the situation, during which I was even allowed to view the footage of the entire incident.  I have to admit, watching the video was upsetting and reminded me of some scary, horror movie where you want to tell the vulnerable character not to do what they’re about to do.  We’re so grateful to the parents that were in the courtyard that watched out for Patton as if he were their own, to the Administration for not taking this lightly, and – of course – that this situation didn’t have a terrible ending.  It has been difficult for me to drop Eden off at school each morning since this, though…and I’m not sure when/if I’ll feel comfortable leaving Patton again.  To be frank – I’m not angry about all of this, I’m just scared.

• The long weekend was very productive!  We finally switched rooms for Eden and the boys; and, Patton started sleeping in his big boy bed!  The adjustment was a little rocky for the first night, but now he sleeps like a champ in his new bed and really seems to “own” it.  I’m having a lot of fun redecorating their rooms and getting things ready for JR…I think it was a good antidote to the PCS-itis I was experiencing.

• We don’t talk about NFL football in this house right now.  At all.

• Sunday night, a stomach bug came on fast and furious for sweet Eden.  She was so upset and so apologetic for getting sick in her bed, bless her heart.  She seemed to be back to normal the next morning, except for some body aches…then it was my turn.  It was all I could do to make it through an MCCW meeting that morning and then an ENT appointment for Eden that afternoon;  I felt like I’d been hit by a Mack truck.  I’m feeling better now except for the body aches, too.

• Eden’s ENT appointment…let’s backtrack a little.  At her 4 year check-up in early November, the doctor noted that her left ear appeared to have either a perforation or a retraction pocket.  He put in a referral for her to see Dr. Bright, whom she has also seen for a follow-up to her soft cleft palate surgery, just to make sure that it was growing with her as it should.  Dr. Bright and his partners did a full examination of Eden’s ears, including t-grams and a hearing test.  Her nerves responded appropriately, but her hearing was between 20-35% depending on the decibel level tested.  They also found that she had a retraction pocket in each eardrum, so clearly things had gotten worse in the past two months.   He gave us two options – we could try an antibiotic and nasal mist steroid for 10 days-plus and then come back for a recheck in 6 weeks, or we could choose to have tubes put in her ears.  In his experience, the antibiotic/nasal steroid plan only worked 20% of the time; and, it only resulted in a 10% increase in hearing ability.  Those aren’t fantastic odds.  Eden has never had an ear infection, which is especially rare considering her soft cleft palate, so part of me wanted to “roll the dice” on the antibiotics…but the low improvement rate didn’t seem worth the risk, the situation had clearly worsened over the past two months and the end goal is for her to have the best hearing ability as possible.  We discussed it overnight (in between my naps!) and decided to call to schedule the surgery today.  Her surgery will be the morning of January 26th.  We’ve been through far worse with both kiddos, so I’m not very nervous…I’m actually more nervous for how she’ll do because her only other surgery was when she was very young and she doesn’t have any recollection of it.  I do know, however, that she is a very strong and resilient little girl…so I probably need to back-off in the “worry department.”

• Micah was scheduled to attend the two-week long Air Assault School here at Fort Bliss in mid-March…but the plans were changed because his Battalion will be having some field time from February through March.  With the Air Assault School plan, even though Micah would have been “inaccessible” shortly after JohnReagan’s arrival, we were really happy knowing that he would definitely be here for the birth.  Now…Micah will very likely be a few hours away when I go into labor…we’ll see!  I’m not stressing about it – what will be, will be and it’s in God’s hands.  I did tell Micah that he can’t miss the birth of his second son, too, or they would both definitely be Mama’s boys – ha!

• Eden hugged and kissed my belly tonight as we were saying goodnight and it was the sweetest thing in the whole world.  She is looking forward to another sweet baby in the house.

I’ll be back soon – hopefully – with some “reveal” photos of the kids’ rooms!

Short Random Post

I have so much on my mind.  So much, in fact, that I wish I could just use some sort of “auto fill” feature through this publishing software and dump out all of my thoughts.  You should probably be grateful that such a feature doesn’t exist because you’d get a lot more than you bargained for.

Before I start, let me share a self-portrait with you:

Yesterday, as I sat writing out my “to do” list, which is filled with things to complete before March, Eden came into the kitchen and told me that she had a doll that looked just like me.    Of course, I needed to see this doll, so I asked her to show me.  And “Belle” is who she returned with.  Eden said, “Look, Mama, you even have the same hair!”

She couldn’t understand why I was laughing so hard.  The fact that we certainly do not share the same waist line right now didn’t seem to phase her.

I didn’t really make any New Year’s resolutions, but perhaps I should have if Eden thinks this is what my hair looks like…something along the lines of “use a better conditioner and hair brush.”

She is now affectionately referred to as “Mama Doll” around our house; and, while she doesn’t do dishes or laundry, I am certain that she feels some stress.  Aside from her “hands on her head” gesture, I heard her crying in her closet last night.  Once I gently reminded her that her commitments are first to the Lord, then to her husband and children…and that everything else comes after that…she came out of the closet, tackled a few small “to do list” items and went to bed.  From what I understand, she slept well and woke up ready to chisel away at the list over the next 62 61 days.

Patton has his own ways of making us laugh.  He is now officially referred to as a raccoon around the Stedman household.  He has certainly gone through a mini growth spurt, as he is now moving up to some 24 month/2T clothes, despite my expectation that he would stay in 18 month clothing through the early spring.  Of course he would need “fuel” for this growth spurt; the little man eats anything he can get his hands on, which works out well for him since his mother has stashes of snacks all over the house.  Over Christmas break, he wandered his way into the big pantry (where I store serving pieces, small appliances we don’t use often, etc.) and found my large tub of Red Vine licorice.  He carried it out of the pantry and into the living room, handing it to his sister to open for him.  Instead, she ratted him out and brought them into the kitchen to me, saying, “Mom, will you just look at what Brother did,” hands on hip and everything.  It’s hard to be upset with a little person who looks this cute:

And the same little boy who is starting to have his own opinions on certain things, such as sitting down in the bathtub.  This video is definitely worth watching once or ten times.  See it HERE.  Yes, he cries at the end because he lost “the battle.”  Better than having him cry because of a bathtub injury.

We are putting our “baby JR preparation plan” into high gear.  On Monday the 2nd, Micah had the day off of work, so we went to Marshall’s and Ross to shop.  I don’t mind having to search a little bit unless the store is super busy and people have left discarded items strewn about.  Luckily, it was fairly quiet and tidy.  I think I skipped out of Ross when I found a reversible comforter for Patton’s big boy bed for $12.  I’ve got everything planned out for the kids’ rooms…it’s just a matter of putting the plan into action and completing all of the little projects (new curtains, some new artwork, a blanket for John, etc.)  Here’s a sneak peek of a little artwork for Eden’s room:

This past week, we watched one of my friend’s little ones so that she could attend an appointment with her oldest, Emma.  They had borrowed our swing and brought it back because 1) they were done using it, and 2) it came in handy that day for their youngest, Samuel.  It is still set up in the living room/play room area because I need to call Fisher Price about it…the motor has died.  In any case, it has actually been a very good thing because I’ve found both Eden and Patton near it.  Eden put her baby in the swing and told Patton to be quiet because the baby was sleeping.  When Patton noticed that the swing had stopped (because you know, no motor), he gently started rocking it again.  I’ve caught both of them glancing over or standing up next to the swing, watching the baby inside, being oh-so-gentle and sweet.  I know that it’s only a doll, but it gives me an optimistic enthusiasm for Patton’s big brother abilities.

I’m off to pin together JR’s blanket in preparation for sewing…and I should probably swiffer the floors today.

Back in a flash!

Good grief, Georgia Tech!

“Good grief” is Eden’s new favorite phrase.  We were at the car wash today, waiting in line, and she said, “Good grief that car is taking a long time.”  We weren’t even in a hurry!  I blame “A Charlie Brown Christmas” for this one.

On New Year’s Eve Day, we found ourselves heading to the Sun Bowl.  We were lucky enough to get free tickets through Fort Bliss, as a donation of several thousands of tickets had been made for soldiers and their families.  This year, the yellow jackets of Georgia Tech faced off against the Utah Utes.  We decided to have a big family breakfast out so that our tummies would be prepared for a long day at the stadium.  After that, we headed out to the Bowl.  Parked just a few blocks away from us was the famed “Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech” at the Mesa Street Grill.  Alumni who had traveled to the game were having an Alumni Breakfast, and the driver and “crew” of the Wreck were hanging out, too. I can’t tell you how badly I wanted to put the kids in the little seat in the back!

Can you tell that I dug through our drawers to come up with some yellow/black/white clothing options?  Also, did you take note that a certain someone – Daddy - isn’t wearing yellow?  That’s right, Micah was cheering on the Utes!  You can tell who dressed the kiddos…

Here’s my little sunshine girl.  I thought the shirt was especially fitting since we were attending the Sun Bowl.  I need my sunglasses still, just to look at this picture!

Can you tell it was ridiculously sunny?  There was not a cloud in the sky, which was wonderful!  But…it also turned out to be 70 degrees and had us wishing that Santa had left some Coppertone 45 in our stockings.  We did end up getting a little sun, but not enough for a burn…just some color.  After a long walk up to the stadium – uphill – I ended up taking off the long-sleeved shirts on the kids, and I took off my cardigan.  I was starting to “glisten”…you know, because good southern girls don’t sweat, they “glisten.”

This little man looked right at home by the Ramblin’ Wreck.  Maybe he has a future at GA Tech?

The only yellow in Patton’s closet (in the right size) was his Charlie Brown halloween costume shirt.  I figured, “What the hay?” and put it on him.  You wouldn’t believe how many compliments we got on his shirt!

Five of the Army Golden Knights parachuted into the stadium and delivered the game ball.

Seeing Georgia Tech take the field was quite the spectacle.  I just love that the “Wreck” delivered the mascot (a yellow jacket) and some of the cheerleaders.  So doggone cute!

The Utes led at the half (by a field goal), and B.J. Thomas serenaded us with three of his hits.  Perhaps you remember the songs “Raindrops Keep Fallin’ On My Head,” or “Hooked on a Feeling.” Those were two of the songs he performed for us.

In the second half, Georgia Tech got down to business and it looked like Utah didn’t stand a chance.  Then, with a minute and a half left in the game, it was all tied up.

Of course it went into overtime and the yellow jackets lost.  Boohoo.  Eden said, “Good grief, Georgia Tech!”  I think she only said that to make her mama feel better because Eden had definitely had her fill of football that day.  I can’t blame her; it was a long day for the mama kids.

Micah, of course, didn’t rub it in at all…{I hope you’re laughing right now}.

We made the long hike (downhill this time, thankfully) back to the parking garage and made our way home.  All three of the babies fell asleep and the kiddos stayed asleep until the next morning!  We, of course, gave them special midnight New Year’s kisses…but we’re smart enough to know not to poke a bear!

How did we spend New Year’s Day?  Relaxing, playing, watching more football.  And this mama had her feet up after all the previous day’s activity!