Happy 2nd Birthday, Josiah!

When I think of the time that has passed, I can hardly believe Josiah is TWO today!  But when I hear him talking and see him interacting, playing with big boy toys (mostly things with wheels), eating as much as I do (he can eat a whole 6 inch sub plus a side!), and having clear thoughts and ideas of his own, I can fully believe he is growing up.  It is hard to realize that this baby that we anticipated for so long and mostly only ever thought of AS a baby, is no longer, and never will be again.  He is such a great little guy, though, with a wonderful disposition and I’m so excited to see who he is in 18 years.

In addition to his swing, he loves anything with wheels that he can push or ride on, his current favorites by far are Jacob’s matchbox cars.  Actually, most of them are tractor/trailer/farm equipment combos.  Josiah LOVES a trailer of any kind or a train with cars.  We hadn’t really planned on giving him the matchbox cars yet since there are small parts and he tends to break them, but he always seems to track them down and insist on having them.  They are a must have at breakfast time.  They are currently stored in our storage trailer, but every time he sees the key for it he begs for it and, if possible, will go outside and start walking towards it (the other end of our property!).  Once there, he knows which box to open.

    Here he is in his beloved “wing” after a raid on the matchbox toys!

In the last three months, Josiah has transitioned from that in- between stage to a full blown little boy toddler.  I can see it in his toy choices, and speech, as well as the fact that his independence is growing.  He used to cuddle with us on the couch in the mornings and drink his milk which made for some special family times, but now he must start playing right away and milk is taken on the go or with the breakfast he eats by himself.  He also LOVES books with a passion!  I love our nighttime ritual where he curls up in the rocking chair with one of us to drink his milk with his blanket while we read Bible stories to him.  Once done, we brush teeth, return to the rocking chair to cuddle, sing songs, and pray, then put him in bed.   I know the nighttime milk needs to go away soon, but I’m holding on just a bit longer.

The picture quality is bad, but it was a sweet moment as Savannah “read” multiple books to Josiah.  Prior to this he had been following us around begging us to “weed” him “buk” again and again, so we were happy with this arrangement.

Josiah is saying multiple new words a day.  He said “Jesus” for the first time several weeks ago and it was so special to me, though in his mind I doubt he considered it much more significant than many of his other first time words.  Still, I’m so thankful the name is familiar to him.  He is also beginning to count, but only on his own, never when prompted.  Despite the fact that he’ll repeat almost anything you say, he rarely will repeat numbers, letters, or colors, but I know he knows some of them and can identify them based on his interactions with us and on occasion he’ll say them on his own.

He is slowly but surely learning to put his shoes (“oos”) on.  He loves it because it means he’s going out.

During these last months we have struggled with health as he has been on 3 different antibiotics for 3 different reasons in one month, but we seem to be on the right track now, he is gaining weight again, and his GI issues are better than ever.  I had suspected that his 2 year molars were coming in and contributing to the problem, but they just seemed to be taking their sweet time to the point that I wasn’t so sure, but sure enough the first two have begun peeking through .  Hopefully they will hurry up!

Showing off his pearly whites after enjoying a cookie (“ookie”).  I love how when he gets a treat, he celebrates it and looks at it for several minutes before actually eating it.  Having possession of it and anticipating it is as good as partaking in his world.

So, at 2 years of age, we are loving and enjoying our little boy, perhaps more than ever.  There are times I feel a bit of guilt that there will be another little one and he will have to share our attention and that he will definitely no longer be the baby, but I know it will be great for him.  When I cuddle with him and his legs hang low and my back strains to hold him too often, I’m thankful for his “kid” self and look forward to a new little bundle.  I know I love the fact that I have siblings that add something to my life that no one else ever could (good or bad!).  Lately, with my belly protruding into my lap, I barely have enough room to hold Josiah and have to keep readjusting to keep him from sliding off.  I asked Jacob the other day if he thought I’d ever have a lap big enough to hold Josiah again.  He responded with “yep, and it will be big enough for two!”  I’m not sure if that was supposed to be reassuring or depressing!

A random picture of our big boy: Josiah went orange picking on the farm with his Papa and Daddy.

 

Happy birthday, little man, you are our little blessing from God.

37 Weeks – Good News and Bad News

…but mostly good!

I had my nearly 37 week OB appointment today which included an ultrasound.  So far I’ve gained about 26.5 pounds, which is not as bad as it originally looked like it was going to be, and I have been pretty healthy.  My belly measures great, Elijah’s heart rate is great and everything seems to be on track.  This is what we found on the ultrasound:

He’s still a boy!

He’s head down…the good news…

  …but he’s face up…the bad news.  Notice the “bad baby” caption to the left of his head.

These are his measurements.  The one’s that stand out to me are his big head (measures at 40 weeks) and his body weight estimate (6 lb 1 oz).

Big heads run in my family.  Yikes!  Josiah had/has one.  It is the only above average size thing on him.  Also, Elijah is on track to be about Josiah’s size, assuming this estimate is right.  She asked when Josiah was delivered and I told her 38.5 weeks and it really started to set in that this baby was coming soon!  My mind is still back in early pregnancy, so it better catch up quick.

As for Elijah being sunny side up, well that “just” means that I’m pretty likely to have back labor when the time comes.  Jacob is dreading this as it is something he learned about this weekend in our prepared childbirth class.  He’s not looking forward to the role he’ll have to play.  I’m thinking, “oh, poor thing!”  :)   Elijah still has time to rotate, but it isn’t a good sign.  Why can’t I just have a normal, run of the mill delivery just once???  We’ll see.

On the bright side, everything seems to be going along fine.  Elijah’s organs look great and functional, the placenta is healthy, there is just the right amount of amniotic fluid within it, and there are lots of “flecks” within the fluid – meaning the vernix is sloughing off as he prepares to make his entry into this world.  These are the things that really matter.

My next checkup is at 38 weeks which I never made it past with Josiah.  I’ve had LOTS of mildly painful Braxton Hicks contractions and feel lots of tugging and pulling, so while I’m not holding my breath for an early delivery (I still have lots to do!), I’m not going to be surprised by one, either.  Time will tell, so stay tuned.

I Need Input!

1.  We are getting a bit bored with the music we have for Josiah and are in the market for some good kid’s praise music that we can enjoy, or at least tolerate, too.  Any suggestions?

2.  Josiah is beginning to show signs of being ready to potty train: telling us when he has gone, wanting to get on his potty when we go, things like that.  It is a bit farther in our future and I’m not holding my breath (though I am hopeful), but I’m beginning to think of what method I want to use when the time comes.  Any advice based on experience out there?

Also, I have a cool never-been-used bath toy that was given to us but won’t work in our tub.  Any kid would love it and I wish we could use it, but it needs a tub with a side that is about 5-6 inches wide and relatively flat to work.  It has suction cups to help it stay in place.  I don’t really know how to explain it, but it is free to a good home!

A Little Work, A Little Play And Needing A Rest

(Feel free to skip all the narratives and head straight for the pictures below.)

Yesterday was a day to celebrate Elijah’s coming arrival.  Josiah was excited about it from the start, or at least that is how I chose to read it.  He woke up bright and early as usual and Jacob got him up and they both came into our bedroom.  Usually when this happens we just all hang out for awhile, but this time Josiah grabbed my robe, brought it to me and grabbed my hand and started pulling and saying “up, up” demanding that I get out of bed.  I had to laugh.  Once I was up and putting on my robe, he was grabbing the sides and tried to close it before I could even get it straight.  Then we had a few hours of playtime together during which he insisted I sit on the floor next to him and play with his trucks on the couch.

Later the girls in my Sunday School class threw me the most beautiful shower, though I have no pictures to prove it (yet).  We had a brunch with some really great food, I must say, and some fun conversation.  Elijah got some really great gifts to help us out when he comes and Josiah had fun initiating those things when I brought them home.  We are so blessed to have so many great friends to be kind enough to celebrate with us.

After attending a seminar that afternoon at UF for some free CE, Jacob and I dropped Josiah off at Grandma’s and headed to Conestogas in Alachua where my coworkers were throwing us a little shower…we thought.  Turns out somehow I missed the fact that they changed the date to next Saturday, which I can’t make!  So, we had a little unexpected date night.

Josiah has been a little on the grumpy side since his molars have been coming in and he had been begging to be with me and I hadn’t had much spare time with him and wouldn’t for a few more days, so Sunday I decided we’d play hookie from church (again) and hang out while Jacob went to teach sunday school.  We spent the large majority of the morning outside enjoying the absolutely gorgeous weather.

First, we spent some time playing in our front pasture just soaking up the sun.

 

Lilah is Josiah’s faithful sidekick when they are outside together.  She goes everywhere with him and he waits for her and calls her if she gets side tracked.  Today she followed us throughout our six acres, then to the neighbor’s place.  Funny cat!

 This is what the skies looked like this morning.  Josiah took this picture. 

After some running around, we played on the fort/swingset, “drove” Daddy’s truck, trimmed plants…

 …then we headed out across the road to look at the logging equipment (Josiah loves equipment) at the neighbor’s house where they are cutting down LOTS of trees, but we got sidetracked by the dirt (another love of his) and got filthy playing there.

  Then he practiced his country boy potty training by peeing on their fence (totally kidding, but that’s what it looks like, doesn’t it?).  He gazed at the equipment across the fence for awhile.

 

Jacob joined in the hookie fun by skipping out on church and bringing us subs and taking us to Cellon Oak Park to eat them.

My little man LOVES a sub!  And can usually eat one on his own!

 

I didn’t put the worst of them in here, but I didn’t realize I was this large until I saw all these pictures of myself.  YIKES!

Why do I have a basketball under my shirt and between my legs?  Not flattering!  But I did laugh when I saw it.

Airplane!

Sweet Boy.

After picnic time came nap time and chore time, which was only fun for one of us!

35 Weeks Pregnant And 2 Year Molars

…not within the same person!

Today was another uneventful, but good checkup with the obstetrician.  In fact, we spent more time talking about her dog’s allergies than the coming baby!  Anyway, I’ve gained yet another three pounds, am growing, and Elijah has a good heartbeat.  Next time, in 2 weeks, she will be doing an ultrasound, so we are excited.  After that we’ll probably start the weekly visits .  Yikes!  That means it’s close and I still have too much to do and no time to do it.  I’m scheduled to work right up until delivery, even on my due date and my days off are filled with more than I can do.  Oh well, I’m sure we’ll manage.  Even with a messy house.

Josiah really loves our OB appointments since he gets to go and play with all the toys there, NOT get an exam, and still get a lollipop at the end.  He and I have thoroughly enjoyed our day off together today though it has involved a bit of tylenol and only a short nap for him.  He’s getting another molar and has mild cold symptoms as a result.  He woke up screaming at 2 a.m. this morning which is always my clue that we have a problem because he never wakes up for no reason.  When I went to him he was just laying on his belly crying and my pregnant, groggy self couldn’t get him up from the bottom of the crib.  It kind of scared me and I wondered if he was crying in his sleep.  When I finally pulled him out he had a coughing fit and gagged.  He threw up all over his sleeper, my robe, my leg, and the floor.  Great.  It made me regret that he’d eaten such a great meal for dinner!  After dealing with all that and one other short episode that Jacob soothed, he slept pretty well the rest of the night.  Poor guy – he’s having a rough couple months!  On a good note, the food additive stuff he’s on (I found out today it is called “Mila”) seems to be really helping him, but time will tell.

Celebrating Baby Karis

Last week our Sunday School class had a baby shower for Stefanie.  She and Kevin are going to have  a sweet baby girl (the only one among 4 births in about 2 months!) named Karis.  We  had a great time laughing and talking.

These are supposed to look like baby rattles.

      

Little Henry is the first of 4 babies to come in our class.  Here he is 6 days old.  He has made Annie and Chad very happy parents!

This picture is one of a series that we have been taking from early on, though I don’t have any of those.  One by one we will be replacing bellies with babies!  It is so exciting to have friends to go through this with.  You’re next, Amy!

Nathan’s First Birthday

We spent this afternoon in Lake City celebrating our nephew, Nathan’s , first birthday.  He’s such a cutie with a great personality!

He was a bit tentative with the cake, but he’ll learn to like it!    This picture leaves me hoping that Josiah is a great big brother in the making.  He pushed Nathan all over the yard!