Babies On The Hiking Trail

A boy and his (my) walking sticks

Hiking with little children has been a bit of a different experience. We still are terrible at estimating the time it will take us, despite our best efforts to plan ahead. We set out to hike Warwoman Dell and part of the Bartram Trail, and didn't make it to lunch until 3pm. But we had a lot of fun.

All bundled up and ready to hike

We parked near Warwoman Dell and hike 1/4 mile to see one waterfall. Then got back in the car and parked past a giant mud hole (so we wouldn't get stuck in it later in case it rained) that made us grateful for our four wheel drive.

First waterfall/uncooperative 3-yr-old

Snug as a bug and ready to hike

The Hubs had gone hiking with Little Man here before and got lost looking for a waterfall. We didn't find it this time either. But we did see this one...

Not the one we were looking for

We ran into some people hiking from the opposite direction and they couldn't find the elusive waterfall either.

Same waterfall, slightly different picture

After checking the time, we turned around and headed back to the car. All of the shedding of the wintery layers as the day warmed up and all the stops for trail mix slowed us down much more than we realized. And then a very patient baby couldn't wait any longer.

Nursing on a log. A momma's gotta do what a momma's gotta do

Same waterfall on the way back. Waiting for the boys to catch up

Carrying Little Man over some mud

Happy as a clam

We made it to lunch in Clayton around 3pm. It was a great day!

Inappropriate Use of Hashtags ~ A Week's Worth

It's Seven Quick Takes Time. Here's a glimpse at our riveting week with all the glorious hashtags and grainy iPhone pics to go with it.

~ Saturday ~

I don't even remember what happened on Saturday. There was sleeping and eating and baby feeding. 

~ Sunday ~

Lucy slept through mass. #secondchild #angelbaby

~ Monday ~

My husband went back to work today. My sister in law goes home tonight, which means I'm on my own tomorrow for the first time with both kids. #IwishIdrankcoffee #Imighthavetostart

#excusemewhileIgocryinacorner

I think I struck fear in the heart of my 3 year old when he realized that I was willing to stop feeding the baby to discipline him. #mommydoesntdodefiance #timeout #cansomeoneputmeintimeout? #mommyneedsanap

~ Tuesday ~

I kept myself and the two kids alive all by myself. #weareallstillinpajamas #maybewecandothis #Imighthavetotakeupdrinking #coffeeImeandrinkingcoffee

~ Wednesday ~

Got the kids ready and in the car all by myself #twice #applauseplease

It's Daddy's 30th birthday! 

#gotdressedup #butnoonetookapic #adultdrinkswerehad 

 ~ Thursday ~

Got a few minutes of outside time. #wasonthevergeofbecomingahermit #sunlightwhatsthat

~ Friday ~

Mommy got a shower. #becausetheinsurancemaniscomingovertonight #bothchildrensleeping #cantdecidewhattodofirst #blogofcourse

That's a wrap. Go visit Christy, who is hosting Seven Quick Takes for Kelly. 

Happy Friday!

Postpartum Status Update

If you follow me on social media, you'll have to excuse the recycled taken on my iPhone, weren't that great to begin with pictures. But recycled pictures are better than no pictures, right? Sure. On to the quick takes.

~ 1 ~ 

My days have pretty much been filled with this: 

and this:

~ 2 ~

I attempted to go for a walk with the boys and Lucy, and I made it just around the corner before feeling lousy and had to return to my bed. Lucy thoroughly enjoyed her first outing in the Ergo carrier snuggled up to Daddy. Daddy didn't mind either :)

 

~ 3 ~

Things have been going pretty smoothly recovery-wise, but last night I lost a lot of blood and started feeling really lousy. After a somewhat frantic call to my midwives, I was told that I was too active too soon and I overdid it, and to go back to bed for several days. Which everyone knows is hard to do, especially with a three year old running around. Prayers appreciated.

~ 4 ~

So, even though my days weren't much more than adventures out to the living room, attempted walks, and laundry mountains, for now, my days are back to looking like this:

Which really isn't so bad.

~ 5 ~ 

Now that the grandparents are gone and birthday excitement is over, we think Matthan has taken more notice of my absence in his daily routine. His excitement over Lucy has waned a bit, and he has been acting out. Again, prayers appreciated as The Hubs returns to work next week.

~ 6 ~

We've had a few visitors this week (some who brought food, yum!!) including (almost) 4 month old Cousin Avonlea. Lucy doesn't look so sure about her cousin.

~ 7 ~

Lucy is sweet as can be. She has been really stuffed up since day 3 though, and we've tried a few things for that. She's a good eater, but the nasal congestion makes it complicated sometimes. She is a REALLY LOUD sleeper, and she currently sleeps in our room so we are getting use to her noises which often times sound like a congested puppy or an old man snoring and occasionally a seal pup (according to The Hubs). She loves the swaddle, but will sleep without it especially if she's on my chest. And she seems to sleep better with big brother acting crazy around her, which he does willingly without being asked. Her days are still spent mostly like this.

Happy Friday everyone! Now go see Kelly for more quick takes, and tips on traveling with kids.

~ 7.5 ~

Update: Since some of you have asked about The Hubs. He's good, slightly sleep deprived but thoroughly enjoying his time with the munchkins. I think he's going to have a hard time going back to work. Because he's not a sitter, he's a doer, he's tackled several house projects while wearing out the 3-yr-old with long bike rides and trips to the park. He's also keeping me sane and in good humor while I try not to go crazy at the thought of all of the laundry piling up. I'll leave you with this latest gem:

Me: (referring to the milk life commercials) " The commercials with milk spewing out of people are so weird."

The Hubs: "Hitting to close to home right now?" 

Me: ............maybe

Baby Blankets - I Know Just Enough To Get Myself Into Trouble

This post is brought to you by my iPhone from my couch.

I asked my grandmother for her fish chowder recipe a while back and I got the quintessential "Grandma recipe" that read something like "I put this and this in with a handful of this and sometimes I put this in it if I have it in the cabinet. Boil it until it's just right. Then I taste it and I might add this. Then I say the magical words and stir the pot twice and it comes out amazing."...yeah...mine tasted nothing like hers. I did bug her for more details through about 6 more e-mails, but I'm still convinced that the secret ingredient is you have to be a grandma. 

Anyway, my grandma asked me about the baby blankets I made and funny enough I have only slightly more detail than a "grandma recipe" to offer. I know how to knit and crochet (theoretically, anyway), but I know just enough to get myself into trouble. When I made Matthan's blanket, which is when I taught myself how to crochet, I think I threw it across the room several times due to it (unintentionally) taking the shape of a triangle. There may have been curse words uttered. 

Both times, I made a boy blanket and a girl blanket since we didn't know which we were having, but this time I actually used a pattern. Well, sort of. 

For the boy blanket, I used this pattern, except I altered the row colors to add an extra row in order to make it a bit bigger...because I can't be bothered with things like gauging. 

For the girl blanket (modeled by our sweet Lucy) I used this pattern, more or less. I crocheted strips until I was happy with their length, then determined 5 strips was adequate, and crocheted them together. I made up some way to connect them (single crochets?), but it created ridges on the underside (pictured below) which I'm not thrilled with. I would have put more thought into how I connected them, but I was under a time crunch (read very pregnant and grumpy). And then Lucy showed up a day shy of 42 weeks so the joke was on me. The border is one row of single crochets, one row of double crochets, and a row of picot stitches (which I picked out of a book at the last minute). 

So there you have it, my only slightly better than a grandma recipe details about the baby blankets I made. I think I'm better at making cute babies ;)

Matthan's Baptism

"[...] God patiently waited in the days of Noah during the building of the ark, in which a few persons, eight in all, were saved through water.  This prefigured baptism, which saves you now.  It is not a removal of dirt from the body but an appeal to God for a clear conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ [...]"  1 Peter 3:20-21

Many of our friends and family joined us this weekend for Matthan's baptism, and for a post baptism party at our house after the mass.

Fr. Eric addressing the parents and Godparents

Matthan Timothy being baptized

"For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ." 
Galatians 3:27

Being dressed in white garments

Being sealed with holy oil

Matthan was not thrilled with the whole thing.  He fussed through a good bit of it and ended up falling asleep in Tim's arms (which is something he rarely does).  A lot of excitement for the little guy.

Godmother Penny, Amy, Tim, Matthan, and Godfather Austin

Father Eric, Amy, Tim, Matthan, and Deacon Nick

Grandpa Jim, Maddox, Aunt Sarah, Amy, Lailey, Tim, and Matthan

Sophia, Penny, Grandpa Peter, Amy, Ava, Grandma Mary, Tim, Matthan, Muriel, and Austin

I didn't allow Tim to wash Matthan's head for two weeks.  The nursery and car seat smelled like holy chrism for several weeks after that.  Aw, sigh, I miss that smell.

Diapers, Diapers

All of this cuteness...

Matthan ~ 10 days old

...produces a lot of diapers and laundry.

We chose to go the cloth diaper route.  These aren't yo' momma's cloth diapers.  We use the Fuzzibunz One Size cloth diapers and we love them.

Cute little tongue, I just want to pinch it. :)

One Week Old

Ok, so technically Matthan was 6 days old when this photo shoot occurred.  Sarah stayed with us for a couple days and threw together a photo shoot on our dining room table.  Tim came home in the middle of the photo shoot and together they produced some great pictures.

They took a ton of pictures, and at one point attempted to stuff Matthan into the cowboy boot...unsuccessfully.  Unfortunately, the memory card with those pictures corrupted.  

This is the hat and blanket that I made for him.

Not the best picture, but I love the close up

Matthan with the ukulele

Matthan was so calm and relaxed for almost an hour of them moving him and snapping pictures.  By the end of it, my dining room was torn apart, and he had peed on the table cloth, the sheets, and the boppy.  He did great...until they tried to stuff him in the boot...I think that was the final straw.

It's A Boy!

IT'S A BOY!!!

Matthan Timothy

(pronunciation: begins like Matthew, ends like Nathan.  MATH-un)

About The Name

The name Matthan is in the Bible in the genealogy of Christ.  When Tim was in youth group, the youth group performed the genealogy of Christ to the Twelve Days of Christmas, and his segment included the name "Matthan".  When we were thinking of names, Tim said he had always liked that name and I was hooked.  I insisted on Timothy as the middle name.  Matthan is a derivative of Matthew and means "gift".  Timothy means "one that honors God".  So together, his name means "a gift that honors God".  

Born August 22, 2012 at 12:38 pm

8 lbs 4 oz ~ 19.5 inches