The St.Hilaires

Our First Weekend!

2012-01-21T08:27:00.000-08:00

For two years now, Andrew has been working six days each week. It's been hard, but I really admire and appreciate him for how hard he works to support us. With him working an extra day, we've been able to work on Dave Ramsey's "Baby Steps" and hopefully we will be able to buy a house this year.

Last Saturday was Andrew's last day working at Star. The sign pictured above welcomed him home! We are SO happy that we will have real weekends with Daddy!!!!!

We are proud of you Daddy! This weekend is going to be great! =)

***
On a different note - notice that John is actually trying to color parts of the picture instead of scribbling on the whole page. This a little milestone for him! Now we just need to work on staying in the lines...

Snow!

2012-01-21T07:52:00.000-08:00

We got about five inches of now last Wednesday! I'm just glad I was able to go to the store on Tuesday to stock up on groceries for the week. Cabin fever is setting in, so I am kind of glad that rain washed away most of the snow last night. We are going to get out of the house today and go to our Bradley class reunion. All of the women in our birthing class have had their babies, so it will be great to see everyone and hear their stories.

On Wednesday, we were able to get out in the snow with John for some fun! We went sledding on come corrugated plastic board because we didn't have a sled and we (aka Andrew) build a really cute snowman. It was pretty cold out there and the top layer of the snow was icy, so it didn't roll very well - but that doesn't matter to a 2 year old!

Hot coco + whip cream + crushed candy cane + chocolate sprinkles = the best post-snow play drink!

Peter Stats

2012-01-13T14:49:00.000-08:00

I took Peter in a few days ago for his belated 2 month check-up. It confirmed what we already knew - we've got a big baby! 15lbs 11oz, 25 inches long, and 17 inch head circumference = 97th percentile on all counts! At least he is proportionally large!

On Monday he went to his 3rd chiropractic visit. She told us he was perfect! So now we don't have to go in again. I'm so glad the adjustments worked and he is all better.

He used to be pretty crabby, but over the past month or so he has calmed down and is generally very happy. I remember when I was in the hospital the day after he was born and he started to fuss. My friend Becky was holding him and asked me, "What does he want?" I shrugged my shoulders and said "I don't know, he is like a stranger to me." She gave me a weird look, but it was true - when you have a new baby you love them and have a strong bond to them, but it takes time to learn what their different cries mean. I'm happy to say now that he is no stranger! He is my little side-kick and I love being able to read his signs.

He is now approaching the three 3 month mark and I am really enjoying his age. His big past-time right now is sucking on his right hand (I wonder if that means he will be right-handed...). He is even getting a little rash on his chin from his drool. His sleeping patterns are starting to set in, which means I am able to keep up with some daily routines. At night, he usually only wakes up once to nurse and is a sound sleeper the rest of the night. I'm thankful for that!

Peter in his Jumperoo

2012-01-09T16:04:00.000-08:00

I brought this jumperoo in from the garage after I took down the Christmas decorations. I figured that Peter was just about the right age for it. Sure enough, he loves it! And so does John! ;)

Until Next Year...

2012-01-06T21:38:00.000-08:00

We had a good run, O' Christmas tree, but the time has come to say good bye. It's bitter-sweet. Sweet because your departure means that I can get on with organizing and cleaning the house. Bitter because it means Christmas is over and you won't return for another year.

----

As a grown up, a year doesn't seem that far away, but when I think that my boys will each be a year older - that seems crazy! Peter will probably be walking! John will be even more eloquent, independent and potty-trained (please, oh please!). A year is a long time in child-years.

Today as I laid by the tree with John, I realized that I will only have 16 Christmas' left with him living in the house. Might seem like a lot, but I know it will fly by. I'm going to cling to these years like Pooh Bear to his Hunny Pot. It's been a sappy day for sure. To top it off, "What a Wonderful World" played on my Pandora station while I was rocking Peter to sleep.

So tomorrow is the day, I will pack all the Christmas decorations away. Probably during John's nap. I don't want to traumatize him with de-decorating!

More to come later about all the festivities. For now, here is a picture of the boys cuddled up in matching PJs (thanks Grandma and Grandpa!) watching the Grinch.

Almost 2 months old!

2011-12-19T15:18:00.000-08:00

Our little Peter is almost two months old! It's hard to believe how quickly the months have passed, but we can't imagine life without him! He smiles a lot and is starting to coo and babble. He is a very cozy guy and I love co-sleeping with him. He is also a great sleeper - only waking up once or twice to nurse!

We noticed early on that he tends to lean his head and look to the right. We learned from a chiropractor who was a guest at one of our Bradley classes that this can be a sign of spinal misalignment, which likely occurred during delivery. So last week I took him to that same chiropractor and she determined that his occipital bone was misaligned. She made some adjustments and showed me some exercises to do with him. We had another appointment with her today and she saw major improvements in his neck strength and movement. Andrew and I have also noticed a lot of improvements. It's so nice to see him holding his head straight!

I have a couple more posts that I meant to write after Peter was born. I've been pretty behind on this blog for two main reasons (John and Peter!). Hopefully I will catch up soon!

John Quotes ~ Vol. 3

2011-12-16T11:30:00.000-08:00

There is never a dull moment around this house. John is quite the talker and has a great sense of humor. Here are some quotes that I managed to write down over the last month or so:

-------

His critique of some homemade grape juice: "It's not sour, Mamma. It's very spicy!"

"Look my did!" (instead of "look what I did")

"This mines?" (instead of "is this mine?")

"Some-be-people" (instead of "somebody") Example: "Some-be-people live in that house."

When Peter was crying: "Oh, Peter, you're fake crying."

After trying to use the potty chair: "I put a toot in there! Come see!"

I was wearing a knit hat and John said, "I like your hat, it's really purple."

We were taking a walk and a sports car went by. The driver was revving his engine. After it passed, John said, "That car stinks!"

He gets to have a little cup of chocolate milk before nap and bed time. While he is drinking it he always puts his finger in his belly button. He calls this "belly button time".

Apparently I call Andrew "darling" a lot because John asked me one day, "darling had to go to work?"

When we were driving past a sign for a highway he said "That man lost his body" (In reference to the profile of George Washington).

Our Newest Catholic!

2011-11-22T13:31:00.000-08:00

Peter was baptized on November 13th. We had a great weekend - full of time with family, friends, and God's grace though Peter's first sacrament!

Shortly after he was born, a good friend of ours gave Peter a holy medal that contains a relic from his patron - St. Peter Julain Eymard! I pinned the medal to his shirt and he wore it during his baptism.

May you cling to Our Lord all the days of your life, Peter! Welcome Home!

Andrew's Birthday Weekend!

2011-11-21T12:46:00.001-08:00

Andrew's birthday was on Saturday. He had to work, but that turned out to be a good thing because I had a lot to do to prepare for a couple surprises I had planned!

As far as he knew, the plan was that he would come home for one of his favorite meals (Tikka Masala), then my parents would come down and join us for huckleberry pie and a few presents. That was it... or so he thought!

After he opened gifts, my mom spontaneously suggested that Andrew and I go out and do something together. I looked at him and shrugged my shoulders as if it was a possibility. At that point he knew something was up!

So we rushed off and I took him to see our community theater's production of Fiddler on the Roof! It was very good and well-done! We had a great time and he was pretty surprised.

But wait, there's more!

The next day, after we came home from Mass, he found this sign on our front door:

"Whaaaat?" He questioned with a smile.

When he went in the house he found a fridge stocked with beer and pizza and snack food covering the counter (Thanks to my mom and dad who set it up while we were at Mass!).

I told him that some of his buddies would be over soon for a "guy-day." They played poker and Halo. Everyone stayed all day and into the night - so I think they had fun!

John, Peter and I went upstairs and spent the day with my parents. So we got to have a special day too!

Andrew, I love you so much and hope you had a wonderful weekend! You work so hard to provide for us and we really appreciate everything you do! Happy birthday!

Happy Birthday!! {How to make straw rockets}

2011-11-19T08:05:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday, Daddy!

Today is Andrew's birthday - or as John would say "Daddy's happy birth-dee." This year, John got in on the gift giving. A couple of days ago we made straw rockets. You can see below that we have Super Daddy, Super Mommy, Super Johnny, and Super Peter. I drew the figures and John colored them (I colored the capes).

Stapled to the back of each figure is a paper tube that I rolled around a crayon which was slightly larger than the straw. You can't roll it around the straw because then it will be too tight and not fly off easily - trust me, I tried it! Then you just put the figure on the end of a straw and blow! It's lots of fun for a 2-year-old and his daddy!

This morning I told John that it was Dad's birthday today. He ran to where we hid the gift and brought it to Andrew (who was still sound asleep). Andrew woke up and opened his gift. It was so sweet to see John's excitement! I know that Andrew is his hero!

Big Brother

2011-10-31T16:43:00.000-07:00

John has taken very well to his new position as Big Brother. I love watching him smother his brother with kisses. He is totally smitten with Peter and that makes me think about his own call to fatherhood in the future - be it physical or spiritual.

I have noticed that with multiple kids, you have the added responsibility of teaching the older child how to care for the baby. There are so many life lessons for them when having a newborn around, but it does require more patience on my part to teach those lessons.

John is a great big brother and I look forward to seeing his relationship with Peter blossom over the years.

Here are some cute things John as said about Peter:

Pointing at Peter: "Look, so good brother is!"

"I like Brother."

"Let me hold him!" (says this about 100x a day!)

"Baby Brother a Baby?"

"Baby Brother so nice!"

"I love Peter."

Peter Julian's Birth Story

2011-10-30T20:20:00.000-07:00

Below you will find Peter Julian’s birth story. It is written to him and I plan on putting it in his baby book for his first birthday, as I did for John. Warning - it's pretty long! =)

~~~

We eagerly awaited the blessing of a second child. It took six months before you were conceived and this was a sign to us of God’s perfect timing. When your dad and I got married we made the commitment to let God plan our family. It was a lesson in patience for me when month after month, I was not pregnant and then finally in January of 2011 - the pregnancy test was positive and you were present on this earth! We joyfully welcomed your eternal soul into our family!

I also learned to be patient at the end of my pregnancy because you were not born on your due date - just like your brother, John. My goal was to birth you naturally, with no drugs of any kind. I had the same goal for John’s birth, but because I was induced and didn’t know much about the birthing process, I ended up getting an epidural. But with you, we prepared ourselves by taking class on natural child birth. Even though we were still anxious about your birth, we felt more prepared this time.

Since you went past your due date, our doctor suggested inducing and advised us that we should not wait longer than two weeks. We scheduled the induction exactly fourteen days after your due date - to take every chance we could to let labor begin naturally. As we neared the fourteenth day, we questioned whether we should go through with the induction or keep waiting. Thankfully, you were born on the twelfth day, so we didn’t have to make that decision!

Days and days passed with no sign of active labor. Grandma St.Hilaire came down for a few days before your birth to help me around the house and entertain your brother, John. We had told her and Grandpa Stockton a few months prior that they could be present at your birth. She had never seen a birth and we wanted to give her that special gift of seeing her new grandson being born. It was such a blessing to have her stay with us and her company made me feel less impatient for your arrival.

I did a lot of walking to help bring on labor. A couple of days before your birth, I started feeling contractions when walking with Grandma St.Hilaire and John. That made me hopeful, so the next day I went on three walks! That night around midnight I began to feel regular contractions. They were not painful, but they were strong enough that I couldn’t really sleep. I stayed in bed and tried to rest. Around five in the morning I got up to get a bite to eat, knowing that I should eat while I could since, once admitted to the hospital, the nurses would not let me eat. Sourdough toast and string cheese sounded good to me, so that’s what I ate while sitting on my exercise ball. I woke your dad up a couple of times during the night so he could time the contractions. Thankfully he was able to get a good amount of sleep so that he was well-rested in the morning.

Your dad took the day off from work and we sent John upstairs to be with Grandma and Grandpa Stockton and Grandma St.Hilaire. It was so nice spending the day with your dad. We played Dr. Mario together, went on walks, and danced! It was actually fun being in labor! I felt like the whole day was one long date with your dad!

Based on what we learned in our birthing classes, we thought that I was in early first stage labor for most of the day. Hours went by and not much seemed to change. So we kept enjoying ourselves between the contractions with more games and fun. When a contraction came on, your dad would help me through it with encouragement and massage. Around four in the afternoon your grandparents told us that they were going to the Saturday Vigil Mass. Since it was the weekend, they thought it would be good to go to Mass before you were born, so they wouldn’t miss anything.

Shortly after they left, your dad and I finished up playing a video game (which your dad won, sparing no mercy on your laboring mom!), and looked at each other wondering what we should do next. Should we eat dinner? Go on a walk? We decided to time the contractions to see if they were any closer. I laid down on the couch. The contractions were getting closer but were still more than five minutes apart. We thought we’d try to stay home until they were less than five minutes apart.

We were listening to a Bob Dylan album. As I was laying there, listening to Blowing in the Wind, I began thinking about you and how blessed I felt to be a mother. Knowing that I was going to be able to hold you and nurse you in a short time filled me with joy. I started crying. Your dad thought the pain was the cause of my tears but I told him they were tears of joy. Around this same time I started feeling like I was going to throw up during the contractions - a sign to us that I might be entering transition which is the last phase of first stage labor. These emotional and physical signs told us that we should leave for the hospital.

Your dad scurried around the house grabbing last minute items, while I got my shoes on and grabbed a few things in between contractions. We got out to the car and hopped in. As we drove the contractions got stronger and closer together. Dad tried to console me while driving, but I told him to focus on driving and that I would be fine. Dad called your grandparents, who were still at Mass, and left a message. We figured they could just head to the hospital when they got out of church.

After the fifteen minute drive to the hospital, we arrived and your dad asked me what we should bring into the hospital. I just told him to get your diaper bag and we could get the rest later. I started walking ahead to the entrance of the hospital but a contraction came on. I motioned to Dad to hurry over so I could lean on him. He ran over and when the contraction had ended I remembered that my cute laboring gown was still in the car, so I sent him back to get it.

We checked in and they wheeled me to room 16. Two nurses were there to greet me. I told them I had my own gown to wear and they complimented me on it saying that whoever made it could make a fortune. I got the gown on and tried tying the bow in the back. I was having a hard time tying it so one of the nurses helped me. Then I hobbled onto the bed and the nurse checked to see how dilated I was. She said I was between 8 and 9 centimeters dilated (the goal is 10). Your dad and I were both surprised and excited that most of the work was done. Shortly after that I felt like I was doing to pee in the bed. I warned the nurses and asked if that was alright. During the next contraction my water broke and I started feeling a slight urge to push. At that point the nurses were in a flurry trying to prepare for your birth. I looked at your Dad and told him that I had to push during the next contraction. Pushing you out was something I couldn’t really control - my body just did it! It took about three contractions before I pushed you all the way out. Your warm, naked body was immediately placed on my chest and I kissed your precious face. I told you that I loved you over and over. I called you by name - Peter! Dad got to cut your umbilical cord and he touched your sweet body for the first time.

You were born fourteen minutes after we arrived at the hospital - at 6:06pm. The doctor wasn’t even there for your birth! In hindsight, your dad and I are so thankful that we even made it to the hospital!

Your grandparents called Dad when they got out of church. Dad asked them, “Do you want to know his name now or when you get here?” They couldn’t believe you had been born already! They went home to grab a few things and then headed over to the hospital to meet you.

They came in the room with John and Miss Jordan. John had on his shirt that said “I love my lil’ brother”. He had decorated cupcakes for you earlier in the day with your grandmas. We all sang Happy Birthday to you. John was beaming and really enjoyed eating your cupcake for you!

Everyone got a chance to hold you and welcome you into our family. We apologized to Grandma St.Hilaire and Grandpa Stockton for not waiting for them so they could see your birth. They forgave us!

It wasn’t long before we were transferred to a different room. It was getting late and eventually the family left to go back home. You, your dad and I were left alone for the night. I was feeling great and on a natural high from giving birth to you with no pain medication. You and I were both doing so well that we were released from the hospital less than 24 hours from being admitted.

We came home to a house full of people wanting to meet you; including Great-Grandma Launceford, Grandpa St.Hilaire, Uncle Aaron, and Mr. Friedman. We ate a big meal together to celebrate your birth.

As I write this, you are now one week old! You are a precious addition to our family and we thank God every day for your life. He has entrusted you to us here on this earth and it is a true honor to be your parents. May you have a long life filled with love for God and others!

Introducing Peter Julian!

2011-10-26T07:30:00.000-07:00

Peter Julian St.Hilaire

Born on October 22, 2011

6:06pm

9 lbs

19.5 in.

Stay tuned for the birth story...

Clean up!

2011-10-18T13:40:00.000-07:00

In the past month or so I've been relying on John more and more to clean up after himself, since I can't do it all and endlessly picking up toys off the ground is no fun when you are 9 months pregnant!

I know that for him to meet my expectations, I need to teach him and train him how to do it first. We began by cleaning together and we put everything in its home. One day I thought of a way to make it a little more fun - I made this short youtube playlist with some good songs for cleaning (disclaimer - some of them are slightly annoying and get stuck in your head!). So now when I tell him it's clean up time, I turn on the music and he is capable of doing it all by himself. Notice I said "capable" - meaning he can do it but doesn't always do it without more encouragement and help. At this point the event after clean up time dictates how quickly and thoroughly he cleans. For example, "clean up so we can watch a show" gets better results than "clean up so you can take a nap."

We typically do this routine before nap and bedtime. A couple of days ago it was time for nap and I was thinking that I'd just clean up for him since it was getting a little late in the afternoon. But when I told him it was story time (which we do before nap) he said "no, clean up first!" I wasn't going to argue with that, so I turned on the music and let him clean!

Here are some before and after shots of our pre-nap clean up time today:

Before

After

Less than one week to go! (Maybe)

2011-10-06T22:03:00.000-07:00

Well, there is now less than a week until my due date. I've been trying to not focus on that date though because I don't want to go crazy if he arrives late. John was nine days late and the waiting game was very trying emotionally. I'm already beginning to feel anti-social and homey.

The other night I asked Andrew if he ever forgets that I am pregnant. He chuckled and said "No!" But I can honestly say that some days I feel like I forget, or sometimes I have dreams that I am not pregnant and then when I wake up it's a big shock that I am indeed pregnant and the baby will be coming out very soon. I guess it's just hard to imagine having another baby in the house. John and I have a particular rhythm to our days and I don't feel prepared to have that change yet. These last nine months have really gone by so fast!

But "ready or not... here he comes!"

39 weeks pregnant

My Nemesis: The Dishes

2011-09-15T21:21:00.000-07:00

One spoon... Harmless, right?

But if your spoons are anything like the ones in our house - they multiply - very quickly!!

I'm not just talking spoons either. Dirty dishes. They attract one another like magnets:

(Not my kitchen... but some days I feel like it looks this way!)

Well, I've taken up an experiment for the past week and a half. I've always struggled with keeping the kitchen clean. It is especially difficult cleaning up after dinner because I am generally tired at the end of the day and I want to relax!

One day, Andrew gave me some advice (in a nice way, of course!). You see, his parents' kitchen is always clean! It's like magic! And I know his mom does a lot of cooking, so it should be getting dirty, right? He said that growing up, his parents always cleaned dishes immediately and if any dish could go in the dishwasher, you put it there right away - no time hanging out in the sink!

I put that advice on the back-burner for awhile - after all, surely that would not work for me. I've never been the clean-as-I-go type.

But in the flurry of nesting mode, I decided to give it a go... By golly, it works! The kitchen has been clean for pretty much the last week and a half! Sometimes a few things pile up, especially when I am in the middle of cooking or baking, but I always make sure to clean it up as soon as I can. I don't even let one spoon hang out in the sink because that, my friends, is the beginning of the slippery slope. It's also nice not having to scrape dried food off dishes - who knew it rinses right off if you clean it immediately!

Andrew has even commented that when the kitchen is perfectly clean he feels bad leaving one dish out, so he is also motivated to clean up immediately after himself. Whereas, before if there were already dishes collecting in the sink, what's wrong with adding a few more?

I know I'll have down days, and everything won't always be perfect, but I am really hopeful right now that I'm developing good kitchen habits that are here to stay. My favorite part about having a clean kitchen is I feel like I have more time to do other things - like play with John and keep up with the rest of the house.

If this sounds appealing to you, go ahead and give it a try! =)

The Magic Dragon

2011-09-09T14:05:00.000-07:00

This morning was rough. John use to stay in his bed and yell, "Open door please, Mama!" Until I relented and rolled myself out of bed to open his door. I think he did this because he was afraid to get out of bed. Well now we have entered a new phase of independence. I even tried to open his door once this week and he told me to "let Johnny do it." With this new independence also comes earlier wake up calls because he gets up the instant he is awake. Yesterday he was bright and chipper at 6:15am and today he let me sleep in until 7:15am. I'm generally accustomed to sleeping in until 8am - spoiled, I know!

But this morning he was up and not so chipper. I told him that I would send him back to bed if he was going to be so crabby. Once we got to the living room and started playing with toys he was better. But I was still finding myself annoyed by little things.

I was making sandwich bread and he wanted to help put the salt in. I let him do it, but tried to guide his hand. He wanted to do it on his own and sure enough - he dumped the salt on the counter right next to the mixing bowl. I know it's not big deal, but I've noticed he wants to be independent when he really still needs help, and dependent when he doesn't really need help (i.e. wanting me to pick up his toys for him).

Anyway, I was feeling very negative with all these little things. But once the bread was in the oven and the kitchen was clean, I went into the living room to be with my little guy. I really do love him. He has such a great imagination - acting out voices for his stuffed animals and little figurines. He also loves to read. He could be read to all day if I was willing. His bookshelf is in constant disarray because he is always pulling books out to read.

Today he found a book by Peter Yarrow that is full of lullaby lyrics and beautiful pictures. Attached to the inside cover is a CD with all the songs. We got it as a baby shower gift before John was born and we've never listened to the CD. I asked John if he wanted to listen to it with me. He said yes. So we busted it out of it's untouched case and put it in the CD player. It was a great album. I really like Peter Yarrow's voice. We sat on the couch and I sang along with the songs.

When Puff the Magic Dragon came on, I was surprised by my reaction near the end of the song:

A dragon lives forever but not so little boys
Painted wings and giant rings make way for other toys.
One grey night it happened, Jackie paper came no more
And puff that mighty dragon, he ceased his fearless roar.

I cried.

John was surprised too. He is always so concerned when I cry. "Cuddle Mama," he said as he came over and hugged me.

It's so easy to get caught up in the day-to-day. Picking up toys constantly, repeating yourself over and over, dealing with crabbiness, picky eating, being pulled out of bed at who-knows-what-hour... I instantly felt so bad for feeling irritated earlier. My little boy will not be little forever. This precious time I have with him is so fleeting and I resolve to value it more. Who knew good ol' Puff would bring me to my senses... for today.

Adventures in Cloth Diapering: New Wipes!

2011-09-05T13:27:00.000-07:00

Since I just got a bunch of new diapers, I thought I'd freshen up my wipe stash too. I have been using wipes made by a friend which are one layer of flannel surged around the edges:

They definitely did the job! But I recently envisioned a new wipe that was more heavy duty, because sometimes you just need a little more than flannel. So I made some new wipes that are the best of both worlds - one side is terry cloth (for the dirty work) and the other is flannel (for a smooth finish!).

I started using the new wipes with John and I really like them. I am usually able to do a big job with only one wipe. I made a set of 20 wipes so that should be plenty. I still use the same spray bottle solution to get the wipe nice and moist before using it.

Adventures in Cloth Diapering: 2 years later...

2011-09-05T13:26:00.000-07:00

We have been cloth diapering for over two years now. If you've been around our blog that long, you'll know that we settled on Fuzzi Bunz. They are "One-Sized" meaning they are designed to last from birth to potty training.

Here is the series I posted when we were making all the decisions and getting into cloth diapering:

The beginning (We started with Bun Genius)
The sun is amazing (stain removal via sunlight)
Reviews and new diapers
And the winner is... (decision to use Fuzzi Bunz)
Cloth wipes
How I wash those smelly dipes

My review of Fuzzi Bunz and cloth diapering in general - 2 years later...

Smell - After the diapers are cleaned, they smell pretty neutral. I have noticed that once John goes pee the diapers smell like ammonia sometimes. After looking into this problem, I discovered that it is probably caused by soap build-up. This can be solved by "stripping" the diapers. I don't do this on a regular enough basis to know if it would really work. I have stripped the diapers and it does seem to help, but I generally just try to keep him in a dry diaper and deal with the stinking factor.
Repelling - Sometimes the diapers have repelled pee. For example, more than once the diapers have leaked and they weren't even wet! Again, this problem was solved with a good stripping.
Rash - About a year ago, John had a terrible rash. His skin was raw and welted to the point that cream would not stick to it. He had it for weeks and I was trying everything to get rid of it. We had to switch to disposables during this time because I didn't want to damage the cloth by using various creams that we were trying (you must use special creams on cloth diapering that won't build up on the fabric, which can cause more repelling). I believe the rash was caused by his "all night diaper" as we called it, which was a Fuzzi Bunz diaper with two absorbing inserts inside... let's just say he had a fluffy bum at night! His bottom just couldn't handle being exposed to all that moisture during the night and the diaper wasn't good at pulling the moisture away from his skin. I sought advice from many friends. One told me I should try athletes foot cream because it has an anti-fungal properties. She told me the key ingredient was Clotrimazole. I was willing to try anything, so we went and bought a tube of athlete's foot cream. It worked!! Within three days, the rash was pretty much gone. Two results came from that experience: 1. We keep athlete's foot cream in our diaper supplies, and 2. We put John in a disposable diaper at night. Thankfully, we have not had the problem again since the disposable keeps his skin dry at night.
Fitting - The one-sized Fuzzi Bunz diapers grows by adjusting the elastic in the legs and back. This system has worked well and the diapers have really grown with John. He is 2 years and 4 months old now and the diapers still fit!
Quality? - I still think the Fuzzi Bunz diapers are high quality. No, they are not white anymore and they've seen better days. But, since I've only had 8 diapers, these diapers have been through a lot of washing and wear. I use to have 9 diapers, but the PUL on one of the diapers started to separate, so I had to take it out of the rotation. I think this happened because I started drying the diapers in the dryer instead of air drying them - to speed up the process. Now I make sure to air dry them to prolong the life of the diapers.
The Verdict - I am very happy with Fuzzi Bunz and we just got more for Baby #2! My friends threw a shower for me a couple of weeks ago and they gave me a set of diapers! I requested a set of 12 so that I could have more in my rotation. It will be especially nice when John is potty trained and I can use all the diapers for Brother. So when John is out of diapers I will have 20 diapers to use for one child (a dream come true!).

Here are some pictures comparing old and new diapers:

New diapers!!

L-Old, R-New (Notice the old is pretty brown!)

Lining of the old diapers, the fabric is pilled and not as soft

New diaper lining - it's like a cloud!

Diaper inserts: L-Old, R-New (notice the old is brown and isn't as soft)

That wraps up my 2 year review! Let me know if you have any questions

Kitsap Fair

2011-09-05T10:02:00.000-07:00

We went to the Kitsap Fair two weeks ago. John loved seeing all the animals, but most of all - he loved the rides! Andrew took him on three rides and John was hooked! He also ate cotton candy for the first time. I'm not sure if he liked it, but he did eat it!

The fair holds a special place in my heart because I did 4-H when I was a child. Sewing, square dancing, and cats were my focus. For a few years, we camped at the fair the whole week, since we had to be there everyday anyway. This day trip to the fair brought back a lot of memories for me and I hope the fair will be a special event for our children too.

Camping with Friends

2011-09-04T13:00:00.000-07:00

Two summers ago we went camping with our good friends, the Herrings. We had so much fun and wanted to make it a tradition! Not sure why we didn't do it last summer, but we managed to revive the trip this year and invited our other friends, the Snyders, to come too!

The kids had a blast! And the grownups had a lot of fun too!

Air mattress + bouncing = Bloody nose for John =(

Loving the smores!

Home, sweet home!

Flying a kite for the first time!

Huckleberry Picking 2011

2011-09-03T09:03:00.000-07:00

Picking Crew 2011

A few weeks ago, we went on our annual family huckleberry picking trip. As always, it was a lot of fun! Every year has been a different experience because of John's age. My first year going, was right after our wedding (so if John was there he was very small!). John was only about 3 months old when I went the second time. Last year he was 15 months old and this year he was a little over 2 years old. I think this year he had the most fun because he was able to play with his second cousins and knew that camping was something special.

I did alright being about 7 months pregnant. I definitely took it easy though! We had an air mattress so that helped but it was still hard to get good-quality sleep.

We came away with four "pies-worth" of berries. I was not expecting to pick that many! I guess Andrew worked really hard because I think John and I only picked about a half a pie!

I love being part of Andrew's family and this long-standing tradition. It is always a highlight of the year!

Aunt Ruthie and Mom

Ready to pick

Look at all those berries!

John played with this car while I picked berries

Add caption

John's picking cup became my caddy for the camera and walkie-talkie

John and his second cousins

Fun in the dirt!

Can't wait till next year!!! =)

"Blue Airplane" By John

2011-08-29T18:00:00.000-07:00

Inspired by Actual Events...

2011-08-23T10:43:00.000-07:00

John loves the story of Humpty Dumpty. He will talk about it a lot and act it out with his stuffed animals. He asks me to sing it about 30 times a day!

Today John fell down and hit his head on a chair. He cried and said he was "just like Humpty Dumpty." I kissed him and he felt better. Thus we made an adaption to the story:

Humpty Dumpty: The Toddler Version

By John and Mommy

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall.

Humpty Dumpty had a great fall.

Then his mommy kissed him and he was all better!

Engagment Pictures 2008

2011-08-09T09:38:00.001-07:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

What happens when a 2-year-old snatches your camera...

2011-07-27T14:25:00.000-07:00

Family Trip to the Zoo

2011-07-26T14:21:00.000-07:00

On Sunday we took a much-needed family adventure to the zoo! I try to do fun things with John with our friends. We usually have weekly play dates with other moms and kids. But there is just something special about doing fun things as a whole family! I know Andrew wishes he could do more fun things with us, but he works very hard to support our family - and we appreciate it! =)

John had a great time looking at all the animals. He is at the perfect age for enjoying the zoo! Here are some pictures from our wonderful family day:

Loved the slide! =)

Baby #2 Update

2011-07-25T14:07:00.000-07:00

Baby belly pictures haven't been a common occurrence with Baby #2... oops! Today marks week 29, which means we only have *about* 11 weeks left. If he is anything like his older brother, we might have 12 weeks left.

Baby #2 - 28 weeks

We have been taking classes for the Bradley birthing method. It is a twelve week course - one night a week for two hours. Now we only have two classes left! I am shooting for a natural birth this time and I think this class has given us some good tools for getting through labor without drugs. We shall see! ;)

Thanks to those of you who have been keeping me and Baby in your prayers. All our doctor appointments and ultrasounds have gone well. So your prayers are working! Keep 'em coming!

2011 Garden

2011-07-13T14:11:00.000-07:00

We planted this garden several weeks ago. We were a little lazy this year and just used starter plants. Hopefully they will take off soon! We planted tomatoes, pumpkins, yellow squash, red onions, artichokes, spinach, snap peas, lettuce, and potatoes. John and I have fun watering it every morning. Here is what it looks like now. I will post more pictures as the plants grow.

Pre-school: Learning Letters

2011-07-11T16:05:00.000-07:00

I have been keeping an eye out for ways to integrate more formal learning for John during the day. I do realize that he is learning all.the.time and soaking up everything we say and do together. However, I want to make sure I am giving him some tools to begin a foundation for formal schooling - especially since he is interested in it.

For Christmas, Uncle Aaron bought John the Letter Factory from Leap Frog. I put it on John's wish list because it was mentioned in this great post I read on learning to read written by a homeschooling mother. John has been watching it probably once every other week, on average, and loves it! He also has learned most of his letter sounds by watching it and being quizzed with flash cards. He knows we are proud of him and so he is very proud of himself.

Several weeks ago I began reading a book called Mommy, Teach Me to Read. It is loaded with good ideas and I highly recommend it! I've already implemented some of the author's recommendations for teaching letters. I bought some magnetic letters and I let John just play with them when he wants. However, we do put them away after he is done with them because I want them to be a special toy and I don't want to lose any of them!! In a little while, I will use them for more formal teaching, but for now, he loves playing with them and making "words" with them. He lines them up on the fridge and makes the letter sounds. It's an especially great activity for him while I'm making dinner! ;) I started taking pictures of his words and telling him how proud I am of him. In the pictures below, you can see the progression of his own pride. At first he was uneasy about me taking a picture, but now he runs to me and asks me to take his picture with his words. Very cute!

Babies!!

2011-07-06T21:13:00.000-07:00

We have a lot of friends who are pregnant right now - there is quite the baby boom happening! =) So I have been going to a few baby showers lately and there are many more on the schedule in the next few months!

Corina and Me (and John...) at her shower

All the pregnant moms at Corina's shower

All the pregnant moms at Erin's baby shower in order of due date L-R

Fr. Bryan Ochs!

2011-06-17T12:04:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we were able to witness Bryan Ochs' ordination to the priesthood. He is a good friend from the Newman Center at WWU. The ordination Mass was beautiful and we are filled with joy for Fr. Ochs!

Praise God!

Organizing: Under the Sinks

2011-06-16T13:38:00.000-07:00

As you probably know, I love taking before and after pictures! I noticed recently that the areas under the sinks in the kitchen and bathroom were getting pretty disorganized. So I invested in some plastic drawers to help get inspired and organized.

Here is under the kitchen sink BEFORE:

AFTER:

Here is under one sink in the bathroom BEFORE:

AFTER:

And under the other bathroom sink BEFORE:

AFTER:

The Cousins

2011-06-15T15:21:00.000-07:00

A couple of weekends ago, we went up to Bellingham for our nephew's graduation. He was homeschooled, so they were able to have the actual ceremony at Mom and Dad's house. It was neat to see a homeschool graduation ceremony and I am glad we could be there. It was also a special weekend because John got to meet his cousins for the first time (they live in Nebraska). He loved his cousins and we sure wish we lived closer to them! Here are some pictures from the weekend:

All the cousins!

Hi!

2011-06-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

Well, it sure has been a while since my last post! May and the beginning of June were very busy, but I think (hope!) things will be slowing down. In the next few days I will share what we have been up to.

The current big news is that I decided to work on potty training with John. I think he is ready, and I am also ready. It would be nice if he had a good grip on it by the time Baby #2 is born. But I'm very relaxed about it and know that he might regress some after the baby is born. We have been working on it every day for the past 3 days. Progress has been made! Yesterday he was sitting on his potty chair and while I was reading a book to him he went pee! I called Andrew and he and my parents came running in to make a big deal about this achievement. We all clapped and John poured it in the toilet. He was beaming! =) I also gave him a lollipop and asked him why he was getting one - he said "toilet!" That's right, little man!

Today he spent some time wearing big-boy underwear. I told him that he needed to tell me if he had to go pee and not to get his big-boy underwear wet. He was playing quietly with some toys and then said with urgency, "pee-pee." We both got up and ran to his potty chair. He picked out a book for me to read and the second I started reading, he started going potty. I was so impressed that he is already learning to acknowledge the urge to go to the bathroom.

We have a long way to go - I've heard that it can take anywhere from 3 months to a year for kids to be fully daytime potty trained (nighttime is a whole other story!). But I am very proud of his progress!

Baby News

2011-05-24T14:22:00.000-07:00

Last Friday we had our mid-way ultrasound. I was SO excited because I love seeing our baby and we were hoping to find out the gender. We invited my parents and Andrew's parents, since they were in town for John's birthday. So the room was packed, as we all gazed upon the image of the new baby.

We did get a peek at the gender and it looks like we have another BOY! However, the technician advised us to "keep our receipts" (as she says to everyone). But the nice thing is we won't really have to buy much for this next baby since we already have some clothes and everything else that we saved from John.

We are so thrilled that John has a baby brother. We hope and pray that they will be good friends for the rest of their lives. We taught John to say "brother" - which he pronounces "brudder." SO cute!

Oregon Vacation

2011-05-24T14:02:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, we took a much-needed vacation to the Oregon coast! It was a lot of fun and we came back refreshed and ready for the ol' routine. Here are some things we did followed by a whole bunch of pictures:

Went on a couple beach walks
Went out to dinner every other night (yey for no dishes!)
Enjoyed a visit to the aquarium
Ate a lot of sweets and other yummy food!
Attempted to go on a tour of the Rogue Brewery, but I fainted during the first 10 minutes... (long story short, we ended up going to the ER but Baby and I are fine)
Andrew went on the brewery tour by himself later in the week
Went shopping at the Lincoln city outlet mall
Had a nice dinner and visit with my grandpa on the way back home

Apparently if you were to drink all the beer in one of these containers it would take you 26 years drinking a 6-pack every night! That's a lot of beer!!!

Notice George in the background - even he got to relax! =)

John turned 2!

2011-05-23T14:03:00.000-07:00

Our little guy is now two years old! It is hard to believe how fast those years have gone! His actual birthday was last Sunday, but we didn't have his party until yesterday. A lot of family and friends came over and the whole weekend was full of fun!

His big gift from us was a big-boy bedding set (airplanes, of course!):

His party was an airplane themed barbeque. When he woke up from his nap, nearly everyone was here! He was surprised and very happy. I loved watching him be a good host by making his rounds to all the guests. When he opened his gifts he was very good about saying "thank-you" and giving hugs to the gift-givers.

Here are some pictures from the big day:

Eating breakfast on his birthday plate

Measuring how much he grew over the year

Throwing rocks under the fence with his buddy

When he saw all the gifts he said "Oh boy!"

John's airplane cake

Happy birthday to our big boy, John! We love you!

Off to Oregon!!

2011-05-08T14:34:00.000-07:00

In one of my "quick take" posts, I mentioned that we were going on a vacation in Florida... well plans have changed and we are going to the Oregon Coast instead! The weather won't be as nice... but we are very excited just to have a week together as a family! =) We have a lot of plans, but the main item on the agenda is - relaxation!

We will come back home on John's birthday, but we won't be having a party until the next weekend. I can't believe he is almost 2 years old!! He is such a big boy!

I will post all about our trip when we get back!

Happy Mother's Day to all you mothers out there -

but especially to my dear mother and mother-in-law!

Beautiful Oregon, here we come!

Egg Wars 2011

2011-05-08T14:12:00.000-07:00

This event is a long-standing tradition in Andrew's family, and it is a fun way to add purpose to egg painting. Here are the rules that I posted on our blog last year:

1. Before we paint our eggs, we write a family member's name (or Saint's name) on them and they represent that person. We use a white crayon to write the names.
2. Each person uses their egg (since it is just me and Andrew, we will play for the other people we chose to represent).
3. You hold the eggs facing each other. One person goes first and taps their egg against the other person's egg (begin by doing nose to nose).
4. The person with the cracked egg turns the egg around to the other end and they tap that end to the other person's egg.
5. If both sides of your egg get cracked, the you are out and you punish your loser egg by devouring it with a dash of salt and pepper!
6. The winner goes on to challenge the other eggs.
Each day, we will tap eggs until we have two loser eggs (so we can each eat one for breakfast).

Click here to see a video of how it works (from the 2010 championship round).

Egg Wars 2011

Day 1
"Dad" vs. "Mom" ----> "Dad" is the winner!
"Dad" vs. "John" ----> "Dad" is the winner!

Day 2
"Dad" vs. "Baby" ----> "Dad" is the winner!
"Dad" vs. "Grandma St.H" ----> "Dad" is the winner!

Day 3
"Dad" vs. "Dymphna" ----> "Dymphna" is the winner! (*See note below)

Day 4
"Dympna" vs. "Grandma Sto" ----> "Grandma Sto" is the winner!
"Grandma Sto" vs. "Grandpa Sto" ----> "Grandma Sto" is the winner!

Day 5
"Grandma Sto" vs. "Grandpa St.H" ----> "Grandma Sto" is the winner!
"Grandma Sto" vs. "Joseph" ----> "Grandma Sto" is the winner!

Day 6
"Grandma Sto" vs. "Mary" ----> "Mary" is the winner!
Final round:

"Mary" vs. "Jesus" ----> "Mary" wins!!!!!

We felt bad that Jesus lost, but that's probably what He would've wanted anyway - He is a good Son and always puts His mother first! =)

*We will never truly know results of this years competition because on day 3 I accidentally tried to set a jar on "Dad" - the reigning champion up to that point. Needless to say, he got cracked and I sabotaged that round! =(

Easter!

2011-04-29T14:13:00.000-07:00

Our busy Holy Saturday was followed by an even busier Easter Sunday! We got all spruced up for the 7:30am Mass. It was a wonderful celebration of Christ's Resurrection and Father Lappe's Homily was great!

We came home and told John that there was something special hidden for him. He found his Easter basket in the net of his new basketball hoop! He was very excited about it, even though he is not smiling in the pictures...

We changed clothes and loaded up my parents' car. Then we drove to Edmonds for our annual Launceford family brunch at the Pancake Haus (a tradition that has going for over 15 years!). We forgot John's bib at home, so it was a challenge keeping him clean while eating pancakes smothered in strawberries and whipped cream! Then we all headed to my Aunt and Uncle's house for more visiting and an egg hunt for John. The big kids hid the eggs for him and we all enjoyed watching John's innocent pleasure and excitement in finding the eggs.

After that we headed up to my other Aunt and Uncle's house in Mukilteo (on my dad's side of the family). John fell asleep right as we got there, so we left him in the car to finish his nap (that we were worried would never happen!). We had a nice visit with them and John woke up eventually and got to play with his 2nd cousin, Alice.

The next stop was at my brother's house in Seattle for dinner. On our way down I-5, a couple miles before our exit, I looked over to the car next to us and thought the driver looked familiar. He was looking at me too and I quickly realized that he was Father Qui-Thac - the priest who celebrated our wedding! Andrew called him and invited him to join us for dinner. He was on his way to Lacey for a retreat and accepted our offer! =) So we had a great dinner with our family, Fr. Qui-Thac, and our friend Andrew, who lives with my brother. We are still so amazed that we noticed Father on the freeway, and just in time to invite him for dinner! It was Divinely arranged! And thank you to Aaron for cooking a great meal!

We had such a great visit over dinner that we lost track of time and didn't leave until 9:30pm - which means John had another late night. But other than that, I thought our Easter was perfect!

Holy Saturday

2011-04-28T13:35:00.000-07:00

Holy Saturday happened to land on my mom's birthday! We had a very busy but special day! I started the day out by getting a much-needed haircut. Then we all went with John to a public Easter egg hunt at a city park. We were about 15 minutes late and pretty much all the eggs were found already! We went up to one of the coordinators and she graciously gave us a few handfuls of candy and some empty plastic eggs so we could do our own little hunt for John. Grandma and Grandpa played with John on the playground while Andrew and I stuffed and hid some eggs in the woods. John caught on quickly and found all the eggs! It was very cute watching him! After he found an egg he wanted to open it right away and eat the candy inside - which he calls "cookie."

The egg hunt was followed by a nap for John, while I went out with my parents for some birthday shopping. When we got home, we painted eggs (aka - the contestants for "Egg Wars 2011").

Then we went out to dinner at Applebees. It was a full day and little Johnny didn't get to bed until about 10pm - usually he is in bed around 8pm. And since we had to go to the 7:30am Mass in the morning, that made the 6:30am wake-up call pretty difficult!

Palm Sunday Weekend

2011-04-27T10:54:00.000-07:00

We went up to Bellingham and enjoyed a wonderful family gathering. We arrived on Friday and left on Sunday night, so we had a nice long weekend up there. The weather was pretty nice and we got to take John to the park two days in a row!

On Saturday we had a family party and enjoyed the company of some extended family that we don't get to see that often. John really enjoyed playing with his second cousin, Sydney. She is eight years old, and John just adores her! She gave him her old basketball hoop, which he really loves! Even now that two weeks have passed, he still talks about her every day. The conversation is very predictable - this is how it goes:

John: Sydney?
Me: Did you get to play with your cousin Sydney?
John: Fun?
Me: Did you have a lot of fun with her?
John: Go?
Me: She had to go to her home.
John: Basket?
Me: She is so nice, she gave you her basketball hoop!
John: Home.
Me: And you got to bring it home with you!

Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Another Sunny Day

2011-04-12T15:11:00.000-07:00

Fortunately the weather.com people seem to be wrong about their predictions of rain... so far! We have had two beautiful days in a row; although yesterday was rather cold and windy. Today John and I decided to take advantage of the nice weather and go to the park down the street. We had a lot of fun there and then I decided we had enough time to journey a few blocks down to the water front. It was perfect timing because we got to see the ferry coming and going while we were there! We even saw a sea lion! Too bad I didn't get a good picture of it. =( There was an older boy at the beach who was throwing rocks in the water - one of John's favorite things to do! So John was huge fan of him right away. I loved how he watched him and tried to imitate him. So cute!

The Wonderful World of John

2011-04-12T13:28:00.000-07:00

John loves to play. When he first wakes up he usually comes over to my side of the bed and tries to pull the covers off - saying, "play? play?" I'm not the best playmate at 7 in the morning, but once I am fully awake, I truly love entering into John's world of Playtime. He has so much imagination and I love getting to act like a kid again.

Lately, my playtime alter-ego is George the monkey:

John demands that I act as George for most of playtime. It was really fun at first, but this gig has been going on for a couple of months, so it can get a little old... After a day of play, it's nice to be just me again. John loves George, so I usually comply when he runs to me lifting George high in the air saying, "Dorge, Dorge!"

Here are some things John likes to do with George:

George will stack the blocks


John knocks them over

George cries

John makes him feel all better!

I caught John "fixing" George's eyes the other day with his power drill. After I dismissed the grotesque image of him actually taking a power drill to someones eye - I thought it was rather... compassionate?

George is also a great friend to have on a rainy day!

This kid sure needs a sibling to play with!! =)

In this video, you'll see me trying to get John to color for the camera. You'll also see how he does not do what I ask him to do - but the moment George asks him the same request, he does it immediately!

Playdate at the Park

2011-04-09T15:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we had a very nice morning playing at Evergreen park with our friends - Lauren, Elena, and Madeleine. It has been so rainy lately and John and I have been so sick of staying indoors! I checked weather.com and apparently yesterday was the only nice day for another week or so (bummer! I hope the weather people are wrong). So we took advantage of the sun and had some good times! We played on the playground, went on the floating dock, threw rocks in the water, chased birds and squirrels, and we even got an ice cream cone! I'm looking forward to many days like this!

Making a new friend. She gave him the stick, so he was happy!

Truest Demonstration of Faith

2011-04-08T21:17:00.000-07:00

Thy Will Be Done

There was an article that I read a couple of days ago in a newsletter that Samaritan Ministries (our health care) puts out every month. The story is about a man and his family who are part of our health sharing ministry. It was so moving that I had to share it with you! I cried a lot when I read it and John was so confused. I tried to explain to him that the words were sad, but he didn't get it. He kept wiping my tears.

Here is the beginning of the story, I really recommend reading the whole thing:

As I ran up to him, the first thing I noticed was the Bible. It was small, a pocket-sized book, in black leather. It had apparently been knocked out of his clothing when the car hit him, and had landed beside him in the snow, down off the shoulder of the road.

That was yesterday, a few minutes after 7 in the morning. It was frigid and there was accumulation and black ice and two cars had slid off the busy Interstate. He had stopped and gotten out to help. He had been on the way to work, with his son, and he saw the motorists who needed help and he stopped. Countless others of us drove on by. But he stopped... (Read the rest here)

What really struck me was the description of the wife's prayer for her husband:

Then she knelt and began to pray.

She may have held his hand, she may have leaned in toward his head. As she spoke, I cast my eyes down and reverently listened. She addressed God. Whether she called him “Dear Lord” or “Heavenly Father” or something else, I can’t recall. But she addressed him, and then she thanked him. And she offered him praise. Her words were not words of pleading, they were words of praise and gratitude. And then she said something like, “If today you wish to call him home and take him from us – thy will be done.”

Thy will be done.

The line from the Lord’s Prayer. The hardest part of faith. At a moment when most of us would be begging God to give us what we want – to spare us our loved one – she asked the Lord to do his will, what he wanted. She trusted him, and had faith in him.

Where could there be a truer test or demonstration of faith than in the snow beside the broken and near lifeless body of your sweetheart and spouse? In that situation, there can be no pretense, no show, only the heartfelt honesty of a soul in direct communion with its Creator.

And in her moment of test, in her own Gethsemane, she literally prayed, like her Savior before her, not my will, but thine, be done.

But if it was not his time to die, if the Lord did not want to call him home, she asked for his life, for her and their children, and strength through the weeks of hospitalization and recovery.

After I read that part, I felt silly for crying. Here I am - a stranger - and I was crying as if this were my own husband. While she had the strength and conviction to ask for God's will to be done and that this whole situation add to the glory of God. I really hope and pray that God will give me the grace to act the same way when I face trials in my own life. This made me realize how much I have to learn about real sacrificial love.

When I read this portion of the story to Andrew he commented on how she was acting like Mary, our Blessed Mother, did during Christ's passion and death. Surely it was very heart-wrenching to watch her Son suffer so, but she knew it was for the glory of God and she desired to be submissive to His will.

This wife and mother is such a great example for me and I will always remember her story. If you didn't have a chance to read the whole story, her husband did die - and now she is a widow with eight children to care for. May Our Lord give her the strength and joy she needs to persevere in this life and be reunited with her beloved in Heaven.

7 Quick Takes ~ Vol. 22

2011-04-01T23:44:00.000-07:00

1. I had my first doctor's appointment on Wednesday. Everything went well and I got to hear Baby's heartbeat! Today I was looking back at our blog from when I was pregnant with John. It's neat to compare my experience and I am thankful that I kept a record.

2. Poor John keeps getting any cold he comes in contact with. He has a cold right now and today he felt horrible. I could tell by the way his eyes were red and squinty and his nose was draining all day - not to mention his terrible cough! At one point he was snuggled on the couch watching Blues Clues and I was cleaning up the kitchen. I hear his little voice "Hi. Hi. Hi..." I figured something must be up, so I went and checked on him. The poor guy had snot all down his lips and chin, yet he was politely trying to get my attention! We hope he feels better very soon!

3. I've had a few bouts of nausea with this pregnancy. But I saw the sliver lining today when John threw up in the kitchen, I took him right to the toilet and he knew to finish throwing up there because he has seen me do it a few times. So I guess I've been a good example for him...

4. Last week I made one of our favorite Indian dishes, Tikka Masala. I serve it over basmati rice (seasoned with salt and turmeric), and with Naan (Indian bread). I've experimented a lot with different Naan recipes - and I've been very unhappy with the results. It never turns out quite like they serve it at restaurants. So just for fun I experimented in a lazy way this time. I defrosted Rhodes Dinner Rolls as directed but then to bake them, I rolled them flat, broiled them in the oven on high on each side, and brushed melted butter and garlic salt on them. Surprisingly, they turned out amazing!!! They were light, fluffy, and bubbly - just like in the Indian restaurants we've been to. To top it off, while we were eating Andrew looked at me and said "This is a five!" Those four words meant so much to me. As I've mentioned before, we have a five star rating system (1-hate it 2-it was OK 3-it was good 4-it was great 5-it was amazing!). Fives are very hard to come by! So basically it's like he said "You're the best cook ever!" I was beaming for the rest of the night!

5. One of John's favorite things to do is blow kisses - not necessarily to be affectionate, more to be funny. It all started when we taught him to blow kisses at bed time. When he got the hang of it we made a joke by pretending to be blown away by his kiss. We would stumble backward and say "Woah!" This would get a great laugh out of him! But now he does it all. the. time. Which is fine, but some days I think I am going to get whip lash from all the blowing! We'll try to get it on video and post it, cause it is really cute!

6. John and I are really looking forward to nicer weather. He loves going outside, which he calls "side!?" But lately it has been rainy, so we've been cooped up inside. I promised him yesterday, as we gazed out the window at the rainy world, that it will soon be nice more often and we will go outside every day! I hope I can hold true to my word!

7. John has some cute words that he has come up with lately. He calls spiders and other bugs "paully." We have a stuffed animal that is a squirrel and he calls it "coy-ly." He has also seen squirrels outside and he gets very excited "coy-ly! coy-ly!"

Baby St.Hilaire II

2011-03-18T13:21:00.000-07:00

We just had our first ultrasound this morning and met the newest addition to our family! Baby is due in mid-October which means that right now I am about 10 weeks along. We are so very thrilled!

I happily present to you Baby St.Hilaire II:

Have fun decoding the pictures! =)

Can you see the tiny foot and toes? =)

7 Quick Takes ~ Vol. 21

2011-03-18T11:36:00.000-07:00

1. I've been taking a little break from blogging lately. Life has been pretty busy, but I plan on getting back into the swing of things during Lent. I have a lot of ideas for posts, so stay tuned! =)

2. Lessons in the kitchen: My world has forever changed... I was never really sure how to chop an onion. To be honest, I've always been frightened of the slippery layers of an onion - fearing for my poor fingers who could easily be victims of the knife. But all that has changed now, after watching this video on how to chop an onion! (H/T Shelly!)

3. Potential trip: We are still working out the details, but it is very likely that we will get to take a vacation to Florida! Andrew has a one-day conference to go to, and SwingSetMall.com will be covering the costs of this portion of the trip (including his flight round-trip). So we thought it would be a nice way to save some money, since he is going anyway, and make it a family trip. We are hoping to be there for about a week. It will be so nice to have some down time and relax in a sunny place. The trip will be in May right before John's birthday, which means that he will (barely) fly for free!

4. Friends: Several weeks ago we had a delightful visit with our friends Andrew and Molly. It is so refreshing to spend time with our friends. We even squeezed one of our favorite games - Settlers of Catan!

5. Date Night: We went out on a date last Saturday and saw The King's Speech. I know it's been out for a while, so everyone else has already seen it - but it was very good! =) I even found myself Googling more information about the British monarchy. (Funny side note: I just googled the word "googling" to make sure that people say that... haha)

6. Video: Check out this great video to promote Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament for college students:

7. St.Hilaire Family Recipe: Here is the recipe for the Soda Bread that we had last night:

Grease pan - heat oven to 350 F
Sift together in a large bowl: 4 c flour, 2 T sugar, 3 T baking powder, 1 t salt, and 1 t baking soda
Add 1/2 c corn oil and mix with fork or pastry blender until fine crumbs form (optional: stir in 1 c raisins and 1 T caraway seed)
Mix together 1 c buttermilk and 1 egg. Gradually add to flour mixture, stirring until soft dough forms
Turn out onto floured board
Knead lightly about 10 times or until smooth
Shape into ball, place in prepared plan, flatten lightly, and cut a cross on top of loaf
Brush with corn oil
Bake about 50 min or until brown
Cool on a rack

Happy St. Patrick's Feast Day!

2011-03-17T19:46:00.000-07:00

John and I went grocery shopping yesterday and we saw our favorite grocery checker there, Annie. She is so fun and we always choose her lane over the others even if there is a wait. John always loves to see her. Yesterday she was wearing a St. Patrick's day headband. John was intrigued, so she let him wear it. I warned John that we had to give it back, and she generously told us to have it - she has plenty more. That was SO nice! Needless to say, John wore it a lot today and got some great compliments from his friends at Mothers' Group this morning.

Here at the St.Hilaire household, we just finished enjoying a yummy Irish-inspired meal: Soda Bread (recipe from Mom St.Hilaire), and Guinness Beef Stew served over a mound of Colcannon. It was delicious and we gave the meal 4 stars (out of 5) - which is very good; we reserve the 5 star for only the finest cuisine known to man (in our humble opinions).

Happy Feast of St. Patrick!

PS. Today is also my conception day too! Thanks, Mom and Dad!! =)

Valentine Cake

2011-02-17T22:48:00.000-08:00

As the leader of the Pro-Life Youth Committee at our Church, I put a lot of work in planning our annual Couples' Dinner which was last Saturday. This year our theme was"Wedding Reception." Part of the evening included a couple (randomly chosen) cutting a cake. I wanted to have a cake that was very pretty but also frugal. So I decided to make it myself. I used this recipe to make the fondant. The cake topper is a Valentine figurine that I got at the Dollar Tree. I also couldn't have done it without borrowing a lot of supplies from my friend who is a pastry chef (Thanks, Emily!).

I was very proud of the end result!

21 Months Old!

2011-02-16T21:20:00.000-08:00

Grandma and Grandpa St.Hilaire came for a visit last weekend. John really loves being with them and it was hard to say goodbye! This picture was taken right before they left and I love how John grinned for the camera.

John is now 21 months old and his vocabulary is really blossoming. He says many words, but more than anything, he understands a lot of what we say to him! Today he was looking for his little cat figurine and I said "I think it is on the floor in our bedroom, go check for it!" And he ran off and came back in a few moments with the cat!

We have so much fun together every day! I am really loving this age!

Here are some of John's new words:

"Bo-bo" - Elbo or knee
"Toe" - Toes
"Cookie" - He says this pretty clearly and he uses it for anything sweet
"Boat"
"Bo" - Bowl
"May-may" - Cat; one of his cutest word creations. I'm not sure how he came up with this, but he has been saying it for several weeks. We recently went to the park and he ran over to a tree and said "May-may!!" He was remembering last November when we saw a cat up in that tree! I was amazed at his good memory and that he applied his new word to a past event.
"Uh-oh" - Probably his most commonly used word, he says it when something falls or is unexpected
"Choo-choo" - Train

He likes playing in the sink while I make dinner.

He stands on a chair and I spread a towel down to minimize the mess.

No more crib! John is now in a big bed!

Book Reviews

2011-01-24T13:33:00.000-08:00

John and I try to go to the library at least once a month. I've been reviewing the books we check out so I can get them again later and this list will help me remember which ones we enjoyed. Now I am going to make it available to you! Click HERE to see an alphabetic list of the books and my reviews of them. I also added a link to this list on the side column near the bottom of the page. If you have any book recommendations for toddlers, let me know! We love to read!

Establishing a Routine

2011-01-20T21:48:00.000-08:00

John and I tend to have lazy mornings, especially when we have no where to go. Sometimes I am astonished at how long we stay in our jammies. Yesterday I decided to try to be better about having a morning routine.

I took pictures of him doing all the different parts of his morning routine and made a book about his morning. I know it will be really good for John and train him to have good habits and be more independent as time goes on. Also this will help me to stay on track too! - Actually it is probably more for me than it is for him!! =)

This morning was our first time using the book. When he woke up, I grabbed the book and we did all the things that he is shown doing in the book. It worked really well. I plan on doing this every morning until he is able to predict each step of the routine.

Moving to Hawaii...

2011-01-19T10:44:00.000-08:00

Unfortunately the title for this post is not about us! Andrew and I would love to take a vacation to Hawaii, but at this point we are very happy living where we are. ;)

No, this post is about some dear friends of ours who are going to be stationed in Hawaii until June. So it won't be a long separation, but we will definitely miss them. We got together with them last night for a farewell dinner. John and his buddy, James, get along so well. I know they will miss their play dates together. They hugged and kissed each other goodbye - it was super cute!

So long for now!

Fashion Faux Pas?

2011-01-17T09:01:00.000-08:00

It's been raining a lot lately here in Bremerton, and I'm struggling with a temptation right now, which has been brewing inside me for several years...

I'd really like to start using those rain bonnets that are stereotypically reserved for old ladies.

In all seriousness - think of the practicality! Here in Washington, who even uses an umbrella anymore? They can be bulky, something extra to hold, and awkward. Yet I would still like to have a way that I can keep my hair dry, especially on the days that I actually try to make my hair look good. I have one problem... my sweet husband would never want me to wear one of these!!! So out of respect him, I am going to resist this temptation with ~~all~~ some of my might.

Actually, in writing this post I found some "trendy" rain bonnets - Here is a an etsy store that sells bonnets made out of umbrella fabric. And here is one being sold on a European website (I really have my eye on that one!).

Maybe he would go for one of those?

Our big boy!

2011-01-15T10:18:00.000-08:00

Today John turned 20 months old! It's hard to believe that he will turn two in only four short months! Here are some highlights from John at 20 months:

His favorite toys right now are little cars that he can wheel all around the house. As I type this he has one car in each hand and is driving them on the couch's rough terrain.
He really likes to accessorize (in a manly way of course) - hats, boots, mittens, scarfs...
He has a minor obsession with hats. He will often say "at" (hat) and put his hand on his head when he wants to wear a hat. Or he will say "at go" when he wants to put a hat on and go somewhere. For some reason when ever he sees Grandpa St.Hilaire, he says "at?" and wants him to put a hat on.
Other new words for him include:

"Bay-be" - baby
"wa-wa" - water, but he also could be referring to any other drink
"ca" - car
"guh" - glove, he does have mittens but he prefers to wear socks on his hands right now. He will bring me socks and say "guh!" insisting that I put them on his hands.
"doos-doos" - blues clues or choo-choo train (they sound the same)
"Ma" - grandma
A whispered "pa-pa" - grandpa
"go" - goat
"up"
"mo" - more

I have started teaching him letter sounds with the help of the short video "Letter Factory" by Leap Frog. It is a fun video and teaches letter sounds in a neat way. The only letter sound he is confident in is "H." My parents got him some alphabet blocks for Christmas and he will find the "H" and make its sound. We always assume he is panting because he sees a dog, but then realize he is making the "H" sound!

He is such a sweet little boy and very sociable. He likes playing with his friends in childcare while I go to Mothers' Group every Thursday at our church. A few weeks ago I went to pick him up and he had some older friends saying "Bye John!" It was really cute to hear little kids saying his name and treating him so nicely.

Here are some pictures of John from our friends' wedding in December

(Congratulations Marc and Nichole!!):

John and Clare had fun dancing together, it was really cute!

Under the gift table proved to be the biggest entertainment for all the toddlers!

Gotta love this action shot of him hitting his head on the table!

Here is John playing in a box full of peanuts. He loved playing in it until the box tipped over and he hit his head and spilled peanuts everywhere! =(

Visit from Mom and Dad St.Hilaire {New Years Eve}

2011-01-14T15:20:00.000-08:00

New Years Eve was crazy this year! I was on call with a friend who was due to deliver her baby any day. She has four other children all under five and she needed someone to watch them when the time came. Well, the time came on New Years Eve. I was able to rush out the grocery store and stock up on some food for the weekend. We were also expecting Andrew's parents to arrive that day for a post-Christmas visit. His parents arrived before I went to pick up the kids, so I was able to leave John with them. I came back driving a 15 passenger van; which, by the way, was a small victory for me - I was very nervous about driving something that big, but it really wasn't that bad! The whole evening and the next morning are kind of a blur so I am going to have to organize my memories in bullet points:

I made sushi for the first time (see picture below)
We watched some Veggie Tales
We celebrated the New Year with New York and the kids toasted with sparkling cider
Our place is small, so we had the kids sleep on the floor in our room, so we could stay up and play games in the living room
They all went to bed very easily!! I was so impressed!
We stayed up until about 1:30am
The youngest child woke up coughing at 3am and again at 4am, I soothed him both times
I got a text around 5am saying that they new baby was born!
The kids all woke up at 7:30am
I was tired
I made waffles while they watched Thomas the Train
We cleaned up and I drove them home at 10:30am

I was very happy to watch the kids and help out my friend. Her children behaved amazingly, so nothing really went wrong. It was just a big adjustment for me to have five kiddos in tow.

New Years Eve dinner

Our first moments in 2011

Mom and Dad St.Hilaire were able to stay until Monday morning, so we enjoyed some quality time with them. We played games, watched a movie, and ate good food - including my first attempt at homemade ice cream! They came bearing many gifts and we loved them all. We put them all out under the tree and on Sunday we had a second "Christmas morning." One gift that we were honored to receive was a picture that belonged to Grandma Reilly (Andrew's Mom's Mom). Mom said that she thinks it originally belonged to Grandma Reilly's mother. So this is a family heirloom! It was given to us by our cousin Erin, who was very generous in letting us enjoy it in our home.

Grandma Reilly's picture

New cozy coat!

"Helping" me make pizza with his new apron

I made this ice cream and it was SO easy and yummy!

We always love visits with Mom and Dad. Saying goodbye is the hard part!

Launceford Christmas Party

2011-01-13T17:19:00.000-08:00

In my childhood we would always go to my Grandma and Grandpa Launceford's house on Christmas Eve. I have many fond memories of this event. There were only three grandchildren (my brother, me, and a cousin who is a year older than me), until I was nine years old. Everyone got us a gift, so we were very spoiled! We would always eat and visit first, but the three of us grandkids would be very anxious to go downstairs where the glorious tree and all the presents were. We would often get permission to go down early and organize the gifts. The anticipation was almost unbearable.

After I turned nine, three baby boys were born - from three different families. After that, our family kept growing and growing! Currently, there are twelve grandchildren in all, plus one great-grandchild (little John!). Times have changed... the wonderful company has remained the same (except for my dear grandpa who is now in his eternal Home), but we don't gather on Christmas Eve anymore or at my grandma's house. Also the gift giving is pretty different since there are so many of us. Now we each bring one generic gift and draw names to see who picks a gift first. When a name is picked that person can either open a new gift or take one that has already been opened. It is fun and lighthearted.

In all honesty, I nostalgically envy the consistency of the old traditions and plethora of gifts we received as kids. However, as an adult, I appreciate and realize the greater importance of enjoying the company of my extended family. All the grandkids are getting older, which means they will soon be going off to college and choosing their own paths in life. So at this moment, I am savoring this season of life where I can create new memories with my wonderful relatives. Times may change, but the love we share will always remain.

I've been promoted to the grown-up table!!!

John received this from Great-Grandma. He loves it!

John with Great Aunt Karen - wearing a mistletoe headband!

I joined in on the silly headband fun...

Christmas 2010

2011-01-12T10:19:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning was pretty magical. It was neat seeing John's excitement, though he definitely was not expecting all the gifts and treats. We got up early and went to the 8:15am Mass. We had to wake John up because he usually sleeps in until 9am (I know, I am one lucky mama!). The first video below is of John after we got him dressed for Mass. He wasn't sure what to make of all the presents under the tree.

After Mass we opened our gifts to each other and then went upstairs to be with my parents, brother, and grandpa. One of the best moments of the day was when we walked into my parent's house. Andrew and I were greeting my brother and mom, but John ran past us. He made a mad dash for the tree and fell half way there, only to quickly rise to his feet to continue his sprint. We thought he was just excited to see more presents, but he had his eye on a gift that was not wrapped. My parents got him a Strider bike! He grabbed the bike and swung his leg over the seat - as if he's known how to ride a bike his whole life. It was the cutest thing! His raw joy and excitement was contagious to all of us.

We all opened gifts to each other, ate yummy food, and played games together. Christmas was very special this year because we had an honored guest with us - my grandpa. He lives in Oregon, so I do not get to see him much. It was quite a treat to celebrate with him. He is known for his ability to recite long poems from memory, so listening to his recitations added to the perfection of our Christmas day this year.

Advent & Christmas Crafts

2011-01-11T10:42:00.000-08:00

My goal is to do a few crafts each year so that a lot of our Christmas decorations will eventually be homemade. This year I made a tree skirt that was inspired by this pattern.

I also made a stocking for John.

I made a few batches of cookies and attended a cookie exchange. I really think cookie exchanges are the best way to get a great variety of treats with the least amount of effort! John even joined in my cookie decorating efforts! I got the idea from Life as a Mom. She suggested using pastry brushes, but I didn't have any so I used baby spoons. I think brushes would have worked better - I had to help John a lot! Mom St.Hilaire told me that she used to have her kids paint the cookies before they were baked with an egg yolk mixture, which looks neat when baked. I think I will try that next year!

We did not have an Advent wreath last year or for most of this year. I ordered one from Bronners, but it didn't come until the 4th week of Advent. To tide us over, I drew a wreath on the chalk board in our kitchen and added a flame each week. We also hung the cards that we received around the boarder:

Tree Decorating in Bellingham

2011-01-10T12:56:00.000-08:00

Every year that Andrew and I have been together, I have participated in cutting and decorating Andrew's parents' tree. It is a cherished tradition for me, and we wouldn't miss it for anything... unless it was snowing. We just don't drive in the snow - too risky!

Fortunately, the weather was great. So we took a trek up to Bellingham and hunted for the perfect tree:

We found it!

Then we decorated it with all of the St.Hilaire ornaments while singing along with Elvis' Christmas album:

Even John got in on the action!

Annual family Christmas portrait:

Advent

2011-01-09T09:26:00.000-08:00

Advent Party: John and I hosted a party for our friends and we made paper chains to countdown the days till Christmas. It was fun to have a big crowd at our house! John didn't really get the idea of ripping off the chains each day... maybe next year!

Advent Calendar: Last year (2009), Grandma and Grandpa St.Hilaire gave John an Advent calendar that has a piece of the Nativity scene for each day. It took a little time and discipline, but he quickly learned to take the piece out of the pocket and place place it on the scene above. I also put a candy cane kiss in each pocket - which he enjoyed very much. It wasn't long before he knew what the words "Advent calendar" meant. Whenever I said those words he would get a huge grin on his face and run to it!

Waiting: This year we made a concerted effort to hold off on our celebrations until Christmas. As a child, I was always hauling out the boxes of our family's decorations the day after Thanksgiving. So waiting was a challenge for me. I wasn't sure if we would just hold off on our tree or on all decorations, until I recognized that our church does not decorate at all until Christmas Eve. I want our home to reflect the church, so I decided it would be best to only have our Advent calendar and wreath out until Christmas Eve.

The best part of waiting to get the tree is that we got our tree for a dollar at Rite Aid!! It is still standing proudly in our living room, but we will be taking it down later today and putting all our decorations away. I definitely was very excited to put it up on Christmas Eve, but it made for a very busy day... Andrew and I may do it differently next year. It is fun figuring out how we want to celebrate these holidays in our own family.

Where has the time gone?

2011-01-08T21:23:00.000-08:00

Seriously? I have not updated this blog since the beginning of December?? Wow, I guess we have been busy around here. During the course of this week I will attempt to give an update on all of the things that have happened in our lives since I last wrote. For today, I will share our letter that we sent out with our Christmas cards, written by my wonderful husband:

~ ~ ~

Dearest Family & Friends,

Peace be with you as we celebrate the joyous occasion of the birth of Our Savior this Christmas season!

This letter is getting out a wee bit later than we had hoped, but hey, thank goodness the twelve days of Christmas come after December 25th and not before! And now that the new year is looming, we look back in amazement at another year gone by in the blink of an eye.

In May, we celebrated John’s first birthday. Around the same time he began to take his first steps, and since then the world has never been the same. John loves to run around the house, climb on furniture, and generally tear the house apart. Lindsey can usually keep up with him, but on her busier days you can definitely tell where our sweet little boy has left his mark. Throughout the year he has gone from one fixation to another. It used to be pens and then cellphones. More recently his fascination has been with hats. He also loves to wear his red rubber boots around the house all day, sometimes from the moment he gets out of bed.

Although fluent in his own native language, John is still working on speaking English. “Hat... go?” is his way of telling us he’d like to put his hat on so he can go outside and play. “Auh?” he says as he points to something he wants. One of his favorite things to say is “BY-e”, with sort of a Southern drawl, as he smiles and waves at strangers passing by or as he’s leaving the room. Everyone loves to see his cheery face, especially his “Mama” and “Dada”, who feel so blessed to have him entrusted to their care.

In January, I began working part-time for our parish, Our Lady Star of the Sea, to help with marketing and web management, in addition to working at SwingSetMall.com. Having both jobs and working six days a week have definitely kept things busy, but we feel fortunate to have the extra income which has helped us to pay off all our debts and get us closer to owning a home (just waiting for home prices to fall a bit more in Malibu). At SwingSetMall.com, we’ve had a record year of sales and growth. Without going into details which would violate the terms of the confidentiality agreement (in which case I would have to kill all of you), let’s just say the business is doing better than ever and showing promising signs of continued growth in large part due to this thing called advertising. Praise God! We hired a new employee in September to fully manage the warehouse and shipping, and although Glenn is still not keen on my idea of hiring an in-house sushi chef, I think that day is coming soon. :)

Lindsey has been staying busy with all of her duties as a (wonderful) homemaker. She finds a lot of fulfillment and meaning in the little things she does each day. She is also leading a mothers group at our church which meets every week. She tries to reach out to our friends and have lots of play dates for John. Fortunately, we are blessed to be in a community where there are many moms who are homemakers, so Lindsey feels blessed to have so much support.

Another important part of our lives has been our continued involvement in pro-life work. This year Lindsey helped lead the Pro-Life Youth Committee at our church. I am still co-directing the Anti-Choice Project, now a non-profit organization, with our good friend Tom. Other highlights of the year include attending 5 weddings of some of our dear friends; a trip to Bellingham to be with my two sisters, Jenny and Marie, who were visiting from out of state; several batches of homebrew; more than one trip to the mechanic; going to a Dave Matthews Band concert with friends; and of course our annual camping trip to Mt. Adams to pick huckleberries.

We love you all and hope to hear from you soon. May you have a blessed Christmas season and a happy new year!

Love,
Andrew, Lindsey and John

Elf Storage

2010-12-04T14:42:00.000-08:00

Last December, when we came home from our trips to Bellingham, we noticed this sign:

(Photo courtesy of exit133.com)

We thought the "S" in "self" was just brunt out, but that it was a funny coincidence for the season. However, we also noticed that once Christmas was over, the sign was fixed! Hmmm, maybe it wasn't a mistake...

Sure enough, as we made our way back home from Thanksgiving, we were on the look out, and saw that the "Tacoma Elf Storage" was back! We were so excited, we actually cheered! I hope they keep it up every year so John can learn to appreciate it!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-12-03T22:11:00.000-08:00

We had quite an eventful Thanksgiving week! We decided to leave pretty early on Wednesday to head for Bellingham. There was still snow on the ground from Monday, but it seemed pretty safe. We didn't want to drive in the evening for fear of the road getting icy. We were blessed to have left early because once we got to Lynnwood Andrew noticed that our car was in the red zone on our temperature gauge. We found a mechanic that could look at our car, but not until Friday. So we toyed with the idea of leaving our car and renting a car for a couple of days. As it turned out, once we got to the mechanics, Andrew asked if they were sure they couldn't squeeze us in that day. The man said he would see what he could do. We waited for about an hour, not sure if they were even working on it. Sure enough, they were able to fix it and we were on our merry way again...

Until we drove another 50 miles or so. Andrew noticed that the car was getting hot again. We made it safely to Bellingham and decided to take the car in again on Friday.

Thanksgiving day was SO wonderful! We woke up to a flurry of snow falling from the sky with about 2 inches of fresh snow on the ground. I love the feeling of being stuck at home when I have no where to go!

I provided the mashed potatoes, as I have for 3 years in a row, and they were very yummy! (I'm a sucker for good mashed potatoes). Mom St.Hilaire cooked a feast! Jenna brought the green beans. It was a very delightful dinner, with exceptional company!

Thanksgiving dinner

There was a crazy rain and wind storm on Thursday night. When we woke up, there was hardly a trace of snow on the ground! On Friday we took the car in again. They told us it wasn't going to be finished until Monday. We were supposed to leave on Saturday morning because I had a baby shower to go to back home. I was very sad to have to miss the shower, but it was nice to have a couple of extra days with Andrew's family! I was also able to catch up with a few friends.

Dinner on Friday night (second round of Thanksgiving dinner!)

Grandma let John play in her kitchen drawers! =)

While we were there we watched the movie Karol: A Man Who Became Pope. It was so inspirational and I highly recommend it. I was worried that the actor playing Karol would not be good enough to play the role, but I was quite impressed by him. Watching this movie made me think about what really matters in life: our relationship with God! It was appropriate to watch for Thanksgiving, because it reminded me of how thankful I am to be part of such a wonderful Church!

We picked up the car on Monday and headed home... only to see that the engine was still getting hot. =( We're not sure what to do now.

First Snowfall of the Year!

2010-11-22T14:04:00.000-08:00

We woke up this morning to a thin blanket of snow on the ground! John didn't care too much, but he liked looking out the window at it. Before his nap, I took him out to play in the snow for a bit. He wasn't sure what to make of it and he didn't seem to want to touch it either. It's still snowing out there, but we hope it melts away by Wednesday so we can go enjoy our Thanksgiving in Bellingham with Mom and Dad St.Hilaire.

18 months

2010-11-17T14:21:00.000-08:00

John turned 18 months old on Monday. That's right - he is a year-and-a-half-old! Whew, seems like yesterday I was in awe about him turning nine months old - and being outside in the world as long as he was growing inside me. Now he is TWICE that old!

I am so proud to be John's Mamma. He has his moments, but overall he is such a good kid! Here is a snapshot of John at 18 months:

He says cracker - "ka-ka" (same noise for bird!)
I can ask him if he went poop and he will shake his head "no" or "yes" - and he is usually right. Potty training - here we come! ;)
He gives kisses and they are so precious. Sometimes I will be playing with him and he will randomly lean in for a kiss. I love it when he does that!
He is a great sleeper and he likes to sleep with his Jesus doll that Grandma and Grandpa St.Hilaire gave him for Christmas last year. When we put him in his crib he will often grab Jesus under his arm and snuggle.
When I ask him to say "please" he smiles and nods his head, but never says it.
He is really getting attached to his Da-da. During the day he will often call out for him and when he gets up in the morning he says "da-da?"
Every Saturday we have homemade pizza and eat popcorn with a movie. Because of these special things, John loves Saturday nights! He enjoys helping me make the pizza. He pushes a chair across the floor and climbs up all by himself. He tries to "help" me mix the dough, but he isn't so helpful with that part. However, he is really helpful when it comes to assembling the pizza - he is sure good at dumping the cheese on!

We love you, little guy!

7 Quick Takes ~ Vol. 20

2010-11-06T21:29:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since I've done quick takes... but I think it will be a nice way to catch up with the current events around here.

1. Visitors: A few weeks ago, we enjoyed hosting our sister, Christina, her mother, Liz, and Mom and Dad St.Hilaire. This was my first time meeting Liz and I have not seen Christina since our wedding. Their visit came as a surprise, but we were quite delighted! I had a lot of fun cooking and baking for them. One morning I made scones and decided to dig out my tea set from our stored boxes in the basement. I have never actually used the tea set, and this was the perfect occasion! I've always thought it would be nice to have a sister, and I am so glad I have gained five through our marriage! =) They brought a movie for us to watch called Sophie Scholl. It was very inspiring and I highly recommend it! Here are some pictures from their visit:

We were able to video chat with Christina's family! Family photo!

Andrew's brother, Terry, with our niece and nephews

2. Jury duty: This week was very busy for me! I was called in for jury duty on Monday for the Federal Court in Tacoma and was selected to be on the jury for a criminal case. I was hoping not to be picked and told the judge that it would be an inconvenience - but so did everyone else who was there. I had a gut feeling that I was going to be picked - especially when I realized that I was the only one representing my demographic (young-stay-at-home-mom). It was a very awesome and daunting responsibility to serve on the jury. We deliberated about all the evidence for around eight hours - over the course of two days. During our deliberation I realized that we were the most powerful people in that courtroom. The lawyers present the case, the judge oversees the trial and gives the sentence - but the jury alone has the power to decide if a person is guilty or not guilty. We found the defendant guilty on 3 of the 5 charges; however, just as the famous juror in the movie 12 Angry Men, I was able to convince 10 of my fellow jurors that we could not prove guilt for one of the charges. If I had not spoken up, he would have been charged with 4 of the 5! The whole process was very fascinating and I'm glad I had the experience.

3. Rash Remedy: John has had pretty bad diaper rashes recently. But we finally found the remedy! I told my friend about the rash and explained that it was really wearing down his skin and the diaper cream didn't seem to do anything. In fact, the cream hardly stuck to the area because the skin was so raw (ouch!). She suggested that I use Athlete's foot cream because it is an anti-fungal cream and it sounded like he was having a bacteria problem. She told me to look for a cream that had the active ingredient called "clotrimazole". I found some and we tried it - sure enough, within a few days his skin was healed! Who knew athlete's foot cream would cure diaper rash too!!

4. Mothers' Group: Last year I was helping with our Mothers' Group at Star. I was in charge of leading the prayer part of our meetings. In mid-September, I found out that the leader is moving in December and she asked me to take over her role as well. It has been quite a challenge and I won't go into all the details, but I know it will work out. My goal is to divide up all the planning and teaching so that I don't get overwhelmed.

5. Update on Andrew: He has been working a lot this year (6 days a week)! Recently, for Star of the Sea, he designed a billboard to promote the Catholics Come Home campaign which will be during Advent this year. The billboard can be seen on a very busy road here in Bremerton. On the billboard there is a website listed that Andrew also designed: bremertoncatholic.com . I am always so amazed by his talent! He has also been working hard for Swingsetmall.com! John and I are proud of his daddy, but we are looking forward to having him home on Saturdays again!

6. Christmas: I know it is a little early - but I am very excited for Christmas! I think having a little one brings back all the fun of a childhood Christmas.

7.Getting his groove on! Little Johnny love to dance! He has a certain move that he does a lot and it is SO cute! I've been trying to capture this move, but whenever I pull out the camera he usually stops doing it. Here is the best video so far. We like to listen to kids music on the TV and here he is dancing to the Wiggles theme song. Enjoy!

Little St. Anthony

2010-10-13T12:14:00.000-07:00

Here in this household, we are pretty excited for All Saints Day. And by "we" I mean me!! John is a little too young to know what to be excited about... but I know when the day comes, he will have lots of fun! We are planning on going to a party at our church and participating in "trunk-or-treating" in the church parking lot. Last year he dressed up as Fr. Lappe. This year, I decided to make him a Franciscan-styled garment and he will go as St. Anthony. Here are pictures of the outfit in the works. It is basically finished, but the arms are waaaay too tight! So I will have to do some adjusting with leftover scraps of fabric. The problem is I just based the pattern off of John's clothes and forgot to add the seem allowance for the sleeves - oops! I also want to get him a little baby doll, because St. Anthony is often pictured holding Baby Jesus.

He cried when I took it off...

Bellingham Marathon

2010-10-12T09:04:00.000-07:00

Go Aunt Marie!

On the weekend of September 24th and 25th, we went up to Bellingham for the first time since last Christmas! It's been that long because Andrew has been working six days a week this year. So Andrew's parents have been gracious enough to come visit us here each month. But it has been hard for us not to go up there - we have really missed it! The last time we were there, John wasn't even crawling! Let me tell you, he was all over their house this time! Dad St.Hilaire dusted off their ol' rocking horse that he built for Andrew's older siblings in the early 70s. John LOVED it! I'd love to see a picture of Andrew on that horse, to compare with the pictures we got of John.

The reason for our visit was our sister, Marie, was in town to visit with family and run in the Bellingham Bay Marathon!! She has only been training for the last three months, though she has been running short distances for a few years. And by "short distances" I sure don't mean my definition - which would mean about ten feet! Our other sister, Jenny, came up from California to be here for the grand event. We hadn't seen our sisters since our wedding. So this was their first time meeting little Johnny! We were really excited for him to meet his Aunts.

Here are some pictures in a very random order:

I learned how to make Paella!

On a family walk!

Just after the marathon. We are SO proud!

Family dinner! So nice seeing everyone!

Mom and Dad had a trophy made for Marie. It turned out great! =)

16 Months Old!

2010-09-18T23:09:00.000-07:00

A few days ago, John turned 16 months old! Since his birthday in May, time has really flown! People often ask me how old he is and I really have to think about it. I'm looking forward to when I can stop counting the months and just go by years - that will be easier on my brain!

I really enjoy my days with John and I love watching his personality bloom. He has a minor shoe obsession and will bring me my shoes periodically during the day and insist that I put them on. I always put on the shoe he gives me and sometimes I find myself walking around the house with just one shoe on. He is also learning about how he can control situations and people. For example, he will often motion for me to come with him and if I don't, he will come over and physically turn me and push me in the direction he wants me to go. It is pretty cute at this point...

I try to take him out often to do fun things. We go to the library and parks, and play with friends. I know he enjoys getting out of the house because yesterday he motioned for me to come with him and led me to my purse. I gave it to him thinking he wanted it, but then he gave it back to me and handed me my flip flops. Then he walked to our front door and tried to open it! Fortunately, he hasn't successfully opened a door yet, but I'm glad he knows what I need to leave the house. Maybe he will start reminding me when I forget something!

Here are some of the latest goofy pictures of little Johnny:

Blackberry-face!

Wearing Clare Herring's glasses and riding her bike!

Feeding himself!

DMB - Road trip!

2010-09-18T22:37:00.000-07:00

On the first weekend of September, John spent the weekend with my parents and we took a road trip to the Gorge Amphitheater to see the Dave Matthews Band with our friends - Ed & Corina, and John & Lauren. We took two cars, a girl car and a boy car. It was really fun to have some girl time!

I had never been to the Gorge, and it was very beautiful. We were a little disappointed by how windy and cold it was. The concert was lively and entertaining, and I have a greater appreciation for the variety of instruments they use. Too bad they didn't let us take cameras into the the amphitheater!!

After the concert was over, we piled in the cars and drove to Corina's mom's house in Wenachee, which was an hour away. We set up our tents and camped in her yard. When we woke up in the morning everything was quiet, so we weren't sure if the others were awake. As it turned out, everyone else had been awake for over an hour and they had already eaten breakfast! They figured we were soaking up our sleep since we don't normally get to sleep in!

It was a nice break from our day-to-day lives, but I sure was excited and happy to see John when we got home!

John Quotes ~ Vol.2

2010-09-18T21:32:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the new words John has been saying:

Belly button = "be-bu"
Shoes = "shoo-sh"
Hot = "aht-t" - whenever I do anything with the oven, stove top, or microwave he comes over and, at a safe distance, he will wave both his hands and repeat this word over and over. He definitely gets the concept.
Broom = "sep" (I think he is saying "sweep")

He has become very vocal lately, and although I don't understand most of what he says, I know he is understanding a lot of what I say to him. When asked, he will point to these body parts: eyes, nose, mouth, teeth, head, hand, finger, toes, and bellybutton. When he points to his bellybutton, he insists on seeing mine too... silly guy! He also understands a lot of the little directions I say: "Give it to Mama", "Come here, John", "Let's go change your diaper"... and so on. It sure is fun watching him learn new things every day!

Berry Picking

2010-09-08T14:53:00.000-07:00

Last week we went blueberry and raspberry picking with some friends. John caught on quick and enjoyed eating the blueberries. He didn't quite get the concept of putting them in our bucket and saving them for later...

Lauren, Elena, Emily, James, Laura, and Charlie -- we had a blast!!

We drove together - can't believe the three kiddos fit in the back!

The boys - chowing down on blueberries!

Lunch time

Onward to the raspberries!!

Come on boys!

"Forget the raspberries, lets play in the grass!"

Silly Guy!

2010-09-07T11:24:00.000-07:00

John helped me do some organizing and had fun dressing up in this robe!

The Point Defiance Zoo

2010-09-04T14:40:00.000-07:00

On August 26th, we went to the zoo with our church's homeschooling group. John got to see all kinds of animals! I'm not sure which one was his favorite... he actually really enjoyed jumping on one of the storm drains in the "Asian Forest" - that was probably his favorite part!

Actually, his favorite part was probably playing in the kids area and the end of the day:

Craft Time - Making a Clubhouse

2010-09-04T14:14:00.000-07:00

John is getting more and more hands-on. I bought him some toddler crayons which are a little advanced for him, but he likes trying to use them anyway. We put the crayons to use on this box we got from Costco. We had a few crafting sessions, and (with a lot of help from me...) in a short time, we made this clubhouse for John. He really loves sitting in his ~~box~~ clubhouse!

Toddlers only - cause there's no way I would fit in it!!

He liked trying to put stickers on the box

Who knew you could have so much fun with a lettuce box!

Forest Park

2010-09-04T13:51:00.000-07:00

We have had a pretty busy summer! - Which is why I am so behind on updating our blog! In August we went to Forest Park with our friends, the Herrings. It was such a blast!! They had everything there: a petting farm, huge playground, fields to run in, a little water park... and the best part was - it was all free! We are definitely going back next summer! Thanks, Herring clan, for all the fun!

John really liked the chickens!

Of course, John wanted to play with the brooms... and the poop shovels! =(

Even baby James got to play in the water!

John was so tired by the afternoon, that I rigged up this bed for him!

Cuteness!

2010-08-25T11:45:00.000-07:00

Here is a much needed dose of John's cuteness:

Awe!

Huh?

Sometimes he insists on lugging my purse around - what a gentleman!

Huckleberry Picking 2010

2010-08-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

We had a truly wonderful time on our third annual huckleberry picking trip. It is our third year going as a married couple, but the St.Hilaire family has been going for over half a century! All my worries about camping with a toddler were for naught (see my own tips below). We drove down to the Mount Adams vicinity last Monday, picked berries all day Tuesday and headed home Wednesday morning. I was looking forward to this trip all summer and now I am sad that it has come and gone.

I think it was a great success! We picked four pies-worth of berries, which is really good, considering we were toting along our wee-one. Last year we picked only three pies-worth, but we went home with five because Mom and Dad St.Hilaire generously donated two. So this year wasn't too shabby in comparison!

The weather and bugs were also good this year. Our first year going was really rainy. We even had to dig a trench around our tent to keep water out. Then last year we were swarmed with yellow jackets... but this year was just perfect!

The best part of the trip was being with our family! It is always so wonderful spending quality time with our dear relatives!

To follow up with my concerns about camping with John, here are some of my own tips for camping with a toddler:

1. Bring A LOT of clothes! - John got really dirty, so it was nice having a bunch of clothes as a back up. I also recommend socks and close-toed shoes. The first night he was wearing sandals and his feet got really dirty and we had to clean them with baby wipes before he went to bed. The next two days he wore shoes and socks and that made clean up a lot easier!

2. Bring baby wipes - I used these a lot to clean his hands and face, they definitely came in handy!

3. Bring an umbrella stroller - I had no clue that John would cling to this stroller and entertain himself by pushing it around. That is basically all he wanted to do. I'm not kidding either. Aside from entertaining him and keeping him out of trouble, we also used it as a highchair at meal time and strapped him in it when we were sitting around the campfire. This thing was a lifesaver! Now my only problem is when we pass by it in the garage, John cries if I don't let him play with it...

4. Try to stick with your routines but also be flexible - For bed time I tried to have a similar routine for John so that he had the cues that bedtime was coming. I also made his sleeping area really cozy and familiar with blankets, his pillow, and a stuffed animal. The first night was rough because he thought the tent with our air mattress in it was his own personal blow-up fun house! He was very hyper and it took a lot of effort to get him to settle. Finally he did, but later I made the mistake of tying to comfort him when he stirred during the night. He basically ended up sleeping with us the first night. The second night went a lot smoother. He was not as hyper and I was able to do our routine, which was read a book, pray, shadow puppets (not normally part of our routine!), and then I sang him to sleep. He actually wanted to go to the little area I set up for him. To my surprise and delight he slept the whole night in his spot and didn't join us on our mattress until about 6am! I had to be very flexible with nap time tough... he basically snoozed in my baby carrier and it wasn't a very long nap! =(

5. Let them get dirty and explore - I wanted John to have a lot of fun, so I tried to be more relaxed about what I let him get into - as long as he was safe. He picked up rocks and put them in his stroller, touched tree sap, crawled in the dirt, walked off the trails... all sorts of things that made me cringe a little inside. But I know he had so much fun and now that I had that experience of him getting really dirty, I think I am a little more relaxed about it at home in our own yard. Kids need to be kids after all!

My darling picked probably three whole pies-worth of berries on his own!

Getting ready to go pick berries!

There was a neat cave near our picking area!

Looking out from inside the cave

Our sleeping arrangement

John's best friend

Relaxing at the campsite

My handsome men in flannel!

We visited Multnomah Falls on our way home

I love John's expression here!

John's New Rocking Chair

2010-08-25T09:27:00.000-07:00

I bought this little old rocking chair from a rummage sale at our church for only $1.50!! I think it was a good purchase, and with a little TLC it will be a good chair for John. So far, I have fixed it up by making new cushions. Maybe someday we will sand it and put a new finish on it. John sure loves sitting on it and reading his books!

Before:

After:

Train of Thought

2010-08-23T23:59:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday at Mass, in the short time between the consecration of the bread and the consecration of the wine, I had this train of thought:

The smell of a woman in front of me reminded me of a lady I took care of when I worked at the Courtyard (dementia care facility) --- which made me think of dementia and I wondered who is the youngest person to ever suffer from dementia --- which made me wonder if I will ever get it --- which made me wonder if you could have symptoms of dementia for being overly tired (because I was feeling tired) --- which reminded me of a movie that Andrew and I watched part of (but turned it off because it was pretty bad) called The Machinist with Christian Bale. (It is a creepy movie about a man who suffers from insomnia and has not slept in over a year) --- and I wondered if it is even possible to go a year without sleeping --- then a gory scene from the movie began replaying in my mind where there is an accident at a factory and a man's arm gets stuck in a machine and is torn off and his severed limb is shown spinning around and around on the machine (Ick!)

So there I was grimacing to myself, when I was drawn out of my mind by the words, "Do this in memory of me." (and then the bells rang) Then I began internally reprimanding myself for thinking about such a horrible scene during the consecration! Not being aware of the path that led me to this thought, I wondered - why was I even thinking about that movie? And then I traced back my thoughts to see how I got from listening to the consecration of the bread to replaying that gory scene from The Machinist. And it all began with a smell... It's amazing how something as simple as a smell can trigger such a quick chain reaction in our minds! I say "our" because I hope I'm not the only one who has this problem! =)

I think that Satan really manipulates and tempts us with these little distractions. This might be a great failing for a lot of the "good" people out in the world. Outwardly, a person could look very good and holy, while internally they let their minds trail off. It is so easy to be distracted and turned away from Our Lord in our minds. And this is a problem that no one has to know about. We can hide this disconnect from everyone, even those closest to us. There is no one to hold us accountable because this is a problem people don't really talk about much, other than saying "I get distracted."

I don't think people realize how dangerous distractions are. The vessel for our prayers is our thoughts, for even the vocal prayers we say originate from our minds. So if our minds are easily distracted, then prayer probably comes as a difficulty (at least, I know this is true for me!). I'm not sure how I can concretely work on controlling my train of thought; I welcome any advice! I hope that eventually I can keep my thoughts centered on God and on good things. I hope that someday I will be united to God throughout the whole day, by being vigilant regarding what thoughts I allow myself to dwell on, making sure that they are always pleasing to Him.