Thanksgiving

This year there were two extra things to be thankful for on top of jobs, health, and all things good - Britta came to join us (we missed you Tobi) and Baby Violet. It was so amazing to have Britta here for almost two weeks and we packed in all sorts of things, the beach, Sunriver, cooking, eating, shopping, time in Portland...but it is never enough. I am always so sad when our time ends and it always goes too fast! I miss you middle sister! I am so thankful you could come and meet Violet. I look forward to the two of you getting to know each other as she grows.

She Smiles!

At six weeks she did it, gave us some glimmer of hope that we are doing the right thing - at least some times!

First bath at home

Here are some pictures from her first home bathing experience, she didn't exactly like it, that might just be a real tear!

Fall Days

Another couple of photos. She is still very serious, although seems to laugh in her sleep.

3am

After a feeding husband says, "Let me take her and put her back in her kennel, uh I mean crib."

More photos

In her swing








birth class babies, Vi is the youngest (in blue pants)

















pumpkin patch






hanging out so mom can do things

Sleeping

Violet sleeps a lot. In fact, she eats, sleeps, cries and dirties her diapers. We look forward to the smiling, cooing and less demanding aspects of a baby soon...

Hospital visits

Just thought I'd post some pictures of the family when they came to meet Violet in the hospital.


Bob's parents





My family









My Grandma










Bob's brother Kris and our niece and nephew when Violet was 10 days old.

On a lighter note...

Violet had lost weight and we were having to supplement, so here is Bob feeding her.











And here is Bob weighing her on a kitchen scale!

She's here and this is how it went...

Violet Mae arrived after a very long labor followed by a c-section on October 6. I woke up around 1:30 am on October 5 and contractions were what I now know as mild and not too close together. When I thought they were closer to 5 minutes and I had to move around more, I woke up Bob. By 3:30 we were dowstairs walking and using a timer. Around 5:30 we headed out of the house and were at the hospital on a rainy night, by 6am. We were in a waiting delivery sort of room and they checked me, had me walk and checked again - I was 5 cm and admitted. We went to room 15. The midwife on call was Liz and our nurse was Tamara. By noon I was 8cm still walking around the room and using different positions to be comfortable, rocking chair, yoga ball and the jacuzzi tub and we had our first nurse change - Lisa. At 5pm pitocin was suggested because my contractions were not strong enough to move me past 8 cm. We declined and Liz went off duty at 6pm and Nancy was a our midwife. At 8pm we started the pitocin with an IV and I continued having contractions, now even stronger. What a trooper Bob was supporting me, encouraging me and a lot of times holding me up. I could not have gone as far as I did without him. Marilyn was our night nurse and she was incredible. She was helpful, encouraging and took care of the most embarrassing parts of labor lie they were no big deal - this was a huge issue for me to get past so a very important detail about her. At midnight I was 9cm and was told to 'bear down' basically pushing through to the 10cm mark. Around 2am I started pushing. We rotated positions every 15 minutes trying a total of 6, but sticking mainly with the 3 or 4 that had the best results. There was movement and eventually I was told that she had a lot of hair! Unfortunately, after almost 4 hours of pushing, the midwife called in the doctor for her opinion, which ended up being a c-section. I was exhausted. I hadn't eaten in over 36 hours, but was frustrated and sad. We had done everything we could, we fought so hard, I had no pain medicine, he hadn't eaten since lunch. He asked the nurses for a minute alone. We knew the choices, it just seemed so unfair, but neither of us could ask the other for any more, there was simply nothing left. At 6:30am on the 6th they dressed Bob in scrubs and started prepping me. I was wheeled around in what felt like a bad Disneyland ride. Bob had to stay outside while they numbed me and gave me a heated gown - both were really quite strange feeling. The anesthesiaologist stayed near my head the whole time and gave me some updates on the other preparations because now there was a screen between the nurse (now Sam), midwife and surgeon. Finally, Bob was able to come in and sit by me. He couldn't hold my hand because of the meds and there were tears in his already red eyes, but he held it together. At 7:35am we heard Violet Mae's cries and what a sense of relief it was, that small sound we'd been waiting over 24 hours for. They held her up, said she was beautiful, Bob said she was huge and how was she inside of me. Both of us now had tears in our eyes. They wiped her down and then brought her over to to me, took off the weird heated, inflating gown and placed her on me. I could barely see her because I couldn't move my head to tip it down and couldn't feel her because I was numb - but they tell me she pooped on me! (I guess that makes us even) The next 20 minutes involved what I like to guess was putting my organs back in place and stitching me up. Then things get fuzzy, I think Violet went with Bob and I went back to the room. Around 10am we'd already tried a little latching, more skin to skin time and the grandmothers were brought in for introductions. I was still numb waist down at this point.
The next days in the hospital are a blur of eating, sleeping, trying to get in and out of bed, and figuring out breastfeeding when you have no milk. We had 2 great lactation nurses and more regular nurses that we owe thank yous to as well. Lisa even took another shift with us and Marilyn came to see and meet Violet the next day.
Violet is now a week old as of this morning. We've been home since Sunday afternoon and Bob has returned to teaching. My mom and Bob's mom have both been a great help and our friends and neighbors have kept us supplied with food. I stopped taking pain medication in the hospital, but had to start taking it again at home, but am now off of it again although some times are more painful than others. Breastfeeding is going better, well for me, Violet is still struggling, but I am able to pump enough to give to Bob to feed her through a tiny tube (no bottle so there isn't nipple confusion). She weighed 7 pounds 4 oz when born and had dropped to 6 pounds 9 oz when we went home and we were having to use all formula then, even though I was pumping. Now she is up to 6 pounds 13 oz.
Soon we wont remember what life was like pre Violet, just like we don't remember what life was like before Lulu! Speaking of, both pets seemed to have adjusted just fine, thank goodness!

Baby updates

I'm now at 39 weeks, but my belly stopped growing and I haven't gained more weight so tomorrow they want me to have another ultrasound to check on her size. I'm still hoping to work through this week and other than being tired (again) I feel pretty good.
I had two get togethers with girl friends over the last week, one out to dinner night and one scrapbooking morning, both were great with small groups filled with quality time. I can't believe how quickly September, and the whole pregnancy for that matter, have flown by. I miss several things about not being pregnant, but I know I will miss being pregnant as well - feeling her move is so incredible and people are so nice to you! But to bend over again, see my belly button, roll over, drink wine will be wonderful.

Belly Time

Sorry for the quality, I'm trying to work on more pictures! These are from baby showers and the bottom one is with my neighbor who is expecting a boy in January.

Getting closer!

I'm now 37 weeks along - which is considered full term. Our bags for the hospital are mostly packed and here is a picture of the crib!Bob's mom made the bumper pad. She's working on the cradle too and then I'll post a picture of it. We just got a changing table, but we're still looking for a rocking chair. The drapes are super cute, thanks again to Bob's mom, but not up until we get the windows replaced.

Our showers have set us up pretty well, family and friends you are a blessing! We have just under 1/2 of the cloth diapers, all the crib bedding, blankets and stuffed animals. We are in need of the changing pad and covers, glass bottles, breast pump accessories, the diaper spray off thing, diaper pail liners (reusable waterproof kind), the baby web monitor, rug for the room, diaper drying rack, the high chair accessory seat and sleep sacks. Thank goodness for the gift cards to Amazon and Target!

Sweet, Sweet Blackberry

Another doggie friend of ours has passed into doggie heaven. Blackberry, a mini version of Lulu and just as sweet, had lime disease and her kidneys were failing her. May she no longer be in pain, may the squirrels in doggie heaven be just as much fun to chase, may she eat all the people food she wants, go for long walks, may her tail wag just as much and may she not be lonely waiting for her people to join her one day (in the distant future.) Thank you for all the wonderful time spent chasing Lulu, letting her chase you and showing us California through your eyes.

Dishwasher

I unload and Bob loads the dishwasher. Well this morning I noticed it was clean and since we've been trying to stay really on top of things and we have people coming over tonight, I thought to myself, "I'll unload when I get home, how much can Bob dirty in one day?"










I had forgotten he was making a pie for tonight!

Garden time, finally

Overnight Dill Pickles










I let the bees and hummingbirds enjoy before I cut and brought inside












New side yard garden, may be a bit out of control...












Established backyard garden beds









Love having flowers to bring inside!

Summer Updates

Giant Jenga!











Bob's birthday meal












Berries from our yard, cherries picked at a harvest party










Spencer on a local bike race - he won!

The JOB

I am about to wrap up my fourth week back to work and I am still liking it! When it is sunny I ride my bike (so far no balance problems) and I get there at 8 and then ride my bike back home at noon and have lunch with Bob and from there each day differs! I should say that even at work each day is new and exciting. Let's look at this week for example...Monday I reviewed a couple set of plans, Tuesday I went to Lincoln City with my supervisor to inspect a dialysis clinic, Wednesday I went to state training for new managers (in my title, I don't supervise anyone though) and today I started reviewing an Oncology clinic. The co-worker I share an office with has been on vacation the last two weeks so it has been even quieter than normal (there are only 5 of us total, 3 of us on the 2nd floor). I quickly lose track of time and find the morning flies by. I don't have a badge yet because they really aren't necessary in our department, but I do have my motor pool rental card. I have a state ID number, my own phone number and starting August 1, new health insurance and a first paycheck. The 8-noon schedule lets me make my lunch meetings for the AIA and Housing Committee and two weeks ago it meant we left earlier than traffic to spend our anniversary in Sunriver (9 years, can you believe it?). I still don't have all of the details for my maternity leave and we need to crunch some numbers to see if taking 3 months off will work. It sure would be nice, but in any case, I'll still only be working 4 hours a day so I hope that makes it easier to go back. Bob has less than a month now until his classes start up and he is still working his tail off to wrap up the dissertation.

Always wear your helmet!

On June 30th, Bob went mountain biking with Spencer and some guys on a new trail. I went to dinner and was running errands with my sister when I get a text message from Bob's phone that read "Spencer here, call Bob's phone when you have a chance." Small panic begins on my part. At this point I am now at Winco and my phone starts to ring, I answer but cannot clearly understand Spencer. What I do understand is that Bob is headed to Good Samaritan's in Corvallis and I need to meet them there, but he is okay. Okay? What does that mean? So my sister graciously offers to accompany me to Corvallis and proceeds to find directions and start texting Spencer for more info, she calls our mom, I call Bob's mom and then she tries to just keep me calm on the way there. We enter the Emergency area, I sign a form and then we are shown back and told what curtian/room he is in. As I wander through I think, "No major problems here people are in slings, sitting up etc." Not Bob. I get to room 14 and see his feet and a sheet covering him and tears begin to fill my eyes. I walk over to his side and he has a neck collar on(because they did a scan of his head) and I reach out and touch his shoulder because he still has blood running down his face and I don't want to try to kiss any thing that might hurt more (as it turns out the shoulder I chose was one with a big scrape, but he didn't say anything because the look on my face nearly broke his heart.) We've now been married nine years and in that time neither of us has seen the other in the ER, we've had minor injuries or surgeries, but this was different, this was not planned. By now it is close to 10pm. Everyone is tired, Bob and Spencer are starving, we're still waiting for results of the scan so the collar stays on, but everyone is in good spirits. Once the scan comes back and everything is fine, the collar comes off, Bob's brother and our nephew came in for a visit and then Spencer left for home. Now it is time for stitches (and Bob thought the collar was uncomfortable!) We don't know how many there were, a couple here and there and then 'bunches' was what the guy with the thread said. I couldn't watch. Around 11pm things are wrapping up, the doctor has given me paper work and they are checking Bob out. We gather his cracked helmet and slowly walk out to the car, a small, but very welcome miracle.

Last Friday Bob went back to have the stitches removed, because they do it for free after your trip in there! He is healing nicely and doesn't seem to be suffering from any long term concussion symptoms. He is sporting a goatee because he can't shave around the stitched area as it heals. His knees are almost bandage free and he has a new helmet, because he'll be back out there in 2 weeks.

Timbers Event

I've now been to 3 Portland Timbers' games and they are SO much fun. The next big one is on the 10th against Seattle!! We went last week to a season ticket appreciation night. We collected signatures, bought a jersey, walked on the field, saw the locker room and kicked around a ball. Here are some pictures of Bob with his brother Kris (season seats, goal kick, corner kick, goalie) and then of course Bob and I.

The biggest news is sometimes small...

... Bob and I have been playing things very casually the last few months, but since I have a job lined up...We're expecting a baby girl in early October!! I apologize if we weren't able to tell you personally or even over an individual email, so please do not hate us if we had not called/written you. I feel quite strange telling people sometimes, I know everyone is generally excited and happy for us, but it is still weird. But in case you are wondering, I have felt pretty good (I am 26 weeks), just mostly tired and joint pains plague me. Soon this blog may be filled with pictures of my belly and updates to the room, but I'll try to keep it to a minimum. Here are the fabrics I picked out and Bob's mom will turn into wonderful items for the room (for those of you paying attention, our old bedroom now that the upstairs is done.) The three patterns on the right are for the crib and the one on the left is for the curtain/valances.

Job!!

I have accepted a part-time position with the State. I'll be reviewing construction documents for health facilities in Oregon. This includes hospitals, retirement homes and facilities in between. I'll be riding my bike the 1.9 miles for a job that is 5 days a week, but only 4 hours a day. My benefits are partially covered by the state and I'll make more than my unemployment check - plus I can enjoy my afternoons and no longer job search! So right now I'm enjoying my last two weeks of going to the gym when I want and sleeping in, although I have a huge binder of paper work to start looking through. (Here is the house my office is in. I'm on the second floor and share it with one other person.)

Two week update

Sorry it has been a while and for some one without a job, what do I spend my time doing if it isn't blogging? Well, I have had 2 interviews since the last post, been looking for a futon so we have a guest room, still working on small upstairs details (now there is both a handrail and guardrail thanks mostly to my parents helping mid week) and I planted my garden. Now this is on top of the four committees I have monthly or bi-weekly meetings for all they ask of me and the continuing search for a job, as well as laundry, cooking and other household stuff, not to mention being a supportive wife to my dissertation writing, summer school teaching hubby.

Missoula and Davis

Because Bob starts teaching and we are still hoping I get a job soon, we crammed in two wonderful trips in the span of 8 days. We spent three days in Missoula (plus two driving) with wonderful friends and then were home for two night and one day before flying to Davis for a goodbye send off and Bob to check in with advisors. I only wish we could have brought more of the weather back with us. I didn't take many pictures, but here are Bob and Alden in Davis and Diana and I in Missoula.

Bin Laden

I have to say the death of a terrorist sure makes Americans act strangely. We are not celebrating the winning of the Olympics, the end of hunger, poverty or even a war, but oh how I wish we were. Celebrating a death like his only makes us look bad, it makes us, no better than he was. The debt trying to find this guy was huge and I don't see an end to it. Traveling and security is still ridiculous. I wish we could focus on issues that affect people in the US more directly - enough money for schools, to feed hungry kids and families, continued Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid, and affordable health care for everyone.

Spring

Spring in Oregon, always coming a bit later than desired.