A lake day

On the farm

We also saw 2 pigs, chickens, turkeys, cows and lots of geese and ducks. The two little lambs sure were cute though!

More toddler times

Violet calls sneezes bless yous. 

The TV is called the radio and she'd like to watch pictures on it. 

Here she is reading a book in the bumbo. 

Enjoying her first root beer float (and then the mile walk home)

And Easter pictures

Sunny days

Lately there are more sunny days than rainy, although Tuesday it snowed. Winter doesn't want to give up! Since my hard day, we've had mostly 4 hour sleeps (8-12 and then one at 4 or 5 and then 7), we went to a BBQ and we have 19 days until we are home. We've lined up some subletters to cut costs so that takes some stress off. I've also realized our toddler is crazy. Taking off her pjs at night and then getting upset. And the babe will scream and scream when tired. The problem is the craziness and the tiredness happen at the same time and I can only be in one place and I only have 2 arms. Choosing the most needy at that moment is difficult. One on the toilet vs one on the changer, one running naked vs crying in bed, one hungry vs one tired. I mean it is nice to be needed and all... 

Hard day

Yesterday it rained, it was gray, Violet wouldn't nap and Liam was needy. Last night was rough with wake ups at 1,4,6,7. Plus, Violet wouldn't go to sleep and Liam needed (or thought he did) extra feedings before giving up and falling asleep. So today is sunny and still rough. Liam is finally napping, but I had to fight Violet. She peed in her pull up which she hasn't done in a month. I'm on edge and everyone annoys me. I thought the sun would help and it was the weather yesterday making me homesick. I hope my nap helps because I want to enjoy the weather and my misbehaving, crazy toddler again. May we all sleep better tonight so we can tolerate each other tomorrow. 

Violet's funnies

We call them vs Violet calls them

Crumbs= crumbles

Ribs=ribbons (as in your rib cage)

And what does her blanket smell like? Polk dots, yes polk dots. 

Just In case you missed it, the song is Yankee Noodle Dandy. 

Liam's story

It took me a while to come to terms with Violet's birth and I blogged about it eventually. Now here is baby brother's story of entering the world.
I woke up at 3:30 am on February 27. I had had acupuncture and my membranes swept on the 25th, his due date. I had cramping that day but then nothing on the 26th. Well then we had bad mexican food that night and I woke up early the 27th. I woke Bob up at 4 when the contractions seemed regular, painful and too hard for me to keep track of on my own. I showered in between painfull moments while he woke my parents, and called the midwives and then he showered and I ate part of a banana while trying to relax between stabbing pains that were coming very quickly. I could barely get my shoes on, as if that wasn't hard enough before contractions! My dad drove us to the hospital and we called our doula. It was now around 5:30 and it was maybe 20degrees out. I couldn't walk to the door of the hospital, my contractions were super close, so Bob found a giant wheelchair in the lobby and we headed inside. We checked in and I was struggling to change my clothes. I was 8cm!! I had been 4cm at my last appointment. So yes, I was in labor. They admitted me and moved me to a delivery room, it was now 6:30 or so. I could barely move, the contractions were fast and hard and I wasn't getting a break between them. With Violet I blamed it on the pitocin, but now I'm not sure but that might be how my body deals with a pushing a baby out. At 7, our doula arrived and the midwife left to catch another baby while the midwife intern stayed with us. I was now at 10cm and they were telling me I could start pushing. I pushed and I pushed. Liam was past any point Violet ever got to. I pushed 3-5 times with each contraction. I tried different positions, I made noises I had never heard myself make before. Bob stayed by my head, always reassuring me and offering water, chapstick or other small comforts. My doula was on the other side encouraging and cheering me on and then when Liam's heartrate dropped, handed me the oxygen mask between contractions. After 2 hours of pushing, close to the max allowed for a VBAC, they brought in a doctor and discussed using a vacuum, he couldn't decide how to turn his head, this was also discussed with Violet and was seeming a bit too familiar. After each push a baby retracts slightly, 2 steps forward then one back. The vacuum would prevent the back step. Although this time, a vacuum might help. The doc tried a local numbing procedure that I do not think worked (he doubted it would because of Liam's position). It was incredibly uncomfortable. I could see things in the mirror above me, almost like an out of body experience, some things I may not want to remember. By now it is almost 10, a c-section has was mentioned once and I had mentioned an epidural once before the vacuum, but we decided against it. The vacuum was a like a suction cup on a hand pump and it started to help. Soon you could tell what color hair Liam had! near 10:30 I began pushing almost continuously after an episiotomy and finally his head was out. The relief was incredible, the second push for the shoulders was almost too easy! He didn't cry at first, he had a lot of mucus, but then we heard him. The placenta was also easy to deliver compared to the giant head. I had a second degree tear that needed stitches, Bob was so relieved he started to cry. There may have been a bit more blood than what was expected, by him. There were around 10 people in our room for the last half hour, some for the baby, but most for me. I think everyone wanted a VBAC that morning.
The healing over the next week was rough. I didn't expect that much discomfort in standing or walking, sitting I understood, but no one mentions walking! My c-section was so emotional that I forget how hard the physical recovery was. Liam's birth was almost all physical, I can type this and talk about it without crying, something I'm only just recently able to do about Violet's. I am thankful for both experiences and thankful to not go through either of them again.
Just FYI, It turns out Liam's head was in the 97%.

Women

There are lots of special women in my life from those I'm related to (blood or marriage) to those I've known a short time to those I went to school with. The help, love, meals and texts from them have all been valuable during pregnancy and after Liam's arrival.

At a moms group today I mentioned we'd be back in Oregon for the summer (which we are looking forward to), but I realized I will miss my new friends, friends from the JCC and moms groups. I feel we have these double lives to lead. But I also realize that I need both theses lives. I need those of you back home to check in on me, to not forget us in this Midwest-east coast vortex and I need the ladies here until I can get back home. Thank you for not forgetting us. 

4 of us

It is strange to think there are 2 little people in our house now. 

The babes

First time to watch them both! Usually Liam is in our room with us. 

Liam

At 10:35am on Feb 27, Robert William McMillan Reinhardt joined our family! Today, we brought him home. 

Sleeping beauty

She cracks me up!

Nearing the end

With less than 2 weeks until my due date, I'm filled with a range of emotions. From joy to fear (meeting him vs sleepless nights) from happy to sad (about no longer being pregnant) from heartburn to hunger, from hurry up and break water to wait for grandma to get here. Each day I wonder, I wait, I try to rest and I try to prepare myself for what will come soon. I hang on, but I let go too. 

Chores

Violet helps with chore list. 

Little Funny Things

It snowed last night so Violet thought we should go see Christmas lights. 

She calls us by our first names occasionally. 

She told me today that when baby brother gets here he can use her markers. 

She wants peanut butter on everything, today it was a blueberry pancake. 

Violet will stand behind Lulu when Lu is wagging her tail and Violet then says, 'She's wagging me.'

Her favorite story right now is in Richard Scarry's book 'What Do People Do All Day' and it has a Dr. Lion that takes a girl's tonsils out while her mom gives birth to her baby brother. 

She is still singing Jingle Bells. 

She was yelling at Bob to stop dancing. 'No daddy, no. I no like it. '

Dinosaurs

Today's outing was the natural history museum. Bank of America has a museum day the first full weekend of the month, so we show our Alaska Air credit cards and get in for free! Bob and I went for a date day this fall and Violet has been with Bob, but this was the first as a family. She likes the dinosaurs so that was our focus, but they are simply too big to capture in a photo, my apologies. 

Maybe an archeologist? 

Cold

It's been really cold here and I know a lot of mom's don't take their kids out because it is too cold, but that is so hard! Don't get me wrong, she didn't get to go for a walk or play in the snow until it was above 20. But here are some images of just how cold it was. 

These are taken from the science center looking at the river and downtown. 

And the other day when it was warm enough to play. 

Science Center

Today's outing was the Carnegie Science  Center. 

Sad day

It seems this is the end of the ride for us this year. A long one and now we sit at the bottom and wait. And hope someone fixes the ride soon.
(To ease some of your minds, we were quite hopeful for a position back in the NW, but it seems that is not in the cards for us at this time. Academia positions/hiring is a broken system and has left us exhausted and frustrated this time around.)

Lego tunnel and a train

I'm not sure who is more obsessed with this evening activity. 

And more train time.