the alligator

/1 Comment/in /by

Max tells stories. He starts as if he were in the middle of the story. I like it.

“And then you go to doctor. And the doctor get your baby out. Then we open the door. We go on the alligator, we walk and then we see you and baby D’liza. And then the doctor buzz baby D’liza’s hair. Like this… buzzz… buzzz…buzzz. And I love baby D’liza. She is so cute. And baby D’liza loves me. I hold baby D’liza?”

So… it’s funny to see how different all my kid’s personalities are. The other day Jimmy told a story about how he almost was hit by lightning. Later that night Max retold the story and acted it out. I guess he’s our dramatic child. He loves to act things out. The best was when he re-enacted getting the google eye out of his nose. He is quite the funny tot. Another great thing about Max is that he says encouraging things. When Jimmy is out working in the yard Max will say over and over, “You’re doing a good job Dad.” The other day he comforted D’liza with, “It will be okay baby D’liza. It will be okay.”

A little more about Max lately. This kid has been sick 3 times in the past month. And we’re talking week-long illnesses. It’s weird. I suppose part of it is because he has been a stinker about eating lately and his immune system probably isn’t very strong. But it’s partly that he’s at the age when he’s out more (ok – really just going to Primary) and he’s catching all the little viruses that kids just catch. He had a rash and a fever. And now he is just getting over a weird virus with one-day barfing and 2 weeks of diarrhea. On the day he couldn’t keep any food or drink down, he was so out of it. I missed him talking about Baby D’liza. I was glad when he was back to his perky self. He also is always saying his stomach hurts and I hope it goes away soon. Anyhoo… having sick kids is no bueno.

We like Max. I do hope this whining phase will end soon. He and Truman battle it out with screaming. Aaaak. It drives this mother crazy. We’re working on obeying mom and dad the first time, going potty before it’s too late (he somehow thinks he can get out of going potty), and saying please. This summer he has loved swinging on the big swing. He holds on great and likes under-dogs from Hannah. His favorite cereal is Strawberry Frosted Mini-Wheats. He still likes warm hot chocolate. His quiet times consist of watching a movie and laying on the couch… with a snack, of course.

There’s a little bit about Max these days. I want to remember all the cute things the kids do and say when they are little and so innocently funny. Good times.

Back to School

/2 Comments/in /by

The day finally arrived… Tuesday the 23rd … the first day of school. The kids had their first week of clothes planned, folded, and piled. Hannah’s been planning her hair styles and accessories. They decided to try Messenger Bags this year. I’m glad they are back at school… and I’m sad they are back at school. I miss their help, but I know a schedule is better for our fam. What will I do with 3 kids under the age of 3 at home all day. Yikes.

Here’s Abe with his teacher for this year. He keeps saying how she’s funny. He learned the ‘Apples and Bananas’ song using all the long and short vowels. He laughed singing it – so cute! I didn’t get to go to back-to-school night but Jimmy was able to meet the teachers and get the scoop on the year. Abe met up with his friends Jacob and Garrett at lunch and recess. He seems to be chipper about school thus far. I hope he has a splendid year!

Hannah spent time all summer long creating songs, poems, and drawings for her new teacher. I loved her unique drawing. She made a Super-Hero-Pencil bookmark. And then wrote 2 pages worth of the 12 days of school that she made up. Clever girl. She took extra care picking her outfit and hair accessories. First day she came home and said, “I sit by a girl named Brooke. She is so quiet and shy… just the opposite of me!” Hannah generally is pretty shy too until she knows and feels comfortable with people so it was a funny comment. She was thrilled to meet up with her best friend Isabella at recess.

Jimmy gave the kids father’s blessings the night before and they realize it is a special moment. Max made sure to line up and get his turn as well. I’m grateful for these family times to connect spiritually with each other.

I sure hope and pray the kids have a great year with their teachers, friends, and schoolwork. They do so much good and I hope they believe in their abilities.

what went on when i was gone

/1 Comment/in , /by

Jimmy’s mom and sister are here helping with the kids while we’re recuperating from having Eliza. It’s so nice to know we have someone to watch the kids 24/7 when I’m in the hospital for a week. I hear lots of stories from the kids, but it was fun to copy the photos from Terry’s camera. I got lots of chuckles when I saw some of what they did. Grandma took them on fun adventures to a park and they got to see Lisa and Danielle from Florida. They picked some carrots form the garden (“Mom, there were like 100 carrots that we picked!). Time with Koda (since when do my kids love dogs?)

Some of my favorites that made me laugh:

I’m really grateful for Terry and Christine and all they are doing to help us out. Today Terry asked what major chore I’d like done. Windows came to mind. They are always on my wishful thinking to do list. Well… now I keep thinking my vision has improved, but really, the windows are just clean. What a great view! Thanks for helping so much and keeping us going until I recuperate a bit more.

1 week old … that she is

/2 Comments/in /by

Well… little Liza has been with our family for one week now. She’s affectionately called, “little miss stinky pants” by her parents… since she seems to poop every 30 minutes. Whoa Nellie! All the kids are still enamored with her and are so cute about their excitement to do errands to help with Eliza. I LOVE how much LOVE they have for her… it helps us all feel more LOVE for each other in return. This is good. I do hope she survives all that LOVIN’.

Baby D’Eliza

/8 Comments/in /by

We’re home… we’re finally home. What a long 5 days in the hospital. Here’s the run-down for our record:

M: c-section. So relieved it went well. Dr. Bean did a great job stitching me up. Feeling much better than anticipated. Mom and dad visit with the loveliest of flowers. I actually have ankles! Lovin’ baby Eliza. Glad her breathing was stronger and sugar levels increased so she didn’t have to go to Level 2 nursery. The nurses commented on how long and skinny her toes and legs are.

T: Chipper Day… still on baby high. Janey came to visit. Sad that kids couldn’t come because of their sore throats. Evening … no bueno gas build-up (major problem for this mama and c-sections). Ankles are replaced by Cankles… gotta love what all those I.V. fluids do for your body.

Visits from the Fam

W: Hormones starting to kick in… emotions!… but visitors helped keep things positive. The kids came with masks and hand sanitizer. Grandma Smith helped keep the troops in line. Mom came with a jamba juice! Janers and Seth came. Julie, Brock, Christine, and Peter got to meet Eliza. Major gas pressure hurting incision … Pain! No bueno. Lovin’ Eliza!

Oh – little Eliza… she looks different in every one!
She’s such a skinny little one, so I wonder why she looks chubby in photos.  Anyhoo….

Th: Oh, the tears. Not feeling well at all – just ick all over. Missing my fam. High blood pressure which alarmed the docs and nurses  (170s over 110s). Incision infected & oozy. Antibiotics. Met with Hospitalist dr to change bp meds. Sad I couldn’t go home. Evening: date night watching Leap Year with Jimmy (with lots of visits from nurse Terry to monitor blood pressure). Still lovin’ Eliza… more than ever. I missed her when I sent her to the nursery all night. But – a good night’s rest is imperative for this mama (go Ambien!)  I loved getting lots of snuggles with her every morning.

F: Feeling much better physically. Meager breakfast (new low-sodium diet – bleh…) Finally get to go home…. Yay! so relieved that Blood Pressure was a little more under control. The entire fam came to bring us home which was a little wild. Here we goooooooo on this new adventure with 5 kiddos! Eliza is surrounded constantly by tots. Tru is absolutely obsessed with “Liza”. He always wants to hold, feed, rub, love her. I hope he mellows out so the poor girl can have some peace. Abe, Hannah, & Max serenaded Eliza with a bunch of primary songs. She gazed at them with big open eyes.

Photos with our fam

And this video would explain the title “D’Eliza”. This is what Max calls our sweet baby. He has said so many times today, “I love Baby D’Eliza. She is so cute.” (Jimmy said that the D can be for Delight… Eliza is such a delight for our entire family).
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD1pKlrWoDk[/youtube]

Introducing Eliza

/12 Comments/in /by

Today we welcomed sweet Eliza Ruth Smith into our family. Weighing in at 6 lbs 13 oz, she’s a wee little person. Her hair is darker (more like Maxwell’s) and she has long fingers and toes. She had a little trouble eating and breathing… but seems to have conquered both by the end of the day. (Jimmy adds, “She must have an unconquerable spirit!”). The c-section went pretty well, for which we are grateful. My brain is fuzzy from all the drugs and being tired… so I’ll keep this short. Welcome little Eliza! We hope you enjoy this family of ours! We sure love you already!!!

wee little squishy ones

/3 Comments/in /by

I can hardly believe that in 3 days, we’ll have a cute little squishy, fuzzy baby. You’d think I’d be ready since we’ve known since December that this time would come. Not so much. The other night I lay awake remembering all the little things I needed to do before baby arrives. Eeeekk! Lots to do… little time and energy. I’m also trying to prepare mentally and emotionally for my c-section recovery. I dread it every time. I need to just be grateful that they can do such surgeries in a clean atmosphere with skilled doctors. The operating room at AF hospital has a wall of windows looking out on the mountains. It is a lovely view.

I don’t have photos of Hannah as a wee babe since we weren’t into digital photos then. But can you guess who is who amongst the boys here?Clue #1: Abe has his eyes closed. Oh – wait… they all have their eyes closed. Newborns look so similar, eh?

Our family is excited to welcome our little baby next week. Max keeps saying, “The doctor is going to get your baby out?” Yesterday when I came home from the hospital for my non-stress test, Max seemed disappointed that the doctor hadn’t gotten the baby out yet. All in due time, buddy.

I hope I remember what to do with such a wee little baby. I’m quite excited to meet her and see that all is healthy and well.

THREE. MORE. DAYS.

p.s. photo #1: Max… see all that dark hair (well… dark for this fam). I love his pose.
photo #2: Abe with the blondest hair
photo #3: Truman… the serious baby … littlest of all (who looks so much like Abe, eh?)

1st week of August

/0 Comments/in , , /by

Not much going on these days with me trying to rest and keep my feet up. I’m always so grateful for those who help while I’m gone to doctor’s appointment and non-stress tests. They are angels who keep the kids going having fun. Here’s a little of our week:Max had a rash for 10 days. Weird. We finally took him to the doc and they said it was just a virus. He had a fever for 3 days and was super irritable for the rest of the time, but I think he’s finally over it. Yay.

We built a fort with blankets and chairs. The kids read the Diggingest Dog and ate a little lunch in there. It went much better once Tru was taking a nap. But it was mostly fun and was a good diversion.

Kids swinging outside. Tru could swing for hours I think. Hannah and Abe are good to help push him so I can side on the sidelines and observe.

Tru is such a cute little thing… but I’ll tell ya… that boy has a mind of his own. If it’s not his idea – he sooooo isn’t okay doing it. The picture on the bottom right makes me smile. The only thing besides church pants that I could find were those shorts… which appear to be one size too small. It was awesome. He parked himself right by me on the porch to watch the kids play.

Hot potato game – do ya think Max liked it? Oh yah! He didn’t ever want to toss it because he wanted it to end with him. They all laughed and laughed… well, until Tru accidentally threw it way too hard at Max’s head when he was 2 feet from him. Games often end in tears with the littles, don’t they.

Hannah – oh, Hannah… why did you decide to curl your hair around a comb? I worked on it for 10 minutes then turned it over to Jimmy. I was ready to cut bangs and call the stylist to bob and layer the rest. Jimmy, on the other hand, loves that Hannah is getting longer hair, so he stuck to that mess. He ended up cutting the teeth of the comb… and then snipped the comb into a few parts to get it out. 30+ minutes later, she just had a bunch of knots which finally came out.

Last of all… I had just said how nice it would be to have a treat today… and Sister Grow knocks on the door with a full pan of hot cinnamon rolls. That woman listens to the Spirit, I’ll tell ya. I think she did that 6 months ago right after I was longing for some cinnamon rolls. Yum! I’m so grateful for those who have brought food and have watched over us the past few weeks. Good people! I want to be as good (and aware of other’s needs) as friends and family have been to us.

These photos are from our one outing this week… my sanity to leave the house. We ate pizza at the park and the kids played. Hannah and Abe enjoyed climbing trees and playing frisby (until Hannah got whapped in the mouth). Tru loved the rocks. He sorted the little ones and climbed on the big ones. We hardly even saw Max because he was so busy going down the swirly slide. It’s fun to enjoy a park with huge trees, shade, and benches.

During my personal time/church today… I listened to Julie Beck’s talk from April 2011 Women’s Conference. I liked when she talked about the purpose of Relief Society… that it isn’t just to get together and socialize… but that it is to provide relief {“lifting up to a higher level of achievement, behavior in the Lord’s kingdom.”}

“We have an organization because we have a purpose. And when we have a purpose there is an expected work and outcome. Relief Society isn’t just a feel-good, get-together, let’s-enjoy-each-other, do-anything-any time-any-place for any reason. This is part of the Lord’s work… it has a purpose that was delineated by the Lord and His holy prophets.” Relief Society “provides an alignment with His purpose which helps us learn our unique duties and responsibilities…”

Anyhoo… all good stuff. It reminded me of how much I love the Relief Society Declaration.

p.s. ONE. MORE. WEEK. May the Light, Strength, and Power of God shine on us all … so we can endure. … endure well… sigh…

“There’s an eye in my nose,” said little Maxwell

/0 Comments/in /by

… and sure enough…there was an eye in his nose. That would be a little google eye (the kind you glue on crafts) stuck in his nostril. I’ve never had a child stick something in his/her nose/ear until today. Luckily, as I was running (as fast as an 8-month prego lady can run) to get my tweezers, he blew hard out of his nose, and out it popped (covered with slimo). I loved when he re-inacted that for Jimmy. Too funny. Hopefully our lecture on not sticking anything in noses will keep him from doing any such thing in the future. (keyword: Hopefully!)

Though this photo has nothing to do with this post… I like it. Max is a happy child, even when we’re putting him in bed. Last night he started tickling Truman while we were singing songs. They had a good chuckle. Plus, this photo shows all his dogs and his monkey Bo-Bo piled on his bed. He also loves his blankie. And he loves his pictures on the wall. He points to each as he prays about them. My favorite thing he said in tonight’s prayer was, “Grateful Truman had a good day.”

Cankles, high waters, and tests… oh my!

/1 Comment/in , /by

1.  Cankles…  I’ve got ’em.  Sure ‘nough!  It’s pretty much a joy to hit this stage… sigh… not! I’ve also got a pretty awesome gap between my maternity shirts and pants. Not cool people!

2. High Waters… Abe’s got ’em. I can’t believe how fast this boy grows. I buy him pants and 2 seconds later, there is a big gap between his pants and socks. Shopping list for the week: new Sunday pants and socks for Abe.

3. Tests… oh – so – many … and I’m tired of them already. My doc announced on Monday that I have twice a week non-stress tests, once a week labs (gotta love all the bruises on the arm from those), and once a week 24-hour urine. So that pretty much wipes out 3 days out of my week. I’m grateful they are watching me close with the pre-eclampsia jazz… but it might be a long 5 weeks. Blood pressure – please lower yourself. It’s one thing to say to a friend, “wow… that is hard. I’m sorry you’d had to deal with that.” But it’s another thing to be concerned about your own health and your own baby and be away from tots for hours on end for appointments. Thinking about all that is raising my blood pressure. Yikes…

Good news: I had an ultrasound and it’s still a girlie (phew… ’cause I had a dream it was a boy and it threw me for a loop). At 33 weeks she’s about 4 lbs 13 oz at 50% or so. She was looking good. I have oodles of amniotic fluid for her to swim in, which I’m hoping is the explanation for my gynormous belly. Grow healthy Bessie – grow healthy.

With all the resting I’m attempting to do (key word: attempting)… I’ve been thinking about the challenges in life – big or small. I know mine right now are very minor compared to what they could be – so I’ll try and count myself blessed (key word: try).

One scripture that has come to mind many times…
I’ve always thought about this scripture for youth – and making correct choices. But this week I’ve thought about it in regards to hard challenges. It does take courage to do right in the small and simply daily choices… to have courage when you feel like being afraid, to be strong when you feel like crying (can you be strong and cry too?)… to know that no matter what happens, that God is watching over you and strengthening you, even if things aren’t exactly to your pleasing in that moment. And a dear friend reminded me that all the doctor appointments and tests are but a small moment … and having a healthy baby and mom is worth it.  Yes, indeed.

Another tender mercy moment was reading Elder Holland’s message in the July 2011 Ensign. I was browsing through it and realized it was the very talk I loved from our Regional Conference. It’s where the principle of having a reservoir of faith to call upon really hit home for me. Especially the last paragraph noted here is my favorite.

“Little wonder that faith always has been and always will be the first and abiding principle of the gospel and of our work. It is the heart of our conviction that the work not only should go forth but that it also can and will and must go forth.

“I don’t know how else mothers and fathers could leave those babies in those makeshift graves on the plains and then, with one last look, weep their way forward toward Zion. I don’t know how else a woman like Belle Smith could set her children at the edge of a cliff and muscle her wagon down the perilous incline. I don’t know how else Samuel Claridge could sell all he owned and head off to build Zion in the desolate Muddy Mission. The fundamental driving force in these stories is faith—rock-ribbed, furnace-refined, event-filled, spiritually girded faith that this is the very Church and kingdom of God and that when you are called, you go.

“Nurture your own physical and spiritual strength so that you have a deep reservoir of faith to call upon when tasks or challenges or demands of one kind or another come. Pray a little more, study a little more, shut out the noise and shut down the clamor, enjoy nature, call down personal revelation, search your soul, and search the heavens for the testimony that led our pioneer parents. Then, when you need to reach down inside a little deeper and a little farther to face life and do your work, you will be sure there is something down there to call upon.”

Jeffrey R. Holland, Faith to Answer the Call, July 2011 Ensign

Anyhoo… I’m working on simplifying… staying calm… trusting God… and reaching deeper. And in the end, I’m so very grateful for the angels who have come to help do my dishes and laundry and loved my children. My mom and sister Amy have watched over us this week. Jimmy and Hannah have covered lots of duties… and I think Abe is trying. Trying is always a step in the right direction.