I just wanted to let you all know we won’t be posting anything on our blog until after we get back from Africa on the 18th. If you want to follow what goes on there go to the mission team blog. (<– click here)
heavy July 29, 2009
Josiah’s newest phrase is “it’s big, it’s heavy”… although he says it like “heaby.” Well, here is some news of something that is getting big and heavy.
I am over 14 lbs!
12 weeks July 28, 2009
The most dramatic development this week: reflexes. Baby’s fingers will soon begin to open and close, the toes will curl, eye muscles will clench, and the mouth will make sucking movements. In fact, if I prod my belly, baby will squirm in response, although I won’t be able to feel it. The intestines, which have grown so fast that they protrude into the umbilical cord, will start to move into the abdominal cavity about now, and the kidneys will begin excreting urine into the bladder.
Meanwhile, nerve cells are multiplying rapidly, and in baby’s brain, synapses are forming furiously. Baby’s face looks unquestionably human: the eyes have moved from the sides to the front of the head, and the ears are right where they should be. From crown to rump, baby is just over 2 inches long and weighs half an ounce.
vacation July 28, 2009
Sorry for the long delay. We were on vacation and there was no internet. Here were some highlights:
Day one: We left to go to WI to stay in a cottage on a lake with Jim’s family. After driving all day we got there just after dinner. I am not sure who was more excited, the crying kids or the headached parents. Josiah was excited to see everyone, but the goof was feigning memory loss on names. His little joke was ruined by uncle Danny walking in the door. Josiah saw him and squealed “Danny!” Eva took a little time to warm up. After riding in the car all day all she wanted was mommy to hold her and everyone else to give her some space. After about an hour she chilled out.
Day two: This day great grandma and grandpa came to the cottage to say hi. We spent half the day on the boat that grandma and grandpa rented. Josiah and Eva both like the boat, but the hated the life jackets. This day was also our 4th wedding anniversary. We celebrated with an exchange of happy anniversary and Jim spending time on the phone with the credit card company as they called to let us know of some charges on our card that were questionable. Don’t worry, it was all taken care of and who ever stole the card will have authorities after them.
Day three: Today grandma and grandpa rented a speed boat. Daddy tried skiing today. We are not sure how that went, mommy stayed with the kids during that time so they could take a nap. Uncle Kevin, uncle Brian and their girlfriends came. Josiah and Eva did great with being friendly with them. They don’t get to see Kevin and Brian as much as everyone else, so it was fun to watch them do well with interacting with them.
Day four: We had the speedboat one more day. This day mommy and daddy went tubing… at a slow speed since mommy is pregnant. After lunch daddy went skiing with his siblings and parents while mommy stayed and had the kids take their naps. (For the record, mommy volunteered to stay since she couldn’t really tube and she could ski) This day we also discovered the Josiah’s beloved “Two” (the dog he has slept with since he was about 9 months. We spent a good hour searching every inch of the cottage and even the lake for the dog. Nothing!
Day five: Today we left to go home. Josiah was devastated to know that “Two” was gone and he had to leave him behind. But about an hour onto the road grandma called to say “Two has been found.” Josiah is counting down the days until Two will come in the mail.
Who can understand his thought processes? July 17, 2009
Jim was typing an email and I was watching behind him (it was an email that involved the kids and he wanted me to give my input). Neither one of us were making any noise, Eva was upstairs sleeping and Josiah was playing on the floor with a box (go figure the best toys are not technically toys). I was just noticing the silence and started to just let the moment sink in when I heard “Mommy? Mommy?” I looked over to Josiah without saying a word. He looked at me, put his finger to his mouth and said “Shh”, he then proceeded to point the the puzzle in the box that he was playing with and said “napping.” It took every kilogram of control that I had to keep my face serious and nod in aggreement.
What I choose to remember July 15, 2009
It is funny how Josiah remembers things, but not as they apply to him. I was making cinnamon rolls last night and Josiah came into the kitchen and looked at the flour and sugar mess on the counter as I put the rolls in the oven to bake. As I was walking back to the counter he said “Uh oh, mommy, clean this mess up!” I nearly doubled over in laughter!
praise about our little princess July 15, 2009
For the last 4 months Eva has been refusing to eat solids! She hates it, she would prefer and demands a bottle instead. She is stubborn, but so is her mother. After four months Eva is finally accepting solids. We are so excited about it! The other night she ate almost 1/2 of a jar!!!!
(She is smiling here, I just pushed the button too late)
10 weeks July 15, 2009
Sorry for the delay in posts. I was planning on writing yesterday, but God had other plans.
Though baby’s barely the size of a kumquat — a little over an inch or so long, crown to bottom — and weighs less than a quarter of an ounce, baby has now completed the most critical portion of development. (Huge praise that this part it over before Malawi!!!) This is the beginning of the so-called fetal period, a time when the tissues and organs in baby’s body rapidly grow and mature.
Baby is swallowing fluid and kicking up a storm. Vital organs — including kidneys, intestines, brain, and liver (now making red blood cells in place of the disappearing yolk sac) — are in place and starting to function, though they’ll continue to develop throughout the pregnancy.
If you could take a peek at baby, you’d spot minute details, like tiny nails forming on fingers and toes (no more webbing) and peach-fuzz hair beginning to grow on tender skin.
Baby’s limbs can bend now. The hands are flexed at the wrist and meet over the heart, and the feet may be long enough to meet in front of baby’s body. The outline of the spine is clearly visible through translucent skin, and spinal nerves are beginning to stretch out from the spinal cord. Baby’s forehead temporarily bulges with a developing brain and sits very high on baby’s head, which measures half the length of the body. From crown to rump, baby’s about 1 1/4 inches long. In the coming weeks, baby will again double in size — to nearly 3 inches.
That’s nice! July 10, 2009
Josiah has a new favorite phrase: That’s nice! Here are some examples of him using it.
1. Driving down 72nd st, Mom: Josiah, there is the hospital where you were born.
Josiah: Oh!!! That’s nice!!!
2. Mom: Josiah, daddy called, he is on his way home!
Josiah: Oh, that’s nice!
3. Josiah: That? (meaning “what’s that?”
Mom: I am feeding Eva green beans all mashed up/
Josiah: Oh, That’s nice!
4. Mom walks in the living room after doing dishes in the kitchen to find Josiah playing with Eva
Josiah: Mommy, I nice!
