Happy Birthday, Mike!

Today is Mike's birthday, and I'm not sure what got into me, but I was actually crafty. Amazing.  My gift to him is new golf shoes, but he needs to pick them out, and I didn't just want to give him the money.  So, I rolled up the money and put it in this:

I thought of it all by myself and whipped it together in less than an hour during the girls' naps.  Yes, I'm proud.

The girls and I went shopping this morning.  They got Mike pens and gum.  Mariah kept saying things like, "Maybe Dad would like a princess pen . . . ." and "What kind of toy do you think dad would like?  Maybe some princess stuff?"  (Side story to illustrate Mariah's RAD self-centeredness:  Last night one of her toys broke.  Elaine has the identical toy.  Mariah said, in all seriousness, with no guilt, "Mom, can I give Elaine my broken star, and I can have her star?"  I said, "How do you think Elaine would feel about having the broken star?"  "Sad.  So, can I have her star?")

Mike requested snickerdoodles instead of cake.  I also made him a tri tip roast for dinner, which caused much internal struggling for me and my vegan self.  This was our conversation:

Me:  This is really a sign of true love.  I love him enough to make him tri tip for his birthday.

Other Me:  No, if you really loved him, you wouldn't make him tri tip.  You'd say, "Sorry, Honey, I love you too much to serve you a plate full of cancer-promoting, heart-disease-causing cow bottom."

The first Me won out, and Mike loved the tri tip.  For a vegan, I can make a really mean roast!

December Catch-up

Here are the rest of the December photos (excluding Christmas):

Elaine doing P90x with Dad:

Her favorite:  "Downward Dog"

I took the girls out in the snow one afternoon.  Things were just fine until a blizzard suddenly hit.  Mariah was about 10 feet from me and said, "Mom, the snows getting me!"  I said, "No, it's fine . . ." and then it hit me.  A wall of blasting, stinging snow.  It was crazy.  I managed to get both girls onto the porch, but then realized we were locked out, and Mike was in the bathroom.  I left the girls huddled in the corner of the back porch and went to the front of the house to get inside.  I seriously could barely see with the wind and snow.  Both girls were screaming by the time I got back to them. Adventure.

Elaine didn't want to walk in the snow.

Mariah loved it!

Snow Angel

I finally carried Elaine down from the porch, but she still wouldn't walk in the snow.

Hiding from the blizzard.

Sally's favorite toy is plastic.  She LOVES the plastic diaper sacks and takes them all out of the box whenever she gets the opportunity.  She also used to do this funny thing when she wanted to sit.  She didn't do the conventional bend-a-knee-and-bring-one-foot-under-the-bottom-and-sit-back thing.  She would go into a pike position, on her hands and feet, and then stand up and fall backwards onto her bottom.  Very funny.

The pre-sit pike.

Plastic Bags!!

Family Time

The primary focus of our trip to Utah was therapy for Mariah.  We were, however, still able to spend some time with family.

Sal with Uncle Alex

Alex and Lindy

I love this one of Sal with my dad.

Elaine and cousin Henry enjoying Christmas brunch at Christine and Brad's new house.

New Christmas jammies from Grandma Shaunna and Grandpa Jim.

Elaine and cousin Max.

Mariah and I enjoying Grandpa Paul's Dutch oven potatoes.

Elaine sporting some of Orva's finery.

Sally eating some of Orva's finery.

Getting suited up for church.

My memory is failing me; I think this is New Years Eve.

Laney loved to practice the piano with Uncle David.

Saying "Goodbye" to the house.  Mike's parents built a new one!

Elaine with cousin Orva.

Happy Birthday, Mariah!

December 21, Mariah turned 4. I'm still getting used to the idea of having a 4-year-old. Where does time go?

RAD has robbed poor Mariah of a carefree childhood; I'm still hoping to be able to salvage a few years for her, but in the meantime, I hope she has happy moments.

One of the issues with RAD is the attention she receives from others; another issue is that she gets over stimulated very easily. A birthday is a day full of these 2 things combined. We did our best to de-stress the day for Mariah. She was able to receive gifts from people who love her, but she did not open the gifts in front of them, thus minimizing the pressure and stimulation she felt while getting attention from others.

We had a little party with just our little family. She opened the gifts then and made thank you cards later. I hope it was a good day for her.

Mariah had been asking for fruit soup for a long time, so we made some for her birthday lunch. Grandma Orva, Grandpa Paul, and Uncle David joined us briefly.

Looking a little shell shocked.

A bit nervous about the fire.

Singing the song is the favorite part at our house.

Thanks, Grandma Shaunna and Grandpa Jim for the memory game!

Thanks, Grandma Orva and Grandpa Paul for "If You Give a Pig a Party!"

The "Winky Wogs" were a family gift.

Writing thank you notes.

Happy Valentine's Day

We spent 2 1/2 hours at the doctor's office today finding out none of us have strep (yay!), but the 2 youngest do have ear infections, and my current antibiotic was not doing anything to help my bronchitis.  So, new antibiotic for me, and antibiotics for everyone else too.  Mariah got some just cause she's been sick for 2 1/2 weeks.  (I hate antibiotics and don't really plan on giving them to the girls unless they don't improve over the next few days.  I don't want to deal with the tummy issues and yeast infections that will surely be the aftermath.)

So, not much of a Valentine's Day for us.  But we did manage to make this cake for Mike this morning.

Flu and Food

We've had the flu, bronchitis, and strep here, and today I suspect Sal might have an ear infection.  The kids and Mike have now been sick for 2 1/2 weeks, and Sally and I have been sick for just over a week.  Miserable is an understatement.

One of the more frustrating parts of the sickness for me (and Sally) was that the high fever dried up my milk.  Sally still only nurses, and she was one sad baby for several days.  She had the flu, and she was hungry.  I did everything I could think of or read about to increase my milk supply.  It's finally almost normal again yesterday and today.  (The key, I think, for anyone interested, is taking fenugreek and blessed thistle capsules.)

Anyway, Sally absolutely REFUSES to take a bottle; I did finally get her to drink a tiny bit out of a sippy cup, but even that, she would only do if she could hold the sippy while nursing (getting nothing), and get off every few seconds to take a couple sips.

I also tried supplementing with solid food.  She was not a fan.  I think she thought all of these things were a ploy to ween her.  She really acted like her little heart was broken.  Poor girl has cried more in the last week than her whole life combined.  I'm not kidding.

Sick Mariah

Getting ready for her first solid food.  Oatmeal.  Yum!

Cheesing for the camera, but there are tears.

"I just want to nurse, Mom."

One blessing we received this week was a snow day.  Mike didn't have to go to school on Wednesday, which meant I got to stay in bed all day!  (He actually had a couple days where he didn't feel sick, but then got slammed with strep on Thursday!)  I came out from sleeping at one point to find Mike and the girls peeling garlic for me to help me feel better.  Labor of love!

Smarty Pants

I have not taught Mariah to write her name.  I've written it for her a few times, and she has traced it, but not in all capital letters.  This is what she drew this morning.  (I love how the snowman looks like he's running.)

Digging Out

With Mike still in bed with the flu (going on a week and a half now), I got to shovel the driveway.  I've shoveled a lot of snow in my life, and I actually really enjoy hard physical work like that, but this was insane!  The snow was incredibly heavy and just the right consistency to stick to the shovel every time.  I was exhausted, and today my body feels like I either did some hardcore rock climbing or water skiing.  (Sensations from my former life.)  Love it!

Luckily, the younger 2 girls slept the whole time I was out there, and Mariah sat on a chair and watched from the window.

I don't really think the pictures look as dramatic as it was.  Trust me . . . it was deep!