Early Days

Big Sister

One of the most frequently asked questions in the last few weeks has been "How's Isabelle doing?"

She pretty much ignored Charlotte for the first two weeks, except for asking "I go baby's car seat" or "I go baby's bed" in a whiny voice once or twice a day. She also has gotten in the swing a few times, and it only lasts about 5 minutes or so and she then realizes she's too big. For the most part, she has not shown any jealousy at all. She has played well in the room with me while I've been nursing. We often read books during that time with her up on the couch with me.

Whenever she hears Charlotte cry she says "Baby Charlotte's hungry." She was also very watchful of Charlotte's paci in the first few weeks, because Isabelle is only allowed hers at bedtime and I fully expected her to grab it at the first chance and run off.

A few days ago when Ben asked Isabelle to say "Good morning" to Charlotte, Isabelle replied with "What's going on, baby Charlotte?" I think she got that from me saying "I need to see what's going on with Baby Charlotte." :)

She has not yet held Charlotte - not interested and runs away. One day when I was taking Charlotte's picture, Isabelle said she wanted to be in the picture too, so that's how these shots came to be. It looks kind of like she's reading to her....


Last night we went to the mall to let me out of the house (it had been a few days!) and Isabelle was playing in the indoor playground. Ben and I were standing on the edge with Charlotte in the stroller and in between romps Isabelle ran up and said "Mummy!Daddy! Isabelle! Baby Charlotte!". It was like she was saying, "Yeah, she's one of us now. And I love our family!". :)

More Reinforcements

The following weekend the second shift arrived. Auntie Jo came for her annual visit - which we had scheduled months ago, not knowing that she'd get to be the first Gresik to meet Charlotte. Jo did what she is best at: cheer us up, clean our house and help me buy some clothes. I wish we'd had the mind to give Jo a name that means "sunshine" because that's really what she is. Pure sunshine. Jo had to leave on Sunday evening to get back to school.

My mom came on the Sunday and stayed for a week. She enjoyed baby Charlotte time in the evenings and had Isabelle time in the mornings. As usual, we enjoyed her company immensely, although we were missing my dad. Mom took Isabelle on several excursions, including a dinner out to Schuler Books and Music. Mom was kind of a trooper about it, considering Isabelle ran away on her twice while Mom was ordering the food. She sent Ben, Charlotte and I out on a "date" and we chose to have dinner at Tokyo Grill, where we had our first dinner out with Isabelle two years ago. Mom knew we would be short on date nights in the coming months, and it was a great idea.

We had a hilarious time trying to get a picture of Mom with the girls. Isabelle was crazy and wouldn't look at the camera, until Charlotte kind of slumped over and Isabelle started laughing and saying, "Baby fell over!". Hence, the small smile you see.

Thanks, Mom and Jo for all you did and for spending the time with us. And thanks Dad for giving up Mom for a week!

Back on the Home Front

Meanwhile, back at home Christy was taking awesome care of Isabelle and reinforcements (aka Oma and Opa) arrived late that evening that Charlotte was born. Oma and Opa stayed until Saturday and gave Isabelle a wonderful time!


Isabelle helped Opa rake leaves and do dishes. She helped Oma bake birthday cupcakes for Charlotte and made beautiful cards with "colors" (markers). Isabelle also had a nasty cold during this time, which made it extra nice that she had such wonderful playmates and caregivers! She got lots of TLC.

Talking to Mummy on the phone in the hospital

Visit to the Hospital - Tuesday 13th Noon

Another Life Changing Day

In the hopes of not missing any of the wonderful and monumental events of the last month, I'm going to go back to November 12th and bring everyone up to speed slowly. Look for more posts this week.

On November 12th I was scheduled to start my maternity leave. On the 11th, I played piano for the morning service and then led worship for the youth that evening. Before going to bed I remember crying as I was processing all the events of the day and how things were going to be changing. I was exhausted.

At 12:30am I awoke with stronger contractions than I had been having during the previous two weeks. After a few hours we called Christy to come stay with Isabelle. I was a little more eager to get to the hospital this time because it was now a 30 minute drive, instead of 1 minute for our last birth, and I wanted to make sure that someone was here for Isabelle.

We arrived at the hospital around 4am, but I was not admitted until 8am. I wasn't as far along as I thought, and they also did an ultrasound to make sure baby was doing okay. She wasn't very active, and one solid memory I have is of the ultrasound tech poking my belly very hard with the wand, trying to get the baby to move - meanwhile, I'm having a wicked contraction and the poking is NOT helping.

The hospital was brand new and when they ushered us into the birthing room we were not disappointed. It was large and spacious, with space for the baby's bath and examination all in the room with us. Last time Isabelle was sent to the nursery for that stuff and it seemed to take so long. Anyways.....the day progressed, but I didn't. It was long and slow, ending with the worst four hours of pain of my life. Ben got me through it.

And as soon as she came out at 8:21pm, it was the greatest feeling. No more pain! No more pregnancy symptoms! No more belly....well, not nearly as big anyways! It was all worth it.

In the hours and days that I spent at the hospital, I really felt like I already knew this lovely creature, Charlotte Beth. We had been through a lot - a tough pregnancy, a hot summer and a long hard labor together. We had some great bonding time at the hospital. I felt like I was on vacation - food made to order, a 37" plasma in my room and a cute baby to cuddle with. It was instantly apparent that she was calm and easy to soothe.

Charlotte was named for two very special people. Charlotte Gammon Saunders was my mother's paternal grandmother. She was an amazing lady who lived into her 90's, still baking bread and washing the kitchen floor. She faced a great deal of adversity in her life and lived with grace and kindness. She passed away in my first year of university so I was blessed to know her well as a great-grandma.

Beth is my middle name, but I too was named for a special great Aunt Beth, my mother's sister. Beth was my surrogate grandma, having lost mine too young when I was 12. She was a painter, a music lover, a great cook, an outdoor enthusiast and the kind of person who always remembered your birthday or anniversary.

Even though the pregnancy and labor were very difficult, the after part was much easier and smoother than last time. Stay tuned.

Da Room

After months of waffling about which room to put which child in, we finally made a permanent decision. Or to be more accurate, I finally made a decision. We had been planning on leaving Isabelle in her room and putting the new baby in our newly cleaned out study, but I kept going back and forth because of the size of the rooms. Isabelle's room is smaller, and is already set up as a nursery.

When we were at Ikea we chose a color scheme and some bedding. The twin bed is just a reading/sitting area for now because we'd like her to stay in the crib as long as possible! This morning Christy and Dane took Isabelle out for the morning and for lunch so we raced around assembling the furniture (Ben) and buying the remaining linens needed (Mel). While she was sleeping this afternoon I washed all the new stuff and hemmed the curtains. Ben will put the finishing touches on the blinds tomorrow.

BEFORE

AFTER

Isabelle was super excited about "da room" and we had some great play time in it after dinner. She went to bed very happily. I can't believe it's finally done, except for hanging up a few things on the walls.

Ikea

We enjoyed a much needed trip out of town today and headed to the Ikea near Detroit. We had a list of furniture items to complete both the nursery and Isabelle's new room (yes, Mom, I changed my mind AGAIN). We got there at lunch time and ate at Wendy's first before the big shopping trip.

Isabelle did really well. Ben stayed with her most of the time while I tried to go quickly through the store. She really enjoyed the children's room section and kept going through this doorway that had streamers hanging down through it.

Near the end she was quite cranky, because she has a cold and she was overdue for a nap. When we got to the check out, Ben stayed in line with our mountain of purchases while I showed Isabelle the only way I can get her Daddy to come to Ikea - the promise of an ice cream cone at the end. They didn't have utensils and I didn't have a spoon in the bag, so I decided to try the cone with her. After about 5 minutes she said, "I have ice cream.", which meant she wanted to HOLD the cone. It was fine until it was over and she totally melted down, but was asleep 5 minutes after we pulled away from the store.

The first thing she said when she woke up 80 minutes later was, "I like it, that ice cream cone."

Getting Ready

Here's an update on baby #2. I had an appointment on Monday, including an ultrasound. The baby is roughly 7 pounds, and measuring as if it was 38 weeks (I am 36). I am having some contractions, although they always stop, so it's not like we're going to the hospital anytime soon. My prediction is before November 20. But you know how dangerous that is!

This week and last I have been focusing on finishing up church work. It feels good to at least finish SOMETHING, and to be able to mentally let go of at least one part of life. Next week I will turn again to the house and doing more things to get us more prepared for life with two.

In Pictures

I have been fairly depressed about my ability to photograph Isabelle over the last six months, hence the lack of new pictures of her. I need a new camera. The pictures are usually blurry because she's moving most of the time. I can never capture her in a way that truly looks like her!

I have sunk to a new low.
I have begun to photograph my child while she is watching a video.
It's the only time she is still.
She doesn't smile...but at least she's still.


Here's the only other good one (ONE!) from the last three months.

Sentences

"Mummy, look. Cars." (Sally, Mater, McQueen.....)

"I have stinky pants."

"I want....Dane."
(referring to Uncle Dane, when only Auntie Christy was here to babysit)

"What happen?" "MESS!!!!!"
(referring to when she has dumped a tub of plastic fruit or other such noisy toy all over the laminate floor)

"Mummy all wet!" (after she has dumped cupfuls of water out of the bathtub onto me)

"I want talk Daddy's phone."

"Shoot!" (when things on the floor have dropped)

She uses "I have" sometimes when she means "I want" so it results in things like, "I have beads." or "I have pen.". Also, association is played instead of rote repetition, resulting in conversations like this.

Me: Isabelle, can you say "Oma and Opa"?
Isabelle: Chris. (Uncle Chris)
Me: Say "Oma and Opa".
Isabelle: Chris.

Me: Isabelle, Grandma's coming!
Isabelle: Rika! Peppi! (dogs....that live with Grandpa Ed and Grandma Jean)
Me: Can you say "Grandma and Grandpa"?
Isabelle: Rika! Peppi!

Baby, Baby

I'm just getting in under the wire with a post during September.....here's hoping that the next few months will be a little more blog friendly.

Many have asked how my pregnancy is going so I thought I'd do a little recap.

During months 1-5 I was very sick. Tired. Laid down as much as possible. Hungry but little success with finding foods that relieved my nausea. Down. Wondered how I would manage with a nursing baby and an active toddler.

In early July, when I was probably at my lowest point in the pregnancy, my mom announced that she would come visit for awhile and that changed everything. She stayed for 10 days and cleaned, organized, watched Isabelle, cooked and just generally cheered me up. I mean, I appreciated all that she did, but the best part of her visit was her company. Each night at about 8:00pm we would quit working and then play Scrabble, eat snacks and talk. When she left, I felt completely different about facing the rest of the pregnancy and the early days with a newborn and toddler.

My morning sickness finally left in mid-August (around week 25) and that was a welcome relief! I have gotten a lot bigger, faster, during this pregnancy and so in August I started having all the discomforts that I didn't have until month 8 with Isabelle (difficulty finding a sleeping position, tying my shoes, etc.) That has slowed me down somewhat, but also given me an excuse to avoid picking up things off the floor. :)

I continue to feel enormous, and I've both been physically uncomfortable with size/weight of the baby, and also a lot more self-conscious this time around. Last time I felt special and cute. This time I feel huge and awkward.

The baby has been active, but in different ways than Isabelle. She kicked a lot, repeatedly. This one does a lot of large motions, stretches and changes of position. It also gets the hiccups a lot, sometimes four times in one day. Here's the ultrasound photo at 20 weeks (late June). We chose not to find out the gender (again).

This post would not be complete without mention of how amazing Ben has been during this pregnancy. He has cooked a great deal, gotten groceries early in the morning before going to work, helped try to find foods that would relieve my nausea, taken Isabelle outside after dinner to let me lie down, never complained about the state of the house, changed his work hours to allow me to go in during higher energy times, calmed me down during irrational outbursts of fear and exhaustion, rubbed cream into my feet every night and just generally has been a ray of sunshine at all times.

I am currently 32 weeks......
Due Date: November 27

Ice Cream

When Isabelle was younger she did not like ice cream. We tried giving it to her repeatedly and she would say "no, no" and not open her mouth. About a month ago someone took her to our local "Cone Shop" and this person jammed it into her mouth when she wasn't looking.

Then she wanted more. After repeat trips to the Cone Shop, she knows exactly where it is. In fact, when we drive by from multiple directions she still somehow recognizes it, and declares "eee keem".

So tonight I was putting her to bed and singing our current night-time songs (Holy, Holy, Holy and Open the Eyes of My Heart). She joins in on the "holy" part - it's very sweet. It's a wonderful, worshipful moment and all of a sudden in the middle of the song, she perks up and looks at me with intent eyes and says "eee keem! eee keem!".

"Nice songs, Mom, but isn't ice cream great?"

Ontario in June: Ottawa

One day during the trip we traveled to Ottawa to see more family. We spent a morning with the dearest, sweetest niece in the world, Lia. We had a great lunch and went to the park together. The girls enjoyed the swings and slide, and they also chased the birds a little.

Lia is really growing and changing so it was really a treat to see her again.



We ended the day with a delicious dinner at Oma and Opa's house. Lisa and Chris were also there. Isabelle helped Oma and Opa with the dishes after supper and enjoyed dumping water all over the kitchen floor! She also ran up and down the ramp about a million times, and made Auntie Lisa chase the tennis ball many times after throwing it into the flowers.

Ontario in June: Grandma and Grandpa's House

Isabelle was quite thrilled with all the exciting activities at Grandma and Grandpa's house during our visit. She spent many hours in the swing going "whee" at the top of her lungs, playing in the sand with Grandpa, riding her "bike" in the driveway, making chalk marks on everything she could find and trying to splash in Rika's water dish.

Grandpa and Isabelle in the sandbox

Ontario in June: Brother Ben's Grad

Yes my friends, it's been awhile. But we're back after weeks of vacation and general activity. So if you're willing to forgive, then keep reading.

What have we been up to since June? We truly kicked off summer with a week of vacation in Ontario during the end of June. It was brother Ben's high school graduation so we arranged to be there for the grand festivities. Ben introduced the speaker and also played drums for the congregational singing. He looked great and was great. Ben will be living at home next year, while practicing his scads of instruments, attending Frontenac Secondary for a few credits and attempting to save some money for university.

Splash Pad

It has been very, very hot here. Isabelle trots to the door first thing in the morning and says "'side, 'side?" We've been sticking to the basement most days, with the exception of morning walks. Today we met up with some people from church at our neighborhood splash pad.

Isabelle loved it. She got completely soaked and was not afraid of the water at all (must be thanks to Ben's hair rinsing techniques). She did fall at one point while running excitedly and skinned her knee, but after a quick hug got right back out there.




I took the video with my digital camera so it's rough, but I thought it'd be nice to see!

I Want to Ride My Bicycle

We got the bike trailer back at Christmas as a present to ourselves and Isabelle. We've used it LOTS as a stroller, but kept waiting for the right time to try it out behind the bike. Friday morning was it and we had a glorious ride. Isabelle was very happy to have her snack, drink and books with her, and she didn't complain about the helmet until the very end, as you can see in the photo.

We look forward to a lot of good rides this summer.

Wedding

Last weekend we were at my cousin Mark's wedding in Windsor, Ontario and it was a great time with the extended family. We really enjoyed seeing Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma had a stylish new dress with a crocheted sweater.....she looked not a day over 60!

Isabelle was not yet ready to experience a wedding so during the ceremony she and her dad picked rocks in the parking lot. During the reception they went to Swiss Chalet for dinner (their first time at a restaurant alone!!), played at a park and then watched Shrek in the hotel room. Fun was had by all, especially me, who got to eat a sumptuous wedding feast while it was hot and participate in adult conversation. Family - you were a lot of fun to be with!! More pictures from Alison and Shawn.

Ben and Joanna

Picking rocks with Grandpa