Missing Daddy

I think it's safe to say that Eli sure has missed his Daddy this month! Really with Brad on call every third night, it's like we only see him every third day. The first day of the rotation he leaves at 630am and gets home the next day around 1pm, then sleeps the rest of the afternoon. So we get a glimpse of him when he gets up just before Eli's bedtime, then it's the next day that we get to see him home for dinner (see, every third day).

Eli has really gotten into wrestling Daddy and will just lay on the ground whenever he sees Brad and point to himself and say "Dada, Dada!" meaning for Brad to come tackle him. The other day when Brad was on call, at least three times during the day Eli went to the bottom of the stairs and laid there, pointing to himself and calling up the stairs for "Dada!" Brad even called during one of the episodes and it broke his heart to hear Eli calling for him. I tried to explain that Dada was at work, but he was pretty persistent. Then yesterday, I took him to the post office and the dr's office, and every man he saw he would call "Dada!" Or "There's a dada, bye bye dada."

Needless to say we love Dada and miss him and can't wait for this shift to be over =).

Farmer's Market

I sure wish I had a picture of this. We headed over to one of the local farmer's markets last weekend and it was awesome! There really is a difference between produce that has been picked that morning and the stuff you find at the grocery store. I cannot describe adequately the sweet smell of the carrots and celery (yes, even the celery smelled good) as well as the corn and tomatoes etc. It made me want to start growing all of my own food, lol. The market is held outdoors in the mall parking lot under tents. Eli thought it was so great that he refused to stay in his stroller. It took us both just to keep track of him and to buy all of our goods. I got all the produce I needed from my grocery list, so my trip to the store was a breeze later that day. Yum, Yum, Yum. I really wish I could bottle up that carrot smell and send it to you all! Our neighbor has also been giving us zuchinni, beets, green beans and summer squash from his garden. So we've had zuchinni bread, chicken noodle soup with carrots and celery, zuchinni pasta, zuchinni and tomato salad, etc. We put the corn in the freezer so I have yet to try that - as well as the locally grown portobello mushrooms. Ah, nature's bounty. I can't wait to go apple and pumpkin picking!

La Leche League

So I'm fessing up to another "hippy mama" activity, lol. I mentioned there were not many young mothers in my ward out here, and I really need to socialize with other moms for my sanity. So I started attending La Leche League meetings and I have to say, they are COOL! Do not be afraid to attend one if you are curious, just want to meet some interesting people, or have a problem you need help/support with. Here is the website if you want to find a group near you. I wish I had gone when Eli was a baby (you can go even before your baby is born). It is really helpful to meet with a whole group of like-minded moms and share stories and support. We talk about all kinds of things too (not just breastfeeding all night) like nutrition and toddlers etc. It's funny, today at the library I recognized the librarian in the children's section from the meeting, and another young mother there with her newborn - so we all chatted for a bit. From LLL I also found out about a "Birth Circle" group that meets and have started attending that as well. It's pregnant mamas, and other women who support natural birthing and the midwifery model of care who get together and talk about birth stories, answer questions, discuss birth stuff, and maybe even watch some natural birth films. Totally cool, totally up my ally, and actually really helpful! If you are a pregnant mama, I HIGHLY suggest the book Ina May's Guide to Childbirth no matter where/how you intend to birth. A much more positive, empowering, and natural approach to pregnancy and birth than the What to Expect books. Oh that and Hypnobirthing (which I'm trying to read right now). I also found out about some playgroups in the area from the other moms, so we'll have to check those out. Anyway, that's my blurb for the day! =)

Cape Cod

Our final summer fling - a weekend on Cape Cod! Brad was able to take Friday off (his last chance for a few months) and we headed out to the Cape. It's super expensive to stay out there, so we opted for camping. I wasn't so sure how that was going to work out, but it was actually pretty fun. The airbed was surprisingly comfortable this late in pregnancy - it was the lack of a nearby potty that left me in pain much of the night. We wore Eli out sufficiently so that he went to sleep without a problem - it was waking in terror at 430am that we didn't expect. Problem #1 - he had blankets on him (which he hates) and started kicking them off.... Problem #2 - he kept kicking and realized something was on his feet (footie pajamas) which upset him even more ... Problem #3 - he opened his eyes and saw an unfamiliar closed in space. He started screaming bloody murder and we just had to get up and start our day so he didn't disturb the entire campground!

The Cape is truly breathtaking. The beaches have soft, white, clean sand and the waves were just perfect. The weather was PERFECT the entire weekend. Just warm enough to want to be near the water, but not too muggy. We spent several chilly evenings by the shore, and one long warm day playing in the sand and surf. Eli was nervous around the waves and wouldn't walk unless he knew we were far enough away that the water couldn't reach him. Even then he would only walk holding our hands. He did enjoy collecting rocks and seaweed and throwing them into the water - he even got his timing down and would wait for the wave to come up close before he would chuck something in.

We also took a day trip up to the very tip top of the cape in Provincetown, where we went on a whale watching trip. This was a childhood dream come true for me - aside from the seasickness (yuck!). We saw 5 humpback whales during the trip, one of which was breaching (jumping out of the water). It was amazing. We got that on video, but not the digital camera. Just our luck - Eli fell asleep right before we came across the whale so my arms were full of him and Brad was busy with the video. But we got a shot of another whale's tale at least. Eli was excited about the boat ride and enjoyed looking over the railing. For dinner that night, we had a real lobster at the Lobster Shanty - not really my cup of tea but it was an experience anyway. Brad says he really liked it - I think I prefer shrimp or crab - the clam chowder was great though.

Our campground was in the historic town of Brewster. It's crazy because it's right off the main street, but as soon as you pull in you are surrounded by the woods. The whole Cape is that way - you wouldn't believe you are right by the ocean until you pull up at the beach because there is so much vegetation out there. In the evenings Brad and I had s'mores by the fire after we put Eli to bed. It was chilly enough at night to feel like a real camp experience. All in all, a FANTASTIC time - we highly recommend it. It was a nice way to end the summer and launch Brad into his endless days at the hospital =).

Sharon, VT

We made the 3 hour trek up to Sharon, VT this month to visit Joseph Smith's birthplace. There is no longer an actual house there, but there's a visitor center, a memorial, and some old foundations of the homes of his relatives on the property. It was incredibly gorgeous and peaceful there. Our tour guides were an older missionary couple and they were so sweet. Eli's favorite part of the trip was riding on the golf cart through the woods.




We got to pass by an old stone bridge from the 1800s which still spans the stream, as well as the old stone wall that lined what was the "freeway" back then. After our tour, we headed up to nearby Tunbridge (where Joseph Smith's parents met) and stopped at the country store for some delightful grub. The owner was French (probably Canandian?) and he ran the store, and cooked the food. We had the most delicious "crispy cheesecake" - it was cheesecake wrapped in a fried thin pastry and topped with cinnamon and sugar. Yum, yum, yum.... I just can't get over how SMALL all these towns in VT are that we drove through. There were bustling farmer's markets in just about every town we drove through as well.


And here's an interesting little attraction we drove by.... I'm not sure if people actually live up that hill or what. It was the end of the day and we didn't have time to drive up there and see... but we at least pulled over and got a picture. It took a couple of tries to get the camera timer set and aimed right on the top of our car, then to have me waddle quick enough to make it into the shot. So the picture turned out blurry, but it was fun.... tee hee.....

Hippy Mama Returns!

I took a long hiatus from cloth diapering and such during the whole moving process, but we are back at it and loving it. I'm starting to collect the newborn size for baby O. Here is Eli modeling his favorite - the basketball diaper.


I can also still get him on my back! It's surprisingly comfortable in spite of the belly. We don't really do it routinely anymore, I mostly wanted to see if I still remembered how, and test out some of my carriers to make sure I want to keep them all.


And here is a pic of the 27 week belly (almost a month ago - I can't fit in that dress anymore!).


Baby O is doing well by all indications. Every check up is really good and he is definitely getting big in there! He's due Oct 30th and I'm at that "really awkward, can't get comfortable at night, bending down is torture, can't reach the kitchen sink" stage. Baby O is not a wild mover, but when he does move he is big enough now that I sure feel it! Half the time I get the strongest kicks when Eli is squishing me - he has already been kicked in the head by his little bro so they are getting things off to a great start =). One very sweet thing is when I lay down with Eli to get him to sleep, he cuddles up to me and puts his arm over my belly and pats it. He feels the baby moving all of the time when laying like that, but I'm sure he doesn't understand what it is. Or maybe he does - he was recently sitting on the couch with me watching A Baby Story (birth story) on TLC and when the baby was born and started crying, Eli pointed excitedly to the tv and said "oh there's da bebe" then points to my belly and says "bebe" then back to the tv "bebe." So either he does understand there is a baby in there, or he just thinks my big bump is called a baby, lol. I'm starting to go through baby clothes and get things set up and ready for the big arrival - it's that intense nesting instinct kicking in!!! I really had a hard time getting excited about this pregnancy in the beginning because I was so sick and we had all the craziness of moving going on, but I've started to really fall in love with this little baby and am excited to meet him!

Beautiful Boy

This is a mostly "for the grandparents and my journal" post - I apologize. I have been meaning to post "all about Eli" for his 18 month update, but now he's 20 months so I will just have to go with it! It seems like he has changed a lot in the last two months. He has gone from a vocabulary of about 40 words to an extensive list that I can't even number. He is also spouting out sentences that make sense, along with his random babbling and story telling. He is such a crack up. His favorite thing to say is "I see a _____" fill in the blank with a word he knows. Some of his common sentences are:
"I see a .... bur (bird), a bee, a ba-ba (ball), appo (airplane), meeam (meow, or cat), diggun (digger)" and his latest and greatest - "I see a bum! Mama, bum!" Brad said something about there being sand on my bum this past weekend (we were at the beach) and now Eli loves to tell me he sees my bum. Wonderful. It is even more hilarious when I echo "you see a bum?" and he will respond "Yeah! A bum!" He is also now aware of his bodily functions. He emphatically tells me, "Mama, pee pee!" whether he is going pee, poop, or tooting. Brad thinks this is a sign of readiness for potty-learning. I told him to feel free and take charge of the operation then =). Eli has also become fascinated with burping (he is SUCH a boy!). Whenever he does it, he points to his mouth and says "there!" and then tries to make himself do it again. Oh boy. He is doing well with his sign language and tries really hard to imitate new ones we teach him. His most used signs are: amen, baby, more, eat, and car - though he can sign many others when prompted (such as airplane, dog, fish, shoe, I love you, bird). Some of his most repeated words are: "Dare!" (there), "Dis un" (this one), "Nun" (sun), "Ky" (sky), "ah duh" (all done), Mama! Mommy!, "Uh Oh", "eyes", "hi" and "huwo", "pee pee" and "psss", "ba ba" (ball), "bye bye", "diggun" (digger), "gobeej" (garbage truck), and "caw caw bur."

Eli is really into cars and trucks. He gets super excited everytime the garbage truck goes down our street, or the mailman comes, or a fire truck or dump truck drives by. He plays with his little matchbox cars on a daily basis. He is also fascinated by birds! We put a feeder outside our front window so he could watch them, though he mostly likes to bang the window to scare them. He points out a bird whenever he sees one, and he insists that
birds say "caw caw." It sounds really funny when he starts screaming excitedly "ca-ca bur, ca-ca bur!" He seems to like animals in general, and has also become fascinated by cats, even though he isn't around them much. He has a cat and dog puppet that my mom made for him, and he favors the cat and calls her "meeam" (or meow for cat). Meeam is a mixed blessing - it's great that she inspires his creativity so much, but really gets annoying when I have to spend half the day with her on my hand - using her to throw balls, read books, play cars and puzzles, etc. Sometimes I flat out hide her to save my sanity. As for other toys, Eli also loves his See and Say (it makes animal sounds afterall) and this little toy dog that he can pull around. He has a sand table out back that he will fiddle with now and then when we are outside, but he much prefers to throw rocks or go for walks when we are out there. Bubble blowing is also a favorite. I do try to keep him busy with constructive activities, but I do turn to the TV when I need a break and Eli is not willing to play alone. He enjoys PBS cartoons like Curious George and Clifford, and LOVES the move Cars. He also likes Finding Nemo, Signing Time, and his Baby Einstein farm movie - he asks for this one (or the Little People zoo movie) by saying "E-I-E-I" (for the Old MacDonald song). Books are still his number one favorite. We sometimes read books 3 -4 times a day. Some of his favorites are: Are You My Mother?, The Eye Book, Buzz Buzz Buzz, I am a Kitten, Where Is my Cat?, and a picture book of trucks and one of whales (of all things!). He also knows quite a few of his letters and likes playing with his wooden letter puzzle (with Meeam of course). Although I have to watch him because the other day five pieces were missing - I found 2 in the trash and 3 in the hamper! We affectionately call Eli the "little organizer" because he can really get into sorting things. He often goes through our shoe basket by the back door, my bathroom cabinet, and of course the laundry. He will sort, rearrange, put them back, then start over. It's pretty cute. This behavior will keep him entertained at a restaurant with the little sugar packets too.

At his recent well visit, Eli was 26 pounds and 34 1/2 inches tall. I think that puts him around 30th percentile for weight and 80th for height. He has turned into a tall and slim little toe-head. Everywhere we go we get comments on his white blondedness. Eli is very sweet and loving, cuddly and affectionate. The other morning I went in his room to get him and he wanted me to lay down with him a while. When I tried to get up I got a charlie horse in my belly - it hurt so bad! I grimaced and grabbed my belly and said "ow, ow, ow!" Eli got really concerned and crawled over to me and onto my leg, pointing at me saying "mama, ow, mama, ow" then he started bawling. It was so sweet... I had to just suck it up and pretend it didn't hurt anymore so he wouldn't be distressed.

Eli is also shy and slow to warm with strangers, particular and stubborn, intelligent, clever, and cautious. He will usually stay pretty close to me when I take him out in public - except at the store now. I am tempted to start ordering all my groceries online, lol. He hates riding in the cart and will not do so quietly or willingly, yet if I let him out he wants to run up and down the isles - not out of my sight usually but still. He is learning to go up and down our stairs - he goes up great by himself but insists on walking down like a big boy instead of scooting or crawling down backwards. At least he waits for me to come and hold his hand to help him down. We did have a scare a few weeks ago when he reached for my hand and took a big step at the top of the stairs before I could grab it! All I could do was stand there helplessly screaming as I watched him cartwheel down the stairs and land on his back. He was definitely surprised, but I think more frightened by my reaction than he was actually hurt. I never even found a bruise on him, but I am emotionally scarred forever! I really. hate. stairs. I can't wait to have a ranch level again.



Our biggest challenges with Eli are eating and sleeping. He has made great strides in the sleeping department since we moved - he now sleeps in his OWN bed in his room (as opposed to smack in the middle of ours) though it is still common for him to wake up 1-2 times a night. There are a few occasions when he sleeps all the way through, but we're still working on it. Whe he wakes up, he yells "mama!" until I come in there, and will even get out of bed and bang on the door if I ignore him - then the crying of course. He just wants me to lay with him and cuddle/nurse and will go back to sleep. So, it's like musical beds for me some nights as I tend to fall asleep in there with him then wake up and sneak back to my room. As for eating, Eli has PICKY down to a science. He has always been picky (really didn't take to solids until after a year, and refused baby food all the way) but he got really bad during and after the move. I think it was the stress - I've noticed when we take little trips away from home he will not eat even some of his favorites while we are out. I have to really plan and be sneaky to get him eating a balanced variety. At least he eats avocado sandwiches or peanut butter and banana. He is starting to eat apple slices again too, but I have to leave them sitting out on a plate while he is playing to nibble on - he won't eat them if placed in front of him at mealtime. Of course he loves pizza and nutri-grain bars (I buy whole grain/organic ones). So yes, feeding a toddler is probably the most stressful part of parenting for me, lol. Well, that and the emerging tantrums. Wow, it's crazy when they hit that craving for independence stage and start having meltdowns over little things. I have to remind myself constantly that I am NOT 2 years old and can't have a tantrum back - it's tough, lol.

Anyway, this is such a long post, but I wanted to record a snapshot in time. Eli has just grown and changed so fast, I can hardly believe my little baby is a walking, talking person with opinions! Brad and I both adore him and are so proud of the little boy he is.

A bit of August

At last... our computer is fixed! After we got it semi-working, we moved it and it stopped turning on again. I ended up taking it to a small computer repair company, and they replaced the power supply (it was indeed fried from power surges) but the part was only $50 and they had it replaced and the computer all cleaned of viruses and problems by that afternoon. And the bill was a fraction of what Best Buy was going to charge (they tried to make it sound like I should just buy a new computer for what it would take to fix it). So poo-poo on the Geek Squad. Anyway, now I can blog more effectively and actually upload some pictures from our jam-packed August of adventures! We tried to take advantage of our last few weeks with a cushy schedule and nice weather. Brad is now in the ICU so he is on-call every third night. His first day was a call day so he went in at 630am and didn't get home until noon the NEXT day. Then he slept a bit and had to be back at the hospital at 630am for at least a 12 hour shift. Same thing the next day. Then the next is call again so repeat the overnight thing... and so on. He will have Saturday off this weekend though.

We had a fun "date night" with the ward this month - ballroom dancing! We learned swing, the cha-cha, and tango. The babysitter didn't show up at the church so Eli ended up running around in the gym and trying to trip us the entire time, but it was fun. He liked to stand up by the instructor as well and show him a few moves.

On one Sunday afternoon we headed up to Bennington, VT to see some covered bridges. It is SO beautiful and green in Vermont! Crazy that we are only about 45 minutes from Bennington, but it is even more "woodsy" up there than it is here!


Another quick weekend adventure was up to Northampton, MA (about an hour from here). The downtown area was FILLED with quirky people - seriously - dreadlocks, tattoos, tattered clothing, big dogs, musicians on every corner. I just wanted to take pictures of everyone, but I didn't want to upset anybody, lol. We finally found a place that serves decent fresh Mexican food and had some delicious burritos. Then we shopped til we dropped at Whole Foods Market (a seriously awesome store!) and Trader Joe's. On the way home we drove through historic Deerfield, MA - this OLD town section that has been preserved. Many people still live there, but most of the homes are now part of a historic tour. They were even equipped with the old lantern "streetlights" - it seriously made me want to watch Little Women again. In fact, I think I will have to go unpack it.



Well that's it for this post. We went blueberry picking again as a family this time and got some more of the good stuff. I also took Eli to another farm/petting zoo as a part of a community playgroup (so we got in free) and he had a ball seeing kittens, and various farm birds (his favorite). I think this post has enough pictures though. Our other adventures this month deserve their own posts, so I'm stopping here! =)

Blueberry Picking

Another New England summer tradition we enjoyed - blueberry picking! Eli and I went with some people from the ward and had a blast. Thank goodness for the all-terrain stroller! That thing has sure come in handy. This time I used it to truck Eli down the grassy/bumpy hill to the berry patch, then into the overgrown/brambly/prickly patch itself. I wasn't sure how he was going to like it, but to him the berries were "ball balls" so as long as I parked him next to a low branch that he could pick from, all was well. He even got his own bucket, though he liked to fill it and then throw the berries as far as he could. I guess that's ok since the ones he picked were mostly green. We spent about an hour picking and ended up with over 5 pounds of blueberries for $8! You can't beat that! I have yet to bake anything, but they have been tasty as a snack and in cereal and oatmeal (Eli will have nothing to do with eating them though).The only negative - I forgot to apply the bugspray. The squitos seem to stay away from everyone else and head straight for me! I wound up with a few swollen and itchy bites. Next time I'll remember to coat myself in chemicals before venturing out into a bushy patch of berries =).

I Love my Midwife and Brad's Schedule

I had my second appointment with the midwife out here this week and I have to say, there really is a difference in a practice with midwives versus OBs only. This particular practice is home to 2 midwives and 2 OB's (who reportedly have more midwife-like philosophies than most). I feel so wonderfully comfortable there - very laid back, attentive, and supportive and in general a positive and "you are normal" approach to pregnancy and delivery. One example - towards the end of my pregnancy with Eli the PA at my Dr's office told me that since I was having a big baby I had better bring low cut pants to wear home so that it would be more comfortable when I ended up with a C-section. Her comment just illustrated her total lack of confidence in the birthing process and assumption that any baby over 8 pounds wouldn't come out normally - plus her apparent lack of sensitivity to the fact that I was planning and hoping for a natural and unmedicated delivery was evident. Contrast that with a comment the midwife made this week while examining me - "How big was Eli". "9lbs 7oz." "Oh, well you have a nice wide pelvis - you could have a 13 pounder no problem." Maybe it was just her nice way of telling me I have big hips, lol, but it sure boosted my confidence and lessened my obsession with having this baby early so it would be smaller.

Also, the midwife hasn't batted an eye so far at the more "natural" and "non-invasive" approaches that I prefer for labor and delivery - and in fact she agrees with many of the things I have brought up and for the most part, follows them in general rather than exception! In general it just helps me feel less anxious about going to the hospital to give birth. I was lucky to find an OB in Phoenix who was at least supportive of my birth plan, but I felt like I had to be on the defensive at the hospital with a super detailed birth plan so that nothing was "done" to me that I didn't want while unable to concentrate and object. Anyway, the hospital I'm delivering at is 40 minutes away (not the one a mile from our home where Brad works, lol) but I think it will be worth it. Afterall, they have Jacuzzi tubs!!! Seriously, I wanted one so badly when I was sitting in that puny shower at Thunderbird hospital in labor with Eli. So hopefully it will be as helpful this time around as I envisioned =).

In other updates, a few of you have commented about the apparent amount of time we are able to spend with Brad during internship - well you are right if you guessed that we are lucky! That is part of the reason we chose this type of internship and had to move across country for it. His first two months have been electives - meaning he chose the specialty to rotate in. He did pediatrics first, which was office based so he had nice daytime hours. He was on call several evenings a week, but was able to answer most call from home, and only went in if a child got admitted. So we had dinner together and most of the time he was here for Eli's bedtime. Not to mention weekends off! This month he is doing PM&R (Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation - the specialty he will be training in for the rest of his residency starting next year.) This one is hospital based, but the hours are awesome. He is often home before 5pm and again has weekends off. Sounds too good to be true, right?! Well yes and no - it is awesome while it lasts. Starting next month he will be doing ICU and the month after that hospital wards (internal medicine) so it won't be so great. He will have only one weekend off the entire month for each of those, and then one day a week otherwise which he will probably spend catching up on sleep because he will be on overnight call every third night. So those months won't be fun, but at least we have the good ones to balance it out!