While there isn't much news from our house, there's lots of news with our extended family. Two new nieces this week, Dad's last Sunday in Evart, Mom and Dad preparing to move. We have little stories of our own to tell - a trip to visit Grandma Steward involving lots of spilled coffee, a sick child, and buying fresh clothes, Mia's spilled milk and subsequent fall in it, the wipes Mia decided didn't belong in the container, etc. But for this post I'll focus more on the happenings with our family, since they're more noteworthy.
We're in Evart to visit Mom and Dad for the last time. Sunday will be Dad's last day here, since July 5th was planned as vacation, and they're moving to GR on the 7th and 8th. At the moment, the Gallecks haven't arrived, Leslie is at work, Mom is in the shower, and Dad and Steve took a load to the new house. So I'm here with the girls, trying to keep them occupied with whatever toys I could scrounge and keep them out of boxes. Tomorrow the church is throwing a big party honoring Mom and Dad and I've been asked to say something. I'm a little unsure what to say, since my memories are just of Dad, not necessarily Dad as the pastor in Evart. I jotted down some thoughts yesterday, since I've learned writing out a speech works much better for me than winging it. I'll have Steve, Tracy, and Leslie read over it later and help me with it. Short and poignant.
Last week I said Father's Day is a good day for Tracy to have her baby and Becky can have her baby later in the week. I said this because Tracy was due first and it's only fair for her to give birth first, right? Plus Tracy's due date was this coming Monday, the day after the big party here in Evart, and she was determined to come, pregnant or not. Obviously it would work better for her to have the baby before the party. Turns out I called it. Tracy's water broke around 2:30 Sunday afternoon. They met Mom and Leslie at a hotel near the hospital (Leslie stayed there with Chloe while Tracy gave birth) and then arrived at the hospital around 6:30. Since she wasn't contracting regularly at that point, they gave her pitocin. Things picked up, she dilated to 6, and they stopped the pitocin. I think that was 10:30ish. Between contractions she changed into clothes to wear in the shower and was in there for a few minutes before she felt like she needed to push. This was around 11:00. She pushed for 16 minutes and Haylie May was born at 11:20 pm, 7 lbs 4 oz, 18 inches long. Tracy was very relieved things went quickly and more smoothly than they did with Chloe (30 hours of labor, 4+ hours of pushing). Chloe adores her sister already. Tracy told me she likes to sit on the couch and watch tv with Haylie in her lap, kissing her head every so often. I can't wait to meet her.
Becky was induced on Thursday and I don't know as many details for her delivery. She was induced sometime in the morning. Around 1:30 pm she asked for her mom and an epidural (so I think she was around 5 cm). Linda didn't stay long because Becky was feeling fine after the epidural. Around 5 pm, she reached 8 cm (it may have been a little earlier, the details were fuzzy). She must have reached 10 shortly after that, because she pushed for two hours and Abigail Grace was born at 7:11 pm, after an episiotomy and suction. She was 7 lbs and 20 inches long. We did get to see Abigail yesterday and she is so content. She slept the whole time we were there and didn't mind Ella rubbing her head and poking her nose (saying "boink") or Amelia poking her cheek. The girls weren't sure of her when we first got there and Zech was holding her. Once she sneezed and then especially once I held her, they were interested in Abigail. It should be fun to watch them with her in the future.
For now I need to go. The girls have been playing with plants and trying to eat dice...
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Sunday, June 14, 2009
Mom and Dad's new location
For anyone who hasn't heard yet, Mom and Dad are moving to Grand Rapids to pastor the Lifestream Church. They told the Evart church last Sunday and, just like with me, they were more excited for them and able to get behind the idea once they knew where. I guess quite a few of the Evart church members have family in GR.
That's all. Mia woke us up at 8:15 with a thump and a scream - she did not fall out of the crib so we're guessing she was bouncing and fell down inside the crib hitting her head and biting her lip. But both girls were wet anyhow so we're up for the day. It feels really early because Steve and I fell asleep late last night. Mama needs coffee...
That's all. Mia woke us up at 8:15 with a thump and a scream - she did not fall out of the crib so we're guessing she was bouncing and fell down inside the crib hitting her head and biting her lip. But both girls were wet anyhow so we're up for the day. It feels really early because Steve and I fell asleep late last night. Mama needs coffee...
Friday, June 5, 2009
Jumbled thoughts
A lot and at the same time, not much, has happened since I last posted. Really, this post is more for me to get all my thoughts out because I feel like I'm most coherent when I'm writing.
Things overall are going well. The girls are healthy and happy, all my licensing paperwork is completed and sent in, there's a possibility of a job once my license is approved (I need to write a cover letter and send that in along with my resume), I'm reading about life coaching as another possible career path, and my fitness is improving daily. But then there's all the rest; the tantrums the girls throw, the fussiness, feeling stuck at home, worrying about money and paying back my loans, worrying about my license being rejected, worrying about daycare if I get the job, feeling weary of all the hoops to jump through for my career, frustration over the scale going back up despite making good choices and exercising.
My parents are moving, sometime next month. I know where they're moving, but can't share that information yet with anyone other than immediate family. So I haven't really told anyone yet. I have mixed feelings about this. Dad is excited for the new challenges and a change of pace so I'm excited for him. They'll be a little bit closer too, which will be very nice. But I'm going to miss visiting Evart. Visiting Mom and Dad will just be visiting Mom and Dad once they move; it won't be visiting home anymore. I'm going to Evart tonight to clean out my old room. I'm not sure what I have there or if we really have room to store it or even if it's anything I want to keep. But it'll be nice to have that finished and lose the feeling of yet another thing hanging over my head. But there are so many other thoughts bouncing around connected to their move. Will I ever visit Evart again? Where will I stay if I do? Has Dad started looking for a new cardiologist yet? Will we feel comfortable and welcome at the new church? Where will Leslie stay the rest of the summer? (That has been resolved, thankfully.) When she gets married, will it be in Evart or the new church? Will the new house be big enough to hold all of us when we all visit at once?
I feel like I'm kind of in an emotional slump. There's not a clear-cut goal that I'm working towards now. Most days I don't leave the house so I don't bother to get dressed. I do change into my workout clothes, but usually change back into my pajamas after my shower. I am still working toward losing a few more pounds, but the scale has not cooperated, despite my best efforts. Career-wise, I can't do much until my license is approved, which will be 6-8 weeks. So the one goal that I actually can work on, I'm not seeing progress.
It's a catch 22. I enjoy my workouts. But I've been doing Turbo Jam for so long that I'm getting used to it and it's getting easier. This is good - my fitness level has improved and my heart rate recovers more quickly than it used to. But that means I burn fewer calories during those workouts now. I've tried wearing weighted gloves during my cardio and increasing my weights during weight training but it doesn't up the calorie burn by much. My shoulders and arms are already more defined, which is nice, but they'd be a lot more defined if I could just manage to lose a few more pounds. I'd prefer to keep doing TJ because I like it, but it's not helping me lose weight as well anymore. I need to figure out some alternatives but it's limited by the fact that I work out during nap time when I'm home alone with the girls. I may try to increase my calories a little bit every few days to snap my body out of its complacency. We'll see.
If you're still reading, sorry this wasn't a terribly interesting post. I just have a lot of mixed up feelings and thoughts right now. And if you'd like to know where Mom and Dad are moving, I'll update on Sunday, after Becky's baby shower and an all-clear to share that news.
Things overall are going well. The girls are healthy and happy, all my licensing paperwork is completed and sent in, there's a possibility of a job once my license is approved (I need to write a cover letter and send that in along with my resume), I'm reading about life coaching as another possible career path, and my fitness is improving daily. But then there's all the rest; the tantrums the girls throw, the fussiness, feeling stuck at home, worrying about money and paying back my loans, worrying about my license being rejected, worrying about daycare if I get the job, feeling weary of all the hoops to jump through for my career, frustration over the scale going back up despite making good choices and exercising.
My parents are moving, sometime next month. I know where they're moving, but can't share that information yet with anyone other than immediate family. So I haven't really told anyone yet. I have mixed feelings about this. Dad is excited for the new challenges and a change of pace so I'm excited for him. They'll be a little bit closer too, which will be very nice. But I'm going to miss visiting Evart. Visiting Mom and Dad will just be visiting Mom and Dad once they move; it won't be visiting home anymore. I'm going to Evart tonight to clean out my old room. I'm not sure what I have there or if we really have room to store it or even if it's anything I want to keep. But it'll be nice to have that finished and lose the feeling of yet another thing hanging over my head. But there are so many other thoughts bouncing around connected to their move. Will I ever visit Evart again? Where will I stay if I do? Has Dad started looking for a new cardiologist yet? Will we feel comfortable and welcome at the new church? Where will Leslie stay the rest of the summer? (That has been resolved, thankfully.) When she gets married, will it be in Evart or the new church? Will the new house be big enough to hold all of us when we all visit at once?
I feel like I'm kind of in an emotional slump. There's not a clear-cut goal that I'm working towards now. Most days I don't leave the house so I don't bother to get dressed. I do change into my workout clothes, but usually change back into my pajamas after my shower. I am still working toward losing a few more pounds, but the scale has not cooperated, despite my best efforts. Career-wise, I can't do much until my license is approved, which will be 6-8 weeks. So the one goal that I actually can work on, I'm not seeing progress.
It's a catch 22. I enjoy my workouts. But I've been doing Turbo Jam for so long that I'm getting used to it and it's getting easier. This is good - my fitness level has improved and my heart rate recovers more quickly than it used to. But that means I burn fewer calories during those workouts now. I've tried wearing weighted gloves during my cardio and increasing my weights during weight training but it doesn't up the calorie burn by much. My shoulders and arms are already more defined, which is nice, but they'd be a lot more defined if I could just manage to lose a few more pounds. I'd prefer to keep doing TJ because I like it, but it's not helping me lose weight as well anymore. I need to figure out some alternatives but it's limited by the fact that I work out during nap time when I'm home alone with the girls. I may try to increase my calories a little bit every few days to snap my body out of its complacency. We'll see.
If you're still reading, sorry this wasn't a terribly interesting post. I just have a lot of mixed up feelings and thoughts right now. And if you'd like to know where Mom and Dad are moving, I'll update on Sunday, after Becky's baby shower and an all-clear to share that news.
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