In the midst {celebrating}

No, you are not going crazy, the above photographs are from 2008 of another beloved baby of ours, one who will always be our baby no matter how old she is... Little miss C! She had her 8th birthday the midst of all that was going on with Baby F.
Her birthday in pictures:
The unfinished birthday sweater C trying to be patient as K looks at one of her gifts from Nana and Grandpa Notice the shirt Baby F is wearing, C wore it when she was one week old in the photographs further up C's birthday wish - a day at Wahooz (we had quite the late start, though) Letting little brother drive her Super late night dinner and cake (It was midnight when we finally sat down to eat - I'm not joking!) She chose the double layer chocolate cake from Oh She Glows.
All decked out with gifts from Purple Grandma Our gift to her - after years of hand-me-downs she got a bike of her choice Happy birthday to my bright, spunky, beautiful C!

In the midst {celebrating}

Keep Calm Craft On {crafting on}

The act of creating, in one form or another, preserves my sanity amongst the chaos of life. This explains why I always have more than one project going at a time as well as why my housework tends to fall behind. I enjoy seeing what others are working on and keeping calm with, too. What are you creating? What is keeping you going? Snap a picture or two and share it with the rest of us by leaving your link below.
I haven't found the time to knit lately, so there really isn't any progress to update. That is A-Okay with me, though. I would rather be snuggling with my baby boy. Okay, well I did knit a couple of I-cord rows on Baby F's bonnet when he napped in the rocking chair (seen in yesterday's post), but that hardly counts. I have, however, been creating in the kitchen recently because really, quick projects are all I have time for. The girls and I are working on some turmeric (tooth whitening) oil pulling chews to start our days with. The recipe can be found here.

What are you working on? Happy creating!

An InLinkz Link-up

Keep Calm Craft On {crafting on}

a little update

*Above photos by K (shirt change due to spit-up ;) *

Thank you so very much for all of your prayers, well wishes and for reaching out to me the past week. Baby F and I needed them more than you could know. His procedure went amazingly well. We had it done at our midwives' office because I knew they would take the best care of my little guy, and honestly, we couldn't have asked for a more compassionate and loving person to perform it. After the procedure was finished she comforted and kissed my baby boy, telling him she loved him. I wish all care providers could be like her! Hannah, if you see this - we love you!

I wanted to apologize for not updating sooner. There are days that I allow this unforgiving (at times) world to get to me and make me think - who would ever care about my little family. Your emails and comments reminded me that the world is good, and my family and I are so incredibly blessed to have so many people who truly care about us. Thank you truly, from the bottom of my heart.

Baby F's recovery so far has been full of rocking in our rocking chair, walks in the wrap and snuggles. We are just at the beginning and have a ways to go. He is already nursing a lot better (!!) but he is miserable when we do his lip and tongue stretches (8 times a day). Hopefully this will ease up as he heals. I just want my little guy to be happy and not dealing with constant stomach pain as he was before the procedure, so I know this is all worth it. Please keep those prayers coming!

a little update

Keep Calm Craft On {crafting on}

The act of creating, in one form or another, preserves my sanity amongst the chaos of life. This explains why I always have more than one project going at a time as well as why my housework tends to fall behind. I enjoy seeing what others are working on and keeping calm with, too. What are you creating? What is keeping you going? Snap a picture or two and share it with the rest of us by leaving your link below.
As you can see, I didn't even come close to finishing C's birthday sweater in time. Thankfully, she is so very understanding about it.

What are you working on? Happy creating!

An InLinkz Link-up

Keep Calm Craft On {crafting on}

A little love, please

My sweet, tiny baby boy has a procedure on Tuesday and it is all I can think about. It will help him immensely but I know it is going to be hard on the both of us. You see, one of the reasons for his colic and tummy issues is that he has lip and tongue ties. After dealing with our insurance company for a month, he is finally getting them taken care of. From what I have been told, the procedure itself isn't too bad but the healing time and stretches afterwards are rather excruciating.

Can I please ask for your prayers to help Baby F through this. I start to cry just thinking about it. I am going to need to be strong for my little guy but I have a feeling I will be an emotional wreck. I have been warned of a possible nursing strike for 48 hours after the procedure and the misery that comes with doing the daily exercises to stretch his lips and tongue. It's not going to be easy, this I know.

Lord, give me the strength.

A little love, please

Milestone

Almost two months after the fact - I am finally able to get this post together! Our dear friends came out from Oregon for a week to be post-partum doulas. I was rather in an awful way when they came, not knowing anyone around here and really feeling the weight of not having my community back home. Our sweet friends lifted our spirits and grounded my mind. It felt like they brought the love of everyone in Portland with them. Words would never do justice to how grateful I am for them and their generosity.

My wonderful friend Holly is a baby (and child) whisperer, I swear! I warned her about Baby F's colic but once she arrived you would have thought I was lying. He was so at ease and content in her loving arms (can't you see it in those photos?!) She even got Little L to allow her to cut his hair - something I had been trying to do for months. I need to get her to teach me her ways.

Then of course there was her incredibly thoughtful daughter D with us, making my three older children full of smiles and happiness they haven't felt in quite some time. She is the closest in age to K but C and L love her just as much. She taught K how to sew on the sewing machine as well as how to free mount her unicycle.

But one of the biggest parts of their trip to see us was a pretty big milestone in K and D's lives, in my humble opinion. They got their ears pierced together. K has been waiting for this day for a long time but I wanted to make sure she was old enough to fully understand all the aspects of such a big decision and to be certain it was something she really wanted. After all, she would have the holes the rest of her life. Holly and I planned it all out ahead of time and I found a piercer in Boise who was reputable with children. In Portland that isn't hard to find, in fact there are quite a few of them, but it was quite the task finding one here. I am so very glad I took the time to ask around because we found Colby at Radiant Body Piercing. He didn't bat an eye when we showed up to our appointment with five children in tow or when Baby F cried (for almost the whole visit). He made the girls, who were full of nerves and excitement, feel at ease and was incredibly friendly, patient, gentle and fast. The girls were so brave and are extremely happy with their piercings. We couldn't have asked for a better experience. I know the girls will remember it their whole life. If you happen to live in the state of Idaho I have to say make the drive to go see him - he is so worth it!

We celebrated their big milestone by going out to BBQ4Life (we lovingly nicknamed it Vegan BBQ) afterwards. Oh what fun was had! What a night!! We will never forget this visit. Thank you, thank you dear friends for being your awe inspiring selves. WE LOVE YOU!

Milestone