More Harvest Fest Pictures

I made sure that I got a good picture of everyone in their costumes. Last year I forgot until we arrived at church and it was dark. The pictures did not turn out well. I had so much fun making these. Mine had to be adjusted because it is hard to nurse in a dress like I orginally planned to make. Daniel was just too cute for words in his costume. Alex, who is normally so camera shy, actually was the first to volunteer to get his picture taken. It was such fun to do this as a family.

Zoo

I am trying to catch everyone up on the events of the past few weeks. Last weekend was too beautiful to not get outside. Carl and I have a membership to the NC Aquarium which allows us to get into zoos and aquariums all over the country, including our own NC Zoo. We went last weekend and had a blast. The boys loved all the animals. We started at the Africa end and walked back to the North America side. It really takes all day as the zoo is huge. The boys were upset because the polar bears were not on display. William also missed seeing the snakes and all the stream life animals as the zoo was getting ready to close. They have a huge play area where everything is made from recylced material. Walking on the rubber "mulch" was weird but the kids had fun flinging themselves all over the place. Samuel was great because he slept most of the time. I nursed him when we got there and then right before we left. The kids had fun and look forward to going back. Carl wants to take William for a Daddy and Me day to see the animals he missed.

Samuel

Okay people, stop complaining. Ha Ha. Here are some pictures of Samuel. It is hard to get ones of him by himself. He usually has a sibling attached to his side. Now you all can stop bugging me. Just kidding. We love you all and miss everyone lots.

Harvest Fest

Wow! It has been a while. I have been so busy. One of the reasons I was busy was because of harvest fest. That is what our church does instead of Trick or Treating. It is set up like a carnival. They have a puppet show and a presentation of the gospel. THen you get hot dogs, popcorn, cotton candy, nachos, and soda
(real healthy I know). Then they have games and rides for all the kids. It is so much fun. After last year of being the characters from Narnia the boys requested to be the characters from Lord of the Rings. With a few changes from last year's costumes the boys were all set. Esther just needed a little skirt to go over hers from last year. It was too short and I did not feel like making her a whole new costume. Some fabric and a little elastic and she was all set. I had to make Daniel a new costume and alter his from last year to fit Samuel. Carl requested to dress up too so I made costumes for both of us. He was Aragon and I was his elf love (can't remember or spell her name.) The costumes turned out so good and the kids had a blast. Carl has already decided that next year we are going as a basketball team. He will be the coach and Esther and I will be cheerleaders. People always say we are going for our own basketball team anyway. It took a lot of time and effort but it was worth it. It will be something the kids will always remember that mommy made their costumes each year. The kids like playing with their costumes all year and they last a lot longer than the cheap costumes you get out at the store. William is in fact wearing his to Sunday School this Sunday. His class is studying the armor of God. Each kid is to give a presentation of a specific piece of armor. William is doing the sword of the spirit and thought it would be cool to wear his costume.

Hey Mom! I'm Thankful for your son!

Today was my grocery shopping day. I had a headache all afternoon. I guess a newborn who will scream unless you are holding him and homeschooling five other children will do that to a woman. I really did not want to go but Carl said it was probably a good idea. Carl e-mailed me a list of things he needed at the store. The last item he wrote that he needed is why I am thankful for him. He said he needed to me to buy a card for his lovely wife to show how much he appreciated her. It made my day. So thanks mom for raising such a senstive and loving son. He really knows just when I need some encouragement.
I am also thankful for costumes that still fit from last year. I spent two months working on homemade Narnia costumes for Harvest Fest last year. They still fit and so with some subtle changes the kids are the characters from Lord of the Rings this year. Yeah for me for making them a bit big last year. The joy of simple things!

Precious Pictures

Alex took several hours to warm up to Samuel but now that he has he is the most gentle one. He always wants to just hold and cuddle. He is so sweet with him. He is a great big brother.


Esther is always right where Samuel is. She is always talking to him and "calming" him down whenever he cries. She can't stand to let him cry.


Daniel was the one I was most nervous about but he immediately started kissing and hugging him. Whenever I sit down to nurse he is right there beside me with one hand in his mouth and one hand on Samuel's head. I spend my day going "Daniel, leave your brother alone."



Nathan is such a sweetie. He is content just to sit and watch Samuel. Thumb in mouth and hand on his head just like he did with Esther and Daniel. I guess some things never change.


William was so excited. He was the first one in the door. Forget mommy and daddy, where's Samuel?


Am I a blessed woman or what?

A Short Labor - For Once

With Daniel's 48 hour labor still fresh in my mind I was very nervous about being induced this past Monday. I think I cried all night on Sunday which did not make matters any better. I was so tired by the time we got to the hospital. They started the pitocin and I just sat and sulked watching t.v. Carl was so great though. He made me get up and walk around the room. Well walk as much as all the wires would allow. They have to do continuous monitoring when induced. It was a good thing though because each time I stood up or walked Samuel's heart rate would drop. The only position that proved to be comfortable for me and Samuel was sitting in a chair. That is where I spent most of the labor. Carl just sat and rubbed my arms and hands. He was great. The contractions were intense and she checked me about 5:00. I was five cm. I was discouraged. I told Carl I absolutely could not do this for another day. I started to really feel bad around an hour later and was checked again. Still 6 cm. Carl and I discussed about pain management. I in no way was going to get an epidural. Been there last time and will never do it again. We decided on some i.v. drugs and I was able to relax between contractions. I think it was just enough to kick start things. I went from 6 to 10 in an hour. The midwife left the room to check on another patient and two contractions later the nurse was yelling for her to come back. I forgot what an overwhelming feeling it is when you HAVE to push. I only pushed for 8 minutes but they were eventful. UNC is a teaching hosptial so the room is always crowded. When my water broke there was some meconium so the doctors had to be on call for Samuel. His head came out quickly and the cord was wrapped so tight wround his neck that they could not budge it. His shoulders got stuck just about the time my strength disappeared. Carl told me later that Samuel face was turning blue. I just remember pushing as hard as I could and he just popped out. I rember crying and looking at the clock saying how thankful I was I did not have to endure another hour of labor. They of course swept Samuel away and had to stick that awful tube down his throat to clear him all out. He was fine and so was I when I heard him cry for the first time. It took quite a while to get me all cleaned up. THe placenta did not want to come out. I ended up with several stitches but I did not care at this point. Just give me my baby. He had to get his suger tested because of his size. When they weighed him I could not see all of the reading. I only saw the 11 oz. part and figured 8 or 7 lbs. When they told me 9 lbs. I about fell off the bed. Wow! Even I was amazed I had pushed that big of a child out. No wonder his shoulders got stuck. Carl says he is going to be a linebacker. After about 20 minutes I was finally able to hold him. I put him on my chest and the greedy little guy immediately latched on and started to nurse. Yeah! That's about it. Eleven hours of labor. Eight minutes of pushing. A huge baby boy. God is awesome isn't he? Now I just need to get used to counting to six instead of five.