As much as this cold has him crabby at times and oddly happy at others, we are still trying to squeeze in a last few minutes outside before the "S" word comes, although that should be lots of fun for Austin too!
Monday, September 26, 2011
From Cough to Cold to Pink Eye
This past month has been so tough for Austin. With this really only being his 2nd cold, we have been so lucky to not have experience ear infections or other nasty things brought home for daycare, until now. His cough has been ongoing for weeks but it was just starting to get better when we noticed his goopy eyes. It only got worse over the weekend and he ended up having to go to the pediatrician for some drops. The poor little guys still has a runny nose and a cough, but now on top of it, he has red, itchy eyes. At least it should be all better in time for our big move this weekend. We have lots of family helpers and I think everyone will be taking turns playing with Austin rather than packing up the boxes, since that's an easy decision to make! But this is what makes me excited for our move, FAMILY! I don't like when we have to go months without seeing Aunts and Uncles and cousins because Austin is growing up too fast and they don't get a chance to experience all the fun. Before Austin, it had been many many moons since we had a little one in the family, and now that we have Austin and Jaqueline, we just need to be in town with all of them.
As much as this cold has him crabby at times and oddly happy at others, we are still trying to squeeze in a last few minutes outside before the "S" word comes, although that should be lots of fun for Austin too!
My sick little buddy
As much as this cold has him crabby at times and oddly happy at others, we are still trying to squeeze in a last few minutes outside before the "S" word comes, although that should be lots of fun for Austin too!
I won't miss...But I will
I can't believe we are leaving this house. In just a few short days, we are planning to have most of our things moved and stored, with leaving some things behind for staging. Year after year, I have complained about this old house or the neighborhood and how badly I wanted to move. Now the time has come, and I really don't want to leave. This house has become our home and we cringe when we think of the steal the next home owners are going to get when they purchase this place. We have created more memories here than I can count and I couldn't be more happier that we did.
I won't miss those loud and old creeky wood floors that would wake up Austin in the middle of the night at times when Jason had to go down the hall to the bathroom....But I will miss the character they brought to the home considering they are beautifully original.
I won't miss the crazy neighbors that filled their itty bitty front yard with oversized and loud inflatables at Christmas time but I will miss the laughs we get from our friends and family when we tell them the wild stories of our plans to deflate them all.
I won't miss the closed off layout where even our living room has 4 entries to it, but I will miss the coziness the room has when we squeeze 20+ friends or family in to fulfill our entertaining desire.
I won't miss the scary Michigan poured basement that has large black crickets and spider webs galore, but I will miss having all that space dedicated just for storage and all our accumulating junk.
I won't miss the small backyard with the chain link fence and the larger than life tree that sheds branches on a daily basis, but I will miss the landscaping we have, with the ever so lovely smelling peonies, the beautiful deep blue/purple hydrangeas, and all the grasses that Jason just had to plant to fill in the empty spaces.
I won't miss this crazy old house but in truth, I will have my arms and legs held out, and someone will have to push me through the doors in order for me to leave. I will miss this place more than words can describe, but I know how many memories we have yet to make in Grand Rapids and this is just one more stepping stone in our lives.
I won't miss those loud and old creeky wood floors that would wake up Austin in the middle of the night at times when Jason had to go down the hall to the bathroom....But I will miss the character they brought to the home considering they are beautifully original.
I won't miss the crazy neighbors that filled their itty bitty front yard with oversized and loud inflatables at Christmas time but I will miss the laughs we get from our friends and family when we tell them the wild stories of our plans to deflate them all.
I won't miss the closed off layout where even our living room has 4 entries to it, but I will miss the coziness the room has when we squeeze 20+ friends or family in to fulfill our entertaining desire.
I won't miss the scary Michigan poured basement that has large black crickets and spider webs galore, but I will miss having all that space dedicated just for storage and all our accumulating junk.
I won't miss the small backyard with the chain link fence and the larger than life tree that sheds branches on a daily basis, but I will miss the landscaping we have, with the ever so lovely smelling peonies, the beautiful deep blue/purple hydrangeas, and all the grasses that Jason just had to plant to fill in the empty spaces.
I won't miss this crazy old house but in truth, I will have my arms and legs held out, and someone will have to push me through the doors in order for me to leave. I will miss this place more than words can describe, but I know how many memories we have yet to make in Grand Rapids and this is just one more stepping stone in our lives.
Sunday, September 18, 2011
10 months
Our little man is growing up so fast. He has taken over the house by crawling all over the place. He's not up on all fours crawling, but it's more of a push with one leg and pull with the opposite arm type of crawl. He is really fast with this mode but I can't imagine what speed all fours can get up to. He loves to stand at the furniture to play and he could walk all day long by just holding on to your fingers. He is standing on his own for a few seconds but knows that he needs to grab on if he wants to start stepping. His favorite game right now is probably sitting on his train. Jason pushes him real fast around the living room but Austin is getting the hang of pushing himself around a little with his feet.
His favorite toy by far is a fisher price car that has a ball on top of it, and if you roll it or shake a rattle near it, then it goes around in circles. Now since he can move around, he is able to chase this car all over the living room. He also loves to play with any cord that is left plugged in, so we are constantly reminded to unplug our laptops.
He books it for Lily's food and water dishes no matter where you hide them, so poor Lily is always searching around the house for where her dishes could be hidden next. Austin has recently developed his two front teeth up top, and the tooth next to his only bottom tooth is also in. Three teeth at once was no picnic!
He loves to eat my homemade baby food still but is starting to learn how to grasp onto finger foods so hopefully I can stop trying to keep up with the supply and demand of Austin's endless pit of a belly. He loves to crunch onto the gerber cheese puffs "lil crunchies" they are called. He does really good holding onto and drinking from a sippy cup but if you don't take it away right after he gets a good drink, then on the floor it goes. He knows how to drop things out of his stroller and wagon, and it becomes an endless game on walks. My mom even thought heavier rocks would keep his attention and stay in the wagon but even those he was able to throw out!
I wish I had more pictures to post but my poor excuse is the busy wedding weekends we have had! My parents have enjoyed having Austin on the weekends but they are about to get more of him as we are planning on moving in the next few weeks. We found a townhouse to rent right next to my parents home and plan to stay there during our build....which is still pending since we haven't bought a lot yet, but hopefully soon!
He books it for Lily's food and water dishes no matter where you hide them, so poor Lily is always searching around the house for where her dishes could be hidden next. Austin has recently developed his two front teeth up top, and the tooth next to his only bottom tooth is also in. Three teeth at once was no picnic!
He loves to eat my homemade baby food still but is starting to learn how to grasp onto finger foods so hopefully I can stop trying to keep up with the supply and demand of Austin's endless pit of a belly. He loves to crunch onto the gerber cheese puffs "lil crunchies" they are called. He does really good holding onto and drinking from a sippy cup but if you don't take it away right after he gets a good drink, then on the floor it goes. He knows how to drop things out of his stroller and wagon, and it becomes an endless game on walks. My mom even thought heavier rocks would keep his attention and stay in the wagon but even those he was able to throw out!
I wish I had more pictures to post but my poor excuse is the busy wedding weekends we have had! My parents have enjoyed having Austin on the weekends but they are about to get more of him as we are planning on moving in the next few weeks. We found a townhouse to rent right next to my parents home and plan to stay there during our build....which is still pending since we haven't bought a lot yet, but hopefully soon!
Monday, September 5, 2011
Our Growing Family
I would lie if I didn't say how stressed all these changes we are going through are making me feel. I am finishing things up at my current job in the next three weeks, all while trying to get mentally prepared to start a completely different field of medicine. That's the beauty of being a physician assistant. You can start in Neurosurgery, touching brains in the OR and rushing to the ER everytime you hear a helicopter for a trauma, only to end up switching to whatever speciality sparks your interest. In my case, I am switching to surgical oncology. It only makes sense to combine my passion for the OR with my compassion for treating patients and their families that have to deal with cancer. Neurosurgery has its fair share of brain cancer patients, which led me to sit down with families and have to say the big "C" word to them for the very first time. Brain cancer unless a benign meningioma, usually doesn't have the best prognosis. Most often my patients or their families would tell me what a great job I did explaining everything and thanking me for the time I took to sit down and answer all their questions. I knew that God was drawing me to something more. I can only hope this new position is everything that I dream it to be.
On top of a new job, imagining building a new house (our latest decision on the big house hunt) while time ticks closer to the birth of our second child plays a number on my mind. I have a daily reminder that I need to find a daycare for Austin AND find a place for us to rent in Byron Center near the build.
I am so thankful that I have a motivated and handy hubby that has never given up believing that everything will work out. We have both been wanting to pull out our hair as we sit down each night having that same conversation about what to do about a house. We recently talked to a builder who has lots that we are interested in as well as quotes and ideas that are right up our alley.
In the madness of this all, I have to remember how exciting this all is. Building our dream house is only an option at this point in our lives. We have spent 5 years living in this house to save money and I certainly wasn't convinced that we should spend it all on renovation unless the right house came along. We had trouble finding a house that had the right 'bones' in order to make that dream house in the end.
Time to start a new job that I will fall in love with, build a house that I have been dreaming of for years, and continue to be amazed with my growing family that keeps me smiling and laughing amongst it all.
What would life be life without my boys? I don't even want to imagine!
So here goes nothing, there's no time to dip my toe in the cold water, I just need to jump in and Trust in Him.
On top of a new job, imagining building a new house (our latest decision on the big house hunt) while time ticks closer to the birth of our second child plays a number on my mind. I have a daily reminder that I need to find a daycare for Austin AND find a place for us to rent in Byron Center near the build.
I am so thankful that I have a motivated and handy hubby that has never given up believing that everything will work out. We have both been wanting to pull out our hair as we sit down each night having that same conversation about what to do about a house. We recently talked to a builder who has lots that we are interested in as well as quotes and ideas that are right up our alley.
In the madness of this all, I have to remember how exciting this all is. Building our dream house is only an option at this point in our lives. We have spent 5 years living in this house to save money and I certainly wasn't convinced that we should spend it all on renovation unless the right house came along. We had trouble finding a house that had the right 'bones' in order to make that dream house in the end.
Time to start a new job that I will fall in love with, build a house that I have been dreaming of for years, and continue to be amazed with my growing family that keeps me smiling and laughing amongst it all.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Beep Beep Here Comes Austin
My mom and I had all intentions to go to Buy Buy Baby just to buy a swing. We had noticied one of her neighbors had a little tykes swing hanging from one of their trees and we were immediately green. We had to have one! Austin has been enjoying swinging at the park so much that we thought having one in my parents backyard was a must. I also wanted to check out cars for Austin's 1st Birthday (only two more months!).
My mom started pulling cars down off the shelves and Austin's face lit up like I have never seen. We set him in a few different choices but ultimately there was one that seemed perfect. I was ready to check out and asked Austin if he was ready to get out, and of course he gave me that look like "I am never getting out!".
So we left Buy Buy Baby with a swing AND a new car (early birthday present?) and we kept repeating, "we are in so much trouble!".
The trouble was not nearly as bad as we thought with the husbands AND these pictures don't even begin to describe his happiness......
little tykes car = priceless Austin smiles
My mom started pulling cars down off the shelves and Austin's face lit up like I have never seen. We set him in a few different choices but ultimately there was one that seemed perfect. I was ready to check out and asked Austin if he was ready to get out, and of course he gave me that look like "I am never getting out!".
So we left Buy Buy Baby with a swing AND a new car (early birthday present?) and we kept repeating, "we are in so much trouble!".
The trouble was not nearly as bad as we thought with the husbands AND these pictures don't even begin to describe his happiness......
True Labor Day
Getting the house ready for sale is bringing out all sorts of last minute projects.
At one point in time, we had a patio in the backyard. I don't even really remember it was this big because we had a very small dirt floor garage next to it that was damaged by a tornado. When the garage came down to make room for a two-stall garage, it was tore up and a very small amount was left.
The dirt that you see with a few patio stones in squares, is all that was left for years of that original patio. It was more of a walkway for Lily to go into the backyard if anything.
So Labor Day weekend brought in some true labor from Jason and my parents to re-make a patio and also to dress up the foundation of the back porch. We had bought some very good exterior paint to match the siding when we first moved in which we used to paint the cement blocks. So we still are going to paint the larger cement blocks at the bottom of the porch and also finish up this patio, and we will be closer to ending this project.
We continued the landscaping blocks around the corner. Looking good so far.......
I hope we have as good of luck with selling our house as we have heard so many friends have lately. These last touches are always nice but you definitely start realizing how nice they would have been earlier. Yet....when have we had time to do these things amongst the millions of other projects!?
At one point in time, we had a patio in the backyard. I don't even really remember it was this big because we had a very small dirt floor garage next to it that was damaged by a tornado. When the garage came down to make room for a two-stall garage, it was tore up and a very small amount was left.
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