Day 221..."So, you want to be a midwife?"

Aug 28

Mary Jane came and spent the night last night, so she could be here in the morning to watch Martyn while I went to the "So, you want to be a Midwife?" workshop at Birthing way Midwifery college. It was an all day event, from 9-5.

It only took me a little while to get there in the morning. The whole day was just awesome! I don't feel like going into all the details, because it was a lot of info and I need to chew on...but it was great.

When I got home, I just hugged Martyn up. I missed him today. Sundays are usually my days to spend with just him and I really missed that today. Mary Jane had gotten him this funny onesie, and he was wearing it when I got home. He was also all sticky from watermelon. Just a cutie pie. I gave him a bath a little later to calm him down....after last night, I figured he needed some help getting down to sleep. I was right. He smelled all tea-tree and lavender-y. He nursed right down, and fell asleep quick.

I have a lot to think about.

Day 220...super productive, yet relaxing day.

Aug 27

I love days like this!

It was nice out, but not too hot. We went grocery shopping and got it all done, came home and got everything processes and put away. Got the diapers done. Eli got dinner going (in the crock pot). Got Martyn down for a nap, which took a little while and I kind of took a short nap too. I texted Stacey this morning to see how she was doing and she said nothing really changed yet. Later this evening, I got a text from her saying they were heading to the hospital, and it was for real this time....contractions less than 5 minutes apart and really intense. That was around a quarter to 5. I sent a message back a little bit later, and right away got a text that said "her water just broke" from her phone. That about an hour later from when they were heading to the hospital, and they had just gotten to the hospital at that point. I said I would leave them alone then, and that I loved them. I'm super excited for them.

Update! While I was typing, I got a text from Stacey that her baby was born! 7lbs, 6 oz and 20 inches long! Oh man, that was pretty fast....good job mama!

Man, I can't wait to be a Midwife!

Day 219...Friday

Aug 26

Well, Stacey lost her mucus plug this morning. She said her and Damon have been doing a lot of research the last few days, on how to get labor to progress. I was proud of her for that. She said nothing really has happened, but she saw the doctor and he said he thought she would have the baby this weekend. That's exciting! I really with I could be there with her. Maybe one of these days, we'll get to see each other's babies when they're born....*sigh*

I am SO glad it's Friday, I've just been slammed at work this week and I'm really looking forward to a nice Saturday at home, and then going to the Midwifery work shop on Sunday....I'm REALLY looking forward to that.

So I've been experiencing symptoms that make me suspect I'm pregnant. But it's really hard to tell since I'm still breast feeding.....I'm more concerned, since I have had a period, but the symptoms could also be signs of another period coming. I took a pregnancy test yesterday and it was negative. I decided that if I haven't had another period by the end of this weekend, I'll take another pregnancy test. The main thing is that I've just been super tired, and super hungry all the time. Sore boobs, but again, with breast feeding, that one is kind of not as reliable as it was when I was first pregnant with Martyn. And, Martyn totally has a tooth poking up (finally), which could be contributing to the sore nipples, too.

I guess we shall see.

Day 218...Thursday

Aug 25

Man, I was so busy today! It was just crazy all day. I thought about Stacey a lot...she had gone to the hospital yesterday and got sent home after a couple hours of early labor, but no real progression. No major changes today either, it sounds like. Here's hoping things pick back up, and little Raiden Alexander makes his aperance soon.

Day 217...Wednesday

Aug 24

Well, the week is half way over. Picture blog only today, again.

Day 216...Tuesday

Aug 23

Side note: Today is my dads birthday. He would be 76 years old, if he were still alive. He would absolutely love Martyn, hopefully they will meet someday in Heaven.

I'm still not caught up for the week, so again this is picture blog only.

Day 215...Monday

Aug 22

Happy 2nd wedding anniversary Jon and Talia! I'm totally behind on the blog so that's what's going on this week. Picture blog only. Enjoy my super cute son!

Day 214...got a little sun

Aug 21

I should note, that yesterday was actually a pretty eventful day but since it was a milestone post day, I decided to save the activities account for today.
Yesterday was the Hillsboro Air Show, and the Solar World picnic/bbq. Solar World is right behind the airport, so all the employees and their families were invited to come on out and enjoy some good food, and fun for the whole family, and a sort of back door view of the Air Show. That was actually pretty cool. It was a beautiful sunny day, perfect for the show.

As we were walking around the building from the parking lot, the jets were flying over and they were SO loud....we had to stop a few times, so I could plug Martyn's ears with my fingers, and so he didn't get scared. Once we got all checked in, we got some earplugs for him....they were a little big, since they were adult sized....and looked really cute sticking out of his head like baby Frankenstein. They worked though, I didn't have to continue covering or plugging his little ears.

We found Eli's friend Shelby, and her family and hung out with them the whole time. It was kind of fun for them to play with Martyn a little bit. We didn't really watch the show all that much, because it was really bright and hot out. The main thing we were actually waiting around for was the chance to get to take a tour of Solar World....so I could see all where Eli works, and learn how the Solar panels are made. That part was really cool! I kept wishing my brother could come and see the whole thing, I know he would really enjoy it and find it very interesting. Maybe some day he'll be able to.

Then we came home, and had some much needed naked family time. We even took Martyn out in the doggie pool and just let him cool off a bit. That was pretty much it for Saturday. We all had a good time.

Today, my dear son woke up while Eli was getting ready for work (around 5:20 or so) and was making funny faces at me in the dark.....by funny, I mean super cute and curious. He had rolled over to his belly, and was looking at me to see if I was awake, and I was trying to look at him without him seeing my eyes open. That little stinker! So I ended up getting up with him before Eli left....oh my that's early for a Sunday morning! Since we had spent the whole afternoon out and about yesterday, the task of going to the store fell to me today. I decided since we were up, were just going shopping super early (Winco is open 24 hours) and then we'd be done with it.

I also decided that it was much too early for me to try to function with out a little special treat coffee and bagel from my favorite bagel place, Sunrise Bagels. So I got Martyn all ready to go, and we headed over there....we arrived at 6:37, and the open sign wasn't even on yet. But they open at 6:30.

There was a lady and her husband also waiting for it to open, and they were in line just in front of me....we were the only people in the shop. Her and husband were making baby eyes at Martyn, and me and it was fun as always to show him off, even to strangers. They got their stuff and sat down, and I got my stuff and sat a couple tables away from them. I don't remember what got us started, but somehow it got brought up by the lady that she does Douala work. That sparked my interest right away, and I told her I was wanting to become a midwife. So I moved over to their table and ended up chatting with this cool lady for about an hour. She gave me her card, and I think I may call her to see if I can get into that as a way to kind of get my feet wet in the midwife/Douala circles, ha! After that, I wasn't at all annoyed that Martyn got me up so early. I believe that was a Divine appointment, and I think that's kind of exciting.

Martyn and I went shopping and it was fabulous! There was hardly anyone there! If only I could discipline myself to get up on Sundays (when I didn't have to) and go to the store at that time every week. Ah well.

We came home and Martyn fought taking a nap for a while, and finally crashed out only about an hour before I needed to leave to meet my friend at the Rose Gardens. But he woke up right when I needed to get him up. He didn't go back to sleep all day, until a little before bedtime. We met up with my friend and her little baby boy who is 12 days older than Martyn, for a walk around the Rose Gardens, which I had never been to, and then a little picnic down in a shady spot below the Rose Gardens. The sun kept moving and we had to keep moving to stay in the shade.

I didn't feel like I was in the sun all that much, but man by the time I got home my shoulders, back and chest were just cooked. I hadn't put any sunscreen on. Martyn even ended up getting a little red on his cheeks and for arms, nothing serious though. He didn't seem to mind so much, and he wasn't as sun burned as I was, I was glad for that.

It was so nice to visit with Holly and little baby Oliver, man he is a cutie! He and Martyn are also birth buddies, they were born in the same tub at Andaluz, and they're only 12 days apart. Martyn was really excited to play with Oliver, it was cute but I had to really watch him because he was a little too excited and Oliver was not nearly as excited, ha!

Over all it was a great way to spend a beautiful, sunny Sunday. I just got a little too much sun.

Day 213...7 months!

Aug 20

7 months! How did that happen so fast? Once again, this is a milestone post, and these are my favorite. Here's what's up with Martyn now.

Probably the most exciting thing to me, is that he is full on army crawling/scooting to get around. He's started getting up on all fours and rocking back and forth, with his head down. When he gets frustrated with that, he will kick out his hands and arms, and kind of flop down on his belly...then he can move anywhere he wants. I've had to start flicking his hand and telling him "no no, Martyn don't touch" when he gets to the bottom shelf of the coffee table, and also the dog food bowls and tote. It's working. He doesn't like it, but he gets the point, and stops reaching for them.

He's eating baby food. More and more, and he likes it. So far, he has had Peas, Carrots, Green beans, Squash, Sweet potato, and Apple and Blueberry mixed. He's also had Oatmeal. I've given him tastes of Banana, Avocado, and Watermelon in the mesh feeder, and he really liked all of them. I've also started giving him little sips of water occasionally. He's still breast feeding, but he really likes eating with a spoon, he's learning to open his mouth up nice and wide, when the spoon is approaching.

He watches like a hawk when we're eating, with big wide eyes. He's very interested in food. His little hands are quick, too. We have to watch out for little grabbie hands everywhere we go.

He is babbling like crazy, mixing all different sounds together and experimenting with pitches. He gets really screechy sometimes, especially when he's tired. Just in the last week or so, he's started experimenting with his little tongue. He sticks it out, blows bubbles, flicks it all over the place. It's kind of funny. We've started teaching him baby sign language....he hasn't started signing back yet, but I'm really excited to see him do it. It's going to be awesome!

He's started pulling up on my arms. I don't usually help him, and he can pull himself up from a sitting position to standing. He's sleeping through the night about 10% of the time....but he usually makes it until around 2 or so, and then wants to get up and get in bed and nurse.

He had his first shots, just one shot, and he did better than I did, ha! He only cried for about a minute, then he was fine, and he was fine the next day, you wouldn't even know that he had gotten a shot the day before.

Those are all the main milestones for Martyn at 7 months.

Day 212...It's a wonderful life

Aug 19

I had an interesting chat with my brother on facebook today. I love that he can be on the other side of the world, and we can still have good conversation, even via facebook. I miss being about to talk with him in person, and greatly look forward to the time when he's able to come and meet my son in person, and visit with me and Eli.

Tomorrow is the Hillsboro Air show, and so the planes were doing fly overs a little bit today....everyone kept gathering outside for a few minutes here and there to watch them. That was kind of funny to me. It was a nice sunny day, not too hot, so that was cool. It's supposed to be clear and hot tomorrow, which is good for seeing the planes, but lame because no one likes the heat. We're supposed to be going to the Solar World family picnic and watch the air show, I hope we get a good spot where it's not too hot.

Martyn is really pulling up on my hands. I haven't given him the chance to pull up on anything else yet, but I'm sure he'll be doing that soon enough. I want to delay him a little until we get the house more baby proofed. Right now, he's only allowed to army crawl in a little area in the living room and dining room, and upstairs in the play room. The problem with the play room is that right now while it's summer, it's way hot up there, even with the windows open. We have to wait until well into the evening, for it to be bearable. I just keep thinking about when he's really moving around, crawling....uhg, this house....there is so much to do to baby proof, ha!

We'll figure it out.

Day 211...mama is exhausted

Aug 18

I drank two cups of coffee this morning. Normally I don't have time, or interest in doing that, but I had both this morning. It was the strangest feeling because I was pretty zinged up when I left the house, and was still by the time I got to work, but I was also really sleepy when I got to work. My body was just ringing, but my head was sleepy. Weird.

After lunchtime pretty much, I was just exhausted the rest of the day. I don't know what the deal is. Mary Jane was visiting when I got home, that was a nice surprise. Martyn looked so cute, in his little button up shirt. It was warm enough of a day, that a thin shirt for him was perfect. He sure does love interacting with people, especially people that he knows. He has discovered his little tongue and was just sticking it out and wiggling it all around tonight. It was pretty funny.
I had him out in the grass after MJ left, and he was getting up on his hands and knees, and sometime pushing up onto his feet with his little butt in the air. He got kind of frustrated with doing that after a while. He really wants to either crawl on all fours, or turn over and sit on his butt, I'm not sure which....the latter I think, is what he was trying to do last night. Sheba came over and laid in the grass right next to him. She's such a good dog, so gentle and patient when Martyn pulls her hair, or whiskers. She will lick his little hands and feet, and never snarls at him or growls. She just takes it.

We're trying to teach him to have "nice pets" or "gentle pets"....sometimes he remembers, and sometimes he's just really excited and kind of smacks her in the face....still she's just very patient and loving with him.

I'm excited for him to start learning baby signs. We've been trying here and there to sign words to him, like last night while playing in the yard with Sheba we put the sign for "doggie" in to practice quite a bit. That's an easy one, I'm wondering if it will be the first thing he signs back. It's kind of funny to think about him signing back, it will be as exciting as hearing his first word....that's pretty exciting! When you think about it, it really will be his first word....awesome!

He was also standing up while holding my hands, for a long time tonight. Usually, when he would stand up, he could hold his weight but would get all "Elvis hipped" as I call it, and end up kind of crumbling down. Tonight, he was pulling up on my hands, with out me assisting him, other than for balance. I want him to crawl before he walks, and we're trying to encourage that, but I think it's ok to encourage him to pull up and stand up for a bit, too.

Even on nights like tonight, when I'm just completely worn out, Martyn is just so much fun to come home too. Eli is always fun to come home to, too....poor guy was beat yesterday too and kind of foggy and broke-brained all evening. That always happens on the first day of the weekend, after the long week. I love Eli's dedication to push on, anyway. He's a wonderful husband and father, and I'm so glad to have him as my partner.

Day 210...glorious shower!

Aug 17

So my awesome wonderful baby sitter gave me this really cool little seat that clamps onto the side of the bath tub, and then the little sitting part is on the floor of the tub, and they can sit safely in the bathtub and play in a bath or shower.

So I decided to put him in it, and take a shower. Martyn is totally army crawling around, so I can't peacefully lay him on the floor in the bathroom anymore when I'm taking a shower. I didn't want to just put him in the play pen in the living room, because I couldn't see or hear him, and he was a little mama clinging. So in the shower with me it was. Oh it was fabulous! He's been to big and squirmy to take in the shower with me, holding him, for a while now. Being able to have him in the shower, and know he was safe, and he enjoys the little bit of water splashing on him too. I had to be very careful about where the soap washed to, so it didn't get on him, or in his eyes. That wasn't so hard.

He just sat there and chewed on his little teether, and played. It was awesome! I felt like a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders, in solving the problem of how to take a shower with Martyn, if no one else was home. Yeah!

Day 209...good to catch up

Aug 16

Summer is in full swing. I'm finding myself very much enjoying the crisp cool mornings, and then it doesn't warm all the way up until much later in the afternoon. But by the time I pick the boy up from the baby sitter, it's kinda hot. A little muggy actually.

Martyn is really working on those little gums. I feel bad for him. He hasn't been overly emotional, as teething babies sometimes are, but occasionally he a bit fussy. My friend who's baby is 12 days older than Martyn, told me her little boy now has two teeth, and he pulled up (standing) the other day. I know every baby progresses at a different pace, and I don't think Martyn is behind by any means. He's hit all of his 6 month milestones, and I think he's even a little further progressed than a lot of other babies his age.

I just want to see those little tooth buds poking through and know all his effort hasn't been in vain, ha!

I went after work, to visit with a friend of mine from Alaska, who now lives near Seattle, and was down visiting her sister this week. I haven't seen her in a very long time....about 7 years. The last time we saw each other, was not a pleasant visit to say the least and I thought I may never see her again. But after several years, we found each other on facebook and reconnected. It was so refreshing to visit with her, and catch up. Martyn was, as usual, a perfect little gentlemen. I'm glad I got the chance to introduce him to her.

Day 208...I just love this boy!

Aug 15

I think Martyn grew over the weekend. When I picked him up from the baby sitter today, he just looked SO big to me. I can't even fit my hand all the way around his big head any more. He is a little chubby around the thighs and chin and belly, but he's not a fat baby by any means....just really thick and solid, sturdy.

I was playing with him at home, sitting on the floor while watching a movie tonight. I let him hold my hands, and pull himself up (with a little bit of help) to a standing position. He's really strong! He also really liked that game. When he would stand up all the way, he would smile real big and giggle. I love how he smiles with his whole face, his eyes especially. He is just so much fun!
He's mobile enough now, that I have to put him in the play pen or in the high chair while I'm in the kitchen. I can't just set him on the floor with toys, in front of the kitchen anymore. He will get up and crawl/scoot in there and get in the way. I think I do need to start keeping the floor less dog harry though....he's an excellent swiffer, ha!

He is a hungry boy, too. Every night at dinner time, or just before, he's ready to sit in the high chair and have some baby food, and top it off with some "ninny"....I've been working on helping the diminishing milk supply by pumping more and offering it to him more. It's helping some I guess. Also drinking more water (or trying to at least) and mothers milk tea. It's hard work! I love that he is getting the benefit of breast milk, and I'll do everything I can to keep it up for at least a full year, maybe longer....but I'll be glad to not be breast feeding, when the time comes.
Martyn has been babbling a lot more lately too. Every day, he's just supper chatty. It's pretty cool. We're working on the baby sign language, very slowly. The key is just repetition and timing I guess. I'm excited to see him sign back for the first time, though I don't imagine that will be for a few months.
Here's hoping though!

Day 207...a visit with sissy

Aug 14

Well, today is the Portland Bridge Pedal....I had wanted to do that, but I'm totally not in shape enough for it, or prepared to bring my nearly 7 month old son along for the ride. Perhaps next year, we shall see.

Instead, I got up early (because Martyn kept kicking me) and packed up the boy and the dog and took off down to Rachel's house. It's the first time I've been there since "helping" them move a little over a month ago....I didn't really help much because I was sick. We got there just in time to ride with them to church.

Martyn was a pretty good boy for church, he was just feeling chatty and wanted to babble at the quiet moments...silly baby. I don't mind that so much. I figure people can just deal with it. Depending on the setting however, I know when it would be rude for him to be making so much noise or not. He's just such a happy baby, I can't contain it, and neither can he apparently, ha!

After church, I put Martyn down for a nap, and visited with Rachel and Bryan. When Martyn woke up, it was almost time to go, but I wanted to go for a little walk and check out the park across from their house. It has a disc golf course, which looks pretty tricky. I told Rachel when we come down for labor days weekend, we'll bring our discs, so they can learn to play. That should be fun.

Day 206...lovely day for a down town adventure

Aug 13

I've been kind of craving Pine State Biscuits, so I convinced Eli we should go to the down town farmers market, so we could have some...they have a market vendor there. We were unaware that this weekend was also PSU graduation....which was right next to the farmers market, so the whole place was just packed! It was kind of hectic and crazy. Martyn seemed to enjoy riding in the stroller well enough, so it was ok.

I had to wait in the line for Pine State for at least 30 min, which was annoying, and kind of fun I have to admit. These little Japanese ladies got in line right behind me, and after a few minutes one of them says to me, "this food, very famous?" I said oh yeah. Then she says, "very famous juice, right?" I told her this was the line for the "very famous" biscuits, and if they wanted juice, I thought the line was for the next booth over. It was just kind of funny.

We got our food, and found a good sitting spot at the end of the park blocks, across the street from all the food stands. There was a lady and her 4 or 5 year old son playing chase, around a tree that was near-ish to us. I noticed Eli really watching them play, with a big smile on his face.

I asked him if he was looking forward to Martyn being that age, so he could play with him like that, and he nodded. I told him if he wanted, I would chase him around the tree with the stroller, so it would appear that Martyn was chasing him around the tree....we both got a pretty good laugh out of that.

It was a fun adventure to come to the down town farmers market, but it was more for the adventure it's self, than to actually get stuff. With the fun of the down town farmers market, also comes the prices....and the Beaverton farmers market is simply more cost effective. We did get some really awesome pasta from the crazy pasta guy though, since he doesn't have a booth in Beaverton. Eli also got a bottle of some really yummy hard cider....we had gotten some last year and it was fantastic. It tastes like sweet Champagne. Normally, I'm not a fan of Champagne at all, but this cider was pretty fantastic. He said he would fix me a nice dinner some night this week, and serve it up. Fancy!

We mossied back down to the MAX and rode home. Martyn wasn't afraid of the MAX at all, which was nice. I nursed him on the way back, since there weren't a lot of people, and we were sitting in the back. When we got home, it was time for Martyn to have a nap, in a major way. I ended up taking a nap with him, and slept a good part of the middle of the day. I think I really needed it. Eli finished mowing the back yard, which is so nice now. I had been planning to stop by a friend's going away party later in the afternoon, but the overwhelming desire to just chill out at home, with Martyn (Eli went to have a beer with his buddy for his birthday) got the best of me.

That's ok. Sometimes, a nice relaxing evening is just in order.

Day 205...seriously, nothing to do

Aug 12

I really had nothing to do today. I was anticipating getting off work at 2, to take Martyn to get his first shots. The day actually went by surprisingly fast, for having nothing to do all day. But the time finally came. I left, and went home to pick up Martyn and Eli. I was pretty worked up over the whole idea. I also had waffeled back and forth all day on what I was going to do, wether I was actually going to go through with Martyn having his shots yet.

We were delayed by traffic some, and ended up being a little late. We had to call a head and let them know we were running slightly late. That was annoying....and didn't do much to help my nerves about the whole situation.

We made it there though, and they were perfectly ok with us being a little late. We took the boy into the room, and the nurse came in and asked us a bunch of questions. Martyn got weighed and measured....he weighs 18.13 lbs, and is 27 inches long. Definitely a big, healthy boy.

After the doctor came in, we had a good little chat. She was really young. Like, younger than me I think.

She left, the nurse came back in and Eli held Martyn down, the nurse gave him his shot, that was that. He cried for maybe a minute, then he was fine. I don't know what the heck I got so worked up over. I'm glad it's done with though.

Day 204....feeling a little mama clingy

Aug 11

I miss the mornings where Martyn was up with me, on weekdays....Well kind of. I mean, I'm glad for him to sleep in, because I think he needs it, and Eli certainly does. But I miss seeing him in the mornings.

He got up this morning, so I did get to see him, but lately he's been sleeping in and I realized how much I miss him.

I told Eli I wasn't coming home at lunch today, and if he needed milk, he had to come to me to get it. He didn't end up needing to, which made me feel better about the whole thing. I've been pumping in the morning before I leave, to try and up the on hand milk supply, but it's hard to add that to the list of things that need to get done in the morning.

Tonight when I got home, Eli handed Martyn off to me, and he pretty much stuck to me the rest of the evening. I had a brief period, of maybe an hour total, that he was willing to play in the play pen, and not just want want to be with mama. I don't mind at all....I feel like when I get home I'm relief duty for Eli, and it's my joy to take care of the boy. Apparently he was daddy clingy all day, but it's easier for mama to soothe.

He's really working on those little gums, poor guy. I know he's been working on them for quite some time now, but I'm really noticing his increasing discomfort with it. Ah well, soon enough those little toofs will be breaking through. I wish there was a way I could convey to him, that it won't be like this forever.

Day 203...train the trainer

Aug 10

I had to bring milk home to Eli today. He couldn't come get it from me, because by the time he got home, it would be time for him to turn right back around and leave to go to a special class at his work. His dad was coming over to cover the gap in the afternoon until I got home.

I decided that trying to come home at lunch time is just pointless....I flat don't have the time to do it, and I get distracted with Martyn so easily. I have a hard enough time getting back to work on time when I go to the baby sitter's house at lunch and that's only about 8 min away!

I was so tired and sleepy when I got home tonight. After Walt left, Martyn and I kind of just snuggled up in the chair and took a little snooze and cuddle. It was much needed. When we woke up, I took him upstairs and played with him until Eli got home. Eli came up and joined us for a little while, but then it was bed time for the boy.

So far this week, I've been unsuccessful in my attempt to create a bed time routine. At least not the routine I have in my head.....I suppose it's a work in progress.

Day 202...diminishing supply

Aug 9

Once again, had to take milk to the baby sitter at lunch. I'm afraid my milk supply is going down....that and Martyn is just eating a lot more.

He totally ate almost a whole container of (home made) baby food....4 oz.

He's so happy and healthy. It makes my heart just swell, thinking about how good he is. I am so blessed, to be his mother...but also that he is just such a good, easy baby.

What a wonderful gift he is!

Day 201...off and crawling?

Aug 8

Martyn is totally doing the army crawl, full swing. I mean he is moving. Officially.

It's so flipping cool! Also, kind of scary because now we really really have to watch him, and baby proof the house. I'm still at a loss of how to go about that. We shall see.

I had to go take milk to the baby sitter at lunch time today, which was kind of nice. I got to nurse the boy, and play with him a little and eat my own lunch. I love that I get to do that now, sometimes.....still don't want to get in to the habit of it, but it is nice. Thank you Lord for my wonderful baby sitter!

He's also really working on those "toofs"....at least he's chewing a lot more.

Day 200....really? Already?

Aug 8

Two hundred days! Crazy!

It seems strange to think of it like that, because in terms of months, Martyn is 6 1/2 months old, but when you say it in terms of days, it seems way older, ha!

I had to bring milk to the baby sitter's house today at lunch, which I didn't mind doing at all. I got to nurse the boy, and eat my lunch, and play with him a little bit. I love that I can do that now, sometimes.....I don't want to get into the habit of it too much though. Martyn is so happy there. I'm just so thankful that I found her, what a wonderful gift from God, to provide us with such a great match for our family.

He's been really hungry lately, and sleeping a lot. I think he's either in the middle of, or getting ready to start a growth spurt. Oh boy. Well, he has an appointment on Friday to get his first shot, and just for his 6 month check up....we'll see how much he weighs, since our scale is kind of funky. Although, he's totally big enough that I could probably balance him on the scale now, with out having to weigh myself, then weigh again while holding him....hmmm, that's a good idea. Perhaps I'll try that, and compare to how accurate our scale is, with the one at the dr. office.

Day 199....a much needed day with friends

Aug 7

Oh boy was it ever!

I got up a little while after Eli left, and got Martyn ready, and we went to my dear friend's church in Vancouver, so we could be supportive of their baby dedication.

That's not exactly what it was, but in my head that's the closest thing I can think of, ha! Then I got to spend the whole day with her and her husband and little son, who is Martyn's birth buddy....born 4 months after him, in the same tub, which I think is SUPER cool.

I had been wanting to go out and spend some time with them, for a long while but just hadn't found or made the time to do it. It was so nice to just visit, and play with the babies. It's good to build friendships and continue to grow them. I'm looking forward to doing that more.

I was supposed to stay home and cook all day, but I just had to get out and I'm so glad I did. Jill and Steve, if you read this I want you to know something.

You two as a couple, are really super cool and I feel blessed to be friends with you. I don't even mind having religious discussions with you, even though we don't see eye to eye on some things....(I'm smiling about this, because I realized it doesn't even matter.) Jill, I think you are absolutely fantastic, just a wonderful woman....I love your gentle, yet kind of sassy nature and I'm looking forward to watching our baby boys grow to be friends, and watching you and I grow as friends and mothers. Thanks for being awesome!

I suppose that about sums the day up.

Day 198...chores chores chores

Aug 6

So many chores, only one day to get them done! Actually I like Saturdays for this very reason now....it's the day to get as much stuff done as possible.

Today, we planned on going to the Andaluz potluck in the late afternoon, so we had to get chores done, completed. I think we did wonderfully.

I wasn't sure if Eli was going to come with Martyn and I to the potluck, since he was pretty overwhelmed by all the people before. But it was out doors this time, so I figured that might help him some. He decided to come with us, which I was really glad for. I had really been looking forward to the potluck/bbq and seeing my midwives and the apprentices and talking to them again....and of course showing off my boy, and getting to make baby eyes at all the other babies of various ages and sizes....there were quite a few REALLY little, brand new babies there, which was pretty fun.

I had a good chat with Nicole, one of my midwives' apprentices, about becoming a midwife myself. She informed me that at the midwife college in a few weeks, they were having a workshop called "so you think you want to become a midwife"....I thought that was highly appropriately titled and it made me chuckle a bit. But I'm going to attend it. I had told her, I'm kind of at a point right now where I want to move forward, but I don't know what to do or how to move forward with the whole notion. I think this will be a good starting place for me. I can even bring Martyn, though I think I may try to find a sitter because I'll get more out of the whole thing if I'm not concerned about caring for him all day.

It's exciting though. It feels to me like I'm finally going to be doing something with this crazy notion to become a midwife.

Day 197...It never gets old!

Aug 5

Side note....today is my brother's oldest child, Melody's 10th birthday and I totally forgot to call and tell her happy birthday! Lame!

Even when Fridays are long and tough days, I never get tired of waking up on a Friday morning, thinking "TGIF!"

It was super busy today, for whatever reason. I guess that's good for now...job security? I don't know. I'm not really concerned about job security either way. But busy days do seem to help the day go by quicker. Martyn is always so happy to see me when I get home, and that makes the day better no matter how it was earlier.

He's starting to scoot around on the floor a little better now. He's like a little swiffer though, ha! Martyn doesn't seem to mind, and a little bit of dog hair never hurt anyone. I think he's going to be crawling within a couple weeks, but we shall see. For now, we will continue to enjoy watching him grow, and still be immobile for the most part. The season of an immobile child, is coming to a close, and rapidly at that.

Day 196...it's only Thursday?

Aug 4

Nothing really new with work....The week is just dragging by, which is weird because I'm actually pretty busy at work.

Tonight, I really wanted to make time to play with Martyn.... I'm going to just make that as part of my evening routine....it's so cool to talk to him, and listen to his little squeaks and sounds. He is totally doing the arm crawl...well kind of. He really really wants to. He can scoot side ways, like a crab. It's super cute!

Day 195...It's alive!

Aug 3

Man, this week has been so long and it's only Wednesday. Eli sent me a text today that said "it's alive!" meaning his truck.

After I picked up Martyn, I went straight to the shop and paid for the repairs, and had a little chat with the shop manager, who used to be one of my customers when I worked at World Pac.

We picked up Eli, and then picked up the truck. I'm so glad not to have to take him to work any more. I don't mind taking him to work, but having to leave at 5:30....it's just way to early. Martyn crashed out pretty hard too. Glad the day is over.

Day 194...moving cars, Whiskey Tango style

Aug 2

Martyn got to have a fun adventure day with the baby sitter. Her daughter's 2nd birthday was today, and she had planned to take her kids and Martyn, and several other kids (with their parents) to Oaks park, in SE Portland. I've never been, but I guess it's a small amusment park for toddlers? Sounds like they all had a blast, and it was a nice day to boot.

She told me they took Martyn on the little train ride and he liked it. Mostly he liked watching the kids on the other rides, and on the merry-go-round. I wish I could have been there, but I'm glad he had a good day even with out me. My baby sitter is so cool!

Eli had aranged with a repair shop by our house, to drop the truck off over night and they would check it out/fix it tomorrow. We had figured the battery was just dead from whatever was draining it, so we would jump it with my car and drive it down there.

No such luck. We ended up having to tow it with my car. Now, it's only about a mile and half away, but it's a big fat pain in the butt mile and a half. We live in a very hilly area. At least it was late in the evening, just before dark actually, and there wasn't much traffic.

I've had to move cars around like that many times in my life, with my brother. It's been a long time since I've had to do that, and I've forgotten just how stressful and nerve racking it is. This time, we had Martyn in the car too, which made it even more nerve racking for me....even though I was tow-ee. Martyn was perfectly fine. Mama was not. I totally rode the brakes the whole way...poor Eli was a little frustrated with me by the time we got there, but not angry. He did a good job at helping my nerves calm back down.

We both really missed spending time with Martyn, because of that whole mess. Hopefully tomorrow night, we'll be able to spend some quality time with him and each other in the evening.

Day 193...Mondays used to be my friend

Aug 1

It's true. When I worked at World Pac, I loved Mondays....that's partly because one of the managers was off on Mondays, and I didn't have to deal with him, which made me so happy.

It seems like I've never really minded Mondays, even before that. But now, they are the bain of my existence.

They are the end of my wonderful time with Martyn on the weekends. This week and last week, I had to take Eli to work, which means I had to be ready to go, and have Martyn ready to go at 5:30....have you ever tried to get three people, one of them only 6 months old, fully ready to leave the house for the day, by 5:30 in the morning on a Monday? It's not what I would call "a pleasant experience". Thank G0d Martyn is super easy going in the mornings....my little morning baby.

Still though. The morning did not start off well, and the day didn't progress well either. It was kind of effed up busy at work, for a Monday. To top it off, I started having a period again...I was feeling ok today, as far as that's concerned, but man I just had broke-brain syndrome all stinking day. It was driving me crazy! (crazier?)

Oh well I suppose. Glad the day is over.