2012 was a wonderful year!
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
             |
12/31/12
12/24/12
merry & bright
wishing you & yours a very Merry Christmas season. we've been enjoying time with family, staying up too late and eating far too much chocolate. if our card hasn't yet arrived in your mailbox, keep waiting. i wasn't as organized as i wanted to be and still have a few to be sent out. and if it still doesn't arrive, we apologize. we have both come from really big families, and family comes first.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to all!
12/16/12
my dear friends
cen-ter-ing: n. a wooden framework on which an arch, vault or dome is supported during construction.
last fall i began attending a "centering clinic" that my doctor organized. a more holistic approach to prenatal care that is generally used by midwives, a centering group brings together a number of women that are due within about 4 weeks of one another. from about 15 weeks until the baby arrives, the care of each woman is attended to in a group setting, during which each of us would be taken away for individual check ups. during the group part of the appointment we would discuss lots of different topics, from the woes of pregnancy to labour to care of a newborn.
i'll be honest, in the beginning i was pretty nervous about spending so much time and sharing my pregnancy with these nine other women that started out as strangers. however, each of them was so sweet and open and honest that it didn't take me long for these women to become my dear friends and, like the name suggests, they became some of my greatest supports during my pregnancy. we've kept in touch and try to get together with our babies once a month. it's so great to have friends whose babies are so close to the same age (they all ended up being a bit further than a month apart, as some decided to come really early and thought it best to stay inside a little longer). we are all often going through the same things at the same time, and it's nice to have the support and a sounding board for some of our worries. our monthly get togethers are always so fun and getting crazier every time! we always take a group picture. it's getting a little harder these days, what with mobility and hair pulling and swatting at each other and stealing one anothers soothers, but all that action makes a good picture, right?
i doubt anything but the centering group would have brought us together. all different women, with different ways to mother and different views on life, but we all love our babies and each other. i'm so grateful to know all of them!
last fall i began attending a "centering clinic" that my doctor organized. a more holistic approach to prenatal care that is generally used by midwives, a centering group brings together a number of women that are due within about 4 weeks of one another. from about 15 weeks until the baby arrives, the care of each woman is attended to in a group setting, during which each of us would be taken away for individual check ups. during the group part of the appointment we would discuss lots of different topics, from the woes of pregnancy to labour to care of a newborn.
i'll be honest, in the beginning i was pretty nervous about spending so much time and sharing my pregnancy with these nine other women that started out as strangers. however, each of them was so sweet and open and honest that it didn't take me long for these women to become my dear friends and, like the name suggests, they became some of my greatest supports during my pregnancy. we've kept in touch and try to get together with our babies once a month. it's so great to have friends whose babies are so close to the same age (they all ended up being a bit further than a month apart, as some decided to come really early and thought it best to stay inside a little longer). we are all often going through the same things at the same time, and it's nice to have the support and a sounding board for some of our worries. our monthly get togethers are always so fun and getting crazier every time! we always take a group picture. it's getting a little harder these days, what with mobility and hair pulling and swatting at each other and stealing one anothers soothers, but all that action makes a good picture, right?
 |
| back in the summer, when we could just wedge them all together on a couch. |
 |
| halloween party; this is when it started getting a little crazy. |
 |
| as you can see, it's getting a little harder to get them all to stay still/be nice to eachother/look at the camera. |
 |
aren't they the cutest in their Christmas outfits?
|
 |
| ollie & miriam were born 23 hours and 1 minute apart. cuties! |
 |
| there may have been a little bit of hair pulling... |
 |
| and ollie looks a little nervous sitting there between two pretty girls... |
but it was a great day with friends!
(as you can see, not everyone can make it to every get together, and we miss those who aren't there!)
i doubt anything but the centering group would have brought us together. all different women, with different ways to mother and different views on life, but we all love our babies and each other. i'm so grateful to know all of them!
12/9/12
three quarters of a year
at nine months, ollie is absolutely delightful. each day when i wake up, i can hardly imagine myself loving him any more than i already do. but each day when i go to sleep, i realize that i've come to love him more, or in a different way, or by different means that day and it makes me feel happy that my heart is so full. he is our favourite little guy. he is such a little goof; he laughs & smiles often. except for when i am getting him dressed, then he screams at me. he would prefer to roam around the apartment stark naked all day long. he has totally mastered the army crawl. he scoots & pulls his way around the apartment, all the while doing his fake cough, just to make sure i know he's still there. recently his favourite game has become opening the cupboard doors and pulling the pot lids out. he also enjoys pulling all his books on the shelves and various other activities of a destructive nature. we are into the "into everything" stage! we love you ollie!
 |
| his best friend is the baby on the wipes box. |
 |
| first dentist appointment. he hated it. |
 |
| nothing cuter than a baby in osh kosh. |
11/30/12
never the way you remember
i was just going through some pictures this week, getting our Christmas card ready & some pictures to be printed from the past nine months, when i found this...
he was SO SMALL; my little gnome baby. how does this already feel like so long ago? why do i not remember the feeling of his teeny tiny body? i look at him now, his strong, squirmy, happy body and am so thankful he is healthy and has come so far in less than nine months.
brian also pointed out that when we brought him home from the hospital, ollie weighed as much as one of the five pound weights i use regularly while exercising. it's so hard to believe.
my itty bitty ollie.
he was SO SMALL; my little gnome baby. how does this already feel like so long ago? why do i not remember the feeling of his teeny tiny body? i look at him now, his strong, squirmy, happy body and am so thankful he is healthy and has come so far in less than nine months.
brian also pointed out that when we brought him home from the hospital, ollie weighed as much as one of the five pound weights i use regularly while exercising. it's so hard to believe.
my itty bitty ollie.
11/19/12
we made it through
we are alive, but just barely. the week of the big snow storm, we all got hit with an awful cough and cold. brian was the healthiest of the three of us, so he plowed through (literally & figuratively) and continued on in his studies. ollie & i, on the other hand, stayed cooped up inside, doing only the following activities; cuddling, sleeping, nursing (ollie), drinking tea (me), watching the snow and eating really intense garlic bread (i'm talking seven cloves to one slice. !!!). we are definitely on the up & up now, though i sometimes feel a little sluggish still. weeks like this make me so grateful for my health.
brian is very busy with school. this seems to be his most challenging semester yet (why do i feel like i've said that before?), but he is doing really well. lots of assignments & classes means that he spends most of his time at school. however, the moment he walks in the door, ollie bounces & grins like crazy. that boy loves his daddy. brian has a job for his work term and he starts right after the new year. he'll work for packers plus for eight months, learning about & designing equipment for the mining industry. he is very excited about the opportunity and about having eight months off of school!
i am doing well. being at home with ollie & taking care of the apartment building is great. this stay-at-home mom gig is the best job i've ever had; there is no dress code, if i don't want to leave my apartment i don't have to and i have the cutest boss. also, since brian has been in school since may & i am no longer working, i have come to appreciate more fully the amazing perks of managing this apartment building; free rent! and! we don't pay for our laundry. (we just take the coins out and re-use them.) i figure that if we were paying, between ollies diapers and our regular laundry, we would be spending well over $100 a month on laundry. aye carumba! i am getting so excited for Christmas and have started putting up & making a few decorations and listening to Christmas music, behaviour which has led my sister to question who raised me. (we usually didn't decorate until the beginning of december, but i figure since we are leaving to go to pense to spend Christmas with the thomsons in about a month, i better get a head start and enjoy Christmas in my own home for a bit.) in the past couple of weeks a new baby cousin has been born (welcome, baby marcus!) and another has been announced (we couldn't be happier for you, cassie & dale!). we are happy & excited to continue to welcome all these new babies into our family. ollie loves his cousin marcus.
ollie was born at 37 weeks and two days gestation, and last week he was officially out as long as he was in! without gushing too much, let me just say that this little boy has made my world these past eight and a half months. he is changing every day. although it is not crawling in the traditional sense, ollie is definitely on the move. he scoots and army crawls and drags himself around. he pulls his books off the shelf and attempts to eat any homework daddy leaves on the ground. he still loves story time. he loves food and wants to eat everything. he broke his fourth teeth and number five is not far behind. he is happy & healthy and we couldn't ask for anything more. and here's a couple of pictures of the little guy, because i am a woman obsessed.
brian is very busy with school. this seems to be his most challenging semester yet (why do i feel like i've said that before?), but he is doing really well. lots of assignments & classes means that he spends most of his time at school. however, the moment he walks in the door, ollie bounces & grins like crazy. that boy loves his daddy. brian has a job for his work term and he starts right after the new year. he'll work for packers plus for eight months, learning about & designing equipment for the mining industry. he is very excited about the opportunity and about having eight months off of school!
i am doing well. being at home with ollie & taking care of the apartment building is great. this stay-at-home mom gig is the best job i've ever had; there is no dress code, if i don't want to leave my apartment i don't have to and i have the cutest boss. also, since brian has been in school since may & i am no longer working, i have come to appreciate more fully the amazing perks of managing this apartment building; free rent! and! we don't pay for our laundry. (we just take the coins out and re-use them.) i figure that if we were paying, between ollies diapers and our regular laundry, we would be spending well over $100 a month on laundry. aye carumba! i am getting so excited for Christmas and have started putting up & making a few decorations and listening to Christmas music, behaviour which has led my sister to question who raised me. (we usually didn't decorate until the beginning of december, but i figure since we are leaving to go to pense to spend Christmas with the thomsons in about a month, i better get a head start and enjoy Christmas in my own home for a bit.) in the past couple of weeks a new baby cousin has been born (welcome, baby marcus!) and another has been announced (we couldn't be happier for you, cassie & dale!). we are happy & excited to continue to welcome all these new babies into our family. ollie loves his cousin marcus.
ollie was born at 37 weeks and two days gestation, and last week he was officially out as long as he was in! without gushing too much, let me just say that this little boy has made my world these past eight and a half months. he is changing every day. although it is not crawling in the traditional sense, ollie is definitely on the move. he scoots and army crawls and drags himself around. he pulls his books off the shelf and attempts to eat any homework daddy leaves on the ground. he still loves story time. he loves food and wants to eat everything. he broke his fourth teeth and number five is not far behind. he is happy & healthy and we couldn't ask for anything more. and here's a couple of pictures of the little guy, because i am a woman obsessed.
11/8/12
eight months
at eight months old, ollie has been out almost as long as he was in.
and this crazy little guy has grown four teeth.
and i love him. like, a lot.
and this crazy little guy has grown four teeth.
and i love him. like, a lot.
my head told my heart
the winds of winter have arrived. yesterday they brought almost a whole foot of snow with them. we have been plunged into the cold and into the icy beauty of winter. (we have a complicated relationship, winter & i; it's so love/hate.)
ollie & i have been sick, so we stayed inside all day yesterday. we cuddled & napped & watched the snow come down. and it just kept coming.
ollie & i have been sick, so we stayed inside all day yesterday. we cuddled & napped & watched the snow come down. and it just kept coming.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)