On the Way Up

Ezekiel is doing much better. He's been on an antibiotic since last Tuesday. I'm hoping that nothing else comes up. Malachi seems completely healthy. Ezekiel is a lot like Malachi. They both have a high tolerance for pain/sickness.

I am unofficially a wedding planner for an upcoming wedding, and I'm so stoked!

I work tomorrow and then not again until next Monday!

Ezekiel is getting his 9 month pictures on Wednesday (and maybe a few with Malachi).

We have a busy Thanksgiving and will have some more Turkey on Friday, and I think that we'll cook for the first time. Woo-hoo!!!

Ezekiel Update

You know how I told you that Ezekiel was sick for the first time. He's had a drippy nose for over a week. He was fine most of the day Monday and seemed pretty happy. Well, he woke up Monday night/Tuesday morning about 12:30. He wouldn't go back to sleep in his crib and kept screaming. He ended up sleeping on me the rest of the morning (and I slept only a little). He didn't feel really warm to me, but I was also very tired, before I went to work. Daniel called me around lunch time saying that his grandmother had called and was concerned. Ezekiel was fussing all morning and had slept a lot more than usual. He made an appointment, and I took my boy to the doctor at 2:30pm. It's nice to have an afternoon planning time, sometimes.

The doctor said he had fluid behind both of his ears, and it would only get worse. He prescribed a mild antibiotic. Ezekiel has been much better since. I'm not one who likes to let my child have a bunch of antibiotics just because, but I sure didn't want to go through many more nights like the one before.

I went home, clipped some coupons, and grabbed my two boys, and headed out the door to Harris Teeter. He rode in the Baby Bjorn in the store instead of the cart to make sure he wouldn't get any more sick. He napped for another hour when we got home (6-7pm). He got up for about 2 hours and was down for the count. He slept through the night that evening. He's a little still off schedule, but is doing much better.

My Boys

The 3 cutest males in the whole entire world!
I love my boys!!!

"Momma, what are you feeding me?"

"Who put this hat on my head, Malachi?"

"I'm cute, and I know it."

"'I'm on a mission' to be potty-trained." (And it's not going too well right now.)

(Malachi tries to boycott naps sometimes by playing in his room. Ezekiel was napping and Daniel and I were ready to nap after a typical, crazy Sunday morning. We put up the gate in the hallway and ignored his knocks at our door. After he got quiet, and we actually fell asleep; THIS is what I found outside my door when I went to get Ezekiel out of his bed to feed him. He slept through the flash of my camera [twice] and the occasional screams of his little brother. "Hey, Malachi, you know if you go to sleep when you are supposed to, you won't have to sleep on the floor in the hall, and you'll be in a better mood in the evening. Just a thought.")

Pictures!!!

We're Here, Still!

Ok. So here's the rundown of what has happened over the past few weeks/days:

• Saturday, October 20th - Ezekiel sat up unassisted for about 5 seconds. He also choked on a piece of plastic that he found on the floor and put in his mouth. Thankfully, he was able to cough enough to get it out of his throat with a little bit of throw-up. Not too much drama!
• Sunday, October 21st - Ezekiel's first tooth popped out (the bottom, middle, right). He also turned 8 months old!
• Friday, October 26th - Ezekiel sat up unassisted for over 30 seconds. He is getting better and better at this when he wants to.
• Saturday, October 27th - Ezekiel gets "sick" for the first time. He's got a minor cough (and no other major symptoms) that Malachi shared with him. I think he might have had a small dose of a stomach virus that he caught from me about the 3rd week of school. So, this might actually be the second sickness, then. ***Remind me to talk about "liquid gold" sometime later.***
  
• Sunday, October 28th - Ezekiel gets his finger shut in a cabinet in the church daycare. It was very deep at first and had me worried about bone and tissues in the finger. A little over an hour later, he was fine. We took him to the doctor today, and it was just fine. It's still really swollen, but it doesn't bother him at all.
• Monday, October 29th - Ezekiel sleeps in his crib for the first time. he's been sleeping in a bassinet or pac 'n play since birth. He really was excited to be in a crib with colorful bumpers.
  

Malachi is doing very well. He is doing a little better with being flexible, but I have decided that my word for him is "passionate." He handles life well, but it's either all or nothing with him. It's really hard to change his mind or get him off topic. He wants it his way. I know that he's 2, but there are a lot of other 2 year olds that don't show out like him at times. There are also others that are worse. He loves to cuddle and be with the people that he loves. It's not all about Momma, all the time. That's good!

Daniel recently stepped down as children's pastor of our church. He is currently looking for a full-time position, where he can be home more than he has been in the last 9 months. You see he was working 30-40 hours a week at the Y. He was also working 10-20 hours a week for the church. He loved working with kids and the church, but our family was being sacrificed in the process. It was time for God to move us. We thought we had a full-time opportunity, but it fell through. So, we're back attending at the church that we grew up and got married in, etc. It's nice to have some time to spend with the family again. Please pray that God will provide the right job for him.

My volleyball season got over about 2 weeks ago. Praise the Lord! I totally enjoyed coaching, but it was ALOT with two small children, and a husband who is not home in the evenings. Thankfully, I survived (as I always do), and God got to show off (as He always does). My children are healthy and happy. They got to spend time with their two great-grandmas. I got to have some fun and make a little extra cash (and I mean little, for my time). I feel like I have all the time in the world and energy now that I can get home at least 2 hours earlier each day than I used to.

Random notes

• Please pray for Callie D. She was born almost 2 weeks ago in the area. She contracted pneumonia right after birth and should not have survived the first night. God protected that little baby girl, and God is continuing to "show off" in her life and the family's lives. Please pray that she would come home soon and never have to face the things that she has encountered the past two weeks ever again.
• I have 2 weddings to go to on the same day in December. One is my brother's! He's marrying a beautiful woman. The other is one of my best childhood friends. She is getting married in the area and then moving to the Ukraine with her husband. Wow!
• I am totally excited about the upcoming holidays and having two boys to experience it with.
• Our house is starting to come together more (a little). I haven't forgotten about pictures of our house. I know a house is never "done," but we're still at the stage that we don't want visitors yet. Our other two houses (that we never owned) were able to be guest-ready quickly. I hope to maybe have our family Christmas at our house this year, and have the house mostly "done."
• Kiev is doing much better. I had to take her back to the vet about a week or two after getting the drains out. She had fluid built up under the skin. The doctor was "sure" that it would fill back up with fluid, but it never did. Praise the Lord! We couldn't afford anything else.
• God is good, all the time!!!
  

Brotherly Bonding

The boys have started enjoying each other's company even more lately. The past week, I have started bathing them together. Ezekiel always watches Malachi intently and wants to play. Ezekiel still can't sit up unassisted, but that doesn't seem to bother him. He can roll and crawl to get where he wants (not in the water, of course).

Watching "tee-dee" together on a lazy Saturday morning

Bathtime!!!

Ezekiel can...

• "crawl" - He gets up on his hands and knees and rocks back and forth. He just recently started getting on his hands and knees, then pushing his feet up on his toes, so his bottom is in the air. It is soooo cute. He will do the typical "commando" style crawl to get where he wants to go quickly (i.e. he lays on his belly and uses his forearms and hands to pull his body in the direction he wishes to go.
• grab a small object (like his pacifier) with one or both hands and quickly put it in his mouth.
• put EVERYTHING in his mouth.
• eat almost a whole (small) jar of baby food in one sitting.
  
• not sit up unassisted yet. I just think that he doesn't feel the need to do that. He can move around and get where he needs to go or lunge for a toy. Sitting is not a necessity.
• (and always does) look much smaller than every other baby his age (or younger).
  

Malachi-isms

"hup-ups" - hiccups
"ray-ray" - Rachel Ray
"show-zoes" - Cheerios and any other cereal we eat for breakfast
"cha-cha molt" - chocolate milk
"Z-mats" - one of our nicknames for Ezekiel (Z- max)
"da-doo" - thank you
"peas" - please
"My-my do it" - Malachi will do it.
"bop is?" - Where is my bop (pacifier)?
"Z doin?" - What's Z doing?
"wait" - awake and wait, like "Z wait" (Z is awake)

***Malachi still has no "g" or "k" sound in his vocabulary yet, so it usually turns into a "d" or "t" sound.***

Cute Pictures to Catch You Up

My "typical" Schedule

I'm tired all the time, and I thought I would share why. I know you may not care, but it makes me feel better if I could get a little sympathy.

5:30am - get up and head to shower (and do all the other things to get me, the dog, and the others semi-ready to go for the day)
7:30 - leave for work
7:45 - arrive at work and start trying to organize my desk--I'll explain more later
8:20 - students start arriving.
1:47pm - students head to their non-core classes (i.e. band, art, p.e., etc.) and planning begins (actually, usually that means meetings)
3:30pm - head to the gym to practice with volleyball team
5:45 - leave the school after all my girls have been picked up
6:00 - feed Ezekiel
6:15 - pack boys up to go to the store (since there's always something that we need)
7:30 - get home and start getting ready for bed
9pm - both boys are just getting to bed/sleep (and Daniel has just gotten home)

This is all subject to change if our volleyball game is away. After both the boys get to bed, its time to wash bottles, clothes, dishes, etc. I don't get to sit down until I lay down in bed (except for the time I feed Ezekiel). I'm tired just thinking about it! Thanks for the sympathy. I appreciate it:)

I haven't forgotten

We're still alive. I haven't forgotten to post. The few times that I have tried to post, the computer/internet/router have not wanted to cooperate. So, here I am---posting, when I should be sleeping. I'll start with the most recent events and work my way back.

Ezekiel is "crawling." He can get himself up on his knees, and move one of them sometimes. He will be actively crawling soon. Wow! I'm so not ready for this (especially since he's not really good at sitting up yet).

Kiev was attacked by another dog in the neighborhood on Tuesday last week. Daniel and I were both at work. Poor Daniel's grandma had to deal with that and two crying boys who were upset by the dogs. The neighbor whose dog attacked Kiev, took her (Kiev) to our vet and paid for her bill. It looks like the dog got one tooth into Kiev and slid it down her side. She has many, many stitches (on the surface and under the first layer of skin). The vet had to put in some drainage pipes above and below the cut to help keep infection and swelling out. She was "knocked out" when all the procedures happened. In order to keep her from having to wear a head collar (so she doesn't mess with all the stuff on her body), we have sacrificed some of our old t-shirts. We have three that we rotate each morning and wash in hot water with bleach. Well, poor dog has not been allowed out of the kitchen (except to go outside), because we don't want drainage on the carpet and the rest of the nicer laminate floors in the house. She hates being stuck in there while we are in the rest of the house, but she's getting used to it. She should get the "drains" out on Wednesday and the stitches out the following week. This week will get better!

Malachi-isms

• For two days I was "mom-mom." Now I'm "mom-my" (as in, 'my name is...').

• "eat some" - I want to eat, sometimes it is very urgent, like, ' Feed me now!'
• "dog hum" - meaning: "Kiev, come!" accompanied by leg pats just like his mom-my
• "Zee-zull" - Ezekiel
• "hole-non" - hold on (I say this to him a lot when he is being impatient)
• "mi-mit" - wait a minute

watching "dee-dee" (TV) with "Bob" (Bob & Larry)

Reclaiming the Bedroom

Last night Ezekiel slept in a room all by himself (meaning, he didn't sleep in our room). I was excited about having no baby in the bedroom, but I was a little sad that he was "so far away." He was only right down a short hallway, and we had the monitor on, but I was still a little uneasy. I woke up at 1am, so I went down the hall to check on him. He was fine.

He woke up at 5am. I fed him. He went back to sleep. Did anyone catch that??? He slept "through the night." He went to sleep around 9pm and didn't wake up until 5am! Woo-hoo. AND he hasn't had to be rocked to sleep in several days. As long as he's put down when he's tired, he'll lay there for a little while (if he's still super-awake) and then go to sleep on his own. I am missing out on some cuddles, but I've been in the baby stage for a little over two years. I'm ready to be done for awhile.

***We didn't move Malachi out until about 9 months. We should have moved him out sooner, but I didn't realize that he was waking up and crying, because he saw us and wanted to get in bed with us. We definitely have made some better, more independent choices this time with Ezekiel, but I occasionally miss having him in bed to cuddle. I am definitely happy to have a "master" bedroom again.

It's nice to have three bedrooms, even if Ezekiel is sharing "his room" with the office. Give me a few more nights of checking on him, and I think I'll be ready to let him sleep and myself sleep all night long (if he decides to continue this trend, which would be perfect timing for me to go back to work TOMORROW)!

A Night I Don't Want to Relive Any Time Soon

On Friday night/Saturday morning, we had a very scary experience that I do not wish to relive again. You see, Daniel had been working late at the Y to get everything set for coaches' meetings the next morning (Sat.). Then, he needed to go put up the church signs in front of the daycare where we meet. It was about 9:30pm when he got out there. There were no lights to keep the ground well-lit, so he was doing it basically in the dark (driving stakes into the ground and wrapping the bungee cords around the stakes). After putting up the first of two signs, he realized that there were TONS of little ants crawling on his legs. He swatted them off his legs as quickly as possible and began to put up the other sign (Keep in mind that I am at home with two sleeping children). His ankles and legs were itching which led to his scalp to itch. Once he got in the car to drive home, his lips and face began to swell. By the time he got home, he was frantic and very, very swollen, not to mention COVERED in whelps/hives almost from head to toe.

I talked to a very frantic and upset, Daniel, on the 20 min. ride home several times. I had the doctor on call paged, and got David to run by Mom and Dad's house to get some Benadryl. About 10 minutes after Daniel got home, David arrived with the medicine. Daniel took two, and we waited for the doctor to call. During that time, I called one of our pastors and asked them to come stay with the boys, because I knew that we needed to go to the ER. The doctor finally called, and told us we needed to go to the ER. About 10 minutes later, Pastor B, his wife, and son arrived to watch over the sleeping children.

Of course the ER is never fast (imagine if he couldn't breathe), and we sat for awhile. Daniel's symptoms were getting worse (shortness of breathe, itchy throat), but his swelling was going down a little. When we finally got back to a "room," they gave him an IV. This made him very sick to his stomach. His face that had been very red and swollen, then looked ghostly white. They gave him some steroids through the IV and waited for his condition to "stabilize." We arrived at the ER around 10:30pm and left around 1am. That's not too bad for ER time, but it was getting really late.

I got to sleep around 2am. The boys woke me up at 6am. Daniel was able to sleep until almost 10am when I woke him up. Benadryl makes him very sleepy and almost incoherent. He's still taking a prescribed steroid and over the counter Benadryl to help the inflamation and itching. He's doing better, but he's still not a hundred percent.

I wish I could truly convey how scared I was. When Daniel was freaking out, I had to try to remain calm. It was difficult, but I like to think that I did well. Now I've got to make sure that Daniel gets to the doctor soon, so we can get our hands on an epi-pen just in case this happens again.

Thank you, Lord, for protecting Daniel and keeping him from being admitted to the hospital. Thank you, Pastor B and family, for coming to our aid. I couldn't have imagined trying to keep up with two small children during sleeping time and give my husband the attention that he needed. Thank you, David, for being available to help and bringing over the medicine. That night could have been a whole lot worse, but the Lord kept him safe and has surrounded us with people who care.

Ezekiel Luke at 5 1/2 Months

Ezekiel is getting so much more personality. He is smiling more and more. If you hold him or turn him just the right way, he will give out the sweetest little giggle. He's transitioning from 3 naps to 2. Sometimes he will take two, sometimes its three. It just depends on how late he sleeps in the morning.

He can roll over from any side or from back or front like a pro. He is beginning to refine the skills of grabbing an object and getting it to his mouth. It's cool to see him discover the usefulness of his hands. "Zee-zul" is how Malachi pronounces his name when prompted to call him Ezekiel instead of Z. We call him both, but we are working with Malachi. Malachi's speech is getting much better and words that were often mispronounced horribly are now getting much closer the the actual sounds.

I miss getting baby cuddles like I used to get from Malachi, but I also really enjoy the freedom of having a baby who sleeps so well on his own. Ezekiel is much more particular about where and how he sleeps than Malachi ever was at this age. Ezekiel will NOT fall asleep on his back unless he is in his carseat with the car actively moving. If we stop, he wakes up. He also likes to be rocked to sleep. I am trying to get the third bedroom up and working as a nursery for a few months, because I want Ezekiel to work on getting himself back to sleep. That way, I can sleep a little better at night. Sometimes he will fuss his way back to sleep, but sometimes he begins to wail. If he wails, there's no going back to sleep for this muchacho for awhile.After Ezekiel pretty much gets on the same schedule as Malachi, I think we will try to move them in together. Malachi's room is rather small, but if we move out the chest of drawers and rework the closet, there should be no problems.


We started him on cereal as you saw about a week ago. We tried one other time, and he's just not keen on it. I'm not trying to force it, but he's continually reaching for our food and drink, which leads me to believe that he is ready. Daniel suggested going ahead and mixing the cereal with a little baby food to sweeten it up. When I have a chance to get to the store, I think I'll try it. Even if he isn't eating, I can usually put him in his high chair and let him eat his toes while we eat. It's nice to have my hands free for a few minutes to scarf down my food.


Z can only sit up on his own for about 2 seconds, but we're working on it. He doesn't seem to care too much about it, because as soon as I sit him up, he leans over to try to grab his toes and put them in his mouth. Go figure. They taste good to him!?!

National Night Out

Tuesday night was National Night Out. Our new neighborhood was having some festivities to celebrate the beginning of its neighborhood watch program. There were policemen and firemen with cars and trucks out to help support us and for us to support them. The firemen had plastic helmets and the policemen had goody bags with stickers and coloring books. The neighborhood provided food, drinks, and popsicles. Malachi enjoyed his helmet and popsicles. He was sweaty from head to toe. Almost his whole head was wet due to the heat and running around. It made for a tired but happy boy, and we got to meet some neighbors. Fun was had by all.

Cereal Time

Ezekiel had his first taste of cereal on Tuesday. He didn't like it and kept pushing it out of his mouth. I think we'll try again tomorrow. Here are some pictures.

Putting Sentences Together

I said in one of the last posts that Malachi said his first "sentence." Since then, and especially today, he has been putting lots of words together. They still only come in twos, but, boy, our we happy that he is finally figuring it out. It's so good to hear him say more than one word at a time. I know, I know, I should enjoy it now; because there's no going back from here, and he'll probably never be quiet now. I'm looking forward to having a conversation with him in more than one word spurts. Before it was something like this at times, MJ (Malachi) & M (Momma):
MJ: Eat
M: What do you want to eat?
MJ: (babbling I can't understand)
M: What would you like?
MJ: sees (please)
M: Please, what, sweetie?
MJ: sees (much more emphatically and a little whiny)
M: I don't understand what you want. Thank you for saying please, but what do you want?
MJ: many whines and complains

Hopefully, we are through with most of that now. Now we can do "moi-sees" (more, please) and other phrases to have a much better understanding.

Way to go, kid! I knew you would get it!

I Feel Successful

I didn't get to have the relaxing summer with my boys that I wanted, but I did get to spend some much needed time with them, and I got a lot done. I feel very successful. Now, I just need to buckle down and figure out what's going on with volleyball (starting the 20th) and NC history (starting the 27th). The house is somewhat in order. There's still tons to do, but it is very livable, and I can find most of what I need. I've painted a lot, observed some high school practices and try-outs, cleaned and organized my house to an extent, enjoyed my boys, and went swimming once.

I have discovered something else that makes me feel successful. You see, Malachi is 2 (in case you hadn't noticed) and often acts like it. In his attempt to act like a 2 year old, he occasionally throws fits. I have found that the best way to deal with that is to put him in "time-out." Yes, he still gets good, old fashioned spankings, but when he is screaming uncontrollably, the thing that works right now is for me to pick him up and place him in his room. Sometimes he follows me out, and I put him right back. I tell him to stay until he isn't crying/whining anymore. As soon as I hear him stop, I go in and act like nothing has happened. I've only had to do it 3 or 4 times in the past week, but it seems to work. It is the best way that I have found to calm him down from his screaming fits. We wipe his eyes and nose and get on with life. It makes me feel like I'm on the right track as a parent. Sometimes, Daniel and I forget that he is only 2. He's not perfect, but he is very well-behaved for a young 2 year old.

***Look for more parenting tips to come. I'm an expert now. Just kidding:)

Separated at birth (7 months apart)?

I have been wondering lately if Malachi and Avery were separated at birth, 7 months apart.

Ok. So that makes no sense, but Malachi is quite the observer like Avery. Malachi is a little "behind" in development, and Avery is a little ahead; which makes them almost even in development. Malachi shocked me yesterday morning and made me chuckle. He is quite the observer, too.

Well, I had my pump out to get some milk for Ezekiel before church (which didn't work, by the way---me, not the pump). Anywho, the parts are still not all in place in the kitchen yet, and I hadn't put the pump away yet. Malachi then went into the storage part and got out the pump part that attaches to the breast. I eyed him suspiciously to see what he was going to do with it. He then gave me a big grin and stuck it on his belly (shirt still tucked in). He, then, realized that he couldn't get to his belly through his shirt. He un-tucked his shirt and put the pump part on his belly again. This time, I got the biggest, most mischievous, "I know what you're doing with that thing" grin that I've seen in a while. It was a little embarrassing but mostly just funny.

Malachi has also (for at least 4 months) been pointing to the pump bottles and saying "molt" (milk). To which I reply with a smile, "yes, that's Z's milk." You can't fool this kid. He's too smart!