This Day Was His Own

Friday was hard.    

 We spent all week trying to prepare Noah for pre-school, his first day on his own without me or another family member/friend there to help him through. I'm not sure who was having a harder time? We were all soo excited for this day, secretly hiding our fears, likely not so well from each other.      

 Noah was excited for school, but he was very concerned about being left there. He would keep saying, you are coming right mom? We talked about how school was for kids and that mommies don't go to school, just kids to have fun and teachers to help them learn. When we did our tour, he noticed it was just kids and instantly was concerned. So even when I answered, yes I'm coming, he would then ask "but you're staying right?". This was hard. I didn't want him to be worrying - sorry kid, you got that gene from your mama. We had some tough conversations, but it still came down to the fact that he said he was ready to go, he was excited, but unsettled over just those two facts.      

 Thursday night, he expressed being nervous, just a little scared, but that he was excited. Friday morning he was excited, but once we got in the car, the questions came back.     

 

 I took him in, switched his shoes, he said hi to the teacher and instantly went to go play with one of the other kids. It was great. I finished up some paper work and went to slide out. On my way out another mom stopped me to talk and next thing I knew Noah was running at me. Fail... busted... he told me he was going home. I took him back into the class, we hugged, we talked, he went and played, but kept checking back with me. The teacher began to engage with him, shut the door and then I snuck out. From there on I can only go by what he tells me and his teacher! His teacher is great, she texted me updates, and although he cried most if the tine, he still participated. She showed him how the clock works and when I would be back, she hugged him, encouraged him, reassured him and comforted him.  

 It's hard feeling like you abandoned your child, when yes, in all reality it's good for him, but at a time where he feels he needs you the most, you just leave him and make him figure it out, whether that be relying on his peers or on his own. A good lesson, yes, but one soo hard. A coping skill nonetheless, a necessity in life, but man it makes being a parent hard.  

 

 Parenthood up until age 3 was a breeze and now we are dealing with emotions and feelings and teaching those are hard. Add that on top of this new independence and it gets really tricky!! I think 3 is all about discovery - discovering and exploring emotions, independence, new roles, etc. A lot of big changes in a short amount of time and us parents left to grasp at whatever we can to get by each day and no day is the same.   

 I think one of the hardest parts is the unknown. Yes, he says he had fun, yes, the teacher tells me bits and pieces, but soo much of his day is unknown for me. You begin to wonder - is he still crying? Is he having fun? Is he being a nice boy? Is he using his manners? Are the other kids playing nice with him? Is this worth it?? Yes, I know it's worth it, but it's easy to ask yourself if youeself doing the right thing for him. These days are his own, he will tell me what he wants to tell me, but I won't hear it all and that makes me a little sad. My baby is growing up and is going to have his own experiences, whether good or bad. Who knew cutting the cord could be this hard?   

 

 Yesterday was day 2 for preschool, as we are on an on-call basis for now while we wait for a spot to open up. He had a much better day, he told me about his day, his teacher said he did much better, but still wasn't relaxed. He played and participated, but he was still missing me, but he didn't cry the whole time. It was a bit easier for us both. I know it will get easier each time and ultimately that is the goal we are working towards.     

Weekend Rewind

Friday... Friday... Right, Em had an appointment in London, so we went to that and then hit up Costco afterwards, hello super full cart!!!

Good news is I got quite a few Christmas presents, bad news is it was an expensive trip!! We had dinner at the farm and then came home to get the kids in bed! 

Once the kids were settled, I decided last minute to attend a make up lesson party I was invited to! When it comes to make up I had no clue what I was doing - whatsoever!! The lesson was soo informative and my skin felt amazing even with make up on!! I don't think I have ever felt so comfortable in my own skin! The mom bags were gone... It didn't look like I was wearing a lot of make up and it was Arbonne products, so they aren't horrible for your skin!! 

It was fun and I am glad I went after all!! The aftermath:

Saturday morning we had gymnastics and then we stopped at Walmart afterwards to pick up a new car seat. Turns out the car seat was $50 off!! We are going to end up needing 3 new car seats total once Em is out of the bucket seat, one for each of our vehicles for her and then we are pretty sure the one in M's expires soon (we bought it used). The new one we bought is a 3 in 1 and will transition into a booster. I came home and was going to order 2 others online, but they were sold out! So I called the store and they had 1 other in stock, so I had them hold it! 

M and Noah were working outside, getting all the leaves cleaned up, going back and forth with the backhoe while Em was napping and I just worked on some housework. 

After supper Noah and Mike went to pick up the extra car seat in attempt to keep the kids up a bit late because of the time change coming. It was a fail, Em was not having any of it! So I ended up bathing her while they were gone and by the time they got home, I was nursing her to sleep! They came home with an ice cream treat to surprise me with!! Yum!

Once the kids were in bed, it didn't take them long to fall asleep! 

Sunday morning came early... 6 AM, which I know felt like 7 AM and the sun was coming out, but we definitely didn't gain an hour in our house! 

After breakfast M and moved things around in the mudroom. We have decided we need a closet in the mudroom for coats and boots instead of the wardrobe that just doesn't work for a family! So we moved the wardrobe to where we want the closet to see how the space will change, moved the washer and dryer down the wall and took the change table out of the room and we are very happy with space! So we will be building a closet in there as our next project - hopefully before Christmas! 

The kids actually co-operated in allowing us to get that done!! 

After nap, Noah went outside with M to finish up and I decided to give green beans a try for this little lady...

So far anything green has been a no-go! She hates it, but much to my surprise the green beans did not come back at me, she didn't gag, she actually ate them. I won't say she loved them, but she certainly didn't hate them!! 

After supper we took the backhoe back to the farm - this was not just my first ride in it, but my first time driving it too! Not the best time to drive something with a baby strapped to my chest and it being dark out, but we did it and Noah kept telling me I was doing a "great job mommy". Noah enjoyed an impromptu ice cream date with Grandpa and then we were off to bath time and bedtime! 

Monday we stayed home from play group because hand foot and mouth is going around right now and I really don't want to have to deal with that! Even adults are getting it! So we stayed home! I also decide I would start back up working out and trying to eat healthy! I joined a challenge group to help with that! So I am going to do a combination of Country Heat and 21 Day Fix and see how my body reacts this time! I started Country Heat almost 2 months ago, but my incision started swelling again, so my doctor told me slow down, which then I was unmotivated and just stopped. But I want my energy back! So we are going to try this combination and see how it goes! 

What's Up Wednesday?

Ugh today is off to an early start... I hate early starts, especially after you stay up too late watching the Jays game!! At least they won!

Ems woke up just after 5 AM and Noah must have heard Mike go up to get her, because he was stirring since and decided he would get up at 6:30. I know that's the normal for some of you, but not for us and it really proves for a long day with a tired boy! Luckily Em went right back to sleep after some milk! 

Crazy to think today is her half birthday! 6 months old!! Where the heck did time go?? We are having a mini celebration with Mike's parents and instead of making cake - which Noah is insisting, we are going to make some chocolate chip quick bread instead! I am also going to try my new recipe of the week tonight. I almost forgot the challenge I made for myself to try a new recipe, so I will be trying this glaze tonight:

Pineapple Honey Glaze:

PIN

This morning we have our first library program of the season. We really do love the program, but I don't have high hopes of it going smoothly because of how early Noah woke up! But we will go and we will try! 

Let's talk Luke Bryan - I am officially going to his concert again with my sister! This will be the same venue we went to last October for him in Detroit. Granted I hate the Detroit venue and our seats are not as close as our last concert, I know it will be amazing and it's his close out concert for his tour! I really didn't think it would work, but the concert is on a Saturday, so M will be home to watch the kiddos. The part I was struggling with was that we stay over night, but it's only one night and she sleeps over night anyways for the most part. 

Something tells me October is going to fly by, hopefully not as quick as September did! The weekdays all have something on them, aside from Friday's and every other Tuesday. Luckily our weekends are not too bad though. 

Oh and my hair straightener died yesterday after straightening half of my head... Yes half... I quickly learned why I kept my old one!! 

What's up on your Wednesday? 

Weekend Rewind

I can't believe we are in mid-September already! I knew this month was going to fly by with how busy it is!

Friday night was our first night post-ball season and boy was it nice to have M home! That was a long summer of solo bedtimes, although I think I have got it figured out at least! I just have to remember that not every night is ever the same, well for Emilya that is! Noah is pretty easy to put to bed! 

Saturday morning involved some early morning housework before we rushed out the door to get to the market before gymnastics so I could order buns for Em's baptism. Em was not impressed about being in the car AT all. We also learned a valuable lesson, do not take Noah to gymnastics early - show up on time. He just wanted to run up and down the wheelchair ramp, which only tired him out more. He was soo exhausted by the end of the class and therefore super miserable. His answer was "no" to everything. We really did pick the right time for the class, because this allows us to do lunch and then naptime. I will say it was crazy how much Noah picked up from his first class, because during this class he was supporting himself and actually hanging off the rings this week and the bar.

Saturday afternoon was spent filling the pool, the rain helped with that! I finished organizing all of
Emilya's clothes into seperate bins and then we cleared room in what we call the toy room upstairs, but in all reality it is storage for us and the toy room is downstairs. We put all the labeled bins in there and now her nursery is just about ready for her. I haven't painted the frames, or redone the pictures yet, but in all reality that's not stopping her from sleeping in there at least!

Right after supper I rushed into town and grabbed our groceries for the week, giving myself just an hour, so I could be home to feed Em before bed. I managed to get to 3 stores and was home to tuck
Noah in and feed Emilya.

Sunday morning we woke up early and were out of the house by 7:30 AM!

 

We had to stop and grab my baptism dress on our way to meeting my Dad at Greenview Aviaries. It was about an hour and half drive, and suprisingly Emilya didn't fuss much until we were about 20 minutes away from arriving! The DVD player seemed to help distract her! 

 

 

We had a great morning exploring the park, seeing the animals and then playing!

 

We were so proud of Noah for trying the zip line!! He did great with it!! 

 

He also figured out the big swing:

 

 

We had an amazing drive home:

 

Both kids sleeping!! 

Em even woke up in a great mood!!

 

When we got home it was back to work, getting the pool all put back together. This week we need to focus on getting the pool area finished and the front porch, as well as clean the house! Clearly it's going to be busy!! I did manage to get the upstairs bedrooms all vacuumed, now I just need to wash the floors up there. I also got Gracie's hair trimmed. 

We have such a busy week ahead of us! But I'm excited to celebrate Emilya this weekend!! 

Emilya - 5 Months

Eating: We are still breastfeeding and things are continuing to go well! A few days before turning 5 months, we decided to introduce rice cereal. She has been eyeing up our food when we eat and it is next to impossible to nurse her while eating anything anymore. Of course she has tried ice cream and sorbet and her brother even shared his mango Popsicle with her in the stroller the one afternoon. She does pretty well with the rice cereal and it didn't take her long to figure it out! She gets about a tablespoon a day at this point. I am still getting up to pump between 2-3 AM.

Sleeping: Emilya is a great sleeper. Although with her teething, getting her to sleep has been tricky lately and by tricky I mean it's taking us longer. We have moved her bedtime up to 8 PM and she sleeps until usually 6 AM or 7 AM on a normal night, but with teething she was waking up sometimes once or twice a night. 

Clothing: Emilya is wearing size 3-6 months in most of the clothes. Shorts are still 3 months, as 6 months are too big in the waste. We have put away just about everything that is 3 months now but 6 month pants are just a bit long, so 3-6 month is the best. She is wearing 3-6 month sleepers or 6 month sleepers! Emilya is wearing size 2 pampers swaddlers, but we are on the last box and will move up to size 3. 

Features: Emilya is growing lots of hair, but man is it ever light on top, yet still soo dark in the back! Her eyes are still blue, although I am not sure if they will end up as bright as Noah's. Emilya decided she would get not one tooth before turning 5 months, but 2!! Her 2 bottom front teeth have broken through and man was this not a fun process!  I was quite shocked to find them soo early since Noah didn't get teeth until 9 months! 

 

Weight: 5 Months: 16 lbs 5 oz

We haven't remeasured her,  but I'm guessing maybe 26.5 inches

               

 

What The Doctor Had To Say: Emilya is healthy and doing great! We saw the ENT this past month and she basically just ordered more tests to rule out any further issues, as ear issues can run in pairs with with kidneys, heart and eyes. So she will see an eye doctor, have a urine test done and an ECG. She also ordered some genetic testing to see if can find out why she has the hearing loss. 

We have hummed and hawed over what to do with the hearing loss and have decided that getting a hearing aid is best for her. This was obviously not an easy decision to make, as it seem crazy to have a hearing aid soo young, but this is the most critical time for her learning and development. In a running conversation, she may only pick up half of what it said. 

We also saw Emilya's speech therapist. Obviously there isn't much we need to be doing right now, but it was great to meet her and know who I will be communicating with in the future. 

I will say that as overwhelming as this all is, it is great having an awesome team working with us and supporting us. We are working with a social worker, who will continue to aid us in communication between all doctors and workers helping us with Emilya. We have a great team working with us so far! 

 

Nicknames: Emma, Em, Emy, Baby, Little Miss, Littlest Squish, Baby girl, Baby Bunny, Emilya Hope, Sis

 

Big Brother Update: Noah amazes me every single day with how great he is with her. You always hear about horrible sibling stories, but so far Noah is the opposite and just genuinely loves his sister and having her around. He loves introducing her to people and showing her off, he will share ice cream and Popsicles with her without us asking him to and so far he just looks out for her and I hope that continues! 

 

Likes: rolling around, Nemo, her play mat, her Muslin blankets, her lovey, her brother, being read to, being outside, bathes, toys, being carried in the baby bjorn, the jumper, standing, and dogs. 

 

Dislikes: the car, or sitting still. I will say car rides are slightly better, but slightly being the key word. Sometimes she doesn't scream and gag, other times she does. Her puking has cut back big time,so I am glad she has outgrown that part! She also dislikes teething!! But who doesn't!! 

Personality: Even when Emilya is miserable, she is very tolerable. With teething, she hasn't been as happy as usual, which is obviously understandable and baby girl can fight sleep like a champ when miserable. She loves being around people and finds them entertaining to watch, she will flash a smile to pretty much anyone who looks at her. We managed to get a few summer trips in this month like to storybook gardens, Brantford zoo and African lion safari and she loved people watching, being baby worn or sleeping through it all. We still have yet to start napping her up in her room, as we haven't quite made time to deal with the nursery, but it is coming along. We are hoping by the end of September that she will be napping up there. 

Weekend Rewind

I will say this weekend was the first weekend to make me think fall is actually coming. We have been in a heat wave lately, so it was a nice break, but still nice weather to enjoy. Well, Saturday was less desirable with the threat of rain, but it held off!

Friday night I decided getting the kids to bed was more important that seeing one of M's last ball games. I knew Noah had a big day on Saturday, so we opted to stay home, well I opted, the kids had no clue it was an option. I did let Noah watch Finding Nemo after bath time until it was bedtime, which he was super excited about - he LOVES that movie! 

Noah went to bed great (as usual), but Miss Emilya gave me a run for my money and screamed for pretty much 2 hours of my attempting. In my frustration I just laid her on my bed to take a breather and she fell asleep instantly. I had to turn on a light and make sure of this, I couldn't believe it! Apparently she just didn't want to be held anymore or was just to tired to fight any longer. So I put her in her bed and relaxed for the first time for the day before heading to bed myself! 

Emilya slept all night and we all woke up at 7:15 AM. Saturday morning I feel like I was just running around non-stop after my shower. I managed to go through all but one drawer in Noah's room and pull out the clothes that are too small. I folded laundry, put away laundry, got Noah's clothes ready for gymnastics and tidied up.

M got his meat ready for the party, went and picked up buns and propane. It was time to leave for gymnastics before we knew it. 

Noah was pretty excited and just loved the first class. His favorite part was the rings, but they did do soo much more than that. He followed instruction pretty well for it being his first structured class. I'm not sure who was more tired by the end of it. M or Noah? I'm glad I was watching with Emilya! She loved watching them, so it was a win win for us both! 

We picked up lunch on the way home and M got dressed and left for the last game of ball. I will say that I am soo happy ball is done for the year. It just seems like it is one less thing on our plate right now. I feel like once September is over, we will maybe wonder what t do with our time! We started a lot of projects that I want finished before Emilya's baptism, like the porch and pool liner, plus getting her room ready. However, finding time to do these things has been the trick! 

While M was at the ball game, I got the kids both down for a nap and cleaned the main floor, so it was ready for company. We were hosting the end of the year ball game for the team, and luckily the rain held off! The kids all played well together and it was nice to be able to just sit down for a bit after a busy first half of the day! Emilya was entertained by watching everyone around her outside in her jumper!

It was a late night for the kiddos, but we had them in bed by 9 PM and then we hit up the hot tub before going to bed! 

Sunday we had big plans with the pool and then things didn't go as planned. We got the remaining foot of water drained out if the pool. Despite the fact that we were pretty miserable that we had to replace the liner, I decided to find joy in the process and let Noah go jump in the big puddles the hose was making and he loved it! 

 

Just as we worried, the one wall of the pool caved in once the pool was empty and the liner was out, so M had to dig that and fix it. We got styrofoam and started putting it down for under the liner, just to help protect it from getting another hole. 

 

The day quickly disappeared and we didn't get as far as we wanted, but it will happen... Eventually! 

 

Hope everyone had a great weekend!!