Boy, it's been a long time.... We had a wonderful Christmas with my in-laws who where visiting for about 10 days. Finnegan had such a great time playing with his Grandma and Grandpa. What a sweet time! I have tons of photos and will probably post some, but just don't have a ton of energy to do so right now. Ken has been off this week from work, and I am blessed to have him home. I just love having him home with me and the kids (especially this week as we are finding out Penelope is having a HUGE growth spurt and is pretty cranky most of the day!). He is enjoying his vacation, playing lots of video games and sleeping in. We are currently watching the first four season of the Office on DVD. That's pretty fun! We seem to run marathons of DVD watching after Christmas. The last 2 years we've watched LOST non-stop. This year, it is the Office.

I got a wonderful camera for Christmas and hope to grace the pages of the blog with some new photos. Although I really wanted an SLR, we decided to go with another point and shoot camera for the ease of care and the life style that we have. I don't have the luxary of just throwing the camera in my purse or bag when it's a huge SLR model. So, we went with a smaller model. I'm still learning how to use it on each different function to get the best photos. It has a lot of stuff on it that I don't yet understand, but I'll get it soon enough!!

No news yet about the potential move. We won't know any more information for another week or more. But we're patiently waiting on the next move of our adventure together!

Hope you all have a splended and safe New Year's celebration! God Bless!

Waiting for Our Next Step

In January 2005, my groom and our trusted Boston Terrier ventured across the country to see where God would take us. He brought us to a company with a trusted name and a long history in aviation. My husband quickly made a name for himself within his department and within this new project. He's been awarded great reviews and numerous praises for his problem solving and wonderful work. And now, that adventure that brought us across the country, will soon take us back to the direction that we came. Although, this leg of the journey, we not only travel with our darling puppy, but also another pup, and two babies too! For weeks, we've heard about an opportunity to transfer to a Navy Airbase in Maryland to work with the P8A Poseidon aircraft and it's flight tests. The transfer is a temporary position (2 yrs or less) and we'll travel as a family. We are very excited about this opportunity and are now waiting on God to work out all the details (which He will, because He always does, and He already has!). I'll keep you posted on all the wonderful news and timeline as it unfolds.

I can't begin to explain how proud I am of my husband and the work that he has to to further his career for the good of our family. I look forward to taking this new leg of the journey together with our little tots! And what a great time to visit back east and be closer (although still a nice drive) away from our families.

Getting to Know You: The Holiday Edition

Here is one of those questionnaires that you normally get in an email, but I thought I'd post my answers here...And as always, I really struggled just offering one answer per question. I know... But Christmas is one of my favorite times of year and it's so hard to choose!! If you repost it on your blog, let me know, I'd love to see your answers!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Egg Nog

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He sits them under the tree!

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? white

4. Do you hang mistletoe? No, but I think I'd like too!

5. When do you put your decorations up? the day after Thanksgiving

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? excluding dessert? are you kidding me? ok, probably stuffing.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Reading the Christmas story in Mom and dad's room on Christmas morning and mom bringing us hot cocoa... Or caroling around the trailer park in Florida where Grandma and Grandpa lived...

8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don't really remember

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? A couple of years we were able too, but that wasn't until we were older and talked our parents into it!

10. How do you decorate your Christmas tree? Normally with a hodge podge of ornaments, but this year it is with all the same color scheme of non-breakable ornaments. We'll keep the breakables away until the kids are older.

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Love to look at it- HATE to drive in it. And since moving to WA, I'm really out of practice!

12. Can you ice skate? I can stand on ice skates. Not very confident on ice skates!

13. What was your favorite gift as a child? A cash register with a conveyor belt... or Barbies.

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Setting a tradition for my family that focuses on the real reason to Celebrate Christmas, while enjoying each other and showing our love to our community and each other.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Cookies... Or Peanut Butter Balls.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Going to Disney World, I suppose. But these days, it's tending to be with my little ones on Christmas morning watching the Christmas parade after we've read the Christmas story.

17. What tops your tree? Tinkerbell

18. Which do you prefer, giving or receiving? giving

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? I've always had a few, but I'm a fan of "Mary, did you know?" and "Let there be Peace on Earth".

20. Candy Canes! yuck or yummy? I have a 1 per year limit!!

21. Favorite Christmas Movie? National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation... Or Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas (now, my son's favorite Christmas Movie too) :)

Video Post

If you are able to watch this video and enjoy it without getting sea sick, I will be impressed. Even just listening to the audio will bless your heart as Finnegan sings his new favorite song, and shares a new phrase "Daddy's gonna getch you" Sorry as the toddler isn't able to sit still for long!! :)

Enjoy!!

Yes, Jesus Love Me!!

Finnegan is a singer. And I love it! When he was born, my aunt and uncle sent him a CD of what I would call "church songs". You know, the classics... Jesus Loves Me, The BIBLE etc.

Over the summer Finnegan started singing more and more. His first favorite was the BIBLE. He then learned Climb, Climb Sunshine Mountain. He would sing it each time he'd climb up into his chair at the table. It is pretty cute! But recently, he's started singing a new song. He'll be real quiet and then shout out "YES" "Jesus... Loves ME! YES!.... Jesus..... LOVES ME!!" Then... "The Bible tells me SOOOO!". Oh how precious to hear the songs of a child's heart!

Praises!!

We are rejoicing today for a successful surgery for Emily! Continue to pray for her as she is still in a drug induced coma and will be for a little bit longer. God is so good and we are praising Him for the success thus far...

Above, you'll notice that I've posted a new photo from when Penelope was born. Our birth photographer, Mandy, brought our birth photos the other day. I am so excited to share a few with you as this was such a special day and now we have a few photos to remember the day so vividly!!

Prayer for Emily

Friends -

I have requested it before, but the day has arrived. Emily's surgery is today and could take between 6-24 hours to remove the full AVM from her brain. Please be in prayer for her, the doctors, her husband (Dan) and her family. Please pray for a full extraction of the AVM and a quick and seamless healing!

Luke has posted this slideshow to aid in your prayer time...

http://app.sliderocket.com/app/FullPlayer.aspx?id=2cb5d966-1bcc-40d0-959f-9adfaf367e8e

Our God is Good and will be with Emily and her family the full time during the surgery. We know He is the perfect healer and we rely on Him to heal Emily!!

Continue to check www.therumleyfamily.com for updates throughout the day.

xoxo

Happy Thanksgiving!!

So I know that I'm a few days late, but here are a few photos from our Thanksgiving celebration!! We celebrated again this year with our Washington Family. It is always so nice to celebrate with those that we love even when our biological families are far away. Here are a few photos from the day!

Daddy and his Sweetie

Our Family!
Adult Game Time during Child Nap Time!! Ahh... Bliss :)
Liam wanted to hold the baby. This was the best set up for him to love on her!

Smilie girl after shopping in Black Friday... Mom's shopping, not baby shopping :) And NO, I didn't take her with me! :)Happy girl... I was busy trying to get a good shot for our Christmas Card... and finally got one (this is another that I took).

Daddy enjoying some time with his little girl in front of the Christmas tree!

Well, in other news, I was curious to know if you're planning to pray for Emily this week during her surgery?? If you haven't committed to pray, I would encourage you to read her story and be in prayer for her during her surgery on Thursday and Friday!

I have begun to work out again... trying to get that "pre-baby" body back. Ok, so I never really had a great body, but I worked pretty hard before Penny was born to lose 20lbs. I did it and I am on the bandwagon again to lose that weight plus more. I'd like to lose a total of 50lbs this time before I get pregnant again. I know I can do it, but it will just take some determination and perserverence. I'm back to working out each day for about an hour or so. These first few days are pretty rough and I'm trying not to push myself too much in the beginning, but already feel comfortable doing many of the moves I was doing before and doing them much better. I'm hoping the first 20lbs falls off and my body remembers where it was before this baby was conceived :)

I am almost done with my Christmas shopping. I have about 6 more people to purchase for but and a few to finish shopping for. I am SO under budget already and I'm pretty proud of myself! We'll see how everything ends.

Black Friday

I promise to do a post about our Thanksgiving celebration soon, but wanted post a little description of my Black Friday excitement.

My Black Friday started late on Thursday night. Last year, a friend and I started going early to the sales on Friday morning. This year, with some of our "stops" planning to open at midnight, we thought about going at midnight instead of 5am on Friday. Because the stores had never opened that early, it was kind of a tough call whether or not we should go... would more people stay up late and come in at midnight, or would people sleep until 3 and go in then to beat th 5am crowd? We decided to make a run for it at midnight, and see what would happen. As we approched our only stop for the midnight run (Toy's R U), we realized that we were not alone in our attempt to save a few bucks. However, we were not the crazy ones, as we drove past those, standing in the rain, wrapped around the building, still 20 minutes AFTER the store opened. There were probably 500 people waiting in the vacanity outside the buiding, and my friend said she saw that the building and registers were packed inside!! We decided to drive around the building and bypass this stop. We did however drive around the building to find shoppers waiting at midnight for the 5am opening of Target and the 3am opening of Old Navy. All waiting in the rain too! Man, I am all up for a good deal, but waiting in the rain, pushes me a little too far. No Thanks!

I returned home to my nice warm bed where my husband and baby were waiting for me. Although I was not able to fall asleep quickly (even though I hadn't slept much the past two nights, and was up ALL day on Thanksgiving). My mind was reeling about what I might find at my next stop around 6am and what my game plan would be.

At 6am, I woke up (although my sweet baby hadn't yet) and quickly dressed for another outing to Target, less than 2 miles from our home. As I approached the parking lot, it was full, I could tell. So I opted to park in a smaller lot on the side of the building and walk around. I had my pick of the spots there. I walked in to several long lines of people waiting to purchase items, and not one cart in sight! I found a man in line waiting with 8 DVD's in his cart. I offered him my basket in exchange for his cart. He obliged!! What a nice man! There was yet another line as I made my way back to the toys/electronics area. I found many of the items I was hoping to purchase. Overall, I made two purchases on Friday and one on Saturday. I was lucky to get most of my shopping done, although I do have several items still to purchase. I made out well. I purchased $340 worth of merchandise, and save $240 and got back $25 worth of Target gift cards for my purchases. Not too bad!!

More Prayer

Although Penelope had a successful time at the hospital and was "in and out", I must remind myself that our friend Luke's sister still remains in the hospital and will be there until the first of December, battling pain from AVM. Please continue to follow her story and pray for Emily as she and her doctors prepare for brain surgery. And please continue to pray for Dan (her husband) as he supports her.

http://www.therumleyfamily.com/tags/emily/

The Deed is Done...

It took more than 15 times longer to prepare for the surgery than it did to actually do the surgery. In as little as 12 minutes, we were in the waiting room and then being greeted by the doctor again notifying us that everything was finished.

We arrived at the hospital and put her in her itty bitty gown... it was so little, and oh so cute!! I wanted to take it for a souvenir, but I refrained! They got her all checked in and ready to go back. We met the anesthesiologists and the nurses. We were just waiting on the doctor to arrive.

Unfortunately, there was a bit of miscommunication and the doctor "forgot" and wasn't reminded by his office that he had surgery today (a day the normally don't do surgery in his office). So he was about 45 minutes late arriving to the hospital and the surgery was about an hour late getting started. From start to finish, the procedure only last about 12 minutes or less. Probably less, as it was about 12 minutes from when they wheeled her into the OR and the doctor visited us again after it was done.

She had a bit of difficulty waking up from the gas that they gave her, but once she had had a bit to drink, she felt much better. We were home by 11am and she is promptly taking a nap, here by 1pm. :) Hopefully she'll have a quiet night.

Here are some before and after photos.

Thank you all for praying for our sweet darling. She is such a sweetie pie and we are just so thankful that this process has been so simple and easy thus far. Thank you for praying on her behalf!!

Before

After

Today's the Day

Well, I didn't sleep very well last night... I slept worse (and feel worse this morning) than I did when I was preparing to deliver my sweet Penelope only 9 weeks ago (to the day!) Nonetheless, we are up, giving Penelope her last feeding before we get ready to leave. The hospital called mid-afternoon yesterday and notified us that we should arrive an hour and a half early to the hospital. We are to give Penelope her last feeding of milk 6 hours before her procedure and her last drink of clear liquids 3 hours before the procedure. I am praying that she makes it the 3.5 hours on the clear liquids without freaking out. However, with 15 minutes to go (before she can drink no more) she's taken almost 6 ounces of half strength pedialyte. I think she likes it :)

When I spoke to the nurse yesterday, she put my "fears" to rest about Penelope moving through the procedure as she said and anesthesiologist would be with her the whole time. And we would meet with him before things get going.

Please pray for Penelope and her doctor, Dr. Woodman, for a safe and easy procedure at 8am this morning.

Also, blog-readers, please keep my dad in your prayers today as he has another job interview. Pray for God's peace and provision.

As a Blog poster commented earlier today... God is Good, all the time! All the Time, God is Good!

Tomorrow's the Day

Well, tomorrow is Penelope's scheduled procedure to remove the tumor from her eye. We are scheduled for 8am (pacific time) and I'm still a little sketchy as to where we go, and how they will exactly do it. I am currently waiting on a call from the hospital to help fill in some of the gaps of information that I need :)

Please be in prayer for my sweet daughter. From what I know, the procedure should be fairly simple and will take less than 15 minutes. Please pray for her to be as still as possible and for the doctors gentle and precise work. We will keep you posted tomorrow on how she's doing and perhaps a new photo or two. :)

What am I thankful for??

Well, this time of year, it's customary to be explicate about the things that we're thankful for. Unfortunately, I get frustrated at this time of year because I feel the pressure to explain what I'm thankful for but I don't want to be flippant or patronizing to the people I am thankful for. I don't want my appreciation to be seen as customary or routine. So most of the time, I don't think about what I'm thankful for and therefore don't express it. And then the holiday just becomes about the food and parties, rather than focusing on what I'm truly thankful for. So, I think I'll take a stab at it this year. Please keep in mind that these are in NO particular order.

• My Husband: Although our relationship continues to change as we both grow and as our family grows, I'm thankful that we still love each other each day. I'm thankful for the hard work that he does at work and the advancements that he makes for his career and therefore, our family. He works hard at work, comes home and still is helpful with the kids. I'm thankful for the time he gives me "off duty" and allows me that alone time that I need away from the kids. I'm thankful that he challenges me and makes me a better mom and a better person, although it's not easy to hear... ever! I'm thankful that he can look beyond my flaws and bad habits and love me anyway. I'm thankful that I can begin and end my day with him. Thank you, Lord.

• My Children: Being a SAHM wasn't always my dream. And I would be lying if I said I always wanted or saw myself with children. But, learning about myself through my children has been invaluable. I love how Finnegan and Penelope make me laugh and bring joy to my heart. I love to hear Finnegan pray and sing. Oh, what joy! I love the first smiles to Penelope's face and am thankful for the bond we've been able to create between us. I'm thankful for how smart Finnegan is. I'm thankful that both my kids are fairly healthy (so far) and mostly happy. I am particularly happy to see their shinny faces in the morning and be reminded how His Blessings are new EVERY MORNING! Thank you, Lord!

• A friend who encourages me to be better in EVERY area of my life!! This friend is candid with me. She tells me what she thinks and encourages me to be my best. She's gotten me excited about being more fit and being a better me on the outside, as well as encouraging me to keep up on my devotions (despite my busy schedule) to continue improving the firm foundation that I build my life on and in turn to be a better person overall. Thank you, Lord.

• Starbucks: It may be silly but it is one of the small indulgences that I have in my life. I'm thankful for the little bit of warmth it brings and a boost of energy that I need from time to time. :) Thank you, Lord!

• MOPS group: Although I've only been to our MOPS group a few time since Penelope's been born, I am so thankful that I joined this year. I'm thankful for the friends that I've made, and the interaction that we have. I'm thankful for the support it offers and the few moments that I can get away and enjoy being an adult again :) Thank you, Lord.

• My OB and our Pediatician: This sounds silly too, but since being pregnant this year, and delivering Penelope, I am so thankful for my doctor and his willingness to take the time to hear my requests and answer them fully all throughout my pregnancy. Our pediatrician has taken no chances with our children and always errors on the side of caution when it comes to their health. Regarding Penelope's eye, and her heart sounds, she is always consistent in her care and concern. I am thankful for the resources they have to diagnose our children when they're sick and the references they've offered in regards to Penelope's health. What a blessing each of these experiences have been. Thank you, Lord!

• Blogging and Facebook: Ok, so this one is SO lame, but I am thankful for this technology. The ability to speak my mind and update those who care about our life here in WA, is a relief for me. I love reading what my friends are up too with their kids, and supporting as well as gaining support from the blogging world. Facebook is one of the best inventions out there, for those who live apart from their families and friends. I've been able to keep in touch with people all over the country, and have even made closer friends because of the connection that I have with them on facebook. Friends I haven't seen in YEARS!! I am thankful for the bonds that have been strengthened and those that have been renewed. Thank you, Lord!
• Music: Music tends to be an escape for me these days... whether its Shane and Shane, or Michael Buble, Taylor Swift, Angel Taylor, Colbie Caillat, or Chris Tomlin... The moments that I have losing myself in the music brings sanity and a quiet smile to my soul. I'm thankful for the healing that music brings and that I have that outlet. Thank you, Lord!

• HallMark: Ok, so I suppose that after being thankful for Starbucks, you saw the last of brand favortism. However, I am also very thankful for HallMark Stores and mainly greeting cards. I love to send cards. I love to brighten someones day by sending a card in the mail and encouraging them! I love purchasing them, and thumbing through them to pick out the perfect one for a friend or family member. I'm thankful for the ability to do this financially (when it's available)... and especially thankful for the $1.00 cards that they have now, and thankful that I have friends and family that impact my life enough that I feel compelled to share my thoughts and love with them!! Thank you, Lord!

What are you thankful for??

** For every comment I get on my blog (on this post and others) from now until Thanksgiving, I'll donate one canned/non-perishable item to a food bank in my city!!**

Lots of Prayer

This week has been filled with so much prayer already... so many things calling for our attention to step before the throne of Jesus.

• My Dad is still in need of a job. Mom and Dad's situation has begun to change day by day. Sometimes, for the better, sometimes for the worse. They are both in need of the hope, wisdom and peace of Jesus. And Dad still needs a job!
• Luke's sister, Emily, is very very ill and in the hospital in GR. She is awaiting a news of when her brain surgery will take place. Please pray for her husband, Dan, her family, and the doctors. You can read more on Luke and Lacey's Blog.
• My friend's daughter, Rylee, who is 2 has had a recent health scare. Please keep Rylee and her mom and dad in your prayers for continued healing.

First Smiles

This week our baby has started smiling more and more. Almost the exact timing that Finnegan did too :) She's also sleeping more and more. She will be 8 weeks old tomorrow and this week she slept 7.5 hours TWICE!! Oh, what a blessing that is!! She is still a daudler when she eats... 2 ounces here, 2 ounces there... But this morning (after sleeping 7 hours) she took 6 ounces in 30 minutes!! I was very surprised!!

Her cardiologist appointment was last week, and she did very well during all of the tests. It was found that she does have a heart murmur, but it is nothing to worry about and the doctor believes that she'll grow out of it, as I did mine. On Wednesday, Nov 25th, is her scheduled procedure to remove the skin tag/tumor on her eye. I will keep you posted on how she does then!

Eight Years Ago Today...

Suicide is an ugly beast... And for some reason, he is running rampant through the lives of my family and my friends. Eight years ago today, he almost claimed victim of a dear friend of mine, my room-mate at the time. He taunts immediate and extended family members. He thinks he can walk in and make decisions and take their lives.

I am fortunate, unlike some that I know, that he has never actually succeeded in the lives of those that I love. The attempts are heartbreaking and stay with you forever. But God will continue to claim victory over him, as He is the only one to provide peace, strength and wisdom in tough times.

Suicide, you thought you reigned over her but Christ won. You think you will have no problem winning him over because you keep whispering in his ear. Christ is more powerful than your lies and deception. For years, you've spoken lies to this one and that one... but NO MORE. You have NO power in the lives of my friends and family!! We cling to the Old Rugged Cross and it's everlasting power.

Living with Less??

A couple of weeks ago, I posted a note on FB about some changes that might be waiting for our family. Those things are yet to make themselves completely clear to us, but an opportunity has risen for our family of four to transfer back to the east coast for my husband's job. This possibility holds many promises for us, and while all of the details have not been decided on and all of the questions have yet to be answered, we've begun to play around with the idea, given the information that we do have...

One of the options presented was for us to simply transfer for a short and definite amount of time, meaning that we wouldn't sell our home here in WA, but find someone to live in it while we were gone and rent an apartment in our new city. That got me thinking... how cool would that be? We would only be allowed to move a small amount of our belongings, not every ounce of what we have. So what would I take? I can't take all my kitchen gear, or ALL the kids toys, what would I take... Then it got me thinking, there are plenty of things that we have that we don't need.

How cool would it be to live with just the necessities? Not all the other junk that collects dust that we feel we MUST have. So, I've been sort of on a mission the last few days to go through those extra spaces in our home and get rid of the old stuff, either donate or toss things that we don't use and don't need. Why do we have all of this storage space in our house, and yet, never touch the things that are in them? Because we think we might need them "one day"?? I know I will never live in a spotless house, or a house without knick-knacks. But could I live with less... junk... less stuff? Could we live without those things that cludder our spare places and make us realize that we simply have not just enough but really have too much?

Thank you Veterans!!

Thank you to the Veterans who have served, currently serve and will serve to protect my freedom in our country.

• My Papa Bill - William Hargraves, served in Korean War
• Crystal Wilkinson - my niece - Active Duty
• Morgan Wilkinson - my niece - Active Duty currently stationed in Iraq
• Michaun McComsey - previous co-worker - Air Force
• Steven Frank - friend -Died in Iraq in 2005
• Jesse McCoullough - CU Alum - Active Duty stationed in WA
• Dan Kersey -CU Alum - Active Duty stationed in WA
• Rachel Miller - Church Friend - Active Duty stationed in Iraq
• Ron Corbeille - Church Friend - Served in WWII

Mommy Self-Esteem

Oh, Gals... It's no joke that self-esteem isn't my most treasured virtue. However, I find that having positive "mommy self-esteem" is even harder on some days. Am I really raising my child right? Am I giving him enough love with enough instruction? Am I being too rough on him? So many times I find myself questioning my abilities and feeling that I just fall short. And just as I rebound with positive feelings and move in a good direction, I get set back again. And I feel that it's just confirming my original feelings! GRRR.... Anyone else feel like this?

Perhaps it is just a side effect of being a made-mommy, and not a born-mommy.

H1N1??

Ok, Mommies - Are you giving (or have you given) your children the H1N1 vaccine? Will you be getting one yourselves?

I went for my 6 week check up at the OB today, and they were offering the vaccine to pregnant and post-partum patients. I had no idea I would be eligible, let alone, available to get one. I'd gone back and forth whether I would get one if I had the ability, and just didn't know. But today, I had the opportunity to get one, and did... I'm pretty ok with my position, because my doctor really wanted me to get it. I even posed the question to him that if he had a daughter who'd just given birth or was pregnant, if he'd press her to get it. He emphatically told me "yes". So, I was ok with it. I still am not sure if we'll have Finnegan get it if it becomes available to him...

What are your thoughts, mommies??

The Pitfalls of Being a Mom...

So why is it that my darling husband came home from work early today and got a nap, and I didn't?

Just another pitfall of being the mom...

Yesterday, I took Penelope to the plastic surgeon who will be doing the surgery on her eye to remove her skin tag. Meeting the doctor really took a lot of pressure off my mind. He has a lot of experience working with eyes and plastic surgery. The doctor has plans to remove the skin tag in a very conservative way, without the need for anesthesia or the need to intibate. He does not anticipate the procedure to take more than 15 minutes. And just like any visit with the doctor, I have more questions now since I've been home, than I did when I was in the office. :) But, we are thankful for being referred to a wonderful doctor who has so much experience and who was very gentle with our little girl. Our next step is to wait for the insurance company to allow the surgery, and then we will schedule it.

In other news, I'll be taking Penelope to the cardiologist for a full work up in a week or so. The pediatrician spent a bit of time listening to her heart and feels that she may have a heart murmur. She is pretty sure that it is an innocent murmur (which means it will go away as she grows - which is the kind of murmur that I had as a child). But she wants to be sure that there are no other underlying problems. And if you remember, we had concerns during my pregnancy about her heart. So we take this all in stride and are so appreciative of our doctors and their complete care for our daughters health.

Please keep Penelope in your prayers as we prepare for both the surgery and for the cardiologist appt. The cardiologist appt is planned to be about 2 hours long of testing, so it will be a long afternoon for the the princess. :)

Also, please enjoy the photo above. I received our photos from the photographer this week. And Oh, I just love them. What a beautiful job she did!! I will post a few more in a couple of days. There are a few (including the one above) that she did some photoshop work that I am so proud of, as she took "off" Penelope's skin tag... very neat!

My Two Twins

Ken and I have been talking about how weird we feel to think about the fact that we have a daughter. Ken said it the other night, and I completely agree. In our discussion, I reminded him that we feel that way for one reason... Because our daughter looks JUST LIKE our son did when he was this age. And when we look down at her, we don't see another person, we see our son, all over again. I've been trying to go through the photos that we have of both and see if I can find some that explain where I'm coming from. But unfortunately, at only nearly 6 weeks old, our daughter is falling into that phenominon that every 2nd child falls into, I don't have as many photos of her at each stage as I do of Finnegan... so bear with me. :)

Finnegan at 6 weeks:



Penelope at almost 6 weeks (taken on 10/31/09 - almost identical setting) :)

Finnegan - 10/31/07


Penelope 10/31/09

I've really been thinking about posting all week long, and just haven't. Each time I sit down to write, I can't. Sort of like writers block, but I've been thinking about what I want to say all day long. I have the same problem with emails lately... I want to be chatty, and just can't be. I think part of it is just that I'm still tired. :)

Anywho - Penelope finally broke the 3 hour sleep cycle at night... two nights in a row this week, she slept for 4.5 hours. Oh, what a blessing it was! She went for her 1 month appt and is 8lbs 6oz and 21.75 inches long. So she's gained 2lbs and 2.5 inches in one month!! HOLY MOLY!! Please keep her in your prayers a we go to the plastic surgeon on Monday for our first consult. I'll let you know how it goes...

So, before I go to bed, I'll share a sweet story about Finnegan... Yesterday, we were sitting at the dinner table eating our dinner and Ken and I were talking about Ken's day, unknowingly not paying attention to Finnegan, until we heard him say, "Dear Jesus (then a series of unrecognizable sounds - ba, na, do, ta, ci etc) Amen." How precious it is to hear the prayers of your child!!

Four Weeks Old!!

Can you believe that Penelope is 4 weeks old?? I can hardly believe it myself! And in her first four weeks of life, she's found that she has a super big brother! Finnegan is such a loving little guy. He loves to help Penelope when her diaper needs to be changed or when she needs a paci. He carries his stool all around the house following mommy and Penelope because he wants to be up, seeing what mommy is seeing and helping when he can. He's even begun to share his toys a bit! He loves to hold her, and even helps give her a bottle from time to time. Although, just as any 2 year old needs, he forgets to be a bit gentle sometime :)

Here are a few photos of them from this week...




Here are the cowardly lion and Dorothy... they're off to see the Wizard!!

My New Best Friends??

With the breakout of reality TV and all of the "celebrities" who have taken on the reality tv industry to create their own shows, I've found several celebrities that I'd love to be friends with. Not because they are rich, but because I love the personalities of these people and love that they are real, creative, and people who are full of life.

I'd love to be real friends with Justin Timberlake. Ok, so he doesn't have a reality show, but he's been on SNL several times and I just think he is so creative. However, I have to admit that I've never really listened to his music, i think he's a natural at improv and think that he could do well week after week on that show. Just love his work on SNL.

I would also LOVE to be neighbors to Rev Run and his family and all the antics that go on in that house. I think the Rev is such a fun character and love the way that he runs his family. Although his family is very entitled due to the amount of money that they have - they still have some sense of values and teach their kids how to be real people.

I watched a program on E! this week about Beyonce. I think I could be her friend. She's such a real person who is creative and dedicated to her values and family. I love the secretive life that she lives and how she's been able to keep a private life separated from the spot light.

Tori Spelling is a real person. She was born with entitlement but no longer lives that life. I love that she's a real mom (well, sort of - other than having a nanny for the first year of her kids lives) and struggles with the real things that working moms deal with.

Rob and Big... Ok, so I know that me being friends with Rob and Big (or Rev Run and crew) is a bit of a stretch. I have nothing in common with the rap community, or the skating community for that matter to have anything in common with these guys. But they are hysterical. Ken and I love watching their show and love seeing them do the crazy things that they do. Similar to how I used to feel when watching American Choppers, I sit back and watch these guys, who have tons of money, do what ever they want with the stuff that they have... not bothering anyone else, but taking life by the horns and making it their own. They do some pretty crazy things... but they are super funny (without hurting anyone or getting into legal trouble).

Day One...

Day One and everyone is still alive :) Well, today was my first day alone with two kids, and it wasn't too bad. Granted, we barrocaded ourselves in our suburban home for the day, rather than venturing out into uncharted territory. But the statement is still true - everyone is still alive!

We started our day of with a good nights sleep. Penelope took her first stint at 4 hours sleep, which pleased mommy. Then, she went back too sleep without much fuss (and yes she does choose that 4am feeding to be the one that she doesn't want to go back to sleep after). And we all (Daddy included) slept in until 9am today. Finnegan seemed to be up, but playing quietly in his room. I was able to get a shower, and dressed before Ken left for work, which I believe is the goal to be had on a daily basis for a successful day (at least in the beginning). I got Finnegan his breakfast and preapared for the day before Penelope needed to be up and fed. And it was only about 2 hours after I'd woken that I'd realized that the shirt that I had on was on inside out!! Leave it to me to pull this fashion mistake! Luckily, I wasn't planning on leaving the house! :)

Our day was pretty laid back... a few cartoons, and Imagination Movers. Some music and dancing, and then a friend stopped over for a little playing and adult conversation. Then it was nap time. Finnegan took a nice long nap while Mommy took care of Penelope. I was able to get about a 30 minute nap, after dinner was dropped off by a fellow MOPS mom. Then it was too tending to Penelope again before getting Finnegan up from his nap and receiving a call from Daddy saying he was on his way home.

Granted, I know all days aren't going to go this smooth but it always a nice reminder that things can go smooth without many bumps. :)

Photos from the last few weeks...

Here are some photos from the past few weeks. My parents were visiting for 2 weeks and my sister was here for a week. We had a nice visit as well as got some help around the house while learning to juggle two little ones...

Here is Ken being Super-Dad. Helping to entertain Finnegan while holding Penelope.

Mommy and Baby...


Brother and Sister -- laying together on Penelope's blanket made by Aunt Gayle.
Mana and Papa with the grand kids.
Aunt Beth with the kids.
Finnegan helps feed Penelope when he can. :)

So I haven't posted in a few days... And my posts will most likely be less often until I get the hang of this "mother of 2" thing and get caught up on my sleep! So, since I haven't posted in a while, here's what's been happening during the Morgan's Matinee performance!

• Mom and Dad left yesterday... It is always weird when they leave. I was reminded that since my parents left, I now had to be the adult again and couldn't just sit around and wait for someone to wait on me, as I did when I was a kid. "Oh wait, I'm the adult and have to do adult things again!" It's always sad when mom and dad leave, as we never know when the next time we will see them. That is probably the hardest part. And now having 2 kids, traveling will be more difficult.
  
• We have an appt with the plastic surgeon for Penelope's eye for early November. Although they won't be able to do anything until early December or later, we'll go and meet the doctor and see what he has to say about her eye. After making the appt, I went online and found the doctors website. This plastic surgeon that we'll be seeing worked in Beverly Hills for a while, and is a highly decorated surgeon. I'm interested in speaking with him about Penelope and her eye.
• I went out with my sister today with the kids. I'm not too sure how I will handle two kids while running errands on my own. I'm sure it will take lots of practice and mistakes. I'm so afraid that Finnegan will get hit by a car in a parking lot, or that I'll forget Penelope in the car because she's so quiet. Lots of changes, and I know I must take it one day and task at a time, until I get used to it all. The count down is on for me to do it on my own. Monday is my first day of my new job... doing it on my own!
• Penelope's newborn photos are in. If you're interested in seeing them, email me and I'll send you the information to view them.
• I'm feeling pretty good for the most part in terms of my recovery. I am pretty tired still, as Penelope is still sleeping a max of 3 hours at night. She's slept 4 hours a couple of mights, but she's not making as much strides in progress. Penelope is very much more cuddly than Finnegan was. She likes to sit with us just to sit with us. I've taken the aid of a hot water bottle on occasions to help her cope when she just wants to be held and I can't do it do to other obligations. Too bad this cuddly baby wasn't my first!! :)

I'm on Drugs...

My parents are here visiting - and have been here for a week, with another week to go. They are helping with the laundry, cooking, and child care. Today, they are out with Finnegan at the pumpkin patch :) I'll post photos tomorrow.

But yesterday, they took a trip to Walmart without the kids, leaving me at home with both of them. I haven't taken pain medication in a few days and was feeling pretty sore, especially at my incision, so I took two ibprofen when I woke up. About 2 hours later, I was still feeling pretty sore, so I decided that I could take some of the pain meds that I was given in the hospital. So I took 2 (the normal dose I'd taken for the past two weeks). I'd already eaten breakfast, so I wasn't really concerned about my stomach. As the medication began to break down in my system, I began to feel funny... I couldn't bend over and talk to Finnegan without having this weird feeling in my stomach. I was getting a bit light headed, and then found that I was just feeling really weird. I thought perhaps I should call my parents back to the house, but wasn't really sure... Then it hit me... I ate breakfast over 2 hours before, so there really was NOTHING in my stomach to help metabolize the powerful drugs. So Finnegan and I sat and ate a banana together and waited for Mana and Papa to return.

Later in the evening, right before dinner, I took two more (knowing that I needed to eat something too). So I ate something and took them... but I still had the same result. I felt loopy and like I didn't really care about much. Just really out of it. It was the weirdest feeling and I didn't like it!!

So today, before mom and dad left with Finnegan, they reminded me NOT to take the pain meds and stick with Ibuprofen.

Our Little Beauty

Penelope had her birth photos taken on Saturday and the Sneak Peek is in!!

http://ambersheree.com/blog/?p=317

Check them out at the blog above!!

And enjoy!

Penelope's Eye Update **UPDATED**

Today, I took Penelope to a Pediatric Ophthalmologist to look at the skin tag that she has on her left eye. At first glance, we thought that the skin tag only involved her top eyelid, and might be easy to remove. But after he looked at it, he found (and showed us) that the skin tag involves both the top and bottom lid of that eye. To be more specific, the corner of your eye is shaped like a "V" turned sideways. When we lifted up the skin tag on that eye, the corner of that eye is shaped like a "C" turned sideways. This Ophthalmologist told us that he could numb it and take it off if we were interested in having it taken off today. However, he also told us that he couldn't guarantee that it wouldn't look different or need additional cosmetic surgery. So he gave us the name of a pediatric cosmetic surgeon to visit. I plan to call tomorrow to make an appointment. He also told us that most doctors probably won't do anything with it until the baby is at least 10 weeks old. And as I told the doctor today, we are in no rush to remove it. We want it to be removed correctly with no cosmetic difference and functional problems with her eye.

So, we'll keep you posted on how things go and when we make a final decision on what we will do with it.

**Update**
On Friday - I called the plastic surgeon that the other doctor recommended us too, and they told us that they would prefer to see Penelope when she was older, rather than now. Which is exactly what we thought might happen. And as I stated yesterday, she is still our darling with or without the skin tag. We want it to be taken off correctly with no problems, so we won't rush into anything.

Tomorrow, we are having her newborn photos taken. I was sort of going back and forth between whether to go forward with the photos or not. But we have decided to have them done, regardless of her eye situation. This is the way that she was born, and even if she won't be proud of how she looks as a baby (when she's older) we love her the way that she is and want to remember her the way that she was when she was born :)

Which is worse... No Sleep or Sore Cracked Nipples??

I'll take both please!! Boy, the last few days have really begun to be a nightmare for me as a mommy of 2. I as so spoiled with Finnegan, who was a good sleeper and a fairly good eater from the beginning. Yeah, we had trouble with breast feeding, but who doesn't in the beginning. But my sweet darling little girl is proving to be more troublesome on my body as a whole.

Two nights ago, she started cluster feeding, which is fairly normal for babies to do around the time of growth spurts. Most do it in the early evening time and feed nonstop for 2 or 3 hours. My little princess likes to do this in the early MORNING hours - between the hours of 1am and 5am... sometimes it starts earlier (last night it started at midnight). And she will feed (and want to nurse) non-stop for those hours. She'll fall asleep for a few minutes, but as soon as i wake her to burp or put her in her bed, she wakes up and wants to nurse again. Nothing else will pacify her. Oh, man, is this rough. I calculated the hours of sleep that I got on Saturday, and they totaled 3 (2 at night, and 1 hour nap during the day). And then the same was true for Sunday. I slept 3 hours at night (2 hours straight, and one hour during the feeding frenzy), and another 1.5 hour for a nap. And no one can run on 4 hours of sleep, I am convinced... especially a new mom, recovering from major surgery and looking after a toddler. Oh, and my darling husband was suppose to return to work today. It was a little more than overwhelming. So, in the wee hours of the morning, I've been researching how to help my daughter get past these cluster feeds in the early morning hours (if they were in the late evening - or literally any other time of day, I think I'd be coping a whole lot better). And to my suprise, I've found little to NO information about how to get our loved ones through this time. All I've found is in regards to how long it lasts. Some say it lasts just a week or so (to help get them through a growth spurt), and other record that it can happen for weeks and even months. Oh, MY! I certainly can't go on like this for MONTHS, let alone the rest of the week!! After two days, i feel like I'm at wits end. So, for experienced moms out there (especially those who are schedulers with their infants) do you have any suggestions to help us regulate this time? I have a couple of ideas that we're gonna start today, but thought I'd ask those who have experience... (I was also blessed when my husband told me that he wasn't going into work today that he'd work from home. Oh, the best words I could have heard today... so I was able to get a nice nap this morning and feel better about the outcome, rather than my world is crashing all around me as I felt like this morning).

And not only is she not sleeping, but somewhere along the line during our marathon feedings, we've gotten off track with the proper breastfeeding technique and I am beyond sore. To even think of putting her to one side makes me cringe in pain. So, I've resorted to pumping and bottle feeding on and off to give the breasts a bit of a break. We'll see how it goes. In the mean time, I'm nursing sore and cracked nipples and contemplating calling a LC for an in-home consultation.

In other news, we go for her one week appt tomorrow, and we'll learn what doctor our pediatrician will be sending us too about her skin tag on her eye.

Penelope Jean Has Arrived!!

Well, if you haven't heard (and haven't visited Facebook since Wednesday), Penelope Jean Morgan was born on Sept 23rd at 8:40am. She was born via c-section and we are so pleased to have her as part of our family. She weighed in at 6lbs, 7oz and was 19.25 inches long. She has just as much hair as her brother had at birth, is more vocal than her brother, but less observant. She keeps her eyes closed much more than he did. She is a great eater and sleeper, so far, and we are blessed by her each moment!! Here are a few photos from the day!!


The first two were take by a friend of mine who came and took our birth photos. What a blessing to have these photos.








Coming home... She was so small, that the outfit I brought to bring her home in and all the other ones that I took to the hospital were too big. Our friend dropped this onsie off for us and it just happened to be the right size :)


Getting ready to go home with her big brother!!
On our way out the door of the hospital...