The Best Big Brother

Sam is proving to be such a good big brother. Although he is emotionally traumatized, between whining and crying jags, he asks me all the time if he can "hold it" (eventually, he'll learn to call Leah "her"). Apparently, he doesn't realize that his new baby sister is the reason he has been so out of sorts. He thinks she is so cute and loves her little toes and the funny faces she makes. He only gets upset when Steve holds her. He says (whines), "Daaaaaad, don't do that. Mom holds baby Leah." He loves his new baby.

He'll even pull up his shirt and ask, "Baby Leah want Sam milk?" He's a natural nurturer.

Is it just my imagination, or does she look a little worried?

Jackrabbit Feet

Leah's feet are hilarious.

Have you ever seen such long, skinny feet on a baby?!? The bandaid makes them look deceptively short, but notice that her heel sticks out past the bandaid. That makes her feet almost as long as her shins.

* I measured; her feet are 3 1/4 inches long, and her shins, from ankle to knee, are 3 3/4 inches long (yes, Ashly, I am a nerd).

Pretty Girl

Leah, 1 day old, and so pretty!

Announcing . . .

Leah Jayne was born this afternoon on her daddy's birthday at 3:49. She is beautiful! She weighs 7 lbs, 6 oz (my 2nd biggest baby) and is 20 inches long. The labor and delivery were about as good as they can get, just over 2 1/2 hours from start to finish, and my epidural worked this time!

Martha guessed 3:47 for her delivery time and 7 lbs 6 oz for her weight, so she wins. Very impressive, Nana. The prize is getting to stay at my house for a few days and take care of 5 children - congratulations!

What's Up Doc?

We've had a lot of fun with our garden this year. But I think the most fun the kids have had was with trying to catch the bunny that kept burrowing under the fence.

Sarah asked me if she and Abby could keep the bunny if they caught it. As if they're gonna be able to catch a rabbit. So I told them sure (see what a nice mom I am?) as I laughed inside.

They put hours and hours into building and baiting bunny traps. Then one rainy day, Sarah came running into the house yelling, "I HAD MY HANDS ON IT!!! I HAD MY HANDS ON ITS LEGS AND IT GOT AWAY!!! The poor thing is wet and cold."

Lesson learned: be very careful what you promise your kids!

I sure hope they scared it away permanently. The last thing I need right now is a new pet in the house.

One More Hazard of a 6th Pregnancy

I have a very tall desk in my office so that I can stand while I work. I also have a very tall chair with a short narrow chair for a foot rest for when I need to sit. This usually works great. Except when I'm 9 months pregnant. Now, when I sit, my belly gets in the way and pushes my legs apart. If I'm sitting on the tall chair with my feet on the narrow foot rest, that means my legs want to fall apart as far as they can. With my very, very loose ligaments, this is a problem. It gets uncomfortable very quickly. So I complained to Steve about it.

Do I look uncomfortable now?

His solution . . .

He grabbed a cord and tied my legs together. Works great. And could have multiple uses.

I'm Sure Everybody Wants to Know . . .

I found this pregnancy list on Jessica's blog where I sometimes lurk, and I loved it . . . also had to steal it and make it my own. I love hearing about other people's pregnancy difficulties. It always helps me to know I'm not the only one in misery.

Following are some lists regarding my current gestational state (picture from 1 week ago):

What is uncomfortable / annoying, from the bottom up:

1. Swollen ankles and feet that have deep flip flop ridges in them (the only shoes I can wear now). On the plus side, the kids sure enjoy poking their fingers into my fat feet and watching them pit.

2. Legs that feel like they are going to tear off every time I lift them off the floor (very loose ligaments)

3. In addition to frequent Braxton Hicks, I have frequent false labor meaning painful contractions every 2-3 minutes that last up to four hours. This happens at least 1-2 times per week and has been going on for the past 14 weeks.

4. Nausea that has not been horrible, but is ever present.

5. Vomitting a couple of times a week first thing in the morning


Why I'm excited to have this baby:

1. See above list

2. She's my last (Again. Abby was my previous last, but this time I'm pretty sure.)

3. I have another chance to have an epidural that works (cross your fingers for me)


Names we're considering:

1. Leah (for my mother-in-law, Liahona)

2. that's about it


What I wear:

1. 3 different but similar dresses that were big and cheap. After a couple more weeks, they will go straight to DI

2. My nightgown as often as possible


Stuff I do while I'm pregnant that everyone tells you not to do:

1. I don't do anything I'm not supposed to do, especially any heavy housework!!! That's what kids are for.


Weight Gain during all my pregnancies:

1. Anna: 20 lbs

2. Matt: 25 lbs

3. Sarah: 12 lbs (I had gallstones and was nauseous the whole pregnancy, thus the low weight gain)

4. Abby: 20 lbs

5. Sam: 27 lbs

6. Currently: 2 lbs, all in my feet (Yes, she is growing and measures as she should, but the doctors raised my thyroid dose at the beginning of the pregnancy, and that seems to have made a big difference. That and the ever present nausea)


What I'm looking forward to most about not being pregnant:

1. Being able to walk/move/sit/lie down without pain

2. No more vomitting

3. Eating a turkey sandwich

4. Being able to move faster than my grandma on her walker

5. Being able to catch Sam when he runs from me

6. Getting more sleep, even though I'll be getting up in the night with a new baby!!!


LABOR . . . bring it on!!!

Peaches

Right now is one of my favorite times of year because of . . .

THIS

We are so lucky to live just down the street from a peach orchard where you can buy an apple box size box of peaches for just $14. And they are SO GOOD!!! This time of year, we live on peaches.

Tonight, I'm making . . .

THIS

I've never made peach cobbler before, but when I found this recipe and saw that it has 5 stars out of over 400 reviews, I figured it's gotta be good.

And see what my cousin and I did last weekend? It took ALL DAY, and we are so proud of ourselves.

My mom suggested making peach butter for neighbor gifts to give at Christmas time. So I got my cousin, Liz, to come down for the weekend so we could do it together. It's very easy, although it takes some time. You just wash your peaches, then cut them in half and throw them in a big pan or crockpot on low heat, skins, pits and all. After they've cooked enough to be simmering in their own juices, you put them through a food processer and chop them to a somewhat coarse but spreadable texture. Remove the pits as you go. Then you combine 4 cups of peach pulp with 3 cups of sugar and 1 Tbsp of white vinegar. Put it on the stove on low heat and cook it down until it's a consistency like jam or jelly when it's cool. This is the part that takes so much time, and you have to be very careful not to burn it. We just set the timer for every 10 minutes, and then Liz would go stir the pots (it's a lot easier for her to get up and move than it is for me right now). We made peach butter from sunup to sundown and ended up with 48 half pint jars and 10 pint jars.

Now, the neighbor gifts are mostly done, and my food storage has grown. Wow, I feel like a true Utah Mormon.

UPDATE: Anna made the peach cobbler, and it was very yummy! Too bad it's gone already - next time we're doubling it.

About a Garden II . . .

In May, I posted about our garden. It was our first attempt at sqare foot gardening, and the results have been impressive.

We planted several varieties of tomatoes because we are both novice tomato eaters and don't know what kind we like. We picked over 20 tomatoes last night: Early Girls, Park Swappers, Beefeaters, Oregon Springs, Celebrity, Red Grape, Yellow Pear, Lemon Tomato (so far, my number one favorite), Green Striped, and Purple Cherokee (my number two favorite). We also have basil in the garden, so we can make a really good tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella salad (Caprese Salad) or a similar one with feta cheese and cucumbers (Tomato, Basil and Feta Salad). We planted jalapenos and cilantro, too, so we can make our own salsa pretty soon. Sheryl is going to come over and can salsa with me as soon as we have enough ripe tomatoes at once - it won't be long now.

The kids all have a section of their own where they could plant whatever they wanted. Among other things, they all chose strawberries. Sarah and Abby also both planted Zinnias which I keep cutting and bringing in for our table. They see the fresh flowers and always ask, "Is that from my square?!?" Abby is very proud of her carrots, too (we planted a short variety to work with the boxes), and has already pulled and eaten them all. And Sarah can't wait to cook her green beans.

As you can see, Sam goes nuts over the fresh peas so we can hardly even get any into the house. My favorite part about having a successful garden, aside from the awesome food, is that my kids are excited to eat what they've grown - lettuce, spinach, carrots, basil, cilantro, tomatoes, green beans, peas, and tomatoes galore. And we've learned a lot this year, so next year is bound to be even better.

Memorial Service

Last week was my sister-in-law, Susie's, memorial service in California. First, there was a funeral in Sweden, and then her husband and children came to California for a 2nd memorial service that all of the family could attend. Another sister-in-law, Mary, took on the task of pulling the whole thing together, and she did a fantastic job. She certainly has an enviable talent. The whole service was beautiful, from the display table with all the pictures and little pieces from Susie's life, to the programs, to the speakers, to the food afterward . . . Mary did an awesome job that I know the whole family, including Susie, deeply appreciates.

The program was so pretty with some great pictures of Susie in it. I especially love this one from around the time she was engaged to be married to Håkan.

And I love this one from the day her family was sealed in the Copenhagen Denmark temple. They were the first family sealed in that temple right after it was dedicated in 2004.

The talks were very good and focused on all of the wonderful things about Susie. Her brother, Dave, read a few small passages from her patriarchal blessing that absolutely epitomize the person she is, full of love and empathy for others. My favorite part of the service was when all the nieces sang "I Have A Dream" by Abba. Two of the nephews, Michael and Chris, accompanied them on the ukulele and guitar. They were all just so sweet playing and singing together. The girls were all dressed in white with Swedish style flower wreaths on their heads, and they looked and sounded like angels.

It was such a great song choice, cheerful and optimistic. I know Susie really wanted her children to have that experience of being surrounded by people who can have a positive outlook on life after death and eternity.

Here's a video clip of the song (sorry it's such poor quality, but I still love to watch it - I'm on about my 20th viewing).

How grateful I am for the gospel's promise of eternal life, for the sealing power of the priesthood and the knowledge that we are an eternal family.