I Love the Arts!!!!

Lately I have been thinking about fine arts...music, paintings, classic literature, poetry, dance...and I have fostered a deep love and appreciation for them. I am in gratitude to my husband for sharing that love with me, even making my love for these things expand. We go together quite well the two of us.

Yesterday I finished Jane Eyre. It was a book that I have been wanting to read for some years now. I read each page carefully, as not to miss any meaning or description given. It was a challenge for me to do this because it isn't necessarily easy to read and understand (not to mention my boys didn't like me to read it when I should have been on their watch). But the experience was made all the sweeter by really delving in to the story as best as I could.

Jane Eyre will definitely be ranked among my favorites. I loved the themes of passion and reason. I loved that the heroine was a character with true integrity and strong values. I would recommend this book to everyone. It was truly a great classic. I found Wuthering Heights intriguing, but it is much more Gothic and sad to me. Jane Eyre was truly satisfying and was one of those rare books that didn't leave me wanting at all.

I love classic literature. I love it the best of any other genre. I love being challenged. I love how beautifully put and well described the actual character of individuals are in this genre. I suppose that specifically I speak of Victorian novels, although I love historical fiction as well.

I love the Victorian era and wonder what life would have been like then. The novels set in this period are often very romantic (think Jane Austen books). And I realize that life was difficult for people that didn't have great wealth. Still, was there really a time when women were so accomplished as to speak multiple languages, to paint, write, and play musical instruments so fluently? Was there really a period in which people sat together in one great room and entertained each other with said accomplishments? Can you imagine sitting at the knees of your family and friends and listening to them tell stories or sing or read poetry? I think the world we live in today would do well to remember times past.

Perhaps things seem better than what they really were, but even so I love the idea.

Christmas music has been added to the vocal and piano music frequently heard in our home (Brian teaches voice, I teach piano). Maybe that is another reason I have been thinking about the arts lately. I feel that art is a medium that is used to produce expressions and feelings that we would otherwise not be capable to. In many instances it lifts us higher and evokes feelings in our very souls that are difficult to describe. Whether it is a breathtaking piece of art or a sweet melody, art is a beautiful gift to the human race. And isn't it neat that we wouldn't have art without the talents and gifts that are bestowed to us? I don't consider myself a great artist or writer, but I'm grateful that I know how to appreciate these things. And I'm in awe and appreciative of those that do create art.

Sometimes I think in the virtual and at times artificial world we live in today, people forget the arts, or at least how majestic and inspiring they can be. What can replace a live performance of Chopin or Liszt? What can compare to coming face to face with an original masterpiece painting? Or what feels better than the weight of a book in your hand and the smell of real paper pages?

Don't get me wrong. I don't hate technology nor do I despise this day and age. But sometimes I do wonder how it would have been to live a in a world a few hundred years younger than this one.

Mi Templo Bello

This is a video I wanted to share because this land and these people are very dear to my heart. Just seeing this video brings backs so many wonderful, tender, and spiritual memories that I am moved to tears. I am so thankful that I had the opportunity to serve a mission and help to fortify and prepare a people for this temple, even to some small degree.

Yo Amo El Salvador.

-brian

And if the best isn't good enough...

And if the best isn't good enough, meaning breastfeeding, you switch to formula!


Today I had an interesting doctor appointment with Nathan and David. Nathan has gained 10 oz. in about 2 months, so now he weighs 9 lbs. 12 ounces. I knew he was small and predicted that the doctor would say to beef up the formula intake. Shoot. I thought I had a good nurser this time! Which I do, but my milk is too skim and Nate's metabolism is too active. So he is definitely no where near being on the chart. David I learned today, is on the chart but dropping. So he hit a spurt and now is slacking off. Not too big of a deal. I guess the point is both my boys are small for their age. I keep asking myself why I am surprised. All I need to do is look at Brian and then I can say "Oh yeah...you're the dad huh?". But the doctor suggested kidney and liver screens for both of them. That's when I knew being underweight can kind of be a serious medical issue. My gut tells me they are okay, that it is just genetics, which even the doctor agreed with, so I think I'll wait on further tests for now. Part of the deal for me is that babies in my family, the Salisbury family, are generally fat. I was pretty fat. Brian was no where NEAR fat and never has been chubby. So who knows? My mom and I joke that a fat little baby girl is coming my way in the future. She'll take after me and my family and gang up on her brothers. Or maybe I won't have a girl. Maybe I'll just have a bunch of skinny blue eyed boys. Which is okay too. So I'll breastfeed Nathan until my supply runs out, which it likely will as I increase his formula intake. It is funny because this is almost exactly how long I made it nursing David. I just need to embrace the fact that I can still be a good mom if I don't nurse my babies for a year. But I never imagined I would have a hard time breastfeeding my babies. But that's life right? Full of twists and turns you never anticipate.

Nathan is definitely spirited and lively. He has awesome head control, he rolls over, he giggles and kicks his legs. Yet a lot of people are surprised that he is four months old and that he wasn't a preemie.

Anyway. I guess that is all I wanted to say. Just a little vent.

Grocery Shopping

Last week at the grocery store I was approaching the check out in a pretty typical way. I was pushing a cart full of groceries, David riding in the car attached to the front of the cart, which of course had a broken lap belt. It was all I could do to keep him in the thing. I was holding Nathan out in front of me because he was screaming his head off which is usually what he does at some point during our shopping trip. I'm unloading groceries very slowly, using one hand at a time, when a red headed kid with a messy face, about ten I would guess, approached us. "LOOK AT THAT LITTLE GIRL!!!" he squealed. "What is her name?" Meanwhile, I'm trying to swipe my card with my one free hand to help the line along as the people behind me were understandably wanting me to get a move on. And thanks by the way, to those people for not helping me unload my groceries and just watching me in amusement. I tried to ignore this kid but he was persistent. "CAN I GIVE HER A KISS?" Woah. This kid meant business. I told him no flat out. And if I wasn't in a hurry I would have explained that we don't let kids kiss him on the face but that he could look from an appropriate distance. I kept dodging the boy who was getting ever closer to Nathan's face. I was swinging Nate out in front of me to the left and right while I was trying to find my debit card. Then his little sister got in on the action. She also thought Nathan, the girl, was cute. It was about this point that I wondered where their mother was. I looked around and found her, with a long red-haired ponytail, also juggling kids through the dreaded self-check out lane. She was brave. But short line so I could see her point. I felt her pain. She also had her hands full and probably could hear her kids talking to me but acted like she couldn't so she could just get out of there. So I go to swipe the card and WHILE I AM SIGNING MY NAME, the kid plants one on Nathan. Right on his face! Who does that? The oldest brother of a gaggle of cute red-headed kids is who would. Any I meant to include that on my way to the check out line, the sushi lady, with a thick accent, offered to hold Nathan while I finished my shopping. I politely declined. But she insisted on grabbing his hands and cooing in his face. I actually kind of liked it. I like that people like my kids.

NOW, this week at the store, I decided to ditch the type of cart that made me feel like I was a circus show, and chose instead a normal cart. It is one thing to push a normal cart with one hand, but have you tried pushing and steering one of those huge ones with one hand? Not easy. I put Nathan facing me in his car seat and stuck David in the basket. I have done this before and although difficult, we made it through okay. I foolishly took David to the store hungry though. I soon found out that he was tampering with almost anything I put in the basket. He took a bite of a banana with its peel on for pete sake! So I was strategically placing the food that he could damage in the small area around Nathan's car seat right in front of me. All the while I am breathing threats to David that he is going to have to sit up by me and not in the basket. So I was putting things around him that I thought were safe, cans of food, gallons of milk, etc. It wasn't long before David, who doesn't really talk well yet, was getting my attention "Daddy! Daddy! Hmmmmshlaaaa uhhhhhh." I tried to ignore him but after a while he started to whimper. I couldn't really see him over my mountain of food stuffed in the kiddy seat with Nathan included, so I walked around to the front to see what was up. Oh no. David had throw up all over his clothes and dribbling down his chin. My first instinctive feeling was guilt for getting after him so much. He obviously wasn't feeling very good. "Oh David. Let's get you cleaned up." I pushed my way to the side of an aisle and found a wipe. As I wiped him down I realized that the puke didn't smell sour like I thought it would. I looked around and found a can of Campbell's chicken noodle soup halfway open and knew immediately that he didn't throw up at all. He popped the easy lid of the can and took a swig! And the worst part of all is that I didn't want to pay a dollar for the blasted soup! And I knew I didn't want to try and save the rest of it because it would spill all over my car.

I don't know what the point to these stories are. I guess for me it is that my idea of normal is totally different now that I have kids. I've heard stories like these before but never really understood how real they were. This is my reality. Do I love it? Sometimes. Is it hard? Oh yeah. Is it worth it? Absolutely. I love these guys so much. Even if they make things 20 times harder than they need to be.

Happy Birthday David!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAVID!!!!

David's mommy always said "Oh David!". Oh David! You are now a terrible two! And not so terrible. Not yet. Although you enjoy an occasional temper tantrum and the need to say "no" to everything I say.

I love that you are a boy. This means nose picking and killing bugs outside.


David, I love the way you like to stick your tongue out. Especially when you feel shy. I love the way you wrap your arms around my neck when I put you to bed and giggle in my ear.


I really love your small little mouth. Just like daddy's.


Happy Birthday to the sweetest little kid I know!

Winter Wheat

Winter Wheat by Mildred Walker

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Just finished this for the second time, a few years after reading it for the first time. This time round, I loved it even more and felt that I could connect well with the themes in this novel. The book describes the life of young Ellen Webb and what she learns about love and hate. Whereas last time I related most with Ellen and her lover Gil, this time I really enjoyed the story of her parents. The book seems to address the question "How is true love defined?". It was also written in the 1940s and is a classic. It reminded me of My Antonia in some ways.



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The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


This was a really fun mystery novel. I usually get spooked easily but the suspense was just right in this one. I loved how the author (who I learned is a 70+ man) writes about things forgotten, like stamps and stamp collections. The book also included chemistry/poison and magic which made for some pretty interesting whodunit ideas for the reader. The main character was really developed and it was refreshing to read about an eleven year-old girl heroine. Fun read for October!



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For Dad Sequel

A couple years ago I posted about a little froggy on my porch. The post was for my dad because he is a true outdoors-man. I was trying to describe to him that we have frogs, geckos, etc. here. He really loves critters, and was recently wondering about armadillos in Texas. Well dad, here you go. I found one on my porch the other day. He was digging up fire ants for lunch. I wish he would come back and eat some more.

Want Some?

AWESOME BROWNIES: They won't fail you!




My family loves brownies. Usually we just make them from the box, but because I didn't have a box on hand one time when I wanted to bake some up, I decided it was high time I just made them from scratch. For all of you adventurous bakers out there, I thought I would share with you my awesome brownie recipe.

Two things that are KEY to good brownies (in my experience).

1) If you beat the batter you're going to have cakey brownies. If you're going for fudgey, use a wooden spoon to mix the batter. Beating them fluffs the eggs too much.
2) Don't let brownies over cook. As long as the toothpick comes out clean, it doesn't matter how soft they look or feel. Get them outta the oven!

The Recipe: And don't worry, cause it is easy!

In a bowl mix the following with a wooden spoon one ingredient at a time:

1/2 c. melted butter
1 c. white sugar
2 eggs, slightly beaten (I just stab the yoke with my wooden spoon and incorporate them in to the above ingredients)
1 tsp. vanilla
1/3 c. cocoa
1/2 c. flour (this is where it takes some muscle using that spoon!)
1/4 tsp. salt (sprinkle around the mix before using the spoon so it is well incorporated)
1/4 tsp. baking powder (same as above)

Stir all ingredients well. Bake at 350 degrees for about 25 minutes in an 8x8 greased dish.

Frosting: What really makes the brownie!

3 T. softened butter
3 T. cocoa
1 T. Honey (yes honey)
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 c. powdered sugar

Mix above ingredients together. For best results, frost brownies while they are still warm.

If you live in Texas, don't forget to serve it with the good stuff:



We had this for our FHE treat last night. What does your family like for a treat?

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother

Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother by Amy Chua

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Wow. What a memoir! I found this really fascinating. It really got me thinking. I'm just getting used to the idea of motherhood and how to get my two year old to say "mom", but teaching math to toddlers? I think I connected with the theme of this so well that I gave the book four stars. However, I could see how well seasoned mothers would find her methods horrifying. I do think that Amy Chua is extremely prideful to the point of bragging about her life...of course in the Chinese culture this attitude is acceptable, but I would say that the American culture is turned off by someone that flaunts their lifestyle so openly. The author really isn't very likable. But the ideas in her book! I would never adopt her parenting style, BUT I really thought she had some good observations about "western" parenting. One that I thought most true, was how Americans feel that children should have the freedom to choose what they want to be passionate about. Her premise was that if you let a child do that their "passion" will be to spend hours on facebook everyday and eat junk food. But her flip-side is extreme, commanding her children and telling them what they will and will not do. She wanted her children to be music prodigies and so she made it happen. I do think it is important to invest in your children and observe what they may naturally be good at whether it is sports, music, acting, etc. I don't think I would force my children to do something that they did not want to do. There is just no way I could compare myself to this mother HOWEVER, from a mormon mommy standpoint, I would like to see her try and have seven or eight kids. I understand better why a lot of Asian families tend to be small. Very interesting read if you are up for it!

New car and other ramblings

We bought an awesome car this summer. We had such a crazy summer that we didn't have time to think about how bad we needed another car, especially because Brian has such early mornings as a teacher, and a decent commute. Now that we have it I don't know how we could have survived...I would have had to wake the boys up and we would have driven him to work everyday. Not so fun. Anyway I'll talk more about the car in a minute. But buying the car has caused me to reflect upon my summer a bit...

Our summer seemed to be one of constant change and extremes. I thought about blogging about it, but I don't really know what to say or how I feel about my summer. But I do enjoy reading what a great summer others have had. It seems surreal that people actually had a summer of swimming, vacationing, and relaxing. Our summer was anything but normal. In some ways my summer seems so far away, and in others it seems as if the season didn't come around at all, as though I am stuck in that strange period between winter and spring, summer and fall.

In a nutshell (a big nutshell) Brian finished his degree and there was still no job in sight. We were living with his parents and my obstetrician's practice closed down (weird). So I was left without an OB and it was looking like we wouldn't be in our new place before the baby came. So I told Brian we should spend the summer in Utah. It is SOOOO hot and muggy in Houston that nobody spends time outside. In fact, a lot of people around here seem to disappear during the summer, the way older folks gravitate to warmer climates during the cold season only opposite. I needed to find a new OB anyway right? We may even get a job in Utah right? I mean we did have several applications in there. So after much convincing, Brian agreed that it would be fine to go to Utah.

We had so much fun. It is hard for me to talk about it because I miss my family a ton. We stayed up late playing Mario with my little brother and sister. We celebrated my grandpa's 80th birthday which I helped plan. We spent time outside. We got to hang out with family and old friends. I'm SO endeared to Utah and would love to live there again.

So this could all get really long and complicated...in the end we moved back to Texas when I was 37 weeks pregnant (about two weeks before my baby was born). We came back to a job, but still not a place to live. I had been misguided by medicaid about getting our baby covered in Utah and it turned out to be way more expensive than we realized. We could have stayed but felt like we had better get back to Houston. It was the hardest decision I have ever made and I'm not even joking. I hated leaving! I love Utah! I had medicaid in Texas already established so we returned.

Brian and I did some house hunting hoping to find something fast. That is when we were introduced to the house we are in now. The renter before us promised to get out ASAP but in the end, August 1 was the soonest he could leave. We knew we could fall back on Brian's parents again and stay there if necessary. At the time Brian's sister was staying there for an extended period with her kids, because they too were moving and needed a place for a few weeks before there move-in date. Luckily, a lady in our old ward offered us her house, as she would be gone on vacation all summer. So we stayed there, had the baby, and moved in to our place on Aug. 1.

Now if that isn't the WORST timing you have ever heard of, I would like to know. Sheesh. Brian and I were pushed to our max this summer. We felt like we were definitely put through the refiners fire. But in the end, we came out on top and once again, have grown because of our trials. I did feel like one crazy woman though. I love the home we are in now. I love the peace that surrounds me. I love how we are literally away from the stress of daily life. I couldn't be happier...well except maybe if I could drag my family down here with me.

And now for the car. Are you dying to see this beauty?


Wait for it....


Almost....


TA-DA!!!!





This puppy was five hundred bucks. It has a small crack in the radiator, so it leaks water. That is the ONLY thing wrong with it. AC great. Engine great. Mileage great. Tires splendid. So Brian fills the radiator with water every few days and we are set.

I have to mention here that Brian has a new found love of car detailing. I know we are weird. But he just loves cleaning. This car was quite an experiment for him. Because he has summers off, he had plenty of time on his hands. He can't stand lounging around so he put himself to work. You should have seem how much he improved the interior of this thing! The car was purchased as is, so it was in need of some serious cleaning.

Brian took the seats out of the car, shampooed them, and wiped down every inch of that thing. He found four or five pairs of reading glasses, a set of dominoes, an old McDonald's egg mcmuffin, about 11 bucks of change, a rubber ducky, and the list goes on. It was so funny...every time he came in the house he was holding another treasure.

So now he is serious about opening a car detailing business. Who wants to clean other people's cars? Let alone their own? Well my husband does. And I'm proud of him. Even more so because he wants to use his gift money from his birthday and graduation to buy the supplies. He is one of a kind.

Brian, I know that this is a clunker car, but I would rather have a car that makes you giddy because we paid with it out of our pocket, then a car that would cause stress because of a monthly payment. I admire what a knack you have for finances and your drive to be smart with our money.

And I can't believe I married a man that would rather use his "play" money on starting a business to help us earn money than he would on a newer, better phone, or an updated laptop or fashionable clothes. You are one in a million I think.

House, Cockroach, and My Kiddos

The picture below is our new house! We really, really love it. To understand just how much I love this house, you have to know a few things about it. It is on about ten acres of land. It is a grandmother house so there is a much larger house on the property. Another young couple lives in the other house, and they are also members of the church. They are really a great couple. They are house sitting for her parents, who are currently in California. Anyway, I love being able to look across the once green pasture (the drought is really making a mess of things here in Texas).

One of my beefs with Texas is that I feel extremely closed in. I'm used to wide open spaces and being able to look across the valley and soak in the view for miles and miles. Here there are towering, swampy trees that block most of your vision on both sides of the road. There really are no hills in the Houston area so you can only see what is right in front of your face. So the fact that we live on so much wide open land really is splendid for me. I can post a picture of the view outside of our bedroom window later. I'll try and add some photos of the interior as well.

Of course living out in the country requires a price. Bugs. And boy are there bugs in Texas! The drought doesn't help either, as many bugs are being driven in to homes to find water. When we first moved in, we noticed there was a bit of a cockroach problem. We set up 24 roach motels and (carefully) put boric acid in the cracks and crevices around the house. It must have been pretty successful because we haven't seen any since. I learned an interesting lesson in my battle with the roaches. It really forced me to buck up and take charge. I wasn't about to let those things ruin my peace in our home. Aside from this house we have only lived in an apartment in Rexburg for about a year. When we were living with Brian's parents we didn't really have to deal with this kind of thing. Anyway, it made me realize that I am fully capable of tackling a problem like this and facing those beastly pests head on. It probably helps that I've been feeling mother bearish lately...Kayla the protector of children from nasty insects. Plus, it forces me to have a constantly clean kitchen, which has turned out to be one of life's hidden secrets to maintaining peace in the home.

Okay on to the story of the picture below:

One morning I woke up to do some laundry. I heard buzzing and clicking and...well it was a horrible noise that evoked great fear within as you can imagine. I quickly glanced in the sink and saw the 747 cockroach trying to escape. We bought some Raid just for this reason. Problem was, the raid was currently being stored right above the sink in a cupboard. Well this species of cockroach has wings and I didn't want it to get scared and fly out. But I'm a busy mother and had to act fast, as both of my boys were crying and in need of attention. I gathered my courage and raced to the cupboard, grabbed the Raid and started spraying like mad. It started twitching and running around and eventually flipped on to its back. It was at this point that I started feeling really sorry for it (the reason why I'm not the best person to kill bugs). It was totally being burned to death by poison. I thought the more I sprayed the faster it would die. But the more I sprayed the more it twitched in pain. It finally died. I grabbed my camera and captured this photo (notice the pools of Raid at his neck):



Don't those legs just make you squeamish? It does me. Oh and I forgot to mention that right before I shot the bugger with the spray, he pointed one little antenna at in my direction, trying to sense his predator. I found this oddly cute but decided he had to die anyway. Poor little fella.

Well I'll leave this post on a good note by showing off my little Nathan's smile. I meant to show a picture of David too but I forgot to upload one. Just know that he is alive and well and just as loved. He has a crooked haircut and chipped front teeth which makes for a perfectly cute little boy.


Cute isn't he?

Cute Nate

Okay it is midnight and I'm blogging. How crazy! I should be sleeping. Or cleaning. Or killing bugs with Raid. What am I thinking? This is the only time I find for myself, and usually I don't go to bed this late, but I found the camera and got this cute shot of Nathan:


Which reminds me a lot of this little guy:


Only Nathan is chubbier. Not too chubby though, my babies seem to want to be long and skinny, especially their legs. Just like daddy! I think my photography skills are gradually improving. I really caught the natural light in our bedroom for that picture of Nathan. It turned out pretty well I think.

Happy day!

Life Right Now

Life right now is fascinating to me.

I have two kids...more like two babies...that require a lot of attention.

I have a husband that is about to start a job as a middle school assistant choir director. Sixth graders, watch out!

I have an awesome little house that I love.

I wake up to feed Nathan and before I know it I have David standing at the side of my bed. I sleep furthest from the door to avoid this, but he still comes to my side. Yes our toddler is now in a toddler bed. I'm still getting used to this, and get really freaked out when he comes in unawares. The other night I was brushing my teeth when I caught a glimpse of something moving. It was David. I tried to hide how startled I was by acting cool. It came out in a high pitched, much too loud and relieved "Oh hey David!". Brian teases me. David is funny because we say "find your bed David" and he points to the door and runs as fast as he can to it and goes back to sleep. I sometimes think he might be sleep walking.

I have dead cockroaches in my garbage disposal that have been pushed out of the drain pipe that connects to the dishwasher. They smell like poop. I have Brian fish them out with a gloved hand. The first time we discovered one was when I fished one out. And my hand was not gloved. I did a freaky bug dance big time. I don't think I've jumped that high in years. I hate cockroaches and didn't know much about them until I moved to Texas. Do you know that they love electronics? The dishwasher repair man said so. I would like someone to explain that to me.

Truly we have been blessed. Brian is excited about his job. I'm just trying to keep my head above water for now.

We can't find our camera. I'm a bit devastated because the only pictures I have of Nathan are of him as a newborn in the hospital and he is five weeks old. But when I find it, I'll share his cuteness with you.

Nathan's Birth Story

First of all, the blogging world must be mostly for women, because I can't imagine a man seeing the title of this post and wanting to read it. But some of us girls out there like to read about birthing...like myself. So here is the story of my little Nathan's birth.

I was completely planning on having Nathan the way I had David--no medication, quick labor, quick delivery. In fact, a lot of people say that the second time you give birth the labor goes faster. I labored for roughly 12 hours with David and pushed him out in a couple of contractions. So my mindset was that this time round it would be the same only faster and maybe more intense pain because things wouldn't take as long. I was SO wrong!

So a few days before I started feeling contractions Brian and I had been practicing deep, relaxed breathing. We felt confident that things would work out well for our natural birth. We called the hospital and discovered they had a nice big spa tub that you could get in to control the pain. We made sure our doctor was on board and that she knew of our plans.

Nathan was born Monday morning. The Friday before that day, early in the morning I started feeling labor pains. The contractions were deep and intense and I knew they were more than Braxton Hicks. I timed them while I lay in bed. They were coming every ten minutes apart. I woke Brian up and told him that we would probably have the baby that day. I started feeling contractions early in the morning with David and had him by 8:00 that night. So I thought I would have my baby by nightfall that day!

So Brian and I got up and packed our bags. As we got moving I noticed my contractions were getting further apart. They were still very painful when they hit, but they were very infrequent. I knew I needed to labor at home as long as possible because I wanted to avoid medication at the hospital. Our plan was to wait until the contractions got closer together to go to the hospital. We went on with our day, and to my surprise the contractions kept getting further apart, until they were happening maybe once an hour.

Fast forward to Friday evening. My contractions picked up again. It seemed that especially when I laid down on my side they would get more intense and frequent. I had been experiencing really deep back pain with every contraction which made me think he must have been posterior (facing the wrong way). All through the night I labored, but contractions were still a good ten minutes apart. Early Saturday morning, after a hard night of not sleeping and contracting, I called the doctor's office. Sadly, my doctor was not on call that weekend. The doctor that was on call told us to wait until the contractions were five minutes apart and lasted 30-45 seconds. Well I already knew that and wasn't about to go to the hospital to be sent home. The doctor did say that if we were worried we could go to the hospital and they could see how dilated I was.

Saturday was pretty miserable because my contractions weren't very frequent but persisted all day. Finally that night we called Brian's mom to come stay with David. We decided we needed to go to the hospital. At this point I was totally exhausted and hoping that they would strip my membranes or break my water to get things going. It was about midnight when we got to the hospital. They let us know that I was dilated 4 cm. That was about how far I was when they admitted me with David so I thought I would be admitted. They watched the monitor for about an hour. Before going in my contractions were a steady 8 minutes apart and of course the one hour they monitored me I had maybe three contractions. The doctor on call said to send us home. They didn't even tell us to walk around! I asked why they couldn't break my water or something (I was so miserable!) and they said that the doctor on call would not do anything to put me in to aggressive labor because she wasn't my actual doctor. Grrr. So, even though I thought I would never be the person that gets sent home from the hospital, we were sent home! At this point it was early morning. That made for our second sleepless night. Sunday morning we had David go to church with Brian's parents and we tried to get some much needed rest. Again I felt horrible during the day but managed the pain fairly well (thanks to some coaching on Brian's part). At this point I was sure the baby was posterior because of how much back pain I had, and because labor was going so slowly. Every time I laid down on my side I could feel him moving and my contractions got closer together.

Sunday night was difficult. I took a few hot baths and tried to relax. We went on a walk at a very, very slow pace. We put David to bed. I decided to call the doctor again. I told her I was in so much pain and was so exhausted. Again she asked how far apart the contractions were. I told her sometimes six minutes, sometimes 15 minutes. She pretty much said the same thing as last time. I just couldn't convince her to let them break my water! I knew my doctor would be back on shift at 7:00 Monday morning. At this point it was about midnight so I told myself just to wait a few more hours and I could get my doctor to help my labor progress more rapidly. I was so sure if I could just get my water broke my body would have the baby quickly.

Well I didn't get far in to the night on Sunday before I told Brian that enough was enough. We were going back to the hospital and I didn't care how far apart my contractions were. I was in so much pain I was beginning to shake really bad. Again we phoned Brian's mom and had her come over. We got to the hospital at about 1:00 in the morning. They checked me and I was dilated 6 cm. It didn't matter how far apart my contractions were, at this far dilated they had to admit me. I was so relieved. My contractions were still not very consistent. I wanted to make sure the baby's heart rate was looking normal just because of how long I had been in labor. The monitor read that he was handling them very well.

So we were going in to our third night of no sleep. I was so exhausted and was shaking really badly at this point. I asked if the epidural always included pitocin. They said no not at all, only if labor stops. I asked if they use a shot of local anesthesia before putting the epidural catheter in. They said that they do. Then they asked if I wanted one. It was a hard decision for about half a second. I knew I needed help. My labor had been way to long. I was too exhausted to finish it out on my own will power. So I went for it!

The anesthesiologist came in at about 2 in the morning. I stayed calm. They told Brian to leave. They instructed me on what to do. I listened closely and did what they told me. It was a breeze. It really was. Not that painful. I thought it would hurt worse then it did. I remember before the epidural I was feeling very cold and was shaking pretty violently. About ten minutes of having it put in, I felt warm and stopped shaking completely. I also thought I wouldn't be able to move at all with the epidural in. Turns out you can move quite well, or at least enough to move on to your side, etc. I laid down on my side and shut my eyes. Brian also tried to get some sleep. And sure enough, after that epidural got put in, my contractions started coming regularly.

They gave me the button to push during my labor to keep my bottom half numb. I knew right away that I wouldn't be pushing the button. I wasn't feeling anything and I thought that even if all the epidural did was take the edge of I was fine with it. So I disregarded the button and was actually hoping that when it came time to push I would feel some pain to help with the whole process.

By about 5:00 in the morning I was completely dilated. I felt like I was ready to push and was feeling a little pressure. Again I didn't push the button and was glad the epidural seemed to be losing its strength.

Remember my doctor would be on shift at 7:00. The nurse made a comment that went something like "I wish we could get your doctor here for you but I don't think you'll wait that long." I agreed. I didn't think I could wait that long. So the nurse said she would call the doctor on call and let her know I was ready. Well after the nurse left we waited. And waited. And waited. I was getting pretty frustrated. She came back in at about 5:30 to announce that they were going to try and get my doctor there after all. Okay. So more waiting. My guess is the doctor on call didn't want to deliver me when she was in the final hour of her on-call shift. My doctor agreed to try and get there ASAP to deliver me. Again we were left alone. I turned to Brian and told him that I could have had the baby out already! We tried to stay and calm and relax. I thought that if I had chosen to go naturally there would be no stopping my pushing. But I guess when you get an epidural the nurses feel more comfortable just letting you lay there ready to push. I was pretty peeved. Oh and I was also right in the middle of the nurse shift change too which contributed to the delay.

Finally my doctor arrived. I can't remember when she got there but boy was I glad to see her! I remember another thing that bothered me is before my doctor arrived I asked the nurse if I could move on to my back or my other side. She laughed and said "I don't want you having a baby on me. Hold still until your doctor comes." So the whole staff knew that I had pushed David out in a few contractions so they thought it would be really easy to get this little guy out.

Nobody had yet to break my water even though I was about to push the baby out. My doctor was well aware of this and broke my water just before telling me to push. When I had David they broke it around 5 or 6 cm so this was a whole different experience. They put me in to a sitting/squat position and told me to start pushing. I'll quickly add that the baby had pooped in the womb just like David did. Small price to pay for having babies that are jaundice free. This meant that there were several nurses and doctors in the room. The docs had to make sure that Nathan didn't inhale his poop. They were all waiting for the baby to come. I pushed. And pushed. And pushed. Nothing was happening! I was scared and started to think that I was in big trouble. In fact, my contractions had gone back to about 8 minutes apart. So everyone cleared out of the room except for one nurse who would notify them when she could actually feel the baby descending.

I felt like it would help to lay on my side again. I even asked if I could try pushing on my side. The nurse consented and my contractions became regular again. I was starting to tell when I had each contraction. I also was really feeling the urge to push, which was weird because I thought you couldn't feel that with the epidural. Brian helped stabilize my legs and I asked the one nurse in the room if I could push. She said "Go ahead and push if you feel like you need to." Okay. So I pushed some more. Well it didn't take long before that baby was crowing! And of course there were no doctors in the room! The nurse told me to wait (sound familiar?) while she got the doctor. Then the doctor had to get the other doctor because of the baby poop. By the time everyone got situated for the birth of my baby I was screaming. I was in so much pain holding that baby in. I remember yelling "THE EPIDURAL IS NOT WORKING!!!" Hahaha. Funny that with David I hardly felt any pain pushing him out. Anyway I couldn't hold him in any longer and the doctor knew it. There was no time for any other preparations. I remember the doctor asking if there were any towels. They didn't even have towels ready for when the baby came out! After all that time waiting! Sheesh. But I was just happy to have the baby out.

Long story short (or not short...is anyone actually reading this?) baby Nathan finally was born, after much pain and laboring.

Now this is what is weird. I didn't tear even though I was in so much pain pushing him. I was up and walking around within three hours of giving birth...another thing that surprised me because I had the epidural. With David I was in bed much longer than I was with this one. With David I had stitches. After having David I was EXTREMELY sore from head to toe. I wasn't sore at all with this one. Essentially, my recovery has been much easier with Nathan (aside from a bad case of mastitis) than it was with David. That surprises me because again I thought the epidural would make things harder around the board.

One more thing I forgot to add about my experience. I was tested for Group B Strep and the results came back negative. I had the test done a little late in my pregnancy so the results weren't in my initial paperwork. Because of this the nurses said they would have to treat me for it anyway. I tried to give them my word that I tested negative but they said they needed it in writing from a doctor. They gave me antibiotics and I was pretty upset about that because I didn't need them. But in the end that was a pretty minor part of the whole process and really wasn't that big of a deal.

So do I have an epidural or do I go naturally with my next one? A lot of it will depend on the labor! If I have a fast labor like David, I would love to go without medication, but it is more work than I can handle doing it naturally after laboring for three days. Phew. I'm glad this baby is here!

Baby Nathan

Meet our little Nathan! He was born on 7/11/11 at 8:20 in the morning (we were trying to get him out at 7:11 just for fun but I couldn't quite push him out in time). He weighs 7 pounds 4 ounces and is 19 and 1/2 inches long! Our birth experience was very positive. I'll find time to post the details later, but until then, enjoy the pictures!




I felt great after his birth. Luckily for me there was no tearing this time round which means no stitches! Yay! Notice how I'm trying to keep David contained with my other arm. The madness is already beginning!



David holding the baby. Isn't David's facial expression a crack up? He actually has been very sweet with his little brother so far.


This is a very fresh picture of Nathan out of the womb. Pre-bath and all.


We feel so blessed! Welcome to the world little man!

The Aquarium and France

Here are a few pictures of what we did in May. Brian was invited to be a tour manager/assistant conductor on a tour to France. I really should have him post about it because he could explain the competition that the University of Houston Concert Chorale was invited to, but things are a little crazy for us at the moment so if I don't blog about it now we'll never get to it. The bottom line is that it was an international competition that was pretty prestigious. The chorale won a few prizes and had a great time.

Here is Brian outside a French bakery! Yum!

Beautiful shops in France. I love the alleyway appeal.



An LDS church that Brian went to while in France. It was a very small branch.


The choir that Brian has worked with throughout his time at the U of H. Some of these people were also members of his recital choir. He really loved the opportunity that he had with them and learned so much. Each one of them had to audition for the France tour and not all of the Concert Chorale got to go because space was limited.


And on to the Aquarium...we went for my birthday and it was really fun (and hot!). We had a buy one get one free pass so we decided to go for it. Otherwise it may not have been worth the money. Of all details to share about our Aquarium trip I can't believe I just included the financial aspect of it...you can tell what is on our minds lately! We are frugal I admit it!

While we were there we encountered some creepy looking deep sea divers.



We had fun on the Ferris Wheel. David was a little apprehensive.

I didn't get a lot of shots of myself...wonder why ;o) so I'll stick this one in of me with my piano kids. Our recital was also in May and it went great! I'm really going to miss these kids. The two on the far right are the kids I helped take care of last school year.


And hopefully our next post will bring news of a baby boy!

Update on some great events!

Brian graduated! The two year program flew by and we are so grateful we made the decision to go ahead with his graduate degree. It wasn't always easy, but every sacrifice we made was so worth it in the end. We are so grateful to have been able to live with Brian's parents during this time to save extra money and pay down our student loans. Brian did really well and worked so hard. He graduated with a masters degree in Choral Conducting from the University of Houston.





This is just because he is so darn cute.


Funny story: we didn't realize that cords were really only for baccalaureate degrees so we went ahead and bought Brian's "honor" cords. Luckily we realized before Brian walked at graduation that it is a bit taboo to wear the cords as a graduate student. Unluckily it was too late to return them so the only time he ended up wearing them was for this picture...but we're thinking it might help make a good wise man or shepherd costume in the future :o).



David turned 18 months old on May 1st. This picture shows how he feels about nursery. We actually took it before church that day but it cracks me up because his attitude didn't prove much as the day went on. He actually does great in nursery if we stay with him but literally seconds after we "sneak out" he really puts on a show. Poor kid.



Stay tuned for pictures of the Aquarium in downtown Houston and shots of Brian's trip to France!

7-Up Biscuits

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Here is the absolute best biscuit recipe I have ever made. And ironically it is also the easiest biscuit recipe I have made. Don't let the ingredients scare you away. These biscuits are equivalent to KFC or Popeyes (depending on which chicken place you buy from, if you are in the south, you probably choose Popeyes :o). They really turn out pretty too, just like the picture. I would have used my own picture but they got snarfed before I had the chance. I don't think I'll go back to Pillsbury tube biscuits. These aren't "healthy" but the ingredients are more natural than that of tube biscuits.

2 c. bisquick
1/2 c. sour cream
1/2 c. 7-up
1/4 c. butter

Cut the sour cream in to the bisquick mix with a fork (like shortening in pie crust if you've ever made your own crust). Add the 7-up. This should form a really soft dough. NOTE: It still should be doughy though. It will stick to your hands a bit but if it is too wet it will totally stick to your hands big time. I ended up using more mix than the recipe called for to get the right consistency. Use a little flour or extra bisquick on a board or counter top to help pat your dough into about a 1/2 to 1 inch thick large circle. Cut biscuits in circles using the edge of a glass or a biscuit cutter. Melt butter in a 9x9 (square) baking dish. Put dough circles in dish on top of melted butter. The biscuits will be nice and cozy in the pan sort of squeezed next to each other. Bake at 450 degrees until golden brown. Do not bake these biscuits spread far apart in a large dish.

Couponing

I just wanted to share two awesome couponing websites with anyone interested! We had a preparedness fair in our stake and Tiffany Ivanosky from TLC's Extreme Couponing show came and talked to us. She lives right here in Spring too. I don't know her personally, but she and her husband seem so nice and have these great websites to help people out.

You may not have an H-E-B in your area, but the websites only mention this store every now and then. All the others you should be familiar with.

mylitter.com

iheartthemart.com

Enjoy all you frugal shoppers!

Congrats to a friend!

This may seem really odd, but I can't post a comment on my friend's blog and I really want to. So here's to you Vivian! You can read about her birthing experience here.

Vivian had her second baby without an epidural and it reminded a lot of when I had David. I don't know how I will deliver my second child, but I wouldn't mind having an experience like hers!

David's Hunt

David was really excited for this little Easter egg hunt we had for Playgroup last week. Isn't he cute? Notice the great quality picture...my friend took it with her nice camera. Also you can catch a bit of my baby bump in the second picture for those of you that wanted to see it. By the way, now is a great time to visit Houston! We only have two or three weeks left before we hit horribly hot weather. Right now it is a bit too hot for my taste but would be nice for anyone craving a little sunshine and warm weather...oh and humidity and bugs and pollen. But you can't have it all right? Also, can anyone tell me why I can't post a comment on other blogs? Does anyone else have that problem? I guess if you do I'll never know, seeing as how you couldn't leave a comment about it.

The Forgotten Garden

The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


This was a perfect novel. Full of mystery, some romance, some sorrow, GREAT writing...I loved it! I also haven't read a fat book in a while and I loved how deep this book went in to the lives of the characters. The ending was so satisfying. I can't wait to read another on by Kate Morton. Her writing is so lovely. This book is a great read for sheer enjoyment and entertainment.



View all my reviews

Family Fun

My last post was a bit of a downer. David is doing much better. We ultimately decided not to get another x-ray. He still limps but we think he'll be fine. We're glad he is at least walking on his leg now. So I thought it would be fun to post about a few things that we have done together in the last little while.

We had spring break about a month ago. Brian was busy with rehearsals pretty much everyday, but we did take a day trip to Galveston to play on the beach and feed the birds on the ferry. The beach in Galveston isn't that great but for someone like me that hasn't really been on a great beach it was just fine! We had such a good time. Here are some pictures of it:










A few of the above pictures are from a trip we took to the Woodlands waterway. One of the videos below shows a live band that they had on the square that day. The waterway is a favorite place of ours because it is nearby and free.