One Week Later

Riley started school on Monday. He’s a second grader now! Riley’s teacher’s name is Ms. Staples. He seems to be enjoying school, from the little snippets we have been able to squeeze out of him.

 

 

We have had so much fun with our newest little one!  He is a really good baby. We gave him his first bath:

 

I don’t think he was impressed. But I thought he was very cute, and he’s hair curls!

Yesterday, I did a little photo shoot with Ephram:

I think they turned out pretty good.  I can’t wait to get a few printed. By the way, if you are reading this and wish to print the pictures, please message me. I’ll send you a print ready copy. The ones on the web will turn out blurry as I have shrunk the file size.

It feels good to blog again :) Hopefully I’ll be more diligent in documenting our little lives here. I missed almost a year! Thank heavens for feeling better.

Enter Ephram Mark Leavitt

So, our newest addition was born August 23, 2012 at 10:38 am. He weighed in at 8 pound 4.2 oz and was about 20 inches long. 

I woke up around 2 to go to the bathroom (not an unusual thing) and the pain was getting pretty intense.  I’d seen my doctor on Wednesday and she had told me that once the contractions started to get uncomfortable to come in or I even thought that I might be stating labor. DON’T WAIT! So, Allen started making phone calls to get someone over to be with the kids. He thankfully got a hold of his bother Josh who came over. (Thanks a million Josh and Rachael) We hurried off to the hospital, which thankfully is only 7 minutes away.

When we got to the hospital, they checked me. I was dilated to about 6 and she said my cervix was very soft. They took us to a labor and delivery room. My contractions were not very consistent. I’d have 3 really good ones, about 2 minutes apart and then I wouldn’t have one for 18 minutes. So they add pitocin to my IV, and they called for the anesthesiologist for my epidural.  I wont lie, I was excited to have a relatively pain free delivery. It didn’t exactly go that way.  The anesthesiologist had a hard time getting the needle in the right spot, I had shooting pain going down my right leg and a ton of pressure in my hips. So, he took it out and had to redo the epidural. It seemed to be working, but as labor progressed I noticed that my right side was completely numb, I couldn’t feel a thing or move it. My left side wasn’t numb at all… totally uncool! The worst of both worlds, could feel pain and not being able to move to relieve it!  I cried, especially when my water broke and the contractions really started. The nurse had me lying on my left side in the hopes that the meds would start going down that side. Didn’t work, but when I rolled to the other side I got a little relief, thank heavens! It was just in time to start pushing. I have a wonderful doctor, who coached me though. Three contractions and about nine big pushes and he was out. No tearing, no stitches!  We asked the nurse how long the labor had been. They counted it from 2 AM, so about 8 hours, from the time my water broke until he was delivered 17 minutes. Good thing we didn’t wait!

First impression: woo he has a lot of hair! 

 

Second impression: He’s really cute, and I am so glad that’s over!

Ephram weighed in at 8 lb 4 oz and was measured at 21 inches (we have been to the pediatrician since than and it appears he’s only 20 inch). He is by far our largest baby.  He’s got a pound on Riley and Beka. And about 3 pounds on Emma. 

Mom came to visit while we were waiting for a recovery room. She even got to push Ephram to our room.

Allen brought the kids over in the evening. They were all very excited to meet their new baby brother. I was glad to see them.

Riley was so excited about a baby brother. We took the kids with us to the ultra sound and asked the technician to check twice to make sure it was a boy!

Emma has been such a big helper. She told me the other day: “Mommy thank you for having my little brother. He is so cute!”

Beka was the one I was a little worried about. Her whole world has been turned upside down. But she adors her brother. She gets me diapers and wipes, gives him super gentle kisses. Makes sure he has his blankets. It’s really cute. 

 

I absolutely love the pictures of Beka! She gave him that little kiss and then looked up and was worried about being in trouble. So CUTE!

UGH! We are a family of 6!! Not sure about all the strange faces, but they are still cute!

I stayed in the hospital until Saturday. It just felt like the thing to do. I was so sore, and tired. My back was killing me. So, I felt I need some extra time to heal without kids jumping on me. Everyone was happy when mommy and baby came home.

Poor Poor Abandon Blog

Ok, so it’s been almost a year since I wrote anything on this poor blog… so sad! I wish I could blame it on being so busy (which I was) or because I had so much to say (which I did).  But that’s not why I haven’t posted. But as I sit here in our new home (yes, we moved in the last 2 weeks) in the quiet of the morning (everyone just left for Riley’s occupational therapy appointment) and wait for my last doctor’s appointment before our new little boy is going to be born (uh, yes I guess we’ve had a few changes around here) I thought I would at least try to put some of my thoughts down.

It was a crazy school year (crazier still that school starts back for Riley on Monday). We spent much of it trying to get Riley the help he need. He has some fine motor delay and it turned out a slight vision problem. It took the whole school year! However, finally got him to a pediatric optimologist (a really eye doctor). As slight of a prescription as it it, it has made a world of difference for Riley. He has a ton of trouble tracking lines on a page, and everything has a small shadow that jumps around on him. This causes eye strain. The doctor said that this may be what causes some of the wiggles and inability to focus in school. He is under all this strain and it has to go somewhere (like the earth and an earthquake). Of course, we didn’t get these new glasses until the end of May. He’s also been seeing a occupational therapist once a week. She is helping him learn how to recognize when he’s out of control, how to relive some of the strain, and how to organize his body to be ready to learn. It seems to be helping. Still can’t read his handwriting. But we did get some accommodations put in place for the next school that should help.  We are supposed to meet his new teacher on Friday. She seems really nice and sweet.

Emma went to preschool last year and had a blast! She is amazing. We are working on sight words right now! We also decided not to have her start kindergarten this year.  The reasons were two fold: first, her birthday is 4 days from the cut off, so she would be the youngest kid in her class; and second the idea of a new born and a kindergartener sent me into a tail spin. I have gotten her into an amazing pre-k a friend of mine is running. The gal has been teaching kindergarten and 1st grade for the last 10 years. I’m so excited for Emma. I know she is going to do amazing things.

Beka is growing and changing everyday. She is such a talker and a joker! We really thought that she might be potty trained by the end of the summer, but with the move and all the things changing in her life she has decided that this is just not the right time. When we moved into this wonderful new home (so much bigger with a great back yard) she was finally moved out of the crib. Beka and Emma now share a bedroom. Not sure how Beka likes this (she likes her room nice and tidy, and Emma is a bit of a slob). She also grow during the move, so I moved all her clothes out and put the 3T sizes in… and she had to change dressers.  She’s been really good about all the changes. The first couple of nights were a bit hard to get her to stay in bed, but now she really seems to enjoy her big girl bed.

The day after Christmas, we found out another little one was going to be joining our family. It was a wonderful late Christmas gift. We had been trying for about 6 months. I felt pretty good for about 2 weeks and then the morning sickness hit and the exhaustion.  I really believe that I forget how bone tired I get the first trimester. It was bad. After the first couple of months, the exhaustion eased a little. However, I am still getting sick every day. I’m really looking forward to that ending. Pregnancy also puts me into a dark place, which ends the moment the baby is delivered.  I can’t wait to feel that relief!  It’s been a hard couple of months, knowing how I am seeing things may be skewed. But, we are almost there. For better or worse the little one will be here no later than August 29! By the way, it’s a boy! Riley was SO excited!!! He had been praying for a brother.

I can’t believe that I’ve been able to carry this baby so long. There haven’t been any real scares like with the girls. I’m in my 38 week! We have been so blessed!

Now back to the move:

Allen and I have been looking for a bigger home for about a year and half. We had specific things in mind. We really wanted to stay in the ward, keep Riley in the school, a finished backyard (not one filled with rocks), 4 bedrooms, and it had to fit our budget. Well, our ward boundary is super small. Like I could walk the whole thing in less than hour. And finding a 4 bedroom home in our price range was tricky. I had given up finding a place before little dude came. But, Allen found one in July. It was perfect! It had everything and then some on our list. But I was 34 weeks along, and couldn’t see my feet let alone pack much. I could lift any boxes, no balance. Our ward jumped in! The Relief Society came in everyday and packed up the house. It was amazing! And humbling. I’ve never been on this end of the service before. I was truly humbled by the love and generosity of the sister. Then on the day of the move, the ward and some of our friends and family had our whole house moved in a matter of a couple of hours. Crazy.

I have been so blessed this year, and even if I’ve been in a dark place I know that my Heavenly Father has taken care of me. I am so scared and excited to meet our new little son.

So, here’s to a new school year! May it be filled with learning and growth. May we be strengthen and find friendship. And may I find the energy to at least post once a month :) And I promise, the next post will have tons of pictures! But here’s one from Riley’s birthday :)

Hijacked!

I'm totally hijacking Jessica's blog today. With how crazy busy she's been, I'm laying 5-1 odds that she won't notice for at least 3 days. Any takers? Anyone?

Things have been absolutely madness, but in a good way. Riley's been working through first grade. I'm pretty sure that I didn't have to do half the stuff he does when I was his age, but he's generally a good sport about it all. It does sometimes make me wonder if we should have kept him at home for just one more year. He and I have the same issue when it comes to school: We're early attenders.

See, my birthday is in September. Riley's birthday is in August. So, when it was time to start school, we were both 4, about to turn 5. (Side note: having your 18th birthday in a dorm, surrounded by people you've known for 3 weeks is not the preferred method of reaching adulthood.) When I was that age, I didn't vocalize all that much or all that clearly, so I think my parents' intentions were to put me into kindergarten early, where they had a speech program, and then possibly repeat it the next year. That didn't happen. As it turned out, it wasn't that I couldn't speak, it was that I didn't say anything unless I had something to say. So I went into first grade the next year. I won't pretend that it was all roses. I was bright, but still young. It seems that I'd get frustrated more easily than the other kids, and my handwriting was terrible. (Part of that I blame on being a lefty). I didn't get my driver's license until junior year, and there were only a handful of people younger than me during any given year. Still, I made it, with a few scars. (A solid year of handwriting grades of "D, needs to try harder" in elementary school still burns.)

And then there's Riley. He has more energy than I ever had, his memory is insanely good, and he reads like crazy, but he struggles with classwork. Not because he doesn't understand stuff, but because his mind and body are constantly going 90 miles an hour. When he slows down, the writing becomes clearer, but he isn't built for slow. He didn't learn to walk, he learned to run. This is the kid who had no problem riding a bike for a mile and a half straight just a week after successfully riding without training wheels. Slow is just not part of his make-up. It isn't who he is. And I think I sometime forget that.

It means trying new things to help him stay focused. For example, after talking with Jess's cousin who works at an occupational therapist's clinic, we tried sitting him on a yoga ball when doing his homework. It seemed to help him concentrate while still being able to wiggle. We mentioned that at a parent-teacher conference, and they found one for him. Since then, I've seen improvement in his writing. Don't know if it will last, but it's working for now.

But it also means that once he decides to do something, he goes at it full throttle and gets more out of it. I don't think he'll ever be paralyzed by fear into inaction. His kindness always runs full-throttle too. He's always the last one on the bus, but only for the same reason he's the last one out the door of his class- he know he's going to get on, but he wants to make sure everyone else gets on too. He's the first to give hugs, the first to ask if someone is okay, and the first to try to help.

So instead of always asking him to slow down to everyone else's pace, I'm going to work on coming up to Riley's speed more often. I think I'm going to try to be full-throttle kind, too. Life's too short to be stuck in 2nd gear.

Another First This Week

Emma also had a first this week. She had her first day of preschool! She was so excited. One of the ladies in our ward is doing a preschool playgroup. I was so happy to not have to do a rotating preschool for her. I just don’t have the energy to do it right now. This was a better alternative. Emma’s had a blast. They learned about the letter A and did apple paintings. She loved story time, but “the other kids were kinda noisy.”

She picked out her outfit and how she wanted her hair. I think she did a nice job:

She was being a little stinker, and was not very cooperative being my model. So sad that she’s hit that age. But It was really fun to have Beka all to myself for a few hours!

Emma came home so excited about things… sadly she’s is taking after her brother and not telling us anything that she did… except about the apple picture, which we were able to bring home today.

We’re going to be a part of it: First Grade! First Grade!

Anyone who went to a kindergarten graduation last year probably heard this little ditty, sung to the tune of  New York, New York.

I will catch up with my blog and the doings of August. But I really wanted to get this blogged before the moment was gone. Riley started 1st grade today. He got on the bus and went off into the world. And mommy was a little sad. It’s hard to let them go. However he was so ready!

The bus was a little late dropping him off... and it sure was hot waiting for him. Now, if we can just get out of him what happened today… that would really be something! I friend of mine posted this poem on her blog which I thought was perfect for today:

First Day of School

He started school this morning,

And he seemed so very small.

As I walked there beside him

In the 1st Grade hall.

And as he took her place beside

the others in the class,

I realized how all too soon

Those first few years can pass.

Remembering, I saw him as

He first learned how to walk.

The words that we alone made out

When he began to talk.

This little boy so much absorbed

In learning how to write.

It seems as though he must have grown

To boyhood overnight.

My eyes were blurred but hastily

I brushed the tears away.

Lest by some word or sign of mine

I mar his first big day.

Oh how I longed to stay with him

And keep him by the hand

To lead him through the places

That he couldn't understand.

And something closely kin to fear

Was mingled with my pride.

I knew he would no longer be

A baby by my side.

But he must have his chance to live,

To work his problems out,

The privilege to grow and learn

What life is all about.

And I must share my little boy

With friends and work and play;

He's not a baby anymore-

He's in 1st Grade today.

Hope everyone had a great first day!

One Year…

One year ago today our dear mom, grandma and friend returned to heaven. I have trouble believing it’s been a year already. We miss her still, always. Emma I think has had the hardest time with it. She tells us every few days how much she misses her grandma a in heaven. They were really close. Joan truly loved her grandbabies.  And they loved her!

We miss you Joan! But I know you are watching over us. I’ve told Emma that her Grandma is always there, keeping her safe. It’s ok to miss Grandma, but isn’t it wonderful to know that we are a forever family and that we will see her again. I’m am so grateful for the gospel and the peace it brings. I’m grateful to have answers to the hard questions.  

Riley’s Fish

Around about January Riley and I made a deal. He’s teacher had been sending home a word ring. This is a ring that hold sight words. Sight words are commonly used words. Each group had 10 words to learn. In January Riley knew about 70 words. Riley also REALLY REALLY wanted his own pet. I said no to a cat or any kind of rodent. I also put my foot down on another dog. However, maybe we could do a fish. But this wasn’t something I was just going to give him. He had to earn it. I told him that if learned all of the word ring words he could have a fish. That’s 200 words. Riley worked really hard. But as school came to a close, he was still 20 words short. He was devastated. So, we made an amendment to our deal. He could still earn his fish, he would just need to pass of the 20 words with Grandma. It took him a little while, but he finally earned his fish and tank:

He also got a really cool tank:

Sadly, the fish passed away the day before Riley’s birthday. Poor guy. But we went to the store and for his birthday he got 3 new fish:

 

 

We got two goldfish, one orange and one gold. We also got a catfish type fish. She (for Riley told me that it is a she) cleans the tank for us.

If you look carefully at the bottom of the tank in the far back you can kind of see the little catfish. I was so proud of Riley. He reads really well. It’s so much fun to share books with him!

What happened to summer?

Ok, I’ve been a total slacker on with the blog! I have really struggled trying to be inspired to blog… don’t know why. It just is what it is. I’ve been really tired, and quiet time has been nap time for me. That and I’ve been spending my free time playing stupid video games… oops.

Anyway, summer vacation is almost over. Kind of sad about it. Kind of can’t wait. The end of summer means cooler weather should be on it’s way. Of course today it’s 110 outside.

So, what happened in July. I’m not really sure. I know it was pretty hot but not too bad. We had fun play dates with the Delvin family. Riley finally earned his word ring fish (stupid thing died the day before his birthday but that’s another post), got some cute clothes for my kids who all decide to grow at the same time, Allen got his dad’s pool blue, got a new niece, enjoyed Beka’s 4 hour naps… hmmm I think I really need to be better about updating my blog, the old memory isn’t what it used to be (BC, before children).

A few post to try to catch up. We have had a nice summer. July is gone and August is almost go too. Bye Bye Summer!

4th of July

Finally caught up with the blog. At least I’m in the right month now. 4th of July was a ton of fun. We spent Saturday just hanging out, and ran a few errands. I went on a fun bridal shoot with my sweet friend Erin. Then Erin and her sweetheart dropped me off at David and Celise’s house for the North Las Vegas fireworks. Such an amazing spot to watch! The kids had a blast running around the yards and going swimming. And yes, mommy and daddy got in too. Have to, Riley thinks he can swim, Emma’s afraid of the water, and Beka has NO FEAR! UGH! But it was so nice to get cooled off after stomping around at Corn Creek.

The fireworks were amazing as always. We brought the kids chairs, but they didn’t sit in them. As soon as the first firework went off both girls were clamoring into my lap. But then they were happy to watch the big booms overhead.

  I’m trying to be included in more pictures. Riley was off with the big kids this year. Made me a little sad to see him not wanting to hang out with us anymore. But I guess that what you call growing up. After the fireworks were over they kids got to play with sparklers.  And poor Riley grabbed the end of his and burned the first 3 fingers on both hands. Poor little dude. We didn’t even know he had done it until he started complaining about his fingers hurting. I asked him what why, and he finally confessed about grabbing the end and now his fingers hurt. We put his fingers into a cup of water, but he still blistered pretty good.

The final detail of the night I want to record was how well our little niece Faith did with the fireworks. This little girl has always struggled with the fireworks, she is just not a fan of bright lights and loud sounds. But this year she watched the display with no screaming and really seemed to enjoy them!

Yeah Faith!

Sunday was fun. It was great to sing some wonderful music and hear some good talks about our country.  I had super cute dresses for the girls. I got them about a month ago, and couldn’t help myself! They looked so cute, and I wanted to get a picture with the two of them together…. yeah that didn’t happen. Riley insisted on jumping in, which is fine. But… Well you’ll see:

Yeah, someone was feeling a little feisty! Poor Riley. And the only one that kind of sort of turned… Emma is all burly.

So after church we went to Mom and Dad’s for dinner. And I tried again… Same problem with Emma:

But we got a few cute ones of a sleep Beka. We had a bunch of late nights, and little to no naps. She was glad when the festivities were over.

On the 4th we took the kids to see Cars 2. All the kids. It was Beka’s first movie! She did pretty well. She really liked the popcorn. Emma snuggled into Daddy and fell asleep and missed the end. After nap time we went over to Dad Leavitt’s house and went swimming and set off fireworks. Riley braved another sparkler. He didn’t burn his finger this time, which he proudly announced to everyone.  It was a great day and a great weekend.

Hope everyone had a safe and happy 4th too!