Garden Love

I have been such a slacker when it comes to blogging & I really miss it.  Our life in the summer is super busy & I have been having a really hard time finding a spare moment to put together a post at the end of the day.  Having two kids who are wild and crazy is hard!  My brain in usually fried by the time they are both in bed.

I thought it would do a post to document our garden.  For the past few years we have pretty much only grown tomatoes, peppers & herbs.  We love to grow tomatoes and I stew them to make spaghetti sauce.  I make a few large batches late August/early September and freeze it for the whole year.

This year we dreamed BIG and expanded from two small raised beds to a HUGE 28 x 22 garden (we also kept the small beds for beans & herbs).  We wanted everything to be GMO free, organic & mostly heirloom.  I am so proud that everything has done really well except our broccoli.  I am not really sure what happened because the broccoli was one of the few things we purchased from a local farm.  Mostly everything else we grew from seed.


Tomatoes, green & yellow squash, broccoli, lettuce & onions

Tomatoes, carrots, swiss chard, onions & beets

 

Corn

 

This is Savannah with our first real "harvest"

 



This was tonight's dinner.  

Green beans & tomatoes from our garden.  Summer squash casserole with squash & onion from our garden.  Popover made with eggs from of hens.  Spice rubbed chicken breast from the meat birds that we raised.

 

Our hens

 

 

 

 

I hope to do a post on our chickens at some point.  They are so wonderful & we just love them!  They are our girls.

Great Day for A Swim

A few weeks ago Savannah came home from school with a notice about swimming lessons.  I always took swim class at the local pond when I was little so I thought this would be great things for Savannah to do too.  She can have a hard time adjusting to new people/situations so I wasn't sure how swim class would go but we signed up anyways.

 

Today was the first of 7 classes and Savannah did AWESOME!!!  I couldn't be anymore proud of her.  This is the first week of classes (school just let out of Friday) and we wanted the 9am slot because of Shane's nap schedule.  There was only 1 other child who signed up!  This was actually perfect for Savannah.  Two instructors and two students=1 on 1 attention!

 

Savannah did everything that she was asked to do with the exception of bobbing under water.  She wouldn't jump off the dock into the water at the beginning of class but she did by the end.  Hopefully she will feel confident enough by the end of lessons to go under.  If not, there is always next year!

Shane had a great time on the beach while his sister was swimming.

Attn: NY Friends

Friends of the Syracuse NY area:

Check out the amazing deal being offered by Living Social-  A photo shoot with CD and printing rights for $49.00!  Rhys is my brother in-law and he does WONDERFUL pictures.  He is great with kids too!  Does that baby model look familiar to anyone???

https://www.livingsocial.com/cities/187-syracuse/deals/574878-on-location-photo-shoot-with-an-image-cd?afsrc=1

Disney On Ice: Worlds Of Fantasy

Today Savannah and I went to see Disney On Ice: Worlds Of Fantasy.  I didn't even realize it was coming to our area until just last week.  I bought tickets within 5 minutes of finding out!  My girl and I were going on a day date and we were super excited!

My princess and I

She had popcorn, a pretzel, hot dog & a snow cone!

Mickey & Minnie were the hosts

Cars

The Little Mermaide

 Tinkerbell & fairy friends

Toy Story

Sleepy head

 

 

We had a wonderful girls day but we sure missed our boys.  The show was wonderful but a little long at 2 hours.  Shane would have loved it at first but then gotten bored.  Hopefully next year we can all go.  I am honestly dying to bring the kids to Disney.  We are going to all have so much fun!

15 Months

I have been such a slacker when it comes to monthly updates.  I just can't ever seem to get them done!  Shane turned 15 months a few days ago so I wanted to make note his milestones.

Shanie-

You are a wonderfully sweet little boy!  Everywhere we go, people always comment on your big blueberry eyes.  You continue to be the apple of Daddy, Sissy & I's eye!  You melt our heart's with your sweetness every single day Bubba!

Sleep:  You are a great sleeper.  You get up at about 7:30 every morning and go to nap between 10-10:30 and usually sleep for 1 1/2-2 hours.  You usually go down for your afternoon nap around 4pm and sleep for 30-60 minutes.  You go to bed at 7pm every night.  You sometimes wake during the night for your papi but always go right back to sleep.  You love your soft blue blank (our nickname for your blanket).

Feeding:  You are down to nursing at your morning nap and at bedtime.  Just two weeks ago you gave up nursing when you woke for the day.  You didn't want to sit and have quiet time in the morning anymore.  Too much trouble to get into!  You LOVE your cow's milk.  I swear you would drink a gallon a day if we let you.

Height & Weight:  We will find out on the 29th at you 15 month check up

Diaper Size: 4

Still cloth diapering and loving it

Clothes Size:  12-18 months.  You are a little larger on the top than bottom so I have been ordering your summer clothes size 18-24 shirts & 12-18 shorts.  You wear a size 5 shoe.

 

Milestones:

*Walking & running!  You are now a full time walker and you have recently started to run.  You are still perfecting this new walking skill of yours so you sometimes fall but are a great walker for the most part.  It's so adorable!

*More teeth!  Two weeks ago you started cutting your last 3 1-year molars.  You had a little trouble going to bed but Advil helped with that.  You also got your first diaper rash thanks to these new teeth.

 

*If we ask "Where are your shoes:" you will look down at your feet or go to the shoe closet.

 

*You absolutely love the baby chicks we got for Easter and our hens.  It is so adorable to see you get excited when we tell you we are going to see the chickens.  You make the most adorable chicken noises.

 

*Still a picky eater.  You don't really like any veggies but love anything that is a carb (bread, toast, waffles, crackers & even french fries).  Sometimes you will still eat baby food jars but not always.  You love pouches so that is how we get you to have your veggies.  We still give you infant oatmeal cereal almost daily because you have low iron.  You are also on an iron supplement.  I would say your favorite food is yogurt.

 

*Sissy is your favorite person.  You two have such a great time together.  You are going to miss her so much when she goes to full time kindergarten in September.

 

*You love to "sing" and dance.  You and Sissy jam out every time we are in the car.

 

*Your favorite shows are Barney & Yo Gabba Gabba.

 

*You still aren't saying any words other than Dadda.  I think you will have a speech delay like your sister.

 

*You & I recently starting going to Story Hour at the library together on Wednesdays.  You really enjoy playing with the other kids.  You are not at all shy with the children like Savannah was.  ou enjoy free play, music time & when Ms. Jodi reads her books.

 

 

 

 

Appendicitis sucks!

Last week on Wednesday morning I started having strong pains in the middle left side of my abdomen.  I didn't really think too much of it because this happens to me a few times a year.  The pains are fairly strong but they usually only last a few hours.  The pain seemed to ease up around 2pm which was good because I had to pick Savannah up from school at 2:30pm.  I had plans with my aunt to come over for a quick visit at 3:30 (she had not given the kids Christmas gifts yet).  By 3:00 I was in much more pain again.  Jay got home from work at 3 and I told him he was going to have to take the kids for a while because I had to lay down and rest.  My Aunt came and went and I felt bad I didn't get to see her but I was in too much pain.

The pain kept getting a little worse and a little worse as time went on.  My 5pm I had started vomiting.  I knew I was vomiting from the pain and not because I was sick.  The pains were like a severe labor contraction that wouldn't let up.  This wasn't cramping.  It was a strong constant pain.  Jay took care of the kids all night and put them to bed at 6:30pm because he has a meeting for work he had to go to.  I layed in bed all night in awful pain only getting up the be sick.

At 3:30am I knew something was wrong.  My pains were never this strong for this long.  I woke Jay up and told him we had to go to the ER.  He called his mother (who lives next door to us) to have her come stay with the kids so we could go to the hospital.  (Back story:  Jay's mother has a phobia of the stomach bug.  Like she is DEATHLY afraid of vomiting.  It's one of her worst fears.)  Reluctantly, Jay's mom came over to stay with the kids.  She was deathly afraid that I had the stomach bug (because I had abdominal pain & vomiting) so I called my mother to come stay at our house as soon as she could.  (Back story:  I never ask my mom for anything ever because she is always makes me feel VERY guilty for any help she may give.) 

So we get to the hospital at about 4am.  After multiple IV lines of morphine & anti nausea meds my pain was under control.  I had blood tests, a pelvic exam (so fun!) & a CT scan which showed that I had Appendicitis and needed surgery.

We were in the ER until 12noon when I went to be prepped for surgery.  Jay had a great time watching all of the crazies who had od'd or came in drunk.

I had surgery at 12:30pm on Thursday that lasted about an hour.  I was in the recovery room for a few hours after that.  We were home by 5pm.  They had originally told me I was going to have to stay over night but my appendix had not ruptured so I was able to come home.  I was so grateful to be home with my babies.

I had a mini breakdown in the ER when we first arrived and I was told I was going to be given Morphine for the pain & that I couldn't breastfeed for atleast 48 hours.  I don't have a good breast pump so I thought this was going to be the end of the line for us.  I was so heartbroken that this was going to be the end of my nursing days forever.  I felt like Shane and I were being robbed.  I had decided many months ago that Shane would be the sole person deciding when we would be done.  No one else.  I was beyond pissed at my stupid appendix for this.

When I came home from the hospital I tried the hand pump I had but it wasn't really working.  I purposely only took Tyle.nol and not the Percocet that were prescribed so that I could attempt breastfeeding as soon as possible now that I was home.  I was told I could breastfeed while on the Percocet but I wasn't not comfortable with that.

So yesterday (Saturday) afternoon (48hrs after surgery) I attempted to nurse Shane for the first time since Wednesday morning.  I couldn't believe that I had milk!  It was fairly painful to have him on my belly (I used the Bop.py) but he was nursing!!!  I am so happy that we are back to nursing twice a day again.  I am so freaking proud of my body!

I was able to shower yesterday for the first time since Wednesday (ewwww!!!) & I have been told I can't do any heavy lifting, bending, stooping or straining for 2-4 weeks.  Considering I am a SAHM I am not sure how that is possible.  Jay is going back to work tomorrow afternoon.

We had plans to go away this coming weekend to Newport Rhode Island that we have cancled.  This was going to be the first time we have been away as a couple since Savannah was born.  We are majorly bummed about it but we will hopefully reschedule when I am feeling better and able to enjoy the time away from home as a couple.

Disney Vacation



I have begun the daunting task of planning our families first trip to Dis.ney Wo.rld.  Savannah is the prefect age with a princess obsession and Shane is free so we figured this would be a good time.  We have a small airport about 20 minutes away from home that has been closed for a few years.  Je.t Bl.ue just announced last week that they would be opening the airport up this coming November and flying to a few different places.  Orla.ndo & Fo.rt Laud.erdale (where Jay's grandparents have a second home) are among the destinations..  I booked our plane tickets the day they made this announcement because I knew this was the only way we would make it on a plane with two young children (luggage for 4, 2 small strollers, carry on bags, 2 car seats.  OMG!  Kill me now!).

We have decided to fly into Orla.ndo, stay inside Disney for 4 nights, go to the parks then rent a car and make the drive to Fort Lauderdale.  Jay's grandparents are so excited that we will be coming for a visit!  There isn't too much to do with little ones in their area but we will be ready to just lay low.  They have a condo with a pool & we will go to the beach.

I have only been to Dis.ney 1 time before for 2 quick days.  Any advice welcome!!!  Please!!!  I need help.  I don't really know what we should do on our trip.  We will be purchasing the meal plan and booking a few character dinners for the kids.  I also want to bring Savannah to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique.