WHAT!?!?!?!?!?

Is this for real??? Could it be???? No, it really cannot, but it looks like it!!!! I know that you have checked in with me daily for MONTHS ON END anxiously awaiting my fantastic blog posts. And NOW the day has ARRIVED!!! Ok, so I know that you have all actually just given up on me, so now I think my blog has turned into me just jabbering and putting my own thoughts onto a website. Now, I do have some friends that are actually continuing to update their blogs (ahem....Jenny). There are others that have maybe not updated as much lately themselves (that would be an elbow nudge to you, Ashley). Then there are some that have just gone the Shutterfly way (HEATHER). OK, enough of the little pokes at nameless people. On to my post!

I don't really have much to share. I think that everyone that reads my blog knows my life......I don't have one! In all reality, I have been very busy! Now that Ella is out of the hospital, I spend my time making up for all the time I missed cuddling her, the time I missed with Wyatt and the boys when I was with Ella at Childrens, and catching up on school. Did you notice that house cleaning was not on that list! So, spring is here (at least the calendar says that it is but not the weather) and I have decided to try to get myself in order. I have found a website via pinterest (that places has turned into my main search engine!) and the author is kind of inspiring. Mainly because her house and life are outragously organized. Reminds me of Bree from Desperate Housewives! Even her blog is freakishly organized!! I might add that she does this on top of being a mother and an RN so not another stay at home mom blog (not that there is a thing wrong with it, but I don't have the same amount of time as they do!) It is titled A Bowl Full of Lemons. Check it out!!! Lets get down to the nitty gritty of my post this fine evening. She has challenges and one is a 14 week whole house challenge. Something I NEED!!! My house is a war zone!! She also has a Daily Cleaning Challenge. But I need to declutter first!

Needless to say, I have not started! I am going to! But PLEASE say a little prayer that I don't tear apart my house in the process!!

Birth Story- Brody Scott

Oh Mr. Brody!!! How uneventful his birth story is/was!!! Thank goodness!! I might point out that Wyatt and I did find out what we were having but chose to not share this information with anyone, except the doctor. My doctor, Dr. Thompson was moving to Colorado and informed me at about 6 months pregnant that I would have to have another doctor do the repeat cseaction for my little man. I had it all worked out to have Dr. Wiley deliver the newest addition. At one of my appointments, Dr. Thompson was running a bit late. Once he came in he was very apologetic and was telling me about how he just had a meeting that he was getting out of and that he was telling the staff that he would be coming back to Kansas one day a week through out the beginning of April. I quickly asked if he would then be able to do my surgery. I was pleasantly surprised when he said that he would be thrilled to get that on his schedule! That was about the most exciting part of Brody's birth!! On April 8, 2008, Wyatt and I woke up super early and got to the hospital. I was supposed to go back to surgery at 8:00am. We were all waiting patiently for the doctor to show up and we were starting to get a little concerned when the 8:00 time came and we still had not seen him. Apparently, he had the wrong time down, but no problems because he got there about 8:30am.
They had me walk to the OR where  I got all prepped for surgery. I had a horrible time handling the spinal block and my blood pressure kept crashing causing me to pass out, but otherwise, all went great! As soon as the little man was out, I felt BETTER!!! Brody came out crying up a storm!! He was a healthy baby weighing in at 7 pounds 9 ounces and was 20 inches long. They gave him to Wyatt and got to hold him the rest of the stay in the OR. Once it was time to go to recovery, I got to hold him as they wheeled me down the hall and for the next hour in recovery. The entire time he did nothing but cry!!! A mom can get over that when she sees how adorable her baby is!!!

 

Brody 1 day old!!

 

 

Brody is growing to be quite the little man! He got over his constant crying and has turned it into a constant smile! He loves hanging out with his daddy and being on the go. He talks ALL THE TIME, just like his mama. He is also the tiny version of his Grandpa Scott.

Birth Story- Haden Wyatt Althof

I decided that I want to share Ella's birth and NICU story since it is part of her forever. I was thinking about how it would be a great way to document her beginning. Then I decided I should document the boys birth stories. So I am going to start with my 1st baby boy, Haden. He is such an amazing kiddo! He is so calm and laid back all the while being super quiet and shy. He makes friends very easily as he is just as nice as can be to everyone. He loves to hang out with his dad and play games with both of us. How did Wyatt and I ever get so lucky to have such an amazing kid!!

Here is his birth story!

On December 12, 2005, Wyatt and I woke up early to head to St. Francis Hospital to have our very first child. I will NEVER forget that morning. We both barely got sleep the night before. The alarm went off around 4:30 and we popped out of our bed and fixed me a LARGE bowl of Cheerios. I remember the nurses telling me to make sure I eat since I would not get anything else until the baby arrives. Had I known what I was in for, I would have gone for a much larger breakfast. Wyatt and I took the longest ride to Topeka. We could hardly wait to see if we were parents to a boy or a girl. We got to the hospital at 6:00am. We got quickly shuffled into the labor and delivery room where I got changed and jumped into the bed and hooked up to the monitors. We were surprised to find out that I was having some great contractions that were occurring every 2 to 3 minutes apart. I was SHOCKED!! I did not feel a thing. Then the time came……I had to get my IV. I ended up handling it well even when the nurse did not get it capped off and the blood came out the end. A new mother should never her a nurse say “uh oh” while shoving a needle in her arm. About 8:00am Dr. Dallas Thompson came in to get the day started. He looked at the monitors and checked me out and saw that I was making some progress since I last saw him, so we opted to break my water. Wyatt and I waited a bit and then decided to take a stroll. Wyatt was such a trooper as I made him walk for at least 2 hours with my IV and monitors. He was a nervous wreck. Every 2 minutes, I would stop and breath and he would ask if I was in pain, did I need the epidural, did I want to lie down. He was really a good sport! This continued for quite a while with the occasional cervix checks in-between. Around 4:00pm, Dr. Thompson came back in and noticed that the contractions had spaced out and were not strong. This is when he thought that we needed to intervene and get me back into labor. This meant Pitocin. I should really point out that at this point I am thirsty and all I am getting is ice. This is when I decided to get the epidural and settled in for a nap. Around 6:00pm, nothing had happened, so they really upped the Pitocin and the nurse got to come sit by my side. Oddly enough, I felt that I needed to entertain her!! Then at 7:00pm came the new nurse for the night and I felt that she needed entertained if she was going to be by my side. Somewhere during this time, Wyatt and I tried to get some sleep. By 9:30, I was noticing that I was really starting to get uncomfortable, as in the epidural was no longer working and was starting to hurt. I had come to the conclusion that I have not felt any pain yet, so I was not going to start. They got me all fixed up and I was felling less pain, but now my stomach started to hurt. About this time it was 10:30ish. The nurse so kindly offered me a sprite. After all of this time I had been thirsty, she offers me a sprite. HELL YEAH I want a sprite. I was thirsty!!! Ice chips just did not cut it!! Then it got intense. The baby’s heart rate was dropping. They had me turn from left to right and put on oxygen. Then they decided to call the doctor. He came in and very calmly explained that the baby was just no longer handling labor and that it was time to get the baby out. People started moving very fast and getting me all ready to go and within a short period I was in the OR having a baby. I barely remember any of it, but I remember very clearly hearing the doctor say, “We have a boy!” I can remember being relieved, happy, overwhelmed, and tired all at the same time. They got him all bundled up and let Wyatt hold him for a few minutes then off he went to make sure he was ok. At 11:31pm on December 12, 2005, Haden Wyatt Althof joined the world weighing in at 6 pounds 14 ounces and was 21 inches long. He was the most beautiful little guy I had ever seen. 

Quotes

Move Over Campbell's

here comes the Althof's.......

Wyatt and I put our skills and tastes together last night and made tomato juice! Wyatt really is into gardening tomatoes and I really like look at recipes and we both like tomato juice, so what better than to try it! However, this summer put a little damper on Wyatt's tomato plants, so with a little help from the Fletcher boys, we were able to have enough tomatoes to try out our new canning project. My mom gave Wyatt a juicer for MY kitchenaid at Christmas, so we have been patiently waiting to juice some tomatoes. Last night we cut, boiled and happily juiced our tomatoes and can out with several quarts of juice. It was like Christmas all over again. Nothing is better than the satisfaction that we were able to complete the tasty task. It may not be Campbell's but we are certainly thrilled with our end product!

Creativity

Do you ever have those days when you feel super creative??? You think that you can make anything out of everything?? You can just whip out whatever on a sewing machine (yet you have no idea how to put in the bobbin)??? Then you may know what I was thinking. I have it in my mind that I can whip out a few curtains,  a bed skirt and a crib sheet out of this.

Stay tuned, I counted that I have 50 days to turn this fabric into something remarkable. Let's see if I can do it. I might even take some pictures along the way. Could be fun!!!!

Bring on the tooth fairy!!!

It just amazes me how fast time flies! My baby boy is growing up way to fast. Leave it to a tooth to make this mom tear up a bit! 

Haden has had a loose tooth for a little while now. I will NOT touch it, look at it or obviously pull it out for him. I am just not that mom! It makes me freak out just a little! We were at a friends house the other day going through little girl clothes, and he came up and wanted me to look at his tooth. It was barely hanging in his mouth. YUCK!! I told him that my friend loves to pull teeth out and would do it for him. He did not want to because he wanted to show it to his dad. We get home later that day, he shows his tooth to Wyatt. Wyatt told Haden to go wash his hands and then just give it a pull. again.........YUCK!!! Haden comes barreling inside, up the stairs and gets the funniest look on his face. He was wiggling that thing all the way in, and it fell out. I have always known that Haden is just like Wyatt, but never realized just how much! He is thrilled about this new part of his life, however, you would never know it. He is so laid back and easy going about the whole thing. When I asked him what was up, he just looks at me and says, "Yeah, I just lost my tooth. Pretty cool, huh. I think I need to put it in a bag." There was more jumping up and down from his mother!!!!! Wyatt and Haden both were very laid back about it and very much matter of fact. You lose a tooth, the tooth fairy comes, you grow a new tooth. End of story. 

 Haden at 10 months. Still does not have any teeth!!! 

Haden at 6 years and missing his very first tooth!!!