Labor Update # 8

The house is clean, laundry done, baby changing stations set up all over the house, baby sitter set up for Abby, and food in the fridge.  All is ready for Baby Susanna to arrive. (Her parents are going to call her Cate, but I like Susanna Banana Danna.)

We leave at 6 am Monday morning for the hospital.  Callie is going to be induced.  She is in way to much discomfort and cramping too.  So we are going to move this along.

Pictures will be posted sometime tomorrow.

Labor Update #7

Callie had her membrane swept by the doctor on Wednesday. After that she had hard contractions for a few hours and then quit again.  We thought she would do something within 24 hours.

I can see the baby moving around.  I watch something (hand or foot) move across Callie' stomach and the whole mass shifts like Susanna Cate is doing Gymnastics in there. Funny.

Andy took her yesterday to Sam's Club to walk around and try to get things moving and stock up on stuff for the weekend. Last night Callie, Laura, and I went to PF Changs for dinner.  Andy opted to stay home with Abby and play.

Spring Break has started for Mt. Pisgah, the school where they teach.  Maybe Callie will stop stressing and just relax.

We are going to the Salon today to get my hair cut.  Getting out and about may help her, who knows. 

The doctor's office called and set up her induction for Monday a 6 am.  If you voted on the poll then we were all wrong.  However, I am guessing the weight.  Since we have big babies in this family I am guessing 8.8 pounds.  Andy is guessing 10 (his birth weight).   What do you guess?

Labor Update # 6

Poor Callie.  When we got home last night after going to the doctor and having her membranes swept she was doing labor pretty well.  I went to bed early knowing that I would be awakened in the middle of the night to head to the hospital.  But then she came to a halt, again.  The doctor didn't want to induce until after Sunday.  That is when she will be 39 weeks.  Callie is discouraged.

I really can't blame her.  She has worked so hard with the start-n-stop labor.  Her hips are in much pain too and she is having indigestion a lot.  I think she is more worn out than anything.  She is also stressing about many things.

Her last class for teaching was yesterday and all her work is done so I think she can start to destress and just relax.  I am doing all the house stuff so she can just be waited on. Another destresser.  Whatever we can do to help her relax will help I think.

Labor Update #5

We went to the doctor this afternoon.  After several days Callie is dialated to 3.  The doctor "swept" her memrane to speed things up.  If she doesn't do something they will induce next Wednesday.  I'm not sure she can go through another week of this.  She is really tired of working so hard.  At least she is getting some sleep during the day. So we wait again.

Labor Update # 4

Callie is still going very low.  She is having contractions but nothing that would pop a kid out in a few hours.  She has a doctors appointment this afternoon and she is asking the doctor to help get this process sped up.  We are anxious but willing to be patient too.  The problem is that Callie is so exhausted.  It is a lot of work to do labor, especially this long. It will be interesting to see if she has increased her cms.

In the meantime, I am enjoying my granddaughter, Abby.  She is adorable.  Callie puts her hair in braids every day.  It is so pretty. 

She is also a good eater and loves broccolli.  I made broccolli cheese soup and homemade buttermilk biscuits yesterday.  She downed three bowls and ate some of her mom's also.  Glad she likes veggies.

Abby is turning two on March 7.  If you read the previous blog you will know we had her birthday early.  I got out the letter card game and she can name almost all her letters. She knows what sounds they make as well.  She is learning out to spell her name and can sing the ABC song.  Such a smart kid.

Spending special time with her while there is not baby to distract is fun. She is an amazing little girl for sure.

No Labor? Throw a Party!

Since Callie isn't delivering a baby we decided to have Abby's birthday party early.  Spring break is when her actual birthday is.  None of her little friends would be here so we are having it now. 

Callie decided to have a "Tea Party".  I wasn't so sure about this for a two year old and her friends. Being adventurous we decided to give it a try.  We went shopping for Kid Friendly food but tried to incorporate some healthy stuff in there too.  I am for the "It's a party so junk it all the way!!!!" kind of party, but moms these days are much more consiencous than I was so we did our best. 

We made celery filled with peanut butter and a fish cracker stuck on top.  Very kid, very cool. We made crackers with cream cheese, topped with a cucumber slice, olives for eyes, and carrots thinnly shaved for a mouth.  They were cute but not a fave with the kids.  We had cheese sandwiches.  We filled bowls with fish crackers and olives.  Those did well, of course.

Callie found these stacker servers for kids.  They worked perfect. I worked all afternoon on mini red velvet cupcakes topped with cream cheese frosting and sprinkles.  They look nice on the little plastic pink plates.  Callie only had a pan that baked twelve at a time.  Not ideal as it took along time to get them all baked. Sure tasted good though and they were a big hit with the kids.

I bough these very awesome ceramic tea sets.  The kids loved those too. 

We had hats that someone gave Callie and all the kids wore hats and some long elegant gloves.  Made for cute pictures.

Callie had a friend make the cutest fondant cake with a purse, necklace (made out of kixs) and lipstick.  It was yummy.

Abby made out like a bandit.  She got the coolest toys.  Lucky two year old.  Work for mommy to clean it all up.

We sent extra cake home in darling "to go" boxes. A great way to get rid of cake.

All in all, it was a success.  Now we hope the chocoate will induce Susanna Cate to be born!!! Come on baby, let's party.

Labor Update #3

Same ol', same ol'!  Though Callie's contractions are harder, she is still starting and stopping. She went to bed really early last night.  She is trying to keep up on the rest.  When she had Abby two years ago she was exhausted from the long labor and staying awake from the excitement of having her first baby.  Funny how we learn our lesson after going through it once.

It is nice to be here.  I am happy to be helping out.  I keep up on the laundry, cooking, and house cleaning.  Callie just loves having a personal maid.  Maybe that is why she wanted me to come early.

So we are going shopping again.  There is supposed to be this cute Ma & Pa store called "The Dancing Bear" that has tea sets for kids.  We are going to see if we can find a couple sets for Abby's birthday party this afternoon.

Labor Update #2

Waiting.....waiting....waiting......"I hate waiting"

Callie was having labor last night around 9 pm.  She started keeping track on excel.  I decided to go to bed and get some rest in case we had to get up in the middle of the night.  Woke up at 7 am.  All stopped, AGAIN!  This daughter of mine really makes much work out of having a baby.  Does anyone else go this long in labor?

When I had my three kids I had long labors.  The first was 18 hours, the second was 20, and the third ws 22 hours.  I was exhausted.  I am not sure how Callie handles all of this pain.  I know that her muscles are stretched to the point of tearing and her ligaments are maxed.  She is also having some gaul bladder issues. 

I hope she starts going soon so she can get some relief.

Labor Update

There is no labor.  She has totally stopped.  What gives? Obviously not her womb.

We decided to go to chuch today.  I took a bunch of pictures of my Abby girl.  She is so photogenic!  She was such a good girl in Sabbath School.  She sits quietly until the teacher gives her something to do and then she does it exactly right.  All the other kids are out of their chairs, screaming when they have to give their toy back to the teacher so she can go on to the next thing. Then the parents comment on her hair, done in french braids by mommy, and how behaved she is.  Of course!  She is my granddaughter, silly!

I loved her "riding on the horsie" and singing.  I don't know where they got these stick horses but if you squeeze the ear you can hear it clip clopping and neighing.  So cute!

All Stop

I don't know if it was a way to get me here sooner or what, but last night Callie stopped her labor.  We went shopping today and walked around the campus at Mt. Pisgah twice.  It was a terribly uncomfortable walk for Callie, but it did start up the contractions again, albeit very light ones.  I am still hoping that she has this baby this weekend.  Waiting....waiting.....waiting.

In Labor

I am suddenly in Ashville NC.  My daughter, Callie, has been in labor since yesterday.  Our women are known for laboring a very long time....several days.  Callie is exhausted.  When she told me that she was in labor I decided to change my plane ticket and come early.  I am going to try and get some rest so that when she is ready I can be a good secondary coach. 

Andy is the primary coach and I will take direction from him.  He is a great hubby, dad, and son-in-law.  He is so wonderful to let me be a part of their sweet growing family. It is such a wonderful experience to watch my grandchildren be born and the joy on the parents faces as they see their new arrival for the very first time.

Will post again when I have news.  Keep her in your prayers.

Happy Birthday Casey

Today is Casey's birthday.  She is 28.  I can't believe my baby girl is 28 and has two beautiful little boys of her own.  She grew up far to fast.

We had a wonderful lunch party at the Bistro Rialto in Alamosa.  It is a nice restaurante run by Kent and Sandy.  They know Casey is vegetarian so they made a special eggplant lasagna today just for her.  It was very tasty!

We also had chocolate moose cheesecake and Tiramisu. You really can't have a birthday party or party of any kind without chocolate can you?

Sebby, Davy, and I made special birthday cards for Mommy.  I took pictures of them holding a red heart that said, "I love you Mommy".  Then we printed them off and put them in a card.  Each boy signed it for her and added their own special touches to the card.  Of course she said she was going to keep those cards FOREVER!

We had the flower shop deliver a balloon bouquet to the Bistro.  Casey really liked it.  Then when I went to pay for the balloons after lunch the flower lady gave me five roses for free.  They were left over from Valentine's day and she didn't want to throw them away. Score!!!

On the way home Casey and I talked about how nice it is to do something special on your birthday.  When we are kids it feels like such a wonderful day with it's own special feelings.  When we get older we stop doing the party things so much, because, well I guess we try to talk ourselves into believing that birthday parties are just for kids.  We decided no matter how old we get, we still like parties on our birthdays.  Why not? Life is to short to get rid of parties, don't you think?

Valentine Breakfast

This morning Sebby and I made a Valentine breakfast for everyone.  We made banana hearts and potato hearts.  We fried up the potatoes with red sweet bell peppers, onions, fresh garlic, and cilantro.  It looked very pretty on the plate.

We also made french toast and topped it with fresh blackberries and our heart bananas.  As you can see Sebby enjoyed it. I think everyone else did too.  Even if they didn't it was sure fun to make.

Hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day!!!

Valentine's Day and Getting Well

Sebby and Davy have both been sick.  If you have been following my blog you will know what they have had.  Tomorrow is Valentine's Day.  We gave out our cards  and gifts tonight. The boys really enjoyed getting and giving cards.  They are feeling so much better today.  I think they are finally getting well and Valentine's Day is a good day to be well.


I got beautiful flowers from Don.  The boys gave Casey wonderful flowers and cards.  Grandpa took Sebby shopping tonight, just the two of them so he could pick out something special for Mommy.  I like the fact that Don is teaching his boys how to appreciate Mommy and learn the joy of giving to others.

Denice got flowers from Greg.  He sent her flowers in a box. Sebby helped her open the box.  Denice helped Sebby put water in the vase and cut and arrange the flowers. Our house is full of flowers and good smells.


The boys got little gifts from Mommy.  Sebby got a painting set that he will get to use tomorrow and Davy got a little bear with a heart.  He is hugging it in his crib right now. Sebby got a card from Grammy and Grampa that sings "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star".  I can hear him in bed opening and closing it, singing with the song, and showing it to Davy who is laying in a crib next to the bed.  Very cute.

I love days that encourage us to tell each other that we love each other.  Sometimes we take this for granted and it is nice to get hugs, hear the words, and show and get appreciation.  I think this is what God intended every day to be like. I want to be better at this.

Casey is trying to put the boys to bed.  She reads to them and Davy is getting into his book.  All is well with the world tonight.I'm going to send an e card to my little Abby.  I hope she likes it.

Missionary Doctors

These are the missionary doctors of tomorrow.  Very handsome!  On the left is Pastor Jim Moon's son, Sam.  On the right is my grandson Sebby.  They are dressed up in Sabbath School as doctors.  Sabbath School is fun because they get to do all kinds of stuff and the teachers have wonderful interactive programs.  Sebby looks forward to "Say Good Morning."  It is a song they sing in Sabbath School and everyone goes around shaking hands. That is what he calls Sabbath School. When we drive by the church during the week he says, "There's Say Good Morning!" He enjoys seeing his friends each week too.  

I could take a million pictures of all the cute things they do and what they get to dress up as.  I am a proud grandparent.  What can I say?  Enjoy!

RSV And The Sickies

Worried about the H1N1 scare Casey and I took the boys to get their vaccinations.  I don't think the swine flu was as crazy as everyone hyped it to be.  But we still face cold and flu season.  Even thought the boys don't go out much in winter because it is just to miserably cold they still caught colds.  Casey and I keep the boys well dressed and socked, when in the house.  They don't go out without a coat and hat and "glubs", as Sebby calls them.  I even wipe down the grocery cart handle when at the store with those disinfectant wipe thingies they provide at the door. Plus I carry those in my purse to wipe off stuff they might touch at other places where I think there might be mucho germs.

It is dry here in Alamosa and makes it easier for anyone to catch cold.  But with kids, if they don't get over it quickly, a cold can turn into a respiratory illness that is a pain to kick.  Sebby has asthma so this cold he caught threw him into an asthma attack.  Casey knows the regimen for asthmatic children so we were able to avoid the hospital and take care of him at home. Fortunately, I own an oxygen company and was able to get her all the prescribed machines and oxygen easily. Sebby is doing much better and running around like his old self.

Davy is in the throws of RSV.  Respiratory Syncytial Virus is a very common virus that leads to cold-like symptoms.  But in very small babies it can be a problem.  Fortunately, Davy is a strong 11.5 month old.  Though he is miserable, he is able to stay home.  Again the prescribed oxygen and nebulizer treatments are being used.  He is on Amoxicillin.  But that is because he has a slight ear infection.

Casey is staying at our house for a few days.  It is easier than getting the kids out in the cold every morning to bring them here for the day.  She has her old bedroom set up like a children's hospital ward.  She is a conscientious mother.  She makes sure they get the medications at the right time.  She is organized at keeping all the medications separate so we don't have cross contamination.  I am running everything through the washer or dishwasher sanitation cycles and spraying everything down with Lysol.  Lots of handwashing too.  My hands are really drying out.

I guess you just can't avoid getting sick even when you try your hardest to protect.  I also know that it is a natural way for the body to build antibodies.  Still, having two kids sick at the same time is very stressful.  Getting a full night of sleep is impossible especially for Casey who gets up in the middle of the night to nurse the boys.  Hopefully, we can get a good nights sleep very soon!

Glad we found out what RSV was.  At first it scared us, but now that we know how to treat it we are fine.  Davy already looks better and is resting with much less congestion.  Hopefully he can kick this quickly and be back to "Mr. Happy" again.

The Rocking Chair

My little Grandsons, Sebby and Davy, have been sick for the last week.  Sebby has asthma brought on by a cold that Davy caught.  Davy's cold has resulted in a minor ear infection.  Both are on antibiotics and fever reducers.  I hate to see them sick.  When they are down, I am down.  I want them to be well and healthy and happy.  But even when they are down, I enjoy rocking them in the rocking chair and singing the rocking chair song:

 Rocking in the rocking chair

Rocking in the rocking chair

Rocking in the rocking chair

All day long.

Rocking with Grammy

Rocking with Sebby,

Rocking in the Rocking chair

All day long.

Many hurts and owies are comforted in the Rocking Chair. It is a place of comfort and security.  My boys like to get their fuzzy soft blankets and climb on my lap and cuddle while we softly sing.  When the hurt is over they hop down and go about their play as if nothing bad ever happened. Sometimes they would fall asleep and I would not want to put them down but hold them for as long as I could without my arms or legs going to sleep.

This is a fond memory for me.  I know that my boys will always have comforting memories of the Rocking Chair and our little song. I don't think I will ever get rid of that chair now.  Maybe I will pass it on to one of them when they have their own children and they can carry on the comforting rides in the Rocking Chair.

Happy Birthday

Today Sebby and I made a birthday cake.  Of course it is heart shaped because - guess what month it is? Casey's birthday is February 16.  Today we had a party at the office for all the February birthdays.  That meant two people.

We decided to make chocolate because that is Casey's favorite kind.  We put raspberry filling in the middles (we made a four layer cake) and then frosted it.  Sebby wanted to put little pearls around the middle.  It came out cute.  I have enjoyed this week of cooking with Sebby.  We have had fun projects and it has given us memories.  Sebby's favorite part?  Taking pictures! Wonder what we will do next week?

Pizza Party

I have always wanted to make home-made pizza dough.  So I went on line and found Mitch's Basic Pizza Dough recipe.  Sebby and I decided to make two different kinds, one with regular pizza sauce and the other with an Alfredo sauce.

It was fun putting it together.  We followed Mitch's recipe and added to the dough 1 Tablespoon dried Rosemary.  Really added a nice flavor.  Once the dough had risen we took it out and cut it in half.  We oiled the pans, rolled out the dough, and then patted it onto the pans.  We let the dough rest for 20 minutes while we got the toppings ready.

The first one had Alfredo sauce.  I made my own but you can used pre-made.  I used fresh grated Parmesan cheese.  We spread on the sauce, added sliced Roma tomatoes, fresh and lightly cooked spinach that was squeezed dry, and chopped sweet red pepper.  Sebby sprinkled the cheese on top.

The second was pizza sauce with pineapple on one side and black olives and green chilies on the other.  We used the mixed cheddar and Monterey Jack cheese  on top.

We heated the oven to 425, popped the pizzas in and baked them for 30 minutes.  They had good flavor, but the Alfredo one was a little doughy in the middle.  Next time I will spread it with olive oil and bake it for 15 minutes before putting the toppings on.  I will have the toppings hot so that only the cheese needs to melt and brown a little.  Maybe that will help it not be soft in the middle.

Sebby is getting to be quite the cook now. Sure is fun doing this with grandkids.  Seems more fun with them than with my own kids.  Wonder why?

Train Cakes

My grandson, Sebby, loves trains.  I asked him what he wanted for breakfast.  After yesterdays fun train project still in his memory He exclaimed, "A train cake!"  After thinking on that a bit, we decided to get out the pancake mix and make a train pancake. Sebby added the right amount of water to the mix and beat it with a wisk.

We heated up the griddle, sprayed it with cooking spray, and he spooned out some batter onto the hot griddle.  I shaped the batter into a rectangle.  After that was cooked we set it on the plate.  We cooked a round pancake and cut it in half.  One half we put for the front of the engine and the other half for the cab on top.  Then we cooked a cloud shaped one for the smoke.

After assembling the main part Sebby cut (with a butter knife) banana wheels and head lights.  He also cut banana windows and a door.  He put raisins for people in the window and bolts on the wheels.  Then we poured syrup on the bottom of the plate for "tracks".

Of course we had to take pictures.  We would have saved this work of art to show Mommy but it disappeared quickly.  Sorry, pictures will have to do.

Never Out Of Season

Denice gave Sebby a Gingerbread Train kit to put together for a Christmas present.  In all we had going on it got shoved to the back of the pantry. Last night I was thinking about what I could do with the boys today.  Suddenly I remembered the train.

This morning when they came over I gave them their usual bath, dressing, and breakfast. Afterward Sebby and I cleaned up breakfast together and got out the Gingerbread Train.

We carefully laid out the pieces.  The "cow catcher" was broken in three places but everything else was in good shape.  Following the instructions we made icing "glue", separated the candies, got out piping bags, and readied the sprinkles. We were able to put it together and even glued the "cow catcher" back together so you could't tell it was broken.  It looks great!  We got licorice to make tracks and gum drops for trees and squirted "glue" all over them for snow.It was so much fun, and Sebby hung in there the whole time and even said, "Thank you for the train!"

Taking pictures was fun too.  We put the timer button into action and had another project.  Getting the picture just right.  "Let me see it!" he would say excitedly.  Then, "Do it again!"  Laughing and giggling we finished our photos and came to post them on my blog.

Some things may seem out of season, but making a Gingerbread Train was a fun activity.  Fun is never out of season.

Winter Wonder

I had a ball all day taking picture of the beauty created by the fog, snow, and cold.  I am glad we put our bird feeder out for the winter.  I have really enjoyed the wild life that come to find food.  Not just birds as you can tell from my previous blogs.  I love sharing them with you too.  It amazes me that God is so wonderful and makes every season have it's beauty.  I really don't like cold.  I like warm and being outside.  But I live in Alamosa and the weather here doesn't permit that.  So, might as well enjoy those things in nature that are there for all to see.

I am a very amateur photographer.  I have a Nikon DX40 camera. I really need to take a class but for now it is kind of hit-n-miss with the picture taking.  I figure if I take a bunch of them I will come up with one or two that will be descent.  I got lucky today when I went outside to take pictures of the white trees.  I was standing next to the feeder when the nut hatch and chickadees decided they didn't care if I was there or not, they were hungry.  So I was able to get super close pics.  What a hoot!

Name That Bird

Can you name this bird.  I thought I knew what it was but no I'm not so sure.

My mom and I looked in our bird books and are still having a time of it trying to figure out who this little guy is.  So if you can tell me, TELL ME! I'm really, really, really, wanting to know.

Narnia

Woke up this morning to a beautiful sight.  Looks like Narnia.  Real beauty even in what seems to be stark.  I wish I could get a real close shot of the snow flakes that are hanging onto the branches.  I bet it would be awesome.