While I Was Blogging....

While I was blogging my last post, Baby Nick provided some fabulous photo opportunities.
First, he got a hold of Daddy's Fireside coffee mug from last night and decided to drink the dregs from the bottom. Of course, he has not yet learned the fine art of drinking out of a cup without a lid! But it makes for a great picture!
And then he did something he has never done before. Since I was on the computer and Baby Nick wouldn't stay out of trouble, I put him in the bouncer. He bounced for awhile, enjoying himself. And then he took a breather, so I thought, when I turned around to check on him...he was ASLEEP! I was so surprised...he has never bounced himself to sleep before! Isn't he so cute?!!

The Boys

The boys continue to grow so quickly. Baby Nick will be one year old in only 12 days! I can hardly believe it. I really thought he would be walking by now...but it seems that he will wait like Joey did. He loves to walk around the room holding Joey's hands, even though Joey usually goes too fast, but he still shows no signs of even wanting to stand on his own.

Joey seems to be going through a growth spurt as well. He is continually complaining about leg and "jug" pain. ("Jug" is supposed to be jaw!) The only thing I can think of is that he is having growing pains. I remember that I had some of the most horrible growing pains when I was a tween, so it seems to reason that Joey would experience some real pain too. I feel bad about it, there is nothing I can do about it. He woke up the other night because his feet hurt. So I had him lay back down while I rubbed his feet for a minute.

Joey is favoring a couple key phrases lately, neither that make Nick or I very happy. When he gets really upset at us he will demand that we, "Go away; leave me alone." The other one is, "I'm so frustrated!" This one is both good and bad. It is good that he can identify and express how he is feeling in words rather than inappropriate action. I want him to feel like he can always tell me how he honestly feels. However, he says it ALL the time. Anytime I don't let him do what he wants, tell him to do something he doesn't want to do, or correct him for something he has done wrong (which is about ninety percent of his waking hours, as he is three years old) he lets me know that he is FRUSTRATED. I wish I could spell it like he says it, though...it's quite amusing. The other day he started saying, "This is gotta be adicalous!" I don't know where he heard the phrase, "This is ridiculous!", but he is so cute when he says it.
I know that I have told you how determined Baby Nick is to get up the stairs. He has, so far, gotten through every barrier we put in place (as we have no way of anchoring down a gate that latches.) As you can see in the picture, we try to put an obstacle in front of the gate that hinders his access, such as this play table. It's not too difficult to move, but it does slow him down. But after awhile, he just decided to scoot it out of his way. So Nick decided to lay his fairly heavy toolbox in front of the table so that Baby Nick can't scoot it out of the way. Well, this gave Baby Nick the added two inches he needed to easily climb up on top of the play table (something which has interested him for the last month or so.)
You can see how pleased he is with himself, that he finally managed to get on top of the table. Now he has the option to dive head first onto the stairs. That is really comforting!
Then, later that day, Joey left the remainder of his grilled cheese sandwich (we have gourmet dinners all the time) on the table within Baby Nick's reach. So he sat there on the floor munching down that grilled cheese sandwich like I have never seen him do before! It wasn't until the end that he was taking bites much too big for him and started gagging....so he really did pretty good.

Anyway...there is not much going on here. Nick will be leaving tomorrow afternoon to go to Fairbanks with his boss for a couple days. We decided, since his boss was going, and because they were only going to be up for a couple days, that the boys and I would stay home. It is a very long drive with two small kids to do twice in three days. So he will be gone until sometime on Friday.

Thank You Mom And Dad

On Mom and Dad's last day here, Mom and I went shopping so she could pick out something for Baby Nick's first birthday (coming up quickly). When we were out on the road, she said that she also wanted to find something as a "thank-you" gift for Nick and I. She made a suggestion of food storage containers (as we are sadly lacking in that department) and I whole-heartedly agreed. We found what we wanted, brought it home, and put it in the only cupboard where we had room. Unfortunately...that cupboard is on ground level. As Baby Nick knows how to open the cupboards this does not help me in keeping the house clean.
So as you examine the picture above, I just want to send a great BIG "thank-you" to Mom and Dad, for their "thank you"!!

P.S. Mom and Dad, I truly am grateful....I don't want you to think that I was being rude about your gift. I just wanted to show you how my kids like to use your gift. We miss you terribly.

Not Much New

I'm sorry I haven't blogged in a few days. There has not been much going on here, so I haven't had any stories to share. Baby Nick hasn't had a fever for a couple days, but he did get diarrhea again, so we have been dealing with that over the last few days. Yesterday, he was feeling awful and his poor little bootie was so raw he trembled anytime we had to change him. Today he was doing much better, even laughing and getting into mischief. I hope he is on his way back to normal. Between him and Joey (who is still panicking when he has to "go" but can't seem to stop himself) we are up to our eyeballs in stinky diapers.

Nick was invited to go fishing this morning, provided he drove, so the boys and I stayed home from church. I was sorry to miss it, but the timing was good as Baby Nick has not been feeling well. I probably would have kept him home anyway.

I suppose I will try to get to bed early tonight. They boys decided get up before 5am the other day, and I still haven't felt "with it".

Today Was Hard

Today Mom and Dad left....that was hard to see. I was planning to get the boys up so we could all take them to the airport (I hate leaving someone else to say the last goodbye), but Baby Nick was pretty sick yesterday, and neither boy slept well, we decided that the boys and I would stay home while Nick dropped Mom and Dad off at the airport.

I felt bad that Bubba had to "say" good-bye while he was asleep...which is to say that he slept while Nanny and Papa Buddy kissed him good-bye. It was the first thing he asked this morning, when he passed their room and found that the bed was torn apart..."Where's Nanny and Papa?" After telling him that Daddy took them to the airport, because they had to go home, he asked where Daddy was. Not only did he have to deal with Nanny and Papa leaving, he had to deal with Daddy going back to work. He did pretty well, though.

Baby Nick had a fever all day yesterday. Every time we took his temperature, it was higher than the time before, even after giving him Tylenol. As I was getting ready to come up to bed, Nick brought Baby Nick down, very worried as he was hotter than before and was just shaking with fever. I took his temperature and discovered it was just over 104 degrees. I have never had a child with a fever so high. All he could do was whimper. It broke my heart. So we gave him more Tylenol and then I gave him a tepid bath; which was quite unpleasant for him, to say the least. He woke up again about 20 minutes to 4am and his temp was down to 102. I took it again when he woke up at 6am and it was down to 99.5. I was breathing easier. After feeding him, he fell back asleep in my arms, and I took him upstairs so Nanny and Papa could say good-bye before I laid him back down.

Then it was my turn to say good-bye. They made it quick; no use dragging it out knowing that it would be difficult. I went back upstairs and laid down in bed with Joey, hoping to get some sleep, as I didn't sleep at all throughout the night. I was quite impressed with myself that I only allowed myself to cry for half an hour; then I dropped back off to sleep. I was very thankful that Joey slept until 9am. Baby Nick didn't get back up until 10:30am. When I came back downstairs with Joey, I kept seeing Mom and Dad in every area of the house; the kitchen where they spent most of their vacation doing dishes, in the empty garbage can where Mom would insist Dad take the garbage out, in the mugs that Mom brought me as a gift. I kept looking over to the couch expecting to see them snuggled on the couch.

We played it real low-key today, just hoping that nothing would set me off emotionally. Baby Nick took a four hour nap in the afternoon, and Bubba slept for a little over an hour until I came in after he woke up and laid down with him again...he and I both fell asleep for another hour and a half.

But Mom and Dad have had the hardest day. As they were ready to land in Seattle (for a lay over until they left for Portland) the visibility was so poor they couldn't land. So they were diverted to Yakima for refueling, missing their connecting flight to Portland. After getting to Seattle, they were rerouted to another flight leaving at 6-something (nearly three hours after they were supposed to have been in Portland.) But, for some reason, that flight got canceled. Mom called again to give an update and said that they were rerouted to another flight leaving at 9:45pm. She said that she wouldn't call again, as it would be late when they got in, but that she would call tomorrow to let us know they were safe and home. Imagine my surprise when I got a call from her just after 9pm (10pm their time). This time, they were so close. They were in the plane, engines running; when....flat tire. So their projected arrival home was delayed yet again....nearly eight hours past their original arrival time. I hope that they were finally able to get home and sleep away the effects of this horrible travel day. I told Mom they should have just stayed here another few hours instead of hanging around an airport all day!

On the upside, Baby Nick finally started saying "mama" on Sunday (7/15/07). He is not identifying me as "mama" yet, but he is at least making the sound! It is so endearing. After having a horrible day yesterday, he had a much better day today. He only had one fever today, and that wasn't until Nick got home from work. It was only at 100 degrees, which is so much more manageable than 104. He still wasn't feeling himself; more snuggling, less independent play, but he is getting closer. He even laughed a couple times today. Hopefully tomorrow, he will be even more up to par.

Since the boys are asleep, and since it has been an emotionally draining day, I should get to bed earlier than my norm and get some good sleep tonight.

Hatcher's Pass

Today was a beautiful day! It was in the mid seventies, clear blue skies. Nick took Mom and Dad and the boys up to Hatcher's Pass. I stayed home and caught up on some much needed sleep. I was sorry to lose out on the time with Mom and Dad, and to miss out on seeing Hatcher's Pass, but was grateful for the sleep I got.

Hatcher's Pass is, as the name suggests, a pass and not a destination. But there are some really lovely things to see along the pass. They stopped at an old gold mine and walked around, taking pictures. We will go back some time, take a picnic.

Here are the boys, posing for a picture.
This is a great picture! Isn't Mom gorgeous? She looks so wonderful surrounded by her grandsons.
What a beautiful area!
This was part of the old gold mine. Obviously, the mine hasn't been in operation for many years.
I love how this picture shows how the buildings have settled. It almost seems as if Nick had the camera crooked, until you look at the mountains.

It has been so wonderful having Mom and Dad here. I can hardly believe that our time with them is almost over. It will be hard to see them go, but it will be nice to be able to send our love back with them to those we can not see.

I don't know how realistic it is, but we are hoping to be able to come home some time next summer for a visit. We will have to cram as much visiting in as possible in a short time, if we are able to make it...but it would be amazing to see everyone again.

Last Group

Okay....so this is the last group of pictures for the night. I have been working on getting these all blogged since we got back from the park, but have been interrupted by dinner preparations, dinner, baths for the boys, and general interruptions by the kids. So four hours later, I am finally finishing my blogs for the day!

Is this not the most adorable picture of Jesse and Sarina?!
My Mom and sister Angie recently returned from a mission trip to Haiti. Here is a picture of Angie with one of her daughters, Milouse, whom she is anxiously/patiently waiting to bring her and her sisters home.
And here Angie is with all the kids that were in Haiti with her. Tyson went on the mission trip with them, and the girls (from left to right) are Josiane, Milouse, and Edeline. We are all excited for the three girls to finally be able to come home.

My cousin Angel recently got married. She and her husband, Harry, had a beautiful wedding. I wanted to show off a couple beautiful pictures. Here is Angel and Harry cutting their wedding cake, which was baked and decorated by another cousin, Priscilla (Angel's sister). She did a fantastic job, and Angel looks amazing!

Here is a picture of my cousin Charity and one of her daughters, Reagan, making a funny face. But the reason I wanted to show this picture was because of how much I thought Charity looks like Aunt April here! (For those who don't know; Aunt April is not Charity's mother, so it is not like she is supposed to look like Aunt April.)

I want everyone to know how much you are all incredibly missed and loved. If I could give each one of you a big squeeze right now, I would. For those who live close to Mom and Dad, I will have to be satisfied on giving you a hug through them when they get home.

More Family

The nursing home my Dad (Scott) lives at, set up a field trip to take him, along with Aubrey and her kids, to Enchanted Forest. They had a really good time. Rick-Dad went with them as well, and that is how I ended up with these wonderful pictures.

Here is Aubrey and her kids; Jesse and Sarina. Joey especially misses these cousins, as they are the closest in age. We really enjoyed being able to play with them last summer.
Jesse looks VERY excited to go on this ride!
This is such a cute picture of the kids. They look like they are having a great time.
Jesse looks thrilled with this big, bumpy slide.
Aubrey looked like she had fun; Sarina looks unsure. (Look how beautiful my sister is!)

Pictures of More Family

I miss everyone in my family so much. I miss each of my brothers and sisters (in-laws included), each of my nieces and nephews...I haven't seen a recent picture of most of them in a very long time. So when Mom and Dad came, I was happy to see that there was some recent pictures of those I love so much. Here are some favorites.

Gary and Sarina, sitting on the porch swing. Sarina looks exhausted.
Rachel taking aim with her bow and paint arrow.
Josh, who thinks eating ice cream is more important than talking to his sister so far away! :)
I love this picture of Rina. She is so precious.
And then, you see the humorous side.

Nanny's Pictures

Baby Nick likes going down the slide.
He also likes riding the motorcycle.
I love the expression on Baby Nick's face. This is the first picture I have seen of him that makes me think of Grandpa Paul. I know that he favors the Luty side of the family, but usually I see Nick.....in this photo I see Grandpa Paul.
He looks like a bonifide construction worker on the job, doesn't he?
This is another picture that I like the expression on Baby Nick's face. Besides, there are not many pictures of my boys that I don't like!

Even More Pictures

Bubba helping Baby Nick down the slide.
Baby Nick flying the airplane.
What is it with my boys and sticking fingers in their mouths?
Bubba and Papa Buddy having fun at the park.
What a beautiful baby!

More Of The Same

More pictures from the park.

Nanny enjoying playing with her grandkids.
Nanny trying to get Papa Buddy to have the same fun.
Bob the Builder driving the tractor.
Baby Nick taking a walk around the park.
Baby Nick enjoying the high vantage point.

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures

Here are a bunch of pictures of this and that.

Baby Nick always smiling for Nanny.
Bubba zonked out in the car...Nanny always trying to adjust his head so he was "more comfortable."
After raining all morning, the sun came out, dried up the world and we went to the park for some fun.
Papa Buddy and Baby Nick teetering...
Nanny and Bubba tottering.

Twelve Minus One

I'm sorry that I didn't get these out yesterday like I said I would; by the time I had a chance to blog again, Nick had possession of the computer and didn't relinquish it until after I was in bed and asleep. Here are some pictures of Baby Nick and eleven months old. Twelve months minus one; I can hardly believe it.
He loves the camera! As soon as he sees me getting it out, he starts hamming it up and comes as close to the camera as he can get. That is why many of the pictures of him are up close and personal. I sat down on the floor to get a picture of him, but he wanted to "see the baby" before the picture was even taken. With digital cameras, by the time the picture actually takes, the subject (especially a small child) has changed positions or stopped doing what they were doing to make you want to take a picture in the first place. Baby Nick has also started slinging his jaw to the side when he smiles, so you get this adorably cute crooked smile!
I love this picture! Baby Nick fell so completely in love with Nanny immediately. We just got back from a scenic drive, and every couple minutes, Baby Nick would have to adjust in his car seat until he could see Nanny. He wanted to make sure she was still there, and even if she wasn't looking, he would just sit there and smile at her until she noticed.
Baby Nick has also found a new fascination; sticking his fingers in every orifice of his face. He discovered his nostrils the other day, and you can often see his finger as far up his nose as he can get it. The really sad thing about it, is that after the nose, he usually sticks his finger in his mouth! EWWWW!!
Here is a picture of Bubba at eleven months. Sorry for the blur. He, too, kept moving closer to the camera, so by the time I actually got the picture taken, he was too close to see what he was actually doing. He had his legs inside a toy bin and was scooting along the floor. It was so funny, I had to try to get a picture of him.
And of course, the mohawk picture, which is Daddy's favorite thing to do when giving the boys a bath. I don't think Baby Nick's hair is long enough yet to do the mohawk, but Joey's hair came in very full by eleven months.

Joey has always looked more like me than Nick. Baby Nick, although favoring Nick for the most part, is more of a mix of the two of us. There are times, whether it is an attitude or an expression, when he seems to look more like my side of the family. My mom said that the picture of Baby Nick in his stroller at the park (with a cute scowl on his face) looks just like a picture of my dad when he was a baby. When she first saw Baby Nick at the airport, the first thing she said was, "Kristie! (one of my cousins)" So there are times that he looks like my side of the family, even though he more strongly resembles Nick and the Luty side.

We are having so much fun with Nanny and Papa Buddy here. Nick and Dad are currently sleeping; one in a recliner, one on the couch. Nanny and Bubba are being entertained by blowing around a piece of "fluff" off a cottonwood tree (which Bubba calls 'tree'). Baby Nick is finding new ways to get around the barricades we put up in front of the stairs. I guess he is trying to tell me he wants to lay down. I will lay him down so that three of the four boys in the house are sleeping. Bubba took a nap in the car, so he is good to go. (Megan, I want you to know that Mom kept trying to adjust Bubba so he would be more comfortable in the car. Even though he didn't have pillow, he did have a blanket she kept readjusting!)

Feels Like Home

I feel like I am home....almost. It is amazing having Mom and Dad here. The boys have quickly fallen in love with them, (well, Joey already was, but Baby Nick didn't get much time with them before they left) and Mom and Dad have fallen in love with my kids (or at least been able to express it in person.)

I was so proud of my boys last night; they slept so well. We put Baby Nick down a little early to make sure he was asleep before we put Joey down, and after throwing a ten second fit, he was out. Then we put Joey down with stern warnings not to make a sound and wake Baby Nick. I didn't hear a peep out of him, and he was asleep well inside a half hour. Lately he has been taking a couple hours to go to sleep. I can only pray that the rest of the week will go as well. Baby Nick woke up about three times, but after laying down with Mommy for a couple minutes, he was ready to lay back down in bed. It was a good night all in all.

Today Baby Nick is eleven months old! It is so hard to comprehend. In one month, he will be a year old. He started waving a couple weeks ago, flailing his arm about, but over the last couple days he has started using his hand. He has to concentrate real hard to get his hand to move in just the right way; he's so cute when he is so intent on what he is doing. Later I will post pictures to show the growth.

Baby Nick has been fed, Joey is eating, Nick just got up and is taking care of his coffee, and after making sure Mom and Dad are taken care of, I might just get a shower in before ten this morning! Have a wonderful day.

I Can't Breathe

Please let tomorrow come extra quick, so I can breathe again. I can't wait to be held in my Mommy's arms again. I can't wait for my boys to be held in their grandparents' arms.

Just a few minutes ago, Joey said, "I need to give Papa Buddy hug and Nanny hug." And then he said, "I will wear a black hat and cut the grass." Dad always wears a baseball cap when he mows the lawn, and this made a lasting impression on my long-memoried son!

When Joey heard Nick on the front porch when he got home from work, Joey got really excited because he thought it was Nanny and Papa Buddy. When he saw that is was just Daddy, he was very disappointed. He looked like he would cry if he had to suffer one more injustice.

I don't have anything new, just the mounting anticipation of Nanny and Papa Buddy's visit. I do have to go make dinner, so I will keep this short.

Three...Two...One...Once Again

Here we are, at the three day mark again....eagerly anticipating the arrival of Mom and Dad. I can't even express my excitement. It seems almost impossible to believe how long it has been since we've seen them. I was noticing another "anniversary" during Mom and Dad's trip. With Aunt Angie, it was ten months to the day since she took us to the airport the day she left. Mom and Dad will arrive a year from the day Joey and I moved in with them last year to finish packing up and moving out of the house we had sold. That, and to give us a cool place to live, as it was one of the hottest summers I had lived through, being eight months pregnant, and having no air conditioning in the house!

I wish we had some of that sun up here that the rest of the West is experiencing! I don't need much of the heat, but as the ten-day forecast still shows rain or showers everyday so far, Mom and Dad's visit will be pretty soggy. Sorry.

Happy Birthday to my Dad (Scott). I wish I were home to be able to see you, hug you, and take you out to dinner with Josh and Aubrey. I miss you. I miss your ability to make me smile. I miss staying up late with you and eating a bowl of cereal while explaining my very "logical" way of thinking! I miss doing the cross-word puzzles with you, expecting you to know the answers without seeing the layout of other answers! I miss speaking to you in "sign language" to help you hear what I'm saying. I miss laughing with you. Hope you have a great birthday, and know that I am always thinking of you and loving you very much.

Welcome Home.....Now Hurry Up Here

Welcome home, Mom. I am so glad you had safe travels....you and Angie and Tyson and the rest of the mission team. I can't wait to hear about your trip to Haiti. But I really can't wait for you and Dad to be here. I'm sure you would love to stay home for awhile to rest up, but I can't make it any longer without you. It has been far, far too long since I've seen you, and gotten a hug from you. I don't feel like my heart will beat again until I see you. (I hope you won't mind buckets of tears.)

The boys are doing fine. Baby Nick got ahold of Joey's cup (thankfully it was empty) and figured out how to remove the sippy seal with his teeth! It entertained all of us for the next half hour or so. Let's just pray he doesn't get his hands on a full cup of juice!

I'm kind of disappointed in this "summer" weather we are having. It has been gray and gloomy and rainy for the better part of the last two weeks, and the forecast doesn't show any improvement through the end of NEXT week. I kept hearing Nick say, "Just wait until summer, it's beautiful up here." I'm still waiting! I knew the temperature wouldn't ever get very high, but I thought it would be at least sunny and dry most of the time.

I think my boys are finally asleep, so it would be a good time for me to get to bed too. Except for Nick getting kicked really hard in a very painful, very private place in the middle the night last night, we had a fairly uninterrupted sleep. Let's hope for another night like that.

Glad For A Quiet Weekend

It was really nice not to have gone camping. After spending a week of heightened emotion having Angie here, it was good to have some quiet time to let the boys "reset" themselves. It ended up raining for some time on Sunday....at least in town; I don't know if it rained at the campground, but I am thankful we weren't there.

We have played it pretty low key since Angie left. Nick and I are still feeling the affects of disappointment from her leaving, and although Joey still talks about her coming to visit when it's all snowy (which she mentioned wanting to see Alaska in the snow), he is getting more focused on the upcoming visit of Nanny and Papa Buddy. Only nine more (no, eight more, since it is passed midnight) days!

There is not much to report from here. The weather has continued to gloomy...and it's supposed to be summer. I can already tell a difference in the amount of daylight. In fact, we will have lost almost an hour of daylight between Angie's visit and my parents' visit. An hour doesn't seem like much...but when you know that in a matter of a couple short months, you hardly have any light at all, it is a huge difference.

For example; by the first of September, we will have a "normal" 14 1/2 hours of daylight, but lose 45 minutes in just two weeks. It gets worse; by mid-September we will have 13 hours of daylight, but two weeks later, (beginning of October) we will only have 11 hours! We lose TWO HOURS in just two weeks. That happens again for the next four weeks, where we lose 1.5 hours by mid-October, and another 2 hours by November 10th...for a total of only 7.5 hours. By the end of this year we will only have 5.5 hours. That is not that many "two-week" increments away. The daylight slips away fast up here, and I can feel the despair start clawing its way back up my throat. I will have to fight for every day of survival. I wish I felt up to the fight. Hopefully this winter will be a little easier where the boys are concerned, especially Baby Nick. He won't be a little baby this year, so he shouldn't be as much emotional work without the support of family close by.

Joey is already asking Daddy for a "Chrisin" tree so we can get presents. This year, more than ever, I will try to turn his focus on Why we celebrate Christmas, on Whom we celebrate. I can't believe it is already a reasonable time to start thinking about Christmas again.

Before I start getting too depressed...I better get ready for bed.