Finally!

So for the past 10 months, Noah has not wanted to be in the nursery at church. We'd take him in there and it was like he was going to his death. He'd scream and made such a fuss that we'd end up just holding him the entire time or one of us would stay home with him. It got to where if we'd try to bring him in there, at least one of the workers would roll their eyes and sigh. Yep, my child causes agony.

The big problem is that he's supposed to nap during church. If he doesn't nap, he ends up super cranky for the entire day and part of the Monday. Not really worth it. So Joel or I would just stay him while the other took Hannah to church. This was the only solution. But it was starting to weigh on us that we never get to go to church and we felt really out of the loop.

So a few weeks ago we tried to put Noah down in one of the cribs when time for his nap. It worked! He actually fell asleep for the entire service. The last week we tried it again. He stayed awake for a while talking and cooing but eventually the worker took him out and put him in the swing. He fell right to sleep. Today he cried for a little while then a worker ended up just holding him until he fell asleep. I'm sure she hated that :)

So FINALLY Joel and I can actually attend a service together. It's amazing how much better our marriage is after being in the Bible and listening to our pastor preach. Hopefully the more we bring him in there, the more he'll get used to it and crying. He's usually such a happy baby. For a while I was convinced the workers were pinching him or something. I'm pleased to find out that's not the case.

Valentine's Day

Back in the pre-children days, I always liked Valentine's Day. Joel and I would do something romantic, go out to dinner or something, but little gifts for each other...a very nice day. Then we had kids. Now the idea of Valentine's Day is just annoying. I love my husband very much but it's rare we get a day without the kids to go out to dinner or something. So for Joel and me to feel like we have to come up with any sort of special plans or ideas for each other is just exhausting.

This year we were fortunate enough to have my parents available to watch the kids for a few hours so Joel and I could go out to eat. Granted, we went out for lunch rather than dinner so we wouldn't have to wait for a table and there wouldn't be such a crowd. Then instead of going to an afternoon movie or doing something romantic, we went shopping...for the kids. That was our Valentine's Day. But I must say, I enjoyed that day more than many other dates Joel and I have had. It was nice to spend time with just the 2 of us, holding each other's hands and not Hannah's hand or Noah's car seat, or a sippy cup, or some other random child's item.

We spent a few hours just walking around the mall then had the genius idea to go into a Hallmark store. It was packed with people (mostly men) buying V-day cards. I told Joel it would be dumb for us to spend $4 each on cards we'd just throw away so instead, we picked out the card we would have given to each other, let the other read it, then put it back. We had a great time picking out the cheesiest, sappiest cards then laughing before we replaced it.

So that was my Valentine's day date. It was actually pretty fun. It may be a few months before our next chance to have a day with no kids so I'll have to keep replaying the day in my head.

Curse of the Stomach Flu

My poor baby girl has the stomach flu. In my quest to find some relief for her, I discovered that, in fact there is no such thing as the "stomach flu". It's gastroenteritis. Whatever, stomach flu is easier to say.

Hannah woke up at midnight last night throwing up. It was one of the saddest sights in the world to go running in her room and seeing her covered it puke. It continued on for many hours. Hannah is usually such a healthy child that it's so odd to see her curled up on the couch sound asleep at 10am. I stayed home from work today so I could take care of her. After only getting a few hours of sleep myself, it was kinda nice to just have a day to lay low and cuddle with my kids. Noah started acting a little cranky and fussy mid-morning so then I had 2 sick kids to take care of. Luckily after a nap, both kids had turned a corner and were acting much better.

I hate the flu. I had debated so long about getting the H1N1 vaccine. In the end, I got it. Mainly because I work in health care and one day a nurse came around and shoved the mist up my nose. Ok, I did have to sign a consent but still...it was a quick thing. With the nationwide shortage of vaccine a few months ago, my kids weren't eligible to receive it. Then the restrictions were lifted but I would have to go wait in line at the county health department to get it. Uhhh...no. I wasn't even sure I wanted them to have it. There is so much controversy about whether or not it's effective, was it too rushed in the making, is this just a epidemic fueled by the media and not hard facts? Joel and I really debated about it. At Noah's 9-month dr's visit, our doctor asked whether or not Noah had had the vaccine. I said no and he strongly suggested we consider getting it for him. Now that there's no longer a shortage, all dr's offices have the vaccine. So I gave in and he got the shot. Because he's under age 9, he has to get a 2nd shot in a few weeks. Hannah's getting her first dose then. She'll also have to get a 2nd shot. Not going to be a fun time. I'm still not sure it was the right decision but it's done.

There's so much controversy about all vaccines. It's crazy. My brother chooses to not have his kids vaccinated for anything. I personally think that's dumb. But they're not my children so it's not my call to make. I think there are some vaccines that are a little over the top. For example, chicken pox? Seriously? My mom tells stories about "chicken pox parties" where moms would bring their kids to a sick child's house just to expose their child and get it over with. My mom made all 3 of us get chicken pox at the same time. Hell for her but then it was done. While I appreciate the pharmaceutical companies wanting to spare moms from the agony of chicken pox, spend your R&D money on curing cancer, not chicken pox.

Natalie's party and other adventures

Here are some new pictures of my kids and some of the things we've been up to. Enjoy :)

Noah was trying some new foods. He's eating finger foods now so today's menu was fish sticks, avacadoes and sweet potatoes. You can't tell from this picture, but he actually ate really well! This could possibly be my favorite picture of all time

We took the kids to the Bass Pro Shop in Altoona to look around. We had heard there was a giant aquarium and lots of taxidermied animals. Hannah loved it

You can't tell very well because of the glare but there's a huge catfish headed right for Hannah. She was just staring at it. It kept opening it's mouth when it got near Hannah. I'm convinced it was trying to eat her

It's a stuffed dog but Hannah wanted to pet it anyway. It was cute.

We went up to Minneapolis a few weekends ago for my niece, Natalie's 4th birthday party. She had it at Pump It Up which is a big inflatable playground. It's awesome. Anyway, here are some pictures from that day. Hannah LOVED it. Noah stayed at my sister's house with my mom since he's a too little to really enjoy it.

All the kids at the party. Hannah's standing all the way to the left

Hannah was put in time out for a few minutes. She wasn't too excited about it

Joel helping Hannah over the obstacle course

Joel with Hannah, Natalie, and Jack