Fall baking.

I have been trying to make a habit of spending some dedicated time with Kolten each day when he gets home from his toddler room. Some days that may be an art project or a special toy that’s been tucked away. This day he and I made some crock pot apple sauce spur off the moment. We had a few extra apples and he had just made at school that he really enjoyed so I wanted to give him another opportunity. He loved participating and using the materials himself. Most of all I think he liked to sneak bites of the apples. We recently got a “kitchen helper” which is basically a wooden stool that goes up to counter height. This allowed him to really be involved safely. It is going to come in so handy over the next few months with the holidays. 

PJ day.

Happy almost Halloween! Kolten’s getting full use of his halloween pajamas. Today is pajama day in the toddler room therefor skeleton jammies for the win. He wore them with a black and orange bib which was perfect. It was a wet day so thankfully I think these kept him warm but still had lots of function. 

When we picked him up he had some orange paint on his PJs. I bet he had lots of fun painting and doing art. I’m so thankful he gets to experience that at school. 

Other Halloween pajamas we have include one with a pumpkin face and one with footies and stripes. I love holiday attire. Just wait until Christmas;)

Kolten right now.

• 21.5 months
• Big brother status
• Loves pushing cars and anything with wheels around
• Says no to every question, even if he means yes
• Loves watching Blippi on youtube
• Climbs up on the couch to sit with me & Cora 
• Does not nap well at school
• Will dance at random moments and occasionally when we say "Kolten dance!"
• Asks for mama on most mornings when he wakes up

 

Pastels on the Plaza 2021

This past weekend we attended our real first outing as a family of four. This is one of mine and Jim's favorite events here in Humboldt, Pastels on the Plaza. This is a yearly event (with the exception of last year due to Covid) that is a fundraiser for Northcoast Children's Services. This event is special to us because Jim has been volunteering/attending with his mom since he was a toddler. Typically, Jim, his mom, and siblings would show up before sunrise and assist with things such as marking off the squares and helping with sign in for the artist, etc. This year due to Kolten and Cora's unpredictable sleeping pattern, Jim didn't attend early to help with lines, but everyone was understandable and hopefully he'll make it out next year to help set up and maybe even complete a square! Since Jim's mom has passed away, we've been continuing to attend in her honor. This year, pastels was on two days (Saturday & Sunday) instead of all the artists arriving on Saturday. We only made it out Saturday, but I found some photos that friends took and want to share those below. Even Little Learners had a square done by Teacher Amber!

This year was special because my dad was able to come down from his home in Oregon, and he went with us. Now, I will say, getting out of the house with two kids under two years old was not not stressful, ha! It was a lot- and there was a lot of stuff because I tend to be over prepared & overpack. Also, a double stroller definitely takes up a lot of car space. But, we did it! Kolten had fun finding some pastels and drawing lines on the ground in the kid area. Jim got to chat with the director of NCCS, who is now retired, but knew Jim's mom Janet very well. My dad got to see some of the artist action, and we also scoped out the farmer's market. I got to see some familiar faces that I haven't seen in a while and so that felt good to be out. Overall, it felt amazing to see the event happening and for me to be off the couch. 

*The photos of the pastels are taken from various findings of friends' photos! 

Cora Lynn, our baby girl.

Happy birthday, Cora Lynn. 

I gave birth to my, our, daughter, Cora Lynn on September 13th, 2021. It was truly a moment, day, weekend, I'll never forget. Being my second child, I had lots of ideas on how it would go and although there were lots of similarities, Cora's birth was also very much different. I am forever grateful for my amazing husband, Jim, who was by my side the entire process. I am also eternally grateful for my mom, Grandma Laura, who spent the time at our house with Kolten to ensure his needs were met. Finally, the staff and Dr. Vu who delivered Cora, took care of everything so well and I will be forever thankful for their presence and support during the most vulnerable time of my life. 

Something I aspired to do when Kolten was born was to keep a short documentation of the first "30ish" days after he was born during the "4th" trimester. I love to document, share, and write and figured it would be fun to look back on. I mildly succeeded writing in a little notebook that is now tucked away in the office. This time with Cora, I thought I'd try again. I have been keep a short log in my "notes" app on my iphone and add to it each day- some days more than others- but keeping it extremely minimal and doable is the key for this mama of two. 

Below are the first two days. 

More to come. 

Day 1- 

Ouch. Things are settling in physically and mentally. I feel ok, proud, and complete. I feel nervous thinking about how Kolten is going to react and how we're going to adjust but I do know that we will. 

I'm in my PP room. Jim's coworker brought us coffee (YES!) Having Kolten at home changes things. We're dividing and conquering. We are going to be spread thin like butter on toast, but we will do it. (By we, I mean Jim and I).  Baby girl got her newborn screening, hearing test, hospital bath, etc. All the tests. 

Noted- I keep calling Cora HE, but I'm sure that will fix it's self. 

I farted real big and all I smelt was TUCKS pads. HA, Jim and I laughed! We needed that! Keep it real. 

Day 2-

We stayed in the hospital for 24 hours from delivery to being released. Kolten had a covid exposure at school, so us leaving the hospital at 7:00 pm allowed for him to go to bed, Cora and myself to isolate in the bedroom, and we didn't go out to meet brother until his covid test (which was first thing in the morning) came back *thankfully* negative. After that huge relief, Kolten was able to meet Cora. I sat on the couch and held baby and he joined us. It was a magical moment for me. My heart felt so full. 

I cried today. And tonight. Breast feeding is HARD. I wanted a different experience this time. Baby girl does love to breast feed. We're working through this. It's only the second day. 

I got my pump out. That was helpful. & then I cried more. Jim is so supportive and calming. I hate being an added stress to him. 

Kolten has been super snuggly with me. And dad. And gma. I am trying to support him. 

Jim and I slept on the couch last night. Baby girl slept for a four hour stretch. 

Here we go.  

Our sweet girl- lots of snuggles with mom, dad, and big brother Kolten. 

As many have pointed out, Cora looks JUST like Kolten in this picture. I couldn't agree more! 

Waiting.

 I am currently 40 weeks and five days pregnant with baby number two- our sweet girl. 

I hear many mama's who are overdue who can't wait to get their baby out, super uncomfortable, etc. Although I do feel the urge to pee every few minutes, can't sleep, and am so anxious to see what "she" looks like, I don't feel like I'm rushed for her to come out. 

I think it may be because I know how much things will change. Maybe I'm enjoying these last days with my son, mom, and husband as we prepare. Perhaps I'm nervous to actually deliver? I'm not sure, but I do know that when she is here,  I will be thankful for her presence. I am having a hard time wrapping my hear around having two children. How my heart will grow in love for two babies. I just can't imagine this feeling. I will be growing even more as  mom in these few days to come. Who I am now will be changing for the better. 

If baby girl doesn't come on her own, we will move forward with an induction on Tuesday September 14th. It was planned for Sunday 9/12, but the hospital called and said they needed to move the date due to someone else needing to be induced sooner. They did offer me tomorrow, 9/11, but with it being the 20th anniversary of one of our countries most horrific attacks, I couldn't purposefully plan my babies birth on that date. 

We will see what happens in it's own time. 

Dear Son,

As I spend my last few days with you as an "only child" - I want to remember how special my time has been with just you, me, and "dada". I have cherished every single moment. The good, the challenging, the tiring, and all the moments in between. You have been such a joy- I have loved watching you grow and giving you my undivided (within reason) attention. We have continued to learn each other. I am continuing to learn how to parent you and what you like and what your needs are. I think it's necessary to support and encourage you but to also challenge you and praise you. You are independent, strong willed, funny, loving, and every day is an adventure with you! I love reading books with you, building, holding, rocking, kissing, and making you laugh. You are so special to me and I am so thankful to be your mama. This time just the three of us may not have been long in to comparison of the years ahead, but I am hopeful to remember these moments with just YOU. 

Love you sunshine, 

Mama.