Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Wordless Wednesday (#55): First Family Picture
(Only with my husband would it take a girl 2 weeks to get a first family picture taken of the five of us. And, for kicks, I've thrown in one of just me and the kiddos. Pictures taken on Mother's Day - 5.8.2011.)
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
Macie's Turn (#10): Mr. Monkey
A couple of Saturdays ago, Ivie's friend, Katelyn, had her 5th birthday party at Build-A-Bear. Because Bryce was just a week old, he and I stayed home and Dale took both Ivie and Macie to the party.
Macie wasn't an official member of the party crew, but Dale let her stuff an animal anyway, since an illness had forced her to miss Ivie's party earlier in April. She chose the monkey, and I don't believe she gave him a name (if she did, I'm not privy). So I'm just calling him Mr. Monkey for purposes of this blog post!
As you can see, she loves him and is quite proud that she made him herself...
Macie wasn't an official member of the party crew, but Dale let her stuff an animal anyway, since an illness had forced her to miss Ivie's party earlier in April. She chose the monkey, and I don't believe she gave him a name (if she did, I'm not privy). So I'm just calling him Mr. Monkey for purposes of this blog post!
As you can see, she loves him and is quite proud that she made him herself...
Monday, May 9, 2011
The Elephants
When Macie was born, I found these adorable personalized elephants on PersonalizationMall.com (one of my favorite websites for gifts!) and fell in love with them. So while I know you're not really supposed to buy yourself a baby gift, I did anyway!
Fast forward to when Bryce was born... I knew I wanted to get him an elephant, too, and it just so happened that PersonalizationMall was having their annual Mother's Day sale. Perfect timing. So I ordered B's elephant and, while I was at it, completed the collection with one for Iv, as well.
I'm sharing them here for 2 reasons. First, because they're just so darn cute and snuggly and the girls LOVE them. And, second, because Grandma (Dale's mom, Emma Jean) LOVES elephants and I want her to be able to see them when she gets the blog email!
Fast forward to when Bryce was born... I knew I wanted to get him an elephant, too, and it just so happened that PersonalizationMall was having their annual Mother's Day sale. Perfect timing. So I ordered B's elephant and, while I was at it, completed the collection with one for Iv, as well.
I'm sharing them here for 2 reasons. First, because they're just so darn cute and snuggly and the girls LOVE them. And, second, because Grandma (Dale's mom, Emma Jean) LOVES elephants and I want her to be able to see them when she gets the blog email!
Sunday, May 8, 2011
Saturday, May 7, 2011
Bryce's Letters
I'm thrilled to finally do this post of Bryce's letters above the crib in his room! I've had them for a couple of weeks now, but I, just this morning, got around to appropriately lining up the nails so that they hang correctly. Let me just say that I'm in love with the pattern that the very talented Carrie (whom I found on eBay) used. Particularly given the fact that my vague instructions to her were "Could you use the interlocking NC, and the foot, and maybe some polka dots?" I knew she would be much more creative than I could ever be, so I left it at that, and am certainly not disappointed!!
So here you go! One letter at a time, first...
And now all together...
So we've got his name hanging, just in time for him to move out of the bassinet and into his room. Which I think might happen sometime in the next week or so!
So here you go! One letter at a time, first...
And now all together...
So we've got his name hanging, just in time for him to move out of the bassinet and into his room. Which I think might happen sometime in the next week or so!
Friday, May 6, 2011
Ivie's Random Thoughts (#18)
A Clean House
We have a sweet lady named Ruby who, together with her husband and her daughter, clean our house every other Monday. Which means that I rarely have to do household cleaning, which makes me pretty happy (and is one of many reasons why I continue to work).
On top of that, my mom has been here for almost 3 weeks now. And she's been an amazing help. Laundry, ironing, cooking dinner... Pretty much everything a girl needs help with when she has a new baby.
So, between Ruby and my mom, our house has stayed in pretty decent shape since Bryce's arrival, even though the amount of housework that I do has dropped from "very little" to "nil".
Several days ago (they all run together for me right now), Dale walked with Ivie into her room to get her ready for bed. Ivie took one look at her bed, saw her blankets and stuffed animals placed in an orderly fashion, looked at Dale, and exclaimed/questioned:
"Is Ruby coming every day now?".
Nope, Iv. Welcome to life with Nina. Don't get used to it. She leaves in a week, and you'll be back to digging through the mess on your bed to find your water bottle and favorite blanket.
The Kitchen Television
It won't surprise any of you that my daughters are pretty habitual. In the morning, when they come downstairs for breakfast, one of the two of them heads straight for our little kitchen television to turn on either Nick, Jr. or Disney. Since they are the only ones that use that television, it's always on one of "their" channels, so hitting the power button is all it takes. Instant gratification.
Until Nina arrived, that is.
Now, during the day when she is slaving away in the kitchen, Nina turns the television to either the Today Show or MSNBC. Which means the television is likely not on the correct channel for the girls in the morning.
One such morning, Dale witnessed Ivie's reaction to this occurrence.
She turned the television on, scowled, and muttered under her breath:
"Hmph. Nina."
As if to say, "How dare you disrupt our routine with your nonsense big-person shows. Enough already."
We have a sweet lady named Ruby who, together with her husband and her daughter, clean our house every other Monday. Which means that I rarely have to do household cleaning, which makes me pretty happy (and is one of many reasons why I continue to work).
On top of that, my mom has been here for almost 3 weeks now. And she's been an amazing help. Laundry, ironing, cooking dinner... Pretty much everything a girl needs help with when she has a new baby.
So, between Ruby and my mom, our house has stayed in pretty decent shape since Bryce's arrival, even though the amount of housework that I do has dropped from "very little" to "nil".
Several days ago (they all run together for me right now), Dale walked with Ivie into her room to get her ready for bed. Ivie took one look at her bed, saw her blankets and stuffed animals placed in an orderly fashion, looked at Dale, and exclaimed/questioned:
"Is Ruby coming every day now?".
Nope, Iv. Welcome to life with Nina. Don't get used to it. She leaves in a week, and you'll be back to digging through the mess on your bed to find your water bottle and favorite blanket.
The Kitchen Television
It won't surprise any of you that my daughters are pretty habitual. In the morning, when they come downstairs for breakfast, one of the two of them heads straight for our little kitchen television to turn on either Nick, Jr. or Disney. Since they are the only ones that use that television, it's always on one of "their" channels, so hitting the power button is all it takes. Instant gratification.
Until Nina arrived, that is.
Now, during the day when she is slaving away in the kitchen, Nina turns the television to either the Today Show or MSNBC. Which means the television is likely not on the correct channel for the girls in the morning.
One such morning, Dale witnessed Ivie's reaction to this occurrence.
She turned the television on, scowled, and muttered under her breath:
"Hmph. Nina."
As if to say, "How dare you disrupt our routine with your nonsense big-person shows. Enough already."
Thursday, May 5, 2011
Kaleidoscope (#1): Ivie in the Front Yard
Sadly, I haven't had much time (yet) on maternity leave to play with my new iPad. But I have checked out the camera feature and found the cool kaleidoscope option. When I discovered it, I thought to myself, "What the heck? Why not start a kaleidoscope series on the blog?!?".
So here is entry number one. Of Ivie, standing outside on the sidewalk in front of our house. I love the possibilities with this. We'll see what other creative shots I can come up with...
So here is entry number one. Of Ivie, standing outside on the sidewalk in front of our house. I love the possibilities with this. We'll see what other creative shots I can come up with...
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Bryce's New Hat
My former-intern-turned-great-friend, Shoshanna, came to visit this past weekend and brought along gifts for Bryce and the girls. As a Yale alum who now works in their Compliance Office (What can I say? We compliance nerds stick together!), she felt the need for Bryce to represent.
Seriously. Isn't this just too adorable?!?
Seriously. Isn't this just too adorable?!?
Monday, May 2, 2011
A Slice of Bryce (#1): One Week
Bryce was one week old on Saturday, so it's time to start a series to help me keep up with his milestones and happenings as Herman Nation ventures down the path as a family of five! As we were out on a family walk yesterday, I challenged Dale and my mom and dad with helping me come up with a clever name. They had some decent ideas, but, in the long run, I decided to go with the one that I had come up with myself. Which is only fair, I think, since I'm the one that does all the writing!
So welcome to "A Slice of Bryce"!
1) Bryce is a GREAT burper! And my first child, so far, that hasn't been a projectile vomiter (knock on wood). I told my mom yesterday that I've never had a kid that I could burp over my shoulder, for fear of the milk flying behind me and hitting the chair, the wall, and anyone who might be unfortunate enough to be standing there. So it's nice to be able to put B over my shoulder and pat away!
2) While he's a good burper, he also suffers from gas pains. The Mylicon has been purchased, but I keep forgetting to use it until after we've worked the gas out with a good burping session. But it's easy to tell when that's the problem. Bryce gets very squirmy and lets out a wail that sounds like a hyena. Or at least I think that might be what a hyena sounds like...
3) I think I've settled on "Bug" for a nickname. Not on purpose, that's just what I've been calling him. So now I have two "Boogs" (short for "Booger", which I use interchangeably with the girls) and one "Bug". Nothing like making it confusing for myself. Maybe I'll have to come up with something else. But, for now, Bug it is!
4) I can't tell you how many times I've called Bryce "Sweet Girl". It's hard to change your ways after 5 years of dealing with nothing but girls! Thankfully, he doesn't know any better yet...
5) I'm pleased to report that the milk machine (aka, my mammary glands) is having no problems with production. Two cases in point. Saturday morning, after Bryce's 5:00a feeding, I pumped 10 ounces. And, in our freezer right now, is 60 bagged ounces. Time to clear out some of the food in the freezer to make room for the ice cube trays that store my breastmilk bags!
6) Much to Ivie and Macie's relief, Bryce's umbilical cord stump finally fell off on Friday. They were very concerned about his belly button, so they were thrilled to see it looking "normal" when they got home from school that day!
7) Today was Bryce's 1-week check-up. When we took him to the doctor last Monday, he was 7 pounds, 13 ounces. This morning, he was 8 pounds, 12 ounces. So he gained almost a whole pound! His doctor described the weight gain as "amazing". I second that opinion. Not that Bryce really had much of a choice but to gain weight, given my point in #5 above.
8) And, for those of you who need a picture fix (okay, probably just me!), here are a few of Bryce from the past few days, just lounging around home.
So welcome to "A Slice of Bryce"!
1) Bryce is a GREAT burper! And my first child, so far, that hasn't been a projectile vomiter (knock on wood). I told my mom yesterday that I've never had a kid that I could burp over my shoulder, for fear of the milk flying behind me and hitting the chair, the wall, and anyone who might be unfortunate enough to be standing there. So it's nice to be able to put B over my shoulder and pat away!
2) While he's a good burper, he also suffers from gas pains. The Mylicon has been purchased, but I keep forgetting to use it until after we've worked the gas out with a good burping session. But it's easy to tell when that's the problem. Bryce gets very squirmy and lets out a wail that sounds like a hyena. Or at least I think that might be what a hyena sounds like...
3) I think I've settled on "Bug" for a nickname. Not on purpose, that's just what I've been calling him. So now I have two "Boogs" (short for "Booger", which I use interchangeably with the girls) and one "Bug". Nothing like making it confusing for myself. Maybe I'll have to come up with something else. But, for now, Bug it is!
4) I can't tell you how many times I've called Bryce "Sweet Girl". It's hard to change your ways after 5 years of dealing with nothing but girls! Thankfully, he doesn't know any better yet...
5) I'm pleased to report that the milk machine (aka, my mammary glands) is having no problems with production. Two cases in point. Saturday morning, after Bryce's 5:00a feeding, I pumped 10 ounces. And, in our freezer right now, is 60 bagged ounces. Time to clear out some of the food in the freezer to make room for the ice cube trays that store my breastmilk bags!
6) Much to Ivie and Macie's relief, Bryce's umbilical cord stump finally fell off on Friday. They were very concerned about his belly button, so they were thrilled to see it looking "normal" when they got home from school that day!
7) Today was Bryce's 1-week check-up. When we took him to the doctor last Monday, he was 7 pounds, 13 ounces. This morning, he was 8 pounds, 12 ounces. So he gained almost a whole pound! His doctor described the weight gain as "amazing". I second that opinion. Not that Bryce really had much of a choice but to gain weight, given my point in #5 above.
8) And, for those of you who need a picture fix (okay, probably just me!), here are a few of Bryce from the past few days, just lounging around home.
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