Worth the Wait

Ten days ago we went to Sears. We got pictures of Ian by himself and also ones of him with me and also with Paul. Nadia was very uncooperative so we didn't get any of the two of them, and I didn't like the family ones. So my plan was to have Wendy take a family photo of us when we're in Maryland next weekend, and I was thinking of going to Sears and buying the $7.99 package that includes one 8x10, one 10x13, two 5x7s, 16 wallets, and 16 minis. I have no use for the minis, but that's a good price to pay for all the other prints. The only catch with that package is that you can only select one pose, and if you want any other prints with any other poses, they charge you $30 a sheet (compared to $8 a sheet that we paid today and $5 is what we would have paid if we were there on a Mon-Thurs). If I was there by myself, I would have picked this pose and gotten that $8 package. However, Paul said it was "like we won the lottery" that we had several good poses and that we needed to buy more than just this pose. In that case I would have gone on a Mon-Thurs when the sheets are cheaper, but I knew he was right.

 We picked three poses. It was hard to pick there were so many good ones!! What a wonderful problem to have, LOL! We got a 10x13 and 8 wallets of the first picture in this post. We got an 8x10 and two 5x7's of the second photo in this post, and we got four 3.5x5's of the third photo in this post. Our bill was $25.42 for all those prints. When we picked up Ian's pictures today, we were shown the $25 extra package that they always try to sell you. It's a very good deal as it includes 5 sheets with enhancements (black/white, sepia, etc.) so it would cost over $100 normally. I wasn't tempted one iota to buy the extra package today, but I will be shocked if I don't buy it in 2 weeks as I definitely didn't order enough pictures today. The package usually includes a couple of 10x13 prints. I hope it includes some 5x7's this time so we have more photos to share with our families as I think they'll want to have one! I admit right now I am wishing I had purchased more prints. I usually don't feel that way when I come home, but then again it's been since Nadia's 1 year pictures that I liked the pictures THIS much.

The main reason I titled this post "worth the wait" wasn't becauase we kept rescheduling our appointment due to illness or because Nadia didn't cooperate 10 days ago. The wait I am referring to took place today in the studio. Our appointment was for 3:30, and I scurried around like a crazy woman to get them ready in time since Nadia didn't wake up from her nap until 2:50. When we arrived the family who had a 3:00 appt was still having photos taken of their daughter who will turn 2 years old this week. We usually don't have to wait at all, but I didn't think our wait would be that long. I was wrong. She was with the 2:30 appointment (showing them their pictures on the computer) from 3:45-4:15. Normally the photographer shows me them and walks away and does other things while I'm making up my mind. I admit I was getting very frustrated trying to keep the kids happy while she sat with the family for that long while they tried to decide what to buy. Thankfully the family who had the 3:00 appointment didn't take as long to make their choices. By the time that family had paid their bill, it was 4:40pm. The portrait studio normally closes at 4:00 on Sundays, and the Sears closes at 5:00 on Sundays.

I figured we would have been out the door by 4:00 and yet 70 minutes after our appointment time we had yet to be taken back to have any pictures taken. I told the woman that we just wanted pictures of the two kids together. Had I known what a great job she would do, I would have asked for some of the four of us as well. We were speedy both with the pictures being taken and picking what to buy. By 5:05 we were walking out of the mall. It took us only 25 minutes to have the pictures taken, pick what to buy, and pay for our purchases. We treated Nadia to a happy meal on the way home. Both kids did a great job! The long sleeve onesie that Ian is wearing in these pictures is size 0-3 month. The vest and pants are newborn size. I didn't think the shirt that came with the vest and pants went well with Nadia's dress.  I thought we'd be home by 4:30, but we actually didn't get home until 5:30. It was worth the wait though! I am planning to call the studio tomorrow to find out the photographer's name. I am going to write her name down and make our future appointments when she will be on duty. She was MUCH better than the photographer last week. It wasn't just a difference in Nadia's behavior - although Nadia was great (and the raisins I gave her helped also, LOL). I put all my efforts in getting Nadia to smile. Next time we go for pictures I'll put my efforts into getting photos of Ian smiling. I can't wait to go pick up these pictures on March 12th. They will bring many smiles to my face when I see them on our wall, on my bedroom dresser, etc. I'm very grateful for these two precious children and also for these beautiful pictures of them! :-)

Progress!

The scales were kinder to Ian today. His scale showed that he gained 1.5 ounces yesterday (WOOHOO!). I don't plan on weighing him every day, but I was very concerned yesterday when the scale showed he hadn't gained any weight in 4 days. Thanks for the comment, Lynn. It definitely helps to look at his weight gain over a month rather than a week.

I played my piccolo in church this morning. I think it was the first time I played the piccolo in public in 18 years. I think it went fine. I really liked the song; it made me wish I was already back in the choir although of course I couldn't have sung alto and played the piccolo at the same time. :-) Four adults were baptized during the service this morning. They each shared their testimony. I always think baptismal services that include testimonies are much more meaningful (at least for the congregation) than ones that don't. The only problem was that the morning service at this church is already generally pretty long.

More than a year ago I frequently used to leave before the service was over because of Nadia. I hadn't done that in awhile, but when the pastor got up at 11:50 to start his sermon (and the service began at 10:15), I decided to leave. I always sit in the back since I need to leave during part of the service to nurse Ian. I have no idea how long the service went, but I'm guessing at least 2 hours. Sunday School starts at 9am. I thought that almost 3 hours was long enough for Nadia to be in the nursery especially considering I usually put her down for her nap around noon. Feeding her lunch wasn't very successful when we got home. She was just too tired. It didn't take her long to fall asleep once I took her up to her crib. Ian was very well behaved during Sunday School and church. He was held by 3 different people for a few minutes while I was rehearsing with the choir and also during the service when I played with the choir. If I rejoin the choir sometime in the near future, I won't sit in the choir loft the whole time but just will go up right before the choir sings so that I won't be separated from Ian too long (particularly if he wants to be fed). I kept Nadia in church with me until she was at least 6 months old, and I plan to do the same with Ian.

Last night Ian's longest stretch was 3.5 hours (9:15pm-1:00am). I gave up trying to get him to sleep in the Nap Nanny and brought him up with me at 2:30am. By 2:45 I realized that this doesn't work for me any more. He falls asleep, and I lie there wide awake. Paul generously offered to take Ian downstairs. He got Ian to sleep in the Nap Nanny for 30 minutes, and then he was in Paul's arms for 1 hour until I nursed him again. I got him back in the Nap Nanny at 4:45am. Nadia had slept past six the last few days, but she picked today - the one day Ian was asleep in his bed at that hour to wake up at 5:30. We just can't win! The day that all four of us are asleep in bed at 6:00am will be soooo wonderful. I think it might be years before that happens though, LOL. The perpetual headache has returned from lack of sleep. If Paul hadn't helped me out at 2:45am, I would have only gotten 4 hours of sleep. He doesn't normally help out in the middle of the night so I was very, very grateful that he did last night. I have to say that although I've had headaches and such, I still think it's almost a miracle that I am functioning as well as I am after 11 weeks of sleep deprivation. Normally if I even get only 1-2 hours less than my normal 8-9 hours a night, I don't feel that well the next day. Some people can function well on a small amount of sleep. That's generally not true for me, but the Lord is giving me the strength I need. Paul said he thinks I'm doing better this time around, which is amazing since I was able to nap far more during the day when Nadia was keeping me up so much at night.

A few days ago I got a note in the mail from a woman from church saying how much she enjoyed my flute solo last week. She said that "Heaven Came Down" is one of her favorite songs and that she's planned to have that sung at her funeral. She said now she would prefer that I play it on my flute at her funeral. I've never been asked to play at someone's funeral before (when the person was still alive). I felt flattered, but I admit I also felt awkward about it. She was sitting near us at the prayer breakfast on Saturday and mentioned to me that she hoped I was still in the area when it's time for her funeral. I will add that she's a senior citizen. I have no idea how old she is. I have a hard time guessing ages, but she does have white hair. She seems very healthy though. Well if I am in the area I will certainly honor her request. The dress Nadia is wearing in these pictures is not the one that she wore to church this morning. This one is size 24 months, and I'm planning on this being her Easter dress. I had her wear it for the pictures at Sears today. This morning I had her wear a dress she's never worn before, but I didn't get any pictures of her in it. I had planned on saving it for next winter as it's size 2T, but I'm glad I had her wear it now as it won't fit next winter! It's a long sleeve dress. The sleeves were a little long, but the dress hit the middle of her knee. This size 24month dress is longer than the 2T one.

Prayer Breakfast

This morning I took the kids to a prayer breakfast at church. A missionary couple who serve in Cambodia were speaking. I wasn't really in the mood to leave the house at 8:15 given I only got 4 hours of sleep last night, but I thought Nadia would really enjoy playing with Abby, and I didn't want the cinnamon quick bread I had made yesterday for the occasion to be eaten entirely by me. It turned out that Abby's family didn't come (except for her grandparents) and only 1/2 of one slice of my bread was eaten. To avoid temptation, I wrapped it in foil and put it in the freezer. I am still glad I went. As I watched their video it struck me once again how very blessed I am. It's so easy to take things like running water and food for granted. The missionary family doesn't have an indoor toilet at their home in Cambodia. Their "shower" consists of dumping a bowl of water over themselves outside. I was feeling very down in the wee hours of the morning due to lack of sleep and Ian's lack of weight gain. I can throw myself a really good pity party, LOL. I was thinking that it was so hard for me to become pregnant and then both deliveries were difficult (Nadia's was much worse the actual day she was born but Ian's was also not exactly easy especially considering my retained placenta experience) and now my body doesn't seem to be functioning properly to feed my son. When I look at others, it seems like nursing is such an easy thing to do. I should focus on my blessings. It wasn't that long ago I was longing for the day I'd become a Mom. Now I get to enjoy the smiles and laughter of two children every day. Thank you, Lord!

Of course I don't know why he hasn't been gaining weight this week - maybe it has nothing to do with me. It could be because he spits up so much. I don't think he was fed enough by Beth & Paul on Tuesday while I was at work, but I was at home nursing him on demand Wed-Fri so I can't see how that impacted more than just Tuesday's weight gain. If I had lost a lot of weight this week, then I'd think maybe that was the problem, but losing one pound over a period of two weeks is definitely not too rapid of a weight loss. I didn't end up calling the lactation nurse today. I am not sure if she's in on Saturdays, but I was afraid I'd burst into tears. I am going to wait until Monday and hope that Ian gains weight before then (in which case I won't call her). Part of me wants to put the baby scale away. I didn't weigh Nadia in between doctor appointments. The pediatrican was happy with his weight, and if I didn't own this scale that I bought in December, he wouldn't be weighed again until his April appointment (unless he gets sick in between now and then). Maybe ignorance is bliss??? I'll be more likely to continue almost exclusively nursing him if I don't keep weighing him, but of course I want him to gain weight! Well hopefully he'll gain 2 ounces the next couple of days. I weighed him 3 times today hoping to get a different result, but nope he weighed exactly 8lbs every time (with his clothes on, which weigh 4.5 ounces). I do know that if my ducts get clogged again while he's sleeping, I'm not waking him up. I'll just pump a little - just enough that I am not in pain and can go back to sleep.

Because of the breakfast this morning, Ian's morning nap was in my arms. The same will be true tomorrow because of church. I had toyed with taking Nadia to a play date that the MOPS group is having on Monday morning (the group I've been going to since September), but I think I'd better stay home to give Ian a chance to take a nap in his Nap Nanny. I also need to work on Ian's tummy time. He's really enjoying they gym. I need to get a video of him when he's in there (on his back). He smiles, bats at the toys, and likes looking in the mirror.

Nadia continues to say new words every day. Today when I was reading The Very Hungry Caterpillar she correctly identified the egg, moon, butterfly, and apple. Those aren't new words. The new word she said was "pears" (which is what he eats on the second day). When we were coloring, she handed me a green crayon and said "green." When Paul was reading her a VeggieTale book, she pointed to Madame Blueberry and said "blueberry" and pointed to Larry's belt and said "belt." When she was dancing, she pointed to the camera sitting on the couch beside me and said "picture." These are just a few of the new words we've heard her say today. She also has been saying many more two and three word sentences.

The pictures we had taken at Sears last week were ready to be picked up tomorrow. I've decided to go pick them up tomorrow afternoon after Nadia's nap. Today I made an appointment for tomorrow at 3:30. If they seem to be in a good mood, I will try to get one picture with the two of them together when I go to pick up the prints. If we get one good picture, I'll buy the package that includes quite a few prints (of only one pose) for $8. Hopefully they'll cooperate! It would be utterly amazing if Ian smiled, but I am not going to expect that even though he has been smiling a lot these days. I'll be happy as long as Nadia smiles.

Very Frustrated!

Last night I put Ian down at about 9:45pm and went to bed hoping to sleep 5-6 hours. That didn't happen, but it wasn't because Ian woke up this time. For some odd reason I had developed several clogged milk ducts by 1:15am. I have no idea why. This didn't happen on Wednesday night even when Ian slept 6 hours! I lay there trying to decide what to do. I figured my options were to pump, wait until he woke up, or wake him up. My preference was to wait until he woke up because I was afraid if I pumped that I might not have enough for him when he did wake up and also because I wanted to train my body that it's okay to go 5-6 hours at night without nursing or pumping. After lying there in pain for 90 minutes, I finally decided to wake him up at 2:45am. I figured he had slept 5 hours (longer than any stretch the previous night), and I was afraid if I pumped at that point I definitely wouldn't have enough as I figured he'd sleep at the most one more hour (although of course I'll never know for sure how long he would have slept.). In retrospect, I wish I had gotten up at 1:15 and just pumped a little bit - maybe even just used the hand pump I was given during my January hospital stay. I am not sure why I viewed it as all or nothing in terms of pumping. I guess I'm not always thinking clearly at 1:15am after only sleeping 3.5 hours, LOL.

I know some babies can nurse while they're asleep - a "dream feed" as some call it. Well that never happened with Nadia, and I can pretty much guarantee it will never happen with Ian as he's much worse in the nursing department than she was. Getting him latched on is still not an easy task. Many times he does this head bobbing thing for one thing. I will say it didn't take TOO long for him to latch on this time. I wasn't sure how it would go since it had been a long time since I've woken him up to feed him. He nursed well, but then unlike the last few nights, he didn't go back down easily. I started trying at 3:40, and here it is 4:15am, and I'm still up. At moments like these I wonder why do I want so badly to nurse rather than formula feed? If he were a formula baby, I wouldn't have been awake the past 3 hours. I really don't prefer to be awake from 1:15-4:15am. Right now I am trying to decide whether to keep trying to get him to sleep in the Nap Nanny or just give up and bring him to bed with us. The least amount of time he's stayed in the Nap Nanny 6 of the last 7 nights (not counting Monday night which was a pitiful 2 hours) was 6.5 hours and the longest ever was 7.5 hours total. (later) I ended up taking him to bed with me. He was sleeping soundly whereas I wasn't sleeping at all so I took him back down at 4:30, and he slept there for 40 minutes. I nursed him until 5:30 and then gave him to Paul. I stayed in bed until 6:10 (when Nadia woke up) but didn't get much sleep because my stomach was growling.

The scale has only heightened my frustration this morning. Ian's not gaining. Based upon what he weighed on Tuesday, Ian should have hit 8lb tomorrow. Instead he weighs exactly the same amount as he did on Tuesday. Nadia struggled the first 2 weeks, but from week 2 to week 4 she gained a pound, and she kept gaining from that point forward. She weighed 9lbs at her 2 month appt, 12.5 lbs at her 4 month appt, 15.5 lbs at 6 months, etc. I don't know what the problem is. Today I am going to call the lactation specialist from the hospital I was in last month. It's very, very discouraging to put so much effort into nursing (pumping at work, etc.) and not be rewarded when I weigh Ian. Over the past 7 days he's only had a total of 2oz of formula, but I might start supplementing. I want size 0-3 month clothes to fit him. I don't want to feel his ribs when I'm burping him. I can't stand to give him a bath - not just because he hates it but also because he feels so very skinny. I want him to gain weight is the bottom line. He's wearing a size 1 diaper today as I ran out of newborn size (they were out of them the last time I was at Walmart).

Snow Day!

The school districts around here were closed yesterday, which turned out to be completely unwarranted. Although it was snowing all day yesterday, the roads were completely clear the whole day as the snow kept melting when it hit the driveway or roads. There is some snow on our road today, and evidently in areas not that far from us they have a lot more snow today. My university was open yesterday, but they closed today, and they very rarely close so there must have been a lot more snow out there. I was glad the university closed since my in-laws wouldn't have been able to come up here in light of the snow. The meetings I was to attend this afternoon are going to be rescheduled.

It was such a delight to wake up without a headache yesterday. I honestly can't remember the last morning I didn't have a splitting headache from lack of sleep. Unfortunately the headache returned this morning. Last night wasn't an awful night (like Monday night was), but it wasn't as wonderful as Wednesday night. The good news was that he slept 3 times in the Nap Nanny last night which was a first. Previously he has only slept one or two stretches in it. The bad news is that the segments were much shorter than the previous night. He also only slept about 45 minutes in there for his morning nap (compared to at least 2 hours the last two days). In contrast, Nadia had a GREAT night. We backed her bedtime up to 7pm the last few days, and that has proven to be the right move. She hasn't been getting up as early. In fact this morning it was after 6:30. WOOHOO! She woke up in a happy mood for the first time in a long time which again proves she wasn't getting enough sleep before. The other reason I had decided to move her bedtime earlier was to prepare for the one hour shift we'll all be going through in the near future (at least those of us who follow DST).

In general I am far more optimistic than Paul is. You might guess it would be the other way around since Paul laughs a lot more than I do. Sometimes my optimism does lead to disappointment. After one good night of sleep, I find myself hoping (almost assuming) that the next night will follow suit. Paul doesn't expect that to happen. He keeps telling me these things "aren't linear." Can you tell he's a math guy? I would never say it like that. In general I think we balance each other out. I think it would be great to go to Hawaii, and he reminds me that it wouldn't be pleasant to be on an airplane that long with children this young. Last week I was ready to take the kids back to Sears to try to get one good picture of the two of them together, and he reminded me that Nadia had been fussing all morning and probably wouldn't do any better at Sears than she had the last time we went. Of course sometimes my optimistic view is what actually transpires. Ian has had 2 or more good nights in a row before. Even though it wasn't the case last night, I will go to bed tonight hoping for (aka expecting) a repeat of Wednesday night. I don't think Paul's pessimism (or realism?) has had too much of an effect on my thinking (yet anyhow). :-)

I've had fun shopping for Nadia's 2 year birthday party. I've decided it will have a VeggieTale theme. Last year we just invited family. I still plan on inviting family again this year, but I'm also planning to invite Sarah (her babysitter), Abby (Sarah's 3 year old daughter), and Beth and her 2 daughters (our neighbors who babysit Nadia and Ian). Last night I ordered some a glow in the dark Bob t-shirt (size 3T), 16 VeggieTale birthday napkins, 20 Bob & Larry balloons, a 4 ft inflatable Larry, a VeggieTale matching game, 3 DVD's, and 2 CD's all for $57 from Big Idea (the company that produces VeggieTales). The VeggieTale CD that Al & Millie gave her for Christmas is her favorite CD, and I'm rather tired of it which is why I got her two more VeggieTale cd's. Her second favorite CD is the Silly Song one which goes with the Take-Along Songs book. She asks for that one by saying "Silly Songs" whereas she asks for the VeggieTales one by pointing to the CD player and saying "Bob." Today on eBay I purchased a set of 3 VeggieTale stuffed animals - Larry, Laura, and Junior for less than $11 total (including s/h). Now we shall see if I actually wait until June to give these to her or not. I will definitely set aside the napkins, balloons, and t-shirt, but who knows about the other items. I have a feeling I'll want to give them to her as soon as they arrive in the mail. :-)

SIX Hours!

Last night Ian slept in his Nap Nanny from 10:10pm to 4:00am. That's almost SIX hours. WOW!! He then slept from 4:50-6:20am. I'm so accustomed to not getting back to sleep after his 4am feeding that I couldn't fall back asleep even though I was tired. Nadia woke up at 5:50. I think it's time to move the Nap Nanny from the pack 'n play in the living room to the crib in his bedroom. I think sleeping six hours is considered "sleeping through the night." Way to go, Ian! I can handle this for a few more months until we get to the stage where he'll sleep 12 hours straight. Nadia got to that point right about the time she turned 6 months old. Ian continued to be a good sleeper by taking a nap in his bed from 9:10 to 11:20 this morning. WOW! That's two days in a row that he's taken a 2 hour morning nap in his bed. I am going to change my routine so that I'll shower during his morning nap on the days that Paul isn't at home. The poor guy was often screaming while I took my shower. Nadia still plays in the jacuzzi tub while I shower. During his nap I can also get a little housework done and also have some quality one-on-one time with Nadia. What a blessing! I love holding Ian, but it's nice to go from holding him at least 20 hours a day to about 14 hours a day.

Paul picked up his new glasses this morning. He was planning to head to school directly from that appointment, but in light of the weather forecast he came back home. All the school districts around here were closed today. I bet they all feel foolish as although there is snow on the grass again, the snow has been melting when it hits the road. The roads are still black. Hopefully that will continue to be the case so that Paul's parents will still be able to come up tomorrow to watch Nadia & Ian when I head to school. I will be going in one Friday a month, and this Friday I have more than just my monthly 2pm faculty meeting. I also have plans to observe a faculty member at 1:00, meet with an advisee at 1:45, and participate in a grievance board hearing at 3:00. On Tuesday my department chair informed me that I won't be allowed to continue supervising an individualized instruction this semester since I have dropped to 50%. I have been part-time since October 2008, but I guess in the past years my total credits per year had remained above 22, which is the minimum (I'll be at 21 after the summer is over). I think I will still be allowed to do this in the summer. It's unfortunate because this was something I could do from home.

On Monday he told me that I'm scheduled to do 3 classes in the fall (75%). I had already been approved for a 50% schedule by the President. Making extra $$ next semester is not a big factor in my mind. The main reason I'm considering it is that it will probably be harder to go back to teaching 3 night classes (what I did last fall) in the future if I turn it down. If "your" course is assigned to someone else, it seems it's hard to get it back in the future. When I was full -time, I used to teach 3 sections of the undergrad LA in the mornings. I am quite certain I wouldn't be teaching that class if I went back to full-time. I honestly don't know what I'd be teaching. I was planning to go back to 75% next spring. I do know from experience that I only want to teach one course at a time this summer as when I taught 2 courses in one session last summer I found that to be too much (4 nights a week). I'm scheduled to teach one course T/Th in the first summer session on campus and one course in the second session by distance education - I can teach it from home. YAY! This means I'll get almost a 2 month break in terms of driving to campus in July and August. One other factor in regards to my fall schedule is that the third course is on Wednesday nights. I had planned to rejoin the choir, and their rehearsals are on Wednesday nights. The other two classes are on Monday and Thursday nights. I'll definitely teach those. I'm just not sure about the Wednesday night one. Hmm.....

45 before 45

Penelope posted a list of 35 things she'd like to accomplish before she turns 35 after she had read other people's lists of 30 things they want to do before they turn 30. I thought of doing a list of 40 things before I turn 40, but that's only a little more than 2 years away. Even after reading several other lists, I had a hard time thinking of many things that were just for me to accomplish. I have no desire to go sky diving, learn to knit, or learn another language, and some goals I saw listed rather frequently I've already done such as reading the Bible from cover to cover and buying a home.  Most of what I came up with involves our children, but I think that's fine, even if I didn't see anyone else do that on their lists. :-)

My list would have been much different if I had made it before I turned 30. I did not achieve them all before I hit that birthday, but I did prior to turning 38 (get married, have kids, buy a house, etc.). The other two big goals that I achieved in 2008 were to earn tenure and be promoted to Associate Professor. In order to achieve those goals I had to achieve the smaller goal of publishing articles. I needed at least three, and thankfully I had six published from 2006-2009. If I was trying to be promoted to (Full) Professor, I'd need to get back in gear in terms of publishing articles, grant writing, etc. Spending time with my children is far more important to me than trying to be promoted again.

I'm posting this about 2 months before my birthday so that I have time to revise my list if anyone suggests a goal I want to incorporate. I've added 3 pages to my blog that readers can access via links at the top of my blog. One will be where I'll write a little bit about each of the dates Paul and I will go on over the next 7 years, and the second will be about the new recipes I try in that same time frame. The third page will contain this list, and I plan to record the date when I achieve each of the goals to keep track of my progress.

1. Go on my first cruise
2. Go to Hawaii for the first time
3. Get back to what I weighed in June 2007 before I turn 39 and stay within 5 pounds of that weight until I turn 45
4. Bake cookies with Ian and Nadia
5. Make a gingerbread house, build a snowman, and go sledding with Ian and Nadia
6. Teach Ian and Nadia some sign language and Spanish
7. Give Ian and Nadia piano lessons
8. Go on a family vacation to San Diego
9. Take Ian and Nadia to the zoo, aquarium, and
science museum in Baltimore
10. Take Ian and Nadia to zoo, Please Touch Museum, and science museum in Philadelphia
11. Spend a day at a spa (I've never been to one before)
12. As a family, see a Broadway musical (such as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) and a Sight & Sound production
13. Get into a routine for cleaning the house
14. Go on a family vacation to Boston (Paul has never been there)
15. Visit Niagra Falls as a family (Paul has only had a very brief experience there)
16. Make pulled pork for the first time

17. Take Ian and Nadia to Disneyworld
18. Go to a lawyer with Paul to create our wills, power of attorney forms, and living wills
19. Participate in a 5K run
20. Take Ian and Nadia to Hershey Park, Knoebels, and Sesame Place
21. Grow some fruit in my backyard (blueberries and strawberries for example)
22. Go miniature golfing, bowling, roller skating, horseback riding, and ice skating as a family
23. Take Ian and Nadia to Lake Tobias and Claws & Paws
24. Take Ian and Nadia to a water park
25. Take Ian and Nadia skiing (snow)
26. Take Ian and Nadia to swimming lessons
27. Teach Ian and Nadia how to read
28. Make roast beef for the first time
29. Make white chocolate macadamia nut cookies for the first time (Paul's favorite)
30. Make yeast bread with Nadia
31. Edit the blog so it's just about the kids and then get it printed

32. Get caught up on my scrapbooks and photo albums
33. Nurse Ian at least until he's at least 12 months old
34. Have at least one close female friend - someone I talk to and do things with on a fairly regular basis
35. Participate in a BSF group for at least one year (I've never done that before)

36. Trade my Corolla in for a hybrid
37. Take Ian and Nadia to the Air & Space Museum, National Zoo, and other sites in D.C.
38. Take Ian and Nadia to the beach at least once every summer
39. Pay off Paul's undergrad school loans and make extra payments on the mortgage
40. Go on at least 40 dates with Paul over the next 7 years
41. Try at least 80 new recipes over the next 7 years
42. Plant perrennials and annuals in tthe flower beds in the front and one side of the house
43. Make homemade applesauce for the first time (with apples from our apple trees)
44. Get to know more of our neighbors
45. Get involved in at least one children's ministry (AWANA, VBS, the nursery, and/or Sunday School)

20 Months Old!

Nadia will be two years old in exactly four months. Wow. I love her soooo much! She's generally such a friendly, happy little girl. Her laughter and smiles bring such joy to my heart. She weighs 27 lbs, and we're working on her self-feeding skills. She does a great job of holding her sippy cup by herself. Cold milk is definitely her favorite thing to drink. She hasn't shown any interest in juice. She will drink a little water now and then. Her favorite foods are raisins, pretzels, yogurt, grapes, crackers, bagels, oatmeal, bananas, apples, macaroni & cheese, hamburgers, grilled cheese sandwiches, Captain Crunch, Golden Grahams, and pretty much any dessert (cookies, brownies, ice cream, etc.). She takes one afternoon nap a day which lasts from 1.5 to 3 hours long. She goes to bed between 7-8pm, and she gets up sometime between 5:00-6:30am. Her favorite activities include doing puzzles, coloring with crayons, playing with her kitchen, watching VeggieTales, listening to music, and reading books.

Here are 202 of the words that I could think of that I've heard Nadia say; I am not counting words that she has just repeated after us. The list only contains those words she's used to communicate with us.

Nature related: dog, cat, mice, turtle, owl, cow, tiger, penguin, barn, horse, goat, pig, bunny, frog, star, moon, monkey, flower, knee, elbow, eye, belly, toes, hand, lap, bear, chicken, nose, grass, snow, fish, parrot, ladybug, bee, earth, duck, seal, ear, hair, mouse, teeth, alligator, sheep, polar bear

Names: Mommy, Daddy, Ian, PopPop, Grandma, Abby, Grandpa, Lane, Bob, Larry, (Mr.) Lunt, Elmo, Nadia, Junior (Asparagus), Gabby, Sarah

Food related: spoon, lunch, dinner, bagel, hotdog, ice cream, milk, cookie, (Capt.) Crunch, oatmeal, banana, yogurt, cheese, water, pretzel, bottle, apple, pizza, chocolate, cracker, bite, hungry, grapes, raisin, more, done, napkin, jelly, peas, egg, bib, tomato, hamburger, pickle, kitchen, Kix, mess, ice, noodle, (Golden) Grahams

Verbs: rip, push, tickle, pop, watch, sweep, hug, back up, flip, poop, pee, rock, go, open, color, swing, read

Adjectives: blue, yucky, big, wet, good, all, clean, hot, this, that, yummy, stuck, pink, two, three, the, silly

Nouns: book, puzzle, button, upstairs, cd, remote, diaper, ball, blanket, girl, airplane, crayon, hat, shoes, sock, house, wall, tissue, balloon, jeans, church, brush, baby, light, basketball, touchdown, oval, bath, computer, phone, doctor, pump, Tylenol, sticker, car, boat, gym, pieces, princess, bed, there, stairs, boy, song, engine,

Prepositions: up, down, off, on, out, under, in

Misc.: uh oh, oops, hi, hello, bye bye, thank you, please, I, night night, yes, no, ah choo, yeah, okay, again, peekaboo

Ian was a good sleeper last night. He slept in his Nap Nanny from 8:50pm to 1:50am and again from 2:45 to 4:20am. This morning I decided to try to start a 9:00 morning nap routine. I put him down at 8:50 and although he didn't sleep the entire time, he didn't start fussing until 10:40! Way to go, Ian!! I got some housework done, but mostly I played with Nadia during his nap. When she heard him fussing she said "Hi, Ian." How sweet!

Yesterday I pumped 4.5 ounces at school, and Ian was only given 3.5 ounces in my absence (which surprised me as they gave him more on Monday and I was gone longer on Tuesday). I have 5.5 ounces of EBM in the refrigerator. I am very glad to just stay at home today with my two sweet children. Ian has been giving me LOTS of smiles today. He has such a beautiful smile!!!

Longest Separation

To date the longest Ian & I have been separated has been 5 hours, and that has happened the 3 days I've taught thus far this semester (last Monday and Tuesday plus yesterday). Today we'll be separated for 8 hours as I am going in earlier to do 2 peer observations. Yesterday Paul watched the kids while I was at school; that means its the neighbor's turn today. Thus far the longest he's been with someone other than Paul or I has been 3 hours. Today he'll be with them for 6 hours. I will admit I'm struggling emotionally over this. Going back to work is a hard transition emotionally and a painful one at times physically as I was only able to pump once yesterday (around 4:30pm) at work yesterday. I pumped 2.5 ounces, and he took 4 ounces by bottle in my absence. I definitely need to pump more than once at work today since I'll be there longer. I wore a black sweater plus pads so there was no way I was going to have any obvious milk spots on my clothing last night.

Yesterday morning I took the kids to a different MOPS group. In terms of mileage it's closer (9 versus 13 miles), but I discovered it's not any closer in terms of time it takes to get there (25 minutes). This group just started this fall. It seemed that possibly all the ladies go to the host church. It is a much smaller group. Including myself there were 9 women there yesterday. However that's not necessarily a bad thing as it's easier to get to know others in a group that size. Also, although the group's meeting site isn't any closer to our home, several of the ladies live only 15 minutes from our home which isn't the case with the other group. I plan on trying the group at least one more time. The next meeting is in 2 weeks. I really am still desiring to develop a close friendship with one woman who lives close enough that we can get together fairly regularly. The amazing thing was that there were 4 kids in the nursery (including Nadia) who will be turning or have already turned 20 months old this month! Two of the women are pregnant (due in April) so of course the conversation included labor and delivery stories. Nadia did great in the nursery; the woman who took care of her told me she was very impressed with Nadia's ability to do puzzles. :-) I kept Ian with me. I didn't bring the boppy, but I did bring my nursing cover and used it when I nursed him. The "program" yesterday was really informal - they had molds to make chocolates and also three flavors of chocolate (mint, milk, and dark) for dipping various items (strawberries, pretzels, marshmallows, etc.).

Nadia also is having an adjustment to me going back to work. She did better last night, but last week Paul said she kept saying my name a million times and was looking for me and asking "Mommy upstairs?", etc. I know I have it good compared to those moms who have to go back to work 40 hours a week, but I admit I am still having a hard time adjusting to being away 10 hours a week. Usually it will be 10 hours a week like it was last week. This week I'll be away 18 hours since today's a longer day and I'm going in three days this week (one more than usual). The good news is that I'll be away only 10 hours next week, and then the week after that I get to stay home as it's spring break. That's when I plan to try to potty train Nadia. So if you think of me today I'd appreciate prayers for all 3 of us in light of my long work day - for Nadia and myself emotionally and that I'll be able to pump enough that it won't hurt my milk supply at all.

Unfortunately last night wasn't a good night with Ian. There's never a good time to have a bad night, but it's really not good to have a bad night right before a long day at work, especially as lack of sleep interferes with my ability to think clearly. I put him down at 9:15pm and he woke up at 11:15pm. I was NOT happy that his first stretch was only 2 hours long. Even before he switched to a 4+ hour stretch 6 days ago his first stretch was usually 3-3.5 hours long. To make matters worse, he wouldn't go back in his Nap Nanny any time after midnight. I eventually brought him up to our bed. I had hoped our days of co-sleeping (at least prior to 4am) were over. Although I don't sleep as well with him in my arms, it's better than not getting any sleep. I am one TIRED Momma though since I only got 2 hours of sleep without Ian last night, and I won't be at home when Nadia takes her afternoon nap. The good news is that Ian now weighs 8lbs with his clothes on and 7lb 11.5oz with only a dry diaper. It was very exciting to see the number 8 show up on the scale, even if that was with his 4.5 ounces of clothes on. That means he gained 3.5 ounces over the past 4 days. Way to go, Ian!

FIVE Hours!

I have learned my lesson that when I am in public I need to wear protection for leakage. Yesterday morning when I went back to nurse Ian during the morning worship service, I discovered I had been leaking big time. The bad news was that I was wearing a light purple turtleneck (and milk spots really show on lighter colored clothing), but the REALLY good news was that I was also wearing a black suede shirt jacket. Thank goodness for layers! I think this means that no one saw my big milk spots. Whew... I didn't leave the nursing room until the spots were gone even though I couldn't hear the service in the nursing room like I usually can.

Last evening I let them know that the sound wasn't working in the morning so that when I needed to leave to nurse Ian during the evening service I would be able to hear what was going on. Last night was the "Night of Praise." It was a wonderful service. I was one of three instrumental solos. I played "Heaven Came Down" on the flute, a former college student of mine played a clarinet solo for the offeratory, and a man got a standing ovation after playing "Holy Ground" on his trumpet. There were also 7 vocal solos. My favorite were the 3 songs the men's quartet sang as well as the anthem the choir sang. It was wonderful to sing with the choir again. I couldn't find an audio recording of the choral version of the song online, but I did find a video of it being sung as a solo. Our choir director usually is our accompaniest, but we sang with a CD this time, and the orchestration was wonderful. Four different women got to hold Ian for a few minutes at some point during the 2.5 hours I was there. They were VERY glad to do so. :-) Before the service I rehearsed the song I'll be playing my piccolo for next Sunday morning. The service began at 6:30pm. I left at 8:25pm, and the service wasn't over yet (although it was near the end). Long services are the norm at this church, which is why I left Nadia at home with Paul so she could get to bed on time.

When we got home, I changed Ian's diaper, nursed him, and put him in the Nap Nanny at 9:15pm. He was quiet until 12:30am. I heard him fussing, but I decided to wait and see if he would actually work up into a full fledged cry. He didn't! He went back to sleep!! Way to go, Ian!! He didn't cry until 2:15am! WOOHOO! This was the first time he slept for 5 hours straight. May it become the norm!!! His next stretch was about 1.5 hours long. This means he slept in his Nap Nanny about 6.5 hours between 9:15pm and 4:40am! Nadia woke up at 4:50. I didn't get her until 5:55, but she was awake that whole time. She's not getting enough sleep at night these days as we're putting her down at 7:30pm.

Puzzles Galore!

Ask anyone who has spent time with Nadia this week, and they will tell you that Nadia has been into doing puzzles All Day Long. She can do the 10 puzzles she's been working on lately very quickly all by herself. Pretty soon she'll be ready to move onto some harder ones.

The dress she's wearing today is size 2T, and I am happy that although it fits, there is growing room in terms of length (in contrast with the size 24m dresses that come just below her knee).

Over the last week Nadia has been asking me at least once a day to sit on the toilet, She says, "I go pee pee" and ponts to the toilet. She also said "I pooped" one time when she had a messy diaper. I do think it's time to start potty training her.

We had fun at the dessert social last night. Five couples played a version of the Newlywed Game. It was hillarious! Nadia's babysitter (Sarah) and her husband won. Gabby stayed at our house with Nadia, and we took Ian with us. There were some very yummy desserts including things to dip in a chocolate fountain.

We got home about 9:30pm, and I put Ian down at 10:15. His first stretch was one hour shorter than it had been the previous three nights. He spent about 5 1/4 hours in the Nap Nanny total between 10:15pm and 4:15am. So I didn't get more sleep altogether, but I got more past midnight. He went down much easier than usual at 2:45am, but he only lasted 10 minutes when I put him down after the next feeding. Hopefully the first stretch will be longer tonight as I need more than 5 hours of sleep. He slept in his car seat during the meal at church at noon today which helped me out as I had Nadia in my lap while she and I ate lunch.

This and That

Yesterday Ian was wearing one of the 2 newborn outfits I got him at JCP before he was born. They were rather big on him when he wore them in the NICU, but yesterday he had some bare skin showing on both legs in between where the pants ended and his socks began. He's definitely grown over the past 10 weeks. Can you believe he's now in double digits in terms of how many weeks old he is? I thought maybe he is ready for 0-3 month, but he's not. In fact I tried a newborn size outfit on him again (that he got as a Christmas gift from Grandma Kennedy) and the pants literally fell off him. Sigh. I wish there was more consistency with clothing sizes. Well I think he looks super handsome in the newborn size outfit he's wearing today. If I take the kids to Sears just for a pose of the 2 of them together some time in the near future, I think I'll have him wear this outfit. I considered going up today, but Nadia was WAY too fussy today.

Speaking of sizes, the dress Nadia is wearing today is supposed to be a summer dress, but I put a turtleneck under it. It's size 24 months and comes just below her knee. For pants she's definitely not ready to move beyond size 18 months yet. Tops in 24m or 2T fit well except the sleeves are too long.

Nadia can accurately identify (say the name when she sees a picture) at least 25 animals, but if she sees one she doesn't know (such as an ostrich), she almost always calls it a monkey (or a dog), LOL!

Ian enjoys being in the gym now (on his back), but unfortunately he usually spits up quite a bit if he's lying on his back or belly. He still doesn't usually last long in the swing. Hopefully some day he will. He's almost ready for the Bumbo. He's getting much better at holding his head. Yesterday he smiled for Grandma and also was cooing for her. He's becoming more and more social!

We haven't  made progress with Ian taking naps in the Nap Nanny, but we are making progress with him sleeping there at night and also with nursing without the shield. He's had a few feedings today without it. YAY! I keep trying to wean him off of it, but I'm not letting it get to the point where he's screaming over it. In terms of sleeping at night, I decided today that I need to stay up later at night. Going to bed by 8pm (or 9pm on the nights I teach) isn't helping me get more sleep like it used to because Paul was holding Ian during that first stretch. His first stretch has been at least 4.5 hours long the past 3 nights - which has been WONDERFUL after having him not go more than 3 hours for the previous 9.5 weeks. I worked really hard the last two nights to get him down after the first feeding. It meant I was up for 90-120 minutes, but at least he then slept in the Nap Nanny for at least 90 minutes. I have had zero success the last few days in getting him to go down the third time (which has been around 4-5am). So today my day started at 3:30am as I never got him down again after that. That's just too early for me to start my day. So my new plan is to put him down no earlier than 9pm, and 10pm would probably be ideal. If he could sleep from 10pm-3am (he hasn't had a 5 hour stretch yet but I'm hopeful that could happen in the near future) and then again from 4am-6am, that would be wonderful. Eight-nine hours of sleep is "ideal" for me, but I would be thrilled to get 7 hours a night until he starts sleeping even longer stretches.

 

It's going to be hard for me to stay up until 10pm, but I am going to try to remind myself that it would be better to be up from 8-10pm than to start my day at 3:30am. Hopefully this plan will work! It should be easier to stay up that late the next few days as we have a social at church tonight that starts at 7pm, I am playing the flute at church tomorrow night in a service that starts at 6:30pm, and I'm teaching on Monday and Tuesday night. I also enjoy watching the Olympics and haven't seen much so I can use that to keep me awake over the next week. I've barely watched any tv the past 10 weeks aside from PBS that I have on for Nadia during some of Ian's feedings. My tv watching has been limited to VeggieTales, Curious George, Sesame Street, and Clifford. Can you tell I have a toddler?

2 Praises

First, I would like to say how happy THRILLED I am that Ian is back on track with gaining weight AND with sleeping somewhere besides my arms or chest!!! I weighed Ian this morning, and (drumroll, please) he now weighs 7 1/2 lbs. WOOHOO! With his clothes on, he weighed 7 lb 12.5 oz (the onesie plus sleeper weigh 4.5 ounces). This means in a few days the weight with clothes on should be hitting 8lbs. WOW! After waiting so long to get back to 6lb and then to finally hit 7lb, it seems that we'll be making it to 8lb much faster. PTL! I am not concerned about my milk supply. I had a little spot on my shirt at Sears yesterday (thank goodness that one was covered up!), and last night I was leaking all over the place even when it had "only" been 2.5 hours since I nursed him. His weight gain is the biggest proof that I'm producing enough milk as on Wednesday and Thursday he didn't have any formula. Those two days put together he had a total of about 2.5 ounces of EBM. I am glad that my going back to work this week didn't goof up my milk supply. Whew.....

He also had a regression recently (while sick and after getting his shots) in terms of sleeping in the Nap Nanny. His first stretch has been his only good one lately although thankfully that one has been getting longer and longer. Last night his first stretch was almost 4.5 hours. If I had gone to bed when he did (I stayed up 30 minutes to do some cleaning) and if I hadn't had trouble sleeping because I was so full of milk, I could have slept 4.5 hours in a row. I haven't experienced sleeping more than 3 hours in a row the last 10 weeks, but I think that experience is just around the corner for me! I spent 30 minutes helping him get back to sleep after I nursed him. It was worth it to me to be up from 12:20-2:05am if it meant that I then went back to bed without a little boy in my arms. I stayed up there for 2 hours until he woke up at 4am. This means from 8pm to 4am he was in the Nap Nanny for about 7 hours. WAY TO GO, IAN!!!! He only stayed in it for 5 minutes after I put him down after the 4am feeding. I decided at that point it wasn't worth working for 30 minutes to get him to stay in the pack n play. I just brought him up, propped myself up, and he slept on my chest. Paul was gracious enough to get Nadia when she woke up so I stayed in bed a little longer than usual. Sleep is such a wonderful thing! I am one VERY happy momma at the moment between knowing that Ian's thriving on my milk and also that I should be getting more sleep on a more regular basis in the very near future. Only getting 2.5 hours of sleep on Tuesday night was just brutal. I hope those days are a thing of the past.

Ian's First Trip to Sears

Well we finally took Ian for his first pictures at Sears - four weeks later than originally planned. Every appointment had been for 5pm because I figured that was the latest Nadia could handle. In the past we've always gone in the morning or afternoon. I think our latest appointment has been 3pm, but most of the time I took Nadia myself. Paul came along for her first photos (8-1-08) and both Christmas photos (November 08 & 09). The November photos were both taken during his Thanksgiving break. I knew he wanted this appointment to be as late as possible so that he could stay at school as long as possible. I figured he'd have to leave by about 3:00 to make a 5:00 appt. He usually stays until 4:30 and gets home at 6:00. Well he ended up staying home yesterday so it probably would have been better to have made the appointment earlier in the day as Nadia was AWFUL. Her behavior was just plain terrible. We didn't get any pictures of her with Ian, and I really wanted to buy a few sheets of that pose.

 

We also didn't purchase any family photos, and I really wanted to buy that one also. I will say that the problems with the family pose weren't limited to Nadia. Ian was screaming in one and my eyes were closed in one. I kept tickling her to try to get a smile, and we did get two where she was smiling. I didn't want doggie in the picture. We won't bring him in the future. Paul had brought doggie along for her to play with while Ian was having his picture taken as we planned on most of the shots being of just him. There were two family shots worth consideration. The one (above) I preferred how I looked but Nadia's skirt is hiked up a bit (my fault), you can't see Ian's face very well, and the frame we have for our family photo is for a horizontal pose. The other family pose I put in yesterday's post. Both kids look good in that one. The problems with that one were that I don't like how I look (the way the shirt is pulling across my chest) and the fact that it also was oriented vertically. I think Paul wanted to buy one of that one, but I knew I'd hate looking at that picture in our family room as I'd feel very fat every time I saw it. The irony is that the reason I wore a pink turtleneck and black skirt was to coordinate my outfit with Nadia's when in fact we didn't buy any picture that Nadia was in. I should just have worn whatever I thought I would have looked good in as pretty much anything would have gone okay with what Ian was wearing. Well we'll be seeing my sister in a few weeks in Maryland (who takes very good pictures). Maybe she'll have time to get two good photos for us - one of Nadia & Ian together (vertical) and one of the four of us (horizontal). When we left my feeling was I didn't want to go back until June (for Nadia's 2nd birthday), but I am sure that once Ian grows into size 0-3 month clothing and starts smiling more often, I'll want to take him back for pictures again. It wouldn't be very nice to the second born child to take him drastically less often for photos than we took Nadia just because his big sister didn't cooperate. Hopefully she'll be better behaved next time. I won't try a 5pm appt again that's for sure!

She had been pretty well behaved at home all day so it really wasn't expected that she'd be so difficult at Sears. I guess you just can't predict the behavior of a 19 month old. They didn't stop at McD's as that had been promised as a reward for good behavior.

I assumed that the poses they would do with a newborn were standard, but I guess they aren't. I liked the ones we got with her better in terms of how they had us posed and also the shots of her hands and feet and such. Those were taken at a different Sears; maybe that's the difference? Well the good news is we did get a few good pics, and we only spent $26 including tax. I bought 16 wallets of the first photo in this post, one 10x13 of the third photo, four 5x7s of Paul & Ian, and four 5x7s of myself & Ian. Paul doesn't like the one of himself & Ian so I won't put it on display around our house. I plan to put one in my office, give one to his parents, etc. I think it's a great shot especially as we can see Ian's eyes. The only complaint I have with that one was that since I wasn't in the room while it was taken, Ian's shirt was untucked and his one sock is sticking out. My chief complaint about the one photo of Nadia & Ian (see post below) is that we can't see either of their eyes. Nadia was kissing Ian, and that could have been a great pose, but it didn't turn out well at all. I don't have a problem with how I look in the pose with Ian except for the water spot on my shirt as I had just taken Nadia to the water fountain while Paul was having his picture taken with Ian (note to self - don't do that again!). The bag under my eye is pretty large, but considering how little sleep I've been getting - nothing could be done about that, LOL! I wish Ian's face was shown a bit more in that pose, but I thought it was a decent picture so we got some of it.

Hopefully when the pictures come in I'll feel better about this whole experience. It was exhausting that is for certain. I gave Nadia a bath the previous night and gave Ian one yesterday afternoon. Nadia LOVES her baths - she stayed in the tub for an hour on Wednesday night! Ian HATES his baths, but I imagine that will change in time. Someone this week suggested I give him a bath at night to help him sleep better. That may work for some, but that would definitely not work for him. It takes a long time to calm him down after a bath. He gets so worked up sometimes I think he might jump right out of the sink! Anyhow to get the four of us ready to go was no small undertaking. At least the next time we go to Sears I'll only be trying to get pictures of Ian and Nadia. Maybe I'll go in April for an Easter photo. And hopefully my sister can get the other two poses that I wanted to buy yesterday but didn't. She does a great job and it's much cheaper to buy prints of photos she's taken! I love this dress on Nadia. Can you believe it's size 24 month and just comes below her knee? I also love this little suit on Ian although I ended up taking off his tie. I'm not good at putting on clip on ties. Hopefully my skills will improve. :-)

When I got home I took a few pictures of Nadia and then ate dinner (SUPER late for me) while nursing Ian. While Paul was getting Nadia ready for bed and I was nursing Ian, I was using my laptop. I discovered a woman who was a student in my 5th grade class in 1995-96 had requested to become a Facebook friend. The message she sent me was really encouraging and just what I needed. Why is it that taking the family for pictures is such an emotional experience for me? There have been a couple of times that I was thrilled  with the outcome, but there have also been times where it was super frustrating. Here is a portion of the message she sent me. What an encouragement! "You were my 5th grade teacher and I just came across my yearbook and really wanted to find you. You have a beautiful family and you seem to be doing great. I have thought of you periodically and really wanted to thank you for being such an inspiration. You were an amazing teacher and I just wanted to let you know how great you were and I'm sure you still are. Thank you so much for what you do....I never have forgotten you and never will."