I've always been a fan of breakfast foods. Many times if I'm out to eat at a place like Cracker Barrel or Perkins, I'll order a breakfast meal for my dinner, and sometimes I stop at Dunkin Donuts and get an egg and cheese bagel sandwich for lunch. I could easily eat breakfast type foods three times a day. Breakfast has moved up in popularity with me even more these days because it's the most peaceful, least stressful meal. The best case scenario is that Nadia, Ian, and I eat our breakfast while Oliver is still sleeping. That happened this morning as Oliver's third stretch was from 6:30-8:00am. Ian got up at 6:30 (even though he waited 4+ more hours before he went to the bathroom), but I had him come in bed with me, and he fell back asleep. Nadia came in at 7:30am, and that's when the three of us came down to eat breakfast. Usually they eat their food quickly without nagging on my part or crying on their part. I wish I could say that always was the case, but it's not. Lately Ian has been having a blueberry bagel and a glass of EleCare for breakfast every morning. I break the bagel into pieces and from there on he feeds himself. I give Nadia a cinnamon raisin bagel that is just split in half and a glass of apple juice. Sometimes she picks a bowl of cereal such as today it was Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I don't enjoy meals that take 1-2 hours to eat. It would be different if I was on a date with Paul, but when it takes Ian and Nadia that long to eat a small amount of food, it's painful.
If I wanted all the meals to be as easy as breakfast, then I'd let Ian eat either toast, a bagel, or a strawberry unfrosted Pop Tart at every meal, but I make him eat things like fruit, vegetables, and meat. Nadia is getting a little bit better. I served tuna melt pie for dinner the last two nights, and it took her about one hour each night to eat it. Truly she could have consumed it in 15 minutes or less as I gave her a small portion, but considering there are nights she takes 2 hours to eat the meal, I consider 1 hour to be a step in the right direction, particularly as she didn't cry or fuss over what I served her last night. I keep telling myself that some day dinner together as a family will be a pleasurable experience. I look forward to that day with eager anticipation! I'm trying another new recipe today even after yesterday's brownie disaster. Hopefully Nadia, Paul, and I will like the slow cooker chicken cordon bleu. It was easy to make, which means the recipe will be a keeper if we also enjoy the taste of it.
Oliver has been drinking house and home lately. I think it's in part because he's sleeping more at night (although that wasn't true last night). The significnat increase in how much formula he is consuming was one of the things I let upset me yesterday. Today I am trying to have a better attitude. I keep telling myself the most important thing is that he's healthy and gaining weight. Did I mention that the insurance paid over $2,300 for the first Synagis injection? I thought fertility shots were expensive! Anyhow, I keep trying to remind myself that he is nursing many times a day, and if I wasn't also giving him milk by bottle, he wouldn't be gaining weight as nicely as he has been gaining lately. I already am having enough trouble accomplishing everything on my to do list (the housework needs to be getting more attention). I am trying to convince myself it's fine that I opted to supplement with formula rather than to continue pumping. At this point there's a disconnect between my brain and heart on this matter. I usually weigh Oliver on Tuesdays with the exception of the weeks that he turns a month older. I think this week I'm going to wait until Friday because I'm hoping to see 8 as the first number the next time I weigh him.
Last night I was trying to figure out why I was so stressed out yesterday. I think part of it was because Oliver takes his only nap (or longest nap) in my arms during church on Sundays. I absolutely love holding a sleeping baby. It's one of the most blissful experiences of my life, but the problem is that it means I don't get any breaks from Oliver that day (particularly when Paul spends 24+ hours at PSU). My day goes much more smoothly when Oliver takes at least one nap in his crib. That gives me time to get some work done (cooking, cleaning, etc.) or have a little down time for myself (ex. to blog) or to accomplish something with the other kids that is difficult to do while holding Oliver.
I'm thankful today is a stay at home day. This morning I was determined to feel productive even while Oliver was awake. I was able to work with Nadia on writing letters while nursing Oliver and Ian was playing with Play-Doh. She has now learned how to write 15 letters of the alphabet. She practiced writing the names Ian, Nadia, and Dad several times. Of the letters she's learned to write, "A" is the hardest one for her. Now that Oliver is almost 8lbs, I am also going to try putting him in a sling. He's really not keen on the Weego unless he's asleep. I'm hoping he'll like the sling because otherwise we have to listen to him scream when I have to put him down to cook dinner or something like that. I have gotten really good at doing many things while holding him in my arms. In fact I have mastered the art of going to the bathroom with him in my arms without waking him up (ex. yesterday at church).
I have been trying very hard to live in the present and not worry about Paul's job situation, but it's impossible to completely block it out of my mind. For example, I was contemplating hanging some more picture frames, and then I thought if we are moving in less than 2 months it really doesn't make sense to put more holes in the wall. Three of the positions Paul applied for start in January. Two of them would involve us moving between now and then. I would think though that if he was going to be called for an interview that it would happen in the next 2-3 weeks. If he doesn't get a job at a university, he will go back to working for his Dad in January and work there until he does get a job that would make use of his PhD in Chemistry. It's very comforting to know we do have a "plan B" in place that would provide health insurance for our family. I keep telling myself that worry doesn't help one iota. God is in control, and I just have to be patient and wait to find out what His plan is for Paul's employment in 2013. The more important thing would be for him to get called for interviews for tenure track positions that start in the fall. I wish I could fast forward to find out how this is going to turn out, but that's not how life works!
Yesterday I tried on multiple occasions to take lots of pics of the kids as all three looked so nice in their Sunday clothes. Most of my attempts were unsuccessful because of things like the battery needing to be recharged or Oliver crying. This morning Nadia asked me to take some pictures of her with Oliver, and I got some that I love even though they were all in their pjs. Sieze the moment! The pic (above) of Ian kissing Oliver cracks me up. What a face!
I've always been a fan of breakfast foods. Many times if I'm out to eat at a place like Cracker Barrel or Perkins, I'll order a breakfast meal for my dinner, and sometimes I stop at Dunkin Donuts and get an egg and cheese bagel sandwich for lunch. I could easily eat breakfast type foods three times a day. Breakfast has moved up in popularity with me even more these days because it's the most peaceful, least stressful meal. The best case scenario is that Nadia, Ian, and I eat our breakfast while Oliver is still sleeping. That happened this morning as Oliver's third stretch was from 6:30-8:00am. Ian got up at 6:30 (even though he waited 4+ more hours before he went to the bathroom), but I had him come in bed with me, and he fell back asleep. Nadia came in at 7:30am, and that's when the three of us came down to eat breakfast. Usually they eat their food quickly without nagging on my part or crying on their part. I wish I could say that always was the case, but it's not. Lately Ian has been having a blueberry bagel and a glass of EleCare for breakfast every morning. I break the bagel into pieces and from there on he feeds himself. I give Nadia a cinnamon raisin bagel that is just split in half and a glass of apple juice. Sometimes she picks a bowl of cereal such as today it was Cinnamon Toast Crunch. I don't enjoy meals that take 1-2 hours to eat. It would be different if I was on a date with Paul, but when it takes Ian and Nadia that long to eat a small amount of food, it's painful. 
If I wanted all the meals to be as easy as breakfast, then I'd let Ian eat either toast, a bagel, or a strawberry unfrosted Pop Tart at every meal, but I make him eat things like fruit, vegetables, and meat. Nadia is getting a little bit better. I served tuna melt pie for dinner the last two nights, and it took her about one hour each night to eat it. Truly she could have consumed it in 15 minutes or less as I gave her a small portion, but considering there are nights she takes 2 hours to eat the meal, I consider 1 hour to be a step in the right direction, particularly as she didn't cry or fuss over what I served her last night. I keep telling myself that some day dinner together as a family will be a pleasurable experience. I look forward to that day with eager anticipation! I'm trying another new recipe today even after yesterday's brownie disaster. Hopefully Nadia, Paul, and I will like the slow cooker chicken cordon bleu. It was easy to make, which means the recipe will be a keeper if we also enjoy the taste of it.
Oliver has been drinking house and home lately. I think it's in part because he's sleeping more at night (although that wasn't true last night). The significnat increase in how much formula he is consuming was one of the things I let upset me yesterday. Today I am trying to have a better attitude. I keep telling myself the most important thing is that he's healthy and gaining weight. Did I mention that the insurance paid over $2,300 for the first Synagis injection? I thought fertility shots were expensive! Anyhow, I keep trying to remind myself that he is nursing many times a day, and if I wasn't also giving him milk by bottle, he wouldn't be gaining weight as nicely as he has been gaining lately. I already am having enough trouble accomplishing everything on my to do list (the housework needs to be getting more attention). I am trying to convince myself it's fine that I opted to supplement with formula rather than to continue pumping. At this point there's a disconnect between my brain and heart on this matter. I usually weigh Oliver on Tuesdays with the exception of the weeks that he turns a month older. I think this week I'm going to wait until Friday because I'm hoping to see 8 as the first number the next time I weigh him.
Last night I was trying to figure out why I was so stressed out yesterday. I think part of it was because Oliver takes his only nap (or longest nap) in my arms during church on Sundays. I absolutely love holding a sleeping baby. It's one of the most blissful experiences of my life, but the problem is that it means I don't get any breaks from Oliver that day (particularly when Paul spends 24+ hours at PSU). My day goes much more smoothly when Oliver takes at least one nap in his crib. That gives me time to get some work done (cooking, cleaning, etc.) or have a little down time for myself (ex. to blog) or to accomplish something with the other kids that is difficult to do while holding Oliver. 
I'm thankful today is a stay at home day. This morning I was determined to feel productive even while Oliver was awake. I was able to work with Nadia on writing letters while nursing Oliver and Ian was playing with Play-Doh. She has now learned how to write 15 letters of the alphabet. She practiced writing the names Ian, Nadia, and Dad several times. Of the letters she's learned to write, "A" is the hardest one for her. Now that Oliver is almost 8lbs, I am also going to try putting him in a sling. He's really not keen on the Weego unless he's asleep. I'm hoping he'll like the sling because otherwise we have to listen to him scream when I have to put him down to cook dinner or something like that. I have gotten really good at doing many things while holding him in my arms. In fact I have mastered the art of going to the bathroom with him in my arms without waking him up (ex. yesterday at church).
I have been trying very hard to live in the present and not worry about Paul's job situation, but it's impossible to completely block it out of my mind. For example, I was contemplating hanging some more picture frames, and then I thought if we are moving in less than 2 months it really doesn't make sense to put more holes in the wall. Three of the positions Paul applied for start in January. Two of them would involve us moving between now and then. I would think though that if he was going to be called for an interview that it would happen in the next 2-3 weeks. If he doesn't get a job at a university, he will go back to working for his Dad in January and work there until he does get a job that would make use of his PhD in Chemistry. It's very comforting to know we do have a "plan B" in place that would provide health insurance for our family. I keep telling myself that worry doesn't help one iota. God is in control, and I just have to be patient and wait to find out what His plan is for Paul's employment in 2013. The more important thing would be for him to get called for interviews for tenure track positions that start in the fall. I wish I could fast forward to find out how this is going to turn out, but that's not how life works!
Yesterday I tried on multiple occasions to take lots of pics of the kids as all three looked so nice in their Sunday clothes. Most of my attempts were unsuccessful because of things like the battery needing to be recharged or Oliver crying. This morning Nadia asked me to take some pictures of her with Oliver, and I got some that I love even though they were all in their pjs. Sieze the moment! The pic (above) of Ian kissing Oliver cracks me up. What a face!
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