I love fall! It is my favorite season! I mean REAL fall, not the sort of "fake" fall that comes when children go back to school. Around here, the end of August when school start is still really hot--all those nice jeans and long sleeve tops I buy at the back-to-school sales are too warm to wear, so my children go to school in shorts and t-shirts.
Lately the weather has been just gorgeous--cool (and even COLD!) mornings and evenings and very pleasant days. We've had a couple of rainy days and the mountain tops are dusted with snow and the leaves are changing colors. It really gets me in the mood to do projects around my home and yard.
I have spent quite a bit of time canning. I have made tomato soup, chile sauce, salsa, peach chutney, and peach jam. I have canned cherries and peaches. I have some strawberries in the freezer I bought early last summer that need to be made into jam. I want to make applesauce. A friend has asked to borrow my pressure canner to can beans--I would like to learn to do that. So apart from strawberry jam, applesauce and possibly beans, I am done with canning for this year.
Maceys had their big case lot sale and I stocked up. Right now all the boxes are in the garage. I need to re-organize my food storage room to move what's left from last year to the front and make room for the new stuff. I didn't buy everything I want to--some things (such as Swanson's broth, baking supplies, Jello, etc.) are cheaper in the holiday period between Halloween and Christmas. So I need to inventory those items and see how much I need to buy so when they do go on sale, I'll be ready! My big freezer in the garage is stuffed full. I've probably got three months worth of food in there!
I've been making a list of fall projects I want to get done around the house and yard before snow flies. Or at least before the weather gets REALLY cold. I need to change out the children's clothes; check and replenish our 72 hour kits; refill the propane tanks (our emergency cooking fuel--I used up all the tanks this summer with the canning and grilling); do final yard maintenance; clean up and organize the garage so Steven can park his car in there; and a whole list of other things.
And one goal among all the "to dos" is to simply step back once in a while (once a day at least!) and breathe in the fresh fall air and notice the colors and just enjoy the season.
Monday, October 12, 2009
Monday, October 5, 2009
One year ago....
One year ago…
I cannot believe that my baby is one year old today.
One year ago this weekend was General Conference. My doctor’s appointment was on Friday the 3rd. I was due on Thursday, Oct. 16th; scheduled to be induced on Friday, Oct. 10th. When my doctor checked me, I was 4 centimeters dilated. That surprised me because I had never been dilated that much that early with my other two babies. Steven was with me at the appointment and we all agreed I probably wouldn’t make it to my scheduled induction date.
Saturday the 4th we watched both sessions of General Conference. I was having some pretty intense Braxton-Hicks contractions all day but nothing unusual. I’d been having BH contractions for quite awhile. Steven and I both had the feeling the baby would come that weekend sometime. We had already arranged that Steven’s parents would take Christie and Jordan when it came time to go to the hospital. My parents were on their mission in Africa. Anyway, after the afternoon session, and having dinner, we decided to go do some errands—we were almost out of milk and needed some other things. So off we went. I think we went to three stores. I rode in the mobility carts because walking was so uncomfortable. Sometime while we were out my contractions became a little more intense. We started timing them and by the time we got home around 8, we decided maybe we’d better head to the hospital. While Steven helped C&J pack overnight bags, I called the Swains and the interpreter agency. Steven’s parents live in Draper and we agreed on a ‘code knock’ that would identify them so C&J would answer the door. After making sure they understood what to do, hugs and kisses, and a picture of me (practically the only picture taken of me while I was pregnant), we headed to the hospital.
I was admitted to triage, put on a monitor and then we waited. My contractions were still very uncomfortable but weren’t increasing in intensity or frequency the way I remember they did with C&J. We were there from about 8:45 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. We spent the time alternating between me resting in bed and walking around to see if things would get moving. Each time the nurse checked me, the dilation was the same. Finally, the nurse suggested we go home. She gave me discharge instructions and we went home.
I was hungry so I had a quick snack, then we went to bed. I don’t know if my contractions settled down a bit or if I was so tired I didn’t feel them or whatever, but I didn’t wake up til 10 am on Sunday. I only woke up because I had to use the bathroom very badly! Usually I wake up several times a night to go to the bathroom but I slept so soundly that I didn’t wake up at all! I was still tired, so I had a little snack again then went back to bed for another 2 hours. When I woke up at noon, I was feeling pretty good, so I suggested to Steven that we shower and get dressed and get over to Mom and Dad Swain’s in time for a late lunch and the afternoon session. He agreed with that so I went to take a shower.
I had barely gotten dressed when I started having back contractions. I had never experienced back labor with Christie or Jordan so that was really different! It was about 1:15 or so at this time. Steven was downstairs and I didn’t want to try to navigate the stairs, but he hadn’t showered yet so I was sure he would be up soon. So I lay down on the bed and started timing the contractions. Steven came upstairs and I told him what was going on. Over the next hour and a half, he got dressed, ate something, I tried to watch the Sunday afternoon session of conference on the internet, timed contractions and finally at about 2:45 I said we needed to go back to the hospital. So Steven called his parents and the interpreter agency, then he helped me out to the car and back we went. I was having pretty intense back labor
by this time and I knew that this was the ‘real thing’.
We got to the hospital and by this time there was no doubt at all that I was definitely in labor! The admitting nurse took so long to do the admitting stuff that finally I told Steven to ask if we could do all this later—I was sitting in a wheelchair practically doubled over. The funny thing about all this is that I don’t really remember having uterine contractions—I’m sure I did—but everything I could feel was in my back!
We got to a room and Steven helped me change. Then the nurse got me on the monitor again and called the anesthesiologist for an epidural and checked me. I was still dilated to 4 cm. The nurse had some trouble locating the baby’s heartbeat for the fetal monitor so she did an ultrasound and it showed the baby was transverse instead of being head down. So she called the doctor from my clinic who was on call (Dr. P) because if the baby was transverse, I’d have to have a c-section. Five minutes later Dr. P arrived, and did an ultrasound herself. In that time, the baby had flipped to head down! The nurse was flabbergasted and kept saying, “But he was transverse five minutes ago!”
We then had some time when nothing much was happening.
Then things got interesting. The baby’s heartbeat kept dropping low and then going back up. Finally it dropped so low that Dr. P got really concerned and decided a c-section was necessary. I was taken to the OR and given the heavy-duty meds while Steven and the interpreter got into scrubs. I don’t remember much of the time in the OR because the meds made me feel so out of it. I was awake and somewhat aware of what was going on but not really comprehending. We stayed in the OR for quite awhile—each time Dr. P was ready to drape and cut, the heartbeat went back up for a bit before dropping again. She did something to adjust the baby’s position and that helped the heart rate go up and stay up long enough that she was comfortable proceeding with a normal delivery. So we went back to our room where we waited out the rest of the time til I was 10 cm and ready to push. Pushing was fairly easy and not too long.
Our baby boy Alex was born at 8:40 p.m. on Sunday, October 5, 2009, weighing 8 lbs 2 oz and 19 inches long. After the initial exam and clean up we had our interpreter call some of our family members (we didn’t have phone numbers for everyone) to let them know and to pass the word along.
We then moved up to our hospital room on the maternity floor. By this time it was pretty late and Steven was exhausted from everything that had been going on the past 24 hours so he headed home. Alex got his first bath around midnight then we both went to sleep.
I cannot believe that my baby is one year old today.
One year ago this weekend was General Conference. My doctor’s appointment was on Friday the 3rd. I was due on Thursday, Oct. 16th; scheduled to be induced on Friday, Oct. 10th. When my doctor checked me, I was 4 centimeters dilated. That surprised me because I had never been dilated that much that early with my other two babies. Steven was with me at the appointment and we all agreed I probably wouldn’t make it to my scheduled induction date.
Saturday the 4th we watched both sessions of General Conference. I was having some pretty intense Braxton-Hicks contractions all day but nothing unusual. I’d been having BH contractions for quite awhile. Steven and I both had the feeling the baby would come that weekend sometime. We had already arranged that Steven’s parents would take Christie and Jordan when it came time to go to the hospital. My parents were on their mission in Africa. Anyway, after the afternoon session, and having dinner, we decided to go do some errands—we were almost out of milk and needed some other things. So off we went. I think we went to three stores. I rode in the mobility carts because walking was so uncomfortable. Sometime while we were out my contractions became a little more intense. We started timing them and by the time we got home around 8, we decided maybe we’d better head to the hospital. While Steven helped C&J pack overnight bags, I called the Swains and the interpreter agency. Steven’s parents live in Draper and we agreed on a ‘code knock’ that would identify them so C&J would answer the door. After making sure they understood what to do, hugs and kisses, and a picture of me (practically the only picture taken of me while I was pregnant), we headed to the hospital.
I was admitted to triage, put on a monitor and then we waited. My contractions were still very uncomfortable but weren’t increasing in intensity or frequency the way I remember they did with C&J. We were there from about 8:45 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. We spent the time alternating between me resting in bed and walking around to see if things would get moving. Each time the nurse checked me, the dilation was the same. Finally, the nurse suggested we go home. She gave me discharge instructions and we went home.
I was hungry so I had a quick snack, then we went to bed. I don’t know if my contractions settled down a bit or if I was so tired I didn’t feel them or whatever, but I didn’t wake up til 10 am on Sunday. I only woke up because I had to use the bathroom very badly! Usually I wake up several times a night to go to the bathroom but I slept so soundly that I didn’t wake up at all! I was still tired, so I had a little snack again then went back to bed for another 2 hours. When I woke up at noon, I was feeling pretty good, so I suggested to Steven that we shower and get dressed and get over to Mom and Dad Swain’s in time for a late lunch and the afternoon session. He agreed with that so I went to take a shower.
I had barely gotten dressed when I started having back contractions. I had never experienced back labor with Christie or Jordan so that was really different! It was about 1:15 or so at this time. Steven was downstairs and I didn’t want to try to navigate the stairs, but he hadn’t showered yet so I was sure he would be up soon. So I lay down on the bed and started timing the contractions. Steven came upstairs and I told him what was going on. Over the next hour and a half, he got dressed, ate something, I tried to watch the Sunday afternoon session of conference on the internet, timed contractions and finally at about 2:45 I said we needed to go back to the hospital. So Steven called his parents and the interpreter agency, then he helped me out to the car and back we went. I was having pretty intense back labor
by this time and I knew that this was the ‘real thing’.
We got to the hospital and by this time there was no doubt at all that I was definitely in labor! The admitting nurse took so long to do the admitting stuff that finally I told Steven to ask if we could do all this later—I was sitting in a wheelchair practically doubled over. The funny thing about all this is that I don’t really remember having uterine contractions—I’m sure I did—but everything I could feel was in my back!
We got to a room and Steven helped me change. Then the nurse got me on the monitor again and called the anesthesiologist for an epidural and checked me. I was still dilated to 4 cm. The nurse had some trouble locating the baby’s heartbeat for the fetal monitor so she did an ultrasound and it showed the baby was transverse instead of being head down. So she called the doctor from my clinic who was on call (Dr. P) because if the baby was transverse, I’d have to have a c-section. Five minutes later Dr. P arrived, and did an ultrasound herself. In that time, the baby had flipped to head down! The nurse was flabbergasted and kept saying, “But he was transverse five minutes ago!”
We then had some time when nothing much was happening.
Then things got interesting. The baby’s heartbeat kept dropping low and then going back up. Finally it dropped so low that Dr. P got really concerned and decided a c-section was necessary. I was taken to the OR and given the heavy-duty meds while Steven and the interpreter got into scrubs. I don’t remember much of the time in the OR because the meds made me feel so out of it. I was awake and somewhat aware of what was going on but not really comprehending. We stayed in the OR for quite awhile—each time Dr. P was ready to drape and cut, the heartbeat went back up for a bit before dropping again. She did something to adjust the baby’s position and that helped the heart rate go up and stay up long enough that she was comfortable proceeding with a normal delivery. So we went back to our room where we waited out the rest of the time til I was 10 cm and ready to push. Pushing was fairly easy and not too long.
Our baby boy Alex was born at 8:40 p.m. on Sunday, October 5, 2009, weighing 8 lbs 2 oz and 19 inches long. After the initial exam and clean up we had our interpreter call some of our family members (we didn’t have phone numbers for everyone) to let them know and to pass the word along.
We then moved up to our hospital room on the maternity floor. By this time it was pretty late and Steven was exhausted from everything that had been going on the past 24 hours so he headed home. Alex got his first bath around midnight then we both went to sleep.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
it hurts to see friends hurt
Yesterday (9/22) was one of my best friend's birthday. I actually met *A* and *L* in summer 1996 when I was living in SLC doing an internship. I lost touch with both of them for awhile...when Steven started working at Sorenson full-time, *A* was his supervisor and we have since become best friends.
Yesterday was not the best day for *L*. Two months ago, she was hit head on by a drunk driver. Thirty hours later, her husband was rear ended. Last Thursday he had hip surgery to fix some problems that apparently had been aggravated by the accident. So they have both had some serious challenges lately.
I knew that *A* would not be in any shape to do anything for *L*. And I was sure that that was really hard for him. So last week I contacted the other ladies in the "group of 5" that we socialize with, proposing the idea of a surprise party for *L*. Then I contacted *A* to work out the details. As it turned out, yesterday was not a good day for *L*. She was experiencing a lot of back pain, so we moved the party to *A* and *L*'s house so she wouldn't have to travel. 4 of our 5 were there--#5 just had a baby so we didn't expect her to come. We had a great time, just the 4 of us, with two new babies, laughing and talking and eating.
After the other ladies left, I stayed for awhile to chat with *A* and *L*. We talked about lots and lots of different things.
*A* started a blog to chronicle their family's challenges. See it here. I had known a lot about what was going on--I have spent many hours over at their house, just trying to find ways to help them get through all this. But I hadn't really realized how bad it was.
It hurts to see your friends hurt. For whatever reason. Another friend of ours, *MM*, was in a terrible car accident nearly 3 years ago. To this day, he is still undergoing various surgeries to fix his legs. In fact, he is scheduled for a major knee operation sometime in the next 6 weeks. Although we were living in Orem at the time this happened, the news reverberated throughout the Utah Deaf Community. I have seen friends struggle with infertility, with the death of a child, with employment, with finances, as well as health issues. And it's never easy. There's so much you want to do for them but you also know you can only do so much.
At times like this, what really helps is to remember the Lord's promise in 1 Cor. 10:13 that the Lord will not allow us to be tested more than we are able to bear. Although it seems at times that our idea of what we can bear and what the Lord knows we can bear are two very different things, still, the fact that we are going through what seems to be a terrible trial, and somewhat surviving, is testament to the strength of the human spirit.
I also find the Lord's response to Joseph Smith's pleading (when he was incarcerated in Liberty Jail) inspiring:
"My son [and I might add, my daughter], peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes." (D&C 121: 7-8)
It felt good to do something for *L* to make her birthday a good one. I hope my eyes and heart will always be open to noticing when others need help (even if they don't ask for it) and to be able to give it.
Yesterday was not the best day for *L*. Two months ago, she was hit head on by a drunk driver. Thirty hours later, her husband was rear ended. Last Thursday he had hip surgery to fix some problems that apparently had been aggravated by the accident. So they have both had some serious challenges lately.
I knew that *A* would not be in any shape to do anything for *L*. And I was sure that that was really hard for him. So last week I contacted the other ladies in the "group of 5" that we socialize with, proposing the idea of a surprise party for *L*. Then I contacted *A* to work out the details. As it turned out, yesterday was not a good day for *L*. She was experiencing a lot of back pain, so we moved the party to *A* and *L*'s house so she wouldn't have to travel. 4 of our 5 were there--#5 just had a baby so we didn't expect her to come. We had a great time, just the 4 of us, with two new babies, laughing and talking and eating.
After the other ladies left, I stayed for awhile to chat with *A* and *L*. We talked about lots and lots of different things.
*A* started a blog to chronicle their family's challenges. See it here. I had known a lot about what was going on--I have spent many hours over at their house, just trying to find ways to help them get through all this. But I hadn't really realized how bad it was.
It hurts to see your friends hurt. For whatever reason. Another friend of ours, *MM*, was in a terrible car accident nearly 3 years ago. To this day, he is still undergoing various surgeries to fix his legs. In fact, he is scheduled for a major knee operation sometime in the next 6 weeks. Although we were living in Orem at the time this happened, the news reverberated throughout the Utah Deaf Community. I have seen friends struggle with infertility, with the death of a child, with employment, with finances, as well as health issues. And it's never easy. There's so much you want to do for them but you also know you can only do so much.
At times like this, what really helps is to remember the Lord's promise in 1 Cor. 10:13 that the Lord will not allow us to be tested more than we are able to bear. Although it seems at times that our idea of what we can bear and what the Lord knows we can bear are two very different things, still, the fact that we are going through what seems to be a terrible trial, and somewhat surviving, is testament to the strength of the human spirit.
I also find the Lord's response to Joseph Smith's pleading (when he was incarcerated in Liberty Jail) inspiring:
"My son [and I might add, my daughter], peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes." (D&C 121: 7-8)
It felt good to do something for *L* to make her birthday a good one. I hope my eyes and heart will always be open to noticing when others need help (even if they don't ask for it) and to be able to give it.
wow, long time
It's been awhile since I've blogged here! I have been busy with keeping up with school, canning and other family stuff. Hope to post more often now!
Friday, August 28, 2009
more canning
More canning! Today (Friday, 8/28) I am making tomato soup! We haven't had any for a year because I didn't do any canning last year with a new baby due. So I have lots of things to make! I have already done 16 quarts of cherries and now I am working on tomato soup. For as long as I can buy tomatoes at the local farmer's markets, I will make tomato soup, chile sauce and salsa. I also bought 3 dozen ears of corn today that I will blanch and freeze. A friend is picking up a box of peaches for me (she got a box for herself) that I will bottle. I also have some strawberries in the freezer to make into strawberry jam. I would also like to make peach jam and applesauce.
One of the best things I ever bought for canning is my camp stove. Seven years ago, the Allen family gathered at Grandma and Grandpa Allen's home for what turned out to be the last apple harvest for our family. G&G had several apple trees. That year the apples were all pressed into apple cider. Everyone who lived in Utah gathered to their home to sort and wash the apples, take them to the cider mill and then to process some of the cider into apple juice. We had three camp stoves set up in the garage and 6 pots of water to process the cider. We set up an assembly line to warm and sterilize the jars, lids and rings; fill the jars; put lids and rings on; get the jars into the pots and watch them. It was pretty cool and I decided when the time came I would do the same. The first year we lived here I bought a camp stove and made tomato soup and salsa. I think that's all I made that year. Anyway it was great for keeping heat out of the house and so I am doing the same thing again this year.
One of the best things I ever bought for canning is my camp stove. Seven years ago, the Allen family gathered at Grandma and Grandpa Allen's home for what turned out to be the last apple harvest for our family. G&G had several apple trees. That year the apples were all pressed into apple cider. Everyone who lived in Utah gathered to their home to sort and wash the apples, take them to the cider mill and then to process some of the cider into apple juice. We had three camp stoves set up in the garage and 6 pots of water to process the cider. We set up an assembly line to warm and sterilize the jars, lids and rings; fill the jars; put lids and rings on; get the jars into the pots and watch them. It was pretty cool and I decided when the time came I would do the same. The first year we lived here I bought a camp stove and made tomato soup and salsa. I think that's all I made that year. Anyway it was great for keeping heat out of the house and so I am doing the same thing again this year.
starting up again
With the start of school, Cub Scouts and Activity Days will be starting up again. This past Wednesday was Pack Meeting and the ward had a BBQ at a local city park. It was a lot of fun and we had fun chatting with some of the neighbors. I am really grateful to our local ward for welcoming our children into their activities, even though we are not members of the ward. They have done a lot for us and it is much appreciated!
back to school
Well, we are back in school! School started on Monday, August 25th. I took Christie and Jordan to school and went in with them to see their classrooms and meet their teachers. Jordan is in 3rd grade and Christie is in 5th grade. Christie started 3rd grade at Westbrook and we just loved her teacher Mrs. Gertsch so we requested that Jordan be put into her class and he was! Mrs. G. wasn't in the classroom when we went in but since I've already met her it wasn't a big deal. Christie's teacher is Miss Blake. She seems really nice. Seems the 5th grade classes don't rotate among the teachers like they did when I was in 5th grade (eons ago, it seems) but the teachers do rotate for certain subjects. Each day this week Christie and Jordan have come home happy and excited to tell me about what they did that day. Looks like we're going to have a great year!
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