[trying something new]
Since my children were about 18 months old, I have had them help around the house. We started out with simple jobs like helping to pick up toys, putting their dirty diapers in the garbage, putting their dirty clothes in the hamper, putting away pajamas, etc. Later I had them take their dishes to the sink after meals, make their beds, help put away laundry and other more advanced chores. For the past while, I have had a rotating schedule of kitchen work and housecleaning. We would rotate through a daily schedule of setting the table, clearing the table, unloading the dishwasher and loading the dishwasher. We also rotated through weekly housecleaning: dusting upstairs, dusting downstairs, cleaning the upstairs bathroom and cleaning the downstairs bathroom. I took care of mopping and vacuuming the floors. It worked pretty well most of the time.
This month I decided to do something different. Mostly I wanted a change, but also I want C&J to learn how to take care of an entire room. Also, I want them to learn that sometimes we pick up messes made by others. So for one entire week, each of us will have a kitchen job and be responsible for one room. This is in addition to their usual chores of cleaning up after themselves in the bathroom, taking care of their bedrooms and doing homework.
So, for this week, Christie sets the table and is responsible for the living room. That means that it is her job to make sure that the living room is completely tidied up each night. It doesn't matter if Alex's toys are scattered around or if Jordan's school papers are left out. She can ask other family members to pick up their own stuff, but it is her responsibility to make sure it gets done. Jordan's jobs for this week are to clear the table and to tidy the family room. Same rules apply. My jobs are to empty the dishwasher and tidy the bathrooms (both upstairs and downstairs). Steven's job is to clean the kitchen. Since that is a rather big job, the person who has the "clean the kitchen" job doesn't have another room to be responsible for.
On Saturday, Christie will dust and vacuum the living room; Jordan will dust and vacuum the family room, and I will clean the bathrooms (meaning, scrub the sinks, toilets and tub).
Next Sunday (11/8), we will rotate to the next set of chores.
Should be fun.
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
{organizing}
Recently I have started some small organizing projects. Some of them I have been thinking about for awhile and they've started to nag at me so I decided to take advantage of the time before NaNoWriMo starts and JUST DO IT.
One small project I did was go through my magazines. I had magazines from Martha Stewart Living, Country Sampler, Backyard Living, Creating Keepsakes, a magazine that we get through our banking/insurance company, and a few odd ones I picked up here and there. I also had several years worth of General Conference Ensigns.
I went through the MSL mags and tore out pictures/articles I wanted to keep. I did keep the entire March (gardening) and December (Christmas) issues. I did the same thing for the Creating Keepsakes mags. I kept all the Backyard Living issues as those were really thin mags and chock full of ideas/articles/etc. I wanted to keep. I tossed all the Ensigns (felt guilty about that but reminded myself that the current issue was the most important one, plus I could find all the articles online).
When I started, I had two 6.25 inch wide magazine holders full of mags and a few tucked in beside them. When I finished, everything I am keeping fit into one of those holders.
What I'm keeping:
What I'm getting rid of (recycling):
One small project I did was go through my magazines. I had magazines from Martha Stewart Living, Country Sampler, Backyard Living, Creating Keepsakes, a magazine that we get through our banking/insurance company, and a few odd ones I picked up here and there. I also had several years worth of General Conference Ensigns.
I went through the MSL mags and tore out pictures/articles I wanted to keep. I did keep the entire March (gardening) and December (Christmas) issues. I did the same thing for the Creating Keepsakes mags. I kept all the Backyard Living issues as those were really thin mags and chock full of ideas/articles/etc. I wanted to keep. I tossed all the Ensigns (felt guilty about that but reminded myself that the current issue was the most important one, plus I could find all the articles online).
When I started, I had two 6.25 inch wide magazine holders full of mags and a few tucked in beside them. When I finished, everything I am keeping fit into one of those holders.
What I'm keeping:
What I'm getting rid of (recycling):
Monday, October 12, 2009
National Novel Writing Month
Also known as NaNoWriMo, it's a challenge for writers to write a novel of (minimum)50,000 words from Nov. 1 to 30. Steven has done it for a couple of years now and this year he convinced me to try it.
I'm still thinking about what I want to write about but I am thinking of writing a pioneer girl story.
We'll see how it goes.
I [heart] fall
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.
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 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!
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