Recovery & Rites of Passage

Sweet girl sleeping after her ear tube surgery. It was evident that she was wiped out because we NEVER catch her sleeping on her back!

 St. Patrick's Day outfit - an unusually low-key day at the Yeamans' house. :(

 After a crazy nasty virus and surgery all in the same week, we think she might be back to feeling better. ?

 And the Mr. got himself a lawn mower. We knew we would need one for the Spring and Summer and he wanted to go used/refurbished. I put my foot down on this one however, after a failed attempt at doing this with a refrigerator in the fall. Some items are just not worth the Craigslist attempt.

 I think he ended up feeling juuuust fine about my input.

Hard at work. That 20'x20' flat square lawn just might do him in this season!

 Watching all the action - the new storm door has become quite the attraction around here, for toddlers and doggies alike.

 And to wrap up the post, Naomi tried her first onion. She munched on a purple onion for a good five minutes, all on her own prompting, mind you. We brushed her teeth extra well that night. :)

Have a great weekend everyone!

Tubes for Nay...

After multiple ear infections we had Naomi get tubes in both ears this morning. She did great, considering, but was a little grumpy after being woken up and not given anything to drink or eat. What a trooper.

What she didn't realize was that she would be offered a pre-sedation medication that would make everything seem juuuuust fine. :) This clip doesn't catch it, but she was smiling, cooing, and didn't mind one bit when that stranger of a nurse came to take her from Mommy. You would have thought they were long-lost friends!

Glad to have this morning over and more glad for the relief it will hopefully bring to our sweet one!

All things new and exciting...

Well, let's be honest. Daycare is not exciting. At least not for me. I dreaded this day from the moment I enrolled in graduate school and I knew it was coming - and I wasn't even PREGNANT then!

 But for Naomi, it is exciting. :) I am blessed that she truly seems so happy where we found her a place. It's sweet, bright, clean, and keeps her VERY active. She's grumpy and pooped at the end of the day, pushing bedtime back over an hour from when it used to be.

Pics for my fam... this is the "community" play foyer that the two youngest rooms share.

 The door on the left is hers.

 And boy, was Grant happy to see this!

 One side of the room...

 And the other...

 Nearly every day when I pick her up, my greeting comes in the form of her immediately showing me whatever toy she has her hand on at the moment. :) Sweet, but I look forward to the day when she runs to me and gives me a big hug instead!

 Another new thing is that Grant had his last day at the cafe he's been working at this year. He has transitioned into working full-time for the ministry we moved here for and we are so thankful for the consistency of one job and that he's where he really wants to be.

 Nay baby and I stopped by for a snack to celebrate Daddy's last time behind the counter. It seems as if every post has a picture of my child with her lips glued to a juice box. Hm. Think what you will...

 Climbing the stairs is one of the best things the cafe has to offer, I tell ya.

 We've also discovered ketchup. She's great with it and daintily dips as she enjoys whatever she can put it on. And look! A cup with MILK in it!

 But my favorite new addition to the family is our storm door. A craigslist beauty for a heckuva deal. The top scrolls down to reveal screen if we want some breeze on these gorgeous spring days. Though we're renting, this was a splurge I've wanted all year. I love it. Thanks to my handyman husband, I got it!

A Midwife In The Making...

Many of you know I have begun the clinicals phase of my nurse-midwifery master's degree. A climactic part of my training is a required, week-long trip to eastern Kentucky where students gather and practice hands-on skills for this next portion of school. It was a very hard week in many respects.

Leaving Naomi for 8 days was surely a painful milestone. :( But I left Grant well-prepared, with a bag for each day including an outfit, jammies, diapers, & socks!

 This was my little home for the week. God was watching out for me, as I really hoped to get my own room, which happened. I ended up being very sick the entire week and with the high-stress environment, it was nice to have my own space to retreat to at night.

 So what do a bunch of midwifery students do together for that long? You guessed it. We sat around with fake vaginas.

 We perused tables of birth control, fertility beads, and female condoms.

 We gave each other pelvic and breast exams. No. I'm not kidding.

 We watched the snow fall outside...

 Then we watched seasoned midwives explain the cardinal movements of birth.

 Everyone lined up to practice fundal height measurement on the only pregnant person there - me.

 We practiced sewing up perineums on a block of foam.

 Then graduated to practicing on beef tongue. Now if that doesn't make you rethink the slogan, I don't know what would. Beef. It's what's for dinner. Hmmm. Maybe not.

 We practiced assessments on newborns.

 And we gathered up in circles to share about what we would take on as our personal responsibility as primary care providers.

 The midwives presented us with hand-knit newborn hats to present to our first "catch."

 And we took lots of pictures.

 To send us off to our real-world season of practice, we got to ring the bell on campus, a school tradition. We rang it when we started the program, rang it during this week, and will ring it a final time after graduation.

I have truly enjoyed my first couple of weeks at the grindstone, but it sure is giving me a run for my money as well. I've attended three of the forty required births for the program and whittled down 40-some hours of the required 675. Lots still ahead, but it's a start. Grateful to have a light at the end of the tunnel and honored to have this be what the Lord has called me to do...

Valentine's and Other Such Things

Naomi looooves her daddy.

They go on dates all the time.

And she LOVES my stethoscopes. It is so cute to watch her walk around with the bell/diaphragm skating along the floor.

She can even handle two at once. How talented can you get, I ask you?

Another new favorite is being pushed around the house in the laundry basket. She waves as she makes laps through the living room and kitchen. And it's a fabulous way to get the ol' preggo mom's heartrate up. Over. And over. Again.

Valentine's Day and a handsome redhead brought me these beautiful roses.

Then Grant and I were sitting on the couch visiting while we watched Naomi discover a box of chocolates sitting on the ground. I flinched to take it away, then I thought, oh, what the heck. What better holiday than Valentine's to discover your first bite of chocolate candy. She was just fine with my decision.

My husband, bless his heart, also thought his son should have a few chocolates. Or a hundred. And a heart-shaped cheese quesadilla to go with them (a staple craving for this pregnancy). Be careful. If you look too closely, you'll see a baby coming through a pelvis in my notes for school.

Speaking of babies and pelves. Starting to show. And I promised a pic, so here it is. 22 weeks this Tuesday, so I'll give an updated one soon! Our love to all...

Sweet Little Boy...

This morning, we got a first glimpse of the newest miracle to enter our lives.

 And all I could think of while we sat and studied his sweet little features, (which, by the way, did include boy parts:)

were the words of a classic children's book...

 "I'll love you forever,

 I'll like you for always,

 as long as I'm living, 

my baby you'll be."

Thank You, God, for this gift.