up to my eyeballs {part 1}

It's after 10am. I'm finally eating breakfast, drinking a reheated cup of coffee and about to dig into a bowl filled with fresh cantaloupe from our Saturday trip to the local farmer's market. Joseph is sleeping soundly in his swing and Hurricane Hannah is circling the house leaving a path of destruction in her wake. So how's this for the perfect time to catch up the blog?

I feel like we've been treading water for the past three weeks. In a nutshell: We had our last Sunday at Epworth UMC and said goodbye to our friends there. We've packed up our house in Jesup, spent some time in Savannah, and moved into our new house in Sandersville. We've had our first two Sundays in our new church, and met lots of nice people. We've had Joseph's two-month appointment, and tried to keep track of Hannah's ever-growing vocabulary and communication skills. We've said goodbye to my Dad, Renee and Andrew who are moving from Savannah to Bellingham, WA. And we went to Greensboro (GA) for a get-together with some ADPi mom friends, husbands, and LOTS of babies. It has been full.

So, for those of you who have better things to do, you might stop reading here. For the rest of you faithful blog readers, here are some of the details.

{Goodbye, Jesup.}

As I was packing boxes, I spent a lot of time thinking about our time in Jesup and at Epworth UMC. While it was not without it's trials, I am glad we lived there. It was a very full three years for us - and productive ones at that. In that time we went from a couple to a family of four. {I realized that half the time we lived there I was pregnant.} We had Hannah. Joe started and completed his doctoral coursework. Hannah took her first steps and celebrated her first birthday. I turned 30. We had our son. And lifelong friendships grew. Joe and I learned a lot about each other and became closer because of our time there. We made lots of memories and met special people. Leaving was definitely bittersweet.

Thanks to Bob and Carol, to Mary Lou and Dewitt, and to Ms. Margaret (Margi). Hannah, and Joe and I, thank God for you and the way His love has shown through you to us. We will never forget how much you cared for Hannah and for us while we were in Jesup. We so appreciate all the hours of babysitting, especially since Joseph's birth and while trying to pack up the house. Keep in touch!

Also to Karen and John, our Jesup parents and most definitely family. Thank you. For the dinners and get-togethers. For being so good to Hannah. For supporting us and encouraging us. For driving to Sandersville just to deliver a car load of stuff! We could never repay you for everything you have done for us. You have been like parents the last three years and we love you so much and are so glad that you are a part of our lives. We know with you, there is no goodbye just see ya soon.

{The move.}

On Monday, June 13 the POD was picked up from our house in Jesup. The plan was to load up our cars and head out that afternoon for five days of relaxation in Savannah before the POD would be delivered to our new house the following Saturday. Yeah. Right. Very little went according to plan. Joe and I admit that we grossly underestimated the amount of stuff we had (even with all we gave away and got rid of), the time it would take to completely move out and clean the old house, and most importantly juggling it all with two small children. {I now have tremendous admiration for families that move with youngins.} Even with all the babysitting help we had with Hannah that last week in Jesup, I was hard pressed trying to pack boxes and get organized while Joe was at work in the few hours Hannah would be gone. I guess I didn't consider the stopping every few hours to nurse the baby and all the diaper changes, swaddling, and calming time. Hours would just tick away and I would feel more and more overwhelmed with so much left to do. We worked like dogs and gratefully accepted the packing help from my mom, and loading help from my brothers. Ben and Will - no amount of moldy cupcakes could rightly communicate our thanks. {No really, sorry for that. We honestly didn't think they'd gone bad in so short a time.} Thank you so much for coming down to help us.

Monday night came and it was clear there was no way we were making it to Savannah that day. It was almost 10pm. We hadn't eaten anything in a while and were still loading cars. Aunt Karen and Uncle John had Hannah the entire day. Joseph cried almost the entire day. {I can't blame him. He spent the better part of three days in his swing.} And me, well I came an inch away from a nervous breakdown. Joe was trying to keep me sane. Mom kept calling to check progress, and I kept having to push back ETA. We ended up having to pack John and Karen's SUV too and spent the night at their house. Tuesday morning, we got up and I rushed to Savannah with the kids, leaving Jesup in my rear view, so that I could be at a graduation party for my niece and nephew. I was exhausted, sore, and completely not myself. But at least I was there, and thanks to my mom laying out non-wrinkled clothes for the kids and help waiting for me there (thanks Will and Katie), I made it in time. Also that day I had a much-needed hair appointment and a deep tissue massage (booked well in advance and so awesome). After all that, I felt like a new person, only needing a good night of sleep.

The rest of our time in Savannah flew by in a flurry of activity, and a bit of a stomach bug. Whatever happened to the five days of relaxation? We had errands to run and things to take care of. But Mom and I did make time for a little pampering with pedicures and facials.

Saturday morning we set off for our new home - Joe in one car, Mom, cousins Maddie and Emma, and dogs in another car, and Hannah, Joseph, and me in the third. Here's where the story gets fun. The POD was scheduled to arrive that afternoon. They called with an ETA of 1:30. They arrived at 2, with an empty POD. Yes, as in not our POD. The church had lined up people to help us unload and we had no POD to unload. Strike one. The driver told me he had to go back to Macon and get ours (about a 3-hour round trip), saying he would be back by 5. At 5:30 we had people back at the house to unload, and I called to find that he hadn't even left Macon yet. Two strikes. It was after 7 by the time it arrived and our help had come, gone, and come back. Despite my very-unhappy-customer phone call to PODS, they barely acknowledged our situation with an apology. Strike three. The customer service rep was unhelpful and rude and even after talking to a supervisor, they would not do anything for the inconvenience they caused us. {I was not looking for a reimbursement, but something was definitely in order.} I might have taken what one church friend called "my preacher's wife hat" off. Joe had his first Sunday at his new church the next day, it was Saturday night of Father's Day weekend with several fathers taking time away from their families to help us, and a storm was rolling in. Let it be known: we will not be using PODS again nor recommend them to anyone else. {This reminds me of the letter I need to write.} We got most of the POD unloaded before the rain got bad enough we had to stop. The rest would wait until Monday. A big thank-you to Wade and Anna, Jeffery, Brian, Eric, Jennifer and Joel, and Jeremy for their help.
Sunday was a great day. Sandersville UMC is a spirit-filled place and the music was amazing. Joe preached a really good sermon and we met lots of nice people. Our family from Scaly Mountain, NC drove down to join us for church, lunch, and some help unpacking. It meant a lot to us having them here. In the afternoon, Joe and I took the kids and went over to a friend's house for pool time and grilled steaks. Beautiful day.

{I have to stop here for now. It has taken me three and a half hours to write that with all the interruptions. Mouths to feed and all...Part two (and pictures) to come later.}

MIA

I know. Where am I, right? I'll tell you where I am - right here at home completely swallowed up in being mom, meal preparer, diaper changer, milk producer, laundry master, rock-a-bye-er (how Hannah refers to being rocked), bath giver, book reader, and tantrum handler...to-do list extraordinaire, box packer, organizer, and thrower-outer. You get the point. We are moving and the POD is being picked up on Monday. Joe is out of town this week for the Methodist church's annual conference and let me tell you how I feel about that. Not. Good. Timing. Thankfully I've had help with Hannah. And for those precious hours, I beg Joseph to be good so that I can be productive. We miss Daddy and amidst all the craziness, it's times like these that I am reminded how good God is and how blessed I am.

I love this child.

...and this one.

As I've been packing and have lots of time to think, I've thought of several things to blog about. Maybe sometime soon I'll have a chance to sit down and write. As for now, I'm up and down, up and down trying to keep Hannah from hurting herself in this phase of fearlessness and consoling Joseph, who is not happy. Life would be dull if not for this...

long weekend

First, I'd like to share my appreciation for those we honor on Memorial day, those that have given their lives for this country. Despite the fact that there is a lot of confusion about the meaning of Memorial Day {versus the meaning of Veterans Day}, I love how there is a separate holiday to honor the service and sacrifice of the fallen. I think it is important to thank God for those men and women, and also their families. Anybody that knows someone who has served, knows the sacrifices that their families also have to make.

I hope you had a nice Memorial Day weekend. We did. Though it wasn't relaxing. It wasn't restful. And it didn't involve a lake or a beach. It did, however, involve lots of boxes, lots of packing paper, a POD, and heat.

We made good strides in getting things packed up and stored. I told Joe that packing the POD was going to be a game of Tetris. {Didn't everybody love to play that?} He has risen to the challenge and so far as packed 1/4 of the unit using every nook and cranny possible. When we moved to Jesup, we rented the second-to-largest U-Haul (24'). This time we decided on a POD because it would allow the move to be a little less chaotic. {The Methodist Church sets a move day for all the pastors. One family moves in the other moves out. Typically the same day. This is crazy to me and obviously doesn't allow time for any work - like carpet cleaning - to be done. We plan on being out of the house in time for our church to have things ready for the new family moving in. Thankfully, the same thing is happening where we are going.} With the POD we can fill it over time, packing boxes and moving them out of the house. It's a much more organized and calm way of doing it, which is definitely my kind of thing.The only drawback to the unit is that the biggest one available is still smaller than what we moved here in, 400 cubic feet to be exact. Needless to say, space is at a premium and we are being strategic.

Other than going through things, getting rid of stuff, and packing, we've been:

standing on our heads {not sure what it is, but Hannah assumes this position dozens of times a day}...

laying on our tummies...

making cupcakes...

and showing off our head control.

Some of us sleep while the work's being done.

...and some of us help.

Grandma came and helped too. I was starting to feel a little overwhelmed about all we had to do, but I'm feeling much better now thanks to the progress we made. Monday night we even got to take a break and visit friends for dinner.

As for those videos I promised. Hannah has started singing her ABCs. She gets lost somewhere around H, meanders a little bit and picks back up at "el-lem-in-oh" then sings some unidentifiable sounds and ta-da! she's done. I haven't been real successful in getting her to sing for the camera, but this is the best I've got:

Same night, Joe tells her to come tell me dinner's ready. She hasn't said those words before, but sure enough she found me: "Momma!! Dinnah ready!" After we finished eating this was our entertainment:

one month old

Though Joseph doesn't have a nursery yet, I switched out the cushions on the glider in Hannah's room long enough to take his one month picture. {I started this tradition with Hannah, taking her picture in her glider on the 9th of every month the whole first year and then using those pictures at her first birthday party.}

May 18:

{The baby pillow is from Aunt Katie and Uncle Ben. Katie gave Hannah her's, too. On the back is their full names and their birth dates. Love. Love. Love.}

For those that are wondering if he looks like Hannah, here is her one-month picture:

One month old. While time seems to fly by, I feel like I've had him so much longer than that. Some things we have learned about him:

He is my cuddle bunny. He's happiest when I'm holding him or he's up against me. From those first days in the hospital, it has been this way. He and I slept most of his very first night with him on my chest. Since we've been home he's slept in the bassinet by my bedside. Many early mornings I have pulled him into bed next to me for that last hour or two of sleep. I can't get enough of him.

He loves to be swaddled. Swaddled in the swing is better. Swaddled in the swing with the pacifier is best. He barely moves during the night - very unlike "Houdini" - his big sister - who could rotate around the cradle and manage to get out of any swaddle.

He still has blonde fuzz and his eyes have gone from dark blue to a blue-green. I know, I know. It can take a full year for their eye color to be realized. I think he's got my nose.

He likes to eat. And he's a good nurser. {I couldn't be more grateful for this. What a difference this time around.} I am feeding him 7x/day, and he's going 4 and 5 hour stretches (sometimes 6) at night. He weighs over 11 pounds. Or did last week. He probably weighs close to 12 now. I tell you, I think he's gotten bigger in the last 24 hours.

He did great when I introduced the bottle last week. And even better, I'm pumping lots of milk. What a relief!

He has adjusted very well to a feed-wake-sleep cycle. He has been known to fuss for quite a while before going to sleep, and often I have to wake him up to feed him.

He can and will pee during diaper changes. Everywhere.

He survived his first trip to Savannah, as well as this past weekend's trip to Sandersville and Atlanta. {Though we learned that he can cry really hard for quite a while.}

He doesn't like a wet or dirty diaper. And he lets us know it. {See note above.}

He seems to like baths. He hasn't told me for sure though.

He's not a big fan of tummy time, and sometimes tries to sleep. He has had pretty good head control from day 1 though. And really strong legs (that actually started inutero).

He doesn't exactly love the stroller. This bothers me. {Afterall, the BOB duallie wasn't cheap.} Hopefully it passes, and soon.


He does, however, love to be held and carried around...

As for Hannah. She is a very (sometimes too) involved big sister. She climbs onto my lap while I'm nursing him. She tries to sit in the infant seat with him. She brings him toys in his swing. She takes away his pacifier only to go give it back to him. She lays down on the floor next to him when he's doing his tummy and play time. She fetches diapers for me. She steals his burp cloths. She gives him about a hundred kisses a day. And, oh yeah, is suddenly obsessed with taking off his diaper. I know underneath it looks different but still...

Got a couple cute videos of her I'll post. Stay tuned...

happenings

I'm looking at the monitor and Hannah is stretched out on her stomach, wearing her "majshick shoes." Her arm is reaching over the bumper to where she was holding onto Joe. Bedtime has changed for us. We used to be able to put her in her crib and that was that. For the last couple months, it's been reading, and rocking, and singing, and more rocking, and then the crib. Followed by Joe needing to lie down on the floor next to her crib for a while. Lately, he'll stick his foot through the crib slats. She likes to hold onto him as she falls asleep. It is truly the sweetest thing. After she finally fell asleep and Joe got up, her arm stayed like that.

Yes, it has been a while since I've posted. And, while I'm starting this on Sunday night, I guarantee it will be tomorrow - if that - when it's finished. We have a lot going on. We've had special visitors. We had infant recognition and Joseph's first Sunday at church. {He slept through the entire service.} We marked Joseph's one-month-day. {One month post to come.} We traveled to Sandersville to see our new church and home. We drove to Atlanta to meet my mom. And we celebrated our sweet goddaughter's first birthday.

What is more exhausting than going on a trip with a toddler? Going on a trip with a toddler and a newborn. What is more tiring than spending a day taking care of a toddler and a newborn? Taking care of a toddler and a newborn while trying to pack the house!

The POD is being delivered tomorrow. We've got three weeks remaining in the countdown to moving day. That is crazy! If I think about it too much there is an overwhelming feeling of "how am I going to do it all?" Thankfully, I am not doing it all myself. I am so thankful for the babysitting help. When Hannah is off playing, I am able to get a decent amount accomplished. {That is assuming Joseph is happy or sleeping. Other than a couple nightmare-ish days, I've been fortunate.} And I'm thankful that Joe is a very involved daddy (and a huge help to me) as well as my constant cheerleader.

So for some pictures.

Last weekend was full. My best friend Jennifer and her husband, Daniel, made a short trip to Jesup. They went out of their way to meet Joseph and we were so glad to see them. They have a daughter, Leah, who is one special (and adorable) girl.

\

My brother, Will, and his girlfriend, Crystal, came down for a night. Joe and I had plans, so they babysat Hannah. We went to a dinner honoring a former Navy SEAL who is a chiropractor here in Jesup. The event was to benefit the Boys and Girls Clubs. {On a side note, this guy, Howard Wasdin, was an elite sniper on SEAL Team Six. His book was scheduled to be released at the end of this month, but due to recent events, the date was pushed up. Talk about timing... We have a copy and I can't wait to read it.} Hannah prefers to read about ladybugs.

We had fun taking pictures of the kiddos. Joseph wasn't really having fun.

{Joseph's quilt is from Jennifer and Daniel. I love it. I love anything monogrammed, but the blanket is beautiful.}

During the week my dad came to visit as well as my friend, Lauren, and her daughter Riley. The girls are only a few weeks apart. We will miss them when we move, but anticipate them driving through and stopping to visit!

...you can thank Joe for adding the doo-rag.

On Thursday we drove to Sandersville and stayed with our good friends Wade and Anna, and their daughters, Erin and Kristen. We toured our new church and the parsonage and we were very pleased with both. {I am scheming away putting our new home together in my mind.} Our new friends, Jeffery and Kelly, hosted a dinner at their beautiful home introducing us to several church members. We were overwhelmed by the welcome we received, and the excitement of our coming.

Friday and Saturday we were in Atlanta with my mom. I'll tell you this: I do not miss the traffic. Goodness gracious it is horrendous. We had dinner at Flip. Good food and atmosphere - perfect for a toddler that needs to be drowned out. That night however was not good. Hannah woke up an hour after going to sleep crying and would not stop. She was clawing her skin. At about 1:00am, Joe went to the store to buy Benedryl. We took her out of her braces (which had come partway off) and she spent the rest of the night in bed with Grandma. Of course, Joseph woke up a couple hours after we all finally got to bed wanting to eat. But what is a night with a 20 month-old and a one month-old without sleep deprivation? Traveling can be rough. The pack-n-play is no substitute for the crib, and a hotel room no substitute for a child who thrives on routine. But we survived. And it sure was nice to have Grandma there to help. Thanks, Mom.

The trip was completely worth it since we got to be there to celebrate Leah's first birthday. She is precious and really liked her cake.

See? I told you it would be awhile before I finished and posted. And the POD is here. Time to close the laptop and pack some boxes...after I feed Joseph. Never a dull moment.