micah's mustache bash.

well obviously i'm a bit behind in blogging, but i want to get up the pics from little man's birthday party(almost a month ago!!). we had so much fun celebrating with friends and family...even if it did make for quite the busy/stressful week! For some reason, i can't get the pictures to upload. blogger fail. but there are about a million of them if you click these links::
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14000165@N05/sets/72157626748275535/
http://www.flickr.com/photos/14000165@N05/sets/72157626748431603/

home sweet home.

we've been in our new place for about a month now and we're just now starting to feel settled. moving with a toddler was a lot more difficult than when it was just the two of us. not only do we have less time to unpack, but we also have a little person who gets into everything! the actual move happened while i was working. weird. i literally got ready for work (we had a major event at work) in the old house and went home at the end of the day to the new house. weird.

i am very thankful that micah only had one rough night. he isn't the best (and that's putting it lightly) at sleeping away from his bed. the first night we put him down, he was terrified and cried the most awful heart wrenching cry when i started to walk out. he ended up falling asleep with me laying next to the crib and him holding my hand to fall asleep. too sweet.

we are LOVING our little house. i guess technically it's an apartment, but it feels like a house, and more importantly, it feels like our home. we are still working on decorating, but here's a pic of our super fun outside space.a big thank you to alex for working his butt off to make the outside space pretty...now we just need to get some grass so Micah can play outside!

my pumping journey.

(one day's excess milk getting ready to go in the freezer! 1 qt!)

*disclaimer :: this going to be very random, but i'm writing just so that i'll remember.

when i was preggo, i never would have thought that i would have gone the route of exclusively pumping. i didn't actually think that breastfeeding would be so difficult for micah and i. i was definitely naive when it came to the realities of trying to get a good latch. to be honest, i feel like all of the classes and books make it seem that it is easy. like all babies come out with a great latch if you just know how to position them and that if you have problems, you're doing something wrong. bull.

my journey wasn't the ideal. it wasn't what i expected. it wasn't what i wanted, but i love the road that i chose.

micah came out and actually did have a perfect latch. he nursed amazingly through the first night and it wasn't until the next day that he started refusing to latch. he would fight and scream and after one bad latch, it was just too painful to keep going. the LCs told me to take a break. to pump and feed him what i pump and then to supplement with formula. just for 24 hours. well, after that break, i was left with an infection and i wasn't able to get him back on and after tears from all of us and multiple visits to the lactation consultant, i decided to exclusively pump.

i knew it was possible because my sister did it. if she hadn't, i wouldn't have known that it was even possible because the entire medical profession (that might be a slight exaggeration) denies that it's possible. seriously. 10 months in i had doctors/nurses tell me that it's impossible....i wanted to say, "really?!? you mean the last 10 months of my son getting only breastmilk is impossible? oh and the 3 months worth of milk in my fridge isn't real??" but i didn't, because i'm just not that bold (or rude). instead, i politely said over and over again, that this is what i'm doing and it's working for us.

anyway, God is so good. i prayed that i would have enough milk, and i did. i prayed that He would make a way for me to provide micah with enough milk for an entire year, and He did. i prayed that my journey would be helpful to others, and it has. my God is good.

through this journey, i've been able to help other pumping moms. i helped a mom through the rough beginning stages when she was devastated that her son wouldn't nurse and she felt like no one understood. God has made a way for me to share what I've learned, and because of that, i would not have had it any other way.

as far as production goes, i had a massive oversupply when i was on maternity leave and a couple of months after, and then as work got busier, and micah got busier, i slowed down on pumping until i was matching what he was eating. we maintained that for a while (and i saw we, because Alex was a HUGE blessing and made it possible for me to pause to pump up to 8 times a day!), and then i started weaning. i was completely weaned off the pump by a couple of weeks before Micah's birthday and i had a freezer stash that has kept him drinking only breastmilk for a longer than a month! we'll use up the last few gallon bags of milk over the next couple of weeks. i just introduced whole milk yesterday and micah liked it just fine. he'll get that during the day, while he'll still have pumped milk for the mornings and evenings...just to make it go a little further :)

i felt like i wanted to write this down so that i won't forget. i don't want to forget how proud i am of myself, and i don't want to forget how thankful i am that God sent me on this path. the most common thing that people want to know is if i would do it again with our next baby. i can't say that i can answer that right now because i now have a son who would have to do a lot of waiting around while i pump (and wash bottles, and prepare bottles, and steralize parts...) and take care of another baby, and if i could avoid that, i would. pumping would never be my first choice as it's a ton of extra work, but i don't think i would adamantly say that i wouldn't do it if my baby won't nurse next time. we'll just have to wait and see :)

twelve months.

micah,
you are one! this picture makes my heart so happy and so full. at twelve months old, you are quite the little man. i've said it before, and i'm sure i'll say it again....you are ALL boy. seriously. i can't even get you to sit still to read a book, but i love reading to you so i read while you eat...that way i have you trapped! you are a ball of energy and are always on the go. you don't stop when you're awake and still take 2 (long) naps every day. the picture above is evidence of your energy as your legs are almost always covered with little bruises! you go, fall, and then go some more! you've been taking a few steps at a time for a while now, but on May 1, you started really going for it...10-15 steps at a time, and within a week, you were pretty steady on your feet and walking down the hall and around corners! you are officially a toddler and mama has mixed emotions about that ;) with walking came tantrums, but you're still little enough that we can redirect you and you forget about it pretty quickly. you don't watch tv, which isn't a bad thing, but sometimes mama would like just 15 minutes with you distracted :) you still only say da-da, but you have started waving, clapping, climbing and dancing! you are so much fun to be around and you are SO silly. you do things that crack us up, and you crack yourself up too! it is such a joy to be your mama. i love your big open mouth kisses...you grab my face (or hair) on both sides and bring my face to yours for kisses. it's the sweetest thing EVER. your hugs are the only things that rival your kisses. they are strong and warm my heart. i never knew the depth of love that i would experience by knowing you. thank you for making me a mama. every day with you is a gift and the last 365 gifts have been amazing.

i love you little man,
mama

my first mother's day.

we had an awesome day. it started bright and early since i had to be at our new RH HB campus so Alex and Micah brought me breakfast and a venti chai to get the morning started right :) it was a great launch and then we spent a couple of hours with my mom and grandma at my grandparents house. after that was family nap time followed by packing and more birthday party planning. the day was busy and full, but i loved spending it with my two guys. last year on mother's day, i thought i was 2 weeks away from having a baby, but i delivered my little guy just three days later! i just love being a mama to my little man and look forward to many more mother's days!

weepy.

i'm a crier. always have been. pretty sure i always will be.

i get especially emotional every time alex and i move...which is once a year at this point...let's pray that this next place will be somewhere for us to be long term!

i think it's helping that the birthday party is distracting me from the reality that we are moving in less than a week, but, i know that this move is going to be the most emotional yet. just thinking about it brings tears to my eyes. this is where i labored. this is where we brought him home. this is where we walked the hall in the middle of the night soothing our newborn. this is where he learned to roll over. to scoot. to crawl. to walk.

oh my.

while our neighbors are not ideal, and being on the second floor with a baby is rough, we have had some amazing memories here. ones that i hope to never forget. and with that i am going to try to move forward, knowing that this move is going to be great for our family, and i'm going to try to cut off the weepiness before i got into the ugly cry. here are some of those first memories with micah at home.

almost one.

did you know that this guy is turning 1 in less than a week??! i can hardly believe it. he started walking a LOT more this week! it's safe to say we have a walker, even though i think he prefers crawling because he's faster! with all of the craziness that is surrounding us right now, i am still trying to focus on the details of his little man birthday party. i love and appreciate the details that go into making a party so special, and i'm not skipping any because his birthday happens to fall at a crazy time :) okay, okay, so i'm not focusing on every teeny tiny thing, but i am trying to be intentional for our little guy. here's a sneak peak of what's to come...

(little jars with adhesive mustaches)

(tiny paper bunting)

everything is really starting to come together...maybe i'll start packing this afternoon ;)

quick update.

we get the keys to the new place in 5 days.
micah's birthday is in 7 days.
his party is in 10 days.
giant event at work in 7 days.
launching the RH HB campus in 3 days.

there are so many things to do for all of the things above, but this morning i just enjoyed the morning with my boy. the to do list can wait for nap times.

our new home.

so, the virus has not left me. went to the doctor, but he was no help. dumb virus. i did have to go to work today, but i stayed as far away from people as possible and didn't even step inside a kids room! just there for support, ya know?

okay so the virus is kind of depressing...especially since i've been resting like crazy...alex and my parents have done double duty to keep me resting. anywhoo...our new home is much more exciting than a dumb virus, so i figured I would post some pictures. it's still a work in progress as they are currently installing new countertops and a new tub. we visited again yesterday to check out the progress and it was really exciting :)

best. parents. ever.

today i am especially thankful for my parents. let me tell you about my week...sunday night, i went to bed at 6pm. not a nap, literally in bed for the night at 6pm. slept through until micah woke the next morning. we spent the entire day at home in our jammies. i was WIPED. monday night, my throat started hurting, but i was supposed to be at work at 7am tuesday to unload the easter truck, so off i went. i made it through until 3 and then headed home. then my throat really started hurting. like the burning, have to suck on throat lozenges all night long kind of hurting. wednesday, i went to staff meeting, had one more meeting, and then i was toast. noon on wednesday, i went down hard. i went home early, and my parents stayed to help out with micah while i rested. then they went and got dinner for everyone and came back to feed us. amazing.

then after being with micah all day tuesday and wednesday, my dad came back over this morning and played with/cared for micah all morning until his nap when my mom came over. they fed me, took care of micah, and took care of me. i am so thankful because i don't think i would have been a very good mama today.

thankfully, i think i'm over the worst of it. i'm hoping to be up for work this weekend. so yeah. i have he best parents ever!

oh and did i mention that all of my dishes are clean thanks to my mama :)

easter 2011.

easter was amazing. God was glorified and i experienced the presence of the Spirit in unbelievable ways. easter started for me months ago, but really started taking shape on thursday at our staff meeting. i wish i was an eloquent writer so that i could explain the awesomeness of our staff meeting. we reflecting on stories of transformation from past easters which was inspiring, but then the Spirit fell on us in an incredibly prophetic way. there was not a dry eye, and to be honest, i just don't have the right words...you'll just have to trust me :)

the bulk of the set up was on thursday night. it was a great night and most everything got done.

friday, we had 3 services with children's ministry, and then packed up every.single.toy from the entire building to take over to the tents at the fairgrounds.

saturday was unloading the truck with the toys, and then fine tuning all of the tents. we finished in record time and then we had the stirring saturday night which was a night for the Church around orange and LA counties to get together to worship and pray for the sunday morning gatherings, and the families in the county. francis chan brought a pretty powerful message and we were mobilized to action by contributing to an amazing organization called Safe Families.


and then....easter morning! incredible. incredible. incredible! francis joined us yet again and it was not a service that will be forgotten anytime soon. since a picture is worth a thousand words, here are some captured by alex ::

we. are. STILL. insane.

do you remember last year when we moved? well, we thought that it was the craziest time to move.

nope.

now is the craziest time to move, and, you guessed it...we're moving! again.

this will be our 4th place right before our 3 year wedding anniversary.

let me map this out for you....

alex just moved to full time which means he isn't here to use wednesdays to pack.
i am in the process of helping to make Easter 2011 happen.
may 8th RH is launching a new campus in huntington.
may 12th is micah's first birthday.
may 12th also starts a three day family ministry gathering (aka conference with a TON of people).
may 15th is micah's birthday party.
oh, and did i mention that we have one of our dear friends staying with us from the 9th-15th.

yup...sounds crazy, right? yeah. we get the keys to our new place on may 10th. and we need to be completely out of our current place by the 20th. so why are we doing this? well, let me tell you ::
the new place is free standing. that's right, no shared walls!
washer and dryer hook ups.
new windows.
new carpet.
new dishwasher.
new stove.
new countertops.
a side yard!! this one is huge for us...with a little person and summer right around the corner, we SO desired a place for him to play outside without having to drive anywhere.
laminate floors in the living room.
new tub and bathroom vanity.
all of the above for a (very) small increase in rent.
not having to live next to crazy mccrazy.
no smoker right outside our window.
no stairs!
a landlord who actually wants to upgrade the property for you.

we just couldn't pass this place up. seeing it again last night totally confirmed our decision. it's everything we have talked about wanting. we LOVE it. the funny thing is that alex just happened to drive by it on the way home on Sunday...right after we had just released our hopes of finding anything better within our price range. literally, just minutes after we said that we just need to keep our eyes open but not be expectant and to trust that God would make it clear when it was time. well, He made it clear.

so yes, we might be insane, but i think we'd be more insane to pass it up!

and because no post is finished until it has some micahness in it, here's a winner ::

eleven months.

we're a little late on micah's update this month. mostly because mama has been (and still is) crazy busy!

micah,
every day i think you just can't possibly get any more fun, and then you wake up the next day and prove me wrong! you are still a ball of energy and i don't think that's ever going to change ;) this month you've gotten more steady on your feet and are braving up to 5 steps at a time now! Most of the time it's still only 2 or 3 though. you are a happy baby who never stops moving. if you're still, it's because you are asleep! you've started playing ball now and we LOVE it. you're also loving the outdoors more and more. i think you're going to turn mama into an outside girl :) we take walks nearly every afternoon and you love crawling around on the grass outside.
you are still a very good eater...the only thing we've found that you don't like is eggs. you have tried so many new things, and mama can't even keep track of them anymore! i think that means you're a big kid now.

the closer we get to your birthday, the more i get sentimental about you growing up. you are such a gift to your dad and i. we love you more than we ever thought possible and we love you more every single day!

birthdays.

We celebrated with two very special one year olds last weekend. both boys were born on the same day in the same hospital and they both mean the world to us! first up was Ryder who had a super cute fishy theme and the best cake eating i have ever seen!




sunday was brody's turn...he had an adorable baseball theme which was perfect for his family!





we had a GREAT weekend celebrating two of our favorite little boys! next up is another one of Micah's buddies...we'll be celebrating Landon today...and after that....micah's turn!

check it out.

the OC Easter site is incredible this year. i have gone to the site multiple times since it launched, and i can't get enough. seriously, the communications team did an amazing job translating what it is we're celebrating on Easter.

check it out.

spread the word.

www.oceaster.com

mommy fail.

so last night, micah was extra fussy at bedtime which isn't normal. if he's full, he usually goes down without a fight. last night he wouldn't stop crying. i tried a few more ounces which ended up calming him down. he started crying again when he finished, but fell asleep after a few minutes.

normally i have a pretty good read on micah. i usually know what it is that's keeping him from sleep, so imagine how terrible i felt when after all of that crying, i found his little blankie (that he has slept with every.single.night.) in the living room! of course i felt awful...the good news is that tonight i remembered the blankie and micah went down without a peep :)

manly man

mama and baby.

love.

CPC 2011

(the RH & DCC crew)

CPC this year was awesome. I only attended one breakout and spent most of my time in the David C. Cook booth in the resource center. Being able to talk with other practitioners who are using Tru was great...as was talking with potential customers. The thing that I kept hearing over and over again was a sense of relief. People are tired. They are weary of the same old, and I feel so privileged to be on the team that gets to work on the Tru project. I also loved talking through the Spiritual Parenting philosophy with people. All in all it was an encouraging week and quite honestly was a great time to prepare for the next season of ministry....Easter and RH HB...

a day at the park.

okay so maybe it wasn't a day at the park, but it was at least 20 minutes ;) we took micah to the part to swing and slide, and he loved it of course. the only thing he was unsure of was the sand. that's my boy!