Personality change...

Okay, my once very content, sleep-all-day Jordyn is now "hold me constantly or I will scream at the top of my lungs" and "feed me every second of the day" Jordyn. I'm going CRAZY!

Memorial Weekend

We've had a busy weekend, and I've barely taken any pictures. Either I need to start using my camera more, or I need to just steal Angie, Shari and Cori's pictures! :) We spent Friday evening with Mom, Dad, Jeff and Danielle. After having a great dinner a Dominic's, Jeff, Danielle and Mark went to see the Indiana Jones movie. Instead of going with them, I slept! Blissful, wonderful sleep (while Mom watched Jordyn). Heavenly!

On Saturday, we had a fun get-together at Angie's. Just go visit her blog if you want the details. It involved Marlboro Man sandwiches, 4-wheelin', frisbee football, a bonfire and s'mores. What more could one ask for?


We got together at Olive Garden to celebrate mom's (*gasp*) 65th belated birthday on Sunday! We even managed to pose for a picture outside the restaurant. We all have weird lights on our faces from light filtering through the trees. We picked the spot we did because the sunny area had bees almost as big as hummingbirds. None of us felt too comfortable hanging out with the bees.

Monday was split between both sides of the family. We first went over to the Riley's and hung out there with Cori, the Plattners and extended family. It was a great day until I backed up, scraped along an electric pole (which I totally forgot was there) and tore off part of my front end.

I'm a genius!

This is the van after Mark and Dale did some patching up on it. I may just drive it this way forever to save the $500 deductible. :) If Angie could drive her van without the bumper for over a year, then this is nothing!

Jared

Jesse

Jonas

You wouldn't believe how popular grandpa's garden was for the kids. They were out there for hours digging in the dirt with Nathan's tractors. I'm half tempted to make a "garden" for my kiddos.

Javan

Jubilee

(Somehow I missed getting a picture of Jolene.)

On Tuesday, Mark left for Delaware (the state, not the city in Ohio). I ended up watching Craig for a little bit while Janine went to a meeting for Kent. She then watched my munchkins while I took Jordyn to school to show her off. In the two hours I was gone, Janine managed to watch 3 children, straighten up much of the downstairs and cook dinner! My sister is awesome! (and I'm incompetent)

Today, I hesitantly went garage saling with my sisters. It's a little scary thinking about taking 3 kiddos out, but with Angie and Janine's help, it really wasn't too bad. The day started off really well because Jordyn slept from 11 pm to 7 am. I managed to get up and get a shower. We were on the road by 8:30. Then, my low tire pressure gauge came on. The positive side of that is I learned how to put air in the tires! :) I'm glad I decided to go because I got a load of super cute clothes for Jordyn. After that, I hung out with mom and dad. Nathan, Ben, Jordyn and I all ended up conking out at their house. Dad fed us a delicious dinner, and the boys spent some time playing outside.

Well, there's the recap of the week. Mark is now safely home, and Jordyn is sleeping in the swing, finally giving me the opportunity to blog. I think I'm going to take this opportunity to try to finish a scrapbook for a friend of mine. Am I pushing my luck? I'm betting Jordyn is awake in 5 minutes!

Random musings...

What sad news! Steven Curtis Chapman's 5 year old daughter was just killed in a car accident. I always thought the worst thing that could happen to a parent would be to lose a child. Well, this is even worse because it was his son that ran over the daughter. It was totally accidental...his son did not know the daughter was there. I guess lots of family was over for a graduation party for his son. I heard S.C.C.'s song "Cinderella" for the first time tonight. It was written about his daughters and how he wanted to treasure each moment with them. What an amazing song, and really eerie considering the circumstances. I've been to a couple of S.C.C.'s concerts and have always been impressed with him and his family. I pray for his son as this has to be especially hard for him.

http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/05/musician_steven_curtis_chapman.html

On a lighter note, Weslea greets me with a gift of some sort for Jordyn every time I see her. The other day it was a paragraph she wrote in school. (Need to dig that one out and post it.) Today, it was a drawing with a real flower in the middle. If you haven't guessed, the J is for Jordyn and the W is for Weslea...apparently, Weslea loves Jordyn & Jordyn loves Weslea.

I have a feeling Jordyn will not lack attention from her cousins Weslea and Caryn.

Well, tomorrow is the state Power of the Pen tournament. The kids will be babysat by Trinka, which means mommy will be separated from Jordyn. I'm very sad. It seems way to early. I have no doubt Trinka will do a wonderful job. I just wish I didn't have to do this tournament. Once I get this tournament done with and one (only ONE--YAY!) more IEP written, I will be FREE! (Well, as free as I can be with 3 needy children by my side 24-7.) :) Of course, I'm excited for our POP kids--we actually have 4 competing which is unheard of! We feel pretty lucky if we get one that qualifies at the state level. Hopefully we will have some happy girls who kick butt at the tournament!

It's 12:15 a.m., and I have to get up at 6...so, off to bed I go!

Do you want a free stamp set?

Then head over to my sister's blog right away! (http://thearthurclan.blogspot.com)

Don't know my sister? It doesn't matter!

Never stamped before? Sounds like it's time to start!

So why is Angie giving away stamp sets? Because she's pathetically desperate for attention. She admits it. For some reason in the blogging world, comments are like being voted in as prom queen. We're desperate for comments. We feel popular when we have comments. Our self esteem shoots through the roof! :) Okay, maybe a slight exaggeration there. (at least for me...for Angie...Well...)

Anyway, Angie will randomly select a person who leaves a comment under her stamp giveaway post to receive a free stamp set. It doesn't matter if you have no idea who Angie is. It doesn't matter if you stamp. All you have to do is leave a comment...go to her blog to find out the subject.

Why are you still here? Go enter for a free stamp set. My blog will still be here when you get back!

Bath Time

Before Bath:During Bath:
After Bath:
Oh, so traumatizing!

And here's my traumatizing experience from yesterday:

I haven't been making Nathan take a nap lately but decided I would start so I could actually get something done while the boys slept. It ended up being a big battle yesterday as the boys kept getting out of bed and fooling around. After I went up and laid into them, things finally quieted down upstairs. About that time, Jordyn decided she was hungry. As I'm feeding her, I heard Ben crying. I was very annoyed thinking the two boys were fighting over a toy or something. I almost ignored it so that I wouldn't have to interrupt Jordyn eating. I'm so glad I didn't ignore it. When I went upstairs, I discovered Nathan laying on top of a pillow that was totally covering Ben's face! What a scary experience! I don't even want to imagine what would have happened if I didn't go upstairs right away. I screamed at Nathan..."We never, Never, NEVER DO THAT!!!!" Nathan comes across as being so mature, but it just goes to show that four year olds still don't get it. After my very serious talk with him, and then Mark talking to him when he got home from work, I'm pretty sure Nathan knows to never do that again. I'm not confident enough, though, for them to nap in the same room. Nathan is now sleeping in our bed for naps, and Ben in the bunk bed. So, if anyone saw Angie's comment, you know what she meant about my day not getting better.

Here's a funny thing that happened recently. I took Jordyn to Wal-Mart with Angie and Janine to go grocery shopping on Monday. On the way home, Mark called and asked me to pick him up a Coke. I stopped at Circle K which has 59 cent pops - any size - with the really good ice. Best deal around! When I went to pay, the cashier asked to see the baby. (It was probably only the 50th time Jordyn was gawked at that day. Angie and Janine pointed out that they forgot how much attention a newborn brings!) Jordyn was covered in a pink blanket, but a blue blanket was also in the car seat. The cashier asked whether the baby was a boy or girl. She was a bit confused by the different colored blankets. I told her that I only owned two pink blankets. (Which actually isn't true. I probably own tons of pink blankets passed on by Angie. I just haven't gotten out to the garage to find them!) The cashier then offered to give me the pink blankets she owned. I guess she's had over 21 foster kids over the years, but she is not longer doing foster care. I felt pretty bad taking her up on the offer since I know I have blankets somewhere, and we obviously can afford to buy blankets. It just seems silly to spend the money. She looked so excited to share the blankets with me that I told her I would come in the next day to get them. Then, on top of it all, I forgot to go get them. Now, not only am I an undeserving charity case, I'm also the jerk who didn't show to collect her charity! :)

It's been way too long...

since I've shared a poop story. And I know how you all enjoy those stories! So here goes...sorry I let so much time slip by before sharing another one. Last night, I was changing Jordyn in the dark on our bed. I had her butt up in the air trying to get her nice and clean. That was when she chose to have a full blow-out. Yep, poop all over me and the bed. It's moments like these that make parents wish for more and more children. Here's the pathetic part. Did I run downstairs and take a shower like any normal parent would do? Did I go get new sheets and change the bed? No, not me. I grabbed a paper towel and wiped myself down. I grabbed a blanket and covered the messy sheet. Then I went back to bed. Momma was tired! (It may comfort you to know that I did take a shower this morning, and the sheets will be washed today.) Now you can go on with your lives having had your "poop story" fix.

Where in the world?

It's so exciting. I'm looking at my "visits" map looking at what areas view my blog. I know most of them, but who do I know from Texas, South Dakota, and Tennessee? Looks like there's some lurkers (or blurkers) out there...just like me! I always like to look at random blogs by clicking to next blog at the top of the page. You can find some really interesting people out there that way! Try it sometime!

Nothing new to post!

I've been pretty lame-o on the blogging lately. No new pictures either. I have a brand new, beautiful baby to take pictures of and have I? Nope! You know, I could take a picture of Jordyn in her swing right now, but then you'd see the huge pile of clothes behind her that need to be folded. (Unless I could finally learn some cool photography skills where it would look like a fuzzy pretty background. :) I could take a picture of Ben in his highchair, but then you'd see a highchair that still doesn't have it's regular padding in place. Instead, I have a Thomas towel draped over the seat. Half of Ben is touching the towel, and the other half is dealing with cold plastic. Sorry, hon! From the tone of my post, guess what I'm doing today. Yay! Cleaning! You know how I love it so!

They're dropping like flies around here!

By 6, Mark and Jordyn were down for the count. By 7, Nathan had joined them. Hope this doesn't mean that Jordyn is up all night. That would not be good as I'm not one of the ones snoozing on the couch! :)

Stats

At 12 days old, Jordyn is: 7 lbs. 15 oz. 21.25 inches

First weigh-in!

As you can see, Jordyn is as thrilled with her first doctor's visit as Nathan and Ben were with theirs!

This is how we found him!

Mark and I went into the boys' room last night to check on them. Poor Ben fell asleep hanging off the bed. Notice his fine-lookin' pajamas. :)

Train Adventure with Daddy

Have you ever seen this video? It reminds me of my kids. The only difference is you need to replace "bath? bath? bath?" with "trains? trains? trains???"

Well, Mark, being the cool dad he is, took the boys to Bellevue, Ohio, to check out some real trains.

This series of pictures cracks me up. See in this one that Nathan is kind of smiling?
Now, his brave front is cracking.

That's enough. Get me out of here. Basically, Nathan is deathly terrified of heights and this was too high for him.



I have a feeling maybe they weren't supposed to be in the bags.

Grandma Shari and Great-Grandma Doris were also there.

This should top yours, Angie!

So it took Angie a little over a week to share her embarassing story. Mine only took 13 years to tell...and I'm still cringing.

It all started with a new shorts outfit kind of like the one above. Hey, it was the 90s. Back then, those shorts would have been smokin'! Do you remember DOTS? As a poor college student, it was the best store EVER, because you could go in, buy a cute outfit and spend $10 or less. That's where I bought my lovely one piece shorts outfit that I thought looked super cute on me.

I couldn't wait to wear it. My first (and only) time wearing it was to college. I strolled down the sidewalk to my class feeling very style savvy. My feelings were soon validated when a passing car honked at me. Soon after, I got a cat-call from a guy in another car. You would think this might clue me in...but, no, I was deluded into thinking I was looking pretty good.

That is...until...a car slowed down and a guy politely told me, "Hey, your shorts are caught on your book bag." Yep, that's right...I was baring my butt to every passer-byer since my shorts were caught in my bookbag strap. I wanted to DIE! I remember heading into the nearest building and hiding out in the bathroom FOREVER. I guess my only consoling thought was that the people who saw me were total strangers...nah...it still doesn't help.

But, did it help you hearing the story, Angie?

Birthday pictures

Ben couldn't resist putting his fingers in the cake!


Showing some love for his sister.

...and the tradition continues. Notice a theme? Yep, Ben loves trains too! Mark took Ben and Nathan to the train store and bought some cars for Ben's train. As Nathan and I were wrapping them, Nathan kept coming up with reason after reason why the cars should be connected to his train rather than Ben's. (ex. Ben's train can't carry this heavy passenger car. I'll need to hook it to mine.)
Here, Ben is loving his race track that his Aunt Cori sent to him.

I can't believe how much my kiddos are growing up!

Dad is just so much more fun than mom!

Mark let the kids have full control of the hose and sand pit in our back yard. They were dirty but had so much fun!

One item off the checklist!

Do you remember the sweet letter Mark wrote to me before the C-section? Well, I've gotten one of the gifts on the list! Yesterday, a bunch of coworkers from Cloverleaf came to visit baby Jordyn. Every time one of them stood up from our couch, the recliners would pop out and hit them in the legs. I've been pretty frustrated with our couches for some time now and have scoured craigslist for a couch for the past couple months. I got on again this afternoon and was shocked to find a couch in Wooster that was the exact same one I had been checking out at Macy's. Even better, it was half the price! The lady selling it is married to an orthopedic doctor, and they just moved from Virginia. Now that their living room is bigger, they needed bigger furniture. (Their house is NICE!) Anyway, it worked out for us. We now have an almost new couch in our living room that should be much easier to keep clean. Yay, for me. Now, on to the fence!

Nathan & Jordyn

Nathan loves holding Jordyn.

Ben loves poking Jordyn. :)

Ben is 2 today!

So, Ben at 2...let's see:

Loves - attention, trains, his thumb, balls, hanging out with Nathan, grabbing mommy's hand-dragging her into the kitchen and begging for food, acting like he's a doggy, playing outside

Hates - having his picture taken, sharing...overall, though, an easygoing boy!

Ben has been learning more and more words - dadda, momma, choo-choo, bubbles, baby, uh-uh, no, thank you, please and many more! He also likes to carry on long conversations with nonsense words. He is convinced that what he is saying makes sense.

This is the big year for change!

We love you, Ben! Happy Birthday!

Mama, I'm coming home!

My doctor came in a few minutes ago and said that she would be preparing the paperwork for me to go home today! I figure I'll hang out until late afternoon, and then life begins. Jordyn is a doll. She has been a good little sleeper so far. Of course, I can't quite send her to the nursery at night anymore. :)

Name: Jordyn Brianna Riley

Weight: 7 lbs. 6 oz.

Length: 19.5 inches

Born: 11:17 a.m. on May 2nd

Check out all that dark hair! I'm pretty convinced this gal will also have brown eyes like her father. They are pretty dark already. I hope along with those brown eyes comes a nice complexion.

Fill-in-the-blank (for Mark to wax poetic later)

I just got back from the hospital. I can hardly believe how w_ _ _ _ _ _ _ l my g_ _ _ _ _ _ s wife is. She is a _ _ _ _ _ g! I can hardly wait to go out and buy her an expensive _____________ to commemerate this monumental day in our life. Baby Jordyn is beautiful. She definitely takes after her m _ _ _ _ r. I am just so thankful I now have two wonderful gals in my life, one of which is awesome at picking out names! With eternal g _ _ _ _ _ _ _ e, Mark [Key: wonderful, gorgeous, amazing, (fence, Photoshop CS3, leather couch/sofa, etc.), mother, gratitude]

Update...

Visiting hours are 10 to 8. Guess they have some rules. :)