One month

I just love having a newborn again.

Don't you love the scrunched up legs and fluffly hair?

And in the 2 weeks since these pictures, she's started to stretch out more and lose some of that "newness." It's sad, but also exciting because we can't wait to get to know who this little sweetie is going to grow up to be!

More Ivy

Just a few more pictures of Ivy...

Her hair only stays curly for a few minutes after her bath, but here's the proof that it curls at all! I am so curious to see happens when her hair really grows in. I'm crossing my fingers for curls!

And I've been asked who she looks most like and I think that she looks like Grace. So here's a couple pics of Grace as a newborn for comparison. :)

Ivy Wynne

She's here!

Ivy Wynne Howell
November 11, 2011
7 lbs 9 oz -- 20 inches

So many little tender mercies that Friday - going into labor at just the right time, having time to talk to Carver about it and not having it come as a surprise, 3 different places for our kids to play, no traffic up to the hospital, time to get my antibiotics working before delivery, the same fantastic nurse who helped deliver Carver, and most of all - a healthy baby girl!!

We feel very, very blessed.

We struggled a lot with her name until we decided to really focus on the meaning. So Ivy means "fidelity and eternity." Wynne means "pure" and it's a family name, as well as Welsh (Howell is Welsh). We are so grateful she's here!

Due

3 more weeks from tomorrow is the due date. YIKES! I've been thinking about how it feels like a school due date. All these things to finish before they are "due." Once school started, I really dove into projects like crazy and checked things of the list. There is still a LOT to do, but I'm running out of steam in a big way and resting a lot so this baby doesn't come before I'm ready. Either she's on her way a little earlier than Nov. 16th or I'm just in for a long few weeks. :) Here's a little of what we've been fitting in before the due date:

I had a birthday - Derek took the day off and we went to the pumpkin patch as a family. We even pulled the girls out of school early! It was so fun. Then it rained and rained while we wandered through the corn maze. Not a whole lotta great pictures that day, but it was tons of fun! This is what 9 tons of dried corn looks like...

It was also VERY muddy. 3 out of 4 children rode home without pants. :)

Grace had her first ever field trip. Oh, so exciting!

Carver had a birthday! Spider man style. The boys played with flubber....

...used sticky hands to get spiders off paper webs...

...and shot this crazy villain with silly string.

We had brownies as a family that night to celebrate 6 whole years with our cute boy. He LOVED his birthday!!

Sunday was beautiful, so we took advantage of the sunshine and pretty leaves to take fall pictures on the trail. Some even turned out okay, despite the amateur photography (mine!).

I've got the blessing dress made, the stocking made, clothes out and inventoried, some things washed. It feels like I've done a lot, but there is so much more to do!!

Lydia's big school presentation tomorrow night
Primary program on Sunday (I'm the chorister, of all crazy things!)
Halloween
weekend with Derek's parents
finding a spot for the crib in our room
more organizing in our room
scheduling parent teacher conferences around delivery
all sorts of regular stuff

AND...

a name for this girl!!

It's been SO HARD - maybe because it's our 4th girl?
Who knows.

Some forerunners (if you ask me) are:
Alice. Ruby. Claire. Rose.

I'd like to know before sleep deprivation sets in and I lose all ability to make good decisions, but we might be drawing out of a hat in the hospital. :)

Fall Party

The Howell family's favorite pagan tradition:
ANNUAL FALL PARTY

We love celebrating the first day of fall (give or take) with homemade donuts and decorating the house for the season. That takes about 2 minutes because I'm not a big seasonal decorator. I struggle with the regular kind of home decor! Isn't keeping it clean enough of a job?!

The pink camo has nothing to do with fall. Just a birthday party the girls went to that afternoon. :)

Hurray for cool weather, hot chocolate, donuts and fall fun!! It's birthday season, leaves, pumpkins, pies and even a baby this year. It's gonna be a great fall. :)

Grace's first day

This was one happy day at our house. The question is who was happier - Grace or me!! This is her big smile before our "meet the teacher" picnic a few weeks ago. After watching Carver go to to preschool literally as long as she can remember, it's finally her turn. She had to work through some disappointment over not being able to take the bus to her preschool, but we do get to carpool with a friend and that helps soften the blow a little bit. :)

As for me? This is the day that moms look forward to for years. A little slice of freedom, a little peace and quiet with ALL the kids at school. Granted, it's only 3 times a week for 2 1/2 hours, but that's a whole lot more than I've ever had!! What a strange, wonderful feeling it is! My "bucket list" before this baby is a big one, but I'm sewing and trying to finish listening to Unbroken (it's a REALLY good book!). I've got to make the most of this time before I'm snuggling a baby and going back to bed every Mon/Wed/Fri. :)

Here's Grace on her first day of preschool!

Aren't these girlies cute? They crack me up.
Happy times are these!!

Carver's big day

I've been worried about this day for literally years. I've lost sleep over it. I've cried over it. It is incredibly hard to describe how different it is to send Carver to kindergarten than his big sisters. They were reading and writing and counting to 100, all those sorts of things. Carver can't do any of the pre-kindergarten skills. He struggles to sit still, follow directions, wait his turn. I was hoping for the other teacher and had a huge emotional breakdown when he got the other one. It really wasn't about the teacher, just a reason to let out all the anxiety that's been building up over the summer. His teacher has been wonderful. We've emailed a bunch, she let us come in early to look at the classroom and hopefully let him explore a little without the chaos of other kids. She probably thinks I'm an overprotective worrier. She's absolutely right, but this is my crazy hard, sweet little guy! I resisted the urge to email her the first day and ask how it went, but she emailed me - bless her heart. She's taught kindergarten FOREVER and I know she's seen it all, but I just hope and pray that she'll love Carver. That's what'll make the difference. I met his OT at the orientation meeting and was so impressed. She'll help in the classroom, as well as pull him out for therapy. He'll have PT and SLP every week, as well, but I haven't met the SLP yet. His PT is the same as at the preschool and he is fantastic, as well. I know that we aren't doing this alone. There's still a team to look out for his needs and help kindergarten be successful for him and manageable for his teacher. He'll have time in a small special ed class every day, as well, to learn in his own way and work on the skills that are appropriate for his level. I'm telling you - this style of kindergarten is completely different from what I've done before. How can I not worry about all these pieces?! Will the kids be nice to him? Will he drive his teacher crazy? Will he like it there? Will he find his teacher after getting off the bus? Will he stay in his seat on the bus? Is he going to learn the things he needs to know? How will he ever be ready for all day in 1st grade? I'm trying not to worry about that now, but I kinda can't help myself.

But Carver's just plain old excited. About the bus and going to the same school as Ellie. About being a kindergartener and his friends in his class. He started Friday and was pretty bummed not to go back the next day. He's really happy that tomorrow is another school day. Here's one of his best buddies at the bus stop.

He looked a tiny bit worried hopping on the bus.

You can imagine how it touched my heart to see his good big sisters take his hands on the way to the bus stop that morning. Lydia sat by him on the bus and Ellie helped him find his teacher when they got there. With sisters like these looking out for him and a team of teachers ready for him, I know he's going to be just fine.

And I just might survive another year of kindergarten, too. :)

First Days

Ready or not, school started last Tuesday. At the last minute, the girls swapped their shirts into their matching stripes. For the record, it was HOT that day and I took Ellie's sweater home from the bus stop. She just likes to be prepared. :)

Can you believe that Lydia is in 5th grade now?
Here's her first day of kindergarten:

And now she's in her LAST year of elementary school. Wow.
Do I have to let her go to middle school?!

And here's Ellie's first day of kindergarten:

And now off to 3rd grade! She still loves pink and purple. :)

I asked the girls if they were sure they wanted to go to school. Didn't they want to stay home a few more weeks? It's warm and wonderful right now... Okay, a little too hot, but I'm trying really hard to be grateful for the sunshine! But they were ready to go, so excited to tell me all about it when they got home and enjoy some homemade oreos and milk. It was kinda weird and quiet at home without them, but Carver and Grace kept me plenty busy!

Happy back-to-school to the big girls!

littlest biker

I still can't believe she pulled this off.
Barely 4 years old = a new family record.
She really, really LOVES her bike!!

A bite of the bittersweet

I've really been trying to savor this summer. Make the most of every day because it's the LAST one before baby "cinco" comes along. Does anyone else ever feel like preparing for a baby is preparing for life as you know it to end?! I do.

So I'm feeling a little sad that we're almost out of summertime. I kinda like eating breakfast whenever we want to, showering when I get around to it, not having to be home at lunchtime every single day. Now it's cloudy, school starts in less than a week and my fall calendar is packed, despite Lydia deciding not to play soccer this year and cutting out all Carver's private therapies. I was trying to downsize and simplify, but I guess I just traded for doctor's appointments. :) I'm 29 weeks today! Yikes.

I have moments of just loving summer and not ever wanting it to end and moments (at the store with 4 wild monkeys) that I'm counting down the days til this crew finds somewhere else to be! Instead of feeling torn, I'm relishing the feeling. I love a good tragic novel. Gone with the Wind, Anna Karenina, Jane Eyre. Those are meaty stories that really leave me satisfied. I loved the end of Hunger Games because it wasn't all happily ever after. What does this reveal about me?!! I'm sure I don't want to know.

I'm applying the same principle to the cooler weather, the darker mornings and the start of school. Isn't it delicious that things change?! Isn't it wonderful to feel wistful for warm summer days and anxious for pumpkins, soup and school all at the same time? I'm just eating it up this year.

But oh, doesn't this look like fun?! I'm sure gonna miss these days!!

Summer 2011

Where has the summer gone? It's finally warm and sunny, just in time for the kids to start school in a couple weeks. But despite the clouds and sweatshirts, we've been busy having fun. And I've learned a couple summer truths I always, always forget:

1. We NEVER do all the worksheets and school work that I think we will. Like hardly any.

2. It's really asking too much of myself to tackle massive projects with 4 kids running around this place. I'm doing pretty good to mop the floor, do laundry and feed us.

3. Sibling relationships are complicated. Either you scream and fight or play for hours happily. Both on the same day, sometimes within minutes of each other. I think this is normal. I really hope it is.

4. Playdates are good for everyone, but somehow I never get around to setting them up.

5. Weather does NOT determine our activities. Take a sweatshirt and go to the beach, dang it!

6. I'm happier when I get up way too early and go on a run/walk with my friends, even if I crash on the couch at 3 pm.

7. We are almost as busy in the summer as we are in the school year - I just get to call the shots more. :)

8. I take lots more pictures, but never blog.

Here's a few things we've been up to:

Grace is learning to ride her bike w/o training wheels because all the other little girls in the neighborhood are doing it and she wants to follow along. :)

Lydia got braces - and a cute new hair cut, just not in the same picture.

Here's Grace's new haircut - she's been asking for 6 months to have short hair and I told her she had to wait until after her birthday so we'd have pony tails all summer. I don't really know why that mattered, this is SO much easier than long hair. And darling. But don't tell her - she's a vain little peacock these days! :)

playing slip-n-slide, water guns and all sorts of mischief with Dad

Ellie was BAPTIZED! Hurray for her! Such a beautiful, special thing. She asked Lydia to give a talk on baptism, which was sweet. Lydia did a great job, Ellie was super happy about being baptized and we were so proud of her. Both sets of grandparents and even more family was able to be here for the special day.

ice cream cones

Our first trip to Ocean Shores

Our first trip to Lake Chelan

sending off Grandma to Portland on the train

4th of July - Carver liked it better with ear protection. Our neighborhood is OUT OF CONTROL loud and crazy with fireworks. Poor kid.

I had more pictures, but they won't upload and I'm all done trying. Maybe in a couple months I'll try again. :)

Smells good in here

I'm a terrible blogger. Like maybe I'm not even a blogger anymore. I should retire, give up and move on with my life. But I can't quite do that yet, so here's a "mini-post" until I recover my life and sanity... in July. (June is the hardest month of my year and I'm hanging on for dear life!)

a conversation in a bathroom stall at a therapy center...

Grace: It smells good in here. Like hot dogs.

Ew. Ew!! But I can't help but love hot dogs anyway. Just not public bathrooms so much.

I'm 18 weeks now, feeling great, still running (slow and steady), wearing maternity clothes (sigh) and hoping to enjoy the summer before the fatigue and discomfort hit again that 3rd trimester. But school will start right about then and I'll have (a little) time to myself to rest up before this baby comes. At least that's my plan!

Another GIRL?!

Last week, right at my 15 week mark, I went for a free ultrasound at a Siemens office not far from here. I was crossing my fingers that they'd be able to tell gender. For lots of reasons. Like that we are still in a 3 bedroom house and I'm wondering where the heck this new baby will sleep (after they leave our bedroom). And that Carver's sensory processing disorder is genetic and more common in boys. Not to mention regular things like clothes and names and which bumpers to pull out of storage.

Our little one was facing backwards and not highly cooperative, but they THINK it's a girl. I didn't want to be told there because I just had Grace with me. So I asked them to write it down and we'd open it at dinner as a family. The first tech thought one thing, the second thought another, we had a third come in as a tie breaker. So between the differing opinions, the early gestational age and the fact that it's easier to mistake a boy for a GIRL, I'm not 100% confident. STILL, it's nice to call the baby a "her" and start brainstorming how to use our space to accommodate FOUR!!! girls in our little house.

We are excited. Surprised. I think we were all thinking boy. Maybe I was trying to prep myself for another little boy just like Carver, maybe I was hoping we'd get a boy bedroom and a girl bedroom without having to get creative. Either way, I was surprised. But we love girls and Grace will love to dress her. :)

Speaking of, she's picked a fellow Sunbeam (the name of her church class) to marry and today told me that they'd have children. She'd have babies. After Halloween. Just like the baby in my tummy. So, so funny!!

Sometime between now and November 16th, we'll have more ultrasounds and confirm that this is really a girl. If you asked Grace before, she'd say that the baby is a "boy or a girl." And that still holds true. :)

Pop-tarts and Pickles

Baked potatoes with butter, sour cream, salt and pepper

Greek salad with cucumbers, tomatoes, and feta

French fries, of course

Ginger-ale, with or without grenadine for a little sweetness

Brown sugar cinnamon pop-tarts

Omelets - ham, cheddar and tomato

Strawberries with nutella

Absolutely perfect purple grapes

Sugar snap peas with ranch

Ruffles dipped in ranch

Kraft mac and cheese

Cup O' Noodles

Rondele cheese spread

Kettle Korn

Broccoli, asparagus, peas, even kale

I bought pickles, but they haven't sounded good at home. I'm currently dreaming of a regular Arby's roast beef sandwich. Mexican restaurants with good beans and rice, maybe a chimichanga. And lots of of meat/cheese paninis. Maybe I'll live at Panera for the next month.
A month oughta do it. Maybe 6 weeks if I'm not so lucky.

That's right: 10 weeks down, 30 more to go. :)

What's warming my heart these days

This is a crummy time of year, even if you're trying hard to see the glass half full. Because, dang it, I'm a little tired of rain and clouds by now. As evidenced by the fact that I feel like life is just routine and there is nothing to blog about or take pictures of. In fact, my camera had a total of 6 (SIX!!) pictures on it from the last full month. We're doing plenty of things, but they are inside and the same things we've been doing all winter. So there's the whiny context for this post.

I was thinking about the happy little things that are warming me up right now, while the sun shirks it's responsibility.

Grace telling me, "I love you, Mommy. But best of all, I love to kiss." (huge pucker and lots of kisses on all the parts of my face)

Ellie's 2nd grade concert, where she was so excited to wear a skirt to curtsy. This made perfect sense to me because they were doing square dancing. But she saved the great big giant curtsies for the end when the audience clapped and she was right smack in the middle of the risers in her purple skirt. 2 huge ones, that I only saw the top of head do. But I'm smiling about it all the same!

Grace's independent fashion sense. I'm trying to document more of her outfits. I think all my girls have done this. Lydia says it hurts her eyes and that makes me smile as much as the diva herself. This is Grace, all dressed and ready to go meet her preschool teacher for next year.


Carver is all about sneaking right now. Mostly cute things like, "I sneaked up and brushed my teeth ALL BY MYSELF," he says with a huge grin. Or "Grace sleeping and I sneaked in give her kiss." His clothes don't match right now, either. But he's dressing himself completely on his own, not trashing his closet in the process and that is a happy thing, indeed.

Watching Tangled with the family and Lydia busting a gut, laughing so hard it's contagious. I love that girl and that her sense of humor is just like her dad's.

Lydia played the piano tonight at an Activity Day recognition night. Her first time in front of so many people (that's what happens when I'm the teacher - recitals are small!) and she did great and felt so good about it. Warmed my heart, for sure.

Bike rides with my friend, Sarah. Running in the sunshine from time to time. Reading good books. Strawberries in season again and learning to use the broiler instead of the grill. Phone calls from Derek at lunchtime. Daffodils he picks from our yard that remind me of the sweetness of being engaged in the spring 11 years ago.

There are lots and lots of silver linings lately, but I'm still ready to give up the clouds all together!