Quick Updates, Part Deux

That last post was NOT supposed to publish, but I apparently clicked "Publish" rather than just "Save." Anyhow, let me finish my last post, (apparently I am not computer savvy enough to know how to just edit my last post with the rest of the updates.)

LUKE: The above picture is of Luke and Finn when Luke was a new dad and Finn was a new baby! Luke is still working hard and taking care of the financial part of the Mitchell household, (CA Branch.) He is still an amazing man, an incredible father and a great lookin' husband! He is a little stressed with some unsavory politics at work and the state of the Union as a whole, (he is heavily involved with what is happening in DC and it sometimes incurs wrath on his part.) There is not much else to say about what is going on with him.

LIZ: The above picture is my sister, KK and I during Thanksgiving 2010. Finn was just under a month old so I am new mommy in this picture! Anyhow, I am having fun being home with my two wild boys and taking care of the house. We had a rather scary experience with them last week, (see future post for the full story), but we came out on top and all is well again, Thank the Lord. I have hit an annoying plateau with this weight loss thing. I am still only 16 lbs down and have been for almost a month now. I need to get back in the gym and cut out my precious Mt. Dew as well. It managed to sneak its' way back in, unfortunately. Other than that, I am attempting to catch up on precious sleep, (which I know doesn't help with my weight loss goals), and be a patient mother to a preschooler and a toddler. We are saving and preparing to go to Disneyland next summer, continuing my family's tradition of attending Disneyland when a family member graduates from High School, (in this case, it will be my niece, Brooke. I am still in denial that she is a Senior with a license and a boyfriend.) One of my goals is to be only 20lbs from my goal weight when we go, (so I have an excuse to buy a new wardrobe.) My next goal is to be at my ideal weight before we discuss having another baby. I would be excited to get pregnant when Dietrich is 15 months old, (that's how old Finn was when I got pregnant with D2) and have our third and probably final be the same age gap. However, my body is not healthy at this weight and I don't want to have increased risks of Gestational Diabetes or anything that could hurt the baby. Therefore, we will have to wait until I am at my peak health. Plus, Luke is still going back and forth as to whether he even wants a third and I need him to be 100% sure before we go for three.

I think that is all for now. Keep checking back for more updates that I want to log in here. However, the boys have been asleep for three hours so, by my calculations, I have 2 more hours until Dietrich wakes his one of two times and between 6-8 hours until the boys are up and wreaking havoc! Good night, all! :)

Quick Updates

I will be blogging again tonight after the boys are asleep, I have had a chance to finally shower and my house is shut down for the night. But, since the boys are distracted by Madagascar and my house is clean, I thought I would do my quick updates on the boys, Luke and myself. So, here we go!

Mr. Dietrich, aka Red Rick, aka The Boulder. He is a fearless, wild child with no qualms about wrestling his big brother to the ground and cackling while doing it. He is such the opposite of Finn: he is crazy, happy, loud, animated and curious about everything. He is a fast runner with endless amounts of energy and he just doesn't quit until he crashes, (usually on the floor or in my arms.) He is snuggly and loves kisses and hugs. He loves it when daddy holds him upside down or throws him into the air. He will eat anything and everything, (which is a huge blessing!) He is down to one nap, (something we implemented today, since he has been wanting to stay up later and later with two naps), and loves playing with anything that his big brother is playing with. He also loves to throw everything and actually has quite a good arm for a one year old! At his one year well check, he was 24lbs and 32inches!

My three year old, Captain Finnegan. Well, almost three. He is finally talking to Luke and I! We have been praying, fasting and working with Finn to get him to open up and it is finally happening. Granted, he is still the "silent" type, but every day, he will tell me more and more and express himself. I was worried, but now I see that this is who Finn is becoming. He is cautious, analytical and reminds me of a Mathematician or Engineer. In fact, my dad calls him "The Engineer." He is an incredible builder, loves counting, saying the Alphabet and coloring. He loves his trucks and dinosaurs and quite often falls asleep holding one of his many Semis or T-Rexs', (I quietly remove them after he is asleep, so he doesn't get an uncomfortable surprise when he rolls in his sleep.) He has a temper and definitely has his fathers' passion and drive. He is tall, super thin and would be content to eat French fries and drink milk. Slowly, however, he is opening up to new tastes and has discovered a love of salads of all kinds. He is 37lbs and estimated at 41inches!

I have no new pictures of Luke or myself, so for our updates, we just have a little bold letters for easy reading.

LUKE: My handsome husband of four years, (September 5th!).

Updates!

While the boys are playing, (somewhat roughly so I will be taking frequent blogging pauses to break up the wrestling matches), I thought I would do updates on the dudes and myself! So, here we go! (Oh, break up match #1!)

First, our youngest Mitchell boy, Mr. Dietrich. He is amazing. Our prediction was right when we said he would walk at 10 months; he was walking unassisted and all over the place almost the day he became a 10 month old. He now runs, which is exciting because he is growing, but terrifying now that I have two that can run away from me in two different directions. He loves to spit, clap, laugh, nod, shake his head "no", says "yes", "no", "mama", "dad", "good job" and "nigh nigh." His hair is this incredible deep red color and it just gets richer by the day. He is finally on a set naptime and bedtime schedule, (it took forever with his big brother around, trying to keep him up constantly!) and is a huge eater. He will literally devour everything he sees. He is off formula and just drinks milk now, (we started at 10 1/2 months, just mixing a little with his formula to make sure his tummy could handle straight Vitamin D milk, which it can! Woot!) He hasn't been weighed or measured since his 9 month check up, (and still hasn't been sick, except a small cold!), but we know he went through another growth spurt very recently. I had to get the clothes for the next size up and he was waking to eat every two hours for a few days. Glad that spurt is done! He has eight teeth and is such a laidback, tough little boy, (he has to be tough with Finn as his wild big brother!)

Next is my big, almost three year old, Finnegan Leo. Don't you love this picture? I myself find it hilarious! Anyhow, my firstborn is wild, passionate, curious, determined, fun, beautiful, sweet, and so many other things. He is such a rock star. He loves music, trucks, cars, LeapFrog, playing with Dietrich, wrestling Dietrich, attacking Dietrich, etc. He is a huge help when we going shopping, (99%of the time, anyhow), and loves to give hugs and kisses. Luke is still his Superhero, (I swear, Luke can do NO wrong in that boys' eyes!) and gets so excited when Luke comes home. They are best buddies and Luke and I both hope it stays that way. He talks a lot, but with one stipulation: it's on HIS time and when HE wants to. If you ask him to say something, he won't until you aren't paying attention anymore. After he and I say our bedtime prayers, I will ask him to say "Amen" and he will just smile. Of course, as I am leaving the room, I can hear him whisper, "Amen, mom." It's hilarious, and I know he will get to the point where he will be talking our ear off and we will have to tell him to knock it off! ;)

This is honestly the most recent and the best picture I have of my dear husband, since he is always at work and we rarely see him in the summer. This is the 4th of July, when we took the boys to Whiskeytown Lake. We all had a blast and were so excited to get to spend a fun day with daddy. Luke, aka Dad, aka Babe, is doing great. He is kicking butt at work and has made himself a major asset to his company. He works extremely hard and long hours and his customers love him. He loves being the boys' dad and is so excited for the new camper trailer we were able to save for. We have taken it camping once with my parents and we didn't want to leave. It was so much fun and so much more comfortable than camping with two little boys in a tent. Plus, we had a crazy and long thunderstorm one of the days we were there so we were glad for a warm, dry place to play while we waited it out. Luke really is an incredible person; I am often in awe of his drive and intelligence. He not only is a devilishly handsome man, but he has a huge heart and loves his family, as well as his Heavenly Father and for that, I am so grateful!




I don't take recent pictures of myself, so you are going to have to deal with this little gem. Kristina and I went to Medford to shop for Bachelorette Party accessories and this is my face after seeing some of what they had, (this was for my Bachelorette Party, so this is an oldie!) Anyhow, I am 15lbs down and anxious to be completely rid of this disgusting chub-a-lub. I have a long way to go, but I know I will get there if I keep my determination going. The boys, Luke and the house keep me fairly busy, and I have been trying to accomplish my many projects during my free time, (read: when the boys go to bed.) I am exhausted most days, but 99% of the time, I don't really notice or mind. I am so excited to have found an amazing teenage gal to watch the boys the few times I need a sitter. She has been a lifesaver and has taken a lot of stress of my mind. She loves the boys and the boys absolutely adore her.

Anyhow, I think that is all for now. More to come, since Dietrichs' 1st birthday is in a month and Finns' 3rd is just the month after that! Can't wait! :)

Update for the month of June!

It's been awhile since I have posted, and I wanted to keep up with the growth of the boys, Luke and myself. So, here goes!

We are starting with the youngest today. Our ginger is doing amazing and is a major light in our lives. He just had his 9 month well check, (well a couple weeks ago), and he is 30 inches long and 22 pounds. I looked back at the information I had kept on his big brother and he is the same height and one pound heavier than his older brother was at this age. They are going to be big boys! He is standing, cruising and now tentatively walking. He can take up to 4 steps at a time. We are predicting a full on walker by 10 months, and we are excited! He eats EVERYTHING we give him, and has a huge appetite, (so different from his big brother.) He talks a ton, says "nigh nigh" to Finn when we put Finn to bed and says "mama" and "dada" to the right people. He is officially sleeping in his crib full time, (before, it was only until about midnight and then I put him in bed with Luke and myself.) He waves at everyone he sees, and loves to play peek-a-boo. He has 6 teeth now; they seem to all be coming at once. Luckily, besides his two bottom teeth, he seems to be taking it all in stride. He is a light to all of us and is such a happy, content little man.

My big blonde Finn is a very happy two and a half year old. He loves his trucks, LeapFrog alphabet and number cartoons and wrestling with his dad. He runs to the door, unlocks it and throws the door open whenever Luke comes home and then doesn't leave his side until bedtime. He is the easiest kid in the world to put to bed; when we say "nigh nigh", he grabs his blanket, walks into the bathroom and we brush his teeth. Then, he hops into bed, says prayer, snuggles his Clifford or his Elephant and goes to sleep. Considering how much we fought with him from birth to the time he got his own room, it is such a relief to have such a good sleeper now. He is 36lbs, 40in and has long, curly, shaggy hair, (for the moment.) He is slowly but surely starting to communicate with Luke and I, and is a huge help to both us and Dietrich. He is an amazing big brother, and the best first born a gal could ask for.

Luke, (the one on the far left), is working 75 hour weeks and is exhausted most days. The weather has been 115 degrees most days, (the lowest was about 105), and he is working in attics that get to about 172 degrees. His back and shoulder are feeling much better though. He is looking forward to our yearly camping trip with my side of the family the end of July and getting the backyard completely finished and ready for two very active little boys. He is a very attentive father and an amazing husband. I thank God daily for giving me the honor to be married to such a hard working, loving man! :)

Then, there's the estrogen of the family. (That's an old picture of the family, when it was just Luke, Finn and myself. This is right after we bought our house.) I am 12 lbs down and frustrated that I can't see it yet. Other than that, I am great! I am taking care of the house, boys, bills, cars, Luke and I enjoy every second of it. It's weird to me that I actually do enjoy being a stay at home mom; when I was 20, the last thing I wanted was a husband, kids, house, etc. Now, I would die without each of them. I love that Luke and the boys rely on me; it has always been something that makes me feel good inside and out. When people need me, rely on me and I can help them, I feel on top of the world. I get to feel that every day. Of course, I have days where I want to just sleep for 24 hours and veg, but I know these moments will be gone before I know it and I am trying to cherish them.

In present news, we sold our old Ford Explorer, (yay!), and are on now on the lookout for a camper trailer. We had our bank account hacked and money was spent, but because I check our bank account every day, ( I am psychotic when it comes to our money), I was able to catch it and all is being refunded and repaired. The jerk who stole my information won't be getting anything else from us and won't be getting his online purchases either. We are weathering this heat wave, (with uncommon and crazy humidity), and are loving just being together. We are a happy little family! :)

To the moon and back!

Hello to everyone who reads this, (hey Rach and Sabrina.) ;) Just doing another quick update on the dudes and the lone dudette in this house, (that's me.) Well, let's start with the mister and slowly move our way down to the youngest, shall we?

Luke is in pain. A lot of pain. He is also exhausted because said pain won't abate long enough for him to get any restful sleep. He has been working at least 65 hours the last three weeks, and after nagging him to go to the doctor to see what is up with him, he finally went last week. His shoulder muscles, pectoral muscles, one side of his back and his arm, (all on the right side), are all out of place, knotted up and in a permanent tense position. He has been given mild medication, put on a lighter load at work, (which hasn't happened and probably won't in his line of work), and will be starting physical therapy in the next couple weeks. Other than that, he is doing great! He is a great daddy, a superb hubbs and still wickedly handsome, lol.

                

                                                           Luke with his two brothers                                


Next is the lone woman. I am doing great actually! I haven't burned myself in a month, (seriously I severely burnt myself three times in two months) and I have lost 6 lbs. Not much, but made me happy nonetheless! I try to get to the gym at least three to four days a week for at least an hour; Finn and Dietrich love the gym daycare and I can see them from where I work out so it relieves any anxiety I have about leaving them. I found a website that has you input all your info, (weight, height, age, gender, activity level, etc.) and gives you a healthy and reasonable timeline for you to reach your goal weight. According to it, to lose all the weight I want to in a healthy and responsible way, I will be at my goal weight by August 2014, (that tells you just how much weight I need to lose, huh?) I am 5 lbs lighter though, so even though it is small, I am encouraged that I am on my way. I can't wait to feel comfortable in my own body again.

                                                                   "How you doin'?"

Finn is awesome. And passionate. And fiery. Lol. What else? He can count to 10, and talks more and more every day. He has a temper and is showing a bit of a jealous streak with Dietrich. We are working on him sharing more with Dietrich and how to properly express himself, rather than screaming and whining until he gets what he wants, (which never happens so it is still funny to me that he thinks it will work, lol.) He is definitely a two year old. And, now I am going to brag for a bit. I honestly look at Finn, and am still amazed at how beautiful he really is. That kid has a perfect face, eyes, nose and smile. I am frightened for his teenage years, if he continues on this road to being so gorgeous. Well, I am his mother so maybe it's just my bias talking.

                                                          Look at cutie patootie...
Now, to the baby. Dietrich Miles. My little tomato. He is crawling, cruising the furniture and talking up a storm. I am amazed at how fast he is doing things, but I know it's because he is trying to catch up to his big brother so he can play too! He loves to rough house with Finn, and I let him, well supervised of course. He loves to snuggle, too. Good Lord, does he! At night, he burrows into my chest, gripping my shirt and that is how he falls asleep. I don't mind in the least. He is only this age once and soon he won't have time to sit with me and let me hold him. I love my little bug, and his sweet, laidback nature. What an awesome bubbs he has been! :)

                                                                 D2!

Quick update on the boys

I am just trying to keep track of the all the milestones, and all the important and not so important happenings with the boys and Luke!

Finn loves the outdoors and is an incredible builder. We were becoming a little concerned with his speaking abilities, until we talked to a Speech Therapist and did some research of our own online. They gave us a checklist of things a boy his age should be doing and saying, and he met every single one. He babbles, makes motions and changes his tone when speaking, (even though we aren't sure what he is trying to tell us!), he can say at least 100 words, put 2 words together, and looks directly at the person he is trying to "talk" to. He isn't saying clear, full sentences but the Specialist said to be patient with boys because they tend to talk later than girls. We were relieved to hear all of that, and we are both working with him daily to expand his vocabulary and communicate with us better! His Polands' Syndrome doesn't cause any issues, and we are preparing WAY ahead of time on how to address it when he has questions about why his chest looks different than his brothers', dad or his future friends. He is an analytical thinker who has a lot of passion and loves to rough house with his dad and brother. He is ALL boy, and is an extremely picky eater, which we are slowly working on as well. He is about 37lbs, absolutely solid, and at last measurement was almost 40 inches tall. :)

Dietrich is a master crawler, and can go from one place to another in speedy time. He loves when Finn pays attention to him and he is a major snuggler. He doesn't have a preference when it comes to mommy or daddy; he is happy when either one of us holds and cuddles him. He has two bottom teeth, and so far he loves Squash and is not a fan of Peaches. We are slowly working on introducing more and more food, even though I have a major fear of food allergies. His sleep schedule is a little screwed up lately, but I am working on getting it back to normal. He has taken out his 1/2 hour morning nap and his 1/2 hour evening nap, and is down to just one, three hour afternoon nap which usually begins around 1pm. He still doesn't cry much and smiles at EVERYTHING. He is currently going through another growth spurt and is up to 20lbs and about 28 1/2 inches. He is now using furniture to stand up and can take a couple tentative steps whilst holding on to something. He is very eager to catch up to his big brother! :)

Luke hurt his back working on our increasingly gorgeous backyard and sitting in tiny crawlspaces for 60 hours a week. He was laid up this weekend, but icyhot patches, massage from yours truly and lots of stretching allowed him to return to work this morning. He is working hard on making the backyard beautiful and functional for the boys and myself and it's coming along great! He is extremely helpful to me, and I value and appreciate him more than even he knows!:)

That's all for now! Ta-ta! :)

Our Vacation to the Oregon Coast Aquarium and Visiting Family

(Note: This will sound a little rushed, as I still have unpacking, laundry, dinner and bedtimes to attend to. I apologize in advance for any punctuation or grammatical errors.)

Hello, everyone! When 2013 began, Luke and I talked about taking a much needed vacation to somewhere Finn would love and remember, and a place where Dietrich would be visually stimulated. When Luke and I were young, we both went to the Oregon Coast Aquarium in Newport, OR. Since we were small, it was a huge and fascinating land that we both remembered fondly as adults. Upon arriving and entering the place, we were a little disappointed to see how small it actually is. However, Finn loved the Shark tunnels, the Otters, and the very playful Seals and Sea Lions.

We also saw my parents, my sisters, Luke's Grandma Ann, his Granny and his Aunt Patti and Uncle Rick. My eldest sister, Lydia, came down with a strep skin infection in her leg and was hospitalized the day we arrived in Klamath, on an overnight stop before heading to Roseburg and then Newport the next day. I was able to see her and make sure she was well. While in Newport, we stayed in a beautiful, accommodating and relaxing hotel with an indoor pool. Finn is a water baby and swam four times during our three day stay. I think he enjoyed the pool more than the Aquarium! I thought Dietrich would enjoy the pool because he loves splashing in the tub, but the combination of loud, echoing kids and a large body of water terrified him the first time. I will never forget how fast he crawled up Luke's body until he was hanging onto Luke's head and gripping his hair with a deathlike grip. The second time, he was a little more willing to explore the water and didn't look so terrified.  He stayed up in the room with Luke while Finn and I went swimming the other two times though. They had fun bouncing on the beds, and crawling and exploring the room.

My sister, Kristina, lives in Portland and was able to drive down the day we went to the Aquarium and spent the whole day with us eating amazing food, seeing the fishes and swimming in the pool. Finn was attached to her hip and bawled his eyes out when she left, (she did, too. She told me later. LOL)

All in all, we drove a total of 18 hours and I can proudly say that, though we had a few bumps, the boys did amazing. I am proud of how they handled the car rides, the constant stopping and sleeping in unfamiliar places. Finn slept all the way through the night every night, (which, if you know Finn, is a feat when he is not in his own big boy car bed.) Dietrich slept like a champ in the play pen and in mommy's arms. They were awesome! Luke and I got to reconnect a little, without the distraction of daily life, work, and our other obligations. Anyhow, I am now going to quickly post some pictures from our trip, courtesy of Kristina and Aunt Patti. They are all of the boys' and nothing else, of course. Enjoy! :)

Dietrich is always happy!

Goo!

"I do NOT look like an old man, Aunt KK!"

I love my tomato!

He thinks KK is hilarious.

"I love you too, Auntie."

Smiling for his Great Aunt Patti!

"Sup?"

One of my new favorite pictures!

Chilling in the stroller

I am unamused...

Hiiiiii!!!!!!

Being camera shy...

"Can we please just leave now?"

I love my boys! :)

Say what?

He loves his dinosaurs!

Finn snuggling his Aunt KK in the hotel room!