Lunch with Charlotte

I know, I know! I'm never on here anymore. But my camera and my laptop stopped communicating months ago and I can't overcome it. But Charlotte broke the lens on my camera today so maybe that will be fixed soon as I buy a new camera this week.

I wanted to remember lunch today... Charlotte and I are sitting at opposite ends of the table with big bowls of vegetable soup. I pulled my laptop down to catch up on some blog reading while I ate. Charlotte disappeared and then came back with her play laptop. Just a little alphabet practice over a bowl of soup.

Where the last couple of months went

I love the start of new years and as usual I was very hopeful when 2013 rolled around. I had my new goals, which I kept very simple this year, and I was ready to get stuff done (and blog)! 

And then life took a turn for the worst! On the very day that I picked up my new couch and shelves for the living room makeover, Madoc had the flu. Two days later and everyone was sick but Micah. He hung in there and didn't get sick until day five.

This was absolutely the worst illness that Madoc and Charlotte have ever had. And it was pretty bad for Neil and I too. Luckily the girls weren't awful and Micah was only mildly sick. I've never been so thankful for shared antibodies and breastfeeding. 

It started out horribly with Madoc having seizures from temps topping 106. He had 6 seizures in all over a 24 hour period. It wasn't until after the third one that we even realized that they really were seizures. I have never seen anything so crazy, creepy, scary, bizarre as Madoc having a seizure and then the confusion that sets in afterwards.Luckily they stopped and we just had to contend with regular old being sick.

Except it wasn't regular being sick - it was all the pathogens in the world trying to kill our entire family. There was bronchitis, sinus infections, ear infections, coughing, sore throat, chest pain, headache, fever, fatigue, hot flashes, chills...  Everything short of pneumonia. It was so bad that on day NINE I was still laying on the couch bundled up suffering from the effects of fever. I think it's the only time in my life that I have had all four of my children voluntarily asleep at the same time in the middle of the day. They would all curl up on the couch with blankets and pillows and cups to watch a movie. And the next thing I'd know, Madoc would be out cold. Charlotte even curled up one day all on her own and went to sleep right in the middle of the family room. I don't think that will ever happen again.And it's been years since Sadie took a nap and yet she took one everyday. It was really crazy just how long this flu was and how you didn't slowly start to feel better - in a lot of ways it just got worse!

If he's mad, Micah now flips over in his chairs. He just won't stop rolling! And that doesn't work too well in a swing.

It was also really hard because I had trouble feeding Micah. Luckily I kept at it for the first week so he didn't get so sick but once he was sick it got to the point that I was only nursing him once a day, first thing in the morning. I would get everyone settled and then sit and pump in my fever stupor. He had to learn to take a bottle. So hard!

But then my mom came out after a week to help us. The kids went back to school the day after she got here but there were still enough germs in the house to make her deathly ill. Poor Mom! But if she hadn't come then I am convinced that we would have had to give up breastfeeding and Micah would be entirely on bottles.

Charlotte really likes salad. At this particular meal she had at least two helpings and that may have been all she ate that night.

Once we got better we started trying to put our life back together. Oh, the mess in my house! I am in the middle of furnishing/decorating our living room for the first time and the weekend we all got sick we had acquired a couch, four bookshelves, and two chairs. The front room was a maze! Then there were dirty bathrooms, floors, laundry... With my mom here we managed to keep the house from getting completely disgusting but then she left! So I was hard at work picking up the pieces when we got word of my grandfather and that took up most of February. 2013 really has not been kind!

What she does when she cries at the door but no one will let her out.

But some nice-ish things happened this year. We finally moved Charlotte to her trundle bed because Micah was rolling so much that the cradle was ridiculously too small. She didn't seem to mind the new bed. It wasn't much different for us since she got out of bed and cried at the door whether in her crib or the trundle. She does make a lot of noise some nights and will even get up into Sadie's bed to harass her so Sadie's been sleeping in Madoc's top bunk. I think in another month I'm going to have her move back in.

Micah, in a rare picture. I don't think this one looks a lot like him in real life.

The girls before bed one night. Sadie was reading in her bed (which she wasn't actually sleeping in) and Charlotte climbed up and joined her.

Just another proof that I really do love Micah. I love his round face.

Charlotte feeding the bird

So exciting, right?

Grandpa's Funeral

In February my grandfather passed away and we traveled to Indiana for the funeral. It's sad that he's gone but it's also ok that he's gone. He's where he's supposed to be and I'm happy about that. I'm constantly amazed at how much I know about the atonement and plan of salvation from dealing with my brother's death three years ago. It has made my grandpa's death much easier to deal with.

What really bummed me was the timing. I had plans to write his history this coming July. He stopped working a few months ago, was diagnosed with cancer towards the end of the year, met with the oncologist in January, and then died the day my mother picked up the reports telling what kind of cancer it was in February. So darn fast! When my dad determined that Grandpa wouldn't make it to the summer, Neil and I decided I would fly out with Micah and write his history before it was too late. I had my plane tickets on my computer screen, waiting to be purchased, when my mom called saying it was too late and not to come. Oh I was sad about that! Then we started the waiting game. Every time the phone rang I thought it was my mom calling to say he had died. But his heart was strong and his lungs were clear and he just kept hanging in there! He finally passed away about a week later. Sadie actually called my mom about 30 seconds after he left and my mom (and Aunt Camille) was there with him. That little girl must have been very in tune! I think we must have been the first ones outside of the house to know because of her.

We had two very painful car trips but the trip was still very enjoyable. We loved driving through St. Louis and seeing all the places we love. My kids got to see more snow falling but they never did get to play in it. But I think getting spoiled by Grandma and Grandpa was a good consolation for no snow.

 My mom has a bird named Piper. Charlotte was in love. Here she is feeding her treats. Micah also liked to stare at the bird and wouldn't pay attention to much else in the kitchen.

 Here we are at my Grandma's house. We always go visit when we're in town. Charlotte was very, very sick this day and that's why she looks a little out of it. In fact, she and Madoc were sick before we left. Madoc just had ear infections but Charlotte had a little virus that with travelling turned into a BIG virus that she shared with Micah. We discovered he had fever during the viewing. My poor little babies were miserable. When Charlotte would wake up in the night around 4 am my dad would just pull her into bed with him. They both liked it. And one morning after a very long night my mom came and took Micah to give him a bottle and rock him in her room so I could sleep. Oh how I needed sleep that whole trip! With both babies not feeling well, the trip home was not much fun. But I don't know what could have made it fun so oh well.

 I don't have good pictures of the funeral because my mom had my camera. At least I'm using that as my excuse. Really I just don't take pictures anymore... But here are the four February girls - four cousins all born  in February 1982. We're in order, youngest to oldest.

 My grandma and grandpa had 13 kids. It's hard to see this far away but they're all lined up in order there on the left. My dad, John, is the fifth. During the funeral, each of the thirteen families was represented in some way except ours. That's because my dad was the one who took care of Grandpa during his fight with cancer. He pretty much lived there that last week. I'm so glad that he was the one there looking after Grandma and Grandpa. Nobody could have done a better job.

And it's an awful picture but I was determined to get a picture of everyone at my mom's house. Never mind that it was late after church on Sunday, everyone's in pajamas, and we're five minutes away from getting in the car to drive home for thirty hours. Micah was really tired and screaming his head off.

Micah's new skill

I took this a few days ago. I'm pretty sure the grandmas will like it even if it is a little boring.

A few pictures from the last few days

I don't take many pictures anymore. I'm just too busy and when we're having fun I don't want to interrupt that time to get up and go grab the camera. My kids won't be little forever and we're just trying to enjoy it. But at the same time Micah is going to believe he wasn't loved because there aren't as many pictures of him as a baby so I'm trying to repent.

 Micah sits really well now. He'll be six months old in two days! I

 Tinker Toys litter every inch of my house thanks to Madoc building bows and arrows.

 I tried to get a smile but to no avail...

 But the tags on the new pillows were interesting.

Also no smile for Charlotte but look at her cute little ponytail!

 The kids are out of school for rodeo days. A game of rodeo seemed appropriate I guess. They're riding a couch cushion horse. Can you see Sadie's reins?

 Sadie in her pioneering attire.

Be careful what you ask for...

We are traveling to Indiana this week for a funeral and my kids really wanted to have snow to play in so I told them to start praying for it. Apparently they neglected to specify where they wanted snow as we got quite the snowfall here this afternoon in the desert! Too bad the ground's too warm for it to stick.