Art with a Heart

Momma Post: I hate to admit it, but the past five weeks have been a little overwhelming at times. Frequently I'm tired and often glued to the couch breastfeeding Willa, which makes it difficult keeping up with an active toddler. I'm completely guilty of relying on the television to preoccupy Ruby while I'm tending to her sister. I do justify my actions by telling myself that we only allow her to watch PBS KIDS Sprout programming (Sesame Street, Teletubbies and her favorites, Caillou and Make Way for Noddy). Due to Ruby's desire to watch her favorite shows repeatedly, both Matt and I have reluctantly memorized several Noddy episodes (and swear that Noddy has a "thing" for Tessie Bear). This weekend I had a breaking point and pulled out my dry erase board pens from my former life as a consultant, stripped Ruby and gave her full permission to get as messy as she wished without me wincing too much. She obviously needs her parents to get her a smock and art supplies for Christmas. The pictures of Willa depict her critiquing Ruby's work.

Fridays with GG

Momma Post: Friday mornings are reserved for quality time with "GG" otherwise known as Great Grandma Alice. Ruby loves GG's and knows when we're driving east on Sandy Boulevard that we're going to GG's. Ruby gets to run around and act like she owns the place. She fills up on Ritz crackers and mini apple juices (don't we all). And, she plays with blocks, dice, polished rocks and other trinkets. This has been Matt and Ruby's routine for the past18 months and it has been nice to join in on the fun with Willa. Despite all the good times Ruby has her occasional tantrum which you can see in the last picture.

The Scary Wonder of Christmas

Daddy Post: Another year, another attempt to convince Ruby that Santa is not to be confused with Satan. As the pictures indicate we'll have to give it another shot next year. The Meier & Frank "Santa Land" has been quasi reborn under the Macy's brand. While the train that used to circle "Santa Land" (and which Marty & I both rode) remains as a static monument to the past it just isn't the same. This past Sunday we made our annual visit to Zoo lights with our good friends Tommy, Kristen, Karen, and Alison Pace. A little snow made our trip on the train a memorable one and the lights kept Ruby entertained for the time we were there.

Willa has been a champ. She's becoming more animated each day and has fallen into a nice rhythm with her sleeping schedule. The girls have been a handful, but we value each moment and miss them as soon as they're out of sight. We're looking forward to our trip to Medford for the Holidays so that we can share the "joy" with the rest of the family.

November Notes

Momma Post: The past few days have been quiet (minus the hammering on the remodel across the street) and rainy. Willa has become more animated with occasional smiles and following sounds with her eyes. In the mornings, I've been treated to the periodic coo. The evenings tend to contain her fussy time of the day. Although, I must say her fussiness is totally manageable. Swaddling, rocking and the pacifier all seem to do the trick. One notable difference with Willa is that she can projectile vomit with an Olympic qualifying score, usually once or twice a day (I'd be worried if more often). At Book Club this Monday, my friend Meg had her gray sweater drenched by my cutie pie - a cringe worthy moment. Willa has begun a phase where she needs to be held constantly or I hormonally cannot handle her crying. In some ways it's a good thing because that's kind of what these first few weeks should entail. At the same time I was getting used to having 90 minutes in both the morning and afternoon to do chores/organizing. Now I'm all about wearing the sling and hoping that my movement will lull her to sleep.

Ruby's also begun a new phase. She's doing a lot more talking and is very specific on her demands, which we're attempting to soften into requests by the use of please and NOT waving a bowl or cup in our face type behavior. Ruby is using three word sentences, like "Momma shoes on", "baby chair sleep" (meaning put down the baby), and "no, no, no, Ruby's...fill in the blank". Obviously, we're working on possessives and prepositions, along with expanded vocabulary. Ruby is beginning to identify colors, pointing out greens, pinks and reds. Ruby's doing okay with the addition of Willa. This past week reality has set in and she's become more jealous if Matt's holding Willa or if I'm breastfeeding and cannot respond to one of Ruby's needs immediately. We've had a few tantrums...usually in the dinner/bath time portion of the day. Nighttime, Ruby has woken up "hungry" partially because she's been refusing her dinner and because I also think she receives undivided attention at 3:00am in the morning. Matt and I are doing our best to approach this new tactic as a team. A bittersweet note is that Ruby is very kissy and full of hugs. When I'm preoccupied she'll get my attention by saying "hi, hi, hi" in a soft voice...it kind of tugs at the old heart-strings. It's hard giving your eldest as much time and attention as both of us our used to...not an easy transition. Because of my time with Willa, I've been missing Ruby and am anxious to have some one-on-one time with her this weekend. On Monday, I tried pig tales with her hair for the first time. She aged into a little girl before my eyes.

Many Thanks to Give

Momma Post: Thanksgiving has come and went quickly this year and I'm still craving another piece of pumpkin pie. Great-Grandma Alice hosted a tasty dinner at Steamers', a Portland restaurant that always reminds us of Great-Grandpa Andy (STEA-MERSsss ...you had to be there). The Beebe family was welcomed in by the Anderson clan. Also, joining us were Great-Aunt Julia, Frank and Jan and the Nelson Family from Spokane. Ruby was shy at first, but then was enthralled with her cousins Anna and Robyn, who showed both Ruby and cousin Holden the ropes of interactive play. I found the meal relaxing, due to a glass of white wine and the family passing around a sleeping Willa. Our party did become a little rowdy, specifically, running circles around the banquet room (the under age of 5 portion that is) and we were asked to quiet down by the servers, as diners were being disturbed on the floor below us. We left a bit sheepish, but satisfied. The picture of Willa sleeping on my chest sums up the remainder of the evening.


The following night the melee continued at GG's full house. More running in circles and other acts of senseless fun. Lacking left overs from a home-cooked Thanksgiving meal Alice cooked up a great ham.

On the homefront things are going well with managing both Willa and Ruby. We're still adjusting to how not to go insane when watching both kids simultaneously while alone. I have no idea how single parents do it. Ruby is still somewhat possessive of Willa as HER sister. We have been trying to suggest that OURS is a better word rather than MINE which has been her favorite as of late (ie, my daddy, my momma).

Bathtime Baby

Momma Post: With Willa's remaining umbilical cord falling off on Monday, we were given the green light by a Kaiser nurse to finally bathe her. Willa has a lot of dry skin. More so than Ruby did. This may be partially because Willa was several days past her due date. I've been anxious to start my mother cat behavior of grooming my young. So today I designated as bath day. Since Joan and I first bathed Ruby, I waited until Matt came home for lunch today, so he could have the honor. Willa seemed a bit surprised. Then was moderately vocal on the experience.

On Monday we had an appointment with the lactation consultant/nurse at Kaiser. Willa now weighs 8 lbs. 6 oz. and her bilirubin level (what causes Jaundice) is at zero percent.

Rock Baby

Momma Post: Willa's now a week old and we're settling in nicely. It is definitely much easier as second time parents. Breastfeeding isn't as stressful. There are no unrealistic expectations as far as sleeping through the night. If anything, we're slowly learning how to engage in "man-to-man" defense". Last night both girls were fussy at bedtime, so Matt and I were exchanging tactics and swapping girls for ultimately a successful night of sleep. Although, Ruby did score an overtime victory at 9:30pm, which involved a bowl of cereal and watching Dad combat fellow video gamers (sometimes Mom's just have to turn a blind eye to maintain the peace).

Ruby has surprised us all and how wonderful a big sister she is. We were hoping the transition would be a relatively smooth one. Several dollies were introduced throughout my pregnancy. And, a co-worker of mine gave us the best big sister book. If anything, Ruby is a little possessive of Willa and we are now trying to introduce the idea that Willa is "our" baby, rather than just Ruby's sister/baby. Ruby's favorite saying of the moment is "rock baby", meaning she would like to hold her sister - very endearing.

We've had several visits from friends and family, which is a reminder on how lucky we are to be surrounded by such thoughtful loving people. Grandma Joan was a life saver. She flew out from Washington D.C. on October 27th and stayed until November 10th. Joan and Ruby further bonded, alternating between our house and GG's (Great-Grandma Alice's). I cried while saying good bye to Joan, but now have a sweet memory of Joan's last evening and all of us watching the beginning of The Wizard of Oz. I've never seen Ruby so enthralled, while the rest of us were reciting lines and singing along.

The Morning After

Daddy Post: Just a few pictures from this morning. It's amazing how quickly they start changing.

Willa's Big Day Out

Daddy Post: We're currently at St. Vincent's stuck in a room that can't be larger than the dorm room I had at UO, but such an inconvenience is easily missed after the prolonged arrival of our little Willa "Billie" Catherine. She arrived yesterday at 6:33 AM weighing in at 8 lbs. 3 oz. and measuring at 20.5". Marty is doing exceptionally well and has been routinely visited by numerous staff to congratulate her on her conquest. This is notable considering that several of these visits are by those who aren't even involved with taking care of us. Evidently, a VBAC (vaginal birth after cesarean) of 28 hours of labor that included 4+ hours of actual pushing and manually rotating a sunnyside up baby achieves legendary status around here. Willa's a champ and has been a real team player. Ruby has instantly assumed the big sister role and is already eager to show Willa the ropes. We're hoping to be out of here by tomorrow morning and are excited to share our new addition with you all.

Halloween Terror

Daddy Post: I'll keep this short since I'm in the middle of making several posts following Willa's birth. In short, Ruby dressed as a vicious spider for Halloween and successfully pillaged the whole block for candy that was promptly hidden and eaten by her parents. Rather than saying "Trick or Treat!" she would instead say, "Candy?"

Monster March

Momma Post: Sellwood Neighborhood's Monster March was this past Sunday. The Maitland's hosted our UO college friends a parade launching pad and a post event clam chowder feed. The parade officially began at Llewellyn Elementary School and made a 3/4 mile rectangle through the West Moreland commercial district. Before we joined the parade, we ran into our friends Tony, Carrie and their son Colin, who was dressed as a little bear pictured above. Local businesses handed out treats to participating children and dogs (see dog in costume example below). I couldn't tell if the parade was more for the parents or the kids, but fun was definitely had by all. Ruby took in all the Portland charm with quiet amazement.

Nothing new to report on my front (literally). Kaiser had my ultrasound dated "due date" for last Saturday, October 27th. It is now the 30th and no signs or symptoms of pending labor. I feel fine with a moderate to good energy level. Yes, I'm having Braxton Hicks (have been for a few months now), but they're not increasing in number or intensity. I feel like I've had bursts of extreme nesting behavior and the occasional lower back pain, but no real pattern. No weird digestive issues, no loss of mucus plug, just completely bored with being pregnant. In the last 24 hours, I've eaten spicy Thai food. Matt and I went for a 3.5 mile walk around the Eastbank Esplanade this morning, and I'll be attending my prenatal water aerobics class this evening thanks to Ruby's Grandma Joan. Honestly, I feel like I should be at work today, rather than moping around the house, procrastinating on a couple of chores/errands. Talked to my doula Susan today and she encouraged acupuncture. We have a doctor's appointment tomorrow on Halloween, so hopefully we'll have more of a game plan.