Wavy’s Monthly Update: Part 2

You may have noticed we didn’t manage a photoshoot for Wavy’s eight month day post last week, but we’re here now! I figured I’d pair it with a post about her recent doctors appointment. That way, you’re getting another “monthly update” type of post with official pictures 🙂 Hope that counts!

*****

I took Waverly to the doctor last week with a few little concerns, and as usual, we were welcomed SO warmly and left feeling more confident, and most importantly, knowing that Wavy is healthy and well. 

We were called back a little late, but the girl who called us back was the same as always, and was so enamoured with Wavy. Wavy was equally as happy to see her, until we had to get her weighed. She made a big scene of it, crying big crocodile tears, and then recovering immediately upon me picking her up. She even gave another staff member a scrunchy, silly smile amidst her tears. We all agreed that, if we had to be stripped down naked and weighed in front of strangers, we’d cry, too. While she and I were still in the back, Dr. Guselle happened by! She worked a smile out of Wavy and commented on all her teeth and how beautiful she was. She actually had another patient with her, who she eagerly introduced to Waverly, and we all had a discussion about her hair and the hopes of it curling once again. It just felt like a circle of friends. Was SO nice. Dr. Guselle commented that she didn’t think she was seeing us that day, and I told her we were seeing Dr. Khatra. When I said his name out loud, he answered from just around the corner, lol! I had no idea he was so close by. The gang was officially all there! 

Funny how it feels homey at our doctors office. We’re so fortunate.

We were brought back to an exam room where Wavy was measured for height, which she also cried through. But she calmed easily, and our doctors arrived shortly thereafter. 

Dr. Khatra had a med student with him today, so I dealt with someone new, but with someone familiar still in the room. I actually really don’t mind that. While I spoke to the med student and answered his questions, Wavy’s doctor smiled at her and teased her and worked smiles out of her. And then, when I would speak to Dr. Khatra rather, the student would play with Waverly. She was constantly entertained, and the doctors would “awww” all over her. Anytime she made a sound or smiled, the appointment stopped for a brief moment so everyone could swoon the appropriate amount, lol! It was pretty adorable. She had a captive audience and she knew it. 

We mostly talked about Wavy’s eating and drinking, or lack there of. She loves solid food, so we give her little tastes often. Yet she’s drinking WAY less. WAAAY less. Significantly smaller bottles. With her sleeping through the night, you’d think she’d up her intake per bottle, or have another feeding, but you’d be wrong. She hasn’t. I haven’t known whether to pull back completely on solids, or just be more mindful of the solids she’s eating. I didn’t know whether I should be waking her to get more formula into her, or trusting her to know what she needs. With her lessening her milk intake, she’s pooping harder, and its really upsetting her, and in turn, me. It was time for answers. So, I asked. 

From her quick exam (which she cried through) and her weight check, we all agreed that she was nice and healthy, and that I should continue to let her lead the way, while being more mindful of what she eats, maybe mixing milk or water into more things. We came up with some ways to get extra fibre into her, and I was told to give her water more. I’ve never known when is a good time to introduce water on its own, and apparently its fine anytime after solid foods start. So we’ll kick that off soon 🙂 

Waverly now weighs 19 lbs 3 oz, and is 28” tall! Her growth chart looks great, and I can relax my worries a little. 

My favourite thing about these appointments is how loved I feel my baby girl is. We are made to feel like we’re the only people there, every single time. Now I know that it could ALL be lip service, and maybe they’re all so warm and sweet to all the families! If thats true, that is AMAZING, and I’m SO thrilled to have wound up in such a good office for my family. When the medical student was examining a tearful Wavy, I was trying to offer her a toy, and Dr. Khatra was holding her other hand, trying to comfort her. No one stands back. They’re involved and warm to my family. I don’t know how many times combined it was said how sweet she is, but it was a LOT. Someone would say she was pretty, and someone else would comment on how little she fussed and how relaxed she was. And she sleeps. AND she smiles at everyone! The list seemed to go on, and I find that to be a pretty wonderful quality in a doctors office. We are not made to feel like patient number whatever. We’re our family, and we’re treated like we’re in their family. Feels pretty good to me. 

Any of those people would be welcome in my home any day. I’m SO grateful.

*****

Also VERY grateful to have these beautiful photoshoots of Waverly, month after month 💜 How fortunate we are!

Sundays are Hard Sometimes

Man, if every Sunday could be a “Sunday Funday” situation…

Last night was a difficult one around here, and Brady and discussed the idea of just skipping church to make things easier. We eventually settled on going after all, because not only is a habit we want to get better at, but it would also break the day up a bit for everyone. Also, Rowan is finally old enough to join his older siblings at childrens church, which was was STOKED about. It was a good choice to go.

We got up early and got everyone dressed and ready to go. The kids were a pretty adorable bunch. The older three dressed themselves in their picks, and I’d say they did a pretty great job. Sollys not so bad himself!

Wavy got dolled up a bit extra today, with cute little shoes and a hairband.

Look at her eyes!!!

Church went pretty well. Wavy made strange, which isn’t her usual, but was good for the sake of snuggles. Brady and I were chatting in the foyer for a good while before we realized our kids were missing. All four of them (minus Waverly, of course) had made their way to our usual bench and were sitting, waiting patiently. SUCH good kids.

Ro had his arm around Laela for a while. He is so sweet.

Partway through the service, the three oldest left for children church, and Solly had a big cry. Poor dude still has some time to wait before its his turn.

By the end of the service, I was walking laps in the back with a tired little baby girl on my shoulder, as tends to happen. Sunday mornings aren’t easy, but its so good for us to go, and I’m happy we’re doing better at getting to church.

Another One

Yesterday was another one of those days where we split the group up. Brady took the little boys outside/in his work van while he finished up his stereo installation. When the big kids got home from school, they put their backpacks in the entrance and opted to stay out with them. I, on the other hand, hung out inside with Wavy. She tends to wake up the moment everyone else leaves and I plan to take a rest. She’s lucky I have NO issue with playing with her all day every day!

We hung out and listened to music. She played, I did some writing, etc. It was pretty chill. Meanwhile, outside, Brady got his stereo finished! Solly was less than enthused.

But the kids had fun being outside again. How we’ve waited for this weather!!

Eventually, everyone came inside, homework was done, supper was eaten, and bedtime happened.

It wound up to be a pretty difficult evening for me, but I choose to remember the happy parts! Look at the sweet little kids in these pictures! Difficult days happen to everyone. I’m not ungrateful. I wouldn’t trade my life for anything. I love it so much. Thank you Lord!

Dreaming of Warmer Days

Like the rest of the world (or the rest of Saskatchewan, anyway) I’m very much anticipating warmer weather. I think even those who love winter (Brady) are fed up with the level of freezing we’ve experienced in thus far in 2019. The last coupe of days being within a reasonable temperature have me itching for the outdoors.

I can’t wait to pack up all our winter jackets, snow pants, and aaaaall the toques and mitts that litter our entrance.

I can’t wait to open the windows!

I can’t wait to wash that van without worrying that the doors will freeze shut.

I can’t wait to wear the cute shorts I wore all last summer, and get the kids into shorts and tshirts, too. And dresses! And sandals!

I can’t wait to have Brady’s new BBQ set up so we can grill everything, all the time. (If you remember, he got a brand new BBQ for fathers day, and then a hail storm destroyed it quickly thereafter. He had it replaced in the fall, but never set the new one up. That’ll happen in spring!)

I can’t wait to go for walks and play at the playground in the evenings.

I can’t wait for iced coffee!! The coffee we made for Wavy’s party might’ve been too strong for some, but we loved it and continued to brew it by the bucket all summer! Mmmmm!

I can’t wait for the kids to play with the water in the little pool on the deck. And for Wavy to be out there, too, likely chewing on a sand shovel and laughing at her siblings.

I can’t wait for outdoor church and outdoor town celebrations.

I’m excited to go back to Waskesiu.

I’m excited to be less cold!!

However…

for now, hiding inside in fleece jammies will have to do. There could really be much worse things that this.

For now, we soak in the sweatpants, comfort food, skating, snow hills, and hot drinks. For now… just now, though. Not for too much longer. Then the claws will come out…

Some Small Changes of Plans

Yesterday, we were going to begin priming our basement. However, Brady has had a stereo for his van waiting to be installed since Christmas. He opted to do that rather, since the weather was a bit nicer yesterday. So our plan was to prime a bit the next day. Yesterday, I called our doctors office for an appointment for Waverly. I asked for anytime in the next week or two, and they said “How about tomorrow morning?” So that became this mornings plan. As I type this now, I can hear Brady stirring our primer in the basement 🙂 So its finally happening!

Once the big kids were out the door to school this morning, we got ourselves looking like humans before heading out to Wavy’s appointment. The boys were stoked for the outing, and Wavy was chipper and happy, too. I’ll share all about the actual appointment in a few days, but all went well. We got in a little late, but that was fine. It gave Brady time to go run an errand with the boys.

They went together and switched out our wifi router for a new one. Here’s hoping it improves our signal because our internet has suuuucked worse than usual for the last few months, and we are over it. Then they waited in the van while we were in our appointment. At one point, the doctors ducked out for a second and I texted Brady that I was almost done. He and the boys drove to pick up coffee.

Wavy and I finished up at the doctors and met the boys in the van. I always feel SO uplifted coming out of there! But off we went to the next place. We stopped by Home Depot for a few small parts that we need to install our laundry sink, as well as a new cordless nailer for Brady. His died the other day at work and the estimate to fix it was maybe $20 less than the cost of a brand new one. While Brady was shopping, I fed the boys some lunch I had brought along. They waited patiently for Brady to come back, and once he had, we began heading home. We picked up his broken nailer from the repair place along the way, and made it home by nap time! It was pretty perfect!

The only one who slept on the drive home was Waverly, so she stayed up for a little bit still, but was sleepy and fussy before 2:00 and went down for a nap.

The house is quiet now, save for my clicking keys. The basement is quiet, too, but I got this picture texted to me…

Primiiiiiiing!!

My kids will be home in about an hour, and I want to write out the details of Wavy’s appointment so I don’t forget the important stuff when I post about it. So, excuse me while I do that. And tonight is music practice, and its a JUST FOR FUN one!! I’m so stoked!! Would anyone come listen if he hypothetically played a coffee house gig?? 🤔

We’ll talk tomorrow, as usual!

Basement Update: Taping

I’ve been resisting posting basement updates for a few reasons.

Reason number one. My blog is far from a “home reno DIY” type of blog, so I assume my usual demographic of readers isn’t as interested. Sub reason. I don’t know enough of the technical details to actually communicate anything completely accurately. But I try!

Reason number two. Self control. I’m trying to only post when something significant happens, or something even insignificant is finished and feels worth mentioning.

My last update was about two weeks ago, and it was when Brady finished boarding! That felt like such a huge accomplishment! We spent the next few days fussing around with some changes in electrical. Brady added an entrance light where we wanted one since we built!

We realized there wasn’t going to be a light here just a little too late in the game, and were told they could put one in at that stage, but it would set us back about $500. Doing it this way, it took about an hour and maybe $15. Still needs a real fixture, but we’re stoked! Woot! (Yes, our entrance still has Christmas lights. Because it DARK in there! We’ll probably take them down now 😜)

Brady also gave me a light in our storage area under the stairs, which I really really wanted!!

Don’t judge our mess, please! Lol! Thats ALL our kids clothes that don’t fit anyone right now, as well as the boxes that hold some of our winter decor. Also, fun fact. The playpen is actually where our laundry chute empties! I foolishly thought an average sized laundry hamper would do the job. I was mistaken. So, the playpen that is no longer safe for children will have to work!

Besides these electrical tweaks, we filled a couple of days with some outings and some illness as well.

February 28th brought the tapers!! YESSSSS! They came and went over the course of five-ish days. They were quiet and respectful, and were super polite to our kids when they did have to duck upstairs for one reason or another. Every time the company owner came up the stairs, Solly raced over, yelling “HI DARREN HI!” and he always greeted him back. They had an AMAZING system to keep the dust under control, so we have virtually NO noticeable dust upstairs! (No new dust anyway!) Most importantly, they have done an AMAZING job taping our basement walls!! They even repaired some of our mistakes, and mistakes left by the original builder. They covered it ALL! I know you can’t run your hands along the seams yourselves, but you’re just going to have to trust me. Smooth like butter. And its all so tidy!

We spoke about the next part of our basement project, and made rough plans to touch up any hypothetical imperfections we might find. The beauty of working with local people!

It would be foolish of me not to recommend this company to you, my friends! You guys can trust that I wouldn’t recommend someone I wasn’t totally happy with (Remember the siding guys? 🙄) Kings Forest Construction has been a pleasure to have in our home, and we are THRILLED with our results! I anticipate we’ll be back in touch with them in the future for more work that needs doing, and you should be, too!

Priming is next! We’ll probably prime the laundry area as soon as possible (as in, today) so I can actually do laundry again. Also, the sooner those walls are ready, the sooner we can install the new laundry sink!!!

*cue Hailey’s derpy dance* I’ve been waiting for a laundry sink since we moved in, and its finally happening!!!!

Its finally ALL happening!!! Thank you, Lord!

Strawberry Wavy Forever

I don’t know what it is about this new sleeper but MAN Waverly is just the cutest thing in it! So this post is solely dedicated to Wavy wearing her new strawberry sleeper yesterday. Just pictures of baby girl, looking cute. Thats it.

I bit the bullet the other day and brushed Wavy’s hair to the side after a bath, and gave her a part. While I wish her curls were out in full force, she looks SO pretty!!

Vogue

I feel like they’ll take virtually this exact picture with this exact pose when they’re older.

Supper got pretty emotional…

She was SO excited to eat some rice and mushroom sauce, and bit her lip in the process of inhaling her food. A cucumber cooled her right off, though.

She got SO much food on this beautiful little sleeper, so I soaked it with some other dirty clothes and she finished off the day in her bday suit!

She was pretty comfortable with that idea. As was I, because 1. naked babies are so soft and squishy, and 2. it helped her stay awake until bedtime! Woot!

SUCH a cute strawberry day over here. 🍓 She’s the sweetest little thing.

Nice jammies, Wavy girl.

An Oversight with the Kitchen Tidying…

I’m feeling SO productive in the tidying and reorganizing of my kitchen! The big messy drawers are getting WAY cleaner and it all makes so much more sense! I think the pantry is DONE for the moment, which feels awesome. I was able to combine a few drawers, throw a TON away, and just feel cleansed! I still haven’t jumped on the konmari thing, though I plan to give it a watch soon enough. But for now, the current plan isn’t minimalism, but better organization. For instance, I have a drawer for all the big utensils. Serving spoons, scrapers, lifters, etc. I flat our refuse to throw away my extras. I want more than two serving spoons! I just do! Lol! So I have probably five of those, probably more rubber scrapers, and at least one of everything else! But thats our life!

I have to add an aside in here. Good music makes such a difference for me when I want to be productive! The new Marianas Trench album is SO GOOD!! Give it a listen if you can. For sure the song “Wish You Were Here.” Its so fun!

My oversight in all of this is that I want to show you guys what I’ve accomplished, but I didn’t take before pictures!!! So while it all looks SO much better to me, its still full and might not look tidy to others. So I’m a tad bummed about that, but maybe you’ll just have to trust me!

Its still not done done. I have a big shelf in my furnace room with things like preserves, extra boxes of ziploc bags, some small appliances, and a gigantic roaster. I need to make decisions about where those will live, and I’d so much rather have most of it up here. I don’t want to forget to use what we have! But we’ll have to see. As soon as we sheet the furnace room walls, we can put up shelves, and I can make more intentional choices.

Brady’s on his way home from a morning of work, and I anticipate we’ll take a little lunch break together. After that, I think I’m ducking out for an hour or so for a coffee break, when Brady will probably jump into our taxes. He worked like a dog on them the other day and claims to be about 90% done! Woot! SO ready to have those behind us! No return for us, but its good to get one year wiped off the books and be confident that we set enough aside every cheque!

Speaking of productivity, yet another trailer got dropped off in front of our house today! I guess that means the eavestrough guys are on their way over in the next day or two. Stuff is getting done around here! I think this brutal stretch of cold would feel so much worse if we were all just sitting…

Brunch, Music, and my Pantry

Waverly did not sleep well last night, so neither did Brady and I. She’s not slept great over the last couple of days, and while I want to continue on the path of gently sleep training her, she’s been a bit off and not eating very well either. If she’s feeling anything like I felt last week, I want to make sure she’s as comfortable as possible. So, we get up with her, feed her the bit she’ll drink, and put her back to sleep.

A couple of broken nights, plus attitudes that make me want to tear out the rest of my hair, kept us home this morning. The last few days have just been too much. So rather, we invited my mom over for a waffle brunch and to hang out for the morning. We’re all tired, plus she hurt her back and wasn’t going to make it to church, either. Hanging out at home and taking it easy felt like a better choice. We ate waffles and bacon and fruit salad, and we all enjoyed each others company. It was really, really nice.

The only real goal for the day is to listen to the new Marianas Trench album!! You guys know they’re my guilty pleasure band. They just put out a new album. I preordered it in February, it released on March 1st, and I still haven’t listened to it! The days have just been too big. But we’re going to see them in concert later this month and we need to know it well by then! So today is the day 🙂 Even if we have to load everyone into the van and go for a drive on this (yet again) frigid winter day JUST to contain everyone in a quiet place to listen to it, we will!

Something else I’ve been working on is our pantry! It started yesterday and has run into today. We’ve lived her for about 2.5 years now, and while our kitchen makes sense, there are a few cupboards that don’t make a ton of sense, and our pantry is a bit of a mess. I’d love to make sense of it all, meaning have all the food where it makes sense, have the little kitchen appliances where they make sense, and things like ice cream pails and containers like that all where they make sense. If any of this makes sense, lol! I was inspired while watching a family on YouTube the other day to be more intentional to eat what we have without always restocking things immediately, so nothing gets forgotten. A couple of times a year, this family goes a month without buying anything that isn’t fresh or a necessity, and they eat their pantry and freezers empty. I LOVE that idea, and thats what prompted the big reorganize. I’m not sure I’ll actually bite the bullet on the month without grocery shopping, but I’m happy to say I actually know what I have now, I’ve purged out a ton of expired things, and I’m excited to be a bit more diligent. I’m also happy to say that none of it was as out of control as I had anticipated. Now things are organized! There’s still work to do, but I’m so happy its coming together, even if its taken a couple of years. The freezer is next, but since that lives in our unheated garage, that’ll have to wait for another time 😉

Tomorrow will be another busy, freezing, hopefully productive day! Brady will go to work, Dekker will go to school, and work will continue on our basement. (Update on the basement Wednesday, I believe!) Ideally, I’d love to feel productive myself as well, whether that means more work in the kitchen, or maybe in the boys closet. Dekker and Rowan’s closet is SUCH a mess. I got Laela and Solly’s cleaned out the other day, but the boys is a way bigger job. Maybe I’ll bring everyone up with me and we can do some work in my room, even! Orrrrr we’ll lurk on the couch if Wavy is still grumpy and extra needy. We’ll see! I’m torn between giving myself a break, because Monday, or kicking the week off right, because Monday!

Wavy decides!

Eight Months of Waverly

Our Wavy girl officially crossed the eight month mark!! I feel like she’s always been here, she just fits right in. Yet how is she SO GROWN UP already?! Her expressions tell so much about how she’s feeling that you never really have to wonder. She’s just wide open and honest, and seriously, just the warmest little dear. 

Her weight is 18 lbs 14 oz, which means she’s only gained 3 oz. I don’t know her height offhand but she keeps getting taller! Last month, I said she had bumped up a size and was in 9 month clothing, but she’s confidently in 12 month now!She’s been working hard on some teeth this month, which seems to be a bit of a theme, but she successfully popped two in February!!! On the 9th and 24th. The two right next to her top two in the front. So thats four on top and two on the bottom. She recently discovered how to grind them together, so thats a fun sound that doesn’t leave me wanting to vomit. (NOT my favourite sound, fyi)

Developmentally, Waverly continues to truck right along. Nothing too crazy. She’s not crawling or even close, but she sits a lot more confidently on her own, self-correcting if she wobbles. She LOVES a good game of peekaboo, and will laugh endlessly at her siblings’ silly antics. She babbles a lot and has found new sounds. Dada is a popular one. I can’t wait until she really talks!!! She loves solid food, and can handle it even better this month. We let her taste pretty much anything and everything. The list of things she’s tried is longer than I care to type out here. Its just everything. She regularly rejects the little baby snacks I try to use to hold her off, like digestive crackers, puffs, Cheerios, etc.

“I reject your stupid gerber cookies.”

She wants the real stuff, so thats what she gets! Lastly, in Wavy’s development, I’ll note that she occasionally makes strange now. Not too too much, but she knows her parents, and prefers them to others most of the time. No burn, guys 😉 She’s supposed to like us the most.

Our little dear FINALLY has some semblance of a schedule! Sort of. She has two. Sometimes, she sleeps seamlessly through the night and wakes up early with the rest of us, before school. On those days, she maybe naps around 10:00 or 10:30, waking up at lunch, and then naps again in the mid afternoon until maybe suppertime. Bedtime around 7:00, depending on how long her second nap lingered. She’s pretty chill. If it doesn’t go like that, its because she slept in. If she sleeps in until around 9:00, we keep her up until lunch, and she naps when the others do, after lunch. On those days, she usually naps until 3:00 or 4:00, and while maybe we shouldn’t, we make every effort to limp her through until bedtime. She is POOPED on those evenings! But now that she sleeps through the night more often, we’re working out a new system. As if we had one before, lol! We’re trying, anyway. 

Wavy loves being tickled, but more softly than the other kids liked. She lets me mouth-bite the bottoms of her ribcage, too. She LOVES that. She loves to be photographed, and often perks up and smiles when a camera or a phone gets stuck in her face. She loves when her siblings play with her. They’ll stack every toy we own in front of her and she just squeals and bites everything and plays. As mentioned, Wavy loves to bite everything. Including the hands that feed her or feel her teeth. Beware. Her latest favourite toy is anything that rattles. She loves rattles, and toys that make sound! Lastly, she loves her feet. Playing with them, chewing on them, and pulling them out of her sleeper so I have to tuck them back into place, only to have her pull them out again seconds later. Because baby life 🙂 

Praise the Lord for eight months with Waverly!!