Growing pumpkin

For my blog this week, I'll do a picture update of our week. These first pictures are pictures of the wedding we went to this weekend. Coranelle is not even 5 months old and she has already attended 3 weddings and been invited to 5! Whew! She did a great job. Fortunately, there were other babies at this wedding, so I didn't feel as nervous about her talking or fussing during the ceremony. She did great for about half of the ceremony, then began to fuss. We were sitting near the back, so I just got up quickly and calmed her down in the foyer. Then, we watched the rest of the wedding from the doorway with another baby and her grandmother.


I had to take a picture of these booties because I love them and it was so exciting that they fit her now and even stay on!
These pictures are in reverse order, as always. Here is Coranelle taking a little snooze at the reception. She did fantastic and was happy the entire evening!
My girl and me at the wedding reception this weekend.
All dressed up with daddy!
Our silly pumpkin that Ryan carved. Isn't it great! It already has withered and sunken in. Sad!
"Helping" daddy carve the pumpkin on Friday. Coranelle was enjoying the pumpkin guts. We had a special date night/family night at home. Ryan picked up some Chili's and we carved a pumpkin and had a yummy dessert. Chili' s has this deal that allows you to get an appetizer, 2 entrees and a fancy dessert for $20. We enjoyed our night in as a family. I cannot wait until Coranelle is old enough to enjoy the baked pumpkin seeds and help carving faces into the pumpkins.
We're also practicing sitting up. She is folding in half pretty well, but I think we'll get there. She is using her hands to balance right now, but it won't be long until I have a sitter!
Here's my little one, reading already. It's fun to watch her study the pictures and flip the pages.
She also narrates her own story, in her own little language.
Rolling over again and again and again. She rolled 16 times in a row the other day!
Sporting her Halloween onesie.
And rolling over!

We are currently trying to break Coranelle's bottle strike, which has been frustrating. She refuses a bottle, even if it is breast milk. So, it is our goal to get to her take it again. If I could have a break from nursing her a few times a week, I would love it. I don't mind nursing, but it seems to be really wearing me out! It is hard to be the only one that can feed her. It is also tiring for Ryan that she fusses and battles him so hard when he offers her a bottle.

Also, I am losing my hair like crazy. When will this stop. It is everywhere! All over my pillow and shirts and always stuck in Coranelle's little hands. It's making me crazy!

Not much else is new. We are still working on getting the exterior of the house painted. I cannot wait until it is done and we can call it quits for big projects for a while. I cannot be of much help to Ryan because Coranelle doesn't do too well on her own for extended periods of time. Imagine that! :) So, I don't feel like I get to see my hubby much on weekend because he is always outside working. But, he is doing a great job taking care of us and working hard to keep our home in good shape and I appreciate that. But, we would also all benefit from a little vacation soon! I also want to take Coranelle to the pool and see how she does in a bathing suit and water. I want to try her in a baby swing at the park. Needless to say, I am ready to be done working and on to playing!

Hope you are all doing well. I've got a pumpkin cake to frost and some chicken pasole to finish before nap time is over. We've got my brother and Rachael coming over for dinner and I am looking forward to that!

A shout out to Dad

A card Ryan gave us before he left for his business trip.
Playing with her cool new toy and Bruce and Heidi's!
We went to the pumpkin patch on Friday and got a pumpkin. I have never gone to a pumpkin patch before, so it was really fun!

Mom took this picture at Stefan's birthday celebration on Sunday. I thought it was adorable!!


I decided for my blog this week, I would post part of a letter I recently wrote to my dad. It's amazing how you look at your parents a little differently once you become one.

Dear Dad, I was talking with Rachael today about how we use memories and our own childhood to help us decide how we want to (and don't want to) raise our own kids in the future. I kept telling her about things we did with you and memories I had of times we spent together. I don't think I thank you enough for being such a good dad. I know you didn't get a chance to "raise" us full-time, but you left some incredible, lasting memories that I will always cherish. Thanks for reading to us from the folk tale book about Coyote, Quail, and Rabbit. I can still hear your voice reading us those stories over and over again before bed when we were at your house. I want to read with Coranelle before bed too. Thanks for coming in every night we were with you and tucking us in SO tight that we couldn't breathe and then kissing us good-night. I got so excited for that tucking in, even though I had to squirm out of it shortly after you left so that I could breathe. Thanks for making us special breakfasts in the mornings. We SO looked forward to those waffles, eggs, pancakes, huevos rancheros, and orange juice. What a great way to spend time with the family on the weekends! It was a treat! Thanks for getting Stefan remote control airplanes and helping him build them and fly them. It was fun to watch you guys out there doing that while I played with my dolls. Thanks for getting me a little gift to open when it was Stefan's birthday and Stefan a little gift when it was mine so that we still felt special. I totally want to do that with our kiddos. Thanks for taking us on adventures down the river and to the ocean. We have so many stories from those trips. It was fun from the shopping for food to getting stuck in my kayak on rocks and having to fight to get free. We loved having hot chocolate by the fire with you in the mornings while you had your 3 cups of coffee. And I will never forget sitting around the campfire with you, talking about everything in the world and laughing about the mischievous things you did as a kid. I cannot wait to sit around a campfire with our kids and tell stories and laugh under the stars. Thanks for coming out to cheer me on at Cross Country and Track meets in high school. I always had my best races when I knew you had come. I will never forget one swim meet in High School that you came to. I don't remember the event I swam or the time or place I got. I just remember you grabbing me, right after the race when I was sopping wet, hugging me and spinning me around in a circle, telling me how proud you were. I was on top of the world at that moment! It meant so much! When Coranelle is involved with sports, we'll make sure we are there for her and never too uptight to get wet and sweaty in order to congratulate her efforts- no matter what place or time or event it might be. Thanks for going to Spain with me and exploring the coast. What an adventure to cherish. It was a time when I was "finding myself" and was so great to have 2 weeks to talk to you, eat gelato and flan, enjoy fancy hotel rooms with bathtubs that overlooked the coast, and walk the beaches with you for hours. Thanks for telling me that I was beautiful on my wedding day... lots and lots of times. We will be sure to do the same when Coranelle gets married because I know just how much it means. Thanks for checking in with me a lot when we first had Coranelle. It was nice to have someone to vent to and who I knew could relate to the tough newborn stage we were going through.

Thanks for everything dad! Love you tons,
Kari
As for other news, Coranelle is doing well. She is rolling over tons. Saturday, she rolled 16 times in a row! It's fun to see. She made it a little difficult on Grams and PopPops Friday night when we went out to celebrate a friend's birthday. She fought her nap for a few hours and fussed a lot. Good thing Ryan's parents are so incredibly patient with her. We know it is a stage and won't last forever. Soon, they'll be watching her and she'll be running around, begging for treats and playing games. But until then, it makes it stressful for me to leave because I end up spending my evening worrying about whether or not Coranelle is driving her grandparents crazy. But, I know this will pass and it doesn't make us love her any less. Oh, and she still refuses to drink any formula, so Ryan battled with her for over an hour tonight to try to feed her while I was at the Rec Center. He has tons of patience, which I truly admire. We'll keep working on the bottle and the formula. Sigh.

This weekend, we also got a bunch of firewood and are very much looking forward to cuddling by the fire this winter. It was very cold here this weekend, so we had a fire all day Saturday and Sunday and enjoyed some quiet, family time.

Not much else to report. I need to nurse my adorable little peanut and put her to bed. Thanks for reading and have a great week!

crisp

It's fall and I love this time of year. Every morning, Coranelle and I go out for a walk or a run in the crisp Autumn air. The leaves are all turning and I enjoy crunching over them with the stroller as we enjoy the bright blue skies and views of the snow-covered mountains. I love putting Coranelle in her new "Bundle Me" sleeping bag in her carseat and sliding on our hats and fleeces. Colorado is beautiful and I feel blessed to be living and raising a baby in such a beautiful place like Broomfield. In my former life in Estes Park, I grew up surrounded by pine trees. So, I didn't get the chance to see the leaves change on the trees in our own yard. Now I do and I love seasons. I have a huge trash can full of crispy leaves and raking them takes plenty of time, but it's worth it. I also really love the chance to bake pumpkin muffins and make chicken chili and homemade soups in the crockpot. I like snuggling up under the covers and sticking my cold feed under Ryan's legs so he can warm them up. I cannot wait to get some firewood and have some fires in the evenings, cuddled up with blankets and drinking hot cocoa. Yeah for fall!

Today, Ryan left to go down to Texas for a few days for a business trip. It is his first business trip and he is going on his own. I am proud of him. He is the only mechanical engineer working on this particular project, so he has lots of responsibility and is going down to meet with some clients. I am not super excited to spend the next two evenings alone, but at least it doesn't happen often. Typically, on Tuesday nights, Ryan takes Coranelle for an hour and a half while I go to the Rec Center to take a class. Since he won't be home tonight, he offered to take her last night so I could get away for a little bit. He's a great guy! It was fun to come home to them last night and see them cuddling in the Lazy Boy. What a sweet family! She's still stubborn about taking her evening nap, but we're down to 15-30 minutes of crying at night, instead of 3 hours a few months ago. We'll miss Ryan making Coranelle smile when he walks in the door at 5pm. She is typically nursing and completely gets distracted, choosing to smile at daddy and watch him over her feeding. Ryan always wraps her up at night in the middle of her last feeding and gives her back to me, all swaddled and ready to have her milk and go to sleep. Then, he diverts his attention to me, getting me ice cream or rubbing my sore neck. I am a lucky woman. We'll be lonely without him!

I went and got my flu shot yesterday. Our pediatrician told us we should get them to keep Coranelle healthy. I don't typically get them, but I am willing to do so if it helps her stay well and allows me to take care of her this winter. In other news, Coranelle is still enjoying her rice cereal. She does a great job eating it. This weekend, I think the addition to her diet stopped her up a bit. We got called out of church (again) because the nursery workers said she cried all the way through the service. They reported that she was super gassy. So, we stopped at the grocery store and got her some prune juice. I gave her a bit more than a teaspoon Saturday night. Sunday afternoon, that stuff KICKED IN! Whew! I had just finished feeding her cereal in her bumbo seat and she exploded out of her outfit like never before. I picked her up and she was messy all down her legs, all over her outfit and all over my shirt. I carried her out to the garage and squeaked, "Ryan, I have a bit of a situation. Can you help me?" He came in and put some paper towels down so we could strip her down and give her a quick bath. Then, he scrubbed our clothes and started laundry. Needless to say, Prune juice does the trick. Go easy on it if you decide to give it a try!

This past weekend, we continued prepping our house for painting. Unfortunately, the first set of colors we picked turned out to be peachy pink and, well, for lack of a better description- poop brown. Not at all what the samples looked like or what we wanted. Fortunately, Ryan only bought a little paint and tested it on the shed before painting the whole house. So, we started back at square one and now we have colors that we are really pleased with. Picking paint colors is a hard thing to do!

Last weekend, we also met Claire's newborn nephew. I forget how small these babies once were and holding this little guy felt so strange. Coranelle actually looked really big! It was fun to have this little guy fall asleep in my arms. Awww! Later in the weekend, we got to see Heidi's brother and sister-in-law. Just like Coranelle loves being with her Uncle Josh, she loved being held by Ryan's uncle Scott. Funny how she seems more comfortable with men than with women (unless it's mommy). Anybody have thoughts on why that is? I'm not loving that she freaks out when my girlfriends try to take her or when her grandmas or aunts try to hold her. Silly peanut. But, we love her! She's been allowing us to eat dinner occasionally without holding her. She'll hang out in her bumbo seat or the excersaucer and play while we can enjoy catching up with each other.

Today, before I head to Bruce and Heidi's for dinner, I am going to check out the new King Soopers near our house. I have never been, and while walking with Jenny and Adelaide this morning, Jenny mentioned how nice it is. I am looking forward to checking it out. Sounds really silly, but it will be a fun to take Coranelle. Jenny says it's like Whole Foods. I like having a little errand to run in the afternoons after Coranelle gets up and eats. It helps them to go by faster. Does that sound crazy? Sometimes they drag because there is only so much playing a 4 month old can do.

I hope all of you are doing well. Please continue to keep my dad in your thoughts and prayers. He has started chemo, radiation, and hormonal treatment and I just cannot imagine how exhausting it all much be- especially when raising a 3 year old. I wish there was more I could do from afar. It's no fun to feel helpless when a loved one is going through something so hard. Thanks for your prayers.

4 month old peanut

Right before she passed out at the wedding. So tired!
But Oh, so cute!
watching daddy eat his dinner.
The girls, all dressed up. She liked eating her dress more than wearing it.
Cuddling with daddy on Sunday before a walk with Gammadele and Grandpa Steve.

On Saturday, Coranelle turned 4 months old. To celebrate, we took her to our friends' wedding. We thought that since she seemed to be doing better in the evenings, she might do well and we could introduce her to some of our friends from college. She didn't do as well as we hoped, but she is priceless and adorable and we are glad we got to spend the evening with her. She didn't want to be really quiet during the wedding ceremony, so Ryan had to take her out to the lobby so she wouldn't disrupt the ceremony. When we walked into the reception, she freaked out for a while at all the faces that were admiring her, the music and just TOO much to see. But, she calmed down and we ended up being able to stay until almost 10pm. She nursed in a parking garage before the reception and took a bottle from Ryan at 8:30ish. We hoped she would take a little nap on us during the evening, but there was simply too many exciting things going on. It was great for us to see some friends from college and celebrate with Scott and Jenny. It was a beautiful ceremony and the reception venue was the clubhouse at Folsom Field. The views were spectacular and it was very enjoyable. Coranelle finally decided to pass out on me at 9:45pm as we were dancing. Sooooo cute.
In other news, she still refuses to take formula. We tried a new kind patiently on Sunday and she wouldn't have it. Too bad, considering her weight gain has slowed and the doctor recommended to me that I feed her one more time per day. She went in for her 4 month appointment yesterday. She now weighs 11 pounds 8 ounces and is 25 inches long. That takes her from the 20th percentile in weight to the 9th, and the 75th percentile in height to the 77th. This, of course, concerns me. Being that she is solely breastfed, it is hard to not take this issue personally and feel like I am doing something wrong. But, she has a full feeding every 3 hours and is a good little eater. Even though most babies move to feeding every 4 hours at 4 months, I have kept her on a 3 hour schedule because I know she is a peanut. So, I feed her 5 times a day. When do I put in another feeding. I refuse to wake her up at night to do it, or disturb her one good nap of the day. If she would take formula, it would be easy to pop a bottle in her mouth sometime in the evening. I already feel as if I spend a ton of my day nursing ( close to 3 hours). I don't really want to sit on my couch even longer every day. What to do... The doc said she could eat as much rice cereal as she wants. She'll eat that with formula, so we'll try to give her a bit more of that. The doc also told us to try soy formula, as it tastes a bit more like breast milk. So, Ryan went to pick some up today and we'll try that out. I hope that she catches up in weight someday! I am still perplexed as to how I have a tall, skinny baby! The doctor also reminded me to make sure I am drinking and eating enough. I am going to make a point to make sure I am drinking lots of water and eating enough calories. I used to be very good at drinking water (when Coranelle was first born), but have sort of fallen off the bandwagon recently. And, given my past(destructive) eating habits, I refuse to count calories and thus have not counted to ensure that I am eating an extra 500/day. I suppose I need to be a bit more aware of how much I am eating so I ensure Coranelle is getting enough!
Other than her slowed weight gain, she is developmentally doing great. She rolls, talks, lifts her head, sits with support, plays, focuses, grasps things, puts everything in her mouth, etc. Last weeks new thing was the discovery and infatuation with her feet. She grabs them all the time and puts them into her mouth. Very cute. Ahh, she is wonderful. We love her so so so much. She is currently "eating" her feet, complete with the new "hand-me-down" booties we got from some friends. She also got a hand-me-down excer saucer and lots of cute hats and toys. We love hand-me-downs. She and I continue to go to play groups with our Mom's club. I love walking with my friend Jenny and her little Adelaide 3 times a week. It is wonderful to have another mom with a baby girl the same age. Our walks are often the highlight of my day at home. Then, my next highlight is when Ryan walks in the door after work. Coranelle loves it too and is totally captivated with daddy. She studies him and watches his every move and smiles with delight at the attention he showers her with. I LOVE my family!

Outside of Coranelle, we are prepping our house to get it ready to paint this fall. We seem to have a growing list of house projects that get done much slower with a little baby who is constantly captivating us with her smiles and jabbering. That's all for now. Have a great week!

An angel

A ride with daddy!

A fun nose trick!The rice cereal debut!

Trying to figure out what to do with the cereal.Yum yum!


Coranelle has been an angel! Really! It's like I have a new baby! The weather in Colorado has been very cold and rainy these past 2 days. Yesterday, we got all ready to go out for a morning run. I gazed out the window and realized it was blowing like crazy and pouring. I sighed and decided that wasn't the best weather to take Coranelle out in. So, I hesitantly decided to pack her up and take her to the "Mom-and-me" stoller class. Now, some of you may remember the tears and anxiety that these classes caused us a month or two ago. Coranelle literally used to scream through the entire class. Yet, yesterday, I decided I needed to give it a shot. I couldn't stay inside all day. I showed up about 9:20am. Coranelle was an angel. She never once fussed. She was awake the entire hour, but never cried. She just watched the world go by and flashed a few smiles now and then. The change was night and day different. I couldn't believe it!

Later in the day, I decided to test my luck and take Coranelle to Target. Previously, she melted down second after walking into the store. I never figured out why. So, I was brave and put her in her stroller, rather than the baby bjorn. She proved her angel behavior for a second time. She stayed awake and never cried or wailed. She played with her toy and her blanket and checked out all the colors and lights. I was so proud. It allowed me to enjoy the day and my baby girl.

After coming home, she proceeded to roll multiple times. She kept rolling from her back to her tummy in order to grasp her little hanging cow. Once she got to her tummy, she got really frustrated that she was there. But, she's doing great with her rolling. She also is pushing up onto her elbows and occasionally her hands while she is on her tummy. I feel like she is growing up so much!

This past weekend, Ryan, Josh, Claire and I had the opportunity to go see Rodrigo y Gabriela live in Denver. They were amazing and it was such a joy to watch their incredible talent. We went to dinner beforehand and had a fun double date. Coranelle stayed with Grams and PopPops. I was super nervous to leave her. Not because I was worried about her, but because I was worried that she would scream all evening and make Bruce and Heido insane. I know she is in wonderful hands when she is with them, but I wanted them to enjoy their evening- not just survive it. But, apparently, she did well and was pretty happy. (Or so they tell me ;-) ) She took a whole bottle from them and they put her to bed for the night. It was great to get out and have an evening away and know that she had a good time.

I also decided to attempt feeding her some rice cereal. I didn't do it to fill her up more or because she necessarily "needs" it. I just have worried that since she won't touch formula, I'll have to pump lots of extra milk to mix with her cereals. So, I decided to see if she would take cereal with water instead of milk or formula. And, I wanted to see if she'd take to the spoon. She did! She did great with the spoon and seemed to enjoy the cereal. It was so fun to see her sitting in her little bumbo seat, eating! Her 4 month appointment is on Monday and we'll see what her doctor thinks of her eating cereal once a day. I think it might help her catch up- weight wise. Plus, she typically still seems hungry after her 5pm feeding and this might be a good way to supplement.

Last night, I didn't want to battle with her evening nap. This is always the hardest to get her to go down for. She cries and cries and doesn't want to take her pacifier. I decided I didn't have anything I needed to get done, so I let her cuddle with me and take a nap while I watched the season premier of "Dancing With the Stars". It was priceless to just rock and hold her and watch her sleep. I know I will not be able to do that for a lot longer, so I just enjoy it while it happens.
I guess I don't just enjoy it, I LOVE it. Ryan came back from the rec center after being gone for an hour. He walked in and I just whispered, "Nope, I haven't moved since you left".

Coranelle is also sleeping through the night. Her typical night is about 8:30pm -7am. She is doing great and I am enjoying sleeping through the night as well.

I have also been going to playgroups through the Mom's club that I joined. It is nice to meet with other moms. I am the only one that attends that has just an infant, so at times I feel a little out of place. But, I also meet with another new mom (from my prenatal yoga class) at least 3 times a week. It is a huge blessing to have other young moms in my life to chat with.

All in all, things are going great and I am feeling better adjusted to be a mom. I am excited for all of the future changes and growth to come.

terradactyl baby

The snow coming down at Emerald Lake, while we stop for a snack. Look at my cute hubby! He's always taking such good care of us!
Josh and Claire at Dream Lake.
All bundled up and enjoying the views.
Happy Family!
All rigged up to keep Coranelle warm and dry!


Coranelle has a new way to express herself... a lovely high-pitched scream. She sounds like a dinosaur. The funny thing is that she isn't upset, she's just screaming. It's like she has found her voice and LOVES using it. Anyone else experienced this with their child? It is almost funny, but it starts to hurt my ears after I have listened to it all day. Mom says I should sing to her so she'll learn to sing instead of shriek. I'm trying, but it's not working yet. The workers in the church nursery on Saturday were perplexed. They couldn't figure out if she was upset or just trying to talk. I told them, they would know when my child was upset!

We went up to Estes Friday night to stay in a cabin of a family friend of the Mork's. It is a beautiful "cabin", that we call a lodge. On our way up, we got stopped in Lions for construction and Coranelle woke up. Not only did she wake up, she decided to wail for half the way up the canyon. This was really intense, high pitched crying. The kind that you cannot talk over- let alone think straight. The kind of crying that makes you loose your patience and make you want to scream "what the %^&# is wrong?" I tried leaning over the seat and giving her the pacifier and dangle a toy to play with. Nothing worked. We finally had to pull over and I got in the back with her. After that, she was just fine. I gave her the pacifier and she was fine. Poor little thing. She was so upset, her face was bright red and blotchy and covered with tears. I have no idea what set her off! But, she started again when we got to the cabin and I handed her to Grams. That child has lungs!

On Saturday, we got to enjoy a good breakfast and a relaxing morning. It was only 45 degrees up in Estes on Saturday, with lots of low lying clouds and fog. It was fun to cuddle up under a blanket and enjoy the England weather. About mid morning, Josh, Claire, Ryan, Coranelle and I went to RMNP to go on a little hike. The leaves are starting to turn yellow and looked brillant against the dark clouds. When we got to the trailhead, it started snowing! It was beautiful! Josh and Claire thought we were crazy that we wanted to still hike, but they ended up enjoying it. I put Coranelle in the baby bjorn, facing towards me. She was bundled up with jackets and hat, and hood. Ryan stuffed the umbrella in my baby bjorn so that I could walk and keep Coranelle dry without having to hold the umbrella. It worked well and I got toasty, so I think I kept Coranelle nice and warm. It was truly a gorgeous hike.

Does it strike anyone as funny that when someone has a baby, it makes the rest of the world think that they can say whatever they want about the child? As we were hiking up the trail, Coranelle was alert and happy. People were cooing at her and asking about her and saying things like, "What an adorable baby". "Ooooh, she's so cute". "She's so good!". "How precious". Etc. On the way down, Coranelle started to get fussy. I don't think she was cold or hungry, but tired. It was noon and she always takes her nap between 11-1. So, as she cried on the way back down, I got all sorts of crazy looks and comments. Someone said, "Hey, you know... even junior rangers get hungry!". Cute... not really. I just get annoyed. People always assume that if a baby is fussing, they're hungry. Not my baby! Then, I got these looks and comments like, "It's too cold to have a baby out here". "What are you doing". etc. etc. I find it funny that so many people think that they know what is good for my baby, or what is wrong, when they have seen her for a whole 2 seconds. She was just tired, because I quickly got her to go to sleep in the baby bjorn, amidst the snow and fog. Overall, it was a beautiful and fun adventure.

In other news, Coranelle has now rolled 3 times. She is doing a little better with her tummy time. She is grasping things, putting them in her mouth, and "talking" quite a bit. She still enjoys reading books with us- which tickles me pink. She enjoys her jumpy seat, is sitting up pretty well and loves to stand with support. She is- as always- an adorable gift. She will be 16 weeks old tomorrow!

a little of this, a little of that

Napping on Grandpa Steve.
Hanging with her Grandparents.
Labor Day BBQ at Molly's.
These pictures posted out of order. Anyhow- this is us laying the first pavers. I am looking up to Coranelle's window- hoping she is still sleeping.
Ryan cuting pavers in our street.
Unloading our two pallets of pavers. Good thing we had good help.
Moving the dirt out of the way.
Relaxing with Daddy after the patio was done.
On Labor Day, we went to Claire's mom's house for a BBQ. She lives on a lake so we got to enjoy kayaking on the water.
Eating those fists. I love those cheeks!
Napping on Grandpa Steve.
Hanging out on her tummy!


It has been a while since I wrote a blog post. Things have been busy and I just haven't made time to sit down and do it. We weren't doing a lot of sitting this weekend! Ryan took of Thursday and Friday and we spent 4 days creating a patio in our backyard. This required a lot of work. Before we started, there was a large square of clayish dirt, some remaining red mulch, and these huge boulders left by the previous owners. So, the process consisted of moving all the rocks (some of them took 4 of us to lift) and then digging down about 8 inches through all sorts of tree roots, rocks and pebbles. Next, came laying road base (4 inches of it), leveling and tamping that. After that, we added two inches of sand and re-leveled. Finally, we put in 475 pavers- each weighing 10 pounds. On Saturday, my parents, Bruce, Heido, Josh and Claire all came over to help move dirt, haul pavers, and roll loads of sand into our yard with wheel barrows. Their help was amazing! I just love family! It was like a big, sweaty party. I had feeding duty for Coranelle, but beyond that, there was always a grandma ready to take her and entertain her so I could help. We worked on in almost all day Sunday and we were on a roll. So, we put Coranelle to bed at 9 and just kept pushing along. We decided we just wanted it finished and not hanging over our heads. So, Ryan and I worked until almost midnight to get it done. I hauled 450 pavers to him and he pounded them all in, in a perfectly engineered pattern. When we were done, we sat back, on our completed patio, gazing at the stars and enjoying chocolate ice cream cones. We love the patio! Now, it's time to get some patio furniture. And rest our arms and backs.
In other news... Coranelle didn't survive the church nursery on Sunday. She screamed like crazy when we left her and they called us in after about 10 minutes to get her. I took her and calmed her down pretty quickly. They told me I could bring her back if she calmed down, so I did. But, she revved up again and wailed. So, I took her into the cry room and Ryan met us in there. She ended up falling asleep on Ryan, content as could be. I guess she just doesn't like the nursery! But, we will keep trying. I wasn't sure if maybe she could sense that the woman who took her was not confident in her soothing of a wailing child. Also, once I took her from one of the men working in the nursery, she smelled strongly of cologne. I wondered if she didn't like the smell. I mean, she is a "touchy" baby, so I don't know what set her off.
She had some rough nights last week- nights where she cried for hours straight until we finally rocked her to sleep. Those are exhausting! On Friday, Bruce and Heido were over helping with the patio. We tried to wrap Coranelle up and put her in her crib with her pacifier, but she just screamed and screamed. Finally, Heidi walked her around the neighborhood for awhile and got her to fall asleep in her arms. She also cried like crazy last Tuesday when I was at my class at the Rec Center and Ryan had her. When I got home, neither of us could get her to sleep or calm down. I finally decided to feed her, which helped a little. Wednesday, we went down to Denver to visit Stefan and Rachael. She was content for a bit, but then was doing her high pitched screaming. I think she stressed Stefan out a bit- rightly so. I was stressed too. Ryan had to pace around with her, swaddled up and giving her the pacifier for almost an hour. Then she calmed down and went to sleep. Yikes! The following night, she did the same thing when we went over to some friends' house to discuss starting a bible study. So, we are once again, playing guessing games. Is she not getting enough food in the afternoons/evenings when my supply is low? Is she just overtired? Is she allergic to something? I think she is just overtired. When we got her down for late afternoon/evening naps the last 2 nights, she was much happier.
Speaking of happy, we got her a jumper from our neighbors. She LOVES that thing. Her feet touch the ground and she just bobs around and looks at the toys- totally elated to wear herself out with all the bouncing. We are so glad to have hand-me-downs.
Coranelle has been babbling more, grabbing things more and... she rolled over last Thursday. She was on her tummy and just whipped over onto her back. She surprised both of us! She hasn't done it again, but she gets close. I have found that she rolls over in her crib when swaddled. I hear her wake up from a nap screaming and run up there to find she has rolled onto her tummy and smashed her face against the crib bars. I would scream too!
She is growing fast! She fits into all of her 3 month clothes now, so we have some great new dresses for her. She is adorable and we love her- the kicker and the shaker that she is! I hope you all had a great Labor Day!