Remission

My Graves Disease is now officially in Remission!  My doctor said that I might not have to ever worry about it again, because I responded so quickly to medication.  yay!
We have had a busy summer, with a wedding and lots of family things, and even some visitors.  We are gearing up for a busy fall.  GW and I are ready for potato harvest to start, just so he can quit worrying about his potatoes, and I can quit worrying about him.  The suspense is killing both of us.  Will they or wont they be good?  As long as they arent terrible, it will be okay.  
 Natalie starts preschool in a few weeks, and I am nervous for her ;)  I hope she adjusts okay, and isnt too scared or timid.  Emma's recent accomplishment was learning how to climb out of her crib....I guess its great to get to age 3 before even attempting to climb out, but I am sad that I cant confine her in her crib anymore ;)  Savannah's recent accomplishment is learning how to climb up on chairs/stools/tables.  I'm not ready for that either.  But I am ready for her to learn how to climb down the stairs, that would be handy.  Emma had her first real dentist appointment, and Uncle Benny found 2 cavities, and combined with the 2 that Natalie has, our next appointment is sure to be a memorable one.     

      

Graves Disease

So, I have recently been diagnosed with Graves Disease. I had been feelling very tired, and just 'off' lately. I usually am ready for bed at 9 and sleep like a rock, but I had been having a hard time getting to sleep at nights. It would be midnight and I would be wide awake, my mind thinking about a million things. I also felt like eating all the time, and I would be voraciously hungry in the middle of the night. I felt extreme muscle weakness, breathless, dizzy and lightheaded during exercise (or even just walking up the stairs). So, after a few weeks of this, I finally asked my Dr. to check me for Vitamin D deficiency and also my Thyroid. Bingo! I have a severe Vitamin D deficiency, and my thyroid is hyperactive, producing too much hormone. More tests and thyroid scans, and the diagnosis is Graves' Disease. I am on a beta blocker to slow down my racing heart, and also PTU, which is one of the two medications used for Graves' Disease. Removing all or part of the thyroid is not something they do much anymore, but killing the thyroid is my other option, if the drugs cannot control it. hopefully it doesnt come to that. Our hope is that with a couple years on the medicine, the Graves will be 'cured' for a while, at least until I'm out of the child-bearing years. PTU damages the liver, so I can only be on it for a couple years. Anyways, I'm feeling much better, and I'm hopeful for the future. I am anxious about what this means for future pregnancies, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. Both medications used for Graves' have risks during pregnancy, but PTU is the safer bet. Untreated Graves' Disease is far more dangerous for mother and baby during pregnancy than the medications, but I am still very anxious about it. I am on a quest for information, so if anyone knows anything about Graves' Disease, please let me know. I am so glad I listened to the little whisperings of the Spirit that something wasnt right, and requested labs.

Winter 2011 Update

Well, I thought it was about time to post my semi-annual blog update ;).
I am adjusting to life with 3 kids, 3 and under. Savannah is 6 months, and our little angel. She loves to bounce, and hates tummy time. Which is probably why she isnt even close to crawling yet.
Our 3 1/2 year old Natalie is growing into a little girl, saying the funniest things. She's a little sponge, and sometimes its scary how closely she is watching, and how much she remembers/imitates. She wants to wear the same purple clothes every day/night, and reminds us frequently that she is a "pretty princess". We just discovered that she has 2 cavities -eeek! She is fighting her naps more and more -- she'll go down great, but then 10 minutes later I hear footsteps upstairs in her room, and can hear her talking or singing to herself...this is not good, it's really cutting into my naptime and I take naps very seriously around here! ;)
At 2 1/2, Emma is finally starting to say words that are understandable most of the time (well, sort of.) She loves to copy her older sister, and loves the things that Natalie loves...which means fighting over every purple cup, toy, or sticker in sight. She loves to snuggle. She is still in her crib, which I will keep her in until she can climb out on her own. She takes a 3-4 hour nap every day, and really needs/likes her sleep. We're working on potty training, but I'm not going to really push it for a few more months.
GW is doing great at work. I'm so grateful that winter is finally here and he can work less and be home more. A 40-hour work week is heavenly. I am dreading February when things start up again getting ready for corn planting. So far we have taken a 3 day trip to Seattle, where we walked our feet off and had a great time without kids. Our little family also spent 5 days at my parents cabin in Montana, where we laid around and watched movies, ate, and played in the snow. Heaven.
Our family has really been getting into Green Smoothies (fruit smoothies blended with greens (spinach, kale, collards, etc). I feel ecstatic about getting so many servings of RAW fruits and VEGETABLES in a glass with breakfast, especially for my girls....some days their fruits and veggie intake is like: um...half an apple....2 carrot sticks......a few peas with dinner...does jam count? ha ha! so, knowing that they are getting like 4 servings of fruits and veggies in their little cup at breakfast is GREAT! and its delicious! I have become quite obsessed with the idea, and GW has even gotten on board (to my great surprise!) and often requests a smoothie after dinner (which is usually the only meal he eats at home - he packs the other two meals). We are going to do a Green Smoothie Challenge after the holidays, which is basically where we eat at least 8 cups of green smoothie every day, along with whole grains, nuts, fruits and veggies, and we do not eat any meat or dairy or SUGAR, which will be the hardest. It's going to be interesting! And I am overjoyed (and extremely surprised) that GW wants to do it with me! Anyways, a basic recipe for a green smoothie is 60% fruit to 40% greens. blend 2 -3 cups spinach with 2 cups water. add a couple cups of fruit, frozen is really great. blackberries and blueberries turn the smoothie purple. add 1 or 2 bananas. adjust water for thickness, and fruit for sweetness, add stevia for sweetness also. vanilla extract, and also almond and coconut are great. anyways, just play around with it, making a smoothie as you usually would, using the spinach/water as your liquid -- you cant even taste the spinach! It's been about 6 weeks since I started having a smoothie every day, and I can definitely tell a difference in my skin - usually by this time of year my hands are cracked and bleeding, but not this year- my hands are great! Also, last week all 3 kids were sick with the croup cough/snotty nose, and I didnt get it - I definitely think it was all the extra nutrition I get from the green smoothies! anyways, check out the book "green smoothie diet" by robyn openshaw (its at the library). its really inspiring. she also has a website.

Almost there.....

In 36 hours I will be off bedrest. I will be 36 weeks along. I will have laid in bed for 76 days. Only seeing my girls once a week. It's been hard, but of course I am so grateful that I have made it so far, and that the little girl inside me has been able to grow healthy and strong. This experience has prompted me to think about a lot of things that I wouldnt have normally thought about. Like how an elderly person or someone with a sickness or disability might feel, lonely and bored, unable to get out and see people or do things that they used to be able to do. Or someone in the military-- how in the world do they leave their families for an entire year or more? I think sometimes its easy to forget our blessings, and we take important things for granted....I am so grateful for my little girls, they bring so much true joy to my life. Being alone in this house for most of the time has given me a small glimpse of what my life would be like without them.....so empty. They give so much meaning and enrichment to my life. I am so grateful to be a mother. I'm so excited to be reunited as a family. I'm looking forward to hearing my girls jibber jabber as they play, laugh and scream as they wrestle with daddy when he comes home from work, sing as they take their baths. I can hardly wait till they are sleeping in their own beds, in their rooms right next to mine, and I can hear their little breathing as they sleep. Snuggling with my girls, giving hugs and kisses. And hearing Natalie say, "Love you" as I tuck her in her bed. This experience has reminded me to cherish my girls, and appreciate the time that we have together, in this stage that they are in. I have a renewed desire to make the most of it.

Dancers

Fun in the snow

Natalie is our snowbunny. Her favorite was riding the snomobile, going really fast. The faster you drove, the louder she'd sing, she was so excited.
Emma loved riding the sled down the hill, with a chaperone of course.

Fun at the Pond

Noodles loved the big slide at Grandma's Pond!

All Right.....

Here's our house. We love the location, its perfect. We feel relatively secluded (for living in the city) and love our quiet street!

Emma, looking very tired and full. She can be pretty sober sometimes. I wonder where she gets it.

Natalie, with her latest favorite headgear. At least I can say "she's wearing underwear!"
What a funny girl. She's so lighthearted and happy, she keeps us laughing. She gets that from her dad. Thanks hon.

Settled In....

Well, we are settling into our new house in Kennewick. We love it! However, I am looking forward to being done spending money... we are finding out that its expensive to furnish a house! (appliances, fencing, landscaping, furniture, etc) We are enjoying the perks of living in the city (EASY SHOPPING!), but missing being close to Grandma Jan's house. We finished the yard on saturday, complete with a fence, sprinklers, and sod. YAY! Now I just have to convince Natalie not to be scared to play out there! George is really enjoying his new job at AgriNorthwest and is already used to the 25 minute commute to work. It's actually a really beautiful drive through fields and rolling hills.

We're Moving....

We are leaving our cozy little house on the family farm. George got a great job working for AgriNorthwest, which is the church farm located south of Kennewick, Washington, actually right by the border of Washington and Oregon. Right now, he is staying in a motel down in Umatilla, so that he doesnt have to make the long commute everyday. We will be living in Kennewick, once we get our housing situation figured out. We are sad to move away from the family, and will really miss living in the country, but we are also really excited for this great career opportunity for George.

What a cute laugh-- even if it does sound like an old man wheezing!

Natalie D.

This girl loves chapstick-- she got ahold of some cherry chapstick, ate half the tube, and smeared the other half in her hair, ears, cheeks, lips, and chest. If a little is good, a lot must be better! She came up to me saying, "pitty! pitty!" (pretty!) Every time I use the traditional cherry flavored chapstick, I'm reminded of christmas mornings when I was little-- my sister and I used to get it in our stockings, and we thought we had struck gold! Especially paired with the stick-on earrings! WooHoo!

For the life of me, I cannot get this girl to let me put her hair in a ponytail, or even use a clip or barrette for 5 seconds to take a picture. However, she will wear a diaper on her head all day. Go figure.

This girl knows the routine. She sees daddy getting ready for work, so she runs and puts on a hat, and stands by George's lunch pail. She grabs her coat, and is ready to go. You can imagine the heartbreak and tears that soon follow as daddy leaves for work without her. So sad.

Emmy

Her first teeth, making their debut appearance.

Quite the Fashionista!

Natalie loves to wear things on her head... like Emma's dress
Natalie also likes to squeeze into Emma's pants....She was worried that those pants made her butt look big, but of course I told her she looked amazing....especially with the headpiece...
In this pic, she's going for the "middle-eastern" look, which I think she pulls off beautifully! Yep, I think it's safe to say she's got her mother's sense of style!

Emma the Elf Baby

When I took Emma to the doctor last month, he pointed out that Emma looked "very Elfish". ha ha! What is it with Othello Dr.'s and making comments about my kid's looks? I mean, it's one thing to think it, but to actually say it to the Mom? They must not be too worried about me taking offense....little does that Dr. know I was ready to punch his lights out!.......Just kidding! Actually, I think she does look like a really cute Elf Baby, all she needs is a hat!

Eyelashes.......

What a lucky girl, I am so happy for her! She is looking so peaceful because what you cant see is that she is playing with my cell phone, which seems to be her goal in life.....

Moves you never seen before!

My Sweetie Pies

Natalie, inside the fort that George built for her.
Emma, lounging in the sink, enjoying a bath.

My Sweet Emma

Emma 3 months old now, and so sweet! she is very smiley, and loves to throw her head back and laugh. she is very easy going, and very content. I cant believe I lucked out, and got another easy, happy baby (so far!)