Today I Started Blogging...Again!

Test, Test, Testing, Testaroo, Testarino, This is Just a Test.

(technically, I've been blogging all along...just now here or about personal things...time to remedy that...)

And does anyone else have cool hipstamatic prints to upload? I am LOVING this app! Every photo looks like it was taken in 1979.

Signed, Sealed, and DELIVERED!

I guess it's fitting that the first post from my new house is also the story of my labor and delivery. Life here in Lebanon has been very very good for us. I was only 6 months pregnant when we moved and I have greatly enjoyed and appreciated the convenience of living in town. Of course, we miss our beautiful views and some of the other aspects of country life. But all in all, I feel confident that our choice was the right one.

The house itself has been a real blessing. It's a big one, at 2500 square feet, and has three bathrooms. I also love the quaint old street that we live on, and its giant trees. There is a settled atmosphere that pervades this part of town and which I very much needed at this time of my life.

My pregnancy was uneventful, in spite of the fact that we moved and the trauma that entails. We chose not to find out the sex of the baby this time so this last month had us on 'pins and needles' every time I felt a contraction. During the last 5 weeks or so, we expected labor to start at any time because the baby, although measuring small, was carrying very low. My due date was originally set at January 3rd but was moved up to December 31st, considering the baby's low position.

I also made a conscientious change to a midwife with this pregnancy. The doctor didn't make it to my last delivery and I also have not been all that pleased w/ the emphasis the practice puts on 'induction' and other doctor conveniences. I met the midwife (who is with the same practice) around my 5 month mark and really felt she understood my desires for labor and delivery. She was very much an advocate of natural childbirth, the method I've been fortunate enough to utilize with all three of my boys. I also really loved her enthusiasm about the fact that we were waiting to find out the sex. So I made sure to get all the pertinent info I would need to make sure SHE was the one that delivered, when the time came.

On December 31st I literally did all I could to get that baby born by the end of the year...primrose oil, walking over a mile (which was probably not the best idea since I could barely waddle by the end) etc. Nothing worked. The baby wasn't ready and since we weren't to have a handy tax deduction, I decided not to worry about it but to just sit back and relax. On the 3rd (my original due date), I was definitely feeling a 'nesting' urge. I cleaned, straightened, organized and repeated to my heart's content. I also decided to prepare dinner early so that I could go get my nails 'filled' that evening. I hated the idea of going into labor w/ ugly nails and knew that if I had the baby, it would be a while before I could take care of that little matter. After having my nails done, I returned home and enjoyed a late dinner after putting the boys to bed early. I also treated myself to a large piece of coconut cake (with Hershey's syrup) and a glass of milk before settling down to watch 'Tabatha's Salon Takeover' while my husband snoozed on the couch.

About 10:30, I found myself waking up in my easy chair to a mild cramp in my lower abdomen. Having experienced a few more 'false labor' contractions this time, I was not too quick to diagnose the cramp as labor. I switched sides and changed channels, attempting to settle back down and write off the cramp as a coconut cake induced gas pain. A few minutes later, another cramp struck...and an urge to use the rest room soon followed. Again, I had had quite a few gastro intestinal battles in December so I was not assuming at first that this was actually the 'real deal'. I went to the bathroom and while I was doing so, another cramp struck. Then there was 'bloody show'...a sure symptom that most of you who have delivered a baby will recognize as a definite way to know whether the time has come.

I quickly donned a pair of lounge pants and zipped up my waiting 'hospital bag'. I also carried my stability ball ( a staple during labor, for me) into the living room. My husband seemed a little surprised that I had already accomplished this much before waking him, but he was typically motivated and busy within seconds. We called my mother in law to come stay with the sleeping boys and prepared to get to the hospital quickly, since my labors tend to go very fast. I was already clocking in the contractions at 4 minutes apart, and they were progressively getting stronger.

We got to the hospital within five minutes of leaving the house (yay again, for living in town) and went in thru the ER, since the Women's' Pavilion entrance closes at 6pm. It's funny how the staff reacts when you say very matter of factly that you are in labor. It's such a rarity these days for a lady to allow nature to take its course, it's no wonder that most hospital workers have never even witnessed a spontaneous birth. The ladies seemed doubtful that I was actually in labor but condescendingly allowed me the luxury of a wheel chair 'just in case'. I was carrying my stability ball in my lap and the lady who was wheeling me along asked me what it was, stating that it was an 'interesting idea'. She seemed very doubtful that I would actually be 'allowed' to use it during labor, much less delivery. I'm used to that reaction.

When we got to the maternity ward, it was about 11:30. The nurses signed me in, gave me a gown, and of course they strapped me to some monitors and stuck me in a bed, which is standard hospital protocol. I have no problem w/ this initially but I do not stand for their making me do it for long. The contractions slowed down when I was in the bed and since I was only at 3 1/2 cm dilated, I really wanted to walk around and speed this thing up!

After making sure with my midwife, who was en route, that it was 'ok' for me to move around, they reluctantly agreed not to give me an iv or keep me attached to those obnoxious monitors, which only serve to annoy and give added stress to the situation. I immediately used the restroom ( a full bladder or intestinal tract can hinder productive labor) and sat on my ball to rock my way to more effective contractions. My husband was helpful but stayed mercifully out of my way, as he knows to do, and our good friends Michael and Misty had also arrived to lend their support. My trusty birth coach, Melinda, was also there to help out with her level head and loud voice.

Within minutes, the contractions were intensifying. At this point, I know where my body is in the scheme of things merely by how I feel. This is an added advantage to 'natural' childbirth and I strongly encourage it, if you can take it. The pain was getting more intense as well and I felt that signature 'nausea' that usually heralds the arrival of 'active labor'. Misty helped a lot by brushing my hair (which I find extremely relaxing) and massaging my lower back. When the pain was too bad to feel like I could stay in control, Melinda helped me thru using Lamaze techniques with my breathing exercises. Thankfully, when things get this bad, I know from experience that it's almost time to push. And suddenly, I felt a tremendous pressure in my lower regions, straining against the stability ball where I sat.

The nurse came in quickly as I crawled onto the bed and allowed her to check my progress. It really was not much of a shock that I was now at 10 cm and ready to go. My midwife walked in calmly and began to prepare the staff for a hurried birth. It was 1:15 by the clock that was serving as my focal point during this excruciating time. I chose to lay flat on my back w/ my legs bent, a position that is actually recommended in my Lamaze book to facilitate the process of pushing and minimize tearing. Though it doesn't utilize gravity like squatting does, it does offer a very straight line for the baby to travel. The urge to push was horrid and most ladies know that the body starts to do it's own thing at this point.

With my next contraction, I pushed with all my might, using the knowledge that I did not know the sex to give fuel to my actions. It seemed like forever but by 1:28, the midwife handed me a slippery, wrinkly, bony little GIRL! One of the best moments of my life! Everyone was crying...I couldn't believe my eyes and had to keep looking just to make sure she was real. I cut the cord myself and immediately began nursing little Ruby Lu, while the nurses cleaned her up. She was 6 lbs 6 oz and 18 inches long.

I don't even really remember the afterbirth being delivered or the nurses cleaning everything up, because the room seemed so huge and shiny and Ruby was such a lovely surprise.

Over the past few days, Ruby has become prettier and prettier as she is losing that signature wrinkly look of a newborn. She loves to eat and is doing very well, it seems. I can't stop staring...

The End of an Era...Sort Of.

Blogging has fallen to the wayside, I'm afraid. My 'beauty blog' and facebook page have taken over in a way that I did not expect, but I still enjoy looking at my friends' blogs and commenting on them. Therefore, at this huge turning point in my family's lives, I could not neglect to post an entry. After all, my blog began with our moving into this house in the country. My first blog post was written while we were living in a friend's one-room cabin, a family of four awaiting the completion of their 'house o-dreams'.

My whole life, I had wanted to live in the country. I grew up a predominantly 'city girl', a girl of the suburbs. My husband also lived in 'town', but both of us had grandparents that lived in rural areas and both of us yearned to someday own our own country acreage.

My own grandparents lived in Carthage Tn, on a road that was inhabited by close friends and family. It was like 'paradise' to visit them. The house had been designed by my grandfather, in keeping with his artist needs, and was tucked into the trees. There was a big ol' deck and a gravel drive. There were gorgeous farmlands on both sides of their country road, plenty of room for childish gallivanting, and my childhood 'crush' lived right up the road. I could sneak out at dawn and watch him shimmy up trees and do his morning 'chores'. My good girlfriend also lived right up the lane. I could hang out at her house with my cousins and even walk to the Kingdom Hall on Sunday Morning...a novelty indeed!

So in 2005, when my husband and I felt that our family of four was outgrowing our 1300 sq. foot home, we decided to try our hand at 'building a house'. We found 20 acres for a great price in Pleasant Shade, another area I visited often as a child. We opted to build a home that was only slightly larger than our current home (about 1800 sq. feet) but with all that land, figured we could enlarge whenever we liked. Also, the house would have a basement in the same footprint as the house, providing possibilities to double the square footage when necessary. We had big plans...plans for raising goats and chickens, plans to build another home at the top of our property someday in the future, leaving the house to the kids and thereby keeping the place 'in the family' forever. We planned to start our own businesses, writing or painting, that would eventually make driving that long 35 miles to my husband's current job no longer necessary. I already worked at home after all, and the boys' school could practically be SEEN from the property...just a stones throw away. It was a great little country school with only 55 students and a good reputation. The next best thing to 'home school', if you ask me! The KH was just a mere 10 miles away, the closest we'd ever been to a congregation since our marriage in 1995. The property was also centrally located for shopping, only 15 miles from basic shopping and about 35 miles from several larger shopping options. None of this seemed like a big deal back in 2005, as we watched our house grow from nothing and breathed in the fresh country air around us.

I enjoyed picking out the custom cabinetry for my new kitchen and settling on a lovely 'ocean' color scheme that really suited the bright and airy feel of our home. I actually had a great time scheduling the different workers and paying out of the construction fund, keeping all the paperwork and timing factors in order. My husband and I, contrary to popular belief, did not fight during this time. We were in sync on most things; he left the decorative things to me and I left the structural stuff to him. Our two boys (then ages 5 and 1) loved climbing around on the giant dirt hills, and playing with the rocks unearthed by construction.

There were a few hiccups. We had to re-work the blueprints to suit our needs and the slope of the land. A huge rock caused almost a 3 month delay in the building, due to the fact that it had to be blasted in order for the foundation to be poured. This also made an unexpected and VERY large dent in our budget, causing us to go more than 30,000 dollars over our anticipated amount. We sold our home quickly but the house was not yet ready when we did, so we had to move into the aforementioned cabin for a couple of months before we could close on the new place. The building took about 12 months to complete. Still, we came in at a very decent finish. It appraised for well more than we owed by its completion and we settled in nicely, with a nice big padding of equity in our favor.




Living in the country was great, for the most part. I enjoyed the views, the open air, the freedom. Unfortunately, my husband didn't get to enjoy it like I did, since he worked full time. The upkeep of the property was a bit more time consuming than I imagined and we never DID get around to landscaping. Once we moved in, it became harder to find time for such things, especially when I found out I was pregnant again in 2007. But we still loved our home and my kindergartner was loving his little school.

Then, things began to change. First, the school lost its battle with the state and was shut down. The kids were all shuffled off to a larger school about 10 miles away, making bus transportation necessary for us since carting around my son plus the toddler and my pregnant belly was difficult. Gas prices hiked ridiculously that year...remember? By fall of 2008, it had reached 6.00 a gallon in some places! An unchanging income and a quickly changing economy is bound to have an effect on the average family. Then, the housing market CRASHED...properties everywhere were upside down. Jobs were lost. Initially we wanted to move out west, since we have a deep love for desert climates. But changing jobs in an unstable economy didn't seem like the best bet, so we decided that it would be best to move to an area more convenient to my husband's job and closer to schools and shopping. The house was put up for sale in 2009.

I am not as sad to be leaving it as you would expect. Like I said, the change in the economy caused alot of changes...not only in attitudes but also in priorities. We are now expecting our fourth child and I currently don't have any desire to own property, as odd as that my seem. I don't want that kind of responsibility or the stresses of maintaining property value. I'm ready to be within a mile of shopping. I also hope to take advantage of our proximity to the beauty college. I'd like to get licensed as a stylist so I can start a vintage styling and photography business, eventually. I like not having to worry about the fact that my cars could break down at any moment, knowing that if we absolutely HAD to- we could walk to most things. Heck, we can even order a pizza to our home!

The rental house we found is right smack in the middle of town and is actually larger than the one we live in now. It kind of fell into our lap and we didn't feel we could pass it up. I'm even a fan of the style of the place, which was built in the 1950's and retains much of that original appeal. A more recent 'addition' is less to my taste, but provides the novelty of a large laundry room and a (*gasp*) third bathroom! Most importantly, the schools and jobs are close enough to qualify our continuing to drive to our current congregation, at least for the time being. This was a key factor, since I didn't want the boys to have to deal with changes in every aspect of their lives right at first.

I will, of course, miss this view. I'll miss the smells associated with the country and the fact that my kids could run rampant on the hills without our really worrying about them. But everything has its trade-offs and I'm ready to move on. I'm ready to be a 'city mouse' again, at this point in my life.



All in all, we loved this chapter of our lives and have absolutely no regrets.

Turkey Chipotle Chili Recipe!!

Has it really been since January that I have posted to this blog?? Shame on me!! Anyway, this chili recipe is worthy of 'writing home' about so without further ado:

Turkey Chipotle Chili w/ Corn Cake Toppers
By: Me (based on an altered recipe of Rachel Ray's)

Ingredients
_____________
2 T. EVOO (yep...Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
2 lbs. ground turkey
A sprinkling of dried minced onions
A sprinkling of garlic powder (eyeball it)
a handful of chili powder
one chipotle pepper in adobo sauce (on the ethnic food aisle of your grocery store), chopped
dash of salt
1 cup Negro Modelo beer (yep, the brand is important)
2 c. chicken stock
1 28 oz can of chopped stewed tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans, drained

For the corn cakes:
prepare a package of jiffy cornbread mix according to the box directions for 'corn cakes'. Use plenty of butter and a cast iron skillet!

Instructions:
________________
Heat deep skillet or wide pot over med high heat. Add oil and turkey. Crumble meat as it cooks, about 3 minutes. Add the onions and the garlic powder, and the chipotle. Cook about 5 minutes. Season w/ salt. Add beer and cook long enough to loosen any bits from the bottom of the pan. Add stock, tomatoes, and beans to bring to a bubble. Reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes.

Serve each bowl of chili w/ a corn cake on top...almost like a li'l pie. YUMMMY!

Johnson's Award Winning Essay

This is my nine year old son's essay about lunch. It won first place in the 4th grade, in a county wide contest. :) My son, the journalist.

(spelling and grammatical errors have been left intact)

__________________________________
11:10! It's time! We walk down the Hall. And then it hits you...PIZZA! you go crazy! you sit down, eat it, then you want more. But as always,NO! Here is a few things about lunch...

1. The food is good! Here are some I like...sherbet-comes with Pizza tray. flavors are two, rasberry or orange. Pizza- A main course meal. comes with fries.

2. you get to eat ice cream!
The ice cream you get is a variety. you may Get chocolate. you may get vanilla. But their both good! here is something me and some other kids do...get chocolate milk and put it on your ice cream.

3. the food you eat you will like. From spaghetti to chicken. Pretty much everythings good. Alot of kids love this food. and you will too!

Desert-lots of deserts are handed out on surprise. Maybe its ice cream. maybe its sherbert. or a cookie...you never know what you might get at lunch!

I am looking at the clock right now! Looky there, it's almost 11:10!

THE END

2009 In Pictures...

I saw a wonderful blog entry today entitled 'The Year in Pictures'. What a great idea! I hope everyone will get back on the 'blog-wagon' and do this on their own pages!



January:
A good month for visiting Memphis. My dad gave his first public talk in many years so I wanted to make sure that we visited for that. So me and my buddy Misty took a very quick trip to the ol' hometown and had a great 24 hours. We went shopping at Flashback, had a Karaoke BLAST on Beale Street, and saw the aforementioned talk on Sunday morning. It was a great way to start out the year and to say goodbye to the platinum blonde hair!


February:
After I went 'red' again, I really got involved in my Vintage Styling endeavors. This photo was taken for my Pin Up Series on YouTube, and is based on the artwork of Art Frahm. The channel has given me a sense of accomplishment I would not have expected and is opening doors I didnt know where there. The internet CAN do some good. :)



March:
My favorite photo that was taken this year. My husband had just cut my son's hair and this photo was taken right before the meeting. He took it w/ his PHONE, which is surprising. I love everything about it. The tractor was a nice touch as well. :)




April: Another great Rockabilly Weekender this year in Vegas! This photo of the Haystack Hitones was taken during their reunion performance on Saturday of the event. It was one of my favorite performances of the weekend.


May: For our 14th wedding anniversary we went back to Memphis-town and spent a great couple of nights. We saw 'Hillbilly Casino' with a group of friends at the Blues City Cafe and spent next afternoon at Pa and Mimi's.


June: Over the course of the summer, my husband placed this little figurine at various places in the county and took a photo. I like the idea; I think it documents our area in an interesting way, especially since we might not live in this area much longer. Bittersweet.



July: I love the Wilson County Fair! This sweet horsey was making ice cream by walking on a sort of antique 'treadmill' that was attached to an old fashioned ice cream churn. It was so fun to watch and we kept slipping him treats. The convention was this month too but unfortunately, I didnt get any good photos.


August: This August was fun and included a trip to the Redneck Rumble, a car show in Lebanon that is improving every year. Good bands played and relatively nice cars showed up. But the photo I chose to document the month of August was one of my son's lego creations. I think it's supposed to be The Titanic.


September: This was the month that Misty and I took some photos for my friend Heather and her new line of floral hair clips for ladies. I helped name them 'Belle Blossoms' and she seems to be doing well with this endeavor, shipping items all over the world. It was so exciting to be a part of a project that was just 'getting off the ground', like this.


October: This year, we spent alot of time driving around and really appreciating this area. I am sad that Pleasant Shade School closed right after Johnson finished kindergarten. As it stands, it looks very forlorn and abandoned...the playground equipment is rusted and the grass is grown up. The huge gym would be a FANTASTIC place for a dance or a band to play. How cool would that be?




November: Okay so I stole this photo. We spent the November holiday with friends in Louisiana and I loved this photo because it really conveys the good time/family atmosphere. Plus, the look on Craig's face is priceless!




December: Lastly, I realize we haven't really taken many photos this month. I thought this one was worth posting because its proof that our digital camera is finally dying. The picture quality has steadily gotten more and more screwed up and now, this is the monster it creates. :)

Anyway, as I said, bring on the next decade!

December in a Nutshell...

I refuse to let this blog die! I will at least be posting updates once a month, in spite of the urge to just focus on facebook and communicate my family's status there. :)

This month flew by...as did this whole YEAR, actually. No big news really, but a few changes such as the house bein officially 'on the market' are worth mentioning. We have had no 'bites', as of yet, but I am optimisitic that the spring will bring a few promising offers...hopefully.

The kids are all getting very 'antsy', being at home, and I can't lie and say that I don't look forward to school starting. It gives them structure, and they need that. Especially since I'm so busy working and can't really keep them busy like I wish I could.

On Christmas Day, I did take them up the hill behind our house. It was a healthy jaunt and pretty strenuous since I had to carry the two year old for much of the thorny way. But it reminds me how much I love this property and how beautiful the view is from up there, when compared to the one we have down here at the house. But alas, moving would open up lots of other options that we can't ignore. So hopefully, it will sell and we can quickly move on. I don't see my self 'mourning' over this place much, even if it IS the only house that Nathan and Victor have really 'known'.

Either way, the new year promises lots of interesting things and I'm looking forward to it immensely. Bring on the next decade!

November Galavanting...

In spite of a severe shortage of green and lots of distracting nonsense, we decided to make a trip to Louisiana for the 'holiday' weekend.

We had been sick w/ a virus earlier in the month, a clingy one that just didnt want to give up...the baby had it the worst. He would be well for 24 hours, eating somewhat normally, and then he would have another bad bout of diahrea or vomiting. It was really frustrating and worrisome. However, we came through that pretty well and made rushed around getting ready to depart on Tuesday night of last week.

Instead of heading straight for Talisheek (small town outside of New Orleans where some good friends of ours live) and trying to make the trip in one fell swoop, we opted to go a little out of the way and stop over in Memphis so as to avoid the boys having to be in the car for eight straight hours. The trip to Memphis was unusually slow. It took us 5 1/2 hrs to get there. We basically had just enough time to catch some sleep before leaving early the next morning for Lousiana, by way of jackson Mississippi.

The trip was mostly uneventful...a few hiccups in the form of explosive diapers (not 'the green apple dirties' but something awful, nonetheless) and the price of gas (yikes). But we made it to Abita Springs at about 3pm and were happy to finally see our friends. They really had a great set up for us...we were spoiled by the novelty of sleeping in a nice camper they had drawn up to the house so as to give us privacy and separate sleeping quarters. So convenient! The family we were visiting, New Orleans-ingly known as the Chiassons, are an incredibly hospitable bunch. We enjoyed visiting w/ Craig and Sarah (w/ whom we were staying ) for a while before heading a mile down the road to the rest of the 'Chiasson Compound'-a group of houses clustered together in a chummy way that most families would either dread or love, depending on their closeness. We enjoyed some campfire conversation and yummy libations before heading back over to Craig and Sarah's for dinner and my first encounter with the Wii. I didnt really play it but it does look great. Notes for future shopping lists.

The next day was Thursday. We all went back over to the Chiasson compound for an amazing feast and plenty of good times. There was croquet (which I hadn't played in YEARS), tons of entertainment for the kids, friendly faces, excellent beer, and ACRES of food. Maybe not literal acres...but it felt like it. Gumbo to start, four fried turkeys injected with Creole Butter (oh...my...gah), two kinds of stuffing, delicious potato salad, homemade sweet potato pie, mac and cheese, chocolate cake...all amazing and perfect, of course. The day flew by and I think we all went back for seconds and thirds before finally deciding that our stomachs had reached full capacity. Did I mention the turkey necks? By far the best part. haha

That night, I truly don't remember what we did...oh! Homemade blackberry wine. That's it. :)

Friday the family all piled into several cars and drove across the causeway to the New Orleans Audubon Zoo. We were treated to the zoo trip and are HEARTILY grateful since it was one of the better zoos I've visited. The boys had a blast...they were especially intrigued by the white alligators, which reminded me of white chocolate. That evening, we drove home by way of Magazine Street, a fantastic part of the city that I had only seen on television. I am so anxious to go back and just shop and eat for several days straight. Dinner that evening was the Abita Brew Pub, a special treat.

Since my dad had a public talk on Sunday and we wanted to be sure to make it, we said fond farewells to our friends (can't wait to see ya'll again!) and headed off to Memphis town for the night. Since the kids were suffering from cold symptoms and we didnt want to put too much on them, we opted to stay for the entirety of Sunday (horribly rainy weather anyway) and head home on Monday. And so we did.

I'm tired but thankful for good and generous friends as well as motivated to compensate for some of those calories with renewed energy in a good diet/exercise program.

Great way to bring November to a close!