Pinterest...

Unless you are living under a rock these days, you might have heard of a little thing called Pinterest. I know it has been around for quite a while but it seems as though it have just exploded all over the blog world. I too have hopped on the Pinterest wagon. Shoot! Even Lanie Jo knows how to get to the app on my phone and scroll thought the kid section, that is a picture of her below. The problem with Pinterest is that there are way to many awesome ideas and I end up pinning everything under the sun and know that I will never have the time or money to do them. Oh well. I still keep pinning anyway...

During my mindless pinning I have actually learned some useful tips. I am too lazy to go back and actually link back to my pins... so I will just tell you a few of them that have come in handy.

• Altering jeans so that they fit big thighs and small waists. No more gap! This opens up a whole new world of pants for me.
• Rolling the dice at dinner time. The kids eat as much as they want. Sometimes it really isn't that much. So rather than force them to eat and get all mad, they roll the dice and have to take as many bites as the number that is rolled. This has really cut down on our stressful dinners.
• To shred chicken you put it warm in a Kitchen Aid  with the beater attached turn it on low and then you have perfectly shredded chicken.

Those are my favorite ones off the top of my head. Thank you Pinterest for giving me the opportunity to procrastinate on things that actually need to be done... but really it is pretty awesome.

20,000 questions...

I heard somewhere once that that average 4 year old asks around 450 questions a day. I think that changes for a 5 year old. It turns into 20,000 questions and all the answers that go with it. So this turns the day into constant chatter from my 5 year old boy. 

Bode has such a great imagination. He love to draw maps for treasure hunts. Build huge forts out of cushions, pillows, and blankets. This was this summer and instead of watching Cat in the Hat on TV. He got to work making a Cat in the Hat for him and "Sally" hair for Laine.

Last week Bode had a Thanksgiving snack at school. I had not planned on going. One day Bode asked me why I never come to his class. He said something like all the other moms come, why not you? Break my heart why don't you. I had not planned on coming in until January when thing settled down for us. So after our conversation I decided to go in for the snack. It was fun to see him in his new little world. He was really happy to see me and gave me a big hug and wanted everyone to see his little "Pipes" his name for Piper. It is strange to think he has this whole little world I am not a part of. He has a bunch of little friends and  great teacher. I am glad he is happy with his little life.

Bode is working hard on sounding out words and writing them down. He is always asking for paper and pencils to write with. I love seeing the new things click in his little mind. This is a letter he wrote me. It says, "Dear mom I love you and Piper I love you". Oh Bode, I love you too.

Gobble Gobble...

Our Thanksgiving was nice and low key this year. It was my little family and my parents.

We ate at 12:00 because Jeremiah had to work that day.

We were a bit worried that we wouldn't get it all made in time but my mom slaved away and everything turned out great. I say we but really my mom did more than the lions share of the work.

Thanks mom!

Here we are gathered around the table. I love how the football game is on in the background. How could you have Thanksgiving with out football?

Laine was sick the day before. She had a fever and one nasty poo.

Luckily she was back to her sweet self on Thanksgiving.

This is how the kids spent their day. Playing with the neighbor kids. They had a blast and it was an easy to keep them entertained all day.

For Christmas this year we wanted to get a fun family gift. We have been wanting a trampoline for awhile but they are a bit pricey and kind of ruled it out. Until we saw the walmart black add and one was on sale for $158. So we decided to go for it. Jeremiah had to work so it was up to me to brave the crowds and get the gift. Lucky for me my mom was willing to come with me. We ended up standing in line for about 2 hours. The tramp was going on sale at 10pm so we didn't have to stay up all night. Right before 10 they started handing out tickets to people in line for the items you were in line for. There were 42 trampolines there are we were around the 20th people in line. So they gave us the ticket, we check out at 9:56, went to the car, they loaded it up and we were home by 10:30! It was great. No fighting the crowds or mobs running for things. We are now 1/2 way done with our Christmas shopping. Yay! Now I think on Monday we will put up decorations and start spreading Christmas cheer by singing loud for all to hear :)

Dats my song...

The other day Laine and I were driving in the car listening to the radio. She kept telling me to change the station until we found her song. Well we did. She screamed STOP when we got on Lady Gaga's Poker Face. She jammed out in the back seat through the whole song. Then she got mad when it was over and asked me to find her song again. So I flipped to another station, low and behold, another Lady Gaga song. She jammed out to that song the whole time. So I told Jeremiah that story one morning so he found one of those songs to see what she would do. The music started and she started dancing. Piper had some sweet moves as well.

3 Joncas Babies...

All 3 of these kids love to sleep and look this way. So much so that I have to roll up a small blanket on the right side of their head so they were/are forced to look the other way. 

That we they don't get the dreaded flat head followed my a helmet. Bode was very close to having a helmet.

Do you think they all look alike?

Slow down please...

Newborns change so fast.

This is one of the first pictures of Piper we took on my phone.

So fresh and new except for the gel they put in their eyes after they are born.

We all agreed that she looks like a Joncas baby but she really has her own little look

Here are some of the many pictures I have taken on my phone the past 3 weeks. 

She has changed to much.

This was the first night Jeremiah had gone back to work. Of course it was 12:00 and she was wide awake. I text the picture to Jer and the caption for this picture was,

 "Hi Dad. I have the hiccups and they are keeping me awake".

This is the outfit we took her home from the hospital in. The day we found out she was a girl the kids and I went to pick something pink out for her. This is what they choose. She has such long little legs it was a bit short the day she came home. This is about a week later and those legs must have grown even more because it is even shorter.

This is me trying to force a binky on the poor girl. I may regret it later but for now I am pushing it on her. I think it will come in handy when she is fussy and I need to tend to her older siblings. Despite the look on her face she does seem to enjoy it. Not all the time but in the evening it comes in handy. She like these soothie ones over the nuk ones. I have never had a baby take a binky before so this is uncharted territory.

This is just the other night. She does look like Bode and Laine but she has a smaller less round face. 

I think she looks like Jeremiah. 

When she was 4 days old we took her into the pediatrician for her newborn check up. They found a little click in her right hip. They told us not to worry to much but it could be hip displacia, meaning her hip and hip socket didn't form right and there could be problems. Or it could have been just loose ligaments from birth that would tighten up in a week or so. We had to make a follow up appointment for 2 week to see if there were changes. So for 2 weeks every time I changed her diaper I looked at her hip and just prayed that it would be fine. Worrying  about her and then Bode's whole ordeal were keeping me close to tears at all times. Thank goodness Bode recovered quickly. When I went back in with Piper her hip check out fine. And in her 2 week life she had already gained a pound. Tipping the scales at 9 pound 3 ounces. She is now 3 weeks old and we all lover her to pieces!

You know it has been a good day when...

This is how they find you at the end of the day.

Now that Bode is feeling better he has definitely made up for those lost days at the hospital. We have new neighbors that moved in next door. They have twin boys that are his age and a 4 year old girl. Talk about instant playmates. They moved in about a week ago and every day since then they have been playing nonstop. After we walk home from picking up Bode we play outside in the front for about an hour with the neighbor kids. Bode and Laine have had so much fun. And as a plus for me they are so worn our from playing they have fought less,  are eating their dinner without arguing, and they are tired at bed time. I love it and so they. 

Bode loves school. He really has surprised me with how well he has been doing. I was worried that he wouldn't be able to concentrate long enough and become disruptive. He also was having a hard time with number, math concepts and at times was kind of iffy with his letters before kinder. But to my relief he is right on target with the rest of the kids in his class and has earned an "E" in many areas and meets all the standards that he should be at right now. At his parent teacher conference we leaner that he loves math and loves to share his math strategies with his table mates. She said he is very charming and a helpful kindergartner.

At home he is showing me more and more of what he is learning. It is fun to find his papers through out the house with words on them mixed in with his pictures. He works so hard sounding out words and writing them down. The other morning he wrote his name on a cup of yogurt and then he wrote "Lane" on another one for Laine. So cute. Love that little dude.

Little peeper...

Sweet little Piper

While mom nurses...

I am going to have to keep a close eye on things when I sit down to nurse. You really forget how time consuming nursing a baby can be. Every 2-2 1/2 hours for 20 minutes or so really adds up. It is the prefect time for little people to find trouble. 

I had been washing a few dishes this particular evening. Laine loves to pull up a chair and "help" me. It was time to feed Piper. So I left Laine to do the dishes and I sat on the couch to feed Piper. Laine told me she wanted to take a bath. I told her no, that is was to early and we would take a bath before bed. She tells me, "No mom! I taken a bath!!". I turn around and there she is, buck naked, sitting in the sink, eating apples. Geeze. I had to laugh. I better have something for her to do while I nurse.

Speaking of nursing... I am normally really not a fan of it. I do it because I know it is healthy and the better choice for the baby. My milk never really cooperates with me and I dry out around 4-5 months. Then we switch to formula. I really wanted to nurse Laine longer but again no milk same story with Bode. Plus I was always frustrated being the sole food provider for the baby. That feeling started from the beginning with both Bode and Laine. I feel different this time. I really enjoy sitting down and feeding Piper. She has been a great nurser from the get go. She just latched on with no trouble on both sides and never had any problems. That was so nice. I think we are enjoying it for a few different reasons she could be my last and I want to enjoy the moments because they go by to fast, I like the time it takes to slow down and just focus on her and not everything else going on. I also think the whole skin to skin bonding hour I had with her when she was born was really beneficial. I with that had been the case with Bode and Laine as well. Who know how long this will last. I guess if my milk sticks around and satisfies Piper I might be able to nurse her longer. No matter the case I am enjoying nursing her.

Delaine Jo...

A few days after Piper was born I had a friend come over and take some pictures of her. I was looking on our family picture wall at where I would put them. We need new family pictures taken, in about 15 pounds, Bode has his new school picture and Piper would have cute newborn ones to fill her frame. But Laine's picture is old. It really doesn't even look like her. So I texted Jessica if she wouldn't mind just snapping a few of Laine for me the morning before she was coming to take Piper's pictures. I am glad she didn't mind and I am very pleased with how her little pictures came out. These are just from my back yard. 

Laine has turned into such a sweet girl these days. She loves her "siser" "hiper". She likes to make sure she is warm and even shares her blanket with her. She always tells me "no blankies on her face mom". She asks to hold her every evening, rubs her cheek against hers and gives her kisses. She hasn't been as jealous as I thought she would be, so far... She has already caught onto the whole nursing thing and nurses her babies.

Laine keeps telling me "you feel better mom" or "mom you happy". Poor thing. She will be 3 in January. I think it is safe to assume that she doesn't remember her first year and a half of life. So the things she does remember are probably the last year or so. So for the majority of her little life she has had a pregnant mommy. As much as I try, pregnancy really wears on me and I am pretty grumpy. She notices that an unpregnant mommy is a much nicer mommy. It is true. It has only been 3 weeks and it has been wonderful. I can hold all the kids with out a huge belly in the way, bend over and clean, play on the floor with the kids and play with them outside and actually play not just watch them. I am glad to be back to "happy mom".

Halloween and Month of Thanksgiving...

Laine as Cinderella

Bode as a Ghost Pirate

Piper in a Mommy's Little Pumpkin Halloween outfit.

I think the more kids you add to a picture you just have to be happy you got them all in one spot. Even though no one is smiling, looking at the camera and Bode insisted on making what he called a "creepy pirate face".

After all the chaos around here it was nice to have a normal activity. The original plan was to have Laine go up to my mom's for the week. Bode would have been at school all day and I would have had a week to just relax. But things change. After the weekend we had Jeremiah and I didn't want her to leave us. Plus the kids missed out on the ward trunk or treat so we wanted to take them trick or treating on Monday. It was fun to get my little Cinderella all dressed up with make up and curl her hair. Bode wanted to be a Ghost Pirate and Piper had a cute little Halloween outfit to wear as well.

It was so fun to watch them run from house to house getting candy. All the stress from the last little bit went away as we watched them enjoy the evening. We just walked our neighborhood and came back home. I think the kids had just as much fun handing out candy as they did getting the candy.

This brings me to my Month of Thanksgiving. I have done this in the past, where you take time daily to write down something you are thankful for. I am not promising daily here. Hopefully I will post twice a week. Today I am thankful for little memories. I guess that is the best way to put it. The little memories I have of my children. Like last night them running from house to house, when Bode started walking, how each one of my babies look around while they were/are nursing, Laine's sweet side when she notices someone is upset. I could go on and on but I am thankful for those moments.

Normal would be nice...

So... one week after Piper was born we were back in the hospital.

Last Thursday night Bode got up around 3 in the morning because he said he had a headache. He didn't have a fever but I gave him tylonal and he went back to sleep. He slept in a bit but was ready and happy to go to school when he did wake up.

I got a call from the school around 2:45. I picked him up and he looked pretty sick. He didn't even move when I walked into the nurses office. When we got home it all went down hill pretty fast. I gave him more tylenol  because his fever was right around 101. Then he started to have some labored breathing. We have a nebulizer because just about every time he gets a cold he gets wheezy. So I gave him a treatment and when I went to take it off he started to panic. Like scary chest heaving breathing. So I just left it on and thankfully Jeremiah came home right then. He had been in court all day. He rushed Bode to the urgent care and they told him to go to the ER.

They got him kind of calmed down and decided to admit him into the hospital. Since the hospital closes to us doesn't have a pediatric unit he got transferred to Thunderbird later in the evening. Bode's breathing was really bad, his oxygen levels were low and his heart rate was high.

Seeing as I had literally had a baby 7 days before I wasn't able to go with him. That broke my heart. I felt so helpless sitting around waiting for Jeremiah's updates. Jer was super tired because he had been up late with Piper so I could get a few hours of sleep and then he had court all day. Laine couldn't figure out what was going on. I called Rena and asked if she could come over and spend the night. I was already so physically tired and the stress of Bode's situation I just knew I wouldn't be able to handle taking care of Laine. 

He was transferred to the other hospital to continue breathing treatments. The doctors diagnosed him with a double pneumonia.  After a long night he was seen by a respiratory therapist. He talked with me on the phone and after getting his history and looking at the charts the doctor diagnosed him with asthma. 

This makes so much sense! We had always kind of thought that he might have asthma. Whenever he gets a cold it almost always turns into at least an upper respiratory infection. Any cold he would get I would automatically pull out the nebulozer and do some breathing treatments. They diagnosed him with exercise asthma with one of his biggest triggers a cold. He doesn't get winded when he runs around or plays really just when he gets sick. 

He ended up staying in the hospital for 2 nights and came home Sunday afternoon. I was able to go see him Saturday morning. He was looking much better and was enjoying the attention of the nurses at the hospital. Jeremiah was so tired. I felt awful that I couldn't give him a break. I got to visit with Bode for about and hour while Jer sat in the car with Piper. Bode was excited to see me. He showed me his iv, the pulse monitor. He told me all about the tests they ran on him and that he liked this hospital better than the other one because in the other one they made him wear a gown with pink in it. At this one he got awesome ones that were blue. I hated to leave him there but he was in good hands.

He was sent home with a plethora of medicines and asthma treatments. We are going to do a follow up appointment and get set up with a respiratory therapist to learn more and keep it under control.

I am so grateful for great family, friends and our ward for all the help gave us the last week. We have had meals brought in, my house was all cleaned by ward members and Laine was watched over so I didn't have to worry about her at all.

Now we are on the way back to normal. It was an emotional week and I am glad it is over.