Alison's Wonderland

Lazy days of summer

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 01:03:00 +0000

Yeah right...there are no lazy days at the Donoho house. It is just crazy. Since Josiah has been out of school we have had a trip to Indianapolis, had several t-ball games, made two trips to Brad's parents, had my family visit for a few days, spent many hours at the church getting ready for Roamin' Sandals (VBS)...not to mention I am still working three days a week. Whew. No wonder I haven't blogged in awhile.

I would love to have a post for every one of these events, but I don't see that actually happening. So this is what you get:

In Indianapolis we went to the Indy Children's museum and zoo. It was a great fun family trip.

Our two trips to my in-laws consisted of a huge yard sale and a relaxing weekend. My in-laws have a great house and lots of room and a great place for a yard sale and we had a lot of things to sell. So one weekend we spent there trying to sell things. We still have a lot left. Then my in-laws went on a trip and we stayed the weekend at their house. We went there to mow but did a lot of other things too!!

Josiah and his friend, Cameron played on the orange t-ball team. We weren't sure how Josiah was going to do with it all. The first game was a little rough but by the end of the season he was doing great. We are so proud of our little ball player.

My brother, sister-in-law and niece came up from Georgia for a visit. We did a lot of things including going to the Magic House and the Muny. The Little Mermaid was playing at the Muny and perfect for our 5 year olds. The other perfect thing was that it rained only during intermission and it cooled things off. (yep, we even had to wear jackets)

So that is the first part of our summer in pictures. Hopefully, I can be more up to date with the next part.

What? I can't hear you!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 02:30:00 +0000

For the last few weeks it has been hard to have conversations outside because of all the cicadas. I first started to notice them around my door frame. I didn't know what they were. I just knew they looked gross.

Then I started to see more and more of them. We went on vacation right before Memorial Day. When we got back the bugs and their shells were everywhere.

I started to ask about them at work and they started talking all about the 13 year cicadas but none of them had any of them. Basically from what I have learned, for 13 years the cicada nymphs have been underground feeding on tree and shrub roots. Then once they emerge from the ground they find something to "dry out" on and then the winged adult cicada will draw itself out of the nymphal skin. Hence all the shells, which I had so many under my tree that I could have shoveled them.

But as fast as they came, they are now gone. Something interesting is that they were/are so much worse in Godfrey than Alton. I liked the noise. It just reminds me it is summer. I didn't like having to wear shoes outside all the time, the crunching noise when I walked outside and the imprint the swooshed cicadas made on the driveway.

If you don't have any 13 year cicadas here is your taste of them: (speaking of taste, I hear they are a good source of protein!)

5 years and 6 months

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Wed, 04 May 2011 17:10:00 +0000

Over the past couple of weeks, Josiah had his 5th birthday and Adele is now 6 months old. I know I keep saying this but I can't believe how fast time goes.

Adele is now getting up on all fours and scooting backwards. She can sit up on her own for a few minutes but then topples over. She has tried most all of the baby foods and really likes them. Her weight is 15lbs 3 oz and she is 26 1/2 inches long. She sleeps pretty well at night but some nights are better than others. She loves watching people especially her big brother. She really tries to talk but her tongue gets in the way. She smiles at everyone.

Josiah is a wonderful 5 years old boy. He is loving and the best part of my day is when he says, "I love you, Momma". He is 44 pounds and 44 inches tall. He loves animals except when he doesn't know they are there especially snakes (okay at the zoo, not okay in the yard). He played his first tball game yesterday and he did great. We are so proud. He gets along with friends at preschool and church. He is going to Kindergarten next year at Gilson Brown. We are really impressed with the school so far. His favorite color is blue but a close second is orange (go figure). He asks many questions and remembers everything.

I feel overjoyed and blessed to have these two children. Whenever I am having a bad day, just thinking of them brings me a smile. I started this blog days ago but it is fitting that I am finishing it on Mother's Day.

I am so blessed to be a mother to these two kids!!

How did this happen??

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 03:33:00 +0000

Yesterday I signed Josiah up for Kindergarten. I can't believe it. It seems like this was just yesterday:

When he was a baby, I couldn't wait for him to get older. I wanted to him to be able to laugh, talk, and walk. With Adele it is so different because I know that they are only babies for a such a short time. I want her to stay a baby for a long time.

I remember trying to convince the preschool teachers to take him when he was two. Now I want them to keep him there forever. (Okay not really!) It is just the older he gets, the less he seems to need me. Which I know isn't true either. I just want to protect him forever. I never want him to to get hurt physically or emotionally. But I know that is part of growing up.

His first day of preschool in September 2009:

In signing him up for Kindergarten, they screened him to see what things he knew. I knew that this may be a struggle and I was right. He wouldn't talk to them. He eventually answered enough questions that they decided he was just being shy and not that he didn't know it. The last thing they did was read him a story and he was supposed to answer questions about it. He didn't say a word. Later when we got home, he retold the whole story to Brad. He told us he just didn't talk because he was shy. I have a feeling the first day of Kindergarten is going to be hard on both of us. It is such a big transition. I had someone tell me that it is almost as hard as sending them off to college. Luckily, that is a few years away!!

Put me coach, I am ready to watch them play!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Thu, 31 Mar 2011 23:53:00 +0000

Today is Opening Day!! I just love baseball season. Don't get me wrong, I love Illini football and Illini basketball but there is something extra special about Cardinal baseball. I am sure some of it is because we are so close to St.Louis and have taken Josiah to several games. Seeing everything through his eyes is always special.

I also love how long the season is and how many games there are. You hardly ever have to wonder what to watch on TV. The Cards are usually on. It is actually something Brad and I will watch together.

It is a conversation piece with almost everyone (at least around this area). There is always Cards/Cubs trash talk. Call me "wrong" but I like watching to see if there are any fights or someone running into the wall making a good play. Those things are conversation pieces that can last awhile. Do you remember the fight with the Reds last year?

Cardinal baseball just reminds me of long days and lazy evenings, hot dogs and big pretzels, Mike Shannon "get up baby, get up, get up" sayings, feeling bad when someone "blows the save" again (after awhile I don't feel bad for them), Tony Larussa's bubbly personality (not) and tying to figure out what Molina is actually saying. AHHH, I LOVE THE CARDS!

UABC Reflection

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 15:25:00 +0000

About 5 1/2 years ago, God brought us to Upper Alton Baptist Church where Brad became the Lead Pastor. (It is so hard to believe it has been that long ago.) Instantly we were in love with and loved by the people of the church. That has not changed at all. On one hand not much has changed, on the other hand, so much has changed.

Lately I have been on kind of a UABC "high". I see so many amazing things happening:

A couple of weeks ago there were seven kids in the nursery (birth - age 3). And that isn't including 2 babies that were in the church service or one baby that is on-the-way.

We have had almost 20 + kids in our EDGe (Children's church for preschool - 6th grade). That was something that was started about 3 years ago.
Tonight there were 15 Scooters (Preschool - K) in our Wednesday night Pioneer Club program. There has been around 30 for the whole Pioneer Club program (Preschool - 6th grade). The oldest group (5th and 6th grade) have been around 10 every week.
Looking at the people around our Gathering (contemporary) service, it looks completely different than it did when we first moved here. There are many new families coming and many of those are because of the preschool.
We have started a Girls Group Bible study for our middle and high school girls. I am really focusing on making this group flourish.
There are several small groups, classes, and opportunities to serve inside and outside the church family.

I could go on and on.

I just feel so blessed that we are raising our family in this church. Thank you, God.

It won't be like this for long!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Sat, 05 Mar 2011 06:13:00 +0000

I have always said I am not a newborn person. Some people just gush over babies, but not me. I said I wanted my kids to come out walking and talking. The first few months after Josiah was born was rough but I knew it would be. Every stage got better....he started to smile, then he started to laugh, then he crawled, then he walked, then he talked, then he never stops talking....it goes on and on. I dreaded going back to the newborn stage with Adele.

It seems that I enjoyed the "newborn stage" a little more with Adele. I was freaked out when she started to roll over because I thought it was way too early. I just want her to slow down a little. I don't know if it is because she is probably our last baby or because I just know how fast the time goes (Josiah is going to Kindergarten in the Fall). It just seems I want her to be a baby longer. I want to hold her as she falls asleep. I want her to giggle when we play Peek-a-Boo. I want to know that when I set her down somewhere, she won't move (too much)

The other day I heard the Darius Rucker song, "It won't be like this for long." It pretty much sums it up for me:
"It won't be like this for long
One day soon that little girl is gonna be
All grown up and gone
So (s)he's trying to hold on."
Yep I am holding on and enjoying the ride!

So who does she look like....

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Fri, 04 Mar 2011 06:48:00 +0000

Josiah at 4 months old....

Adele at 4 months old....

I think they may be related.

Four months and a year ago

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 04:35:00 +0000

It seems that I have next to no time to blog. I enjoy it and wish I would do it more. Sometimes I just feel that I have nothing to post or I am too tired to be creative about it. I always say I will be better at it and I will say that again! So hopefully I will be.

This is a special day. Today Adele is four months old! The time has gone fast. She has got so much personality. She is very "curious" and wants to know everything that is going. When she is eating, she likes to sit up to see what is going on. She is particularly interested in Josiah. It is very difficult to get her to drink her bottle when Josiah is around. She smiles at everyone. She loves "talking" to us too.

I am also thinking about this week last year. It was this week last year that I found out I was pregnant. It was February 18th to be exact. It was the most exciting and scary thing. I was thrilled and terrified at the same time. I grew (in more than way) this past year. I feel overly blessed with my family and friends God has given me.

When I just take time to sit and breath, I can't help but smile. Thank you, God!

Don't forget to zip your pants

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 03:10:00 +0000

I loved being pregnant. I loved the attention. I loved complete strangers helping you because they just know you are fragile. I loved having a reason to be "crazy". And I loved maternity clothes. You get a whole new wardrobe because you "have to". And you don't even have belts or zippers. Going to the bathroom is so much easier, which is good because when you are pregnant you do that a lot more.

I sometimes miss being pregnant but not enough to do it again. And now when I am with Adele, I still get attention. (it amazes me how people flock to babies)

Right before I got pregnant I lost some weight. I don't know how, I just did. But I didn't get many new clothes because I knew I was going to get bigger and who knew if I would ever be back to that size. To my amazement the day I came home from the hospital, I could put on regular jeans. No more quick bathroom trips. (but it does take awhile to remember to zip your pants!) It took me a little while to get into my "skinny jeans" but I did it.

Before going back to work I wanted to buy some new clothes so Jenna and I went to JcPennys. While we were there we decided to have some fun and try on some dresses. I soon wanted an occasion to wear a dress. I couldn't believe I actually looked good. But I didn't have any reason to buy it, so I didn't. I kept thinking about it and decided I needed a picture of it (I didn't have a camera that day). I tried to do it myself but that didn't work out so well. My mom was in town for the day and she had some coupons for JCPennys so she bought me some khakis but I also tried on the dress to have her take a picture. I am just glad Mom knows me, and didn't think this was a strange request.

This is the last pregnant picture:

Three months later:

I would also like to say that no Spanks were involved in the taking of this picture. I kind of made some other women in the dressing room jealous.

I do have a feeling it will catch up to me. I am no longer nursing or pumping since we figured out that Adele is sensitive to lactose. I haven't changed my eating habits much since I was pregnant. But right now, I am happy at how I look in this dress. And that so far I have remembered to zip my pants.

"I think she is fun."

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 04:35:00 +0000

One thing I had the most emotional breakdowns while pregnant was about how having a baby would effect Josiah. I was worried he would have a hard time adjusting and that he would be upset with us about having a baby, etc, etc. Yeah my mind just goes on and on about that sort of stuff. In talking about it to anyone who would listen, I learned that we are not going to ruin his life by giving him a sister.

I was prepared for him to "want to send her back" or simply ignore her. I expected for him to have some set backs with school or be more needy.

Josiah failed to meet my expectations by once again proving to me I need not to worry. Josiah has been a wonderful big brother. He has become more independent and willing to help in anyway he can. He plays with her and interprets her coos.

He has even said, "she is fun" and she doesn't really do much. Not sure if he will think that when she is big enough to mess up all his toys.

But I pray that they will always make each other smile.

We agreed!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Wed, 05 Jan 2011 04:36:00 +0000

A few weeks ago, Brad and I were both glued to the TV watching something other than Illini games. See that is about the only thing Brad and I agree on to watch on TV. Most of the time he is disgusted with the shows I choose to watch.

But for about 3 weeks, twice and week we watched the Sing Off. It was an acapella singing competition. Each show the groups would sing one or two songs then three judges would choose one or two groups to go home. Brad would always seem to pick the group that would be sent home correctly. All the groups were really good but I really liked Committed and they ended up winning.

Here is a taste of Committed:

I just wish the show lasted longer. But once again, Brad and I are arguing about what constitutes something worth watching.

Day One---Over

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 04 Jan 2011 03:18:00 +0000

I can't believe that Adele is 10 weeks old. I can't believe I went back to work today and I can't believe I haven't blogged since she was born.

So much has happened in the last ten weeks that I don't know that I can even begin to blog about it all. But I will try to post some pictures and some stories. Let's say it is a new year goal.

Today I went back to work after being off for 10 weeks and out of the office for 11 (the last week before she was born, I worked from home.) I had been dreading this day for weeks. I wasn't sure how I was going to do it. Not really the leaving Adele part but more the having to get up and be presentable and be at work at a certain time part. Brad and I worked out a plan for him to take Addie to the babysitter early after her first feeding. Then he would go to work and I would drop Josiah off at preschool then I would go to work. Then after preschool Brad and Josiah would pick Addie up from the preschool.

Today it worked well. Brad didn't get to the office as soon as he wanted but I think that will get better. I actually missed Adele a little more than I thought I would. I got a little teary eyed a couple of times. All I really got done at work was going through my emails and caught up on what I missed with the program.

Tomorrow is Day 2 of going back to work. I hope it is as successful as the first.

The Story

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 21:49:00 +0000

She is here! Yes, but how did she get here? I like hearing those stories. It is like how you got engaged. The important part is that you are engaged just like the important part is that a baby was born. I like to know how you got you engaged. Just like I want to know how about labor and delivery. Lucky for me, I have some good stories.

This is the story of how Adele got here:
As I wrote before I was dilated to a 3 for a couple of weeks and then a 4 for a week. Last Thursday, the 21st, I had another appointment where the doctor checked me and said, "You are a good 5." She also said not to "dilly dally" if things start to happen and she gave us her home and cell numbers.

After my exam I felt a little sore in my back. After laying down at home for a little bit I went to Book Club at church. At Book Club, I updated everyone about my progress (which they were all surprised I was that far along and the doctor didn't send me to the hospital) and talked about the book we read. About 7:30 I had this horrible pain in my back. I stood up and I guess the look on my face told others that it was a contraction. I never had back labor with Josiah so I didn't know that was happening. I said, well I will go home and see what happens. The women said, you need to stay to see how far apart they are. I had another one in three minutes.

They coached me to call Brad and the doctor. When I told Brad what was happening he said, "do I have time to put Josiah in his pajamas?" I said, "don't dilly dally". At first I was going to have Brad pick me up at church but it soon was clear that I needed to go to the hospital right away. Also we needed to get Josiah to our friends house where he was going to stay. My friend Michelle drove me to the hospital followed my another friend who was going to take Josiah from Brad. We were lucky to find a wheelchair right away. The ER lady made us register even though I was already preregistered. She said, "we have plenty of time" because my water hadn't broke yet. So I registered (meanwhile squeezing Michelle's hand during every contraction), got to the OB floor where they had to examine me to make sure I was in labor.

She examined me and I was dilated to a seven. She moved me to a room and asked me if I wanted an epidural. I said that I did. Once in the room, there were several nurses trying to get stuff together and they said, "so this is the lady making us run around like crazy." Michelle was with me for awhile and Brad got there. The nurse said to me, "okay you can wait for the anesthesiologist on call to come in to give you an epidural that may not work or have the doctor come in, break your water and just do it." They said that they couldn't give me drugs that would take effect in time.

Dr. Wikoff came in ready to break my water but really didn't find any water to break. They said, the next contraction you can start pushing, finish dilating and have this baby in the next 15 minutes. So that is what I did. The pain was horrible. I wanted to give up. But I didn't, and at 9:03, she was born. That is an 1 1/2 hours after my first contraction, an hour after I got to the hospital, a half hour after Brad got there.

Some things that happen when you go that fast is that you don't have time to get paperwork done or labs drawn. The nurse was filling out paperwork and one of the questions was if my water was intact. She and the doctor had a discussion about it and they weren't sure. I guess since Adele is fine then they weren't going to worry too much about it. They just waited until the morning to have the labs done. The lab tech came in and starting talking to me about taking blood and then she says, "has your water broke, yet?" I said, "I already had the baby." Then she touches my stomach and says, "you are right, they usually do these before giving birth." Yeah, you read right: she touched my stomach to make sure I had the baby!

I very thankful I was close to the hospital, with friends and listened to them when I went into labor. It was painful but it was only painful for a few minutes. Seeing her for the first time was truly amazing.

She is here!!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 26 Oct 2010 04:46:00 +0000

Adele Elizabeth Donoho

10-21-10; 9:03 p.m.

7 lbs 1 oz; 19 1/2 "

Adele is my mom's mother's name and my middle name. I have loved that name for years and I am glad Brad liked it too. We are all doing well.

Confessions of a Waiting Pregnant Mom

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 00:32:00 +0000

On April 26, 2006, 38 weeks pregnant, I started to feel some pains in my stomach. These pains got to the point that I couldn't ignore them, sleep or do anything else. We went to the hospital and I was dilated to a 2. After walking around the hospital for awhile and being checked again, it was decided that I was in labor and we would have a baby soon. At 1:01 p.m. on April 27th, Josiah was born. From the time they decided I was in labor till when he was born was 6 hours.

On September 22, 2010, 35 weeks pregnant, the doctor tells us I am dilated to a 3. What!?! I was a 2 when I went into the hospital with Josiah. She says, "of course you could be that way for awhile." Well this definitely put a fire under us to get more done around the house. Last Friday we had another doctor appointment and she said now I am 4 and "it could be anytime". But we are still waiting.

So what things does a waiting pregnant person do:
-- Has to take a shower everyday even if you never leave the house. You want to be ready to leave at a moments notice which means being clean. You also need to shave your legs and look presentable because there will be pictures taken that you will look at forever.
-- Every night before going to bed, I think of scenarios of how to get Brad and I to the hospital and Josiah to a responsible person if I go into labor at any point of the next day. Also wondering if I will wake up in the middle of the night in pain or in a puddle of water.
--Keeping the house somewhat picked up.
--Is aware of every little pain and wonders: "could this be it?"
--Answers the question: "Are you feeling anything?" a lot. Including by my husband who usually asks on Saturday night before finishing up his sermon. Once I say that I feel fine. He goes and works on his sermon. (what is the point on working on it if we are in the hospital)
--Lay on the couch a lot. Josiah says that is all pregnant people do.

But more importantly this time has allowed us more time to be a family of three. I have really cherished these last moments before our family is blessed with another member.

So we will just see how much more waiting there is left.

Update

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 02:19:00 +0000

It seems as if lately I have either had nothing to blog about, didn't have the energy or Brad had my computer. I am sure it is more of the last two because I can always find something to talk about.

We are about two weeks away from due date but no one really thinks we will last that long. Three weeks ago I was already dilated to a 3. But I feel the longer she is in there, the better. However, having her a little older through winter would be nice. I am not one to stay at home so hopefully she likes to be out too.

I wouldn't say I am ready. I would say I am ready to move onto the next phase in our lives. I am ready to see how Josiah is with her. I am ready to dress her in all these cute clothes. I am ready to be on maternity leave.

I would say the thing I am most concerned about is Josiah. So far he has loved the idea of her and is excited to be a big brother. I am just not sure if he knows what that all entails. I hope his excitement and willingness to help will continue after she is born. I am sure that me seeing him with her will make me love him even more, if that is possible.

Our house is a bit of a mess. It is mostly piles around. We are getting rid of Josiah's baby clothes, cleaning and organizing baby girl clothes. I bought a ton of girl clothes at garage sales. Brad says I can't go to anymore garage sales until I find a place for everything I have got.

I am enjoying my last few days of "me time". Brad and I both have Fridays off and Josiah has school. Last week we went on a date for lunch. It was nice. Lucky for us, she will be sleeping a lot in the beginning so maybe we could do that again.

Fall is here!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 02:41:00 +0000

With everything going on right now, I haven't had time to get any fall decorations out. But luckily my mom brought one for Josiah. They had fun putting it together and deciding where it should go. I hope to get more decorations out sometime but I may just start on Christmas now.

Check it off the list

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Sat, 11 Sep 2010 23:48:00 +0000

We made our first purchase on Craigslist today. For some reason I just happened to be on Craigslist. I know somewhat about ebay but know next to nothing about Craigslist. And right now I am not sure of my thought process on Tuesday night that I ended up looking for dressers on Craigslist but that is what happened.

See, one of the things needed for the transition for Baby Girl is to get a dresser for Josiah. Josiah's dresser will go back into the nursery for the baby.

It didn't take me too long to come across a listing for a large, hand-made, natural finish dresser. Right away I thought it was great because they were only asking $50. Brad is not an impulse buyer or an impulse anything really. So I was ready to "lose out" on this one. However, after a couple of emails with the buyer, Brad says, "let's go for it".

Today Brad drove over to Kirkwood, MO to pick up the dresser. He had some extra muscles because we were told it is heavy. I was impressed when I got to see it. It is really nice. Yes, it has been used and has some scratches but overall it is in good shape.

Here is a picture of it...the blue tape are numbers so we know which drawer goes where. This isn't where it is going but it is where we had room right now.

I am very pleased with our first Craigslist experience. I am ready to do some more searching.

Crunch Time

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 31 Aug 2010 02:26:00 +0000

It is less than two months until our due date. Part of me thinks it went fast but part of me thinks that cold day in February when I took that pregnancy test was a long time ago. You would think with all that time, we would have everything ready for Baby Girl to arrive, but no we are not ready.

A few months ago Brad put a countdown until our due date on his computer. At that time said, when that gets down to 60 days, it is "crunch time." It is now 58 days. We still have a lot (okay not a lot but more than a little) to do. We are painting the basement. Part of the basement is going to become the playroom so that the current playroom can be turned back to the nursery. So after the painting, there is moving stuff around. We have to find a new dresser for JT's room because his dresser needs to be moved back into the nursery for a changing area. (this is turning into a "to do" list) We don't have to buy many things and I have gotten a ton of clothes from garage sales.

I would like to get into the "nesting" stage so I can get more things done but right now I am just not seeing that happening. I am content just laying on the couch.

Here is a pregnancy picture for you, Mom. (she wanted to make sure I was taking pictures of this pregnancy like I was for JT.) I really like being pregnant. :)

What is the name?

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 00:57:00 +0000

Yesterday Brad and I celebrated our 9th anniversary. We actually didn't do much celebrating yesterday but we did have leftovers for lunch and Taco Bell for dinner together. And we did have a date night last Sunday.

In honor of our anniversary I will tell you a funny story that happened shortly after our honeymoon.

In fact it was when I was picking up pictures from our honeymoon. Back then, you had rolls of film and in order to get the rolls into pictures you had to go to Wal-Mart (or at least I did) and put those rolls of film, containing precious memories, into an envelope and drop them into a box in hopes that in a few days you would in fact get the pictures that were on that roll. I have 3 of those said rolls of film. I was excited when filling out the envelope and putting my last name as "Donoho".

I waited those few days and then found myself at the picture counter at Wal-Mart. The clerk says, "What is the name?" Excitedly, because I am newly married and getting to use my married name say, "Donoho". The clerk is looking and looking. Then she said, "Did you say your last name is 'Ho'? I say, "No my last name is Donoho, my name is not Donna Ho!".

From then on, I say, "My last name is Donoho". Brad says, he has never had a problem with it. But oh our poor daughter.

Here is one of the pictures on one of the rolls of film:

Let's Hear for the Boy

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 10 Aug 2010 03:36:00 +0000

I love musicals. It is something my parents introduced me to as a child. I am not sure the first time I went to the Muni in Springfield but I remember seeing many, many shows. Grease has always been my favorite musical. Bye, bye Birdie, Sound of Music, Fiddler on the Roof, Seven Brides for Seven Brothers, and South Pacific are all ones I could watch over and over. I am grateful that Brad also loves musicals. He was in musicals in high school and his favorite is Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat.

Since Brad and I have been married, we try to see at least one musical a year. We even checked out a local musical when we were on our honeymoon. We have seen several musicals at the Muni in Springfield and know we have gone to few at the Muny in St.Louis. I like Springfield's a little better because it is smaller and all of the people in the shows are local. But St.Louis is closer. Josiah got his first taste of the Muni when my mom took him to see Suessical.

On Sunday Brad and I went to see Footloose at the Muny. It was a late birthday/anniversary date for us. Footloose is one of my favorite movies. I remember singing along to the cassette soundtrack of it. I was singing about things I didn't even know what they meant like, "This girl gets around." I remember several years later watching it again and realizing they were smoking pot during the chicken tractor race. I was shocked.

Footloose the musical had many of the same songs that were in the movie. The story was very close to the movie. It was an interesting musical because the dancing was minimal because the whole storyline is that they couldn't dance in that town. Of course in the end there was much more dancing. In fact Brad had to hold me back from going on stage for the finale. All in all the musical was good. It was hot and the people in front of us brought a young boy who was not wanting to be there.

I think one of the things I like the most about musicals is that I wish I was up there. I love to sing and dance, I am just not good at any one of them. But I like to be "on stage" so to speak. (that is after I get over my nerves) So I always admired people who could do that. So I sing and dance around the house and Josiah joins me. He makes up words to songs all the time. Hopefully he will get his musical talent from Brad.

Was I supposed to do something?

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 00:35:00 +0000

Over the past few months I have noticed I am forgetting things. It started with forgetting things at the store, forgetting my water bottle everywhere, not remembering if I did something I was supposed to or not, or whether or not I took my medicine. It was driving me crazy. I knew that forgetting things while pregnant wasn't something I was just making up so I looked it up on the trusty internet. It is called "Pregnancy Brain Fog." (see I knew I wasn't making it up) Basically it can be blamed on hormones, as can everything else.

Brad thinks he can blame his forgetfulness on sympathy pregnancy brain fog. However, he was forgetful before I was pregnant. It always amazes me that he can remember something he learned in 5th grade history but can't remember something I told him yesterday.

My PBF (as I like to call it) hit its high (or low) point when after going through our deep freeze I forgot to put one of our frozen meals back in the freezer. It wasn't discovered until the next morning. One night as I was relaxing in the couch, Brad said to me, "I know you are pregnant and you are having trouble remembering things, but could you try and make an extra effort to close the cabinet doors in the kitchen." :) I have been trying to work on that but right now I have no clue where my water bottle is, what time my doctor appointment is tomorrow or anything I learned in 5th grade history.

Supposedly it gets better once the baby is born. We shall see.

To Sir With Love

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 04:28:00 +0000

Okay you all know by now I am a huge Glee fan. I have a slight crush on Will. It isn't that I have a crush on the actor (if he wasn't Will, I wouldn't think anything about him)... I have a crush on the character. The thing I like the most about Will is how much he cares about the students in Glee.

I come from a family of teachers. I am not a "teacher" but I am in the education field. Teachers work hard for little, they get treated badly, and get little appreciation. They do it because of those moment when the student finally "gets it", for running into an old student and them saying, "you helped me get ready for my high school classes", and for summer breaks. :)

When I saw this on the last episode of Glee, I cried (what can I say, I am pregnant). It just speaks or sings to the importance of teachers. (do you hear me, State of Illinois!!)

It's A Girl!!

noreply@blogger.com (Alison) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 04:20:00 +0000

On June 2nd Brad, Josiah and I got to see another peek at our newest addition. We were all excited to see the baby again and to make sure it was developing as it should. But this was also when they could tell if we were having a girl or a boy. It didn't take her long to let us know we are having a girl!

Immediately Josiah said, "I told you it was a girl". From the moment we told him we were having a baby, he said it was a sister. We would say, "would it be okay if it is boy?" He would say, "yes but it is a girl." As the tech person was getting all the pictures she needed, Josiah looked at the screen and says, "see she has a dress on."

How did I feel about having a girl?
All I could ask for was a healthy baby. If the baby wasn't healthy, we would deal with that too. I grew up in a one boy, one girl family and that is what I wanted. I knew that I only wanted two kids so whatever God gave us that was it. I didn't want to be upset if we were having a boy so I kept telling myself it was a boy. When she told us it was a girl, I was excited. But it wasn't long before I thought about doing hair, prom, weddings, drama, and tights. I was thinking, "what I am going to do with a girl?" I then quickly realized she might not like getting her hair done or where tights or like drama (I could only hope). I really feel that for awhile there won't be much difference between raising a boy and a girl. I don't see any reason to get different toys at this point. I have gotten some girl clothes but I do think she can wear some of Josiah's newborn clothes. I mean a onesie is a onesie, right? We are leaving the nursery the same. Brad is going to buzz her hair like he does Josiah's (okay that might be going a little far). I have come to think about all the wonderful things about girls, like they carry their own stuff in a purse, and more importantly how Josiah is going to be a wonderful big brother.

We feel so blessed to have the family I have. Thank you God.