The Sandell Family

Five Months

2012-03-22T10:04:00.000-04:00

Maura turned five months old! This last month has been a true blessing, as the first four were not easy. Her eating, sleeping and overall disposition is great. God answered our countless prayers to heal Maura.

What has been the best part?
The best part has been watching Maura flourish this past month. Before, Maura was not a happy eater, which usually affected her sleep, which then affected her demeanor. Now, she eats, she sleeps and she is such a happy girl! I feel like we have uncovered the real Maura, and that is definitely the best part.

What has been the hardest part?
The hardest part is balancing the needs of each child and their different schedules. Maura needs her routine, which can be limiting for the rest of us, and Holden loves to be on the go, especially outside. We try to get out at least once a day (weather permitting), but a lot of times the scheduling just doesn't line up to do more. Hopefully I can work on this in the coming weeks.

What has been the most surprising part?
I have always heard that children close in age are also close emotionally and become the best of friends. I feel like we are already seeing signs of Maura and Holden's developing friendship. Holden is always quick to point out when Maura is awake and loves to go and see her. He will make sure she has toys to play with - well, as long as they aren't his! And, Maura just adores her big brother! One of my favorite moments each day is taking Maura in to see Holden when he gets up from his afternoon nap. Holden gives her the biggest smile and starts laughing, and Maura laughs back at him. This goes on for a while, and it is my little slice of heaven each day.

What has been the most memorable story from this month?
This may not be a story, but the most memorable event this month was that Nathan started working at the Mark Center five days a week, and I finally learned what it was like to be a 'normal' mom. Sometimes that means letting Holden wander around the house unsupervised while I am feeding Maura, and sometimes that means having Maura cry while I am changing Holden's diaper. I have not left the house too often, but when I have, we all survived.

What has Maura learned this month?
She is taking three naps a day (the first is about two hours, the second is an hour and a half and her third is about an hour). Maura is still exclusively breastfeeding, and she is doing a much better job eating. We no longer struggle to get her to eat. The best news, though, is that she is sleeping through the night.
Maura no longer uses a swaddle, she can roll from her back to her tummy (and often stays there), she is starting to sit-up a little, but is still very wobbly, and she is starting to pivot around when she is on her tummy. She mostly sleeps on her side or tummy in the crib, and we always find her in a new spot each morning.

What have you learned this month?
I learned not to doubt Babywise! I know the book is controversial, but it has been a blessing for both of my children. Maura is thriving on her routine and I just needed to have more confidence in letting her develop that routine.

Giggles

2012-02-19T07:00:00.000-05:00

January 24th is officially the first time Nathan and I heard Maura laugh, but yesterday, we were able to catch her adorable giggles on film.

While we are still clueless on how to encourage Maura to sleep through the night and, more importantly, eat nice full meals, God is so good to give us such encouragement through her little milestones. Maura's smiles are so big and contagious and, as you will hear, her laugh never fails to make me laugh and smile along with her.

Friends

2012-02-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

Holden, Maura and I were blessed to have our great friends, Crystal and Ava, come over for a playdate this week.

Holden and Ava play very well together. They share toys, make each other laugh and all-in-all have a good time. Even today, Holden is looking at the door and saying, "A-Wa."

I also get a great benefit because I truly enjoy and cherish my friendship with Crystal. Her heart is on fire for God, she is a great wife, and a truly amazing mother. I always walk away refreshed after spending time with her.

Hopefully our families can get together again soon!

Valentine's Day

2012-02-14T13:10:00.000-05:00

We had a great Valentine's day this year - Maura's first, Holden's second and Nathan and my's NINTH!

Holden, Maura and I started the day by going to our Mothering Matters group and decorating sugar cookies (thanks Jenny for baking!). Maura also got some new (used) clothes from Jenny's daughter Rachel.

After we arrived home, Nathan had a dozen red roses and chocolates waiting for me. He also had a beautiful card for me, and one from Holden as well. But, the best card Nathan had was for Maura. In it he wrote to her, "I want to try my best to be the man in your life from now until you find a Godly man of your own." Those words still bring tears to my eyes.

In our mailbox, Maura and Holden received Valentine's from their Great-Nana, G-Pa and G-Ma. Holden LOVED the stickers and immediately started putting them all over his body.

We ended our night with a nice, romantic dinner at our table, from Panera. Clean-up was a breeze.

The past nine Valentine's days have made my life - and I cannot wait to celebrate more and more with my perfect-for-me husband, and my best-for-me children.

Valentine Sunshine

2012-02-11T08:42:00.000-05:00

I saw this craft on another blog and thought it would be cute to try with Holden. Basically, I cut out a heart frame from construction paper, attached it to some contact paper and let Holden stick on pieces of tissue paper. After he was finished, I attached another piece of contact paper, cut out the heart, put a hole punch in at the top and looped a piece of ribbon.

Holden really loved his heart and every morning enjoys putting it on and off of the hook. Our first craft together!

Holden's Signs

2012-02-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

Back in October, for Holden's 18-month check-up, our doctor told us he was behind schedule for talking. He encouraged us to start Holden in speech therapy. Nathan and I knew this would be a positive thing to start Holden in, and no matter what, the speech therapist could at least help us to help Holden speak correctly.

There was just the one slight distraction we had in our lives - a new baby girl! I resolved to give myself a few months with Maura before embarking on enrolling Holden into speech therapy.

Come January, I began the task of contacting the county and setting up appointments to have Holden analyzed and assessed. Our service coordinator, Janise, came out to the house and observed Holden, and spent two hours with Nathan and me asking questions about his development, his speech, etc. While we all walked away noting that Holden does have a speech delay, Janise was ever so graceful in also pointing out how advanced he is in fine and gross motor skills.

Our next step is to have Holden evaluated by actual speech and occupational therapists on March 1st, and to formulate an action plan. I'm very excited about this because I cannot wait to give Holden the gift of speech. It is a very powerful tool, after all.

While we wait for our March 1st appointment, Nathan and I were tasked with writing down the words Holden actual says (Mama, Dada, Outside, Apple, Ball, Bubble) and also all of the signs Holden knows. We were surprised at how many signs Holden has picked up in a year. While we have taught him a few, Holden has learned most of them from "Signing Time" - his absolute favorite show. Thank you Rachel, Alex and Leah for teaching our son one form of communication!

Here are all of the signs Holden uses and understands:
Again
Airplane
All-Done
Apple
Awake
Ball
Banana
Bath
Bear
Bike
Bird
Block
Book
Boots
Bug
Build
Bus
Car
Cat
Caterpillar
Cereal
Chair
Cheese
Clean
Climb
Cold
Cracker
Dirty
Drink
Fish
Football
Fork
Friends
Go
Grapes
Hat
Helicopter
Hot
Hurt
Knife
Light
Mail
Milk
More
Napkin
One
Open
Peas
Pillow
Playground
Please
Rain
Sandwich
Shoes
Sleep
Socks
Sorry
Star
Starfish
Store
Thank You
Tomato
Train
Trash
Tree
Up
Water
Work
Yes

Party Girl

2012-02-04T08:00:00.000-05:00

Maura and I had the privilege to attend Laura's baby shower over the MLK holiday weekend. She is due very soon with baby James!

While I did not get to take many pictures of the fabulous party, I was able to get a quick shot of my little girl dressed up in her pretty party outfit (thanks Andie and Ellie!). Maura was the only baby there, but she was the perfect guest and didn't cry once.

Maura is looking forward to many playdates at St. Mary's with James!

Kiss, Kiss

2012-02-03T08:00:00.000-05:00

Everyday we try and encourage Holden to hug, kiss, share or play with Maura. After a feeding for Maura one evening, we encouraged Holden to give Maura a kiss. At first, Lambie gave her a kiss, but pretty soon he decided to give her one, too.

Warm & Cozy

2012-02-02T10:00:00.000-05:00

The weather has been absolutely beautiful here in the Washington DC area. So much so, that I could not deny taking Holden and Maura outside. While Holden might have been able to shed a few layers, I still wanted to make sure Maura was warm and cozy in a jacket and some new boots (thanks Christy-Ann!).

We all made it to the playground and while Holden ran around, went down some slides and swung on the swings, Maura kept me company in the Ergo.

Maura says, "Six more weeks of winter!"

Little Artist

2012-02-01T18:56:00.001-05:00

The other day, Holden painted for the first time. We used the fun dot paint that Ms. Crystal and Ava Jolie gave Holden for his first birthday!

After painting, our little artist continued to color and then craft with Play-Doh.

Happy 21 months, Holden! Your new skills amaze us everyday.

Family Playground

2012-01-24T22:07:00.000-05:00

Due to the nice weather, Nathan and I had the opportunity to take Holden and Maura out to the Cardinal Forest Elementary playground this evening.

We bundled Holden up in his jean jacket, and Maura in her pink jumpsuit (thanks Molly and Tim!). Once there, Nathan took Holden and chased him around while Maura and I were stuck together via our Ergo.

I had the pleasure of playing close-face with Maura. After a few silly faces and some wiggles, Maura let out her very first laugh. Nathan and I were blessed to hear such a sweet sound from our little girl.

Brotherly Love

2012-01-23T14:17:00.000-05:00

As parents, Nathan and I were worried Holden might not react too kindly to a new baby in the house. I've heard stories from others moms about the older sibling getting quite jealous and even resorting back to many baby behaviors.

On occasion, Holden will protest Maura using certain toys, and it is his lovie (Lammie) who usually reverts back and does tummy time, sits in the swing and uses the bouncy-seat. For the most part, though, Holden is such a sweet and kind big brother.

When Maura wakes up, Holden gets a big smile and coos at her. He loves to touch her hands and feet and give her gentle pats on the head. Right now, he calls her, "Maa-mar."

The best mommy moments I have these days are watching my sweet boy as a sweet big brother. I know the two of them will be the best of friends.

First Snow

2012-01-21T13:48:00.001-05:00

On January 9th, the Washington DC area experienced our first snow of the year. While we had an epic snowstorm last year, Holden was too young to really enjoy it. This time, we bundled him up and let him experience the joy of snow.

Maura and I had just returned from the chiropractor. Driving in the snow was enough of an experience for me.

While there wasn't major accumulation, Holden made his first track prints, made a snowball and had fun playing with his Daddy.

BAH--BULS

2012-01-21T12:08:00.000-05:00

Holden has LOVED bath time since he was a baby. Every night after dinner, Nathan starts the water and Holden gets a spark in his eye, signs bath, and runs to the bathroom.

While we were visiting our family in Itasca, Holden had an aversion to the bath. He stood up and didn't want to play in the water. One night, I decided to add some soap and make a bubble bath to see if that would snap his anti-bath streak.

It worked wonders and he throughly enjoyed the bubbles. So much so, that now, every night he demands, "BAH BULS" in the tub and wants multiple baths a day with bubbles.

Good thing we have a lot of soap.

One Month

2011-11-22T08:54:00.015-05:00

Maura's first month went fairly well. We had some difficulties with eating and sleeping, but she is a sweet girl who continues to bring us joy and make our family complete.

It took all two weeks for Maura to regain her birth weight. She would only eat a few minutes at each feeding. We had a lactation consultant come and help me and reassure me that Maura was indeed eating. Her umbilical cord came off after a few weeks, but continued to have some slight, normal discharge.

Nathan's parents came to meet Maura and to spend time with Holden during the first week of November, my brother came to visit the second week of November, and we had an abundance of friends stop by with dinner, gifts and well wishes the entire month.

One Month Stats
Weight: 9 pounds, 11 ounces
Length: 22.5 inches
Head: 15 inches

Welcome Maura Patricia

2011-10-22T16:58:00.007-04:00

Maura Patricia Sandell came into this world very quickly, and here is her birth story.

October 22nd was the due date, but I did not want to get my hopes up that this child would be on-time or even early for that matter. We all remember what happened with Holden! I started to feel some cramping during the week, but that mostly happened when I would carry Holden and his large toddler body on my very pregnant belly.

That week, I tried to keep myself pretty busy. I remember getting my hair cut and highlighted, my toes and nails painted, and I tried to take Holden outside because I knew I would be inside for a while. That Friday, October 21st, Holden and I went to a playground, and I spoke with a father there who told me to try walking on a balance beam. That worked for his wife. I smiled and later tried walking on the yellow curb. Still no contractions.

I had made plans with my friend, Molly, to get ice cream at Friendly's. While we didn't know each other in high school (we both went to Robinson), we both frequented the restaurant after big high school events (yes, mine usually involved the band!). I met Molly there after Holden went to bed and enjoyed a delicious Reese's peanut butter sundae with peanut butter ice cream. We talked for almost three hours and we each went away with prayer requests on our hearts. Mine, of course, was for the delivery of the child inside of me to come soon, and come easily.

I walked in the door close to midnight - a rarity these days. Nathan had waited up for me, and we talked for another hour before finally going to bed. We knew when Holden woke up, we were going to be exhausted.

Around 3:00AM, I started to feel those cramps again. I rolled over and woke Nathan up and told him. He asked if they were consistently coming and if I felt them in my back and front. I answered no to both. Since we had been up so late, he told me he was going back to sleep and to wake him up if anything changed. The cramps hurt and were keeping me from sleep, so I asked him if he could set up some Sons of Anarchy for me to watch (we were waiting for labor to start the season). He did it, and I called my mom to let her know that this might just be it, and for her to be prepared, just in case. (And yes, just for the record, she did tell me to go to the hospital at this point).

I tried watching the first episode of the season and concentrate on Jax's new haircut, but those cramps just kept coming and I eventually had to get out of bed and stand. Around 4:00AM, I called our doula, Marilyn, and told her about the cramps that kept coming, but were not "textbook" so I didn't think I was really in labor. I had two contractions in two minutes while talking with her. She advised me to wake Nathan up and go to the hospital.

After hanging up with Marilyn, I went to the bathroom (for the eighth time that night) and broke out into a heavy sweat. That is when I really knew it was time. I immediately went to Nathan and said we had to go - now! I changed into a comfy skirt, a sports bra and t-shirt and put my fuzzy slippers on from New Zealand. Nathan called my mom and called Marilyn and while waiting for him to change, I got on our floor on all fours begging and apologizing for an epidural. The pain was intense and the contractions were coming quickly.

At 5:30AM my mom showed up to watch Holden and showed me the PBK plate she bought him for Thanksgiving. I'll never forget how excited she was about the plate, and how confused I was that now was the time she thought was appropriate to tell me about it. But, Nathan pulled his car up, and I got in hugging the front seat of the car. No seat belt. At this point, I was just trying to breathe through the contractions, letting out low, "hooo hooo hooo" sounds.

Nathan drove very carefully to Fair Oaks Hospital and parked in the emergency lot. He grabbed our bags and helped me out of the car. I stood behind him, grabbed the collar of his shirt and had two contractions in the parking lot while trying to make our way to the entrance. We finally stepped inside and Nathan began checking me in. I had another contraction at the desk and then my water broke. It didn't really break, it gushed out and I announced it to everyone because I didn't want anyone to think I was just lazily peeing myself.

Once my water broke, the kind girl behind the desk knew we were serious about being in labor and she quickly beckoned a wheel-chair. Unfortunately, sitting was not very comfortable and all I wanted to do was stand and rock; but, I was told I had to, "SIT DOWN." While in the elevator on our way to the L&D ward, I tried to stand again, but heard, "SIT DOWN." We rolled into L&D and our nurse took over and I tried to stand up for a third time, but then heard, "You need to SIT DOWN because you ARE NOT having this baby in the hallway." I apologized profusely and was rolled a few feet away into a room.

The nurses told me to get on my back in the bed, but instead I just made it to the bed and stayed on my side. I held onto the side-rail of the bed and yelled out for anyone to grab my right leg. This was it, and my body just knew it. I let out a low and hard grunt and pushed. I was told to stop pushing, but my body didn't hear what they said. I let out another low and hard grunt, pushed again and heard her beautiful cry at 6:18AM.

They placed her right on my stomach. I saw the umbilical cord and her sweet face. I was filled with such joy. Nathan cut the cord and the nurses took her for the check-up. I "birthed" the placenta and received a couple of shots, a few easy stitches, and began to shake uncontrollably (they told me later this was a normal side effect), but warm blankets helped me out. My baby girl was given to me and she latched right away.

While waiting for my recovery room, I ordered breakfast and immediately walked around. What a difference no needles, no drugs, no nothing made. I felt incredible and the oxytocin my body made on its own was more powerful than anything I had ever experienced.

Once we were settled in, I told Nathan to go home and see Holden and for my mom to come to the hospital. Marilyn stayed with me as I marveled at my sweet little girl. This was as close to heaven I have ever been. We were discharged two days later and began our journey as a family of four.

MAURA PATRICIA SANDELL

October 22, 2011

6:18AM

8 pounds, 6 ounces

21.5 inches long

Playground

2011-09-09T19:44:00.000-04:00

Holden and I (more so Holden and Nathan) would visit the nearby elementary school playground almost every day this summer. He loves to get outside, and he loves to climb - so, the playground was a perfect fit!

As summer is coming to an end, Holden is now able to climb the stairs by himself, go down the slides by himself and cross the "bouncy bridge" by himself.

I'm not sure what we are going to do now that school is back in session, because our neighborhood playgrounds are just not as good, and not as easy to access for a super preggo mom either. I'll have to start doing some research to find fun playgrounds that are safe - or, just move to Loudon County because they have amazing public playgrounds!

Here are some pictures of Holden from earlier this week, September 5th (16 months old).

Crossing the bouncy bridge

Climbing some bars, with Nathan's help

Coming down the twisty slide

Climbing the stairs to get back to the slide

Trying to climb, but this one will probably take a few more months to master

Holden with his favorite guy - Daddy

QT with INOVA

2011-09-05T16:10:00.004-04:00

Saturday August 13th, I started feeling some intense pain on the right side of my stomach. I knew these were not contractions, and honestly, I thought they were hunger pains - I am pregnant after all; but, even after dinner, my pain only got worse, and I could no longer walk upright. Nathan convinced me to call our OBGYN, and the doctor advised me to take a warm shower and to rest. An hour later, the pain was still there, and I had started a fever. We called back, and this time, I was told to come on down to INOVA Fair Oaks.

It was after midnight at this point, and my biggest fear was what to do about Holden. I did not want him to wake up and not have his mommy or his daddy there. All I could do was picture him freaking out and crying (whether true or not), so I called up my mommy and asked her if she could drive me to the hospital. She came right over and off we went. Have I mentioned how blessed am I to have the mother I have?

I was admitted with a 101 degree fever, an elevated white blood cell count, very low blood pressure (90/40 at one point) and an elevated heart rate. My pain was still intense and concentrated on the right side. Appendicitis, kidney stones, gallbladder issues, stomach infections, and blood clots were all tossed out as possibilities, so off to get tested I went.

My first stop was to have three different ultrasounds, then an MRI, an X-ray of my chest (radiation risk to baby), another ultrasound for the baby, an ultrasound for my legs, a CT scan (more radiation risk to baby, and an iodine risk of thyroid disease to the baby), an EKG and an echo-cardiogram. The worst feeling was signing papers saying that I understood that these tests could cause harm to the innocent child growing inside of me. A part of me wanted to just rip everything up and leave - it wasn't worth it; but, I went through with it all anyway.

Even after all those tests, a diagnosis never came back. My pain was being controlled by drugs, and eventually regular Tylenol. I was put on two different antibiotics and my fever was stable, and my CBC numbers all came back normal. My heart was still slightly elevated, but I was told it was because I was nervous. So, I happily called Nathan to pick me up that Monday evening.

But, the pain returned.

Tuesday morning, we called the doctor again, and was told to come on back to the hospital. This time, though, the pain was not as serious, and it quickly subsided with Tylenol. After one more ultrasound, the founding doctor of my OBGYN practice told me I had round ligament pain and that the baby was breech and applying pressure to me.

That was it.

I was discharged that afternoon and took Tylenol the rest of the day. So far, that pain has not returned, and I have continued seeing a chiropractor to manage the ligament pain and keep everything aligned. From this trying and emotional time, I feel I learned two simple lessons:

1. My faith in God is not as strong as I would like it to be, and not as strong as I want it to be for my son.
While I asked for prayer from family and friends, the only time I remember submitting myself to God was in the MRI tube, flat on my back and barely breathing. I prayed for God to hurry the test, or to help me breathe easier. Neither happened and I quickly lost faith. I am ashamed at how I abandoned God and did not continue to ask for His help; or even have the faith to know that while I was experiencing all this pain, He was still right besides me. As I try and teach Holden to love, know and obey God, I feel like a hypocrite. Do I love, know and obey God? This entire pregnancy has caused me to reexamine my personal relationship with Jesus - and, I have a lot of work to do.

2. Modern medicine still does not heal like Christ does.
As I mentioned above, after all of those (expensive) tests and visits by a number of different doctors, no one could give me an official diagnosis. One of my exceptional nurses even commented how she thought I could be a case on "House." There was definitely something wrong with me, but no one knew what; and then, I was fine. Even though I lost my faith, I am so blessed to have had so many true and wonderful friends praying for me who did not lose faith. Thank you all for your prayers for healing. Reflecting on this experience, I know without a doubt that it was your faithfulness and your prayer and your relationship with Christ that healed me, and kept the child growing inside of me safe during that time.

While there are no pictures of me in my hospital wardrobe, I was so grateful to one of the ultrasound techs who surprised me with two pictures of baby. They are 3D, which I have never experienced before, and very fun to see. The best part is that we have compared these pictures to newborn shots of Holden, and the two are twins. I am even more convinced we are having another boy (but, don't tell me - I still do not know!).

Summer Salad

2011-06-30T11:44:00.001-04:00

Here is another quick and easy recipe I saw from the blog "100 Days of Real Food."

This is a perfect summer salad - an easy side-dish or a great addition to a potluck. Holden did not enjoy it (most likely the garlic flavor), so this is definitely more for adults.

The original recipe is below, and I have put my changes in italics. Enjoy!

Lime-Cilantro Quinoa Salad
Salad
-3 cups cooked quinoa (1 cup dry)
-3/4 cup dried fruit (I omitted the dried fruit)
-1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted (I omitted this because Holden is too young for nuts)
-1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
-1 bell pepper of any color, diced (I used red)
-1 can black beans
-1 can corn
(Note: I wanted this to be more Mexican, so that is why I added the beans and corn)
Dressing
-1/4 cup lime juice (make sure to get at least 2 limes)
-1/4 cup olive oil
-1 teaspoon Dijon mustard (I only had spicy brown, it turned out fine)
-2 garlic cloves, minced (I only used 1 and thought it was enough garlic flavor)
-Pinch of salt
Directions
1. Mix all salad ingredients together in a large bowl.
2. In a separate, smaller bowl, whisk together all dressing ingredients.
3. Pour the dressing over the salad and mix thoroughly.
4. Eat or store in an airtight container in the fridge.

Pink Panther

2011-06-30T11:25:00.000-04:00

Holden loves anything soft. If something is soft, or even has a soft spot, he sticks his left thumb in his mouth, puts the soft item near his face and makes a, "mm-mmm-mmm" noise (aside: I made that same noise when I was a baby).

These soft items have included our cats, touch-and-feel puzzle pieces, my bathrobe, blankets, stuffed animals, and in particular, my pink pajama pants.

Holden LOVES my pink pajama pants. He will pet me when I wear them and if they are free, he will take them around the house with him. I have to keep them in a high drawer or else he would get them every day to snuggle.

He is so in love with pink pants that on Sunday, while waiting to get a prescription filled, he saw a woman in pink pants and went up to her and started petting her leg. We quickly scooped him up and apologized. Thank goodness he is still so young and she was very forgiving!

Quick and Easy Recipe

2011-06-22T21:16:00.000-04:00

While I do not have any pictures of my own, I finally tried a recipe from The Pioneer Woman. I've heard so much about her and have seen many friends link to her on Facebook and blogs, so I checked out her site and the Sour Cream Noodle Bake caught my eye.

Ree does a great job of giving you step-by-step instructions with amazing pictures, so it was simple to make and follow along. My only mistake was not heating the water while cooking the meat. Otherwise, everything was super quick and super easy.

Everyone really enjoyed eating it, including Holden (which equals success in my book!), and we had leftovers for lunch. I served ours with some garlic bread. Enjoy!

High Chair Relaxing

2011-06-20T16:12:00.000-04:00

If you come over to our home, you will probably see Holden eating like this - feet up and on the table. Nathan and I started seeing signs that Holden is ready to start eating with us, so, we brought his high chair in, and Holden immediately put his feet on the table. How can I blame the guy? He just wants to relax while enjoying his meal.

Here is Holden enjoying hamburger and sweet potato rounds!

Now, don't worry those of you who swear by Ms. Manners and the method of starting where you mean to go. We are in the process of teaching Holden that feet stay down at the dinner table - but only because Nathan and I are not as flexible as he is ;)

Sick

2011-06-20T11:32:00.000-04:00

This past week the entire Sandell family fell sick. Holden started the trend, but soon enough, Nathan and I were feeling the bug, too.

Our afternoon started off just fine, but just before we put Holden down for his nap, he started becoming restless and whiney. Usually Holden runs to his crib for his nap and is excited to go to sleep and be with his Lambie (yes, I know just how lucky I am!). Not this time, though. He was restless during his entire nap, too, and then at around 4:30PM he woke up crying, which he never does. Nathan was visiting friends who live out of town, so I rushed in and discovered a huge mess in Holden's crib. We immediately went for the bath, and as I cleaned him off, he finally calmed down and stopped crying.

Holden has never been sick in his crib before, so I was a little nervous and called Nathan to come home. It was the right decision because Holden threw up on me about an hour later. All I could do was ache for my little boy at that moment. I think as a Mama, one of the worst feelings you can have is that of helplessness when your child is in need. I could not make that sickness just go away and that was a terrible feeling.

After five more fits of throw-up, countless diaper changes and lots of snuggles, Holden finally began feeling better on Day Four. The bad news was that Nathan and I got sick that night. By God's blessing, my mom lives close by and I called her very early in the morning to be our back-up. She dutifully came over and watched Holden, helped out with the housework, and brought us fluids. I love my mom!

It took us about three days to get over our bug, and now, we are back to our healthy selves! We didn't snap too many pictures of us as we were sick, but there was a funny moment when I tried to feed Holden a mango popsicle to keep him hydrated. He loves mangoes, and the doctor suggested popsicles, so we were surprised, and amused, that Holden did NOT like the popsicle and even threw it on the carpet, and under the chair. He wanted to make sure we knew he did not approve!

Pushing the popsicle away from him

Taking the popsicle

"Gimme that popsicle!!!"

Crying and taking the popsicle over to the chair...

...because that is where yucky popsicles belong!

Splish-Splash

2011-06-11T11:38:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, Nathan and I took Holden to the pool for the first time. It was a short trip because we know we have to get Holden acclimated to this "really big bath" before spending an hour plus at the pool. (Have I mentioned that we have a very cautious child?) Holden really did enjoy the water, but he definitely had a death grip on Nathan's chest hair! Next time we will bring his float along, and a few toys, and see if he likes the water even better.

Here is some video I captured of Holden "swimming" with Nathan:

Welcome Back...With News!

2011-06-10T15:59:00.001-04:00

If you notice the date on my last blog post, it was in February - four months ago. A lot has happened during those four months, including a first birthday. You might think I feel extremely guilty, but Holden had an ear infection on his birthday, and he will probably thank me for not posting pictures of him looking sick and miserable.

Back to February. Nathan and I said yes on New Year's eve to going on a mission trip to Africa this summer, and February was when planning began. There were a total of seven couples going, and we had our first kick-off meeting Friday, February 18th. We met the team, introduced ourselves and were getting more and more excited by the minute. There was just one tiny problem - I was late (yup, that kind of late).

My body had just gotten back to normal in January (I went a total of 17 months - love nursing!), so when February was a little off, I wasn't too worried about it. But with Africa becoming more and more a reality, and money needing to be put down, I thought I should double check just to be sure.

Nathan and I started laughing at the possibility of me being pregnant, and then I stopped when I saw the "pregnant" word on my little pee stick. Holden was only nine months old at this point - how could I be pregnant again?!?

Everyone in our family was surprised and a little shocked. Two kids under two, two kids in diapers, just the idea of two kids. For me, I did not think I would be ready for this task, this "promotion" as Nathan called it. Honestly, I selfishly stayed in a state of shock for about three months. God's plan was not my plan. We were supposed to be going to Africa, not having another baby. We were supposed to be enjoying our little boy, not having another baby. I was selfish and I was scared.

God's grace, power and strength are amazing, though, and I am feeling more and more confident by the day. This baby started kicking much earlier than Holden, and baby has reminded me how much joy and love I have in my heart to give him/her. I look in amazement at how far Holden has come, and I am becoming more and more excited about meeting our newest addition.

I am just about 21 weeks along now, and due October 22nd. I do not know the gender of our baby, but Nathan does, so ask him if you want to know - - but keep it a secret from me!

Meet the newest Sandell: