Craziest things happening lately...all about birds....

Last Friday morning, my husband was sitting in our basement working on the computer. He heard a noise and found out that there was something in our wood stove. At first, he thought maybe it was a bat or a bird. He told me about it, and I told him to leave it in there if it was a bat. He said that it sounded more like a bird, and I agreed that we couldn't leave it in there. So, he got the fishing net and carefully (and quickly) opened the door on the stove. He was pretty nervous to open it, because he didn't know what was going to come out at him. After looking in there a minute, he realized that a DUCK was in there! Crazy!!! How in the world did a duck get in our wood stove? How did it get through the small hole through the vent? We were much surprised. He put the net into the stove, got the duck in there, and pulled it out. Well, the duck flew out of the net and headed to the nearest window (which was closed). She was flapping her wings and hitting against the window. Finally, after a few tries, my husband got the duck back in the net and ran for the sliding doors (which we had open). He set the net down, and the duck waddled out and flew away. I am glad that my husband heard her in our stove and got her out. She must have been terrified! We are still just flabbergasted that a duck was in our stove!! CRAZY!!

THEN, this Tuesday, Caleb and Madelyn were outside near the front steps. We had just got home from the Chiropractor, and I ran in the house to start a pot of water to boil. I had the front door open, because the kids were right out front. I got the water on the stove and I went out to check on the kids. Madelyn was standing very still and said, "Momma, look." I looked over at her and saw this:

I can't believe that a bird was on her head! Crazy, Crazy!! Madelyn was a bit nervous, and she laughed a little, then she asked if I could take it off. I picked up a stick and tried to put the stick near the feet so that it would walk onto the stick.
However, that little bird just clung on to her hair even tighter. The little yellow bird had found a new friend. So, I asked Madelyn to wait just a second so I could grab my camera. I knew I had to take advantage of this amazing photo opportunity! I missed taking a picture of the duck in our stove, I wasn't going to miss this!
The little bird held on her hair for quite sometime. I took a few pictures, and got the little bird to get onto the stick.

After the bird was on the stick, it held on to that for awhile, too. Cole, my little guy was sitting in his high chair inside the house, and he wanted to come out, so I put the stick on the step. I asked Caleb to hold on the stick so it didn't roll away. When I came out with Cole, Caleb was holding the stick up. I wish I had a picture of that. because it was so neat! I had to take a video of the bird so I had proof that this was an actual live bird!
I don't know if the bird was a baby, or it was just a little stunned from maybe running into something. I do know that it wasn't afraid of me or the kids at all. It was just the craziest thing. It is such a cute bird.

I love this last photo. I was able to snap the photo quick before Cole grabbed it. I didn't want him to hurt the bird. This was the last few moments with the bird before it decided that it was time to move on. How amazing this was. I still wonder what ever made that little yellow bird decide to take perch on my daughter's head. :)

Happy Birthday and bits of pieces....

Today is my husband's birthday! Happy Birthday~ honey! We had a great day so far...we got up and went to church. It was Youth Sunday~ and that is when the Youth Group leads in worship, song, and prayer. Our Youth Pastor gave the sermon. I missed most of the sermon, because Cole needed a diaper change and to be fed. This usually happens during the church service when my babies are little. Cole is getting so big! He had an appointment last Thursday for his 2 month check up. He is now 11 pounds 14 ounces! It is hard to believe that he is almost 10 weeks old already! Don't worry, I am not looking to have another anytime soon...the labor/birth/recovery is so fresh in my mind, and it isn't a pleasant thought. At least I have a beautiful baby, and he is healthy! He still has a bump on the top of his head. It is hard, and that is a bit worrisome. I asked the Dr. about it, and she said it was odd to her that it was still there after 2 months. She said sometimes when they give shots, and they hit a vein, kids can get a harder lump from calcium build-up (from the blood). So, she thinks that may be what it is. Too hard to tell. She said we could maybe go to a Skull Dr., but with Cole being so little, there really isn't too much the Dr. could do. So, we wait. Madelyn had her 2 year check up the same day as Cole's 2 month. She is finally on the charts with her weight! She is now 23 pounds (still a little peanut), but she is growing well. She will just always be petite, I think. She a busy little girl, and learning more everyday! I can't believe my little baby girl is a toddler. Of coarse, she loves to say, "NO!" and she is learning Independence with getting dressed/undressed. She loves to give kisses and hugs, and is our cuddler.
For the last two nights, we have had friends over for game night. We love having friends over and entertaining. On Friday night, we had over our friends Lisa and Donnie. Our other friend, Jody and her husband were suppose to come over, but they had forgotten. We had fun playing our new Yatzee game. Good laughs, and fun. Then, on Saturday evening, we had over Jodi and Ben. We have really enjoyed playing this game called Ticket to Ride. I was hoping to review the game on my site, but no luck. It is a really fun game, and my husband especially loves it because it is trains.
I am sorry I haven't been writing too many personal blogs lately. I have been so busy with 4 kids. It really makes a difference from 3 to 4.....especially since they are all under the age of 4~ Caleb will be 4 end of May. I do want to get better with writing about our kids, what they do, and our family times. I will try to get more pictures uploaded too.
Tonight I am going to go pick up Nathaniel from his weekend with his Dad. I hope he had a good weekend with his Dad. We have been going through some things with Nathaniel and we are seeking guidance. I pray that we can help him get through his heart issues. He is 10 years old, and in such a crucial moment in his life. The other night we sat down with him and let him say anything he wanted to us. He could share his feelings, anger, fear~ whatever he wanted. If he was mad at us, or whatever. He had to stay respectful through it. It was amazing what our results were. I will have to go into more details about that another post. I hope you all had a good weekend. More later.

Madelyn is TWO!!!

I can't believe that my sweet, darling daughter, Madelyn (my princess) is two years old today! The time sure has flown! I want to share my birth story with you.
I had an appointment on Madelyn's due date (March 8th, 2007). I had an ultra-sound, which the clinic routinely does on due dates. They found out that the amniotic fluid was pretty much gone, so I was told that I needed to be scheduled for an induction. I was told that I should check into the hospital that evening around 7 PM. Terry was working that day, so I called him from my parents and told him what the plan was. He was going to stop by home after work and pick up my bag, car seat, etc. My mother-in-law was so sweet to meet me at my parent's house to pick up Nathaniel and Caleb. When Terry and I headed up to the hospital, we stopped at Subway and picked up 2 foot longs. I actually ate 1/2 on the way, and the other half in the hospital bed while I was answering the million questions they ask about history/medications/etc. I think that is a funny part about the "labor day" that I ate a foot long sub before giving birth.....
Anyway~ the IV fluids were started and I was going to have a cytotec pill inserted to help "rippen" the cervix. I didn't know the side effects of this pill, otherwise I would not have allowed this method for induction. (see Cole's story) That is a whole other story. I didn't like the nurse that was doing the registration part, and the one that was going to be helping us. She was the nurse that discharged us with Caleb. Let's just say she isn't very personal and caring. Bland would be a good word to describe her. She had difficulty getting the pill inserted (dry glove)~ yeah, can I get an OWIE!! I was a puddle of tears, and after 3 times trying, she got another nurse. I LOVE the nurse that came in to help. She was our delivery nurse we had with Caleb. Right then I should have asked if she could just help us the rest of the time. She calmed me down, told me what I could do to help....and just like that it was in.
My dear friends, Lisa and Jody, came up to see me and offer support. It was a great joy to see them and share a few laughs. One of the laughs was over glitter. I will have to tell you that one another time (or ask them).
The pill worked right away, and I was in full blown labor! Can you believe, through crying and moaning, the nurse told me I really wasn't in labor? I could have smacked her one. (F.Y.I. she had 3 scheduled C-Sections....no idea what labor is).
I had an epidural, and it helped minimize the pain. I did still feel quite a bit of pains, though. I did need oxygen, and Maddie's heart rate decreased. But, my labor lasted about 5 hours, and I pushed for about 10-15 minutes. She was born a little after 1 AM. I thought she was going to be huge, from the way my belly was out there. Everyone else thought my baby was going to be big, too. Out came this tiny, little peanut at 6 pounds 6 1/2 ounces and 18 1/2 inches long. She is still little today at 2 years old. I have her well child check next week. Did I know what I was having? Nope, but I was very emotional during pregnancy, and even cried over spilled milk. We knew we were having a girl. Here are some pictures of our little princess:

My parents with Madelyn. In this picture, she is under 9 hours old.
I think she is about 3 months old in this picture. I did have more of her birth pictures, but our hard drive crashed with them on it. I am desperately hoping we can restore those!
She is such a silly girl! She is feisty, even when she was smaller.
Madelyn is a very happy girl!
Here she was starting to walk around while holding onto objects.
She is a girl in every aspect of the word. She walks like a girl, talks like a girl, and is moody like a girl. We love our little girl, and are so happy she was given to us from God!

She was drinking "pop" on our trip to Chicago last summer. That is what she called her bug juice.
She loves to "copy" mom and babywear her babies. My friend, Candace, gave Maddie this child sling for her Christmas gift.
Blowing out her candle for her Birthday! After we all sang Happy Birthday to her, she clapped and said, "Yeah! Good job everybody!"

MMMMmmmm......Barbie Chocolate Cupcakes!
So careful with her cupcake...not really liking getting her fingers dirty.
Madelyn got mostly clothes for her birthday. She LOVED it! Seriously, she had to try on everything she got! She got underwear, 2 dresses, 2 shirts, a sweatshirt, 3 pair of jeans, and a summer outfit!
Big brother Caleb loved to help Maddie with her gifts. He wanted a gift, too, but I told him he only needs to wait 2 months to his birthday.
She has the cheesiest smile lately. She loves to show off her teeth. She is finally getting the last couple teeth on her bottom gum next to the front two.
We love you Madelyn! Happy Birthday to our precious girl! You are very dear to us, and we pray God will bless your life and you will bring honor to Him in all you do. Thank you, Lord, for our little girl!

Sick kids...and a break for mom~

My kids started a cold over the last weekend. Through the week, they both had slight fevers, runny noses and coughs. Maddie's cough was really bad on Tuesday and Wednesday. I told my husband that we should probably bring her in on Thursday if she isn't better, because we won't want to make an ER trip over the weekend. Well, on Thursday during the day, she seemed OK physically, but she was like Saran wrap, and wanted to be attached to me all day. I could tell that she wasn't a happy camper, and not feeling well. (see how very little I wrote blog posts the last few days). Thursday morning, she fell asleep in the morning, which is very rare for her anymore. In the afternoon, she took a 2 1/2 hour nap, and I just laid her in bed. She didn't complain about going down for a nap at all, and that is not her norm either. Taking a 2 1/2 hour nap for her is really unheard of. She is not a big napper. When she woke up, she was on fire! I took her temp and it was 102.5 under the arm! POOR BABY GIRL! She was also breathing funny and kind of holding her breath. Caleb has had pneumonia in the past, and I was afraid that is what Maddie had.
So, after talking with Terry, I brought her (and the boys) into Urgent care. The Doctor looked her over, and "clinically" she seemed healthy, however, the Doctor knew she wasn't OK. He ordered a blood test for a viral or bacterial infection, and wanted chest X-rays. Her blood test revealed a viral infection, and her X-rays showed pneumonia. Fortunately, I brought her in early enough, so she didn't have to be admitted to the hospital! THANKS BE TO GOD!! Really, I don't know how things would have been if she had to be admitted! Could you imagine if she was admitted then I was admitted to deliver a baby in a different hospital? How awful would that be? I am very thankful that God is protecting us and watching out for us. He is always blessing us! Her pneumonia was caught early enough, and baby is waiting a bit longer to keep safe from the germs. Madelyn is on a medication and is getting nebulizer treatments of albuterol. She is doing pretty good on day three of her medications, and I am thankful that her breathing is improving.
It was a stressful week with sick kids, aches and pains of being an over-stuffed penguin...a..ka pregnant feeling the bliss of end of pregnancy joys and just wanting the time to go quickly to the due date. I am so thankful that I was able to go to the monthly Ladies Night Out. What therapeutic release. We went to a ladies home for this month's LNO, and we had a blast laughing, talking, playing games, and just enjoying our women friendships! I so needed to be with my friends and just release the stress in laughing myself silly. What fun we had, and I didn't get home until 3:30 this morning. Then, my wonderful husband let me sleep in because I needed the rest! He is so good to me! I know it will be my morning to wake up with the kids, tomorrow. We have a great "unwritten" plan on weekends taking turns letting the other one sleep in. It is wonderful! I hope you all are having a great weekend!

Melt my heart....

My little daughter, sweet princess Madelyn, is now saying, " I luv lu!" It is the most precious thing! She is growing up so much! I know that once this baby enters the world, my little baby Madelyn won't be a baby much more. She will be two the beginning of March...oh my goodness, I can't believe she will be 2 soon! However, she is such a little peanut, and still my baby. She is my cuddler beyond all else.

When Terry or I put her to bed at night, we usually sit in the rocking chair with her and rock her just a bit. She has to hold on to us, and hug us close. Sometimes she pulls me down to her in a hug while we rock. Terry told me last night that she gets upset sometimes if he isn't looking down at her. She will grab his face and direct it to her face. I know she has done this to me, too, but I didn't really think about it much. She is very much a personal touch little person.
She also loves to sing! When I was practicing with the practice cd and tape for learning the songs for our Sweet Adelines performance (see here) I usually played the tape in the car while we drove. I could hear Madelyn singing her little heart out, trying to match my voice. So very cute!!

She likes to pray along with us at meal time, too. Whomever is saying the prayer, Madelyn bows her head, puts her hands in front of her face, and says a prayer right along with whomever is praying~ usually Caleb. Caleb is really loving leading us all in prayer. It is so sweet! I love hearing the prayers of my children!

My Kids!

So, I am not sure who will be potty trained first between Madelyn and Caleb. Caleb will be 3 1/2 the end of November, and Maddie just turned 19 months old. Lately, Madelyn has been informing me of a bit of information. I am really liking that she is getting to know her body functions! She is even showing interest in potty adventures! She likes to go sit on the potty chair in the bathroom, she signs the sign for potty, and she does things like this:
On Thursday, Maddie was walking around and then she said, "I poo...I poo!" So, I asked her if she pooped. She said, "Yes!" I went to go change her...and sure enough~ she did what she said she did! What a smart little girl!
I really don't have a preference who will make the official leap into underwear, but it would be super if just ONE of them could make it to that amazing milestone before our little baby arrives!

Speaking of underwear...
We got a sitter for us on Friday night. Terry asked me to find a sitter so we could go sing karaoke. One of the guys from his work runs a karaoke show in town once a month, so he wanted to check it out. So I did the calling around and booked *S* for the night. We brought Nathaniel to meet his dad, and on our way back home, Caleb was asking about who we had coming to babysit him. He said, "Mom, I want...um...what is her name again?" I said, "Who are you thinking of, Caleb?" (knowing who he was implying) He said, "Mr.P****'s daughter, what's her name?" (Caleb calls my friend, Lisa, Mr. P****, and I think it is so cute) Anyway, I told him, "Kaytlin?" And he said, "Yes, I really like Kaytlin. She is my favorite babysitter." We asked him why she is his favorite, and he said that she just is! And she is nice.

So, anyway...getting back to the underwear...

The other sitter we had, was getting Caleb ready for bed (we were still home) and she was changing his diaper. This is the conversation:
Caleb: I wear diapers, *S*, do you wear underwear?
*S*: (chuckling) Yes, Caleb, I wear underwear.
Caleb: I am going to wear underwear someday, when I am potty trained, too. When I am a big boy.
*S*: That will be a good thing, Caleb, you should start going on the toilet.

Ha Ha Ha! I think that is so funny!!

Maddie is growing up...

Last week, Madelyn became the proud owner of two more teeth. She now has a total of 6 teeth. Yes, she is a late bloomer with getting teeth~ being she is now 19 months old! She is 19 months old, and 19 pounds. She is not small developmentally, though, rather she is advanced. I can say that because the Dr. confirms it, PLUS I am the Mom! :) She did her first, amazing, and perfect somersault on Thursday night! She has been trying for a few months now. She would bend over, touch her head to the floor and either (a) wait for a pull of gravity, or (b) roll over to the side. So, on Thursday night, she did the prep of bending over and putting her head to the floor. I was sitting behind her on the couch, and I reached my toes for her bum to encourage her to roll forward. She was ahead of the game though, because in a split second she had perfectly nailed a beautiful somersault! I was so excited that I screamed, laughed, and clapped all at once. Nathaniel came running in the room and asked what was wrong. I told him it was excited because Madelyn did her first somersault! Then, Madelyn started showing off (Grandma was here) ~ she was playing around all over the floor, and running. I asked her to do another somersault, and she sat down, fell backwards, and tried to roll backwards. I told her she isn't quite ready for that yet.

My Little Princess~

Madelyn is growing up so much! She is talking into 3 word sentences, and repeats anything you tell her. She amazes us with things she says. This morning, I was sitting on Caleb's bed fixing her hair. Caleb's window has a Spiderman covering over it, and Madelyn was looking at it. She piped up the theme song for Spiderman..."LOOK OUT, HERE COMES THE SPIDERMAN!" The only thing you can totally understand is the "Look Out!" Then, she mumbles through the rest of the song line. It was so cute. She kept singing it over and over...even all the way to church for my morning Bible study.
Tonight, Madelyn was holding on to her dolly. (one of them) She loves kissing and hugging her dollies. I was going to take her dolly and put it down when I was taking her to bed. She told me no, then said, "AHH Dolly!" I asked her if she wanted to take her dolly to bed, and she said, "YES!" ~By the way, she says "yes" clear as a bell...it is super cute! So, she got to sleep with her precious dolly tonight.

Snack time

Today, Nathaniel got fruit snacks for Caleb and Maddie. He handed Caleb and Maddie their fruit snacks (she had the Gerber's first fruit snacks) and Maddie says, "Fruit Snacks!"

Very clear~ very smart! That's my girl!