Oregon Trip

 

At the beginning of this month Mom, Matthew, Mallory, Wesley and I all hopped on a plan and flew up to Portland to visit Jeff and Lindsay and meet Connor William Reitz!  It was such a wonderful trip. It was just a 4 day trip, but it was perfect! It was amazing to meet Connor, and great to see my brother and sister-in-law as parents. They are doing such a great job with him. He is happy, handsome and as snuggly as can be! Connor is adorable; he looks like a little boy trapped in a 23 inch long body! I kept thinking that he was going to get up and start kicking the soccer ball around. When you got the two little boys next to each other it looked like Wesley could have eaten him and that Connor stole all Wesley’s hair! They couldn’t look more different. Connor is long and thin, with long black hair and dark soulful eyes and the sweetest smile. Wesley is a chunky happy man with blue eyes, red/blond hair and has the body of rugby player. With only being 13 days apart we are all hoping that they will be good friends (and not get into all the trouble that Mallory will inevitably try and get them into). It was a great trip and only made better by the fact that we got to see Joel, Melissa and Brayden Boothe (with whom Mallory is shamelessly in love with). We miss both families so much, but were reminded why we don’t move to Oregon when on just ONE day it rained, snowed, hailed and was sunny… talk about bipolar weather!

Thanks for housing us Jeff and Lindsay. Thanks for driving us everywhere Joel and Melissa. Love and miss you all!!!!!!

New Job (again)

Ok, here’s the new job story. I had all intentions of returning to my current (I guess former) job… it wasn’t perfect, but it was nice, I loved the people I worked with and I did get to learn cool things about exotic animals… but I knew I wasn’t going to stay there forever. Then, about 3 ½ weeks into my maternity leave I got a call out of the blue from Windsor Animal Hospital (this amazing, new, state of the art, 5 doctor practice) that I had given my resume to prior to even starting at the Santa Rosa job. I was really interested in this practice, and was kind of bummed when they didn’t need a vet back when I needed a job. (But Gods got His perfect timing when it comes to life… and it just wasn’t meant to be… then).
Any way, they called me saying that there was going to be an opening for a new vet at the beginning of May (which just so happened to be when I was thinking of going back to work, post baby). They were looking for someone to work 2-3 days a week… which would be great. But the bummer was that it was every sat/sun with a random weekday here or there. Then I started thinking about how perfect that schedule might be… it would mean that I could be home with the kids all week! No daycare needed (talk about a money saver). Then Matthew would have them on the weekends, and both Matthew and I would have Mondays off to be our family day. Plus the weekend schedule would only be temporary (so they think). I was really working on not being too excited, since they said that there were 8 other vets that were interested in the position. Plus I had a job.
They called me back a few days later saying that they really liked my personality and it is now down to 6 people. So they had me come in for an interview. It went well. I was just myself and really relaxed (since I felt like I DO have a job and this would just be nice if it worked out… but it wasn’t a necessity).  Post interview they kept talking about how much they really like me, my personality, my humor and how I handle myself… but were a little worried about my lack of copious years of emergency work (since that’s pretty much what the weekend shifts are all about). Regardless of their slight worry they asked me back for a working interview. Now it was down to me and one other person (who apparently had more experience). So a few days later I left the kids with mom and went in for the working interview. It was fun. I just hung out, helped out, chatted to everyone about all sorts of thing, open drawers and cupboards and scrubbed in on surgeries.  Once again I was pretty laid back about it all… I kept telling myself, I have a job and if God wants this to happen, it will. At the end of my time there, they told me that they would get back to me within 4-5 days.
The very next morning they called! Apparently when I left the entire staff pow-wowed and told the owners that they wanted to work with me! And the owners agreed. They loved my personality, skill and bedside manner and felt that even though I didn’t have as much experience as others, it will come with time… but you can’t teach personality (their words, not mine). So I had the job!!!!!!!!! J I was stoked. The best past is, that even if I only work 2 days a week they are offering my just about what I was making working 4 ½ days a week in Santa Rosa!!!!
God defiantly had his hand in this every step of the way. I start on May 1^st… I’m a little nervous, but really excited about all that I am about to do and the adventure I’m about to embark on!!!!

Chop-chop

I’m not sure what it is about having a baby that makes women want to cut their hair off… but just about every lady I know goes for a new/drastic cut soon after having a baby. Maybe it’s the need to reinvent yourself (again), maybe it’s the need to feel different, pretty, sexy, non-I sit at home and breast feed all day-like, maybe it’s that it takes too much time to worry about/style long hair, maybe it’s great excuse to get out of the house for a few hours without your kids… maybe it’s all the above. Whatever the reason, I got the itch and yesterday I had my hair CHOPPED, highlighted (for the first time ever), had an hour long facial (once again my first) and a foot soak with reflexology and pedicure! It was an afternoon of self pampering (while my dad and brother dealt with the kids). For a few hours my life felt quiet, normal, sane… until too many hours had past and my breasts started getting too full and I almost leaked all over the stylist.  ANY WAY, I love my new hair. It’s easy to do, sassy and fun yet professional… perfect for starting my new job…. Which I have yet to write about.

2 Months

Our little Buck-a-roo turned 2 months today! Once again I am reminded how time flies and drags on all at the same time. He is cooing (some) and giving the ever coveted smiles on his own time, which is almost never and just about only ever to his momma (I don’t mind that).

He had his 2 month doctor appointment today, which meant he got his first round of shots. Remember when Mallory would get shots… she wouldn’t even cry (granted she had more thigh on her then most thanksgiving turkeys)… Little Wesley was the complete opposite. He turned beat red and wailed! I mean, he really was not happy about it! And now, 7 hours later, he can’t be put down, he has a little fever, and if he wiggles his legs (or God forbid you touch them) he screams bloody murder. So much for our laid back little man. On the bright side he did sleep almost 8 hours straight last night!!!!!
On to his stats: He is 11 pounds 3.2 ounces (39%), 22 ¾ inches long (45%) and his head in a whopping 37.3 cm (6%). He is growing great and the Dr was supper happy about our little mans progress (and quite impressed with his weight gain when he found out it was all on MY milk… pretty sure it’s more like cream, or Brie cheese based on his weight).

My Child Has WHAT????

Yesterday Mallory work up and crumbled to the floor as she tried to stand. It was as if her left leg just stopped working. It was heartbreaking. I had no idea what was wrong with her. She hadn’t had any falls, crashes or injuries… just a little runny nose and cough. So there my little girl was on the floor arms raised telling me “Up mamma. Carry you.” (By ‘you’ she actually means herself). She ended up having a very low grade fever so I called the doctor who said to give her some Motrin and if it isn’t better in 2 hours (or gets worse) to bring her in. Sadly after 2 hours Mallory still could not bear any weight on it and would fall if she tried to walk (thankfully she was still happy and didn’t seem to be in any pain, or even seem to mind the fact that she literally couldn’t walk). I of coarse am thinking of every terrible cause for lameness and fever that I see in my profession and am really starting to freak myself out, so I called my mom, who set the prayer chain into motion and off to the doctor’s office we went. Turns out she has Toxic Synovitis!!!!! Sounds scary I know… but it’s just a fancy way of saying a viral induced arthritis… yeah that still sounds a little frightening.  Basicly what happened is that the cold virus that she has also set up camp in her left hip joint (not causing a septic joint though), just pain. It occurs in about 3% of children and usually seen in boys ages 4-6… so it’s a little strange that Mallory Rose, my 20 month old girl has it. But after spending the day resting and taking Motrin ever 6 hours she WALKED herself bed by the end of the day and today is running around like nothing ever happened (all that remains is a very slight limp). Praise God that is was nothing more serious and that she is such a trooper!

Happy Easter!

Happy Easter! We had a blast… especially Mallory, who pretty much ran around for two days with her mouth wide open, screeching for joy when she found an egg. The Easter bunny came THREE times (apparently he’s stocking her).Saturday we had a nice dinner at Roberts’s house, complete with an egg hunt. Then Sunday we had a low key morning and did a little egg hunt here then went over to my parent’s house (along with Joyce, John, Russell and Rachel) and Mallory found even more eggs. Can you say sugar high???? Pretty sure she has never had that much sugar….Ever! But it was really nice. The Easter bunny even gave me a gift. It was the gift of sleeping children (despite ALL the sugar). Last night Mallory slept like a rock (not unusually for her), but after Wesley had been asleep 6 hours I woke up in a small panic and very full milk-bags (he has never slept that long). But he was fine, just all tuckered out and snoozing away. So I pumped for a few seconds to relieve the pressure and went back to bed. Of course he work up 20 minutes later… sigh. But it's progress!

 

Cat in the Hat

Last week The Cat in the Hat came to the mall! Mallory was sooooo excited that we were going to see him. She wanted to dress up and put her hair in piggies so she could show him. When Mr. In The Hat came walking up to the HUGE group of kids Mallory raised her arms over her head and showed "Yeeeeeeaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh......" (as she was screaming with joy she turned to face the group of kids [arms still raised, and with an ear to ear smile on her face]. She looked around at all the kids with a look on her face as if she was asking 'Who's with me....?' All she got in response was blank and slightly frightened stares back at her. Not to be detoured by the less than enthusiastic group, she kept her arms up and took one more look around this time asking 'Anyone? Anyone?') I think she finally realized that she was more excited than anyone else there and decided to take advantage of it, so she turned back towards the Cat and did her patented 'Full
Body Mallory Run' right into his legs (head right into the crotch.... I'm hoping it was a girl in the suit because if it was a guy, that would have hurt). We had to practically pry her off his legs when it was time to go. Needless to say it made her day... actually she's still talking about it so it made her week!