Habbakuk 1:5b

"For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe even if you were told." Habbakuk 1:5b

Sunday, August 30, 2009

Chicago Fire

For Father's Day, Nile bought Bill tickets to a Chicago Fire game which is the professional soccer team in Chicago. After the Silvis race, the boys headed off to Chicago and TBL and I headed home after lunch with Aunt Susie. They had a great time, spent the night in a hotel and came back today. This is the second professional sports game they have gone to. They went and saw the Cowboys play the Vikings preseason two summers ago. Maybe they can go to a NHL and NBA game to round out their tour of professional sports. I am glad they have taken these two trips together; nice memories for later years.





Bringing home trophies

Yesterday Bill, TBL, Aunt Susie, Nile and I went to the Silvis Family Fun Run. Nile hung out with TBL while the rest of us ran. So up at 6 am we were and off to Silvis Il. Bill has run this race for three years now and I ran it last year. Last year I was barely pregnant but huffing and puffing and dripping with sweat on a crazy humid day. I got 2nd place in my age group with a respectable 30:08 time, 9:43 mile pace. Then I freaked out when my ob/gyn said the next week 'running is fine as long as you are not getting too overheated'...then I remember being so freakin' hot and sweating running at Silvis that I cried thinking I had cooked my baby when he was trying to grow a brain and stuff. I was just hysterical of a pregnant lady :-) So this year I was hoping to better my time or at least do as well. I ran faster at Durant last week but Silvis has a huge giant hill at the beginning. All was fine to start and then the hill came. I felt like my sweet deceased Grandma Cook who used to walk so slow and hunched over when I was running up the hill, I was unsure if I was making any forward progress. First mile 9:05, wicked fast, must be short I thought. One tired foot in the front of the other I went and as I sped down the hill to the finish (the reward for going up the hill to start) I crossed the finish line in 27:47! my new personal best. 4 mo ago I had delivered Lucas and now I was running sub 9 minute miles! I can't believe it. Aunt Susie cleaned my clock getting her PR at 26 minutes something. Bill ran the 10 K and wanted to get under 42 minutes and he came in at 40:48. Nile and TBL cheered all of us into the finish. Aunt Susie got first in her age group, Bill got second in his and I defended my 2nd place in my age group. Sadly and ironically the older you get in the running world, the faster people are. I don't think once I turn 35 next week I will getting as many medals and trophies. I have fully enjoyed my last weeks of the 30-34 age group... four races, three pieces of hardware. Not bad for only running since June 17th.
Here is a super cute picture of me and TBL after the race. He loves to look out and watch all the activity. I can't wait for him to 'run' the 1/4 fun run next year at Silvis. He'll be 16 months then and hopefully steady enough on his feet.
TBL took a nap after Daddy started to carry him
All smiles after the race was over
Action shot of getting my trophy
Me and Aunt Susie. Her trophy was bigger than mine :-( and the first place gal in my age group was only 40 seconds faster than I was. Even though I was happy with 2nd place and secretly was grumpy I was just not that bit faster to get first place.
Trophy shot

Oh the Iversons are award hogs. We just love winning after a day of hard work, is that bad? I decided the thing I love the most about weight watchers and running races is the applause you get. I love a roomfull of ladies clapping for me when I lose 5 lbs. I love the random townspeople in their lawn chairs cheering as you past. I think I'm getting addicted to applause, that's bad, isn't it?

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

My little man

TBL looks hilariously cute in little man clothes. My friends, the Dillinghams, bought us this adorable outfit which we wore to church on Sunday. TBL was a big hit. Let's be honest, TBL is a big hit even if he is butt naked.
TBL hates socks and shoes. I put these cute little shoes on him and in like 2 minutes he had figured out how to use his other foot to kick them off his heel. I mean how did he know to do that? Primitive instinct or genius child?? I already know my answer.
Playing in his bumbo today
He is so chubby.
After his afternoon nap I caught these awesome faces as he stretched.

whoops! swallowed a frog I think.

We had a great day. Just what Mommy needed after working two days in a row. This is my last week of working full time in the ER so though I technically will work more days a month I'll be home earlier for playtime and bedtime.

Lifetime Member

So thanks to Ruth, one of the check-in ladies at Weight Watchers, I am now a lifetime member again. Once you are a lifetime member, you only have to weigh in once a month and if you are within 2 pounds of your goal you don't have to pay. I was a lifetime member for a year before I got prego with TBL. Once you are prego, you don't have to go to weight watchers and after you deliver you have 3 months to get back down to your goal or you have to pay again. So my three months probably was technically over a few weeks ago but they were 'giving' me until the 1st of Sept. I am still 6 pounds (145) from being within 2 pounds of my goal (137). Today when I was weighing in, Ruth said that for my height, 145 is in the goal range so I could change my goal to 145 and then regain my lifetime status and continue losing at my own speed (like I was losing at anyone else's speed before). So now I am back to being a lifetime member. My goal in my head is still my pre-TBL weight of 137 and I am still going to work hard to get there but I'll be working hard to get there without shelling out any extra money in the process. yippeeedddooo! every penny counts now that Gabby is in braces again and I'm going to 90% time at work next week.

Monday, August 24, 2009

We've got tile!

The tile guys came today and laid our awesome tile. Bill initially thought it looked a bit dark but I love it. It is so cozy and I CANNOT wait to snuggle on our new couch with a fire crackling and the wind howling outside. It picks up the orange walls great and unfortunately the pictures do not do it justice. tile leading from the addition through the old Star Wars room to the kitchen


Friday, August 21, 2009

Durant Dusk Hustle

So last August on 8/8/08 when the Olympics were starting, Bill and I and some friends went to run the Durant Dusk Hustle. It was a hot August evening and I ran my PR of 28:10. I was really really tired and thirsty afterwards, more so than normal because what I didn't know is that TBL had just got his grip inside of me and was starting to grow. The Durant Dusk Hustle was supposed to be two weeks ago but it got postponed until tonight. Bill was home with the kids and TBL and off I went alone to this race. My sister in law signed up for it but because of the postponement she couldn't urn. Off to Durant I went, signed in and got ready. There were 10 gals in my age group signed up and I didn't think I would be able to place. The gun went off and off we went. It was a nice beautiful night in the 60s. I decided I just want to break 30 minutes. I think that course is short but anyway mile 1 in 9:23, mile 2 in 10.26 (I think mile 1 is short and mile 2 is long) and the last 1.1 miles in 9.40 which is a 8.47 pace. I finished in 29:31 which is only 1 minute and 21 seconds slower than last year. And in the last 12 months, I have gained 45 pounds, delivered a child, lost over 35 pounds and started running again. Well last year I was popsicle stick number 91 and this year I was popsicle stick number 88. Last year I got 3rd in my age group and this year I got 2nd. There was no one there to cheer me on or take pictures at finish or me getting my medal but I got a shot of myself when I got home.

time to eat

TBL's high chair arrived today. I think we are going to love it. I was worried about if it would connect well to our table but sure enough, it is fine. I'm sure when my dad gets here he'll load it up with bricks before deeming it safe enough for TBL. Not a bad idea. This chair rotates 6 different ways and now our very own sounds/songs learning dog will demonstrate.
Sitting at the table like a big kid
Turned to 3 pm and can also sit at 9 pm"yippee sitting facing everyone is fun"
Turned to 6 pm to watch the kitchen activity. "yeah being in the kitchen is soo much fun. touch my paw. i'll sing a song for you"
He can also sit at 4:30 and 7:30 "diagonals are fun too. touch my feet. they talk too"
and there is an attachable tray. "i wish i had longer arms"
This could be a keeper. We'll see what Daddy says when he gets home from work.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

the need for a snuggle

a terrible thing happened at work today. the worst possible imaginable emergency. i can't even really type about it. i wasn't even involved, but i knew it happened. i almost threw up. i did cry. i left work an hour early to come home and snuggle my bug and feed him before bed. for 45 glorious minutes, my typical fast-20 minutes and done-eater just took his sweet time drinking his fill as i rubbed his back and head, drank in his smell and got intoxicated all over again with my son. i thought why is TBL eating so slow? maybe he knew i needed the extra time with him and maybe, just maybe he needed it with me as well.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

we've got color

We've got color and I think it looks fabulous! Thanks Dani for picking out these awesome colors.


Sunday, August 16, 2009

august 16th

15 years ago you were born. i've only known you since you were 10, but have watched you grow from a girl into a wonderful young lady. you are a true and loyal friend, a free thinker not to be easily swayed by the crowd and determined to rise above the challenges life has thrown at you. you are the great delight in your father's life and the love we have for you in boundless. Happy Birthday Gabby!

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

the smiles keep on coming

Sure TBL has his crabby moments. He let out some high pitched screams today for what I thought was no reason but I'm sure he had a reason. Taking pictures of crabby moments is not as much fun as taking pictures of his endless supply of smiles. These first few were smiles and laughs that greeted me after he woke up from his nap. A well rested baby sure is a happy baby.

then we had some tummy time. I say 'we' because I was on my belly taking these pictures. TBL has found himself in the mirror and he was smiling at himself.
checking himself out
then Daddy came home and they got to play. I can't believe how good these next two shots are of both of my men smiling
how can you just not love them?
i never thought someone would replace my dad as my absolute favorite (non husband) man alive but TBL has done it in just 3 short months.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Misadventures in breast feeding

Yesterday TBL squeezed my nipple really hard after he was done eating. I am sure he didn't mean it. OUCH! I yelped but it was TBL who started to cry. Why are you crying? I asked. Then I saw that he had milk squirted all over his face which gave him quite the fright. Poor little dude.

Friday, August 7, 2009

I don't seem crabby

Mommy said I had a crabby day. I woke up last night at 10 pm and then again at 2 am and then again at 4:50 am. It wasn't my fault. My PJs were too long on my arms and I couldn't find my thumb. That made me grumpy and I just wanted Mommy and Daddy to know how grumpy I was. I ate a lot of milks today. I took two little baby naps. I was too busy getting good at new tricks to sleep.
Well this is an old trick, smiling at Mommy...gets me whatever I want.
Clapping my flat feet together. Aunt Susie helps me practice this trick. It freaks Daddy out.
Looking adorable in my pooh overalls- thanks Cris, Fabio and Eric, my birthday twin.
Ahh. my new trick...holding my head up at almost 90 degrees for a long time
I can even move my head around to look at toys
My neck muscles are getting stronger
Laughing at Daddy
He was tickling all my tickly parts
Daddy makes funny faces
I just love him

I wouldn't trade it...

So everyone who reads my blog and knows me has been privy to my journey into motherhood. I never really thought I would be a mom. When Bill and I got married we were open to the idea, so open in fact that he had his vasectomy reversed and thought we would just leave it in God's hands. If God thought we should have a child, we would get pregnant. The years came and went. The longer we were married and some of our 'true' personality came out the more sure I was that we were not going to have a child and 'bless' them with 1/2 of ourselves- that just didn't seem fair :-) . It was almost three years since the surgery and my 35th birthday was looming (looming stronger now only a month away). I had decided in my head and heart that we would stop trying at 35 as to not have a high risk pregnancy. I didn't know if that meant I would go on birth control or get an IUD or something. I was totally fine with it. As my friends all had their kids, they were cute and stuff but I couldn't imagine having one of my own. They were nice to coo at and then hand them back. I never really liked kids; my nieces being the exception for those two girls, I'd walk over hot coals. I babysat my friends infant for like 45 minutes once, totally freaked out and had to call my mom like 5 times b/c I was sure something was wrong. All the nurses in the ER know to steer the sick kids to another pod because they are just not for me. Kids always seem to be sticky, like they have jam on their hands. There was this episode of Gilmore Girls where Luke was worried that he could not care for his teenage nephew because he wasn't good with kids, "they have jam hands", he said, "even with no jam around. I can't handle jam hands". To that Lorelei said, "Jess is way past jam hands".
So it was into this attitude that I found out I was pregnant. I don't think I've ever blogged about what actually happened when I found out. My period was a bit late so I was getting a little worried but didn't really think I could be pregnant. It was August 16th which happened to be Gabby's 14th birthday. We were getting ready to go to outdoor movie night for our couples group at Dave and Ali's house. We were going to watch Raiders of the Lost Ark. Bill was working on the computer and I decided to grab a few of the urine dip pregnancy tests that we take to Mexico. I did two at first and they came back positive. "don't panic, don't panic" I kept telling myself. I came downstairs to rummage through our Mexico stuff for a few more. "What are you doing?" shouted Bill from two rooms away. "Getting a few more pregnancy tests because the first two came back positive" "CRAP" he says, "are you serious?". So three more tests later which were all positive we decide they can't be right. All 5 had to be defective. They either got too hot in the Mexican sun or too cold traveling in the luggage compartment of the planes or they are expired or something. We were both trying not to panic. We go to HyVee and buy a 'real' pregnancy test. We come home. We have 4 advanced degrees between us and yet still didn't think we were reading the pink line right. Neither of us spoke for a while. "It will be ok" Bill kept repeating as we drove over to the BGs. "Will it?" I kept asking. He didn't answer. We were in shock. We arrive at movie night. Not that many folks were there yet. I was trying not to cry or throw up. I was totally freaked out. This could not be possible. I can't be a mom. I pulled my dear friend Kim away from the crowd and told her I'm pregnant. She started to cry she was so happy as I was crying out of sheer panic. A few months before her husband AJ asked us if it was OK to pray for us to have a child. He felt as if God had told him to pray specifically that we would have a baby. We kinda laughed it off and said "sure if you want to". I asked Kim "did we just ruin our lives or will this be great?" to which she simply answered "yes". I hadn't planned on telling anyone else, but Ali and I were alone in the kitchen getting more popcorn and I told her. It was hard to tell her as she struggled with their infertility and had been blessed to adopt Josh (and now Ben) I didn't want to seem like a cry baby or ungrateful for the gift it was to be pregnant as so many women couldn't get pregnant. In true bosom friend fashion, she enveloped me in a hug and said she couldn't be happier. I sat through Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark thinking about how in about 1 hour my life had forever changed and that I didn't think I was ready for it.
Everyone knows I hate change. I cried the rest of that weekend. Totally freaked out by being pregnant. I prayed and prayed and told God I wasn't ready, I'm too selfish for this and this couldn't be possible. On the way back from church that Sunday Bill said, "we had enough faith in God before saying if it was his will, we'd get pregnant and now we are and suddenly you have no faith or confidence in His will anymore. this is not the time to lose it". My very wise practical faith-filled husband.
Well I didn't miscarry and I kept on being pregnant. I told my mom on her birthday over the phone which happened to be grandparents day as well. She and my dad FREAKED out as expected. I told my Aunt Mary (who had her girls later in her 30s and always tells me how great it is to be a mom) at a Hawkeye Football game as everyone had gone down into the tunnel to get snacks. She was sitting the row in front of me and she started to cry and cry with joy. She had a hard time pulling it back together when everyone came back up to the stands. Bill told the kids by himself when I was in London for a wedding. We told Uncle Tom and Michael at Texas Roadhouse but he guessed it before due to our 'you tell him...no you tell him...no you' lead up to the big announcement. We told our couples group and our friend Holly jumped on us in delight. Early on I was craving so much fresh fruit that I showed up to work with a bag of grapes, bunch of bananas, like 5 nectarines and a few apples to hold me over my 12 hours. I offered some to my PA friend, Tammy, and she said, 'you must be pregnant. All I ever wanted to eat was fruit'. I had to lie to her because at that point no one really knew except Kim and Ali.
Everyone was so delighted and excited and I was just panicked and worried.
At 20 weeks we found out TBL was a boy. I really wanted to have a girl. I was trying not to cry when we left the office. I wanted my little curly haired girl named Joey after my dad. I went to Target that day to convince myself that little boy clothes are cute and did quite like all the dinosaurs and turtles. I kept getting bigger and bigger. I hated how my body was changing. My running got slower and slower and then stopped all together. I didn't feel all glowing or whatever, I just felt fat.
Well fast forward, everyone knows the saga of my last weeks, delivery and the stress of those first few weeks with TBL at home. I have blogged about how I wanted my old life back and how inept I felt as a mother and how I just didn't feel that bonded with TBL. I guess I expected to hear the Hallelujah Chorus when they first handed him to me or to feel this overwhelming sense of mother's love. I felt like a failure. My mom and my friends bolstered me up and shared their hard times with me; prayed with and for me; held my baby so I could cry or take a nap. Bill and I were fighting all the time, over tired and stressed that we had just ruined our marriage. We got into the classic fight of 'whose fault' this all was. Those first 6 weeks were rough.
Yesterday at work one of the nurses asked me, "how is that little guy of yours?" To which I honestly replied, "he's the best thing that has ever happened to me". She knows part of my story and herself never felt much like being a mom until she had her kids and we talked a little bit about our journeys. We shared a delightful moment together while warming up our lunches and I realized something.
You could offer me my old life, my old figure, my old running times, my old free time, my old sleep schedule and I wouldn't take it. I wouldn't trade anything for the minutes I have with TBL. Diana in Anne of Green Gables said about her son Fred, "before he came I wanted him to be a girl so I could name her Anne. But now that he's here, I wouldn't trade him for a million girls" To which Rachel Lynde said "you'd feel the same if you had an Anne". I wouldn't trade TBL for a million girls When TBL first gets up in the morning and is all adorable in this footed PJs and he looks up at me and has this huge wide gummy smile on his face like he's waited all night to see me again, I realize that I do have that overwhelming sense of unexplainable love for this little guy. I am his mom and I wouldn't trade my life now for anything I used to have. God knew exactly what He was doing when I got pregnant with TBL. He knew I needed him.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

An eventful Wednesday

Today was the first day at Ms Lisa's daycare. We did a 1/2 day trial as he is going to go next Monday for a full day and then several times a week after that. TBL slept in longer this morning than usual so we had a bit of a late start. We did get there all packed and ready about 830. My friend Julie bought us this really nice monogrammed bag that I loaded up with changes of clothes, wipes, burp clothes, extra bottle supplies etc and along with a few bottles of milk and a box of diapers we were off. Ms Lisa takes care of a few other children who are all toddlers and older. Three of them were there today and were so excited baby lucas was coming. They kept waving at him and saying hi baby lucas. They are so cute. I said all of my nervous mom things like we don't take him out in the sun and make sure he has some tummy time and then I handed him off and left. But not before I got a few pictures.
TBL looks a bit apprehensive
Here he is with Ms Lisa and was a bit grumpy at first but it was getting close to nap time.
They hit it off fine and when she called me after his long late morning nap, I went to pick him up. He did great. He took his usual small mid morning nap, had some milks, played some and then passed out for his longer nap. He was all smiles when I picked him up and we had a fun rest of the day. I realized by working both Monday and Tuesday and him being at Ms Lisa's this morning I hadn't really seen him for 2.5 days. We snuggled most of the rest of the day.
Aunt Susie tricked out his bouncy chair and he has really starting playing with the toys, grabbing them etc.

Apparently he doesn't get overstimulated easily
A few smiley pictures for my day at work tomorrow

Nile brought over these glasses today and we all thought they looked HI-larious on TBL