Manners

We have made some progress in the manners department with Emma Claire lately. She is by no means perfect and it is A LOT of work and repetition that makes my head spin, but dinner tonight was exceptionally enjoyable. Nobody was screaming or saying "I don't LIKE that". Brad even thought the meal was good (a new shrimp spaghetti recipe). Anyway, at the end of supper - without prompting - Emma Claire says "thank you mama ... thank you for the good, good supper". Warms my heart. There is hope...

I Love Jesus

Every day that I drop Emma Claire off at Calvary for school, we pass by a stone "mural" on the side of the church of Jesus. Every day, Emma Claire says "there's Jesus", or something about God. Today, she says "look, there's Jesus... I love Jesus".

Last night during her prayer, the first thing on her "thankful for" list was "the angels".

Sibling Rivalry

Emma Claire: Ooooow-ie, ow-ie (in her Emma Claire dramatic tone). I have ow-ie on my face!

Emily: What happened?

Emma Claire: Arnold slapped me... I need TWO band-aids.

The Bickersons: Lawn mower co-op

The Bickersons: Lawn mower co-op

6 Weeks

Arnold is 6 weeks old as of yesterday. It is hard for me to believe, although I am fully aware of how quickly they grow and change.

Arnold continues to get cuter every day. When he is awake, he is much more alert and active. He is pretty strong when he wants to be with his movements. He is smiling much more, too. Sometimes, I am able to prompt him to smile at me. He has always made funny noises, but now he "coos" more, like he is trying to talk to me.

He loves to lay on his play mat and look around at the hangy toys. Emma Claire likes to lay next to him and play there, too. I think maybe he is having a little growth spurt, because he seems to be sleeping a little more again. At night, he is awake a couple of times to nurse, but then falls asleep again snuggled up with me.

I dressed him up yesterday and took a bunch of photos. He is currently the only family member that will let me "practice" my photography on him. He was very cooperative. I wonder how long he will play "dress up" with me?

More Photos of Arnold

Buckle Up!

"Piggie"

"Calin"

Emma Claire INSISTS that whomever is traveling with her in her lap buckles up. She had a near meltdown yesterday because the strap was "too tight" for Calin. Safety First!

Rubbin' Elbows

Michelle Bachman paid a visit to Sil-Pro last week. Brad got to spend some time visiting with her. He says she is personable, charismatic, and - clearly - attractive. Pretty neat!

I'm Back...

Finally - back to my morning runs with Whitney and the dogs. Back in April, it seemed like an eternity before I would be able to run again and, yet, this morning it seemed like we hardly missed a beat. 4 miles - no walking. I feel great.

Returned home to a sleeping baby (and toddler and husband). I love the quiet stillness in the house. It has already been a good morning - and it is only 6 am.

SWAGGER WAGON

The minivan...the new cool? This is hilarious.

Rainbow

Emma Claire saw her first "real life" rainbow yesterday. It appeared after a sunny rain/hailstorm.

Little Gym

Rowie has been taking Emma Claire to Little Gym for the past month, since Arnold arrived. Yesterday, Arnold and I tagged along for the last summer session.

It is fun to think about how much she has grown and progressed over the summer in many ways - her Little Gym skills just being one of them. Emma Claire is so confident now. She is the first in line to demonstrate a new skill and walks across the balance beam like it is nobody's business! New to me yesterday, was her theatrical dismount from the end of the high beam. She is all over the gym, bouncing from station to station, giggling and squealing. I am endlessly amazed at how quickly she is growing and am so proud of her.

4 Weeks Old

Hard to believe one month has passed. Arnold is a month old now and is really growing. He is more alert and is awake more every day. He looks at things now. He likes to watch the mobile in his swing and his crib and seemed to be watching Elmo this morning and was looking at Rudy yesterday. He loves sink baths. He is starting to develop a little routine and I am starting to understand his cues. He smiles every now and then and likes music. I am not sure how much he weight, but has nearly outgrown the newborn size papmpers (which makes me a little teary).

I Get to Keep It

Went in again on Monday for the next (and LAST) procedure to have the filter removed - at last. The interventional radiologist was confident that it would not be a problem to get it out, so I, too, felt pretty good about it.

In the meantime, still bleeding from the puncture site one week later. Everyone tells me "it's a vein - it should not bleed". However - clearly it is still bleeding. They decided to do an ultrasound to check it out and, turns out, they "nicked" a little artery when they punctured the vein behind my knee. This was the source of the bleeding. So, after my procedure, the doctor injected some Thrombin (coagulant) to stop the bleeding. So far, so good two days later. I am pretty confident that issue has resolved.

As for the IVC filter removal - ended up being a no go. Two interventional radiologists working on it decided that it could just not be done safely. The filter, apparently, was placed higher that typical (because of the location of the initial clot). Removing it would be a risk to my heart. As all of this is going on, I am only semi- conscious - nicely sedated. Brad was the "decision maker" on this one, after much discussion with the doctors. So, after all this the filter stays - I get to keep it. Maybe there is a reason it is supposed to stay. I am perfectly OK with that.

I now breathe a sigh of relief. Maybe we can move on now. I feel great - counting the days until I can run again. Happy to be able to now enjoy my maternity leave and put my energy into Emma Claire, baby Arnold and Brad.

I am grateful for all the support and prayers I have received from family and friends. We are quite blessed.

Piggy Bank

Emma Claire: "Mommy, can you buy me some money to feed my piggy?"