I can't believe 2010 is almost over!

And what a year it was! It wasn't half bad, considering that my husband was deployed for more than half of the year. We made it through pretty well, I'm so glad to have that behind us.

Adelaide is almost 4 months old, one quarter of a year! I can't believe how quickly she's growing! And McKaleigh is growing into quite the little girl, and boy does she have a mind of her own.

Over the last year, I have made a lot of changes in my life. I really dedicated myself to living a more back to basics lifestyle. I haven't always done well with it, but I do feel that I've made a lot of great changes throughout this last year. I cloth diaper, even if it's just part time, I still feel good about decreasing the number of diapers I'm sending to landfills. I use way fewer one use items, I try to only buy things that are reusable. These last few months, we've really started to eat less processed foods. We still go out to eat on occasion, sometimes more often than I'd like, but we do eat a lot more whole foods than we did a year ago. I really hope to see these things continue into 2011, and would love to go even further with it.

One way I'm taking things a step further is that I'm going to grow dreadlocks. I started a couple on my own, but I'd really like a majority of them to be freeform dreads. Here are pictures of my hair with three twist and rip dreads, and hair that hasn't been combed in two days:).

So excited for Christmas!!!

Christmas is less than two weeks away! I love Christmas so much!

I have all but one of McKaleigh's Christmas presents purchased. This is seriously the most excited I've been for Christmas, since I was a kid! The things I'm getting her are on the pricey side, so we're doing quality over quantity:). We bought her a tableware set and tea set from Green Toys. This company uses 100% recycled plastic, made right here in the USA. I'm going to wrap those up with some playsilks from an Etsy shop (DreamSpunKids.) Also got her a huge stuffed dog from Target, and the last think we have left to get is the wooden fridge from Palumba that matches her play kitchen:). Those two things will be from Santa... because I don't want to figure out how to wrap them! Then for both of the girls we got a bunch of little books and puzzles as stocking stuffers.

I just can't wait to play Santa Claus this year! What are you getting your kid(s) for Christmas?

When you stop trying so hard...

...everything just starts to make sense!

About two weeks ago, I started a blog post about how I didn't know how I was going to manage everything, without my mom here. I never finished the post, but my mom left a week ago, and things have been going better than I ever could have imagined they would!

My mom was doing so much of the housework, when she was here! She did a lion's share of the cooking and cleaning. I really don't know what I would have done without her these past three months, especially since my husband was gone. I think part of the reason things have gone well since she left is that I've gotten really used to the house being tidy and I love having meals prepared from whole foods.

It's like I don't even have to try! Everything just happens. I've started waking up at around 7 everyday (way earlier than normal.) McKaleigh sleeps until at least 8, sometimes until 10! So you can imagine how much I get done in the mornings. I love the quiet:). It's a good time for me to tidy up the house, so we can start the day with a clean slate. I've even vacuumed the living room twice this week, lol.

I've done a pretty good job of making sure I sign into Biggest Loser on our Kinect (which is awesome, by the way! I highly recommend it!) Hopefully that will help get rid of the baby belly I have left. Still a little softer than I'm comfortable with.

Cooking has gone way better than it's ever gone before. I'm really starting to love cooking and I'm excited to start trying out some new things! We've eaten out more than I'd like, but honestly, I knew it would be a difficult transition for me. I really don't know how to cook much, so every so often it's nice to just pick something up. I always feel SO much better when I cook fresh veggies, though. Part of me tends toward perfectionism, so I don't really like trying new things, because I'm afraid of doing things wrong, or having things not turn out. It's getting easier, though, the more I try to make new things!

This is starting to get long, so I'll cut it off here. I'm so excited about life right now!

He's home!

Wow the time has flown! It's been two months since I last blogged! So much has changed! Adelaide is getting bigger everyday, McKaleigh turned two, and Michael is home from Iraq!

I can't believe how big Adelaide has gotten. She's really starting to coo and make other cute baby noises, staying up for longer stretches at a time, and holding her head up pretty well.

McKaleigh turned two a month ago. We had a little get together for her and she had a blast! We got her the cutest little kitchen from Palumba.com.

And then of course the most exciting thing that's happened since the last time I posted was that the hubby is home! He's a month early, and we weren't sure if he'd be back for good or not, but now we're almost positive that he won't have to go back! I feel so blessed to have him home safe and sound.

Adelaide is here!

So I'll start with stats, then get into the story:).

Her full name is Adelaide Elizabeth Jane Koch.

She weighs 6 pounds and 10 ounces and is 20 inches long.

She arrived at 3:00 am on the dot, this morning, September 1st, 2010.

Yesterday (August 31st), I started to have some contractions in the early evening. At first I thought they were just braxton hicks contractions, even though they were sort of patterned. At around 8pm or so, I had my first more painful contraction that I had to actually work through. After that I told my mom, "it's probably nothing, but it's not entirely impossible that I'm in labor right now." I was in denial for quite awhile. My husband is deployed and should be home for his R&R in the very near future, so I was really hoping she'd hang on another week or more.

Around 9pm, I decided to get in the tub at my house. I mean there was no way I was in real labor (haha :P,) and they say that a nice warm bath will usually stop contractions, if it's not the real deal. I stayed in for about half an hour and didn't have any contractions... or at least I didn't feel any contractions. I get out of the tub and a few minutes later have another contraction. At this point I decide it'd be a good idea to start timing them. They all lasted 1-1.5 minutes and for awhile were around 8-10 minutes apart.

I started packing my bag around 11:45, since that was something I hadn't planned on doing until this week (I know, I'm a total procrastinator.) As I was packing my bag they became closer to 5 minutes apart. That's when I decided to call The Birth Center's answering service. They connected me with the midwife on call and we started to talk about what had been going on. While we were on the phone I had two contractions about 3 minutes apart, so we decided that I definitely needed to go in, and agreed to meet at 1:15, since I'm about an hour away.

We finished getting ready, and I went with my mom and McKaleigh in one car, with my brother following us in the Cobalt. The drive was pretty long, but giving my mom directions was a nice distraction and she was very encouraging as I worked through each contraction. They remained about 3 minutes apart for the entire car ride. We arrived to the birth center right on time. I went in and as soon as the midwife checked me, she said "well it's a good thing you came in," which was great to hear. Then she totally surprised me and told me I was already 8 centimeters dilated!

To be honest, I prepared myself for much, much worse than what I experienced as far as pain. I thought for sure that I had so much worse ahead of me, since I was at an 8. I labored the last bit in the tub, so that may have helped, but even when she told me I could push whenever I was ready, I just couldn't believe that I was done dilating and that part was over! I had no pain medication whatsoever, and really never felt like I needed it. It's amazing the difference breathing and moving WITH your contractions instead of against them, can make.

After trying to push a few times in the tub, I decided that delivering in the tub just wasn't going to work for me. Half of my pushing I did leaned over a big ball and on my knees. Eventually my thighs got pretty tired, so I turned over and delivered her in a semi-sitting position.

When I first got set up in the birthing room, my brother set up his computer for me. Michael wasn't online, as I assumed would happen, but luckily I got a hold of someone he works with and they got him for me. Michael then got on skype and got to witness pretty much the entire thing. Well... except for the most important part! He got up to do something, thinking I still had quite a bit of pushing left to do. The second he was gone, the big push came, the one that you can't stop from happening, you just have to give into it. Within a minute or two of him getting up, I had a baby in my lap and he walked back in to a crying baby girl:).

The entire experience was amazing! After she was born she was brought up onto my chest and her cord was left alone until it was done pulsing. My mom cut the cord, which is funny, since I don't think our cord has been cut yet;). After a few minutes, I put Adelaide near the breast and she just knew what to do right away. She nursed so well, it was really great, plus the fact that I'm tandem nursing and already had my colostrum in means no sore boobies for mommy:), at least not yet, lol. Adelaide was never "taken" from me, when I decided that I was ready to get cleaned up, that's when she went to be weighed and measured. Everything was on my time, I love the birth center!

McKaleigh was present for the birth, and was very interested in her new baby sister. I can already tell that she's going to be a great big sister. I can't wait to see her interact with Adelaide more in the days and weeks to come, as she gets used to her.

I'll get to go home today, yet another thing that I love about the birth center:). Just waiting for a while until then.

It's been far too long!

Wow! I can't believe how long it has been since I blogged. I'm pretty much a failure:P, lol! I didn't stick to my schedule, surprise, surprise. I have been generally doing better about getting stuff done. I'm just too much of a "go with the flow" kind of person, and although I thrive on a schedule, I can never stick to one. Oh well, I just need to accept that that is who I am!

I'm halfway through my 3rd trimester! Less than two months left to go, yay! I can't believe how big I am... and how much bigger I'm probably going to get! I just feel like I can't get any bigger than this, haha.

It's so different being pregnant when you already have a toddler. Last pregnancy I could lie around all day, sleep whenever I wanted to, hop in the car to get food without needing to put anyone in and out of a carseat. This time is not so luxurious;). I am so much achier than I was last pregnancy, seeing that I have a toddler who needs to be picked up on a semi-regular basis. This pretty much reassures me that I really am ready to be done having kids. I couldn't imagine doing this again, with two kids! Seriously, you women with three or more kids are amazing! My husband and I both feel pretty certain though, that two is the perfect number of children for us:).

Not sure what else I should add into this little update. The Georgia heat is killing me... and my electricity bill, ahhh! I am so ready for summer to be over! Now that I'm not in school, summer is totally overrated, lol.

Well, that's all I got for now... a totally random, not very well written post... but hey, it's better than nothing, right?

Week one, day two

I've decided that maybe blogging frequently about this new method of staying productive will help me be successful. It will help me figure out what about my system works and what needs tweaking. Right now I am finding that one aspect of my "plan" is definitely going to help me stick to it.

This one thing that I think will help me a lot is that I don't have a set task for every single morning. I purposely left half of my mornings open so that we would have time for walks, playdates, appointments, etc. Well, it will also help for when I have an off night, like tonight. Let me explain...

Today during McKaleigh's nap, her diaper leaked. I stripped the bed to wash everything. Had the mattress cover in the dryer and the sheets in the wash and then totally forgot about it! Bedtime rolls around and then I remember... CRAP! So bedtime gets delayed by almost two hours because they need to be dried on low heat and it takes for-ev-er. Also, today I vacuumed half of the house, and since it's been awhile, I moved all of the furniture. As a result of this, my back is killing me! So now there are dishes on the counter, McKaleigh's toys are everywhere, and I just don't think I can bear to be on my feet anymore than is necessary.

But it's okay, really it is. The reason this system will work is that I'm allowed to have an off night. Tomorrow morning I will clear all the dishes and tidy up the play area. I won't let this one slip up ruin everything, because really it doesn't have to. I've done so great in just these two days, and not in the way I usually do. Normally I have a few days where I get so much stuff done and then I'm just so exhausted and get bored with it. I haven't gotten all that much done, just regular stuff, and only what I have scheduled to do. I think that makes such a big difference. I am making my expectations much more reasonable. Now I will end this post with a cleaning tip:).

Carpet spot/stain removal: This is for stains that have been around for awhile, not sure what to do when a stain is happening.

-First, I vacuumed over the area(necessary around here with all the dog hair.)

-Second, I sprayed with a solution of one part water and one part white distilled vinegar, then went and did some other stuff and let it set.

-Third, I scrubbed with a brush and a solution of warm water and Dr B's (I think the real key here is using a scrub brush and not trying to use a rag or sponge.)

-Then I just let it dry! I had these weird dark dirt spots in the middle of my living room that wouldn't come up from vacuuming alone, and then also had some bigger spots in the hallway from where the chihuahua likes to pee. These steps totally removed the stains! I'm going to be doing this on all of the spots in my carpet from now on:).