things have changed

for my birthday, i received a giftcard to llbean. i used a portion of it to buy this diaper bag. i have always enjoyed shopping, but i have not been this excited about a purchase in a long time. after toting two less than satisfactory diaper bags around for the last 7 weeks, i decided to combine everything for both munchkins into a deluxe bag. from the description, this seemed to be the ultimate bag. the fed-ex man came, but went to our neighbor's house...how disappointing! seriously, what has happened to me? why am i so excited about a diaper bag? a guess i have graduated to a new realm of mommishness. i'll let you know how it works out for us!

Product Review: socks for the whole family

socks are important to me. they can make the difference in a good day and a bad day, especially in the winter. do they fit nicely without creases and wrinkles? do they keep feet warm without overheating them? do they wick moisture or get soggy? are they ugly or cute? my absolute all time favorite best ever sock brand is the smartwool sock. these people know how to do it right. colorful, comfortable, warm, but not bulky, all around wonderful socks! they also make kid and baby socks which marit has really enjoyed-they stay on better than any other socks and keep her feet nice and toasty. however, the baby booties don't stay on little newborn kicking feet. it was a good idea though. best places to buy these wonderful socks: on sale at rei or sierra trading post as they do run on the expensive side. you can get the kid version at essential apparel. the knee socks and tights are also extremely comfortable and high quality.

i have had trouble finding baby socks (especially for the early days) that will stay on active little newborn feet. i am thrilled with trumpette baby socks . not only are they adorable, but they stay on well and fit smoothly under shoes. pure joy seems to be the best place to buy these at a reasonable price. they make super gifts as well!

if you need socks, check out these styles and enjoy toasty tootsies!

Thanksgiving part 5

I know thanksgiving has passed, but since it's my blog, i am going to keep celebrating on here. i need to cultivate thankfulness in my hard heart all year long. today i am thankful that i was able to go on a run! i have been a "runner" for roughly 14 years now, but have not run hardly at all in the last year due to pregnancy and the challenges of running with a baby in the winter. i have done other exercise, but nothing beats an old fashioned pounding the pavement run with a vivid blue sky above. i know it will take a while to get back in good running shape, especially since my opportunities to get out the house by myself between feedings and such are very limited. but i am thankful that today my gracious husband babysat during nap time and afforded me sweet alone time during which i was able to clear my head and think and pray. what a blessing! now my 26yr old joints hurt...

Well again

Once again we have weathered another storm of sickness. We all experienced the stomach virus this past week...what a mess of body fluids. on tuesday morning marit was playing as normal and whimpered and reached up to be held. we love to snuggle, so i gladly picked her up and spun around to dance...she looked surprised and scared and then proceeded to vomit what looked like feta cheese soup everywhere...all over herself, the floor, my new sweater. i thought it was just a fluke since she had just finished a cup of milk, but alas she threw up 7 more times over the course of the day. it was so sad since it was her first stomach bug and she was frightened each time. thankfully adam was able to come home from school to help, but that resulted in him getting the virus that night and the next day. early thursday morning graham started to throw up...a scary thing in a newborn. however, just like the meningitis, he weathered this well too and after 30 hrs was able to hold his feedings and pedialyte down again. i got a touch of the virus on thursday as well, but definitely was blessed to have the mildest version. all told, adam and i were thrown up on 15-20 times over the course of the week...lovely laundry was the result of that as you might imagine. we have done the laundry, cleaned the bathrooms, and started eating again. once again, it is God's grace to us that my sister lives here and was able to help out during this week. we are once again healthy and thankful.

also this past week, we discovered (with marit's help) that our apartment, in the downtown area of our city where we have lived for nearly five years, has peeling paint in places and is revealing old paint that tested positive for lead. oh dear. if you know anything about old houses, you know this is par for the course. our apartment/townhouse is about 100 years old. we live in our urban neighborhood intentionally and feel called here, but have really struggled with being here this week. lead poisoning in a child can cause severe developmental delays and even mental retardation. marit's initial lead test a couple months ago was normal and she would have to actually ingest paint to become poisoned, but there is still risk. who knows what a toddler might get into? do we have to choose between the neighborhood where we feel God has called us and the risk of our children being poisoned? there are other problems with our apartment...we park on the street and i worry with two munchkins that marit will run into the street when we are loading up. there are only upstairs bathrooms...fun for potty-training in our future. there is no place to go outside and play unless we walk a mile to the playground which we do most days. we know that living a life for God's kingdom does not guarantee safety and comfort, but aren't we called to care for and protect our children as well? we have explored other living options in our neighborhood and there are few for a family of our size. we almost bought another 100yr old house until we noticed that it had paint beginning to peel as well. pray for us as we struggle with these thoughts that we would be obedient and patient and that God would protect our children from the hazards of our living situation.

we had a lovely thanksgiving with adam's family (that's the kids and i on thanksgiving day and marit is practicing her "more" sign) and are looking forward to spending christmas at the beach with my family. we are hoping to make it to christmas virus free!

I'm Retiring

I know i'm only 26, but i am retiring. after lots and lots of praying, talking, thinking, advice-seeking etc, we have decided that it is time for me to resign from my job that generates income so that i can be home with our two munchkins as they become more and more demanding. it was one of the hardest decisions we have ever made...not because i don't want to spend as much time as possible with our children, but for several reasons:
-my job as a hem/onc nurse has been our only source of income (besides student loans) and benefits for 2.5 years
-i love my job...great co-workers, boss, and patients
-it is in a way part of ellen's identity...i am growing comfortable with being mommy and wife only without the nursing career attached
-i hate to disappoint people and i hate to quit things

we went back and forth for months (since i found out i was pregnant with graham really) and it has only become clear in the last week or so. it has been such a wild last couple months, it has felt like anything added to life would just cause us to reach a breaking point. i am already exhausted all the time and if i work a few shifts a week, i feel like i'll be living in a fog. i don't want to miss this sweet time with my little ones. soon adam will start residency and we will have an income again with health-insurance. for now, we will pinch pennies, probably be on medicaid or cobra and be together as a family. farewell 5-south, hello messy house (i guess if i'm a stay-at-home-mom, i'll have to keep it cleaner?)!

first steps

Happy and Healthy

We are all finally well! For the past month at least one of us has been ill with the dreadful virus that caused Graham's meningitis. Seriously, i don't think i have ever felt so terrible as this virus made me feel. part of it was that it was hard to "sleep it off" with two little munchkins to tend to. one particularly rough day, i just laid on the couch while marit went about making mess after mess after mess...my body hurt too much to intervene. whew glad that's over! i turned 26 in the process of our recovery and had a quiet birthday that included charlotte's chocolate molten cupcakes (AMAZING!), a new pair of keens, and a couple shopping sprees (online of course as we have been quarantined to the house lately). i'm now in my late 20s...oh dear i feel soooo old. and GUESS WHAT ELSE?

the day after my birthday marit began to walk...jeremy and katie were here and she loves to impress them so she just took off when we were practicing walking with assistance. she used to cling desperately to our fingers as we practiced and now she shakes them off with a grunt of independence. she really is growing up. since then she as begun to initiate, stand up, and just go all around. this is a big deal to us because she is 16 months old and her brace wearing has significantly delayed the walking process and yet here she is doing it and with finesse! as with each new skill gained, marit has entered another phase of contentment and cheerfulness with her new mobility. however, there are those darn molars that are starting to erupt through her gums...

graham's big announcement of the week is that he FINALLY lost the gross end of his umbilical cord and he now has a nice little inny belly button that no longer stinks. he is still sweet as pie at one month old (!) and would like to spend the rest of his life snuggled up on my chest ( at least that's what it seems like) where he is most content-thank goodness for the bjorn!

that's all for now as i continue to wage war against the cheerios that are TAKING OVER our floor. where do they all come from? i find them everywhere even though i vacuum frequently.