The Vieiras

waddle. waddle. waddle.

2012-01-20T13:34:00.005-05:00

That's about all I do the days: waddle.

We're about 6 weeks from the due date now,
and I am certainly feeling like I'm 34 weeks pregnant.

The reality that I will have 3 kids in a few weeks is starting to sink in.
I am excited to meet my baby boy,
but also incredibly nervous every time I think about it.

For now I'm happy to waddle around,
savoring every moment with my little girls.
And in 6 weeks, hopefully I will feel a little more prepared
to let my heart stretch even more and become mama to a
whole new little one.

Books for the New Year!

2012-01-06T13:05:00.004-05:00

We had a wonderful Christmas with family!
But it is feeling good to be back in our old routines.
One thing I was really missing was READING!--
with my little ones and reading for myself.

Here are a few of our favorite books as of late:

1) Zin! Zin! Zin! a Violin

This book is a great tool for introducing
your children to an orchestra,
and the poetry is truly wonderful!
You will love the description of each instrument!

2) Snow

We're still waiting for our first winter storm,
but this book certainly gets us excited.

The descriptions of snow and the winter
are, once again, wonderful.
I also love the pictures by Lauren Stringer--
one of my favorite children's book illustrators.

I've mentioned this book before:
3) Winter is the Warmest Season

Written and illustrated by Lauren Stringer,
it is where I fell in love with her art.
I also love how the book makes your little one's think:
Winter may be cold outside,
but we fill it with hot soups, warm baths, fires and candles,
toasty layers of quilts, and lots of together time.
She proves winter really can be "the warmest season."

And this one, 4) Hattie Big Sky
was a random grab from the YA lit section.
I saw the Newbery Honor Award and figured I would give it a shot.
It was another wonderful book!
I loved the combination of early homesteading history
with tensions from WWI.
I also enjoyed that the ending brought some surprises,
not always what you expect in YA lit.

I am hoping to get more reading in this year
than I was able to last year.
However, I'm sure things will get MUCH more
complicated when little Ezra makes his appearance.

I'll just have to read my little heart out for the next 8 weeks
to get a good head start--just in case!

As ready as I'll ever be.

2011-12-21T15:20:00.002-05:00

It has been a crazy week or so. We have had accidents that probably should have involved stitches, nights with extra toddlers, lots of baking and visiting, and trying to prepare the house for the 20 people that will fill these walls come Christmas Eve. WHEW!

I have come to the realization that my house will have to be just what it is when my company arrives. Oh, how I have longed to scrub every floor, clean up every little pile of random papers that accumulates faster than I can sort it into the recycling bin, dust every surface, and finish little decorating projects and ideas to fill my bare walls. BUT, luckily, I know that my family loves me even in all my imperfections and dusty book shelves.

I will at least make sure they have clean toilets to sit on, clean sheets to sleep on, and clean dishes to eat off of. They will be happy, and my 30-week pregnant self will be grateful.

Cold mornings...

2011-12-12T14:05:00.002-05:00

call for warm fun!

Warm peppermint tea,
fleece blankets,
lots of books,
and snuggling.

Success.

Book Review

2011-12-08T14:45:00.003-05:00

I just finished this book a few days ago, and I thought it was wonderful! I had seen the movie based off of this memoir about a year ago and enjoyed it, but the book itself is really worth the extra time.

I loved reading about such a humble, patient, hopeful, and resourceful mother of 10. I love knowing that this was, indeed, a real woman! And I love that her daughter valued her example enough to write an entire memoir about her.

So, all you mommies out there, if you are looking for a new book to start--this is a good one!

The Rainy Day

2011-12-04T16:08:00.001-05:00

The Rainy Day
by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-26T21:29:00.003-05:00

What a perfectly wonderful Thanksgiving we had this year!

After a nice warm breakfast,
Marty took the girls over to their grandma's
to watch the Macy's Thanksgiving parade
while I set to work on the turkey and veggies.
Can you tell this girl is excited to have some papa time?

We did a Thanksgiving lunch instead of dinner
and shared it with some friends and family.
It was one of the best tasting Thanksgiving's I've ever had--
thanks to some wonderful sides and desserts from our guests!

Of course the turkey took longer to cook than expected
and it was pushing into nap time by the time we got to eat,
(a few mini-meltdowns made that fact clear)
but the glitches were outweighed by the warmth of the atmosphere.
I had such a nice time I forgot to take pictures of the actual feast.

I did, however, get a picture of the outfits
Dorothy picked out for herself and her sister.
My favorite part is that she insisted on squeezing into
the 12 month sweater and letting Lucy drown in the 2T size.
They were happy.
Who can argue with that?

I have been grateful for the chance to reflect all week
on the many blessings we have been given.
I feel this sweet little baby boy kicking inside me;
I have a beautiful, healthy family;
we have a warm home and good job;
we have freedoms many others do not.
I love how this holiday reminds us of all that we DO have
as we now enter a holiday season that too often
tries to remind us of what we feel we don't have--
and should put on our "wish list."

May we continue in the spirit of gratitude and Thanksgiving
as we now turn our thoughts to the miracle of our Savior.

Dot's latest artwork

2011-11-26T21:24:00.003-05:00

I love watching my daughter create.
The other day
we were able to sit down and do several
water colors together before Lucy woke up from her nap.

These were the result:

My favorite part was her narration of each picture as she painted.
Every stroke and color had meaning.
She has gone from just smudging paints around
to creating a story with shapes and colors.

I may have to commission her to do a few
for our empty walls.

belly shot

2011-11-07T22:09:00.003-05:00

Proof that I am, indeed, carrying our third child.

Greenery

2011-11-07T21:26:00.002-05:00

We have this awesome family in our ward.
They throw great parties;
their son passes the sacrament to us each week;
they bring us plates full of chocolate-dipped goodies;
they are just good people with HUGE hearts.
And we love them.

Well,
a few years ago they brought us one of their famous
chocolate-dipped variety platters
and it was all wrapped up with a beautiful passion flower
tied on top like a bow.
At first I actually thought the flower was fake--
it just looked so ridiculously perfect and beautiful.
We thought it was so neat we made sure to thank them
for the treats AND the flower the next time we saw them.

Being the awesome people they are,
they didn't forget how much we liked that flower.
A few weeks ago they told us they had transplanted
a portion of their passion flower plant for us to pick up.
So my husband came home from mutual last week with the plant
and now I have THESE flowers to greet me:

This plant will definitely brighten up and beautify
our house in the cold months ahead.

Thank you, Vigus family!

Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee're Off.....

2011-11-01T09:54:00.005-04:00

To get some candy!

While we are still a family of four
we decided (or mostly I decided and everyone else went along)
to go as the Wizard of Oz friends this year.
It was our first year actually doing costumes and trick-or-treating
with the girls, and we had a great time!

Here is our beautiful Dorothy as Dorothy Gale:)
She kept asking where the Dorothy face
part of her costume was.
We had to explain that she already has a little girl face
and she just needed the clothes.

And here is our sweet Lucy as the Cowardly Lion.
I didn't dare try to paint a nose and whiskers on her,
but we thought she still did the part justice with her
lion mane and patch of chest hair.

We made a deal that it would all be homemade--
minus the ruby slippers.
We made enough time to get the girls' costumes done
and then spent the hour or two before trick-or-treating
running around to pull together costumes for ourselves.
But we had a great time!

Here is the whole gang!
Marty was our Tin man
and I rounded out the group (literally)
as the Scarecrow.

Happy Halloween, everyone!

Upstaged

2011-11-01T09:37:00.003-04:00

Poor Autumn.

This season is having a rough time this year.
If you will recall,
the first week of October brought us 84 degree weather!
Apparently summer was not ready to let go quite yet.
If you look closely enough,
you can see a whole beach full of swimmers--
in October!
Crazy.

And then
apparently winter was a little jealous
and decided to get started early.
We woke up the other morning to this:

Luckily ours was just a dusting that melted by the afternoon.
There are a lot of people in the state that got several feet
and won't have power restored until at least Friday.
We will be praying for them.

Sheesh.
I love the seasons,
but I really love when they come at the
RIGHT TIME!

I can handle more snow now that we've entered November,
but if we pull another 80 degree day this month
I may start believing in flying pigs.

It's getting colder here!

2011-10-25T11:34:00.000-04:00

And we LOVE it!

We're not actually wrapping up in hats and scarves quite yet,
but Lucy couldn't resist trying out all the goods
we unpacked the other day.

veins

2011-10-19T14:58:00.003-04:00

So we are on our third pregnancy in the last 3 and a half years. And it definitely sounds even more crazy when I read it all typed out like that. Anyways, this pregnancy number three really seems to be doing a number on my little body (did anyone else have this experience?), and I'm beginning to think that my body is a little angry at me for asking it to, you know, grow three other humans in under 4 years.

One thing I never had with my other babies was varicose veins, but, wouldn't you know, they have shown up on one of my thighs this time. I was taking a bath with Dorothy the other night (we both had colds and needed a warm soak), and she looked at my thigh and exclaimed, "MOM! Who drew on your leg?" Oh, man. Did I need that! Nothing like something silly coming out of that girls mouth to make the world seem right. I looked at her and said "it was daddy." She responded, "yeah, it was daddy. And he did it on purpose."

Now if only they washed off as easily as marker...

Blue

2011-10-14T17:03:00.001-04:00

Its our new color. That's right. Get ready to welcome our first little BOY Vieira in February!

Fall traditions

2011-10-14T12:50:00.004-04:00

Last October our stake put together a celebration
for the 10 year anniversary of the dedication
of the Boston Temple.
We made a whole weekend trip out of it and
stayed in a hotel near the city and took the girls to
Walden Pond as well.
The weekend was such a beautiful experience that we decided
to replicate part of it on a smaller scale this Columbus day.

Our day started with a trip to the Temple grounds.
The day was freakishly hot.
Seriously,
when is it over 80 degrees in October?
But it was perfect weather for walking around the Temple,
letting the girls get out their energy on the grass
and looking at flowers.

The temple was followed by a quick stop to Trader Joe's
(oh, how I wish there was one a little closer to us!)
and a stop for lunch before we headed to the Pond.

With full tummies, we all started our the trip in good spirits.

Lucy quickly faded.
We realized that we had pushed a little too close to nap time.
She ended up passing out on my shoulder about
halfway around Walden Pond,
and I traded her off to Marty to keep up with Dorothy.

Like I said,
it was freakishly hot
and the beach on the pond was swarming with families
making a last swimming trip for the season out of the holiday.
Dorothy kept asking where her swimming suit was.
She had been such a trooper that I stripped her down
and told her to go have fun.
We've been potty training her, but had her in a diaper for the day.
It worked out well,
and she LOVED being in the water.
I think that as much as I try to convince her that fall is the best season,
she will forever be my summer girl.

It was a wonderful (but exhausting) day.
We're hoping to keep this new fall line up of traditions going.

"Just get here when you can..."

2011-10-14T12:31:00.002-04:00

Last week, my sweet husband was a busy man. Wednesday night through Saturday afternoon were filled to the brim with all sorts of activities including a camp out with the boy scouts. By the end of his camping trip when he arrived back home and I insisted that he take us all out for dinner because I was not going to cook, he had a dead cell phone. So, thinking it was time for some uninterrupted family time anyway, he plugged in the dead phone and off we went.

Dinner was followed by the bedtime routine, a night of good sleep, and the usual Sunday morning activities. After everyone was in their Sunday best and I was downstairs packing snacks for church, Marty thought he had better check his now charged cell phone before we took off for a few more hours. To his surprise he had several missed calls and messages--three from the Stake Presidency. "Babe" he called down the stairs. "The Stake Presidency wants to know if we can be to church early. They need to talk to us before sacrament meeting." We grabbed our bags and rushed out the door hoping we could make it with enough time to discuss whatever it was.

On the way we innocently thought that with stake conference coming up maybe one of us was going to be asked to speak. When we got to the building, the second counselor held the door for us and then ushered us directly to the Bishop's office. With about 5 minutes until sacrament meeting was to begin he sat us down and said " we hate to do this with so little notice, but we are restructuring the Bishopric and would like to ask Marty to be the first counselor to the new Bishop." Our jaws fell, and I think I even let out a little laugh. We did not see THAT coming! Our ward was restructured less than 2 years ago, and Marty was still fairly new to the whole Scout Master thing, so we really had no idea.

My sweet husband loves this ward--it is the ward he grew up in--and he has known many of the members most of his life. Although he is sad to no longer be over the boys in the scouting program, he is truly humbled and honored to be able to serve on a broader ward scale. I love that man, and I am humbled and honored to sustain him in his new calling.

Here's to another adventure.

Apple Picking

2011-10-14T12:21:00.002-04:00

There once was a fall day
(that actually felt like fall)
when a mama lady was feeling pretty darn good.
So she packed up her two sweet munchkins
and drove out to the apple orchard.

While her wee munchkin loved the prospect
of picking apples from the tree and putting them in a bag,
her big munchkin cried because the smooshed apples
that littered the rows bothered her to no end.

So the wee one was happily put to work

And the big one was moved to the center of the row
away from the scary smooshed apples.
Peace was restored.

And they all ate apple cider donuts.

The end.

heard from Dot...

2011-09-22T08:14:00.001-04:00

This morning during breakfast:

Mom: "Dorothy, please stop bugging your sister and come eat your oatmeal."

Dorothy: "Not a chance."

Well, I certainly see where I stand.

Good morning:)

our newest neighbors

2011-09-14T15:17:00.005-04:00

These two lovely Tamworth hogs
will be spending about a month on our front pasture.

They have only been here about two days,
but they have already overturned almost their entire pen.
The whole pasture used to look like this:

We're all about cheap labor here.
They will freshen up the pasture, kill the weeds,
and get it ready for us to plant cover crops
before we extend the garden up a few feet next year.
And they look so darn cute doing it!

I kind of laugh at how we get to play "rent-an-animal."
We needed something to eat the pasture down,
my brother-in-law dropped off 9 sheep for a few weeks.
We wanted to start prepping the same pasture for garden,
so he picked up the sheep and dropped off the hogs.
Pretty handy guy to have around.

And I thought this was pretty exciting:

We grew our own dry beans this year!
I still have a LOT of shelling to do,
but I am excited to try cooking with them.
I hear fresh dry beans are oh-so-much tastier
then their bagged, grocery store counterparts.
And the best part is they took almost NO work to grow.
Seriously, we planted, watered, and barely weeded.

Our first pot of beans will determine if we were successful.

Now, if only we could get the cooler weather to creep back
so I can think about simmering beans...

Back to School!

2011-09-07T14:30:00.002-04:00

I don't think I can tell you all enough how much
I love the fall.
I love the cooler weather, the fruits and vegetables, the colors,
AND
I especially like the return to school and learning.

This year, inspired by this wonderful woman,
I decided to start our back to school season off right
with a little family feast.

We all got a little antsy about an hour before dinner
excited about the bubbly, roast, veggies, gravy, and cake--
basically the kind of dinner I have not bothered to cook
since the morning sickness set in.
Oh, how we savored those slow-cooked flavors!
Goosey was particularly interested in the sparkling white grape juice.

Dorothy would eat nothing but roast and chanted
"I love meat!" over and over.
I was just happy she ate anything at all
because from the moment she saw the cake plate
(about 2 hours before dinner)
she insisted on telling me she wanted nothing but a big ole' slice.

We ended the night presenting Marty with a framed family picture
for him to have on his desk,
as well as a frame with our family theme for the school year:
"Seek learning, by study and also by faith" D&C 88:118.
We talked about ways each of us will focus on learning this year,
both spiritually and temporally.
It was a wonderful chance to refocus and set some new goals.

The next morning came with down pouring rain at 6am,
right when Marty had to get up to milk the goat before school.
He was wonderful, not complaining but just getting the job done.
He then came back in to dry off and have some hot chocolate and buttered toast
before heading out for his first day of school.

Happy new school year, everyone!
May we all find ways to learn and grow this year.

reasons I'm smiling today.

2011-09-05T09:25:00.003-04:00

1. We made it to September--and that sweet feel of fall is on its way.

2. I ate spinach artichoke dip and peanut butter cookies for breakfast.
And I dare say it was just what I needed.

3. I still have this whole day to spend with my handsome before his
first day of school tomorrow.

4. There is a constant breeze blowing through my windows.

5. These two girls. Especially in these two poses.

Oh, and 6. It has officially been 7 years since my car accident!
I think that calls for some cake.

Happy Labor Day!

special helper

2011-08-31T13:56:00.003-04:00

No doubt about it, Dorothy is one sassy girl. However, I think she has an extra dose of sweetness inside of her to make up for all that sass.

Thankfully I am on my way out of the morning sickness days.
But there is one thing I will miss from all those moments
with my head over the toilet.
This sweet girl,
my special helper,
liked to find me mid-yack
and rub my back.
"Momma,"
she would say in her sweet voice,
"it's okay. You'll feel better now."
Then she would pretend to cough and sputter a bit herself
and run off to cause some mischief.

Nothing like a two year old.

An Angel

2011-08-23T10:58:00.003-04:00

An angel just called to tell me that she is bringing me dinner. I literally cried a few tears of joy when I got off the phone with her.

I've been feeling a little better yesterday and today, and I am very excited to think I can put all my efforts into trying to get my house clean and organized. No dinner (or dinner pots and pans!) to take care of tonight!

Who knew getting a chance to scrub my shower could make me so happy:)

I want THAT.

2011-08-21T15:37:00.004-04:00

I get pregnancy cravings. No doubt about it. With Dorothy and Lucy, I hate to admit it, I craved donuts, ice cream, and pastries. I tried not to give in too often, but there was the occasional run to stop and shop at 9 pm to fill a "need." I remember cringing as the self scanner practically yelled across the store "please move your PASTRY to the belt."

This time around I have more varied cravings. However, instead of wanting something once every few weeks, I find myself wanting one thing for a week straight. My cravings this time have included:

Caesar salad wraps (but NO chicken, please. It currently makes me wretch.)
slurpees
eel, avocado, and cucumber sushi
pork quesadillas
fresh fruit
pizza (in varying degrees of quality)
potato salad
churros and hot chocolate (although this one was never fulfilled)
rainbow sherbet
flavored seltzer water
cheese and crackers

The caesar wraps were a little out of control. I literally ate one (or two) a day for about a week and a half. I was bringing all the fixings to church and making them in the kitchen to get through the meetings with a happy tummy. I was making them before bed to eat while I read. I don't know that I ever allowed myself to have one for breakfast, but I am sure that I thought about it. I'm a little sick of the wraps part now, but I have given in to eating just straight croutons and salad dressing. Once. Maybe twice.

I am always fascinated that when the sound of most food makes me want to yack, those dear old cravings go down nice and easy. Thank goodness for grocery stores and a husband willing to run a few extra errands.

My new Best Friend

2011-08-09T17:08:00.003-04:00

Zofran.
It gets me through the days.
It gives me the ability to enjoy this summer with my family.

With a dose of nausea medication in my tummy,
we have had some truly delicious summer days:

The beach.

I too often forget to enjoy living 10 minutes from the ocean.
But these little girls love it so much,
I'm sure that we will be going much more frequently.

We braved a bumpy ferry ride over to Martha's Vineyard
for one of my favorite summer days.
Who doesn't love boat rides, picnics, carousels, and ice cream
all in the same day?

We headed over to Battleship Cove to see the ships,
walk along the water,
ride the carousel,
and,
of course,
jump up and down like Rocky at the top of these steps.

I mostly just love getting outside.
The fresh air is,
well,
refreshing,
and I always feel grateful when I think about
the long winter months that will be here before we know it.

Look at that dirt-covered face.
Now that is beauty.

Let's just put it out there...

2011-07-27T19:46:00.003-04:00

because, honestly, I will not be even a semi-good blogger until I stop puking.

We're pregnant with baby 3, folks!

We'll be expecting our little one around leap day--and with my track record it is quite possible we will have a baby February 29th!

Until next time, my head is either in the toilet or on a pillow. Yehaw!!

a month break.

2011-07-19T09:37:00.004-04:00

Well, we are back from our yearly excursion to North Carolina!
As always, we had an incredible few weeks
and came back with a lot of fun memories.

Lucy discovered she can play a mean mini piano.

She also discovered the joys of not being the smallest.

Dorothy played hard and passed out harder.

There were field trips,

cool cousins,

and nature walks.

A Heaps family reunion is never complete without dancing!

It was a non-stop party!

Our papa had to leave early for Scout Camp,
but we loved our first two weeks with his handsomeness.

We can't wait to go back next year!

Thank you, grandma and grandpa
for hosting the craziness!

A day for papas.

2011-06-18T22:36:00.002-04:00

Oh, my Martin.
You deserve more than one day
to celebrate the incredible papa man you are!
Our girls know they are loved,
and every time I see you reading to them,
dancing in the kitchen (with a broadway spin or two),
taking a walk with one tiny bean up on your shoulders,
or speaking a little creole to our babies
it melts my heart.
Keep up the incredible work.

And to my daddy,
the Jazzman to beat all Jazzmen,
thank you for having the patience to raise me right.
I certainly did not make it easy,
but I am grateful everyday to have been raised in a home
with the Gospel and a righteous Priesthood holder.

(forgive the bare shoulders of yesteryear and just enjoy the sass)

I love you, papas!
This one is for YOU!

Heat Wave.

2011-06-14T13:52:00.003-04:00

What can bring smiles,
and lots of them,
even when it is 85 in the house?

Popsicles!

I know how we'll be surviving the summer!

date night!

2011-06-08T08:18:00.003-04:00

Dot's attempt to capture the evening:

We better stick with the timer for another year or so.

starting over

2011-06-07T08:55:00.004-04:00

is probably a good idea when you sprinkle cayenne pepper instead of cinnamon into your little one's millet breakfast. Oops.

Girls, girls, girls! (and Marty)

2011-06-06T21:33:00.002-04:00

Over Memorial Day weekend
we took a quick trip over to New York
to visit my sister Kristi and her family.
Her husband was out of town visiting his family,
so it ended up being a whole lot of girls
and my one handsome Martin for the weekend.

Even though it was a short trip,
we had a great time!

We loved seeing where they live
and getting to go to some of their favorite places.

The discovery center and story garden were a hit!

Dorothy loved getting to pretend to do "big people" things.

We were pleasantly surprised at how well
these two girls got along
They both have pretty strong personalities.

Don' you just want to kiss and squeeze this bean?

Enjoying a book in the garden.

A little girl in a big chair.

Yes, even the dog is a girl.
Thanks for putting up with all our girliness, Marty!

And thank you, Kruspernutter,
for one delicious weekend!

one of THOSE days.

2011-06-03T07:27:00.002-04:00

Yes. This week I had one of THOSE days.

You know, the day where you burn up pizza dough AND the wooden bowl it was rising in when you forget it is in there and preheat the oven to 425 to pre-bake the non-wheat crust for one of your children.

The day where you just can't seem to find the patience for your oldest child who is being super grumpy and naughty and then you realize she is running a fever and just doesn't feel well.

The day where you get off the phone from a teary conversation with your mom and three piano students come walking through your front door to see your red, blotchy, swollen face because they thought they still had one more week of lessons even though lessons concluded at the end of last month and you hope they think your allergies are just acting up today.

The day where you look around and can't remember the last time your floor didn't feel sticky, your dishes were completely done, the toys were all put away, and your sanity was in tact.

The day where your husband has to leave for a meeting eating PB and J (because of said burned dinner) and you are standing in the middle of a messy kitchen with both your children crying and needing to be held and you are still trying to figure out what you, yourself, will eat for dinner.

Oh, yes. What a day it was.

But now that THAT day is over, I am glad we had a "rock bottom" kind of moment. I went to bed that night looking up scriptures on patience and praying that I could be a better mommy. I woke up the next day and, because she was sick, Dorothy slept in a whole extra THREE hours. Lucy and I got laundry done, dishes put away, and food prepped for later use. Tender mercies always seem so plentiful on the heels of one of THOSE days.

Now we have woken up to another beautiful day. Dot still has a fever but is smiling, and Lucy is just now cooing in her crib. And the three of us are off to tackle more tasks that seemed insurmountable just a few short days ago.

Praying

2011-05-25T21:53:00.003-04:00

A lot of it lately has been about this sweet one.

Her body just cannot handle
so much of what the rest of us use for fuel.

We got rid of the eggs,
and things looked up for a day or two.
Then we had a huge flair up eczema,
worse than before.
As I have been praying the answer kept coming: wheat.
Get rid of the wheat in her diet.

Well, it has been about a week now
of egg-free/wheat-free eating for our Goose,
and the eczema has been under control.

We'll keep praying.
We'll keep praying for the guidance that we need as parents.
And we'll keep praying to thank Heavenly Father
for giving us a trial that is within our abilities.
Sometimes I may run out of ideas as to what to feed Lucy,
but at least I have food to give her.

If nothing else, we are learning and growing!
And for that I am grateful.

a break from the rain.

2011-05-23T21:26:00.002-04:00

We haven't seen much of the sun
in these here parts lately.

When it broke through last week
we ran outside to cheer!

Sunshine is always worth smiling about:)

beautiful bookworms

2011-05-23T21:18:00.003-04:00

(enjoying a book with papa.)

(caught in the act!)

sisters

2011-05-20T15:48:00.003-04:00

I don't say it enough.
I have INCREDIBLE sisters!!

These two ladies are some of my best friends.
These two ladies teach me all sorts of important things.
These two ladies make me laugh,
sometimes until I think I may wet my pants,
EVERY time I see them.

And yesterday,
my sister Kristi reminded me again
why I feel so fortunate to have these two to call my own.
(if you have a few minutes, treat yourself to her wisdom)

New project

2011-05-19T00:05:00.001-04:00

I'm starting something new in the blogging world. Check it out here.

too cute.

2011-05-18T08:21:00.003-04:00

Things are getting so cute around here
I can hardly stand it!

A mama and her new babies.
(hatched 4 days ago)

A birthday park trip.

Getting her OWN bowl of ice cream.

Enjoying the sunshine in her outfit of choice.

These girls love our laying ladies.

A mess.

2011-05-16T20:34:00.002-04:00

I'm looking around my bedroom. To anyone else this place just looks like a mess.

There are books on every flat surface, piled up in unruly towers: library books, scriptures, project books, and more library books. An entire corner has been taken over by baby pictures of Dorothy that she and her sister tore out from the baby book, one-by-one. There are notepads and random piles of papers covered with notes: recipes, health and beauty tips, errands to run, etc. There are craft projects that I have started but not gotten back to and supplies for craft projects I completed but from which I haven't quite finish cleaning up. Let me not forget that constant basket of laundry--sometimes clean sometimes dirty. Yes, I suppose it is a mess.

However, I love it.

I love it because they are all reminders of life--OUR life. And I wouldn't have it any other way. (Yes, even that laundry basket)

I love looking around and knowing that I read books with my girls today, that they enjoy looking back at family memories, that I am ever thinking, learning, and growing, and that every day, with my little ones, I get the chance to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and comfort those that stand in need of comfort.

Yes. This mess can stay. Because I think this house would feel a little less like home without it.

Sigh

2011-05-15T21:02:00.004-04:00

Well, we've hit a minor bump in our farm life road.

We're an egg-eating family. You kind of feel obligated to be that way when your chickens are laying a dozen eggs per day. I'm always scrambling (no pun intended) to find new egg recipes that we can use, especially dinner recipes where the egg can be our protein. And why not? It saves us money, gives us a good dose of our omega 3 fatty acids, and we all love them!

All of us, except poor little Lucy's tummy that is. We have now had several puke fests courtesy of eggs at the most recent meal. I think I kept hoping that it was just a fluke. Apparently not. She also has some pretty bad eczema that doesn't seem to quit no matter how much coconut oil I rub on her poor body. Hopefully an egg-free diet will help her skin as well as her tummy.

I'm sure that we'll still do eggs for the rest of us, but I'll have to start learning the ropes of egg-free living as well.

Anyone else in this boat with some suggestions?

Mothers.

2011-05-09T08:16:00.003-04:00

I am grateful that our perspective becomes a little more clear every year that we grow and learn. I remember thinking (especially as a sassy teenager) that I would never do some of the things my mom did. Now I realize most of those things were being done as a sacrifice for ME. Talk about a good dose of humility!

I am grateful to have a most incredible mother, one whose example I strive to follow. I am grateful to have sisters that inspire me and make me smile. I am grateful to have married into a family with more fantastic women that teach me lessons and help me grow.

And, as I look into the eyes of my two little future mothers, I am most grateful that Heavenly Father has blessed me with the opportunity to be a mother myself. I only hope that I can live up to the examples I see all around me.

Thank you, mothers.

SomeONE

2011-05-06T09:17:00.003-04:00

It is official.
We have a ONE YEAR OLD Goose!!

Oh, this sweet, precious girl has been nothing
but sweet and precious from the womb.

I will always remember her labor and delivery
and how RELAXING it was.
Seriously.
My contractions never got closer together than 3 minutes apart,
and I only had to push about 10 times.

I hope she always keeps her sweet demeanor.

Happy birthday, my beautiful baby!
You sure make me one happy mama,
and I love you.

Oh, that Frances...

2011-05-05T15:04:00.002-04:00

My wonderful mother sent me a wonderful book for my birthday: To the Rescue--The Biography of Thomas S. Monson. I wish I had more time to devour it, but I have been getting nibbles in almost daily. Even in those nibbles, I have been finding gems to uplift me or make me think (now that is a book worth reading!).

About a week ago I was reading one part that mentioned how Frances, Thomas S. Monson's wife, was always up to make breakfast for her husband even if it was at 4:30am before an early flight. At first I chuckled to myself and thought, "good thing my husband doesn't expect that!" But then I started to think some more and concluded that just because my sweet husband doesn't EXPECT breakfast in the morning doesn't mean I shouldn't take on that responsibility.

So, a new week began, and I have actually been dragging my patoot out of bed somewheres around 6 (maybe closer to 6:30) and making breakfast for the family. Lo and behold, that sweet Frances was on to something. Our mornings, though still a little crazy, are filled with such a wonderful sense of family and cohesiveness. I love all being gathered together around the crumbs of a good meal to give sticky goodbye kisses when Marty takes off for work.

I think we have yet another family tradition, folks!
(except for maybe those 4:30am days--I don't know if I'm THAT good of a wife:)

2011-05-04T21:08:00.002-04:00

"The truth is, those who diligently seek to learn of Christ eventually will come to know Him. They will personally receive a divine portrait of the Master, although it most often comes in the form of a puzzle--one piece at a time. Each individual piece may not be easily recognizable by itself; it may not be clear how it relates to the whole. Each piece helps us to see the big picture a little more clearly. Eventually, after enough pieces have been put together, we recognize the grand beauty of it all. Then, looking back on our experience, we see that the Savior had indeed come to be with us--not all at once but quietly, gently, almost unnoticed."

~Dieter F. Uchtdorf~

Hooray! For daffodil day!

2011-05-02T21:00:00.003-04:00

I am still feeling dizzy with springtime.

But how can you not when there are magical spots like this one?

I think we have another family tradition!

Now THIS, my friends...

2011-04-29T13:35:00.001-04:00

Is a beautiful sight.

We are back to eating out of our front yard.
Boy, does it taste good.

Wake up call.

2011-04-29T07:21:00.003-04:00

It came at 5:30 this morning.
This little peanut just couldn't sleep any more.

I was intent on being sour about how tired I was
until we opened the front door to say "hi" to grandpa V.

Oh, what a beautiful morning!

Thanks for the wake up call, Goose.

I needed the fresh air this morning.

I'm TWENTY SEVEN!

2011-04-27T20:37:00.002-04:00

And I like to KICK,

STRETCH,

and KICK!!!

I'm TWENTY SEVEN!

Happy Birthday to me:)

"Two Old"

2011-04-26T10:56:00.002-04:00

With a new age to show off,
people are always asking miss Polka Dot
just how old she is now.

Her reply:
"Two old."

The "years" part never seems to make it into her answer.

I love it.
Every time she says it
I just smile and think,
yes,
my dear,
you are getting TOO old.

3 Years

2011-04-19T15:37:00.003-04:00

And look at all we have accomplished!

I love this man
and all that we have together.

Happy Anniversary, Marty!

FAT.

2011-04-13T14:58:00.004-04:00

My brother Nathan is good at many things.

One thing he is particularly good at is introducing me to new information that makes me stop and think--a good quality in a brother.

Well, when we saw him a few weeks ago,
he had a new documentary for me to see:
Fat Head.
Once again, I started questioning food and food theory.
I love being thrown off balance like this!

I agree with MANY but not ALL of the points made in this documentary.
I was happy to see someone so vocal about the truth that
eating fat does not make you fat.
In fact, we could all probably stand to eat more fat
(and less carbs, even if they are whole wheat).

I was also recently introduced to the Weston A. Price foundation, another new information source that makes me rethink food. The head of the foundation is actually in the documentary, and I thought it interesting to see all these new ideas connect.

I probably spend way too much time worrying about food, but I am just so darn interested in how it can effect our bodies. I am especially interested in making sure that I am giving the best fuel possible to our little ones. In the end, we will never subscribe to one way of thinking or another; moderation is certainly what we have found to be the best policy. However, I am grateful for new information to reinforce or help me tweak my own food theory.

Now,
if you'll excuse me,
I'm going to go drink a glass of raw whole milk,
eat a handful of nuts,
and pull some more butter out of the freezer to cook with later.
And it is going to make me feel great:)

Lovely love my family

2011-04-08T20:27:00.002-04:00

A tradition has started. All able Heaps family siblings, Parents, and Co., have started gathering in PA at Eva's house for general conference. It pretty much rocks. We hear the words of our Prophet, AND we have so much fun we almost pee our pants laughing. What a combo!

The weekend in snapshots:

breakfast with a Goose.

meeting baby Sienna--oh, how I miss those tiny months!

we're pretty good at making girls in this family.
One day, Isaiah, you won't have to be the only boy cousin.

cool Dot and the Pinkettes.

der grownups.

Yahoo for 18 people under one roof!
I love this family of mine!

Today my heart is grateful...

2011-04-05T13:57:00.002-04:00

To live here:

We had a wonderful trip to Eva's house for conference.
We loved seeing so much family at once
and being filled spiritually at the same time.

But, oh, this sure is home, sweet home.

My girl wants to party all the time!

2011-03-24T16:21:00.003-04:00

WHAT a weekend we had! Who knew a two-year-old's birthday and accompanying parties could be so darn FUN?

Dorothy started her special day in her birthday outfit request:

She eventually swapped out the pink hat for the birthday crown we made,
and I was able to convince her to wear some more sensible shoes.

I wish that I could take credit for the beautiful weather we had.
The day was a birthday present in itself!
We took full advantage and spent hours outside
walking, talking to the animals, playing on the swings, and poking around the garden.

About three weeks before her birthday,
Dorothy started to request a "choo choo" cake.
I had no idea she was even interested in trains!
I had already made plans to do flower cupcakes for her big party,
but some toothpicks, popsicle sticks, and store bought Thomas later,
we had a train cake that made her eyes light up.
We love easy.

Dorothy has always been pretty dainty with her food,
so when Goose dug in and started getting cake everywhere
(and enjoying it!)
we thought it was great.
I can't wait to see what she does with her bowl of birthday pudding.

Since ALL her Vieira aunts, uncles, and cousins were in town,
we did a BIG ole' birthday bash in her honor.
Here she is with her grandma-made daisy pillow.

This talking, singing, pink and purple picnic basket from "Auntie" Mary
was THE toy of the evening.
All little hands were grabbing for the cups, food, forks, and trying to push buttons.

I wish we had a video for this one.
This is Dot cutting a rug in her new birthday dress and shoes.
I'm sure there will be many more birthday dance parties in her future.

And my favorite,
birthday giggles with papa:

This little girl of ours sure knows how to have a good time.
We are grateful for her infectious smile and laughter,
her love of the color pink and all things girly,
her stubborn but sweet personality,
and for how complete she makes our family feel.

Until next year,
Happy Birthday, my Polka Dot!

You know THAT outfit?

2011-03-24T16:13:00.002-04:00

That outfit that has to be washed every week because you wore it again; the one that is a color that looks great on you; the one that just makes you feel pretty, oh, so pretty:)

Well, THIS is the ONE for Dot:

Even when I hide this skirt and shirt set at the bottom of the drawer,
she finds it.

But, what can I say? She is my daughter after all.
(we're not shy about color or patterns in this family)
I hope she always stays a free spirit.

Just pretend it is after midnight...

2011-03-17T21:36:00.003-04:00

So that you can say this with me:

My big girl is TWO years old!
And what a wonderful two years it has been.

More
laughing,
loving,
snuggles,
and
silliness
than I ever had before becoming a mommy.

More lessons in
patience,
kindness,
gentleness,
and
humility
than I ever would have imagined.

Thank you, Dorothy,
for all you have given me.

I love you, my big lady.
Happy Birthday!

Let us not forget the Goose

2011-03-17T21:12:00.004-04:00

I feel like there have been quite a few posts about Dorothy lately, and I'm about to do another. But right now, I need to give a little love to my second born.

This girl has been nothing but sweetness since the minute she was born--scratch that--since the minute I could feel her kicking around in the womb. Even during my pregnancy I could tell she was going to be our little peacemaker. She brings a calmness into our home that I truly appreciate, and she is not ruffled easily. One of my favorite things are her incredible hugs. She wraps her little arms around you and nuzzles your shoulder until you can feel your heart melt. It is wonderful.

I love watching her and the way she observes the world. While Dot is running all around the yard saying hello to every animal she can find, Lucy is sitting in the grass observing each spear and rock surrounding her. Occasionally she looks up to smile at her sister's antics, and then she slowly crawls to a new spot for observation.
I love that Lucy's personality compliments her sister's so well. While Dorothy enjoys the spotlight, Lucy likes to sit back and see what is going on before jumping in. She is also incredibly patient with Dorothy and still smiles through some rough hugs and tough love.
I feel blessed to be mommy to this little beauty. And I'm sure that I will just continue to learn from her example.
I love you, miss Lucy.

tea time!

2011-03-12T12:35:00.001-05:00

Is this the little girl I carrried?

2011-03-10T13:30:00.002-05:00

As I watched Dorothy eat her yogurt at the kitchen counter this morning, I was filled with that pang that I'm sure all mother's know: she is growing up too fast! She looked so grown up with her hair back in a ponytail, her coordinated hands spooning in the vanilla yogurt, nodding her head to the music playing on the iPod. She seems so much older than even when I left for my trip to Illinois just a few weeks ago.

Last night she asked me to read her her favorite book of poetry. Then she wanted to go through the ABCs and sing "Twinkle, twinkle, little star." Pretty soon she'll be correcting all the words she now says incorrectly, but in such a darn cute way.

All I can do is try and savor these moments.

What was THAT?

2011-03-07T12:58:00.002-05:00

Oh, my kitchen floor. Try as I might, even with a vacuuming every(or almost every) evening it finds itself covered with goodies from my two munchkins almost immediately. I've not given up hope for a clean floor, but have simply decided it is nowhere in my immediate future.

Well, this past weekend was particularly overwhelming: two extra kiddos, a baby shower, dinner with friends (tender mercy of no dinner dishes!), and a good dose of oncoming sickness to round it all out. Let's just say that I was less than diligent with my cleaning. Or perhaps we should just be honest and say that I didn't really worry about it:) Either way, by Sunday morning there were a few more past-meal goodies than usual littering our island.

That being said, my good husband was eating a snack at the kitchen island yesterday afternoon and dropped some. *Note: we are ALL ABOUT the 10 second rule, so long as what has been dropped does not splat or stick to the floor.* Marty, not thinking too much of his dropped piece of dry cereal quickly bent down to pick it up and popped it in his mouth.

And that's when I realized my kitchen floor had gone too far.

Oh, he sputtered and perhaps even gagged for a minute. Then he looked down and noticed the myriad of food pieces. "What was THAT?" he asked. I quickly thought about the possibilities: stale pieces of buttered toast, dry bits of playdough, dried up peas, and (dare I even mention them?) crusty chunks of hot dog and banana.

I'm still not sure what IT was, my dear. But rest assured, the floor will be clean by the time you get home today!

If you put them away...

2011-03-03T09:35:00.003-05:00

spring will come. Right?
The sun is shining, a stinking cold wind is blowing, but we're hopeful for spring. Today we purge ourselves of our winter layers and cross our fingers that no more snowstorms will send us to dig through bins in the basement in retreat.

I've always considered myself a fall kind of gal, but this past year I have found myself looking forward with new anticipation for each season. I loved watching Dorothy's joy when she discovered scarecrows last fall and snowmen this winter in our neighbor's yard. I love watching Lucy's face as she pulls herself up to the windowsill every morning to see if anything new has entered her view. So even if it is a few weeks too early to really be out of the winter, we are ushering in the springtime! Daffodils, sweet green leaves, and chirping birds, here we come!

BFFs, time capsules, and photo shoots. Oh, my!

2011-03-01T23:01:00.006-05:00

Once upon a time, I had a best friend named Heather. We met in second grade and became attached at the hip, as the best of best friends do. We clogged together, were tom boys together, tried to shave our legs without permission together, and did all sorts of other wacky 8 year old girl things together. Well, a few years went by and my dad switched jobs. Suddenly my family was packing up and leaving the good old land of Utah for the rugged east coast. I was devastated. How could I leave my other half?

Now that we were separated, we schemed ways of getting back together. We started saving all our allowance and baby sitting money, pooling it together for a plane ticket for Heather. She came to see me in Massachusetts two years after we moved. For several summers to follow, my family went back to Utah to visit, and I always made a point of spending time with my BFF.

Well, around the time we turned 16 and started dating, driving, and other shenanigans, our lives started parting ways. We fell out of touch and did not hear from each other until we were 23 and I was gearing up to marry Marty. As it turned out, while I had been sewing my wild oats and then meeting my handsome husband, Heather had met and married her own wonderful man and started her family. Now, three years later, I've got 2 babies, she's got 3, and at the beginning of this year I decided it was high time we met up. Marty booked me a ticket, and off I went with my lap-sitter, Lucy, for Chicago (or thereabouts).

It was incredible to reconnect and see where we both have ended up. Aren't we just a sight to behold?
Heather has three of the sweetest little boys I have ever met. This one is nothing but a love bug and was a great playmate for Lucy the whole time we were there.
Here are our two tiny munchkins, all snuggle buggled and ready to go!
One of the nights I was there, Heather informed me that she had a time capsule that we had created when she came to visit me in Massachusetts. I had completely forgotten and was a little nervous as to what the contents could be. 12 year old girls are weirdos, after all.
Apparently plastic jewelry was of uber importance to our little pre-teen selves. Plastic earrings and rings made up about 80% of the contents. We had also thrown in a few random pennies--not pennies to mark the year of the time capsule, mind you. Just plain old pennies, you know, in case the U.S. currency had dramatically changed in 14 years. We had also cut out a piece of one of our clogging camp shirts and written "Clog Utah" on it--man, we were die hard. Oh, and then there were the notes we had written to our future selves. Absolute gems, I tell you. The highlights of my letter were that I was going to be married to my middle school crush, Leo Waible. I was going to have 9 kids, work as a herpetologist(google it), and live nowhere but Provo, Utah (otherwise known as Paradise--right?:). All of our free time was going to be spent helping those in need, and "passers by." Our large house, to fit our large family, was going to have candles everywhere (apparently the large amount of candles was particularly important to note). And the BEST part, the final line of my letter, was that I hoped to be beautiful like Cindy Crawford. Well at least I achieved one of my goals:).
Sporting our plastic goods.
Heather and her husband have taken up photography as a hobby, and she spoiled me with some great shots of me and the Goose while we were there. If only she lived close enough that we could get her to capture our whole family *sigh.* One day.

Our trip ended with an unexpected two day extension when the airline had to cancel and reschedule our flight due to weather. After a momentary panic, it ended up being a great blessing to have a little more time. Dorothy and Marty were back home safe and sound enjoying some one-on-one time together, and Lucy and I still made in home late Sunday night before school vacation ended for Marty. Thanks for letting us come, Taylor family! Let's try and have less than a 10 year break between visits next time!

Spring Fever!

2011-02-17T15:33:00.003-05:00

Doth my ears deceive me?
Did I hear that it hit 60 degrees today?
And let me tell you, we took full advantage.

Cousin Ellis joined us for some Goose rides at Grandma's.
Not exactly Disney World,
but it still extracts giggles from the little ones.

There was lots of running,
skipping,
jumping,
and the like.

Lucy loved the dirt.
And may or may not have received some of her
daily vitamins from it today.

Dorothy found a new love for yardwork.
Clean, my darling. Clean.

And we said some "hellos" and "howareyas?" to the neighbors.
They had little to say in return.

Oh, I know this taste is a tease.
But I'll take a day or two of giddiness!

I knew it was too quiet upstairs...

2011-02-17T15:10:00.002-05:00

But I had to laugh when I found this:

Dorothy stripped her bed down to the fitted sheet
and took her chalk to it.
Thankfully chalk is a rather innocuous medium.
Pretty artistic, I think.

Breaking the Fast...

2011-02-04T18:56:00.003-05:00

Our consumer fast, that is.

Back in, oh, I'd say November, I decided I wanted to try a little experiment. My husband always loves when I approach him with new experiments to try--they usually involve getting rid of things. This time, I decided we should get rid of EVERYTHING. Well, not quite everything, but nothing extra for the entire month of January. I thought this would be a great way to purge our consumer-loving selves after the month of December. I spent the entire last month of 2010 planning out meals for every day in January and the grocery lists to match, what kind of snacks we might like to have around or be able to make (without going overboard), and what type of household goods we would need to keep things clean (or as clean as they get at the Vieira house). We did all of our shopping up front, and prepared to hunker down for the weeks to follow. Our cupboards and fridge were full, we had paid for our farm milk up front so we could still pick it up weekly, we planned multiple trips to free places like the library to help keep our sanity, and off we went. (We did build in exceptions for gas, medical emergencies, and bills. Yuck.)

So, what were the results, you ask? Where to begin...

The month started off grand and glorious with multiple pronouncements that "This will be a breeze" within the first week. Then week two hit. Ugh. Did that one hurt. The whole family ended up sick--strep throat, ear infections, goopy eyes kinda sick. Good thing we decided doctor's visits and medicine were an okay reason to spend a little extra money. Let me tell you though, when you have to go to Target to fill prescriptions and you are NOT there to buy anything else you suddenly find a need for almost everything in the store. Why are we so hard-wired to want stuff? Anyways, we made it out of the store with just our two bottles of antibiotics and a free lollipop from the Pharmacist and went back to our home without temptations. Whew!

But then came week three..

Now for those of you that are runners, you know the wall you hit after a few miles? THE wall where your whole body aches and feels like it is ready to give out? Yes. That was week three. It was in week three that I discovered that having a candy bar stashed in the house can equal sanity. However, there was no such candy bar, and I was forced to plead temporary insanity--more than once. Now that it is February, there are some dark chocolate bars deeply hidden in a place not to be mentioned. Ahh. Can't you feel the relief? Now I have peace of mind knowing that if I absolutely must have some chocolate, it is there.

How else did we get through week three? Cakes. Maybe even some cookies. Yes, we baked our way out of that week like we were old grannies gearing up for the holidays, but it certainly kept us busy. And perhaps a pound or two heavier. I'll take it.

Then came week four, and it was refreshing to feel like we got the air back in our lungs. We could see the light at the end of the tunnel, and we were preparing shopping lists for the next month. Life was good.

Overall, I think we learned quite a few good lessons. I have learned how much I love grocery shopping only once a month and not having to think about it for several more weeks. Shopping with two tiny beans is doable, but not always my idea of a good time. We also learned that there are a lot of things that we may think about buying that we decide aren't so important after we think about them for a few weeks. So many "sale" or "dollar spot" items that I will pick up just because they are on sale or only a dollar did not make it home with us last month, and we were FINE without them. It certainly gives me the will power to avoid them more in the future. We also learned the joy of extra family time without a sudden errand to run. There was more dancing, singing, book reading, and all around goodness to enjoy.

Will we try to do this every month? No. But I do think I will keep up the month of grocery shopping all at once. I do think we learned how to have a little more restraint and truly weigh even the decision for a pint of Ben and Jerry's. So, all in all, I am happy with our experiment.

Here's to all that can be learned while fasting and the relief of finally being able to break that fast. I love the paradox that both the doing and the no longer doing bring a measure of joy.

Anyone else up for a fast?

January

2011-01-30T19:32:00.002-05:00

This month can sometimes seem so hard, but I feel like we are getting through the winter slump with smiles. It has been fun to have Marty home a few extra days from our snowdays that keep building up.
Dot has been getting in touch with artistic side with her chalk easel that she got for Christmas. I love when she reports that she is off to draw with her chalk and happily plays for a half an hour by herself.

There has been lots of dress up with assorted hats, mittens, coats, and other warm winter goodies. These are some of our favorites--grandma-made goodness.

We have discovered the wisdom of the empty box. Oh, how we love cheap thrills!

There have been some nice winter walks to get some fresh air back into our bodies.

Those always make everyone smile.

Lucy has discovered that she can pull off a hat. I agree.

Dorothy has really gotten into pretending and packs up bags for "adventures" almost every day.

A little birthday cake always makes a few days sweeter. Especially when cream cheese frosting is involved.

And somehow Dorothy makes mustard pumps work with an earflap hat. That girl is incredible, I tell you.

Thanks for the good times, January. See you next year!

Snowmen

2011-01-30T19:20:00.002-05:00

Have I mentioned my first born's obsession with snowmen?

Our friends gave us a Little People manger scene for her to use for the Christmas season. Can you spot her addition to the typical cast of characters? Oh, yes. Frosty is there to adore baby Jesus.
We didn't get out into one of our snowfalls until it had become hard chunks of ice. Here was Marty's attempt to create a much demanded snowman out of the nearly impossible. We especially love the nose wedged in the neck space.

Everytime the playdough comes out, snowmen are the only thing we are allowed to make. But hey, whatever makes a baby girl happy.

And we finally made a more traditional snowman, except Dot realized she hates being in the snow in the process. What is a mama to do? I'll just convince myself those are tears of joy.

At least we have been able to move on from the constant playing of "Frosty the snowman" on the ipod. Her new favorite it "The Lonely Goatherd" from sound of music. Yodel-lay-he-hoo!

Diapers

2011-01-30T19:08:00.003-05:00

Ah, the happy land of cloth diapers. I never thought I would visit such a place. In fact, the first week I met my friend Jessica I told her that disposable diapers were just part of the carbon foot print I would leave on the earth. Little did I know that after hanging out with her for a few months she would silently convince me that cloth diapers were doable. And you know what? I am happy to say that after 2 months in cloth, we are still alive! My washer and dryer are not gross and poopy. And I have survived swishing poopy diapers around in the toilet. Who knew?

Goose and Dot sport these sassy all-in-one diapers from the Rita's Rump Pocket pattern all day. I still do disposables at night, but these beauties are great. I really do dig on the cloth now--even if it means a few more loads of laundry.

Am I happy to not be adding my diapers to all the others at the landfill? Yes. But I more immediately enjoy that we have TONS less trash to take to the dump (we're down to about 1 bag per week, sometimes less!), after the initial investment we are saving quite a bit of money (especially with 2 still in diapers), and these diapers are just plain cute! Look at those cushy buns!

And you must admit, this little girl looks happy to have her buns swaddled in fleece:)

Happy Birthday!

2011-01-16T18:45:00.002-05:00

To my Martin.

Here's to another year of this incredible life together!

I love you!

And so it begins....

2011-01-01T08:39:00.002-05:00

2011. What will you bring, my friend?

I love the start of a new year. I love the quiet of January after the joyful roar of the holidays. I love the new list of goals on which to reflect and refocus.

However, I also love the chance to look back and see just how much we actually do accomplish in a year. So, here it is:

2010 in Review

January: We celebrated a late Christmas/combined birthday for all of Marty's brothers.We loved being able to see everyone together and watch the kids play.

February: Interior work on our house seemed never ending. I took a trip to North Carolina with Dorothy to get away from the chaos. She had her first trip to the ER with a fever of 105 while we were away. She also started to walk.

March: Dorothy and I returned to Massachusetts to find my sweet husband had managed to get our occupancy permit. We came home from the airport, picked up our bed, and spent our first night in our new home. Dorothy turned one while we got settled into our little patch of Heaven.

April: Marty and I celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary. I also turned another year older and wiser. We spent April vacation painting our hearts out and nesting in preparation for our second born.

May: Lucy arrived right on schedule. Grandma Heaps came to help us adjust to life as 4, and the rest of the month was spent getting to know our sweet new baby girl.

June: Grandpa Heaps made a trip to see us and meet Lucy. He constructed a beautiful deck for the back of our house almost over night. I hosted a baby shower for my friend having her first girl. We celebrated the close of another school year for Marty and got our hands dirty out in the garden.

July: We soaked up the summer sun down in North Carolina with trips to the farmer's market, swimming in the pool, eating lots of Pelican's shaved ice, and wonderful time with family.

August: We sweat through the month putting up tomatoes, grape juice, peaches, and more. A few trips for icecream sundaes made the days seem cool and sweet:)

September: Marty began a new school year at the high school. The girls and I got back into the groove of school year life by going to story time at the library, making playdates with friends, and continuing to put up the harvest. Our apple picking trip was a great way to ring in the fall.

October: We made a quick trip to Pennsylvania to can up applesauce and see family. We celebrated 10 years of the Boston Temple by doing service, letting our girls walk around the grounds, and speaking to the youth. We visited the beautiful Walden Pond and loved the crisp fall air. Our first pumpkin pie got our tastebuds excited for more of the fall.

November: Marty became scout master of our ward, and we started trying to get to know the program. We made a trip to the cannery and visited with old friends from my hometown. Our first Thanksgiving in our new home left our hearts overflowing with gratitude, and we began preparations for the Christmas season.

December: We listened to the song "Frosty the Snowman" more times than I care to remember. We had fun picking out and making presents for friends and cousins. We bravely switched the girls into mostly cloth diapers, and took part in a few musical numbers to celebrate the season. Christmas was magical, and we ended the year with a wonderful visit from my mom, dad, and little brother.

And here we are again in January! Here is to another year of excitement, joy, trials, and blessings. Here is to another year to grow and learn. Happy New Year!

What we can learn from the Grinch

2010-12-23T16:51:00.003-05:00

Yes, we can learn the true meaning of Christmas. But I think the Grinch has a lot more to teach us. Dorothy has been watching the Dr. Seuss cartoon version a lot lately while I have been slaving away over my sewing machine making cloth diapers for the big Lucy switch (did I mention that my friend Jessica inspired me to further reduce my carbon footprint?--but that is another blog entirely).

Anywhew...The Grinch. He needs to come up with a plan to ruin Christmas, and he does. "I'll make a quick Santa Claus hat and a coat" he says. Then the Grinch just happens to find some material lying around his cave in the mountains, freehand cuts a snug fitting jacket and hat pattern, and sews it all together, well, quickly.

What next, you ask? Well he needs a reindeer for his sled, "but since reindeer are scare, there were none to be found. Did that stop the old Grinch? No, he just said, 'if I can't find a reindeer, I'll make one instead!'" This guy is good. I want him around for next Halloween.

I think the most impressive thing about the Grinch is his self-esteem. He decides that even though scooting down a chimney may be "a rather tight fit" he can do it. If the real Santa can then he can too, dang it! He never doubts himself, and he gets the job done. NOw, if only he could channel all this talent toward a better objective than ruining Christmas for the Whos.

Well, with visions of the Provident Living Grinch in your heads, I will leave you all to have a merry Christmas. May you all have time with your families and to reflect on our Savior, Jesus Christ.

1. Family coming to town
2. Time with my hubby and girls
3. Jesus Christ

Dress Up, Turkey, and Decking the Halls

2010-11-30T17:53:00.004-05:00

Oh, December. Nice to see you again. You snuck up on us this year, but we are looking forward to cozy nights inside around our glowing tree.

Our Thanksgiving this year was wonderfully simple and delicious. We decided to break the trend of doing Thanksgiving with all of Marty's family and just had a day at home with the four of us. It was especially touching to sit in our own home with our beautiful girls and truly give thanks for all the incredible blessings our Heavenly Father has given us. I so often feel that I do not deserve all that we have. With all of the quiet time in preparing the food and taking naps there was a lot of time for reflection and meditation. I went to bed that evening with my heart overflowing with thanks. There was so much more to savor that day than food, and that is how I hope it will always be.

I have to admit that I also loved carrying on the traditions that I remember so well. I woke up in the morning to fry the bacon for my mom's (passed down from her mom's) stuffing recipe. As I cooked down the celery and onions in the drippings and added spices, all the feelings of warm Thanksgiving mornings under my parent's wings came into my mind. I love how intricately smells are connected to memory. I have also loved all these days after of turkey leftovers. Now that is one bird that knows how to feed the masses.

Aside from the holidays, life has just felt particularly sweet lately. I have been feeling over the last month or two like I can finally manage to take care of my children AND my housework--not just one or the other on any given day. I've also felt like the whole Mary/Martha complex is in balance right now. I have been finding more ways to be spiritual everyday while still being able to maintain our home. I suppose I should really say that I have been more willing, so the Lord has helped me find better ways to balance all the details of motherhood that you slowly discover. And again, I am left to feel like I don't deserve all that I have.

But enough of my thoughts, here is the real bread and butter: pictures of the girls!

Dorothy is very into dressing up lately. I am very into capturing every silly moment to make her embarrassed when she is older.

The Goose just keeps getting more beautiful and wonderful with every day. How can your heart just keep getting bigger with every baby? Mine feels so full of love it is likely to burst some days.

Did I mention that Dorothy is into dressing up?...even when it hinders her ability to walk.

We have a great new family in our ward with kids right around the same ages. Bastian and Lucy are only a week apart, so we have fun watching them hit milestones together. Oh, how I love kissing those sweet baby ears that stick out at ever such a cute angle from Lucy's head!

And we went ahead and put out our Christmas decorations already. I was feeling the Christmas spirit and was amazingly able to pass it on to my sweet husband who insisted that decorations are for December only. What's a few extra days? And just look at how much joy this girl gets from her "snow snow."

1. Kristi's quick and safe delivery of baby Sienna.

2. Preparing for a new season.

3. A date with my hubby to Harry Potter.

I knew someone could say it better...

2010-11-10T15:55:00.002-05:00

After my thoughts the other day, I found this quotation:

"The best things are nearest: breath in your nostrils, light in your eyes, flowers at your feet, duties at your hand, the path of God just before you. Then do not grasp at the stars, but do life's plain, common work as it comes, certain that daily duties and daily bread are the sweetest things of life."
~Robert Louis Stevenson

Thank you, Robert Louis Stevenson. I needed that.

1. The Conference issue of the Ensign
2. Finishing the Book of Mormon as a Family
3. A peaceful and Calm heart

Helen Keller once said...

2010-10-25T19:16:00.002-04:00

something along the lines of: "I long to accomplish great and noble tasks, but my duty is to accomplish humble tasks as if they were noble and great."

I was thinking about this quotation the other day and feeling very much like my life consists of a long string of humble tasks that I try ever-so-hard to feel are noble and great.

However, I then had an "ah-ha!" moment, and a glorious lightbulb shone. My duty is to take care of my family and raise my children in righteousness. What more noble and great tasks could there be? If I am able to accomplish these two things, then I truly will feel that I have lived a life of greatness. So bring on the sinks full of dirty dishes, the sad cries of Dot at 2am, the goat milking, the endless vacuuming-up after a toddler--I'm ready for greatness!

Keeping Busy

2010-10-10T18:16:00.003-04:00

We have been BUSY bees this fall,
but it has been a wonderful sort of busy.

This weekend we celebrated the 10 year anniversary
of the dedication of this beautiful building:

We have a lot of sweet memories at the Boston Temple
including our marriage in 2008.
Marty and I were lucky enough to speak at a Youth Devotional
and we loved having the girls on the grounds.
Dorothy was especially enchanted by the Temple.

We also took a family trip to Walden Pond to get some fresh air
(much needed after a sick and rainy week at home).

I love coming to visit Walden.
I'm hoping to make it a fall family tradition.

Dorothy hanging out with Auntie Eva--
my little bohemian child. Not surprising.

Apple picking with Aubrey, Char, and the mini Char.

Finishing up some fruit bars on a warm fall day.

Lots of walks when the weather cooperates.

And can you guess what one of the favorite
forms of entertainment has been at our house?
Who knew pumpkins were so versatile.

1. The Temple
2. Healthy Children
3. No School on Columbus Day!

The Weekend

2010-10-04T20:13:00.003-04:00

What a busy and marvelous weekend!

We packed up Friday evening and drove to PA

to spend the weekend with my sister, Eva, doing THIS:

87 quarts of applesauce to enjoy until next fall.

We are full of fall fruit goodness.

We are also full spiritually from a wonderful

General Conference.

It was hard to catch everything with the kiddos

and making sure the applesauce got done,

so I look forward to listening to and reading

the talks again.

But it really was a wonderful conference.

I loved all the focus on

following the Prophet,

using our free agency for good,

improving and understanding our own faith,

and being grateful.

Oh, how wonderful to feel so FULL!

1. more food storage

2. inspiring words

3. some cool weather--finally!

Fall

2010-09-21T20:07:00.003-04:00

I walked in from milking the goat this evening to the smell of roasted butternut, garlic, and sage. The air outside had started to cool down and the warmth of the house was inviting, especially mixed with fall scents.

I love this time of year. However, this year it feels even more satisfying. For one thing, I'm not morning sick for the first fall in two years! WOOHOO! I'm also feeling more satisfaction out of the harvest this time of year brings. I didn't do as much in the garden as I had hoped, but I look at the ever growing pile of winter squash and root vegetables and feel proud--and safe. We have food to eat for at least a few months.

I've been working hard to keep to my local foods pledge. We have frozen up kale, tomatoes, tomato sauce, green peppers, broccoli, shredded zucchini, rhubarb, peaches, blueberries, strawberry freezer jam, and all sorts of local meats. In a few weeks we'll be canning up applesauce. We're so grateful for all of our fresh milk, and we're amazed at how much can still come in from the garden. Oh, the wisdom of braising greens, winter squash, and root vegetables. I'm hoping that we'll get through to January on mainly local produce. We may need to supplement some non-local onions, garlic, and carrots. Our goal is to make it even further next year until we see our asparagus poke it's nose through that gorgeous brown soil. We're feeling closer to and ever more grateful for this beautiful Earth and the corner of New England in which we have the priviledge of living.

1. sweaters
2. freezers
3. piano lessons

let's get away from goats for a while...

2010-09-13T18:44:00.002-04:00

The goats are great,

but these people are perfect:)

Lucy continues to be a mellow, sweet baby girl.

She is getting up on her hands or knees,

but hasn't quite figured out how to do both at once.

I'm afraid she might be crawling before she turns 5 months old.

A typical moment at our house:
Lucy enjoying life; Dot getting ready to do some damage.

We're always ready for damage control:)

Can you believe how big she is getting?

Speaking of BIG--

we enjoyed every bite of our farewell to summer sundae.

Just a mama and her Goose.

Another failed attempt at a nice Sunday morning picture.

Dot officially enters nursery this week!

Another shot of my beautiful first born.

I love my family!

1. needing a sweater for our walk today

2. new young couples moving into our ward--

but we still want Allison and Kent back!

3. a boatload of winter sqush ready to eat on my back porch.

2010-09-09T17:31:00.004-04:00

Well, thank goodness we made it through the first few days of having goats. I guess it is kind of like having a child. That first week you're home from the hospital always leaves me worn out. Anywho, that said, I was cursing our decision on day two. It took Marty and I nearly an hour to tag-team milk our ONE goat (how pathetic are we?). However, it was done. The third day was Marty's first day of school. Hmm. That put a new stumbling block in our path. I had these glorious visions of me out in the early morn milking away while Dot played safely on the grass with the chickens and Lucy slept peacefully in her bed. HA! When we realized that would not work we said, okay, we'll just get up extra early and take care of it before school. So we waltzed out the front door a little after 5 am only to realize our barn has no light source and it was pitch black out. We ended up going out an hour later with the rising sun and barely making it back inside in time to get Marty dressed and off to school. That brought us to day 4 where we thought, why are we trying to milk in the morning when our goat is only milking once a day? We have since switched her to an evening milking schedule, and things are looking up. In fact, I am proud to say that today I was out to the barn and back with a quart and a half of milk in less than 25 minutes. Our new record:) (though still quite a novice time compared to muy sister-in-laws 5 minutes per goat).

But the process aside, we are really enjoying the *ahem* milk of our labors. I made ricotta for the first time, and it was a success! It was darn easy, too. If you have a place to get raw milk around you, give it a try! Tonight I set up for some crockpot yogurt. This I have made before, so I won't be giving myself nearly as many pats on the back if all goes according to plan.

Well, my little Dot is sick of me typing. I best be off. Time to slip some tomato skins and put me up some more tomaters for the cold months ahead. Boy howdy, do I love my life!

1. new skills
2. stronger hands
3. a day cool enough to put on a thin sweater

Welcome, three little goats: Hermoine, Daphne, and Selene.

2010-09-05T17:16:00.003-04:00

We have some new friends here in Westport--

friends that are good at sharing (their milk).

We took on one milker and twin baby goats this weekend.

This morning was my first go at milking--

not so great.

I'll get the hang of it.

Hermoine is pretty patient with me,

and we're looking forward to all the tasty things we can do

with fresh goat milk.

Yogurt and ricotta are first on the list,

and we'll see what else we can come up with!

Stay tuned...

1. knowing where my milk comes from

2. knowing my fingers will get stronger

3. knowing fall is just around the corner!

Goodbye

2010-08-24T19:44:00.002-04:00

To internet. We did it. It cost too much (in our humble opinion), and it's pretty ridiculous that you still have to pay for cable even when you do not own a tv. So we dropped it. Hence the total lack of blogging lately.

Yes, I miss being able to jump on the net for a random recipe or the answer to a random question. No, I do not miss how much time the internet managed to suck up. I have found myself a much more productive wife and mother with all the time I have regained. Sadly, I am also realizing just how much time I have often wasted on here.

Lately I have found time to start and nearly complete a reverence book for Dorothy that my mom sent me a year ago. I have made several batches of tomato sauce and put them up for the winter months. I have found time to read again--how did I let that start to slip? I have been better about keeping our house clean, spending time with my husband, and getting outdoors. This is not to say none of these things were happening before, but with the extra (approximatley) hour I have gained each day I am feeling a sort of leisure to do the things I love and should have been doing more of all along.

Luckily we do have the library within a 10 minute walk, and my in-laws live across the street with internet we can use. So now we get to check up on things about 2 times per week. Perfect. For now, that is all I need.

1. time
2. our first ripe pumpkins
3. a baby that sleeps through the night--I never knew it could be possible

3 months!

2010-08-06T20:59:00.002-04:00

It's true.
The Goose has been here 3 months already!

This baby girl is surely the peacemaker in our home.
She is so patient, sweet, and loving.

We love you, Lucy!

1. baby girls
2. spontaneous trips to Newport
3. less humidity

Just ducky.

2010-07-30T22:10:00.002-04:00

As part of our grand finale
in the state of North Carolina,
we spent a morning feeding ducks at the local lake.

Dorothy loves ducks.
In fact, "duck" was one of the first words
she learned to say with clarity.

Auntie Kristi and Miss Keira made for excellent company.

And,
of course,
there was one sweet Lucy Goosey along for the ride.

Dorothy had a hard time understanding
that the stale crackers were not for her snack.

It was a lovely way to wrap up our month
in the south.

1. sleeping in my own bed
2. getting rid of the binkis without even a single tear
3. fresh potatoes, onions, cucumbers, and zucchini from the garden
to greet us

In case you were wondering...

2010-07-18T14:36:00.007-04:00

...just exactly where we have been the last few weeks,
we thought we'd share a *few* pictures:)

We have:

visited with cousins,

spent lots of family time together,

found ways to beat the heat,

experienced the sprinkler for the first time,

been spoiled rotten by auntie Eva,

blessed our sweet baby Lucy,

shared lots of smiles over Pelican's snoballs,

and other messy treats,

introduced Lucy to Uncle Will,

managed to get in a date or two,

explored nature,

taken walks,

(Lucy's version of taking a walk in nature)

escaped to the woods,

spent time with great grandpa Brooks

heard lots of giggles from lots of little girls,

fallen in love with sunglasses,

smiled until our faces hurt,

read lots of stories,

loved having a free pool,

acted silly,

and just been loving life!

1. time with family

2. inspired teachers at church
3. reverent music

Just like Moses.

2010-06-29T12:47:00.001-04:00

This girl loves her some Moses basket.
Thanks, Aimee!

1. errands done
2. fans
3. dinner with friends

The first...

2010-06-25T11:56:00.002-04:00

afternoon of summer vacation!

And that's a WHOLE lot to smile about:)

1. two months with my husband HOME!
2. checking chores off the list
3. knowing we'll be in NC in less than a week!

Fathers

2010-06-20T14:32:00.003-04:00

On this special day for dads
I thought it appropriate to share
some of the most beautiful moments in my life
involving Marty as a dad and my own dad.

Both moments took place in a hospital.

Marty has always been good with kids,
but it was amazing to see the love and tenderness
he exuded for each of our girls right after their birth.
After both Dorothy and Lucy had been cleaned off
and put into the warming tray,
I looked over to see Marty holding his very new baby's hand.
He was whispering sweetly,
introducing himself,
and would then sing a song.
That memory is so precious to me
and a moment I am so happy to have witnessed.

My relationship with my own father is strong now,
but was rather rocky through my teenage years and early twenties.
As some of you know,
during those rocky years I was in a very serious car accident.
My concerned parents showed up at the emergency room
and waited while x-rays were taken.
After the x-rays were finished,
we were put into a room to wait for the results.
By this point I had been laying strapped to a hard back board
with a neck brace on for a while,
and the back of my head was starting to hurt from the pressure.
My sweet father,
putting aside all of our differences at the time,
took my head and gently cradled it is his hands
to help relieve my discomfort.
My hair was all bloody from a head wound,
but he didn't mind as the blood covered his hands.
All he cared about was making me more comfortable.
In that moment nothing else mattered to him.
I knew I was loved--
even if my actions and attitude at the time
weren't very deserving.

I feel so blessed to have such wonderful men in my life.
Their examples of gentleness, compassion, and love
help me to better understand
the love that our Heavenly Father has for each of us.

Here's to you, dads.
I love you!

1. Marty
2. Lewis
3. Heavenly Father

Imagine when she can really talk....

2010-06-15T08:15:00.002-04:00

1. birds chirping
2. the sun shining
3. a new day

"Saint Lewey"

2010-06-07T11:24:00.005-04:00

Last week this guy showed up.

He took a few "vacation" days to come up
and turn this:

into this:

He makes it look too easy.

He also did a lot of this:

I didn't know what to do with my free hands:)

Thank you, dad!
We loved having you here.

P.S.--this little gal is already a month old!

1. the talents of others
2. a little Lucy in my life
3. a new week

2010-06-06T14:08:00.002-04:00

"I have a family here on earth.
They are so good to me.
I want to share my life with them through all eternity.
Families can be together forever
through Heavenly Father's plan.
I always want to be with my own family,
and the Lord has shown me how I can."

1. a FULL family photo
2. my own parents
3. being a parent

why did the chickens cross the road?

2010-06-01T20:54:00.002-04:00

To get away from Dot.

Dorothy spent a good 20 minutes chasing the chickens
the other day.
I think the poor things were all traumatized,
but she loved it!

This last one won't turn the right way for me,
but I love it.

1. June--which means Marty is almost done with school!
2. calm, rainy evenings
3. hearing crickets and peepers before bed

The Pants Head Family

2010-05-26T21:53:00.001-04:00

1. pants
2. heads
3. pants on heads

FHE

2010-05-25T09:03:00.003-04:00

For Family Home Evening last night
we talked about GARDENS--
why they're important
and the blessings we get from having
and caring for one.

We took our cute patoots outside in the beautiful weather

and took a look at our own garden.

I'm so grateful to have grown up in a family that gardened
and to have married into one that does too!

It is definitely something I want to pass onto our little ones.
Dot already seems comfortable out in the green:)

1. seeing leaves come up on my first potato plants!
2. that summer is right around the corner
3. knowing that over the next few months we'll get to enjoy
the fruits (and vegetables!) of our labors:)

the mini Pioneer woman.

2010-05-22T21:26:00.002-04:00

We needed a few extra cups of wheat flour
for our bread making today.

Dorothy got her first lesson in using the hand grinder.

I love having a little helper!
(and a big, handsome helper in dark blue:)

1. wheat bread with butter and honey
2. a sparkling kitchen floor
3. feeling ready for the Sabbath

Lately, our days consist of...

2010-05-18T10:13:00.002-04:00

trading off time with the girls.

I'm glad that newborns sleep so much,
allowing me time to still play with Dorothy one-on-one.

We've also had lots of special visitors.
My oldest sister, her husband, and kids
all came to see us just a few days after we got home from the hospital.
We are so grateful for the support from friends and family!

And quite a bit of my days are spent trying to juggle both girls.
Yesterday was our first day home alone,
and amazingly enough it went smoothly.
Oh, how we are blessed with tender mercies.

1. leftovers
2. early bedtimes
3. when Marty gets home from work

Our Two Girls

2010-05-13T21:31:00.004-04:00

Although Lucy will sometimes remind me of Dot,
she definitely has her own beautiful little face.
I think their eyes are the biggest difference:
Dot's round,
Lucy's almond-shaped.

The Dot.

The Luce.

Dorothy Mae.

Lucy Ambrosia.

Oh, how I love these girls!

1. watching Dot give kisses to Lucy
2. finding time to read
3. washing machines

Meanwhile, back at the farm...

2010-05-12T11:34:00.003-04:00

It feels so good to be home!
I couldn't wait to leave the hospital last Saturday.
In fact, I would have gone home Friday morning if they let me.
This birth was so much easier than Dot's,
and my body is thankful for that!

Dorothy loves her baby sister.
Whenever I am holding the baby,
all she wants to do is come over and kiss her repeatedly.
She does get a little upset that I can't hold her as much,
but she doesn't take it out on the baby--
another thing I am thankful for.

Little miss Lucy is such a sweet baby.
She really only cries when she is hungry.
She does spit up a TON, though.
We are averaging about 4 outfits a day with this one
just to keep her dry and comfortable.

We are just blessed once again to have a healthy, beautiful baby girl!
Life as 4 is wonderful!

1. Sleeping in my own bed.
2. All the wonderful people bringing in meals--we love you!
3. An almost solid night of sleep last night.

Lucy Ambrosia Vieira

2010-05-06T14:55:00.008-04:00

Little Lucy weighs 7 pounds 8 ounces and is 19 inches long. She was born 5/6/2010 at 10:30am. Mom and Baby are resting but are doing wonderfully. Kim will blog when she gets the chance but for now here is a few photos of Lucy first day: