Monday, February 28, 2011

hannah elyse

we're thrilled to introduce the newest little lady to the Rakow clan...
Hannah was born on Sunday, February 13th at 5:50 AM
she weighed 7 lbs. 14 oz. and was about 20 inches long...
she came quickly...and has left a huge print on our souls and heart... :)
she looks like her daddy... :)
she sleeps like a champ...
when she cries, she sounds like a squeaky hinge... :)
Katherine loves her new baby sister... K is fabulous with her. :) she showers her with kisses and hugs... :) we are sooo thankful for this... :)
we are blessed... :)


at home hangin' out :)
sleepin' sweetness :)

gettin' loves from Big Sister :)


at the hospital meeting Grandma for the first time :)

Daddy hangin' with his mini-me :) so sweet :)

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

hiatus... :)

well, as the time winds down for this family of 3, i felt the need to make a post just saying that i will be on a hiatus for a bit... not that i was ever the most incredible blogger in the world, but... for my few or single (haha) fan(s) out there...well, i felt like i had to just say..."i'll be back...soon!"

so...meal plans... while i'm still planning in my head, i'm not doing a lot of "organized" planning...esp not this week... :) my mom's here now...and my in-laws will arrive after my parents leave...so i think most of the cooking will be on someone else's shoulders for a time while we get used to being a family of 4 (read: while i try to adjust to being a sleep deprived mother of a newborn and a very sweet but a very 2 year old little girl :))... but, until the baby comes, i'm still pretty much planning meals... easy things like spaghetti, meatball sandwiches, lasagna, rotisserie chicken with the good trimmings... :) we'll see what the rest of the week holds! :) (and if Ry has his way, it will be take out! :))
and, well, who am i kidding? i know that making a meal and planning what we're eating for the week will be something i don't even care about... survival of the fittest will be the goal for the next few weeks after this baby comes...

my dear sweet daughter has stepped into the "terrible twos" just in time for me to consider staying an extra week at the hospital after the birth of her little sister :D i don't really like the term "terrible twos" - but she's been a bit of a challenge for the last few weeks...Lordy day... her main way of communicating is now whining... oh wait, if things are not working out for her? that's ok, a fit is a nice way to show our frustration... i especially like her kicking and hitting random things about the room out of frustration. and when she's hurt or wants to be "soothed" from an angry outburst, i wish for a name change since she just wants me to hold her or pick her up and she will not be soothed any other way... it seems that, as long as she's doing what she likes and enjoys, all is right with the world and she's pleasant and joyful... but when she is asked to do something she doesn't want to do - watch out for the wrath... i actually removed her from the dinner table the other night because she was being soooo ugly and acting out...we went to time out and tears were shed... the good news - tonight, we didn't have a repeat performance, so maybe, just maybe, the consistent behavior reminders/consequences are working... please don't get me wrong... i am thankful for her more than anything in this world....and i love her so sooo soooooo much... but at this late point in my pregnancy, lack of sleep, discomfort...well, to say my patience is at its frayed end is probably a good description... and those ingredients are probably not the best for a sweet little girl who is trying to be more independent, a little challenging in her thoughts, pushing the envelope a bit, and is probably frustrated because she doesn't have the words to express her feelings...and well, i'm convinced she's aware that life is going to be a bit different (and a good different) in a short while... she's little, yes....but she's a smart cookie and aware of things that i am not sure us adults are always clued into... :)

my mom has been here for 4 days...and in that amount of time, she's run around here to make things better, cleaner, and more organized... i know our washing machine has been worked endlessly, i think... :) but, we have lots of clean clothes, clean towels, all clean bedding (all the way down to the mattress cover and mattress skirt on the bed)... she asked about the curtains today but i told her i washed them in the fall... i think that's when i washed them... it may have been the spring....but it won't stop her from washing them later... :) instead, she decided the windows were dirty and needed to be cleaned at that point! :) our finished basement is clean and tidy...she hung pictures, cleaned up piles of stuff...moved a table that used to sit in there back (we had to move it when we had a water leak 2 or 3 years ago)... it looks so nice down there... :) i was thinking today, as i was loading the wood burning stove, that it would be nice to take K and the new baby down there to hang out for a change of scenery in a few weeks... nice and warm... :) if my mom hadn't made it homey and happy, i wouldn't want to go down there... :) i guess there's something to say about a mother's touch, huh? :) i love having her here....she's a JOY and has been so helpful and wonderful... :)

i have an appointment tomorrow afternoon to see how things are going with the "progress" of dilating, effacement, etc. of this new baby girl....i am eager to hear how things are going... i'm thinking things may be happening a little, but i'm not sure...

it's time to try and wind down and head to bed... but i just wanted to be real...
i'm resigned to the fact that my "time" online will probably take a bit of a back seat for awhile... but i will try my hardest to write each week - at least... it's therapeutic for me... and, again, for my fan or few fans, i know that being introduced to the newest member of our little family, as well as the challenges, joys and wonderment of life for us will be a good thing to read and post about... :)

until the next time, hope you have a great day... :) and thanks for being part of the exciting events for us... :) we will be in touch! :)