Violet's Homecoming

We're home, and I'm back at the reins. Glad so many of you enjoyed Stace's take on Violet's arrival. He really is that funny in day-to-day life, too; one of the many reasons I fell for him!
When we were downstairs loading the car, a friend of Stace's called out his name. Brian's wife was due in about 10 days, and her little guy was a sweetie and came early, a day after Violet. It was fun comparing notes right in front of the hospital.
When we woke Violet to dress her in her homecoming outfit, she remembered that she was hungry, but at this stage, feeding takes a bit of time and we were anxious to get home. Hence the unhappy face as she impatiently awaits her next meal.
Below, we have Cora between her two Duckies. Yes, at this point, the play doll is a bit bigger than the living doll.
For naptime and bedtime, Cora has wanted Violet to lie next to her while we read them a story. It takes a bit of coaxing and explaining to get Cora to let us take Violet out of her bed when we leave the room.
Cora also wants to hold her often, and is in the habit of telling anyone she meets that she is a big sister and that Duckie has come out. Obviously, at this point, Cora holding Violet means one of us must be within a foot of them at all times, eyes glued to them.
And, because I think they're so cute, here's Violet in her first cloth diaper. She's too tiny for most of our newborn stash - look at those little legs! She was 6 pounds 5 ounces today.
I enjoyed the room service and medical attention in the hospital, but it's great to be home now, where we belong, all together.

Introducing Violet Mae Howard

Lisa did it again. Beating her previous personal best of 10 pushes she managed to give birth to the latest member of the Howard family with a very respectable six pushes. A great achievement considering her lack of experience, with this being only her second attempt at this event.

Cora Rose gained a little sister (future servant, scapegoat and recipient of wrong doings) and Lisa and I our second beautiful daughter on the 27th of April 2010 at 12.52 in the morning.

After checking in at the hospital we were taken to our "on-suite" room. Very nice. A little more expensive than our normal night-away accommodations (thanks to "Fat Cat" insurance companies ripping off medical institutions which then have to pass their costs down to the customer, us.........................Oh! Pardon me, back to the update). Unfortunately, Henry Mayo is not a partner of Holiday Inn so no points for this stay.

Our, I mean, Lisa's labour progressed quickly. We left home at about 4:30 pm on Monday afternoon and by the small hours of Tuesday we were greeting our beautiful, gorgeous, stunning, incredible baby daughter (add your own expressions of joy and wonderment if you've ever witnessed this amazing show of creation).
She has right number of everything (except missing the one piece we knew she would be missing).
The same pointy pixie ears are evident on this year's model, a carry over from the 2007 model with design cues taken from the fine Howard creations of 1951 and 73. That's retro, people. If the Mustang can do it, so can we.

The baby was immediately laid on Lisa's chest, after the doctor had given her the once over, of course, and I cut the cord. Did I mention I cut the cord? Well. I did the same as I did with Cora. I cut the cord. I was prepared this time around. However, the pruning shears I brought in were apparently "not clean enough." Picky sods.

In the late morning, Lisa and I got two hours of sleep (not long but truly amazing when you consider the average hospital bed is like sleeping on a concrete patio) before being woken by the nurse. Not to worry. I'm sure they'll be plenty of time to sleep when we get home.

At lunch time Cora came to visit. She spent the night with Chris and Paula, who brought her to the hospital to see her baby sister for the first time. I filmed their meeting and got some great quotes from Cora. "Cora, I'd like you to meet your little sister, her name is Violet Mae". "NO, it's NOT, it's Duckie."
OK, then. Duckie it is. I think it will be a long time before that changes.
Cora was great. She got to hold Duckie straight away and gave her lots and kisses and cuddles.
Let's hope this continues!
Cora is a three-year-old expert of holding new babies. She showed great aptitude for the skill when meeting her new cousin Euan at Christmas, and now with Violet, she plans to build on her baby-holding expertise. Not quite a professional, more an enthusiastic amateur.

All of the above was a lot of typing that could have been easily explained like this:
1.6 minutes of passion, free. 14 boxes of Preggy Pops, $57. Twenty-four tubs of Cottage Cheese, $40. Identical Maternity wear but different colours, $170. Two nights' stay in a hospital 150 yards from your own house, $3,000 (approx. amount. Who knows what the insurance companies will ..........sorry).
Seeing your 3-year-old daughter meet her baby sister, priceless. Absolutely Priceless.

So here she is. May I introduce to you all, the latest in a long line of Howards -- Violet Mae.

And yes, I hear you. I am the Man.

Coming Soon!

At my checkup this afternoon, the baby's heartrate was great, but the doctor tested my amniotic fluid level and it was running low.

So, I'm writing this from a Henry Mayo labor room, where Duckie's arrival is being induced. We have personal computer screens with TV and internet, but I can't put any photos on from here. Not that there's anything worth showing yet!

View from the Hill

This afternoon we went for a walk around the block and ended up at the park. While Lisa watched Cora playing on the climbing frame and pushed her on the swings, I climbed to the top of hill at the end of our road and took some photos of the view.

The first picture shows Placerita Canyon on the other side of the 14 freeway.
As you can see, there are plenty of trees here in Santa Clarita.

Below shows our house in the foreground and the mountains above Towsley Canyon on the other side of the 5 freeway in the background.















From up on the hill I even got a nice shot of our house and front garden.

Oh....still no news on the baby front, but I think we'll be taking more walks tomorrow.

A Tuesday Tradition

For four or five Tuesdays, we've enjoyed Baskin Robbins' $1 cone promotion.

For the last couple of outings, Stace and I have wondered if we might be a family of four by the next week. So far, that hasn't happened yet, so this week, back to the ice cream we returned.

This time, Cora took her good friend Benjamin Bear. Benjamin has been coming along with us to lots of places, and Cora and he have been having fun tea parties at home.

Our friends Andy and Jenny in England brought the bear when they visited us when Cora was eight months old, and it talks and sings (in a woman's voice) when you press its hands and tummy. Eventually it went up with her other stuffed toys, but when Cora started watching the Benjamin Bear DVDs from Nan and Pop, the bear got a new name and a new best friend.

Today, during a tea party, Cora was telling Benjamin that he was little and she was big, because she is three. That type of statement has become very common the last couple of weeks. Cora is often talking about how big she is, because she is three, and how she can do this, that, or the other thing because she is so big.

Today, she was looking at a Disney Princess activity book, and a number of the activities involved reading. I tried to tell her that this page or that page would be better for her to do when she is older, and she was very disappointed.
"Maybe I'm big enough to know my letters," she said. "Maybe I'm big enough, because I'm three."

Another Coraism, this when Stace was cutting Cora's nails the other night: "I used to cut your nails, when you were a little boy, when I was a big, big grownup."

The last photo is a bit random, but Stace trimmed back our main rose bush a couple of months ago, and Wow!

39 weeks, plus a few days

Hello, here we are, Duckie and me, still intimately connected. I had a doctor's appointment today, and for those of you who want the nitty-gritty details, I'm dilated 1 cm (same as my last appointment 10 days ago) and effaced about 50%. This isn't exactly news that indicates labor is imminent.

If the baby hasn't arrived by next week, I'll go in Monday, a few days after hitting 40 weeks, for a non-stress test to make sure the she's still thriving. It's a little early still to be talking about scheduling an induction, but I imagine that would happen late next week if Duckie insists on staying inside.

I'm definitely ready to be done with feeling sick, heartburn, and aches. I was sick again this morning. I'm also struggling to breathe, as Cora has again shared a cold with me. At least we know that we are surely in the last days, or week or so, of pregnancy! I'm very much looking forward to holding and kissing this precious baby girl.

Our huggy girl!

A few cute shots from recent days...

Cora with Maya, from Friday, when we went over for lunch and playing. We love having lunch with Juliana and Maya - she is an excellent cook and always seems to have four or five different lunch options available.

Cora with her bestest friend ever, Somer.

And Cora with Brooke, daughter of my friend Michelle. Brooke is the sweetest almost-two-year-old we know, and is also very clever. She's nearly finished with potty-training already, all on her own accord!

Mini Playroom Makeover

We haven't posted a DIY update for a while, though Stace has been very, very busy. Here, he and his trusty assistant prime the playroom. Bye-bye, green, hello Devonshire Cream.
We think/hope the new color, which is throughout the dining/living rooms and hallways, helps unite the addition to the rest of the house. Stace also took down the (horrible) cloth vertical blinds, a big improvement in itself.
You can see the beginnings of the current project on the right side. Stace removed the old kitchen window completely, frame and all, and is installing drywall, plaster and paint. Then he'll put in trim around the hole, and it will become a nice, pretty opening, mirroring the opening on the other side of the kitchen into the hallway.
Our yard is looking really flowerful at the moment! I'm so happy with how these Pink Lady bushes are blooming; this bush in particular was in sad shape last year and barely put out one flower. Stace gave it a thorough trimming a few months ago and it certainly is showing its appreciation. The pink flowers in front are Mexican primrose, which bloom like this, then die off, and then grow back again.

An overall shot of the back planter...

And, our first set of gorgeous irises. My mom gave me a few cuttings from her yard last year. Last April, we were set to have just one bloom. I was very excited about it, and just when we could see that it was going to be yellow (Mom also has purple irises, so I wasn't sure which color I had), Cora shredded it. Needless to say, I'm thrilled to have all these beautiful flowers here. We planted some more bulbs this year, so next year we'll have some lilies, too.

New building, new paint

Cora has become adept at riding her tricycle in recent weeks. For the longest time, she chose her scooter each time she played outside, and mainly went backwards when she got on the bike. But now, she is a cyclist.

On Friday evening we walked and she rode around the block, with a stop at the park for some swinging.

On Saturday, we went to Adrian's fourth birthday party. Cora was the only girl, but since most of the boys were a bit older, she had a great time. She played dinosaurs, a new thing for her, as that was the party theme. Brooke did a fabulous job on Adrian's chocolate-with-mint-icing dino cake.

Sunday morning was special, the first time our church has met at its brand-new location. This week, services were held in the grassy outdoor amphitheater, and next weekend will be the grand opening with services inside the auditorium. The church was born about eight years ago and met at the movie theaters for the first six or so years, and then moved to the high school 2 1/2 years ago, just after we started attending.

As things would work out, the weather turned cold and rainy Sunday morning, just in time for an outdoor service. It was gratifying to look around and see hundreds of others, in coats and under umbrellas, who didn't let the weather deter them from this long-awaited event.

After a shortened service, we all got to check out the new facility. Wow. It would make a great venue for a concert, Stace pointed out. We also found the bricks we bought for our girls on the front walkway. I would have loved to get Cora in this photo, but she didn't agree. We also found Duckie's brick - no photos yet since the brick has her real name, the one we aren't sharing quite yet.

Also this weekend, Stace decided to paint the playroom. We're attempting to make it blend in better with the rest of the house. Photos coming, when it's finished!

Showered at Stroller Strides

On Friday morning, Cora and I were showered with love after our last-for-a-while Stroller Strides class.
As you probably know, we've been Stroller Striders since Cora was about five months old. I've loved the friendships we've made, the routine, and the great workout.

The program recently went through an ownership change, and I'm so pleased with the new owner, Amanda, and the work she's done to rebuild the membership. Every Friday after class, she hosts a moms' club, with planned activities, which has been bringing in new moms who aren't (yet?) taking part in the workouts.

Today, the after-class activity was a party for me, Cora and Duckie! In the top photo, the kids all colored a congratulatory poster for us. We had drinks, cookies and cupcakes, and even some great gifts. Such a special morning!

A special thanks to my friend Michelle, who has become a dear friend to us since she joined almost two years ago. She became an instructor a year ago, organized many moms' nights, and has been the constant as the program has transitioned over the past few months. She also took most of these photos!

The last photo shows me and Cora just after our workout. It was a little funny, at our last class for a while, we didn't get to take part in the group workout.

Just after class started, when we were at our first stop (for some strength training), Cora told me she needed the toilet. Back to the park we went, and by the time we used the toilet and backtracked, we were never able to catch up to everyone. I am now walking much slower than I used to, and I have to stop for breaks to rest my aching shins. But at least we did complete the circuit!

Assuming Duckie doesn't come too early, I have some little projects and things-to-do I'd like to accomplish in the free time I'll have with us not going to class. And, hopefully we'll rejoin everyone when Duckie is around six weeks old. I must say, after observing for almost three years, none of my Stroller Strides friends who've had second babies have managed to get back into the Strides routine. We'll just have to see how it goes, as I know it will be harder to get out of the house with two little ones, and the hot summer approaching... If nothing else, there will be the Friday morning playgroup!

One of God's Greatest Gifts...

... family.

My dad took these shots of us on Easter. In retrospect, we should have tried harder to get together a month or two ago, as my belly was more "cute" then and less - um - huge.

Lately, I get a wide range of comments on how I'm carrying. Duckie is just straight out in front, and I'm told I don't look pregnant from the back view. I have gained less weight this time than last (thanks, Stroller Strides!), so the rest of me, particularly my face, isn't as big as last time. But the belly! My, oh my. But when you put a 7-pounder inside my petite frame, it's got to go somewhere, right?

Consider these the official 37-week photos; I'll be 38 weeks along Thursday, which will put me at full-term, medically speaking.

I've felt better Tuesday and Wednesday this week, but the prior week wasn't the best. Lots of common late-pregnancy complaints cropped up, and I was generally uncomfortable a lot of the time, not to mention the resurgence of morning sickness.

Yesterday and today, I've concentrated on eating a lot more, and more often, like I did early on, to keep the sick feelings away.

We got some amazing, excellent news today, news so happy it made me burst into tears. (Being this pregnant will do that to you!)

For months now, our hospital, with lots (all?) of the other area hospitals, banned children from visiting patients because of the H1N1 virus. I had been hoping that with my due date in the spring, presumably after flu season, the policy would be lifted in time for our delivery.

However, as we get closer and closer, with no change in policy, I was getting really concerned. Cora has been so excited about her sister coming; she kisses my belly and talks to and about Duckie all the time. I didn't want her to be kept from her sister for days after she arrived. And, logistically, it would have made things complicated if Stace and Cora couldn't spend hours with me and the baby in the hospital room.

On Monday I wrote a letter to the hospital president, urging him to change the policy. I noted that two hospitals in the area (at least) are allowing siblings to visit their moms in the maternity ward. I received a quick email back saying that the hospital is reviewing it... and today, I got an email saying that the policy will be changing back, this week. The Centers for Disease Control said this week that pediatric cases of the virus have not risen in the past six months, according to the email from the hospital.

Stace and I are both so relieved! It's an answer to a frequent prayer of mine lately. Having a second child is so different from the first, in that I have so much more to think about this time around with how Cora will take everything. I can't wait for her to hold her sister, and I know she can't wait, either.

Just today, minutes before I got the great news about the change, Cora and I drove past the hospital and she said, "that's the hospital where Duckie will come out!"
She then asked if she would come in the hospital when Duckie comes out; I didn't know how to answer, and just said, "I hope so!"
Then she asked, "What's 'Hope so'?"

As I tried to explain I got a little teary. Then, we got home, I checked my email, and the floodgates opened. And for good reason.

Easter Weekend

Our Easter weekend started off on a painful note for Stace. He had all four of his wisdom teeth removed Friday, and lived to tell about it.

Here you see him recovering Friday evening, with a helpful Cora. He said he feels like he's been kicked in the jaw.

On Saturday, Ave stopped over and helped Cora paint some Easter eggs.

I was thinking Cora would be the only decorator this year, so I only boiled four eggs. Unfortunately, one egg was dropped on the floor during the transfer from me to Ave. And Cora's second egg rolled off the table when she had only painted a bit of it. So, we got out paper and the girls finished off the paint. Next year, I'll boil a few more eggs!

Stace wasn't feeling too good Saturday as he recovered from his surgery, so it was great that he felt well enough Sunday to come to Easter service, speak to all the family in England, and go to Easter dinner at Grandma and Grandpa's house (though Stace's dinner pretty much consisted of mashed potatoes and macaroni).

Here you see Cora after church in her Easter best... excuse the dark photo, but it was pretty cloudy and she would only wear her hat for a few minutes.

Silly Daddy wore the hat for about as long as she did.

Next, we have an Easter hug between Cora and her best friend, as we again had to collect her from the yard. She likes to race out and eat grass (and then get sick in the house, preferably on the carpet rather than the tile).

And then Cora enjoys opening her Easter basket at Grandma's house. Somehow this year, the Bunny forgot to come to our house; thankfully he still got Cora the goods!

Cora also really liked her Benjamin Bear DVDs, from Nan and Pop. She watched them Monday and renamed one of her bears "Benjamin Bear" and played with him the rest of the day.