Scariest Night of My Life

Last night earned that title. Gracious, I hope to never repeat it again.

On Friday morning around 3 am Alia woke up with a fever. Thus far in life she's been a very healthy girl, having only had one other fever due to cutting her molars. I didn't think too much of it and just chalked it up to getting her incisors. I just rocked her awhile, and layed down with her in her "big girl bed" for a few hours. Around 6 am she woke up crying a bit, peed the bed (her diaper was full), and wanted to be held. So... I changed both our clothes, took off the sheets, gave her some Advil, and she slept in our bed until morning.
Through out the day Ali was "off and on." She'd be happy and playing, and then the fever would start to get higher and she'd be cuddly and tired.
Around supper time she was quite warm, whiny, and very very cuddly. I kept trying to take her temp... but that's not her most favorite thing to do... so it was a constant fight. I gave up and about that time Jonathan walked in from work.
When he closed the door she jumped... she had just fallen asleep on my shoulder... but then she just kept shaking. When I looked down at her eyes weren't right and I started yelling for Jon to call 911.
He did. And she kept convulsing, puking on me, and not responding. That image of her in my head is a horrifying one. The 911 lady told us to lay her on the floor on her side, so we did and just kept talking to her and rubbing her back. She wasn't with it even when the paramedics arrived... and that only added to the terrifying feeling. They handled everything very well and told us they would be taking her to the hospital for the night.
I quickly packed anything I thought we'd need and ran out to the ambulance. Which, by the way, had gotten stuck. So Jon had to get them out, etc. etc.
I'm so glad I was in the ambulance with her just to comfort her and sing her songs. She had started to come back at that point and was quite scared.
When we got to the hospital they explained that it was a fever induced seizure and that it's surprisingly more common than we realize. I kept asking what I could have done differently and they said there's nothing you can do really. But... I just know there has to be something. I have gone over yesterday a million times in my head and I would have done so many things different. It's done now... I know... but it's still very very hard to feel like a good parent when something like this happens.
Anyhow... we were at the hospital for about 4 hours and they ran blood and urine samples. Her temperature never did get very high when we were there. They said some kids it takes until 105 and the next one can have a seizure at 102. Ya just don't know apparently.
The absolute worst time at the hospital was when they tried putting a catheter in. HORRIBLE. I finally told them to stop and that they weren't doing anything else... I was just a basket case and couldn't stop crying.
Anyhow, the Dr. came and said that it's probably a viral infection and that the 2nd urine sample wouldn't come up with new results anyhow. So.... I would have much rather been spared that last bit of drama, but it's done now.
We were up most the night monitoring her, and will def. be napping soon. She is doing MUCH better today. She's more herself and her fever hasn't fluctuated as much. So... right now she's napping and was quite tired, so hopefully her body can get the extra energy it needs.

This isn't flowery, or beautifully wrote out... but that's a overview of what happened last night. And I'm so thankful that she's fine, and that it wasn't worse than it was.

Beauty Comes at a Cost

It's winter... and sometimes noses just have a tendency to run. But, oh the torture that one must go through to get all the gunk cleaned out!

Hand Me Downs

Since most our friends have girls the same age as Alia, she's never really had many hand-me-downs. Well... the other day a gal from our church said she was blessed with some clothes and wanted to pass on the larger sizes to us. (She's having a baby girl this spring and didn't want to store the 24 month+ sizes.)

My oh my... what a HUGE blessing! I never expected to get so many clothes... or such cute, cute stuff! There's a whole bag left just waiting to be passed "down the line!" (The clothes were organized, by the way... but when one very excited little girl dives into a stack, there's just no going back!)
Alia had a hoot trying on a new outfit, modeling it for Daddy, and then basking in all our "ooohs" and "aahhs"! I tell ya, she sure does have a flair for the dramatic!

Cast Iron Casualty

Mexican food is a favorite at our house, but I have never been able to make it quite as good as the restaurants. After looking online, I discovered that the "secret" is very high heat and resisting the urge to stir, stir, stir.
I was very pleased with the way our fajitas turned out... but my poor cast iron pan didn't take to the high heat and the marinade, oil, etc. mixture very well.

I've boiled H2O, scraped, chiseled, and scrubbed... but my pan is still not smooth and velvety like it was before. So - it looks like it's time for the die grinder! Any other suggestions would be welcome... at this point I'm afraid my poor pan may never be the same!!

House fire

What do we even say in a time like this? All other postings I was going to write today seem trivial. All other worries and concerns seem piddly.

Last night Jon's sister and brother-in-law, Jer and Joe, lost everything they own in a house fire. In a matter of 1/2 an hour their whole lives have changed. Praise the Lord that they weren't home (they considered just staying put and going to bed early... but decided to head to a friend's house instead). The fire didn't take long to spread due to the strong winds we've been having... and with no opening windows in their bedroom, the outcome could have been worse than it is right now. The only items they have are their two vehicles (a neighbor was able to move Joe's truck in time) and the clothes they had on their backs.

Please pray for them. Praise God for His protection, His goodness despite hardship, for His plans to be known. Pray for peace, for favor with the insurance company, for things to be restored, for them to become closer to their Father, their families and to each other.

I just can't imagine losing everything. It sure reminds me of where my true home is, and that everything we accumulate here is just stuff. Nothing more.

I'm still at a loss for words, so again... please just pray for them. Thanks.

If I wasn't ready before...

I am now.

Check out these newborn pictures that my friend took of Alia. She does gorgeous work!
http://tarawytonphotography.blogspot.com/2008/06/new-life.html

Gracious... looking at these just does it to me! Good thing we're meeting our new babe soon... I'd go crazy otherwise!

The highlights of a simple life

Getting the mail is a definite high point in Alia's day! Maybe I keep her inside too much, I dunno... but that bit of fresh air does us both good!

Warm and ready



She totally knows the way to the mailbox on her own... and once we get closer she can't help but break out in a "brisk toddler trot"! (I hardly know what to call it, but it's super cute none the less!)


Pleased as punch with our find for the day... Mommy was hoping for more than a telephone bill, but ya take what ya get!



Crazy noses... we weren't outside all that long, but it sure doesn't take long for them to become a nuisance!


I'm so glad we never have to worry about traffic where we live... walking down the middle of the road is just how it's done here!


After a quick nose wipe, we decided to run around on the verandah for a bit... and play with the one rock we found up there!



The hoar frost was beautiful! I probably should have taken more pictures, but to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the cold! Someday maybe I'll be a true Canadian... for now I just lock myself inside for most the winter!!!

Pics or no pics?

Pregnancy pictures that is. I'm torn. To be fair to this next baby, we should get them taken (since we did with Alia). But to spend at least $100 on evidence of how puffy, blah looking, and big I am right now, doesn't sound appealing.
The question is... will the baby care? Jon says no. And I'm just not sure.
So... I will make a valid effort to contact a photographer and get pricing. But with only 2 weeks left... it just may not happen! And that has to be okay!

*I still haven't ordered Alia's newborn pics (and they were AMAZING!), if we want to get really technical... so maybe I should just start there first!!*

CRUNCH!

There are no pictures (and I have no intentions of taking any!) but the Explorer is worse for the wear than it was yesterday when Jon left for work. The good news - Alia and I didn't fall down the slippery steps he warned us about. The bad news - we should have just stayed home!
I crunched the passenger side mirror while backing out of the garage. I always use my mirrors, (my dad DRILLED that in my head!) and I have to say, it got me into trouble this time! As I was noticing the larger-than-normal-gap on the driver side, I should have stopped.... but I didn't. And as I was turning my head to look in the passenger mirror I heard considerable crunching and soon realized why.
Jon didn't really care, of course... but I'm still kicking myself! Well, it's done, and hopefully the junk yard has a "new" shiny black one in stock!

Sleds and more sleds

Friday night Jon brought home another one of his old snow mobiles. I think that makes it 4 behind our garage at this point. But I'm not 100% sure... because it's winter, and it's cold, and I don't ever go back there! And even though they all have cosmetic flaws (LOTS of cosmetic flaws!), they are still quite fun to drive around!
When Alia heard a snow mobile fire up she RAN to the window saying "Daddeee, Daddeee!" I told her it was the neighbor or something and that Daddy wouldn't be home for a bit, but lo and behold - she was right! Of course Alia had to take a spin, so we bundled her up and Jon took her for a cruise around town.
(That's not grease on Jon's face as I originally thought... it's a long story about him helping out the cosmo class at the high school, and the girls learning how to do straight shaves on him, and all of them being scared to cut him so they only did his cheeks. He shaved as soon as he came in the house but I never even noticed it until I was looking back at the pics!!)

Since the sled was out I decided to have a go at it. Jon wanted me to pull the starter cord to show me how easy it was to start... "in case you want to take it for a spin when I'm not home".... HA! (It still makes me laugh!!) Surprisingly it was quite easy to get going, but I doubt Alia and I will be gallivanting around while he's at school!
Before I zoomed away Jon told me two things... it gets stuck easy and it tips easy. "G-R-E-A-T... thanks hun!"
With that in mind I was a little more cautious, but when the opportunity arose I just HAD to go up this big pile of snow. Even though I tried not to... and even though I thought I was going fast enough... I got stuck! Picture me, 9 months pregnant, trying to drag the stinkin' sled off the hill (so I could try going over it again before Jon realized I was stuck!). But it's a really heavy sled (hopefully they make them lighter now a days!) and I didn't move it an inch, so I had to walk home to get my man to come yank it out!
Oh well! I drove it some more after the stuck episode and have to say... sleds really are a lot more fun than I thought! I've been trying to convince Jon to sell at least 4 of the 5 sleds and buy a nicer one... but I think he likes the option of supplying all our friends, and their relatives with snow mobiles if the need ever arises!

"Nuu - Nuu"

That's the answer anytime I ask Alia what I should make for supper! Noodles... a girl after my own heart! Even though I wouldn't mind eating noodles on a daily basis, my love handles would (and do!). So we have to shake the menu up a bit.
That being said, the other night Jonathan wasn't home for supper so spaghetti was a must!! And Alia was THRILLED!

To the rescue, again!

My Hutterite friends were such a HUGE help before Alia was born. In one day we made two sets of duvet covers (boy and girl) and matching pillows, a bumper pad, a crib skirt, and sewed all my receiving blankets for each sex. It would have taken me FOREVER to do it all on my own... but between three of us we had a ball, and got it done in a jiffy!
Well... the other day I was trying to make a flannel fringe blanket and happened to be talking to Roseanna on the phone at the time. Things weren't quite working out as planned and, despite my protest, Roseanne insisted that I stop and finish sewing it at their place. And I was to bring any sewing that I still wanted to get done for the baby! (Needless to say, I have learned that having the right tools makes a WORLD of difference! So I now have a few more toys in my sewing closet for the next time!)
What a huge blessing it was! I have some extra winter baby blankets ready and had such a great day with Roseanna and her family. It's always such a treat to head out to the colony and hang out for a bit!

Alia learning how to sew from Rose (Roseanna's mother)... a much better teacher than I am!




Roseanna with her beautiful girl


They have everything you can possibly think of to aid in sewing... but since they sew all their clothes, bedding, towels, etc. it just makes sense! Every time I sew with these ladies I learn a new trick of the trade!!


I forgot to get a picture of us cutting the fabric and laying out the pattern for the fringe blankets, so... this is the last strip waiting to be sewn!


All the strips sewn (for the girl blanket) and now it's waiting to be "fringed"


Roseanna "fringing" away... it took us quite awhile to do that on two blankets!


It never fails... I ALWAYS leave with more than I came with when I visit the colony! And every time I tell them it's too much they just laugh and help me to the vehicle with all the bags!

Look at these two...

I just can't get enough of them!



(They were waiting on me to finish getting ready so we could head to town... and I guess I was taking longer than expected. They ended up finishing a movie that's been ongoing for awhile!)

Only Daddy would think of doing this!

Jon is, by FAR, the more fun parent in our family equation! I think anyone who knows either of us could probably guess that without a whole lot of evidence! On Saturday I was organizing in the office and heard Alia squealing with delight, only to have her "pull up" to the door moments later to show me why!

Patiently waiting for Daddy to be off the phone

Let the "races" begin again!

Sitting in a chair

is just too boring apparently. Lately Alia wants to sit ON the table for snack time. We never sit on the table (I doubt our table would survive!) so who knows where she got the idea. She's had 1 tumble and 1 close call, where she caught herself inches from the ground with her arm getting stuck in the chair. You'd think she'd learn that sitting on the chair is safer... but nope. Then again... look who her Daddy is! He's not known for being the safest around (and I quite prefer it that way!)!

Office Climber

Since I spend a bit of my day in the office, Alia has moved her play zone into there at times. Thankfully she's no longer interested in the bookshelf, but this little "craft spot" has become her new favorite!
She sits on the box for minutes on end (which is quite a while when you're under 2!), just chattering away and having a grand ole' time. I couldn't find the silverware to her kitchen the other day, and after MUCH searching, found them in between the pages of her baby scrapbook. Why I didn't look there sooner... I'm not sure! But when things go missing I have a pretty good idea where they'll be from now on!

Little Miss Chef

For Christmas we decided to get Alia a new play kitchen. I researched until the point of ridiculousness (a word? I'm not sure!). After much hemming and hawing we decided on a plastic one, for a number of reasons! (Hopefully it stands the test of a little girl who's still learning to be gentle, and subsequent kids after that!)
Alia doesn't know when Christmas day is so, for at least this year, it didn't matter when we gave it to her! We decided to extend the festivities a bit and give it to her when we got back to MB. Boy oh boy, what a treat to see her eyes light up! I'm surprised... but she knew just what to do with it! She even closes the oven door with her foot - it's so funny! It's a big hit in our home, and I look forward to more "purple eggs" (that's what she made me today) in the future!