Sunday, December 18, 2011

Small town Santa vs. Mall Santa



This weekend we decided to take the boys to Medford to visit the "mall" Santa. We took them to see Santa in Etna two weekends ago and that was quite fun. Carter was so giddy standing in line and Miles didn't cry once. All of the local businesses were open and were providing holiday treats. The bank was passing out popcorn and Carter took his from Virginia, then all on his own, turned around and dramatically yelled "Merry Christmas!". It truly warmed your heart to see the boys so happy experiencing a little "hometown" Christmas Cheer. Well, we should have left it at that and totally skipped the "big-town"Christmas.

We knew we were in for trouble when we arrived at the mall to find the line to see Santa was so long that Mall Security was involved. While Bradley took Carter to the bathroom to kill time, I used my communication degree skills to promptly people watch. While observing my counterparts, I also was presented with a price-list for ways to commemorate our trip to see the jolly man. Before I even looked at prices I was aware of the bold letters prohibiting no outside photography. After a few calculations I realized that the only way we would be able to show our kids that we did indeed care enough to put them through this hell, it was going to cost us about $25 bucks. Good thing the line was long enough so that I was able to process these emotions. As we got closer to Santa, Carter was able to see the stuffed animals. At least this year he wasn't running around trying to shoot the big bucks.

While we were within five feet of Santa, Carter (who had been an absolute angel) almost had a meltdown because the autistic child in front of us kept trying to touch him. Carter was okay for the first few minutes, but soon felt his bubble being violated. I appreciate teaching my child about diversity and boundaries, but this kid was a little too much. (He and his three siblings). Anywho, we get up to Santa and he is able to easily get Carter on his lap, but Miles is pretty reluctant. In an effort to make everything okay, the dirty old man offers his lap to me. I promptly decided to sit off to the side, and Miles was happy.

The pictures turned out fine (for 25 bucks they better), except for the fact that I realized I had dressed Miles in shorts instead of pants. Insert Mother of the Year Award here. I guess seeing Santa is all part of the magic of Christmas, but I think next year we will visit Santa and Etna and call it good. We'll leave with our pockets fuller, our children happier, and our boundaries less violated.

In addition to making sure we fill our kids' minds with the commercialism of Christmas, we also made sure to touch on the true meaning of Christmas and the Christmas Story. Carter played an angel in the Christmas pageant (he was so good last year, they asked him to make another cameo appearance), but this year he was upstaged by his younger brother who played baby Jesus. Jesus didn't care much for Mary, and Carter got pissed at another angel who wanted to play with his toys, but I doubt that Mary and Joseph really had that swell of a night in a manger in the freezing cold anyways right?

Monday, December 5, 2011

Daddy Blues

Honestly, lately I feel as if I live for the weekends. However, this weekend was not one I wish to repeat. The fun started early on last week when Bradley was complaining of back pain. Not one to ignore my husband, I simply nodded and showed my "oh, no" face, all whilst still finishing off the nightly tasks. Come Thursday, he simply had turned into a very creaky tin man, and had the attitude to match. I tried to make him a chiropractor appt. for that day, but they couldn't see him until Friday at 3:30. Ah, yes, he will go to the chiropractor and feel better in time to get our Christmas Tree this weekend and hang some lights, Clark Griswold style. We all know what happens when we make plans in the Isbell home. . .

Friday night his back felt much better, but come Saturday morning he was in sheer agony around his neck. Sure he had in fact broken his neck, he spent the ENTIRE day on the couch in a 90 degree angle popping Vicodin I had leftover from giving birth to our youngest. Let me remind you of what Vicodin does to my husband who is already crankier, let's just say it didn't cross my mind to look up the number to 1-800-DIVORCE . Come Saturday night, we were all ready to go to the local tree lighting and had JUST told our two year old that Santa was coming. My husband who was all hopped up on Vicodin agreed to come. No sooner were we ready to go than the power went out. Sh**! Once the two year old was calmed and convinced that Santa would indeed still make an appearance at a later time, we decided to go to Yreka to get some dinner. Once again, the power comes back on, we go to dinner at the Pub, (where someone commented that Bradley looked shell-shocked, no just pain and Vicodin). My parents commented on how bad he looked and called their friend who is a masseuse (yes, my parents have friends like this), to come over the next day. After dinner, Bradley drove us around while we looked at lights. Carter looked at the lights and said things like, "I can't believe my eyes", "Amazing!", and "it's beautiful!".

Okay, so sometime around midnight on Saturday, I had fallen asleep on the couch, and Bradley attempted to go into our hottub to relieve his pain. This was after I had found him hunched over his dresser crying. Anywho, he goes into the hot tub (naked - we do have some privacy), I fall asleep on the couch, and he finds himself stranded in the hot tub and not able to get out. Luckily, he hears our newly retired neighbor out telling his dog to take a "poo-poo". Out of sheer determination to not have to seek help from our older neighbor, while being naked, and slightly "broken", Bradley miraculously manages to get out of the hot tub. He then comes in, wakes me up, and repeats the story, to which I start laughing, which makes him laugh, and then double over in pain.

Sometime around noon the next day an elderly gentlemen, wearing late 1980's NorthFace gear, and with a European accent, (whom we have NEVER met before), comes over and gives Bradley the best/worst massage of his entire life for two hours. Bradley feels better, the gentlemen leaves, and then all hell breaks loose. Apparently, having a massage can make the toxins in your body move around. Well, now Bradley is toxic. He's felt as if he has had the flu all day and has eaten nothing. We're hoping that he feels better by tomorrow.

In the meantime, Miles has been booked for Baby Jesus, in the church pageant, and I may have to forgo our "Griswold Family Christmas Tree" by going down to the local tree-lot. Yes, Fort Jones has one of those now. But the good news is that by next weekend, perhaps I'll be ready to be a "weekend warrior" again.

Friday, December 2, 2011

Pee-Pee for Two



You know there's nowhere for your day to go but up when it starts by getting pissed on. This week at 4:30 am I started my day with a warm stream of pee from Mr. Miles. (Yes, our seven month old shares some of his sleep-time with us, but Carter did the same thing and now sleeps on his own.) Anyways, after I finished changing Miles, and getting him to go back to sleep, while laying out on the coach, my running-alarm went off. I never heard it and Bradley turned it off. Somewhere in there Carter decided to tag-team us and Bradley (who by the way had put his back out and was hopped up on Vicodin), one-leg Charlied it up the stairs, and somehow packed our 40 pound two-year old back down. Although none of us, besides the gimped up father, were in our respective sleeping arrangements we were all dozing quite wonderfully in dreamland, until I was awakened by a knocking at the door. Yes, it was a school-day, and yes, I normally leave at 7:25, but no, this was my mother waking us all up at 7:30 am. I don't know what I looked like that day, I probably scared all of my 4th graders, but I still managed to make it to school by 8 am and wasn't so frazzled that I maimed any ten year olds.

In other news, Carter is seemingly completely potty-trained. I'd like to say that this new-found skill has left us with huge amounts of wiggle-room in our budget, but sadly our dog getting run over by a car last month has triggered a rather larger contribution to our local vet's office. (Which coincidentally is our neighbor). Yes, Carter even wakes up in the middle of the night to tell us he has to pee. He has pooped on the potty for over a year because of some constipation issues (TMI?), but due to the diligent efforts of our wonderful "Eileeny", he has mastered the art of the potty. In fact, he is quite the self-motivator on the potty. Lately he has been really into Bob the Builder and last weekend I could hear him singing to himself, "Can we pee-pee? YES. WE. CAN!". Those of you who know the usual lyrics of Bob and his crew, can appreciate this comment.

Onto other words of wisdom, last weekend I held a baby shower for my good friend and Bradley took Carter on a solo-trip to Medford. Bradley and his friend Steve have been brewing up a batch of "Apple Pie", in Bradley's man-cave and they needed some sort of auto-siphonor from the elusive land of "Black Bird". I truly wanted to experience Carter's first trip to this eclectic store, home to the rightfully titled "Black Bird", but alas didn't make it. Bradley shared that upon entering the store, Carter proclaimed with sheer delight, "Oh, holy Dollars!". I think this comment either points to my fascination with our ever-shrinking budget, or my lack of commitment to the church. Either way, he's a boy after his daddy's heart, a lover of a manly man's store.

As you approach this holiday season, may you live it through the eyes of a two-year old, or an infant. Sheer happiness and anticipation, maybe a few "holy dollars" too. But in the wise words of my own father, I guess maybe it is better to be "pissed off", than "pissed on".

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Four days of goodness!


After a month of pumpkin patching it, it's sure nice to have a weekend to catch up. Luckily, with a section cross-country meet on Thursday and Veteran's Day on Friday, it's been a nice long weekend with the kiddos. I'd like to interject here with a short snippet of:
"Sh** my kid says, Vol. 2" - in celebration of Veteran's Day.

"Bi-yah, was a solider?"
"Yes, bi-yah was a solider, that is why we celebrate Veteran's Day for him."
"Oh, I call Biyah?"

"Hi Biyah! You were a solider?. . . And nee-nee was a beautiful princess?"
The above mentioned comment made my mother's month!

As the weekend progressed, I decided that it would be a good idea to replace the baby swing with a baby jumper. Miles was beginning to squirm in his swing, it won't keep him asleep, and quite honestly I think he's past the weight limit. Carter helped (read severely hindered the process) of setting up the jumper. It isn't a "johnny jump-up", but rather a stationary device that the kids just "jump" in. Miles LLLOOOVVEED his new jumper. I am not exaggerating when I state that he jumped for a solid 20 minutes. He just laughed and jumped, and laughed some more. He is full-on crawling all over, pulling himself up on things, and earning many bruises in the process.

Speaking of bruises, Carter decided to replace his old bruise with a new goose-egg this weekend. Just a few weeks ago, Carter managed to meet our low windowsill with a brute amount of force, which resulted in a nice horizontal bruise for about three weeks. No sooner had the remains of this bruise disappeared, when Bradley brings a sobbing Carter into the house. He turned him around to show me his face. Some moms may have been upset, but I have recently learned that there is no need to panic unless the bruise/goose egg remains indented into the forehead. Since this new boo-boo/ping-pong ball was promptly sticking out, I really didn't even worry and in fact had to be prompted by Bradley to get some ice. As our friend Brent put it, "that thing is big enough for a calf to suck on". (They say things like this in the south).

Anywho, taking our bruised children out in public is also really interesting. I just hope people look at us and realize that we are not capable of child beating, but also question if our kids are really that uncoordinated.

I'll end with a third volume of "Sh** my kids says":

"Be nice you two!".

Yes, in the midst of a brief argument (which I will contextualize for you), our son came up between us, smiled, and said these words. I must say I was a bit embarrassed and proud at the same time. I really have a phobia of arguing in front of our kids, and we rarely let words pass between us, but I was so proud of Carter, in the midst of being humiliated that our two year old had to get us to shape up.

To our defense, my right breast was about as bloated as Roseanne Barr on steroids, due to the fact that our youngest's nursing is a bit off-kilter. Seeing as how he was acting hungry I decided to let the little one try to relieve my pain, when the floodwaters were let loose. I'm not kidding, it's as if several small holes were put into a water-balloon with about 380 PSI. Poor Miles is getting drenched in milk, I am soaked as well, and I start yelling for a towel. Bradley clearly does not sense the urgency in my voice and doesn't respond with the velocity I am wanting, and therefore some words were exchanged. Sorry to gross you all out, just really wanted to put our two-year old's words into context.

In other news, we are really trying to enforce going pee ONLY in the potty (or the lawn). He (carter) has gone number two for forever on the potty, but we are trying to save up for college instead of funding the shareholders of Pampers. Anyways, any thoughts/prayers/meditations towards this would be greatly appreciated.

Thank GOD for four-day weekends!

Thursday, October 20, 2011

One Big Happy "Toy Story" Family


My attempts to blog once a month have failed. I'm sure super-mom can maintain a full-time job, keep two kids half-bathed, stock local stores with fresh produce, market a pumpkin patch, help coach cross-country, train for a half marathon, be supportive to my husband, aannnd keep up a blog, but that's super-mom. I am just mom. That is unless you talk to Carter lately.

The kid is into role-playing. At first I thought it was just because he was super-excited about Halloween coming up, but no, I'm pretty sure he really does think that he is in fact Woody from Toy Story. The other night I was tucking him into bed and I said "Good night Carter", to which he replied, "I not Carter, I Woody". "Okay, Good night Woody!". His response? "Good night Jesse".

The role-playing continued the next morning when he told me that "we have to get out of the backpack Jesse". I swear, he has only seen Toy Story 3 a few times. He has decided that Miles is Buzz Lightyear and that his dad is Andy. His Nene and Biyah are Mr. and Mrs. Potatohead, but is quite perplexed as to who should be Bullsye the horse, so he switches characters between Woody and Bullsye. Things get quite interesting when Woody has to ride a horse.

It's amazing how our entire dinner conversation and evening activities revolve around the needs of Carter and his imagination. Some nights we have "cowboy pie", while others we "blast" each other in between bites. Miles is very calm and just goes along for the ride, but I often wonder what kind of spin dinner will take in another year when Miles has a different imagination track than his brother.

In other news, Miles is SOOOO close to crawling. He gets up on all fours, rocks, then scootches forward or just falls. We all cheer him on, but he just smiles and stares at us. We try to bribe him with toys to come to, but he just looks at us. I personally think he is more intrinsically motivated.

The pumpkin patch is doing extremely well. We have been busy every weekend and have finally broken even on our investment. It has been a lot of fun to see and meet many different people. Carter seems to get a kick out of going on and getting in the wagon, or showing his friends around the patch. I think he may have set a record for the most pumpkins picked by any one child in a season.

Last weekend I went and ran the Nike Women's San Francisco 1/2 marathon. I had a great time with all girls. Right before I fell asleep on Saturday night, I realized that I was about to experience my first full night of sleep in six months. I wanted to run faster than I did, but my alter-ego super-mom kicked in and I was running sub 7 minute miles for the first six miles, when I hit the first hill my legs were toast. I still finished 336th/16,000 runners, and 57th/2,979 in my age group, but I think "Jesse" could have done even better.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Sh*t my kid says - Vol. 1




Everyone always says, "Oh, I should write what my kids say down!" I am going to start folks. Here we go. . .

"Momma, I like your boobies" - while sitting in the jogging stroller enjoying a run.

"Daddy, you probably want to play cowboys with me?" - in response to being told it's time for bed.

"The Doctor told me I have to watch a new movie with you" - after his surgery he has seemed to remember a lot of what the doctor has advised him to do.

"Doctor, where are you?" - this happened in the waiting room of the doctor's office of the immediate care place (small fish allergy incident) after he told my dad he wanted to get down off of the table. He proceeded to open the door and then yell this out into the office.

"Mason has the flu" - he successfully passed this rumor about his older cousin around at daycare. There was some mild concern as some of the children had played with Mason close to the time this rumor was circulated. Bottom line - NEVER believe what a two year old has to say.

I'm sure I'll remember more of what he has to share, but just stayed tuned for volume 2.

Monday, August 29, 2011

Dear Summer: Thanks for the memories!






Really the purpose of this post is to showcase some photos taken by our relative. With summer coming to a close, I have a bit of a heavy heart. Not only do I have to go back to work and leave my kiddos, but it means a change of routine. This summer I have probably spent more time in the garden than in the house, or on the road running. Bradley has a real passion for gardening and I am sheepishly ready to admit that perhaps I may have caught the bug. It wasn't until I saw her pictures and got rather weepy eyed that I realized how much I may have a passion for all of this too. As an individual I can get too caught up in the "process" of life, to sit back and look into what I have accomplished. As I look at these photos I have a sense of pride not only in the fruits of our labor, but in the life that Bradley and I have created for our family. Our kids are happy and healthy, our garden is abundant, and our lives are blessed. As another summer vacation closes and a new school year begins, for the first time in my life I think I am a little reluctant to welcome in fall, but rather surprised at my newfound passion for summer.

On a sidenote, in addition to our six family CSA, selling at the local Farmers' Market, and selling to local restaurants, we also have our own stand at Ray's Food Place in Fort Jones. "Fresh. Local. Sustainably Grown."

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Brothers, Botched Circs, and Bad Docs



Yesterday, out of the blue, Carter told me, "Momma, Baby Paul and Baby Miles are the best brothers in the whole whorold". I really couldn't believe that this comment came out of his mouth seeing as how just five minutes prior, he was trying to squeeze his brother's head off. Some minutes Carter dotes on Miles, and then within a few moments he will try another malicious act. Meanwhile, Miles will track Carter around the room, easily navigating any path Carter sets out on, which trust me, is rarely ever a straight line.

Carter recently had to have a minor corrective surgery up in Portland, Oregon. Let's just say that his first pediatrician, with the initials: DR. MARTIN YOUNG, of Southern Oregon Children and Adolescent Clinic, piece of sh**, mother-f**ker, screwed up his circ. when he was a baby. Poor Carter had to have the whole procedure redone, but this time around he had to be put under anesthesia, and has had to end his summer with no swimming, or straddling activities (ie his favorite activities: riding horses or bikes). Carter has handled the whole thing really well. I think it was more trying on us the parents or perhaps the grandparents, than anyone else.

Morally, I don't feel that I should have to pay for this second circ., seeing as how the first one was was REALLY wrong. After consulting with various lawyers who all said they couldn't try to get me my $2,000.00 back, (apparently malpractice cases aren't good for anything less than 30 grand) I decided that I would "professionally" handle the situation by calling the asshole's office myself and politely suggesting that he might morally and ethically feel obligated to either pay for the 2nd time around, or at least refund me our money from the first botched job. Would you believe that the office manager answered my inquiries by stating, "Well, ma'am we get these kind of phone calls about Dr. Young's circs ALL OF THE TIME". WTF?????

Looking on the bright side, it was a great trip to Portland because we got to spend time with my sister, her boyfriend, and my parents. Prior to his surgery we took Carter and Miles to the zoo, which was only made even better with a Peter Frampton concert right next to the elephants.

On another note, I think Miles may be the "messy brother". I am trying not to pin labels on anyone or put any of this energy out there, but he had rice cereal for the first time this week and it wasn't pretty. The encore to ingesting the rice cereal (fed to him by Carter), was the process of smearing it all over himself. We need someone to balance out Carter's need to have everything in order, clean and precise (I wonder where he gets that from:)), I guess that's why Carter knows that Miles is one of "the best brothers in the whole whorold".

Thursday, July 21, 2011




The month of July has been very busy for us! Between gardening, housework, weddings, and vacation I feel like it has just flown by!

I will try to sum up some of our most memorable moments of July.
4th of July - Carter LOVED the sparklers and the fireworks. Miles seemed to enjoy the lights as well. Our in-laws hosted a wonderful 4th of July party, almost two weeks later their pool collapsed. . .

Carter's first race - One mile in 27 minutes! It was rough terrain:)

Good friend's wedding - Carter was one of three ring-bearers. I will just say that kids will do anything for a few jelly beans. The wedding was hot and beautiful and my parents took the boys home! We had a nice evening visiting with friends.

San Diego trip - beach, Disneyland, Giants/Padres game, waterslides -

Whew, it was an amazing trip. Both Carter and Miles ate a lot of sand and saltwater, perhaps leading to explain their interesting bowel movements. It was truly amazing to witness the magic (and overcommercialization/stimulation) of Disneyland through the eyes of a child. Carter was genuinely excited to meet Mickey Mouse, Donald, Pluto, and Minnie Mouse. Pirates of the Caribbean was a hit, but ironically, the Pinocchio ride was sheer terror. Miles was a trooper through all of it (read sleeper).

Perhaps the best part of the trip was realizing how important spending time with cousins is. I grew up away from all of my cousins and they were also much older than my sister and I. Carter and Miles are so lucky to live so close to at least six cousins, and have the opportunity to spend the week with six other extended cousins.

Here's to hoping that August does not fly by as fast as June and July have. I LOVE my job but am dreading leaving my boys. . .

Tuesday, June 14, 2011

Pumpkins, lettuce, swimming, oh my!




With the addition of the faux post prior to this one may notice that a lot has been going on in the Isbell home. With all that has been happening I am happy to report that Miles has been aided in his sleeping by some excellent swaddling advice! Knock on wood, he has had some six, even seven hour stretches! Yahoooo!

Both boys are growing every day. Carter has started swimming lessons this week and even though he "wants to swim without Ty holding me", he seems to enjoy himself. Miles is awake a lot more and likes to move! Carter usually has to be reminded at least once a day to not brutally mutilate his brother, but Miles is still functioning well despite Carter's many attempts to "wrestle" with his brother.

Summer just sort of happened in the Valley. It was so cold for so long. I actually kind of enjoyed the slow pace that the cold brought to our home, but once the temperatures started rising I feel as if we are in a never-ending rat race. As the lettuce started to rise, so did our endless number of activities. We have had a solid garden for several years and have actually grown in size to the point that we have participated in the local Farmers' Market. This past season we started selling to local restaurants as well. However, this year was the year we decided to "go big or go home". (It seemed the right time to go crazy, being as though we had a two year old and a newborn. *note sarcasm) In addition to starting a small, five family CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), selling at the local Farmers' Market, and supplying local to restaurants, we planted a "you-pick" pumpkin patch. That's right, as our little Miles was growing, so were the 2,000 pumpkin seeds that Bradley and Carter started in our greenhouse. Last weekend we planted all of those seeds in our front field. (We being ourselves, a good friend, and amazing parents.) I have run SEVERAL marathons folks, FAST MARATHONS, and I have NEVER been as sore as I was the day after we planted those plants. My muscles hurt to even be slightly touched! That being said, the plants are in the ground, we have a nice logo (see prior post), and we are spreading the word.

I am so proud of my husband for pursuing what he ENJOYS in life. He creates a hell of a lot more stress than I need, but I believe that he does everything with incredible passion and precision. Sure, he blows the hell out of a budget as well as Miles blows through a diaper these days, and we may not see a profit, but we're a family and we're loving life.

Check out our new website www.isbellgardens.com - if it's not working, the nice folks at weebly assure me it will soon.

Sunday, May 15, 2011

Time to Reflect





I believe that creator of the old adage - "Time flies when you're having fun" would agree that fun could be replaced with a plethora of words. Drinks, to pay bills, - or in our case - babies. In all seriousness, time has just flown away from me. Our newest addition - Miles John Isbell will be four weeks old tomorrow and time has scooted right along. I don't know if it's the minutes in the days that tick by quickly, the days in the week, or the weeks in the month, because I truly feel that I am living minute to minute some days.

My pregnancy with Miles was absolutely terrible . To recap - placenta previa, bedrest, contractions, bedrest, pneumonia, bedrest, gestational diabetes, and to top it all off, four weeks of contractions during which my cervix was at 5cm and I was working full time. However after 39 weeks and six days of well, hell, Miles entered the world easily and effortlessly. No joke, I was induced around 5:30 and he came into the world at 10:40 pm. There was no tearing, stitches, hours of groaning, swearing, just a few pushes and he was out.

Since his arrival he was gained almost two pounds and is the calmest one in the house. Despite a few grunts and some loud eating, we sometimes forget he is here. Carter has taken a strong liking to his new brother but does like to push the limits of Miles' personal space. Miles has already taken on the roll of Carter's wingman. Carter likes to use the excuse of "checking on my brother" to get away from eating his vegetables. Poor Miles has also taken the blame for a few ripped pages of treasured books and seemingly invisible scratches on his brother.

I'm sure that Miles will learn from Carter's mistakes growing up as most younger siblings do, but I think that Carter has been learning a few things from Miles. Case in point, he has a strong sense of the purpose of boobies and can apply so learned knowledge to everyday life. I would like to be modest about my pumping each morning but Carter can't be trusted in a room by himself with his brother, so both of them (along with the poor neighbors who might glance into the kitchen window) get a full viewing of Mom's girls being suctioned by plastic cups. The first time Carter witnessed the ordeal he asked incredulously, "Momma, WHAT are you doin?". I told him that I was pumping milk for his brother. He thought for a minute and then replied, "Oh, like a cow?". This conversation was soon followed by his observation that my tummy was "jiggly". I knew my child was smart, but now I know that he's honest too.

The day before Mother's Day this year I entered a local 5K pushing both boys in my new stroller. (That purchase is a whole other blogpost in and of itself - I'll just say that my husband must really love me.) As I set out getting ready for the race that morning I could hear Carter telling Bradley that he was going to run too. Bradley avoided the issue by assuring Carter he could finish the race with mom. As the race began I was hoping Carter wouldn't get upset about not running by himself and he didn't, just sitting in his stroller with his brother. During the race he was a great sport and cheered on other runners as we passed them or we were passed. About 1/8 of a mile before the finish he asked to run with me. I don't know how he knew it was the finish but he did. The little man ran the whole way and was so excited to cross the finish. This folks, was my crowning moment as a mother. Carter was enjoying my passion as a runner on his own. His cheeks were red, he asked for water, and told anyone who would listen about running a race for the rest of the day. The whole experience was the best Mother's Day present I think I could have asked for.

All in all, I think our familial unit is doing well but Bradley recently admitted to me that he is just "surviving". I feel extremely blessed to have the time off of work until next school year to be with my boys. I will admit that I often feel as if I'm living minute to minute but I couldn't be happier as I reflect on what the last four weeks has given me.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Ready or not!

The blog has been a bit neglected over the last month. Mostly because I have gone into labor every other week. Needless to say, our insurance deductible has been met and I am on a first-name basis with the OB department of FMC. Apparently our new son to be has quite a sense of humor. I have had to breathe through contractions which teaching a math lesson to 4th graders, drive over Yreka Mountain in a blizzard requiring chains, and create last minute lesson plans detailing STAR test preparation, all to get hooked up to a monitor in a hospital (three times mind you), and then have the contractions STOP.

I am now nearing my due date and have finally been taken off work. I guess the doctor figured that if I have contractions all day and am five cm dilated I deserve to sit at home. I can't possibly clean another item in our house, the car is packed, grandparents are on high alert, the baby clothes have been "Drefted", we're ready. . . or are we.

When Carter came along we were pretty blissfully unaware of the dreadful lack of sleep and unwavering sense of unselfishness that is parenthood. I love Carter more than any words or actions could possibly convey, but I distinctly remember how incredibly hard those first few weeks were. You see the commercials on TV with blissful looking families cuddling their soft naked newborns and you realize that those ads are pieces of airbrushed propaganda - wrong on so many levels. I mean who leaves a newborn naked for that long right?

I guess I'm being kind of negative and am using a little comedy to accentuate the point that I am scared out of my ever loving mind right now. Forget the actual part about birthing the child, no, I've got that, but how am I supposed to competently care for a newborn AND a two year old with the lack of sleep and sanity I know I am destined for at any moment. I am so very blessed to have the most amazing and supportive husband who has made the transition into fatherhood look like a dream, and I have not one but two sets of grandparents, that live less than ten minutes away. So why am I so freaked out? Shoot there are women living within miles of me that have eight, nine, kids - some all at home. I guess I just want to make sure that I do the very best job that I can. I know I won't be perfect and it will be hard, but if I give the best I have to offer every day then I know my two boys will thrive.

Okay some brief highlights of the last month:
1) Carter telling me that he is going to cut Miles out of my tummy with his saw.
2) Being told to be patient by Carter.
3) A friend telling us at the pub that it's okay for him to have four beers and drive because "I just sip them."
4) Carter wanting to play in Mason and Shelby's baseball and t-ball games. "I can't wait momma! I can't wait for Mason's baseball game!"
5) Listening to Carter read his books. The Very Hungry Caterpillar (Caterpillar Hungry) is nearly memorized.
6) Listening to Carter tell Baby Miles that he loves him and asking him to come out soon to play.

Okay Miles, I am ready. I had my pedicure, the house is Home and Garden ready, your car seat awaits, and I have vented/figured out/released some anxiety. I am so ready to meet you and hold you!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Birthday "Plans"



It's been another heck of a week or two in the Isbell household. My mom constantly reminds me that "if you want to make God laugh, make plans". This is coming from a woman who also likes to remind me that she isn't "religious" but she is "spiritual".

Yes, mother was right. Don't try to make plans. About a month ago I began "planning" Carter's 2nd cowboy birthday. I went to great lengths to create custom invites on Shutterfly that depicted Carter as the Lone Ranger. My mother-in-law, BLESS HER, was enlisted to make hobby-horses for each guest. The date was set, Oriental Trading was given a hefty donation, and the invites were mailed.

Well. . . I went for a baby checkup (oh, that's right we actually need to remember that a 2nd human being will soon be joining our family and needs attention too) and found out that baby Miles was great, but momma had pneumonia. Wait? What?? I had a party in two days, the invites, the cupcakes were ordered, hobby horses for crying outloud! Nope folks, the momma was very sick. I knew I didn't feel well, but the next few days were borderline scary for the momma and momma to be. Needless to say, Carter's party was postponed until the next weekend. Luckily for me, my cupcake lady (no judgment here please, I work full time and am VERY pregnant), had a church potluck to take her cupcakes to.

Well, the party went off without a hitch. Unless a hitch counts as a two-year old who didn't get a nap and consequently didn't want to share ANY of his new toys with his generous guests. Or if a hitch counts as possibly inviting toooo many young cowboys and cowgirls and serving toooo much sugar. Or if a hitch counts as aforementioned sugared up cowpokes earning numerous bumps and bruises from enlisted hobby-horses. Regardless, kids came, kids had cupcakes, kids played cowboys/cowgirls, and kids left with hobby-horses, hats, sheriff badges, and cowboy hats.

The most important part is that Carter had a wonderful actual birthday and a fun time at his party with all of his friends. He did fall asleep sitting up next to me at 5pm and is currently snoring on the couch. I would like to "plan" on his sleeping through the remainder of the night, but we all remember what my mother said about "plans" right?

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Never Say Never

You know those times when things are going along really well and then you slip up and say or think something like "finally, sunny weather" and then boom - a snowstorm hits? Well last weekend was one of those weekends. On Thursday night, the eve of my coveted four-day Presidents' weekend, I made the comment to Bradley that, "Wow, I'm so happy we're all well again". Not two hours later did Carter have a terrible runny nose. Thinking it was just a fluke, I further taunted the cosmos by saying, "I'm going to take a nap EVERY day of my four-day weekend". That night our energetic two year old became a coughing seal who couldn't breathe. That's right folks, croup had found its way into Carter's system. The sounds were so severe and startling that at first, we thought a small dog over at our neighbors' vets office was being sacrificed. Bradley decided to sleep with him on Friday night to monitor his breathing.

First thing on Saturday morning I called our pediatrician in Medford. We drove the hour or so up there (in a snowstorm) and were given a dose and prescription of steroids to bring down the inflammation in his vocal chords. Great, we thought, a little steroids and everything will be back to normal. Wrong again.

About two hours after the first dose of steroids we realized that Carter seemed to be running into things and clumsily falling down. He was also extremely tired and his usual two plus hour nap was shortened to almost 45 minutes. Not to mention that his pleasant and giving personality was replaced by the ghost of Chuckie. The kid was needy, clingy, ravenously hungry, hitting, it was just crazy. After a little soul-searching, I decided to look closer at the steroid label. I found that the side effects were as follows: difficulty sleeping, feeling of a whirling motion, increased appetite, increased sweating, indigestion, mood changes, nervousness. Well, we were four for seven in that set of side effects.

We finally got the demon child to bed around eleven pm. I know that "demon" seems a little strong, but he was a COMPLETELY different child. I took the duty of sleeping with him so that Bradley could finally get some sleep. Strike four.

Around three in the morning I woke up to pee and noticed that all of the lights downstairs were on and I could smell a burning candle. Not knowing what the heck was going on, I walked downstairs to find Bradley cleaning our wood floor on his hands and knees. Yes folks, the weekend had gotten even better, Maggie had sh** all over our downstairs. All of the rugs had to be washed, the floor spot cleaned, and then sanitized. By the time we got to bed at five am, we were able to catch about thirty more minutes of sleep before Chuckie, I mean Carter, awoke.

I think that I did finally get a nice nap on Monday and I am so thankful that Carter is well. I also value Bradley's strengths as a father and true partner/team player. I am a little nervous that we will be outnumbered with two kids, but it is just another reminder that life is so very unpredictable.

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Laughter for the Heart




Right after it seems like we have all recouped from one heck of a head cold, something much more hideous comes along. . . head lice!!! No, we DO NOT have it in our home, but it is running rampant through the schools here and I am extremely paranoid about getting it. In an effort to shield us from these hideous creatures I have been requiring the household to add a daily dose of tea-tree oil to their beauty regimes.

When you live in Scott Valley, tea-tree oil is not something you can just run down to the store and pick up. No, in fact I had to make several phone calls before I found someone who had a little in their home. I decided to take their bottle and replace it when I made the "big trip" into Yreka.

Not only is tea-tree oil hard to find in our immediate vicinity, but it's also hard to find in Yreka. The only place that sells it is called "Nature's Kitchen". Suffice to say , the name pretty much speaks for itself. It is very "natural". Bradley has never been into this establishment, but because of who my parents are (God love them) I have been a regular since I could walk. Needless to say, once you enter the store you are immediately enveloped in incense, natural foods, various pieces of spiritual guidance, plants, potions, elixirs, bran muffins, bald men in white linen. You get the idea. Well I head on into the place without breaking stride, meanwhile my poor husband and son are trapped in the threshold just trying to take in the entire surroundings. Carter really didn't seem that bothered by the change in scenery at all, in fact when we left I asked him if it was like Nene and Biyah's house, and he said "Yesh".

While I am trying to make my tea-tree oil purchase, I also decide to have a smoothie. Being as now I have gestational diabetes, I thought that the natural place could satisfy my cravings in a healthier way. Bradley ordered a smoothie too and Carter opted for the carrot cookie. While we were waiting on our treats, Carter began taking in everything at eye-level. As it was the weekend before Valentine's, there was quite an array of au natural semi-erotic material for viewing pleasure. Carter kept pointing at naked pictures of Adam and Eve asking, "Daddy, what's this for?". Bradley just calmly replied, "decoration, look at the plants". We thought the semi-nude photos were the worst until we looked over and saw Carter copping a feel on the boob of a wooden sculpture of a pregnant woman. Again, he asked , "What's this for Daddy?" and Bradley replied, "It's de-cor-a-tion", while turning a terrible shade of red. Needless to say, Bradley and I just couldn't get out of there quick enough, but Carter on the other hand, could have stayed for hours.

We got to the truck and tried out the smoothies. Bradley and I almost gagged - they were WARM and Bradley says the banana was probably "beyond banana-bread ready". However, when I passed it to Carter he said "Yum, thank you mommy!"

Although all of this rambling is quite funny, I have to admit that I have learned a little lesson about Carter. While we are so concerned about how he'll react to something "weird, or different", he seems to be as cool as a cucumber and totally accepting of differences. Case in point, we went to eat with my parents on Sunday and a man with downs syndrome was fascinated with Carter. Carter was again, as cool as a cucumber and welcoming in communication.

I hope that my son will stay like this forever. He is so pure in his thoughts and welcoming with his heart, which is so appropriate in light of the coming holiday of St. Valentine's Day. I love you Carter, for so many reasons, but especially because of your generosity of heart!

Saturday, February 5, 2011

Sleepless in Fort Jones


I've finally come to the realization that a sleepless night happens very regularly with kids and that a full night's sleep is a luxury. I know that this seems like an obvious epiphany, but I think I was just in denial.

When Carter was only six weeks old, he started sleeping through the night. Even though the doctor tried to warn us that it would only be temporary, I prescribed to positive thinking and believed that it would last. After he started waking up during the night I made another naive mistake of just putting him in the bed with us. Although he was extremely content, I think this ultimately cost us five years off our lives due to sleep deprivation. It's impossible to get into REM sleep with constant wiggles, jabs, and poking.

Next, we decided to be "tough" and have him go to sleep in his own crib. Finally, after many nights of laying on the ground holding his hand through the crib rails, and trying to make a stealth escape, it worked - he was falling asleep on his own. Soon we knew the time we had come to put him in a "big-boy" bed. We tried to make the transition slowly. First we brought in the bed, next we showed him his new truck sheets, and amazingly enough he took an intense liking to his "new bed".

I love laying next to him in bed, snuggling into the covers, and reading him stories. After the stories are over, he usually asks me "Mama, lay down too?", and being the gullible one I am, I do lay down and he strokes my arm. Sometimes he'll ask for his flashlight which his "Bi-yah" has hidden in the racks of the top bunk.

Even though right now I know that, with a new baby coming and Carter sleeping in his own bed for an eight or nine hour stretch, it is my prime time to get ANY sleep for a LONG time, I can't resist snuggling in with him at night and catching a few hours of sleep next to him.
He looks so tiny in his new bed, but I know one day it will one day be too big for him. Sometimes I secretly hope he will wake up so I can sleep next to him in his new bed.

Monday, January 24, 2011

Best of the Best


So after being inspired by the many facebookers who often blog, I decided it was time to take the plunge! If anything else, I can try to write down some things to remember about our family. My love language is "written word", you'd think I'd make this more of a priority.

My top current "best" things about Carter:
1) I love that he thanks me for dinner. "Shank you for dinner mama!"
2) This weekend he sat in his armchair which was near his daddy's feet and said, "Pee you!".
3) He tells Bradley and I at least once a day, "Daddy? - you're the best! Mama? You're the best!, Carter the best too?"
4) Uninhibited self-expression as evidenced in his ability to "shoot bad guys" while wearing only a cowboy hat.

Thank you Carter for making every day "the best"!