Happy Cheesfare week

Okay, so I finally got this spring's two big Emmelia activities scrapbooked and I'm not sure what I'll move onto next. I have some photos of the kids being awfully cute this weekend (or maybe I'll just get to developing that Gimp course already). Ah, this weekend. The sinus infection I'd been flirting with hit full force AND we discovered that it is impossible to buy a child a winter coat in Colorado in February. I'm mentioning this because the Deac thought I should blog about how stupid that is - apparently coats are clearanced here in snowy Colorado in December. But whatever. We'll probably find something online to replace Em's coat with a broken zipper.

So the verdict is that I will retain my uterus and chance to have future children for now - assuming the hormonal treatment works to lessen the pain. And then in a year or so, the Deac and I will re-evaluate and decide if we really want to try again for another child before I turn 40. Em's friend Rebecca, mentioned in the ballet layout above, got a new baby sister on Friday morning. It was a homebirth and everything went swimmingly well - if we DO have another one, we both agree we'd like to just do a homebirth this time. We met her on Saturday and I was wondering if I would get "baby fever" or anything. But, really, I didn't. I am really not at a point where I feel like being pregnant or going through labor again right now. Let alone sleepless nights and living in a fog for the first 2 years. I think it will be a tough decision in a year or so - I can see wanting to have a baby again (as it is, my girls seem so grown up - it seems so long ago that they were born!), but we may also be kind of glad to be past this period of our lives. It's wonderful having children, but also so very exhausting when they are this little. It amazes me to think that by the time Emmelia was the age Maura is now, I was already 4 months pregnant.

This week is Cheesefare week in Eastern Orthodoxy. Lent begins next week (we're a week behind the West this year), but this week we begin our abstinence from meat. Beginning next week the traditional fasting regimen involves fasting from meat, fish, eggs, dairy, wine and oil. I got a new cookbook last week that I'm very excited about! It should make Lent a whole lot easier this year - with easier clean-up, too, if I use those new slow cooker liners. It's called "Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker" by Robin Robertson. I looked through it when we were visiting Emmelia's godmother and liked so many recipes that I had to buy my own copy. Even the Deac approves of many of the recipes (he's very "meat and potatoes," so Lent is particularly hard for him). I don't know what we'll try first... Vindaloo vegetables? Almost-Irish stew? Actually, we'll probably save that one for St. Patrick's day.

Our latest excitement

At her lesson last night, Emmelia finally got to open her "violin" - a box of fruit roll-ups wrapped in brown paper. She had no idea what was in it, so it was a nice surprise. The idea of the box was to give her something to practice caring for and learning proper technique with before she starts to really make sound. Hopefully she's got the tools now to make nice sounds on the violin so that she doesn't feel discouraged once she starts to play (and a box of fruit roll-ups is roughly the size and weight of a size 1/16 violin). So after that she got to start working on her pre-Twinkle rhythms on her REAL violin! It's only a few bow strokes on the E string for now, but she was so very cutely excited. It was sweet to watch her. Our big girl is growing up. And I feel a new scrapbook layout coming on....

A couple new layouts

Here's a couple of layouts I've done recently. I'm so excited because I've been approached about developing an on-line course to teach folks to use the Gimp in digital scrapbooking! I'm still in the process of thinking about format and content, but think it's a wonderful opportunity, both for me and for the greater world of digiscrapping at large - many people have no idea there is such a powerful graphics program available for free!

And just a reminder - you guys CAN leave comments on this blog... it would make me feel less lonely out here in cyberspace to hear from you occasionally. ;-)

Happy Valentine's Day!

We don't get too into Valentine's Day around here, but this morning the girls gave away their valentines (above) - designed with a "princess" theme in mind (as requested by Em) and baggies of sugar cookies (pink hearts and purple stars - as requested by Em) to teachers at school. For some reason, neither girls' class is giving valentines to classmates this year. Oh well. They each got a new book from me & the Deac. The grandparents sent some cute stuffed animals and candy. For some reason I cannot fathom, both of my children apparently LIKE those conversation hearts. It kind of gives me the chills (and not in a good way). As the girls and I were leaving the house this morning, the Deac asked me if I preferred flowers or chocolate. I replied that I really don't need either of those things - it's not a big deal. But as we were walking out the door, Emmelia caught my eye and said "I like flowers AND chocolate!" She's really going to be an easily pleased but expensive wife someday.

Maura had a follow-up with the allergy/asthma doc yesterday and was placed on a nebulizer to reduce the lung scarring shown on yesterday's chest x-ray. Turns out that getting RSV within a month of having pneumonia is not so good for little lungs. Poor bean. So we'll be adding those treatments to our daily schedule for the next two months and hoping to get through the rest of respiratory virus season with no more damage done. I guess this is one more thing for your prayer list, if you've got one.

Between traveling and umpteen million doctor appointments, I feel so behind at work. And I really AM hopelessly behind in Russian. Sigh. Oh well. I have to keep reminding myself that I'm taking that class for fun. But, speaking of work I should get to it. Just wanted to post briefly and wish you all a happy day!

Back safely and big decisions

A week ago today, the girls and I loaded up the car and drove 5 and a half hours to visit Emmelia's godmother and her children in Nebraska. It was a wonderful weekend! We got to visit, play, get addicted to "Monk," listen to Romanian music, be fed wonderful Iron Chef quality food (including a delicious mocha chip birthday cake!) and basically just be with friends as close as family for a few days. Can't wait to go again - I just wish someone would get around to inventing a teleporter already! Geesh - can it be THAT hard? Emmelia's godsister is 5 weeks older than her and is in her own way a miracle baby as a result of the prayers of St. Raphael of Brooklyn. After the liturgy on Sunday, the girls posed for a photo with St. Raphael's icon and we were grateful for another opportunity to venerate his relics.

{{Post interrupted for funny story about Maura at church: when we first went into the church for the Orthros service, Maura was in the sling looking around. Presently, she exclaimed "Mama milk!" For her this phrase serves dual purpose - she uses it to ask to nurse but also says it whenever she sees a NIPPLE of any sort. Here's what she was looking at. I'll never see the icon the same way again.}}

Before we left on Friday, I had a follow-up with my gynecologist to get the results of my ultrasound meant to determine the source of my abdominal pain. The radiologist thought he saw evidence of a condition called Adenomyosis in which endometrial tissue grows into the uterine muscle causing irregular cycles and pain. Unfortunately, the only treatment is a hysterectomy. Because I have always wanted a third child and frankly, was hoping for more than a mere FIVE years total fertility in my life, this comes as a bit of a shock. I'm so incredibly grateful for the two miracles I have, but it's still hard to face a final decision at age 35. My basic choice seems to be continue having nearly unbearable pain twice a month or be unable to have anymore children.

I have an appointment to talk with my reproductive endocrinologist about it in a couple weeks. He's the doctor I trust the most in the world and I'm sure he'll take his own look at the ultrasound findings and maybe run a few more tests. Who knows - maybe he'll decide it isn't even adenomyosis after all. Anyway, I figure there's no need to invest much angst or psychic energy in this just yet until I know more. I'll keep you posted.

I've been Tagged!

Yeah, thanks Cynthia.... ;-)

What were you doing 10 years ago? Let's see - in 1996 I had been married 3 years and had just become Orthodox at the end of the previous year. We were living in a one-bedroom apartment in Boulder but were about to move to a house in another nearby city - renting from a friend for a really good rate. I had the same job I have now, but at a lower level. I was more of a technician and my job required a little more physical activity (sometimes I miss that). Ten years ago I was having another episode of unexplainable abdominal pain. It lasted for 9 months before my RE did a laparoscopy in June of 96 and found my appendix had ruptured and formed scar tissue.

What were you doing 1 year ago? One year ago, not much was different in my life. I had a new digital camera and "discovered" digital scrapbooking. My first layouts were valentines for the kids last year.

Five snacks you enjoy: Chocolate, salty meats (salami, etc.) and cheese, fresh veggies with dip, cookies, and mocha lattes.

Five songs to which you know all the lyrics: Do kid's songs count? Let's see - I can sing along pretty well with Paul Simon's Graceland album, most things by They Might Be Giants, and some Orthodox liturgical music CDs.

Five bad habits: Not keeping the house spic-and-span, spending too much time on the web or digiscrapping when I should be working, snacking when I'm hungry instead of having a big glass of water, being too lazy to exercise, letting the kids eat in the car.

Five things you like doing: Playing with and nursing my kids, digiscrapping, baking, open-water kayaking, learning new things.

Five things you would never wear, buy or get again: Um, yeah, everyone else is saying thongs and I agree on that one! Let's see... I think I can finish this one with kids supplies I THOUGHT I needed but didn't: a crib, a baby bjorn, a BreastBottle Nurser (it's a cool idea, my kids just didn't like it - and the daycare people felt weird holding a bottle shaped like a boob), Kelty baby backpack (that thing HURTS!).

Five favorite toys: Digital camera, palm pilot, graphics tablet, kayak, Russian dictionary

Four people I'm tagging:
(sorry, I don't have a lot of blogger friends yet so had to choose four rather than five)

Gracie & Joe
Tamie
Barbara
Whitney

Emmelia's funny monster story

I absolutely adore how creative Emmelia is becoming as she learns more about how the world works around her. She loves to be told bedtime stories. The Deac is much more gifted at making up good stories to tell her. I, on the other hand, am not gifted at storytelling in the least. So instead I've taken up reading chapter books to Em at bedtime. Right now we're reading "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe" by C.S. Lewis. Emmelia listens incredibly attentively and is always upset when I stop reading because it is getting too late. I hope both girls are prolific readers as they grow up.

I just scrapped (above) my new favorite piece of school art. It is a picture Emmelia drew at Preschool and then told her teacher what was happening in the picture and the teacher wrote down what she said word for word. I love her story! And the picture actually matches the story pretty well. I was impressed.