Saaaaaddie, Where Are You?

Good News

The cardiologist says Sadie's holey heart has healed. Yeah :)

While You Were Gone

Dear Ben,

While you were gone I did my best to stay busy. It was no substitute for your company, but this is what occupied my time:

I spray painted these things:

I made these things:

Sadie and I started our spring garden.  We have green beans, parsley, tomatoes, and peppers planted.  Remind me to water them, please.

And, I've been reading these interesting books:

Also, did I mention I put our house up for sale?  Hope you don't mind :)

Love you,

Alicia

All By Myself

Ya know how this happens:




And you think you'll spend your life like this:



But, it ends like this:

So, I do what any other person would do and go live with my parents for some of the time.

But, to get to my parents I have to drive for an hour and a half in rush hour traffic with a barking dog and fussing baby while listening to Barney.

And then Sadie gets sick {on the second anniversary of her hospitalization}.

And all I want is my husband and all Sadie wants is her dad - but he is no where to be found.

That's when I say "Aye Caramba"!

*******

At least we'll get to spend eternity together even if on earth we're always apart.

Growin' Up

Sadie just had her two year check up {two months late} and she is back on the charts! This is the first time since she was three months old that she is actually within range.

Here are her stats:
23 lbs. 4 oz. - 7th Percentile
32 inches - 40th Percentile

Something magical happened around 22 months old. She started eating, sleeping, growing, and playing. She was a challenging baby, but she is a wonderful toddler!

My Flat Tire

A couple weeks ago I was driving home from my parent's house on US19, talking to Ben on the phone, setting up where we were going to go for a lovely dinner out. We had decided on our favorite Thai restaurant in Palm Harbor where we frequented when we were newlyweds living at our much-loved apartment in Boot Ranch. I was very excited!

Then I heard: Thump, THUMP, THUMP!

My conversation with Ben was as follows:

Alicia: "Boy, somebody sure has a loud muffler."

Ben: "Ya"

Alicia (as I'm searching the sky): "Is that a helicopter? It sounds like a helicopter is really close."

Ben: "Really?"

Alicia: "Oh shoot, I think I have a flat tire. Gotta go!"

Well, by the time I realized I had a flat tire I was on an overpass and had to get over the overpass because there wasn't any space to pull over.

A very nice man in an construction vehicle pulled behind me and put his emergency lights on so no one would rear end me because I was going 10 mph in a 60 mph zone. He looked at the tire and informed me it was barely still attached, I was pretty much just driving on the rim.

Ben and my dad came to save me. However, it took them TWO HOURS to get the spare tire on! Not that I'm complaining but Sadie and I were pretty bored by the end of the ordeal.

But, the worst part of the night - no Thai food! It was nearly 10 o'clock by the time we were done. I wanted that Thai food so bad!!

(My dad can be seen below wearing my mom's Christmas sweater while holding the flashlight for Ben who is laying on the ground.)

Life Lately 3.11.10

Life lately is good, real good.

Ben's busy season ended last week. Oh happy day! Good news, too: it was a GREAT renewal for the company! So, all of their hard work definitely paid off. He had been working 60 or 65 hours a week and when you couple that with the 10 - 15 hours he serves in the church each week there wasn't much of Ben left over for Sadie and me.

When Ben is home - life is magical! He plays with Sadie, does the dishes, let's me have alone time, get's Sadie ready for bed, puts her to bed....anything and everything that needs to be done, he helps me get done.

But, really, what I love most is how he plays with Sadie. He reads to her, draws pictures with her, gives her piano and guitar lessons, and he teases and chases her around the house. It's really quality, productive time he spends with her each night! Their laughter fills the house from 6:30 until bedtime. That's Sadie's favorite time of the day, so it was definitely a noticeable change to not have him around. I tried to do my best, but I'm just no Ben :)



In other news, I'm just entering my third trimester. I'm still feeling really good. Although, I do feel much bigger this time around. I keep wondering where three more months worth of growth is going to go.

(The above pictures do not do justice to how big I actually am,
however, they are the only recent ones I have of myself)

We still haven't chosen a name, although we are getting closer. There is a name we love (it wasn't on the previous list), but we are just trying to decide if it's right for this baby. Remember when you were a kid and it was so fun to think of baby names? First of all, none of those names you pick out as a kid you like as an adult. And, the chore becomes much more stressful when you have a deadline. Hopefully we'll figure it out soon, though!

Sadie has been healthy for a really long time now! The stage of getting colds every week seems to have passed. I think she's only had two colds in the last 5 months! It's so wonderful to feel like we can go places and do things again. For the first year and a half of her life I felt practically home bound. Now it's so easy to run errands, take day trips to fun places, or have play dates. I know that's going to change when the baby is born in a few months, but I'm really enjoying our current independence!



We really have a lot to be grateful for!

And that, is a little about life lately.

The Phone Thief

To those of you that always take the time to talk to Sadie on the phone - thank you! You know how much she loves it! I think it makes her feel really grown up.

This is what she looks like from our end:

Sadie's Top 10 Favorite Foods

Dear Mrs. Mary M. and Miss Kimberly M. and Mr. Joe M.,

One day, in the not so distant future, I will be forced to go to the hospital to have a baby. The reason why I use the word 'forced' is because I would much rather visit a birthing center and then return home to recover. However, no one in this family seems to think that is safe or wise, and therefore I choose the word 'forced'.

When that day comes I need you to be prepared to house and love my child for a few days. She is a sensitive soul who thrives in her routines and her mother's affection. Since she will be without her mother's affection as they hold me hostage in the hospital (interesting how similar those two words are spelled, no?) I hope her routines can stay as normal as possible.

Also, since oftentimes unforseen circumstances may lead to a newborn's extended hospitalization (jaundice, risk of infection, small size, etc.) this will hopefully be of help to you in that unexpected situation.

Therefore, I will be recording pertinent information regarding our little one here, on this silly blog, in an effort to make the transition as comfortable as possible for Miss Sadie.

This week's lesson deals with food. A favorite topic of us all :)

Sadie's Top 10 Favorite Foods:

(Half of the can of peaches for breakfast and half for lunch)

(Any brand of yogurt will be fine)

(Please be sure to rinse the grapes extra well as they are a highly pesticided food)

(Beware: she can eat a whole quart of strawberries in one sitting)

(Use cheese sparingly as it may cause stomach problems)

(Ice cream intake should not exceed one scoop every two days.)

Please, be sure to have these foods on hand during late May and most of June. She has a very healthy appetite!

Thank you for your time and attention,

Sadie's grateful Mom

Hokey Pokey

The "Hokey Pokey" is currently Sadie's favorite song to perform.

Special thanks to Joseph for teaching it to her.

Special thanks to Ben for singing it to her for hours every night.

Fisher and Sadie

Sadie has a really cute little friend. His name is Fisher. They have a love-hate relationship.

Sometimes Sadie and Fisher get together for play dates. But, I think the play dates are mostly so his mom, Lori, and I can socialize :) Here are some pictures of them through the years: