Summer! At least temporarily...(Bridget)

We had the most gorgeous day today - 77 degrees and sun, sun, sun! I went out and did yard work for about 2 hours while the babies were sleeping and I have the blisters to prove it. I even hung a load of clothes out for the first time in a long time. I'm sure I won't have time to do it every day like I wish I could but maybe once school is over.... Lonny and I took Ethan and Samantha for a walk this afternoon and saw a robin at the tippy-top of a tree just singing at the top of his little lungs. That's what this weather makes me feel like doing too. I know that I'd feel a lot less energetic if I woke up after very few consecutive hours of sleep every night to darkness and cold instead of bright sunshine and warm(ish) weather. If only my body didn't require sleep; there's so much I feel like doing! Actually, it's not so much my lack of sleep that's keeping me from doing what I want, it's lack of time. When Lonny is home he can hold Sam and help with Ethan but if I have to do it all, there's very little time left for anything else.

She's Here!! (Happy Mama)

The Piscoya kids welcome Samantha Marie born on March 14 at 1:53am. She weighed 9lbs, 3oz. What a joy for Molly to have a little sister, finally! The "girls" are having way too much fun dressing their new "doll!" Ethan loves his baby sister. He calls her "Nee-nee", his word for baby, or "Nam" since he doesn't say "s" on the front of words. He loves to talk to her and give her kisses and shove her pacifier in her mouth a little too hard. We can't wait until they can play together and be best buddies.

The birth went well. I started having contractions on Friday morning and thought the baby would be born on Friday the 13th but as soon as I got up and started my day, the contractions pretty much stopped though I did have some on and off the rest of the afternoon. I finally decided to make arrangements for someone to come watch the kids, since I hadn't asked anyone yet (denial?) so I called Kelly when I got home from group and told her I would probably be going into labor sometime in the next couple of days and she agreed to be on call. I lay d0wn and took a nap and when I woke up the contractions were stronger and getting closer together so I called Kelly and gave her a heads-up. We both laughed at how soon I ended up calling her! I made pancakes for dinner and busied myself with laundry and general cleaning and finally packing the rest of my overnight bag. We left for the Birth Center around 10:30pm and my water broke in the car on the way there. That was a total shock since in all my pregnancies, my water has never broken on its own except when I started pushing Nicholas out. I got right into the soaking tub when I got there and ended up staying in the entire time. I was so relaxed during labor that I almost fell asleep a couple of times. Then of course transition was still horrible and intense even in the warm water. All I could think was how much worse it would be if I wasn't in the water! I only pushed for 5 minutes, my midwife told me later. It was a little disconcerting for the baby's head to be under water before the rest of her was out and I had to ask if that was really okay! When she was all the way out, - I was craning my neck trying to see whether it was a boy or a girl but the cord was in the way and finally Lonny said, very matter-of-factly, "It's a girl!" My jaw dropped and I said, "Are you kidding me??" Anyway, she is beautiful and sweet and a wonderful addition to our family. Now if I could only get some sleep....

Busy Month and then some! (Bridget)

Well, February ended with our biggest snowfall in 8 years - 6.5 inches. I know, that's really not a lot but it's a lot for us since our snow is very dry and fine. The boys made out like bandits with their shoveling jobs while avoiding a mama moose and her calf the whole time and Nicholas and Matthew both bought Airsoft pistols.

Nicholas decided to submit an entry to the Homeschool Science Fair at the last minute so he did a report on How a Hand Grenade Works. He did it all in one week. We were so tired from our busy month that on Friday night before the fair we were really dragging and he still had to print out all his report, draw his diagrams and put it all together on the project board. He had a hard time staying focused but managed to finish and get to bed at a decent hour. His hard work paid off though as he got a first place for his project and moves on to the Interior Alaska Science Fair at the end of March. He can make improvements to his project between now and then, so he's planning on adding a little more info. on tear gas grenades and flash-bang grenades.

Oooh, I almost forgot - I got a girls' night out on Saturday! Six of us homeschooling buddies got a couple of rooms at a B&B up on Chena Ridge and had a heavenly time. We went out to eat and then went back and soaked in the hot tub under the alternately starry and snowy sky. Then we indulged in assorted chocolates, chips and cheesecake and watched a couple of movies. We enjoyed a very nice breakfast in the morning and then went home a little more relaxed and with our cups a little bit fuller. This will definitely be an annual event!

Daniel and Nicholas are both enrolled in the spring session of Youth Court training starting at the end of March. They'll go two nights a week for 2 hours and end with a mock trial at the court house on April 18. It seems like a pretty intense class and they'll learn all about the laws and how to act as attorneys and judges for actual youth court cases involving their peers. I'm really excited about it and hope they get a lot out of it.

Today Daniel got his tonsils and adenoids out so he's sitting on the couch with a huge cup of ice water and a book. He's had about 7 little popsicles since the operation, as well as a milk shake and yogurt. The poor kid is hungry for real hot food but he can't have any yet. We're just thankful that the surgery went well and that he's feeling as good as can be expected. He should be fully recovered and eating a normal diet in plenty of time for his birthday. And at least he can have ice cream by the time we celebrate Matthew's birthday and possibly even some cake if it's soft enough.

So, that was an overview of recent events. I did manage to get my valances made for the kitchen, dining room and living room and I must say they add a little something to the rooms! I started on my next goal of cleaning out our messy bedroom and getting it ready for the new little one. I should do before and after pictures but I'd be embarrassed to show just how bad our room is/was! I'll say ta ta for now so I can go start dinner. Ta Ta!