Welcome ICLW

Welcome! Glad you stopped by.

My blog focuses mostly on parenting "after" infertility. I put after in quotations because I have Premature Ovarian Failure (POF) and no matter how many children I have I will never be "fertile." Plus, we're not done having trying for children. If you’d like to know more about POF check out my page link at the top of the blog. You can also explore my other pages at the top for an overview of our infertility journey, which led to our miracle son through embryo adoption;  for a summary of my 30 Before 30 Challenge; and for more information about Embryo Adoption. And if you have any questions or just need some support I'd love to hear from you. I love comments and emails, too!

Again, thanks for stopping by & happy ICLW.

***If you’re one of my regulars and want to know more about ICLW click on the button in my sidebar about halfway down the page.

Herbs!

I planted herbs this week! So far I have planted oregano, thyme, sage, and some green onions. I still want to plant some basil, rosemary, scallions, and mint. I have them in a large planter, as well as one of the topsy-turvy hanging planters.

This marks #20 off of my 30 Before 30 List.

I also added a tomato plant to the topsy-turvy planter. 

In addition to the herbs, we have been planting lots of other things in our new backyard.

Mexican Petunia

Japanese Maple

Creeping Jenny

Caladiums

We even have a new swing arbor!

While I planted, Leland played with his new water table.

Dinner with My Boys

We went downtown for pizza tonight. We kept Leland out past his bedtime but still had a great time. Here are my boys walking to the car after dinner...

Bumps & Bruises

Tuesday at exactly 2:50 p.m. my phone rang. Flashing across the caller ID was the name of Leland's school. It is in this moment that my heart always drops into my stomach. In that moment every fear, every worry fills the the mind. For a moment you go numb. If the school is calling....something must be wrong.

Looking back at my phone I see that the call only lasted 36 seconds. The school secretary tells me that Leland has fell, hurt his cheek; he is pretty upset; I should come right away. Her thoroughly sweet voice and calm demeanor reassure me everything is fine. But the school doesn't call you to come right away when everything is fine.

Thankfully I was at my office, just a mile from the school. I drop everything and rush to comfort Leland. When I arrived he was crying, inconsolable. It's these times that I am so glad we are still nursing. Nothing comforts like mama's milk. And sitting still with an ice pack is made so much easier with the distraction and comfort of nursing.





Thankfully Leland is fine. Tender and bruised. But fine. My clumsy boy stood up from his cot after nap and promptly tumbled into the corner of a table. Later that night, Nana helped make everything a little better with some surprise post-dinner watermelon.

Leland had never seen a watermelon cut into. When Nana arrived with the watermelon Leland was excited about the "ball". When Nana cut it open to reveal watermelon Leland was thoroughly delighted. He squealed and cheered and clapped. Then promptly dug into a whole slice!

Twenty One Months



Last week marked twenty-one months for Leland. I am constantly in awe of how quickly he is growing, changing and learning.



APRIL 2012

APRIL 2013



We have seen huge leaps in communication this month. He is using verbs now on a regular basis and in short sentences. He has also started to use some "feeling" words. On Easter we were eating with plastic silverware when a piece of the fork broke off in his mouth. He got very upset and I had to help him get it out of his mouth. After it was out of his month he proclaimed through his tears, "that was scary"!

Mommy & Me Art Class

Leland has started singing on his own. He has always loved music - both singing and dancing - but now the song he is singing is recognizable. His favorite songs to sing are the Alphabet Song, the Clean Up Song, and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. He loves to play with his glow worm and always seems impressed that I know the words to the song she is playing.

My BIG Boy!

Leland’s sleep habits have made a shift this month. He is now going to bed about 7:30-8 pm (about 30 minutes later than before). The wonderful result of this natural shift is that he usually doesn’t wake up most mornings until after 5am to nurse - then he is usually back to bed until 6:30-7:30 am. Although it is not technically sleeping though the night, I’ll take it! He is still nursing 3-6 times per day depending on the day. And he has made excellent progress with self feeding now feeding himself foods like yogurt and applesauce.

Sleeping :)

As for growth...I don’t have a current height or weight (I really should measure him). The four molars he has been working on for the past month or so are all the way in. He is wearing a mix of 18 months - 2T sizes. I just pulled out his newest pair of shoes - a size 6 ½.

Trampoline Fun!

Leland’s favorite toys are books, puzzles, balls, and any toy he can push (lawnmower, shopping cart, etc.) He recently discovered bubbles and loves them. Nana taught him how to blow his own bubbles and he is hooked. He is loving the warmer weather and wants to be outside all the time.



Easter Egg Hunt

Highlights and ... Deviled Eggs?

What do highlights and deviled eggs have in common?

Both are on my 30 Before 30 list - #26 and #27 actually! You can check out my progress on the list by clicking on the link here or on the page tab at the top of my blog.

Deviled Eggs

Since I made the list last year, Deborah has been encouraging me to tackle the deviled eggs. I finally did it on Easter Sunday. I made Guacamole Deviled Eggs and I think for my first try at guacamole, my first try at hard boiled eggs, and my first try at deviled eggs it turned out great. I didn't make "traditional" deviled eggs, but I still consider this marked off my list. And it really wasn't hard at all.

 Highlights

Last week I took the plunge and got blond highlights. They are subtle and I love them. I really should have done this sooner!

Before

I look so serious?

During

Do I look stylish?

After

I took another "after" shot the day it was done

but you couldn't really see the top or side of my head.

AND...here is a close up of the top of my head!

It's really hard to photograph highlights!

Final Weigh-In

If you’ve been following along you know I’ve been on a Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Sweets-Free Diet all of Lent. Over Lent (6 weeks & 4 days) I lost a total of 12.6 pounds. Looking back at the last year (thanks to the data stored in my Wii Fit) I have lost 27.6 pounds total - most of which was lingering from the 50+ pounds I had gained during my FET cycle and pregnancy.

Thank you for all of the encouraging comments and for cheering me along!

MAY 2012

EASTER 2013