25 going on 40.

Due to incessant whining reminding of certain individuals, Mandie & Katherine,
who shall remain nameless....

I hereby update my blog.

woo. hoo.
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Liberty is almost an entire year old.  I'm both excited and sad.

All those times people told me how fast it goes...

they were right.

stupid people.  stupid correct accurate people.

I can't seem to imagine us any further than what we are now...

A cute young couple with an adorable baby.

stop that snickering out there.

But really, I can't imagine us 15 years from now. That would put me at FORTY years old!!

AUUUUUGGGGGHHHHHHH!!!!!!

No way. I'm young. and hip. and cool. forever.

I'm such a loser.

Let's move on.

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Liberty has 11 teeth.
This may not seem like a huge deal, but let me put it this way...

She has popped 1-2 teeth every month since she was 4 months old.
Thats 2 tubes of baby orajel...and about 7 bottles of ibuprofin.
And about 10 gallons of drool.

Once we hit the molars we switched to adult orajel.  She doesn't even mind the taste anymore.
In fact, she grabs the tube, screws off the cap, and pumps the stuff onto her gums herself.

ok not really.

But really, she's gotten her teeth a lot earlier than most babies.
Grandma Pat says Liberty knows the rapture is coming soon
so she's getting all her teeth in so she can have a steak before we go.

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We've Noah has been busy building a laundry room/pantry out of part of our garage.
I am. SO. excited.

I don't really mind doing laundry.  I know a lot of people hate it, but its not that big a deal to me.  But I hated going into my nasty cluttered garage where the occasional demonic beasts cockroach was waiting for me.

I'm beyond excited to have tons of shelves for my couponing overflow.  And carpet and baseboards. And clean walls...and and and.

Noah has been so very awesome and diligent about getting it finished.

We keep teasing my mom that we're finishing it for her because we want her to feel at home while she's here.

Last time she spent a ton of time out in the garage washing and folding our clothes.
And yes I appreciated it.

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My parents are due in about 11 days, give or take a few hours.

They haven't visited since Liberty was born
and I wasn't actually able to take them sight-seeing.

hmm. wonder why.

But THIS time we have a huge line of events planned!
Epcot, Museums, Birthday Party, Ikea...

Ok...maybe it wasn't that huge.

It is for ME!! I don't get out much.

again with the snickering???

seriously. stop.

I am a homebody.  (what a weird phrase)
I do love to travel...but I love my home.
my bed.
my shower.
my fridge.
mine. mine. MINE!!!!!

...I don't know where that came from.
I blame it on lack of sleep.


Speaking of lack of sleep...

we usually have to rock/walk/bounce Liberty to sleep for her naps and bedtime.

I know...most kids are broken by now.
But I kept telling Noah,
"she's only little once, lets just enjoy her"

Said I.

Now, 17 pounds is a lot heavier than the 5 lb 13 oz she was when she was born.

So...she I must be broken.

Last night I put her down, told her nuh-nite and let her cry it out for 15.
came back in and patted her til she calmed down. Let her cry it out another 15.
came back in and patted her and..she fell asleep.

oh. my goodness.

really? that easy? really?

why have i been jiggling this 17 pound kid around for 30 minutes to get her to sleep!?

WHAT WAS I THINKING!?!?

oh yah..she's cute.

and cuddly.

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OH! Did I mention she's walking!?

Very exciting.  The first day she took a few steps..

and I started screaming

and she stopped and stared at me.

doh!

Its so cute to see her walk all stiff-legged.

Then she pauses.
claps.
And walks a little further.

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I always put pictures up on facebook...so I tend to forget about my little blog.

So here's a recap of the last several months of Liberty Grace


6 months

8 months

AND 10 months!

Anyhow...thats all for now . )

Baby Teeth & Cloth Diapers

Our little Liberty is almost 5 months old!

What?! When...where...woah.

(You can see her 2 month and 4 month pictures at this amazing photographer's website)

Liberty is joyful.

Adventurous.

Content.

She is a truly wonderful baby and we have been SO blessed.

Right now I'm watching her jump up and down in a borrowed jumperoo.

She thinks she is hot stuff being able to kick up and down without me holding her.

She got her two bottom teeth this month, within just a week of each other and honestly, did very well.  She still slept through the night....just grumpy and clingy the rest of the time. I can handle that.

A lot of people have asked me how cloth diapering has been.

I'm sure they're curious as to why anyone in their right mind would choose to mess with cloth diapers.

I'm sure they're curious as to whether or not I've become a green freak hippie.

I'm sure they're considering I've lost my mind.

But let me tell you,

It's pretty much one of the smartest decisions I've ever made.

Yah...you heard right.

I'm really really really REALLY glad we decided to do it.

It hasn't been difficult at all.  It takes some transitioning when you're not used to doing a load of cloth diapers every other day, but we found our groove pretty easily.

The reason I decided to cloth diaper?
plain and simple.
money.

I couldn't see throwing a handful of twenty dollar bills out the window every month.
I'm not a hippie, I don't use cloth napkins and natural toothpaste and shampoo.

I simply want to save money.
These cloth diapers in particular grow with a newborn all the way through potty-training.
They're also built to last through more than one kid.

So how much am I saving? About $1500 dollars for the first 20 months.

Really, I never dreamed I'd do cloth diapers.  But they've been a snap (literally).

This is a modern cloth diaper.  Those long things on the left are called inserts. They're made of microfiber which is highly absorbent and are "stuffed" into the diaper on the right through the pocket you see at the top.  They lay flat inside that pocket so they only thing against the baby's skin is a really soft suede-like layer that wicks moisture away from the bum.

They're pretty awesome.  And I know everyone is like yah yah...but what about the POO!?

I generally run into one messy diaper a day, usually when she wakes up.  I take the diaper off, set it aside while I change her into a clean one.  Then let her play while I rinse the diaper in our toilet using a sprayer (much like the one on your kitchen sink) that Noah hooked up for me.  It then goes into a wetbag with every other diaper she's gone through since I last did wash.

Easy.

So wash times come around and all the diapers and inserts get thrown in and put through 2 cycles. An initial cold wash. Then a warm/warm with an extra rinse.

I know there are a lot of people curious about our choice of cloth diapers.

Some think we're crazy.

ok...most think we're crazy.

But they don't realize cloth diapers have REALLY evolved since the little napkin your gramma used.

I've become a cloth diaper fan.  I think everyone should do it. Because its just that easy.

I won't make fun of you if you want to waste $50-$75 a month on paper diapers though.

A Year of Blessings

I've never done the whole "Christmas card/letter" thing...

then again, I've never really had a life until I got married and had a kid.

If I had written the traditional end-of-year letter, this is what it would say.

Hello family. Hello friends.

The year has flown by...365 days of perpetual change.  We cannot control the flow of time, but merely accept its presence and ride alongside it the best we can.  This year has brought many large changes for us...

In February we discovered we were expecting.  A definite shock to us...but the Lord knew just what we needed.  I admit I was concerned and anxious at first.  But I quickly learned to put my trust in Him, our Provider.  Looking back, I can easily be brought to tears at just how much the Lord blessed us over and over again.

We spent the year preparing for the baby's arrival...it seems that everything we did this past year centered on the upcoming change in our lives.  We had bought a house in August of 2010, so we began working on all the 'little' things I knew we'd never get around to once we had a baby keeping us busy.  We painted, built furniture, decorated and sewed.  I even learned to crochet a thing or two.  We spent a lot of time "together"...just doing whatever.  Noah even found time to make some arrows out of bamboo.  Not to mention he built me a bench, coffee table, and guest bed. I loves him so.

Over Easter, we made the trek to Louisiana with our youth for the annual camp meetings.  I was at the peak of my first trimester and the bus ride did nothing to ease the morning sickness.  Our pastor had asked for our help in writing a skit for the camp.  After what seemed like a thousand drafts we finally presented a skit with the theme of 'distraction' using Facebook and the internet as our premise.  This was stressful, but we also had a lot of fun working with the kids.  Plus, the feedback and testimonies were very rewarding in themselves.

In May we found out we were having a girl. Another shock.  With all boys on Noah's side, I thought a boy was inevitable.  Alas, a girl we would have (the seventh girl on my side.)  Not that we really cared either way...we both agreed we just wanted a healthy baby and we would be happy no matter what.  Everyone was excited to hear (especially Noah's mom, Pat) a little girl was soon to be in the family and Noah soon found himself melting over the little outfits and toys.  -grin-

In July I flew up to visit my parents before the baby came and my mom surprised me with a small baby shower.  It was wonderful to visit with them for a week, but I missed Noah terribly while I was gone.  We both agreed it would be awhile before that happened again.  In fact, I think I said "Never again."  We'll see how that works out...

The rest of the year just flew by after that...in September I had another baby shower in Florida.  It was beautiful and I was completely spoiled by everyone.  Someone (who remains anonymous) gave Noah money to fly my mom down to surprise me at the shower.  Needless to say, I cried when I saw her (as pregnant women tend to do) and everyone agreed it was the greatest gift anyone could have given us.

October. It came so suddenly.  Together with my doctor we decided I would be induced for labor on the 25th.  This decision had many reasons, the main one being I wanted MY doctor.  He had a relaxing demeanor that made me very comfortable with him. I didn't want to chance getting stuck with the other doctor on call, who made me nervous and uncomfortable.  I don't regret our decision in the slightest.  The induction went so well and I just know the Lord was with us every moment.  Afterwards, the nurses gave me a little card saying what a wonderful couple we were and that they could really tell how much we loved each other.  That to me, is just a testimony being lived out loud . )

Our little Liberty Grace was born beautiful and perfect.  We fell in love with her immediately and there is not a day that goes by we don't thank the Lord for her.  Noah and I both said that if we had waited until we thought we were ready to have kids...it would never have happened.  Thank the Lord He has it all in control...because I don't think I could live without her now.

November and December has come and gone with its sleepless nights and dirty diapers.  Christmas snuck up on us and then disappeared leaving too many stale cookies behind.  We were able to visit my entire family in Alabama for the holidays and our little girl was spoiled being passed around 24/7.  (Isn't it wonderful?)

A new year.  With many new things and "firsts" to come.  Like crawling, baby teeth, talking and walking.  Next Christmas I expect Liberty will be unwrapping her own gifts and walking from room to room and Noah and I to still be madly in love . )

May this next year bring you joy and laughter...may you find God in all the little things and may He become more and more precious to you as the days pass by.

Love,
Noah, Jeni & Liberty