Post about nothing

I haven't posted since Sunday, so I thought I would do so.  I don't really have much to say though, so read with only if you are bored :)  I played volleyball at 8:30 on Monday night while Jeremy held down the fort here at home.  He is learning the ropes of taking care of Madison, and he has the worst time of day to learn - nighttime!  He is a trooper though and I am ever grateful for his willingness to do this fatherly duty every Monday night.  It feels so good to go sweat and exercise AND play my favorite sport.  We have had good competition both weeks now; we have also lost all our games both weeks now.  Oh well, I am still having fun.  Tomorrow Madison and I are meeting Jill, Winston, and Digby (I think that is how you spell his name) at the zoo.  We haven't been to the zoo for awhile and it will be fun to go with others.  Plus, it is supposed to be another beautiful day.  We are heading home for the Easter weekend and looking forward to family time.  I think as much as I am looking forward to it, I am also dreading it a bit.  Not being with my family or Jeremy's family, just the fact that we will be throwing our routine out of whack right before I head back to school.  Hopefully, Madison will be able to get a few regular naps in and will continue to be a power sleeper (and any worry will be for nothing).  Cheri came to take care of Madison on Tuesday morning from 9-noon.  It was great because I headed into school.  I made all my copies for my first week back, so I am feeling more prepared.  Hopefully, I can stay a little ahead of the game for awhile.  We'll see... it all starts up again next Tuesday.  (This, by the way, is a huge prayer request because I am worried about being able to physically survive and not be too exhausted.)

12 Week + 3 days Picture

Here are the pictures I said I needed to post a few days ago.  I don't think they are the best we have of her, but they are the most recent.  The first two are her on her activity mat; this is by far one of her favorite playtime activities.  The last two are from today; I think those little slipper shoes are hilarious.  Enjoy.  (Oh, and the little lady has gone to bed at 7:30/8:00pm and not woken up til 5am the past two nights!  We have never done that long of a stretch two times in a row.  Nice.)

12 Weeks Old

I should have a picture, right?  I have been a slacker when it comes to taking pictures.  I will try to get one posted sometime... actually, I have to take it first.  Madison is now 12 weeks old - a big turning point for a baby.  We'll see how things change. Here is the week's update:

Monday - Rough night for all of us - not a single person went to bed before midnight.  I have no idea what Madison's deal was, but it took a long time to work it out.

Tuesday - Cherie came to watch Madison, and I am in my second chapter of biology notes; it is necessary to be ahead of the game.  My parents came in the evening, so Jeremy and I took off for a date night while they spoiled their granddaughter (and dealt with any possible nighttime escapades).  We ate at China Dynasty, treated ourselves with Graeter's ice cream, and browsed Half Price Books.  Madison slept for 8 straight hours; my parents should just live with us :)

Wednesday - My dad went to his pastor-peer conference; Jeremy went to work; my mom loved on Madison; and I ran around (grocery shopping, clothes shopping, baking).  My mom and I also went to the Breastfeeding Support Group.  There were 6 other mothers with their babies!  Madison was the oldest and weighed in at 10 lbs, 8 oz.  Good growth :)  This evening our friend, Anja, brought us a delicious supper - chicken enchiladas.  She and her husband, Mike, had planned on supper with us.  Mike was sick, so we enjoyed Anja's company; last week, we enjoyed Mike's. 

Thursday - Madison and I went to see my friend, Tara, and her dogs this afternoon.  She is due mid-April, but her little girl could arrive any day.  It was good to get out of the house even on this rainy, dreary day.  Now, Jeremy is home and we have no other plans for this evening.  Relax, Eat, and hope for a good night's sleep.  Have a great Friday

Surprise Visit

We had a surprise visit from Grandma and Grandpa Yoh.  Well, it was not a complete surprise; they called before they left their house to make sure we were up to it.  It was a tiring night, but Jeremy had taken over duties for me after church so that I could sleep for an hour.  It is amazing what an hour can do.  They made it here about 2:15 and enjoyed about 30 minutes of Madison's awake time before she was too tired to be enjoyable :)  We talked for a bit longer before heading back.  They hadn't seen Madison for almost a month and said it was a nice day for a drive.  It was good to see them. 

Good Stuff

So, Madison seems to have had a little difficulty with the time change... fighting going to sleep from 8:30 - 10:15pm.  It is super annoying because you lose your whole evening relaxing time.  BUT on to the good stuff:

• On Tuesday, Madison and I traveled to Ashland to see my parents (and those of Nate's kids that were home).  It was a short trip, but good.  We also went to visit Laura, Adam, Teagan, and their new arrival, Everett.  He is super cute and not much smaller than Madison!  It was good to spend a little time with them.  Tuesday night we went to the small group potluck - delicious food and good fellowship.
• On Wednesday, Jeremy's aunt Marianne came to love on Madison.  It was so nice of her to drive down.  She had offered to do this back in February so that I could get out and do something on my own.  So, I did.  I went shopping.  I am not quite back to my pre-pregnancy pant size, and with school quickly approaching, I needed to find some dress pants.  I was dreading this because usually finding pants is a week long experience.  I found a pair at Old Navy and two more pair at Target!  I couldn't believe it.  I am either less picky or they are making longer pants than they used to.  I also took an hour long nap, which was awesome because I had been tired since Sunday.  Marianne played with Madison from about 10-4:30, and was much appreciated.  (Thank you, Marianne!)
• Last night, Jeremy went on a long bike ride with his friend Mike.  Then, he joined us for supper.  So good to hand out with friends.
• Today, we went to pick up my car that had had an oil change (and some other stuff.... you can never take your car to the mechanic and just get an oil change, can you???  At least he checks for things and keeps my car safe.)  This was about a mile walk, we lengthened it a bit and walked for 50 minutes.  It is so beautiful out there!  I hear tomorrow is supposed to be just as nice.  
• Today, Madison slept for 2-1/2 hours in the morning... I opened the blinds to help her remember it wasn't nighttime!  Wow!  
• Tonight, Brent (another of Jeremy's old roommies) is coming for supper.  Hopefully, it will be a good night with Madison so that I can enjoy the company too.

All Night Long

Just a quick post to say Madison slept from 10:26 (after crying off and on from 8:30) til 7:30am.  Yes, that is ALL NIGHT LONG.  Yes, that is a solid 9 hours of sleep for me.  That has not happened for a looooong time.  It was beautiful.  I don't know what was different. Maybe she has hit the 10lb mark and is now a big girl and can do it.  Maybe we just got lucky.  Either way, I will take it, revel in it, and hope to see it happen again soon.  Hope everyone has a great evening... and a good night's sleep.
(FYI: No, that's not Madison with a full head of hair draped over my arm... just a nice picture from the internet.)

Going Out

We ventured out yesterday.  I mean, we went further than Columbus.  All my brothers and their families were gathering at Nate's house in Ashland.  We were invited to join.  Madison had had two great days here at home - going down for naps and bed quite peacefully - and it made me nervous to leave the confines of the house and ruin that streak.  But, I thought, you can stay cooped up forever, right?  So, we left about 12:30 - she in her hoodie gifted to her from her great-aunt Beth... so cute.  (I know she looks a bit skeptical, but she was tired and that was pretty ideal for the road trip.)

We arrived in Ashland in time for her to eat.  However, she was far too interested in what all was going on around her to really concentrate.  That is how the rest of the day went for her - too distracted to eat and a bit out of sorts for napping as well (although she did, thankfully, get one nap in).  We bbq hamburgers and ate some very good (and very rich) desserts.  We watched as the cousins paraded their finest clothes around for us to see (notice that Sam is very compliant and lets his girl cousins dress him up).  They also bounced balls, played with trucks, and said hi to Madison.  We adults discussed parenting techniques and marriage frustrations.  I told Jeremy that I realized my family is very open with all our "stuff."  We don't cut each other down or fight in front of each other, but we talk about what is happening and work to learn from one another.  It was good and amazing that we could carry on these discussions with so many little ones running around.  We got home about 9pm.  Madison ate (really well) and went fairly calmly down to sleep - only woke up once last night.

We are off schedule from the time change; she woke up at 7:40, but that was really 8:40, so that meant we couldn't get to church unless we went right in the middle of her nap.  So, we are here; Jeremy went to help run the Awakening (youth service).  I am going to try to find a podcast of a church service to watch or listen to instead.  Have a great day, Everyone.