Things I'm liking right now

I'm sick with the same sort of thing I was sick with a few weeks ago involving mastitis.  Except this time I don't have mastitis.  Symptoms: weak, fatigued, light-headed, headache, chills, running back and forth to the toilet (if you know what I mean).  Not sure what's wrong but hopefully I will start to feel better soon and won't experience this again.  It sucks.  

Cambria has had a stuffy nose and cough for the last two days, but is showing lots of improvement.    Cambria is a pretty healthy kid and has never had antibiotics or an ear infection (both of which seem like commonplace for toddlers)  so when that girl doesn't feel good, I know it and I DO NOT like it.  Ezra even had the sniffles too...it was the saddest thing.

Anyway, I am getting off track here.  I wanted to use this post to share a few things I am currently obsessing over.  

Kyle and I are going to look back on these beginning weeks of Ezra's life and I know we will think of Mumford and Sons. And particularly this video of theirs.  

We both love it and have played it about 100 times. 

A family friend of ours made us a DELICIOUS meal when we first moved in and had Ezra.  In addition to a beautiful salad and dessert, she made us this amazing pasta dish. 

Rigatoni with Eggplant and Pine Nut Crunch 

I think the name says it all.  The pine nut crunch is to die for, seriously.  We've made it two times since and can't seem to get enough of it.  Please, please, please if you like pasta dishes give this recipe a try.  I promise you will not be dissapointed! 

Last week, when we took Ezra in for his 1 month check-up Kyle noticed a flyer for The Great Cloth Diaper Change.  On April 23rd, people around the world are going to change their baby's cloth diaper all at the same time.  It's going to be in the Guinness World Records and they are doing it to raise awareness for cloth diapering and to celebrate Earth Day!  We signed both the kiddos up to participate at the Savannah spot which is taking place at this adorable baby store called Just for Baby.   We stopped by the store after the appointment and discovered so many adorable things.  I was most excited about the fact that they actually sell cloth diapers and supplies.  I didn't know such a place existed in Savannah!!

We got this adorable rubber whale to go on the spout so Cambria doesn't hit her head. 

Cambria is really digging the Burt's Bees bubble bath in the background these days.

And we got this cute growth chart that I plan to use for both Cambria and Ezra.

Today I found these shoes on a blog I follow called Say Yes to Hoboken.

Image: Bensimon 

In college, I had a pair of sneakers similar to these that I wore so often, I literally put holes in them.  I found ones I like, but they are $55.  I'm really cheap and don't like buying things unless they're on sale so I'm not sure if I can justify spending that much.  I know I will wear the shoes almost everyday though. Hmm....

When Kyle and I were downtown a few weekends ago we stopped in this shop called nourish.  They sell all natural bath products and candles.  I love candles but feel conflicted when I use them because of all the nasties you breath into your lungs.  I was soooo excited to buy this natural soy wax candle.  I feel a lot less guilty using it in the house.  

I'm also liking these pretty sunflowers we got for cheap at Kroger.

The candle was $15 (kinda steep, I know), but it's something that is worth the money for me.  I love this scent and plan to buy a few more whenever we make it downtown again. 

And of course, I'm liking these two cuties.

 

Exhaustion

This is what Cambria looked like when she was taking her 4+ hour nap after coming home from the parade on St Patrick's Day. 

 This is what she looked like when she woke up. 

Don't you wish we all could take naps like this when we are exhausted?  I know I certainly do. 

Ezra is 1 month!

Happy 1 month birthday Ezra Amos! 

I can't believe Ezra has already experienced his first month of life.  It feels like I was just pregnant and wondering whether baby #2 was a little boy or a girl. But boy oh boy I could not be happier about having this little guy in my life.  I know I would have been excited about having either, but he really seems like the perfect sibling for Cambria. 

I can't imagine it any other way now. 

A lot has changed for our family over the last month but the one consistent thing has been having him by my side the entire time.  He has already seemed to develop a very strong attachment to me.  I like this for some reasons and not for others.  I want him to know me as his mother and food source, but I also want to be able to feel comfortable leaving him if I need to.  And I want Kyle to be able to soothe him when he cries.  

Ezra is still sleeping a lot, both day and night.  During the day he'll have an hour or two of wakeful time then nap for an hour or so.  He sleeps through the night from about 10 p.m.- 8 or 9 waking every 3-4 hours to eat.  He rarely cries during the night and has an easy time going right back to sleep. I pump after feeding him at night which keeps me up longer but I don't mind too much as long as I can take a nap every other day or so.

Right now, he doesn't mind getting a bath and sleeps whenever he is in his car seat. He has the cutest smile which will appear at random times when he is sleeping.  My favorite piece of clothing on him is his octopus shirt and I love his little cloth diapered tooshie, except when his sensitive skin gets irritated.  I try to give him lots of diaper-free time to help with that.  I love the little hairs on his head and the way he smells.  I love that he is Cambria's little brother.  I love that he's my son.  

Can't wait to see what the coming months will bring!

lots of pictures

We've been busy as ever here around the Finnegan household.  

The funny thing is, I haven't actually left the house in two days except for our little outings to the park and around the neighborhood.  

I stay busy during the day and can't believe how quickly the days fly by.  

Thursday is St. Patrick's day and since we live in Savannah (huge celebration) Kyle's last day of work for the week is tomorrow.  Yay! 

Not sure if Ezra and I will be going to the parade but we'll see.  

We went for a family run tonight and it felt amazing.  Even though I'm going nonstop during the day I still feel like I need and want to start running again.  It's good for my soul, really.  Plus it's nice knowing I don't have to feel too bad about pigging out on chocolate banana bread all day.  (that's gotta stop soon)

 Here are some of my favorite pictures from the last week or so. 

He loves his baths- only cries when we take him out.

2 week check-up with Dr. Ramos.  LOVE him.  Never realized how important your choice of pediatrician is until we met him.

Mimi with her grandkids :)

Big stretchy

yawns and kisses

Our daily chore, taking care of the cloth diapers

My b-e-a-utiful sissy

Waffles with strawberries and homemade whipped cream

Picnic in the park

Kisses + nursing

My mom showed up and took a family picture for us.  Kyle can use our new Moby Wrap too!

Seriously, she had no idea these bubble were on her head.

NO IDEA!!

How I Cook Tofu

For dinner tonight we had tofu and veggie quinoa stir-fry.  I have wanted to share how I like to cook tofu for a while and figured this was a good opportunity.  I know lots of people are scared and grossed out by tofu, but I swear if you cook it this way it is quite tolerable and actually pretty delicious.  Even though I am a vegetarian I will admit I am not a huge fan of some of the meat alternatives out there.  Some are just plain nasty and have the weirdest textures, which can be unpleasant.  I'm really picky about the veggie burgers I eat and about how the tofu I eat is cooked.  I don't like jiggly tofu and this cooking technique prevents that. 

I always buy extra firm tofu and today bought this tofu +plus.  Extra goodness.  The first step is to cut the tofu into about eight rectangles (just slice it).  After doing that I cut the tofu into small triangles, I like that shape.  I didn't take pictures of this step, sorry.  Next, I layer the bottom of a cookie pan with several paper towels then place all the tofu on top.  I then put several more layers of paper towels on top of the tofu and place another cookie sheet on top of the paper towels.  To add weight I put cans and jars on the cookies sheets and put everything in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes (you could really do it as long as you wanted though). You are doing this to get some of the liquid out of the tofu. 

This was actually after I had already pressed the liquid out but you get the idea.  Make sure it's all flat though unlike a few of my pieces.

You could use more cans we just don't have many yet. 

Chilling in the fridge.  

After it's been in the fridge for a while take the cans and cookie sheet off the tofu.  I then heat just a drizzle of olive oil in a pan to fry up the tofu.  I have to fry it in two different batches because it won't all fit in the pan at one time.  I cook it for about 10 minutes on medium high heat.  It should look golden and feel pretty firm when it's done.  You can really cook it as much as you want.  The more it cooks, the less jiggly and squishy it becomes. 

When it first goes in the pan.

Golden brown and firm when it's done. 

At this point you could really do anything you wanted with the tofu.  It is pretty bland on it's own so adding any sort of sauce or marinade would taste awesome.  Because I was making stir fry I marinated it in a mixture that contained the following three ingredients. 

Sweetness and saltiness.  

I put the tofu in the marinade about a minute after taking it out of the pan to let it cool down a little.

I let the tofu soak for about an hour but I'm sure the longer the better.  I sliced up the veggies and cooked the quinoa.  If you've never had quinoa you NEED to try it!!! We love how it tastes and love all it's wonderful nutritional benefits.  It's great for us vegetarians because it's a complete protein. 

Water chestnuts, baby corn, broccoil, onion, red pepper, snow peas and bean sprouts.

It's delicious!

I heated some olive oil in the pan and added some garlic.  I then cooked all the veggies and added the entire tofu and marinade mixture.   This was the final product.

 

Cambria wanted to be held when I was cooking so for the first time in a very long time I held her in my sling.  She didn't like it at first but quickly became comfortable and started helping me by eating the broccoli that was on the counter :) She enjoyed her dinner too. 

No more belly so it's comfortable for me again.  I have a strange, random piece of hair on my face, please excuse it.

Munching on some corn.

I also wanted to share Cambria's plate before and after her lunch today.  She had black beans and rice, spinach and tomatoes with tzatziki sauce and red pepper humus with whole wheat pitas.  Another excellent vegetarian meal.  I gave her seconds on almost everything.  She wasn't feeling the spinach today...man can that little girl eat!

And of course I have to include a picture of our rolling 3 week old Ezra.  I am anxious to discuss this crazy rolling with his pediatrician and to see if he is still gaining a pound week like he did during his second week of life.

This was taken by his Aunt Amber. 

So anyway, try the tofu, it's yummy!!! 

I first saw it cooked this way here. 

new things

Today it was concluded that my migraines/headaches and flu-like symptoms are probably related to an infection I have developed called mastitis.  It's an infection in my breast which is accompanied by many uncomfortable symptoms.  Of course I am suffering from just about all the symptoms possible.  I picked up some medication today that will hopefully start helping this annoying situation.  

In other news, on Saturday Kyle, Ezra and I drove down to Florida to pick up our 2006 Ford Freestyle (that's exactly what ours looks like) from a very nice guy Kyle found on Craigslist.  The car is in excellent condition and we love it already.  It's kind of scary buying a used car, especially from someone you found online, but we feel confident that this car is going to work well for us.  We saved loads of money selling our old car to a private party and buying from a private seller instead of dealing with a dealership.  Wooooo for saving money!!! 

So today, at 2 weeks and 5 days old Ezra Amos Finnegan rolled over.  Yes, you read that correctly, he rolled over.  From his tummy to his back.  Kyle yelled for me to come see when I was giving Cambria a bath and I just missed it, but he had been on his tummy and when I saw him he was on his back!! We think the cloth diaper may have given him some extra leverage or something but he is a strong little boy nonetheless.  I've been saying since day 1 that he seems a lot stronger than Cambria was as a newborn.  At his 1 week check up the midwife even noted that he had lots of strength and guessed he was very active in the womb...which he was!

Cambria is saying new words everyday.  It's amazing to watch the wheels in her brain turn at she learns new things.  That's one of the things I love about parenting.  Here is a list all the words I can think of that she knows: 

-up

-car

-water

-banana

-apple

-mama

-dada

-grandpa

-chlo chlo 

-hat 

-hot 

-coke (I'm ashamed of this one) 

-park 

-oatmeal 

-poop (and she tells me when she does it) 

-Kyle

-tons of animal sounds 

-bob
-noah
-bye bye

That's all I can think of at the moment.

Playing out on the front porch.  I swear this girl would stay outside ALL DAY LONG if we let her.

Ezra's first nickname is Ezzy-pooh.  I don't intentionally call my children ridiculous things, it just sort of happens...

Ezra Amos Finnegan's Birth Story

The day before Ezra Amos was born (February 15th) was the first day Cambria went to her temporary day care which was set up when I was put on bed rest due to my end of pregnancy high blood pressure.  Our friend Erin's mother watches kids in her home and was kind enough to agree to watch Cambria for us.  After seeing Cambria off that morning (my mom dropped her off on her way to school) I went back to sleep until about 10.  Thinking back now, it's probably a good thing I was able to get those few extra hours of sleep because I was certainly not going to be getting any sleep that night.  I spent the day watching some tv, surfing the internet for house stuff and cloth diapers, writing a blog post, and taking a shower (something I hadn't been able to do as often as I wanted because of the bed rest).  For some reason, after getting out of the shower, I took several pictures of my belly.  Now I'm really glad I did because I have lots of belly pictures that were taken just hours before my son was born.  

The belly that was soon-to-be no more.

My mom arrived home with Cambria around 4:30 or so.  Cambria told me about her day and my mom and I sat (me laying of course) around talking for a good hour or so.  This is the first time I can remember saying something about what I thought were Braxton Hicks contractions.  I told my mom that I had felt several just that hour and they seemed to hurt a little more than usual and I was feeling them in my back.  I didn't really think much of them at this point and I guess my mom didn't either.  My midwife told me earlier in my pregnancy that false labor happens more frequently after your first pregnancy, I think I figured that's what it was.  I continued feeling the contractions but was hardly paying attention to them at this point.  Kyle got home around 6 or so.  Shortly after he got home I think I mentioned that I was feeling a lot of Braxton Hicks and that my back was achy.  He didn't seem to think that anything was going on either.  I think we were all just in denial or something?!?  So around 7:30 me, Kyle and Cambria all made our way upstairs to where our room was.  At this point I started picking up things around the room and that combined with walking up the stairs really started to rev up the contractions.  Nothing too intense or extremtly painful like ALL my contractions were with Cambria, but I definitely took notice.  I let Kyle know and we decided that maybe we should pack our bags, just in case.  Yes, we hadn't packed any bags at this point because we are procrastinators.  I think the only reason Kyle and I both didn't believe I was in labor was because this was not how my labor had started with Cambria.  My labor with her was a short 5-5 1/2 hours and it was an extremely painful and stressful experience for me from the get go.  I assumed my second labor would be similar and so I didn't think anything could really be happening.  I was wrong. 

After Cambria's bath, we all went downstairs and she said goodnight to everyone and then Kyle put her to sleep.  We were lounging on the couch talking and watching t.v. and around 9:45 I decided that my contractions were getting a little more intense and I should probably start timing them so I could see if they were coming at any sort of regular interval.  I quickly realized I was having a contraction every 8-10 minutes that was lasting at least a minute long.  I did not even realize they were that long or regular before I started writing them down.  It started to make me nervous and really made me question whether or not this was indeed false labor or the real thing.  I think Kyle went to bed around 11 or 11:30 and just told me to wake him up if I needed him.  The contractions were still coming on strong but seemed to be getting closer together, probably like 7 minutes apart at this point.  Around 12:30 I went upstairs to try and lay down but the contractions were too intense to sleep through.  This should have been an obvious red flag but I still did not think I was in labor.  I went back downstairs and started recording my contractions again while looking at baby names on my laptop.  I did this for about 3 hours.  Around 3:30 I realized that my contractions were getting intense and I was no longer able to just sit still through them.  I was rolling around on the couch at 3 in the morning by myself in the dark trying to find comfortable positions.  It was probably a funny sight. When I started moaning during one of the contractions I knew it was probably time to wake Kyle.  I went upstairs and said something like "Kyle, my contractions hurt pretty bad now."  If you can believe it, I still was not 100% sure I was in labor and Kyle wasn't freaking out or anything either.  We went downstairs and when Kyle saw how intense my contractions were I think he and I both started to think I was in labor.  My mom heard us out in the living room and came out to see what was up.  She was pretty surprised that I was in labor, just as we were.  At 4 we finally called the midwife.  At this point my contractions were still 6-7 minutes apart but lasting well over a minute.  Nancy instructed me to get in the tub to use the warm water to help ease the pain and to see what it did for my labor.   We were to call her back when they were 5 minutes apart and strong.  

We went upstairs and I got in the tub.  This was when my labor took off.  Right when I got in I started having very intense contractions every 3 or 4 minutes lasting well over a minute.  My mental state at this point was so very different than my labor with Cambria.  In between contractions and even during I felt so calm and in control.  I knew I would have a contraction but then there would be rest and I kept reminding myself of this fact.  I felt completely aware of what was happening around me and I felt confident with what I was doing.  I was even talking to Kyle and laughing!!!  I joked that I felt like I was acting drunk because of what I was saying to Kyle.  I felt almost giddy or something, it was weird.  With Cambria I could hardly walk and could not talk to anyone so my calm and collected mental state was awesome.   Kyle called my midwife Nancy back and we all agreed to head to the birthing center.  I was excited Nancy was on call that night because she was the one who delivered Cambria and I was very happy with my experience with her.  

Kyle ran around the house like a mad man trying to get everything together we needed while I lay on our bed trying to handle the painful and intense contractions.  Cambria was sleeping in that same room and didn't move a muscle even though I was moaning pretty loud.  Before heading downstairs to leave I kissed her bye and got a little teary-eyed thinking about the fact that the next time I would see her she would have a sibling.  Kyle took this picture of me as we were walking out the door.  

I was just starting to get a contraction when he took this.  Little did I know, I was probably 8 cm dilated at this point.

The car ride to the birthing center sucked.  Experiencing the transition phase (the part of labor when you transition into pushing) was extremely uncomfortable in a car.  I was tossing and turning trying to get comfortable, it wasn't really working.  When we got on 95 Kyle started going like 90 and put his flashers on.  I told him it wasn't necessary (it was).   On the ride there Kyle called his family to let them know we were headed to the birthing center.  When we finally(!) arrived at a few minutes past 6 it took me a couple contractions to actually get on the table so Nancy could check me.  Right when she did she looked up and said "well, you just love doing this to me don't you, you're 9 cm!"  Honestly I wasn't really surprised by this because I knew I had to be getting close to pushing judging by how close and intense my contractions were.  I DID feel like I was experiencing a total deja vu.  We arrived at almost the same time and in the same manor as we had when I was in labor with Cambria.  Nancy checked me, we headed down the hall where I weighed myself, then we made our way to the same bed I gave birth to Cambria on.  Nancy checked my pressure and it was 124/70!! She told me I could do the water birth if I wanted only if another person (nurse or midwife) arrived before the baby was ready to come.  She can't deliver a baby in the water on her own.  

Nancy was running around getting everything ready while I lay on the bed with Kyle working hard through the contractions.  We both put on bathing suits (him shorts and me a tankini) thinking I was going to be able to deliver in the water.  My mom arrived within a few minutes and by that time I was ready to push.  This picture was taken just a few minutes before I started pushing.  I cannot believe how calm and focused I was able to be.  I felt so in control of my body and that felt wonderful.  Last time I was in this psychotic state where I could not focus on anything that was going on around me, I could only focus on the pain.  This time around my mind felt stable and I was thinking clearly.  

Getting ready to push.

Nancy broke my water and everyone got into their spots.  No one else had arrived so we all knew I once again wasn't going to be able to have my water birth.  At this point my terrifying pushing experience (1 1/2 hours of pushing) from last time came rushing back into my head.  Let me just say- PUSHING, TO ME, IS THE ABSOLUTE WORST PART OF LABOR.  I hate it.  You push and push and can't tell you are doing anything.  You have contractions and on top of those you are trying to push something out of your body that is waaaaay bigger than the space it is traveling through. It burns.  It really hurts and I am terrified of the "urge to push."  If I ever get pregnant again I will dread having to push that baby out.  When my first push was a really weak and crappy one Nancy knew she needed to motivate me.  She said two things that still stick out in my mind.  "Your baby's head is being squeezed in there and you need to push it out" and "Come on Brandie, you are a better mother than that push, you need to push your baby out now!" Kyle motivated me by telling me to remember how hard running can be at times but that  I always get through it and that's all I needed to do now.  Both of these things really struck a cord with me and helped me push Ezra out in only 3 or 4 pushes.  I pushed once and not much happened.  On my second push you could see his head.  Then on the 3rd or 4th push he was out.  We had wanted my mom to take pictures but she had to hold my leg because the nurse hadn't arrived yet.  When Ezra actually came out it felt different than with Cambria.  I first felt his head come out, then his shoulders, then his body and finally his legs and feet.  I could feel every little part of him come out.  The second he was out all my pain went away and I was overcome with the most wonderful array of emotions. 

Ezra Finnegan's first picture.

The only decent picture I can share due to the face that I didn't have a shirt on. For some reason I was reallllly blothcy. My face in this one says it all.

He was born at 6:42 a.m. on February 16th, 2011 in the presence of me, Kyle, my mother, and Nancy.  He weighed 7 lbs. 14 oz and measured 19 1/2 inches. I told Kyle I wanted him to tell me if it was a boy or a girl.  Right after Ezra was born he said "I think it's a boy, yeah, it's a boy, oh my gosh it's a boy!!!"  Nancy quickly told me to take my top off and Ezra was placed right on my chest.  This feeling can only be described as pure love.  It is the most perfect and pure love.  To have a person growing in your body for so many months and then finally being able to hold that little being is the.best.feeling.in.the.world.  I know I haven't yet experienced everything life has to offer but I know nothing will compare to giving birth to my children. 

Ezra stayed attached to me for about 10 minutes until Kyle cut the cord.  I delivered his placenta and that was that.  I had a son and I couldn't have been more thrilled about it.  About 15 minutes after Ezra was born Kyle's mom arrived.  Kyle's Dad was on his way to work and was conveniently able to stop by too. 

Giving birth naturally for the second time was definitely easier.  I knew what was happening, I knew what to expect and I knew I could do it.  It hurt just as bad as it did the first time but I was able to stay calm and focused.  As a woman, I think there is nothing more empowering and invigorating than giving birth to a child.  The births of my children have been two of the proudest and happiest moments of my life.  I am so lucky to have been able to have Ezra at the birthing center and to have Kyle as such a supportive spouse.  My son is beautiful and I could not be more in love with him.    

Love this silly face.

Babies are my life

As I started writing this post I looked at the date and realized it is MARCH 1st! Already!! March has really snuck up on me partially due to the fact that February is short but mostly because the days seem to run together for me right now.  I feed Ezra every 1-3 hours during the day and every 2-4 hours at night and this never ending cycle causes me to lose my grasp on the days.  Tomorrow Ezra will be 2 weeks old.  In some respects I can't believe it has been that long but if I'm honest with myself, it has been a loooong 2 weeks.  Mealtimes, baths, poopy diapers, laundry...We've actually been able to venture out into the world several times but I haven't been brave enough to go out on my own yet (mostly because I'm nervous about driving my 2 children in our manual Jetta--me not so good at driving stick).  Diaper changes are crazy when we're out, especially when they're both pooped!!! Cambria's music class is tomorrow though so that's going to force me to leave on my own, luckily it's only for an hour.

Ezra is being the sweetest little baby, still.  I think he is the perfect little newborn, even more so than I had previously thought Cambria was.  He is content all the time and if he does get a little tired or hungry he is easily soothed.  I can just put my face right up to his when he's crying during a diaper change and he almost always stops--what a sweet boy!  I love to watch him sleep and watch all the little faces he makes.   He "smiles" a lot when he sleeps and yesterday he kept making this giggling noise-it was adorable.  Kyle and I were discussing whether we think the rest of the world is dramatic when it comes to having a new baby or if we have just truly been blessed with two not so horrible newborns.  I think we just got lucky.  We also discussed whether the birth environment our children have been born into has had any role in shaping their temperaments--folks at the birthing center would probably argue "YES!!"  Either way, I hope Ezra keeps his disposition and continues to allow me to get sleep at night.   Have I mentioned that I looooove him?

Right after Ezra's umbilical cord stump fell off and onto the floor (2/27--11 days old)

When I'm taking care of Ezra and feeding him and changing his diapers I keep thinking about the fact that one day he is going to be a man.  I feel so lucky to be his mother and to be caring for him during these precious days in his life.  He is my son and all that I want for him is to become a good and happy human being.  I keep telling Kyle I NEVER want to treat him different or expect less or more from him just because he is a boy, at least when it comes to all the important things.  I want to teach both my children kindness, sincerity, creativity, empathy and compassion for others no matter their gender.   I hope we can do this.

Big sister and little brother with his adorable octopus shirt from Jessie.

Kyle went back to work yesterday so it's only been two days, but I think the three of us are already finding a schedule.  Between diaper changes and feedings there have been a few stressful situations where both my children have needed me at the same time.  I try to keep my cool and deal with the most important issue first.  My main goal throughout the day is trying to have one-on-one time with both children.  Cambria deserves my undivided attention and so does Ezra, easier said than done but I've made it work the last few days. 

In our natural environment-Cam with embarrassing pants eating, me on my phone, Ezra chilling on my chest.

Tomorrow I want to write Ezra's birth story...hopefully I can find the time.  And I also want to give some updates on the progress we've made with the house....again, when I find the time.  Oh and I want to write my thoughts about breastfeeding in the beginning before I forget everything like I did with Cam...again, time is the key here.

Thanks to everyone who has written a comment on the blog or on Facebook.  Your sweet thoughts and words make both Kyle and I very happy! We love you guys!!