Emma had her 18 month appointment today. She had to get 3 shots (boo!) but Claire talked her through it on the way to the doctor. "Emma, you have to get 3 shots today. Dr. Shaw will listen to your heart and look in your ears and then Leann is going to come in and give you the shots. Then she will give you a sticker when you are done!"
Emma weighed 27 lbs (80%) and was 33 inches long (85%). Not quite as big as Claire was at this age but we still got the recommendation to switch from whole to skim milk. Lets face it: my kids just don't need those extra calories! :)
At the end of the appointment, Dr. Shaw's nurse asked if we would be back again before we moved. I said I wasn't sure so she said she would say goodbye now just in case. She gave us all hugs and told Claire, "you are my favorite patient!". I got all teary-eyed. Seriously, how will we ever find a doctor/nurse combo like them that we can possibly love so much?! They are just the best!! *sigh*
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Date Night
Last night our sweet friends insisted on watching the girls so we could go on a date. It was much needed after Justin had been gone all week, and even had to come home a day later due to the weather. They even insisted that we return no earlier than 9:30. ;) Those are some good friends, folks! Thanks, Blackleys!
Anyway, before our date, I asked Claire to take a picture of me and Justin. Here's what we got:
Haha! Oh well. The date was wonderful, even though the pictures weren't. :)
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Happy Half Bday!
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Today is this girl's half birthday.. she is 18 months old already! It is so hard to believe. Emma gets more fun and hilarious every day.. seriously. I wish I could express how much she LOVES Claire and picks up on everything she does. This child does not miss a beat. Just as a small example, the other day Claire got a small 'owie' on her leg and was pulling up her leggings to look at it. Several hours later, we were in the car driving somewhere and Emma is pulling up her pant legs, saying 'owie', and pointing to Claire!
Her vocabulary grows more everyday and she says lots of words! She doesn't sign anymore and instead can verbally say all of the words she used to sign. I was reading my post from when Claire turned 18 months old and after seeing that I made a list of her words, I tried to do the same with Emma. She has around 45-50 words.
She LOVES to pray and frequently in the middle of dinner will grab everyone's hands and say, 'pray'. She loves babies and animals. Most of her play time is spent with her babies, just like someone else I know. ;) She also has some serious 'moves.' She watches Claire do gymnastics and when we say, "Emma, do your move," she puts her hands on the ground and lifts one of her legs in the air. It is so funny! I need to get that one on video. She also has recently come up with a little tune she likes to sing. She will walk around the house all morning singing, "Yat da da di da." Again, I need to capture this on video.. it is super cute!
She loves ALL food and eats everything, often eating more than Claire does. Emma has a waffle for breakfast every morning and recently is not satisfied until she has eaten 3! She also loves to look at books and recently has learned who Elmo is.
She still goes to bed around 6:30 pm and sleeps until 6:30 or 7:00 am. She naps around 12:30 every day and sleeps for about 1 1/2-2 hours.
We have her 18 month appointment next week (sad... might be our last one with our favorite pediatrician!!) and I am excited to see how she is doing.
So thankful for the joy Emma Annette has brought to our home over the last 18 months! The other day Claire said to me, "Mom, my heart feels like I love my baby sister so much. I am so happy I am a big sister." Girl, I couldn't have said it better myself. My heart feels the same way about both of my girls!
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
Happy Valentine's Day!
We had a super, love-filled day today! It started with little Valentine's gifts for our littlest loves.
Then I made pink chocolate chip pancakes for my favorite peeps!
My hubby surprised me with some gorgeous flowers. Seriously, I love getting flowers!! So pretty!
I was pretty proud of the gift I made for my hubby. I will admit... I downright copied someone else's idea straight from Pinterest (have I mentioned how much I LOVE that website?!). But, it was a super inexpensive gift that allowed me to get a lil crafty!
After baths and bedtime, Justin treated me to a delicious meal. I love this tradition we have had going for several years. He does the planning, shopping, and cooking.. and it is always delicious!
What a fun day! Spent with the ones I love... and reminded especially of God's love that trumps all!
Then I made pink chocolate chip pancakes for my favorite peeps!
My hubby surprised me with some gorgeous flowers. Seriously, I love getting flowers!! So pretty!
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| Sweet Valentine girls! |
I was pretty proud of the gift I made for my hubby. I will admit... I downright copied someone else's idea straight from Pinterest (have I mentioned how much I LOVE that website?!). But, it was a super inexpensive gift that allowed me to get a lil crafty!
After baths and bedtime, Justin treated me to a delicious meal. I love this tradition we have had going for several years. He does the planning, shopping, and cooking.. and it is always delicious!
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| Started with a little Kendall Jackson Chardonnay, warm brie with garlic, almonds, and cherries on a baguette (inspired by an appetizer we had on vacation in Arizona). |
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| Next up: Mediterranean stuffed chicken, steamed green beans, and roasted red potatoes. |
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| And finished with molten chocolate cakes with espresso cream sauce. |
Partners in Crime
Remember my last post about my crazy climbing 18-month-old? Well, she's not alone! Today I caught her and her bestie up to no good in the playroom!
And, seriously, what is Claire going to do without her bestest buddy, Liam?! *sigh*
(Right after I took that pic of Claire and Liam, she said, "Liam's my husband.")
And, seriously, what is Claire going to do without her bestest buddy, Liam?! *sigh*
(Right after I took that pic of Claire and Liam, she said, "Liam's my husband.")
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| The whole Shoe/Baum kid crew. |
Monday, February 6, 2012
Monkey Girl
I don't know what it is about second babies and being crazy, climbing daredevils, but there must be something to it. Many of my friends can attest to their second children being the fearless one... can I get an amen?!
Check out our little monkey. I rarely find her on the floor.
Saturday, February 4, 2012
Atlanta, here we come...again
Well, this is one post I never dreamed I would be writing... that's for sure. But, after a series of crazy, unexpected, God-led events, the Shoe fam is moving back to Atlanta. What???! I know! I am just as surprised as the rest of you... trust me!
Here is the story...
Justin and I went to Arizona in January and the night we got home, Justin got an email that was sent to his entire company announcing a new job posting for a product trainer at their home office in Atlanta. He read the email out loud to me and I looked at him, confused, and said something like, "Umm.. why are you reading that to me? We aren't moving to Atlanta!" He just said, "Okay." We briefly talked about it a little more that night and when I realized he was serious about wanting to apply for it, I asked for 24 hours to pray, process, and think about it. We talked the next night and both really felt like he should at least apply. I was surprised that I felt like that because I have been telling people since the day we moved back to Iowa that we are here for good, this is where we plan to raise our family, etc... But, I just knew I couldn't say no. This is the job Justin has always felt like would be a perfect fit for him.
So, we got the initial email on Monday, he sent his resume on Wednesday, and on Friday, he was asked to put together a one hour presentation on selling to pediatricians. He was told that during the process he would be presenting it. He worked on it all weekend and honestly, that was when I realized how much he wanted this job. As some of you who know us well already know, Justin has struggled with going back and forth between different jobs, being laid off, not knowing what to do with his life, etc... and it has been so hard to watch. I have cried so many tears for him as I have watched him struggle through choices, options, unknowns. He is such a talented guy and has always felt like the jobs he has done have not really allowed him to use his talents. Seeing him working on this with such excitement and passion was so refreshing for me. I haven't seen him this excited about work for... well probably ever! Anyway, he emailed his presentation on a Tuesday and on Wednesday was told they would be flying him down on Friday for an interview. He flew down for the day on Friday, sat through an intense interview and gave his presentation. He was asked some really hard questions but, at this point, he was even more excited about the chance. Without knowing how many people were interviewing for the position, and only being with the company for a short while, we weren't sure what to expect. Well, they ended up calling him the very next day (Saturday) to offer him the job. By this time, God had really changed my heart and made me excited about this opportunity. And, truly, ONLY God could have done that because I was totally set on never leaving Iowa. But everything about this opportunity can only be explained by the fact that this is what God wants for our family. We both really believe that.
So, he took the job! Our house is on the market and whenever it sells, we will move! They want him to start by the end of March. Until then, he will mostly be working from home with some occasional trips down there for a few days at a time.
Is that not the craziest thing ever?! I still can't believe it is actually going to happen. I have cried so.many.tears. about leaving the most amazing friends a mama could ever have, our families, an amazing church family, our pediatrician (seriously... i love her), and just our life here. It will be hard. So hard. And I know that. But, if this is what God has for us... then we must do it. I am learning to adjust what I thought our life would be.
Anyway, that's the story, folks. We are moving to Atlanta!
Here is the story...
Justin and I went to Arizona in January and the night we got home, Justin got an email that was sent to his entire company announcing a new job posting for a product trainer at their home office in Atlanta. He read the email out loud to me and I looked at him, confused, and said something like, "Umm.. why are you reading that to me? We aren't moving to Atlanta!" He just said, "Okay." We briefly talked about it a little more that night and when I realized he was serious about wanting to apply for it, I asked for 24 hours to pray, process, and think about it. We talked the next night and both really felt like he should at least apply. I was surprised that I felt like that because I have been telling people since the day we moved back to Iowa that we are here for good, this is where we plan to raise our family, etc... But, I just knew I couldn't say no. This is the job Justin has always felt like would be a perfect fit for him.
So, we got the initial email on Monday, he sent his resume on Wednesday, and on Friday, he was asked to put together a one hour presentation on selling to pediatricians. He was told that during the process he would be presenting it. He worked on it all weekend and honestly, that was when I realized how much he wanted this job. As some of you who know us well already know, Justin has struggled with going back and forth between different jobs, being laid off, not knowing what to do with his life, etc... and it has been so hard to watch. I have cried so many tears for him as I have watched him struggle through choices, options, unknowns. He is such a talented guy and has always felt like the jobs he has done have not really allowed him to use his talents. Seeing him working on this with such excitement and passion was so refreshing for me. I haven't seen him this excited about work for... well probably ever! Anyway, he emailed his presentation on a Tuesday and on Wednesday was told they would be flying him down on Friday for an interview. He flew down for the day on Friday, sat through an intense interview and gave his presentation. He was asked some really hard questions but, at this point, he was even more excited about the chance. Without knowing how many people were interviewing for the position, and only being with the company for a short while, we weren't sure what to expect. Well, they ended up calling him the very next day (Saturday) to offer him the job. By this time, God had really changed my heart and made me excited about this opportunity. And, truly, ONLY God could have done that because I was totally set on never leaving Iowa. But everything about this opportunity can only be explained by the fact that this is what God wants for our family. We both really believe that.
So, he took the job! Our house is on the market and whenever it sells, we will move! They want him to start by the end of March. Until then, he will mostly be working from home with some occasional trips down there for a few days at a time.
Is that not the craziest thing ever?! I still can't believe it is actually going to happen. I have cried so.many.tears. about leaving the most amazing friends a mama could ever have, our families, an amazing church family, our pediatrician (seriously... i love her), and just our life here. It will be hard. So hard. And I know that. But, if this is what God has for us... then we must do it. I am learning to adjust what I thought our life would be.
Anyway, that's the story, folks. We are moving to Atlanta!
Update on C-Bear
Well, after a crazy week, I am happy to report that Claire is finally feeling better! So, in case you don't read my Facebook updates, let me catch you up. After yesterday's post, Claire's fever spiked to 103.5. I talked with a nurse and she said we needed to come in so the doctor could have another look at her. It turns out her urinary tract infection got so bad that it developed into a kidney infection. They gave her two antibiotic shots at the doctors office and then sent us on our way. We were to watch her over the next several hours, call back with an update, and then decide if she would need to be admitted into the hospital. They wanted her to be able to keep down liquids and to get her fever down. If we couldn't do those things, they wanted to admit her for IV fluids and antibiotics.
Over the next several hours, she was able to keep down small amounts of water. She was also able to keep Tylenol and ibuprofen down but her fever just wasn't coming down. An hour after one of her doses of medicine, it got up to 103.8. Tons of people were praying and I know that is why she finally turned the corner around 5 pm. Her fever suddenly came down to 102 and then 101. So, praise the Lord, we didn't have to go to the hospital and she slept peacefully all night long. She had been waking up at night all week due to the fever and last night she slept all night. That means mama and daddy got to sleep all night, too! Glorious!
This morning she has been her old, chipper, happy, stubborn self! Yay! She wanted to eat for the first time in three days so we got donuts for the whole fam. So thankful that God hears and heals!
Over the next several hours, she was able to keep down small amounts of water. She was also able to keep Tylenol and ibuprofen down but her fever just wasn't coming down. An hour after one of her doses of medicine, it got up to 103.8. Tons of people were praying and I know that is why she finally turned the corner around 5 pm. Her fever suddenly came down to 102 and then 101. So, praise the Lord, we didn't have to go to the hospital and she slept peacefully all night long. She had been waking up at night all week due to the fever and last night she slept all night. That means mama and daddy got to sleep all night, too! Glorious!
This morning she has been her old, chipper, happy, stubborn self! Yay! She wanted to eat for the first time in three days so we got donuts for the whole fam. So thankful that God hears and heals!
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| Donuts for breakfast! |
Friday, February 3, 2012
It's February...
And you know what that means, right? We are sick again! I think we spent the entire mont of February sick last year and here we are again! It is actually 4:45 am as I type and I am watching Dora episodes with Claire. After a long, sleepless night, I finally decided laying on the couch watching movies was easier than going back and forth to her room like I did all night. I am going on 1 hour of sleep here, folks!
Claire developed a fever on Tuesday and it progressively got higher each day. It finally spiked to 103.5 yesterday so I decided to take her in. She was so miserable...it was so sad! She was shivering and freezing, under 3 blankets and tons of layers and not warming up. She had never reacted to a fever like that before...poor thing. Anyway, I took her in and we found out she has another UTI. The doctor was concerned with how high the fever got with the infection and has recommended an ultrasound of her kidneys to make sure there isn't anything else going on. Emma had this same thing done last year because of her recurrent UTIs and everything was fine so I am hopeful it will be the same for Claire. We definitely want to rule things out, though, so we will have that done soon.
On top of those crazy high fevers, Claire was up throwing up all night. Poor, poor girl! I don't know if it's the flu or a reaction to the antibiotic or what. Anyway...hoping today brings less fever and throwing up! Happy Friday, y'all. :)
Claire developed a fever on Tuesday and it progressively got higher each day. It finally spiked to 103.5 yesterday so I decided to take her in. She was so miserable...it was so sad! She was shivering and freezing, under 3 blankets and tons of layers and not warming up. She had never reacted to a fever like that before...poor thing. Anyway, I took her in and we found out she has another UTI. The doctor was concerned with how high the fever got with the infection and has recommended an ultrasound of her kidneys to make sure there isn't anything else going on. Emma had this same thing done last year because of her recurrent UTIs and everything was fine so I am hopeful it will be the same for Claire. We definitely want to rule things out, though, so we will have that done soon.
On top of those crazy high fevers, Claire was up throwing up all night. Poor, poor girl! I don't know if it's the flu or a reaction to the antibiotic or what. Anyway...hoping today brings less fever and throwing up! Happy Friday, y'all. :)
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