Our New Normal

There is been a bit of radio silence on this blog recently... mostly it's because life's been nuts (in addition to the general nuttiness of having two small children).  The Corey family has decided to change things up a bit... rather drastically.  

The whole thing started this summer when Jacob was offered, accepted and started a new job in Vancouver, on the other side of the river, in another state, with different taxes.  Jacob started talking about wanting to move as it would effect his take-home income, but my job and our (awesome) child care situation was holding us back.  Then, in August, you may remember my post about not getting a promotion that I really thought I had a high chance of getting... and was really the carrot at the end of the stick in terms of my then-current position.  

I had an epiphany at that point... I was, once again, "stuck" in a position that I didn't really want to do, for less than 1/3 of what Jacob was getting paid for a job that he loves (and would bring home more from if we moved to Vancouver due to the lack of income tax).  I was spending about 3 hours per weekday with my kids, 2 hours of which was stressing everyone out by trying to get them out the door in time for Jacob and I to get to work or trying to get them to bed.  I never had any energy on the weekends, was commuting roughly 1.5-2 hours per day (same for Jacob) between work and shuttling kids to daycare.  It just didn't make sense anymore.  I have always enjoyed my work and really cared about it's mission... which I still do.  But I couldn't make the argument anymore that I was continuing to work for my family and for myself... it wasn't true anymore.

So, in August, we found a house that we loved in Vancouver and put in an offer.  We put our house on the market.  We got an offer in September, and moved in October, the week before Sam's birthday and in November I finished working to stay home, raise my children, and manage our household. 

 This post was going to be about the process of the home purchase/move and our stumbling blocks... that's what I intended to write about when I started.  But the post has taken a different course, and I'm going to allow it to do so.  I'll tell you all more about the move later, but for now let me just tell you how amazing it is not to have wake up a sleepy 3-year old when it's still dark outside (when she REALLY doesn't want to open her eyes), skip breakfast EVERY morning because there just isn't enough time to get everything done, not eat dinner until 7:00/7:30 because I can't actually start cooking until 6:00, spend more than an hour a day listening to my children laugh and play, go to the store on a Tuesday afternoon when there are no lines, take my kids to the library and week day play grounds.  Jacob is loving it, too.  He can sleep/leave a little later in the morning (and in a better mood!), can come home on his lunch breaks to hang out with us, and is home about an hour earlier every night than he has been for the last 3 years... it's only day 4 (and, truth be told, today is my "me/errands day" and they are actually with the sitter while I go grocery shopping and run other errands - while still taking a Starbucks break for some peppermint hot chocolate and blog catch ups) but so far I'm not regretting my decision at all, and believe that we made the best choice for our family.  I am very much looking forward to seeing what our new "normal" is going to be like.  =)

Adventures in Sleep Training an Infant with a Sick Toddler in the Next Room

The title kind of sums up my weekend.

Sam is 5 months old... and was waking up regularly every 2-3 hours throughout the night.  I would nurse him, but it was obvious that he wasn't really eating anything.  For the last couple of weeks I have just been waiting for a mellow weekend with no plans so that we could dedicate some time to sleep training/night weaning.  I just wasn't sure how to do it with a toddler in the next room...

The plan that Jacob and I came up with was that we'd put everyone to bed as normal around 8:00 (Sam goes to bed just fine, it's the waking up that's the problem).  If/when Sam woke Emily up, the plan was to move her to the couch in the living room at the end of the hall, hoping that would distance her enough from the noise and she could get some sleep.  Here's what actually occurred:

8:00 - Sam goes to bed with a little bit of whining, but is out within 5 minutes.
8:15 - Emily goes to bed... and by "goes to bed", I mean that I leave her room and close the door... we never really know what she's going to do in there.
8:45 - Emily comes up crying that she fell out of her bed.  I put her back to bed and tuck her in.
9:30 - I hear coughing, and then crying.  Jacob goes to check on Emily, sure enough she's puked all over her room.
9:32- Jacob takes Emily into the bathtub for a quick spray down while I try to clean partially digested hot dog out of a white shag rug.
9:40- Jacob bundles Emily up in a blanket and helps me with clean up.
10:00 - Put Emily back to bed, and tell her that, if she needs to throw up again, the toilet is an excellent place to do so.
11:00 - I can't keep my eyes open any more... Sam should be up soon, but I'm fading fast.  Jacob agrees to take the first "shift".  I go to bed.
11:45 - I hear Sam crying and Jacob going in to him... then I hear more coughing and crying... then I hear Jacob scurrying around... then I hear Sam crying... then I decide to get up and help.
12:00 - Sam's gone back to sleep, I'm tucking Emily and Jacob in on the couch in the living room with a big bowl next to her head (Jacob decided to sleep on the couch with her in case she got sick again).  This last time she threw up she must have heaved a few times... and ultimately ended up in the toilet (she listened!  Just too bad she threw up twice on the way there.. lol).
5:30 - Sam wakes up, I go in to feed him, he goes back to bed.
7:30 - The day begins.

Annnnddd... it just occurred to me that these were the events of Saturday night... we actually started on Friday. lol  See?  I'm exhausted!  So... back tracking to Friday... I went to bed and Jacob did everything.  He stays up super late any way, so he took care of "progressive waiting" until 2:30 when he came to bed... and it wasn't that bad.  I think Sam was ready for it just as much as we were.  He did wake Emily up, and she did end up sleeping on the couch.

Sunday Sam slept until 3:30 and then decided that he didn't want to be asleep... or awake for that matter.  He was just whining in his crib with his eye closed.  I think it probably took about half an hour for him to fall back asleep, though, he was not really crying... just the whining.

Monday morning I woke up feeling a little "off".  My stomach was bothering me.  I dropped the kids off at day care and then came home with the expectation that I'd work from home... that didn't happen.  By 11:00 I was back in bed (between visits to the bathroom) and didn't really get horizontal again until Jacob and the kids got home around 6.  Yay for day care germs.  =(

When Emily got home, though, she did ask me if I wanted a stuffed animal and then played a "song" on the piano to make me "feel happy".  =)

Sleep!

Last night at 11:30 Emily was WIDE awake.  I was exhausted and ready for bed, but she was sure that it was time to party.  Finally, I handed her to Jacob (who was still up and working on something on his computer) and told him that I was going to try to catch a little bit of sleep, and that he could pass her off to me (if she was still awake) when he was ready for bed.  I also mentioned that, if she got cranky, he could feel free to give her a bottle.  Several minutes later I remember hearing her start to cry, and Jacob heating up a bottle. 

That was the LAST thing I remember before I woke up this morning at 6 AM!!  That's right... I got SIX uninterrupted hours of sleep!  I woke up in a bit of a panic when I realized that I hadn't gotten up at all to feed Em, and that Jacob wasn't in bed.  I found them curled up together on the couch in the living room, an empty bottle on the floor beside them.

My awesome husband had taken ALL of the night feedings, allowing me to get some much needed sleep!  Sure, I was hard as a rock and leaking all over the place, lol, but I SOOO appreciated the extras ZZZs. 

Now I just hope he doesn't regret when he's trying to work today...

Invasion of the Body Snatchers! Part 2

This is how I felt last night...

I was lying in bed last night and noticed this weird hard spot just above my belly button.  So, naturally, I started to play with it... and it kicked back!  I thought that was pretty weird/odd/funny so I made Jacob do it, too. lol  Only, this time, instead of kicking back, I could feel the little person inside of me completely shift her position, and poke me REALLY hard on my right side.  I jerked and, involuntarily moved my hand to the pained area, only to discover a GIANT lump poking out of the side of stomach!

My response:  "Oh My GOD!"  and pulled my hand away in horror (Jacob is still making fun of me almost 24 hours later for it).  Jacob then felt whatever it was (knee?  elbow?) and was able to "massage" the extended appendage back into the roundness of my stomach.

Freakiest damn thing EVER! lol  It's so weird that the end is getting so close that I'm now able to feel body parts!

Our Love Story

In all honesty, I kind of forgot that Valentine's Day was coming up.  I've never been much of a celebrate-r of this day (with the exception of a box of chocolates and/or a heart shaped Papa Murphy's pizza).  But, when I saw that Shannon at From Match to Marriage posted this questionnaire, I thought it would be a good way to honor the awesome relationship that I am so happy to be a part of.

1. How long have you and your significant other been together?

January marked 4 years.

2. How did you meet? {What's your "love" story?}

We "met" in late December of 2007.  I had just gotten out of a relationship and was anxious to get back into the dating scene.  So, I did what any independent girl of the 21st century would do... I posted a personal ad on Craigslist.  =)  Among all of the creepers that responded, was one "normal" guy.... Jacob. =)  We sent a couple of e-mails back and forth for about a week, and then go together for our first official date at the beginning of January 2008.

3. If married, how long have you been married?

  Valentine's Day will mark our 1.5 year "anniversary".  We were married in the sand on the Oregon coast on August 14, 2010.

4. If you are married, where did you get married at? Big or small wedding?  

We were married at Governor Patterson Memorial State Park on the Oregon coast outside of Waldport.  We had roughly 80 people celebrating with us.  I think the size was just right!

5. Do you have any nick-names that you call one another? 

Yes.... but they aren't appropriate for publication. lol  (Has anyone seen the movie "Away We Go"?  We really enjoyed the airplane scene....;) )  Though, in recent months Jacob has been calling me "Spaghetti Sauce"  (get it?  Prego?)

6. Name 3 things you love most about your honey.

I don't know if I can separate it down into three things... he is just generally a great man.  He's kind and thoughtful.  He has goals and is good at making things happen for himself and our family.  He doesn't question things NEARLY has much as I do... he keeps me in check in that way. =)  He's easy going and not afraid to try a new experience (just don't feed him tomatoes).

7. Tell us how he proposed? 

In July of 2009 I was living in Vancouver, BC finishing up my coursework for my Master's program.  Jacob had returned to Oregon for the summer.  Things were rough.  I was feeling very lonely and questioning how our relationship would survive the summer months with such a great distance between us.  For the 4th of July weekend I returned to Oregon to go to the coast for the holiday with Jacob.  We stayed in his parent's beach house and headed down to the sand to watch the fireworks.  It was a little cold and misty out... not at all uncommon for Oregon, but not the most comfortable either.  After the show was over we returned to the beach house.  I was freezing so Jacob ran some hot water in the bathtub and I sat on the edge of the tub and warmed my feet in the water.  All of a sudden, Jacob was down on the ground next to me, with a ring box.  He opened the box and asked me to marry him.  At first I couldn't help but thing that he was joking.  I mean, we were in the BATHROOM after all... he was pretty much kneeling in front of the toilet. lol  But, after several minutes of my staring at the ring, asking if he was serious, he finally convinced me that he was and I said "yes". =)

On the beach prior to his proposal

8. Is he a flowers and teddy bear kind of guy for v-day, or strawberries, champagne, and rose petals?

Neither... like myself, he doesn't really see the need to celebrate Valentine's Day... at least, any more than a kiss and acknowledgement. =)  As far as gifts in general, he's more of a chocolate kind of guy... which I am a-okay with!

9. Are you a sunset dinner on the beach kind of girl, or pop a movie in and relax on the couch?

For a special occasion, definitely the dinner on the beach.  I LOVE the beach... and dinner. lol  But, for any random Saturday night, I am usually up for cuddling on the couch with a movie.

10. Tell us one thing you'd like to do with your significant one day. If you could do anything? Go anywhere?

Travel, travel, travel.  I LOVE to travel!  We spent our honeymoon roaming around the south island of New Zealand.  It was AWESOME and I would love to be able to do some more trips like that in the future.  I think our next "big" trip will be somewhere like Ireland...

Gunn Lake on the way to Milford Sound

11. Tell us what you plan on doing on this Valentine's Day.

I have an OB appointment, and then Jacob and I will probably have dinner together before he works (his at-home second job) and I catch up on some computer stuff for work that I missed since I had to leave early for my Dr. appointment... we're a couple of wild ones over here. ;)

12. Are you asking for anything this Valentine's day?

Nope.  But he did give a nice necklace a couple of weeks back.  No special occasion... just 'cause. =)  And it matches my wedding/engagement rings.

13. Give us one piece of advice of keeping a relationship strong and full of love.

Make time for the relationship.  It's important to have your own interests and activities, but make SURE that you also set aside time to spend/communicate/experience life with your partner.

14.  Show us a picture of what love means to you.

I have two that represent what love means to me.... laughter.

The Name Game

Jacob and I have a name picked out... we've had one picked out from the very beginning.  In fact, I have had a list of baby names for YEARS that I couldn't wait to pick from. lol  Thankfully, Jacob is not overly picky/opinionated on the subject and liked my suggestions.  We had a name picked out for a boy, and one for a girl.  Now that we know we're having a girl, I'm happy to be able to think about her name in relation to her... rather than just a "future possibility".  (Jacob has a hard time remembering what it's going to be though.... lol... I told him that he better figure out a way to remember before we get to the hospital!)

Here's the thing though... we're not telling anyone the name.  Why?  No, I'm not worried that someone's going to "steal" it, but, rather, I don't want any feedback on it.  I don't want people telling me, "I know someone named ..., she was...".  I don't want to associate the name that I love with other people's preconceived notions on personality... I already get that enough with the due date.  (It's kind of amazing to me how many people around here actually know something about astronomy... I never even thought about it).  I also don't want to hear people's opinions on the name or get other "suggestions" as to what might sound better.  Once she is here, and the name is on the birth certificate, I believe that other people will be less likely to throw in their two cents (I kind of wish sometimes that I would have taken this approach to wedding planning, too, and just not told anyone anything about it until it was planned and done! lol)

Another reason that I'm a little leery about telling the name ahead of time is because I don't want one of these things to happen.  (P.S.  HUGE Friends fan.... I can relate a Friends scene/episode to pretty much ANY life situation. lol)

Before I was born my  mother was certain that my name was going to be Krista... and she told everyone.  Well, guess what?  I'm not a "Krista", and I don't want to run the risk of getting baby gear with our chosen name all over it only to decide at the last minute to go with something else! lol

So, the name is staying a secret.  But don't worry... there's only 12 more weeks to wait!

OMG!

Cribbage*

*Jacob came up with the name for this post. lol

Our nursery is coming along nicely.... today we put the crib together!  The crib was a hand-me-down from Jacob's brother, who has two kids of his own.  Once we got all of the pieces to our place (thanks to J's mom) we made a run to the hardware store and set to work!

Scout trying to be helpful

Taking a break for a little lovin' =)

Kitty in a cage

Jacob getting some "practice"

I was a little worried about the whole construction process.... since it didn't come with any instructions and I didn't know what we were doing.  But Jacob had it down... I really need to learn to trust his ability to do some stuff. ;)

Now that we have the crib, we were able to arrange the furniture (which we are pretty much done accumulating) and now I can focus on the fun stuff... decorating!

(P.S.  It's REALLY weird having a crib in our house... lol)

Craigslist + Christmas $$ = Happy Me!

Now that we have the nursery painted, I can start decorating and adding furniture... Here's the first addition!  Thanks to Christmas money, after scouring Craigslist for the last week I finally found a glider that I liked that wasn't super spendy AND that I was the first one to (it's amazing how quickly people respond to CL posts up here!).

I'm VERY happy with it.  It's comfy and matches our colors nicely.  Plus, it gives Jacob a little more of his favorite color combination. lol

Go Ducks!

News

I haven't blogged much... and I apologize.  But now I can explain!  I HAVE been blogging... just... secretly.  You see, I had some stuff that I wanted to write about, but wasn't ready to make it public, until today... the end of my 13th week. ;)

We're having a baby!

Not the best of images from my appointment yesterday, but apparently the little one is quite the mover!

I've been writing since I found out about 6 weeks ago... and have been TRYING to continue to blog here as well, but it's been complicated to think about anything else. =)

Back in April I had my "yearly" appointment.  I spoke to my doctor about going off of the pill and how long it would take a person like myself (who has been using it for about a decade) to conceive.  I've always had this underlying fear that there was something wrong with me and I wouldn't be able to have children (surprisingly, Jacob admitted the same fear to me), and I figured being medicated for so long (to the point that I no longer even menstruated)  probably wouldn't help matters.  My doctor couldn't give me much information, and just said that different women "bounced back" at different speeds after going off of the pill.  I had her write up a refill prescription, and went home to have a talk with Jacob.

Children had come up.  We both wanted them.  But we'd never really had a SERIOUS conversation about the "when" factor.  When I came home we talked about whether or not I should refill the prescription and, in true Jacob fashion, he told me that we could just "see what happens".  So, I pinned the prescription up on the bulletin board in my office, and finished out the pills I had left.  Three months later, I find out that I'm 6 weeks pregnant.

I know that we were lucky, that some couples have to TRY for a REALLY long time before they conceive, and that others are never successful naturally.  But it really threw us for a loop.  We weren't "trying" we were just not NOT trying.  And, it happened.  It was meant to be I guess, but still kinda freaked me out with the suddenness of it.  I just hope I'm ready for this step!

Over the next week or two I'm going to be posting the tidbits that I've written since we found out the big news.  We are happy, nervous, excited, and still kind of in denial... but definitely looking forward to what the next several months (and years!) have in store for us!

Anniversary Stay-cation: Day Two

Day Two of our anniversary stay-cation was spent lazing around the hotel... and it was AWESOME! The temperature in Portland got to roughly 95 degrees... we Pacific Northwesterners are NOT used to that.  Jacob and I were perfectly content to spend the day inside, vegging in the air conditioning.  But, we did have to eat.  So, after a shower (and taking full advantage of the hotel bathing amenities),

Jacob and I left in search of a Big Ass Sandwich.

My co-worker convinced me a few weeks back to try one of these monstrosities, and, though it was delicious, I felt like a fat, greasy cow afterward. lol  But, after telling Jacob about it, he just had to give it a try.

I, on the other hand, opted for a felafel sandwich... little did I know it would make me feel almost as gross afterward (but, what can you expect from cart food, eh?)

Felafel and Strawberry Lemonade

Big Ass Sandwich

After lunch we cruised around downtown a little bit, and then, when we thought we were going to die of heat exhaustion (or the food we just consumed!) we headed back to the hotel... which was serving complimentary fruit juice with grapefruit slices in their lobby.  LOVE IT!  Then, back to the room for more vegging before we ventured out for our next meal.  =)

As hotel guests, we were given a discount at the hotel's restaurant.  So, for dinner we gave it a go.

I'm not so great with the food photography (I want to EAT it, not take pictures of it!), but I do love any place that serves dinner by candlelight!

After dinner, Jacob and I headed out to Staff Jenning's Marina to board a sailboat for a 90-minute sailing expedition up the Willamette.  I found this deal several months ago on Groupon and have been waiting for this weekend.  I was really excited about seeing all of the gorgeous downtown lights from the water.  here's a couple of photos... but be pre-warned, it's REALLY hard to take long-exposure photography from a moving boat!

We had a great time this weekend.  Even though we didn't go anywhere, or really do much more than sit in our hotel room, we appreciated the opportunity to relax without distractions... and a quick drive home. =)

Anniversary Stay-cation: Day One

Since we had a couple of other things going on last weekend, Jacob and I celebrated our first anniversary this weekend.  With the home purchase and all of the home improvement related expenses we've had over the last several months, we knew that we weren't going to be able to afford a get-away vacation, but thanks to my cousin and her awesome discount at a boutique hotel in downtown Portland, we were able to afford a pretty nice little "stay-cation!"

Our weekend started on Friday.  I got off work and walked to two blocks to our hotel (shortest commute EVER!  I loved it! lol), the Hotel Vintage Plaza.  I checked in, went up to the room, and took lots of photos! lol

Hallway

There was even a nice little note (with a bottle of champagne and some chocolate candies) from my cousin waiting for us.

After the mini photo shoot (and a browse through the mini-bar) was complete, I got a head start on a weekend of relaxing while I waiting for Jacob to get there.

"Say Yes to the Dress" Marathon... pretty appropriate I thought!

When Jacob arrived, we packed our bags (and anniversary cake!) up to the room, relaxed for a little while longer, and then headed to dinner.  We had a reservation and restaurant.com gift certificate for Chez Joy, and I was excited to try out a real French restaurant.  However, much like our luck with everything else we try to do, this did not go according to plan.  We arrived at the restaurant only to find a sign on the door stating that Restaurant.com gift certificates were no longer being accepted.  We went in, and I pointed out to the maitre de that the gift certificate clearly states that there is no expiration date.  I was told, in much nicer language, that we were SOL and there was nothing that could be done.

More than a little frustrated, Jacob and I left in search of another restaurant (as I felt quite put off by the way they handled the situation, and I didn't want to pay full menu price).  We headed down to Mother's Bistro and ended up having a fantastic dinner.

Still got a little taste of "fancy"

Then, as we were only a couple blocks from the river, and it was such a beautiful night, Jacob and I headed in that direction.  We walked for awhile, and then started to play with some long-exposure photography, and then sat on a bench and just talked (I think this was my favorite part of the weekend!).

We also got a shot of ourselves in front of the fountain where we got several of our engagement photos taken almost two years ago.

Oct. 2009

Aug 2011

After it got dark, we headed back to our hotel... it was time to dig in to our complimentary (I LOVED this part!) first anniversary cake from the bakery that did our wedding cake.  I was ex-i-ted! =)

Made to replicate the top tier of our cake

Chocolate chip cake with fudge filling... mmm mmm mmm!

After cake, it was time for vegging and bed.  It is also getting to that part tonight... I'll tell you all about day two tomorrow. =)

One Year

One year ago today....

Here's to many more laughs and smiles to come!

** More on how we "celebrated" a little later....

Sometimes I Wish I'd Married a Woman

How does this look?

Should I wear the purple scarf or the green one?

Which shoes go better with this outfit?

I'm not sure about these earrings, what do you think?

 These are common questions that come out of my mouth... aimed at Jacob. 

Jacob is not fashion conscious (self admitted).  But I don't have any other options for advice when I'm getting ready in the morning!  I did, after all, choose to marry a guy! =)  He tries though.  He gives me an opinion, i.e. the green scarf, and, alas 90% of the time I go with the purple one.

He called me out on it a while back.  I asked him a question similar to those above, and, instead of answering, he said, "you're just going to end up choosing the other one, aren't you?" 

This got me thinking a bit.  I don't want to make him feel like his opinions don't matter (even in silly situations like this), and I also don't want to set him up for failure (i.e. ask him for an opinion on something I've already made a decision about... consciously or not).  So, I'm trying to do better.  Several times now I have gone with his suggestion (even when, I probably would have chosen the other way) and I'm trying to limit the times I ask his opinions to those times that I really, truly want it.

I want us to be able to talk about, and make decisions together when it comes to the big things, and, I feel like in order to do this we need to start small. I do value his opinions... I just need to make sure that he knows it, which means wearing the earrings he picks out from time to time. =)

Is this a common situation in anyone else's house?  Are you lucky enough to have a guy who craves giving fashion advice?  I KNOW there are several male fashionistas out there! =)

Being Green

I subscribe to several of those "daily deal" websites (you know the ones.. Groupon, Living Social, and now Google Deals (we live in the beta-city, woo!), and I often find a lot of stuff that looks fantastic but that I know I can't afford to spend money on... even at a discounted price-- things like restaurant discounts (I already have a bunch from restaurants.com that I haven't used yet) and wine tastings (I would love them, but Jacob doesn't drink) but, from time to time, Jacob or I find something that is just too good to turn down** (like the massage that Jacob bought for me that I utilized today!), or really is something that, in the long run, will save us money.

The specific one that I have in mind right now is my sandwich bags that I purchased from ReUsies.  Sure, sure, if I knew what I was doing and wanted to put the time and energy into it I could have made these myself, but I don't, and I didn't, and I bought them. =)

I bought two 2-packs, one for myself and one for Jacob.  We both pack lunches most days for work and I WAS feeling slightly bad about all the plastic bags we were using (but not bad enough to bring them home and wash them like my mom used to).  These are great.  They are cute and work really well!  if you have a juicy sandwich, though, I will warn that it may slightly leak through the lining (i.e. I got a couple of little spots on the exterior fabric when I packed a sandwich with tomatoes), but it's not bad enough to deter me from using them.  Plus, I feel a little bit better about myself and my status as an Oregonian. ;)

I have also been stocking up on these deals for our first anniversary in a couple of months.  I'm not going to tell you what we're going to do, but I will tell you that thanks to Groupon and Living Social we're going to have a fantastic weekend for about half the cost!  More to come in August, I'm sure!

** Discounted passes to this place?  Too good to turn down. ;)