Poor little crabs!

In October we bought the kids 2 crabs, one for the girls named Lala Loopsie and one for the boys named Sharktooth. Now I had never heard of hermit crabs before purchasing them, except when a couple of our youth girls bought some, so I knew nothing about them. So like every responsible pet owner, we bought this nifty little hermit crab guide. It was really thin and I read it from cover to cover.

After a couple of weeks the novelty of the crabs wore off. They didn't really do much, especially after being dropped a couple of times. But they are also nocturnal so during the day they don't do much. I even found it kinda boring. I felt sorry for the little crabs, because I thought that they were probably bored out of their minds. But from my reading I see that they don't really do much of anything.

About 2 months ago, we found Lala Loopsie falling out of her shell and her arms fell off. So Alex cleaned out the shell and we gave the girls the bad news. By this time, Alex was neding to be reminded everyday(if I remembered) to take care of his crab. I was getting pretty tired of having to remind him ALL the time, especially when all he had to do was change the food and water and spray the crab down.

Today when I told him to take care of the crab, he found his fallling out of its shell. Sharktooth took the big dirt nap. Poor little buddy. So Alex started cleaning out the shell, but was having problems. So I helped him and as I was pulling out pieces and noticed 2 more claws and a bunch more legs, I realized Sharktooth wasn't dead. Well at least not until we started ripping him apart. He was just molting. Now I am pretty sure that Lala Loopsie was just molting too. So we killed 2 hermit crabs.

Now Alex wants 2 more since we know we aren't such horrible crab owners that kill our crabs, at least not from neglect. We just rip them out of their shells when they have the nerve to grow. lol. Maybe I will have to try my hand at another pair of crabs, so prove I can keep one alive. lol

I am so blessed!!

Alex on Crazy day at PVCA

JJ on Crazy day at PVCA

Kennedy when we went sledding

Livie on her first day of dance

Emmalee being all cute

9 days old

Well Emmalee is 9 days old today. I have to say I have been really blessed with her! She is a good baby. She hardly ever fusses, usually only if she is wanting fed or if one of her siblings are poking and prodding her. She sleeps really good at night. The past 3 nights she has slept for 5 hours straight for her first stretch of sleep, then nurses and goes back to sleep until morning, and all in her bassinet alone. I haven't had to cuddle her during the night for the past 3 nights. Mommy is enjoying her long stretches of sleep all by myself! Of course I wonder I have been putting her carseat in her bassinet and letting her sleep in that all swaddled up. I wonder if she would sleep as good just laying in the bassinet alone. Think I might try that tonight.

I just can't believe how fast these 9 days have flown by. I just keep thinking that I will never again have a baby in the house to enjoy this time and that is going by way to fast. Praying my baby girl don't grow up too fast! I will miss sweet baby smiles and a sleeping baby sighing contently.

How having my 5th baby was different than having my first baby

After having a baby you are sent home with doctor orders and thoughts of what the next few days or weeks with your new baby will be like. Now believe it or not it will be extremely different between your first baby and any children after the first. With each additional child you will remember the time after your first baby more and more fondly as you see how different this recovery time is. Not because your subsequant children are less loved or adored, but because it is always easier when there is only the baby and no children running around to be cared for and destroying your house. So here are the things I found that are extremely different from when I brought Alex home as my first baby to now that I am 6 days out from having Emmalee.

1. NO DRIVING FOR A WEEK- This is an order than was given to me with all my dismissal papers from the hospital. Now I am pretty sure that with my doctors this is a normal thing they put on their dismissals because for most women they prescribe them tylenol with codiene to help with the pain and that can make you loopy. But with me being "blessed" to being allergic to codiene just have to make it through with regular old tylenol. Lucky me. lol

Anyway, seriously no driving for a week?! I have 3 kids that have to go to and be picked up from school and a husband that works. No driving is not an option.

With Alex I didn't need to go out multiple times daily to go anywhere.

2. NO LIFTING ANYTHING HEAVIER THAN BABY FOR 2 WEEKS- Another dismissal order. Really?! I have a 2 1/2 year old that has to be helped into our SUV. Plus just carrying laudry baskets around with clothes are heavier than my tiny little one. This is nice in theory but impossible to not lift anything heavier than Emmalee for 2 weeks.

With Alex, there was only Alex and not laundry and picking up to do after 4 other kids.

3.  TAKE A NAP WHEN BABY TAKES A NAP- This sounds like great advice. Especially since newborns sleep so much, but when there are 4 other kids to take care of and Alex is the only one that goes to school all day, it is pretty much impossible to sneak a nap in. With just one, you could be napping all day long, but with your 5th, unless all your other kids are old enough to be in school or young enough to all take naps you are lucky to get to sit down for a bit.

4.  PEOPLE BRINGING OVER MEALS TO NEW MOTHERS- Again this is an awesome thing to have blessed upon you, but by the time you have 5 kids, the fact that you popped out another baby is old news to everyone and it just is not really done. You have been through this multiple times and know how to juggle it all already.

With your first I think people figure you are going to be so sleep deprieved and frazzled because you are new to all this that they feel sorry for you. By the time you have your 5th, you have been going for YEARS without a good nights sleep and deal with chaos on a daily basis, so life REALLY hasn't changed that much more. lol

5. YOU WILL HAVE TO RECOVER PHYSICALLY AFTER CHILD BIRTH- After every labor and delivery you have to allow yourself to recover. And maybe it is because with your first one you are able to have more down time because you dont have other children to chase after, or the fact that you are younger with your first. I don't know, but I don't remember being this sore after having Alex.

I remember having the cramping while nursing with all of the kids those first days. And it was always horrible. That part I expected and remembered. What I didn't remember was the horrible pain after that part. The feeling that my lower abdomen had been ran over and that my crotch had been kicked repeatedly with steel toe boots. I mean it makes sense that I would feel like this, but geez, I don't remember it being like this with any of the other kids.

Heck then you top it with the extremely sore wrist from where they placed my iv, that makes me want to cry everytime it is touched and the fact that my chest is sore from my milk coming in I feel awesome. REALLY. lol

6. YOUR OTHER CHILDREN DON'T UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE NOT A JUNGLE GYM- You come home sore from child birth, only wanting to be left alone, and your other children have missed you and only way they can show this is by crawling all over you and in the process poke and prod every sore part of your body with knees and elbows.

Now these 6 things are just a few things I have noticed that are different between bringing home my first baby, Alex, and my fifth baby, Emmalee. I must admit I find it humorous seeing my first time mommy friends on facebook posting about things with their babies and see how different it is with their pregnancies and my pregnancy. They have their rooms completely finished down to EVERY detail, house deep cleaned top to bottom, meals in the freezer ready for when they bring home baby, etc. And that is all great and amazing to get done, but when it comes to your 5th, any deep cleaning lasts for about a day, the baby room is done just enough to be functioning(if you have it painted and bedding to go with a theme you are doing awesome), and what are preplanned meals?!

Miss Emmalee Jorja Kay Arrived

The Schimek family is officially complete. Unless God decides to give us a major SURPRISE or we decide to adopt or foster in the future, we are finished expanding our tribe. Here is the last picture of me being pregnant ever. (well except for the couple John took while I was in labor)

Friday morning right before 5 John and I headed up to the hospital. I went with expectations of having a baby before noon considering the deliveries of Kennedy and Livie. Let's just say that my labor was nothing like I expected. It was a long, frustrating, very disappointing labor!! Things I hoped and specifically asked to not have happened, happened. My labor was very slow progressing once I hit 5 cm and got my epidural. Wasn't told the reason for the hold up for the longest time.

And before being told why labor probably wasn't progressing the baby's heart rate started dipping pretty low. It got so low that it would go from 160's to in the 90's and then go back up. The doctor was concerned and threatened a csection if it didn't even out in 5 minutes of him coming in. He put an oxygen mask on me and John, my mom, and John's mom started praying for me. Praise God, her heartbeat never dipped again after that. So we were out of the woods there.

The I found out that the baby was turned facing my side, so she couldn't drop down to get into position. I started asking if I could get up over the bed to help turn her with gravity or get on my hands and knees. The doctor didn't want me to because of the baby's heartrate being normal again and the nurse was worried because I had an epidural and she was sure I wouldn't be able to do it. I was getting so frustrating because by this point it was past 3 and I still had no baby, my mom, John's mom, and a friend had been there since before 11 or earlier, and they were all frustrated. I was very frustrated because my labor plan for how I wanted the atmosphere to be was totally not happening. I felt like saying just give me a csection and be done with it. I felt that that is what would end up happening anyway so why fight it. I was done and discouraged and just kept praying that God would get me through it.

So finally after asking the nurse again and again, she said we could try to get me on my hands and knees. The doctor had gone back to the office and was going to be back after office hours which was 5 and it was 4 by then. She said she refused to have me have to have a csection with my 5th child. So she went to help me over and she was shocked that I was able to hop over on my hands and knees so easily with an epidural. I was in that position just like 15 minutes and I told her I felt like something had shifted in there. I think she was just humoring me and said that maybe it was going to work while not really believing it. Then the pain, which was almost not there before started picking up. It kept getting more and more intense. I told her that I felt like the baby was right down there and I felt like it was working.

She went and checked me and goes "oh my, you are a good 6 and thinning out really fast. This is working." I had hope again, because usually I get to 5 or 6 and then it is super fast and I am 10. Often we don't realize how fast until they check me because the pain is so bad, or until a baby is popping out like with Livie. By then I was in ALOT of pain regardless of my epidural, so she called up the guy to give me another full dose in, because the pump wasn't touching it. He came in and did it and I told the nurse that it REALLY hurt and I felt like I had to push. She checked me and said that I was just a rim, and the baby was there, she was getting her tray and calling the doctor.

So John called in our moms and our friend who was bound and determined to see this delivery, and the nurses started coming in setting up stuff and talking about if the doctor didn't hurry who was delivery the baby. I was "blowing out candles" as they called it, trying not to pop the baby out like with Livie. I remembering looking at the clock and seeing it was just after 5 and thinking, this doctor better HURRY!!

So here comes in the doctor, not believing I am ready with how labor was progressing all day long. He checks before getting his stuff all on and was shocked to say the baby was RIGHT THERE. So he gets to put his stuff together and they break the bed, I am trying desperately not to push. The nurse goes ok you can push when you feel the need, but I see the doctor isn't even facing me and I ask her if she wants me to with him not being ready. She goes well he is almost, but I waited until he turned around. Then with one little push, the baby's head is out, 1 PUSH!! They did the shoulders real quick and my baby was out at 5:20 pm. Almost 12 hours after my induction began. Longer than I ever imagined. But she is so worth it. So introducing my baby girl..............

 

Emmalee Jorja Kay Schimek

Born on January 18, 2013 at 5:20 PM

7 lbs 9 oz(second smallest baby only by 1/2 oz bigger)

20 inches long

7 days and counting

I have only 7 days until I will meet my little baby girl. That is unless she decides to come early. I am not really in a hurry to get her out for the sake of getting her out, but I have been having contractions most days all day long, so I would really love for them to either stop or my princess to just make her debut. I can take the back pain and such that goes along with pregnancy, but the constant contracts, especially when I have them at night, it gets old fast. I am so tired because last night I couldn't sleep with all the ones I was having.

So who knows the next time I blog it might be to introduce our newest little baby. Stay tuned. lol

With my induction date approaching in 11 days and having spent last night in the hospital with possible labor, I have been thinking about what I would like my labor and delivery to be like. With all the kids but Kennedy, I had people in the room with me while I was laboring and then at delivery. With Kennedy it was only John and me, not because we planned it that way, it was because my mil was getting off work at noon and missed it and my mom was in the waiting room and I was at 5 for a while and then went from 5-10 in an instant and John was lucky to even get into the room in time because he had stepped out to talk to a friend.

Now I really don't mind having my mother and mil in the delivery room while I deliver, but I think I would really prefer to have no one in the room with me and John while I labor. When I am in pain, I like to draw into myself and prefer to not have people touch or talk to me. When people are in the room with me, I feel I have to entertain them and end up resenting that they are there and feel I can't show my pain.

So my desire would be for everyone to stay in the waiting room until I am ready to push. Now this is a really risky move, because honestly as fast as I pushed Kennedy out and how Live pretty much shot out on her own, I am worried they would miss it. But I really would like to make my labor room as stressfree as possible. I got really, REALLY stressed by guests while I was in labor with Livie and it affect my delivery and me afterwards. And I am really afraid of having unwanted guest again this time during the process.

I just want to enjoy my last labor and delivery and not feel that it is for others. I kinda feel like some people who just got to the hospital and never tell people they are there have the right idea. Then they are able to do things at their pace and without an audience.

While we were on vacation visiting my brother in October, I was on facebook and noticed I was added by a friend to a crafting page on facebook. It is a page where the point is that crafters get together and give each other ideas for crafts, although the main thing that was on the page was about these Christmas baskets they were wanting to put together. The head of the page had a list of kids whose parents had signed them up to recieve homemade items from these group to give them a little more under the Christmas tree.

So I said I was interested in helping. With it being the very end of October it only gave me 6 weeks to get some crafts done, but main did I come through. When we showed up to put the baskets together I was shocked to find out that even though I was the last one to join the group, I had contributed the most homemade items, except for the woman who made little Christmas ornaments. Now I have to admit that some of the items I was not overly impressed with, but that goes to show that everyone has their own taste and abilities.

I would love to add a picture of some of the projects I donated because I am very proud of them, but unfortuanately for some reason, blogger isn't allowing me to add pictures. One of the main items they wanted help making was rag dolls, which I had never made before. Their goal was to make 19 of them. Since I only had a little bit of time I wanted to make them as simple as possible, so I made ones that body was a triangle shape to be the dress and the legs were out of fabric to coordinate with the body to be stockings. I ended up finishing 9 and was willing to make more, but was told to wait to see if others made any. Mine were the only rag dolls that were donated. I also made 5 stuffed robots. Again first time I had made these, but I loved them and want to make more to give away. I got the idea from another blogger and thought they were super cute.

The thing that I got most addicted to was these fast crocheted stocking caps that I found the pattern for. They were pretty fast to make and I ended up making 20 to donate in various colors. I loved seeing all the different color combinations I could come up with. I even made one for each of my kids. And in addition to that I made 5 door hangers for boys' rooms with their name on them.

I was so proud to bring my stash of donations and the fact that with only 6 weeks to create, that I had a good amount to donate. We are planning on doing the baskets next year and I already have gotten a head start. I hope that we make it a better organized project since this year was kinda our practice year.

I also would like to maybe make projects to donate to other organizations that can use them. I love making the hats and am sure that I could get pretty crazy with it and end up with way more hats than we would need, so I will probably find another group that could also benefit.

I have so many craft ideas running through my heads and I love creating, but I find that items at craft shows just don't sell like they have in the past. I don't even like to buy items at craft shows usually because I know I can make it for less. So I love the itea of having somplace to donate the items I enjoy making. I am going to have fun with this!!

Happy Birthday Alex

Today 8 years ago, I became a mother for the first time. We welcomed our oldest son Alexander Michael into the world. He was such a blessing after all we went through with the loss of Jacob. In no way did we view Alex as a replacement for Jacob, but as a blessing to help heal our pain.

These past 8 years not only has Alex grew, but John and I have grown as people and parents. Alex has pushed us and stretched us in ways we never expected.

So today started off with our special family breakfast that has become a family tradition. However's birthday it is gets to choose what we have for breakfast. Alex chose pancakes with blueberry syrup, fried eggs, and bacon with hot cocoa. It was very yummy.

We then took the kids sledding for the first time ever as a family. It is one of those things we always wanted to do, but never did. Last year we bought a sled, but we never got enough snow to go. We all had so much fun going today. Well except for Livie, who did not want to go sledding, so she just walked around at the top of the hill and helped push people.

I even when about 10 times with various kids. Bet there isn't many 37 week pregnant women who go sledding. I haven't gone sledding down a hill like that in years, if ever. My dad used to pull a car hood behind a tractor when we were little, but I don't remember ever going sledding down a hill. Definately will have to go again!

Now we are preparing to enjoy a birthday dinner of steak and potatoes and black forest cake. It should be yummy. I would have posted pictures from today, but for some reason I can't post pictures right now. Not sure what the issue is.