... The darndest things.
Nolan started fussing this evening. Keyan ran over to him and asked what was wrong.
Jono: "He's crying because he's hungry and needs to eat."
Keyan: "I'll feed him."
Jono: "How are you going to feed him?"
Keyan (as he holds up his shirt): "He can eat my boobie."
Too much information? Sorry. Sure made us laugh!
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Monday, November 9, 2009
Friday, October 30, 2009
Joy
Keyan has been my main squeeze the last three and a half years. But over the last few weeks I've been pretty absorbed in the newborn experience. While I love Keyan so much and try to give him the attention he needs and deserves, I lose my patience sometimes. It's so easy to start thinking of Keyan as the trying toddler, in comparison to Nolan, the lovable, innocent newborn. Sometimes, I have to consciously remember what an amazing child Keyan is; that he has incredible abilities and talents. So, this post is dedicated to you, Keyan, both to the joy you find in the world... as well as the joy I find in you.
I love the philosophies of the book Teaching Your Children Joy. So, this year, I started Joy School with Keyan. Okay, not the "official" Joy School... but our own home-brewed version. I knew our routine would be a little off both before and after the baby's birth, so instead of sending away for the curriculum this year, I decided to plan lesson topics based on Keyan's interests. It's been lots of fun and Keyan has really enjoyed it. One of the things we do after a lesson is draw a picture of what we've learned. Keyan has always had access to paper and markers, but this was the beginning of something different- a recognition that the markings on the paper represented something. He began drawing planets and apples and people. People. I am proudest of these drawings. Keyan even drew a family portrait, which I can't find anywhere, but it was similar to the person in this picture... except everyone in the family had arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet, and toes!
Along the lines of drawing...
I no longer I have to forge Keyan's signature on cards; he can write his name by himself.
And when he's not writing or drawing with markers and pencils, he's using them to make patterns and explore shapes.
But the most gratifying thing has got to be seeing Keyan find joy in the gospel. We purchased some "We Believe" flash cards that help kids visually learn the Articles of Faith. Just a week after introducing him to Article of Faith number two, I was sitting folding laundry when he went and got the cards, set them out, and recited it all on his own.
Way to go, little man. I am sure impressed by how much you are learning & growing. And I am definitely proud of what a good big brother you are and how much you love your baby brother. Küsse.
I love the philosophies of the book Teaching Your Children Joy. So, this year, I started Joy School with Keyan. Okay, not the "official" Joy School... but our own home-brewed version. I knew our routine would be a little off both before and after the baby's birth, so instead of sending away for the curriculum this year, I decided to plan lesson topics based on Keyan's interests. It's been lots of fun and Keyan has really enjoyed it. One of the things we do after a lesson is draw a picture of what we've learned. Keyan has always had access to paper and markers, but this was the beginning of something different- a recognition that the markings on the paper represented something. He began drawing planets and apples and people. People. I am proudest of these drawings. Keyan even drew a family portrait, which I can't find anywhere, but it was similar to the person in this picture... except everyone in the family had arms, hands, fingers, legs, feet, and toes!
Along the lines of drawing...
I no longer I have to forge Keyan's signature on cards; he can write his name by himself.
And when he's not writing or drawing with markers and pencils, he's using them to make patterns and explore shapes.
But the most gratifying thing has got to be seeing Keyan find joy in the gospel. We purchased some "We Believe" flash cards that help kids visually learn the Articles of Faith. Just a week after introducing him to Article of Faith number two, I was sitting folding laundry when he went and got the cards, set them out, and recited it all on his own.
Way to go, little man. I am sure impressed by how much you are learning & growing. And I am definitely proud of what a good big brother you are and how much you love your baby brother. Küsse.
Thursday, October 29, 2009
What Love Is
My sister-in-law, Heather, is an amazingly talented photographer. She does family portraits, newborn and kids pictures, weddings, engagements, pregnancy pics... and has wanted to branch into other events, like birth photography. When she expressed interest to me a while back, I thought, "Ok, if you want to be there, great... but if not, no big deal. I'm sure we'll get some snapshots of our own." I am so glad that Heather did end up being there. First of all, we never got any photos ourselves; we were a wee bit preoccupied. But secondly, there is no way we ever could have captured the emotions of the event the way Heather did. For that, I cannot express my gratitude to her enough. I will cherish these photos always. They really express what love is. The love and patience Heather had to take them. The love of a wonderful, supportive spouse who never left my side. The love of a caring, concerned mother who offered her support throughout the labor. And the love of a younger mother who could not be more overjoyed to bring another little spirit into this world.
Now for the official birth story:
Having hired a certified professional midwife and planning for an out-of-hospital birth, we started out in a birth center. The night before I was to be induced at the hospital (as required by law because I was 42 weeks), the midwife broke my water. Labor began almost immediately, and I quickly dilated to an 8. I labored in a birth tub (we had planned on a water birth) and took the contractions as they came (1 and a half to 2 minutes apart). People knock natural birth (and there is nothing wrong with choosing an epidural as you will later see...), but let me tell ya, there is something so wonderful about natural childbirth. It felt so good to work with my contractions, to experiment with different positions, and just feel my body preparing to have this baby. It was quite an amazing experience. Pretty soon, I had the overwhelming urge to push... but when the midwife checked me, I still had a cervical lip. But I could not control that urge to push- not pushing was so painful (just ask Heather, Jonathan, or my mom about the screams coming out of my mouth). So the midwife tried holding the lip out of the way so that I could push. But it didn't help; my cervix just needed to finish effacing. Meanwhile, I was in so much pain from trying to refrain from pushing. Every time I had a contraction, I had a vaso vagal response and vomited. Keep in mind, I was recovering from a cold, hadn't slept for nearly 24 hours.... I was just plain exhausted by that point. So we decided to head to the hospital for an epidural, which would control my urges to push until I was completely dilated. Within 5 minutes of receiving the epidural, the urge to push had gone away. I was able to sleep over the next few hours while we waited. Then I was given a little bit of pitocin because the lip was still there. I had just been administered the pitocin when the doctor came in to say we needed to perform a c-section, though there appeared to be no reason for it, other than the fact that he was on his lunch break and it was convenient. We stood our ground, and had a wonderful nurse midwife (CPMs do out-of-hospital births; CNMs do hospital births, but are ultimately bound by doctor's decisions) who helped buy us some more time to push, since I was finally fully dilated. I pushed for 3 and a half hours, trying all kinds of positions. I did everything I could, but at the end of that stretch, the midwives informed me that the baby had moved all of 2 or 3 MILLImeters and that his head was starting to swell. So now, the c-section was inevitable. But I was happy. We stood our ground and weren't bullied into a c-section before it was necessary. And I did all I could; the rest was in the Lord's hands. I had been given the opportunity to try for a vaginal birth and did a large part of it naturally... and, for me, there is just something empowering about that.
As you already know, Nolan Phillip Hoehne was born at 5:03pm on October 13th. He was 21 inches long..... and weighed in at 10 lbs 1 oz!
Now for the official birth story:
Having hired a certified professional midwife and planning for an out-of-hospital birth, we started out in a birth center. The night before I was to be induced at the hospital (as required by law because I was 42 weeks), the midwife broke my water. Labor began almost immediately, and I quickly dilated to an 8. I labored in a birth tub (we had planned on a water birth) and took the contractions as they came (1 and a half to 2 minutes apart). People knock natural birth (and there is nothing wrong with choosing an epidural as you will later see...), but let me tell ya, there is something so wonderful about natural childbirth. It felt so good to work with my contractions, to experiment with different positions, and just feel my body preparing to have this baby. It was quite an amazing experience. Pretty soon, I had the overwhelming urge to push... but when the midwife checked me, I still had a cervical lip. But I could not control that urge to push- not pushing was so painful (just ask Heather, Jonathan, or my mom about the screams coming out of my mouth). So the midwife tried holding the lip out of the way so that I could push. But it didn't help; my cervix just needed to finish effacing. Meanwhile, I was in so much pain from trying to refrain from pushing. Every time I had a contraction, I had a vaso vagal response and vomited. Keep in mind, I was recovering from a cold, hadn't slept for nearly 24 hours.... I was just plain exhausted by that point. So we decided to head to the hospital for an epidural, which would control my urges to push until I was completely dilated. Within 5 minutes of receiving the epidural, the urge to push had gone away. I was able to sleep over the next few hours while we waited. Then I was given a little bit of pitocin because the lip was still there. I had just been administered the pitocin when the doctor came in to say we needed to perform a c-section, though there appeared to be no reason for it, other than the fact that he was on his lunch break and it was convenient. We stood our ground, and had a wonderful nurse midwife (CPMs do out-of-hospital births; CNMs do hospital births, but are ultimately bound by doctor's decisions) who helped buy us some more time to push, since I was finally fully dilated. I pushed for 3 and a half hours, trying all kinds of positions. I did everything I could, but at the end of that stretch, the midwives informed me that the baby had moved all of 2 or 3 MILLImeters and that his head was starting to swell. So now, the c-section was inevitable. But I was happy. We stood our ground and weren't bullied into a c-section before it was necessary. And I did all I could; the rest was in the Lord's hands. I had been given the opportunity to try for a vaginal birth and did a large part of it naturally... and, for me, there is just something empowering about that.
As you already know, Nolan Phillip Hoehne was born at 5:03pm on October 13th. He was 21 inches long..... and weighed in at 10 lbs 1 oz!
Monday, June 1, 2009
Open House
The Draper (Utah) Temple was dedicated not too long ago, and Jonathan & I attended the open house with our ward (ward= local congregation)... but it was a total fiasco! The tours were packed. We had already been gone 3 hours by the time we reached the temple entrance, and our sitter called to say that Keyan was sick. So, only having been in the temple for 5 minutes... we left. Because of our experience, we did not plan on attending the Oquirrh Mountain Temple open house. But recently Keyan has shown great interest in temples. I mean, he has always requested to drive by the Provo Temple whenever possible... but a few Mondays ago, we went to the temple grounds for family night. Keyan asked to touch the temple, then to go inside. That latter request sparked a desire to take advantage of the Oquirrh Mountain open house. So we registered to go today- the very first day it was open to the public, at the very first time slot available. It was wonderful. Not only did it take less than 45 minutes to do the tour (though we did walk the grounds for 20 or 30 minutes)... but the spirit there was beautiful. Keyan was so reverent. He kept telling us, "I love the temple. I love the temple!" I am so grateful that all four of us could attend the temple today, where precious moments abounded.
*For those of you who may not be familiar with the purpose of LDS temples, there is a great 3 minute video available to watch here.
My absolute favorite picture of the day!!!
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Feeling Like Abraham...
(Slightly lengthy... Ye Be Forewarned!)
I probably should have issued this update before any of you had time to leave comments, since today's post may seem to completely contradict last week's sentiments! Still, I want you to know how much I appreciate your words of encouragement. It's a wonderful feeling to be supported in something! In recent weeks, we have felt much like Abraham as our willingness to obey was tested. But like all trials of faith, if we handle it well, the blessings come.
For us, the blessing came the day after posting about our decision to up and go to Florida. That day, Jonathan received a job offer at Spring Creek Elementary School here in Provo. Jono thought he had given a terrible interview, when in actuality they were quite impressed by his responses. He was extended a 4th grade position in a technology classroom, where each student has their own computer. The school will pay for Jono to receive technology endorsements, as well as an ESL endorsement. It's really a great opportunity. But when we first found out about it, we thought it was Heavenly Father's way of simply putting our mind at ease. That we could go to Florida and pursue positions... knowing that if nothing worked out, an opportunity would be awaiting us here. But it became difficult to even concentrate on Florida. It was like the thought of Florida had been dismissed from our minds. But though it took a lot of focus, we continued to pursue leads in Florida, check on openings, and simply pray like crazy to know what we should do. We wanted the Lord to know that despite the opportunity here, we were still quite willing to leave and go to Florida. Then yesterday I had an interesting experience.
When I opened my scriptures to read, the page fell to Section 9 of the Doctrine & Covenants. Knowing the content, it felt even more than I had been guided to this section. When I came to the verse about the "stupor of thought," I wondered if that had been what we were experiencing. I wondered if our difficulty in concentrating on Florida was our being caused to "forget the thing which is wrong." But what really hit me was verse 11: "Behold, it was expedient when you commenced; but you feared, and the time is past, and it is not expedient now."
A little background. In December of 2007, Jonathan and I packed up our apartment and were about to move to Palm Harbor, Florida. We had just felt prompted to go, and so we were going. Then, less than a week before we planned to leave, our housing fell through. We feared- just as verse 11 stated- going to Florida at that point, and so we decided to stay and have Jonathan finish out his schooling here. Whatever the reason, it does feel that the time has passed... at least for now. Perhaps it is the state of the economy. If we had gone in 2007, Jonathan would be applying to Florida districts as a local applicant (because of cutbacks, many districts are not even opening positions to external applicants). But Jonathan will receive notable endorsements if he works at Spring Creek, endorsements (particularly ESL) that are preferred by Florida districts. While we're not ruling Florida out, it does seem that perhaps the timing is not quite right. But we will see. We are more than happy to allow the Lord to guide us, because only He knows what is best for us.
I probably should have issued this update before any of you had time to leave comments, since today's post may seem to completely contradict last week's sentiments! Still, I want you to know how much I appreciate your words of encouragement. It's a wonderful feeling to be supported in something! In recent weeks, we have felt much like Abraham as our willingness to obey was tested. But like all trials of faith, if we handle it well, the blessings come.
For us, the blessing came the day after posting about our decision to up and go to Florida. That day, Jonathan received a job offer at Spring Creek Elementary School here in Provo. Jono thought he had given a terrible interview, when in actuality they were quite impressed by his responses. He was extended a 4th grade position in a technology classroom, where each student has their own computer. The school will pay for Jono to receive technology endorsements, as well as an ESL endorsement. It's really a great opportunity. But when we first found out about it, we thought it was Heavenly Father's way of simply putting our mind at ease. That we could go to Florida and pursue positions... knowing that if nothing worked out, an opportunity would be awaiting us here. But it became difficult to even concentrate on Florida. It was like the thought of Florida had been dismissed from our minds. But though it took a lot of focus, we continued to pursue leads in Florida, check on openings, and simply pray like crazy to know what we should do. We wanted the Lord to know that despite the opportunity here, we were still quite willing to leave and go to Florida. Then yesterday I had an interesting experience.
When I opened my scriptures to read, the page fell to Section 9 of the Doctrine & Covenants. Knowing the content, it felt even more than I had been guided to this section. When I came to the verse about the "stupor of thought," I wondered if that had been what we were experiencing. I wondered if our difficulty in concentrating on Florida was our being caused to "forget the thing which is wrong." But what really hit me was verse 11: "Behold, it was expedient when you commenced; but you feared, and the time is past, and it is not expedient now."
A little background. In December of 2007, Jonathan and I packed up our apartment and were about to move to Palm Harbor, Florida. We had just felt prompted to go, and so we were going. Then, less than a week before we planned to leave, our housing fell through. We feared- just as verse 11 stated- going to Florida at that point, and so we decided to stay and have Jonathan finish out his schooling here. Whatever the reason, it does feel that the time has passed... at least for now. Perhaps it is the state of the economy. If we had gone in 2007, Jonathan would be applying to Florida districts as a local applicant (because of cutbacks, many districts are not even opening positions to external applicants). But Jonathan will receive notable endorsements if he works at Spring Creek, endorsements (particularly ESL) that are preferred by Florida districts. While we're not ruling Florida out, it does seem that perhaps the timing is not quite right. But we will see. We are more than happy to allow the Lord to guide us, because only He knows what is best for us.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Florida or Bust!
Now that I've finally posted Keyan's birthday pictures, I probably won't be on blogger for quite some time. Things are busy, busy, busy around here as we prepare for our trip to Florida. That's because our trip entails a lot more than simply packing for a vacation.
For a long time, we have felt that we should move to Florida. But it just never worked out for us. Now that Jonathan has graduated, he has been looking for teaching jobs all over the state of Utah... but nothing has worked out here, either. Which is really surprising since Jonathan has fabulous recommendations, and well... he's a guy. And good male teachers are hard to come by. The school Jonathan currently teaches for would have loved to rehire Jonathan, but cutbacks didn't allow it. In fact, the school had to issue notice of non-renewals for all non-tenured teachers (3 years and under). So, we came up with...
Plan A:
Continue applying for jobs in Utah and hopefully be hired to one before heading out to Florida for the summer... where we would also apply for jobs. If something worked out, Jonathan would return to Utah to pack up our things and move us out. But Jonathan just interviewed his last interview... and things don't look too promising. So, we are considering...
Plan B:
Packing up everything now, not later, and just going. It's a somewhat scary option. And it probably seems crazy to a lot of people to just pack up and move with no knowledge beforehand of what will happen. It would definitely be a leap of faith. And it definitely means that there is lots of packing and getting ready to be done over the next two weeks. Yep, two weeks! Are we nuts? Maybe. But we are continuing down that path until we feel differently :)
For a long time, we have felt that we should move to Florida. But it just never worked out for us. Now that Jonathan has graduated, he has been looking for teaching jobs all over the state of Utah... but nothing has worked out here, either. Which is really surprising since Jonathan has fabulous recommendations, and well... he's a guy. And good male teachers are hard to come by. The school Jonathan currently teaches for would have loved to rehire Jonathan, but cutbacks didn't allow it. In fact, the school had to issue notice of non-renewals for all non-tenured teachers (3 years and under). So, we came up with...
Plan A:
Continue applying for jobs in Utah and hopefully be hired to one before heading out to Florida for the summer... where we would also apply for jobs. If something worked out, Jonathan would return to Utah to pack up our things and move us out. But Jonathan just interviewed his last interview... and things don't look too promising. So, we are considering...
Plan B:
Packing up everything now, not later, and just going. It's a somewhat scary option. And it probably seems crazy to a lot of people to just pack up and move with no knowledge beforehand of what will happen. It would definitely be a leap of faith. And it definitely means that there is lots of packing and getting ready to be done over the next two weeks. Yep, two weeks! Are we nuts? Maybe. But we are continuing down that path until we feel differently :)
Thursday, May 14, 2009
The Age of Three
Keyan's birthday was a little over a week ago, but I am just now getting Blogger to cooperate with me!
Keyan has been talking about the kind of cake he wants for months. But I am not very creative in the baking department and I hated to buy some fancy cake that only 3 people were going to eat. Holly, Jonathan's little sister, to the rescue! She made this awesomely delicious chocolate cake with a photo cutout of Lightning McQueen. Simple. Yet Keyan loved it.
The night before Keyan's birthday was Monday night, so we actually had cake and presents a little early. That way Grandpa could be there too since his stake calling would have taken him away the following night :)
Waiting to open presents...
Percy and Fearless Freddie to add to his train collection.
Birthday morning at our house!
Birthday cereal. The one time he gets to eat the sugary stuff. His pick? Fruit Loops, of course!
Ready to celebrate the day.
We went to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point. We had free passes we'd been saving for just this occasion, and boy am I glad we didn't have to pay for the experience. Keyan hated it. He was terrified. Thinking about it, I suppose miniature dinosaur figures are a far cry from the life size kind. Anyway, this is the only happy shot we have of him!
One of the scarier parts... the T-Rex display.
Me and Jono :)
It's amazing what an IHOP smiley face pancake can do to help soothe dinosaur fears!THE END :)
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
A Sweet New Blossom of Humanity...
... A boy blossom that is :)
Wagging his finger at me for thinking that he might be a girl ;)
Not quite a thumb sucker; just resting against his face.
The beautiful profile. In the end, it never matters whether it's a boy or girl, does it?It's still love at first sight.
