Sorry for the night picture, beggars can't be choosers. We'll get one in daylight soon, maybe after we do a little with our yard. Within 48 hours counts as within 24 hours right? We're still adjusting to Pmc's new schedule. It throws us for a loop, because it is different every single day of the week. Mondays he teaches. Tuesdays and Wednesdays he has class until 8pm, but starts at different times, and sometimes goes in early to have office hours or do homework. Thursday is his short day. Friday he has no class. But Syracuse also has some pretty different holidays. So this month he has 4 Mondays off. We are so glad, because it gives us a chance to get things done, and spend time together. But it doesn't make any sort of routine very easy.
So now I have to do the blogging on my own while Pmc is at school, and Cpc is down for a nap.
The last month has been CRAZY to say the least. I'd like to give all the details, but I'm just not motivated to dig into it. Let's just say, it's hard on your faith and courage to move across the country believing your home is waiting, only to find out that it's not. Then, to have to search for 3 weeks to find that home, fork out extra money, and rely on other's kindness......that's doubly hard. At the same time, our faith and courage has increased. We know we're in the right place. We've been so blessed, and taken care of, and loved by absolute strangers. We are so grateful for family and friends, and Christlike people.
We finally moved the last item (the piano) in yesterday. Our storage unit is empty. We feel at home. We are enjoying all the little projects that come from living in a house rather than a basement apartment. Pmc is really enjoying his assistantship and his classes. I am working hard to find students. Cpc is....well, growing and learning like a weed.
So, we'll start with cpc, since he has the most to share! To start off, when we were staying with the H family, cpc discovered the wonderful world of boyhood. It really bothers me when people say that we train boys to be boys, and girls to be girls, and that really they are the same. One day there was a bunch of other moms with their kids over. The girls were playing on one side of the room with dress-ups, and the boys on the other side of the room were playing with a mini-pinball machine. After walking back and forth between the two groups a couple times, cpc decided that pinball and boys were definitely his pick.
We realized how sensitive cpc really is to his surroundings. There are a few stories to share here. We'll start with sleep. Even though cpc had been regularly sleeping through the night from 9:00pm-7:30am before we moved, while we were living with the H family he woke up at least once a night most nights and wouldn't sleep past 6:30am. Now that he is back in his own crib and has all his own belongings surrounding him, he is sleeping through the night again, and waking up at 7am. We'll take the compromise! The first week at the H family's home was the worst, but it was neat to see how when we got to the storage unit to unload our truck, cpc walked from item to item grinning from ear to ear. We could tell he knew this was HIS furniture, HIS boxes, and HIS toys! Once we got that stuff moved into our own place he has been a totally different kid. I don't think he could've acted any more excited when he saw the otter pops coming out of a box. He was barely capable of waiting long enough for us to freeze him one.
It is clear he finally feels at home, just like us! Last but certainly not least, is the fact that cpc's balance/peripheral vision has been COMPLETELY whacked since we moved across the country. He learned to walk at 10 months, and didn't EVER walk into things. Well, the first week we were here he walked DIRECTLY into the corner of a table. So here's his first black eye, while eating toast with black raspberry jam!
His 2nd black eye happened when he tripped. He has been tripping over his toes all the time. His feet are growing fast I admit, he skipped size 4 shoes completely! You'd think we are beating this child. I promise we're not!
Cpc also cut his two top pre-molars this last week! We thought it was quite interesting, since his first eight teeth grew in all at once at 9 months. He finally has 10. He is absolutely LOVING eating trail mix!
Okay, so, onto me. My surgery has been delayed until post-baby-birth. I'm mostly relieved on that. I'm excited to meet with my doula next week, and I really like the doctor and midwife I chose. I'm excited to attempt a natural VBAC this time around. I'm feeling VERY pregnant already. I'm enjoying this pregnancy a lot, especially since I didn't start with 15 extra hypothyroid pounds. My body looks much more pregnant and much less chubby! Sleep is already a problem though, and I started feeling this little kid kicking around by 12 weeks. I'm also really enjoying the fact that we have 2 sets of missionaries in the ward, Elders and Sisters. We've had both over for dinner, and I get to go teaching with the Sisters tomorrow!
Pmc is really enjoying teaching his discussions. He feels really good about his teaching skills, which I'm sure doesn't surprise anyone. He was very nervous when he found out he would be doing those on his own, but I think he's surprised himself. His classes are mostly good, except that they aren't much more advanced than the last classes he took at the U. He says they are repeating a lot of information he's already learned. So, he's enjoying a slower semester, and hopefully it will pick up for him in the coming semesters.
As a whole, we're thoroughly enjoying this adventure, now that we're settled. We are grateful for the trials we had the last month, even if they were SUPER hard for us. We feel much stronger and ready to face new challenges. So here's to our New York life....
