Our Version of Elf on a Shelf

To be honest, Elf on a Shelf kind of creeps me out.  However, I love the tradition and fun of it.  We have found a way to make it work for our family.

Meet our sock money, Purple.  She ( Ila decided she was a girl) hides every night for us to find her.  Ila knows we are the ones hiding her and she even gets to participate some nights in the hiding.  Dru hid Purple before he left for work this morning and when Ila found her, she laughed so hard I thought she might cry, and for those that know Ila, laughs don't come easy, she makes you work for it.  She said, "Daddy is so silly!" and she immediately hid Purple for Dru to find her in the morning.

Purple doesn't watch Ila and she doesn't report to anybody whether Ila has been good or bad.  I'm actually very impressed with the creativity of some moms I've seen set up scenerios where their elf has been mischievous.  However, Purple does not go about at night making messes for me to clean up.  She hides out in the open for us to find.

I love that we have found a way for this tradition to be a part of our family.  I kind of like that we have made it our own.  I hope Purple makes our family laugh for years and years to come!

What traditions have you tweaked to work for your family?

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One Year

You will never be forgotten.

Thankful for four sandy feet.

Your little sister will know of you.

One of the most beautiful spots I know.

Picnic

Today makes one year since you left our world.  A couple days ago we went out to our favorite spot, the place we made special at your Farewell Celebration.  We had a picnic and celebrated you.  We talked about you.  We played and laughed.  We even saw a dolphin swim right up to the beach.  It was very special and I'm thankful we have a beautiful place to celebrate you.

 

We love and miss you everyday.  You will be forever stamped on our souls.  Your sisters will both always know of you.  Thank you for everything you've taught us.  We love you forever and ever.

 

 

Love,

Mommy, Daddy, Big Sister, and Little Sister

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Photo Purge

Spooky Ghost

Pedicures.

Splash

Dish Duty

"I'm glad I have a sister."

Baby Won't Sleep

Carnival

Goofy

Hanging out

Moon light

Out to lunch

Race

"I'm a ghost"

I melt

The only way cleaning gets done around here

She's in heaven

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Photo Purge

Pictures from our week!

Good Morning!

Delivering midwife, Lesley.

Sunset at the Battery.

Lunch.

Candle lit for our angels.

Halloween decorations at a house downthe street.

Happy girls.

Ila's first attempt at writing her name.

Little water lover.

Breakfast by the water.

Well taken care of babies.

:)

 

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The Birth of Sylvia June

Five days past my due date.  Will this pregnancy ever end?  Will I ever get to hold my baby?  9:30 PM my water breaks.  No contractions.  This could be a long night.  I try to sleep.  My nerves won’t let me.  A few hours later the contractions come but far apart and irregular.  An hour later they are intense and two to three minutes apart.  I’m walking, swaying, breathing.  Bob Marley plays in the background.  It’s happening.  My baby is coming tonight!  My husband and mother are there.  They take turns holding heat to my abdomen, to the pain. 

I’m in labor land now.  It feels like one long contraction that intensifies every so often.  There is no break.  I’m doing my circular breathing.  Thank you Birthing From Within.  I hear myself moaning.  It’s animalistic, quite beautiful actually.  “Every little thing is gonna be alright.”  After two hours, he calls the midwife.  She hears me in the background and says, “I’ll meet you there in thirty minutes.”  He packs the car.  I continue to labor in my home. 

2:45 am we get in the car.  The contractions are excruciating now.  Emergency flashers are on.  We are flying down the road.  It feels like a movie.  I am in so much pain. I don’t remember being in this much pain until the very end last time.  There is no way this is the end.  I don’t know if I can do this for hours.  Another contraction.  I can’t do this for hours!  Forget natural birth.  Take me to the hospital for some relief.  No, just get me to the birthing pool.  It will feel so amazing.  If I can just make it to the water. 

We finally pull in.  The midwife meets us at the car.  She helps me to the birthing room.  “Are you feeling any pressure?” she asks.  “Not really,” I say.  I see the pool filling up.  Thank, God.  I drop my pants and she checks me.  “It won’t be long,” she says.  I stand back up for another killer contraction.  I hold the bed post.  She puts the monitor on me.   Silence.  She’s searching, searching.  This is too familiar.  This can’t be happening.  I can’t believe I’m praying for a heartbeat again.  She goes to find a Doppler.  I begin to panic.  He tries his best to calm me.  “You just need to focus on you and the baby.  Breathe for our baby.”  “Our baby without a heartbeat,” I think. 

She comes back with the Doppler.  Silence.  It’s broken.  After everything.  After all we’ve been through.  This is how it’s going to end.  How can there not be a heartbeat.  My body takes over.  I have to push.  I’m pushing.  Wait, it’s not time to push yet.  I haven’t made it into the water.  We haven’t found a heartbeat.  How can I be pushing? 

Although I fight them, they make me lay on the bed.  I push again.  I don’t know if the baby I’m pushing out is alive or dead.  The next moment, my baby is out and on my chest.  I hear my husband crying out with joy.   Our baby is here!  I’m holding our baby.  That little flicker of a heartbeat we saw so long ago.  That baby we thought we lost.  That baby we longed for.  All I can say is, “Oh my God.”  I’m in shock.  I can’t believe our baby is here.  Our baby is looking right at me.  Our baby is breathing, squirming, moving.  I am so in love.  But wait, is our baby a boy or a girl?  I go to look.  I stop myself.  I want him to tell me.  He looks.  “It’s a little girl!” he says with tears in his eyes.  We have another little girl.  It’s all over.  The waiting is over.  She’s here.  She’s healthy.  She’s beautiful.  Our little Sylvia June.  You have our hearts forever.

 

Sylvia June Wolfe

Born August 30, 2012 

3:10 am just ten minutes after arriving at the birth center.

7 lbs. 13 oz.

19 inches long

Beautiful, sweet and loved.  What a wonderful blessing.

 

Thank you to our delivering midwife Lesley, our nurse midwife Ashton, and all of the other staff at Charleston Birth Place for all of your care and support.  You ladies are amazing! 

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Our Next Big Adventure

We love Charleston!  It is our perfect city.   There’s so much to do.  There’s so much to see.  So much beauty it takes a lifetime to soak it all in. 

When we were pregnant the first time around, we thought we’d do the responsible thing.  The thing that everyone expected us to do and the thing that adults would do.  We bought a house in the suburbs with plenty of square footage, a nice neighborhood in a good school district with a big backyard.  We have regretted this decision ever since.  There is nothing wrong with the suburbs.  They’re just not for us.  We have made some amazing friends in good ole Summerville and that I am thankful for.

We recently, by chance (don’t the best things always come about by chance?), had an amazing opportunity put in front of us.  We were resistant to it at first and joked about it but eventually it became a “why not” situation.  It is not one we came to lightly.  We discussed it over and over again before we decided to go for it.  We will be moving our family of four from a 1600 square foot, three bedroom home to a 600-700 square foot, one bedroom apartment in downtown Charleston.  We are very excited about this!  Yes, there will be sacrifices made and some things will be more difficult but we gain so much more than we lose.

There is a park across the street with a playground, soccer and baseball fields, basketball and tennis courts, and picnic tables.  There are multiple other parks within a ¼ mile.  There is a free trolley system that runs through all of downtown and there is a stop about two blocks away.  This means we can catch the trolley for free to museums, restaurants, the aquarium and tons of shopping.  This is a dream for us that we didn’t think we would be able to achieve for a very long time.  Most of our neighbors average millions of dollars a year so that will be interesting!

One thing that almost stood in our way was our stuff.  We thought we needed all of this square footage to hold our stuff.  I am going to have a new series where I talk about simplifying instead of organizing.  Because we have limited space, I had to decide what things were actually necessities. Do we really need five potato peelers?  The less stuff you have, the less time you have to waste on it. 

I will definitely be walking all of the time so I will be taking lots of pictures.  If you have Instagram, you can follow me @seekingradiance.  If you don’t have Instagram, you can check the left side of the blog for pictures.  I will also be posting some of the pictures on Facebook.

I hope you are excited for our new adventure and you enjoy following along!

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Daily Supplements- 38 Weeks

These are the supplements I take daily now that I'm 38 weeks.  Sure does seem like a lot but completely worth it!  :) 

Vitamin D3 5000 ius
Probiotic
Prenatal
Evening Primrose Oil
Red Raspberry Leaf
Calcium/Magnesium

I also drink at least one glass of red raspberry leaf tea with pink lemonade everyday.  I'm getting pretty tired of it but I'm just thinking of how toned my uterus is getting! 

What supplements do/did you take during pregnancy?  Did it change throughout your pregnancy?  Did it change once you had the baby and you began nursing? Pin It

My First Post for Preggie Pals

I am now a featured blogger for Preggie Pals!  This is my first post about the loss of our twin.  It was easier to write than I thought it would be.  It is very healing for me to write and share my story.  Check it out!

http://www.preggiepals.com/the-not-so-vanishing-twin-syndrome/

Make sure to "like" the Preggie Pals Facebook page! Pin It

My Birth Plan

I think that a birth plan is very important for anyone about to give birth.  Of course, anything can happen and it is important to be flexible but it is also important to let everyone know your wishes.  I have decided to share my birth plan.

Birth Plan

*I, Brandi Wolfe, am preparing to give birth at Charleston Birth Place.

*My support team includes my husband, Dru Wolfe, and my mother, Terri Paugh.

*Other people welcome in the birth room are my mother-in-law, Connie Wolfe, Liz Reeder and Nicole Hinson.

*We plan on staying home until labor is very active for at least 2 hours.

*I trust my body’s ability to birth my baby.  I plan on a drug free birth.

*I will bring my own food to the birth center.

*I plan on wearing my own clothes.

*I plan on my mom videotaping my birth.

*My guests will remain in the family room until we have had a chance to bond with our new baby and I have had a chance to nurse him/her.

*My desire is to wait for the cord to be clamped until after it has completely finished pulsating at which time I prefer my husband to cut the cord.

*I will be encapsulating my placenta so I wish for it to be treated accordingly.  Living TreePlacenta Encapsulation Services will be performing the encapsulation.

*I plan on birthing in the birth pool.

*My desire is to have my husband in the birth pool with me and assist in delivering my baby if the moment is right.

*I plan on using the Birthing From Within method of childbirth.

*I choose not to bathe my baby.

*I prefer no vitamin K, no eye ointment, and no Hep B shot.

*Should the baby be a boy, I do not desire my baby be circumcised.

*I prefer the midwife provide lots of verbal encouragement, physical touch and be present with me as much as possible.

Should I be transferred to the hospital-

*I prefer my baby to stay with me at all times.  Should the baby need emergency care, I desire my husband to stay with my baby at all times.

*I prefer my midwife stay with me and help me to reach as many of my birth goals as possible.



Did you have a birth plan?

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Boy or Girl? Old Wives' Tales.

I thought it would be fun to go through some old wives' tales to see what we could figure out!  Take a look at these and then vote in the poll at the top of the page!

One of the most popular old wives' tales is if the baby's heart rate is under 140 it's a boy, over 140 it's a girl. Baby's heart rate has been mostly in the 150s and never below 140.

Low belly.

This kid is no doubt low which means boy.

Well, I definitely experienced morning sickness but it seems to be mixed as to what that means. Most sites say that means girl.

Both the Chinese and the Mayan calendars say girl.

I had terrible headaches almost everyday for a few months and apparently that means it's a boy.

Blossoming breasts.

My face broke out and my breasts have definitely blossomed, both of which mean girl.

My hair has gotten thicker, one of the few pregnancy symptoms I am happy to get. Thicker hair means boy.

Unfortunately, I have not had many cravings this pregnancy. At least not anything like my first pregnancy. When I do want something it is usually fruit, lemonade, or sweets of some sort. Sweet is girl but sour is boy so this one is pretty split.

Dru hung his ring over my belly and it started going back and forth and then went in a circle. We did it again and it started in a circle but then started going back and forth so this one is inconclusive.  Supposedly circle is girl and back and forth is boy.

No help!

Children are supposed to be intuitive so I've asked Ila a thousand times. She has gone back and forth so many times. I think she says boy most often but she says sister more than brother. She most often says the baby has a penis but sometimes she says vulva. She says the baby's name is Alice. (I have no idea where that came from but she is pretty certain of this.) So she is no help!

UPDATE:  Ila has now decided that the baby is a girl.  She is very certain of this and gets frustrated if you say that it could be a boy.

Sounds like it is better for your self-esteem if you are pregnant with a boy. Supposedly you look better than you normally do and carry most of your weight in front. I am not fortunate enough to have these characteristics. I do not look better than I normally do and I like to carry my weight everywhere but mostly in the thighs, hips, and butt area. If this is a boy, I got screwed!

I have gone back and forth on this so many times and everyone's guesses seem to be split.  I have no idea so it really will be a wonderful surprise either way!  What do you think?  Boy or girl?  Please vote in the poll at the top of the page!

Were any old wives' tales right for you?  Were any of them dead wrong?  Are there any good ones I missed?

To see more maternity pictures, check out this post or head over to Facebook!

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Slices of Life

Snacking on SC peaches.

Bumble bee splashes.

Stuck in the house.  Might as well work on making it look pretty.

Peek-a-boo!

Grieving.

 Just trying to enjoy the last few weeks with my only child!  I'm in a lot of pain but I have a few things I'm going to do to try and relieve some of it.  We have been working on the house some.  Re-decorating and re-organizing.  Trying to get ready for baby!

It is a little quieter and a little sadder around here.  We had to say goodbye to our beloved 8 1/2 year old boxer.  I wrote in this post about how I could help prepare Ila.  We were lucky to have our vet come to our home which I think was good for everyone.  Ila is doing well for now but I'm not sure she fully comprehends it yet.

I'm now 34 weeks pregnant and even though I'm uncomfortable and in pain, I'm getting so excited!

You can follow me on Instagram for more pictures!

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Maternity Pics!

We had so much fun with Ashley Maone Photography!  She was amazing and as you can see, very talented. These are some of my favorites although it was so hard to pick.  The dress I am wearing was my mom's and the top Ila is wearing was mine!  I'm so glad we have these to look at and remember forever!  Check out Ashley's Facebook page and if you are in the Mid-Ohio Valley area, I highly recommend her! Contact her for a session ashelymaone@yahoo.com or 740-236-2259.

I've gotten a lot of compliments on my dress!  Sorry everyone, it was my mom's in the 80s!  You can either go raid your mom's closet and hope she kept some pretty pieces around or I found this super cute dress that is similar and a great price.  If someone doesn't buy it soon, I might have to snatch it up!

To see more of the pictures, check out my Facebook page!

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