the mega update...

I have had a super, super crazy July-...what month is it now?  Ever since I took on the job at WIU, and choose to pursue my doula certification...and continued to teach & sub at the Y...and attempt to keep Z involved in playgroups/sometimes running a playgroup, while helping at L's school...and did I mention I began painting canvases for childrens' rooms?..I've been a little busy.  I did complete the kids' scrapbooks for Poland & I've kept up w prep & grading for class, but I had to let something slide, so blogging & any attempt to keep up w current scrapbooking has fallen to the wayside.  Apologies, loved ones.  Here's a brief, story-through-photograph recap of all I felt I'd missed out on blogging about...from July til Oct. 14th.  I plan on picking back up w Halloween & attempting a better balance soon...I'm learning as I go. :)  Enjoy! 

all of us(but motion sick dad) on a mini-roller coaster at a fair in Macomb

fair treats & sweet Amir, L's bf & our other boy

making dad's b'day cake

Happy B'day to daddy!  (July 9th)

dad's golf cake

some beautiful things from our awesome co-op (both kids helped harvest sometimes) :)

excitement!  L. ties his shoes all by himself!!

Aunt Leslie & Uncle Logan come to visit & we all go "Bonkers!"

Zo convinces Uncle Logan to read "Once Upon a Potty" :)

Zora: I make a mess!

we host some exchange students...B. looks crazy.

showing off our swim lesson skills

L shows granddad all he learned in swim class

one of my favorite Macomb homies moves.  (Miss you, Jessie!)

we vaca in St. Louis

the Arch

from the top of the Arch

the zoo

wet kiddos, tired parents:  day 2 of zoo

our fantastic friends, the Gartlands, who also lived in Poland last year

the Keys in St. Louis

petting the rays!

Zora "sets up" her babies

cool L. going to school on "green day" (Aug)

my 30th b'day gift from my in-laws (Thanks!)

the boys take in an away game (Sept.)

fun in Champaign after mom's doula training

grandmother comes to help out

on the playground w granny

snapped by granny

all my kids after school :)

Tim & Emily create a kids' triatholan

Christine visits:  mom's nite out!  (miss you, lady!)

Braylon visits:  Zora is a "big helper"

Lincoln school has a fund-raising fair

cotton candy, everyone!

Langston gets silly over his prize from the cake walk

WIU's homecoming parade

tub fun

volunteering in the library at L's school

Z "helping" mom by taking pix while mom works in L's library :)

our parent-created, parent-run Macomb playgroup:  going strong this fall!

Macomb High's homecoming parade:  Langston & Amir were in the paper catching candy! :)

Mrs. Pryor (L's teacher) got dunked as a fund-raiser for MHS's after-prom party.  Her daughter is a senior.

mom's 30th b'day dinner (10-4, good buddy. :)

Langston's new bff, Eli

Mrs. Pryor's class on their 1st field trip!

Pumpkin cookies

fall soccer

mom's college roomie, Cassie, visits

L. making a rope at the 4-H tent at the Farmer's Market

mom's birthday mom's nite out

Grandmom & Granddad visit

the girls:  mom, Zora & Cassie

the roomies, the kids & the colonel (ha!)

our new bedding:  made by grandmother!  (thank you!)

I fixed a supper dedicated to my late granny gray on what would've been her b'day, Oct. 14th.  I miss her.

Zora says...

pumpkin cookies

just so I don't forget.  Z says the cutest things lately.  For example...

"I need dental sauce."`
"Dis my baby lion club."
"I want cereal."  (me: What kind?)  "Snow flakes."  (me: Cornflakes?)
L:"May I be excused [from the dinner table]?"  Me: "Yes.  Zora, did you hear your brother?  What do you need to ask?  May I be..."  Z:"A Piwate!"

daddy's birthday cake:  as Fudge would say, "Eat it or wear it!"

so much more.  daily.  this girl keeps us laughing.

What is a doula?

A doula is  someone who...

• provides emotional and physical support for a woman during, and/or just after labor.
• stays by the side of the woman during the entire labor.
• assists the woman and her partner in carrying out their birth plan.
• understands the physiology of birth 
• understands the emotional needs of a woman in labor
• facilitates communication between the laboring woman, her partner & the medical care providers.

• perceives her role as one who nurtures & protects the woman's memory of her birth experience.   (I love them all, but I think this is my favorite.)

the above is taken (& slightly revised) from the DONA int. workshop I attended in September. 

Pictured: my doula, Tammy, assisting me as I labor with baby Zora.  My birth experience wouldn't have been the same without her.

Yikes in photo form....

Happy Meal experiment.

New Blog!

The Diary of a Doula  (servingmoms.blogspot.com)
My doula information (books to read, movies to watch, studies, etc.)  will be posted on a separate blog.  I just got back from my training on Sun. evening & I am SO excited to get started!  If anyone in Macomb or surrounding areas would like labor support, please contact me.

blog from KIN & mom's update

http://wiukinesiology.blogspot.com/
Good idea.  I like my chair.  And I'm not in any sort of "loop," so I've got to catch up & keep up a little.
Classes are going well.  I love seeing all these really athletic kids sweating it out while doing Hatha Yoga. :)  Several of them have told me that:  they really like the class, it's more intense than they expected & they will no longer be lifting (weights) before doing my class (say good morning! to holding the plank :)

 In other news, my dance (Zumba) class went well at the Y.  Youth Yoga begins next week & I can't wait to see all my little gals again.  My in-laws are here right now for the long weekend & my mom will be here on Tues, so that she can help w Miss Z. while I do my doula training in Champaign.  I can't wait for that!  If anyone is interested in having some labor support, please contact me! 

Langston & Mrs. Pryor

  Langston continues to get used to Big Boy School.  The first few days of excitement wore off & he found that the day was long.  By lunch, he was really missing mama & fam.  He's come home w daily art for me (& sometimes B.) that says "omo" (mom) & dad & usually has a house/family/kid & mom on it.  (Yes, he's not tough to figure out.)  His fantastic teacher is really helping, though.  She said he was "a good example of a student" for the rest of the kids.  :)  Sweet guy.  I'm missing him, but Z and I are so busy that the 7:45-2:45 time when he's gone is flying by.

Zora's first (non-baby) puzzle

Zora is wearing panties in this pic above!  :) She has been too fun on her "just mama & parents" days.  She has said the funniest things lately...

Z going potty at her school

• Even so!--I'm not sure what she thinks this means, but apparently it's bad!
• Odd-iously not!--she knows what she means w this one & uses it in a sassy way.
• Berenstang--from the Berenstain Bears, but she uses it freely w any bear, esp. the Three Bears story.
• Two-pats--Hyland's teething tablets.
• something different everyday....;)

We've been having lots of fun at home lately, too...Enjoy!