Slide, Slide, Slippety, Slide

When grandpa came to visit he brought Sawyer the slide he made for me on Valentine's Day when I was 1. It took Sawyer a few tries to master the slipper slide, but now he's a pro. It's usually the 1st thing he does in the morning and numerous times throughout the day. This slide will contribute to many years of fun. Here's Sawyer in action:

Getting prepared to sit down

Scooting forward

Wee

That was fun!

Time to go again.

Untitled from Kristen Schenk on Vimeo.

16 weeks

Before we get to the latest pregnancy update I thought I would update you about Sawyer's eyes. This week we went back to the optometrist after 3 nights of eye dilation. The Dr. determined Sawyer is farsighted with a prescription of +2 in both eyes. The good news is at this time the prescription is not strong enough to warrant glasses. However, the Dr. said his farsightedness will probably continue to worsen until about the age of 4, so Sawyer will be returning to the optometrist every 6 months. More than likely he will require glasses at some point, but right now he will remain glasses free!

16 weeks, sorry for the shadow

How far along: 16 weeks 3 days

Total weight gain/loss: 10 lbs. (more on this in a moment)

Maternity clothes: not yet, but I'm going to pull out the box very soon, the pants are getting tight

Sleep: only side sleeping with a pillow b/w my legs

Best moment this week: having Kyle home for a few extra days

Movement: A little, but not much

Food cravings: anything I see someone else eating on TV

What I am missing: Working out, just going outside in general, I know it's strange it's just been a long time. I was doing well working out regularly running at the beginning of the pregnancy (before I even knew I was pregnant) and then Kyle's work schedule changed and now it's impossible to go to the gym (the gym would have to open at 4 am) and the ice-packed sidewalks are way too dangerous.

What I am looking forward to: Finding out the gender at the next appointment

Milestones: Officially popping out :)

Fair Warning: this is not to meant to be a complaining post, but I just received this news and I'm a bit taken aback. After I have time to process the information I'm sure I'll be back to my normal self.

I had my 16 week appointment today. For the most part it was very routine. The baby's heart rate was 142. Which is very low for any heartbeat checks I have ever had, but it was strong and consistent.

This week I've putting together Sawyer's "baby book." I say that loosely because I'm just creating a book of his 1st year online. Anyway, I was looking at old blog posts about his pregnancy and I did not wear my 1st piece of maternity clothing or gain any weight until 20 weeks with Sawyer. I know they say you get bigger with each pregnancy, but seriously I'm already 1 month ahead of the timeframe I was with Sawyer's pregnancy add to the fact w/ Sawyer I was running all the time and now I'm not...this could get interesting I mean I gained 10 lbs. in a month! Granted w/ Sawyer the first month I gained weight (5 months) I gained 8 lbs. and then it leveled off. That's what I was hoping for until the dr. entered the room.

I was required to have more lab work due to a low thyroid level on my initial labs. The Dr. said this is very common during early pregnancy and should return to normal levels. Unfortunately, the second test revealed almost zero thyroid levels. Say what!? I've never had an issue w/ my thyroid or anything else during pregnancy for that matter. So, as soon as possible I must visit an endocrinologist to get my thyroid levels in check. I have no idea if this will go away once the baby is born. This may explain the issue of the sudden weight gain though. I've never had thyroid issues, so the sudden lack of thyroid production may have wreaked havoc on my body. At this point I don't have many answers to my questions. At the doctor's office I was too shocked to ask many questions, but I did ask what it means for my body to have low thyroid levels (what are the effects). Her exact answer, "The baby also has low thyroid levels." Okay, well what does that mean!?

So, the plan...I must have a plan in order to stop obsessing:

1. Visit the endocrinologist

2. Only buy healthy foods from here on out :( Sad, I've never really had to worry about weight during pregnancy, and honestly the Dr. isn't concerned about my weight, but it's always better to eat healthy right.

3. Rearrange Kyle's work schedule so I can once again go to the gym. The alone time will do me some good anyway.

4. Remember the most important thing about this pregnancy, the baby, is doing well and seems healthy!

And to end on a funny note. Kyle's 1st reaction when I told him everything about the not-so-great Dr.'s visit: "It must be a girl."

1st Zoo Visit

Okay, I know it's February, but we literally haven't seen the sun or the grass in 2 months, so when the weather was in the high 50's for 2 consecutive days we jumped at the invitation to go to the Akron Zoo. It also happened to be Sawyer's 1st zoo visit. I think the sunshine did us all well.

Both S and G enjoyed running around outside, climbing rocks, watching the penguins up close, pointing out all the animals, and licking the exhibit's glass enclosures (okay maybe that last thing was only Sawyer). We went with some church friends so there were 5 adults and 6 children ranging from 4 years old to 3 weeks. Let's just say we had quite a wild adventure at the zoo. Not really sure why we brought the strollers :)

Sawyer watching the penguins.

We were there for 3 hours and the kids did great. They were so entertained by the animals and the people watching.

G hanging on for dear life on the rope bridge

Sawyer wanting to go on the rope bridge, but I'm pretty sure he's legs would have fallen right through.

And a tip for those who may be visiting the Akron Zoo. If you show your Acme Fresh card at the ticket desk and buy 1 regular priced ticket you get the next ticket free (adult or child).

This Chair

Our living room is almost complete except for a gaping spot with no furnishings or pictures, so for the last few months I have been perusing the thrift stores and craigslist for a chair. I really wanted a slipper chair that required no work. I quickly discovered my price range would not accomodate these standards. So, last week at Restore I found this chair:

I love her lines and while I'm not a huge fan of caning this chair has extra large caning that says to me "I'm retro" not "I'm an out-of-date '80's wicker chair." When I found our her price was only $15 I decided to take a chance.

Now I need your help...

1. Should I paint the wooden parts? Perhaps a distressed white

2. Any fabric suggestions for the upholstery? We currently have a mix of tans, dark browns, and greens in the room. The artwork features quatrefoil design and the curtains have some paisley. All the furniture in the room is a solid color, so I really want this chair to have a pattern.

3. Has anyone done any upholstery projects? This will be my 1st one we'll see how it goes, but any advice would be welcome.

Another Visitor for Sawyer

Before we made our quick trip to Kansas last week we actually had a visitor from Kansas. This was our 11th house guest in the past month, so our guest room has been getting a lot of use, which we love.

The visitor was my Dad. He drove from Kansas to bring us our Christmas present (1/4 of a cow) and to play with Sawyer. We visited the Football Hall of Fame, played with Sawyer, worked on the downstairs bathroom, and I introduced him to Habitat for Humanity's Restore.

We visited the Hall of Fame with both kiddos...that was an adventure.

Sawyer helped grandpa work on the bathroom

He learned how to use a putty knife

& sandpaper.

We had a great time visiting with Grandpa. He also brought along a new toy that Sawyer is loving. I'll show it to you as soon as I can get a video of him using it.

A Sad But Joyous Time

This past week Kyle's beloved Grandmother passed away quite suddenly at the age of 85. She was a wonderfully sweet Christian woman who was the pillar of her family. She will be greatly missed, but we also rejoice that she is now in Heaven with her Savior.

Kyle along with his brothers left for Kansas very quickly to be at her bedside before she passed away. Me, Sawyer, my SIL, and niece followed the next day. While attending a funeral is not always the most enjoyable experience this was a wonderful funeral. Grandma had outlined the entire service including the location and songs to be sung. Two poems written about her were also read. It was a very personal service and one that centered on the Lord and her service to Him. I am now convinced that everyone should write down their funeral requests in advance to ensure the service is a reflection of their life.

Kyle's grandma was not only kind she was also very talented. She has many beautiful paintings and quilts throughout her house. And everyone is going to miss her cooking. We learned after her passing that she had already begun making a quilt for our next little one (as she has done for all the grandchildren). It will be a very special quilt for the next little one.

Here are some photos we will cherish of Sawyer and Great-Grandma Schenk plus a picture of the whole family (everyone made it to the funeral except for 1 grandchild that is serving in the military overseas).

Grandma meets Sawyer for the 1st time

4 generation picture

Sawyer & Great-Grandma @ Christmas

The Schenk Family

i.e. Grandma's children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren

Seeing Through The Fog

At Sawyer's 1 year check-up the doctor mentioned that Sawyer might have estropia (lazy eye, cross eye), but he wanted to send us to the pediatric optometrist before making the diagnosis.

Until that day I had never noticed anything strange about Sawyer's eyes and no one had ever mentioned any concerns to me. You would think after all those pictures I take of him I would have noticed :) Over the next month I watched and there is a noticeable inward turn to his right eye when he is looking at something very close to his face or when he is tired.

And within 30 seconds of our visit with the pediatric optometrist he confirmed that Sawyer has estropia in his right eye, probably due to compensating for farsightedness. Luckily, there is an easy fix for this condition...glasses. Unfornately, he has to wear glasses :)

Once the eye problem is resolved he will not have to wear the glasses. However, this could take 6 months or 5 years. And given his parents history of near blindness beginning in grade school I think Sawyer will be wearing glasses for many years to come.

This is the "best" picture I could find that demonstrated the inward turn of his right eye. This was taken during a football game this past fall.

In a few days we go back to the doctor to find out the prescription strength.

We are so blessed by our happy, healthy little boy. This will just be another interesting experience in our journey. One we are very unfamiliar with. So now I need your advice does anyone out there have experience with young children and glasses? Anything I need to know before purchasing the glasses? Anything I need to make sure the glasses have to ensure durability and stay-on-ability? Any tricks for keeping the glasses on the child?