Hazel's Dedication

She's such a wonderful little girl, I just have to start by saying that. It was such a blessing to have her dedicated at church. We set aside Sunday, March 15th, and invited some friends and family to join us to celebrate her dedication.

Hazel did well! She didn't spit up, toot, or fill her pants while Pastor Brett held her and prayed. He mentioned several times how adorable and "comfy" she is, which only caused my heart to swell to the bursting point.



We had lunch at Macaroni Grill following the service...




I have to take the opportunity to mention here that Hazel is mesmerized by Grandma Jo's voice. She stills and stares whenever Grandma Jo speaks to hear - it's fascinating to watch Hazel's very physical response to Grandma's voice.


When we got home from church and lunch, I took some pictures of Hazel. With every day that passes, Hazel becomes prettier. Or so her parents think. Every time Nate returns home from work, he comes to kiss us hello, and he stares her in the eyes, pauses, and then says, "Yup, you're cuter. How'd you do it, girl?"

A smattering of events.

First, a very nice cleaning and paint job was done at our new house! We had Stephen helping Nate practically every day to finish the paint job by the time we had a crew in to clean. Things looked so pristine before we moved in - it was amazing and we are so grateful for all the help we had, both cleaning and moving. The before and after pictures are so different...




Second, Maggie was born, a much looked forward to event! Of course, you can't tell from Hazel's expression. Congratulations to friends Adam and Julia!





Third, Nathaniel's due date sprang up on us; March 13th marked year two of his missed due date. We visited his grave with Hazel after picking up some flowers from New Seasons. It feels weird to not set aside an entire post and dedicate it to him on this day that was so important to us, but it also feels like healing that I can post only one picture and not feel guilty about it. God is good.


Hazel's dedication is coming up! We're so excited and I can't wait to share pictures from the event.

Oh, and about Hazel's blankie, I wasn't kidding. A parting picture to make you chuckle.

Going back a bit.

These few pictures are from Nate's birthday this past January. I think they're kinda fun.

Hazel and her blankie.

Hazel has become incredibly attached to my old blankie, one that I used to sniff while I sucked my fingers. A couple weeks ago I thought it would be cute if she liked it - I haven't really been able to get it away from her since...

She grasps it in both hands and pulls it straight up over her head to cover her face. It's a show to behold. And at night when I wake up with her, she's clutching it like a lifeline. I'm loving that my old blankie is being loved on all over again!

Hazel as she is today.

Just to hold you over until I can reclaim the camera...






(She jumped sky hgh at the flash initially. I about peed my pants from laughing at her reaction. I'm mean.)

So we've moved! And yesterday we got our Internet finally set up so I'm back online...

I have pictures to post of the house before we moved all our junk in. And then, as rooms are completed, I'll post pictures of those as well!

Things are moving slowly here. It's taking mucho time to get things out of boxes and put in their rightful places. My day was made yesterday when Nate mounted our curtain rods and hung the curtains. Of course, I'd washed the curtains but not ironed them so everything is super wrinkly, but they're up! I decided to take them down one at a time to iron them and make things look really good around here. I can't find my dining room table - I can sure find all the boxes around it, and I can even get a peek at its four legs, but it's been awhile since I've seen the top. Someday...

Hazel is doing really well. She's growing like crazy, and her cheeks are beginning to even out. We're going to neurotherapy weekly to work out the torticollis (sp?) on her neck. Those weekly appointments are a surprise and blessing. They're being scholarshiped to Hazel - her PT feels that she really needs them but they're highly priced. Beyond our ability to pay. It's been a special gift from God that we're able to take Hazel to these appointments. The clinic is being so good to us.

(Oh, Necia, you know the PT - her name is Crystal and she was a grade behind you at Pacific. SMALL WORLD!)

Crystal shows me new exercises to do with Hazel at every appointment. We're teaching her to turn her head to both sides equally. Torticollis keeps her from turning her head to the right - at least it's hard for her. We're working to loosen the tightened, shortened muscles on the right side of her neck so that she can turn her head with ease; the ability to turn her head to the right will enable to use her right hand and arm more effectively, too.

Usually the pediatrician wouldn't catch torticollis until 8 or 9 months of age, but our pediatrician is a wonder and caught it early. So we're on the ball now and Hazel is improving! We're not sure how long we'll be going to these PT appointments - minimal, 6 weeks, maximum, she's walking.

It's a kick in the pants to watch Hazel at the therapy sessions, though - she's not a huge fan of Crystal because Crystal touches her neck. She doesn't like her neck being touched so she bunches up her fists and tightens into a near ball. I probably shouldn't laugh, but the look on Hazel's face kills me. So now we're working on "fun touching" of her neck (tickling and playing) rather than all business touching (stretching and cleaning out her crevices).

Okay, Hazel is chatting loudly next to me and wanting my attention. So now I'm off!

Quick Trip

Man, my brain is fried. I'm sitting here trying to remember when we took this trip, but I can't! I think it was two Sundays ago. Nate's been busy working the other six days of the week, so Sunday makes sense. I'll pretend it was Sunday.

So on Sunday, January 25th, we decided to get out of the house after listening to a sermon pod cast - Nate let me sleep through the alarm. I was exhausted. We decided to brave the cold and take Hazel to Multnomah Falls. I dressed her to the max - thick tights, a onesie, fleece jammies, 2 pairs of socks, a coat, and a hat, not to mention the two blankets I was prepared to wrap her in.

Even with all of her layers we never got her out of the car at the falls. It was so cold, made even worse by the strong Gorge wind that was blowing. We'll go back when the weather is a bit calmer, I think.

[Nate driving]


[Hazel sleeping in the back seat]


[Um, me]

After the falls, though, we headed out to Mom and Dad's hangar to see them. It was a long drive from the Gorge, but it was fun - the poor plane looked like it had been in a wreck, though. It's going through it's annual physical examination. Poor plane has no privacy.

I have some fun pictures that are stuck on the camera right now. I'll find a way to get them off soon! I especially want to show you some before and after photos of the house. So exciting!

a "grandma" post

This is really just one long list of pictures. Pretty simple, this post!

Hazel at 8.5 Weeks

I took several pictures of Hazel around 8.5 weeks, so here are a few of those. Tired of this yet?




I snapped a couple self-portraits also...



I took Hazel with me and we drove out to meet Gretchen's new little one, Havaah (Hebrew, but my spelling might be off). Havaah was born December 23rd, during the horrible snow storm, so we hadn't been able to meet her in the hospital. She's such a cutie! It was really fun to have the girls together.




The following video is of Havaah and Hazel. You can hear Gretchen in the background, and I'm talking with Ransom, Havaah's older brother.



I'm getting another blog posting ready - you'll love it, grandmas. It's photo friendly.