Marathon Complete

Waiting patiently (at the time of this picture)...not so patiently by 38 weeks and really struggling with patience at 40 weeks!

Marian has been a wonderful helper and loves
to hold her baby brother!

Sofia continues to just love to shower
Timothy with kisses.

Well not a real marathon, I feel like pregnancy is a marathon (although I've never run one so its only my assumption of a marathon) and this race is done.  There is adrenaline when you start, sometimes accompanied by a sick feeling wondering what you just signed up for then the long haul of miles/months to get to the finish line which is crossed at a sprint (labor). 

Tuesday July 3rd Timothy Duraikan Samuel made his appearance at 5:24am after only 4.5 hours of labor.  Considering my past two labors were 28 and 18 hours you can imagine my surprise but also my joy at how quickly the finish line came up!  He was a bit smaller than his sisters at 8 lbs 13 oz and 20 inches long, but he looks very similar.  As our friend, who happened to also be our discharge nurse from the birthing center, said "He's definitely a Samuel baby."  It seems our babies all look alike. 

There is something precious about baby feet.

The name of our first male child has been determined since before Mark and I were dating.  At one point Mark had told me he wanted to name his first boy Timothy Duraikan, by the time we started having kids it was just expected that would be the name if the baby was a boy.  Mark liked Timothy because of the relationship between Paul and Timothy in the Bible.  Duraikan was Mark's grandfather's (Samuel Duraikan) last name but for some unknown reason, Mark's dad ended up with Samuel as his last name.  I guess the immigration system wasn't to blame after all...it's what we've thought for years!   Since Mark's aunts were the only ones given Duraikan as a last name and their names were since changed due to marriage, the only way for the name to be passed down in the Samuel family is through middle names.  Mark's brother Paul has the middle name Duraikan, as does his son Nathanael.  Now Timothy has it as well.

We are grateful for all the help we received by family and friends that made sure Marian and Sofia were well taken care of so we didn't have to be anxious while focusing on labor and enjoying those first few hours and days with our newest edition.  Personally I'm grateful for the effort everyone put into learning how to care for Marian, God's peace that he's with Marian even when I'm not, and his grace in allowing a quick physical recovery for me.

My Little Man :)

Maternity and Newborn pictures done by Photography by Susie.  Love them!  Thanks ladies!

Printable Preschool/Toddler Activities

I found a link to a post about bugs on Money Saving Mom today that was too amazing to not pass along.

I'm printing the one relating to bugs since both girls seem to be enthralled by these little critters at the moment.  They are really well done, colorful, and free!

You can find them at 3 Dinosaurs.

Enjoy!

Pouring My Brain Out

Do you remember taking a test in high school or college and studying really hard then pouring your brain out with all the information that you could on the test?  Or researching for a paper all semester then sitting down to write it and having trouble making sure all the important stuff is in there?  Has anyone else felt this way?

I'm beginning to feel like this and its been a while since I've had to take a test or write a paper!  As we prepare for the arrive of our third child, I'm trying to train the family members that will be taking the girls when I go into labor as well as those that will take the girls for a long weekend camp at "Grandma and Grandpa's."  The amount of things to think about for caring for Marian for more than a few hours is mind boggling.  I'm not sure what is important and what is something only Mark and I need to focus on because what if...  Ahhh gotta love worries and fears.  If I was honest Marian would probably be just as happy telling everyone else how to care for her than for her mom to write instruction sheets for how to do it ;)  I guess I can be grateful for a very independent 3 year old!

If anyone wants some of the items I've found useful online here are the links:
My Child Has Diabetes-Childcare Checklist
JDRF- Emergency Checklist

I've made a bunch of checklists and instruction sheets, if anyone would find them helpful I'm happy to email them to you! 

Off to keep packing because we leave in 2 hours!  (That means I probably shouldn't be typing a blog entry).

Gratituesday- Music

I haven't done a post about something I'm grateful for in a while.  This morning I'm grateful for music.  Both my girls sing all....the...time.  I can't say I get tired of it.  They sing quite a variety too, kids songs, Bible songs, hymns, and songs of their own creation.  I had read somewhere when Marian was a baby that having music in the home helps everyone to keep a joyful attitude and it helps to show kids your joy in Christ when you're expressing it through song while working.  Now, my singing is NOT something that most people enjoy, however, I do enjoy singing, I just need some assistance from those more musically talented.  I'm grateful at how much Truth our kids have soaked up through music.  It's amazing.  I've also loved seeing them express their love towards babies through singing.  Their baby dolls are always getting sung too.  Their little brother while in-utero has has quite a few songs sung to him as well.  Sofia sings "Jesus Loves Me" to her baby brother at least a few times a week.  While she sings, she holds my belly.  This morning as she sang the baby kicked.

Sofia "holding" her baby brother.



  Picture by Photography by Susie.

Don't Stand Near Me

Tonight I had a bit of a mix-up with my youngest and oldest.  We arrived home way past bedtime and I was trying to get the girls ready for bed quickly.  We walked into the house I said "Marian let me test your blood sugar" for probably the millionth time.  I sit down to test her with both girls standing around me.  For some reason Sofia had her little finger out too so I grabbed it and pricked her with the lancet (little device that pricks the finger to draw blood for a glucose reading).  Needless to say the scream and look of confusion on her face brought me to my senses and made us laugh pretty hard.  It took a while for Sofia to get over the shock of what just happened to her, but thankfully she survived.  My guess is she will not stick her finger out anywhere near me anymore.  This is also a warning to anyone else that might be brave enough to stand near me when I have a lancet in my hand. 

Diabetic Supplies Bag

I love to sew and I have an absurd amount of fabric. I figured I'd experiment with a diabetic supplies bag for the diaper bag, since I have a ton of free time ;). I like the little kit that the blood glucose meter came in but since putting a rubber safety cover on it, it doesn't fit easily and drives me crazy. I wanted to be able to fit all the supplies I normally carry in the diaper bag pockets into the diabetic bag so that I can easily switch to a book bag or another bag if Marian is going someplace without me. We're going away this weekend so I guess I'll try it out and see what needs tweaking or if I just need to go back to the old blood glucose meter bag. I will say this one is much cuter!

BG Meter Bag

My new version.  Room for extra batteries, insulin pen with extra insulin, snacks, and pump supplies.

All rolled up

I'll check back next week to give an update on whether or not this works and some directions on how to make your own.

B is for Boat

Fun little project for a rainy day to review the letter B (and work on fine motor skills and shapes...its the teacher in me).

Such concentration

Sofia decorating the "b"

Marian's finished project

Materials: macaroni, glue, marker, crayons, and large paper

1. Draw a picture in permanent marker

2.  color the picture

3.  Put glue on various shapes to be lined with macaroni.  Marian wanted to add lines to her original triangle.

Original idea from Art Projects 1 from A Beka Book Art Series.  As a note I have NOT looked at this series, someone just gave the book to me when I was teaching art a few years ago.  I use adapted projects for the girls sometimes.