To Give Birth in a Hospital or Birth Center….

January 29th, 2008 by Mariah

Well, the time has come to make the big decision.. Hospital or birth center. I have appointments with the two local birth centers here in Idaho this week. One appointment on Wednesday and one on Thursday. We are exploring the option of a natural birth. No drugs. AHHHH! That scares me! But I am excited about this possibility. My experience with giving birth to Tyler, at the hospital, wasn’t a bad one.. But I wouldn’t call it a great experience. Basically I felt like my dr had “something to do.” Although I only “pushed” for something like 8-10 minutes, It wasn’t enough. (stop reading now if your easily grossed out) The dr cut me and pulled Ty out. It felt like he was ripping my guts out. Not anything like I have read for a “natural” birth. As I understand it, the baby comes when your body is ready to give birth and when the baby is ready to come out.

I have not made the final decision - and won’t make the final decision before interviewing the birth centers, and giving the whole situation to the Lord in prayer. We will keep you posted on what we decide. We are even talking about not finding out what we are having. Please give me any comments you have about natural or hospital births. I am trying to soak up as much info as I can.

Check back for more on this subject!

Posted in Pregnancy || 2 Comments

Terrific Two’s

January 24th, 2008 by Mariah

Well, today is the day! My sweet angel baby boy turned into a sweet angel, BIG BOY - Two Year Old! I heard his sweet voice calling “Ohhhh Mamaaaaa” sometime around 6:00am. As I lay there in bed, I prayed for my perfect gift and thanked God for him. I also prayed that he would go back to sleep. It may be his birthday, but it’s still only 6:00am. Well, thankfully he went back to sleep. (that’s my boy!)

He and I got up about 7:30. Shaun was still sleeping, but Brandon was up. Tyler was in no mood for big brother yet. Brandon came out of his room with a big grin on his face and said “Good Morning Tyler, Happy….” That’s as far as he got. Tyler responded with a frown and a sneer, “No mornin brotha.” I think that it made Brandon feel bad. I know I felt bad for him. But Tyler is, after all, only 2. So Brandon retreated to his bedroom a little broken, and Tyler and I came downstairs for a warm milky baba. (No he doesn’t drink from a baba anymore, but he calls his sippy cup a baba.)

We began our morning ritual, (when I’m home) of snuggling together on the couch and watching Cars. Tyler is Lightning McQueen’s biggest fan! He LOVES the Cars movie! I was snuggled up with my precious boy under the covers, trying not to fall back to sleep, and he was snuggled up with his mommy, his buddy and his sucky thumb. That is how the morning began.

Shaun was up right around 8:00 and we let Tyler open his presents shortly after. He got a Tigger outfit from Grandma Carol and Grandpa Ron. He is also a HUGE fan of Tigger aka “Tiggy.” Papa and Grandma got him 2 outfits: one with fish and sharks on it and —– A Lightning McQueen shirt!!!! As Tyler opened this package and saw the Lightning McQueen shirt, he flipped his lid! He said, “Look Mom, K-chow.” (that is the thing that Lightning McQueen says in the movie.) Tyler then proceeded to rip off his pajamas because he couldn’t wait another second to put on this new Lightning McQueen shirt. He strolled proudly through the house showing off his newest prized possession. “Look Mom, Look Daddy, Look Brotha.” He was very excited! The Williams family gave Tyler some accesories for his play dough. He got a couple of things from us too.

The rest of the day, we didn’t do much. Just hung out and played with Tyler. I think we watched Cars twice. And we played with play dough. It was fun.

Later that evening, after dinner, we had cake and ice cream. Tyler doesn’t get treats like this very often, so he was beyond excited. He also knew what to expect because just a few days before, we went to his friend Drew’s 2nd birthday party. Apparently the fondness for cake and ice cream stuck with him. Be sure to watch the little videos below of him eating his cake and ice cream. You’ll see what I mean.

Cake Monster

Birthday Cake Airplane

After a very messy dessert, I cleaned Tyler up and we headed to bed for a bedtime story and a warm milky baba. Big brother Brandon came upstairs and Tyler snuggled with him for quite sometime. (hopefully this made up for his behavior this morning)

Tyler and I read “Spot.” and snuggled and prayed. After Tyler’s traditional bedtime show - (Shaun invented this one- where Tyler’s buddy and Tiggy stuffed animals sing and dance for him) then I put him in bed and headed for the door. Tyler started his ritual of mom, mom, mom, mom once I closed the door. We usually ignore him, but it WAS his birthday. So I opened the door to see what he wanted. He responded to me, “Mommy, I want kiss.” So I gladly came back in and kissed my big boy TWO year old. What a perfect end to a perfect day! Happy birthday baby! I love you!

Posted in Tyler || 3 Comments

Being a Mom

January 22nd, 2008 by Mariah

Is there anything more precious here on this earth, than for God to have given the gift of motherhood? I would say no! Being a mom was what I was made to do, (next to being a help-meet to my husband). It is the times like right now, when Tyler has been in bed “going to sleep” for more than an hour; but still calls our the occasional “Ohhhh Mamaaaa.” Or when Brandon has learned his ENTIRE alphabet in sign language class on the 1st try!

It’s the times when Tyler cries in the middle of the night because he got scared, and all he wants is for mommy to hold him and make him feel safe. The times when Shaun and I insist that Brandon try something new - and he finds out he likes it! It is even the times when Tyler is throwing a TWO YEAR OLD tantrum or Brandon is grumpy in the mornings. I love my boys more than life itself, and I am so thankful for them everyday!

As I sit back and reflect on the incredible gifts that God has given our family over the last few years - I stand in awe. First and foremost he saved a couple of schmucks like Shaun and I. That in and of itself, is amazing! He changed our lives in so many ways from our marriage(actually getting married, that is), beginning to homeschool, having Tyler, our businesses, even moving to Idaho. In all of these things I can see so clearly the hand of God and I marvel at his grace!

Now as we prepare to begin this next chapter of our lives - having another baby, I am so excited to see what God has in store for us. I don’t know what it may be, there may be trials, there may be calm waters, there will likely be a mixture of both. But what I do know is the He has wondrous things planned for the Buck family, and it is our desire in all of those times to glorify Him.

We’ll keep you posted through our blog of these times…

On another note: In the link below is a picture of our boys playing together and being - as usual- A-DOR-ABLE!

Brother Backpack

Posted in Thoughts by Mariah || 1 Comment

The BIG Announcement..

January 17th, 2008 by Mariah

I apologize in advance to those of you who are hearing this news for the 1^st time on our blog.. Shaun or I called you today, but you didn’t answer. And I am too excited to wait to post about this!

We’re havin’ a baby!

That’s right folks! I am pregnant! Shaun and I are very, very excited! Shaun’s pretty nervous too, but also very excited! Let me answer all the questions you are thinking right now…

YES! I have morning sickness already. I have been feeling nauseous everyday, but I haven’t gotten sick at all. That is the same way it was when I was pregnant w/ Tyler.
My due date (calculated by me and not a dr. **I haven’t gone to the dr. yet** will be September 28, 2008.
Yes, Brandon is excited! He is very proud that when this baby arrives, he will have as many siblings as cousin Jordyn. Also, he has “given me permission” to have a girl. When I was pregnant w/ Tyler, Brandon went with us to the ultrasound to find out his sex. Before we went in, Brandon prayed that it was not a girl. But, now he has baby sister Kendra – and he realizes that he can love a sister too!
As far as the sex of the baby goes, we are hoping for a girl. I will be in love with a baby boy, if that’s what God blesses us with. But I am hoping that he is blessing us with a baby girl. (Shaun too!)
Yes, we are already thinking of names.. The same ones that we were thinking of when we were pregnant with Tyler.. Jeremiah for a boy and Amanda or Elizabeth for a girl.. BUT – we have a long way to go. The name options are subject to change. (and very likely will)
NO, this was not an accident! We planned this baby. (For the record, that is never a nice question to ask. God doesn’t have accidents.)

Our whole family is extremely happy to announce my pregnancy! I will keep you posted with how it goes and with pictures. Please keep us in your prayers!

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart…”

Jeremiah 1:5

Posted in Pregnancy || 7 Comments

Childhood Friends

January 12th, 2008 by Mariah

My precious little baby boy is going to turn 2 in about 2 weeks. I can’t believe how time flies! I have always hated that corny saying – but it’s true! It seems like just yesterday I found out I was pregnant. I can remember the joy and fear of that day! These past 3 years (pregnancy included) have been some of the most precious. Not only have I seen my little boy grow and change, but I have gotten to see how my big boy has grown and changed too. The two of them amaze me everyday! I feel so blessed and thankful for my beautiful children.

In thinking back to the VERY hazy days after Tyler was born there is one theme that is very clear in my memory: no sleep. With the help of my loving sis-in-law’s infinite wisdom, I was able to train Tyler into a regular sleeping pattern. I also had the help of a little guy whom I affectionately named Snuggly.

Snuggly was the idea of a good friend of mine – Anne. She had a little boy a few months before I did and she was convinced that this little snuggly bear toy (she called him a Schmoozy) would help her little boy sleep. I was ready to try anything!! So I went out and bought a “Schmoozy.” I named him Snuggly. Anytime that Tyler would go to bed for a nap or for the night, I would tuck Snuggly under his arm and snuggle him up next to his face. We did this every time – without fail.

Fast forward (almost) two years. My little baby boy is now a full on toddler. He is wild and crazy and has a mind of his own. BUT, Snuggly is still a treasured friend and necessity at nap and bed time! Speaking of that “mind of his own” that Tyler has; Tyler has changed Snuggly’s name. Yes, his name has been changed to Buddy.

When we moved to Idaho, I met a really neat gal and her son Brody. Brody and Tyler are very close in age. They even live in our subdivision. We would get together and play ALL THE TIME. (I miss you guys by the way!!)

Anyway, Tyler couldn’t say Brody’s name. So he called him Buddy. And ever since meeting Brody and calling him his buddy; Tyler has named his Snuggly bear – Buddy. I guess it might be in honor of his good friend? Ok, I know that’s way beyond his comprehension, but you never know!! He is a genius!

There is also another treasured friend (more of a recent friend) that Tyler is in love with. I bought him a monkey at the Build a Bear shop in Downtown Disney when he was like 6 months old. Since his room is a jungle themed room we have used this monkey stuffed animal as a decoration for the side of his crib. In the last month or so, Tyler has decided that he is an integral part of the “ni-night” process. Tyler has named the monkey Ye-Haw. Don’t ask me where he got it. He came up with the name on his own. But Tyler loves Ye-Haw like there is no tomorrow.

There is no bed time that does not include Buddy and Ye-Haw. It is really cute! My baby is growing up! Here are some pictures of Buddy and Ye-Haw. There is even a short video. In the video, Ye-Haw is using Tyler’s cell phone (an old broken one of ours) to call Papa. I don’t know where he comes up with these things.

Be sure to click on both movie links at the bottom of the pictures…

Sharing a ba-ba with Ye-Haw

Ye-Haw calling PaPa

Posted in Tyler || 4 Comments

Cheese

January 10th, 2008 by Mariah

Today Tyler saw the camera sitting on the table. He climbed up and grabbed it. Then he brought it over to me and said, “Mommy, Cheese!” He wanted me to take his picture. So here they are. What a cutie pie!

Posted in Tyler || 3 Comments

What age difference?

January 10th, 2008 by Mariah

I love the way that God has impressed in on Brandon’s heart to love and value his little brother! Yes, he can be annoying at times, but he loves him like crazy! They play together all the time. That has increased lately as Tyler’s vocabulary has increased along with his patience to sit and play games with big brother. Although, games played with Tyler have no rules - Brandon will still sit and lovingly play them. Here are a couple of pics of the boys playing a battleship game that Brandon got for Christmas. No rules, just fun.

Posted in The boys || No Comments

by the way

January 10th, 2008 by Mariah

the link for the video of the snow storm works now. It’s kinda cool.

Posted in Uncategorized || No Comments

Christmas Insanity

January 10th, 2008 by Mariah

Ok. So let me tell you about an annoying little habit that BOTH Shaun and Brandon have. They have to move, shake, tap or bang on something AT ALL TIMES. I used to think that it was just to annoy me, but I have resigned myself to believe that they just can’t function w/o annoying noise as the soundtrack of their lives.

So, in the “spirit of Christmas” I saw this squishy ball at the store. I knew that I would regret it if I bought it. So what did I do? I bought two. YES that’s one for Brandon and one for Shaun (for those of you keeping count) All I can say is

??????????WHAT WAS I thinking?????????

The answer is – I wasn’t. And I have regretted it ever since. For the last 15 days, (yes it has only been 15 days since Christmas) they have tortured me with these things! Thankfully one of them finally broke. Woo Hoo! Hurray! Yah Baby!!!!! Oh, I mean, “darn it!! (Yah right!)

Did a broken squishy ball stop Shaun? NO. He continued to play with the remnants of this plastic toy. He pulled the tassels until they snapped and made annoying sounds. He shook it until it made annoying sounds. And when he was done with that, he

Well, just look at the pictures below to see what he did with it.