Sunny Summer (Finally!)

The garden is in full BLOOM!Some blue lake pole beans climbing right off the teepee...
Just a few tomato flowers, I think this is a cherry. Hoping for more varieties than last year. We planted at least 5 varieties last year and wound up with only romas... Hmmmm...
This is one of my favorite sections in the garden. The far right row has sunflowers, heirloom cucumber, and butternut squash. The middle row has soybeans, and the left row has a few varieties of tomatoes. Chris recently put in 14 additional cages around some tomato plants, I think totaling around 20 plants. Can't wait to share, save, and possibly sell? Gramps always said he wanted a 'truck garden' which is defined as selling your garden goods out of the back of your truck. I can just see Owen and I hanging out on the side of the road while Chris is at work, with our truck garden!
Foreground: melon, middle ground: tomato, background and all around: weeds.
Quick trip to the garden with a little variety to the basket! Snow peas, radishes, parsley, heirloom cucumber, and my love, kale!
A beautiful sunflower, and a sweet lady inside! Not bad for a little Canon Proshot point and shoot, no? I have been telling Chris I want a wild garden, a little nook of my own to go crazy in that is safe from deer. I am now realizing that our garden IS my wild garden, it just changes every year!
Red potatoes, harvesting a pound or two a week of these, or fingerlings, or russets.
Bean teepee, house in background.

Finally got these pics updated, these are actually from tonight! There are lots of flowers on all of the squash, the original cilantro has bolted, turnips, beets, romaine, mesclun, kale are all doing well. The corn is slowly taking hold, and the bush beans are all about 8 inches tall. The potatoes are lost in a sea of dandelion greens, and weeds, so only to be harvested while wearing muck boots. Sad to say that the our chickens have been slowly hunted over the last 2 months, starting with Pat. Tonight I am bummed to report that we are not chicken owners anymore, despite the efforts to protect them. We will be chicken owners again, but maybe not until next year. Made it about a year without buying eggs. Mother nature is pretty powerful, someone said when Pat was the first to go that the hunter will be back, and yes they were. Still not sure what it was, but it isn't a vegetarian... OK no time for jokes.

Hiking with Owen

The American River is about a 5 minute drive from our house. Owen and I went a little further down the road to one of my favorite hiking spots. I haven't been since last summer, so it was so great to visit a place where I have spent many hours hiking. Owen is such an agreeable companion. We timed the trip between a feed and naps, so it was in the heat of the day. I dressed him in long sleeves in hopes of shielding him from the sun. The hat didn't stay on for long, but the backpack kept him pretty well shaded. I hiked quickly just in case Owen wanted to go back sooner than later. He had a blast, and even enjoyed the halfway point photo shoot. He especially liked the feel of the rocks and weeds. He wasn't a fan of his toes in the water, but it is pretty cold.




Owen is awake now, so best be on my way.

Happy 28th, Chris!

Good morning, Daddy!Chris's parents were both here to celebrate. Wynter watched Owen after a night shift so we could go wine tasting.
Carolyn, Jac, and I at Lava Cap.
In the back room a tasting at Lava Cap.
Chilling out at Boeger. It was not busy at all for a Sunday in June, but that was to our advantage. It was such a gorgeous day with gorgeous people! We had a short bus take us to the wineries. If you are in need of some fun transportation, check out FART (Foothill Area Rapid Transit). Must do more often!

Garden 2011 Follow-up

I am back-blogging as I call it... I'm not organized enough to blog along the way...These photos are from early June. I'm excited to share pictures now, but here are a few of the garden getting started.Bean teepees amidst the rows.
Before being hoed... lots of weeds!!
Baby radishes.

Showering Jac

Early June it was due time to give Jac (Aunt Jac) a bridal shower. She is getting married 7/30, so soon!!She said that she would handle the favors, and that she did! She donated to Paxton's parents... What a sweet gal!
Had to get the fruit basket cake from Ettore's. It is an amazing cake, but impossible to cut cleanly... The fruit on top kept falling over, and the layers split as soon as the piece was cut, but down the hatch it went!
On all of the invites (except hers) there was a request to wear a hat. We were thinking it was going to be a hot summer day, so the hats would be fun and also functional. Well June 4th was quite a cold and rainy day. We still donned the hats, and Shirley provided one for Jac to wear with a veil on it. Super cute and an extra surprise.
This was the spread before the other hostess showed up...She brought three more salads. MMM! Quite the brunch. My favorite was the peach sangria: 1 bottle riesling, 1 bottle champagne, mint leaves, 3 cups sliced peaches, and peach schnapps to taste. We kept "tasting" and ended up using the whole bottle. (To be fair, the punch bowl was huge and I ended up using 2 bottles each of riesling and champagne. IT WAS GOOD! A perfect summery brunch, indoors! Thanks Nancy for the use of your home! Getting excited for the big day, Jac!

Making a scarecrow

I really wanted a scarecrow for our garden and thought that the girls could help me out. Lily was at school, but Ava had a friend over to help. Owen and I found the fixins at the local thrift store, as well as one of Gramp's old hats.
I cut down some bamboo stakes from our plant, and we used them as the arms, legs, and trunk. We stuffed the body with newspaper.
Elise was the professional stake tier! She is focusing so intently.
The girls are always PURE entertainment for Owen.

Dinner With Friends

Linda had us all over to her beautiful home a couple weeks ago. Owen loved being walked around the yard, and I didn't complain one bit! The food was so good (of course!) and the company was so nice. I miss my Mercy Co-workers:(.

Thank you for such a wonderful dinner and visit. Hope to see you all again very soon.

Weekly blogging, a few days late...

I have been attempting to blog weekly, but I see it has been awhile. I have been getting behind in most tasks these days. Even on home days I feel I never stop moving yet somehow don't accomplish too many things. It is a never-ending cycle of motion through the day that blends into the night. Owen also has been up every 1-2 hours through the night the last week. Before that he was giving us a break of about 5 hours of straight sleep for 2 nights. Just enough to get really excited for. He has another molar peeking through, crazy how a small thing can cause so much discomfort. I guess that is what it is keeping him (and us) from resting, but it is no fun for anyone. I have been doing some silly tired things...Cut Chris's hair too short the other day, and today put dish soap in the dishwasher and had suds all around to clean. Would have liked to spend Owen's naptime doing something else, but oh well. That's the way the tired Chelsea functions. I am going to look through iPhoto to see if there are any new pics. I always have some new ones. Since the last posting, I gave a bridal shower for Aunt Jac, Owen started his OT therapy, the sun decided to make an appearance, and Owen's best friend Evan has been in the hospital for a week now. It has been a busy June so far. Maybe this blog will just be summarizing these topics and pictures next time. Just goes to show you how much planning I do...

SHOWER

Bridal shower was so fun, and the food was so darn good. I think I may open up a catering business, JUST KIDDING! It was so great to spoil a dear sister friend, and it was lovely even though the weather did not cooperate. Made some spiked peach punch that was potent and so good! All of the attendants wore hats and she showed up unsuspecting! Her mom provided her a hat with a veil, so fitting!

OWEN's OT

Owen had group therapy on tuesday. I looked at the schedule the morning of to make sure I had the time right and OOPS! It said 1045 not 11. Well guess I don't really need a shower. That is why ponytails were invented I guess. We rushed out the door, started his feed, and got lost trying to find the location... I was driving on the street but couldn't see the address numbers... Pulled up into the wrong parking lot (beginner's mistake) when Owen had 2 more ounces to go... I could have "called it good" and just stopped it but I wanted him to have the whole thing. So I hooked the bag to the backpack and tucked the pump inside, unbuckled Owen, and loaded up my purse. And then Owen started gagging, and threw up in the parking lot. Cleaned him up and wobbled across the way to the right parking lot/building. (Yes a stroller would have been a GREAT idea but I left in too much of a hurry to attempt to get there in time...) Owen's feed starts to beep as we are walking into the front door. I disconnect him while holding him (don't recommend doing this while also holding a backpack...) We walk in the door at the hour of 1100, I am apologizing to the director. Oh, you are right on time, she says, we start at 11. Oh geez, my schedule says 1045 for every tuesday... Oh well. Long story longer, Owen had a blast watching the other children interact with a variety of textures, physical activity gym type of stuff, and swings. We had song time where we learned some new songs and reinforced the importance of repetition with song as a way to teach. It was very good. Then for our home visit the same day at 3, our therapist worked with Owen so much and thinks he has good muscle memory. We worked on him keeping him on all fours instead of flattening out onto his belly. We also brainstormed lots of ways to incorporate other food items into Owen's day. We have seen some improvement in Owen's gross motor skills this week, and he even has been chewing on his sippy cup! YAY!

SUN

It is beautiful, there are so many weeds in the garden, harvesting cilantro and lettuce, and watching the other plants grow. That's about it for now...

EVAN

Evan's parents have a blog and I am close to them so I feel it is okay to talk about. Plus I know how important it is to have so many people thinking and praying for you that I am going to chat a little about Owen's best friend Evan. He was recently diagnosed with a tumor in his abdomen that is confirmed to be cancerous. He will start chemotherapy on monday. He had very little noticeable symptoms until a week ago. He is uncomfortable as the tumor is pushing on other organs and systems. I was able to visit him for a little while this week, and try to be there for his parents. They were sure there for us when we were hospitalized with Owen. This sure is a different battle they are gearing up for. Evan just turned 1, and we were just partying for his first birthday. A week later, who knew this would be where he would be. Our hearts are aching for his strong parents and just lifting them up so high and attempting to give them so much energy to get Evan through this. We are there for you guys, and Evan is such a strong boy. I called Erika today to chat and she got off the phone when Evan started clapping to Dora. He must have been feeling a little better and she wanted to be a part of that. We love you guys and are here for you. If you haven't gained anything from my tired rambles, hear this~ love, honor, and respect your body. You never know when it will not work the way it does today. You never know when things can change. LOVE YOU EVAN!

Therapy starting...next week!

I have been wanting to do a garden update posting but as I am writing this it is thundering and lightening! We do have tomatoes on some plants, but I am really hoping they don't get too confused.

Owen had his Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler development report shared with us today from the El Dorado Count Special Education Program. Man were we popular, 4 people showed up to review these reports, and make a game plan for Owen. Here is the summary of the results (I'll include only the interesting parts to spare you the full report.

One report was prepared by an Occupational Therapist.
Owen is age appropriate for Cognition and Fine Motor skills! Meaning, in a nutshell, he plays really well!
Owen is at the 6month age for gross motor skills, meaning he does not crawl or pull up yet.
Owen is at the 3-4month age for expressive language skills and sounds.
Owen is at the 7 month age for receptive language skills. Both this and the one above has to do with him not yet producing two different distinct vowel or consonant sounds.

The second report was prepared by a registered nurse.
Owen is at the 6month age for the 'daily living' section which includes eating. (Not to be confused with the ADL's in adults, but similar!)
Owen has some social emotional issues with touch by his mouth, face or nose.
Owen is at the social emotional age that is consistent with his actual age! Yay!

So, in a nutshell, not many surprises here. It is good to hear others assessments because as a parent you think your kid is amazing for blowing snot bubbles, so it is good to have an idea of where he is. I have to say at the moment, he is chewing on our leather coffee table. So he is standing and holding on and chomping down teething. I am pretty convinced with some great therapy he will catch right up with the Gross motor stuff. The other stuff will take some time, but as always we are SO lucky and proud of all that Owen has accomplished this year! He is so amazing to us and brightens our day every day.

So the next step is... group therapy once a week and home OT once a week.

O gagged the tube out on Memorial Day so we decided to trial it without the tube. He breastfed really well through the night but didn't breastfeed at all, take a bottle, or sippy cup for 6 hours. I was leaving yesterday to go teach a class and we both werent comfortable with me leaving (his only consistent intake) for hours. Also we tried to give him his aspirin in a syringe and this was also making him more orally defensive. So, we sadly put it back in and I went off to Roseville to teach my diabetes class. His issues aren't as simple as 'not taking the bottle,' and they took a long time to develop, so they will take a while to improve.

Ok going to get back to Owen. I have been connected to my pump and he is now an ounce into his feed. This post was written in a few sittings over the last couple hours.