Canyon Adventure

We may have been a little crazy heading up to the mountains to kayak on a 55 degree day in April but we wanted to get in some "summer activities" with G.'s sister before she left to serve a LDS mission. She brought along a long time friend and we all had a blast. I bundled myself up like it was snowing while those crazy girls decided shorts would be appropriate.

After kayaking G.'s mom met up with us at a campground and we roasted hot dogs and made S'mores. We all had a wonderful time and feel so blessed that we got to have that time together as a family before she leaves. 

Happy Easter

Infant Colostomy Tutorial

After our sons ostomy was performed the NICU team and wound care struggled to teach us a method that would allow the ostomy bags to stick for more than a few minutes. We turned to the internet and found this amazing blog that gave us some great suggestions. We were able to secure the supplies they used and went to work trying them. The difference was night and day. We decided to build on their tutorial and added some step by step pictures of the process. We recommend you read there blog for in depth tips and descriptions and use ours for a visual guide. 

Their blog is here:

http://blog.hoosejohnson.com/2008/10/how-to-get-ileostomy-bag-to-stay-on.html

We used Imgur for our post:

http://imgur.com/a/uQpoP#17

Best of luck. Its very overwhelming at first but it gets easier. We found great support in online communities (most have moved to Facebook), its great to be able to troubleshoot with parents who have been there or are there right now. 

Lillebaby Complete-All Seasons Review

The Lillebaby Complete is a 6 in one carrier. You can use it from birth to 45 pounds. It has a setting for a newborn/infant to be legs in and legs out. The newborn infant setting can also be used to forward face children that a are at least 3 months and have good head control.  When the baby can comfortably extend their legs the full width of the carrier the regular panel setting can be used.  You can also carry a large child (who sits independently) on your back. Overall its incredibly versatile. 

What makes the All Season model of the Lillebaby unique is that it includes a zip down mesh panel (and a mesh backed waistband) but standard cotton straps (no mesh rubbing on your underarms). I love the this new version of the All Seasons has a zippered hood or phone pocket (previous versions do not have this feature). 

The body panel is 12" without the headrest. The waistband is a wide 6" of padding. 

The total length from base to top of the headrest is 18" I was being wrestled by a toddler so the picture didn't turn out quite right. 

The panel width or seat width is a generous 14.5" inches. When put in a forward facing or infant setting the width is 5 inches at the narrowest point (pictured below). 

The arm strap padding is a generous 23" and the entire length from begging of the straps the end of the padding and canvas is 25". The arm straps are dual adjusting, so you can tighten the straps without being a contortionist. 

Fit:

This carrier has a lot of arm padding so you get a comfy fit, no buckle rubbing at all.

** Petite wearer note- I was not able to get this thing tight enough in a back carry. I am a size 0/2 and 5'4" and could pull inches of slack off my shoulders with a 18 pound 12 month old. In the third picture down you can see how tight I have it cinched. 

On a positive not the darted seat helps you get a very deep seat for the kiddos bum. I also loved the pad on the chest buckle. 

Because the arm padding is so long you can really pull the chest clip low this is a complain I have with the standard kinder pack (I feel choked by the chest strap). I could have moved the clip down two more inches. This also is great for people who like a low chest clip when back carrying (I am one of them). 

Pros-
- Runs large (great for a plus size adult) the arm padding is very generous at 24" long.
- No infant insert needed
- Headrest to support the head of a infant or the back of a taller child.
- Unique lumbar support and chest clip cover

Cons-
- A bad fit for the petite wearer. I am 5'4" and this carrier was HUGE on me. I could not get in clinched tightly enough in a back carry.

Spring in February?

Last Sunday it was a balmy 69!!! Not your usual pre Valentines weather here in the mountains. We aren't complaining one bit. We spent the afternoon teaching B. how to ride his strider bike and as a reward we let each kiddo "ride" on daddy's bike to the mail box and back. They were in heaven. L, was napping at first and wasn't waking up too quickly but ended up perking up when we offered the ride (top right photo). 

New Years Trip

Two days after Christmas we took off to Denver to see my family. It was a whopping 5 degree high several of the days we were there. Our kids were unfazed and still got out and played in the snow as long as we would let them. Overall we had a wonderful time and were so thankful that we got the chance to be reunited with family and friends over the holiday break. 

We have no idea what the context of this picture was, but the faces are priceless. 

Christmas 2014

We spent Christmas Eve at G.'s house. It was so much fun to have a fancy dinner and have all the littles play together. The prime rib was incredible as always (my mother in law is an amazing cook). Then we headed home for our first ever Christmas at home. 

G.'s sister spent Christmas morning with us, the boys loved having her help open presents. As you can probably see, each boy received a ride on toy. Since this was a white Christmas the boys tested out their new wheels around the kitchen island. 

At the last minute I decided to make cinnamon rolls. Shockingly it was my first time ever making them.  I was very proud of how they turned out. If you haven't made your own cinnamon rolls before I highly recommend you give these a try. http://ourbestbites.com/2010/06/everyday-cinnamon-rolls/