The Baley Family Story

Goals

2009-02-01T11:20:00.000-08:00

Since it is now February, I think I should start focusing on some goals. Not that I'll accomplish all of them this year, but to be striving to achieve something is a good idea, right? So here's the list, not necessarily in any order:

1. Drink more water every day.

2. Start doing yoga/pilates on a regular basis

3. Meal plan. At least one week at a time.

4. More quality time with my husband and kids. None of us are getting any younger.

5. Show people that I love how much I love them, even if it means stepping out of my comfort
zone.

6. Organized reading. I'm so bad about starting a book, then starting another one without
finishing the first.

7. Paint the remaining white walls in my house. A hallway, a stairway, bathroom and laundry
room.

8. Teach Ben how to read. We're working on learning the alphabet right now.

9. Run a half marathon.

10. Read my Bible daily. (This should be at the top of the list.)

Christmas

2008-12-29T15:10:00.001-08:00

I decided I'm not the best at taking really good pictures. Maybe I will make that one of my New Year's resolutions.

Christmas is such a special time to me. Even though it has turned into such a crazy time of spending money and trying to remember to get a gift for everyone on my list, I try to keep in the front of my mind the real reason we do all this in the first place.

One idea I had that I hope to try next year is to collectively give to a charity at Christmas time. Myself and the family members that would like to participate can pool our money...money we would have spent on meaningless gifts, and give it to a worthy cause. And then we could do a simple gift exchange, like exchanging board games that we could play on Christmas Day. That's my idea for next year and hopefully it will be more meaningful for us...

Some pictures from Christmas...

What We Do On A Snow Day

2008-12-16T18:51:00.000-08:00

Sled down a hill...

Take a nap...

Play a game...

Eat a grilled cheese sandwich...

...and yummy soup.

Also, we read books, baked bread, addressed Christmas cards, and watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Finding Our Tree

2008-12-09T09:01:00.000-08:00

We took our annual trip to the Christmas tree farm last week. We chose the right place, because finding a great tree was not difficult. There were many beautiful trees to choose from...

The kids had fun walking around looking at all the trees. They would find one they liked and put a branch over it to mark it so we could find it again...

Halloween Fun

2008-10-27T16:59:00.001-07:00

A friend and I organized a little Halloween party for kids this past weekend. The kids played games, decorated cookies, and did a pumpkin craft. It was slightly chaotic, but we expected that. The kids all had a great time, I think. We're brainstorming ideas for next years party...

Balloon popping craziness
Mummy time!

Most of the group

Crusoe

2008-10-17T22:45:00.001-07:00

I don't watch very much T.V, but when Trevor told me about a program showing tonight, I knew I wanted to see it. It is Crusoe. It is based on the novel Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe and we happened to read the book together earlier this year. Tonight was the premier, and it was two hours long. Amazingly, we were able to watch the entire program, and we both enjoyed it. Of course the story has been embellished a bit, but that just made it more entertaining for me. I love the relationship between Crusoe and Friday. And the drama that is already unfolding. Oh, and the gentleman who plays the part of Crusoe, Philip Winchester...totally hot! Can't wait till next week!

Every little boy needs one...

2008-09-18T12:15:00.000-07:00

...oh make me a red cape

I want to be Superman...

~John Mayer

I recently purchased some red fabric to decorate for Hannah's "High School Musical" birthday party. As I was waiting to have the fabric cut, I pondered in my mind what four yards of red fabric would be useful for after the party. And then it occured to me. A superman cape, of course! Trevor had one when he was younger that I made for him so he could be like a favorite computer game hero, Pajama Sam. He loved it. And I don't know where it is now, but it got so much use that I'm sure we trashed it. Doesn't matter though, because I had the makings for a brand new one, special for Benny. And with left over fabric, I'll make a second one for Ben's little friend Harrison.

Back to School!

2008-09-05T13:59:00.000-07:00

Trevor, 7th grade! I can hardly believe it. He is growing up before my very eyes. He is taller than me. He is smarter than me. Well, at least in math. The boy is taking Geometry this year. Normally a 10th grade class. He'll be earning a high school credit for it which is great. He continues to amaze me with his success in school. Hannah, 3rd grade. On to a new school. Oak Grove is 3rd through 5th grades. She adjusts so well though. Even though none of her closest girlfriends were in her class, she was still very excited and ready for 3rd grade. She is already bringing home books from her classroom library, and I'm sure this will be another great school year for her.

Ben and Ava braved the big world of preschool yesterday. They had different feelings about the idea of going, though. Ava was very excited and even said she was going to be a big girl and stay without Mommy there. Ben, on the other hand, was a little nervous, as the pictures show. He wanted me to stay the whole time. But after a few minutes on the playground and having his teacher come over to him and talk to him a bit, he loosened up and was doing well when I left. They will only be going two days a week. Just enough to get some social interaction and experience a structured, school like environment. It will be strange for me to be without any children for 2 1/2 hours on those days. I'm sure I'll get used to having some free time to get things done...

Clear Lake

2008-09-01T08:01:00.001-07:00

Clear Lake in the morning
Nichole, Hannah, and Ben at Sahalie Falls
Getting the fishing poles ready for morning, Ben said, "What does your taco box do daddy?" (He was referring to his tackle box.)
Koosah falls
My dad and his dog, Sam
Mmm....smores!

Ben's feet

2008-08-19T22:00:00.000-07:00

Last night, quite late I might add, Ben held up his right foot and said, "Mom, is this my right foot?"
And I said, "Yes, it is!"
Then he held up his left foot and said, "And is this my wrong foot?"
It cracked me up. For a minute, I didn't even mind that he was up way past his bedtime. What a funny boy.

Considering a Pump...

2008-08-16T11:05:00.000-07:00

We met with the Diabetes educator earlier this week to talk about putting Ben on an insulin pump. It's an exciting possibility for us because:

1. It would mean NO MORE SHOTS!! (We would do a site change every three days, which is equivalent to a shot, but once every three days as opposed to three times every day sounds great to us.)

2. It will allow us to be more flexible as far as when he eats. Right now, we make sure he eats breakfast at 8 a.m every day in order to give him his background insulin at the same time which is active for 24 hours. This means waking him up in the morning most days, so letting him sleep in would be a nice change.

3. It would (hopefully) mean better control of his blood sugar. The pump lets out small amounts of fast acting insulin every hour, mimicking a healthy pancreas. The amount of insulin can be adjusted at certain times of the day according to his specific needs. For example, he tends to run "high" in the afternoon. With a pump, we would be able to increase the amount of insulin during that particular time of the day to avoid a high. Also, on sick days blood sugars can be abnormal, so we would be able to temporarily adjust the basal rate of insulin. (The amount given every hour.)

And an added bonus to the particular pump we are considering is that it communicates wirelessly with a blood glucose meter. So the meter would test Ben's blood sugar, but also have the ability to control pump functions. It could calculate how much insulin would be needed for a meal, and then tell the pump to deliver it. The meter can also store carbohydrate information for 500 foods which we could customize.

Those are the major advantages to pumping. I'm hoping that once he is on the pump, we will discover many more. The plan is to have him start pumping this fall. The ball is rolling with insurance, and we need to coordinate appointments with the Diabetes educator and Ben's endocrinologist as we will be in frequent contact with them for awhile as he adjusts to the pump.

Walking with Benny's Believers

2008-08-14T14:56:00.000-07:00

As many as 3 million Americans have type 1 diabetes, a disease most often diagnosed in childhood that strikes suddenly, lasts a lifetime, and carries the constant threat of deadly complications, including heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure, and amputation. JDRF's mission is constant: to find a cure for diabetes and its complications through the support of research. Thanks to dramatic research progress, a cure is now within our reach.

On Sunday, September 28th, we will be walking with family and friends in JDRF's Walk to Cure Diabetes. It has been almost two years since Ben was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes, and we are still just as hopeful as we were two years ago that a cure will be found in his lifetime.

Clear Lake

2008-08-10T11:42:00.000-07:00

We went camping last weekend. Well, Hannah and Ben and I went. Trevor had plans with a friend and Larry had to work. We camped at Clear Lake with family. It was such a beautiful lake. The kids played, the weather was nice, and the hiking was great. We were able to stop and enjoy an amazing waterfall on the way home. I would love to spend more weekends like this.

Clear Lake
Row, row, row your boat...

This is where Clear Lake turns into the McKenzie River
A sweet little creek we passed by on our hike
The cutest little boy at camp!
Sahalie Falls

Independence Day

2008-07-04T17:16:00.000-07:00

Happy Independence Day!

It's hard to believe it's already the 4th of July! And almost a month into summer break... I decided it would be fun to let Hannah have a couple friends over for a few hours today to play outside and celebrate the holiday. They played on the slip and slide, jumped on the trampoline, listened to her new Camp Rock CD, and had lots of treats. Good times for these girls...

Feeling nostalgic

2008-06-19T08:57:00.000-07:00

I was going through my pictures today, looking for a particular one that was taken of a garden trellis at our previous home. I started at the beginning of my collection, knowing it was taken shortly after I got a digital camera, back in 2003. I had forgotten how much I enjoy looking at pictures from the past, especially pictures of the kids when they were so much younger.

I came across this picture of Hannah on her 4th birthday. She was really into dressing up and singing, and here she was giving me a private performance of "Me and My Teddy Bear," as sung by Baby Bop. :) The only reason I remember the song is because I took a video along with the picture. She was such a little princess, and still is. Just in a big girl kind of way...

Looking at pictures from this time period reminds me how life seemed less busy back then, and we seemed to have more time to soak up sweet little moments like these. I guess it's just the natural evolution of a family. And I'm glad I have lots of pictures like these to remind me to make time and to not get so busy that we forget to make more special memories.

Over 12 years ago

2008-06-12T08:40:00.000-07:00

This is Trevor, on December 24, 1995. It certainly doesn't seem like it has been over 12 years since that day. Today he finishes the 6th grade.

His feet are bigger than mine, we discovered last night. He is almost taller than me, in fact I'm sure he will pass me up this summer.

He has such a big heart, cares about people and his family, and most importantly, he loves God.

He makes me laugh, and amazes me with his success in school. (So far, a 4.0 GPA this year.)

And although it wasn't my plan to become a mother at age 20, I cannot imagine life now without Trevor. He is definitely one of God's greatest gifts to me.

These Two...

2008-06-10T22:33:00.000-07:00

...have a love/hate relationship. (Or maybe it's more like sibling rivalry.) But I think the hate part is just for show.

Getting a picture of them together can be very difficult most of the time. For example, today we stopped to take some pictures at this really beautiful field of lupine. (Ben was asleep in the car.) I asked them to stand together for a picture and to hurry because the battery in my camera was low. I just started snapping, figuring I would have to settle for a picture of them in a lupine field wrestling around being silly, but after a few shots I ended up with a pretty nice picture with the pretty purple blooms behind them.

I know they love eachother. And hopefully as they grow up they'll be able to show it more easily.

Marching in the parade

2008-06-09T20:52:00.000-07:00

My boy...playing his trombone and marching with his school band in the Strawberry parade last Saturday....and I'm not a big fan of parades. But this one was special because Trevor was in it. Making me proud. :)

Wee Artists

2008-06-06T16:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I got down the paints from the very top cupboard in the kitchen. You see, they had been there since Ben and Ava had gotten into them about a year and a half ago, rubbing them into the carpet two separate times. It happened before I could get to them and stop them. That is how quickly they work as a team.

I figured they were probably ready to try the paints again, this time with a little more supervision and structure. Oh and they were so excited. The moment I suggested painting, they both forgot what they were doing and ran into the kitchen as I got the paints down. Of course, they immediately started requesting certain colors, but that was solved by putting all of the paints in the center where they could be reached by both of them. (Notice the blue and purple paints are missing...rubbed into the carpet...)

The painting actually held their attention for quite a while. Ben took the more "modern art" approach, while Ava scattered her colors separately all over her paper, including a "rainbow" in the end.

I think investing in some more good paints, including the colors blue and purple, is in order for this summer. We may even try painting outside if the sun ever makes it's appearance again.

Our dinner

2008-06-02T20:34:00.000-07:00

Food, yummy food. My oh-so-kind sister prepared a delicious meal for our family tonight. Pork tenderloin with cooked apples. Add a little rice and steamed broccoli and we had ourselves a wonderful, tasty dinner. And since I worked all day, this was especially nice to come home to. Thank you Jenny! Love you.

Recycling

2008-05-30T12:49:00.000-07:00

I try really hard to recycle everything I possibly can. Many of my friends and family would attest to this fact. Just last week, in fact, I took a bag home full of empty boxes and french fry containers from McDonalds after having lunch there. (I wasn't going to confess this because it is, afterall, borderline crazy! But I already let the information slip out to a friend at work, so what the heck?!) After we finished our lunch there, I looked at all of those empty containers, knowing that they almost always end up in the trash can inside the restaurant. And it bothered me. I really hate to waste things, and so bringing them home and putting them into my commingled recycle bin was what I had to do.
But what I really want to mention, on the topic, is something said by my little boy last night. He came to me with two pieces of cardboard in his hand and said, "Mommy, is this garbage or recycle?" Now this might sound crazy, but I was so proud! :) He is only three years old, and this just goes to show you that I, like every other parent, have habits that rub off on my children. So glad that this good habit, (in my opinion), is rubbing off on him!

Now, here is a picture of the silly boy...

Preview of Summer

2008-05-29T13:44:00.000-07:00

I love summertime. Sitting outside, drinking something cold, wearing shorts and a tank, watching the kids play... A couple of weeks ago, we enjoyed a very hot weekend. The kids played in the sprinklers, wore sunscreen, asked for "otter pops."
At the soccer game, we all looked for a shady spot to sit. And then, the weather turned gloomy again.

But I'm hopeful that the warm weekend was a preview of a beautifully sunny and warm summer to come...

Helping our feathered friends

2008-05-24T19:37:00.000-07:00

Yesterday turned out to be a nice day weather-wise. We went to Corvallis to Martin Luther King Jr. Park for a picnic lunch and a short hike through the wooded area. When we got home I remembered this activity that I had read about. So, having an onion bag handy, I decided to put one together with my kids. We collected little sticks and dried plant stems and added it to some ribbon and raffia that we had, stuffed the bag and hung it in a tree in our backyard. It only took about 20 minutes, and it will be fun to see if it attracts any birds.

Prince Caspian

2008-05-22T11:18:00.000-07:00

Last night Trevor and I finished reading Prince Caspian from the Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. Lewis. We decided to read this story before going to see the movie which is playing in theaters. So we read one or two chapters every night for about a week and a half. It was such a good story, written by a good author and we both really enjoyed it. Now we'll go see the movie, probably this weekend sometime and I'm so excited. I'm sure it won't compare to the book, as books are usually better than the movie, but I'm expecting it to be entertaining at least.

Table Restored

2008-05-17T11:49:00.000-07:00

About five years ago, Larry and I were in Sisters, Oregon going through the sweet little antique shops. We found this table and I loved it. Someone had taken an old window and built the table around it. The window lifted up so things (magazines, books, decorative items...) could be stored inside. Since we have owned it, we have had to have a few of the window panes replaced due to obvious reasons having three children in the house. I started to think that maybe the table needed a facelift. Something more durable that would withstand several more years of use. I decided to take the window out and designed a new top for the table. Larry was nice enough to build the new top for me, (although I was a little disappointed as I would really like to learn how to use some power tools! :) Painted it black, attached a new handle and hinges, distressed it a little, and this is what I came up with...

I'm very pleased with the result. We plan to store board games and books inside the new table.

Saturday Soccer

2008-05-03T19:48:00.000-07:00

I love Saturday soccer. Trevor and Hannah are both soccer players. In the fall and spring, we plan our Saturdays around the soccer games...or try to figure out how to fit both soccer games into the day, which can be tricky since I'm often the only parent available to do the "soccer run." But I don't mind it. I actually really enjoy it. Soccer is something they both do well and seem to really have fun with.

I left my camera at home today by accident for Hannah's game, so no shots of her this time. I did get some good photos of Trevor though. I just sat with my camera ready to shoot, which is what you have to do to get a good action shot.

He has been playing since he was five years old. We used to go to his games back then and giggle as the boys would all run together around the ball, hovering over it like a swarm of bees. The way he plays now is so different and I find myself sitting on the edge of my chair as it gets exciting. When he was younger and would score a goal, I would be so proud of him that it would bring me to tears. It's the same today, and whenever he makes a good pass or challenges another player and makes it around him with the ball, the lump stars forming in my throat. I guess it's just the mommy in me.

I'm proud beyond proud. But not just because he is good at soccer; he is successful at a multitude of things, but more simply because I have been entrusted this wonderful young man by God.

Ben's soggy foot

2008-04-28T08:38:00.000-07:00

A couple days ago, in the morning, Ben was sitting on a barstool at the bar eating his breakfast. He climbed down from his stool and limped over to me, whimpering and complaining that his foot hurt. I said, "Why does it hurt? What happened?", and he said, "It's all soggy", and he was shaking it. I stood there trying to figure out what in the world he meant by a soggy foot, but then realized that he must have been sitting on his foot and it had fallen asleep.

A creative way to describe what he was feeling, I thought. Cute kid!

Sweet little Ben

2008-04-24T15:31:00.001-07:00

Ben says the sweetest things. I have to write this one down, and plan to make that a habit, because I know from experience that it will slip from my mind if I don't.
Last night we were sitting down for dinner, and it was a little rushed because we had to leave to take Trevor to church shortly. I looked over at Ben and he was just sitting there, eating his dinner and looking at me. Our little "dialog" went like this:
Ben: "Wuv you."
Me: "I love you, too."
Ben: (Wink.)
Me: (Wink.)
And then he puckered up his lips and leaned over to kiss me. And my heart melted.
He has the tenderest of hearts. I cherish every piece of him. I got lucky enough to be blessed with this sweet boy, and I'm so thankful for him.

Reading

2008-04-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

I have recently been trying to make more time to read. I was so pleased to learn about this book. It is titled Honey for a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt. The author is a Christian and she has a lot of insight on the importance of reading to your children. And not just any old book, but well written books that get little brains warmed up and excited about reading. She puts an emphasis on reading out loud to your children. What's really great about the book is that the last half is a series of booklists that she organized according to age and/or reading level. It also includes a couple lists of books that help kids and families grow as Christians. And although it was written way back in 1969, it still applies to today. I borrowed a copy of this book from the public library, but plan to purchace one so that I can reference the booklists when I borrow or buy a book in the future.