Matching Jammies

Kinda a self-explanatory title, isn't it? :)

Never having had a sister, this wasn't part of my life growing up - but I can see why people do this to their kids...
It's so stinkin' cute! (lol!)

(Christy V: Not sure if you read the blog - but just in case: thanks for the awesome pjs! :))

A Perfect Day For...

Baking cookies with Daddy!
(and using the new apron made for you by Gramma Lori!)

Besides: what else are you going to do when it's -25???

"Auntie Kendall"

The above title sounds good, I think. :)

My brother, Kiley, and his wife, Jessica had their "little" (8lb, 3oz, 20&3/4 inch) boy last night just after 7:00 pm. He was born on his actual due date, people!

I'm SO impressed!

Welcome Kaden James Podhordeski!
Auntie Kendall is already in love with you - and she's only seen pictures!

Your cousin, Peyton, is already practicing your name - and informed me, "Baby out Auntie Jess tummy." (We've been practicing understanding of that concept four a couple of weeks... she knows that Tenley came out of Mommy's tummy at the "ho-pee-tal"...)

Tenley is preparing to be the older cousin - although you already dwarf her by a good half-a-pound - if not more! I'm sure all this sleeping she's doing is just to grow and catch up... ;-D

Praising God for my nephew's safe arrival - and his parent's (especially his Mommy's) endurance!

My Daughters

Life is pretty much absorbed with being a mommy these days.

Tenley's days and nights are righteously mixed-up. :)
Peyton daily bids for attention I'm trying my best to give.
Kurt is working really hard to get the barn fully winterized as winter has officially arrived - so that means some long hours with the girls in my snowbound house.
Thank goodness for satellite tv and a new season of What Not To Wear. (grin)

Life is good. Hectic but good.
Hopefully I can blog soon.
Hopefully. :)

I told Kurt that Tenley brings Autumn to mind more than Peyton did for some reason.
I think it's her eyes.
When closed, they remind me so much of Autumn on that last and only day of holding her. Peyton's eyes were smooth when she had them closed.
Autumn and Tenley both have wrinkles.
I never saw a resemblance between Autumn and Peyton - but Tenley brings glimpses and reminders of both her big sisters.
Genetics are a strange thing at times...

I wonder if God is giving me a glimpse of what my beautiful firstborn baby girl would have looked like had those eyes opened.

These are bittersweet musings... pain mingled with humble thankfulness and joy for our third daughter's safe arrival.

But I do miss Autumn these days. More than in a while. Tenley's life is bringing to mind, on a daily basis, the loss of her oldest sister.

Not expected emotions on my part.
I guess I should learn to stop thinking I know what to expect. (chuckle)
I'm not depressed - lest anyone be worried. But I am reflective. That's not a bad thing.
Honest. :)

Thanks to everyone who continues to keep our family in your thoughts and prayers. :)

One Week Later

- The gas issues seem to have resolved. It hasn't been too bad... just enough that she curls up her legs and cries uncomfortably. The gripe water has relieved her both quickly and effectively. So far, no indication she's fighting a nasty bout of colic. Yay! :)

(There could be a bunch of "so far" comments in this post, I think... lol!)

- Peyton has adjusted well (so far - see?). Today she came in from her visit with Baba and Gydo (went to see the horses, kitties and Lexi (the dog)) and said, "Where Tenley?" the second she walked into the room. After asking to hold her, and doing so for a few minutes, she leaned in, kissed her sister gently on the forehead and whispered, "I miss you, sister." Awwww....

- Sleep. (slowly shaking head...) Well, it isn't like I had high expectations, anyway. (lol!) Besides, this phase really only lasts a little while in the grand scheme of things...
Tenley is starting to schedule herself - just at odd hours. My mantra is to not get used to anything - 'cause when (not if - when) she changes, I'll just be that much more ready to go with the flow. :)

- As of the Public Health Nurse's visit on Wednesday, Tenley had not only regained her birth weight - but gained another half-ounce. Weigh (ha! pun!) to go, kiddo.

- On that note: she DOES like to eat. And eat. And EAT. So the jaundice is fading - not that she was that bad in the first place, but it's almost unnoticeable now. She also poops a lot more than Peyton did. Not too many blown-out diapers yet, though. (I said "yet" - same as "so far"...)

- The birth story is still in the works. Suffice to say that I'm thankful for the doctors and nurses around me - and the mainstream accepted low-intervention approach mindset that exists in health care here.
If we had been on TLC's Baby Story, the docs would have been telling me several days earlier: "You're not progressing. I think we need a c-section."
(I don't know how many times I've yelled at the TV while watching that show, "Good grief! What's the rush???" No wonder one-in-three births result in sections down there when they have no patience! - ahem... rant over. lol!)
As appealing as it would have been to meet Tenley a few days earlier, my health care team was perfectly alright with letting it take as long as needed and with as natural of an approach as possible to get things moving. Which - eventually - it did. Whoa-boy... did it ever. :)

- I hear Peyton waking up, so I should go spend some time with her before Tenley wakes up and needs me again.

Thanks for reading, everyone! :)

Genetics?

People have been telling me the girls look alike.

What do you think?

Update (sorry this is the best I can do right now)

I just gotta say that gripe water is the best baby invention ever.

*yawn*

Getting There and Going Home

Two shots which - when I viewed them on a screen bigger than my Canon - brought tears to my eyes...

Pure joy.

My heart overflows with it.

Thank you, dearest Jesus, for these three precious gifts you have given me...

The 3 Manz Girls

Tenley Breanna Lynn Manz came into the world November 6th, at 0741 hrs.
She weighed 7 lbs, 0 ounces, and is 20-and-a-half inches long.
Our hearts are full of joy!

But we are POOPED-OUT, people.
I tell ya... not exactly how we planned it to go... but stay tuned. :)

Full story to follow, I promise - asap. What that means with a toddler in who is in full-blown mommy & daddy withdrawal and a newborn is yet to be defined.
But I'll do my best... lol!

Thank you, thank you for all the prayers and hope sent our way. :)
Love,
Kurt, Kendall
Peyton & Tenley

November 2nd

It's true... the day we've been waiting for for months is almost here.
November 3rd is tomorrow.

I still have to pack that darn hospital bag. I know, I know.
Bad. I really do know that.
(parts of it are 'stacked-neatly' in my room - ready for placing in a bag... so it isn't all bad)

But - I dunno... deep down I just kinda know I won't go into labor early. It isn't even something that runs in my family (maternal side, anyway).
Having been through this twice before, I think there would be a few more signs - and I never got that sense.

That said - if I'm wrong and my water breaks in the next two hours - you have my permission to say, "Silly-procrastinator, Kendall."

But the girl's (plural!) room is done.
And absolutely delightful! :)

Kurt did a super job of building a closet-organizer - from scratch. I told him what I wanted (handed him a scrap of paper and said, "Can you build this closet for me by next week, honey?"), and he did all the measuring, cutting, painting, and placement.

Everything fit perfectly the first time. I'm so proud of him.
Peyton - after seeing the completed project for the first time - said, "Wow! Good job, Daddy!" I think that might have meant even more to him than my praise. :)

All of the kid's clothes now have a place in the closet, and the change-table can be kept solely for diapers, blankets, bedding and receiving blankets. A dream come true...

Peyton is beyond thrilled at her big-girl bed. The first thing she did when she saw it put together this morning (we finished up after she went to bed in our room last night) was grab a book off her shelf and "read" in her bed. She also keeps looking at the two new pink walls and exclaiming, "Wow! Pink!" with a big grin. :)

(Funny story: After the first coat, Kurt stood back and said, "We're promoting our own breast-cancer awareness with this room." lol!)

The only things missing are the closet doors, toy box and the new baby's name-lettering.

The first item is in Saskatoon waiting for pickup at Rona. (We had to custom-order them because the size of the opening isn't 'standard'.)

The second is waiting for pick-up at my parent's house (a 3rd generation toy box, no less!). It will likely go at the foot of Peyton's bed (where that tub is now).

The third is an item custom made by my dear friend Katrina - who has her own family (including a baby daughter!) to contend with. :) But we'll eventually get it hooked up - and the letters will go above the crib just like Peyton's are above her bed.

Both the first and second item(s) have to be primed and painted - but Kurt has this lovely thing called a 'heated garage' which makes painting an easy task even in the dead of winter. :)

Having a room which can hold the belongings of two children in an organized fashion made us decidedly more relaxed - versus last week when we were thinking something along the lines of, "Where the heck are we gonna put TWO kids??"

It also helped that I was successful at washing, sorting and organizing all of Peyton's old clothes. I purged just the right amount of "stuff" to assure I'm not overwhelmed later.

Today holds the intensive house-cleaning that has been severely neglected the past few weeks.

(I need clean bathrooms before I can go give birth. Is that strange?
(I already know your answer, Jen V.T. - lol!
Disclaimer: I will not be washing my floors on my hands-and-knees today!)

Laundry (including sheets, clothes and towels) washed, winter-bedding on, dusting, garbage out, fridge cleaned, and - of course - the bathrooms, vacuuming and washing the floors (with a mop!) are all on the list.

Basically, I don't want to worry about anything but sleeping and nursing when I get home. :)

Anyway... thanks to all who are praying for us. Peace of mind seems to be a harder thing to fight for as we get closer. Even last night as we finished the girl's room, I was dealing with, "What if..." thoughts.

But I am choosing to trust God with hope - which is pretty all-encompassing - be it hope that all things will turn out well - or hope that He has done and will always do what is best for us.

I'll do my best to keep you posted! :)