Update

Just thought I would give all you Farmer Family Fans out there a little update on our lives since I feel like we are completely crazy and never see anyone anymore...

Will - got the news that he has been accepted into NCSU's phD program for Animal Science and will begin in August.

Jennifer- is working three 12-hour shifts a week in the pediatric emergency department at Wake Med Hosptial and loving it....drama, drama, drama!

Fiona - is crawling/scooting, pulling herself up to stand, takes baby steps while holding your hands, sleeps most of the night in her crib, says "Hi-Dada" (all one smushed-together word) when she sees Will in the mornings, is a complete mama's girl and will let you know very quickly if you try to hold her, and is growing so quickly!!! (Where is my pause button?)

For those of you who we haven't seen in a while, we miss you. I hope we see you soon. Now that we have our schedules worked out for a bit I hope we can make some trips. But until then...SMILE!

Fiona's Thin Mint

You know you're in trouble when this thought crosses your mind: "Hum, my kid sure is being quiet right now."

Fiona found my Girl Scout Thin Mints...she sure was quiet, and happy...and covered in chocolate.

Ahh, the book I read when I was a child that motivated me to become a nurse today. Yes, really.

If you have never read Nurse Nancy you should...its a great book.

I recently have started my new job at the Children's Emergency Department at Wake Med Hospital in Raleigh. PHEW - talk about busy. We are the busiest ER in the state. We also see the strangest and most outrageous things...things I never thought possible. And No...I can't tell you about them. Sorry! Patient privacy rules.

However, I can say - I love my job. Its wild and wacky, but very fun. So if your child ever gets a serious boo-boo come and see me. We're open 24/7...but mind the wait. Just cause you know me doesn't mean I can get you seen in under 2 hours.

Hopefully my schedule will even out soon and I'll only be working 3 days a week - which will allow me more Fiona time which may even translate into more blogspot time. Who knows - you may even get a video update of Fiona next time. :o)

On a humerous note - yesterday Will and Fiona and I went to the pool to get some much needed exercise. Will was looking at Fiona's swimmies and said - what about the diaper? Fiona wears a "swim diaper" which is basically just a cover with no padding - meant only to keep in solids...not to soak up liquids. At which point Will squeals "EWWW...she pees in the pool?" Yes honey, she pees in the pool - much like the rest of the people who swim in it. "EWWW...people really pee in the pool?!!?!!?" At which point I bust out laughing....yes honey, people pee in the pool all the time. For some reason - Will cannot get through his head that the majority of people who go swimming will pee in the pool at some point or another. I personally think this is hysterical as I watch him do calculations to see what percentage of the pool water is actually pee. He came up with 10%...I think thats a bit high. Anywho - to back me up on this. Who of you have peed in the pool. Oh come on now, don't be shy. Really - have you peed in the pool?

Hello world!

Hello world!

Nice to see you again...its been a while hasn't it? Sorry I haven't been around to blog, but life has taken over in full swing. As mentioned in my last blog, I don't get to see Fiona or Will much due to work schedules. And right now, I'm getting to blog because Will is over at some friend's house (so he isn't here to say, "noo...don't blog, snuggle with me!").

So here's the updates on our lives...

Fiona
Fiona is doing great! She is almost 6 months old and growing so quickly. You can see all her pictures on my facebook page. I update there more frequently than here.
Breastfeeding - Fiona has decided that she is too mature to breastfeed in public; or even during the day for that matter. Which has forced me to pump for her daytime meals. I don't mind at all, but it has definately given me a new found respect for "exclusively pumping" mamas. My hats off to you all.
C0-sleeping - Fiona still has not transitioned to her crib. She'll nap there during the day for an hour or so at a time, but will not do long bouts of sleep in the crib. Therefore, she is still co-sleeping with us (something that before she was born I swore I would never do). We hope to have her in her own crib by 12 months if not sooner. If you have any suggestions feel free to comment...but if I hear "just let her cry it out one more time" I'm going to smack someone. Trust me honey, we've tried.

Will
Job
Will recently got a new job working for Ohio State University assisting in collecting samples and materials for research on antibiotic resistant salmonella in hog farms. He works in the local NC hog farms and comes home stinking like them too. Its long hard work but somebody has to do it. We're just thankful he has a job right now. He is starting his application to his get his PHD at NCSU...but that will depend on whether or not the school has enough grant $ to fund him.
Community Group
Recently we were asked to begin our own Community Group here in Angier for Vintage 21 (our church). We've been blessed to have 2 regular attendees (thanks Emily and Andrew!), and we're hoping for more folks soon. Its been an interesting challenge to work on truely living as Jesus' disciples...but hopefully we'll improve in His will. If anyone ever wants to come we hold CG at 7pm every Wednesday night.

Jennifer
Job
Jennifer just accepted a new job at Wake Med Hospital in Raleigh working in the Pediatric Emergency Department. I start February 23rd and am so excited but nervous as well. I'm going to miss everyone at Fuquay-Varina Pediatrics as they are all so wonderful. But life is one of those funny ever-changing things and it was too good an opportunity to pass up. I'll *hopefully* be working 3 twelve hour shifts per week.
Mama
I must say - being a mama is my most favorite thing in the world. Right now I'm laying in bed next to Fiona. Watching her sleep and holding her while she naps are my two most favorite nighttime activities. I love to play with her and watch her grow before my eyes. She's just beautiful. Thank you Lord for blessing me with her! I can't wait for more!

Well I think that about covers it for now. I'll try to blog more often, I promise. But when I've got a Fiona to play with, no offense, but she comes 1st.

Peace Love and Contentment - Jennifer

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times...it was Saturday.

Saturday is that magical day that all of us in the working world long for. Saturday is my day of relaxation, of getting chores done, and my most favorite part...getting to have Fiona for a whole day.

You see, Monday through Friday I get to see Fiona for about 3 hours total each day. "How can that be?" you ask...

Well, I wake up at 6:30 and get ready for work while she finishes sleeping. I wake her up at 7am, feed her, put her in her carseat, and drive her to Gabu (my mom, who takes care of her). Total morning Fiona time = 30 minutes tops.

In the evenings I get off from work around 5pm. At least one night a week I have 'late-night' which means I can't leave until the last patient is out the door. Most times this is around 5:30-6pm; the other week it was 6:45. Anyhow, I digress. I get off work at 5pm, retrieve my babe and head home. We usually get home by 5:45. At this point she eats, I cook supper (or not), we play, and then at 7:30-8pm she falls asleep. Total evening Fiona time = approximately 2-2.5 hours.

Now, I hear some of you saying "Yeah, but you get to see her while she is sleeping. Plus, you get up 3 times a night to feed her. Isn't that enough time for you?" NO. If I had it my way, I would spend every minute of every day with her and that still wouldn't be enough time.

Back to Saturday. The problem with Saturdays is that I hardly interact with Fiona during the week. While she has a pretty good routine established with Gabu, somehow that doesn't happen with me on Saturdays. In other words, each Saturday I have to re-learn what she wants and how she wants it. For example, during the week my mom gives her bottles, and Fiona doesn't have to work very hard for her meal. On the weekend she nurses and gets mad that my milk doesn't come out faster. So we spend 30 minutes with her screaming until she wears herself out enough that she'll take whatever she can get. I also struggle with wanting to play with her and find myself forgetting that she needs to nap. Add in any travel, appointments, or seeing friends and family and it can be a disaster waiting to happen.

By Sundays Fiona and I are back into a rhythm and can function pretty well together. Sunday is my favorite day of the week. And then that ugly Monday rolls around and I lose it all over again until the next weekend.

So what can I do? I've already requested changing my schedule from a 5 day a week routine to a 4 day a week routine. But that wasn't approved. I have a job lined up that would start in February for 3 days a week, but after some challenging patients this week I wonder if that job is really right for me.

I guess all I can do is learn from each Saturday and pray that the next will be smoother.

Until next time...this is working mom #185011 signing off.