PAIL

I recently came across PAIL: Parenting After Infertility and Loss, and I am so glad that I did! Prior to Aynsley being born, but especially prior to adopting Jaxson, I did a lot of infertility blogging. Although I chose not to share those posts with anyone I knew in real life, I found that blogging and networking with complete strangers was such a support to me, because these people knew exactly how I was feeling. After Aynsley's birth, I started to drift away from the infertility blogging community because even though I could relate to how others were feeling, most of them couldn't relate to me. Plus, what infertile girl wants to read about someone's two kids, even if they have dealt with infertility?

I realize that right now, our family does not look like the poster child for infertility. Unfortunately, I will always be infertile, and I know that it will plague me again the next time we are ready to welcome another child into our home. I have come to realize that the pain of infertility never completely fades, or if it does, it takes a really long time. It is different now; instead of longing for a child, it presents in other ways...wishing that I could perfectly space out the time between kids, sadness when I see someone complaining about their pregnancy.

So, back to PAIL. PAIL is a list of blogs that are written by people who now are parenting after infertility. I was so happy to recognize many of the people that I used to follow when I was writing on my infertility blog. I am really looking forward to getting in touch with some of these ladies again.

As an added bonus, this week is National Infertility Awareness Week.  I would encourage everyone to take just a minute and learn a little more about infertility. Did you know that infertility affects an average of 1 in 8 couples? Chances are, you know someone besides me that has been affected by it.

I don't mean to get on my soapbox, but this is an issue that has affected me and is dear to my heart. Thanks for listening to my ramblings. :)

Hoppy Easter

We  had such a fun Easter with the kids this year. Even though Jaxson still didn't know what was really going on, he still had a lot of fun, and Aynsley loved being able to play with the plastic Easter eggs. It is so fun to see them get excited! 

We had my cousins come over for a little egg hunt and to dye Easter eggs the day before Easter. The two other kids are a bit older than Jaxson, so I was a little worried about how well he would be able to keep up and whether he would be even able to find eggs on his own. I shouldn't have worried...he was a champ! He started finding eggs and putting them into the sack while I was still trying to explain the rules to the other kids. It was just like he was an old pro at finding eggs and knowing exactly what to do with them. So cute!

Aynsley was just so happy...she loved playing with the empty eggs. She is such a sweetheart! 

 The kids weren't too excited about anything on Easter morning. I thought Jaxson would have liked looking in his basket, but he seemed to be mostly fascinated with the Easter grass. I think I was the most excited of everyone. :)

 I think the kids look super cute in their new Easter clothes. I really love this picture of Aynsley...she just has the biggest smile on her face! I tried to catch a good picture of just Jaxson, but no luck. That kid is ALWAYS on the move!

It has been interesting for me to celebrate the holidays as a mom rather than just as a wife or daughter. Especially now that Jaxson is understanding more and more, I feel an added weight of how important it is to really teach him about why we celebrate occasions like Easter. I don't want them to grow up thinking that the most important things in life are things...there is SO much more. This Easter season, I am so thankful for the many blessings that I have been given, especially during the past few years. I am so thankful for the power of the atonement and the ability it has to ease the pain and difficulties that we face in life. I know that I couldn't make it through alone!

What's It Like in Your World?

Wow, time sure goes by fast! Jaxson and Aynsley are growing up so quickly. I absolutely love being their mom and I truly can't imagine having it any other way. I just love being a part of their worlds. Here is a glimpse at what is going on with each of the kids:

My sweet Jaxson:

Jaxson loves to run around outside. I could tell that he was feeling a little stir-crazy one day, so we went out into the backyard to run around. He loved being able to chase Faline around the yard and thought it was so funny that she was running away from him.

Jaxson loves to play on the playground. One of our favorite things to do right now is take a walk to one of the playgrounds in our neighborhood. He especially loves to play in the sand and go down the slide. Recently, we met up with some friends for a picnic lunch/play date at the park. Jaxson was in heaven! He is so social...he loves to play with other kids and was loving being able to go down the slide over and over.

Jaxson is slowly starting to get more vocal, and it seems like he has so much that he is trying to say. Some of his most commonly used words are hi, hi ___ (guys, sis, dad, mom-ma), no, owe-ie (I think he uses this as stop), go, and uh-oh. He also can say cookie, wa-wa (for water), hello, bye-bye, and a few others.

Jaxson still loves music and he loves to dance. He was always start moving around if he hears music that he likes.

One of his newest fascinations is that he has learned to turn light switches on and off. He loves to climb onto our sofa and turn the ceiling fan on. Once he sees the fan start to move, he points to it and has the biggest smile on his face.

My dear Aynsley:

Aynsley's personality is coming out more and more all the time. It is so fun to see her grow and learn. I love to hear her giggle and laugh...it is so precious!

Aynsley has finally started eating solids within the past week. She was so resistant to it...it kind of seemed like she just didn't know what to do with it. When I mentioned it to our pediatrician at her six month check-up, he told us to keep offering food at every meal, including offering table foods, just in case it was the baby food texture she didn't like. We still weren't seeing any progress until last week. My mom put a little bit of ice cream up to her lips, and she was hooked! Since then, she has successfully been eating any baby food that she has been given! :)

Aynsley is getting curly hair, and I love it! She looks so much like Mike, so it has been fun for me to see a trait that she inherited from me. It seems like her hair is becoming curlier the longer it gets, so we'll see what happens.

Aynsley is a girl after my own heart, and seems to love all things Disney. Although she still loves Mickey Mouse the most, she also seems to really enjoy whenever any Disney movie is on. I am so excited for when she and Jaxson are older, and I can take them to Disneyland to meet Mickey Mouse in real life!

Aynsley is sleeping through the night! She consistently will sleep 10-11 hours at night before waking up...so nice!

Like I said, Aynsley is growing up fast! She weighs almost as much as Jaxson, although he is still a lot taller than she is. She is wearing all of the clothes that I had planned for her to wear this summer, so we definitely like these warm days.