Projects and a New Venture

Now that Camden is here and I am no longer pregnant, I feel fantastic! Even though I'm really tired most of the time, I still feel like I could take on the world. So apparently I am! Here's what I've been up to:

1) The laundry room. I've removed most of the old shelves, painted and put in a small cubby unit for shoes and such, and I've bought several wall cabinets. The last few steps are to remove the final shelf, install the cabinets, and purchase and put in a tall cabinet for the mop & broom, etc. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm excited for how great (and organized!!!) it's going to be!

2) The living room. This one is a little tougher. I have the paint, and plan to get started this week. I've got a referral for an electrician, and will be getting an estimate to wire for the TV to be mounted above the fireplace. That's the tough part - I want to move the TV up there, and Mark doesn't. I simply want to get the TV up off the floor so we can open up the room a little more. Mark is agreeable to getting the estimate, so we'll see what it is and decide from there. Otherwise, it's just paint and curtains... and probably someday soon replacing the carpet as well. That room certainly sees a lot of traffic!

3) The master closet. This will be physically the most difficult. I'll be removing all of the shelving the builder installed, painting, and putting in a new custom configuration of shelves, rods, and drawers. This project will go in stages, and I'll start once the laundry room is completely done.

I'm really excited to complete these projects. As one friend said, it's so much easier to motivate yourself to keep your home clean and organized when you've put hard work into it!

Aside from all of that, I've also become a stylist for Stella & Dot. This is a jewelry company for whom I'll do home-based trunk shows. I LOVE this jewelry! It's amazing how much more put together I feel when I'm wearing a really pretty piece of jewelry, and this company has a LOT of pretty jewelry. I'm not looking to make any money, really, just have some fun, make some friends, and earn some jewelry. In fact, if I were hoping to earn a true income from it, I wouldn't have joined. I simply don't want to put that kind of pressure on myself (especially right now!) But I think I'm going to have a lot of fun doing it, and I'm really looking forward to an excuse to spend time with other grown-ups and make some new friends in the area. I haven't been great about that since we moved.

So now that you know all about me, what are the kids up to? Well, Owen is doing SO MANY exciting things! He's actually starting to talk, which is just amazing. He's also doing more with his mobility. He's *almost* crawling on his hands and knees vs. his army crawl that he's always done. He's also pulling up to kneel much more often and easily. It's so great to see him feeling good.

I think Gavin is having a little baby sister-induced anxiety. He's a bit clingier than he had been, and wants me to hold him and cuddle him a lot. I, of course, LOVE cuddling with him (Owen is not really a cuddler) but I obviously can't do it as much now that the baby's here and I'm nursing her. So I'm just trying to fit in extra cuddles and kisses between nursing and chores, and I'm hoping that will be enough for now. Gavin's also getting really good at shape sorters and puzzles, and he can count to ten.

Baby Camden is already changing so much! She's more awake and alert, and she's just starting to smile at us. I'm just in awe of her.

We're having a busy month of January, but life is great and we couldn't be happier to have these three precious children in our home!

-Adrienne

Camden Paige

Our newest little Frossard, Camden Paige, arrived on 12/12 at 1:09pm. It was an easy induction, and she was born quickly. Too quickly, actually, because she aspirated amniotic fluid and developed pneumonia. It sent her into respiratory distress, and she had to be admitted to the NICU, where she remains. Which is why I haven't felt much like updating since she was born.

At this point, she is off of her antibiotics and oxygen, and is pretty much like any other normal newborn, except she doesn't eat very well. So in the NICU she has to remain until she eats an appropriate amount and gains weight. This is so heartbreaking, especially so close to Christmas. We don't think she'll be able to come home before Christmas, and it's really putting me at the end of my rope. We've had so much great support from family and friends, helping watch the boys so we can spend time at the hospital, bringing meals, and just checking in on us. But the fact is I just want my sweet baby girl home so we can be a family on Christmas.

We are grateful that this is something she will recover from and that she should go on to be a healthy child. I just can't help but be sad and miss her, too.