Monahan’s Sandhills State Park
The children slept snuggled together last night, falling asleep before we reached Monahans Sandhills. As we arrived and looked out into the dark, we knew they would love it, and we were not disappointed in their reaction! Julianna charged off to climb and slide, then ran back and led Theo to the tops of the dunes. Theo followed willingly when led, a bit nervous about the wind and the blowing sand, and when given a moment, crawled and dug. Elijah discovered an abandoned kite and, after daddy showed him how to get it into the air, Continue Reading …
The fun has begun for our family of five!!
The fun has begun for our family of five!! This is our first vacation in a few years, and I think we got it started right, with fresh cups of coffee and a fridge full of food. I had fun lightly decorating the RV last night (I’ll post pictures here or on Instagram @thehouseofgriepp of that) and making everything slide-proof, so the kiddos can play Legos and crafts at the table without everything rolling off. They’ve been busy since we left at 9:30!
A Running Journal, of sorts…
When going for a long run, one has a fair amount of time to get alone with their thoughts. Sometimes those thoughts are meaningful. There are plenty of occasions, however, when those “brilliant ideas” that come somewhere between exhaustion and exhilaration inhabit a different reality; one that doesn’t squarely align with other moments of the day. These are, nevertheless, seeds that grow over time. As the miles grind on and the days unfold they begin to take shape into a vision of new opportunities and innovations. This blog came about through one of those seeds. We have yet to see Continue Reading …
The Wonder Year
The snow has been falling for three days here in the North Woods of Wisconsin. For this girl from Texas, snow that drifts in the air and blankets the ground is a special thing; individual flakes that distinguish themselves, resting on our clothes after their long journey home, a wonder to behold. Continue Reading …
Christmastime is here…
To give credit to our sweet Julianna, she is now sleeping in 3 hour blocks at night. We couldn’t resist, however, and captured Julianna in one of her finer moments. This shot was taken Christmas Eve. The shirt reads “All mommy wants for Christmas is a silent night.”
Unto us a child is born
This week has certainly been a journey. As many of you know we made plans to induce Julianna in consideration of mommy and baby’s safety. We first checked into the hospital on Monday evening and, after 24 hours of medically-induced contractions with no progression, determined it would be best to go home empty handed, rest, and return to the hospital later in the week. On Thursday night we began another marathon effort of bringing Julianna into our arms. This 36 hour rush of contractions climaxed Saturday morning. After about an hour of pushing, Julianna came into our world at 9:51 Continue Reading …
Julianna has arrived
Julianna Isabelle Griepp arrived at 9:51 a.m. She weighs 7 lbs 3 oz and is 19.75 inches. More information and photos on the way.
Hope to be pushing soon
Early this morning Tamara received her ninth Cytotec. A few hours later we switched back to a Pitocin drip. Until 5:30 Tamara was 5 cm dilated; by 6:30 she had moved to 8 cm. Tamara is currently at 9.5 cm and we hope to be pushing soon.
The Journety Continues…
We are now 30 hours into our second stay at the hospital for Julianna’s induction. This visit started much like our encounter earlier this week. We checked in at 8:30 p.m. after enjoying a relaxing Thanksgiving afternoon at our home. Shortly after settling in, Tamara took on the first of seven Cytotec doses. The contraction pains started to become progressively more intense Friday morning. From morning until evening Tamara experienced a contraction every 90 seconds. As the evening moved on and her endurance waned, the contractions became more erratic, intense, and typically lasted 120 seconds each. She received her first Continue Reading …
Will vs. May
In one hour we leave for the hospital. We check in at 8:30 p.m. and they start the induction again. In the morning, well, who knows? The only thing we know right now is that from our first attempt to this second one, we’ve learned some important lessons, of which we’ll highlight one. Continue Reading …