Allie Mae- 7 months old

Sweet Allie Mae.

You are now just over 7 months old.

It's so hard to believe how fast you are growing and changing.

How much you are learning.

How much you are a joy to our lives.

I haven't been very good at updating the blog.

It's been a little busy with 2 of you munchkins.

And the flood of course.

But I've been taking lots of pictures of you!

You are eating well. 

14 pounds and 8 ounces at our last doctor visit.

And you've loved that you've started solid foods!

You love to chow on whatever you can get your hands on and will try anything.

We are doing baby-led weaning with you.

I think it's one of your favorite activities.

You definitely don't want to be left out if the rest of us are eating.

You are also sleeping well.

You had a "regression" around 4 months.

But other than that you've slept through the night except when you've been sick.

It is a great gift that you've given your mama.

I love that you love to sleep!

As far as other activities you're playing hard now.

You love to army crawl.

You're *so* close to crawling on all fours.

I've seen you do it a couple of times but it's not consistent.

You also love to be with your brother.

Any of his toys are your favorite toys.

And of course he'll always tell me when you start to eat them.

I can tell that he loves you and he's trying hard to take care of you.

It's adorable to see how you two are together.

I believe sharing a room with him is one of the reasons you sleep so well.

You are joyful and happy (almost) all the time.

Your smile lights up a room.

You're silly.

You love to laugh.

You love to babble and talk.

You're so curious of the world around you.

You really seem to take it all in.

You are loving and affectionate.

You are my sweet, beautiful girl.

And i love you like crazy!

Mama

Lyons Flood- FAQs and How you can help....

I wanted to thank everyone again for the overwhelming support.

Since my last post, I wanted to address some of the FAQs.

And share how you can help.

Am I ok?

Yes and No. 

We are together as a family, our house was untouched by the waters, and we are staying with wonderful friends.

We have everything to be thankful for in this situation.

But I am unsettled.

Not just because we are displaced for several weeks.

But because of the collective trauma.

It was traumatic.

For so many people including myself.

And I feel that trauma around me.

I was wired for days.

Now, I'm just tired and wanting things to be "normal" again.

How are the kids doing with this?

Really, they are fine.

Allie doesn't know the difference.

Jackson thinks it is normal and fun to stay with Ms. Ashlyn and Mr. Craig.

But he has now referenced going to our "other house."

The "purple house in Lyons, Colorado."

For some reason that really gets to me.

When will we be able to go back?

This is the big unknown.

But I believe it will be a matter of weeks for us.

They are supposed to turn on electricity for businesses today.

We're hoping they'll bring it for the northern, untouched part of town on Friday.

Which includes our house.

And would allow people to keep their homes warm so the pipes don't freeze.

I've heard them say that they can hopefully get water and sewer going in 2-3 weeks for 75% of town. 

That would also include us.

Really, we might be able to go back if we just get electricity and if we can use one of Jonathan's work RVs for the water and bathroom.

How can I help?

Our family's physical needs are met.

But so many in our community are really struggling.

Especially as the attention shifts away.

If you are willing to contribute financially, I would ask that you consider sending money to The River Church.

http://www.therivercolorado.org/give.html

100% of funds go to flood relief.

There are no administrative costs that chip away at your donation.

You can specify to help the church itself rebuild, or for your money to go to help families in the community.

This is our community church and will be helping for the long-term.

If you are local and would like to donate clothes or household items, I would ask that you wait for a little bit.

Right now there are a lot of donations.

That won't be the case in a month or so.

Much love to all of you,

Marcia (and Family)

Footage of pedestrian bridge washing away:

(Normally river is 10 feet or so below...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sg_cKy-AQ6s

The Great Flood of Lyons

I can't express how thankful I am for everyone who has been asking about us and praying for us this last week and a half. It has been one of the most stressful times of our lives, and yet we are blessed beyond measure to be safe and to be able to stay with our wonderful friends, the Montgomerys, as our town pulls itself back together.  Our house is fine. We are fine. We are anxious to go home as soon as possible.

So what happened?  The "500 year flood" hit Boulder County.  When I moved to CO, I had heard of the "100 year flood" potentially hitting Boulder at some point- and that it's time should be coming- but you still don't expect it.  Basically there's a 1 percent chance in any given year.  When I moved to Lyons, I even thought less of it. We live on a top of a hill in Lyons. I figured that we would be ok. I did not expect for the *entire* town to be evacuated because of lack of infrastructure. I did not expect to get an alert about my town on CNN.  There is no water, sewer, electric, or communications.  The river has actually changed course.  Hundreds of homes have been damaged or destroyed.  It's devastating.

Our timeline:

Monday September 9- I'm laying by the pool at the gym, soaking up the sun.  It is absolutely gorgeous. By afternoon the temperature dropped, I felt fall had arrived, and not long after it started to rain.

Tuesday September 10- Rain. Rain. Rain.

Wednesday September 11- Rain. It was a bad with Jackson and so I decided to not go to the grocery store since I could go the next day while he was at preschool.  That evening it developed into a torrential downpour. Would. Not. Stop. Over the course of 24 hours, 10-12 inches fell in Boulder County.

Thursday September 12- More downpours. Woke up to find that the sirens had gone off in the middle of the night and people had been evacuated to the Elementary school. I was told that the roads were shut down in all directions. Jonathan was coming home from Rifle, CO and he was insisting that he could find a way in.  During a break in the rain that AM, I videotaped some of the scenes from town- the river was crazy and had taken over the roads.  I heard a dam had broken above us which had made things worse. I was thankful to live on a top of a hill, on the other side of town from the river. Those of us on our side of town began bringing down supplies for everyone at the school. By the late afternoon, we didn't have water, so I began collecting rain water, but we had electricity.  I was praying that we would keep electricity. Jonathan was not allowed in, nor could he have made it-- the river completely covered the road into town.  I witnessed the National Guard enter town and saw their trucks struggling to get across.  I thought the only hope of Jonathan getting in was if he could catch a ride in on the truck since they were supposed to start taking people out the next day. I heard a report that the elementary school was probably going to lose power and so I knew that we would, too.  I called Jonathan at 1am right after we lost electricity with my phone dying. He told me where the generator was and then I was on my own.  Communications went down during the night with only limited cell service after that.

Friday September 13- I woke up to a whole new reality. I was by myself, in the dark, with 2 small children and 2 pets. My phone showed an alert from CNN that Lyons was being evacuated but I couldn't check for specifics or see most of my other messages, including from Jonathan. I set to work getting the generator working and was successful after an hour or so. Boy that thing was heavy and so loud once I got it going. I plugged our fridge and deep freezer into it, and felt pretty accomplished. I learned from our neighbors that there was a town meeting and headed down there. They basically told us that if we had food and water, to go back to our homes and come back the next day. A neighbor had a landline phone so I was able to call Jonathan and get more instructions as to where our landline phone was in the house and what to do if we needed to evacuate the next day. But he was beside himself not being able to be with us.  They wouldn't let him in on the trucks and even though the river had receded, leaving a lane, they wouldn't let him drive in. I went down on Friday afternoon and pleaded with an officer to allow him but the guy was a jerk-- letting his buddy leave and come back- and ignoring my request for help. I didn't give up though and I talked to a nice lady at the elementary school about it. They still didn't have supplies... and I knew my husband had a truck full of them to donate.  So she set me up with Officer Nick who heard my request and said he would make it happen.  It seemed to take forever for my husband to get to me-- but when we did, all of the neighbors cheered and I felt so happy.  I knew that we could deal with anything together!  

Saturday September 14- Another town meeting- this time to tell us to leave in an orderly fashion. There was no infrastructure, and although it wasn't "mandatory," they wouldn't help with any more supplies and needed us to leave. They gave no indication of when we could come back.  It was sunny and beautiful outside. Everyone was packing up on our street and aside from a cookout to get rid of frozen food, we started to pack as well. We also planned a steak dinner that night with our neighbors, Don and Nancy, and our friends, the Lohrs. At some point, Jonathan heard a rumor that another dam could be in jeopardy and he wanted to go ahead and evacuate but I knew that we weren't ready. It's a lot of work packing up for kids, pets, etc. Besides, i wanted our final dinner with our neighbors and I wasn't ready to leave!

Sunday Sept 15- We worked all morning and with some help, we were finally able to evacuate around noon. It was again pouring rain. We drove 2 trucks out with what we could pack, and headed toward Longmont.  We dropped off our cat, Kyla, with our friends the Christiansons, who live 3 houses down from our friends the Montgomerys, who had graciously offered to let us stay with them. We've been staying at their house for a week now and could be here awhile as our town gets fixed.

In the past week, we have been busy and yet rather disoriented with this whole change of events. Jonathan was able to get access again to town through impressing Officer Nick and other town leaders, and offering his skills and resources. After having a pass system to get in last week, they are now letting all residents in with our drivers licenses as of today.  But we still don't have any of the utilities- and so any trips in are mainly to check on things or to get things that we forgot.  We still don't have a clear answer as to when we can go back in to live.  I have heard that electricity will be back on soon-- but water and sewer will take awhile- esp. since the river has changed course and they have to decide what to do with that. In the mean time, we are trying to settle into our temporary home with our friends, and have things be as "normal" as possible, esp. for Jackson.  It's hard being displaced, and yet we know it could be soo much worse. We are thankful that God has provided for us in every way and that we are safe and together as a family.  We ask that you continue to pray for Lyons in the coming weeks and months and that you keep us in your thoughts. Thanks for your love and support!

Six weeks old...

Sweet Allie Mae,

You are now over 6 weeks old.

Wow, we are so blessed with you in our lives.

Time is really going by fast but we are enjoying our precious days with you.

You are eating well.

Around 9 lbs, 10 oz at our last doctor visit.

50% for height and weight.

90% for head circumference.

Your stomach still gets really upset when you eat too much but we're trying to slow you down a bit so you can keep it down.

You are sleeping well.

Usually only 1 or 2 feedings during the night.

Sooo nice you are to your mama.

You love to sleep in just like we do!

And you are quite the snuggle bug.

And you are playing well.

You've started to interact with the world around you.

Batting at your toys on your play mat.

Looking around at everything.

And let's not forget your smile.

At one month we saw it for the first time.

It lifts our hearts and is the most beautiful thing in the world.

We love to see you happy.

And thriving.

We've had some firsts.

First time going out to eat.

(You slept through it.)

First baby play date.

(You slept through it.)

First trip to meet Melissa and Kendra down in S. Denver.

(You screamed all the way home.)

First trip to the grocery store.

(Not so good. Cleanup in aisle 5)

But all in all it's been a great 6 weeks.

It's fun to see your brother be sweet with you.

He loves to help put your pacifier back in when you spit it out.

It's fun to see your daddy want to hold you.

You always calm down when you get into his arms.

And for me it's fun to just to spend our days together.

I'm so thankful for you sweet girl.

I love you.

Mama

Two weeks old...

Our sweet Allison is now over 2 weeks old.

I still can't believe that she's here sometimes...

But then in a way it seems like she's been with us forever.

So how has it been?

Much easier that I thought it would be!

We are tired... she's still a newborn...but whether it's her sweet temperament or just that we now have a clue...it's felt so great to have this little addition to our family.

I can't believe how much we love her.

As for the basics... she has been eating like a champ.

We haven't been to the doctor yet.. that'll be this week... but I'm sure she's gaining weight. Usually once a day she's so excited to eat, and she inhales so much air, that she flat out vomits. This is not spit-up. This is full contents of the stomach. Everywhere. Full wardrobe change for her and for whoever is lucky enough to be holding her at the time.  Very gross. Definitely trying to figure that one out but we're glad she's eating.

With sleep it's been rather inconsistent.

We have days and nights where she'll only sleep for an hour or so at a time but then we've had stretches where she's slept for 6 or 7 hours.  Amazing!  The only tough thing is that we can never predict when those sleep stretches will be but we're definitely thankful that she seems to love to sleep as much as we do!

And how is Jackson doing?

Really well!

When we first brought her home, he seemed to guard his room.

It was quite strange but it definitely made us laugh.

He moved into being rather indifferent but now it seems like he is noticing her more and more and trying to be more helpful.

He is quite concerned when she starts to cry.

He did tell us that she's not to be ever called "Allie Mae" but only "Baby Sister Manz." 

He was very serious about that!

This week he's going down to 3 days at school instead of 5 so we'll see how it goes for me to have both kids. 

As for Jonathan and I... we're doing great, too.

Jonathan hasn't been traveling so that has helped in these initial weeks.

We've also been blessed by some friends with some delicious meals.

Personally, i've been recovering so much more quickly from this birth which has been really nice.

 I think with so many things being "easier" for whatever reason, it's made me appreciate this experience all the more.

Baby girl, we love you so much and are so thankful for you!

You are beautiful and sweet and wonderful.

Allie Mae's Birth Story...

Our sweet baby girl, Allison Mae Manz, came into the world on Friday March 15, 2013.

3:29am.

1 week past her "due" date.

I would say right on time.

Her birth story is in many ways the ideal.

At least for me.

And our family.

And so more than anything I'm thankful that it was such a positive experience and that our little one came safely.

I can't believe how different it was than Jackson's birth story. 

Which is perhaps why I am so amazed by it all.

I knew things would be different this time around.

Not just because it was a 2nd birth- which is likely to be faster- but also because the pregnancy and my attitudes were so different.

This pregnancy was HARD.

My body hurt greatly for months on end.

There was very little preparation.

I was tired.

I was working full-time with a two year old at home.

Yes, definitely tired.

So I just trusted that things would work out.

That baby girl would come when she was ready.

And that Jonathan would be in town.

As January and February passed, I did wonder if Baby girl would come early. 

I never wondered that with Jackson, but I felt like it was a possibility this time.

So did Jonathan I think.

I went to the doctor at 38 weeks.

He was concerned that I had not gained a lot of weight during the pregnancy.

But Baby Girl measured over 7 pounds on the ultrasound.

And everything looked great.

Unlike before there was no mention of induction.

I worked full-time up until March 8, my due date.

It is the busiest time of year for us at work... definitely not the ideal for me to be leaving...but thankfully I was able to get the things done I needed to, while packing my office to leave for good and trying not to think about saying goodbyes.  

It is quite strange to leave a job that has been a huge part of your life for nine years.

The last week was probably my quietest week ever.

But it felt "right" when it was time to leave.

I was glad that Baby girl had waited.

At that point, I was supposed to have my 40 week appt.

I canceled it online.

I was sick.  

Jonathan was really sick.

I just wanted to relax and enjoy a few days of rest.

And i knew there was nothing they could tell me at the doctor's.

I wanted to take advantage of each precious day.

It turned out that we only had time enough to get over our sicknesses.

But my week at home gave me a lot of the rest that I had been missing.

I got as much sleep as possible.

And i enjoyed every minute of it!

And just like that, Baby girl decided to make her entrance.

Thursday night at 9:30 I was watching TV when the contractions began.

I timed them for less than half an hour.

They were only 30 seconds long, but they were coming every 3 minutes.

I knew that was really fast and we had to get ourselves organized quickly!

Just then Jonathan randomly came upstairs early from playing videogames.

He asked, kidding, if I was having contractions.

He didn't expect me to say yes, but when I did he jumped into gear as well.

No time to mess around with a 2nd baby.

Time to get all of our stuff together.

I called my dear friend Corrie to pick up Jackson and then kept getting ready as the contractions got more and more intense.

Thankfully I was able to shower.

But by the time Corrie arrived 30 minutes later, I knew we would have to leave soon.

After all the hospital is 45 minutes away.

The car ride was difficult to say the least- contractions were then 50 seconds each and 2-3 minutes apart- but there's not much traffic at 11:30 at night.

Thank goodness.

We arrived at the hospital around midnight.

And i was proud to still be able to walk myself upstairs.

We met our nurse for the night.

And she soon realized that I would be having the baby relatively soon.

I was 6 cm at arrival and the contractions kept getting worse and worse.

All i could think was that I really hope it wasn't too late for an epidural.

And this is where the birth became so different than Jackson's.

I was able to get an epidural.

My nurse was able to get the doctor to do it before she went into surgery knowing I couldn't wait an hour for it.

And though it was hard to stay still for it with the contractions coming that fast, it offered almost immediate relief.

It was like a miracle.

It definitely felt like a miracle.

Just like that, I couldn't really feel the pain of the contractions anymore.

I was focused again.

I could laugh and joke with my husband and the nurse.

I could take a few random pictures.

I could listen to music.

I could *enjoy* the birth.

I was baffled.

This was so unlike my previous experience.

I couldn't believe it.

And yet there was definitely a part of me that felt like I was appreciating this so much more because of the prior experience.

After only an hour they told me I was already at 9cm.

Shortly after that (3am), our nurse came in and told me that I'd be having the baby in 15 minutes.

Again, I was baffled.

Really?

Ok. Sure.

And so we started the pushing phase.

Really, it was a piece of cake.

And at 3:29am, just six hours from the first contraction, little Allison was born.

I was so overwhelmed by this beautiful little girl on my chest.

I held her and kissed her and was so *thankful*.

I was instantly and completely in love.

Allison Mae weighed 7 pounds 10 ounces.

She was 20 inches long.

We love you baby girl!!

Welcome to the world!!!

Allison Mae Manz

Allison Mae Manz

March 15, 2013

3:29am

7 pounds, 10 ounces

20 inches long

40 weeks and counting....

40 weeks and counting now...

Technically 40 weeks and 4 days.

I can't believe you've waited this long already baby girl.

For some reason I thought you would come weeks ago.

Here's the 40 week belly picture of you and your mama.

So now we're playing the waiting game.

I've now stopped working.
It's been *really* nice to slow down.
I do have a bad cold... but
I've been trying to relax and sleep as much as possible.
Thankfully, with being home for several days now- the back pain is not quite as severe.
And I've had no symptoms to cause me (or the doctors) to worry about your arrival.
We know you'll come when you're ready.

Your daddy has stopped traveling.
He's been miserably sick.
He's been telling you to stay put for awhile longer so that he can get better and be able to help when you come.
You're a good girl for listening to your daddy.
(I think he still needs a couple more days.)

Your brother is pretty unaware that you're coming soon.
We keep talking about it but I think he just needs to meet you!
So far you've given him a baby triceratops and a monster truck so he is really happy with that.
We are hoping that you both are always sweet with each other.

As far as everything else...

We've got your clothes, diapers, carseat, bassinet, and other necessities.

We just need you baby girl.

We love you so much already.

We pray that you are healthy and that you come safely.

(When you're ready.)

Love,
Mama, Daddy, and Jackson

Mini Manz 2.0 aka Baby Girl Manz

Why hello there.

Apparently I only blogged 3 times in 2012.

Unacceptable really.

But I'm back.

And hopefully i'll do better in 2013.

For you see I was the 2nd child.

I remember seeing lots of pictures of my brother in the family albums.

And only a few of me.

Well, much less of me.

Yes, 2nd child syndrome.

Why else would i remember that?

So i vow to have lots of pictures of our baby girl.

I want her to know how much she is loved already.

So to recap a bit for the sake of the blog:

Yes, baby girl Manz is coming our way!!!

Due around March 8, 2013.

At this point I am already 32 weeks.

The time-- this pregnancy-- has gone by incredibly fast.

We can't wait to meet you baby Girl!

Here was the announcement:

Yes, your brother Jackson is super excited!

He already loves you as his baby sister.

Sometimes he rubs my belly.

The other day at daycare he was rocking a baby doll and when asked he said that he was rocking his sister.

Sooo sweet.

Here are some of the pictures of you so far:

(12 weeks)

(17 weeks)

(28 weeks)

(32 weeks)

And here is some of the current info of the pregnancy:

How far along?  32 weeks 3 days

Total Weight Gain/Loss? I am 2 pounds shy of my pre-pregnancy weight.  Meaning that this time was similar in that I lost quite a few pounds through sickness the first few months and I've slowed added them back on.

Maternity Clothes? Yes. Of course. Thank goodness that I got some new things for winter when my mom came out for Thanksgiving.  It has been sooo cold. 

Symptoms? This has been rough. Much rougher than I thought because I've seemed to get all of the usual but for longer than before or with more intensity. The first few months I was sick in the AM and PM. I've had terrible sciatic and hip pain. Sometimes I can barely walk. The other day my feet/ankles started to blow. And wow, i've been crazy tired. 

Exercise? Not a chance. With Jackson, I coached tennis for the first trimester. This time I'm lucky to be able to walk down the hall.  A lot of it is because of all the lower back, hip, leg pain. And of course some is that I've been working full-time and so there's not really a lot of time/opportunity anyway after work... especially with it being winter and it getting dark so early.

Sleep? Pretty good until recently- when the pain has been a hindrance. And of course there is the nightly wake-up to use the bathroom.

Movement? All the time!  I love it! 

Cravings/Aversions? The first trimester the aversion was definitely bananas. Which of course is Jackson's favorite. Whenever I'd even tear off a banana, the slightest smell would make me sick immediately.  As for cravings-- it has been all sugar-- all the time.

Gender? Girl! Your dad thought you would be a boy, but I knew that you just had to be a girl. Everything about this pregnancy has been really different.. plus I just felt it this time around.

Belly Button? Not recognizable at this point.

Name? Nothing definite picked out yet.

What am I looking forward to? Meeting you out in the world. Seeing who you look like. Holding you and loving on you. Seeing Jackson interact with you.

Worries? That the side effects will only get worse in the coming weeks. That you'll come a little early.

What's different this time? Everything has been super fast! And of course the added side effects. It also feels different being pregnant during more of the winter months when I haven't been as active. Other differences- I mostly take my own belly pictures these days, strangers have thankfully not touched my belly, and people seem to ask a lot less questions.

Best moment so far? Finding out that you were a girl and seeing your daddy's face! Pure surprise and joy!

I think that's about it for now!

Can't wait to meet you baby Girl!