Our Minnesota Adventure

Settling in & Some Water Fun

We were SO excited when we found out that my mom (Coco) my sister (Meili) and her boy (Benji) were coming for a visit!  Originally it was just going to be Meili and Benji but a turn of events in Meili’s life made it so that my mom came too!  See, Meili’s husband Matt got a job in SC so they moved from Dallas to Anderson, SC in a span of just a few weeks!  They packed up and moved out there, so instead of flying from Dallas (Meili already had her ticket!) she drove down with my mom, who made a trip to help Mei move in to her new place, for a few days!  We played with the kiddos, went to the beach, the pool and relaxed at home because the smoke from the fires invaded Jacksonville during their visit. 

Witt was so excited when I told him who was coming!  We started preparing a few days in advance, getting beds and towels ready.  And getting Benji’s high chair ready – so when it was breakfast, and time for Benji to finally sit next to Witt, Witt was so happy!  
(They were here the week of the 12th and Witt is still calling the extra chair “Benji’s Highchair”) 

Breakfast with my cousin!

 

"ABC's Benji ABC's!"and a little dancing!

 

Meili and Benji =) It was Benji's first trip to the ocean!

 

Witt's showing Benji the ropes!

 

"Beeeeeech! Yaaaaaay!"

 

Helen's new set-up at the pool. I am actually able to get in with Witt again! I thank the Lord for the swing =)

 

Benji, Witt, Me and Coco - enjoying the cool water!

 

Coco and WittWitt

 

 
Photoshoot!I was excited for Mei and Mom to come because of the artistic collaboration we could have! I had an idea of what I wanted to do for Helen’s “newborn” pics and knew that it would come to reality with their help.  Due to the smoke we weren’t able to be outside for too long so we did it just outside our back door instead of heading to the beach, which was my original plan.  But I’m really happy with how it all turned out!In order to create the “bed” that she was going to lay on we had to go on a little scavanger hunt.  Just behind our complex is a bit of land with some of the natural foliage so Meili, the boys and I headed out there while Mom stayed back in the apartment with Helen. 

 

Pit stop to see the cool fire hydrant!

 

Benji having fun exploring!

 

hello

  

Our model, getting ready The hair clip was a gift from Meili =) from my most favorite store - Anthropologie! So Helen is now a fashionable little lady

jackpot

Here are a few shots – we took a ton! But I’m going to use some for the announcement so I’m going to save the best for last, so to speak  

Our Beauty!

 

Waiting with great anticipation for the arrival of the choo-choo train!

We LOVE Chick Fil A =)
I can’t tell you how often we’ve (well – me and Witt) visited this place since our arrival.  On this particular visit, back at the beginning of June, though we went because it was a party! The local Chick Fil A hosted a party for the mothers-in-need in our neighborhood.  To enjoy the party we were to bring gifts for the mothers (formula, diapers, clothing, etc.) and in exchange they had several fun things for the kids to enjoy.  What Witt loved most was the choo-choo train (he’s becoming obsessed with trains!) and the bounce house.  

On the train!

 The Barlow’s joined us because, honestly – who can resist a reason to go for Chick Fil A

Happy Kylie =)

 

LOVED the bouce house

 

FERNANDINA BEACH

 Emily visited this town, just north of Amelia, while her in-laws were in town.  We went there for a day trip to do something different from our ordinary beach/pool days.  It was fantastic – such a CUTE little down, with lots of good shopping and fun places like coffee shops and ice cream =)  And, the weather happened to be perfect! It was in the 80′s and breezy!Fernandina was about a 40 min drive from our apartment so we took a nice drive and then ate our packed lunch when we got there.  We sat outside on some benches, I fed Helen, we ate our lunches and then took off for some browsing! We ended up buying Helen a toy for her carseat as well as a few extra for shower gifts in the future.

Catching a snooze while we shopped and looked around

 

 

Beautiful Emily and Kylie

 

Witt and the Fernandina Beach Shrimp

 

Love my boy =)

 

Pit stop

 

Digging in

 

Emily matched her ice cream!

After ice cream we completed the outing with a visit to the docks to see some boats. 

Boats!

Helen turned 1 month! It’s amazing to think that she’s already that old (well almost 6 weeks by now).  We’ve had a good time and a tough time with life as 4.  She is definitly a different kind of baby than Witt was and is, to be honest, a little tricky.  I could be forgetting the first month with Witt but I don’t feel like he cried nearly as much as she cries.  At times it feels like all I do is coddle, sway, rock, walk, shh, and bounce this little girl – and none of it works.  There are days when Rob gets home and I’m nothing but a big mess full of tears.  BUT – she’s a sweet, feisty, strong little thing and I love her! As she’s getting older we are seeing more personality develope and learning what she needs and life is getting slightly more smooth! Thankfully I have Emily, once again – could not do this without her during the day while Rob is at work.  So Emily – thank you, once again, for everything…helping me get things in the car, taking care of Witt, playing with Witt, talking me through tears, reminding me that Helen’s still young and figuring things out, reminding me it’s ok to let her cry =)  and everything else!  The laughs, the walks, all of our outings =)  Couldn’t do it without you!

SO, for Helen’s 1 month birthday Emily’s family was in town – her mom Susan, her sister Mia and Mia’s boyfriend Brady.  It was Memorial Day and we headed to the beach.  Rob unfortunatly had that weekend of call so we saw him for a little bit before he had to go back to the hospital.   We did our normal lounging in the sun, playing in the waves and playing in the sand. 

Happy 1 Month Birthday!!!

Emily and Mia (on the right) burrying their feet in the sand - Witt thought it was so funny!

 

hello jon =)

 

Helen was a very busy girl the first week of her life!  We started off with her first appointment to the pediatrition’s office.  She was gaining weight nicely and got the A-ok from the doc.

3 days old

 She also got her first sponge bath.  She didn’t seem to like it too much.  We have come to know that she definitely has her own opinions already and she doesn’t mind sharing them either!   

Getting ready for her first sponge bath

 

Urgh - water! (she has had more baths and LOVES the water)

Helen also made her first trip to the beach.  (check out my facebook page for a family picture)  We Hartzler’s are lovers of the sea and wanted to share that love with our daughter.  She was 4 days old and we headed our for some toes-in-the-sand time! 

enjoying another beach day! Helen was 4 days old when she first saw the beach =)

  AMELIA ISLAND

The Barlow’s had Jon’s parents in for a visit.  They rented a condo on Amelia Island for a few days and had us up for brunch and some more beach time.   It was about a 40 minute trip up there from our house and we decided to take the route that had the ferry ride, thinking it would be a fun experience for Witt. 

Waiting to board the ferry

 

driving on to the boat!

 

Witt was so thrilled

 Little did we know that the ride took 4 minutes!  We drove the car on, it departed, we got out of the car, took the pictures you’ve seen and then we were there!  Short, but well worth it for the experience for Witt.  He truely was thrilled. 

heading in for our landing...

 

Brunch was excellent, and we found out that it was Jon’s dad’s bday! As well as mother’s day =)  After our bellies were full we headed down to the seashore and relaxed for a few hours.  I spent most of the time with Helen under the tent.  Rob, Jon and Emily took advantage of the waves and went wakeboarding.  Jon’s parents strolled with Kylie in the stroller. And Witt got some more time with his grandma =) 

=)

 

more quality time with Grandma

 

Jon, Emily & Rob catching some waves on the wake boards

 

our set up for the day

  We also got to witness an amazing sky.  There had been fires in FL and GA and the smoke from them blew in while we were at the beach.  To the south of us the sky was pristine blue.  To the north it turned and amazing golden grey.   

the golden sky - results of the fires

 

the firey sun

  After our relaxing beach day we went to find some food and came across a hole-in-the-wall YUMMY bbq place.  We were the only ones there and the food was super greasy but really tasty.   

out at dinner after the beach

It was a great first week of life and I hope Helen had as much fun as the rest of her family did!

 

Hello World!

Happy Mommy =)

Sweet Girl!

We didn't forget the dirt! She was indeed born over Texas soil =)

Here’s the story:

It was a saturday, so that meant we were heading to the beach for our normal spiel.  Volleyball for Rob and beach time for me, Witt and Rob’s mom.  Once we arrived I started to feel regular contractions, but they weren’t strong yet and were about 5 min apart.  Rob was enjoying volleyball and I was enjoying watching Witt play with his grandma.  Jon, Emily and Kylie arrived a little bit after we did.  Emily and I joined Witt and Sheila down by the waters edge and by that time my contractions were getting stronger so we started timing them.  They were about 4 min apart at that time (around 11:30) and they ended up being every 3-4 by about 12:30.  Before they got too painful I made sure to get some pictures to commemorate the day I went into labor!  And thanks to Meili, she reminded me that my Aunt Nan had taken some ‘beached whale’ shots when she was pregnant so we decided to do the same. Although, it was tough lying on my back like I was so the photo shoot didn’t last for very long. Rob came to came to check in with my between games and by about 1 we decided it was the real deal and time to go.   We headed home to grab our bags and a shower.  The car ride felt longer than it really was and by the time we got home I was contracting every 2-3 minutes.  We had called the hospital on the way to let them know we were coming.  I didn’t really feel like showering by the time we were home but knew it’d be a while before I’d be able to and was able to get the sand and sunscreen off with Rob’s gracious help!  I definitely did not feel like bending over in any way! 

Off we went downtown to the hospital.  The 20 minute trip (thank goodness it was a saturday and not rush hour!) turned out to be a little longer because two blocks from the hospital we got stuck behind a very slow moving train!  Thank goodness, once again, for modern technology – Rob looked up an alternate route on his iphone and we made it to the hospital while the train was still moseying along. 

Rob got out of the car and got me a wheelchair and took me up to L&D.  Since I had called ahead they knew who we were when we got up to the floor and we were put straight into a delivery room where two nurses proceeded to hook me up to an iv (I got some fluid as well as antibiotics since I had tested positive for strep b) and get me all set up.  I was still contracting every 2-3 minutes and once checked I found out I was 6 cm!  That was encouraging to hear but at the same time I was suddenly very aware that there were still 4 more cm’s to go – and there was no telling how long that might take.  My contractions were getting stronger and stronger, quite unmanagable and I began to feel desperate and unable to handle the pain anymore – so I asked for an epidural.  I’m sure it wasn’t much later, although it felt like an eternity, before the anesthesiologist came in and hooked me up.  By about 4 I was feeling comfortable.  Rob was able to leave to go get something to eat and move the car which had been sitting in the drive this whole time!  I relaxed and called my mom and dad to let them know what was happening. 

Rob returned and we watched a little tv.  I had the shakes so bad and my left leg had started to swell because of the way I was lying on the bed, but other than that I was comfortable and getting really excited about meeting our little girl!  At about 7:45 maybe, we were ready to start pushing.   The movie Rocky 3 was on in the tv – best motivation ever! – when we began.  Although it was turned off immediately =) Helen was born by 8:24 and aside from a slightly elevated temperature (for me as well) she was perfect!  I didn’t end up tearing and could not have been happier with the whole birthing experience.  The nurses and my doctor were fantastic and, most of all, Helen was in our arms and healthy!

So, there you have it =)  It’s been a little over two weeks now that she’s been in our world and it feels so right!  Witt’s been incredible with the change  – he wants to hold her a lot, give her kisses, throw her dirty diapers in the trash, rock her in the bouncer, etc.  I’ll do another post about life thus far so do stay tuned.  I can’t promise when that will be but I will do my best to have it be sooner rather than later!  Afternoon nap time is no longer mommy’s free time    

Witt, Rob and Grandma!

my attempt at "Beached Whale"

Our family

 

Our visitors! Wuh-hoo Barlow's =)

 

Ready to go home!

SO excited for our adventure!

These guys were putting on a show for us!

Witt was able to peek through the slats and see the wildlife roaming around below.

Witt’s mode of transport some of the time

Next we took on the Great Apes tour:

Cute Lemurs!  Emily and I were both saying how cute they were and before we knew it Witt was copying us – that in and of itself was cute

Alligator!And they were, as Witt said, funny!

One was biting the other…

It was then time for lunch and a little escape from the heat again.  We headed back out to the car and turned on the AC and refueled. 

 And look what was waiting for Witt and I on the stroller when we got back outside!

Our final tour took us through the Range of the Jaguar, Australia and finally ending at the Splash Ground Play Park.

Witt loved this little guy.  He kept saying “doggy sleeping”

Splash town!  I wanted so badly to get in there myself – haha! Check out my belly – HUGE!!!

And then he found this guy and wouldn’t leave till I picked him up when it was time to go.It was a fabulous trip to the zoo! 
Thank you Jacksonville, for providing such a wonderful place! 
We stopped by the gift shop on our way out and I found the perfect memory for Witt (who was falling asleep in the stroller!)

An alligator!  And, I just realized  – I was dressed in all greens too!  Must’ve been a family theme of the day – Gators =)

This is how I felt by the time we got to the car…

And check out the rest of the crew…

Getting to know his new surroundings

Witt’s jumped right in to our new home and hasn’t blinked an eye.  I am thankful for the countless times we traveled since his birth!  We are in a ground floor (thank goodness! I can roll the stroller right in the front door) 3 bedroom apartment – so there’s lots of room!  Come and visit if you’d like.  The apartment complex has two pools (we’ve been to one a few times), tennis courts and lots of walkways around lakes.  It’s a pretty complex and definitely has a tropical feel to it being painted in bright yellow and the countless palm trees that flank the grounds.

Since we’ve been here we’ve done quite a bit already.  On Sunday night Rob, Witt and I took a quick trip down to the beach for a picnic dinner.  It was important to get Rob down there before his week (and weekend) of work.  We knew he’d be busy getting settled in, and then he’s been on call all weekend (and working hard the whole time…the only time Witt’s seen him is when we’ve made it to the hospital for a meal together).  SO – I’m glad we took the time to head down there for an hour for Rob’s sake.

During the week, Emily, the kids and I have made sure to do our errands, eat at Chick Fil A (YUM! SO glad to be around that place again!), head to the beach and check out some of the shopping areas.  Emily, Jon and Kylie left on Thurs for a conference in AZ so we made sure to get her feet in the sand, and get Kylie out there before they left as well.   We headed out to Neptune Beach, what Catherine recommended, and LOVED it!  It was a bit of a cooler day (low 70′s) but was perfect for our first trip out there.

Neptune Beach

Sweet Kylie's first visit to the beach!

There it is! 37 weeks - let the countdown begin =)

He jumped right in - we must be related

After the Barlow’s left, it’s just been me and the Wittster.  Rob’s been busy with work and we don’t know anyone else down here yet so I’ve kept the two of us busy with several things.  We got registered at the local library, missed a story time because we needed a ticket (oops!  and I was there in plenty of time before they ran out), gone for walks and swims, played at the apartment’s playground and made sure to visit Rob a few times.  It’s been good to have some one-on-one time with my boy before this little girl comes along, but I do have to say I’m glad the Barlow’s come home tonight!  It’ll be good to have someone else to hang out with again.

going up...

...and coming down - weeeeeeeeeeee!

We got Witt a bike!  On our many walks around the complex we’ve seen lots of kids bikes and Witt will run over to them saying “bike!” so Rob wanted to get him one.  We took a trip after dinner one night and Rob picked out a bike for him.  He really wanted a three wheeler but they were all made for 3yrs and older so that will have to wait.  This was the next best thing and Witt LOVES his bike and helmet =)  So much so that every time we are leaving the door he wants to take it with us.  One venture yesterday I decided to go for it.  We were going for a swim and I thought it would be a good idea.  The problem is, Witt doesn’t really operate it by himself (hasn’t got the idea of pedaling down yet) so that means I have to push it, which is fine, but I’m bending over the whole way.  And we are about the farthest away from the pool as we could be.   SO, we take off, things are great, then he wants to push it so we get him off to push, yet he wants to push from behind so the trike takes off in all directions!  Anyway, to make a long story short, I was never as happy to get to our destination as I was at that moment!  And even happier when we made it home =)

Witt's new bike

It’s been a great week.  I’m so glad we’re here – the warmth and sunshine are so reviving to my soul!  And it’s nice to have a ‘simple’ life for a while.  No signs of baby yet, even though I’ve had lots of contractions.  At times I wish she were here already, but all in all it’s a good thing she’s still tucked away inside.  I have an appointment tomorrow and will see if there has been any progress.

Stay tuned!