Noah has learned to ham it up and "smile" for the camera, except that his camera smile is really more of a grimace. As a result, all the pictures I've taken of him in the last week look like this. Those probably aren't going to get framed for the hallway, but I think they're pretty funny.Lately I've been craving a little more order in our lives. Right now, there is no telling what time we will accomplish anything, ever. Sometimes we wake up at 7:30 and sometimes we wake up at 10:00, sometimes Emma will nap at 1:00 or she might nap at 5:00 or she might not nap at all, sometimes we eat dinner at 5:00 and sometimes we eat dinner at 9:00. I've always been okay with this, but now, for two reasons, I'm hoping to make some changes. First, tomorrow is Steve's last day at his current job, and I think after that we will actually be able to have more of a routine in the evenings. Knowing he will be home at a reasonable time every night means I can have dinner ready at roughly the same time, and also that he will be here to help me establish and carry out a bedtime routine for the kiddos. Second, Noah absolutely will not sleep by himself for longer than five minutes. Emma wouldn't do that for years, either, and I could continue to muddle through it with Noah like I did with her, but I have to think about the new little one, and I really don't know how I could manage to have two babies at the same time who will not sleep if I am not holding them. So, I'm hoping to have Noah sleeping by himself by the end of the summer, and that will make the transition to three kids that much smoother. I'm reading Sleepless in America, and it's been very informative so far, except I'm still waiting for that magical part where she says, "And now here is what you do to get your baby to sleep all by himself..."

Last night Noah and I stayed in Emma's new bed with her until she fell asleep, then I carried him into our bed and we went to sleep. Steve got home from work at about 2:00, and asked me where Emma was. I told him she was in her own bed, and he said he thought that was sad and for a minute I thought he was going to go get her and carry her into our bed. I told him I wasn't sad about it because I could finally straighten my legs, but at that moment she walked into our room. I guess our talking woke her up, but I am pretty excited that she spent about three hours sleeping all alone in her new bed. Tonight we'll try it again and I'll make a point not to talk so loudly when Steve gets in from work.

I've been feeling decent, but sort of apprehensive, like any day I was going to get completely sick. Saturday night it happened. I couldn't get off the couch, except to run to the bathroom and throw up. I threw up about five times in less than two hours, and I was so sad and miserable. Luckily, someone suggested I take Unisom and B6 together, and in preparation I'd already bought both of those things, so I took them before I went to bed Saturday night. It's like a miracle! Sunday, and then again today, I felt better than I have in weeks! Yesterday I was able to do a bunch of cleaning and laundry that were way overdue, and today I even went to Joann's to get fabric to sew curtains for the kids' room. No clue as to when those curtains might actually be completed, though. Still, I am elated to be feeling like a regular, somewhat energetic person again!