Pages

Slovakian Combs(s) Over

Slovakian Combs(s) Over
Adventures of the Combs

Sunday, September 27, 2015

11 months

What an amazing journey it has been so far. I've been able to provide not only for my son but also for my nephew. Before my kiddo was born, I had no idea if I was even going to be able to produce. My mom couldn't and my sister-in-laws had to supplement with formula. I was determined to breastfeed. It was not the easiest since I got many plugged ducts due to my milk being so fatty. But thankful for medicine to help thin my milk out so that I could be in less pain. When I had to return to work in January, I learned how to pump on a regular basis. Now that machine is one annoying thing but it helped us get through the rest of the school year. My little man definitely wanted to stop the whole bottle thing come May and we had to be creative on how he got milk when he was not with me. It's amazing how much money you can spend just trying to find the right bottle or sippy cup just so that the little man can eat. Then I started another school year where I was back to the machine on a regular basis. But, to this day little man has only had one bad cold and that is right now. I'm again so thankful that I've been able to provide for him and produce so much extra to build a freezer stash that eventually goes to my nephew. 
Now it's a process to figure out how to get this guy to eat solids. He has no problem downing a squeeze packet of puréed food. I mean it just takes seconds for him to inhale a 3.5-4 oz packet. But give him something we are eating and that is a hit or miss. It will come in due time, I realize this. In the meantime, I'll enjoy his silly self. 


Thursday, September 10, 2015

When too much is too much

Every morning, I get up, feed Theo, eat breakfast, and get going with my day. I rush rush rush all day long. Then, go to bed to get rest only to start the next day with the same routine. 
Obviously I'm really struggling right now with this whole balancing who I am. 
Let's see, my roles are: wife, mom, and teacher. But each role I feel like has a million responsibilities and there is just not enough time to get it all done. So I make decisions to drop a few things but they eventually catch up with me and then I become this emotional mess. 
That is me currently. It's Thursday morning, hubby just left and Little man is just waking up. I don't who I am at the moment. Wait, I do! Someone who just told her husband she hates who she is. Why? Because I can only be positive for so long. One negative thing, no matter how small or big it is, just messes me up. 
What did I just do? Logout of all social media for the day so that I can regroup myself. I mean, I was suppose to hang out with a wonderful lady that helped deliver little man and instead I'm sitting here at the dinner table crying and hearing little man say "da" over and over again. 
Mission today: allow my Heavenly Father to heal me from this negativity so that when my hubby comes home I can be a better supportive wife and be a leader to our life group this evening. 

Sunday, July 26, 2015

Job Sharing

So this week begins the journey of job sharing. Plus side, I get to be home with little man 2 more days of the week than before. 

Down side, lots of preparation this week. I am still very nervous of how this looks but I know that God will provide answers as I go about the next few weeks. I am sad to see that summer is gone though. I have enjoyed the time at home a little too much probably. Therefore, I have been a little more emotional the last few days knowing I have to say goodbye to little man after his morning nursing and not see him again until 4 or 430 in the afternoon all this week.
To yet another school year... (Beginning my 7th full year)

Wednesday, April 29, 2015

I finally wrote the letter...

...to resign from my current teaching position. Such mixed emotions I have about it. The best part about it is that I know I'll get more time with this little guy:
My Mama heart is full knowing that I'll get to be a part of his life more. God will carry us through financially and I will still remain in the classroom by being a substitute teacher. Unless God provides something else for me. 
I am so thankful for our little family. 
Now to finishing the school year strongly, hubby transitioning to his new position, and I transitioning more into a stay at home Mama. 

Sunday, April 12, 2015

I want to be a stay at home Mama...

... Every day as the end of the school year comes closer (May 22nd), I am closer on wanting to just say I am not returning next year. I'm really trying to pray through what the best decision would be for the one more year that we are here in America. My heart continues to break on the weekends when I only have two days with the little man and I always have a million other things to do, including spend time with my hubby. I feel that weekdays are tough because I'm gone all day and get only a few hours with little man and then when he is in bed, even less time with my hubby before I need to get to sleep so I'm rested for the next day... Why can't this decision be so easily made?



Saturday, April 4, 2015

Easter Weekend

So it's been awhile since I've blogged and it's probably because I've been busy looking at Pinterest for some project. (Extend the pavers to make a larger patio, build a baby gate, challboard/magnetize a wall for little man) I have a few things I want to do but need the money or more time to do it. *sigh* I wish that I could just stop working, we have all the money in the world, and life would be easier...ha, yeah right, like that is going to happen. 
For the past weeks I've realized that I haven't been spending time with my Heavenly Father. Why is that? I've let my life just keep busy and probably the fact that the AZMERIT is controlling my work life. In three weeks, I can return to normal teaching and think of May 22, the last day of this school year. What a great weekend to realize that I need more quiet time with my Heavenly Father. 
It is 5:15am and I'm once again sitting in little man's room typing away and listening to his talk. It just melts my heart away. Even if yesterday he hardly napped and didn't allow me to have lunch with Monica and her daughter. But he did do this:
He has discovered his feet and rolled over in his crib. 
Why must time go by so quickly?!?!
Look what my garden has produced!! I was very excited for this and now I just need to include it in a meal somehow. 

Saturday, March 21, 2015

Bottle Troubles

Who knew that me being home a week and Little Man not needing a bottle would be a problem? Dustin gave him a bottle now two nights in a row and it has been a nightmare!! He use to not be a picky baby with what bottle he got but we have tried the Avent with a size 3 nipple AND the Medula and no luck. This morning I'll go to Babies R Us and they have a coupon for a Dr. Brown bottle and we will try that one. This is such a weird experience for us and we are trusting God for patience with this. Little Man has become so much more active this week and one of the things is being able to chew better on stuff. I mean he coordinated his two hands to get his little elephant into his mouth to chew on an ear or a foot while we were at the cabin. Also, he is trying really hard to roll from his back to his tummy. It's impressive how well he can arch his back. Baby yoga for sure. The kicks he does when he is on his play may is quite impressive as well. This little guy is ready to be on the move for sure!

Thursday, March 19, 2015

Day 2&3 of Combs Family Vacation

So the wifi was not that great at the lodge and I wanted to enjoy every second I had so I didn't blog. But here is an idea of what we did. 
Day 2
Breakfast and morning Devotionals while Little Man slept. 
Some family time taking pictures and relaxing on the couch. 
Drive around and enjoy God's beautiful creation
Dinner at a restaurant where Little Man decided to keep us busy. 

Day 3

Another wonderful morning doing a devotional as a couple. 
Walk around the neighborhood with the jogging stroller and in the rain. 
Lots of play time with our little family of three. 

Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Day 1 of Combs Family Vacation

After we left our house, Little Man was able to fall asleep pretty quickly and we only heard from him when he coughed. We stopped for lunch in Payson and that's when he woke up. We were able to distract him somewhat but the wind seemed to irritate him a little. He started to get red dots on his face. So we continued on toward Show Low. 
Important that you have the right snacks:
Eventually we arrived to the cabin after trying to feed Theo at the city park. It seemed Little Man was having a tummy issue and major gas. He struggled for the rest of the day with hardly nursing and lots of crying. 
It was definitely an early bedtime for him and he didn't seem to mind. 

Thursday, March 12, 2015

Milestones

Tuesday night was the night little man decided to roll from his tummy over to his back. We were so excited to be both home to see this! He can roll over both to his right and left, which was pretty amazing. Yesterday, he tried several times throughout the day to roll from his back into his tummy but hasn't quite figured how to get his arm and leg over. He knows to swing his arm over but the leg not so much. He did keep getting his arm stuck in his rings on his floor mat when he would try to roll over. 
Our little man is sure discovering new things. 
I mean, look at this. I put him on the table at the car dealership and he kept leaning forward. So I pulled Dustin's water bottle over and it seemed like he knew what to do with it. 
I have only two more days of work until Spring Break. It cannot come soon enough! 1 week with my little family, yes please!

Friday, March 6, 2015

Immunization Shots Are No Fun

Wednesday was little mans four month checkup where he once again got five shots (two shots in each thigh and one to drink, the Roto Virus). This time he had a reaction with hair not feeling good. Not sure if he has something else going on at the same time because he was already having trouble on Tuesday. I mean, the kid loves to eat and for him to refuse two bottles on Tuesday AND yesterday? There is something going on. We thought maybe it was the nipple that he needed a bigger opening. Well that only worked for the first bottle yesterday. The rest of the day he just wanted to sleep. Poor kiddo! He just didn't know what he wanted last night. Put that together with a hubby that didn't feel good and man oh man did this Mama have her hands full. Plus, the kids wanted to do a science experiment with making an egg bouncy, so what did I have to do? Go get 32 eggs and boil them last night. It is tough balancing this whole being a teacher and a mama!! 
I'm praying that I can find something different to do next school year. We plan on staying at least one more school year in the country so that means we need to be creative with income. I have had some rough days this week about driving all the way to work and being gone for so long each day. My boy is growing up to quickly! 
Plus, I feel that I've hardly had any time with the hubby since Little man seems to be changing so much and needs a little more attention this week. (as I'm writing, Theo has discovered the sound his fingernail makes as he scratches the mattress sheet:) I did just cut his nails) (yes, once again I'm sitting in his room so I can listen to his little noises, these are my special moments as he tries to drift back to sleep) 
Well, I better get ready for work, I guess...

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

The Adventures Continue

       Such a wonderful sight this morning after a rough Tuesday where he took only one bottle the entire day AND was very gassy. Poor kid has too much going on at the same time. Teething is a bother for him as well.
       This boy is changing so much! When he went to bed last night (@8am), his head was on the right side of this picture. He was so wiggly during the night that by the time 6am rolled around and he was hungry, he rotated quite a bit around. 
A good description of the day above. I'm realizing how much enjoyed this personal day off to take little man for his checkup. I wish I could be a stay at home Mama...

Saturday, February 28, 2015

This week...

I could not have been any happier to see the end of this week and celebrate the fact that my little man is 4 months old already. 
I came home to a very cranky man but am glad we could snap some updated pictures of him with his bear. 
At least we could get him to smile just a little bit. 
This picture really shows what he likes to do now that he is teething like crazy. Within 20 minutes of him wearing this shirt, the front of it was soaked with drool. 




Monday, February 23, 2015

Worst Monday

I Well, this was a day I did not expect: to get in a car accident on the way to work and have my car be totaled pretty much. I knew someday this would happen, but today? Really? It's that annoying on ramp traffic that finally got to me as I was checking traffic to merge into the lane. It all happened so quickly! You check to merge, turn around and see the truck slowing down immediately, and the next thing you see is the airbag smoke filling up your eyes because of the impact. God protected me thankfully but I still question why today? God only knows th reasons and now I must figure out the aftermath. Insurance, rental car, find a new car, and still move on with work and taking care of my family. 
The strangest thing is about the two dreams I had last night. One being about a plane crashing a block or two away from my parents house and seeing it how it happened while standing in their backyard. It was just so distinct. A Southwest Airlines plane spiraling out of control. The other dream I know was an accident of some sort but cannot recall what it was at the moment. 
I guess what is harder about this day is that Theo seems to be full on teething. He has been so good about sleeping through the night until last night. He woke up at 1am hungry and something really bothering him. Then he woke up again at 4am with the same thing. Also, he has pooped three days in a row. For about over a month now he was pooping every 2-3 days. Poor little man. 
Thankfully I have an amazing hubby who is helping with all of this today on his comp day. What would I do without this amazing man? Also, thankful for my parents being supportive and for the help we needed this morning. 
Thankful for the time to just lay down on the floor with my son and read a book together. Felt good to just relax and let the diffuser spread Stress Relief oil in the room. I just want to do this all the time. This evening I have very much anxiety about driving and work. 
One day I will get to be home with this little boy...only two more weeks after this until Spring Break. 

Sunday, February 22, 2015

Sunday Times

Love seeing my boys on the couch each doing their own thing. 
Wish I could take a 2 hour nap like this! Instead, I was making cookies, pasta salad, and ironing our clothes. 

Friday, February 20, 2015

My Favorite Times

So after I nurse little man at his morning feeding, I like to just sit in the rocking chair in the dark just listening to his noises. Most of the time he is awake and just sucking on his hands or talking a little bit. This is my favorite because I don't get to just ever sit and listen during the daytime. There are a million things calling to my attention and needs to get done before little man is hungry again. Plus, Monday through Friday I'm at work all day and get just limited time with him in the evening. 
Another thing I love is seeing my hubby interact with the little man. He has grown into such an amazing father to Theo. I love his silliness that comes out to entertain the little man, especially when he gets fussy while we eat dinner. Parents are definitely special creatures when it comes to distracting a fussy baby. Of course, we are dealing with teething which in itself is very special as well. I feel bad for the little man since he doesn't understand what is going on. But man can Dustin distract him sometimes in the evenings. Theo will just look with the biggest eyes. 
Looking forward to seeing how little man develops more and more his personality. 

Wednesday, February 18, 2015

Day 1

Man, you don't realize how much you use a certain thing until you don't use it! Loved the time I had doing other stuff though. Wish I felt better though, must be a head cold again or allergies. 
This evening I spent discipling one of my senior girls and Theo actually was well behaved. Thankful that we had this time together. 
This whole teething thing is quite an adventure, let me tell you that. Poor guy just doesn't understand what to do. I was lucky that he even tried chewing on his elephant tonight. 
Theo got to wish Opa a happy birthday this afternoon. He gave Opa a good slobber. 

Need to get my rest so my eye stops twitching. Wonder what that is all about...

Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Lent 2015

So as I have been pondering what I will do for Lent this year, I realized I needed to do something to help me focus on my life again. (Can't do a major diet change since I want to still be providing as much as possible for the little man) Having a little baby really takes up quite a bit of time and so when I have down time, what am I doing? Checking Facebook or Instagram or Pinterest or occasionally Twitter. I find myself mostly addicted to Facebook. I am busy comparing myself to the other ladies who recently had babies and how their little ones are doing so much more than my little one. I tell myself all the time that I'm good they way that I am right now but the little lies always come back. Or seeing how much a mother is pumping while at work when some days I struggle to just get enough. I keep finding myself saying that sometimes I wish Facebook didn't exist. I love that I can keep in touch with so many people worldwide. But is it hurting me more than helping? Am I that weak right now that I can't just turn away from that?

Here is my hope for the next 40 days:
I focus on my relationship with my Heavenly Father. (Dive into God's word)
I focus on being a better person in general. (Health wise both emotionally and physically)
I focus on being a wife and a mother.  (Allowing myself to not compare)

I want to blog about my journey as much as possible so feel free to follow me as much as you want. Everyone can still get ahold of me via email, text, WhatsApp, and I'll most likely stay on Instagram as I need a way to post my pictures still. If you can't tell, I LOVE pictures!! 

Here it goes with my journey to be a better me! May I focus on the life that God has given me.