Shoes, Art and Motherhood

Something that made me smile

2012-02-01T15:09:00.001-06:00

This is an email I received from a co-worker this morning. She is the recreation director at the church, and is over Upward Basketball (Cadence had Upward practice last night.)

Hey-just thought I'd tell you that I know as parents we are always looking to find our kids doing something "right".....last night I was still in the gym when it was practice time for Cadence's team-Brent wasn't there yet.........she asked me to lower the goal for her and I did--- she thanked me several times and we had a nice little visit. I told her I'd be glad to do it and what nice manners she had. Just thought I'd tell you so you could brag on her. I also told her I was hungry and ready for my girl scout cookies and she thought that was funny!

It is always nice to get emails like that, especially since there are lots of times I wonder if the manners I'm trying to teach her are actually sinking in. And it was also nice to know that even though her coach hadn't arrived yet, I can trust her to act like a big girl and not get in trouble. I just love her so much!

We got it!!!

2012-02-01T07:15:00.002-06:00

We have talked about getting something bigger, but since we don't have a car payment at the moment, couldn't justify the payments on anything we looked at. On Friday, they had something come through wholesale that was perfect. It's a 2004 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited, completely fully loaded, owned by an older couple, low miles and extremely well taken care of. It literally has every feature available at the time - leather, navigation, Sirus, power sunroof, adjustable pedals, heated seats, you name it. And since it came through wholesale, Mike could get it for $6,800.

We went over the weekend to make sure all three car seats would fit (they do), and he had it inspected on Monday (passed with flying colors.) He spent most of yesterday afternoon at the bank getting the money, but after it was all said and done (taxes, trading my 2004 Sentra, tags, etc) we ended up paying $4,115 for it. Our payments are going to be crazy cheap, and this is by far the nicest vehicle either of us has ever owned. We got it last night, and went through putting car seats in, setting the seats for me to drive, setting the automatic garage door opener and doing all those other little things. Cadence is so excited, and informed me last night that she doesn't miss my car at all, because this is much more awesome.

I'm a little sad to lose my car, because I bought it brand new, and I've had it for the last 7 years. And I've only ever driven little cars - a 91 Pontiac LeMans, 2000 Mazda Protege and then the Sentra. Driving a Cherokee is going to take a little time to get used to, because it's about twice as big as my car, and sits A LOT higher. I really really like it, though, and am so happy to have a place to put all three girls when #3 gets here!

Good thoughts, please?

2012-01-28T21:50:00.000-06:00

We've been wavering on the car issue since I found out I was pregnant. Three car seats won't fit in my car, and while they will fit in Mike's Cherokee, it's a 1993 model with 230,000 miles on it. However, both cars are paid off, and we really don't want and can't afford another car payment.

Yesterday, a 2004 Grand Cherokee Limited came in through wholesale at CarMax. It was owned by an older couple, has low miles, is fully loaded and will hold all three car seats (we tried them today.) The best part? After we trade my car in, it will cost us less than $4,000 to get it. Mike is getting it inspected on Monday, and if all that pans out ok, we're going to start the process of getting it. I'm really really really hoping it works out, because I would much rather drive it than Mike's Cherokee. And it would by far be the nicest vehicle I've ever owned! I mean, even the pedals adjust in this thing!! We should know something Monday, but please keep your fingers crossed!

It's cookie time!

2012-01-23T16:12:00.002-06:00

Girl Scout cookies officially went on sale here on Saturday, and we already have 25 boxes ordered, and I know more are on the way (including about 10 from Mike and I.) Cadence has decided that she wants to sell 1500 boxes so she can get ALL the prizes, but I've convinced her to please knock her goal down to something smaller. We decided on 500 (which is still an awful lot of boxes!), and at that point it will give her the first electronic prize in the list - a portable dvd player. I don't know that we'll hit 500 (and don't know that I want to see 500 boxes of cookies at my house), but I guess we'll be trying.

No new news on the baby front. Still no name, and even more have been vetoed off the list (Violet, Mary James, Eliza Jean, Sophia/Sophie and Hannah.) The only name combos that I've actually gotten a maybe on are Alice Miranda and Mary Alice. Abigail, Madeline, Marissa and Felicity are also now on the maybe list, but with no middle names. She'll have a name eventually. I hope.

I've also hit the halfway point, and have gained a total of 6 lbs. Most days, if you didn't know me, you wouldn't know I was pregnant. I'm getting a little round in the middle, but my stomach seems to be stretched out really long. It's definitely not the "beach ball" look I had with Amelia. I've had three people since Friday comment on how small I am, and my response has been that she's apparently hiding and doesn't want anyone to know she's here. Heck, she didn't even want ME knowing for the first 14 weeks! Still not a lot of movement, but I feel her enough that I'm sure she's still ok. Right now we're just waiting.

Not much else is going on around here. I feel like all I do is cook, clean and start over again the other day. But, boring is good, and I'll take that any day.

Book 3/24: 11/22/63 by Stephen King

2012-01-19T19:36:00.001-06:00

3) 11/22/63 by Stephen King

Wow. That's about all I can say. It was long (about 850 pages), but so worth it. Basic story is that the main character finds a portal that sends him back in time, and he decides to try and stop the JFK assassination. During the course of the story, I really came to love him, and all the people he became associated with. I was also in tears by the end, and even though I wanted it to end differently, it really couldn't have. Also, it seemed to go very quickly - much more quickly than you would expect an 850 page book to go. I've read a few other of his books, and there were some I really think could have been a few 100 pages shorter and still had been awesome. However, I think this one could have kept going and I would have been just fine.

I loved it. I give it 5 books.

A photo comparison

2012-01-18T09:40:00.002-06:00

Here I am today, at 19 weeks, 5 days:

And this is me at 20 weeks with Amelia.

I think I look more pregnant with Amelia, and still look slightly fat with this one. Amelia was also more out in front, and I had gained less weight in my face, arms, boobs and hips than I have this time around. It's crazy how different each pregnancy can be.

Sad, and about to be more stressed

2012-01-17T22:34:00.000-06:00

Tonight, parents were asked to attend the girl scout meeting, and it was because the leader had mentioned to co-workers that we would be selling cookies soon, and she got an email back from one that said because of the situation in Colorado, they would no longer be supporting Girl Scouts, and wanted her to know why they wouldn't be buying any cookies.

In case you don't know, a 7 year old boy, who identifies everywhere as a girl (home, school, with family, everywhere), wanted to join Girl Scouts. This particular council decided that since this child identifies with everyone as a girl, as long as the dues were paid, they could join (and from further reading, I don't think they ever did, but could have). When Girl Scouts of the USA was asked, they basically said it was a council by council decision, and that if this child identifies as a girl and the troop/council was ok with it, then they would stand behind the council. People have since called for a boycott of Girl Scout cookies, and it has hit our troop as well.

On the subject of cookie boycotts, I just want everyone to know that any money made off of cookie sales stays with the local troop, and supports those girls. It never hits the national level, and doesn't support other councils and troops. Also, the girls decide what to do with the money they raise - our girls have decided to either plant flower gardens in front of habitat homes, or use the money to make the local parks more handicap accessible. So, when you boycott cookie sales, you're not affecting Girl Scouts of the USA at all - you're affecting the local troops. If you have problems with Girl Scouts as an organization, please take it up with them, and don't punish the local girls.

Now, on to the larger issue. Our troop leader was very conflicted about this story, and some other info she found out regarding Girl Scouts of the USA as an organization. Because of this, she decided to step down as the troop leader, and if no one steps up, the troop will have to be disbanded. Also, during her decision making, she decided to talk with her pastor, and he decided that Girl Scouts could no longer meet in the fellowship hall of the church. And out of the leader and 4 assistants, I know at least 2, maybe 3 will be leaving, and there will also be probably close to 8-10 girls leaving the troop as well.

I honestly can't fault any of them, because I completely understand having convictions and having to stay true to them. However, I also fail to see how this affects our troop, and how this is any different that any number of other situations that Cadence may be put into in the future. I know a lot of parents kept commenting that they didn't want to have to explain to their daughter about transgender or homosexual children/adults, and they were afraid this would bring those conversations up. Well, what if a transgender child showed up in your daughter's class? What if one of her friends mentions "Aunt John" (I have a friend who affectionately calls her brother that) and your daughter comes home asking about that? Or what if you're watching something on tv and a commercial comes on that deals with one of these issues, and your daughter asks questions (that has also already happened here)? Are you going to completely ignore it and pretend the question wasn't asked? I'm all for sheltering her as much as possible, and not having conversations that aren't needed, but I also don't see the point in completely avoiding controversial topics, especially when they are so widely discussed in the world around us.

Tonight, I agreed to step up as leader if one is needed (yes, even with baby girl #3 arriving in June), and I'm pretty sure that we will have a new meeting place by the next meeting. I hate that this is happening, but will be honest with Cadence with any questions that she has. I figure with as much Project Runway, Tabitha Takes Over, and other Bravo shows we watch, if she's not asking questions about sexuality by now, she probably doesn't care yet. And if she doesn't care, I'm not going to make a big deal out of it. The thing I'm upset about most is that she LOVES all of the girls in her troop, and if half of them leave, she's going to be really upset. I hope that it doesn't turn out to be as bad as what it seemed like tonight.

And on a happy note, if anyone wants to buy cookies, they go on sale January 21 (Saturday!) Please let me know if you want to order any, and if you live far away, please support your local troop. The girls will greatly appreciate it!

Poor Mike

2012-01-07T22:24:00.002-06:00

We found out this week that Baby Girl #3 is on the way! Cadence was at the appointment with me, and is so excited about having another sister. I'm excited because it means that the only thing we need to buy baby girl is clothes since the seasons are different. We're also going to be spending money on furniture for Amelia's new room (and will be the baby's room, too, in the future), but we don't really need any baby things. That's a huge weight lifted off of me.

The name discussion is well underway, and we have a few things that haven't been vetoed completely. Of course, I suggested Vivian and Genevieve right off the bat, but he shot them down. I'm hoping to at least get Genevieve in the middle, but it's looking doubtful. Other suggestions that are still on the table are:

Madeline
Alice
Miranda
Marissa
Abigail
Clara
Elizabeth
Beth
Lucia

None are perfect - I'm scared Madeline will get turned into Maddie, Alice and Abigail are really close to Amelia, Clara is close to Amelia's middle name, and Lucia doesn't sound that great with our last name. However, all are names that we are liking at the moment. Maybe we'll come to a conclusion soon.

17 weeks

2011-12-30T09:51:00.001-06:00

And I've "popped." I'm now starting to look a little less like I've gained some weight, and a little more like I'm actually pregnant. Every muscle in my abdomen hates me at the moment, and sneezing is the worst. I feel like I completely rip out the muscle along my hips every time I do. Babycenter says Stealth Ninja Baby is about the size of a turnip, and I totally believe it. There are times I feel like someone has shoved a rock or something in my belly.

Symptoms are still pretty boring - slightly queasy all the time, crazy dreams, want to sleep a lot, have a cold. Other than that, we're just cruising on, waiting for the ultrasound on Tuesday. Can't wait to see if we're going to have a boy, or add another sparkly princess to the mix!

Book 2/24 - Angelfall by Susan Ee

2011-12-30T09:42:00.002-06:00

2) Angelfall by Susan Ee

I have to say, I really really liked it. It's classified as YA Fiction, and it was a really easy read. I tend to like things that deal with the supernatural - angels, demons, etc - so an entire book based on angels coming down to earth was great. I loved the relationship that Penryn and the Angel had, and wasn't sure whether to love or hate the mom. The only part that really got to me were the ones with her little sister. Paige is 7 (the same age as Cadence), and some of the parts with her just broke my heart, because I kept thinking of Cadence. Overall, the book was excellent.

This is the first in a series, and #2 hasn't been published yet, but I will definitely be getting it when it is. This one was only 99¢ on the Kindle, and well worth it.

I gave this one 4 books.

Book 1/24 - The Hunger Games

2011-12-29T10:12:00.000-06:00

I've decided to try the book challenge again, and am hoping for 24 books this year. That's only 2 a month, and I'm going to go from Christmas 2011 to Christmas 2012. I'm hoping I can actually do it this year, since last year was a sensational flop!

1) The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I had read enough online about this book before actually reading it, that I knew pretty much what would happen. And I must say, I'm glad I did. I would have been a complete mess if I hadn't, and probably would have cried through a lot of it. Between the ages of the main characters, the total disregard of most of the adults, and the crummy (to put it lightly) conditions they had to live in day to day, it definitely pulled at the heartstrings (especially since I'm a pregnant, overly hormonal mom.) It was really good (even if depressing), and I'm eager to read the next two since I haven't read anything online about them yet. I now want to see the movie as well, and am curious as to how much a like they will be. I don't know that I'd rank it up there with my most favorite books ever, but it was definitely a great read.

I have two others I've started, and a at least three more still to start. Next on the list are 11/22/63 by Stephen King (in book form) and Angelfall (on the Kindle app.) The Stephen King one is HUGE (about 850 pages), but I'm already halfway finished. It's awesome, and I think I'm going to be very sad when I'm through with it.

Over all, 4 Books

This is still bizarre to me

2011-12-29T09:19:00.001-06:00

I know this is my third time to go through a pregnancy long enough to endure symptoms, but they are still crazy to me. And come February, I will have been either pregnant or nursing for 2 years straight, so that's throwing things off even more. I'm beginning to forget what MY normal is, instead of pregnancy/nursing normal!

The most bizarre to me is the food. It still seems so weird to me that one day something can be perfectly fine, my favorite food ever, then the very next day, just the thought of said food makes me want to make a beeline for the bathroom. That on some days, smells and tastes and textures don't faze me at all, but on others, the act of getting to close to something, or even the idea of putting it in my mouth and actually EATING it, makes me want to gag (and I do, on occasion.) I'm also full of snot (thank you, awesome Mississippi weather!), and that's definitely not helping with the gagging problem. Thankfully, though, the "puking every time I change a diaper" seems to have slacked up some. It's not gone completely, but is getting better.

So far I haven't had any weird cravings this time. With Cadence it was mac and cheese, chocolate milk and grilled cheese sandwiches. I went through a brief bbq phase, but it was mainly cheese and milk. I think I was needing more calcium. With Amelia it was watermelon. OMG, I ate so much of it that summer, and was going through one to two a week for awhile there. It was like someone laced it with crack! I also had a brief "peach milkshake from Chick-fil-a" craving that ended with me crying in the drive-thru because they had stopped selling them. Not my finest pregnancy moment. This time the closest I've come to a craving is salad. I liked them before, but it's like every salad tastes even better now. It hasn't been an all consuming craving like with the others, but it's the only thing that's come close.

As of tomorrow I'll be 17 weeks, and so far things are pretty boring. I'm between sizes in clothes - can't wear a lot of my regular jeans because they feel too tight, but the maternity jeans I have are still slightly too big. My stomach isn't *quite* big enough yet to keep them up, and in most of my clothes you can't tell I'm pregnant. I look like I've put on a few pounds, but that's about it. I still haven't really felt movement - a few flutters here and there, but nothing like with the other two. "Ninja baby" really seems to fit this one, because there are lots of times that I forget that I'm even pregnant. I hope it starts moving a little more soon, though, because the girls both moved a ton. I'm going to be a nervous wreck if I'm not getting punched all the time! Heartburn hasn't started yet (even though I'm sure it will within the next few weeks), I'm still slightly queasy a lot of the time, and I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that the hormonal headaches don't make an appearance any time soon. I go Tuesday for my 18 week appointment, and we will do an ultrasound then. Cadence is going with me, and we hope to be able to tell what the sex is. I can't wait!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-27T09:12:00.000-06:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! It was fun, but way too short, and I got spoiled getting to take a nap almost every day I was off. When 2pm hit today, I was really wishing for a place to sleep. Cadence loved that she got a basketball goal, and ended up with tons of art stuff, pretty jewelry, sparkly headbands, and new clothes for Emily. Amelia got some new bath toys, a little people castle (which she adores) and jeep, a stroller for her dolls and lots of other random toys that she seems very excited about. Overall, I think they were both very happy with their loot, and have another Christmas with my dad and stepmom this weekend.

I racked up as well. From my mom I got a ton of purple baking supplies, a purple northface jacket with a mixer charm attached, new books, lots of pretty jewelry and Les Miserables on dvd. My sisters got me some awesome boots and a cool sticker for the back of my laptop. Cadence got me a purple brownie maker, and Mike got me some new running shoes, an awesome laptop bag, and Stephen King’s new book 11/22/63. For him, my mom and I went in together and got him tickets to go see Stan Lee in New Orleans at the end of January. He is so excited, and we should officially be buying the tickets at the end of this week!

We also cemented that Amelia has a milk intolerance. We are currently having to stay away from any dairy - no milk, cheese, yogurt, or anything that has those in them. That was loads of fun at Christmas when it meant no lemon icebox pie, rotel dip, poppyseed chicken or mac and cheese. I feel so bad that there are so many good foods she can’t have, but the vomiting, diarrhea, gas pain and stomach cramps just aren’t worth it. We’ve been told to take her off all milk for now, and that hopefully as she gets older we’ll be able to reintroduce it.

Now to what I know you all want to see: Pictures! There are a ton, but it was a very good Christmas! I hope everyone has a wonderful 2012!

My mixer from my mom :)

Awesome laptop bag!

BATH TOYS!!!!

Slowly adjusting

2011-12-13T15:28:00.000-06:00

It's been a few days, so now we're slowly starting to adjust to the idea of not only am I pregnant, but we're going to have another little one 19 months younger than Amelia, we need to figure out a car situation, and something's gonna hafta give as far as rooms are concerned! We've had quite a few practical discussions over the weekend, and think we at least have a plan in place for most of it.

I've also discovered that there were a lot of little things, but no major, glaring red flags. If I had stopped long enough to put the pieces together, I'm sure I would have figured it out much sooner than 14 weeks, but hey, who has time for anything with a 7 year old and 1 year old at Christmas?? I'm still not showing, which is so bizarre to me since it was getting obvious by this point with Amelia, and beyond obvious with Cadence, and still have on regular clothes. I went back and looked, and I've gained a little more weight than I had at this point with A, but not much. I'm also slightly queasy all the time. I thought it was the stomach bug from hell that we've been cursed with, but seems it was something else! But if this means no headaches like the last two times, I'll deal with the queasiness!

So much change in such a short amount of time. I can't think about it too much, though, or it becomes a little overwhelming!

Here comes Santa Claus!

2011-12-11T15:33:00.000-06:00

Cadence loved him (no surprise there!), but Amelia wasn't so sure what to think of that crazy man I was handing her off to. She didn't cry, but I love the look she's giving me!

Well that's not what I expected

2011-12-09T13:49:00.001-06:00

I went in for my yearly check up yesterday, and found out that not only am I pregnant, I'm 14 weeks pregnant!

A pregnancy test was done as part of the normal procedure, and the nurse came back telling me that I was, indeed, knocked up. I didn't believe her, she insisted, then felt of my stomach and said since she really couldn't feel my uterus, I probably wasn't that far along. She said she'd do my physical first, then we'd do a vaginal ultrasound to see if we could find a heartbeat and see how far along I was. Well, when she did the ultrasound, this is what we saw:

Not a blob, not a little butterbean baby, a real live actual baby! With fingers and toes and everything! The nurse and I both just stared at the screen, and I think she was as shocked as I was. My official due date is June 8, and I go back on Dec 20 (about a week and a half) for my first actual OB appoint.

Wow. Another baby!

Just to clear things up...

2011-11-12T16:28:00.001-06:00

I am a graphic designer

All of the handouts, billboard, flyers, product packaging, magazines, banners, and newspapers you see? Me, or someone like me, had a very important role in that getting produced.
My job is more that just "making things pretty."
I have 4+ years of higher education, and two degrees. I didn't just wake up one day and decide I wanted to do this. I actually did go to school for it and had to take classes to learn how to do my job correctly.
I AM a professional. So when you see something I've created for you and comment "That looks so professional!!" it's insulting. Very insulting.
On that note, when you tell me that I need to just run to a chain store and buy pre-printed and pre-designed papers to use instead of doing what you've hired me to do, that's also very insulting.
If you want something designed, and change your mind 45 million times, and I keep having to redo it for you, don't get mad at me when we're stressing about making the deadline or have passed the intended deadline. I can't snap my fingers and make the work be completed. It actually does take a little time.
I have close to $1500 worth of programs on my computer that were made to do graphic design work. These are wonderful programs, but are expensive and took years for me to learn to use.
I don't use Microsoft Word, Excel or Powerpoint unless it's for a simple letter, spreadsheet or powerpoint presentation. And most of the time, I have an Adobe program that will do any of those tasks faster and more accurately. So PLEASE don't come ask me to design something for you in Powerpoint or Word. I will laugh at you.
And on that note, if you bring me something you designed yourself in Word, chances are I'm going to have to redo it in the programs I use to make it print correctly. It's nothing personal if I do, I just want to make sure it "looks professional."
I mainly deal with designing print pieces. I don't know much about websites (even though there are lots of us that do), and please don't ask me to do any marketing or copy editing. I CAN, but I can't promise it will be great.

In short, I am a professional, I DID have to go to school to do this, and it's more than pushing a few keys on the computer. I love what I do, and I think I'm pretty dang good at it. But the people that act like my job is completely unimportant really really bug me. Please, just have a little respect. You hired me for a reason. Let me do what I do best.

A birthday party - in pictures...

2011-11-07T15:40:00.000-06:00

Birthdaypalooza 2011!
(and don't laugh at their cakes. I know it's not my best, but I was running fever and sick, and it's a miracle they even HAD individual cakes at that point!!)

Birthdaypalooza

2011-11-07T13:44:00.001-06:00

Wow. Over a month since I last posted! This last month has been insane, but I'm back - at least briefly! The last two weeks have been the biggest party extravaganza ever at our house, and it started on Oct. 28 with Amelia turning one. ONE!!! How in the world is that possible? Her birthday was on a Friday, and it was also the Friday before Halloween. We sent cupcakes to the babysitter's for the Halloween party and a special one for MillieBug, then had cake at the house that night and gave her a few little presents.

Monday night was Halloween, and I took a very pretty peacock and a very active ladybug around the neighborhood. Amelia figured out by house two what they were putting in that bucket, and after that, she was all for this trick-or-treating thing! We spent the majority of the trip with her sucking on a dum dum sucker, and she had a blast handing out candy to people that came by the house that night. Cadence went around with us, then went to a neighborhood that was close with a friend of hers. We have more candy than we'll ever be able to eat, but I think both girls had a blast.

On Wednesday (November 2) it was Cadence's 7th birthday! It's so hard for me to believe that it's been 7 years already. She got her first American Girl doll for her birthday, and we let her open it that morning before school. She knew she was getting a present, so she was awake at 12:30 am, 2:30 am, and 3:00 am asking if it was time to open her present yet, and at that point I told her that if she asked again, she wasn't opening it until after school. At 5:30 when Mike got up, he said she was in the living room watching cartoons, so we're not sure how much she actually slept. She adored her gift, and has named her doll Emily. Emily has gone to school with her every day so far, has been dressed for bed then redressed for school each day, and is by her side 24/7. Cadence took cupcakes to school and to the sitter's with her that day, but that night we all ended up going to bed early after our birthday dinner of chicken nuggets and mac and cheese. :)

This past Saturday was "the Big Day" - they had their birthday party. We had it at a local park, and it was Mardi Gras/Princess and the Frog themed. We had masks, beads and crowns for everyone, Tiana cups with beads, coins and mardi gras rubber ducks in them, and pretty cupcakes that were in purple, green and yellow flower papers. We also had a king cake shipped in, and I made red beans and rice and gumbo. We had a really good turn out, and the girls got more stuff than we could ever possibly play with. Amelia has loved having all the new interactive toys, and is especially loving the ones that give her the opportunity to either push buttons or take things in and out. Cadence was thrilled with pretty much everything, and received tons of books, craft stuff, and of course, jewelry and play makeup. (see next post for pictures. There are a lot! :) )

Overall it was fun, but I'm SO glad it's all over! Well, until Christmas! :)

____________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) My awesome family. Without them, the party could have never happened.
2) Birthdays
3) Happy girls
4) Cake!
5) It's after Saturday, which means it's all over!!

Just a quick rundown

2011-09-29T23:06:00.005-05:00

I think Kahla had a post like this titled "Friday Night Leftovers" or something similar, and I think that would be fitting. Lots of things going on, but nothing that seems big enough to deserve it's own post. So here they are:

Cadence:

She's doing SO well in school, and I found out today that the placement test for the reading class she's in was at a 3rd grade level. And the AR books they are sending home with her and 3rd grade! I'm so very very proud of her!
I'm ordering her birthday present next week - an American Girl doll. She thinks it's going to be for Christmas, but will hopefully be so excited when she gets it early.
She has started Girl Scouts, and has Upward Basketball evaluations next Tuesday. Things are about to get so busy.
She's been invited to her first sleepover. We haven't set a date, yet, but it's with a girl that is in her class this year, and also in Girl Scouts. Her mom seems nice, and they live close. This should be interesting...

Amelia:

She's walking EVERY WHERE!! She's now walking more than crawling, and I just can't believe it.
She's also starting to sing to us. No real words in her songs, but you can definitely tell it's a tune. It's so very cute.
She's 11 months old now. How did that happen? She can't be that old yet!

Mike:

He's going Saturday to pick up another Jeep. This one is a 1969 CJ6. That doesn't run. And is in the middle of a restoration. And is 2 hours away. Yay.
Thankfully, though, the Cherokee (that he traded the Wrangler in for) is paid off. So at the moment, we don't have any car payments, and his job covers our bills. Not much else. But the bills are covered.
Still likes his job ok, but I don't think he'd be upset if he got transferred to a different department.

Me:

My job is driving me insane. People are stupid. It's just... crazy.
I have a few freelance things going on, so hoping those will continue for awhile and pan out. They are a nice, welcome break from the craziness at work.
Sarah and I did our first mud run last weekend, and finished in under 48 minutes - that's times good enough for Disney! We have another 5K (sans obstacles) next Saturday in Brookhaven. It's for breast cancer research, and we're calling ourselves The Boobsie Twins. I can't wait!
I'm planning a birthday party. It's going to be huge, but I hope the girls (Cadence especially) have fun. It will be Nov 5, and will be a Mardi Gras/Princess and the Frog party. I think I'm more excited than Cadence is!

Let's see how long it lasts...

2011-09-20T23:44:00.000-05:00

When Mike and I got married, I tried to be the perfect housewife. I cooked and cleaned and pretty much tried to wait on him and take care of him. That was a mistake. It didn't take long before I was the *only* one cooking and cleaning, plus working and/or going to school. Before kids it was ok, but then we had Cadence. Suddenly I was still doing all the cooking and cleaning, plus taking care of a baby. Now, don't get me wrong. If I asked, Mike was more than happy to help out. It's just that sometimes, explaining to him what I needed done, then showing him how to do it, actually took longer than if I had done it myself. So that's usually what I did.

Fast forward a few more years, and now we have two kiddos. And I'm still doing the major bulk of the cooking, cleaning and childcare around here. Again, if I ask, he'll gladly help. But I have to ask. And when I ask constantly, I feel like I'm nagging. And I don't want to become *that* wife. But I can't do this anymore. I feel like I'm treading water and not making any progress. And honestly, we both work full time jobs and there's no reason that I should be doing it all alone.

So, in response, I made a chore chart. Yes, a bona fide chore chart. It has a list of all the things that need to be done daily, and I told Mike that he needed to pick 3 nights to cook and I would sort from there. He picked Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, so on those days he's supposed to make dinner, wash/put up a load of clothes and straighten the bathrooms. I'll straighten the living room and dining room, vacuum, and clean up after dinner. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, the schedule swaps. I'll admit that I hate cleaning and am fine with minor clutter, so neither of us have completed all the chores on the list the last two days (I didn't vacuum tonight, and didn't get both bathrooms finished yesterday.) But it was SO nice to be able to work on some freelance stuff or take care of the girls tonight instead of worrying about dinner. So very very nice.

I'm not sure how long it will be before I'm back to doing it all, but I'm going to enjoy it while I can. Hopefully it will continue.

_____________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) A husband that will help (even if it takes prodding)
2) A daughter that looks forward to some of her chores
3) A somewhat clean house
4) Not having to worry about dinner every night
5) A family that loves me

So alike, yet so different

2011-09-16T23:25:00.002-05:00

So, my sister got some very exciting news this past week. She made Senate at Southern, and she's also now a Delta Gamma girl.

Now, the Senate thing is totally like me. I was student body president, cheerleading captain, senior class treasurer, member of every (mainly academic) club on campus in high school. I didn't do a ton in college, but it was mainly because I was engaged and about to get married. But I can totally see myself having done something like senate.

However, Delta Gamma is completely foreign to me. I'm not social, until I really get to know someone. I'm much much happier sitting at home in front of the tv, or reading a book, or on the computer that I am around other people, especially large groups of girls. Girls that are way prettier. And more popular. And had way more friends and boyfriends. See? I'm 31, and the thought of being in the same 100 yard radius of *those* girls from high school and college makes me sweaty and nervous and makes me want to go hide with a good book.

Cecily, though? It's unbelievable. I looked through her facebook wall, and there were SO many people posting pictures of her and congratulating her and telling her how awesome it was that she was now in DG. As I'm looking through it, I was amazed and in awe. I don't even have that many friends, much less that many that would take pictures of me (and not me in a group - just me!) and post and comment. It was just unbelievable. And I see my daughter being the same way.

I'm so proud of the awesome and amazing woman she's becoming, and can't wait to see what she does as she gets older. And it gives me hope. Hope that Cadence will, one day, be just as awesome and amazing. Hope that even though I don't understand her at all most of the time (kinda like Momma and Cecily), it doesn't mean that she's not listening and learning, and making my teaching uniquely hers. Hope that her future is going to be amazing. And I honestly can't wait.

I love you, Cecily, and am so proud of you.

______________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) Both of my sisters

2) My awesome, outgoing daughter

3) That Cecily is having the time of her life

4) That we can be so different, yet still love each other so much

5) My family

More good news!!

2011-09-13T22:00:00.001-05:00

This morning we got a letter from the librarian at Cadence's school. It said that since she is an "exceptionally above grade-level reader" she gets to take part in the advanced reading group at school. She started today, and will be going to the library to do her reading work every day. I'm so proud of her, and spent the day bragging to everyone I saw!

____________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) the love of reading has passed on to Cadence
2) a school that helps nurture that love
3) books. The ones she loves now, and the new ones coming soon
4) family that's as proud of her as I am
5) My girls.

Tutu Mania!

2011-09-12T19:06:00.004-05:00

So, Cadence informed me over the weekend that she wants to be a peacock for Halloween. Really? A peacock?? Do you have any idea how hard it is to find a peacock costume that isn't A) for a baby, B) for a hooker or C) outrageously expensive? I had been wanting to find something where the two of them would match (I was thinking Rainbow Brite and a Sprite or maybe both be princesses), but Cadence wouldn't let the peacock idea drop. I spent all day Saturday searching online, and finally found a lady that could make tutu dresses for the girls for Halloween and tutus for them for their birthday party, and not charge me an arm and a leg. Cadence is getting a tutu dress with green, blue and purple and the pretty peacock mask we saw at Cracker Barrel (which is what started all of this), and Amelia will be getting a red tutu dress with black spots, and some cutesie ladybug wings and antennas. For their birthday, they are both getting purple, green and yellow tutus for their Mardi Gras party. I'm so excited for them to come in, and can't wait to see Amelia in that cutesie dress!

We also have the party planned! One of the local parks is renovating at the moment, and it's going to be absolutely amazing when it's finished. They are planning to have it open the first week in October, and we have the party planned for the first week in November, so it should give them plenty of time to actually get up and running. I called today, and we are now on the list to have the party from 2-4pm on Saturday, November 5. I'm so excited, and when I told Cadence, she informed me that I was "the Best. Mommy. EVER!!!!!" I'm glad she's happy!

I don't have plans for Amelia's gift for her birthday, but we have Cadence's picked out. She has been asking repeatedly for an American Girl doll, and we're finally going to give in. She loves Julie, but really wants the new My American Girl one that has short brown hair and brown eyes. That will be her birthday gift, but we'll get her other "stuff" (she's asking for Julie stuff) for Christmas. She's going to love it! For Amelia, it will probably be things like paper bags and boxes. She'll be one. She'll love it!

__________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) My two girly girls
2) Fall. I adore fall.
3) The craziness of this season.
4) Cooler weather
5) Football season and holidays

Shopping and Progress Reports

2011-09-09T21:52:00.000-05:00

I did some shopping today, and have a very nice start on Christmas and Birthdays. The majority is from the Missions Garage Sale that the church holds every year. I work in a very nice, upscale area of town, and there is always some crazy nice stuff. This year I came away with:
For Cadence-

Books! So. Many. Books! I ended up with 6 for her. They are Junie B. Jones and her Big Fat Mouth, 99 1/2 School Jokes, Riddles & Nonsense, Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses, The Amazing Days of Abby Hayes, The Secret Fairy in Fairyland (it even comes with holographic stickers!) and Number the Stars (one of my most all time favorite books.)
This awesome book that's like a scrapbook and journal in one called I *heart* Being Me! It has pockets to put mementos in, and space to write things about you. It's so awesome.
And, Operation. I will probably hate the buzzer before too much longer, but I know she'll be thrilled!

For Amelia -

Fisher Price Brilliant Basics Stroll-Along Walker - She's getting pretty good at walking, but I think she'll like having this to push her Marie Baby around in.
Fisher Price Little Superstar Stacker - Yeah, she might be almost past the age, but it's a stacker! And it lights up! And it was $1!!
Fisher Price Amazing Animals Spinning Zoo - It's just too cute. And plays music. And has animals with wheels as feet!! How could I pass it up??
Snap Lock Beads - she's almost a year old! She has to have snap lock beads!

For me -

Two Michael Crichton books - State of Fear and Prey
The prettiest teal pyrex baking dish. I LOVE this dish. The color is beautiful, and I'm pretty sure it was someone's grandmother's. I love, love, love it.
Some ribbon headbands (those are mostly for Sarah, though.)

For Mike -

I found the most awesome LSU camping chair, and it was marked $2. I made the mistake of not opening it, and it was broken. :( I'm not sure if I can fix it or not, and I half-jokingly commented that I'm sure all the Ole Miss fans at work did something to it! ;)

The best part? All of it was only $22.50!! This is why I love the Missions Garage Sale every year! I also bought a few other things for Christmas/Birthday. Amelia got a see-n-say junior, and Cadence got a Girl Scout charm, some Daisy Girl Scout socks, and a princess glitter fashion set (her daddy will kill me for that!)

We also got progress reports today, and Cadence had all 100's! Not even 90-somethings - all 100's! I'm so extremely proud of her, and she's doing so so well in school!

Long time no see! (continued...)

2011-09-03T18:43:00.001-05:00

....

I just got some really awful news. My grandfather in TX just passed away. He was admitted to the hospital yesterday, but I don't know that any of us thought it was as bad as it was. By today he was doing worse, but the news would be bad, then good, then bad again. The last text I got was that they were starting dialysis, then that he coded. It was definitely a shock, and not the texts I was expecting to get.

The girls and I will be leaving in the morning, heading to TX, and Sarah will go with us. Mike more than likely won't be able to come because of short notice and work, but I'm glad I won't be making the trip alone. I'm very glad to get to see family, but not excited about the circumstances.

Wow. I'm just shocked at the moment. Within the last year I've gone from having 3 grandfathers to none. Wow.

Long time no see!

2011-09-03T16:57:00.000-05:00

I know it's been awhile, but hopefully I can keep up with this more. So. Many. Changes. the past week or so! This will be long and bloggy, but since it's my blog...

So, first major change is that we are no longer the proud owners of a Jeep Wrangler. Instead, we are now the proud owners of a PAID OFF Jeep Cherokee. Notice those two bolded words? Yep, that's right. We don't have a car payment anymore! Mike had the Wrangler appraised at CarMax, and they said at wholesale they would give him almost $3,000 more than what we owed. He took all the aftermarket stuff off, sold it back to them, then used the money to buy a Cherokee from a guy at work. It's a 93, so almost as old as Cecily, but he was a mechanic and took great care of it. It has some minor problems (dry rotted gaskets, starter cylinoid is out, headliner is falling), but even fixing all of those puts us WELL below what we still owed on the Wrangler. So, no more Wrangler (for now!)

Other awesome change is that I now have a new MacBook Pro! It was bought for me by H2O Marine Accessories, and I will be working my little bahooty off to pay for it, but OMG do I love it! I also have all of the programs I need for work, so I can do stuff from home or on the road now. And since I can carry it around the house and it's actually fast, I'm hoping I can keep up with this more, too. I adore this computer. Really really really love it.

School wise, Cadence is doing excellent. Reading about 70 words per minute at every test, has made 100 on each spelling test so far, and 97 is the lowest grade she's made on a math test. And the best, most exciting news? She's been on green EVERY SINGLE DAY! And she's been in school for over a MONTH!!! I can't even begin to tell you how proud I am of her!!! She's also taken a liking to American Girl books, especially Julie (from 1974.) We've read a few of the books, and she keeps saying "Momma, these are clothes you used to wear when you were little!!" Um, no, honey. Those are clothes MamMaw wore. I'm glad she's found a book series she likes, though.

.....

Surgery and first day of school

2011-08-09T06:52:00.000-05:00

Friday was a big day for us - Amelia got tubes and Cadence started First Grade. I had to be at the hospital with Amelia at 6am, so Mike ended up taking Cadence to school her first day. I have to download the pictures from his camera, but he said she got up great, didn't give him any problems getting dressed, and she says she had a great first day. She likes her teacher, and will actually have to work this year - more homework and spelling tests every week (starting Thursday!!) I'm curious to see how the year goes with her actually having to study some, and hope the rest of the year is as good as the first few days have been!

Amelia did wonderfully on Friday, and did really well with not getting to eat after midnight. She woke about 2am and was fussy, and couldn't quite understand why I wouldn't nurse her. But when I woke her again at 5:15, she was fine. We got her checked in, and about 6:30-6:45 they took us back to a room and had me put a baby hospital gown on her. I met with her ENT, Dr. Clay, and the anesthesiologist, then the nurse came to take her back about 7:30. Mike showed up shortly there after, and as he was walking in, Dr. Clay was coming out to tell me she did great. The entire procedure took less than 10 minutes. They warned me that she might be angry after waking up, but she was more upset about not getting to eat than anything else! She fussed some until I fed her, then after that she was fine. They released us, and she came home that afternoon and slept for 4.5 hours.

Last night was the first night that her sleeping has improved -10:30pm-7am with a brief wake up about 3 because she lost her nookie - but she's become a chatterbox since Friday. She's now talking nonstop, and is SO much happier. I'm so so so glad we did it!

Sleep is overrated

2011-08-03T03:26:00.000-05:00

I was so excited when I woke up this morning, because Amelia only woke once between 9pm and 5am. Now, I know she's 9 months old, and it should be normal for her to do that or longer. But since the ear infections started at three months, the sleeping has been non-existent. So, when she went 6 hours straight last night, I thought I had gone to heaven. Apparently my daughter thought that would be enough sleep for tonight as well.

She went to bed at 9, woke about 10:15 but went right back to sleep, but woke up SCREAMING at 11. Sometime after midnight she fell back asleep, but I fell asleep on the couch with her. I woke at 1:45 and went to lay her down, and she was back up by two. It's now 3:26am, and she's currently playing with a picnic basket in my living room. I tried letting her play in her bed, but she would stand up and cry. I brought her to bed with me, and she did nothing but climb on me and pinch and cry. So we're now up and playing.

My alarm will go off in two hours, and I have less than two hours of sleep, and on the couch at that. Today should be awesome. Joy.

My Past Week: A Photo Montage

2011-08-02T07:57:00.001-05:00

We supervised cleaning...

went to the fair...

went to the creek...

ate yummy food...

and made things sparkly!

It’s that time of year again...

2011-07-27T08:49:00.000-05:00

The time of year when things get super awful crazy! Things are starting to gear back up again at work - my current to-do list has 19 things on it, 11 of which are due by the end of next week - and this is the last full week of summer vacation. Cadence is with GiGi this week for VBS, but next week she has a dentist appointment on Wednesday, meets her teacher on Thursday and starts 1st grade on Friday. Amelia also has surgery for tubes next Friday.

The only upside to things getting crazy is that it means cooler weather is coming, and it’s only 38 days and counting until the official kickoff of college football season! I’m so extremely excited about that, and am ready for football season to start.

Deep breaths, deep breaths, deep breaths. I CAN make it through the next few weeks of craziness!!

I just have to laugh

2011-07-26T13:13:00.000-05:00

Today I went into the breakroom at work, and there was a church member talking to the ladies in there, and she was telling them about her daughter. I caught part of the conversation while washing my pump, and it took me a minute to realize that it was her daughter and not Mother Theresa she was talking about. Apparently her daughter has three children and is pregnant with #4, homeschools, bakes her own bread, grinds her own organic grain for her homemade bread, and mentors high risk kids. I'm positive there's more, but I left at that point.

Now, I have friends who are just like the daughter mentioned, and they are the kindest, sweetest people I know - just like I'm sure the daughter is. I'm also very happy for her that in her mom's eyes, she's apparently Super Mom (because honestly, don't we all want to be thought of that way by our moms??)But it made me wonder if this lady knew that not only was she making everyone else's kids seem inferior, but she was doing a pretty good job of giving another young mom (i.e. ME!!) a complex. I had to take a moment to remind myself that 1) how she lives her life has absolutely no bearing on how I live my life, and 2) I'm sure there are tons of things about me, when laid out like that, make me look beyond super awesome as well.

Later I went back in the breakroom to eat, and the mom was still in there, talking about herself this time. I realized then that the mom just likes to brag, and that made me feel better, too. It's crazy how no matter how old I get, or how many things I do, I still feel like a little kid playing pretend. Maybe one day I'll finally get over that.

We can run!

2011-07-25T17:39:00.000-05:00

Our small weekend trip to run a race at Disney has blossomed, and we're going to blog about it! Come visit and read!

www.wecanrundisney.blogspot.com

Book 2/10: Palm Trees on the Hudson: A True Story of the Mob, Judy Garland & Interior Decorating by Elliot Tiber

2011-07-21T14:39:00.002-05:00

I know that I said The Dashwood Sisters Tell All was next, but I was looking through the free books for my Kindle app, and came across this title. Any book that has a bright pink and purple cover and deals with the mob, interior decorating *AND* Judy Garland is one that I have to pick up, even if it’s just for the absurdness of it all.

I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised. It’s a really easy read, and he does a great job describing NYC in the 60’s. His descriptions of the nightlife, the outlandishness, and the art scene are awesome. I also felt a little sorry for him through part of it, because I saw the mob stuff coming a mile away, and hated for him that he didn’t. I enjoyed it, and it was a complete 180 from Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart. Overall, a fun time, and I give it 4 books.

Next up, The Dashwood Sisters Tell All (for reals this time!)

Book 1/10: Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart by Beth Pattillo

2011-07-19T15:49:00.002-05:00

I started this last year, and only made it through 5 books before life got too hectic - no where near the 25 I was aiming for. So I’m going to try again, and decided to try for 10 this time around. Sarah gave me some books to read, and I just finished the first: Mr. Darcy Broke My Heart.

I must preface this with the fact that I have never made it through any Jane Austen book. I’ve also never seen any of the movies - even the Holy Grail of Austen movies, the 5 hour BBC Pride and Prejudice. However, Sarah loves Austen, and not only loves - but owns - the BBC movie, and has watched it more times than she can count. She assured me that I’d love these books, so I told her I’d read them.

I went in not expecting too much, but absolutely loved this book. It is a very easy read, and VERY easy to get lost in. It also didn’t require a lot of thinking and concentration, which was great since I was usually reading either with a baby on my lap or while pumping, so 15-20 minutes at a time. The story was good, and it had just enough about Jane Austen in it to make me want to try reading Pride and Prejudice again. It was a great, fun, summer read, and a perfect escape during the few moments I could find during the day.

I can’t wait to read the other two in the series: Jane Austen Ruined My Life and The Dashwood Sisters Tell All. I give it 5 books!

Next: The Dashwood Sisters Tell All by Beth Pattillo

Birthday update, injuries and...Girl Scouts?!?!

2011-07-18T23:30:00.000-05:00

I wanted to give a quick update on my birthday and The Never Ending List of Crappy Things. The list does, indeed, seem to have reached it's end, and for that I am eternally grateful. Currently, bills are paid (with some money still in our account this time!), we have a new-to-us stove that works great, and my birthday was amazing. Sarah took Cadence, Amelia and me to see Winnie-the-Pooh (which is absolutely amazing), she gave me some cute running socks with pom poms (I adore them!), bought me some really pretty and sparkly earrings for Cadence to give me, and took all of us to O'Charley's for dinner Friday night. She also helped my awesome friend Kris get me a birthday cake - She got the bakery info and picked it up, while Kris so sweetly ordered it to make sure I'd have cake on my birthday. I don't know that I'll be able to repay either of them, but it was so sweet and awesome!

On Saturday (my actual birthday), Mike and I went to Schlotzsky's to eat with some of my birthday coupons, and bought a stove. Sunday was McAlister's with more birthday coupons, and my mom came up with more presents. She gave me the Disney Princess: Cupcakes and More cookbook, and some adorable Pooh and Tigger salt and pepper shakers. It was an awesome birthday.

Today has been pretty eventful as well. This morning I received my first running-related injury when I fell on the asphalt and scraped my knee pretty bad. Then this afternoon, Cadence finally had an appointment with a therapist. I took her to the one at the church, and I think it went well. He talked to both of us for awhile, and for now he seems to think it's all habit and attention seeking. I left with a few things to try, and I can tell the next few weeks are probably going to be hard for all of us. He told me that he wants Mike and I to:

Ignore and not engage her at all - If she says she's ugly or stupid, agree and go on. If she argues over dinner or chores, tell her one time and don't argue with her. If she tries to pull us into endless logic battles, ignore and don't let her have any power.
Quit giving second (or third or fourth) chances to do things before I give consequences - If I tell something and give a consequence if it isn't done, follow through immediately and be consistent. Don't keep telling her "If you do this one more time..." before I finally explode.
Don't yell - This will definitely be the hardest. Don't let her pull us into a yelling match, because it leads us into grown up tantrums, and it's just not productive.

He also suggested a quarter jar. I took two of Amelia's Gerber Puffs containers and let Cadence decorate them. One has about $5 worth of quarters in it, and the other is hers. Every time I see her doing something nice or polite or respectful, she gets a quarter. When she gets angry and throws a tantrum, or barks orders, or is rude or sassy, she loses a quarter. At the end of the week, she can take whatever money she's earned and gets to spend it on something for her. We're hoping the results will be twofold - it will give her an immediate incentive to change her behaviors, and force me to start focusing more on the good/positive things she does instead of getting wrapped up in the negative. Let's hope it helps.

I think I am also officially a Girl Scout mom. The money hasn't been paid yet, but I spent about half an hour on the phone with her soon-to-be troop leader, and already have jobs to do! :) They won't start until sometime in August, but her leader was VERY excited when she found out I'm a graphic designer. They already have a list of community service projects and field trips planned, and I'm so excited!! I've never done anything with Girl Scouts before, so this will be brand new for both of us. And for those of you that live close, be expecting me to come hounding you to buy cookies in January!

_________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) A great counseling session

2) Hope that it will get better

3) Neosporin with pain relief for my knee

4) Birthdays, and birthday cake

5) Girl Scout projects!

Birthday Freebies!

2011-07-15T09:32:00.000-05:00

Since my birthday is tomorrow, I’ve gotten a few emails from local places with freebie items or coupons to use. I decided to see if there were other places that offered birthday freebies as well, and found a great list on HeyItsFree.net of restaurants and retail stores that you can get freebies from. Most ask you to join their mailing list to get it, but will also send you something for signing up. So far, this is what I’ve received:

For Signing Up:
Chili’s - Free chips and Queso
Dairy Queen - BOGO medium blizzards
Maggie Moo’s - BOGO cone or cup
Marble Slab - BOGO Tasty Creation
O’Charley’s - Free appetizer with entree purchase
Ruby Tuesday - BOGO entrees
Schlotzsky’s - Free chips and 20 oz drink with sandwich purchase

For My Birthday:
Arby’s - Free 12oz shake
Backyard Burger - free cobbler
Baskin Robbins - One Free Scoop and $3 off any ice cream cake
Chili’s - Free Brownie Sundae
McAlister’s Deli - $5 off next purchase
Maggie Moo’s - Free kid’s cone
Marble Slab - BOGO cone or cup and $3 off any ice cream cake
Ruby Tuesday - Free handcrafted burger
Schlotzsky’s - Free small sandwich
Sweet Tree Yogurt - 5oz free

I also had a free creamslush from Sonic, but couldn’t get that coupon to print, and signed up at Zaxby’s, but they mail their coupon to you instead of emailing it. And I’ve heard that Cerami’s (a really good local Italian place) will give you free spaghetti and meatballs on your birthday. The downside? All the coupons I’ve received expire within the next two weeks. I know that I'm using the O'Charley's one tonight when we go to the movies with Aunt Sarah, and know the McAlister's one will get used (I love that place.) I also have a feeling that every ice cream one will be used as well. Looks like I have some eating to do!

Make sure you go to HeyItsFree.net to sign up for your freebies as well, and happy birthday to me!!

_________________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) Aunt Sarah

2) The opportunity to see Winnie-the-Pooh with my girls

3) Birthdays!!

4) Free stuff!!!!

5) Payday!

Funny things

2011-07-11T15:50:00.001-05:00

My phone crashed last week (I just realized that I forgot to add that to the Never Ending List of Crappy Things), and thankfully I had gone on the week before and saved videos and pictures off my phone. I was looking through them this morning, and came across some pretty funny stuff. After the Never Ending List of Crappy Things, it was nice to laugh. Enjoy!

Cadence, jamming to Linda Ronstadt at McAlister's

Amelia, playing instead of sleeping

LET'S DO THE TIME WARP AGAIN!!!!

Some photos...

And some quotes (courtesy of my facebook page)....

For Cadence's wedding, she wants it in a castle with a disco ball, she'll have a rainbow dress, and will serve grilled cheese and cheese nips at the reception. Sounds like fun!
"The cheese nips in my lunchable were little tiny cheese nips. But these in the box are gigantic, huge, magical cheese nips!!"
"The shells (Mac-n-cheese) look like O's. And I don't really like them that much, cause they look like O's! And O's just aren't my type!"
Cadence asked me if she could change her name when she gets older. She wants to be called Jem.
Cadence says I need some Pajama Jeans because they have "smooth, butt lifting design," and my butt is saggy.
"I love you anyway, even if I don't have a trampoline, a water slide or a swimming pool!"
"I don't want anything else, because I have my family! Well... I want toys, too!"
"When I see things, I don't see them." Alrighty then.
Cadence just told me she doesn't like her one piece swimsuit because it "chokes her butt."

I hope everyone has a great week!

Is that a light or a train at the end of my tunnel??

2011-07-11T10:43:00.003-05:00

This past week has been something. I was very excited last Friday, because Mike got his first full paycheck, and things should have been better last week and this week. I was wrong. Because of time, I will bullet point for you the things that have happened in the last week.

Got his paycheck, and paid all our bills (including car insurance and car tag.) However, forgot to write my car tag down in the checkbook, and didn’t notice it until Monday. And we spend money over the weekend.
Mike’s computer decided to crash and burn, and we thought it was the power supply. Went to Best Buy over last weekend to get a new one, only to get home and discover that it WASN’T the power supply. We figured it out and fixed it (for free!!), but had to wait on the money to be returned to our account.
Still having problems with Comcast, though not as bad.
After realizing that I forgot to write down my car tag, and stuff would probably bounce, had to borrow money from my sister to add to the money in my savings so that my account was back in the black when mortgage came out on Monday (today) (Thank you, Sarah!)
Took Amelia to the ENT on Thursday, and found out that she needs tubes. Not that bad, except it’s going to cost $700 out of pocket. They have been postponed until September or October.
On Friday, went to transfer all the money out of my savings account, and accidentally transferred it INTO savings. Also went to put the money in from Sarah and got there right as they closed and the lady wouldn’t help me. Had to put the money in the night deposit and try and fix the transfer so that it cleared over the weekend.
Saturday, I was supposed to take pictures at a wedding (doing it as a favor for my mom’s best friend), and meeting the girl at 8. Finally got to where she was about 8:30 because she didn’t meet me like she said, then I sat around in the nastiest “salon” ever for three hours watching her get her hair done.
While waiting at the “salon,” I checked my bank account and saw that my mortgage came out Saturday instead of today. Had to make some phone calls to my bank to keep it from bouncing. We got it taken care of, but it will cost me a $5 service fee. Stupid bank.
The wedding reminded me why I don’t do them anymore, and after 8 hours, I finally left. The best part? The bride didn’t tell her parents that she had agreed to pay me, so no one had money for me. Thankfully my mom gave me gas money to get home, and the bride’s mom (my mom’s friend) is supposed to be mailing me a check. Apparently everyone thought I was going to drive an hour and a half, leave my two small children all day, and work my tail off taking pictures of the most uncooperative bride ever, all for free. I don’t think so.
Yesterday morning, I got online to check on my newly arrived cell phone bill. It’s messed up. And when I called about it, I was told it was a computer glitch, and they’ll give me a call after the billing cycle to make sure it’s fixed. Lovely.
And the kicker, as I’m fixing breakfast yesterday, my stove made this awesome electrical buzzing sound, then black smoke started pouring out from behind it. The connectors right behind the oven selection knob melted and shorted out. Mike was able to unhook those and take care of them so that I can still use the eyes, but I don’t have an oven. Looks like we’ll be buying a new one this weekend when he gets paid again.
No birthday cake on Saturday. :( We don't have the money to order one, and my oven has crapped out, so I can't make it myself.

And this is on top of the fact that after I bought groceries and realized we had beyond no money, I found out that the babysitter needs diapers and the cat doesn’t have food, and there are a few other little things we need around the house before this Friday. I hope this all ends soon, because Mike and I are both almost to our breaking point. I just keep telling myself that Saturday is my birthday, and I get to go to the movies to see Winnie-the-Pooh Friday night with Sarah and Cadence and Amelia (that’s my birthday present from Sarah.)

It’s gotta get better, right?

______________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) We're all safe and healthy

2) Even when I realized we were beyond broke, bills were paid and we had food

3) It might take a month or two, but things WILL be better

4) My birthday is Saturday!!

5) I get to see one of my favorite childhood movies with my two girls.

Comcast. Oh, Comcast.

2011-06-29T09:37:00.000-05:00

We’ve had cable and internet service with Comcast for three or four years now, and if you had asked me before a few months ago, I would have told you that they were great, I loved the dvr, and we didn’t have any issues. Then, they changed to Xfinity. That’s when all the problems started. They changed all the menus and dvr settings, and now it’s a lot harder to find shows. Plus, even if you have something set to record, there’s no guarantee it will actually record. I can’t tell you how many episodes of things we’ve had to go find either online or on OnDemand because the dvr didn’t record like it said it was going to. Those issues are annoying, but it didn’t really seem worth going through their extensive automated process to complain. Then, the internet started acting up.

Now, Mike loves World of Warcraft (WoW for short.) He’s always on the computer playing, and gets really upset when the internet service we’re paying for starts cutting out. About a month to a month and a half ago, it would get so slow and bogged down at night, that he wasn’t able to play, I couldn’t use the wireless to look at anything online, and you could hang up trying to use Netflix. We called quite a few times, and every time we called in we were told that the signal was fine, reset the modem and it should clear the problem up. Every time the problem would come back just as bad. On one call they actually told him that the reason it was running slow was because we hadn’t paid the bill yet (it was just now due), and that as soon as we paid it, it would start running faster again. Mike laughed at him, and a friend asked us if they had some twist ties, and tightened them down to stop the internets from coming into our house as fast. Finally Mike got them to send a tech out to look at it, but I was the only one that could be there during the time he was scheduled to come.

The tech came and was very nice, and told me that we had two lines running into the house and one had stronger signal strength. It just so happened that the one we were plugged into wasn’t the “good” line. He swapped things around and got ready to leave, and I asked him point blank if there was anything I needed to sign or a charge or anything before he left. He assured me that no, it was all fine, and left. That night, the signal was as bad or worse as in the past, and Mike was furious.

A few days later, I came home from work to a cable box that was in an infinite reboot cycle. It would be on and working for about 10 minutes, then reboot itself and say it was downloading stuff. After about 5-10 minutes it would come back on and start working fine. Then 10 minutes later, the entire cycle started over again. I had stuff to do that night, so we left it alone, thinking it would work itself out. By the time I got home from work the next day, it was still doing it. I called in, the guy tried to get it to stop and couldn’t, so I was told to take it in the next morning and swap it for a new box. We got the new box home and it seemed to be working fine.

I went online to pay our bill over the next few days, and I noticed there was a $40 charge on there. I called and asked, and it turns out it’s because the tech came out to our house and swapped our cables around. I told them that he told me there wasn’t a charge, and thankfully they said they would put in to have it removed. Mike called back when he got home that night and complained that we had the cable issue, the internet still wasn’t working correctly, and now we have this issue with the charges. They were very nice on the phone, and had another tech come out between 5 and 7 at night (our internet problems usually start about 7 or so.)

That tech came out, and actually saw the issues we were having. He agreed that there was a problem, but basically told us there was nothing they could do. The system was overloaded, and until they upgraded, we were screwed. The next day he tried calling AT&T to see what service would cost with them, but had to wait until Monday before they were open. We tried back this past Monday, and he was put on infinite hold with them. Also, I came home Monday afternoon and our brand new cable box was in a reboot cycle. We called, spent over an hour trying to get someone on the phone with me, then he told me how to force it to reboot and said “We can send a tech out.” We set up the tech appointment for today, I asked to talk to a Customer Service Account Executive, and they had one call me back. Mike talked the the account executive, then sent an email to the Vice President of Consumer Operations. He told them about all the issues we’ve been having, how frustrated we are, and made a point to tell them that if he hadn’t been on infinite hold, we’d be with AT&T now.

The cable box finally worked out whatever it’s issue was, but the internet is now the worst it’s ever been. He was told by the account executive to take screenshots of the program he used to determine the speeds and packet loss, so we have about 10 of them on his computer, waiting on the tech to get there between 3 and 5 today. We also got a response back from the VP’s office, basically telling us if we aren’t fully satisfied after the tech leaves today, contact them again, and they’ll take care of it out of their office. Also, they’d be more than happy to issue a credit to our account because of the issues.

As of right now, we have crappy internet, a cable box that may or may not work at any given time, an extra $45 in fees on our bill ($40 for the first tech visit - which they still haven’t removed - and $5 in late fees because we haven’t paid the most recent bill that’s due because of the issues.) Mike is taking off work today to be there between 3 and 5 when the tech is supposed to arrive, and I’m curious to see what happens after this is all over. We can’t get UVerse here, and AT&T’s internet is WAY slower than what we are supposed to have with Comcast. However, if it means we actually HAVE internet service, it may be worth it to swap. It should be an interesting afternoon.

8 Months Old

2011-06-28T16:31:00.002-05:00

How did this happen? Wasn't I just at the hospital having her? Or on maternity leave, holding that tiny little baby that refused to get any bigger? How can she possibly be trying to walk and talk and eating real food? How is she big enough to be sitting up in chairs, playing with her big sister? That's impossible! I do believe this has been the fastest 8 months ever!

From this...

To This...

I'm not sure who is more upset

2011-06-27T09:17:00.000-05:00

My mom's church is having VBS this week, and Cadence left with them last night to go spend a week with MamMaw, Aunt Sarah and possibly, Aunt Cecily (if she ever decides to come home from Florida!) I think this is the first time Cadence has been away from Amelia for more than a night or two, and she was getting emotional last night. And during the day yesterday, she kept going back and forth on whether she wanted to go or not, and it had nothing to do with me or her dad. She did decide to go, but last night when she called, she made me promise that I'd tell Amelia that she loved her as soon as she woke up.

Amelia seemed fine last night, but was acting a little weird this morning, and I'm sure will be even weirder this afternoon. She adores her big sissy, and plays with her all the time. Usually, they are attached to each other, so it's going to be so weird only having one with me for the week. I know it's going to be weird for them, too. Hopefully it will go quickly - for all of us.

____________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) That my girls adore each other

2) That Cadence is so loving to her sister, even when she's not to anyone else

3) Family that's close and doesn't mind kiddos for a week

4) A church that loves Cadence just as much as they love my mom and sisters, and consider her family, too.

5) Time to spend just with Amelia

The lights of my life

2011-06-26T10:19:00.002-05:00

New name, anyone?

2011-06-24T13:49:00.001-05:00

Yesterday Cadence came up to me and asked if she could change her name when she got older. Me, being slightly offended because I helped pick out her name, told her sure and asked why. She informed me that she wants to be named Jem. Apparently my daughter thinks she's truly truly truly outrageous.

My favorite place EVAH!!

2011-06-23T13:48:00.003-05:00

And that place would be Disney! Cadence has been to Magic Kingdom three times in the last 3.5 years, and Amelia has already been once. And now that I'm wanting to run the Expedition Everest Challenge in May, we're discussing it again and who all will be going. I've already decided not to take Amelia, just because it's going to be such a rushed weekend. I'm not sure yet if Mike and Cadence are going to go and cheer us on, but Momma is thinking about it. If Momma goes, I'll probably at least bring Cadence, because I know she'd love it.

I'm so excited, and I know it's because whenever we go, it's always magical. Every. Single. Time. The first trip in recent history was 8 days, the next was (I think) 6 days, and then last month we did Magic Kingdom in one day, and two days at Downtown Disney. Right now Disney is doing their "Let The Memories Begin" campaign, so I thought I'd share some of my favorites - the reasons that I adore that place, and can't wait until my next trip.

September 2007 - Cadence was almost 3

While waiting on our friends at the restaurant in the Grand Floridian, Cadence was sitting at the table in her Snow White dress, coloring away. One of the waitresses walked by and commented out loud (and very excitedly) "Oh, they didn't tell us that Snow White would be visiting today!!" Cadence's head shot up, and she goes "Snow White?? Where????" The waitress looked at her and said she was Snow White. Cadence rolled her eyes and commented "I not Snow White. I Cadence!" and went right back to coloring.
When we first turned the corner on Main Street USA and Cadence got to see Cinderella's Castle for the first time. She got so excited she couldn't talk, and whispered to me "There's Cinda-elwa's Castle!!" Yes, I cried.
She loved the tea cups, and always asked for them to go faster and faster. When she saw Splash Mountain, she was SO excited, then almost started crying when she was too short and they wouldn't let her ride it.
She was able to eat with JoJo and Goliath - her most favoritest person at the time.
This is the trip that started her love of all things Princess. My friend Cathy had brought princess dresses for her daughter to wear, and let Cadence share them. She wouldn't take them off for the entire trip, and hasn't stopped since.
Bibbidi Boppidi Boutique. Oh. Em. Gee. That place is amazing, and every princess's dream!
On this trip I got to meet some awesome online friends in person. We had talked forever online, but had never met. This vacation was a first for all of us - and in the most magical place in the world, too!

September 2009 - Cadence was almost 5

When we went to meet Mulan, we got there before she was in her spot and ready. We saw her walking by, and Cadence was SO excited. The Photopass Photographer could have easily told us "Hey, she's heading over there. Walk over there and start the line." but they didn't. Instead, Mulan walked up to Cadence, grabbed her hand, and walked her to the spot - talking to her the entire time like they had been best friends forever. It was amazing.

We had gotten the magic fairy wing pictures taken while waiting to see Tinkerbell, but I saw that night that Cadence's weren't on our Photopass card, but Aubren's (my cousin's girl who was with us) were. The next day, while in Hollywood Studios, I asked them to help me try and find them, and the girl spent at least half an hour trying to locate those pictures for me. We never did find them, so she made a call over to Magic Kingdom, and they made arrangements for Cadence and I to skip the line and get our picture retaken the next day when we were back over there so that both girls would have fairy wing pictures.
The stepsisters from Cinderella. They were amazing, and definitely worth the wait to see. Awesome, awesome, awesome!

While getting dolled up at Bibbidi Boppidi Boutique, Cadence kept sticking her tongue out and being snotty. I think the Fairy Godmother In Training could tell I was getting upset with her because she leaned down and goes "Oh, no, no, no!! Princesses don't EVER stick their tongues out, because that's just rude! Instead, they do this:" and she held her hand up in front of her face so that I couldn't see her sticking out her tongue. I started laughing, and Cadence thought it was great because she was getting away with something. God bless that Fairy Godmother!

May 2011 - Cadence was 6.5, and Amelia was 7 months

At Downtown Disney, one of the Castmembers had a pin Cadence wanted to trade for. He was handing out maps to people, so made her work and hand out the maps for him so he could get the pin off. He then gave her a hard time about how she wasn't do her job correctly, and picked on her about the pins. It was all pretty funny to watch

At the Christmas store at Downtown Disney, Cadence found someone with a ladybug pin. Since we call Amelia "Millie Bug" and have lots of ladybug things for her, I told Cadence we had to get that one for Amelia. The Castmember (an older man, probably old enough to be my grandfather) smiled at Cadence, too the pin off, and said "Here, you can have it! You don't owe me anything for it!" She was so excited to have the pin, and thanked him multiple times.
When we got to see Rapunzel, Cadence was thrilled to show her the Rapunzel Barbie doll she has. Rapunzel got excited, then grabbed her doll by the hair and spun her around in circles screaming "It's the BEST. DAY. EVER!!!!" At the same time, Flynn kept giving Amelia "The Smolder" (which, we discovered, she's immune to.)

And what's crazy, is I know this is just the tip of the iceberg of all the memories we have. I have loved each and every trip I've taken, and Disney does such an awesome job making every day magical. The countdown has begun for the next trip, and I can't wait to have more memories!!

She's decided she wants to be iCarley

2011-06-23T12:52:00.003-05:00

When I went to get a shower the other day, I came back to find this on my phone. She says she wants to have a web show like iCarley, and even asked to make sure I'd "put it up on Facebook." These are the first three parts, but there were 10 total.

I think one of my favorite parts is the end of video 3: "Now we're going to turn it off. Sorry all you people who love me, but buh bye!"
__________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) My super creative daughter
2) Cell phones with video
3) That my girls love each other
4) Mike's new job
5) It's almost the weekend...

My newest adventure

2011-06-22T09:55:00.000-05:00

I’ve started running again, which has actually gone better than I thought. I stopped last April while pregnant with Amelia, and am now on week two of starting back. To give me some motivation, Sarah and I have decided we’re going to do the Expedition Everest Challenge at Disney’s Animal Kingdom in May 2012. It’s a 5K, obstacle course and scavenger hunt, and ends with an after hours party in Animal Kingdom. I’m so excited about this!! I’m already starting to save up (this probably won’t be a cheap weekend trip, especially with airfare), and Mike is still debating on if him and Cadence are going to come and cheer me on.

So far, Sarah is running/walking the 3.1 miles when she works out, but not at a fast enough pace. I’m at a fast enough pace, but not doing 3.1 miles yet (closer to 2.) Thankfully we still have almost a year, and we plan on doing a few 5Ks around here before then. I’m hoping my first will be on my birthday - July 16. And as they say on the RunDisney website - I can run! I can run! I can run!!

An update!

2011-06-22T09:41:00.000-05:00

There are so many things I haven’t posted about, so I’m going to try and do it quickly. The last six months have gone SO fast, and it’s all kind of a blur. Hopefully this will help me remember some of this later on down the road!

December:
Christmas!!! Amelia was completely unconcerned, but Cadence loved it, and was a huge help with opening all Amelia’s gifts. We also got to see tons of family, and Santa (of course!)

January:
Cadence got her hair cut, and looks SO grown now! And Amelia started laughing! Full blown belly laughs, and they are awesome!

February:
Snow and King cake!! Mardi Gras was early, and we had two or three king cakes at work during the season. We also got some snow. Not a ton, but it was still fun! Amelia also tried out the swing for the first time, and seems to love it!

March:
We attended the St. Paddy’s Day parade, and were all decked out in green. That weekend was also the first trip in the Jeep with the windows out for Amelia. I was also accused of hitting someone in the parking lot at work (I swear, I didn’t do it!), and that case is STILL open. At least the insurance company believes me!

April:
Amelia is sitting! And Cadence is still being the most awesome big sister ever. She adores her baby sister, and helps me take care of her all the time. It’s so sweet to watch. We made our first trip with Amelia that was over an hour. It was...interesting. We went to Memphis to visit Daddy and Debbie, and she was ok through most of the 3 hour drive there. However, she screamed all the way home. I was never so happy to get out of the car, and it didn’t give me hope for the trip to Houston just a few weeks later. The trip to Houston was fun, but way too short. The seven hour trip took us 8 hours going, and 10 coming home. Amelia was good until it started getting dark outside. When it’s bedtime, she wants to be in her bed! Also, Amelia’s first Easter!

May:
The girls and I went to Florida to see Daddy and Debbie, and were able to go to Disney with Debbie for her first trip! We only spent one day at Magic Kingdom, but I adore that place! Also, Cadence is officially a first grader, and Amelia started crawling!

And now June is here. The biggest news is that Mike has started a new job. He’s now working at CarMax, and is getting settled in. I hope he likes it, and I can’t wait to get the first full paycheck! Amelia recently got her first tooth, and Cadence was a flower girl in a friend’s daughter’s wedding. She looked so pretty (the bride and Cadence!) She is also swimming, and has loved getting to go to the pool three days a week with the babysitter.

It’s been eventful, but oh so much fun!!

Maybe I should be more specific during the sex talks...

2011-05-02T23:47:00.001-05:00

We've always been very honest and direct with Cadence when it comes to our bodies, and will answer any questions that she has. We also try to use proper body part names whenever possible, and I've tried to treat it more like "just another talk" and less like "The Sex Talk." I'm now wondering if maybe I should revamp my strategy a little.

When I got to the sitter's today to pick her up, I was told that she had gotten in trouble (no surprise, really.) She was defiant and told one of the helpers "no" when it was time to come in, which got her in time out (and a severe talking to and grounding when we got home. I *will not* have her being disrespectful to them.) I was also told that one of the older boys there (he's a 4th or 5th grader), said that Cadence had used the word "vagina" while talking to him. He wouldn't tell them the context, just that she had said "that word." The sitter told me, and I told her I would try to find out why it was said. We both agreed that it's fine to use proper names, it's just not a subject to talk about in front of a lot of other people.

Now, this put me in an awkward position. Not because I was worried about talking to her about it - we've talked about a lot more than this recently. Mainly because I wanted her to understand that it's not something that should be talked about with every friend she has, but not because it's bad or dirty. She tends to go to extremes on everything, so I was mainly worried about explaining that to her.

When we got in the car, I started asking her about it, and the conversation went like this:

Me: So, Cadence, why did you say "vagina" when talking to Michael earlier?

Cadence: Well, he had the ball and I wanted it.

M: Um, ok. But what does him having the ball have to do with vaginas?

C: Well, he had it, and I wanted it, but I couldn't reach it.

M: Okaaaaay....

C: And he had it down there (points down toward her lap)

M: Oh! He was sitting on it!

C: Yeah, so I told him to give me the ball that was under his vagina! (smiles triumphantly, and is very proud of herself.)

While trying not to laugh hysterically, I told her that only girls have vaginas, not boys, and she told me she knew that, but couldn't remember what the boy parts were called. I also told her that all she had to say was "Please give me the ball that you're sitting on!" and that vaginas or other parts didn't even have to be mentioned. We also talked about how any part that's covered by your swimsuit is a private part, and they only need to be talked about with Mommy, Daddy or a doctor, and only if something's wrong or is hurting for some reason. That she doesn't need to be talking about those parts of her body with anyone, and if anyone ever tries to touch her or look at her there, then tell them NO! I also realized that I probably should have been a little more proactive about "private parts" during the talks we've had, but really wasn't expecting this to become a topic of conversation at the babysitters!

I will say, though, that I hope she continues to remain this open with me as she gets older, because I shudder to think what kinds of things she may get herself into. She's fearless, has no filter, and is pretty. That can be a dangerous combination, and I know Mike and I have our work cut out for us, keeping her safe. Lord help us.

______________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) My two girls

2) Conversations with Cadence, even grown up ones

3) Funny misinterpretations

4) The hope that maybe she'll reach her "wild stage" before she can drive

5) The hope that maybe the 2nd one will be like me ;)

6 months ago...

2011-04-28T16:18:00.003-05:00

One of the cutest babies ever entered the world! I can’t believe she’s six months old already. She has truly been a blessing to all of us, and has each and every person she meets completely wrapped around her finger. I think I’m still her favorite at the moment (but only because I feed her!), but Big Sissie and Daddy are definitely high on the list!

She’s now sitting up on her own, wants to crawl so bad, and has discovered the joys of real food! The food issue is both good and bad for me: Good, because I haven’t found anything she doesn’t like, and it helps with the pumping since she is still nursing. Bad, though, because if she sees food, she expects you to give it to her, and gets mad if you don’t!

She still loves a bath, sleeps well most of the time (average is bed at 10 and sleep until 5am), and is extremely ticklish. She also loves to be carried, and is happy to just hang out. She doesn’t talk a lot, but is very observant of everything around her. She giggles, but I have a feeling her first words will come much later than 7 months when Cadence’s did.

She’s such a happy baby, and it amazes me that she’s growing so quickly!!

4 months old, and daffodils!

2011-02-26T22:07:00.000-06:00

One month old, and a ton of pictures!

2010-11-28T23:18:00.001-06:00

I can't believe my baby is a month old today! She's such a good baby, and has pretty much everyone wrapped around her fingers. She's recently started trying to "talk" to us, and it's so sweet to hear her little voice. She's still eating and sleeping well, but will make her opinion known if she has to! I'm already starting to forget what life was like before she was here, and I'm really not looking forward to going back to work in two weeks.

Cadence is adjusting well, and will probably have a time getting up tomorrow morning. After spending a week off schedule, the next few days should be a blast for all of us! Sarah is coming up tomorrow to take her to see Tangled, then to see Santa, so at least I have an incentive to get her out of bed in the morning.

I took some pictures of Cadence and Amelia in their matching Christmas pjs, and my mom wanted some family pictures for her Christmas cards. Both photo shoots were spur of the moment, but I think they turned out pretty good! The last picture is a bonus of all the girls in the family. Poor Mike, he's the only guy when we go out with my mom, surrounded by 6 of us!

Cadence:

Amelia:

Both girls:

This is Cadence's favorite

My mom and her family:

First picture of all four of us together:

All the girls:

_________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Amelia
2) Cadence
3) The last month with my two girls
4) PaPaw being at Thanksgiving
5) Christmas is on it's way!

Please forgive me...

2010-11-21T22:10:00.000-06:00

I know my new baby is 3.5 weeks old, and I haven't posted anything about her yet, but in my defense, this whole "having a newborn" thing is taking up WAY more time than I thought it would!! ;) I've also been told that some people have been worried, and I truly appreciate the concern. This is going to take a few posts to get through everything, but I'll start with the birth announcement:

Amelia Claire is here!

This is copied from a board I visit, so excuse any present tense. ;)
Short version: I finally got in a room about 8:30 Wednesday night, and they started the Cervidil, after about an hour, contractions were painful and hard, so they removed it and gave me Staydol. I labored like that until about 7ish when they started pitocin (still a 2), then at 9 they broke my water (4-5 by then.) At 10 they checked me and I was a six and asking for the epidural. They got it in about 10:45 (still a 6 when they started it), laid me down, and I started pushing. She was here at 11:02 am. It happened so fast that my doctor wasn't able to deliver her, and his partner had to instead. She weighed 6 lbs 14 oz, is 20 1/4 inches long, and has a head full of hair, just like Cadence.

Long version: After my appointment Wednesday, they told me to be back at the hospital at 6 pm to start Cervidil. They were swamped, so it was about 8:30 before I was in my room. Around 9:30 they started the cervidil, and by 10:15 the contractions were really strong and I had dilated enough to remove it and get Staydol. I called my mom to come stay with me, and she arrived about 11. When she arrived, I was at 2, and they let me labor on my own all night (and Staydol is my friend!) Around 7 the next morning, they came to give me an enema and started pitocin, and I was still a 2. At nine my doctor came in to break my water, and I was a 4-5 by that time. They told me they would check me again at 11, but by 10ish I was hurting and asked for the epidural. They checked me before the epidural (about 10:30) and I was a 6. By 10:45 when they laid me down after the epidural, she was coming and coming fast. I had to wait through two contractions before they would let me push, because my doctor wasn't there yet and they didn't have anything ready. I think I pushed through 3 or 4 contractions, and she arrived at 11:02. My doctor wasn't able to make it since it happened so fast, and his partner (who I met for the first time when she walked in) delivered 3 other babies besides Amelia during an hours time.

She looked great, and weighed in at 6 lbs, 14 oz. She's 20 1/4 inches long, and has the longest feet and biggest hands I've ever seen. We are all completely infatuated, and she's a good nurser so far - when she actually nurses. She's still really sleepy, so she has spent most of her time as a baby burrito and asleep. She's a great baby, and I hope to get her home today!

And what I know you're here for - pictures!

Birthday party and Big Sister Day!

2010-10-25T09:38:00.001-05:00

We had Cadence's birthday party last weekend (3 weeks early!) so that we wouldn't have to worry about a baby arriving in the middle of it (and unfortunately, she didn't.) She had a blast, got a ton of sparkly, girly things, and has now decided that she needs more presents on Nov. 2, when it's really her birthday. I haven't convinced her yet that it probably won't happen. ;)

Cousin Clayton, who got a little carried away with the chocolate icing.

One of her favorite gifts. It was a messenger bag that she could color herself.

My awesome friend, Angel, also took her out this past Saturday for Big Sister Day. They let her dress up in her new Tiana dress and wear makeup and everything, and took her out for about 2 hours and pampered her. They wore feather covered tiaras, had ice cream at Baskin Robbins, happy meals from McDonald's and then a makeup shopping trip to Sephora, where she came home with pink lip gloss, cotton candy perfume and sparkly makeup on her. They also gave her a Big Sister present - a really cool sock monkey for her, and a smaller one for her to give to Amelia. I'm so very thankful to them for thinking of her and trying to make her feel special as well. I couldn't ask for better friends.

Ready to go

First stop, ICE CREAM!

Now, MAKEUP!!!

Aren't we pretty??

And last, HAPPY MEALS! And french fry vampire teeth!

With the Sock Monkeys

37 Weeks - We have Swiss Chard!

2010-10-21T10:26:00.000-05:00

Your baby is now considered "full term," even though your due date is three weeks away. If you go into labor now, his lungs will likely be mature enough to fully adjust to life outside the womb. (Some babies need a bit more time, though. So if you're planning to have a repeat c-section, for example, your practitioner will schedule it for no earlier than 39 weeks unless there's a medical reason to intervene earlier.)

Your baby weighs 6 1/3 pounds and measures a bit over 19 inches, head to heel (like a stalk of Swiss chard). Many babies have a full head of hair at birth, with locks from 1/2 inch to 1 1/2 inches long. But don't be surprised if your baby's hair isn't the same color as yours. Dark-haired couples are sometimes thrown for a loop when their children come out as blonds or redheads, and fair-haired couples have been surprised by Elvis look-alikes. And then, of course, some babies sport only peach fuzz.

Woo Hoo!! Full Term!! I had my appointment yesterday, and there’s no change from last week. I’m still having contractions that aren’t regular, blood pressure is good, I’ve gained 19 lbs, and her heart rate is good. Because of all of that (which really is good news) they won’t induce yet and want me to come back next week. I was told that since it’s my second, I could possibly just go into labor, but if not, they’ll see me on Wednesday. We have a ton of things scheduled for this weekend, along with the fact that it’s a full moon on Saturday. I have a feeling she’ll be here soon, but I could be wrong. Right now we’re just waiting!

36 Weeks - We have a Crenshaw Melon! (and the epic hospital stay)

2010-10-15T13:24:00.000-05:00

Your baby is still packing on the pounds — at the rate of about an ounce a day. She now weighs almost 6 pounds (like a crenshaw melon) and is more than 18 1/2 inches long. She's shedding most of the downy covering of hair that covered her body as well as the vernix caseosa, the waxy substance that covered and protected her skin during her nine-month amniotic bath. Your baby swallows both of these substances, along with other secretions, resulting in a blackish mixture, called meconium, will form the contents of her first bowel movement.

At the end of this week, your baby will be considered full-term. (Full-term is 37 to 42 weeks; babies born before 37 weeks are pre-term and those born after 42 are post-term.) Most likely she's in a head-down position. But if she isn't, your practitioner may suggest scheduling an "external cephalic version," which is a fancy way of saying she'll try to coax your baby into a head-down position by manipulating her from the outside of your belly.

I'm really not sure how many more of these I'll be posting after my visit yesterday. At 36 weeks, I was told that she's head down and ready, and I'm "really soft." They also said that if they wanted to push for labor now, I wouldn't have any problems having her. However, I'm only 36 weeks, she is doing fine, my blood pressure and everything is fine, and I'm not having any complications, so they are going to let me wait it out. I am having contractions, but they are sporadic and go away pretty easily. I was told that if I couldn't get them to go away or if my water breaks, call immediately. Otherwise, they'll see me at 37 weeks (next Thursday) and we'll probably schedule an induction. It's looking more and more like I'm going to have an October baby instead of a November baby!

About 2 weeks ago I ended up being admitted to the hospital, hence the reason no updates have been posted lately. That Monday I left work early because I was sick, and I hadn't been able to keep anything down since about 2:30 that afternoon. That lasted all night, I went to bed with a massive headache, and woke Tuesday morning still feeling awful. I arrived at the doctor's office, still not able to hold anything (including water) down, and they sent me over to the hospital to be admitted. Over the next 4 days they gave me 7 bags of fluids, plus I was seen by a neurologist, had a CT scan, an MRI and ultrasounds of my head and neck. They still aren't exactly sure what is causing the headaches (all the test came back normal), but their best guess is that it's a combination of the weather and hormones. I'm extremely grateful that it's nothing major, but it's frustrating to be told that the pain I have been dealing with since 27 weeks is all hormones and probably won't go away completely until she arrives.

I'm thinking some of it is still sinus, because the past few days I've been better. Also, Benadryl seems to help. I asked Kim, and she said it's fine to take, especially if it's helping. I'm still not sleeping much, and we have a birthday party for Cadence this weekend. Every time I start moving too much, contractions start, so I'm worried about how this weekend is going to go. At least I know that she's fine, and they are ok with her coming early.

I had an ultrasound last week, and was told that she's probably 6+ lbs already (which I know can be off by as much as a pound, but that's pretty close to Cadence's size at this age), she has long legs, and a head full of hair. I can't wait to meet her, and Cadence is even more anxious. I think she's expecting for her Daddy to have to get her every afternoon, and is almost disappointed when I show up and I'm still pregnant! Hopefully soon he can be getting her and taking her to the hospital to meet her new sister!

33 Weeks - We have a Pineapple!

2010-09-23T12:32:00.000-05:00

This week your baby weighs a little over 4 pounds (heft a pineapple) and has passed the 17-inch mark. He's rapidly losing that wrinkled, alien look and his skeleton is hardening. The bones in his skull aren't fused together, which allows them to move and slightly overlap, thus making it easier for him to fit through the birth canal. (The pressure on the head during birth is so intense that many babies are born with a conehead-like appearance.) These bones don't entirely fuse until early adulthood, so they can grow as his brain and other tissue expands during infancy and childhood.

33 weeks, and still battling the sinus crud. This makes, what? 6 weeks now? Yeah, way too long! I started Zyrtec this morning, so maybe that and the (hopefully!) rain this weekend will fix it once and for all.

Work gave me a shower today, and it was so nice!! We got a ton of pretty things, a ton of Target gift cards, and a ton of stuff that Cadence is going to love. I can’t wait to get home and go through it all! I think the biggest hits (at least with the guests) were the Boon Grass Drying Rack and the Boon Frog Pod for the bathtub. They were both things that I LOVED, but wouldn’t have bought for myself. I’m so glad that I got them!

Here are a few pictures from today, and I’ll post more when I get them.

32 Weeks - We have a Large Jicama!

2010-09-16T09:58:00.000-05:00

By now, your baby weighs 3.75 pounds (pick up a large jicama) and is about 16.7 inches long, taking up a lot of space in your uterus. You're gaining about a pound a week and roughly half of that goes right to your baby. In fact, she'll gain a third to half of her birth weight during the next 7 weeks as she fattens up for survival outside the womb. She now has toenails, fingernails, and real hair (or at least respectable peach fuzz). Her skin is becoming soft and smooth as she plumps up in preparation for birth.

Well, I’m still here, still pregnant, and getting more miserable by the day. The sinus crud won’t go away, Amelia is all out in front so it’s making my back, neck and hips hurt, and I’m not sleeping. I also can’t eat anything, because EVERYTHING gives me heartburn, and because of where she’s sitting, I constantly feel like I’m going to throw up if I eat anything. I just keep telling myself “8 more weeks. Just 8 more weeks!”

I have a doctor’s appointment today, and then at 34 weeks I’ll get another ultrasound. Hopefully the visit will be uneventful and over quickly! And I had a prenatal massage on Tuesday, and highly recommend it to everyone who is pregnant! Best. Feeling. Ever!

____________________________________

Things I’m thankful for:

1) That she’s still in. Being miserable is better than a preemie.

2) Sleep

3) Tylenol PM

4) Cadence being such a big helper around the house

5) Prenatal massages

31 Weeks - We have 4 Naval Oranges!

2010-09-09T14:09:00.001-05:00

This week, your baby measures over 16 inches long. He weighs about 3.3 pounds (try carrying four navel oranges) and is heading into a growth spurt. He can turn his head from side to side, and his arms, legs, and body are beginning to plump out as needed fat accumulates underneath his skin. He's probably moving a lot, too, so you may have trouble sleeping because your baby's kicks and somersaults keep you up. Take comfort: All this moving is a sign that your baby is active and healthy.

9 weeks to go. That’s what I keep telling myself. And as eager as I am to meet her, I hope she stays in pretty close to that. If she comes on her due date, I don’t have to go back to work until the first of the year, plus it gives me more time to get things finished here before that happens. I know there’s a possiblity she could be here by the end of October (Cadence was 2.5 weeks early!), but I’m hoping she stays put for awhile.

We also officially have a name! We have decided to call her Amelia Claire, and I’m very very happy with it. It took us a lot longer to pick a name this time around, but I’m glad with the choice. Cadence told me she doesn’t like it, but I know she’ll come around.

I’m still having headaches, and have come to the conclusion that it’s something wrong with my back and neck. I discovered while in TX that different positions made it better or worse, and started wondering if I had thrown something out. I have a prenatal massage scheduled for next Tuesday, but Mike has promised to give me a ton of back and neck massages between now and then. I’ve also been taking hot baths, walking around more, and trying to stretch throughout the day. I’m not sure if it’s any one thing that’s helped it, but this morning I woke up and felt almost normal. I threw up in the shower (just like every other morning), but washing my hair wasn’t excruciating and I just realized that I took Tylenol at 7 and it’s now 1:30 and I haven’t taken any more yet. Maybe I’m on the mend.

The trip to TX was great, and I now have so much stuff! I’m starting to feel at least slightly prepared, and my house looks like a Carter’s outlet exploded in it (thank you, Kahla!!) Millie will definitely be the best dressed little girl around, and Cadence has had fun helping me sort through everything. I’m excited for her to get here and us to be able to use all the great stuff we came home with! The only “problem” we’ve had is that I discovered that both car seats won’t fit side by side in my car. Cadence is still in a 5-point harness seat, and I won’t turn it into a booster seat just to make them both fit. For now, at least, we’ll leave Cadence behind the passenger seat and put Millie behind me. I hardly ever have other people with me, so I don’t think it will be that big of a deal. If Cadence starts complaining about the 5-point harness (I don’t think she realizes yet that there is actually another option in my car), then I’ll change it, but for now we’re going to leave it like it is.

I have a busy few weeks coming up, but know that it will make this pregnancy fly by even faster than it is now. Over the next two weeks I have a massage, my 32 week appointment, homecoming at Mike’s high school (Caroline is a homecoming maid!), and then a shower at the church. I’m so excited!!

And me, the blimp, at 31 weeks! I'm beginning to feel like she has her own gravitational pull!

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) A name!!
2) I’m starting to feel slightly better
3) Seeing family (that I already miss!)
4) All the awesome baby stuff
5) Baby kicks and turns

Big Sister Class

2010-09-03T09:24:00.001-05:00

Last Saturday, the hospital I'll be delivering at had a class for siblings-to-be. It was free, and Cadence was SO excited to get to go. They let them watch a video, practice putting diapers on baby dolls, took them on a tour of Labor & Delivery, the nursery and the recovery rooms, and gave them a ton of goodies. She came out with a shirt, a bracelet, a certificate and a coloring book and colors. She loved getting to see the hospital (and commented that the statue of St. Dominic in the lobby was God), and even though I thought it was impossible, I'm pretty sure she's even more excited now than she was before!

With her certificate

her and some of the other "Big Sisters"

Investigating the L&D room

Checking out the view from the recovery rooms

Seeing a 4lb baby in the nursery. I'm glad she was able to see her, because I think it brought home the conversations we've been having on why our baby doesn't need to be here yet, and needs to stay in my tummy awhile longer. She was sweet, but SO tiny!

With her new shirt (that's she's worn to bed almost every night)

Her "Big Sister" bracelet

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Things I'm thankful for:
1) Cadence's excitement
2) Hugs and kisses to my belly
3) Conversations that she's already having with the baby
4) The big helper that she is

30 Weeks - We have a Cabbage!

2010-09-02T11:47:00.000-05:00

Your baby's about 15.7 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds (like a head of cabbage). A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room in your uterus. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it's not very keen; even after she's born, she'll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she'll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. (Normal adult vision is 20/20.)

Wow, what a week the last one has been. I’m still dealing with the sinus crud, and last week was pretty much hell on earth. I had been getting severe sinus headaches - to the point of making me nauseous - and by last Thursday spent more time puking in my garbage can in my office than actually working. I went in to the doctor on Friday to see if they could fix me, and discovered that my blood pressure was elevated (141/82.) He took me off of all the sinus medicine, put me on a blood pressure medicine and then gave me oxycodone to take every 4 hours for the headaches. I still have the sinus crud, and have been treating it with fluids, warm showers and a humidifier at night, but that’s about all I can do at the moment. The headaches are S-L-O-W-L-Y getting better (even though I’m still throwing up in the shower every morning from the sinus drainage), but I’m going to talk to them at my appointment today about maybe a decadron shot or something. I figure that has to be better than oxycodone every 4 hours!

And on a funny note, I’ve been taking just one of the pills, even though the bottle says I can have two. On Tuesday, I decided to take two since the headaches were coming back before the 4 hours. Well, that was a BAD move! I was high as a kite for over 2 hours! I went to lunch with my friend Rhonda, and she laughed at me the entire time. I couldn’t complete sentences, couldn’t complete a coherent thought, kept wanting to fall asleep, and was just out of it. I’ve decided that I’ll deal with the headaches, because 2 of them is WAY too much for me to take!

We leave tomorrow for TX, and I can’t wait! I’m so excited about seeing my family over there, and just as excited about getting actual baby stuff to bring home! It’s hard to believe that it’s getting so close. I also might be having a shower here at work soon, but I have no idea when. It started as one for me, then turned into one for me and one other person, and now that girl has been put on bedrest. She’s due early October, and has already been told she won’t make it that far. I don’t know what’s going to happen with the shower yet, but maybe I’ll know something soon.

And yesterday, Cadence finally REALLY got to feel the baby move. It was amazing to watch the look on her face when she realized that was her, and she was so excited. At one point, she was laying on the couch beside me, and put her head on my stomach. She had just complained about not being about to feel the baby, when the baby decided to kick her - right in the cheek. The look on Cadence’s face was priceless!

I have my latest check up today, and after this I start going every two weeks. I can’t believe it’s getting so close! And here’s some video I finally got of my belly moving. She starts this about 5am, and doesn’t stop until sometime around midnight.

________________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Heavy drugs
2) Family and free baby stuff
3) Cadence getting to feel her kick
4) 30 (mostly) uneventful weeks
5) A healthy, growing, active baby

28 Weeks - We have a Chinese Cabbage!

2010-08-19T14:21:00.001-05:00

By this week, your baby weighs two and a quarter pounds (like a Chinese cabbage) and measures 14.8 inches from the top of her head to her heels. She can blink her eyes, which now sport lashes. With her eyesight developing, she may be able to see the light that filters in through your womb. She's also developing billions of neurons in her brain and adding more body fat in preparation for life in the outside world.

So, the waddling has begun. Today was the first day that I really don’t feel like I have any control over it, and feel like a toddler! I thought I was doing ok, but had two different people comment on it first thing this morning, so I gave up trying to be discreet. You know what? I’m huge and pregnant! Everyone here knows it, so they’ll just have to deal with me waddling up and down the halls, too!

I also broke down and went to the doctor yesterday about the sinus crud that won’t go away. They had told me they would give me a decadron shot if I came in, but when I got there they couldn’t. One of my ears is red and my lymph nodes are swollen, so they called in a z-pac instead. They also told me to stop taking Sudafed, and instead take Mucinex to help with the sinus headaches. I’ve tried to stay really hydrated, and have been sleeping a lot the past two days. It’s the only time my head doesn’t hurt. I’m hoping I feel like a new person tomorrow, because if not, I’m calling them back and begging for the shot.

Upside to going in yesterday was that my blood pressure is great (106/73), I haven’t gained any weight in the last two weeks (which is good since I was up 10 pounds at my last appointment!), and I got to hear her heartbeat. I’ll never turn down that opportunity, and it was definitely the highlight of my day.

I’ve now reached the point that it hurts to breathe, hurts to sleep, and nothing tastes right. Nothing sounds good to eat, so I’ve been eating just because I know I need the nutrition. Also, anything I eat makes me have to live off Tums, so that’s making everything even less appetizing than it was before. I’m sure that the sinsus crud has something to do with it, but I can almost guarantee that stupid pregnancy hormones are playing a part, too.

I have my next appointment in 2 weeks, then go to TX the week after that. I’m so excited, and can’t wait to actually have baby stuff at my house!!

_________________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Baby heartbeats
2) Baby stuff!
3) Mucinex (if it will kick in)
4) Decadron shots (if it doesn’t)
5) Good check ups

Cute kid items

2010-08-17T14:24:00.000-05:00

I wanted to shamelessly plug two online sellers I know, and brag for a minute on their really cute stuff! One is a friend of mine who owns Sew Pink and Blue, and she makes the cutest little girl and boy outfits, along with a few other kid-related items. The other is my cousin, owner of The Pink Bulldog, which specializes mainly in baby items.

Sew Pink and Blue is owned by a friend of mine, Emily, and she makes everything herself. She started with making clothes for her son and daughter, and it’s expanded to include a few baby items as well as these awesome things called Tot Spots. They are basically these really awesome, machine washable place mats that you can use at home or at restaurants, and have these really cute designs on them. They are non-slip, can be thrown in the washing machine, and are awesome! I’ve done some design work for Emily, and instead of money, asked to be paid in these instead. They are so useful, and so very cute! If you have little ones, go check them out, and take a peek at some of her awesome clothing and other kids items while you’re there! You can also check her out on facebook, here.

The Pink Bulldog is owned by my cousin, Kahla, and she specializes in baby items and girly things like tutus and bows. I can’t wait to go to TX in September to see her, because she’s promised to make the new little one some burp clothes and pacifier clips from some fabric and ribbon I already have. Her stuff is SO cute, and she uses her daughter as the model - so again, absolutely adorable! For girly or baby items, (and a few things for mom as well!) check out The Pink Bulldog on Etsy, or on facebook by clicking here.

__________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) Creative friends and family

2) Cute girly and baby stuff

3) The internet

4) The rain that came in today

The “glamorous” side of pregnancy

2010-08-16T20:42:00.000-05:00

My poor husband. I might be the one going through the physical changes of pregnancy, but he’s having to put up with quite a lot as well. Not only am I going through the obvious physical changes - clothing doesn’t fit, I have a stomach that can now take out small children if I’m not careful, the waddling is starting - but there are a ton of not so obvious changes taking place.

First, I can’t sleep. I’m waking every hour and a half or so at night, either to go to the bathroom, to roll over or because I’m hot. We have the air down and a fan on, and I still sleep under nothing but a sheet - with a foot hanging out most of the time - while Mike is beside me under the sheet and the down comforter. If I even THINK of putting that comforter on me, I start sweating. The plus is that we’re not fighting over blankets at the moment. But when I wake, if it’s to go to the bathroom, I have to stretch and get my right hip moving or I’ll fall when I try to stand up. So I spend a few minutes stretching (which really wakes me up, and I’m sure bothers him), then go to the bathroom, then it takes me 15-20 minutes of tossing and turning to get comfortable and finally back asleep. Neither of us are getting much sleep at the moment.

Second, the stupid sinus crud. It won’t. Go. Away! For the last two weeks I’ve lived off of Sudafed and Tylenol Cold and Sinus, and have to get straight in the shower when I get up in the mornings (the steam helps slightly.) Then, once the meds wear off, I’m not much fun at night either. I know he has to be almost as tired of me complaining about the headaches as I am with having them!

Third, the dreams. Oh, the dreams! I’ve woken up a few times because a dream was so vivid that I was crying or angry in it, and it translated to me crying or being angry in real life. Last night there were two that I really remembered. In the first, Sarah wanted me to go on a Disney Cruise with her, because they were having an awesome deal. However, she couldn’t figure out why I couldn’t come up with the money on such short notice, and why there was no way I was going in OCTOBER - when i was due in NOVEMBER. We ended up fighting over it. In the other Aarti, Tom and Herb from The Next Food Network Star had to make dishes based on the names we were considering for the baby, and that challenge was what determined who won. Yeah, after telling Mike about the, I know he thinks I’m crazy.

And the best part? The hormones. Saturday I spent the day rearranging, cleaning and working on the crib, only to discover that I'm missing some bolts and others don't fit. It's really not that big of a deal, and something that is easily fixed by a trip to Ace. I got Mike to look at it when he got home, and when he couldn't fix it, either, I dissolved into tears. The crazy thing is, I KNEW I was being irrational. However, once the tears started, I couldn't stop them, and every time he would try to get me to tell him what was wrong, they started up again. I spent probably close to 20 minutes just crying and crying and crying. He finally looked at me, said "I love you" (in that "you're acting like a total emotional girl right now, but I know you're going to bite my head off if I say anything so I'm keeping my mouth shut" voice), gave me a hug and walked away. Eventually the tears stopped and I felt much better, but I hate just breaking down like that. It's so crazy, for both of us!

I can't wait for this yet-to-be-named little one to arrive, and know things are going to be great when she's here. But why I have to go through this roller coaster to get her here is beyond me!

__________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) The new baby
2) Kicks - even at 3am
3) Baby furniture
4) Dreams - because that means I'm asleep
5) Sudafed

Cecily was on the local news!

2010-08-14T07:56:00.000-05:00

Momma took her yesterday to move in to college, and while they were there, there was a girl interviewing people moving in. Turns out, the girl graduated with Sarah, so when she saw Momma and Cecily, she insisted that Cecily get on camera and the clip made the news there! I was able to find it online, so if you want to see it, here she is! You can read the article, or click on the video on the right to see her. She shows up about 50 seconds in, and then again at the end!

http://www.wdam.com/Global/story.asp?S=12977187

_____________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Family
2) A great move-in experience
3) Great scholarships
4) A new beginning

27 Weeks - We have a Head of Cauliflower!

2010-08-12T16:59:00.000-05:00

This week, your baby weighs almost 2 pounds (like a head of cauliflower) and is about 14 1/2 inches long with her legs extended. She's sleeping and waking at regular intervals, opening and closing her eyes, and perhaps even sucking her fingers. With more brain tissue developing, your baby's brain is very active now. While her lungs are still immature, they would be capable of functioning — with a lot of medical help — if she were born now. Chalk up any tiny rhythmic movements you may be feeling to a case of baby hiccups, which may be common from now on. Each episode usually lasts only a few moments, and they don't bother her, so just relax and enjoy the tickle

The sinus crud is back, and I can’t wait for August (and this crazy heatwave!) to be over. I don’t enjoy having a heat index over 100 every day (it’s currently 106 at 4:45 pm), and I’m ready to be able to breathe again. I bought a fan for my office, though, so that has helped a lot. At least it’s not stuffy in here now!

I hope to get to TX by early September to get all the awesome stuff Kahla is going to let me use, and Momma has agreed to go with me. I’m pretty sure I’ll be fine, but I think we’d both feel better with another adult there, especially since I’ll be 30+ weeks at that time. I can’t believe it’s so close!!!

I think I’ve ballooned again, because I feel like I’m leading with my stomach everywhere I go. I also updated the registry, because I’ve been asked by a few different people what we still need. My answer? All the little stuff! I’m so not ready for her to arrive! 27 weeks down, 13 more to go!

_____________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Free baby stuff
2) The fan in my office
3) Free maternity clothes
4) Vicks and Tylenol Cold and Sinus
5) Ice water

Kindergarten, here we come!

2010-08-06T11:27:00.000-05:00

Today was the first day of school!! She was very excited, and was fine with me taking her in this morning (thankfully!) I’m glad I did, because the entire school was chaotic (duh! it’s the first day!), and she walked into the room and looked at me like “What have you gotten me into??” She picked a flower for her teacher, and settled in pretty quickly. I love her teacher (so far!), and really hope Cadence has a great first day!

Before we left. She's so excited!!!

In her room after I got her to settle some. Let's hope she stays this happy!

____________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) School starting
2) That she's so excited
3) Her teacher
4) That I get to take her every morning
5) Adorable uniforms

The Mysteries of Communion

2010-08-02T15:12:00.000-05:00

Cadence and I decided to try out a new church this weekend as part of our mission to find a place the entire family can feel involved. In June, when the United Methodist Conference played “fruit basket turnover” with it’s pastors, one of the ones from the church I work at was assigned to a smaller church not far from where I live. He had been telling me that it’s a smaller church (a plus!), has an older congregation, and feels like a “small town church” even though it’s right in the middle of Jackson. Since Mike and I both grew up in very small churches, this was a huge draw for us. This Sunday, Cadence and I went, and I forgot that it would be Communion Sunday since it’s the first Sunday of the month (growing up Baptist, we usually just did Communion for special occasions. Methodists are much more diligent about it!)

Cadence has been at my in-laws church for Communion, but it’s been a really long time. Because of that, she wasn’t really sure what to expect. At this particular church, you go to the alter, get the piece of bread, drink the little cup of juice, then go back to your seat. She freaked when she thought we might have to go up front, so I told her we didn’t have to go (and growing up Baptist, it felt a little weird letting her take Communion, anyway.) She apparently heard more of the sermon beforehand than I thought she did, because she was really confused (and slightly grossed out) by the references to “the body and blood of Christ.” I spent most of the time answering questions in the best way I knew how, and trying to explain to her that no, it’s not really Jesus's blood and body, yes, they are eating it but they are pretending that it’s Jesus, no, we wouldn’t really drink blood in church, and yes, we do this to show how much Jesus did for us, and that we are a part of him. I know she still doesn’t understand, but she was at least relieved to find out that all the adults in the place weren’t crazy and they were actually eating and drinking juice and bread, “because drinking blood and eating skin would be GROSS!”

It was rather fitting that she was asking these questions (and was thoroughly confused by my answers) because the pastor was talking about what a weird practice it was, and how bizarre it must look to someone not familiar with the church or Communion. Having her around constantly reminds me how entrenched I am in the church, how normal it all seems, and how crazy it must look when you’re someone who isn’t “churchy,” or a 5 year old who hasn’t “learned the lingo” yet. It’s teaching me to really ask why we do things, and find new ways to explain them instead of the answer being “because that’s how it’s always been.” Both of which I think are great things.

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) Hard questions
2) Warm, friendly people at the church
3) A place in this city that feels like home
4) Cadence not being afraid to ask questions
5) What Communion means

She's definitely a performer!

2010-07-30T09:27:00.002-05:00

Yesterday Cadence had her 6 month dental checkup and cleaning. Usually this isn’t a big deal - we go in, they clean her teeth, 20-30 minutes later we’re finished and out the door. They did mention when they took her back that they wanted to get xrays since she had some teeth come in since her last visit, so I was guessing it would be closer to the 30 minute mark than the 20.

I sat back with my phone and tried to get comfy, and could hear her voice through the walls.OVER AN HOUR LATER she finally comes back out, and proclaims that she has been “The sweetest little girl EVER!!!” The hygienist takes me back, because the dentist wants to talk to me, and they let me have a seat. Then, the first thing the hygienist says is “Well, her ballet skills are excellent! And her princess identification is spot on!” Yes. Yes they are. I know this, but how come the hygienist knows this, and feels the need to tell me this first?? She then gave me a run down of the visit (we have 4 loose teeth - including the top two front ones - and one cavity - probably because my daughter decided she didn’t like her toothpaste, didn’t tell me, and has gone who knows how long wetting her toothbrush and not actually brushing her teeth) and told me Dr. Cook would be over shortly.

Then Dr. Cook comes by and tells me that I have quite the talented little lady on my hands, and let me know that they turned on “New York, New York” and let her dance around to it. That suddenly explained why it took over an hour to do a cleaning - she was putting on a Broadway performance! He also mentioned that he wouldn’t be surprised to see her on stage one day, and was very impressed with her dancing skills.

I have to schedule an appointment to get the cavity filled, and he made her promise that she would actually BRUSH her teeth from now on, and not try and hide it. She agreed - she got a new Tiana toothbrush and some blue sparkly toothpaste! Brushing is fun again!! - and we left. She is such a total opposite of me. I NEVER would have showed off in the middle of the dentist office, and the thought of doing it now makes me cringe. Cadence, however, is a totally different being, and it’s one of the many reasons I love her.

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) Good checkups
2) Our awesome dentist
3) Princess toothbrushes and sparkly toothpaste
4) Rock renditions of “Down by the Bay”
5) Over-active imaginations

25 Weeks - We have a Rutabaga!

2010-07-30T09:10:00.000-05:00

Head to heels, your baby now measures about 13 1/2 inches. Her weight — a pound and a half — isn't much more than an average rutabaga, but she's beginning to exchange her long, lean look for some baby fat. As she does, her wrinkled skin will begin to smooth out and she'll start to look more and more like a newborn. She's also growing more hair — and if you could see it, you'd now be able to discern its color and texture.

Still boring, and still pregnant. Last night she decided that she wanted to sit diagonal across my stomach, so that made for an intersting night. And I’ve discovered she goes through spurts - one day it’s like a 24/7 party, and I’m sore by the end of the day. The next, she moves just enough to keep me from getting too worried about her. It’s giving me hope that she may be a little calmer than her big sister, because she NEVER went through spurts! She was full force, all the time!

We finished the quilt on Wednesday night, and Cadence is SO proud of it. I will admit, the designer in me is bothered by the fabric combinations, but Cadence adores it. And ultimately, that’s all that matters.

Here are a few pictures of her with the quilt, and me at 25 weeks. 15 weeks to go!!

Home, and injured

2010-07-26T16:34:00.001-05:00

Cadence and I made it home about 3:30 or so yesterday afternoon, and had a wonderful time in Memphis! The zoo is amazing, I got to see a friend I don’t get to see nearly often enough, and we had another friend from TX meet us there as well! I think all the kids had a blast at the zoo - even if it was 5,000 degrees outside - and I’m grateful to Stacey and Robin for not getting upset every time I had to stop and sit. The kids loved all the animals, and were especially impressed with the monkeys in the panda exhibit. They kept doing flips and jumps and playing, and we sat there for a really long time watching and laughing.

Cadence had a blast playing with Emma all weekend, and they are almost identical. They are built alike, act alike, and even have the same tone at times. It was almost scary how much alike the two were! I think they really enjoyed playing on the deck together (and with the huge hammock!), and playing the Wii. They also colored a lot, had a “spa day” and got to go shopping - a 5 year old girl’s dream vacation!

I also fell this weekend and injured my ankle. I was going into the garage to get the baby swing, and when I stepped down, my left ankle gave out. I have no clue what happened, or why it did that, but it was the most awful pain ever! Thankfully, Stacey was there, and she helped me hobble into the living room once I was able to get up. Stacey, Trisha and Tony bandaged and iced my foot, and I decided that since we were 99% sure it wasn’t broken, I would try to make the drive back home. Stacey followed me to the gas staion and pumped the gas for me. I kept it propped and iced last night, and today it looks so much better. It’s really sore and still swollen, but there’s hardly any bruising. I just feel like an 80 year old woman hobbling around! I think it scared Cadence, too, because she told Mike last night that I was screaming and crying when it happened. Um, yes. Yes I was.

Here’s a ton of pictures from the weekend, and hopefully the rest of the week will stay uneventful!

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) Really good family and friends who will take care of me
2) Cruise
3) Ice packs
4) Fun time with friends
5) Pictures!

24 Weeks - We have an Ear of Corn!

2010-07-22T13:37:00.000-05:00

Your baby's growing steadily, having gained about 4 ounces since last week. That puts him at just over a pound. Since he's almost a foot long (picture an ear of corn), he cuts a pretty lean figure at this point, but his body is filling out proportionally and he'll soon start to plump up. His brain is also growing quickly now, and his taste buds are continuing to develop. His lungs are developing "branches" of the respiratory "tree" as well as cells that produce surfactant, a substance that will help his air sacs inflate once he hits the outside world. His skin is still thin and translucent, but that will start to change soon.

Nothing major to report, except I’m still huge and pregnant! This little one has decided she likes sitting off to one side of my stomach, and I’ll look down and see a funny lump on one side or the other. The past two days she’s been on the left side, but I’m sure that will change soon. I think there must have been some sort of growth spurt, too, because Terry (the babysitter) has insisted I looked bigger the last three days. One thing I read online said that my uterus should have moved up some by now, so maybe that’s it. Or, I could just be getting bigger. :)

The quilt is coming along great, and we’re almost finished. Last night we got the batting and back sewed on, and next week we’ll press it, then sew up the hole at the bottom we used to flip it. Cadence was disappointed that we didn’t get to take the quilt home last night, but we will this next time. We also got our first baby gift last night. One of the sweet ladies that helps at the front desk has also been helping with the sewing class. She brought us the cutest tiny pair of moccasins. They are SO soft, and white. I guess I need to buy some thank you cards now, so that I can get her one!

I’m going to the zoo this weekend in Memphis, so pray for me. I’ve told my friend to help remind me to drink LOTS of water, because they last thing I want is to get dehydrated. I’m terrible about drinking enough, though, so keep your fingers crossed that I remember throughout the day. And also, that the weather isn’t unbearably hot!

And on the name front, still no decision. We have two first names that would be ok, but Mike hates every name I suggest (too long, complicated or flowery) and I can’t stand his (too plain or country.) We’re down to two first names, but are having SO many problems settling on a middle name. I just take comfort in the facts that 1) we have a possible first name and 2) every name he suggests is a thousand times better than the options we had with Cadence. Plus, I still have 16 weeks. Hopefully we’ll have something by then!

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) The constant kicks I’m getting
2) Name discussions (even frustrating ones)
3) I leave at noon tomorrow!
4) My huge belly
5) Water. And AC.

Happy Birthday to ME!!

2010-07-21T15:13:00.001-05:00

I know, it was actually last Friday, but I'm just now getting around to posting pictures! I’m meeting a friend of mine in Memphis this weekend, so I told Mike that for my gift, I wanted money for gas and for the zoo. I also told him that I wanted a cake - one that I didn’t have to decorate, that I didn’t make myself, and that I didn’t have to go pick out.

First, some back story. My grandmother (who now lives in TX) used to bake cakes for a living, so every birthday, cakes were A BIG DEAL. My cousins and sisters and I would spend weeks picking out *the* perfect birthday cake for that year, and my grandmother always came through with the most amazing creations. Because of this, I’m spoiled when it comes to cake. I will usually either make the cake myself (not as good as Nana’s, but I’m getting there!), or just buy a cheap one from Wal-Mart or somewhere. I refuse to spend a significant amount of money on a cake, because honestly, they are never as good as Nana’s.

So, when I told Mike I wanted a cake, I was fully expecting something from Wal-Mart, or maybe an ice cream cake from Dairy Queen. I told him I didn’t care what it looked like, but I didn’t want to have anything to do with it. I just wanted cake. He sent me an email on Tuesday, asking to make sure I was going to be 30 (yes, honey, 30. A year younger than you.), another asking how much a cake from Dairy Queen costs (no clue, call them and ask!), and then a third asking what kind of decorations I wanted on it (doesn’t matter to me! As long as it’s cake, I’m fine!) I think he got a little upset after the third response, because he stopped asking questions. That afternoon, he was smiling when he got home, and informed me that I was really going to like my cake, and he had stopped to put a deposit on it. I kinda went into shock at this point, because you don’t put deposits on cakes from DQ or Wal-Mart. He then told me that he was wanting it to be a surprise, but when I saw the bank account I’d know where he got it from. He stopped and ordered me a cake from a local place called Dream Cakes, and the total cost was going to be $55. I almost died, because I was REALLY expecting to get $10 cupcakes from Wal-Mart!

He stopped and picked it up on Friday, and it was very pretty. I was still extremely skeptical - until I cut it and tasted it. I swear, if it didn’t have fondant on it, I would have thought he had somehow convinced Nana to come over from TX to make the cake. It was SO good, and it’s definitely the closest I’ve ever tasted to one of hers that she didn’t make. It was so good, in fact, that we’ll probably get Cadence’s cake from there this year since I’ll be a week from my due date at the time.

Momma, Sarah, Cecily and Benjy came up, and we spent the night playing the Wii and eating cake and pizza. I’m posting some pictures of the cake, along with a video of Sarah and Cecily playing Raving Rabbids. I think Sarah got video of me, too, and if I can find it, I’ll post it as well (might as well embarrass all of us!) It was a great night, and an awesome 30th birthday!

Cadence picked out the "30" candles. She wouldn't let me get 30 individual ones because she didn't "want the icing to melt, and stuff."

___________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Cake
2) Birthdays
3) Time with family
4) Another year to enjoy
5) Cake :)

Some sad news

2010-07-19T15:10:00.000-05:00

My cousin, Rachael, the one that Cadence was a flower girl for in October 2008, lost her MIL today. She had been battling cancer, and even though they knew to expect this, it that doesn't make it any less painful. I simply can't imagine losing your mother, much less losing her at such a young age, and hearing of someone passing away from cancer really hits home, especially with what my grandfather is currently going through. My heart it just broken for them. Please send a prayer their way, to Josh and Rachael, along with the rest of their family.

My grandmother (the one who recently moved to TX) also lost her BIL (well, ex BIL, but him and his wife had remained close to her) yesterday. Bessie and Dave were married for over 50 years, I just can't imagine losing your spouse like she has. Please send prayers to her and her son.

_____________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Family
2) Prayers and support
3) People to lean on
4) Memories

23 Weeks - We have a Mango!

2010-07-15T11:52:00.000-05:00

Turn on the radio and sway to the music. With her sense of movement well developed by now, your baby can feel you dance. And now that she's more than 11 inches long and weighs just over a pound (about as much as a large mango), you may be able to see her squirm underneath your clothes. Blood vessels in her lungs are developing to prepare for breathing, and the sounds that your baby's increasingly keen ears pick up are preparing her for entry into the outside world. Loud noises that become familiar now — such as your dog barking or the roar of the vacuum cleaner — probably won't faze her when she hears them outside the womb.

Things are going along well! I’ve discovered that I can’t sleep without being surrounded by pillows - even for a few hours - or I’ll wake up and not be able to walk. I’ve also discovered how utterly awesome mint chocolate chip ice cream is. I’m now to the point that I have problems putting shoes on (I have a basketball in the way!) and there are days I have issues putting on pants (it hurts to lift my legs that high!) Cadence is still commenting on my belly almost daily, and loves to give my stomach kisses and talk to her baby sister. We’re also working on ideas for maternity shots, so if you have some, send them over!

We were able to work on the baby’s quilt again last night, and we now have the border on it. Cadence is extremely proud, and I’m afraid that we’re going to send this child into sensory overload! The quilt is extremely bright and colorful, but it was all Cadence. I know the baby will love it!

And just because, here’s a picture of me from Tuesday (22w5d) and of Cadence holding up her quilt. Also of the wonderful surprise I had waiting on me this morning. My birthday isn’t until tomorrow, but the girl I work with is only in the office Tuesday and Thursday mornings, so she surprised me today. I love surprises!

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Things I'm thankful for:
1) Surprises
2) Ice cream
3) Big sister love
4) Pillows. Lots of pillows!
5) Ninja chops to the bladder

Pretty, pretty fabrics!

2010-07-10T19:59:00.000-05:00

My sister has decided to make some blankets for the baby, so we went and bought fabric today. The teal fabric with the birds is going to be a flannel blanket for us to throw on the floor/drag around/use for whatever needed. The pretty purple, teal and green fabrics are going to be a patchwork quilt. The white fabric with the flowers will be the back, and the other 4 will be the squares on the front. I also hope that there's enough scraps of the white with flowers to give to my cousin, Kahla, to make some burp cloths with! Cadence hates it, of course, because it's purple and not pink. :)

I also bought some other fabrics for burp cloths. I have no idea how many this will make or how far it will go, but I hope Kahla was serious about me bringing her some fabrics! Cadence picked out the pink with the butterflies, and I picked out the owls. They were just too stinkin' cute to pass up!

We also went to see Despicable Me today, and I loved it. I was worried about how kid friendly it would be because of the cast, but it was great, and Cadence, Sarah and I giggled through the entire thing. It was a lot of fun!

_________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Pretty fabrics
2) Crafty family members
3) Baby related items
4) The weekend!
5) Spending time with family

Update on PaPaw

2010-07-09T16:52:00.002-05:00

PaPaw had another chemo treatment yesterday, and a head scan. He’s been really forgetful lately, and they wanted to make sure it was chemo related and not cancer related. Thankfully, the scan was clear, and it indeed appears to be chemo related!

He is now on his way to Michigan with my mom, sister and grandmother, because it’s one of 3 continental states he hasn’t visited yet. I think they’ll be back about Monday, and I hope he has a blast!

22 Weeks - We have a Spaghetti Squash!

2010-07-08T10:34:00.001-05:00

At 11 inches (the length of a spaghetti squash) and almost 1 pound, your baby is starting to look like a miniature newborn. His lips, eyelids, and eyebrows are becoming more distinct, and he's even developing tiny tooth buds beneath his gums. His eyes have formed, but his irises (the colored part of the eye) still lack pigment. If you could see inside your womb, you'd be able to spot the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his body and the deep wrinkles on his skin, which he'll sport until he adds a padding of fat to fill them in. Inside his belly, his pancreas — essential for the production of some important hormones — is developing steadily.

I’ve decided that this child has stealth ninja skills. Cadence liked for everyone to know where she was at all times, would instantly kick you (HARD!) if you put your hand on my stomach, and loved to move around and poke me. This one moves, but she’s a lot calmer, goes silent if you try to feel her kick, and stays really low in my pelvis most of the time. She’s also mastered the art of karate chops to the bladder that make me have to jump and run to the bathroom. I think she’s a ninja baby.

The baby stuff is coming along. I have to make a trip to TX at some point to pick up some things from my wonderful cousin, and my mother-in-law has already bought some clothes. Most are onesies and sleepers (and almost all pink), so we have some clothes in the drawers now. She also picked up a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle onesie, and I can’t wait until she hits 6 month clothes and can wear it.

Cadence and I are taking a class at the church, and it’s on how to make a 9 patch quilt. We’ve decided that it will be from Cadence for the baby, and I’m letting her do as much as possible. Last night she traced and colored the design for the middle, laid out the fabric in the order she wanted, and helped me sew it. I let her control the foot pedal, but she also got to sew some of it completely on her own. The only thing she’s not happy with is that we have to wait until next Wednesday to work on it some more.

The painting of the living room is coming along, we’re working on getting toys situated to make room for baby stuff, and will possibly be getting new furniture this weekend (in exchange for a 6 pack of beer. Only in the South.) Things are just cruising along!

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Things I’m thankful for:
1) New wall color
2) Projects with Cadence
3) Movements, even ones to the bladder
4) Free baby gear
5) Tums

Our latest family portrait

2010-07-07T10:42:00.000-05:00

When she brought me in to show it to me, she informed me, "Look Momma! I drew you and your big belly!!" It's totally going in the baby book as soon as we get one for the new little one.

__________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Honest artwork
2) The rain
3) The temperature drop
4) We're getting closer to a name
5) Cute baby things

21 Weeks - We have a carrot!

2010-07-01T15:47:00.001-05:00

Your baby now weighs about three-quarters of a pound and is approximately 10 1/2 inches long — the length of a carrot. You may soon feel like she's practicing martial arts as her initial fluttering movements turn into full-fledged kicks and nudges. You may also discover a pattern to her activity as you get to know her better. In other developments, your baby's eyebrows and lids are present now, and if you're having a girl, her vagina has begun to form as well.

The kicking has definitely ramped up, but it’s still not quite hard enough for anyone else to feel. I tried to let Mike feel her last night, but even though she felt like she was doing jumping jacks to me, he said he couldn’t feel her moving at all. My appetite seems to have calmed back down, and I still haven’t had any crazy cravings or aversions. Overall, nice and boring.

I pulled out the one box of stuff I kept from Cadence, and found a few sleepers and onsies that I still have from her. I also found a few cute dresses that I had bought, so all of that was washed last night. We’re going to try and use the top drawer of Cadence’s dresser for now, and see if we can keep the baby’s clothes in there with her.

I forgot to mention the question Cadence asked me after the ultrasound the other day. While we were eating at Chick-fil-A, she asked me how the doctor knew that the baby was a girl and not a boy, and it hit me that she hasn’t been around boys enough to have realized yet that they are different than her. She knew that the doctor was going to have to check the baby’s head, legs, heart and other parts to make sure they were all growing right, so I just told her that when she got down to the baby’s legs, she saw that she had girl parts, because girls and boys are different down there. She goes “Oh, OK!” and went back to her chicken nuggets. I have a feeling quite a few more biology related talks are going to come up in the following months!

Still no news on a name. We can’t seem to agree on anything, but I’m keeping my fingers crossed that she’s named before Christmas. And if one more person comments on how disappointed Mike or I probably are over the news of a girl, I think I might scream. Yes, I would have loved a boy, and hate that we can’t honor our grandfather’s with the name. But we’re both perfectly fine with another girl, and Mike even told me he’s slightly relieved. Girls are ok!!!

_____________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Honest questions with honest answers
2) Cute tiny baby clothes
3) A very easy pregnancy
4) Sisters
5) Baby kicks, even if they are aimed at the bladder

Had the ultrasound today...

2010-06-28T17:13:00.001-05:00

And Mike is about to be severely outnumbered! Turns out we have another perfect little girl on the way, and Cadence couldn’t be happier. And because I love it, her pretty profile shot:

(and if you can't see it, head on the left, chest on the right. And that's her cute little chin jutting up.)

Now for the boring stuff. My blood pressure is great (110/75), I’ve gained another pound (6 total), and her heart rate was 128, They said that all of her scans looked great, and she looks strong and healthy! We’ve also discovered that, like her big sister, she HATES ultrasounds and any pressure on my stomach. As soon as there is any pressure at all (me sitting up straight, pants that have a waistband, the ultrasound wand) she starts kicking and moving around. Unfortunately, she hasn’t done it when Cadence is around, so she still hasn’t been able to feel the kicks.

Cadence loved being at the ultrasound today, and actually picked out the profile before I did. She also got to see a great profile shot with her heart beating, and was totally amazed. The baby is still really low, down below my belly button, but weighs about a pound now (give or take.) The measurements gave a due date of 11/11 still, which the nurse was really surprised by. She said it rarely comes out to be exactly the due date at this stage. It was a good appointment, and I guess we get to finish discussing girl names now!

20 Weeks - We have a Banana!

2010-06-25T11:01:00.001-05:00

Your baby weighs about 10 1/2 ounces now. He's also around 6 1/2 inches long from head to bottom and about 10 inches from head to heel — the length of a banana. (For the first 20 weeks, when a baby's legs are curled up against his torso and hard to measure,measurements are taken from the top of his head to his bottom — the "crown to rump" measurement. After 20 weeks, he's measured from head to toe.)

He's swallowing more these days, which is good practice for his digestive system. He's also producing meconium, a black, sticky by-product of digestion. This gooey substance will accumulate in his bowels, and you'll see it in his first soiled diaper (some babies pass meconium in the womb or during delivery).

I have the ultrasound on Monday, and we may or may not know after then what we’re having. Even after 20 weeks, I honestly don’t care either way. I can see pros and cons to either, and I know even if it’s another girl, there’s a distinct chance it won’t be a sparkly, princessy drama queen like Cadence. Most people don’t believe me when I tell them I don’t care, but honestly, I don’t!

I’ve also had a ton of people who don’t know Mike comment that they just know he’s dying for a little boy. I asked him again this morning, and he’s like me - honestly doesn’t care! And I find it funny that people that don’t know him assume he wants a boy, because I know the end of that sentence is “to play ball with and go fishing and hunting with!” Well, Mike isn’t into that stuff! When he was little he played little league, but he spent more of his time being artistic and creative - like Cadence. He built models and played with action figures, and we have a huge stack of his old coloring books. He likes fishing ok, will go camping from time to time, and likes the electrical end of cars, but he’s not a “manly man.” I find it hilarious that everyone assumes that the kind of little boy he wants!

I have a feeling, though, that it’s exactly the kind of little boy we’d get. Cadence is definitely the complete opposite of me, and if we had a son, our luck he’d be the complete opposite of Mike. I guess only time will tell.

And I think I posted one last week, but here's one from today. I love this outfit (I have khaki capris on as well) because I just feel girly and pretty, and it shows off the belly. I've made it halfway!

______________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) The possibilities that await us
2) Kicks that keep getting stronger and stronger
3) Ultrasound is Monday!
4) IT’S FRIDAY!
5) BBQ for lunch

It's just SO cool!!!!

2010-06-21T13:11:00.000-05:00

Mike had to take the Jeep back in today to have it looked at, AGAIN, and they gave him a rental to use. He’s used to driving a 2 door (with half doors) 4 wheel drive wrangler with a soft top. This one is a 4 door (with full doors) 2 wheel drive with a hard top. He despises it, but Cadence is fascinated and has been pointing out all the differences. Her favorite?

“It has these really cool windows, and you turn this knob, and THEY GO DOWN!!!!”

She’s utterly amazed at this wonderful technology!

______________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) A wonderful weekend
2) AC
3) Watermelon
4) Cadence’s comments
5) Rentals so we don’t have to carpool

Some random photos

2010-06-18T15:09:00.000-05:00

Charm bracelet and charms, and all but one is from Aunt Sarah. In case you can’t see, they include Minnie Mouse, Belle, Cinderella, the Mayflower, a butterfly with a Massachusettes tag, a castle, It’s A Girl, music notes, Mickey’s head with November written on it and a flower made of her birthstone, a mermaid (from the GA Aquarium - Big Momma got it), Sleeping Beauty, Ariel and Tinkerbell.

Mike’s Jeep, supposedly being “fixed”

My new shoes, from Sarah

She’s asleep WITH A FOOTBALL!!!

A recent trip to the Reservoir

The “present” we found outside our house earlier this week.

After one of the recent storms

19 Weeks - We have a large Heirloom Tomato!

2010-06-17T14:32:00.000-05:00

Your baby's sensory development is exploding! Her brain is designating specialized areas for smell, taste, hearing, vision, and touch. Some research suggests that she may be able to hear your voice now, so don't be shy about reading aloud, talking to her, or singing a happy tune if the mood strikes you.

Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

I feel like I’ve done nothing but eat for the last 2 or 3 weeks, and I’m constantly hungry. I’ve tried to keep healthy things - like fruit - around to much on, but I’m not sure it’s helping. I have a feeling I will have gained about 45 lbs at my next appointment.

Speaking of which, it’s only a week and a half away!!! I’m getting excited about the ultrasound, and Cadence is super excited that she’ll get to see the baby. She’s already kissing and talking to my belly, so I’m excited to see how that changes once she actually sees the baby that is in there. Terry also said that she’s been excellent with all the babies there, and has been acting like a little Mommy to all of them.

I’m still having the hip pain all the time, and getting up a zillion times at night to go to the bathroom. We have a 4 hour drive ahead of us this weekend, and I’m curious to see how long I can go between bathroom breaks. In July I’m heading to Houston to see my cousin, and that will be 7 hours. It will probably take me closer to 8 with all the potty stops I’ll have to make!!

I broke down and bought a swimsuit the other day, and I’ve also set up a Target registry. I’m not expecting showers, but I keep finding all this cool stuff that I want but don’t have the money for yet. I told Mike, at least if it’s there, I can remember the stuff I wanted. Most of it is little things - onsies, diaper carriers, bath stuff - because we’ve been so fortunate to have been given so much of the big stuff. I’m so thankful for family with kids around the same age who don’t mind sharing!

Not much else is going on, so I’ll end with a picture of me taken today. This dress had a ton of room in it at Easter when I bought it, but that room is quickly disappearing. Here I am at 19 weeks exactly.

__________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) A boring pregnancy
2) Free stuff!
3) Cutsie baby things
4) A swimsuit I actually like
5) Not being sick

The "I've been mugged in London!" email scam

2010-06-17T13:13:00.002-05:00

Well, this morning has definitely been interesting. I woke up to an email from my sister, Sarah, that basically said that she was in London, had been mugged last night and had everything stolen, and now needs $1,800 to pay the hotel and get back home. I laughed when I saw it because 1) If Sarah was in London, the entire world would know about it - she’s wanted to go there for years! 2) She just took a trip to Orlando. There’s no way she can afford London right after the trip to Harry Potter World, and 3) The spelling and grammar were perfect. I laughed it off and called my mom to make sure Sarah knew so she could change her passwords on her account, and also found out my aunt had gotten the email as well and called (she said the same thing about the spelling!)

After I got to work, I noticed that “Sarah” had signed in to Yahoo IM, so I sent a message to her saying she needed to change all her passwords because I got a spam email this morning. The response was something like “I was serious and really do need help. Please send money.” I told the person that I find that hard to believe since Sarah was just in my mom’s living room about 15 minutes before. The response? “It was an urgent trip.” Yeah, did you use the TARDIS to get back and forth? That or teleportation are pretty much the only explanations for that kind of world traveling.

My stepmom decided that she wanted to see if she could catch whoever it was, and actually got them talking. They gave her an address and wanted her to wire $1,000 to them so they could “come home.” They insisted that it be done Western Union, and said that she couldn't call the hotel directly because "their credit card machines are faulty." She called the police, who sent someone over to the house, and they were able to trace the person. Unfortunately, nothing could be done since no money changed hands, but Debbie did eventually tell them that they were crazy and she knew it wasn’t really Sarah. I also found out that Sarah had the person’s email address from where they hacked her yahoo account, and I think it’s been sent over to the police as well. She now has her account back, and in her message to let me know, she misspelled “couch.” Yep, definitely her! ;)

I told my dad this morning that I couldn’t believe Debbie was involved in some kind of internet sting operation, and that Sarah had actually been hacked. Thankfully Sarah has her account back and I don’t think any major harm was done. I did learn a few things today, though, that may be helpful to others:

Change ALL passwords for ALL your accounts (bank, facebook, twitter, credit cards, etc) immediately!
Contact everyone you can that is in your address book to let them know that you were hacked, and not to be fooled by the emails.
Contact someone at your local police department, or if money has been exchanged, the FBI. You can contact them here.
If you have a yahoo account, it is possible to get your stuff back. You can email account-security-help@cc.yahoo-inc.com or call 866-562-7219.
There is also a great article here that talks about what someone else did in a similar situation. Ours didn't escalate as far as this one did, thankfully, and the information is excellent.

It seems that we’ll have a happy ending. I just hope that no one else has to go through this, or even worse, gets taken by the scam.

_____________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) This situation was resolved quickly
2) No one (that we know of) lost any money
3) My sister has her account back
4) Sarah’s dyslexia
5) Family that’s willing to alert her to problems

The "Drama Queen"

2010-06-16T15:37:00.000-05:00

My name is Randi, and I have a 5 year old creative drama queen. Oh, sure, most 5 year olds are creative and dramatic at times (it comes with the age), but seriously. My daughter is a teenager stuck in a 5 year old’s body. I thought the NICU nurses were crazy when they told me she’d be like this when she was only 24 hours old, but lo and behold, they were spot on. She is Dramatic - with a capital D.

I’ll admit, when she was younger (2-3ish), this trait really bothered me, and I was upset by it. And I also know the reason. When I was little, I was definitely creative - imaginary friends, could entertain myself, dreamed of being on Broadway and acting - but I wasn’t dramatic like she is. My parents were told things like “Randi is so polite!” and “Randi is just so well behaved!” and “Randi acts so grown up!” I was the kid you could take into nice restaurants at 4, 5 and 6, and I would sit politely with my napkin on my lap and use the very best of manners. And I was that kid who’s mom could look at her and she would bust into tears. I was creative, but sensitive and quiet as well. I just always assumed that if I ever had a daughter, she would be like me. And when my daughter arrived and looked identical to me, I just knew that would be how it was! I never dreamed she would instead be a perfect blend of my two sisters. She may look like me, but she has Sarah’s temper and Cecily’s adultness. It’s scary!

It’s taken me awhile to realize that this trait that I so despised for awhile is more than just a trait. It’s who she is. I can't change this about her any more than I can change her eye color or her height. My daughter looks at the world differently than I do, and once I started looking at it from her perspective, I’ve found that I really enjoy her view. She’s not easy to raise, and she’s definitely not easy to discipline. I’ve discovered that if something goes wrong, more times than not it will be met with her having a meltdown and declaring that “Nothing EVER goes RIGHT!!!!!” (while falling on the floor and being SUPER dramatic.) And I’ve also discovered that “something wrong” can be anything from not finding the exact shade of pink that she wanted to color something, to actual, real life problems. To her, they are all the same. We have to put her in her room - alone - to calm down when a meltdown starts, because the number people around is proportionally equal to the massiveness of the meltdown. She loves an audience, and loves to perform. She also has a bad habit of saying whatever comes into that head of hers, whether appropriate or not. Sometimes a look will bring about an apology, but sometimes it takes a little more. She just hasn’t learned to think about what comes out of her mouth before she says it. Opinionated, that one is!

But I’ve also discovered that she views everyone and everything around her as way fancier than it really is. In her mind, we don’t just have a nice house - we have the most wonderfulest house EVER! I’m not just her mom, I’m a princess who dresses in pretty dresses all the time. And she’s not just Cadence, she’s CADENCE!!! who is always decked out in sparkles, tiaras, clothes that are “just fabulous!!” and has spotlights following her. She’s one of the most creative children I’ve ever met, and has more personality in her little finger than I had in my entire body at that age. She couldn't care less about gymnastics, t-ball, soccer or anything else physical, but has taken dance, auditioned for Annie, is about to start art lessons and told me she wants to learn to play the violin. She does fine academically, but has to jazz up all of her papers. I’ve seen pictures drawn in the margins, curly cues added to letters in her name, and 10 times more detail than was required put into her drawings. Nothing about her can be normal or boring, even school work!

She amazes me, and when I stopped thinking of her as being “bad,” or “difficult,” and I started just seeing her as “Cadence” instead, I was able to really see how amazing she is. It’s taken me years to see it, but I’m sure that she’s taught me way more about life than I could ever teach her. And I love her for that. The next few years won’t be easy, but they will definitely be interesting, and I wouldn't change it for anything.

_____________________________

Things I'm thankful for:

1) Cadence

2) Spunk. It would be a boring place without it.

3) Her attitude. It will serve her well one day

4) Her love

5) Crayon drawings

18 Weeks - We have a Bell Pepper!

2010-06-10T10:31:00.000-05:00

Head to rump, your baby is about 5 1/2 inches long (about the length of a bell pepper) and he weighs almost 7 ounces. He's busy flexing his arms and legs — movements that you'll start noticing more and more in the weeks ahead. His blood vessels are visible through his thin skin, and his ears are now in their final position, although they're still standing out from his head a bit. A protective covering of myelin is beginning to form around his nerves, a process that will continue for a year after he's born. If you're having a girl, her uterus and fallopian tubes are formed and in place. If you're having a boy, his genitals are noticeable now, but he may hide them from you during an ultrasound.

I’ve noticed that during the last week or so, all I want to do is eat. I’ve tried to stay at least semi healthy (lots of bananas, watermelon and even peanut butter toast - even though peanut butter gives me indigestion), but I feel like I’m starving all the time! I have a feeling I will have gained a lot more than 2 lbs next time I go in to the doctor. I’m also really congested, and feel kinda sick from the drainage. Summer colds suck anyway, but not being able to take much for it is just making it worse.

I have Cadence’s closet finished, and tonight I plan on getting her room back in order. Of course, most of the stuff that was in her closet is now either in the hallway or in my room - I guess they’re next on the list to clean. We got the crib out, though, and part of me is eager to put it up. I know I still have 5 months to go, but I really can’t wait to have everything here and in order! We have a few things we’ll have to travel to get (carseat in Houston and a swing in Memphis), but everythings seems to be coming together. I still have to find a dresser for the baby, and I need a rocking chair. After that, I think we’ll have all the big stuff covered!

____________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) 18 weeks down!
2) Lots of movements
3) Still not throwing up, even with the sinus crud
4) Cadence’s closet looks great
5) A free week to get housework finished

So quiet...

2010-06-07T16:07:00.000-05:00

This week is Vacation Bible School (VBS) at the church I grew up in, so Cadence is with my mom for the week so she can go. My mom came and picked her up yesterday, and it was so quiet at my house last night. I was able to sort through a ton of clothes that were in my closet and drawers, and hope to get her closet cleaned out this week as well. Also on our “To Do While We Have No ‘Help’” list are cleaning the porch and front door/shutters (Mike did that today), painting the living room, hanging a new ceiling fan and possibly painting the front door and shutters (since they are now clean.) I know all of it won’t get done, but maybe we’ll get enough finished that it will be easier to do once she’s back home.

And I’m glad it’s quiet now, because at the end of last week, things were definitely anything but! Thursday was our anniversary, and Thursday night Cadence started throwing up. She went from 8:30 to about 11:45, and I spent that time either holding her hair while she threw up, or giving her a shower because she didn’t make it to the toilet and got it in her hair. All I could think as I was giving her a shower at 11:45 at night was “You might sleep with puke in your hair when you’re 20, but it’s not happening at 5!” She finally went to sleep, but Mike tossed and turned all night, then was up at 6am Friday morning doing the same thing. He insisted on going in to work anyway (and threw up again at the gas station - said he felt like a college frat boy), so I stayed home with Cadence. We ended up taking him toast for lunch (it’s all he wanted to eat), and I had to buy her medicine because she still felt crummy most of the day.

By Friday night they were both starting to feel better, but I felt like crud. We had chicken noodle soup for dinner, and thankfully it never hit me. Saturday saw us all on the mend, and by yesterday you couldn’t tell anything was wrong. I’m hoping Cadence doesn’t relapse this week while she’s with my mom, and I’m very thankful that it seemed to be a very fast bug.

_____________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) We’re all well
2) Things getting done around my house
3) Watermelon
4) Baby movements
5) VBS

17 weeks - We have a turnip!

2010-06-03T23:12:00.001-05:00

Your baby's skeleton is changing from soft cartilage to bone, and the umbilical cord — her lifeline to the placenta — is growing stronger and thicker. Your baby weighs 5 ounces now (about as much as a turnip), and she's around 5 inches long from head to bottom. She can move her joints, and her sweat glands are starting to develop.

I had my 17 week checkup today, and it was nice and boring! I've gained 2 lbs (5lbs total), my blood pressure was 106/75, and I should have the blood work results back by Monday. The baby's heartbeat was 146, but she had problems finding and keeping it because it was moving around so much.

My next appointment and ultrasound are scheduled for the end of June, and Mike and I are still at odds about finding out, so we're going to let the baby decide. I told the nurse that if it's obvious, tell us. If it's not and she would have to hunt, don't. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the baby keeps it's legs crossed, but I know Mike and Cadence would love to know.

Today was also our 10 year anniversary. I can't believe that 1) I got married at 19 and 2) that was 10 years ago! I got some Victoria's Secret lotion, body spray and bath stuff I wanted (Love Spell - Ooh la la!), and we went to Mugshots for dinner (Mike picked). We also have next week all to ourselves since Cadence will be with my mom, so I'm really looking forward to that!

And a bonus belly shot - this was taken yesterday, and yes, I felt like a blimp!

________________________
Things I'm thankful for:
1) Boring appointments
2) Dinner I didn't have to cook!
3) 10 wonderful years!
4) We get to see the baby in 3.5 weeks!
5) New, girly, smell good stuff

A wonderful update!!!

2010-06-02T15:53:00.000-05:00

I just received a call from my mom, who is up here with PaPaw for chemo treatments. They did another scan today, and the doctor was amazed with how he’s doing! They said that the tumor and the swelling around his bile ducts are both shrinking, and that his blood work looked excellent! She said that the doctor told them to keep doing whatever it is that they are doing, and they plan on keeping him on the same chemo treatment for now and will do another scan in 3 months.

PaPaw had mentioned that remission had come up in conversation recently, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that it might actually be a reality! I told him he had to take care of himself, because I expected him to be here holding a baby in November, and I’m looking forward to my baby hearing the Christmas story from him on it’s first Christmas! I’m so thrilled about this, that I can’t hardly stand it.

__________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Chemo
2) Wonderful updates
3) Shrinking tumors
4) Possibilities for the future
5) Optimistic outlooks

Cecily's Graduation

2010-06-02T12:42:00.002-05:00

I don't have all of Jonathan's pictures finished yet, but are some of the ones of Cecily. She has received a wonderful scholarship to the University of Southern Mississippi, and I think she's really excited about living in the dorms and being away from home. I'm so proud of her, and know she'll do wonderful next year!

It also hit me that night, that I was this far along in my pregnancy with Cadence at Sarah's graduation 6 years ago. Crazy how that happened.

All of us with Momma

All of us with Daddy and Debbie

My mom

Granny (PaPaw didn't feel well enough to come.)

With Sarah

With Mike and me. Cadence refused to get in it.

And just because I love this picture, Cadence and Clayton. I didn't realize how much they looked alike until I pulled this picture up!

Book 4/25: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

2010-05-30T14:14:00.000-05:00

I made the comment to the girl I work with last week that I had finished my book and needed something else to read, and she brought me The Help by Kathryn Stockett on Tuesday. Oh, WOW! I started it Tuesday night when I got home, and returned it to her on Thursday morning. It was absolutely wonderful.

Short synopsis: Set in Jackson, MS in the early 60’s, and the main girl has just returned home from college (Ole Miss, of course!) and all her friends are married and starting families while she isn’t. Through a series of events, she decides to write a book about “the help” - the black maids, cooks and nannies - from their point of view, and wants to tell the good, the bad and the ugly.

There are parts that are absolutely hilarious, and parts that had me in tears, and I felt like I actually knew all these people. I’m sure some of it is because I live/work in Jackson, and have been in MS all my life, but I know that a lot of it is because of WHERE I work. The church I work at is filled with families that this book could have been written about. I’ve been able to see the Ole Miss love, the high society living and the Country Club/Junior Leage lifestyle up close and personal - especially in some of the older ladies that go to this church. It was a wonderful story, and hit, maybe, a little too close to home - especially for some of the older families in the city. However, I loved it.

I plan on buying it so I can let my mom and aunt read it, and I’m very excited they are making it into a movie. I also want to read it again, and actually enjoy it this time instead of being worried for a lot of the characters in it. I really enjoyed it, and give it 5 books.

Up next, Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer. I promised my sister I would...

Why are girls so mean?

2010-05-28T12:33:00.000-05:00

Cadence got in trouble at the babysitter’s on Tuesday and Wednesday for being mean. There are two sisters there right now, S and P, but S hasn’t been there in awhile because she started school this last year. Cadence loves both of them, but tends to play with S more, and joins in when S starts picking on her sister (who is the same age as Cadence.) Tuesday she got in trouble for being mean to P, and for telling her she wouldn’t play with her, only S. She then got in trouble when she got home for the same thing, and we had this long talk about being polite, playing with everyone, yadda yadda yadda. Wednesday was a little better, but she was still snotty to P (but not to S). After another talk when we got home, she decided to draw S and P both pictures to take to them the next day.

She drew them BFF pictures (complete with flowers and hearts and all kinds of girly things), and I noticed yesterday when I picked her up that she still had both the pictures with her. This morning she informed me (with her head down and in that pitiful voice she gets) that both of them told her that they didn’t want their pictures and were going to give them to someone else instead. Since they didn’t want them, she decided to keep them for herself.

Now, I know my daughter hasn’t been great with one of the two girls, and we are dealing with that. But when I heard they didn’t want the pictures she drew, the Momma in me came out in full force. I wanted to march to the babysitters and snatch both of those little girls up by their little blonde ponytails! I didn’t (obviously), but I did tell Cadence that I’m not sure why they didn’t want them because she did great on them, but maybe she could give one to the girl next door next time she sees her. She was happy with that idea, and walked in this morning like nothing was wrong.

I know that girls do this, and we’re going to be dealing with this kind of stuff for the rest of her life. But why does it have to start this early? And I know that there will be times that Cadence is the one that some Momma wants to snatch up, and I just pray I find out what happend so I can snatch her up first. I also now understand why my mom has spent the last year (my sister’s senior year of high school) being furious. You can mess with me, but don’t mess with my kid and hurt her feelings!!

Things like this are making me hope this next one is a boy. Boy drama isn’t quite this bad, right??

_________________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) My creative daughter
2) My day is about to end!
3) Long holiday weekends
4) Lunch with Mike
5) It’s not storming (yet!)

Book 3/25: The Tommyknockers by Stephen King

2010-05-27T19:41:00.000-05:00

After A Clockwork Orange I took a break, but eventually picked up The Tommyknockers - another book Mike got me for Christmas. One thing I’m starting to love about Stephen King is that he takes his dear, sweet time telling a story. This one was more supernatural than scary, and I enjoyed it more than The Stand. There weren’t as many characters in this one (well, it was close, but the story flowed better this time), and he’s great about doling out little bits of info at a time - just enough to keep you wondering *exactly* what is going on. The subject matter was a little ridiculous (and he pokes fun at himself about this in one part of the book), but he did a great job of making it seem plausible.

This one is long, too, but I was able to get into this story a lot easier than The Stand (only other SK book I’ve read.) I’m not sure if it’s because I knew what to expect a little more, or if I just flat out enjoyed the story more. I’m now on the hunt for a few more of his books, and I give this one 4 books.

Next, The Help by Kathryn Stockett.

Book 2/25: A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

2010-05-27T15:06:00.003-05:00

I have 3 books I’ve finished and not posted about, so over the weekend I hope to get all three up.

First up is A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess, and I’ll say, it was better than I thought it would be when I started. The only thing that threw me (and almost made me put the book down in frustration) is that he uses a lot of made up, teen slang throughout the book, and in the beginning it was hard to get into the story because of it. Once I got a little farther into it, however, I started recognizing the words, and it the story was good. Well, about as good as a story about a kid who’s in a gang, gets arrested and goes through brainwashing can be. The copy I had said something on the cover about having the original ending in it, and I loved the way it ended.

It’s not a happy book, or a light, fun, summer read, but was good nonetheless. But, I will say, after reading The Stand and this one back to back, I had to take a break for awhile! I’m glad I picked it off of my “classics” list, and enjoyed it a lot. I give it 4 books.

Next, The Tommyknockers by Stephen King.

16 Weeks - We have an Avocado!

2010-05-27T10:53:00.000-05:00

Get ready for a growth spurt. In the next few weeks, your baby will double his weight and add inches to his length. Right now, he's about the size of an avocado - 4 1/2 inches long (head to rump) and 3 1/2 ounces. His legs are much more developed, his head is more erect than it has been, and his eyes have moved closer to the front of his head. His ears are close to their final position, too. The patterning of his scalp has begun, though his locks aren't recognizable yet. He's even started growing toenails. And there's a lot happening inside as well. For example, his heart is now pumping about 25 quarts of blood each day, and this amount will continue to increase as your baby continues to develop.

I still feel great, and can’t wait for my appointment next week! It’s been pretty boring around here, and I hope to have graduation pictures up in the next day or two. I’ve purchased some onsies (Wal-Mart had them on sale for $1 each, so I have yellow ones now), and Debbie met a lady with a Fisher Price Ocean Wonder swing. We found it for $35 on craigslist, and I’m so excited to have it home and to get a baby in it! I can finally drink water again without feeling sick, and so far, foods aren’t really bothering me, either. Nothing else exciting is going on, and we’re just waiting at this point!

–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––
Things I’m thankful for:
1) Cheap baby stuff on craigslist
2) Ice water
3) 16 puke-free weeks
4) The baby bump that is growing
5) Good books

15 Weeks - We have an Apple!

2010-05-20T11:31:00.002-05:00

(Yes, I am shamelessly stealing this from my cousin as well, but I think she'll forgive me. And yes, I AM starting almost halfway through. So sue me! ;) )

Your growing baby now measures about 4 inches long, crown to rump, and weighs in at about 2 1/2 ounces (about the size of an apple). She's busy moving amniotic fluid through her nose and upper respiratory tract, which helps the primitive air sacs in her lungs begin to develop. Her legs are growing longer than her arms now, and she can move all of her joints and limbs. Although her eyelids are still fused shut, she can sense light. If you shine a flashlight at your tummy, for instance, she's likely to move away from the beam. There's not much for your baby to taste at this point, but she is forming taste buds. Finally, if you have an ultrasound this week, you may be able to find out whether your baby's a boy or a girl! (Don't be too disappointed if it remains a mystery, though. Nailing down your baby's sex depends on the clarity of the picture and on your baby's position. He or she may be modestly curled up or turned in such a way as to "hide the goods.")

I’m feeling well, and (I think) starting to feel a little movement. It’s not a lot, and comes at random times, but I have felt a few little flutters. I can also tell the baby is getting bigger, because it really does feel like I have a whole apple floating around in there. If I bend a certain way, or lay on my side or stomach, I can feel this little knot that seems to be there now. Even after going through this once, it’s a bizarre feeling. Everything seems to be going fine, and I have another appointment in two weeks!

_______________________
Things I’m thankful for:
1) An easy pregnancy
2) That I’ve made it to 15 weeks without being sick
3) I get to hear the heartbeat again in two weeks!
4) I’ll get another ultrasound in 6 weeks!
5) Cadence is still super excited

Conversations about The Baby

2010-05-17T13:59:00.000-05:00

Cadence talks about The Baby a lot. Like, as in, multiple times a day, EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Our conversations are usually pretty benign - names, how the baby will treat her, what she’ll do to help with the baby, where will the baby sleep, etc. - but up until this weekend, we’ve only had one conversation that was uncomfortable and/or deep.

The first was shortly after we told her I was pregnant, and she was talking about helping give the baby bottles. That isn’t a big deal, except I nursed her, and plan on nursing this one as well. I figured that was as a good a time as any to talk to her about breastfeeding, and told her that most of the time, the baby wouldn’t use a bottle, but she could definitely help me in other ways, and help feed it when it was old enough to eat baby food. She asked how it would eat, and I asked her if she had ever seen puppies or kittens drinking milk from their mommies (“Just like the dog in Alice In Wonderland!” she told me) and said that Mommies were super awesome and could feed their babies the same way. She was slightly shocked when she found out where the milk came from, but got over it MUCH faster than I expected - actually, much faster than most of my family when they found out I was going to nurse Cadence. I’m sure this topic will come up again when she actually sees me nursing (and because she’s fascinated with “booms” and talks about them a lot), but for now it hasn’t been an issue.

This weekend, the second conversation came up. She asked me out of the blue, “Momma, what if the baby doesn’t come out tan like us?” My first thought was, “Then something happened I don’t know about, and your Daddy is going to be PISSED!,” but I told her that since Daddy and I were both tan, then the baby would be as well. She then amazed me with how much she had been thinking about this, because she said, “But Alfie’s parents are tan, and he is brown” then stared at me with an “explain that one!” look. I then (as simply as I could) explained that she’s right, but Alfie was adopted from Africa, and wasn’t ever in his (current) Mommy’s tummy. But, since she and the baby were/are in my tummy, and Daddy and I are both tan, they are tan as well. She thought about it a second, then said, “Oh, OK!” and went off playing. It amazes me how much she thinks about this stuff, and how much she notices about the world around her. I’m now waiting on “How did the baby actually GET in your tummy??” to surface. This should be fun.

And here I am at 14 Weeks. Not much different than the last picture, but for those that know me, I’m definitely starting to show.

________________________

Things I’m thankful for:

1) My inquisitive daughter

2) Honest questions, even if they do catch me off guard or are hard to answer

3) That she’s excited about The Baby

4) Over 14 weeks and I still haven’t been sick

5) I haven’t gained weight all over this time

Graduation and First Kisses

2010-05-14T15:59:00.000-05:00

Cadence had her Kindergarten Graduation on Monday, and she looked so grown up! I spent all day crying, and I’m so glad Mike had the video camera instead of me. Here’s a few of my favorite shots of the day, and I”m honestly surprised I look as good as I do after the crying fest!

With Mrs. Walker, her math and homeroom teacher

With Mrs. Grace, who I wish could go be her teacher next year as well

And a bonus picture of her on her new big girl bike that she got for graduation!

On Tuesday they had their end of year party at Pump It Up, and of course, Ethan *sigh* was there. She went down the slide with him a few times, and seemed to have a great time. When it came time to leave, she wanted a picture with him, but was too embarrassed to ask, so she made me do it. He agreed, and the picture is just priceless. She is laying all over him, and completely infatuated! After that we left, and she went to give him a hug by. When she did, he leaned over and gave her a kiss on the cheek. Now, those of you that know Cadence knows that it takes A LOT to embarrass her, but that kiss made her turn about 10 shades of red! She was totally speechless and stood there with her mouth hanging open. All I could do was laugh at her. She’s talked about it for days, and I think is still slightly in shock. I think it was a good end to the year.

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Things I’m thankful for:

1) Innocent kisses

2) Knowing that yes, my daughter CAN be embarrassed!

3) Graduations

4) New Bikes

5) My big girl