Veiled

Sophia and Jamie got married tonight. There was another wedding attempt earlier, but the groom choice was one little boy that lives in our house, and well, he just wouldn't cooperate! So, Daddy was glad to oblige for a little wedding fun before bed. Soph was looking for something to use as a veil, and since Jamie and I just came across my actual veil from our wedding, I suggested she get to borrow it for the wedding ceremony. She was on cloud nine! :) And she looked so sweet. Made my "Mama's heart" skip ahead 20 or so years to when she might be wearing this veil, or another one, for an actual wedding ceremony!

hello

Just a quick hello to say we are all alive and well. :) I haven't posted much this week. Every now and again I just get in a bit of a blogging slump and life catches up with me and I guess this is one of those weeks. I've been busy trying to stay on top of keeping the house clean and working on my "To Do Before Baby Rose Comes" list. I have 6 out of 11 things marked off, so that feels good. There is only one more "essential" to do and the other four will just be icing on the cake if they get done, so I'm actually starting to feel prepared!

We've worked hard to get our little house more organized to make room for another person. With only two official bedrooms and our housemate living in our "extra" space, staying organized is important! Thankfully our house has TONS of storage and great closet space, so there are lots of places to do that organizing behind closed doors!

Tomorrow we will be attempting to visit the hospital I'll be giving birth at. We have to call the unit an hour before we want to come to see if they are busy or not. If not, we can go ahead and go for a tour. If they're busy, we'll have to try again another day. I hope it works out because I've never been there and I know it will help me mentally prepare for this birth being able to visualize the place I'll be heading!

How has your week been??

This and That

Let's see... our weekend:

Sophia was gone for TEN hours on Saturday for the Little Sib's Weekend events. I dropped her off at 8:45am and didn't pick her up until 6:45pm! I asked her babysitter, D, how it all went. She said, "Sophia is so friendly, she just talks to everyone!" I asked D if she was ready for kids and she quickly and enthusiastically said, "NO!" :) So, I think Soph may have worn her out.

Sophia came home bearing many items from the day and many stories to share. She had a large cutout cookie and a few pretzel sticks that she'd been given free-reign to decorate. And... if you know my daughter, that means she used about a truck load's worth of sprinkles. There may now be a sprinkle shortage in this part of the country, I'm just saying...

She also had "goo" she'd gotten to make during the science portion of the day. And, get this, she got to go to "exercise class," and she was excited about it! :) When does that stop being something fun and become more of something one must do to stay healthy???

At any rate, she had a fabulous day and we are forever grateful to D for extending herself like that to spoil our daughter. Sophia was pretty tired on Sunday, and even took a "sleeping rest," which for her, at 5, is VERY rare!

My parents came down Saturday to help us rearrange furniture in the kids room. Sophia was given this great bedroom set a few years ago, but it was all pretty oversized and since three kids will be in there soon, it was time for a change. We had acquired a smaller bed for Soph, along with a more reasonably sized bookshelf and dresser. So, we switched all the furniture around (and when I say "we," I mean I sat and watched/supervised. :) ) and got it all arranged. Riley was SO excited at all the changes and just danced around the room, babbling and giggling with glee. Sophia was thrilled when she got home and saw her "new" room. She has loved sleeping in there and the extra space is great! She especially loves hearing about how the new dresser was my Mom's and Aunt's when they were little. Her favorite story is how my Aunt would hide her Girl Scout cookies in the cubby portion and my Mom would sneak in to them and eat them! :)

Riley is cutting his last four baby teeth! This is major because he always has a harder time with his regular routine (i.e. eating/sleeping habits) when he's cutting teeth. It looks like we might get all those teeth out before Baby Rose is born, which would just be a huge blessing!

Riley is a very mechanical kid. He loves figuring out how things go together/come apart. Today I walked into the living room to find that he had unplugged the lamp and put a child-safe plug in it's place! Where he found the safety plug, I have no idea!

I will be 35 weeks pregnant tomorrow. I had my regular check-up today and all is well! I now will have weekly appointments until Baby comes! Yikes, that feels crazy to be able to say.

Sorry, no pictures. I'll need to get the camera out tomorrow to get some shots of the kiddos and maybe some of the 'ol Baby Belly. :)

Babies on the Brain

First, this baby, my firstborn...

Sophia is off on a grand adventure today! Our local University is hosting little siblings of students this weekend for "Little Sibs Weekend." One of Sophia's babysitters is a student and graciously invited Sophia to come be her "little sis" for the day. She will be decorating cookies in the cafeteria, eating lunch there, going swimming, playing games at the Rec Center, doing science experiments, going to the library and eating dinner. Then, her big day will be done and I'll pick her up! Whew. She has never gotten ready so easily with so little complaints than she did this morning. :)

I am so excited for Sophia to have this opportunity. What fun! I have to admit though, when she walked away from the car, with her giant pink backpack, holding D's hand, I almost started crying! I've been away from Sophia before, but almost exclusively her sitters have been my parents or Jamie's parents. When she's had non-family sitters it's always taken place at our house or where we were (like with Abby this summer in CO). So, to send her off for 8 or 9 hours to have a fun day with D - it was a little bittersweet! She's growing up, which is fabulous, but makes my heart remember her little years. The fact that I'm comfortable with her having this sort of day is proof that she's not a baby, toddler, or even pre-schooler anymore! She's a big girl! I love my Sophia and will be thinking a lot about her today and taking a bit of a journey through "yesterday" as I remember memories from when she was just my little baby.

And then, there is this fabulous little man, my second-born...
Riley is almost 18 months old! I cannot even believe it. Today will be fun because he and I will have the opportunity to have a lot of one-on-one time. Until Sophia was almost four, it was just her with Jamie and me. Riley has always had to share us. :) He doesn't seem to mind, as he adores his big sister, and well, he knows no different! But, while Sophia is off having her adventure, I'm looking forward to just playing with and enjoying my little boy, who is also no longer my little baby. He has left infancy far behind, and as the days go on he becomes less and less baby and more and more toddler. Memories of his infancy are still very fresh in my mind, as they were not so long ago, and I'll be relishing in those memories today and enjoying making some new ones!

And lastly... Baby #3

What will she look like? Or, will "she" surprise us and be a "he?" I have so much to look forward to, and as I spend the day thinking back on the "baby days" of Soph and Riley, I will be looking forward to what is to come for the baby days of Baby Rose. I'm organizing all my baby clothes today and doing some rearranging of furniture, so nesting is in full force and "babies on the brain" just may be an understatement!

Do you have a special kiddo in your life who is no longer a baby, but, really, will always be your baby??? See, as bittersweet as it is to see the special kids in our life grow-up, I'm reminded of my Mom. Even at my current age of 29 1/2, she still often reminds me that I'll "always be her baby." So, that makes these days much more sweet than bitter!!!

Have a great day!

Some Updates

Riley: We took Riley for his follow-up appointment with the pediatric GI doctor this past Monday. Based on all the tests and evidence we've gathered, it appears as though Riley has a non-allergic immune response to milk protein. There are two (at least, maybe there are more?) types of immune responses, one is allergic - meaning it could result in anaphylactic shock/death and one is non-allergic - meaning it results in negative symptoms, but these symptoms, in and of themselves, are not life-threatening.

So, the plan of action is to withhold all food/drink with milk protein for a time (say a month or two), then slowly reintroduce it to see if Riley still reacts. If not, yippee, he's outgrown it! If so, then we cut it out again for another period of time and start all over. The hope/prayer/expectation, is that he will, in time outgrow this. Only time will tell!

A couple of weeks ago we did reintroduce some dairy, and he definitely has NOT outgrown it at this point.

Sophia: Well, Sophia is just doing great! Healthy and loving life - though maybe a bit stir-crazy from the snowy/cold weather! Jamie took the kids to an International Club event on campus Wednesday and Sophia won a candy bar. Later that evening she announced to me, all on her own volition, that she wanted to share what was left of the candy bar with me. So... awhile later I asked if I could have my bite. Her response:

"Sure! Okay. Mama? I love you. But...

I still want the bigger half. Okay?"

:)

Jamie: Jamie is doing great. Burning the candle at both ends most days, but God is sustaining him. He's such a needed and wonderful support to me as my pregnancy continues on and as I find myself needing more and more help with things. I'm just so thankful for my husband!

Me: I was able to see my primary care physician this past Monday. I am now on a regimen of an allergy pill once a day, a preventative inhaler 3x/day and a new rescue inhaler for when I have an asthma attack. I still have my moments most days where I'm very short of breath, but overall my asthma has improved and I feel confident I can make it to delivery day without any major issues! Praise the Lord!

Wednesday was a day full of contractions for me, some of them very painful! The amount and intensity of them was unusual for me, so I went in to my midwife on Thursday to be checked out. All is well thankfully. I have guidelines to follow for how many contractions are too many and when it would be necessary to go in to be monitored. So far I'm below what would warrant being seen, so it seems like I just need to deal with it. It adds another uncomfortable measure to my days, but at least we're near the end and so I know it won't be forever! I am 34 weeks now, so this sweet baby could make her appearance in as few as 3 weeks - when I'll be considered full-term, or in as many as 8 weeks. I'd love to meet her in about 4 weeks, if I could have my way. :) But, I'll leave that timing up to God, since I know He knows best!

Have a great day!

Creepy Church Sign

What feelings of God does this sign create in your spirit when you read it??

I find it, aside from being totally corny, a bit creepy.

How do you feel about "church signs?"

Valentine's Day

A couple of years ago Jamie and I decided to start a new tradition in our family. We decided we would make Valentine's Day a special family day. We love to spoil each other with little gifts and a special breakfast. It's so fun to have a great excuse to celebrate the love we have for each other. I think it's also beneficial for our kids to see their Mommy and Daddy loving on each other - gives them a lot of security! And who doesn't like to have a reason to spoil their kiddos?? So, this year we started the day out with a breakfast of donuts and OJ and a little exchange of gifts and cards. Jamie, of course, spoiled us girls the most - and he would say, "As it should be!" Here are some pictures of the kiddos enjoying our special morning.

Sophia, smiling ear-to-ear. She received pink roses from Daddy and a fun straw-cup from Mommy, among other little treats.

Riley got a new book from Daddy, a race-car from his sister and a play cell phone from Mommy. His new favorite word is "Wow!" and that was his exclamation upon finding gifts at the breakfast table!

Jamie knew just what kind of donut Sophia would love. Pink and sprinkles!

Chowing down!

"Hey Mom, where is my donut??"

"Ah! Yum, thank you dear Mother!" :)

He's a happy boy!

All decked out in pink and matching her doll, Natalie - waiting to leave for church.

"Yes, Mom, I know I look super dapper, but are all these pictures necessary?"

This picture is a bit blurry, but I just love how they are sitting together so nicely, and even holding hands! Melted my heart.

It was a fun day and we all ate too many sweets, but that's part of the joy. :)

My Valentine

Jamie surprised me this past Saturday with a date night! These tend to be rare for us, so it's always a special treat. The kiddos were scooted off to Grandma Susie and Papa's to be spoiled for the evening, while Jamie and I went to PF Chang's (for the first time!) to spoil ourselves. :) It was so yummy and just a fabulous date. Thank you Jamie!

Digging in to the much recommended lettuce wrap appetizer.

First bite... yum! It did not disappoint!

Who needs the Great W@ll of China when you can have the Great Wall of Chocolate! My favorite part was the strawberry sauce that went with it. What a great pairing!

I made Jamie take a silly picture with food going in his mouth since I had done so with the lettuce wraps. :)

Valentine's Weekend, 2010

Valentine's Weekend, 2003

(I apologize for the awful quality of this picture. Our scanner is on the fritz and so this is a picture of a picture.)

This is our Senior year of University. I was 22, and Jamie was 21. During Christmas break, just a few weeks earlier, we connected on a new level (we'd been "church/youth group" friends since we were 16), as in, when he greeted me the last Sunday of our Christmas break in church my heart raced and flip-flopped. I had a crush!!! I found out much later that Jamie had had a crush on me since we'd met. :) At any rate, we had two "just friends" outings the second half of January, and the feelings just grew each day! The first weekend of February Jamie asked me to be his girlfriend and told me his intentions were to pray and seek the Lord about us pursuing marriage (what a man! God knew I needed a man who could communicate clearly and tell me just what he was thinking. No games in this relationship!). So, on Valentine's Weekend I went to his University (We attended separate schools, so all of our dating was done on weekends.) and this weekend we held hands for the first time (watching a campus-wide movie at the Student Center - "My Big Fat Greek Wedding") and later he told me he loved me. I knew Jamie, and I knew this was yet another confirmation of his intentions towards me. He liked me, he really liked me, and he wanted to marry me! :) Two months later he proposed and and just shy of four months later, we were wed! He was my Valentine in 2003 and he is my Valentine today. Oh how I love him.

What I got...

I'll be working on a post about our weekend later today, complete with pictures. But, in case you're wondering what I ended up getting from my sweet little girl... chocolate! :) Actually, I love reading, and a new "chapter book" would have been delightful, but we're working on a budget here folks. Jamie and I were at Target after our Valentine's date Saturday night; picking up a few things for the following day. We each called Sophia to ask what she'd like for us to choose for the other parent. She told Jamie she wanted to give me chocolate shaped like a flower. So, Jamie found a giant Toblerone chocolate bar in a box with roses on it. I've eaten almost all of it, and I may or may not have dipped quite a bit of it in peanut butter...

What to get a Mom for Valentines' Day

Sophia - Valentine's Morning, last year (2009)

We've been in Valentine's mode the past couple of days and will be for the rest of the weekend. Monday I'll be sure to post about all the fun we've had. We love to take the opportunity to make this little love holiday all about celebrating the love we share as a family. We do our best to make it a family day (though Jamie is taking me out on a date tonight, sans children!). At any rate, the following conversation took place last night in the car.

Sophia: Mom, you always get me gifts for Valentine's Day, but I never get you anything.

Me: Well, you made me a Valentine. That is a special gift for Mommy.

Sophia: No, I think I need to get you a real gift. I just don't know what to get you.

Me: Well, I always love candy or chocolate!!!

long pause, Sophia pondering...

Sophia: Okay! I think I'll get you a chapter book! That is a good Valentine's gift for a Mom!

Me: Okay... (kissing my gift of sweets goodbye... maybe I can still change her mind. :) )

:)

Some favorites

My Sophia -girl.

a) Hearing her sing in the bathroom at night as she gets ready, a song, which she has made up, that goes a little something like this: "Jesus is my Lord, I believe in God, Satan get out of our house because I believe in God!.... etc...."

b) This morning Sophia got in bed with me for morning cuddles and was excited to feel Baby Rose moving all around. She loves her newest sibling so much already and it's a thrill for me to see her excitement at feeling the baby and guessing what body part it might be!

My Riley-boy.

a) The last couple of nights Riley has needed a few extra cuddles and hugs before he'll settle into his crib for bed. I am cherishing these extra moments, as he wraps both arms around me and squeezes me tight, laying his head down on my chest. I know in a couple of months my arms and time will be filled with the needs of a newborn, and my cuddle time with my firstborn son will be harder to come by.

b) Hearing Riley start to talk - absolutely precious!!! When he utters "uh-oh" or "hear you go" - I can't contain my joy, actually none of us can, and Riley gets rewarded with our clapping and cheers! He tries quite a few words now and it's so fun to hear his little voice!

Did you get it too?

Almost exactly one year ago, February 12 I believe, we got a similar snowstorm to what our area experienced this past weekend. Did you get it too??

Last year, I could help with all the crazy shoveling that needed done!

This year, not so much, poor hubby had to bear the task alone.

Last year I bundled up and joined in all the snow-play fun with one very eager little girl!

This year, Sophia was mostly left to entertain herself, as Daddy was busy shoveling and Riley tended to do his own thing (though the following day he did build Soph a snow fort, after-all he is definitely not an "all work and no play" kind of Daddy). :)

Last year I got to be in front of the camera.

This year I stayed behind the camera.

Last year Riley got his first "taste" of snow, as we sat him in a big drift, all bundled up (all 5 1/2 months of him)!

This year, Riley got to actually taste the snow - which he loves, by the way!

Last year, Riley was little more than a lump in the snow. :)

This year he can walk and play, to his great delight!!!