While I was writing last night's post...

....Chad ran to get a couple of things at the store for me.

Two of these items are for me, two are him - bet you can't guess which are which ;)

Keepin' It Real Wednesday

Chad and I went to a Valentine's Day party last weekend. Chad was adorable, and charming, and I was happy to be basking in his presence, without the presence of our boys.

This pleasant evening was overshadowed by the rest of the weekend.

Chad could not do anything right around the house. The kids were especially loud and whiney, and their elbows and knees were especially sharp and belly-seeking. I was snapping, yelling, crying and complaining in utter frustration at the annoyances that surrounded me.

After a couple days of wondering what was wrong with everyone else, I broke down in tears on Sunday night and admitted to an ever-patient Chad that it really was me that was the problem. Then just as I uttered that admittance, a calm settled on me and a thought very clearly came into my head,

"You need some sleep."

I didn't feel that sleepy, but I had spent the week training Oliver to sleep in his own bed all night, which meant getting up four or five times each night. Saturday night was a late one, spent at the party, and top those factors off with regular doses of pregnancy insomnia, and yeah, of course I an irrational mess.

It was 8 o'clock, I didn't feel tired, but to bed I went, and awoke a brand new woman, in very clean house (thanks to Chad.)

On Monday I finally noticed the candy bar that we received at the party.

How appropriate.

One of the saddest things in the world....

......has to be the tragedy of a five year old breaking his piggy bank

- a piggy bank carefully chosen with birthday money

- a piggy bank that housed carefully saved money, and was just brought to preschool for show and tell.

- a piggy bank dropped in a single reckless moment while running away from a naughty brother who was trying to get it.




I am so buying him a new one.

Preparing

I stayed out of the girl's clothes section for quite awhile after the big ultrasound. I don't know if it was the shock of all that pink screaming at me, or the disbelief I felt about having a girl. Whenever someone asked me if I was just SO excited, I would say, "I really just can't believe it yet." My brain was stuck in boy mode. Part of me still expected to pull out the 0-6 month boy bin from the closet one more time and just sort through it sometime before April.

My resistance and disbelief disappeared with the appearance of these little dresses on clearance at Target.

Size newborn

0-3 Months

Part of me wonders if I will look back on the second dress years from now and wonder what I was thinking, but for now I love it.

The spell has been broken and I have no problem shopping for little girls' clothes now. No problem at all.

String Cheese at 3:30

I always get this point in my pregnancy, when I am up at 3:30 in the morning snacking on string cheese and crackers. Well, usually it is grapes too, but Oliver ate all of ours. I am wide awake and thinking of projects I want done around the house, which is also typical of this point of my pregnancies, so let me use this time to share some pregnancy information -just because. If you are bothered by the word placenta, just go ahead and click out of here.

At my beginning of my pregnancy, I found out that there is a new birthing center near us. I am not anti-epidural or anything (considering I have had one with every birth), but the idea of giving birth without IVs and monitors attached the whole time, like they do at this place, is very appealing. Most appealing is that, if everyone goes okay, they let you go home with your baby after four hours. I know there are some women who treasure their time at the hospital, but I am not one of them. The idea of going home and sleeping in my own bed that very night seems like utter and complete bliss. Plus, if I am ever going to "go natural" I think it is going to have to be at a place where epidurals aren't even an option and I am supported by someone who won't even mention the word.

Anyway, this place has very reasonable prices ($4000 for all visits and the birth AT MOST - this is if your insurance won't cover anything), but they don't do ultrasounds there, so I figured I would stick with my current nurse midwife (who only delivers in a hospital) and then just switch over to them after my first ultrasound. Well, at my ultrasound, I was told that my placenta had a succenturiate lobe, which means my placenta was growing in two pieces, with membranes and vessels attaching them. The main placenta was anterior with the lobe running down close to the cervix and then over to the other side of the baby. Or something like that. So what did that mean? If it didn't move, I would need to have a c-section when it came time for the birth, and even if I didn't need a c-section, they would have to make sure the whole placenta came out intact so I wouldn't hemorrhage or anything. Am I saying placenta too much? Are you still there?

So my midwife set up a second ultrasound for me at 28 weeks (and I put off going the birth center because why go if I am just going end up needing a c-section?), which then got cancelled because of snow, so I ended up having it at 29 weeks. What they find? Absolutely nothing. Not only is my placenta far away from my cervix, it is all in one piece. No succenturiate lobe. Did it magically grow back together? Um no. The technician told me that if you happen to have a Braxton Hicks contraction while you are getting an ultrasound, it can make it look like you have a succenturiate lobe. Hmmm. By the way, she turned on the 3D during both ultrasounds and could only get a nice blobby view of everything in my uterus expect the baby, so even though I got two ultrasounds, I don't have any cool pictures of my little girl. Also, the techician never said anything about the sex at the second ultrasound. I know that isn't what she was checking, but I wish that I would have asked her to double check, and I keep hearing stories since then about technicians who were wrong the first time. All I have to comfort me is that I called the baby a girl and she didn't correct me. Folks, that would be really bad if this baby was a boy. Not because I wouldn't love a boy, but I am emotionally and mentally prepared for a girl - not to mention the girl clothes I have been buying.

So now I have no worries about giving birth at the birthing center. We went and took a tour a couple of days after that ultrasound and talked to one of the midwives there. I love it. We turned our insurance information in to one of their billing people, who was supposed to find out how much it would cost us. This place is considered "out of network" and we would need to pay a higher deduction and percentage of the cost than normal because of that. Since we don't have a birthing center "in network" they were going try to get an "out of network" exception for us, which I guess they have successfully done with several patients. Unfortunately they came back and told us that our policy doesn't allow them to request the exception - we needed to. Chad called in yesterday to do that, and now we are waiting to find out if we will get it. Either way, we will find out what our out-of-pocket expense would be, and either way it could very well be less expensive than using the hospital.

Is it really all about the money? Not really - but I don't care enough about "going natural" to do it if it is going to cost more than giving birth at the hospital. It looks like it will be less expensive at the birthing center, and let's face it - if it is, I am going to demand a really big push present from Chad :o) So, long story, but I am 32 weeks today and I don't know where I am giving birth!

My placenta is still anterior, which I guess sometimes makes it harder for the mom to feel the baby kick, but for me it just makes it harder to feel from the outside. Chad just felt her move a couple of weeks ago, but I feel her beating my insides relentlessly every night at around 8:30. At my last ultrasound she had her head and feet on my right side with her behind on my left, and I am just as uncomfortable as that sounds.

I have been having soooo many more Braxton Hicks contractions this pregnancy than the others, and sometimes they border on being painful. It is strange and keeps giving me the feeling that this baby is going to come early (which freaks me out, seeing what my sister went through when her daughter was born premature), but I know that I will regret admitting that feeling when I am at 42 weeks and still haven't given birth. I won't even allow myself to even fantasize about a March baby, even though I am due on April 2. Colin keeps telling me that I am going to have the baby on what was his due date - April 14th. That way he would have been born on this baby's due date and she would be born on his. He thinks that would be pretty funny, but yeah...I am missing the humor there.

Like I have said before, I am really huge. I'm not just saying that either - I really am. The main reason I mind this is because everyone thinks I am much further along than I really am, and that makes this pregnancy feel like it is lasting an eternity. When I stand up after sitting down for a long time, my back hurts and I waddle for about ten minutes. I have been trying really hard the last couple of weeks to stay active and build up whatever muscles I need to support my growing girth. I painted and re-did the toy room last week all by myself, and I have still been using the elliptical (for short amounts of time) and playing Just Dance 2 on the Wii. It isn't much, but I am trying and I can tell it helps. Since getting heartburn over the holidays and Chad's birthday weekend, I have also been trying to eat better, and I haven't had to take Tums since then. It is so much more motivating to eat right if it makes you feel so much better.

What else? My skin is so dry and itchy that I have used up two bottles of lotion this month. I have been waking up with night sweats. I am grumpy in the evenings and I am sure Chad is tired of hearing my unintentional grunts and moans and groans.

Two months left, and I am ready to never be pregnant again (who knows!) but I am also happy to have the little one in there for awhile yet, safe and healthy.

So there you have it - all the information you never needed to know :o)

Oh, and if placentas gross you out, you aren't going to want to see this. Don't worry - I will never be that "crunchy."

And a nice "little" picture, taken on Thursday, to prove my earlier point.

Friday Evening

Sometimes toddlers need the weekend just as much as their daddies.

Chinese New Year Recap

The younger boys and I went to Colin's celebration yesterday. Colin's teacher practically swooned when Oliver walked through the door and couldn't believe how much he looked like Colin. I think she loves our Colin. Chad told me that after their evening performance, she and Colin were holding hands the whole way back to the classroom. Anyway, the classroom party had lots of great Chinese food, which all three of the boys love, and all of the kids at the performance were impressive. *I forgot the add earlier that I was really worried about Ollie's behavior after his performance at the piano recital, so I loaded up the iPod with Dora and Diego and took it for him. It worked great.*

We love being a part of Smith Academy! Next year we will be in a new (to us) building and our name will be E.E. Waddell Academy, and though it will be a great move, I am sure I will look back on these days of classroom trailers and old bathrooms with a little bit of nostalgia. That is, afterall, what I grew up with!

Onto a video of Colin's class performance. My apologies for the length. For some reason, even though I have done it in the past, I couldn't figure out how to cut the length, and you get all the music snafus included. You probably can't hear it either, but Colin and a girl from his class introduce their class in the beginning.

Happy Chinese New Year!

Colin was pretty excited this morning when he left for school.

Today is Chinese New Year, which means he will be having a classroom party with noodles, dumpling and fortune cookies, followed by a performance with all the Chinese immersion students. It's a big day at Smith Academy today, with another performance this evening. Wish me luck as I try to get a 2 year old to sit through over an hour of what sounds like utter jibberish to him (and me.)

You should be excited too. Why? You can use this coupon to get some free firecracker chicken at Panda Express today. Hop on over.

What Works For Us: Family Scripture Study

We have tried several different ways of studying the scriptures as a family, but could never get the kids to sit still and never got into really good habits until this year. Since I was always looking for ideas, I thought I would share what has finally worked for us. I know it won't work for everyone, and please don't feel like I am saying this is what everyone should do, but here you go:

First, what we have tried in the past that didn't work for us:

*Reading right before bed. We would get the kids bathed and in their PJ's, and then read with them before tucking them in. This didn't work because they tend to get really rowdy at the drop of the hat during this time of the day - looking for any excuse to prolong the bedtime routine. Being calm during scripture study just became one more thing to fight them on every night.

*Reading the scripture stories online from the children's versions, as found here. This worked better than some methods, but the problem with it was that not everyone had a place to sit, and it quickly got old to stand in front of the screen. Attention spans were very limited.

*Reading one verse a night. It was better than nothing, but I just don't know how much anyone got out of it.

*Reading before school. It worked some mornings, but other mornings....woo-eee. Nope.

So, onto what does work for us:

*We now clean up the dinner table and immediately gather in our front room to read. Since we are pretty good about having dinner together every night, it is an easy transition from the table to the couch. The kids are not fighting us at that time of the evening, everyone is pretty calm, and it is easy to remember. All our study materials stay in that room so we are always prepared.

*We read from New Testament Stories (shown below), which is put into easy language and has pictures. We bought it off the LDS Online Store for $7. Gabe usually reads from the book and then Colin reads directly from the scriptures that are listed below each little section. This works well for us because the kids are hearing everything twice -first with easy to understand language, and again in scriptural language. They are both highly involved so their attention doesn't wander, and Colin gets great practice at looking up specific scriptures. We decided to do the New Testament this year because that is what is being studied in gospel doctrine, so Chad and I are studying it in more depth on our own as well.

*We pretty much let Ollie do whatever he wants. Sometimes he even watches Dora on Chad's i-pod so that he will be quiet and calm. For now, this is part of what makes it all work :o)

A few things that don't work well with this method:
*If we eat out, we totally forget to read.
*I don't know what we will do when sports start back up and we aren't always able to have that time free in the evening.
*When Chad travels I am pretty tired after dinner.

I think the keys here are being prepared, finding the right time, and above all, consistency - like Elder Bednar said:

Each family prayer, each episode of family scripture study, and each family home evening is a brushstroke on the canvas of our souls. No one event may appear to be very impressive or memorable. But just as the yellow and gold and brown strokes of paint complement each other and produce an impressive masterpiece, so our consistency in doing seemingly small things can lead to significant spiritual results. “Wherefore, be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work. And out of small things proceedeth that which is great” (D&C 64:33). Consistency is a key principle as we lay the foundation of a great work in our individual lives and as we become more diligent and concerned in our own homes.

We are still far from perfect, and Chad and I have noticed that if we go a few nights without reading, our family starts getting pretty grumpy with each other. We are gaining a firm belief that studying together brings the Spirit into our homes, and our kids are gaining a true appreciation for scripture study.

So, tell me, what have you found that works for you? I know that I have some aunts and uncles out there who have been there/done that, so please share!

Keepin' It Real Wednesday

Life with boys.

How do we celebrate? FOOD!

When I was looking over the pictures from Chad's birthday celebrations, I had to laugh to myself. Everything was centered around food!

There was another thing that made me laugh - our cheapo date on Chad's birthday. I mentioned the other day that a week after we moved to Charlotte, for his birthday I got Chad a pair of jeans (from Walmart) and a new phone for our apartment. For dinner that night we used a gift certificate from Papa John's for a free pizza that we had gotten as a part of a welcome package in the mail. Chad had just graduated from college, we had just moved across the country and had not yet been reimbursed for it (this was back when companies actual did that!), and Chad hadn't received his first paycheck, so we were absolutely broke. It was okay though - actually one of the most exciting times of our lives really - because we knew that things were going to be better very soon, and even though it was a lame celebration, Chad did not mind in the least.

However, we laugh about that birthday and sometimes Chad teases me about it...which brings me back to this birthday. I bought him a hoodie from Old Navy (which he is wearing in all these pictures) and some sweats from Target. We had Bobby and Sabina babysit our kids for us while we went to Outback using a gift card that Chad got for Christmas from a colleague, and then we went to a movie for free using coupons that we got from the back of cereal boxes. Six years have passed, we make twice as much, but Chad just hasn't changed that much! Everyone knows that free food tastes better anyway!

So here we were on his birthday - Bloomin' Onion, my delicious wedge salad (don't worry, that was just a side, I haven't changed on you either), and ribs. YUM! We had a wonderful time.

Chad had a ton of work this week, but managed to work from home the day after his birthday, and Colin had school off that day, so we did our family celebration then.

I made sausage and monkey bread for breakfast. In this picture we are all waiting for him to finish a work call so he can join us. We ended up starting without him, which was good because he didn't get off the phone for another 40 minutes.

Poor guy!



We went to Red Robin for a late lunch. I couldn't stomach a burger, so I tried this fish sandwich. Even though it is fried fish it sounded like it would make me feel better than red meat. The first two bites were awesome, and then the breading on the fish got soggy and it was kind of gross. And yes, I got a salad on the side instead of fries. What is going on?! I will tell you what - pregnancy has not been kind to me lately and Tums are becoming a close friend. Chaddy got the faithful Whisky River and was as happy as ever with it.

For the first time in probably two years they didn't bring out a "surprise" birthday sundae. The kids were pretty bothered by that. We stopped on the way home to get some ice cream to go with his birthday cake.

I was planning on making him a cheesecake, but when I was at Target I saw this peanut butter brownie mountain thing that looked perfect for him, so I got that instead.


And finally, the only part of the festivities that wasn't about food - we lit some fireworks to celebrate the most popular member of our family.

1/20/2011

Happy Birthday to the love of my life, the person who makes me laugh most, the biggest blessing in my life,

My Chad,

who just gets better with every year.

We love you.

Writing a post in 20 minutes or less

I don't have much to say folks. I know you all love blog posts that begin like that...they are sure to be so entertaining, but there you have it. My mind is January, third-trimester, brain-dead-ee-o. I read back on my blog yesterday and have seen been chastising myself since for not keeping up like I used to or putting in the effort that I used to. So here is the keep-up, without the effort. May the effort soon follow.

What is going on in our lives:

Chad's birthday is this week. He says not to get him anything. I told him that if I at least got him a pair of jeans and a plug-in phone that one year when we had been living in Charlotte for a week and were broke, I was sure gonna get him something this year. My goodness.

Got to go to the temple last week, thanks to my parents. As always, it had been way too long. We ended up in a spanish-speaking session, which was really okay because it meant we got to add headphones into the mix. Well, I did.

I think Gabe gets the same winter blues that I do. I really need to find a way to get him out of his funk. He is not happy these days. His favorite things lately are word searches, Harry Potter, and Spongebob.

Ollie is getting over an ear infection. He now seems symptom-free, but if you ask him how he is, he will furrow his brows, frown and say, "I'm sick" even if he has been scooting wildly around the house. He has been back into mischief lately and is now tall enough to reach the water dispenser on the fridge.

We have been letting the boys ride their scooters in the house since Christmas because of the bad weather. One of the many benefits of wood floors! No broken bones or furniture yet.

I am officially uncomfortable, and I already can't fit into to some of the clothes that I wore at the end of my pregnancy with Gabe. Strangers are already asking me how much longer I have. 11 weeks people! It's not even soon enough to start a countdown. I think it would have bothered me with my first or second pregnancy, but it makes me laugh now. They always follow it up with asking if it is my first.

I got to sit around talking to Colin for a half hour tonight while Chad put the other two down. That kid is growing up so quickly, but is still such an innocent sweet boy in so many ways. We talked about who his best friends are at school (all girls still) and what his favorite "special" is at school (PE). He got new primary teachers on Sunday and when asked to tell them two things about himself, he said, "I have too much energy" and "I'm good at math."

20 minutes are up! Have a good night.

Keepin' It Real Wednesday

Last night we drove home from McDonald's with the kids. We had been sledding at my parent's house before that. Sounds like a fun evening, right? Well, it had been the opposite of fun (tantrums, yelling, snot-nosed punks), and as we drove, I asked Chad if he could put off the three hours of work that he needed to do that evening, so that I could have some time away from the kids. He told me to take all the time that I needed and then asked,

"When do I get my time?"

He was kidding, of course, but I stared out the window and asked him if he really thought I was in the mood for jokes.

I got the time I needed and used it wisely to peruse facebook, where I saw a status from my next-door neighboor stating that school had been cancelled for Wednesday. Heaven help us. Really. Please help us.

I consider myself a homebody, but this is getting ridiculous. We are on our 12th day in the year 2011 and so far I have spent 9 of those days completely or partially confined to our house because of injury, sickness, or weather. As I write this, a chapped-faced Oliver is breathing his snotty breath into my face.

I keep picturing Ma Ingalls, cooped up in a tiny dugout on the banks of Plum Creek, snowed in with her three kids. If she can do it, I can. Right?

I gotta admit though, that this picture does nothing to console me, as I replace her face with mine and then picture myself beating my head on the dirt wall and screaming, as my kids look on, open-mouthed.

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Date: Cabo Fish Taco

Since we heard that Cabo Fish Taco was on Triple D, Chad and I have been dying to go. Good Baja-style Mexican in Charlotte is a rarity, and it also happens to be the one of our favorite types of food. However, Cabo Fish Taco is a good half hour drive from our house, so we just never took the time to go. We finally went there for a date over Christmas break, and we were not disappointed.

Well, I take that back. We were disappointed with their chips and corn salsa. Fresh tortilla chips can be one of my favorite things in the world, and these were hit and miss, all in the same basket. The corn salsa was tasty by itself, but on corn tortilla chips? Just wasn't quite right.

Chad got the BBQ Mahi Tacos - "Grilled mango BBQ Mahi-Mahi tacos stuffed with Cabo slaw, tomato, avocado, mixed cheeses & finished with our cilantro white sauce." Oh my. A lot of different flavors were stuffed into those tacos, and the pay-off is a taco unlike any taco you will ever have. And can I just tell you that the tortillas were the most perfect I have had in North Carolina? Here is a clip from Triple D about these very tacos.

I ordered the beer-battered shrimp tacos. My tacos were much simpler in taste, but the taste and textures together were perfection. The shrimp were cooked perfectly, and the batter had just the right crisp to it. There was a lot less going on, but I they were still just as delicious as Chad's. By the way, we each had one of each of the tacos - one more thing I love about my husband is eagerness to try new food right along with me, and we almost always trade plates half-way through.

The sides were pretty mediocre, but it it really didn't matter. If those tacos were good enought to make me forgive the chips, I can certainly forgive the sides.

Chad and I haven't been this excited about a new restaurant find in a long time. We have talked about it over and over again since going and even though it is half an hour away and we have no coupons for it, we will be back. SOON.

Cabo Fish Taco, located in the NoDa neighborhood.

Also forgiven? The hipster-doofus neighborhood. Tell me where the phrase "hipster-doofus" comes from and you get some brownie points from me.