9.28.2011

Bump It

I have been feeling so yucky that even my drive to blog has felt like a chore.  But, life hasn't stopped and I still have lots to share!  So here it goes...

I am 11 weeks pregnant now and this experience is already completely opposite from my first pregnancy.  With Londyn, I was a little nauseas in the beginning but more so... just flat out exhausted the entire 9 months.  This time around, I have been really nauseas, super tired, headaches and achey all over.

On a more positive note, we got to see our growing baby at our first ultrasound.  Londyn loves TV a little too much, so when she saw the baby on the screen- she called it "the baby show".  It was such an amazing experience having both Andrew and Londyn there.  Lulu already loves the baby so much and the first thing she said when the peanut showed up on the screen was "cute baby".  I'm not so sure how cute our little one is at the moment, since it still looks a little alien-like but- it was amazing to see it's little arms and legs wiggling around.  I can't wait to start feeling the baby kick and move!  The ultrasound showed that baby is healthy, has a strong heartbeat and confirmed a due date of April 14th.  Although it was wonderful to finally see a real baby growing inside my belly, I think my favorite part of the ultrasound was seeing Londyn react.  After the ultrasound, she kept telling us that the baby show was FUN!  It is so stinkin' cute to see her get excited about the baby.
  
Andrew was home most of last week and it was such a relief to have an extra set of hands and most of all, his company.  He completed lots of chores/projects around the house, took care of Londyn so I could nap and relax, spent time with me at night when I was feeling the worst and even out on a date Saturday afternoon.  Having spent so much time apart this Summer, it was nice to just spend time together... being a normal family that has dinner together, puts the kid to bed together and sees each other at night.  It was the perfect ending to the Summer season!

The bump.




9.26.2011

Nay-Nay Cute!

Londyn has been blessed with super cute curls and I'm crossing my fingers she won't grow out of them!  But I've always wondered what her lovely locks would look like straight... so after her bath tonight, I decided to play beauty shop (one of the fun perks of having a girl)!  I swear, the poor kid hasn't gone a day without her hair done since the day she was born... even when she didn't have any hair to do, I threw a headband on her bald little head.  Hence how fabulously cooperative she is with doing her hair every morning.  So, when I told her we were going to play with her hair, she was all for it!  I got my round brush out and went to town... followed by a few swipes of the flat iron and of course, my signature trademark... back combing.  Yes, I ratted my 2 year olds hair.

The whole time I was doing her hair, the both of us could not stop laughing!  Lately, she has been calling herself "Nay-Nay" so after we were done with her new do, she flashed her pearly whites, put her hands on her squishy cheeks and said "Nay-Nay cute!"

I'm still not sure if I'm diggin' the Beiber hair on my usually curly cued diva, but it was definitely a fun time as just us girls!


9.12.2011

Canning Apprentice

So far this year, my domesticated diva of a sister has taught me how to bake bread, grow a garden and today, can 14 jars of peaches... ALL for the first time!  My sister is the best teacher, mostly because she is so patient and I am so stubborn.  Every year, she asks me if I want to can, juice or make jam with her and my usual response is something like "uhhh... no, maybe next year."  But with my growing family and talented sister, I would be an idiot not to take her offer!  I am always so amazed at her skills in the kitchen and if some of that talent can rub off on me, I'll be one lucky little sis!  Today, I deemed her the Canning Queen and myself, the Canning Apprentice.  Thanks Jenelle!

First Zucchini of the Summer

Canning peaches was not near as lengthy or difficult as I thought it would be.  I enjoyed every step, from peeling the peaches to hearing the lids pop when they were done!  When I got home, it was just a sweet feeling as I placed the jars I had just canned on the shelves with the rest of our food storage.  Even though it's only 14 jars of pure gold, it's absolutely and undoubtedly rewarding!  Honestly though... I don't think they stand a chance of lasting very long in our home.  They're toast!


Dance Class: Take 2

Today was Londyn's Ballet & Tap dance class.  I was nervous after our experience last week, on top of the fact that Londyn said "no dance class" this morning.  But last night, she danced around in her new tap shoes for a good 30 minutes and loved it.  So, our chances were looking good!


 Daddy came with us this time!

Lulu loved her teacher Miss Rochelle and only had one other little girl in her class.  I think she was overwhelmed with her tumbling class last week as it had about 6 other kids in it.


This class is called Little Movers and the first half is ballet, while the second half is tap.  I loved how her teacher switched activities frequently.  It was the perfect pace for Londyn's short attention span.

Not one tear was shed and after the first half, I snuck out of the classroom without her even giving one worried glance!




I loved watching our little dancer have fun in her class!  I am so proud of her for being such a big girl and especially following all of the directions.  I can't wait for her to try tumbling again on Thursday!

9.10.2011

Girls Just Want to Have Fun

It has been just us girls this weekend as Andrew has been at a 4 day long drill.  So I decided to have all my nieces over for a back-to-school party!  These girls are such a big part of my life and I am so lucky to have them so close.  When I was younger, I loved throwing sleepovers and parties for them but with married life and motherhood, it's not as easy.  I am realizing that these girls are growing into young women, and they aren't always going to want to hang out with me!  So spoiling them is the only answer.

No boys.  
Pizza, candy, cookies & ice cream.
Lots of laughs.
Pillows, blankets & a movie.

Best part... each other.






The aftermath... and all worth it.

9.08.2011

Dance Class

For the last week, Londyn and I have been talking about going to dance class soon.  Even though I knew she didn't have a clue what dance class was, she has been super excited whenever it was mentioned.
We set out her dance clothes and picked out her hair bows before bed last night.  We were ready!

This morning went perfectly smooth as Lulu woke up in a super happy mood!  She pranced around in her leotard, saying "cute Lulu" and "go to dance class?  now?!"


 My only fear has been Londyn's shyness lately.  She has been so clingy that she can't even make it through nursery (with Grandma as her nursery leader) without crying hysterically for mommy or daddy.  She has been going to nursery without any flaw since she was 16 months old, so this new sensitivity is really foreign for us. 

Upon arrival, Londyn was still in good spirits and not acting overly shy.  While her teacher was pulling out the mats before class, Lulu decided to run around the classroom and check herself out in the floor to ceiling mirrors.

Once class started, her attitude took a turn for the worse and she did not want to have anything to do with dance class.  She started crying hysterically and saying "no dance class!" and "I go home!"... yikes.  I knew it was too good to be true.  Her teacher suggested that I come and join in on the class... but she wasn't falling for that either.  She then recommended that Londyn just watch through the window from outside the class.  My kid got kicked out on the first day!  We'll see how she does next week... but it's not looking promising.

From the outside, looking in...


9.03.2011

8 Weeks & Counting

It's official!  Londyn is going to be a big sister!

8/4/11: 3 weeks, 5 days
I have just been having a strange gut (get it?) feeling that I'm pregnant... and since we have been trying for a few months now, this is probably the tenth stick I've peed on.  But, this time I finally saw the little pink line!
I have always wanted to come up with some super cute and creative way to tell my husband that we are preggers... but that would take patience, and that is something I SO do not have.  This is how it went... I came out of the bathroom, probably smiling way too big and said "are you ready to be a daddy again?"  I then proceeded with an impromptu the-test-is-positive-and-I-really-am-pregnant dance.  Andrew laughed and looked at me like I had three heads.

8/5/11: 3 weeks, 6 days
I have had a nasty cold and major chubbiness going on.  I had these exact same symptoms before I found out I was pregnant with Londyn.  I was shocked to discover that sinus congestion/cold is a common symptom of pregnancy... who knew?
The chubby look is my least favorite part in the early stages.  I started showing at around 6 weeks with Londyn... we were living in Utah and I would send my mom and sister pictures of my belly.  I cried to Andrew because they didn't believe that I could be showing that early.  I remember them asking if I was taking pictures of someone else's pooch!  When I came home for Christmas at about 9 weeks, they were finally convinced because I already looked 6 months pregnant.  All throughout my pregnancy, people (even strangers) would comment on my large bod and how it MUST be twins... Little did we know that I was going to give birth to a 9 lb. 5 oz. chunk!
Last time I gained 60 pounds during pregnancy!  I wonder if it had anything to do with the countless super-sized meals of 10 piece chicken nuggets, fries & diet cokes.  I ate... ate... and ate a ton.  To top it off, I had about as much motivation to exercise as a beached whale.
This time around, I am determined to stay active, eat healthy and listen to my body.  I am still struggling with the changes my body has made after having a baby the first time, so I want to try really hard to take care of what I've got this time around!  Not to mention, I have an active 2 year old that will keep me on my toes, whether I want to or not.
As for my feelings and emotions on having another baby... I still can't believe it!  I am so happy!  It's round two and we know more of what to expect.  Londyn is ready to have a playmate and baby to love on.  She will be almost three when the baby comes!  I have seen so many of my friends and their newborns recently, which has just made the baby itch that much stronger!  Hopefully I can still remember that feeling when I've only gotten about 2 hours of sleep at a time, haven't showered for 36 hours and my 3 year old is begging to eat something other than hot dogs or mac n' cheese... hopefully.
My only initial fear of having another baby... is just that, having another baby.  I can't even believe that I went through 54 hours of labor and delivery with Londyn.  SO many factors in that pregnancy and delivery were wrong and if it weren't for my mom and sister's vivid memory, I wouldn't even be able to list all of them.
This time, I WILL make sure that I am 100% confident in my doctor.  No doula, no nurse midwife, no doctor not measuring me every visit or checking the size of the baby when I am way huge and then finding out I'm overdue AFTER the baby is born.  No being delivered by a student nurse midwife and being her first delivery ever without an overseeing physician in charge.  No discouraging a C-section after my water being broken and only being dilated to a 3 for over 2 DAYS.  No pushing for 4 hours with the epidural worn off because the idiot STUDENT nurse midwife doesn't know how to deliver a baby.  No no no.  I realize labor is LABOR... but c'mon, that was just pure misery.
But... I'm not going to lie, the product of all that insanity was worth it.  I held that little girl in my arms and I forgot every one of those last 50-some-odd hours.

8/13/11: 5 weeks
Today we had our very first yard sale... need I say more?  After it was over, I was beyond beat.  Pregnancy and a yard sale is a recipe for a 3 hour long afternoon nap.

8/14/11: 5 weeks, 1 day
After church today, we had a big dinner with my whole family to celebrate the August birthdays, Andrew and my nephew Kyler.  We decided that since everyone would be together, this would be the perfect time to make our big announcement.  Londyn was wearing a shirt that I ironed on the words "Big Sister" in rhinestone wording, with a cardigan sweater over top.  As irreverent as it sounds, we took the sweater off during the prayer over the food so she would be ready to reveal when everyone opened their eyes.  After the prayer, we announced that Londyn had something to show everyone and Andrew turned her around to show off her shirt.  We definitely got the reaction we were hoping for, because everyone was so surprised!

8/16/11: 5 weeks, 3 days 


8/31/11: 7 weeks, 4 days
Pros: not puking.
Cons: exhausted, nauseas, cold symptoms and super sensitive to smells

Londyn plays with her babies for numerous hours each day.  She feeds them with her sippy cups, changes their diapers and tucks them in for "nigh night".  When asked where our baby is, she says "mama tummy".  Sometimes she lifts her shirt up and says "baby tummy".

9/2/11: 7 weeks, 6 days
Today was the beginning of many pokes and pushes over the next 7 months.  I had my first visit at the OB/GYN office and I soon remembered the drill of peeing in a cup and letting go of my personal space, while it is completely invaded.
I won't see the obstetrician until I am 12 weeks, but I was able to see the Nurse Practicitioner, who was really nice and comforting.  Considering Londyn was a tank, at 9 lbs. 5 oz., they surprised me with a 1 hour glucose test for gestational diabetes.  I thought it was way too early for something like this!  But hopefully, the results will be just fine like my last pregnancy.

9/3/11: 8 weeks
I have NEVER EVER liked cereal with milk in my life, but as of lately - I am having one bowl for breakfast and even one at night, after Lulu goes to bed.








9.01.2011

Londyn Lately: 26 months

I have been sitting here with my fingers anxiously resting on the keyboard, trying to put how much I love my daughter into words and I am absolutely speechless.  

So... take a look for yourself, and you will fall in love with her too!

Gma Milne is dogsitting for my sister and Lulu loves taking her for walks.  My sister's dog is names Maggie but Londyn calls her "Moggie."  She tells the dog "go potty Moggie" and "c'mon Moggie."  I think she likes being in control... poor dog.

Londyn LOVES her new winter coat from Gma Milne.  Can you tell?


Seriously?  This kid makes me so happy to be her mommy.

I took Londyn to play at her favorite toy store today, and she told me she was making a cake.  How cute is the oven mitt?