5 months and a diaper bag

I'm 5 months preggie today! I am feeling glorious (mostly). My face is so clear and I only wish I could have skin like this when I'm not pregnant! My hair is "doing right" for me and I only wish that would last too. Sleep is still pretty good and I don't have to pee that much (tmi I know). My belly is just big enough to get me lots of attention and smiles and mostly warm wishes and lots of the same questions over and over. It's a great time in the pregnancy! My favorite food I'm loving right now is coffee ice cream straight from the carton and also made into a shake. Oh so good. But I have noticed that I crave just about whatever is mentioned in my earshot. It's best not to talk about food around me right now unless you have some to share. Here's my 5 month shot:

This is a non-pregnancy top I had and I love how the buttons follow the curve of my tummy!

Also, in a previous post I talked about buying fabric to make a diaper bag. I started on it last night after debating back and forth whether to pay a lady $30 to make it for me. I just couldn't stand to part with that $30 when I knew I could probably figure it out and do it myself. I have definitely figured out that sewing is dangerous for me....once I start a project I can't stop till it's done. I worked for 3 1/2 hours last night and then this morning started again around 7:45 and finished at about 5 this afternoon, with a few breaks in between. Before I show the pictures I just want to say, I LOVE THIS BAG! It is made to order. I got to "design" exactly how I wanted this bag to look. I wanted to different fabrics for the handles and also changed some of the fabrics parts on the front and back so they are slightly different. I used 5 different fabrics in all and love how they all coordinate! In case you want to know the name of the fabric it's by Amy Butler and it's the Midwest Modern 2 grouping. I love love love the fabric. If you're really astute you'll notice that it's the same fabric I used to spell "boy" on the shirt I wore to tell everyone what I was having. I'm contemplating either making some piece or pieces of clothing for Levi and/or myself or even the girls out of the leftovers....maybe even a small quilt for Levi. Who knows??? Anyway, the pattern was mostly easy to figure out and I'm proud to say that I didn't have to use the seam ripper once! So, here's the pictures:

Lots of pockets(12 to be exact!)...this is what sold me on this diaper bag pattern. My last one had no pockets so it was just a jumbled mess in the bottom. I am going to need some organization!

Oh how I love customizing burp cloths!

The lovely pregnant model showing how it sits on the shoulder. Just the right size and can be put on without having to use the other arm to get it up on the shoulder.

Sugar and Spice and all things nice....

...that's what Christmas parties are made of!

I just returned from helping in Elle's class as they had their big Christmas party. It was a lot of fun. The gingerbread houses were a lot of fun for the kids to make and they got to just go wild with all the candy! What a dream come true (for me too :) After they made the houses, they got to celebrate the holiday further by beating Frosty the Snowman to death. It was a little sadistic to me, but the kids and teacher seemed delighted....freaky. After that they got to eat fruit and veggie snacks (very smart homeroom mom) and then play Christmas Bingo. Then they were all set loose in their sugar stupor to go home and have tummy aches for the rest of the night. What a great party!

The Little Things

If you ever visit my actual blog, you will see a column of The Little Things; things that are so tiny and many times unnoticeable but that I am so very thankful for and/or that I just love! Lately, like in the last two weeks, there have just been little things here and there that have been out of my hands and turned out really well. Here they are:

1. Last week I was feeling pretty exhausted as I went out running errands with Ava. I almost fell asleep pushing the buggy in Target. I still had a full grocery run to make before heading home and knew I had to act drastically. I sold one of Ava's kidneys and bought the smallest cup of coffee, a vanilla latte, at Starbucks. It just so happened that they were out of the size of cup I needed so I got an "upgrade" for the same price. I just about jumped out of my shoes with excitement and if nothing else, gave the Starbucks girl something to laugh about with how excited I was at such a little thing.

2. I found the cutest ornament for Levi today(see above--it will go in his room once it's ready because it will match the colors) as well as a few others and they were all 60% off...awesome.

3. We broke down and bought Elle some more Sunday dresses, panty hose, and shoes for church so she wasn't having to wear her sleeveless summer dresses with sandals in the 40 degree weather. Sunday morning rolled around and there was not a single crisis about finding a dress that fit, finding a winter dress, finding a sweater, finding shoes that fit and were appropriate for winter, or finding panty hose that didn't have a huge hole in them. This is usually a huge ordeal every Sunday morning.

4. We took family pictures for Christmas and I L O V E how they turned out. I always have an idea in my head of how I want them to look and my ideas are usually way better than what actually happens, but I truly love how they turned out. Can't post them yet.....

5. I am making a diaper bag for Levi from some fabric I fell in love with a month ago. The fabric was $9.50 a yard...this is really expensive to me. I was going to need around 3 yards. I didn't get the fabric because it was just so highly priced. I went back to the fabric store again a few days ago and all of the ones I liked were on the sale rack for $5.99 a yard. Again I screamed and jumped up and down and gave the lady that owned the place something to laugh about. I can't wait to complete this bag and show it. I truly think it will be my favorite bag EVER.

6. I realized a few days ago that now that Elle was in Kindergarten, I actually needed to buy a gift for her teacher. I found the perfect gift and it was on sale! Woo hoo, plus I had coupons and store credits so it was just about free!!!

7. We stayed under our budget for Christmas for our girls this year and that just feels awesome!

8. We paid off Elle's hospital bill from birth. They took off $700 for us to settle the account and then my MIL paid the rest and that is such a BIG blessing!

9. We paid off the dr's bill for 9 months of maternity appointments which was A HUGE bill. We paid it off early! We tightened up big time and didn't have to take out of our emergency fund!

10. I have had a few women offer me their hand-me-down clothes for baby Levi and that has taken a load off of my shoulders since I don't think he'll want to wear all pink.

11. I looked up the consignment sales that I go to, to get the girl's clothes and usually in the spring they do the sales right around Elle's birthday which won't work, plus Levi will be born right at that time too. This year they shifted them back to March so I will be able to go to those sales to get the things I still need for Levi without having to buy brand new as well as buying Elle summer clothes!

Okay I think I could think of other things, but these were the ones swimming around in my head. I think it is no coincidence that when you are looking for the positive, you find it. And it wouldn't be right for me to post all of this and say I'm lucky. I'm blessed and I know that there is only One who I can thank for all of these "little things."

Pull out the Christmas Sweaters...

Shawn wore this shirt to the church Christmas party this past weekend. I loved that he was showing his sense of humor! Everyone thought it was great!

Now that the firestorm of the Gender ID has settled a bit, I can get back to "regular" life. Since last Wednesday, I have been eating, sleeping and breathing boyness. I truly did not sleep well for about 4 days and went to bed really late every night because my mind was racing with all the to-do lists and boy ideas. Now, it's settling in and I'm feeling ecstatic and calm...at the same time. We have decided for sure that Levi will be this babies name. We started calling him that to the girls and they both loved it, though Ava goes back and forth between calling him Ezra, Eli, and "What's your babies name going to be called?" She cracks me up when she's not making me scream.

The girls did their traditional ornament painting a few days ago and showcased their unique styles. They loved getting to do their own thing with no help from me. I loved giving them that freedom to create with no boundries.

Last night I hosted Bunco at my house. This marked the start of our 3rd year of this and I have to say it was a wonderful start. Instead of drawing a name to win the big basket of goodies, we all decided that the hostess picks the theme and then gets that basket. My theme was Sugar and Spice; all things peppermint and cinnamon. I loved my basket. I got some of the cutest things and lots of little things I wouldn't every buy for myself because they were luxuries, but were wonderful to receive as a gift! We have one more little party to go before Christmas and that is for our closest neighbors. We are going to do an ornament exchange game and finger foods.

Christmas shopping for the girls is totally done! Woo hoo! Shawn has 2 tiny things for his stocking and that's it. We are going much much lighter this year since we have the doctor and hospial bills, bunk beds, and a new baby all coming in the next few months.

Enjoy these last 2 1/2 weels before the big day. I am relishing each day. I am feeling great, and everyone is healthy and I really couldn't hope for much more!

And the shopping begins

Shawn surprised me with a gift tonite. It had the sweetest card about having a new son and the camera not being able to keep up with all the moments. It still sounds weird...the word "son." But I love it more and more every hour! Onto the gift: I thought he did an outstanding job finding two pieces of clothing that suited both of our tastes. When I commented on how much I loved the color of the PJ's he said "If he's going to be my son, he's going to have to learn how to wear color." That gave me a good laugh! Thanks for such a sweet and exciting gift Shawn!

I can just see a little boy wearing this shirt.

Gender ID take 2

This morning we went for our BIG ultrasound to check the babies health and hopefully find out the sex of "it." First, the good news: our baby is extremely healthy! The dr. checked for spina bifida, cleft lip, bladder, heart, bones, spine, brain, amniotic fluid, and placenta placement and every single thing checked out wonderfully!!! The baby is measuring right on for all of it's measurement and that is something to praise God every minute about! It was so wonderful to see everything as it should be. I could not be more thankful. Okay that was the good news. Now for the great news!

We're having a

Truly, we are so very excited about this new adventure. I have prayed since way before this baby every was, that whatever was best for us would be. I prayed that whatever gender would be best for our family would be what this baby is. I am more than at peace with having a boy. We are definitely going out with a bang for sure! We have a lot of family and friends that have boys so I know if I have questions about how in the heck I'm suppose to wipe that area, I have lots of people I can call! I feel now that not finding out for sure 3 weeks ago was a blessing. The doctor said she was almost sure last time, but we just couldn't see proof on the screen. That gave me 3 weeks to let it soak in that it was a boy. Now, I'm all about it! I am excited to look at a color other than pink every once in a while...speaking of, many have asked a few questions about how a boy will work in our house. So here's the answers:
Elle and Ava will get bunk beds sometime before April and will start sharing a room. They know it and seem excited about it. I expect much later bedtimes because of it. I also expect the room to for sure never be clean again. Second, the bathroom WILL stay pink. Sorry son. I love that bathroom and you'll just have to get your testosterone pick-me-ups from some other place. Plus he has a daddy that loves pink so he will too :) Third...names....nothing is set in stone at all, but we do like the name Levi. I like it more than Shawn, but we have looked and looked and can't find another name that tops it at this point, but we could change our minds last second so don't be painting Levi's name on anything or having it sewn on something till we have told you FOR SURE! Last, I hate boy clothes that have sports stuff on it so please save your money and buy yourself something from Starbucks if you were just about the purchase a "homerun" onesie. ha ha ha

Okay, enjoy a few more pictures from today. We have heard that raising a boy is easier than raising a girl...let us hope so! I am just about out of fuel! I truly feel that Ava has prepared me very much for having a little boy. Today I went to Hobby Lobby after we found out and bought boy scrapbooking stuff and just about everything that the boy stuff said like "my favorite color is dirt" or "rough and tough" I just kept thinking, "You know, I could use this stuff for Ava too." Here are two more pictures from the exciting day we had!

I took this one in our bathroom as soon as we got home. I then sent this picture to all our families by email.

And I have now entered the world of boy scrapbooking paraphernalia...soon to be followed by the boys section at Target and Old Navy!

Black Friday Treasures

I didn't get up at 3 am or even 5 am on Friday. I got up after the sun and we took our time getting going. We went to Bath and Body after breakfast and got the one thing I look forward to every year. They only carry it for a few weeks and it sells out quickly. The Twisted Peppermint smell is my favorite one the store carries. As soon as we got home from Tyler today, I lit one of the candles up to make it smell even more homey. My whole house smells like peppermint and we all love it! Hope your Thanksgiving was great. We had a wonderful time in Tyler although we felt like even though we got to see everyone more than once, we didn't get to see anyone for too long at one time....maybe at Christmas. Enjoy the next few weeks of wonder and joy!

Pilgrims and Indians

Holidays are always so much fun when you're part of a school, whether the teacher or the parent. Elle has been bringing home the cutest projects and preparing for a Thanksgiving play that her class did today. Here are a few pictures from the last week's activity. She was a pilgrim for the play and her line was "I think I see land!" She said it just right in a nice non-mousey voice! Yeah! :)

The pilgrims and Indians sharing the 1st Thanksgiving meal.

This is her Indian outfit she worked on. Each feather in her headress was for some piece of information she knew, such as her phone number and her address. She was one of the only girl "chiefs."

I took a picture of the back because she drew a picture of herself as an Indian shooting a bear with her bow and arrow.

Home Walkabout

Yesterday I decided to roam the house and take pictures of what I see on a daily basis, things that inspire me, and things that just caught my eye.

It is officially "winter." We turned on the heater yesterday morning. We were all freezing!

Four chairs in a row.

Don't think they make fold up chairs for baby, but they will be in my lap for a while anyway.

Our stairs on a daily basis.

Most of the time Shawn, me and Elle have a pair each and Ava has around four pairs sitting on the stairs.

Shoes that Elle has outgrown.

With every change of season comes the changes of the closets....a big task where I have to put up the old season of stuff and the stuff that doesn't fit, and pull out the new hand me downs.

Inside Ava's panty drawer.

I wouldn't expect anything less. She loves vehicles.

Loving this ornament.

This caught my eye yesterday at Hobby Lobby and all the ornaments were half off!

Loving this smell.

I have this bag opened up in my craft room and every time I go in there I get a strong smell of cinnamon and I love it!

Some little crafty things that will go on the invitation for December's bunco which I'm hosting. The theme is Sugar and Spice...all things peppermint and cinnamon.

4 months

I am four months preggie today. That translates to 18 weeks and 3 days pregnant...I think that sounds more substantial so that's what I'm going by. Most of the yucky symptoms are gone, thank goodness, but the back issues are still constant. I am learning to cut my to-do list in half right now and that's very hard for me. My brain wants to go go go, buy my back says no no no! Right now, food is a glorious daily event in my life. I love the smell, taste, sight, and anticipation of every future snack and meal during the day. Food tastes so good right now. Things I've eaten many times before all of the sudden are the best they've ever tasted. Now my job is to not let that go too far and gain too much too soon....so hard to do!

Preggie

Yesterday I took some pictures of a mommy-to-be. She has about a month left, and as I expected, she was glowing and beautiful. Here are a few of my favorites.

Campin Out

We weren't far from an airplane community and they were launching a few hot air balloons the next morning. Not the best of days for a hot air balloon ride.

Kind of on a whim, we decided to go camping this past Friday night. We invited anyone from the MASH group that wanted to go, to meet us Friday night. We camped on some property owned by one of the members at church. The weather was pretty good. It got REALLY cold that night though and made it very hard to sleep. Also the air was so wet and although it didn't rain, everything the next morning was sopping wet. The kids of course loved it and did so good. What a wonderful time, but we definitely have our sites set on a pop up camper in the next 5 or so years.

Anticipation

Imagine that it's Christmas Eve. You go to bed with such anticipation that you barely sleep at all. You toss all night checking your alarm clock hourly just waiting for it to be time to get up. FINALLY Christmas morning comes. You run downstairs to the living room to see all of the gifts that Santa brought. To your astonishment, not only are there no presents, but all the decorations, twinkling lights, stockings and Christmas cards are gone and your living room looks like it does in May. On top of that the weather forecast for your wintry day is for highs in the 90's and full sunshine.

Okay, well that's kind of how my day has gone this morning. Yes, I'm dramatic. I come by it honestly, because my dad knows how to dramatically tell a story too. This morning we were suppose to find out what this baby is. As you can tell by the story that didn't happen. The doctor did three different ultrasounds trying as hard as she could to tell what it was. The baby just wasn't lying quite right. She could see sort of between the legs, but not good enough to give us a 100% answer. She said she was 95% sure but that's not good enough for me. She advised us not to tell what her 95% guess was because she was just sort of iffy on it and didn't want everyone thinking it was for sure one thing and then it be another.

I am beyond disappointed. I will say I made it to the car before I started crying so there's my feat for the day. I have been saying for weeks though that I was sure that for whatever reason, we wouldn't be able to tell today. I think it's because there has been so many unexpected and upsetting things happen in this pregnancy that I just prepared for more disappointment. Now I will have to wait three, count them, three more weeks for the next ultrasound. MAYBE, this child will be in a better position by then and we'll finally be able to say.

Onto the good news, which it's hard to be excited about because I'm just so disappointed! But it is wonderful news. My placenta has moved all the way to the top of the womb now and is completely out of the way. The complications I was having seem to have gone away and she did a lot of measurement and looking at body organ and structure and every single thing she looked at was perfect. I am thankful for that, but I need to swim in my disappointment a little longer before getting out and drying off.

So there's the news for today. I feel sort of numb because of all the excitement I put into this day and how sorely disappointed I am. I really hope that this child is getting out all it's orneriness now before it's born because it has already put me through A LOT!

It's a Girl!

But not for me...at least not that I know of yet. Actually I took family pictures and baby pictures for friends of mine today. There daughter was born about 2 months early and now at 5 1/2 months old is doing marvelous and I got the privilege of capturing her sweet cheeks this morning. Here are a few of my favorites.