Three Christmases

I am pretty sure I am not the only who just went through multiple Christmases, both a blessing and a curse. Well curse is a bit strong of a word, but seriously- I am exhausted. With the less than ideal weather around here what should have been a two day max experience just ended today, after the last rescheduled family event. Whew. Done. We did have a really great time this year though, Christmas and toddlers were made for each other. The MR received so many new toys, too many really, and he just had a blast going from one thing to the next and being around so much love and attention. We had our own small family Christmas the 24th, spent Christmas morning with BL's family, and then just had our belated Christmas gathering (and traditional tamale feast) with my parents today. Our big gift to MR this year was the Elmo Live doll, which he is in love with and has been from first sight. I have to admit it is a pretty amazing little toy, and most definitely the least annoying noisy toy we have ever bought him. A win for us all. He also got lots of cars, LOTS, and plenty of other very annoying noisy toys which are still residing at Nana and Pa's house (we just didn't have room for it all ;). The load was a little extreme from the mother in law, anyone else have this problem of too many gifts? She means well, but she suffers from too much free time and ready access to a credit card and online shopping. We are definitely setting a limit for next year as things got a bit out of hand this time around. For example, we are now the proud owners of a two hundred dollar dino paperweight. Well, it's actually this but as far as we can tell so far it doesn't do much and it scares the heck out of MR. He wants nothing to do with it. So we will hope to avoid this next year. Now with everything done and celebrations at an end, I need another break just to recover.

Hope you all had a wonderful holiday celebrating whatever you do!

Finishing touches

The cookies ended up a little abstract in design, but original and wonderful all the same (in this mother's opinion). Besides, the frosting still tasted good regardless of it's form:).

"Making" cookies

Take note: when making sugar cookies with a twenty one month old child, you will not be the one in control. It is best to accept this ahead of time. It's more fun for both of you:).

Hello second trimester

13 weeks, I am most definitely showing now, looking more pregnant than pudgy (I hope). I also had my first "breakthrough" with MR and the whole baby in the belly deal. He and I were sitting together on the couch when he laid his head on my stomach. I asked him if he was saying hi to the baby. He looked up at me, then stared really hard at my belly then said 'Hi Baby!'. He also then got down and start running around the downstairs randomly saying hi baby to other things as well, but it's a start.

Little Bean check-up

I had my first official appointment with my new OB today, and things went well. It will take some time to get used to my new doctor and assess my comfort with her, but so far so good. Everything is well with the little bean, we did get to hear the heart beat today. Somewhere in the 160 range. It was reassuring to hear them in there, the weird thing is that now that I am feeling better (KNOCK ON WOOD) I almost forget that I am pregnant sometimes and the reassurance is nice. Of course there are still obvious signs, mood swings for one, and I am definitely still pooched out there. It's just that without the constant haze of nausea/exhaustion and prior to feeling any little kicks and punches... it's really a pregnancy grey area. My due date got switched, again, I am back to being due on June 26th. So that puts me at a little over 12 weeks now. I will post an updated belly shot for week 13. For now I am just glad that things are safely under way.

Winter wonderland

One of my greatest reliefs in moving out of Spokane was the knowledge that I would never again have to face a winter full of snow. That said, a bit here and there isn't necessarily a bad thing. Especially when it is so cute to see my little boy play in it. No other words really for this, but lots of pictures (and a video!). Enjoy.

Veinte

Dear MR-

Yesterday you turned twenty months old. See, I am only one day late this time. You can attribute this to your old mom feeling better in the nausea department and once again staying up past 8 pm.


I cannot believe that in only four months you will be two years old. I suppose it is time I started accepting reality and the truth that you do indeed get bigger, and fast. This second year has gone by quickly. You pick up new skills and words now like it is old hat, and we can barely keep up with you physically and sometimes mentally. You are becoming capable of mental feats that I really didn't expect to see before your fifth, let alone your second birthday. You have started to procrastinate before your bedtime. You are a smart kid, you know what's coming. So instead of willingly allowing us to trundle you off to sleep, with a hug a kiss and a book, you dawdle. You want to say goodnight to the stars, and check out your books, sometimes you will abandon us all together as we watch the tail of your towel fly out of the room. This isn't play to you, you know that you are avoiding bed time. And for now we let you, because you're awfully cute, but I can tell this logical acuity spells trouble for us down the line.

Here's something else you like to do:

You love cars, and by love I mean you are completely and totally engrossed in all things automobile. You have several hotwheels and a couple of odds and ends cars and trucks you like to play with. By the end of the day you are generally worn out, but you will still pick up your cars and lay yourself down and drive your little autos around on the carpet. Your poor father is at a loss with this love of yours, as he generally defines the difference between cars by their color not their make. Here's hoping your affection doesn't extend much past blue cars and red cars, for his sake.

Happy twenty months kiddo, we love you so very much.

A post through pictures

So I have more pictures to post than words really, so I am just going to use my pictures to help me post. Here we go...

We finally managed to decorate our tree. The poor thing sat on our doorstep and got rained on for a bit, but now it's up and decorated (at least above toddler height). We did have some kid safe decorations down at MR's level, but he picked all of those right off. So the tree looks a bit uneven, but it works for us. We also don't have a corral around it at present, the kiddo has been really good about leaving it be. So far so good.

So glad that we have this little park just a few blocks from our house. It was great in the warm weather and now even in the winter it's a lot of fun to take the kiddo there. He comes back wetter and muddier, but it's a great way to spend time and energy.

Did you know that if you ask nicely the st@rbucks people will put your child's chocolate milk in a mini-cup? MR LOVES this. He covets our cups when we pick something up, and now he can have his very own.

And in news that I don't have a picture of, my husband got a JOB! After eight months of searching, waiting, trial and frustration he was offered a job yesterday. And not just a job, but a great job! It's three blocks away from where I work presently, so we can carpool, and it's a great fit for him. This is an amazing early Christmas present for us, a dual income- hooray!

Oh tannebaum

It's definitely time for things to start looking, and feeling, like Christmas around here. BL has many (regretful) memories of his father procrastinating to the last minute for getting their tree. As a consequence he has always been very insistent that we go out and get ours as soon as possible, once Thanksgiving passes of course. So we went out this weekend and picked ours up. This little holiday outing went WAY better than our pumpkin picking experience. MR has come miles from where he was (or wasn't) in the hand holding department, and was very mindful when I asked him to stay near me or hold my hand when walking through the trees. He also loved the experience, the combination of which made it all much more enjoyable for me. I also didn't have to be the one cutting or carrying away the tree, so that helped.

Just his size
Looking for the perfect fir

Making sure it's baby proof

Helping Daddy do boy stuff

Never wanting to be left out of the fun

10 down, 30 to go

I suppose it was technically ten weeks yesterday, but I won't worry about being too particular. So here's the baby bump:


Looking somewhat reminiscent of what I recall sporting around month five with the MR. Eh. I am definitely feeling better as of late, and BL mentioned that he is glad to have his (generally) pleasant wife back. I am fortunate that he has a strong memory of what last time around was like, so none of this is unexpected for him. He has been most accommodating and his rule of thumb is to keep me fed. This, he says, was his greatest piece of knowledge he gathered from preggo number one. Hungry = even more grouchy/bitchy/intolerable. He's a smart man, that one.

Here's an aerial view, for anyone that might wonder what I see when I look down everyday. It's still crazy to me when I see such physical evidence of the process occurring inside of me. It's exciting and reassuring, but still just as wondrous as the first time.

Fixed

Sorry for the lovely negative post previous, I just so rarely have time and/or energy to post lately and when I finally sat down to remedy that... well Blogger poo'd on it. Bleh. Anways, things seem to be in working order now, so I have resolved to get over it.

Thanksgiving around here went really well, we had my parents over to our house and BL cooked. Have I ever mentioned that he is a fabulous cook, and he makes me yummy dinners every night? I am a lucky lady, especially since I am not very culinarily inclined. Anyways, he had the honor of cooking up the bird this year and it turned out great, see:

So that went well, though the kiddo was a little overwhelmed from the big day and didn't have much of an appetite for the fare we put in front of him. Guess he is more a chicken guy.

Also, to update from a few posts ago: the doctor's appointment went well. I didn't get to hear the heartbeat as it was mostly a history appointment and they generally don't like to use the doppler until after ten weeks or so. I was a little disappointed by this, but the rest of the appointment went really well and I ended up leaving feeling reassured. Since we moved I had to find a new OB-GYN down here, thus far I am pretty pleased with my selection. I will be going back for another appointment in a little less than two weeks and am actually looking forward to that. Things have been going relatively smooth in the baby-brewing, my nausea really only seems to rear around certain foods (and smells) and the exhaustion has really toned down. All in all I can't ask for much more.

Eff this

Don't ask me why my header is the size of a thumbprint... after I spent an hour making it... after I finally decided to sit down and fix my layout post-blogger-fritz... and now this. The mini header will have to do until I have the time and patience to try and figure this out.

Nervous

For likely no reason whatsoever I am nervous about my doctor's appointment tomorrow morning. I think, no I know, it is just due to this whole pregnancy being so new and early in the process. Of course I have certainly felt pregnant for a while now (hello huge sore boobs, morning sickness, and exhaustion), but before you really see that little face on a regular basis or even feel their little kicks and hits... it all seems so hard to believe. And how ridiculous that the other reason I am nervous is because I have been feeling better lately. The exhaustion seems to have lifted, and my nausea has become manageable if not really all that bad. I should be grateful, not worried, but still. Before the heartbeats and the ultrasounds these are the things that remind me, oh so regularly, that something is going on in there. Perhaps I am just totally crazy? Tomorrow's visit is really just a routine history visit but I am hoping to at least hear the heartbeat, which would do so much to put me at ease. I forgot just how nerve-wracking this whole process can be sometimes.

To dispel the general crazy bent of this post, here's some cuteness from this past weekend. We took the kiddo to see Santa for the first time and miracle upon miracles there was no line! This was likely due in part to it being before Thanksgiving and also a Sunday morning. I am not one to complain though. The MR was really much more interested in Santa's surroundings (fake snow, gingerbread men) than Santa himself but he did consent to being held on Santa's lap. We even managed to get a precursor to a smile, at least he wasn't crying.

Then from later in the day, the MR decided that what's good for the goose is good for the gosling. BL was having a chocolate sucker and the little bug wanted to "share". I think this was the first time he had ever had a sucker, he managed to make a mess of himself. Cute nonetheless.

8 weeks 3 days, as the belly grows

So regardless of the fact that the little bean in my belly is only about the size of a gummy bear, according to internet sources, my belly is definitely exhibiting signs of residency. I was looking back at some of the early pictures I had from my pregnancy with the MR (of which there are sadly few prior to about 5-6 months) and things seem to be on track. I guess I just show earlier.

For the last half of this past week things in the nausea/exhaustion department have become a little more manageable. I learned from last time that it is highly helpful for me to regularly dose myself with snacks, and this time around I am finding that those snacks are better received if they are not a)sugary or b)full o' sodium. I am already starting to be more careful about these two, as I am hoping to forego a round two with the gestational diabetes, but I have also noticed that my body (and temperament) are less receptive to these kind of snacks. So lots of apples, yogurt, and string cheese for me. Not necessarily a bad thing. I am not sure if this more careful monitoring of my meals is responsible for the slight lifting of the fog I had been trudging through these last few weeks, but I will take what I can get.

So what do you think, does this look like the belly of an eight(ish) week pregnant lady?

P.S. Yes, those are already maternity pants, they are just more comfortable, k?

Diez y nueve, belated

Dear Mister-

So I am a little late this month, seven days actually. Time flies by so fast lately it hardly occurred to me that I had missed this update until today when I was remembering that you are indeed nineteen months old now. Not going to lie kiddo, I also have been have a rough couple of weeks incubating this new sibling of yours. So it has been hard to blog, or to remember to blog, when I generally fall asleep about a half hour after you do at 8:00.You are such a big boy now, and here's how I know. You say please and thank you when you want and get something. You have a name for so many things now, always pointing out the apples, airplanes, and keys in our world. When climbing the stairs, you now want to "walk" up them, using the railing as your guide. You are getting better about holding our hands, and enjoy getting out an about to see the great wide world. You have also become very self aware, even telling us when you need to go to the bathroom. True, sometimes you tell us when it is too late, and you have already committed the act, but you are really very good about this. The M&M treat you get after using the potty might have something to do with that.

A little story about your awareness, and a small character portrait of you at this point in time. We went out for an ice cream run the other evening, Daddy insisted that you should get a cone. No bowl and spoon for this little boy. Considering that the ride home was conducted in near pitch black conditions, and this was your first encounter with ice cream in a cone; well the results were a bit messy. It was worth it though, regardless of how sticky and chocolatey you came out of it. We got you out of the car and into the house, where the light let you see the brown mess that had become your little fingers. You insisted that I clean them. You don't really care to be messy. I wiped off your hands but only took a cursory swipe at your face since it was almost bath time, and you were ready to move on to more interesting things. Come bath time though you stood up in front of the mirror to brush your teeth, like every night, and you came face to face with what should have been your clean and smiling likeness. Not so. You knew that you were looking at yourself, but your self did not look quite right with all the smudges and smears. Before we could move any further forward with the teeth brushing (a favorite activity, I must add), you wanted your face cleaned and back to normal. As I wiped away the chocolate you kept pointing to different spots that I had missed or not gotten yet. Finally you saw you again, and that made you happy. It may not seem like a big thing, but it just shows me once again what a smart and sensitive little person you are becoming.

You are also a big boy, size wise. We so often see other children your age who are literally almost a foot shorter than you are. You are hovering around three feet, and weigh in at about thirty pounds. You also wear a size 8 shoe. Big boy.

Thank you for another good month bug bear, we love you.

That was fun, not

So I had some weird glitch take out my blog list (and mess up my layout). Not what a tired pregnant lady wants to deal with at the end of the day. I tried to recreate my blogroll from memory, but if you knew you were there before and don't see your name now- let me know please? And if you weren't there before, and would like to be, then speak up now.

Reason #137 why he will be supremely embarrassed by me later in life

I know, I know, a picture of my child on the potty is the ultimate in embarrassing momness... but still, look at how cute he is being a big boy! And that hat, oh man, the ranger hat. He got it as part of a full outfit from his Nana and he loves wearing the hat, all the time. Even, apparently, while on the commode. We have started trying to get him to use a seat reducer on the big potty and it really seems to work. He has even come close to an accident and then stopped, told us he needs to potty, and then waited until he was sitting to go! Very exciting, and he is so proud of himself.

In other news, I am exhausted. All the time. I am exhausted right now, but I figured it has been almost a week since I pushed myself to stay up past 8:00 and even used the internet. No promises, I will likely be asleep in twenty minutes. But oh my goodness, this pregnant thing is wearing me out. Alright, even more tired just thinking about it. Expect another post from me again in likely another week, I'll be sleeping.

Already?

A little over six weeks along and I am already starting to pooch out... I don't recall this occurring so early last time. Must be the result of my tummy muscles taking a beating from the MR's residence. Or maybe just bloating? We shall wait and see.

Potty training?

MR went pee today, amazing I know. But it was, because instead of his usual diaper wetting he went pee in the potty. He's one and a half years old and he went pee in the potty. Incredible. This kid just keeps surprising us. Not to denigrate our parenting abilities, I think we are perfectly wonderful parents, but the mister certainly makes things easier on us. He is such a clever little kiddo, and so observant. Lately he has begun to let us know, sometimes, when he has to go or when he does go. He is fully aware of what he has down there (just ask him where his "peh-peh" is, he's very forthcoming), and he seems pretty interested in dealing with it like the big people do. Today he told BL "Ah peh-peh" (I pee pee), to which Andy asked him if he needed to go. MR ran into the bathroom and with BL's assistance used the toilet. He, and we, were very excited. Andy went out and got him his own little potty, which he has already asked for (and used) three times since. Don't worry, we do possess a healthy amount of hubris and aren't going to count our chickens before they hatch- but it is pretty cool that he is even approaching the subject of toilet training. And with enthusiasm. We figure we will strike while the iron is hot and see where it gets us. Having number one trained by the time number two arrives would be almost too much to ask for, but it won't stop us from trying.

Relief

Today was a day of relief on a few different levels. Of course last night was really when I let out the sigh I had been holding in all day, waiting and hoping to see what I did. There is so much going wrong in this world, in this country, at this point in time that it is enormously relieving to see such a big right take the stage. I think both Obama and McCain, in their acceptance and concession speeches respectively, were very gracious. The only point I ever truly found to fault McCain on was his choice of Palin, so watching his well worded acceptance of defeat was bittersweet. And I couldn't have asked for Obama to have said it better than he did, in promising to not be the champion of only his supporters- but to be President and defender to us all. BL pointed out to me that Bush, in his acceptance, said quite the opposite. A little bit of unity will be nice.

On a more personal level, today brought relief in the end of several days of worry. I started getting some brown spotting on Monday, following a very strenuous weekend. This NEVER happened with my pregnancy with the MR. I know what everyone tells you, that brown is nothing to worry about as long as it stays brown and no other symptoms show up. But being pregnant and having anything unexpected show up down there is scary. I immediately went into lock down mode, ceasing anything but necessary physical movement. I freaked out. I called the doctor and spoke to the advice nurse, who assured me with all the words I knew she would. What she did offer me that gave me a chance to truly feel better was an appointment for an ultrasound today. I went in this morning, BL and the mister in tow, hovering between fear and anxiety. Thank god we saw this:

Our teeny tiny little bean baby, and their itty bitty heart beating away. The technician did both an external and a transvaginal ultrasound, and it was with the internal exam that she found the little heartbeat for us. I was starting to become more worried when the tech began to explain to me that it might be too early to even see a heartbeat, the one thing I really needed to see. Fortunately that wasn't the case. We saw it, beating away at a happy 109. What she also found in there was the cause of my spotting. Apparently I suffered a small (maybe 3/4 of a cm) subchorionic hemorrhage, likely from all the extra activity over the weekend. It was a huge relief to have an actual answer, and visual proof to boot. The spotting is still unsettling, but it remains brown and it should temper down within a week or so. One other finding from the ultrasound, they adjusted my projected due date from June 20th to July 1st, as I am looking closer to six weeks as opposed to seven at this point. BL's birthday is on the 6th, and doesn't seem keen to share, so we shall see how that plays out.

And now, for the relief of sleep.

Halloween!

Halloween was amazing, the kiddo was amazing, the whole experience: amazing. I had no idea Halloween could feel like this again, like being a kid. This year truly was a completely new experience, especially compared to the nonevent that it was last year. The MR was totally enthused by the whole energy of the day. We had family (and a few friends) over for the night and the mister took a while to warm up to so many people in his space. After a bit, and really once the trick or treaters started showing up, he just came alive. He was so excited to see all the kids! We didn't take him trick or treating this year because frankly we didn't think the experience would count for much in his book. He might have just enjoyed the opportunity to ring doorbells. However, we definitely are beyond pleased with how things turned out the way we went. He stood sentry by the door waiting for more new faces to show up. He would screech 'Hi Guys!' and 'Bye guys!' when someone would come up, and he even managed to say trick or treat a few times by the end of the night. He also figured out how to say candy, he's a quick learner when properly motivated. BL and I were just enthralled by the gregarious and enchanting little creature we had on our hands. The night really was wonderful. See for yourself (don't miss the video at the end).

Making a Jack-O-Lantern

It suddenly occurred to us, on the eve of Halloween no less, that we needed to actually carve our pumpkin. It was getting on towards the mister's bedtime, but we figured that such an occasion is worthy of staying up just a little bit longer. We were right, that extra half hour was so worth it. It is incredible just how different the experience of Halloween is this year is compared to last. For one thing, the kiddo was SO much more interactive with the different elements of it all. This included the pumpkin carving. He wanted to touch, smell, and really process what the pumpkin was. And he certainly wanted to be a part of the carving process, though he was good enough to stand back while mommy did the actual cutting.

Too lazy for a title

Some random things. I wanted to thank everyone for their responses to my Two and Through post, it was really insightful to hear your different opinions especially coming from so many varied backgrounds. BL and I have come to the conclusion that even we won't know for sure what we want until we get there. We will go through this (hopefully healthy) pregnancy and then wait, a year and a half maybe two years, and see how we feel then. I have always used pills for birth control, something I really dislike and honestly was never very good at maintaining. So following this pregnancy I will likely look into something a little lower maintenance such as an IUD. I think we are both leaning towards the comfort of having only two, but then who knows how we will feel several years down the line. I agree with what many of you voiced, that a tubal ligation or vasectomy seems scarily permanent so early in the game. So we will bide our time and wait to see if those measures are truly warranted for us.

One other random item that made my day, I filled my tank for only $40.00 today! It's usually $60.00. I kept watching the dollars move up while pumping thinking that this was the slowest tank of gas ever, since I had been sitting there a while and it had only reached $35.00. Then *click*, all done at 40! I knew prices had declined, but seeing $2.67 on the pump and feeling twenty bucks richer sure felt good. How much is gas in your neck of the woods?

So is it sad that three days away from the internets can make me feel like I have dropped off the side of the earth? I am thinking it's probably a bad sign. However, I am glad to be back and see that I have missed some wonderful news in my absence. Ann(ie) decided to jump on the baby number two bandwagon, she wasn't kidding about that blog water ;). Go over and wish her well on this exciting news!

The reason for my absence, and lack of blogging, these past few days was a beach trip. One would think that going to the beach in late October wouldn't make sense, but then that would show just how un-Northwest you are. The beaches around here are always cold, so really a late year beach trip doesn't vary a whole lot from one done earlier in the spring or summer. You still wouldn't want to get in the water. We went out with the extended family to Lincoln City this past weekend to rest and recuperate- and to give the kiddo his first beach experience. He loved it! All of that open expanse, and the wa-wa, oh the wa-wa. That's water, for the un-initiated. He ran like the wild man he is, up and down the beach. Then up to the water, and away from the water when it came crashing back in. We also took him to the Oregon Coast aquarium, another thing he loves. MR loves feesh, he really enjoyed looking in all the tanks though he wasn't quite brave enough to try touching any of them yet. We had a great time, mostly just from watching our little mister experience all these new sensations and wonder at the little (and big) things this world has to offer. The blonde people in the following photos are BL's older siblings, fyi.

*The early preggs tiredness has caught me up, can you tell?