History

So maybe you know this and maybe you don't. David and I have a history. A loooong history. I mean, like, I've known him for 26 years. 

(That makes us sound really old, right? But we're not. That goes on record. We're NOT old.) 

He and I were in the same kindergarten class. In fact, we were in the same kindergarten, first grade, second grade, and fifth grade class, some sixth grade, seventh grade, and eighth grade classes, and at least one ninth grade class together. Not to mention some extracurricular activities, too.

It's pretty cool. We know a lot about each other. He saw me through my awkward stages and I saw him through his. We can mention names like Jesse Rutter and Bethany Hoose and know exactly what the other is thinking. We have some of the same memories, only they're from our own perspectives. I was the reason he got grounded the first time (because he bit my finger - we were like 7 or something and I'm sure I was waving my finger in his face). It's kind of like remembering my childhood from someone else's perspective. And David has such a good memory. I love when he talks about our past because I feel like I'm learning new things! Ha!

But the funny thing is that we really didn't pay any attention to each other when we were young. David's sister, Becky, and I played all the time. We had/have a lot in common even though she's three years younger than me. My sister, Erin, and David hung out a lot because they have similar personalities. Which is to say that they were both okay doing their own thing and not hanging out with anyone.

But I pay a lot of attention to him now :). He's my best friend. I love him. I'm glad God brought us together when he did and not any earlier. Sometimes I wonder what it would've been like to be in love with him all those years ago and I just think about how hard that would've been. I wouldn't have wanted to move to Texas during my high school years, which would have been tragic. A lot of good happened to me in Texas, during both high school and college. All the events that made us who we are today probably wouldn't have happened in the same way. And I wouldn't change that. David's perfect for me just the way he is. Quirks and all. :)

My big sis, Erin, me, David, and David's little sis, Becky.
My sister was actually the tallest (now she's the shortest) and Becky was the runt (she's now the tallest girl of the group)! Erin was about 10 years old, I was 7, David was 7 and Becky was 4.

In other news...

I had a doctor's appointment today. This was a normal weekly visit as well as my final ultrasound before the big day. They measured Amelia Jayne's head circumference and checked to make sure all is well. She looks great! They even did some 3D shots (which I still think are creepy, especially at this stage when the poor thing is squished so much that she looks like her arms are growing out of her head...she is pretty darn cute, though, head-arms and all).

BUT, she's HUGE.

Are you ready for this? My daughter is already 7.5lbs!!! What?!?! I have 4 weeks left until my c-section and typically babies gain about a half pound per week during the last month. I am not prepared to have a 9.5lb baby. I am SO glad that I already have a c-section scheduled. Let me tell you that I would be scheduling one right now if I didn't. Of course there's a possibility that she won't be that big or that she just has a huge head (like her brother did). Either way, I'm feeling much better about my decision to have a repeat cesarian. Xander was 9lbs when he was born and he was 6 days late. I didn't have an ultrasound at this point when I was pregnant with him so I don't know how big he was at 35 weeks gestation. All I know is that this little girl may not be so little after all...

Memories

I found these pics on my computer the other day. I had almost forgotten about them! Xander was sooo little! These are his 3-month pics. He was such a happy, smiley baby!

Now I'm feeling all nostalgic and weepy...silly pregnancy hormones.

Newborns

These are newborn pics of Xander - he was only hours old. I can't believe in one month I'll have another one! I just love how sweet, little and snuggly newborn babies are.

Remember this post from a few months ago? Well, most of my friends have had their babies now, so I've gotten to enjoy them before I have another one :)

Julie had Elijah Brennan on June 10.

Angela had Claire Emma on June 29.

Lulu had Winston Gilley on July 8.

Veronica had Caleb Alexander on July 18.

Amanda had Isaiah James on August 13.

Kristen had Emily Grace on August 26.

Lisa had Anya Grace on September 12.

Naphtalie had Landon today, September 22!! (No photo of Landon yet)

I'll be next - scheduled c-section on October 24, Crystal will have hers soon after me (real soon after me if she gets her way :)) and I found out a couple of months ago that my friend Mindie is due to have her second child in January! Woo hoo!

Justin & Thea

Last weekend we drove to Johnson City, TN for David's cousin, Justin's, wedding. It was a beautiful affair! Here's their wedding website.

Congratulations to Justin and Thea! I hope they have a long and happy marriage.

You can certainly tell that David and Justin are cousins, right?

Thea is really one of the sweetest people I've ever met. I haven't spent much time with her, but every time I see her she is kind, caring and full of peace. Isn't she gorgeous??

So glad we got to be a part of their special day.

Xander did fairly well considering his lack of sleep. He barely got a nap from Wednesday through Sunday and went to sleep way later than normal (I dare say he even saw 11pm and midnight a time or two...yikes!).

My SIL, Becky, said she saw the mother look come out in me when he ran out onto the dance floor (which was empty at the time) and screamed at the top of his lungs. That got him taken straight out of the reception to the ladies' room where we had a little talk. Then after the first dance David sat down with him, bouncing him on his knees and his eyes started rolling back in his head. He reached for me and laid his little head on my chest (and big ol' belly) and fell fast asleep - during the noisiest part of the reception! You can tell he was tired :). Wish I had a pic of it, but amidst the crazy chaos that is keeping up with a 2-year-old, we didn't take a single picture. The wedding pics above are courtesy of David's cousin, Ame.



Story times

I realized I haven't blogged about work in a long time! It's going well, despite the loss of two of our staff members for a period of time. Amy will hopefully be back in a couple of weeks after a bicycle accident and Veronica will come back from maternity leave the week before I go out on maternity leave. I've been focusing on my regular story times with daycares and centers around the community, as well as my Jumpstart programs and story times for children with special needs. I've been filling in a tad bit for Amy while she's out, but overall things have been going well. Here are some pics one of the teachers took at the ABC Language Stimulation School - a site I visit monthly and do story times for children with special needs.

Don't laugh at my expressions. Okay, go ahead. I laughed when I saw them, too...after I cringed a bit inside. And my big ol' pregnant self...all I can do is laugh or I'll cry, right?!

Peace

I tend to get an email from my Aunt Karen when it's been a few days of no blogging. So, KtG, this is for you! No, the blog is not broken!

I, however, feel somewhat broken! Emotionally, mentally, physically. Things are starting to fall apart here! Well, that's not exactly true. Sure, my body is tired, achy and cumbersome. Sure, my emotions are frazzled, at times low and other times high, and in overdrive all the time. Sure, my mind is a hot mess - dealing with my suddenly overwhelming two year old, thinking of what life with a toddler and newborn will be like, dealing with work stresses since two of my co-workers are out (one due to a biking accident and one out on maternity leave) leaving 5 and a half people trying to keep their programs going on top of the ones we're already doing, still trying to make time for my husband who I care for so deeply, scheduling everyone's days and juggling all of this together.

But you know what? I have peace.

Romans 5:1 - Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

Luke 2:14 - “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”

Philippians 4:7 - And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Philippians 4:9 - Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.

Hebrews 13:20-21 - Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

Romans 15:13 - May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.

Colossians 3:15 - Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful.

Irony

Funny how I post about fall and the cool, crispness of the air (I haven't quite felt "crisp" yet, though I have noticed some changing of the leaves already!) when our air conditioner goes out! Ha! These past couple of days have been around 92-95 degrees! We're supposed to have a cool front move in early next week and the temps should be in the upper 70's, lower 80's. I can't wait for that! Maybe I should have postponed my post until the cooler weather set in....

Here's what happened over the last few days. Wednesday evening David and I both got home late - him from working and me from having a meeting for church. I walked in and it felt hot. I looked at the thermostat which read 79 - yikes! Usually in the heat of summer I allow us to keep the house between 76 and 78 degrees - it's just more economical that way. But recently with my pregnancy I've been getting hotter than normal so I've been bumping it down to 74. 79 degrees feels really hot compared to 74! Anyway, it was after 10 when we concluded, yes the air conditioner is definitely not working. Not wanting to pay an after-hours fee we decided to bring another fan in the bedroom and just suck it up. Not my best night of sleep, but oh well.

The next morning we called and the air people said they'd be out that afternoon. David went home to work and wait on them and I continued my day at work. They came, did their thing and left. David went back to work. When I got home around 6:30pm it was even hotter. The thermostat downstairs read 84 degrees and the one upstairs read 87! We called them back and they said they could get someone out early this morning. David and I contemplated going to a hotel last night, but instead we ended up opening some windows, bringing the fan downstairs, and sleeping on the couch and big comfy chair. It was fairly miserable and neither of us slept well, but hopefully we'll get it fixed today! If not, I see a trip to the lake house in my immediate future. The air conditioner works really well there. :)

Fall

I love the fall of the year! It's definitely my favorite! I'm fully aware that the first day of Autumn is actually on September 23, but when September comes I already feel the seasons begin to change. The beginning of the school year brings cooler weather, changing leaves, football games, television show premieres, and typically a change of pace. I won't say it slows down, but somehow it seems less hectic. I like that. There's more of a schedule and routine in place - and I don't even have children who are in school yet! The atmosphere at the library changes - it's a bit quieter and things have a calmer feel. Anyway, I just love it.

I have so many reasons to celebrate fall this year. The biggest one, of course, being the birth of my sweet baby girl, but also Xander is starting preschool, the holidays are right around the corner, there are so many birthdays to celebrate (mine included!), and we have so many exciting changes going on! It makes me want to go out and buy new notebooks, pens and pencils, warmer clothes, visit a pumpkin patch and apple orchard, sip hot apple cider, bake pumpkin bread, and carve jack-o-lanterns. Mmmm. I can smell my Harvest candle already.

Sick and Preschool Orientation

I apologize for my lack of blogging lately. A stomach bug had me down last week and I was still recuperating over the weekend. Things are getting back to normal now! I've been playing catch up at work and still continuing to run around crazy (though I should probably try to take it a little easier) doing Waumba curriculum at church and getting together with friends who are about to give birth or who have recently had a child. Never a dull moment!

David, Xander and I went to Xander's preschool orientation on Tuesday night. I was so proud of him! We went to "meet the teacher" first. His teachers, Ms. Jean and Ms. Lindsey seem very sweet. They seem like a great team and a perfect combination for Xander. Ms. Jean is soft-spoken and gentle, Ms. Lindsey seems energetic and fun. They'll be really good for Xander, I'm sure.

Ms. Jean kindly told us, "We'll work on learning our letters and numbers, recognizing them, and learning our colors. Does Xander know his alphabet?" I suppressed a laugh and just nodded saying, "Yes, he does!" Then Xander proceeds to go over to the door and point out the letters in everyone's names. I didn't want to tell her that he's already spelling some words on his own, can count to 40, and recognizes upper and lower case letters! Of course, this whole experience is more to help Xander with his social skills then to improve his academics. Maybe it will boost his self-confidence to already know most of the things that will be taught! I am excited that they're also going to learn their days of the week, sing songs and read stories during circle time, and do some arts and crafts. I have a hard time getting Xander interested in arts and crafts. Perhaps when he sees the other children participating he'll be more interested. All in all, I'm very pleased and excited about this program! It makes me want to go back to school hearing all the fun things they'll be doing! Ha!

He had a great time playing with the cars, trucks and tractors while the other kids and their parents came in the room. All the parents were kind and friendly, always introducing themselves and chatting with me. When it was time for David and I to leave for the parent meeting, I told Xander we'd see him later. He was across the room playing, glanced up briefly and went back to playing. Wow! I was so impressed and happy about that. No tantrums or tears. Very cool. Then they all played outside on the playground while the parents met.

The director told us that the teachers have a prayer time before class starts each day. Each classroom has circle time, prayer time, outside time, lunchtime, and play time daily. She told us some rules and important information and then we were finished! They have some fun things planned like a Fall Festival, Easter egg hunt, Parents Night Out, picture day, etc.

Xander will be going to preschool every Tuesday from 9:30-1:15 and if things go well we'll be adding Thursdays in January. So excited for my big boy!

Books I've read: May - August, 2011

Below are the books I've read over the past few months. Check out the books I read early in the year here. I'm really thankful that I have the time to read right now. There was a fairly large stretch of time that I really didn't read much because I was so busy with baby Xander. Now that he's 2 year-old Xander, I find that I do have some time to myself and that's when I do what I love - read. I guess this cycle will continue after the new baby is born, so I'm soaking up all the time I have to read now. :)

1. The Help by Kathryn Stockett

I had no idea how great this book would be! It had been recommended to me by a few different people, including one of my mom's friends who is an avid reader, a co-worker of mine and even the dental hygenist at my dentist's office! So I figured with such a wide variety of people talking about it I should check it out. So I did. And I'm so glad! It's an excellent book! If you get a chance to listen to this book on audio, you definitely should. My co-worker told me how good the audio is, so I chose to grab it and listen to it when I was on the road driving to and from work and my programs. There are three or four different ladies who read the story and they have great voices for the characters. I was even talking to David's grandma last week and she said she's going to start it soon. It appeals to many different audiences. I didn't realize it was going to be made into a movie until David and I went to the movies in June and I saw a stand-up display. David and I went to see it on one of our date nights this month and really enjoyed it! Yes, even David enjoyed it, so take your husbands if you want! It's very true to the book and such a good story. The actresses they chose were perfect!

2. The Pioneer Woman: Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond

I am an avid Pioneer Woman blog reader. I love how she writes - she's witty, honest and just downright makes me laugh. This book is no exception. The story of how she met her Marlboro Man, fell in love, married, etc. It's a great, funny, romantic, sappy read. And, yes, I laughed out loud multiple times! :)

3. Little Bee by Chris Cleave

Hmmm...
Sad, hopeful, disturbing. Speaks heavily to the heart, but I'm still not exactly sure how I feel about it.
An account of two women (a young teenager from Nigeria and a British woman) whose lives intersect and are forever connected.

4. Two Kisses for Maddy by Matthew Logelin

Unlike most stories of loss, Matthew Logelin is very down to earth and real about his grief. I'm not quite used to the language he uses (e.g. he cusses - a lot.) but it's how he expresses himself. Not exactly sure why I decided to read a story about a husband and wife who have a baby and 27 hours after the baby is born the mother has a pulmonary embolism and dies. I mean, I'm two-thirds of the way through my pregnancy and already have a child - why would I torture myself with this kind of story? My only answer is that I love memoirs and biographies and I love hearing real people tell true stories about themselves. It actually warms my own heart to see how the human heart can still survive after such a devastating blow.

5. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling
I read this again in honor of the movie coming out last month. I have loved re-reading the books just before I see the movie for the first time so I can notice the differences. I typically enjoy the movie more after the book is out of my mind since I get irritated that certain things get left out or changed in the movie compared to the book. This time I was pleasantly surprised. There were definitely some changes and differences, but I wasn't upset about any of them.

6. Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe

Well, I'm only part way through - I'll let you know what I think when I'm finished. I've wanted to read this book for a long time. Written over 150 years ago, it's been referenced many times and I've been curious to read it for myself. It was quite the scandal when it was published and has been banned many times in history - who doesn't want to read a banned book and see what all the fuss is about! Ha!