Baby G#3, Preschool, And Updates on the Kiddos

Life is crazy, busy, full of anticipation, and I am just enjoying it before life as I know it gets turned upside down and I have 3 kids under 4 to take care of. The girls keep me busy from about 7:30 am until they go to bed at 8. I have discovered more than ever this summer that I thrive on routine. Some days might feel monotonous, but if you mess with that predictable monotony, I get grumpy. So this summer, our weeks have been filled with a repetition of play time, weekly water park visits with family, housework, baby prep projects, and doctor visits. As usual, we spend lots of mornings out taking a walk, messing around in the garden, filling, cleaning, and refilling the kiddy pool and giving pushes on the swing set. I think Julia would be content to be pushed in her little pink ride-on car (she calls it her "beep beep") or in her swing all day long. Natalie loves helping check on the vegetables and picking whatever happens to have survived all the rain we had in June/July. Things are in a pretty sorry state in the garden at the moment and I'm, well, over it. Pregnant mama has worked hard and couldn't keep up with the persistent Bermuda grass and towering tomato plants that seem to grow another foot and need to be re-staked every few days. There's always next year.

We found out at the end of April that we are expecting another girl! I'll be honest, it took me quite a while to adjust to the news. This pregnancy has been NOTHING like the first two, so I was just sure I was having a boy. But now I am having fun sewing her quilt, making crib sheets and changing pad covers, and even a Christmas stocking. There's no telling when I'll find the time to sew after she arrives, so I might as well get things done while I have a chance. Natalie has named her baby sister Sophia Olaf. Alex and I accepted her choice for a first name, but have made absolutely no progress in picking an acceptable alternative for her middle name.

Tomorrow, we will embark on a new journey as a family: homeschooling. Natalie has been looking forward to preschool for quite a while and soaks up all the information that she can about the world around her. Lately, her interest in letters, sounds, and writing her name has really grown, so I am taking the leap and giving it a go. I am having a very hard time deciding whether or not to do two years of preschool with her because her birthday is so late, or going ahead and starting kindergarten next year. I am a long-term planner, can you tell? The best idea is probably to just wait and see how this whole preschool thing goes and then decide! I am nervous about how our lives are going to change once Sophia is born and I don't want to completely push schooling aside, especially when I know it will be fun and special to spend that time with Natalie. We joined our local homeschool co-op which meets once a week starting in September and has classes for Natalie's age. My social butterfly will love making new friends.

Julia is now 18 months old and is changing quickly from a baby to a full-fledged toddler. Her vocabulary includes about 40 words (not all of which are clear, but close enough that we can interpret what she is trying to communicate), her favorite of which are "I want", "eat", "snack", and "more". Can you guess what her favorite pastime is? Ha ha! The kid can put the food away!!! Her favorite foods are probably raisins, blueberries, cooked carrots, spaghetti, mac n cheese on the rare occasion that she gets it, corn, bananas, applesauce, and yogurt. Really, she loves fruit, cooked veggies, pasta, and sweets, and isn't a fan of most raw veggies and meat unless it is mixed into a soup or casserole or cut up in very tiny pieces and covered in seasoning or sauce. She can sometimes successfully do a forward roll, jumps with both feet off the ground, loves going down slides at the water park and just being in the water in general, story time, dancing, and playing with her big sister. Those two really love each other, which is a huge answer to 9 months of prayer when I was pregnant with Julia. Now I am praying that my three girls will love one another, always include each other, and be like a 3-strand cord that is not easily broken.

Natalie is my big girl. Don't try to tell her she is too little to wear red nail polish (I made that mistake) because she will just tell you, "I am too bigger! I am a big sister!" She keeps an eye on Julia and loves feeling Sophia kick. The other day, she and I were snuggling on the couch at nap time and her back was against my belly. Sophia decided to practice her soccer skills and went a little crazy. Natalie thought it was hilarious getting kicked in the back and the behind by her baby sister. She helps me tremendously from fetching things around the house, to putting things away, helping me grocery shop, picking up after herself, getting herself dressed (even if she does want to change outfits 3 times a day), feeding the dog, getting the mail, and generally being willing to help however I ask her to. She wants mommy and daddy to snuggle with her and rub her back every night before bed. Lately she has been singing along with songs on the radio and it just melts my heart to hear her sing about Jesus. She gets excited when it is my turn to lead worship at church and asks me if I am going to sing. I think there is a good chance that she'll be up there with me some day. Natalie asks me every morning where we are going and who is coming over. If I tell her that we aren't going anywhere or that no one is coming over, she asks to go somewhere and see someone. She loves going to the library, the water park, to her grandparents' houses, to church, and to play with friends. She has been fascinated with ballet for months now and loves wearing tutus, dancing around the house, watching Angelina Ballerina, and watching YouTube videos of real ballet dancers.

So that's life around here in a nutshell. Sophia will make her grand debut in roughly 9 more weeks and then things will really get interesting. I am so nervous about the transition from 2 to 3. Having Julia seemed like a breeze, but now I'm really going to be outnumbered. What if I never get a nap?! I have gotten the hang of the whole two-kids thing and now it's going to change. I just want there to be enough of me to go around and for no one to feel neglected or left out. Despite making progress on a few projects, my to-do list is still a mile long. Some of the things on it aren't important, but it would still be nice to get them done. It'll all come together. And God's grace is sufficient to help me through this next transition!

Life with a 4 Month Old

Life won't slow down and most days it feels like I am just along for the ride. I blinked and my baby is now 4 months old. I feel like I am on the verge of a breakthrough with figuring out my new normal since Julia was born, prioritizing what needs to be done and what I want to get done around the house, coming to terms with living in "survival mode" and letting go of things that just aren't as important as being present with my girls. I made a chore chart in the hopes of getting more done around the house, but decided it was too much to handle after the first day. As long as we all have clean clothes to wear and clean dishes to eat off of, that is enough for now. It's not worth it to me to go and go and go all day long cleaning and playing, running, running, running, and then not have any energy left after the kids are in bed to enjoy my down time. So that is where I am at right now. Tired and trying to find balance.

Miss Julia turned 4 months old on Friday. She started out her life as an amazing sleeper, but right at 3 months, that all changed and she started waking up 3-5 times a night. My seasonal allergies started bothering me and it seemed that Julia's nose became constantly stuffy at the same time, causing her to not sleep as well. She teased me a bit on Friday because she slept all night for the first time in over a month, but went back to waking up a lot again every night since. Combine that with the fact that Natalie comes into bed with us in the middle of the night and this mama isn't getting great sleep.

On a more positive note, I just love Julia's little personality. She is so social and smiles whenever you talk to her. She gets bashful and turns her face away as she smiles at you, which is so sweet. She giggles when you tickle her, which has to be one of the best sounds in the world. My heart was full tonight watching Natalie talk to Julia and watching Julia smile and laugh in response. Natalie will tell me, "I want to talk to Julia! Hello, Julia! Hello, Julia! Hello, Julia!" It's like she doesn't know how to have a one-sided conversation with her baby sister just yet, but I love her heart and know they will keep growing closer as they get older. It has always been my prayer that they would be best friends.

Julia rolled over during the middle of the night one time, but hasn't rolled over again since. She has started reaching for toys and anything within her reach, including my hair, which she tries to eat. Not fun for Mama. The similarities between her and Natalie as a baby are uncanny. Both girls have tempers and scream when they are mad, both love being outdoors and calm right down when we head outside, both girls have a strong attachment to me and don't like to be held by anyone else for very long, they both love moving around a lot and standing up on their feet if being held on someone's lap. The Jumperoo has started getting some use, as well as the Bumbo chair, but Julia doesn't generally enjoy being put down for very long. I bought a Lillebaby carrier to use on walks and while out shopping instead of carrying the carseat into the store and Julia and I both love it. She sucks on her fingers or thumb and sometimes falls asleep in it and I love being close to her while still having my hands free to do things with Natalie.

Natalie seems to still be doing well having a baby sister around, but she is still really rough at times. The instant she hears Julia crying or cooing after a nap, Natalie tells me, "Julia awake!!! I wanna talk to her!" and she runs in the nursery to tell her "Hi!". It is so sweet and Julia usually smiles at her through the crib slats. She likes to hand me diapers and take toys away from Julia, which we are working on with her. She is growing into a little girl more every day. Now she helps me unload the dishwasher and wants to get undressed by herself. She has been saying nursery rhymes and little songs during the day and asks me to sing with her. Some of her favorite songs are If You're Happy and You Know It, Apples and Bananas, 5 Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed, The Wheels on the Bus, and The B-I-B-L-E. She still eats non-stop and right now especially loves candy-lope (cantaloupe) and trail mix. There is never a dull moment in our home. I just wish I had half the energy she has. Alex's nickname as a child was Taz, and Natalie sure has inherited his energetic ways.

39 Weeks (Baby #2) & A Trip to the Bounce House

On New Year's Eve, we took Natalie to an inflatables games place for some quality family time. Our plan to feed her lunch and then head out so she would nap in the car during the hour car ride there worked like a charm. Alex stopped to get an oil change first, and she was out by the time it was finished and stayed asleep until we arrived at our destination. Groggy from her nap, it took her a little bit to warm up to the whole idea of the games, but once Alex got her going, she was unstoppable!

 

 She amazed us with how she quickly figured out how to climb the stairs of the inflatable slide all by herself.

 She enjoyed "playing" on the arcade games. I'm very thankful she doesn't yet realize you can put tokens in the games to actually play them and make them move! She was content just pretending to ride them.

 

The face of pure happiness:

After she wore us out (seriously, I was EXHAUSTED from chasing her all over), we took Natalie to Steak 'N' Shake for dinner. She ate every single bite of her food and then "helped" Alex pick out which shake to order.

 She doesn't look impressed, but believe you me, the kid loves her ice cream!

Then she proceeded to eat pretzels and water on the way home and an entire apple when we got home. Little piggy had worked up an appetite after all that playing! We had such a great time!

It's hard to believe that our time with one child is coming to a close. It has been easy to steal snuggles lately since Natalie hasn't been feeling well and wants to be held a lot. Between stomach bugs, sinus congestion, and coughs, our family has been fighting illness on and off since October. I do not want to bring the new baby home to a house full of sickness! I've been dealing with sinus issues since the week before Christmas!

On Saturday, when I turned 39 weeks pregnant, I decided I needed to go ahead and take another belly photo. Bathroom selfies are the "in" thing, right? So, I decided, why not join the bathroom selfie club and snap a picture? Not so easy. One look in the grimy mirror and I started cleaning the bathroom. It needed to be done anyway. Never mind that it was 11 pm!

Natalie came 4 days before her estimated due date, which would be today, if this baby had chosen to follow big sister's footsteps. I'm glad that baby #2 has decided to stay warm and cozy right where she is considering that it is currently 9 degrees outside and our street is a sheet of ice. Tomorrow's high is 40 degrees, so she is welcome to come once the ice melts!

My symptoms have stayed the same. Frequent heartburn, energy that comes and goes, my legs often feel like lead and I get tired easily, no more than 3 Braxton Hicks contractions a day, very minimal swelling of my hands and feet. Baby is still moving around like she has all kinds of room in there. I don't quite know how she's managing that, but I'm enjoying feeling her on the inside while I still can.

With the weather being so cold and icy, Alex worked from home yesterday and I got a TON of cleaning done around the house. Maybe that was my "burst of energy" before going into labor? Not sure how soon before labor you usually get that burst, so who knows. We rearranged some of Natalie's bedroom furniture to make room for a play tent, I vacuumed most of the house, did quite a few loads of laundry, scrubbed some floors, dusted the living room, took a nap, and made dinner. I don't think there's much more to be done before we bring our baby girl home, and if it's not done at this point, I really don't care if it gets done. Life will go on! Besides, I'd rather enjoy time with Natalie than be busy cleaning during her every waking moment right now!

38 Weeks with Baby #2

Today was my last Monday of babysitting our nieces until well after the baby is born, so I asked our 8-year old niece to take a belly pic for me. My camera is clearly not behaving lately since this picture is just as fuzzy as the last one. Dagnabit!

Out of fear of forgetting something important, I finally wrote down my pre-baby to-do list and starting tacking projects. In two days, I have packed our hospital bag, washed covers for the car seat, swing, bouncer, play gyms and cradle mattress, started recovering the cushions for the glider rocker (a project that has been in the making since I was pregnant with Natalie. Oops!), cleaned the laundry room, and written out a few Scriptures to look at for encouragement during labor. Alex brought the cradle down for me today and Natalie immediately climbed into it. She looked pretty darn cute, but I made her get out and suggested she put her baby doll in it instead. She went and got her doll, laid her down in the cradle and proceeded to rub the baby's back like I do to her. She sure knows how to melt my heart, and she's been doing a good job of it lately, too. Whenever I bend down to get in a lower cabinet or something, she'll come over and rub my back and then give me a hug and a kiss. Sometimes she even asks, "You ok, Mama?" Precious. I decided to cuddle with her in her toddler bed tonight, a feat easier accomplished in a larger bed or without a big belly in the way, and she started rubbing my arm. I tried to get up at one point, and she sat up and pushed my head back down to the pillow. Guess she wasn't ready for me to leave her just yet! I'm soaking up the cuddles and making sure to try and take advantage of opportunities to show her that she is special and I'm here for her. With all the changes that have already happened and the ones getting ready to take place, I want to help her feel safe and secure instead of anxious.

Once we get the car seat installed and bags packed for Natalie to take to my parents' and for the baby, I think all the necessary things will be done. I have a laundry list of sewing projects that I'd like to tackle, but we shall see about those.

I've had a couple Braxton Hicks contractions the last two days and plenty of heartburn as soon as I eat sugar. And have I mentioned how badly I've craved sweets?!

Tomorrow, we are taking Natalie back to an inflatable games place we first went to back in February. The plan is to feed her lunch and then let her nap in the car on the hour-long ride there. I hope she enjoys it as much as she did when she was 14 months old. She really surprised me back then. I thought she'd be intimidated by it all, but she was my little wild child, running around as fast as her little legs would take her. I'm really looking forward to having some good quality family time before Alex heads back to work Thursday and our family of 3 becomes 4.  Hopefully the camera will cooperate tomorrow and we can get some good pictures to remember the day by, too!

A Big Ol' Brain Dump aka Pregnancy Dreams and Natalie-isms

Women talk about having some off-the-wall dreams during pregnancy and this time around, I have been no exception. At first, I had all nightmares, but lately my dreams just seem to be unbelievably random and well, kind of funny. I thought it might be nice to document them just so I could look back someday and remember what it was like to be pregnant with baby #2.

Two nights ago, I dreamed I married Daniel Boone. As in, the famous wilderness explorer/pioneer, Daniel Boone. Yeah. I hadn't watched any documentaries or anything that would have triggered that in my subconscious, so it must be those wacky pregnancy hormones! ;)

Before that, I had a dream that Tina Fey came to my house for my birthday along with a bunch of friends and their dogs. One friend has a HUGE Great Dane, by the way. It was a crazy party!

I started to write about the nightmare dreams, but I just can't do it. I don't think I'll ever want to remember those down the road. Lots of tragedy and sadness. No fun. So, on to a happier subject!

Natalie has been full of hilarious and/or cute anecdotes lately. Even though we are in the full-fledged tantrum-throwing phase, she can still be quite charming most of the time. Yesterday, after wearing out my nerves with incessant crying and whining for over an hour after waking from her nap, I heard her in the kitchen behind me as I was making dinner, saying all of her grandparents' names and the word "cousins". I turned around and she had her hands clasped together in front of her and then she said, "Night night. Amen." My sweet girl was praying for her family! It was the most precious thing ever!

Earlier this week, I dug out some books that I'd put away for when Natalie was old enough for them. I introduced her to Clifford, the Big Red Dog and well, she loved him. I read one book through and then she proceeded to "read" it herself, saying "Cifford" (no 'l') about every other word. She babbled on and on for a good long time.

Natalie repeats every. single. thing. she hears and sometimes it's just too darn cute. A couple of weeks ago I exclaimed in exasperation, "You are driving me nuts!" and Natalie said, "Nuts!" and ran to the pantry. I had to laugh and then deal with the mom guilt from saying that to her. She has discovered cashews and loves them. And she has an insatiable appetite these days, so it is like a constant feeding fest over here.

Baby girl wants to be held. A LOT. So she holds out her hands as if she expects you to hand her something, not like she wants to be picked up, if that makes sense, and then says, "Hole-jer?" I think she's saying "Hold her?" It's funny how she doesn't know to refer to herself as "I" and "me" yet, although I am in no hurry for her speech to develop to that point. We understand most of what she says and it's just sad when toddlers start speaking in full sentences, sounding like big kids!

I know there are more cute things that have happened lately, but my memory fails me. Natalie is in bed for the night and this mama needs to get busy sewing Christmas presents! My sewing machine awaits...

21 Months on the 21st

Last week, Natalie turned 21 months old. I really wish that time would slow down already!Last Wednesday (9/18), we moved Natalie to her toddler bed. (I made her sheet and pillow case out of fabric from JoAnn's. Sheets are surprisingly easy!)

The first two nights, she shocked me by not getting up even one time to test her new boundaries (or lack thereof, since she isn't contained like in her crib). On the third night, our air conditioning went out, so her bedroom was too warm for her to be comfortable to fall asleep. We opened her window and let her sleep in just a diaper, but she was quite restless well past bedtime. Then she woke up at 5 am Saturday, wide awake and asking to eat. Not a good way to start the weekend.

She has shown a lot of interest in the potty recently, so I tried to start potty training her today. All along, I have been eager to be done with diapers, but after today, I'm in no hurry. Apparently Natalie is not as ready as I thought. We had NO success. It was ridiculous. Like, 3 accidents in 30 minutes ridiculous. So, I'm backing off and waiting, probably until Spring sometime once we're hopefully in a routine with the new baby. Part of me feels like a dope for thinking she could possibly be ready at this age and another part of me also feels like a loser for giving up after one day. But you know what? It's not the end of the world and life with cloth diaper laundry will go on and my child WILL be potty trained eventually, and that's what matters. Who cares if it doesn't happen right now. Just pray that I have enough energy to tackle the potty training when she's truly ready and am not just utterly exhausted from adjusting to life with 2 kids. I'm pretty scared about all that!

These days, Natalie thinks she is too big to sit in her high chair and will only eat while sitting in a chair or next to us on the couch. She hates wearing a bib and is getting picky about sippy cups. Um...mommy hates cleaning up unnecessary messes, so just wear the bib and use the no-spill cup, please, child!!! She is obsessed with apples and asks to eat them all.the.time. We took her to an apple farm and Alex let her mooch off an apple with him, so now she prefers to bite right into the whole thing instead of having me cut it up for her. I made an apple pie last week and Natalie kept asking for "Ah-pie". She can say "apple" clear as day, but for some reason, she hasn't figured out how to say it with "pie".

We take a lot of walks around our neighborhood, and recently, we've been leaving the stroller at home. In some ways, it's nice not having to push a 30 pound stroller with a 26-pound toddler in it, but our walks last twice as long since we're constantly having to tell Natalie to keep moving. She likes to watch for animals and airplanes, pick up rocks, mystery berries, acorns, and flowers along the way. At least she's observant, enjoying nature, and getting some energy out! She asks to take a walk pretty much every day and even goes into the laundry room where we keep Layla's leashes to make sure her puppy gets to come along, too. Speaking of Layla...it is now Natalie's regular job to feed the dog in the morning and evening. She gets right into it, too! Sometimes she even tries to sneak a 3rd feeding in there in the afternoon...

Any time you ask Natalie a question, she answers with the cutest little "yes". My mom asked her something like, "Does Mommy have a melon in her belly?" and Natalie said, "Yes". Thanks, kiddo! Needless to say, she's pretty agreeable these days! She says well over 100 words and has finally started saying Grandma ("Damma". She has been saying her other grandparents' names for quite a while). She came up to me the other day with her hands clasped together and said "pray". So we did, and then at the end she said, "Amen!" It was precious!

I'm loving the age that she's at right now. Everyday is full of new things she has learned and figured out. It's amazing how quickly kids pick up on things! She loves to give kisses and asks to cuddle. She is definitely both a mama and a daddy's girl (just what we prayed for!). We're working on tantrums and how to not be upset when she doesn't get her way (like when mean old mommy doesn't choose the grocery cart with the car on the front for her to ride in). It's strange to actually be able to almost carry on a conversation with her now. She seems so grown up and yet still so much like a baby at the same time. I think she is going to be a great big sister! We had lunch at my parents' house after church yesterday and Natalie cuddled up next to me and started rubbing my belly. It was the most precious, sweet thing ever. She's never done anything like that. My mom tried to take a picture, but, as usual, Natalie's 6th sense for when the camera is out kicked in and she stopped being all cute.

So, that's life with a 21-month old Natalie! Never a dull moment around here and we wouldn't have it any other way! 

Before I Forget These Moments

In the eyes of a 20-month old, every day is full of possibility. Opportunities to learn something new, to find new trouble to get into, maybe convince Mommy to give you a treat or two. Natalie is literally growing up before my very eyes and it is exciting and heart-wrenching at the same time. Her vocabulary has exploded to include approximately 80 words (I counted it up yesterday and today) and she's even started putting a couple phrases together like "shoes on", "want this", and "here, mama".

I wanted to remember a few moments and details that have stuck in my mind lately before I forget them. Yesterday, Natalie handed me a half-chewed piece of green pepper, so I told her to go throw it away in the trash and she ran to the kitchen to throw it away and then ran back to me yelling "Throw in trash!", all proud of herself. I was proud, too! Maybe it seems strange that I am proud of something like that, but she is just becoming so independent, plus that was only one of a handful of times that she has said two or three words together.

The grandparents have all gotten a kick out of Natalie's latest antic: checking mommy for a dirty diaper. Yeah. I guess she figured that since I pull her diaper back to check if she's clean or not that she should check mommy, too...

Natalie loves playing chase. She gets Layla to run after her in the backyard and just giggles and cackles and squeals in delight. When we're inside, she says, " 'Mon! 'Mon!" (c'mon) so that we will chase her around.

My independent toddler loves trying to buckle the chest clip on her car seat, the buckle in shopping carts and the buckle on baby swing on her swing set. She is starting to dislike eating in her highchair and prefers siting in a regular chair. Don't even think about trying to hold silverware for her or she will probably refuse to eat. Yogurt used to end up all over her face, hair, and bib, but now she manages to get the majority in her mouth. The first thing she has been asking for in the morning is to put on her shoes and a bow for her hair. I walked into her room to get her out of bed the other day and she immediately said, "Mommy! Hi!". Melt. My. Heart.

She might be growing up much faster than I'd like, but I'm going to do my best to remember as much about these busy days as I can and be a better mom tomorrow than I was today so that when my daughter looks back on her childhood, she will have fond memories, too.