The Best Day

Thursdays are my favorite day. I love only having to be at work a half day, then rushing to Sarah's to get Levi. The past two nights when I have picked him up, he runs to the door and wants to get in the car. So cute. He has even figured out which door to (try) open to get to his seat.

Not only is it a half day, but tonight is mine and Matt's weekly date night. I look forward to these every week. Even when it's "boring" like going grocery shopping, it's still so nice to be together. I really appreciate the fact that Matt has worked so hard at setting aside this time every week. He comes home from work about 20 minutes early. And we will pinch pennies and do whatever it takes so we can go out each week. I've already been thinking about how soon is too soon to leave a newborn baby at home with a sitter...

I have been overwhelmed with thankfulness lately. I think it's part hormones, part being hit in the face that this baby will be here before we know it, and part that I have talked to some patients with really rough/hard things going on right now. And I can't help but be overwhelmed with all that God has given us. On the way home the past two nights I just can't WAIT to see Levi, whiny/clingy stage and all.

It's helped that the past few evenings it's been warm enough to go play outside when Levi and I get home. And we are loving it. The cat has gotten very quick at sneaking in whenever any of us open the door. We usually find her on Levi's changing table, which makes him so excited. He loves "itty" and spends a lot of time chasing her around. The fact that she is now at his mercy is something he takes full advantage of.

Thank goodness "itty" is patient.

Last night after we threw balls to the dogs and walked all over the backyard he came inside and had a snack while I fixed dinner. This kid will eat ANY snack if you put it in this Froot Loops tub. It's great for tricking him into healthy snacks.

It's amazing what kids learn from watching adults. Levi is now eating two of these oranges a day. One for breakfast and one for supper (which is why I've just started leaving the box out on the table, we fly through them). He's watched me use my teeth to start peeling it, so now he'll pick it up, bite it, and then look at it like "umm, now what?"

And after dinner, Levi had his first pickle. His face is priceless. Despite the face, he loved it. Today for snack he had another one. Lucky for him I'm flying through pickles right now, so we'll always have some on hand.

Oh, and another good thing about Thursdays? It's the day of the week when I "change weeks" with my pregnancy. So Baby #2 is now 18 weeks old! Again, crazy fast. AND on Monday we find out the sex of Baby. I am split 50/50 on "what I want." A little baby brother would be so great (later, after years of smells, bugs, and wrestling matches) for Levi and this baby to have a brother, and I pray, a friend so close in age. But at the same time, I would love to have a little girl. Growing up, I always wished I had a big brother. And let's face it, this house could use some more girl power 'round here. So, either way I will be elated (albeit a boy would be so much cheaper because we already have all the clothes...)!

Hilton Head

This weekend Matt, Levi, and I used an incredibly cheap Groupon and headed to Hilton Head, SC. It's only 40 minutes from Savannah (where we both went to college) so we decided it was worth the drive.

Friday we went to Savannah first. We couldn't check in until 4pm, so our goal was to tire Levi out as much as possible. We did this by letting him run in the only fenced in place in Savannah, the grave yard. I know. But he loved it. He even carried his puffs around. I guess he was eating the calories as he ran them off.

Whenever he got tired, Dad was quick to give him a lift. We actually didn't use the stroller most of the weekend. Levi walked, and a few times he hitched a ride.

Then we learned a few lessons about how to entertain a toddler in a hotel room. This is one of them. Running up and down the halls was another.

Saturday we decided to stay on Hilton Head all day and we loved it. We spent a long time at the marina and on the playground there. I was sitting in a rocking chair (we walked a LOT), when this happened. Don't worry, I was biting my tongue not to act like the "mom" and yell at Matt to grab onto him!

And this was Levi anytime I pulled out the video or regular camera. Running towards it with mouth wide open.

After lunch we rented bikes and went for a drive around the ocean and some of the neighborhoods. It was gorgeous. Levi did really well, most of the time.

Levi had fallen asleep. I was amazed. Whenever Matt turned, Levi's head would move side to side and he wouldn't wake up! At least he is learning to sleep wherever he is.

Needless to say, after 9 hours of being on the road today we were all glad to be home, Levi included. He was so excited to be in his bed he was trying to climb into the crib 20 minutes before bedtime. I put him in, thinking he would try to get out immediately. But he sat down and was just so happy! It was so cute, but so sad at the same time. The picture below is one he will kill me for when he's a senior in high school and I try to turn it in for the senior slide show, but man is he adorable.

Two mischievous monkey bottoms!

Keeping it Real

I don't want to look back years from now and say "Wow, I really did so awesome eating healthy during that 2nd pregnancy." Because that would mean that I would forget nights like this:

Yes. Two nights ago (and last night) Matt had to go back to work. He left around 8:30pm and gets back between midnight and 2am. He was all set to get into bed with me when he saw I had replaced him with a bag of Cheddar & Sour Cream Ruffles. I know. Wife of the Year award.

On another note, I am so thankful we have had company last weekend, today, and tomorrow. One, because I love getting to spend time with family and friends. Two, because I clean under pressure. Last weekend we had Matt's cousin spend two nights and today my parents are coming to spend the day (they are almost here). So, I better go get busy.

Second Trimester

I find it really hard to believe that I am almost 16 weeks. And it's so funny how different I am during this pregnancy (I feel the exact same, crave the exact same foods, my guess is a boy).

First of all, all the pregnancy details: I will be 16 weeks on Thursday. I went to the OB today and the baby's heart rate is 149. I don't know if that means boy or girl. And I can't remember whether Levi was in the "boy range" or not. I have had a really weird sugar issue this time around (which is really a blessing). I cannot eat sugar. Believe me, I try. Because I LOVE sugar. Like this past Sunday I made 3 HUGE cookie cakes for youth group and had a SMALL corner to test it. After I ate it I felt so sick for at least 2 hours. So, while I can eat sugar, I have learned the hard way that it is in no way worth it, for how miserable I feel afterwards. I'm hoping by the time this 40 weeks is up I'll be so use to not eating sugar that I can continue this trend!

Mainly, I'm eating lots of Greek yogurt with granola, salads, MEAT (lots of meat), vegetables (I had to put the veggie tray for youth in my car after I ate almost half of it at our house...), fruit, and smoothies. I LOVE smoothies right now. I need to stop being lazy and spending $5 every time at Planet Smoothie and just go buy the ingredients. But I haven't. The only bad thing I'm eating is bread. Oh bread. I love it. Specifically pizza and the bread that comes with Mellow Mushroom's spinach and artichoke dip. I have had dreams about how good it is. Seriously.

I have felt the baby move several times. Just flutters and rolls, nothing huge, but makes me smile and so eager to meet this new little one growing inside me.

Now, for how different I am mentally. I've heard a lot of moms talk about how they were so much more anxious the second time around because they realized what all could go wrong this time. That has been the opposite for me. Working in the NICU while in school, and having Sam (a NICU nurse) as a best friend, I know the absolute worst cases of what can happen, and knew that while I was pregnant with Levi. So worrying about all the worst case scenarios is just not an option, I don't let my mind go there. I think the difference this time around is because of the way God has worked in mine and Matthew's lives over the past two years.

I am just so much more content this time around. Granted, a big part of that is having Levi keep us so busy, that we both honestly forget that I am pregnant. And it is amazing how much faster the time goes by when you're not counting down the days. It's crazy, but we really realize now, how much more free time you have when you don't have kids. And when you're pregnant for the first time, you spend all that free time thinking about the baby.

The second part is a heart change. Matt and I have been talking about this before I even got pregnant. We have realized more and more how every day is a gift, a blessing. Every day with Levi, every day with each other. And every single day of this pregnancy. Granted, if I were to lose this baby tonight, my heartbreak would be inexplainable. But, Matt and I both know, and rest in the fact, that that was God's will from the beginning. Every day of this pregnancy, and this new baby's life, is a gift. And we are trying so hard to treat it as such. When I am tired, to not complain, but be thankful that my body is able to hold this baby, etc.

People keep asking me am I anxious, can I just not wait to find out whether it's a boy or girl, am I just dying for the end of June to get here? And the answer is no. I really am not anxious or worrying this time around about any of that. I am just enjoying every day with Matt and Levi. I know our lives will be so much more enriched and exciting with the addition of baby #2, but I am going to soak up every day of Levi's "only childhood" while I can.

A Day at the Park

So it's been awhile.  I've gotten out of the habit of blogging so it's really hard to get back in. But I want to. Because this is our scrapbook (you know, one of these days when I print out all of these...). So I "resolve" to blog more this year. I have let my tiredness be my out. But today, my house is the cleanest it's been in the last 10 weeks, which is a huge motivation to get back in the swing of things. Funny how a clean house makes me feel so much better. Sad, but true.

So, I'm slowly dipping my feet in the pool, so to say. Here is how our day went. It was wonderful. Matt has a "man-cold," but he sucked it up long enough for us to go to a nearby middle school's football field. Levi walked/ran all over the place while Matt got to play with an airplane his parents got him for Christmas. It was so much fun. And the best part is Levi came home and took a 2 1/2 hour nap. We had to wake him up at 5pm!

This picture has nothing to do with today. This was taken last night. Levi got slippers for Christmas and he loves them. Every time he looks down at his feet he gets so excited to see cars down there!

I'm so thankful this "rainy day" turned out to be so beautiful!

This is how Levi runs, with his arms flapping in the wind.

Matt tinkering with something. He loves the remote control plane, and it's a great excuse for all of us to get outside.

Levi carried these cones everywhere. One set was a STACK of cones. He was in heaven stacking and un-stacking them.

I love this picture. And Levi loves his daddy. Wherever Matt went, Levi was not far behind. Including climbing up on this bench.

It was a beautiful day. Hopefully tomorrow will be just like it. A good mixture of productivity around the house and quality family time with memories made.

The Christmas Bug

Facebook has been rampant all week with posts of different people and their kids getting the stomach virus. "Aw, how sad for them, the week of Christmas." I would think.

And then it hit. Thursday morning at 1:30am we heard piercing screams from Levi's room that had us both up and running. We walk into Levi's room and there is vomit everywhere. That was his first time to throw up so he was freaking out and this was my first time to have to clean it up, so I was freaking out. Thankfully Matt and I double-teamed it.

Thankfully, it was a very short bug. He threw up a LOT in between 1:30 and 4:30, but stopped after that. So he and I slept on the couch (we were sitting up watching TV with a bowl in my lap while he was on a roll) until I had to get up for work at 6am. Let me just interject that when Levi was a newborn, if I went 3 nights in a row with 4 hours of sleep or less, then I would get really bad "exhaustion headaches." You can tell I am spoiled by Levi sleeping so well now, because just one night of dicey, vomit-smelling sleep and I had an exhaustion headache all day. I better get used to it with #2 on the way...

So, I left Levi with Matt in the bed and headed to work (when he's sick Matt and I split the day at work and at home with sick little man). I hadn't heard from Matt by 9, so I called to make sure he knew not to give Levi any food, only clear liquids, maybe some applesauce, etc. I called him at 9 and Matt said "Oh yeah, we just woke up and Levi has had 2 milk cups and a cookie. He seems all better!" WHAT? Thankfully Levi was better, so he didn't throw any of that up.

So needless to say, that 3 hour bug taught us both a lot about kids and stomach viruses. We were all new to the game. We both thought, ok we learned our lesson, now let's get Christmas under way.

We had our little Christmas morning Friday as we planned to go home Saturday (that would be 48 hours after Levi started/stopped being sick) & Sunday for our families Christmas'.

Needless to say, Saturday morning at 4am, the virus hit me. Unfortunately, since my immune system is weakened from pregnancy, the bug lasted a lot longer in me. It's just today (Monday) that my stomach has calmed down and I can eat regular food. Yesterday Matt felt weak and nausea all day but never threw up. So I'm hoping that his immune system had time to build some antibodies while Levi and I were sick and that is all he is going to have.

So, the biggest/saddest part of this weekend is we weren't with family. But boy did God provide, as always. I didn't tell too many people that Levi was sick, or I was sick. I got a call from our small group leader on Saturday. She had heard I was sick and we couldn't get home (I still don't know how she found out) and they wanted to bring us a Christmas dinner. That meant the world to us.

When I called my mom Saturday morning to tell them we couldn't come home, I didn't cry. But as soon as I hung up the phone with Shari, the waterworks started. I was just so thankful. So that night they brought over a huge dinner for us, that we are still eating on! And then Sarah came by Christmas morning with some delicious pumpkin bread that we ate for breakfast (well, I had popsicles).

And to be honest, this really made Matt and I sit down and talk about the reason for the season. We are so thankful, that all in all, we are all 3 (really, 4) healthy. That we are all together. And that this is the day we celebrate that Jesus was born to save us from our sins. We missed going to church to celebrate this with our church family, we missed seeing and spending time with all of our family in Ringgold, but we are so thankful that God used this time to slow us down. He showed us His provision, His love for us through others here in Birmingham. And He made us sit down as a family and really talk about why we celebrate Christmas.

But I'm not going to lie, I'm so thankful as well that Levi won't remember this Christmas. There wasn't the usual hoopla, but we did share lots of snuggles, stories, and Christmas movies. Now that I think about it, it would be a good Christmas for him to remember as well!

Emotion Induced Post

Last night our church had it's annual "Lessons & Carols." It's this beautiful Christmas program that has been one of the best parts of my Christmas the past two years. Last night I couldn't help but pray while I watched those precious children singing "Lord, please please find a way where I can stay at home full-time, I can't do this anymore."

It's not only those kids singing that got me to praying that, it was a culmination of things. The majority of it is exhaustion. Absolute exhaustion. Christmas this year has been a complete let-down on my end. Today I am doing my Christmas shopping. Seriously? How late is that? Even last year with a newborn (-ish, he was 3 months old), I was so ahead, so together.

Today I was thinking about all of that (as I finished my baking and made my enormous list of stuff to buy) and it hit me.

I AM BEING A HUGE BABY.

This is my 2nd pregnancy. Which means I can't rest as much as I did last time. And there's way more laundry and way more messes to pick up when I don't want to. But, it's not going to get any less. It's going to get more. And I'm getting 8+ hours of sleep right now. So it's time to buck up. Time to realize I have to stop wishing for what could be and to enjoy what is now. When Levi and I are running all over creation today, I can focus on how stressful it is and how long the lines are. OR I can enjoy this time with him and be thankful for it.

I read this article today and have been in a crying mood all day. Hence the emotional post. Shoot, everything is emotional these days!

And this is what made me cry:

"And this is what I feel compelled to say: Tonight, stop and take a really good look at your spouse. Next, look at each of your children. Look really, really long and hard. Take a moment and thank God for every whisper of a moment that God has given you with them. Thank God for the little kisses offered, the stories told, the tickles dispensed, the games played, the readings shared, the silent moments cherished, the victories experienced, the losses endured, the kind words presented , the songs sung, the glances exchanged. These moments not only count for eternity, but they will be remembered for the next billion years after you leave this minuscule moment in time called “life.” Every moment with your loved one matters. Someday they or you will be gone. Every conversation matters. Every kind deed in the name of Christ matters. It all matters."


So. My internal whining is stopping. I am thankful for every minute I have with Matt and Levi and I will make the most of it. Whether we're playing outside or running through Sears looking for that evasive "perfect gift" for my dad.


*I know I have one of these break-downs every few months, but thanks for putting up with me through them all!