My oldest and my youngest

These are some of my favorite pictures of my first born and my last. Landon is 14 and even though he can be a stubborn teenager at times, he is the sweetest big brother to Sarah Kate just like I knew he would be. He's gonna be such a good man, full of love and honor, a provider and protector, just as God wants. I'm such a proud mamma!

My handsome boy. . .

Watching Saturday morning cartoons with her bubba. . . .

This was the first time he held her. She was 2 days old. He wouldn't hold her till the visitors stopped and he had chance to look her over. We turned around and found them taking a nap together. How sweet is this!

4 months

Look at my big girl now! Sarah Kate is 4 1/2 months old now and growing so fast. She's rolling from front to back and back to front. She loves the sound of her voice and someone has taught her to blow raspberries. It's super cute except when she does it eating her carrots. Here are some pictures from her 4 month check up. She weighed 13 pounds and 10 ounces and is 24 inches long!

Yucky yucky shots. . . .

She saw herself in the mirror for the first time. It was so adorable. She talked to herself the whole time we were there!

This was one of the last warm days we spent outside. I can't wait till winter is over!

Cutest Flower!

Sarah Kate was the cutest little flower for her first Halloween! It was such a fun time. We started out seeing Nana and Great Grandmother and then caught up with Meemaw and Peeps at the first annual Bushnell Bonfire! Cousins and 2nd cousins and 3rd cousins were there. It was much fun. The big kids did a hayride and we made a quick trip to the festival in Atoka. Since we are too little for candy just yet, she got some little Halloween socks and sock monkey stickers in her boo bucket. She had no idea what was going on of course, but stayed warm and comfy in her costume! I can't believe next year she'll be walking and maybe even saying trick or treat!

Nightgowns!

Okay, first I'm going to take this opportunity to say "Hi, i'm SarahKate's mommy and I've become an ebay junky"! After discovering that they don't sell those little Carter's gowns in sizes bigger than 0-3 months, I went hunting for some on eBay. I have found yet another brand that I've fallen in love with. Mary James makes the sweetest little nightgowns with the bottom open. (That elastic is gettin hard to fit over SK's round belly!) They come with adorable little appliques or you can have them monogrammed! Of course they are pricy like the Kissy Kissy gowns at the Frog, but they are oh so cute! I can't wait to get this first one in and try it out!

3 months!

Sarah Kate is now 3 months old and life is good. She's almost sleeping through the night. She's been getting up about 4am for the past week so things are looking up. She's gotten soooo big. She's outgrowing lots of her 0-3 month clothing. I'm having loads of fun shopping on ebay. I have bought several smocked outfits way cheaper than it's costing me to make one. I'm "working on" two dresses right now. One with strawberries and one with frogs. Hopefully I will get them done before she outgrows them! We changed to faster flow nipples this week and started apple juice. She is so alert. She's has lots to say and gave mommy a big laugh this week. Lots of milestones. . .





We are super excited about our first Halloween. We are having a bonfire at Meemaw's. That is, if, the burn ban is lifted. Right now that's looking like a very big if. My neighbors, Pastor Jim and Mrs Stephanie, are also having a fall festival. It will be lots of fun and include a very tiny guest. They are expecting baby number 4 any day now! Sarah Kate will have a little friend, maybe Sadie and maybe a little boy with no name yet!





Daddy is going out of town for two weeks! We've tried to prepare him with an overnight visit with Aunt Karen. But even that was hard, so Sarah Kate and I may have to sneek a mini trip to Murfreesboro for a couple of nights!





4 months is coming up fast. We are scheduled to see Dr. Scott for our next set of shots on the 11th. Mommy is not looking forward to it but it must be done!



Our first pictures didn't turn out so well so if anyone has suggestions I'd appreciate it. Unfortunately, I have money tied up in a baby plan already but worth the loss I guess to have pictures I love instead of ones that are just okay.



Lastly, we are enjoying the last of the warm days. Winter is coming and we will be hibernating indoors for the next few months. Yesterday was so beautiful, we decided to nap right on the front lawn!

Prayers needed!

My family needs your prayers. I'm asking everyone I know to pray for my newest cousin, Kristian Gray.

Kirk and Kristi Gray of Conway, AR had a son, Kristian, born Wednesday, October 13th. Kristian was born at 32 weeks. He was taken early due to a large amount of fluid around his tiny heart. At 32 weeks, he weighed 7lbs. They drained 90cc of fluid from his heart. For a brief time, they were hopeful as the doctors said little Kristian's heart was functioning normally. Just a few short hours later, they found out that the baby has bleeding on his brain. Kristian is now struggling to survive.

My heart is aching for this mom and dad. I can only imagine their pain and for that I am thankful. I look at my sweet girl's face and realize how blessed we are to have such a healthy, beautiful girl. As a mommy, this story hits so close to home. Please pray for Kristian Gray, that God may heal his little body and work a miracle before us. Pray for strength and wisdom for his mom and dad as they are sure to have many difficult decisions coming there way. I have never prayed in my life like I have for this little boy. Sometimes faith is so difficult for me, but I know his little life is in God's hands. Please keep my cousins in your prayers!

12 weeks!

Wow! Look how much she"s grown!

So it's been awhile since my last post. The Barkelews have been pretty busy lately. Sarah Kate is now 12 weeks old. She has grown so much. I'll have to backtrack a bit to catch everyone up.

First, I had a slight meltdown over breastfeeding or rather not breastfeeding on week 2. I anticipated this problem and now wish I had not even tried. The first two weeks were terribly emotional and stressful for all of us. I don't know that I've ever cried so much. Justin was home with us the first two weeks so that was helpful. And one of my super duper friends came out and held my hand for a few days till I was feeling better. It's hard to understand being so sad when you've been anticipating bliss for so many months. But, we made it through and I'm feeling much better now.

Second- going back to work! OMG! I knew that this was going to be tuff but didn't realize just how much till it happened. I stayed home with my other babies so this is new for me. I went back when she was just 6 weeks old due to a lovely corporate policy that caused me not to qualify for FMLA after 7 years of service. The first night was so hard. I wanted to cry every time someone asked me about my baby. But that too has gotten better. I am so thankful that SK stays home with her daddy when I can't be there. He is wonderful with her. He does diapers and feedings like a pro. He always puts her little gowns on at bedtime and even washes bottles. Daddy even packs up the diaper bag and takes her out for some one on one time to let me nap. I don't know what I'd do without him. I'm a lucky wife and mommy.

Third- Sarah Kate is. . . . . . well, she's just awesome. She is such a precious baby girl. She has been so alert right from the beginning and wants to watch everything. We finally got a good smile at about 6 weeks I think and she is all smiles these days. She loves her bath and absolutely LOVES being outside. She weighed 10 lbs and 14 oz at her 2 month check up. (Daddy went with us that day for support.) We decided on Dr Scott as her pediatrician. He's been great so far. I think we've finally gotten through the gas and Miralax has cured the constipation. Next on the agenda is to get baby girl to sleep through the night. I am hoping to move her into her nursery soon. She looks so big in her cradle now. She is growing and discovering new things every day. I am so in love with this little girl!

I don't have any pictures on this computer but I will try to add some soon. We had her first professional pictures made 3 weeks ago with Emily Payton Cook in Covington. I think they turned out well but unfortunately I am still waiting on the proofs to post!

New Neighbors

I got great news this week and just had to share. My mom and dad will close next week on a 6 acre lot located exactly 1.1 miles from my house. I am super excited. I love living in Tipton County but the one thing missing these last 5 years has been my momma. She's the best mom and an even better Meemaw. My dad aka Peeps is awesome too. Now they will be just around the corner. I can't wait!

They are going to build a house and a shop, plant blueberry bushes, and have goats for the grandkids. There is a huge pond, 6 pecan trees along the back, pear trees and more. It is the perfect place for my parents to retire. It will make great memories on holidays and birthdays and good ole Sunday dinner. Our first gathering will be a big bonfire Halloween night after we clean up all the brush from around the property.

My brother who I thought would never leave Rockin' Raleigh is talking about putting a house on the south end of the property and it's very possible that my brother in Sardis, whom I miss dearly, may also join us. What's funny is that my sis-in-law already lives two doors down from me. Oh and I forgot to mention that the name of the road is Trotter which is also my husband's middle name. This was his mom's maiden name. It's family land! Justin's great aunt who is the most wonderful lady is directly across from my parents' lot and a cousin next door. There are several relatives still up and down the street. Sarah Kate will have mommy and daddy's families on the same road. Life is good. God is good. What a blessing!

Happy Birthday to you. . . .

I know it's been forever since I've posted but the Barkelews have been a little busy. All 6 of us! She's finally here. July 9th at 12:02 p.m. Sarah Katherine aka Sarah Kate was born. She weighed 7lbs 6oz and was 20 in long. Here's the story. . . . .

On Thursday night we checked in at the Women's Pavillion at Methodist Germantown at 9pm. After somehow going from 3cm the week before to no centimeters the previous Tuesday, we decided to start the induction with cervadil. They were very busy that night so it was around 1am by the time we got settled in a room and got the medicine from pharmacy. I woke up contracting by 3 and started pitocin at 7. My doctor came in and broke my water at 9. I was handling contractions pretty well up to this point. We talked to the anesthesiologist after we got into our room who advised us that an epidural would be fine this time around. Although I was apprehensive, I decided to go ahead and get it at 5cm. I could no longer talk through my contractions and I feared a long labor once again. They just went a little higher in my back to avoid scar tissue from previous spinal taps and it worked perfectly. As soon as the pain subsided, I realized that I had a TON of pressure and warned my nurse that my last two babies were born in the bed! 15 minutes later I was 8cm and in no time I was complete and dying to push. They held her head in till my doctor made it across the parking lot and 2 pushes later she was born! It was so easy. Epidurals are FABULOUS! After 3 grueling, excruciating labors, this one was awesome!

She is a beautiful, perfect, healthy girl who looks just like her daddy. We are so in love with her. I can't even find the words to describe how wonderful her daddy has been. I'm so proud of him and love him even more. Her big brothers and sister have been the biggest help and just adore her. We are so blessed. Our family finally feels complete!

The Nursery

FINALLY! The nursery is done! Last week, the custom bumper and curtains I ordered finally arrived after what seemed like forever. Although the wait seemed unbearable, (okay, so maybe that's being a little dramatic), they were well worth it because both pieces turned out just beautiful!


So this is Max who is solely responsible for my daughter having a room taken over by sock monkeys. I saw him at Walmart while Christmas shopping and thought how cute he'd be in a little boy's nursery. Then after finding the pre-made bedding online, I decided, boy or girl, that he or she would have to have sock monkeys! The little rocking chair he's sitting in was my hubby's when he was little. It matches my not so favorite cradle that I would show you, however, IT'S STILL NOT FINISHED! Almost though. We should pick it up tomorrow. Whew!






This is the chest of drawers obviously. Funny, I just realized I used to call them chester drawers when I was little. The chest and dresser were mine from a bedroom suit my parents bought me at an antique flea market when I was 14. Using these pieces was the compromise I made with hubby in order to get the crib I wanted. On top is the first sock monkey I actually bought and the Jack in the Box or Monkey in the Box, I guess, which still scares me, I must admit. It sits on top of this great keepsake box I found at Old Town Hall. The picture hanging on the wall is of two lady sock monkeys with jewelery and lipstick. Too cute! The odd colored bobble head figures are my children's contribution to the nursery and more precious than words even though they don't match.

This is the dresser/ changing table. I painted the letters and the bow holder and also the tray for the wipes and powder. It's hard to see, but there is a little sock monkey candy jar that holds cotton balls and q-tips. It's the first gift I received for the baby. My friend Tori found it at Cracker Barrel of all places right after I decided on sock monkeys. She also got me a super cute monkey night light. Funny they had sock monkeys in their Christmas decor this year. The hamper took me forever to find and just has a trim of the matching fabric pinned on the front with a sock monkey applique, again, found on Etsy. ( Thanks, Amy!)

This is one of my favorite parts. We got this great leather rocker/ recliner at Ashley when I was barley pregnant. It's super comfy and will be great for nursing with all the traffic in my house. It doesn't swivel but that's okay. I also painted the shelf and hanging rack above it. It's got a smocked doll dress from The Freckled Frog, a willow tree prayer angel, a mini sock monkey (Etsy again) and some other cute stuff. See where we are gettin overrun with monkeys at this point??? I think my mother hates it and won't say to spare my feelings! I actually sewed the lampshade cover myself. Not well, if you flip it over, but it's pretty cute from a distance. I even painted the curtain rod and brackets and capped the ends with tennis balls covered in fabric. . . my mom's idea.

This of course is the crib. I love it. Her quilt is hanging over the back. She won't be able to use it till she's 5 seeing as how it's HUGE. The lady that made it for me kind of had her own ideas on size and pattern. It was a favor from a friend's mom so I didn't complain. It was quite a nerve wracking process however. The good news is that it is beautifully sewn and SK will be able to use it for years. I think it is probably big enough to fit a twin bed! I love the way her name turned out on the wall. I enlarged the embroidery off one of the diaper bags and transferred it to the wall. My mom painted the letters and we had a lady from Munford come paint the design. I've since decided that I could've also done that part myself too seeing as how she used the exact images I printed and transferred them with carbon paper just like I did the name. I had wanted a similar vine running all through the letters but I'm pretty happy with it anyway.

So that's my baby girl's nursery. Finally complete. The only thing still "in the works" is that I haven't found a rug I just love yet. The one in front of the crib is a little $4 woven rug I found at Big Lots and it just happened to be red, brown, and cream. I figured it would do till I found one I wanted. I've had lots of fun and a little stress putting this room together and I'm pretty happy with the finished product. I can't wait to bring my baby girl home next week to see it!

Ohhhh, yes, that's right. I haven't posted that, huh? I am going in for an elective induction on the 9th. Not exactly what I had planned but the pain of pitocin and no epidural is welcomed at this point if it will get me out of these 12 hr work nights! Although, I was 3cm on Monday and lost my plug later that night (sorry if that's tmi but I figure we're all girls) so I'm really hoping she will decide to come on her own in the next 8 days! Wish me luck!

Family Fun

So last week was our little "mini-vacation". We decided just to go spend a few days at the lake house seeing as how taking a big trip at this point in my pregnancy was neither affordable nor sensible. Justin and the kids drove up on Sunday and I joined them on Monday after I got off work and had a little nap. It was a nice break, although there were a few obstacles. . . .

We knew the AC was "out" the week before and decided we would just take the window unit out of our bedroom and tough it out. Hubby's step-dad pointed out that the windows at the "cabin", which is actually a double-wide trailor, wouldn't hold a window unit. The neighborhood fix it guy was supposed to be coming to fix it anyway so we decided to go on. Apparantly Sunday night was unbearable, so hubby and the kids went and bought a window unit from Wally World and rigged it up in the sliding glass door, duct tape and all! Unfortunately, it did not help much. It was still 80 deg in the house. Knowing me like he does and especially now, hubby decided not to tell me that the parts for the air had not come in! I may have stayed home! I guess you might as well say we were camping cause it was almost as hot inside as it was outside. Ever tried to sleep 8 months pregnant in a house that's 80 degrees??? Thank the Lord that the parts came in and we had AC after getting off the boat on Tuesday!

The AC was not the only problem we encountered. Hubby had to replace the carborator on the boat Tues morning before we could go out. Come to find out, after an hour on the lake Monday, the boat died and he had to ask someone to tow him back to the dock! This is apparantly a terribly embarassing thing for him. Must be a man thing. We just had to laugh about it but I think he was gonna crack if one more thing broke!

After everything got repaired, we ended up having a great time. Chloe has really learned to swim well since last summer and didn't even need her Scooby Doo doggie life jacket and my baby girl started learning to water ski! I was so proud of her. She got almost completely up on the first try. I would never have had the guts at 11 to even try. Then on Wednesday, my sis in law and niece came up and went to out on the lake with us. We did some tubing- I'll have to post some pics if I remember. And then we hit Fat Daddy's for lunch. It's a floating restaraunt on the TN River in Dover. Sarah Kate now has her very first Fat Daddy's t-shirt! It's super cute. We just couldn't resist!

Gripes!

It's okay to gripe here, right? lol So things aren't going very smoothly this week. The nursery curtains I was expecting came in (now let me say I have been trying to get these curtains since the 25th of March) with the WRONG fabric. That's right! The wrong fabric. How in the world does one confuse polka dots with red monkeys???? Please tell me. I just about cried. When I called the very old, senile lady, she said, "Well, that's the number I wrote down". So even if you wrote down the wrong number, wouldn't you notice that monkeys were NOT polka dots??? She and I got on the same website at the same time to pick out my fabric to avoid any confusion. Guess that backfired. This is a little lady that runs a shop in a little town outside of Murfreesboro. Hubby was there for a class and bought me a sock monkey pillow while he was killing time. So he brings this lady's card and tells me she has curtains too. YAY! Or so I'm thinking. Not only did she use the wrong fabric, but the seamwork was just atrocious. I could've done better myself and I don't sew! Sooo, Lesson: Don't trust hubby's opinion of one's seamwork!

My bumper is being made by a lady I found on Etsy. After I emailed her wanting a shipping date, she tells me that she is running about two weeks late! Aggghhhhh! Doesn't she know that I desperately need these curtains hanging up two months ahead of time??? lol I relunctantly ordered my curtains from her after rereading lots of wonderful reviews. All say, "worth the wait" so I guess she stays behind. She has bought herself some time by holding my bumper hostage and shipping both pieces together. She did give me a date of June 7th though, so I'm trying to be strong! Ohhhh, how crazy I have become! Hopefully, they will be worth the wait!

Thirdly, what is thing where pregnant women work? Holy cow, 12 hours has never seemd so long! I just want to cry every morning when I finally get off. I can't imagine, at this point, working up until my due date. I guess I have officially become a wuss. I am whiny and obnoxiously emotional. My poor hubby and kids. I must say, they are doing pretty good with my crazy behavior. But 7 weeks seems like forever right now! For all of us!

In the home stretch!

Well, we are officially in the single digits. Nine weeks to go and counting. And boy am I counting. Things have actually been going well, but I am starting to get pretty uncomfortable and feel like I could knock down the Eiffel Tower with this belly! No weight gain at my last visit! YAY! I was super excited about that although I'm not sure why I didn't gain. I guess my eating has slowed quite a bit. Guess I'm running out of room in there! SK was 3 lbs during an "under the table" ultrasound from a friend 2 weeks ago. That's just a little above average I think so hopefully my lessened appetite will prevent her from being HUGE! My boys were both close to 9lbs. Everything looks good so far. She even has little fat cheeks and I can tell she's gonna favor her big sister!

The nursery is almost there. I can't wait till it's finished. I had a lady come out and add some detail to the name my mom and I painted above the crib and I'm pretty happy with it. My curtains should be in the mail tomorrow and my bumper should be ready any day now. I got a couple of cute pics to frame off Etsy and some other little nick nacks to finish things up. I need a hamper and wastebasket still and a cute rug for the middle of the floor and I think that will be it! I have really had fun with the sock monkeys. I hope I don't tire of them quickly after all this work!

Hubby started stripping the dreaded cradle today and it went well. Yay! I had just about decided not to use it until a family gathering on Mother's Day where I was informed that half the family slept in that cradle. Even second cousins! SIGH!!!!! So I'm stuck with it. I did discover that they make metal spray paint that we can use on the hardware since it seems impossible to find. I'm also still in need of a new mattress. Apparantly, size 14" by 33" isn't a common cradle size! I'm hoping it will turn out well. Now I just have to get on the ball and find some bedding.

I must say that the closer it gets, the more scared I get. That "amnesia" that the dear Lord gives us is starting to wear off and I am remembering the long, painful labors of the years before. I am truly considering wussing out and risking the epidural. lol My doc this time isn't totally against it so we'll see. She says to talk with the anesthesiologist as soon as we check in and get his/her opinion. Sooo, we'll see.

All in all, life is good. I know I am truly blessed. I know that the Lord loves me althoughI don't always act like I should. I have a healthy family, a healthy baby on the way, a nice, DRY home, a good, stable job, and food on our dinner table every night. What more can a girl ask for?

Cankles and Cradles

So I'm happy to report that my cankles seem to have subsided for now. I had about a week of REdicuous swelling, and now, MUCH better. I dunno??? I'm not going to question, just enjoy while I can. It has also been brought to my attention that I have not gotten heartburn yet this time around! Yay! I lived on Pepcid with my other pregnancies so I guess right now, I'm feelin pretty blessed. I'm going to be blessed tomorrow with that yummy glucola drink for my glucose tolerance test. I must say I'm super exited about that! At least I get to hear baby girl's sweet heartbeat. That's always reassuring even though I have constant reminders that she must be okay every time she punches me in the ribs! I LOVE it!
On a less happy note, things aren't going quite the way I expected and looked forward to with the furniture. The MIL gave us hubby's old cradle and rocking chair. Yes, that means that they are near 30 years old and a bit worn looking. I took them both to my mom's house about a month ago in hopes of refinishing them together with my parents. I love the memories of working on my nursery projects with my parents so many years ago and was hoping to do the same for this baby. So Saturday after I woke up, I went to their house to try and get started on things. My schedule isn't exactly conducive to productivity on the weekends, but I made the effort. My dad glued the joints of the rocker while I did some sanding and before you know it I was packing everything up in my truck and going home. It was kinda late but I didn't get the feeling that anyone else was quite as excited about these projects as I was. I certainly don't want to be a burden. I checked into having someone redo the cradle. It's a light oak color which matches nothing in my house and is a Jenny Lind style which is probably my least favorite style of baby furniture not to mention difficult to refinish bc of the many spindles. It's going to cost twice what I would pay to buy a brand new one to refinish it. If I'm going to spend that kind of money, I'd rather just buy one I actually like, but then we have hurt feelings to deal with! Aggghhhhhh. I guess at this point, the best option is for hubby and I to research and take a stab at doing it ourselves. Sighhhhh.

Milestone!

Okay so Saturday was a BIG milestone for baby SK and I. I'm officially 24 weeks or 6months. Wow, SIX months. Doesn't that sound BIG??? Boy I sure feel big this week. Apparently along with my big milestone comes big changes in my pregnancy. On the positive note, SK is FINALLY moving. A LOT! YAYYYYYY! I've been just dying to feel her little movements for weeks and have been disappointed that I was only able to feel slight flutters. My OB started asking me if I was feeling her move at 16 weeks and I think it was about 20 weeks before I was able to feel any significant movement. But finally, this week, baby SK is moving like crazy. I can even see her moving which is too cool. She definitely lets me know if how I'm sitting is bothering her. I had my arm resting on my belly last night at dinner and she got to kickin' like crazy till I moved it. I think our little one is gong to be a feisty girl!
Since I did say that was on the positive, yes, that means there is a negative. Yesterday, I went to the last hour of the Baby Expo and hit a few other stores before meeting hubby and the boys for dinner. By the time nightfall hit, I looked down and I had CANKLES. Already!! At 6 months. What's this? I have not had any swelling out of the ordinary and have been feeling pretty good up to this point. Cankles so bad that I had to stop in at Old Navy for a pair of flip flops to continue my shopping trip. Along with the cankles, also came a fierce aching low back. I'm sure this is a good sign that in the last 4 weeks, my already atrocious weight gain has gotten worse. Ahhhhh, the joys of pregnancy. The memories started flooding back! LOL
Another positive, the nursery is looking super adorable. I got my bed skirt in and changing pad cover. Ordered up some girly curtains and found someone to make a super cute bumper pad for the crib. My quilt top is complete and I've had it embroidered. With the exception of one fabric that I DID NOT choose, I do love it so far. I have painted a wooden shelf and an ABC block to look kinda aged, gotten some cute vintage pictures of the sock monkey to frame, and am working on a cover for the lamp shade. People say I'm obsessed but I'm having lots of fun. Thinking back, I did the same for my other babies so I couldn't do any less for this sweet girl!

Favorite New Store

So yesterday, Sarah Kate's Meemaw came out after a little arm pulling from the mommy to be, to get her name painted on the nursery wall. We needed a little break and decided to make a trip to Covington to check out the Freckled Frog followed by lunch at the tea room with the slightly obnoxious ladies who work there. So I must say without a doubt, I have a new favorite store! It is an absoulutley precious children's store. And as an experienced mommy, I can honestly tell you how precious the days are that you get to shop in a store like this for your little one. It doesn't seem like it took anytime before we graduated to Limited Too/Justice and Aeropostale. Where did the time go?
The Freckled Frog has all the old time honored brands that I put on my babies a decade ago like Feltman Bros and Petite Ami, along with some adorable new brands I had never heard of. I am super excited to get to shop for these little things again. Although SK has multiple sweet outfits of her sisters, washed and waiting in the closet, I've got my eye on some, more precious than words, dresses that I may break down and buy. There is a line of clothes called WillBeth (I think) that I have fallen in love with that SK and I may not be able to live without! Sorry honey. Just wanna get that outta the way now! lol

Painting things. . . . . pink?

So things are really moving right along it seems. First, we have a closet, well almost. We have to go have another $30 gallon of paint mixed to paint a 2 ft wide section of wall. Baby boy is officially moved upstairs with the exception of his hanging clothes, which of course, are waiting on paint. He actually has a lot more space than he did downstairs so now I feel less guilty about yanking his bedroom. We now have a chest and dresser and a leather rocker in the nursery with several sock monkey items set out that I've already purchased. I'm really getting excited.

I also got my hall bathroom "mudded" finally after 7 months of procrastination thanks to a good friend who really came through for me and motivated me to get the job done. I still have to "rag paint" to make the texture "pop" so to speak but with all the yucky weather and a crazy work schedule, I haven't made it to Sherwin's yet. So hopefully this week with the next 3 days off and the hopefully melting snow, I will get some painting done. I'm also planning to buy the paint for the stripes for the nursery walls. Thank goodness I don't have to paint the whole room. I'm really not up for that. As a matter of fact, I think we may call someone in the next few weeks and have the master bath painted. I've had the paint sitting here since we moved in. Hubby thought he would save us a whopping $200 by taking the bathrooms off the list of rooms for the painters. Oh how I have regretted going along with that decision. Especially now that we will probably pay at least $200 to have one bathroom painted now anyway. It's going to be a dark chocolate brown on the wall above my tub and then yellow on yellow wide vertical stripes on the other walls. Will be beautiful when it's done.
I'm now officially 16 wks and 2 days. Although some days it seems to be creeping along, I can't beleve I'm finally 16 wks. That's 4 months. That sounds substantial, don't you think! I go for my monthly check up tomorrow but unfortunately that means that I won't get another ultrasound till I'm 20 weeks. Agggghhhhhhhh! Can I say that any louder??? I have no idea why but I'm so anxious to find out if this is going to be baby Nash or Sarah Kate that I could just scream. I didn't know with my first and chose not to know with my second and with my third, I was just like "sure, what is it". LOL.But for some reason, knowing that I'm going to find out, I'm worse than a kid at Christmas who tries to unwrap her presents ahead of time! I actually had the tech at work look tonight for the 2nd time in the last couple weeks and we are thinking it's a girl. If it had an obvious penis, I would be totally convinced, but at 16 weeks and this being "unofficial" I'm a little hesitant to start buying dresses. However, it's REALLY unlikely that this baby will have a penis pop out this late in the game. Soooooo, I'm really thinking we are on team pink and will be welcoming a little Sarah Katherine into the family this summer!

Yay the closet is underway!

Hubby and the FIL are upstairs as we speak hanging sheetrock. Although this hasn't made for the greatest sleeping conditions since I have to work tonight, I'm super excited. One, to get the furniture outta my living room and two, to have a "space" to start decorating and imagine the little person that will live there this summer!
Funny Story- So they actually started on this project yesterday. Spent the whole day banging around up there only to find out that they had to start over. Some disagreement over how much space to leave for the sheetrock. Hubby didn't listen and it all had to be ripped out today! LOL. Father knows best, right? He actually came into the bathroom to ask me if it was ok if the closet wall wasn't flush with the piece of wall next to it! Uhh, NO! Not okay. LMAO. Gotta love men.

So I also wanna comment on the beauty of life. The creation of it, the birth of it. . . souls come in and out of this world each day. Yesterday, a precious new life joined our world. A sweet baby girl that will be so loved and bring so much love. The blessings are neverending it seems.
On the flip side, a life was lost. A son, a father, who made a mark in this world and has now moved on to greater things, I hope. Life is so precious. What a reminder to have a birth and death surround you all in one day. It's a balance I guess. Not sure what to think right now. Just that I hope to fill my years left here with love and honor, worship, gratitude, teaching, learning, humility and most of all, strength and spirituality, to know Him like I've never before, and teach my children like I should. We are so small. . . .

A Closet and an Orange

Okay, yes, this may seem like a strange title, but intrguing, yes? I titled this entry this way because these are the two things that I want most right now. The oranges- what I'm assuming to be the first "craving" so to speak seeing as how I do not normally go to the trouble of peeling oranges when you can drink it in a glass. And the closet- well, this makes the second weekend in a row that closet making plans have been interrupted for that ridiculous thing called - work! Yes, sweet, that my hubby is working lots of OT to make up for the EXTRA deductions from my paycheck this year. We opted to do this rather than struggling to make fat payments to the obstetrician, the first of which is due in a few weeks! Not that I'm complaining, of course.
However, this OT is cutting into something I want, which again is yes, a closet. We have 3 bedrooms down and 2 up. Well, sort of. Two rooms up- one of which has no closet bc it is not technically a bedroom. So the plan is to technically make it a bedroom by adding, yes, a closet, and moving my sweetest, most precious, youngest child upstairs to make room downstaris! Whew! That was a mouthful.
Of course, my urgency with this closet is totally justified. 13 weeks is NOT too early to start decorating a nursery for those of you who where thinking that. LOL. I do happen to have half the "nursery furniture" scattered around my house for the time being, and it is quickly becoming aggravating. I only have nursery furniture because hubby and I purchased a much needed set of bedroom furniture for ourselves and it was delivered last week. We also purchased a most adorable leather rocker that will be in the baby's room until which time it is no longer needed in there and can be moved to the living room. I have reluctantly decided that the antique chest and dresser from my room will be used in the nursery and therefore justifies me buying the crib I want! Hehe. My super girly, green, wrought iron, canopy bed frame is now in Hope's room and hubby is soooo excited about that. So nothing is "going to waste". Sigh. . . . . good-bye, adorable armoire and matching dresser that matches my crib. Oh well. 90% of marriage is compromise. Agreed?
So anyhow, now that I've rambled on for so long, I think I'll take a break and have my yummy orange that I'm almost salivating about and be keeping my finger crossed that I get a closet this weekend!! I mean, hubby got all the painting done over a week ago. All I need is . . . . . . . . . .
A CLOSET!

I have arrived!

Woohoo! Well, it's official. I am now in my 2nd trimester. I've been waiting 8 longs weeks to write this post. Hey everyone, I'm PREGNANT! Whew. There. I said it. LOL. Most everyone I know has known for quite some time but I wanted to wait until I was "out of the woods" as they say, to officially announce it. I am super excited if you can't tell. This is the first time I actually "planned" a pregnancy. This is a very wanted blessing.
It's a whole new world from the last time I had a baby, that being over 10 years ago. I have felt pretty good so far. No morning sickness. Yay! The only downside to that is that I've gained quite a few pounds already! I have been pretty exhausted so I haven't spent much- strike that- any time at the gym this month. But I will be there bright and early in the morning. I'm feeling much better this week.
Sooooo, I guess that's it for now. I was busting at the seams. Second ultrasound today showed a healthy wiggly baby with the most precious sounding heartbeat. More to come.
Ohhh yes, and before I forgot, I want to wish a very special friend the best of luck on her new arrival in the next days or weeks. She's my only reader so I'm sure she'll know who she is. Wink!