A Mommy, A Daddy and Two Little Ladies

34 weeks {nora}

2012-02-11T13:09:00.000-06:00

Up till now, I've just been doing updates at the same time that I had a belly shot with Emmy. BUT...it's the weekend, I am getting bored with all the usual time-waster websites so I am going to do a 35 week update, sans belly.

Her size: According to Babycenter, Nora should be 17 3/4" and a little over 4lbs 12oz.

How far along: 34 weeks as of Friday.

Total weight gain: +33lbs. Probably +1.5-2lbs since last week. Hoping that weight gain is either water (b/c I feel like I am swelling a bit) or Nora catching up in growth.

Sleep: Not too bad, usually wake up around 330-5am to pee. Also keep waking up on my back which makes my lower back ache SO bad when I have to get out of bed.

Maternity Clothes: ALL maternity and digging through Chris' drawers to find size L tshirts. Kind of depressing when his stuff is even too small.

Food cravings: Chocolate and cold things. This is crazy, b/c I am normally not a chocolate person. I mean, I enjoy it just as much as the next person- but I've never considered myself to CRAVE it.

Food aversions: Water....this is a bad one to NOT be wanting.

Symptoms: Nothing abornmal. Although I have noticed my swelling starting to increase, not terrible. I don't have the best knees and have had on and off pain in both knees....right now my right knee is swelling like I have injured it. But I think it's just regular pregnancy swelling. Anyway, didn't experience this with Emmy and wanted to take note.

Stretchmarks: None that I can see. But my stomach is starting to look a little stressed out. Remember those hyper color tshirts from way back when? Yeah, my stomach can do the same trick when I put my hands on there. I think it's primarily from the Procardia causing my skin to flush.

Doctor’s Appointment: I have an appointment Valentines Day! How sweet right? It's also a 2pm appointment which means I will weigh in at least 1-2lbs heavier than morning appointments (starting to think now of what I can eat at lunch that doesn't weigh much but is filling....YES, I am that vain.).

Movement: Plenty of movement...especially from 9pm until whenever I fall asleep. When she moves, I feel it everywhere so I honestly don't know if she's breech, head down or transverse. We will see on Tuesday.

Belly Button: Poking out a little.

Best moment of the week: Some sweet friends brought us dinner last night. Outside of work, I have no social life so it was really great to feel like a social human being.

What I’m looking forward to: The next 6 weeks flying by. Just ready to meet Nora.

What I miss: Working out. Not like a big, intense, P90 meets Insanity meets Bootcamp workout....Just want to hop on the elliptical for a 20 minute workout.

Preparations: The bedding is on the crib (which doesn't matter much since I'm sure we won't be putting her in there a ton until 2-3 months). Hoping to get the carseat in the car soon and get the car cleaned out.

33 weeks {nora}

2012-02-05T13:25:00.003-06:00

update time....

33 weeks on 2/3/12

What do you think about the belly? I think they look almost identical. Before I added the labels I had Chris guess, and he got them backwards. Only difference? I couldn't get my arm at the right angle for the Nora picture. My elbow is not that fat, not sure what happened. hah

Her size: According to Babycenter, Nora should be 17" and a little over 4lbs 3oz. However, we had a growth scan done at 32.5 weeks and she was weight in at 3lb 12oz which was at the 12th percentile for gestation age.

How far along: 33 weeks as of Friday.

Total weight gain: +30lbs. Probably +1-1.5lbs since last week. I'm pretty certain when I was pregnant with Emmy I gained 1.5lbs per week the last 2 months. So if I carry Nora to the same point in time (39 weeks) I guesstimate my final weight to be 39lbs. Yikes.

Sleep: I shouldn't have silently bragged to myself about my great sleep last weekend b/c last week I woke up around 230-3am almost every night. No biggie really, except that when I stand up I feel like there is a jaws of life machine in my pelvis stretching it apart.

Maternity Clothes: All maternity pants and skirts. I still have a few long tanks and tees (non maternity) that stretch over the belly.

Food cravings: Chocolate. This is crazy, b/c I am normally not a chocolate person. I mean, I enjoy it just as much as the next person- but I've never considered myself to CRAVE it.

Food aversions: Water....this is a bad one to NOT be wanting.

Symptoms: Nothing abornmal.

Doctor’s Appointment: Had an appt on Tuesday. Measured Nora since my fundal height had been measuring small. She's at the 12th percentile which is little, but they don't consider baby to be small for gestational age until they drop below the 10th. We will do another scan on the 22nd to see how her growth has progressed. At that point, I'll almost be 36 weeks. We haven't really discussed yet what we will do if her growth has slowed down- I'm sure we'll discuss.

Movement: Lots and lots of movement down low because little miss thing is BREECH! Oh how I wish this sweet baby would flip so that I wouldn't have a head pressing up against my ribs and boobs when I sit upright!

Belly Button: Poking out a little.

Best moment of the week: My best moments are when Emmy talks sweet to Nora. It seems like that has increased over the past week. She wants to give hugs, kisses, show Nora things and always has to say goodnight to her.

What I’m looking forward to: My next appointment. Sounds weird right? But I'm pretty sure that I've been going to the dr weekly since 28 weeks and I finally get a 2 week break from the dr.'s office scale (this could also be a bad thing though for my weight!)

What I miss: Being a normal, social human being who can go on errands unrestricted, go to church, do a few things around the house without worrying about causing too many Braxton Hicks contractions and carrying my daughter. I say all this, but of course I will do anything and everything I need to do to let Nora cook a little bit longer inside.

Preparations: The carseat is down from the attic and all inserts and parts are washed. Just needs to go in the car. Also...Nora's bedding came in today. It's in the dryer right now and I can't wait to get it on her bed and snap some pics.

Finger paints

2012-01-25T19:23:00.001-06:00

No, not the kind that you are thinking about. Little miss likes to call finger nail polish "finger paints". Makes sense. Here's her newest color.

We are trying to teach her how to hold her hands at an angle where other people can see them. We are getting there.

Slowly but surely, my girl who used to pinch worms and kiss fish is turning into a little diva.

-jordan

She makes me laugh

2012-01-23T21:03:00.000-06:00

things said by emmy tonight:

"nora, dos, tres, cuatro...."

"pink is yucky" (as in, pink nail polish...i have no idea"

"let's sing 'itsy bits minnie'"

"my pee pee really hard"....maybe she means, "i really need to go...like now!"?

"mama, my eat your dinner all gone" (then steals the bowl out of my hand and puts it on her tray"

Just a snippet of funnies that go on in our house every night. So glad we have her as our entertainment, how boring life must have been before she came along.

31 Weeks

2012-01-21T11:21:00.000-06:00

I hit 31 weeks yesterday! That means we are into the single digit countdown period! Wahoo!!!!

31 weeks

Weight gain? My 30 week appt had me up about 26-27 lbs at the dr.'s office. Home scale seems to be measuring about the same.
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? Starting to stick out JUST a little at the tip top.
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy!
Cravings? Anything but water. Late night snacks. For emmy to not wake up in the middle of the night to pee.......oh, I digress. Back to cravings: FOOD! I have been so hungry the past week or two. Wondering if Nora has gone on a growth spurt?
Latest hormonal outburst? My hormonal outbursts have come in the form of cussing. Not a good thing, I know. But it's almost uncontrollable.
Vomiting? . Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? Yes actually. This bedrest thing has really increased my desire for these coming weeks to pass quickly. I wouldn't normally wish time away like this, but things are just frustrating right now.
Names? Nora Lee
Random pregnancy side effects? Thinking I might be starting to waddle. Also, my legs and arms are really itchy. It's starting to move to the soles of my feet. It doesn't quite look like the pictures of PUPP online, so I'll be interested to see what the Dr has to say at my next appt.
Maternity Clothes? OH YES.
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? Nope, not at all. I'm still avoiding my whole body and face being in pictures! yay me.

old mcfarmer

2012-01-13T19:01:00.000-06:00

While I've been on my modified bed rest, little miss has adapted quite well. I am spending many more hours wasting away on the laptop. Every evening for the past few nights, Emmy will grab her little Minnie Mouse laptop that plays songs and sit on the couch with me. One of the songs is "Old McDonald".

I love listening to her sing: "old mcfarmer had a cow...."

The Many faces of Emmy

2012-01-08T21:52:00.000-06:00

left to right, top to bottom...the many faces of emmy (one pic from each month)

recap of the past week

2012-01-07T12:25:00.001-06:00

Monday: day off of work, yay! Take down Christmas decorations and enjoy some family time.
Tuesday: Dr Appt and 1 hour glucose screening test. Found out I am 1cm dilated and 60% effaced. Ordered to partial bed rest and told to do ONLY the essentials at home (shower, get dressed, bathroom....). I am still cleared to work, but have another appointment this coming Friday that will give us a more clear direction. Ended the day over at labor and deliver to monitor to make sure I wasn't having contractions. I don't have them while laying down, but getting up and around does cause me to have them.
Wednesday: First day of trying to do "nothing" while at home with a toddler.....interesting but not terrible. She's more adaptable then I give her credit for.
Thursday: More of the same
Friday: OB office calls to let me know I failed my 1 hour test on Tuesday and I GET to come back Monday to do the fasting 3 hour test. I plan to show up at soon as they open so I can eat lunch pronto afterwards!

29 weeks

2012-01-07T08:30:00.018-06:00

Weight gain? Dr's office said up 30lbs, but I had on all my clothes and shoes. Home scale says I'm up 24 lbs. I'll go with the latter.
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? Starting to stick out JUST a little at the tip top.
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy!
Cravings? I have wanted chocolate this week. But I think it might just be mental. <--Refer to previous post.
Latest hormonal outburst? I cried the other night when the Band Perry was singing the National Anthem during the Cotton bowl. Seriously?
Vomiting? . Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? Getting there. I'm thinking we might get the carseat out soon and other things like that and start cleaning the fabric.
Names? Nora Lee
Random pregnancy side effects? I've mentioned the toothpaste thing before. Well I finally found one that has just a bit of mint, so at least it feels like I have brushed my teeth. It's the kid's aquafresh bubble mint.
Maternity Clothes? OH YES.
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? Nope, not at all. I'm still avoiding my whole body and face being in pictures! yay me.

We did go to have a fun 4D of Nora this past week. In the 15 minute session, we got 59 shots! I think she definitely looks like Emmy did at the same stage, but then there are differences too. I may be completely wrong, but I think her nose bridge is more defined.

Christmas Card 2011

2011-12-25T21:54:00.000-06:00

We still have 2 more hours of Christmas day remaining...so from our little growing family to yours, MERRY CHRISTMAS and Happy Birthday Jesus.

26 Weeks

2011-12-20T22:53:00.000-06:00

Emmy Belly

Nora Belly

Weight gain? 22lbs, I think. I don't really want to know. I'm sure 80% of the US population gains weight during the holidays, but only pregnant women have it tracked.
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? Starting to stick out JUST a little at the tip top.
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy!
Cravings? No, and I've actually put myself on a little diet. Old fashioned oats w/ cranberries for breakfast, greek yogurt for a snack and a chicken and spinach salad at lunch (topped with cheese, fruit, veggies and a handful of grape nuts....it's pretty filling). Then I let myself eat whatever I want for dinner. My stomach size is definitely small right now, so I never have THAT much for dinner anyway
Latest hormonal outburst? Hah, yeah. Just today- I yelled and Chris for no reason at all. I later blamed it on the leftover ill-feelings from road rage that occurred on the way home.
Vomiting? . Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? I think once the holidays are over, we will definitely start feeling more psychologically prepared.
Names? Nora Lee
Random pregnancy side effects? I tried reading a passage aloud at Sunday School this past week and I swear it took 3x the effort to read and process and then finally spit it out.
Maternity Clothes? OH YES.
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? See above. Seriously, wait until my 29 week update and you will see that the 26 week Nora belly is about the same (if not bigger) than the 29 week Emmy belly.

Santa 2011

2011-12-20T18:11:00.000-06:00

Oh my, how far we have come in a year when this happened.

So proud of my little babe who marched right into Santa's house, sat on his lap and told him that she wanted Woody for Christmas. She even gave him a smooch on the cheek.

Anticipation of the Unknown

2011-12-15T21:01:00.000-06:00

Exactly fifty two weeks ago Chris and I had just gotten in a really big argument about......well, I don't know. I don't remember because it was probably something not even worth arguing about. Chances are I wasn't even mad at Chris or at a situation. Anxious thoughts had filled my head because I had a feeling that something was wrong inside of my body. My pregnancy symptoms had disappeared too quickly and it wasn't the end of the first trimester yet.

Fast forward to this day and this post and our suspicions were confirmed.

Tomorrow (almost a year later from finding out about our 1st miscarriage) I will head to the doctor's office for a 26 week appointment. I am so thankful that my anticipation of the unknown is different this time around. As I feel the kicks, jabs, punches and rolls I know that Nora is currently thriving inside of me. All I *worry* about this time around is how my cervix is holding up. No biggie really. If it's bad, might have to go on bedrest. If it's good, then life continues as it has the past 26 weeks.

I am sitting here trying to come up with some great conclusion. But I have none. I am just so happy to know that baby girl is alive and active. I can't wait to see her tomorrow on ultrasound and hear her heart beating. It's pretty much the best early Christmas present a girl could receive.

Life Lately

2011-12-07T21:31:00.000-06:00

Here is your warning-

THIS IS GOING TO BE A BORING POST! But, it is about our lives at the moment and it's journaling for journaling's sake.

Things going on at work: I am a senior engineering tech at Samson, just celebrated by 5th anniversary and Samson just celebrated it's 40th anniversary. Small side note (sarcasm): Samson just got bought by KKR and a few other companies for $7.2 billion. Yes, that's a B in front of the "illion". Seriously? I can't even fathom that much money. All things are the same at work for the moment. The deal is supposed to close on December 23rd. If that happens a pretty nice bonus is coming my way. If for some reason it doesn't go through, a small "sorry we put you through all that worrying" retention bonus will still be granted. I am contemplating going back to school this fall. I only have 24 hours remaining (so, that's only 8 classes which means 2 years max if trying to work part time and do school part time). It's almost been 3 years since I was last in school and I know I need to just go back and finish. There's only so much more I will be able to do in my current job. And let's state the obvious, having a Masters in Petroleum Engineering will pay out just a little bit better than my current tech job. It's not all about the $, but I can't lie- I welcome the thought of having enough $$ to go to every KU home basketball game :)

Things going on at Chris' work: Not quite as eventful. They keep firing people in the Tulsa area to cut down on overhead. For a global company (well, the parent company is global), I just can't believe they haven't found any other way to cut down on OH. He has been with APAC for 3 1/2 years and for the most part enjoys it. I don't always enjoy his work schedule, but such is life.

Things going on at Emmy's work: (aka school). School is ok. We are on a wait list at another child care center close to downtown. This is something that's on my mind constantly, but I need to be more persistent in praying about her getting into that school. There have been some things that have happened at her current school that I am just not comfortable with. Nothing that's a super huge deal, but just indicators of behavior that is allowed when parents aren't around. Almost seems worthless to try to parent at home when the same things aren't being taught at school. I realize that each child is parented different at home, but there are some common ground items (biting, hitting, talking back, etc) that you would expected to be addressed at school too.

Things going on in Nora's life: She is currently breech and kicking the snot out of my lower area. Her active times still tend to be at 2pm and 9pm. I know she is active at other times, but I can always count on major movement during those two times. I feel alot of little kicks and jabs from her, but rarely can I see my whole belly move because of her. I remember with Emmy- my abdomen would move when she was having wrestling matches with herself inside my womb. Also...Nora girl seems to have a bit lower heartrate than her older sister did. Emmy's average heartrate reading was 155-165bpm. The past few appointments, Nora's has been 140-145. Wonder if this is giving any insight to temperaments?

Things going on in Sally's life: Sally lost Frank in early November. She misses him and we need to get a companion for her. She does enjoy human companionship slightly more now that he is gone. But she is still weird and can still handle only small amounts of human love at a time.

Things going on at our house: This will have to be a post all on it's own. I hope I have taken enough pictures to do a time lapse journal on our backyard renovation. Let me just say this though, my husband is amazing. I knew he was handy, but I am coming to appreciate it more and more with his undertaking of this project.

Well, enough boring for now. Just wanted to prove to myself I could blog something other than baby update.

24 weeks

2011-12-03T12:16:00.001-06:00

Nora Belly

Emmy Belly

Weight gain? ugh, probably up 20#. BOO
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? Starting to stick out JUST a little at the tip top.
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy!
Cravings? Protein! The insatiable hunger has struck!
Latest hormonal outburst? Bursting out in tears in 0.2 seconds when a lady won Chopped that had about 10 adopted children.
Vomiting? . Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? My illegal crib is up
Names? Nora Lee
Random pregnancy side effects? My Nails are FINALLY starting to grow.
Maternity Clothes? OH YES.
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? Any picture that captures my "looks 40 weeks pregnant" face would fit this category.
Funny for the week: Um...can't think of anything in particular. But I did get a new phone, so I can't wait for the return of iPhone Fridays!

I don't want to forget

2011-12-01T09:13:00.001-06:00

... That right now, my daughter is busy furrowing her eyebrows at daddy's "yucky" hands from doing backyard renovation work, wiping off mommy's kisses, yelling for 10 minutes after going to bed for us to come lay down with her, saying while in a public restroom "everybody going pee pee?", asking to watch Dora or Toy Story very morning, eating alot of ketchup, getting excited at seeing houses lit up with Christmas lights, wearing a size 6 shoe, de-robing at bedtime, singing Happy Birthday to no one in specific, loves to slam doors, taking her hand and tries to grab Nora out of my belly, running around nakey, so pleased with herself when she builds big towers with her giant legos, saying "you hear me?.....allllllll right?" and finally- I can't forget that she is growing into a little lady every day.

What's in a name?

2011-11-25T15:47:00.000-06:00

And she has a name...and it will be...

Nora Lee Sanders

Sanders...because I'm 90 percent Chris is the father. Just kidding just kidding. Based on the last ultrasound I'm fairly convinced she's going to look more like him than Emmy.

Lee...because for the past few generations on Chris' side, the 2nd child has been the same gender as the 1st child and bears the middle name of Lee.

Nora...because we like it. And after looking up the meaning, which is "light"....it just fits.

Emmy says "No-wah". A little more dramatic than Noah, but not quite with the R of Nora. We finally told her about the baby in my belly. She was interested for one night but hasn't asked since. We'll tell her again in a few more weeks and see what she thinks then.

Manners, Please

2011-11-16T20:55:00.000-06:00

We practice manners almost every minute that Emmy is awake.

Usually the first words out of her mouth in the morning? "I watch Tooey Tooey" (read: Toy Story). I correct her and make her repeat with me "Mama, may I watch Toy Story please?".

Almost everything she wants starts with "my". I know in her mind it means the same thing as "may I please have". And gosh darn it, the little girl is smart- why use 4 words when you can use 1? But I love her and I want her to be a well mannered and respectful child. So, as much as humanly possible, we say things using manners.

Today on the way home from church, I hear from the backseat "My Tooey Tooey please?". Ah, sweet victory is mine. She just said please without being prompted! I immediately turned on the movie for her and commended her for using manners. As soon as I started praising her, I then hear "May I please watch Tooey?". WHAT? Even better!

Now I'm no dummy. I am pretty certain these events will be few and far between. But I'm so glad my little "Emmy honey" is starting to use her manners, all by herself.

full cycle

2011-11-14T22:32:00.001-06:00

As I sat there in my hospital bed, the chaplain having just prayed over me, the sweet nurse who was trying to give me a bit of hope said "There are so many women who have gone through what you are going through right now and we see them back here within a year. It'll happen again for you".

I had a few more minutes with family and was then wheeled back to the OR room for a d&c. Sad should have been the primary feeling, but I found myself a little numb. That's just what I do in highly emotional situations. My mind tries to process the logistics before I move onto emotions. It wasn't until a few nights later (when all visitors had returned back home) that it hit me.

I was sad. I was confused. I was empty. I was angry.

Being a Christian, I would like to say that at this point I drowned myself in scripture, but I didn't. I would like to say that I spent so much time on my knees in prayer, but I didn't do that either. I had traveled through dim valleys before, but after this miscarriage- I found myself in the darkest valley yet. At this point all I could do was ask others for prayer. Thank the Lord for those prayer warriors who were able to lift me up when I couldn't do it for myself.

Hope slowly returned into my life. I remembered the nurse telling me of all the women who returned within a year, and I started holding out hope that my story would follow suit. If I were to be returning within that 365 day period, I needed to deliver a full term baby by Dec 17, 2011. For those who have ever walked this road before, that means I needed a positive test by mid-April. Well, mid-April rolled around and much to my surprise......A POSITIVE TEST! But the feeling of victory and hope was short lived. Another miscarriage. The pregnancy didn't even last long enough to get to the doctor's office to hear a sweet heartbeat.

What was wrong with my body?

I fell back into a really bad place. Not exactly bitter at those around me who were experiencing the joy of pregnancy and new life, but just feeling sorry for myself. I don't know...maybe I was bitter, but what an awful admission of self.

Eventually, just as before, my hope returned. It returned just in time to grieve again. June 27. The day I was to have had a baby. I think the anticipation of the day was much worse than the actual day. Thank goodness.

So here we are now. I found out I was pregnant in mid-July. It means that I got pregnant just days after the expected due date. I am pregnant, and I am so extremely grateful. But I cannot sit here and say that it was easy to get to this point. Throughout the journey, I never ceased to believe in God or His plans for the Sanders' family of 3. I just couldn't understand. Chris and I asked the age old question, "Why do bad things happen to good people?". The answer did not show itself immediately. And for awhile, I couldn't even get past the tears to even think about the answer.

We have come full cycle and now I know these things (not saying I understand).

1. God knew that Chris and Jordan Sanders needed to experience going through the due date without being pregnant again.

2. There are some amazing Christian women whose outreach saved me many times.

3. I now have the opportunity to be a #2 on the list.

4. Sharing joy is so much sweeter than sharing grief. But it's in sharing grief with one another that relationships grow.

There is so much more that I have learned. I am better friend now. I appreciate small victories much more now. I believe so much more in God's faithfulness.

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father

There is no shadow of turning with Thee; 

Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not 

As Thou hast been Thou forever wilt be.

Great is Thy faithfulness! Great is Thy faithfulness!

Morning by morning new mercies I see;

All I have needed Thy hand hath provided

Great is Thy faithfulness Lord, unto me!

Emmy baby

Sweet heaven baby

baby whose name means "light"

(PS: I promise I'll reveal the name after we tell our families. We decided today on the spelling)

21 Weeks

2011-11-13T21:20:00.000-06:00

Emmy belly

Present Belly

Weight gain? Umm, yeah....15lbs? And that might be on the low side of the estimate.
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? I have an insanely tight belly button normally (as in it looks like just a little slit). It's starting to expand though!
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy! and we have a name. But I haven't told family yet.
Cravings? Anything that doesn't leave a weird aftertaste in my mouth.
Latest hormonal outburst? yes, many, but none that actually make for a funny story.
Vomiting? . Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? Um, no, and I don't intend on preparing until after the holidays. I mean hey- we have all the gear, all the clothes, just need some diapers
Names? Chris' choice. He has decided, but we aren't quite certain on the spelling.
Random pregnancy side effects? I cannot use minty toothpaste anymore, makes me gag.
Maternity Clothes? OH YES.
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? No horrifying ones that I know of unless someone caught one of me? Chris did manage to snap a sweet shot today, I'll post below.
Funny for the week: Even though haven't officially told Emmy about the baby, she lifted up my shirt the other day and said "Baby Julie, mama's belly?" (Baby Julie is her brand spankin new cousin. We really hyped up the baby in the belly leads to baby on the outside concept). She is smarter and more intuitive than I care to admit. This will probably ruin her trust in us for the rest of her life...oh well.

Friday morning perfection

2011-11-11T07:19:00.002-06:00

She's not a huge fan of cookies and cake, but the girl loves her some donut holes!!!

19 weeks

2011-10-29T16:40:00.007-05:00

So i almost started typing in 23 weeks into the title box. I swear my belly has popped out so much sooner than with Emmy and I'm feeling like I should be one more month along!

My present belly is first, Emmy's is second....see what I mean about popping out? I think my weight gain to this point in time is about the same- just growing differently!

Weight gain? Oh yes. 10 lbs very early on (as in, by the 13th week). I'm up a total of 12ish pounds.
Stretch marks? None that I can see :)
Belly button? It stayed in for a very long time with Emmy, it's a deep one- so it takes a LONG time to pop out.
Gender? a baby sis for Emmy!
Cravings? Anything that doesn't leave a weird aftertaste in my mouth.
Latest hormonal outburst? Seriously? I have to just pick one? I have about 10 a day. Sorry hon.
Vomiting? Just mucous pukes from Emmy this week. Early on I was nauseous (subsided around 14 weeks), but no vomit from me. Although there were many times I wish I could have.
Feeling prepared? Um, no, and I don't intend on preparing until after the holidays. I mean hey- we have all the gear, all the clothes, just need some diapers
Names? Chris' choice.
Random pregnancy side effects? I can't fit into my normal pants! What? I thought with the 2nd pregnancy your body doesn't freak out so much and the weight doesn't come on as fast...hah!
Maternity Clothes? Yes and no. I cleaned out the closet this weekend and put a lot of normal shirts away (b/c I like for all shirts to be long now). Chris found my Bella Band that Emmy hid in the bathroom towel hamper, so I am still getting some use out of non-maternity pants
Work? Yes, will work up to D-Day.
Horrifying picture? Um yeah, refer to belly shot above. It's my general rule that I try to avoid full length, face on pictures while pregnant because my face actually starts to look pregnant around 3 weeks. With the holidays this year, I'm thinking this is unavoidable.
Funny for the week: Pretty sure after we saw little girl's girly parts during the ultrasound I laughed hysterically and pointed to Chris and said, "Oh no, they are gonna turn you into a big fat weenie". Wow, sounds so mean in retrospect. Let's just add this to the list of hormonal outbursts!

thinking of a new blog title

2011-10-25T14:43:00.000-05:00

If you haven't caught it on FB.......

We would like to introduce you to our baby girl. She has no name yet and we have not told Emmy about her yet. Judge us if you want....but until you've spent a day in our shoes answering 10,000 or so questions about "where'd ______ go?", then just believe me when I say it's best to hold out just a bit longer. We are thinking maybe once the belly becomes a hinderance we will start explaining. I have hope, with as baby infatuated as Emmy is, that this transition will be a good one.

On Friday I will be 19 weeks and little girl is due around March 23. Chris' bday is March 18 so I think it'd be great if she came just a few days early to give him an amazing 30th bday present.

Thank you all who have been with me, and checking up on me during the past 10 months....

time to blog....

2011-10-20T15:18:00.000-05:00

So I'm am home with "sick" child. By "sick" I really mean: the daycare called to say she had 3 loose #2's and had to come home. I brought her home, she watched "tooey" (toy story) then wrestled with herself in bed for an hour before falling asleep for a nap. I think we are ok, but whatev...back to school tomorrow.

I have found that since parenthood entered my life, my crafting has severely taken a hit. Even though the house needs cleaned, dinner could be started and the kitchen is a wreck- I decided to craft! HAH, take that house. You came in 2nd place, AGAIN!

Here is my first Pinterest inspired craft. Materials list: old frame & mat, sparkle paper that was in my paper stash, printable subway art that I found somewhere on the good old WWW.

Second craft of the day. Materials list: pumpkin that a coworker gave me, probably 10 year old black acrylic paint and a sponge brush with a circular head.

I'm thinking Emmy's nap is probably close to being over, so I probably shouldn't try to squeeze in any more free crafts for the day...but you never know. We may just create something once she wakes up.

alllllllmost

2011-10-06T21:02:00.000-05:00

Oh, elusive forward roll, Emmy is SOOOOO close to mastering you!

Emmy's first Sleepover

2011-09-30T22:12:00.000-05:00

Emmy's cousin Jackson is here for a sleepover. We had to have a little family sing-a-long before bedtime, here are the kiddos performing.

This was also Emmy's first night in a big girl bed, it took her about an extra hour to fall asleep but she is finally down. Hoping for a better night tomorrow!

Bathroom Colors

2011-09-17T14:41:00.000-05:00

Soooo, now that you've seen our guest bathroom before (in previous post)...and you've seen the current...maybe you can help with the future.

Even though the tile is in pretty good condition, we are done with the peachy-pinkness in the bathroom. We bought enough tub and tile paint to cover the outside of the house and will give this bathroom a little makeover. I've decided to go with the gray-blue color for walls...but OH the choices.

I'm thinking that I like the Jamestown Blue. I don't know.

So once I do decide on paint colors, then I need to decide on accessory colors. Do you do a dark brown this this kind of blue? A black for contrast against the blue and white? A gold/yellow....a burnt orange? My decorating skills are about equal with my house keeping skills, so if anyone out there can help...will you please?????

iPhone Friday 09/14/2011

2011-09-14T21:13:00.000-05:00

Sadly, I only took a few pictures this week. One was a recipe and just a few of Emmy.

I LOVE this picture of my little gal, she is the sweetest and the most ornery thing wrapped up in one package.

This one cracked me up. She's very particular about her night time routine and ALL of her buddies have to be in bed with her. You can't tell it very well here, but her monkey is actually sitting on her pillow.

Baked Potato Soup (b/c it's feeling like fall)

2011-09-14T11:57:00.001-05:00

I LOVE PINTEREST.

Please let me repeat if you missed what I just said I.LOVE.PINTEREST.

I would marry it if I could, imagine the wealth of knowledge I would become!

However, the one thing I don’t care for about Pinterest is that there is no great space to put notes about the item. I know you can add comments, but it doesn’t keep your text formats. For most items this is not an issue. But for recipes I would love to see a picture of my object of affection, an ingredient list and cooking instructions! Right?

If I’m just Pinterest dumb and there is a way to do this, will you please be a friend and tell me? So until the time comes that either a) Pinterest adds this feature, or b) you let me know about this feature I’m going to problem solve this way: (step by step instructions) Post picture on blog of dish and ingredients, post to blog, pin it. Is this vain? Oh well, it solves my problems so here we go.

Baked Potato Soup, found here

House Befores and Afters

2011-09-10T11:31:00.000-05:00

So I have a confession to make, and for those of you that know me well this is no confession at all, just the truth: I'm terrible at keeping house. I would have been an absolutely AWFUL 1960's wife.

We clean our house for events: parties, family coming over, the night before the cleaning lady comes, and most recently for a house appraisal.

Since our house was nice and clean, I wanted to take a few pics and compare to "before" (pictures taken from the house listing website). I know I've done this before, but seems like our house is in constant flux and I wanted to capture what it looked like September 2011.

OUTSIDE BEFORE: We thought it looked pretty nice when we first moved in, and it did! See the two bush things on the left? The tall one we just called the "bush tree" b/c we had no idea what it was. Well, it blocked the view to the driveway from the inside of the house, there's a window that you can't even see from this picture. Also note: old windows.

OUTSIDE AFTER: new windows, cleaned up the landscaping, added a front yard tree. You can't see it in the pictures but to the right we also planted a redbud. And to the left of the driveway is a type of japanese maple. It had been planted 1 foot away from the garage and was having growth issues.

FORMAL LIVING DINING BEFORE: Nice condition, just decorated for a granny and gramps.

FORMAL LIVING DINING AFTER: Added ceiling fan/light, replaced chandelier, and most importantly- added wood floors this past Memorial Day. I can't express how much larger the room seems now that it's wood flooring.

DEN BEFORE: It's.All.Wood. Seriously- wood floor, wood wall panel, wood bookshelves, wood blinds, wow.

DEN AFTER: We painted the trim white, bookshelves white, added the mantle, replaced gas fireplace with woodburning stove, primed and painted walls. I like having a little more contrast.

GUEST BATH BEFORE: ugly.

GUEST BATH AFTER: Took fluorescent light off and replaced fixture, elbow greased the wallpaper off and painted a neutral. We still have lots of plans for this bathroom, so I can't wait to someday show you the FINAL after picture.

There are some days that I definitely wish we had a new house that didn't require so much work. But most days I really appreciate our home and love the fact that we've put so many personal touches into this home.

iPhone Friday 09/07/2011

2011-09-07T21:00:00.000-05:00

I've found that ever since I had to downgrade to an iPhone 3G from the, I've not taken as many pictures. I was SO spoiled by that old phone....just waiting patiently for my upgrade date and the new iPhone 5- whatever it may be.

Emmy and Daddy reading books.

Enjoying a little appetizer of Greek yogurt while it was still warm and light in the evenings.

Ahhh, now these are the temperatures I've been waiting for. After 3 months of unbearable heat, temperatures of this nature are MORE.THAN.WELCOME!

Yikes, so glad I wasn't stuck in THAT traffic on the overpass. Sometimes I love Tulsa, sometimes I hate Tulsa.

Emmy at her first Wednesday night church experience. She was a little overwhelmed. I think that after a full day at school she was probably just ready to go home and chill.

iPhone Friday 09/02/2011

2011-09-02T16:37:00.000-05:00

It's been interesting watching Emmy at parks. She is pretty shy at the park, I'm not exactly sure why that is. I would assume that since she is a daycare kid that she would be more outgoing- but it takes her awhile to warm up to the kids and to the toys and water. Don't worry, she's not drinking the water here- she's blowing bubbles.

We FINALLY had her 2 year checkup. She is a full 2 1/2" taller than I was at the exact same age, so I have very high hopes that she'll surpass my 5'2".

"Painting" her toenails with a dry erase marker.

Pink Ting. If you haven't tried it, and you like grapefruit, this is a MUST! Get yourself right on over to Hibiscus on Brookside.

Getting prepped for allergy testing...result? A small allergic reaction to Maple trees. But the nurse told us during the consult that allergic reactions won't always show up on 2 year olds and that it is DEFINITELY possible to have allergies still without them showing up on the skin test.

Sometimes you just have to pick up something OFF of the list....I might have won my hubby over FOR LIFE with this purchase.

Happy Friday! We'll be working on our house this holiday weekend. Fun, right?

iPhone Friday 08/26/2011

2011-09-02T16:27:00.000-05:00

Emmy's first trip to the dentist, 8/22/11. She was such a good patient and let the hygienist clean her teeth! No cavities, yay!

Because sometimes your armpit itches right in the middle of dinner.

Chicken and Biscuits? YES! It's a mix between pot pie and dumplings I suppose.

Our cucumber vines were AMAZING! Those little guys are the fall tomatoes that we planted.

Chillin on the couch!

iPhone Friday 08/19/2011

2011-09-02T16:21:00.000-05:00

So, I'm catching up today with 3 iPhone Fridays..wow, I'm behind.

First...this guy....really? Does it really take that much more effort to just pick up your drink?

Workin away on the "puter"

This is how we roll now. Thanks MIMI

The "studious" look.

Important to stay up to date with your heart health statistics

Creating her masterpiece, from pizza dough, at Andolini's on Cherry Street.

2 year post

2011-08-18T20:22:00.000-05:00

I now have a 2 year old you guys! Time has gone by WAY WAY WAY too quickly. Here's what my little darlin has been up to the past month:

FAVORITE SONG: Frere Jacques, Happy Birthday (and when we sing it, we have to sing it once for each person in the room)

FAVORITE FOOD(S): Ketchup, fruit snacks, peaches

FAVORITE BOOK: "Blue Hat, Green Hat". (She loves to pitch in and yell "oooop")

FAVORITE WORD(S)/Phrases: "Hi Honey Mama", "Mama/Dada hide too" (when wanting to play hide and seek), can-eeeeee (with emphasis on E, this is her potty treat...Mimi gives her a piece of candy for EACH hand. Hey I can't complain when I'm not the one having to do the potty training)

FAVORITE SHOW(S): Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, Elmo

OTHER TIDBITS: In incomplete sentences and absolutely no order: she floated on her back at swim lessons by herself, can get about 1/2" air when she jumps on the ground, had a great time in CO with all of her cousins but didn't impress us with her night time sleep, loves her black patent shoes that sound like tap shoes on the wood floors, has a very bad habit of grabbing things out of peoples hands

This month has been fun, just like all the rest. I feel like I have alot more to blog about...hope I can make those become a reality!

730 days old!

2011-08-12T17:30:00.000-05:00

I think that is 2 years, right? It's friday and I'm doing mental math, so anything could happen.

My sweetie of a husband went to pick Emmy up from school. And since I get off early on Fridays that means that I have had plenty of time to make dinner. Baked alfredo with chicken, bacon and peas is in the oven and Iron Chef is on TV. I'm having good times, myself.

My apologies that this comes a week late, I've had people asking about a birthday post....so here it is!

We decided to go with a little Toy Story theme. It was non commercial and a little more just "western". As of late this has been Emmy's go to show. She calls it "two-ee". You know, like TOY+STORY=TWO-EE. In April this movie officially replaced Rudolph. If you've been around for awhile, you know what Rudolph meant to this child. I found it only appropriate to have two-ee things at her 2nd birthday.

The par-tay started around 1030 with all guests arriving by 1050. We started by coloring paper bags that had a Toy Story coloring page glued on. These became candy bags for the horse pinata. After coloring- everyone changed into their ~~birthday~~ swim suits and we went outside to demolish the pinata. We magically got 8 or so 2-3 year olds stand in a line and about 1/2 of them partook in swinging the Swiffer stick at the horse. Have you ever seen how hard a 2-3 year old can swing a stick? Take your socks off, put a dowel rod between your middle toes and swing. Yep, that's it.

So we assisted a little, the candy comes pouring out and everyone stores up their future sugar high in their bags...now time to swim. The pool was surprisingly refreshing (maybe had something to do with all the water we had to add b/c the 110*+ temperatures were sucking our pool dry) and I think everyone had a good time.

After swimming we came inside and chowed down on food that is best appreciated by a toddler: corn dogs, hot dogs, pizza rolls, mac n cheese cups, applesauce, fruit kabobs, juice boxes, strawberry cupcakes with the worlds most amazing buttercream icing and sugar cookies. I also offered water, tea and cherry limeade just in case the adults didn't feel like a juice box =)

After lunch we all sang happy birthday to Emmy as she stared in awe and then opened presents.

We were blessed to be surrounded by wonderful family at the party, and one non family friend. Emmy had a wonderful time and has enjoyed everything she received.

Now, instead of posting pictures in the post I'm going to include a link to the gallery. It's on Facebook but you can still access it without being a member.

Stay tuned for a 2 year update that highlights all of Emmy's ~~misbehaving~~ happenings.

iPhone Friday 08/12/2011

2011-08-12T15:48:00.001-05:00

We had a busy busy start to this past week with Emmy's bday party on Saturday. A post to come on that one. In fact, I need to do a two year old update too, wow- I'm behind.

So by Saturday evening I was sick of being in my house and especially my kitchen so we headed to Pei Wei @ 61st/Yale (about 2.5 miles from our house). Emmy decided she needed to wear her new princess dress up shoes and take in her purse. And since she's two now, she figures that she is supposed to get her way whenever and wherever....maybe.

While we were eating dinner and watching the rain barely come down at the restaurant, this was happening at our house.

White trash pool.

I mentioned earlier that she is two now, right? Well, do I need to even explain this picture?

Enjoying her new bike from mommy and daddy. She will ride for a short while, but then wants to get out and steer the bike with the parent handle.

This was from last night at the Brook...I asked Emmy to give her daddy a hug and this is what we got.

Not much on the plate for this weekend. Just a "get to know a new member of the extended family after the wedding" shower, a church activity Saturday afternoon after E's nap, and helping host a baby shower Sunday (although I have to admit I have been a lowsy co-host...so sorry Kathryn!).

Hope you have a good one and find some time to just kick back and relax!

iPhone Friday 08/05/2011

2011-08-05T11:17:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday! We are gearing up for emmy's big number two tomorrow!! Here are some pics from the past week.

Apparently, Emmy thinks this is what you do with junk mail. Pretty close.

My car is in the shop for routine work, I have been stuck driving my MIL's Lexus. It's terrible! (please tell me you could sense the sarcasm). Thank you dianna! I feel luxurious this week!

This is an oldie, but it came through in an email this week. If you knew me 5 years ago-you also know that we had some issues with our photographer. A friend captured this an it's the only shot of me and my dad heading down the aisle.

Last Saturday, I covered Emmy up with Chris' work vest. She now thinks that it is her blankey and requests it whenever she is in his truck now!

Found this as inspiration for a birthday party decoration. I'll definitely have a birthday post later this weekend!

Hope you all have an amazing weekend. Stay cool and remember this heat shall pass too! Let's remember all the positives in our lives.

iPhone Friday 07/30/2011

2011-08-01T22:36:00.000-05:00

AKA "iPhone pics from while we were on our glorious vacation where it was in the mid 40s in the morning and mid 60s at sunset"

Eating mac & cheese at Toby Keith's. It was a featured side item that evening...I was expecting something a little more gourmet. But oh well, it was Emmy approved.

Miss Emmy did really well on the flights over vacation. Our flight to Denver left at 7am (which is her prime time). On a typical night's rest she would have been rarin' to go...however, we were up with a pukey child for a few hours after dinner. Note to self: Emmy still cannot handle Mexican food, including but not limited to queso.

Breakfast.McDonalds.Ketchup in a cup.

Sporting her new tutu and headband from Bunco!

Still obsessed with babies. This is my nephew Hollis, whom Emmy lovingly refers to as "Baby Holla"

Maybe this next week I'll actually get an iPhone friday post up on time.

Ah, who am I kidding?

Emmy's birthday party is this Saturday and I really haven't started planning/decorating/anything for it yet. What kind of irresponsible mother am I????

iPhone Friday 07/23/2011

2011-07-25T23:11:00.019-05:00

A little delayed, but here are the pics that should have been up on Friday! I was completely out of my routine on Friday because I started my vacay a day early!

Teaching my girl the best things about making brownies.

Reading books to Daddy before nap time.

She LOVES her boots and always picks the best time to wear them too!

I sat in a class all day Wednesday. I almost fell asleep at least 5 times. This breakfast sandwich probably didn't help matters out.

Driving to OKC Friday evening...see the Devon building under construction on the left? It's insane. Friday night was the start to our Colorado 2011 adventure.

This week was a little uneventful, but I know there will be a picture overload next week from all of the vacation pictures. Hope all my friends in OK are surviving the heat. My body is getting spoiled with these chilly evening temperatures in CO.

Cannas 2011

2011-07-17T22:29:00.001-05:00

The only thing I can say about any of these pictures is that YES, Emmy did pick out her own shoes. I like to give her that freedom. She's a stylish one, no?

iPhone Friday returns

2011-07-15T08:05:00.001-05:00

So, I'm completely bummed. As you probably know already- my old phone took it's last picture over the 4th weekend. I lost ALL of my pictures from the en of may to the beginning of July. Lesson learned-I will now try to sync my pictures at least twice a month.

I was able to find an older phone so I am back in action. So here are some pictures to cover the last two weeks.

Getting ready for swim lessons.

"Mastering" the spoon.

I love our little garden.

Watching toy story on the computer while toy story plays on the tv.

Not quite sure what happened to the cuc on the left.

Bring back the blizzard. I'll take four wheeling in the snow any day!

Happy weekend!

23 months-and well into the terrible twos

2011-07-07T22:05:00.000-05:00

Here is what Emmy has been up to on her journey to two years old:

FAVORITE SONG: "I had a little turtle"

FAVORITE FOOD(S): Fruit snacks, cucumber and tomatoes with tangy dressing, ketchup

FAVORITE BOOK: "I Love You Through and Through"

FAVORITE WORD(S): "I'll get it", "I'll do it" and "I did it", "How-do" <-- which is aka HOUSE. She is rapidly moving past saying single words and practicing putting 2-4 words together.

FAVORITE SHOW(S): Handy Manny and Toy Story 3

OTHER TIDBITS:

Emmy's love for "lo lo" (lotion) has only increased.
She talks to inanimate objects. On the ride to work, if I hit a pot hole, she gets her finger out and shakes it while saying "NO car". Today I caught her spanking her knee and telling it no. She cracks me up.
She can AALLMMOOSSTT jump. The bend and stand up part is good, we just need to get some air time.
She loves standing on her tiptoes and closing all the doors and saying "Bye Bye doors".
Emmy is doing great in the pool, she loves to wear her puddle jumper and kick to the steps in the pool. Then she'll get on the 2nd step and "jump" in.

Well, the countdown is on for birthday #2. I have NOTHING planned. It's amazing how much of a difference there is between planning this year and last! Hopefully the trend DOES NOT continue next year or else the poor girl might not have a party at all.

23 Month Collage

2011-07-06T23:13:00.000-05:00

We have had a very busy 23rd month, and have LOVED it!

Here's what we have been up to (L to R, Top to Btm)

1. Swimming. Goggles, Puddle Jumper floaties and Emmy in her "pool"<--The small floaty disk thing that she is in.

2. Watching fireworks @ Stone Canyon.

3. Cousin Grace came for a visit. Emmy calls her GeeGee (hard G)

4. Probably talking about an "owie".

5. Picking apples with Grandpa.

6. Reading books with cousin "Jacksee".

7. Just chillin.

8. At a wedding this past weekend.

9. Walking around the U of A campus.

10. Sippin on some cold lemonade at the Samson Picnic (Drillers game).

11. Hangin w/ Bunco after some serious swimming.

12. First haircut!!! (Well, a trim in the back. No longer do we have business in the front and party in the back)

I would stay up and write out the 23rd month update, but think I'll wait for my travelin' man to get home.

Man do I miss him when he's gone. I get so bored that I blog! hah

Travel buddy

2011-07-02T11:24:00.001-05:00

We are off to Fayetteville for the weekend for a wedding. This is the first wedding chris has been in since we have been married.

Even though it's only an hour and a half (ish) drive we still loaded up the whole house! Daddy made sure to bring monkey along, and I believe Emmy is happy that he did so!

iPhone Friday 06/24/2011

2011-06-24T06:19:00.001-05:00

Wow. It's been a long week.
As chris was returning home Monday from the college world series-he received the news that his grandma had passed away. Today we laid Ollie L. Sanders to rest. Her body is completely healed-and all of heaven's occupants can now enjoy her fried pies!

Here are some other happenings from this week:

This is going to be a very clogged toilet!!!

Whoa mama. I am so spoiled by the AC. I thought I was surely 2 degrees away from melting. Thank you AC repair guy for making weekend service calls (and for charging me that extra arm and leg for it) so that the remainder of my weekend could be enjoyable.

Putting lo-lo on Uncle Greggy's sunburn.

Gotta keep your neck clean while eating milkshakes.

Brooklyn, Emmy and Jackson enjoying their drinks.

I love my little garden. Now, just waiting for the rewards of my hand pollinating (please squash, JUST GROW!!!!)

Hope you all have a wonderful weekend. My sis and favorite niece and nephew with the initials GG are coming to visit.

She's got skilz

2011-06-22T20:56:00.001-05:00

Oh my. We are entering, actually already entered, a very interesting stage of toddler-hood. I am going to patent backwards pajamas that zip straight up the back. Who wants to be my financial backer for initial production?

iPhone Friday 06/17/2011

2011-06-16T22:36:00.001-05:00

Happy Friday friends. Don't forget that Sunday is Fathers day. So tell your dad, your husband if he is a dad, or a role model in your life that they have/ or are currently impacting your life in a positive way. I'll try to remember to tell Chris- but he will be up in Omaha at the College World Series so he might be too busy enjoying himself to even remember ;)

On to iPhone pix...

Is this what I do????

Playing with great grandma pat.

True. Fried. Eggs (we do this approximately once every 5 years)

After Emmy spilled some water, chris went to the kitchen to get a towel. As soon as he came back in the room she swiped the towel out of his hands and repeated no less than 10 times- "I'll do it"

Driving daddy's old truck one last time-we will finish the sale on Monday. Wahoo

Sunscreen rash :(. My amazon.com natural sunscreen stick has been ordered.

iPhone Friday 06/10/2011

2011-06-10T09:23:00.001-05:00

I love these iPhone Friday posts because I will be able to look back someday at our day to day happenings. What I DO not like about them though, is that it makes me very aware of how fast time is going by.

Picnic with our neighbors, Emma Jane and Lucy.

The sanders house has 2 ketchup addicts. That is a half gallon of milk next to the "bih-dip". Hopefully this will last us awhile.

Gettin her hair did. This was pre-haircut by a few days. I will post on that soon- after I get the last few whispies trimmed up.

In a meeting yesterday. I found the perfect foot rest.

Happy Friday all. Enjoy the weekend.

2 months till 2

2011-06-06T22:08:00.000-05:00

So I'm getting just slightly stressed that I have no idea what we will do for Emmy's 2nd birthday. Any ideas?

I am just having too much fun watching her grow to plan a party. I mean, who wouldn't want to hear "NO" coming from the backseat 50 times on a 12 minute trip in the car? I kid, I kid. Emmy is growing so fast and her personality is shining through more and more every day....this stage, as every stage has been, is fun but not without its struggles.

Here are highlights from the past month:

Favorite Song: The Wheels on the Twinkle, Twinkle go Up the Water Spout (She likes to sing one line from each song then move onto the next), ABC's

Favorite Food(s): spaghetti but not the meat (which is odd because red meat was one of her previous favorite foods)

Favorite Obsession: saying a person/dog's name and following it with POOP, her voice gets so high and accented when she says POOP, hah! Also, she loves waving at our neighbor, Emma's, house. And rocking.

Favorite Book: no favorite, but at bedtime she likes to say "two books".

Favorite Word: it's actually a favorite phase this month which is "no mama, no mama, no mama, no". I am NOT a big fan of this. She also likes to grab books and say "read it".

Favorite Shows: Mickey and Elmo

Also this month: Emmy moved up to a new classroom at school. I think she might be learning some annoying behaviors from the older kiddos...but this too shall pass.

When she sees trucks she says " Dada's truckt". Yeah, it's like the past tense of truck. As with the "no mama", her voice goes SO high when she says truckt!

Emmy can officially run.

She had her first dip in the pool for this season on June 3. She did great remember her skills from swim lessons. But the more we are in the pool, the less she wants to "swim" and the more she wants to play.

We are really working on manners. Using please instead of whining and saying thank you without prompting. The other day, she was up on the counter (with me right next to her) and she reached her hand into the candy jar and pulled out a Hershey kiss. Then with absolutely NO prompting, said "thank you mama". It's as though she knew I wouldn't deny the candy if she was being sweet. She's a smart one.

iPhone Friday 06/03/2011

2011-06-06T09:17:00.001-05:00

It's a little late. Oh well.

Memorial day weekend we installed some wood floors. I am in love with them! I have a whole post planned with before and afters- let's see if I can make that happen.

You know, you gotta put on your rainboots after you get in the pool. It just works better that way.

See the pencil? Daddy had his pencil behind is ear during the wood floor weekend, so Emmy needed hers too!

Miss independent is showing papa how it's really done.

Enjoying candy from the Piñata at a graduation party! She thought she was pretty special sitting up on the ledge.

I was hoping to include a picture of our veggie garden this past week. It is OUT. OF. CONTROL!!!! I think the cucumbers grow about 3-4 inches per night. It's amazing.

Happy Monday to all. Hope this is a great week for you.

Hello there, Old School

2011-06-05T20:48:00.000-05:00

Well, hello there old school picture (circa 2006).
This picture was taken in Reno, NV where Chris was presenting at a conference about bridge deck performance and concrete cracking...good times!

We flew to Vegas first stayed a few nights, then drove to Reno on the scenic route which took us by many Joshua trees and through lots of open range area! Really, cows just on the side of the road who looked at you like you were a weirdo if you "moo'd" at them.

Chris and I took so many fun trips the first year we were together....and honestly we haven't taken a ton of trips to new places since then. BUT...that does not mean that the fun ceases. Whether we are watching Toy Story 3 for the fiftieth time, putting together a swing set, moving 2 tons of gravel, working in the yard or just hanging out- I have so much fun with this husband of mine. He IS the best.

I don't write about him a ton on here, but I just thought you ought to know what a great husband he is. I suppose I need to do a post about why he's the best daddy too.

I have Blogger's Block

2011-06-02T09:36:00.001-05:00

You know..as in “writer’s block”…but I’m not a writer, just an occasional blogger.

Aside from iPhone Friday posts, I’m having a hard time writing right now. Why? Because the only thing on my mind right now is people who are struggling to get pregnant, people who are pregnant and complaining about their symptoms, and ME- who is not pregnant.

I know there are worse things in life. I could have been a Joplin resident who lost all Earthly possessions, my four legged friends or even a family member. I could be the Piedmont mama who lost two of her babies. I could lose my job tomorrow (not that I’m in any threat…I’m just saying). But right now, all that my mind can think about is a baby!

June marks the month that Baby Sanders should have been due. Then the miscarriage happened. Then we got excited with another positive in April. Then a very early miscarriage. (Don’t feel bad if you didn’t know about miscarriage #2, not too many people do).

So does that explain why I can’t write about much right now? Probably not.

Hoping to get out of this funk soon. Until then- I hope you keep enjoying the iPhone Friday posts.

iPhone Friday 05/27/2011

2011-05-27T11:24:00.001-05:00

Wow, what an exciting/emotional/heart-wrenching week. I am so happy the heavy storms spared Tulsa, but my heart is so heavy for Joplin, the Hamil family in piedmont, Will Norton's family and everyone else. I so badly wish Oklahoma's soil was different so that everyone ere could have a basement for storm protection.

In other news, here are pics from the past week.

Emmy just chillin and reading her picture book.

I was so nervous about this storm, I even packed an emergency bag and had it waiting in the closet. Just in case.

The waster is still FREEZING, we are talking 72*. I guess Emmy has no temperature sensors in her little feet!

Loving on her puppies. She can't say Frank yet, but she loves to call for Lally, aka Sally.

Our little garden is plush, green and on the verge o being cramped. Plenty of good soil for the plants to share. So grow, veggies, grow!

This morning. Life is rough for this little toddler.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Memorial day. If you know an active or non-active member of our military, please remember to thank them.

iPhone Friday 05/20/2011

2011-05-20T12:15:00.001-05:00

Last Friday I picked Emmy up from school early. I get off of work at 230 on Fridays and sometimes I have errands to run sometimes I don't. So we came home and asked "puppies, walk??" so we did.

Chris and I had lots o' help putting together the new swingset for miss priss.

Emmy and her first strike!

Just putting the new swim skills and confidence to use.

She had to have her hair wrapped in a towel like mama.

Happy Friday! We are headed to KS this weekend for a high school graduation. Hoping to get back early enough on Sunday to enjoy some fried goodness at Mayfest.

Girls Trip 2011

2011-05-18T21:48:00.001-05:00

DSC_1062, a photo by JordanYEnsley on Flickr.

Ahhh, the end of a wonderful trip! Fun time with fun girls!

iPhone friday 05/13/2011

2011-05-13T11:27:00.000-05:00

Friday the 13th!!!!

Here's a sampling of what we have been up to this past week.

She climbed into the toy hamper on her own, I promise!

Someday, she will be using this for it's intended purpose ;)

Our garden that is quickly running out of space. We already have 2 tomatoes and 5-6 squash growing. Wahoo.

Mini key lime pies from Albert G's. Nuf said.

This weekend we will attempt te big move into a big bed. We don't have a bed purchased yet. Whoops. So this kid sized aerobed will have to do for now.

Happy Friday. Enjoy the weather and hope everyone has a blessed weekend.

21 Months

2011-05-09T20:48:00.000-05:00

A few happenings from the past month:

Favorite Song: Twinkle Twinkle Little Star (sometimes she'll sing the last line), It Ain't Me Babe

Favorite Food(s): Fresh pineapple, cantaloupe, peanut butter on a spoon, Eggo cinnamon toast waffles

Favorite Obsession: blowing bubbles in the bathtub

Favorite Book: ALL books, nothing in particular this month

Favorite Word: Lally (Sally, the dog)

Favorite Shows: Toy story 3, handy manny, mickey mouse clubhouse and other big girl movies

As we drive the curves on the BA, will say “wheeeeeeee”

Started noticing “owies” and says it in the sweetest voice. She also likes to kiss others' owies.

Emmy has graduated to drinking milk out of normal hard spouted sippy cups! (She’s been off a bottle since a little over 1 year old, but has been drinking her milk out of soft spouted sippy cups)

Lower left incisor finally cut through

Walking is a THING OF THE PAST! Tip toe-ing around and running are Emmy’s new talents.

She is putting two words together now, “hi mama”, “dada home”, “puppies no”, “puppies walk”…and many others that we can’t really understand

I follow a lot of statements with, “ok?” to which she replies “tay” with an up and down nod

We are getting less bratty no’s and the revival of the “yes” nod

Emmy has thoroughly enjoyed swim lessons. She is blowing bubbles, going under water, kicking, moving her arms and floating on her back (with assistance).

Occasionally does a perfect downward facing dog, we simply call it “doing her yoga” and sometimes she’ll do it when we ask.

Seems like Little Miss has grown up SO much this month, I’m wondering what happened to my baby. As any parent would say about their own child: she is the smartest and most beautiful little girl in the world.

iPhone Friday 05/06/2011

2011-05-06T21:08:00.000-05:00

Another rainy Sunday:

Enjoying the weather, and taking the wagon for a walk.

Watching sooooo intently at swim lessons.

Just chillin poolside.

I have a birthday part to plan, only 3 months to do it...

2011-05-04T22:28:00.000-05:00

or more recognizably titled "21 month collage"....read on, if you want to know the details behind the pics. You probably aren't too interested, but I know I will be in the years to come. This IS my journaling and scrapbooking, all in one.

Easter party at school. It's multiple toddlers in one picture, this is the best I could get. I figure it's a success since they are all sitting down :)
At the zoo with Uncle Jay Jay, Hays and Halle (Aunt E-E and cousin Hollis were talking to an old lady in a moo-moo while I snapped this pic)
Emmy was cleaning her hands while we did some work on the vegetable garden.
Taking a break from gardening.
Enjoying some "papa" (my dad) time.
Monkey see monkey do. Emmy and Lucy (neighbor) are just TOO cute together.
My sick little girl. She NEVER lays on the couch like this.
Maaaaaaaaw, put the camera away and just play with me already.
No caption needed.
At the school Easter egg hunt.

I have MANY more pictures I need to upload, I need to tell you about the Grove Park Inn, I need to show you all of the Easter cuteness that happened in this part of Oklahoma, but man- I really need to go to bed.

Goodnight friends.

Don't Cry Over Spilled Pot Pie

2011-05-02T09:47:00.001-05:00

I remember my mom making a certain dish growing up that we dubbed “the hospital casserole”. Need I explain more? It was prepared for people who were in the hospital, or had loved ones there. I think hers involved tuna and pasta, can’t quite remember as it wasn’t really prepared for me.

I have a dish now that has quickly become “the new baby casserole”. We have had quite a few friends, inside of church and out, that have become new parents or added new babies to the family recently. I find that I keep going to this one particular dish. It’s not so easy to fix, but the reward is a great one. Besides, who can resist the flaky crust, steaming hot filling and wonderful aroma of a CHICKEN POT PIE!

Well, maybe YOU can. But I most certainly cannot. I usually make a double batch so we can have some for a meal that week too.

Yesterday, as soon as Emmy went down for a nap, I put the chicken on the stovetop and ran (er, drove) to Reasor’s to get a few missing ingredients. I came back home and got to work on the pot pies. In about 30 or 40 minutes I had the filling done and was waiting to put it all in the oven. We were visiting a new baby at 530 and I wanted the dish to be fresh out of the oven when we arrived.

Fast forward to 515. I go to pull the dish out of the oven (it was baking on a baking sheet in case of excessively bubbly filling). With my right hand (b/c the other hand can’t operate a hot pad right now) I go to pull the sheet/pan out of the oven. And like a slow motion shot of Wylie Coyote falling over the canyon’s edge, I see my dish falling off of the baking sheet. My left hand had nothing on it so there was no way I was risking a huge burn on it to save the dish.

This is what happened (well, I am sparing you the picture of the dish on the floor). So I scooped it into a pan and VOILA, we now have happy dogs who are enjoying the extra love that’s going into their Pedigree.

This is the recipe I use for homemade (except the pie crust) pot pie. It tastes delicious, it makes your house smell delicious, it looks delicious….but none of this matters when you drop it onto the kitchen floor.

man","serif"'>Ingredients

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup frozen green peas (I usually just use the bag of frozen veggies: peas, carrots, lima beans, green beans)
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion (considering the thumb chopping event that took place last weekend, I opted for the frozen chopped variety this time around. They worked beautifully)
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery seed (I never have this on hand, so I use dry ranch seasoning)
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (someday, I will try a homemade crust)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425*

2. In a saucepan, combine chicken and veggies. Add water (I use the 1 ¾C broth here to add more flavor to the chicken and veggies)to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.

3. In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions and celery in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.

4. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust (My next alteration to this recipe will be to cook the bottom crust for a few minutes before adding the liquid mixture). Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape. (I would also suggest putting foil around the edges because they tend to get a little overdone @ 425*)

5. Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

iPhone Friday 4/29/2011

2011-04-29T08:34:00.002-05:00

Hi all! We have had a fairly uneventful week around here, which is always a nice thing. My parents came into town Tuesday night, so Emmy played hooky on Wednesday with Mimi.

This first pic is Emmy with her cousin Hays at the zoo last Friday . Hays' daddy is my brother Jay and today is uncle Jay Jay's birthday. Happy birthday!

Fell asleep 10 minutes into the trip home after the zoo.

On Friday, right before the storms rolled in.

I have better pix from Easter on the big camera, but this is the best pic I could get of Emmy on Easter.

My crazy sleeper.

And the trend continues.

Happy Friday!

Easter 2011: Egg hunt and Egg dyeing

2011-04-23T23:51:00.000-05:00

So Easter 2011 is off to a roaring start.
This morning we hunted eggs in Owasso with Jackson, Jarrod and Kim (Jarrod is Chris
bro). While we were there, we ran into Anna, Ashley and Jon (Ashley is Chris' mom's half sister? So Chris' half aunt? I don't know..., we just call Anna a cousin)...SO MUCH FUN. I have a plethora of good pictures from that event, so that will need to be a post all to itself.

After egg hunting, we went back to Jackson's and Emmy took a power nap there. After she woke up we headed towards home but stopped by Barnes and Noble first. We picked up a bunny book, an Easter book (actual religious explanation for kids) and a Pat the Bunny stuffed animal. The first two purchases were intentional, the third purchase was a result of weak parenting. hah! She found it on the rack, picked it up and WOULD NOT let go while we were there. I made the executive decision that Pat the Bunny would be going home with us. She better not get accustomed to these purchases!!!!

After B&N we headed home, picked up dog poo, burned some sweet gum balls in the chiminea, Emmy ~~mauled~~ gave the puppies some lovin, had leftover pizza from Hideaway for dinner then Emmy went to bed.

This is where the fun part of my night begins! I headed to Reasors to do some grocery shopping!

Say whhhaaattt? You don't consider going to the grocery store at 730pm on a Saturday night fun? Tisk tisk.
Well, after I got home I dyed some eggs...only 10. I started with 13 but 2 got cracks while boiling (even though I followed Martha Stewart's directions for perfect boiled eggs) and then I dropped another.

Here's what I ended up with...

I'm fairly pleased with them, but the purple didn't color well over the pink.

Oh well.

PS: I'm going to digress....the Easter book that we got Emmy is GREAT! It almost brought tears to my eyes because it's such a simple yet effective way of telling the Easter story. I pray so hard, although not often enough, that my daughter comes to know Christ early and loves Him without restrain.

Goggies

2011-04-21T21:06:00.001-05:00

Sunglasses aka "goggies", are the new MUST HAVE in this household. Morning, lunch, bedtime- doesn't matter.

Full time, working outside the home remorse

2011-04-18T21:35:00.001-05:00

Yep.

It's true that when Emmy was 8 weeks old I was extremely ready to get back to work. Let's face it, new babies aren't the most interactive beings. I was ready for some human interaction.

But here we are, a year and a half later, and now I find myself wanting what I never thought I would. There are days, especially like tomorrow that I wish for the greener grass on the other side of the fence.

My Emmers is sick. She had a 103* fever right before bedtime. So tomorrow, chris and I will split shifts. I will work in the morning them come relieve him at lunch.

Part of me wonders if she would be sick less often if I stayed at home. But then part of me wonders if I have enough patience to handle the demands of a toddler.

Sometimes I think that she would be talking more and understanding more because of increased one-on-one time if I stayed at home. And sometimes I wonder what undesirable things she would be saying and doing as result of mimicking me.

Most often, I feel quite confident in my decision. But when my baby girl actually cuddles with me because she feels so cruddy- that's when it's hard to go to work the next day.

iPhone Friday 04/13/11

2011-04-14T20:55:00.001-05:00

Wow, the last week has REALLY flown by! At the end of last week, we traveled out to Asheville, NC. I spent the weekend at the Grove Park Inn and Chris and Emmy went to stay with his aunt and cousin in a town about 50 mins away.

Austin and Emmy.

My delicious flat bread pizza at the Market Place in Asheville.

Grove Park Inn. You've gotta put this on your "go see" list. And while you are there, spend a few extra bucks and get a massage too!

On the plane back home, this picture must be from one of the five minutes that Emmy was happy. it was our fault, tried to fly too late at night.

With Mimi and Papa on Brookside

Chilling at the doctor's office for an asthma checkup. Everything looks good!

My roses are budding and blooming. Wahoo!!!!

Happy almost weekend all!

1 year + 8 months

2011-04-13T21:06:00.000-05:00

This is almost too scary to type, but I will be throwing a certain toddler a 2nd birthday party in less than 4 months! What in the world???

Here are some highlights from this past month:

All four incisors are coming in. The fourth molar also came in, but that may have been a month or two ago.
Seems like Emmy is picking up new words everyday. Some of my favorites include: goggy (glasses), poop poop (although it's only used correctly 1/10th of the time), gab-gaw (grandma), ock (sock), mar-mar (in reference to her birthmark)
Favorite Song: Wheels on the Bus, and she demands that everyone around her do the motions to the song
Favorite Food: nothing in particular, she hasn't been eating yogurt as much as the past
Favorite Obsession: taking shoes to their rightful owners
Favorite Book: Goodnight Moon
Favorite Word: NOOOOOOOOO (with the attitude of a teenager, oh dear- what are we in for?)
Emmy now sometimes enjoys brushing her teeth since we got her a kids' spinbrush
We started swim lessons at Miller Swim School. Emmy is doing sooo well- she's learning to kick and row with her arms (she already had the blowing bubbles thing down).
Health has been ok overall. We still do the steroid inhaler twice a day, Nasonex in the AM and Zyrtec at night. I think we finally found a winning combination.

As I say every month, this one has certain been fun. But I will throw in that it has been a little difficult. Stern talks and time outs don't seem to be working in the discipline area. Chris and I have much learning to do so that we can carefully and effectively discipline our daughter. It is my prayer that I can be a good mama to Emmy.

Guest Poster

2011-04-05T14:14:00.001-05:00

THREE NICKNAMES: Emmers, Stinker, Baby

THREE PEOPLE THAT MAKE ME LAUGH: cousin Jackson, Bumble Monster, neighbor Lucy

THREE THINGS THAT I LOVE: throwing anything and everything that I’m not supposed to throw, bath time, being outside

THREE THINGS THAT I HATE: vegetables, sleeping in on the weekends, being told NO

THREE THINGS THAT I DON'T UNDERSTAND: why mommy feels the need to paint my toenails, why I have to sit still sometimes, why my clothes must match

THREE THINGS ON MY FLOOR: brush, books, 3 pairs of shoes

THREE THINGS I AM DOING RIGHT NOW: coughing, showing someone my birthmark, tooting

THREE THINGS I CAN DO: kick in the pool, run, put on socks

THREE WAYS TO DESCRIBE MY PERSONALITY: observant, occasionally demanding, always loving

THREE THINGS I CANNOT DO: somersault, pee pee in a toilet (although mama’s trying to convince me), sit still

THREE FAVORITE FOODS: cheese ravioli, spaghetti, greek yogurt & baked sour cream & cheddar chips

THREE FOODS I DO NOT LIKE: vegetables, vegetables, vegetables

THREE BEVERAGES I DRINK REGULARLY: whole milk, apple juice, smoothies

THREE SHOWS I WATCH: Rudolph, basketball, The Office

a little taste of NOLA

2011-04-04T22:47:00.000-05:00

from left to right, top to bottom-as told by emmy

1. play with crayons
2. watch mom combine dry beignet mix with water
3. dump onto well floured surface, mommy needs help with what "well floured" means.
4. roll out to 1/8" thick, or just guess like mommy b/c she doesn't have that super cool rolling pin that has rings on the end that help you know how thick/thin to roll out dough. PS: i think her birthday is coming up
5. have the engineer of the house cut into 2" squares
6. get powdered sugar ready
7. drop into hot oil
8. ENJOY! whoops, this picture is out of order, oh well. this boring collage was needing another picture of me anyway.
9. plate food and top with PLENTY of powdered sugar. looks like mom did get this one right.

iPhone Friday 04/01/2011

2011-04-01T08:24:00.001-05:00

Thanks to my sweet friend Sara for reminding me about his post, or lack thereof.

Emmy giving Teddy his sippy.

Key lime pie with mango sorbet from the Polo Grill. It was DIVINE, along with everything else. I think my fave part of dinner was the kalamata olives, or maybe the 1/2 sized bottle of wine, or maybe bread being offered with each course....

This was not staged, I promise. Miss Priss found this to be the only acceptable way to drink milk. Whatever works.

Watching a rerun of The Office where Dwight and Michael brought their Asian dates who were their waitresses to the Christmas party. Perfect TV while enjoying the fire. Only thing missing was chris, who had to work late. Boo.

And an oldie but goody, Emmy at one month. (had to throw in a pic of her when she was sweet and cuddly and didn't say NO with the attitude of a tween)

Happy Friday my friends.

Weather Roller Coaster

2011-03-30T16:39:00.001-05:00

Just FYI, all you T-Towners.

It’s suppsed to be 89* here Sunday, which means one of two things: 1) it will be 50* or 2) it will be 95*. Time to get our your Venus Breeze, Skintimate gel and get to work on those hairy legs!

Oh, wait…whoops, I just revealed myself.

iPhone Friday

2011-03-24T21:52:00.001-05:00

I'm going to start a new weekly post called "iPhone Friday" with random pix from the week. Will someone out there in the blogosphere please hold me accountable?

Because we wouldn't want to get frosting on our hands as evidence of eating the cupcake (cup-kee).

Even from nosebleed, this was SO much fun. Note to self: buy tickets earlier next time this event comes to Tulsa.

Our maple tree is blooming! This is the tree we planted in remembrance of our heaven baby. I still think it was a boy... Someday I will get the chance to find out.

Hot mama metal!!!! I went an toured the Norris facility unburied today, they make rod strains and couplings. This was just one of many steps. These rods go through many rounds of heat to refine them.

I'm just gonna let you use your imagination here. Anyone know what this is?

Lessons learned

2011-03-21T20:36:00.001-05:00

1. Hide suckers from Emmy's view.
2. Buy your husband whatever it is that he wants for his birthday dinner. Remind self that it is not oneself's birthday meal, so it doesn't matter so much what oneself hunks about chosen meal.
3. Don't eat nachos from the BOK and NOT expect to have burps later.
4. An overly tired toddler is NOT fun.
5. Lastly, but not the least at all, when NCAA tournament rolls into town again, buy tickets earlier so I am not stuck here again:

6. Oh, one more lesson. If you take a book to an NCAA basketball event, know that some person behind you might take a picture of you because you look ridiculous.

Happy Birthday to Christopher Lee

2011-03-18T09:00:00.001-05:00

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday dear "you are the best husband in the world because you put up with me" Chris,
Happy birthday to you.

Little Miss

2011-03-15T20:12:00.001-05:00

Little miss has been sleeping in the past few mornings, she's still on her winter hours schedule.

It's an extremely tough life that she leads.

Kiss The Fish

2011-03-12T21:28:00.000-06:00

Today has been SOOOO much fun!

It started with dinner last night with friends and their two little girls. They are older and Emmy LOVES watching big kids and mimicking. This morning she slept in until 645 (I know this doesn't sound like sleeping in, but lately she has been waking very early on the weekends). Then we got ready and headed up to my parents' house. Emmy did alright in the car and was happy to get to Mimi and Papa's house. She took a short nap. It would have been longer, but I changed her poopy diaper during her nap and it woke her up. So then, since it was such a beautiful day we decided to go fishing. It was me, Emmy, Chris and Uncle Jay Jay. Each of us caught 3-4 fish and Emmy touched every single one. She even gave one a kiss before we threw it back in...er, before Chris threw it back in. SIDENOTE: I neither touch fish nor touch worms.

She is such a nature girl and had so much fun. We fished for probably 45 minutes and she played on the golf cart like a big girl.

Another favorite of today was saying Uncle Jay Jay's name. She doesn't really say "Jay Jay"...but it is distinguishable.

{L to R: Emmy, Dada, Uncle Jay Jay with his tongue sticking out}

{Emmy kissing the little perch}

{Emmy and Uncle Jay Jay playing with nightcrawlers}

{proof positive. I..HATE. FISH}

February collage

2011-03-09T10:10:00.001-06:00

a year and a half plus one

2011-03-07T21:26:00.001-06:00

Oh my goodness, I just realized something...Emmy is 19 months old. I had an online draft of this post titled as 18 months! This past month has been SO much fun. I swear this little girl has learned an extreme amount this month: from words to actions to imitations to how to give the stink eye.

Here's a sampling of our past month.

Words: apple, beep beep, classmates names, coat, dude, me( for please), snow, cupcake, Elmo, Ice cream (eye-kee), cold, up, sticker, sucker, color, wind
Walking and running very well now.... we are still working on the running part a little.
Stomping right foot when she doesn't get her way...oh terrible two's and three's, here we come!
Snowmageddon 2011: we survived! Emmy loved the NOOOOO (snow). She honestly didn't mind the cold, she's such a nature girl. We also baked ALOT and Emmy enjoyed the fruit of her mother's labor.
At Emmy's 18 month appt (it was in late February) she came in at 25# 10 ounces, 32.25". She is definitely a good size girl and bigger than I was when I was two. I am hopeful that she will be at least an inch or two taller than me as an adult! We also found out that she had strep (showing NO symptoms) and the dr diagnosed her as having asthma. SO.....we have been doing our amoxicillin morning and night along with the steroid inhaler. I can't even begin to describe how much that has helped.
Emmy likes to carry her lovey (which she calls BABY) in her neck, kind of like a violin.
We bought her some cool sunglasses at babies r us. If i can get her to keep them on for more than 10 seconds, I'll grab a pic.
Says "poot" when toots, then when prompted says her version of "excuse me". She poots alot and quite loud. In fact, I mistook her poot for an adult poot the other day in the car.
Will say thank you often, without prompting (well, it's still nah-noo and it's TOOO cute)
Loves little mandarin oranges and big regular oranges
She prefers walking up and down steps instead of crawling.
Emmy is also understanding what UP means, thanks to "Twinkle Twinkle, Little Star"
She is actively moving along to these songs: Twinkle Twinkle, Ring Around the Rosie, Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider. Her fave song is Row Row Row Your Boat. We grab each others hands and rock back and forth to the song. She has become obsessed with it lately and wants it every 5 minutes.
Speaking of obsession with things: We are still watching Rudolph at least 2x per day. And, whenever I pick Emmy up from school she expects a juice cup in my purse. She gets a *little* upset if it's not there.
We took our first trip to the zoo with Emmy's friend, Eli Tracy. She loved it and was so glad Eli was around to show her the ropes.
She is wearing size 5 shoe, sized 5 diaper (but it's starting to get a bit snug) and mainly 24 month & 2t clothes.

PS: collage to follow.......I'm still out of commission in the "big" computer department and the Dell Mini doesn't have enough memory on it to run Picasa. :(

Perfect picnic

2011-03-01T22:24:00.001-06:00

I think I will just let the pictures speak for themselves here.

Just kidding, I like to talk too much.

First time in a big girl swing:

Showing me a stick while either saying the word "poke" or "poop":

Daddy daughter moment.

Thanks for dinner, papa.

Our pizza eating machine. She ate about 3/4 of a piece and two meatballs. Then had a few handfuls of Puffs when we got home.

Perfect sunset and perfect weather:

Tuckered out.

Also need to add that Emmy had her first experience jumping out of a swing this evening. She landed flat on her bum and I think it caught her off guard. But no tears.

Additionally, does Woodward park discourage kids and picnics? Because there were no infant swings nor could I find picnic tables.

January collage in detail

2011-02-24T23:40:00.001-06:00

1. Playing at Whiteside park before Snowmageddon Two Thousand and Eleven.
2. On our way to take Valentines pictures
3. Bathing with Cousin Jackson(a year difference in age), I think we managed to keep most private parts covered.
4. “enjoying” the snow
5. Watching Dadoo (Rudolph) on a snow day
6. Trying to get dressed. It has been fun to watch Emmy develop these skills. She can get socks on now!
7. Playing peek a boo on neighbor Mike's truck
8. Helping out in the tub and getting a drink of water simultaneously
9. Need I explain?
10. Sledding down the snow packed street
11. Hugs for cousin Halle( 6 weeks apart) at aunt Eden's shower
12. Perfecting the art of "chopsticking"
13. Because sometimes, your belly just needs to be accessible
14. Hugging the steering wheel. Honestly, I have no idea here.
15. Primping
16. Eating peanut butter by the spoonful.

Number 16 makes her daddy grin ear to ear. Like father, like daughter.

Good Morning to You

2011-02-23T09:31:00.001-06:00

Emmy,

Last night, around 3:45am, your daddy and mommy heard you making noises on the monitor. They left you alone for about 10 minutes but then they could tell in your voice that you were unhappy. Your mommy told your daddy that she would go check on you, and that if she wasn’t back in three minutes to bring some milk in a sippy. So three minutes later, your daddy came in and you downed your milk like it was going out of style. Your mommy started to put you into bed when you reached out your hand, touched her face and so gently said “mama”. As in “Mama, thank you so much for coming in here to rock me and sing to me. I love you”. She then placed you in your crib, turned on your music and caressed your back for a minute. You told each other “night night” and then everyone went back to sleep. After watching all of this happen, I can safely say that each must love the other very much.

As told by: the fly on the wall

Valentines Shmalentines

2011-02-16T22:54:00.000-06:00

I remember Valentine's day as a kid, and I have extremely fond memories.

We would have a sit down dinner and my mom would have little presents for us at our place at the table. I do not remember a single gift- but I do know how special I felt that evening.

Then I grew up and realized that Valentine's is such a Hallmark Holiday. I participated in it, but I can definitely tell you I always had a little grudge with Valentine's Day.

That is....until Emmy arrived.

It has a completely new meaning.

{2010}

{valentine's card, thanks shea

{2011}

eighteen months

2011-02-09T21:16:00.000-06:00

This months post is a little late....I am still battling computer problems. This month's collage is all iPhone pics, which probably captures our everyday life better than the big camera anyway.

So here is what we have been up to lately:

Emmy's words (mainly said on her own, sometimes needs prompting): Daa-doo (Rudolph), bumble & herbie (from Rudolph move too), wah (wipe), bapple (pineapple), nah-noo (thank you), bow, bobbo (bottom), goooooo (immediately when we get into car), why-buh (diaper), I'm sure there are more- these are just the new ones
She is using utensils much better, I have ditched the plastic take and toss forks and we use little cocktail forks.
3 molars this month: Upper Right (Jan7), Upper Left (Jan11), Lower Right (Jan23)
Went to the dr for wheezing and got placed on 5 day, low dose Prednisone. Helped while on meds, but then got worse again afterwards
Emmy loves Nasonex and saline spray to be sprayed up her nose..weird, I know
When frustrated, Miss Thing stands and stomps her right foot repeatedly
She can count to three! Well, kind of. I say one, she will say two, I say too, then she yells THREE!
Most often, Emmy will either forewarn or tell us as soon as she has gone poopy.
She loves to practice putting on and taking off clothes.
The moment she gets strapped into the car seat, Emmy starts to take off her shoes and socks. Just like momma, those toes need to be free!

This last month, just like all the others, has been the best month yet. Sooooo much learning, soooo many new words and new mannerisms revealing themselves.

Here's a little collage...I think in a future post I'll explain what most of the pictures are about.

18 months old

2011-02-08T20:34:00.001-06:00

You guys, it really stinks having no working computer! Well, my Mini works but the hard drive is so small that I can't store images on it! Woe is me.

So, maybe tomorrow during my snow day I'll get around to posting and creating a January photo collage. Until then, I'll just be waiting for the snow. Call me crazy, But I don't mind it!

{giving pedicures}

Busy day

2011-01-25T20:37:00.001-06:00

Emmy sneezed this morning and I wiped it with my tee shirt. In the dark. Once we got into light I actually took a look at it. It was approaching the hue and saturation of the Nickelodeon slime. (more on this later)

If you saw my first facebook status of the day, you may have noticed me lamenting the fact that I am ALWAYS late in the mornings. I am Emmy's chauffeur both to and from school. She attends "school" downtown and I also work downtown. So it just makes sense. But some mornings and some afternoons, I just wish someone else could fill that role. But alas, I am a parent now an so I will be chauffeur for another 15 years at the least.

Now back to the Nickeloden slime colored snot. I know you were holding out for this one.

Emmy has been congested and sneezing since August 6, 2009. That's right, her birthday. Sometimes it's better, other times it's worse. Right before we left for the sugar bowl it was AWFUL. So much mucous that she had the "mucous" pukes. It quickly got a step better and had been staying there ever since but didn't go away. Today we decided it was time to see someone. So at lunch (and naptime) we went in and found out she wasn't sick. Her little lungs are just having a hard time. She still isn't completely healed after having rsv last year (as far as lungs go). So we were told to continue breathing treatments and are on a 5 day, low dose prednisone. Fingers crossed this works.

There's an end to this story, but I'm too tired. I'll finish it later.

Here's my baby, she fell asleep between the drs office (21/Yale) and school (9/boulder).

internal combustion

2011-01-23T13:35:00.000-06:00

Five minutes ago, I deleted all the pictures on my camera.

It had all pictures from January on it...I am sick.

My insides reached 106.7 degrees, I'm pretty certain. There were pictures that can be repeated. But there were some of Emmy and her cousins with their great grands, and those are hard to come by. UGH. NO!

There were also some of our home improvement day, which is what I was wanting to post. I sewed some curtains for Emmy's room, or should I say I recrafted some tableclothes from Target. Chris installed a new kitchen faucet. Might I just say at this point, Delta + Touch2O technology is awesome! If you come over to my house anytime in the future, you do NOT have to turn the water on and off. JUST TOUCH THE FAUCET! So cool.

Also, a year ago in this post (ONE YEAR AGO) Chris and Emmy started working on installing the instant hot water dispenser. Well, I can gladly say that part of it is finally IN! Now just waiting on Chris to round up some help for some water line installation stuff and it will be done! Woohoo. Maybe by the next time we have a baby it'll be ready for sanitizing pacifiers, warming up frozen milk and thawing food. Wahoo.

So, I'll leave you all with a picture of the Emmers and myself from last night.
We were both tired girls and passed out at 7pm sharp.

Guest poster

2011-01-21T21:52:00.001-06:00

Hi all. It's Emmy here. Just wanted to tell you about my day.

First, daddy stayed home with me until 9am because my school opened late. Then I ate lots of snacks, played, ate lunch, had milk, took a nap, had snacks, read books and then mama picked me up. We went to braums to get milk then met dadda at home.

Later, we met some of mama and dadda's friends at hideaway. I sat in my highchair for five minutes and then I really really needed to get out! I was all by myself in that chair and got lonely I needed extra snuggle time so I sat in daddy's lap. Then I went to mama's lap. Then mr. Adam held me for awhile. Mommy thought I was being a pill, but I just wanted to be social.

After awhile I got a little warm inside the restaurant so daddy and I went outside until everyone else was finished.

On the way home from the restaurant they told me they were not happy with my behavior at dinner. I thought I was perfect. Maybe next time they will see it from my point of view.

random iphone photos for the week

2011-01-20T22:13:00.000-06:00

Happy "almost" friday to all of you! Looks like alot of the Tulsa area is out of school again tomorrow. Still waiting to hear about Emmy's school. They were closed today, which is rare- but so glad none of the teachers had to get out in this mess. Chris has the option to not go to work tomorrow since the school district that we live in is OUT for tomorrow.

Here are a few random pix from the past week. Captions are below each picture.

We went to a birthday party and came back with some new, used cowgirl boots.

This is the bus that turned out in front of me on 36th street just east of Peoria. He or she then proceeds to drive 25 mph to Harvard where he/she then turns north. (Usually takes up both lanes while turning and waits until a yellow light to turn so that people behind the bus have no chance of making the light). I've been skipping the BA in the evenings because of the construction, but not really sure my city streets route is any saving any time.

This one was on facebook....I left Emmy alone for awhile and found this. She loves to clean. I guess the penguin nightlight was a little dusty.

She is so helpful in the tub. She likes to dump water on her head, in her mouth, on her belly and she likes to rub in the shampoo as well.

Chris bought all these storage tubs and I finally got around to organizing them. From L to R: Tub 1)christmas gift bags and ribbon, 2)christmas wrapping paper, 3) "other" gift bags, 4)"other" wrapping paper.

Emmy playing with her neighbor Lucy. They were banging their heads against the back of the couch. Silly girls.

Poor girl. Seems like we've been doing these breathing treatments for a year...oh wait...IT HAS BEEN A YEAR! Right now we are just battling chest crud and a constant cough. It doesn't wake her at night, but makes her wake a little earlier in the mornings.

I got rear ended this morning. This is tne 2nd time in 6 months. Neither were bad enough to file..well, actually need to check on this one. He hit me near the black dot (the rear parking sensor) and the paint is cracked around it. It made me mad...not for being rear ended, but there is some damage on the back bumper from the previous owner and I wish someone would hit me hard enough so I can file and get a new bumper!

Daddy, bubbles, bathtime, no clothes. Life Is Good.

My kitchen, after Emmy emptied the lower cabinet full of metal bowls and after cooking tonight's dinner.

The kitchen a short, err long, err short 15 minutes later.

Hope you all stay safe out there on the cruddy roads. Learned a fun trick from my dad today: If you are going downhill and having a hard time stopping on snowy/icy roads you should throw your car in neutral and then brake. If you are in drive then your wheels still want to travel, and if you stay on the brakes- you'll get that weird sound.

Ok, enough randomness for the night. TTFN

My Predicament

2011-01-17T15:36:00.001-06:00

I am still feeling guilty.

I have a feeling that the other decision would not have settled well either.

There was that third choice, but I didn’t think of it until it was too late.

The Place: Reasors 41st/Yale
The Time: 8:30ish pm
The Dilemma: someone needing money

So I finish loading my groceries into the back of Sasquatch(my dad’s name for my vehicle) and get into the driver’s seat. I notice a woman who exited a car (car then drove away) and then walked right towards my car with a panda bear in her arms. I am slightly worried so I lock my doors. She comes to my window, knocks and I roll it down a little. She, in a matter of fact- no shame manner asks “Can I have $20 to buy my baby some formula. If you do give it to me, I'll give you this stuffed animal”.

Now…here’s where I get stuck: Does she have a baby? Is she going to reach her hand into my window and try to get in if I don’t give her the money? Where is the baby? Why did she ask for $20, why not just ask for money for formula?

There were a few occasions when we purchased formula for Emmy, and I know that you CAN buy a container for less than a twenty. I thought it was a bit weird that she asked for a certain amount. That was the first thing that triggered my brain, to tell my heart, that it probably wasn’t going towards formula.

I was stuck for a second and didn’t know how to reply. I came up with this “Ma’am, you must believe me when I say this- if I could see your baby, if I in fact knew the money was going towards the baby, I would gladly give you the money”.

She replied “it’s too cold for him”.

I looked up at my trusty display in the car that read “40* F”. I told her that yes it was a little cool, but that I’ve had my baby out in this kind of weather many times. She didn’t have much to say. In my mind, I have automatically assumed she does not really need the money for a baby but for drugs. I shouldn’t have assumed that, but I did.

I left Reasor’s feeling sad, guilty, uneasy, worried, and unsure.

Did I do the right thing? Should I have doubted her? What if there really was a hungry baby? Did I just make the face of a Christian look bad because I didn’t give to the poor? I have just been fooled before, and didn’t want to be taken as a fool again.

On my way home scenario #3 entered my mind. I could have gone into the store with her and bought the formula myself. I thought of that too late. I guess that would have been the tell-tale sign as to whether she really needed the formula or not.

Then I started thinking about the person dropping her off. What if that was her boyfriend/husband? What if he sent her out to get money and was mad when she returned with nothing?

Agh.

This happened 19 hours ago and it’s still bothering me.

What would you have done?

Bathtime

2011-01-16T07:51:00.001-06:00

Bathtime has been so fun lately. New tricks learned at the expense of old tricks forgotten. Emmy used to blow bubbles in the tub, but has since moved on. Now, she likes to rub the shampoo into her mullet, tilt her head back when she knows it's time to rinse mullet, will dump water down her front, and mostly- she likes to stay in there until the water is cold!

17 month update

2011-01-09T20:35:00.000-06:00

So, I had nice updated ready to go on the big computer. I just needed to spell check- and then it would have been ready to post. Why didn't I just create a draft in blogger? Well, I just didn't expect my computer to practically crash and die on me...agh. We have absolutely nothing backed up, so I do hope it turns back on again just once so that (after I go out and buy an external hard drive) I can back up all those precious pictures we have.

Here is what I can remember of the list:

Just learned how to nod yes, and says "deah". We are working on Yes Ma'am, Sir, or anything!
Can make animal noises for cow, sheep, duck, and kitty cat
Knows all the parts of the face (which I think isn't actually new this month)...is also learning elbow and knees.
Picking up new words left and right. Very interested in what things are named, Emmy is trying very hard to verbally communicate although it usually just ends up with whining and stomping of feet.
Emmy was a great wrapping-paper-demolition-queen.
She is wearing size 18month-2T clothes, size 4-5 shoes, and size 5 diaper.
We did buy a potty but are not forcing anything right now, just wanted to have it handy. Ya know, just in case (which realistically may not be for another 6 months or so)
Emmy received a new kitchen for Christmas and loves to dump out all her food, try to chew on it, and then abandon the scene.
This month she enjoyed a 3 day stay with Mimi & Papa while we went to NOLA for the Sugar Bowl.
Says either "bah" or "bee" for up. She will pat the object that she wants on top of and will try to climb. Poor thing just has short legs, she needs a step stool.
Says MAY-MEN after prayers.
Emmy has learned SO much this past month. She continually amazes us. I'm pretty certain life was boring as all get out before she entered our lives. So hard to believe 17 months have gone by when it just feels like yesterday she was a mere 7# baby.

Thank you for sharing in the memories with me. I'm sorry if this post is boring for you, I write it down because I don't want to forget.

December 2010 Collage

2011-01-08T14:28:00.000-06:00

Wow, we've had quite the busy December: Christmas, playing with neighbors, bathing with cousins, ice skating rink, Uncle Greggy's birthday, watching Rudolph 50+ times. When I get around to it, I'll explain more in Emmy's 17 month post. It will be, of course, a belated post.

Hurricanes, and Beignets, and Sugar Bowl- OH MY

2011-01-04T14:06:00.000-06:00

Ok, so I've experienced 1 of the 3 titled subjects...but maybe by tonight I can accomplish my little list.

Yesterday adn today have been SO awesome! I miss my little girl SO much but it's always so nice for Chris and I to get away. But let me explain this: I have SUCH a hard time leaving her. Terribly hard.

I have taken quite a few pics already (on big computer and phone) and I'll definitely do a picture post when I get home but here's a written list of the things we have done so far:

Monday: Lunch @ Stanley Restaurant with a strawberry italian cream soda, walked all around the French Quarter, dinner at Commanders Palace, drinks at Delachaise and watched the Orange Bowl on a ginormous projector screen.
Tuesday: Breakfast at the terrible excuse for a "club level"...but hey it was free, not really, but included; beignets and cafe au lait @ Cafe Du Monde, a little bit of shopping, some new boots, lunch at Dickie Brennens Palace Cafe, rest time and now on our way to Audubon Park and then on to the game!

Hope your Monday and Tuesday have been just as fun ;)

(didn't but it, but i LIKE it)

Our Merry Christmas card

2010-12-30T01:09:00.000-06:00

So it's only 5 days after Christmas, not too late to share our Christmas card is it?

Sorry the picture quality isn't great. It's a picture of a picture. And not sure if you recognized the family picture, but it was taken by shea.

The verse reads "the Lord has done great things for us and we are filled with joy". It's true. Even through the hardship of the last two weeks, we remain joyful for the things in which we have been blessed.

Here is just a short list of those things( and sorry for all this rambling, it's been hard to go to sleep. I actually will myself to stay awake at night knowing I must get up at 615 the next morning for work. If I stay awake until my eyelids barely stay open, then going to sleep doesn't bring about such sadness. Oh, how I digress). Back to my blessings list.

I have been extremely blessed with:
-my health, the last time I was really sick was in may with a sinus infection
-a job/employer that has put up with me for four years
-wonderful neighbors who have enriched our lives
-family that lives us beyond measure
-time with my dad this fall as he worked in Tulsa for a few months
-a healthy, growing, beautiful, babbling, hungry, intuitive, curious, lovable, ornery, smiley little girl
-a loving, supportive, encouraging, hard working and giving husband
- two dogs who always smell like poop
-finding a true friend
-a wonderful life group
-seeing the beating heart of a new life and the promise that we can try again
-a roof over our heads, two steady jobs, two dependable cars, food I'm the fridge and meals on the table, enough clothes to go for weeks before needing to do laundry

Really, this last l bit of the list could go on and on. God has proven that He provides me everything I need to be the person that He desires me to become.

I will try to remember that now and always. He will not withhold nor unnecessarily give unless it is held in His master plan.

Today I feel more at peace than I have the past two weeks. I pray this continues. The more "sane" that I am, then the easier it is consistently hand things over to God. It's 1am, I hope that made sense.
If it doesn't, then I'll either delete this post or later correct my errors.

My eyes are heavy. My heart is lighter. Thanks bloggy friends for listening to my random thoughts.

Samtsirhc Yrrem

2010-12-24T22:18:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas from us.... To you.

Chris and I have had a very busy day, but now we are sitting in Christmas pj's (I should probably be more specific here. I'm in normal clothes, chris is in the footed jammies. J/K)

Tonight we went to our church's candlelight service. I wish I could sit here and tell you how wonderful the service was. However, Miss Emmy was a pill so we were quite occupied with keeping her entertained. Oh well, it was an experience to write down in the baby book.

So now miss priss is sound asleep and we are laying on the couch watching TU mutilate Hawaii.

Hope you are having a very Merry Christmas.

Location:Valley W Dr,Claremore,United States

15 euros...really?

2010-12-24T00:09:00.000-06:00

#1) I may or may not have written about this before
#2) I am too lazy to look back to see if I have indeed written about this
#3) I don't like to go to sleep these days, I associate tears with my pillow
#4) So here goes, an 11:41pm post, wow- it will probably have many errors.
#5) Oh well.

Can I share with you one of the happiest days of my life?
It is June 8, 2006 (oh, dear...I hope it was the 8th...)

Anyway, that is the day a vendor at the Spanish Steps in Rome asked Chris to pay him 15 euros for roses. Seriously Roman dude....$30 for three roses? Ugh. I think we ended up cutting a deal, 10 euros for 3 roses.

See, isn't that a happy day?

No? Ok, well I suppose what made that day happy is that the love of my life...well, he asked me to be the love of his life FOREVER. And of course I said yes. What girl wouldn't?

(please take the time to click on this picture, enlarge it and OOOH and AAAH over the flowers)

Little did I know then what kind of husband Chris would be now. You see, my poor dear didn't date much in college. He did have a girlfriend for just a little while before we dated (I need to thank her for refreshing some of his "how to impress a girl" skills). Anyhow, I knew that Chris was a great boyfriend, and then a great fiance' (for a short 4 months)...but honestly he is a WONDERFUL husband. If I could choose just one adjective to describe him as a husband it would have to be SUPPORTIVE. Obviously he is loving, but I wanted to choose a word that really describes him. In my journey to going back to school and eventually wanting to put school on hold for family, he supported me. Through the many daily decisions that I make, he supports me. When I go on a shopping spree...he supports me..hah, j/k.

But really, in our most recent chapter of life...he has been SO SO SO amazingly supportive. Honestly, I didn't know that a man could be so in tune to how a woman is feeling. And let me say, it's not all the time...none of us are perfect. But he has been so sweet in checking up on me throughout the day at work, and to let me know that if I wake in the middle of the night and need to talk- he's there. I am truly a lucky girl.

I will write more later about how great he is as a father, but tonight- I wanted to focus more on the wonderful husband side of things.

Oh, one last very RANDOM thought (as if you haven't figured out yet how random I am). I mentioned earlier that our engagement period was very short...here's our actual timeline

Dec 17, 2005: first date
June 8, 2006: He popped the question
October 21, 2006: We both said "I will"
August 6, 2009: Happy "Birth" day Emmy
Dec 17, 2010: saying goodbye to my baby (my gut tells me BOY)

Why...why a happy thing and a crummy thing both on the same day?
,
But I don't want to end this post on a sad note...so here, a pic of my baby girl when she was a baby, being so delicately loved on by her dada

And PS...the reason for the midnight blog is b/c I was trying to get my mind away from my sad state....but somehow it turned into the very thing I was trying to avoid. I promise happier, more care free posts soon.

Already The Skeptic

2010-12-21T21:24:00.000-06:00

I'm gonna let the pictures do most of the talking here.

Let's just say that the visit to the jolly ole fake Santa did not go so well.

My feelings, I do have them

2010-12-20T14:26:00.001-06:00

My last blog post was written in somewhat of a hasty manner. I don’t like much attention and I don’t like having to explain things umpteen million times. Thus, I wrote the blog post about what was happening on Friday as more of an “informative” post.

This will be more of the “insightful” post.

I’ve had a few days to think things over. The first thing I can tell you is that the daytime is easier than the nighttime. I suppose it’s because daytime keeps you busy enough to where you don’t have much time to stop and think. And even though it’s the more solemn time of day, there’s also something magical about the night too. It’s the only time Chris and I can lay there, hand in hand, face to face- whatever, and check-up on one another. Even though the physical portion of the miscarriage and D&C happened to me, I can’t forget that he shares in the emotional portion. We are both a little more emotional at night. It’s almost a simultaneous event- my head hits the pillow and a small tear (or many large ones) emerge from my tired eyes. Chris posed the question the other night, “Why do things like this have to happen?” I wish I knew the answer. All that I know is that our God still loves us the same as He did Friday morning before the appointment and that we have to trust in His decisions- however much we want to disagree.

Something I else I want to say is that I’m not as stoic as the blog sounded on Friday. I often have a tendency to get all the facts out, and then think about them, and finally display some emotions because of them. I WAS very sad, today I AM not as sad, but I MIGHT ALWAYS be a little sad. In the short month and a half that we knew about this baby we had started planning; thinking of how we’d transform the guest bedroom into Emmy’s big girl room, decided on names, looked at double strollers, received a baby gift…..ya know, all the things you do when you are expecting. It was easy to shift my mindset to having a new baby join us, it’s much harder to shift back. I would give anything to be pregnant with indigestion, 4am trips to the bathroom, and overwhelming exhaustion at the end of the day- but I know it just wasn’t meant to be.

The other realization Chris and I now have is that our daughter is such a MIRACLE. You think that since female mammals are equipped with these bodies to reproduce that it should be easy. IT’S NOT! My pregnancy with Emmy was not a breeze, and there was a small risk of premature labor because of my effacement issues. In talking to so many women about their pregnancies, it really is hard to find ones that were simply flawless. Every baby that is born is a miracle, that’s why abortion just makes my stomach turn (but that is a subject deserving of its very own post).

Lastly, I want to thank you all for your out pouring of love. Your words, whether they were in person, over the phone, through an email, blog comment, facebook post, or text message meant the world to me. So many people offered food, company and help I am so lucky to have such an amazing support system. I have no doubt in my mind that prayers for the procedure and my body were received and answered. I couldn’t have asked for a better recovery. I amazed my nurses at my ability to function so quickly after the D&C.

The healing process has made much progress in just a few short days. I am very lucky that we were able to get into the OR Friday afternoon. Really, the physical healing is practically complete. As far as emotional healing- it’s going well too. Chris and I are focusing ourselves on each other and Emmy. We want to make sure we get all the spoiling in that is possible before we try again, and hopefully make her a big sister. Chris and I thank you for your prayers thus far, and we ask that you continue to pray for us. Mainly, we need continued peace over the situation and will need peace when we decide to try again. I can only imagine how hard the first 12 weeks of the next pregnancy will be. Again, thank you for your love. We are blessed beyond words.

I'll leave you with a picture of my baby who had an amazingly strong heart (175 beats per minute) but just wasn't compatible with further development. I am sad that our plans did not come to fruition, but also glad that the baby ( who I still think was a boy) never had to experience anything crummy in its life.

Just the Three of us

2010-12-17T11:50:00.001-06:00

My computer is wimping out on me so please excuse any typos that WILL happen.

I'm going to make it short and sweet. Today at my Dr appointment I was 12 weeks and 4 days. We started the ultrasound and the baby looked exactly as it did at 9 1/2 weeks. There were no arms and legs, still buds, and there was definitely no heartbeat. Man, what an awful sound. Silence.

About a week ago I started feeling my symptoms subside, it kind of corresponded to the end of the first trimester. But I didn't remember ALL symptoms disappearing when I had Emmy. I just felt.......not how I thought I should be feeling. I shared my concerns with Chris this week but tried to downplay the worry. By nature I am not a worrier, so I've been a mess this past week. You couldn't see it externally, but the worry ate at my nerves and my patience. I completely went berserk on Chris last night for a no good reason. It was just the worry coming out.

So even though the news we found out this morning was sad news, I had a slight feeling of relief. I didn't have to spend every day worrying and wondering. Peace of mind really does feel good. Thank you God for restoring my sane mind.

Back to the appointment. After the ultrasound we met with the doctor and discussed options. After talking it out we opted for a D&C. It will actually be at 330 this afternoon. Pre-op begins at 130 and I should hopefully be headed home by 5ish. Just in time for rush hour traffic. If you are of the praying sort, I ask for you prayers for the anesthesiologists, doctor, and my body and that all things go well in general. Pray too for Chris as he has an emotionally heightened wife the next few days, and for Emmy-that she will
intrinsically know that my body will need to take it easy.

A few last thoughts before I end.
I'm so happy and excited for each and every one of you out there that is expecting your bundle of joy. For you first timers, it is the most amazing experience.

We will try again soon, after I have my first full cycle we are cleared to try. But I did get an rx for some birth control to keep our options open on the timing.

I know God looks out for us. And his plans were written long ago as far as my family goes. He also rocks because I believe it is more than coincidence that my sister( who lives 9 hours away in Indiana) will be in Kansas this weekend. What amazing timing.

If you see me out and about, don't feel you have to say anything profound. It's ok to acknowledge it and then we can go onto other fun topics.

Ok, that's it for the random thoughts. Thanks for making it this far and thanks for your love.

And Emmy makes three...

2010-12-09T16:11:00.000-06:00

Well, I suppose I need to change the name of my blog.

But seeing how I haven't posted about thus baby yet or Emmy's 16 month post- it'll probably be awhile until I get to the renaming part.

I want to introduce to you, the finest looking peanut out there.

( if this picture is bad, I'll redo when I get on my computer at home)

Why the blue you ask? Well, obviously we don't know yet what the gender. And frankly I don't really care. I just had an early feeling that it was a boy, but now my mind is wavering. I'm hoping at my appointment in January( 16 weeks, 4 days) they will be able to tell.

We also have names picked out.

I will reveal when we find out the gender.

And because I posted some pictures of number two, here is a pic of number one.