Thankful

Well, by now, everyone (including myself) has moved on from Thanksgiving and is in full on Christmas mode, but there's never really a bad time to be thankful is there? No. We're agreed then. So, even though it's a little late, here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving weekend and a few things that I am thankful for right now...

Hot chocolate.

Second trimester and the end of morning sickness.

A place to call home.

Books.

A two year old beauty who is healthy, points out every house with Christmas lights on the way home, gives the best hugs, is independent and funny, pretends to put on my makeup in the morning, loves to read and sing, makes every day an adventure.

 

A close knit family of parents, siblings, and in-laws that are always there for each other.

Friends both near and far.

A husband who is my best friend, loves our daughter intensely, is one of the handiest men I know, let's me drag him to all sorts of events, is my favorite person to travel with, doesn't believe that skittles have different flavors (they do. red and purple are the best.), still holds my hand after more than eleven years.

Christmas lights.

A faith that is steadfast through a life that is constant change and motion.

A loyal companion.

Little sister growing in my belly.

My camera and the ability to capture life's fleeting moments.

This little blogspace where I can share my pictures and thoughts.

All of you who read it.



Happy (belated) Thanksgiving!

It's a...

We had our anatomy scan today. A full head-to-toe scan to make sure everything looks good with baby#2. This is always one of my favorite appointments!

Baby #2 was quite the wiggle worm! No surprise to me, with all the movement I've been feeling. It's so neat to actually see the kicks and punches on the screen while I'm feeling them.

The always creepy alien face shot.

Everything looked good, baby is strong and healthy, and....

SISTERS!!!

We're having another girl!

I can't wait to meet her! Of course a boy would have been great too, as always a healthy baby is all that maters, but I'm so excited that Sydney is going to grow up with a sister! They can play together, share clothes, talk about boys, fight like cats, and hopefully grow up to be best friends. This is going to be one crazy house, but I'm so looking forward to watching our family grow.

Now I guess it's time to start thinking about names!

Leaves

Last week Sydney decided to help us "fwoop" (a.k.a. sweep) the leaves. Such a little helper she is.

"I fwoop mama!" She took one "fwoop" at the lawn which immediately resulted in a rake stuck in the grass and a toddler having a meltdown. Luckily, she relented and left the "fwooping" to the adults, at which point Jon decided he was too manly (or maybe it was too efficient, I can't recall) to use a rake and broke out the big guns.

Sydney didn't immediately take to well to being tossed in a big pile of leaves, but she gradually warmed up to the idea.

 (For the record, Jon is asking me here, "Are you sure this is a good idea?" To which I, being the sensitive mother that I am, dutifully responded, "Sure, toss her in!")

Well, that went well.

Thankfully, her terror was short lived and soon replaced with the elation that only a giant pile of fresh, fallen leaves can bring to a child.

Oh yeah, Sawyer thought the leaves were swell too.

A great place for hiding sticks from would-be stick thieves.

Jon claims that i have not been giving him proper credit for the photos he takes that end up on my blog, so....

Disclaimer: The following pictures were taken by my lovely and talented husband Jon. I case you thought I was taking the time to set up timers and tripods, let me clear the air...I did not.

There you go Jon. Better?

It is, in fact, nice to get out from behind the camera for a change and have documented proof to be able to show Sydney some day, that I too was around for her childhood.

 

All-in-all, I'd say the leaves were a hit! Enjoying them while we can. Happy November Everyone!

October; Over and Out

Doppelganger

I fear my child has been replaced by an evil doppelganger. At least 50% of the time anyway. 

This girl has been pushing me to the brink lately. It’s like her emotions are completely out of control. One minute she’s happy as a clam, the next, epic meltdown. SCREAMING at the top of her lungs and swinging about uncontrollably. 

What is going on?! Where has my sweet little girl gone? It’s like walking through a minefield with her lately; one wrong move and…Kablooie!

Her blanket isn’t on right…Kablooie!

Kameron touched her…Kablooie!

Sawyer didn’t clap when she got the puzzle piece right…Kablooie!

I put food on her tray…Kablooie!

Wrong spoon…Kablooie!

How about this spoon?...Kablooie!

No spoon? …Kablooie!

Serenity now…serenity now…serenity now…

This sudden change has swept in out of nowhere over the past week or so. Terrible Two’s? Evil Doppelganger? Whatever it is, I hope it is short lived, or else this pregnant mama is going to looser her mind. 

Let’s focus on the good though, shall we? The other 50% of the time.

Look WHOO’s turning two!

We celebrated Sydney’s second birthday last weekend, and did a girlie owl theme. I know it’s hard to believe but once the party started I did not take a single picture. Not one.  I’m kicking myself now, but Jon was manning the smokers most of the time and I was so busy running around taking care of everything else, that I just never found the time. Luckily it’s not a total loss, as some kind party-goers have given me pictures that they took.

I did manage to snap a shot of the AMAZING cake that my sister did for Sydney before the party started. She really should start selling these things.

The party was a lot of fun, and as usual I enjoyed spending time with friends and family, but I was surprised how much being in my second trimester of pregnancy affected me. I was TOTALLY exhausted! Ready to pass out by 8pm!

Trick or Treat!

Sydney went trick-or-treating for real this year instead of just coming along for the ride. She loved it! I thought she would either be terrified or just want to sit down and eat the candy, neither of which happened. She was thrilled by the idea of going up to the doors and getting fun things to plunk down in her pumpkin basket. Every time, she would walk back and shout, “Mama, look MORE!” She hung in a lot longer than I thought she would too; a good 30-45 minutes, before finally setting in the stroller and deciding she would just ride along for the rest of the night. Little kitten still got more than enough candy!

:::Begin Soapbox Speech:::

Dear parents in cars,

Please, please, please stop following behind your trick-or-treating kids in your car. PARK your car and get out and WALK! There are so many things wrong with this, I don’t even know where to begin…the health effects for you, the example you set for your children, the congestion and safety hazard you cause for the other kids…the list goes on. I am amazed every year by how many people do this. Unless you have a legitimate reason…get OUT of your car!

::::End Soapbox Speech:::

Little Sibling Update

Houston we have movement! Even as I write this I am feeling the little pitter-pats of baby movement. It’s light, but it’s unmistakable. It may sound surprising that despite my inability to zip a normal pair of pants and my ongoing face-to-face meetings with the toilet, that it sometimes fails to sink in that I’m really pregnant again. That we are going to have another baby in our house next spring. But, these little movements are the first really tangible reminder to me throughout the day that there is a little baby on board. Another human being growing inside my ever-expanding belly. It’s an amazing and welcome reminder. 

Let's just hope for all our sake that by the time this little addition makes an appearance, we've managed to find our way out of the minefield we find ourselves so carefully navigating these days.