It's been a while...

It's been a while...but I don't feel like there has been too much to tell! So I thought I would share some cute little Natalie stories for my memory's sake. After Thanksgiving, we as most others were putting up our Christmas tree so I was sharing with Natalie about Santa Claus (which on a different note I am having trouble balancing talking about Jesus' birthday and Santa Claus-I want her to grow up with the focus of Christmas being about Jesus and the gift that He is and how we should help others less fortunate-but unfortunately for myself I tend to lose sight of this all somewhat as well). Anyways, back to my story-I was telling her that Santa Claus is going to come to our house and leave her presents if she's been a good girl-and she flipped! For like 1-2 hours she kept obsessing that Santa would not come, that she was scared of Santa, and did not want any presents! Then, she started crying (not a whimper-a full out scared cry for like 5-10 minutes)..imagine if we took her to see Santa Claus at the mall! That would be pure torture for her. I thought that was cute-I know tons of kids are scared of seeing Santa etc but I didn't know kids were scared of Santa leaving her a present-I told her that Santa would leave the presents outside!

Just last night I started being a little firmer with the whole bed time thing-I know I have talked about it quite a bit on here-but to refresh since moving in the big girl bed she hasn't been as great of a sleeper and I have to be in her room or on the stairs for her to go to bed. I realized that since I do the whole bedtime thing the majority of the time and with a new baby that I might want to change this habit sooner rather than later-so last night I talked to her about being a big girl and that big girls go to sleep on their own in their own bed. (The past few nights she has been sneaking downstairs at 2 a.m. or so and giggling until I wake up-she says "I wanted to check on Mommy and Daddy". So instead of sitting on her floor for 45 minutes and creeping out of her room 2 to 3 times a night-last night I said it is time for bed and for Natalie to go to sleep by herself-what should happen if Natalie gets out of bed and doesn't listen to Mommy?" And she replied a spanking-and I said ok-if you get out of bed you will get a spanking...it worked like a charm! I couldn't believe it was that easy-after sitting in the dark on a the hard floor for so long each night. Even in the middle of the night when she woke up (last night she woke up from a bad dream about Caillou-her old favorite tv-show until like 2weeks ago-when suddenly she became afraid of it!) it worked. Hallelujah!

Yesterday, when we were in the car we were talking and I said Ok Nat! And she told me "No Mommy. My name is Natalie, not Nat!" I thought that was so funny/cute-it made me laugh for quite a while-she sounded so grown up too.

Her favorite things to do right now is dance, run, march-any verb she can think of around the room while listening to her music CD from her Kindermusik class. You can often find us doing this around and around our living room/kitchen several times a day. She also likes to sing and march to the Ants Go Marching-unfortunately the song has 10 verses but it's worth it seeing what a kick she gets out of it. At my Mom's house she has a book there to the song Skip to My Lou-and she does the same thing only this time reading the book, singing, running around, and telling anyone else who is there to join her! (Speaking of my Mom-she has lost over 40 lbs. these last few months and is looking great! I am soooooooo proud of her!!!!)

Just wanted to tell a few random stories-I know it wasn't very interesting but I am afraid I will forget these things if I don't write them somewhere. As for the baby-we still haven't decided on a name-we dont' ever really talk about it-I am almost 32 weeks along-not too much longer!!!

Halloween and more....

The fun we had at the park and Henry's Ark!

This is how Natalie fell asleep one day during our walk-very cute!

First off-I am very excited!!!!! Natalie is currently down for a nap-I can't begin to tell you how much of a struggle this has been and just to have one day every now and then is a blessing! Since we have moved to the big girl bed her sleep patterns have changed (for the worse) and I am hoping it is still just an adjustment that she is having to get used to. Today she woke up at 5:40 a.m. (last night she went down at 8 and with no nap-well she just isnt' getting enough sleep-fortunately she doesn't get too grumpy) so I laid down on the chair next to her and told her if she got up out of bed she would get a spanking-she got out once and I followed through and she made some more attempts but after about 45 minutes she is sleeping peacefully in bed. Hallelujah!!

Here I am 26 weeks pregnant!

Steven and I are close to a consensus on the name of the baby-as I just entered my last trimester. I have dropped the name Brock because I think it sounds too close to Barack-not that I have anything against him but I don't want it to get confused or for people to think I named him after the president. One of the names we have always both liked has been Chase but he works with someone who has the child's name and wanted to see if we could find something else-well we haven't and I think we both are so sick of arguing over it that I would guess that Chase will be his name. He said that we could use one of my middle names (within reason-he has banned many of my names including Rylan, Mekhi, Sawyer, etc..) but it is hard to find a name that has really flowed. One of my favorite names though not unique is Noah-and I didn't want to use it for a first name because I would feel like I would have to use a N name for our third..so we will see.

Natalie only has 5 more music classes and I am sad-it has been such a joy to see her open up in front of others, learn, sing, make friends, etc. With the new baby and winter we won't be able to do much so I think I am going to start a little preschool curriculum with her at home-teaching her her letters, numbers, maybe a Bible verse/story, crafts, some sort of math/geography, and some sort of exercise two to three days a week. My sister does it with a friend of hers and the kids love it and I think it would help to break up some of the monotony of the winter days ahead with some structure/education. We will see if I get organized enough to do it!

Steven was off work Tuesday-Friday this week and on Tuesday we were able to enjoy the day together by going to Henry's Ark and on a picnic lunch after voting of course! It was a lot of fun and a good way to spend some quality time together as a family. On Wednesday and Thursday I worked this week so on Wednesday Steven took Nat to Puzzle's Fun dome-an indoor blow up place with playground-she really enjoys spending time with her Daddy! On Thursday Steven came down with like a 12 hour bug-his stomach and head were bothering him so he dropped Natalie off at his Dad's house. I am thankful for that because Natalie and I both are well and no one else got sick. This coming week we are both off Tuesday and will probably go out and do something else.

As for Halloween-which seems like forever ago-Natalie enjoyed herself for the most part. She was very shy and didn't like the scary costumes-the first trick or treater at our house was the Grim Reaper-and she said "Natalie's scared"-which made trick or treating at first a bit of a challenge. Steven passed out candy while I took her around-it was supposed to be the other way around but she insisted I take her and she wouldn't walk-so we didn't get too far! We went to maybe 10 houses but her bag was full-our neighbors had special bags for her or gave her one of everything-just what I need-my weight gain this month will probably be a doozy! She kept saying "more candy" but I could only hold her for so long. Anyways, I think her costume turned out great-granted the tutu has some major flaws-(the ones I have made after that have been much improved) but she wore the peacock costume proudly! (and Sarah-yes of course you can borrow the costume next year!)

Visit to Chattanooga

Natalie loving on Tyson-she has a love/hate relationship with him-she is often seen poking or hitting him and saying No, No, No..so I had to capture the sweeter moments too!

The weekend before Chattanooga we went to Huber's Farm with friends to pick pumpkins-Natalie picked a pumpkin for "Brock"-I have sort of taught her to call him that-haha-even though the name isn't decided....While there we ate--mmm!! rode on the hayride to pick pumpkins, petted/fed the goats, launched apples and corn into the water with a slingshot and rode down the tube slide..it was a great day

Last Thursday Natalie and I packed up and drove to Chattanooga, TN (technically Ringgold, GA) to visit my sister and her family. I was confident that she would do great in the car because last year just the two of us made the journey and she didn't cry once and she had a DVD player in the car now that she had never seen..guess I was mistaken! We had to stop three times because of tears and then she finally fell asleep from crying-it was a long day-very rainy and I was thankful when we got there safely! She did much better on the way back thankfully and we shortened our drive by over 1.5 hours!

Natalie is obviously saying "Cheese"-hey at least I can capture smiles easier on camera!

While there we hung out-Natalie, Keighley, and Myles played very nicely together and Natalie wasn't too shy! Thursday we were planning on taking Keighley to her soccer practice but practice had been cancelled so we went and played at a park nearby. We took them to an indoor playground on Friday because of the rain and then had a picnic lunch at a park and then in the afternoon I went to the outlet mall close to their house. On Saturday, we had a great day-we first went to Keighley's soccer game-so cute (however, leave it to me-I got pretty weepy when Keighley played)! I can't wait until next year when Natalie can start something and hopefully I can better control my emotions!!! Then we went to a place called Coolidge Park in Chattanooga-kind of similar to the Waterfront Park here in Louisville but much nicer and more to do--it had a great lawn on the river like the Waterfront where we had another picnic and then went and rode the indoor carousel twice. Natalie had to be forced onto it-the first time we just rode on one of the benches because she was nervous and the second time I made her sit on one of the horses and she finally got the hang of it and even asked for "Two, three"--she says this quite often--meaning two or three more times. After the carousel we went and walked across the walking bridge over the river-which was beautiful and then stopped in Clumpy's icecream store for a treat-thanks Darnell and Kristin! It was great to escape for a few days and we had a great time!

The picture of the girls in their tutu's are tutu's I made for them-I was hoping that Natalie would want to wear hers if she saw Keighley wearing hers-Keighley loved it-Natalie took it off after a few minutes! Should be interesting next weekend when she wears her peacock tutu!

I also posted a pic of Natalie's big girl bedroom-she is now sleeping in her big girl bed pretty well. I have to sit at the stairs at bedtime for about 10 minutes-I think she just likes the reassurance that I am there and I tell her if she gets up then I will go downstairs--it keeps her in bed! She is waking up usually once in the middle of the night and I have to go lay down with her-hopefully as she gets more comfortable/confident she won't do this-it hasn't been too long since we moved her up into the bed.

Also, went to the Dr. today for one more ultrasound-yes that makes 3! Last time they couldn't get pictures of the heart that they wanted so they wanted to make sure everything was ok-it was-I wasn't worried-he is quite the mover! He is measuring on schedule-technically two days early-but they weren't going to change the date. I am 24 weeks-moving right along!

Had a bad day--

For some reason the past couple of days I have been a little more on edge and irritable which is unlike me as I am usually pretty even keeled and do very well with little sleep...but today I had a bad day and I let it get to me much more than it should have. Here it is at 11:30 p.m. and things finally hit me and I feel pretty guilty about the way I treated Natalie

Ok so to preface--in preparation for her big girl bed a couple nights ago I decided I should try out Natalie sleeping on the floor on her mattress before I moved the mattress up onto a bed. She really has been pretty great about it-the first night she didn't sleep well and thus either did I and I put her in her crib at 2:30 because I had to work in the am and last night it took her about an hour to go down (I have to sit in the complete dark outside her room and tell her to lay down until she settles down) and she didn't wake up once after that-so really I am pleased. However, I was hoping it would have been a bit more of a team effort (if you get my drift).

This morning was just a normal morning when I am home with Natalie except I took her to her pediatricians' office (who I really like) for a flu shot-we got there at 10:20 and didn't leave until 11:55. When I entered the dr. office I was the only one in there and so I thought oh great this will be really quick-I would say about 15-20 minutes after I had gotten there things got pretty busy and we were all waiting a while. Everyone kept getting called back except for us who were the first ones waiting--now flu shots are walkins-they don't do appointments for that and I knew that appointments were priority but after an hour I went up and told the receptionist that we had been waiting an hour (which was pretty assertive for me!). I said that we were the first ones in here and the last ones in here (there was another family that got there 5-10 minutes prior). She said ok and went on with her business-well what do you know a couple minutes later the other family got called back-and the mother said "she has been waiting here over an hour-she needs to go before we do"-the nurse replied well I have his stuff all ready but I will look into it. She did and apologized saying they had put Natalie's file in the wrong place but at that moment for some reason I had already lost it-crying in the Dr's office--a little embarassing!

So anyways Natalie did great there and got her flu mist and we went on our way to the grocery store-there she was a different story. She prefers walking in the grocery and I do let her some but she wants to push the cart by herself and the carts at Meijer are bigger than Kroger and she just couldn't do it...small meltdown-no problem... At checkout though she likes to unload the cart all by herself-well the cart was too full for her to get into to and she couldn't reach any of the items in it so I tried handing her the items but she lost it and was so mad that I touched the groceries--so I ignored her behavior and proceeded to empty out the cart and then she was screaming really loud, crying and even kicking and hitting me. I don't tolerate that very well so I tried time out and then gave her a spanking-which I do spank Natalie for things like that. So we got over that and when I got to the car I realized it was 2 and she hadn't had lunch and was tired and I was too--I understood that she is two, tired and hungry (though she did have plenty of snacks). So we came home ate and I went to lay her down in her crib-I was ready for a break..but she said no she wanted to lay on her big girl bed so I gave her some guidelines to follow and told her if she didn't follow them then I would put her in her crib-well low and behold she kept getting up so I put her in her crib-but apparently she figured out that she can climb out of it now-and so no naptime for Natalie. I was in desperate need for a break and sometime to lay down-and didn't get that.

Ok so I lost it on Natalie for repeatedly being mean to Tyson-for some reason she likes to bully Tyson around and thankfully he is good with it-but I told her to be nice, tell Tyson he's sorry and if she did it again she would go to time-out. Well it happened again after time-out, so she got a spanking-but I didn't stop at one-I did it multiple times(like 3 or 4). I think all of my day's frustration was taken out on that moment-and granted I think I crossed the line and shouldn't have done that what bothers me the most is how I let all my frustration come out on her in that one little moment and I didn't stop after one. It has really bothered me all day-it scares me to think that I took my anger out on her-the person that I love more than anyone else on this world (don't think I am leaving out Steven but a love you have for a child is just so different-its hard to compare the two) --someone who loves and relies on me for so much and the example I set for her. I hope that I use this as an example of what not to do and when I have days or moments like this to remove myself from the situation for a little bit to get some rest and gain my composure-and seek God more so on these days to give me strength, wisdom, patience, and love/forgiveness. I hope I can use this as a reminder to myself as well! Sorry for the long drawn out blog but it's my free therapy!

Preparing for two

Not too much new here-just thought I would give little updates as to what's been going on-I have been busy trying to clean out the house-trying to declutter and free up some closet space. This meant that I sadly had to go through Natalie's clothes-because I can't possibly save all of her clothes plus a whole new wardrobe for baby boy, so I packed away about three boxes of clothes of hers in which I will keep and the rest I will probably sell at either a yard sale or those consignment sales. It feels good to make the house a little lighter but I tend to be a packrat and have trouble of letting things go. I have gone through the upstairs of the house and haven't tackled the main floor or the basement.

I also just ordered Natalie's new furniture and bedding! I had such a hard time finding bedding that I liked for a little girl that I wouldn't spend a fortune on because who knows how long this bedding will last with accidents and such! I will post pictures of it in the next few weeks when we get it all here and together. The only thing I was disappointed with is that I really wanted Natalie to have a trundle under her bed for when she gets older and has sleepovers or just as an extra bed but they were sold out and couldn't be ordered. I ordered Natalie a full bed because I know she will always have her own room with this baby being a boy but she is in the smaller room right now and hope it won't be too cramped.

As for my pregnancy, I have been feeling pretty great these last couple weeks-I still get sick on occasion but seem to have found a correlation between when I sleep poorly and getting sick..who knows maybe it was just a coincidence. My sister, Kristin, who I am visiting in a couple weeks is expecting her third-and our babies will be about two and a half months apart! Steven and I have yet to come up with a name but it seems like our top contender is Brock. We made our name lists the other day and we didn't have one name that matched--of course! Brock is one of my favorites I just think it sounds very masculine and different but not unheard of. I like to pick names that I don't know anyone with that name so I don't have any preconceived ideas-and this one fits. Out of all of my names Brock is Steven's favorite but there are definitely names he prefers (Justin his favorite..excuse me while I yawn!) So we will see, I know we have plenty of time but I love monogrammed things so we will know before the baby gets here I hope! My mom is going to help paint stripes on one wall in the baby's room (it's already painted blue) and paint polka dots on one wall in Natalie's room.

I also have been busy making Natalie's Halloween costume-I am quite proud that I am making an effort to be crafty. She is going to be a peacock-I wanted to do something different from the ordinary Halloween costumes that you buy-I made her a tutu with peacock colors and found a fabric to make a tube top with-my Mom is doing that part too(dont' worry Natalie will have a shirt underneath) and Natalie and my mom collected peacock feathers I am going to use. I am excited to see how it all turns out--it could be my last crafty adventure if it turns out poorly!

It's a.......

Boy!!

Well we got a good picture of the baby today at my ultrasound--and sure enough it's a boy! I can't believe it-I am going to have a son! It will be a whole new world for me and I have to admit I am a little nervous about it. I know boys are great and sweet and generally Momma's boys and I am looking forward to raising a son but I was a little disappointed as well-I hate admitting that but I guess my blog that hardly anyone reads is the place to be honest. I have a great relationship with my sisters and want Natalie to have that sisterly bond--don't get me wrong I wanted a little boy too-but I was hoping that it would be a girl and then my third to be a boy. So that is the big news and I promise I am really excited and Steven is thrilled! He is so excited and shocked-he thought the baby was a girl-it will be great for him to have someone that he can teach and coach sports to (not that he can't with Natalie either but boys are typically more involved in sports), watch UK sports with (can you tell that I am not that into sports!--I am sure I will be if my children play them) and have that father/son bond with. I look forward to watching those moments with the two of them and building memories with my family.

A week off of work!

Well this week I was supposed to work three days but they called me since I am PRN-meaning as needed-I am the first to go when our productivity is poor and census is low--I was pretty grateful for that this week. We had our annual UK/UL gathering at our house-we've done this since we've been married-but unfortunately it was pretty miserable. Our air has been working pretty poorly all summer but this past weekend it went kaput and was 86 degrees in our house-it was sweltering! Our friends were troopers and on Tuesday we had our air fixed-however, they said we will probably need to replace it come spring time. On Monday, we went car shopping-and yesterday we traded in my car (so long Civic-I won't miss you) and got a 2005 Nissan Quest SL-it has a lot of great features (power door and trunk-meaning closes with a button, DVD player, it makes a beeping sound if you reverse and are within 6 feet of something, garage door opener button in car so you don't have to carry around the actual opener, etc) and I am pretty excited about it. I swore up and down that I would never drive a mini-van-but Steven convinced me otherwise. I know it will come in handy especially as we travel, have more children, and our children can have friends come home with them.



Also this week I colored my hair (at home-the color was supposed to be a golden light brown--I wouldn't call it that but I like the color enough for fall) and had my hair cut--the cut was supposed to look like this but I go to the hair design school-mainly because I have trouble scheduling appointments ahead of time-and it looks like this....not exactly what I had in mind-but I still like it..it is definitely more of a mom haircut to go with the mini-van! I have posted a pic of the haircut/color and my growing belly at 17 weeks.

My 25th Birthday and more..

Well it's been a while since I posted-time seems to escape me-I guess being busy working two to three days, watching a friend of mine's child usually once a week (who is at the very difficult age at our house with many temptations (mainly the stairs that I can't keep her off of and the fireplace), trying to manage house (which I am quite poor at) and trying to do something fun with Natalie at least once a week. We recently started Kindermusik class-tomorrow will be her third class-she went once with me to the night class where there were only two others and then once with my mom in the morning where there were 12 others...I think I will continue taking her to the night classes because bigger crowds overwhelm her. Natalie takes a long time to warm up to new situations and is extremely shy until she gets to know you-however then she is quite the ham and likes attention. She actually has very much my personality-of course if that's the case I dread the pre-teen years! Anyways, the class is great-though it's not cheap, it is something that she enjoys and talks about often and I hope that it will increase her socialization skills and help her developmentally. I look forward to next year where hopefully I can enroll her in soccer, gymnastics, or dance.

This past week I have reintroduced potty training to her and she has been doing really well-she isn't really pooping on the potty like she was the first time, but she is more successful with peeing--the past day and a half she hasn't been quite as excited about it, not wanting to go to the potty but once she gets there it's almost always a success. She still has accidents-I think it would be easier if I were home all the time and could just put her in underwear-but she has still been wearing diapers or Pull-ups. For her reward she gets one M&M (which you can guarantee she will pick a green one) and a sticker that she puts on a piece of paper. She is very proud!

A week and a half ago I celebrated my 25th birthday-it was a nice day. On Friday, my friends Allison and Libby took me out to my favorite restaurant Rocky's and then out to my favorite little ice-cream spot The Widow's Walk (it's in Indiana on the Ohio River at this Victorian house)-it was nice to get away for a little bit and have some girl time. I am grateful for my many wonderful friends! On Saturday, Steven, Natalie, and I met my parents at The Cheesecake Factory for dinner because I had been really wanting their corn cakes (unfortunately, that's just a side dish and I didn't touch my main entree)..but the corn cakes were delicious and then we went to their house for Dairy Queen ice cream cake and presents...I got shopping money from Steven, his Dad and Sherry, and his grandfather-I am thinking of using it on some new shoes. From my parent's I got several new maternity shirts, a pair of capris, a monogrammed makeup bag (she must know how I love monogramming!), some candles, and some personalized thankyou notes and this great pregnancy pillow that I love-I like to hug something while I sleep and have something between my legs and this pillow lets me do both-the only downside is it's a huge C-not leaving much room for Steven! I haven't had many struggles with insomnia though (which I often suffer from). Thanks to everyone for making my birthday special!

I went to the doctor today for a quick check up-I am 16 weeks and in a month we get to find out the sex-yay! I have lost another pound-probably only a total of 3 or 4 lb loss-and the heartbeat sounded great! This pregnancy so far has seemed to go by faster-probably because I have other things to devote my attention to! My nausea has been better the past few days but I have been getting headaches almost every day-Tylenol has helped out a lot!

Last week, there was a ceremony for Vicki at Easter Seals-where Steven's mom used to work-and it was beautiful and very touching. They named their Resource Room after her and hung a picture up-several people got up both family, friends, and coworkers and spoke of the impact she had on their life-what a legacy she left. It has been over 2 years since she's passed- I hate that I didn't get to know the Vicki everyone spoke of-she was truly a remarkable woman. I had very few conversations with her-I remember the first time meeting her and we spoke about our connection in the therapy world-though I was just beginning as a student at Belmont-I also remember her making Steven and I milkshakes and a few other treats. It had always been very hard for Steven to see his Mom fade and I know the glimpses he saw of her always meant a lot. That first year we started dating she declined a lot but she was always very sweet and affectionate to me-we went to Orlando with Steven's family around Christmas time-and I remember her holding my hand watching CMT together-who would have known that that would have been one of my own most treasured memories of her. Even as her health declined, most of the time when she saw me she would want to hold my hand and put her hand on me-that meant a lot to me. From the ways others spoke of her I aspire to be half the mother and wife she was.

Lake Cumberland with the Lifegroup

This past weekend the lifegroup that Steven and I belong to went on a little getaway while all of our children stayed behind-we had a great time and many memories were made. We left Thursday morning and went grocery shopping and got settled in-we stayed in Jamestown. The place we were staying was great-it had five bedrooms with all queen beds (except one room that had twins) and each with their own private full bathroom, two kitchens, two living rooms-one was a game room with a pool table, darts, and ping-pong, and a beautiful deck with hot tub. On Thursday after we got settled in we went to a swimming hole that was located about two minutes away and the girls laid out on the rafts while the guys were jumping off rocks and came back to prepare dinner-we grilled out. After dinner we relaxed, hung out, and got in the hot tub-the first night I was able to get in bc. the temp wasn't hot yet-only 99 degrees.

Friday morning we headed out pretty early with our packed lunches and went to the Lake Cumberland Resort Park-first everyone went on a horseback ride (except myself who stayed behind not wanting to take the chance of something bad happening-fortunately for myself it wasn't too long of a wait). Afterwards we stopped at a scenic overlook ate lunch and then headed on a 3 mile hike with some strenuous hills-Tiffany and Ben continued on the trail a little further. After I got to the top of one of our big uphill hikes-I stopped for a breather and felt the baby move! I was pretty excited about that! When we got back in the afternoon we headed out to the lake for another swim and the guys got a little braver jumping off some cliffs. We stayed in that night too-just hanging out and playing Rockband-Matt and Kirsten joined us this evening.

Saturday morning we headed out early because we had a 10 person speedboat rented for the whole day and wanted to maximize our time/money. I had a bit of a rough start-the night before I had gotten zero sleep because of my struggles with insomnia and was very emotional and had a bit of a breakdown because I was feeling left out-not by anyone but by the fact that I couldn't do anything-I wasn't able to get in the hot tub, have any drinks, horseback ride, and now I couldn't tube, kneeboard, or ski (which everyone had a great time doing-I enjoyed watching people fall!). I knew this ahead of time and know it is a small sacrifice to pay to carry a child but it had just hit me. I ended up having a great time on the boat-we went for some nice rides and got out to swim and I liked just being on the water/boat. It is one of our goals in life to have a boat and lakehouse so that as our children grow we can build many memories with them on the lake and getaway often. Saturday evening we were wiped out from being on the lake for 8 hours-we went to a restaurant that was recommended to us-but I don't believe we will ever go back there-the food took over an hour to get to us, some food was undercooked, etc but we still had a nice time. By the time the food got to us-I was pretty nauseated and didn't want to touch my entree-I ate some bites of my side items but Steven was very thoughtful and went and got me an apple (which was the only thing that sounded good) at the grocery store. After dinner we watched the olympics for a bit and went to bed early.

On Sunday Steven and Ben made breakfast-pancakes, bacon, and eggs and we had a nice big breakfast together (besides the heated conversation on tipping-haha) and packed our bags and left. It was such a great time to spend together-I am very grateful for my lifegroup and the friendships that have evolved from it. I look forward to many other trips like this hopefully! Also, thank you to Mom and Dad who watched Natalie Thursday to Sunday for me-you all are the best!

Happy Anniversary!

It is hard to believe that five years ago today Steven and I were getting ready to walk down the aisle and take the big "plunge"-I am so happy that we did and have never looked back. I am truly blessed by my marriage to Steven and I often don't give him the credit that he deserves. As many of you know I have a really bad habit of pointing out his flaws or stories that I find amusing that might embarass him--it is a struggle of mine that I need to work on and I am so thankful for his patience and him putting up with me. He is such a wonderful father to Natalie and they have a great relationship-I never get sick of watching them play together or have quiet moments where it's just the two of them. Besides being a great father he is a wonderful husband who is patient, kind, loving, affectionate, extremely hardworking, and lately has been extremely helpful-unloading the dishwasher, picking up, etc without me even having to ask! It has been great. I am proud that he is my husband and grateful that I get to spend the rest of my life with him by my side raising our family and hopefully growing old together. I am so in love with my husband and am going to make an effort this year to show him more so this year!

The Circle of Life

(I know the pics are blurry-they are pictures of pictures-so not the best quality-the bottom picture the baby's hands are by it's face-he or she was very active!)
Well I just got back from my first doctor's visit and am 11 weeks 6 days along-the baby looks very healthy with a strong heartbeat and we were fortunate to get an ultrasound-I found a plus for going to the doctor's office that I go to now--you get two ultrasounds one at 12 weeks and one at 20. I need to download the picture of the baby and will try to add it to this post today..it's amazing how developed they are even at 12 weeks. Steven and I both think it's a girl (I don't know if it is a real gut feeling I think Steven is preparing himself for a girl and I would like to have another girl--though I know if the baby is boy I will still be just as happy)...and we had been tossing out names--one of our biggest contenders was Delaney because I thought it was a nice update on Steven's mothers middle name who passed away 2.5 years ago (which was Elaine) until I looked up the meaning and it said "dark one's child or child of dark defiance"-it also had a meaning of from the alder grove-which I can deal with but I am sorry I don't want to give myself the omen that my child will be defiant and satan's child! We got a kick out of that-and made our decision on that name easier! We also both really like the name Jillian-(my middle name is Jill too)..so we will see!
Work has been difficult for me lately--there have been so many people pass away recently-I would say at least 10 in the past month-and most of whom I had developed relationships with. I have difficulty separating my emotions from work-which I don't think is a bad thing-one of my favorite parts of my job is getting to meet and hear about different people's lives and hoping that in some small way I can help ease their pain and loneliness while they are in the nursing home. I have only known my grandmother and Steven's mother to have passed (and unfortunately I didn't get to know Steven's mom before she was ill) and have difficulty coping with loss. I know that both my grandmother and Steven's mom are in heaven rejoicing but I don't know about the people that I work with. It makes it much easier when you know if they have a relationship with Jesus and are in a better place. There was one sweet lady that I worked with back in October when I started who became independent with all of her daily activities and I would always walk by her room and greet her..well I guess about two weeks ago I noticed how ill she had been and I felt called to go in her room, hold her hand and pray for her while she slept-I rarely feel promptings that I think are from the Holy Spirit-but I felt like this was for sure-but of course I ignored it because I was busy doing something else and I regret not acting on it-it could have given her peace and comfort just to know someone was there praying for her. Anyways-this has been a big tangent but has been helpful for me to get all of that out...will write later!

Paci progress

I am so happy to say that Natalie is now over her paci!!! I got rid of it on Thursday and today she didn't cry over it once--the only time that she has cried for her paci is at bedtime/naptime with the longest crying spell was about 20 minutes. I am so relieved! I was so worried about how it would go. Now to get her into other big girl routines--such as not playing with her poop! If she poops during naptime she takes it off and then proceeds to play in it--today I heard her playing in her bed but wasn't listening to what she was saying and then she fell asleep..well I went in to peek on her this afternoon--and there was poop everywhere-thankfully it was contained in the crib but her hands were covered in dry poop......oh memories I will have to remind her of when she is older! I know that this is a semi-common problem with other children and I have heard of duct-taping the diaper which I probably need to do-but it is not often that she does it. Anyways, the doctor appointment went fine-I am almost 10 weeks along now-and go for my first ultrasound on July 31. This pregnancy has seemed so much more real to me I think because I know what to expect and it's not quite as surreal. I am so glad that I am 1/4 of the way through the pregnancy--I said that to Steven the other day and he was shocked at how little time he feels we have left--our two biggest things before baby #2 comes is to get a new vehicle for me--I think unfortunately I will be a 25 year old minivan mom-I swore I would never drive one-but Steven is very set on it and there are several advantages and to get Natalie into a big girl bed--we are waiting to find out what we are having to decide whether her new bedroom set should be a full or twin--if I did the twin I think I would want to get a trundle bed. Anyways, that's enough blabbing for now-just thought I would update everyone on the pacifier progress!

Today is D-Day

Well I finally got the courage this morning to get rid of Natalie's favorite object in the whole world--her beloved paci. I am off until next Wednesday and thought there probably won't be much of a better opportunity. It has been a bit of a rough morning--Natalie woke up early this morning (6:45) and I am also watching an 11 month old today so the combination of things hasn't been perfect. So at like 9:30 I packed them all up-I am sure there are still several floating around the house-and I just laid her down for her nap at 12:25--it is now 12:35 and after 10 minutes of screaming and crying she is starting to quiet down a little. She usually goes to her paci for longer car trips and sleep times--sometimes she will manage to sneak it in at other times. Anyways, I think I will have a rough week ahead of me--prayers will be appreciated!

Just a couple sidenotes--

Just wanted to update everyone on my pregnancy--things seem to be going well-I go for my first appointment Friday but it is just for medical history and labwork-nothing too exciting. I am now a little over 8 weeks and from what I remember with Natalie I think I am not getting as sick as often-I don't have much of an appetite for most food-especially meat but only have nausea when I get hungry. Will keep posted on further developments..

Also, this past week we got rid of all the wallpaper in our house-we had painters in our house for 3 days-which wasn't so pleasant but now all the paper's gone and paint has replaced it. I am happy with it but now our house is full of dust! They painted our bathroom, laundry room, repaired our entryway, and painted up the stairs. We really enjoy our house and are happy that it is coming together to match our taste. So we have now completed projects for a while-our next step will be to work on the flooring-both carpet (where our dogs have ruined) and linoleum.

Anyways just wanted to add those tidbits! Will post pics of the house and Lake Cumberland trip later!

Lake Cumberland Trip #1

This past weekend we went away with Steven's family for a long weekend getaway to Lake Cumberland (my first time there but will be returning next month with friends and no kiddos--little nervous about leaving Nat for 3 nights). The house we stayed at was very nice and had a BEAUTIFUL view of the lake right outside our door--our house was elevated above the tree lines so we could see everything. We ventured out to the lake once but it was a very dangerous walk down there-because of the moss covered steep sidewalk that was very slippery, repelling down a hill with a cable wire, etc. s0 we decided to hang out at the house mostly. We did manage to go to the parks a few times--and had a lot of fun playing around on the playground-there was even an intense baseball game that Natalie and I skipped out on secondary to no nap!

Natalie discovered on this trip that she can climb out of the Pack N Play all by herself-and was extremely proud of herself-doing it over and over! Finally after time out's and a spanking I figured out that if I stood in front of a cracked door and every time she attempted to get up I would say firmly "lay down" she fell asleep after three times. I am looking forward to the stage of a big girl bed-but also dreading it a little!

Anyways, we played a lot of games-which I happen to love playing games so I had a great time--we played some games that were new to me-Mexican Train Dominoes and also Bananagrams. It was a nice relaxing getaway and we enjoyed ourselves. Natalie had a great time playing with everyone-especially older cousins Clay, Zack, and Luke-they entertained her and she loved playing Hide and Seek with them. She understands (usually) that you alternate turns--when she goes to counts she will just say "two" several times and halfway cover her eyes, she will generally hide in the same spot, and the cutest thing is when you ask "Is she behind the curtain?" Is she behind the door?--etc..she will say "nooo" in a cute voice until you find her. Just wanted to say thank you again to Dad and Sherry for taking us on a nice weekend getaway--we really enjoyed our time and are so glad that our families get along and mesh so well.

Bargain shopper

Ok so my favorite store is Ann Taylor Loft and about a year ago they got a maternity line--well I was browsing the clearance items and they had clothes from the winter still on there for super cheap! I just had to share my good news that I bought a wrap dress, a pair of jeans, a pair of khaki's and a shirt with shipping for a whopping $38!!!!!!! The dress itself was originally marked at $90 and had been reduced to $5!!!!!! I know it's early and no one really cares about my shopping adventures but I was so excited! Also, on other news--I filled out a form tonight to learn info on becoming a consultant for Southern Living at Home. A few years ago I went to a party and loved the products and had thought about it for a while--the girl I jobshare with needs to work a little more and when the second one comes I don't know what I will do about working-I definitely will be cutting back probably to just being a sub--so anyways, thought this would be a fun way to make some extra money and decorate the house! But don't worry I won't be one of those pesky women--they drive me nuts sometimes!

Natalie's going to be a big sister!

Well it's official--we are expecting baby #2! I am only about six weeks along and the due date is Valentine's Day! We are thrilled with the news to add another member to our family. I have been feeling pretty good-have had a couple waves of nausea when I get hungry around dinner time and more tired than usual but so far no complaints. When I was pregnant with Natalie I don't remember quite when it hit but I threw up just about every morning. Natalie was the first person I told (I found out June 12) because she was in the bathroom with me and she was so sweet even though she didn't understand what was going on. I became teary and said "Natalie, Mommy is going to have a baby-you are gonna be a big sister"and she ran up to me and gave me a hug and a kiss-just what I needed then! I pray that the baby grows to be a healthy and happy (not to mention easy like Natalie) baby but also for the baby and Natalie to grow up and be great friends--I really think a bond between siblings is very strong. Steven and I have already been arguing over names--we have such different opinions on names. I know that we will find a name that we both love in these next 7 months! (though ideally he would come over to the Kim side so I don't have to compromise!--I really love the names I picked out--Lindley Grace for a girl and Rylan Hunter for a boy-Steven says there is no way for either but I am pretty sure I could convince him to pick Lindley). Anyways, Natalie had her 2 yr appointment and everything went well-she is 34.5 inches (the 75th percentile for height--which ever since her 1 month appointment she has stayed in the 75th percentile) and 27 lbs (which is in the 50th percentile).
It truly amazes me that we all start off being less than a grain of rice!

So proud!!!

Last night I went to a friends Pampered Chef party and Steven watched Natalie--well he was changing her diaper for bedtime and Natalie got up and said "Pee pee" ran into the bathroom, sat on her little potty and peed! I am so excited however a little bummed that I missed the momentous occassion. We haven't been pushing potty-training-we have introduced the potty to her and encourage her to sit on it every once in a while but that's about it-so for her to go on her own without any prompting is huge!

Anyways, things are going well-the summer has seemed pretty busy. Today Natalie goes for her two year checkup so I will be posting later about that. We have been busy with doing house repairs-we are hiring some painters to get all of the wallpaper out of our house (finally) and paint and repair our foyer, up the stairs, laundry room, and our bathroom. We will tackle some of the other rooms later. This week I power washed our fence (which made a huge improvement) and we are having a fencing company come repair our fence. We recently also had a landscaper come out and do some stuff to our house and will have Mister Curb come out soon to add a little more curb appeal. I think after that the only other house project for this year will be to take up all the laminate flooring and replace with either tile or hardwood...............Guess what-I just went to check on Natalie-she peed and pooped in the potty again without any cues--all on her own!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am so excited--I wish I just took a picture but I just flushed it. Anyways, we also got family portraits recently and the address to check it out if you want is www.karaguffeyphotography.com go to online proofs and password is Natalie-I really think they turned out great. I think I will close her-will write again

The Weekend of Weddings

Well we survived our busy weekend--Steven and I were in two different weddings this weekend. Steven was in Devin's wedding (I used to work with him and they became good friends when Steven and I started dating) and I was in Lindsay's wedding (friend that I met from Highview and have stayed in close contact with). It was such an honor to be part of both of their days. Devin's wedding was at his parent's house out in Simpsonville which was a beautiful farm setting (though I am not sure how the guys stood out in tuxedo's in the 90+ degree heat). Lindsay's was at Southeast and Mellwood Art Gallery which was a beautiful/different setting. We had a lot of fun with the photographers (there were 4 of them) and I am looking forward to seeing how they turned out. On Friday night, we both went to our separate rehearsal dinners and I went out with Lindsay and some girls for her bachelorette party--we had such a good time. It was nice to let our hair down and just act silly--of course wouldn't you know that our church (Springdale) was having their middle school lock in there that night (we went to Kingpin). Anyways, I am so happy for both of them and what their future holds--the roads they have both had to travel have not always been the easiest and they deserve nothing but the best! Will post some pics in a couple days!

Natalie's 2!

I can't believe it that Natalie is two now--we had a great week of celebrating-three times to be exact! In Hawaii we had a small celebration with her cousins and aunts and uncles and then on the day of her birthday (May 20) Steven took a half day off work and we went to lunch and to play at Chuck E. Cheese--she enjoyed herself there-but I think Steven had more fun! She loved to watch the robotic mouse while we were eating and then loved the games that involved balls and the one where you have to smack the alligator. After her nap, we went out to Mom and Dad's for a steak dinner and cake--always appreciated! She opened her presents there and really dug into them-tearing the paper off. The big gift we got her was the Rose Petal Cottage--which she absolutely loves playing with-we also got her a pool, Barbie, magnetic dress up doll, and an Alphabet School Bus. I am looking forward to being outside this summer with her-she got a sandbox and picnic table from Mom and Dad, a new tricycle from Steven's dad and Sherry, and lots of new toys and clothes from other friends and family. Thank you everyone for your thoughtfulness and generosity! So her party was today (Saturday) and the weather was beautiful out. It was a Hawaiian themed luau-and I think it went well. I love to entertain and really plan a lot for her parties but I always get nervous that things won't go well and that people might feel left out if they don't know anyone. But thankfully everyone seemed to interact well with one another. I made Kalua pig--(pulled pork), teriyaki chicken kabobs with pineapple and peppers, and cut up fruit and veggies. My friend Michelle made a delicious coconut pineapple cake that I enjoyed! Natalie had been talking about cake all week when I talked about her party but when it came time to sing Happy Birthday she got very shy and clingy--she doesn't like the spotlight on her-that's for sure! Anyways, I am so blessed to be Natalie's mother-she has such a sweet demeanor and easy going personality--I am sooo thankful for her and the past two years and look forward to watching her grow through the years. Happy Birthday Natalie!

Special thanks to all those that celebrated her life with Steven and I--we are truly blessed to have such wonderful family and friends! Love you guys!

Hawaii

Well our summer had a wonderful kick-off with a Mier family vacation to Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. The trip there was a long day (23 hours) accounting for a long layover and a delay but thankfully we got there! Natalie only slept three hours but thankfully I don't think there were any tears-she is soo good! We were blown away by the place we were staying-huge house with plenty of room for everyone, very nice touches (like flowers in the toilets!), and all the sporting/swimming equipment you could dream 0f (b-ball courts, shuffleboard, kayaks, snorkel gear, bicycles, etc) and a plantation where we would go out in the morning and pick fruit right off the trees (Dad and I even made fresh squeezed orange juice). The trip was relaxing and so good to catch up with everyone as we don't get to see each other too often. Some of the highlights of the trip for myself were the luau-which was so much fun but I think my favorite part about it was seeing the excitement on Natalie and nieces Caroline and Keighley's face. They were dancing around and Natalie who is usually very cautious and likes to stick pretty close by me ran up to where the big girls were and got between them to hold their hands (it was precious) and was dancing with them. I also enjoyed the volcano trip (though the drive there and back wasn't too fun--the most windy roads I had been on--we all felt a little carsick). We went up 3,000 feet to one of the only active volcanoes in the world and explored a lava tube and saw some steam vents. I was a little disappointed because I didn't see a science project volcano (though some of the park was closed off due to high amounts of gases) but it was incredible to see lava meet the ocean. Dad, Jason, Gary and myself stayed behind while everyone else went home and went an extra hour and a half (after a quick stop to my first Thai restaurant) to where the lava was actually flowing into the ocean. When it got dark you could see lava spewing off the waves. I also really enjoyed brunch out with my parents and siblings (no spouses or kids) on Mothers Day to a crepe place and then dinner that night everyone went to this very expensive but gorgeous restaurant (makes Ruth Chris look like Applebees) that Jason treated us too. Snorkeling in Hawaii was amazing!! The water was crystal blue and they had such beautiful and tropical fish--everywhere! Everyone that snorkeled also came in close contact with huge sea turtles on several different occasions. Another big deal on this trip was that Natalie started speaking in sentences saying "Mommy, I want up" "I want to wash my hands" etc...I was soo proud!!!!!!! I know this vacation will hold so many special memories for myself. Anyways, I guess I can now say I am a blogger!!!! (Tiffany I hope you are happy!)