Catching Up and Pregnancy Update

Wow, I thought that not having a 9 to 5 job anymore would make it easier for me to keep up with this blog but I guess I was wrong. So let's sum up the past few months and get to the update on pregnancy #2.

We have completed the renovations on our home and put it on the market. So far we've "sold" it three times, and each time the buyer has backed out. Selling a house stinks.

Wild Man continues to grow like a weed. He deserves his own update, which I fully intend to do soon. Ha!

On to the pregnancy update portion.

• I am currently 20 weeks plus a few days pregnant. Over half-way done, wow.
  That went fast.
• At our 17 week ultrasound we discovered that this little one is a BOY!
• For now, he shall be known as Wiggle Worm. Because that is what he does, constant wiggling.
• At my appointment last week I discovered why I feel so many wiggles but very few actual kicks, baby is taking a backseat to the placenta. Hopefully won't cause a problem but could potentially be an issue for my repeat c-section. My long suffering doctor just sighed and said "ofcourse its (the placenta) anterior, why would yours form anywhere else." Funny.
• So far at every ultrasound Wiggle Worm measures big for his gestation. But, since there's no way I'm going to full-term that's not necessarily a bad thing. Grow buddy grow!
• Weight Gain: Um, so not going to advertise that on the world wide web. Suffice to say I've gained. More than I should have. That is all.
• In a few weeks I'll have to switch to weekly appointments. Not tops on my list how I'd like to spend my holiday season but I'll do it.

I'm looking forward to Christmas. Wild Man will be able to really get into it this year and its going to be so much fun!

Toodles for now, sorry about the bullet points and no pictures. I'll get better, I promise.

Wild Man at 26 Months

It has been way too long since my last post. I've been finding my footing as a new SAHM, finding then losing then finding my footing in a complicated second pregnancy, and attempting to get our current home ready for the market. Anyway, today I want to jump back in to blogging by making a record of my first born at this point in time.

Age: 26 months
Weight: Between 24 and 25 pounds, still a shrimp!
Height: I have no idea, at his 24 month appointment I think he was in the 6th percentile. So, not tall.
What Wild Man's Doing: At 26 months Wild Man is busy busy busy. Running, jumping (sort of), and climbing over anything that will stand still.
He is talking so much every day and using more and more sentences. A few days ago we were sharing an ice cream and after taking several bites with me holding the spoon he put up his hand and said "Can I hold the spoon?" Too cute. There's almost no word or phrase he won't at least try to say. Some of my favorites are: "Me hold you" (when he wants to be picked up); "Huggy"; "I pray Dadddy" (he never asks for me to pray, just Daddy); "Please share Daddy"
Wild Man has a compulsion about his food. He cannot stand for anything on his plate to crumble or fall apart in any way. I gave him a brownie one day and he completely fell apart when he took the first bite and a few crumbs fell to his tray. It would be funny if he didn't become so hysterical. The really strange thing is Working Man was the same way as a child.
What Wild Man's Not Doing: Pottying with any kind of regularity. I can pretty much take the blame for this one. I've just not taken the time to really focus on potty training.
Telling people "Hello". He just won't do it.

This would be a great place to put an adorable picture of my sweet boy, but I'm on my laptop so no pics. I'm too lazy to go save some off the big computer to my jump drive.

Love ya'll

Two Years

On July 7th 2011 my precious baby boy, better known as Wild Man, turned two! Hard to believe that this itty-bitty...

has now become this boisterous boy...

I just love him!

He had a fantastic day and is loving every minute of being 2!

Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today, June 18:

Outside my window.......darkness. (What do I expect, its barely 5 am)
I am thinking..... that I seriously need to develop the ability to sleep past 4:45 am.
I am thankful for..... new jobs starting soon for both Working Man and myself. His may pay better, but you can't beat my benefits ;).
I am wearing.... grey yoga pants and a thermal undershirt.
I am remembering....playing in the church nursery when I was little. We just bought Wild Man a set of those oversized cardboard blocks like they used to have and its made me nostalgic.
I am going....to work today. Blah!
I am currently reading...... The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan. I have so many kids request this series at the library, but I'd never read any of it.
Pondering these words.....?????? (crickets chirping)????????
From the kitchen......I'll be at work today so nothing from me. We have leftover Johnny Carino's to keep the menfolk alive while I'm gone. Tomorrow, possibly veal marsala in honor of Father's Day. Its Working Man's favorite.
From my picture journal.

Check out those baby blues! Can't believe how much he's grown since this was taken last summer! He's lost all of that baby look. (pardon my sobbing, just ignore me)

Welcome Summer

Long time, no post. I was afraid this would happen, but I'm not giving up. I'm still going to try and post whenever I can. While waiting for inspiration for a really great post here are some pictures of my Wild Man welcoming the warmer days with a new kiddie pool.

 This would have been a great shot if he wasn't looking at someone else.

 Creating his own splash zone!

 Check out that gut! Someone's been eating a few too many jellybeans.

Whoa!!! Cold water, cold water, cold water......!!!!!!

He loves his new pool.

Easter!

Easter proved to be an exciting time this year. Due to the addition of my adorable new nephew, I got to have my precious neices with me for the Easter weekend. Its been a long time since I had any length of time to spend with just one or two of my sisters' children. We had such a good time! Here's a few pics of our Easter Weekend fun.

Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today, April 16

Outside my window....early morning, birds starting to sing.
I am thinking....that I need to buy marshmallows to make the rice crispy treats for WM's daycare party.
I am thankful for..... our daycare. I hate sending him, but they really are a good center and they love my baby.
I am wearing.... my pajamas.
I am remembering.....my Nanny Hartwell. She's just been on my mind quite a bit lately.
I am going.... to visit my mom and daddy this afternoon.
I am currently reading.... not much of anything right now. Taking a little break.
Pondering these words.... "and they'll know we are Christians by our love"
From the kitchen.... will be eggs, bacon, and toast in a few minutes.
From my picture journal

I apparently need to take pictures of people and things besides Wild Man. Every time I look for a photo to use here, they're all of him.

Parenting Hall of Shame

Friends, I have hit a new low. Today I was in W@lM@rt, otherwise known as the place that shall not be mentioned, and a "cart return guy" stopped me to tell me I needed to wipe Wild Man's nose. Sadly, it was true. Apparently the appearance of snot on the boy's face no longer registers on my radar. He's had a cold/viral infection for approximately 9 months, so its not surprising that I tune these things out. But, I was embarrassed. As he shuffled off the cart guy muttered, "we gotta take care the little man." We certainly do. The first time mom paranoia has definitely worn off. Now the people of W@lM@rt feel adequate to give me parenting tips.

Spring

Wanted to show you guys a little of what we've been up to since the weather has improved lately.

 Inspecting the wisteria.

 Inspecting the ginormous bumble bees that buzz around the wisteria. Turns out they're kind of scary!

 Blowing bubbles with Daddy.

Catching lizards!

Lazy Sunday

Just having a relaxing day at home after church. Working Man of course had to work last night, and is working again tonight so we just kept things simple. Homemade chicken fajitas (question: why can't I successfully make fajita meat?) and out of the box Spanish rice, I'm slowly winning Working Man over to Mexican food but I don't think meals like today's will further my cause.
We need more days like today. All of us home at the same time, for at least part of the day and no huge items on the to-do list. Just bubbles in the yard with Wild Man and afternoon naps.
Just wanted to share a picture I found the other day...

Doesn't he look just absolutely at peace? This is the image I try to see in my mind on days when he's being especially wild. This peaceful baby is still in there, somewhere.

Toodles for now, hope to have a real post for tomorrow.

Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today: March 25, 2011
Outside my window... a breezy sunny day.
I am thinking.... that although I dislike working Saturday, I really enjoy my monthly Friday off.
I am thankful for ... Elmo's World. That fuzzy red monster is the only reason I'm able to blog right now, bless him!
I am wearing... OLD jeans, black v-neck shirt, maroon undershirt.

I am remembering...my bachelorette evening, fun ladies fun times.
I am going... to paint my bedroom sometime during the month of April.
I am currently reading...Last Words of the Executed by Robert K. Elder.

I am hoping ... that change is on the way.
On my mind... the list of things I did not accomplish that were on my to do list for today. Oh well.

Pondering these words... nothing. My mind is a total blank on this one.

From the kitchen... breaded baked porkchops in the oven. Still in my mind and intentions: chicken fajitas, turkey meat loaf, weight watchers cake, cookies of some kind. Don't know if all that will materialize.
From my picture journal...

No story, I just love this photo.

The Unfortunate Incident

First of all, I'd like to say that there are no pictures to accompany this post. You can all thank me now. I've mentioned that there was an unfortunate incident with Wild Man and some candy while we were on vacation and the sad truth is that it was 100% my fault. (Wait a second, technically the Working Man (WM) bought that candy. We'll go with 99.99999% my fault) It started out innocently enough. On the way to Houston on Friday we stopped at a gas station, and WM came back to the car with a box of chocolate covered mint candies. Just a small treat for us to share with the boy while we were on vacation. We didn't know what Wild Man would think about the mint flavor, but he seemed to really enjoy the few pieces we gave him that evening.
On the following day, we arrived at the acquarium early because we wanted to secure tickets for the "penguin experience" and they are sold on a first come, first served basis. So, after we bought our tickets and toured the acquarium we still had several hours to kill before it was time to mingle with penguins. I suggested that we drive over to another area of the island to visit a few stores and maybe let the Wild Man catch a power nap in his carseat. When we went to get in the car I somehow ended up holding that box of candy while trying to wrangle Wild Man into his seat. It wasn't working, so I set the candy on the back dash area to free up my hands for child wrangling. (You now all know where this is going) We then got into the car and made the 15 minute drive across the island, nothing but the sounds of silence from the backseat. We parked and exited our vehicle, WM went to pay for our parking and I opened up the back to get Wild Man out. The following are my thoughts as they occurred, in sequence, as best as I can remember...
"What?"
"Oh no! He threw up, poor baby!"
"Wait a second...What is that??!!"
"Its chocolate... Where did he get chocolate??!!!"
"AAAAAAAAGHHHHH...NOOOOOO, the candy!!!!!!"
Friends, he ate about half a good size box of chocoate mint candy. Except for the few pieces that he sat on and melted into his carseat (his new carseat) and the one piece I found later in his diaper. He threw up again on our return to the acquarium, and remained a rather unpleasant shade of green for several hours.  It kind of spoiled his mood and enjoyment of the penguin meet and greet.
Valuable lessons were learned from the unfortunate incident
1. Wild Man learned that a few chocolates are yummy. But 20 chocolates consumed in the span of about five minutes, is too many. (I might benefit from this lesson also)
2. I learned that when I have to choose which to secure in my vehicle first, the child or the candy, choose  the candy. Every time.
3. The Working Man learned that my memory cannot be trusted with mundane, yet important details.

Simple Woman's Daybook

For Today: March 23, 2011
Outside my window... all is still.
I am thinking.... about how God's mercies are never ending.
I am thankful for ... answered prayers.
I am wearing... flannel pajama pants and matching (miracle of all miracles) long sleeved shirt.
I am remembering...this past Christmas. How my baby still looked like a baby, but now he looks like such a little boy.
I am going... to give my house some much needed attention before I go to bed.
I am currently reading...Last Words of the Executed by Robert K. Elder. Please don't judge me, its fascinating.
I am hoping ... to be able to keep up with this blog. I think I'm really going to enjoy it.
On my mind... the list of things I need to accomplish on Friday while I'm off work.
Noticing that... this house is completely silent. This is a rare, but most enjoyable, occurrence.
Pondering these words..."it is like mothers are the mortar of our families and we make up the bricks"  - quote by Susanne Alexander at simplemarriage.
From the kitchen... threw together a quick homemade stroganoff type dish so the Working Man will have something to eat tomorrow. Other than that, things are pretty bleak in there.
From my picture journal...

The Working Man pointed out that yesterday's post included no pictures of me. So here is proof positive that I went on vacation with the rest of the fam.

Vacation

Last week our little family of three took a quick trip to Houston/Galveston. It was the Wild Man's first vacation ever, and the first vacation for the Working Man and me since 2008. So, we were long overdue for some relaxation and fun. Unfortunately, although I spent about a month planning this little trip I overlooked the fact that many schools were on spring break last week. The Houston Zoo was literally a ZOO! However, we had a great time in spite of the crowds. Friday afternoon we fought our way down I-45 to Galveston and spent a lovely evening at Moody Gardens. Saturday, we visited the acquarium there and Wild Man got to meet a penguin up close and personal! Aside from an unfortunate incident with a box of Jr. Mints (another story for another time) a fabulous time was had  by all.

 Seeing the birds at the zoo.

 Caught him in mid-sqwauk. The other people in the bird area thought one of the birds was making that noise! He just likes birds a whole lot.

 The baby elephant that my son did not get to see. Stupid crowds!

 Wild Man playing in the hotel room.

 Why yes, that is my husband acting out the throwing of my son into the hotel fountain/goldfish pond. And, no, now that you mention it, the hotel desk clerk did not find this as amusing as we did.

 Wild Man had so much fun at the acquarium Saturday morning. He was running around like, well, a wild man.

 Sadly, the penguin experience came after the Unfortunate Jr. Mints Episode of 2011. Wild Man was not at his best.

The penguin was adorable and very aware of her cuteness.

First Post Ever

Okay, lame title. I know. But, it is my very first post ever and the pressure of trying to come up with something witty was making me twitch. It may actually have been the coffee, but you know I'm not giving that up, so we'll blame it on the pressure.
I'm starting this blog after spending the past year following the blogs of others. Family, friends, complete strangers, the friends of complete strangers... I read them all. Now, I want to try it for myself. I want to be that friend of a complete stranger that someone else is following. My lack of basic knowledge as to how blogging actually works should make this fun for me and for you. So...
Welcome! Come join me, because I have no idea what I'm doing and confusion loves company.