I know we are in Texas, but....

....does it really have to be 172 degrees here? OK, maybe I am exaggerating a bit. But to PG (pregnant girl), it feels like 172 degrees. I am miserable. I am sitting outside letting the boys run off energy so they will go to sleep quickly and sleep like angels until late in the morning play. Ahem. I am miserable.

In other news, Mason's garden is doing so well. We have been well-stocked with carrots and tomatoes this summer. Maybe the boys will branch out and plant a few more veggies next summer.

Two more days until my OB appt. I am excited and nervous to have an exact date to meet Max.

Wishing it was January or that we lived farther north........sigh.

Bath update

Demo has begun on the master bathroom.
Tile has been picked (BEAUTIFUL!!!!)
3 electricians are coming today to give bids.
Several plumbers have been called and are coming out over the next couple of days.
Design is finalized and better not change again...!!!

Master bed is in the floor of the baby's room.
Eric's clothes are in the baby's closet.
Dust.....everywhere.
Boys are curious but mostly uneffected.
Mommy's nerves are a little frazzled.

July is a little calmer. Miles' swim lessons are finished. Mason will have swim lessons one day a week through July. One week of VBS for Mason.

Mason had a very fun 4th of July weekend. He went camping in Tyler with Nana and Papa. He dug in the dirt with his new shovel and bucket. He played with his new tractors (thanks Nana and Papa). Papa taught him how to fish with his very own Lightn1ng McQueen fishing pole. I will have to get pics from Nana to share. He slept in his "sleepy bag" (Lightn1ngMcQueen sleeping bag) on the floor of the (air conditioned) trailer. :) (We camp in style.... no tents and sweating for us!) But he played hard (his clothes were SO stinky!!) and had a blast. I keep hearing about the fun he had. I love that he can go away for a few days and enjoy his grandparents. And, it was so EASY to have just one child in the house. Who knew that 1 was so easy. I know, I know, 2 will feel easy soon enough. I just don't know how families of 4, 5, 6..... the Duggars.... do it. I am in awe!

My next OB appointment is Friday. I have my glucose test and we will schedule my c-section. I can't believe in just 3 days we will know exactly when we will meet our newest little guy. I am overwhelmed by the list of things to do and coordinate that will invariably hit me once the date is decided. Seems weird to know this far in advance. Not much about this pregnancy or baby are a surprise. Well, except for the pregnancy itself. THAT was a huge surprise. Everything about Mason's was a surprise. Yes, everyone knew he was a boy and what his name was, but since it was our first baby, everything was new and shocking. To me and Eric, at least. Miles' gender was a surprise to all of us. His name was only known by Eric and I until he was born. Had Miles been a girl, he would have been Brooklyn Hope. Have I ever shared that? I think with only a few that have asked. This time? Gender - known. Name - known. Arrival date - known. I guess only the weight will be an unknown. I think this little guy will be the smallest of the 3 boys. I think 7 lbs 2 oz. I deserve a little guy! :) It's too hot to carry an 8+lb baby around all summer!!

OK, enough ramblings. Time to get to the gym to workout and take Mason swimming. Have a great week. Pics coming soon of the bath.

the boys

The boys have been busy busy busy this summer. Both boys are in semi-private swim lessons at the Y. Mason did an art camp for a couple of days and was a pirate and a knight! Both boys have M0ther's Day 0ut on Thursdays (mommy's alone time) thru July. Mason is also doing a sports camp on Fridays thru the first week of August.
I have had a few OB appointments and Max is busy growing and growing. We cannot wait to see who he looks and acts like.
We have had some craziness around the house as well. We are busy getting ready for Max. So, we painted the master bedroom (I know - Max wouldn't care but Mommy is busy nesting). Ran satellite to the formal living room so mommy and daddy can hang out away from toys at night. Redid the boys closet to better accommodate two boys clothes and toys. Moved extra unused furniture out of the garage so that the boys toys fit more easily. What else..... oh yeah, the problems.
We realized last Sunday that we have a major leak in our master shower. We have some damage to the subfloor that has to be replaced. The shower has to be completely demolished to fix the wood. So, we are doing a full renovation to the bath. The 50-year old existing tile is impossible to replace and is ugly not our style. :) We also realized this weekend that our water heater was leaking. That was replaced today (Monday). So, we had a weekend without hot water. Just for the record, I would not have been a good housewife/mom before hot water heaters. Boiling water to give baths and wash dishes was no fun!
Otherwise, things are great. Nice and calm. Nothing really going on. :) hehe!!!

Busy

It has been way too long. I know I say this often lately, but things are so busy busy busy around here.
Potty training is going great. Miles went all day today and stayed dry and clean. Yippee! I am so happy that I will only have 1 in diapers at a time!!!
Moving two boys into one room is not going great. It is 10pm and Miles is still awake. He is in his big boy bed in Mason's room, but talking away. Mason is sacked out. Thankfully. But, Mommy is tired and needs the mental break of knowing all her little chicks are sleeping soundly in their beds and I can turn off my brain for a few hours before putting myself to bed as well. I am not getting that break lately.
Our to-do list is a mile long. There are so many things that I need done and some that I really want done before Max arrives. I know that they do not have to be done by then, but I also know the havoc that a newborn throws on a family. So, I know the things that do not get done before he arrives (ie: painting our master bedroom) will not happen for quite a long time.
I am tired.
I am stressed out.
I am nesting.
I am suffering from crazy pregnancy brain.
Here is a funny story to illustrate my pregnancy brain. Today, Miles had swim lessons at the Y at 10am. I decided to go a little early to get a workout in before. I got the boys dressed and all our swim stuff packed. I got to the Y early, checked the boys into the kid's area, and went into the gym. A friend then had to point out to me that I had my flip-flops on rather than running shoes. Yeah. Kinda helps to have the right shoes to workout in.
On a happy note, the last appointment I had with my OB (last Friday) went well. Max sounds great, is growing right on schedule, and everything is great with my health as well. At my next appt I have my glucose test to check for gestational diabetes and we will also schedule the c-section date. This pregnancy is going by SO fast. I can hardly believe that in 9 more days, I will be in the 3rd trimester. Yeah, let's not talk about that right now.

Happy 2nd Birthday Miles!!!!

Miles is 2 today. I can hardly believe it.
He is not officially 2 until 10:53pm this evening. :)

Dearest Miley-Moo,
What a fast 9 months and then a LONG 28-hours of labor to meet you. You always have your own way of doing things and we have had to learn to let you. You are the life of our house. You bring the smiles, the laughter, the fun, the craziness. You also bring spunk, fight, tenacity and precociousness (hey, it's my blog, I can brag all I want). I love you beyond words.
It has already been said many times in your short life that you will give us a run for our money one day. While that is true, you already have.
You have scared your mommy and daddy (and grandparents) to death with dangerously high fevers and a seizure. You have pushed us to our end with countless ear infections. You test our patience with other minor ailments (colds, runny noses, pnemonia) that seem to drag on forever. But through it all, you manage to keep that sweet smile on your face and find a way to charm us and pull on our heartstrings.
Your little brother is going to have huge shoes to fill between you and Mason. While I know that you are going to have a tough next 12 months, I also know that you will be an amazing big brother. You already show such love to Max by patting my tummy and giving him endless kisses. You cannot wait to meet him and I cannot wait to see you in the role of "bratty middle child"!!! :)
I love you MileyMoo!
Mommy

More potty talk

So, yesterday afternoon, Miles told me he needed to potty. I quickly figured out he needed to poop. He even asked for a diaper so that he could go poop in it. Long story short, after about 30 minutes and much coaxing, he did his first poop in the potty. YEA!!!!!!

Mason and I cheered for probably 5 minutes. Miles would sit on the potty, I would ask him where his poo-poo was and he would stand up and say "there it is". We would cheer and it would all start over again. For about 5 minutes. If I didn't ask him where his poop was, he say "mama, where poopoo" and wait for me to ask him. SO cute!



One of my favorite things is listening to the boys have a conversation. They talk all the time - in the car, at the table, while playing together. Mason is very patient with Miles and actually understands what Miles is saying more often than I do! I can hardly wait to have another boy to add to the mix.



We picked out the new nursery bedding fabric and got almost all of it bought this weekend. Nana is making the bedding for us because I am way too picky and could not find anything at the stores that I just loved. As things get finished, I'll post pics. Now, I just have to get Eric and I motivated to get some painting done.



Ok, I am on duty this morning alone. E is out of town for a few days. So, I need to start getting the boys dressed. We have to leave for school very soon.....! Have a great Monday.

Potty time

I have been letting Miles run around the house (and yes, the backyard, I admit it) without diapers and pants on for a few weeks. I have not been consistent, but he has not been either. He would get to the potty a few times and not get there, well, more than a few times.
Yesterday, things clicked. He tee-teed in the potty about 7-8 times successfully. Mason even took him once without me. Miles loves to use his little potty and Mason loves getting the rewards (m&ms, of course) of helping little brother become a "big boy". I just love that I might only have one in diapers this time. Still working on the pooping in the potty. He hasn't gone in a few days, so I am sure when I put a diaper on his in a few minutes to go to little gym, he will go. Of course! Oh well, we have 4 months to keep practicing.

Speaking of 4 months, BabyBoo should be joining our family in about 4 more months. We are so excited. I am 21 weeks along tomorrow. I am finalizing the nursery bedding fabrics this weekend and we are working on getting Miles moved into a big boy bed in Mason's room. He napped in the full size (bottom) bunk yesterday. It took about 50 minutes for him to go to sleep, but then he napped about 2 hours. Today, Mason is at school, so we will work on it again today and hope for a shorter time in getting him to sleep.

I kept a friend's 7 month old little boy yesterday in addition to M&M. I was excited to do it so that I could get a preview of things to come. It was interesting. I would call it quite successful. All 3 boys were napping at one point and I was able to get in about a 40 minute nap. That is why it was successful in my mind! :) Meal time was the hardest. I will get used to having another mouth to feed I am sure, but my meals will probably be separate from the boys for a while. Should help me lose the baby weight faster! :) Speaking of weight, I am only up 1 lb in the last 3 weeks. So happy about that!!! I really don't want to have to lose a lot of extra weight after just getting it all off (plus some) with Miles. I am the weight right now (at 21 weeks) that I was when I got pregnant with Mason. Yeah.

Ok, enough randomness. Have to run to get Miles ready for Little Gym. It is his last one for the Spring. I don't know yet it we will continue for the summer. It is so expensive, but he LOVES it so much. I am torn.