Adoption Status: Approved

We got an exciting email today-our application has been officially approved!!! We are eligible to adopt a little girl aged 0-4, and our agency thinks we have a super great chance of getting the little girl we are trying to get.

OMG. WE GOT APPROVED!

But there is that little chance that we won't be able to get her......but we will get someone. There is a little girl out there that will be a part of our family.

OMG. I'M GOING TO HAVE A DAUGHTER.

I want to go do shopping right this minute. She is going to need princess dresses. And a pink soccer ball. PINK!

OMG. THIS IS GOING TO BE CRAZY EXPENSIVE AND I NEED TO FINALLY UPDATE MY NAME ON MY PASSPORT.

Where do you even do that? Oh goodness, there is so much to do. I feel thrilled beyond all else and panicked at the same time. A part of me thought we wouldn't actually get approved. A part of me thought we would hear no yet again. We have some huge payments to dish out very soon to really cement our place "in line" for a referral- for the little girl God is going to lead us to.

Do we take the chance of not getting her? Are we ready to do this now? Do we have the money? I have no idea how we will afford all of this. When it is all said and done, it will be around $40,000.....OMG. That makes my stomach hurt....but at the same time, I would pay millions to keep my sons safe, so thinking of it that way, why would I not make sure I found a way to pay the money to get my daughter safely to us?

We will have a daughter. A DAUGHTER.

I need to learn Hindi, stat

OMG!!!!

And even cooler? We got the best news ever on our 8th wedding anniversary.

I'm totally ordering this Tinkerbell hair clip for our Princess:

AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm going to have a DAUGHTER!!!!!!!!!!!!

New News

So, I know in my heart that adoption takes a long time. I have a blogger friend who waited 5 years to be matched with her lovely daughter, so hey, I understand and realize we will be waiting. But, right now, we are just waiting to hear back that our application has been accepted. And while our agency coordinator said that everything looked great to her, the ultimate decision is up to the lady that works with the India government very closely, and she knows exactly what their preferences will be with the new CARA rules. And our family is RIGHT on the border of their rules anyway, because Champ our Princess will be right at 9 months apart.....JUST past their age limit set to make sure there can't be artificial "twinning". AND we are JUST at the limit of children already allowed in the family prior to adoption. AND even though Princess is special needs, she isn't severe...and she is still really young, in terms of international adoption. So, we have some things going for us, and some against us. And right now waiting is killing me, because I really just want to KNOW that we can keep going forward, or stop for the time being. If we get turned down, it just means that Princess isn't meant for us, but that another child out there is, and this is all part of that path. But seriously, waiting to just hear a yes, keep going, or no, you can't adopt her and you need to look at a different kind of adoption is killing me. So maybe some prayers that we get an answer to which path we need to get on sometime soon? And in the mean time, a cute photo of us all from our cousin Angie's trip to NC from Oregon!

Now we just need to get out there to go on one of her rafting tours!

I Came To Win, To Fight, To Conqure, To Thrive

Champ at the Park, loving the Swing. 

So much has been going on these past 6 months since my last post. A lot, and then at the same time, not that much that seemed "worthy" of writing about.

The boys, Little Dude and JR are in soccer now and loving it. I'm loving that our Saturdays are spent cheering them on, there really is no where else or anything else I'd rather be. Their huge smiles as they run for water at half time and look over to see if we are watching-I love those mid game waves, even if it means they completely miss the ball rolling right in front of them.

I just laugh inside, and smile and cheer and wave back.

Yes, we are here, watching, and we are so proud of you, always.


School starts for Little Dude in August, and already my heart hurts thinking about not seeing him ALL DAY. But, like in Nemo, I need to just smile and tell him to have a great adventure.

That is what this parenting is all about, right? Letting them have grand adventures, and knowing we will always stand in the shadows, cheering them on.

Champ is starting to walk and has the cutest way of doing raspberries all through church. We make all the old people on our little side area crack up.

He can also say "uh oh" quite well and in the cutest sing song voice. I love it, even if it does mean that there is actually something to say uh oh about-yes, he uses it correctly. Usually when a mess has been made.

We are pursing adoption, finally, after many years of thinking about it, talking about it, and finding reasons that it wouldn't work financially, Will and I have really felt a tug and desire to at least try and see what happens. I have faith that somehow, financially, it will all work out.

God has the power to create the universe, so I know that if we are truly meant to adopt then somehow, things will continue to fall into place for us.

We are looking at adopting a sweet little special needs child from India. She is the same age as Champ, and has a similar smile-huge and wide, and she also has tons of teeth, just like him.

Things are falling into place in the most amazing and scary of ways-to the point that we have decided that we really are being called to bring this little girl to our home.

I'm actually waiting on a call from our adoption agency today to discuss her more and what our process will be in requesting a specific child, as opposed to just getting in the general line. It helps us tons that she is listed as special needs, though her needs are actually far more minimal, according to her orphanage director whom I've already spoken with, than her file indicates.

And there are so many other signs -like how I even got in contact with the orphanage director out of the blue from a friend's email.

So much falling into place, making this all feel like we have to pursue it, and just see what happens.

So, we are starting the process, with much excitement and apprehension, so see if we turn our family of five into a family of six.

and that, my friends, is all that is going on in our little neck of the world. Pray that we are patiently able to follow God's plan, regardless of that meaning we adopt a little girl, or just have to wait to see what is to be revealed.

Hey Monday 6 Months

My littlest little man is 6 Months today.

ignore the dirty mirror.....

It seems crazy that he is already that old, I really feel like we just got settled.

• He is rolling all over the place and scooting with a determined efficiency.
• Bouncing is currently his favorite thing to do, and he likes to turn his head sideways or upside down to look at people. We have to be constantly ready to keep a hold of his ever twisting and turning body weight. 
• He LOVES to watch his brothers and they are still every enchanted with him; that makes my heart so happy.
• He gives HUGE toothless smiles all the time and I am cherishing them all, as I know from the amount of drool and chomping he is doing that teeth will probably be emerging soon and that lovely newborn-ness will be all gone then. 

It is funny, but I have a deeper appreciation with my third child. With my first, Little Dude, I was just trying to figure everything out; with  my second, JR, I was SO SAD to see him grow, as it went by much to quickly in a whirlwind of activity. With Champ though, even though I hate to see the stages pass by, I am making sure to take the time to enjoy it and to ENJOY his growing. Through our little blog-o-sphere here, I have met far too many moms and dads who have lost children to illnesses, experienced great loss, or pushed through still births.

I've connected with so many, and know there are so many more out there. So while I can't believe 6 months have already flown by, but I am, at this moment, so grateful that I was given these past 6 months and I am hopeful I get to see his next 60 years.




*The post title is from a song that came up on Pandora today called 6 Months by a group called "Hey Monday". You can hear/see it here: http://youtu.be/W3svr_CUhxo

I See The Light

Summer has offically ended for me. Little Dude is in preschool, our little neighbors started REAL school, and now JR's preschool starts today. (JR is going one day a week, that is all I could handle, with Little Dude being gone 3 days already).

So now, for Wednesday mornings, it is just me and Champ.

And part of me wants to soak up every minute I get with JUST him, but then, another part of me starts a HUGE list of what I could maybe get cleaned, wiped, dusted, worked, DONE while my other two tornadoes are gone at school.

My compromise? Oh yes, my good friend saves me-my Mei Tai. I love it, and will be spending today working on the computer, doing laundry, mopping, and maybe even FOLDING laundry-while Champ snuggles close in my Baby Hawk.

And now, a random cute photo of Champ sleeping during our walk yesterday: 

Tangled

I know, I still need to upload my July month photos of the boys AND Champ's 3 month photo. I do have them, they are just on my camera still, and I am just always forgetting to grab the camera from my purse and upload the photos.

Anyways, what have I been up to lately? What is my excuse for not uploading super cute photos of the boys?

The Social Security Office.

I'm telling you, that place is Hell on Earth. Yes, caps are needed, too. I just spent another 3 hours of my life waiting in line, and 2 hours before that on the phone, just to make sure I had everything I needed for getting Champ's social security number.

Apparently though, 2 hours on the phone and 3 in a line filling out paper work-all the while with a security officer making you change seats and move around WITH THREE KIDS all in tow-are just not enough minutes of my life. They apparently want more.

Evidently, even though I ASKED WHAT PAPERWORK I NEEDED, and spent another 2 hours earlier this morning at vital records and the doctor office to get the said papers I needed, I did not have everything, because their policies have JUST CHANGED and the idiot I talked to before chasing down all the certified, stamped, sealed, crap-ola paper work didn't remember to tell me that NOW I must also have an insurance card with the child's name on it.

Cause, you know, that proves the child is alive. As a birth certificate, immunization records, and sealed biography/life records form his doctor doesn't. OH, and the fact HE WAS THERE WITH ME and I had my driver's license and passport.

And you know the whole reason I am needing to chase down a social security card? BECAUSE I WANT TO ADD CHAMP TO OUR INSURANCE-AND THUS GET AN INSURANCE CARD WITH HIS NAME ON IT.

Shoot me now.

And you know why I even have to jump through all these hoops and spend days dragging kids all over down town? Because somehow Champ's social security card/number got lost between the Federal side and State side of processing. So, right now, he is halfway processed, and there is a flag on his account saying he had a number, but because everything wasn't transferred between the agencies correctly he now needs to apply for a NEW number.

So, instead of just applying for a first time number, as the hospital did for us with simply submission of his birth certificate, NOW I have to have a stupid crazy amount of certified documentation to prove he is alive and a US Citizen.

Seriously, shoot me now, because I have already pulled out my hair into a tangled mess. AND I have to continue this stupid paper chase tomorrow or Thursday.

Can someone just direct me to a nice Latino* that could hook me up with a social security card? I would probably be able to get Champ's original card number that way, since apparently all his info is just floating around out there between Federal and State Hell.




*My grandma is Latino, so don't say I am hating anyone; I'm just speaking from experience. Most Latinos I personally know could hook me up with fake id in two blinks of an eye, and I am THIS CLOSE to just buying a card off one of them instead of facing the social security Line Of Hell again. And yes, bold caps were needed.

Raising Sons

I'm really quite amazed an entire month has gone by, and I haven't really found the time to blog much. Honestly, I am blogging now only because I felt I should have more than one post under June!

Anyways, here are some quick updates:

The boys are all getting huge. HUGE, I'm telling you! How in the world did that happen? Champ is starting to move around on his back, and no longer stays in one place now....I am going to have to start figureing out the baby gate situation quickly. What did other people do with kids and babies and stairs? I hate to trap the big ones up stairs and have them needing me every second to open/close it for them (and I'm scared they either won't close it OR they will try to climb it...ahhh!)

In the past with babies and crawling, early walking times, we lived out of town in apartments/ one story houses for Will's job....so I have yet to really need to master baby gates.....now with number three being HERE in our split level entry house...I am quite wondering how to set it up.

If you have brilliant thoughts, please share them.

Other updates include that Little Dude is going to start soccer camp in a few weeks-I am really excited for him to get some kind of energy sapping activity going. I'm not sure if we will sign up JR yet or not, I might see how he feels and maybe do another session in the fall with him while Little Dude is in preschool. We shall see. JR will be doing a little preschool baseball weekend session and we are all quite excited about that.

It has suddenly gotten super hot here and I am trying to come up with fun things to do that don't require me seating like crazy, since the kids don't seem to notice. I think there will be many future visits to museums.

In the cloth diapering world, the cloth wipes I am trying out is going great. I am actually really liking just throwing the wipes in the wash as well, and not having to keep them separate, etc. I got some great bottom cleaner spray, called CJ's Carcass Cleaner (nice name, eh?) and used an old body spray bottle (and old one from Bath and Body Works) and I am doing the dry method of wipes. So I take my baby wash cloth or infant diaper insert (those are working GREAT as wipes, by the way) spray down Champs bum, wipe away, and toss everything my wet bag til wash day. For super poops I spray the cloth AND his bum, but so far we have only had one. I think my cleaning spray will last a super long time too. I also got CJ's Bottom Butter in the sea spice scent and it SMELLS SO GOOD. I use some even though he hasn't had any diaper rash as of yet, just because it makes him smell so wonderful.

So far, having a house full of boys is extremely fun. It is usually a super hero, treasure hunting, saving the world kind of day around here, and I love how serious they get about fighting bad guys.

Last week we had JR's birthday party and it was all super hero themed-Oh the kids all had such a great time! I will put on pictures of JR in his batman cape and mask; it is really just too awesome. Little Dude is loving JR's Captain America shield and mask, so I am going to hunt down a Captain America cape on etsy for Little Dude's birthday. Don't tell him though :)

I am also already training them to hold the door for me (and all ladies) and making sure they understand that they can't ever hit a little lady, even if she DOES bite you. I am constantly reminding them they are gentlemen and must act that way.

My sons' future dates can all thank me, as the boys mostly do act like gentlemen to all our little lady friends. I can't; however, be blamed for the toliet seat, I am convinced forgetting to put it down is just a genetic makeup for boys; just be thankful they pee IN it.

So, that is all that is going on here. Beyond keeping the kids alive, trying to put laundry away so Bill thinks I'm productive, and keeping up with my paying job, I really don't have much time to blog as I would like.

Cloth Diapering and Cloth Wipes

I've been cloth diapering for a few years now; we started with Little Dude was a year old, right after we found out JR was on his way! At the time, I didn't know anyone that cloth diapered, but had seen a lady in TN (where we lived for Little Dude's first 9 months) doing it, and I was a bit intrigued, since she had all these cute covers.

Anyways, after realizing we were soon going to be doing double diaper duty with two under the age of two, I started adding up the cost and figured out pretty quickly that even with increased water, electricity, and detergent usage to do the extra loads of laundry, by FAR we would save a TON with cloth diapers. Especially since I got a lot of mine as "pre loved" ones from http://www.momforlife.com and ebay. Germ-a-phob that I am, I of course washed them with bleach a few times before ever using them on the kiddos.

So, now four years later, I am still super happy with all my cloth diapers and wet bags. LOVE doing it.

But as much as I love doing the cloth diapers, using cloth wipes never crossed my mind, for some reason. Now though, that the cost of the baby wipes I normally get have jumped up a bunch and the fact that I only have one diaper wearer now as apposed to two (yay, JR is out of diapers at night too now, YAYAYAY!)I am really considering the cost, and trying to figure how I can make it as cheap as possible.

So here are my thoughts:

One, I am going to use baby wash cloths (I have a ton for some reason, though I only use his mickey mouse one at bath time) and the "newborn inserts" that came with my cloth diapers. Now that Champ is bigger and peeing more, he is using just the regular insert folded to the small size setting, so what to do with all the newborn inserts? I am thinking they will be perfect baby wipes.

Two, I am so tired of pulling out the baby wipes from my wet bag before washing diapers, or worse, pulling them out of the diaper Velcro after being washed (the Velcro won't stick when the wipe is all stuck in it, so you have to pull every.little.bit.out. ugh.)

Three, I want to cut our costs more and as a bonus reduce the amount of trash I am creating for landfills.

I am also going to use a solution of baby wash with water in a recycled regular wipe container (I will test its water holding power in the sink before putting it on Champ's dresser, hopefully it will be water tight)and then just place the newborn inserts/wash cloths in there as needed.

When done? I'll just throw them in with my diapers in the wet bag as normal, but instead of pulling them out of the wash or bag later, I can just wash everything with no worries about my Velcro getting messed up. Yippie!

I did go ahead and order a travel wipes spray for the diaper bag, though I am fine with using regular wipes just for travel if needed.

So, off on the adventure of cloth wipes I go. I'll let you know how it turns out.

ABC Easy As 123

Somehow an entire month has gone by since Champ made his debut. It has gone by very quickly and at the same time, has felt pretty normal.

Some things are crazy still. Like the fact it takes me 2 hours to get everyone dressed and out the door somewhere.....or the fact that laundry has somehow grown by a factor of 20 to the 10th power. Literally.

But, I am getting everyone to preschool on time, and getting dinner done, and grocery shopping done. And let us not forget just simply keeping everyone alive. That really is a feat in and of itself with two boys that are rough and tough and want nothing more than to hug their baby bro a LITTLE too tightly.

Star Of Mommy's Blog

Champ seems to be contemplating being the current tiny star of my blog:

My mom is putting my baby photos on the internet? Oh my.

Photos of Champ

Hi all! So, today was Champ's due date-that is a little crazy to realize since it already seems like he has been here forever and has gotten so big already since leaving the hospital (he is already at 7lb 10 oz, and had dropped to 6lb 15 oz) Since it has been SO LONG since I put anything on here, I thought I would share some photos!

Here is me on the 23rd, the very last belly shot we got. Champ came 3 days later and you can check out all the adorable photos below. I sorta miss being pregnant; but at the same time, it is very fun to sleep on my stomach again!

So far, Champ is an amazing baby-all calm until time to eat or poop, which is just AWESOME. Last night and the night before he actually when 5 hours at one stretch; a nice break from the around-the-clock 2 hour feedings he was demanding. I'm hoping this nice trend continues; we will find out tonight!

Little Dude and JR are in love with him and very proud to help out; so far we have had quite a nice adjustment to becoming a family of 5-and partly because we have such amazing friends and family that have brought us dinners and helped us out so very much over the last two weeks.

OK, now for cute photos:

Here is Champ on his birthday, 3-26-11. He was born at 5:55am  at 7lbs 9 oz and 21 inches long. (my contractions started at 4am; I am very glad he didn't come in the truck)

Here is Bill and Champ, with Bill being silly and staging his pose to act like Champ's and predict our future for the coming weeks. Even though it is staged, I love this photo :)

Here are our three boys! To get Champ's jaundice numbers down quickly we had to do formula and breastfeeding, so Little Dude and JR got to help feed when they came to see us Sat. night.

Here is one very proud Papa and  his cute namesake, Champ.

So, that is all the news around here-I will work hard to get on here more often now that we are kinda getting a new normal going on around here. Now I need to hurry and clean before Bill gets home so it looks like I did "something" today.

Surely you guys all do that too, right? Right?

The Champ Is Here

Our little Champ was born on 3-26 at 5:55am-after having a few contractions on and off throughout the day Friday, labor started around 4am with regular contractions at about 5 minutes apart, and we got checked in at the hospital at 5am-10 minutes after my water broke our Champ was here.

I have to say, I am a huge fan of fast deliveries, especially after being able to get into a nice hospital bed with my doctor, sweet hubby and some awesome nurses there to help. Hurray for not giving birth in the car!

All is well and we are settling in quite nicely as a family of five, thanks to the amazing help from my mother in law and all our friends.

AND I will eventually get one of the hundred cute photos of Champ on here, I just keep forgetting to bring the camera downstairs to download them all to the computer; thus, no photos for you guys yet.

He is super cute though, with a head full of blonde blonde hair and deep blue eyes that are already starting to turn lighter blue. Ohhhhhh cuteness!

Talk to you soon (and hopefully I'll have some photos on here next time).

20 Days!

The countdown is on-there are only 20 days to my due date, and going on my previous history, it should be less, since both the other boys were early.

SQUEAL!

I went to the dr. today and found out I'm not 4 cm dilated, though no contractions of any kind yet. That makes me nervous, since I'm obviously not feeling whatever contractions are causing the dilation, so when they DO really start I'm really crossing my fingers (and legs) that I make it to the hospital....I REALLY don't want to end up on the news as the subject of "Baby Born on Highway!"

SO, when will Champ get here?

I can't wait, I really can't. I'm so anxious and just want to meet him and start our routine as a family of 5. Right now I am just cleaning like crazy, spending time playing super heroes with Little Dude and JR, and finding ways to avoid work, like updating my blog before finally getting back to the tasks at hand. That is actually pretty fun, since I am always able to find something else to do, like put my feet up. (Don't tell Bill I could put them up as my desk; I prefer the recliner, which is faaarrr away from my desk).

Anyways, not much to report, just playing the waiting game.

Now, back to some actual work that pays me....

Contractions

So, apparently with the more preganancies you have, the better your body jumps into gear to "get ready for baby".

Meaning that I have all kinds of fun "practice contractions" or Braxton Hicks going on-and at times I start to think they are real ones, only have them go away or stop.

Sigh.

Well, we are ready, and currently I am 3 cm dilated and 75% effaced, and the baby has dropped to station 0 (whatever that means, I keep trying to find station info in my pregnancy books and haven't yet, so I might just google it when I am done here) according to my latest dr. check up. Now that I am well into 36 weeks, the dr. has also declared that if labor starts now they won't try to stop it, since our little Champ is measuring a week ahead anyway AND we have crossed into the more full term time period of the third trimester.

Very exciting to be so close to having him here with us-and I am so hoping he does come in March because I just love March. Don't know why, just do.

Also a bit scary, as I really do want to make it to the hospital, so the more dilated and effaced I get BEFORE any contractions really start, the more nervous I am about how quickly this labor might go....

But then, this pregnancy has been so different, that I feel I might be jinxing myself-he will probably go 2 weeks past my due date and then have a hard 24 hour labor.

Or be scary fast and I'll have him in the driveway.

Oh my. I'm ready to be done with labor already....

Happy St. Patrick's Day 2011

I LOVE St. Patrick's Day. Most of my family's heritage is Irish, wish some Native American, Mexican, and British heritage for good measure. Everyone in my family though has naturally dark DARK hair, and my sisters both got the brown/black eyes, along with the natural tendency to tan easily without burning.

Me? I'm super pale white even if I DO try to tan, super short to the point that I may or may not be borderline needed a booster seat according to the new child car seat laws height requirements and I'm way shorter than both my little sisters. I have auburn red hair that gets redder in the sun and had super strawberry red hair when I was really young). While most members of my family have no trouble keeping weight off their more slender frames, I have the hips of a cow, which have come in super handy when having children, but don't work well with skinny jeans. Fashion icon I can not be. I also have blue green eyes and my face turns red when I drink.

Sigh.

But you know what? On St. Patrick's Day, all those features are cool! So, I love St. Patrick's Day.

Yesterday, the kids and I colored shamrocks and taped them all over the dinning room. Then we baked banana bread and made green cream cheese icing with green sprinkles for it, AND we made our own St. Patty's Day necklaces (the boys did a super great job getting the beads on their strings!)

It was SO FUN. We talked about who St. Patrick was, and why we celebrate a day for him, and how he was important to everyone. I may have not actually DONE anything, but just sitting at the table, doing crafts with the kids and talking was FANTASTIC. I need to set aside days to do just that way more often.

I'm thinking that with dinner I might have green milk for the kids, though our traditional corned beef dinner will be held on Saturday when my in laws and sister in law can all come over to share.

I'll have to see what else I can make green today.

Little Dude is at preschool, JR went to my awesome friend Teresa's house to play while I go to a Dr. apt for Champ, then it will be on to see what other Irish stuff we can do today! Yippie!

Hospitals, Nurses, and Shots, Oh My!

Well, I think I jinxed myself with my huge to do list-I started having super strong contractions during dinner, and each one got closer in time, until around the 10 minute time space we called up my awesome neighbor to stay with the boys until my sister in law could get here, and then Bill and I bolted for the hospital.

By the time we got to the hospital, my contractions were about 3 minutes apart and getting really strong.

So, I was admitted, and checked, and luckily, I had not dilated or effaced any further along from that morning, so I was given a shot to try to stop the contractions. My doctor really REALLY wants Champ to stay in at least another week, and I would really like to get two, but we will have to see what happens.

Eventually I got enough meds to stop the contractions, though I did dilate a little bit more, but after some more watching everything finally stopped. I'm on Motrin now to help stop or block the production of something that would induce contractions again-I can't remember what it is supposed to be stopping-but at any case, it is working.

Today I am being super lazy, sitting at the computer finishing up a little work, the kids are playing with play-doh. Awesomeness.

2 CM Dilated

OMG. For real.

I went to the doctor today for my start of week 36 check up and found out that I'm 2 cm dilated, 50 % effaced, and Champ is at station 1. I still haven't stopped to look up what that means, but he is also head down and ready to go, according to my doctor.

SOOOOO, can I tell you that I'm a little freaked? If he came to day, he would be early, but not as early as JR, and the doctor assured me that since everything is starting on its own, then chanced are he is just really ready to come. With JR I had to be induced and it took forever for contractions or dilation to start (though when it did, it happened fast).

Previous stats:

Little Dude-3 hours from the time my water broke to delivery
JR-Got induced around 1pm, contractions didn't start til around 8pm and he was born at 11.

So what will Champ's stats be? I'm really nervous about not making it to the hospital.

So, I have butterflies all in my belly and a suddenly HUGE, GINORMOUS list of things I MUST do before Champ can come (ha, that means he's coming in a few hours, right? ) Anyways, I finally got the laundry put away (Bill will be so proud) and I actually finished going through JR's clothes and getting the outgrown stuff out of his drawers. Little Dude I still haven't tackled; I figured it was better to just put everything away than to have numerous, half crazy sorted/unsorted piles of 4t and 5t cloths all over the place when Grandma got here to take over...

And now, I am trying really hard to get all my small tasks I have left for Dakno done asap so I don't have to worry about handing anything off.

Oh I have butterflies. And I know, I know, it could still be weeks of walking around at 2 cm, BUT I can't help but worry because for the last half hour the light braxton hicks I've been having on and off for the last few months have actually started to get stronger, though I'm not sure if they are regular yet or not. I'm going to start timing them now and see if I need to call Bill.

I'd be a little embarrassed to be sent home, but at the same time, I'd hate it more to have Champ in the car....

40 Days

OMG, there are only 40 days left to my due date! I can not believe we are already here. Next week I have another baby appointment, then I go ever week to be checked for progress until delivery.

The bags are packed, the carseat is ready, a name is finally picked and the grandparents are on standby (as are the neighbors since we might need someone to help with the boys until grandparents can get here)

Both of our other sons were early, and I had VERY fast labors. Little Dude was about 3 hours total from the time my water broke (and contractions started after that, in the car) to when he was born. JR was induced early since my water broke way too soon; however, once labor and contractions started, it was only a few hours of actual contractions until he came out.

I am a little nervous about this one being a fast labor-I know it sounds crazy, but I am hoping that it starts off slowly so we can have the grandparents get here for the boys before we have to leave for the hospital, but I am thinking, and preparing myself, for the fact that we probably will need to head to the hospital as soon as my water breaks or contractions start, and just call on one of our super awesome neighbors to watch the kids until Patty and Ed get here (they are about 2 hours away).

I'm super excited for our little Champ to get here and sleep in the bassinet by our bed. I can't wait to put the little outfits on him and carry him around in one of my slings. I'm super excited to see how the big brothers do with Champ; judging by how excited they are for him now, I think it will go well, even if Champ does end up crying non stop.

I ordered some "Big Bro" and "Little Bro" shirts for the guys; I can't wait for the two big brothers to wear their "Big Bro" shirts and to get a nice photo of the three of them together. Even if all three defy me and stare off into different directions, it will still be so cute to get them all in their shirts. I'm crazy excited about them. I ordered them from my friend Christy, who runs a little consignment shop right around the corner, and go tall three shirts for less than I had been able to get one big brother shirt from a shop I found downtown. I'm SUPER excited to see them done and on the boys!

In a few weeks, it could be any moment for him to get here; this is by far the worst part of pregnancy for me-just waiting for the big day to come.

Pregnancy Aches and Pains

So, I am there. I'm feeling done with being pregnant, as bad as that is for someone who has had a premature baby to feel.

Last night, my sciatic kept pinching on whatever pressure point our little Champ was providing and it HURT LIKE HELL. Nice, sharp, stabbing pains every so often in each hip are enough to drive one batty. Especially if one is trying to sleep. Sigh.

Today, I have been cleaning like crazy, and trying to get the boys over whatever gross nose/sneezing/cough thing they have. Ugh on both parts, because laundry was involved as well.

And even my usual list of somewhat enjoyable house chores (like mopping the floors or picking up toys-those are WAY higher on my list than laundry) where slow going an exhausting with the stupid sciatic nerve pinching. And are there two nerves? I'm feeling the pain in both hips-and even right now they are both super sore and feel like I got punched in them multiple times.

Sometimes walking now, I almost stumble from the pain of moving my hips/legs. Mostly my right is giving me trouble just walking around-and the stairs in our house aren't helping any. I don't remember having the pinching never pain as badly with the other two, but I have heard most symptoms-like varicose veins, stretch marks, swelling, heart burn and sciatic nerve pinches get stronger or occur more quickly with each pregnancy.

Someone needs to remind me of that fact when, 2 years from now I start talking about babies again....

Anyways, I think tonight is a pizza night. I'm going to go put my feet up and see if I can find some position that makes my hips feel better. And then not move until Bill gets home.

Just for Kicks

Oh my goodness, I really can not believe it is February already! The time seriously has flown this pregnancy.

I still have so much to do to get ready, but on the flip side, we all free pretty ready.

We still don't have a name, but we DO have it narrowed down to two, so Bill and I have pretty much given up on picking one at this point and will probably just wait until we see him at the hospital before we can choose. Both are awesome names, in our opinion, so I think we cant go wrong with either one.

I still need to pack my bag. Yes, I realize it is kinda early to start worrying about that; however, I don't want another replay of JR's birthday, where everyone was gone, no bag was packed, and panicked calls to everyone that they were inducing me a month early....

So, yes, I have started gathering the stuff for my bag and getting it all packed (and including stuff for Bill to spend the night, too) just so there is no chance I'll be caught without it ready, should this guy come a month early, too.

I think the nursery is all ready.

We have the diapers all ready and washed (I cloth diaper) and the little clothes all folded.

I think even the boys are ready for their little brother-and for a fun overnight visit with Grandma and Papa. Little Dude and JR have been getting really excited about feeding and holding Champ, and I am crazy excited to get photos of the three of them all together.