SLO in Arkansas: May 2009

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

Good News!

I went to the doctor today and had my second ultrasound, and it was good news for me!!! I don't have placenta previa!!!! My placenta was a little low about 10 weeks ago so they wanted to check and make sure it had moved up, and it sure did. I tried not to worry too much about it, and they said today everything looks fine and I should be able to have a normal delivery. I am very thankful for that:) I will just use this post to ramble on about more baby stuff since it is on my mind today.

I will be 28 weeks on Friday and things have been going excellent pregnancy wise so far. Jace weighs around 2 pounds and 7 oz as of today, which they said was right on track. He is also measuring right where he is supposed to be. Tyson always measured a week or two ahead of schedule, so I am wondering if maybe Jace will be a little smaller. I guess we will see! The baby is less active than Ty was too, so sometimes I worry when he isn't kicking me like crazy around the clock. Today he was bunched up in a ball with his feet up by his head. He won't be able to do that much longer as he is about to really start getting big and losing his room to move like that:) I am going to the doctor every two weeks until week 36, and then it's down to every week. It still seems so fast for all this. I have to do the glucose screening again at my 30 week appointment even though I passed the first one. Good thing the orange drink isn't that bad:) There is really nothing else going on, thank goodness. I can tell I am starting to slow down a bit, but I think part of that is the weather warming up, and especially the humidity draining my energy. And the lovely fact that Tyson would live outside if I would let him, so we are outside a lot. This morning we took our walk and played outside about 7:30am to try and beat the heat a little. It was a nice time of morning and I enjoyed getting out early. And now for some lovely pictures of Tyson and his antics!

This isn't the best picture, but one night after dinner we were enjoying some Nilla wafers and Tyson proudly displays his cookies on his chest. Silas and I both cracked up and the boy was so proud of himself for getting such a good reaction:) I may have posted this already, but I have pregnancy brain and I can't remember!

Little man conked out on the couch while watching Veggie Tales one afternoon. Aren't they sweet when they are sleeping?!?!?!

Prego picture of me around 26 1/2 weeks I think. I am about to trade most everything in and go for my standard outfit of capri pants and t-shirt. Or maybe some shorts and a tank top soon!

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Memorial Weekend 2009

Lake season is officially here and we are loving it already! We were able to get one good full day in on the water this past weekend before the flooding rain came in, and were so thankful for that time!! My favorite part of the whole thing is watching Tyson learn about the water and all the fun things there are to do there:) We didn't get to pull him behind the boat on the tube because the water was so choppy it was like the ocean at times, but Silas was able to float him out and pull him in really fast, and the kid LOVED it! I can only imagine his excitement when he gets to experience it for real.

Silas did a great job as boat captain as always:) We have getting the boat in and out of the water down now and work great as a team. I love that it is a manageable feat, even with a pregnant woman manning the boat at times:) We have found a pretty cove with a little waterfall in it that we like to anchor in and hang out, and Silas was brave enough to climb the falls and jump off this year! The guys are crazy and all did it!

Here is my proof that I was swimming this weekend. Never mind that I nearly got hypothermia the water was so cold!!! It felt fine after about 5 minutes, but I think that might have been after my body just went numb all over:) And of course kids are amazing....the water never seemed to phase Tyson, even when his little lip was chitter chattering all over the place. I am really looking forward to some good floating time once the water warms up a bit later in the summer.

This is Connor and Tyson hanging out together at the lake. Connor is just a few months older than Ty and they have been hanging out together since last summer. They get along great and keep each other company with all the other adults around:) Connor is also having a little brother about 3 weeks after Jace should be born, so next summer we will have 4 little boys running wild at the lake! Despite the rain, we were glad to get some good time in outside and really enjoyed getting away with friends for a bit. We are definitely looking forward to going again once it warms up a bit:)

Saturday, May 16, 2009

This and That

I love my boys! Since it is easier for me to get pictures of the two of them together than of me and Ty, I end up having a lot more to choose from:) We have several framed around the house of the two guys together, and every time Tyson sees one he grins and points and says "Daddy!" That kid loves his dad so much, and it is so precious:)

Tyson is quite the helper around the house and he is actually making a few chores easier on his pregnant momma these days, believe it or not! He and I have a great laundry routine down. I hand him all the wet clothes from the washer and his job is to put them in the dryer, throw in the fabric softener sheet and shut the door. It keeps me from having to bend over a ton since I just have to pull the clothes out of the washing machine. He also helps me throw clothes into the washer at the beginning. Now if only I could teach him to fold everything and get it put back in the drawers, life would be divine!!! He continues to love helping me with all kinds of chores, and he helps me wipe off counters, clean the mirrors, and sweep the floor. His job is to bring the dust pan when we are ready for it. He stands by me patiently waiting for all the dirt to be swept and then squats down to hold the pan for me. Too cute. Our all time favorite chore though is vacuuming. He gets so excited when I ask if he wants to vacuum and runs to the closet to get it out. His job is to push the "on" button and then run like crazy as I chase him around the room with it. He just squeals with delight and runs right up to it and in front of me and then jumps out of the way. We both end up burning a lot of calories with this event, and I actually vacuum more times during the week than I probably would just because he likes it so much:)

Here are a few recent pregnant pictures of me. I believe these were taken at week 25, and I am 26 right now. I feel absolutely huge already. Thankfully I have been feeling really good lately (just big), so I am still saving my complaining for later in the summer:) I went to the doctor this past week and everything is still looking great so far. The only concern we have right now is that my placenta looked a little low on my first ultrasound, so I go back on the 27th to have another one and see if it has moved up or not. If it has, great, and if not, then I will probably have to have a c-section. Not my favorite alternative, but hey, what do you do??! The doctor seems optimistic since he said it was barely low to start with, so hopefully I will have some good news in a few weeks. He is also having me come for appointments every two weeks now, which is crazy! I can't believe I will have this baby in the next 14 weeks (or less) hopefully!!!

We are slowly continuing to work on the nursery. There is not a ton that needs doing, just more decorative stuff really. We finally got some curtains hung this weekend and I finally made up my mind where I wanted the crib to be, so hopefully the furniture is in its final spot and I can quit having Silas push it around every few weeks so I can try out a new layout!!! Ever the organized one, I am trying to have the room all ready early, so the last month or two I can just focus on resting and working and spending time with Tyson, and not have to mess with anything else. Ty has been so much fun lately and I am really enjoying spending time at home with him. He is talking so much more every day and is still so independent and free spirited. My only complaint is his new sleeping schedule. He still goes to bed around 8:30 pm, but oh my goodness the child gets up now between 5 and 6:15 am!!! Basically at the first light of day I guess. He comes flying into our room and jumps in the bed like the energizer bunny! At times we can get him to calm down and go back to sleep for about 30 minutes, but most likely he is up for the day. Thank goodness for me he is very content to play by himself and I can lay in bed until about 7 or so and he runs in and out to check on my every once in a while or get some kisses, and then goes back to crashing his trucks together or whatever he has found to entertain himself. He is still a good napper too, and we both look forward to sleeping a while after lunch in the afternoons!! I am definitely taking advantage of that time and sleeping too, since I just can't make it that long of a day with such an early start! Despite the early mornings, I love my crazy wild little boy and enjoy every day of getting to be his mama:)

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Spring!

I have not been able to get too many pictures of us enjoying the spring weather, since most of it has been spent indoors unfortunately. Arkansas has had record amounts of rain this year, and even the days it doesn't rain are too muddy to go out much. Thankfully we have been able to play on the porch, and take some walks around the neighborhood when it's not actually raining! Personally, I am so grateful for the weather we have been having. It is usually pushing 90 degrees around here by now and getting really hot. Seeing as I have to be pregnant until August, I was not looking forward to that at all! The clouds have kept things cool and I am loving the 60-80 degree days we have been having all month:) Tyson has discovered the joys of popsicles recently, and he is so cute wandering around the yard with one:) I just could not get the kid to look at the camera!!!

Another shot of Tyson toting his popsicle around the yard.

Well we finally pulled the boat out for the year to get it all washed up and ready to go for the lake season. What an exciting day!! Silas did the majority of scrubbing and wiping down of everything. We apparently did not clean it up well at the end of last year, and had to work a little harder to get it ready:) It is all clean now, packed with fresh beach towels and boat music, and ready to hit the water next weekend for Memorial Day. I got the all clear to have as much fun as possible from my doctor today, which was good news. No tubing for me this summer, but hopefully Tyson will get to try it out. We got him a new big boy life jacket recently and he looks adorable in it:) I am really hoping for some sunshine next weekend so we don't have to spend the whole time in the house.

We also spent this past weekend planting a vegetable garden in cool crate containers that Silas got from work. We will see how the containers work, since we didn't want to dig up the yard to plant anything. We have some big plans to turn the crates into a cute family project and make them a train, but for now, getting the seeds going was all we got to. Hopefully I will be able to post more soon on how that is going. Most of it depends on the weather and if we can get outside long enough to get anything done! Believe it or not, all of these pictures posted were from this past Saturday, during about a 3 hour window of sun between huge flash flood storms. We took advantage of every second of it possible though!

Monday, May 04, 2009

5 Years

I got to thinking today and realized that I have been working at my job for 5 years this month! Wow. It sure doesn't feel like it has been that long already. I remember graduating from grad school in 2004 and being so excited about getting a "real job." One that would help me pay back all those student loans!!! I never even imagined I would still be there 5 years later. I have definitely complained a lot along the way, but I have to say, this has been one of the best jobs ever for me. I make my own schedule every week, have tons of flexibility, and make good money doing something I enjoy. Sometimes I get bogged down in the office politics, but I sure do have a lot to be grateful for. It is even kind of crazy knowing that we moved an hour and a half away from Searcy, and I am still working for the same company:) It's fabulous! I have been doing contract work part time since Tyson was born and it has been great being able to be at home all day with him and get a few hours of work in the afternoons once Silas gets home. It is a schedule I am hoping to continue once the new little one gets here as well, assuming we can work around feeding schedules:) I love being at home with Tyson, but it feels so good to get dressed, go out and use my brain for a few hours, and then come back home to relax too. I am just like Hannah Montana....I get the best of both worlds:) It is not always easy to balance work and home, since I work a lot from home and can't really separate them, but it's working so far and I am working on being more appreciative of this wonderful opportunity that I have. For any of you that don't know, I am doing therapy with kids and families part-time (about 10-15 hours per week), and also do adoption home studies on a contract basis. These are great, but have been really slow this year since I moved out of the main area I was getting the referrals from. I am also contemplating adding in a couple of hours counseling at our church, which has a private Christian counseling center. Not sure if that will pan out or not, but it would be a nice change from what I usually do:)

Before Tyson was born I could not wait to quit working full time and just have a break from "having" to be somewhere. But go figure...I missed working and have really appreciated the balance it brings to my life. I think the majority of that comes from choosing a profession that fits me well, and having a job that is rewarding and is not just a job. Really this post is more of a pep talk for myself to remind myself how blessed I am, and how thankful I am that God provided me a job that has withstood so many changes over the years:) Now if you will excuse me, I believe I have some paperwork that I haven't finished yet!!

SLO in Arkansas