36 Week Check-Up

As for the reunion...I'm blogging because Justin is at work today. I know. Can we just have a moment of silence for the absurdity of the fact that he was gone for a month and has to work today? But, we are having a baby in a couple of weeks, and he needs to save his vacation days. He has to work a certain number of hours per week or he has to use his vacation time (plus he has a ton of stuff to do after being gone). Oh well. He'll be home tonight. That's a good thing!

I had my check-up a couple of days ago, and things are still going well. I had gained one pound over the two weeks, so now I'm at -2 overall. Not too bad. :-) At this point, I weigh 14 pounds less than I did when I gave birth to Caleb, and I started out this pregnancy heavier than I started his. (And it's not because I've been neglecting my ice cream cravings or Little Debbie snacks, either!) I told the doctor after I have this baby I'll probably end up losing weight for the pregnancy. She said I would and with a good-sized baby, too. I guess this is the benefit of all the months of losing my lunch (and breakfast and dinner). I'll take what I can get.

My c-section is scheduled for 3 weeks from today. Not that I'm counting down or anything. ;-) If I go into labor on my own before then, they will go ahead and take the baby right then, as long as I'm 37 weeks. Since I'll be 37 weeks next Wednesday, we don't have to worry too much. If I go into labor this week, they will try to stop labor, and I'm sure they'll give me the steroid to mature the baby's lungs. If my pregnancy with Caleb is any indication, we really don't need to worry about me going into labor before my scheduled date.

My doctor hasn't tried to "guess" how big this baby will be yet, but I think he's at least as big as his brother was (7lbs 10oz). He's been under my ribs much more than Caleb ever was, and he's definitely an active little guy.

Justin, being the good daddy that he is, bought both Caleb and Levi little stuffed white tigers from the Singapore Night Safari. Caleb ran into Levi's room and put Levi's tiger in his bed for him. Justin was smart to buy two of exactly the same toy so they'll be no squabbling about whose is better. Not that I know any siblings who ever squabbled about such silly matters. :-)

Well, my sister is officially moving tomorrow. I'm sure we'll be busy all weekend helping them unpack and get settled. Not that I'll be much help, but I can sit down and unpack a box with the best of 'em!

Have a great Labor Day weekend!

Life is Good

He's home. Aaaaahhhhhh. It's good.

I was a little worried that Caleb might not respond well at the airport and be in shock that he was actually seeing his daddy in person, but his response was precious. He yelled, "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy!" and ran to him. I couldn't have asked for anything better. It's been so good to see them playing all evening.

Now it's 9:15 and both my boys are in bed. Only the older one is actually sleeping, though. ;-) He's completely exhausted and probably won't remember half the stuff I told him today, but it's so good to have him home again.

And, don't you just love this new design? Thanks, Jules. It's perfect.

Just a Few More Hours

Justin's plane arrives about 1:30 this afternoon (Central time), so we're getting ourselves ready. Caleb woke up on the wrong side of the crib this morning, so I'm hoping he is in a better mood this afternoon, which is not likely since daddy gets back right at nap time!

Thanks for all your prayers for us this past month; they have definitely been answered. The time has passed much more quickly than I imagined it could, and it's hard to believe that reunion day is finally here!

Well, I'm off to shower and actually put on some makeup. I figure Justin will appreciate that since he's been gone for so long, even though he'll have been on a plane for 24 hours and need a shower himself! ;-)

We're just counting down the hours until we leave for the airport now!!!

I'm so giddy I can hardly stand myself...

Justin will be home in less than two days. This time tomorrow he'll be on a plane for the LONG ride home (almost a 24-hour flight). And our family will be reunited after a much-too-long separation.

I'm so happy I'll have my husband back I don't know what to do with myself. :-)

We can be "normal" again.

And then we'll have another baby and "normal" will be redefined once again.

Oh, and I think some of you have prayed about Caleb's behavior and/or my patience level because the last two days have been much better. Thank you for praying, and thank you, Lord, that things have improved!! I told Joy in an email the other day that I didn't think I could take 5 more minutes of being the mommy and the daddy.

Why, indeed?

Last night our neighbors stopped by with their twin girls (5 years old) to deliver the cinnamon rolls and cookie dough Justin had ordered from their fundraiser (the man loves some pastries!).

One of the girls said,

"Why doesn't Mr. Justin live here with you anymore?"

::big, huge sigh::

An Attempt At An Update

I'm so tired I can hardly form coherent thoughts lately, but I'll try to write something so when my mom clicks over here, she sees something new (and all of you as well). Literally, my brain is so mushy I can't have a conversation without saying, "what's that word...?" :-) I don't know why pregnant women can't sleep well; it just seems mean because I'm not going to be sleeping at all in a month, so I need all I can get now.

So, here's what's going on over here in bullet form. As I mentioned above, narrative form would just be too hard right now.

• I'm not sleeping. ::sigh::
• I'm READY for my husband to come home NOW. Thankfully, we have less than a week left.
  
• I'm having Braxton-Hicks contractions like crazy. Every time I stand up, my belly gets rock hard. It's not painful, but pretty uncomfortable.
• I told Levi that as soon as his daddy gets home, he's free to make his appearance at any time. Scheduled c-section or not. I'm READY.
• My sister and I have had several conversations about how she never reached this stage of pregnancy where she was uncomfortable all the time and was ready to NOT be pregnant. It's because she had a FOUR-POUND BABY. In JANUARY.
• I'm not one of those women who really enjoys being pregnant. I just don't feel good when I'm pregnant, especially at this stage. My mom and my sister both say they missed being pregnant after they had their babies. I do not feel that way.
• Caleb is watching way too much TV lately since it's stinking hot outside, and, well, all the reasons above.
• He can officially count to ten now. It freaked out the nursery worker at church a couple of weeks ago. She was like, "who's counting?" since all the kids in there are between 1 and 2 years old.
• Since his daddy has been gone, Caleb has cut two teeth and become quite the little sassy-pants. He's gotten in trouble lately for telling me "NO" when asked to do something. And one of his favorite words is "mine," said in a sassy little way. I've tried hard not to even say that around him; I don't know where he picked it up. I wish it would go away.

When I summon more brain power, I'll try to write something more interesting and maybe even more uplifting. Let's all hope!

I love that man

My favorite flowers delivered on our anniversary.

Start Praying Now

...that Hurricane Dean does not make its way into the Gulf of Mexico and head our way. All I need next week is to be 35 weeks pregnant with an almost-2-year-old and my 85-year-old grandmother and two dogs, with a husband out of the country trying to evacuate this place. During the madness of Hurricane Rita two years ago, we were trying to get home from the hospital after having Caleb when millions of people were stuck on the highways. It was madness, and I'd like to not repeat that this time around.

Thanks!

Relief in the Form of a 12-Year-Old

My cousin's daughter came last Sunday night and spent 4 nights with us, entertaining Caleb and helping me out. It's been a while since I entered the world of a 12-year-old girl; it's been, well, since I was about 12. It was enlightening, to say the least.

Monday I promised her that we would watch Titanic after Caleb went to sleep. Because what's better to a 12-year-old girl than Leonardo DiCaprio circa 1997. (And, yes, we skipped right past a couple of questionable scenes that I was not going to be responsible for her seeing on my watch.) I cannot convey her great disappointment when she found out the movie was made in 1997. It was so long ago. Yeah, like the year I was graduating from high school. (There's nothing like a 12-year-old to make you feel OLD at 28.) She was crushed. So she was 2 when the movie came out, what's the big deal? Oh, my friends, it was a big deal. Leo's, like, well over 30 now, and we all know that is ANCIENT.

She spent most of the rest of her free time this week looking up all things Leo and Kate and Titanic on the internet. (Did you know that Kate Winslet and Leo DiCaprio are 15 months apart in age? She did the math. Trust me on this one.) Obsessed, maybe? Oh, and don't think we only watched the movie once. No, sir. She asked me if she could watch it again the.very.next.day. That movie is SO long. But, she's 12. And Leo is SO CUTE. And it's SO ROMANTIC. (Gag me with a spoon was what I was thinking. I'm getting so cynical in my old age. It's probably the hormones and the fact that my husband is on the other side of the world on our 5th anniversary.)

I forgot what it was like to be 12. Now I remember.

Within the first 5 minutes of cousin R being at our house, she said, "Jennifer, did you know that Nonnie (her grandmother) knows Hillary and Haley Duff's mother?"

me: no, I didn't
R: she does. She even has her phone number and her email address.
me: really?
R: yes. Isn't that cool?
me: way cool, R.

Oh, and High School Musical 2 is premiering on the Disney Channel tonight, so R had to go home because she and her sister are having a big HM2 premiere shindig at their house tonight. I'm sure there will be lots of giggling and singing and dancing and regular junior-high-girl-craziness going on.

But, seriously, she was a doll and a huge help with Caleb. (She did inform me when she arrived that she doesn't "do" dirty diapers!) :-) He was missing her like crazy when she left.

My grandmother came on Tuesday to help out for a couple of days and take R home yesterday. Every room in my house is clean, all my laundry is done, and there are no dishes in my sink. I can't tell you the last time that happened.

Caleb and I are headed to a sweet friend's house after he wakes up from his nap. Justin spent our anniversary with people from work at a "team-building" activity, and I'm spending it at dinner with a friend letting her two kids entertain and tire out Caleb. Should be fun!

5 Years and Counting

Today we've been married 5 years. I can't believe it's been that long, and, yet, it seems like I've known Justin my whole life. We've been through a lot in the last 5 years...the death of my Pawpaw right after we married, living apart for a year for a project Justin was on, becoming parents for the first time, enduring more separation for this current project, expecting our second child in about a month, and lots and lots and lots of laughs.

I'm WAY too emotional right now to do a really sappy post, so I give you, "The Wedding Cake Incident of 2002" in pictures...

Our beautiful cake my aunt and grandmother made for us:

Wedding Cake Incident 2002 begins

Me, shocked that my husband of one hour just got cake all over my forehead and in my hair. Apparently he was aiming for my nose and I ducked my head. Notice the cake on the floor...

"Do you see what you did?" :-)

Close-up

My sweet husband wiping the cake off my face

If I didn't tell you that I started the Wedding Cake Incident, Justin would probably break his record of never commenting on this blog to tell you that I started it. People started booing us after we just fed each other the cake, and I caved to the peer pressure. It made a funny memory, though. :-)

Maybe sometime I'll post the pictures of my best friend, Lisa, snatching the tossed bouquet out of my sister's hand! That was pretty awesome to watch, too. I think Lisa figured since Kimberly was already engaged, she didn't need any more help!

And just for grins, us being pelted by silly string by some unnamed groomsmen

I love you, babe, and I always will. And all the sappy stuff I said last year when I wasn't pregnant and on the other side of the world from you is still true. You are my best friend and the most amazing man I know. Now, come home already!

I'm posting this early and post-dating it because it already is our anniversary in Singapore!

Belly Pics--33 Weeks

This baby is definitely growing! Justin saw me on the webcam the other day and said my belly looked bigger than it did when he left (of course, pregnancy is the only time he would say that!!). It has grown quite a bit in the last two weeks, and you can really tell by looking at the picture from four weeks ago.

33 weeks:

29 Weeks:

17 Weeks:

Advice Needed

All of you seasoned c-sections moms...

It occurred to me recently that I'm not going to be able to lift Caleb for a while after I have this baby (a month, maybe?). He weighs about 26 pounds, and that's definitely over the, "don't lift anything heavier than the baby" requirement.

So, I think we need to move Caleb to a toddler bed. I don't want to, since he's doing fine in his crib, now that we turned it around!, and he's not even 2 yet. He has a convertible crib, where the front comes off and two little pieces are added to each side. I'm not looking forward to the energy it will require those first few nights to make him get back in his bed 1,000 times. And he's not old enough for the "big boy bed" logic.

Any advice? Is there any way to keep him in the crib and not have to lift him? Please offer your suggestions!!

And, everyone else who's ever moved a child to a toddler bed, your advice is welcome as well. We're treading in new waters here.

Encouragement

JMom at Lots of Scotts has written a poignant post that encourages those of us "in the trenches" of mothering little ones.

Here's an excerpt:

"The truest stories of heroism and grace of God are found in the walking (sometimes trudging) through the day-to-day, unpredictable challenges of life.

We are called to live with an eternal perspective, with our eyes fixed on "things above," yet the reality is that Moms of little ones spend a lot of our day wiping poopy bottoms, cleaning toilets and dirty floors, trying to shape and mold character of people who still fall apart over spilled milk and the wrong kind of cookies.

What would it look like if we could pray for the ability to REALLY view this all as work for the glory of God? I am going to try. Care to join me?"

Lately I feel like every day there is an unpredictable challenge and the rest of the time I'm dealing with predictable challenges!

Read her whole post here.

Quick Update (lots of random thoughts)

We're back from my parent's house. It was good to go there and spend some time with the whole family (we had a family get-together on Saturday to meet my grandmother's "friend"--a whole other post).

Justin took our webcam with him to Singapore, and we borrowed my mom's, so we were able to talk to him over it this morning. It was good to actually see his face, and Caleb really enjoyed seeing Daddy and showing off for him. Technology can be a wonderful thing!

At my appointment last week, I had gained 2 pounds! :-) Everything still looks good, and we were able to schedule my c-section. Luckily, it won't be on Caleb's birthday, just the day after. Looks like we'll be having joint parties for a long time!! (Until Caleb gets tired of having Levi's friends at his birthday party.)

Here are some pictures of Caleb and Ava from this weekend...

These two look just like their daddies:


Caleb loves his Ava! Here he is giving her a kiss:


And kissing her hands:


The other day, Caleb kissed my belly and said, "Dat sweet." Can you tell we say that to him a lot?

My dad and Kurt took Caleb fishing for the first time on Saturday morning. As soon as I get the pictures from my dad's camera, I'll get them on here. They are SO cute! My dad couldn't be more tickled that Caleb enjoyed it since he bought him his own fishing pole when he was born and has been waiting for the day Caleb was old enough to go with him. Male bonding at its finest!

My mom just left to go back home and Caleb's napping, so it's time for me to go and get some rest, too. It's stopped raining here (finally!), and now it's hotter than ever. I broke a sweat walking to my car in the driveway from the garage. The heat makes me SO tired...like I needed any help with that.