Waiting

I do have a few pictures to post, not sure when I'll do it.  I'm working hard on Christmas presents for people, and that takes any time I do feel like sitting at the computer.  Which isn't often because it isn't really comfortable at this point!

Just waiting on baby.  Last week (37 weeks) my midwife had very positive things to say after she checked me out and really thought the baby would come any time.  Tuesday I was having lots of very painful contractions, cramping, and I was downright misreable.  Then by Friday things started feeling better.  Saw my OB on Monday and I actually went backwards.  Yep.  I was looking less like I'd be delivering anytime soon.  Baby is very happy where he/she is.  Kinda depressing.  I don't feel great.  I have zero energy.  I get contractions that hurt quite a bit and guess what?  All for nothing.

I made a paper chain from now till Dec. 18th of at least one thing a day I can do because we don't have baby yet.  Things like going to see Santa in the Park on Friday night or a special Christmas Concert I always look forward to this Sunday.  Trying to be optimistic!

My actual due date is the 13th, but tomorrow (Thursday) will be 38 weeks, 2 days-the date I delivered Rosebud.  After that it will be the longest I've ever been pregnant.  I have a great debate up on Facebook on what date people think I'll deliver and if it is a boy or a girl.  Maybe I'll make a spreadsheet.  But not now because I'm already hurting from sitting here.

I'll keep you posted.

1 Little...

 One Little

 2 Little

 3 Little Indians!

Snug has his shirt from preschool last year, Little Monkey Man made one this year.  I took a little undershirt that was badly stained and headed for the rag box and stained it with tea, fringed it, and put some stamps on it.  Rosebud now has her own!

This is LMM at his Thanksgiving program at school.  He sang very nicely and enjoyed all the attention!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Survival Of The Fittest Fattest

#1 had SWAT training this weekend which means we were in the "40 hours with no daddy" weekend that we have once a month or so.  This was going to be the toughest by far as I am not quick on my feet, feeling great, having tons of patience, or up to going out in public with the kids alone.

Friday afternoon as I was feeling sorry for my self and thinking of devouring a gallon of ice cream I decided I had better snap out of it.  It wasn't going to help anything.  Aside from falling down the stairs again (did that 2 weeks ago, baby and I are both fine) I wasn't going to be able to have #1 take any time off...they are at minimum manning almost every day.  So I decided to man up.  Or whatever.

I wrote down a list of things that sounded like very little effort on my part but fun for the kids to do.  Then I made a list of things that should get done.  Then I made a list of things that HAD to get done this weekend or we'd be living in a complete pig sty.

I put each item on a slip of paper and put them in a jar.  This morning when the kids got up it was so tempting to turn on the TV, lay on the couch, and then listen to them argue and whine all day.  But I didn't want that.  So I got out the jar and explained the "game" to the kids.  They were instantly hooked and very excited.

The boys got to take turns picking a slip out of the jar.  After the item was done, we picked out another one.  Meals and "quiet time" aka naps were at their normal times, not included in the jar.  I warned them some things would be jobs, but they were happy to do whatever knowing that the next slip of paper might be something fun.

We pulled "get dressed" out of the jar at 10:30, and then "take a bath" came out at 11:00.  So they got undressed, bathed, and re-dressed.  They thought that was funny.  Teeth were not brushed till 4pm, but I figured one day wouldn't kill us.

The slips of paper took us from 7:30am till 6:45pm.  I had no idea how long it would take, and actually took one out that wouldn't work after dark (run around the house 5 times) when I realized it hadn't happened yet at 6pm. Here are a few things we did.  Although I would HATE to run my daily life at random, this really worked for us this difficult weekend.

Fun:
Play-Doh
Make/Paint Thanksgiving napkin rings
Mommy reads a book to you (in the jar twice)
Take a bath alone (they took turns, they usually have to all go at the same time, this was a treat)
Play in basement
Play a round of "Sorry"
Play a Thanksgiving game Snug brought home from school
Run around the house 5 times (didn't use)
Skype with grandparents

Should Get Done:
Get dressed
Brush Teeth
Practice sight words
Phonics practice (Snug) letter ID practice (LMM)
Snug read to mommy
Clean up bedrooms
Get the mail

Had To Get Done:
Sweep and Vacuum
Empty Dishwasher
Load of laundry (in the jar two times)
Feed the pets
Stuff/fold/put away diapers

So that's what we did.  And even things like the laundry were fun because I got the kids involved.  I'm not supposed to be carrying laundry baskets up and down the stairs after my fun fall so the boys worked together and did it for me.  They were quite pleased.  I even let them "shoot" the laundry into the washer so the job was done quickly and without whining.  Things went well until bedtime when an over tired member of the family finally fell apart, but overall, we survived and now they are all sleeping.  I'm labeling this post as a boredom buster because, as you see, we were not bored!  We didn't even go anywhere...we didn't even watch TV!  

I have a cute Thanksgiving craft we made the other day to post, and pics of Little Monkey man's Thanksgiving program at school...I'll try later.

36 Weeks

I'm not a big belly shot girl.  I think I did it twice with Rosebud, and never with the boys.  But here it is.  The biggest belly I've ever sported.  Last week at the OB I weighed 10 more pounds than I did the day I delivered either boy, and eight more than when I delivered Rosebud.  This week I had lost 2 lbs...certainly not due to my lack of eating or eating healthier, I assure you!

 I feel like an elephant, although I realize I really am not that huge.  It just feels like it.

Officially four weeks till my due date.  Here's hoping I don't have to go that long!

Pin?

This is my "pin".  I "pinned" it today.  On Pintrest.  Which I don't understand.  I can pin off of something someone else pinned on Pintrest.  But can I pin anything I see anywhere online?  Help!!!  Someone let me know what to do!!!!  This seems really neat...but I don't know how to use it.

Alphabitty Moments "A"

Thanks to Carrie for hosting Alphabitty moments!  I am taking pictures of a book I'm making in Shutterfly for my kids...whenever I get a free book again.  I can't seem to figure out how to just save a copy of the page I'm working on, so I took pictures with my camera.  That works too I guess!
Check out her blog and other people's moments!

Bunk Beds and Halloween

Ah, a week after Halloween this mom is finally going to post some pictures.  But first things first.  Today the bunk bed is complete.  I blog about lots of milestones, and I think moving from toddler beds to big boy beds is a milestone!

 Snug got to start sleeping up top of the bunk bed when we first got home from camp back in July.  He was way too big for a toddler bed, and we found this bunk that was very stable and had stairs...too many little people around here that I didn't want falling off a ladder.  The bottom bunk wasn't assembled, just left like a loft with Little Monkey Man's toddler bed sticking out from under it.

 After I caught LMM launching himself from the top bunk to the toddler bed and then climbing back up without using the stairs, I decided it was time to build the bottom bunk and get rid of the toddler bed.  It was really hard.  I wasn't ready for him to be that big.  But I also wasn't ready for him to split his head open from the top bunk.

 And boy, was he excited to get into a big boy bed.

*sigh*

Ok, now to long overdue Halloween pictures.

 The kids and I got to go to a costume party the Saturday before Halloween.  Like my costume???

 I didn't take great pictures of the kids that night because I was planning on going trick-or-treating with them.

 I'll have to get Rosebud all dressed up again and get a picture for myself because these are the only three I have of her in costume  :o(  Anyway, she was a fairy princess, and sooo stinkin' cute.  I made her costume, which is my favorite part of Halloween.  I made Snug's too, but not LMM's this year.  We borrowed the Tigger costume that we had borrowed for Snug when he was three.  Tigger just really fits his personality!

Halloween I was so sick I wanted to kick the bucket, but thanks to an awesome lens from my aunt, I was able to take pictures of the kids carving pumpkins with their daddy.

 I was totally grossed out to witness Little Monkey Man eat mouthfuls of pumpkin.  I mean, I know it is edible...but ew!

 I guess what doesn't kill him makes him stronger!

 Snug had very specific ideas about how his pumpkin should look.  He still doesn't use the knife, maybe next year.

 #1 was so good.  He carved pumpkins, got on costumes, and even took pictures before they left.  It was the first time he'd been off work on Halloween since Snug was 2 months old.  We had a big family night planned, but that didn't happen.

 Rosebud didn't get dressed up for the outing.  It was really chilly and #1 had done so much.  I was too sick to care.  These pictures took forever to post because, for privacy, I had to do some photoshop work (albeit not great work) to take #1's department name off Snug's costume.

  He was so proud to be wearing "daddy's uniform".  I have to laugh that he picked the pink bucket.  I"m sure my husband was laughing...or not.

Little Monkey Man's pumpkin is on the left.  He wanted a smiley one.  Snug wanted a pumpkin that was "scary".  I was kinda surprised...then he explained it was supposed to look "scared".  I love how #1 set them so that it looks like Snug's is scared of LMM's.  So cute!

Well, another long post, but I am so busy I end up shoving all my pictures into long posts instead of posting daily.  I don't think that life is going to slow down anytime soon, do you?

What To Do On A Rainy Day...

I've added a new "label" to my sidebar (see bottom left side of blog) called "Boredom Busters".  If you live in a large area of our country, the next few months are sure to bring many inside days with little people.  My ideas are (usually) not new or unique to me, but I try to share some things that work for us!  

Welcome to anyone visiting from Jenilee's "Just Because Blog Hop"!  Glad you're here!  I"m Jenney, mom to three (almost 4) kiddos, and I run a home daycare.  My husband is a police officer, and I blog about that occasionally too.  Mostly though, about family life.  

Today's activity was one I had done with my remedial kindergarten class WAY back.  I was reminded of it though as my boys were vegged out watching Sid the Science Kid on Monday.  While I was laid up with my lovely bug, they watched as much TV as they would normally in two weeks.  All in the name of survival, I assure you!

SLIME!!!!

 What you'll need:
Mixing bowl (I used a large measuring cup)
Cornstarch
Water
Measuring cups
Food coloring (optional)

 The recipe technically calls for equal parts water and cornstarch, but I really think it depends somewhat on the temperature you're working at.  Today we needed a tad more cornstarch.  Snug enjoyed using a 1/4 c. because we've been talking in homeschool about four quarters equaling a whole.  For those of you who didn't realize, yes I homeschool Snug as well as send him to the local public kindergarten.  His district only offers kindergarten two, sometimes three days a week, so we homeschool the days he doesn't attend.  It really has been the best of both worlds.

 Little Monkey Man was in charge of water.  We ended up using 1/2 c. water and nearly 3/4 c. of cornstarch.

Next the boys got busy mixing.  I should have put the food coloring in at this point, because by the time we did our slime was pretty stiff when mixed quickly (when mixed slowly it oozes nicely).  

Yep, it was messy.  Our table (and a little of my camera) had cornstarch all over it.  However, it cleans up VERY easy.  Just water and a washcloth.  We talked about how to make purple, as Little Monkey Man has been doing lots with colors in his preschool.  We used one drop of blue and two drops of red and it made a lovely purple color.  

I had the boys use the trays we use for grilling out (clean, of course) to play on.  Little Monkey Man lasted...about three minutes.  His sensory issues did NOT enjoy the slime.  Although he is sensory seeking, he likes to be able to control what input he gets.  This slime is so unpredictable he ended up shaking his hands and screaming.  It was still good for him to have the experience.  I washed his hands and he played in the beans and trucks instead.

You seriously have to try this some yucky day and let me know how it goes!  Check out the other "Boredom Busters" and try them too!  *It may take me a little while to find them all and label them...just sayin'.

34 Weeks

Well, week #34 of pregnancy came in with a bang.

Sunday night 11:30 Snug woke up vomiting.  I was up with him about three times, but he would go right back to sleep.  He was fine by lunch Monday.

Monday morning 4am I woke up with awful stomach pain.  It just kept getting worse.  I missed trick-or-treat, I missed pumpkin carving, and I hardly cared.  Whatever bug this was, the sheer pain was way worse than the exiting of food from my body.  Add that to a super active baby constantly pushing on me the pain was almost unbearable at times.  And from laying down too much, I was having lots of contractions-nice hurting ones.

Tuesday was my official 34 week mark (I was told originally that it was marked on Sundays, so I've been counting off by 2 days this whole time.  Guess it really doesn't matter).  I felt somewhat better, not nearly the pain, but still not hardly eating.  Hungry?  Yes.  But the minute I ate I felt terrible again.  Lost 5 lbs.

Today, Wednesday, I can eat in small quantities, but I have no energy.  I feel like someone has beat me up.  I do have Halloween pictures from a party we attended Saturday night.  And I took a few pictures thanks to my new lens from my aunt (I was laying so far away other wise I wouldn't have gotten much) of the kids carving pumpkins with daddy.

Hats off to #1 who has been off since his last shift Sunday night...he's gotten so much laundry done, kept the house in order, and gotten kids to and from school.  I do not know what I would do without him.  I do know that I am really ready to be 37 weeks and then hopefully have this baby!!!!