Wednesday again?!

No, I'm not cleaning the bathroom today, but I did notice it's starting to need it...how does that happen?

I had a doctor's appt today and nothing has really changed. I was really uncomfortable last week but this week has been much better. Maybe the baby just moved around or something. I'm progressing the same I was with Caleb at this time in the pregnancy so I'm thinking she will be late rather than early--Caleb was a week late. I think I'm okay with that now. :) Whether or not I am, I guess it doesn't really matter, huh? :)

For Greg

Greg is Andy's sister's husband who is an engineer for the air force. We were at our friends' house for dinner and he is getting his PhD in some sort of engineering and told us a joke that we thought Greg (and Alisa) would enjoy.

The optimist thinks the glass is half full, the pessimist thinks the glass is half empty, and the engineer thinks the glass is twice the size it needs to be.

I laughed pretty hard. :)

Random Things

On Thursday we were at Grandma's and Caleb found the container of bubbles. I agreed to blow bubbles but when I opened it he told me he wanted to do it "self"--or by himself. He totally blew the bubbles! I was so impressed. Actually I think he said, "want to try it" which was one of the first times I'd heard that phrase and I thought it was really cute. At one point it didn't work and he told me, "too hard" or maybe it was even "blow too hard," I can't remember, but I was amazed. When did he learn that? It's been a while since we've played with bubbles and maybe I've said that he blew too hard before, but I was still amazed at how much he remembers. A couple weeks ago we were organizing his closet and going through everything to get out what we would need for a new baby. I had stored away a diaper pail that I haven't used since Twin Falls (July), and Caleb pointed to it and said "diapers." How on earth did he remember that?! It makes me wonder what else he remembers and how far back.

Speaking of rearranging, I've been trying to get things ready for the addition to our family. I've had major nesting instincts going on for weeks now and have been dying to organize all closets, etc. However, I haven't gotten to it for one reason or another. I did do the closet in Caleb's room where most baby stuff is stored and sorted all that out and reorganized the closet, but since then I haven't done nearly what I would like to do. A week or so ago I put up the pack and play in our room and moved the bed over to make room on my side. I've slowly been organizing our room and the closet and today while Andy's at work, Caleb and I have been working on it some more. I've just decided to use three of the drawers in my dresser for baby girl stuff and today packed away sweaters and socks that went in the drawers and that I probably won't use. (Two of the drawers are little ones.) I'm washing all the clothes I have for her along with towels and blankets and am so excited to fold them up and put them in the drawer. So funny, huh? I was at Walmart the other day buying diapers and I bought some of the little newborn diapers with the little dip for the umbilical cord and it was so fun. While I was there I browsed the clearance items and found a super cute little onesie (spelling?) and bought it. I still need to rearrange the hall closet and have a bit more to go on my room before I'll feel like it's done.

On Thursday Andy had worked a really long day. He'd had a harder day on Wednesday and felt like he didn't get that much done so Thursday he billed around 12 hours and was at work for more than that. He came home exhausted a little after 11:00 and I was awake and chatty. Then I thought that maybe I should call the doctor because I'd been wondering if I had been leaking amniotic fluid since my doctors appt the day before. I called and of course the doctor on call told me to go into the hospital. I wasn't leaking amniotic fluid, but it took till 3:00 am to figure it out be done at the hospital and Andy had stayed up a bit excited thinking this might be it. I felt pretty dumb when it wasn't and I had kept Andy up. While I was at the hospital I thought of all these things I still wanted to do before the baby came and how unprepared I felt. I think we would all manage fine if the clothes hadn't been washed or any of the other things that ran thorugh my mind weren't done. But it was interesting to think about. Andy came home from work on Friday and fell into bed--no surprise. He did get a descent night's rest last night and hopefully will be able to finish his projects today. I felt bad, but I think he's going to be okay too.

Caleb likes to tell "Annika Ruby" )the name we have pickout out but could possibly change--nothings definite until we write it on her birth certificate) things that are going on. He either says "see tummy" or "see An'ka Ruby" and then will sometimes "read" stories to her or tell her about things. Today we were playing on the bed and he started jumping on the bed and said, "An'ka Ruby yikes it." Apparently Annika Ruby likes it when Caleb jumps on the bed. :)

One other random thought. My plants are not dead, but they went through a pretty tough time at Christams. The fern is really close to dying, but there is one new little leaf that I keep watching and thinking maybe it will grow. The peace lily that Andy gave me when we were dating suffered as well but is still alive but down to about six leaves. The plant is amazing and I am terrible with plants.

Time passing

There are some ways that time passes so very quickly. One of the fastest ways for me is how fast time passes between bathroom cleanings. I hate cleaning the bathroom. I cleaned it last Monday. Has it really been a full week? I didn't clean it today even though it was on my list. I don't have a particular day I clean the bathroom and although I would like to clean it every week it often turns into about every 10 days. Those days pass so quickly!! Before you know it, it is always time to clean the bathroom...

Caleb loves his little sister

Caleb loves to put his cheek up against my belly and say hi to his baby sister. It seems like he really understand that there is a baby in there and she's going to come out. Sometimes he asks for her to come out and I tell him we have to wait. He is so cute and loving to Zocima, Jasper's little sister and I think it's really helped seeing Zocima become part of Kaedra's life and seeing how much Jasper loved his little sister. I absolultely love how much Caleb loves to press his cheek up to my tummy. He likes to go skin to skin and the other day in church he was trying to pull my shirt up to see my belly and kept saying, "see the tummy! see the tummy!" and I was trying hard to distract him. :)

Daddy and Caleb

After the bath Caleb wanted Daddy.

Valentines Dinner

Tonight Andy and Caleb made dinner for me. They got out the cookbook Mike gave Andy last year: A Man, A Can, and a Grill, and found a recipe for BBQ pizza. After a trip to Albertons they came home with a can of sun dried tomatoes, Pillsbury pizza crust, and ceasar salad dressing. The pizza turned out awesome! He grilled the chicken and then grilled the crust a bit. After one side was cooked he put the dressing, chicken, cheese and tomatoes then grilled the bottom. After he drizzled some of the oil from the tomatoes on the pizza. It was heavy but totally tasted like a resturant. He was so pleased with himself. Caleb started out helping but our grill is old and crazy and when Andy lit it a flame burst out and scared Caleb (don't worry Caleb wasn't anywhere close enough to get hurt). So he didn't help with the grilling. We also salad, applesauce, and sugar cookies for dessert. Happy Valentines Day!

New Bike Seat

We should have bought one of these a year ago...

Sledding in the Hallway

Last night while I was at the baby shower, Andy and Caleb got out the sleeping bags and put them in the hallway. Then Andy pulled Caleb on the sled on the sleeping bag. He loved it!! This morning they showed me how they were doing it and I got a video.

Adrienne's Baby Shower

So last night I helped throw a shower for a friend of mine. I asked another lady I know to help me with the food. She is like the party throwing queen and amazing with food and decor and asked me what direction I wanted to go with the shower. It took some time before I got across to her that I wanted it whatever direction she thought would be interesting and good and I had no preference other than to learn from one of the best. She decided on a formal dinner of "french peasant food" and came up with an amazing menu and gave directions on how to set it all up. Unfortunately she had a family emergency and had to leave town on Thursday so we got together Wednesday and I helped (i.e. watched and learned) as she made up Poulet A' La Creme and Rice Pilaf and a Winter Squash and Caramelized Onion Tart. It turned out oh so delicious and we were all said that she couldn't make it. Other ladies brought bread, fruit, and chocolate mousse. It was really, really good. I took a few pictures--none of which capture anything and Adrienne was annoyed since I just kept snapping candids. :) I wish I could have gotten a good picture of the whole spread. It really looked great and tasted even better.

Andy's input on the update

Andy said I was this way with Caleb and have just forgotten. He also said this morning as I was whining, "You're becoming less of a person and more of a fetus carrying apparatus." I laughed. True, true.

Update

I just thought I'd update you all on my pregnancy. Actually it's 4:30 in the morning and I can't sleep and I just want to tell someone how I feel SO CRAMPED! A week ago or so I was comfortably pregnant, as possible as that is. I have had a super easy pregnancy--hardly got sick, was very healthy, etc. I am still healthy, other than congestion that won't go away, but I really feel like I'm running out of room. I'm beginning to wonder, and kind of hope, if we will have a February baby rather than a March one. My doctor will begin checking me next Wednesday to see if anything is happening. The baby has dropped a bit which means I'm going to the bathroom a whole lot more. However, it might just be because there is no more room. She's already pushing up into my diaphragm so much. She likes to get right into my ribs in a position I'm assuming works for her, but not for her mother! I also get the charlie horse equivalent in my lower abdomen especially at night when I move the wrong way. I suppose there is still room somehow, somewhere, but it's really getting tight! I am having way more difficulty picking stuff up and bending over. I don't remember it being like this with Caleb. Perhaps I've just forgotten. :) I know it's normally difficult for woman who are 8 months pregnant to pick things up off the floor and generally bend over, so really I shouldn't be complaining...We'll see when this baby comes. I still want to organize a couple closets more and I don't know if I'm entirely ready. Hopefully I'll have some time in the next week to get some of that done. Alisa, I'm sorry, your kids' presents are still a ways from being finished. I haven't worked on them much since Christmas time and I'm afraid David will have outgrown it by the time I finish...

Jam time at the Hyers

Caleb danced around as Andy played the guitar. I didn't get great shots and Andy wouldn't let me post a video of him playing...it was really cute though. Then we sang and played together and it was really fun. Someday I will learn how to play the guitar. I took a class at BYU during a very busy semester and didn't practice much and the only song I can kind of play is Last Kiss by Pearl Jam. So we sang and played that one.

Smile!

The other day Caleb looked so cute in the bath so I got the camera and then he wasn't looking the right way so I told him to look at the camera and smile. This is what I got. Now whenever we tell him to smile he scrunches up his face and shows a lot of teeth.

So I did something tonight I haven't done in ages. I took a shower (that I do regularly, don't worry :)), did my hair, changed my clothes, and put on make-up late at night for no other reason than that it made me feel oh so much better about life. We've all had colds this week and Andy's worked at home a couple days. I haven't gotten ready for about a week and I got a cold sore on my lip (GROSS!!). It was driving me crazy to look in the mirror so I decided to shower and blow dry my hair with a round brush and put on something besides an old T-shirt. I never blow dry my hair with a round brush so I'm not very good at it. I find it incredibly tedious and the thought of doing it every day is...well, that's why I don't do it and why my hair is usually in a ponytail or something. I must say I thought my reflection in the mirror looked nice. However the pictures still didn't look so hot but I'll post them anyway. At least Caleb looks cute and you can see my 8 month pregnant profile. :)

"Ticky" Dump Truck

Okay, I tried to copy a picture of the front of the book but it wouldn't let me so you'll have to click on Big Bigger Biggest Trucks and Diggers if you want to see the book.

For Christmas Grandpa Mike sent Caleb a book about Caterpillar digging machines. When the box arrived in the mail (after Christmas since they sent it so we would get it at home)I told Caleb it was a box from Grandpa Mike and we could open it when Daddy got home. He loves Grandpa Mike (it could be the name...no, he really does like you Mike :)) and he was thrilled with his new book. Andy thought the DVD it came with was really cool and they watched it together and that was the longest Caleb had ever stood still and watched the TV. He was really fixated by the trucks and diggers scooping and dumping dirt.

We've read this book so many times in the last month and Caleb can name most of the machines and tell you something about them. He likes to point out where the driver sits and that the driver has to wear a hat and a number of other things. I even had a dream about Cat Machines about a week ago! Caleb's favorite is the Articulated Dump Truck which he calls the "Ticky Dump Truck" and today we saw them in action. They are doing a lot of construction between Boise and Nampa and adding new roads so many of the machines the book talks about are used to make roads. I could name them. I was pretty impressed with myself.

A Miracle

I really shouldn’t post this considering four days is by no means a permanent habit; however, I’m thrilled with even the four days. For the last four nights, Caleb has gone to sleep in his crib with his stuffed dog (thanks Grandma Evie) without crying when I leave the room. For the last five months or so I’ve been laying on the floor beside his crib, my head on a pillow, until he falls asleep. Sometimes I’m fine with this since I just have to lay there and I’m often tired. But it gets frustrating when I try to leave and he wakes up and cries, or more recently, “Lie down on the pillow!” (Yes, he can say that complete phrase including the article and preposition.) We have never done the complete cry it out method, but a few times when it’s taking forever and I have things to do, I’ve let him cry a bit and then go back in after I’ve done something. I’ve been really nervous about what was going to happen when the baby came and thinking of different ways I could help him ease into, none of which seemed to be working. Then the miracle just happened. I had a lot to do one night and it was late. I put him in his crib after our nightly bedtime ritual, but instead of laying down beside his crib, I gave him his dog, told him he had a picture of the temple with Angel Moroni, by his crib (we had bought it and hung it up that day and Caleb loves the Angel Moroni on the temple) and a picture of Jesus on the wall. Then I walked out of the room waiting for the wails and it was silent. I couldn’t believe it. I tiptoed into our room where Andy was reading and told him that Caleb was still awake. I was dumbfounded. I took a shower and he didn’t cry. I went to bed. The next night it was the same. And the next and the next.

I don’t know if this will continue, but I am still grateful no matter what happens. I think it proper to thank both Grandma Evie for the stuffed animals that Caleb really likes, Andy for trying to get Caleb attached to the dog and bed by dressing the dog in pajamas and naming him Mike the dog, and to my mother who has faith to move mountains and I’m sure has been praying knowing my concern with number two coming so soon. (Mike, I hope you’re okay with having the dog named after you. He really likes the name Mike.)

Camping in the living room

A couple weeks ago Andy was playing with Caleb on a Saturday evening and go the idea to set up our tent in the living room. He thought it would be fun to sleep out there but after playing with Caleb and getting tired, he changed his mind. But they had a really fun time setting up and playing in the tent.

Tail end of Chistmas

After returning from Utah, we held our final Christmas celebration in Nampa with Granda and Janell. Here are some videos that are a bit difficult to see and honestly not the greatest footage, but I figure grandparents don't care if the footage isn't that great, right? :)

Listening to my own voice makes me cringe a bit, but it is cute of Caleb and mickey dancing around.

Janell bought Caleb a bunch of cars to play with when he comes to visit their house and containers to put the toys in. The container is just as interesting as the toys.

Uncle Daniel bought the jacket for Caleb and Caleb likes that Daddy has a matching sweatshirt.