No, Daddy, you need to eat!

We have been praying about Natalie's eating lately, as she has seemed to want to snack more. And, we have seen God working in this as she has gotten excited about cleaning her plate. We cheer when we clean our plate now.
Today, Woody was having lunch with his coworkers instead of eating lunch with us before he left for work. As I was preparing Natalie and my food, Woody prepared to leave. He awaited his normal hugs and kisses. But, Natalie piped up and said, "No, Daddy, you need to eat!" So, she is picking up on our words and concern and putting it to try and help others!

Why smart parents do not put Playdough within easy reach of their kids

This is what happens during "naptime" sometimes lately, although it hasn't been as messy as this!

Quick Getaway

We haven't really planned an outing in a while, so we went on the spur of the moment to a park for a picnic and wading in a mountainous stream. It was a longer drive than I remembered, so one of my memories is getting my exercise running to find the bathroom (which was further than I remembered!). Several people looked at me kind of strange as I zipped by. Of course, later I saw a visitor drive right up to the bathroom on the walkpaths, which was kind of funny because that would have been what I had wanted to do at the time!

Picnic time (fast PB&J sandwiches, plus some healthier sides)
Natalie kept wanting to skip lunch so she could go in the stream. We finally were able to get a few bites of food into her and then she happily put on the swimsuit. And, yes, I did at least put my feet in the water.
It was a great memory to make, maybe the last little trip for the 3 of us before baby. We stopped as we went through peach country to pick up some peaches on the way back. They had something called a peach slushie there. It really tasted good! Natalie drank that and then fell fast asleep on the rest of the ride home.

I had to include the big jump in the blog too! The water was actually deep enough in spots to jump in! Woody & Natalie splashed and enjoyed the cold water for quite a while!

Piecing it together

The last few days, I have been scouring the house trying to find all the pieces of items that we will use for the baby. In the 3 years since Natalie was an infant, pieces have moved in different locations and some I can't find! But, we were blessed to find the play gyms for the baby with all the pieces(we have 3, so we have plenty now!). Now, I'm searching for the mobile piece right now that actually moves the mobile. If I had any advice to give anyone who might want to have another baby, it is to get all the pieces together in one place for each item!

Weekly Doctor Visit 2

Today, another good report. My blood pressure was good, weight still hasn't moved since about the 23rd week. But, I did forget that this was Group B strep day--once that was over, the office visit was routine. The NST went well, even though most of the visit I was fighting my germaphobe tendencies to think of how many pregnant bellies that had been strapped on. They did have to buzz the baby again to get her moving, and she did not appreciate that one bit! She did fast flip flops after that time. The doctor reinforced that if the contractions started now, they would not try to stop the baby from coming. I told him, it can wait until 40 weeks if possible!

Lunch Shower

Since I am a month or less away, some of my friends decided to give me a small lunch baby shower today. It won't be long until the "big day" is here, it is hard to believe. It was really good, and was neat to see all the kids playing with each other, some of whom seem to have grown up so fast! Here's Hudson playing with Colt and Lillah.

A candid of Allison, Hudson, Mamie, Lillah, Janet, and Colt. Melissa is to the right but I couldn't fit everyone in one shot! Andrew was asleep and I should have gotten a picture of him when I first arrived.
Janet and her new baby, Paul
Here's the main present for a repeat mom--diapers! Much needed and used!

If you are wondering where Natalie was, she was with Janet's mom who was so kind to keep her during this lunch time. Natalie had a good time and is still sleeping after all the fun.

Thanks for the fun time!!

Uncle Pete Visit

Natalie was all abuzz the last few days, once she knew Uncle Pete was coming to visit! She at first thought that cousin Nate and Aunt Emily were also going to be there, but she was glad to have Pete come even if by himself. We hope to see everyone else really soon! Pete was on his way from one end of the continent to the other, so he was here for just a short time. But, we made the most of his visit! The night he arrived, he read her some books as it was close to bedtime, but she was certainly glad that he was still there in the morning!

Here, hugging Uncle Pete
Showing Uncle Pete that she knows how to ride her big bike
Swinging with Uncle Pete

This section, I'll subtitle "Things to do with your used crib mattress"

I know that it is probably okay to reuse the crib mattress, but Natalie has jumped on this one so much I feel it well worth the money to buy another one. And, thanks to Grandma & Grandpa, we have a new one. So, this one is released to the jumping and sliding arena.

Bible School Week

This past week was VBS week. Natalie had a very good time there, playing, singing, making crafts. I took her there every day, but only stayed to help 2 days. I can tell my energy level is decreasing by the amount it took out of me to stay just 2 days. The workers who stayed 5 days are the real heros! Natalie is here posing in her room one day that we picked her up.

Here's a cute video of her and her friend, Lillah. I took this video on the 3rd day. The last day was the one I ended up helping in her room. I didn't know it, or I would have brought my camera! What kind of blogging mom am I, anyway? I should keep it in my purse for these types of situations. Actually, it probably would have not been a good idea because all the 3 year olds wanted to play with other people's cameras (the teenagers helping had brought theirs). It would have been great to get shots of her in the music room because she always did well in there with singing and hand motions. And, some pictures of her playing on the playground. Her day went like this:

A quick craft and some play time in the room, then playing on one of the playgrounds. It was then music time. After music time was snack time and time for another craft or two in the room. Then, time for the courtyard playground then a video time until the end where the parents picked up.

Natalie really enjoyed having a full week of activities with other kids. Hopefully, the next few weeks we can find good activities for her during this summer time of no routine!

My Kind of Blackberry

Say Blackberry in this day & age, and most people look for their favorite electronic device. Say that to me, and I start digging through the bushes! Yes, for some reason I have really enjoyed searching for the real blackberries over the past couple of years. This year, due to low rainfall, this hasn't been as "fruitful" (yes, there had to be a pun). But, I had to put something in the blog to remind myself of me searching through the bushes even at 35 weeks pregnant. Natalie enjoys this too, but mostly just wants to hold the basket. And, eat the fruit too!

Weekly Doctor Visit 1

Now, we're on the weekly plan for doctor visits! Today, the ultrasound for growth looked good. The baby measured 5 lbs. And, the good news is that we aren't due for another ultrasound for 3 weeks per the doctor today. But, weekly NSTs and doctor visits. Today, we found out that taking Natalie to an NST was not a good idea. They put you in a recliner and strap two sensors to your abdomen. And, recline you back while you press a button if you feel the baby move. At first, the baby was reacting in heartbeat but not as much movement, so they "buzzed" the baby. Then, she moved a lot and is still moving! Poor thing, probably won't settle down until tonight. But, Natalie kept wanting to get up in the chair with me and became more fussy when not allowed. But, she was way past her naptime, so it was tough on the little girl! But, praise the Lord for the good reports from the ultrasound and NST today. Everything looks great!

Big Bike

Natalie had Mimi and Papaw visit this week, and they brought with them a new, shining bike for her. She was ready for this, as she has been asking for this quite a bit. She quickly developed proficiency for this, especially since she does well with a tricycle and a big wheel. But, it was different being higher up. Here, she has either Woody or Papaw right beside her. When we went out today, I could not quite keep up and she had a small fall but didn't really even break the skin. But, she got right back up and kept riding.

She had a good time with Mimi and Papaw here. It was a great break in the week! Thanks, Mimi and Papaw!

Because of your age

That is a phrase I never thought I would hear quite yet, but I hear every time I go to the doctor's office. Today, praise the Lord, there were good reports on the baby's heartbeat, my blood pressure, everything checks out well. However, they keep coming up with surprise testing that they need to do because of "my age." And, they tell me so late these recommendations so I can't possibly switch doctors at this point. But, they want me to come back every week until the baby for an ultrasound and a monitoring of the baby's heartbeat (NST). I wish I knew if this was normal or if they were going above and beyond. Because the only answer I get is because of my age they are doing this. This is taking the joy out of the pregnancy experience as well as adding a lot of additional costs since the insurance only pays a small portion of each ultrasound and I don't even know how much of the NST. All I know is that I will search for another doctor's practice after this baby so that I can hopefully receive care that is more focused on mine and the baby's needs instead of a cookie cutter approach.

Father Daughter Camping

While I was in a hot kitchen cooking away, Woody & Natalie went away to a beautiful camping spot that was in a cooler location than here. Natalie did not hike up as far as Woody would have liked, so he was carrying all the gear plus a little preschooler up a mountain. Let's just say he took a nap when they returned! He did great, cooking backpacking food for them. And, the Lord protected them and me during this whole excursion!

Can you pick a prettier spot?
Seeing a waterfall on the way back home
Splashing in the mountain streams...another excuse for a bathing suit!

Cooking Timeline

So, here it goes. The cooking timeline so far (yes, I said so far) for the 2 week plan of food preparation. At 2pm, I was ready to start and eager for all the good food to be completed.

2:00 Happy start time, getting out the meat to cut up and other prep it states should be done the night before

3:00 Done with the night before prep, excited to turn the page for the real prep

4:00 Mostly done with chopping the veggies. I was tired of chopping and used everything I could to help the chopping. Salad shooter, and another chopping gizmo I have used only a few times really helped with this. They also had some more meat to chop that they stuck in this place. Also, make some spaghetti sauce

4:30 Starting on the first entree. Using dough to roll up a pizza roll up.

5:15 First entree out, cooling. It smells good and I eat three as soon as they cool enough. They are tasty! Getting some more momentum up as I start another entree.

6:30 Putting away the first entree in the freezer, cooling the second. I look at the time, shaking my head. Start some stews that take 1-2 hours to simmer.

7:00 I decide that it is break time. I take the dog for a walk, lay down for a few minutes for energy.

7:30 Munch on a snack to get energy while starting to put away a few more entrees

9:00 Through washing up, but still have more entrees left--put stuff in refrigerator for tomorrow.

So, basically, I worked almost 7 hours, expect to work about 1 more hour to finish. So, 8 total hours for 2 weeks worth of food. Could you do this with a 3 year old in the house? No. Could you do this with more than one child, even if they napped? No. You would have to think that you want to spend your down time in the constant cooking mode for a day. Yes, they meant a whole work day!

But, one thing that could be done is to buddy up with someone and split the entrees up to take home at the end of the day. One could chop this while the other either cleans or gets other things ready.

But, I am looking forward to eating these meals as they did smell really good while assembling them for the freezer. And, what else do you do on a day when it is almost 100 degrees outside?

Of course, next time I might think about going camping too!

Agenda for 2 Days

Yesterday, Woody & I were able to use a 4 letter word we haven't used for months -- date! We actually went on a date yesterday. We went to see the new Narnia film at the movies (don't get me started on asking why it cost $5 for a small bag of popcorn). It was really good, and Woody liked seeing a non-child movie with action. It was actually my choice as I have been wanting to see it since it opened on May 16. Of course, we took the matinee and then went to dinner. All this was possible since Woody's mom watched Natalie for us! Dinner was great, but now that I cook most meals and am very aware of costs, thinking how many groceries we could eat for the amount of money. But, it was a nice, special treat! And, one we won't have again for a while I bet!

Now, Woody is going camping with Natalie tonight. It will be a wonderful, special time. I would love to go, but I believe sleeping on the ground will not happen at this point. And, being away from any facilities will be difficult, so I am doing my own agenda tonight!

This will be my focus! I've had this book for over a year (available from Amazon). The recipes aren't gourmet, but they are usually good. I have just used it for cooking one item while freezing half in the past. Now, I am actually branching out and trying to cook half a month, or 2 weeks, as that is one option. It would be great to know what was for dinner for 2 weeks! So, I want to see if it is worth the effort and time to try this out tonight. I have already purchased the items to cut up, chop, and assemble. I need a few more freezer dishes then I will be ready! So, I will update how this goes.

The Picture

Okay, this may be the part where several want to scroll quickly up or down to avoid the pictures. I agree to have one picture each pregnancy for Woody. And, since I was in a swim suit yesterday, it was prime time for the picture.

Here is the picture for this pregnancy. I haven't gained as much as last time, and still can get around pretty well. Just can't stay down on the floor for a long time then think of getting up!
Here was last pregnancy (it was in the winter, no swimsuits!). I was a little bigger then than I am at this point.
Whew! I guess everyone is glad this post is over!

Splashing with Friends

Natalie has really been missing her routine of going to BSF and other activities already this summer. So, it was a blessing when we could meet up with Jo Ellen, Emma and Meredith's mom with both of them yesterday. Natalie had really been missing Emma! So, add that to being able to wear a bathing suit, splash in water, and do something new...all this was great for Natalie. The only bad thing was that there were two float rings for 3 kids, which is something I hadn't thought of before. No matter that there were plenty of water toys thanks to Jo Ellen. That was the main focus for a while.

Splashing around, having fun! It was so hot, a cool water pool was so nice.
Natalie, not having a sibling, didn't quite get into the chase games as well as Emma & Meredith. At first, she thought Mers was going to bite her or her float. But, she was better as the day progressed.
Thanks, Jo Ellen! Natalie had a great day!