What a Week!

Hi Friends!

Hope all is well with you- this week has just flown by for me! (I am saying that as I just caught up on about 500 emails (literally)...still sitting in my pj's at 5:00 pm. WOW.

Austin was sick for most of the week and has now passed that onto the girls, so it has been a busy week taking care of all of them.

I have two weeks of maternity leave left, so I am trying to enjoy that! It seems so weird to go back to life the way it was before Lainey- I have adjusted quite well to my new routine, and even have a schedule down...most weeks anyway! When I think about it, I get really anxious, so I am just praying that God would lead and guide me and give me peace. If a person could stay on maternity leave forever I would say SIGN ME UP! Unfortunately we leave in the real world, and that is not an option. ;)

I am however learning things in this stage of life! One of those being that my house is ok if it is messy. When I was in the office full time, my house was picked up all the time, because we weren't there much. Now that I am home alot more, I have learned that it cannot stay that way with two kids...particularly a toddler! I have learned, although it tests my patience, that it is ok to have toys all over the floor. However, every once in awhile my blood pressure rises and I just have to pick it up!! ;) I am working with Keira on picking things up, and taking one thing out at a time- however that doesn't go over to well with her usually. We have affectionately been calling her our "walking tornado", as it looks like a tornado has passed through wherever she has last been.

I have also tried to get on schedule by making a task list for each week. It helps me to feel like things are attainable, and not feel overwhelemed with having to do everything in one day. then- if I miss a day, I just make it up the next day! For example, this is my weekly task list:

Monday:
Change Beds and Pay Bills

Tuesday:
Playdate
Dust and Clean Bathrooms
Grocery list and menu

Wednesday:
Library
Grocery Shop
AWANA

Thursday:
MOPS
Vacuum/Sweep/Mop
Small Group Bible Study

Friday:
Laundry

Of course- I have more things I do, but this helps me get the household things that have to be done each week done on a schedule, and then I am not wondering "when did I change the bed last?!"

In Keira news:
She is SO GROWN UP! One day last week I was passed out in the morning in our room with Lainey, as we had been up most of the night. When I finally was able to wake up, I came out to the living room to find Keira sitting watching a show, with a banana muffin in one hand, and a sippy cup of juice in the other. She had seen that I was sleeping, and had gotten up, dressed herself, then climbed on the counter to get a muffin, then got out a cup with a lid, then gone to the fridge and filled it. I was quite impressed! I did giggle a little bit though as I found the bottle of juice sitting in the middle of the hallway with no lid on it. ;)

She is also quite the technie as of late. I have added a couple apps for kids onto my iphone, and the little stinker can open them all by herself! She can unlock my phone, then scan through the pages to the app she wants, and open it to play the game. It cracks me up! However, it has been helpful if I need something to occupy her with while shopping etc. :)

Today when I gave her a bath, she wanted to wear my robe, because it is long on her, and looks like a "Princess dress". See picture below. She also helped me give Lainey a bath. She talks so sweetly to her, and gently rubbed her head with a washcloth. I am so happy with how she does with Lainey. If Lainey is crying she will search the house for a paci, then give it to her and sing her the ABC's...that is Keira's form of a lullaby. ;)

Well that is all for today- I will try and post sometime this weekend with Lainey's 2 month update, once I get a picture of her. :)

The Latest Updates

Hi All!

I figured I would give a quick update on what is going on with our little family! ;)

Lainey:
She is now 6 weeks old (wow time flies!). She is starting to look less like Keira, and more like the Oswald side. She has fairer skin than Keira, and bigger eyes. She LOVES to cuddle, particularly with mommy, and she is wide awake alot more now. She will just lay with her big blue eyes and coo when she is happy. She has also started smiling this week quite a bit when you talk to her. So precious! She is a great nurser...no formula so far, wahoo!!! We are so thankful for her! I took her to the doctor today and she was weighing in at 8 lbs 13 oz, with clothes on, so I am guessing she is about 8 1/2 lbs. She weighed in at 8 lbs when she was a month old.

We just recently moved her to size 1 diapers, and she is outgrowing her newborn clothes. It is on my list to get out all her 0-3 month stuff this week. Poor little thing has had a double ear infection and thrush in the past two weeks. She is now on the mend, PTL! She slept for 6.5 hours last night, which was a first, wahoo!

Keira:
She is now "free years old" and enjoys playing with "Parisses" (Princesses) in her 3 foot tall Barbie house all day long. She is very independent, and can at times be a handful, but we love her vivacious little personality! She loves mommy being home with her, and I enjoy it too, although she is a walking tornado! ;) She just started Cubbies and is loving that and doing a great job learning a verse each week. It is amazing to see them learning about Jesus at such a young age...and it warms my heart! Last week in the car she said, "Mom do you know God? He loves us and died on the cross for everybody's sins!" I am so thankful she is learning these things so early in life!

She also had her first dentist appt. last week. She looked so little sitting on the table, but did a great job. She got a new princess toothbrush and balloon when she was done, and had no cavities. So we left without her hating the dentist- SUCCESS!!

She is really into crafts lately as well, and loves to paint, do stickers, etc. We have kept busy on my maternity leave doing playdates with friends, MOPS, cubbies, and dates to the library. We are considering letting her do dance- but telling her she has to be completely potty trained before she can do that. She is trained, but lazy at times. Just this last week she started sleeping through the night without an accident- but only if she has undies and not a diaper on....so sometimes if we have somewhere to be first thing in the AM I don't risk it. ;)

Austin:
He is very busy finishing up his degree at Grace. He has 10 weeks left, and we are both anxiously awaiting for him to be done! We went to a marriage conference this weekend that was great for both of us. It was a really good weekend of reconnecting, as life gets busy with two kids, work, and school! I am so thankful for him, and thankful that God chose to give him to me to share life with!! He is absolutely the best husband and father- I am so blessed!! For Valentines Day he said he wasn't getting me anything, but picked up the house and folded a ton of laundry while I napped with Lainey- I was PERFECTLY happy with that!! ;)

Me:
I am enjoying being home with the girls- it is never a boring moment! I have gotten back into couponing, and we are trying to live on a streamlined budget. We are starting a mommy and me playdate group with some girls from church, so I am excited about that. I have also enjoyed getting to be more involved with MOPS. It is a great outlet for us! I have 4 weeks of leave left and plan to enjoy every moment and avoid the fact that 4 weeks will go quickly!!!

We are also looking into housing options, and saving for a new house, with hopes of moving in about a year. We would like to have a house with more bedrooms so the girls can each have their own, plus have more room for entertaining, as we really feel that God has called us to be hospitable and host others. We can do that now, but it is getting to be difficult with all of us and our friends having more kiddos. ;)

Well that is the latest with us- Thanks for reading and praying for us as we go through life! :)

Keira: 3 years old!

I cannot believe that I now have a 3 year old!

Happy Birthday to Keira- she has brought lots of joy, laughs, and also taught me what a roller coaster motherhood is, while seeing my little mini-me grow up!

It is hard to believe that she has been in our lives for 3 years now! I could never imagine life without her, however at the same time the last 3 years have gone SOOO fast! As the Bible says, "Life is a vapor". I didn't realize the true impact of that statement until having children. Now I realize how quickly time flies, and that I need to be making the right decisions regarding how I spend my precious time.

Things that she is up to right now:

1. She just started Cubbies at AWANA. She loves it and looks so grown-up! This was her first week, and she did a great job saying her verses. :)

2. She enjoys going to MOPS every other week and calls it "school". She is doing a great job learning to be apart of a group and play with others.

3. She is LOVING having mommy home, and consistently now says, "I want to just stay home and chill with you mom!". The fact that she says, "Chill" cracks me up! I am enjoying being able to see all the fun things she does, and play with her more. She loves doing puzzles, read books, and do crafts. However, her favorite thing currently is to play with the new Barbie house that she got from Grandma Lea. She has such an active imagination and can play for hours with her house! We have consistently heard her say she is "taking her Barbies' golfing." Grandpa Steve would be so proud!!!

4. She gets up and gets ready on her own. She has now gotten into the habit of getting up in the morning, going to her closet, and getting dressed before I even know she is up. If I am still in bed, she will go to the fridge and pour herself a glass of milk. So grown up! She has been such a helper with getting me what I ask for, cleaning, and taking care of herself now that Lainey is here. I sometimes forget that she is only 3, as she is so good at being independent!

5. She is 38.5 inches tall. WOWZER, she is gonna be tall like Daddy I think! I am not sure what she weighs, but she is very tall and thin!

6. Her Phrases: these are some that I have heard pop out of her mouth this week!

"where in the world are you going for heavens sake?!"- This is what she asked me as I was driving home, taking a different route than we normally do. She is usually very good and recognizing the routes we take, and I threw her for a loop!

"Princesses (Parises as she says) wear crowns mom!"- She is VERY big into princesses, she wants to wear only dresses that "dance really well" and wear heels, jewelry, crown, and wand to go along with. She is quite the girly girl! One morning when I was trying to convince her to wear pants to church, she got the most pitiful face and sniffled, "But I am a princess, and so I MUST wear a dress!" She also loves Fancy Nancy books and has started using words such as "ecstatic"

7. She LOVES to dance and is begging to get into dance, we are considering it...Daddy isn't too keen on the idea, he just sees $$$ signs!

8. She takes after Grandma's in cleaning. That is one of her favorite pastimes. She loves to get out her squirt bottle with water, go get a towel and start scrubbing...the walls, floor, windows- anything I will let her clean!

9. She loves her "friends"- she wanted to make sure that we invited all her friends to her birthday, so we had a "Friends" party at Playdaze and are also having a family party for her on Saturday. She is very influenced by what she thinks her friends would like.

We are so thankful for her! We are praying for her salvation and she love Jesus with her heart and use her outgoing personality to be a witness for him!

Happy 3rd Birthday Keira Deara!!! We love you so much!

Lainey Jane "Bright Light of Grace"- The Story of Her Arrival

Hi Friends!

It has been a little while, but as promised I wanted to write down the story of Lainey's birth, before I forgot! ;)

I love reading birth stories, as they are all a little bit different, but all miraculous in their own way!

So Lainey's birth was a bit different than I was expecting, as most are. :)

I went in for my 39 week checkup on Friday, December 30, 2011 at 11:00 am. My last day prior to maternity leave was supposed to be the day before, but I had some things I was still trying to finish up, so I had stayed up until about 2AM on that night before, finishing work projects up. Then they had planned a meeting in the office for management at 8:00 AM and I had some stuff that I wanted to get tied up at the office, so I went in for a meeting at 8 on Friday morning. Austin had the day off, so we planned on me going into the office for a bit, then Austin, Keira, and I going to my doc appt, and then spending the rest of the day running some errands and having a relaxing family day with just the 3 of us.

I went to Hyvee on the way to my meeting to pick up donuts and milk, and ran into Austin's boss. We were joking that he was wrong as he had guessed that she would be born on that Thursday (Dec 29). I said that I was guessing that I had at least another week- if not more before she was born. I had everything planned out- I was pushing really hard to get all of my work stuff finished, and then I was planning to have a week off of work to spend with Keira and get my house caught up on, and last minute projects with the baby etc. finished up before she arrived, as I wasn't due until the next Friday.

WELL- God obviously had other plans! I was late getting out of my meeting/ the office, so I ran home and grabbed Keira and Austin and we rushed off to the doctors office. I was planning on my appt. being about 30 minutes, and Austin was starving so as we waited we were discussing where to eat lunch, errands for the day, etc. When we went in to see the doctor, the nurse asked if I wanted to set an induction date. I said, no, as I really wanted to see if this one would come on her own- plus I was looking forward to a week to get my brain wrapped around baby before she came. :) The nurse and PA were pleasantly surprised, as most people I think want to be induced when they get to that stage. Once we saw Bridget, the PA, she noticed that the fluid levels looked a bit low in my amniotic sac, so she decided to look a little closer, and took some more detailed measurements. My fluid was measuring at a 7. Normally anything between 10-25 is in the normal range, and anything below a 5 is very dangerous. With that, she also noticed that the umbilical cord was starting to calcify, which shows it is getting old and baby is usually ready to come. She then said that she would like to induce me that day, or at the latest on Tuesday (all doctors offices/ and scheduled inductions were closed until Tuesday, as it was the NY weekend, Monday was the official Holiday for New Years Day.) I asked her if I could get induced Tuesday, and she said that made her a bit nervous, as my fluid could drop alot in just one day. So- they hooked me/ baby up to the stress test to see if she was active/ looked like she was in distress. Everything looked good, however they did notice that I was having contractions that were about 4 minutes apart, 1 minute long. Bridget asked if I could feel them, and I said "yes, but I have been having those all week off and on". With that, she said that I needed to go to the hospital that day, as they normally tell people to head into the hospital when contractions are consistently every 5 minutes apart.

I started stressing for a quick moment as I thought about all the stuff I hadn't got done at work/ home and then I just relaxed and realized this was God's timing, and I wasn't going to worry about what didn't get done. I started to get excited as I realized that our little girl would be in arms soon!

We then headed home with Keira, and got my bag and made some lunch and picked up the house a bit. We dropped Keira off at Steve and Lea's, and then headed up to Mercy Hospital around 2:30 pm in the afternoon. The doctor's office had called ahead and said that we were coming. Since it was the start of a holiday weekend, we noticed from when we first walked in, that the hospital was a ghost town! Before I even got to the maternity floor a nurse asked, "Are you Elizabeth?...we have been waiting for you!" Come to find out I was the only person in labor that day and she was my nurse. My doctor was out of town, so I knew I was going to get the on-call doctor, who ironically was the doctor I had with Keira. However, for Keira's birth he was at another hospital, so he didn't deliver her and I got a different on- call doctor. I asked if he could just come in and break my water as I thought my labor would go fast on its own if they did that, but the nurse said that she couldn't do that- only a doctor could. Since there were no on-call doctors in the hospital (they were all out at clinic), they started me on a cervix softener, as I was only about 1.5 cm dilated and not effaced when I went in. They kept giving me doses of that every 3 hours, and in between I would get up and walk the halls, etc. It was pretty interesting to walk the hospital at that time of the day, on a holiday- no one was around at all! It was nice to be able to walk, as with Keira I was stuck in bed from when I first got there. Around 8 that evening my mom and Faith came up, and then a bit later, Charity and Levi, and my Dad and Charis and Nate (who drove into town when they heard baby was on the way) all came up. It was a big family affair in my room! ;)

I had said before that if the baby didn't have a name by the time we got to the hospital, I would put all of the options up on the whiteboard, and people could vote on what they liked. So- since we were sitting waiting for baby to arrive, we put all the names up on the wall.... Lainey not being one of them. At that point, we had pretty much narrowed the names down to Kalla or Kaia. However, we couldn't agree on a way to spell Kalla, and Kaia we thought was maybe too close to Keira. I happened to mention that if I had my way, I would name her Elaina Jane, as I have liked that name since I was a teenager. However, Austin did not like Elaina at all, so we hadn't even considered it. My sister (not sure which one) said, "Well you could name her Elaina and call her Lainey". Austin then said, "I really like Lainey!" I couldn't believe that we hadn't thought of that or even discussed it! So- that is how Lainey ended up on the board. It was fun because we let each of the visitors, and the doctors and nurses vote on their pick. ;)

Around 10:30 I actually started to be in some pretty good pain, so I kicked everyone out. My mom looked dead tired so she went home to get some sleep for a bit, as we figured it would be a long night. I tried to get some sleep but by that time was in too much pain to get much sleep. Around 3 AM they started me on pitocin, which didn't affect me much, as I was already having pretty strong contractions. Around 4:30 I asked about an epidural. They told me that the anesthesiologist was in West Omaha sleeping, so it would take about 30 minutes for him to come- I asked that they go ahead and call him. ;). At this point I was still only about 3 cm dilated, but was in alot of pain and getting really tired, as I hadn't slept much that night, or the night before. I ended up getting the epidural around 5 AM, and my mom came back up about that time as well. Once I had the epidural, I was able to finally relax, and things started moving quickly. By 7 AM my water FINALLY broke on its own, and I was completely dilated and ready to push. They called the doctor, who said to turn of the pitocin and such and get ready for the birth. He called again around 7:30 and said he was 5 minutes away- but to hold me off as he was on his way! He walked into the room at 7:35 AM, and I was planning on pushing for at least an hour. However, with 3 pushes, she was out! PTL that she was born when she was, as her cord was wrapped around her neck and they had to unwrap it as she came out. Our precious little girl was born at 7:42 AM on December 31, 2011.

She was the last baby of the year born at Mercy Hospital in 2011, as no other babies were born that day. As soon as the doctor held her up I knew she looked alot like Keira as she had the same round head, and distinctive scowl that Keira had. She weighed in at 6 lbs 8 oz (perfect!!) and was 20 inches long, so almost the exact same size and dimensions as her sister! She had a head of beautiful dark hair as well. :)

Around 9:30 that morning Keira came up with Grandma Lea to meet her sister. She was so anxious, but very quiet and reverent- almost as if she thought this new little sister was SO much responsibility. She loved holding her, and playing with her toes, saying, "Look at her tiny toes!"

We spent the rest of the day resting and having family come up and meet the newest addition. In the evening, we had some visitors and our good friends Blake and Steph stayed for quite awhile and chatted. Austin ran out and got some root beer and oreos to ring the new year in with! ;)

We had planned on having a New Year's Eve Party- just not one in the hospital! However, we got our steak and shrimp dinner complete with wine, and could even see fireworks that the neighbors were doing from our room- you can't beat that! ;)

We still hadnt decided on a name the next day, so I went to shower, and told Austin to think about the name and I would think about it, and we would then convene and see what we each concluded. I thought about the name we had been leaning towards the whole time Kalla, and then thought about Lainey, which were the two I was debating between. We had kept coming back to Kalla the whole time, but I liked that Lainey sounded different than Keira, so she would have more of her own identity. I loved Elaina, but knew Austin would want to call her Lainey, so I thought about it and decided that I liked Lainey, since that is what we would be calling her, more than Elaina.

When I came out of the shower,I asked Austin what he thought, and he said, "Kalla". I said, "oh."...because I had thought he would say "Lainey" and we would have a decision! I said, "Bummer- I had been thinking Lainey". He answered by saying, "Well I like Lainey better, but thought you wanted to only use Elaina, and so I think we would fight about it all the time!" LOL- so once we got on the same page, we decided to go with Elaina, and call her Lainey. I love it, because I think it sounds modern, but elegant at the same time. It means, "Bright Light of Grace" and we are praying that is what she will be...a shining light for Jesus to the world!

She is now 18 days old, and we are loving every minute with her. :) She came home from the hospital on Monday, January 2 and it was so nice to have Austin home with us the first week! We are now adjusting to him being back at work and me being home. I am honestly LOVING being home this time and wishing my leave would last forever! Keira is such a big helper and loves having a little sister. :)

The Latest in our Life

I have been meaning to blog for awhile- but did not realize it has been 3 months since I have given an update! It is late though, so I will try and keep this short.

The last two months have been a complete whirlwind as I went back to the office full time in October and have been working 80 mph since then, between going back to running the billing department, doing my duties as VP, and preparing for maternity leave. I decided to take 10 weeks off so that I can really enjoy my newborn and hopefully slow down and just focus on bonding with her...and hopefully nursing will go better this time with that philosophy! With Keira, I was doing work the whole time I was on leave, and starting going back into the office when she was 10 days old. I am really going to try my best to leave work when I go on leave- although I am sure it will be a test to my personal discipline. I am really looking forward to having some quality time with Keira and the new baby, as I have been so busy with work, etc. lately. I have enjoyed being in the office 5 days a week as I love being able to get more done that way and feel less stressed. However, I am glad that the stint of long hours is almost over as well...as it is so hard to balance home and work when I am working that much! ;)

I have just a few days left in the office (5 to be exact)! I am taking off a week before I am due in hopes of getting my house in order, and my last minute things done, and spend a little quality time with Keira and Austin before she arrives. We will see if she holds off that long!

I am almost 38 weeks, and last week I was only 1 cm dilated, and she was weighing in right under 6 lbs. I am hoping that she will be under 7 lbs. when she is born! I love tiny babies...they get big so fast anyway!!! I so far have gained 18 lbs, but I am thinking all these Christmas parties and sweets my start to add to that number. QUICKLY! I have been consistently having contractions in the evening, so I finally packed my bag last night...so that if it happens anytime, at least now I have flannel pants and fuzzy socks packed for the hospital! ;) We are fairly decided on a name now as well, but we will wait to decide for sure until she is born and we see her. We have not told anyone (including Keira...as she has proven to be a horrible secret keeper).

In Keira news:

She is just SO much fun! She is smart as a whip, and definitely keeps us on our toes. She is anxiously awaiting Christmas, and then the birth of her sister, and then her birthday party, as we have been telling her about the order of events since June...or close to that. She has been excited for her birthday forever! She is obsessed with Dora lately, and is requesting a Dora party. However, Grandma Jane told her that "mommy and daddy might be busy with the baby" so she now tells me, "Mommy, if you and Daddy are too busy to make me a Dora cake, I will take a PARIS (princess) cake. That's ok with me" Too funny, that she is being so considerate, and thinks that a princess cake would be less work.

She just finished her last week at Kari's house for daycare while I am at work. We have loved having her go there, as she LOVES the playtime with Addie and Avery "her best friends". Even though she won't be going there for daycare anymore we are planning to still have some playdates with her friends.

She has also established that she only likes to play with girls. She has decided boys are too rough, and refuses to go to playdates with them, or sit by them in toddler time. Keira and Lauren are alot of times the only girls in Toddler Time at church and they stick together against the boys. They call each other "best friends" and have such similar feisty personalities. It is so fun to see them play together!

Keira is also anxiously waiting for her sister to arrive. She keeps telling me how she is going to help with everything, and now if I am eating something she will ask, "Does my sister like that?" Anytime we see clothes that are too small for Keira in the store she says, "My sister will look cute in that!" She is so grown up!

Keira got the card game "memory" at our Mommy and Me party this weekend.(We still get together with the same group from our parenting class...3 years later!) We have been playing it each night before she goes to bed, with her being on a team with either Austin or I. She loves it, and Austin and I have a good time competing as well! She is pretty good at picking out the matches on her own too. Last night we asked if she wanted to go look at Christmas lights or play the game, and she chose her game. ;)

Austin and I are really looking forward to Christmas with her this year. She understands so much more of it so it s so much fun! We have taught her "Away in a Manger" and "Go Tell it on the Mountain" and she loves to sing them before bed. We also took her through the interactive "Walk Through Bethlehem" where she went to all these interactive stations as if she were in Bethlehem. The funny part is that by the time we got to the end, baby Jesus (who is an actual newborn) had gotten tired and gone home! So after building up to him as the main event we didn't even see "Jesus". Keira still will ask "what happened to baby Jesus? Did he go night night?" LOL! we figure next year we will have to go again and hit that station first, so we don't miss the Reason for the Season!

Austin and I wrapped all the gifts the other night after she went to bed. When she got up in the morning, she saw them all below the tree. She saw one of hers (she only thinks she is getting one)with a Dora tag and starting dancing and jumping up and down with excitement saying, "Mine has a Dora sticker!!!!" Austin and I can hardly wait for her to actually open her gifts- since she was so excited for just a box with a Dora sticker!

Well- it is late so I am going to cut this short, sorry for all the randomness, I am just trying to write down a few things to look back on. We may have a new little girl before I post to this again, but I will update with her birth story if nothing else in the next month! ;)

Random Thoughts

So, I haven't blogged for awhile because every time I think about doing it, I have so many different thoughts/ topics to blog about that I just end up not doing it. :)

Keira has been saying the funniest things, so I have been writing some of those down, and will be updating those shortly.

One thing that she has been saying alot is "Actually". For example, she will say "It is raining out....actually it is just cloudy". It is so funny to hear her say that, as it sounds so grown-up! She also really enjoys singing/dancing, and we spent some time this evening listening to some upbeat gospel songs on Youtube and letting her dance to them.

This morning when we were walking into church she asked "Where is God at?" It is fun to see her thinking and realizing that GOD exists! We are thankful for all the Christian influences she is around and continue to pray for her salvation. She really enjoys Toddler Time now, and has also been coming to Sparks with us on Wednesday nights. :)

This weekend was REALLY nice as we had a pretty relaxing weekend just around town. On Friday night Keira walked in TJ's Homecoming Parade with Aunt Faith. She had such a good time and kept saying, "I go in another parade later! My got LOTS of candy!" when it was over. It was super cold that day, and so she looked hilarious. She had skinny jeans on, a HUGE bubble coat, and then an adult t-shirt over the top. When she was walking she looked like a miniature sumo-wrestler! ;) We then went out for Pizza with Grandma Lea.

On Saturday we went to an extended family reunion, and Keira made friends with her cousin Emme. They had a great time playing babies and singing songs sitting under the tables.

We then went to a husker party with our small group Bible Study which was fun. They are such an encouragement to me and I am so thankful that God has given us a group of friends who we really enjoy spending time with and are able to share our lives with. :)

On Sunday we slept very LATE and then made it to church. It was so dark and rainy that I could have stayed in bed all day! We enjoyed lunch at my parents with the college kids. Keira thinks they are all there for her to entertain, and she sings her ABC's over and over and makes hilarious faces to get them to laugh. After that we ran some errands, Austin dropped me off at Walmart and then ran to Mendards with Keira. I was amazed at how a) quickly and b) stress-free I could shop without her. It was a nice change of pace!

We then came home and made my mom's potato soup...it was a family effort as we all worked on it, and it turned out as Keira said "SUPER SUPER YUUUMMYY!!!" I have really enjoyed cooking more lately, and have involved Keira in it more as she LOVES to cook/work in the kitchen and it makes for a good activity to keep her busy on rainy days. After dinner we continued in the kitchen by making Pumpkin Chocolate muffins for us to take for breakfasts in the morning. Keira kept licking the batter out of the bowl, it was all I could do to keep her from eating it all before we got it in the oven!

As the weather is getting colder and we are inside the house more I am starting to get really excited about our new arrival at the beginning of January. It almost feels like De Ja Vue as I am expecting at the same time as I was with Keira, so I remember that last time once it started to feel like winter I was on the home stretch! :) The baby is moving alot now, and I can tell if I drink something cold/ eat sugar she reacts quickly! I have had some contractions this last week, so I have been trying to take it a bit easier. They usually start around 8 or so in the evening, so I think I just need to take it a little easier. :) We went to the doctor on Thursday, and she let us see her face! Her mouth and nose look very similar to Keira's...so we will see what she looks like when she arrives! Right now she is measuring around 1.5 lbs, right on track for her due date of the first week in January. :) I did go to Bigwheels this week and got some maternity clothes with birthday money from my parents. Now that I have some cuter maternity clothes I am feeling like I look cuter pregnant. :)

Lots of other things have been happening (mainly work related) but it was so refreshing to have a down weekend with family!!! :)

My Monthly Update

So...
Since I am so bad at updating this on a regular basis, I have a sticky note with all the memorable things on it that I wanted to blog about. So much for keeping up with technology, haha!

So here are the big things going on in our lives as of late. :)

1. My trip for work in August IS CANCELLED!! Hallelujah! I am so excited to have a month with no travel as it is the first time since November that I have had a month with home (as in not leaving the Omaha area)!!! I am just going to enjoy it, hopefully have a couple get-together with friends, and not think about September! ;)

2. I wasted alot of time today looking for a matching bedset for the baby...I bought Keira a new bedset in January, and apparently since then they have discontinued it. I really want to get another one to match for her little sister since they are going to share a room. BAH HUM BUG! I looked all over online and am convinced you CANNOT get it anymore. In the end Shopko had awesome deals on back to school bedsets so I bought one for Keira that matches the crib beddng I already have. I am going to wait to put all her new stuff up though until about November..so that she gets something new too. ;) Of course, I had to buy a matching lamp and drawer organizers too!

3. One day last week on my lunch I went to Childrens place as they had amazing deals on summer clothes. I bought the girls their first matching outfits for next summer...it was SO much fun! I got two matching sundresses, matching swimsuits with lace tutus' and the CUTEST little tanks with rosettes on them ( I wish they made that shirt in my size!) Austin thinks me buying new clothes for the baby is ridiculous...which it is, since we already have all of our girl stuff. However, I figure I have to get something new for this one, and I will just make sure to do it in moderation ;) I have been using coupons, watching sales, and just in general trying to do free stuff...and really it hasn't been too bad.

4. New Budget: EEK!!! We redid our budget in August to cut out 1/2 my salary should I need/want to do that once the baby arrives. We started living on the new budget now to see if we can actually do it, and actually WANT to do it. So far it is going well, but has been somewhat difficult. The good news is that we are still on budget though! I am really determined to prove to Austin that I can stay on it, as I don't think he really thinks it is possible, since I usually am the one who likes to spend (not in excess...but just for sanity, at least that's what I always say!)

5. Mini van: Another EEK! We are seriously considering buying a VAN when the baby gets here. Ugh...I don't know about this! We were planning to get a different vehicle once the baby arrived as the Jetta is way too small to fit a car seat, and we just need a bigger vehicle. We had wanted to get an SUV, but after looking at the price differences, gas mileage, and room, we are thinking a van is just a better buy. So, although I hate to admit it we will probably go the van route instead of the SUV route. Guess it is a good thing it doesn't matter if I am cool or not right?! ;)

6. Baby Names: Berfa

We are keeping the babies name a secret (in fact) it hasn't even been decided yet for sure. However, I told Keira ONCE and she repeated it, so I started telling her it was Bertha, just as a joke. Well apparently that has stuck in her head, and she now calls the baby "Berfa" all the time...including when she talks about buying stuff for the baby, when she sees pictures of babies, etc. When people ask her what the name is she sheepishly will whisper "Berfa" like she is telling them some highly confidential secret. I think it is hilarious, but it makes Austin so mad!!!

Well- I hope to post more soon. On thursday I have an ultrasound for the baby, I haven't been to the doctor in 6 weeks, so I am excited to see how she has changed! ;)

Lots of other stuff going on right particularly with work, I will update more when I have time.