Ready... Or Not?

So I just got back from my 37 week doctor's appointment and I'm making quite a bit of progress already. I'm 1cm dilated and 50% effaced and she said the baby could come at any time. He's weighing in at approximately 7-7.5 lbs. This is all well and good but I'm not quite sure I'm ready yet!! I mean his clothes are washed.. his crib is set up... my hospital bag is (sort of) packed... the swing is out... boppy ready... and Leah is sleeping nicely in her new big girl room. BUT... I'm enjoying sleeping through the night (sort of.. when I don't have to get up and pee!) and enjoying the peace and easiness of only having one child. Leah's just so easy and I have a feeling that once Chase gets here it's going to be CHAOS! Controlled chaos hopefully! My back is starting to hurt and my belly has expanded I'm sure (or not) all that it can possibly expand, and added a few new stretch marks (BOOO!) and my feet are swollen and I'm constantly tired. So in that respect I'm ready. Ready to sleep on my stomach again! But I guess ready or not, he will come when HE is ready! Whether that's this week or not until mid-June (GOOD GOD I HOPE NOT). I'm trying to at least hang on until next weekend.. we have a wedding to go to on Saturday so Saturday night or Sunday would be good. Plus my mother-in-law, who will be staying with Leah when the baby comes, has work until then and my mom, who will be coming out 2 weeks after baby is born (to relieve Tim when he goes back to work) also has school until the first week of June so there's really no rush.. Oh well.. these are just my rambling 37 week pregnant brain thoughts. Have a look at some cute pictures we took at the river yesterday. XOXO, Sarah

April (and May) Showers!!

I have been meaning to blog about my trip to Maryland since I got back but just haven't had the energy. A few weeks ago (April 16-19) Leah and I took a whirlwind trip to go home to Maryland for my nephew's baptism. My mom and my sister-in-law also threw me a wonderful baby shower while I was there. It was so great to see all of my old friends and especially family that I rarely get to see except for holidays! My grandma made the trip down and spent the whole weekend with us and it was just so nice being able to spend quality time with my mom and grandma and Leah... 4 generations! I got "showered" with lots of great gifts for baby Chase! My mom did a really awesome job putting everything together!!


This past weekend, my friends Stacie and Michelle threw me a baby shower here for all of my Arizona friends and family! It was also successful. Michelle came down from Scottsdale and spent the weekend with me and she and Stacie put on quite a show for my shower! I got TONS of diapers and wipies and some other cute stuff. The baby's room is all set and ready for Chase whenever he decides to make his appearance into the world!



It's starting to get hot and the heat doesn't really mix well with a VERY pregnant woman... I'm trying to keep cool and not get too irritable and grumpy, which is kind of hard sometimes when dealing with a 2-year-old who has about as many mood swings as I do! We are trying to keep busy ...lots of playdoh and trips to the pool! Leah's made it to the first step.. we're thinking by the end of the summer she might actually get in!! Haha.... xoxo, Sarah

Terrific TWO'S!!

Well, last Friday, *sniff sniff*, my baby girl turned TWO! I can't hardly believe it! It's like she woke up a little lady instead of a little girl. She's sleeping in her new room, in her twin bed, and LOVING it.
We had a nice dinner Friday night (pizza and ice cream cake.. yea!) to celebrate for her actual birthday, just us. Then on Saturday, we had a bunch of friends over for a BBQ celebration in honor of my birthday girl! She got a lot of really fun gifts and had a great time at her party once she warmed up to the idea of everyone being there and talking to her.
On Monday, I took her for her 2-year check up at the doctor. It was a nightmare. She literally screamed NO NO NO and told the doctor BYE BYES! the entire time. She didn't want this strange lady touching her or looking in her ears or mouth. Poor thing. It was kind of embarassing, but I can't say I blame her. The doctor kept calling her a monkey, the way she was clinging onto me. She is off-the-charts tall for her age, yet didn't meet weight requirements. The doctor said it was nothing to worry about at this age because they are so active, but that we should really watch it and make sure she is getting enough calories throughout the day. She also recommended taking away sippy cups and binkies.. eek! We'll get there eventually... for now we are dealing with one change at a time.

Books are Fun

Leah got a whole bunch of awesome new books for her birthday from some of my friends, so I decided to relocate where I keep her books. I used to keep them in one of the drawers underneath her bed, but I decided to move them over to the shelf next to her dresser to make more of a bookshelf if you will. She helped me by bringing me every single book one by one from the drawer and plopping down on my lap asking me to "read mama again!" So needless to say, we spent the day reading about 30 books over and over and over and over again. I mean I LOVE that she loves to read. She even has some of them memorized and "reads" them to me and makes the animal noises or points out words that she knows. It's super cute. BUT .... I'm all booked out for one day!!!!!!


On a side note, I'm just about 35 weeks pregnant..VERY pregnant. It's starting to get heavier and more tiring every day. I've had to cut back on my farm hours, and possibly stop altogether (I'm holding out to see how the rest of the week will be). Last night I had a rough time and had some serious contractions from about 8pm until a little after midnight. The little voice in my head was telling me I should go to the hospital but my brain said NOOOOO. I drank about 32 oz of water and laid in bed on my left side, like my midwife told me to do, and stuck it out for a few hours and eventually fell asleep and was fine this morning. Little man is anxious to meet me, I guess! Well he has to hang on a few more weeks!

Bubby

Yesterday we made the hard decision to take our dog, Bubby, to a new home. We decided about a month ago that we just can't give him all the love and attention and exercise that he needs and started on our journey to finding him a new family to love. He is a great dog but is just so full of energy that we couldn't keep up with him in our small condo with a small back yard. The thought of having 6 of us (with the new baby) in here in a few weeks made my blood pressure skyrocket and we all knew it was just for the best for all of us.
We got a few responses and finally decided on this couple named Les and Jul. He is a retired marine and she works part time at their church as the nursery director. They have a great family and someone always around to play with him. They have a large home and a decent sized yard for him and Les runs every day. I took Bubby over there yesterday to meet them and you could tell he instantly took a liking to Les. I stayed for about an hour to make sure I was happy with the decision and managed to leave without crying (until I got in the car at least). I know this is the best thing for both him and for our family. Our other dog, Felony, doesn't even seem to notice... in fact I think she's happier too because she gets to go on walks again (it was just too chaotic with 2 dogs and a 2 yr old) and we even took her to the station to visit Tim last night and she and Leah got to run around together. Leah doesn't seem to notice either, she asked for him once or twice, but is focusing more on Felony.
Les and Jul agreed to keep in touch with us and keep us updated on how Bubby is doing. I got an email from Les last night and this morning and Bubby seems to be doing great and has taken a liking to their one-year-old grandson. Here is an email I recieved this morning that I thought I'd share:
Good morning Sarah!
Thought I would attach a few pics this morning.
We all did fairly well, he was kind of ansy throughout the night in his new surroundings but again, new sights, new sounds, new smells it's to be expected. We got up and he joined me on a good 3 mile run this morning and he did great, stayed right with me, didn't fight the leash, didn't try to chase dogs, cats or cars.
Have a good day.
Les

The picture above is a picture that Les sent.. he looks happy.

Anyways, we miss that little guy but we know this is the best thing for him and for us. He'll always have a special place in our hearts! XOXO, Sarah

Naptime Hide-and-Seek

Today I put Leah down for her usual nap around 12:30 and then went and laid on the couch to watch TV. About 20 minutes later, I got up to check on her and her bedroom door was wide open. She was nowhere to be seen! After thoroughly searching her room and mine, I found her hiding behind some hanging clothes in my closet... her blanky was thrown over her shoulder and her hair was all a mess. She looked at me and said "Hi mama, whatya doing?" LOL I just chuckled (to myself) and told her it was not time for hide and seek, it was bedtime!! I wonder how long she had been standing there before I came in... she went right to sleep after that (in her bed) and took a good 2 hour nap. Siwwy girl.

Easter Earthquake

"The angel said to the woman, 'do not be afraid, for I know you are looking for Jesus, the one who was crucified. He is not here, he has risen, just as he said he would!' " Matthew 28:5-6



Yesterday was Easter. We had a nice morning. We went to church and celebrated the resurrection of Jesus. Then we came home and all of us fell asleep for 3 hours! (WAY longer than usual naptime!) At 3:45, I woke up to the dogs whining and pacing back and forth. I thought maybe they had to go outside so I opened the bedroom door but they didn't go outside. I thought it was a little strange but went to wake up Leah, who was napping for WAY too long in her bed, and Tim who was napping on the couch. After we all woke up, Leah was sitting on the couch with Tim and I was in the kitchen making a drink when we felt it. The earth moving underneath of us. The walls started shaking and we heard pictures falling off the walls and shattering on the ground. Tim grabbed Leah and told me to go outside. We wobbily walked outside and stood there for a few minutes, watching our neighbors, and our trees and house shaking. It was an earthquake. A big one!

After it passed, we went back inside. We couldn't make any calls out for awhile and our internet was out practically all night. I started picking up everything that had fallen, nothing broke except for one picture frame, and the shattering noise that I heard must have been from the cross we had hanging on the wall in the hallway. I found it symbolic that on Easter, the day Jesus conquered death on the cross and rose from the dead, that our cross fell off the wall and shattered into a billion pieces. What an Easter lesson! When our world is a little shaky, we must remember to conquer our cross and that HE is our ROCK to stand on.

We turned on the news and discovered that the earthquake was centered in Baja, California which is not very far from us and it was a 7.2! We had aftershocks all night. I felt like I was on a boat all night! Anyways, everything is good and luckily no one was hurt.