Are we Crazy?

This most likely is not a surprise to you...as most of our family and friends are already aware...but yes - Prince Baby #3 is on the way. The excitement of taking the test was soon dimmed to a shadow as nausea and fatigue set in at about week 5. That is also when the question: "are we crazy?" entered my mind. Of course not, lots of people have 3 kids - or even more! The reality added with my current state had me sitting in minor panic for several weeks.

But alas...I am entering "the good times" as 2nd trimester is just around the corner. I'll be 12 weeks on Friday and I've been feeling much better these last few days. I'm relieved to be through with all that, but now the reality of my changing body is hitting me.

There are several things that will be different with this pregnancy. First, I decided I am not going to let the ignorant musings of strangers affect me so much. So what if they thing I'm big for 3 months...or if they think I'm carrying twins...or am going "to pop" (a most abhorred thing to say, if you ask me). The truth is: I have big babies. My tummy gets big. Really big. Its ok that I get big. I don't stay that way. I'm going to relish this time. Its probably my last time being pregnant!
Another difference we are not going to find out the sex. That's right: We're waiting to find out! I'm super excited about this. For awhile, I was thinking we could do something fun - like a "Finding out Party" but I have decided that I really want to experience finding out in the delivery room. Jason is...less than thrilled at this idea, but he has decided to support me (but honestly, he didn't have much choice). :-)
Oh...and one more thing - for those of you who don't see me all the time...are you wondering if I am "showing" yet? Just last week I was telling Kristen - no, not really. Just my little tummy pooch sticking out a tiny bit more than normal. This week I would say...yeah, I guess so. My tummy is poking out there. Still in all my regular clothes and I think I will be for...at least another 2 or 3 weeks (hopefully)...but - as I told a girl at work last night who said: "you're already showing? WOW!" I said - this is my 3rd kid and everything already knows where to go...gone are the days of the 1st pregnancy where people don't know you're pregnant for 4 months...oh wait - I never had those days :-) Even with Gavin I was in maternity clothes quite early. Oh well.
I'm sure there is more to say, but for now, I'm gonna sign off...
Today I'm thankful for:
*Walking into a clean house this morning after a BUSY night at work - made my day!
*Jason took my car to get washed - its never been so clean
*The swiffer wet-jet we bought at Target. We used to have one and haven't for awhile and I love it! Low maintenance way to keep the floor clean daily.
*The kid's excitement to see me after I've been at work
*My new tinted moisturizer from Sephora with a gift card...so free to me!
*Cooler nights
*The way Ez says thank you: tank eww. makes me smile every time I hear it
*OH - my favorite father-in-law gave me a Blackberry recently and I had to do a few things to get it usable...(unlocked, battery, etc) but I have it now and I LOVE IT! I get to email from anywhere!! :-) I can listen to the radio, text, go online, look at my calendar...its super cool. Thanks Dan!
Good night! More update on the fam later!

First Dates

They elicit anxiety, hope and anticipation. First dates can be horrible - as in the experience I had with a blind date where the guy had such bad BO, I called it off early. Or they can be fun and leave a fluttering knot with thoughts of a possible future phone call or second date. I did think my days of first dates were over and for the most part, I'm really glad about that. I do wish that I could cause some one's tummy to flutter again...or be a mysterious person to be discovered again...but I have traded that for something you can never get from 100 first dates. Someone who knows me as well as I know myself, if not better. Someone who loves me even though he knows me beyond the mystery...someone who is my other half. Sure, after almost 9 years of being together (including dating time) we don't get butterflies when we see each other, but I still watch him when he doesn't know it and think I married the most handsome guy around.
So you're wondering why I was talking about first dates? Well, I had one of a different kind on Wednesday night. We were not nervous, but excited for sure! We had plenty to talk about and laughed the whole time. My date was sweet, held my hand and had great manners. He is the greatest 4-year-old I know :-) Yeah, Gavin and I went on a date. We painted pottery at Color Me Mine, ate dinner at Ruby's on the pier and he had ice cream after that. We had a great time and I loved every second of it. I think he did too! I lost the pictures of that night through some computer glitch, but I'll take pictures of our masterpieces when we pick them up!

Happy Birthday Jason!

this expression is funny to me - he's trying to glare
look at this form...
gavin's got some talent too!
birthday boy
i love this of these 3...they look so cute!

Yesterday we spent the day celebrating Jason! We went bowling (at Gavin's suggestion - but Jason likes it too!) and out to dinner at Pomodoro. Then Jason and I enjoyed Coldstone Ice cream while watching 300. It was a great day and I think Jason felt celebrated. Jason has always been someone who can make me laugh when I'm grumpy - or anytime really. He is thoughtful, logical, patient, understanding and loving. We have grown a lot in our years together and I enjoy him more now than when I first met him. He is a great father who LOVES his boys with all his heart and only wants the best for them.

In other news...Ezekiel's lip has healed well and is almost back to normal. Jason enjoyed playing in a Biola Alumni soccer game Saturday night and I would like to say I enjoyed watching, but really all I did was chase Ez around the whole night.

Off we go to run..

Not really surprised...

Jason and I have been waiting for this day to happen. We have both mentioned it several times and have wondered at our good fortune so far. Our little Ezekiel is the typical no-fear-climb-and-jump-kid. Its was only a matter of time until we visited an ER for some type of injury for him. Today was the day.
Don't panic. He's absolutely fine.
At 8am today I was laying in Gavin's bed watching him dance to his VBS music and Ezekiel was on the bed with me. He was walking from the foot of the bed up to the head and jumped the last bit and was planning on hitting his head on the pillow, but instead hit his mouth on the headboard. My first fear was that his lower teeth were knocked out because there was a lot of bleeding and at first I couldn't' see them. But the teeth are fine. He did, however, knock his lower teeth clear through his lip....what we like to call a through-and-through laceration. I debated on going to the ER, since the bleeding had stopped and the outside lac looked fine. However, there was a nasty lac (cut for those who don't' work in the ER :)) on the inside of his lip so I thought it was worth checking to see if he needed a few stitches. Basically the Dr said there was more risk of infection stitching it up, so nothing was done. I was glad...it would have been quite an ordeal to stitch him (IV, sedation, several hours in ER...). He is bothered by it, but nothing horrible. Tylenol is helping and he is just needing some extra TLC. This is his second ER visit, but the first was a breathing issue in Seattle...so first "injury" visit. Hopefully not too many more to come??
I tried to get a picture of his inner lip to show you, but he doesn't want me to touch it...no kidding, right??
I promise some pics from the party soon. I don't' have the energy to accomplish that right now!

Party Day

The fun thing about having a party for your child is seeing them delight in every aspect from decoration to the arrivals of the guests. The difficult part is the responsibility of having a party...not just assimilating all the necessary items - food, cutlery, drinks, plates, etc. I always feel a sense of obligation to ensure that each guest is enjoying themselves. I try and move from one group of friends to another to chat for a bit and introduce those who are strangers. Today we had Gavin's birthday party and it was a lot of fun. We had friends from church, our 2 families, our "Biola" friends and some friends from Mariners. It was great - but I was constantly surveying the atmosphere to make sure the guests looked happy...over analyzing?? Probably.
My 2 goals were accomplished: 1) Don't run out of food (always a bummer at a party!) and 2) A fun time for Gavin. Yes. We had great food, good dessert and even a special ladybug cupcake for each kid thanks to my insanely creative mom. And now, I'm exhausted! Good night. I'll post pictures soon!

Catching up!

Oh man - what a great few days we've had. Jason has been off since Tuesday and its been fabulous to hang out as a family. Tuesday, our baby...Gavin turned 4!! We can hardly believe its already been 4 years. We let him choose the events of the day so we had apple pancakes for breakfast at the Pancake House, went bowling, and then had pizza for dinner at BJ's and walked around downtown HB. Wouldn't be a birthday without dessert, right? We headed home and Gavin enjoyed a few presents and we all enjoyed some ice cream cake. It was a full day and I'm pretty sure Gavin loved it. After opening his gifts Gavin looked at Jason and I and said "guys, I really appreciate all the stuff you got me." How old are you??

I know I've previously described my favorite birthday tradition - going around and telling the person what we like about them...well as we sat down to have cake, Gavin asked me if we were going to celebrate now. I said "we've been celebrating all day!" Gavin said "no, mom, I mean are you guys going to tell me what you like about me now??"OF COURSE! We were going to anyhow but thought it was so sweet he remembered and wanted to hear that. Who wouldn't, really?? So we told Gavin that we love his sense of humor, his questions, his sweet nature, the way he loves his brother, his affection for all the people in his life, his excitement for Jesus, his singing and dancing, his generosity and his desire to do right...and many more things. When we would pause he would say " what else, guys?"

Wed and Thurs we spent just hanging out, cleaning house and working out. Its been great. Jason has to work a little bit today, but should be home in a few hours...the kids are going to Becky's and I think we are going to go to lunch together or catch a movie before hitting Costco for food for Gavin's party tomorrow.

What we have been up too...

I have a plethora of information as to what we have been up to!

On Friday evening, we took the kids to the OC Fair and had a great time. We saw some animals, Jason and Gavin each played a game (gavin won stuffed animals for himself and Ez!), rode a few rides (nothing crazy!) and had some treats! It was a blast!

Gavin on the ride by himself. Ez had a fit when he realized he wasn't going (too short)
Gavin fed the goats and sheep hay and wasn't a bit scared
Enjoying a churro - one of several treats from the evening
The only picture of Jas and I...notice Gav smiling in the background
Ez is very nervous about the loud MOOOOOOO coming from the cows


Ez fed the sheep with much coaxing
As did Gavin.
Now we move on to one morning we were all home and just laying around the house relaxing and we started taking silly pictures...

I like this smile Ez does
Cute boys
Silly faces
Happy with his coffee!

Today is my mom's birthday! Happy Birthday to the most wonderful Mom ever! My mom is a great woman! She is loving, thoughtful, a good listener, seeks to know God better everyday, is quick to admit her wrongs, is patient, wise, a prayer warrior, forgiving, nurturing, and basically AMAZING! My mom is umm...50-something :-) and is a brand new nurse! I am so proud of her. She excelled in school and is working in a busy ER where she is continually challenged, but is learning about herself and how to face those challenges. She encourages me whenever I need it and always has time for me. I love that I live so close that I even got to have lunch with her today on her lunch break at work.

And speaking of living close to my parents...today is a day I needed my Daddy and he was there for me...

So I'm driving to church, and all of a sudden the car starts shaking and I have a hard time driving straight. There is a loud noise assaulting my ears and I am panicking...people are pointing at me...did I mention I was on the freeway? Yes, folks, I blew out a tire on the freeway. I pulled over onto an area not even wide enough to be a shoulder and first called Jason. He advised that I try and get off the freeway, but I was nervous I wouldn't be able to go fast enough to safely exit...I was near tears and didn't know what to do. I'm sure Jason felt helpless as he was at work 25 miles away...I quickly got off the phone with Jason and called my Dad. If anyone would know what to do, it would be Dad. I prayed he wasn't in church yet, as it was 9:24am and Dad is ALWAYS on time to church (starts at 9:30) and usually early. By the grace of God, he was late today and quickly came to where I was. He called AAA on his way and we were met with a tow-truck less than 10 minutes later. The mechanic changed the tire on the freeway(made me very nervous!) and we were off to church 45 minutes late...I am SO thankful my dad was around to help me today. I really needed him. After church, we drove to a few tire places and found somewhere to get 2 new tires (they couldn't patch it)...we had lunch with mom and basically spent the day hanging out with my dad...until almost 5pm! It was a fun day for the boys and I and it made me so thankful that my dad is nearby and that he always has time for me too.

Why I love Costco

So tonight after dinner we decided to return our printer we bought 12-31-05. It is a scanner/copier as well, but those options are not available because it has been putting a huge black line in anything copied/scanned. We walk into Costco with our receipt, printer and cables. No box. No manuals.
We walked out with almost $200 cash. (ok...actually $160 because we bought a few food items...)
I love Costco.
One more thing I love right now - New York Strawberry Cheesecake Ice Cream by Dryers Light. OH MY GOSH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Its SO GOOD!!!
Ok, I'll add just one more - the steaks Jason grilled tonight and the baked potatoes we had (thank you carrie) --such a good dinner. Salad too - can't forget the veggies. I can't remember the last time I had a baked potato. Yum.
Ok...I'm done. Good night!