Making a List and Checking it..... a lot!

I made a list about a week ago of EVERYTHING that needed to get done between then and Sunday. It was a LONG list. A lot of it was normal everyday things- bake, clean, laundry, etc. Some of the things couldn't be done until a certain day which is always a bit frustrating for this list lover! I love lists, because when I get to CROSS things off, I get a sense of accomplishment, which is why I made the list in the first place! Hee hee!

We had to clean the house for small groups, cook and bake for certain things/people, errands to run, a lot of MOPS stuff to copy, turn in and prepare for, a doc appt and on and on..... Like I said, along with all this stuff, we had to add the normal grocery shopping and cleaning.

It is already Thursday and the list is getting smaller and messier by the day! Gosh! I haven't even begun to even THINK about packing. It'll happen. Probably not until Saturday. There are things that need to happen BEFORE then. The past week or two have been SO crazy and I'm wondering when will things slow down!

I'm tired and ready for a chance to sit and chill. Good thing I'm going on a vacation, huh? I'm still having anxiety and fear issues with leaving the boys. Its been a very painful process...one that I've had to give to God daily...and sometimes hourly. When I wrote this post, sadly, I was sobbing while writing it. I know God is working on me through this. I truly believe that God gave us this as a wonderful blessing and not a way to harm us or my family. Like I said, this is an issue I've been giving to God daily. Ever prayed and not received the answer right away? That is kinda what I've been working through.... the less I talk about it, the less I think about leaving and the less I have to "give" it to God. The more I talk about it, the more painful it is, because I do have to THINK about it and then satan rallies his troops and goes at me with a vengeance! I keep reminding myself of something I heard at BSF a few weeks ago- God isn't in the word F-E-A-R. God is the fruits of the Spirit- love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self control..... none of those things are ANYTHING like fear, huh? God is a God of love, and goodness and peace.... Sweet peace! What I am praying for is gentle, overflowing peace and that satan will not win. I also have been asking God to make satan flee from my mind. I know satan would love for nothing more than for me to not give God the glory for this trip or for Hubbie and I to not come back- stronger than ever and strengthened in God. I have news for satan. he will NOT win. God is more powerful and I will overcome my issue of fear. Now, does it make me nauseated, at times, to even plan for the cruise? Yes, but God is my strength when I am weak. He is not a God of fear....so I continue to give it over to God....and in reality, remind myself that I am not in control and must give my children over to God for protection....the place they should be all the time.

Whew! What a lesson..... so, continue to pray for my heart and mind and to have peace. 3 days until we leave. What a story this will be!

Pink or Blue?

We went for our sonogram today to determine the sex of baby bundle no. 3.

(Drum roll please.......)

We are happy to announce that baby no. 3 is a BOY!!!


I knew it! I knew it! I knew it!

I am glad and relieved to know and just feeling quite lucky!

A girl would have been nice and new. Maybe no. 4 will be a girl! (Ha! Something to keep Hubbie and Nana on their toes!!!)

The bond and love between my two sons is a special thing to watch and I'm so glad we're adding another one to the mix!


During the sonogram he was moving like crazy and making it semi-difficult to get measurements. All parts are there and working correctly!

Baby Braeden will be here in the Fall and I can't wait to see him!

Wordful Wednesday- What Are You?

Today we are going to find out what the sex of this little munchkin is.

The results are in- "Girl" won by 8 votes.

Family and friends are definitely pulling for a baby girl.

Hubbie is praying its another boy!

We'll just have to wait and see what God has in store for our family.

And, no, I have NO idea!

Come back later and we'll post more pics and the long awaited gender news of baby no 3!

Gosh! I'm kinda nervous! Been waiting on this for months and its FINALLY here.....





For more Wordful Wednesday, visit here.

From Today.....

Three days from today, I will be leaving my babies with Nana, heading to the doc office with my handsome Hubbie to find out what the sex is for this little baby nestled in my tummy!

Six days from today, I have to have everything finished- grocery shopping, bread and some cookies baked for the boys, clean house, wash clothes, errands ran, hair done and feet fixed, food taken to a MOPS mom, budget made, bills paid, MOPS Mom's registered-money deposited, field trip to go strawberry pickin' taken, packing for the cruise, essential bought for the cruise and I'm sure there are about a million more things on my ever growing list!

One week from today, I'll be leaving my babies, heading on a road trip with my handsome Hubbie to Cape Canaveral to wait on the cruise ship which will be taking us to the Bahamas!

One week and two days from today, I will be lounging on the beaches of Bahamas... I still cannot believe it! Doing no laundry, nose wiping, kitchen clean-up, hearing cries or whines.....and still....I still cry when I think about leaving the boys and not doing all that stuff! Silly silly!

Of course, it will all get done. A lot of stuff will have to get done on certain days, so that makes my stress level higher...since I can't go ahead and knock it out. Hubbie is taking a day or two off next week in order to do some stuff with us and go to the doc appointment with me so that will help, because I can get my haircut and toenails done one day while he's at home with the kids.

And, of course, because no post is complete without a pic....the temp here has been in the high 80's and even low 90's so we turned on the sprinkler.....


I'm off to help in children's church, a yummy Chinese lunch with Nana and then naps for everyone! Happy Sunday!

Oh, and don't forget to go vote on what the baby's sex is.....so far girl is winning.... 3 more days!

Lu Wants To Know

Since the only thing everyone is talking about is whether this baby bun in the oven is a boy or a girl AND the sonogram is now LESS than a week away.... I wanna know...... What do you think we're having? If you've seen me, you can kinda give your opinion on whether I'm carrying high or low or different than my other two.... if you haven't, then you might be at a disadvantage and I still haven't taken any tummy shots yet. Will try to do that in the next week or so. I am 18 wks 3 days or if we're going by what size the baby is, I am one day shy of 19 wks.

Do you think we are having a boy or a girl?



Boy



Girl

View results

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Songs Stuck In Your Head?

Songs stuck in my head ALL week!

First from church on Sunday.... yes! we rocked it! Still gives me goose bumps!


Second, yes random, but saw it on t.v. last week and hum this song to myself while playing with the boys.... it won't get out of my head!

The Day Is Coming Soon....

Less than 2 wks away from my sonogram to determine the baby's sex. I can't wait. I just want to know. I don't care. I'm tired of NOT knowing!

People ask....people want to know....most people assume we want a girl. We really don't care. Hubbie REALLY wants another boy. I still vary from day to day. I think if I had a girl, I would be okay....but to be honest, I've never really even DREAMT of having a daughter until we had Peanut... then I kinda thought a girl would be nice. I do look at friends with girls and smile....not envious smiles......smiles of....I hope I don't have to deal with that..... the drama..... I can't deal with girl drama. One reason I never really had a lot of girl friends.... I think since middle school I've always had a close guy friend... they are drama free and listen well and give good advice! So....if I have a girl, its gonna take some adjustments and getting use to the idea....and a lot of patience when she starts getting a mind of her own! But in my gut, I really think its a baby boy moving and grooving inside of me..... which is a lovely thought!

I had only bought one thing for the baby.... shown here.....but then I went to Target on Friday and saw these two adorable baby items- one is a soft blanket(boy) and one is a dust ruffle(girl). I was on the phone with Hubbie (while in an airport) and asked if he wanted me to wait on these items until we found out, but since they were on clearance, I hated to do that. I then realized that since its less than 2 weeks away, I could buy both and return which ever one needed to be returned...so that is what I did. So then, we have one neutral item, one boy item, and one girl item....until we went to a few yard sales on Saturday. One of the local church yard sales had TONS OF GIRL CLOTHES... I mean TONS of it. If I knew I was having a girl, this girl would be set. I didn't know how many pieces to get and or what to get or even if I should get any... but they were 50 cents a piece and REALLY nice things.... so I got about 5 pieces. If I don't need them, I have quite a few friends that are preggo and our new next door neighbor (who is a month ahead of me and expecting another girl) and I'm sure I can find SOMEONE who will take these. Or I can even sell them at a consignment sale. Anyway.... so now I have mostly girl stuff.... I think its just easier to find... of course, I do have a HOUSE FULL of boy's clothes and toys. So if we have a third little boy, unfortunately, he's gonna have a bad case of hand-me-down depression!!!

So, I am counting down the days. I just want to know and to be able to call the baby something other than baby in 'da tummy or baby no 3. I want to know what I can do with the bedroom, but either way it looks like we'll be doing a brownish theme. With a girl's room, I think I'll mix in brown toile. With a boy's room, I think we'll do something with brown and green and maybe dinosaurs.

Menu Plan Monday

Monday- Crock pot Ravioli and leftover breadsticks

Tuesday- Chicken pot pie (or something with chicken... haven't decided exactly what)

Wednesday- Taco Casserole (from last week )

Thursday- Leftover ravioli/chicken pot pie

Friday- Leftover Taco Casserole

Saturday Lunch- Egg Salad or Tuna Salad Sandwiches and chips
Saturday Dinner- Breakfast/ Waffles and Bacon

Sunday Lunch- Out
Sunday Dinner- small groups/ everyone does something..

Another busy week for our family. Bible Study Fellowship and MOPS will start back for me. Then Nana will be keeping Peanut so I can take Bubbie to this. Some MOPS friends are gonna go with us. Very excited and I think Bubbie is too! Thursday night, Nana (Nana and Pops alway saves the day!) and Pops are gonna watch the boys so Hubbie and I can have dinner and attend Dave Ramsey's TownHall for Hope. Very excited! I think we have something else thrown in there....but can't remember what. Oh, Bubbie's soccer practice. Can't forget that! Hopefully its written down!

Have a great week!

For more, visit here.

Our Week Without Dad

Last week Hubbie went to San Diego. It was a LONG week. The boys did okay... some days or moments were better than others. We had a full week with lots to do, so that helped our days go by quickly. The nights were the worst part for me and I probably should have gone to my parent's house to sleep, but I thought that I was being a bit silly, so we stayed at home. Every night I probably slept about 4 hrs instead of my normal 8 or 9, so by Friday I was dragging, but I knew I was in the home stretch.

Like I said, we had lots to keep us busy.

On Monday, Peanut had his 15 mo check up (about 3 wks late) and he is doing pretty good. Basically he has a huge head (90th percentile), height is average (31 inches at 50th percentile) and weight is bad (10th percentile... weighing in at 21 lbs 3.5 oz.). The doc wasn't concerned about the weight- as long as he continues to gain some in between each visit- its ok. All I know is that this kid is eating us out of house and home, so not sure where the food is going. He is always moving...that could have something to do with his little weight gain!!!

On Tuesday, I had our monthly MOPS Steering mtg, so we ran a few errands and then went to that. Tuesday was my 27th birthday and yes, my husband was gone! The ladies were super sweet and I got gifts and cards and a birthday cake. Gosh! I love being with those gals! They made me feel so special and much better about having a normal day! After nap time, we headed to Bubbie's first soccer practice. He did a good job.


After about 30 mins he was tired and ready to go home. Thankfully the coach ended it early, because Bubbie was starting to lose interest. When we got finished, we met our pals- Mandy, Frick and Frack- at Chick-fil-A for Kid's Eat Free Nite. The boys enjoyed being silly together and playing in the wet playland and Mandy and I got a chance to chat.

On Wednesday, we ran a few errands and went to the library and the park for a playdate. We had fun and the weather was beautiful.

On Thursday, a few gals got together for a playdate and picnic lunch. Again, the weather was wonderful and the kids had a great time. It was nice just being able to talk to the other moms while we played with our kiddos. I have some of the best friends!!!

On Friday, my in laws offered to keep the boys for me. I had a few errands that I wanted to get done before Hubbie got home, so I dropped them off around lunch time. I had the best time running to Target for shampoo and doing some MOPS stuff at the church office. I didn't do anything of leisure, like I wanted to with those 2.5 hrs, but it was so nice just being out and about without kiddos. The rest of Friday was spent cleaning house, doing laundry and waiting to find out if Hubbie would be home early or late on Friday night. Thankfully, Hubbie walked in the door before 10pm!! Woo hoo!!! We were both so exhausted so we went straight to bed.

We kept busy...the boys and I played lots of trains and read books and enjoyed the nice weather, but it sure was lonely without my main squeeze.... since he's been home, we've slept two good nights with at least 8 hrs each night and then had a 2 hr nap on Saturday...so I think we're both recovering from our long weeks! Just a few more weeks until our vacation on the cruise!

Bad Widgets

I just wanted to apologize for my blog being messed up all week. I assumed it was a widget that had changed its size or something...but I wanted Hubbie here to help in case I had more issues...my suspicions were right and it was a bad widget. I, unfortunately, lost some of the widgets in the process, so the blog looks very clean, doesn't it!?! We deleted the "bad" widget and hopefully, I won't have any more issues.

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Wordful Wednesday- Einstein Hair

Peanut didn't have any hair for a long time. Then he started growing a peach fuzz and it looked red, then kinda strawberry blonde. In the last 4 mos he's gotten a headful of fine, blonde hair....that is always crazy! You can comb it, but it doesn't stay down. If you cut it, it would probably be even crazier. We've decided to let it go crazy!

People love it. People stop me and comment on his hair. To us, it has personality and adds some character to this cute little man! Yummy Preciousness!

For more Wordful Wednesdays, visit here.

Menu Plan Monday

Hubbie is leaving for San Diego. Not only is he gone, but not be home every night to "rescue" me. He has left me on one of the busiest weeks of April! Bubbie starts soccer practice this week. We have a doctor's appointment, a MOPS meeting and on and on. Just craziness! There are things that need to be done this week and once Hubbie does return, we have a jammed packed weekend. Hopefully we can all make it! Because of the hectic week and no daddy coming home every night, we are having a very easy week-food wise. Nothing extra special or fancy. Basically, this week, is survive and keep everyone alive! Hee hee! It truly won't be THAT bad..... just want this week to go by fast!

Monday- Easter dinner leftovers- ham, veggies

Tuesday- Soccer practice (out to eat- kid's eat free at quite a few places around town)

Wednesday- Debbie's Casserole and biscuits (this was a HUGE hit last week for both boys, so since Dad is gone and its easy, I'm gonna make it again!)

Thursday- Frozen pizza (I usually make pizza by hand, but I'm assuming that by Thursday I will be ready for a break....so frozen pizza it is!)

Friday- Leftover casserole

Saturday lunch- out/ busy day with errands and an Earth Day event
Saturday dinner- Taco Casserole...had this at JTEAM a few weeks ago and it was delicious! Similar to this casserole, but has a different flavor!

Sunday lunch- Leftovers casserole
Sunday dinner- JTEAM/ not sure what is on the menu

For more MPM, visit here.

Peanut Takes Over...

Because my mommy is quite busy with Easter activities and baking, I, Peanut, son of Hyperactive Lu, age 15 mos, have decided to forgo nap time and take the blog hostage. Not much to say....so I'll leave you with a picture.


This picture is mainly for the computer geeks in my life...Daddy, Uncle Bubba and Pops. Momma doesn't get it.

Shirt was a baby present from Ms. Mandy and Mr. BP.

Thank You Notes!

I think I have always done an excellent job at writing thank you notes... birthday, wedding, Christmas- you name it- I send thank you notes. Have for years..... I think my parents made us do it at a very young age and it just stuck. It dawned on me a few days ago that I don't think I sent out thank you notes for Christmas presents...or even for birthday presents for the boys. I really can't remember.

To those of you who did not receive a thank you note in the last 6 months, I apologize, I will do better and please know that we appreciated what you gave us!

I feel better! :)

Anxiety

The cruise is less than a month away. By this time next month, we will be back home, settling back into the normal life with 2 rambunctious kiddos and entering our half way mark of this 3rd pregnancy.

A few weeks ago fear and anxiety struck my soul....probably satan trying to steal away my joy. I do not enjoy my kids leaving me. Never have and probably never, EVER will. I know it comes with the territory. I do tend to be more of a worry-wart than most. I've read too many things and seen too many things. I have read the Bible- A LOT and I know that God does work in mysterious ways to bring us closer to Him. Not saying I always like knowing that, but just the fact that I can't control God....and I don't know what His plans are for my life and my children's lives.....scares me to death! I know, I know... I say this verse.....

Jer 29:11 (NIV) "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

over and over in my head when I feel anxious. Doesn't matter. I know God's power and His love. I've seen Him work in my life SO many times. I also know that He has a plan and I DON'T KNOW IT!!!

The thought of being out in the middle of an ocean miles and miles away from my kids brings tears to my eyes and makes my throat swell up. Just knowing that they will not be WITH me and me protecting them scares me. I do know that Hubbie and I need this time. I do know that this trip is TRULY FROM THE LORD. I do believe that God wouldn't give us this trip in order to bring harm to my family. I know He gave us this trip as a blessing and I know to cast my cares on Him...and I do...daily....but the fears and thoughts come back.

I need peace and I need reassurance from the Lord that my children will be okay. More than anything I want to have a great time and to be able to focus on my husband 24/7. He does NOT get that attention that he deserves and hasn't gotten much attention since Bubbie came into existence! I want this trip to be a blessing for my marriage, but also for our family. Something we can always look back on and say "God did THAT!" and He did. I can't tell you enough about how this trip has impacted my faith....but I think more than mine, my husbands. I know God cares, but this is really an answer to prayer. An out of the blue..... knock on the door and surprise! kind of answer to prayer! We would not be taking a trip or a cruise if it weren't for God.

So, I am giving my fears and concerns to God... knowing that my children are in the most PERFECT of hands..... the hands that molded them and made them...the hands that gave them to me to make me a better person and to give joy and purpose.

It doesn't help that I am pregnant and probably the most emotional basket case I've been my whole life.

1 Peter 5:7-- "Turn all your anxiety over to God because He cares for you"

Yummy!

Today- The sun is shining so very bright! Not a cloud in the sky! All lingering puddles have dried up! There is a crispness in the air and a gentle cool breeze! The temp is about 60 degrees!

We spent from about 10 o'clock until almost 1 pm at the library and park today! The boys had a blast! Peanut fell down some of the playground steps....oops! I felt like an awful mother, but just couldn't catch him once he started the downward fall! But he's pretty tough and recovered very quickly. Thankfully no blood or bruising.

Bubbie informed me today that "the sun was so very yummy today"!

My thoughts exactly! No where else I'd rather be but playing in the Sun with my sons!

Menu Plan Monday

Hey guys! We had a busy weekend and I can't believe its already gone! Geesh! In less than a week Easter will be here! So much to do! Here is our menu for this week!

Monday- Leftover Taco casserole

Tuesday- Cheesy Chicken Casserole , green beans and crescent rolls

Wednesday- Debbie's Casserole (recipe from a dear friend YEARS ago and still a favorite!)

Thursday- leftover chicken casserole

Friday- leftover debbie's casserole

Saturday Lunch- OUT- Mexican
Saturday Dinner- Homemade pizza, breadsticks and salad- if you want a quick, easy pizza crust recipe, comment/email me and I'll send it to you! Only needs 10 mins to rise and its good! :)

Sunday Lunch- leftover pizza and sides
Sunday Dinner- Easter dinner(not sure what is on the menu) and egg hunt for the boys

For more menu ideas, visit Laura here.

He Did It!

This weekend Hubbie left us for the big city of Charleston, South Carolina to run in the Cooper River Bridge Run. He has been training for this race and talking about it for months! It was finally here! Hubbie and my father drove up together and after a few mishaps along the way finally made it to Charleston late Friday night.


Both guys did a great job! Dad finished under a hour and forget his "official" time. Hubbie did a great job as well and even beat his estimated time. Hubbie's time was 1:15:20. We are very proud of him!

6 months ago he couldn't even run without puking...now he's running 10k and getting ready for his half marathon in the Fall. He's lost 50 lbs and doing great!

Baby No. 3 UPDATE

I had my 2nd ultrasound and my monthly doc visit yesterday. I got to see this tiny, squirming thing on the monitor and it brought me to tears! The baby's arms and legs were moving like crazy and the baby's head was nodding away...maybe hiccups? God answered our prayers and I do NOT have placenta previa! The placenta is way up high and the cervix is down low.....just perfect for a healthy natural delivery. Unfortunately I can't have any of those! :( It is still c-sectioned babies for this mama.

The babies heart was beating at 152...a little less than a month ago when the babies heartbeat was at 164. Maybe since its getting bigger? Not sure, but no one seemed alarmed. Everyone at the doc office asked me if the ultrasound tech told me the sex. The answer was no. The sonogram was really short- maybe 10 mins. and I guess since she wasn't told to look, she didn't. Not sure if she could see it or not, but she didn't tell the doc or the nurse. By the end of the month I will know the sex, so its all good. The baby will be bigger and hopefully that'll be my last sonogram- unless we have any other issues before D-DAY!

I gained 4 lbs this past month and not really sure how. I started walking with a friend at the park and I guess it had an adverse effect. I guess I made up for the last month of losing weight! Oh well! I do have an excuse! I have a baby....a very TINY baby....in my tummy! I just need to slow down the weight gain, because I started this pregnancy with a lot of Christmas goody weight! Eeek!

I still haven't totally felt the baby move. I think I might have felt baby on Tuesday, but then I would think it was a gas bubble....so I'm still waiting! I know it won't be too much longer though!

Since we still do not know the sex and won't for a few more weeks, I've had a REALLY hard time not purchasing anything "baby". I'll see cute little rompers for a baby boy or a baby girl... and I have to tell myself WAIT! I did purchase a pacifier holder a few weeks ago.

It is very neutral, so I think it could go either way. I thought it was very funny how the company is called Bink Link..... and one of the circles even has their initals...which would be our baby's initals if it turned out to be a boy! Hee hee! I am very clever, huh?! Now...if its a girl....guess we gotta find a girl's name that starts with a B! Just kidding!

Pregnancy is going good. My patience and tolerance level has been really low this week. Not sure whether its the craziness of our schedule, me being hormonal and tired or the non-stop rain, but I have been very short tempered with Bubbie....and much quicker to pop Peanut. I know this is HORRIBLE to say, but Momma's that are honest will totally understand it when I say...I'm ready for summer playcation at school! It starts at the end of May and I am so ready! I am sigining Bubbie up for the maximum- 2 mornings a week and Peanut for 1 morning a week and I can't wait! I know its only a few hours, but they'll be able to get adjusted to school and the teachers for the Fall and I will have 4 hrs of peace once a week! I can't wait! Plus the weather will be getting better and we'll be able to spend more time outside, so I'm sure that will help too!

I am still able to wear some regular clothes and mix them with maternity pieces. A good friend from MOPS gave me a HUGE bag of summer maternity stuff and it was like Christmas looking through all the goodies she gave me! I was definitely in need of some summer shirts. I am definitely at the point where you can see a bump....not sure if its a fat bump or a pregnant bump...but its a bump! :)

I know I've written before about my doc "pushing" me to make a decision about tying my tubes. I've kinda let the idea mull around in my head, but we decided this week that we will NOT be tying our tubes. I just can't let go of the thought of never being able to have any more children. I think we are done with having kids for a while, but give it 2 or 3 years and we might want to have another.... I truly do think we will have at least 4 children......but just not sure of God's timing. I feel a sense of peace once we did agree on not tying tubes or getting Hubbie "fixed". The thoughts of adding another child to the mix and just the thought of Christmas and birthdays for 3 seem daunting...let alone 4, but I know that God will be faithful. No worries. One kiddo at a time! Hee hee!

I am almost 16 wks and so glad that I've had a good pregnancy thus far. By the time I go for my next sonogram, I'll be half way through this pregnancy! Gosh! Time flies, huh?!

Next Door Neighbors

Isn't it funny how God works thing out? A year ago in May I met a gal at a playdate. She was new to town and I felt silly about mentioning it, especially since I was at a playgroup's meetup, but she asked about activities around town, churches, etc. I told her about our church and about MOPS. She thought MOPS sounded good and signed up. Last fall was the beginning of her first year of MOPS and she has really enjoyed it. She is such a outgoing and people person anyway, she just fit right in and made friends on the first mtg.

About a month ago our crazy neighbors moved out. I'm pretty sure I've written about them, but shortly after we moved in a cop came to our house asking about the neighbors and where they were, if they were in our house, etc. It sort of freaked me out and ever since I've kept a CLOSE eye out on that house. The house hasn't had power to it (power co removed the meter) since last June. The people would let their dogs run free and they weren't very nice dogs and sort of scared me and the kids.... let's just say that Hubbie and I wanted to throw a party we were saw them moving out.

Now this same gal, Ashley, is moving into the house next door! How awesome is that!? Within a month Ashley and her growing family will be our new neighbors. Her family will be a wonderful addition to the neighborhood and they are expecting another baby about a month before my due date. I can't wait to have awesome neighbors on both sides of us.