Late December and January Books

Facelift: this book reminds us all that we all need a facelift of the spirit and heart.

 Book 2 of the series and it is great.

 Book 3 of the series and a wonderful end to the series.

 Book 2 and let me tell you it is intense. I had a hard time putting it down.

 Book 3 of the series and a very strong finish. This book is about a serial killer.

 Book 1 of the series and it is great. The question is how do you deal when you find out secrets? On a side note could her hair be any cuter?!

32 Weeks

Left: with Meredith Right: with Charles

I thought I looked bigger with Charles, but I think I am just carrying higher this time. I should have never looked back at the old photos because I believed I was smaller this time around (Not the case at ALL). Plus winter clothes hides pregnancy a little better.

Make your weight predictions for this baby- remember Charles weighed 9 pounds 11 ounces.

How far along am I? 32 weeks

Clothes: All maternity at this point it is just more comfortable.
Cravings: I have just been really hungry and it doesn't matter what it is as long as I get to eat. I will not turn down sweets though. I am one hungry little mama to be.
Loving: Feeling little kicks and punches that are getting so much stronger. She can wake me up with her movements now, and others can feel her move too.

Not Loving: All the bathroom trips daytime and nighttime. I'm still struggling with sleeping because of my hips. How fast this pregnancy is going by. I am also getting short of breath doing small tasks.
Looking Forward to: The next doctor's appointment. I love hearing her heartbeat and finding out how she is doing. I am also looking forward to meeting baby girl and showing her off to family and friends. 
Not Looking Forward to: Surgery

New Hats

Meredith now has mouse ears! These precious hats were made by a sweet co-worker of Patrick's. I can't wait to see them on her.

Pink Laundry

I bet you thought I put something red in with my whites and turned everything pink by that title. Nope, for the first time ever I have pink things to wash. A very generous friend gave us her baby girl blankets and clothes. I still have a bunch of clothes to go through to see what will fit/be warm enough here in late February-early spring. As we all know the climate here is not the same as Atlanta, Georgia. I am beyond thankful for her sweet gesture and look forward to seeing Meredith dressed in the cute clothes and wrapped in the soft blankets. Now I need to keep working on getting her room ready, finishing her heirloom blanket, and making a wreath for her room. I have so much to accomplish in the next 7 weeks. Last night I got majorly overwhelmed, so like any OCD organized mom to be I made a list of everything that needs to be done so that I can check things off as I get them accomplished.

Adventures in Potty Training

Yes, I just said those scary words. We are starting the long journey of teaching Charles to go to the potty. In many aspects he seems ready, but I do wonder how long this will take.
Steps we have taken in preparation:
Talk to Charles about how big boys use the potty and about all the cool underwear he will be able to wear once he is potty trained.
I have read books to him about going to the potty.
We have pull ups set and ready.
We also have a Mickey Mouse seat that goes in the regular potty. This is one cool seat it has a button that says hooray when you push it.
The actual first steps with Charles:
Last night at his urging to sit on the Mickey seat before bath time. We sat him down on the seat. He was so excited he didn't want to get off for a bath. This morning he easily sat down on the seat and was happy to wear a pull up. This is where I made a huge assumption that this was going to be easier than I thought. HAHAHA (insert evil laugh in the background)- boy did it ever go down hill from there. I know you are supposed to take them to the bathroom to try at a minimum of every hour. Charles refused to go. He said, "No, I can't want it mommy." No matter how fun I worded it he would not go. I remind myself we are just starting and he will eventually get this!
Any helpful advise, encouragement,and prayers are appreciated.

Big Boy Bedding

Charles moved up to a big bed in September. We decided to wait for Christmas to get big boy bedding. I think it looks nice and goes with all his WWII fighter pilot stuff really well. The biggest benefit to waiting is that he got his bedding as a gift from Mama C and Pop and we did not have to purchase it. My Aunt Allie made the bed skirt and red pillow.

Little Tiger Fan

This is how we celebrate a LSU Tiger win in the Hawkeye state the day after a WIN! We are all sporting our purple and gold, but this little guy is the cutest. I'm guessing that Outback was busy making onions yesterday.