And The Tie-Breaker

We are expecting another girl! Chris and I went to an ultrasound appointment last Wednesday. All is as it should be; the baby seems very healthy. The only trouble we have is picking out a name.

What should the name of our baby girl be?

New Baby Update

Well, Baby #3 is on its way! I had an appointment yesterday with Dr. Stamps of Primrose OB/GYN here in Springfield, MO. For those of you in the area who need an OB/GYN, I highly recommend him. We listened to the heartbeat, which my doctor said was "perfect." I gained 7 pounds in the last few weeks since my last appointment, but he's not worried. Neither am I. I don't feel overweight for this pregnancy...yet. Maybe that will happen the last month or so. :)

I have an ultrasound scheduled in a couple of weeks. Hopefully, we will be able to find out the gender of the baby! Actually, I suggested to Chris that we wait until the baby is born to find out (since we have both boy and girl stuff), but he said absolutely not! He hates surprises. That's OK. We are excited to for our "tie-breaker" baby to be here!

Here We Go Again!

Chris and I are expecting our third (and last) child! I am about 9 weeks along now and definitely feeling the morning sickness. My appetite goes up and down like a roller coaster; it's unpredictable. I usually don't want to eat anything in the morning, but the rest of the day, I don't know what I am going to feel. I either feel nauseous or I am starving! So, because I am feeling somewhat sick like I did with Micah, I'm wondering if it's going to be a boy. I didn't hardly at all feel sick with Paige.

What do you think I will be having?

Our Kids (No Longer Babies)

Well, I have said a lot about our new house, but I need to catch everyone up on the real important stuff, the kids.

Micah: He is such a handsome boy. He turned 3 last July, and he is SO independent. Seriously, he wants to do everything by himself. It's interesting. I've obviously gotten myself into a habit of helping him with the little things since he couldn't do them before, like pouring his milk. Here, let me share with you a typical breakfast meal. We go into the kitchen, and he has to turn on the lights. He gets his own cereal or oatmeal, milk and juice out of the refridgerator, and spoon. The only reason I get his cup and bowl is because he can't reach it. He sits down in his chair and pours the cereal or oatmeal, milk, and juice by himself (with my supervision.) I just watch to make sure he doesn't pour too much or spill. When he's done, I ask him to put his dishes in the sink. (It's funny how I have to ask him to clean up by himself.) After that, he has to be the one to push a dining chair to the sink to wash his hands (and face if need be.)

Going to the bathroom is similar. I get him started by turning on the light (the bathroom is really dark,) and helping him pull down his pants. Once he starts going, though, he asks me, "Please go." So, I go, and let him do the rest. I'm not complaining about him doing things by himself, because he needs to learn those things. Sometimes I do get annoyed when I do something for him, and he has a huge temper over it, like I can't do anything at all for him anymore. Wow, kids want to grow up so fast.

Paige: Our little girl is a feisty one. She has a temper like Micah's; her screams can blow up your eardrums! (Seriously, it's loud.) She likes to hit things (and people) right now, and throw her toys. She's just starting to learn how to put herself to sleep. For awhile, it was WWIII if I didn't rock her or rub her back to help her go to sleep. She is very much attached to her mommy. Honestly, sometimes it's annoying, but most of the time, it's really awesome. Paige is completely off of baby foods; she graduated to adult food, just in much smaller bites. She has also recently stopped using a bottle, so she is using whole milk in just her sippy cup. Now, I need to focus on getting her used to more juice and water. Milk shouldn't be her only drink, I don't think.

Paige took her first step last week! She hasn't done anymore by herself since then, but it was one step closer to learning how to walk. Right now, I think she feels just fine with crawling. It gets her where she needs to go.

Finally...

Below are the pictures I said I would post of our house (with Micah on the driveway.) Yesterday, I described what was finished on the inside the last time we looked at it almost 2 weeks ago. However, our realtor (Laura Roberts of Carol Jones) called Chris today, and she said that our house is done! Sweet! We will make an appointment with her to take a look at it, since I'm sure the house is locked up now.

New House Pictures...

will be coming soon! I keep putting it off for some reason! We're really excited, and we want to show everyone how it's coming along. We believe they may even be done already! In the last post, we showed our house as just a frame. Since we last took a gander, they finished the siding, roof, driveway, and our part of the sidewalk on the outside. On the inside, they finished painting the walls; texturing the ceiling; putting linolium (sp?) on the floor; installing the cabinets, appliances, sinks, toilets, and bathtubs. If we go back to look at it, we may not be able to go inside if everything is done! Our contractor is also seeding the land, so we don't have to put in our own grass. We will eventually have to purchase a fench, though. Still, it's awesome to see everything coming along!

Pictures of Our House

Well, here they are, pictures of our house. We are pleased with the progress our contractor has made. Of course, they can't take too much time to work on it. We'll be moving in before we know it; the house is supposed to close Sept. 30, and we will be moving in the beginning of October! That's less than 3 months away! Incredible.

We believe the whole house is framed and that they will be putting on the flat boards that go on the roof soon. That's what we found on the gravel "driveway."

The driveway will go up somewhat; Chris estimates an 20 - 30% incline.

This picture shows our future address in the front, 204 Spruce...I think it's "St.", but it may be "Ln."

For a look at our floor plan, go to the Together We Learn blog.

We will keep you posted with future pictures. We are, of course, excited!

Stats on Our One-Year-Old, Paige

Paige went to her one-year check-up today. She did really well holding still while the doctors looked at her eyes and inside her ears. No crying, but no shots, either. Hopefully, she'll have those done next week. Here are her stats:

Length: 28 in.
Weight: 18 lbs.
Other comments: She looks and acts great! No other concerns.

On another topic, Chris surprised me by deciding to take our family to the lot where our house is being built. They have laid the foundation down. It looks a lot smaller right now, but I'm sure it will look more like the home we are expecting as the walls and roof are put up. We will put up a picture here soon.

Exciting News

A week ago, Chris and I decided to stop giving Micah training pants cold turkey. It has been the best decision for his potty training. Although, he's had several accidents (as expected), Micah has really progressed with using the potty and telling me when he needs to go. To me, that alone is worth the accidents he's had. Oh, and Micah finally went poop in the potty! I caught him trying to go in his underwear when I rushed him to the bathroom. He finally did it!

Paige waved "bye-bye" for the first time today! Grandma and Papa Crosby were over at our place to help us get Paige's new (and very pink) car seat in our car. When they left, she waved "bye-bye!" That's also something we've been trying to teach her for awhile. It's so cool to see your children grow!

Today for Family Home Evening, our lesson was about baptism. Since this is a new concept for Micah, I tried to think of any activity that he could relate to. I decided to have Micah wash and rinse his toys in buckets of water like the June 20th activity I posted on Together We Learn. I told him that we are "dunked" and become clean in a baptism just like we are dunking and cleaning the toys. It was simple and fun for him. Paige wasn't too shy getting into the bubbles either. :) For those of you who are curious, you can go to http://together-we-learn.blogspot.com for a picture of the floor plan for our first house. Tomorrow, I will be posting a healthy oat bran muffin recipe. Yum!

Want to see Paige walk?

Yesterday, on my Together We Learn website, I posted a video of Paige walking with her toy walker. It's pretty dang cute! Today's TWL post is about keeping your kids cool outside while they help clean. Sounds good, huh?

Appreciating Your Spouse

Take a look at my new Together We Learn blog post about appreciating your spouse. Chris said that it was kind of kinky. Curious? See for yourself! Tomorrow, I will be asking for your thoughts on potty training. Please visit the website and enjoy!

New TWL Post

Check out my new post on Together We Learn. FHE Lesson: I Am a Child of God. Learn how to make homemade pot pie tomorrow!

http://together-we-learn.blogspot.com

Jenn's New Blog

Together We Learn is my new blog that brings ideas to one place, ideas that may help a family somehow become more united or find ways to just have fun. Below is the website address:

http://together-we-learn.blogspot.com

Check it out, and please e-mail me your ideas and suggestions to macpcmommy@gmail.com. I am excited for many to participate to bring color and variety to the posts and discussions. Thanks in advance for your support!

Just Talking

Well, our offer on the house we want to build was accepted, so now the contractor is in the process of buying the lot from the developer. That may or may not close this weekend; hopefully it will so they can get started on building our home. I'm getting pretty anxious and excited about it. I can't wait to go down and see our home in progress. And, of course, we will take pictures for everyone to see how our home is coming along.

On a very different note, I think I have decided to stop my late night fix: chocolate. I was looking in the fridge for something to eat at 9:00. I knew I would feel guilty about ice cream or a chocolate bar, even though they taste so good. It's my addiction. So, I decided instead on an orange. Then, I thought, why don't I make this kind of choice every time I'm hungry so late at night? I can't guarantee myself that I'll always choose the healthy snacks, but if I want to stay healthy, I need to eat that way.

Our Journey Towards Getting Our First House

Not too long after Chris felt secure and comfortable at his job, we were considering the possibilities of buying a home. We were tired of renting and "throwing our money away". Yes, renting an apartment provides a place for a family to live, but we wanted our income to invest in what would be ours, a house. So, Chris contacted Laura Roberts of Carol Jones Realtors, a friend of my mother-in-law, very friendly, helpful, and professional. She gave us a contact at OakStar Bank to help us apply for a pre-approval.

After several weeks, we had a pre-approval of a rural development loan. Not long after that, we started looking at houses; a few of them were houses many years old and needing some extra work (i.e. new roof). But then, Laura took us to Clever, MO, 20 minutes southwest of Springfield. The town's population is a little more than 1,000 but growing. The first house we saw was awesome! The original purchase price was $116,000, but since it was on foreclosure, the new selling price came down to $83,000! Laura, however, told us we would have to bid the full amount of our loan (not including closing costs) to even be considered a buyer. The best bid is what wins on foreclosures. We thought about trying it, but we didn't have a few extra thousand to pay for the closing costs.

As we kept that option in our heads, we toured a few houses on sale in a newly developed subdivision called Westview Fields. We liked what we saw and decided to build through a contractor. We just needed to pick a floor plan and lot. On our next appointment with Laura, she took us to a home (not in Clever) we had not toured yet. It was built by a contractor who also owns some lots in Clever. Chris absolutely fell in love with it, and I liked it but didn't love it as he did. As we thought about it and after we showed the house to our family, we decided it would be the floor plan best suited for us.

Our new home will have 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a two-car garage. The living room and dining area are open to each other, and the laundry room is right by the kitchen. It is a nice home for our little family, a good starter home. The day we decided that was what we wanted (last Saturday), we also picked our carpet, counter tops, and cabinets. We completed the paperwork of our offer to the contractor (Cantrell's Patriot Homes) as well. Laura says it should be accepted, because we are offering to pay for everything they are asking for.

We will keep everyone updated, and of course, post pictures of our developing home. The house should close Sept. 30, and we will move in not long after that in October. So, our new address from that time will be:

204 Spruce Ave.
Clever, MO 65631

If for some reason that address changes, of course, we will let everyone know. We are super excited and grateful we received this opportunity! We are truly blessed.

A Perfect Day

My birthday was last Friday, and it was the best! On my last birthday, it snowed. The birthday before that, I was sick! I was overdue for a fantastic day to remember.

The day started out as I woke up at 6 a.m. to work out. Yes, I wanted to work out. My birthday especially should be a day of feeling good, and I feel good after I exercise. The kids didn't wake up until after I was done, which doesn't always happen. For breakfast, we had cinnamon rolls. Yummy! After everyone got dressed and ready for the day, Chris and the kids drove me to my 9 a.m. appointment for a massage, pedicure, and manicure. Chris drove around and watched the kids while I got pampered. It was SO relaxing! It was my first time, too. During my massage, I could just feel all of the stress being pushed out of my body. Needless to say, it was very nice.

After feeling refreshed and getting my nails painted a pretty purple, we went out for lunch at Lucy's. I love Chinese food, so it was a good meal. Chris' sister, Sarah, works there, and hooked us up with some extra egg rolls and Crab Rangoon. Next, we took the kids home to take their naps, and I got dressed in nicer clothes for a date with my man that night. Jeni, my sister-in-law, straightened my hair. I completely trust her with my hair; she does a good job. At 3:30 p.m, I had a facial appointment. Also awesome, relaxing, and my first one. I felt pretty and relaxed after who-knows-how-many lotions the beautician put on my face.

Our evening started out with dinner at Gilardi's, a very nice Italian restaurant. I ate with my mom-in-law, dad-in-law, Jeni, Sarah, as well as (of course) Chris, Micah, and Paige. I got a pasta with creamy tomato sauce and mushrooms. Very delicious, and good service, too! Everyone seemed to enjoy it, so that made me happiest of all.

After our bellies were full, Chris' family took the kids home while Chris and I had our date at a Springfield Cardinals game. We arrived at the field, and one of the stadium workers found us our seats right behind home plate a couple rows up. He brushed off our seats for us, too! We watched a good game as we ate cotton candy and ice cream in a bowl resembling a St. Louis baseball hat. A man with roses gave one to each lady in our section. We were treated like royalty! The score was tied 5-5 in the middle of the 9th inning, but the Cardinals swung hard and hit a home run bottom of the 9th. Great way to end the game! Plus, they had fireworks afterwards! Nice ending to the perfect day. Finally, we went to the 'rents home to pick up the kids, and pretty much just crashed in bed. Like I said, a perfect day. And I have my husband to thank for it. He wanted to make sure I had an amazing birthday, and I did. How is he going to top it next year?

Yesterday, Chris and I decided to try putting Micah in some underpants. We hoped once he saw that they don't work like diapers or training pants, he would ask to use the potty so he wouldn't get wet. WRONG! He went through the whole pack we bought him. The last pair of underpants he had on was during lunch. Just as I was about to ask if he needed to go potty, he wets his pants, the chair, and the floor. So, I take him into his room to clean up. As I was doing that, Enzo (a child I care for during the week) drops his plastic plate half full of grapes and eggs. So, now I need to clean up pee, eggs, and grapes. No big deal, I thought, I'll take care of it. (All the while, Paige is hungry crying.) I put Micah back on his seat after cleaning up some of the mess as to not sit in it. As he normally does, he decides to stand up to eat, stuffing his mouth with grapes... and starts choking! But, he doesn't just cough up the grapes, he throws up the rest of his lunch on his seat, the floor, and his clothes! At first, I was surprised, but then I caught some of his puke in my hands to dump in the sink. Yikes! So, once again, I cleaned him up and put him to bed for naptime. (He wore 5 outfits yesterday!) Enzo had a good lunch before dropping it on the floor, so I just put him to bed. I gave Paige a bottle, and while she ate, I cleaned up the mess: pee, grapes, eggs, and puke. Then, I swept and mopped the floor to make sure it was really clean. While I was doing this, though, I had a little grin on my face, and I was glad I didn't feel overwhelmed. I was able to step back and figure out what I needed to do, and it all worked out great! I wanted to add that Micah is doing well using the potty. He doesn't go in there all the time, but he is still learning. That's all I can expect or even hope for.

Has it been this hard for anyone else?

Micah has been frustrating the crap out of me these last few days! Is it really this hard to be the mother of a two-and-a-half year old? I have been praying for more patience lately since that's what I feel I need more of. I have learned the importance of taking "mommy time-outs", a few minutes to regroup and refocus. It's a good thing for both me and the kids. As frustrated as I get sometimes, I don't want to take my anger out on the kids; I need to still be a good example. But even that isn't easy. I'm trying to teach Micah to listen to Chris and I and do as he's told. That is still a work in progress. I'm also trying to make potty training a positive and encouraging experience. Micah gets to put one sticker on his rubber ducky for a pee pee and two stickers for a poo poo. (Still waiting for the first poo poo in the potty.) But, the only time he wants to go is right before he takes a nap (so he can postpone his bedtime). I ask him if he needs to go, and he says, "No. Playing with (insert name)." So, right now, he still doesn't see the importance of taking a break to use the potty. It's much more convenient to just go in his training pants if he is busy doing something he likes. The need for patience comes when he takes a really long time to use the bathroom. With the child care I do for 2-4 other kids most of the week, I don't have time for him to play with the soap or take a few minutes to pull up his pants. So, my lack of patience and frustration is not helping in making this a "positive and encouraging experience". I hope I'm not the only one who has felt this way.

Our 9-Month-Old

Last Wednesday, Paige had a doctor's appointment. At 9-months-old, here are her stats:

Weight: almost 18 lbs.
Length: 27 1/2 in.
Head Circumference: 17 1/2 in.

Standing Up and Laying Down

Paige is progressing on how to stand up and support herself. At first, she would stand on her feet using objects close to the floor. Now, she can use the door to completely stand up! Amazing!

Paige is also getting her two top teeth, which explains her random crankiness. But, other than that, she is a very happy baby. When she "talks", it just makes me giggle.

I wasn't sure if I should post this picture of Micah and I being bootelicious. He is actually helping me work out on the Wii. Lots of fun!

Paige's Growing Hair, the Monst...Monkey, and "My Kids"

Her hair has grown to the point that I can actually make little ponytails or piggytails. It's exciting for me. I love to do her hair. I can't wait to put little clips in next. Aunt Jeni actually made her first ponytail, but yesterday was her first day for piggys, which I did.

A few days ago, Chris thought it would be good to stop calling Micah a "monster". The name was intended to be a way for us to joke around about how much trouble he can cause. My husband was sweet enough to think that calling Micah a "monster" was mean. So, we both decided it would be best for us to stop calling him that for good. We still call him a "monkey", though.

Below are pictures of the children I care for throughout the week. They can be quite a handful all together, but somehow it's all still fun.

Molly, 3 years old













Kyle, almost 2 years old













Enzo, 18 months old

She's everywhere! Micah and the challenging potty!

Paige is now crawling, and she doesn't hesitate to move around to get something that she sees. A lot of times it's my foot, a toy, the blinds in front of our patio door, or the doorstops attached to the floorboards. Once she gets it, she chews on it, so I steer her clear of the blinds and doorstops. She can also climb up onto her knees and feet while being supported by something close to the floor like our toy box. Yes, I have pictures of this, but they are on my phone, so I need to get some on our digital camera. Anyways, that's the latest scoop on Paige.

Micah is the usual monkey/monster of a child. He is a lot of fun to watch and play with. Potty training is a slow process. He loves to go potty at church, at Grandma's house, and just about anywhere else besides home. He does use the potty at home, but not every time he needs to. While he lets me know he needs to go at all the other places, he doesn't tell me that at home, so I have to ask him constantly (and of course, sometimes I forget to ask). I need to somehow make the potty at home more fun. Right now, when he goes in his training potty with the removable bowl, he gets to dump the pee into the toilet and wash it out. (He likes to do that.) He has yet to go poop in the potty. I've told him to let me know when he needs to go poop, but that has yet to happen. I'm not in a hurry to have him fully trained; I'm not worried about it. But, I can see that it's going to take awhile. And don't worry, no pictures of poop or Micah on the toilet. :)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

Last night was Jenn and my date night. We (Jenn) decided to go see Benjamin Button. I have heard a lot of good things about it. My mom and sister worship the ground it was created on.

I didn't mind the movie. I will admite, I am a softy and when emotional things happen and the music is just right I will cry. I shed a tear, much to my frustration. After the movie I felt I just saw the.love child of The Notebook and Forest Gump. I am slightly frustrated at how some of the story panned out and flowed. The strength of acters carried the movie.

Overall I give the movie a B rating.

Quick Paige Stats

Paige had her six-month appointment last Wednesday. Here are her stats:

Length: 26 1/2 in.
Weight: 17 lbs. 1 oz.
Head Circumference: 17 in.

The doctor said she looks great! We are going to start feeding her veggies next week. Weaning her has been a challenge, but the doc said to just keep trying different nipples...bottle nipples, not boob nipples. (Awkward.) And either she doesn't like the infant cereal or the feel of the spoon...or both. It's been a harder transition compared to Micah, but we'll get there. Speaking of Micah...

He's been doing pretty well with potty training. Sometimes he doesn't want to use the potty, and sometimes he will. At Church yesterday, he told me he needed to go, so I took him to the bathroom, and he went! He is making some progress, it seems.