mason's rough day

poor mason had such a day today. well, his face/head did.

both boys were fairly tired after staying up pretty late last night and getting up pretty early too. there was a lot of crying this morning. madelyn and mason were having some sort of disagreement which resulted in mason having a purple mark under one eye that looked like a black eye.

everyone was acting such a mess that i actually almost cancelled a pre-planned visit from our neighbor to watch the kids for an hour so that they would be used to her before we called her to come watch them when i go into labor (it was her idea to come over, wasn't that sweet?). i enjoyed my hour at starbucks and the kids were really good for her.

then we had another friend from mops bring over a girl she babysits that is madelyn's age (we have met them for lunch at the park several times) to swim in the pool after lunch. it was a lot of fun for everyone and the boys were pretty worn out by the time we got home. mason tripped on the walk home and instead of landing on his knees, he flipped onto his face. i turned around and saw the whole thing. it was the weirdest way of falling. i am still not sure how he managed to land on his face and nothing else. but his nose and mouth were bleeding pretty good. he had calmed down and stopped bleeding by the time we got back to the house but had a pretty fat lip that changed the whole look of his face.

maddux had fallen asleep in the wagon on the way back so i laid everyone out in the living room in dry clothes to watch a movie (mason's choice because he had the bloody face) while they ate a snack. and then daddy arrived and we headed off to my doctor's appointment.

since it was so close to dinner time on a tuesday, i planned for us to go to chick-fil-a for family night. we had never been to this cfa on family night so weren't sure what sort of 'activities' they might have. to the kids' delight they had balloon artists! and i must say that they made some pretty impressive things. madelyn got a princess crown...

...mason (with his fat lip) got a stegesaurus (there is a piece with 'spikes' going down the middle of his head)...

...and maddux got elmo.

daddy even sprung for ice cream at the end of the meal. madelyn has already asked to go back next week (and "every tuesday").

before the girl made their balloon hats she warned them that touching them to the wall would pop them. by the end of the meal i had all three hats hanging from my arm outside the booth which an employee found hysterical.

such a busy and fun day. it was a great way to start our school free summer! it has occurred to me that i am going to have to do a lot more planning this summer to keep us busy since school is out and we will have a lot more time together. can't wait! love.

38 weeks

check up went fine today. i do not have fifth disease (they didn't say if i had it before or not, just that i didn't have it now). other than that everything is fine and we keep waiting. the doctor i saw today (mine is on vacation this week) said that their practice wouldn't let someone like me go beyond 41 weeks. she said that we might talk about scheduling an induction during the next appointment (scheduling, not doing). it still doesn't mean much to me because we have had an induction scheduled for all three and have never been induced - labor has just started on its own by the time i got to the hospital.

the picture is from sunday. i don't think that this baby is going to be as big as maddux. i need to take a front view picture because there is very little width to my belly. i don't think i am very big and today they said that i am measuring back on schedule (who knows which schedule). the doctor was surprised by how high into my ribs the baby was. i told her that they all have been and that my sternum may never be the same again. the tip sticks straight out and actually makes it painful to lay on my stomach after the baby is born (and for quite some time after). it goes down a little as time goes by, but it has never straightened back out. oh well. they are worth it. love.

fifth disease

have you heard of fifth disease? Yeah, me either. Madelyn's teacher pointed out the notice of a case in her class a few weeks ago since it is one of those things that can be 'dangerous' for pregnancy.

i called the ob office and they said not to worry about it unless i had direct contact with someone with it. i did do a little research on it (mainly curiosity) and called my mom to see if i had it as a child (it is most common between the ages of 5 - 10). she had never heard of it either - and like every other person i have mentioned this to - freaked out a little at the word 'disease'.

the symptoms are similar to a cold - slight fever, runny nose, etc. the real indicator that you have had it comes weeks after you are contageous in the form of a 'slap cheek' rash on the cheeks and maybe on the torso and arms. as it fades, it can look 'lacy' (adults may not get the rash but might experience joint pain). it really isn't much of anything for those infected. in fact, most people never even know that they have it or have had it. in rare cases the baby can catch it in utero and become anemic to the point of heart failure. my pregnancy book just said that they will monitor via ultrasound for 12 weeks to watch for anemia - but i only have three weeks left so i wasn't too worried about it.

even knowing all of this, we thought that madelyn's red cheeks and upper arms were the result of a sunburn after being in the garden all weekend with daddy. granted it had been weeks since the notice went up at school so i had sort of forgotten about it. that is until her teacher pointed it out to me when i picked her up from school on wednesday. (four other kids had shown up with the tell-tale rash that day too.)

so now that i knew for sure that i had come in direct contact with it, i called my doctor's office. they did want me to come in for blood work but only after a doctor had given madelyn an official diagnosis. erg. so i called her doctor and they said that there was no reason to see her at this point since she was basically over it and since it is a virus there isn't really anything that can be done except let it run its course. once i explained that i needed to be tested but couldn't until she was officially diagnosed, they found a way to squeeze us in - tomorrow.

it was one of those appointments where the doctor must feel bad even billing for! she didn't even have the rash any more and he essentially took my word for it before giving her a 'diagnosis'. it was nice to be able to ask him if it posed any risk to a newborn since mason had an outbreak in his class as well recently and i figure that the boys are going to get this too. there is no risk at all. it seems the only risk if for babies in mommy's belly.

so i loaded all of the kids up to get madelyn diagnosed and then called my doctor from the parking lot to see if we could head over for my blood test since it wasn't very far from where we were. the nurse said that she would have to call me back. after sitting for 20 minutes (with a potty training mason in the back), i decided that we couldn't sit here all day and headed for home. to stall a little longer, i swung through mcdonalds for free cherry berry chillers and smoothies (coupons from the paper). just as we were pulling into the neighborhood i got a call back from the doctor's office saying that, yes, they want me to come in - what day would work for me? what?!! was what i was thinking. i am due in three weeks and you are putting this off?! instead i said, "could i come in today?" the girl said that she didn't know but kept me on hold while she checked. if i could get there right away they could squeeze me in. so a quick u-turn in the 'hood and back we went.

the lady taking my blood was a little concerned about my three little ones tagging along when there were going to be needles involved. i assured her that they would be fine with seeing it and that they would sit without problem. they sat in a row blocking the doorway drinking their cold beverages.

i was told to call back at this time tomorrow and they would have the results. but they didn't. in fact they told me my blood work was fine but since i had done a little research i knew that the results should be 'immune' or 'infected' so i questioned "fine". oh, no, my fifth disease results were not back - call back tomorrow. and then when i called the next day it was call on tuesday! obviously this was not considered a 'rush' situation. normally it would be annoying (and it is a little) but it actually reaffirmed my impression that this isn't really a big deal.

i have an appointment this afternoon so hopefully my results will be back and i can discuss them with the doctor. because i really don't know what it would mean in i had the virus while pregnant; as in what would they do at this point.

at this point (and before we even started this process) it seems like an excuse to bill our insurance for some unnecessary tests and to give me a lot of run around that i didn't need, but it seemed better to follow through than to wonder. an update to come later. love.

 

memorial day

we found out that we could walk to the memorial day parade so matt was willing to go with the kids and i early this morning. our plan was the walk to the parade and then walk back straight to the pool before it got too hot and crowded. we made it to the parade, but we missed the first half or so. madelyn still said that it was "the best parade ever" after seeing a few trackers, horses and firetrucks. i think it might have had something to do with the candy they were throwing...

we were all pretty sweaty and will definitely leave the house earlier for the next parade (i think july 4th will be the next one). it was nice to go straight to the pool. madelyn and mason were super excited to get in but maddux took a little coaxing. we swam for a while and then headed home for lunch. the kids had been in the sun a lot over the past three days so we stayed inside and watched a movie during the afternoon.

yesterday daddy walked with the kids to get ice cream after lunch (i didn't think that the three mile walk in 90 degree weather was such a good idea for me at this point and stayed home to nap instead). i got a call to come and get them because mason's whole face was bright red and matt didn't think they should walk back in that heat. so it worked out that i opted out. and you know i wasn't feeling up to it if i passed on ice cream. love.

mirror image

madelyn's sunday school teachers told us that we had to look at her color sheet from church today. they were very impressed with her ability to figure out how to make the mirror images (they said even the teachers/they were having trouble with it). i was impressed because madelyn doesn't typically like detail drawing and rarely does it. so proud of our little peanut. love.

 

cool down

daddy set up the inflatable pool to help everyone cool down after soccer. i couldn't believe that it survived two years of storage and our big move(s). it is so funny to see mason acting like madelyn by splashing and sliding and maddux acting like mason used to by standing outside of the pool and still trying to splash.

they had so much fun! i ended up with some burnt thighs from sitting and supervising while matt finished work on the retaining wall around the garden. great start to the holiday weekend! love.

sunny soccer

today is the warmest it has been at one of madelyn's games. it was the first time she even broke a sweat. she was a little tired and just not that into playing. she went through the motions and even got up to the head of the pack a few times but her heart (and head) were not in the game. but there was no crying and she didn't quit.

i think her whole team was a little out of it because they were a little lethargic out there. and if they kept score it would not have been even remotely close.

on the ride over to the fields madelyn was coaching mason and maddux on cheering for her on the "yellow team" instead of the "blue team" this week (the color depends on if you are the home or visitor team each week - every field has a yellow and a blue team). it was pretty cute. and it was even funnier when madelyn was sitting out and cheering for her team by yelling "go blue!"

we were all sweating by the time we got to the car and madelyn and maddux were both crying. mason took several opportunities throughout the day to point out that he was the only one that had a "good attitude" at soccer.

we also got her team pictures. how funny is her expression?! that is her 'i-am-keeping-my-eyes-open-and-looking-at-the-camera-like-mommy-told-me' expression. love.

new zoo exhibit

after frantically cleaning up the house for our builder to give a tour in the morning, we took the kids to the zoo as a surprise in the afternoon. they were having an advanced opening of the new reef exhibit for members only. i expected the zoo to be fairly crowded, but it wasn't at all and it was a perfect time to check everything out. the most special part? daddy was joining us! the kids have been so excited to have him home these extra days. mason keeps asking, "is daddy staying home with us today?" he gives a "yay" every time i tell him yes.

the kids were not very excited about standing next to the diving suit photo opp outside the new exhibit. i had to promise that it was just a costume and no one was inside. but they still didn't want to get too close.

maddux enjoyed the exhibit (as did madelyn and mason). here he is with a starfish which reminded me about how he 'sings' twinkle, twinkle little star every time he sees a starfish or star shape in a book.

daddy took them to the 'touch tank' for petting the sting rays. i guess there was also a little shark in the tank too but it was new to the exhibit and not available for touching yet. (you can see matt helping mason reach to pet a sting ray in the picture.)

the kids liked that there were some new items in the 'play area' for this exhibit. they were all afraid of the yellow eel puppet when daddy made it move but once they came around and tried it themselves it wasn't quite as scary.

on our way out they were 'driving' one of those remote control clown fish balloons. maddux kept trying to reach it and couldn't look away. i finally had to go pick him up so that we could head out.

fun times and we look forward to coming back a lot this summer. love.

end of the school year

it is so hard to believe that the school year is coming to a close. both kids are a little sad about the end. madelyn is having a more difficult time because she won't see most of her friends at her new school for kindergarten next year.

they don't do a 'graduation' ceremony for the 4/5 year class at this preschool because they offer a kindergarten and do the graduation then. so the end is a little anticlimactic. they do give all of the kids their own 'kid bible' and madelyn was very excited about that.

here is madelyn with her teachers mrs. h and mrs. c. madelyn has had such a wonderful year with them and they feel very confident that she will do very well in kindergarten.

mason had the most wonderful teachers for his first year of preschool. they are two special women who really love God and each and every one of the kids in their class room. (his teacher is actually one of the mops mentors and she really is a special lady.) two days a week with them has just not been enough for him and he looks forward to each and every school day.

mason with mrs. s (some of the kids call her "mrs. sweetheart").

and here he is with his main teacher, mrs. h, who is a mops mentor.

i am happy to report that mason is "satisfactory" in all of his skills for the year. here is a little bit from the lovely letter mrs. h sent home with the evaluation:

"His happy attitude in everything does make him very easy to love... He loves to be a helper and is always willing to do whatever is asked of him. He follows directions well, participates in Circle time, Bible Time, independent play, and both large and small group activities with confidence."

mason will be the only one returning to the preschool next year because maddux will be too young. he will go four days a week which seems like a lot but he loves it so much and i will still have two more at home. it will be weird for madelyn to be going to such a long day of school next year. but very exciting for her!

it has been a great year for both kids. love.

tired boy

maddux was having quite a morning. i think he might have the virus going around the kids' school because he has been sleeping more and his attitude has been atrocious at times. he came in crying and just laid himself down in the kitchen and went to sleep. he stayed asleep there for about an hour and then slept through driving to get the kids' from school and waiting in the school. he only woke up after i put him back into the car. love.

have stool, will travel

maddux loves the stool from the bathroom. the one that is considered 'his' is made of wood and too heavy to carry around, but the one that is considered 'mason's' has a handle and is highly portable.

and maddux brings it everywhere.

anytime he sees something that interests him, he runs off for the stool and takes a look. he likes to use it the most when i am in the kitchen preparing food or washing dishes.

while making lunch he 'asks' me which plate is his and then moves his stool closer to that spot at the counter. yesterday he was poking his finger in the jelly and licking it off after determining which one was his. and when i told him that his sandwich was ready he took it down and used his stool for his other favorite purpose - a table. he ate his sandwich in the kitchen until madelyn and mason came to the table to eat their lunch.

like i said, he loves his independence! love.

potty update

we have success!! after i posted about mason's pride in wearing underwear he went poop in the potty (i say "potty" but he is using a regular toilet with no 'potty seat')! and then he insisted on wearing underwear to bed. we have totally let him take the lead since it isn't a matter of ability but willingness at this point.

he doesn't even ask for any help in the bathroom or even tell me that he is going to go - he just goes.

he has had no accidents in two days and has spent two nights in underwear. we are so very proud of him! love.

potty training - part 3

mason is on day 4 of underwear! we have been putting him in a diaper for overnight (although he is generally dry in the morning) since he won't poop in the potty yet. he had two accidents today but those have been the only ones in the past three days.

he is quite proud of himself and has been telling me that the baby in my tummy will wear diapers, but he is a big boy and wears underwear. it was all his idea - i just reminded him.

friday night he told me that he would wear underwear and use the potty "tomorrow" (we usually talk about wearing underwear while i change his diapers). so on saturday morning i reminded him about our conversation and he picked out some underwear.

he still wants a diaper for pooping and i told him that i am fine with that. he just needs to tell me when he is ready and i will change him into a diaper.

maybe we won't have three in diapers after all! love.

spicy

while i made dinner all three kids decided to pick out their favorite spices. they would smell each bottle and ask me what it was called. i think 'pumpkin pie' was the winner. love.

 

camera time

i wanted to get a picture of maddux for his check-up post but he was being such a ham and asking me to keep taking his picture that i did. there were too many cute ones that they are now getting their own post. he does not look this chunky in life. enjoy. (i think the last one is my favorite.) love.

 

37 weeks

so now we wait. i spoke with my doctor at length today and there isn't really any reason to have the baby early since i successfully delivered an 11lb baby. if i had not, she would be more concerned and they would be talking about scheduling a c-section, but given my history she would want to let me labor and see how things go. she doesn't even think it is necessary to have a late ultrasound because they are so inaccurate and i am not showing any risk factors.

apparently, i am measuring 2 weeks ahead. but i have actually lost 2lbs since my last appointment putting my total weight gain at 9lbs! (believe me, i look like i have put on much more than that.) i think that moving has so dramatically changed my daily activity level that i have been losing while gaining - if that makes any sense. i also indulge almost no cravings because of the little eyes watching all the time.

i hate the waiting part. not really the waiting but the unknowing. i am working harder to keep everything clean and ready to go so that i will have less stress leaving for the hospital - and coming home.

we are all set for baby though. i have washed everything that was in storage, bought size 1 diapers (we have rarely used newborn size for the others and can always run out for some if we needed them) and gotten the crib all set up in madelyn's room.

the worst part about the appointment was that it was my first physical exam and i had to bring all three kids by myself. not ideal but it worked out. i was able to sit them all on the floor with some coloring books and crayons where they couldn't see anything. the doctor was surprised how well behaved they were (she has triplets - i think they are three or four) and several other staff people commented how good everyone was during our visit. i did make sure that matt could make it to the next appointment though... love.

 

wildlife invasion

the picture doesn't really how capture how large a turtle this was that wandered into our yard today. matt called me to come and see something (i was laying in bed for the first time all weekend - during the day time anyway - so i was pretty slow in getting up). it was over a foot long and maggie was sniffing away at it and jumping back a little every time because she wasn't sure what it was. we ended up putting her inside just to make sure she didn't get a snap on the nose.

matt carried each kid out to have a look but wouldn't put them down and wouldn't get too close. i was watching from the deck and reminded him that it was a turtle. they aren't fast and they can't jump. he still didnt want to risk it.

while we were checking out the turtle, a robin baby jumped from the nest under the deck! it made a wobbling flight across our yard and over to a tree where another robin was with some food in its mouth. we are pretty sure that it was the mommy robin because it often hangs out over there and came over to the baby bird right away. the real shocker of this story is that we (read: matt) have had to clear away 6 - yes, 6 - dead baby birds from that nest already! and there were at least two still in there. crazy.

the kids are enjoying all the critters around here - muskrats, groundhogs, frogs, turtles, robins, ducks, geese, deer, cats etc. there have been no shortage of animals to see from our back deck.

 

pop stars

for whatever reason, madelyn felt that they needed to wear sunglasses for our nightly dinner prep dance party. she said that they were "pop stars" (after the veggietales movie - princess and the pop star).

18-month check-up

for the life of me i can not find what i did with the paper where they wrote down maddux' stats at his appointment. i am going to keep looking but i have a feeling that i set it down while trying to schedule the kids' birthday appointments (which they had me wait on because i would be bringing the baby in and could do all three at the same time) and never picked it up again. short story - he is very tall (over 97th percentile and way off the curve), average weight (just over 50th percentile) and a large head (proportional to his height). he was just a little early for his next vaccination, so we will wait on that - probably when we bring baby in at some point. he won't have to come back until he is two. the doctor said that "he looks practically perfect".

since there isn't much to tell about the appointment, i thought that i would give some general info about his personality.

- he is my little helper - or at least he tries to be. his favorite is helping with laundry. and he really is super helpful! i usually sort laundry in my bedroom and then move everything to the laundry room. maddux helps carry each of the piles with me. and whenever he sees me switching a load over from washer to dryer, he goes to get the next load into the washer. all of the kids have enjoyed helping switch the loads, but maddux doesn't mix sorted piles and gets an entire load in the machine before closing the door. he doesn't even let a stray sock get left behind. he really is good. now folding is where he is not helpful at all. in fact, he destroys any sock pairings or folded piles.

- he is very good with his "please" and "thank you" signs and frequently uses them without prompting. he even signs "thank you" at times when it is appropriate but i didn't think of it before he did.

- he. never. stops. and has pretty much stopped napping. he only naps if he falls asleep in the car because he is just easier at bedtime if he doesn't get a 'real' nap in. we don't wake him up or anything but don't encourage him to nap during the day.

- i would say maddux knows all of his basic colors. he can point at the correct color 9 times out of 10 when asked.

- he sings "twinkle, twinkle little star" to himself a lot. he doesn't use the words but the tune is very clear.

- most of what maddux communicates is very clear. he doesn't use a lot of words but it is usually easy to guess what he wants and with some yes/no questions you can have a pretty lengthy 'conversation' with him about most topics.

- he gets into 'trouble' frequently, but it is good natured curiousity not that intentionally-doing-the-wrong-thing where toddlers will get that look in their eye and are challenging you. he is a pretty great listener in general though. people often comment on his good behavior when we are out and about.

- sleep has been a little difficult. it is mainly the going to sleep part. he almost panics about being left alone (aka without mom and dad) and will fight sleep. generally, he sleeps through the night and is starting to sleep closer to 7 than 6 which has been nice. the boys still come into our room from time to time in the night and have started to just take a spot and go to sleep without disturbing us very much, if at all. not ideal, but at least no one has to be all that tired the next day. last night he laid down at the dinner table (on the bench he sits on) and went to sleep. it was 6:30 so we quickly gave him a bath and put him to bed. he was asleep by 7. when he is ready to sleep, he falls asleep quicker than either of the other two! just like his daddy.

- he can turn lights on and off and close the van door by himself which pleases him very much (his sister and brother aren't as thrilled with his new abilities).

- he is very independant and will wave me off from the bottom of a slide before coming down and prefers to walk with us without holding hands. he stays right with us so it hasn't been that big a deal and he will hold madelyn's hand as an option. parking lots are non-negotiable for handholding and he seems to understand the difference without much argument.

- he sits on the 'little potty' whenever someone mentions going to the bathroom. hopefully, he keeps his enthusiasm until we are ready to train him! (he makes no effort to remove his pants or i would get him started now.)

and that is all i can think of for now. he is generally a delight and very full of life. he keeps me on my toes but he is also very generous with hugs and kisses. we love him. love.

happy mother's day to me

when matt and the kids asked what i wanted for mother's day, i told them that i wanted a nap. seriously. just a nap. sleep is the one thing seriously lacking in my life.

while i didn't take a nap (my choice), i did have a lovely day of rest.

both boys ended up in our room last night. mason comes in quietly and lays down with a pillow and blanket next to matt's side of the bed. we don't always even notice that he came in. maddux came in and climbed right up in between us and went to sleep. it was unusual for both boys to come in without any one crying. i ended up sleeping at the foot of the bed because maddux was jabbing me with an elbow and i couldn't get him to move over so it was just easier to move. i woke up first at 8am. normally this would be great but we need to leave for church at 8:30am!

amazingly, we made it to church on time. madelyn brought home a cute mother's day gift with her picture on it. and maddux went in without crying for the first time in months.

after church matt made us all breakfast (a special treat for me!). i took the kids downstairs while matt cleaned up since mason invited me specifically to come down and play with him. madelyn couldn't wait to give me my presents so she brought them down as soon as matt was finished. mason had made me a cute flower pot with his 'bloom' stats at school (madelyn had given me her gift on tuesday). i will do a separate post later with pictures of my gifts.

then i was free to rest for the day. i was planning on taking a nap but watched gone with the wind and blogged instead. matt had gotten me a wireless keyboard for our ipad and an itunes gift card so that i could get a blogging app so of course i had to try it out. he also gave me the most beautiful card that i cried. feeling so loved!

i had joked that i would just be doing laundry and working, but then i thought about it and being able to do the laundry without kids around was very appealing. so i folded quite a bit of laundry while i watched the movie too.

matt took care of dinner too (he picked up chipolte - lucky for him that baby wanted his favorite) and i got to take a long bath. it is such a luxury to be able to have some down time before 8pm! it was a really great way to spend mother's day. i am so blessed to have a family that loves me. love.

 

game number 2

as you can see, madelyn was in high spirits before today's game. we had been speaking with her all week about what happens when during the game and how to handle different situations and practicing out in the yard. when i asked about what she would do if she didn't make a goal. she said that she would "keep practicing". i asked if she would cry and she said, "no, i am used to it now." she was ready.

and she did so great! every time she fell down or got tripped, she would jump right back up and run after the ball. she even got a little break away that almost ended in a goal. we were so proud of her. she looked to us less and she was even smiling! she cheered from the sidelines when she came out too. mason did a really good job of cheering on the team too with a "go, team, go!" and maddux clapped when everyone else did.

madelyn got to kick the ball in and she was pretty happy about that since she didn't get to during the last game.

i think she did better this week because her coach was there and he was great! he explained what they were trying to do each time the ball was returned into play and which direction it would be thrown/kicked.

i love that the team was getting into a 'ready' position this week instead of just standing straight up.

how cute are madelyn and maddux sitting together on our cooler (we brought the snack this week) while madelyn was subbed out?

matt took the boys to an open spot in the field to burn off a little bit of their energy. mason and maddux were having so much fun. mason could 'steal' the ball from matt and maddux had finally figured out how to kick and run too.

matt had taken madelyn and mason to watch the fireworks after the baseball game from his office the night before and they didn't get home until after 11pm! we were a little worried that madelyn's attitude might be all over the place since she had been up so late, but she only cried once during the game - when her finger got jammed a little with the ball. but this week she sat out for a few minutes and was then ready to go back in!

so excited for the rest of the season! love.

 

tent town

madelyn and mason woke up and got to work on building a 'tent town'. once they had the 'town' completed they filled all of the 'tents' with their dolls and toys. silly kids. love.

 

park lunch

we met some friends for lunch at a park after school. i had to snap a picture of maddux swinging on a 'big kid' swing. he was pretty excited about it. and i was impressed with how well he did. it seems like the other two didn't understand how tight they needed to hold on right away.

and mason wanted his picture taken too. (the striped hat he is wearing is one of his favorites right now and he wears it even when it is hot out!)

we loved having lunch with our neighbor friends and the kids loved playing at their new favorite park. love.

 

x weeks

i had matt take a picture but it was so terrible that i won't post it. today i had what i thought was my 35 week check up but learned that the practice considered it my 34 week check up.

i ranted about this change enough on facebook, but the jest of it is that i was surprised that no one had bothered to tell me that my due date had been changed off of the ultrasound. my doctor said that they wouldn't move my date over it but here i found out that it was. it doesn't really matter because the baby will come when it comes. the only reason i care is because they are planning a 38 week ultrasound and may induce me at 39 weeks if the baby looks too large (although the doctor said that an ultrasound that late is less than 30% accurate; which i can attest to since a 40 week ultrasound put madelyn at 10 lbs and she was 8lb 13oz). i am less concerned about the delivery and more about the testing the baby needs after being so large. poor maddux had his foot 'bled' at least four different times and was almost readmitted about a week after we went home.

but watch, this baby will be the smallest.  i have only gained 11 lbs. so far.  i think a lot of that has to do with the lifestyle change from apartment living to being back in a house.

i am meeting with my doctor in two weeks and will discuss with her further. i met with someone else this appointment - this practice has you rotate through all the doctors as an ob patient so that you will be familiar with whomever is on call when you deliver. i was fine with it in general, but now i want to only see my doctor for these last few appointments.

i have been having pretty strong braxton-hicks contractions for a few weeks now. sometimes they have been regular, every five minutes or so, but they don't get stronger than they start so i haven't thought about them too much. when i mentioned them during the appointment they said that i should call if i have four contractions an hour after laying down to rest. i haven't bothered because i have had contractions like this with all of my pregnancies and i knew every time when it was the real thing. i am not too worried - yet.

just a few more weeks until we bring home baby boy! it is still a little crazy to think that we are going to have four kids so soon. love.

grocery tour with mops

my mops group arranged for a tour of a local grocery store. we had never been there before and it wasn't super close to the house so i was hoping that we were heading the right place. the store had a nice cafe/restaurant too and we met there for lunch after school. our tour guide, mrs. bonnie, cut us fresh pineapple as a 'welcome' while we finished up lunch. the tour was going to begin "promptly at one" and she meant it. i was still waiting for my credit card to be returned and the tour was gettting started.

everyone was given a plastic grocery bag to carry during the tour. maddux was still waking up from his nap in the car (and in the restaurant) and it made me terribly nervous for him to be carrying something that was dragging on the ground, but he wouldn't let me help him at all.

the tour was a 'behind the scenes' look at the store. we got to walk through the kitchen, bakery, meat counter, refrigerator storage, dairy case, warehouse and offices.

mrs. bonnie was a neat lady. she has 10 children, 49 grandchildren and something like 24 great grandchildren. she was giving us tips on child rearing, grocery shopping and meal planning durning the tour.

the kids (and mommy) liked the cake balls we got to sample and the cookies we got to take home for later. mason was the first of the kids to touch the lobster at the meat counter. i was so proud of him stepping forward first. he is usually a little more hang back about new things.

the outing was fun and i enjoyed my lunch. madelyn has asked to come back some time. we were all disappointed that the cake balls were not for sale. i guess they are something special for mother's day. oh well. love.