Our day at Disney

Okay, first a vent- I really don't have a problem with people in wheelchairs, but if you are in a crowded line, could you please keep back a foot or so?! Really! I was hit in the ankle not once, not twice but 5 times on Sunday by the same wheelchair. If I wasn't so darn polite, I would have turned around and said something. Argh.

So we went on the Sunday before Thanksgiving. Wow! We haven't been when it's been that crowded in a while. We actually got there right after opening which is amazing for us. We don't get there that early when we stay onsite. LOL At first it wasn't too bad but it quickly got crowded. Logan was able to ride his Big Thunder Mt RR and Ian was able to ride Buzz and all of us rode the new improved Haunted Mansion which neither kid likes all of a sudden. We attempted the Barnstormer but the line was way too long. We'll go back another day for that. I love Disney any time (as dh pointed out) but I really love all the Christmas decorations. It just makes it that much more magical. We did get to catch the Pirate Tutorial with Captn Jack Sparrow and while Logan didn't get to sword fight with him, he did get a certificate to be an apprentice pirate.


While shopping in the big tent over in ToonTown (County Bounty) Logan spotted some cotton candy so we let him get a bag. While checking out, he was eyeing the girl behind the counter making fresh cotton candy. She noticed him looking and smiled at him and then made him a bag of fresh cotton candy for free! He's already a lady killer.

Logan decided to be an apprentice photographer while we were waiting for the parade and took a few shots. Here's how those came out.




Don't you just love the angles?

This was Ian before and during the parade...it isn't often he just falls asleep.


I took a few pics of those I thought maybe didn't make the best fashion choice when they woke up...
Dude- it's 80+ degrees out, the sun is beaming and you are wearing a thick looking jacket. Aren't you hot??

Nothing like spandex leopard print pants! At least she isn't wearing heels.

Oh and the flowery print shorts...is this the new fashion? I thought these went out in the 80s.

Okay, I think that's it for our Disney day!

It's a.........

..........GIRL!

Yippee!! We had our ultrasound this morning and the tech said she saw no boy parts. She looked a lot too even though the appt seemed to fly by. Baby's heartrate was 162 this morning, good and strong. We are cautiously optimistic about it all though as I know moms who were told girl and had boys. We're going to get a 3D/4D next month though and hopefully verify she is a she! I won't be running out to get pink just yet. I can't wait to buy all the cute girly stuff though!

21.5 wk update

For those keeping up, I had an appt with my midwife this morning. Everything looks good. Baby's heartrate was 160. He/she was active and kicking back at the doppler! I mean literally, kicking the doppler, not just near it. Ahh already a trouble maker. Haha!

I have another appt in December where I get to do the lovely glucose screening. At least I won't have to starve beforehand. They actually want you to eat breakfast! Yea! After that, I'll be going every 2 weeks. How did it get here so fast?! The house isn't close to being ready for another baby!

Here's a belly shot. (ETA: Logan took this pic. I was surprised it didn't come out blurry. I did crop the rest of me as I look weird from the angle of a 5yr old sitting down. LOL)

I'm a Disney nut and proud!

Everyone who knows me knows what a Disney nut I am. We go all the time and vacation there at least once a year. I know the parks by heart and listen to Disney music in the car. I collect Disney snowglobes and we are in the process of decorating our new movie room with Disney/Pixar posters. I can tell you all sorts of facts and point you to the best websites. All that said, WDW never loses it's magic for me or my family. I just watched a video of the new 2007 Christmas party castle lighting (watch it in HD for the best picture!! May take a minute or 2 to load) and it was beautiful and made my eyes well up. The boys were mesmorized watching it. I can't blame it on hormones because every time I see my kids' eyes light up while at a show at Disney, I get the same way. There's just something about Disney. I love that my boys love Disney as much as we do. My 2yr old asks all the time to go back. You can't tell me he doesn't remember Disney! If he even spots a small picture of anything WDW, he'll point it out immediately. We are headed back there this weekend where we hope our youngest gets to go on his first roller coaster ride (Goofy's Barnstormer). I'm just as excited as he is! Oh and I've informed dh that we will be headed to the Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party (MVMCP) again this year. I want to see that castle lighting in person(ETA: it's done every day at 5:45pm, not just during the party) and enjoy the holidays at Disney. There's nothing like it!

What is the point??

Why do we buy widescreen, big screen tvs and widescreen dvds if when you watch the dvds, there are still those stupid black bars at the top and bottom?? I just don't get it! I bought a widescreen dvd and am watching it on a wide screen tv- why doesn't it fill the screen?? What is the point?

Fire in the neighborhood

I was taking my oldest to school this morning only to see a fire station ambulance with lights flashing coming towards me. I got to where he turned and there were at least 5-6 fire trucks and a hose running across the street. OMG! I didn't see any flames or anyone running around though. I got back about an hour later and there was only one truck left. I stopped by the house on my way home this afternoon from ds' school and asked if they needed anything (they were outside) but was told no. I don't know what happened but they weren't the most polite people. I would have at least said no but thank you for your offer, but I just got a No and the lady started talking to someone else. (fwiw, they'd been sitting outside in lawn chairs for a while) I just happened on this article though from our local news about the fireman. Hope he's okay! I'm glad that the house wasn't occupied at the time but it still really sucks for the homeowner.

Guess Our Baby!

So our big ultrasound is coming up. I'm so excited and ready to find out what we're having. I'm not one for getting a big surprise at birth- that would drive me insane. I may try to keep my mouth shut to everyone else though. Hmmm we'll see how I do with that- more than likely, I won't be able to keep it to myself! Haha. So I made up a Guess The Gender game. It also includes other little guesses like weight, birth date, height, etc. Come take a guess!!
http://www.expectnet.com/games/GuessOurBaby2008
OR
http://www.expectnet.com/game.php
Our game name: GuessOurBaby2008

I have had 2 "girl" dreams so I'm crossing my fingers! It could be just the whole subliminal mind thing too. Only...8 days, x hours to go!

Funniest Blog Ever

Seriously, this is some funny stuff or at least I thought so!! http://15minutelunch.blogspot.com/2007/10/strap-in-shut-up-and-hold-on-were-going.html

Here's his main page http://15minutelunch.blogspot.com/ This is one blog I'll keep in my faves.

It's a Farmer's Life

Ian and I went to Granma's Hug N Farm Tuesday with our playgroup. It's a working farm but most of the animals are kid friendly and they can pet them and get close to them. Ian loved running from place to place. A smiler he's not though as you can see from pictures.



He was worn out by the time naptime came around. I laid him down in bed and thought he went right to sleep as I didn't hear him moving around. I went to check on him and couldn't find him!!! I looked in Logan's bed, under the bed, in other rooms....I wasn't panicked yet but freaking out a little. I kept hearing little noises so kept looking. Here's where I found him.


He had crawled into the bookcase, closed the doors and fallen asleep. Aww. I had to move his bed to even get to him. He barely woke up when I moved him and when he did wake up 2 hours later, he came to bed with me and fell asleep for another hour! Sounds like I need to take him to the farm more often! LOL

Family issues

It's official. My dad is moving out of the house Friday. He didn't even stick around long enough to make it to the 1st therapy session which happens to be on Friday. I'm so mad at him. I just want to yell at him or something. I wrote him a short letter but I didn't send it. I'm too emotional right now. What part of Til Death Do Us Part and Forsaking All Others in the marriage vows did he not understand? 33 years later at that!! I just don't get it. I've lost respect for him. He's hurt my Mom and he's hurt his family. It breaks my heart to hear my Mom cry. It breaks my heart that the marriage I've always looked up to as one to strive for is breaking up. I don't know how to move past it. I don't want to talk to him at all. I don't even want to see him. Thanksgiving and Christmas will be very hard this year. What do I say to my boys when they want to know where Grandpa is? I can't believe this is happening to our family. If you pray, please pray for our family and for me. I'm taking this pretty hard and the last thing I need is to get stressed out. I'm sure I'll be better tomorrow but tonight is tough.

It's the Great Pumpkin!

Am I the only one who doesn't "get" Charlie Brown? I never cared for the shows when I was little and I still don't. What is it about CB that everyone loves? I know it's a classic and all but I still don't get the appeal. I did let the boys stay up and watch the Pumpkin one tonight. All I can say is that they did sit thru it. I'm looking forward to Christmas when all the good classics come out!

Speaking of pumpkins, we carved our tonight. Let me rephrase that- I carved them tonight. Logan told me what to do but neither of them would stick their hands in there to help pull out the guts. My 2nd one didn't come out so great. I was using a Mickey Mouse cutter (came with a kit) and the pumpkin got too thin inside and started breaking. Oh well...it's only for another day and then the trashman gets it. Here is a pic:

Pregnancy update

So I'm 19 weeks now! Only 1 week to the halfway mark. I've had a cold for the past couple of weeks and with it came one of the most unaPEEling parts of pregnancy. One I never had to deal with before- peeing when sneezing or coughing too hard! Ugh!!! Seriously, I do my Kegels. Guess I better start doing more!

I did feel the baby kick outside my tummy the other night. That was very cool! It hasn't happened since but I still feel a lot of wiggling going on in there.

There is a big advantage to being pregnant and that's that you can send your hubby out for donuts at 9pm and he'll go willingly. I guess it could be that they sounded really good to him at that moment too.

And finally, despite the late night donuts and McDonalds I've had recently, I've still only gained approx 12-13lbs. Yea! I know it will go up quickly in the 3rd trimester but at least I know I'll lose it once he/she is born- or most of it at least. I lost all my pg weight the last 2 times within 6-8 weeks of giving birth. Hopefully the trend will continue!

School Zones

Why do we have them? Noone seems to care that the big flashing yellow light means SLOW THE HELL DOWN!! Everyday I see people fly right through them without even touching their brakes. Where are the cops when you want them? Thankfully, at the time I go through them, the schools are already in session so there are no kids around but I guarantee these same morons would probably fly through regardless. On a different note, I really hate that the Brandon High school zone is still flashing 90min AFTER school's been in session. Do they really need it that long?

Again? and more misc.

Now our new room's AC is out. WTH?! I guess the power outages and surges we got this weekend fried the electronics inside so it only blows air- not COLD air. Glad it's under warranty! I still have to deal with 86 degree temps in this room for a few days. Argh.

Big news is happening with dh's job. I can't post anything at this time since noone else knows yet. I'm really hoping things will look up for the business and dh too. More to come on that...

Ahh what else...I had a teacher conference at Logan's school last week. Academically, he's far ahead but he's always happy to do schoolwork and never complains about being bored so that's good. They said he's a joy to have in the classroom. I was told he is an immature 5 yr old though. I never really thought about it but what they said made sense. He cries alot, he doesn't do as much for himself as he should before asking for help (ex.opening packages at lunch) which is very much my fault and we're working on that, he has a problem with staying on one thought and he has periods when his brain just doesn't seem to connect to what you are saying. Like he's told to line up behind the line leader and he goes to the wrong door. When you point it out, he looks at you blankly. I can only work with him on a few of those, the rest will come with time and patience I guess. Maybe this is the maturity gap "they" talk about between boys and girls? I have no idea.

Pregnancy update- still no pictures. I suck. I'm 18 weeks though and I'm really starting to feel the little pops/movement more often. I also feel Braxton Hicks which I don't remember feeling with the boys. Our big U/S is on November 19th! Can't wait!!!!

That's all I have at the moment- boring I know. We can't all be as witty as Julie. LOL You'll just have to love me for me.

Food & Wine Festival- Take 2

My GF and I went to the F&WF today. Just the 2 of us- NO KIDS! Yea!! Unlike last year, I couldn't do all the fun rides but we did do a few new things. She had never been on Maelstrom in Norway or the Journey to Imagination, never been to Club Cool or the Innoventions buildings so I got the show her around a bit. She liked the watermelon soda at Club Cool the best, not so much the Beverly. LOL She was okay with it until the bitter aftertaste. Here are some pics for your viewing pleasure.


Peru...Arroz con Pato- Roast Duck with Cilantro Rice

New Zealand...Marinated Seafood Salad - Chilled Bay Scallops, Shrimp and Squid in a Lime Dressing (One of the favorites of the day-sorry it's blurry)

France... Escargots Persillade en Brioche - Provence-style Snails with Garlic and Parsley in Brioche (this was my Fave and gf's fave on a different level- we went back and had seconds!!)

Germany... Spaetzle with Creamy Mushroom Ragout

China... Pork Pot Stickers & Chicken ShaCha with Peanut sauce


Spain- Spicy Calamari Stew with Saffron Rice (sorry blurry- hard to see if it was in focus)

Canada...Maple Custard with Almond Crumble, Canadian Cheddar Cheese Soup


India...Indian Rice and Coconut Pudding (this was good last week and terrible this week. It tasted like the fruit had gone bad or something. Almost fizzy tasting too. We tossed it after a couple of bites)

Driving home


Oh and for Julie and her people watching hobby.
This is what pedicures are for people!! Ewww

Congrats

To the USA women's gymnastics team for winning the gold in Worlds and to Shawn Johnson for winning the gold in the all around! What a cutie she is too. I can't wait for next summer's Olympic games!!

Foodies

Our family went to the Food & Wine Festival at Epcot (Disney) today. We go a couple of times or more usually each year we have passes. We ate and ate and ate around the world today. Tried a lot of new things- some good, some not so good. I didn't take any pics of the food but here's our breakdown if anyone is going soon.

New Zealand-
Lamb Slider (Roasted Lamb with Mustard Sauce on a toasted roll) The roll wasn't toasted and the mustard sauce had no tang to it, much less flavor. The lamb was very good though.
Kiwi and Custard Roll- dh and the boys liked it. It was much too mushy for me. The flavor was okay though.

Greece-
Greek Salad with Pita Bread- this wasn't as good as last year. Not enough olives in it. Logan liked it though. It didn't have a lot of onions this year though which to me is a huge plus!
Spanakopita (Savory Spinach and Cheese Pastry) this wasn't as good as last year either. Not enough cheese to it.
Karydopita (Walnut and Coffee Cake) it was good- reminded us of carrot cake without the icing

France-
Quiche au Fromage de Chèvre (Goat Cheese and Sun-dried Tomato Quiche) This was very tasty. I didn't care for the sun dried tomato on top personally, but dh loved it.
Coupe de Sorbets (Champagne, Framboise and Chocolat Blanc-Champagne, Raspberry and White Chocolate Sorbet ) Yum!! This came in a glass like a trifle- all layered together. You could try each individually or the 3 together. Either way this was good. Even the champagne flavored one was delish!

Oklahoma- Route 66
Pecan Pie- dh loved it. I'm an okay fan of pecan pie in general but it's never my 1st pick. It was good though
Peach Buckle- dh loved this one even more. It was like a pie but the crust seemed to be like a thick shortbread. Needed more peaches IMO.

Turkey-
Meze (Cucumber and Tomato Salad, Eggplant Puree and Turkish Black Olives with Pita Bread)- the salad part was okay and dh ate the olives but we both thought the eggplant puree was nasty!!
Manti- (Spiced Beef Ravioli with Yogurt and Paprika Butter) this would have been better without the meat in it IMO. Not something I'd get again.

India-
Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Paratha Bread- dh enjoyed this but I didn't care for it. Needed salt or something. Bread tasted like stale pita bread.
Samosa with Tamarind Sauce (Spicy Pea and Potato Pastry) I really liked this one. I wish the tamarind sauce had been warmed up though. It was ice cold. Dh enjoyed this as well.
Indian Rice and Coconut Pudding- Everyone liked it. Very creamy, great flavors!

Ireland-
Chilled Potato Leek Soup with an Irish Cheddar Cheese Stick- YUM!! I wasn't sure about cold soup but this was very good!!
Boxty Potato Pancake - with Bacon Chips and Kerrygold Garlic and Fresh Herb Butter- Won't get this again. I didn't expect it to be filled with some kind of veggie too. I expected something very different. The potato pancake itself was okay as was the butter.
Irish Cheese Plate and Brown Bread with Apple Chutney and Kerrygold Irish Butter- Dh ate this and liked it. The boys loved the chutney. It was too syrupy sweet for me. The butter was well... butter!

There were a lot of new culinary displays to see as well as new entertainment and crafters. They seem to have stepped it up a bit this year. If you have a chance to go you should!

Just for you

Since Julie thinks my mind is somewhere else, here's a new blog. The reality is, I haven't felt like there was much to talk about as you'll soon see. Ha!

Let's see...the boys are both better. No more sickies in the house. Logan never did get his birthday party as he was sick that day as well and I had to call everyone and cancel. Robert reinstalled all our flooring and did a darn good job! There are a few finishing touches that have to be made still but hopefully we can get it done and get the house semi organized. He also fixed our dishwasher. He's turning into quite the handyman. Who knew?

Logan is enjoying school. He's learning bible verses and all kinds of cute new songs. I really wish I could afford private school for him next year but I have to think of 2 other little ones' educations down the road too. I don't have an extra $4K for Logan's tuition and then multiply that by 3 when the others start school. Come on lottery!!

Ian is a little Handy Manny around the house. Had I not already bought him some Christmas stuff, he'd be getting toy tools for Christmas to play with. He loves dh's screwdrivers, measuring tapes, etc. He pretended to fix our dining room table last night. He also took scraps of the laminate flooring and tried putting them together in the doorway where the Tmolding will go. He's smart in his own little way. I'm betting he'll be the one puttering around the house, fixing things, taking apart things, etc later in life. I'll post pics after I upload them.

I'm nearly 16 weeks now (yes, have to put a pg update!). Can you believe it's been 4 months? I had my 1st midwife appt last week. The baby had a HB of 152. Nice and strong. I go back in another week or so for that oh so lovely PAP and more bloodwork. Can't wait for the ultrasound!!

Speaking of which, my sister finally had hers and she is having a GIRL! I asked if she was sure this time since her ds was supposed to be a dd all the way up until he was born. She said yes though so we'll have at least 1 girl in the family now.

I'm sure there was more I was supposed to post, but I can't think of it now. Be back soon!

We're getting there!

Ian has moved into Logan's room and is sleeping on his crib mattress on the floor AND has not nursed in 4 days. I still miss it somewhat but it wasn't the dramatic parting that we had when I dried up when nursing Logan. That was all of a sudden and this I knew was coming. I'm so sore right now too since my boobs has blown up really quickly. My left side which was completely deflated since he hadn't nursed on that side in over a year is now filling out and spilling out of my bra! It hurts just to touch them and he tends to climb all over me. Ugh. The only issues we're having with him and bed is that he can get up and move around and he's closing the door (and locking it!) and Logan likes the door open. Last night, I went to the store and dh said he found Ian out of bed 4 times- one time hiding. LOL Tonight, Logan was asleep and I heard Ian in there playing with a baby toy that makes noise. He's good about getting back in bed though and isn't giving me a hard time yet. Eventually he'll move to Logan's bottom bunk and Logan will get the top.

On the pregnancy front, I swear I've felt the baby move! It's very subtle but it's there and I don't believe it's gas. I love that feeling (of the baby, not the gas!).

Happy Birthday

to my big guy Logan!! He's 5 today! Unfortunately he's sick at home and not celebrating at school with his friends today but we'll have a make-up pretend bday another day so he can. He must be better by tomorrow though bc his first ever school pics are then!!

***ETA: So he's still not better. Tonight he seems to be running a bit of a fever. He's acting okay and coughing much less though. I'm going to see how he is in the morning I guess.

He did get his cake tonight (that's the 1st thing he asked for this morning) and got to open his gifts. We bought him a new Razor scooter complete with helmet and knee/elbow/wrist pads. He'll need them I'm sure. He also got a LeapFrog Math Desk, a book, a LF backpack and a dvd. He also got some gifts from our secret buddies from my 2002 Sept. groups. We opened those yesterday though when they came.

The only people who called him today was his grandma and daddy though. Kinda sad. I'm betting his Abuela slept all day since she works nights. He did get to see one uncle tonight though and while the other didn't call specifically for Logan, when reminded what day it was, he did wish him a Happy Bday. Thankfully, Logan doesn't know the difference yet so he's fine. My BIL offered his house for a small party for him on Sunday (once he runs it by his GF) since our house isn't in any shape for it so hopefully we can have some of the family over for that.

In My Defense....

We were on vacation for a week and trying to get back to routine for another week hence such a long wait between posts! I'm back now though.

We were at Disney for a week and what a week it was. Not all good either. We stayed at Port Orleans French Quarter which is one of the smallest resorts on property. It was really nice though. On Labor Day we went to the Pirate & Princess Party at the Magic Kingdom and we all had a lot of fun. The parade was great and the fireworks were awesome! It looked like the pirates had taken over the castle and were bombarding it. The boys took home a ton of loot. It was the last party of the season and the castmembers were trying to get rid of all the extra candy so I still have bags and bags of it. While on vacation though, our youngest dog got very ill and dh had to go home and ended up rushing her to the emergency animal clinic where she had emergency surgery. Turns out since she'd never been spayed, she had a uterine infection and was filled with pus. The only thing that saved her life was that she had been in heat recently so her cervix wasn't completely closed. She seems much better now though and although she's lost a lot of weight, she's eating again and is bright eyed. (No longer bushy tailed as they had to shave her!) Dh drove back to WDW after leaving her with the vet and then had to drive back again that night to be prepared to pick her up early in the morning. He also had to wait for a plumber as our water softener which hasn't worked since we moved it, started leaking. Ugh! More than $1500 we hadn't planned on spending that week. I feared we were going to have to cut our vacation short but thankfully it all worked out. We had a few wishes granted while at WDW. We all got co-pilot licenses for "driving" the monorail one night (sitting up front with the driver), I got Guest of the Hour at MGM one day at Package pickup and got a certificate and a Tinkerbell pin, the boys each got a co-engineer certificate at AK on the Conservation Station train and got to blow the whistle and Logan got a few birthday cards and lots of birthday wishes and cupcakes while we were there.

Now we're home and trying to get into routine again. Ian slept with me the entire vacation and I guess he really liked it as he's put up a fit all week long sleeping in his room. I've never come so close to wanting to hurt my child before but he's driving me insane. Lack of sleep, hormones and frustration are really getting to me. I cried last night bc I was at a loss as to what to do and bc I felt like such a terrible mom. How the hell am I going to deal with him and a newborn?! It's very overwhelming. Tonight we are trying something new. I went out to eat with some friends so dh had to put the boys to bed. He put Ian's mattress in Logan's room and we're hoping that knowing someone else is in there with him, he'll do better sleeping. Dh said he went right to sleep tonight and didn't even cry for me which shocked the hell out of me but I'm glad. Dh is really tired after last night and I felt kinda guilty going out. On one hand, I'm really hoping he'll wean soon but on the other, he's still my baby and I like that time together. He's such an angel when he's next to me nursing and falling asleep. We've successfully stopped the morning session although he still asks and we're doing pretty good with the nap time session so the bedtime one is the only one left. Tonight's like the 2nd time ever he hasn't nursed. I'm really on the fence about it.

Hmmm what else.... I found out my sister is approx 18 weeks this week. She called me to see if anyone had a crib they were giving away. That's the only time she calls- when she needs/wants something. I may have found her one though so at least the baby will have a bed. She'll need a new mattress though. She goes for her U/S this week I think to find out what she's having.

I'm now 13 weeks along. I can't wait til I'm 18-20 weeks and can find out the sex!! I want to get one of those 3D/4D U/S done too this time and possibly maternity portraits. This is probably our last baby. The chinese gender charts say girl. We'll see.... while at BRU today, I was checking out all the baby bedding and picking out different ones I really liked. I found 2 really cute boyish ones and couple of girly ones too. I told a friend yesterday, I was leaning towards pink colors if it's a girl, but I think she'll just wear pink. Her room however might be lavender. I found some really cute bedding sets in light purple today. Just gotta wait and wonder....

6 Days!!

We leave for vacation in just 6 days!!! I'm so ready for this vacation. It's been 3 whole months since we were last at Disney. I'm jonesing. LOL Today I went out and got 3 maternity shirts since my regular shirt all seem to be shrinking. I just wanted some transitional pieces. I also got another pair of shorts. I know I'm going to have to do laundry at some point on vacation though. I only have 2 bras and a week in the FL heat. I think I'll be handwashing every night. I am ready though! Dh is too. He's been stressed with all the home stuff going on. What a pita it is. The boys are super excited. Saturday morning, Logan woke up and realizing there was no school that day, he wanted to know if it was time for us to go to Disney. One more week.... Ian's been talking about it too. He loves "Nidney".

Last night we went to the Playhouse Disney Live on Stage show in Lakeland. What a fun show! We saw My Friends Tigger and Pooh (with Darby), Handy Manny and friends, the Little Einsteins and Rocket and Mickey and all his pals. The boys loved it. I took some pics (no flash on most) so I'm not sure how well they turned out. I'll upload them soon. We saw our friends Julie and Olivia (and David) and Debbie with her dh and girls, Elizabeth and Jilly. Everyone had a good time. When we left, it was pouring out. We got pretty wet before we decided to let dh go get the car so the boys and I wouldn't get completely soaked (I was wearing white!). I'm glad I let dh drive home bc I hate driving in the rain and it was just nasty out. The lightning was amazing to watch though.

It's not been a good week

Monday our house was flooded. Logan stopped up the toilet and the flapper thing didn't work right after flushing (brand new toilet btw) and since we keep the door closed, noone noticed so it kept running! It probably flooded for an hour or so. All of our brand new flooring in the hall and living room are gone. All the carpets in the bedroom have to be replaced as well as the baseboards. I was so upset as you can imagine. Every towel in the house was being used to mop it up and it still wasn't enough. Poor dh- it was his birthday too. We decided it was too much for our pocket book and filed a H.O. claim. The guys (Serv Pro) we called out to dry us out were over $2600 after all was said and done. Ouch! Thankfully that's all covered. The adjuster came out after we were all dried out and took pics and a statement and said hopefully we'll have a check by the end of this week.

All last week the boys had to sleep in the new room(Logan on the airbed and Ian in his crib) and we were finally able to move them to their own rooms last night. Dh spent all day installing some laminate flooring in Ian's room and Logan's only missing a small piece of carpet so he was able to sleep in his bed. Ian needed some normalcy and to get back to naps. Since we had an idea of what we would be reimbursed, we went ahead with doing Ian's room first. It looks nice. I only wish the rest could be the same. What a disaster area.

On top of that, dh and I got a tummy bug Tues/Wed although I seemed to get the worst of it. Not fun. I think I spent the majority of the day lying down. Ian had some yucky diapers which led to a bad rash and Logan stayed completely well. Go figure. Guess all the breastmilk has really done some good for their immune systems. Yea for mommy milk!!

A couple of good notes:

Today we went to a new photo studio at the mall to have some family portraits done. Ian was fine thru the beginning but once we did a wardrobe change he was done. I think he just got hungry and a bit tired. Most of the pics came out well though. They did my hair and makeup which was a treat. My brand new dress' zipper broke (the actual zip part you pull) came off as I was trying to change. Ugh!!!! While it was a bargain dress at 50% off, it was still expensive!! I'm going to have to take it somewhere and see if it can be fixed. Dh bought a couple of 8x10 shots of just me and then we got some family pics.

Logan finished his 1st week of school. He seems to really enjoy it. Last week they had to do bring in something from the letter A for show and tell and we found some airplanes around the house. They also got the eat Astronaut ice cream. He comes home with sand everywhere every day. I have to empty out his shoes. LOL I'm glad he's enjoying himself.

Here are some pics from his 1st day:

Orientation

Wow. My little boy is going to Pre-K this year! We went to his school's orientation today and he had a good time. I left the room for about 30min while he stayed and when I came back he was dancing and singing with a teacher and some other kids. It looks like there are a lot of girls in his class. The 1st thing he told me today before we even got there was he only wanted to play with boys, not girls. Where did he learn that from?? I still worry that he's too advanced for what the curriculum is though. All the state req. before Kindergarten when it comes to the alphabet is that they know 8 letters. 8 out of 26?! Come on. Logan is reading everything in sight. I would guess he's at at least a 1st grade reading level. I know Pre-K isn't so much about learning but when I think of school, I think about learning. They are synonomous in my eyes. I know he's going to learn some stuff like days of the week, month, weather, etc and learn to listen to the teacher but I just want him to keep going. I'm sure next year I'll be typing this same post again. LOL There wasn't much time to speak one on one with his teachers today so hopefully I'll get that chance in the near future.

Ian is going to take this break from his brother hard I think- at least as first. Today while we were in chapel (parents meeting while the kids were in the classroom) all he wanted to do was go get Logan. I'll have to do something with him next week to keep his mind off of Logan.

Here's a small world moment- while at Beall's on Wed, I met this woman who was also buying clothes for her son. We were lamenting on the small selection. Guess who is in Logan's class? Her son! Out of all the preschools in Brandon, I thought that was neat.

No pregnancy updates- nearly 8 weeks now and just as unenergized as ever. I'm dragging by the afternoon. We went out to eat the other night and I swear it took great effort. And don't wake me early from a nap- I'm grumpy! LOL

Room Remodel!!

Ok, here are my pics!

Putting in the floors

Closer view

Everything except baseboards and some T-molding done-
Looking down the hallway- forgive all the dust!

Living room - the speaker on the wall is being moved, the thing that looks like it's on the wall is the fan pull

New room- It's a mess since we threw everything from the living room in there so they could work on the floors in there. Still need baseboards and might trim the windows too. Still haven't decorated either as you can see.

It's not swimming!- stupid vent

It can't be just me... there's a post on one of my boards about 2yr olds and swimming. She wanted to know if any other toddlers could swim on their own. While Ian can get swim a little bit (he's very slow and not coordinated on the kicking part), I'd consider him able to swim a short distance. Other moms jumped in that their kids can swim, but they also had them "swimming" in arm floaties and life vests. That's not swimming!

Prayers

go out to all the families in MN waiting to hear about their loved ones and to those who have lost someone in the horrible bridge collapse. I can't imagine the horror those on the bridge went thru. Living in FL, you cross a lot of bridges if you want to go across the bay or over to the beach. My mom is very afraid of bridges and won't cross one if she doesn't have to. I'm very wary of them but I really dislike drawbridges and their metal grating. I was watching the news/videos last night and all I kept thinking about was what if...what if that happened here (it did a long time back to our huge suspension bridge- the Sunshine Skyway), what if I was on that bridge with my 2 children strapped in their car seats? How would I get us all out to safety? Ugh I hate those kinds of thoughts. Our swim instructor just moved to MN so I hope he and his family are okay.

On our new room: it's nearly done!!! They are finishing up the floors down the hallway today, the floor in here is done and the living room is almost done. We still need new baseboards which we haven't bought yet. Right now, it's all still very cluttered with everything stuck in boxes in the new room. The kids are having a blast on the new floor though and are loving the extra space. The walk to the bedrooms seems so much longer. We got our new blinds up and our new fan. We'll def. need some floor lamps as it's so dark in here. I'll post pics as we get closer to finished.

All this rain is dreary. I just want to curl up in bed and sleep which I can't do with 2 boys running around. I'm nearly 7 weeks along now. I'm so tired in the afternoon and today my nose is working overtime. Everything smells. Dh heated up some leftover pasta and I had to leave the room. Ugh. It made me nauseous. I made him make the boys' lunches so I wouldn't have to walk into the kitchen.

We're going to have to replace the floor in Ian's room for the 3rd time in 2 years. One of the dogs peed in there twice again. It happened when I was pg before so I wonder if they are sensing something or if it has to do with all the changes going on in the house. Maybe Bandit is rebelling since we shaved her this weekend. I don't know but I can't get the smell out. I poured Nature's Miracle all over the area and it isn't working this time. Blech!!! This time, we'll put laminate or something in there I think.

Hormonal

Vent: I'm pregnant and hormonal. Don't F with me! Our buddy is here to install our laminate floors. He wants to do it one way bc it's "easier" and I want it to go the other. If you don't want to do it my way, don't do it at all. I don't want to walk down my hallway and have the planks going horizontally. It's ugly. You took on the job, you're getting paid for it, do it the way I want it done. Ugh. (I just peeked in and it looks like he's doing it my way)

This weekend:
We went to see Thomas Live on Stage Saturday night. That was fun! I choked up a little when I heard the kids so excited. Logan was fascinated by the entire show. Even Ian was repeating stuff that happened in the show (choo choo rock stuck). Logan wants to go again next year.

Sunday we went to the beach with some friends. The waves were really hard and high. I didn't venture into the water at all. I don't like waves that big. Logan had a blast though. It was Ian's 1st time and he reacted just like Logan did the 1st time. He didn't like the sand on his feet. Unlike Logan though, he wanted nothing to do with the water, not even the shallow tidal pool area (no waves). He still had fun though. I was impressed by the lifeguard too. He did a good job of patrolling the beach and keeping everyone away from the rocks/wall. He nearly had to save a little boy who got very close to smacking into the wall. His parents were on the beach and should have been in the water with him IMO. The waves were breaking hard. The weather held out for us even though it threatened rain for a while when we got there. On our way home though we hit a bunch of storms. I'm talking about driving 30-40mph in a 70mph zone bc you just couldn't see the car (red in my case) in front of you.

Surprise!

Ok so not much of a surprise to any of my friends anymore but I'm PREGNANT!! It's been a long time since I posted bc I didn't want to spoil anything if someone from my family had read this. We found out last Sunday after AF didn't come. It was due Friday and I am very regular so something was obviously up. I had a HPT someone had send me in my BOC bag a while bag and took it and it almost immediately read positive. Oh My Goodness. I had to call dh back to the bedroom since he was in the kitchen (he didn't know I was taking it) and I showed it to him and started bawling. I didn't know whether to be happy or shocked but I was def. overwhelmed at the prospect of another baby. It had always only been talk of having a 3rd. I'm still overwhelmed. I have so much to do to get ready. The boys will have to share a room which means a lot of weeding thru stuff and figuring out the logistics. I'm glad we'll have our new family room now though as we need the square footage. I told all my friends via my "new" website. We told our families only yesterday at a themed lunch I held. The menu consisted of Baby back ribs, Baby carrots, Baby spinach with Baby tomatoes and mozzarella cheese, Baby asparagus and garlic bread. I was planning ice cream with a side of pickles if noone had guessed. My Mom was the first to guess when I said it was a themed meal. She says she already had an idea since the only time we entertain is holidays. Oh well... George(BIL) who said he was "sharp as a razor" didn't get it at first even after being told over and over about the baby theme. LOL

I'm so tired already with this pregnancy. My hormones are so completely out of whack. I am grumpy all the time with my boys and I hate it. I'd rather have sore boobs. I know it only lasts a little while though so hopefully it will end soon enough. We are def hoping for a little girl. I will be happy with another boy though. At least I have an idea what I'm in for.

Ever feel the need?

To tell someone they suck? I don't mean playfully, I mean tell them outright that what they are doing sucks- big time. I really just want to call my sis and tell her off. I sent my mom an email last night about some discount tickets I saw for a theme park. I thought it would be fun for her to take my nephew. She wrote me back and sounded very hurt bc my sister won't let her have my nephew for the day- any day apparently. Since my dear sister left her dh and got with the "boyfriend", she's done nothing but be a bitch, and ungrateful bitch at that. My parents have done everything they can for her but damn, she's a grown adult. It's time for her to grow up. I think her new BF may be a controlling person and her low self esteem doesn't help. My parents give her money when she needs it (Bank of Mom!), helped buy her a car, gave her said car today so they don't get bad credit for her not paying on it and never get paid anything back. Sis got a huge tattoo instead of paying them back with her tax refund for several loans. Also got new cell phones. Niiccee!

Ahhhh! So I wrote all of the above out this morning and then tonight I get a phone call from my mom. She saw my sis today bc she wanted sis to sign the title on her car so Mom doesn't have to worry about it anymore (accidents, no ins, not paying for the loan...) My sister is....PREGNANT!! Noooooo!! You'd think I should be happy for her but she is so f'in stupid! This guy is a total loser. A loser who already has 2 children he does NOT support and is NOT allowed to see by court order from what I understand (don't know the whole truth here). She can barely afford my nephew and now she's bringing another baby into this world. So many people out there want children and can't have them. I just don't understand it. It happened though and there's nothing I can do about it. I'm sure I'll have to throw her a baby shower since she can't afford anything. I'm not giving her my stuff except some maternity clothes maybe. She probably won't want those anyway. She likes to squeeze into anything that 2 sizes too small.

I love my sister, don't get me wrong, but I don't like my sister. I don't like the way she's leading her life and what she's doing to her son. ( He hasn't seen his dad in months!) I don't like the situations she gets herself into. I really don't like the way she treats mom. How did two siblings grow up so completely and totally opposite of each other?!

ARGH!!!!!!! Glad I can vent this!!

On another note- to the cashiers at JCPenney tonight over in the lingerie dept. YOU SUCK TOO! I've never seen such rudeness. They weren't that busy but you'd think there were 20 people in line. There was maybe a handful of customers. I had picked up a pair of pj pants off the clearance rack but they had no tag. Apparently they were part of a set but had gotten seperated. Fine, I mentioned I saw them on the rack and she snapped at me that I couldn't buy them that way. Whatever, I walked away to see what else I might like but realized I had to get home. After having her snap and seeing another cashier being really awful, I went to a different register altogether. If I didn't like the Barely There undies so much, I would have left empty handed.

Also, while waiting in line, there was an employee (clearly off duty) also waiting. She helped this one (white) lady out by scanning a few shirts for her to check the price since there was noone around. The lady behind her (Muslim) asked her if this was the line and the employee got rude! OMG. I was appalled by it and felt really bad for the Muslim woman. I just didn't know what to say at that moment. I was across the desk from them too. The employee was Asian but I guess prejudice has no color. If I hadn't been in a hurry and had thought about it, I would have gotten all their names and reported them. I should just write an email to corporate about it. Ugh!

A Bit Ticked

I was a bit ticked off earlier. The electrician and A/C guys were supposed to come today to do all their work on the new room. I missed a playdate that we really wanted to go to bc they were coming and guess what?! They didn't show! I had dh call our contractor and he said he didn't know until 3pm when he called them to see how it was going. I just feel it's really unprofessional on the workers' part to not call the contractor or even the homeowner. I can't wait for this all to be over! Let's see if they show up tomorrow morning like they are supposed to.

ETA: They did show up this morning (Wed) at 8:30am and are working on the electric now.

Noises in the night

I really dislike noises in the night. Saturday about 4am I got a bit freaked out when something rattled my bedroom window. It almost sounded like a bird flapping it's wings on the window. I woke up dh though and made him go check. He didn't want to get up at first since in his words, It wasn't something too big, the motion lights didn't go on, but he did get up. He even slept in the living room for the rest of the morning just in case. At least he was home. There's no way I'd have the courage to get up and look. The thought of looking out the window and seeing someone staring back at me freaks me the hell out!!

Bittersweet goodbye

Today was our last swim lesson with Mr. Thom. He's moving to Minnesota on Thursday. :( I'm sad to see him going. He's so great with all the kids he works with. My boys love him to pieces. I don't think Logan really gets that Mr Thom is moving away. I made him a small photo album of the past 2 years worth of lessons so he has something to remember them by. He really liked it and said noone had ever done anything like that for him. He and his dw are taking the move hard now that it's really hit them that this is their last week here. I guess they had a going away thing at church this past Sunday and she broke down. He didn't think she was taking it so hard. I told him he could always change his mind about leaving. ;) And so we'll miss Mr Thom. He taught Logan to swim and taught Ian not only safety and how to swim, but that swimming and being in a pool is fun ( no more screaming!). I can only hope we find swim instructors in the future who have the same great attitude and qualities as Mr Thom.

House update

Before:
with carport

new room


all stucco-ed. (will be painted in approx a month- have to wait for it to dry out completely)

New window - no screen yet. Got a new light for the outside and a new doorbell ringer too

It's coming together!

I bought the paint today after having it color matched at Lowes. It's called Hyper Blue and it's purty. I also bought a funky/fun ceiling fan from Lowes online. They claimed to have it in stock but when I got there they said it was special order. Get it together people. I ordered it online with free shipping to the store for pickup. There are some guys stuccoing the house as I type too. They've been here all day. I can't walk out of my front door right now which makes life difficult. I have to go out the back door, thru the gate and around to the front of the house while manuevering around any construction stuff. As long as it gets done soon. I have stuff to do!

Happy Independence Day!! (a day late)

We had a fun holiday. We went to our little hometown parade which is always fun. The kids get so many beads and tons of candy. So much more than they'd ever get at the big city parade here. We had to keep telling Logan to turn around bc he'd be looking at everything in his bag and missing the parade and goodies. Between Logan and Ian, they got a bag full of candy and over 50 bead necklaces. Wow! The weather held out for the parade too although it was drearily overcast the entire time. At least it kept the heat down. After that we went to a friend's house for a BBQ. We did a lot of talking and played some cards. It was nice to sit down as couples and talk too vs one set of parents watching the kids while the others talked. The weather finally broke and it stormed. Nothing unusual for a typical FL summer day. The boys were so tired upon leaving. Ian even fell asleep in the short drive home. Fireworks were going off right outside their windows after bedtime and they didn't hear a peep.
I'm sure I gained 5lbs this week(ETA: I only gained 1 -woohoo!) between all the parties/get togethers I attended. Ugh. Glad tomorrow starts a new week!
Pictures....
Crazy teen next to us who was putting ALL the beads he and his friends got onto his neck. I bet that was heavy!

Best of Friends! Jen & Me
More best friends... Logan and Trey

Daddy & Ian

The whole gang of us... (John and Zane off to the left and barely seen, Evan off to the right LOL)

House news! The new windows are in! The stucco was dropped off today and we thought they were going to start that today but I guess not. The walls inside will be textured on Saturday and hopefully painted on Sunday if I can think of a color. It takes me weeks to figure this stuff out and they want me to do it in a few days. Argh.

Here's our concept. We want to make this a family movie room. We have a large screen TV and surround sound already. I want this to be a fun room too. I'm thinking Disney/Pixar movie posters on the walls and bright painted walls. The paint I keep eyeballing online is called Frank Blue by Sherwin Williams (#6967) or Honorable Blue (#6811) with everything else trimmed in white.

We still can't decide on flooring though. The echo is the room now is terrible but I know once there's furniture it won't be so bad. We keep going back and forth on what we want in there.

What else...swim lessons are coming to a close. I think we have 1-2 more and that's it before Mr Thom moves away. :( I made him a nice little photo album of the pics I've taken over the past 2 years at his pool. I think he'll like it.

We took soccer pics last week. Here's our team and Logan's indv. pic.



And a few more just for fun pics to make you smile.
Googly Eyed Ian

May the Force be with You!

Arrr me hearties...it's pirate Ian Sparrow (sorry it's blurry- gotta catch it quick)

We've been Boarded!

Our front windows that is. Saturday the guys came out and took out all our old front windows, raised the bottom ledge a few inches and then put plywood up until we can get our new windows installed on Tuesday. Why the days in between? I have no idea! Dh took all our plastic bags and squished them in to the cracks to make sure no critters found their way in. It also helps insulate it. Ian didn't wake up unitl close to 9am this morning because his room was so dark. Do they make darkening blinds that will do that? LOL

Next steps are the stucco which I believe will be done this week or next, the texture on the inside walls and ceiling and the A/C installation. Then we can paint the inside! Yea!! The one downfall to this whole process I found out yesterday is that we can't repaint the outside of the house for a long while. Dh said the stucco has to cure before we can paint which means our house is going to look hideous! (I'm going to double check that) Seriously, the sides and back of the house will be painted and the front and new addition will be stucco grey. Yuck!

Magical Disney Story

I got this from a fellow DIS'er....her uncle witnessed it.

During a showing of Crush, he was doing his thing and picked a little girl out of the audience and had a conversation with her. After the show, when everyone was exiting, the little girl and her mother were coming out and the mother was sobbing hysterically. A CM approached and asked what was wrong and if there was anything they could do. It took the mother a while to gain her composure and what she said was incredible. It turns out, the little girl was autistic and had never spoken a word in 7 years but she talked to crush. The CM's immediatly shut down the attraction and allowed the girl and her mother back in and had private showings.What an amazing story.

Is it any wonder why I love Disney so much?!

Doing better

My throat is killing me(got a cold and living on Airborne) but at least the noise level has been reduced from yesterday. I thought I might lose my mind. Since dh was working late, I couldn't retreat to the bedroom either. I was never so glad to see bedtime roll around.

Anyway, I thought I'd share a few pics today.
Here's the way the new room is coming. The drywall is up and they've been taping, "mudding" it up and sanding it down for a couple of days now. They've also come out and chiseled and cracked away all the stucco "brick" from around the existing windows on the front of the house to make way for new windows. The new windows are slightly shorter since they don't make our size anymore so they have to build up the bottom.
Looking at the doorway

Big picture window

Opposite wall from the doorway
Close up pic of ceiling shape (no attic)
It's coming along!! Slowly but surely.....

Here's a picture of Ian at swim lessons yesterday. He and Mr Thom were fooling around.

I'm trying to upload a video but it's taking forever on YouTube so I'm uploading it somewhere else now. Short story while I'm waiting, Thom and I were talking yesterday and we were talking about candy. I mentioned dh worked for a candy company and he asked if I knew K.L. I was like Yes! This guy didn't work with us but with a partner company. I knew someone else he mentioned too. I just think it's such a small world that we both knew people in this huge town. He and this guy K.L. used to be BFF back in the day. I got his # for Thom and hopefully they can get back in touch before or after Thom moves away. Ok, so let's see if my video worked (nope it didn't, trying again....). Click here to watch "Ians-swimming-lesson"

And one more of Logan being pushed in the pool with all his clothes on. It was to see if he would panic with clothes on or not. I was very proud that he didn't. He was none too happy that this happened (very put out) but he got over it very quickly. Click here to watch "Logan-Safety-Swim-Test"

My head may explode

Our buddy is working on the new room and has rock playing on his radio. The kids are alternating between saying Mama, talking, screaming, crying and the TV is on a movie hoping they would sit still and watch it. OMG all I want is some peace and quiet at this moment. Dh is working late on a computer and bedtime isn't for at least another 30-45min. Calgon, take me away!!

Ian's conversation

I think it's cute, but then again, I'm biased. LOL

Me: Daddys on his way home.
Ian: Daddy home?
Me: Not yet, he's on his way.
Ian: onhisway?<said in one word as he's going to window> I Check. Nooooo.

He learned his 2nd spanish word/phrase today too apparently. His 1st being Te Amo (I love you). Today while watching Dora, she told the audience to say Abre (Open) and he did at just the right time! He kept telling Door Stuck too since the castle door was locked. He's a parrot!

Speech & Preschool

I don't know why I find it so amazing or fun to listen to Ian talk but I do. He's putting words together that just 2 months ago, he wasn't doing. Today I took his shorts off and told him to put them in his room. When I needed them again just now, I asked where they were and he said Mommy Room. He put them in my laundry basket. Good job! When dh came home today, he must have heard the car door bc he said Daddy Home. I just love listening to him. He's become quite the little parrot! He's learning and using new words every day.

I took the plunge. Someone pass me the tissues please. I signed Logan up for preschool 5 days a week starting this fall. I said I was not going to send him every day but it's almost like I have to. I didn't want him in a daycare setting. I really liked the school though. It's a private church based school and he'll have some one on one time with the teacher. I didn't get to meet his teacher as she is on maternity leave right now but I met the other one and she's great. I think he'll love it but it's going to be some major adjustments on Ian and me and Logan of course. We were talking about school earlier and I was telling him what he'd be doing and learning. Our conversation went something like this:

Me: You're going to love school. You're going to have music class and learn about God and Jesus too.
Logan: And Meerkats! Just like the zoo.
Me:

Where do they come up with this stuff?