Baby # 3, Month 4!

This past month has gone faster than the first trimester combined. I'm feeling so much better, despite some serious energy defiancy that I didn't really experience in my other pregnancies. I think it has to do with having 2 other kids and not ever slowing down! I'm learning to handle it a little better, make sure I'm taking my vitamins and looking into pregnancy herbal teas that will help. A 15-20 minute power nap a day usually helps, too. :)

Here's my official 16 week picture! I'm wearing a black shirt each month so I can put them all together later in  a collage,something I've wanted to do in the past but never did.

 Funny how outfits can change the way you look--here I am at 15 weeks, wearing about the only maternity skirt that fits so far! I'm ready to be done with the in between stage, which will probably happen around 20 weeks when I'll start looking more round and pregnant and maternity will fit better. I've been selling old clothes I don't really care for anymore on ebay and using the money to get some cute new things for Fall. I'm really excited about that!

Other than that, not much to report this month! I'm getting into a better workout routine, finding a balance in resting and not over-doing it and still looking a little awkward around the mid-section. That will change soon--I hope!
 My next report will be at 20 weeks, and I'm still debating if I want to find out the gender because I really do not like it at all. It's very anti-climatic and boring to me to find out in the u/s room. However, for Brookie's sake I think we will, but I'll have the tech write it down and we'll do it a little more special than discovering the gender at the Dr.'s office. We shall see--I guess you'll find out next month!

Joey is Two!

Today, my son turned 2. Because I've been sick all day and I'm completely exhausted right now, this won't be a full birthday post, but I just wanted to post this comparison picture really quick. Time goes by way too fast! I re-read my birth story post and looked at all the pictures from the day he was born. I love every stage my children go through, but like any Mom, it always makes me a little melancholy to see them growing up and getting bigger.

Of course Joe-Joe has been acting way more like a 2 year old than a 1 year old for a while now, but it's official now and I have just a little twinge of sadness. This is when I'm so happy to have another little one on the way--makes the other one's growing up seem a little easier when I'll have another infant in my arms soon enough. (Lord Willing.)

 Well, until a more extensive post on his 2nd birthday...goodnight for now. :)

Rekindling the Spark

It was time. Time for some moments alone, time to look at each other and talk, time to rekindle the flame and remember why we got married in the first place. No kids, no friends, just us. It had been to long and it was time for a night out.

Nate took me to a new upscale pizza place and we immediately loved it when we walked in the door. It was quiet and romantic but fun at the same time. We had looked at the menu before hand (of course) and knew what we wanted--a white special. White pizza with ricotta, mozzarella, sausage, fresh tomatoes and garlic. 

They brought crushed red pepper, Parmesan and something green. I only had eyes for the red pepper, which I cannot get enough of these days. I douse everything with a generous portion. I'm telling you, it made that pizza.

Look at that. Look. At. That. Thin and bendable, chewy and crispy, greasy and cheesy and melt in your mouth amazing. I dare say it was one of the best pizza's I had ever had. One piece was all I could handle!

But enough about the pizza...this night was about us. We talked and laughed and ate, walked around downtown and made out in an alley. Oh yes we did. It was wonderful. Sometimes life gets the best of us--the every day cleaning and cooking and taking care of kids and laundry and feeding kids and changing kids and bathing kids and doing laundry and vacuuming and picking up toys and wiping counter tops and doing dishes. Falling into bed at night exhausted and getting up the next day to do it all over again and losing sight of our love that started it all. Making arrangements for the kids is a small price to pay to focus on each other for an evening. Mmmm. I am so in love with this man,.

After our dinner, Nate took me to the top of one of his buildings where we saw a gorgeous view of the city and our capitol. I'm a country girl at heart, but if I had to choose a city view, this one isn't too bad... ;)

Our night ended with a free venti caramel frapp, which was lovingly shared by two very, very happy, in love people.

Dinner with my husband: $30.00. Time spent together as lovers: Priceless.

The Joy of Reading

It's been way, way too long since I've gone to the library. As in, my almost 2 year old has never stepped foot in one. I finally took the kids last weekend and we had a great time. Other than the fact that Joey is way to LOUD to behave how you are supposed to in a library, which is pretty much how you should act at a catholic funeral. Yeah, that wasn't happening. 

Brooklynne, however, was the perfect little library poster child.

Then the train came by outside, which was quite a highlight of the day!

See? Sweet Girl.

Believe it or not, he sat for 3 seconds to read "Skippy Jon Jones." 

I love them. The little joys of my life!

I plan on making library trips a tradition--the way I grew up. It's great that I can get books too-- I love to read and haven't done it much in the last few years. I am excited about that changing now. :) Who are some of your favorite authors?

Texas Fall

Fall is arriving in central Texas. This simply means that the tempature's are dropping below the 100's during the day and the mornings and evening are in the 60's and 70's. This feels so amazing to us that have been hating the heat for the past several months. This morning I went and ate breakfast outside--wearing a hoodie! It was probably 70 degrees which is very cool for us. The sad part was, I could smell the smoke from the awful wildfires which actually came within a mile of our house today. It passed and we were ok, but many people are not ok and almost 1000 homes have been destroyed. Firefighters are tirelessly to try to control it and are going way too long without sleep. God bless them!

With "fall" comes the things that most of us do in the summer...walks, picnics, playing outside--anything that has to do with "outside" makes me happy, since we've been cooped up for a few months!

How I have missed our nightly (or at least 4 times a week nightly) walks! Nate pushing the kids and me walking the dog. Or the dog walking me.

Our little piece of "country"---a beautiful bike trail that we love to walk on, talk and solve all of life's problems.

The kids have been wanting to get out and walk, which slows us down and makes me wonder how many less calories I'm burning, but they are burning more. So good for them!

Coming out of the trail, this was the beautiful view I saw. Texas skies are gorgeous. Almost as good as New York skies. Almost. (I underexposed a little here to get the beauty of the sunset )

I'm trying to get in more pictures with my kids, and their doll...and Buddy...for memories sake, you know.

Watching my daughter run ahead with the sunset in the background--just beautiful. Way to make my heart happy. And a beautiful way to end one of our last night's of summer.

I am jealous of the beautiful fall weather my northern friends are starting to enjoy, but I realize in about 2.5 months when they get their boots full of snow just walking out of the house, scraping off ice from their windshield, so frozen they can hardly move, seeing nothing but white while they drive and sliding on ice, they will be jealous of me. So, bring it on, Texas fall. After that comes Texas winter and I can hardly wait!

P.S. I realize that Joe seems to be a bit neglected in this post. It's not "second child syndrome", I promise. It's "he doesn't want his picture taken" syndrome, thus the lack of his face in these pictures. ;)

Creating Beautiful Spaces: The Heart of the Home

Some of you can interior decorate in your sleep. I, on the other hand, take years to hang a simple picture on the wall. 6 months to get the picture printed, another 6 to buy a frame, and another year to hang it. I am serious--my friends can attest to this.

Well, I've had enough of my bare walls, naked windows and boring spaces. I want them to be beautiful, and I don't want to spend a lot of money while I'm doing it.

Here is my kitchen before. I didn't have much wall space to work with, so decided to do something simple above the refrigerator. 

and tada...after! Simple but lovely. A call to eat with a huge fork to emphasize it. Creative, right? I wish I could take the credit for the idea, but I can't. I still love it anyway. We bought cheap, wooden (or more like cardboard) letters and painted them red and the big fork was 50% off at Hobby Lobby.

Before: Secondly was my sad little area above my table. Does this welcome you to eat? Make you want to be there? No.

After: But this, on the other hand. A fat little man holding a huge plate of spaghetti and meatballs? I'll take some right now, please. 

I didn't want the focus to be on the curtains so I just bought a simple valance. The picture was also 50% off at Hobby Lobby--score!

Before: I can't stand cluttered counters one bit. But I wanted to tie in the "fat chef" theme with something simple...

After: cookie jar from a friend and a candle that I will never burn (ha) from another friend! So, this one was free for me. Thanks, friends.

Before: The cookie jar was on this counter, which was cute but I had some other stuff that would go good there...

After: A friend had also bought me the plate and little jar, but I never got a stand to set the plate on. Who knew they were $2.99? Since it was the only thing not on sale, I used my 40% off coupon on the plate stand. Hey, I love saving pennies. Looks classier now, I think ;)

I hope this wasn't too horribly boring for you. Next up is my playroom and living room and next year I'm going to work on my bedroom.