Bubbles

Bubbles sure make splashing in the water a whole 'lotta fun!

Seven

That is the number of pounds I have gained since my last doctor visit 4 weeks ago. SEVEN! The doctor suggests that I gain a pound a week, but I guess I am an overachiever. Maybe I will consider cutting back on the sweets. Or just buy bigger clothes...

Thursday: What's that in the back yard?

I happened to look out the back door to find what I thought was a black turkey with a red head (my mom later informed me that the "turkey" was actually a vulture--Ewww). I ran to grab my camera because it's not every day that a 20-pound bird lands itself in your back yard, but when I came back it flew the coop. BUT it left for us the most ironic gift: a rabbit carcass. So poetic because Caleb and I have a hate-hate relationship with rabbits as they eat EVERYTHING we plant (People who know us know just how seriously we hate these animals). I hope this dead rabbit sends a message to all other rabbits looking to feast on our foliage tonight. If not, at least the whole situation has made me laugh!

Wednesday: Still no Internet

And my mom knows this, but says she keeps checking my blog thinking there might be a new post. Oh, Sally, thanks for being my biggest fan. But you are a loon!

Tuesday: Water Boy

It was HOT, HOT, HOT, so Jacob decided to cool off in his new beach ball sprinkler. He LOVED it, but he didn't realize that he could walk away from the spewing water. Instead he just stood in front of the freezing cold stream and gasped for air. And he tried filling up his watering can one drop at a time. I think this activity provided more entertainment for me than for him!

Monday: I Still Got It

A 40-something guy asked me out to dinner. Maybe he overlooked my ring, but is it really possible to not see my round belly?! Weird. I should have told him I would give him a call when I recover from my c-section. That would have sent him running!

Sunday: A Day at the Zoo

Even though the weather was about 30 degrees too warm, we had fun at the zoo on Sunday with Caleb's sister and family. Jacob was a trooper even though his nap came about 3 hours later than usual, Caleb was a great navigator, and I somehow dodged bringing home cankles as a souvenir of the hot trip. A fun time was had by all!

I'm Baaaack

Computer is back up and running. Though I must admit that I have been more productive in the past few days without the distraction of the Internet, I am happy to be back to the idle waste of time that the cyber world provides!

Hiatus

I'm taking a blogging hiatus (not because I want to but because my modem crapped out). So look for lots of pictures and updates later in the week once we are back up and running. Until then, I will be going through Blog world, Facebook, and Internet shopping withdrawal!

What to do?

When B.S. is born, Jacob will be 20 months old. Caleb and I are determined NOT to buy another crib, but I don't know if 20 months is too young to switch Jacob over to a "big boy" bed. His crib transforms directly into a full-size bed (headboard and foot board), but as far as a convertible bed with drop sides, it is not. So, to all of my been-there-done-that moms: What do we do? Do we leave Jacob in his crib and set up the Pack-N-Play for B.S. until Jacob is ready for the next step? Do we buy a toddler bed for Jacob and move the crib to the new nursery? Or do we skip the toddler bed altogether and head straight for a twin-size bed with side rails? What worked best for your transition and at what age should we plan the big shift? HELP!

Student Driver

Jacob loves to "drive" our cars (thanks, Grandma Joan for this terrible obsession). So I put this no-fail fun activity to good use. Jacob sat in the driver's seat for a solid 45 minutes and kept himself entertained while I cleaned out, vacuumed up, and wiped down the inside of the car. And when I turned on the car to run errands a bit later the brights were on, the flashers were blinking, the radio was blaring, the windshield wipers (front and back) were on high speed, the rear defrost was running, and the AC was on full blast. I think that about covers all of the buttons!

Obviously

A new study reports that married women live a shorter life than single women, and that married men live longer than single men. This makes perfect sense: Men get married and no longer have to do their own laundry, dishes, cleaning, etc. Women get married and spend their entire life cleaning up after their husbands. They really needed to do a study to determine this?!

Not cool, lady.

For the first time ever I took advantage of the "Expectant Mothers" parking space at the mall. I never use these spaces because I am more than capable of walking. But it was close, I was in a hurry, I am clearly pregnant, and I had to lug out Jacob's stroller and accessories so I thought what the heck. And then a 50-something lady (who was in no way of childbearing age) parked in the Expectant Mother space next to me. I just about asked her when she was due, but didn't want to risk a throw down in the parking lot so I kept my mouth shut. I'm sure she felt the hole I burnt into her back with my eyes as we walked into the mall, and hopefully she felt dumb enough that she will think twice before taking advantage of something that doesn't belong to her. Hmpf.

Jacob Meets Ball

Had I known Jacob would have so much fun chasing a ball around, I would have introduced the two a LONG time ago!

Cheap Entertainment

Who knew playing with a sleeping bag could be so fun/funny?!

Buds

Caleb dropped Jacob off at daycare this morning and reported that his buddy Braxton "waved really big, and ran up and gave Jacob a hug." How cute is that?!

Bridesmaid Emergency

My brother is getting married in less than 3 weeks and I decided this weekend would be a good time to try on my bridesmaid dress. And it doesn't fit. At all. My mom was in the room with me when I tried to shimmy into it and the conversation went a bit like this:

ME: Just zip it up.

MOM: I am trying to. Suck it in.

ME: I am.

Oh boy. Needless to say, I will be at the mercy of my seamstress (who just thinks she had to shorten the length an inch or two, HA!), and will be canceling my dinner order for the wedding.

Even my child knows my addiction.

Jacob opened the pantry and brought me the WHOLE container of Oreo Cookies. I think it might be time for me to cut back...

Comparing Baby to Vegetable

I am 25 weeks pregnant today, and my weekly email update said that B.S. is about the size of a rutabaga. Funny to me because my dad will get a kick out of knowing that his grandchild is being compared to his (and no one else) favorite Thanksgiving tuber...

Holy Cramp

I heard about them, but never really experienced leg cramps when I was pregnant with Jacob. But, omigod, they exist. I woke up to one cramping my leg to a 90 degree angle last night, and I couldn't get it to go away (for what seemed like an hour--but was probably really just a minute). Ouch!

Passed!

On a good note, I passed my glucose test (Yippee!). But (does good news ever come without a "but"?) my iron levels are a little low. I'm not surprised that I will have to pump iron as I was anemic with Jacob. The nurse told me that iron deficiency can make me tired and asked me if I am feeling at all sluggish. I had to laugh as I thought what pregnant woman who is chasing after a toddler all day isn't sluggish?!

L'il Stinker

This face has "I'm up to no good" written all over it. And I LOVE it! (The face, not the mischief, that is)

My Little Gardener

Jacob loves his lawnmower, his wheelbarrow, his watering can, and his shovel and rake. I just wish doing yard work made me giddy with excitement the way it does him!

Can't Win 'Em All

Caleb and I headed to the North Side last night and caught another Cubs game. This time in the bleachers. Really, the view was great, but I could have done without the drunken commotion around us (I sound really old). The Cubbies lost, but, as always, we had a good time.

Funny story as I was passing through security:

Security Guard: Please shake out your blanket and your coat for me. And now please pat down the front of your sweatshirt.

Me: There isn't much to pat down. I'm pregnant.

Guy Behind Me: I wonder if that excuse will work on me.

We all cracked up.

And who is that guy in the second picture you might wonder? Why he's the owner of the Cubs, of course. I'm sure he's the richest person I will ever rub elbows with, and Caleb joked that he probably had a million dollars in his pocket when we took that picture. (If only I had known that, I would have reached for his wallet!)

Flossin'

On Thursday my dentist suggested I floss my teeth every day (I currently NEVER floss). So I agreed to it. It makes your teeth healthy, your gums healthy, and Oprah's experts say it adds years to your life so it must be a good thing, right? Well, I am on Day 4 of flossing nightly and I am not loving it (and neither are my achy gums), but I am a woman of my word so I am going to stick with it until my next check up. 176 days to go!

Just do it.

Time to tip back a round of that orange-syrupy drink to test for gestational diabetes. I put it off as long as I could, and, well, I just need to get it over with. But I failed my first test last time around, and don't want to stomach the 3-hour challenge (which really is challenging) this time around. Bottoms up to me, and fingers crossed that I can get it right the first time this time!

Typical Caleb

Caleb and I were out and about yesterday when we stopped into a small-ish boutique. We were immediately greeted by the clerk with the comment "oh my gosh, you look so cute." Before I could respond, my quick-witted husband said, "Well, thank you for noticing." Nice try, Caleb, but I think the lady was noticing my belly, not yours!

Observation

I had my first uninformed observer ask me today if I was pregnant. An older lady--and a monthly client to the clinic. She then went on to tell me that she thought my FACE was looking a bit fuller and rounder. And to think this whole time I thought my BELLY was the spot looking "a bit fuller and rounder." I'm still trying to figure out how to turn this one into a compliment...

Put it on the Calendar

I am officially scheduled for an 8:15 a.m. C-section on August 20. I keep joking that I am having the baby on a Friday so that I can recover over the weekend and be back to work on Monday. But, seriously, I am secretly freaking out...

Procrastination.

I have to schedule my glucose test for gestational diabetes. I have known about this test from Day 1 and have had the papers to schedule it for the past week. But I don't want to drink the juice, I don't want to have my blood taken, I don't want to sit idly in an office for an hour before I have my blood taken, and I certainly don't have the self-control at this point to cut down on my sugar intake to even give myself a chance at passing the first round of this test. I need to suck it up and get it over with. But I just don't wanna...

A great way to wrap up a decade.

Caleb surprised me with tickets to the Cubs game for my birthday. The seats were great, the weather was fantastic, our team won, and Jacob spent the afternoon at the zoo with friends so we could actually relax and enjoy our outing. But the day didn't end there. We threw in dinner and a movie (Date Night-- it's hilarious. You NEED to see it!), and the second shift of baby sitters came in to watch our kiddo. I forgot just how nice it is to be a couple every once in a while and not a family. Not that I don't love wiping snotty noses and assisting with fork usage, but c'mon...
And, yes, this is a picture of my round belly at Wrigley Field. It may have been blocking out the sun...