Another Busy Week

It seems like every week is so busy even though there is really nothing on the calender! At the end of every week this month I have felt like, what did I do this week? It goes by so fast with tons of little stuff keeping us busy. I love to stay busy, but sometimes it is so nice to not have anything due or anything to be doing. This weekend we are somewhat busy. Andy's car is once again in the shop. I vote we park it on the curb with a free sign on it, but Andy doesn't want to part with it. My car needs new brake pads and the service engine light has been on and off since we paid it off in October. Isn't that always how it goes? So he is getting the brake pads changed today before the whole brakes get torn up and this leaves me car less! Luckily we live in walking distance to a couple parks and have a nice backyard so that we can enjoy this beautiful weather! Andy is helping some friends move in the morning and then who knows what we will do. I need to go to the farmers market and of course sew to get ready for the festival I am doing next weekend. We have the nursery at church on Sunday, so we won't get out until around 1 and then I am sure there will be lots errands we need to run after lunch.

I am so glad that spring or summer has finally arrived! Our house is so cool on these kinds of days, but I'm sure by the middle of next week it will be hot in here and we always wait until the middle of June to turn on the air. I am so cold natured and the heat doesn't really bother me until it hits about 100 for a week or so, then I am ready for cooler weather. Everyone keeps telling me that this summer will be different and I am going to be miserable! People are so nice, huh?! Hopefully I will be able to tolerate the heat ok since I am so cold natured. I was never bothered by it with the boys and they were born in May and I gained 60lbs of warmth.

This morning at work we were talking about how we wish we had always written down words that our kids called things, like the kid in our class who calls big trucks "BT". Well I was thinking I really should make a day each week where I write down things the kids say. Here is this week and last...

Us: What do you want to name the baby?
Cale: Mater
Carter: Regular Baby---Not sure where this came from unless it's because we are only having one? Also, this is what Carter calls the baby when referring to it.

Carter: I don't have to pee pee and poo poo right now because my pee pee and poo poo are sleeping.

Carter: The baby started out very tiny and then (pointing to his mouth and moving down) it went down, down, down into your belly. ---So I guess this is where he thinks babies come from. Andy has a lot of work to one day.

Cale and Carter: Pepperoni is called Macaroni

We got the boys some Rainbow flip flops, they wanted some like Andy and I and they were the same price as the Crocs I was looking at. Well they walk like Frankenstein with them on. They are a little big because their feet were too fat to fit in the right size, so I had to move up a size. So I don't know if that is what it is or if they just need to learn to walk in them.

Carter has a lot more interesting things to say because he is a little more free spirited, I guess that is what you would call it!

As for Cale, he is more the serious inquisitive one and asks why or what about EVERYTHING!! We never have a peaceful meal or car ride!

This past month we have done a lot. We planted our veggie garden, which isn't doing too good. We took the boys to eat at Kanki, Japanese hibachi style, for the first time. They loved it! Their birthday is coming up! I can't believe they are almost 4! We decided instead of a party this year we are taking them to the zoo, it is pretty much half way for our families. Their actual birthday is on a school day, so I am taking in cakes and party supplies to have a little party at their tea party time at school. They said they wanted Mickey Mouse clubhouse cake. Well I got the people from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and am going to make them cakes. Yes, they each get their own cake, which sounds strange to some people. Our thought is, would you want to share blowing our your birthday candles every year? As for the candles they both want a number 4 candle. Easy enough!! Hopefully they will like their cakes!

Peak Fest

In a week and a half, on May 2nd, I will have a booth for my business at the Apex Peak Fest! This looks like it will be a lot of fun! They said they are expecting 20-25,000 people this year!! I am a little nervous about having enough stuff made, but hopefully I will get a lot of stuff done in time. I am a little bit of a procrastinator, so I still have lots to do! Whoever is going to be in town should go! They are going to have entertainment and a big kids area and of course Andy and I will be there. Hopefully the weather will be nice, so say a little prayer that it will be a beautiful warm spring day!

Go Pack

On Saturday we went to the annual Red/White Spring practice game at NC State. Last year we went for the first time and made it through most of the half. This year went much better! We made it through the entire half with the boys just sitting and watching. We got there a little early and joined a friend that was tailgating. All the boys kept talking about was wanting popcorn. They don't like my popcorn because it is white not yellow (I actually don't like the white kind either but Andy makes me buy that kind). So we went in and got some popcorn, lemonade, and Chik Fila A sandwhich. We sat in the top of the stadium because it was pretty warm out and I didn't want Andy and the boys to burn. So by the timewe hiked to the top and sat down we were all ready to eat! We also got several gift cards for Bojangles that they were handing out at the gate. They have anywhere from $1 to $100 on them. If we have a lot on ours we will be eating at Bojangles all the time! I love it anyways, so that would be fine with me.

With the baby...today for the first time I really felt the baby kick! I have been feeling him move, but today was the first day that I could really feel a good strong movement and even on the outside of my belly! They have told me that this baby is very active, although I can't feel it all the time, so great another energetic boy. I had to go to the mall today and get the boys some Mickey mouse figures to go on their birthday cake and while I was there I went in Janie and Jack and bought the baby a cute little outfit. I am so excited about getting super cute stuff for this baby. With the boys it was just too much to buy two of everything from those kinds of places. This time I will have more fun shopping!

Big Beds

We finally got the boys big beds!! When they climbed out of their cribs right after their 2nd birthday we were a little surprised and not ready to make the large purchase of beds, sheets, and mattresses. So we got toddler beds and figured it would give us more time to look and decide what we wanted.

Two years later and we still had no clue what kind of bunk beds we wanted to get them! After spending hours in the Rooms to Go Kids last weekend, I finally talked Andy into checking out the beds at Pottery Barn. He decided to after nothing was really standing out to us at RTGK. It wasn't too much more expensive and a lot nicer. We got them delivered on Saturday and Andy was so glad that he went with the Pottery Barn furniture. I never thought I would hear him say that!! He is kind of like Phoebe on Friends, he hates Pottery Barn. I still need to get the quilts for their beds. Which I actually got what I wanted with that too! Turns out Pottery Barn has a credit card that gives you 10% back, so with that money I am getting the Madras quilting at PBK that I want!! I just have to wait for my reward certificate. The dresser also has a nice large shelf for baskets to put all their toys in that I need to keep out of the playroom. I also need to get some stuff for their walls. We are going to repaint the room too, but are having a hard time with paint colors. Go figure! Carter wants his walls red and Cale wants his walls blue. I am not sure how that will look, but that is why I wanted the Madras quilt with lots of colors in it.

They say it is much safer to have children under 6 years stay off of the top bunk, which is fine with super paranoid parents like Andy and I. So we will leave them like two twin beds for a couple years.

18 weeks

Here I am at 18 weeks. This pregnancy has been much different than the other one. The symptoms have all been different and I feel really different, which would I guess be expected since last time I had twins. I have only gained 6lbs, yay!! Last time at 18 weeks I had already gained 16 lbs. I am feeling good and have been able to start drinking coffee again, I had to stop for a while after throwing it up a bunch at first. It has really given me a lot of energy and its decaf!



This is a picture from when I was around 18 weeks with the boys. I look so thrilled! I'm not sure what that look is about since I hadn't really began to feel uncomfortable yet.

Easter Day

For Easter we didn't do anything too exciting. I had to take it easy, so that is what we did. We went to church. Andy and I had to serve in the nursery, so that meant we didn't get out until almost 1:00. We then stopped by the Cookout and got lunch. We were going to have the ham I was going to make Saturday night, but that didn't happen. So we came home ate and then all took naps! When the kids got up Andy hid a bunch of eggs in the yard for them to find. I then made my ham and we had it for dinner. It was a nice day!!

An Eventful Saturday Resulting in...

Saturday started off kind of strange. I was having some issues, so I called the Dr and she told me everything was ok and if it happened again to call her back. I felt good about what she said and we were going to an egg hunt that afternoon, so I decided to go ahead as usual with our day. We went to a fun egg hunt with some friends and there was free Chik-fil-a which always makes a day pretty good. Then we stopped by Rooms to Go Kids, because we need to find some bunk beds for the boys. While we were there I had my issue again and had to call the Dr. Well she told me to go to the ER and get checked out just to make sure everything was fine. I was a little nervous about going to the ER alone, just because the wait there is always so long. Well we couldn't reach anyone to watch the kids, so I went ahead by myself to the ER. Once I was there it was surprisingly not busy and I only had one person ahead of me at triage. When it was my turn the nurse pretty much freaked out because I was pregnant and immediately called labor and delivery to come and get me. So They took me to labor and delivery triage and once I was there I realized why I was sent to the ER. My Dr was pretty mad they sent me there because just in case something was wrong it would have made a bad situation even worse if I had to sit there and listen to other people's healthy baby heartbeats. Well luckily for me I was the only one in there and everything was fine. They found the baby's heartbeat and the baby is very active, so great signs.

The triage nurse kept me company. She was very impressed that I drove myself to the hospital and was there by myself. It was actually pretty nice, finally peace and quiet. Now I am all registered for when I go into labor and know what to do since I will probably be driving myself to the hospital then too. Which isn't bad since we literally live 2 minutes from the hospital. Andy did get in touch with our friend Brian who brought his 5 year old daughter over to help him play with the boys so that Andy could come join me. When Andy got there I was waiting for an ultrasound. Which took me 2 hours to get! Apparently there was one person ahead of me, that was in the ER go figure. My triage nurse kept calling and the ultrasound people were useless. So I finally got my ultrasound and everything looked good. I guess it was just one of those things and hopefully it will not happen again. I was really hoping to make it to 40 weeks this time without seeing the birthing center at Rex hospital. Oh well, maybe I can make it the next 22 weeks without having anything else happen. However, we did find out of the sex of the baby! Andy said it was the one good thing that came out of the day. So can you guess what we are having?! It's a boy!!!

Looking Forward to Summer

This week the boys and I have been on spring break and I have really enjoyed it. I thought that it would be a long and exhausting week, but it hasn't been too bad. The boys have had their moments where they have been way too loud and Carter is going through a difficult stage which Andy says is just like he was as a boy (if you want him to do something he doesn't).

We haven't really done anything too exciting this week and that is the best part! Monday we had lunch with Andy. Yesterday afternoon we went to the grocery store. That is something I never do with the boys by myself just because I either forget what I am getting, even with a list, or I spend too much. I didn't do too bad. The only thing was I accidentally picked up the expensive milk instead of our usual HT brand. Then today we met some friends at the $1.50 movies to see Bolt. I was a pretty good movie. Carter said he liked it and Cale said he liked it, but there was a scary man in it.

The boys are pretty fun to have conversations with now. Carter is funny because he is so carefree and gets distracted easy, so you never know what answer you are going to get. Cale is the more serious one that you can really talk to about things and most of the time get normal honest answers. Things like this make me sad about them growing up because they are so

It has been really nice not having to be anywhere at any certain time. Also, being able to spend more quality time with the boys. I do work at the preschool and then have my own business, so I pretty much feel like between those two things and all the chores at home that I ALWAYS have something I need to be doing. This week I have just put everything on hold. Well not really because that would be impossible, but I have taken it all easy. I have been doing the house chores and a few sewing projects, but not too much.

I feel like I am nesting a little early. I have gotten most of the baby stuff ready and been trying to clean out the room that is going to be the nursery. It is a little early since we don't even know what the baby is yet! We will be finding that out in 3 weeks, which seems like we should know by now. I wish we weren't going to find out, but Andy insists. I guess truthfully it would kill me not to know what the baby is! It is already bothering me not having ultrasounds every time! I think it is making me more nervous this time than with the boys. Everything also feels different, but I am having one and not two! Cale is now saying he thinks the baby is a girl because he wants a girl because I am a girl. He has turned into a mommy's boy lately. They like to flip flop between Andy and I.

I am really looking forward the summer to just doing fun things with the boys now that it is so much easier to go and do things. We are doing 4 weeks of camp this summer and going to the beach for a week, but so far that is it. I may sign them up for gymnastics camp in August again, just because they loved it and I may need a few hours to get things done. Last summer we were so busy there was no time for the pool, summer movies, or other fun things that would come up. This summer is hopefully going to be a lot slower!

Motherhood

The other day I watched Oprah, which I normally do not do, and it was about these mothers that had written a few books on motherhood. It was funny for me to hear their responses because it is exactly how I feel! Motherhood is hard! They said that when writing their books they would call anonymous mothers and talk to them and only after 20 minutes or so the moms would confess that they are not totally happy being a mother. This was only after the women writing the books commented on how happy, together and balanced the other mothers were. It is amazing that even to a complete stranger moms won't admit their challenges. It's like people think you must not love your children or want to be with them if you admit you are not totally happy being a mother.

Andy and I have always talked about this because when I had the boys I really felt alone in my challenges. I thought I had made a huge mistake having children because it was so extremely hard! Although most people I would talk to seemed to have it "together" and not have any complaints or have any of the same problems I was having. I did have one friend who also had a baby who did not sleep during the day and spit up gallons after every meal just like mine did and that was very reassuring to me. I thought I must me doing something wrong because no one else was having the same problems as me.

I now know that there are lots of resources and lots of people will "come clean" as to what it is like to be a mom. I don't want to be negative and I do love being a mom and feel very blessed to be able to spend these early years at home with my children, but I will be the first to admit that it is NOTHING like I thought it would be! I just can't understand people that say it is so perfect being a mom and they love it everyday. Andy and I think to ourselves, "Seriously?!", but maybe it is for them and maybe they do have the perfect baby or have live in help:) Andy is somewhat of a negative person, so maybe that has a lot to do with how we think. We obviously don't hate having children, because we are having another one and it was planned. However, I feel like this time around will be different. I know it will still be hard, but I know what challenges I now face or at least some of the challenges.

I know that before I was a mom I would have not listened to anyone tell me how hard this was going to be. I got mad at people that would comment that I would have my hands full with twin boys and I was going to need help. I am kinda stubborn and wanted to find out for myself, so I didn't really want much help at all until I realized that it was hard. That is why I try and tell people in a gentle way the truth about having twins and being a first time mom, but only if they ask me and I do try and make it as positive as possible.

It is hard going into it all with blinders on, which is totally what I did! I thought that babies slept all the time, at least during the day, and it was going to be a breeze to nurse and they would sleep right away in their cribs. NOT of us! None of those things happened, but it was all OK. They slept in their car seats for several months and that was fine because they loved the car seat and would sleep in it during the day so that I could get out of the house and have them sleep the whole time while running errands. I know that what works for one doesn't always work for another and that as a mom the most important thing is to do what works for you and your baby to help you keep your sanity. So if my baby doesn't want to sleep in the crib for 5 months, but will sleep through the night in the car seat at 12 weeks that is perfectly fine with me! As long as I am getting sleep that is all that matters:)

I do believe that the happiness of motherhood does outweigh the bad, but some days it is very hard to see it that way. I really just try and take one moment at a time and try to remember that when they are fourteen I am probably going to wish they were four again!

Here is the Amazon link to the books by the women who were on Oprah http://www.amazon.com/s?ie=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Trisha%20Ashworth&page=1. I definitely think they sound like fun reads.

New Projects!

Here are a couple of new items I have been working on. The first is a pad for your arm when carrying an infant car seat. I got this idea from my friend Anna, who had one and loved it. I can't wait to use one with my baby!




Next, I have started making strap covers for car seats. These are reversible and have a cushiony, is that a word?, batting in the middle. They make for an easy clean up for babies that spit up all the time like mine did.

Yummy Eggs

Last week at school the boys dyed some eggs. They both had two eggs and I guess their teacher had told them that they could eat their eggs, because they kept insisting that they wanted to eat them. After dinner we peeled and let them eat an egg. Cale totally loved his egg even though he had never really been a fan of eggs before. Carter on the other hand, refused to try the egg. Cale didn't like it enough to ask for the other egg.

Easter Egg Hunt

Friday finally turned out to be a beautiful day! The boys had their Easter egg hunt at school that day, so I was really glad that the rain finally stopped and the sun came out. I was also having my class's egg hunt at the same time, so Andy was nice enough to come and take pictures for me. The boys had a great time and have loved playing with their eggs.

This week we have spring break from school and it has not started off to a great start. The weather is terrible!! It is pouring rain and storming. This past weekend was so nice out! We were able to get our vegetable garden started. We started with tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, zucchini, peppers, and green beans. I also did some research on herbs and flowers that would repel bugs and rodents from the garden and was successful at finding stuff. The herbs I found were basil, sage, marigolds, mint and I started from seed garlic cloves--not sure if it is the same as garlic but that was all I could find. Those things are all suppose to repel ants, flying bugs, rodents, mosquitos and some other stuff. We also got this steak that you put in the ground that sends off a sonic sound to keep ground animals away. Even though we live in the middle of the city we have so many rabbits and chipmonks and of course squirrels. We also got an owl for the pear tree and are hoping it will scare the squirrels out of that tree as well. We'll see how well these things work. I also found that sprinkling cinnamon or cayenne pepper around flower beds or trees that you don't want squirrels in will keep them away. I will also be trying that once the trees start to get fruit on them.

Enjoying the Weather

Last Sunday after church was the first nice weather we had had in a while. So we took the oppourtunity to take some pictures at our beautiful blooming tulips.