CSI

DH and I love to watch this show, especially the Las Vegas original one. I think it's because we enjoy the characters and we enjoy trying to figure out who's guilty. What we don't enjoy are the really gory images and the dark tone of most of the episodes. We just finished watching a tape of tonight's episode and I feel so sad right now. Ugh--why is it that I put myself through this?

The Waiting Game

I had an OB appointment today. For the last two weeks, my doctor's exam showed that I wasn't yet dilated, but I was 70% effaced. Today, I was 2 cm dilated and 85% effaced. My doctor called it a "significant" change. This would normally tell me that I could be going into labor very soon. When I was pregnant with DS#2, however, I made weekly changes, from 2 to 3 to 4, and then finally 5 cm before my doctor then decided to go ahead and induce me. So, what this means is that we still don't know when I might deliver this baby.

We did a few more things today to get ready for the baby. I made some backup plans today with a good friend for when I go into labor. She told me to call her and she would meet us at the hospital so she could take the kids. She is such an amazing friend! Tonight we had the boys pack some extra clothes just in case we have to leave the house in the middle of the night. Earlier today, DH went out and got some baby wipes and diapers. The delivery feels so close!

Everyone keeps asking me if I'm ready to deliver this baby. I feel like they're all expecting that I will say, "YES, I'm tired of being pregnant!" I always say that I'm not ready, though. You see, my due date (April 13) is six weeks from the last day of school. I would love to be able to be around for the upcoming activities without having to work the night before just so I can get a day off. Thus, I am NOT ready to deliver yet. I want to make it until the end. Of course, that probably means that I'll deliver early. Until then, it's anyone's guess when I'll have this baby...

Absolutely

I absolutely got it right when I "picked" DH to marry. He has taken care of me so well during this pregnancy. I barely have to lift a finger. He has even started planning meals, something I never even dreamed he would do when we first got married. He takes care of the finances, chauffeurs the kids to various activities, and even does all of the laundry. His parents were just here, and I even think I'm lucky for having married a man with nice parents. Last night, I realized again what a special man my DH is. He was picking apart an essay that DS#1 had written for school. He was so patient, but he was also so fantastic at giving constructive comments without being critical. I told DS when I was tucking him into bed that he was lucky that I picked the right father for my children. Yes, I absolutely did. :)

The Day After

No sleeping in for us this weekend. We left for church again at 8:30AM today. Of course, this mass was a little shorter--about an hour and 20 minutes this time. Poor DS#2 really didn't want to go today. He thought he had spent enough time at church yesterday. The rest of us wanted to sleep in, too, but we were dutiful Catholics. During mass though, our pastor announced that the new communicants should hold their head up high during Communion so he and the deacons could figure out who would or would not receive the host. DS#2's ears perked up at this point, and he got a big grin on his face. Yes, he was still excited. :)

This afternoon, I took DS#2 and DD to a birthday party at a petting zoo/farm. They received these hats and bandannas (as well as a goodie bag) as party favors. They were too adorable not to get a photo of. So, we did have some fun this weekend along with the other obligations. :)

First Communion/Confirmation

DS#2's First Communion and Confirmation ceremony was today. They're apparently trying to move Confirmation before the First Communion, so there was a dual ceremony today. DS#2 has had several days to be "spoiled". On Wednesday, the grandparents flew into town. We had dinner at Texas Land and Cattle--DS#2's choice, and afterwards, he was spoiled with his favorite ice cream (Dreamsicle) but as a special treat, he got to order a shake instead of his usual kid's cone. He's getting his fill of shakes this week (see Friday's post and below).

Today was all about DS#2. He looked absolutely handsome in his black suit and shirt/tie that he actually picked out himself. Here he is with Grandpa in one of the few photos where Grandpa actually looks at the camera.My parents and sister (DS's sponsor) arrived at our house around 8:30AM and we immediately went to the church because we knew it would be standing room only. The ceremony wasn't going to start until 10AM, so I brought an activity bag for DD. Because there were over 100 candidates, the mass didn't finish until about NOON! DD was so good, much better than anyone can expect from a four-year-old sitting for three hours! There was a reception in the Hall where DS#2 and my dear sis got a photo taken with the Bishop. I'll get that photo later, but in the meantime, I snapped this one of DS#2 and our pastor. DS#2 was SO excited all day!

We didn't leave for lunch until about 1PM. At DS's request we went to El Mirasol, that I've blogged about in the past being DH's favorite restaurant. We were all very hungry and left with very full stomachs. My parents and sister were going back home right away (six hour round trip) so we said our goodbyes outside of the restaurant. I was able to snap some photos of both sets of grandparents together. My in-laws, the kids and I went for Brindles ice cream again and once again, DS#2 had his Dreamsicle shake. I reminded him that he shouldn't be expecting so many shakes after this weekend. His only reply, accompanied by a mischievous grin was, "You mean I can still get one of these tomorrow, too?" What a spoiled child! ;-)

Report Card Day

DH and I are so blessed that all of our kids are smart and do well in school. Of course, it's not too taxing in PreK for DD yet, but she still got excellent marks. DS#1 got the "Golden Arrow" award again for straight A's, but this time he wasn't alone up there. A good friend of his got one, too.

Since it's Friday during Lent, DH grilled some salmon fillets that he had gotten at Costco. He just loves that place. Everyone ate well, even the kids. They really love fish and salmon is just one of their favorites.

I wanted to show the kids how proud I was of their great report cards by taking them to Baskin-Robbins after dinner tonight. My in-laws were here and expressed interest in going also. At first DH was going to stay and clean up after dinner but I convinced him to spend some time with the family instead.

DD got the Rainbow Sherbet, a very colorful concoction that she practically inhaled. DS#2 took the opportunity to be spoiled and got a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough shake. Grandpa convinced DS#1 to try one of his favorites--Chocolate Ice Cream Shake with some caramel sauce added in. Grandma wasn't going to have anything at first, but decided to try the kids' cup of the Caramel Turtle ice cream. I had the Jamoca Ice Cream in a sugar cone. DH actually passed up a chance to get ice cream. He never mixes milk products with wine, which is what he had with dinner. Grandpa paid for all of the treats, and he even showed how much he enjoyed his shake by spilling some down the front of his shirt. He claimed that there was a hole in his cup, but we all knew that whatever the reason, the spill was a sign that he really enjoyed himself. I was surprised that I didn't get anything on myself. That little shelf I have seems to always catch something. :)

37 weeks

I was telling DH this morning that "it's starting to feel real". Of course he laughed and said that he's been feeling that all along. I meant that, between his putting the crib up this week and taking my last overnight call last night, etc., I finally feel that this birth is "impending"--like it can happen any time.

I'm also feeling the apprehension that I tend to feel at this time in my previous pregnancies. I think it's because we wait 3-4 years between kids. I feel like I forget a lot of little things. Sure, it'll all come back to me, but in the meantime I get a little apprehensive about the unknown--how the labor and delivery will be, how easy it will be to get this baby to nurse, how sleep deprived I'll get, etc.

I have this idea for a mini-album. I actually saw this idea a couple or so years ago. Someone made a small album where you could easily insert weekly 4x6 photos of the baby along with your little notes into little pockets, for a total of 52 pockets. I couldn't find an album like that, so I picked one that only has about 20 5x7 pages, so I'll have to add more. I'll have to make some modifications, but that's okay. Of course I haven't started this project, so, along with everything else I'm doing this weekend, I plan to start this. I've always had a hard time keeping up with all the baby milestones. I hope this way, I'll just document something weekly. This will be my last child, after all, and I want to remember every bit of this.

I'm at 37 weeks today--it's almost time! :)

Little Shopper

On Sunday, we decided to go to the local mall to have lunch and finish shopping for DS#2's suit for his First Communion this coming Saturday. We were at Macy's where I got some more foundation from Prescriptives. They gave it to me in this little shopping bag which DD loved because it was just her size. I also ended up buying her a dress to wear for Easter. She carried that bag, too, and she was so please with herself that I had to take a photo of my little shopper! DH saw her and immediately got a fearful look on his face! :)

T-ball Season Begins

Last Thursday was DD's first Tball practice. She'll have two practices a week (Mon/Thu) until their first game in April. She originally didn't want to join, but then she found out that her PreK friends were all on the team. Sigh--another social sports player in the family!

I found out that she has my eye-hand coordination--meaning NONE! Poor thing is doing a bit better, but she kept hitting the Tee and not the ball ON the Tee. Her coach was hilarious, telling the kids that the #1 rule is "Don't hurt the coach" and the #2 rule is "Have fun!" After practice yesterday, he told the kids to run after my DS#1. We all got a laugh out of seeing him chased by a bunch of 4 and 5 year olds! :)

St. Patrick's Day

I'm a little behind in my posts, so I'm going to backtrack to St. Patrick's Day last Saturday. DH loves to channel the 1/16 part of him that is Irish on this day. We started out by going out to IHOP for breakfast (LOVE those blueberry pancakes!) which was more my choice than his. Then, we headed out to Fiesta Texas to use our brand new season passes. The weather was beautiful, partly cloudy with a breeze and with a high in the low 70s. There were lots of people there, but the kids did get to ride a few favorite rides.

Here is DD riding the carousel. She wanted to ride all by herself. We all watched her from the side, but she got in line by herself, and got on the horse by herself. She may have been a little disappointed that her horse didn't go up and down, but you wouldn't know from looking her. She looks absolutely pleased as punch. She also got on the kiddie plane ride and kiddie truck ride. She was very disappointed when the train ride was closed down because the lights at the crossings were malfunctioning, but it did reopen eventually and we rode on it just for her.

The boys went on the Gully Washer, which is a round boat that goes down some rapids and under some waterfalls and sprinklers. Their pants got all wet, which is why DH insisted that he didn't want to go with them. Later, they went on the log ride all by themselves. The kids are getting more and more independent.

We went home for lunch and DD and I took long naps. Meanwhile, DH went out with DS#2 to buy him a suit for next Saturday's First Communion and Confirmation. We have both sets of grandparents coming into town for this one and my younger sister, who is DS#2's godmother and sponsor for his Confirmation.

For dinner we went to DH's favorite restaurant, El Mirasol. I got this photo of DH and DD when DD asked to sit in her Papa's lap. So much for independence! ;) We went to Brindles, our favorite ice cream shoppe after dinner. I just love that Cookies and Coffee flavor. DD loves to get the chocolate ice cream in a pink cup with a pink spoon. DS#1's favorite is Red Velvet ice cream and DS#2's favorite is Dreamsicle. DH usually gets some sort of Coffee concoction, too, but he didn't get any this time since he had a margarita at dinner and he doesn't like to mix the two.

All in all, it was a perfect St. Patrick's Day! :)

Random Facts

Just some random facts and thoughts...

1. Every day for a month or two now, DD says, "I can't wait until I see the baby." She's also been very affectionate, especially towards me--almost annoyingly affectionate at times.

2. Today, a handful of people asked me, "When are you going to deliver that baby?" What else can I say but, "I don't know when I'm going to deliver this baby, but I'm due in four weeks."

3. I love that my kids all still want me to sing to them when they get in bed, even my big 11-year-old boy.

4. I'm sad that my family doesn't seem to want to come visit here for Easter, for various reasons. I can't travel to see them since I'll be 39 weeks on Easter Sunday.

5. Both of the boys really enjoyed their Soccer Camp this week, even though it was only for two days. DH and I are so happy to see DS#2, especially, excited about such an activity.

Spoiled

After posting about trying to teach the kids about the value of money, what did DH and I do? We got DS#1 a cell phone. It was time for us to re-up our service anyway, and the boys have Soccer Camp this week. DH didn't want to stay there for the whole two and a half hours each night, so we reasoned that we wanted them to be able to get in touch with us easily. With DS#1 also being involved in more competitive soccer, we also may have to start dropping him off instead of staying with him for certain practices and games. So, we reasoned that this is more for our convenience and our peace of mind. We even got a cool feature on his phone where we can track his whereabouts--sort of a GPS system for his cell phone. DS#1 has admitted that he is "spoiled". So, we keep proving it to him...

Spring Break

My kids don't have "Spring Break". They have "Easter Break" which is the week after Easter. My nephew, however, has Spring Break this week, and his family decided to come to my town for a couple of days. Of course, it hasn't rained in ages, but it's been raining pretty much since they got here Sunday night. They went to Six Flags yesterday. It was overcast but it didn't rain until the evening. Today they went to Sea World and they got drenched. While there, they went ahead and got season passes since it was such a good deal and they left the park early since it was still raining. That meant that we could all have dinner together before they all go home tomorrow. My sister took these photos at the restaurant tonight. I wish the kids could have been able to play a bit more, but my kids have to go to school tomorrow, and they're already feeling the effects of Daylight Savings Time. I really wish that I could have scrapped with my sister, but we just didn't have any time. At least she'll be back in town for DS#2's First Communion and Confirmation in a couple of weeks.

Maternity karate

Well, for those of you who asked, here is a photo of me in my karate uniform. Not a pretty sight, I know. Our karate school has really bad lighting for photos, but my friend went ahead and took this one of me yesterday. She also took a more closeup photo of my belt, which I don't want to show here since it has my last name embroidered on it. She's remarked on how she can see less and less of my name as the weeks have gone by. I usually double wrap my belt, and I could just single wrap it, but then it usually gets in my way, and I don't need another reason to get off balance at this point.

I don't think I've been doing anything too strenuous in class. We usually start by running laps around the room, but I've been speed-walking it instead for the last couple of months or so, because running makes my belly ache. Yesterday, we were asked to do as many push-ups as we could in one set. I had to rest after 25, mostly because when I try to push myself on those, I run the risk of losing control and my arms giving out and allowing me to fall. I didn't want to fall on the baby, so I was conservative. We also practice some jump kicks, but I, of course, omitted the jumping. The rest of the class was spent on doing our forms, so I got to move around but my heart rate didn't really get going. That was good, I guess, because I ate a slice of cheese pizza right before going to class. DH brought some home from school since they were selling them as a fundraiser and I was so hungry that I couldn't help it. ;) It didn't affect me at all.

Next week I have to work late on Friday, but I'll be at 36 weeks then, too. We'll see how long I keep going to karate...

The Value of Money

How do you teach your kids to be more responsible with their possessions and ultimately about money? This has been such a dilemma for us. Tonight, DS#1 forgot his warm-up pants at his soccer practice field. This isn't the first time he's forgotten something there. Luckily, last time his coach found his soccer ball and held on to it until the next practice. Hopefully that happened this time, too. We just spent a lot of money on his soccer gear. Tonight he also found out that he has some money missing. We've told him time and time again to be careful where he leaves his money. Hopefully his sister (who routinely leaves dollar bills that her grandma gave her lying around the house) was "playing" with it and just stashed it somewhere. Hopefully it hasn't been taken by the new lady who cleans our house. Sadly, I don't think I myself really learned the value of money until my Dad was laid off from his job around the time I was finishing high school. Hopefully, we'll find some other way to teach the kids about the value of money.

American Idol and DS#2

DS#2 was cracking me up tonight. We were watching American Idol. One of the judges (Randy maybe?) was talking about one of the singers being "pitchy" and DS#2 said, "I agree." He also kept making comments like, "I don't like that song" or "He can't dance." After all, it's not like he's any great performer himself! I have to say that I'm not all the into AI this season. Maybe I'll regain interest once they get the top 12, but what's keeping me interested is how my kids have been enjoying this show. :)

Sleep

I've always "needed" eight hours of sleep each night. Of course, that means that I never get what I need. I've always wished that I didn't need so much. I'm so inefficient with my time as it is, so cut my awake time and I get even less done. In the last year or so, I usually "catch" up on sleep by napping on the weekends. With the kids' activities, that time is often gone, too. With soccer at 3PM yesterday, I wasn't able to get my nap in. What did I do? I went to bed at 9PM last night. I went to bed even before DS#2. I don't know what I'll do. When will I ever have time to do anything?

First Soccer Game

DS#1's first soccer game with his new team was today. The weather was fairly nice--sunny and in the low 60s maybe? The only problem was that it was quite blustery. It was so blustery that I didn't see any parents sitting on the sidelines, until the game started. Luckily, our parking spot was right next to the field, so I got to stay in the car almost the whole time, the first time I've ever done that for a game. Even DD and DS#2 stayed in the car with me. Thankfully, I didn't have to go to the bathroom during that time. I wasn't all that crazy about using one of those port-a-pottys.

Since DS#1 had been with the same soccer team for three years, I got used to those kids. He "played up" so most of the kids were older and bigger (or at least the same size) as he was. Most of the kids on this team were the same size or smaller. The goalie from his previous team was VERY good. Their goalie today was sick and the other one didn't show up. I also got used to the defense on the other team being very proactive and being very good, too. I'm not complaining about this new team, but I really expect to see some improvement this season as these kids play together more (about half the team are new this year).

DS#1 also just received most of his uniform package today. It was a bit pricey, but I have to say that it all looks more "professional" and in my opinion, very COOL. There are matching shorts, jerseys, warm-up suit, socks, etc. The only thing missing was his gear bag--also matching, of course. I'm going to wait until it all gets in and I plan on doing a layout about it.

He has another game tomorrow. I have to admit that I'm looking forward to this season.

3/2/07 Journaling Challenge

I just started these Weekly Journaling Challenges at Scrapaddict. I'm sort of taking over from our Challenge Goddess Catherine, who gave us awesome journaling prompts for every day in February. I really enjoyed practicing my writing and thinking of new layouts to do that I wanted to continue. Today's challenge is:

What did you want to be when you grew up and how does this compare with what you’re actually doing?

I have to say that the only thing I remember wanting to be was a doctor. I don't remember doing a lot of pretend play when I was younger, although with my vivid imagination, I must have. When I was 12, I visited my aunt and uncle in Boston, who were getting ready to move to San Antonio. My uncle, who is a doctor, took me on a tour of Boston. As he drove by the Harvard campus, he mentioned how great it would be if I went there for medical school. I didn't go there for medical school, but that seed was planted in my head.

So, in short, what I'm doing now is the same as what I wanted to be when I "grew up". I've always been happy with my choice. The only drawbacks were that I delayed everything really important in my life (i.e., marriage and kids) until after medical school and the schedule challenges that I still have problems with sometimes. I have the life that I want now, though, with time to spend with my family but with the money to buy whatever we need and most of what we want. It was a sacrifice, but worth it in the end.

What else?

DS#2 got a yellow card at school today. That's what they call the paper that they send home for the parents to sign. Apparently, he had a water bottle that he wasn't supposed to have. The teacher took it away, and he got someone to get it back for him. He then used it to squirt water at other kids. He's never been a discipline problem at school before, so this recent trend (this is only one of multiple incidents this year) of getting in trouble at school is very concerning for us. We've talked to him, talked to his teacher, and so far we haven't come up with any particular reason for this change.

Tonight he is "grounded" to his room and only came out for dinner and his shower. He can't play with electronics or watch TV--or even be in the same room as either of those things. He wasn't even allowed to to have dessert after dinner. What else can we do? What else can we take away? This is the boy with the squeezable cheeks that I posted about yesterday. :(