Happy Birthday, Poppy!

Happy Birthday, Dad! Wish we were there in Florida with you to celebrate, but we will sing and have cake in your honor! Jack can't NOT eat cake, right!?!

Thanks to my bestest Aunt Pattie for the picture (and for making me super jealous!). Love you all!

Nursery (part 1)

A while ago (in July 2009), I won this from The Light Garden! I love it. I was so excited to get a package in the mail from Istanbul, with the sweetest note from the artist. I told her that if I ever had a little girl, this would definetly find a place in her room.

And so, 8 months later, with a little girl on the way, I'm excited to finally hang my prize. Well, to think seriously about hanging my prize, because the nursery-to-be is a BIG, HOT, MESS! I would totally show you a picture of our third bedroom, but I'm actually afraid to walk in for fear of being buried by my junk treasures!

But I have a definite motivation to organize and beautify, and I can't wait. My general thought...wait for it...vintage birdies! I'm thinking handmade nests, turquoise (which is my new obsession), celadon green, bright pink, a sweet vintage birdcage, and a cozy quilt...I need to try to keep in mind that I'm decorating a s-m-a-l-l room, on a s-m-a-l-l budget, but the possibilities have me reeling!

Don't even start Googling "nursery themes, ideas, inspiration, projects, etc."...because you might become obsessed and want to make every room a nursery (or maybe that's just me)! So, to get my thought process started, here's a random mish-mosh of the look I'm dreaming of, basically I'm thinking out loud here (or something like that)...

(via here)

(via here) Totally obsessed with this nursery!

(via here)

(via here)

So there's just a few of my preliminary thoughts and ideas, all I can say right now is I-want-to-PAINT!

The Great Name Debate

We’ve had a whole week for it to sink in: we’re having a baby girl! And the excitement keeps rolling in. She’s even received her first gifts: pink baby ballet flats, hair bows, and some outfits I’m just drooling over! (Hello Cardinals dress and bloomers!) Thanks Mom and Care. You’re THE best!

And now on to the Great Name Debate:

I’ve looked through tons of websites and lists (Jim prefers to scroll through the Social Security Database, because that’s a boy thing, I guess), and we’re stuck.

There’s some question as to whether we should stick with another “J” name, since we’re Jim, Jen, & Jack…but I think that’s too kitschy for my taste. Jack wasn’t named with a “J” because we were: it’s a name we love and has meaning to us. On that note, we will not be pursuing the “Jack & Jill” option, although it's tempting. ;-)

Soooo, here’s what we’re throwing into the mix for now:

Edie
Elle
Charley
Grace
Layla
Lila
Maggie
Mallory
Melanie
Molly
Olivia

This changes everyday, in fact, multiple times a day, so chances are the name-themed post will prop up again and be completely different...I just felt the need to get the cantaloupe ball rolling!

PS: She's a cantaloupe this week, AND we're more than halfway to the finish line!

Baby Girl!

Go Team Pink! Here's our daughter with her hand in her mouth...

and her perfect little profile...

Here's our proof that this is a beautiful little girl...notice the 3 lines between her legs...no boy parts :)

And another profile as she's stretching...

She was definetly an active girl! The technician was having a hard time because baby girl wouldn't stay still. She said, "If I had to guess, this is a boy because a girl wouldn't be doing this!"

Once determining her gender, she said, "This is one active, thumb-sucking little girl!" Hmmmm, reminds me of a little girl I once knew... ;-)

But she is perfect and healthy and we couldn't be prouder!

Now the fun really begins: we can really narrow down name choices (even though I have my heart set, it's a matter of turning Jim's heart in my direction!), room decor (complete with mood boards!), and outfits (ohhhhhh bloomers, and headbands and pink, Oh my!). So much to do, and I'm so excited to get down to it!

On a side note, since the u/s, I've been feeling this lady move like crazy. It's as if all of a sudden, I'm more aware. I love it. It's my favorite part of pregnancy, and it makes me smile knowing I have a rambunctious little girl.

the final post before

knowing what baby #2 is (as long as he/she cooperates!). I'm thinking positive, healthy, gender neutral thoughts!

I'm also dreading drinking 5 gallons (gross estimate) of water and not being able to go to the bathroom! I mean, I literally take 2 sips of water and almost wet my pants. This will be tricky, or really hilarious, because loosing control of my bladder can’t not be funny, right!

I'm also planning on snacking on an Almond Snickers bar or DMD for a little extra caffeine boost. Do you think that's considered performance enhancing drugs? A candy bar or soda?!?

So, famous last words before finding out the sex: I knew it all along! ;-)

ummmm...

I swear, we put him down for a nap with a diaper ON!

And yet, somehow, this is what I saw when I checked on him halfway through his nap…hmmm, looks like someone was a little restless (I blame the time change, and maybe a boy thing!)

Luckily, he didn’t have any accidents in his bed, and he woke up a happy boy…which is all I can ask for on a typical Sunday (minus an hour!) Check out my fav. cheesey smile...actually, I can't really tell if he's saying, "CHEESE" or asking for a Cheez-It, but it's cute, none-the-less!

T-minus 28.5 hours until we find out if we go team blue or team pink... :)

the Park

Last weekend we dove into Spring and had an adventure at the park. Jack couldn't get enough of the baby goats! He even saw a goat "sleeping in the bathtub!" (aka: water-trough)...but he can't stop talking about it!

(Obligatory "CHEESE" cheesy picture!)



He loved to just stare at the goats...nothing could break his concentration. Except...

The damn goose that wouldn't stop honking! Jack finally had to go over and scold him (which unfortunately didn't stop the noise, but was quite adorable!)

As was Jack meeting the bunny! "Hi bunny, I'm Jack" he said, as pointed to himself and inched up to his cage. T-H-E cutest ever!

Oh I love this weather! And this boy!

18 weeks...

In a little less than 5 days, we’ll find out what this sweet potato is! I can.not.wait.

For now, I’ll just continue my anticipation whilst sporting my bump!

Boy-Girl-Boy-Girl...

bed head!

Ohhhh Jack! Just like his Mom with some crazy-looking bed head!

Apparently, he was none-too-thrilled with having his picture taken yesterday…he cried! :-( But, I was told that the photographer thinks “he got a good one” so we’ll see what they come back with!

In case of a miracle, and Jack wants to try for a round 2 of pictures, I packed a polo with him to school today…but I’m not putting any money down on him having a sudden change of heart and loving the photographer…especially when he’s so used to the “house” photographer (ME!) :-)

Notice his half-hearted attempt at a smile this morning! I think it's more of a Really Mom!?!-look than anything! LOL.

Plus, the house photographer lets him watch Cars movie non-stop....literally. He loves Mater, and can practically recite the movie at this point, so you try telling him no ;-). And as you can see, Mister cannot be bothered to take his eyes off his favorite movie EVER!

Spring Picture Day

Another picture day at school! We've had both good and bad luck in the past, so I'm hoping we get a good one this go-'round.

I'm not overly confident because these days, when Jack's ready to take a picture, he says, "CHEESE! Click! Let's see-let's see!" as he runs towards me! Literally, he says the "click", and has to see the picture right away, so lately, I've been snapping a lot of random "Jack running towards me to see the picture" shots...

We'll see! : ) Every once in a while, I do capture a gem, like this one...which is actually quite an accomplishment at 6:30 in the morning, for a sleepy boy who, had his Mommy try 3 different cups for his oj this morning because, well, just because he can!

146...

beats per minute. "Right down the middle."

13 days...until we find out the sex of #2! And get some more pics to love.

Listen, Baby #2, your big brother, Jack will be the first to tell you to get used to the camera, because never-ending picture taking is inevitable! Just learn to love it, even in the womb :-)

Potty Training (kind of)...

Today I woke up with full-on Potty-Training Gusto! Most likely because Jack woke up and his first words we’re “M-M’s? Pee-pee potty?” And sure enough, despite the bright bathroom and sleepy morning eyes, Jack went in the potty! (And was thus rewarded with M&M’s at 6 in the morning!)

It’s one of the few times he’s initiated the act himself, so I was very excited. And to continue to encourage his progress, I’ve made a nice little “Potty Chart” to track his development as we go:
Now I’ve done pretty much zero research on this whole potty training business, and I’m not trying to put the pressure on Jack, I just want to start getting him into habit. (And hopefully, have him (mostly) out of diapers by the time #2 arrives!) I figure, we’ll ease into the process slowly, and when we run into bumps along the road, we can move into the R&D phase! ;-)

So here’s the deal, every time he goes in the potty, he can put a sticker on his chart. When he fills up an entire row, he gets a little present TBD. Of course there will be cheers and hugs and M&M’s along the way, and I’m sure plenty of accidents…but bring.it.on! Trial and error, here we come!

still LOL...

Because everyone needs a good laugh on a Monday morning...

and rolling around so much that you get static-y, peacock-like hair!