30 Weeks!

Our boy is growing!!  This pregnancy has been as easy as Caroline's.  I have felt great and had a really good time.  Nine months is full of long days, but quick months!  I feel like it has taken forever to get to this point, but at the same time I can't believe we are only a couple of months away from meeting our boy!  I am measuring right on my week every time I go to the doctor.  My blood pressure has stayed down and my weight gain has been slow and right on track.  I'm hoping he can stay in and cook as long as possible!

I would love to say that his nursery is completely ready and we are all ready for him like we were with Caroline at this point, but that would be far from the truth.  We know this time that he won't even be in his nursery for 6 to 8 weeks after coming home, so there really is no rush.  We have been trying to make it through the end of the school year so that we have the summer to get everything ready.  His crib is put together and his bedding has been put on, so at least he would have somewhere to sleep!  I am so lucky to have great friends and family and have a couple of showers coming up.  I was not expecting them since this is our second, but it will be nice to get some blue stuff in the house!  The nesting bug has been hitting me for a while, but we have a lot of big stuff to do before we can get to the little stuff and it will just have to wait until this summer.  In just a few weeks, though, I will be an organizing and cleaning machine.  Then we will be all ready for him to get here in August.

Caroline has been precious and really sweet about him coming.  I know that won't stick around for long once he gets here, but I am enjoying it for now.  She gives my belly kisses all the time and talks about all the things she is going to do to help.  She lives her life to help someone, so I really think she is going to be a great big sister.  She no longer calls him Flynn and will actually call him Baby Camden, Baby Cam, or (her latest) Cameo.  I have a feeling that Cameo may stick as a family nickname - as ridiculous as it is!

It is nice that Caroline can do pretty much everything for herself, but Jason and I are definitely ready for and excited about having a baby in the house again!  I try to think about what his sweet little face will look like, but nothing will compare to being able to look into those big eyes once he is here.  Can't wait to meet you, buddy!

It's a...

BOY!!!  

We had been looking forward to March 21 since soon after we found out we were pregnant.  We were so excited to know what the baby was and to be able to start preparing for his/her arrival.  For the longest time, Caroline wanted a girl and wouldn't even talk about it being a  boy.  She always used 'her' and 'she' and would ask me questions like, 'Mommy, when are we going to go to the doctor to find out the baby is a girl?'  We would let her know that it may be a boy and that we don't get to pick.  The week before the appointment, we really amped up the conversations.  We would talk about how much fun Anna has with Jack, and how she could teach him how to play basketball and jump on the trampoline and play football with Daddy.  She finally said the night before the appointment that having a boy would be fun.  Glad we convinced her when we did!

That night we put her to bed and a few hours later I was brushing my teeth.  It hit me square in the face what we were going to do the next day.  The excitement of it all had made me really look forward to Friday because I knew we were going to find out the gender.  I didn't, however, think about the fact that the rest of the anatomy would be checked and that leaves a lot of room for bad news.  First, I thought that there may not be a heartbeat.  Second, I thought that the heart, brain, spines, hands, feet, kidneys, and everything else could possibly not have formed correctly.  Thirdly, I remembered again that we would find out what the baby was.  So I got into bed and I told Jason that these were the things that I was worried about.  He assured me that everything would be fine and we went to bed.

We got up the next morning, put Caroline in her Big Sister shirt, grabbed some breakfast, and headed to the doctor.  We waited for the appointment, meanwhile my heart was in my throat, but I just read to Caroline and colored with her.  Finally, they called my name.  We grabbed everything and headed back to the sonogram room.  I got up on the table and Mrs. Barbara went to work.  Caroline let everyone know that if the baby was a girl, she wanted her to be named Bapunzel (Rapunzel) and  if it was a boy, she wanted him to be named Flynn Rider.  Within the first few minutes, I thought I saw a ding-a-ling, but I wasn't sure.  She got a good shot of the feet, saw that they were great, then she got the leg bones and worked her way up.  And there it was.  Homeboy was laying with his legs spread wide open and his ding-dong was in very plain sight.  Mrs. Barbara said that we could definitely start painting things blue because there was no doubt he was a boy!  She asked if we had a name and Caroline yelled out, 'Flynn Rider!'  We all kind of laughed and Jason said, 'Camden Michael.'  Caroline was not very happy about that, but Jason told her that she could call him Flynn.  That satisfied her.  So, Mrs. Barbara kept doing her thing and eventually we saw every part of our little man and every single bit of it was perfect.  Four chambers in the heart, everything in the brain that was supposed to be there, two kidneys, good bladder, three veins in the umbilical chord, nice spine, two hands, two feet, and everything else that was supposed to be there.  I definitely let out my breath I had been holding and let myself get really excited about everything I just saw.  Jason and Caroline were playing and celebrating and talking and we just took it all in.  Barbara was so great through the whole thing and was so sweet to Caroline.

 Our BOY!!

After the sonogram, we headed to meet with Dr. Oliver to go over what they had just seen.  She gave both of us a clean bill of health and sent us on our way.  We headed to get a blue balloon for the Facebook post and started making our phone calls and sending out our texts.  It was so fun to let everyone know about Camden!  Everyone was so excited - especially Leslie because Jack would finally have a boy cousin!  Jason's dad called and was very touched that we are using his name for Camden's middle name.  Such a sweet thing for Jason to want to do.  After a little celebration with some ice cream at Dairio, we headed back home so I could get to work for my afternoon class.  

We had dinner with John and Jamie that night to celebrate and then we headed to Babies 'R' Us to pick out the very first boy outfits for Camden.  They had an awesome set with a rhino playing football and we had to have those.  Even though little girl clothes are still ridiculously cute, I'm excited about buying some blue and green stuff!  

So this is the story of how we found out we are adding a boy to our brood!  We can't wait to meet little man in August!

3 Year Update

We were finally able to make it to the doctor for Caroline's 3 year check up.  She was 33 1/2 pounds and 38 inches tall (both around 75th percentile).  We did the developmental questionnaire, they measured her, and for the first time they took her blood pressure.  She was asking questions about it all.  She didn't miss a beat.  Watching Doc McStuffins helped because she knew the names of a lot of the instruments and had an idea of what they were used for.  Her tube is still in on one side, but it is coming out.  Hopefully, it will work its way out and we won't have to go through a second surgery to get it removed.  Overall, she did a great job and we've got us a happy, healthy 3 year old!

Being Rich

There has been a lot of talk about teacher pay and about how poor it is in North Carolina.  That is not a great thing when my husband and I are both teachers trying to make a life for us and our family.  It is not often that money is not something that I think about.  It is in the top 5 reasons that couples get a divorce and I can understand why.  Money can be stressful.  It is hard to know that there is a week until you get paid and you have just a little bit of money in the bank.  I know that we are definitely not alone in our worries about money.

Last night, I was washing dishes and cleaning up from a delicious dinner that Jason had made for us.  We had food (really good food) on our table with leftovers in our refrigerator.  As I looked up from the sink I saw Jason and Caroline having a conversation.  Not about anything special, but in that moment I felt incredibly rich.  I started to think about all that I have.  I have an amazing husband that loves me to the ends of this earth, an amazing little girl, a baby that we get closer to meeting every day, a nice house, two cars, a job I love that has an impact on lives, and the list goes on.  It is hard when the daily struggles of life get in the way to keep all of that in perspective.  It certainly was nice in those few minutes to have that perspective back and really remember what it means to be truly rich.

Real Talk

Here is some honesty that may not be appropriate.

If you have read any previous posts, you have read that Caroline slept through the night at about 6 weeks old and always has, she asked to be potty trained, she asked to give up her Daci, etc.  I am by no means saying that Caroline has not provided us with plenty of frustrations, but in the grand scheme of kid raising, she has been pretty easy.  I have heard lots and lots of stories that leave me feeling very lucky.  So, the idea of another child leaves a lot of room for my imagination to go wild.  I am just hoping that maybe Jason and I produce kids that are on the easier side of the scale.  Or, maybe I'll come back to this in a couple of years and laugh my head off because my imagination came to life!

The second thing that makes me a little bit nervous is the whole 'how do you love another child as much as you love the one you already have' thing.  We are by no means the first people to have more than one child, so I know that you really do love all of your children and your heart just grows and grows and grows with each one.  The amount of love I have for Caroline is insane.  I have never known love like this.  Is it possible to love another one like this?  My mind knows that it has to be possible, but just sitting on this side of it, it is something that I am nervous about.

The third thing that makes me nervous is that Caroline's world is about to be rocked.  Being from a family of four, I completely understand the benefits of siblings.  The life lessons of sharing and coexisting with other people, life long friends that you happen to be related to, always having someone to play with and share stuff with, etc.  Right now, though, Caroline has it made.  She has our attention all the time.  We spend time with her and just her.  That will all change.  I know that it is going to be so good for her, because there are some very real detriments of being the center of attention all the time.  The process of getting to that point, though,  is not always easy.  She is really excited about being a big sister and helping and holding and doing lots of things with and for the baby.  I am just not looking forward to her wanting me or needing me and me not being able to do anything for her because I am busy with the baby.  That will very quickly be what we do and how things go, but looking into that part of my future is a bit daunting.

With all of that being said, I am over the moon excited about having another baby.  The smells, the snuggles, the sounds, the firsts, the love, watching Caroline and her brother/sister play together, grow up together.  I am really excited about it all.  This is me being real.  Aren't these fairly normal feelings and concerns?  I have a feeling it will be pretty funny to come back and read this in a year or so!

Second Round!

We are going to make this family of three into a family of four!!  I am due August 12, 2014.  We find out in late March if Caroline will have someone to share her princess stuff with or Daddy will have someone to teach football to!

We have worked on this one for a few months, but if one thing is for sure, we are NOT in control!  So our baby will be here a week before football season and a week before school starts!  The timing may not be the best, but we cannot wait for August to meet our next beautiful mess!!

Almost 3 Year Old!

People give parents a hard time about saying their kid is 30 months rather than just saying 2 1/2.  By people, I mean me.  I never understood it and I thought it was silly.

Well, once again, being a parent has made me swallow lots of things I said before kids.  I totally get why months are used because Caroline as a 25 month old and Caroline as a 35 month old are two completely different things.  At the beginning of her two-year old year, she was a walking, talking baby.  She was capable of doing a lot of things, but she still had baby cheeks and talked baby talk.  Fast forward to the end of her two-year old year and she is in no way shape or form a baby.  I love how independent and grown up she is, but lately I have been going back and watching videos and looking at pictures of her, just to help me remember her baby-ness!  I know I will be doing that for a long time, because she will only get bigger from here!

Some things that I want to remember about my big girl:

*She is completely potty trained.  The second attempt stuck and we have not turned back.  She wore a diaper for nap and at night time until one day she asked me if she could nap in her underwear.  We had accidentally put her down for a nap with no diaper and she had done fine, so diapers at naps were over.  Then a few weeks later, she asked me if she could sleep at night with her underwear on.  So we rolled with it.  She has had a couple of accidents over the past few months, but she has done fabulously.  Our girl is completely potty trained and 90% of it was her idea!

*She is completely without Daci (her pacifier).  A week or so ago, I went to go get her in the morning.  She told me that she was ready to give her Daci to the babies.  (When she got her big girl bed in November, we told her that she didn't need her Daci in her new bed because she was a big girl and that babies sleep in cribs and need a Daci.  She would talk about the idea of giving it up, but when it was time, she would not be quite so sure.  We could have pushed the issue, but decided that we would give her until her 3rd birthday and then we'd force the issue.)  We hadn't talked about it in a while, so I just went along with it.  I figured that we would talk about it and then when nap time rolled around, she would need it back.  Nap time came and went, no Daci.  I figured for sure, bed time wouldn't happen.  Bed time came and went, no Daci.  She asked me about it once, I told her she didn't need it, and she has not asked for it again.  It is still sitting at the top of her closet where it will stay until I'm ready to throw it away.  (It is so funny to me that some times parents have a harder time letting go of things than kids do!)  We had also told her that when she gave up her Daci, she would get Sofia and Minimus figures that she had been asking for.  Well, she saw Sofia, Vivian (Bibian), Crackle, and Clover at Target the week before she gave up Daci, so when she told she was ready to give it up, she gladly told me that since she gave up Daci, she could get Sofia and Vivian.  I wanted to make sure that this was going to stick before we rewarded her, but about four or five days in with no mention, homegirl got her Sofia and Vivian. (Sidenote:  I completely understand that giving up a pacifier is not always this easy. I was expecting this to be a huge struggle because she would sneak in to her room to get her fix like it was a drug or something.  I am baffled that she made this decision, but I am very proud of her and just rolling with it!)

*She can talk anyone's head off and we often get asked if she is 4 years old.  Her vocabulary is rather large and there isn't much that she can't tell you.  I do love that her 'th' sounds are still 'f' sounds right now.  Like, free years old, I fink I'm going to...  It is one of the few baby things we are holding on to!

*We have completely entered the stage of very few items she will eat.  It is tough to get her to try anything new, she thinks (finks) she knows what she likes and what she doesn't, even when she hasn't tried anything new.  Her loves are still mac and cheese, bisketti (spaghetti), chicken nuggets, green beans, carrots, ranch, most fruits, and her treats (she really likes candy and ice cream, like most kids, but she is pretty good about stopping when she is done).

*She has entered complete sass mode.  She has always had a bit of a tude, but she is reaching the age where she understands what she is doing and saying.  This where karma is really going to start being a bitch.  I ask her to do something, she does the opposite.  Not like a two year old, where she is testing boundaries or may not know what I mean.  Like a three year old that knows exactly what she is doing and what button she is pushing.  This three year old stage is going to be a tough one - just a guess.

*She is in huge need of control - as are most three year olds.  She likes to pick what to eat, what to wear, what she is going to do, when she is going to do it, for how long she is going to do it, and on and on and on.  We give her choices where we can, but there are just some times, my friend, that you do what you are told because I am your momma and I said so.  (Dear Lord, I am my mom.)

*She is in complete princess mode.  To date she has seen Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Tangled, and loves Sofia the First.  We have a lot of princess movies left, so that will be fun.  I was never a huge fan of the princess stuff, just because I am the opposite of girly, but it is fun.  I don't mind watching the movies and singing the songs.

*Lately she has been telling us what to say.  As in, 'Mommy, say how is your dinner, Princess?'  Then she will answer like we randomly asked her that question.

*She has done great with her big girl bed.  Not gonna lie, I'm a little bit jealous.  That bed is awesome.  It is lofted a bit, so that gives her some room underneath for her 'Secret Spot'.  Mom sewed some curtains to hang so she can totally go under there and be by herself.  She loves it.  I told Jason that putting her in a bed and out of the crib could completely ruin our lives if she was going to start creeping around the house, but like everything else, she has done fantastically.  Even after being in her bed for a few months, we are still trying to tell her that when she wakes up she can come out of her room and doesn't have to stay in there yelling for us.  Guess I scared the daylights out of her when I first gave her instructions about getting out of her bed!

*She loves saying that stuff is 'so whack'.  Hearing it used in the correct context in her little voice is about the funniest thing I've ever heard.

*She is doing great at school, but we still have a crying thing in a the morning most mornings.  Not sure what it is, but she is fine seconds later and has a great day at school.  It certainly is not fun, but it does not concern me like it once did.  Some days we can talk school up and talk about other things to distract her and I get a smile and a wave.  Those days are my favorite.

*She can tell you how old she is, how old she will be on her birthday, that her birthday is on March the second, and her birthday will come in the spring when it is warm and the flowers are growing.  (I am aware March is not spring yet, but just roll with it.)

*She is my absolutely beautiful mess.  She is absolutely hilarious, so unique, so independent, and just awesome on so many levels.  She is my 'best girl in the whole wide world'.