Miss placed pictures!

So I wasn't going to post today, 'cause with the house a wreck we have been leaving the house a lot and not taking pictures, but I was removing some pictures from the Gwen folder (that aren't of Gwen) and putting them in the correct places. And I found these long lost pictures of Gwen the first time she finger painted last August. I am excited to finally find them....doesn't she look happy!

We still have minimum of 48 hours before we have the kitchen back. Probably more like 72 hours, I am hoping...but who knows!

The 'holiday' weekend

As my faithful readers know that we have been working on the house, pretty much since we bought the house, ok, literally since we purchased the house we started working on it, well if you saw it when we purchased it, you would know why! The kitchen project has been yet another disaster that we are trying desperately to overcome! So, I will document what the heck has happened over the last couple of days. First, when we went to unplug the water for the icemaker in refrigerator water started spewing out and so we had turn off the water to the entire house...on Thanksgiving and you know no home improvement store are open. We did enjoy the Cracker Barrel dinner, took too long to come to the table, but whatever, we didn't have to clean up later. So, Friday we were finally able to replace the problem valve for the icemaker! YEAH! So, then we started laying the backerboard and unfortunately didn't have enough mortar to finish the kitchen Friday night so we finished it Saturday. Last night we finally laid the tile, of course we couldn't get it all laid last night, so we will probably be doing that again tonight, but maybe not. Then we have another 24 hour waiting period after that dries before we can lay the grout and then we have another 24 hour waiting period before we can put the stuff back in the kitchen. So today we can at least access the faucet, but it will be at minimum it will be 48 days...I mean 48 hours before we can put stuff in the kitchen and I can cook again! I wasn't going to post the pictures, but I changed my mind. (in these first pictures I think the boys were high on fumes from the backerboard.

Happy Thanksgiving!

We hope that you have a great Turkey Day! This morning we, Gwen & I, walked around while Daddy did some stuff around the house that I couldn't help with. Gwen walked around carrying a football and trying to go to the grocery store. How more American can you get.
Well, happy turkey day from our kitchen to yours!


Gwen's up from her nap so off to Cracker Barrel we go!

Scenes from a Sunday afternoon

So around here on Sundays I usually get to go to Church by myself. I used to take Gwen, but it is either go by myself and be calm and refreshed or go with Gwen and be frazzled and probably out of sorts. (Eric has mentioned that the only symptom of pregnancy I get is irritability, and he forgot that, kind of like forgetting how this baby has to come out when you agree that its time to have more kids!) So anyhoo, this Sunday we all slept in, if Gwen sleeps in, we all sleep in, so I left for Church and come home to find Gwen dressed thusly:

I've heard of people matching their kids when they are twins and all, or for formal pictures...but do you think this means he is going to want us to get matching sweaters? I am not sure in my irritable pregnant state I am up for that! Of course, I am not sure in any state I am ready to wander around with my kids and we are all matching...FYI for future gift givers!

As for Thanksgiving, we have indeed decided to remove the laminate from the kitchen and replace it with tile. I know it is going to be lovely, but I am nervous about the whole process, because my husband will likely be doing everything by himself...this probably suits him because then he won't have me in his way. Even though I am rather helpful, I have been known to cause many a discussion on what the heck are you doing because our communication at the beginning of any project we do is lacking. I know what you are thinking, we have done many house projects we should be better at this by now, but we are not. FYI future house guest, if you here we are starting a house project and you would like to stop by, wait until we have the first few hours under our belt! Since we will have no kitchen for 4 days (I hope only 4 days) we will be heading to Cracker Barrel for Thanksgiving dinner. We are pretty excited, no stressing over my dinner and how my kid won't eat any of it! Plus, we will be able to celebrate Christmas in grand style because I am pretty sure we can get the kitchen done in a month! Happy Thanksgiving! We hope that you have a lovely, relaxing day surrounded by family and friends!

Ok, so by now, no one is going to check the blog...I tried to start this post earlier but it is now 8:30 and the pictures just finally uploaded! UGH!

If these pictures don't make the Grandmas want to visit Gwen I don't know what will!?

I know that is seriously the longest title ever, but if you could have seen the look on Eric's face when he came home. I don't know what possessed me to do this to Gwen today, but for a while I have been saying that I should try to do Gwen's hair in pigtails. These first 2 are from this morning, I decided to put the pigtails in while she was in her highchair...you know when she couldn't move!

I don't know what she was doing here, but when I pulled out the camera this is what she did.

The news

I have been rather languid/listless/lackadaisical..I can't think of the right word to explain how I feel about this pregnancy. It has been different than the first pregnancy, I have had more 'issues' with this pregnancy, some spotting and a bladder infection. I have never had a bladder infection in my life and the spotting, well, after some rest that has gone away. We have seen the 'blob' as it looks at 8 weeks and we have seen and heard the heartbeat, which is always cool! I was really nauseous before I started to spot and after that I haven't had morning sickness. In the recent week in the evenings, smells really bother me and then I do feel nauseous. So it seems that I have evening nausea. I am at 12 weeks, that funky stage were you are not yet showing, God willing it will be a while before I start showing! Unless you get sick, don't feel pregnant and sometimes forget that you are pregnant, which is not a complete surprise since I often forgot I was pregnant with Gwen even when I 9 months pregnant! Don't get me wrong, it is not that I am not excited about this pregnancy, I am, I just don't seem to get real excited about the pregnancy until I can see the 'bump' and/or feel movement. I guess because I didn't lose all the weight before this pregnancy I my stomach is still kind of flabby! I really enjoyed the tight belly, even as it poked out last time because I realized I will never me the kind of girl with a tight stomach and awesome abs, but with the pregnancy bump it didn't make me feel fat as it was rock solid!
Our current debate is whether or not to find out the sex of the baby. Eric I think wants to know the gender, I do not want to know. This poses a problem since I feel like its all or nothing, either we both find out or we don't. We do have about 8 weeks to decide what we are going to do. We currently have more people saying it will be a boy.
This year I will not be going all out for Thanksgiving. I will not be making a turkey and we probably will be going out. We had originally decided to re-tile the kitchen while Eric had some time off, but we haven't firmed up those plans. Manly, since we have no supplies for the kitchen redo, probably won't get done! We were invited to go places for Thanksgiving, but with Gwen's nap schedule, my pregnancy and just general life issues we decided to just hang as a family and try to find a restaurant or someplace that charges less than $60 for the meal with all the fixings! I mean that is what the holiday is about, family and giving thanks, which are things we can do without me stressing out and running around the kitchen like a chicken with my head cut off while Gwen hangs on my legs getting in the way/throwing all my cooking utensils and things out of the drawers.

PS I don't seem to have the energy to make up clever titles anymore, I apologize for what should be a very boring titles 7 months!

Playing

The weather in NM was in the 70s, which was a nice change from the winter weather here. It is nice having family in the warmer climates so we get breaks from cold weather! In this series of pics Eric is playing with a nerf rocket that can become a dangerous weapon and stuck on roofs and such. Fortunately no one was hurt, but there were a couple of close calls!

I would like to say that here Gwen is saying where the rocket is going to go, but she is most likely telling us about the plane that is overhead. Gwen has become obsessed with the sound of a plane and even when we are in the house and there is a plane, if possible she will run to the window and point up and say something that is incoherent to us parents!

Bisbee!

Gwen might be a little to young to pronounce her love for someone or something, but you can tell who she loved in NM! And a child who would wake up and look for "DOG" definitely loved Bisbee. Bisbee loved Gwen also, at least once was seen sleeping outside her door. When we first arrived Gwen was a little leary of the "DOG". She was not fond of the front of Bisbee, she did not want to be licked or sniffed and would run and hide if he tried. So, the next morning when Gwen and I got up I was playing with her and Bisbee was sitting in his spot and I put her next to him and I got these series of shots (and the 2 posted previously) and Gwen was less frightened of "DOG"




Gwen loved "petting" Bisbee, she mostly slapped him and hugged his hindquarters.

By the end of the weekend she was trying to get "kisses" from Bisbee.

The flights!

So, as I mentioned yesterday Gwen was a perfect angel on the way to NM. Eric & I didn't get much sleep, finishing packing and stressing out about travel. We waited until the last minute to wake up Gwen. We didn't change her we just popped her in the car hoping she would go back to sleep. She of course did not. We get to the airport and are waiting for the bus and realize we forgot the carseat, just as the bus is coming and Eric has to run back to the car and get it. OOPS! Fortunately there were some nice people that helped me load up our stuff while Eric ran back to the car. Gwen didn't fuss on either flight, she chatted we walked the aisles and we had a long layover in Houston where she got out and ran around, generally had a good time. In the car on the ride to NM we got about 30 minutes from the house (we had been in the car for an 1.5hr) and she started to get crazy.
On the flight back, we didn't leave until about 3p EST, she took a nap in the car, which we thought was a good sign, but it wasn't! By this point Gwen was overtired and antsy, she was sitting on our laps and kept going back and forth between the 2 of us. She wanted to look at the people behind us and just acted crazy, fussing and tiring to all of us! As soon as we got into the car at 10ish she feel asleep. I kept telling Eric if we could just get her to sit still for 10 minutes she would fall asleep, but we just couldn't. She really enjoyed closing the window shade and then signing and saying open, so she could close it again. UGH! That was annoying, but it kept her relatively quiet and happy.

Excited!

So, I have been told that the AU-UA game has been changed to 8p (EST) on ESPN! So I can actually watch the game, without leaving Gwen with Eric. Plus I was doing a little research on my own today and found out that they released the 2008 schedule, we are playing West Virginia, in WV, maybe I can get to an AU game after all! It would be just under 3 hour drive! Will have to think about this. Ok, probably should go to bed. Gwen took a 3.5 hr nap today and woke up this morning at 8:30, goodness knows what time she will wake up tomorrow...BTW 8:30 is sleeping in!

We're back!

I know you missed us! At some point I might give a more detailed visit description, but for now I will give you the highlights. We made it to NM in one trip...Gwen was a perfect angel on the flight to NM and the 2 hour car ride to his parents...despite being wide awake when we got her out of her crib at 5am. She only took a nap towards the end of the second flight, when she fell asleep on me, I had to carry her, sound asleep through the airport and she woke up right before we got to rental car and was awake the rest of the day. Gwen never adjusted to the time change so she was waking up at between 5-6:30am. She took a nap everyday and went to sleep without too much problem and seemed to really enjoy herself. I think these pictures really sum up her favorite aspect of the trip!
I don't think that poor dog will ever bee the same, he has probably never been abused as much as Gwen abused him, she never learned that petting is not the same as slapping! I am not going to talk about how terrible she was on the flights back. And, I guess fortunately, I wasn't able to watch the AU-UGA game. I caught some of it, but it seemed pretty terrible. But, despite all that we had a good time, we just wish Grandmom and Grandpop (& Bisbee) lived closer!

Packing-theoretically

So, we still haven't started packing, I know we have to be up really early, but the laundry is almost done and Gwen is napping. I think the later nap time helped her. She was asleep by the time I finished my shower! So, I hope this has been the problem with her naps, later nap time, not that she is giving up her naps.
I got some good ideas from the ladies today in the exercise group for what to do with Gwen on the trip. I had made her some pumpkin muffins for the flight, but today she refused them...dang kid, so now I don't know what I am going to transport for her that is more 'healthy'. I certainly don't want to feed her graham crackers and cheerios all day!
I think that I am pretty unprepared for this trip, I am not the most prepared person in the whole world, as my Mother can attest I am a pretty big procrastinator. I would like to get in bed before midnight, because since we will likely be getting up at 4am, because at that point, shouldn't I just stay up all night? I think it might take all night for me to pack all the stuff I want to bring on the plane for Gwen. Well have a great weekend, I am sad that I will most likely miss the AU-UGA game! WAR EAGLE!

Sleep

So, as I listen to Gwen babble to herself as she has done all week, I am beginning to wonder if she is needs a later nap time. This would be great for us! I think that means that we could have a slightly later lunch time and later nap time, which means we could do fun stuff in the morning. I could get more errands done after exercise class and it would make her less cranky in the evening. So, we will see how it goes. I usually put her down around 12 with lunch at 11am. Maybe we could try a 1p nap time. But, we are leaving for NM in 2 days so it probably a mute point, but interesting to think about!
I think we are about ready for the trip. We of course have not started packing, but I think I have most of the supplies we will need for Gwen. I am nervous about the plane ride and Gwen's overall need to explore and not really wanting to sit down. I am just hoping I am not kicked off the flight because she won't sit in our laps! Goodness, I just realized we leave Dulles at 7:30, CRAP that is early, well at least we won't have to leave earlier to avoid traffic. We have a rather long layover in Houston, but I hope that will give the munchkin time to run around. Any ideas on what do with her on the plane?

Jacket

Here are some pictures from last week. Gwen in one of her jackets. Have I mentioned my child is an outdoor baby. The days where I was feeling under the weather with my cold we didn't go out especially after she caught it and I didn't want her getting others and herself more sick. Those might have been our worst days! Gwen loves to be outside! I am wondering if we need to get a tent so she can sleep outside when she gets older in our backyard. Of course we either need a backyard or a sturdy deck, neither of which we currently have.

Gwen's current obsession is with sitting on the curb, why she started this obsession, I don't know. Eric was blessed to see Gwen do this this weekend. The funny thing is not Gwen sitting on the curb, cause as you can tell that is pretty cute. But, it is the slow motion that she uses when she is going to sit down. So hilarious. I just have to watch her because she is getting dangerously close to the drainage ditch...I don't want her to end up in the sewer.

Friday pictures

This last weekend my Aunt & Uncle and their kids came up to see my Mom (and us of course!) I don't know if you can tell by the pictures, but seems like Gwen enjoyed playing with her cousins.

Unfortunately I was too far away to get the look on her face when Uncle Bill was zberting her. So hilarious!



Today we are invited to Halloween party, I was thinking about not going with snotty nose, but it is with our exercise group friends and they are encouraging us to go. I think the funniest thing said to me this morning was we are talking about Gwen, it is not like she is in anybody's face, which is so true, she isn't a touchy-feely girl. I think they all just want to see Gwen's costume, I don't know if you remember last year's costume.