Counting my blessings (61-70)

I don't know how many Sundays this is in a row.  But, I'm thinking it's the longest I've stuck to something like this. 

It's a record.

61.  I'm thankful for records.  :)

62.  Good hair days.

63.  Breakfast dates with friends.

64.  A husband who will eat just about any left over in the house.  And not complain.

65.  Catchy tunes that get stuck in your head- and you don't mind, cause they're catchy.  :)

66.  Snarky friends who think just like you.

67.  For laughing so hard you almost pee your pants.  Or, you do pee your pants...but no one will ever know.  ;)

68.  For free dog parks- and realizing that some of the best people on the Earth are dog-people.

69.  For cooler temperatures.

70.  For friends who are loving and supportive.  No matter what.


What are you thankful for this week?

5QF.

It's Friday!

I'm ready for the weekend, but it's going to be a busy one.

I'm also feeling on the verge of some sort of crying-fit....which I'm not sure why.

I'm feeling over-whelmed for no particular reason what so ever, and people are annoying the crap out of me- just in their mere existence. 

I'm praying this feeling passes quickly- cause it's not who I am in general.

Dang hormones!


I betcha you're feeling really jealous of my husband right about now, huh?  :)

Just keepin' it real. 




 1. What is your favorite fall family tradition?

We love to carve pumpkins together.  It's a fun night, and Dave really gets into helping the boys. 

We also usually get a family picture taken during this time of year.  We just love fall colors, and they accent the walls of our house beautifully!

2. If money weren't an issue, how many kids would you have?

I'd probably be done at 3 biological kids.  I really don't want to put my body through any more pregnancies. 

Adoption?  Sure...I'd be up for 2 more.  I would love to help out a sibling set.  I know they are harder to place, and there's a need there.  So, that's what I would do.


3. If you were to get a tattoo, what would it be and where would you put it?
I have a burn.  On the inside of my left ankle. 

How'd I get a burn there?

Riding on the back of a crotch rocket- and my ankle hit the blazing hot muffler.

There's still a scar- even though the burn is over 15 years old.

So, I'd get a cute little daisy to cover it.  I once saw a daisy tattoo drawn out- it was small, with rounded edges, and it was very sweet.  The petals were almost translucent, and it wasn't trashy at all. 

I actually almost got it- but by that time, I had already been dating Dave...and he STRONGLY recommended me against it.

So, I obliged him....

4. What condiment is a must in your house?

That's a cross between ketchup and maple syrup.

Ketchup needs to go on anything savory. 

Maple syrup is a must for all breakfast foods.  Breakfast doesn't exist without maple syrup.  I'm not talking about the flavored/colored corn syrup either.  I'm talking 100% natural- out-of-the-tree-tap maple syrup.  Mmmmm, good.

5. How did your spouse/fiance propose?

We went to the UP for the weekend (Michigander talk for the Upper Peninsula).  I was wondering if he was going to propose- it was my birthday weekend, after all....but my dad had already gone up north to the cabins, and I knew he wouldn't propose without asking my dad first.

So, we're up there- the foliage is BREATHTAKING.  We do all the touristy things, hit all the beauty spots...there were PLENTY of perfect opportunities at these kodak spots to pop the question.

Nada.

All day, nada.

Finally, we're on our way back to the bed and breakfast- talking about what to do about dinner.  He says, "Before we head out, I need to use the restroom, so let's head up to the room real quick." 

Ok.

So, he's in the bathroom....I brush my hair.

He's still in the bathroom.....I reapply some make-up.

He's still in the bathroom....I wonder if he fell in.

He comes out acting a little squirrely, and I ask him if he's ok.

He says, "Sandy Behm, I have something to ask you."  He dropped to his knee right then and there and asked me to be his wife.

I said "YES!" right away, and we went to dinner to celebrate.

This is us- after returning to the city.  We dropped our things off at his house, and he asked to stop by his parents.  He just walked right in and yelled,  "Mah, dad!  I'm getting married!"

Side note:  he did ask my dad for permission to marry me.  He had to call him through a neighbor up north, and when he asked, my dad (my precious loving warm-and-fuzzy dad) exclaimed, "TAKE HER!  TAKE HER!!!  Wait...you know she's head-strong, don't you?"

Thanks, dad.  (We won't mentioned who turned into a soprano when he gave his daughter away....ahem.)

34 Weeks! 42 days left! (and a non-political soap box)

Today, I officially have 6 weeks left of pregnancy.

I'm ready to be done.

Really, really ready.

But, I'm willing to wait a bit longer to ensure a healthy and safe baby.

So....bump picture?

(More like big huge belly picture...but whatev....)

As of my Dr. appointment yesterday,

we're pretty sure (like 98% sure) that the baby is head-down.

No more breech baby!

She's laying lower than either of the boys ever did,

and her heart rate remains strong in the low to mid 140's.

A. took this pic of me yesterday as I was talking to C just outside the door.

He wanted me to include it on the blog.

I think I just look tired.

Which, of course, I am.

Thanks to a dip in my friend, Karen's, pool, my swelling has really come down a LOT from last week,

but it didn't stop a momentous weight gain yesterday.

I stood there...on the scale....and cried.

Dude...I cried!

So, I step on, and it showed I gained ELEVEN pounds.

ELEVEN.

So, I look at Sue (my favorite nurse of all time)

and say, "Heck no...I need to reweigh."

So, I step off, and back on.

In that 30 seconds, I apparently gained ANOTHER .2 pounds.

So, now I was up ELEVEN POINT TWO pounds.

Thereby, exactly doubling my total weight gain thus far.

I was NOT OK.

This is where Sue tells me that they "fixed" the scale 10 days ago-

since ALL the OB patients were refusing all other scales,

they investigated, and realized that it was SEVEN pounds off.

SEVEN.

Seriously?  They have to FIX a scale in my third TRIMESTER?!?!?

So, if you subtract that 7, I actually gained 4.

(point stupid 2)

Which is pretty much in the range of weight I've been gaining and loosing this whole pregnancy.

Since I lost it last time, I expected a little gain....

So, I don't know if I just started the pregnancy 7 pounds higher than I was,

or if it gradually got off, and I've been gaining more than they were telling me.

Regardless, I saw a number I wasn't happy to see.

A number I never wanted to see again.

Tears started to form.

But, in the long run...I need to remember that I am healthier this pregnancy,

and I'm not overdoing my calories. 

I'm being smarter and making better choices.

That will affect me after the baby is born as well.

And Sue (best nurse ever) reminded me that I'm STILL

significantly lower than my last yearly appt

almost 2 years ago.

So, while I think about how much I worked my arse off to get down 54 pounds pre-pregnancy,

I need to remember that I've weighed much more than this

without being pregnant.

And that I'll have plenty of time to get back down after baby girl comes.

In the meantime, I need to remind myself that I'm focused on a healthy pregnancy.

Making healthy choices.

Turning those healthy choices into healthy habits.

Anyway....

*************************************************

I need to jump on a soap box for second.

I promise it's not political.

My Dr. had a really stern talk with me yesterday about Whooping Cough, and the vaccine.

Whooping Cough in older children and adults presents as a persistent cough.

Bothersome, but not life threatening.

However, it can be FATAL to infants.

FATAL.

As in "cause of death"

So, an epidemic that started on the Western side of our country

has now spread throughout it.

And right into Michigan.

And, as a matter of fact, there was a 3 month old baby in the obituaries not long ago

who died of Pertussis (Whooping Cough).

It's in my back yard.

So, all area OB's are having very strongly worded talks with their patients about getting vaccinated.

If you haven't had a Tetanus shot within the PAST 3 YEARS, you are not covered.

ANY adult that comes into contact with an infant can pass whooping cough on to them.

They are STRONGLY recommending parents and grandparents get updated vaccines,

but really, any adult who comes into contact with any baby should now be updated.

Guys...this is serious.

Even my husband (who does NOT do Dr's) went and got updated yesterday afternoon.

He's protecting his baby girl.

I'm going to get updated at my next visit.

I do not want to be the one responsible for ANY parent standing over a NICU isolette

watching their baby fight for life.

Let alone mine.

After I'm updated, I know our family of 4 is completely up-to-date on our Tdap (or DTap for the boys)shots...

...are you?

Foreclosure.

My husband recently told me that our first house was foreclosed on.

It made me sad.

Sad because I still love that little house.

And sad for the couple that were star-gazed newly-weds when we sold them that house.

And now, they're getting foreclosed on.

It made me think about events that probably had to transpire for them to stop paying

their mortgage payment and loose the place where they live.

And sad that our once lovely house is sitting vacant. 

With no one to love her.

So, with an hour to kill - stuck on the other side of town - I stopped by our little bungaloo.

Dave did all new vinyl siding and roof in our first year of marriage.

And new windows.

I made the landscaping happen - which they pruned down to nubs.

Sigh.

They left crap laying everywhere.

The carpeted those BEAUTIFUL wood floors that Dave spent

SO much time refinishing.

They painted the walls from antique white to a pretty beige-

I applaud them for that!

Dave would NOT let me touch the color on the walls in the living room.

This was our itty bitty backyard.

Yep...that was all of it.

We had a little victory veggie garden in the corner.

It took Dave 5 minutes to mow it...with a weed wacker.

One time, we were watching our niece Emily when she was about 2 years old.

She came outside, and said "Uncle Dave, where's your yard?"

He said, "You're in our yard."

She replied, "Where'd it go?"

We laughed.

This is the kitchen.

I had it painted a pretty butter yellow.

They've obviously stipped all the appliances out of it.

The stove goes under that ledge,

the refrigerator goes on the other side of that wall.

Even the kitchen sink has been stripped out!

See those little windows up there?

That's where Dave and I used to sleep.

It was our loft style bedroom.

It was cute.

That was our little house.

Then it was someone else's little house.

Now, it's the bank's little house.

I just pray that someone else will come along and love that little house as much as we did.

Ten on Tuesday

1.  The Labor Day weekend has messed me up.  I keep thinking that today is actually a Monday.  I'm not sure if this is a good thing or not.  Either way....I'm confused.  But what else is new?


2.  The boys are in their second week of school.  This kinda worked out great.  They had a 3-day week last week, a 4-day week this week, and into the 5-day weeks next week.  I think it's great for my little men to get used to the hard core scheduling gradually.

3.  Last month, there was too much month left at the end of the money.  I blame a birthday celebration and back-to-school for that.  However, around the 20th, I found myself with 11 days left in the month and a lot of "creative" meals ahead of me.  Now, the envelopes are full...and I went shopping.  Now they're empty again.

4.  Not really....they're not totally empty.  But I had to do some major restocking of freezer and pantry shelves.  On the plus side, most of my shelves had a good cleaning/ scrub down last week!

5.  I purchased my first set of Izze drinks at Costco this morning (they're on sale until the 8th!).  Yum.  That was my monthly splurge.  Oh so good.

6.  Dave finished the trim around the doors and windows in our new bedroom and the baby's room over the weekend.  I forgot how long that process took!  (and how EXPENSIVE IT IS!!!!).  Of course, my crazy OCD husband needed to design a window that has no less than 7 wood profiles on it...right?!?!  Anyway, we're just waiting on him to do the base molding (another 3 profiles), and we're ready to stain and lacquer those two rooms.  The answer to your question:  No....I still don't think it will be done by the time the baby gets here....but I'm ok with that.

7.  The baby decided to have the hiccups at 11pm last night.  And she thought she'd take up gymnastics around 2am.  I got about 2 hours of sleep.  I'm tired.  Her movements are starting to hurt.  A lot.  Does this mean I need to worry about amniotic fluid levels?  I have a Dr. appt tomorrow- need to write that question down.

8.  Our neighbor left HUGE amount of cherry tomatoes on our front porch the other day.  I made a Rachael Ray recipe called Fat Spaghetti with Bacon Cherry Tomato sauce for dinner last night.  YUM!  It was fantastic!  Of course, I made it gf....and the boys gobbled it right up!  I'm looking forward to leftovers for lunch today...and tomorrow....and the day after that.  It made a large serving.

9.  I was sick and tired of A. coming home with 1/2 of a lunch left over- when I'm really not packing him a whole lot to begin with.  He said that he didn't like the surprise of the lunch, so he didn't feel like eating it.  Seriously?  So, I wrote out a weekly schedule on the fridge that basically says every M/W/F, he'd get a sandwich with fruit and a dessert.  On Tues and Thurs, he gets crackers and cheese with veggies and a dessert.  Now he's happy as a lark, and gladly eating lunch.  What the what?

10.  Fall programs are starting to ramp up.  At the same time, I'm not sure if I'm ready for the crazy schedule...but ready to have that social time/ purpose driven living that comes with these programs.  I've backed off a bit on obligations since baby girl is due soon...but still seem to have a crazy busy calendar starting mid Sept.  Seeing all that ink on the calendar makes me tired...


..which reminds me that I need a good nap before I go pick up the boys....


....which reminds me to post this and zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...................

Counting my Blessings (51-60)

Well, how do ya like that?!?!?

So far, I've managed to make this a Sunday afternoon habit. 

So, without further adieu:

51.  I'm exponentially thankful for friends with pools who let us come swim for a few hours.  And for being able to find my ankle bones and tan lines afterward.

52.  For an awesome school to send my kids to.

53.  For the Tigers win last night.  (this is where we will not mention U of M football...ahem)

54.  For Tylenol- even though it's only marginally effective.

55.  For the fact that I can take much-more-effective ibuprofen in about 7 weeks!

56.  For the fact that my boys can reheat some leftovers- all by themselves- for lunch.

57.  For Glutino Vegetable flavored crackers.  Gluten free carb-loading yum.

58.  For being this ----{  }------ close to having all our thank you notes done!

59.  For my PTL Treasurer.  Really.  She's a livesaver.

60.  For TRIM going up around the windows!!!  Yahoo!

5QF

Labor Day weekend!

We have no plans.


Other than to get things done around the house, enjoy each other's company, perhaps grill out a bit, and catch up on work.


I know.....riveting, right?

Hey, it works for us!


The boys don't have school today, and I'm grateful for that.

Poor C. was a tired boy last night, and slept in until 8am this morning!
(yeah, that never happens)

I thought a 3-day week was the perfect way to ease my Kindergartener
into the all day/ every day school routine.

Ok...questions!


1. What do you enjoy doing the most with your spouse?

Ahem....aside from the obvious....(wink, wink) which landed me smack dab in the land of the surprise pregnancy?!?!?


We like to just chill out together.  We will light a fire in the backyard and sit in the dark just talking.  We will have "couch dates" where we'll sit and give each other back rubs and either watch TV or just talk.  We have about 20 minutes after dinner where he lingers at the table while I clean up dinner- just to talk with me and reconnect after being apart all day. 

I'm not a "high maintenance" kind of wife.  Easy little things are the most enjoyable.  We do get out for dates and such....but finding joys in the little bits of everyday life are things that keep life wonderful.

2. How do you eat your taco? From the top or from the side?

Side.  Then all the flavors of the fillin's are mixed and I enjoy the entire taco experience.

Really?!?!?  People eat them from the top?


3. Have you ever shut off the basement light and ran like a fool because you knew someone was down there and would get you?

When I was little, heck yeah.

Now?  Not so much.  :)


4. If you could change one thing about you what would it be and why?

One thing?!?!?  Seriously?!?!?  I have a list a mile long.  But a lot of that is my own darn insecurity talking.

One thing I'm working on is not being so judgemental.  Toward myself and toward others.  I am horribly hard on myself.  Giving myself some grace for messing up once in a while would be pretty awesome. 

5. What age do you think is appropriate to have the "bird and the bees" talk with your children?

Sigh.  I just had this talk with a friend of mine whose 2 older children are pretty much the exact same age as my boys.  They are 8 and 5.

Since I am currently pregnant, they have been asking more questions, which means they're curious.  Things like:

How will the baby come out?
Where does it come out?
How did it get in there?
Does it hurt?
Will you be ok?

So, it's a good spring board to start talks like that with them.  My first response to their questions is:

What do you think?

This way I can gauge what they're ready to hear by their answer.  I can also find out if they've been talking to any of their peers about this, and what they may have already heard.  (and correct the incorrect things they may have been told or have assumed).

But, one thing I want to make sure of- I want them to hear it from me first.  In the correct, God pleasing, way.

There's supposed to be some books out there that you can read with your child.  They're separated by age and the details start out more vague, and get more detailed as the age goes up.  I think I may look into those- just to give myself some guidelines.

So- what age?  I think A. - at 8- is getting old enough to know a little bit.  His body is (or will be soon) changing, and I want him to know it's ok.  This may be a divide and conquer thing with D and I.