Fat and Happy!

I haven't taken a belly pic in quite awhile (last one I posted was the last one taken), so after our good friend Adam's graduation from the Police Academy this week, I made Lora (his wife, who's 4 weeks behind me-pregnant with her first) join me for a belly pic. Dang my belly's HUGE!!! Luckily this shirt actually covered the whole thing- which seems to be a rarity these days. I swear every single maternity shirt I own barely covers my belly anymore. I'm bigger than I ever remember being and have definitely gained the most weight of any of the 3 pregnancies. I think with both girls I gained a total of 30 pounds. I've already gained 35 with this one and still have 2 1/2 weeks until due date. Yikes! The uncomfortableness set in this week, and I now remember that feeling of wanting the baby out! I'm super excited about the baby shower some of my friends are throwing for me next Saturday. I thought I was fine and had everything I needed, but then started to realize that every bib, blanket, towel, and wash cloth I own is PINK! Shoot- guess I do need a few things. I should probably also pick up some diapers, baby wash, lotion, and butt paste. His room is ready and I'm actually feeling ready now and very excited! Just hoping labor and delivery go as expected- no surprises please!

Schedules

It's no secret that I thrive on schedules. I love knowing what I'm doing everyday, knowing when things are happening, and what upcoming events I have to look forward to. I love having Madi in everyday preschool mostly for the fact that I can keep our days very routine. I struggle on the weekends when we have no plan for the day (especially the many Saturdays that Spencer's had to work). Don't get me wrong, I'm surprising very flexible and fit in lots of last minute events, I just like knowing what I'm doing with my day before I get out of bed (or sometimes it's knowing that I've got stuff to do and places to go that gets me going early:). With a baby coming in just a short 2 1/2 weeks, I've been wondering how his arrival is going to affect and change our daily routine. So, for record keeping sake I wanted to jot down the girls and I's current schedule, knowing that most liking life will be a little different in the coming months.

6:15am I'm awake and head out to the garage to work-out.

7:00am The girls come out to the the garage to let me know they're up.

7:10am Get them to go snuggle with Spencer in bed. Some mornings they're hungry and want breakfast immediately. It's those mornings when I'm off and on the elliptical- getting breakfast, breaking up arguments, getting a morning cartoon turned on, etc. A great morning is when they snuggle with Spencer, Madi informs him of all her dreams (she has the best, vivid dreams every night), and then they all lay in bed and watch a Max and Ruby together. It gives me just enough time to finish my workout.

8:00am Girls finish breakfast, make beds, get dressed, play. I make Spencer's smoothie, toast, and lunch.

8:30am Family prayer, Spencer leaves, I shower and get ready.

The girls play great together in the morning and usually keep themselves entertained with art projects, dress-up, babies, and on warm mornings they'll play outside and ride bikes on our back patio.

This is also when I do laundry (Monday- whites, Tuesday- darks, Wednesday- sheets, Thurs/ Fri- as needed), vacumn, mop floors, and other various cleaning jobs.

10:30am We usually are ready to leave the house by this time.

Monday- always something random (this week was kindergarten registration, next week is a song practice for Madi followed by visiting some of the elderly sisters in Leisure Village)

Tuesday- Doctor appt. and library

Wednesday- Park date at Mission Oaks with friends from our ward

Thursday- Park date at Pitts Ranch with friends from 5th ward

Friday- Also something random- like a morning play date or something. On some days, when the girls are playing fabulously together, we'll just stay home the entire morning.

11:50am Leave to take Madi to school

12-3pm Madi at school/ Elle and I play

Love this time and the one-on-one I get with Miss Elle. She rarely (if ever) takes naps anymore so we'll usually do one outing (Target, Costco, grocery store, play date), picnic in the backyard, stories, and then quiet time for her and short nap for me.

2:50pm Leave to pick up Madi

3:15pm Home. Girls play- always happy to be back together (the 3 hour break is perfect for all of us)!

4:45pm Bath or just ready for bed. Mom makes dinner, girls set the table and await Spencer's arrival.

5:30 - 6pm Spencer home, dinner

6:15pm Teeth brushed, Scriptures and Strength of Youth, family prayer, then stories with Dad

6:45 - 7pm In bed!

Craftin' it up!

When we first moved in, I wasn't sure what I wanted our front room used for. I originally wanted it to be a nice, formal living room with comfy chairs and lots of books. But instead of a library (which we hopefully will have some day), it became the office/art room. It's a sore sight to walk into, but it's one of my favorite rooms. Madi's always been quite the little artist, but it was always such a pain to get out all the art supplies anytime she wanted to make something. Now she's got everything she needs at her fingertips. Plus, it's not a big deal to leave out projects she's not finished working on it. Her space does get pretty messy (which drives me absolutely crazy), but with lots of threatening, she manages to have it clean by the end of each day.

Their art space:

My desk sits against the other wall, so usually Madi will grab my office chair instead of sharing with Elle. They use the white paper from my printer and a big container of colored construction paper under my desk. The top 2 drawers to the left of their table holds all sorts of sissors, tape, glue sticks, stickers, pencils, erasers, crayons, stapler, etc. The bottom drawer has beads for necklace making. In the basket underneath the table are all sorts of workbooks, coloring books, white boards, writing tablets, lined paper, etc. It's not at all organized how I wish it were, but it works for now.

It's just been so much fun to see all the projects that Madi comes up with- all on her own. She runs to her art table almost every morning with a project in mind and then again as soon as she gets home from school. She's made books, calendars, animals, cards, collages, frames, hats, jewerly, and spent many an hour working on her handwriting, spelling, and numbers. I love how self motivated she is. And I especially love how all projects are done completely on her own. She usually doesn't even like me in the room when she's working on a big project- surprising Spencer and I afterwards is probably one of her favorite parts about the whole thing.

This was the project she made after school today. She came up with the idea for making the hat and I let her watch a tutorial online for how to do it. And of course she had to dress to fit the occasion!

On Sunday while I was frantically getting everything ready (we have 9am church), Madi whipped me up a collage of Christ. She picked out an Ensign from our magazine basket, got her scissors, and carefully cut out several pictures, then glued them on just so. I loved it and displayed it in my relief society lesson that day (on the back is a larger picture of Christ).

Later that afternoon, Madi made paper plates for us to eat on. She decorated them beautifully with flowers. But then after discovering they were smaller than she wanted, she turned one plate into a kite, then later used them all to make a caterpillar.

I used to be so stingy with my tape, glue, and paper, but it's been amazing to watch Madi's imagination grow with having unlimited access to all the supplies she needs.

Bustin' out the pool!

The other day Spencer and I were talking about how crazy it is that it's already the end of February. Spencer then reminds me, "It's cause we live in California now." Which is so true- those dreaded winter months always seemed SO long when we were living on the east coast. I remember being stuck inside for days and not wanting to leave the house cause of how dang cold it was. January and February seemed like they'd never end. But out here, the "winter months" are just as beloved as spring, summer, and fall. I know, I can't stop talking about how much I love living here (and it will probably take me an entire year to get used to it), but it really is perfect. This morning the girls and I dropped the van off for an oil change, walked over to Pitts Ranch park to join 5th wards weekly park day. Then on our walk back to get the car it was getting nice and toasty and I mentioned something about getting out the pool later. Of course Elle wouldn't let me live that comment down. She woke me up from my 15 minute nap this afternoon bugging me about the pool. So out it came! Elle had a blast splashing around for the next 45 minutes. After picking up Madi from school, almost the entire yard was in the shade, but the girls still managed to enjoy every last bit of sunlight!

I love this last picture. I never want to forget all the little moments of my girls sitting together just talking and telling stories.

Catching up

So much to update, but I feel like I should start with Spencer (I rarely mention him on here- sorry babe)! He's been at his new firm for 6 months now- totally loves it and really couldn't be happier. Work is going well and keeping him very busy. When he first started, back in August, the partners assured him that he wouldn't be getting his first case for probably 3 months. Well, at his 3 month mark he was up to about 6 cases. And now at his 6 month mark he's got 12 going full force! Pretty exciting to hear how well he's doing and how quickly he's picking up on all of it, but it also makes for a very busy husband. I was so looking forward to this President's Day weekend- just spending time as a family. Bobby and Amy were originally supposed to be coming for a visit, but that trip fizzled and hopefully just postponed for a date in the near future. I guess it was a blessing in disguise though, cause Spencer ended up needing every extra minute getting caught up at work. But of course that left me, at home, alone with the girls. Lots of fun! It wasn't the most exciting weekend but it definitely had some perks. The girls and I hit up the beach on Friday with Lindsey, Brooklyn, and Easton (no pictures taken, but we sure had a lot of fun)! On Saturday the girls and I met Spencer for lunch at Cafe Rio (always something I look forward to- Cafe Rio and lunch with Spencer:). On Sunday Spencer only had one short meeting in the morning and then was with us the rest of the day. We joined the Thunell family for dinner that evening. Love this family and am so looking forward to getting to know them better! They loaded us up with a huge bag of lemons, a bag of limes, and a bag of oranges from the trees in their backyard. DElicious!!! Then today Spencer went into work early. I got some jobs done around the house while the girls played. Then Madi and Elle each had a friend come over and we went to the park. At 2pm Spencer called saying he was coming home! Kirk and Valerie stopped by an hour later for a visit, and then we just had a nice relaxing evening at home as a family.

As for other updates: I got a new calling a couple of weeks ago- RS teacher. At first I wasn't excited at all. I really wanted to be back in primary where I could be with Madi and knowing what she's learning, songs they're singing, etc. Then I subbed in young women's and thought about how much fun it would be to serve in there. But after starting to prepare my lesson for this upcoming Sunday, I'm getting really excited. I only have to teach once a month (4th Sunday- from the conference Ensign), which will be perfect with a new baby. I just need to figure out how to teach older women vs. teaching kids (what I'm most comfortable with).

I have updates for both the girls coming too- Elle celebrated her half birthday last month and there's much to say- mostly about her totally giving up naps, being completely binky obsessed, and not ready for potty training at all (Ug! I was so hoping to have only one kid in diapers)! Madi celebrated her half birthday 2 months ago and I had a few things to record about her as well- these unfinished posts are driving me crazy!

I did finish my 2010 blog book though and am now ready to start on 2011. Yay! Those books are such huge projects- felt great to get it checked off my list! Only 5 more weeks until due date! Crazy! Still doesn't feel real. It's my big uncomfortable belly that serves as a regular reminder that this baby is coming very soon!

Picture not related to this post at all, but couldn't leave without some picture! And probably appropriate for a February, week after Valentine's Day, photo of the 2 girls I love best!

January & February in Camarillo

Heavenly, heavenly, heavenly!!! Seriously, everyday is perfect- not too hot, not too cold. And for a person who thrives on sunshine and beautiful weather, I couldn't ask for anything better. Just a couple of things I love about January and February in Southern California:

* Having our windows open. My favorite window is in the master bath, up high in the shower, facing the sun. Something about feeling the warm sun beat through the screen onto my face makes for a wonderful morning shower!

* Birthday parties outside at the park (seems to be the thing to do here in Camarillo)- the girls have each been to one already.

* Bike riding. A couple weeks ago Spencer spent 2 hours working with Madi without her training wheels. It'll most likely take longer than he originally thought, but training wheels or not, at least Madi gets to go on daily bike rides!

* Teaching the girls how to play kickball. My girls are so much more active here- being able to get outside for some exercise everyday. This past weekend Spencer and I had them kicking balls and running bases. SO much fun!!

* Daily park outings. It's so fabulous being able to get out everyday and soak in some much needed vitamin D!

* Enjoying Sunday afternoons in our backyard. One week the girls did some painting:

Madi's american flag painting. She was pretending to hold the flag in this picture.

I basically feel super lucky to live where we do. Not only is the weather perfect year round, but the church is super strong (seems like half my ward lives within a mile radius), schools are great (and just down the street), the people are wonderful, and it really is such a beautiful area! I don't think a day has gone by that I haven't thought about how happy I am to live here!

7 weeks to go!

I'm 33 weeks along today and starting to feel the uncomfortableness of pregnancy more and more. I've actaully been feeling pretty awesome up until this past week. He (the baby) constantly has an an elbow/knee/foot (or whatever it is) protruding into my side, and I'm constantly pushing it back and telling him to be nice. It's fun to feel him moving around in there, but he's a crazy one and not as nice as the girls were to me. I've been woken up at night from him kicking around so much.

The weight gain has been hard on me this time around- mostly just depressing to see the scale continue to climb each week. And knowing that it's gonna take me an entire year to loose all the baby weight just stinks! All this probably explains my irritability lately. I feel like I'm less patient, more easily annoyed, and just a little grochier. Sorry to those who have to put up with my mood swings.

The best part of it all though (aside from knowing I'll be snuggling my new little baby boy in less than 2 months), is seeing the girls excitement! They are so sweet and thoughtful- every single prayer (both Madi and Elle's) incudes a "we're thankful to have a baby in mommy's tummy" and "bless mommy's veins to go away and for the baby to grow healthy and strong!" I love it! As excited as I am to meet him, I think I get more excited thinking about Madi and Elle meeting and holding him for the first time!

The BEST of Friends

If you would have asked me last year at this time how much I loved having 2 girls- 2 years apart, I don't know how quickly I could have responded. But now I constantly think about how much I love having 2 girls close in age. The girls are at such fun ages and really are the best of friends. Madi tries to be bossy, but Elle doesn't let her. Elle gets a good idea for something and Madi quickly joins in. Madi hates going to bed without Elle (they've been sharing a bedroom for 2 months now). I love how they wake up laughing and talking in the mornings. When Madi starts an art project, Elle's right there in the next chair wanting to be just like her sister. They share all their toys (except of course for those few special ones that the other is not allowed to touch without asking). Madi's super protective of Elle. Like when they were jumping on the trampoline with a bunch of friends. Elle fell down and started crying. Madi was immediately at her side yelling for everyone to stop jumping cause it was scaring her sister. Sometimes I worry because Madi doesn't care very much about making new friends. As long as she can bring Elle along she's happy. They definitely have their disagreements- their fights can get pretty nasty, but it's totally worth all the good moments.

Breakfast on the rug in jammies!

Always an art project a day.

Thanksgiving in Brentwood- the girls getting slap happy over trying to eat the candy from Elle's cornucopia.

This is the oldest picture of the bunch- taken back in Sept. before we moved. The girls were playing "wedding". It was time for scriptures but they refused to take off their dresses. I told them as long as they were reverent they could leave them on.

Games have reached a whole new level of fun now that Elle's old enough to really play. Zingo and "Let's go Fishin" are two favorites.

Not a day goes by that the girls aren't Princesses!

One morning the girls played for an hour in their bedroom closet. It's amazing what simple things bring so much fun!

Taken after a birthday party that Madi went to a week ago. Elle got to join in on all the fun at the very end, but when we got there Madi seemed super overwhelmed with all the dozens of new friends. She was so much happier once we got home and she got to play with her sister!

Sure love these little girls!!