Christmas 2012

     I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.  Our little family ended up having a nice, uneventful Christmas after getting off to a rough start.  Our holiday season started Thanksgiving day with an unusually fussy baby.  Sarah rarely ever fusses so we knew immediately something was wrong.  Sure enough, the day after Thanksgiving I took her to our pediatrician's afterhours clinic and she had her first ear infection.  Things seemed to spiral from there (I actually even considered writing my own version of the 12 days of Christmas song).  Here's the Thanksgiving to Christmas rundown....ear infection (Sarah), stomach virus (Eli), fever virus (Sarah), a full 6 days of high fever & flu (Eli), another 5 days of fever (Clint), double stomach virus (Sarah AND Eli on the same night).  Whew!!  Aren't you jealous you weren't at our house the past few weeks?  Ha!  Thankfully, my prayers were answered and I have been spared (knock on wood). 
     Anyway, everyone was happy and fever/virus/flu/stomach bug free for Christmas!  We had a great time with our families celebrating the wonderful gift of Jesus.  Here are some pictures from our Christmas.  (Disclaimer, most of these are from my cell phone so they are obviously not great quality)

 We have been blessed beyond measure in 2012 with our beautiful healthy children and I can't wait to see what 2013 holds.  Happy New Year!!

My Cute Little Pumpkins

     Last weekend my sister-in-law and I took pumpkin pictures with all of the kiddos.  I took Eli's pictures in a pumpkin when he was a baby, so I wanted to do the same thing with Sarah.  We had so much fun and actually got several pictures with all 4 kids looking in the general direction of the camera.  Score!  I love these little pumpkins!

By the way, this is the cute little monogrammed onesie that I had to get pumpkin stains out of...Success!

Grandma's Secret Spot Remover = AWESOME!

     For all of you out there who have children, or messy husbands, or are just a generally messy person I MUST tell you about a secret I found recently.  Grandma's Secret Spot Remover is seriously the best stain remover I have ever tried, and I've tried almost all of them!  I bought this on a whim when I was checking out at the fabric store a few weeks ago because the sales lady said it would get dried in honey mustard out of Eli's brand new white shirt.  I figured what the heck, it wouldn't be the first $4 I have ever wasted so I got it.  I am SO glad I did because it is amazing!  This stuff not only got out the dried in honey mustard, but it has also gotten out dried in daycare chili, orange pumpkin stains off a brand new monogrammed onesie (that's a story for another post) & dried in baby food spit up stains off all of my mom's shirts!  We tried this on all of the stains that our other stain removers had left behind, hence all the "dried in" stains we treated.  I am officially hooked.  Here's a picture of the bottle...it's very small, but very awesome.  Go Get Some!!  (I'm not being paid at all to write this post, I promise...I just love this stuff and wanted to share!)

A Countdown of My Week

So, this week has not been one of my best weeks.  I probably deserve an award for the worst mom or something like that.  Maybe staying home so much is getting to me or something...or perhaps it's the lack of good sleep.  I don't know.  But, here's a countdown of my week.

* 5 * The number of minutes it takes me to lose my patience this week

* 4 * The number of weeks sweet Sarah has been here (this is my good point for the week!)

* 3 * The number of times Eli threw up in my car on the way home from the dentist yesterday

* 2 * The number of weeks our washing machine has been broken 

(you would think the repair people would have pushed us to the front of the line after the number of times I've called! But, HOLY COW we generate a LOT of laundry!)

* 1 * The number of uninterrupted hours of sleep I'm getting at night

(This is without a doubt the source of my frustration for the week I'm sure)

* 10 Million * The number of times I remind myself that this tiring stage is temporary and count my blessings for my sweet babies because I know I'm very blessed!

How can I not smile when I look at these sweet little faces!?

Happy 11th Anniversary to us!

     Today is our 11th anniversary!  I can't believe how fast another year has gone by!  This past year was definitely very eventful.  We moved into our new house, welcomed our new baby girl, and celebrated our sweet boy turning 3.  I'm so thankful to celebrate another year together!  I love watching the number grow higher and higher every year.  It proves that 2 imperfect people can still stay married and keep a promise we made to each other with God's help.  So, Happy Anniversary to us!!

(Please excuse the very bad picture!  It is the only picture I have of our family of 4 so far!  It was the day we brought Sarah home, so I'm still VERY puffy!!)

Sweet Sarah

     I have to say that I think we were blessed with the sweetest baby ever born.  Of course I could be a little biased, but I'm sticking with my opinion.  Seriously, this baby is so easy!  She doesn't fuss very often, she sleeps through all the Eli noise, and she is super cuddly....We couldn't ask for a better baby!  I am so thankful for such a sweet healthy baby girl.  I am also SO thankful that Eli has fallen in love with her.  He has been so sweet to her!  He kisses her and always wants to check on her when she is sleeping.  I love it!  God is so faithful to answer a worried momma's prayers about healthy babies, sweet big brothers, and a great husband that takes up my slack at work (and at home) while I adjust to this new addition.  Now, on to the fun part....pictures!!  Here is my sweet girl and her silly brother (he was ready to go play instead of taking pictures) and their handsome Daddy!

Stationery card

Keeping Tabs Girl Birth Announcement

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Welcome to the world baby girl!

Meet Sarah Kate!

Our BIG baby girl arrived last Friday morning.

She weighed 10 pounds and was 21 inches long.  I have no idea where all of her dark hair came from, but she has an entire head full of almost black hair!  If I hadn't seen her as soon as she was born I would swear the hospital gave me the wrong baby!

Everyone is doing well and Eli is the best big brother!

Wow!

   I cannot believe how fast time has flown over the past few months!  It seems like we have been super busy, but yet doing nothing much at the same time.  So, here's a rundown of what's been happening around here....
     My sweet boy turned 3!  I can't believe how fast the past 3 years have flown by.  I am so proud of what a smart, sweet, all around awesome kid he is.  Of course, I know I'm biased but that's ok.  I LOVE this kid!  We had Eli's 3rd birthday party a few weeks ago.  I would upload pictures, but our internet stinks and is too slow!  It was a Star Wars party and it turned out pretty cute if I must say so!
     The sweet girls at work also gave me a baby shower for baby girl.  I got tons, and I mean TONS of cute girl clothes and bows!  So fun!!  Although, I think she will be bald just like Eli was!  We will see....SOON!
     Speaking of baby girl, she is coming in 3 more days!  That's right, 3 DAYS!  HOLY COW!  I am excited but so nervous at the same time.  I debated for months on doing a repeat c-section or trying VBAC.  My first section was super easy but yet I still kept thinking how awesome it would be to avoid major surgery if at all possible.  Well, Clint and I have talked it over for weeks now and we have done 2 size estimates to help me determine what I want to do.  Apparently, I grow HUGE children.  Now I know that the size of the baby is really not necessarily a determination of a successful VBAC, but I believe it can't hurt either.  At 36 weeks baby girl was measuring 40 weeks 2 days....pretty large.  Eli was very large even arriving at 37 weeks (8 lb. 4 oz) so I am expecting this baby to be a good size also.  Anyway, to make this long story shorter, I opted for a repeat c-section and I am scheduled for this Friday.  Yikes!  Please pray for a safe delivery for everyone involved.  And pray for my nerves over the next few days while I wait!
     So, I guess that's it in a nutshell.  Busy, but not too productive.  One final note....to all you women out there who claim you get a burst of energy right before delivery.....ha!  I don't believe you!  I have been so exhausted that I can barely make it off the couch!  Seriously.  It's terrible!  But it will be worth it in the end!

A Moustache on his Tongue?

     So, when I first got pregnant with this baby I craved anything fruity.  Real fruit, fake fruit, fruit flavored candy....you get the picture.  Well, Clint Santa filled my stocking up with about 4 boxes of Fruit Roll Ups at Christmas and since then my fruit cravings have died down a little.  Needless to say, we are still working on eating up the Fruit Roll Ups!  I got one out last night and it happened to be the kind with the tongue tattoos on it.  Eli thinks those are the best, most awesome things ever so of course he wanted to swipe my snack.  I broke him off a section with a tattoo on it (if I give him the whole thing we just end up with a huge, sticky, drooly mess!).  He was so excited and he said "I'm going to get a moustache on my tongue!"  Yes, a moustache.  When I died out laughing he realized that he had forgotten what a tattoo was called and that he was calling it the wrong thing and he didn't think it was too funny.  But, Clint and I definitely got a very good laugh out of our child applying a moustache to his tongue from the fruit roll up!  I just love what kids say!!
    

My Mystery Noise

     Everybody has moments where they doubt their sanity, right?  Tell me I'm not alone here!  I'm going to share one of those moments I had recently.  About 2 months ago we bought me a new car.  Well, it's not a NEW car, but it is new to me.  Anyway, back to the story....we had driven the car to Disney World and all around eveyday for about a month.  One night I went out to the car to get something and when I opened the door I heard this scratching sound.  Like a mouse scratching sound!  I immediately jumped and then started trying to figure out where it was coming from.  Of course it stopped.  So, I closed the door and waited a minute then opened it again and the noise was back.  I knocked on the glove compartment and the noise stopped again.  I ran inside and told Clint about the noise.  He went outside and opened the door and.....nothing.  Not a single sound!  Ok, this went on for days people!  I would hear the noise and work at finding my mystery "mouse" over and over and then Clint would go out and would hear absolutely nothing.  It got to the point that he thought I was just going a little crazy I think!  So, after about a week of listening for my mystery mouse I made him go out and open the door first.  Tada!  He FINALLY heard the noise!  And, guess what it was?  The weather stripping on the door!  Yep, the weather stripping was sticking to itself and sounded like a scratchy mouse when it was unsticking.  By the time I opened and closed the door over and over it was unstuck when Clint came out to listen.  Go figure!  But, at least I know I wasn't crazy...there really was a noise!  And, I'm very very glad there is not a little critter living in my car.  I don't think I would be a very safe driver if I was constantly looking for a mouse to run across my foot!

Changes are coming....

     So, I am starting to realize that there aren't very many weeks left until our new baby girl gets here!  I'm in freak-out mode to say the least.  We have done nothing in the nursery, I haven't washed or unpacked any clothes yet, and I'm making myself a little nervous honestly.  I think the main reason I haven't done any clothes washing yet is because I'm still waiting to have my very last sonogram to make 100% sure SHE is definitely a SHE and not a HE!  Does that sound crazy?  Haha!  I've bought some cute cute little girl clothes (yay for fun clothes), but I keep thinking that if I cut the tags off I will jinx us and we will end up with another boy.  :)  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE Eli and I would be thrilled with another boy too!  I just don't want to end up with tons of girl clothes I can't use or return!   Soooo....there you have the insanity in a nut shell!
     Ok, on to the other less obvious changes around here.  Ever since Eli was born I have either rocked him to sleep or laid beside him until he fell asleep.  While I love the sweet time I get to spend with him I know that once the baby gets here I won't be able to do that every night.  I don't want him to think I'm trading him for his new sister, so we started a new bedtime routine this week.  He has done so great!  I told him that it was time to start going to sleep like a big boy without Momma laying beside him, so I've been laying down and reading him a few stories then kissing him goodnight and he has been falling asleep ON HIS OWN!  This is seriously a monumental occasion here people!  My child has never been cooperative at bedtime and all of a sudden he really has been acting like a big boy!  Yay!
     Now, one last note before I go.  This doesn't involve change but it ranks as one of my proudest Momma moments (all you Moms will understand why in just a second).  Yesterday, Eli came and sat in my lap and said his throat was burning.  I asked if he was ok and he said, "No, I'm going to throw up."  I had time to grab the trash can and let him throw up in it instead of all over me and the floor!  All of you Moms out there that have been puked on understand why this is a proud moment!  I didn't have to clean up anything but the trash can!!  Praise the Lord!!  He's feeling fine by the way....thank goodness for that also!

Balance

     Is it impossible for a mom to find the right balance between work & home?  I feel like I am constantly struggling to find the right mix of work, home, being an employer, being a mom, and being a wife.  First off, let me say that I am extremely blessed by being my own boss.  I can come and go throughout the day, but there are lots (and LOTS) of days that we have several employees call in sick and I am needed at work all day.  Plus, things just don't run as smoothly when Clint and I aren't there as they do when we are.  So, although I am my own boss, I still have a certain amount of time I must be at work.  I feel guilty when I leave work early enough to come home and cook a decent supper.  When I work until I feel free to come home, Eli is tired and fussy and hungry before I get supper cooked.  I want to be a good mom, and a good wife, and take care of my family and my house!  The question is HOW?  How do I balance everything that needs to be done every day?  I don't want to end up feeding my child something quick every night because he is crying before the meal is cooked.  I don't want him to fill up on milk instead of real food while he's waiting.  I hate being in a cooking rut.  I feel like I cook the same things over and over because they are the old standby recipes that are easy.  Clint and Eli never complain, but I know they have to get tired of eating the same things.  Tacos, Spaghetti, Baked chicken, blah, blah, blah.  Help!  I'm in a rut and I don't know how to find the balance I'm looking for to get out of it!!

MIA

     Wow!  It has been a really long time since I have written a post!  (Not that anyone has noticed since I have such a huge audience....haha!)  Anyway, life is very busy and about to get even busier soon.  Things are great.  I am definitely very blessed to have a great job, a healthy family, and a healthy baby on the way.  Speaking of the baby....we found out we are having a girl this time!  Yay for cute girl clothes!!  I am still a little leery of taking any of the tags off the clothes yet though.  I keep thinking they will surely tell me at my next sonogram that we are really having a boy!  The second pregnancy definitely goes by faster than the first.  I can't believe we only have a little over 3 months left before our sweet baby girl is here!

     Anyway, back to the past few months.  We have been busy doing everyday stuff plus taking Eli to Disney World for the first time.  We had a really great time!  He was a super trooper on the 12 hour drive and didn't fuss a single time!  Thank goodness for DVDs, goodie bags, and Angry Birds!  Here are some pictures of my sweet guy enjoying Disney.  The first picture is on the Teacups and I love it for some reason!  (It was even worth the motion sickness I accidentally got taking the picture...darn pregnancy!)

Our SUPER great traveler!

     After Disney we were home for a few days and then Eli started acting funny.  He wouldn't eat, was extremely whiny, and just generally ill.  Well, he came down with some sort of weird fever/sore throat/ulcers in his throat & mouth virus.  My child seriously would not eat for 3 days!  All he wanted was milk, so we let him drink as much milk as he would.  Poor little guy was very sick!  Of course, after 2 days I took him to the doctor and he was subjected to a flu test and a strep test (both of which were negative thankfully) and then he promptly stopped running fever the next day!  Isn't that how it usually goes?  At least he got better and is now back to his normal self.  We are very blessed because he isn't sick very often at all, and when he is it is usually something mild.
     Ok, enough rambling for now.  I will leave you with a cute picture of my little guy that was taken at school today.  I love, love, LOVE this kid!!