Pop Up Visitors!

We just got word that my sister in law and her family are going to be visiting us in TWO DAYS!!! And they are bringing my mother in law, who will be staying at our house which is a total WRECK! I appreciate the excitement and I know we'll have fun seeing them but my gosh! Don't they know it takes more than TWO DAYS to prepare for visitors when you have no food in the house and there is CRAP EVERYWHERE??? Sometimes I'm thankful I'm off the hook because I'm at work all day so it doesn't have to be ME doing the frantic cleaning! Good luck making it look presentable, Chris!

Over 1/2 Way There!

Here's what 21 weeks pregnant looks like on me! By the 4th one, you get big FAST! My mother in law sent me a BUNCH of new maternity clothes she found at a 2nd hand store and this is my favorite shirt - great color, huh? She sent me so many new things, I am going to have to get pregnant several more times to get her money's worth! (TOTALLY KIDDING!)

This is definitely the last pregnancy and there are things I won't miss, but one thing I WILL miss is maternity pants. Just slide them up, slide them down - no buttons or zippers or belts to mess with. Now I know why there are so many elastic waist pants in stores, even though they are in NO WAY flattering on anyone! I guess when you get to a certain age, convenience trumps style. Until then, I will spend the next several months enjoying being allowed to wear pants that slide up and down, and being able to look huge and be told I'm "glowing." I need to appreciate pregnancy for its few perks and relish this last time around.

Mother's Day

Here's a picture of us before we left for church this morning. It was around 8am and I was DOG TIRED from a night of virtually no sleep and had a splitting headache. UGH! I am convinced NO day is a good day if you have a headache, no matter what happens. I swear, I could have Ed McMahon show up at my door with a huge check and if I had a headache the moment would be ruined. (ok, SLIGHT exaggeration!)

After a quick nap with Sammy and a few Tylenol, it got better this afternoon and we were able to enjoy the sunshine and pleasant temperatures. There was a lot of time spent outdoors and I tried DESPERATELY to finish planting the flowers I bought last weekend but there are still a few left languishing in their little plastic cages. I asked my mom at what age did she actually start ENJOYING gardening and she said it wasn't until her late 40's so I've got at least 10 years to go. She said that she's gotten to the point now where she actually likes the smell of the dirt. I can't even imagine! Then again, it may also have a little to do with not having 3 kids trying to run out in the street that allows her to enjoy it more than I possibly can at this point.

So it wasn't the best Mother's Day ever, but I need to remember to be thankful for all I have. This morning there was a child in the nursery class at school who had a shunt in his head. That's all the info we got on him but it was obvious he was developmentally disabled in some ways. I looked at my 3 healthy boys and realized how lucky I am. Sure, they can be pistols at times but they are all wonderful little guys who bring more joy and fulfillment to my life than I could ever have imagined.

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there!

It's a.....

BOY! Oh my gosh, how the heck am I going to feed FOUR TEENAGE BOYS! I'd better start looking for a second job now!

Everyone is so thrilled and this new little boy will fit into our family perfectly. I'm so glad William will have a little brother just 21 months younger than him to play with and he won't feel like a "third wheel" with Owen and Sammy. I am so excited to welcome our newest little man to the fold!

Pink or Blue?

Well, the big day is almost here: tomorrow we will have the ultrasound to tell if we should be packing away or giving away all our baby boy clothes. Exciting, yes, but also very nerve-wracking for me. Why? I guess it's probably because this is our last time around. People assume that I will be disappointed if it's a boy, but just the opposite. I think if they tell me it's a boy, I will feel relief. I am soooo nervous to have a girl because I'm so used to having boys and also because I fear I will be really hard on a daughter. So if they tell me it's a girl, it will take some time to adjust to that news, I think.

But of course once I start shopping for her clothes, I will be THRILLED! Oh, what fun!

No longer a cat lover!

When we painted the walls in the living room to match the furniture, I knew I would have to really amp up the red accents. My mom is working hard on the red pillows for the couches and I got red curtains for the living room, but felt it needed something else. Here's a picture of how it looks so far (minus the pillows, of course):

I know, I know...accessories are going to make a big difference once we get those going. And the blank wall over the couch will, of course, eventually have the PERFECT piece of artwork, complete with some sort of red something in it. But I still felt I needed MORE red to bring it all together. Enter....the bench:

I had come SOOOO close to purchasing this Lorraine Red Leather Storage Bench about a month ago when it was on sale, but hadn't yet started the "project" so didn't want to go overboard. But when it went on sale again at Smartbargains.com, I just couldn't resist. It's hard to tell color on line, but I hoped it would be the right shade of red and it IS! It arrived while I was at work on Wednesday and I was soooo excited to come home and see how it looked.

At first Chris had put it in front of the couch for use as an ottoman, but since the room is kind of small and the kids like to have lots of room to fight....err, I mean PLAY...I moved it to underneath the window. It was the perfect size and height to make a great windowseat and it also opens up for storage. It's made of a beautiful, supple red leather and even my husband LOVED it, mostly because he didn't have to put it together AT ALL - even the legs came attached! I sat on the couch and stared at it all night and woke up the next morning happy it was in the house. :)

Then we caught the cat clawing the top of it and it looks like he was at it all night. And that's all I have to say about that. :(

Boy Genius

I got the kindergarten calendar for May a few days ago and apparently they are going to start working on "simple sentences" at the end of this month. Well my little scholar is WAY ahead of his class, because he brought this note home in his take-home folder the other day. "I tooted on my bed" is one of his favorite things to say and anyone under 6 who is within earshot thinks it's hilarious! Apparently he worked on this during "free choice" time the other day and he was a hit with his classmates.

It was a hit with my family, too, and in fact I believe my in-laws printed it out and put it on the fridge. We are all so proud of our little scholar!