The final count down

In the last days (less then 2 weeks, aka any day now) of my pregnancy I am feeling so many feelings.... Excitement, happiness, nervousness, anxiety, and anticipation.  I can't wait to meet this new little human that I've been growing inside myself for the past 38 1/2 weeks. I know she is going to be absolutely the sweetest, most special little girl. 

However, I also feel so nervous.  I am not sure how I will manage my time between my three children.  How will I spend equal quality time with each child?  How will I get all my household chores done?  How will I go grocery shopping, cook dinner, or get everyone to bed?  How will I manage to stay sane?  It seems like with each child I have, my patience wanes, I yell more, and I am more exhausted.  Tyson and I have less time to spend together, and by the time all the kids are in bed at eight o'clock, I am spent.  I don't even have the energy to watch a movie with my poor husband. 

I know I can do it.  I know Heavenly Father will help me.  I know I will eventually figure out how to find a balance between three kids and my husband.  But for now I am nervous and doubting my abilities. 

Even with all the doubt, I cannot wait to experience the miracle of birth again.  The sweetest feeling of holding a brand new infant in my arms for the very first time, giving her those most precious first kisses.  I have been ready for her to be here (all my projects done, all her clothes, sheets and other materials washed and put away, and hospital bags packed with car seat ready for 3 weeks now) for three weeks now.  Anytime you're ready baby Addie, so is mommy.  Hurry and come join our family!!

Lexi These Days

she dresses herself, usually it matches pretty good.  My favorite thing about her dressing herself is her looking in the mirror after and saying, "I look good! Really good. Mom, say "lexi, you look good."  (it happens almost every day, yay for self confidence!)

 

Three in a Half and counting.  This girl is three going on thirteen.  She has so much sass in that little body that sometimes I don't know what to do with her sometimes.  We recently started a sticker chart and she has 3 stickers to start with, if she does her chores she gets more, if she is disrespectful she loses some.  She's really enjoyed it so far.  There are daily rewards for certain number of stars as well as weekly awards for milestone star marks.  Her current chores are helping unload the dishwasher, making her bed, putting her laundry away, brushing and flossing her teeth twice a day, and cleaning the playroom.

 

She is so incredibly smart that it scares me.  She craves knowledge and learning.  She is always asking my to "do school."  Right now she can write her own name unassisted, recognize the words CAT, DOG, DAD, and LOST.  If I tell her how to spell something she can write it out all by herself.  She can write and recognizes all of her letters, their sounds, and the numbers 1-10.  She can count to 13. 

 

Her favorites toys are "my favorite toys that I like are baby dolls, and letters, and letter puzzles.  Hmmm I like pink, hot pink and purple."  She is a great dancer and lyric writer.  I love hearing the songs she makes up.  They are so sweet and so heartfelt, or so silly and funny. 

 

 

 

 She is so excited for her new little sister to be here.  She couldn't believe how small and cute baby Tory is :)

 

Foods she loves: Organic Trader Joes pop tarts (with hot pink sprinkles), donuts, bacon, steak, chicken, and strawberries.

 

I am homeschooling her this year.  We chose to do the ABEKA 2-year kindergarten program.  We begin tomorrow and I cant wait!!  She is going to love it :)  It will definitely be an adventure with both of our strong personalities, but my goal is to make it fun!  I really don't care how much she learns this year, it is mostly about bonding and spending individual time with each child. 

Our first "theme" is outer space, so Tyson and I built this awesome spaceship for the kids to explore.  They love it!!

 

Lexi is so special to our family.  She is a born leader.  I am grateful I had her first so that she can set the example for my other kids.  She is so helpful and loving.  She is constantly giving my loves and telling me, "You're the best mommy ever."  It melts my heart! 
I love this little girl!

One in a Half

(powdered donut aftermath)

I can't believe Gauge is 1 1/2.  He is so smart, adventurous, and an overall sweet boy.  He can reach anything!  He is using multiple drawers as a ladder to climb on the counters.  He carries little stools around and uses them to reach all kinds of things.  It is impossible to "baby proof" everything, so I just spend my days following him around, constantly watching him.  At 18 months his vocabulary is increasing at dramatic rates.  He is fast mapping all kinds of words.  As of yesterday these are the words he can say : mom, bite, dad, au-dee (Addie), bubble, bath, baby, hi, bye, K?(are you ok?), more, help, hold, come, dog, mine, shoes, book, and I'm sure more I missed.  He will copy any word we say and is especially interested in saying and learning about colors.  His favorite toys are his glass jar of marbles, his counting piggy bank piggy, and the metal shopping cart.  His favorite foods are steak, hot dogs, chicken (basically anything he can dip in ketch-up), black berries and raspberries, chocolate milk, our home-made juiced veggies and fruit, yogurt, and gold fish. He wants to be in the middle of all the action, all the time.  He loves playing with and imitating his sister.  He is full of happiness and laughter.  Gauge is still a great sleeper!! He recently changed his bedtime to 8:00 PM, but will sleep until 7:30 now, naps for three hours around 12:30 and does all of it in his crib.  He loves his crib.  I'm glad he's such a great sleeper. 
 

He also loves shoes!! Especially ones that are too big.

 

I took the kids to Rain Forest Café for a date night and Gauge loved the moving animals and thunderstorms... They scared poor Lexi.

 

He is learning how to be "silly."  He will put shirts on his head and just start laughing, or run into the wall on purpose, or do weird stunts to get a laugh out of us.

Baby Shower for Sweet Addie

 

I have this friend.  She's pretty great.  Everything she does is above and beyond expectations.  She goes all out no matter what.  She is the most thoughtful, creative, and in-tune person I have ever met.  I feel so blessed that heavenly father put her in my life.  She is the sister I never had.  My kids adore her and she treats them like her own. 

Even though she is also pregnant with baby number THREE, she insisted on throwing me a baby shower. 

It was a themed shower.  The theme was around the world.

She had everyone write a note to Addie on a luggage tag, which she later attached to the cutest little suitcase.  I can put all of Addie's most memorable things inside.

We read about a few different birth/pregnancy customs around the world.  Most were utterly disgusting, but some were sort of cool.  One Tatum loved was the painting of the belly.

I'd say I was a pretty good sport, showing my belly at 35 weeks pregnant.  It is huge and Addie was sitting in a weird position making it sort of lopsided and lumpy, yet it is so beautiful at the same time.  I am so grateful I get to be pregnant and experience this miracle. I can hardly wait for the next 3 1/2 weeks to pass so I can hold this little one!! 

Me and the fabulous host :)

Me and a few of the linger-longer girls.  We tried to get a group picture with everyone, but a lot of people had already left.  Thanks to my good friend Amy Gibson for taking the photo.  I love these girls that have become my great friends over the past year in a half.