Nervous

Well, I find myself feeling a bit nervous lately.  About several things....

Tonight is Hanky's last night in his crib.  Tomorrow his big boy bed goes up in the big brother room.  I'm nervous he won't stay in his bed at nap time.  But, I think I am more nervous that he won't be my baby boy any more.  He is already seeming so big.  

Avery's bed is moving to the big brother room, too.  I'm nervous he will wake his brother up in the mornings, and Hanky needs that extra hour of sleep.  I'm nervous he will be super chatty at night, he loves to talk!  But, I am most nervous that he will think he got kicked out of his amazing giraffe room because of the new baby.  But, when we talked about the new baby he couldn't have cared less so it will probably be fine!

With Avery and Hank in the big brother room it is time to "fix" the walls in Hanky's room.  I get that nervous sick at my stomach feeling about covering up one of my two favorite rooms in the house.  I absolutely love Hanky's room and it makes me so sad to have to cover it up.  I am also nervous because Michael and his dad are the "fixers," if we are being perfectly honest they aren't quite so emotionally attached to the room. 

I am nervous because I think have passed along a few of my OCD tendencies.  Avery lined up all these napkins perfectly the other day while he was supposedly taking a nap.  Hank perfectly dissected his bean burrito at lunch yesterday eating first the cheese, then the beans, and then the tortilla.  Oops!

 

I am nervous because Hanky doesn't speak as well as I think he should.  I know he knows what he is saying (but we have no clue about 75% of the time) and I am pretty sure he understands what we are saying.  But there is a lot of screaming and grunting and incomprehensible speech from my favorite one year old boy.  Thank goodness for speech therapist friends who can come hang out with my friend and let me know what he needs. 

I am nervous because we signed up for preschool for next year and Hank will join his brother at school.  I am going to miss that little blondie and his adorable grin.  We have had a lot of fun on our alone days this year.  I'm nervous I will have a hard time finding special time with my soon to be middle child.  I am also nervous that he won't LOVE school like Avery does.  He begs to go to school every day! 

I am nervous because we are having another child.  Holy cow!  We had a pretty easy transition from 1-2 and that makes me nervous that this will be the transition that gets us or that this will be the baby that doesn't make it easy for us like Avery and Hank did.  

I am nervous because we need a lot of rain this winter/spring.  Thank goodness we got some last night and this morning.  Not only did it let us wear galoshes and play with umbrellas, but hopefully it is filling up the lake.  Avery and Hank will be very sad boys if there isn't enough water this summer.  Mamma and Daddy will be, too.  

I am nervous because I am at a very scary part of pregnancy for an NICU nurse.  26 weeks is scary.  That's a very tiny baby with a lot to overcome.  I know we are so very blessed with our 2 healthy boys.  I want Wee 3 to stay right where he (or she, but I think it's a he) belongs for many many more weeks. 

I am nervous because these 2 boys are t-r-o-u-b-l-e!  I love that they love each other and have so much fun together.  It is so fun to see them starting to really play together (even if it almost always involves jumping on or off of something they are not supposed to.)  They do also love to push each others buttons and make each other crazy.  I want more than anything for them to be building a life long friendship providing them with their best friend for life!  It makes me nervous to try to figure out to help them have the relationship I want for them. 

I am nervous because Wee 3 has no name.  Well, she Wee does (Sadie Jo), but he Wee doesn't.  This is not like us, we didn't have much trouble coming up with names for the last 2 times.  We just look at each other with no solution.  I wouldn't change my boys names for anything I love how special they are, but we kind of put too much pressure on ourselves giving the boys 4 such very special names!  

I am nervous because Avery is a better driver in reverse than I am.  My family may have called my bumper cars in my early driving years because I tend to bump into things while in reverse.  While Hank does need a helmet to ride with Avery because of the rough starts and stops when asked Ave to park his car by the shed he perfectly backed up to the shed first try with no bumps.

Thanks for letting me get all my nerves out, I know I don't really need to worry about anything and that I am very blessed!  

GREAT Aunts!

The last week at our house has been pretty eventful.  Avery and and Hank got to play with 2 of their great Aunts, pun intended!

Of course, I took no pictures....
sorry.

Great Aunt Susan Jo came last Wednesday.
She was very busy.  She and LouLou pained the big brother room base coat, so now it is all ready for Aunt Linde.
She also played in tents, threw rocks in the lake, and gave us good excuses to go to Dairy Queen and Sonic and eat other Texas treats she can't get in North Carolina. 

We were so glad Aunt Susan Jo came to Dallas, took the boys with her to Papa and LouLou's lake house and then came back and spent one more night with us in Dallas.  We are now in official count down to summer mode, when she will hopefully be back to help us celebrate the 4th of July and meet Wee 3!

We were also so glad to get to see great Aunt Suzi and cousin Taylor.  They came up for a night and we got to all have dinner together.  They were troopers when Avery and Hank totally latched on and didn't let them out of their site until bed time.  Aunt Suzi even left a surprise for when the boys woke up the next day, GREATNESS!  We were sad Jamie Lee couldn't come visit, but we were glad she stayed home to get well for school and that Uncle Jay stayed home and took good care of her!

And all the extra supervision came just in the nick of time, because Hanky is bound and determined to kill himself!  And to be perfectly honest after asking him to get down 972 times day, I am occasionally tempted to look the other way.

Mr Mr managed to skin his face, get his first bloody nose and almost bite all the way through his top lip in 2 separate falls Monday and Tuesday. 
The kid is part monkey.

The rule at our house is passy time is only when napping/sleeping so that is where the pappy lives.  So monkey man started climbing up in his crib to get his pappy.  You know he has done it again when he starts yelling help to get out.  Good thing the big boy bed is getting put up next week, and I finally moved the pappy out of reach during the day.  
But don't worry the busted face came from chasing Avery and trying to pull him off the scooter and climbing over the back of his anywhere chair and then hitting the coffee table.  BOTH things he was asked not to do.  Good thing he is cute. 

Boys!

Saturday Book Club came to my house for lunch so Michael and the boys needed to clear out for awhile.  Michael to them to his favorite place.  His family has a "farm" house on some land in East Texas.  They had a great time just roaming and being little boys.  The pictures say it all!

Happy Anniversary to Me

It is definitely safe to say I did not give the best gift this year.  I got a card and ordered a present off the internet that may or may not ever come.  Note to self, don't try new websites in these situations.  

But, Michael hit a HOME RUN!

He surprised me with a trip to Vegas.

We had such a great time!  A couple of months ago we were watching 20/20, because we are cool kids.  There was a segment about the creator of Cirque de Soleil.  We both thought it seemed intriguing and Michael knew I would love to see a show.  The very next day he hopped on the internet and booked us a special anniversary get away, unbeknownst to me!

He was SO right the show was AMAZING!  It was unbelievable all the different parts of the show, I am dying to see it again because I know it was impossible to see it all at once.  My eyes kept burning because I didn't want to blink and miss things.  I highly recommend this show!!

Here are a few reasons this will go down as a practically perfect trip, you know like Mary Poppins, practically perfect in every way!  

We got to Vegas, checked in our hotel and went and had a hamburger, french fries and onion rings!  Abbe Jo + pregnant=unparalleled love of junk food!

Then we got to go to the spa.  I had a manicure and pedicure. It was quite fabulous.  I chose My Private Jet by OPI, Michael said it was super cute.  He did also compare it to a fishing boat paint job, but since this was a practically perfect trip I will overlook it.  Michael had a massage and was a whole new relaxed person I barely recognized when we got back.  I am so glad he went and took the time to unwind. 

Then we read books and relaxed with out 1 or 3 year old boy interruptions for almost 2 whole hours.  It was amazing!  I read 50% of a book and managed to actually not ruin a manicure within an hour of getting it!!

The we went to Olives for dinner.  Soooooo good!  The flat bread pizza we shared for an appetizer was unbelievable.  Michael had great steak and they even had a super yummy chicken dish for not so adventurous girls like me.  And they gave us a sweet treat since I casually mentioned it was our anniversary. 

After dinner and the show we walked on the strip for awhile, enjoyed the lights of all the hotels and saw the amazing fountain show outside our hotel!  

Then we pretended we were in Paris again.  

We took our picture in front of the Eiffel Tower. 

And then had a very delicious, second dessert of the night.  Nutella crepes!  

What a practically perfect day!  We had so much fun, basically never left the hotel and Michael had it all booked ahead of time.  The hardest decision I made all day was what color nail polish to wear.  

Friday we had a great day just walking around looking at all the hotels and casinos and doing whatever we wanted.  This was a perfect 2 day get away and we didn't even gamble (come on did you really think Mr CPA, financial planner would gamble for fun?) 

Thanks MAW what an amazing gift!  I sure do love you!

9 going on 90

Today Michael and I celebrate 9 whole years!  I can't believe it!  I feel so blessed to have him in my life and don't want to imagine life any other way.  I love that we have enjoyed so many different seasons of life together, 9 to be exact!
1-We were church buddies, I love that our initial common interest was our faith.  We both believe we made a promise to God and each other on our wedding day and I love that it started when we were 15 sitting in Sunday school, going to life group, and Ranger games.   

2-We were dating and living in separate towns.  Of course we had to wait until I was in Abilene and Michael was in Tyler and then College Station, it would be too easy to date in the same city.  This was actually a huge gift.  We both loved our college experiences, and I don't think either of us would have been as happy at the other's school.  We learned a lot about communication on ridiculously long phone calls, and we also learned the value of friends besides your best friend.  I loved this phase as well.

3-We were engaged.  I loved and hated this part of our lives together.  Being engaged is really fun, planning and dreaming is exciting.  But blending families and expectations is tough, and we were not good at it.  Being engaged is weird, you are not married you are not dating....where do you fit?  But, I also loved this time.  We found ourselves showered with love and parties by sweet friends and family.  We felt so much love and support as we planned for our special day.  I also found myself in a new city working my very first real job and Michael was an amazing support for me during a very tough transition, I'm not so good at change!  We learned to lean on each other in new ways, another great time. 

4-We were newlyweds.  I am just going to say it.  It was probably very good that we were in College Station for this time.  I am sure we were icky and disgusting just like all newlyweds are.  But, it worked perfectly!  We hung out with Michael's friends some and had lots of fun learning to be married just the two of us and Cleo, who was not an unloved pug at this phase of her life ;)  What a great time this was for us to learn to be married and support each other.  Michael was awesome finishing out his last semester of grad school (completing undergrad and grad in just 5 years, I have to brag) and studying so hard that he was able to sit for the CPA and pass all 4 parts the first time (I have to brag again.)  This time to study hard and play hard was amazing!

5-We were grown-ups.  We moved to the big city.  We bought a house.  We SURVIVED remodeling that house while living in it.  This was a hard time, but I can now look back with some fondness.  I love our house, I love the blood, sweat, and gallons of tears we put in to it.  I love that we managed so many changes all at once growing together not apart.   

6-We were DINKs (double-income no kids), some friends taught us phrase and I love it.  This phase of life was fun.  We took trips.  We found a church home.  We made couple friends, we had a blast!

7-We were/are pregnant.  It was an adventure.  I have to admit, I am not so good at it.  I am a lot crabby and a little bit crazy.  I love that we totally change rolls and Michael is calm, cool and collected and I worry like crazy.  Michael has graciously weathered the storm 2 1/2 times.  It is a crazy time, but a fun time full of lots of excitement and anticipation.
 
8-We are parents.  I love to see Michael through our boys eyes.  They truly adore him and would always chose him above anyone else.  They light up when he comes home from work.  I love to hear their squeals of delight when he chases them and plays with him.  I love how much he loves them.  To see him work so hard for them at work, yet constantly attempt the balance of family time as well.  I hope and pray our boys know how very much they are loved.  I also love how much this has shown me about God's love!

9-We are survivors!  The past two years have been a roller coaster.  Michael along with 2 partners started a business.  As I have told you, building a business can be a beating!  But, in all honesty I wouldn't have it any other way.  Having your husband doing what he loves it worth so very much.  We have weathered some very tough family times, and I think we are making it okay.  We are again working hard to learn and grow and become better people throughout hard times we never imagined facing.  We have been blessed by wise counsel, great friends and great family to carry us when we needed, but more than anything we have again leaned on each other and God and will continue to do so.  I can't wait to see what other phases we get to go through between now and 90 years!! 

Christmas Quotes

We had a great Christmas!  I did terrible in the picture department, but here are a few of my favorite quotes from the weekend!

"daddy daddy we're stuck in our truck"     avery while attempting to drive he and hank in their new powerwheels F150!

"are we going to have a bounce party?" as we pulled into the church parking lot (you know to celebrate Jesus' birthday)

"mamma, mamma where's Jesus I can't see him" as the candle light service is about to begin

"but mamma i think i see a baby in that manger" after i attempted to explain that Jesus is in our hearts and always with us, but we can't see him.

"daddy, do you think the sun will shine tomorrow?" on the way to bed last night after a day too cold and rainy to drive the new truck!

hope you are having a very fun holiday season!

Merry Christmas

Wishing you all the best from our family to yours.  We are so thankful for all of our blessings, especially the most important one we celebrate today!  Have a very Merry Christmas!