The Theater, Knitting and Life

It's been a while.....I blame work :)  I've been busy the last couple weeks finishing up a big project and am taking a quick break from another project to blog a little.  The work has led to some late nights, but I am overall very grateful for the ability to work (mostly) from home and add to the family coffer while my husband learns the ropes of his new commission-only position.  Without a guaranteed paycheck every pay period, it's nice to have some checks of my own to sock into the savings account to get us through the next couple months.  According to all the experienced sales reps, and my husband's boss, the first 6 months to a year are generally rough, but after that, life starts to click a little more.  We're hanging in there, thanks to my work and a frugal nature born of being raised in a one-income family with 8 siblings.

It's hard to believe it's been about 9 months since my husband was laid off.  Life definitely looks different and I am continually reminded of God's faithfulness in providing for us...even when it means I'm working into the night, it is God's providence that the work is there for me to do.

The pregnancy continues to go well.  Our little girl is getting more and more active....although I swear she is playing possum every time my husband tries to feel her kick.  She'll be moving around like crazy, his hand goes on my belly.....NOTHING!  She's playing hard to get already :)

I'm starting to kick names around with my hubby and LB, but I think we're going to have to get a look at her before any naming can really happen.  What if she looks nothing like the name we were thinking?  What if it doesn't fit her disposition? 

I'm still struggling with the idea of sending LB to school next year.  She is very much against it.  I think in some ways it might be good for her, but part of me really doesn't want to send her.  The plan for now is to fill out the paperwork and continue to be open to the possibility.  The answer doesn't always show up right when you ask the question, after all.

Last weekend, we went to see Anne of Avonlea at the theater.  It was a Christmas outing with my m-i-l, s-i-l and LB.  LB had a great time.  She was a little star-struck.  As we were leaving, she said quietly, "I wish I'd gotten their autographs".  Well, we turned around and she got the young Anne and teenage Anne to sign her program.

This weekend, we also got out one of LB's Christmas presents.  I've been slow in getting them out since Christmas, but it does make it fun to have different things each week, I think. 

Well, the present that LB has been urging me to open since Christmas Day was her knitting machine.  I finally got the yarn wound and the machine set and she went away to work at making her very first pair of leg warmers.

Now I just have to figure out the directions for getting it off the machine and she'll be able to start the second one.....but first, more work while she does her math, spelling, reading and history :)

Big News!

I have reached the 20 week mark....and that means we finally went in for our ultrasound yesterday. 

Before my appointment, I was pretty sure we were having a boy.  I've felt pretty good the whole pregnancy and was miserably sick with LB for nine months.  Right before my appointment, I was getting ready and brushing my teeth....as other preggos may know, teeth brushing can be dicey with the increased gag reflex.  Well, before yesterday, I had not done more than gag when brushing my teeth.....as I said, before yesterday.

I lost my breakfast right before my appointment and with an upset stomach from getting sick, I didn't feel much like eating again right before the ultrasound.  As a result, baby wasn't very active.  The ultrasound tech even asked me if I'd eaten that morning the baby was so lazy!  I told her yes, but I'd gotten sick, so baby might not have had a chance to get much. 

After losing my breakfast, I thought perhaps I was wrong and it could be a girl.  The baby continued to hide through most of the appointment, with legs crossed and all!  At the very end, the tech did some additional manipulating and told us that she couldn't see anything obvious (meaning she thought it was a girl).  She kept looking and repeated herself that she couldn't see anything obvious.  At this point, I asked her if that meant there was a 60% chance it was a girl, or maybe a 70% chance?  She responded that she felt like it was more of a 90% chance.


So, we are most likely going to have another little girl running around our place next summer....unless we had a very shy boy who was offended at our invasion of his privacy :)

I feel like after two girls (LB and SB), I've got the girl thing down and can handle it again.  I think my husband was leaning towards boy....as he put it, "a girl would be easier, but a boy would be nice".  I told him we can try again....although at the rate we're going, they're going to be marking "advanced maternal age" on the birth certificate of the one after this!  We both knew we would love whichever we got, but I am definitely excited for LB to get a sister - especially with SB's future undetermined, it's nice to know LB will always have a little sister to doll up :)

With the big news out of the way, here are some funny shots from this week:

Working on math

The sweet smell of a Book-It! pizza

Gaining a new love of reading through pizza

20 week belly

Oh Christmas Tree!

Every year in our area, there's a local Christmas festival held the week after Thanksgiving....it always strikes me as way too early in the year, but our homeschool group had a field trip, so I was able to take LB to see all the fancy trees and decorations.

LB took lots of pics

One of the two hundred pics she took :)

Posing with the decorations

Hanging out in front of the model train

Stuffed animal tree

Relaxing on the bench

I think this may be our Christmas card :)

Here are some great pics from feeding the geese and visiting the museum.  It's been such a busy month with work that I'll still be catching up - more pics of our latest adventures to follow this weekend!

Feeding the geese

A little exciting....

Rock climbing in CO

Rocking the sunglasses

Learning about water flow and erosion

Checking out meteorites

Posing with the rocks

Taking a phone call from the mine

This is what she looks like as a moose

Little Flowers, All Saints Day and More!

Okay - time to catch up!

First, last month's Little Flowers gathering:

The girls playing a game

LB at work

Next up, our All Saints Day party.  First, let me start by saying our homeschool association is awesome.....seriously awesome; supportive, interactive, faith-filled families that lift us up in prayer and with whom we have such wonderful fellowship.  One of the many wonderful activities organized throughout the year is an All Saints Day party where the kids dress up as saints, we have a potluck and the kids play games.

Noah's Ark animal toss

Picking a prize!

Blessed Kateri Tekawitha showing off her prize

....and preggo pictures

12 weeks

14 weeks

Little Bean has had a hard time starting to read....the last couple months have been such a shift.  She has finally started reading for enjoyment and without fighting it (well, she still fights it sometimes).  Part of the blessing of homeschooling has been that we didn't have to force LB to read in Kindergarten like her traditionally schooled peers.  We've been able to allow her reading to go at it's own pace and I think by the end of this year, she'll be on par with her peers.

Caught reading....

"Mom, what?!"

"Shhh...don't wake him!"

Reading to her cousin

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  I'm now about halfway caught up on pictures :)  My husband is down south for training this week, so it's been quite the hairy handful with the precocious puppy and two girls.  Whenever I stop to think about it, I am SO thankful that I haven't been sick this whole pregnancy like I was with LB!

Wishing everyone a blessed Advent season.  Prepare Ye!

LB's First "Grown-up" Concert and other fun...

My husband's mother periodically gets really inexpensive tickets to events at our local entertainment center.  When she asked if we would like tickets to the gymnastics and ice skating spectacular, it was a unanimous "YES!" 

So, on a Saturday night, we packed into the car and headed out.  The billing for the show had ice skating and gymnasts with special musical guests I'd never heard of.  When we got the the show, it was clear that there were definitely followers of these musicals guests!  We saw many teeny-boppers in shirts proclaiming their fan-dom of the various singers.  That should have been our first warning.......BUT, we were still taken by surprise when they announced the singers and the many, many girls in the crowd SHRIEKED at the top of their lungs!  At first, LB covered her ears and was very unimpressed with all the shrieking....however, about 10 minutes into it, I found myself sitting next to one of the shrieking young girls in the audience - who happened to be none other than the non-shrieking child I had brought in shortly before!

About halfway through the show, I decided it was more entertaining to document LB than the show....as you can see, she wasn't a huge fan of that approach :)

It was a great night.  Near the end LB started to get sleepy.  There were lots of empty seats in front of us, so LB and I moved down at one point for a better view.  My husband snapped a shot of LB and me.

Other silliness from our house includes horse-riding and sprucing up jammies:

 

I'm doing well without injections and tomorrow will be the 12-week milestone.  Someone told me last month that having Sweet Baby would make this pregnancy go faster because she would keep us so busy....that has certainly been true.  Weeks have flown by like days!  The exhaustion is starting to ebb slightly and I'm looking forward to that 2nd trimester with an energy pick-up....hopefully Sweet Baby will be sleeping longer stretches by then too, so it'll be the perfect storm of more rest :)

Hubby's job is going well.  He's learning lots in training and showing lots of initiative to get things done.  Having watched his progress the last couple weeks, I am becoming increasingly convinced that his personality is ideally suited to a sales profession.  In a couple months, he'll be operating solely on commission, so prayers for success are always appreciated :)

All in a Week's Work

I spent all of last week working out of town.  It was a late Sunday night drive, followed by five long days of working 10-12 hour days.  It was also an amazing experience.  Working from home, I rarely get such an opportunity, but my husband's new job didn't start until this Monday, so he stayed with the kiddos while I spent a week being the working stiff :)

I stayed in a beautiful hotel on the client's campus and had complimentary meals.....needless to say it wasn't the best weigh-in at my appointment this week :P

Belgian waffle with strawberries and blueberries

Sticky bun french toast with pecans and blueberries

The work experience was just as amazing as the breakfasts - I think I learned about a 3-hour graduate class worth of material.  I was there to observe a pilot training program and while observing the pilot couldn't help but absorb the great material.

The days were long and I worked into the night more than once, so Friday afternoon I was ready to go home and snuggle my hubby and babies.  On my way out to the car, I noticed one of my tires was a little low.  I went straight to the trunk where my ever-ready husband keeps an air compressor in both vehicles.....well, the box was there, but no air compressor.  I set my gps to navigate to the closest gas station.  It was a couple miles away, however, when I got to where it was supposed to be, no gas station....this happened TWICE!

On my way to navigate to yet another gas station, I passed a Jiffy Lube.  I passed it and kept going, but my guardian angel urged me firmly to turn around and ask for help.  I got to the service station, and asked if there was anyone who could put air in my tire or change a tire for me, since I have a full size spare.  The man was kind enough to offer to put air in my tire, but pointed out a nail lodged in my tire as the culprit.  I asked if anyone could change my tire out.  He said with great reluctance that he was on the clock and couldn't.  I was quick to ask if there was anything they could charge me for and get the tire changed (as I was standing there exhausted, in business professional clothes, 9 weeks pregnant and those tires are HEAVY).  He told me they could rotate my tires for $25.  I quickly told him to start the rotation!


After a quick wait, I had four good tires on the car and the man was apologizing for having to charge anything to help me.....I happily handed over my credit card and thanked him for his help.  I was so relieved to have my tires safe and ready to get me home.

I arrived home about an hour later than I had planned, but safe and sound.  Snuggling ensued shortly after :)

I'm glad to be home, although I'm still feeling the effects of my long workweek.  The combination of pregnancy and intense workweek has led to many naps in the last few days, but I'll be back soon with another baby/family update :)

Bucking up....

Wednesday I was officially 8 weeks pregnant.  I'm two weeks into my shots, and I have to admit, it's getting REALLY old.  It's hard to keep getting these shots that push me to the brink of blacking out and then end with dry-heaving.  Still, according to the doctor, in two weeks, the shots will be behind me and it'll be smooth(er) sailing. 

The problem I'm having is that it actually is a problem.  I HATE the shots and this makes me feel like a big whiney baby.  I have wanted another child and have been through so much to this point that I would've thought I'd be singing my way to the shots....not so....hence the guilt. 

This all brings me back to a truth I've known and forgotten a number of times.....you can see a blessing in every cross or a cross in every blessing.  So, it's time to stop whining (most of it has been in my head, but still) and buck up.  I offer my shots up for all those who are trying to conceive....this makes it a little more bearable and hopefully sends palpable grace to those who have been struggling with low fertility. 

So, this week, I'm going to focus on being grateful for shots that will make this baby strong and healthy.  I will visualize this baby growing and thriving with every shot I get.  This is my shot (haha) at having another child and I will consciously practice gratitude.  God didn't promise easy times....He promised to be there in the rough times. 

We are starting to celebrate in our house.  This last weekend, we went to dinner to celebrate the advent of a new addition. 

7 weeks pregnat

Out to dinner

A fancy drink

Our silly dog

In other good news, my husband received a job offer yesterday.  He will be starting his first sales position November 1st.  After the first few months, it becomes entirely commission-based, so we shall see.....just one more step along this crazy path of life.