So much to write... so tired to write it all :/

I will start by first saying "IT'S A BOY!" I can't believe I have not blogged since we found out! We are 28 weeks along now so only 12 more to go!!!!! WOW! Excitiong and scary that I will have 2 kids by the end of this year! So glad that I trust my loving God! ;) We are super excited to have a complete family of four! We will be done having children after this little one! Thankfully so b/c this pregnancy has really taken its toll on me. I feel like my body feels "older" It really is sad. It feels great when I walk and excersise so I do a lot of that but I constantly have to think about proping my legs up, sleeping on my left side 'only', drinking lots of water, stretching my back a lot.... I am just coming into my 3rd tirmester and I just feel like I only have a couple weeks left. I really love being pregnant, just this time around. my body doesn't so much! :( I am very nervous about the changes that will take place when baby Hunter gets here but I know we will be okay. Middle of winter, inside the house 99% of the first few months.... phew, that is going to be hard! But then again, maybe not as hard as actually going out... with 2!.... and to make it worse, going out ALONE! Oh my!!! ;) It will take some easing into, huh? And hey, Im not the first to have done it!

Okay so the other thing I came here to write about is our trip to the Disney on Ice show today.... we were able to take Hayden and see the princesses dance on the ice. It was so much fun to see her enjoying it so much! She was a very happy little girl! We rode the train and again, she called it "Thomas" lol! They did mini shows from Cinderella, Princess and the Frog and then Tangled with Rapunzel. It was about 2 hours and that was good timing.

My Pregnancy Excitement

With Hayden, it was the first everything. I enjoyed it from seeing the positive pregnancy test all the way to the end of my pregnancy and beginning of our new life. Yes, the newborn stage was hard but I loved it and I love my 3 year old so much at this age too BUT I am so excited to have another baby again. I never thought I could enjoy the "second" experience, not the baby itself, I knew I would love my kids the same, but the experience I never thought I could enjoy the same because it wasn't the first. I was so wrong! It is like a whole new love for this pregnancy. I got to have an u/s at 12 weeks with this one and I did not get the the first time and it was beautiful. To see something that tiny, I mean smaller than an actual piece of jumbo shrimp, move its arms and legs and the heartbeat was amazing! The first movements and know that they are getting stronger bring such joy and smile to my face everytime I feel it. To know that I have done the birthing process before and that I am "better prepared" for it this time makes me so much more confident and relaxed which does make for a more enjoyable pregnancy. To know that I dealt and overcame ppd after having Hayden makes me feel assured that everything will be okay! She is such a good helper to me already that I feel like this will be a pretty easy transistion. I know it will be hard work but I am not afraid of anything to go terrible. I feel that we are doing well preparing her and she seems to be understanding! Makes me so glad that we made the choice for the 3 year age difference!
I am also preparing for the new changes in a different light, as I have grown as a mother I feel more confident with my motherly instincts and decisions. I plan to make longer goals to maintain a happy healthy baby. First choice: I plan to exceed the 9 months I breastfed dd#1. I loved the bonding and the good feeling it gave me to know that I gave her the best. I am so thankful that I have these desires and that it worked so well with the first so I now have a better understanding, and passion to do it again. I have also prepared better for the homemade baby food journey that I plan to take on again. That is another wonderful feeling and I LOVED doing it with Hayden which makes me so much more motivated! My third and biggest decision is to tackle cloth diapering again and stick with it... as I did not do with Hayden. I have learned a lot more about it now, bought a great stock and I actually have a husband willing to help with it this time! We, well I, tried with DD for a few weeks and I gave up. I wish I had taken the time to know more about it and I know it would have worked. It is hard to learn something when you have gotten to a certain stress level with it. I have the energy, motivation, and "knowledge" I feel I need to suceed this time around!
Thanks for reading! I wanted to share because when people ask me how I am doing I want to tell them everything, how wonderful I feel, and how excited I am but I just can't say all this at one time! :)
So as my journey continues, I pray everyday that I will maintain this positive look at life and continue to be so thankful for all my blessings! I am so happy to share my joy! (Pray, too, that it stays through the tough days, as I know there will be tough days) :)

Funny Things...

I will probably update this often as this is a very funny age Hayden is at and she says and does funny things a lot! I want to remember some of them so I will try to jot them out here:
She has a stuffed puppy now and his name is Rooster "but it doesn't say cocka doodle do, it says ruff ruff"
She also had a couple of pennies in the car and randomly said "mommy, I want to make a wish" and never have taught her that I said "huh? like in a wishing well?" and she said "yes" I said "we don't have a wishing well" "Yes I do mommy, look." And she was tossing the pennies into her cup of water. I then remembered that mom had taken her to the manchester area where they have a fountain and now know that my mom taught her about that. So funny though that she remembers so well! It really amazes me! Nothing gets by her and I always have to remember to stick to my word or don't say it.

Hayden calls popsicles a "pocoloni" I have no idea why or where she got that from. I used to and still do have to correct a lot of 'S' words like s "pooky" etc and she will leave off the 's' so I tell her to say "s, snake" using the ss ss sound.... anyway, I was correcting her popsicle mistake the other day and she said "s, pocolicle" lol It really was hilarious!

Something else she says that makes me smile ... when we ask how much she loves us, she will say "BIG MUCH" She started saying that early on when we would say "thhiiissss much" and she started her own thing and still does it today! It is very special!

She says "are you serious mommy?" This she gets from me unfortunately. I say that good and bad, lol. She will say it to be more funny than truly asking... so she is indeed making ' fun of the way I do it' ;)

Lets see... she also learned to roll her eyes. Not out of rudeness but like a "so silly" eye roll that I guess I also do and didn't realize.

Children!

Hayden will be 3 years old this summer!! I believe it now how time flys by after children! I am 12 weeks pregnant today and I think this second baby will grow even faster! Hayden did everything so quickly so I hope this one will stay a "baby" for longer but I definately don't want to "baby" this one forever like some people do when they know it will be their last baby. ;) So much changes once you become a parent. Im telling you what, there are so many things I said I would never do or let me kids do and yeah... "never say never" The kids in the resturant or in the grocery store yelling and pitching the fit - I would say, "I would have better control of my child" Now that the tables have turned I understand that it is not that the parent is not in control, but only that the child.... well, is a child! It is going to happen and the question now is, "How will I handle this" Every child and mother is different in every situation and I have learned that you may have to try a couple different "modifications" to disciplinary actions to find the one that will best work for your own childs personality. For Hayden I have to always ask her "Hayden, do you understand me?" and then I have to make her repeat what I ahve said or to acknowledge it by saying "yes ma'am" while looking at me in my eye. That youngin is a bullet! If I don't have her full attention, it is like I never said/did it! The other day, nana told me that Hayden said to her in a grumbly voice "Do you understand meee???" I laughed so hard! Hey, it may not have been right for her to use that with her nana and I am sure that in these cases we talk to her about it afterwards, but at least I know that she is listening and understands that this means... "Do you get what I said to you?" Hayden is learning how to swim this summer! Nana's wonderful pool allows us to get her out there and just go! She did great last year too, I mean she would slide the slide all by herself, but this year she forgot what all she did last year and she has gotten a little more fearful of a lot of the things she use to be so fearless about. That could definately be a good thing too b/c she needs to know the difference between the two when it comes to dangerous situations but I hope she will not fear the water, learn to swim and stick with it through to next year! We were able to go to the beach this past May which was nice! Hayden loved it! She would ask to go when we got home... and now we get to go again but as a family! I am so excited! We went last year but it was a fishing trip for Justin and Hayden and I just tagged along so it wasn't a family vacation (and it was in October). We are having some friends down with us one day/night and they have Connor, Hayden's age and then Jeannie and the boys will be heading down Sun-Wed! This is just wonderful! I am ready to pull out the sand toys and build a big castle with Hayden, swim in the ocean and maybe get a sun tan? lol! I am not going to be huge and pregnant this time around over the summer so I will enjoy it while I can. I am definately not sporting a bikini but I can still get a nice tan. I think I have a little baby bump forming but still in my regular clothes!! I am so happy about that! I bought my first pair of maternity pants when I was pregnant with Hayden at 12 weeks... they usually say you start showing earlier with the second so I fiigured I would be in maternity clothes by 10 weeks.... so yeah, I think this is great! It won't be long though, I'll tell ya! Also I lost more weight than my pre-pregnancy weight after Hayden too so that has a lot to do with it. I hope I can continue to go to the gym and stay in "shape" during this pregnancy. I just want a smooth delivery and I know that will help tremendously. My ideal labor would be to wait out as much as I could at home and soak in the bath and then head to the hospital and be dialated at like 8 or 9 and then start pushing and have a natural labor....... BUTTTT being that my dues date is Dec 30th I do not think that my dream will come true. Why? Because due to insurance reasons, I really need to have this baby in 2011, not 2012. I will then have the next deductible to meet which is $1500 and we will have already met it for 2011. Our OB GYN would be billing us again in 2012 is the way I understand it so I am thinking if this baby is not here by the 28th or the 29th I will try to induce labor.... inducing labor will then lead to an epidural, lol! But we shall see!! Wow! I ahve never ever ever dreamed of having a holiday baby, much less, a Christmas/New Years baby!! This is going to be one heck of a ride! Just no pictures of this mom on Christmas morning please!! lol I have had a really pleasant pregancy this far. I mean the difference between this and the last is not a whole lot. I loved my pregnancy with Hayden. No sickness, felt great, etc. This one is the same but even less nausousness, less tiredness, less irritability... but more eating :( Uh oh! I have cut back since the beginning... that was bad! I was craving awful foods and I have just tried to learn to control it and balance it out. I am ready to find out what this little peanut is! We had an ultrasound last week and this little thing was moving around and kicking! I loved it!! We will know in Aug if it is a boy or girl. I now have a "gut" feeling that I had not had at all before and I am saying BOY! Now, who really knows but God, but we will see soon enough! I think Hayden is going to be a great BIG SISTER! She already talks about the baby and says she is going to help! I think I am really going to love this age difference.
We are still trying to sell the house and move our growing family into a better home but no takers just yet. I have come to a peace if we do have to stay in this house longer than we wish but we are still praying diligently that things change and turn around for us! We are very thankful for what we have and we know we have a good thing!

The way we spent our last weekend in January 2011

This past week has been super busy for us and I think we all were looking forward to a fun filled long weekend! Sad thing is that weekends always go by too fast! Having a 2 year old makes them go by even faster! So Saturday was an all day affair for me and my beautiful friend Emily - the bride! We had 3 appointments from 10am to 3pm for wedding dresses and bridesmaid dresses. Although I had to be out all day, it was good for Justin ... He was able to have a father/daughter day with Hayden -- scary huh? and Yes, he actually made it the whole day! (I think it was the first full day with her in 2 years... shhh lol) They went in to Rock Hill and bought 15 +/- books for $4.25 at a bargain book sale! She is in heaven with all these 'new' books. What a great deal too!! Books are too expensive now a days so a deal like this can't be passed up! They got to spend some good quality time together and when I returned home we went to eat fish at the fish fry at the York High School. We do this every year while Justin's cousin is in the Band (this is their fundraiser). We met Paige, Eric, Peyton, Nana and Paw Paw there and then were on our way back home where we played even more. Hayden dressed up and put on her heels and just danced! She is a wild one! Never slows down for sure but you tell her it is bedtime and she is OUT! I will have to share the video I took! This is great blackmail for when our daughter starts dating! :) I am going to love sharing this when she gets older!!! I know she will appreciate it!

So anyway, Today, Sunday the 30th, we went to Church and left straight after for the Circus! Barnum and Bailey & The Ringling Brothers! We won free tickets through Charlotte Parent! How perfect for our little toddler! The seats start at A on the bottom row (closest to the floor) we had row E! 5th row up!! Great seats! We were so blessed to get these! we rode the Lynx Tram up to the Arena and got there for the Pre Show! Hayden was scared of the clowns but loved the Elephant. Before we got there she was telling friends at Church "I go to the circus and and see the elephants and cows" lol "the elepants eat" and when we got on the tram she called it "Thomas" like Thomas the train lol!! So we watched the show, had popcorn and coke cola which was $4 and $5.75 for a reg size (not big at all) We wanted to get Hayden something to be a souviener but it was soooo expensive and since she doesn't know what she is missing (yet) when passed.... but they had light up necklaces for $7, small stuffed animals there were $16 and up and the swords that light up were like $20! Sheesh!! When she is 5, 6, or 7 I am sure we will not be able to pass up a toy but I can't imagine how much they will be then!! It was truly a blast for us to be together as a family!

Afterward we headed to Jeannie's for dinner and to see Justin! He is home from California for a few days and we all got together to celebrate! We are so happy he is home and can't wait until it can be permanent! I love my family and how close we are!! It is wonderful and I hope family values always stay important throughout our busy lives... even in our children's lives!!

New Year, New Beginnings

I am very excited to head into he new year of 2011. Hayden will be starting in a Pre-K program 2 mornings a week - doesn't that sound fun?! She will have the interaction with other children her age, learn social skills, sharing, and the "schooling" aspect of it will help her attention span and listening skills. She will have to listen to someone other than mommy daddy or a family member and will have to follow the rules. I am nervous that she may be the "wild child" in the class but if we never do this, she will never learn, right? She is learning so much so fast it amazes me already! As the new year begins I am changing some things in my own schedule as well. I am studying to get my insurance license! I am also cutting back on cleaning houses so that I am not so overwhelmed. I love both jobs but it sure takes it toll on me. With Justin back at Bowater, this is allowing us to get our budget back into place and start looking up! I am also taking one day off of both jobs a week to spend with Hayden. Justin and I are hoping and praying for another new and healthy addition to our family by the end of 2011! I am excited for that as well (of course) Hayden would be 3 years old before the new arrival and I think that is a good age difference. I pray that God will work it all out in His timing. I know He will!

Christmas 2010 was awesome! It is so much fun being a mom to a 2yr old! I was just as excited this year as I was when I was a kid on Christmas morning. :) She has some really cool and fun toys and I get to play with her. lol. She got all kinds of play doh stuff, rain boots, the cutest monogramed bookbag, games, clothes.... A baby doll and puppy from Great Grandmama, a tent from Grammie, all kinds of stuff from Nana including a really big tinkerbell coloring book, a pillow pet, and cute outfits. All kinds of princess stuff from Aunt Paige, Grammie and others. Puzzles from Christina, A shopping cart and pretend food from Aunt Sara and Ricky, PJ's and a robe from Aunt NeNe, a Clemson shirt, huge cereal bowl and towel set from Daddy Pop, she got dvd's including Veggietales and Barney's Christmas Adventure from great Aunts. Great Grandma got her a Beginner's Bible and mommy thinks that is one of the coolest gifts! I know I loved mine when I was little so I am hoping and thinking she will too! Phew, she got a lot!

We played in the snow the day after Christmas and had a lot of fun but it was so cold and Hayden face planted a few times so we ended up going in the house shortly after. We stayed out for about an hour and a half though which is a long time really. We took the sled down a hill at a church down the road and tried to build a snowman in our yard. Hayden loved it. We put her in the bath when we got in not realizing that we should have waited for her body temp to rise ... so poor thing was so cold and then went into warm water and it made her wrist and ankles look like they were about to blister. Thankfully it went away quickly but that was scary and lesson learned!!

All in all I am so happy in my life and looking forward to what the new year and God's plan has in store for my family!

(Our house is STILL on the market -- I wish it would sell, other than that we are good as gold ;))

Carving Pumkpins

We are always planning stuff to do now with these fun holidays and a little girl at a really fun age! It is fall - ah, I love fall - so we went to the Peach Orchard last weekend. Hayden got to hold cute little bunnies, and there was this huge 19lb rabbit too!! Grammie helped Hayden decorate a planter and they planted a pansie! We rode a horse carriage to the other side, went through a hay maze, and got ice cream! Hayden wanted to hold the cone but she would gladly share, just DON'T take the cone! ;) Today we planned to carve pumpkins. We were getting all the stuff out from the inside and asked Hayden to stick her hands in and help and she said "No mommy, hands dirty" lol As if she just did not want to get her hands dirty from the inside of the pumpkin. haha. We made her do it anyway b/c she really or usually doesn't mind getting dirty and she was fine! It was cute though!

She does so many cute things! She will call everyone "friend" She will pull the blinds up in the living room, look out and if someone is walking or outside across the street she will yell "Hey Friend" lol. She will see a baby or child in the grocery store and say "friend mommy, friend" Sounds more like "fiend" but I understand her! She looves other babies so much! She wants to get right in their face and "help" anyway that she can. She loves her cousin Peyton! She will try to "tickle" her and try to help feed her or give her the paci. It is precious! I think she will be a greta helper when she has a little brother or sister! She will be 3 by then I am sure so she will be even more of a help and she will be more independent herself which will be a help to mommy! ;) Justin and I are talking about our options now so hopefully we will have another baby in 2011 or sometime around then!! It is exciting to me to have a sibling for Hayden! I know having a big family means so much to me now and esp when I was a kid! I just think it will be tough going through the infant stage but time flies so we will be alright!

Justin is about to start 2nd shift (instead of 3rd) and I am really thinking that I am going to like it a lot! We will get our nights together back and he will be able to get a good amount of sleep and able to get up have family time or help with watching Hayden while I work and not be worn out all the time! I hope it will be as great as I am thinking! He sure is wonderful though! He is such a hard worker and I appreciate him so much! We have really been trying to work with each other and help each other out as much as we can lately and it feels so nice! Sometimes we forget to do these things and when we are reminded that we are not alone it is wonderful! I love the connection we have and the bond! He is my hero! .... okay so done with the cheesyness! haha!

On another note... I am sure ready for Christmas... not really Christmas to be here but for the shopping and wrapping! I am ready to get stuff together for everyone! We are cutting back a lot this year and I have already gotten a little done to space things out but I am still excited to give something! We are going to make some pretty cool gifts to be from Hayden too and I think it is going to turn out sooo great!