My New Addiction...

Marcus got me started on "Scrubs" and now I can't stop watching it. Just finished Season 2...Season 3 here I come!

Apartment Searching...Oh What Fun!

O.k., so my title is a little sarcastic. Marcus and I have been searching for an apartment in Texas to move into this fall. We were hoping to find a place within our budget in the Little Elm area (so we could be in Bishop Bappa's ward) but just couldn't get our move-in date to match with apartment availability or find a home to rent that was a reasonable cost once utilities were figured in.

We ended up searching right in the area Marcus will be working and found several apartments that were within seven miles of his job. Marcus' mom went and checked a complex out for us (thank you for all your help Momma P.!) and we have decided to move forward with the place...and hope it all works out so we can finally stop worrying about the whole thing.

We're a little bummed to be farther away from his family members than we first expected, but are happy to have found a convenient area, and in all reality, one that is not too too far away from everyone.

Today's Fantastic Doctor's Appointment

I had another one of my Dr. appointments today and it could not have gone better. My blood pressure is still super-low (and it had started creeping up at this time during my last pregnancy). I also still had not gained any weight (which is good because I should not have really gained any in these last two weeks).

Dr. Gourley seemed very happy with how things are progressing and gave me a scheduled c-section date a week later than the latest date he gave me last time, which came as a total suprise to me, but I am very happy about. If things continue to go as well as they have been then James will be delivered Friday July 25.

So...that's the update for now. I couldn't be more happy about it and hope everything continues this way!

Manners

Marcus, Connor, and I went out this evening to do some fun things on Memorial Day as well as have a family home evening activity. I'll spare you all the boring details, but I have been ranting and raving to Marcus all night about how rude a lot of kids are now days. I swear, manners (of any sort) are a thing of the past for most people. I know that my little Connor is far from being well-behaved a lot of the time, but I am trying to teach him and hopefully when he's a bit older he'll have some basics down...like:

-not hitting two year-olds (especially when you're 10)
-not throwing them (literally) off of a slide ladder
-not purposely trying to jump on their heads
-not totally ramming into a pregnant lady's belly and then acting ticked off like it was her fault for standing there (even though you shouldn't have been running around like a crazy person to begin with)
-not swearing, belching, and farting as other kids walk by on playground equipment(especially when you're an 8 year old girl)

Let me just say I learned something about myself today, and that is that I really do not have very much patience when it comes to blatantly rude children who definitely are old enough to know better. I have even less patience when thinking about some of their parents who were standing by watching the entire time and seemed not to care at all.

11 Nights in a Row

For those of you who may not know, Marcus works gaveyard shifts at a residential treatment center for at-risk youth. He has worked at this job for over three years now. His usual schedule is Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday nights from 11:00 pm to 7:00 am. He has been picking up A LOT of extra shifts lately and right now he is in the middle of an 11 night streak...and the weekend shifts run from 11:00 pm to 9:00 am. I am glad for the opportunity he has to pick up these shifts (since this job is our only means for income right now) but I am ready for him to be done with this crazy schedule...and I know he is too!

My Little Big Boy

I have always loved watching Connor enter a new stage and do things for the first time. I have to say, however, that watching him turn into a little big boy and come out of the toddler stage has really been my favorite. He has been acting so funny lately and doing things that have been cracking me and Marcus up. We think he sees himself on the same level as us now. Here are a few examples:

1. Yesterday and today when I was showering Connor came in and brought me some bubble bath and bath toys to play with. He even got down an automatic bubble blower his grandma gave him and turned it on for me. A few minutes later he came in to check on me and today he even told me I needed to wash my hair before I could get out. Finally he came in with a towel, pulled back the curtain completely, turned off the water, and told me it was time to get out. All of this was followed by him pulling out some of my pajama's from the dirty clothes hamper and giving me a pull-up to wear. He even brushed my hair once I was dressed. I think I need to start locking the door when I shower.

2. Sometimes I just lay down in bed with Marcus and talk in the morning after he comes home from work or in the afternoon when I wake him up. Lately, if Connor catches us he tells us it's time for our nap and then closes our door for us.

3. Yesterday I went shopping for some post c-section pj's and lounge clothes. Marcus and I always go shopping together and like helping each other pick things out. This time Connor hopped out of his stroller and started showing me different shirts he thought I would like and bringing me pants to try on. He acted like such a big kid...It was adorable.

4. Just as I've been sitting here typing this post Connor brought me a cup of milk and told me to drink it all gone before I could have a snack.

I am thrilled to be having an infant in my life again soon, but I am loving all the fun a preschooler brings right now. It will be fun to see my little big boy start to take care of his little baby brother...hopefully he won't smother him too much.

Blog Templates

Some of you may have noticed I have been changing my blog template an awful lot lately. I just can't find one that I really like very much and I am bored with some of the ones I have used for a long time. I wish blogger would come up with more templates to choose from. I have been to the websites that offer hundreds of other blogskins, but if I select one of them (and I haven't even found one that I like too much) it erases all of my pictures and links. No thank you! Anyway, I've come to the conclusion that this black one is the best I can come up with for now. How do some of you get your blog templates? How do you customize them so much? Is Wordpress a better program to use?

Baby James

Yesterday I had an ultrasound to check the growth of baby James. The ultrasound technician was convinced that everything looked totally healthy as of now. She explained to me that if my placenta stopped growing (which is what happened sometime around the 7.5-8 month mark last time) that the baby's brain and organs would soak up all of the nutrients and the abdomen would stop growing (which explains why Connor was totally healthy but just short and small). I thought that was pretty cool. Anyway, James' growth is exactly where it should be right now and he currently weighs about 3 pounds.

Connor was totally into the ultrasound. He wanted to get up and see everything that was going on. He liked looking at the monitor to see the baby as well as watch everything the technician was doing. In true Connor fashion he did not stop talking the entire time. He kept asking questions and getting excited about seeing the baby. When we were leaving the technician thanked us for bringing him with...she got such a kick out of him. Connor has been carrying around the ultrasound pictures and looking at his baby ever since we got home. I cannot get them away from him. When Abigail came over this morning Connor showed her the pictures and said, "This is my baby, Abby! Look at Connor's baby!"

So, that's the update on baby James. My next appointment is Tuesday afternoon.

Game of Tag

How to play this game of tag:
-Post these rules to your blog.
-List 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, and 3 random suprising facts about yourself.
-Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names.

Joys:
1: Connor and James. Connor brings joy into my life every day through all the little things he does and says. I love it when he says, "thanks mom" a thousand times a day, or gets really excited about any of the food I make for him and says, "Mmm, that's good". Plus, he's a total ham and is constantly making me laugh. Although James is not born yet I feel connected to him already. He moves and grooves A LOT and I can tell he's going to be a lot like his older brother in many ways (always busy...never any time to be a baby). I can't wait to meet my little James.
2: Marcus. I am totally convinced I have the best husband in the world for me. Marcus is always doing little things to suprise me and just make my day. He NEVER complains...unless it's about sports. And he's the best daddy to Connor...I love to see them play together.
3: Bevo and Hemi. I spend more time calling these little guys pathetic than I do joyous, but the truth is that they bring a lot of humor and entertainment into my life every day. They really are very loving and I'm thankful to have them as our little pets.

Fears:
1: Getting sick anytime in the next few weeks (while I'm nearing the end of pregnancy).
2: Being hit by a tornado when I move to Texas and do not have a basement or storm shelter. Seriously, I know it will probably not happen, but it still scares me like crazy.
3: Marcus suddenly dying. That would really stink.

Goals:
1: Get my apartment as ready for our move as much as possible before having James.
2: Keep sticking to the budget Marcus and I have set up to meet the financial goals we have.
3: Lose the 30 lbs I have gained (yes you read right...30!) since having Connor. I would love to lose 15 more than that even, but that 30 would get me back to my wedding weight, when I was "cute" according to Connor (who says I am not cute anymore).

Obsessions:
1: Blogging.
2: Budgeting (saving money and preparing for the transitional period we'll have during the next couple of months. Also, preparing to buy our first home and saving for medical school).
3: Cleaning. This is really just a current obsession as I'm trying to get (and keep) things ready for James to come and our move.

Random Suprising Facts:
1: I am a "yes-sayer" and find myself doing atleast two favors for other people every day. I have decided I am sick of this, however, (with the help of Marcus being sick of me doing it) and am going to start saying yes only when I absolutely want to do the favor or think the person really needs my help. I have started feeling like I'm being taken advantage of these last few weeks. I will always remember when I was at BYU-Idaho and President Bednar said, "You are never helping another person when you do something for them that they can and should do for themselves." This is my new motto!
2: I used to hope that I would have only boys...careful what you wish for! Although I really would LOVE to have a little girl (and was SO EXCITED when I thought I was having one) I am happy with the idea of having a family of boys. I guess it just seems natural since that's what I have always imagined anyway.
3: I am a sucker for teenagers. Teens are by far my favorite age group. I just love all the crazy changes everyone goes through during those years. I would not want to be a teenager again, but I find so much joy working with them. I loved working with teens at EFY, Heritage, and hope my next job (which will be some time down the road) will bring me to that age group again. I can't wait for some of my neices and nephews to get to that age (and many are well on their way...on the Poole side).

Alright...If you happened to read that whole post and you would like to do it yourself go right ahead! I'm going to tag Marcus (yes, you have to do it! I want to read what you'll come up with!), Dawn Poole, Christy Ciccotelli, Andrea Aguiar, and Kristine and Janeen (o.k. so I know you are two people, but I figure since you're identical twins I can get away with tagging you both as my fifth person).

A Good Husband

I have a good husband who today proved that he was willing to go the extra mile (or 30 miles) to make his wife and little boy happy.

I have been telling him how much I wanted to have him take care of Connor for me so I could just dig in and get our apartment super clean. Connor tells us both every day how much he wishes we would just take public transportation every where we ever go..."I wan't to ride the bus! The Bus! The Bus! Please the Bus!" Well, this morning Marcus got Connor ready for the day, packed a little bag, and took Connor for an hour and a half long bus ride just to give the little guy a fun time and me some time alone at the apartment. Who does that? Amazing!

Of course, Connor had a blast, Marcus happily tolerated it, and I got a bunch of work done at home.

I love you Hub! Thanks for being such a good husband!

Baby Shopping Update

I'm sure you've all been dying to know how my baby shopping has been going...o.k., so maybe not, but I'm giving you an update anyhow.

Let me first say, shopping for things for my home and family is one of my most favorite things to do. I'm not exactly sure why, but it's like my hobby or something. I love it and I take it very seriously (I hate to waste money or buy things on a whim).

Anyway, I have decided to put off buying the cradle swing and infant stroller until we move to Texas (which will be in August). I just can't justify purchasing them right now only so they can sit in a box and take a long ride with the rest of our stuff half-way across the country in a few months. James will only be a few weeks old when we move and I didn't use my cradle swing until Connor was six weeks. I will buy those when I get my double stroller the end of this summer (P.S. Thank you all for the advice on a good one, I have been looking into each of your suggestions!).

Tonight I bought my bouncer and I'll be ordering my carseat. I am so excited! I now have all the odds and ends and other things I need to feel prepared for my baby James to come! I never got to that point with Connor, he was born before I was prepared for him.

Let the Potty Training Begin!

This afternoon it finally happened...I ran out of diapers (even though I have since found a few more down in the car). I put training pants on Connor and explained to him that we had no more diapers so he needed to start using the potty. Then I got out a big jar of bubble gum and told him he could only have some when he was sitting on the potty. To my amazement, he ran right in there, sat down and had some success. I know that I am the one that actually is going to need more training then Connor, it's so easy to just let him wear a diaper, now I've got to get used to making sure he gets in there enough throughout the day and clean up the inevitable accidents. Here we go...wish me luck.

Huggies Bug Me

Now, before I rant and rave about how much I do not like Huggies diapers for my kid, let me just say, I'm sure they work great on some babies...they just are horrible on mine!

My dislike for Huggies began all the way back to when Connor and I were still in the hospital after his birth. He was a teeny tiny four pound baby and the hospital was putting him in preemie size Huggies diapers. EVERY time he wet his diaper he leaked totally through them. We figured it was just because he was so small and the diapers were so big on him. We suffered through this horrible dilemma for the first three weeks of his life...and then we bought Pampers. Same size, but NO LEAKING! Hooray! It was like a miracle!

I continued to use Pampers after that first purchase, but have occasionally used a Huggies diaper either because someone else gave them to us or because I would buy a pack that was on sale and think, "Maybe now that he is a different size they will work better on him." I have been wrong about that 100% of the time.

I am still using up the diapers I have here in the house before potty training Connor (and I am now SERIOUSLY almost out of them). Last night I put a Huggies diaper on him (what was I thinking) and he woke up this morning DRENCHED.

The thing that bugs me so much about this are those darned Huggies comericials I see all the time...the ones that say "unless your baby is a brick Huggies are best because they are shaped to fit babies of the human variety." LIARS LIARS LIARS! My son is not a brick, he is a little human, and their diapers stink on him!

So, today I take my hat off (not that I ever wear hats, but if I did I would) to Pampers. The company that not only keeps what goes in the diaper inside the diaper but also give me free stuff all the time for buying their products (which are also cheaper than Huggies by the way). Their Pampers Points for Products system is awesome.

The end.

P.S. If you use and love Huggies please do not take offense to this, like I said, I'm sure they work great for some babies, they just are horrible on mine.

Carpet Cleaning and Medical School

What do those two things have to do with one another you may ask. Well, I'll tell you, they are what we (and when I say we I mean Marcus) are going to be doing for the next several years.

Marcus has been applying for and looking for various jobs in the Dallas area since January. We have always been planning on going there to work and go to graduate school, but a couple of months ago we began talking about going there and preparing for Medical School.

Marcus visited Dallas this last weekend to attend a teacher's job fair but ended the trip with a fantastic job working for Zerorez (a carpet cleaning company) which, as funny as it sounds, we could not be more happy about! The job only requires him to work 4 days a week and pays double the salary we have been hoping for. His boss is a former stake and mission president and Marcus was impressed by him and the way he runs the business.

So...Marcus does not have to begin until after our baby is born, and will probably start sometime towards the end of July. I will be moving with the boys in August and Marcus will begin taking the classes he needs to prepare to apply to Med School. We are grateful for this opportunity to purchase our first home sometime this year, make the money we need to support our family, and save big time to prepare financially for the four years of schooling he will have before doing a paid residency. We will just need to practice some solid financial discipline.

Anyway, that is our big news and we are both really looking forward to the next several years!

Today's Doctors Appointment

I had my appointment this morning with Dr. Gourley that I was so looking forward to. I asked all of my questions and got very good answers.

First, I am doing very well. I still have super-low blood pressure, had 0 weight gain (hooray!), and James' heart was beating fast and furiously (which was good). I feel like my belly is much bigger this time than it was with Connor (it was not very big with him) but I am apparently wrong. It measured almost exactly what it was at during this point in my last pregnancy, but all is well. I will have an ultrasound to check James' growth next Tuesday and they will check my organs as well then too to make sure I really am still nice and healthy. The Doc was extremely optimistic today and has no concerns about me or James at this point!

Now, I will not bore you with all the details of all the questions I asked today and the answers I got, but the bottom line was simply that I should not worry too much because Dr. Gourley is taking every precaution. If I ever have a day where I'm worried that I'm begining to not feel well, or my blood pressure goes up, etc., he feels confident that with monitoring and possible early delivery we will avoid any major problems.

Lastly, I recieved full permission to eat as much sugar as I want. My glucose screening test came back mostly normal...it showed I have too high of a tolerance for sugar. So, to avoid feeling light-headed or getting headaches I was told to eat sugar as I please. I guess that's a Dr.'s order I will just have to follow :)

Mother's Day

Marcus has been in Texas this weekend job hunting (and has been successful! More on that in a later post). Anyway, because he was going to be gone this weekend we celebrated my Mother's Day a week earlier and each spent yesterday with our own mothers. I just wanted to thank Connor and Marcus for a great day last week and my own mother and grandmother for a wonderful day yesterday (my in-laws too...thanks for the e-mail, phone call, and gifts!)

100th Post

So...aparently this is my 100th post. When I noticed this fact I started feeling a lot of pressure to make it a really good one. Unfortunately, I do not think it is going to be. I just do not have anything really exciting to write about today and all the celebrities I invited to guest write on my blog to celebrate this occasion declined. SO...it's just me and my "not too happening" life.

Anyway, Connor and I just got back from dropping Marcus off at the airport. He is flying to Texas to attend a huge school district job fair this Monday as well as look into some other potential jobs. He will be back this Tuesday and I am already looking forward to his return.

Since Marcus has continued to work a lot of overtime shifts lately Connor and I have been trying to keep ourselves busy playing with friends and running errands. Yesterday we went over to my aunt Julie's (where my cousin Christy and her little boy Ty are staying this summer while her husband is away doing a physical therapy internship in Las Vegas). We had pizza with Christy and Ty and then played and went for a walk. Although we are sad they have to be away from Jay (Christy's husband) this summer, we are glad they are here for us to play with!

Connor and I are going to get a good sleep tonight and then head down to Ephraim to celebrate Mother's Day tomorrow. Monday morning I have a Dr.'s appointment and I am totally geared up to ask Doc Gourley LOTS of questions about the coming few weeks and all the "what if's" that could happen. I'm also excited because we'll be scheduling another ultrasound for the week to check James' growth. I LOVE ultrasounds.

O.K. That's it. Happy 100th to me.

Shopping for Baby

I have realized that finding out I was having a second boy instead of a girl was a definite financial blessing in disguise. I kept all of Connor's clothes that were in really good condition as well as all the other baby boy odds and ends I bought for him. It has been fun to go through everything that was being stored and get it all ready for James. I am mostly left needing to get "baby gear" type of things; either because what we had for Connor was disappointing, or it was passed on to someone else, or we never got it to begin with.

So...Since I'm sure you are all so curious, here is my list of things to get:

1: Infant Car Seat (We had quite the ordeal with this when we had Connor. The first one we got was not preemie compatible and it was too big to fit securely in the back seat of our CRV. The second one we got fit just fine but was really disappointing...it just ended up not being a good car seat. It was HEAVY, bulky, and the handle and base became very lose after a few months of use...not too safe).

This time I'm going with the #1 safety-rated car seat on the market which also comes at one of the best prices I've seen...HOORAY! It's also ultra light, slim, and is made out of the same fabric that Connor's current car seat is made of (which is super-easy to wash)! It's the Baby Trend - Flex Loc Infant Car Seat and here it is:


2: Swing and Bouncer (LOVED LOVED LOVED the ones I got for Connor. However, one of his older cousins accidentally broke the motor that moved the toys around when visiting as well as straining the motor that actually moves the swing...so Connor let his sweet baby cousin Ty see if he could squeeze any use out of it).

This time I'm going for nearly identical products to the ones I got last time...and safe guarding them as much as possible. Good thing Connor is only 21 lbs. so if he does climb in the swing he is still light enough to not strain the motor (although my preference will be for him to stay out of it completely)! Here they are, the Fisher Price Cradle Swing and Bouncer:



3: Infant Stroller (I never bought one last time. I just didn't want a bulky travel system and I couldn't find one that was small enough for my liking. I LOVED the stroller I ended up buying, but would like the convenience of not having to wake my baby up if he's sleeping when going from the car seat to the stroller).

This time I'm going for the Baby Trend Snap N Go Stroller:



There you have it. I'm thrilled because the two things that are not coming from Wal*Mart.com (which beats Babies R Us pricing on the products I like by $20-$60) are going to be on sale the end of this month during Babies R Us Baby Days...I love a good deal!

Now I have a question for any of you who might be able to offer some good advice. I've been shopping around for double strollers and I'd love some tips on what makes a good one! I do not like the big-bulky-humongous strollers (my muscles and coordination are not good enough to manage ones like that). If any of you have a double stroller that you LOVE let me know!

Elmo Underpants

I have been on a mission to find Elmo underpants in a size 2T. "That can't be too hard" you may say...well, if you did say that you would be DEAD WRONG!

On Saturday Marcus, Connor, and I went to EVERY, and I mean EVERY, single store we could think of from Spanish Fork to Orem that could possibly sell them. We got really creative too, I even checked grocery stores, just in case. Well, our search turned up unsuccessful and we had to call it quits until yesterday. After some hard-core internet research I came up with a list of random places to check. After a few more failed attempts we finally found some at Sears! HOORAY!

Connor is now ready for potty-training...now I just need to do it. I plan on starting as soon as I run out of diapers (which will definitely be in the next few days).

Nothig Says "I Love You" Quite Like...

...a note on a box filled with Krispy Kreme doughnuts.

Thanks Hub!

Fun Summer Days (Even Though It's Not Really Summer...I Know)

Connor has had a VERY fun few days this week (and I've had a fun time with him)! Marcus has been picking up lots of extra shifts to earn what we need to compensate for the Teacher's Aid job he no longer has now that school is over. We decided our preference was for him to just get the extra shifts out of the way in May so that we did not have to worry about it throughout June, July, and August. So, he's been super-busy with work (and sleep) and it has left Connor and I with lots of time on our hands to fill. Abigail has been coming up in the morning to play and then we have been going out with her and her mom in the afternoons to do some fun summertime activities!

This week we went to lunch on Wednesday (thanks to Abby's Grandma), went swimming for two hours at the Orem Rec Center on Thursday, and then rode the "choo choo" (Trax) up to the Gateway yesterday to go to the Children's Discovery Museum and see "Sesame Street Presents the Body". We were gone for eight hours, and even though we came home absolutely exhausted, we all had a blast!

Connor is really turning into a good little swimmer! With the help of his trusty floaties he now swims all by himself in the big pool. He kicks his little legs as furiously as he can and he is able to actually make his way from one end of the pool to the other.



Connor was in an entirely different world when we were on the "choo choo" and at the Sesame Museum. He was completely unresponsive to me or anything else around him as he ran from one display to another. I was desperately hoping to get some good pictures of him in front of all the cute Sesame Street backdrops they had, but like I said, he was checked out of reality. I did get lots of "action" shots, however, and hope you enjoy them!

Enjoying the train ride on the way to Salt Lake City.


Connor was desperately trying to get Big Bird to open the door. "Hi Big Bird. This is Connor. Connor at your house!"


Shopping at Hooper's Store.


I wish I could have captured the look on his face when he saw this! He could hardly believe that we were at "Elmo's House!"


"Hi Dorthy!"


Another desperate attempt to get someone to open the door. "Elmo...this is Connor! Open!"


Playing the Count's organ.


Maybe nobody answered any of the doors but everybody was on the phone. (When he'd pick the phone up the different characters would take turns answering and talking). Connor spent nearly 30 minutes talking to everyone and telling them that he was at their house.


Big Bird.


Happy to say hi to Big Bird...Connor had no idea this was just a cardboard cutout.


Sleeping on the train ride home.

Last Trimester!

Today I am officially in my last trimester! WAHOO! I am:

1-EXCITED! (can hardly wait for my little James to be here!)
2-Nervous. (I do not want to get sick at all or have any complications).

So...here's to hoping the next few weeks go as smoothly as possible!