Let's see if this works....

This should be a Picasa album slideshow with 11 photos from December.

1. Annie looking pitiful in front of the Christmas tree.
2. Okay...so she finally gave us a smile
3. Elizabeth and Katherine "help" Annie open her birthday gift. Annie did NOT appreciate the help - trust me.
   
4. The things we'll do for our children. Mom got the snowglobe for Elizabeth's 4th birthday - got a killer after-Christmas deal on it. Brad kept putting off setting it up, until finally he relented on December 22. We wish we'd put it up earlier. It was cute (and with the lights on the roof was the only decoration outside our house) and the girls LOVED it. Brad actually said it was pretty cute, too.
   
5. The girls in their Christmas dresses before church on 12/23
6. Another sweet photo of Annie in front of the tree.
   
7. What our "yard art"/snowglobe will NEVER morph into - this is the RIGHT side of my mom's next-door neighbor's yard
8. And this is the LEFT side of the yard. Getting it all in one photo didn't do justice to just how bad it really looks. I mean, this stuff can be fun, but reign it in, people!!!
9. Meet Sophie. She's Mom and Dad's new puppy and she is such a cutie!
10. Annie, singing in her sister's High School Musical microphone. Loudly. Also, please notice the marker all over her fingers! What you can't see is the black marker all over her TEETH and mouth. (I give up with this child eating markers!!!)
11. Elizabeth and Katherine in a loving moment. Literally seconds later, they were rolling around on the floor screaming and fighting. Lovely.
    

That was rough....

With each of my pregnancies I've had a stomach virus. Something about the two seem to "go together" for me. Until yesterday, the latest I've ever been sick, was 16 weeks (with Annie). Yesterday morning it hit - hard. And Harrison did not appreciate it one iota. It's always hard to have a stomach virus (I hate them!) but having every muscle in my abdomen trying to press around a 32-week fetus who fights back I think makes it even worse!

Thankfully we only dealt with that once. The nurse told me to take Phenergan and sleep as much as I could. She didn't have to encourage me twice. I did just that.

Now I'm feeling better - still dizzy and weak but definitely better. I'm just praying Elizabeth doesn't get it next. Her birthday is Thursday and I really don't want this stuff to ruin her day!

Well, it started off as a good Christmas...

...and quickly went downhill from 2:00p.m. on. I'm still waiting on it to get better. We had a wonderful time opening gifts here, a great breakfast at my parents, a fun time opening gifts there and even a wonderful, very simple lunch (Petit Jean bacon sandwiches...yummo!). On the way home at 2:00p.m., just as we turned onto the interstate, the vomiting started. Poor Annie.

Initially we thought it was the consequences of sneaking into my mom's pantry and eating junk food (she's done that more than once) but as it continued into the evening we quickly realized it was a stomach virus.

On Wednesday, she kept down bananas for several hours but then did great keeping down a very light lunch and dinner. On Thursday, she kept down breakfast, lunch AND a snack. I was going to give her applesauce for dinner since diarrhea had started but was over-ruled and she got mac and cheese. Um, cheese...after a stomach virus. Not good. She started throwing up at 11:15 and threw up every 10 minutes until 1:00a.m. It was horrible because she would freak out when she started getting sick. And when she was dry heaving rather than actually vomiting...it was even worse.

Brad was sick (stomach virus) from 7-10 last night. Now he's mainly dealing with weakness.

I was just about to put Annie in her bed at 1:15 this morning when Katherine came up the hall, wailing. She stopped, threw up a little on the carpet as I ushered her into the bathroom saying, "Throw up in the sink or potty! I'll be right there." I basically tossed poor little Annie into her bed (she was out cold) and ran into the bathroom. Brad woke up and came in to check on her. She said, "But I don't need to throw up any more." Any more? Huh?? "Katherine, have you already thrown up?" She nodded, "All over my floor." Oh great. Brad went into their room and soon came back to the bathroom, "Let me take care of her." With the way he said it, I could tell that meant "I'm not cleaning the mess, you do it."

Why is it that everyone had to get sick at the same time??? Everyone is going to bed early tonight. I'm exhausted.

The birds and the bees and almost-five-year-olds

One day last week we're driving to preschool and from the back of the van Elizabeth asks, "Mommy, how did our baby get in your tummy?"

Oh. My. She did NOT just ask me that! And on the way to school, no less!!!! So, I said, "You know what, Elizabeth, I will be happy to answer that question; but on the way to preschool is not the time for us to talk about it. I'll answer it later, okay? I promise." She was fine with that.

So later that day I told her that we would talk after Nin went to bed - we'd have some Mommy and Elizabeth time. After Nin went to sleep, E came up to me and said, "Okay, NinNin is asleep. Let's talk now, okay?"

I talked to her about what we believe about God's design for a family and that as a Mommy and a Daddy we have been given a special gift to show how much we love each other and sometimes God uses our love for each other to create a baby. "Is that when you snuggle and want to have Mommy and Daddy time?" I've *never* said that she can't come in our room to sleep because we want to "snuggle" I've always said that sometimes Daddy and I want to have private time with no children in our room and that she needs to stay in her room. How she picked up on the "snuggle" thing, I have no idea. In response to that question I said, "Sometimes it is. And sometimes Daddy and I just want to talk without having kids around."

I knew this day was coming but had no idea it was going to be last week!

Some day I'll return to this point...

I love all the cookies and candies Alexis Stewart made for people and how she packaged them (as seen here). I managed to make two different kinds of biscotti and some hot cocoa mix in a jar one year for Christmas. I also stamped all of my Christmas cards that year. Yes, this was before children; but if I could get my act together...I could do this again. There's no reason I couldn't! Maybe next year, I'll set aside a weekend day in October, one in November and once in December to bake & freeze, package and decorate.

I think it's time for my family (or at least for *me*) to return to Family Christmas Craft Days and possibly include some baking on those days!

Christmas Quiz

Kim and Becky did it...I'm feeling blog-peer-pressure (okay, not really, but it looked fun!)

1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? I love wrapped gifts with lots of curling ribbon - lots and lots of curling ribbon! Wrapped gifts are more fun to open, don't you think?
   
2. Real tree or artificial? We have to have artificial because I'm allergic to real trees. In 1992 I was having to see the doctor once a week and get a shot for my allergies. We couldn't figure out what was going on - until I kept his boys one night at our apartment. He walked in, took one look at our tree and said, "Well, there is the reason I'm giving you a shot in the backside every week! You're allergic to your Christmas tree." :( Though, next year we are going to go to the tree farm and get a small real tree to put on our front porch - Brad misses having a "real" tree. And I'm sure the kids will get such a kick out of choosing a tree!
   
3. When do you put up your tree? Brad usually puts the tree up on Black Friday while I'm out shopping. Then I spend the rest of the weekend decorating it. This year, though, he didn't get it put up until the Monday after Thanksgiving and then it took us over a week to decorate it!
   
4. When do you take your tree down? I want my space back...I start undecorating the tree on Christmas night. I want it down and OUT by December 27th. The only time it hasn't been down by then was in 2005...when I had a baby three days before Christmas. The tree didn't get undecorated until the first week of January.
   
5. Do you like eggnog? Not at all. I prefer hot chocolate with a splash of peppermint schnapps (though not this year)
6. Favorite gift received as a child? Barbie United Friend Ship - the airplane. I loved that thing and wish I still had it!
   
7. Do you have a Nativity scene? We have many! I have one carved from olive wood that my friend got for me when she went to Israel for many weeks on a tour. It stays out all year long. I bought the Willow Tree Nativity starter set for myself last year and want to add pieces to it. I have a white bisque porcelain nativity that hasn't seen the light of day in about four years (since I had a toddler in the house!!!). We have two of the Little People nativities - one "basic" and one "deluxe" (star lights and it plays "Away in a Manger", it has a few extra animals and pieces) They are so sweet, I have to say they are my favorite! And the girls *love* to play with them!
   
8. Hardest person to buy for? Thankfully the difficult people to buy for are no longer on my list. :)
   
9. Easiest person to buy for? Really, everyone in my family is pretty easy to buy for since Mom *requires* a list from everyone and so we've all come to expect lists from one another. My kids, obviously, are super easy to buy for because I know them so well.
   
10. Worst gift ever received? I really can't think of anything at the moment!
    
11. Mail or email Christmas cards? For the record - emailed cards, while nice, aren't REAL cards. I mail mine and have finally, in the past couple of years, trimmed my list to under 100.
    
12. Favorite Christmas movie? A Christmas Story totally cracks me up. And we never miss the claymation version of Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer. Brad loves that one. And Holiday Inn -- another of Brad's absolute favorites.
    
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? Usually sometime in October but I get really serious about it on Black Friday and get most of it done that day.
    
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas gift? I can't remember, but I don't think so - not a Christmas gift.
    
15. Favorite things to eat at Christmas? Hershey's Candy Cane Kisses. I love those things!
    
16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear - the tree is prelit. We have clear red and clear (alternating on the strand) outside. I can't wait to get a little tree for the front porch and put red and white lights on it...it'll be so cute! And the tree for our room (which we've not put up in a couple of years) is blue and white with blue and white pearlized lights.
17. Favorite Christmas song? I blogged about it last year. It's Kathy Mattea's song "Christ Child Lullaby" it's a beautiful song and her CD is my favorite Christmas CD. I have several other CDs that I really like. The Carpenter's Christmas Portrait, Steve Tyrell This Time of Year, Tony Bennett Snowfall, Michael Card The Life, Josh Groban Noel (if you don't have this one...GET IT...man, can this guy SING - my girls love it!), Harry Connick, Jr. When My Heart Finds Christmas, Kenny G Miracles and Faith (I like Miracles better of the two). I can't remember what other Christmas CDs I have in the van at the moment. Oh...what we lovingly in our house call Have Yourself a Murray Little Christmas it's Todd's Christmas album from several years ago and since the front of the CD jewel case has disappeared, I can't remember the name of it (Todd is our Worship Pastor).
    
18. Travel at Christmas or stay at home? We stay in central Arkansas. Christmas morning gifts here and then we go to my parents' for breakfast and opening gifts with my parents, siblings and their families.
    
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen, Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen...but do you recall, the most famous reindeer of all...Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer...and I'll stop singing now. ;)
    
20. Angel on the tree or a star? Pressed tin, painted and distressed star at the very top of the tree that I found at Target a few years ago and love. All of my angel and nativity ornaments hang at the top of my tree, too.
    
21. Open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning? Christmas morning
    
22. Most annoying thing this time of year? The traffic in certain areas of Little Rock. Thankfully since I've left the corporate world, our outside commitments are pretty much nil! I love that!
    
23. What is the "corniest" family tradition you do as a family, or miss doing? We love putting the girls in their PJs and driving around to look at lights.
    
24. Ugliest Christmas decoration ever invented? I'm sure I have an opinion of something, it's just escaping me at the moment. I *do* hate people who put a ton of junk in their yard, though (like my mom's next-door-neighbor). Even the inflatable snowglobes are okay...I can deal with those. But you don't need more than ONE. (says the woman who is going to have one in her yard next week...as soon as the rain stops)
    
25. Which looks best, themed trees or homey trees? I like both. Our tree is more on the "homey" side unless you consider "Mostly-Hallmark-Ornaments" a theme of it's own.
    
26. What does Christmas mean to you? Exactly what we put on our Christmas card every year:
    
    And when we give each other Christmas gifts in His name, let us remember that He has given us the sun and the moon and the stars, and the earth with its forests and mountains and oceans – and all that lives and moves upon them. He has given us all green things and everything that blossoms and bears fruit; and all that we quarrel about and all that we have misused – and to save us from our own foolishness, from all our sins, He came down to earth and gave us Himself. ~~Sigrid Undset

Turtle ideas

Elizabeth is having a turtle-themed birthday party and it's her first "friends" party so she's very excited about it. Initially it was going to be sea turtles and dolphins - so we were going to do a beach thing - she'd chosen this cake and we were going to add some turtles to it and eliminate some of the fish:

But, she's since chosen another cake (no photo on the Wilton website since it's a cake in their 2008 Yearbook) and the craft/favor she's chosen isn't beach-related either. It's a very, very cute little paint-your-own ceramic turtle bank.

So, now I'm searching for wording for her invitations. Any ideas? I'm completely drawing a blank!!

Christmas card and letter

It's that time of year...

Wow, what a year 2007 has been for the Eggs! And yes, I know I say that every. Single. Year. But, every year it rings more and more true!

• Because Annie was born so close to Christmas, it seems we’re always about to celebrate her birthday as we’re preparing to send out our Christmas notes. So, in order to be fair to our Bittiest Bug, I need to tell you about her first birthday party!. We had a pink and black polka-dot shindig complete with pink and black invitations, a cake decorated with pink and black polka-dots and a birthday girl dressed in a sweater with pink and black polka-dots.
• In January we celebrated Elizabeth’s 4^th birthday three times! Once at preschool on her actual birthday where she got to wear a special crown that she made with Ms. Janet, blow out candles on a pretend cake and bring a special snack. Then, we had a special family dinner on her birthday – at her favorite place to eat, IHOP. Strawberry pancakes are a must! Boop joined us for coffee while we were there. We had a Hello Kitty party that weekend with family and friends; turning 4 was quite an event.
• In February Annie officially became a toddler! Her big sisters were such an encouragement to her as she learned to take those first steps. They cheered and cheered.
• In March, Brad and I celebrated the 21^st anniversary of our first date, the 18^th anniversary of our engagement and our 17^th wedding anniversary. We’ve been together over half of our lives. It’s amazing how much we’ve grown together and how much we’ve been blessed.
• In April we took the girls to see Disney on Ice: Princess Wishes. We had front row seats and it was so much fun! After the show, we changed everyone into PJs and drove all night to Grammie & PawPaw’s house. We went to the Aquarium where, once again, Elizabeth’s favorite things to see were the turtles. Katherine loved the seahorse exhibit and seeing “Nemo and Dory”. Annie loved petting the corn snake and seeing the parrots. Grammie thought she’d died and gone to heaven in the butterfly room.
• In May, we celebrated Nin’s 3^rd birthday along with cousin Sam’s 10^th birthday. We had a party at Boop & Paw’s house. The girls learned to play badminton and loved it! Nin chose Strawberry Shortcake as her theme and at the last minute Wal-Mart saved my sanity by having a Strawberry Shortcake cake kit for a sheet cake. I spent a few days at Portofino Bay Resort at Universal Orlando in mid-May. I had a great time but was glad to come home!
• In June. . . oh June! Well, Happy Father’s Day, Brad! Brad’s Father’s Day gift was. . . a positive pregnancy test. Yes. We are expecting again! This is a huge surprise. Huge. God is the giver of all good gifts, and most gifts are surprises, right? J It was difficult to tell some people, knowing they wouldn’t be excited for us at all. It was a joy to tell others, knowing they would rejoice with us. Telling the girls was the best thing ever. Elizabeth had been praying for God to give us a new baby. She was overjoyed at the news and danced around after we told her. Katherine cheered. Annie, well, she doesn’t get it. . .yet. She will in February, though!
• In July we celebrated Brad’s birthday and tried to stay cool! We also got Elizabeth and Katherine registered for preschool. Nin is so excited about it. She thinks she is going to learn to read this year. Who knows, maybe she will!
• In August, again we tried to stay cool as we welcomed many days of over 100-degree weather. I spent the majority of July and August losing weight thanks to never-ending morning sickness (the kind that lasts all day and all night). Brad was a prince among men as he parented the girls and did housework while I worshipped at the porcelain altar or took medicine and went to bed.
• In September, just after my birthday, the big girls headed off for preschool. What a great adventure. Elizabeth goes every morning and Nin goes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings. They both love it. Annie misses her big sisters but loves having some one-on-one time with Mommy three mornings a week. The big girls also started AWANA at church – Nin in 3-year-old Cubbies and Elizabeth in 4-year-old Cubbies. They love the Scripture memory and Bible story time. I am so glad they have this opportunity at our church!
• In October, we learned that we will be welcoming Thomas Harrison into our family in February! Yes, a BOY!! Boy, oh boy! Are things going to change around here!! I’m still wondering what that’s going to be like, but am so excited and thrilled at the opportunity to parent a son. The girls are thrilled that Harrison will be coming soon and are already trying to make sense of just when February is.
• In November, we took another trip to Grammie & PawPaw’s house. We love going over there. There are so many fun things to do – the Aquarium, the Children’s Museum, the Carousel and Park. It really is a fun trip that we look forward to making.
• And we’re back to December – where we look forward to celebrating Annie’s 2^nd birthday with the traditional “Egg girl 2^nd birthday party” – Dora the Explorer. Annie loves Dor-doo!

So yes, 2007 was an exciting and incredible year for us. We look forward to welcoming Harrison about six weeks after Christmas – we’ll let you know when he’s here!

About the broken ornament

Someone jokingly said to me...and it made me howl...I know the secret Snow White needed to tell Cinderella! "Pssst, Cindy, watch out for Katherine. She'll bite your head off. Literally." I doubled over laughing. Well, as doubled over as I can get these days.

So far I've had to glue (or attempt to glue) the following broken ornaments: At the Ball (pictured in the other post -- oh, and Annie broke off Prince Philip just because she could); Part of Your World; Frosty Friends Winterfest; a snowman that I got on Black Friday because I bought 2 ornaments (Hooked on Hallmark doesn't seem to have a picture of it); Sweet Christmas Smackerels; and there's one other I've had to glue - but it escapes me at the moment. The only one where gluing has not been successful is At the Ball - Snow White and Prince Philip are just too small for the glue to work. The joys of precocious preschoolers at Christmas time...

Now this is some kind of wedding

I have only seen the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie; but I look forward to seeing the second and third. I was able to preview a clip of the wedding scene from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End the other day. Mmmm, yummy Orlando Bloom! :) This is some kind of wild wedding!!! I wonder if my nephews have the DVD for the second installment of the movie...or maybe it's OnDemand...need to check and see.

Telling secrets

Katherine! You just BROKE your ornament!! What happened?!"

"I wanted Snow White to tell Cinderella a secret!" So, she POPS SNOW WHITE OFF THE ORNAMENT TO MOVE HER CLOSER TO CINDERELLA. It's the Hallmark "At the Ball" ornament:

There's a little handle on the back and you turn it - each Princess rotates through the archway with her prince. Makes me wonder what Snow White needed to tell Cinderella. Is Aurora's dress stuck in her pantyhose? Does Prince Philip have chives in his teeth? Well, at least she didn't eat Snow White's head. This child of mine definitely keeps me entertained.

Everywhere that man can be

I remember when I was pregnant with Elizabeth standing in the balcony at church the Sunday after Thanksgiving singing during the worship service. One of the songs that Todd traditionally chooses for this particular worship service is "I Sing the Mighty Power of God" by Isaac Watts. Once again, brain disengaged as I sang words that I'm accustomed to singing and have been singing for the vast majority of my life (therefore, often singing without thinking about what I'm saying).

We got to the final verse of the song and I was singing along when we reached the last two lines. "While all that borrows life from Thee is ever in Thy care..." I'm fine...singing along just fine..."And everywhere that man can be..." Elizabeth moved in utero and reminded me that she was there and the next words out of my mouth reduced me to tears..."Thou, God, art present there." While I was well aware that the Psalms say that God was knitting her together in my womb, I never thought - and He's THERE WITH HER. What a comforting thought to this first time mom who had desperately longed for this child for years. He not only put here there, He was not only forming her inward parts, He was there with her. After all, the song says "everywhere that man can be" and in utero is definitely one of the "everywheres" that man can be.

So, today as that sweet baby stood next to me in the worship service, now almost five years old, and I sang this song - my brain was fully engaged. She was leaning her head against me, anxiously waiting for her baby brother to kick her in the head (something that will produce tears once he's here, I'm sure!) is it any wonder I found myself, once again, unable to sing but only cry?

Black Friday

I dragged my pregnant self out of bed at 4:00a.m. Friday morning and readied myself to meet my sister at 4:45a.m. I pulled into the commuter lot and thought there was a car that looked a lot like my sister-in-law's - but, nah...she never comes with us (we've been asking for years). My cell phone rang. My sister was getting close and said that our sister-in-law was already there. Oh? Yay! She's finally taken us up on our offer! She spent the day with us. (she may never go again!).

We went to all of the places we wanted to go, got some great deals and missed out on a few things. Who knew Toys R Us either wouldn't have or would sell out of Dora slumber bags - Annie's birthday gift - she may be getting something else if we can't find one. Speaking of TRU, what a pit! I feel for their employees - that store was trashed.

While we were at the mall, I went to Gymboree (of course!) I found the outfit Harrison is going to wear home from the hospital. The cool thing - it was 20% off, I got an additional 30% off for being there during their "early bird" hours, and I got an additional 20% off from a coupon I got in the mail (whoo-hoo). What I chose was from the "My Favorite Toys" line and is classified as "unisex". Personally I think it looks much more like it was made for a boy...what do you think?











I also got the little sweater hat and the socks that match this. It is the sweetest thing! I was about $10 short in getting Gymbucks, so I grabbed E a couple of pairs of knit leggings that were on sale, too. She'll get a kick out of them, I'm sure. I'll either put them in her stocking or give them to her for her birthday.

And, Elizabeth had asked for a "Katie" handbag from Vera Bradley in the Pink Elephant fabric. I was going to have to order it, as the shop where I get my VB stuff doesn't carry the Katie bag routinely. However, I did find the "Maggie" bag in Pink Elephant fabric. Maggie is just a little bit larger but still small enough for a little girl to carry. I snapped it up - especially since I had a 40% off one item coupon for the store. :)

Those were the things I bought that I was most excited about. Just cute! My Christmas shopping is finished for all the girls. All I need to do is birthday shopping. A Dora slumber bag for Annie and, hopefully, a turtle Webkinz for Elizabeth (they're supposed to come out before Christmas based on what sellers are saying on eBay). The manager of our local Hallmark store is a friend of mine so she's going to put up a note for them to call me as soon as they get one in. Even if it's too late for her birthday - maybe it'll be here in time for Harrison to give to her when he's born.

Ran into my OB in Linens 'N Things. He told me, "When you go out looking like this, you need to tell people they're taking care of you over at Baptist. Don't tell them I'm your doctor." Dude, considering you are in a Catholic High sweatshirt (purple and gold on grey) and red shorts - I don't want anyone to know you're my OB. He's such a nut. "What? This doesn't match?" Um, not by a long shot, Paul. Not to mention, it's FORTY DEGREES out there and you're in shorts!! Men...

Our final destination was the unpainted furniture center to look at bunk beds for the girls' room. We'd talked about getting a set of bunk beds with a trundle; however, after looking at what they have - we may go with a twin-over-full with a drawer that can be converted to a trundle if we wanted to do that. Got some good ideas and made some notes so once we're ready to move everyone we'll know what we're doing!

Now I'm off to download photos so I can finish our Christmas card, I'm going to start a fire (it's been raining and sleeting here today) and spend the evening with my kiddos since their Daddy is gone to basketball - and will be tomorrow as well. Have I mentioned how much I love basketball season? Eh, it could be worse.

Singing Amazing Grace and other Egg girl stuff

Elizabeth Jane is standing here next to me singing Amazing Grace. It's so sweet to hear her singing these wonderful hymns. It's also funny. I remember when she was born. I heard this deep, raspy cry from the other side of the drape and I said to Brad, "Oh, yay! She's an alto!" Well, if anyone ever had any doubt - all they had to do was hear her sing just now. I don't know of any little *boys* who sing this low! When I sing with Katherine, I always have to start the song high (translation: it gets out of my range pretty quickly). When I sing with Elizabeth, I'm singing with my little clone.

Annie is starting to talk quite a bit. She just came to me "uh nack" and points to the kitchen. "You want a snack?" She smiles and nods, pushes the computer and says "Moan" (come on). I'm about to start dinner, Bitsy. No one panic at that sentence. Brad is out for the evening, if i don't make dinner, we starve. ;) Back to Annie. Her pink blanket is "Mimi" (so is my sister). She loves Doorda (Dora) and Boo (Boots). She also loves Boo (Boop - my mother) and Mammie (Grammie - Brad's mom). She actually said "I yuh you" (I love you) to my mother-in-law while we were there a couple of weeks ago. I got, "Mama, I cuh uh! I cuh uh, Mama!" from her - which translated is: "Mama, I come up! I come up, Mama!" after I told her to quit playing on the stairs to the basement (which she'd already fallen down!!! Thankfully she didn't get hurt). She was at the bottom of the stairs and I told her "Come up here!" She grinned and after telling me she was coming up, she did just that.

Katherine is finally getting over her cold, I think. She's not felt great for a couple of weeks; but she's still sweet - most of the time. She's been having some major meltdowns that we're trying to work through and help her with. Her favorite song lately has been "Albuquerque is a turkey" along with "Lord I Lift Your Name on High" - a huge spread in taste there! Silly thing!

They are such sweethearts. I'm blessed beyond measure to have them!

Home again, home again, jiggedy jog

We just got home from my in-laws. Had a good visit with them, took the girls to the museum where we had a great time -- until the big girls got lost in a maze just as they were about to come OUT of said maze and then I couldn't find them (NOT fun). Obviously the panic was written all over my face as I pushed my way through a school crowd. A woman approached me, "Are you looking for Katherine and Elizabeth?" Yes! "They're in the office, they were about to get on the elevator." Good. Grief. I was ready to end the day right then and there. They were fine, not afraid at all. I was freaking out - and furious (not at them and we'll leave it there).

I love this picture that I took of the big girls at the park. They really are best of friends. I love it. Except when they fight like the "best of friends". ARrrrrrrgh!

Katherine shared her love of music and performing with us at the museum in the music area. How funny is this? The child saw that microphone and it was all over. She sang. And sang. And sang. She's asked for a microphone for Christmas. My mom is getting her one for her stocking. She's going to love it!. Absolutely cracks me up.

Elizabeth, wearing her "turkey hat" made at the Creation Station. Playing the harp. She loved this - a quiet instrument. I said, "Hey, you can make $150/hour playing harp -- not a bad instrument to take up if you like it!" Of course, someone has to BUY her said harp!



And here's my little dare-devil. Yes, she climbed that far by herself. And yes, she actually climbed to the TOP - and got herself down. I've often joked that I give birth to children who are part mountain goat. All three of them have been climbers, though E is more timid now than she was as a toddler.

The minutea of our lives

I haven't blogged in forever it seems. I've been working, tired and busy! Long time, no blog = long blog.

What has been going on? Well, as you know Elizabeth was diagnosed with MRSA and has now completely healed from that. Doing well with absolutely no lingering issues.

My aunt (mom's younger sister) was diagnosed with breast cancer a couple of weeks ago. Good news: the mass was only 5mm, which is the absolute smallest they can see on a mammogram. The edges of her biopsy were clean. It was estrogen receptor negative - so she doesn't qualify for Tamoxifen treatment. She's still trying to decide what to do, meanwhile we wait on her breast cancer genetic testing results to come back to determine if Mom, my sister, my cousin and I need to be tested. My maternal grandmother died of metastatic breast cancer in October 1960...October pretty much stinks for our family, ya think?

Katherine was out of school for a week with a nasty case of croup. Now Annie has it, though her case isn't as bad as Nin's was.

I talked with Paul about MRSA when we saw him yesterday and it's not a concern for my c-section unless *I* have an infection; or if one of the girls has the infection when we remove my dressing. So, no need for us to be tested. Speaking of seeing my OB - I gained 11 pounds since my visit with him in early October! Yikes! Baby boy must be growing like a weed in there. I'm hungry all the time - which is a drastic change from even a month ago.

It's 8:15 and Nin is wide awake. She took a nap this afternoon so she'll be awake for a few more hours. She's so stinkin' cute. She sitting on the chest singing our phone number to the tune of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" - we made it up to help Elizabeth learn our number for her life skills unit at school. "#-#-#-#-#-#-#; That's the number for you to call me". Brad is so good at working with them on stuff like this. I often wonder if maybe I don't need to go back to work full-time and let HIM stay home and homeschool the girls. (no, I know...I know)

Oh, that's another huge thing - I'm going to homeschool Elizabeth for kindergarten next year. The more we talk about it, the more we pray about it, and the more we look at our budget, the more we know this is the right decision for us as parents, for her and for our family. Now I just have to figure out what curriculum I'm going to be using, fill out all the forms and take them to the school district.

MRSA at my house

Elizabeth and I went to the after-hours pediatric clinic at the hospital last Sunday to have my concerns confirmed - she definitely had a staph infection and it was most likely community acquired MRSA. The pediatrician put her on Septra, gave us instructions to keep her isolated from other children (including her sisters) until she'd been on antibiotics for 24 hours and to wash our hands. Often. Considering mom is OCD, that part is never a problem.

We dealt with the isolation part as best we could, took her back to school (as cleared to do) on Tuesday and gave antibiotics, IB for pain, warm baths and compresses to help pull the infection out. On Wednesday I got a call to come pick her up from preschool as she was hurting. On Thursday, when we got to preschool we were told she couldn't come back until everything was healed - despite what we were told by our pediatrician and the one at the hospital. Okay, that's not a problem and I get it. A phone call on Wednesday night with "This is our decision" would've been much better received than hearing "Oh, no, no, no, no, no. Our doctors say she cannot be here. Everyone is panicking over this and we're trying not to" on Thursday morning as we stood in the office. And to make matters worse, she was supposed to be Frog Princess in her class that day (big deal, a very big deal). So, she started crying which made *me* cry - along with pregnancy hormones, the frustration of having gotten everyone up, fed and dressed then spending 30 minutes in traffic to get there. And to top it off, I was livid that I had not gotten a phone call on Wednesday when the decision was made that this was going to be the policy. I don't mind the decision at all. I get it. What I don't get is the failure to notify the parent involved when the decision was made.

Elizabeth's teacher called me on Wednesday afternoon to check on Elizabeth and on me (she knew I was upset). She also wanted to let me know her policy on "Frog Prince/Princess" - they would wait on Elizabeth and no one else would go until Elizabeth did. "If it's a week or it's a month, we'll wait on her to come back to school." We are now to the point that she can return to school. So, E will get to be the Frog Princess for her class tomorrow. In honor of the day, she's chosen a green jumper and white shirt to wear to school because "Frogs are green, Mommy."

Breastfeeding on Sesame Street

This was posted on one of the message boards I read. I love this! Sesame Street, 1977.

Felt like scrapping some pages

Started working on 2007 photos....
This is from Elizabeth's birthday party. Everything is from the Girls in Black Collection by Amanda Rockwell and Gina Miller. The mesh brush used on the title is by Emily Merritt (The Digi Chick)

M-I-C...see ya real soon!

For the past 10 months I have been part of an exclusive online focus group of "Disney Moms" and it has been a great experience. We were given the opportunity to sneak peak websites associated with DVD releases, see special clips from upcoming DVDs, and provide "The Powers That Be" at Disney with our feedback. Sometimes we saw changes based on our feedback - wow, they really were listening! A couple of times Brad really liked them because they saved him fifteen bucks by sending us a DVD that I was planning on buying anyway (Cinderella III which has a great "moral of the story" if you haven't seen it and Disney Princess Enchanted Tales: Follow Your Dreams)

This particular focus-group is coming to an end next week and I'm sad about it. So many of the moms there shared many things - from parenting philosophies to where is the best place to stay at Disney with a "large family" (something I will need to know in a few years!!!) Nothing was too deep and nothing was too trivial or silly. I'm going to miss the exchanges with these women. We didn't always see eye-to-eye, but we were always respectful to one another. Always. I liked that. It was a great community and I hope to run into these women again sometime! And our one guy - Mike - one of the Facilitators -- great guy!!

K-E-Y...why? Because we like you!!! M-O-U-S-E

So, here's how I feel about it

Am I excited to be having a baby boy? You bet. I absolutely cannot wait to see what this "mother-son" dynamic is all about. All of my friends who have little boys have reiterated that little boys LOVE their mommies.

But at the same time, I'm a little sad that we're not having a fourth daughter. I know girls. Four girls sure would've made dividing things easier, too. Two and two in the bedrooms, no stacking necessary. Now I have twenty-five huge Rubbermaid boxes full of girl clothes won't get any additional wear and tear.

Things are going to be lopsided. Harrison will always have his own room, never having to share with a sibling. Are my girls going to resent that? If they're anything like their mother they will at some point. My sister and I had to share while my brother got his own room. Most of the time I didn't mind sharing a room with my sister - but there were some days that she and I wished we each had our own rooms. Going back to the twenty-five boxes full of clothes - Harrison won't have to share a closet. That won't work. Three girls put all their clothes in one closet? It'll never happen. Little dude better learn to expect to see some pink dresses in his closet for a few years. As long as he doesn't try to wear them himself, I really don't care. ;)

We're having a SON!

Credits can be seen here.

journaling reads: Oh wow!! The tech checked your gender first thing, which was a new experience for us. We are accustomed to having to wait until all the important measurements are done first. When she said, "It's a BOY!" I started to cry and then I started laughing. I laughed and laughed. A son! I cannot wait to get my hands on you in February, sweet boy!

Our family - updated

IT'S A BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thomas Harrison, we'll call him Harrison. Finally, after 21 years we are going to get to use our "boy" name. Everything looked great on the ultrasound so we elected, with Dr. Wendel, to not do amnio. The girls seem to be pretty excited. Well, except for Annie. She won't realize anything is different until we have a new, crying little bundle in the house.

Poem in the layout says:
Our family is the perfect five
Three sisters, Daddy, Mother
Oops, better make it a perfect six
We're going to have a brother!

Credits for the layout are here

Finally, a new wallpaper for my monitor

Suffice it to say I've not felt like creating a personalized wallpaper for my monitor lately. I was in the mood to do one tonight but don't have the kit I wanted to use on this hard drive and was anxious to get something on there that wasn't standard Windows Vista ickiness. Until I dig the CD out from hiding (which I'm about to do), I'm going to use this prefab one from Shabby Princess' blog. I think it's a cute little design, but man - I need to take some up-to-date pictures of my kids! The picture of Nin is one Brad took so it's out of focus and from way across the room - but her little grin was so cute, I couldn't resist using it. I'll definitely be getting the camera out tomorrow, though, and snapping new pictures of the girls!

SIX DAYS until we find out Baby Egg's gender. Katherine said today, "Dr. Wendel may say it's a boy but I think it's Mary Ju-yee-et" (in that cute, can't-pronouce-her-Ls way she talks). I'm so ready - not only to be able to call this child by name but to also know all is well in there!

More on being served

Have I ever mentioned how much I love our Care Group at church? If not, well, I have been lax in doing so. (which reminds me...I have a picture of all of us that I need to scrap). We have been members of this care group since it began in...1993, earlier than that? Janet, when did you and Skip get married? There was about a year when we didn't go regularly because of kids' bedtimes - but still we remained close to the couples who are members.

We have rallied around members who have dealt with issues in their marriages, have had difficult times in their lives (death of a child, illness of parents, financial difficulties for members, etc), and as members have had children (and had children, and had children, and had children -- I think we counted once and there are more than 50 children represented in our Care Group). Now it is our turn to be loved by our Care Group - twice a week they are dropping off freezer meals for us to try to take some of the load off of Brad and me as we deal with this pregnancy. This morning at church people were asking "how are you?" Well, I'm awake and upright - that is saying something!

However, I'm about to be horizontal and asleep -- it's nap time since we are going to try to go to Care Group tonight.

Family

Credits can be found here

Blurry but still cute

Well, pooh - the camera was focused on *us* and then when I pushed the button to take the picture it focused on the *house*. Pffffft. But still...cute! Nin has to take a photo of her family for Show 'n Tell on Wednesday. Here we are:
I can just hear Annie giggling. I'm not sure if she was laughing at her sisters, at our neighbor - who was standing out in the street making faces - or at me trying to run get in my spot while Elizabeth cheered me on "Hurry, Mommy! Run!!"

I just finished a scrapbook page with the photo, too. I'll upload it tomorrow; but since Nin is asleep (finally) I'm going to move her and head to bed!

I actually scrapped something

Here is a page documenting Elizabeth's first day of four-year-old preschool. It was much different this year than last - for both of us.

Journaling reads: Elizabeth's first day of 4-year-old preschool was very different for us compared to her first day last year. Last year, neither of us knew what to expect. She was nervous, I cried. This year, we were both excited. Anxious to see what the year will hold. I am looking forward to seeing her confidence level grow in addition to what she will learn. She is looking forward to all the art she will get to do - especially with a teacher who has a degree in studio art! September 4, 2007


Font: Missed Your Exit
Everything is from Mint Juleps & Rosy Tea by Amanda Rockwell and Jennilyn.

Serving and being served

Last week I got a phone call from a friend of mine at church - she was calling me for her daughter (who was driving at the time and can't talk on the phone while driving). Her daughter's small group at church does a service project each month - and they wanted to do something for me. They wanted to come over to my house on Saturday (yesterday, as I type this) and have me let them know what were the most pressing issues in my house - to help me organize and clean. Her daughter had suggested it to them since she knew how sick I've been with this pregnancy.

So yesterday morning five 11th grade girls, their adult leader and her husband came to my house. They ironed, they swept and mopped, they ironed, they had my big girls cleaning their room and organizing their toys, they ironed, they folded clothes, they ironed (get the feeling I had a *ton* of ironing to do?!), they dusted, they put away all the laundry and ironing. They were such sweet helpers to me. Jim even mowed our lawn! (Brad wasn't home -- he was out trying to buy my birthday gift -- nothing like waiting until the very last possible second!).

It was hard for my pride to let them help me...but I *needed* to let them. To not let them "bless" me would have robbed them of a blessing. They were so sweet - as each project was finished, they would say "What can I do now?" "Are you sure we can't do any of that laundry in your room for you?" My girls loved having them here, and the big girls seemed to really enjoy being here together. And it was a great birthday gift for me - probably one of the best ever!

(by the way, Brad's gift to me was a certificate for a prenatal massage at the spa - mmmm, can't wait to have that!!!)

Hey, Steph - look what we got!!!

My friend Steph and I have this strange knack for ending up pregnant at the same time. Asher (he's over there in my right margin) is just a week and a half younger than Elizabeth; Alexa is about a week and a half younger than Katherine; Aubree is about three months younger than Annie, I think. So, when Stephanie announced she was pregnant with #4, I asked her then "Does this mean I need to go buy a mini-van??" Well, little did I know - yep, that's exactly what it meant!!! ;) Little Andrew has already arrived while Poached Egg isn't even halfway finished baking yet...errrr, um, Poached eggs really don't "bake" do they? You know what I mean. :)

So, last Thursday after my OB visit - we traded in the Accord for a mini-van. We are *loving* it. The girls really love it and are trying to make it their newest play toy. Not hardly, kiddos. I'm constantly saying, "Girls, get out of the van. It is not to play in!" They love it. I think Elizabeth would sleep in it if she could.

It is a Kia Sedona, six airbags including side curtain airbags for all three rows. I love that they emphasize their safety rating and number of airbags over the number of "cup holders" because we all know how 22 cup holders are going to help prevent injury in a crash. It has LATCH (the Honda was a 98 - from before LATCH was standard). On a totally frivolous note, the middle windows roll down which is just the coolest thing. Brad loves that it is red. He stalked it on the dealer's website for four weeks before I finally felt like I could drive over and look at it. And once he laid eyes on it, there was no other van for him.

Man, the simple things that are thrilling when one becomes a mom...

Silly child #2

So, at 1:30 this morning she comes crashing out of her bedroom and climbs in bed with me and Brad. She sleeps fitfully over the next two hours - and I don't sleep *at all*. At about 3:30 she woke up wanting some water. I get her water. She takes a drink, hands it to me to set on the bedside table, wraps her arms around me and says very softly, "I yub you, Mommy" then she snuggles into my neck, arms still wrapped around me and starts giggling! She stayed awake for the next hour and a half - patting my face, rubbing my hair, holding my hand, kissing me, telling me she loves me, and flopping all over the little slice of bed she had between me and Brad. Goofy thing. Finally, she and I both got back to sleep at about 5. Seriously, I do love this kid. But really, must we have this lovefest in the middle of the night??

Mean Girls

I was going to take my blog "invited readers only" because I found out that a people who think they know me and the circumstances of my life (and apparently my finances?) loved to read my blog to ridicule me and my "ugly children". Oh, and my hen-pecked husband (which in and of itself proves they don't know me one iota). My position was they could mock me all they wanted. I'm an adult, I can deal with it. But don't you dare mock my children. And since my blog is mostly about my children, I thought "why give them fodder for their pettiness?"

Then my husband and a few friends who are familiar with these "mean girls" said the same things about the situation which boiled down to jealousy, bitterness, unhappiness, and the previously mentioned pettiness. Why let these people, who obviously have very sad lives, change *anything* about mine? So, I won't. And I refuse to justify anything about my life to them.

I recently ended a long-term relationship over someone else thinking they could meddle in my life. It's so nice to know that I don't have to deal with anyone who thinks they know what's going on in my life when really they don't have a mortal clue.

I just need to rant

I am almost 42. Why are there people out there who assume that just because I'm over 40 and pregnant then I "need" to have certain prenatal screening, testing or genetics counseling? People who don't even know me personally are questioning my decision to not do certain screenings.

We elected to bypass Nuchal Translucency Screening after my OB informed me that it would require (a) the MSAFP (which is a crock of a blood test) and (b) genetics counseling. I've already had genetics counseling TWICE. I wouldn't have had it the 2nd time but we got railroaded in to it because of a change in my OB's clinic policy which I wasn't informed about ahead of time (all Level II ultrasounds now go through their genetics clinic rather than the OB clinic) . I don't NEED genetics counseling again. The decision to bypass NTS and genetics counseling were both questioned - though not by my OB, he knows full well how I feel about this.

My OB and I will be discussing the "requirement" for genetics counseling before I schedule my Level II scan this time. I refuse to sit through a 25-year-old preaching her statistics to me and acting like I'm doing a disservice to my child by not having an amnio solely because of my age. The fact is that women younger than 35 years give birth to about 70 percent of infants with Down syndrome (http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Health/story?id=1296512). So, pardon me for not wanting to rush into having a needle stuck into my belly that risks this pregnancy more than I'm willing to risk it.

After my level II scan, if there are some questions about the health of this baby - then absolutely, we'll do an amnio. Had Annie had a heart defect, I would've had an amnio (babies with heart defects of moms over 40 often have chromosomal defects). I'm willing to have an amnio if there is a valid medical reason. My age is *not* a valid medical reason. I'm willing to have an amnio in order to make sure we have the medical and support systems in place at the birth of this child (that's to answer those who think one only does an amnio if one is going to terminate the pregnancy -- that's a crock-full as well). But willy-nilly testing because, "Oh, I'm over 35 there might be something wrong with this baby"? Not on your life. Women over 35 are perfectly capable of having normal, healthy pregnancies and normal, healthy babies. If you don't like my choices, get over it.

My sweet Bitty Bug

Well, Annie scared me to death on Saturday. She spiked a fever of 105.7 after her nap. I promise it was solely the grace of God that kept me from flipping out. I remembered a conversation I'd had with Tandy years ago, I think when Elizabeth was a little one, that those high fevers required immediate attention in a tepid bath. I had Brad draw the bath while I dosed up some IB and called Medical Exchange. The entire time I was praying that Annie didn't have a febrile seizure (she didn't, thank God!). While I finished off the bath, Brad got Bitsy ready and we stuck her in the tub with a cup full of cold water. Within about five minutes, her temp dropped to 102.9. I'll take it.

The nurse from Medical Exchange called me and confirmed that the things I'd done were the right things. She asked me a few questions, I could tell she was trying to determine if we were dealing with menegitis - we're most likely not. She determined that we didn't need to go to the ER at that point; however, if Annie spiked again we had to go in (whether we got it down or not). Thankfully the fever broke during her 2nd nap.

The fever was back today, though not as high as yesterday, so we're headed to the pediatrician on Monday to see if we can figure out what's going on with the Bitty Bug. Hopefully it'll be something definite and not just something like "viral syndrome". Ugh.

Messy house mom poem

So I get the Google Analytics report for my blog today and one of the search terms that brought someone to my blog was "messy house mom poem". I can only assume they were searching for "Song for a Fifth Child" which appears here on my blog. We won't even talk about the mess that is my house now that I'm pregnant again and sick. My sweet husband tries to keep up, but it's hard. Hopefully I'll feel better soon and we can knock it out together.

Speaking of my sweet husband. I need to take a picture of how he has redone the flower bed in front of the house. It looks *so* good! And much better than how it used to be done. Now we just need to finish putting dirt in it, do the French drain and then choose shrubs (I want hollies). Hopefully we'll have it all done before the end of September.

There's only ONE!

The blurry little blob between the cross markers would be baby #4. :) Heart beat good and strong at 180 bpm, measuring perfectly for dates. And yay - there is only ONE!

The tech had a little bit of trouble plotting the heart rate because it seems that I have yet another little wiggle worm in there!

EDD is February 23 but we'll go earlier than that.

Oh, and if I need more Zofran he will give it to me. That is a good thing. I'm just hoping and praying that the nausea will subside in the next couple of weeks.

Better living through chemistry

I don't "do" pregnancy well. I never have. I'm horribly sick and it never fails that there's always some kink thrown in for good measure (my gallbladder the first time, a common bile duct stone the second time, a miscarriage the third time and a baby with a possible heart defect the fourth time). So, here I am - dry heaving almost non-stop and that, my friends, is NOT fun. I have Phenergan, but I also have three children. It's kind of hard to parent when one is passed out after having taken a Phenergan.

I called my OB's office late Tuesday afternoon and left the nurse a message basically begging for something besides Phenergan. She called me back with the offer of 30 Zofran. Thirty is all he'll give - not sure if that's a medical reason or because Zofran is so bloomin' expensive. I didn't care. I leaped at the offer. I called my pharmacy later. They didn't have the generic (by the way, did you know Zofran has gone generic? Can I get a hallelujah?!) in stock and didn't have the correct strength of the name brand. I was talking to the tech and I heard the pharmacist say I could have the name brand if I wanted it. The tech said, "How much?" Then I heard it... "One thousand dollars" WHAT?! The tech said, "Oh, but your part is only $50" Phew. I said, "You know what, let's wait until you get the correct strength of the generic. My husband is home. I can take a Phenergan."

Yesterday, Brad went to pick up my script. The generic was $249+ some change (yikes!) and our insurance paid all but $10 of it. (thank you, Lord, for insurance!!) I took one and within 30 minutes I felt a lot better. I ate some then went to bed and slept for 3 hours (not drug induced, thankfully). I woke up and ate some more. Wow. This stuff just might make the rest of my first trimester bearable!!

Awww, shucks

Angi thinks I'm a Rockin' Girl Blogger (see my little non-blinkie award over there ~> you have to scroll down some to see it). Man...do I have her fooled or what? ;) But seriously, thank you Angi!

Elizabeth and I went to the Hallmark store this morning for Keepsake Ornament Premiere. Yes, really, I start buying Christmas ornaments in July. My mom and dad got there shortly after we did so we had three generations of Harrison women shopping together. That was fun. Elizabeth loved every minute of it. She helped me get the five ornaments I wanted to pick up today and then she helped her Boop get all the ornaments on her list for today. E also picked out a couple of other ornaments that she'd like to have. You can read about our shopping spree here and get links to look at what we purchased and what is still on our "wish list". I came home and fell in bed. I think I was asleep before I hit the pillow! I slept until 1p.m. when Annie climbed on the bed and woke me.

My husband went to an Arena Football game tonight, so he asked a friend of ours from church if her youngest daughter could spend the evening with me and the girls. Since she's never really babysat before, she and her best friend came over. I used to teach them both in Sunday School when they were THREE! Time flies. Anyway, my girls had the *best* time with Boo and Livvy. They took E and Nin to our next-door-neighbor's birthday party - which gave Annie and me some time to grab a little nap. (can you tell being old and pregnant is really making me tired?!) They came home and played games, they watched movies, we ate dinner, they got all three girls ready for bed, they put Annie to bed, then they laid down with the big girls and watched Aladdin. They didn't let me lift a finger. I was more than willing to do so, but they wanted to do it all. Such sweet girls. Did I mention my girls LOVED them?

After they left, Nin came into the family room and said, "Mommy, the striped girl and the pink girl left their movie!" (Boo had on a striped shirt, Livvy had on a pink shirt). I reminded her of their names and she said, "They are my very favorite friends!" Really cute and proof the girls loved them!

Results are in

I'm 7w tomorrow based on LMP. Normal for 7 weeks is 7,650 to 229,000. My results were 159,750 - Debbie was thrilled with those results - so am I. We will believe the best unless the worst happens.

Rollercoasters: hate the emotional ones

I felt like an oven last night (could that be because I'm baking a baby?), that really nasty metallic taste is back, and I was starving at midnight. So, my symptoms went on a "let's really scare Gina" 48-hour hiatus? I don't know - but they're back to a certain extent. That is somewhat comforting. Beta results should be back this afternoon.

Blood draw scheduled

After spending all day today in a panic - and having a couple of panic attacks - I decided that I needed to talk to *someone* who had a clearer head than I did. I called Hannah who patiently listened to me sob, talked to me, prayed for me, read me Psalm 121, and told me several times "call your doctor".

I called his office and talked to Debbie - I'm going in first thing Friday morning to have a beta hCG drawn. The results will be back Friday afternoon and will determine if I'm okay until my appointment on 7/26 or if I have to go back on Monday. If I have to go back on Monday then we'll be trying to determine (a) are the levels doubling like they're supposed to and if so, then we're in relatively good shape or (b) are the levels dropping and if so, then we just wait for the inevitable.

Trying to trust...

I'm trying to not freak out - we went to my parents house yesterday and not once did I have the urge to run from the room sick. That's not been typical of late. Typical has been: walk into the kitchen and immediately start heaving (sorry - but I've been sick). I might feel decent for the first couple of hours that I'm awake, but for the most part I'm sick all day.

Tuesday I was so sick I ended up leaving work 1:00 (thankfully we had an "early dismissal" in preparation for the holiday so I left when everyone was allowed to leave), took a Phenergan, put all my kids down for naps and I laid down. I woke up at 5p.m. when my husband sat down on the side of the bed. Annie was just starting to wake up, Nin was asleep and Elizabeth had been sitting on the sofa playing with her Leap Pad. I felt pretty nasty the rest of the night.

I woke up Wednesday and actually wanted a cup of coffee (had some decaf so I fixed a 4-cup pot - which I had to share with Nin *and* Annie). I was a little on the hungry side, but not starving. We left our house at about 10:25 and I was craving a McDonald's sausage biscuit with pickles and mustard. No, they don't normally come that way - and usually I can only get a mustard packet to go with it; however, if I tell them I'm pregnant and it's close to change-over, they're usually happy to give me a few pickles to go with it. (can you tell I've done this a few times before?)

We went to Mom & Dad's and I was fine all day. Not sleepy, not sick feeling. I'm just now 7 weeks. Morning sickness lasted barely two weeks. I know enough to know that's not a great sign. It doesn't necessarily mean a miscarriage is coming but part of me keeps waiting for the other shoe to drop. July 26 can't get here quickly enough...I desperately need to see a heartbeat and know everything is okay in there.

The push to have a girl's name ready...just in case

Here are the girl names we've come up with so far, including names suggested by our children. Tell me what you think, you won't hurt my feelings. :) Well, okay - you might but I'll get over it. ;) And just to remind you of our other DD's names: Elizabeth Jane, Katherine Martin, Anne Lancaster. (Katherine bears my maiden name. Annie has my maternal g'mother's maiden name and our boy name is my mother's maiden name)

• Mary Annette (Puppet's cousin on The Upside Down Show...Elizabeth's suggestion - can't tell you how hard we laughed)
• Mary Arline (DH's paternal grandmother)
  
• Mary Beatrice (I love that Beatrice means "blessed" or "she who brings happiness")
• Mary Carissa (Carissa means "grace" - some friends at church have a daughter named Mary Charis - I think that's too close for me to feel like I'm not "stealing" their name)
• Mary Claire is my cousin's daughter and his other daughter is Caroline so both Claire and Caroline are out.
  
• Mary Celeste
• Mary Charlotte - not sure I'm wild about how that sounds together
• Mary Eden - I love the name Eden, but this doesn't work for me
• Mary Elaine - I like the name Elaine (the French version of Helen)
• Mary Ellen - Ellen is the English variation of Helen...hmm, interesting that I like several versions of Helen...but does it smack too much of The Waltons? "Goodnight, Mary Ellen. Goodnight, John Boy."
  
• Mary Genevieve - Brad suggested this, I couldn't tell if he was kidding or being serious, but I kind of like it
• Mary Georgina - it's funky, I like it
• Mary Grace - classic, I love it - but is it too common???  Yes.
• Mary Gwen/Gwendolen/Gwendolyn/Gwyneth - our brother-in-law's mother is Mary Gwen so these are all out.
• Mary Joelyn (pronounced Jo-Ellen) - there's a reason for this name but since people I know read this blog I can't tell what it is not even privately (sorry) -- but this name means the world to me.
  
• Mary Juliet Katherine (Katherine's suggestion including the "Katherine" part and Brad told me last night it is his favorite minus the "Katherine")
  
• Mary Louisa - I love literary names and that's part of the reason my first child is Elizabeth Jane (Barrett Browning and Austen). I love Louisa May Alcott's books. I like the way this sounds.
• Mary Olivia - Love Olivia but not with Mary. Would also make my child's initials MOE. Larry and Curly,anyone?
  
• Mary Rachel - Like Rachel but not with Mary.
• Mary Rebekah
  
• Mary Rose - a very old-fashioned sounding name (kind of like Mary Louisa) and I love it. My only issue here is that initials would be MRE and would that be an issue?? (you know - MREs in the military)
  
• Mary Susanna/Suzanne
• Mary Violet - another botanical name...but not sure I'm wild about it and I have issues with the fact that I love purple and refuse to name my child after my favorite color.
• Mary Wynn - Too close to Mary Gwen

Missile Defense?

This is copied from my iVillage blog...

[Yesterday] morning I was laying in bed with the girls and Elizabeth said, "Mommy, I hope God put two babies in your tummy. That would make me sooooo happy." (Which seem to be in the water around here; three couples in our church have had twins in the past three months and a couple on our street had twins in April). I said, "Oh, Elizabeth, I really hope not. Just one baby would be good."

Nin said, "Mommy, you have to have two babies." She points to my chest and adds, "You have two missiles."

I'm still trying to catch my breath from laughing so hard.

Father's Day in the bathroom at church

Well, we had a very interesting Father's Day. For a little over a week I'd thought I might - possibly - be pregnant again. Major heat waves, kicking off the covers at night, turning down the AC again and again and again. Then Friday night I started feeling dizzy. Uh. Oh. Dizzy + hot + late = pregnant! Always has.

Brad had nursery duty during Sunday School and I decided to make a WalMart run since we'd gotten to church early. Bought all the important things: coffee filters, soap for the girls' bathroom, a pregnancy test. Drove back to the church Put the test in my purse and went into the bathroom to take it.

The test line was positive before the control window was even wet. Yep. Good and pregnant. Brad already knew I was certain I was pregnant - so I took the test to him to confirm that yes, my gut instinct was right. I'm glad he was in the nursery with the woman who was in there. Her husband is an OB/GYN and they have nine children. She is so sweet and so encouraging. I'm sure she was just that to Brad. He was a little bowled over, despite having been told several times over the previous 24 hours I was pretty sure I was pregnant.

He's coming around and is getting excited about the idea of a new baby. He's such a great dad - FABULOUS. His biggest worry? Let me quote him: "I have twenty four boxes of girl clothes in storage. I do NOT want a boy!" Have to laugh. And you know, if this is a boy - he'll be thrilled.

Aut Tagged Me

Okay, I think it's a chain-letter tag or something. I'm not sure. But following directions...

Remove blog in top spot, bump everyone up one and put your blog in the bottom spot. BTW, I only have links for Autumn and myself.
Wendy
Donna
Crystal
Autumn
Gina

Next, select five people to tag.
Um....
Susan
Kellye
Amanda
AnitaW (who needs to do this before she has to move out of her house)
Angi

Now the questions:
What were you doing 10 years ago?
1997...eww, that was a very difficult time in my life. My marriage was hanging by a thread, literally. This isn't the appropriate forum to share what was going on, but trust me when I say it was incredibly serious. I had pnemonia, I had a kidney stone. BUT, I did have a new nephew that year, too. That was fun! And, my husband had gotten a new job that year, too. So there were a couple of good things that happened.

What were you doing a year ago?
I had a six-month-old baby, a two-year-old and a three-and-a-half year-old. I was struggling with the deepest, darkest post-partum depression I'd ever dealt with and was borderline suicidal (didn't attempt suicide but sure didn't want the next day to come, either). It was a pit that threatened to suck me in and keep me there. Thankfully it didn't.

5 snacks that you enjoy
Peanut M&Ms
Low-fat cream cheese on graham crackers
string cheese
cheese dip and chips
cheese and crackers

5 songs that you know all the lyrics to
I Love You, Lord (including and especially the lyrics by John Piper)
Blessed (Martina McBride)
Have You Ever Been in Love (Celine Dion)
I Could Not Ask for More (Edwin McCain)
Live Like You Were Dying (Tim McGraw)

5 things that you would do if you were a millionaire
Fund my children's educations
Get this house ready to sell
Buy some land
Build River Bend Farmhouse (Southern Living Houseplans)
Buy a van

5 bad habits
Losing my temper
Being impatient
Being lazy
Playing the car stereo too loud (when my kids aren't in the car)
Not going to the dentist

5 things that you like doing
Taking naps
Reading magazines
Digital Scrapbooking
Doing Crafts with my kids
:) Yes, I know I only listed four. ;)

5 things that you would never wear again
Polyester pants (okay, not that I ever wore them anyway!)
Satin shirts
a MULLET
huge shoulder pads (I don't need the help there - I look like a linebacker anyway)
Shorts

5 favorite toys
My girls' Littlest Pet Shop toys
Fisher Price Little People
Ty Pluffies
My computer
My coffee pot

SuSu Tagged Me

Susan tagged me.

Tag, You’re it!!!

So, the rules are that once you’ve been tagged, you have to write a blog with 6 weird habits, thoughts, things, etc. about yourself. At the end of the blog you need to choose 5 people to tag and list their names. Don’t forget to leave each person a comment that says “you’ve been tagged” and to read your blog.

1. All the clothes in my closet are coordinated by type of clothing and then color. And all must be hanging facing "out" so that I'm looking at the front of my clothing when I step into the closet. Same for DH's stuff.

2. All the bills in my wallet must be facing forward, head up - with a $1 in the front and in the back (just in case I have more than $1 in my wallet)

3. And speaking of cash in my wallet I rarely carry cash. I'm one of those that ALWAYS has to stop at the ATM to get it.

4. I scrub my tub before I get into it and after I get out. Even if no one else has been in it before me that day.

5. I sleep with three pillows and can't go to sleep if one of them isn't in the bed.

6. I'm afraid of the dark and use a Department 56 house as a night light. (It's NeeNee's Dolls and Toys from North Pole Village if you're familiar with that line from Dept 56)

Happy Birthday, Miracle

After having spent over nine years and several thousand dollars trying to get pregnant with our first child, we fully expected her to be our only child. Our little miracle. And, while I desperately longed for more children, I was content and thrilled to be Elizabeth's Mommy. I'm sure you can well imagine our shock and overwhelming excitement when we learned you were on your way. As much as Elizabeth is a miracle of modern medicine - you are a miracle in your own right. As much as she is the baby I never thought I'd have - you are more so! We love you NinNin, our Miracle.

Bitty Bug Ballet

My youngest in the sunglasses that were in her Easter Basket and the tutu that was in one of her sister's Easter baskets.

LO was totally inspired by Julie's "Picture Perfect" but I could never in a million years scrap like her (maybe when I grow up, LOL) so this is a much more "elementary" LO compared to hers.
http://www.digishoptalk.com/gallery/...er=11&sl=m

Credits:
Amanda Rockwell:
Background - Little Miss
Painted flowers - Painted Flowers
Mini painted flower - Knock Knock
Butterfly - Knock Knock
Dragonfly - Flitter
Diamonds - Back in Black Collection, Bright
Film Strip - Back in Black Collection 2, Funky Town
Staples - Little Miss

Michelle Coleman:
Stamped Alpha Brushes

Font: Pea Sdflenner

Filter: Virtual Photographer