Music to my ears

McKinley's school offers orchestra to the 3rd graders. Originally McKinley wanted to play the violin, but after hearing the orchestra teacher play the violin, viola and cello, she decided she loved the sound of the viola better. I am excited she has this opportunity and hope she continues to be as excited about it for many years to come as she is now.

Whoa baby!

Today I went in for my 38 week appointment. I had an ultrasound done to check for size. According to the ultrasound this baby is currently about 9 lbs 9 oz! Yep, I'd say that feels about right! We scheduled an induction for next Friday, October 7th.

Let's hope he doesn't hit the 10 lb mark by then!

Just look at those cheeks already!

Daddy's girl

McKinley brought home this writing assignment that she did for the beginning of the school year. I may have gotten a little teary-eyed (in a good way).



She thinks her dad hung the moon (even just sitting on the couch), as every little girl should.

Orange Crush

Sawyer started his flag football season today. They call themselves the "Orange Crush"! We were at the field for over 2 hours since they had their first practice before the game as well.

While Sawyer was practicing, I was watching another two teams playing their little 6-8 year old game. One of the coaches was a big, burly, "New York" sounding crazy man. He was yelling at the kids and quite a few little guys slumped off the field feeling pretty low. I was getting really nervous about letting Sawyer do football. I was worried that maybe this community puts a little more pressure on these football kids than I want. I was getting really angry at this coach and it wasn't even my kid!

Luckily, our coaches were great with our team, as were the coaches on the team we played against. They taught the kids some plays to run and helped them learn about football. Sawyer had a great time and that's what's important. I was so relieved to be on this team with good coaches.

It was a hot day in the sun. 82 degrees plus insane humidity equals some tired little bodies.

They practiced two different plays today. One with a hand off to the runner up the left, and one with a hand off to the runner up the right (I have no idea if those are real football terms). Here is Sawyer's turn to run the ball. The quarterback didn't quite hand it off though, he kind of tossed it which threw Sawyer for a loop and the ball tumbled to the ground. Sawyer was disappointed in himself saying he didn't get to run with the ball because he messed up. I told him the boy accidentally tossed the ball instead of handing it off and it was just a mistake and he felt better after that.

Every time Sawyer had to take a turn on the sideline he was anxious to get back in the game.

This kid loves sports! I am glad we are on a good team that will give him a positive experience.

35 weeks!

We're planning to induce a week early due to my big baby history. So I tell myself I only have 4 more weeks to go...I hope I'm right!

I am...very uncomfortable! Which I am sure is just nature's way of motivating me to want this baby on the outside instead of the inside.

Pregnancy

This post is my journaling of my pregnancy...a very sparse journaling.




March 10- week 9- I never documented my other pregnancies, and since this is the last one for me I thought I would finally do it. Today I am 9 weeks along. I haven't made a doctor's appointment yet. Having had 2 miscarriages this last year (one at 7 weeks and one at 10 weeks) I am taking this one very cautiously. It's hard for me to believe it's going to last yet. If I make it to 10 weeks I'll make a doctor's appointment. If I make it to 12 weeks I'll give myself permission to start hoping. I heard a great quote that explains it perfectly: "It's such a cruel thing, to lose a baby. Nothing is ever untainted again, not even hope."--Lady Agnes in PBS Upstairs Downstairs. In week 9 I'm feeling...nauseous all day long. Mornings are better than evenings, so my family's dinners suffer. I don't feel like cooking taco meat once dinner comes around. I'm a little more voluptuous up top, which is a nice bonus. My mood seems a little more stable-to me anyway. I am not very motivated to do anything though, or go anywhere. I'm content to be at home and read or watch movies or hang out with Hayden. As a result dishes have been piling up for a while.

March 24-week 11- Feeling less nauseated this week, which is nice. Also feeling more energy and have actually been cooking and cleaning! Hayden keeps saying things about a baby in me...it's so funny and I can't wait to be able to tell them. I want to wait until after the ultrasound so we can tell them whether it's a boy or girl. I guess that means I need to make my first dr. appointment though. It's hard to just pick one out of a hat and hope for the best.

March 31-week 12- I finally made that dr. appointment for next Wednesday. They are going to do an ultrasound too. Nausea is back to it's old self again. I do pretty good in the morning and early afternoon, but late afternoon strikes and I don't want to even THINK about dinner.

May 1- I am 16+ weeks now. I did finally go to the doctor. They did an ultrasound in the office so I got to see the baby. It is such a beautiful baby and I just couldn't wait to tell the kids. Of course once I told the kids I had to let others know, since I know the kids couldn't keep it a secret.
At 16+ weeks I am feeling...chubby. I had a little relief from morning sickness while we were in D.C. but it's kind of back again. I am obviously eating enough to get chubby though. My next appointment is on Tuesday, then I will schedule the ultrasound to see if it's a boy or girl.

May 14- 18 weeks. I feel like I am 8 months pregnant. I already waddle sometimes. That can't be a good sign of things to come. I am also chubby...or as I like to think, pleasantly plump. I'd better start looking pregnant soon instead of chubby. I'd rather people think I'm pregnant. On a positive note, I can feel the baby moving. The kid's can feel the growing baby bump. And the ultrasound is next Thursday!

June 9- 22 weeks. We are past the halfway mark. We got our ultrasound a few weeks ago and found out we're having a boy. I knew it! Kent and McKinley thought it was a girl. McKinley was a bit crushed for a few days, but now that all the cute baby stuff is coming out I think she's excited again. I will always wish for her to have had a sister. Sisters are the best...but this is our last so she'll have to put up with brothers. Feeling normal, except I am huge. Much bigger than I think I should be. Not technically, but aesthetically. And I can feel the baby move a lot now which I am relishing every moment. No name yet.

September 8- 35 weeks. Hmm, it's been a while since I've documented anything. I see a recurring theme in all my other updates and it is still appropriate today...I feel huge. I am as big as a house! I also feel a lot of pressure in my pelvis, like this kid just might pop out at any second! If my body cooperates we are hoping to schedule an induction for week 39 (October 6). So I like to think I only have 4 more weeks to go. I wish my body would just have this baby on it's own, but it didn't happen with my other three, so I'm not counting on it. I have lots of Braxton-Hicks contractions everyday. I didn't have nearly as many with my other kids. Baby is moving around a lot and has the hiccups at least once a day. The kids love to feel the hiccups. The kids call our baby Josh. It is still the front running name as I haven't had another name bowl me over yet. I have appointments starting every week next week. We'll do an ultrasound on week 38 to help me decide if I do want to induce a week early...I do, believe me I do.

Sept 20- 36 weeks and 5 days...I keep having Braxton-Hicks contractions, but they end up nowhere. Grrr. I wish just once my baby would come on it's own and not by Pitocin force! Oh well. Hopefully just nearly 2 weeks left.

Sept 22- 37 weeks. Well, I am officially "full term" now. So any time baby...any time. I have an ultrasound scheduled for next Wednesday followed by an appointment to see if I am dilated at all so we can schedule an induction date if everything is good. On one hand I want the baby to just come now, and on the other hand it would be nice if my parents were here to take care of the kids (they come on the night of Oct 4). Chances are I will still be waiting when my parents get here. Feeling: stretched. I can't stand comfortably for more than a few minutes without back pain or overwhelming aches in my abdomen or difficulty breathing. Things I will miss: feeling a baby inside kicking and growing. All the kids rubbing my tummy and loving this baby already. Sleeping (except for bathroom breaks) through the night. There is something very special about experiencing pregnancy and I know I am lucky and blessed to be able to become a mother this way. I thought I would be more sad about this being my last baby. But I know my family will be complete and it feels good. Come soon baby!

First day of school...finally

After a week's delay from the hurricane aftermath the kids finally had their first day of school.

McKinley started bright and early with the bus picking her up at 7:00 am. She came home and said it was a great first day. She is my eager little learner! Her favorite part was lunch because she got to see her friends from her old class.

Sawyer finally said last night that he was excited to go to school. I think it helped that they were doing gym today and he got to wear the new gym shoes he picked out. He came home today and said it was a good day. But later complained that there was too much writing, and that he doesn't want to read. Oi vay! He said his favorite part was nothing...and then claimed it was lunch. When I asked him why he said it was because of his chips :)

Hayden also went back to his "preschool" today. He tried really hard to trace his "A"s correctly. We did an "All About Me" book where he had to draw a picture of his family. He made all 6 of us (including baby) and I wrote down on his paper that there were 6 people in his family. Then he told me "no, not 6", and we had a little argument as he drew a 7th person. Turns out the 7th person in our family picture is a stranger and daddy is kicking him in the head. That's my Hayden.

Demo

Our "neighbor" across the street got torn down this weekend. It was the lovely abandoned "structure" with ceilings caved in and who knows what living in there. It was still on the market for $525,000 though.

Recently our landlady sent an email letting us know that if we wanted we could back out of our lease as she wouldn't be able to afford to replace the roof and that this house will probably be a tear down anyway when we're done here....comforting.

It was fun for the kids to watch the demolition though.

It's back!

The power came on at 10 am this morning! The cable was quick to follow. It may be the best day ever!

The laundry is running and the dishwasher is cleaning! Hallelujah!

And there will be college football tonight!

Day 6

Still no power. They say it may not be on until next Wednesday! Our clean laundry is getting low. My appetite for hamburgers and hot dogs has waned. I miss electricity. I miss tv. I miss my computer. I miss running water all the time. I miss doing dishes in the dishwasher. I miss running the washer and dryer. I miss dry towels (I don't know why the towels won't dry out in between use).

I'm so glad we have a generator though. So many people without are having to go to community places to shower and such. I was very unsure of spending all that money last year, but it has more than made up for it. Hopefully we won't need it again for a while.