34 Weeks and Outdoor Play

Well, here I am at 34 weeks. We are getting close! She should be about 5 and 1/2 lbs right now and I can feel all sorts of feet, elbows, and knees.
Also, I took a few pictures of Luke playing in his water and sand play table. He plays in it about an hour at least everyday and loves it. We find all sorts of things to pour water and sand around with. The current favorites are matchbox cars and the plastic eggs from Easter.
Happy kid:
Oh, yes, and another shot of the garden. So far we have taken in about a dozen cherry tomatoes and 5 beefsteak tomatoes. There are many many more on the vine too!

Our weather has been downright gorgeous- which is really saying something for Houston in mid-late May. Last year, it was already unbearably hot and muggy and the mosquitoes were out in force.

Stick Horse Riding

These arrived in the mail today:

Birth is Messy

Luke: You have a big baby in your tummy
Me: Yes, I do here she is (put hand on belly)
Luke: And she isn't going to pop out yet. She is still growing.
Me: Yes, she is growing bigger and bigger.
Luke: (covering his face) Then she's gonna pop out your belly and its going to get all over my head.
Me: (Where in the world did he get that from?)

He has also told me on a few occasions that "You gonna need a new shirt mommy, when the baby pops out."

We haven't shown him any birth videos (and won't). Where does he get this? :)

A little bit of this, a little bit of that

It's about time that I wrote a more substantial blog post. I would have done it earlier, but there has just been too much going on in my head. Here is an update on our family:

Having the baby:

We have really been getting ourselves ready for baby #2. The room, the labor details, the supplies... everything. I am only 32 weeks, but I really have felt the need to get ready. Maybe that is because last week, at my appointment with the midwives, I realized that I didn't even know where to go when I was in labor. With Luke, there was only one place to go- the birth center. Everything happened there- check ups, birthing, the works. I also realized at that appointment that i had to make sure that Luke had a place to go when I go to the hospital. Another complication that we didn't have the last go around. Basically I had not really thought of the important stuff (or aybe shopping for girl stuff was just more fun).

So, since then, I think I have gotten my act together. In the past week, I: 1. hired a doula (labor assistant) that I am very excited to work with, 2. got an appointment to view the labor and delivery ward at the hospital- which happens to be in a completely different building than my prenatal visits. That was kind of important for me to know! 3. found a back up person to watch Luke if his auntie and uncle are still out of town.

I feel better now.

The baby's name:

I have one that I am completely stuck on now. Hopefully Nathan will consent. :)

Luke:

Luke has continued to be an avid reader with me. He remembers books better than I do and will sometimes just break out into a 12 line rhyme from Dr. Seuss.

Some things that he says a lot right now:

"I got an idea!"
"Let's throw you into the hole top bacon."- we have NO idea where this came from
"It's all right, your friends are all here."
"I'm still hungry mama- my tummy is empty."

Next week, he starts swim lessons. He is very excited about that!

Also, Luke has been better lately. We have still had our moments, but on the whole, I think that he is beginning to get better about obeying and playing nicely with other kids. I found that taking him home really helped me with this. We were at the park on Monday and he whacked a a couple school age kids (Yes, he is fearless) and threw rocks. I picked him up by the arm, took him to the car and told him that we had to go home. He cried for about an hour, but has been a LOT better since.

Nathan:

Nathan has had some good news this past week. His company gave him a raise and a lot more support on the project that he was working on. It was a welcome surprise.

Me:

I have been thinking through a lot of my first birth experience lately. The ups and downs, what I would like to try and do differently. Some of it has just been remembering how things felt. I think it is a grace that most of my sad and difficult labor and post labor thoughts and feelings have dulled or completely been forgotten.

I have also been thinking about how gracious God is to me. This past Sunday at church was a great example. For one, I didn't want to go. Second and third, I knew that Luke didn't want to go and I was feeling really tired from the pregnancy. Luke ended up being very good for me and there were a couple of older mothers who came up to me at lunch and gave me a lot of encouragement. Really, they were exactly the words I needed to hear. I got a little teary.

It is hard to be a mother because you don't always know what to do. I find this especially with church. I want Luke to love God and the Church like I do- and truly much better than I do. I want to bring him often, but I know that he can only handle so much sitting still and such.

Well, I have to go now. We are in the crazy hour before bed and I need to get ready to enjoy some stories with Luke and steel myself for the "I won't go to bed!" routine. :)