No Photo Memories this Year

If you are wondering where all our Christmas pics are of from this year’s Christmas you are out of luck. Remember that new camera I told you I got? Well, I was trying to figure the thing out and it told me I needed to reformat my memory card so, I did, without even giving it a secong thought. The kicker is, that memory card was out of my old camera and any pictures I had on it are now lost. Talk about a downer right? All the pictures I had taken of us opening our gifts on Christmas morning, including our stockings, and Rayce big Jeep surprise were all on that memory card. Ugh, I just can’t get over that fact that I did that.

We had covered Rayce’s Jeep with a sheet and a big bow on top, I had got the cutest picture of him poking his head under the sheet to see what was under it. I am so sad. Also on that memory card were the pictures of us opening all of our gifts from my mom, which we all loved. Sorry mom I know you wanted to see those pics. So, I could go on and on about what was on there but I won’t because it only gets me all upset all over again. For now, I’m trying to capture new memories and I’m sure I will have my new memory card filled up in no time.

Two Year Molars

Shoot me now! Today was probably the worst day that I have had with Rayce since his newborn days. He cried, fussed, and whined for the majority of the day. It seriously reminded me of his newborn days when he would just cry and cry and nothing I would do would work to the point of just wanting to throw in the towel. So finally, I just had to put him in his bed (after an hour straight of having a full blown fit) turned on the vacuum (so I couldn’t hear him) and just left him be. He probably cried and screamed for another 45 minutes before he stopped. I went in, picked him up and he acted like nothing ever happened. Crazy kid. Thank god nap time was only an hour away but that wouldn’t last long either, thanks to our lovely neighbors. So, the afternoon was probably as eventful as the morning, minus the running of the vacuum. Oy, I tell you I’m ready to wring someone’s neck! You’d think those teeth are ready to pop through or even breaking through at that. Heck no, his gums are just swollen and red. The next couple of week to a month should be grand! So if I’m a bit short with you, now you know why. ;-/

A Huge Task

This is soon to be Rayna’s room and it is nowhere near to being ready for her. Ack, just thinking about it drives me nuts. For the last 2 years this has been our junk room. You know the kind of room where you just throw everything in it when company is coming over, kind of room. It has also acted like our garage since we don’t have one. Kind of just a place to put things that don’t have a place. Well, all that now needs to change and I have no idea what to do with all this junk. It’s too cold outside to have a yard sale and some of this stuff I need to keep but I don’t have a place to put it. Now do you see my frustrations? I am on a mission though, a mission to get this room ready for her. We already bought her changing table so that is my motivation for getting this room cleaned out. Wish me luck! I will post pics as the room progresses.

Merry Christmas to me!

Look what santa brought me! I guess I was a good girl this year after all. I'm not to sure what I did to deserve this but, all he said was I did. I'm still trying to get use to using it. This camera is a little more complicated then my old one but I just love it. I can't wait to explore new things with it, I'm so excited!

This week's new words!

Also some phrases and new letters!

New words:
Car (thar)
Go
See
Light (yight)
Tree(tee)

Phrases:
What do you see
What did you do

Letters:
H
N
U

Rayce's favorite show to watch is called Super Why on PBS. It's about fairytale readers who have problems and solve those problems by reading books. It's kind of silly but Rayce likes it nonetheless. Anyway, yesterday he was watching and the show asked what letters do you see? Three letters popped up on the TV and Rayce goes E, O, L so, I look up and sure enough there's an E, O, and L on the screen! Can you believe that? He's actually learning his letters from this show. Who says watching TV isn't good for kids? Hog wash!

IT'S A GIRL!

What a memorable day yesterday was. When I got to the doctor’s office they took me right back, I hardly ever have to wait there, which is nice. So I plop right up on the table and not too long after that the fun began. Right away when she put the probe to my tummy I saw her! It was so amazing to see this little being inside of me. She started out by measuring her waist and then she asked us if she happened to see the gender if we wanted to know? We both said yes most definitely and then she proceeded. At that point, I could kind of tell she was in “that area” but I really couldn’t make anything out. Then she goes “I’m running out of paper, it needs to be changed but I would like to end on an image let me see what I can get.” Then, all of the sudden she goes “there’s your babies gender” but I couldn’t tell so I go “it’s a boy?” She’s like no honey that’s a girl! Right at that very moment I just lost it, I was completely hysterical. I just wanted to jump off the table, go in the corner and cry! Not too long after that I felt Ray grab my hand and he squeezed it tightly. It was honestly one of the greatest, most memorable moments ever. It was just like I had imagined it would be. I am still in shock!

So I re-gain my composure (after feeling like a complete goof) and the ultrasound tech asked why I was crying? If it was a good thing or bad thing? So I explained after having 2 boys that I really wanted a girl and how this is going to be my last baby. She said she understood and then she started taking all kind of pictures for me. It was so neat! She really couldn’t get a good face shot because Rayna does not like the camera ha. She kept her hands over her face the whole time. It was almost like she was saying I’m trying to sleep lady leave me alone. It was so dang cute.

Anyway, that’s my wonderful ultrasound story! They said everything looks great. She is measuring right on track and weighs what she should. What a blessing, really!



Here are some pics for those who haven't seen them!

This week's new words!

Rayce is really having a blast learning new words. He suprises me daily by saying new things. So, I decided it was probably a good idea to start a weekly "new words" log. So here ya go here are Rayce's new words for this week:

Apple (ba-po)
Bubble (buh-bow)
Eye
Mama (the word I've been waiting almost 2 yrs for!)
No (his new favorite)
Nose
Ouch (ow-wa)
Zipper (zzzzz-pa)

Isn't this great? I love, love hearing him say new things. If you're keeping track that's 20 words now. What a blessing!

Pregnancy Reflections

The Fourth Month

What I least expected with this pregnancy was:
Sickness/nausea to last this long.

The best bit of advice I've received is:
I haven't really received any advice instead, it has been me giving it.

What has changed the most in my life with this pregnancy is:
My eating habbits...once again!

What made me realize that I was really pregnant was:
Hearing that wonderful heartbeating sound.

This month's ultrasound was:
I haven't gone yet ;(

At my prenatal visit this month I discovered that:
Once again I haven't gone yet. I think my appointments got messed up by a week somewhere :/

My hopes:
I'm really wanting a baby girl.

My fears:
That almighty c-section.

Learning New Words Everyday

I am so proud of Rayce! He is making great strides and learning new words every day. Ray and I have been working with him diligently and it is finally paying off. Rayce’s vocabulary has grown and really taken off just in the past 2 weeks. Some of the words he is saying now are:

Ball
Balloon (boon)
Banana (nana)
Daddy (da-ee)
Dog (bog)
Hi
Hello
Hungry (un-gee)
More (nah)
Wow
Yeah
Yay!

This is so exciting! It may not seem like a big deal to some but for me it is HUGE. Also, he can now identify some letters by site and also recite them. Some of the letters he can identify are A (his favorite and often calls all letters this) O L and S. Again I am so proud of him. I knew he had it him; it simply took time like everyone said. We will continue to work with him daily and hopefully, soon he will be talking so much we won’t be able to shut him up. What a blessing that would be. ;)

Wordless Wednesday

19 weeks!

Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now. Her kidneys continue to make urine and the hair on her scalp is sprouting. A waxy protective coating called the vernix caseosa is forming on her skin to prevent it from pickling in the amniotic fluid.

I can't believe I'm almost half way there. Where has the time gone? I'm feeling great these days. I still get sick about once a week but for the most part I feel good. Rayce keeps me on my toes and I am forced to stay active so I think that helps a lot.

I started having tailbone pain and numbness in my legs when on my feet for too long. My OB seems to think it's a pinched nerve. Joy! My heating pad and favorite recliner have been my best friend in times like this. As time goes on I think this can get real fun.

Only 2.5 more weeks until our big u/s!! I cannot wait!

No more "baba"

Rayce is no longer depends on a bottle to go to sleep. Actually, he has been off the bottle for almost a month now I just forgot to mention it. The process was actually easier than I had thought it would be. Rayce has always been a good wiener lol. I have defiantly learned to follow his cues and to kind of let him decide when he is ready to give up things. I’ve never really saw a sense in torturing a child by taking things away that they still depend on. I just think it’s cruel.

On the other hand I am having a hard time trying to get him to drink milk now. He won’t drink it from a cup of any sort. Also, he doesn’t like other dairy products such as cheese, ice cream, and yogurt. He’s a crazy kid, the only way he will drink milk is from a bottle. Hopefully he will outgrow this and learn to like milk in other forms.

For now I’m counting this as a victory that we are a bottle free house. Well, for now anyway!

Appointment

I had my check up appointment yesterday and all is well. My blood pressure was a little high but I think it was because I was running late and I had to go across town in horrible traffic. Also I didn’t gain any weight, nor did I have any sugar in my urine so, yay for that. I got to hear the heartbeat beating away at 155 bpm. She also scheduled my ultrasound and filled out a blood work form and sent me on my way. My ultrasound is scheduled for Thursday December 18th at 3:00 p.m. Count down the days with me would ya?

Headaches Grrr

The one thing I don’t look forward to during being pregnant are those pesky headaches. I’m not just talking about your average headache either. I’m talking about the kind of headache that is all in your neck, shoulders, behind your eyes, and throbbing in your temples. Grr it makes me so mad just thinking about it and nothing I do seems to help. Not to mention the medication you can take during pregnancy is slim pickings’.

I tried to read up on pregnancy headaches but there doesn’t seem to be one pin pointing cause. Some experts say they are caused by high blood pressure, while others say it’s related to the rise in estrogen during pregnancy. Who knows? All I know is it sucks.

Today I’m going on day three of having the same headache. Last night I asked my wonderful husband to get me the heating pad and he responded by rolling his eyes. Now talk about a rise in blood pressure ha. It took everything in me to contain my raging pregnancy hormones. He did end up getting it for me and then politely asked if I needed anything else. Oy, I tell you…men!

Wordless Wednesday

Pregnancy Reflections

Third Month

What I'm enjoying the most about my pregnancy so far is:
Just trying to enjoy it. It's been a tough one but it's getting better.

The strangest advice I've received is:
Haven't really received any. I guess I'm an old pro!

Names that I've been thinking of:
The girl name is already set. For a boy I like Landon.

Girl or boy? I think you will be a:
Not to sure this time.

The old wives tales predict:
Girl (pencil test)

At my prenatal visit this month I found out that:
My glucose levels went down!

My hopes:
For a healthy baby.

My fears:
Raising 2 kids. (I think I said that on the last months to ha)

The pencil test!

My mother in law (Sinda) and I did it yesterday and the results are in! It says it's a.....
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.
.
.
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.
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GIRL! Woo Hoo!
So far the pencil test is 5-0 in our family so we shall see.

Wordless Wednesday

Second Trimester

I am now in my second trimester and I still feel blah. All I ever want to do is stay in bed all day. I'm still nauseous throughout different parts of the day, and I just want it to end. My brain is complete mush and I cannot complete a thought. Hence, the lack of blogging. I'm patiently waiting for my "honeymoon" phase to begin. I swear if it wasn't for Rayce I would just stay in bed 24/7 and wilt away. Thank the Lord for him and Ray they keep me in high spirits.

Also, here are some interesting facts I read today about the second trimester.

By week 15, the fetus is around five inches long and weighs about two ounces. Although its eyelids are fused shut, its eyes are now sensitive to light. The fetus now kicks and moves. Its head -- which just a few weeks ago dwarfed the rest of its body -- is now more proportional. A fine hair called lanugo covers its body. The kidneys and urinary tract start to produce urine and release it into the amniotic fluid. The liver begins secreting bile, and the spleen begins to aid in the production of red blood cells.

A Happy Halloween

This years Halloween was great! What better way to share the story but through pictures. See for yourself!

Movement!!

For almost a week now I've been feeling some type of movement/flutters. At first I wasn't sure if that is what it was but, as time has gone on, it has become more apparent that baby bean is floating around in there. Yay! How exciting is that? I'm right at the 12 week mark, which puts me at 3 months, and on my way to the 2nd trimester. It seems like it is going by so fast but then when I think about how far I have to go, uh, not so much.

I've been feeling ok. The nausea and morning sickness is gone but that blah feeling is still there. I am able to get more things done now so, I guess I shouldn't complain. I go to the doctor in a week so stay tuned for that.

Wordless Wednesday

Saturday Social

Today's Saturday Social Question:

Are you doing anything for Halloween?

We will probably do a little of everything this year; take Rayce trick or treating and also hand out some candy. We will only go to a few houses because Rayce doesn't really like candy and mommy can't have any candy. That leaves a bunch of candy for daddy and he really doesn't need it. I love taking pics of Rayce in his costume. He will probably be a frog this year; I'm still searching for his costume. Wish me luck!

Visit the lovely Lisa if you'd like to participate in Saturday Social or click here for all the rules and details!

Happy Socializing!

11 weeks

Your baby is now almost 2.5 inches long (6.1cm) when measured from crown to rump, and weighs between 0.3 and 0.5 ounces (9 to 13g).

Your baby's fingers and toes have separated and are getting longer. Your baby can open and close its mouth and drinks amniotic fluid which it passes out as urine. Its head is becoming more rounded, though it is still large in proportion to its body. It has eyelids.

You can now hear your baby's heartbeat with a Doppler Ultrasound device!

Your baby continues to grow rapidly and has doubled in size in the last three weeks alone.

The face is beginning to look more human, and all body structures are present with a few refinements still in progress. Fingernails and toenails begin to develop this week.

Your baby's muscles are sufficiently developed to allow for involuntary movements at this time. The messages which control your baby's movements are sent from the spine, rather than the brain, which is not yet sufficiently developed.

Most of my nausea has lifted and I am starting to get some energy back. Being pregnant with a toddler has been a lot more challenging than I ever thought it would. I wouldn’t be able to do it without the ongoing support from my husband. He has been there to pick up the pieces with Rayce when I haven’t been there to.

We are still waiting for a financial break through. It has been 2 months since daddy lost his job. He is only making half of what he was and our savings is gone. I am trying to remain hopeful that something greater is waiting on the other side of this but at times it gets tough and adding pregnancy hormones on top of it all doesn’t help either.

I really need to update this thing more often. Most days I just don’t feel like doing much of anything. :-/

Wordless Wednesday

Pregnancy Reflections

Second Month

The hardest thing for me to give up is:
Carbs! Anything with too much carbs...ahhhh I love carbs!

This month I told:
I think everyone already knows. I'm pretty sure.

They reacted by:
Does not apply.

This month at my prenatal visit I learned that:
Baby bean has a strong heartbeat. 179 bpm!

New pregnancy symptoms I had this month:
Nothing really new. Constant nausea and tummy aches.

My hopes:
Baby girl!

My fears:
Oh the fears have set in! Too many to list and my list might have you sending me to the nut house lol. It's normal right? Stupid hormones.

Catching Up

Lately I feel like I’m living in a constant fog. I can’t seem to shake the first trimester funk. I will have one good day and then spend the next 3 or 4 days paying for it. It’s a constant exhaustion that I’ve never felt before. Bless my husband and son; they are barely hanging in there by a thread. I’ve always been quite the multi tasker and lately I can’t seem to get anything done. I’m hoping it passes soon. If not, I’m in for a long ride for the next 9 months.

In better news: we had our first appointment on Wednesday and we got to see our little bean floating away. When I saw the heartbeat I nearly lost it. It is truly an amazing site to see that for the first time.