Weekend Project

Last week, I was so looking forward to our 3-day vacation! The weather was supposed to be nice and I made sure to clear all my projects at school on Friday before leaving. I was also looking forward to the backyard renovation we were planning to do. Ryan and I have been talking about making our garden bigger since we moved in 6 years ago. We finally got around to it on Saturday--but it wasn't quite the weekend I was hoping for. It was a LOT of WORK!!!

We pulled up flowers and rocks around all 3 of our trees in the backyard. Ryan started trimming the middle tree which we are going to be cutting down--it is getting too big and out of control. Not good timing, though--our backyard neighbor was hosting a wedding shower. We gave the guests a lot to talk about! Next we had to dig out flowers for replanting. Then Ryan had to dig up a good chunk of our yard. We laid bricks around both trees and outlined the garden. The best part--we have so much room to plant more vegetables! We planted tomatoes, red and green peppers, beans, peas, onions, and some potatoes. Although it was a lot of work, we are pleased with the results and are excited it's over!

Bennett was out in the yard watching all the nonsense with grandma and grandpa. He even put on some gloves and pretended to get to work :-)

Bennett's New Bed

I recently received an e-mail stating that Bennett's crib had been recalled. Perfect timing, actually. This forced us to go our and purchase a new toddler bed. We have to take the crib apart and send back all the hardware. When school is over, we'll start working on getting him to sleep in his new bed. That way, he hopefully won't be offended when the baby has to take over the crib. Plus, the baby will get a brand new crib, just for him--not a hand-me-down like all his other things will be :-)

What Little Boys Do

So, for some of you, you may wonder what it's like living with a baby boy--I know my sister is curious, as she has two little girls. And now with a second little boy on the way, I thought I'd show you some of Bennett's favorite activities.

He loves to read books!! He makes this funny growling sound as he "reads."

He loves to talk on the phone!

He's never too far from his basketball and he loves to play catch and bounce it.

He's strong enough to carry mom's purse!

My sister's biggest fear is that my little boy would someday want to play with trucks--yuck! But here's how my little boy likes to play with his truck :-)

Even though we'll never have dolls or princess dresses in our house, I think my little boy is too darn cute--trucks and all!

An Unexpected Surprise

A ring at my doorbell earlier today was a complete surprise! A woman was standing on my doorstep holding this beautiful bouquet of flowers. Names started going through my head of who would be sending me flowers and of course, the obvious choice, was my husband as an early Mother's Day gift. But the card had a wonderful message and was signed by my sister, brother-in-law, and nieces! Completely out of the blue, unexpected, and greatly appreciated!! I've had a lot of time to think since my last post. My initial reaction to being the mother of another boy was upsetting and made me sad. But I look at the incredible gift I received in my first son and wonder, "How could I possibly be disappointed about another little boy?" As with my sister (it was not this way as kids), there is a special bond between siblings of the same sex. My sister was the first person I called, I cried on the phone about my disappointment, and then read her blog about her excitement over another nephew. I wish that same kind of relationship between Bennett and his brother-to-be. Am I still sad? Sure. Will I always feel a little twinge when I see cute baby girls? Of course. But nothing could possibly take away from the incredible feeling I have about being a mother at all! When we were trying so hard with Bennett, there were moments when I thought that I would never be a mom. How lucky am I to have one beautiful little boy and another close behind. Things may not have turned out according to MY plan, but apparently someone has a different agenda, and I'm okay with that. If my boys have the chance to be close like my sister and I, then I will be truly grateful!!! And as I'm finding out, the best surprises in life are the unexpected ones!

Baby Boy

Here is the first picture of our baby. We were ablet o determine the sex and found out it was another baby boy! Everything looks great--heart, two arms, two legs, seemed very active. The only glitch was the cysts they found on his brain. Sometimes, during pregnancy, they develop and I guess they're pretty common. These can be linked to a disorder called Trisomy 18, but he has none of the other symptoms--no cleft lip or clenched hands, just to name a few. These cysts can also, a small percentage of the time, be an indicator of Down's Syndrome. We opted not to do the blood tests to find out whether we are at risk for this. Instead, we will leave that in God's hands and see how things progress. Typically, they shrink and go away as pregnancy progresses, so say some prayers and keep you fingers crossed!

As for the news that is was a boy--I can't lie--I'm a little disappointed. Okay, a lot disappointed right now. From the beginning, I really felt like it was a girl and we were thinking of some cute girl names. But, today I returned my cute pink outfit to the store. Although I am so grateful that this baby boy is measuring well and seems very healthy, I have this enormous sense of loss. I'm so sad that I'll never get to put in pigtails or go shopping for prom dresses. In the beginning, I knew having another boy would be a good thing--we have all the clothes we could ever need and with them being so close in age and having to share a room, I think two boy will help them be good buddies. But as a mother, there's just something about having a little girl that I am having a hard time letting go of. I really don't think I want to have more that two kids, especially if it would turn out that this baby does have some medical conditions. I guess this just means I'll be buying my nieces a lot of dresses and dolls :-)

Overall, it was an emotional day. I went in with high hopes that there was nothing wrong with this baby and it was going to be a girl. Although the doctor assured us that the chances of these cysts turing out to be anything were slim, there's still that chance. As was the news that we were pregnant again, this will take some time to sink in and for me to come to terms with it. God must think I can handle living with 3 men--yikes! As always, I'll continue to update as things progress. And if you have any good boy names, send them my way--I'm starting from scratch!

Good News!

Not only did Bennett and I arrive home safely, but I got some great news upon my return. After going through all 150+ personal e-mails and 96 school e-mails, I found out that I will be teaching kindergarten next year! What a relief! I am so excited to be back teaching the grade level I love and am comfortable with. When all the chaos began with the new school staffing, I made the decision to leave it in God's hands. I chose not to apply to the new school, and I have been blessed with staying at the school I love with my incredible principal and co-workers (although some are moving away :-( and now I am teaching the level that I was hoping for. So, things worked out the way I had hoped and the way they were meant to. I can go into summer vacation with a sense of relief about what the next school year be. On Wednesday, we hope for more good news as we have our ultrasound. We hope the baby (who survived this trip with me!) is growing well and is healthy. And, of course, we're really hoping to find out whether it's a girl or a boy! All in all, life is good!

Home Again, Home Again

On Saturday, we all got up very early to get to the airport to fly home. Bennett and I had two very rough flights--the turbulance was horrible! But Bennett was such a trooper and did pretty well. Although it was sad for our vacation to end, it was great to be home and be greeted by Daddy, and Grandma and Grandpa T.

What I also learned was that even though the Midwest has its flaws (weather being one of them), there is something to be said about the people. I met some wonderful people on our flights, who were so generous and willing to help. On our final flight home, I sat next to a man and his wife just coming home from Germany. I put Bennett on the floor while I got situated and he picked him up and put him on his lap. He talked to Bennett and even let him play with his cell phone. When getting off the plane, this same man held on to Bennett while I got the stroller. I have a new appreciation for my home and the people here. I also have a new appreciation for parents traveling with kids. It is hard work, especially when you're alone. It's stressful and it's hard to manage all your bags, strollers, car seats, and children--especially when they are tired and cranky and are not acting the way you wish they would! But I'm proud to say that I traveled alone with my 15 month old son and survived!

I miss my sister, brother-in-law, and nieces already, but I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with them. I know Bennett won't remember any of this trip, but I hope through my blog, all the pictures, and stories I have to share, he will someday be grateful for our time away. Thanks to my family for giving me the opportunity to come tag along on your family vacation!

Vacation ~ The Last Hurrah!

After spending two long and fun-filled days at Disneyland, Dave headed to work and Heather, the 3 kids and I headed to the beach. We went to Huntington Beach Pier on the Pacific Ocean. It was a chilly, windy day, but boy was it beautiful!

Playing in the sand!

Mattea making sand angels.

Searching for seashells.

Vacation ~ Day 3

We began our day with a quick snack at the hotel, and then it was time to head back to the park. The girls were super excited because we were going to have breakfast with the Disney princesses! We were greeted right away by Ariel. The girls also got to meet Cinderella, Belle, Jasmine, and Aurora.

Mattea finally got to go on the Dumbo ride!

On this day, we spent some time on the other side of Disney--California Adventures. We checked out a Bug's Life and rode a few rides. But the kids were so exhausted that we decided to head back to the hotel for a nap (which Bennett never took!). Then it was back to the park that evening for the big parade! What a neat way to end our time at Disney! It was full of dancing and singing and Disney characters!

Vacation ~ Day 2

The day began on a rough note--Bennett was awake at 2:47 a.m, thinking it was almost 5 our time. I managed to get him back to sleep, but he was up and ready by 5. We headed to Disney around 10:00. All 3 of the kids seemed excited to get going.

(Just a side note about poor Bennett's shoes. I bought some new sandals for our trip, but when I went to put them on that morning, I couldn't get them velcroed! His feet were just too chubby--so we had to wear our other shoes, minus socks--sorry, babe!!)

One of our first stops was It's a Small World--I think this was my favorite part of Disney.

Then, we went on the train that took us all over the park. We went on Pinnochio's Daring Adventure, ate cotton candy, and took some time to play in Toon Town.

Finally, we had the chance to get our picture taken with a Disney character--Pluto.

By the end of the day, all the kids were extremely tired! What a great way to start our vacation!

Vacation ~ The Beginning

I've been away from blogging for a while but I had a good excuse--Bennett and I were on vacation! Let me tell you how this all began. Many months ago, I was in desperate need to get away and go someplace else. So I e-mailed my big sis and told her that we were taking a trip--Vegas, California, Chicago--it didn't really matter. Well, somehow, a girl's trip of fun, shopping, and hanging out turned into a family vacation with my sister, her husband, myself, and all 3 children--not quite what I was thinking, as I was reminded by my sister yesterday, but what a trip it was! It had all the makings of a true family vacation--fun, sun, seeing and doing new things, grumpy kids, stress, and lots of laughs! When the Disney trip first became an option, I never questioned whether or not I'd take Bennett with me. I thought this would be a perfect opportunity for me to see my family and for Bennett to get to know his wonderful cousins! So, I booked our tickets, packed half our house, and headed to sunny California.

Things didn't begin as smoothly as I was hoping. Bennett, my squirmy, moving, shaking, little boy had a hard time sitting still on the plane. Our first flight, only about 30 minutes was manageable, but after a quick breakfast and no time to play, we got on our second flight for four hours of -- chaos, maybe is the word! Bennett screamed from the time we stood in line until the plane started taxiing down the runway. Unfortunately, most of our plane was filled with high school kids heading to the DECA nationals--not the most understanding crowd. But one woman did turn around and offered at any point if I needed a break, she was more than happy to help--true generosity. The flight attendants moved a gentleman out of our row to allow Bennett an extra seat for some wiggle room--it came in great handy. After sleeping for about 90 minutes, the rest of the flight was spent trying to keep him busy.

He was having fun with the cheese and fruit tray I purchased--none of which he actually ate, but the container came in handy!! He also spent some time sitting on the floor playing with his blanket, which I'm not quite sure is "legal" in airplanes, but no one said he couldn't.

Finally, the long flight was over and it was time to start our vacation!