My 30th Birthday

Family is an important thing to me.

I guess it always has been, but I think it is even more important to me as I get older and see all the amazing quiltwork of our lives unfold, both physically and spiritually.

In the personal patchwork of my own life, I was able to add a few "quiltblocks" this weekend. I had a wonderful time sharing with my best friends in the whole world over lunch at Panera, and I actually felt good enough to eat the whole lunch!! Major accomplishment for this prego. Then I had a blast watching my daughter play with all her cousins in the backyard that night and spent the day today with Coby's family just hanging out and being together.

Then tonight, my wonderful Mommy orchestrated a surprise party for me!!! Bless her heart, she had already planned it at a restaurant, but after knowing my desire to just hang out at her house, changed the plans with her husband Ray's help. (Amazing hamburgers, Ray!!!) It was a wonderful surprise with all the people I love and cherish the very most...my family. My mom, siblings, Coby's family, and my best friends. It really, truly was the best!!!

Thank you for coming this weekend everyone! Thank you for blessing me so much with your life, your time, your love, your prayers!!! Raschael, thank you for watching my girl on Saturday and Mom, thank you for making my night so special!!! Thanks Powells, Waters, and Kavalich's for making the trip!! It means a lot to me that you would do that...just for me!

I love you guys!!! I'm excited to keep working on my quilt with you all along the way!

Our Little Popcorn

So my visit at the doctor last Wednesday was great. I was able to see the little heartbeat on the monitor and get all the measurements...only to discover I'm only 8 weeks pregnant. Oh well. And I wanted Skyler and her brother or sister to be close in age, but I wasn't expecting a due date of MAY 26th!!! The day AFTER Skyler turns three!!!! Hopefully this little one will come nine days early like Skyler did!!! :)

Skyler's Latest Funny

The other day, Skyler was sitting next to Coby and me. She all of a sudden stopped what she was saying, looked at me, and said,

"Mommy, I tooted in my mouth!!"

Oh MY GOSH!!!! I nearly fell over. I said, "Did a burp just sneak up on you?" She said, "Yea! That's funny!"

Kids!

We're Having A BABY!!! (and a re-cap of the last 2 months)

So, FINALLY, here's the big news!!! We're having baby number two!!! YEA!!!!!! Skyler is ecstatic about the chance to be a big sister, and we're glad to oblige! :) I apologize for not blogging in so long...again. This time it has been legitimate. I couldn't blog for awhile because I didn't want any of the Waco crew to give it away to those who didn't know yet that were out of town. And, as par for MY course with babies, it's been puke city!!! :) I didn't start getting sick until I was around 7 weeks (I think--my first pre-natal visit isn't until tomorrow, so we'll know how far along I am for sure then), which was a two week reprieve from when it all started with Skyler.

I would definitely say this pregnancy thing is much harder with a toddler. I'm so much more emotional than before and realize with all that is in me that it's not about me--it's about meeting her needs first. She's been a real trooper, though. Yesterday was pretty good for me, but after our outings to gymnastics and two stores, I was pretty much pooped. I walked in the house and tried to convince her to lay on my bed with me to take a nap, but she just wanted to play. So, in spite of myself and at a loss to know what else to do, I started a Dora and laid on the couch. Pretty soon, she came up to me and rubbed my arm, saying, "You wokay, Mommy." Then she wanted to get up on the couch with me and we quickly fell asleep side by side for about an hour. It was a little piece of mommy heaven, and exactly what I needed in that moment. I truly believe she knew in her little heart what to do to make me feel better. It's a moment I'll treasure for the rest of my life.

So my days pretty much consist of existing until it's time for work. Then I work a few hours and crash early. And even though the nausea and vomiting have been a bummer, I know it is only for a short while. It's a blessing to have another baby on the way, and I'm so thankful that God has given us this opportunity. I am so incredibly blessed beyond what I deserve, and I know it. I just need to remember this very clear fact when I feel so sick. Oh well!!! :)

Other things we've done the past few months in reverse order:

At the end of August we made a trip to Dallas to hang out with our cousins and Skyler made her first Build-A-Bear. It was a smashing hit, and we had SOOOOO much fun playing with aunts, uncles, and cousins!!! She named this bear Krystal the Baylor Bear--appropriately so, don't you think!??

We also went to Skyler's second Baylor game of the season with my friend Tracy, and Skyler had an outing to the zoo with our neighbor Megan and her Mom and new little sister Rebecca. I'm trying to download pix, but the blogger is being difficult, so I'll post them a little later.

All in all, it's been a fun, exciting, and exremely nauseating adventure!! WOOOHOOOOO!!! Skyler swears there's twins in there, and Sassy mentioned the same thing. I guess we'll find out tomorrow. Please keep us all in your prayers through this time. It's been full of memories, but very difficult, and I need grace. Coby is awesome--as usual a wonderful dad and husband. I honestly could not ask for a better parter to walk with on this journey through life. And I will blog as often as I can. Watching the screen makes me a little motion sick, though, so that's all for now. I love you, fellow sisters, friends, and bloggers!!! Thank you for loving me back!!!