Why I dont get cleaning done more often...

This morning Logan was "helping" me clean the bathroom and under the cabinets. He got bored after a while (can't say I blame him) and told me he was going to play cars.

15 minutes later I didn't hear too much from him so I called him and asked what he was up to. He replied "come see what I did Mama!" Panic set in.

Fortunately, he just wanted to show me the "masterpiece" he had created in the window...

happy birthday old man!

Today my Dad celebrates his 52nd birthday.

I decided I wouldn't write a nice little paragraph about what a great guy he is (because it will make him cry and we certainly dont want him to cry on his birthday).

I decided that posting a formal picture of him just wouldn't do that manly chest enough justice (therefore I went with the shirtless, suntanned look).

I decided that when I really had to keep it simple it was harder than I thought it would be...because the older I get, the more I appreciate my Dad and all that he is to me. (OK, said I wasn't going to do that -- Dad, you'd better not be crying).

I decided that simply the best thing I could do would be to say this:

Dad/Papa,

You rock...and we hope your birthday does too.

Love,

Ryan, Heather and Logan

Hopefully you didn't have to break out the tissues for that one.

We love you, Papa. Happy Birthday.

...just because it's Friday

Eat a cupcake for breakfast. Get a little messy. Do whatever makes you happy.

33 weeks + 1 day

Huge. That is me. It is hard for me to look at these pictures without cringing...I dont like pictures with my body normally, much less with a giant belly...but I didn't really take pictures in my last pregnancy and I do regret it a little.

I am feeling bigger by the day (or maybe I should say night since the simple act of turning over in bed each night makes me feel like I am 90 years old with arthritis in every bone in my body).

I did you all a huge favor and cut off my head and arms so I wouldn't break your computer.



Hard to believe I still have over a month to go. Not really sure how much further I can keep wearing these maternity clothes when my belly already hangs out the bottom of every shirt. She is super low and it is hard to keep my pants up and shirt down these days. I may have to resort to wearing a tent or a mu-mu...

Lauren's Room (for Katrina...)

Just a warning - this is a really photo-heavy post (and the photos aren't even any good...took these this afternoon during a rain shower and I'm just too lazy to spend a bunch of time working on editing them up for y'all, sorry).

As most of you know, Lauren's room was previously Logan's room. When I was pregnant with Logan we didn't know if we were having a boy or a girl, so my mom did a mural and we went with a gender-neutral theme. This worked out really well for the second time around because literally all I did was take some butterflies and put them on the wall and added a few birds into the mural and made it a little more girly.

Like I said, not really a great picture, but you get the idea...

...and just a close up of a couple of birds I added on this weekend...


...and this is the first thing you see as you open the door - sweet words to Lauren from all the wonderful ladies in our life (random baby in that photo in case you were wondering)


The (non-mural) walls in these photos look pink but they are actually a cream color. The pink chandelier is one of my favorite items in the room, but it makes EVERYTHING look pink.

When you first open the door, this is what you see. I painted the "sweet dreams" on the wall after a decal I purchased just didn't look the way I wanted. I'm still trying to figure out what else I want to do with it, but it's working for now.

I finally got around to ordering those super soft sheets and a crib skirt. Under the crib is storage for extra sheets and there is a rug (not pictured).

This shelf Poppy put up for me and I love it. I also love the boxes (thanks Mimi and Poppy) and the monkey (thanks Katrina, who knows my love for all things monkey. Seriously, that is the cutest monkey I have ever seen. She even has a belly button). Those little frames I got on clearance at Target. Not really sure where I'm going with this shelf but this is a start...

The cozy chair + ottoman are something we purchased when we were expecting Logan. It's the most comfortable chair in the world for snuggling up with a sweet new baby. I have been using it lately to read books with Logan and he seems to really like it too :)

This little hair bow holder was spotted on Saturday at Willie's and I couldn't resist. (Still not sure where that frame is going or the stork, which is from my baby shower cake.)

I added some pink velvet paper with baby words to the center of this frame until our baby girl arrives and gets her photo taken with her big brother...


I had my fixed lens on and couldn't get far away enough to get a photo of the dresser/changing table, but you're not missing too much. I will say I have really enjoyed picking out girl clothes to fill the drawers as you can tell

This picture cracks me up because it looks like there are a million outfits here but these range in size from 0-9 months, so it's really not too bad. Ok, maybe it is that bad. I can say though that the first 10 or so outfits in this picture are all carefully handcrafted, smocked (read: expensiiiiiiive) dresses that my mom dressed me and my sister when we were babies. She used to iron them. That makes me laugh. Hysterically. I do not iron. Ryan does the ironing around here, I "do" the dry cleaning. If I asked Ryan to iron one of these dresses he would look at me like I had a third eye. The truth is, I love these little dresses more than anything, but am partially terrified to use them (50% of it is the ironing, the other 50% comes from knowing how much babies spit up on expensive clothes and ruin them).

(That very first outfit hanging there is what I wore home from the hospital - a gift from my Grammy. Lauren will be wearing it when she comes home as well...love that).

and truthfully, one of my absolute favorite purchases I have made so far is this car seat cover. This is the car seat Logan used and well, let's just say it wasn't pretty anymore. I love that this one is machine washable, feels like butter and looks gorgeous too....

the accessories drawer. You don't even want to know.

This branch I bought off etsy for about $4. It was all gold and something straight out of the 70's. I have to admit it was a lot of work, but I love the way it turned out with a little bit of paint. It is hanging above the closet doors.

...and that's about it. Surely some things will be added in or changed over time, but for now I feel good about the progress made.

Hoping to get the time to post some (33 week) pictures tomorrow of my enormous belly (I have no shame these days) so you all can get in a good laugh (and be amazed at how much time I still have facing me until this baby is born).

xoxo

h

making me laugh...

Last night after "slaving" in the kitchen for an hour and a half I made two casseroles *(and one big mess) and our dinner *(it was really good but next time I'll omit the red pepper flakes. I am such a wimp when it comes to heat in my food). I decided it was too spicy for Logan so we let him pick what he wanted to eat instead. "Cheese and turkey!!!" he told us. So, I grabbed a lunchable from the fridge and he went to town. "Delicious!" he exclaimed. (Ryan and I both looked at each other and tried not to crack up...we've never heard him call anything "delicious" - especially cheese, crackers and turkey meat). When we asked him "where did you learn that word?" he replied "at Target."

He's becoming picky about who reads what story at night ("No, Daddy read dat wun"). We read three books so you can't ever tell who is going to read the next story. Most likely he will pick whichever one of us doesn't feel like reading at the moment.

We also sing a couple of songs before turning out the light. Currently on (never-ending) rotation: Jesus Loves Me, The Itsy Bitsy Spider, The ABC song, and The Wheels on the Bus. Last night he actually put his finger to his lips, told me "Shhhh!" and said "Daddy do it"...(He also told me "Mama go night night. Daddy come hang out wit me!"...). [I dont take these things personal...he sees me 24/7 and when he wakes up in the morning, Daddy will be gone.]

Saturday he went to my parents house and among other things fed the new baby ducks at the pond. He was anxious to tell me about his adventure and I asked him "what does a duck say?" He responded in a hissing voice: "he he he." ...I later found out that the mama duck did in fact make this noise as she didn't want anyone near her babies. He's smarter than we give him credit for sometimes ;)

He went with me to my OB appointment last week and ever since has been telling me "I have fun at doctor mama!" and "I have good time!"...I am really not sure what was so fun but when I asked him what he liked about the doctor's office he told me "the chair." He has also been saying "we go bye-bye Mama?" and I'll say "where do you want to go?" and he says "to doctor."

He...

Melts my heart when he looks at me with those big blue eyes and says "I sowwy Mama"

Gets a little upset if you say he is anything other than Logan or a boy ("No, I not a monkey, I boy!"..."No, I not big brudder, I Nogan!").

Knows the names of about 90% of his [one million] cars and will correct you if you call any of them by the wrong name.

Loves his family more than you can imagine. Every day we have chats about where everyone is, to which I respond "at work." He tells me at least once a day that he wants to go to _______ (fill in random family member's name)'s house. (I have started telling him that everyone has to go to work to pay for his car addiction).

Loves bananas, "coffee milk", goldfish crackers, fruit snacks, cheese, and recently frosted shredded wheat (or whatever cereal I am eating).

Can have a mini-meltdown over the smallest things sometimes (he gets this from me I am sorry to say). I can say "We'll get you a lemonade (something he normally loves) and he'll flip out and say "oh no oh no! I need APPLE JUICE MAMA!!!" Yesterday I had a handfull of items to bring in the house and he had a fit because he was afraid for the library books I left in the car (for about five minutes) "oh no! OH MY GOO-NESS! No leave books in Mama's car!!!!!!!"

He is growing up
way
too
fast.



And a very very Happy Birthday wish goes out to the best sisters-in-law any girl could ever ask for, Stephanie and Melanie. They are celebrating in North Carolina this weekend. Hope you guys have an amazing time...wish I could be there with you.

Have a great weekend yall.

xoxo
h

She...

Held up her tiny hands in front of her face for most of the ultrasound

Has a tiny bit of hair (most likely peach fuzz, but hey, the sonographer said "She has hair!" and I was thrilled...those bows may get used after all)

Is coming in a little stong on her weight (75th%) and may be bigger than her brother was

Has had the hiccups twice so far today (maybe being a star made her nervous...)

Kicks, squirms, and moves constantly (but I dont mind it one bit)

Makes me more and more excited to meet this sweet little face every day.

Just so you know....

you do not want to get moles removed when you are pregnant
they do not give you the painkillers
they WILL find extra moles they think need to be removed
they will tell you "this is going to pinch a bit"
but you will think your skin is being ripped off
you will feel like you are going to faint
and the room will start spinning
and you will sweat like you are in a sauna
and you will have five different people come in and check on you (half naked in your paper dress)
and you will not care so much about being naked
as you do about knowing that you still have to drive home
and all you can take once you get there is Tylenol
while your arm pit, your chest, your belly and your back
burn like fire

oh, and if that's not enough,
you cant take a shower for 24 hours.

hmmmm.



...and a big thank you to Mimi and Poppy who entertained my little dude all afternoon while I was tortured. Yall are the best ;)

recipes

I've been thinking about recipes lately - namely casseroles and things I can freeze for when the baby arrives. My mom really outdid herself when I had Logan - my freezer was stocked with about 20 different meals from the time we arrived home from the hospital. It was so nice to be able to go and pick something out, put it in the oven and have dinner ready with no real work except to put the dishes in the dishwasher.

Just wondering if you all have any recommendations. My mom makes a spaghetti pie that I am sure I'm going to make the list and the Paula Deen cookbook is coming out for a few recipes (although I cant make too many or I'll never loose that dreaded baby weight)...

We'll be spending the weekend working in the yard for sure.

I am excited to plant some flowers and see beauty in the yard again (we actually had a couple of freezes this year and it looks pretty gloomy) though I have to say Ryan is not quite as excited to get back to mowing and trimming the grass every weekend.

Logan helped me yesterday pick out some color for the yard and I think he did a really nice job. He told me his favorites are "the baby ones"...

Logan is staying the night with Mimi and Poppy tonight. On Friday Ryan and I have a date to stuff our faces at Carrabbas (our fave) and on Saturday we'll be digging our hands in the dirt and getting the yard looking decent again.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.

xoxo
h

Easter Egg Hunting

Blaine and Mindie are in town for a few days and they invited us over for an Easter egg hunt with Meah and all her cousins yesterday evening at Mindie's parent's house.

Logan just about didn't know what to do with himself after he discovered the eggs had candy in them. He went crazy opening the eggs for their little treasures (fortunately I fed him dinner early in case that happened) and had a blast playing on the swingset in the backyard. One of the eggs even had a dollar in it and he was thrilled to get to add the money to his piggy bank when we got home.
L discovers a large blue egg in the distance and charges after it with his Target bag

Um, now what do I do with this thing?

Meah had her basket filled in no time

Blaine and Ryan on Daddy Swingset Duty

Monday

Random lady at Target: "Are you due like, tomorrow?" (laughs)

Me: "Actually, I have two months to go."

Random lady at Target: (Jaw dropping) "You're kidding."

Me: "I wish I was."

every day.

Every day he wishes and hopes his Daddy will stay home from work or that when the door bell rings or I open a door it is Daddy arriving home (although Daddy never uses the door bell...)

Every day he says "where Daddy go?" and then answers his own question in a sad little voice and says "Daddy go work."

Every day he starts his day with crazy bed-head hair, Thomas blankie in his hand, and asks for his "coffee milk" and "bana". He also usually asks you to come and "sit on couch" with him.

Every day I am reminded that he is growing faster than I can believe and soon enough, no matter how small he is now he will seem so BIG to me with a new baby around.

Every day we fight to get into bed at a decent time. We read three books (which is never enough for him) and we sing a few songs (also, never enough) and Daddy leaves a minute or two before I do because he gets upset when Ryan leaves...so I sing one more song to take his mind off of it (usually "The Wheels on the Bus") and he sings with me in this crazy mixed up word way that would just melt your heart if you heard it.

Every day I love him even more than the day before simply because he's my Logan...he's my days and my nights and my whole world wrapped up in one little person.

Love you buddy.

corey's shower

There is still a part of me that can't believe my little sister is getting married...yet I know it has been a long time coming!

Just sharing a few pictures from the shower yesterday - chosen at random from flickr (and of course it got the one of me and my double chin...)

nothing new

Went to the doctor yesterday for my 30 week appointment. Everything looks/sounds good and there is nothing new to report other than I continue to gain weight. (You have to love waiting almost two hours for that kind of confirmation...but then again some day I will be the hated woman who just HAD to deliver her baby and interrupt the doctor's scheduled patients).

Logan is still occasionally sleeping on the floor (rolling, falling, getting out of bed intentionally, we're still not sure which one it is) but we find him there about once a week and it seems to be something he's proud of. "Mama, I sweep on my fwoor!"

Spent yesterday doing some preparations for my sister's [wedding] shower and discovered that if I ever had any doubts yes, my mother cannot ever keep her word and make JUST the food she said she was going to make...(love you mom...even if you are crazy about trying new things).

Logan doesn't like my hair in a ponytail. He actually has resorted to giving me a pouty lip, a small cry and says to me "mama! no put hair in ponytail!!!! dat ugee!" and then if/when I put it down he says "Mama hair pretty!!!"...

Time is about to start flying around here so I guess I'd better enjoy the fact that things are not crazy just yet.

Hope you all have a lovely weekend.

xoxo
h

Monday

Ryan took a much-needed day off after his infusion treatment to be at home with us.

It was a simple day - lunch together at the dining room table, playing with Logan on the playset and going through the mail on the porch in the sun, playing cars and watching a movie together while Logan napped (and by napped I mean he destroyed his room and took all of his PJ's out of the drawer), followed by a dinner of steak and baked potatoes with fried green tomatoes and asparagus.

Somehow the time flew by and before we knew it, the day was over and it was time to go to bed.

Just wishing we had more days like that to spend together...

I am still amazed at how blessed I am with friends and family who showered little Lauren (and myself) with love this weekend.

The thank you's are endless in my head.

When I felt a little guilty about having a second shower, someone reminded me that showers are about people who love you coming together to support you. How true that is and how quickly we forget it. I get emotional when I think of all the people we have in our lives who have supported us emotionally, physically, financially, spiritually and selflessly.

I think about how blessed we are that our children have four great-grandmothers and two great-grandfathers...how Logan ADORES his grandparents and his aunts and uncles...how wonderful it is to have such great friends and family who support us...and how Lauren, not even being born yet, is loved and adored just as though she has always been here with us.

Thank you all so much for your support in every sense of the word...and a big thank you Katrina for the opportunity to be reminded of what a blessing it is to be "showered."