Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Post-AI Post

Well, I must say that I am pleased with the way Alabama was presented. And I love that the first gal was from Auburn :)

I think those judges had more fun here than anywhere else they've been. Good ol' Southern Hospitality paid off! And I think the "thank you" bit was awesome!

Yes, I know that there were probably more golden tickets given for non-Bama folks than Bama folks but it's cool to know that if any of them actually succeed in this competition that there will always be a connection to our great state.

I REALLY liked the Jack Black Osborne dude by the way. He was great!

One More Thing...

Before I forget...

For anyone interested in watching the "Bama Loves Bob" crew sit in the audience during The Price Is Right, set your DVRs, Tivos, VCRs, whatever, for THIS THURSDAY morning, February 1st. Check your local listings for times :)

Dedicated

I sure felt like a Mom dedicated to her unborn child today while I was out hoofing it around the block in way-too-cold weather. I'm such a whimp in these freezing temps! My ears were killing me and my lips were numbed to a point of not speaking clearly. But since walking is SO important for optimal fetal positioning, I toughed it out. (But not without complaining a little!)

My out-of-the-womb children didn't seem to mind it at all, though. They stayed outside on the trampoline, even if only for a short while, after our walk. Crazy youth! The dog was no dummy, however. She followed at my heels, all the way into the coziness of the house.

********


Speaking of "dedicated," I know many of y'all out there are just as into American Idol as we are. I haven't said anything about it here yet but with them airing the Birmingham version tonight, I thought I should give at least a little shout-out about it. I'm very confused, though...all ads for tonight's episode lead us to believe that Birmingham was an audition stop just like all others around the U.S. whereas I was lead to believe by local media that B'ham was a last-minute add-on stop and that Ryan Seacrest was the only one of the celebrities in attendance the day of the auditions. But commercials certainly imply that Randy, Paula, and Simon are watching auditions in Idolville, AL. I'm wondering if maybe the BIG auditions (where footage is shot on the massive crowds outside the civic center) are used to whittle down the contestants to only those that are worthy of airing. Maybe the Big 3 Judges are then called in later?? Or maybe they were here in Bama all along and our local media coverage goofed or was lied to?

Anyone understand the process?? JD, do you know more about how this works? I'd really like to know from someone because I'm confused.

Here's to hoping that Alabama isn't too embarrassed after tonight's episode.

(Wondering, too if I'll see anyone I know...)

Sunday, January 28, 2007

Can't Have A Baby Yet

Too much going on. I wish you could see the email my Mom sent me tonight. LOADED with too much stuff that's happening right now. Whew.

Thankfully, I don't think birth is happening any time too soon. But I'm not stupid. I know it can happen any ol' time. Not up to me.

My friend Suzanne had a baby this morning, by the way! CONGRATULATIONS! So happy for her and the family!

*****


Walking is such a good thing. These past few PRETTY days called me out for a nice, much-needed, walk. I really don't have a lot of get-up-and-go on dreary (and definitely not COLD) days so it has been really easy to let my big belly make excuses for me. But the nice days (especially Friday & Saturday) beckoned me out for a stroll. And those walks did a world of good. I know they helped little Captain get positioned in a much more comfortable way because I have been feeling really good today.

I'm interested in watching my shape, though because my belly button isn't poking out any more and the previously tight spot in the low-mid-section of my tum has gotten flabby, implying that there isn't a baby part there any more. I wonder if his little head is working his way into my pelvis?? I don't feel a discomfort with that idea yet but I definitely look a little different.

I need to take at least one more belly shot soon.....writing that down.

The girls laughed and laughed tonight while feeling their brother kick around in my tummy. He was showing off pretty good for them and they would just squeal with delight over being able to feel his little feet push against their hands.

Can't wait to see you, Captain!

Monday, January 22, 2007

Couldn't Find The Right Onomatopoeia

(It was very difficult for me to find the correct spelling for this word because if you google misspelled versions, other people out there in the world wide web have misspelled it the same way. Thankfully I remembered correctly enough to finally find the right way.)

I was trying to title this entry with a great little word to describe the way I have been feeling the last couple of days. "Ugh" and "oy" came to mind but they just didn't quite encompass the emotion of my poor bod.

It seems to have happened overnight. I believe I have gained 100 pounds, all in my belly, and have swallowed some sort of giant stone that thrusts my belly button out into a whacky misshapen hump that pulls so tightly at my sides that I feel as if I might burst. God's plan to prepare a woman for labor works quite well when He allows a completely lovely pregnancy to be attacked in such a way in the end. Last week I would have said, "Hmm, I'm in no hurry to have this baby. I feel good and still have some things to get done around the house before he gets here so there's definitely no need to rush." NOW I am fiercely trying to obey my nesting instinct and get this home ready for a new baby because I am READY for labor to commence. And JUST LIKE THAT ("snap") God's plan falls into place. How else could we be willing to deal with the work that labor entails if we weren't driven to a point of "ugh" and "oy" during the preceding weeks?

This is all familiar, though. I just can't believe it's here already.

I missed church last night because of this lump & pain. Captain is getting a little peeved at the tight quarters or something and is choosing to stretch out his complaints in a very attention-grabbing way. His largeness is causing moments of pain along the lower back pelvis region. If I was a first time Mom, I might fear these to be contractions but I am quite certain they are not. They don't feel like contractions and don't last for sufficient periods of time. They are just doses of reality that the time is nearing.

In addition to the low back stuff, I also get this really uncomfortable sensation on the front side where fists and elbows make their mark. It's no fun. And the every-30-minute-middle-of-the-night-bathroom-calls? DOUBLE-UGH!

Thankfully, the pains subside when I lie down to rest. And they don't last forever when I'm upright...just in phases. It's very positional and when Boy Baby is in the right position, I am fine. He even gets in a few naps and allows me a normal day. But when he gets restless in the afternoon and evenings..."ugh" and "oy..."

A trip to the chiropractor this afternoon held off the discomfort until a little later in the day.

And because I need to get to bed, I won't be making many efforts to smooth out the transitions in subject-changes.

The reason we ended up going to the chiro today instead of my regular Wednesday is because He-Man put his fingers in the automatic sliding door of the van. Three fingers were smashed. He seemed fine after the initial yowl but I wanted an x-ray anyway. THANK YOU LORD for an x-ray machine at the chiro. MUCH faster service and with less germs than your conventional pediatrician or doc-in-a-box office.

No breaks! YAY! I was pretty confident that would be the result but I feel better knowing for sure.

Warning - another change of subject, but at least I'm following somewhat of a segue...

Fingers :)

The girls have started back to piano lessons. OK, Indie has started BACK (took lessons last year) and Ray has just STARTED (took guitar lessons last year instead of piano.) We have found an AWESOME teacher in our neck of the woods and they have been going to her house the past few weeks. I'm VERY proud of their progression. Talented little boogers, I tell ya!

Eyes burning, back aching. Must sleep.

More later!

Friday, January 19, 2007

A Movie Quote I Can Relate To

"My back hurts, my leg hurts...I'm only 4" (weeks away!)

Anyone care to name that movie??

Friday, January 12, 2007

There's Nothing To Disclose But...

I just wanted to warn y'all who are super-curious about impending labor/birth, that this forum will NOT be a full-disclosure blog about all physical occurrences I am experiencing. It's tempting at times but I have learned that it is MUCH better to keep such changes to oneself so as not to have a phone ringing off the hook with everyone or ANYone thinking that "experience A + B = labor."

So, before I get to that point, I just wanted to make it clear that even though I am almost officially into "nesting mode" and that even though it's almost impossible for me to even think about anything EXCEPT this growing belly and its passenger, I will be working very hard to protect myself from too many questions from others.

Can I get an "amen, sistuh" from others that understand!?

With all of that said, however, I probably won't be able to keep myself from talking at least a little bit about how these last weeks are going. For example, I am at that stage of experiencing, at least once a day, the "my belt is too tight" feeling. You know the one where you wish you could unbutton your pants or let your belt out a notch or two.....but there are no clothing articles or accessories causing the discomfort. It's just that little boy of ours squirming and pressing and making me feel mighty tight in the midsection.

I will also say that the frequency of trips to the bathroom are getting annoying. I've always prided myself (rightly or wrongly) in having a steel bladder and it's very frustrating to need to visit la toilette as often as is necessary these days.

And when I say I'm nesting, that basically means that I'm ready to do nothing but stay home and get it straightened up. It is a huge mess and I'm ready to just BE HERE. I still have a small number of to-dos that will prevent me from becoming a hermit but whenever possible, I WILL be at home. And sometimes when I am home, my feet will be up. And always when my feet are up, I will be thankful!

Psalm 139:1-6 (NLT)
1 O Lord, you have examined my heart
and know everything about me.
2 You know when I sit down or stand up.
You know my thoughts even when I’m far away.
3 You see me when I travel
and when I rest at home.
You know everything I do.
4 You know what I am going to say
even before I say it, Lord.
5 You go before me and follow me.
You place your hand of blessing on my head.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too great for me to understand!

A Funny From He-Man

Sorry. I know this probably falls in the "too much info" category but I just had to share.

Minutes ago while He-Man was doing his business on the potty...

"Mom! When you get 3 and I get 32, then I can wipe YOUR hiney!"

Saturday, January 06, 2007

Late Night / Late Morning / Late Night Cycle

Last night, Henry & I stayed up to watch the last episode (2-hour finale) of LOST-Season 2. We now have to find a good way to watch the first 6 episodes of Season 3 on the Internet before the remainder of Season 3 airs, starting in February. WE LOVE THIS SHOW!

So we started last night's DVD pretty late after coming home from a friend's birthday party and getting He-Man back from my Mom and Dad's. (quick side story - I think He-Man is smarter than we give him credit -- and we give him lots of credit -- but I think he might have figured out that if he didn't spend the night with my parents last night that he would have me and Henry all to himself. He got to sleep with us and everything. And he giggled like his planned worked! That little stinker....OH -- and he patiently waited for and recognized a kick from Captain for the first time. He had felt kicks before but wasn't paying enough attention to notice. Last night he just laughed and laughed and wanted to do it again and again. It was so sweet!)

Allright -- back to the rundown:

After starting the DVD pretty late, we didn't turn off the lights until after 1:00. That's not a non-pregnant late hour but these days, that nearly kills me. So after staying up so late, I had to sleep in. I was able to snooze until nearly 10! It was awesome!

The rest of the morning was spent coordinating pick-up times of the two homes that housed my other 3 children. Henry took He-man to get them all picked up while I stayed home to get ready for a wedding. Our original intent was to have all 6 of us go to the wedding together but we decided against it since all the kids were post-sleepover.

At the wedding, I BURNED UP. It was doggone hot today! But I am not complaining. I just don't have the biggest variety of maternity clothes to wear for crazy weather swings. So I actually loved today's weather and would love to duplicate it for most of the year, I just wasn't properly dressed for it.

So, as sad and embarrassing as it is to admit this, my sweaty pits actually lead me to skip the reception and get back home. The heat drained me and I didn't really want to stay in my black tights and long-sleeve shirt any longer.

Thankfully the wedding was beautiful and very, very sweet. I'm glad I went. AND I got to see Michelle! (Sorry I didn't see you afterwards to say bye!)

After getting back home and in some lazy clothes, I took the ol' Dixter for a walk. Bless her heart, she had already been played to a worn-out state while I was gone. The kids were with her outside all afternoon and Henry cut the grass, which makes her run around like a wild-child. So when I put her on the leash, she happily went with me but kept her pace nice and slow...which is exactly what I needed today, too!

Oh how I waddle these days. And babe really isn't that low yet (meaning he hasn't dropped. He's low cuz he's #5 but his (thankfully) head-down position is actually making the biggest discomfort near my ribs). But I feel like I'm carrying a bowling ball in my torso 24/7 and that gets a little tiring, ya know? The walk was good, though and I'm really going to be dilligent about it in these next few weeks. He-Man wasn't in prime position when I went into labor with him and I just don't want to repeat that scenario this go 'round. Therefore I will be taking frequent visits to the chiro and will be walk, walk, walking.

Today's 70ish temp was WAY better than the bitter cold of a few days ago, though. I only took a 1/2 walk earlier this week when my ears became numb from the wind. Dixie didn't like it either.

Now I'm sitting here KNOWING I need to hit the sack but am blogging instead. Part of that cycle I guess. Not good considering that we have to be at church early tomorrow so that Donnie can be prepared to sing.

I will close after saying that the situation that prompted my Ugh post has improved greatly. I know a great deal of the improvement is because of the prayers of my child and her repentant heart. I've been so thankful for it.

Romans 5:3-5 (New Living Translation)
"3We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. 4 And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. 5 And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

Thursday, January 04, 2007

Ugh.

Reality: My children are getting older.
Reality Check: Not everything they say and do is adorable.

Reality: Childhood mistakes sometimes become bigger as the child gets bigger.
Reality Check: More people are affected by bigger mistakes.

Reality: Talking about the mistakes of older children starts to creep in on privacy and respect issues of the child.
Reality Check: This issue being dealt with in the house right now makes me WANT to blog about it but I feel it would be wrong to do so because of the child's feelings.

Reality: Pre-teen life isn't going to be easy.
Reality Check: Gray hairs will be abundant.

Reality: PLUS helps Mom and Daughters with emotional balance and ability to handle stress.
Reality Check: PRAYER & GOD'S WORD are the only helps available for the trial-and-errors of growing up.

Monday, January 01, 2007

Happy 2007 - It's Really Here!

Since I haven't mentioned Christmas yet, I'll go ahead and give a quick rundown here.
It was nice with no big travels. We got to see less family than usual however, so that was a bummer, but sticking around town was a blessing (especially since the size of my belly requires frequent moments of stretching.)

Even though I prefer Vacation-Christmases (like last year to Disney World) over the Buy-And-Wrap-For-The-Tree-Christmases, I will admit that things stayed pretty under control and ended up being quite enjoyable. We were able to buy appropriate amounts of goodies for the kids without being wasteful. AND the gifts were enjoyed by all! Our only couple of "duds" were able to be exchanged (a broken bracelet & a crummy toy that didn't live up to commercial expectations.)

We ended up with LOTS of games. Fun for the whole family!! In fact, we looked at nearly every gift from the eye of each family member. We want to be a sharing family as much as possible.

Here are a few pics:
From Blog2007Jan01

From Blog2007Jan01

From Blog2007Jan01

From Blog2007Jan01



RE: New Year's Eve
Henry & I are playing some massive catch-up by watching Season 2 of LOST. We're hoping a Season 3 marathon will occur at some point before Season 4 starts in the fall. This show is totally crazy but we love it. I think we watched at least 4 episodes yesterday.

The kids watched some movies and were struggling to stay up until Midnight. He-Man barely made it to 11:45! Then he sent himself to bed. We told him he could go to bed earlier but he wanted to be with everyone else. The big kids were soooooo tired but were happy they made it.

I can't believe it's the year our 5th child will be born! Not only that, we're actually only a few weeks away. Crazy.

No predictions here but I do have a few "resolutions" I am goaling after. They'll stay between me and God, though.

In the same way, wisdom is sweet to your soul.
If you find it, you will have a bright future,
and your hopes will not be cut short.
Proverbs 24:14 (New Living Translation)

Lastly, I've been working on a "Year-In-Review" website for sharing with those whom I don't fear will stalk our family. If I know you to be a safe person, you will probably be notified of the URL by email or possibly even snail mail in the coming days.