Baby, It's Cold Outside!

Yet another major snowstorm of the '09-'10 winter has hit us here in VA. This time, we got about a foot of snow, which was kind enough to fall from the wee hours of Saturday morning until Saturday evening, giving us our FIRST and much-needed snow day of the school year! As a teacher, I live for snow days (and other days off, including spring and summer break!) and am always hoping for a few during the winter months. During December when we had our first big snowstorm, we didn't get a single snow day because the snow came on the afternoon of our last day before Christmas break. But alas....a snow day tomorrow! Glorious snow day!! We haven't taken Aidan out in the snow yet, but hope to tomorrow when we actually get ready to leave and go out. The past few experiences he's had in the snow have not been too pleasant for him, so maybe tomorrow's snow experience will go over just a bit better. Here's hoping!

I'm excited just to be able to go outside and get out of the house for the first time tomorrow since Friday evening. Surprisingly enough, I haven't had a severe case of cabin fever, as I ususally do, but I've actually enjoyed being at home with Chris and Aidan (and of course, Liam has been letting me know a lot here lately that he's here too!). So for tomorrow, I'll probably make a trip to Sam's for some diapers and milk, and maybe stop by Kroger to pick up a few items to add to our already stocked pantry.

Here are some pictures from the past two days of being "snowed in"! I wanted them to be under the text, but for some reason, they're not, and I haven't been able to figure out why yet. Hopefully I will soon!

Friday nights at the "spa"

For all you mamas, especially those who work two jobs like me, y'all know how super important "mama time" is. We crave it. We need it. We simply have to have it! It's good for our mind, body, and soul. We give so much of our time caring for our husbands, kids, and home (and second jobs, if you work outside the home), that we mamas need to indulge and do something special just for us. This could take many forms--could be shopping, girl's nights, any sort of pampering (mani/pedi's, massage, etc.), or just relaxing with a good book or a chick flick. I enjoy all of those! But Friday night I began a new tradition that I'm looking forward to again this Friday night...I call it my "spa" night. It's nothing really that has to do with a spa at all...I don't give myself a facial, or a massage or a pedi, but I do soak in a warm bath, surrounded by candlelight only, and to enhance the mood, I put the Sirius spa channel on the satelliete that plays the "new age" music you hear when you go to the spa. I do this after I've put Aidan down for the night and Chris is usually downstairs on the computer or watching TV, so I've got the whole bedroom/bathroom to myself. Ah, solitude! I can just soak and relax, and feel all the stress and responsibilities of the week just melt away...even if it is for only 45 minutes or so! Our tub is a jacuzi tub, which is awesome! It's great to turn on the jets and get a mini-massage as well.

Anyway, one point of this blog is to feature a fabulous bath product that I use to make my bathtime "spa" experience extra special. This week, it's the Me! bath ice cream. These ice cream scoops are wonderful, and probably my very favorite product to use for my baths.

I get these fabulous fizzies at The Corset Corner, a super chic and cute lingerie store here in town for a great price! They are so worth it! The smell fantastically yummy, and leave your skin feeling so soft and supple (not to mention sweet-smelling!) long after your bath. The scent I used this week was "In the Land of Milk and Honey". Loved it! I made a trip to The Corset Corner again this past weekend to splurge on myself a little (wanted, or maybe I should say needed a new maternity/nursing nightgown and of course, another Me! bath ice cream), so I'll be sure to review my new purchase soon!

So whatever your indulgence of choice, enjoy it, mama! You deserve it! Happy pampering! :)

Thoughts on Mr. Mom

Ok, so last Thursday and Friday as I had to go to my second job, Chris decided he would stay home with Aidan, to give him some time to fully recover from his cold (which he has, thank the Lord!) and have some daddy/son bonding time. I was very thankful for that. While Aidan enjoys his teachers and class at school, who wouldn't want to be at home with their child (and in my case since I HAD to work) or see their child spending quality time at home with one of his/her parents? I was so glad for Aidan, and especially Chris, that they got to have two whole days together. Aidan loves his daddy dearly (as do I!), and he had a good time with him. I would call them during my lunch breaks to see how things were going, and Chris said they had been reading books, watching some "Handy Manny", and he would just give me a full report of the morning thus far. And of course, I would get to talk to Aidan, which would brighten up my day, since he was usually still asleep in bed when I would leave for work and I didn't want to wake him. He would always say "Mama!" and "hello!" to me, and that would be about it. And I was very surprised and thankful that the boys kept the house in pretty decent shape--no major messes or dishes for me to clean up when I got home! That's a nice treat, especially after I've been working most of the day!

I guess thinking back about those two days has even made it even more set firm in my mind how much of a lucky and very blessed girl I am to have such a wonderful, amazing, caring, thoughtful, dedicated husband in Chris. He is the perfect match for me...and I know this because God Himself brought us together and we know that He causes all things to work for good! I am just so amazed at what a wonderful daddy Chris is to Aidan...I always knew he would be, but he just never ceases to amaze me with what great care and love he constantly gives to him. He jumps at every chance he has to be with him, and I know that sometimes since he works two full-time jobs (he's a machinist and he's a general contractor-yeah, he's pretty busy-especially in the summer when it's perfect house-building weather!) he doesn't get to see me or Aidan that much, so I'm especially grateful and thankful for days like last Thursday and Friday when he could stay home with him and spend good times with him.

Thank you, Lord, for my husband and my son....such wonderful and dear treasures from you!

Lately

So, it's been a long weekend for all of us here in our house. I'm on day 4 (and the final day) of my long weekend. So is Chris. We both had planned on going back to work today, that was until Aidan got a pretty nasty cold on Sunday that continued into Monday. He just looked and I know he felt so pitiful. He had terrible congestion, an awful cough, a slight fever on and off (usually after he wakes up from a nap or when he wakes up in the morning) and his eyes were just so weak-looking. I HATE seeing my baby sick, and knowing there's only so much I can do...and wishing that I could just take all his sickness away and put it on me. It's just so sad when a little one is sick and they can't tell you where they hurt, or how they feel. So I just try to do the best I can, and think "What would I do if I were sick? What could I do to make me feel better?" so I can help him. He hasn't been eating much at all, but has been drinking lots of fluids, so I'm glad he's been keeping hydrated even though he's not eating much.
I've been giving him some Motrin for the fever, using Johnson's soothing vapor bath during his baths each evening, putting Vicks Baby Vapor rub on his neck, back, and chest before I put his pj's on, and using a cool-mist humidifier in his room at night while he's sleeping. I think the humidifier has really helped his cough out, and he's not coughing nearly as bad as he was. A nurse at the dr's office said to give him some children's benedryl, so we tried that last night, and I think it really helped him out. This morning, he woke up pretty content, not whining or crying as he had been the previous mornings, and only had a low-grade fever of 99. I didn't give him any Motrin, in hopes that it would go down on it's own, and-surprise!-it did! He even ate a bowl of Cheerios this morning, and has seemed more active and energetic. I'm SO thankful that he's feeling better and getting back to his old self! I think it'll still take some time for him to get completely over this cold, but at least if he can get to feeling 95% better, I'll be relieved! And I think he's well on his way!

We stopped by Target last night to get the benedryl for Aidan, and while we were there, we browsed around the baby section. Oh, I can't believe I'm gonna have a newborn again very soon! It seems like forever ago that Aidan was a newborn, and I feel like I'm out of practice, but Aidan's only 17 months old, so I know it hasn't been that long ago. I'm sure it'll all come back to me, just like riding a bike! I'm so very glad that I've saved all of Aidan's clothes and baby stuff, so I have a pretty good stock of supplies (well, clothes and equipment at least) for Liam when he arrives. It was fun looking at all the new baby stuff that has come out since I was pregnant with Aidan and he was a newborn...and it hasn't been that long ago! My, how things can change in just a year and a half! I did get a baby book for Liam, so that I can start filling it out and keeping a record of all the things leading up to his birth, and take it to the hospital to get his foot and handprints when he gets here. I got him a cute jungle safari baby book, which will go just perfectly with the jungle safari theme of his room. I'm using Aidan's baby bedding (which was jungle safari) for Liam too, which will help us save money, since we have to get Aidan some new "big-boy" bedding for his new room. And Aidan's baby bedding is still in great condition, so it'll be just right for Liam! It's kind of nice knowing I don't have to get the nursery completely set up from scratch again like I had to with Aidan, but that I can just add some new touches for Liam. But I do have to get Aidan's new room all set up, so scratch that last thought!

Now on to saving money...wow, this has been a long blog! So, I promise to keep this short. I went to Kroger yesterday to get some groceries, and I ended up spending $55, after coupons and Kroger Plus savings. I was pretty impressed...since I've started couponing and buying items only on sale and stocking up on them about 4 weeks ago, I've seen my grocery bill at Kroger drop by $10 or $15 each week. It's a GREAT feeling to save money and to know that I'm helping my family out! My favorite buy this week-a box of Quaker Instant Oatmeal on sale for $1.88-$1 off coupon=$.88 for a box of Quaker oatmeal! I was pretty impressed with that steal!

Ok, now you're caught up on life in our house lately! Better get started on some more laundry while Aidan finishes up his nap. It's been a good, long weekend, but back to work tomorrow!

Pregnancy...the second time around!

First off, let me just say how much I love being pregnant! I mean, really, I do. I may be one of those crazy women to you, but I just love feeling my baby move and grow within me, and watch my body change, knowing that God is creating a new life inside of me! It's an awesome feeling that leaves me just speechless at times. But being pregnant the second time around is different than the first. Not in a bad way, just different. I'm still so very elated and overjoyed, and I'm still loving being pregnant, but I'm not constantly worried and anxious about things this time around like I was with Aidan.

I guess with Aidan, pregnancy was a new experience for me, and I had longed to be pregnant, a mama-to-be, for a while, so I was very much concerned if I hadn't felt any movement in a day or two. This time, I'm not so concerned, because I know that babies sometimes face inward, and their kicks can't be felt, and that sometimes you'll go a day without feeling anything, and the baby's just fine. I think having Aidan now, being the busy, active toddler that he is, also keeps my mind not fully focused on Liam all the time. I do feel kinda guilty about that, since all my thoughts were about Aidan the first time around, but I know from talking with other mamas with more that one child, that this is common and there's no way I should feel guilty or even bad. That's just how it goes. So that helps me feel better and keeps me from not beating myself up quite so much.

I am 20, almost 21 weeks pregnant this week, and feeling great! We actually found out on Wednesday, the 13th, that Liam was actually Liam. I had long suspected since the early weeks of finding out that I was pregnant that the baby was a boy, simply because the way I felt pretty much mirrored the way I felt when I was expecting Aidan. I did have "morning sickness" for about a month this time, just like I did the first time, but this time, the "morning" sickness occurred at random times of the day, whereas in the first go-round, I was sick only from 3 pm to around 8 pm. But still, I felt the same way this time as the first, so I just knew this baby was a boy! And the proof was in the ultrasound...I was SO excited to see my second son on the ultrasound monitor! He is just so sweet and cute...as much so as a 20 week fetus can be! We had Aidan's second ultrasound at 22 weeks, and this time we had Liam's at 20 weeks, so it was interesting to compare notes on how much babies can change in 2 weeks. I know this is pretty much a stream of conciousness right now...haha!

I am just so glad that Aidan will have a little brother to play with, and be close to. Aidan will be about two months shy of being two when Liam arrives, and I think that's a good age difference between them. My sister and I are 19 months apart, and from my earliest memories, I can always remember her. She and I did everything together; we were built-in best friends. And still are! I can only hope and pray that Aidan and Liam will have a good, fun relationship as brothers and best buddies. I'm sure they will! :) On Wednesday night before church, we went to Olive Garden as a family (just the 3 of us) to celebrate baby Liam, and I showed Aidan an ultrasound picture of Liam, and told him that he was going to be a big brother to his little brother, Liam. He just stared at the picture, and I said "That's the baby!". Aidan pointed to the picture, said "Baby!" and then immediately tried to grab the picture to put it in his mouth! It was funny...I think since he thought I was showing him something at a restaurant, where we are supposed to eat food, that the picture must be some kind of food, and he was all willing to try it! Haha! I know he doesn't understand his new role, or that in about 4 months that there will be a new baby in the house, but Chris and I talk with him about it every day so that one day it will click with him and will hopefully make some sense.

All right, all right...enough with the rambling. Sorry for such a long blog, but I reckon I just had a lot to say about my feelings on pregnancy. I am so thankful that God has blessed us with two healthy boys, and that He has entrusted these two, precious, innocent souls to us to raise to know Him and to love Him, and to lead to Christ. It's such a huge responsibility when I think about that from that perspective, but that's the absolute truth. Thinking that way makes me want to be a super better mama each and every day! And Lord willing, I will try with all my might! Off to bed now, so goodnight y'all!

It's the little things...really!

So I'm cleaning up the dishes and putting the food away from supper tonight (btw, we had meatloaf, mashed potatoes, peas, and rolls...and Aidan GOBBLED down his potatoes and meatloaf, and ate most of his peas...makes my heart happy to see him eat a good supper!), and I'd just cleaned off Aidan's hands and face...which you would have thought I was using battery acid instead of a baby wipe the way he was carrying on, and had just put him down with his cup of milk to run and play with some toys. So I moved on to wiping his bib and highchair tray off. Typical. Nothing out of the ordinary. Just going about my household duties while Aidan was playing. But as I'm wiping off his tray, I feel two little arms wrap around my leg, and look down to see a little head, face buried into my pants leg. This was out of the blue. And it touched my mama heart so much. Just a tender show of affection from my sweet boy to his mama. I don't know what prompted him to stop playing with his toys and run over to give me a hug, but I'm so very touched and oh so glad that he did. It was like he was saying to me, "Thank you, Mama. Thank you for cooking and feeding me, and for cleaning up after me. I love you". And that's how I took it. Made everything I'd done without really getting a moment to sit down and rest SO worth it! Man, I live for moments like this. I really do. Nothing else compares to this...nothing gets better than this.

Welcome to my Mama/Wife Life!

Hey y'all...and welcome to my Mama/Wife Life! While at times it's an incredibly busy life (and only going to get busier in the next 4 months), it's an incredibly WONDERFUL life that I wouldn't trade for any single thing in this world! It's my life, the life God has called me to live, and I just feel so blessed and overjoyed with where God has placed me and led me that I've decided to share my thoughts and feelings on this Mama/Wife Life with all you dear readers!

Some background on this Mama/Wife. I'm a Southern girl married to my sweet Southern country boy Chris since May 2004. My newlywed days are tucked neatly into a photo album in my mind, and I'm moving further into the "veteran" years of marriage. Marriage is an intense bond formed through hard work, much sacrifice, unselfishness, unconditional love, and a total dedication to one another and to God, and is worth every single smile and tear put into it. So my writings on marriage are from a more "seasoned" point-of-view. Chris and I are proud parents to our two young boys, Aidan-17 months, and Liam-still in the womb and due May 29, 2010. Mothering is perhaps, without a doubt, the most challenging and hardest job that I have ever had. Ever. But it's also the most rewarding and most fulfilling job that I've ever had. And I love every moment of it. After having survived Aidan's infancy years (which, in the first 3 months I wasn't so sure I was going to do), I'm now embarking on my voyage into the toddler years. Being a mama to an active toddler AND soon a newborn...this will certainly be an adventure! I ask for your prayers! I'm only an "expert" in mothering up to age 17 months, but still, I'm no expert. I'm just a mama, doing the best I can for my boys, and leaving the rest up to GOD, my strength and guide! He is ever faithful!

So, join me as I share my thoughts, humor, insight, intermixed with some pearls of wisdom and nonsense ramblings on the Mama/Wife side of life! :)