7, 6...

Went to my doctor appointment yesterday.  Once again, had to wait an hour for a 2 minute appointment.  And had not Elizabeth thrown a very vocal temper tantrum, I know I would have been waiting longer.  (the other waiting patients were jumped over in order to quiet E).  Dr. Sam said that baby's head is down.  She is now measuring 33 weeks (instead of the 34 that I am), but Dr. Sam said it was in the margin of error.  How accurate is the stomach measurement anyway???  So, we went from a large baby at last appointment to a smaller one this time.  Who knows?  I have gained about 22 pounds so far.  The next appointment is in 3 weeks (have pushed it as far in between as possible for the vocal reason listed above).

Still not feeling too pregnant or cumbersome, but there are two drastic changes I have noticed in only the last week.  #1:  I am MUCH warmer constantly now.  I had not noticed this change (cold-natured naturally) until just recently and thus am having a harder time getting to sleep at night because I am now a bit too warm.  #2:  I am suddenly very tired all the time again.  I could happily take naps every day (I even have succumbed to them several times despite longing for the time to do other things), and I would still happily go to bed by 9:00 every night.  Not quite as dead as the first trimester, but certainly a lot shorter on energy.

Holding my breath...

...and almost hate to post it lest I "jinx" myself, but...

David has been accident free (including bedtime) for over a week now!  Are we potty trained? Only time will tell!

Brilliant ideas

Today at nap time, David (despite being super tired) begged to stay up. We told him "no" and that he must go upstairs for quiet time for a bit. He wanted to stay up and watch Daddy's movie with him. When I said "no", David's face dropped at first. Then it lit up and he put his little finger up in the air as if he had a brilliant idea we all would agree on. "Let's watch 'veggie bachines'!" (translation: Mighty Machines) Michael and I just looked at each other and burst into laughter. We almost hated to disappoint our little bargainer but naptime was calling...to which end, he is sweetly and unusually sleeping even this moment.

What a difference a month makes...

No, I don't mean physically (although probably there has been that too--little Miss E can wear size 18 month shorts, a thing that her brother was only doing at about 2 1/2 years old).  The growth has been in so many areas developmentally this month!  14 Months old and so capable!

Elizabeth went from only occasionally walking without help (and really not too much interest) to a sudden walking that is steady and with hardly any spills.  This was about mid-month.  Walking is now her preferred method of movement.  She does prefer to be barefoot (who wouldn't?), but she is almost as steady with shoes on. 

She has developed immensely verbally too!  This is something that just shocks me because our little boy had no desire for words and was barely speaking clearly until 3 years old!  E's words include so many: Nigh-nigh ("night-night" her first word, and now accompanied by a wave), Uh-oh (a current favorite), No-no-no (accompanied by a head shake and often not meaning what she is saying), Yes (with proper head nod), Bye (loves to wave bye to Daddy each morning), Mommy (most often said over and over when she is looking for me), Tank O ("thank you" still only used rarely), Mo ("More" and said with the signing hand motion--something I tried to teach her, but true thanks to her BSF teachers!  This has been a life saver at times.), A Du ("all done", also accompanied by signing hand motions), Ball (this one suprised me today as I have never tried to teach it to her), and probably a handful of others I cannot even remember.  She mimics so much that we say and even was heard clearly today repeating after a toy, "I see you." 

Elizabeth can follow simple directions now too.  "Get your blanket" (a new favorite at bedtime).  "Hand Mommy your bottle." 

I think the beginning of communication has made for a far less frustrated little girl.  Overall, there have been far fewer tantrums and whining sessions this month.  We do still have a VERY strong-willed girl on our hands though--

--Especially when it comes to mealtime and food that she wants to eat or not eat.  So many of our battles have been over whether she will get to eat the "unhealthy" in lieu of the "healthy."  I'd like to say it is getting easier, but it really just depends on the day. 

Life has been too busy to take pictures this month, but these are glimpses into Miss Elizabeth's 14th month!

He comes by it naturally...

I know David comes by his love of cars naturally (anyone know anything about his daddy?), but I am still amazed at D's finely tuned powers of observation!  He is constantly spotting the littlest things that most people would overlook.

Well, today his powers of observation met his inherited love for cars.  We arrived at the church to workout and David said, "Amy is here."  I asked him how he knew that.  He proceeded to point out Miss Amy's minivan parked across the parking lot.  I, being less observant, thought it was possible but was not as certain.  Upon checking D into his class, who were there but Addie and Ben?  Sure enough!  Miss Amy was at the church.  How did David know this?  I, who have ridden in the car and admired it while mini-van searching, still did not remember the color or the exact look.  David, on the other hand, who has never ridden in the car, nor ever even had reason to look at the car or have it pointed out to him, immediately recognized one of 30-40 cars in the lot as her car!  Wow!

My Mr. Happy

Month 45. 

I have neglected taking pictures of both children for most of this month.  Oops...

No new developments other than the fact that D wore underwear to bed last night and it was dry in the morning!  Yeah!  Still not consistently potty trained, but so close!

I have noticed over the past several months, David is now starting to pay attention to the names of people around him...something he never cared about before.  He will often greet other children by name and tell me all about the other kiddos in his classes. 

What maturing has taken place over the past 6 months! 

the best job in the world!

I do have the best job in the world!  Even days like yesterday and this morning cannot diminish the fact that I love my children with all my heart and I would never trade the joy of serving them for anything!

Thank you to both My Mom and M's Mom for being such Godly examples in our lives!  We love you and cannot begin to express what you have meant in our lives!

And for all the ladies who are longing to be moms or have lost a child, I know this may be a very hard day for you.  I have been in your shoes and have been in constant prayer for you today that God will fill your strong desires with Himself.