Pick a Name, Any Name

Dear Baby Boy,

Tonight I thought we'd come up with your name. We discussed and discussed. Agreed on the first, and chose the middle. I got the butterflies. I got the feeling I had been waiting for. I got a rush of adrenaline, and was super excited. I was ready to get on the phone and share it with the world!

So I turn to your dear father, my darling husband, and say,
"Have we really got our baby name?!?"

And he replies,
"I don't know, do we?"

????!!!???

"You know, we still have a few months before we have to decide."

?????!!!!!??????

And then my head exploded.

Love,
Mommy

A Touch of Cool Will Make Us Warm

We had a cooler weather teaser today.
The wind was blowing,
and it actually felt good to be outside.

I opened up the windows and let the breeze
fill the house.
By dinner, the clouds covered the sky.

Hailey has high hopes for rain,
just like her momma,
though I think it's exciting to her
because it means hot chocolate.

For me it will mean that my favorite seasons
are upon us,
my favorite time of year is approaching.
I love fall and winter,
(or what CA attempts to call fall and winter)
and the holidays bring me such happiness.

The seasons will bring such exciting things for me:
my sister,
a big birthday,
a new baby,
and of course,
lots of hot chocolate.

I can't wait!

Just Ducky

Tonight we took the girls out to dinner,
since Chili's was giving 100% of their profits
to St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

There was a gnarly looking duck there,
I wish I had brought my camera along.
The girls were fascinated,
so we took them over to the Duck Pond after dinner.

(Photos from the TDP's website)

A lap around, and then back home.
My favorite part was this sculpture:


Three people on a bike, looks a father and two kiddos,
with umbrellas for heads.
Ponder the meaning of that if you will,
then get back to me and explain, okay?

Now, I'm watching Dancing with the Stars.
Never thought I'd say I love this show,
but I do.
And as I sashay up the stairs tonight,
I'll be rooting for Kelly.

Wake Up Calls

My alarm sounded early this morning.
I groggily headed into her room,
and was greeted with a exuberant,

"I LOVE YOU MOMMY!"

Early morning wake ups are not so bad
with a greeting like that,
from a face like this:

Farm Fresh

Today the weather was a balmy 102 degrees.
We had the bright idea to go check out
the fare at the Farmer's Market.

It's 10 AM and we're already sweaty!

Our local Farmer's Market is smack in the middle of our Old Town.
Lots of produce,
artists,
and different culinary delights
gather.
I would have snapped more pictures,
especially of the giant squash
and the ginormous gourds,
but it was too stinkin' hot.

Here are the gals shopping and snacking
on some fresh from the farm
Kettle Korn.
:)

I think this will become a Saturday staple
for the P clan,
once the weather cools down.

Wishing and Hoping

I'm itchin' to go to Disneyland,
but until the cooler weather comes our way
we're staying put.

I only have one request,
cooler weather get here already!!!

I'm Armed

There is a cold making its way around the house,
so I come armed with this,

( Yes, I have already been suckered into Halloween tissues)

and I follow around the Meese.


Let me see your nose!

How's your nose?

Need a tissue for your nose?

Clean nose?

Perseverance?
Yes.
Annoyance?
Probably.

So far, knock on wood,
I haven't been hit.

Here's to hoping it stays that way.

See Sascha Smile

Year One

What a year it has been!

Last year at this time,
I was yearning to add the missing piece of our family puzzle.
Today,
that missing piece is a bun in the oven.

We weren't sure where life was going to take us,
and now we've found a beautiful home,
in an area we love.

I feel so blessed,
so happy,
so content,
and so lucky to have
the last year of our lives
chronicled
with precious memories.

This blog has helped me
stay focused on what is important,
the moments our family shares
both big and small.

I cannot wait for the new adventures this next year will bring!

Why I Had Children

How else am I supposed to get my floors so clean?

Dinner Sans Children

It was also sans husband :(,

but thanks to said husband I was able to go
and enjoy myself.

Last night, we celebrated Linsey's birthday
Teppanyaki style.


It was fun (and yummy) until we got to the awkward part
where our chef tossed pieces of shrimp into our mouths.




Mine went straight in my shirt.


There's a reason I always hate that part.



But, we had a blast and I would have loved to bring home
my hubby some of my delicious chicken and rice,
but apparently the waitress didn't think so
and piled all the dirty dishes atop my plate.

Next time, I'll just have to bring him with me!

B-A-N-A-N-A-S!

The girls picked out a new shade of nail polish today.

It is yellow.

Banana Yellow.

Which incidentally coincides with how big the baby is this week:

I'm 20 weeks today!

Halfway there!

Let's show the bump!


20 more to go!

On the hunt!

I'm in search of a baby boy doll.

I'd like to get one for Rory,
to hopefully get her excited for our new addition.

Right now, she says, "No baby brudder!"

I'm pretty surprised to not have found one yet.
There are many, many girl babies dressed in pink,
but I have yet to find a boy.
Target sells Grandma & Grandpa dolls,
(which I find a tad strange -
"Here kids! Play nice with Grandma!")
but no baby boy dolls!

My internet searches haven't produced anything either,
though I have seen some very scary looking dolls. Yikes!

I may just try to make one myself.
We'll see how that goes!

Today Saw

The Return of my Happy Ladies.

Praise the Lord!!

So, how was your day?

Today I had the honor of taking my girls to their new pediatrician.
That meant one thing... shots.
Lots of shots.

Sascha was not having any of it from the moment we walked through the door.
Even though she told me she had to go the bathroom mere seconds before they called us in the room, when the nurse requested a urine sample - she no longer had to go.

Rory had no problem being weighed,
having her height checked and her body examined.
She's in the 98% percentile,
and to quote the doctor, "She's a big girl!"

Sascha held my hand to be weighed,
crept slowly to have her height checked,
and cringed in fear during the whole examination.

Then came the worst part. Would you like to get the girls the flu shot? Normally, I would pass. But with a newborn coming during flu season, we've decided to do it. They had a nasal spray option for the girls. Immediately Sascha objected, saying she would rather get the shot.

Turns out she would end up getting 4 shots. I had to physically restrain her as she screamed bloody murder. This prompted Rory to cry, as she saw her sister in pain. Next came Rory. 3 shots for her, and the nasal spray. Nasal spray - no problem. The shots found me holding her down, kissing my sweet baby's tears away as she screamed, and as Sascha bawled in the corner - not wanting her sister to hurt.

I was emotionally drained. I needed a hug - I almost hugged the nurse.

My girls cried for a solid twenty minutes after the fact,
and even shakes at McDonalds did not pacify them.

It's been a tougher day for Rory than Sascha.
Rory has been like this all afternoon.


No fever, but she is in major pain.
She wails ever few minutes,
and says "Hurt me. Hurt me."
My heart breaks every time.

I cannot wait for this day to be over.

My Kitchen is Clean

Company must be coming!
We are looking forward to seeing
Grandpa & Marilyn tonight!

Party Time.... Excellent!

I didn't get a shot of Uncle Fred,
but he was there too!

We spent most of the time throwing out baby names.
Our list is getting shorter!

Happy Birthday Dad!!!

We are off to Nana and Papa's tonight
for some sweet and sour pork,
and banana cream pie.

Oh! And to celebrate Papa's birthday! :)

I made him another golf club cover...

Shhh! Don't tell him!

Baby Mine

I found this picture today, and could not believe how fast time has flown by.
I showed it to John and he took a few minutes before he was able to tell me
who it was. Our babies look so much alike, will the next one as well?
I am so excited to find out!

Do you know who she is?

Inspiration

This is a sneak peek of what the baby's room will be decorated in,
thanks to an adorable crib set I found at Target.
I'm loving the orange, light blue, and dark brown
along with the retro dots.

I've got a long while before I'll actually get to decorate his room,
seeing as how Rory currently occupies that space.
But it's never to early to start preparing, right?

Another Peek

Went to the doctor today and was told that I get to have another ultrasound in 4 weeks.
The placenta is between the baby and my cervix. If you can spare a happy thought or a prayer, send one my way that everything moves into its correct position in the next month!

My Daughter, Ladies & Gentlemen

Oma gave Rory some Lightning McQueen underoos
for her birthday as a joke.
I may have stuck them on her head at one point.

And that may be the reason she now thinks they are hats.

Afternoon Adventures

Two Sisters

An amazing outfit

A silly face in tree pose

A sweet pea

and an "angry face."


All on a Tuesday afternoon.

S-potted

Not sold in stores.

Wall That Was Fun!

We all convened in the girl's giant room
with some cute little wall stickers from Target.

We turned the white walls,
into a forest of fun.


This guy is my favorite.
Obviously he is nervous at the thought
of jumping into that pile of flowers.


A great quick fix for plain walls!

Insert Picture Here

We are at Nana and Papa's today.

I should have some cute pictures to post here
of Sascha & Hailey at the Farmer's Market.

Except Nana forgot to take some.

So, picture them smiling and happy,
like this


except with fruit in the background.

The Official P

Today she became an official P.
This was a big day for me.
For the first time in 9 years, 2 months and 12 days
we share the same last name.
Today feels good.

The Name Game

Oh my friends,

This is going to be a long one, I can already tell. I throw out names and John shoots them down. He lops one up and I smack it out of the park. I...well you get the point.

I came up with a name when we first found out I was pregnant. I had heard a variation of the name, back when I was pregnant with Sascha - and have loved it since. When I came with my variation - it was like SNAP! That should be my boy's name! I broached the idea with my hubby, and he seemed to like it, but since he doesn't like to think about names until we know what we are having it wasn't discussed much after that conversation. Since I believed it was a boy from day one, I had been thinking about this name when I thought about the baby boy that I felt in my bones was growing inside of me. Silly, silly me.

So, the other night we are sitting around and decide to talk names. I tell my husband my vote is for that name that I have been daydreaming about for months. First, he says it wrong. Then he says that he told a relative the (wrong) name, and got the response "interesting" - never good. I tell him the correct way to say the name, and he says it. Then imagines different ways of saying it, and finally says, "No. Don't like it." And moves right along.

I felt like someone had popped my shiny balloon. After that, no name sounded right. I may have let a few tears slide, but I didn't let anyone see. I could have pitched a fit, but I really want to find a name that we both love. I'm waiting for that moment where a name is said and SNAP! - that's it, that's our boy.

I still feel that way about the name I had in mind. I'm going to have to let go.

At least we still have 5 months to figure this out, but it would be a whole lot easier if I was a patient gal!

I guess there's always Punxsutawney!

It's a BOY!!!!

I'm going to have a son! I can barely wrap my head around it. I would like to say, I KNEW IT!!!! This pregnancy has felt different, from my moods to my distaste for sweets - a huge sign something was different! My Chinese Gender Chart prediction said boy, and the heartbeat sounded slower to me than the girls. Plus, I felt it in my bones so strongly - mother's intuition if you will - thank goodness I was right!

I'm beyond excited for the new adventures this little man will bring into our lives!

Baby Boy P's Profile:

Baby Boy P's Foot:

Baby Boy P's...ummm Baby boy parts:


I would now officially like to pull the name Punxsutawney off of the table.
Let the name game begin!!

What's Kickin?

Today we'll find out!