How to weigh 118 pounds on a diet of H.a.ag.en D.azs Part 1

Sometime in early Spring, I was pulling on a pair of size 4 jeans, and they were huge. I thought to myself that my diet of ice cream in addition to nursing my 9 month old must really be paying off. My husband was convinced that my body just somehow "knew" to go back to my weight in my 20's. Oh, if only it were that easy. I gotta say, I was rationalizing this sudden weight loss with every excuse in the book...I'm nursing...not sleeping...don't have time to sit down and have a meal...But when the weight kept falling off with absolutely no effort on my part, it was starting to be a little concerning. To top it all off, I had family, friends and complete strangers saying things to me like...you are way to skinny. Why are you so anxious? You're shaking. Why does your hair look oily? Skin breaking out? What's with the sweating? I wrote it all of to anxiety and finally agreed to go see a doctor. Maybe a little Z.ol.oft would help. I mean, come on, I've been a stay at home Mom now for four and a half years. It's got to be stress. Right?

Giveaway!

Cara over at Me? A Mom? is giving away some fabulous fabric! I would love to use it for a quilt I'm about to start.

Hello?

So it has been way too long since I have updated my blog. I blame it on Facebook! A lot has happened in the past year. My son is now 4 and finished up his first year of full time school. It was an amazing year for him, and I look forward to all the school adventures to come! Oh yeah...and I had a baby! Elsa Mae joined our family on July 5, 2009 and she is just a love. She's a lot more fiesty than her big brother, and she gets into way more things than Elliott ever did. I promise to put together a post with some pictures of her first year, but for now...here's the pictures from her party. Leave a comment and let me know if I still have any readers!

Giveaway!

Cara over at www.meamom.blogspot.com
is having a giveaway! Enter to win a $60 gift card to CSN stores!

Happy Birthday!

Elliott's birthday was a success!  He had so much fun with all of his family and friends.  He had insisted on a monster theme, so this is my first attempt at actually decorating a cake.  He loved it so that is all that mattered!  We got exciting news that he got into our dream school for him next year, so we are really excited.  I think it is going to be an amazing opportunity for him.  It's full-time which is going to be a little hard for me to adjust to, but he loves school so much I think it will be perfect for him.  Plus it will give me lots of one-on-one time with the new baby who should be arriving in about 12 weeks!  Yikes!  Lots to do!

Six words I would love to go 24 hours without hearing...

But I really, REALLY want it!

Happy St. Pat's Day!

I hope everyone had a chance to get outside yesterday and enjoy the beautiful weather.  We had a great time at the parade!  Elliott thought it was the coolest thing ever to have candy hurled at his head.  He had never seen so many lollipops in one place.  I am hanging in there with this pregnancy.  Still tired all the time.  I can't believe I only have 14 weeks left.  Last night I got sucked into a show on Discovery Health about women who didn't know they were pregnant until the went to the hospital and found out they were in labor.  I mean really...how is this possible?

It's a...

So I am still having trouble loading pictures on my computer, but I thought I would post an update in case I still have a reader or two out there.  I am now 21 weeks pregnant.  And we found out we are having a little girl!  We are so thrilled.  Mike and I both agreed a long time ago that we would only have 2 kids.  While the thought of brothers is exciting, I am really happy that we are having a little girl.  Elliott is my little man, and while I know I would love another little boy just as much, it is nice having him as my guy.  The experience of a girl is going to be so different I'm sure.  I just went on my first shopping trip for little miss, and I think that I am going to have a problem...or at least my bank account is!  Elliott is still doing great.  I am in the process of planning his 3rd birthday party.  He still loves school and we have been in the process of figuring out where he will go next year.  I will update again soon with pictures.

Is anybody out there?

I am not sure if I still have any readers. This poor blog has been neglected for quite some time now. My only excuse is that my computer is so overloaded with pictures, I have been having problems downloading new images off my camera.

We have been really busy lately. We had an incredible Christmas. Elliott was very much into Santa Clause this year although he did get a little upset when he woke up and the cookies he left were all gone!

He is loving school right now. Trying to find a new school for him next year has been taking up a lot of our time. He interviewed at my "dream school" for him last week. I would be thrilled if he got accepted, and received a large grant! It is so hard for me to understand how all these good schools can cost more than my car for yearly tuition. A lot of things need to fall into place for him to go here, so we will just have to wait and see.

I am now 16 weeks pregnant. Hard to believe! I am hoping to find out what we are having at the end of next week. I remember loving being pregnant the first time around. Everything was so new and exciting. But this time around seems a lot harder. I don't have any real symptoms with the exception of always being tired (and of course the body changes.) But there just isn't the time to think about every little moment of the pregnancy which is kind of sad.

Elliott will be 3 in April. He is such an awesome little guy. It's crazy to me how grown up he seems. He is so smart it's almost scary! He communicates in complete sentences, writes his letters and numbers, reads his letters and numbers, is potty trained...along with many other things. He is constantly talking about this baby and wondering when he/she will be joining our family. It is so sweet.

I promise I will try to update more often. I am leaving you with a picture of Elliott riding Beatrice. Seems to be a fun activity around here!

So I guess I don't win any blogger of the year award. Sorry I have been away so long. I am just so tired! Being pregnant while keeping up with a 2 year old is some hard work. Everything feels so different this time around. When I was pregnant with Elliott, I loved it. I was in such a good mood, that Mike threatened to keep me pregnant all the time! This time around, I am moody, achy, and always feel like I am moments away from hurling. Good times! I did have my first ultrasound a few days ago, and I got to see my little gummy bear. I am due at the beginning of July, which is when I suspected. Elliott is being extra sweet to me. He will ask me if my belly aches and then proceed to give me kisses and tell me that I'm all better. And he also likes to talk about the baby in his belly...so cute. Anyway...I will update more later.

Soon to be Big Brother...

That's right...I'm pregnant.  The newest member of our family is expected to arrive on 07.08.09.

Smarty Pants

E and I were just playing with blocks. When it was time to clean up, I told him to count the blocks as he put them away. With no hesitation, he counted to 50! Maybe this is totally normal for a 2.5 year old. But to me, it was pretty amazing.

My LIttle Tree

So I am way behind in posts. And I have lots of fun things to share. But I will start with posting some pictures from Halloween. I thought it would be fun to make E's costume this year. Not really sure what made me decide on a tree. The top was so heavy, it took several attempts to find a way to balance it on his head!

Squash

The other day was what we refer to around here as "Happy Nancy Day." Nancy was coming over to give M and I massages. While I was mid-rub down, I here E upstairs say to Mike "I'll be right back. I'm just going to go check on Mommy real quick." He comes downstairs, parks himself in a chair, and patiently waits for me to be finished. Then he looks at Nancy and says: "It my turn for a squash." He climbs up on the table, looks at Nancy and says: "so, you want me to start face down?" It's official...we have created a monster.

Halloween's Past

Two years ago. E was 6 months old...

A Few More...

E: Mommy I am so excited I almost get to do it!

Me: Do What?

E: Play soccer! I have to get to 3 first. Right now I'm only 2.5!

When he asked for ice skating lessons, I did some research and found out he had to be 3. I guess he figures that's how old he has to be before he can play on a soccer team. I think we may have a little sports fanatic on our hands. He has been asking for a basketball hoop every day for the past 2 weeks. It's so funny, because M and I are not "sports people" at all.

E and I were sitting at a very high iron and slate table working on an art project. When we were finished, I told him he had to get down, because if he fell, he would hit his mouth and bust out his teeth. Five minutes later he walks over to me...

E: Mommy, I got down like you asked. But a little bit later I'm going to bust out my teeth, O.K.?

I guess he thought it was like me telling him he can't paint now, but maybe later...he's so silly!

Conversations With My 2 Year old...

E: Mommy, today at school I saw a bunch of colorful leaves falling from a tree. You should see it.

Me: Was it pretty?

E: Yes.

Me: When trees lose their leaves, what is that a sign of?

E: Fall Momma!

So smart...

M was out of town for 2 weeks on a big job. It was during that time that my Dad passed away. Needless to say, it was a crazy 2 weeks. Leading up to his departure, M would tell E that he had to go out of town for awhile, and Mommy was going to be sad. He had to be the man of the house and take care of me. E took this very seriously, gibing out lots of kisses, being on his best behavior, and doing everything he could to help out around the house. One day, I was a little stressed out and I was trying to get E dressed for school.

E: Mommy, you look sad. Are you sad that Daddy's gone?

Me: Yes. I miss your Daddy. And Mommy is just really tired. Daddy is working really hard, and he will be back soon.

E: Don't worry Mommy. Daddy isn't at work. He just ran out to get a cup of coffee. He'll be right back. I think you need a kiss.

Fun Fact

M and I have been trying to have another baby for awhile now. When I say "trying," I mean we have ceased all preventative measures. We decided we were ready and we would just see what happened. Nothing has happened. I am tossing around the idea of taking Clomid again. When trying to conceive the first time, I took the lowest dose for one week and got pregnant. Thirty eight weeks and four days later I gave birth to a healthy 8.1 ounce boy.
E was born 0n 4.5.06 at 7 p.m. and weighed 8 pounds 1 ounce. He was 20 and 3/4 inches long.
Get it? 4.5.6.7.8.1.2.3.4 ( if you drop the zero.) Seriously, what are the chances?

Well, if I got pregnant with baby number 2 on my current cycle, the baby would be born on 7.8.09. The due date would be a couple days later, but since I had a c-section for my first pregnancy, I would be able to pick the day to be induced. And of course I would pick that date, because come on...how fun would it be to say your kids were born on 4.5.06 and 7.8.09? Yes, I am a dork.

After meeting E for the first time, I was convinced that we get the babies we are supposed to have. And they join our lives when they are supposed to. It will be interesting to see if I conceive this month!

And a few updated pictures of my man...



And yes...that is a bottle in that picture. It is the only way he will drink milk. And he only has it before bed. And he is asleep within 5 minutes. We aren't ready to mess with a good thing.

The Day My Dad Died

Partick Clark
December 24, 1949-October 2, 2008

A few new pictures...

Here are a few updated pictures. We are finally finished with all of the home remodeling. Whew! And we had my nephew, Dylan, spend the night with us on Saturday. Poor guy wasn't feeling too well. But it still was fun to have a little baby around. I forgot what it was like to have a little one around (he is 3.5 months old.) I am also posting a picture of E's monkey with the mini-quilt I made with left over pieces from the larger quilt I made a while back. I will update more soon.