unloading pumpkins at The Pumpkin Church

the alphabet song

My cousin gave Julianna a Jumpstart Preschool PC game last year for Christmas and she has thoroughly enjoyed playing with it for the last few months.  She went from playing Level 1 with relative ease to being bored playing Level 3 and now I think she's ready for a new game.  Before she forgot one of the songs she learned from playing the game, I made a point to get her recorded singing it.  Now, I present Julianna and the Jumpstart Preschool Alphabet Song:

A is for apple
B is for bone
C is for cookie
D is for donkey
E is for elephant
F is for frog
G is for gorilla
H is for hog
I is for ice cream
J is for jam
K is for kangaroo
L is for lamb
M is for monkey
N is for nose
O is for owl
P is for potato (with sour cream and lots of butter)
Q is for queen
R is for rabbit
S is for shoe
T is for tomato
U is for umbrella
V is for violin
W is for window (that looks out on the world)
X is for x-ray
Y is for yellow
Z is for zebra (that you see in the zoo)
Whoo-hooo!
Oh let's all sing the alphabet thing
Make a word with every letter



Untitled from c525600 on Vimeo.

pregnancy update

Two Saturdays ago I started having contractions all throughout the day.  They were not really strong and definitely not regular, but I could tell that something was going on.  We had a really busy weekend that weekend, with something like a zillion places to be.  Everyone joked that I would miss my baby shower on Sunday, but fortunately I didn't.

The contractions continued pretty frequently throughout Saturday and Sunday, even getting as close as every 15 or 20 minutes.  I could feel my belly tighten and when I touched it it would be as hard as a rock.  Then the back of my neck would get warm sometimes.  By Monday and Tuesday the contractions had slowed down a lot.  Yesterday and today I haven't had any that I know of.

When I went to the doctor last Wednesday I had to get the group B strep test done so they just went ahead and checked me as well.  I was 2 cm dialated and 50% effaced.  Of course, that means that I could go into labor at any time or I could still be walking around pregnant past my due date.  Who knows?  My belly was still measuring pretty normal size-wise and my blood pressure was fine.  I will admit though, that it was exciting to hear that the contractions had caused some progress.  When I described the contractions to the doctor she confirmed that they were just false labor contractions, but I never felt Braxton Hicks at all with Jules so it's all new to me.

I go again on Wednesday.  I have about three weeks left and I am ready.  I am beyond ready.  I have no desire to cook a thing.  I am so ready for fall weather I can hardly stand it.  I couldn't take one more second of my long hair being down my neck so I had it all chopped off.  I would love to be able to see my feet again and not feel like a double-wide trailer walking around.  I can definitely tell that being on my feet all day at school makes a difference in how many contractions I have and how badly my body aches that night.  Needless to say, I am enjoying the flexibility of being a substitute so that's one good thing.

Anyway, that's about it.  More news after my appointment tomorrow and every week until we have a new baby to coo over.

Philippians 4:13

Here is a short clip of Julianna saying her Bible verse for this month. And it happens to be my favorite scripture verse. Moving up to the three year old class at church has been a very good thing for her and I'm so proud of her for learning it.



Untitled from c525600 on Vimeo.

an open letter

Dear Tums,

I love you. You work like magic.  I am thoroughly amazed at how quickly and effectively you stop the stomach acid from rising into my throat and granted, you don't work for extended periods of time, but you do bring instant relief and for that I am grateful.  Whoever invented you is considered a genius in my book and my hugely pregnant body thanks you.

Yours for at least another 3 weeks,
Courtney

three point five

Three and a half is

• using big words like "concocted" and "multicolored"
• independence shown in fun-for-mommy ways like, "I'm never gonna drink that milk"
• writing letters all by herself and drawing pictures that are beginning to resemble real objects instead of just scribbles
• adventure seeking

• wearing 5T clothes and STILL growing like a weed
• imagination and creativity - making up and telling lots and lots of stories to yourself each day
• lots of pretend play - doctor and house
• embarrassing your parents by saying things like, "Let's go over there and see that old, old, old man."
• obsession and fascination with the unusual (i.e. bloody, scary faces and masks out for Halloween)
• prancing, posing, and eye-lash fluttering for attention
• able to type on the computer and change the font color and style, plus play kindergarten and first grade level games with ease
• still ornery without a nap and ten hours of sleep at night
• old enough to dress herself

• mean as a snake
• pre-reading (making the first letter sounds of each word as she sees it and then declaring proudly what other words begin with that letter)
• still has trouble sharing, but certainly has the concept down
• full of love and the desire to please others

Happy Half-Birthday, Jules!

waiting for the preschool doors to open

Happy Friday everyone!

feast your eyes on this

my banana split dinner at The BBQ Center in Lexington, NC

mowing with Daddy

better late than never, right?

These pictures are from two weeks ago.  
Here are some shots from Julianna's first day of preschool this year.

my big girl

her Disney Princess backpack

riding in her new big girl booster seat on the way to school

before going in to school, so excited she can hardly 
stand still long enough for a picture

the first thing she did was run in and flop down 
on the couch in her classroom

for lunch after preschool she wanted to make a 
chicken salad whale sandwich

She's in a small class this year (which I like a lot better). She's at a new school and she's the only girl in her 
class. Some days there are three other boys and some days there are only two other boys in there with her. I 
think it's a much more manageable group of 3 year olds than the 13 kid class she was in last year.

She seems to like it as well. On the second day she went to school my mom took her since I had to work.  
Apparently, Jules told Nanna right away when she walked in the class, "Look Nanna! That's the boy I'm going 
to marry!"

Daddy says he needs to run a background check first.

much better this week

you knew tutus were supposed to be worn around your neck, right?

My little baby started dance on Tuesday.  She was in a class of 6 girls and she is taking ballet, tap, and tumbling for an hour once a week.  I stayed to watch for the whole first class and I have to say that it brought me so much joy.  It was one of the most entertaining hours I have had in a long, long time.

Each child in the class had their "moments."  Sometimes they would listen and follow directions well and other times they would run off, stare off into space, or as my little ballerina liked to do, stare at themselves in the mirror.

Untitled from c525600 on Vimeo.

And just a tip for any of you considering putting your child in dance class soon: I would suggest buying a leotard with the skirt attached, not as a separate piece like I did.  Because otherwise you will be standing there watching through the observation window as your daughter makes a cape out of her skirt and twirls it around her neck.  Just saying.

love you, Booger

Here's an "A is for Beautiful" story for you.  The other night we were all sitting in the same room together, my mom, dad, Jonathan, Jules and I and Jonathan was reading "Arthur Goes to Camp" to Julianna.  He got to a part where it said something like, "They pitched their tents..." and instead he read it as "They pinched their tits..."

[And now I'd like to take a moment and pause to say hello to all the perverts that just googled that phrase and landed upon my sweet little blog here.  Hi!]

I can't even begin to describe the looks that came next.  He immediately glanced over the top of the book at me and I completely lost it.  I laughed until my sides hurt.  It was just one of those times where laughter couldn't be avoided.  And I wish I had it recorded.

The Big Sister

Written and posted by my husband, Jonathan.




Julianna and I have been planning to get a present for her new brother or sister. Yesterday, when I came home, Courtney told me that she suggested that Julianna buy the new baby a stuffed animal. She has always been attached to a little lamb named Lucy (named after the friend that gave it to her). Jules then says, "momma, I want to give the baby Lucy." Courtney waited, expecting a proposal to buy a new one for her, but it never came. It was a sincere and heartless offer. Throughout the evening, we both expected her to return the crib where Lucy had been deposited and retrieve her. At bedtime, we climbed into bed about to start our night time book. I saw Julianna instinctively look around for Lucy among her other friends (Lasso, little Lucy, Ralph, and Bean). Nothing was said as she scooped up Lasso and little Lucy and slid between the covers. After our story, Jules had a look of deep thought or concentration on her face. After asking "what's wrong," she paused and said, "daddy, I should have given the baby little Lucy instead of big Lucy." Well, the regretful look on her face coupled with this extremely mature logic melted my heart. I told her that the baby would love either of her friends and we could switch them out if she wanted. We switched big Lucy for little Lucy and life goes on. While there will be fights in the future over toys and territory, the fact that she wanted to give up her most prized possession for a sibling that she has yet to meet makes my heart swell.

Thanks Jules, I love you.

daddy

Ellie/Josh update

Five weeks and one day to go.  Bullets this morning because I'm too lazy and tired.

Pregnancy news:

• I have no dark line down my belly, but I do have an outtie belly button now.  When I was pregnant with Julianna I got the dark line but my belly button never popped out.
• I've gained about 37 pounds. With Jules I gained 39 total.  Have I mentioned that there are still five weeks to go?  Someone help me please; I am miserable.
• I've had less leg cramps this time around, but much more trouble with the peeing too many times at night thing.
• This time I've noticed that the baby is moving less at is grows. Well, not really moving less, just differently. Like it is stretching instead of flailing around in there. I didn't notice that before.
• I've also had less nosebleeds this time, but I'd imagine that's because it's SUMMERfreakin'HOT and not dry winter like it was when I was preggo with Jules.
• This baby definitely likes to lean off to one side, my right side, and I don't remember Julianna doing that.
• Oh yeah, this.  I am tired of eating my nightly Tums tablets, as I was when pregnant the first time.
• I go to the doctor today and every week until the baby arrives.  The past few times the baby has been measuring closer to just-slighter-bigger-than-normal instead of OMG-a-lot-bigger-than-normal.
• My sister started a baby pool for everyone to guess the baby's birth date.  The tie-breaker will be the weight and sex.  It is interesting to see what people think and it will be even more exciting to see who's right.  Most people have bet on a 9+ lb baby boy and most people are guessing that I will deliver before my official 10/22 due date.  If you'd like an invitation to join the pool, leave me a comment.

hamming it up with Lucy before preschool

Happy Grandparent's Day!

off to the Grandparent's breakfast at preschool

GRRRR!!!

Just went by a local credit union to buy my precious Dixie Classic Fair tickets and the annoying teller said they weren't selling them yet. When I told her that the website said that advance tickets went on sale on Tuesday she replied, "Oh, well we got a big stack of them in but we haven't opened them yet. We don't start selling them until two weeks before the fair."

Ugh! Frustrating!

I'm debating about whether I should complain or not. That was the only reason I stopped by there.

during planning today

so tired of studying when I really don't need to know this stuff to teach computer classes anyway

just asking

Is it bad that it's only early September and I already want to put the Halloween decorations out simply for the fact that my due date comes before Halloween?

Discuss.

you mean I haven't told you my embarrassing story about our trip to McDonald's yet?

I'm sorry.

I've really neglected you.

Here goes. Please don't laugh.

Actually, laugh all you want. I'll happily be the butt of your jokes. You're welcome.

Now, a couple of weeks ago when school started again and I had to go back to work subbing, Jonathan and I talked it up with Julianna and tried to get her excited about us being gone all day and then her own school starting soon. We promised her that if she was a good girl for Nanna and Pap that first day back that we would go somewhere fun after work that night.

Well, she definitely took the bait. She was completely fine with us both being gone and she played happily all day. When we got home we had no plans for dinner and were wracking our brains for some place to go that would be "fun" but also not too expensive.

We thought of everything: Chuck E Cheese, picnic at the park, mall playplace, ice cream shop, etc. Where did Julianna decide she wanted to go?

Old McDonald's and the pet store, of course.

So off to good old Micky D's we went.

I was starving from being at work all day and not used to not snacking every three hours. Wait. What? I know it's the babt that's supposed to eat every three hours, not the pregnant mom, but sadly that had become my routine.

Anyway, I decided I wanted to try the new angus burger that I kept seeing advertised despite knowing that it is probably a heart attack waiting to happen. [I'm taking full advantage of this being my last pregnancy, you see.] And because we hadn't had an abundance of vegetables lately, my husband decided he would have a salad and he asked to share some fries. He doesn't even really eat salads so that was pretty unusual, but nevertheless he ordered it and then got Julianna a Happy Meal. After we had ordered the cashier looked us all over and said...

wait for it...

"Who's having the #12?"

When I answered that I was. She just smiled and punched the order in.

Yes, my husband eats chicken salads at McDonald's, but I get the Angus Burger combo. That my friends, is probably the funniest things that a McDonald's cashier has ever said to me.

And I will tell you without a doubt that it was worth every single stinkin' calorie.

at the creek

watching the dog swim

going dove hunting

you see who gets the back seat

raindrops on roses and goldfish in baggies... these are a few of my favorite things

Yay! Only 26 days until this.

it is really funny

to hear your three year old go off in another room after being scolded and tell her stuffed animals, "Mama, said..." in a mimicky voice.

That is all.

49 days and counting

I had another OB appointment today which was very uneventful. There was nothing much new to report except she did confirm what I already knew, that being that the baby is already head down but kind of positioned slightly diagonal with it's butt to one side. The baby's heart rate was right at 154 -155 bpm. I was measuring perfectly on track for 33 weeks, weight gain was fine, blood pressure was fine, and urine was fine. Nothing special.

Except! Except that they went ahead and scheduled the remainder of my appointments today before I left. That is so exciting to me (and yes, I know I'm a dork). The end is in sight, people! Hallelujah!

stories

So my daughter loves her Uncle Seth tremendously. We already knew this, but it was certainly reinforced tonight after dinner.

I was just sitting with her on the couch looking at a huge stack of pictures taken over the last year that I've just had developed. She got to a picture of my dad and Seth playing horseshoes at Julianna's birthday party earlier this year and she paused and said, "There's Uncle Seth. I love Uncle Seth!"

Then came what perhaps could be one of the funniest things I have heard her say this year. She kissed his picture and said, "I'll always believe in you, Seth."

Sure, it's probably something she picked up from a movie. But still, I think it's hilarious.

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I was sitting in the rocking chair the other day and Jules came up to give me a gentle push. She started singing "Rock A Bye Baby" and I asked her if she was going to rock her baby brother or sister in a few months.

She thought about it for a second and then replied, "No! Then he will poop on me!"

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Whenever Jonathan or I go get our hair cut and Julianna has to go with us, she pretty much insists that she get hers cut too. I don't want to ever have to battle with her for a hair cut if I can help it so we often just put her up in the chair and let her get hers pretend-cut too.

Today, both Jonathan and I were working so she stayed with Nanna and Pap and they had hair appointments. They had already been warned about her saying this. Of course, Julianna told them on the way that she wanted hers cut too and while Nanna was having her hair done Jules loudly declared, "Pap, I'm going to have five hairs cut next!"

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