Baby Gear & Gift Registry for 2nd Baby

Taken @ 16 weeks. Just starting to pop out a little.

We will have a 7 year gap between our "babies". I can't believe that Zachariah will be 7 years old when this baby is due to be born. This was not the plan, but it's reality. We have a big gap.

The problem with having a big gap between children is that we've either gotten rid of baby gear or it is too out of date to use. We have some things, but we were missing some really big imporatant items. We got rid of our crib, infant seat, and car seat just a year ago. I realize now that the car seat would have been ready to expire by now anyway, so we needed a new one.

We found a car seat/stroller travel system at a local home improvement store. They don't often carry things like this, so there was one left that kept getting marked down. We checked it out and it was a decent one that would work for us. When Matt bought it, we ended up with a great price plus a $20 rebate. Score!

Last weekend we picked out and bought a crib from Target. Nothing fancy, but it's nice (probably nicer than the old one was new). And Matt had a $100 gift card from a prize he won that we used towards it. I also had a few Target gift cards (from various blogging things), so with all of those combined we paid VERY little for the crib. Yay!

Now that we have the crib and car seat/stroller, there isn't a lot more we need. I kept our bouncy seat, play mat, pack 'n play, baby bathtub, and a few other things that I used with my nephews/niece.

I think the obvious thing would be clothing...but only if it's a girl. I still have all my boy clothes. My sister has been borrowing them as needed, but she never needed things until about 12 months or so. So most of the little baby clothes haven't been worn since Zachariah was little. If this is a girl, we'll have to start over with most clothing.

The other major thing we will need are diapers. We've decided to cloth diaper this time. This is all new to me, so we're starting from scratch. I haven't decided exactly what type(s) I want to use yet. But I see that Amazon.com has some available there.

And that brings me to baby gift registry. I feel a little funny doing a registry since this is our 2nd baby, but I know there will be at least one big shower for my family/friends. Since I already have quite a bit (more than I originally thought), I think it might be necessary to register for what we actually do need. I'm thinking of setting up a registry on Amazon and maybe Babies R Us. Mostly on Amazon for the cloth diapers I can register for.

What do you think? Is a registry acceptable for a 2nd baby? Did you do it? Does it make a difference that there is a big age gap?

And I'm still working through what other baby gear I need. It can be overwhelming, but at least I've done this before and know where to look. What baby items are must haves for you?

16 Week Update

I know it's been a while since I updated. Sorry. After talking to Sarah (she has the cutest little baby, by the way) for a while on Sunday, I figured I better update how I'm doing. (She said she had to stalk me on Twitter to make sure I was still doing OK. Which works because I post there A LOT! Ha!)

I will be 16 weeks pregnant on Thursday. I had my 16 week check up with my OB today. It was a quick, easy, and good appointment. We went over some general questions, talked about getting enough calcium in my diet, and listened for the baby's heartbeat. The LPN we saw gave me this whole speech about how for some reason she finds it very hard to hear heartbeats at 16 weeks. She speculates it's something to do with the growing uterus and small baby. As she finishes telling me this, just in case she can't find the heartbeat, she finds the heartbeat. Well, that was easy. It was so good to hear our little baby again. The heartbeat was around 142 this time. (Last time it was 180, so quite a difference.)

I have been feeling better overall, but I am still dealing with nausea and vomiting (once in a while). No fun. I tried to stop taking the Zofran, because I was feeling better. I quickly learned that I'm not ready to stop taking that. I have a lot less vomiting when I'm taking it...still, unfortunately.

The same week I stopped taking the medicine for a few days, I had some other bad issues too. I ended up with a terrible yeast infection. I've only had 1, maybe 2, ever, and this was terrible. I used the recommended treatment from my OB office, and it started clearing up within a few days. That was a rough few days.

While that was clearing up, I had to up the medication I'm taking to keep my blood sugar levels good. They told me to do it gradually, so that's what I've been doing. When I increased it, I started having diarrhea  That lasted for about 3 days off and on all day. I had to try hard to keep some food down and get lots of liquid. No fun.

What a bad week that was. I'm glad to be past all of that. And it helps to have great friends to listen to me complain and send fun care packages to cheer me up. Thanks, Sara! I can also thank Sara for my newest craving- Jolly Ranchers. They are good to have especially when I'm feeling a bit nauseous.

15 going into 16 weeks is starting to look better for me. I have more energy to get things done, and I'm glad I'm not feeling down all the time. Looking back I can see time is passing quickly already with this pregnancy. Only 4 more weeks and I'll be half way there. I want to treasure each moment, like the little flutters I'm just starting to feel.

What I Didn't Mention

OK, there are some things that I didn't mention in my last post. I had a few pregnancy related problems that we talked with the doctor about.

Remember that glucose test that they wanted me to take? I went to do it, sat there for an hour with the orange stuff in my belly, then my belly rejected it. I was sent home. After a week they told me to go retest.

Since I haven't been feeling great, still, I have not gone back to be retested. The doctor mentioned at this appointment that my fasting glucose level was "a little high". (I'd like to see the numbers.) Therefore, they are putting me on medication that will help with that. And after a while I will just do the regular 1 hour glucose test to check for gestational diabetes.

I'm hoping this will help and there is no other reason for concern. But honestly, I'm past being upset about the conclusions everyone jumped to, and just ready to do what I need to do to have a healthy pregnancy.

The other issue was a little infection from my ...uhh... female check. So I have to take antibiotics for a week too.

I'm now on 3 medications plus a prenatal vitamin. I hope this doesn't all last.

At least we have a healthy little baby growing inside just like it should!

12 Weeks - A Sneak Peek

I'd like to be able to say that now that I'm 12 weeks pregnant the "morning" sickness has completely disappeared. Unfortunately I can't. The medication is helping, but I've still had a few rough days. It's not completely helping, though, most of the time I can function better with it.

Today I am officially 12 weeks along. I can't believe it! The baby is about the size of a lime, and I had my 2nd OB appointment. This time I got to see one of the doctors, and Matt was able to join me. I had my pap smear (which was long overdue) and some other fun such things. (I'll come back to that.)

The best part was that they tried to listen to the baby's heartbeat on doppler. After searching for some time, the doctor and nurse both reassured me this was normal and if it couldn't be found they could do a quick ultrasound. OK, fine. She tried and tried and couldn't get it. I just smiled and said OK. After the doctor said we'd move to another room for an ultrasound I mentioned this happened with my last pregnancy. The doctor laughed and said, "Now i understand why you're smiling and not crying. You've done this before."

Had this been my sister, she would have been really freaked out given her past experience. But I knew that it could be hard to find a heartbeat and honestly wasn't worried yet. And I was secretly (or maybe not so secretly) excited that I finally get to see my baby!

Thankfully Matt was able to make this appointment, so we were quickly ushered into another room where we had a quick ultrasound. She found the baby with no problem and we were able to heat the steady, strong heartbeat. The heartbeat was around 180 (faster than I ever remember Zachariah's being). The baby was kicking and moving around a LOT! It was great to watch. The doctor wanted to get a measurement while she was looking, but baby just wouldn't cooperate for that. There was not a good view from crown to rump to measure.

So, we walked away with smiles and our first baby picture. (It's a rough picture, I know. Like I said, baby was being uncooperative.)

Good Medicine

I finally gave in last week and called my OB about getting a prescription for my nausea. It was getting bad. I was throwing up a meal at least once a day...and not always at home. I'd had enough. Nothing else seemed to work for me.

Fortunately the practice I'm going to had recommended the prescription and readily called it into my pharmacy. Unfortunately when I got to the pharmacy I found they only had enough medication for a 3 day supply. I took it, knowing it would at least get me through our weekend away.

This stuff rocks. We drove all the way to Columbus without me getting sick or even feeling like I needed to get sick. I was able to keep down food and even eat a bit more. It was easier to drink things and keep my prenatal vitamins down too. Ahh, relief.

But I knew my time was running short. When I took my last pill Sunday afternoon on the way home, I called the pharmacy to see if they'd filled the rest of my prescription. They had not. And since Monday was a holiday the shipment wouldn't be in until Tuesday. I asked about filling this somewhere else. Maybe even the same pharmacy on the other end of town. No. They had to keep it to give me the rest of the partial.

Ugh. Knowing that I'd had 3 days of relief, then had to go through 2 more days of feeling sick was not a great though. But it didn't seem there were any other options.

Sure enough by Monday afternoon I was feeling blah again. And yesterday was a really rough day. I got sick once and felt terrible all day.

Matt stopped in the evening to pick up my prescription and they hadn't filled it yet. He had to wait for an hour in the store while they filled it. I don't think I can thank him enough. Now I'm back on the medication and hoping that I can function again. It feels good to be feeling a bit better. And I think in a few weeks I'll be past this tough phase anyway.

Testing Fun

My new OB, or rather the LPN that I saw at my first appointment, ordered me to get some blood-work done before my next appointment. I have no problems with all the blood-work.

Here's what the problem is...she also wants me to go through the 2 hour glucose test now. This typically happens later in pregnancy to test for gestational diabetes. Usually they do a 1 hour test and depending on results they may order a 2 hour test.

There are some reasons why they want to do this now:

1. I had a BIG baby last time. They are worried that I'll have another that big. And she seemed shocked that I delivered (vaginally) a 9lb 11oz baby with no complications or major episiotomy.  (I did need one, but it was minor, and I healed really quickly.) Does it help knowing that I never even took a drop of pain reliever after I had my son. Nothing. I felt pretty good.
2. I am overweight...obese in fact. I think they are worried that I have diabetes issues without pregnancy that could cause problems. This has never been a known problem, but I understand the concern.

Here's why I don't want to do this:

1. I have to fast. I don't do well when I don't eat these days.
2. I have to sit there at the lab for 2 hours.
3. I'm in the midst of terrible "morning"/all-day sickness.
4. And eww, I'll probably have to drink that nasty orange stuff. Not even sure I will keep it down.
5. I have to go in the mornings, when it's hard to get around when I'm feeling like this.

I think I'll be luck if I make it through the whole thing without throwing up or passing out. I did decide it would be best to take someone along, for back up if I do get sick, or for a ride if I feel faint. Matt offered to take time off from work, but I asked my mom to come down. I figured if anyone can distract me for a few hours it would be her.

I'm just praying that all goes well. I want to have the test done to see if there really is a problem. I want a healthy pregnancy, and if I have to do this to have one then I will. Of course I hope the results are good with no further problems. (Then I won't have to do the glucose test again for a while...and only the 1 hour one next time.)

Have any of you had a hard time with the glucose test when pregnant? Any tips for me. Think of me in the morning if you will. Thanks!

Oh Baby!

I'm still having a bit of trouble wrapping my mind around the fact that I'm actually pregnant. Of course the morning all-day sickness is a sure tell, but I'm still in a little shock. Don't get me wrong, we were trying to get pregnant, and I'm thrilled that I finally am. It's just that I had come to a point where I really didn't think it was going to happen. I didn't think it was a possibility, and I was already accepting of that when this news came. It's all very exciting!

Since we thought we may not have more children, we got rid of a bunch of our baby items last summer. We no longer have a crib, car seat, stroller, and more. At first this started to panic me, but I'm realizing that I do still have quite a bit. And since this is most likely our last baby, I may just try to borrow certain items from family and friends. Plus when I think about the baby things that I do still have, we have a good start.

I think part of why this pregnancy isn't sinking in as quickly is the way this new OB does things. Since I am confident of my last period, they see no reason for a dating ultrasound. They are going by my dates, and there will likely be only one ultrasound at 20 weeks. By 10 weeks in my last pregnancy I had already had 3 ultrasounds. We saw a lot of the baby and heard the heartbeat often. Although, a lot of that was because of an early medical issue. I suppose I should just be thankful that I haven't had any major issues this far, and hold tight for a few more weeks.

I am 9 weeks pregnant today. My next OB appointment is at 12 weeks, so only 3 weeks away. They will listen for a heartbeat at that appointment. I can't wait! Before my appointment I need to get all the necessary blood draws. I could have done it before now, but they've also decided to send me for a 2 hour glucose test at the same time. I do not want to sit in a waiting room for 2 hours with Zachariah, so I'm waiting until he goes to school. My mom is coming along with me, then I can have all that done next week. I'm taking her along, because I'm worried about not eating all night, then most of the morning. I'm worried about getting sick while there, or passing out (which I almost did once this week already).

So far I've had a lot of morning all-day sickness. Some days have been better than others. Last weekend was rough for me. I got sick several times (once in the car on the way home) and had heaved so much that my stomach muscles were cramping. It was miserable. But by Monday I felt a lot better. Unfortunately while in the waiting room for Zachariah's ENT appointment, I almost passed out. I felt it coming. I thought I'd be OK, but then I got shaky, weak and really light-headed. I asked them if I could lay down, so they got me back into a room and reclined a chair. That seemed to do the trick. After I cooled off, drank a bunch of water and ate a few crackers, I felt better. I still called Matt to come pick us up, because I didn't want to drive while feeling like that. Fortunately I haven't felt that way since. (Passing out caused a lot of drama for me early in pregnancy last time, so I really don't want that to happen.)

I seem to be feeling a little better since then, though. I still don't feel 100%, but I can say it's gotten a little better. I'm hoping it will all go away in a few weeks like it did before.

Baby names! I realized this morning that I've done very little thinking about baby names. I usually love to think about this from the start, and last time I was still thinking about it when he was born. Maybe it's because we already have a girls name we really like. I don't know if it's worth looking, because I think I'll find others I like better but I don't think I'll get Matt to budge on his pick. We had a hard time agreeing on boys names last time, so I don't really want to deal with that right now. I suppose this is why I haven't really dug into baby names. It will come. Maybe if/when we find out what we're having in a few months, I'll be a little more into names.

What a crazy few weeks it's been. Between doctor appointments, other activities and getting ready for school we've been a little nuts. My feeling sick all the time has really hindered getting things around for back to school too. I didn't buy a bunch of new clothes this year. (I know to start he'll wear summer clothes anyway.) I have most of his school supplies. Did I mention that our Open House for school is Sunday...and school starts Tuesday? I think he has enough to start Tuesday, and I'll get the rest organized and ready as I can. We can already see how this new little one is changing our lives. And I know there will be so many more changes to come. I can't wait!!

Surprise...Our Big News

If you follow me on Twitter, you already know. For the rest of you...

SURPRISE! I'm pregnant!

We just shared the news with our family this weekend. They are just as excited for us. I thinking wondering if we'd ever be able to have more children at all makes this to much more surprising and exciting. 

Baby #2 is due March 28th. I am 7 weeks pregnant and feeling all the nausea I should (or did last time at least). Zachariah can't wait to be a big brother and meet his new little sister or brother (he says he prefers sister).

Busy Busy Busy

I actually do think about blogging here from time to time. It just never seems to happen. ;)

How have you all been? I feel a little disconnected. I do appreciate those of you who are on Twitter a lot, because I am too. Then I know what's going on from day to day. Not that my life is really that exciting. It has been a really busy summer, though. Here are some of the highlights.

End of school (Zachariah finished Kindergarten)
Vacation (Panama City Beach, FL)
Power outage (3 full days!)
My birthday (32!)
Week with my parents (due to power outage & stayed for 4th of July)
T-ball
Tearing out & putting in new kitchen flooring (still not quiet finished)
Got a new camera (Nikon 5100)
Anniversary trip (12 years ... Shipshewana, IN)

That pretty much brings us to the present. The t-ball season is finally over. It got drug out an extra week due to one week of high temperatures and storms that cancelled all the games. This makes it seem less hectic, since we don't have to be away several evenings each week.

Matt's been riding his new bicycle a lot this summer. He's participated in a few charity bike rides and other things too. This weekend he's riding 50 miles in a local ride. He enjoys it, but he's usually beat after all that riding.

Zachariah is enjoying the summer. We've managed to squeeze in trips to parks, movie theaters, and much more since he's been out of school. I can't believe that he's finished with Kindergarten and starts first grade in about 3 weeks. We've been stocking up on supplies and looking for new clothes to start the year. (His shirts that fit a few months ago are suddenly too short on him!)

And right now we have lots to look forward to. Some other trips we'd like to take. School starting. Family happenings. A camp-out reunion next weekend and more!

I know I'm busy with my other blog - PS Mom Reviews, but I'm going to try to post here a little more. Be sure to check back, so I can share other things going on. How has your summer been? What's been your favorite part?

Recent Happenings

I haven't purposefully abandoned this blog. I am still blogging (all the time) at PS Mom Reviews. And if you really want to keep up with me Twitter and Facebook are the best places for that. Or my other blog also has links to my fan FB page, Pinterest, G+ and more that I do keep up with.

I think I've found it too much to keep up with two blogs. But the hard part is that I don't want to give up this blog. This is where I started. This is like the old house I don't want to sell. It's where my son grew up. It's also where I feel I can share things that I don't want to post on my other blog. So, even though I don't use it much, I still keep it around.

And I still value you, my friends and readers. I may not comment as often on your blogs, but I do visit from time to time to check in on you. And if you're connected with me on Twitter or FB I chat a lot there.

Zachariah is finishing out his kindergarten year now. He has just over 3 weeks left now. I can't believe that he's practically a 1st grader now. He's been through a lot this last year. Most of it pertaining to illness. If you've been around for a while, you know that my son has been a VERY healthy child. Up until Dec 2011 he had never been to the doctor for being sick.

When December hit he started coming home with various things from school. He had an ear infection, then after the first of the year it was tonsilitis or strep throat. And there was another ear infection in there too. Then more strep, more strep, more strep. Every time he came off an antibiotic we were back at the doctor again. It got so bad, I could count how many days until our next doctor appointment.

After this went on for months, they finally decided he'd been seen enough times to see a specialist. We were off to the ENT. They scheduled surgery rather quickly. We were mostly concerned about his tonsils, but learned that his ears were worse than anyone had realized. So he had his tonsils and adnoids removed, as well as tubes put into his ears.

Since the surgery...we have a new child. He's back to his old healthy self. He healed quickly. His follow up ENT appointment revealed that one of the tubes had already come out (the fastest she's ever seen in her 30 year career), but it looked clear so it was good. Now that the tonsils are gone the strep and tonsilitis has stopped too. No we just spend this summer keeping his head out of the water since he still has one tube left.

Zachariah was great through all the illness and surgery. It just got to be too normal. But he's doing so great now. I'm glad to have my happy, healthy guy back.

And now...he's got his first loose tooth. Or as he woul say, finally! I think he's one of the few in his class to still have all his baby teeth. But he just turned 6 in March, so really he's on course. I just think it makes him seem so grown up.

At school the past month has been a bit crazy. Their teacher (who we adore) sent home a note a few months ago explaining that her father had cancer. It looked bad, but he was going to receive treatment. She knew that she would be taking some time off to be with him through some of these things.

She missed a day here and there. A few weeks back she needed to take a whole week off, because her father had suffered major problems from his cancer treatment. Then 1 week became two, then turned into 3. I knew he had to be bad, but there was little communication from her or the school. They were great about reassuring us that the class was being taken care of, learning lots, and adjusting well to the many substitute teachers they've had.

Today we got a note home. Her father passed away from complications from his cancer treatment. So sad! :( I don't know how old he is. I did meet the teacher's mom, and she's probably close in age to my parents (who are in the early 50s). The teacher is my age, so that makes sense. I'm guessing her dad was 50-something. How terrible for her and the family. Her parents were divorced, and I don't know if he was remarried. But it's still terrible for her and her siblings and the rest of their loved ones. I am definitely praying for her.

Through this all Zachariah's class seems to be handling things well. I do feel sorry for them being away from their teacher so much. It would be different if she was taking maternity leave and had prepared for that. But this has been really unexpected. She's been into school a few times to get things organized and ready, so I know that's helped. But I do have to feel bad for these kids too.

The note we received today says that she is expecting to be back in the classroom by next Monday. I'm sure there is a lot to deal with this week. But I'm sure she would like (and probably needs) to finish out this school year with her students. I wish things could have ended differently for her. It's such a sad loss. (And I guess it hits close to home with the age too.)

Not a great note to end the school year on, but I'm sure everything will be OK for the kids. Zachariah understands what happened and seems to be taking it well. If you don't mind, please say a prayer for Mrs. Davis and her family this week.

Forever Family

My cousin and her husband just adopted their foster kids today. When they started this journey about 2 years ago, I'm sure they never saw this path.

My cousin, let's call her Leigh, and her husband knew when they first got married that they didn't want children right away. They wanted to take their time together and in their careers (they are both in church ministry) and see where things went. They said when they were married 5 years, they would discuss children.

Leigh has never been a big "baby person". She's always said that if she could just get her kids at about 3 years old or older, that would be perfect for her. Well, once she and her husband started discussing children (after those 5 years) they talked about having babies, fostering, and possibly adopting. They felt like they had a lot to offer children who didn't have a family.

Well, they ended up pursuing the fostering option. They went through classes and went in with the intention to foster to adopt. They thought they might foster a set of siblings or several kids together. They were set to be open for fostering after a scheduled missions trip.

That missions trip was supposed to be to Haiti. The devastating earthquake hit Haiti about two weeks before Leigh and her husband were supposed to go. Their trip was cancelled. They got a call from the fostering agency. There was a young brother and sister who were adoptable and were looking for their "forever family". They thought Leigh's home would be great for them.

The brother and sister were placed with Leigh. It was a great situation. The kids were 3 and 5 when they came. The transition was tough, especially for the 5 year old girl. She remembered going to the last foster home (which was a great home), and she had memories before that too. The boy really only remembered the past foster home, so this was rough for him to think about getting a new "mommy".

For a year and a half Leigh and her husband worked with these kids. They formed bonds, went through intensive therapy, and always talked about how they would be these cihldren's "forever mom and dad". A few weeks ago the little boy (who has been through a TON of stuff in this time) told Leigh that "it's a good thing he loved Mommy, because she could be his 'forever mom' now". You have no idea what this meant to Leigh. When I heard this I cried. What a break through for this little guy.

These children are so precious. Leigh and her husband are fantastic parents. And today they finalized the adoption of their two children. I am so happy for their little family and I can't wait to see what will happen next. But I know these two kids are the luckiest to have amazing parents like this. And I know Leigh and her husband are very lucky to have these precious children in their lives too!

Questions Answered

Pam asks: Do you want to be the house all the kids come to or not?

I haven't thought about that much. That actually is a tricky question. I like kids. I like talking to and working with kids...on a small scale. I don't mind when other kids come over...if it's for a short time. I guess I just get tired of having them around for too long. That sounds horrible, but it's strangely true. It's sort of the same way I know I would not make a good full-time classroom teacher. I could do tutoring, or specialized teaching or other classes, but I know I don't want to be a full-time classroom teacher. I just don't have it in me.

On the other hand, I'm hoping that this will be easier for my when Zachariah is older. I would love to be the teenage hangout house. I do like to entertain and since teens are better to do that with, I think that might work out. In the house we are in there just aren't any great places for kids to play or run around. We're hoping to be in the position to move in about 5 years. We would really like a place in the country. A basement or other area for hanging out would be fabulous. Then I think it would be great to have Zachariah's friends come and be able to be a big part of their lives like that.


Laura wants to know what my best posts are.

Well, that's hard to do. I've blogged here for almost 5 years now. I know there are some posts that I tell about myself, so here are a few I can think of that might give you a little more insight to who I am.
*Here is an oldie, but goodie with 50 facts about me. (Keep in mind this was written 4 years ago.)- http://mommydaisy.blogspot.com/2007_04_01_archive.html
*Now I'm just being sentimental. This is some cute things about Zachariah when he was my nephew's age, about 1 1/2- http://mommydaisy.blogspot.com/2008/01/my-little-funny-boy.html
*Ooh, bad memories about a friend who stopped talking to me (we talk just a little now, but I haven't seen her in person since before this incident 3 years ago)- http://mommydaisy.blogspot.com/2008/09/break-up.html
*This tells about how Matt & I met- http://mommydaisy.blogspot.com/2008/04/r-is-for-relationship-bonus-letter-day.html
*And this is a great story about how I broke a boy's heart once- http://mommydaisy.blogspot.com/2008/07/heartbreaker.html


Whew, that was really fun looking back over past posts. I had forgotten so many things about when Zachariah was little. I'll have to remember to go back through my archives more often.

2 More Days...and I'm Out of Ideas

Wow, blogging for a whole month is hard. I did OK for the first half, but I've definitely hit a wall. I do have a few things that I'd like to write about and questions that I need to answer, but I need a little more time to sit down and work on those things.

It seems most days I put off writing here until late. Then I don't have as much time to put together the good posts that I really want. Plus when I am in the blogging mood, I'm playing catch up at my review blog. (That blog keeps me pretty busy!)

I am glad that I seem to be getting over my cold. I had much more energy today (even more than a normal Monday). It felt good to get a lot done. I still haven't tackled decorating for Christmas, but I did get all of Zachariah's presents wrapped. I'm pretty much done with gifts for him. The rest should be pretty easy, and I have some already. Now I just have to keep our holiday schedule under control and all will be well.

So before I wrap up my NaBloPoMo posts this week, do you have any more questions for me. I am going to work on a post to answer things tomorrow or Wednesday. And to the rest of you who are still blogging, keep up the great work! We'll finish strong together!

Back to Routine

I have felt all out of sorts this last week or two with our routine. We went away for a weekend. Then Thanksgiving and no school last week made things a bit crazy. I need to get back to our regular routine. I think I'll feel more stable that way. Am I the only one who craves a routine?

Books

What books have you been into lately?

I haven't been reading too much in the last month, but I always have several books sitting around. I'm currently reading A Lawman's Christmas by Linda Lael Miller. It's a quick read, historical romantic fiction.

Some of my favorites that I read in the last few months/year are Water for Elephants and The Great Chicago Fire Trilogy- The Hostage & The Mistress (I haven't gotten to the last yet). I guess I can't think of any others that really stood out to me.

I have been thinking about reading The Hunger Games books. And then I saw the preview for the movie...wow! It looks awesome. I'll definitely have to read the books now. If I'm interested in the movies and want to read the books, I have to read the books first.

What else am I missing out on? What is something good you've read lately? What should I add to my wish list?

Oh, and I'm on goodreads.com if you want to add me.

Hectic

My life has felt very hectic lately. The good news is that I don't feel too stressed about it. It's just been busy, and getting a cold (and feeling so tired today) in the middle of it doesn't help. Also the fact that there is a quickly approaching holiday doesn't help.

Right now I have no desire to decorate my house for Christmas. I can't figure out if it's because I am sick right now or I'm just not in the holiday spirit yet. I'm hoping it will hit at some point. (There was a Christmas, years ago, that I didn't put up our tree. I was not in a festive mood and didn't feel like dealing with it. Hoping I don't get to that this year.) I usually love putting up our tree and decorations. It's fun to have beautiful, festive house.

This week seemed like a big blur of activities. Monday was my usual busyness with Bible study at church and then trying to catch up on laundry, dishes and other chores that get put off over the weekend (especially since we were away last weekend). Tuesday I took Matt's truck to a neighboring town to have new tires put on. While they were working on it, I got a loaner car. I drove to Zachariah's school to help with his class Thanksgiving "feast". We had a great time there. I went back to the car dealership to pick up the truck, then home to get a few quick things done before Zachariah got home. Wednesday, Zachariah didn't have school. We drove to Columbus to pick up our family photographs that were ready. (They turned out so well. Have I posted my favorite here yet?) But we did make good use of our time

Thursday was Thanksgiving, which means running around to various relatives and stuffing ourselves, although it's not as bad as Christmas. We live a little way away from our families, so we end up driving the farthest to participate in family get-togethers. It gets very hectic and a little crazy, but I love it. Being with my family is such an important part of the holidays, I'll do it as long as I can.

Today Matt had to work, so Zachariah and I stayed home. I am not a big Black Friday shopper. I don't like all the crowds. We slept in and were pretty lazy all morning. Zachariah got to play video games for an hour or so, which thrilled him because he hasn't had time lately. After lunch I asked him to clean his room. It was driving me nuts, and with Christmas coming I don't want to deal with putting more toys and things into an already messy room. I couldn't believe that he readily went in and cleaned for about an hour or so with no help or complaining! He cleaned up everything and did what I'd asked. OK, so I did bribe him a bit, but still there is usually at least a little whining. Not today, so the room is clean and I let him spend the rest of the afternoon eating popcorn and candy while watching movies.

While today was a nice little break from all the hectic plans, the rest of the weekend isn't that way. Tomorrow I have to go to church early for a funeral. We lost a precious lady earlier this week, and I am helping with the dinner afterwards. Matt will come to the funeral, but he's heading home after that. The burial is a little ways away, so it might be a while before the dinner starts. Plus the Ohio State vs. Michigan game is tomorrow afternoon. I will miss it, but at least Matt will be able to get home in time to watch it. I know he has some other things to do around the house (like clean the gutters before the snow starts flying), so he'll have plenty going on. And Sunday is always busy with our involvement in church things.

Whew! I'm glad next week won't be quite this busy. Maybe that's why I'm not in the Christmas spirit yet. I think once I have a day or two to get back on a normal schedule around here and catch up on housework and chores, it will help. But we all know there are plenty of activities to keep us all busy between now and Christmas. Fortunately so far most of them are on the weekends (every weekend between now and the end of the year to be exact). Ahh...

Happy Thanksgiving

We have so many things to be thankful. I thought I'd list a few. In no particular order...

1. My family
2. A warm home
3. Health
4. Food & Clean water
5. Nice clothes
6. Friends (like you)

I pray that you enjoy your Thanksgiving with family and friends. Blessings to you all!

A Little Puke to End the Day

Zachariah with Brutus at Cheryl's

Yep, I said that. I just used the word "puke" in a blog title. Ha! What are you going to do about it?

We had a pretty fun day today. We went to Columbus to pick up our prints of our family photos. Wow, they turned out very good. I can't wait to get everything hung up and framed.

While we were out of town, I took advantage of the opportunity to shop at Target and a few other stores we don't have here. And we ate lunch at Chick-fil-a. Then we got some yummy cookies from Cheryl's, and stopped to buy Matt some See's Candies before leaving the mall. (It's probably a good thing I don't live closer to these places that I love!) Sometimes it's fun to have a little spoiling, though.

About an hour after Zachariah went to bed he got up with puke all over himself. Yuck! He had been coughing (stinking colds), and I think he gagged himself. All over him, so he had to re-shower. All over the bed, which I had to change and wash. Ugh. I am just hoping and praying it was because of him gagging and not the flu hitting our house. I don't want to deal with that. Plus we have plans for Thanksgiving. So far, so good, but only time will tell.

I wish you and yours a happy, healthy thanksgiving tomorrow!

Sick Again

Poor Zachariah had another cold this weekend. Fortunately he hasn't been too sick this fall, but enough with the colds already. I think going around to school has exposed him to germs he wasn't before. He seems to pick things up.

The bad part is that this time Matt and I seem to be coming down with colds too. We tried so hard to keep Zachariah's germs contained, but it didn't work. I just pray ours go quickly and neither of us end up too bad. Right now we have too much going on to even worry about it. So we'll do what we can to feel better faster and hope for the best.

Cheesy Potatoes Recipe

Here is a recipe that I got from a friend. I've had similar things many different places, usually for potlucks and such. My friend and her mom make this a lot. She is a vegetarian, so when she goes to a potluck she doesn't always know what she can eat. If she brings something along that she really likes, she knows she can at least fall back on that. But these are so good we have had them for a lot of our get-togethers. I like to make them when we have a lot of people over because it serves so many. And it's very simple! You'll have to give it a try.



Cheesy Potatoes

2 lb. frozen hash brown potatoes, thawed

1 pint sour cream

1 can cream of celery soup

2 c. shredded cheddar cheese

1 stick margarine, melted

1 tsp salt

½ tsp pepper

Combine all ingredients. Pour into a greased 1 ½ qt baking dish (or an 11x13 baking pan). Bake 45-50 min. at 350.