Bit by the Bug

Well Monday's post was delightful but I havent written since because of that lovely flu bug that has been going around. Monday night I came down with the virus having a stomach ache and vomiting throughout Tuesday. I was on a four day NON EATING streak because I was terrified to throw up again. Thanksgiving came around and I stuffed my face with the food that I yearn for all throughout the year...came home and my stomach hated me once again rejecting it. Not fun!

Besides the flu diet, my body has not gained any weight since finding out we are pregnant. I am amazed that the only time I am ever able to lose weight is by having a baby. All my bad weight shifts and turns into healthy baby weight...if only my body & mind can think about being pregnant all the time, it would help me to drop some lbs after the baby! With Jackson, I breastfed for 6 weeks and dropped 30lbs after he was born but immediately gained it back and then some throughout his 22 months of life! Ahh, the ups and downs of the scale is such a fun game...

Since my Thanksgiving wasn't so eventful, I am going to pig out in Disney - if my stomach & baby allow it. We received the Disney dining plan for free with the purchase of our resort stay so we will be eating in style every night. I look forward to everything I consume and hoping my weight shifts when I return home from our 6 day vaca!!  We leave on Sunday and we are beyond ready for this break :)

Jack just got his crocheted Mickey Mouse ears hat in the mail today which made this vacation oh so real!

A Thirty Minute Stroll

This morning was such a gloomy day. Jack and I ventured to Target to stock up on food and supplies for our upcoming Disney trip {6 days away!}. When we returned home, it was great to see that the rain storms had let up and the sun was shining; also it was 50 degrees outside! Before bringing in the purchased goods, we decided to take a "quick" stroll around the block...on foot.

I cannot walk fast as it is with this pregnancy let alone walk hand-in-hand with a toddler who has little legs but we managed. What was so great about this block walk was the level of fascination Jack had with everything. We stopped to gaze at the water trickling down the stream, the newly laid tar in a neighbor's driveway and the falling wet leaves in the streets. I was amazed that Jack held my hand the entire time and didnt have a melt down!

I was texting Brian and snapping pictures along the way to share with him, letting him "walk with us". We took pictures of our shadows, the pine cone Jack said Hi to 13 times, the stick he brought home for Abbie and the muddy wet shoes after we splashed and played in the puddles.

Normally a walk around our block would take merely five minutes, but admiring the little things and taking your time turns into thirty. Probably the best thirty minutes of my day with my son!

Country Springs Waterpark

Yesterday Brian and I took Jack and met up with some of hsi friends and their parents at the Country Springs Waterpark in Pewaukee. I have to say that this place exceeded our expectations in every way. We planned to go on the Sunday where they offer a $10 off voucher with online purchase so it only cost us $15 per person (kids 2 and under are free).

Jack's little friends Landon and Will were there with their parents Kara and Andrew and Erin and Jeremy. It was such a nice time to be able to run around with the boys, splash around in the kiddie area, float down the lazy river and relax. We all even took the boys down the big tube slide where you sit in a boat raft and speed through the tube...Jack was scared/thrilled and after the ride he kept saying "more". The day brought us a ton of laughs.

We were at the waterpark for about three hours and we could tell Jack was getting tired. He managed to stay up on the ride home but immediately when we got in the house, he looked like he was ready for bed. I asked him if he wanted to go to sleep and he grabbed my finger and lead me to his room by his crib, it was too precious! These boys are just getting so big so fast but we are all enjoying the new adventures that come our way and are looking forward to all the new things to try out in the future.

Closed for 2010

I'm taking a break from it all!! I am excited to say that I am taking the rest of the year off from making baby blankets. Today I am officially on vacation. Well, once I catch up on my holiday blanket orders then I will actually be enjoying my free time. I decided to close up the baby Jack blankets shoppe starting today for the rest of 2010 to catch up on the holiday rush of orders, enjoy the Thanksgiving weekend and not worry about work while on our Disney World vacation. I allowed myself enough time 4-5 weeks to process and complete holiday orders and not stress out about it.

This year has blessed our business in so many ways, we are beyond happy with the success of it all. Being able to continue to create these blankets and allow me to stay home with Jack gives me an enormous amount of gratitude, especially for all those that make it possible - my husband, my mother-in-law, my customers and facebook fans (which reached over 1,300!). I can only hope that 2011 will continue to bring more great things for baby Jack blankets.

What will I do for the rest of 2010? Well, the holidays will consume most of my time (as well as Jack!) but I really want to catch up on scrapbooking Jack's first 2 years before the next child comes along. Nancy and I found a great scrapbook store right down the road (next to Walmart on hwy 100) and we are going to be visiting it often. Along with scrapbooking, we will be creating a fourth bedroom in our basement which will open up the nursery to be completed...projects, projects and more projects. The great thing about these projects is that the baby comes in May so we can take our time as we all know that life gets in the way of plans.

Leveling out

Today's prediction: GIRL. I don't remember my hormones to be this out of control with Jack...my prediction is solely based on the amount of crying and  up & down emotions that have taken over my body for the past two weeks. I feel so out of whack and short-tempered lately that it's got me even more emotional; a terrible cycle I tell ya.

The thing that has been getting me through this stage of the pregnancy is a lot of R&R. My body is telling me that I need to relax and rest as much as possible so I have been listening to it. Also, it doesnt hurt that my husband is SO supportive and keeps reminding me that this little being in my belly is turning my body into a ball of uneven hormones and that I am NOT crazy. He is and always will be my rock.

Healthy mind, healthy body is my belief. I have been reading, writing and taking time away from doing any work to keep me centered and stress-free. Last night as I lay in bed with Brian I explained to him all the thoughts that have been consuming my brain and giving me anxiety; projects galore, traveling with Jack, holidays, getting behind on orders, taking care of Jack along with myself and the baby and many more. He took on some of the worry for me and allowed me to get some sleep.

I woke up refreshed today - it helps with Jack sleeping until 6:30AM lately; as Brian always says when I call him in the morning "You two have it made" {this is coming from someone who wakes up M-F at 4:40AM, puts in a good workout at the gym and then gets to work by 6:45}  I love my sleep and will never take it for granted!

So for now, I am weathering the oh-so-worth-it storm knowing that my emotions are getting the best of me due to the pregnancy. No matter what I do, I am a great mom, wife, friend, sister and daughter and my amazing support system reminds me of this every day.  I am blessed.

I could never be a hoarder...

I feel like I am nesting or something already; maybe it coincides with the 2nd trimester and having more energy but lately I have wanted to organize everything possible in our house. We are starting to build a fourth bedroom in our basement for guests to stay since the baby is taking the current guest bedroom. This fourth bedroom will be removing A LOT of storage space which means we have to be smart about what we are keeping and donate/sell/toss the rest.

We've been slowly working on cleaning items throughout or home, starting with the garage. It's all a pyramid effect in my mind; when the shed is up the garden/lawn items can be moved to there, once the garage is clean, there will be room for tools and more storage, which we can then create the fourth bedroom and move the furniture down there and then start the babies room! My mind never stops with projects whether it's a closet to clean, updating the color scheme of a bedroom or kitchen or just rearranging furniture in our house. I love change; I like a refresh every once in a while and I am unaware if this is normal.

I could never imagine myself being one of those hoarders on television. We threw out so much stuff, donated a plenty and are selling a bunch online. Stuff collects here and my motto is that if we havent missed it in the four years we've been in this house, then ADIOS. We had so many boxes of items outside by the curb for the garbage to collect that people were actually stopping and rummaging through them. I was shocked that people wanted this stuff, but one man's trash is another man's treasure.

Quitting Cold Turkey

The holidays are near, a time for spending it with family and close friends. It's a time where every day is jam packed with plans and we are pulled in every direction possible. This holiday is going to be different...we are learning to decline invites to parties and stay put. We are quitting cold turkey on making too many plans and trying to simplify things a little bit in order to spend more time with those that we love.

Thanksgiving is approaching us next week! I cannot believe how fast this year has flown by.  I am excited to say that this is the very first year {since my parents divorce} that we are starting holiday traditions. Since I havent spent Thanksgiving with my mom in over four years, we have decided to eat by her this year and stop by my dad's house for dessert in the evening. It's the first in five years that we will not be spending it with Brian's family but next year we are planning on going up north {Long Lake} for the entire holiday weekend! As an added bonus to our Thanksgiving holiday, we will be leaving on Sunday November 28th on our first family Disney trip with Brian's parents and staying for the week in Orlando at the Disney Caribbean Beach Resort. Our family has visited Walt Disney World several times and never have I experienced the park during the holiday season...it's going be a trip to remember seeing the Magic Kingdom decorated for Christmas.

It's been extremely important to me to get back to traditions, or to start new family traditions of our own. One thing that is changing this year is our Christmas plans. It has gotten more and more difficult with kids to travel to several houses during the Christmas holiday. We have decided to limit our visits to Christmas Eve with my side {mom's in the AM, dad's in the PM}, spend Christmas morning at our home with our own kids and travel to Sun Priarie to spend the entire late morning and afternoon with Brian's family. With a toddler and another baby on the way, 2010 is the start to simplifying our lives and making the most of it for our immediate family before the hectic plans of 2011 begin in January!

The year 2011 is going to be a crazy one. We have baby showers, bridal showers, births, baptisms, weddings and more to celebrate! Starting at the end of January, my brother and his girlfriend Kim are having their baby shower. They are expecting a little girl on March 24th and I am beyond excited to be a first time Aunt. Of course in February Jackson turns 2 already! I've already started to plan a 2 year olds birthday party inviting his group of friends and his two cousins & their families. Last year we made a big spectacle of his first birthday and this year it's going to stay simple....close family, friends and all at a neutral location with enough room for kids to run around. March leads to more birthdays, births and showers...only to have April near and our due date! We are officially due May 7th but will most likely have a scheduled cesearan 1-2 weeks prior.

There I go again, planning for more plans. I am going to quit while I can and simplify my day by playing with Jack, taking a nap and enjoying all these quick passing moments before they are gone.

A fresh start

I would just like to say that it's great to be back...to writing that is. I haven't been able to keep up with writing, I kindof gave up on my baby Jack blankets blog for the time being. I really wanted to keep that blog business related and create a site that is personal and for family updates; kindof like a daily Christmas letter :)  Many people really enjoyed reading about Jack and his daily adventures but since I have been pregnant with baby #2, blogging seems like a distant passion. My {early} New Years Resolution is to get back at it since it has been so theraputic for me.

Things are changing; rapidly. I cannot believe that it is mid November already and cannot understand where this year has gone. They say that time flies when children are young but that is an understatement! Just yesterday I went through baby clothes of Jack's to attempt to purge and make room for a fourth bedroom build in our basement and I got so sentimental. Seeing his newborn attire, items he was brought home from the hospital just got me all choked up. He's growing so fast and is already 21 months! Every day he is learning new words and is continuing to make us laugh - and proud.  He's a comedian at heart but a very loving little boy who kisses mommy's belly {baby} on a daily basis.

We are already on week 15 of our pregnant {25 to go!} and find out the sex of the baby on December 16th. Many predict that it is a girl since this pregnancy has been far different from with Jack; I have no clue.  My hunch is a girl but every pregnancy is {and should be} different; just as unique as the little personality that emerges from you. All I know is that I am grateful to no longer have morning sickness and that all the side effects of the first trimester have subsided. No matter what it is that is growing inside me, we know for sure that it will be born into a world with endless love and possibilities.

Having two kids changes a lot. It changes your perspective on parenting and also your nerves. You've done it once before and learned a million lessons and are ready to take on this second challenge. Don't get me wrong, there are PLENTY of things that terrify me with #2...like my nap schedule. lol  Every day I am able -and take advantage - of taking a nap when Jack does. Once we have another little one in the house, schedules change and you have to re-adapt. I love schedules and predictability and the unknown is what still scares me about having more kids. The good outweighs the bad and you make it work no matter what; you learn that your body adjusts to 3 hours of sleep and that a 10 min nap recharges you for four more hours. You learn to have so much respect for yourself and for those people that have multiples!

Next week is Thanksgiving, one of my favorite holidays and I cannot wait to express my gratitude and thanks for so many things this year. Soon will be Christmas, a time to be spent with family and then the New Year, a fresh start to so many things. Reflecting on the year 2010 so far, I wouldnt change a thing besides slowing down and cherishing the time that continues to fly by.