So, today has been a LONG day; a good day, but just tiring. After Cale woke up, we ate breakfast, got dressed, and then went to the park. Actually, we stopped by the bank to take daddy something he accidentally left, and then went to the park. Thankfully the weather has been a little cooler the past few days so the park was pretty enjoyable.

Now, a little side information. I had to take Cale to the doctor yesterday because he's been battling diarrhea for close to a month. So, since it's been such a long bout, they want to do some tests. Sound good? I thought so at first. I thought, "Good, maybe we can finally figure out what's causing this and get him back to normal. And I won't have to keep going through such an unbelievable amount of diapers." I do still think that, but the process just isn't too pleasant. These tests involve Cale, myself, and five tubes with little scraper shovels on the end of each lid. FIVE tubes. Yes, I've been having to collect...samples (shutter). And if you remember what I said Cale is suffering from, you probably realize that this is not the easiest thing to collect a sample of. It's near impossible. TMI, I know. Let's just say this is one of the most unpleasant experiences I've had as a mother. But, praise the Lord I've only got one more tube to fill! Woo hoo! Thank goodness I love Cale because I can't imagine doing this for another child. The whole point of that story is to say that Cale produced quite a nice sample at the park, wouldn't you know. So, being prepared with the tube (because I knew my usual luck with these sort of things), I did what I had to do. I just wonder what the car that pulled up next to me thought when they saw me bent over, scraping my son's diaper. I can only imagine. Weirdo.

Afterwards, we stopped in the beauty shop so that Cale could see his Mamaw. When we left, we took Cale's cousin Shelby home with us. Cale loves to play with her so he was pretty excited. Shelby stayed until about 2:00, then to Cale's disappointment went home. After dinner, we decided to take the boat out for a quick ride. Cale's only been out one time before, but he loved every minute of it. This time was no different. While the boat is moving is one of the only times that we get to enjoy Cale being "still". He just lays back in my lap and lets me love on him. That doesn't happen very often so I savor those moments.

After the boat ride, we finished the night off with Blizzards at Dairy Queen. The perfect end to a great evening.

A hungry, tired pregnant woman does not a happy home make!

My poor husband has been having to put up with a lot of...er...grumpiness lately. That's probably putting it mildly. I try to explain to him (almost daily) that he has no idea what I'm feeling, but I pretty sure he just hears the equivalent of Charlie Brown's teacher "wah, wah, wah...". He's getting used to my daily two-hour naps (I'm so ashamed to admit that, because I've never been a napper and usually get a lot accomplished while Cale naps. I don't think I napped even once when I was pregnant with Cale) but lately I just crash.

This afternoon, we had a neighborhood meeting with the other homeowners of Stonegate. We took Cale, which we knew was a mistake but...guess we're gluttons for punishment like that. Two hours later I was so worn out from chasing Cale all around that house, up the stairs, down the stairs, up the stairs, down the stairs, you get the picture. He never stopped except for about 15 minutes, when a train set captured his attention. The rest of the time, he was on the move and I was a nervous wreck. For some reason, he kept going into the people's master bedroom (people who we've only met once) and climbing up onto their bed and sprawling out like he owned the place. It was embarassing because everytime I took him off, he just kept going back! Also, he kept walking around with his hand down his pants...which is his new thing lately. I guess it's a boy thing.

I was so starving by the time we left the get-together. There was food, but I didn't eat any because Carl told me that I wasn't suppossed to bring anything...so I didn't. Then, I get there and everyone else had brought food. So, I was a little embarrassed to eat. When we left we headed, more like sped, down the mountain for good 'ole, "healthy", fast food. When we pulled into Arby's, I realized I had left my purse. And of course, Carl didn't have his cards. And of course, they wouldn't take checks. I felt my heart shatter and my stomach ache. Let me tell you, my emotional, hungry self just about started crying at this point. Carl was like, "What is wrong?" On the verge of tears I said, "I'm not going to get dinner!". Yeah, that's what being pregnant is like. Food, or lack thereof, is grounds for an emotional meltdown. Carl told me I was acting bipolar, but he just doesn't get it! So, we made the trip back up the mountain to get my purse and then I volunteered to go back down by myself to get the food. No, not because I'm just nice like that, but I knew I could eat in the car as soon as I got the food instead of having to wait until Carl got home with it. I thought I was dying by the time I got to Arby's. The 5-minute wait felt like an eternity. When the girl handed me the bag, she warned me that the fries were hot...but I didn't care. I think I had half the box scarfed down by the time I pulled out. Of course, by the time I got home, my food was gone and I was wishing I had another sandwich. I debated swiping some of Carl's food, but I knew he'd notice. But hey, at least I felt better. A full belly made me feel like a new woman. Well, at least for an hour or two until the next episode!

So tonight, we had the best dinner we've had in a long, long time. And I'm not talking about the food, although it was good. We ate at the fairly new Italian place in town, Joe's Pasta. We always put careful thought into our choice of eatery these days. While taste of food and cravings used to be on the top of the list, they have now fallen down a few notches behind characteristic such as, fast service and loud atmosphere. Ahhh, the joys of having a baby. So, we're always hesitant to take Cale to Italian places because they tend to be dark, quiet, and not too kid friendly. We tend to eat a lot of Mexican. To tell you the truth, Joe's was no different than your average quiet Italian place, but we decided to bravely try it at our own risk. (It helped that there were only 2 cars in the parking lot!) To our amazement, Cale was on his best behavior. It helped that mama came prepared with a little extra ammunition this time. I learned some tips from a friend. Cale's baby bag was full of pizza rolls, cinnamon toast crunch, toys, suckers, and, the lifesaver for the evening, fruit snacks (thanks Megon, such a great idea)! (All of which are unhealthy choices for a baby, I know, but you do what ya gotta do, especially when it comes to avoiding fits in public!) We got to enjoy the entire dinner with Cale in his high chair, which hasn't happened for a few months now. It was so nice!

After dinner, we headed over to the Visitor's Center to let Cale look at the fish and turtles. Of course, typical boy, he loved every minute of it. Afterwards, we walked over to the park, because these days anytime you ask Cale where we're going, his response is always "park". So, let's just say we go a lot. Walking seemed like a good idea on the way. But, by the time we were finished, we were so hot and sweaty that the walk back wasn't too fun. We saw one of my second graders (I guess third graders now, sniff sniff) while we were there. I love seeing my students outside of school. You don't realize you miss them until you see one of them! On the walk back, Cale tried to chase some geese, which actually let him get a little too close for my comfort. I thought they must be pretty friendly and tame, until I heard the loud hissing directed towards my too-curious-for-his-own-good son. Who knew I could scoop Cale up so quickly!

Now we're home. Bath has been given, books have been read, and our little guy is off to sleep. So Mom and dad are going to sit around and watch a movie and eat some popcorn. Just another typical Friday night.

Now comes the waiting game...

So, today was the big day. We officially found out we are pregnant again! We've unofficially (I say unofficially because even after 3 pregnancy tests and lots of symptoms, I still second guessed myself) known for about a month. We had planned to start trying this summer, in hopes of having a spring baby. But, I think there's no use in trying to plan things like this because plans always change. About a month ago, I decided to take a pregnancy test, not thinking I could possibly be pregnant at all because we hadn't even started "trying". But, it had been several months since my last period (which is fairly normal for an irregular person like myself) and I had started noticing a change in my stomach. Now, I had been working out fairly often and my eating habits hadn't changed so I was a little suspicious. My jaw dropped when I saw the plus. I think I was way more surpised this time than with Cale. I think Carl was more surpised than I was. So having no idea when we got pregnant, we were excited for our first appointment so that we could see how far along we were. But, of course the first available appointment was a month away.

So, we spent the last month wondering. To tell you the truth, I thought I was 12+ weeks along because it had been so long since my period. Also, I haven't been able to wear my wedding ring since March because all of the sudden it started giving me a bad rash that itches and swells. After making Carl promise he didn't get it out of a Cracker Jack box, I decided to just go without wearing it for awhile. After we found out we were pregnant, I started thinking maybe that had something to do with my rash. I looked it up online and sure enough lots of pregnant women have the same problem. Also, I had lots of weird arm and leg rashes last pregnancy. Once again we thought we must have been pregnant since March.

Lastly, my stomach is already getting bigger and I've already gained 4 pounds (I don't really know when the weight gain started, but I'm 4 pounds heavier than my normal weight) I mean, when I'm in a tight shirt, I actually look a little pregnant. I can barely button my pants and am thinking about making Carl go up into the attic (because that's what husbands are for) and get my belly bands out. So, once again, I was just sure I was at least 12 weeks along, probably more.

Well, I was shocked today to find out that I'm 7 weeks. Excited, but shocked! 7 weeks! That means I was like 3 weeks when I found out, which seems really early. And what the heck is up with my stomach? If my pants are barely fitting at 7 weeks, I can only imagine what I'll look like when I'm 9 months along.

I have to say, so far this pregnancy has been much harder than my first. I've been very nauseated and more tired than I ever imagined I could feel. I've been napping every day which is something I never do. I really mean never. When Cale's asleep I can barely make myself get up off the couch. It's really bad and all I can say is I'm so thankful I'm a teacher and have this time off. And the hunger. Oh the hunger. The past few weeks, I'm so ridiculously hungry that it's painful. I eat and eat (I know, I know...you're thinking, "Well that's why your pants won't fit!" But, I'm telling you, it's like a life or death situation when I feel hungry right now) and within an hour I'm hungry...no starving...no, so hungry I feel like I haven't eaten in a day! I'm actually not being sarcastic. I didn't know I could feel this starving, this often. I will actually be very glad when that symptom goes away...if it goes away. And if it doesn't, well let's just say I will be big!

All the whining aside, we are very excited to be pregnant again. Excited and nervous about having two kids. How do you take care of two? How do you give them attention and love equally? How do you rest when you have two? How do you go to dinner? (you probably don't very often?) But, I'm sure it all works out. Boy or girl, we really don't have much preference. Either one would be awesome!

Poop and Run

Well, I'm sure I should be working like crazy and accomplishing all the many chores that are weighing on my mind (since Cale is finally down for a nap), but as you can see, I'm not! Tomorrow is my day for the babysitter so I think I'll wait and do my cleaning then. What's one more day, right? Wow, I'm becoming a little more relaxed about my house since summer break began. Don't know what's wrong with me! I think I'm just getting tired of cleaning and Cale messing, cleaning more, and Cale messing more, you get the picture. I could spend my life trying to keep a perfect house, and it still wouldn't be. And I'm gradually becoming okay with that!

We just got back from Branson yesterday afternoon. We stayed 5 nights with my family and had a lot of fun. Cale especially loved playing with his two older nieces. But, he was pretty fussy during the trip. He had just started showing signs of a virus the morning we left (fussy, not interested in eating, and messy diapers). It seems like he has bad luck when it comes to trips. When we got to our condo, we quickly realized that there was an upstairs and we even more quickly reazlied that Cale was going to spend the entire time climbing them. The stairs were pretty steep and Cale was too short to hold onto the rail. Going up was no problem, it was the going down that about gave me a heart attack. We tried to teach him how to scoot down, but he decided he didn't have time for all of that. So, after a few falls, and many tears later, mom and dad went to Wal-Mart and got a baby gate. Thankfully I was able to relax the rest of the trip. That is, when Cale wasn't standing at the foot of the stairs crying at the gate, begging to go up!

So, one of my most embarrassing mom moments happened on this trip. The condo had a nice, big pool and Cale loved splashing around in it. They also had a zero entry baby pool with fountains that was Cale's favorite because he was able to run free without the constraints of "mom and dad". On about day 3, we took Cale to the pool once again. He wasn't really acting like himself. He wasn't "swimming" in the baby pool or getting under the fountains, he was just kinda standing there. I thought he was just tired with naptime being pushed back and his sleeping all out of whack. Then, suddenly I saw it. It was orangish brown and floating in the pool. It took me about 2 seconds to realize that it was coming from Cale. Yes, he'd pooped in his little swimmers and into the pool. Not to get too graphic, but it wasn't exactly the kind you can just scoop out. So, horrified, I pointed out the mess to my husband, and I think we were out of that pool and back to our car in about 30 seconds. Now, I know that may have been the wrong thing to do, fleeing the scene of the "accident", but I panicked. Needless to say, we didn't make any more trips back to the pool. Partly for fear of a repeat offense, but even more for fear of someone recognizing us as the "poopetrators" from the other day.

We had lots of fun but we were also very glad to be back home where things can be somewhat back to normal. As normal as things can be with an almost 18-month old.

Summer Vacation...Oh, How I've Longed For You

This week is my first official week of summer vacation. It's still a little hard to believe that I don't have to go to work, (well staying home with Cale is almost more work than my actual "job") until August. I've been enjoying the extra time with Cale so far...we've already made many trips to the park (every.single.day, actually) and we've spent hours playing in the dirt outside our house. Yes, I'll be very glad when all of the sod is completely laid and maybe Cale won't have so many mudholes to explore, dissect, and yes, even taste. Everytime we play outside Cale has to have a bath afterwards, so it's a little bit of a hastle! But, thanks to my dad, my bro-in-law, and Carl we now have an almost finished yard full of grass!

Cale and I have gone to VBS at our church the past 2 mornings which has been fun. Cale's been in the toddler room and I've been working in the craft room. VBS lasts from 9:30-12:00, so Cale has to make it until then before a nap. We've been experimenting with the one-nap thing. I say experimenting because it's been a bit of a struggle. I thought I would just let him keep taking 2 naps, even though the second one is usually a huge battle that sometimes (okay, oftentimes) ends up with Cale as the victor. But, lately the problem is that he's not ready for his 2nd nap until about 5:00, which is too late and just not practical for a naptime. So, I've toyed with the idea of one. The problem with one nap (there seems to be a problem with everything) is that Cale wakes up at about 6:30 most mornings and it's extremely hard for him to make it until noon without sleep. So, we're struggling but hopefully will get a pattern down. I don't think being a parent ever really gets any easier, the struggles just change and look a little different with each phase of a child's life.

We are going to Branson this week with my family. We're excited but also a little disappointed because we were planning to go to Florida *sigh*, but the oil...blah, blah, blah...you know the rest. At least Branson is a much shorter drive and we're very glad to not have to endure the 12-hour screaming, jump-through-hoops-just-to-make-him-stop-crying-even-if-it-involves-way-too-much-chocolate-coke-tickling-cartoon watching-food-in-general-mommy-acting-like-a-fool-and-climbing-to-the-backseat-making-way-too-many-stops-for-relief, torture with Cale. We're excited to get away for a few days and have some fun with the family! I just hope Cale feels good and I wish these stinkin' teeth would just come through already! They've made their presence known for months but just won't come out of hiding. Cowards. My finger has been painfully bitten many times because of those swollen knots. Yes, I'm angry at teeth. I'm ranting and raving about teeth. It seems strange, but it is what it is! I've also been angry at ears many times since I've had a child!