Friday, October 16, 2009

Busy, Busy, Busy

Oh how time flies when you're insanely busy!! :o) I'm thoroughly enjoying life right now! Alena and Tirus are doing really well in school. They both love going and are learning a lot! I actually wouldn't be surprised if Tirus is reading by the end of preschool. He's constantly pointing to words and asking what they say and he'll even try to sound words out that he sees around the house. Alena is already starting to read chapter books! She really enjoys the Junie B. Jones series. I may have to get her some of her own for Christmas or something. Hmm...

Anthony and I are doing really well. I sure do love that man! :o) He's an angel for putting up with my inability to keep up with the housework as of late! I've just been so stinkin tired lately and I've been finding it impossible to keep up with everything! Between swim lessons, BSF, Awanas, driving 2 kids to and from school at different times and to different locations...I just can't seem to find enough time to fit in all the household duties that I was so good at keeping up on just a few short months ago. I don't know if I blame the busy schedule or the little peanut in my tummy that's making me more tired than I thought possible. Either way, I really appreciate having a husband that never complains about coming home to a messy house or not always having dinner on the table when he gets home after working all day. He knows I'm trying my best and all he asks is that he gets to come home to a happy wife and kids...and with prego hormones raging I can't even promise that one! Poor guy...it's a miracle that marriages can withstand the rocky road of pregnancy!! :o) Thank you, God, for my amazing husband!!

Our newest member of our family, little baby Jack Ryan, is doing really good. I definitely find myself much more paranoid about his well being than I was with my other two pregnancies. Every day that he's not as active as I'd like him to be I get rather worried and imagine the worst but I'm finding it a wonderful opportunity to work on trusting God. He already knows how long I will carry Jack in my tummy. He already knows the number of days there will be in Jack's life. My worrying about it won't change it one iota...all it will do is cause me to stop trusting God and it could even have a negative effect on my little baby...stress is never a good thing in pregnancy - or ever, for that matter! So, to sum it all up...I'm learning every day to trust God with the health and development of my son, Jack.

I caved in yesterday and finally went and got a flu shot. It's funny...I can handle the pain of natural childbirth like a champ but don't you dare give me a flu shot and expect me not to whine like a little baby because my shoulder hurts!! :o) It STILL hurts too!! When will it end?!?!??! :o) But seriously, the shot itself didn't hurt at all but 36 hours later, my shoulder still feels like it got hit with a hammer! Lame...

Well, I'd better get going. I've got my nephews over for a sleepover and their movie just got over. Time for the chaos to resume... :o)

Wednesday, September 9, 2009

The poor kid finally has a name...

So, after 2 weeks of knowing that we're expecting our 2nd son, Anthony and I have finally agreed on a name for the poor little guy! :o) His name is Jack Ryan Bader. :o) How cute is that?!?!!? I may be a little biased but I sure do love that name!! :o) Last week I found out that another very special thing behind the name Jack Ryan is that that is the name that my brother-in-law, Ryan and his wife, Jody were going to name their 1st son. They were never able to have children but since our kids are their kids...I figure it's only fitting that one of our kids gets the name they picked out. :o) Don't worry, I asked both of them numerous times if they were okay with us using their name and they both answered with a resounding "YES!" So, there you have it...our family will consist of Anthony, Laura, Alena, Tirus and Jack. Sounds pretty good to me!! :o)

Tonight was Alena and Tirus's first class at Awanas. Awanas is a Bible Study club thingy for kids ages 3 to ... honestly I'm not sure how old it goes up to. :o) Anyways, I'm SO glad I got my kids into it. I was a little nervous dropping them off tonight just because it was at a different church than we attend on weekends and they wouldn't know many people. I was especially concerned about Tirus so I went into his class with him for a little while. Within about 10 minutes I could tell he was warming up and I felt like it was time for me to leave. Well, when I came back to pick them up afterwards, I walked into Tirus's class without him knowing it and just watched him. He was kind of walking around aimlessly...watching what people were doing but he wasn't interacting with anyone so again I got nervous that maybe he didn't like it. I finally called out his name and he walked over to me with a sad look on his face and I could tell he was pretty upset about something. I was thinking, "Oh great...how many weeks am I going to have to fight him to come to Awanas?" He walked over to me, looking like he was on the verge of tears and said, "I don't WANT to do this!" I said, "You don't want to do what Buddy?" I thought for sure he'd start going on and on about how he was never going to come back to that class again but instead he said, "I don't WANT to go home!" I couldn't help but laugh a little as I pulled him into a big hug and said, "But, Buddy, that's a good thing! I'm glad you don't want to leave cuz that means you had SO much fun!" A few of his teachers could tell he was upset and came over to see if he was okay and when I informed them why he was upset they about melted at his feet. :o) He cried most of the way home saying that he wants his teachers and he wants to stay at Awanas. :o) I think that shows the first week was a success! :o) What do you think? Alena, of course, had a ton of fun...once we got there I was quickly reminded that 2 of her friends from Kindergarten are also in Awanas so she immediately joined them and I knew she'd be okay. And, of course, she was. She went on and on while we drove home, telling me all about what she got to do in her class and saying how excited she was that she'd get to go again next Wednesday. :o) I'm SO thankful that both of my kids are as excited about this new program as I am. They'll have weekly memory verses that they're required to have memorized and they'll even have a little bit of homework in their little workbooks that will help cement the Truths they're learning in class into their little hearts and heads. Please pray that this program would help me in helping them grow in their own personal relationships with Christ!!

Alena has now completed 2 whole days of all day school and she couldn't be more excited about it! :o) She's in school from 9:10am til 3:20pm and it seems like an eternity for me! It's not even really that I miss her...I mean, I can go that long without seeing her especially when I know she's in good hands. I'm just so used to how school was last year when she got out at 11:50am that by about 11:30am I'm already feeling like I'm late in leaving to pick her up. :o) On her first day of school I asked her what her favorite part of 1st grade was so far and I thought for sure she'd say either lunch or recess...that's what every kid says! :o) She, however, quickly answered that her favorite part was reading! She's such a good kid! I guess her whole class read her favorite little story from Kindergarten and I think she appreciated the familiarity of it. Today when I asked her what her favorite part of school was her answer was a little more predictable. :o) She said her favorite part today was seeing Henry, one of her best friends who happens to be in the OTHER 1st grade class. She was very excited to learn that she'd get to see him at lunch AND at all 3 recesses!! :o) That's like hitting the jackpot in her world! :o)

Well, this has become quite the novel! What can I say, this has been an eventful week at the Bader household! And the fun has only just begun! :o) Tomorrow we get to go in for yet another ultrasound so they can get some better pictures of Jack's spine. I sure don't mind...I'm super excited to see him again!! I'm hoping to have them check just one more time to make sure we're really having a "Jack" and not an "Olivia" or something. :o) Also, I'm hoping we get a nice technician who will print out a few more copies of profile pictures that I can give to Alena and Tirus since their mother is much to selfish to share her copies. ;o)

Until next time....God bless and peace out!! :o)

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

8 happy years...

Well, they haven't all been happy, of course, but today is mine and Anthony's 8 year anniversary. I couldn't be more thankful for the amazing husband God has given me. I'm more in love with him now than the day I married him and that's impressive cuz I was completely head over heels for the guy! :o) Keep in mind though I was only 20...can't believe they let people get married that young!! Anthony and I have been VERY fortunate that as we've each changed as we've gotten older we've actually become MORE compatible with each other. I think that's a pretty rare thing. He's become better at communicating and I've become better and letting the little stuff go. Earlier this year, Anthony made an observation that I'm so glad is true. He said, "We've gotten to a point where we've just accepted each other for who are." It's just so true! I used to always get mad at Anthony for getting home an hour or 2 late. I felt it was righteous anger! Even if it was, it didn't help our marriage one bit. So, now, when Anthony tells me he'll be home at, say, 7pm I just automatically add at least 1 hour to that and figure I won't be seeing him until 8pm. Try it sometime on that "constantly late person" in your life...I gaurentee it'll improve your relationship with them! The other thing I used to always get so mad about is that he's the messy one in our relationship. Now I just pick up the mess or ask him to do it without taking it personal. I think a big key to success is keeping in mind that he doesn't do anything of those annoying things simply to make me mad or hurt me or anything like that. Like Anthony said, it's just who he is and I've come to accept it. When you get married they always tell you not to go into it thinking you're going to change the other person but I think that's exactly what most people do...I think most of us go into most of our relationships thinking, "I'll just smooth out your rough spots and THEN we can be best friends." Makes me wonder what rough spots I have that people are hoping to smooth out...hmm...

I've started feeling little Mr. Baby moving more and more lately and it's such an amazing feeling!! That's definitely my favorite part of pregnancy! I've actually been really enjoying the little movements that only I can feel because it's like my little secret with the baby...nobody else knows...just the two of us. :o) I am looking forward, though, to when Anthony can feel the baby kick and I'm SUPER excited about when Alena and Tirus get to feel some movement. It's cute, they both like to touch my tummy all the time and they'll get all excited and say, "I felt the baby move!!" and I have to say, "Yeah, no ya didn't...sorry. You'll feel it soon enough though!" I'm kind of assuming that if I didn't feel it, neither did they. :o) They're both still SO excited about their new little brother. Alena tells everyone she possibly can that she's getting another little brother...the bank teller, the grocery store cashier...pretty much everyone. :o) Tirus doesn't talk about it as much but he constantly talks to my tummy, saying hi and goodbye to the baby...good morning and good night too...it's SO cute. He kisses my tummy all the time too. :o) I can't wait for the moment that they get to first meet their little brother. I could see Alena have "happy tears" and Tirus starting out a little shy but giving him a little kiss on the forehead or something. *sigh* I can't wait...

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

150 and going strong

So, I had an OB appt today and everything is looking really good! Doctor Nathan said other than needing better pictures of the baby's spine that everything on my ultrasound looked great (I'm going back in on Sept 10th to get another ultrasound done in order to get better pics of his spine). I was, of course, very relieved to hear that!! I can't believe that on this Sunday I'll be 20 weeks...half way through my pregnancy already!!! Usually when someone else is pregnant time just flies by but when it's me that's pregnant time seems to stop altogether. However, this time, time is flying by like crazy! I'm sure it's cuz Alena, Tirus and I have been pretty busy this summer so I haven't had much time to just sit and daydream about little Mr Baby.

Monday, August 31, 2009

Great Way to Start the Last Week of Summer Break!

My kiddos had a dentist appt this morning and they did a wonderful job of sitting still and letting the dentist do a thorough cleaning on their little pearly whites. Unfortunately I have to take Alena back there on Wednesday to get a filling. :o( For some reason this doesn't make her completely freak out...she's even had a few fillings done before (sadly) but she still looks forward to going to the dentist. Weirdo...

After the excessively long dentist appt (it took about an hour and 20 minutes), we picked up some lunch at Arby's (YUM!!) and met up with my mom, my brother Danny, his wife Dawn and their 4 boys Austin, Caleb, Jacob and Micah and we all caravaned down to the Woodland Park Zoo. It was the perfect day to go to the zoo because the weather was amazing and because all the animals were out and about and very interactive! The kids AND adults all had a blast! My favorite part was watching the gorillas. There was a baby one that kept antagonizing one of the grown up ones until the grown up finally had had enough and swiped at the baby a few times! Then the baby quickly ran to it's mama and sat in her lap of safety! :o) It was the cutest thing I've ever seen at the zoo!

Well, my family is watching a movie together on the couch and I'm feeling a little left out so I'd better get over there and get some snuggling in. :o) I hope you're enjoying the gorgeous weather God has blessed us with this week as much as I am!!!

Sunday, August 30, 2009

I'm back!

Wow, how time flies! I didn't mean to wait so long between posts but life has been a whirlwind this last week!

First I'll give details about the ultrasound I had last week. So, of course it's a boy and everything looked good I think. Of course the tech can't really give much info - good or bad - but I saw 2 arms and hands, 2 legs and feet, a brain and a 4 chambered heart. I have an appt this Tuesday with my OB to find out exactly what the results are from the ultrasound...but I'm not worried. A couple of things the tech did mention were that he's measuring about a week ahead at about 10 oz but when I told her my other babies were over 9 lbs at birth she said, "Oh, I guess he's right on pace then!" Also, she mentioned that he was an awfully active baby. :o) However, he wouldn't move quite enough so that she could get some good pictures of his spine so I have to ... or get to ... go back in on Sept 10 to try to get better pictures of his spine. We got some pretty cute pictures...he even looks like he's smiling in a couple of his profile shots because his mouth is open a little. :o) Way cute! Oh, and one other picture is a straight on shot of his face - which are always a little creepy because of the way the eyes look - with his little hand up by his face and in the ultrasound he completely looked like he was waving to us! His little hand was moving back and forth...it was super cute! :o)

Another fun thing we did this last week is we went camping with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Ryan and Jody, at Lake Easton (it's just on the other side of Snoqualmie Pass). I brought the kids' bikes and they had a BLAST riding up and down the little road in front of our campsite. :o) We also hung out at the lake on one of the days and the kids got to go in the water for a little while. I kinda thought they were crazy since it's a mountain lake so it's freezing and it wasn't all that warm out that day so they must have been freezing too but they claimed it was a ton of fun! :o) Oh, to be a kid again and completely oblivious to things like being cold! :o) We didn't end up going camping at all last summer and I'm SO glad that we went this year. It was so nice to get away from home and just enjoy a few relaxing days with my family...sigh...can't wait to do it again next year! Although then we'll have a 6 month old and that should add a whole new crazy dynamic to the experience!

Something kind of crazy happened today...I got home from church and my next door neighbor said hi to me the second I got out of my car - which surprised me a little because they're a little more on the quiet side - and he informed me that I should go check out my house because he had just had someone break into his house in broad daylight while he was home!!! He said they broke a window in the back of the house to get in. All I can think is that there was no car in the driveway so the person must have thought nobody was home. I was also told that the police had come and gone and that they "thought" they'd found the car of the individual(s) that had done this but they thought one of them was still on the loose. So, I called Anthony while I unloaded the kids from the car and I told him what I'd just learned and made him stay on the phone with me while I looked through the house for any signs that someone had been inside our house uninvited. Halfway through the walk through, though, I said, "What in the world would I do if I DID find someone in the house?!?!" Anthony in all his wisdom, suggested I start with, "Get out of my house!!!". I thought that was a good place to start. Luckily I didn't have to use my one liner because I found the house had been undisturbed. I swear, though, that is one of my very worst nightmares...having someone break in while I'm home with my kids. I felt pretty on edge most of the afternoon. I just prayed A LOT that God would protect me and the kids and that He would help me to feel safe in my home. I've heard of these kinds of things happening but to have it happen SOOO close to home is quite unnerving. Please pray for safety and peace for me and my family.

All in all though, this has been a great week and the fun isn't over yet! Tomorrow after the kids get their teeth cleaned at the dentist - something they actually look forward to...weirdos - we're heading down to meet my mom, my brother, his wife and their 4 boys at the zoo! Sadly, Daddy has to work but we'll try to have fun without him. As Alena says, "Poor Daddy, he misses out on all the fun stuff!" Amen Sister!!!

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

It's a .....................

I'll elaborate more tomorrow and tell you all the details about the ultrasound but for now I only have time to say one thing.....

It's a BOY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :oD

So sorry to be so brief but I wanted to at least make sure to get this important information out there for all 1 you that read this! :o)

Monday, August 24, 2009

T minus 12 hours

I can't believe that in just over 12 hours I'll know whether the little person growing and developing inside my tummy is a boy or a girl! It's funny how these things can feel like they're forever in the future but then one day you wake up and BAM! it's time to hurry to the appt you've spent weeks upon weeks daydreaming about! :o) I'm starting to lean toward thinking...or hoping..not sure which...that's it's a girl. I think it's more subconscious than anything. For instance, if I find myself wondering through a store looking at baby clothes I'm always in the girl section drooling over some adorable little outfit. That's one reason I'm glad I'm finding out...I can prep myself for what I'm in for. Don't get me wrong, I won't be the least bit disappointed if the ultrasound technician reveals that we're having a boy. I think I just need time to mentally picture myself with my new little baby boy or girl.

Well, I've gotta cut this one short as Anthony is anxiously awaiting my company on the couch so we can enjoy one of our favorite pastimes...watching 24. It's Bauer Time!!! :o) I know, we're dorks...

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Anyone out there?

Well, I seriously doubt anyone reads this thing anymore but I can't say that I blame them. I see the last time I posted anything was on November 1st, 2008. Sorry about that...

The newest and most exciting news at the Bader Household is that we're adding another member to our family! :o) Baby Bader is due on January 24th, 2010. We even get to find out in about 5 days whether it's a boy or girl! The boy name we like right now is Maximus Ryan. I really just like the name Max and I don't really care for any of the extended versions of the name so I figure I'll let Anthony pick the ending to the first name since he seems to have a strong opinion on the matter. The name Max is one we've liked for a while and we happen to have a good friend with that name so it makes it all the more near and dear to our hearts. The middle name, Ryan, is after Anthony's big brother...and best friend. The girl names we're debating between right now are Abigail and Olivia with a definite middle name of Bernice. If we go with Abbie (which is what we'd call her, not Abigail - unless she's in trouble) she'd be named after a good friend of ours, Abbe Baker, who is married to Anthony's other best friend, Able. If we go with Olivia - which is what both Alena and Tirus are voting for at the moment - then she wouldn't be named after anyone in particular...we just like the name. Bernice, however, was my grandma's middle name and if you didn't get a chance to meet her before she went to be with her Creator and her Savior in eternity you seriously missed out! She is still one of my favorite people in the world! Out of all the people I've lost throughout my life, I by far miss her the most. So, on August 25th at 10am, I'll be at my big ultrasound with my wonderful mom and my doting husband, eagerly awaiting the announcement of "It's a ...."

My most recent project I've been working on is going through the Gospels in the Bible (Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) and writing down every command that Jesus ever spoke. I figure, my kids behave much better if they know what I expect of them and I'm hoping that same thing will be true of me once I know all that is expected of me from my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I'm only in the 18th chapter of the book of Matthew and I've already filled 8 pages with 81 commands spoken by Jesus. I've got a long ways to go and I can't seem to get enough of it! I highly recommend taking on this challenge. Obviously, knowing all the commands won't make me - or you - perfect...only being washed in the blood of the Lamb of God will do that...but I thoroughly enjoy reading all the things that Jesus found important enough to talk about on His short stay here on Earth.

Well, on that note, I think I'll actually get back to my project at hand as I eagerly await the arrival of my husband. God Bless!!!