saturday, sunday, tuesday, wednesday

No, I haven't gotten confused on the lines from The Godfather via You've Got Mail in my title. That's just the days that are featured in this post.

Well, yesterday (Tuesday), we went to the pumpkin patch with Renee and her kids. We had fun, but I think Renee got much better pics than I did. As you can see from these first two--Matthan is saying, "No pictures please!" and , "Maybe if I just hide behind these overalls..." Aubie was completely distracted by all the other children, so a smile was pretty much impossible. Plus the poor dear was concentrating so hard on holding Matthan, I think.

Since Aubie doesn't ever look at the camera anymore, I just try to make sure she's in a pretty pose. I thought this one with the pumpkins looked cool.

Here she is as an ear of corn, a pumkin seed advertisement, and a sunflower with her friend Jill.

Daniel got his pumpkin painted on his face, while the girls had their's painted on their hands. I believe the pumpkin he's holding is the one he ended up with. He was so cute continually exchanging pumpkins until he found the tiniest one possible.

The sleeping picture is from Saturday, and the adorable awake picture is from Sunday. I am really wanting to compare his hairline in these to pictures, although the untrained eye wouldn't see much. Anyway, the boy is growing so fast. His hairline has already moved back an inch or so since this picture. It's like overnight his head grew 2 inches or something.

And this is my Wednesday picture. Aubie went with Leah and Mom to Leah's church for their fall festival. "Friendly costumes are welcome", so I let her wear her princess dress that Mom made her this past Christmas. She looked so pretty when she left. She'll probably have cotton candy and chocolate and all that mess all over her when she gets home, but she'll still be my little princess : )

missing thought

Yes, its been a while, but you have to admit I have a good excuse this time (I am typing one-handed at this very moment). As always happens with new babies (I had proof of this at church this morning), people suddenly become more interested in you. But...
Who knows what my next thought was? The world may never know. I know I sure don't.--10/09/08

introducing...

Matthan Zain

9 lbs. 5.2 oz.

21 in.

Matthan and his overjoyed big sister.

my first video

For the past year, Aubie has loved to pick Bahaya? grass and eat it. Last summer, when I first noticed that she was eating some, I asked, "Where did you learn to do that?" She said, "Daniel tell me [to] eat grass." Since that time, every time she sees some, she has to pick it and eat it. Sometimes, she picks two and hands me one.
Her latest thing is wanting to go to China--thus the China question. The girl loves China! Just to see what she'd say, I told her as we passed the Dollar Tree, "You see that store? There's a lot of things in that store that are made in China*." Her response, "Oh, Mommy. I wanna go there!" When I explained to her that the things were just normal American looking things, not really Chinese things, she said, "Mommy, I just kiddling." If it had actually been a store full of Chinese kites, dragons, lanterns, etc., I would have had to stop the car and take her inside. *I personally love China, Chinese decor, Chinese people, and I like Chinese food, but have taken a stance against buying goods made in China. I still do it occasionally, but I am trying my best not to support a system that has people working 18 hours a day, making 3 cents an hour, just so I can get something for 99 cents. It's a moral issue in my opinion.

what's up with the videos?

another video that never uploaded. pitiful. 10/09/08

Pop!

I was hoping to post exciting news that I was already at a 3, and should be going to the hospital sometime this week! Well, look for that post another time, cause it ain't happenin'. I'm at a 1-2, and not a good 2 at that. I realize that these numbers mean nothing--I could jump to a 5 with several good contractions, but my midwife seems to think that this is going to be similar to Aubie's birth which was 1 hour and 4 minutes short of being a week late. : ( Oh dear. All I want to know is, how can I get any bigger and not explode? I have yet to see how it is possible. If you don't see a post in the next week or so, you'll know that it wasn't.

our state fair

What does a disheartened pregnant woman do when she finds out that it could be another week or so before delivery? Well, this one decided she and her family should go to the opening day of the Georgia State Fair. I didn't realize it when we went, but it was dollar day, so it only cost us $2 to get in (I had a coupon for BOGOFree admission, but that still would have been $5) which was nice! It was about 92 degrees on Tuesday, but with the nice breeze, it wasn't completely unbearable. We did a lot of walking, which probably did nothing to onset labor, but at least I got some exercise.

Aubie and David got a good spot to see Robinson's Racing pigs.
And they're off!


Here's Aubie's sad little pig (the guy picked Aubie to cheer it on--each race he picked someone from the audience for each pig) who decided that it didn't want to race. Especially not a biathlon (running and swimming this time). The poor dear seemed a bit scared of the water. He kind of made this sighing motion when they finally got him to get in the water--like, "Oh, dear, I knew it'd come to this eventually!"

This is me holding an invisible deck of cards. Yeah, they're really there, you just can't see them.

Here's the other volunteer picking an invisible card out of my hand. I'm not really sure if I missed the point or what, but when the magician let me pick the one flipped-over card out of the visible deck, it was the 2 of clubs--the same card that the man had picked out of the invisible deck. It was supposed to be a sort of mind reading trick, I think. (Does everyone just automatically think of the 2 of clubs when he or she thinks of an invisible card?)
This is Aubie holding my ring under a handkerchief. Of course, my ring disappeared after he did a few little finger waves over it. Aubie looked a bit taken aback that it disappeared, but was amazed at the "magic" just the same.
OK, the trick is, my ring is now gone, and he keeps giving Aubie quarters to put into the ring machine. He asks me if I want to trade my ring for the cheapo things inside the little plastic bubble containers and of course I say no (even though this is just a temporary ring from Walmart until my fingers aren't swollen anymore).
Well, on the third quarter Aubie puts into the machine, guess what comes out? My ring! I really cannot figure out how he did this, but then I can never figure out any magic tricks. Sometimes I just prefer to say, "Its magic!" Then other times, I just get amazed at how much quicker other people's fingers move than mine do. Either way, it was a great trick. And lest you think that he switched them as he was handing me the bubble container to get my ring out, he had said earlier that Aubie might be too young to help with this one. A slightly older child could have looked at the ring coming out of the machine and said, "Mommy, that's not your ring". (Also, he got her to check each time before giving her a quarter to make sure there was nothing in the door.)
For being such good volunteers, I got my ring back, and Aubie won a cute red cordouroy teddy bear. Lest you think we were just the prettiest, cutest things in the audience and that's why we kept getting picked, there were only like 10 of us watching, so our odds were pretty good.
Aubie did not like this ride at all, poor dear. It would have been fine if it had just spun around, but it went up high and spun a pretty fast circle for a three year old. This is once the ride was over and she is looking mistrustingly at the poor carnie after he spun the car around for me to take a better picture. It was only one ticket, and we told her she could only ride one ride so it made me sad that this ride was it. (Tickets are a dollar a piece if you don't buy a bunch of them.)

After our sad ride experience, this was just what we needed to get spirits back up. Just a dollar to Paint the Pony, and all proceeds go to help abused children. Aubie really enjoyed using her creative talents to "beautify" this kind creature.

I helped her with the "A", but the rest is all her own artwork.
I could digress into a social commentary on the state of the state fair these days, but this post has taken me a day and a half already (I am actually posting the day after the date at the top), so I will save that for another time. I tell you one thing, I WILL be entering a craft or two next year--with the slim pickins that were there, almost every entry had a ribbon of some sort. I hope have a blue ribbon of my own next year.

craft update

Sorry to all of my male readers (Kevin, I hope you don't cry a manly cry over this), but I feel the need to post some of the crafts I've worked on lately. Mainly this is to prove that while I have not been blogging, I have been doing something constructive. In fact, Aubilane has helped out on several of the crafts, whether by modeling, or creating things herself.

Here is a backpack that I made for Aubie's friend Jill's birthday, and Aubie demonstrating how it looks on someone her size.
This is the Grandparent's day card that we made for Ma. Notice in the top middle of the card (you will have to click on the picture to see it big enough) there is a little "stick person". This is Aubie's first person ever! She said its a picture of Matthan.
This is the Grandparent's Day card that I made for Graham and Pop. Aubie picked out all the "fabric" for the outfits. You can see her card in the upper right-hand corner of the picture. Caught in the act! While making Mom's birthday card, Aubie decided she needed a bit of glitter in her hair. Just a bit... (please be sure to click on the glitter pictures too, if you want to see just how much a "bit" is)Just look at the innocent little Angel : )
This is the button bracelet that I made for Mom's birthday. Aubie chose the color purple.
And last of all, I made this quilt for a friend's baby shower. It took a few late nights, and working up until time to leave for the shower, but I started on Wednesday, and finished on Saturday. It was a lot of fun to make! If only I had that kind of determination to get Matthan's quilt made (and to blog everyday, huh?).

new post tomorrow...

For those of you who may check this page every day (bless you) to see if "she FIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINALLY posted something new", let me tell you. I am going to post something tomorrow : ) I have several pictures to get off my camera, so that is why I won't be doing it tonight, but tomorrow sometime, I will have a post chock-full of pictures. Isn't that exciting news? Doesn't that just make you want to sing? To kick off your shoes and do a little happy dance? Ok, well maybe not all that, but something close, right?


Oh. A little something I didn't want to forget. Tonight, David and Aubie and I were riding through the neighborhood and I saw a pretty house that I thought had been sold by now because it used to have a "Sale Pending" sign. So I said, "I thought that house was pending" and Aubie said, "Not anymo-re". David and I kind of hid a laugh, and then she said, "My friend get it. My friend Menise (like Denise only with an "M") get it for her doll house." No, she doesn't have an extremely rich friend named Menise who can buy nice big houses and use them simply for her dolls. I really have no idea where she comes up with this stuff, but she cracks us up.

Happy Grandparent's Day!

Aubie and I had so much fun making cards yesterday and today. She really enjoys doing crafty things (like her mother) and absolutely loves gluing (doesn't that word look weird?). Yesterday, when we started making Graham and Pop's card, she decided that picking out the "fabric" colors was not enough--she needed to make her own (picture to be added). Today, when we made Ma's card, I let her be the one to do most of the work. She even tried tracing her own hand--an awesome piece of modern art, if you ask me. And though you can barely see it in the picture, she drew her first real person today! (Ma, I know you are so proud to be the recipient of this!) I hope to post more of Aubie's crafts in the future. Actually, I need to post a catch-up page of the precious few crafts I've done this summer--expect this in the next few days. And please, stay on my tail if a week has gone by and I still haven't done it : )
I think I posted some of this in another post... hopefully.--10/09/08

short

Eeeeek! He's due 4 weeks from today!!!

anniversary

It's been 8 years... not since I last wrote ; ) But on August 28, it was 8 years that David and I have been married. Wow. Time has flown. And now that there is a little person in our lives (about to be two of those), its hard to remember her not having been here for 4 1/2 of those years. Sometimes, I think back on a situation, and try to remember, "Where was Aubie?" and then realize it was a couple of years before she was born. She has added so much joy to our lives--I am looking forward to seeing what this new little person will be like. That being said, it was nice to have Pop watch her for the evening so David and I could go out on a date.

I'm still not on my computer, left my camera at Renee's this past weekend, and have a child with strep throat, so this isn't a long post. I'm tired of having pictureless posts, though, so I thought I'd dig up an old anniversary photo from Leah's computer. This is from two years ago--just look at our cute little baby : )

I'm baaa-aaack

"It doesn't take anybody that long to move!"

"I think she just don't wanna do it any more!"

"What could possibly be taking so long?"

"That Aubie Lane says funny things all the time--she could at least put one of those on there!"


In case you have been thinking one, or maybe all of these things, I'm sorry that I have been the cause of a slightly negative attitude. Once we get a cable modem in our room, I will put some pictures on here, and tell you funny things that Aubie says. Its just been a bit hard to write in unfamiliar territory. But as you can see, I am testing the waters at this very moment, and it has proved to not be as difficult as I had expected.

While I'm here let me give you an update: I am 34 weeks. Which means, at the latest, I am 7 weeks away from holding my little bundle of joy! We were really scared that he was breach, but he isn't. He's head down! That hard place that kept feeling like his head is actually his bottom. (Aubie tends to be a bit hard-headed sometimes... What will a hard-bottomed child act like?) He looked absolutely adorable on the ultrasound--chubby little (face) cheeks and cute little fingers and feet. He is around 5 pounds 5 ounces right now, and is measuring about a week ahead of schedule. Let's hope he stays a week ahead--the heat is about to do me in!

moving

Hi. In case you are wondering why I haven't posted, I'm not dead. Just moving. Which, by the way, is not-fun enough when you aren't feeling as big as a cow. But when you do feel as big as a cow, let me tell you, it's way not-fun. So, I promise I will begin to blog again next week. Sorry I haven't been posting--I really have had a good excuse this time! : )

Aubie is always telling me how to reply to her questions. Like, if she wants some "gummies"(fruit snacks), she'll say, "Mommy, I have some gummies? Say, 'Ok, Aubie.' " So the other night before bed, she asked me, "Mommy, I have somefin?" I reluctantly replied, "I guess so. What would you like?"
"How 'bout some peanut butter crackers?"
"Um..."
"Say, 'Crackers it is!' "

Then yesterday, though not in response to a question, she told me what say. I am so proud of how quickly she just up and started wearing panties all the time and going potty, so I was telling her and she said in a sentimental voice, "Say, 'Our wittle monkey's growing up." So I did, because that is exactly what she is--our little monkey.

A picture of the little monkey who decorated her pajamas with stickers and made sure that her eyes were crossed before I snapped the picture : )

I can't believe I didn't post this before now--10/09/08

As of somewhere around 1:20 on July 20, Mimi's house is no longer ours. No longer our family get-together location, or our there's-not-enough-room-at-my-house-let's-have-it-at-Mimi's spot. It has passed from one Joe and June to another Joe and June (one of the many coincidences that help us all feel better about letting go). David will not have to keep up the pool any more, as he has done for the past two years, but we don't have one to swim in anymore either. I am so thankful that Mimi's house didn't sit on the market for a huge-long time, but it really is sad to have to completely say goodbye. I've known that house my whole life. I could drive the road to Mimi and PaPa's blindfolded. But, blindfolded or no, I won't be driving that route anymore, and its a sobering realization. Anyway, here are a few pictures from the night before closing.

poor puppy

Aubie's puppy (see the post from December 21, 2006) has finally been disassembled. It has now become a jump rope (or several jump ropes), pancakes, lines laid in the floor for one to follow, necklaces, a cake, something else I can't remember, or just beads. When David was taking the puppy apart, Aubie said, "Oh no. My puppy's head is dead." She could actually see what part of the bead clump was a head, but now the puppy is no more. Aubie wasn't traumatized by this occurrence at all, however. In fact, in the middle of the project, when David had to get the phone, she sat there and finished taking the beads apart. I asked her what she was doing and she looked up at me at and said, "I just doin' my Daddy's work." When she got them separated she said, "He be so happy!" This is a picture of the once-puppy pancakes.

It kinda reminded me of the story of Jesus in the temple when she said it. Whenever I heard the story growing up, I'd always thought he sounded a bit snobby when he said, "Didn't you know I'd be about my Father's business?" But when Aubie said that, it hit me as to what Jesus had really been saying. Not the too-big-for-his-britches tone that I had always heard it in--"Didn't you know...?"--but "I'm just doing my Daddy's work." It was really sort of a revelation to me. Out of the mouths of babes...

One of Aubie's favorite names for her dolls, puppies, etc. is Sella. It waned in popularity about a month or two ago, but has since made a comeback. Yesterday, Mom, Aubie, and I were playing with her Little People, and she named the baby Sally, Mom named one of the other girls Sella, and I can't remember what my person's name was. When I asked her what the boy's name should be, she said, "Sella". We tried to get her to come up with a boy name, but she couldn't think of one, so Mom said, "How about Saul?" Aubie said, "No. A Saw cut fings"(things, not fingers).

big girl

Well, I guess you guys are going to just start checking once every 2 weeks, now, huh? Sorry once again. But I really haven't had much computer time lately. No pictures this time (not even the beach ones I promised), but I do have excellent news! My big girl is COMPLETELY potty trained! No sleeping in pullups or anything. Yes, I know it was a long time coming, but the great thing is, it only took one day : ) Two days after her first day in big-girl panties, we had a long car ride and a 6 1/2 hour tour of IKEA and not one accident to speak of. Just thought everyone should share in my joy--the joy of a mother who has only 13 1/2 weeks before the poopy diapers start all over again ; )

sad

Well, a week and a half. I'm getting better, huh? Hope everyone had a lovely 4th of July. Ours was very nice, though sad. It was probably our last time swimming (or doing anything else) at Mimi's house as a family. David and Aubie and I may go one or two more times since he will be working on the pool till closing on July 31st, but that's it. Though I never lived there, I am sadder about it's being sold than I have been about any move that we ever made growing up. There are good memories and not so good memories, but that house has always been a part of my life. Its not the same anymore, though.
posting this on 10/09/08

Florida

Well, it's been another 2 week stretch between posts again. I wanted to post Florida pictures the day after we got back, but as you can see, that didn't happen.


Aubie and her baby--this picture taken right after she asked me for the 50th time, "Where the beach? Are we here yet?"

Singing a song while waiting for our food at the Olive Garden Monday night. We decided to have Olive Garden night on Monday since it was raining something awful and there was nothing else for tired travellers to do (except go to the gym in the condo--which is exactly what Dad, Daniel, David, and Elena did before getting ready to go eat).

The somewhat cloudy view from our condo on Tuesday. It got sunnier as the week progressed, but I didn't get pictures of that.

Aubie and Elena getting their first taste of Dip-N-Dots!

Aubie standing outside the coolest looking Goodwill I have ever seen (located in Destin)! The prices are only cool on Mondays, because all clothing is half price. Sadly, this was Wednesday.

A close up of the artwork.



We girls at the beach in Destin at sunset.

As if I needed any more reason not to like shrimp! Blechhh!

Aubie rode the luggage cart to the car when we were leaving.
I'll have more beach pictures after I get them developed. I didn't want to ruin our camera by taking pictures while we were lounging in the sand (been there, done that--bye, little camera, I miss you!), so I used a disposable. Since I didn't use it up, it may be a couple weeks before those get posted. It seems that I only post every couple of weeks here lately anyway... Just kidding. I'm going to try to work on that. : )

Florida

So I guess I posted another one about Florida. This one just didn't make it.--10/09/08

hello darlin'...

nice to see ya. It's been a long time... Sorry about that. I really have been meaning to post. The free time I was so looking forward to once school got out hasn't arrived yet. I keep waiting for it, but so far, since the last day of school, I have been busy with: the end of year party--which ended up being a surprise baby shower for me and the other pregnant lady (which as wonderful as it was, adds more to the to-do list with all the thank you notes I have to write), New Attitude (plus all the preparation and unpacking that went with it as well as the driving back and forth to take Aubie to Mom and Dad's and to pick her up), dealing with a spoiled rotten child who now wants to stay at Graham and Pop's all the time, a doctor's appointment, pulling my hair out over potty training issues, a church merge, trying to get more involved locally by going to the library story times, Oh yeah! Aubie's birthday party, and this week, helping lead music for the 3 and 4 year olds in VBS. It may not sound like a lot, but for a pregnant lady beginning a long, hot summer, its making me kinda tired.

I did take pictures the other day, though, that I thought you might enjoy. This is Aubie and Hank the Cowdog. I was a bit surprised at her standing there long enough for me to get her picture. The library lady told everyone to get a high five and you could take pictures if you brought your camera. Well, Aubie shook his hand, got her picture, and as we were walking away, she said, "Mommy, I not get a high five." So, we had to get back in line and give this scary dog a high five. I was quite impressed with her bravery. I doubt that I would have done so at her age. I was scared to death of Santa Claus.

And here is a picture of "The Flour Girl Returns". Once again, she only floured one piece of meat and then played for the rest of the time. In fact, I was putting supper on the table and she was still playing. I know its a bit early, but to all the aunts and uncles and grandparents of this child, if you want to give her something she will absolutely love for Christmas, a bag of flour will be just the thing!