All the Judgy Parenting.

Can't we all just get along and live in peace and harmony? Okay, maybe that's a little extreme. But friends, for the love. Can't we at least just embrace our differences and stop all this judgy parenting?

 I feel like every time I turn around someone else has posted a judgmental parenting blog post/article/status on Facebook. Or even better, when someone posts something that they think is sweet or they can relate to, and someone posts a judgy comment on that.

We all parent differently. We are all different.

Does that make your parenting style the right one? No. No more than it makes me dragging my screaming child into the McDonald's bathroom to spank him yesterday the "right" parenting style.

Yes, I spanked him. Gasp. Maybe you don't believe in spanking. That's okay. I do. And that's okay too.

Sometimes I give my kid Oreo's for breakfast. Because you know what? I don't feel like fighting with him.

Sometimes I let him watch ten episodes of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse in one day. Because I need to get some things done.

Sometimes I let Gavin watch TV. Because some days it's the only thing that keeps him from crying.

 Sometimes we eat McDonald's and Chick-fil-A in the same day. (Maybe we did that yesterday.) Because I need to get out of the house.

Sometimes I throw random parties for him and a couple of his friends because I know it will absolutely make his day. Because I adore every inch of him and want to do things for him that he loves.

Sometimes I sit and snuggle with him and the baby on the couch instead of cleaning the house. Because I know that far too soon he will be too big to snuggle.

Maybe my house is a total disaster almost all the time. Because sometimes there are just things that are more important. And because I live with Hurricane Knox.

Sometimes he wears a bandana and a fireman hat to school. Because he just wants to.

Sometimes he shows the most amazing childlike faith and trust in God you've ever seen. Because really, we are good parents and do our best to raise our kids to be Godly people.

I don't go into the play place with him, because he has to learn to do things on his own.

I don't help him climb up the really high areas of the playground. And it's not because I'm lazy, so I don't need you to look judgingly my way while you help him either.

Maybe I'm sitting on the park bench playing on my phone while he plays and the baby sleeps. Because 85% of my conversation during the day is with a toddler. Sometimes I want to feel like an adult.

I don't make him give a toy to another child just because he/she wants it, because that is not real life. I do make him give it back if he takes it from them instead of blaming it on him being a child and not understanding.

Here is the most controversial one:

Sometimes, I let him play with my phone. But wait, I'll do you one even better. He has his own iPod (which is really just my old phone). Yep. You read that right. My two year old has his own iPod. 

He is incredibly smart. And I'm not saying that in a "my child is a genius" sort of way. It's just a fact. He is very, very smart. He has tons of education apps that he absolutely adores.

You know what he has learned from them? The alphabet. And the sound each letter makes. And within the next six months I have a sneaking suspicion he will start reading.

And numbers. And shapes. And animals.

And your mind would just be blown at how much he knows and how well spoken he is.

Don't get me wrong, he learns a LOT at Mother's Day Out. A whole lot.

But the fact of the matter is, I do not sit down and teach him these things. I am not a teacher. It is not my gift. We talk about things, but I do not teach him other than by our conversations and his observations of my life.

Maybe you sit down every day and do an alphabet lesson with your toddler. Maybe you homeschool your kids. I applaud you. Your parenting style is different than mine and I have so much respect for you.

But it doesn't make me a bad mom because I don't do those things.

Maybe you don't give your kid Oreo's for breakfast. Or at fast food. Or let them watch TV. Or let them have a phone at age two.

Maybe you do sit in the play area and climb around the playground equipment with your kids instead of playing mindlessly on your phone.

Maybe you make sure your house is clean before sitting down on the couch with your kids.

But you know what? It's okay. We are all okay.

We are all doing the very best we can to raise tiny humans to be good big humans. And we all do it differently.

My parenting style doesn't have to look like yours. You don't even have to like mine. And who's to say I like yours? But that doesn't matter. You do what works best for you and your children. And vice versa.

 Why can't we all just start respecting those differences and that we are all a mess?

And we just pray that by God's saving grace our kids will all turn out okay. And that's really the best we can do for them.

Gavin's Birth Story

Now that I've shared Knox's birth story with you, it's time to document Gavin's! Since his is more recent, it may end up being a lot more detailed long. Bear with me. I wasn't as good at keeping up with his pregnancy as I was Knox's, so I guess this makes up for that? (you know, just trying to justify it for myself.)
At the end of my pregnancy, I was D O N E. I loved every single second of being pregnant with Knox. I didn't necessarily hate being pregnant this time around, but it was certainly not as easy. Chasing a two year old around while pregnant is, honestly, quite miserable less than enjoyable. When I started my weekly appointments at 36 weeks I was dilated to maaaaybe one centimeter (I think she was just trying to make me feel better) and about 50% effaced. Same at 37 weeks, same at 38 weeks. At my 38 week appointment we had this conversation:
Dr. M: What day will you be 39 weeks? Me: Next Wednesday. Dr. M (looking at computer): Hmmm...I could do next Wednesday. Want to schedule it?
Hallelujah, praise Jesus....I'm pretty sure the heavens opened up and the angels sang. YES I want to schedule it. And so, we did.
At that point, I really wanted Gavin to just hangout for one more week. I swore I didn't want to be induced this time around, but that all went out the window about 32 weeks. Especially with Jessica's wedding ten days after my due date. Being induced a week early gave me 17 days until her wedding, which was doable (if you know me well, you know I went back to work when Knox was two weeks old. I'm not much of a homebody.). This time around we also had Knox to think about, and going into labor in the middle of the night was less than ideal. I get really tired of hearing people say "babies aren't meant to be born at your convenience. You should really let them come on their own." Yes, well in a perfect world that would be great. But in MY world, a scheduled induction was perfect because we didn't have to freak our toddler out in the middle of the night. 
And so, he did. My children are happy to stay in my belly as long as they possibly can. It's warm in there. According to my mom Gavin was "happy in his cozy cabin." You're so clever, Mom.
We were scheduled to be at the hospital at some ridiculously early hour before the sun was even up 6am. I'm pretty sure I didn't sleep a wink the night before and I'm pretty sure Clayton didn't either. Knox's Auntie Jess stayed the night with us so that we wouldn't have to wake him up early and he wouldn't even know anything was amiss when he woke up. I went in to kiss him before we left and of course, I cried (I cried pretty much every night when I put him to bed after we scheduled my induction. Hormones are no joke.) He had such a fun day with Jessica and she was able to kind of prepare him for his brothers arrival!

We got to the hospital, filled out all of the paperwork (because I forgot to pre-register this time. Oops.) and got into our room. We had this massively huge room with a bathtub, which Clayton immediately started making rude, crude and socially unacceptable jokes about. I'll leave those to your imagination. I, once again, got into my lovely hospital gown and crawled into bed.
The nurse that came in to do my IV...well, I'm pretty sure she was trying to kill me. I hate having an IV in the top of my hand anyway, and this one was terrible. She apparently got it right next to a valve. Which means nothing to me, except that I thought I was dying. Okay maybe not dying, but I was sure I was going to pass out while she was drawing blood, which by the way, took like fifteen hours. Or at least it felt like it. Once she got that in, the very best labor and delivery nurse there ever was (whose schedule I may or may not have planned my induction around) came in. We talked game plan, started pitocin and waited for the doctor to get there. 
Dr. M came by first thing and went ahead and broke my water to get things going. My nurse was shooting for one centimeter an hour and the plan was to have a baby before 5pm. Remember that time when I told you my babies are happy to stay in my belly?
The morning was pretty uneventful. My parents came that morning and the plan was for my mom to stay the day and to be in the room with us again. Clayton's philosophy was that everything went great with Knox, so why would we do it any differently this time?
This time around my doctor told me I could get my epidural just as soon as I wanted it. I am no hero, so I got that bad boy around 10am just as soon as I started to feel my contractions. 
A couple of hours later the nurse came in to check me and laid my bed flat. I don't really remember what happened, but all of a sudden I was super light headed and felt like I could fall asleep in an instant. I vaguely remember hearing monitors beeping and Clayton and my mom freaking out a little bit. I remember another nurse coming in and asking my nurse, "is that her heart rate or the babies?" It was Gavin's and it had dropped drastically. I have these stubborn kids. Once I was sitting back up and on oxygen everything started evening out and I was fine. I think it was scarier for everyone else than it was for me because I really had no clue what was going on! After that I just wanted to nap, so I did for a bit.
A little later I could tell my epidural was wearing off on one side because I could freely move and lift one of my legs. The nurse called to have it re-dosed and the guy that came to do it wasn't messing around. I felt like each of my legs was the size of an elephant and as heavy as two! My progression was slooooow, but that was fine because I was comfortable and just hanging out. Every time someone came to check me I'd think surely I had made at least a centimeter or two of progress, but no such luck. A little before 5 my epidural was wearing off again, so we had it re-dosed before all of the anesthesiologists left for the day.
Best nurse ever left at 7pm at the end of her shift and I was still just hanging out around a 5-6.
A couple hours after she left, I once again felt my epidural wearing off and my contractions were BAD. My nurse wasn't taking me very seriously, and come to find out, they didn't think they were getting a very good read on my contraction monitor. I had been comfortable all day and at this point I was absolutely miserable. I asked her to please call someone to come re-dose it and instead she decided to try to move me into different positions to see if we could get it working again. I finally made my mom go tell her that if someone didn't come fix it, it was not going to be a good night (I'm certain those were the EXACT words I used. I would have never ever threatened to punch someone in the face)! 
My contractions continued to get worse and I was starting to feel a little bit of pressure and all I could think was "sweet baby Jesus if the anesthesiologist gets here too late and I have to feel this baby coming out, I may never recover." Thankfully, that's about the time he showed up. We got it re-dosed, and right about the time it kicked in, I told my mom and Clayton that I felt like it was time to push. My mom grabbed the nurse and sure enough, it was pretty close to time. She had my push a few times just laying in the bed to kind of check and see how we were doing. She told me that he was crowning, and so it shouldn't take very long to get him out.
She got all of the carts in and everything ready to go and then called the doctor. She had me start pushing, and I felt like he was going to come any second. I told her that if she didn't want a baby born before the doctor got there that we needed to wait, so she told me to start breathing through my contractions instead of pushing. Oh man, talk about torture. All I wanted to do was push!  Dr. M got there pretty quickly and started getting her gown and glasses on. She could see the misery on my face and said "I'm here! Push if you feel like you need to!" And so I did. One time. And out popped my sweet baby boy at 10:33pm! She was caught so off guard and wasn't even totally dressed yet! We all started laughing and couldn't get over the fact that he just kind of shot right now (sorry for that visual image).
I was so thankful to have not been on Stadol this time around. While I remember Knox's birth, I was so much more aware of what was going on with Gavin's birth. I was able to see Gavin as soon as he was born and I remember EVERYTHING. His lungs were clear enough that he started crying immediately, so they brought him over for Clayton and I to see. 
I never worried too much about how I was going to love two children equally, but in that very instant I completely understood how it is possible. My heart was bursting with love for this tiny boy that I was meeting for the first time. And once again, our family was complete.
He was 8 pounds even and 20 inches long. Almost the exact same size as his big brother, and equally as perfect.

We finally got into our postpartum room around midnight, and I immediately sent Clayton for food. I hadn't had a single thing to eat since the night before, and I was starving. Pickings are slim at midnight, so we settled for Jack in the Box. A hamburger and curly fries has never tasted so good!

They brought Gavin to us for just a little bit so I could feed him and love on him and then we took him back to the nursery so we could try to get some sleep.

The next morning, all I could think about was getting Knox up there to meet him. We decided to let him go on to school so that we didn't totally disrupt his day and Clayton would pick him up and bring him to the hospital. We had visitors throughout the day, so that helped to pass the time.

It was finally time for Clayton to get Knox and bring him to meet his brother and my heart literally felt like it was going to burst. I could not wait for Knox to get there! And instead of telling you how it went, I'll just let you see for yourself. These are unedited (because who has time for all that with two kids), so you get the whole three minutes of video!

This semi-sweetness also took place.

And then there were four. And our hearts were full.

 

puj Splash Review

When I was pregnant with Knox, a friend recommended the puj tub to me as an alternative to the traditional bulky infant bathtubs. Before I even got my hands on one, I fell in love with the sleek, compact and portable design of the puj tub. Once I did get my hands on one, it was all over. I was obsessed. When Knox outgrew it, we stored it for our next child and two years later when I got it back out for Gavin, it was still in perfect shape! That’s what we’ve been using for Gavin since he was born.

One day I was perusing Instagram and saw that puj was looking for product testers for a new product, the puj splash. Being the puj addict that I am, I of course applied. A week or so later I received an email that I had been chosen! Eeek! I was so excited and watched every single day for that FedEx package full of goodness. So that being said, here is my product review of the puj splash.

Out of the FedEx box came this super sleek box showcasing what the puj Splash has to offer, which is: a how-to guide, one puj Flyte tub, three Fresh washcloths, one Hug hooded towel and three Nubs hooks. I was immediately drawn to how the box is laid out. I think it’s very appealing and well designed. The box itself has a handle, which makes it easy to transport.

We have very small bathroom sinks in our house, so our original puj tub has always been used in the kitchen sink. When I saw that the Flyte was a little more compact, I got excited about the prospect of it fitting in our bathroom sinks. When we are trying to bathe both kids at once, we usually just put Gavin in the bath seat in the tub with Knox. I bet you can imagine how well that goes. As soon as I opened the box, I immediately had to see if it fit in our bathroom sinks. And voila! It fit! It was a tight fit, but it fit nonetheless. I couldn’t wait to get Gavin in to try it out.

To get started, I hooked the Hug towel around my neck with the easy to use silicone tabs. The whole purpose of it is that you can hook it around your neck to keep yourself dry hands-free while bathing your baby. You can then wrap your baby up in the towel easily at the end of bath time. It is so easy and very convenient, but probably not something I will remember to use all the time!

Like I said, the Flyte was kind of a tight fit in our bathroom sink. A tight fit mixed with a massive baby isn’t a great combo. BUT I did like having the option of bathing him in the bathroom while Knox is bathing. It’s super easy to setup. It folds in half, so all you have to do is unfold it and put it in the sink. The drain at the bottom works perfectly to get excess water out of the tub.  I LOVE how soft the Fresh washcloths are and they are a great size for a big baby in comparison to a lot of the washcloths I’ve had in the past. Bath time was quick and easy in the Flyte and I found myself really wishing I had one when both of my babies were newborns! It’s more compact and a little more stiff and supportive than the original puj tub.

After his bath, I wrapped Gavin up in the Hug hooded towel. With it already being around my neck, it was super easy to just pick him up and wrap it around him rather than having to lay him down somewhere else. Talk about super soft. I wanted to wrap myself up in it! He usually fusses when it’s time to dry off, but he just laid there wrapped up in this towel for a few minutes, no problem. It’s made of thick, ultra-soft cotton, so I think it made him feel more secure than any of our other towels. Or maybe he just likes how soft it is. Who knows! All I know is, he looks adorable.

 I think my very favorite part of the whole Splash set are the Nubs. They are just small, grippy hooks that you can hang anywhere, but they are a genius addition to the set! I chose to hang mine in the boys bathtub. The silicone tab on the Hug towel fits perfectly onto one of them, which is so convenient. The other two are now home to my TWO puj tubs. The original tub is magnetic, but I’ve never had anywhere to hang it, so it just ends up in the boys bathtub to dry. Now I can hang it on one of the Nubs to dry, and you have no idea how excited this makes me!

All in all, this puj enthusiast is a fan. I think this is a great combo of items that would make a great gift for new parents! It is convenient and easy to use, and let’s face it, who needs anything more complicated when running on a couple hours of sleep?

If you want your own puj Splash set, you can get one here AND you can get it for 20% off using coupon code SPLASHTESTER20 through July 31,2014. Enjoy!

Knox's Birth Story

I was going to write Gavin's birth story first since it is the most fresh on my mind, but I find myself comparing the two so much that I feel like I need to write Knox's first. He is, after all, our first child. So here we go.
If you kept up with my pregnancy at all, you know that it was an incredibly easy, textbook pregnancy. I started going in for my weekly appointments at 35 weeks and at that point I was dilated to a 2 and 50% effaced. That didn't change between 35 weeks and the time I went to the hospital. At my 39 weeks appointment, my doctor told me that she would let me go to 40 weeks, but no further. She told me that she is a firm believer that nothing good happens after 40 weeks. That was fine with me. I was beyond ready for that baby to be OUT! (If you know how this story ends, you know I don't have small children, so I was highly uncomfortable and miserable by this point!)
My doctor was going to be out of town on the day that I was technically 40 weeks, so we went ahead and scheduled my induction for a few days later (December 20th) in hopes that I would go into labor on my own before that. No such luck, of course. 
The 20th rolled around and I decided I would work that day since I didn't have to be at the hospital until that evening. I worked until lunch time and went home, took a shower and got everything ready to go. Clayton came home from work a little early, and we packed our bags and headed to the hospital  at 6pm. When we got there, Labor and Delivery was CRAZY busy. We ended up having to sit in the waiting room for a little bit while they got a room ready. We got all of my paperwork filled out and finally got into a room.  I got into my lovely hospital gown and crawled into bed to wait for my doctor to get there and tell me our plan of action.
She got there and told me that we would start Cervidil that night and hope that it would help get my cervix a little further along by morning. After a few excruciating tries by the nurse getting the Cervidil in (sandpaper anyone?), they gave me an Ambien and told me to try to get some sleep. I slept like.a.rock. 
They woke me up about 7am on the 21st to take the Cervidil out and see if it had done any good. Before taking it out, the nurse said "everything is going to be a little more tender, just wanted you to know." Thanks for the warning. "A little" was probably the understatement of the century. I'm willing to admit that I'm a total wimp when it comes to pain and I have a very low pain tolerance...but holy moly, she wasn't joking. 
My doctor came by that morning to just check everything out and they started my Pitocin around 8am. I remember telling my mom not too long after they started it that I was feeling a little crampy. By mid-morning I was having full on contractions and they were less than enjoyable. I had always heard that contractions we worse when you were induced. I had nothing to compare them to, but they were awful in my book. The hospital "recommends" not getting an epidural until you are dilated to a 5. I wasn't even close. 
I finally asked for some IV pain meds, so I got those sometime that morning. She told me it would take a few minutes for them to kick in. I just remember feeling super tired all of a sudden, and I'm pretty sure I just passed out after that.
I only remember bits and pieces from the rest of the day. I know the nurse came in to check me at one point and my water broke while she was checking me. I remember them coming in and turning me in all sorts of crazy positions trying to get things going. I remember eating ice chips galore because I was STARVING and my mouth was so incredibly dry. Clayton said that I would basically wake up, have a contraction and immediately fall back asleep. All I remember is being in immense amounts of pain. And those people who say you forget the pain? They lied. I still remember it. Two and a half years later. My friend, Shealee, was due with a little girl about a month after Knox. She had planned to have a natural birth with no drugs. She and her mom stopped by to visit sometime in the midst of the terrible, horrible, no good, very bad part of the day. They had repositioned my bed (kind of like an altar- they must have known the only cure for my pain that was coming anytime soon was going to have to come from Jesus) and made me sit on my knees and rest my arms on the top part of the bed (you getting the altar image?). I remember thinking "screw this" and curled up in a ball on the bottom part of the bed. Well, that's apparently the time they decided to come visit. I don't even remember them being there, but Shealee still to this day cracks up because apparently I woke up when they came in, looked right at her and said "Don't do it without the drugs." and passed back out. I stand by that statement to this day.
Finally, sometime after lunch, after lots of begging and pleading and probably crying, it was time for my epidural. I have never been happier to see a man with a giant needle to stick in my back. The nurse gave me a pillow to hold onto and told me to "be totally still." I don't know if you've ever tried to be still through really intense contractions, but I was fearful for my everyone else's life. I remember that I finally just bear hugged the nurse and buried my head in her shoulder in a effort to be still. Looking back, I'm sure she really loved that. They got my epidural in quickly and it started working within minutes. Oh, sweet relief. 
Because the Stadol just knocked me out and the epidural relieved the pain, I pretty much just slept the rest of the afternoon. They did have to put me on oxygen because Knox's heart rate kept dropping, but other than that it was a pretty uneventful afternoon.
Sometime after 3, I woke up and told Clayton and my mom (through my sweet oxygen mask) that I felt like I had to poop (sorry for the graphic details). My mom and I had this conversation:   Mom: umm that probably means it's time for you to push!  Me: no, I just need to go to the bathroom. Tell the nurse to come in here. I have to figure out how to get to the restroom. Mom:Just use your call button.  Me: Really? With this oxygen mask on?
So, she so helpfully pushes the call button and announces to the entire Labor and Delivery floor, "Ummm she feels like she needs to poop!" Thanks mom.
The nurse came in and my mom was right. It was time to push! They called the doctor and got everything ready to go. I was still so out of it and really didn't know what was going on, but I remember having that moment of panic about pushing a watermelon out of a lemon. Everything happened so quickly that I didn't have much time to worry about it. The doctor got there and it was time to push a little before 4. I started pushing and one of the nurses said "Oh good, you can tell when you need to push and you're doing a good job. We won't have to turn your epidural off." I'm sorry, turn my epidural off? No. Just no. I'll just say, it's a good thing they didn't try. Knox's heart rate kept dropping, so my doctor was really pushing me to get him out quickly.
My mom and Clayton were amazing through the whole thing. I pushed for right at 30 minutes, and then I'm pretty sure I started to just pass out again. At 4:20pm our precious boy made his debut covered in hair. I remember Clayton saying "Do you hear that? Do you hear him crying?" I'm pretty sure I tried to smile and say yes, but I honestly don't remember hearing him.
Clayton told me later that he got really nervous right after he was born because he didn't cry immediately. They had to take him over to clean out his lungs before he made any noise. I honestly don't remember any of that!
They got him cleaned up and brought him to me and I can still to this day remember the feeling when they laid him on my chest. It was the most amazing feeling in the world and I finally understood how you could love someone that you just met with your whole heart. He was perfect. And in that moment with Clayton and our precious new baby, my life was complete. 
They told me to spend about 30 minutes trying to breastfeed before we started letting people come in to meet him. He took to nursing without a problem, so everyone got to come in pretty quickly. My memories are still somewhat foggy even at this point. That Stadol is no joke.
After about another hour they came to take him to the nursery to weigh and measure him and give him a bath. One of the very coolest things is that a family friend who has worked in the nursery for as long as I can remember was the nurse who took care of him. That is so special to me. They came back and told me that he was 8 pounds, 1 ounce and 20 inches long. Like I said, I don't have small children.
Because Labor and Delivery had been so busy, postpartum was also very busy. We ended up having to stay in the L&D room for quite awhile, so I went ahead and showered and got dressed in there. I had a friend ask me before she had her baby to be totally honest with her about the whole experience. She wanted to know the things that no one tells you. The one thing I told her and that I would tell ANYONE is that the bathroom will look like a murder scene when you get done in there. No joke. No one told me. So you're welcome.
We stayed our one night in the hospital and got to go home around 5:30pm on the 22nd. Our world was turned upside down. After a few days I didn't remember life before Knox. It seemed as if he had been with us forever. My pregnancy with him was far from planned, but looking back I wouldn't have it any other way. He is my pride and my joy and he is the boy who gave me my most treasured title of mom. 

Knox-isms

Knox started talking REALLY early and hasn't stopped since. He is in such a fun stage right now (even when he's making me totally and completely crazy) and I am really trying to savor every moment with him before Gavin gets here. Here are a few things about him that make me laugh on a daily basis:

• Stickers. He absolutely HATES stickers. I don't know what it is about them, but he doesn't like them on anything. Every Sunday when we get to church, we go to the check-in kiosk to check him in. And every single Sunday as soon as we walk up he says, "no get mine sticker!" because he does NOT want the sticker on his back. There can't be stickers on his cups, anything. When all the nice little ladies at the grocery store ask him if he wants a sticker his eyes get huge and he yells "NO!!!" and it's only a little embarrassing. I have no idea where this hate for stickers came from.
• For the longest time he referred to himself in the third person. "Knox tummy hurts." But now we've moved on to "mine." "Mine tummy hurts, momma." 
• One of his newest words is "together." It's so fun to hear him start speaking in longer sentences. He tells us all the time, "Let's dance together!" 
• He's also starting to figure out what "I'm sorry" means, but he doesn't quite have it down. He apologizes for EVERYTHING. And he does it in the most pitiful voice you've ever heard. I assure you, you'll give him whatever he wants if you ever hear it. "Oh, I'm sorry Mickey Mouse went bye bye momma."
• Another one of his latest things is, "Oh, okay." When you tell him something he will always matter of factly answer, "Oh, okay."
• He does this little inflection thing with his voice that absolutely cracks me up. It's usually when he wants something he knows he can't have. He gets this mischievous little grin on his face and says, "I want CAAAANDY?" with this really high pitched inflection on candy. It gets me every.single.time.
• He wants to be naked all.the.time. He will get really excited about going somewhere and then immediately tells me he doesn't want to get dressed. It is an act of congress to get him dressed every day. He immediately strips his clothes off the second we get home every day!
• He LOVES to dance. He started telling us awhile back, "I GOTTA dance!" and now that he knows we think it's funny he says it all the time. 
• He is obsessed with Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and can tell you anything about any of the characters on the show. 
• He has picked up this eye rolling thing. It is the most hilariously obnoxious and frustrating thing I've ever seen. I don't even know how to describe it. When you get onto him, he closes his eyes and you can tell that he's rolling them and like flutters his eyelids at you. You just have to see it. Maybe one day I can secretly get it on video.
• He really likes to tell you that he will "be right back." The other day he said, "Oh! I forgot! I be right back!" I'm not sure what he forgot, but he disappeared for a bit and showed back up empty handed.
• He has become quite the momma's boy lately. I don't know if it's because he knows his world will be rocked in a couple of months or if it's just from spending so much time with me, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't secretly love it!

I guess I'll stop there for now. I don't document too many things (you know, first tooth, first steps, first word...all those things that good moms keep up with), so I want to try to occasionally make note of things that our kids do! Aaaand that means you get the joy of sharing in that.

And to prove just how much of a mess he is, here is a lovely picture for you. He was hanging out with his Auntie Jess today and she sent me this picture and told me that he gathered up all sorts of things in his basket, and got on the horse and told her that he would be right back and was riding the horsey to the grocery store.

Baby Gavin: 30 Week Bumpdate

Look at that, two weeks in a row. Bam. Maybe if I post once a week until Gavin is born, he will have as many pregnancy updates as Knox. Maybe? It's worth a shot.

I had an elective ultrasound yesterday at AC. I absolutely love that they are always looking for volunteers for their sonography students. I get to really see how Gavin is changing and growing and I love it!

As far as pregnancy goes, things are good. It is still not as easy this time around, though! I am getting to the point where I can't sleep and I just feel like a zombie all the time. I am so thankful for Clayton. He is such an amazing husband and dad. I told him yesterday morning, "I'm sorry that I haven't been a very good wife lately." To which he responded, "You are not a bad wife! I don't know what it's like to be pregnant, but I do know what it's like to go with very little sleep, and I can't imagine being pregnant on top of that." Thankful for his patience, understanding, and willingness to just let me be useless sometimes.

I seem to have developed this crazy, ridiculous anxiety over the past few weeks. I worry about EVERYTHING, which is so unlike me. It doesn't matter if I know it's irrational or not. My parents had a weird thing happen at their house recently (that in all honesty, deserves it's own blog post) and then I couldn't get ahold of them. Within about five minutes I had convinced myself that I needed to go to their house and I was going to find them dead inside their house. Sorry for the morbid details- but seriously, it's bad. This is not me. If we're being honest, this is Jessica! I don't worry about things.

That brings me to my next point. My ultrasound yesterday showed that Gavin is breech. I know there is plenty of time for him to flip, but it has me worried. Knox flipped really early! Or maybe he didn't. Clayton thinks maybe he was breech at this point too. Either way, my anxiety (even though I know it's irrational) is getting the best of me. He is stretched from end to end and he's going to be out of room before too much longer! So, as petty as it seems, if you would say a little prayer that he flips before too long (or before I have to commit myself to Rusk) I would appreciate it!

Onto more fun things...

How far along? 30 weeks.
Maternity clothes? Do sweatpants count as maternity clothes?
Sleep: No sleep. Ever. None at all.
Missing anything? Sleep?
Food Cravings: Anything sweet! Cupcakes anyone?
Gender: BOY! Gavin Reece.

Movement? During my ultrasound yesterday, the girl said "Does he do this ALL the time?" Yes.
Mood: Exhausted.
Looking forward to: getting a little more prepared for this little dude to get here!

I have a doctor appointment tomorrow and I think I start going every two weeks from now on. Craziness. I can't believe we are almost to single digits in the weeks left countdown! 

And here are 30 week pictures for your enjoyment!

If I Had a Girl.

So let me start this post by saying I do not wish that Gavin was a girl. I also never wished Knox was a girl. I am not that mom. Really, I never hoped for a girl either time if we're being honest. I have said from the time I got pregnant with Knox that I would probably do better with boys and would be thrilled to be a boy mom. I would so much rather go to a baseball game than a dance recital. And let's face it, if I had a girl who acted like me as a pre-teen/teenager I'm not sure I she would survive. I'm fairly certain we are done having kids after Gavin is born, but if one day God gives us a little girl, great. If not, I'll be perfectly content with my house full of rowdy boys!

Now, all of that being said, the day I found out I was pregnant I, of course, started looking at all of the adorable things for both boys AND girls. I can't help it. It's in my nature. I can envision exactly what a little girl's room would look like in my house, how she would dress, etc. So if you want a little glimpse into what a girl's life in my world would look like, here you go!

I've said before that I am not very traditional when it comes to kids clothes. I could see myself being a little more traditional with a girl, but not much. I love these looks for little girls!

girls outfits via//turquoise bow shoes via//oxfords via//bird romper via//chambray + head scarf via

Her room would, of course, have to be adorable. The top left photo in this group is what I had picked out for bedding if baby #2 was a girl. It might be the one and only thing I am sad that I can't have with a boy! I am obsessed! Want to know the craziest thing? When I went to read the blog post about the room, it was for a little girl named Finley. That is the girl name I have been stuck on for probably two years now! If we were having a girl, it would have been meant to be! Except Clayton doesn't like that name. So that part would have been a problem. Details, right? I am also obsessed with the framed Shel Silverstein poems and might do those for my boys in a playroom one day.

nursery via//shel silverstein framed photos via//fierce print via//dresser via//basket via

So there you have it, the life of a little girl in my world! But I would take my dirty, stinky, rowdy, wild, precious, loving boys over the frills and lace any day of the week!

My Baby Must Haves

As we start to (finally) get ready for baby Gavin to get here in April, I am quickly remembering all of the little things that I used so frequently with Knox and that I need to replace/get more of before April! I figured while I was at it, I'd share them. You know, for anyone who cares, since I'm an expert mom.

When I was pregnant with Knox and trying to figure out what I needed I, like most people, scoured google looking for the best advice. I felt like most of what I found was advice from earthy, breastfeeding in public, cloth diapering, granola momma's. Not that there is anything wrong with that (more power to you!), it's just not me.

So here is advice from a barely kept it together, breastfeeding, show me the easiest way to get the most sleep at night, fly by the seat of your pants mom. As for the expert mom thing, let's face it: I was lucky to keep my first kid alive through his infant years. So take my tips for what you will, friends!

1. Okay so this is a cheat #1 because it's three different things. But I figured it was worth bundling them together. So, we'll do it like this:
1a: Medela Spare Parts Kit. I pumped a lot when I was breastfeeding Knox because I was working. I found out very quickly that since I was only functioning at about 50% 30% at that point, it was rare that I remembered to wash my pump parts the night before. These were a saving grace for me to have on hand! 
(side note: I learned a little later that you can rinse your pump parts, put them in a ziploc and put them in the refrigerator. This is good for about 24 hours.)
1b: Lanolin. I used the heck out of this stuff in the beginning of my breastfeeding adventures because, let's face it, it hurts sometimes. It's safe for you and for baby, so it's a win win.
(side note: It will stain your clothes. My trick was to always have on a bra/nursing pad BEFORE I used the lanolin so that all it touched was the nursing pad. Problem solved.)
1c: Medela Quick Clean Bags. These were SO great when we were traveling. I'll be honest with you, I'm not much of a stickler for sanitizing. And I'll be honest again, everything goes through the dishwasher in our house. But anytime we had to stay in a hotel, I'd take one of these to clean pump parts, bottles, whatever I would have run through the dishwasher at home.

2. A swing. We have this one. Man, oh man. I can't say enough good things about this nifty little invention. Knox LOVED his swing. It would soothe him when he was upset and as he got a little older he loved to watch the birds spin around and see himself in the mirror. When he was about six weeks old he got a nasty viral infection and was super congested. His doctor told us to elevate his head while he was sleeping to help with the congestion. I wasn't quite ready to put him in his own room yet, but there was no way to elevate his bassinet. Solution: we moved the swing into our room and he slept in it for a few weeks.
(disclaimer for all of you who are freaking out at the thought of my kid swinging a mile high in the middle of the night: we turned it off when he went to sleep. And yes, we buckled him in.)

3. Chicco Keyfit 30. When Knox was born, this was the best of the best in terms of safety and it was what everyone was using. So, it's what we got. I feel like now there are a lot more fancy carriers out there, but this one served every purpose we could have ever imagined and didn't break the bank. It will most definitely be used again for Gavin.

4. Up&Up Diapers. Y'all, diapers will cause you to file for bankruptcy. And I just don't have it in me to cloth diaper. Props to those of you who do, but I just can't do it. I discovered the Target brand diapers when Knox was probably 3 or 4 months old and never looked back. We had used Pampers up to that point because Huggies didn't fit him right. We are still using them to this day and will be using them for Gavin too! I would love to know how much money this saved us so far.
Up&Up Size 1 Diapers, 112 count: $16.99 vs. Pampers Size 1 Diapers, 100 count: $24.99
Even better? If you use the Cartwheel app, there is almost always at least 10% off Up&Up diapers and wipes!

5. Medela Freestyle Breast Pump. This thing was a life-saver. I am not a nurse in public type girl, even if I'm covered. I have nothing against those who do, I just choose not to. I was also working full-time when I had Knox. So I pumped a LOT. This pump is small and compact and uses a rechargeable battery, so it's very easily transported from place to place. I could usually carry it in my diaper bag if I needed to! It has a hands free gizmo, but it always reminded me of dominatrix type things and I was never able to figure out how to make it work. (If you've ever seen it, I'm sure you know what I'm talking about. Or maybe I'm just crazy. Could be that.)

6. Puj Tub. I LOVED this for bath time! It is one of the best baby inventions ever in my opinion. We don't have much any storage space in our house, so I didn't want one of those big bulky tubs that I was going to have to hide somewhere when we had company over. This fit perfectly in our kitchen sink and I could use the sprayer to wash Knox and stick the tub in a cabinet when we were done!

So, there you have it. The things that I need to go dig out of a box so that I'll have them when Gavin gets here come April!

29 Week Bumpdate.

I won't lie, I had to catch my breath when I typed 29 weeks. Twenty nine?! Really? You mean to tell me that there are only ELEVEN weeks left in this pregnancy? I'm pretty sure by this point I had Knox's nursery done and I had most definitely updated my blog with more than one pregnancy post. Oops? It really is true that the second child gets the shaft. Sorry, Gavin. Oh- I guess I haven't mentioned that Baby P is a boy and his name is Gavin. Again, oops.

Clayton and I decided to have a garage sale this weekend. I've been saying for two years "We have got to have a garage sale. We have so much junk." So I finally set a deadline for us. We've got to get rid of some stuff! I need to go through baby stuff and I can't even get to it. So that should be fun. Clayton is thrilled. But I'm hoping after that I can start getting a little more organized and ready for baby time.

Our poor neglected second child isn't really going to get much of a nursery. His crib is going in the guest room and he's getting to reuse big brothers bedding. I'm ready to change Knox's room and he's never even going to remember what his "first" room looked like. So I decided I'm not even going to bother. I know, mom of the year.

How far along? 29 weeks.
Maternity clothes? I am in my own version of maternity clothes. I bought clothes to fit when I was pregnant with Knox and I am most definitely wearing those!
Sleep: I finally got to a point where I was sleeping pretty good, but my insomnia is back. I should probably buy stock in Benadryl.
Missing anything? I would still give anything for a frozen margarita. With salt. Yum.
Food Cravings: I have had random cravings here and there, but nothing constant.
Gender: BOY! Gavin Reece.

Movement? This kid has dance parties every single night. Knox was not this active. I'm hoping that's not a sign of what's to come!
Mood: I feel like I've been in a pretty good mood, but Clayton may tell you otherwise!
Looking forward to: sorting through baby stuff and getting a little more prepared for Gavin's arrival!

And here are a couple of terrible pictures for your viewing pleasure. I shattered my phone last week and I think my camera took the brunt of the damage. 

Knox Turns TWO!

My, oh my. Where has the time gone? Is my precious boy really TWO? I really can't believe it. It seems like yesterday and a lifetime ago that he changed our lives. He is hard headed, stubborn, strong willed and the lovingest boy I've ever met. Reality is starting to sink in that he won't be my "baby" anymore (even though secretly he will ALWAYS be my baby) and that he will be a big brother in just a few short months. EEK! But that's for another day. Today, I can't wait to share his second birthday party with you!

This boy is obsessed with cowboys, tractors, heavy machinery and all things man. One of his very first words was "excavator." (No, I'm not kidding.)We talked for a couple of months about his birthday party and every time I asked him what kind of party he wanted he said very matter of factly, "John Deere tractor party." Unfortunately for my child, he will probably never have your basic good ol' John Deere green birthday party. So we settled for a more vintagey theme with tractors/farm animals.

For his first birthday I went ALL out. I always swore I wouldn't. But, of course, I did. I just couldn't help myself. I promised myself (and Clayton's wallet) that I would reign it in a little bit a lot for his second birthday.  Clayton's parents have a barn on their property, so I thought that would be the perfect setting for his party. Pretty much everything was DIY, so I Clayton was pretty thrilled with how little $$ I ended up spending.

I always do his invitations myself, but this year they ended up going out via text and email because, well, let's face it, I just couldn't get my act together with Christmas and his birthday being four days apart.

We had his party all planned out for Saturday December 21st since his actual birthday fell on a Saturday this year. We had talked all about it and he was SO excited. And then the weather decided it didn't care so much about my plans and we were told to prepare for the worst. And it was pretty terrible. Outdoor birthday party+terrible horrible no good very bad weather....well yeah, that just doesn't work out so well. So, like the fly by the seat of your pants parents that we are, we rescheduled for Sunday. It was still chilly, but it worked out for the best. We had snacks, a bonfire, a hayride, quite a few tractor rides and a "watering hole" to keep the adults sane.

So there you have it, the easy peasy details of Knox's second birthday party. He loved every second of it and I loved that it didn't take me six months to plan! And here are a few more pictures of the day for your viewing pleasure!