Madison Street Festival 2011

This was our 2nd year to go to the Madison Street Festival. We ate, Finley rode a pony and played in the inflatables. It's funny what a difference a year makes when you're talking about toddlers. We went with the Chatams again this year. Here is a picture of Finley and Abby back then...

and this year...

Katie, Abby's mom, and I joked that this was our one year anniversary. Joey knew Katie from high school and introduced us at the festival last year. I can't imagine what this year would have been like if we hadn't met. She has become such a good friend and we would not be as happy as we are in Huntsville if it weren't for those girls. We love you, Katie and Abby (we love you too Wade!)

Here are some pics from this year.



There are no pics of me and Katie. We are both pregnant and were both feeling good that day so we were busy eating our weight in Greek food, kettle corn and funnel cakes.

See what I mean?

It's not pretty.

Big Girl room!

Sneak Peek...obviously not done yet, but it's a work in progress :) Yes, that second picture is where I spilled paint all over her carpet. Awesome.

Big Sister Finley!

As most of you know by now, I'm pregnant! What many of you do not know is how I loathe being pregnant. I have every pregnancy symptom you can think of. I was sick for the first 4 months, raging heartburn no matter what I eat, I get huge and I gain weight all over, my nose is stopped up, my face breaks out and I get horrible headaches. I know I am blessed to be pregnant, but it's hard to be positive when I feel so bad. I had all these symptoms when I was pregnant with Finley and here they are again. There are some differences in this pregnancy. With Finley, I craved milk. This time, any milk that goes in my stomach comes back up. With Finley, I was sick all day, but it was worse in the AM, this time it's worse at night. With Finley, I really didn't have any food aversions, but with this baby I can't tolerate sweets. They sound good, but when I eat them I feel terrible. I'm showing way earlier than I did with Finley, but I figured that would happen. What I didn't anticipate was the awful mommy guilt I would feel. I'm feeling better physically, so it's not as bad, but for a while there it was rough. I felt like I only had a short time left with just me and Finley, but I was so sick I couldn't play with her or take her to do fun things. I could barely get out of bed to make her something to eat or get her juice. I was throwing up at night so Joey completely took over dinner, bath and bedtime with Finley so I felt totally disconnected and sad that she would think I didn't love her. I thought for sure she would be damaged somehow by it. I think my hormones have leveled out a bit, because I know that's not going to happen ;) I plan on making up for it though. The holidays are right around the corner and we are going to make the most of our last months as a family of 3. Of course we are so excited to find out what we're having. We find out on Nov. 15th so I'll be counting down the days. I remember being pregnant with Finley and I was so miserable and once I found out it was a girl, I started buying clothes and decorating the nursery and that was the only thing that kept me going. So far, everything is good with baby #2. I hate being sick, but it is comforting thinking that as long as I'm nauseous, baby is probably okay in there. I'm 15 weeks and 3 days, I think. I'm starting to turn the corner and feel better, but I still have bad days. Mostly I think it relates to sleep and these dang headaches. On the upside, I'm so excited to have another baby and for Finley to be a BIG SISTER! I wish I could give birth tomorrow...is it April 2nd yet? Oh, and April 2nd is not only my due date, it's Finley's birthday! We didn't exactly plan it that way, but I like being pregnant in the winter months and I loved having a a newborn in the Spring. The weather is nice and I don't worry abut bundling him or her up and then summer is right around the corner. It doesn't hurt that since I'm pregnant in the winter, I can indulge in all the holiday eating without hesitation. I even have a legitimate reason to wear stretchy pants :) I'll keep everyone updated. Please pray for a healthy baby :)

Pumpkin Patch 2011

We drove over to Heflin, AL last Saturday to meet up with some friends for a trip to Bennett Farms pumpkin patch. Finley had a good time and it was great to see my friends and their babies. Unfortunately, we were too busy chasing kids to actually carry on a conversation, but that's just the way it is nowadays. I left my memory card at home and realized it when we arrived so I got no pictures. Thankfully, the others played photographer for me. While we were on the hayride out to the pumpkin patch, Finley got a piece of hay stuck in the back of her throat which made her gag and then puke on the hayride. Yeah, it happened. She recovered quickly and I made it through the episode without puking which took considerable effort on my part. Just thinking about it makes me queasy. After the patch, we stopped at a BBQ place for lunch and then headed home. It was a fun day!

Finley Goes to School.

Finley started Mother's Morning Out this fall. This is her first time to be in any sort of school/daycare setting so it was rough at first. She goes two 1/2 days a week. She cried each time I dropped her off for about 2 weeks. Then, slowly but surely, the tears turned to one tear and then the one tear turned to a little sniffle and now she tells me bye with a smile and joins her friends at their table. She really enjoys it! Her teacher, Miss Debbie, says that she does great. I was a little worried at first because she is in an older 2's class with 6 other kids. So far, 4 of the six have already turned 3. I actually think it works out though. She plays better with kids who are older and I think she is learning a lot from them. I always thought my favorite part would be the 4 hours I had to myself, but it's not. My favorite part is all the cute art projects she brings home. I LOVE them! They do all kinds of fun things. They celebrate birthdays, the fire truck came to visit, they have Bible story time with a storyteller, they play on the playground and they always have fun little activities going on in the classroom. I couldn't be happier with her teacher or the program!

Mom of the Year Moments:
1.) Picture day was a couple weeks ago and I forgot and sent Finley to school in a summer outfit because I hadn't gotten her any fall clothes yet and I stuck a clip in her barely brushed hair that didn't match her outfit. Oh well! I'm sure it won't be the last time that happens.
2.) I forgot to pick up a calendar at the beginning of September so I sent Finley to school in a pink and brown outfit on "Yellow Day". At the orientation, the director told us to make sure and get a calendar because we may not care that it's "Yellow Day", but our child will be very upset when he or she gets to school and is the only one not wearing yellow. I'm pretty sure Finley had no idea, but I felt bad :(

Finley has her school Halloween party in a couple weeks. I'm so excited! I'm making spider cupcakes ;)

Baby Efan :)

Two days a week, I keep a friend's baby. His name is Ethan, but Finley calls him Baby Efan. It has been great! It takes my mind off being sick, it's great training for when my second one gets here and Finley gets to practice being a big sister. She loves it! She plays with Ethan's toys and follows Dixie (their dog) around the house. We take walks to see the horses and cows and read books to Ethan. My favorite is when she calls him "Buddy". She'll say "what's wrong buddy" or "look buddy". I was surprised at how well she reacted to me holding another child. She has never shown any jealousy. I have a feeling that will change once she realizes that the new baby is here to stay ;) For now, I'm enjoying seeing her in this new situation.