Glutton for Punishment

Last week, I couldn't think of anything fun to do inside soooo, I took my 39 week pregnant self to Fort Pulaski with my little men on a day when the heat index was 111. Am I crazy? Maybe! But...they had a BLAST!! I have this strange tug on my heart right now because I know I only have one more week with them the way things are, yet I know that things will be great with our newest addition too. I loved seeing their little faces light up at all the cool discoveries at the fort and especially loved seeing them play their little hearts out with their cannons and soldiers when we got home. It was so precious!

The Game Plan

I have not been shy to mention on here before that I am quite the planner. I absolutely love being given a task and then being able to accomplish it knowing I will meet the expectations of those around me. I went to the doctor Tuesday and still not much is going on with little miss so...we made a game plan. I go back this Tuesday for one last ultrasound to check her size and if all goes well, then I will enjoy my weekend and celebrate my actual due date (the 4th) at a fabulous wedding we are invited to. Then on Monday August 6th at 5:00pm, we will check in for an induction and the plan is to have her Tuesday August 7th!! Now my hope and prayer is that none of that is necessary and I will get to experience going into labor on my own and the fun and excitement that goes along with it, but just in case, a game plan has been made and boy does that make this little planning mama happy!!
Her car seat is all ready to go with this adorable cover I ordered from Jacques Bebe Designs on Ebay, and her Vera Bradley diaper bag is here in all it's purple glory! I'm so ready to meet this little girl!!!

It's All About Dad!

The one thing I love most about having sons is watching them emulate their daddy! It seems right now that every single day their desire is to be "exactly like daddy!" It is so cute to see them transition into little men and copy cat almost every move Chris makes. I had to share some pics because lately it has been No Girls Allowed quite a bit around here.  I don't mind one bit because if their hearts turn out like their daddy's, I know they will be wonderful men who will make two lucky little ladies very happy.

We watched the Home Run Derby the other night and it inspired Grady to want to go out and hit some balls. Now if we could just make him understand that you don't do everything perfect every single time, we would be good to go. :) Davis took some hits too off the tee and practiced his catcher skills. It was hot, but they had fun. I only stopped by to snap a few shots and then hit the road for a nice quiet bike ride. It was a win, win kind of morning!

I had not been to the library since I was in college but since Grady will be heading to kindergarten and does love to read books with us, I figured it was time to get a library card again. We have been having so much fun reading new books each night and usually I do the reading at least with Grady but this night it just had to be dad. As you can see Grady thinks he is so big now that he even wears boxers and a white t-shirt "just like dad" to sleep in. Precious!

The boys had been hounding Chris to take them fishing so he used his Bass Pro gift card to get them little men fishing poles and away they went to the Gun Club on Saturday. Nothing was caught but memories were definitely made. Both of them had so much fun telling me all about fishing with Dad. 

 Last but not least, we both took the boys by our friend Ken's fire station on Saturday. We didn't tell them where we were going just that we had a surprise. When we pulled up, you would have thought it was Christmas! They loved "driving" the trucks and pretending to answer fire calls. Davis is convinced that is exactly what he wants to be when he grows up and I am A okay with that because I truly do believe firemen are unsung heroes of our cities. 

I am sure the boys will enjoy plenty more daddy time in the weeks to come while mom gets used to having a newborn again, but I know one thing for sure...they won't mind at all!!!!!

Surprise Surprise!!

Today I went back to the doctor for another check and surprise, surprise still nothing going on at all! So with 17 days to go, it looks like we are in it for the long/short haul. :) After a day filled with mixed emotions, I went to a friends' baby shower tonight and while I was out, my absolutely amazing, kind, generous, caring, creative husband was preparing the most awesome surprise that I have had in a long long time. He turned our master closet in the cottage into a full fledged nursery!! He even went and found lavender curtains to make it like the lavender walls I have always dreamed of having. I literally burst into tears, and not just because of the crazy hormones rushing through my body, but because I have been blessed enough to marry a man who cares about the little things that he knows will brighten my day/month/year! I am just astounded that he could do all this 1)without me knowing at all and 2)in two short hours! It is so precious and makes it so much more real. I can't wait for our little girl to get to know her daddy. She has no idea the blessing that is waiting for her. He truly is a man that loves his family and wants the very best for us and I love him to the moon and back. 

37 Weeks!!!!

Every pregnant girls dream...full term! I am so excited that we will meet our little girl in 3 weeks or less! I wish I had cute little lavender walled nursery pictures to show you, but that will all have to wait. God is teaching me so much through all this and giving me such a focus for what really matters instead of filling my time and attention with the things that are just for fun. I am thankful and am trying to savor the moments. Chris and I are pretty sure that this will be our last little baby and knowing that makes me appreciate this pregnancy that much more. As I watched the fireworks on July 4th, I could feel her moving around and she had the hiccups. I wish I could remember that feeling forever. I really do love being pregnant because it is a time when you can just let your body relax a little, and the very best part of all is feeling the baby move inside you. It amazes me every time and makes me wonder how in the world people can go through this life and not believe in God. I love not having to hold your stomach in all the time and the sweet things people say when they see your tummy growing. I will miss my sleep that I still am blessed enough to get and I will miss walking and feeling no guilt over not running a single step. I definitely will be glad to be able to tie my shoes easily again and sleep on my tummy, but to think I won't get to experience all this again is definitely bitter sweet. I have all her little gowns washed and the car seat, stroller, and bassinet all washed and ready to go. It's getting quite exciting over here and the countdown is on!!!

Back to the basics

Mothering truly is the most difficult task I have ever been given and although pictures can do a great job of painting the good times, they don't at all portray the times when I think steam might literally come out of my ears, or I might actually just get in the car and drive away, or my screams can probably be heard within a 100 yard radius. I think one of the scariest parts can be not knowing what your ROI will be. Now for all you non-finance majors out there that is "return on investment." In this world where we know for certain Satan is here among us, raising children can be a very intimidating job. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us, "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour." This means that we must be ever mindful when raising our little people to make sure that they know the truths of God's word so that they can guard against the devils attacks when they come, because they WILL come.

The other day I was so encouraged when reading one of my favorite blogs, Marathon Mom. She is the mother of eight boys that she homeschools and although I don't even know her, I am pretty much in awe that any one human can endure that and have the energy to blog about it as well. Anyway, here is what she reminded me of.
"I want every single one of my children to love God, know God, and grow up to live for Him.
I sigh because I realize it’s the ONLY thing that matters in motherhood.  It’s the entire point.  Nothing else that I accomplish with these boys academically is more important than this one thing.  Sure, haircuts, diaper changes, clean dishes, soccer games, and orthodontic appointments have to happen, because, in short, in taking care of these children’s needs, I AM nurturing them toward that ONE GOAL.  In loving them and in serving them and in taking the best care of them that I can, I am working toward that one goal. So, God, please help us keep in perspective what it means to keep our children’s hearts. Please help us remember that their hearts ultimately belong to YOU, first, and that we are only temporary stewards of their precious hearts.  Help us to remember, even on hard days, the importance of our work.   Help us remember we’re not just “keeping our homes”, or keeping a schedule, or keeping a menu.  But that in doing all these things, we’re serving them, we’re keeping their hearts, so that we….so that they, can serve YOU."

Happy 4th of July!

I can't believe that we will have an 11 month little girl next 4th! So exciting! We enjoyed watching the fireworks though and are off to see some more tonight! Hope everyone has a happy and safe holiday!

What is our first love?

My pastor spoke on this a few Sundays ago and I just had to share with you all. He threw out quite a challenge to each of us sitting in the pews that day.
"What is our first love?"
Is it our job, our family, sports, money? Is it television, the internet, clothes? Is it traveling, exercising, shopping? What do we spend our physical and mental time on?
The bottom line is that our first love MUST be God!
"Are we living for ourselves, or to honor and serve our Lord and Savior?"

Just something to think about in this crazy busy world that rushes by at warp speed each day. Happy Monday!

Enjoy my new favorite song!
Now if I could just live up to it, I would be good to go :)
Live Like That by Sidewalk Prophets