Story of the night:

We were eating dinner, just like any normal family would on a Sunday evening. John got finished before we did, so we let him out of his high chair. Matt and I were having a good conversation when we saw John wanting his shirt off. It was a little wet, so Matt took it off. Next thing we know, John has pulled his pants completely off, next his socks, and then the diaper. He was completely naked standing in the kitchen. I asked him if he needed to go potty, he said "NO". He pulled on Matt until he got up. John led him into the bathroom and announced, "BATH!" Matt said, "No, not yet." John whined a bit and then came into the kitchen. He saw I was eating peas, and he loves peas. So the dinner ended up with John, stark naked on my lap, eating peas...yet, then he went on to pretend the peas were cars and he would make a crashing sound when they ran into each other. OH...what a boy!

Below are pictures of John with his "silkies". He loves his silky blanket, as well as my 2 silky robes. Tonight he felt he needed all three to carry around and lay on.

Lately I have been hearing through books, sermons and talks, about being more intentional. I have been working on this for a while now, especially when spending time with John. Tonight, as I did the dishes, I tried to be intentional. I reflected on what I had heard and talked about today. I also said a prayer of what was on my mind...going back to school tomorrow still pregnant. I have come to an understanding that the baby just isn't ready yet. I just got my hopes up so much last week when all the craziness started and I really thought I would have a baby by now. I know that it isn't about my timing, but God's timing. I also know that the baby will come and it will be a true bundle of joy. This is what I came to conclusion of while doing the dishes. I must say, I was surprised when I already had the kitchen clean when I finished reflecting and being intentional. I hope that I can continue doing this throughout the next couple of weeks. I would like for it to become something that I do on a continuous basis.

Have a great Monday!

Today we went down to Crown Center to enjoy the Fairy Tale Village. It is super cute, but there were A LOT of people there. We got down there around 10:30 and by 11:00, they had already let 800 people in! Needless to say, it was very crowded and a little overwhelming to John. We are thinking we might go down again on a week day, maybe after the baby is born and I am on maternity leave. Here are some pictures of today...

John did not like the Wolf's voice in the 3 Little Pigs house.

He wasn't too sure about the pigs either.

Very pregnant mommy and John

He really liked the Crayola store. He colored, picked out things he liked and played with the wheels that turn. He ended up with triangle shaped crayons (helps with writing skills) and dry erase crayons (an amazing thing!)

Getting ready for the baby...John and Daddy putting the car seat back together after washing it.

Update on new baby...

We are still waiting for the little one. Yesterday I ate spicy food and took a 3 hour walk... didn't seem to help. On my 3 hour walk, my mother in law, my mom and I saw this other lady who was pregnant walking. We stopped to talk to her and she is a week overdue. I guess I shouldn't complain. I hope she had her baby last night. Some people told me to drink Castro Oil but after looking up information about it, I decided I wasn't that desperate. I did have contractions last night for a few hours, but they stopped. Today I haven't had hardly any contractions but I have been very tired. Yet, the tiredness has not kept me from getting my whole house clean, straightening the basement storage and finding more things for the little one. My parents left tonight around 7:00. They stayed as long as they could but have traveled back to Houston to be at church tomorrow.

I won't lie...I am dreading having to go back to work on Monday. I had it set in my mind that I was finished for 6 weeks. However, it is looking like I will be back...which isn't a bad thing. I will get to meet my long term maternity sub, get another week of MAP prep in and see my darling students for another 5 days...then it is Spring Break.

One more thought...it is a full moon tomorrow...they say crazy things happen on those nights. I guess we'll see.

Here's an update...

I went to the hospital yesterday around 1:00 p.m. I had been having contractions since about 2:00 a.m. and they were getting down to about 7 min. apart. They had me come in. I was monitored until about 9:30 p.m. While laying there, I did progress from 1 cm. to 3 cm. My contractions were down to about 4 to 5 min apart. The baby is looking great. However, they sent me home and said to come back when the contractions were 2 to 3 min. apart. They said they wanted them more intense. (I will say that when they said that...I didn't appreciate it because I thought they were already painful...but that is okay). Since I got to come home, I did get to eat something for dinner and get a pretty good night's rest. My contractions got down to 3. 5 min. before going to bed. I don't know if I was just exhausted and was able to sleep through most of them or if my body gave me a little break...but I am feeling better this morning. Today I am at home with my parents, John and Matt. We will let you know if anything progresses. I would say that there will be some Mall Walking today! Hopefully this little one will come soon so we can meet him/her.

Thanks for all the thoughts and prayers.

Dull back pain tonight...

started earlier today...

got worse during class...

going to go lay down.

2 1/2 weeks to go...

Tonight when I asked John if he was ready to be a big brother, he nodded yes and then said "hi baby" to my belly. Maybe he is ready...

Hard evening tonight...

John was super cranky

I was super tired and uncomfortable

John fell twice and now has 2 bruises (one on his forehead and one on his cheek)

John wouldn't let me brush his teeth

I have to grade papers

At 7:00, I finally gave in and put in the movie, Cars. We laid on the couch, but I couldn't get comfortable and John couldn't seem to get comfortable on my belly. Plus...this baby has NO MORE room, so any movement is uncomfortable. Finally, John gave up laying on my chest or beside me, and laid on my legs. He realized that he was tired, so he didn't want to lay anymore. I decided, even though it was 7:30...it was bedtime. I might be regretting it at 5:00 am, but all is quiet right now.

John loves when I say "Are you ready to brush your teeth?" He instantly points to his teeth and says "br teeth". Tonight I caught him doing some tricks while he was brushing.

1. Making faces in the mirror

2. Trying to turn the water off and on with his foot

Yesterday we went to Barnes and Noble. John was walking between my mom and I. I hear this soft humming coming from him as we walk. In the middle of his humming

, he would stop and say hi to anyone walking buy. However, the farther we got in the store...the louder his humming got. By the time we got to the children's section, he was singing with mouth wide open and loudly. LOVE IT!

Below is the book that my mom got John yesterday and it is super cute. It is like Simon Says but Elmo Says. John interacts with it as Elmo says to do different things. He thinks it is really funny when Elmo says "uh oh" because he didn't say "Elmo says"

Good book pick!

Yesterday was a PIE MAKING day! Matt wanted to give my mom's famous apple pies to all of his volunteers. This is a total of 19 people so we made 20 pies on Saturday (we made one for ourselves). Luckily my mom came up this weekend, so we had her helping. Matt had a wedding that he had to help with and his last words as he went out the door was "you ladies, don't feel like you have to make all the pies while I am gone. I'll help when I get back." Mom and I started at 12:45 and were getting ready to make the last pie at 3:15. (We didn't bake them) Matt walked in the door and really looked disappointed when we told him that 19 pies were made. He insisted on making the last pie...and we let him.

I couldn't blog about it last night because he wanted people to be surprised when they got their pies this morning...so here are the pics from yesterday. Enjoy!

John was big helper all day. He helped us peel, stir and eat the apples.

Luckily we had a an apple peeler/corer. It would have been a long, painful day without one.

Here is John doing one of his favorite jobs...eating.

Lovely picture...huh? I was in charge of the topping for the pie. (That's my favorite part to eat!)

The first pie...COMPLETE!

The pile of peelings after we were finished. There were a lot of apples.

The finished product...19 pies and one in the oven.

A great day indeed!

This is a hint of what tomorrow's blog is going to be about...so make sure and check in tomorrow! Have a great night!

Today was BABY SHOWER day at work!!

I will tell you it is weird when you are having your second child because you've already been through the parenthood thing, so you don't need all the "stuff" that you didn't have with the first one...because you already have it. With that comes the fact that you don't really have any baby showers. It kind of makes me sad because I love a good get together, but I also loved putting the new things away after each shower. It also makes you feel kind of guilty because the 2nd baby is just getting the leftovers. BUT...that feeling left today because my school gave me and Allison (another teacher expecting her 2nd) a basket baby shower today. It was absolutely wonderful. I will tell you that I work with the best staff. They make it so much easier to go to work each day. I also love the team that I work with. I can't imagine going to work each day and not looking forward to seeing the people that I work with. I think I am very blessed because of this. ANYWAY...they threw us a wonderful shower with LOTS of yummy food. I didn't get a picture of the food, but it was beautiful and delicious!

The other Communication Arts teacher that I work with surprised me by having my kids make a book for John about being a SUPER big brother. I had no idea that she had done this and it is adorable (and hilarious)! I can't wait to read it with John.

A very good day indeed! I will now be going to put these fun items away in the nursery.

Good night!

Mr. John loves his train book. He has loved it since the day that he got it. We couldn't even finish getting our jammies on because he was in the middle of reading the book himself. Each page he mumbles something and then says, "Choo Choo". Below is a video of him reading.

Funny story today:

John loved his shoes today. Every time we would try to take the shoes off...he cried and said "Shoes, Shoes". As we are getting him ready for bed, we took off his shoes and he cried, "Shoes, Shoes". We told him that he couldn't sleep in his shoes and his reply was, "Why?"

I have a feeling I am going to get that question from him a lot.

Have a great night.

Remember climbing up in tree houses when you were a child? I always wanted a tree house but never had one. Well...tonight I found cottages that are tree houses in Eureka Springs! They are beautiful. If you click on the picture of the tree house, it takes you to the website. They have all kinds of accommodations and beautiful hiking trails all around them. One of the accommodations they have is that there is cinnamon and pumpkin bread waiting for you in the kitchen. They also have fresh flowers awaiting you. I am a sucker for food and flowers. The bedroom, kitchen and bathroom (jacuzzi's!!!) all look out into the trees and the landscape. It looks beautiful!

Why am I looking these things up you may ask? About 8 weeks after John was born, Matt and I stayed in a bed and breakfast in Liberty and left John with his mom and dad. It was a wonderful, little get away for us, especially with just having a child and me starting back to work. My thought is that we could meet up with my parents, drop the kiddos off with them and head down to Eureka Springs.

I went to Eureka Springs when I was really young and I barely remember it. I have always wanted to go back there and see it. I hear it is beautiful. Hmmm....this plan is sounding better and better.

John so badly wants to play outside. When the sun is shining, he goes to the window and says "outside". Poor guy...I hope that it gets warm soon.

My darling is doing some new things in the past couple of days:

1. He is starting to pretend more. He has always pretended driving cars and helicopters, but this past couple of days he has pretended to feed Matt and I something from a plate and spoon. He says "Yum Yum" when he puts the spoon to our mouths. Tonight in the tub, he had his little people lined up on the edge of the tub and it was like he was having them have conversations with each other. It's neat to see these little things as he grows.

2. PHRASES!!! He is starting to say more phrases, such as "More please", or "Get up", "I done". He is working on "love you". It is almost there. It is amazing to see his vocabulary growing each day.

Yesterday I made waffles. I have always used Bisquick and thought they tasted heavy. So I made them from scratch. However, instead of using milk, I used water thinking that it would make them lighter. They were a little too thin, so I guess I'll try half milk and half water. Any suggestions???

Update on the baby: I went to the doctor today and I am still at 1 cm. Which kind of surprised me but then I came to my senses and thought, "I was at a 1 with John for almost 3 weeks". Anyway...the doctor said that everything looks good. Baby's head is down and everything seems ready to go. I need to be drinking 8 oz of water an hour...YIKES! That is a lot of water! She also said that I didn't need to stay off my feet unless it is for comfort. (Last week, her orders were to stay off my feet as much as possible.) She said she wanted me to get to at least 36 weeks...so I am there! When this baby is ready to come...there is no stopping it!

Getting close...

As some of you know...there was no blogging last night. I missed my first day this year and I was totally bummed this morning when I woke up. HOWEVER...I do have an excuse (I hate it when my students say that...but I am going to do it anyway). I was having contractions last night for about 3 hours. It started at Wendi's (Matt's sister) birthday party and lasted until after we arrived home. They actually stopped as soon as my hospital bag was packed...go figure. Anyway, they started at being 20 min. apart and by the end were at about 9 min. apart. I thought that we might just be having a baby last night. My original due date is Thursday, Feb. 18th and I am wondering if maybe it shouldn't have changed. I have a dr. appointment tomorrow, so we will see what she says. OH...back to me not blogging. The contractions stopped around 10 and I was exhausted from all the pain and wondering if this was the real deal, that I collapsed in bed. As soon as I had my head on that pillow...I was out. I did wake up in the middle of the night, thinking, "I didn't blog" but I didn't have the energy to get up.

SO...I have put extra pictures up tonight. I guess to make up for last night. So enjoy!

Celebrating Wendi's Birthday! Luke did an excellent job at helping open gifts.

John smiling for the camera while he at lunch.

John had a dr. appointment today since he has turned 18 months. He wore his Sesame Street Live shirt to the dr. office and showed it off to EVERYONE! He kept pointing out Elmo and Cookie Monster (Cookie is what he says). Here he is showing it off at the dinner table. The dr. visit went well. He weighs 26 lbs and 14 oz. A little less than when we were there last but the dr. said that is okay because he is 33 inches long! He has reached almost all of the 2 year old mile stones already so that was exciting news. The only one we haven't met is walking down the stairs alone. YIKES! I will say that as soon as we walked into the examination room...TEARS exploded from John's eyes. He knew what was coming. He got 3 shots today, however, as soon as they were over and we got the shirt back on...he was ready to show off. He even danced in the hallway as we were entering the waiting room.

We always feel so bad after John has to get shots that we spoil him rotten. So after his afternoon nap, he got to watch Elmo and have chocolate milk. Daddy came home from work with a ball that was just John's size as well as a hot wheel car. Above and below are pictures of John wanting to throw the ball high against the wall like Daddy does. Below...well I am not sure what happened.

The dryer was making a weird grinding sound today so Daddy and John got work on it. Here is them working together to figure out the problem...BOBBY PINS! They must have been in a pocket and got stuck in the dryer wheel. Thanks goodness that didn't cost money!

This is John saying "stuck" because Matt couldn't get the back off of the dryer.

Funny story of the day...

During dinner tonight, we were eating and asking John all kinds of questions about his day and such. All of a sudden, John acts like he is "hawking a lugee". He had the sound down and the spitting to the side down pat. I was in disbelief and Matt almost fell out of his chair he was laughing so hard. The first words out of my mouth was, "What was that and where did he learn it?" Matt couldn't talk because of laughter, but he pointed to himself. I just rolled my eyes and put my head in my hands. I tell you what...if this next one is a boy...there is no telling what our dinners will be like for the next 18 years.

I guess boys will be boys.

Matt and John love playing cars. It is a daily thing to walk into the living room and see Matt and John playing with the hot wheels. I don't know if I have said this before but when I play with cars, I describe them as "Oh look at the red car." (so I do it by color) However, Matt says the correct name of each car and tells John all about them. John listens so intently as Matt is describing them. Here are some pictures of Daddy and John play time.

TICKLE TIME!!

Practicing Somersaults...

Love this picture...

Cousin Luke came over tonight while his parents went out with friends. John loves playing with Luke. We do have other seats in the living room, however, we all ended up in one chair for the movie.

Tonight, my hubby and I watched the Winter Olympics Opening Ceremonies. This is a difference between us...I love the Summer Olympics and he loves the Winter Olympics. Don't get us wrong, we do really like to watch both, but those are our preferences. I will tell you, after watching all the scenes of Vancouver...I would love to visit or maybe live there. My mother and father in law visited there this past summer and their comment was, "We can't let Matt and Jodi come here because they'll stay."

Matt's comment as the opening ceremonies began was "I think I should work from home this week so I can watch the Olympics."

The Canadians did an amazing job. I think they knew it would be tough to follow up after Beijing's Opening Ceremonies, but I think they did a fabulous job.

The grand opening was the "We Are the World" Premiere. I love this song and think it has so much meaning to it. I love the old version, and it still is my favorite but I thought they did a good job at redoing it. Click here to see it if you haven't yet.

Favorite parts of the Opening Ceremonies:

1. The whales that turned into salmon (this was the coolest part)

2. The totem poles that rose from the ground

3. The snowboarder opening the ceremony

4. Canada's mittens with the Maple Leaf in the palm of their hands

5. The red dress that the singer wore that sang "Oh Canada"

6. The cloth that was raised to make a mountain

7. The poem at the end was amazing. It made Matt and I want to be a Canadian. We loved the line "We are please and thank you." I love that they can define themselves by being polite. I don't think that is what America would be able to say.

My last thought for the Olympics...How do you get on the Olympic planning committee when it comes to your city? I think that would be a very cool committee to be a part of.

Good night and enjoy the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Valentines Day was celebrated today between Matt and I. My husband is so sweet everyday, but today he made it a little more special. At lunch, I was told that I had a delivery in the office. Low and behold this is what was waiting for me...

To make it even better, Matt arranged these flowers. Isn't he amazing?

Then my darling took me to dinner at Lidia's. It was delicious! We had a 3 course meal called Pasta Trio. We had Ceaser Salad, 3 different types of pasta (the waiter's come around and give you all you want of the 3 different kinds), and dessert. Our waitress was so sweet because I had 3 desserts I wanted. Matt picked one of them and I picked another one. The waitress, when bringing out our desserts, brought us the 3rd dessert that I was wanting. It was these 3 different kinds of ice cream. When sitting it down on our table, she said, "I think you need the calcium." LOVE IT!

I know that I don't say this enough, especially on my blog, but I do have such a wonderful husband. He is my perfect match and I can't imagine my life without him. I love you Matt.

Happy Valentines Day to everyone!

Tonight is going to be a bunch of words because I have so many thoughts on my mind.

Starbucks on 39th Street is a getaway for me. Two darling friends and I meet together there weekly to discuss the book Crazy Love. However, it is not all we talk about it. It is a safe haven for us. A place to go and speak our minds about really anything we wish. It is a place that we can ask questions about our faith, our kids, our husbands, our finances, or really anything. We talk about things that we hope for, things we dream and things that drive us crazy. We are three people that are going through pretty much the same stage of life, so we understand each other and what are thoughts are as we think out a process. I think back to when I first had John. I felt like I had to be with him all of my spare minutes. I was scared to miss something because so many people said "Oh they grow up so fast." I would get so jealous of Matt when he would go out with the guys, or go to Bible Study or even up to work with friends at the church. I know that I probably wasn't the best wife at the time, because in a way I was lonely. Don't get me wrong...I have a darling son who puts a smile on my face faster than anyone could AND I have a wonderful husband who would do anything for me. At the time I had wonderful friends; yet, still something was missing. It was fellowship. Since then, I have learned that it is okay to really take time to myself. I had said this before when John was first born but I don't think I really believed it. Now, I look forward to my time at the cozy 39th Street Starbucks. I don't get jealous of Matt going out with the guys or heading out to Bible Study. I think the best advice I could give a new mom is to REALLY take time for yourself with girlfriends.

This probably is something very random to write about...but I have been thinking about it, so that's what I blogged. Have a great night.

Things that went on at our house tonight...

John was convinced that he could get in this truck. He tried and tried and ended up being frustrated.

We've had trouble with John splashing TONS of water out of the bathtub, so we bought him a distraction. It was a hit! He only splashed at the end and we didn't have a river on our bathroom floor.

Today I had contractions and they had me come in and get monitored at the hospital. Looks like I am at 1cm. and 70% effaced...so the contractions did something today. My instructions...stay off your feet as much as possible. Matt made sure that I did this tonight and this is what he fixed me for a snack while we watched a movie. CREAM PUFFS!!

Funny Faces made by John...

These are a few of the faces that Matt caught on camera the other night. This is one of the things I love about John...HIS EXPRESSIONS! Most of the time you can tell exactly what he is thinking or feeling just by the look on his face. Check them out...

"Tickle Tickle"

He loves to tickle people.

Oh and check out those teeth! We are working on our last two teeth...it is almost over!

More than likely he is saying, "Juice"

Wish this one was clearer because I love that happy grin!

His new thing to do is say "Hmmm??" This is the look for that. The other 2 new things he is saying is "Oh" after you tell him something or "I don't know" and he shrugs his shoulders....so cute!

And this one sums it up...priceless!