Soccer Mom

I have had serious Honda Odyssey envy ever since I got pregnant with Cooper. It used to be the Pilot, but then my sister got an Odyssey, and I thought they were the coolest vans. I never pictured me driving a van until I rode in one of these. They are so nice! And so spacious! So if you haven't guessed, we bought one Monday!!! I'm so excited! I can't believe that we actually did it. We have been looking hard since we got pregnant with Levi. It wasn't a necessity, but since Matt's car (my old one) was a 96, we knew that at any moment it could go out. I really did not think I would have one before summer. But God provided with a great deal! We just couldn't pass it up! It's a 2006 EX-L. It's so nice! Cooper kept saying that it is his big car. Yesterday when we got home with it he climbed all around. No kidding, he probably spent an hour climbing over seats. Anyways, I'm very thankful to have 2 reliable cars. We were having to switch any time we drove Coop, but now we have car seats in both. I am also very thankful for my husband who works very hard for us to be able to have nice things like this. Love you honey!!

Levi’s Nursery

My parents came two weekends in a row to help with Levi’s nursery.  The first weekend they came, it was awful!  Cooper was sick the entire time and up 3 hours the first night and then 5 hours the next night.  We took him to the doctor on Sunday and found out he had strep on top of bad allergies which was making him cough all day long!  So we were all exhausted!  We did manage to get the room painted and my dad and Matt hung the ceiling fan.  Mom also recovered the glider to put in Levi’s room.  So it wasn’t a total waste, but it would have been a lot easier if Cooper had been feeling better!

The next weekend was the weekend of Winterfest.  Mom, Cooper, and I were supposed to go to Winterfest, but because Cooper was sick and we were all coming down with it, we decided to stay home.  Mom and Dad ended up coming back and installing chair rail in the room.  My poor Dad was feeling so bad, but kept right on working!  I felt so bad for him, but honestly, since Cooper was feeling so much better, I felt like the weekend went much smoother!  They got the chair attached and painted on Thursday.  Friday mom did some deep cleaning since it is so hard for me to clean right now.  We also moved Cooper’s crib in to Levi’s room which means that Cooper is now sleeping in a queen size bed!  Cooper transitioned ok.  He’s never been the best at going to sleep, so really the queen bed has not made life any more difficult for us.  Mom also helped me organize the closets.  They were a mess! 

Below are just some of the pictures I took of the second weekend and some I took today of the finished product.  I didn’t get any pictures from the first weekend since Cooper wanted to be held the whole time.  But that’s ok.  I still have to hang some art, but the major stuff is all there!

 

 

Baby Shower for Jamie

Another one of my sweet friends is pregnant and due March 26th!  So not too much longer till she meets her little boy.  Today we threw her a baby shower from our Share Group.  Can’t wait to meet sweet Bennett!

me and Katie

the hostesses – Lauren, Brooke, Jamie, Katie, Abbie, and me

Jamie and me

April, Jamie, and me – Sweet pregnant friends!!

Don’t miss the new post below!

How to recover a glider

After my grandmother passed away, my mom brought me a glider from my grandmother’s house.  I wish I could say that it is an antique, but it’s not.  But I didn’t have a glider, and so it has been a nice addition to the furniture in our house.  The only bad part about it was that it was ugly!  :)  And I had lived with the ugliness long enough!  The initial plan was for me to buy replacement cushions.  But those are expensive!  I can buy a brand new rocker for the price of the cushions.  When I told Mom, she said that she could recover them with no problems.  My mom is so talented and creative that I wasn’t worried at all about how it would turn out. 

My mom came 2 weekends ago to help with this and several other projects.  We went to Hobby Lobby and found some upholstery fabric that would go great in Levi’s nursery.  I wanted to get something that would look great in his room, but then when he got bigger, I could bring the glider in the living room and it would go great too.  Well, I think we picked a great fabric!

Anyways, my mom did the majority of the work, but here are some of the “how we did it” pictures.

 

Lay your cushions over your fabric and cut around making a pattern

Turn them inside out and do a lot of sewing and other fancy things that I have no idea what she did!  :) (If you really want to know how to do this, let me know and I’ll ask my mom!)

Cut out a piece and staple to your ottoman.

Before and After!  What a difference!

 

Don’t miss the new post below!

Weeks 24 and 26

 

I did some major growing in week 24.  And I felt all the stretching that went along with it!  Levi is packing on the pounds according to the scale.  :) 

 

I’m still feeling ok.  Not sleeping all that great, but I didn’t with Cooper so I was prepared for that.  Cooper can no longer sit in my lap without me being very uncomfortable.  I have to put him to my side to read to him.  Bending over to get things off the floor is pretty impossible.  I’m still having Braxton Hicks, but nothing regular.

Levi is a big kicker.  He kicks all night long!  He likes to kick my bladder in just the right spot where it hurts if I don’t go to the bathroom. 

We are looking forward to meeting this little guy!  Not too much longer to go!!

Boy toys

My mom and dad were here this weekend working on Levi's nursery. My dad was installing chair rail in the room which required him to use a lot of tools. Coop kept wanting to play with Poppy's "toys". Of course he couldn't play with any of them without hurting himself, so what did Poppy do? He went straight to Walmart and bought his boy some tools. Coop sat forever screwing and unscrewing, hammering, sawing, and more. I think Poppy is motivated to teach him about tools as he grows. Poppy was showing him what a nut, bolt, hacksaw, etc. do and how to use them. Of course Coop was all in to it! I think a big workbench is probably in Cooper's future!

I've been tagged...

First Things First, The Rules:

You must post the rules.
Post eleven facts about yourself on the blog post.
Answer the questions the tagger set for you in their post, and then create eleven new questions to ask the people you've tagged.
Tag eleven people and link them on your post.
Let them know you've tagged them!

My Eleven Facts:

1.  I hate talking on the phone.  If you know me well, you are already well aware of this.  I just hate it!  Since I've gotten my Blackberry, texting has made communication so much better.  So, if you call and I don't say too much, don't take it personally!

2.  Another hate (but one Matt loves about me!  :) ) - I hate to shop!  Hate it!!  My mom and sister wish badly that I weren't this way.  And I don't know where I inherited this.  Because my dad likes to shop as well.  I don't know if it has anything to do with me not liking to spend money, but girls, don't ask me to go shopping with you.  I may say yes, but I will be miserable the whole time!!

3.  I love to scrapbook, but I never do it any more.  I dream of one day having a scrapbooking room at another house.  It would be awesome!

4.  In college, I took a test to tell me what career path I should go down since I had no idea.  Some of the top choices were construction worker and landscape architect.  Being a teacher was no where on the list.  When I took my personality test, it also said that teaching would not suit my personality!  :)  But alas, that is what I chose to do!

5.  I've always wanted to own a Hummer and a Ford Mustang.  Neither of these will ever happen unless I win the lottery which I don't play...

6.  I don't like the ocean or lakes.  I do prefer creeks or rivers.  Whitewater rafting and tubing are my adventure sports.  :)

7.  My favorite candy is Resees cups or Snickers.  My favorite drink is Diet Dr. Pepper.  Frosty's from Wendy's make everything better.  I always have a box of brownies in my pantries for emergency chocolate needs.

8.  In high school I decided that I wanted to marry a youth minister.  Not really thinking this would ever happen until I fell for Matt. 

9.  Each morning before work (I only work one day a week), I go to Chick Fil A and get a buttered biscuit and hashbrowns.

10.  I take WAY too much Tylenol and Ibuprofen (when I'm not preggo).  My heating pad is also my best friend.

11.   I hate cooking, baking, and grocery shopping.  I do it only to survive and because I like to eat!


Erin's Eleven Questions:


1. What would your dream vacation be?

- to go back to Italy.  I studied abroad in college without Matt, and I've always wanted to take him back over.  It will definitely happen, just not anytime soon!
2. If you had a whole day with no electronics… what would you do?

- READ!!!  I LOVE to read.  I can read for hours if it is a good book.

3. What is your favorite meal… what you would ask for on your birthday?

- I love chicken parm from Olive Garden.  And then top it off with cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory.
4. What makes you feel closest to God?

- when I am struggling as a mother.  I feel as though I have prayed more since becoming pregnant with Cooper than at any other time in my life.  I have never felt more helpless and rely on HIM for guidance.  I seriously do not know how people do parenthood without HIM!
5. What do you do to keep your feet warm at night? (Mine are ALWAYS freezing!)

- mine are always hot!  :)

6. Pepsi or Coke? Why?

- Diet Dr. Pepper or Coke Zero.  I can't stand the taste of regular!  (Sorry Erin!  :) )
7. Name one thing in nature that makes you happy every time you see it.

- flowers or butterflies.  I know that's two, but I couldn't choose.
8. What’s the most physically challenging thing you have ever done?

- well if we aren't counting labor (come on, you know we should get a medal for that!), then I guess it would be training and running a half-marathon.  I did this in college my junior year.  I wish I had kept up with it!
9. What is the best gift you have ever received?

- my engagement ring.  It is so perfect for me.  And oddly enough, I would have never picked it out, but as soon as Matt slipped it on my finger, it was perfect.  I can't imagine having a different ring.  It suits my personality so well.  My husband really knows me!!
10. What’s your idea of a great date?

- right now, anywhere without Cooper!  It doesn't take much to make me and Matt happy on a date these days.  And it is even better if we can stay over-night in a hotel.  That really makes me happy!!
11. Warm or cold weather? Why?

- definitely cold weather.  If I lived up north, this would not be the answer.  But since I live in Alabama, winter is not really winter.  We can still get out and do things.  And the warm weather in Alabama is sweltering!  Unless you are in the water, you don't go outside in the heat of the summer.


11 Questions I want answered:

1.  Cat or dog person and why?

2.  If you could talk to any person, who would it be?

3.  Favorite book and movie?

4.  If you could live anywhere, where would you live?

5.  Do you hit the snooze button in the morning?

6.  Favorite article of clothing in your closet?

7.  Favorite Bible verse and why?

8.  Dream vacation?

9.  Are you on time or late when you go places?

10.  What is your thermostat set on at home?

11.  Favorite dessert?

My people I'm tagging:

1.  Brandy
2.  Sha
3.  Trisha
4.  Kathryn
5.  Sarah D.
6.  Holly
7.  Amy
8.  Sara R.
9.  Kristin B.
10.  Jamie
11.  Brooke