3 weeks left

And I am well.

New Tea I like :-)

School and chores keep my time filled completely
and then I nest when I can grab snippets of time here and there.
Purging toys, sorting clothes, putting together birth supplies
washing tiny baby things, dreaming....
And sleeping at night (?!)
If you ask me if I'm ready - yes.
I'm ready to hold this baby in my arms!
But since I am sleeping 8 hours a stretch at night
and not waking with back spasms;
since I am able to roll out of bed in the morning in less than a minute
and can step into the legs of my PJ's;
since I can see my ankles and wear most my clothes still...
I can't possibly be miserable enough to actually go into labor!
I suppose I could become miserable at the turn of one day,
but I'm not hoping (or asking) for it :-D
In the moments that aren't consumed with "doing"
I am trying to grasp the very great honor it will be to
worship my Lord in laboring to bring forth this life.
To remember that He delights in me
and has shown me great favor.
That labor is one relatively short step to accomplishing my hearts desire:
meeting my tiny love.
Not long now!

Smoochy Cheeks

"Where's Bryce" Episode #3

Chocolate covered cherries this time. 
Three left so probably... 2, 3 eaten?
Someone wasn't very smart about where they left them.
Really though, isn't it obvious mom is preoccupied with other things?
I'm just glad somebody benefits!

My Birthday

Me an' Mom (Thank you for my Birthday calls Mom O' mine!)

It was lovely.

I got birthday cards galore from all my children!

And phone calls from:

Grama

Dad

Mom

Courtney

Diane

Dad L

Mom L

Em

Molly, Nick, and Lydi

Kelli R...

I got Starbucks.

And I got to pick up my Beloved at the airport *sigh*

Went to Hobby Lobby (which I didn't know we HAD West of the Rockies!)

And Target.

Tell me, what could be better than that?

Oh yeah, I got a vacuum cleaner!!! (though I think that was more of a coincidence, not so much a birthday present - HA!)

I was treated to lunch out,

and then my day was topped off with dinner at Char and Hannah's!

(complete with chocolate cake resplendent in mocha frosting and 32 candles)

Thank you thank you THANK YOU for all your well-wishes and calls!

I am so thankful for a little more time to 

revel in the Lord's daily mercies :-)

Boy Blankie? CHECK!

I saw this most Marvel Hill-ish material and it spoke to me.
It said "Take me I'm yours!"
This print (and the one following) are part of a collection by Ellen Crimi-Trent called
Woodland Friends II.  I'm in love with the vibrant colors and playful mood.
And the Moose - can't forget that precious Moose!

(So Baby, if you're a little Boy baby... we're ready for you now!)

Also, I've had some fabric intended just for an apron and today?
I decided to make myself a Birthday present!
Yep.  Tomorrow is my birthday and I've had one favorite apron I got at my bridal shower
about 14 years ago.
It's never been my favorite print, but it has been my favorite splatter-guard
and it's been tired out for some time.  This darling new fabric gives me the perfect incentive
and since it calls my name too...
Happy Birthday to ME!

Just a FYI, the bird fabric in my Baby Girl blanket is a design by Valori Wells.
You can even find some lovely Valori Wells fabrics as well as other wonderful
bird prints on Amazon if you type in "Bird Fabric by the yard".

Promise to show me if you create something wonderful!

Aaaaand She's OFF!

Susanna has aced the "Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons"
That means the book is all Olivia's!
She's been waiting for quite a while now, and because I didn't let her start
while Sue was still working through it, she resorted to teaching herself what she could.
"Mom, how do you spell...?"

Strangely, now that we have officially started the book together I find
the girl is bored out of her mind!
Doesn't take kindly to all the repetitive rhyming and saying words slowwwwly and fast.
It's not a game.
It's not fun.
She's heard it all before when Sue did it.
And I am going to kill reading to make her jump through all the hoops
just because that's the program.

Today I decided to make that book work for ME instead.
I let Olivia skip all the exercises and just say the sounds and a few words
until we got to a list of words and THAT made her little heart go pitter-pat!
I especially enjoyed how she wanted to give me a sentence for each word she read:

"SEED... I have a seed I am going to plant!"

and

"SEE... I can see it and YOU can't!  That's bragging, isn't it mom?"

We made it to the first "story" with accompanying picture in lesson 13
SEE ME EAT
and that just tickled her SO much.  Perhaps now we can slow back down
to the books intended pace.  But if not, that's okay.
That book has been a super resource for me, but as with any tool we use in
helping our children to learn new things we must not forget that we are trying
to LEARN something, not complete a checklist.
So... whatever you use, don't be a slave to it.  make it work for YOU!

"Look Mom...

...We are SNUGGLE BUGGLES!"

 (says Carolina Truth from within a nest of colorful pillows and cuddling close to her best buddy)

ART: learning to get out of our box

Time to try some different mediums.

Today we drew our very FIRST self portraits
and experienced our FIRST soft Pastels...

Sue

Clay

Olivia

Zack

Momma

Do you know how intimidating it is to try something for the first time?
Those soft, dusty, pigment-rich chalks are so... different!
Some of my children were intimidated by drawing themselves this way,
but WOW!  How GREAT they did!  And after they followed through
with this first, they were off!

It was good for me to sit down WITH my little bugs because I often get
them started on a project and then I do something else while they are busy.
I've been needing to sit down and learn and participate with them.
It was new for me too.
I used soft pastels once for a class waaaaaay back in my past
but never to draw a person. 

This kinda made me want to sit down with the kiddos again!
Tomorrow?

Drawing Near

We must be in the last weeks before baby's arrival.
All the signs point to it.

This drawing is only a partially-accurate rendition of me.
I am not embracing a lot of touch these days.
I am not so patient and graceful as I look in the picture.

But...
There are moments
when all this is true.

And it's always my hearts desire to gather my chicks around
to revel in the moments.
To be loved so thoroughly - even though I deserve it so little.

My children are ready to meet this new sibling.
They are baby's best fan club!
They talk to baby
follow baby's movements with tender hands on my belly
suggest names
make plans to help hold baby...
rub my feet...

Yes. I am ready; and I am loved.
Baby is loved.
We're a lucky twosome these days!

"Where's Bryce" Episode #2