Never Say Never...

Yesterday was a strange day for me. I did two things I never thought I'd do in my life...

1. I chose my daughter's birthday. Since Cash ended up a c-section baby and I'd rather not put myself (or the baby) through any added risk by attempting a VBAC (which, in my dr's opinion would end in c-section anyway) we decided to go with the scheduled repeat section route. The whole "scheduled c-section" just seems too easy to be for real - we go in at 8am, get prepped, baby's here in an hour and we're done for the day. Well, Dr. Davidson is done for the day...I think my shifts a little longer. Like 18 years...or forever. 

(Drew and I haven't decided if we're sharing her birth date with anyone outside of family just yet or if we'll wait till closer to time, so sorry. Not gonna find out today! MWAHAHA!)

2. This is the real kicker. I lost Cash's beloved "blankie". The perfect, adorable, soft, light blue blankie he sleeps with EVERYDAY! He has it for every nap and every night when he goes to bed. How could a responsible, loving mother such as myself do something so heinous you ask?! I DON'T KNOW!!!!! All I know is we had it at the food court in the mall and I thought I saw it when we got in the car. But when I got home and went to lay him down for his nap...it was missing.  Thank goodness he has a back-up blankie that seems to be working just fine. But still. I need to get another one. 

"Don't forget to take me with you!"

In case you haven't talked to us in the last 6 weeks or so - we're moving! Thats right...we didn't feel adding a second child 15 months after the first one was hectic enough for our lives so we decided to throw another humongous life change in just for the fun of it. So, Lord willing, as of next Friday (June 19th) we will be the proud new owners of a beautiful, 2-story house. I don't have any pictures right now, but as soon I do you can expect a post! Lets just say its a major upgrade in house for minimal upgrade in payment -- which is what I call a beautiful thing.

We were able to move because Drew's parents decided last summer they'd like to move out here and take advantage of the low cost of living. That, and there's this adorable little boy by the name of Cash they'd kind of like to hang out with. Oh, and their son lives here too. :) So we worked out a deal with them and they're actually purchasing our current home and will be taking care of that for us - God really worked it out for everyone's best interest. 

As if thats not enough excitement Drew's sister, Laura and her family are moving out too! We're really excited about adding the other branch of our family to the area and getting our kids together. Growing up, I didn't have cousins close to my age so I'm really excited that our kids will be able to take advantage of that and have both sets of Grandparents nearby. 

Keep us in your prayers over the next few weeks as we go through several transitions - all good, but slightly stressful. :)

Notes from the Under-belly: Week 30

How far along? 30 weeks 5 days
Total weight gain/loss: 22 lbs. I'd like to add that I'm less than 10 wks from D-day and have only gained HALF of what I gained with Cash. There is hope!  

Maternity clothes? : Enjoying them more and more. I'm embracing my pregnant body a lot easier this time around. 

Stretch marks? Not any new ones...

Sleep: has been better the last few weeks. Still can't get enough, but I don't think that'll ever change.

Best moment this week: Enjoying an entire weekend with my husband and son! Drew and I somehow managed to BOTH have Saturday and Sunday off this weekend and we spent the majority of together. Absolutely LOVED it! 

Movement: Lots of it, and the kicks are getting harder! I think she's doing tae-bo in there!!!

Food cravings: carrots, pears, salad, and cherry limeade from Sonic.

Gender: hopefully she's still a girl ;) 

Labor Signs: More and more Braxton Hicks contractions...even when I'm just sitting around.
Belly Button in or out? still in, but pretty shallow! 

What I miss: being able to bend over and pick Cash up without grunting (really attractive), being able to bend without squatting, and I seem to have lost my love for Mt. Dew. But the jury's still out on whether we miss that or not...

What I am looking forward to: getting moved into our new house so we can finally get things set up for the little lady

Weekly Wisdom: Try to move when you're REALLY pregnant. That way your husband wont question why you're sitting down while he's working. (This also comes in handy when painting.)

Milestones: We are less than 10 wks from D-Day and she weighs approximately 4 lbs and is 16 inches long! Time is a'flyin!

Really deep for a Tuesday morning

All 3 of us (well, if we're being REALLY accurate - all 4 of us) were up early this morning so I suggested we go on a  breakfast date. For those of you know don't know  - breakfast is one of my favorite meals to eat out. Drew and I used to have "Krispy Kreme dates" on Saturdays when we were dating and first married. Its a luxury that faded slightly when a newborn entered the picture but has returned occasionally since he's gotten a little older. I love it! So this morning I promised Drew I could be ready in 35 minutes (it was actually more like 38 minutes...close enough!). So we set out to Bob Evans...

We were seated around the corner from a table of all women, probably in their late 50's, some mid-60's. They were having a lot of fun. From time to time we'd hear them laugh about something and then go on chatting. I wasn't really paying a whole lot of attention to them until at one point I heard one of them giggle and it sounded just like my Grandma Dunaway. And for a split second I had forgotten that Grandma isn't here anymore. 

Its just weird to me because it'll be four years ago in August that she died. But not only do I still have moments where I forget that she's gone, but I this morning I still teared up at the thought of her in the middle of Bob Evans. Of course I don't cry over missing her as much as I did the first year or so...but even now, as I write this, there are tears. I don't think the hurt will ever go away. 

It hurts because she never met Drew. We started dating the March after she died. I tell myself she got to have a little window into our wedding ceremony and hope that I'm right. I also tell myself she held Cash before I did and knew him before we even knew he was on his way. And the same with Corinne. But there's still a piece of me that aches because she'll never hold them physically here on Earth for me to see and enjoy. Grandma had a special way with babies.

I'm told I have her hands, feet, laugh, and stature. (Several of those are qualities I hated about myself previously. Sorry, Grandma. ha!) I'm also told that I sound like her when I sing sometimes. Which, don't get me wrong, I love remembering the sound of Grandma's vibrato but don't necessarily want to sound like a 70 year old woman when I'm only 26. ;)  Someday I'll appreciate that more I guess. 

After she died I asked my dad if we'll know each other in Heaven as we do on earth. Obviously he's never been to Heaven so can't answer me for certain. But he said he thinks we'll know everyone the same. Which kind of makes me sad because in my human mind I want to think that "the great reunion in the sky" will literally be like a giant family reunion and Drew and I will just go on enjoying life together as husband and wife, etc. 

(Dad reminded me that we'll be in constant communion with God, so the side relationships probably won't matter as much. Which I guess is true, but I'm still thinking with my fleshly mind here. So that kinda hurts.) 

I do know that there are no tears or sadness in Heaven, so chances are she's partying it up big time with all her new friends...and Jesus, so she's probably not thinking much of us down here. But every once in awhile, like this morning, I whisper a little "Hi, Grandma. I miss you." and hope that God tells her for me. 

Memorial Day '09

A wise old sage once told me that camping is one of the most bonding experiences. 

Or something like that. 

(Sorry, Dad - you're not that old.) 

 Nonetheless, I married a mountain man, one who is wild at heart so when we have a free weekend, we camp. I'm sure there are those of you out there asking yourselves if you're reading the right blog..."Bethany CAMPS?!"  I'm told I  use the term loosely. I "camp" only when I'm promised a toilet I can flush, a faucet to wash my hands, and the option to shower (which I take!). No digging holes to go potty in, no sleeping in sleeping bags. I'll sleep in a tent as a long as I get to sleep on an air mattress in a tent. :) I'm sure Drew was slightly disappointed when realizing this quality about me AFTER we got married. (Sorry, babe.) 

(In my defense, I did go camping this last Memorial Day nearly 7 months pregnant WITH our one year old. I don't think an air mattress was too much to ask for...)

Anyways, we arrived to Spring Mill State Park around 5pm on Friday and got things set up. Our friends Matt & Jill joined us that evening along with Nathan & Penny on Saturday. We really had a great time. Cash, of course (seeing as how he's all boy) loved it! He ate rocks, skinned up those precious chubby knees (with me cringing the whole time), chewed on a stick or two, ate food off the ground, swam in the baby pool, played in the dirt, and went shirt-less half the time - he fit right in.  We had lots of fun enjoying each other's company and the great outdoors. Camping is slowly...but surely, becoming one of my favorite getaways. Although I did tell Drew - next time we're not bringing kids (inside or outside the womb). :) 

I didn't think it was possible to outgrow a stroller at 1, but I'm starting to wonder. 

The wilderness women: Penny, Bethany & Jill.

Life of the party

Highlights from Cash's 1st Birthday Party! 

His new favorite thing: the wagon Mimi & Papaw (my parents) got him. He sat in it to open his presents. :)

Loved his birthday cake! 

Icing on the cake

Growing up, birthdays were a big deal. And still are! December 20th is MY DAY. And you better not mess with it. I get a full 24 hours. And so do you on YOUR day. Thats just how I was raised...so naturally, Cash is getting his glory day and that just happens to be tomorrow. (His birthday was last week, but due to Mother's Day and other scheduling conflicts the celebration is tomorrow.) So tonight began the preparations...meaning, his cake. The cake he will be wearing and just maybe get a little taste of (if any lands in his mouth). ;) 

A few posts ago I talked about the unknowns of motherhood and tonight I added another one to the list: baking a birthday cake and decorating it is WAY harder than it looks! Props to mom & dad for always having stellar cakes for us kids. My children will most likely be getting store-bought cakes, unless I can talk my sister-in-law into baking them for me. (What do you say, Amanda?!) I've added some pictures to allow you to see just what I mean...

this is precisely why I bake sheet cakes - filled those pans a little too full. Oops! 

But no worries! The spillage stuck to the cookie sheet allowing these cakes to be salvaged. Ha!

Starting to look more and more like an actual cake.

This is where the fun came in: decorating. I definitely don't have a future on Ace of Cakes. Dang it. (Please note, this was the 'practice cake'.)

The finished product!! Simple, but cute. And hey - it'll taste good. :)