Camping with good friends...

We had so much fun camping with our friends Phil, Aleah and their kids. We love spending time with them and learning from them as well. We hope to be parents like them when we grow up:)

Parker loved the camping experience. In fact, he cried when we got home and kept asking to look at the pictures of the other kids. I think he got attached!

Tag me! Tag me!

Okay, I have a few minutes before I need to get going on our trip... so I thought I'd participate in this little game. I feel like I'm in elementary school playing tag because when I read Andi's post, I was really hoping that she'd tag me:)

Five things in my freezer...
~Morningstar Farms Chick'n Patties
~Coffee
~Mixed Veggies
~Frozen Berries
~Whole wheat waffles

Five things in my (dining room) closet...
~My lovely red scarf
~My winter coat
~Good Night Sleep Tight (Parker's book)
~A shelf that needs to be hung
~Our dreaded file of crap (stuff that we shove into a file when we don't want to look at it anymore)

Five things in my car...
~Lots of pacifiers
~Parker's cereal on the floor
~The luxury seat (Parker's carseat)
~Old receipts...bad, bad, bad
~All of our camping gear!

Five things in my purse (diaper backpack)
~Diapers:)
~Fruit cups
~Lip gloss and lots of it!
~Gum
~SPF 50

I tag...

Gina
Aleah
Jen

Does anyone else want to be tagged? Now I really am back in elementary school--I don't want to tag anyone that doesn't want to be tagged. Maybe I'd make them feel peer pressure;)

Tagged

I've been tagged by Andi and I'm super excited, but I'm supposed to be packing for our big camping trip this weekend with our friends Phil and Aleah. And here I am reading blogs....figures:) I'm going to do this when I get home. Thanks Andi!

Wish us luck on this trip. This is Parker's first camping experience. I'm so excited to be going with Phil and Aleah and their four kids. I'm sure we're going to have some chaotic fun...my favorite!!

I miss my sister!

My sister is off having a summertime adventure near the Atlantic coast and I think she should come home today! As you can tell from the picture, she's fun, pretty and best of all...she loves my Parker like none other!

Come home soon little sister or I'm going to come get you myself:)

Eat Dirt

What? You don't let your kids eat dirt?!


Okay, so we've had a little problem with our air-conditioned bliss. Our AC unit broke the day after it was installed so now we have no AC in 100 degree weather. It is seriously like 95 in the house. I have a very bad word for this but I will refrain from polluting the web:)

On Sunday morning, we were out at 6:30 am working on our flower bed. This is the only time of the day we can do this, you see, because it is the only time it is below 90. Okay, okay, I'll stop complaining...I'm getting tired of listening to myself.


Anyway, Parker loves to help with everything and so he was basically sitting in the dirt and throwing it all over. Very fun! He was so happy in the dirt. I think he started eating it when I wasn't looking. Why do kids think dirt tastes good? Thank God for Parker. He is so lovely even when I'm thinking unlovely thoughts...

Blessings!

Just a day full of blessings yesterday...

My mom came over in the morning and helped me get ready to have my Joel's parents over. She did so much! She folded my laundry, cleaned my bathroom, made up three beds, helped clean up around the house, AND entertained Parker. This would have taken me soooo long to finish and I felt so ready to have company. She did receive some payment...a nice slobbery kiss from Parker that only a grandma would enjoy:)

Later in the morning I had a great visit with my good friend Gina and her son Winston. I love having easy conversation with Gina and spending time with her and Winston. She's really encouraging and our babies are about the same age. I think they should never leave!

When Joel's parents showed up, they surprised us by giving us an air conditioner for our house. I cannot tell you how this will change our quality of life for the summer. It is supposed to be 104 today so the AC will be going full blast.

Such a day full of blessings...I'm so thankful!

See Gina... I can post even with company!!!

Identical twin girls and a bad diet...

You all might think this is sort of funny after my passionate post about girls. I had a dream that we found out that we were having identical twin girls AND I didn't pass my gestational diabetes test. I don't know which one I was more worried about...the girls or the strict diet I would have to be on! Both situations are possible...twins run in our family and I barely passed my GD test last time. Eeeek! By the way, if we find out we're having twins, we will find out the sex ahead of time. That would be waaaaaay too much to handle on the birthday!

Parker and I are on our way to decorate cookies with other moms and kids. Actually, I really just want to eat them. Maybe I am on my way to becoming diabetic!

Bikini for Baby?

Boy or Girl? Hmmmm… I’ve been trying to articulate to people and to myself, how I feel about having a girl vs. a boy. Most people think that I want a girl this time because we already have a boy and …every woman wants to have a daughter, right? Not necessarily true in my case.

While I’d be thrilled to have a daughter, I’m not sure I’m ready for it yet or if I ever will be. I really love having a son. I love the unique mama-son relationship that Parker and I have. While Parker wants to be just like his daddy and copies everything he does, he always looks to me for reassurance and comfort. Always. Many people don’t like the whirlwind of activity that boys create…but I love it. It is such a fun challenge to try to rope that energy in and create healthy experiences for Parker. It really keeps me on my toes because, by nature, I’m not like this at all. I like peace, rest, solitude….you know, not necessarily what toddler boys like. We’re so different. I love being exhausted at the end of the day because Parker has had me chasing him around the house or helping him knock down towers or insisting that I take him outside and play for the hundredth time. I love having a little boy and would love having another one to increase the chaos:)

To be really honest, I’m scared to have a girl. I know that people love to buy clothes for little girls and dress them up and make them look cute. But I think that parents are making a mistake when they put so much focus on clothes and such for little girls. I think it sends a message that appearance is too important. I hate it when little girls are dressed like mini-teenagers. I think it is disgusting and inappropriate. They have plenty of time to choose to look sexy and hip (and they will), but childhood is not the time. I especially don’t like bikinis for little ones…but this is just a hang-up I have. Okay, I’ll step off of my soapbox now…

It seems like girls are often recognized for their appearance, while boys are more often recognized for their character. Why is that? I think that it starts with parents and the emphasis we put on outward appearance vs. character. With boys, I think it is easier to center our attention on raising men of integrity and character (and I have such a passion for it), but with girls, I feel there are so many distractions that even parents can get hung up on.

I guess, to put it bluntly, I’m afraid of failing. I feel confident in raising boys. I feel good about the way we’re raising Parker and I’m afraid I’d totally flop with a girl. I’m afraid that I’d go along with the rest of the world and become obsessed with creating a beautiful child and lose my focus. And then when she becomes a teenager, I’ll see my mistakes coming back to bite me!

In my heart, I know that God will prepare me to be the mom that this new baby needs….boy or girl. I just need prayer that God would calm my nerves and give me wisdom and confidence in our decisions.

All this thought and it really doesn’t even matter because I have NO say in the matter. The sex of this baby has already been determined. Even now, I’m being prepared to be the mama to this new little one. It will be interesting to come back and read this later!

I grew something!

I was feeling a little down about myself the other day when my grandma told me that my tomato plant probably should have little tomatoes on it by now. My plant is huge but there were no little tomatoes. I love the thought of gardening but I’m really not that great at keeping plants alive. I killed ivy once. An ivy…no one can kill ivy. However, as we were coming home the other night, I saw four little, green tomatoes on my struggling plant! I’ve never grown anything before. Well, I take that back. I’ve grown flowering plants and I happen to grow children for a living—and the second one, by the way, is currently sucking the life right out of me:). But, in any case, today is big day because I’ve finally found that I can grow something edible...a vegetable…fruit…whatever it is!

I'm a fairly laid-back mama, especially when it comes to dirt on my little boy. I like to let him play in the sand and get all yucky. I think kids should be allowed to get dirty....such a good, fun learning experience. Parker really enjoys packing the sand into his scalp and squeezing dirt through his fingers. Good stuff. However, I do not like a dirty house and I really don't like a dirty bathtub. So, to keep my tub from becoming a second sandbox, I bathe Parker outside after a visit from the grime fairy. I have a really tiny blow-up pool (really tiny...like two feet wide) that I fill up with water from the hose and a pot of boiling water from the house. This makes it warm enough for a good bath, but not too hot. I bring the baby wash, towel, and rubber ducky outside to make it feel authentic. It is a win-win situation: Parker gets to be a real kid and enjoy the dirt and I still get to enjoy my clean tub. Outside baths...this is what works for me:)

For more ideas, please visit Rocks In My Dryer.

Grumpy Parker

Okay, so the picture really doesn't reflect the title or content of this post but this was Parker having a good moment. Actually, any moment with food is a good moment. I'll have to keep that in mind!

I think Parker is mad at me. For the past three or four days, it seems like he is so frustrated and doesn't want to be around me. He's usually such a happy little boy, so you can imagine that this concerns me...and makes me a little sad. I used to be his favorite person:) I keep thinking that maybe his molars are bothering him...maybe he has allergies, maybe his tummy hurts, or his head, foot, toe, knee, belly button...hmmmm. But I'm beginning to think that it isn't a physical hurt at all. Maybe he's mad because I'm boring and just lay around on the couch all day because I feel sick? Maybe he even senses that change is coming and he's no longer going to be the only one? Or maybe, just maybe, he's just a toddler and going through a stage? Yep, I'm sure that is it. And this too shall pass!

We spent the 4th of July holiday with Joel's side of the family at the lake cabin. The lake and cabin are so beautiful--we feel so blessed to be able to enjoy the property with people we love.

Parker and I went up early so Parker enjoyed lots of time with family. Family members were so great to take care of Parker while I battled out my morning sickness:)

Parker had some new developments in his life over the time we spent at the lake. Here are a few...

• He learned the word "boat" and the sound it makes
• He found that he can entertain a large group of people with his dancing skills
• He fell off the dock into the cold water with his daddy (with a life jacket, thank God!)
• He learned where his eyes, ears, mouth and nose are located. Yep. He's not only found his nose, he's found his nostrils and that his fingers fit perfectly inside those little holes. This is the stage I've been in fear of since he was born! Disgusting!

Just a picture day...

I don't have the energy or inspiration to write anything today...this whole pregnancy thing is harder than I remembered! I thought a little picture was better anyway.

This is Parker looking out onto the lake from the "big boat". I thought it was a great shot of his perfect ear:)...more to come from our holiday weekend.