It's Kicking Time!

I've been feeling this baby move for about 8 weeks now, but Will finally felt "him" this past Sunday when I turned 20 weeks. What joy! It really is The.Most.Amazing.Thing to feel life moving around inside of you, but it's even better when it can be shared! I'm not sure Ella has felt Icee. She always moves her hand when I try to put it in the right spot, insisting, "No, Mommy, Icee's over here." Plus, she has a tiny hand, which makes it harder. :-)

It's interesting that Will didn't feel Ella move until 24 weeks, but of course, I didn't feel Ella until about week 20. I guess the more babies you have, the earlier you feel movement b/c you know what it feels like.

But as I write that exciting news, I can't forget the heartbreaking news I heard yesterday. I'm sure you all have heard by now of Steven Curtis Chapman's 5-year-old daughter Maria who was killed Wed. night in a tragic accident. Let's lift his family up in prayer.

Children's Book Monday

Dimity Duck by Jane Yolen
Illustrated by Sebastien Braun

It's so funny. Elise reviewed a different Jane Yolen book last week and I did a search for her books at my library. Only then did I realize that she is the author of one of Ella's favorite books. (Guess I don't pay much attention to details, huh?)

This is such a fun read, with winsome rhymes and adorable illustrations.

It tells about a day-in-the-life of Miss Dimity Duck.

Dimity Duck
waddles,
she toddles
out of bed.

Niddy-noddy
goes her tail
and quack!
goes her head.

After getting some breakfast, she meets her delightful friend, Frumity Frog.

Dimity Duck waddles,
she paddles to his side.

Splishy-splashy
go the two,
playing seek-and-hide.

Only the sunset can separate these two playmates and finally Dimity must blow a kiss and say goodnight to Frumity.

Then she puts on her PJs, plumps her pillows, and waddles off to bed.

Sleepy-sloppy goes her tail... (of course you have to read this part very s.l.o.w.l.y)
And snore goes her head.



I'm sure you & your toddler will love this book as we have. It's one of the few I don't mind reading over and over again. You just can't help yourself from smiling while doing so. Enjoy!

Look What We Can Do

I can't believe my little girl's hair is finally long enough to do this.



She now has her own pocketbook full of ponytail holders and loves to pick out the color for the day. Just the other day, I wanted to put a pink one in her hair since she was wearing all pink. "No, Mommy, wanna wear purple one. Purple is my favorite." And today she told me, "Know what, Mommy? I'm growing up."
Indeed you are, my precious girl.

A Birthday Bash

Ella rarely sees either of my sisters' children. In fact, this is the first time she's seen Marna's 4 kids since August! This is mostly due to the fact that they were in Mexico over Christmas and when they returned, 2 them got chicken pox, followed by the flu.

So, I defintely wanted to make it down for Dylan and Kaitlyn's combined birthday party. Kaitlyn was turning 2 and Dylan had just turned 7. And wouldn't you know it, Ella and Kaitlyn are the same size, even though Ella will be 3 next month.

It took awhile, but by the end, Ella and Kaitlyn were giving each other hugs and kisses. And jumping on the trampoline together. And playing in the sandbox. And splashing on the pool steps. It was WAY too cold to actually get in and go swimming. This was 2 weeks ago and the water *may* have been 74 degrees. Of course, Marna's boys got in. I just think boys can do cold better than girls can. But Dylan did put on his flannel PJ's after getting out, though he insisted it was NOT because he was cold.

And I had to thank my sister for making more work for me. As soon as Ella saw Kaitlyn's brightly colored Dora cake, she exclaimed, "Mommy, I want that cake for my birthday, too." Now I have to try to duplicate that. I've made a vow to make all of my children's cakes. Not that I'm much of a cake baker, but it's something special I get to do once a year, so why not? And I always loved my mom's cakes. In fact, I still remember one year (I think I was turning 16) when my mom's cake flopped, so she ran out to buy one. I took one bite of it and knew it wasn't homemade. Thus, my mom was forced to bring out the falling-apart-cake and *that* was the one that got eaten!

Enjoy the sweet pics.

A Great Mother's Day

I was so surprised to get a corsage at church this morning for the youngest mother. I never considered 31 that young, but apparently at the church we're visiting, it is. It's beautiful-two red roses-and it brought some sunshine to my black dress. :-)
(By the way, Emily, this is one of the dresses you gave me from Abbie and it fits perfectly! So thank you to you both!)

Ella and Icee made me the sweetest card.
Will asked Ella what she wanted to say to me and this is her reply,
"Good morning, Mommy! How are you? Happy Mother's Day, Mommy."
Then Will asked, "What do you think Icee would say?"
After saying some undecipherable words, she finally said, "Bopee."
:-)

We enjoyed some great KFC w/Will's parents and got to see Aunt Joan and Uncle Will when they brought Mama back home from dinner.

Re: this pregnancy, I think my weight has finally started to level off. After gaining 10 lbs. the first trimester, I was getting a little worried, but I haven't put on much more than that since then. And we finally decided (after much prayer and research) on the local midwife. (Well, local, meaning the one that's an hour away.) I've had one official appt. so far and it was great. I go to my first of two required doctor visits in a couple weeks.

I've also had a horrible rash since 12 weeks (which didn't itch, thankfully) all over my stomach, part of my back and my legs, but thankfully the stomach and back part are better. Hopefully the leg part will be better soon too. And the nauseau is gone and I'm getting a bit more energy. So all is going well. Praise the Lord!

Here's my recent belly shot and one of my precious little girl all sweaty from running around!

Those Curls

There once was a girl who had a little curl
Right in the middle of her forehead.
And when she was good, she was very, very good....

We all know how the rest of it goes, but since it is Mother's Day, I'm just going to reflect on the *good* part.

Swim Time!

We went swimming today for the first time this year! Let's see...it only took me 20 minutes to get all the way in. Will, of course, just dived right in. But he made me feel better when, after catching his breath, he said, "Wow, it *is* cold." Yeah, that's why I'm going in
s-l-o-w-l-y. Ella only "swam" for part of the time. She had her floaties on but has not gotten the swim motion down and when you're not swimming, you, of course, get cold even more quickly. So then she became our lifeguard. Will wrapped her in towels and put her on a chair right by the steps. After being prompted on what a lifeguard might say, she began shouting things to us like, "No horseplaying!"

I so enjoyed swimming some laps but finally had to get out because I just had to go the bathroom. And you can't get back in the water after you go pee. Okay, maybe it's just me but having to pull a wet bathing suit back up is just not fun. And besides, it was time to eat. And did I mention the water was cold?
77 degrees to be exact.

But still we enjoyed ourselves.
And we're looking forward to going again soon.
Perhaps tomorrow?

Little Mama

We had a wonderful time w/Em, Jeff, and Benjamin last weekend. Ella just doted on Little Jeffrey Benjamin the whole time; she was truly like a 2nd mama to him. She kept offering him his water bottle, even when he had his paci in his mouth. I'm not sure whether to be excited about this or not. On the one hand, it seems she'll be a good helper when Icee comes, but on the other hand she might try to help too much. I finally had to explain to her that when the baby is finally quiet, you leave him alone! :-)

Ella informed me yesterday that when the baby comes, she'll be the mommy and I'll be the big sister! She already tries to nurse her stuffed animals, so I guess she figures she can nurse the baby too.

And for those of you I haven't told yet, Ella is quite convinced there are AT LEAST 2 babies inside my tummy. Soon after she named the baby Icee, Will asked her if she wanted a brother or sister and she said, "Brother AND sister." The other one's name is Bulldozer and that one's a girl.

So, the other day, when Ella was nursing, I reminded her that when Icee pops out, he'll need lots of milk too. She said, "Icee gets this side, Ella gets this side, Bulldozer waits."
Hmm, somehow I don't think Bulldozer will like that.

Oh, and Will took Ella out fishing again and they caught some more bream and crappie. This time he took the camera.

Enjoy the pics!

Fish Fry!

Will had a grand time at the mill fishing today. Ella and Laurance went w/him this afternoon and Ella caught her first fish! She helped reel the bream in and Will said she was so excited! Will also caught yellow perch, crappie, and tons more bream.

When they got home, I went out to get Ella and she was fast asleep in her car seat. I tried to gently get her out without waking her and cradled her in my arms. No such luck. She woke up and asked, "Where's Uncle Laurance?"
"He's right there, helping Daddy clean the fish."
She turned to see them and then quickly looked back at me.
"Listen," she said, completely serious, as she grabbed my chin and turned it towards her. "Wanna tell you a story."
"Wanna clean fish by myself when I'm 16."

"Okay, sweetie."

Hope this makes you smile as much as it did me; enjoy your weekend!

Those Cravings!

Monday night, Will came in from work and met his salivating wife. "I have to go to Olive Garden tonight!"
"That's an hour away!"
"I know, but I've been looking all day at this coupon w/their new meal-Five Cheese Stuffed Rigatoni With Shrimp-and I just have to have it."
Let me tell you, food advertisements really work for pregnant women!

He's still amazed as we head out-"you're really going to drive that far?"
"Yep!"
And turns out, we can make it in about 48 min.

Well, we get there and I suddenly don't know if I want the Shrimp Rigatoni. My usual favorite, Chicken Alfredo suddenly sounds so delicious. What to do? Well, you get both obviously! After all, pregnant women have some leeway. I knew I couldn't eat it all, but also knew Ella and I would have a great lunch the next day.

While I stuff my face w/food-I just can't get enough-Will just smiles, especially when I tell him he's made Baby Icee very happy.
And truly it's the most content I've felt in awhile.

Olive Garden is my favorite restaurant and yet b/c of the drive, we don't get there very often. Even where we used to live, it was a good 40 min. away. So anytime I'm there, especially when I'm pregnant and have been craving it all day, I have a very good time! And can I just say, we can't understand why there's not one in every town. I mean, they're always crowded; it's not like they wouldn't make money if they decided to build one here. Maybe one of these days, we'll move to a town where there is one. (My favorite restaurant for casual fare would be Chick-Fil-A, just in case you're wondering. And that gets hit a lot more often, like once a week!)

I have to admit I felt like quite the hog as our waitress brought out my two huge plates of food. And of course after loading up on their delicious salad and breadsticks, I did have lots to take home.

But don't worry-it all got eaten the very next day! Ella and I enjoyed it for breakfast and lunch! And in case you're wondering, yes! the Shrimp Rigatoni is delicious!

First Mud Puddle

This was Ella's first time playing in a mud puddle. We just got these boots for her; they're a size too big but no matter to her. She had a ball! By the time she came inside, her pants were actually falling off of her they were so wet, and she had a good 2 inches of water in her boots. But, of course, she wanted to go out again after her bath.


It wasn't really cold that day, but she wanted to wear the hat and mittens-go figure. :-)

Audrey Caroline

Audrey's story and her family's testimony have had a profound impact on me. I'm sure this little baby will have a mighty legacy and point many people to the Jesus who holds her now. I am praising Him for the 2 hours she had with her parents and sisters, but my heart is aching for the family so much right now. Thank you for upholding them in prayer.

Children's Book Monday

Quite often these days, Will and I have requests from Ella to tell her stories about when we were a little boy/girl. And it all started with the book I'm reviewing today.

It has been a wonderful time for us to recollect happy childhood memories. For me, I tell her about PirateLand Campground at Myrtle Beach and taking long walks on the beach at sunset w/my parents and sisters. My mom held one hand and my dad held the other. And before they even turned around to head back to our pop-up camper, I was asking to be held. A four-year-old can only walk so much after all. :-)
Or I tell her about being a skating waitress in the rec room along w/my best childhood friend (whose name also happens to be Laura). We would use ping-pong paddles for our order pads and have a blast skating under the shutter doors.

Will, of course, has slightly different stories of playing Cowboys and Indians or eating tons of watermelon with his Baba and swimming in the old pool during the summers they would visit their grandparents' farm.

I hope reading this book with your little one will prompt many childhood stories of your own.

Laura Charlotte
By Kathryn O. Galbraith
Illustrated by Floyd Cooper

It's bedtime and Laura Charlotte can't go to sleep. So she asks her mom to tell her a story, but not just any story. She wants to hear the story of Charlotte.

So her mom begins the story of her 5th birthday when she received her favorite present, an elephant her grandmother had made her from the scraps of her sewing kit.

Laura's mother named her Charlotte because she thought it "was the prettiest name in the whole world." She reminisces about their wagon rides, shared sicknesses, and even scary adventures.

One evening, Charlotte is accidentally left outside and Laura's mom braves the darkness to find her when she misses her from her bed. She finds her but a tragic thing has happened.

"I started to cry. Poor Charlotte had only one ear. Dinah, the cat, had chewed off the other."
"But it didn't matter," Laura said quickly. "Because you still loved her best."
Mama stroked Laura's hair. "No, it didn't matter. I still loved her best. And I sat right beside her while my grandmother sewed on a new flannel ear. We were both very brave."

The story continues to bring everything full circle, back to a little girl named Laura Charlotte who continues to love the little elephant today. And it brings Laura a great appreciation for her Mama, Grandmother, and Great-Grandmother.

Enjoy!

P.S. Please pray today for the Smith family, and especially little Audrey.

Secrets

We woke up rejoicing today because it's Saturday and Daddy is still here (and not out hunting). This means he's making breakfast. Yum!

So, I ask, "Ella, do you want to have French toast for breakfast?"
Milkie-milk drink first, then French toast.
She begins nursing and then props herself up.
Listen, have a secret for you.
She leans in very close to my face.
Do it byself when 3 or 4.
"You'll make French toast by yourself when you're 3 or 4?"
She nods.
She goes back to nursing and then pops her head up one more time.
Or 5.


Daddy is explaining that in a little over 3 months Ella will turn 3.
Wanna be 3, no.
Wanna be 4.
Then 3.
Then 5.
"Remember, Ella, how we count, 1,2,3,4...see you have to be 3 first then 4."
No! 4 then 3.
"It doesn't work like that, Ella."
Let's check.


And, now, for one of Ella's frequently used words.
Yesternight
"Last night" is not in her vocabulary.
It's always, "Daddy did that yesternight," etc.
It's amazing to me that she came up with that; Will nor I use the word.
As it turns out, she's just kin to Shakespeare.
And how can you correct her?
It's in the dictionary, along w/yestermorning and yesterevening.
And in the Bible too (Gen. 19:34).
So, why don't you try out this "new" word today and see how many funny looks you get?

Please Pray

Please pray for Audrey Caroline and her family, especially on this Monday, April 7.
To read about the beginning of their journey, go here.

Thank you.

Children's Book Monday

Bumbletum
By Steve Smallman
Illustrated by Tim Warnes

This is a delightful book for toddlers! Bumbletum is a brand new toy in some lucky child's bedroom. He's "small, soft, and floppy" and his tummy is covered in stripes. When Teddy Bear asks Bumbletum what he can do, he doesn't know. Thus all the toys begin their quest to uncover Bumbletum's talent.

Milly Mouse says, "You look like a mouse." "Can you squeak like this?" Milly pushes her tummy and squeaks. But no matter how much Milly tries to make Bumbletum's tummy squeak, it just doesn't work. Then other toys take their guesses at what his special talent might be. Bumbletum finally becomes discouraged and says, "I must be a 'doesn't really do anything kind of toy.'"

Thankfully, one more toy has a plan. And as a result of this plan-turned-disaster Bumbletum discovers that he can do something important for others and rejoices, for he is "very, very special indeed!"


The pictures are so true-to-life, you'll feel like all the toys are your immediate friends. Ella requests this one again and again-in fact, I've renewed it 3 times and unfortunately have to turn it in this week. But that's great news for someone else! Enjoy!

The Nursery

I recently went to a consignment sale in town and found this photo/memo board with the most ADORABLE fabric on it. It's a great vintage zoo theme. Immediately I knew this is how I wanted to decorate Icee's room. It's perfect for a boy or girl. The only problem is where to find more fabric like this??? I'm going on the hunt this coming week to fabric stores in town, hoping and praying I'll find some more. I've already scoured the internet for it w/no luck. I'd like to have the crib bumper made from this fabric and I'll just use Ella's old crib skirt w/it (it's red/white gingham, so it should look great w/this.) I'm planning on asking the very artistic Abbie to paint a mural for me on one wall (giraffes, lions, etc) to complete the look. And I'm thinking we'll paint the walls a pale or medium shade of yellow.

For those of you who frequent fabric stores, please let me know if you see this-thanks!

Easter at the Lake

Saturday after the reunion, we went to the lake to spend the night w/my mom and step-dad. Ella had been looking forward to it for weeks. We went to church w/them on Sunday (I'm so excited they have a church they both enjoy going to!) and heard a wonderful cantata about our risen Christ.

During the service they also had a movie playing of Christ's ministry, and it just amazed me that when it came time for His crucifixion, no one spoke up for Him. He had healed so many, yet, everyone continued to shout "Release, Barabbas." For some reason, I had never thought about this before. Will and I talked about it later and he said he was thinking the same thing, but we had to remember that this was in Jerusalem and most of His ministry had been in surrounding cities. Word also traveled slowly in those days-it wasn't like everyone knew right away that He was being crucified. And of course I know this was God's divine plan. Even if people had tried to intervene, it would have proven useless. It just makes me more grateful for my Savior. He knew when He was healing all those people and especially when he was teaching his disciples, that they would all desert him, yet he did it anyway. And He suffered alone there for me. Unfathomable love.

Mom cooked a wonderful meal for us-ham, butterbeans (cooked in fatback-absolutely delicious but glad I don't eat that way everyday!), corn, mashed potatoes, rolls, and strawberry shortcake for dessert. Yum! Then we dyed and hid eggs and Ella had the best time.
Now you hide them, Mommy. Now Daddy. Now Grandma and Grandpa.
Sometimes she wanted to hide them with us. :-) Once she even hid them from me-in one spot-all lined up in a perfect row.

Lastly, we went on a very relaxing boat ride and Ella fell asleep in my arms (kind of tricky since she had a life jacket on-poor thing-she could hardley move w/out rolling off!). I even took a brief nap as well. And Will said again as we were driving home how much he'd love to live there. Of course, he'd be out fishing everyday.

I hope you all had a wonderful Easter celebration as well-we definitely have reason to rejoice, for "He is not here; He has risen just as He said."

10-Year College Reunion

It makes me feel very old to write the above title, but it is interesting that I could easily recognize most people at the reunion-I guess 10 years doesn't change you as much as you'd think. We got there a little late since we met w/my midwife first but people were still in line to eat, so we didn't miss much. It was held at the new pavilion-the roof of which was taken from the old gymnasium. They have basketball hoops there too-pretty cool.

I really enjoyed catching up w/ Sarah M., Joy, and Susanna the most, as I haven't spoken w/them since graduation. Sarah is still teaching in Puerto Rico, Joy is Editor for Kids 4 Truth, and Susanna is working full time at the Bill Rice Ranch. Of course, I also spent lots of time w/Tammi and Sarah H., but I do get to see them more frequently.

Ella had a blast playing w/Sarah's daughter Hailey. She even got her face painted (for the first time) and sat perfectly still for it (quite a feat for a toddler!). There were two sad parts to the reunion. One, of course, was telling everyone good-bye, knowing that you would not see the majority of them for another 10 years. (But Joy McCarnan did do a great job w/the memory books, so at least I can have a way to keep in touch w/many of my classmates now.) And then there was Ella's balloon. She got a red butterfly balloon and loved it. When we were talking w/Sarah H, she said suddenly, "Laura, isn't that Ella? She's running across the field." She was going as fast as her little legs could carry her, for her balloon had blown away (it was awfully windy that day). Will ran after her, scooped her up, and tried finding the balloon (which had now blown to the next soccer field). As soon as they spotted it, they saw it POP and Will said Ella cried, "No! No!" Oh, my pitiful child. Thankfully, she recovered after a few minutes.

We toured the new gym before we left-it's really something. I would have loved an indoor track when I was there! And we spoke w/Anna Grace who currently works on campus w/her husband, and she said many good changes have taken place there since we left. Stephen Jones seems to be doing a great job.

Letisha, I'm sorry you didn't get to go-I hope you'll get your memory book soon and that you'll enjoy these pics. Sorry I didn't take more; I realized about half-way through that my camera was still in the car!

Rejoicing!

We met with my midwife in Greenville on Saturday and she was able to pick up the baby's heartbeat. Praise the Lord! You don't know how relieved that makes me. And as far as we can tell, there seems to be just one in there :-).

The heart rate was in the 160's. So if it continues to be that throughout the pregnancy, I won't be stocking up on any blue outfits.

I know of many who had a boy and the heart rate started out at 160's but throughout the pregnancy it fluctuated (150's, 140's, etc). BUT I think that old wive's tale proves true IF it is consistent throughout the pregnancy. In other words, if the baby's heart rate is consistenly in the 160's, you're most likely having a girl, and consistently in the 140's, a boy. 150's is anybody's guess. That's my theory anyway. Ella was in the 160's from 13 weeks until 5 min. before I pushed her out.
So....we'll see.

And here's my updated pic at 12 weeks. I've currently gained 7.5 lbs and you know what? It's really okay. I'm working out (3 days a week) and trying to eat healthy, so that's all I can do.

And by the way, I swear I've already felt our little one move several times (starting last week). Have any of you felt movement that early?

I'll post soon about my college reunion and our great Easter at the lake.