Double Fisting....

Bananas that is!

Birthday, Birthdays!

I am such a lucky Mom to have so many great friends who are also Mommies! I am surrounded by friends who have babies older and younger than Zoe that I just treasure. And I love celebrating all our special days together!

First Birthday this Month goes to Ms. Anna Riley!

Crystal is such an entertainer and did a beautiful job decorating for the party. And the food, which you can always guarentee with this family, was GREAT! "Who me? Couldn't be!"

"You know....my mom makes me take 2 naps!"....

"TWO...Girl, you need to show your Mom who's boss!"

Loved all the little touches!

Thank you so much for inviting us to your party, Anna Riley!!! You are such a big girl!!!!

Next for the Month was Mr. Nick's Big 2nd Celebration!

Lauren is all about a theme and she let no one down!

Everything was Balls! Ball Pit, amazing food all shaped like balls or circles, the favors were all balls...everything! SO cute!

And Little Adam let was such a doll with those Amazing smiles....he is such a personality!

Just chillin in the Ball Pit.

And Ms. Maria came too!

"Cheers to Nick!"

Thanks for inviting us, Nick! We had a Blast!

14 Weeks and 15 Months

How Far Along: 14 Weeks

Size of Baby: Baby #3 measures about 3 1/2" long, is the size of a lemon and weighs about 1 1/2 ounces. Baby #3 can now squint, frown, grimace, pee, and possibly suck his thumb (wonder if it will be like it's Big Sister)! Thanks to brain impulses, his facial muscles are getting a workout as his tiny features form one expression after another.

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I am up 1 lb from last week...no complaints!

Maternity Clothes: Still in the regular clothes. So glad I can wear comfy clothes though and my uniform for work is comfy too!

Gender: August 14th...I can't wait! Still working on a middle name for a boy...any suggestions???

Movement: No movement yet...but I know it is coming and I can't wait either...every new stage in pregnancy gets me so excited. I am one of those crazies that loves being pregnant. I love my growing belly, love getting kicked, love the hiccups, love it love it!

Sleep: Sleeping great...when I do get to sleep. I have switched shifts at work again and now will be in Accounting. Great transition! The hours are at night so I get to spend the WHOLE day with my baby, eat dinner with my family, spend quality time with Zach, put everyone to bed...and then go to work. It is ideal for our situation. Although I get less sleep at night....it is so worth it for me!

What I Miss: It is so funny the second time around....things I would be scared to touch the first time...I am perfectly fine with this go around. I allow myself my Chai Tea...with dare I say it...some caffeine (not much though). I eat deli meat, peanut butter, drink a glass of wine every so often...I know...I am a horrible mother :)

Cravings: Anytime there is a holiday....I have certain candies that I must eat....and only can eat during that holiday season. Valentine's Day = Conversation hearts.... Halloween = Candy Corn.... Easter = Robin's Eggs...and the list goes on. I had to have my conversation hearts!!!!

Symptoms: Huge hunger pains this week. I could not eat enough...I have been trying to eat small meals, more often...but instead this week I ate big meals...more often. Oh well :)

Best Moment of the Week: There is nothing quite as amazing as seeing your Husband become a Father....and I must say I have a pretty amazing Husband who is an even better Father. This week, Zach has really been giving our Baby #3 attention....kissing my belly, talking to the Baby, laying on my tummy...it just brings tears to my eyes how blessed I am for this man....and our beautiful babies!

On to our beautiful Zoe, who is now 15 MONTHS old!

This picture just sums this kid up! She is so corky!!! And I love it!

Zoe had her 15 months check up yesterday and she is perfect...Doctor's words, not mine. :) Her are some of the things going on with this girl...

• Zoe weighs 20 lbs 14.5 oz. (20%), is 29.75" tall (24%) and has a head circumference of 18 (45%).
  
  
• Zoe wears size 4 diapers and 12 month clothes.
  
  
• Zoe drinks 8 ounces of milk twice a day from a sippy cup and eats all the time...but we try to make it 3 meals and 2 snacks. She loves food, but this past month has gotten into the habit of saying no to some. She tells us when she is hungry and goes to her chair. She tells us when she is done by saying "All Done" and raising her hands to get down. She says "nana for bananas and "wa wa" for water. Any time she hears the toaster pop or the microwave beep, she gets really excited. She is really wanting to feed herself everything and we have been working with forks and spoons. Zoe became obsessed with Fruit Loops and would literally beg for them. She carries her snacks around in a small bowl and eats from it as she pleases.
  
  
• Before eating, we have started to sing grace with Zoe and she just loves it!!!! And she claps her hands together when we say "Amen". Priceless!
  
  
• Zoe sleeps great, when we are home. Sleeping out of her crib is a little difficult still...its just not the same. She takes 2 naps for anywhere from 1 hour to 2. She loves her blanket, lion, bear, bunny, and now her pillow pet. She likes to turn on her music all by herself and the night light before bed. She says "night night" and blows a kiss when going to bed. It is very rare that she detests naps or night time. Zoe has been sleeping until almost 8:00 ever morning...I am dreading time change because this is when everything got screwed up last time.
  
  
• Zoe is corky....she has little things she does that just crack me and Zach up. She loves to walk with her hands behind her back and she crosses her fingers all the time! She does many things for reaction...she has started shaking her head yes and saying "ya ya ya" when you ask her a question. Anytime we walk into a place with lots of people, she screams "HI HI HI HI"...she loves being around people. She loves to grab the phone and say "hello" and "bye bye". She loves to dance and sing songs. Her favorite these days is "The Wheels on the Bus..." She just giggles and giggles.
  
  
• Zoe loves bath time! She loves to blow bubbles and get a big "Yay" from Mommy and Daddy.
  
  
• Zoe says Thank You for everything....we will see how long this lasts!
  
  
• Zoe has learned to get off the couch and our bed. She says "Sit Down" or "Get Down" when doing these things.
  
  
• Zoe says "No No" and looks at us whenever she goes to something she knows she isn't supposed to play with...but this usually is followed by a smile and she does the action she isn't supposed....so hard not to laugh at her sneakiness.
  
  
• Zoe loves to "read" books....which means turning the pages all by herself and then running to get another one. She wants to sit right in your lap to read! Zoe has also started to draw or scribble with markers and crayons. Zach does this with her all the time in her coloring books and then usually takes them for himself and colors all night. So funny.
  
  

So many awesome things changing every day....it just overwhelms me when I look back to when she was born and think about where she is now!

So Proud

My Hubby is going on his first retreat this weekend!

AND

it is Covecrest's first time hosting a Men's Retreat!

So Proud

I wish I could be a fly on the wall. There are over 130 men attending and I can only imagine the Fun, Fellowship and Faith they will all share this weekend...all for the glory of God! Such a beautiful thing!

***UPDATE *** Received a message last night from Zach: "Thank you so much for this weekend. It has already been exciting and I can't wait for the rest of it. This will be one of the most memorable birthday presents I have ever received. Thank you." Love this man! (side note: for Zach's birthday, my parents offered to pay for the admissions if he felt called to go. This was sent to them as well. So proud!)

On another note:

I have had a change of heart this week....

I am so proud of the Faith I have in God, His Son, in His Spirit and all things surrounding God. I treasure my Catholic Faith, I defend My Faith, I depend on it because the Faith I have is what will lead me to my Eternal Home with Christ....where I belong, where God wants us all to be.

Because of this Faith, I am deciding now to live my life differently....a way I should have been living all along. I am here to praise God and give Him all the glory. I am no longer going to be worried about the matters of this world...what this world claims to be right and wrong...it is distracting. Because of this Faith, I would never want to offend another or make someone else feel insufficient...this is not what my Faith is and that is not the point....the point is for us all to LOVE...love each other no matter what place we are in life, no matter what Church we go to, no matter what someone else says against your own Faith or what you believe. We are called to Love. And I am going to live this way.

Now don't get me wrong...there will be times when I will state my beliefs, but it will be from a place of Love...not a place of trying to prove something wrong or right...but from my heart. When I say things...it will be for the Glory of God, not to get a rise out of others or to seek an opportunity to show others the Truth of my Faith...I know the Truth that my Faith entails. I don't need the justification of others or the approval of others to know that. All I need is my God, His son and to know within myself that I am doing all I can to please and honor HIM!

We are called to Love one another...God did not say to only love the ones who agree with us but all. And I am going to live by this.

We are called to be in union with one another...not just the ones who believe the same things as us...but all. And I am going to live by this.

God gave me, and all of us, gifts of grace, the Sacraments, to celebrate and help us live our lives in a way pleasing to God. These gifts are to constantly remind us of the sacrifice Jesus made for our salvation and to bring us grace. Even though there may be differences and opinions on these gifts, they are positive, beautiful, and meant for God's Glory. We are never to forget what was done to save us and I am going to live by this.

And this makes me so proud. And I hope this makes Him proud as well.

Would you be your own Friend?

Have you ever asked yourself this? The qualities you possess as a friend, as a person…think about them. Maybe list them and take a look…genuinely look at the person you are to others and ask yourself…

Would I be friends with myself?

What makes a good….NO… a great friend? Because, honestly, shouldn’t we all strive to be this person….this great friend. Not for the purpose of acquiring a ton of friends, but to do what is right. To treat others as we want to be treated.

I mean lets be real with ourselves….we expect so much from our friends…and then if the littlest thing happens…we are disappointed. Well, do we have the same expectations for ourselves? I have a feeling we all don’t hold ourselves to the same level we hold others.

I have had some serious heaviness on my heart around this topic for awhile. And I am trying to be completely honest with myself….Am I a great friend….not only to the people who are great to me…but to the people who aren’t as well. And…being honest…I would say no.

In past months, someone I would have called a friend surprised me by her actions and words. To the point that I said…okay this girl and I can’t be friends. I felt weighed down by the drama and gossip. And selfishly, I was going through enough at the time to even put effort into the relationship. So I let her know…we shouldn’t be friends.

And to this day, I regret saying things the way I did. Not that I didn’t mean what I said, but I feel like there could have been a better way of going about it. Unfortunately, I don’t think people realize their actions sometimes. They don’t realize the hurtful things they have said, the judgments they have made because it has become second nature for them. I am guilty as well. I feel like this is what happened. And I ran.

We are called to help one another. We don’t know what others are going through or what kind of day or year they may be having. Instead of being a listening ear or discussing the actions that I didn’t agree with….I ran.

I take pride in my friendships and I must say, I have some pretty, darn amazing friends! But I also need to put energy into the relationships that might weigh me down or the ones that aren’t as easy. Because we are supposed to be there for one another and be Christ like to everyone we meet. Not just the ones that make our lives better or the people that treat us the way we feel we should be treated.

So much prayer has gone into the decision I made a couple months ago…and all I get from it is that it was the wrong move. But, my question to you all is this….

Is it wrong to say goodbye to someone that you just don’t see eye to eye with?

13 Weeks

How Far Along: 13 Weeks

Size of Baby: Baby #3 is about 3 inches long...the size of a shrimp and weighs about 1 ounce!

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I weighed myself on Wednesday and I was back to starting weight! But then we went to Tuscaloosa and I ate homemade biscuits and 4 layers delight and Birthday Cake and much much more....I couldn't resist. And I'll have you know....I didn't gain any weight back! So I am even right now. No weight gain. I was curious to see what my bump looked like around this time with Zoe...well....the way I look now is close to the way I looked at 20 weeks....but my belly is shaped very different in my opinion.

Maternity Clothes: None yet. But some of my sweaters/shirts are starting to get a little bit short around my tummy....so I have been trying to wear cardigans over.

Gender: August 14th.....is so far...and that is when we will know who are little one is. On our trip to AL, we discussed names a lot. And we decided we are going to keep the names a secret too! It is so fun! And for all those who think they know our girl name...it changed :)

Movement: I SWEAR I felt some movement this week, but I am pretty sure it is way too soon for that. My midwife said I probably would be able to feel the baby come 16 weeks....that is right around the corner!

Sleep: Doing very well sleeping. I am starting to have to get up to use the bathroom and I am not sure I will be able to give up sleeping on my back!

Symptoms: These Mexican cravings just won't seem to go away. Luckily, I have had no aversions so far! I made dinner for Zach this week and cooking the chicken was a little rough....but I got through it.

Best Moment of the Week: I have a couple from this week.

The more I see Zoe's personality shining, the more excited I get about bringing our Baby #3 home. She is so sweet to babies, minus her having a little bit of jealousy this week when I was holding Maria....she tried to sit on her!

I got some great news that just overjoyed me this week....but that is all I can say.

I am in the 2nd trimester and already feeling my energy come back!

And the Mexican was just great!!!!!

A Day for PLAY

Atlanta has so much to offer for little kids and family outings....but sometimes to trek to the city is just not in the cards. Katie introduced me and Zoe Zoo to Imaginations at Play this past week....a great place right down the street. Affordable and FUN! The activities are endless for our little ones and it is small enough that you can sit and chit chat and not worry one bit where the Baby is...because you can see every corner.

This was Zoe's favorite area to play....I have such a little fish on my hands! She would get her hands all wet and just giggle and giggle. She also loved when the bubbles would start to spray....she just tried to grab them all.

And there was even a little area for really little ones...

Needless to say after all this play, we both needed a nap! So we headed home....slept....and waited for Daddy to get home from work. Then off to the park we went...

Zoe had to show off her new slide climbing skills for Daddy to see.

Love the hair!

Pure Joy!

And to spin because Aunt Chrysti said it is good for my development!

My Zoe is getting so big...it just blows me away!

I must say....days like these just make me more and more grateful that I can be home with my Baby Girl....she is so much fun and just has Zach and I cracking up all the time! So Very Blessed!