Snow Day

The snow is still coming down here, but it's getting dark and the fun will melt away in the morning. :(

This afternoon, Steven came home early (we were worried the road would freeze over) so we bundled up and headed outside. Unfortunately they received more snow on the north side of town, but we still had enough to make a couple of snow men. There is so much grass in them, but that's a "Texas" Snowman for ya.

We started in our back yard so that we could still look out our front door and see the pretty blanket of snow.





Initially it started as one snowman, but we couldn't lift the second ball on top of the first one... so we made two!

Saying Goodbye! Sleep tight little snowmen...

Month 6

Man, do I feel pregnant! And I look very pregnant. Every time I see myself I'm amazed at how big I am. The thing that truly blows my mind is that I've only gained 15 pounds. I look like I put on 50... and I feel like I put on 100! Before writing this I looked back at my Month 2 photo and realized I never appreciated my old body... now I will be so thankful to get it back!

I had to switch to one of Steven's shirts to take my photo for this month. Next time I will just start with an XL shirt. When taking the first picture I literally just grabbed something out of my closet that seemed stretchy to me at the time. Lesson learned.

While taking my picture Steven and I often get a little goofy. Most of the time I delete the silly photos, but I had to add this one because it truly captures how I feel...

Changes for Me
-Nothing much has changed in the realm of heartburn, backaches and general uncomfort... but I have accepted the current circumstances. I'm sure once I meet John I will think it was totally worth it.
-He is still kicking a lot... they are just stronger now. And I think he has found some of his favor spots... like my lower left rib. Anything that is tight against my stomach he kicks at. This has been helpful because if someone want to feel him kick they can just press real hard against my stomach and he'll kick you! Just warn me before mashing a hand into my ridiculously large tummy.
-Something new this month are growth spurts. Oh man, I hate these! First things start to feel really really tight. Then I get crazy hungry. Then there is more tightness... and aching. No matter how I sit or lay I just can't get comfortable. And then, all of the sudden, I'm better! The thing that bugs me about growth spurts is that I have no idea how long they will last. I had one that lasted 3 days and another that only lasted a day or so. It would be much more bearable if I could predict them.

Changes for Steven
-Its been a fun feeling John kick. Yah for me feeling him kick a few times... and big ones too!
-I've noticed that Fallon's back is hurting her more. But doing the Bradley exercises has helped some.
-I feel like our love for each other has increased. Or at least we are showing it more.

Changes for John
-Most things I've read say that he is around 2.5 pounds... but I know he has got to be at least 3... some days I think 15.
-He has hair... which isn't a shocker, because I've had heartburn since... forever! But he does have eyebrows and eyelashes... which I think is precious.
-In addition to the practicing of breathing and being able to hear us, he will now start to open his eyes... I can't wait to see them peering up at me... hopefully not while screaming at me!
-Bodily growth has slowed a bit because so much energy is being pumped into his brain.
-Bone marrow will take over production of red blood cells.

New Flip Colors

For some reason that has currently slipped my mind, I found myself on the Cotton Babies website... which isn't unusual for me... he he. And I saw a yellow Flip diaper!!!! Turns out Cotton Babies has new colors for Flip. I love the twilight, butternut & grasshopper... if only they would come out with a white... oh well... yellow (butternut) is a good compromise. I'm may break down and buy some Flip diapers.

Time Management

One of the main goals for our household before John comes is to establish a good routine. We know that in May things will most likely have to be adjusted or just plain thrown out the window, but a good routine will be easier to slip back into if we have it established before he comes.

One of my friends found a blog talking about "maximizing your mornings." Amazing concept! I have found that if I wake up with a plan, I can easily work my way through most household chores in two hours. The rest of the day is left to... whatever! I've been doing this for about two weeks now and I am really thankful that the Lord showed me this. The only thing I dislike is that I didn't have this figured out while in school (one of my biggest struggles with stress came from how untidy our house was while I was taking classes).

Something I came up with to help me "see" what needs to be done in the day is a little excel spreadsheet I print every week... I'm sorry, I just LOVE excel. It's very helpful because Steven can even "see" it and fill in things if he wants to. One of my love languages is service and he often puts a heart in the square he completes... all week I'm reminded of how much my husband loves me. Here is an example of my list.....



Trying to prevent myself from being overwhelmed I didn't plan out the weekends. I start on Sunday nights by quickly packing lunches for the next day and running the dishwasher. This helps me eliminate any excuse for procrastinating on Monday morning.

The morning portion takes about two hours... but I've found that I'm getting faster and faster at it. I also don't stress about marking off everything. For instance, we don't always have a full load of dishes and/or laundry. I know that will change and so I left it in the daily portion.

Somethings don't need to be done daily... like meal planning or pulling weeds... so I made a weekly task section. In addition, I have a detailed cleaning section. I have nine areas in our house (entrance, office, dining, laundry, kitchen, living, bathroom, hallway/second bedroom and our bedroom) and I work on one area per week (every 9 weeks a section gets detailed). I got the idea from "Fly Lady." Sometimes on the weekends Steven will tackle some of the task for me... I love seeing those little hearts.

The green section is where I do my actual meal planning. I decided to put it on the list because I had the extra room and it is a good place to look after I see the "dinner prep" part of my daily task. I have the days of the week listed, but we rarely stick to that... it's more of a tool to make sure I have enough meals to last a week. Often two or three of those days will say "left overs."

I do still adjust little things at the end of each week, but overall it is working out really well. The most amazing thing is that our house always feels clean and I'm not over working myself. This leaves so much freedom to meet with friends or take care of things I've put off forever... like our silly wedding scrapbook.

I hope this encourages you! Happy Homemaking.

Bradley Class

We had our first Bradley class this week and it was very exciting. If you aren't aware of the Bradley method it's a birthing technique that teaches relaxation (and many many other things) in order to achieve an unmediated birth. See this website for more information.

This has been my desire for a long time... even before I got married. Steven heard about it through me and has been very supportive. I chose this method because I know women have been giving birth without medicine for a long time (some even in my family) and I want to see if I can do it too! I love how Bradley encourages the husband's involvement and educates you on the entire process. I feel like I'm going to be prepared... and I really like that.

There is always a chance that we will need medication or possibly a cesarean, so we are preparing our hearts for that if it happens. I'm not so set on an unmediated birth that I'm going to ignore the concerns of our doctor... however, we both really want this for our family and so we are doing everything we can to be successful.

Back to the class... we both really like the instructor. She has nine kids... two were adopted, but she birthed seven of them. All of her children are very well behaved and polite... we were very impressed. In addition to having a ton of personal experiences, she has taught the Bradley method for 17 years! Instructors are required to get and maintain a certification so there is some degree of accountability. Steven was very impressed with these things and quickly put his confidence in her.

The thing I most liked was that she works with what we want. For safety reasons we plan to give birth in a hospital and because we have insurance through Steven's work, it would be more expensive to have a mid wife. There are couples in the class that have chose to have a midwife and those who have not. I was very relieved... as silly as it sounds, I had fears that we would be sat in the center of the room and sternly instructed to get a midwife. There is a lot less pressure than I expected.... it's more like educating you so that YOU can make a decision.

We practiced some exercises and relaxation techniques during the first class. I have full confidence in Steven. Because I have had such a hard time sleeping he has become really good at helping me get comfortable. He sets ups and adjust up to seven pillows for me every night. I know, seven pillows sound ridiculous but some nights it is really hard to get comfortable... I can't just flip over like I used to be able to do. He also has had a TON of practice massaging my sore back. So the relaxation part of the class was very easy.

The exercising portion was a little more educational. Because a few of my friend have also done this method I had already begun some of the exercises. However, I was definitely doing one of them incorrectly... contributing to some lower back issues I was having. Some nights I could barely crawl into bed because of a dull pain in my back. The instructor helped me correct things and I've have almost no back pain since.

We are both excited and feel more bonded with our child than before. We need so much prayer, because a lot of things have to go well in order for this to happen the way we desire. Conception, pregnancy and birth are all such a miracle... I'm amazed anyone is able to have children.

Homemade Pasta

Steven got adventurous in the kitchen a couple of weeks ago. He made pasta! I think he is truly Italian at heart... and so good lookin' too!

He has was stunned to find a recipe in my Betty Crocker cookbook and couldn't resist trying it out. It turned out well. Next time he is going to cut them into smaller pieces and hopefully roll them flatter... it was a monster sized linguine.

You probably have everything you need in your kitchen to try it out. Italians were making pasta before pasta-making-machines were invented.

How do you like his make-shift pasta drying rack?

Here is the recipe...

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon olive oil

Mix flour and salt. Make a well in center of flour mixture. Add eggs, water and oil to well. Mix thoroughly (if dough is too dry mix in water to make dough easy to handle... if dough is too sticky gradually add more flour when kneading). Gather dough into a ball and knead for 5 to 10 minutes. Cover and let stand 15 minutes. Divide dough into four equal parts. Roll out each quarter to 1/16 to 1/8 inch thickness. Fold over into thirds and cut into strips. Hang pasta on drying rack or arrange in a single layer on a lightly floured towel. Let stand 30 minutes. Boil 4 quarts of water, salt and add pasta. Boil uncovered for 2 to 5 minutes. Test for doneness when pasta rises to the surface of water. Drain pasta and sauce.

Steven added 1 teaspoon of dried herbs, but good ol' Betty also recommends trying the zest of a lemon, poppy seeds or sesame seeds.

Have fun!