T G F G (Thank Goodness For Gramma)

My mom got into town last week, and the girls have been glued to her side like flies stuck to flypaper.  Already she's been an enormous help, and Tessa hasn't even arrived yet.  Benji and I even squeezed in a lunch date at a Thai restaurant in McMinnville.  Thank goodness for Gramma!

Full Term

Well,  I finally reached 37 wks last week.  And to be honest, I'm tired of being pregnant.  Actually, I'm just plain tired.  With my due date just around the corner, we are feeling the pressure of completing our checklist of things to finish before Tessa arrives.  Thankfully, my mom is getting into town earlier than originally planned, so I'm hoping to take advantage of that while Benji is at work.  At my last appointment, my midwife again confirmed she was head down, but also thought she had dropped a bit. I still find it hard to breath, so I don't know... maybe she has, maybe she hasn't.  So far, I've gained a total of 35 pounds and have felt some minor contractions while trick-or-treating.  My low blood platelets are still a concern, but my midwife assured me that they probably won't drop below 100, which will still give me the option of an epidural.  CrossFit has taken a back seat, as I'm only going once a week sometimes twice a week.

This picture makes me laugh 'cause it looks like I'm trying to hide a small watermelon underneath my shirt. 

Boo-boo's birthday fun

Even though Dadda had to work, I wanted to make her day extra special.  So after she woke up, she came downstairs to find cupcakes and balloons at the dining room table.  After breakfast in which she merely licked the frosting off the cupcake, we skyped with Gramma & Grampa C. and she opened a couple of presents.  For lunch I surprised her with a trip to McDonalds, and the girls enjoyed playing in McD's Playland.  When Dadda got home we skyped with Ahmma & Dumpa, and she opened some more presents before we ate a kid-friendly dinner of chicken nuggets and mac & cheese. 

Happy Birthday Piper Joshlyn

Happy 2nd Birthday to my second-born.  You and your hair sure have grown!

Stay tuned for pictures of her birthday celebration.

Life lately

Even though my cross country season is officially over, we still manage to stay pretty busy as a family. We recently painted the girls' shared room and Tessa's nursery and took a trip to Ikea to buy some items to complete my vision for the decor.  I can't wait to show pictures of the girls' finished room!  We are transitioning the girls into bigger beds; McKinley into a twin bed and Piper into a toddler bed...mainly because ever since Piper learned she could climb out of her crib, she won't stay in her crib.  So, with that, we are battling nap time and night time issues, and hopefully they will be fully resolved before Tessa arrives.  McKinley is going through a little potty-training regression as well.   I don't know what's worse....cleaning up after McKinley or Piper's night time strolls which leave us sleep-deprived. 

Redeeming a Groupon voucher at Fat Milo's in Sherwood. 

Biggest pancake ever!

The girls model their Sunday attire before Dadda takes them to church..... so Momma can finish painting.

A little birthday greeting for my little brother currently deployed on the USS Reagan.

The girls scored some dress-up outfits at Goodwill because their Halloween inventory was 75% off.

Princess Cinderella and Princess Aurora.