The moments that remind me why we are doing this again

When I think about having a newborn around I tend to remember the sleepless nights, spit up on everything, milk stains on my shirt, gassy, crying babies, 2 a.m. fights with Dave, the endless amount of bottle and pump parts that need washing, and did I mention the lack of sleep? This past week, however, my two boys have been reminding why we thought 3 kids was a good idea. On my morning to sleep in, Archie came up into my room with a flower that he picked for me in the backyard and a hug. Not wanting to be left out, Fletcher wanted a hug too. Getting woken up with flowers and hugs is probably the best way to wake up in my opinion. At the library a few days later, instead of holding my hands in the parking lot, the boys held each others hand. It was completely unprompted by me and luckily I had my camera handy so I could capture the sweetness of the moment. How could I not want another child? I am not delusional enough to think that puppies and roses are going to abound in the next few months, but I am reminded that it is totally worth all the crappy nights that are ahead of us.

On Tuesday we had our last growth ultrasound to see how large the baby is because of my gestational diabetes. At our penultimate (thank you Prof. John Su for teaching me one of my favorite words) ultrasound, the baby was sleepy and we didn't really get a look at him/her. This time around though we got to see the chubby cheeks and adorable face of the baby we are going to be holding in less than 2 weeks. Both of us kind of had our moment of calm at that point. The fact that Grandma and Grandpa R. are coming for a month starting on Monday also helps!

I have been trying to take the boys to the park a lot since they have been such troopers going to to all of my appt's with me. We tried out two new parks this week. One was kind of neat b/c it was a sensory park ideally suited for special needs kids. How cool is it that my new town has thought of these things? The boys liked it, but I think it could have used more shade trees. However, I would be sweating in 60 degree temps right now. The other park was in our neighborhood but we haven't been there yet. In our little square mile where our house resides we have 6 playgrounds and an abundance of trails with open space. This park had a nice climbing wall, tall slides, and wasn't near any major roads which is a great plus. I liked this one a lot.

Dave has officially completed 2 weeks of working from home. I am quite pleased with how well it is going. The boys accept that when Dad is in this basement he is "at work" and not to be bothered. There was that one day where Dave went to get the mail during nap time, slammed the door on the way out and in, and woke up the kids! I have forgiven him though since he has been rocking out the honey-do list. Plus, the basement bathroom has never been cleaner now that Dave works down there. Ivy, whose litter box is down there, is also thankful.

Over the last few weeks Fletcher has really just advanced leaps and bounds with his communication skills. Fletcher has been talking for almost a year, but the quality of what he is saying is just astounding. He is talking about his feelings, using adjectives a lot, letting us know what he has been up to, etc... Yesterday after Dave took them to the park he came home and told me everything that he did using full and complete sentences. It is really kind of cool. Archer is getting ready to start school next month. I have his uniform but we still need to get all of the back to school supplies. I am so excited for him. He has been asking to play with friends a lot lately. He doesn't have any play mates, but he calls kids that he meets at the park friends. I cannot wait until he actually has kids he can play with everyday and have real friends. It breaks my heart to see him sad when no kids are at the park. Only 3 more weeks until school!

I am still doing really well on the menu planning and food budget. I am completing our 3rd month and the amount we spend is getting pretty predictable. Our garden is also starting to produce a lot of squash, tomatoes, and the chard is still coming up. It is nice have fresh veggies at every meal and knowing what is going to be for dinner every night. It also provides a nice amount of leftovers for our lunches. I imagine our grocery bill will be going up a bit now that Dave will be eating all his meals at home, plus snacks throughout the day. Once the baby comes we will probably have a few months of more processed foods as well and that usually equals more money. At least I have built up a nice repertoire of meals that we enjoy and are relatively easy to make.

Well today is Saturday and maybe our last weekend before the baby comes so we need to get stuff done. Dave is cleaning out the cars, moving the boys' car seats to the back, and installing the infant seat. I am cleaning all the bottles and accessories and figuring out where to put them. I also need to find all the baby socks and bibs and launder them. The pack n' play and co-sleeper are getting put together, the house is getting as clean as we can muster, plus we have the boys that need supervision and what not!

What a difference a GD diagnosis makes. I weigh almost 25 lbs. less than I did at this point in my previous pregnancies and I feel the best too. I haven't been able to indulge in any pregnancy cravings, but at least I won't be paying for it after this LO is born.