Updates

First, yep, still pregnant. Big Sigh.



Things have been so busy for me the last couple of weeks trying to get everything finished up that I need to get done before this next baby arrives. I know that I'm not going to even come close, but the perfectionist side of me refuses to give in. I'm hoping I have at least two weeks left before this kid decides to make his grand entrance which according to Murphy's Law either means he's coming this weekend or in 4 which would make me utterly miserable. (I'm pretty sure if he doesn't show by his due date of Sept 13 I'm just going to camp in the doctors' waiting room bawling until they take pity on me!) The last couple of days have been really hot and just add the the joys of being this pregnant in August. Although I'm very nervous about just how I'm going to manage with two kids, I'm am so ready to just NOT BE PREGNANT! My last doctor visit exam said I was making some progress on this front, but still hard to tell when he will actually show.



Last Sunday, my family threw both Carter and I a really nice baby shower. (Thank you so much everyone!) You can see some nice pictures here, here and here. Carter is pretty sure she has a baby in her belly too that is getting ready to come out also, so my wonderful family also got her some gifts for her baby. Her baby just arrived last week via American Girl and is hiding in my closet until I go to the hospital so both babies will arrive together. Carter really loved the shower and has been playing dolls enthusiastically with all her new loot for the last week or so. She has this idea that the baby is going to come ripping out of the top of my belly and has quite an exciting story about just how he is going to do it. Makes me almost nauseous to hear it. Kid, don't listen to your sister! (The first of many times I'm going to be telling him that...)



I've also been busy trying to get everything finished up at work. I talked to them this week about not returning after my maternity leave unless they had some projects for me to work on around the baby since I simply don't have any good child care options I'm willing to consider or that really work between costs and drive time (i.e. taking the kids to Billings or even Huntley for day care with someone I don't know). Landa, who has been so wonderful to watch Carter for the last two years, doesn't want to watch another baby (and I really can't blame her at all...she's taken care of three extra along with her own two) and next fall is planning to either go back to school or return to work when her youngest daughter Riley Jo goes to kindergarten. We are really going to miss her. I'm still tying not to have panic attacks when I think about being unemployed especially with all the gas price and grocery price crazyness. My dad laughed at me when I told him that and said if I didn't think staying home and raising kids was work I was really in for a shock. No, I get that being a stay at home mom is really a lot more work than going to an outside job everyday. Kids seem to be born knowing how to push everyone of your buttons and seeing what happens when you get to your last sane straw. They aren't big on rational conversations when they really want something NOW, they don't care if you spent all day cleaning when they decide to streak through the house covered in mud and worse things, not real interested in you trying to take a nap when they want to show you the latest and greatest grasshopper they just caught--and just lost in your bed. (That was entertaining....) I just hope I'm strong enough to survive this! I have several friends who are stay at home moms and they give me hope. At any rate, Robert and I figure that we are in a pretty fair situation to make this work for awhile right now so it feels like the right thing to do, especially while they are little. But this feels a lot like the first time I was pregnant, and while I had all these kinds of ideas of just how it was going to be, the reality was nothing like I'd imagined or even could have prepared for. Wish me luck, I'm going to need it. Anyway, work is mulling over some options and I'll probably know in a few weeks if I am completely done or if I will be going back after the baby for a short period to finish some training projects for them. They have been a really great company to work for, particularly in allowing me to work from home, part time so that I could also be a mommy. They also seemed interested in the idea of me re-applying in a few years if things change or when I'm ready to go back to work. No point in burning any bridges!



Also last Sunday night we had a bit of another fire scare. Robert was driving home and saw lightning strike and start a fire that looked like it was right above our house. He came roaring home, grabbed the fire truck, told us to get ready in case we needed to leave and tore off again. Scared the daylights out of Carter who velcroed herself to me and kept telling me not to let the fire get her. Not a chance baby girl. Luckily the fire was actually further away then it looked and with the fast help of our local volunteer fire dept (basically all the family and neighbors in this area), it was quickly put out. Robert didn't get home until late and was pretty tired.



The following Monday, Robert gamely volunteered to take Carter to the fair, along with 3 teenage girls--all cousins. Two of the girls managed to get separated from the group and lost for most of the night. They were having a ball riding rides while everyone else was out looking for them and worried. Sigh. I ended up going in to pick up Carter at midnight and Robert didn't get home until after 1 when they finally found the girls (happily standing in line to ride another ride) around 12:30. In all fairness, it wasn't all the girls fault, it was just one big mix up from the get go, but made for a long night for everyone. I'm just so glad the girls were found safe!



So that's basically what we've been up to. I have a little cousin, I think he's about 8 years old, who is in the hospital hoping to get out soon--hopefully last night. He got admitted last Friday with a really sore arm and a fever which they finally determined to be an abscess in his arm. Poor kid. He had to have surgery on Monday (which as it turned out, my sister got to be one of the nurses in helping, yah Christy!) and they are hoping he can go home in a few more days. Sounds like he's getting pretty stir crazy--can't say as I blame him. Carter is still catching grasshoppers and has added catching bees to her list. Even getting stung didn't slow her down for long. She likes to use big ziplock bags and sweep them over the flowers when the hapless bee lands. Those do NOT get to come in the house. I have a few more fun pictures to post when I get a chance... School is starting so I'm losing all my summer babysitters. Carter is going to miss all the big girls being around to play with. Plus Gramma Aunty Linda is starting back up at her old job at Agri-News so she also won't be watching Carter during the week. The timing is really pretty good, since I'm just about ready to be home full time. So no pictures just yet...maybe later today.