Soaking it Up and Counting Down the Days!

I have never been so torn between wanting to soak up every sweet moment with me and my girl and time as a family of 3 and wanting our little man to join the fun! Some days I would give anything for more time of this simple and fun stage before the newborn stage begins and other days I cannot wait for the sweet snuggles and James and I embarking on baby #2. 

I am amazed how fast this pregnancy has gone by and definitely very excited that we are in the home stretch!! One more month until Hudson is due and that makes this momma very happy! 

Here I am at 35 weeks. It is 100 degrees outside and I am PREG-NANT. Hudson is super active and seems to be moving all of the time which has been fun to experience. The movements are definitely changing as we run out of room, but he still manages to be pretty active! I haven't had any crazy cravings, but last week I was dying for chinese food, but didn't want to feel super puffy afterwards, so James made Stir Fry that was delicious! I have also craved pumpkin, but that craving has been curbed a few times since it is not quite cool outside. 

While Hudson is growing Ella has been turning into more of a big girl every day! Here are some fun pictures from recently...

 Ella trying Sprinkles Ice Cream for the first time. 

 Ella cheering on her Aggies at a watch party with friends! Also, coloring on the receipt obviously!

 This girl could not love Lambie more than she already does! ("MAM-EEE") She LOVES to play doctor (just like Doc McStuffins) everyday and Lambie is her little side kick! 

Ella also started her first day of MDO without mommy. She loves it so far, which is such a blessing. She has an incredibly sweet teacher and is exhausted after I pick her up. 

Ella's personality is developing more and more every day. She is definitely an independent little girl who knows what she wants. She loves fruit and is definitely on the pickier side when it comes to vegetables and protein. She is talking so much and definitely communicating her favorite things. Every time we pull into church she says "chuchhhh" then immediately says "siiiddddeee" which is slide. She loves to go down the slide before she gets dropped off at child care. One of her favorite sayings lately is "Come on," in the sweetest little voice. When she wakes up in the morning she wants everyone out of bed to have breakfast and will say "come on" until we are all headed down the hall. She has also started saying her own version of "I love you." She says "Muh Moo" and will usually come hug or kiss you....melt my heart! 

James and I can't wait to watch Ella become a big sister and to meet our little man, Hudson. 4 1/2 weeks to go! 

Cheap Summer Entertainment

I am always looking for cheap summer entertainment for Ella and I. We love to get out and find fun activities that don't break the bank. There is always the option for swimming, library story time, and many other fun, free options. Today I decided to take Ella to her first movie and she LOVED it.

Studio Movie Grill is doing a Summer Movie Series for children. It is $2 for adults and $1 for kids. They show a different movie each week, and you can see their schedule on their site. If you click here, you can see all of the movie theaters in Dallas participating in different children's movie deals. We might try some of the options that start at 10, since that might work a little better with nap time. Today they were showing "Follow that Bird." I figured with sesame street, some guaranteed singing in the movie, and the chance that if it did not go well we were only out $3...I would give it a try.

We got in the movie and Ella kept saying "Wow" when things would be loud or flash. Once the movie started she loved it and every now and then if it got a little loud or a character came on that she was not too sure about (*cough" Snuffy) she would sit with me. Other than that she really enjoyed it.

This was a great option for us to get out of the house on a hot day and go enjoy a movie together! I know these are sweet dates we get for a couple more months before our sweet boy arrives! We are definitely looking forward to movie days at home with Hudson, too!

Hope everyone has a wonderful Thursday!

28 weeks

I don't have a belly photo this week, but that can be attributed to the third trimester coming in with a bang! This week has felt like a gradual turn into feeling my body's need for rest and hormones going a little crazy! 

I am definitely having to choose to be joyful in this season of pregnancy, and fail at this all the time. I catch myself wallowing in how hot I am and the fact that sweat seems to constantly be a part of my every movement. Then, Hudson kicks or moves around like crazy (because he is super active) and I am brought right back to the place of remembering how worth it this is. How my sweet babies are teaching me so much and bringing me closer to the Lord in so many ways, that I will take being hot for the joy I get to have being their momma. 

This week has definitely brought on the hormones too. I am finding that I have to give myself a little time each day to nap or lay down or I seem to find the need to cry over the most ridiculous things. This week I actually cried because one of my plants died and I just did not understand how that could happen when I have tried to water it so well (and it has rained!). Go ahead...laugh...it is absolutely ridiculous. But this change has been so good for James and I to revisit what those first several weeks can look like. How they can be filled with emotional breakdowns and tears from exhaustion amongst the joy of a a new baby. It has really got us talking about ways we feel loved and can love each other through that season. I feel like we know a little more of what to expect and are more confident in ourselves as parents, so I am really praying for the Lord to use that season to love each other well. 

Even though there are no belly pics this week, here are a few pictures of a mighty spirited 18 month old I know....

 This is Ella with her "OW-UHL." She loves to lay in her bed and read books after naps. 

This week we watched the Polar Express (she didn't quite make it through the whole thing, but we got a little here and there.) I love watching movies and snuggling with her, especially Christmas movies! 

Hope everyone has a wonderful week and enjoyed their weekend! 

27 weeks and a 1 1/2 year old!

Today I am 27 weeks along with Hudson...only 13 to go! I am so thankful that June was filled with several mild days and as we get into the hotter days I am definitely trying to get creative with how Ella and I spend our time. I am not one for the heat, but definitely thankful for a healthy growing baby (and planning to avoid summer all together next pregnancy:) Clearly, my plans always work so great...

I have been craving a few random things like....cinnamon life cereal ( I literally NEVER eat cereal...EVER!) but this has sounded good recently. I am definitely enjoying a popsicle on hotter days and love steak kabobs from Zoe's. Hudson is definitely bringing out foods that I would not usually pick, unlike with Ella I always craved sweets, which is very typical for me. I officially start my 3rd trimester next week and we are trucking along getting everything in order for Hudson. I am hoping to finish up his nursery soon and will post pics when we do.

As for big sister, she is 1 1/2 today! What!!! She is full of personality and saying new words every day. I feel like I can't keep up with how fast she is growing. I am also really loving her cute names for things that we know what she is saying, but has her own version, for example blankie is banbie and its precious. She also LOVES her owl and when she says "owl" it sounds like a 2 syllable word "OW-UHL." She is doing a great job at communicating, but along with that comes some pretty good meltdowns when she is told no or if we do not understand. So, that is something we are definitely working on with our little spirited girl! Lately, if you ask her where Baby Hudson is she will come up to my belly and give it a kiss. I think it is pretty sweet!

Once the 3rd trimester starts I am trying to plan some fun family dates to be intentional with our time together as a family of 3 before a newborn is in the mix. If you have any great family dates that you have loved send them my way.

Ella (18 months) with blankie, owl, and using Hudson as a pillow!

Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Hudson James and catch up

After Ella's first birthday I took a "vacation" from keeping up the blog. Also 2 weeks after her first birthday (the last time I really blogged) we found out we were pregnant, traveled, bought our first house, and life got a little crazy chasing around my busy girl. I love going back and looking at the posts from Ella's pregnancy and first year, so I am going to try to add some pictures and updates in here and get going again.

We were surprised a couple days after getting back from Breckenridge, CO to find out that we were pregnant! My first trimester was pretty standard (compared to my pregnancy with Ella) and I had my 2 weeks of nausea and other than that I was mostly extremely tired. Thank goodness Ella still napped twice a day during my first trimester because momma usually needed a nap too! I definitely felt Hudson kicking around much sooner and have loved the feeling of having him move around all cozy in there. I love this part of being pregnant. 

Being pregnant in summer has definitely been a whole new ball game. Anyone who knows me knows that I am already very hot natured and wouldn't exactly say that I thrive in the heat, but the Lord is teaching me so much in choosing joy because I have a little girl who adores being outside, loves the water, and has little interest in kicking her feet up on the couch in the air conditioned house. We try to get in fun activities in the morning and be more creative with our afternoons. So far summer has been really fun with her. We have definitely had our long, hot days, but overall we are really trying to soak up our girls summer before sweet Hudson arrives! 

I get giddy thinking about when he will arrive. I love thinking about the fall and the holidays and how we will be adding such a sweet joy to our family. I know the newborn stage can come with its fair share of long nights and sleep deprivation, but I feel so much more confident going into baby #2 and trusting that I can do it. With Ella, there were so many times I doubted if I was doing it "right." With Hudson, I know we can do it and have tons of friends and family who can lend their wisdom on the harder days. 

This pregnancy I have not had too many crazy cravings. Although 2 times I have called James to get Cane's on his way home from work. All I really want is the toast and Cane's sauce, but I have kept that craving at bay. Right now its coconut yogurt with almonds and dark chocolate chips...yumm! Oh and fresh lemonade never hurts :)

Here are some pictures from my pregnancy so far...

 12 weeks at the Easter service

 14 weeks...so excited to announce we are expecting!

 16 weeks 

 18 weeks and bought our first house

 19 weeks and snuggling after lots of unpacking

 22 weeks

23 weeks at the beach

24 weeks right before Ella's swim lesson

Overall, it seems like this pregnancy is flying, so hopefully I will be able to document some more and get back into blogging about our growing boy and busy girl! Luckily, we have still been taking lots of pictures, so at least the family book at the end of the year won't lack for documentation! Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend!!! 

Ella's First Birthday!

Saturday was filled with so much joy and excitement! It was so wonderful celebrating our sweet girl and thinking of what we were doing that time the year before. I can't believe how much she has grown over this past year and her party was a perfect celebration of the blessing she is!

I had so much fun planning her party. The theme was "Ella's Favorite Things" and I kept the decorations girly and fun. The food was all of her favorites and for favors we did rubber duckies and apple sauce pouches in a bag with cute little dogs on it (ironic?). I wanted the whole day to be a celebration of her and the things she loves. I did a few fun crafty things and kept the rest of it pretty simple. 

We had her friends and family all together and she could tell everyone around her was excited and she kept smiling and laughing all day, which was the sweetest thing! She LOVED eating cake (no surprise at all) and cried when we took it away. Here are some sweet pictures from her birthday!

Me and my birthday girl! 

I made little centerpieces with pictures on popsicle sticks and cupcake goldfish on the table. I also put together a little book with pictures for the guests to sign/write Ella a note. 

Incredibly lucky to call this my family. 

Such a little goof ball!

Being silly with Nana

The birthday girl with grandma and grandpa

With her Aunt Ashley and Aunt Fifi

Favors and Drinks

"Ella's Favorite Things" 

I made a "1" sign with some of our favorites. I also did a monthly picture banner, but don't have a good pic of that. 

Sweet daddy helping Ella enjoy her favorite foods!

Loves her cake!!!!

Opening presents and loving all the tissue paper!

After we had her party we celebrated with family that night. We enjoyed pizza and cake and had a great time celebrating Ella! 

Singing her Happy Birthday! 

She kept clapping while we all sang. 

Ella with her cousins. 

Lovin' on my sweet girl after a day full of fun!!

Happy Birthday, Ella Mae! You are the sweetest blessing in our lives! 

learning the hard way

The last 24 hours have been pretty crazy for our little family. At 6:45 last night Ella and I were playing and waiting for Dad to get home. Jaxon was sitting by us, as usual and Ella was cruising all over the place. I was on the floor with Jaxon on my right and Ella started playing with her ball to my left. Out of nowhere and for a reason we still don't know, Jaxon lunged across me and bit Ella. It was by far the most terrifying thing I have ever experienced. I had to pull him off her and picked her up. There was blood on her and me and I could not figure out where it was coming from. At that moment James walked in the door and when she looked at him I realized Jaxon had bit Ella's ear. 

We got in the car and headed to the ER. They triaged her immediately and then we waited an hour and a half to see the doctor. After the doctor took a look they called in the plastic surgeon. When he arrived he went over everything with us and told us he thought surgery was the best option to fix her ear and stitch up where he could. We waited about 45 minutes for an operating room to open up then got her IV hooked up and prepped her for surgery. They sedated her through an IV that put her into a deep sleep while still being able to breath on her own. All of the doctors and nurses kept coming in to see Ella...she stole all their hearts and was an absolute dream. Considering the pain she was in she was such a trooper!!

Normally, Jaxon is such a good dog and Ella can literally pull the hair on his face and he won't budge. Ella's first word was dog when she was 10 months old and every time she sees him she gets so excited. James and I are firm believers in raising children in a home with animals. We believe it teaches them so many wonderful things, and never in a million years did I ever think something like this would happen. I was sitting right there, there did not seem to be anything that provoked him and all I can guess is that he was going for her ball. 

With that being said, today was very hard for our family in many ways.

A lot of people might be thinking, "that is why we don't have dogs," or "you just have to be so careful," but what I have learned from this is more that being parents requires sacrifice and a tremendous amount of faith that the Lord is in control and understanding that accidents are accidents and they happen. Understanding that last night was the first and might not be the last trip to the ER. Learning that even when you love your dog like a child that your baby's safety is most important.

This morning we made the choice to choose a different home for Jaxon. We know that Ella is our first priority, but saying bye to our dog was not an easy thing. Thankfully he will be living with James' parents now and crated anytime children are there. For now, this is the right decision for our family, but one day there might be room for a dog again, just not today. 

Here are some pictures of our sweet girl...

 Prepping her for surgery with her IVs.

 Snuggling with momma.

 Her poor ear. The gauze is on until tomorrow to prevent clotting. 

 You might be wondering how it is possible to be this cute in a baby hospital gown and IV...she is so sweet!

After surgery they had to monitor her for an hour then we could take her home.

So last night the lesson I learned the hard way was not that dogs are unpredictable, but that I am not in control. While the events definitely led to our family having to make changes, more than anything I learned that no matter how close I sit to her and try to protect Ella from harms way, life will happen. I am incredibly thankful for an amazing plastic surgeon who did a beautiful job on her ear and hopeful that it will heal. We would love and appreciate prayers for a speedy recovery and no infection.