Here We Go!

This weekend we will officially start taking steps to move to Missouri, yay! We are cleaning and repairing so that we can get this house on the market. Hoping to have it done and on the market within the next week or two. Fingers crossed.

My Dad has been cracking me up over the potential relocation. Rest assured he has given me a minimum of five lectures on the topic and I'm sure they'll be many more in my future.Without him I would have never known that I need a job, benefits and MONEY to move...who'd a thunk it. Here I am hoping to live in a van down by the river, eating berries and small animals to survive.

In case anyone out there is wondering why we want to move (a few have asked), let's count the ways shall we (in no particular order):

1. Houses in DE are too expensive
2. We need a four bedroom house
3. The school district we live in sucks
4. Private school is crazy expensive
5. Tom and I both love Missouri
6. I need wide open spaces
7. No offense to my fellow Delawarean but quite a lot of you act very ghetto. Sorry/Not Sorry, learn manners
8. We've both worked at our current jobs for ten years...this is crazy talk and we need change
9. We are only 30 and 28 life is to be enjoyed in a place you will enjoy it best
10. I'd like to try living closer to the rest of my family for a change

I don't know where we'll work, I don't know what town we'll live in but we'll have all that hammered out before we pack up three kids, three cats and a dog to head west.

So there you have it. It's starting; let's see what the next year and a half brings...good Lord willing of course.

One, Two, Three, Four...Fifth!

Hannah celebrated her fifth birthday yesterday, her golden birthday! She went to school with cupcakes and treat bags in tow. We picked her up from school with a large bouquet of balloons. Had lunch at her favorite place-Red Robins. Traveled to Best Buy to pick up Wreck it Ralph at which time the balloon bouquet decided to exit the car. Bought a second bouquet of balloons. Came home and played before heading to the mall later in the evening. Hopefully she had a great birthday despite the balloons blowing away and a few other minor disasters.

Carter had his psychological evaluation while Hannah was at school and my Mom watched Amelia. Nothing to really report about that, it was surprisingly the easiest part of my day. They let him play while they talked to us. We then implemented a clean up time that went pretty well. Next, they tested him while he was buckled into a high chair and all the toys were taken out of the room. They showed him a book with pictures and asked him questions, they worked with red and white blocks, etc. He did not care to be buckled in the high chair and was getting angry at the lady for not letting him out. Tom and I filled out about seven pages of questions in regards to his behavior and then we went to the playground to see how he does in a playground setting. From there we left. The evaluation lasted around two and a half hours. They will give us a call to have us come back and talk about what they found during his evaluation.

Yesterday was a hard day for me, I think the easiest part of the day was taking Carter to the Children's Hospital which is saying a lot. After the balloons blew away the day went downhill from there. I cut my finger (which still hurts), Carter jumped on my back (which also still hurts), Carter choked and threw up at the dinner table because of his paper eating obsession and to top it all off he jumped into the mall water fountain and was completely drenched and choking on water. Yeah, it was a long day for sure.

I'm sure one day I'll look back and laugh at some of these shenanigans but today is not that day.

CoCo

Our newest baby to join the family is a sweet little black kitten that Hannah named CoCo. I cringed a little when she named him. I like normal names for animals and was all set to name him Willy or Murphy. Like a good Mama I let Hannie name him, so we have CoCo. Adding to his special-ness he also shares the same birthday as Hannah, how fun is that to hear when you're four years old?

He had a little bit of a rough start, I noticed that his siblings were coughing and one had an eye that was oozing...oh no. When we first picked him out and put in our adoption application he was fine but four days later when we went to pick him up we could tell something had manifested within his litter. I kept an eye on him and he seemed to have a strange cough but that was it. A few days after we brought him home the group that we adopted him from called me and informed me that this litter of kittens had come up from Virginia and his litter mates have lung worms and one had pink eye. Eh.  They did give me medicine to treat him and thankfully his appointment was scheduled with the vet a day later. He ended up taking a super strong de-worming medicine for 10 days in addition to an antibiotic for 10 days. Thankfully, he is now healthy and doesn't show anymore signs of  parasites, phew! I was worried in the beginning because I'd never heard of lung worms but from what I read on the internet it appeared that the cat could develop pneumonia and make the cat so sick it would die. And really, worms inside your lungs is really never a good thing to hear! 

He is a super cute and friendly little guy and warmed up immediately to my other kitty boys. Here he is sleeping in the middle of  Simon (left) and Figaro (right):

I call him puss-puss and Carter calls him baby. Carter is attached to him the most, he looks for him all the time and will pick him up and carry him around when he finds him :) The cutest thing ever!

and with family like that...

I don't even know where to start. I'm sad. I'm not sad for myself, she's been calling me fat for the past 10 years. I'm sad for Hannah. I'm sad that she has an Aunt and Uncle who are so ungodly hateful that it is unfathomable. I'm sad that her Aunt tries to pin her cousins to dislike her. I'm sad that she won't be able to play with her cousins any more. I'm sad that my parents play the fence and further perpetuate an already rocky existence. I'm sad for Carter that because he is the only boy he is hated for it. I'm sad that I don't have a sibling that I want to be around and we've been like that for longer than I can remember. I'm sad for my nieces who have mommy dearest for a mother.

How did it get this way?

There will be no coming back from this fight. This was most definitely the end for me; what a sad relief.

Carter, Now Sugar-Free!

Ugh, that's where I'm at right now.

I've heard it all when it comes to my sweet boy and I'm beginning to think I should rename him Handful or Pistol or Something Else since that is how he's most often described. The descriptions annoy and frustrate me. My son is not bad or mean. And I don't appreciate grown adults saying that in front of him or about him in front of their children. He's a two-year old boy who is extremely active and entirely too smart for his own good.

I've been praying a lot more lately about my Buddy. Along with prayer I've been scouring the Internets and giving quite a bit of thought on how to help Carter with self-control, hyper-ness and occasionally hitting (hangs-head-in-shame).

I feel like I'm a reasonably intelligent and logical person and I see that discipline (we've tried every different way) does not seem to faze my boy in the slightest. I am also smart enough to realize that no one is perfect and I am speaking to myself when I say that. I've been reading about ADHD. It runs in Tom's family so I know there is a very strong chance that he may have it too. I also tell myself he's two years old, he's supposed to be hyper. Then I begin to wonder, when is it too much? At what point do you call the pediatrician in to have him evaluated?

My internal Mama Bear is telling me something might be "wrong." On the flip side the one thing I haven't tried is eliminating sugars. This has become my next step. I've taken down tons of notes, installed new child-proofing devices around the house and I'm ready to give this a good fight. I've been very deliberate and repetitive in my new discipline routine. I've also added a supplement of Omega-3 Fatty Acids. My fingers are crossed as we venture into discovering what triggers my sweet angel to seemingly go crazy.

The Traveling Tank

Growing up we always seem to have a fish tank or three somewhere in our house. It was a common thread that tied us all together. We loved picking out new fish and all of their accessories. I remember staring at the fish tank watching the fish swim around, such a carefree life. My Grandpa decided that he wanted a fish tank for his house, he was going to try his hand at saltwater. He knew exactly the fish he wanted and took his fish tank very seriously. He really, truly enjoyed tending to his fishes. I really enjoyed helping him pick out super-pretty fish. I always thought salt water fish were much, much cooler than the freshwater fish we had at our house. Eventually my Grandpa moved back to Missouri and the fish tank moved to my parents shed, if memory serves me. Then it lived in my brother's living room for a while, empty. Then it eventually made its way back to my parent's house and not too long after my Mom set up the fish tank in the little girl's room. Since my Mom isn't home to tend to her fish and my Dad doesn't seem to want to put forth the effort. The fish tank was taken down, again. Only this time it was brought to my house.

I was out front weeding my flower beds when my Dad rolled up in the yard with Mom's Mercedes. I could tell he was dropping something off but couldn't make out just what that something was. My Dad starts to unload the fish tank and the stand and the accessories and gallons of water specifically for the fish. "Your Mom said you wanted the fish tank." While I don't remember saying that, my Mom assures me that I did. Before my Dad pulls off he adds that the "red fish" is at the house once I get the tank set back up. This fish is a trooper he's lived through Carter knocking him off the table not once but twice. The second time (as I picked the poor thing out of the Barbie doll's hair as it lied on the floor) I decided it was time to relocate him to Mammie's house. And there he's lived for the past year and a half.

I walk in the house and ask Tom, "Did you ever tell my parents you wanted the fish tank?" "Heather, there better not be a fish tank out front of this house!" I assured him that there was no fish tank out front but only because I had already moved it to the garage. A week had passed and I made it a point to get the fish tank back up this weekend. As I was cleaning it out I saw a sticker marking that it was made in 1992, it reminded me of my Grandpa and the fact that this was his fish tank. I can see it sitting in his living room and I can hear the excitement in his voice as he goes on about his fish.  Although the hood is now broken and one of the three little girls had put a sticker on the front, it's still Grandpa's fish tank.

The Week of H

It was H week at Hannie's school. She made a headband and colored hippos. For show and tell she brought a horse Tuesday and a hamster Thursday. She was very glad to have started back to school after Christmas break.



Now that Tom is what I like to call, a deadly diabetic, we have made a 180 with the meals in our house. Tom gets really sick when his sugar gets too high and his sugar gets high very easily.  He has gone down three pant sizes and two shirt sizes due to his newly diagnosed diabetes. Luckily, I am an expert on how to eat (not that I always follow my own advice) and have got him on a super good diet. He's feeling better and not having any of the symptoms that he was feeling prior to the diet change.

I've lost 8 pounds this week thanks to the change and unfortunately his diabetes was just the push I needed to get my butt back in gear.

Aside from Hannah's school routine and grocery shopping we did a whole lot of nothing this week and that is perfectly fine with me!

Amelia Jane

• Born November 1st at 7:55 AM


• 7 pounds 2 ounces and 19 inches long

We set our alarms for an early rise Tuesday morning, November 1st. Our bodies thought otherwise as both Tom and I slept through both of our alarms and didn't wake until 4:45 while needing to be at the hospital by 5:30. Whoops! We both did manage to get showered and dressed in time and pulled up to the hospital doors at 5:30 on the dot. After we checked in with the front receptionist we headed up to the second floor/peri-op where we would spend our time directly before and after delivery.

Everything was pretty routine with lots of paperwork being completed and IV's being administered. It was finally time and they wheeled me to the OR while Tom waited in the hall. The dreaded moment came to get my spinal, man do I hate that part. Finally they laid me down and Tom was allowed to come in. In typical fashion my body starts shivering and I begin to throw up, a lovely way to welcome your child to the world. After what felt like an eternity Amelia was finally born! I was almost done when I felt pain in my belly. I looked at the nurse who was messing with my medicines the entire procedure and calmly advised her that I'm on the verge of freaking out. At that point I could feel pain, I was still vomiting and my arms where shivering so hard that I looked like I was having a seizure. If I had feeling in my legs I might have sprung off that operating table! The whole c-section was miserable and felt like the longest to me.

Finally, they get me ready to wheel me back to periop where I would spend my recovery and I get to hold her. My second sweet baby girl. After we get to recovery the nurses start right away checking her and I. Amelia's blood sugar was too low so the nurses had me give her a bottle of formula to get her sugar levels up. After that she was doing good and snoozed most of our stay in recovery. I was surprisingly in a ton of pain, not how I remember the first two c-sections. The nurses gave me medicine but it wasn't working, I was supposed to be in recovery for two hours and I was there nearly four because my pain and blood pressure would not get under control. At one point my blood pressure reached 199/115 and the pain was like something I had never experienced before.

Once my pressures came down we were transferred to our hospital room. Everything went pretty well with the exception of around 7:00 pm the first night. The nurse at the time came in and advised us that Amelia would be under the bilirubin lights because her blood type is B positive and my type is O positive and the two don't mix. What a terrible night that was, she hated the lights. She was not allowed to be held unless she was eating so that the lights could break up the bilirubin and get her levels down. All in all we made out okay and got to leave the hospital a day early.

It's a week later and I feel like crud but I'm hoping that will pass soon. Amelia went to the doctor's office Monday and is down to 6 lbs 8 ozs. I went to my doctor Monday as well and my pressure is still high 160/100 so they put me on blood pressure meds.

She is a great baby, she mostly sleeps and during the day I have to wake her up to feed her. The kids have gotten used to her very quickly and love being around her and loving on her. I'd say having three children is about like having two children...so far ;)

What happens when we attempt to get a picture of all three, lol:

The Week of "C"

Tuesday, Hannah enjoyed showing off her camera for the week of C as well as some freestyle coloring. She was super excited to bring class snack, one of her favorites-Cheez-Its! She even brought home her school picture proofs!



Carter enjoyed going to Toys R Us Tuesday afternoon and FINALLY getting his Halloween costume!



Thursday, Hannie took one of her Hello Kitty dolls to school for show and tell. She brought home a craft project and her letter C for the week!



Friday while home, Hannah made Christmas Lists for her and her brother and taped them to the pantry door.

Limbo Land

That's kind of where I'm at right now with this pregnancy. After Thursday's doctors appointment resulted in being admitted directly to the High Risk Pregnancy Unit at our local hospital.

I stayed in the hospital for about a day and a half to be observed and to complete a 24 hour urine test as an inpatient. The results of that test were the same as when I did it a month and a half ago, only confirming once again that I have preeclampsia. Shocker.

Initially, I thought that they might take Amelia that day or the next since I was sent to high-risk but obviously that didn't occur. One of the doctors on duty said that the risk of taking her at 36 weeks was too high. Since I now have gestational diabetes Amelia is at a greater risk of having respiratory issues if she is born prior to 37 weeks. Call it mother's intuition but I don't think it's her time just yet and was surprised to have found myself back in the hospital. She is doing very well cooking; it's just my body that is having an adverse reaction.

I think it's safe to say I've finally hit my wall of being good spirited about bed rest and hospital stays. It took a month and a half but I've finally cracked. It feels like fall was ruined, it's my favorite time of year and I can't even enjoy it. I miss not being able to spend as much time with Tom and our kids. I just feel sad. Maybe the coming weeks will be better?

Blue Week!

This week was the week of blue for our little preschooler! Tuesday she got to be "Snack Helper" and it was her first ever "School Picture Day!" Very fun firsts for her! She also seems to have developed a dislike for one of her school mates but it's been hard to get a complete story from her as to why.



Thursday she was "Line Leader" and we got her first permission slip for her first field trip!



 

First Week of (Pre)School!

Hannie had started school this week; she is still beyond excited! This week was red week so they learned all about the color red. She even got to paint and do play-doh which are things we don't often do at home. I must say that with her curiosity of bathrooms she was probably most excited about the "little potty."

First Day:



Her Artwork:



Second Day:



Her brother has been acting lethargic since Thursday, this was his take on his sister starting school:



Followed up with some cartoons and cuddling on the couch:

Doctors and Hospitals

Friday, I went to the OB's office for a blood pressure check. With my symptoms (dizzy, blurred vision, headache, shortness of breath) and elevated blood pressure (168/110) I was sent to triage. Not exactly what I was wanting to hear. So Mom and I wander off to the maternity ward and check in to triage. I'm kept in triage for a short time but my pressure went down enough to be sent home.

Sunday rolls around and the same symptoms happen, with very light spotting added on for good measure. I call the doctor and they tell me to go to triage. Off I go again. This time they kept me in the hospital overnight. Not what I was expecting to hear. The doctor on call released me Monday and said to be on bed rest. I was kind of expecting that.

Tuesday I check in with my OB and she confirms that I will not be returning to work and will be placed on bed rest. Officially diagnosing me with mild preeclampsia.  My BP was still on the high side 153/96 or something like that but she lets me go home this time.

From now until Amelia is born I will be on bed rest and will start seeing the OB twice a week for blood pressure checks and bio-physical profiles. If anything worsens and starts to affect her I'll be having a baby much sooner than November 1st. Although the OB has not changed my surgery day.

Today at the ultrasound appointment my doctor was very concerned about my current status. He doesn't think I'll make it to 39 weeks (my c-section day) and said he'd be surprised if I make it to my next appointment with him which is on October 4th. On the bright side Amelia is doing fantastic and I hope and pray it stays that way! She is in the 46th percentile, weighs 3 pounds 12 ounces and her heart rate was 138 which are all good things! I think she looks just like Carter ;)

Something Old, Something Blue

The other day I was checking the blogs I enjoy reading when I came across a post by my BF. To summarize she was discussing the tradition of women getting a gift from their husband when they have a baby. This got me to thinking...

Tom will usually get me a present as finances allow so it isn't usually the same time the baby is born 'cause babies are expensive. I'm a big jewelry person, I've loved jewelry since I was a little kid. I can still remember going through my mother's jewelry box, the carpet fibers pressing on my legs,  looking at all of her rings and necklaces. Now I have my own collection and I imagine one day I'll find Hannie looking through my jewelry box too ;)

I've really lucked out in the children's birthstone department. Hannah is aquamarine and Tom bought me a very beautiful pear shaped aquamarine ring with white diamonds around it. Next is Carter and Tom again bought me another beautiful ring this one is a cushion-cut blue topaz for Carter's birth stone with black and white diamonds around the topaz. Both rings are very beautiful and both rings are a shade of blue. This gave me the idea that one day when/if my kids get married I will give them these rings on their wedding day as their "something old and something blue." Carter of course could give his ring to his future bride.

It then dawned on me that I never researched what the birthstone is for November, which is when Amelia will be born. Can I tell you folks, it's Citrine. For those of you not familiar with that stone it's like a yellow-orange color. Gross.  I immediately went online and did manage to find a beautiful ring, that is of course sold out. (Story of my life) The more I thought about the Citrine the more I decided this warranted a call to Tom which went something like this:

H: Amelia's birthstone is not very pretty, it's a weird orange color. Maybe we should switch her birthday to the day prior.

T: (Slight pause) No, we are not making her birthday Halloween!

H: Well, one day, when I have lots of money and can have my mother's ring custom-made the Citrine won't be as pretty as an Opal would be...

T: That's selfish Heather, we are not switching her birthday to Halloween just so you can have the ring you want.

H: I did always want an October baby and Halloween could be fun...

T: No, Heather.

So, I didn't quite get my way but I thought my argument seemed reasonable at the time ;) Truth be told I did always want an October baby but our option was Halloween so we vetoed that before I made the surgery appointment for 11/1. The thought of Citrine made me quickly change my mind that Halloween really isn't all that bad but Tom declared it otherwise. I guess one day when I'm old and gray I'll have a very pretty cluster ring that contains: Aquamarine, Topaz and Citrine. And if Amelia doesn't like Citrine I'll let her know her Dad is to blame...blahahaha!

Operation Organization

Last weekend my Dad and I worked on the family room. I seem to get along best with my Dad on projects like this because we have the same mindset. We're practically twins ;)

Dad and I set forth on cleaning my family room which had somehow began to look like a room that a hoarder lived in. We threw away some things, hung shelves, cleaned some more and finally ended up with a pretty decent looking room. After Dad went home I organized DVDs and began putting them on the shelves, hung pictures, put out Tom and I's unity candle and a few more odds and ends. In between organizing the family room I worked on sanding, staining, sanding, staining and sanding some more. Voila! I had a completed handrail.

This weekend I hung more shelves and put the books up. Finding bookends proved futile so for now I just have heavy stuff sitting on the shelf to keep my books from falling in the floor. I'm itching to do more will need more money for the big items like a small loveseat/big chair and a TV stand. Once we have that this room will be all set for the kid's toys!

Amelia Update

The appointments seemed to be going along well...

Last Wednesday I had an OB appt and was able to schedule my C-Section for 11/1/2011! The next day I had a Fetal Echo Cardiogram at the local Children's Hospital to monitor the effects of my hypo-thyroid/diabetes on the baby's heart. That went well and no issues were noted. The day after that I had an appt at the Diabetes doctor and my Hemoglobin A1C is still really good and my levels have been good so no changes with that. Which meant no insulin, hallelujah! My thyroid is still off and is too high so they are raising my medicine to compensate.

Then this Tuesday came and I had my monthly level 2 ultrasound. Everything seemed fine and then during my ultrasound the tech asked if I had any issues at my last appt. Well I didn't but her question had me quickly realize that when the doctor came to check me out I'd be given some type of bad news. She finished up the ultrasound and advised that Amelia is estimated to weigh 1 pound 4 ounces and is in the 38th percentile. Forty minutes after the tech leaves the exam room the doctor finally shows up. He immediately asks if I know what a "notch" is. Um, no. He goes on to explain that the baby is not getting enough blood flow from the placenta on the left side. He continues with that being where the notch comes in and says that instead of the blood flow being  just "one big gulp" that mine is a "big gulp, a divit and a small gulp to compensate." I could plainly see what he was talking about on the tv screen so that was helpful to know what I was looking at. He went on to say that this could be a pre-cursor for preeclampsia and that I really needed to rest and relax and be as stress-free as possible (insert laugh here). I asked if there was anything I could do for the "notch" and there isn't so I think this is a wait and see kind of thing.  I have high hopes that the next visit is "normal" and they'll tell me there is no longer a sign of a "notch." So for now all I can do is pray!

Baby Amelia's Face:



Profile:

Vacation...

...when I get to, for a moment, pretend to be a stay at home mom. Maybe one day hopefully I'll get to stay home with the kiddos but for now, me working is a necessary evil.

This year was a stay at home year. This usually occurs on the years I'm pregnant, I kind of like it that way. We stayed home for a day then headed to the beach for a few days. Came home and stayed a day and then the next headed to Sesame Place. Then back home to watch movies, eat popcorn and lounge around like we hadn't a care in the world! Ooh, we even had my best friend's baby shower which was of course super fun! Then it was a quiet fourth of July as Tom returned to work and I attempted to shrink the overwhelming list on my DVR. Monday night Hannie had a hard time falling asleep, as soon as she realized it was back to work for me the next day she would not stop crying. After I finally got her settled in bed, I went in my room and started to cry too. I hate leaving my kiddos and I really, really didn't want to leave them for super stressful work. I guess that's life and we just got to keep plugging along and praying life might change for the better someday.

As fun as vacation was I think it was an eye opener for me. Hannah's voice sounds so little still and I enjoyed taking the time to listen to her ramble on. Carter's legs suddenly looked so long! When did my baby boy turn into a nearly two-year old? I enjoyed snuggling in bed with my husband at a normal time of day. I just wish life could be like that everyday! Tom and I were able to talk face to face for once which was terrific. We even hammered out a baby name for our upcoming girl. We both really liked Amelia Sophia but couldn't bring ourselves to give this child the initials A.S.S.  So, we decided on Amelia Jane instead! Apparently, come to find out Amelia is a family name on Tom's side and Jane is a family name on my side which was an added bonus we hadn't realized.

I am going to make a pointed effort from here on out to make more family time and memories. The years are slipping by entirely too fast!

I <3 NY

This past Saturday I had the pleasure of visiting NYC. It was so wonderful and almost magical. We stepped out of the train station and I immediately had a smile on my face and couldn't help but stand in amazement of the impressive buildings and the hustle and bustle that surrounded me. Our first stop was of course to a Starbucks because we all had to relieve ourselves and needed a warm beverage to keep us from freezing to death. After that we grabbed a hot dog from a street vendor, walked to fifth avenue, stood in awe at St. Patrick's Cathedral, watched street performers, meandered around the Plaza Hotel, perused FAO Schwartz, ate at Pop Burger (delicious!), walked to Central Park, watched the ice skaters, ogled Tiffany & Co, fought our way to get a glimpse of the Rockefeller Tree, walked 4,000,000,000 miles to Times Square and then an additional 4,000,000,000,000 miles back to the train station. I even spotted Laura Linney and she smiled at me, I just love her! It was a terrific drama-free day and I would do it again-in a New York Minute ;)



Photo Credit: Kaila Regina Wedding Photography

For Serious?

The other night Mom and I were out running errands. We left Home Depot and headed to the dollar store. By this time Carter was getting hungry so I freed Hannah from her car seat and grabbed Carter out of his. I sat back down and changed his diaper, just as I began nursing him (in the car mind you) Hannah starts to take her diaper off too. I didn't want to stop feeding him and after a few times of telling her not to take her diaper off, I figured all would be well until he was done eating. Just then as my little princess is standing in the passenger seat I hear, "Pee." "What did you say baby?" Pee!" "Let Mama see." "Pee!" You guessed it folks, she peed right there on the seat of my two month old van and I was trapped in the other seat with a baby on my boob, trapped like a rat. I managed with my one free arm to find tissues and wipe up the pee. I asked Han to stand on the floor mats, which she did, incase she needed to pee more before I could diaper her. Thankfully my mom came back just as I was done sopping up my pee seat!

Lesson learned for the day: Never trust a two-year old with no diaper on.

Big Girls and Sleeping Babies

In the very near future we are going to upgrade Hannah to a full-sized mattress. When I pictured in my head her room I always thought of  Mermaids! I looked and looked last year and couldn't find a single mermaid and if I did find one the bedding wasn't what I had pictured in my head for her. Today, since I am now in the position to purchase a mattress for her I went ahead and started looking for bedding again.  I jumped on google and typed in 'Mermaid Bedding,' with no real hope of finding something for her. Much to my surprise this popped up:



I could hardly believe it! It is adorable and age-appropriate.  I bit the bullet and went ahead and placed my order. Operation Hannah's Room Re-do will soon commence! I'm so excited to be re-doing her room and anxious to see how she handles a 'Big-Girl Bed!'

Mister Carter is doing so well lately! He is SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!  Thank God!!!

Every night with the exception of Tuesday he slept through the night without a peep! Tuesday I think we threw him off by going to a dinner party and messing with his routine. Thankfully his routine is back on track now and he has continued to sleep through the night! He goes to bed around 10:30 PM and wakes up around 8:30AM. I have noticed that when he gets up a little bit earlier, then Hannah will sleep later than normal and vice versa. I think they might be conspiring against us!  j/k

I can tell my attitude has greatly improved since I have been able to get much-needed sleep!