Christmas Day

Christmas was so fun this year. Payton is starting to grasp the concept of Christmas and was super excited to help wake everyone up to see if Santa came and start opening presents. It was so cute.

This year Santa brought Payton a dolly with a highchair, stroller, and bassinet. When she saw them she beelined for them and started playing. About a half an hour later we were begging her to open some of her other gifts. About an hour later Dave finally opened another one of her gifts and showed it to her. If we would have only known. It took her about 3 days before she even looked in her stocking and another day to open all of her presents.

We spent the majority of the day at my parents house. When we got there they had a yummy breakfast of french toast waiting for us. I love french toast! Then we all got together and opened our stockings. This tradition has sort of evolved over the years. My mom puts together a stocking, which is really a big Christmas gift bag for each person. It is always fun to watch her try and figure out what everyone needs/wants.

After round one of opening presents we cleaned up and got ready for additional "family" to join us for Christmas dinner. Funny story about the dinner. One of the things we had was Tri-Tip, usually this is one of our fall back dinner items. They have always turned out delicious. And I was definately looking forward to eating it. Well, let's just say it was "well done". When Dad pulled it off the grill jen asked if it had gotten a little burned but he kept trying to say that it was fine and just to cut off the outside. Well, when he tasted it I think he realized how done it was. Hee! Hee!

Payton certainly was spoiled. Between all the grandmas, great grandmas, her aunties and uncles, and mom and dad she really brought in the loot. Lucky girl!

I really do love the Christmas Season and I am always sad to see it go.

Effaced and Dialated

OK this is definitely not the most flattering picture ever taken of me. But I am amazed how huge I look. Yikes!
Anyway, at my last doctor's appointment, which was a week ago as of this post, the doctor said I was 50% effaced and almost 1 centimeter dilated. Yay! However, I almost wish that they would have found no action happening. At least before I went in for my appointment I wasn't expecting anything to happen. I just assumed that my due date would come and go with no baby and I would have to schedule the C-section. Now I have this hope that I may have go into labor early. Each day that goes by I am more and more disappointed that the little guy is still inside.

I am just scared that when I go in for my appointment tomorrow that I will have actually gone backwards meaning I am no longer dilated or effaced at all. I am starting to think that the C-section was a better option for me since I like to plan things out. :o)

Our First Ponytail

It is getting harder and harder to catch a good picture of Payton these days. She is just way too fast.

For the longest time I have been able to put Payton's hair into half piggytails and half ponytails. Her hair was just not quite long enough to get it into a full ponytail...well, until now or so I thought.

As cute as it was it only lasted until her nap. Still not quite long enough to withstand all the moving around of a 20 month old. Oh well, it was cute while it lasted.

Christmas Tree Decorating

Let me start by saying that Costco is a great place to shop for your Christmas tree. Well, that is unless you want to go out and chop one down yourself. If that is the case Costco would definately not give you the same experience. :o)

For as long as I can remember I have been a fake tree sort of gal. Let's face it, I would rather have my curious kitties knock over a fake one than a real on with a dish of water underneath it.

Anyway, Dave's family always gets a real tree. I believe they usually get it from the same place too, I just can't remember where they said they had gotten them. This year they decided that it would be easier just to go to Costco and pick one up. So Dave and a I volunteered for the job of going to get one.

You just go up to the register and tell them you want a tree, they give you a receipt, you go out to the parking lot and pick one out of a truck. They are all bound up and ready to go. I was nervous about not being able to see the tree unbound and was afraid that we would end up with one with a big gap in the branches or something. Fortunately, my worries were for nothing.

When Dave and his dad brought it into the house it all of a sudden seemed taller than it did when getting it out of the truck. Then once they got it in the stand and unbound it... The best way to describe it was from the scene on Christmas Vacation. That tree is huge! Beautiful but huge!

This last Sunday was decorating day. Payton decided she was going to help. It was so cute. She kept pulling out all the empty ornament boxes and handing them to her grandma. Then came the bead garland. I am just glad she didn"t take off running while the garland was drapped over her shoulders. Lastly came the discovery of the Candy Canes.

Need I say more. :o)

Pregnancy

I realized after taking these pictures that I should not allow anyone to take pictures of me while pregnant. Not pretty. At least not great when taking them of myself. I will have to have Dave take some pics of me that I can be proud of. :o)

So this is me at 37 weeks pregnant. I am hoping that this little boy decides that he wants to come early. However, I have told the doctor that this will not be the case and that my due date will come and go and she will need to schedule the C-section. For those of you who didn't know, I had to have Payton by C-section because she was confused about how she was supposed to come out. Evidently she was under the impression that rear first was a good idea.

At my doctor's appointment this week we discovered that our little boy baby may be a little confused as well. He is at least head down but has decided that he prefers the sunny side up position better than the "normal" back facing position. Not optimal positioning especially when attempting a VBAC. My doctor says there is still time for him to turn and that this doesn't mean that I cannot still try a VBAC. She just said it makes it harder. Wish us all luck!

Truth be told, I am really excited for this little guy to come. This pregnancy has definately been more difficult that my first and I feel bad because I feel like I complain a lot. Dave (and his family) have been VERY patient with me. But I am thankful that I have had the opportunity to have children and that I have been able to experience life growing inside me. I am scared that I will not be able to handle two kids but I am looking forward to the challange. I can't wait to hold him, to watch Dave with him, and to see how Payton interacts with him. Exciting times.

All Tuckered Out

Figuring out a nap schedule for Payton can be very challanging. I am not complaining, at least she taking naps now. :o)

A couple of Mondays ago I went down to Gilroy for a playdate and I decided to just nap Payton when we got back. When we got in the car she insisted on looking at this book so I gave it to her and didn't think anything of it. I started off the trip talking to her about the playdate and what she was seeing in the book. Then all of a sudden it got very quiet in the back seat. I figured she was just really into the book and was ignoring me. After all she was holding up the big book, so I stopped talking.

When I got home and turned around I peaked up over the top of the book because she still wasn't answering me and found out why...She was asleep! It was so cute I had to take a picture.

What's funnier is when I took the book from her. She didn't wake up and her hands never moved. She was sitting like she was holding an invisible book. I love times like this! So cute!

Guitar Hero

Payton is getting to that age were she just loves to copy anything you do. Cute, but also makes you think twice before doing something. :o)

Anyway, She saw her uncles playing Guitar Hero and wanted to join in on the fun. Her cousin Ethan was all over it too. They are both so cute.

She is a natural!

Bed Head

Payton is definately going to hate me for this when she is older but I have to post these pictures. These pictures were taken when we were up in Truckee for Thanksgiving. I had done her hair in french braids the day before. When she went to bed I just took out the rubber bands and didn't finger out the braids. So this is what she looked like when she woke up. LOL So cute!

I just love that smile.

Thanksgiving

So this is what you get for eating too much Thanksgiving dinner. LOL Just kidding. But really doesn't it look like my belly is floating?

Every year Dave and I alternate between families celebrating Thanksgiving and Christmas. This year was the Ahlgren's year for Thanksgiving. After getting the OK from the doctor we headed up to Truckee for the week. It was really nice to have all of Dave's family together. That hasn't happened for a while with missions and military service and the like.

For the most part the weather was really nice there. There was only like a day and a half when it got cold and started snowing. Fortunately for us that wasn't the day we were heading back. :o) Traffic was horrible that day (sorry Rob and Keri).

Much of our time was spent relaxing, eating, and just hanging out. Some did go out and go snowboarding while leaving a certain pregnant lady home to pout. Others braved their luck at fishing two days in a row while the rest of us ventured out to go shopping the day after Thanksgiving, which actually wasn't bad, I was expecting Gilroy Outlet traffic. We also took Payton and Ethan out to play in the snow. For some reason it took Payton a while to warm up to the idea of being pulled in a sleigh but she didn't mind pushing it around while Ethan was in it. She is so wierd.

Overall, I think everyone had a really good time. I included this last picture because with the two kidlets in my lap I don't even look preggers. They hide my belly well, don't you think?

LOL Parties

Yes this is my lame attempt at trying to catch up on my bogging. Please bear with me. :o)

As many of you know and may be involved in, there has been a group of us in Gilroy having play dates every Monday for a long time. I have loved these play dates and look forward to them each week. Payton and I both have gotten to know and become good friends with these girls and their kidlets. When we moved to San Jose I vowed to still go to the play dates and have done so. Shoot everyone has even hightailed it up to San Jose for a play date.

Well, to my suprise there is a group of ladies from our ward here in San Jose that get together for play dates once a week on Thursdays. I have to admit that I have not been as regular at attending these play dates but it has been nice getting to know the ladies in this area and their kids. It is a bigger group that get together up here and sometimes I think Payton is very overwhelmed but over all I am glad when we are able to go and am excited for Payton to get to know these ladies and their kids too.

Well, a few weeks ago the San Jose play date ended up being at a place named LOL Parties. I considered not going because I didn't know if there would be anything that Payton would enjoy. I had looked on the website and it said for kids 18 months up to 12 years. I thought that she would get run over. Fortunately, our group was the only one there and Payton had a blast. I would love to take her again, she was able to run around and just be a kid. She definately needs more time like that.

Long story short, if anyone wants to go just let me know. I am game.

Group Baby Shower

So in our new ward there are or should I say say "were" 5 of us all due within about 6 weeks of each other. To date, everyone but me has had there baby. Good for them! My moment with eventually come. :o)

Anyway, the ladies in the ward put together a group baby shower for all of us. I really didn't know what to expect. I mean Dave, Payton, and I just barely moved into the ward and no one really new me at the time. I figured I would go and visit and get to know everyone better. I didn't realize it would take several of us to carry all the gifts I got out to the car and then into the house.

As it turns out, anyone that brought a gift brought 5 of them! I can't believe the generosity of the members in this ward. There were so many great gifts, clothes, blankets, diapers, wipes, and even prepared meals all ready to be frozen. I think we all had fun, I know I did.

I made Nursing Cover Clips for each of the girls. They were a bigger hit than I had anticipated, which I am way happy about. I put together a tutorial of how I made them here on my other blog. Take a look and let me know what you think.

Soup - er Saturday

So my new ward is holding a Soup - er Saturday. They will be holding a handful of different mini classes and then having soup for lunch. One of the classes they are going to have How to Make a Baby Sling, I thought "what perfect timing". And guess who they asked to teach it? You guessed it and probably are thinking exactly what I thought, "Me?".

This is where I am wishing our original move date had stuck and I was able to make it to the Fabulous Friday they had for my ward in Gilroy. They were having a lot of the same classes including the nursing cover and baby sling class that I had signed up to attend. Oh well, Some times we are asked to do things because it is something we need to grow from. Maybe I will become a fabulous sewer out of this experience. Watch out Jessica and Cassy! :o)

So ever since being asked to teach the class I have a few things on my to do list that I need to get done. Find my sewing machine in storage. Ummm. Find any of my sewing supplies in storage. Ummm. Order the aluminum rings needed to make the baby slings. Check. Find the perfect material to make the baby sling. Check. Well, at least I am half way there.

Last night my sister, Caeden and mom met Payton and I at the fabric store. I probably should have waited to go with Payton being sick and all but she had been so happy and energetic the whole day. Let me just say I am glad my mother was there to help me watch Payton. It is impossible to watch a running toddler while trying to find the perfect fabric combinations. The good news is I found fabric I am happy with. I was going to take a picture of it and put it in this post but there is a sleeping baby in my room and I do not want to disturb.

Payton is about the same, happy with a touch of super sad. She switches back and forth with out any notice. Her bubba and binki have been her constant companions today. I have resigned to the fact that we will be home bound for at least a couple more days. According to the doctor she doesn't exhibit the symptoms that make her contagious but she probably isn't feeling all that great either.

Since posts are always better with photos, I am including a few from last weekend when we (my mom, Caeden, Payton, and I) prepared for our friend Johnny's annual Halloween Party's Pumpkin Carving contest by pregutting the pumpkin. I thought the girls would be totally into it. It turns out that they really don't like to get dirty. LOL

Phnemonia

So Payton developed a little cough last week that has progressively gotten worse. I think I was in denial about her being sick. Anyway, I took her in to the doctor yesterday and found out that she had phnemonia. She is now on antibiotics, hopefully it doesn't get worse or develop into the swine flu or something.

On a side note, I loved the doctor I took her to. I took her to the office my sister goes to and had a really good experience. We were not able to go to the same doctor that my sister goes to but was able to go to one of the other doctors that Jen has seen and thought was good. Her name was Dr. Vittamonte (not sure of the spelling). She was really good at keeping Payton calm and comfortable, Payton was even doing her naked baby jig before we left. I guess in taking her to Dr. Bhatia, her attempt at baby talk and conversation always felt forced and Payton was hardly ever calm and comfortable. We will have to see if things continue to go well when we go in for her 18 month shots. :o)

The Move...

The short sale has been completed. Escrow is closed. Dave and I are no longer home owners. It is sort of a bitter sweet statement. I think it is probably a blessing that the whole loan modification and short sale process takes so long, by the time it is completed you have gone through all the emotions (worried, angry, frustrated, sad, etc) and are so thankful just to be done with everything.

Thanks again to everyone that helped us move. With the truck we were borrowing it took four trips to San Jose to get most everything moved. Dave and I still had to go back and forth several more times to get everything. Yikes! Note to self, go through your things once a year and pitch what you haven't touched. :o)

For now we are living with Dave's parents. Hopefully during our stay we will be able to save back some moola for a down payment on a new place. We have been told that if we were not delinquent on our previous mortgage that there are programs available that will enable us to get a home loan again with no waiting period.

Wish us luck.

Happy Birthday to me!

My birthday started off with a bang! A very sore thoat. :o( Fortunately, my mom was willing to take Payton for the day so that I could rest and so that she would not catch what ever it was that I had. I took advantage of the quiet time and rested all day long. Fortunately, I was feeling much better by the end of the day and was ready for some celebrating.

I have to say that I have never been a great present giver. I spend the whole time stressing out about whether or not the person would like what I have picked out. Dave on the other hand has the talent of finding really cool things. He definately spoils me.

My friend Jessica dropped by in the afternoon and dropped of a really nice gift. By the way, Jessica your cookies were amazing as always. This morning Aimee gave me this really cool book that gives you an age appropriate activity to do with your child every day, very cool. I think my firends have the gift giving talent too. :o) I am hoping that eventually some of this talent will rub off on me.

So last night we went to Chili's for dinner. I love that cheese chilie dip stuff. Probably not the best thing to eat when you have had a sore throat but I couldn't help myself. Yummy!

Besides feeling like crap for the better part of the day, I had a great day!

My New Hair

Let's just say that it is about time that I got a hair cut. I don't think I have gotten my hair cut in about a year. Yikes! It was getting really shaggy.

Our friend Stephanie does hair and was nice enough to endulge us in a hair cutting extravaganza. She cut my, Aimee, and Cassie's hair today. She did an amazing job with all of our hair and I am even able to donate what she cut off to Locks of Love.

My hair is so much lighter and has a bounce to it. It looks so much healthier. I love it! Thanks Stephanie.

Poor Payton hung in there while we all got our hair cut. She started acting tired about 11:00 and we didn't leave Cassie's house until a little after 2:00. She fell asleep in the car on the way home, woke up briefly while I took her out of her car seat, and fell back asleep before I set her back into bed. So cute!

Suprise!

Yesterday was our regular second Sunday family dinner. We had a baked potato bar...pregnant mommy liked...very much. :o)

Anyway, we were over at Coyo's house yesterday waiting for dinner to start when my uncle walked in. Boy was I suprised we don't get the opportunity to see him very often. I guess he was in town for his 40 year class reuinion. What ever the reason that brought them here is good enough for me. It was so good to see him.

We had an exciting trip to the Relief Society retreat this weekend. We had an bizarre experience on the way up there involving a bug in the car. I guess one of the times we stopped a bug got in the car and decided to hang out on the dashboard by the speedometer. One minute I am driving along without a care in the world and the next Jessica is asking if there is something moving around on the dash board. I guess I should mention that I really don't like bugs, especially those I can't see. I finally got off the on the side of the road and Stephanie had to jump over the driver's seat to save me and Cassy from what turned out to be a moth. Just imagine a bunch of girls in a car screaming because there is a bug and it's dark and it keeps flying around. It was really funny.

That experience was almost immedeately followed by Jan Dixon chasing me around with a really big bug carcass. I freaked out, jumped into Cassy, and squealed, which lead to Cassy jumping and screaming. Let me just say again that I really don't like bugs...dead or alive!

So exciting news with Payton. She started saying the word "happy" today. It is so cute. She is getting so big so fast. I can't believe it.

The Cats Locked Me Out.

I know it sounds very strange but I think they did it on purpose. Payton and I went out into the backyard to take another stab at finger painting, this time with spnoges and cookie cutters. Anyway, we have a wooden dowel in the track of the sliding glass window and I pulled one end out to open the door. Usually I wouldn't shut the glass door again until we were coming back inside but it was already warming up so I slid the glass door shut.

Payton and I finger painted for a while when I remembered that I forgot baby wipes to wipe off her hands. When I went to open the door it stopped about two inches open and wouldn't go any farther. "What the heck?" Then I noticed them...all three of them staring at me through the window...smiling. When Bongo layed down next to the slider door he pushed the wooden dowel back onto the track. Hhhhhhhh.

Luckily we have a key pad entry into the garage and the garage door to the house house open. Whew! I am glad they haven't figured out how to lock dead bolts.

Broken Freezer

I just spent the last 30 minutes moving our inside freezer items to the outside freezer. Burrr! For some reason the inside freezer has decided it doesn't want to work today. This is not good news for the pregnant woman who needs ice in everything, especially on a 100 degree day. :o) I will say that I am just glad it wasn't the other way around and that our outside freezer had decided to call it quits. I would have never gotten everything into the inside freezer. Whew!

Updated news on our house...We have a new buyer and have submitted the new offer to the bank for approval. I was told that since we already have a negotiator and already have a prior approval on our short sale that we should be hear back within a couple of days as to whether or not they will accept the new offer. Which puts us at today, I hope we hear something soon. I have been told not to worry about it but I have to until we are moved out and the new owner has the keys.

The Zoo

On Friday my mom, dad, Payton, Caeden and I went to the Children's Museum and Zoo in Palo Alto. We had a lot of fun it wasn't a big zoo but it had just enough to keep both babies and adults interested. There were geese, rabbits, bats, ferrets, rats, fish, hedgehogs, and other animals. I wanna say that we saw a rat having babies but not sure.

In the museum part they had lots of activities for little kids. Some of the activities were a little too old for Payton but others were just right for her.

After the Palo Alto Children's Museum and Zoo we went to the Olive garden for lunch. Soup and Salad for me again... :O) Yummy!

Splash!

Yesterday was so hot and today doesn't seem to be much better. After lunch Payton and I headed over to the pool. We were the only ones there until we were joined by Aimee, Gage, all of her sisters' kids. Party! Party! The water was cooler than I expected but it still felt really good because of how hot it was.

Payton was playing on the steps of the pool with some of the bath toys that I brought over. She was having a great time. She didn't even cry when she lost her balance when reaching for a toy and went face first into the water. :o) She stood up and looked at me with huge eyes not knowing what to do and I just clapped for her and told her that she did a good job.

A little later she decided to reach for a toy that was in the pool while she was on the pool deck. That one didn't go over so smoothly. She fell in looking up, not quite sure how she managed that but fortunately I was right there in the pool when she fell in. I think I was just as suprised as she was. I pulled her out of the water and again she had huge eyes but this time she had sucked in some water. :o( She cried. But overall she didn't freak out too bad.

So we got the final word that the buyers did back out purchasing our house. I guess since we already have an approval that we just need to get another buyer to submit with the short sale approval back to the bank. Fortunately we do not need to start all over again and supposedly it would only take a couple of days for the bank to make their decision on the new offer. Our realtor feels that it will not be a problem to get back into contract because we have had some of the people that originally put offers in that have been calling just to check in on how things were going. She is confident that we should be able to get back into contract by tomorrow. I hope she is right.

Story Time

Yesterday Aimee and I tried out the Barnes and Noble Story Time with Gage and Payton. I think Payton really liked it. Not shy at all. When I put her down she walked straight to the front and sat on the stage just looking at everyone that was by her. It was so cute, one of the girls sitting next to her started to cry. Payton looked and looked at her with a very concerned expression then all of a sudden she got the quiver chin and started to cry too. I would love to go again but I think they only have it like once a month.

This morning we went to the 2008 Las Madres Park Play Date. It was so hot. I just don't handle the heat as well when I am pregnant. I am so glad Aimee and Gage were there, it has been so long since we have been to a play date that I didn't recognize many people. I also couldn't remember anyone's name but one. Hopefully, I will get to know everyone again and feel comfortable going by myself.

I think today may definately be a pool day.

Our realtor, Sheila, gave our buyers until last night to decide if they were going to pull out on purchasing our home. I was hoping to hear from her last night but unfortunately I did not. If they decide not to go through and purchase our home we will need to see if any of the other people that offered to buy are home are still interested. I hope that since we already have a approval from the bank that we do not have to start the process all over again. I just want this to be done.

Last night Dave and I were talking about our situation and he said "I just really need something to be really easy". It seems like we are having to fight tooth and nail to accomplish anything and that we are being faced with a bunch of tough decisions all at once. It has to turn around sometime. I just keep telling myself to stay positive. Everything will work itself out.

Blast From the Past.

So Friday I went up to Palo Alto to have lunch with my friend Kerry. I used to work with him before I had Payton. We had went to Olive Garden and had the soup and salad. Yummy! It was so much fun to see him and then everyone else I used to work with too. I think Payton really enjoyed it too, she was a little shy at first but quickly warmed up to pretty much everyone in the office.

My sister came down to hang for a little while on Friday night when she was done decorating all her cakes. We went to Arby's for dinner. I love Roast Beef sandwiches. Their play area there is pretty cool too. I think Payton will really like it when she gets a little older.

Saturday we went up to San Jose to watch Dave play soccer. It was so hot! I don't know how he runs around in 100 degree weather, I was miserable just sitting in the shade. Payton really liked watching, there was another little girl there that kept her entertained for most of the time. Every time the players would run by she would yell “Dada, Dada!” It will be even more cute when she does it only at Dave and not all men. :o)

After the game we decided to stick around and hang with Jen and Anthony. Dave, Jen, and I ended up just laying around their place visiting and watching Payton and Caeden play while waiting for Anthony to get back from his last delivery. We also decided it was too hot to cook so headed over to Sweet Tomatoes for dinner. Payton had her first ice cream cone. It was so cute to watch her eat the whole thing. No need for mom to lick around to keep the ice cream from dripping she ate it too fast.

Good news! Bad news! Just found out that the bank accepted our short sale offer. Also just found out that our buyers may be backing out. What else!?!?!?!

Payton got a Boo Boo.

My friend Aimee volunteered us to act as the welcome wagon for the 2008 Las Madres group. Yesterday we went to meet with the 2008 Presidents to learn what we needed to do. We thought it would be a good chance for the kids to get together too, since we haven't been down to any of the play groups lately.

Well, all of the kids are going through the not wanting to share stage. I tell Dave all the time that I can't imagine that kids going through that stage have any fun playing together. There is stealing of toys, pushing, pulling, crying, etc... LOL It is pretty funny to watch. Well, let me preface this with the fact that Payton hadn't been feeling well this week. I thought she was getting better but she was coughing when I left for the gym and was real cryie all morning, I almost decided not to go but went ahead and went anyway.

We had been over there for about a half an hour or so. The kids were playing, taking turns stealing toys... They all found these little link toys and I know Gage really likes to play with them as well as Payton, I guess Devin likes to play with them too because he came up and grabbed them away from Payton. His mom went over and tried to get him to share the links but he yanked them away from Payton again and she lost her balance and fell down. I guess she hit her mouth on a toy ( I didn't see that part) I just thought she was crying because her feelings were hurt. Well I went over and picked her up to try and comfort her when all this blood came spilling out of her mouth. It went all down the front of her outfit and pooled in my hand. All I could think was that she had coughed up a lung and that she was a lot sicker than I thought. It never entered my mind that she might have hit her mouth on a toy until after the bleeding stopped and Aimme said she saw her bump the toy. I didn't totally panic but I wasn't exactly calm either. I don't know if there was as much blood as I thought but all I know is that it just seemed to keep coming and I couldn't figure out where it was coming from.

I am just glad it wasn't anything serious.

Dave's brother Rob came back from Iraq. They had a big caravan bring them up from Camp Penalton yesterday. It was cool to see, lots of motorcycles before and after the bus with the Marines in it. Police would close down the intersections so that they could pass through without having to stop. They had a big dinner for him at his wife Keri's parent's house. It was so good to see Rob, he looked so happy to be back. Dinner was excellent, we had steak, potatoes, salad, jello, watermellon, cookies, etc. Yummy!

I am so mad at myself. I never took any pictures. Boo!

Housebound...

Payton is on day three of having a runny nose. I am not sure if it is from teething or if she just has a cold but I hope she gets over it soon, I hate it when she is not feeling well. Just to be on the safe side and not spread anything I have decided to keep her home. :o( I missed the play date yesterday.

So being pregnant I am naturally becoming more and more self conscious about my body. I know you are supposed to gain weight during a pregnancy but when the weight actually starts coming on it really gets to me. I don't know about anyone else but it always seems that when I am pregnant I am around a bunch of people who are losing weight, toning up, and looking good. As they are getting smaller and smaller I am getting bigger and bigger. Guhhh! At least this time around I do have a few friends that are pregnant along with me so I am not gaining weight alone.

As when I was pregnant with Payton, I plan on going to the gym throughout this pregnancy. I know there are definitely benefits to working out while pregnant but sometimes it is so hard to get up and go. So far I am still able to run or should I say jog 4 miles three days a week and go to my spin class. I am also still able to lift weights. I am so glad that my doctor is so supportive of my staying active. She basically tells me that my body will tell me when I should stop doing something. If I couldn't continue going to the gym I think I would go crazy, not only because of a slight workout addiction but because it is my main way of relieving stress. I just hope that I can see and accept when my body is telling me "enough is enough." Right now I can already tell that I need to take it easy on lifting weights, not too heavy. I can tell my body is changing when I get on the bike for spin class too, for one thing my legs are starting to hit my belly when in certain positions. My knees were what stopped my running with Payton, this time I fear it will be my sciatic nerve pain. Right now I am trying to decide if it is worse on the days I run or if it is the same regardless.

Fun in the Sun

On Friday we had some friends over to play with some of the summer water toys we have for Payton. First they all sat in the little swiming pool and then the eventually got over onto the water activiy thingy (I don't know what to call it). I think everyone had a good time. Payton definately enjoys playing with it when other kids her age are playing in it too.

Saturday, Dave and I went out to pick up all the toys and Payton decided she wanted to get back in. So shoes, clothes, and all she ran right into the middle of the water. She did it so fast neither of us could stop her. One thing lead to another and splash, she ended up flat on her back. She ended up playing out in the back yard in her diaper for quite a while.

On Saturday evening we were pleasantly suprised; Rob, Dave's brother, suprised the family by showing up. He has been in Iraq since March and we were all expecting him on Wednesday. We were able to have dinner, and dessert with him and Keri. He had to go back to Camp Penalton but will be back Wednesday in San Bruno.


Lastly, on Sunday Dave said that Payton had gone number two in her diaper and decided to pull out the diaper changing matt, wipes, and then her big bear. He tried to get it on tape. She laid the bear on the changing matt, pulled out some wipes and wiped off the bear and then grabbed a diaper. Very funny.

Arts and Crafts Day

Yesterday morning my mom and I did some fun artsy things with Payton. I found this little "thing" in the dollar racks at Target. It has a little sponge that you get wet and rub over a picture of Hello Kitty. When the picture gets wet the colors appear very bright but when it dries the picture fades to an uncolored pictures from a coloring book. What's better is that it is reusable. I think she got a kick out of it. She let grandma and great grandma take a turn "coloring".

Next came the play-doh. The first time we played with play-doh she tried to eat it. I only bought play-doh with no little shape cutters or any thing. My vision of what it would be like to play with play-doh was sadly distorted. I went back to costco and bought this little play-doh kit for $5 that included some play-doh playing necessities. She got a kick out of the little shapes we made then squashed them up. Oh well, maybe next time.

I also bought some of those markers that only color on certain paper. She took a marker in each and and scribbled all over the page. Then mommy and grandma gave it a try. That stuff is pretty cool. I am glad that those markers only color on the special paper seeing as she dropped one of the markers in her chair and I didn't notice. She probably sat on it for five minutes or so.

Last night Dave, Payton and I went to his parent's house for dinner. Their back neighbor, Julie, had cooked a whole meal from the Julia Child's cook book and had us all over. I don't know what everything was but it was really good. I had two plates, ate way too much, and ended up having reflux the whole night. But it really tasted so good.

Busy Weekend

This past weekend was Dave's best friend Johnny's wedding and it kept us pretty busy or at least Dave anyway.

Friday he took the day off work to be around if Johnny needed help. We took advantage of having him home in the morning and took a stab at finger painting for the first time with Payton. I think she doesn't like having her fingers/hands dirty. The next time I will have to try using sponges or something. Over all she ended up painting four different pictures, with mommy and daddy's help. :o)

In the evening Payton and I went out to Johnny's parent's house to see if we could do anything to help and to see all the animals they have out at their house. They have horses, a goat, chickens, dogs, and cats. Payton loved it. She even got a little kiss from the goat. LOL

The wedding was really nice. They did a great job fixing up Johnny's parent's house for the wedding. It looked beautiful. The weather was great. Anna was beautiful, she actually rode in on a horse drawn carriage, very cool. Over all the whole evening was so much fun.

Sunday morning Dave bent down to pick up Payton and at the same time she lifted her hands to let him. She accidentally poked him in the eye and scratched his cornea. Ouch! I had to take him to the emergency room to have it looked at. I felt so bad because he was hurting so bad. I am glad that eyes heal really quickly and that he is feeling better.

Dave's sister Jen is in town with her son Ethan for the week. They came down yesterday to play. I am so suprised by Payton, she has started being really possessive with her toys and pushing. The first time I saw her steal a toy I was shocked, I don't want my baby to be mean. I know this is just a phase and that all kids go through it it just suprised me. I hope that she learns how to share quickly.