What's in a NAME!!!!

Okay, so I think we finally chose a name. Jackson. But don't you ever call him that! He will go by the name Jack, until he chooses otherwise. Basically, we were going to just name him Jack, but then he would always just be Jack without options. What if when he grows up into this strong handsome man he decides he would rather be Jackson. Options are good. His brothers have options so we have to keep it even. Aaron really doesn't like Jackson and so I promised not to call him that.

Okay, and for a middle name.....can I get a drum roll please......Floyd! This is my maiden name and a little something in there to honor my Dad. Your welcome, Daddy. So, Jackson Floyd-sort of resembles Jackson Five, but we won't go there, because he is JACK, just Jack. Jack, the little one that seems to know exactly where my sciatic nerve is located-just a sweet little reminder that he is there and growing and kicking and making me cry hard, laugh hard, throw up, pee every 5 seconds...well, you get the picture.

Whew, I'm glad that's out of the way. Boy, names are stressful (or maybe it's just hormones).

Finally

Our hallway-there is one more picture at the end, but I couldn't get a good angle for it....

Living Room - Is it just me, or does the picture on the right seem a little high? Empty shelves-still working on that.

I didn't think I'd ever get around to it....as I have said in a previous post, we print these at the shop, but for some reason it has taken me forever to print some for ourselves. Here they are: nice big canvases of our sweet little boys. Yippee!!

Sunday

We miss a lot of Sundays at our home church, because we are out of town A LOT on the weekends. Sometimes for family functions and other times because Aaron has Singings with his group. We have been in town for the last two Sundays, HOWEVER, last Sunday we had to stay home and try to keep our basement from flooding with sewage water. It was so gross, and you wouldnl't believe how hard it is to get a plumber to come out on a Sunday to fix an emergency problem. I believe one plumber literally told us he was just too tired to help us, because he had been plowing his garden all morning. Another plumber acted like I dialed the wrong number and fed me a line of being busy at the casinos that afternoon, then later told me that he just wasn't able to help us because he doesn't work on Sundays. Seriously, it was unbelievable. We had no choice but to work on Sundays ourselves - our ox was in the ditch!!!!

Finally, we found a plumber who was willing. He used his Roto Rooter to fix our clog and we had indoor plumbing again!!!! Whooo Hooo!!!!

The next Sunday rolls around, we are all happily getting ready to go to church and Ta Da- clogged again. I will spare you the gross details of what overflowed out of the toilet......you can use your imagination. The only viable solution to the problem was to replace the sewage pipe from our house to the road. Thankfully, my parents were visiting and my Dad was able to help Aaron, all morning, all afernoon, and all night. Two men and a shovel. I took a picture of what they did. Can you believe the trench they had to dig. Oh, I felt so bad for them. We are using our indoor plumbing again, but the process is not complete.

I'm not going to lie and tell you that I'm not a little gun shy every time I flush the toilet, take a shower, run the dishwasher.....etc. I really hope and pray that this will work. The grossness of it all is almost more than I can bare as a big prego!!!! Next Sunday, we are going to Church, even if he house is sinking in doo doo.

Ben is 3

Ben is three!!!! Obsessed with Spider Man and Diego, we combined the two for an inflatable fun party. We let him wear his much loved Spider Man costume and his favorite hairdo -a seriously stiff mow hawk. He really had a lot of fun, and played/jumped his little heart out. It was so stress free. The workers did all the setting up and all the cleaning when we left. How nice. There wasn't an age limit for the inflatables so the adults enjoyed themselves as much as the kids.

On his real Birthday,once he realized it was HIS day, he sang "Happy Birthday to Me" allllll day long. He got birthday candles in his breakfast, lunch, and dinner. At lunch we gave him his gift, a Spider Man bike, and at dinner his got to eat his Spider Man cake. He definitely enjoyed all the special treatment.

Gestational Diabetes

Gestational Diabetes - yuck. I just got a phone call from the nurse and she told me that I failed my glucose intolerance test today. The diabetes center should be contacting me shortly to set up an appointment. Drats, and I thought for shore I would get away with a perfectly healthy pregnancy.

I will say that my two little boys were most well behaved at the doctors office this morning. We were there for 3 HOURS, and they were so good. I am very proud of them. I had to wake them up at 5:30 this morning, and they persevered so well. Better than me.

I will defiantly have to find a sitter for my next appointment. The nurse told me it would be a 4 hour ordeal and from what I can tell it's a class explaining my condition and what I can do/eat to ensure a healthy baby/birth/mommy....etc.

Halloween

Funny, funny, funny. So Christian and Ben have these Super Hero names for my Mom and Dad. Mom and Dad decided to dress up as their characters - Tinkerbell and Superman, as if it's not obvious. The boys thought it was GREAT! What was even better is that my parents were stopped a time or two by complete strangers asking to get their pictures.

Christian's super hero name has been "Super Dog" for the longest, and Ben was "Chigger." I was really excited to be able to create their unique costumes for this event, I had lots of ideas, and had to make one more trip to the store to get the final touches. Unfortunately, on the way to the store that night they both decided that they were no longer the Super Dog and Chigger pair but instead they were Iron Man and Spider Man. Ugh, REALLY! I am not a fan of novelty stuff. The only novelty stuff the boys get to wear is their underwear. So, I tried to talk them out of this generic getup and encourage the creative characters that were not longer cool to them. They wouldn't have it.....Iron Man and Spider Man it is. It's not about what Mom wants, right? They had a lot of fun, and were very excited to play the part of their costume characters. They still dress up in their costumes and run around the house. We even let Ben dress up as Spider Man for his birthday party - I will post pictures of that later.

Mean Dragon

Mean Dragon is Christian's "imaginary friend." Hmmm. I'm not really sure what to think about that. Even as an only child, I never had an imaginary friend. I know a lot of people have, and it is very normal, but it's still a little strange for me. My friend told me not to worry unless Mean Dragon starts telling him to do things. So far, he has been quite harmless. Sometimes Christian holds him by the tail when walking through the parking lot. Daddy acted like he beat Mean Dragon up one time and Christian had a heart attach. Mean Daddy. I think that this may have spurned off a movie he use to watch, Pete's Dragon. It's a great classic. Hear are some things that Christian says to describe his Mean Dragon.

-"He is 4 years old"
-"When its sun shinny he is mean, and when it dark time he is nice. Those are the rules, Mommy" (a little nontraditional)
-"He is black"
-"He has claws that scratch."
-"He is tall, but he can pick you up because he is REAL strong."
-"He can do fire out of his mouth"
-"Hey Momma, Mean Dragon eats ducks, bugs, and mud"
-"He doesn't like bugs, he opens his mouth and eats them"
-"He has no hair"

He also tells lots of stories that involve Mean Dragon. Very creative.

So, that's Mean Dragon, in a nutshell.

Biscuit

Biscuit, that's his name for now. We don't have a name for our newest addition, but Poppy and the boys seem to think he is a "Biscuit." It works. I found myself telling Aaron the other day that "I bought a nice warm hat for Biscuit at Old Navy." .....baby biscuit...cute

Cravings:

Pickles. Very generic, right? My first pregnancy of craving pickles. I also LOVE double cheeseburgers from McDonalds. Even more strange, because I am definitely not a fan of fast food. Since we are on the subject of high cholesterol and saturated fat, I have also been loving Chick Fil A waffle fries with MAYONNAISE!!!! Gross, I know, but it's just soooo good. (Natalie, I just know you are gagging at the thought of this) Yes, I have been gaining a little more weight than usual. Big surprise there. I have a dusty treadmill in my basement. I'm sure I will use it soon, maybe. Okay, probably not. In my defense, I have a contraction every time I exert energy. I have read that this is normal for a women with multiple pregnancies and I have discussed it with my Doc. Surprisingly, she didn't have a heart attach and assured me that it was normal as long as I don't have too many in an hour and as long as they are consistent with "over doing it."

SO, many people have been asking me how I feel and I just know to describe myself as "heavy." I just feel heavy. It's a little awkward to move in certain positions and Biscuit is incredibly active. Much more active than even Ben. It amazes me that I don't pee on myself at times when he give me a swift kick to the bladder. He seems so much lower than normal, and sort of towards my back. He still isn't easy to feel on the outside just yet.

I am nervous about delivery this time around. Christian was a breeze, but Ben proved that there is always a possibility of complications. I think what makes me most nervous is the 1 HOUR drive to the hospital! I have made Aaron promise me to research how to deliver a baby on the side of the road if necessary. It seems like I remember something tricky about cutting the umbilical cord.... He promises, with a dreaded look, that he will be prepared.

I will continue to keep posting the progress, my hormonal silliness, and everything else. Please pray that God will calm me down. I am so nervous about it all......

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. Phil 4:6

Car Conversation

Scenario: Driving, everyone is quite, enjoying the peace, and the Christian speaks

Christian: Mom, did you know that there are A LOT of people older than me?

Me: (laughing) Yes, sweetie. There are a lot of people older than you.

Christian: Some kids are this many (he holds up 8 little fingers).

Me: (laughing even louder) That's pretty old, buddy. Pretty old indeed.

I love his little mind, and these simple epiphanies. Always cracking me up....

Baby Shower

My dear friend Jackie is expecting her first baby - a precious little girl named Hannah. These are some snapshops of her shower and her very non pregnant looking self. Seriously, she wears an 8 month pregnant belly VERY well! Just a little jealous.... :) Congratulations Jackie Chan! May your next year be blessed with vomit, breast milk, and explosive diapers. Ya know I love ya!

Lulu Visit

We attended a great little children's play in Birmingham -The Frog Prince
I wasn't aloud to take pictures of the actual play-bummer. They did a great job and held the boys attention for a full 45 minutes-impressive.

Okay, this made me nervous. Notice Aaron tossing Ben on the hay, and then Ben jumping down into his arms....what I didn't get a picture of was Ben tumbling down from the top, no broken bones.

Another pumpkin patch, my favorite one- Old Bakers Farm. We get our Christmas trees from there too.

This is the first Pumpkin Patch that we went to.....local.

Aren't their pumpkins cute! The rule was that if they couldn't carry it, then it wasn't coming home with us - being pregnant and all, I had to create weight limits. Daddy wasn't there to carry the load.

Christian sang at the fair with our Churchs' Children Choir....he did really well. He was so loud that the vein on the side of his neck was popping out. Mommy and Daddy were truly proud. Also, he announced that he had to pee in the middle of the program....pride quickly turned to embarrassment.

Picnic and Play at a fun little park around B'ham.


Lulu (my grandma) visited for two weeks. She came at the perfect time of year, the weather has been so nice. A couple of first timers for her: Eating at a Jack's and eating a sausage biscuit (with mustard, of course) We enjoyed her company and I'm sure I have gained at least 5lbs. during her visit. Thanks for all the good 'ol home cooking. The boys woke up looking for you this morning. We were sad to see you go. See you next year, LuLu!!!

It's a Boy

We are having another little boy, oh my! He is really a cutie. We got to see the "4D" pictures and can already tell he favors Ben. It's hard to guess what he will be like. I feel like Christian and Ben are SOOO different in personality and appearance-this one is a wild card. The boys are excited. Christian has felt him kick and is puzzled at why his new baby brother kicks Mommy. He is much more active than either of his older brothers at this point. We are having a terrible time choosing a name. Three boy names are tough! We are open to suggestions if you have any. (No Dad, we aren't going to name him "Gator")

I will scan in the ultra sound pictures at a later date for all to see.

Christian's 4th Birthday

This is Christian's "Party" - a paper airplane party, he's obsessed.
(Points to Daddy for decorating the cake this year - what a huge weight lifted. Thank You Honey!)

Some things about Christian at 4

- He likes to make people laugh
- Very extroverted
- Does not like snakes
- Loves to fish/hunt even if he doesn't catch anything
- Very good at wrestling
- Has imaginary dragons that live in his room, a mean one and a nice one
- Enjoys singing and drawing illustrations of stories.
- Always wants to help me or Daddy with projects
- Loves Spiderman and Ironman
- Enjoys telling stories to his family, and is quite creative with them
- Looks out for his little brother
- Doesn't like to go to sleep
- Good at picking up his room
- Dresses himself, and likes to pick out his clothes
- Idolizes his cousin Bryson, Daddy, and his Poppy
- Likes to pee on bugs.....or anywhere outside
- Makes paper airplanes EVERYDAY


- Is loved Dearly by his family and most especially his Mommy and Daddy.

Christian, you are such a special little man. Your father and I love you so much. You are very much a funny guy, and I enjoy being around you. I am proud of you, and am excited to see the great man you will one day become.

More Helpers

I just wanted to recognize the Lord and his goodness. He takes care of his children and I am so thankful. Once again, I found myself asking God for helpers. He sent my Mom this time.

I have been feeling so rotten with this pregnancy and totally drained of energy. Mom took 3 days from her hectic schedule and drove down to help me with the children. Before she got here I told her the house was clean and the laundry was pretty much caught up. She laughed at my laundry when she looked at it. Her claim was that I had about 6 loads or so. To me, that's caught up. I have two laundry sorters that were full, and no piles on the floor. I thought that was great. My definition of "behind" is when the sorters are overflowing, the laundry shoot is full, and I have at least 3 clean loads sitting on my dresser waiting to be folded, and probably need to be rewashed. She entertained the kids, kept their nap schedule in line, cooked diner/lunch, and even man-handled our huge dog, Abe. (Such a bad dog.)

Here I sit, my laundry is completely finished, my house is somehow cleaner than before, and I feel like a load has been lifted. Thank you Lord, and thank you Mom. I feel like throwing up, but life is good.

I know I'm grumpy, and snappy. I feel sorry that Aaron and the children get the bulk of that. Mom saw a little bit of it too. My patience is so worn. I hope to feel better in the upcoming weeks. At some point things will turn around. I find that I am nicer when I get in the Word and continually pray throughout my day. I have to remember to find my joy in the Lord and lean on Him for strength, encouragement, and most of all, PATIENCE!!!! Oh, that patience....it is so hard sometimes.

Little Helper

Aaron has purchased this old farm truck. He thinks it's cool because it has some sort of big engine, it's 4-wheel drive, and it has a "granny gear" - if that means anything. It can climb steep hills quite impressively, I'll give it that. It is kind of cool looking and pretty mechanically sound, but has a long way to go. My sweet husband is practically giddy over it. Christian really gets into helping him fix it, because it needs so much fixing. :)