Joel

I have accomplished a good many things in my 27 going on 28 years, but yesterday was one of my best. I actually kept my mouth shut. For those of you that really know me, I have a really hard time keeping secrets. If I know it then Joe, Sheila, Crystal, and my moms probably know it too. But not this time.

After my last doctor's appointment I sent out an e-mail/blog saying that my next appointment was today, May 27th, and that that is when we would find out the sex of the baby. Well saying that this is definitely our last baby, I really wanted to surprise everyone, so when I sent out that email/blog, it was a lie. We actually had our ultrasound yesterday, May 26th. Joe and I decided that it would be us and the girls that would go to the appointment and that we would surprise everyone with homemade cookies after my appointments. So Monday night we got our cookie pans, cookie dough, baby carriage cookie cutter, pink sprinkles and blue sprinkles out and started working on cookies. Well for those of you are advanced in cookie making, premade cookie dough does not do well with cookie cutters. Every time I would cut out a baby carriage it would mush back together as I picked it up, so finally I gave up and we just made big circles. Jolie did the "girl" cookies, ie the ones with pink sprinkles, and Josie made the "boy" cookies, ie the ones with blue sprinkles. I even had a woman who works with my mom in Flordia to make cookies to give to her yesterday. I had bought cute little colorful bags to put the cookies in and had printed up a special note for everyone to read before opening their bag. Their sheet read, "SURPRISE!!!! We wanted to surprise everyone with the sex of the baby. We actually had our ultrasound today, and it is a … (look at your cookie). Don’t tell anyone yet or say anything yet. We have more deliveries to make and would like to make the announcement ourselves. We love you, Joe, Jess, Josie, Jolie & Baby J." So after my appointments we headed out to our family and closest friends' works and homes. Everyone was surprised. I loved seeing their reactions as they read the note and realized what was going on and then their anticipation as they opened up their bags. I think we even made a few people cry. Our last stop was at our friends Mary-Kelley and Tims around 8:30 p.m. last night. Today is Mary-Kelley's birthday, and I had forgotten to print her off a sheet, so I handed her the bag and she thought it was a birthday present. She opened it and said, "oh y'all made me a cookie." I said, "its a cookie with blue sprinkles." She said, "aww that is so sweet of y'all." And I said again, "Mary-Kelley, it is a cookie with blueeeeeeeeee sprinkles." Then she realized what was going on. Seeing everyone soo happy and excited really made it worth all exhuasted we all were after making all the deliveries.

My appointment went really well. Joel is measuring just as a 20 week fetus should. He was all curled up as if he were napping. I told the woman that I had just eaten so he was sleeping after getting his "full belly" as Josie would say. I am doing good as well. My blood pressure was good and I had neither gained nor lost weight, so my doctor was happy with that as well. It was really neat this time because with both of the girls when they would show us their parts, they would sit there and try to show us that it was a girl, and I never could see it, this time as soon as his boy parts showed up on the screen, I knew it right away. I knew exactly what I was looking at. My Dad has always joked with Joe about putting the "stem on the apple" so instead of writing "boy" on the ultrasound picture, she put "apple stem."

Here is a picture of his sweet little face:


His foot:


And his "boy parts"
.

So glad we have so many wonderful people to share this with.

Hot Weekend

It is only May and I am already miserable. It is so hot, and I dread going through the rest of the summer pregnant, so Friday after work the girls and I bought this:

They are so cute, they think I bought it for them :) So needless to say Friday we swam and then we watched Alvin & the Chipmunks, the Squeakquel. Now, my girls have never, and I honestly mean never, have been ones to sit down and watch a TV program for let alone a movie, but Josie actually sat still through the entire movie. Lol got up and played from time to time, but for the most part she watched it as well.

Saturday Joe had to be at the church a little after 8:00 a.m. to help do yard work, and around 9:40 a.m. the girls and I headed to Annaleigh's birthday party.




When Joe got done at the church he joined the party which meant ge got there in time to help clean up. After the party Joe and the girls went back to Chris & Crystals while I headed to Montgomery to meet Mary Kelley to shop for decorations and everything we need to do crafts for VBS. I left Chris and Crystal's church around 1:00 and I got home a little after 7:00 p.m. I was exhausted.
Yesterday we had church and then Other Mama took the girls home with her for the afternoon. Joe and I had every intention of working on cleaning the house, but instead we took advantage of free nap time. We woke up just in time to head back to the church to get the girls ready for their "Putting on the Ritz" photos. They turned out great! I can't wait until we get them back. You got a great package for making a $10.00 donation to Relay for Life. The photographer kept bragging about great the girls were doing and how natural they were at having their pictures made. When we left Joe said make we should enter them in some contests. I just looked at him in shock. I never would have thought I would hear those words come from him. After pictures we went home and the girls and I swam while Joe worked on cleaning the house a little.

We have a super busy next month or so. Joe has Greenville's biggest tournament this weekend, so I'm sure this week he'll be late getting home almost every night, and then be at work all weekend long. VBS is fast approaching and I have to work on getting all the crafts ready for each class for each night as well as getting all the decorations set up. Then the 14-18 of June we have VBS. That is also the week my mom will come up and visit on their way to moving back to Pennsylvania. July 2nd we get our new roof. We also have to plan a small party/get together for a group of people at our church which we will probably do the 17th or 24th of July. (The elders are doing this as a way for people to meet and be around people they would not normally be around.) At some point we have to get the nursery set up and everything arranged. This Thursday I will be 20 weeks. It is so hard to believe I am at the halfway point in this pregnancy.

Well the next blog you read will tell you if we will be adding a Josalyn or a Joel to our precious family.

Crazy Week

Last week was a not so good week. It started out good, Tuesday was our 8 year anniversary and Aunt Sheila and Uncle Quint kept the girls so Joe and I could have dinner at the Olive Garden. We ate until we were both full, then drove around looking at huge houses, and then went and picked up the girls. I wish we could have done more and maybe even taken a little weekend trip away, but hey that's life, and I was happy to be able to spend the alone time with him. After getting the girls in bed Joe packed for Mobile and we went to bed. Around 3:00 a.m. Wednesday morning Josie woke up and came to me crying. Her legs were hurting her. I put her in the bed with us and told her to go back to sleep. About an hour later Joe's alarm went off and he got up and started getting ready to leave for work. Somehow this woke up Lol, who ran to him. He brought her into me because he had to leave before he was late for work and she was burning up. So we gave her Tylenol and Josie, Lol, and I laid back down in my bed. Well it was around 5:30 a.m. before the girls fell back alseep. When my alarm went off the first thing I did was go straight to Lol and feel her, she was still warm. So I called my grandmother to see if she could keep Lol. She told me she had some errands but that she could get her from me later in the morning. So I took my shower and then I got to thinking aobut how I was going to have two kids by myself at Pri-Med. So as soon as I got out of the shower I called Mrs. Emily to see if they could pick up Josie on their way home and take her to church with them. Thank goodness they said yes. So I got the girls up, we all got ready, I dropped Josie off at Ms. Erica's and then Lol and I came to work. She was here with me until around 11:00 a.m. when my dad came to get her. My dad has really been knight in shining armor through this past week. He offered to stay with us while Joe was gone to Mobile and offered to keep Lol for as long as she needed to stay home. He also offered to meet me at Pri-Med right at 5:00 p.m. with Lol. So that is what he did. He met me there at 5:00 and we were in and out by a little after 6:00 p.m. The verdict, ear infection and tonsilitis. Lol was so cute that the nurses and doctors thought she needed two suckers and a piece of gum. Then the Walgreens pharmacist also thought she was so cute that she needed another sucker. When we got home my dad had cleaned up the living room and had ordered pizza for us for dinner. Josie did great at church with the Burdicks and did so well that someone thought she needed a sucker as well. Thursday Jolie stayed home with Pap-Paw and slept almost all day. When Josie and I got home Jolie and Pap-Paw were cooking out hamburgers and hotdogs for dinner. After dinner we took a walk to see the progress being made on getting ready for the tractor show. That night Dad and I talked and decided that Lol should stay home Friday as well to get more rest. Friday she did a little better and was upset to watch Josie and I leave for Ms. Erica's, a sure sign that she was feeling better. Joe got home around lunch time and he spent some time with her before getting ready for his second interview with the City of Prattville. He said he thought the interview went really well. The next step is them calling the person they have chosen for the job. We don't know how long that will take. So more waiting. Daddy decided to stay again Friday night since Joe had to work the weekend to help me with the girls Saturday. Saturday Lol felt a little warm but after nap time felt fine and was acting fine, so I thought it would be good for her to get out. Daddy, the girls, and I walked down to the tractor show where we just happened to run into Aunt Sheila, Uncle Quint, Caden & Ansleigh. It was so funny because Daddy said did you know they were coming and I said no. I said this week has been so crazy that Sheila and I have only talked about important stuff, interviews and sick kids. So we all had a blast and after an hour or two we headed home. Daddy left to go home shortly after that. When Joe got home he played with the girls and took care of dinner so I could rest. Around 2:00 a.m. Jolie woke up and I went in to check on her and she was burning up again. I was confused because she has been on the antibotic since Wednesday. So I gave her Tylenol and put her back to bed. Around 7:00 I woke up and went straight to check on her. She was still warm. So I called Other Mama to see if (1) I could leave Josie with her at church so I could take Lol back to Pri-Med and (2) if she could teach my Sunday School class that morning. Of course, she said yes to both. (I just don't know what I would have done without all the parents this past week!!!) So I dropped Josie off with Other Mama and Lol and I headed to Pri-Med, again. This was a much longer wait, and the verdict, a viral infection. I think it is just a fever virus. So I called my Dad again and he came back last night to spend the night so that way I would not have to do any extra running around this morning and again said he could stay with Lol for as long as I needed him to. Her fever will spike and then she'll be fine, spike and then be fine. So we shall see how long this lasts. Josie ended up going home with Other Mama and spent the afternoon with her and Aunt Elisa. I was told there was water hoses and golf carts involved, so you know the girl had fun. Wow, what a week and weekend, but again I'm just so incredibly thankful for all the help.

So hopefully we can get this child well because I have stuff I need to be doing like getting the crafts and decorations ready for VBS which is about a month away. We are also axious as we await and pray for a call from the City of Prattville. And in about a week and a half we find out if we will be the proud parents of three beautiful girls or two beautiful girls and a handsome gentlemen. Also, my mom has decided to move back to Pennsylvania to be closer to her mom and sisters. (She currently lives in Panama City), so I ask that everyone pray for her and Babette as they make this transition and that they can find quickly find jobs.

Well I'll end this with some pictures that Sheila took of the kids at the tractor show:


The last ride, they all had to be in one car:
Cooling down:

Caden & me:
Sheila & me:

So Blessed

I had an awesome Mother's Day weekend. Friday night Joe and the girls took me to one of my favorite places, Mellow Mushroom. After that we went home and took a walk so Josie could ride her bike. The girls were so excited because earlier in the day I had bought her a new Hello Kitty helmet and knee pads, and Jolie a Dora helmet and knee pads. (The night before Jolie informed me she needed a bike and a "hat" aka helmet.) We have pulled out the tricycle for Jolie to ride, but she hasn't quite got the pedaling down yet. Jolie has as much fun walking though and the knee pads come in handy for her walking because she runs so fast that she falls quite a lot.

I have the most fabulous husband who let me rest almost all day Saturday. I think I slept 60% of the day and it felt great. It was just what I needed. Sunday we went to church and then they took me out to lunch again and we went home for more resting. The girls got me all kinds of pretty flowers in hand decorated pots (thanks to Erica and Ms. Jane) and a beautiful windchime.

I am blessed beyond measure to be the mother to my amazing girls and this little one on the way. They have taught me so much. For instance God's love. I never fully understood how God loves us until I had my girls. I will always love them no matter what they do or who they become, they will always be our beautiful amazing girls and little one. That is how God feels about us and it took me having children to fully understand that. They have taught me to stop and be amazed at the small stuff like flowers, bugs, the moon and stars. They have taught me to treasure the firsts, like seeing the ocean for the first time, riding an amusement park ride for the first time, first smiles and laughs, and all of the other firsts that we have gotten to experience with each one of them. They have an incredible thirst for knowledge and pick up on things so quickly. It warms my heart to hear them singing all the church songs and to talk about God and Jesus. It warms my heart as they list out all the people they are thankful for and want God to bless as we say our prayers each night. It makes me proud when they take care of each other and look out for one another. You can not give one of them something without them asking where the other's one is. Or last night, we were walking and Joe and Josie were a good bit ahead of Lol and me and Josie fell off her bike. Lol left her baby in the baby doll stroller and took off running to Josie to make sure she was okay. As much as they fight, they love each other dearly and are very close. I am not sure why God chose me to be the mother to these three children, but he did, and there is nothing I could do or say to ever repay him for that and I am eternally grateful.

I also want to recongnize all the beautiful women in my life who have helped shape who I am. It is not all to one person but to both my moms, all three grandmothers, all of my aunts, women of the church, and when I married Joe (well actually way before I married Joe) the women of his family that took me and loved me as their own, my mother-in-law, his grandmother, his aunts, and as I have gotten older my list has grown to include my sisters-in-law and my girlfriends. I love you all and you are all amazing people. I am truly so blessed.

In addition to Mother's Day Joe and I celebrate our 8 year anniversary today. He is an amazing husband and father. He provides for us and is a very involved Daddy. He is very active in the church and loves God. I am so so incredibly blessed to have the family that I have. To have spent the last eight years with this man through all our ups and downs and making it today. I pray for another 80 with him. I can't wait to experience each day with him, raising our children, planning our future, and making it to each anniversary together.

Josie Can Finally Ride a Bike

Back in September or October Josie I went to a consignment sale and found her a bike for $5.00. She was so excited about it as was I. We took it home and pumped up the tires and Joe adjusted the handlebars and seat for her and the next day we took it outside for her to ride. Or so we thought. We both worked with her trying to explain to her how to ride a bike. She would pedal a little and then slam on the brakes. She couldn't go forward for slaming on the brakes. We tried for two weeks working with her when I finally decided that maybe she just was not ready. Shortly thereafter Ben and Tiffany took in a foster child that was a little older and we let "A" borrow the bike while she stayed with Ben and Tiffany. Ben brought it back one day and because it was winter it just went back under the car port. So last night after eating Mexican in honor of Cinco de Mayo the girls and I ate popsicles outside. After our popsicles I thought it would be nice to take a walk and Josie asked if she could ride her bike. I told her she could as long as she actually rode the bike. So we got out the red car for Lol to ride in and Josie's bike. To my amazement she had finally figured out how to ride the bike. She still had a few problems getting started when we first started, but after our first round around the block she had it figured out. I was so proud of her. I kept telling her how great she was doing and she was just beaming. She would start pedaling real fast and then tell Lol to look at her and Lol with a huge smile on her face would say, "Good Job." It was so sweet to see little Lol as an encourager for her big sister. The whole walk warmed my heart. We were still walking when Joe got home around 8:00 and so he got to see her ride her bike as well.

Gloomy

I don't know if it is the rainy weather or the lack of sleep, but I'm just gloomy today. Saturday night Joe and I attended my SOS group's progressive dinner (and had a great time), but I was telling someone how I dream from the moment I fall asleep until the alarm clock goes off and I wake up more exhausted than when I went to sleep, and she told me they are stress dreams. So that got me thinking what all am I stressed about and I realized my list is pretty long. My dad called yesterday, he is in the hospital and they are not sure what is wrong. I'm waiting to hear more today.
We have made an insurance claim on our roof from hail damage and so we are getting a new roof but we have to come up with the $500.00 deductible. In a way this is a huge blessing because we almost did not get insurance on the house because it needed a new roof, but the thought of coming up with $500.00 on top of everything else right now just has me sick to my stomach. We did have a tiny bit of money set aside to buy things we needed for the baby like bedding and a car seat, but that was only like $100-200 and now I guess it will go towards the roof and we will have to figure the rest out.
Will Joe get this job. God gave Joe the job in Greenville so that we could afford Lol, but I have never understood why God gave him a job that pulled him away from his family and put huge strain on our marriage. I am really hoping that this job will work not only for more money but so that my kids can have their dad. It is hard them asking where he is every morning, every other weekend, and a lot of weeknights. I have no clue how long we will have to wait before we hear something back.
I'm not as fired up for VBS as I was to begin with. We had a rocky start that really put a damper on my feelings about it. Now it is almost hard to get excited about it knowing how rough the first couple weeks of planning went. However, it is fast approaching and I need to get busy. I'm also feeling burnt out at church. I think I took a year off from being an elder doing teaching and being involved in other things. I think this baby is going to give me a great reason to just attend and be fed for a little while.
How are we going to afford 3 in daycare????
How am I going to parent 3 kids with the possibility that Joe not get the Prattville job and knowing that I could be doing it alone a lot of the time. The girls already have me stressed and I feel like a horrible mother every night as I lay down to go to sleep. I am so scared that I can't do it.


I know for every stress/worry you should name a blessing and I know that my blessings more than outweigh my worries any day, but some days your worrys get the best of you and I guess that is what has been happening here lately and especially at night. I know that for every worry, God has an answer.

Well on a happier note, we went to Florida April 23-25 to see Grammy and Emmie. We had a great time, but it was a short trip. And like I said Joe and I attended the progressive dinner which was probably our first date in a long time. We had a great time. We met with the roofers Friday night and picked out our shingle color. I'm not sure yet when the work will begin. I'm 16 weeks and will be 17 weeks this Thursday. I'm still doing good and only get sick at smells. Next week is Joe and my 8 year anniversary. To be honest the first 8 years have been a little rough, hopefully the next 8 will be a little easier, but I love him more and more each day and could not imagine my life without him. He is my soulmate and he and the girls and this baby mean everything to me. Aunt Sheila and Uncle Quint have been kind enough to agree to keep the girls so that we can go out to eat to celebrate. Then he will spend the rest of the week in Mobile working a tournament.

Well until next time.