Hamballs, Piggies and Everything In Between!

The pictures from this post were taken the weekend of March 19-20. We haven't seen much nice weather since. But, we've had some fun times even if I didn't take pictures. Today, Joshua & I were talking about dates and months. He's doing well with the days of the week (with the song sung to the tune of the Adam's Family), but I didn't realize that he's also comprehending months to some degree. He told me that we're coming to the end of March and soon it will be April. He asked which month is next, and I reminded him that it was May. Then he said "the next month starts with a J - what is it?" I wasn't sure if he didn't remember or if he was testing me (which he likes to play teacher or mommy at times), so I answered "June." He said "Yes, he comes with Miss Julie & Kate." Haaaa!!! That's your friend, Jude, not June. ;-)

I loved the picture above of Joshua kicking the ball to Daddy from our driveway. (In the first picture you'll see our new gray minivan parked out on the street so the kids had maximum driveway space to play.) We've been playing a lot of indoor games these days. The boys still love their Dominoes and Memory. It surprises me how good their Memory is at times. When I turned over the pig's character, whose name is "Ham" on the movie, I said "Hamball! Not a match!" The kids thought this was hysterical. They laughed and laughed and called everything by its name with a ball at the end "Buzz-ball! Rex-ball! Woody-ball!" and they'd laugh some more. I didn't really think about the fact that they didn't realize ham balls were a type of food. They continued this game the rest of the day, adding ball to the end of many expressions. Then it started with "nose-ball, arm-ball, knee-ball, eye ball." This one made me crack up. An eye ball is very normal and not hysterical like they were making it to be. Likewise, when they came to football, they were still cracking up at their silliness while I cracked a smile at the very normal word. They did the same with their food and then said "cheese ball" along with their bread ball and cracker ball, etc. Oh, my silly boys! Now when we play Memory, all the characters still have ball at the end with much laughter.

Speaking of balls, Joshua is trying to head butt the ball in the above picture, and he did a great job of making contact! Another game that the boys have been loving is Hide & Seek. They take turns counting and then after 10 they shout "ready or not, here I come." It's kind of amusing to watch because they always jump out from their hiding spots upon hearing the expression that they're being looked for. They shout with glee that they're "right here" and it starts all over again. Daddy & I barely have to move while playing this game if we're not the ones hiding. :) :) :)

I've been trying some new recipes lately since I feel like I'm always making the same old things. Two new dishes I made were "Chickenetti" and "Yumisetti" from my crock pot recipe book. Both of them turned out scrumptiously. I also made "cheeseburger roll-ups" that my friend Renee had emailed me. They were so good that I decided to make them again when we hosted life group this past weekend. Everyone thought they were amazing as well, it seemed.

With hosting life group, this past weekend was spent doing some spring cleaning and organizing, etc. Most of it wouldn't be noticed by the average person, but it was a good excuse for us to get things done. For example, I put all the shoes away that Caleb had outgrown and organized them by size. Shawn organized our back porch where toys have been accumulating, etc. I clipped the flowers in the pots on our front window sill and threw the dead ones away. We were glad to get some things on our "to do list" crossed off. While life group was at our house, we asked Miranda to watch the boys since my mom was sick (and she had originally agreed to have them at her house). They stayed upstairs for awhile, and then Miranda put their coats on them and they walked to her house. They seemed to have fun playing with her little sister. I wasn't too sure about them going to another house since we don't know her parents well, but they did fine and she brought them home right on time.

The following night (Monday, March 28) we had our friends the Buckwalter's over for dinner. Kyler is right in between Joshua & Caleb age-wise, and he seems to enjoy playing with our boys. They all had a blast with the dinosaurs, trains, balls, cars, doodle pros, etc. We also like Seth & Karisten a lot, as we have a lot in common with them. They are very nice, devout believers, and in our same life stage. It was a fun night.

Caleb picked out the "Sleepyhead" book before bed the other night, which was one of our favorites that we hadn't read in awhile. Daddy said "oh, I like this book!" Me, too. We've read it several times. Caleb has been our "sleepyhead" lately as he asks for one more snuggle, one more comfy cozy cuddle, one more book read just right, one more gaze upon the night, one more drink, one more kiss, one more hug, etc. and then eventually passes out in the middle of it all. The book is super sweet, just like our little boys.

I'll end this post with a story from this evening. I made roast beef in the crock pot for dinner with brown butter noodles and veggie. When I told Joshua that we were eating roast beef, he pointed to his middle toe and said "is that for this piggy?" Shawn & I both cracked up. No, it's for eating. Neither boy touched the meat (even though Daddy & I thought it was wonderful) but they both had several servings of noodles and veggies, much to our surprise. Joshua was so proud that he cleaned his plate. I guess roast beef brings out the piggy in all of us... or something! Hope you enjoy the pictures - Joshua is learning to ride his new Toy Story bike he got for Christmas while Caleb is learning to ride on Joshua's old Thomas bike. Fun!

Moses

On Wednesday, March 23, Caleb & I had went to the Calvary Preschool Library to borrow some videos since I had originally thought I would have to take the boys with me to my ultrasound appointment. [Thankfully, Grandpa agreed at the last minute to postpone his plans with his girlfriend for an hour to watch the boys for us, so I didn't have to take them.] Anyway, one of the videos I got was about Moses since Joshua really enjoys the story about the Israelites leaving Egypt, etc. The video said for ages 7 and up, and Shawn wasn't too sure about showing it to them after we saw it. It didn't really sugar-coat much, but I think it's good for the kids to learn about the Bible stories.

When Daddy was vacuuming this past weekend, Joshua took the attachments to the vacuum cleaner and said that they were his staff. He was going to turn his water into blood. I explained that God had equipped Aaron to speak that and Moses to act it out, and that only God could make such a miracle happen. I also explained that while I didn't mind if Joshua had a play staff, the vacuum cleaner attachments are breakable, so I'd prefer he find something else for his make believe. It did make me smile, though. He climbed onto our bed another time and shouted "LET MY PEOPLE GO!!!" as he was acting out his dramatic version. Shawn rolled his eyes at me, and I cracked up. So far he hasn't asked to kill anyone's firstborn, so I think we're okay. I like that the Bean enjoys the Bible stories, and Caleb also is learning about Moses, the Israelites, the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, etc.

This week we got Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors (since it was time for Moses to head back to the library). Hopefully it's good! The picture above is of Joshua petting a snake at his preschool's "Reptile Friends" presentation. I thought it was fitting for this post since I hadn't used it yet. :) :) :)

One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish

On Thursday, March 24, Joshua's preschool class went on a field trip to That Fish Place. Now, this is really just a big store, and I've taken my boys there before, so I wasn't sure how they were going to make a whole field trip out of it, but I was happy to be able to go along with Joshua since Grandpa Georgia agreed to watch Caleb for me that morning.

We arrived early (I'd always rather be early than late) and parked our minivan right next to Mrs. Dearborn's (his teacher). I had seen a minivan that looked identical to ours and thought "I'll park next to it" not realizing that it was hers or she was in it. She came right over and said how much she loves our ride and hers! We laughed. I took the picture of Joshua outside the store, since he LOVED the big shark that stuck out of the wall. Then we waited for his classmates to arrive, who all trickled in.

Joshua LOVED this little corner of the store where the turtles were swimming. I must say, though, that it smelled so bad that I could hardly stand it. He enjoyed looking at all the animals as we waited for the official tour to begin. The first stop was the "touch tank" pictured below. Unfortunately, the kids were too short to really get a good view or have the ability to touch anything. We tried lifting them on their bellies to reach, but it didn't really work. They just go wet! Inside the touch tank were stingrays that had their tails clipped so they're no longer dangerous.

Joshua wanted to go between his friends Bethany and Chase (both pictured below) and ended up on a very wet spot of the wall. His shirt was soaked the rest of our morning, but thankfully it didn't throw him off his game.

After the touch tank, we gave our children paper towels to dry their hands and hand sanitizer. Then we went to meet some of the other animals, which they could pet. The bunny below was named "Princess Alice" and she weighed something like 16+ pounds. That's one big rabbit! The kids liked petting her, and the store clerk warned that Alice doesn't like her feet touched.

I was trying to get a shot of Joshua petting the bunny, but it was Mia's expression in the picture below that cracked me up!

Next, the clerk got out a "pet rat." The kids all likened him to Ratatouille. The clerk said that rats may GREAT pets as they can be toilet trained and go only at a spot marked in their cages, they're very friendly and they love their owners. All of us parents all but gagged at the thought of taking one home. But, the kids enjoyed petting this rat. YUCK!

Next she got out a ferret for the kids to pet. Ferrets are similar to skunks in that they let out a significant odor, she said. She also noted that they are like toddlers in that they can't be left alone and need constant supervision. They'll hide your keys in small cracks and wander into holes, etc. YUCK was my thought once again. The kids all took turns touching her.

After these animals, Mrs. Dearborn gave all the kids a squirt of hand sanitizer again - here she is giving Joshua his.

The next stop was the reptile room. The clerk got out two snakes and showed how they coil up to protect themselves. She explained what it means to be cold-blooded and how snakes don't like their heads to be petted. Then she allowed the kids to touch them.

The next thing she let the kids touch was a lizard of some sort, I think. The kids all lined up, but there wasn't a real great order to the morning, I thought. Most parents allowed their kids to run wild without telling them to take their turn and move away, etc.

In the picture below, Joshua is petting a hissing cockroach. Again, I can't imagine that any parent would want this as a pet for their children! The little girl next to him is named Ivy, and she had NO fear! She took her turn petting anything that was shown to her.

After leaving the reptile room, the kids sanitized their hands again, and Mrs. Dearborn passed out goldfish and juice boxes that she brought for the kids (which I thought was nice). She also laid out her own blanket and let the kids sit and eat snack. I asked Joshua to smile at me and this was the face he gave me as he was chowing down. I cracked up! The teacher's aide, Mrs. Wolfe, is right behind him in the photo, and Mrs. Dearborn is wearing the blue scarf. The rest of the adults are parents.

After snack, it was time to explore the fish room, which we did on our own.

Joshua LOVED this room and moved at his own pace to see the creatures in the various tanks. The entire week or two before this field trip had been devoted to learning about the ocean and fish, so he thought it was really cool to see the different varieties. And, he was having a great time with his friends as well.

The picture below is of him next to a sting ray. That sting ray cost over $400!!! Who would spend that kind of money on something that will likely die? Not me!

Here's more fish we saw:

I did enjoy seeing the underneath side of the sting ray. The hole that looks like a belly button is where the sting ray takes in his food to eat. I thought that above his little bones looked like a smiling mouth with eyes above it for a face. They typically hover on the bottom of the ocean floor to find their food and hide against predators. This particular sting ray was $169. Again, that seems outrageous to me, but I guess I'm not a fish lover or so wealthy that I need to throw money away.

Here were some frogs for sale. I don't want any pets for the kids. Maybe some day, but not right now. Most smell bad and take a lot of work to upkeep.

Here's the Bean next to a "big fish" that he saw with a mustache. Speaking of mustaches, the other night we were talking about the 'Three Little Pigs' and how they said 'not by the hair on my chinny-chin-chin.' I asked Joshua if he had hair on his chin, and he said "no, but Daddy does until he shaves it off." I was surprised he had picked that up. It made me laugh.

Mrs. Dearborn picked Joshua up to show him a crab in a cage. He said "oh" and she laughed at his lack of enthusiasm. She also told him she'd miss him next year, and I warned her that she might see him again. She asked why, saying that he has all the skills necessary for kindergarten. I replied that he just barely misses the cutoff age-wise, so we're sending him to Calvary again. And while they offer a 4- and 5- day pre-K program, it's just too expensive for us. So, he'll go 3-days again, and she's one of two teachers that teaches T, W, R. So, there's a chance she could have him again. She said that he'll do just fine wherever we send him. He's doing well socially and academically.

In fact, she told me, the day he lost his teeth was the day he lost his inhibition. He is more social, he's more outgoing, he talks more in class, he volunteers more, and all around he's way less shy. She said the two events almost went hand-in-hand with one another. I do see that he does interact more with his peers these days, and I'm glad that he's doing well in school. We left shortly thereafter to go home and be with Caleb and relieve Grandpa. It had been a fun morning out!

Water You Coloring?

I'm way behind on blogging again. There are so many memories I'm missing, but I realize that capturing every moment would be next to impossible, let alone the fact that the boys may or may not read all these books I'm currently printing (in fact, I'm working on formatting 2010 now since I finished the 2009 book). One example of a funny expression was when Joshua told Aunt Missy that he was going to go catch a bird. She told him "good luck!" He always thinks he can catch the birds or the bunnies or squirrels he sees near our house, and I'm thankful that he can't!

The weekend after Kitchen Kettle Village (my last post), we took it easy. The boys still weren't feeling the best, and on Saturday we had taken a drive in the minivan to get some fresh air. Unfortunately, Joshua got sick in the car again, but this time he asked for a bag or bucket and just made it. Luckily I had some throw-away bags from the diaper bag that I could hand him and wipes to clean him. I also teased Shawn that it was probably his driving that made our little Bean sick. Shawn didn't think it was amusing, though. We came home and the boys rested, but we did play outside some over the weekend since the weather was still nice. They enjoy being outside, and we knew we couldn't really go anywhere else in hopes of not spreading any germs.

By the following Monday, both boys seemed a LOT better. That morning (March 21 - the first day of spring and yet the beginning of another cold front!), the boys & I sat down to paint some of the pages from the Easter water coloring book that they had received from Mamaw & Papaw (thanks so much!). They had a great time, and they each picked out certain pages to mail to their grandparents (now I just have to find an envelope where they won't get bent or beat up to mail them!).

The boys LOVE doing crafts. They each picked out their various pages, and I took a couple snapshots of some of the pictures they painted. The following two pictures show four of Joshua's creations.

Then here were two pictures of four of Caleb's creations:

While they were painting and having fun, I decided to paint with them. It's harder than it looks to keep water color in the lines of a painting! The 'craft' definitely put us in the mood for Easter books. I had ordered a cute one online which came that day as well. And, I asked Daddy to pick up some of the supplies we needed for our resurrection biscuits since they turned out well last year. :)

Since the boys were completely better, I took Joshua to preschool the following day and Caleb & I went to our respective areas for Bible study. The teacher was surprised to see our little Bean since I had mentioned he was supposed to have surgery the previous day. I explained that it was postponed due to his cold. I keep praying that he's well from here on out so that it can occur on May 2 as planned. Here's a picture Daddy had snapped of us that Monday night when we got back from our date at Barnes & Nobles. The kids had went on a little "picnic" with Miranda to the playground behind our house and had a blast. I'm so glad we found her and that the boys seem to enjoy spending time with her. More from that week to come...

Baby Boy Good

On Monday, March 21, Shawn & I had a date night scheduled. We went to Barnes & Nobles, ate dinner there, and went through stacks and stacks of Baby Name books. This is the second time that we've done this for this specific child, let alone countless hours of discussing names. And, we're still not completely sure what our little love will be named yet. I've kept the lists that we've discussed, and some day I'll post different options that didn't make the cut. But, until we're 100% certain about them, I don't want to say they won't be his name and us end up falling in love with one or another.

Joshua was going to be "Benjamin" for a long time. But, we realized that Benjamin was the younger brother in the Bible, and we knew that our Joshua would have to be strong and courageous with his lung issues, so we felt that Joshua was a better fit. We had discussed the possibility of naming Caleb "Mark" but then I finally said that I wasn't sure that I wanted another 'fiery' son (the meaning of Mark), and we ultimately decided on Caleb. We had lists for both of our older boys as well, though. What we do is each take a baby name book and write down any names that we come across and like. I also write down the meaning of the name since that's important to me, whereas Shawn usually skips the meaning and wants the name to sound okay with our last name Good. He writes his own list, I write mine, and then we go through them. If he hates any of the ones I've written, I cross it off my list; if I hate any of his, he crosses it off his. Then we see if we have any in common on our lists. Then we say it a bunch of times, talk about the meaning, and usually we end up with our heads spinning and agree to discuss it more later.

We hope you LOVE your name, my little son, because we've put a lot of thought and prayer into it. My hope is that God reveals His thoughts to us on it in the coming weeks.

On Wednesday, March 23, I had my third trimester ultrasound with Dr. Bayliss at Maternal Fetal Medicine. Unfortunately, I didn't have the tech that I like (we got the same one that we got last time vs. the one we've had at all the rest of our visits). This gal didn't explain what she was looking at at all, which drives me crazy. I like the other woman who would say, 'I'm looking at your son's kidneys, spine, brain, etc.' But, when she turned on the 3D option, we were AMAZED at what our son looks like and what you can see. These pictures truly don't do it justice (I'm guessing their printer is no where near the quality of their screens, let alone my scanning of the images and re-posting them). The above picture was the favorite one I got. I just loved his little nose and cheeks! His image reminded me of Caleb when he was a newborn.

Even though I wasn't impressed with the tech, I was thankful to see Dr. Bayliss once again. He told us that everything looks in tact with this pregnancy. So, this would be our last ultrasound unless I would experience any problems. He said that regular follow-up visits with the OB should detect if there would be any signs of any issue, in which case he would gladly bring me back for another ultrasound. But, with our history of having one child problem-free, all signs indicate that this pregnancy should follow suit. I was sad at the thought that we'd never see Dr. Bayliss again. I'll never have another ultrasound where we get to see a beautiful child in my womb. They are SO exciting! And, we are always so impressed with the info that Dr. Bayliss gives us. For example, I asked him about pain I've been experiencing on my right side, which keeps me awake at night. He said there are good chances it's just stretching and pushing as my uterus grows. But, with that, he said that it's fine to sleep on my back or any other position that's comfortable and to say otherwise is an old wives' tale. It is true that some positions can cause less blood flow, but when that happens, it will wake you up and your body will force you to move. He said he even told his own daughter to sleep on her back if she was more comfortable that way. He also said that you can experience the same feeling (lack of blood flow=weak knees=cold sweat or dizziness) when standing in the same position for too long. Some women can even experience it standing in line at the grocery store. I have felt a little off at times, and changing position does help. So, it was good to know.

Anyway, all that said, I've enjoyed my experiences with Maternal Fetal Medicine and am sad to see them come to an end. As I think about this being my last pregnancy, it truly makes me feel severely old. Such is life! I'm glad that our little guy is healthy and growing steadily. I couldn't ask for more! My next appointment with the doctor is this coming Friday or April Fool's Day. :) :) :)

Here is his growth over the last couple weeks:
Week 29
Fetal Development:

The baby's head is in proportion to the rest of the body. Fat continues to accumulate under the skin. The brain can control primitive breathing and body temperature control, and the eyes can move in the sockets. The baby is becoming sensitive to light, sound, taste and smell. Now, I wonder how experts know a baby can smell in utero?

Week 30
Fetal Development:

Our little one is nearly three pounds already and growing like a weed. The early lanugo is disappearing, the eyelids open and close, and the toenails are growing. The bone marrow is now responsible for red blood cell production.

Kitchen Kettle Village

Like I had mentioned before, Friday, March 18, was an extraordinarily beautiful day for our area. Mamaw & Papaw were in town from FL for a couple days because Papaw had a business meeting in OH so they drove over our way to visit before heading home. We received a call Friday just before lunch time to see if we'd like to meet them at Kitchen Kettle Village. I don't remember having been there before, and I quickly agreed. We jumped in the minivan, both boys excited for our adventure even though they were both coughing. Mamaw had also gotten the flu while she was in OH, but thankfully I feel fine and Papaw also seemed to be feeling well.

When we got there, we waited for Aunt Missy to arrive. We saw two horses hitched to an Amish buggy that sold rides. Knowing that the Amish do not like pictures of themselves, I refrained from snapping a photo of the boys with the horses, whose names were Mary and Martha. Martha was the one the boys petted, and the man told them that she was expecting a colt! Next, the boys continued to walk and stopped to smell the beautiful flower arrangements. Next they were put in the wagon above, and I took this picture of the grandparents with them, which I thought turned out nicely. The boys played and played at this area while we waited for Missy to come - over the bridge, on top of the rocks, running to hide in the gazebo and back again.

Once Missy arrived, we headed to the shops, stopping to take a picture of the picture. Unfortunately, little Caleb Luke was not quite tall enough to clear the frame. :) Both boys wanted to hold Papaw's hand, and he led us first into a toy store and then into the Fudge Kitchen, where we sampled some chocolate.

That wasn't the only store where we sampled yummies. Of course we tasted a few things in the canning store, and Papaw generously bought us some cookies and a sample of different types of jellies. He also bought the kids each a gingerbread cookie, and Mamaw helped the boys decorate them with the icing provided while I took pictures.

Caleb told her which colors he wanted on his cookie, and Joshua eventually got the idea and decorated his own.

Joshua's looked a little "hot dog"-esque to me as he put on the yellow that matched his shirt followed by the red, which looked like ketchup and mustard.

Caleb tried to lick the icing, and he got a red mustache that made us smile.

When we left the store, the boys stopped to wash their hands from the sticky icing and then we sat at a little table for them to enjoy their treats. Thanks so much!

We continued looking in the various shops there, enjoying the outdoors with the refreshing breeze and beautiful sunshine as we walked. We saw candle shops and kitchen stores with aprons that had funny sayings on them like "I'm not a slow cook, I'm a half-fast cook." Haaa!!! The one store was of Christmas decorations, and there were so many breakables that I decided to take Caleb Luke outside. There was a big dog named 'Grace' sitting out there, and she was VERY friendly toward our little guy, as was her owner. He gave Caleb a little treat to feed Grace, and the dog was very obedient, sitting, barking and doing what she was asked to do. Caleb LOVED her, even though she was big. He warmed up to the idea of petting her in a shorter amount of time than most dogs, but I think she was pretty gentle.

When Joshua came out of the store, he was also able to give the doggy a treat, which he thought was cool. From there, we ventured to lunch at a little cafe. Neither boy ate much of their lunch, but I thought the chicken salad sandwich I ordered was heavenly. When we got up, Caleb told me he was VERY tired. So, that was our cue to head to the minivan, where both boys passed out before I even exited the parking lot. We had had fun, though!

When I got home, Caleb had a belly ache, and I think it kept him from napping more. I tried for an hour to get both boys to lay down to no avail. Finally, after changing three pull-ups from the little Bluke, I decided to let them get up and play outside some more. We went for a walk and then stayed on the driveway to enjoy the beautiful weather. When Daddy got home, we moved the back yard, sliding and kicking balls, etc. Mamaw & Papaw joined us that evening, and we all drove to Freeze & Frizz to grab some ice cream before calling it a night. It had been a beautiful day.