Tuesday for school

Well, after V's nap, he calmed down and had a pretty good day for school.  I also found a Kindergarten skill test online at www.tampareads.com/skills/kindergarten/test-html.htm
I don't really like public school “standards” but it's nice to know where most kids need to be before they enter the 1st grade.  V is doing preschool right now, and he already knows about half the stuff on this test.  Now I'm working on some of the other things in addition to what we're already doing.
V has learned “The Pledge of Allegiance” per the request of Hubby, and we start out every school day with that.  Then we do prayer.  For one of his AWANA activities, V has made his own prayer list, and that's what we pray to start out his school time.  Then we read a chapter or two out of the bible…right now we are reading the Gospel of John and just finished chapter 5.  After bible reading and discussion, we pick a devotion out of his devotional, “Gotta Have God,” which is a devotional for boys ages 2-5.  If he has a lesson to do out of his AWANA book, we will do that after this.
Next, we move on to worksheets I pick out from his book.  We bought a complete kindergarten basic curriculum workbook up at Sam's and he is working his way through that.  Plus he has a thinking skills workbook and a fun maze book (he LOVES mazes and is very good at them) that we got him from Walmart.  Today, he learned how to write his uppercase and lowercase U's and did some activities involving the numbers 13 and 14 (we're working our way up to 20).  Also, since he finished working with 12 yesterday, we dabbled into time a little bit.
Then we do a little break and have a snack, and if he wants, he can do an activity out of his Precious Moments activity book (which is usually more learning anyway).  Then we do our reading and any added activities.  Right now, we're reading out of Dinosaurs by Design.  We also have a sticker book that has all kinds of dinosaur stickers with a small blurb about the dinosaur.  We do one per day and then go to enchantedlearning.com to learn a little more about that dinosaur and print out a coloring page for V to color.  Then I hang it on our wall above our desk so that he can look at them and once in a while I will quiz him out of nowhere on what the dinosaurs are called…he's getting really good at remembering the names.  So far, we have learned about the Pterodactylus, the Diplodocus, the Compsognathus and the Brachiosaurus.
I also made reading flashcards for color words and also for number words 1-10 and we are going through that right now.  I am also going through the calendar with him now, too.  Besides the color and number words, he can read about 10 other words without help as well.  He can also spell and write his name and the word apple and ball without any help.
So, now that I've written a novel, can you tell I'm excited we're back into our school routine?
For Kindergarten, we are considering either My Father's World or KONOS.  I would love to hear opinions of those who have used either of these.  Any other suggestions are also welcome!

Sugar highs...or lows?

Oh, my, what a week it has been!  Last Monday, we finally settled back into our homeschooling routine here with V.  He has been doing really well, too, and excited to get back to it.  We started learning more about dinosaurs, as he is really into them right now.  We are reading out of a book called Dinosaurs by Design, by Duane T. Gish.  It is a really good book, as it takes on a biblical approach to the dinosaurs.
Despite being back to school, V had been acting impossible for the last few days.  Hubby and I couldn't figure out what was going on, especially since once he has school work to keep him occupied, he's usually pretty mellow.  Well, today we found out what was going on.  Hubby found on the floor a little round pink thing and we weren't sure if it was a piece of candy or some sort of pill or something.  V claimed he found it in his pocket.  I was freaking out looking on drugs.com (they have a very good pill identifier there) to see if I could find this thing on there.  Meanwhile, Hubby tried to get out of V where he got it from.  After lying and throwing a bunch of fits (very unlike V), he finally broke down and led Hubby to the kitchen closet/pantry.  In there, I have a box with holiday baking supplies, including many different kinds of sprinkles and such.  Well, he had been getting into those and he proceeded to show Hubby which ones he had tried and whether or not he liked them.  I could not believe it, but at least we know where this behavior was coming from.  By this point, V had calmed down enough to go take a nap without throwing a fit about it.  And all the sugar (and I'm sure there was tons of red 40 in that stuff as well that was contributing just as much) is hidden out of reach again, at least I hope.  I thought it was last time, too, but apparently, those darn kids keep growing and getting smarter!
So now, V and A are both taking naps at the same time…praise God!  And Hubby has gone off to work for the evening, so for the first time in a while, I've had time to get on this…this…oh yeah, it's called a computer!  I've had time to get on the computer and do a little update and catch up on A LOT of email.

Getting back into the swing of things

Well, Hubby got called in to his part time job this morning, which, while I am sad to have him gone, is really a blessing as the hours there are scarce during the winter.  Hubby has really been blessed with hours there since A was born and he took some paid time off from his full time job as we sure could use the money right now.  The Lord always provides.
So, with the call, we were up and at 'em early this morning and after feeding and cuddling with A for awhile and doing a quick email check, it was off to the kitchen to get it clean!  I cleaned the fridge and got all the dishes done.  I got everything picked up and put where it belongs, so now I have some counter space.  The only thing I have to do now is get a bunch of canning jars out of my cabinet so I can make room for bottles, as they are taking over one side of my counter.  A has been having problems latching on, so I am pumping breastmilk and feeding him through bottles for the time being.  At every feeding, though, we try the breast first and sometimes he does get it!  But sometimes he gets sooooooo frustrated, and I don't want him to get too upset about it, so we go to the bottle.  I know he will get it eventually…I have a friend who went through the same thing and all of a sudden at around 3 weeks old, her little one latched on like she had been doing it the whole time. 
Anyway, as time, energy and A allows, I am going to be working on getting this house picked up, one room at a time.  I'm not going to worry so much about deep cleaning yet, but I just want to get things picked up and to find a home for all this stuff laying around from Christmas and the baby.  The other big thing really, now that the dishes are done, is getting laundry done…it's mostly clean, but I have a huge pile on my dining room table that needs to be folded and put away.  I think once I get that done, the picking up part won't be so bad.
I also really want to make some banana bread.  It seems like it's been forever since I baked, and we have some bananas in the basket that are just about perfect for banana bread right now.  Plus, Hubby will be home close to dinner time, so I want to find a good meal to make for dinner.  This should be fairly easy since when I cleaned the fridge, I found a lot of good basics in there, plus our freezer and pantry are stocked pretty good.  The hard part will be making a decision.
Well, I best go get busy!  I hope you all have a blessed day!

Announcing...

A is finally here!  He was born Tuesday December 27 at 4:54 pm.  He weighed 9 lbs 7 oz and was 22 inches long!  I was able to have a successful vbac, so I am very happy about that.  

We're all home now and adjusting to life with a new baby.  The first couple of nights were rough, but A's only been up 2 times a night for the past few nights, so it's already getting better.  Although, I've had a case of the “baby blues” or as Nick calls it, “the hormone dump.”  That's one thing I had with Vincent that I completely forgot about.  Out of the blue without any trigger whatsoever I will just start crying.  This is really where I remember how lucky I am to have the dear husband that God has blessed me with.  As long as he's not occupied with A (or at work), he takes the time to come over and just hold me until the moment has passed.  He has been so great throughout all this transition…I could just brag on him all day 😊.

Short baby update

I'm still not online too much, but I thought I'd jump on and give an update after yesterday's doctor's appointment (yes, I did make it), as well as catch up on some blog reading.
Since we did make it to the appointment, I fully expected to be scheduling a c-section for today.  But this little stinker just does not want to come out.  His non-stress test came out perfect, and I am now dilated to 4 cm, so my doctor wants to hold out one more week, since he thinks something will happen very soon.  He told me not too many women walk around at 4 cm for very long.  If I go into labor by the end of the day today, I can still leave the hospital on Christmas Eve…knowing this baby, I will go into labor Saturday morning and have him just before midnight Christmas day or something like that LOL.
Gosh, I remember when I was in labor with my V.  My water broke at 1:30 in the morning and by the time we got to the hospital I was dilated to 3 cm, after being 2 cm for the last 2 weeks.  It took until around 3 that afternoon to get to 4 cm, and by that time I was asking for an epidural.  Now, I AM at 4 cm, and I keep wondering if the contractions I feel are “real” or not LOL.  My, oh, my…I know they say each pregnancy can be different, but with these two…I'm wondering how much more different it can get!
If I don't get back on with an update before Sunday, I want to wish you all a very blessed Christmas!

Taking a break

Hi everyone!  I am taking a blogging break until after the baby comes.  I won't have time to be online much, considering whether I go into labor or have a c-section, this baby will be here within a week!  There's still plenty to do at home, so I am limiting my computer time.
I hope you all have a blessed Christmas!!!!
Lisa

Sometimes it's hard to Let Go and Let God

Posting a little late-night note here after a long day.  Nick had the whole day off today, but is working overnight tonight, so I haven't had much of a chance to get on the computer.  I managed to stay caught up on laundry and got the grocery shopping done and some errands done, too.  Now that it's getting harder for me to move around a lot and harder to carry much, I almost detest going to the grocery store alone, so I was so blessed that he wanted to come with ☺️.
I was almost positive I was going to go into real labor last night.  It's kind of hard to believe, with all the times this little baby has cried wolf so far 👶.  But I was having some pretty good contractions, complete with pressure and pain in my lower back.  Nick and I went to sleep fully expecting to wake up in a few hours because this was really it, but I woke up in the morning with nothing again 🤷‍♀️.
Anyway, since we woke up a little late (yes, on top of it, I actually got GOOD sleep LOL!), Nick said we would get some Chinese food for lunch, since that got his mom going with all 4 of her births.  Of course, nothing has happened yet.  I have caught myself lately looking for natural ways to “get things going,” and while I know that God is really in charge and that most of the things I have tried are just for fun, I have to think that God is reminding me that ONLY He is going to make this happen.
I know in my heart that I really don't want to try and take it out of God's hands, but sometimes my mind tells me “Hey, if this really works, we'll have that baby today!”  I have to constantly remind myself that only God knows the best time and He's already got it all figured out.  It's kind of like a diet you've been on before that has worked absolutely perfect…but somehow you still seem to fall off of it.  I know for a fact that if I just give this completely over to Him and stop being obsessed with this going MY way, the Lord will most likely work it out pretty close to what I am asking for anyway.  It's happened that way so many times with so many other things.  Things always go so much more smoothly when I just Let Go and Let God.  It's getting to the letting go part that's always the struggle, it seems.  That truly can be the hardest part, can't it?
If you find it in your heart, I ask for your prayers in this particular battle of letting go.  I do know what I need to do, but I ask for the Lord's peace to come over me in this, so that I don't have to keep reminding myself over and over again.
For nothing is impossible with God.
Luke 1:37

I'm still here!

Ok, ok, I'm still here.  I admit, I did get a little excited yesterday (who wouldn't?), and should've known I probably wouldn't go right away.  I'm still excited, though, and am slowly getting some housework done around here.
I did get off to a late start today, but I am all caught up on about 2 days worth of dishes…shame on me for doing that baking yesterday and not even filling my sink with water!  I have recently gotten into the habit of doing that, and it has saved me so much time, so I don't know what I was thinking yesterday 🤦‍♀️. 
Maintaining a clean kitchen is one of the most important things that I need to do as far as housework goes, because if my kitchen isn't clean, I can't stand being in it!  I cannot stand cooking or baking in a kitchen that is messy, even if it's just the dishes that need to be done.  One of the best things I had started doing is filling that sink with hot soapy water every time I started cooking or baking.  I had been told probably thousands of times by many different people that this will make a difference, but for some reason, I didn't start listening until recently.  Now, I love being done with the cooking or baking and looking at an empty sink!  I fill it with a fresh supply of hot soapy water right before we eat a meal, too, so that people can just drop their dirty dishes in and let them get a good soak.  Can you tell I don't have a dishwasher?  We had one before we moved into this house, and I only used it a handful of times over the period of a year, so it wouldn't do me any good.  Like my dear mother, washing dishes is actually soothing to me (as long as it's not too overwhelming!).  Okay, I'll get off the dish soap box, now.

Slacking on Housekeeping

Despite me being so excited about the doctor's appointment, I really have not been feeling up to par today.  I think the baby may have just dropped last night, as I didn't get very good sleep with pain in my hips, and I've just been feeling that lower pressure all day today.
I did manage to get up and make a couple of batches of cookies.  I dug into my Betty Crocker Cooky Book last night and made up dough for Chocolate Drops (to which I added Christmas Mint M & M's) and Pineapple Coconut Drops.  I refrigerated them and then baked them up this morning.  I pretty much just did that and packed dh's lunch for work and ironed him another shirt.  I am so behind on ironing…I've pretty much just been doing it as he needs it.  I would like to get all his shirts done and just have it over with for awhile, but prayerfully, he won't need that many for awhile because he will be on leave for the baby 🙏.
While I don't have all the laundry put away, at least it's all clean.  I know dh doesn't mind, he loves getting to take homemade treats to work…he has no problem sacrificing having a little housework done as long as he's eating good!
Well, hopefully, I'll get some good sleep tonight and will at least have the energy to get dishes done and keep up on laundry tomorrow.  OR, maybe I'll go into labor and won't have to worry about it for a couple of days!

Baby update

Well, I went to the doctor today for my ob appointment.  We were expecting to schedule a c-section for sometime next week.  Last week, the baby was not engaged, and I was not dialated or effaced at all.  Because I have gestational diabetes, there are a few concerns that my doctor had that made him lean toward doing a c-section, especially since my first was a c-section.  For one thing, this baby is getting awfully big…on Monday I had an ultrasound that estimated him at almost 10 pounds, and I was 37 weeks as of Sunday.  The concern is for his shoulders being too big…If I deliver “normally,” his head could fit fine, but his shoulders could get stuck, which would put both the baby and myself at risk.  Also, the placenta deteriorating soon is another concern because of the gestational diabetes, and they don't like you to go much past 39 weeks.  They can't induce me because the stronger contractions that usually come along with being induced could rupture the scar from my previous c-section.  So with me experiencing nothing different over the last week, we were really expecting to get everything in place for the c-section today.
All that to say, when the doctor checked me today, the baby had dropped, and I am now 80% effaced and 2-3 cm dialated!  Even he was excited, because unlike a lot of doctors I hear stories about these days, he would really like to avoid another c-section if at all possible.  He knows that dh and I are planning (Lord willing, of course!) to have a lot of children, and that he said he has performed many c-sections on one woman, he also knows that a second c-section in a row would pretty much diminish my chances of ever delivering naturally again.  But, I will do whatever is healthiest for the baby.  However he is born, I want him healthy and in my arms.
I am just so excited that it could happen any time now!!!!