Pregnancy Burn Out

Oh my how quickly we forget the woes of being very very pregnant.  My husband finds it amusing as I waddle around the house and my daughter quacks at me frequently.  I have to admit, it is pretty funny.  It is always fascinating to me the difference between pregnancies, even in the aches and pains.  This time my biggest complaints are my aching hips and HEARTBURN!!!  I sure hope that there is some truth to crazy heartburn means lots of hair for the baby.  :-P

However, when I get bogged down with the complaints, I take a minute and feel her and it all seems to melt away.  I remember all of those people out there that have tried so hard to get to experience this wonderful time of pregnancy and for whatever reason they couldn't, or perhaps they experienced it and then lost their little one.  I am grateful that God has blessed me with this season in life even if simple tasks cause me to feel like I just ran a marathon.  :)

Getting excited!!

So, the baby is almost here!  I cannot believe that in less than 8 weeks we will have a new bundle of joy.  I am also super excited about cloth diapering this little one and am working diligently to attempt to build a stash.  I am doing this by entering cool contests, like the one over at The Cloth Diaper Whisperer Blog!

I am also super excited about a baby shower that is in the works!  I cannot wait to see all those cute little baby girl clothes that my friends and family love on Izabella with!!!

OK, well I must get started on dinner!

Fighting the Downward Spiral

I have finally acknowledged that I indeed suffer from bouts of depression.  I cycle really, everything is great and wonderful for a couple weeks and then I bottom out.  I think I get tired and run down and that is when the downward spiral starts to hit.  I have been fighting it for a couple days now but today it seems to have won.

I hate when these episodes hit.  I almost feel like I cannot control it.  I find it hard to pray, read my bible, or do anything that would help in getting out of this funk.  It is really strange and hard to explain and only someone who has experienced it can truly understand what I am talking about.  My patience basically is nonexistent and I really do hate that.  My three year old needs a mother with LOTS of patience (especially when in the midst of potty training). 

So, I write this post to simply acknowledge that I am indeed in my funk and I know that I will come out of it in a week or so...but in the meantime, prayers of any kind are greatly appreciated!! 

New Pictures of my Kiddos

So it has been so long since I have done any pictures of my own kiddos - so I finally did some.  This one is my favorite:

You can see some more on my facebook page by clicking here.

aaaah, feels so good

OK, so it was almost a year ago (August 14th, actually) when I set out to change my ways as far as my messy out of control house went.  I am proud to say that it was a complete and total success!  I cannot begin to describe the crazy good feeling that comes from looking around and knowing where I came from to where I am today.  Many of you will not get this, many of you will not understand.  However, as silly as it may sound, getting that part of my life under control has led to other parts falling in order. God has done a total change in me and I am forever grateful.  What is even better is when I see my family enjoy what I have done for them.  Now, there is still painting and decorating to do, but it will happen as money, time, and body allows.

Now, on to another topic.... BABY!!  We are growing ever closer to the big day and I cannot wait.  I am 29weeks 3 days.  I have officially hit what I so loving refer to as Baby Burnout.  My body hurts!  I get teary eyed thinking that I have to endure for 74 days but then I smile because I get to meet my sweet little girl in 74 days (and most likely before then).  I had Emmelyn 2 weeks early, and William 3 weeks and 2 days early.  I am holding out hope that this little one will be ready a tad early too.  However, I don't want to bank on that because I will be disappointed when she decides to hang on for a week past my due date. 

I have officially begun nesting for the little one.  All of her clothes, cloth diapers, etc have been washed (smelled) and lovingly put away.  Her diaper bag is packed for the hospital, yes I am aware that it is a bit early... oh well.  I have found myself scrubbing walls...literally.  I am resisting the urge to install the car seat... and to unpack and repack her bag...  oh how fun it is!

I had another ultra sound on Friday.  It was a pleasant surprise because it was unscheduled but the tech was in and the doctor suggested that I go ahead and get scanned.  The baby is growing beautifully, actually measuring a week bigger, but that is still within normal.  She kept opening her mouth and putting her hands next to her face.  There was one thing that was made certain by the ultrasound... this beautiful baby has her daddy's nose!  :-P   I believe that this little one will actually look different from her siblings, I am excited to find out. 

I have been getting many questions about names, so I am not sure if I have posted it here... but just in case I haven't - Yes, we have settled on a name.  We are going to name this precious little one Izabella Danielle Wynn.  Her daddy is very particular about names and I was super excited that we both settled on a name that we both really liked. 

Now... I just have to survive the next 2 months...  :)

It's me again

OK, I am skipping all the usual excuses as to why I haven't blogged... just scroll down and read my last few posts and pretend I repeated everything from there.  LOL

Anyway, I was reading tonight and thought I would share some of my reading.  It's from a great book (that doesn't actually belong to me and probably really needs to be returned to a dear friend that moved away before I could remember to bring it to her... HEY, I only had the book like a year or something... Love ya, Charity!)  I have read this book and excerpts from this book many many times.  I pulled the book out to share something from it with a dear friend of mine today and it sparked my interest in reading some of it again.  The book is titled "Lies Women Believe" by Nancy Leigh Demoss.  You can get a copy here.  I HIGHLY recommend this book to any woman. 

In my daily life, I sometimes find myself overwhelmed by responsibilities as a mother and wife.  Anyone that has done it knows that being a good mother  and wife is just not an easy task.  Especially when you are tired, irritable, and very very pregnant.  The temptation to lose your temper and yell is one that I must admit is too great for me most of the time.  It is something that God has convicted me about and that I am working diligently (OK.. well.. maybe not diligently) to correct.  I mean, it is up to me to show my children the love of Christ and I somehow do not think that is being accomplished by yelling and wagging my finger when William pulls all the pillows, sheets, and blankets off my freshly made bed for the thirteenth time in a day.  Or as I huff because the living room rug needs to be vacuumed AGAIN when I just vacuumed it this morning.  I am reminded that Christ never yells and wags his finger at me or huffs at me when I ignore his pleas to listen to him for the hundreth time in a day.  Some days being a mom and wife is an uphill climb (come on, you can admit it).  Don't get my wrong, I love it ... it is just the hardest job I have ever had. 

In my reading tonight, I was reminded that it is also the BEST job I have ever or will ever have.  God has called me to be a mother and to point my children to him.  I was reminded that God smiles at me and the fact that I chose to come home and do exactly what he made me to do.  I was also reminded that in the society that we live in, not every child gets the chance to have a mom.  Not every child is given the chance to even live.  I was reminded that although I could be doing many other things with my life, I am glad that I listened to God's call and that I am choosing to live...to really live.  I wanted to share with you the excerpt from this awesome book in hopes of any other mothers out there being encouraged.

The author is describing her refrigerator and how almost every square inch is covered with pictures of families. She is talking about looking at all the many pictures of the families.  She writes:

As I pondered the scene before me , I was struck with the wonder and significance of family - for better or worse. The family is at the heart of what really matters to us all. If things aren't well at home, every other area of life is affected. I looked at those scores of women sitting like mother hens surrounded by their brood of young ones, and I felt an enormous sense of gratitude for the willingness of those women to be givers and nurturers of life.

In the middle of all the photos, I have placed a bumper sticker you may recall seeing many years ago: "Life: What a Beautiful Choice." These women have chosen life by bearing children (something only a woman can do, I might add); and they are choosing life every day...

• with every meal they prepare;
• with every load of dirty clothes they wash;
• with every trip they make to the grocery store, to school, to the dentist, to piano lessons, to soccer practice, or the the shoe store;
• with every scraped knee they bandage;
• with every encouraging word they speak;
• with every night hour they spend rocking a sick or scared child;
• with every dispute they arbitrate;
• with every moment they spend building Legos, coloring, helping with math problems, reading a Bible story, or listening to a husband or child describe his day;
• with every moment they spend interceding for the spiritual growth and protection of their family;

Day in and day out, they are building a home, they are being life-givers; they are laying a foundation and building a memorial that will outlive them for generations to come; they are honoring their Creator in the greatest possible way.     

So, as I tell my children to stop fighting and play nice tomorrow for what seems like the millionth time... I will remind myself that I am honoring my Creator... I am being a life-giver.  What an incredible opportunity!

Here I am

So I keep meaning to blog... and keep getting distracted and not getting here to do it. 


Life is continuing to be busy but I am loving every minute of it.  I have to admit, being the stay-at-home mom is not as easy as I once thought it would be.  However, there is no amount of money that could make me leave this job.  This is the most fulfilling job I have ever had.


Homeschooling finished up last week.  We managed to get our 180 days of work in and both Emm and I were very glad to see it all done.  We still have some scheduled school days that are to be filled with field trips or projects but all of the curriculum is complete.  It was a fun year and I look forward to next year.  We will be using the same Math curriculum but we will be using Sonlight in all other areas.  I cannot wait to order it and get my hands on it. 


My baby belly continues to blossom.  I look huge and keep getting the typical..."are you sure there is only one" comments.  I got these comments when I was pregnant with William, so I am somewhat used to them.  I have to admit that are days that all I hear when someone says that is is "WOW... you are so crazy fat.".  LOL  Those are on my hormonal days.  We did find out that we are having a GIRL!  I am super excited and have begun picking up adorable girl outfits.  Because we had our girl so long ago (7 years...WOW) I have very little left...but if I start now, we should have everything we need by the time she makes her appearance.  As far as baby gear, we will be needing a new pack-n-play, high chair (ours has been through both children and did not survive the tornado that is William), and a new stroller/car-seat travel system.  However, I have been unable to find a girlie pattern that I like at Babies-R-Us, Target, or Walmart...so the search continues. 


Other exciting news - my sister is pregnant again!  So we are getting to go through pregnancy semi-together.  She is due in December while I am due in September.  It will be fun to have our children so close in age.  Her sweet Silas turns one in July... so she is going to have her hands soooo full.  LOL


I am still fighting the battle with potty training... and I am at my wits end.  Apparently I am not very good at potty training.  I thought I was... Emmelyn was completely all the way potty trained by the time she was 2.  By 3, accidents were a thing of the past.  William turns 3 in June and well... he has peed in the potty twice.  We have done the sitting on the potty every 15 minutes throughout the day thing... we have done the run around naked thing....we have done the try to catch him when he hides thing... I am just so lost.  I figure it will happen when HE is ready and not a minute before.  I just hope that he is trained by the time this baby is born.


I have rediscovered that I enjoy sewing.  I have not done much of it in my life...but what little I have done has been fun.  I have decided that we are going to attempt to cloth diaper this new little bundle of joy when she gets here.  So, I decided I would try to make some cloth diapers.  I was successful with my first attempt.  See...

Well, I am off to do the housework... as much as I keep hoping, it does not seem to do itself.