Friday, August 7, 2009

Day 5 (Sun. Aug. 2)
Dave's truck was in need of a tune-up so he took Malina with him up to his parent's house, so he could work on his truck, and I could have some time to rest. Ella stayed with me so we could have some bonding time. Ella and Malina tend to be very different children when they are away from each other; we try to separate them as much as possible.;) Ella was a very good helper and we cooked and baked the day away. It literally took us (me) all day long to make 3 things. I was really wiped out!

Day 6 (Mon. Aug. 3)
On Mondays, Malina has her dance/ballet/little Gym class. Mostly, our day involved going to her class and then relaxing. Trying to clean some, cook some, and resting alot in between. I go through phases where I have spurts of energy, and then where I'm so tired, I can barely get anything done. Right now, I am just still recovering from Thrus-Fri. fun and excitement!!

Day 7 (Tues. Aug. 4)
First thing this morning, I had an appt. with my midwife. She said I am 5cm. dilated and 90% effaced. I should keep the appt. that I have for next Tues. but she thinks she will see me before then. (She has said that, every appt. for the last 3 weeks!) :D I'm not sure why I am not going into actual labor, I mean I AM already half way there........

Right after that, it was time to take Ella to her dance/ballet/little Gym class. Malina and Ella are in the exact same class, just on different days. Again, we try and separate them as much as possible. Since they are so close in age, they are practically twins, spending all their time together, and doing the same things. Fostering their individuality, and giving them a chance to shine away from each other, has become a priority. (Yes, I have stopped dressing them alike).

At Ella's dance class I started feeling dizzy and light headed, so again, the rest of this day was spent resting, resting, and more resting.

Day 8 (Wed. Aug. 5)
I must have hit another one of my energy spurts because I started the morning off with a mission. I am not crafty but I want to be. One of my new favorite websites is www.make-baby-stuff.com because it shows some really neat projects--even a few I can do! :) I found an idea for a cheap wall mural that I was determined to get done in one day. (I am notoriously known for starting projects and then not finishing them!!) So first I cleaned out my trunk. Then we were off to Walgreens to refill printer ink and the dollar store for cheap picture frames. Next to Michael's craft store but they didn't have everything I needed so we went further down the road to JoAnn's fabric store. We finally got home and I did get the mural finished. I don't have a picture of the mural but I do have a the picture I used to make the mural. (having problems with the USB cord for my camera, again)

I divided the picture into eighths and put each one into a picture frame. It didn't print out as vibrant as I would have liked but it does add a nice little something to Jackson's "nook". Believe it or not, this took most of our day, and then Dave was home; which means dinner, bath and bed (for all of us!).

Day 9 (Thurs. Aug. 6)
Little Jackson has several "due dates". Today marks 40weeks from the day of conception; Aug. 7th is when I think he will come; Dave thought he was going to come Aug. 4th; my mom thinks he will come Aug. 8th; my original Doctor's office gave me a due date of Aug. 9th, based on my early ultrasound. Rarely do little babies actually come on their "due date" but this little guy might not come on ANY of them!!

I am still feeling pretty ambitious so we went to Tacoma to bring some things to the consignment shop and to visit one of my favorite parks--Titlow Park. We walked along the beach and found some little crabs that I let the girls' hold. We walked the length of the beach and then down the path right next to railroad tracks. At the end there are outdoor picnic tables and benches, so we sat down and had a snack. On the other side of the railroad tracks there are 2 different playgrounds and we played in each for a little while. At the first playground we seen a raccoon in a tree, trying to get comfortable enough to sleep. (right as a train passed by :D) Then we walked around a swamp that filters into the Puget Sound, to the other playground where we saw a doe and her fawn. Though they retreated in the woods when they saw us coming it was still pretty cool. Who needs the stinkin zoo? (Well, I do, because right now at the PDZA they have camels, and you get to ride one of them!! :D But since I am 9+ mo. pregnant, I'm sure its out of the question. :( Darn.)

On the way back to our car I picked blackberries from the bushes that lined the street right next to the woods. I personally hate black berries but the girls' love them, and they kept saying "mmmm, I got a sweet one" every time I picked a ripe one for them. :) It was turning out to be a pretty darn good day but it was only 11 am. What to do with the next 8hrs?

Well we finished getting some things at the consignment shop, got lunch, but then Ella peed her pants (and car seat) so we had to go home. At home the girls' watched the new movie they got at the consignment shop while I worked on a sewing project for Dave. Next we went on a walk to the "Chocolate milk river", which is the Puyallup River next to our house. I was hoping to find more blackberries and this time brought a container to fill up with the gushy berries. They were big and plump down by the edge of the river and the girls' had a good time building sand castles while I filled our blackberry container. Despite all the walking I did, which did cause some contractions, Jackson didn't really seem to care, and so I am still without a little baby.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Day 4 (Aug. 1)

Dave has worked the last couple of saturdays and so, hasn't seen Malina in her soccer class yet. I call it a 'class' because they are just supposed to be learning skills and they don't actually play any games yet. In Puyallup, the youngest age for a soccer team is 6 yr. old. Still, Malina really enjoys the class.

So Dave opted to take Malina to her soccer class and Ella and I headed over to our farmer's market. We walked around and found some eggplant, leeks, and golden squash but then I started getting dizzy. Our farmers market is in the middle of town @ a park w/ a playground, that is right outside of the library. This makes it very easy to bring the kiddos with. So after we got some veggies I let Ella play @ the play ground while I tried to get my strength back and stop my head from spinning. Dave came with Malina about 10min. later. We were going to get Dave his first ever library card that day but since I wasn't feeling good, we opted just to go home. But first, Dave HAD to get a couple of lbs. of clams to eat for lunch. :)

We went home, had lunch and Dave took the girls outside to ride bikes while I went to the grocery store. After that, we just kicked back and relaxed. I'm trying my hardest to view these last preggo days as a vacation of sorts; painful, tiring and hot but a vaction, none the less. I mean, what IS a vacation? Eating out, sleeping in (when I CAN sleep), trying to enjoy the beautiful weather, and doing as many activities as possible. That's about what I've been doing, just throw in lots of painful contractions and pressure! :)

Sunday, August 2, 2009

Day 3 (July 31st)

With all the excitement going on Thurs. and all the walking around I did, I managed to sleep for 12hrs. last night. This morning I woke up and @ 7:30am and about a half hour later Brandon called me. So I headed off to pick up the girls in Seattle. I had heard that they were doing free tours of the coast guard and naval boats. So when I got to Brandon and Carrie's house I kidnapped them for afternoon and we all went to see the "big boats".
It was pretty cool and Malina, Finn and Ella seemed to really like it. Part of the tour brought us through the 'galley' and with 2 pregnant ladies and 3 toddlers, there was an almost unanimous decision to get some lunch. (poor Brandon was out numbered).
We went to the Seattle waterfront and got some food (& candy)and then let the kiddos run around on the boardwalk. The girls and Finn seen the indoor carousal so we of course HAD to let them take a spin. :D After that though, Carrie was more than ready for a nap and I was feeling pretty hot and tired myself (but what is new?). The girls fell asleep instantly on the way home--mission accomplished.
It was really nice to spend time my brother and his family. I rarely get to see them, so it was a nice treat.