Still Alive & Kicking :)

It's been forever since I've written and so much has happened. We finished summer strong with a few days in San Antonio at the Hill Country Hyatt and then Jake's sleepover party in celebration of him turning 9. We had six boys spend the night and it went well. A highlight of the party was a show by Mr. Puppet, a ventriloquist who Jake had seen perform at Magic Camp.

I've included a couple of favorite pictures from their summer camps - one of Jake at Magic Camp and one of Sydney at Reunion Ranch in Georgetown.

The kids are back in school and enjoying their teachers and classmates. I continue to be grateful for the quality of their education and support for their needs at our elementary school. I am hoping to get some more intensive intervention for Sydney this year to bring her up to grade level across the board. I am trying to find the right tutor to work with her a day after school as well.

In the meantime, we are signed up for more extra-curriculur activities than ever before, in the same fall we are having a baby - go figure! It's kind of funny how that came about. I have wanted Jake to play a team sport for a long time - in part because I just think it's good for a boy or man to know his way around a field, court, etc. and in part because I think the interaction and team environment will help with his social interaction skills. He did play a few seasons from ages 4-6 - first with soccer (he and his friend Max spent more time playing in the dirt and goofing with each other than watching the ball), then with t-ball, which he (and I) found a little slow-paced, and one more season of soccer where he was good at defense but still just didn't get into it. So, it's been a couple of years and he has announced during that time that he's not a team sports guy. He did tae kwon do from about ages 4 to 7, and that was wonderful for him in terms of focus and discipline, but requires a 2-3 day/week commitment that became more and more difficult. Then last year, he got a little tired of cub scouts and wanted to stop, but I told him he wasn't going to sit at home and play video games and so until he had another activity he wanted to try he wasn't quitting the one he was doing. That, however, was not the motivation he needed...

This summer, he started asking all kinds of questions about girls and specifically about what kind of boys girls like. I gave him what I hope were good answers - that it depends on the girl and that he shouldn't try to be something he's not to please anyone else and that he should be the best version of himself he can be in order to (someday) find the girlfriend that's right for him. But I also told him that a lot of times the athletes in junior high and high school are popular with the girls. I told him I was a little worried that he would figure this out and want to play a sport down the road but that other kids would have a 4 or 5 year jump on him in terms of learning the rules and plays and having experience - and that it would be hard for him to catch up. I truly believe that because Jake is a rough and tumble kind of boy and because he very much wants to be accepted and to be cool that he will want to play sports. So then - and this is key - I left the topic completely alone for a couple of months. When it was time to sign-up for fall sports, I casually asked him if he thought he might want to try anything and, lo and behold, he signed up for flag football. Ahhh, the power of the opposite sex - who knew it would start to wield its influence at the tender age of barely 9? I guess I'm partly to blame, but boy was he primed to take the bait :).

Sydney has played soccer for a lot of seasons now. Much of her team has been together year after year which has its ups and downs. Familiarity with each other and the coach means his job isn't easy because the girls have a tendency to spend lots of time giggling with each other and not necessarily listening or paying attention when they should. This season, for reaons she can't really explain, Sydney waffled on whether to play again or not. She finally said she wanted to play so I signed her up and then the next day she changed her mind and said she wanted to do cheerleading. Normally I would have made her choose one or the other - especially since she's doing Brownies as well. But, since she was kind of only 1/2-way committed to soccer and I want her to play well and give it her all, I told her that she had already agreed and was signed up for soccer and the only way I would add cheerleading was if she would give each 100% of her energy and effort while she's doing them. She agreed, so now she is signed up for both and pretty excited. I hope she comes through on giving soccer her all this season and gets into it again. When she's focused and trying she's a really good player.

Another exciting thing that happened is that Martin's brother, Andrew, proposed to his girlfriend Erin. We went to Dallas for a celebration with them and lots of the family and friends. We all went to a little neighborhood bar and hung out upstairs while he took her to dinner and pretty much strung her along. She knew the proposal was coming and had expected it for awhile so I think everytime they went out she wondered if it would be 'the night'. A few days before she had asked what to wear out that night and he said something like, 'I don't care what you wear, I'm wearing shorts and a t-shirt.' He said you could just see her deflate. That night, they did get dressed up and he took her to a very expensive dinner where they had the best seat in the house reserved with flower petals on the table, etc. Towards the end as she waited expectantly, he casually asked for the check and again she was thrown for a loop. So, when they got to the bar, she seemed totally caught off guard by so many family and friends being there. The proposal was great - down on one knee in front of everyone - and she was so excited. We were happy to be there and share that with everyone. Here is a picture with Martin's parents and brother on the left and Erin's parents and Erin on the right.

Finally, last weekend I went on a girls' weekend with friends that I met when I was practically a full-time volunteer with Austin Junior Forum back when the kiddos were babies. We actually stayed in town at Renee's house, but she planned great activities for us like a catamaran cruise on Lake Travis, a catered dinner by a wonderful local chef, and a day at the Lake Austin Spa. Below (thanks to Katie for taking pictures!) is a photo of the group on the boat, and one of my big belly as we were heading back in for the night.

me, Wynne, Lindy, Shelly, Kristen, Renee, Caroline, and Katie

me at 7 months pregnant...

I won't let another month go by without an update again - I promise. We are officially 6 weeks from our due date and all is well with the baby and expectant parents!

Baby Shower

On Friday night, Martin's sisters Jacqueline and Virginia and Mom gave us a shower in San Antonio. We got VERY cute (and pink :) things for our little girl. It was so nice of eveyone. A friend of Jackie's prepared wonderful food and cake and my Mom and two of my aunts came as well. My Mom is making an adorable quilt for baby Kiley. Here is a picture of my big belly!

Today we've run errands and been working. Not so exciting, but it is good to be nearing the end of the project I've been on for so long. Martin is helping me create a website for data entry by my client's customers and it's fun to work together on that.

Kids Say the Darnedest Things!

It's a special treat for Sydney when we take a bath together in the big bath downstairs. Sometimes we get out the beauty products and turn it into a real girlie fest. Last night she was tired and needed to get clean, so I suggested a bath. So, we were in the big bath with mud masks on and in walked Jake. The conversation went like this -
Jake: "What's THAT?"
Sydney: "Mud mask"
Jake: "What does it do?"
Me: "Well it's supposed to help get your face really clean..." - even as the words were coming out, I was trying to anticipate his next question or comment and figure out how it made sense to me, much less to an 8-year-old boy, to slather yourself in mud in order to get clean.

To my surprise, his next comment was nothing that I anticipated as he said... "And keep you single!" HA - where does an 8-year-old get something like that?

Kids today are wise beyond their years and it's a funny time when they start to understand more grown-up things and to give you glimpses of the young adults they will be. Jake is in that transition period where one minute we will have a really grown up conversation about his feelings and observations he's made or opinions he has - and the next he's whining about the toy he wants and hasn't gotten.

Anyway, this week has been SO much better than last. We had a good weekend. On Sunday we took the kids to Schlitterbahn and, even though Martin and I weren't initially thrilled about the prospect of spending our Sunday in the crowds, we ended up having a blast. The kids are loving Magic Camp and I'm making good progress with work and getting caught up on some things I had hoped to complete last week. Martin is enjoying being home and catching up on yardwork and rest, and we got to have a date night tonight!

What a Week...

Martin's been out of town for work this week and, let me just say that life in general and parenting specifically is more fun and much easier with my wonderful husband in town! Here were some highlights from the week:
-- Tuesday morning about 2 a.m. Sydney came crying into my room saying her tummy hurt. She was soon vomiting (thankfully, into the toilet!!), but then she was able to go back to sleep, while I was up for the night.
-- Tuesday night, Jake fell off his electric scooter and scraped his face up on the sidewalk. He has some pretty good battle scars, but thankfully no need for stitches. Sydney was very sweet and worried about her brother. His face was bleeding pretty badly when it happened and I think it scared them both.
-- Wednesday morning, I dropped the kids at the bus for camp and then got an email on my phone on the way to my client in S. Austin from the camp director telling me that Jake isn't mature enough for the new camp (Camp on the Move) that they started this week. She basically made a snap judgement based on one incident on Tuesday when he couldn't find his shirt on the bus and got embarrassed. I had given her a heads up that Jake has ADHD and would benefit from a patient counselor and some help/reminders keeping up with his stuff. When I called her Wednesday morning after reading the email, she asked me if he is emotionally disturbed and suggested that since they have a ratio of 1 counselor for 5 kids and can't give him the one-on-one attention he would get in special education that a different setting would work better for him. I kept my cool, but told her I was meeting the bus to get my kids off, pulling them from the camp, and expecting a refund from them. She told me if I needed them to, they would take the kids this week. I told her if she didn't want my kid then I didn't want him there with her. So, I canceled on my big client for the 2nd time this week (Tuesday because of Syd throwing up and Wednesday because of Jake being kicked out of camp), and pulled the kids off of the bus.
-- Thankfully, the rest of Wednesday was pretty uneventful and the kids were actually nice to each other and got along, which makes such a difference in the day. The lack of sleep from Tuesday night caught up with me, and the kids let me nap while Syd napped with me and Jake had a water gun fight with the boys down the street. On Wednesday afternoon, I was also able to get them into Magic Camp - I had to pay for the whole week and it is in East Austin, which is a haul, but I am grateful to them for their willingness to take the kids and the fact that they make the kids feel really welcome and happy.
-- So Thursday, I was able to finally make it to my client and resolve a technical issue I had been struggling with all week, when I'd had time to work. When I picked up the kids, they were awful to each other - back into full fighting mode. I came very close to sending them to bed around 6 p.m., and they finally got the point and settled down. In the end, we had a fun night. We put on the Camp Rock cd, turned out the lights and danced with glow sticks for awhile before bed.
-- When they went to bed on Thursday, Jake shut my door (I let them sleep downstairs this week on the couches in the living room) and two of the dogs were in the room with me. I guess one of them had an upset stomach, so I woke up at 4 a.m. to the overwhelming stench of poop and had to clean out my closet. Again, I was up for the night.
All in all, I have (mostly) kept my sense of humor, but I was thinking this morning that I wouldn't mind a do-over on this week :). I'm definitely ready to start a new week - hopefully one with MUCH fewer bodily functions and fluids, and with my husband home with me!

Quick Update

All was well at my Dr.'s appointment this week. My blood sugar was well within the range it needed to be in, as was my iron. The baby is so extremely active and the Dr. told me again that is a good sign. He said active babies are usually very healthy. He said it might be difficult to monitor the contractions I am having because there have been a number of days already where they have been frequent enough that he would typically send me to the hospital for monitoring. But, some women just have them more than others and so he said to consider what I've had to be the norm for me and to raise a flag if they increase or I have any other symptoms. He will check my cervix at our regular appointments ongoing just to make sure it stays closed until baby Kiley is ready to join us!
We have a bunch of photos on the camera that have been there for the past couple of months, but will get them off soon. I found this self-portrait (those are always great, right? :) from around Mother's Day, and will post more pics soon.

Baby News

We just got back from the hospital for our 2nd visit to the labor & delivery unit in just over a week - and let me start by saying that everything is perfectly fine with the baby (we're naming her Kiley - not sure of the spelling) and with me. I started having repetitive cramping last Wednesday and called the doctor to be told to go to the hospital for monitoring. They didn't track any contractions on the monitor, my cervix was closed, and they said I was slightly dehydrated, which can cause contractions. They sent me home pretty quickly. The cramping continued a little bit that night and then the next day, but stopped after that.
A couple of days ago, it started again, but this time were the contractions I remembered from my pregnancy with Jake and not just a cramping feeling. They have continued for a couple of days and so today I called the doctor and he sent me to the hospital again. They did register the contractions on the monitor, but they were not severe and not regular in their timing. They ran a few tests that all came back with 'perfect' results according to the nurse, and she gave us a 0% chance of going into labor in the next two weeks. So, we went home with a clean bill of health and no restrictions. That is a HUGE relief, as I was very anxious at the prospect of 10 weeks of bedrest, and then scared for the baby when they told us they were running a test to check the odds of going into labor in the next two weeks.
The history is that, with Jake, I started having the Braxton-Hicks (also called 'practice') contractions but they got more intense and regular, and at 34 weeks I went to the hospital for this same monitoring and was determined to be in pre-term labor. They put me on medicine to stop the contractions and on bedrest for two weeks. Once I got off of bedrest, I carried Jake for another 5 weeks to just past 41 weeks of pregnancy. I think the doctor thought that after he let me off of bedrest with Jake that I would go into labor soon but I carried my babies high and, since they never really dropped, I never dilated or showed any other signs of being ready for labor. I had both of them 8 days after my due date with the help of being induced. For that reason, I wasn't really worried about having the baby early, but more about the prospect of bedrest and what that would mean for our family. Anyway, it's a good night tonight and we are very relieved.
We see the Dr. tomorrow for a regular visit, the diabetes test, and a Rhogam shot since I am Rh-. It should be pretty uneventful. I promise to soon write a light-hearted blog entry - as we are having a fun summer!!

Crazy Pregnancy Happenings

This is going to make me sound a little crazy or careless at best but is interesting if a little scary... I have fallen twice in the past week and a half. Not little 'stumble and catch myself' kind of falls but huge, total 'wipe-out flat on the ground' kind of falls. The first time was at family reunion on the 28th. We go to Blanco, TX the last weekend of June every year to get together with family from all over. The boys camped out at the state park and Sydney and I shared a room with my Mom. Saturday morning, she and I jumped in the shower. She was standing behind me in the water and she slipped. She grabbed onto me and I lost my balance. I had my eyes closed but started falling forward, fell out of the tub, pushed off the wall on the way down and flipped myself onto my back so that I basically fell against the toilet and slid down it with my back and landed on the floor outside the tub. I was so surprised to find myself suddenly on the floor of a motel bathroom that I started laughing HARD. My back hurt a little, but I had protected the baby. Sydney had fallen in the tub but she was ok. I told the kids my balance is a little off and I can't support them right now - especially when it's not expected.

Tonight we went to a backyard Bible club for the kids at a friend's house. When we got there, Jake got self-conscious about wearing his swimsuit. He hadn't changed from camp and I had told him he could wear it - it was raining outside anyway and I thought it was no big deal. But, when he got there and saw how many kids from school were there he wanted to go home and change. Sometimes when he feels really urgent about going somewhere, he'll grab my arm and pull me and he started to do that. So he's in front of me pulling me out the door with my arm over his shoulder and both his hands on my arm pulling. The problem came when we ran into something of a traffic jam with people coming in the door. He stopped short on the porch, but kept pulling on my arm - hard. It had been raining and the porch was wet. I was losing my balance and the last thing I am really sure of is me saying 'Jake stop pulling on me' and I was trying not to fall forward onto him and then honestly the next thing I knew I was flat on my back on the sidewalk. There were about five moms around me and they were all freaking out - some knew me pretty well - some didn't. But here is a very pregnant woman who has just, for all intents and purposes, been flipped kung fu style over her son's head. I think I initially was still fussing at Jake a little but then I looked at him and he looked dazed and a little hurt and was starting to cry and look really embarrassed or ashamed and I quickly shut up. I also had the moms descending on me with great concern asking if I was ok. I was actually pretty shaken up once we got in the car. I started crying a little bit from minor scrapes but mostly I think just from being disoriented and scared. Jake felt awful - he said multiple times that he didn't mean to hurt me, he wished I'd just fallen on him; mostly he wanted to make sure I was ok, but he had fallen also and hit his head hard on the concrete. Later, he told me he made a fool of himself and didn't want to go back. We skipped tonight (left Sydney there and she had fun with her friends), but I'm hoping he'll go back at least one night this week. He's worried that his friends will make fun of him. I told him it was an accident, that we all have them and yes, sometimes we come out looking a little foolish, but that accidents happen to everyone. He's had a couple of things lately where he's been pretty hard on himself and it bothers me. Last week, he walked out without his lunch for camp one day and I realized it before we were too far down the road, but he said on the way back home to get it, 'I'm so dumb...' I don't want him to have those voices in his head telling him anything remotely like that. It's a fine balance with kids (or at least it is with ours) - teaching them responsibility and accountability - without them beating up on themselves.

Anyway, I am amazingly fine - AGAIN. I can't believe I landed flat on my back on a concrete sidewalk without hitting my head or getting hurt really at all. The baby is moving just as much as ever, and the internet research I did on falls during pregnancy was reassuring. I'm so glad I didn't take out anyone's kid but mine - and he's just fine except for a little lump on his thankfully extremely hard head. I am truly amazed at the extent of the instinct to protect the baby. I did not have any time at all to think either time but managed to flip my entire, rather large body both times so that I landed on my back. I gently reminded the kids again that my center of gravity is off right now so my balance is not what it would be normally. I am hoping that we'll have no more of that kind of excitement - surely I must be pushing my luck at this point :) And, I've missed two really good opportunities to make easy money on America's Funniest Videos!!

We're way behind in posting pictures - it's been a busy summer... Here are a couple from Mother's Day. After church, we met at Pappadeaux's (our Mother's and Father's Day tradition since before my Dad died) for lunch. Then, we went to my Mom's house and had dessert and gifts and goofed in the yard. My Mom got out and played modified soccer (by Sydney's ever-changing rules :) - she'll be 78 this year and she's amazing!