Baby #3 Week 37

It's getting closer! Can't believe we are 3 weeks away from due date. I'm still feeling good but nesting in a major way. I'm feeling the time crunch that baby boy will be here in less than 3 weeks. Clothes are washed and our hospital bags are packed but I have TON of monogramming to do. After losing three things this week I have decided that our home is an unorganized disaster area (being extremely dramatic here) and it is time for a major clean out.

Some of my cheerleaders threw an adorable shower for me on Saturday. They were all such sweet hostesses and you could see their cotillion manners coming out! They gave a super sweet toast to me and baby Shep. We got tons of lovely gifts and played some really fun shower games.

We met with the doctor on Tuesday and everything seems to be good. I am not dilated and very thankful! We didn't discuss delivery options but I'm pretty set on a repeat c-section as the date gets closer. My first was pretty fabulous and I don't really see the point of laboring for hours when I'm not sure if I'm going to end up having a c-section anyway. I've been hearing tales of scars busting open too during the labor process and that is just not appealing to me!

Nesting has set in and I am an organizing machine! We are hiring a cleaning crew to do a deep clean of the house before we go into the hospital but I want to get everything organized and picked up so they can work their magic. Jay and I completed the dining room, living room, front, and hall closets last night and already have giant piles in our living room. I divided everything up into sell, donate, put away, and trash. Our system is working pretty well and I'm loving the increased closest space. Can't wait to finish up the rest of the house!

I also forgot to post this last week but we met with the pediatric urologist and learned about how they would help Shep once he arrives. I really like our urologist. He did Holden's surgery and makes me feel super relaxed. He is very optimistic that Shep's kidney will heal on it's own. They are going to put him on antibiotics as soon as he is born to avoid any infection and will do an ultrasound within his first 2 days to see if the kidney is truly blocked.  

Pregnancy Highlights:

Today's Date: Friday, March 28, 2014

How Far Along: 37 weeks 

Pregnancy Countdown: 21 days until due date!

Size of baby: Yay! Baby has reached full term. He likely measures around 18.9 to 20.9 inches and weighs about 6.2 to 9.2 pounds. He's gaining about 1/2 ounce each day. Shep is the size of a winter melon. 

Total Weight Gain/Loss: I've stayed the same at 25 pounds gained. I'm slowing down on my eating because this guy is taking up a lot of space! 

Maternity Clothes: Yes, all maternity

Gender: Boy- Arthur Shepherd Carroll

Movement: Lots of movement. I'm taking time to lay in bed each night and feel the kicks. While I'm pretty sure I'd like another baby, I am cherishing the last few weeks of this pregnancy in case this is my last. I'm trying to make memories of how all the kicks and rolls feel and what its like to grow another human :) 

Sleep: Sleep is pretty good. If I get restless during the night I'll get up and use the restroom but it's still not waking me up. So thankful for this bladder! I'm alternating moving from stomach to side to sleep. I can lay on my back too long because it is hard to breath and makes that heartburn worse!

What I miss: SUSHI! If anyone comes to visit in the hospital, this is what you must bring me! ;)

Cravings: Nothing really this week. The sweets cravings have gone back down. I am loving some orange tea though!

Symptoms: Heartburn is still there. I'm a little swollen but my rings are still fitting snugly. Thankfully no new stretch marks, nesting is kicking in BIG time, and I found out that the pain I thought was round ligament pain is really just scar tissue stretching from the last c-section. 

Best Moment this week: Cleaning! Seriously, I sound crazy but it makes me feel soooo much better to be in a clean, organized house.

Scenes from Our Weekend- St. Patty's Day and Nursery Updates

We had such a fun and productive weekend spent with family we love!

I got a text from Jay midday Friday containing this picture. He is not one to run out and buy toys so I was pretty shocked. He is ready to start teaching the kids some baseball. He had it out with the kids on Friday evening and to Jay's disappointment, all Holden did was take the ball of the tee and run away with it. Future running back instead?

I had a bunch of sewing to do so I headed over to my mom's after supper to get to work. It's so relaxing and I was able to keep any eye on the State game. We were so excited to knock off Syracuse! 

From the hooop: I put the monogram on Shep's bumper fabric! The seamtress is coming to pick up the fabric today to start working on the bumpers! 

I was up bright and early Saturday to head back to my mom's house to sew. I had been putting off making this kids St. Patty's day monograms to match their new pants. I just found a new site to order blank stuff to monogram/applique and am LOVING the quality! 

We got to the parade a little late and weren't able to get seats. Jay and my Mom were great to hold the babies on their shoulders to get a better view. Holden looked like this the entire time. He was amazed by everything. The parade was a little hokey but the kids still had a good time. 

Poor baby makes the worst faces! I promise he was happy/excited in this pic.

She never really smiled but looked interested the entire time. 

our ?happy? family of four point five!

I'm truly not a fan of selfies but if I don't take them, I'm not in any pictures with my kids. I want them to know that mommy was actually present in their lives! My face is also beginning to get its pregnancy swelling on.

We went to the park uptown after the parade for lunch and running around time. The babies did great but were all over the place. I definitely need another adult to help me corral the kids in this open space.

H was just lounging eating his pb & j. 

she LOVED to jump off of the side. Hopefully she'll be doing this into the pool in a couple months!

love this shot of my mama and emma cate against the city

daddy was getting intense while swinging H.

I was feeling a little stressed when we returned home after our morning outing. Last week was sooo busy and our house was showing it. I have said it so many times but I am DYING for a clutter free house. I want to purge everything and have less but purging always gets pushed to the side in favor of other things. I am treasuring spending time with my kids rather than spending time on my home but once they go to bed and I see the mess/clutter and I freak out a bit. I want someone to come over and help me purge/organize my house! I cannot take the mess anymore! I'm hoping I can get around to doing this stuff on maternity leave.

Instead of cleaning/purging, I dropped my mom off at her house and decided to sew a little. It is so relaxing making things for my family and I'm so proud the things I make. I had ordered this bow holder for Emma Cate a week ago and wanted to put a monogram on it and get it hung. It was so nice to cross a little project off of my to do list!

Again, instead of staying home and cleaning, we took advantage of the amazing weather and walked up to Zoe's Kitchen for dinner. They just opened a new location and it's about 1.5 miles from our house and a really easy walk! I often forget how close some of these places are! Walking is such a stress reliever and my kids love seeing all the cars go by on our walks!

again. the selfies.

Sunday morning was actually really calm around our house! We came up with a good game plan to get ready and out the door for church. Are Sunday's stressful at anyone else's house? Sunday am is bath morning at our house and getting everyone fed, showered, and dressed before 9 can be a production! 

For lent, in addition to giving up highly processed foods (still going strong with no candy, soda, chips, etc!) I also decided that I wanted to look into a Sunday school class. We've been members at our church for over a year now and haven't gotten plugged in. This past Thursday, I went to a Mommy SOS class which I didn't know at the time (one of my neighbors took me) was an extension of one of our church's Sunday school classes. Mommy SOS was a really great small group and I loved the wine and apps social part before we got down to our study. Anyway, Jay and I went to the class on Sunday and really enjoyed it! We are probably the youngest there but have kids similar ages to everyone else. They do a ton of activities and it seems like a great place for us to be. I'm excited we tried this out!

Sunday was sooo rainy and yucky but we had a strict plan (since we couldn't enjoy the weather) to get everything accomplished. We did a family target trip (never again with hungry kids) and had lunch at Pizza Fusion. Their veggie pizza was Ah-mazing. Unfortunately their organic sauce has proven REALLY hard to remove from kids clothing (AHHH). I had to pick up some things at trader joe's and Jay volunteered to stay in the car with the kids and watch Nemo. I only let them watch the car DVD on trips but if it would buy me a little time to grocery shop, I was all for it. I think Jay enjoys that movie as much as the kids.

We came home and changed into comfy t-shirts and pjs and the kids took great naps. I got to work painting the nursery. I tried a ton of different techniques before really finding what worked, unfortunately, by the time I got to this point I was on the little wall to the right of the window. Maybe I should have started there. I got cups of water and added splashed of different paint colors. Some I applied with an old rag and some with a brush. The brush covered a lot more and I prefer the look of the rag. Overall I'm pretty happy with how it came out. At one point I had put two cups on a ladder and was working underneath the ladder. I forgot the cups were up there and tried to move the ladder while I was seated. The full cups hit the floor and paint went EVERYWHERE. Thank goodness it was diluated. Jay ran to help me and we got most of it off the floor, rocker, dresser, and crib. A little stained the wall and we're going to have to touch that up.

painted wall

This guy woke up from his nap an hour before his sister and we let him help. He was obsessed with Daddy's drill and helping out. Jay got a little upset with me when he noticed I was letting Holden practice hammering on our hardwoods (I'm totally one of those people who believe our home is a reflection of family. I am more upset by a house that doesn't seem lived in compared to a few small dings in the floor... you may want to ask me how I feel about this in a year after we get all of our hardwoods refinished! haha).

While Daddy hung the drapes, we heard Holden making a lot of racket in the hallway outside. He found Jay's dress shoes and decided to do a little tap dance down the hall.

I'm loving how things turned out with the deer head and curtains. I was so iffy about the curtains and thought about using white sheers to let some light in but really like the look of these navy ones. We're adding  DIY shelves above the chair on the left  and possibly an old clock to the wall to the right of the window (it depends on how within reach of baby the clock will be). Jay is also working on a rustic toy box to go between the foot of the crib and the wall. 

I think little man is pretty obsessed with this deer. He's going to love it when he and Shep share a room in a few years. I think I might keep this theme going on! I also have to add for memory that H seems to be getting a little jealous of Shep's things. He walks in and points to the deer head everyday, he takes Shep's lovey and teddy bear (that used to be his but he NEVER touched) and walks around with them and tried to put on a sweet pair of truck and tractor pj's that a friend bought for Shep (don't worry I went to HA last night to get him his own pair :)). 

I was craving something home cooked but did not want to do the cooking. My mom made my Grandmother's Swedish meatballs and brought them over with mashed potatoes for dinner. I can't remember the last time I've had a home cooked meal that I haven't cooked. It was amazing! Thanks Mom! 

My uncle (a gulf war vet) recently wrote a little thank you to my mom for all the support she and the rest of his family provided while he was overseas and mentioned the cookie bars that she used to send him. I haven't had one of those in YEARS (seriously like since he was overseas over 20 years ago) and immediately had a craving. Mom brought everything over to our house and cooked with the babies while Jay and I prepped for the Monday ahead. I snapped a few quick pics of the babies cooking with their Gigi. 

I tried this recipe for homemade fruit snacks. I didn't buy enough gelatin and I think that's where I made my mistake. They did taste pretty good and I made a few star shaped ones (think jello-jigglers) to send in for snack at preschool.

hmmmm cookie bars!

The other half of the nursery is looking fab so I figured I'd post a behind the scenes look  at this half! This is the view sitting in the rocker. I still need to finish waxing the crib, making the frame for above Shep's bed, working on the crib skirt, having the bumpers, changing pad cover, and pillows made, finding hardware for the dresser, purchasing a laundry basket to go in the corner where the light is, painting the frame to go above the dresser, and stocking the drawers. We did get a LOT of closet progress made yesterday though! We washed and stain removed all the newborn clothes, built the shelves for the closet, purchased 2 out of 4 needed baskets and organized all the blankets. 

We had a great mix of productivity with fun and play. I'm still working on finding that balance between getting it all done and spending quality time with my kids. Goals for this weekend include finishing the nursery completely (hoping the bumpers are finished), cleaning out the upstairs of my house, hopefully starting on the basement, and making LOTS of trips to goodwill.

Happenings

oh the drama...

this week has been CRAZY and I'm so ready for the weekend. We have plans to spend a LOT of time in the nursery. I'm so ready for it to be done. We just got all of the fabric yesterday and the lady that is making the bumper pads and crib skirt is coming by this weekend to get measurements and start creating! I am so excited! I've been an etsy addict and have to keep my finger away from the add to cart button. I am looking for baskets and artwork to finish the room. I want to create something ourselves but fear we are running out of time. I'd like to hang some artwork over the crib but am not sure which way to go. I know it's not everyone's cup of tea but I really love sayings and letters. I'm also thinking a cool collection of wall clocks but not sure that I have enough time to curate that. I'm craving a day spent antique hunting for cool nursery accessories. 

I'm feeling more and more pregnant and had my first wake up to tinkle last night. I was so confused when I looked at the clock and realized it was 3am. I went to bed at 9:30 and felt completely rested when I woke up. I really needed some catch up on sleep. It can't believe that baby will be here in 6 weeks omg. I'm working on scheduling newborn pictures and just ordered some outfits for the family to wear. We haven't had professional pics made since September and it's time to capture these crazy toddlers with their sweet little brother. I'm having internal debates over what to spend on newborn pictures. I want quality photos and all of the digital negatives but don't want to spend what we did on the twins. I found an amazing photographer (she is shooting my sister's wedding) but unfortunately, she isn't taking new lifestyle clients right now. Any suggestions for a natural-light photographer in Charlotte?

I guess I can officially declare that I decided to give up "highly" processed foods for lent. I originally was going to give up all processed foods but mama ain't got time for that right now :) I'm basically giving up fast food and sweets that I didn't make myself. People have accused me of using lent as a kick off to a diet but really it is amazing how many times I reach for a piece of candy or other processed treat and I think about why I can't have it. Each time I think about Jesus and the sacrifice he made. So far (only day 2) I like how this is working out for me. I'm also planning to try a Sunday School class. Attending church is great but I'm really feeling a need to get plugged in with our church and not be just another body in the pew. 

I've been tutoring a LOT after school and it's wearing on me. I miss seeing my babies and keep them up a little later just for some quality time. I have sweet students that have requested tutoring and it's hard to say no (and the money doesn't suck either). I feel like we're going balls to the wall knowing that come April 18th we will have a MAJOR slow down (I know most people are thinking that a newborn will not slow our lives down but I'm pumped to be at home everyday and hanging out with my babies... not being at work will majorly slow our lives down) and I am so excited for it!

Jay and I are trying to plan a staycation babymoon for sometime within the next 4 weeks. We have dreams of sleeping in the heavenly bed at the Westin and going to a nice dinner uptown. I'm trying to decide if a night uptown, or a weekend at the Ballantyne Spa would be a better bet. Anyone been to the spa for an overnight? Any suggestions of other great Charlotte staycation ideas? My main goal is to eat great food, relax, and spend some quality time with Jay.

Scenes from the Weekend

I can't believe it is Thursday afternoon and I'm just getting around to updating pictures from our weekend. Better late than never. 

This girl woke up on Friday with some curls going on! We're having a bit of a hair dilemma. Her hair can be totally crazy because it is getting longer in the back but the front is still really short and she is just now starting to grow a little hair where her hairline was receding. The humidity is bringing out her curls and I'm thinking that keeping it longer will be better for this summer and her little ringlets.

We went out to eat at Brixx on Friday night with my mom, my friend Sara, and my sister Bo. This one was hamming it up at the table like usual.

Not to be outdone by his little sis, Holden was running around and giving us goofy grins. He notices the attention that EC gets when she falls or makes a funny face or coughs (or anything really) and he imitates her to get the same reaction from mom. His fake cough (followed by a devilish grin) is pretty much my favorite.

not the most flattering picture but a few of my best college girlfriends got together on Friday night. I was so tired but made it until 12:30 chatting with these girls over drinks at Nan and Byrons. I had the BEST time.  I have missed my friends sooooo much lately. I'm working on being more intentional with my friendships. It's so easy to let friendships slide, especially because none of my very best friends are in the same stage of life as me (i.e. have children). I have some good "mom" friends but nothing like this group of my college besties. Because of work, I spend most of my free time at home with my family but I have got to start making an effort to get together with friends old and new!

We headed to gymnastics bright and early on Saturday morning. I was sooo exhausted after being out late on Saturday night. I was so pumped that we got this parking spot. Anyone that works out at Harris Y knows the spots around the circle are coveted. I've tried for 5 weeks to land an expectant mother spot and we finally did. Parking here makes it SOOO much easier to wrangle the kids into class rather than walking a mile from the back lot while carrying a toddler. There is no room for the stroller in the gymnastics space so carrying them is the only way to go.

these babies were obsessed with the beam this week.

Holden was flirting MAJOR with these two sweet gymnasts. He would run on the trampoline by where they were sitting and bat his eyelashes at them and give them little smirks. They asked if they could help the twins during class and of course I agreed. I had to take pictures of them walking the beam with their "big girl" helpers.

we ran some errands and had our weekly chick-fil-a lunch before heading home for naps. We bought EC some sunnies at target because she ALWAYS wants to wear mine. She will leave them on until they fall off or we take them off of her. We tried to get Holden a pair but he wanted nothing to do with them. She will put them on whenever she can! 

My mom and Bo came over for Chinese on Saturday night and we bathed the babies and put them to bed before dinner. Emma Cate was petting Holden in this pic.

And by the way- the kids are pretty much taking all of their baths in the bath tub (finally). We still stick them in the sink when we need to do it super quick!

She loved putting her feet in when he was bathing!

i know i know... this will totally embarrass him later but this pic was too cute of his little tush and his outgrown robe.

She isn't potty trained yet but loves to sit on the potty. 

We barely made it to church on Sunday morning. Jay dropped me off with the kids and I checked them into Sunday school while he went to park the car. I headed back to the lobby to wait on him. There was another family that did the same thing and after I saw her husband walk in I assumed Jay would be there shortly after. I waited another 5 minutes and by this time we were so late that I figured we'd just go try a Sunday school class because there was going to be no way we'd get a seat in the sanctuary. I continued to wait. I finally went to the twins' Sunday school classroom and checked to see if Jay had been by there. Of course, he had (about 5 minutes ago). I had no clue where he would be so I headed to the sanctuary and found him sitting in the last pew. UGH! I was so frustrated and didn't know how we had missed each other. I settled down during the service and enjoyed worshiping. 

We met Gigi for breakfast at Eddie's Place after church.

We got home from brunch and Jay and I dove into Operation Nursery. I really wanted a grey Jenny Lind style crib and couldn't find any for sale so we decided to buy a white one and paint it. I went with Annie Sloan Chalk Paint in Paris Grey and Graphite. I mixed 1 cup of Paris Grey with 4 tablespoons of Graphite for the perfect mid-grey color. 

mixology

we bought a paint sprayer and OMG I LOVED it! We tried hanging the pieces at first but decided it was better if I held them and Jay sprayed. We mixed the paint with 10% water to thin it before spraying.

I sprayed one little bit and it came out chunky so I gave up.

excuse my adorable painting outfit.

It took us around 2.5 hours to paint the crib. We did one coat and then touched up the spots that we missed. The paint covered soooo well! I want to give a HUGE shout out to my mom who came over to help me get started (Jay was working on refinishing the dresser behind him above) and then once we had it under control she left. Around 4:45 the kids started to wake up from nap and she came rushing over to babysit so we could finish up. SOOO thankful for her. We would have never gotten it done without her help!

Daddy assembling the crib!

Crib and mattress! Can't wait for all the bedding and the baby to put in it! I'm also planning on sealing it with Annie Sloan clear wax! I'll update when I get some new pictures.

We totally crashed Sunday night after an exhausting but fun weekend!