It’s all relative.

I was looking through pictures and I had to laugh out loud when I saw this one (this is me at about 6 months):

I remember feeling huge then. Seriously? This is me now (admittedly not the best picture of me – I somehow become even less photogenic when pregnant). I may be at a slight angle, making me appear slightly larger than I really am. Only slightly though. I think there is something genetic about boys that makes them thing they get extra personal space from conception. Anyways, I realize that I whine a lot, and I am definitely ready to be done being pregnant. In spite of this, I am incredibly grateful that I am healthy and as far as we know little Ben is healthy. I have a number of friends on bedrest and there is a couple in our ward who just lost a baby. It really puts things in perspective, we have been very blessed. I will take the aches and pains, rude comments and general hugeness if that’s what it takes! Only 2 more weeks (I hope)!

State Fair

This is horribly late, but Blogger has been having issues with uploading pictures and then it takes me forever to move them around which mostly leads to a lot of frustration and me giving up on the post. Then, my technologically advanced friend Karen told me about Windows live writer and I must say that I am very impressed. I was able to download all these pictures at once, and it took about 30 seconds instead of the usual 3-4 minutes. And it spell checks as you go. So there’s my plug for Live Writer.

Here is my plug for the WI state fair. We have been every year and I love it. I mark it on my calendar early in the year and look forward to it all summer. This year we caught the pig races for the first time. Carter had seen a picture of it in the paper and it was all he could talk about for days before.

First, check out the fans. We are talking hundreds of people here. And they showed up early. We were there 30 minutes early and got good seats, which was lucky, because the stands filled up fast. By the time it started, there were people sitting on the ground in front of us.

Can you see the anticipation on their faces? Especially Mike’s… The racing pigs:And ducks…

And goats…There were also potbellies pigs and a swimming pig. Only in Wisconsin (ok, maybe South Carolina or Tennessee).

We were assured however, that none of the pigs were involved in the much publicized chocolate covered bacon.

Then we hit up the animals – the cows, horses, sheep – you know, the usual. But let’s face it, we were really there for the food. Next year we are going without the kids so we can stay longer. Overall though, it was a great year for the fair, and we are definitely looking forward to next year!

Doggy Daycare

We have been dog sitting for the past week. She is probably one of the best behaved dogs I have ever seen. She doesn't bark, is awesome with the kids and mostly lays around all day. I thought the kids would be so excited about it, and they were - for about the first hour. After that, I think they played in her kennel more than they played with her. It has been a great experience though and I am really glad that we did it. I have decided that we are definitely not ready for a dog any time in the near future (or possibly ever). I just feel like she gets neglected. I have a hard enough time giving the kids the attention that they want. And maybe it would be different with our own dog, and if I weren't 9 months pregnant and a little bit cranky, but I'm not ready to take that risk. So, we will enjoy the next week with her and then happily send her home to her family, where she will happily go, I am sure.

I'm ready!

The house is clean (even the basement), the nursery is ready, clothes are washed, babysitters are lined up, and the car seat is installed. I'm as big as a house and ready for this kid to get out of me! Carter was talking to him the other day, yelling into my stomach "Ben, come out soon! Mommy is tired of being pregnant with you!". Amen brother.

A kind lady in Wal-Mart last night inquired if I was having twins. After Mike told her no, she replied "wow, she's big." I said thank you and turned around to avoid having what was going through my mind come out my mouth. She then tried to make it better by saying that it must be a boy because I am carrying so low (read huge). Thank you very much, wait until you see me 20 days from now when I am overdue and really "low".

And lastly, I will be thrilled when I no longer have the same bladder capacity as Samantha.

I have been walking every morning, working my butt off around the house, trying positive thinking "come on baby, come on out...", and anything else I can think of to start labor. So far, it's a no go. I'll keep you posted!

Blessed

I have been living away from my family for 5 years now. In all honesty, it hasn't been that bad. I see them once or twice a year, we talk on the phone and I have been left out of quite a bit of the drama that is bound to happen in a family of 10 kids. However, there are certain times when big things happen or I see the neighbor kids playing with grandma and grandpa, or I hear about kids having sleepovers with cousins that I really wish that I lived closer to family. I was feeling that way this last week as I have been overwhelmed with kids, house projects, cleaning, and being constantly exhausted. I was thinking "If only I could just drop them off at Grandma's for the day", or "I wish I had a sister here to help me out". Then, on Monday night, my great friend Karen invited me out to a movie. I was excited to go out, but even more excited when after some sneaky suggesting on her part, we ended up at Cheesecake Factory at a surprise shower for me! I was so touched to see how many people showed up to support me and to realize the dear friends that I have met here in Milwaukee. I honestly can't imagine how I would get by without them. I realize that even though I don't have family nearby, I have a number of friends who (whom?) I would definitely count as family. You know who you are, and I hope you know how much you mean to me. Thank you!!!

Funny Thoughts

So this is kind of long, but Mike forwarded me this email and I still laugh when I read it. I have to admit, I agree with at least 90% of them. Enjoy!

• I wish Google Maps had an "Avoid Ghetto" routing option.
• More often than not, when someone is telling me a story all I can think about is that I can't wait for them to finish so that I can tell my own story that's not only better, but also more directly involves me.
• Nothing sucks more than that moment during an argument when you realize you're wrong.
• I don't understand the purpose of the line, "I don't need to drink to have fun." Great, no one does. But why start a fire with flint and sticks when they've invented the lighter?
• Have you ever been walking down the street and realized that you're going in the complete opposite direction of where you are supposed to be going? But instead of just turning a 180 and walking back in the direction from which you came, you have to first do something like check your watch or phone or make a grand arm gesture and mutter to yourself to ensure that no one in the surrounding area thinks you're crazy by randomly switching directions on the sidewalk.
• I totally take back all those times I didn't want to nap when I was younger.
• The letters T and G are very close to each other on a keyboard. This recently became all too apparent to me and consequently I will never be ending a work email with the phrase "Regards" again.
• Do you remember when you were a kid, playing Nintendo and it wouldn't work? You take the cartridge out, blow in it and that would magically fix the problem. Every kid in America did that, but how did we all know how to fix the problem? There was no internet or message boards or FAQ's. We just figured it out. Today's kids are soft.
• There is a great need for sarcasm font.
• Sometimes, I'll watch a movie that I watched when I was younger and suddenly realize I had no idea what was going on when I first saw it.
• I think everyone has a movie that they love so much, it actually becomes stressful to watch it with other people. I'll end up wasting 90 minutes shiftily glancing around to confirm that everyone's laughing at the right parts, then making sure I laugh just a little bit harder (and a millisecond earlier) to prove that I'm still the only one who really, really gets it.
• How the hell are you supposed to fold a fitted sheet?
• I would rather try to carry 10 plastic grocery bags in each hand than take 2 trips to bring my groceries in.
• I think part of a best friend's job should be to immediately clear your computer history if you die.
• The only time I look forward to a red light is when I'm trying to finish a text.
• A recent study has shown that playing beer pong contributes to the spread of mono and the flu. Yeah, if you suck at it.
• Was learning cursive really necessary?
• Lol has gone from meaning, "laugh out loud" to "I have nothing else to say".
• I have a hard time deciphering the fine line between boredom and hunger.
• Answering the same letter three times or more in a row on a Scantron test is absolutely petrifying.
• My brother's Municipal League baseball team is named the Stepdads. Seeing as none of the guys on the team are actual stepdads, I inquired about the name. He explained, "Cuz we beat you, and you hate us." Classy, bro.
• Whenever someone says "I'm not book smart, but I'm street smart", all I hear is "I'm not real smart, but I'm imaginary smart".
• How many times is it appropriate to say "What?" before you just nod and smile because you still didn't hear what they said?
• While driving yesterday I saw a banana peel in the road and instinctively swerved to avoid it...thanks Mario Kart.
• MapQuest really needs to start their directions on #5. Pretty sure I know how to get out of my neighborhood.
• Obituaries would be a lot more interesting if they told you how the person died.
• I find it hard to believe there are actually people who get in the shower first and THEN turn on the water.
• Shirts get dirty. Underwear gets dirty. Pants? Pants never get dirty, and you can wear them forever.
• I can't remember the last time I wasn't at least kind of tired.
• Bad decisions make good stories.
• Whenever I'm Facebook stalking someone and I find out that their profile is public I feel like a kid on Christmas morning who just got the Red Ryder BB gun that I always wanted. 546 pictures? Don't mind if I do!
• Is it just me or do high school girls get sluttier & sluttier every year?
• If Carmen San Diego and Waldo ever got together, their offspring would probably just be completely invisible.
• Why is it that during an ice-breaker, when the whole room has to go around and say their name and where they are from, I get so incredibly nervous? Like I know my name, I know where I'm from, this shouldn't be a problem....
• You never know when it will strike, but there comes a moment at work when you've made up your mind that you just aren't doing anything productive for the rest of the day.
• Can we all just agree to ignore whatever comes after DVDs? I don't want to have to restart my collection.
• There's no worse feeling than that millisecond you're sure you are going to die after leaning your chair back a little too far.
• I'm always slightly terrified when I exit out of Word and it asks me if I want to save any changes to my ten page research paper that I swear I did not make any changes to.
• "Do not machine wash or tumble dry" means I will never wash this ever.
• I hate being the one with the remote in a room full of people watching TV. There's so much pressure. 'I love this show, but will they judge me if I keep it on? I bet everyone is wishing we weren't watching this. It's only a matter of time before they all get up and leave the room. Will we still be friends after this?'
• While watching the Olympics, I find myself cheering equally for China and USA. No, I am not of Chinese descent, but I am fairly certain that when Chinese athletes don't win, they are executed.
• I hate when I just miss a call by the last ring (Hello? Hello?), but when I immediately call back, it rings nine times and goes to voicemail. What'd you do after I didn't answer? Drop the phone and run away?
• I hate leaving my house confident and looking good and then not seeing anyone of importance the entire day. What a waste.
• When I meet a new girl, I'm terrified of mentioning something she hasn't already told me but that I have learned from some light internet stalking.
• I like all of the music in my iTunes, except when it's on shuffle, then I like about one in every fifteen songs in my iTunes.
• Why is a school zone 20 mph? That seems like the optimal cruising speed for pedophiles...
• As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists.
• Sometimes I'll look down at my watch 3 consecutive times and still not know what time it is.
• It should probably be called Unplanned Parenthood.I keep some people's phone numbers in my phone just so I know not to answer when they call.
• Even if I knew your social security number, I wouldn't know what do to with it.
• Even under ideal conditions people have trouble locating their car keys in a pocket, finding their cellphone, and Pinning the Tail on the Donkey - but I'd bet everyone can find and push the Snooze button from 3 feet away, in about 1.7 seconds, eyes closed, first time every time...
• My 4-year old son asked me in the car the other day "Dad what would happen if you ran over a ninja?" How do I respond to that?
• It really pisses me off when I want to read a story on CNN.com and the link takes me to a video instead of text.
• I wonder if cops ever get pissed off at the fact that everyone they drive behind obeys the speed limit.
• I think the freezer deserves a light as well.
• I disagree with Kay Jewelers. I would bet on any given Friday or Saturday night more kisses begin with Miller Lites than Kay.

Odds and Ends

I had my 36 week checkup today and everything looks good. He's head down, which is a good thing. I've started retaining water and that's been a lot of fun. My toes look more like lil' smokies than ever and I can't wear my rings anymore. Otherwise I just feel big and tired. I must look big and tired too, because people just can't stop telling me that I look ready to go anytime. "Really, another month?" I've just started telling people I just carry big and fat. What is it about being pregnant that makes people think they can say whatever they want about how big you are and somehow that's ok? Yes, I looked in the mirror this morning. Yes, I know that I have grown out of most of my maternity clothes. And yes, I do wonder where another month of baby is going to go. But all I want to hear is how beautiful and wonderful I look. Maybe even throw in a svelte. Whatever. Anyways, I'm not counting on going early, so one more month!

I went to Penzey's spice store today for the first time. As an avid cook I have to admit I am a little bit ashamed that I have lived minutes from the factory and have never gone. For those of you who may not know, they make amazing spices. Alton Brown and Tyler Florence use them. That is enough endorsement for me. Needless to say, a store full of small glass jars has never been a place that I have been dying to take my kids to. But today after hitting up the local ghetto farmer's market (another first - not the farmer's market, just this particular one in the ghetto) Samantha and I decided to check it out. We walked in and the first thing Samantha said was "it smells spicy in here...and good too." She did end up dropping a bottle and breaking the lid, but the nice lady there gave us a new one. Awesome store. If you have one close by, you should check it out. If not, they have a website here or else you can just come visit me. I have one down the street.

Well that's all the random rambling I have for tonight. Stay tuned for the annual State Fair report...

The Beach

Being someone who doesn't love the water (I finally learned how to swim in college), I sure have 2 little fish for kids! Some girls from the ward got together at the beach the other day and I so I decided to surprise Carter when he got home from school. We had everything all ready and all he had to do was put on his swimsuit. Should be easy, right? Not with my kids. First, he was disappointed that Mike wasn't coming. Then he just wouldn't change. Then we had an argument over what shoes he would wear. I was telling him to wear his flip-flops because his shoes would fill up with sand. Finally after pretending that I was going to leave him (secretly I kind of wanted to) he changed in record time and showed up at the car in his flip flops. Why do my kids make it so hard to have a good time?

Anyways, as you can tell by the pictures, they did have a great time. I however, was ill prepared and was definitely ready to leave before they were. I didn't want to get into a swimsuit (nor do I own a maternity swimsuit) so I just wore shorts, thinking my kids would stay by me and not want to get in very deep. Wrong. Samantha kept walking out to where the current would knock her over and then flail until I would rescue her. Then Carter threw sand in her eyes and I had to hold her as I poured water over her face. Needless to say, I was soaked and cranky by the time we left. I will definitely be taking them back to the beach, but never alone, and never, ever 9 months pregnant. Lesson learned.

Skating in Style

Carter got this skateboard with a t-shirt that we bought him the other day. He absolutely loves it and is convinced that he is the next Tony Hawk. Mike told him that his Van's are skateboarding shoes, so he insists on wearing them every time he practices. The rest of the outfit I have no explanation for. We were planning on going to the beach earlier that day, which I guess is why he is wearing his swimsuit. I think he just loves the socks. I asked him why and he told me he's a nerd. I guess it's good that he can embrace it!

The short bus

Alright, so almost all of the kids at Carter's school ride short buses. Considering there are maybe 4 kids on this bus, I guess it's OK.
This is Carter's first time riding the bus! I took him to school last year, but with Ben on the way and Samantha to tow around as well, making the twice a day trip just doesn't seem as fun. But as you can see by the smile on his face, Carter loves the idea. Now I just need to get over the anxiety. Something about trusting someone to get your kid where he needs to be is just hard. What if he gets left on the bus? It happens all the time here. OK, he could probably figure out how to open the doors as long as he isn't sleeping. What if they take him to the wrong house after school? He is wearing a bracelet with his address on it and I have seen the route sheet with his name and address on it. But still, these are the things that keep me up at night. We went over the bus rules today - always wear your seat belt, don't get off at anyone else's house, always sit at the front...
One more sign that my baby is growing up!