Birthday Happenings

Saturday, Cory and the girls went to my sisters house to hang out 

while my dad, his dog, my sister's boys and I participated in a 

Volkswagen Cruise in the next town over.

 ( ^ Our vehicles ^ )

 ( ^ Several of the maybe 40 vehicles that attended. ^ )

 ( ^ My dad's dog, Nickel. ^ )

It was a very HOT day... I was glad once the actual

cruise started so I could have the wind blowing in my face!

Of course, usually one or two vehicles break down.

Considering the majority of them are 30 or more years old, 

this is not surprising.

(One year there was even a wreck between a few 

of the vw's - yikes!  Brake Check!!)

Anyway.

Guess who broke down this year?

 

Ahh, yes.

It was little ole me!

Thank goodness my dad is a mechanic!

It took about 45 minutes and a little help from my sister's boy 

and another VW enthusiast... but they got him going again.

Thankfully my dad drove the camper back to my sister's

and I was able to drive the little red beetle back.

(I felt more comfortable that way, in case the camper

broke down again!  It was not a pleasant experience!)

You can see what my girls were up to while we were gone 

over at my sister's blog: HERE!

Sunday was my actual birthday...

it was pretty much a day of rest.

We had planned on attending church and spending the

rest of the day as a family.  Cory was even going to take

me out for dinner (a rare treat!).  But alas, Eloise

woke up in the wee hours with tummy troubles

and none of us got much sleep after that!

 ( ^ My birthday bouquet... beautiful! ^)

( ^ The girls helping me open presents... Cory goes all out

with the wrapping... leaving it in the USPS packaging it came in! ^ )

Add to that my sunburn from Saturday (forgot my

sunscreen, oops!), I just felt pretty miserable!

So we lounged around at home.

 Not much celebrating, 

but lots of love!

(And that's what truly matters!)

Lookie Here!

Today was my mid-point ultrasound!

I won't have another unless a problem arises 

(Lord willing, that won't happen!).

I know it's hard for some people to "see" the baby 

in the ultrasound images, 

so I will do my best to explain them, just in case!

This one (below) is of the baby lying sideways - looking out.

The head is on the left... you can see the top of the head 

and an eye socket, nose and even the mouth.

It was open so it showed up on the picture.

I think it kind of looks like a smile! :)

The big circle on the right is the belly.

 

This one is a profile.  

You can see the nose.

The rest is the body and the legs sticking up (to the knees). 

Not sure where the arms are in this pic... but I 

believe the bright white line at the bottom of the body

is the spine.

We got several pictures, but they were mostly repeats

and these two were the most clear.

And don't worry - Baby does have arms and legs, though

the pictures are deceiving.  I saw quite a few

where the arms were up by the head and we even saw

the bottom of the feet.  :)

We also were fortunate to see the baby's tongue moving

at one point!  That was pretty neat!

We asked the ultrasound tech NOT to tell us the gender, 

but it turns out that the baby was in such a funky position

that she couldn't tell either!  So that worked out!

It was exciting to watch the screen...

and made it seem more real that we'll be welcoming

a new little bundle before we know it!

I continuously pray for a healthy pregnancy and baby!

 

20 Weeks

Tomorrow I will be 21 weeks, however I am just now getting 

around to posting my 20 week pic!  

Halfway! 

Don't mind me in my lounging around clothes... 

Cory's old Tshirt and some boxer shorts

 I've had since I was 15! 

 Gotta be comfortable... at least when you're at home, right?

I have been feeling the baby move since between 13 & 14 weeks.

Some say that's too early... but when you're on your 3rd kiddo... 

ya know what you're feeling! 

 Not to mention your muscles and insides aren't what they used to be!

I am definitely showing a lot more at 20 weeks with this one,

 but that is to be expected as well.  

My doctor is pleased with my weight gain

 (though, of course, I'm hard on myself!).

And we have an ultrasound on Tuesday.

Sorry for those of you who like an early surprise...

We won't be finding out Baby's gender until Delivery Day!

Our hospital recently merged with another in terms of their 

Name and Policies, etc.

They decided to close our Maternity Ward and move it all 

to the next town over, which is a 20-25 min drive

 (or longer if there is winter weather).

My doctor has joined with about 5 other doctors in rotating schedules, so

it's not likely I'll actually have him deliver my baby - but you never know!

He did advise me to GET TO THE HOSPITAL... when I'm well into 

my labor since Dinah came SO fast last time!

(12 mins in the hospital and we had a baby!)

We don't want Cory to be delivering a baby in the car... 

especially in the cold Nov/Dec weather!

Ha!

I am a bit disappointed that we will not be at our local hospital this 

time around (3 minute drive anyone?  Yes Please!), 

but it is what it is!  As long as the doctors/nurses adhere to my birth plan (assuming there are no emergencies that arise), it'll be fine, I'm sure!

Hard to believe I'm over halfway now... 

Eloise insists it's a boy....

We shall see!

Do you know how much pre-made hooded towels cost?

You know, the kind that you use with your kiddos so that they 

can be all wrapped up and snuggly after a bath...?

It's outrageous, I tell you!!

The cheapest one I could find was $15! 

And I think that was a pretty small one meant for a newborn!

So I took matters into my own hands...

checked out Pinterest (of course)...

Found some decent but inexpensive towels...

 and VOILA!!

Super simple to make... and I could spend more time embellishing with 

bias tape and fabrics if I felt up to it (obviously I didn't here!).

Why didn't I do this sooner!?

I have a feeling I'm going to be making more of these...

not only for my kiddos...

but perhaps as some Baby Shower Gifts as well!

If you like hooded towels, I encourage you to make your own!

You don't have to be a champion sewer... they truly are a simple project!

Birthday Decor Project... Revealed!

A few posts back I shared some fabric that my mom and I had picked

 out for a little project for my niece's 13th birthday party.  You can find it HERE.

Well, unfortunately, this is the only picture I got of it! 

 I hung it real quick at my house with the intention of taking pictures
once it was all set up at the party... but well... 

if you read my sister's post you will see what a hectic time it ended up being with the weather!

These are the only pictures I snapped the whole evening!  Oops! 

 (Showing Madelyn the picture they colored for her)

 (Swinging before the deluge!)

 (Eloise was lucky to have her cousin to give her some big pushes on the swing!)

 (Cory and I took the girls and Madelyn to my sis's house during a tornado warning... my girls always love the piano!!)

Thankfully my sister got pictures as well as she could...
and the evening ended up a success!

A Trip to the Playground!

We were to meet some friends at the playground on Monday, but they had to cancel.  I didn't realize it (lovely Facebook messages that don't show up on time!) until I got HOME!  But the girls and I stayed at the playground for awhile and they played.  

I think their favorite was the swing!  

We had a little bit of a picnic and then headed home.   

We hope to go back again to meet our friends in a couple of days or so!!

It definitely isn't easy taking 2 kiddos to the playground by myself - especially when Dinah isn't quite ready to be on the equipment without help... add to that me being 5 months pregnant!  But it definitely was worth it to see their smiles!

Eloise-isms

Apparently Eloise must've seen a Band-Aid commercial....

"I can stomp on handy brand cuz bandage stuck on me!"

18 Months!

Little Miss Dinah turned 18 Months old on the 3rd!  

She is like a little parrot, repeating everything we say.  She has her own little quirks (like having to put her shoes on... then her coat... then her hat.... and if anything goes on in the wrong order, she takes everything off and has to do it the right way!!) and she also has her own little stubborn streak, of course.  But she is quite the joy as well... and her smile can make me smile even if I'm having a bad day!

 Cheese Face!

I didn't realize it'd been so long since I posted.  Time is FLYING! 

Here is a picture of the girls from Sunday.. waiting to leave for church!

And here is a picture of some fabric that my mom and I picked out for a little project for my niece's birthday this coming Sunday.  I will share a picture of the finished product... but no hints before then!

 

I hope you had a blessed 4th of July!