36 weeks

We are almost there! I think these 2 are excited! Maybe Caleb is just ready to have my lap back to sit on while reading books. Eli is just ready for his birthday that he has been counting down to for the past 58 days. We are ready. This was all God's deal (I keep reminding him of that!), so I know baby boy #3 will arrive at the appointed time. Until then, I'm soaking up moments with these two who have been my constant companions for the past 3 years! Love them so.

Tara

12 Months of Giving: August

For our 12 months of giving project in August, we collecting pencils for The Pencil Project, you can read all about it here. We collected pencils at our last Wacky Wednesday event and ended up with over 1,000 pencils. I was so proud of Eli, he made a poster to advertise to our friends about the project. Here is the poster - flying pencils with retractable wheels - how creative!

Next, we boxed them up at mailed them to the Rising Fountains Development Program in Zambia, Africa! The pencils will then be distributed. Here is a quote from the director that I got in an email "The pencils will go a long way to assist the pupils in schools who do not have access to pencils, books, and of course other school requisites." Wow, a little pencil can make an impact! We will definitely be doing this again next year!

Tara

Lame O

Okay, so basically, I am a lame O blogger. Not that anyone cares really, but I look at the length of time between blog posts and I think, how boring am I. Not that it is going to get any better in the upcoming months =), but I just wanted you to know, that I know!

Caleb started Mother's Day Out last week, which has gone well so far! So, I have had a few glorious hours to myself the past couple of weeks! I've gotten some cleaning done, some decorating done, some errand running done, some birthday party planning done - it's been nice. So I thought I would share some of my recent POTD (Picture of the day) for my project life book I am working on for 2010 - see this post for more details. So love doing this for my family and it has been pretty easy to keep up with (pregnancy and all) .

Eli and Emma spent most of Labor Day weekend with Papa & Pamma - just the 2 of them! They loved it and it was pretty much all about them! These 2 are just crazy about each other - I so love the bond they have!

A peek at the finished alphabet wall and the corner of Baby Hall's room. I hate to brag, but I pretty much love how it turned out! When all is said and done, that red chair will have rocked 3 very special boys and heard many, many books over and over again!

Our first real live "out in the wild" tarantula sighting! It was literally on the street in front of my parents house! They boys were thrilled and it was all they could talk about. You know you have boys when you whip the car into the grass, unbuckle everyone from their seats and climb out with your camera. They boys wanted me to get it off the road so it wouldn't get smushed! Thankfully, it found it's own way!

Wednesday is trash day - Caleb always says "I want to see a garbage truck today". So, we look for them everywhere - we happened to be home when ours came by this week. It was a good day!

Hope you have a great weekend!

Tara

Pregnancy Update

Okay, here is a little pregnancy update for you.

How far along: I am almost 33 weeks (this Friday) - it's getting closer people!

How is the baby: He looks great, weighs around 4 pounds

How is mom: I am doing well, survived the hottest part of summer with lots of trips to the pool!

Heartburn: daily - it's just part of it for me, doesn't matter what I eat or when I eat it.

Nightly potty breaks: I think I'm up to 2 or 3 now (was only 1 for quite some time though)

Name: still not completely decided yet. I think it is extremely hard since we already have 2 boys, every name we consider has to be tested like this "These are my sons - Eli, Caleb, and ...."

Nursery: looking so cute with the alphabet wall in place, now to go through my tub of 0-3 month boy clothes.

Nesting: definitely has begun - doing lots of organizing of Eli & Caleb's clothes & toys

Cravings: watermelon and the Spicy Chicken Sandwich from Chick-Fil-A

My view lately:

Any other questions?

Tara

Sneak Peek

We've been doing a little work on the nursery. Eli and my dad painted the walls (Cornbread Yellow) - love the color. Eli and I have picked out and painted letters. We are doing an alphabet theme complete with an alphabet wall. Here is a sneak peak at the letters and the bedding.

Pregnancy update later this week after an appointment.

Tara

First Day of Kindergarten 2010

Eli started Kindergarten this Wednesday. My baby growing up. He's almost made it through the first week (I go pick him up in 45 min.) and he's done great. But, I have to say "I sure do miss having him around!" As much as I was ready for him to start Kindergarten and get back into a routine, the last 3 days have seemed to drag on. I realized on back to school eve (as I was crying while cleaning up after dinner - thankfully the boys were all outside playing!) that what mom's are really sad about when their kids go off to kindergarten is that their "time" with them at home is over. Oh sure, you have weekends and summers, but it will never be the same. When I realized this, believe me, the tears flowed and I was so sad. But in the same breath (or sob for that matter), I am so, so thankful for the chance to be home with my little guy and discover the world! We made the most of every single day and I have absolutely no regrets.

He is going to have a great year, with new friends and new experiences! And now, Caleb and I get to have some one on one time before baby Hall arrives! Although I asked him if it was fun doing stuff with "just Mommy" or if it was more fun with Eli - of course he said it was more fun with Eli!!

Eli was pretty excited about having his own locker?

Eli and his teacher Mrs. Farrell - she's a tiny little thing!

Eli's desk. God answered a prayer that we had been praying for before school started - that he would have a friend at his new school where he didn't know anyone. Not only were there 2 kids from his preK class last year, but their desks were right across(facing) and diagonal from Eli's. He's always doing more than we could ever ask or imagine!

When I picked him up on the first day, he said he had a super day and then he said "I don't have to tell you everything because I wasn't scared and I did fine!" BOYS!!!!!!!!!!! I am a detail person and I wanted all the details =)! I had to drag them out of him the rest of the evening.

O yeah, I got all my tears out the night before in my kitchen, so I didn't shed a tear on the first day of school (even when I went to a boo hoo breakfast with my friend!). I highly recommend doing it that way!

Tara

Goodbye Wacky Wednesday- see you next summer!

For the past 2 summers, me and several of my mom friends have gotten together on Wednesdays for a fun summer activity with our kids. It really is so much fun and something we all look forward to (moms & kids). It has become a tradition and I love that about it. My friend Stacey and I usually plan out our activity list at the end of school, which makes it super easy to send out a reminder email each week to everyone. We are always on the lookout for fun, educational, and free activities. Some of the things we did this summer: swam in Oologah lake, bowling, Woolaroc, Incredible Pizza, snowcones @ the park, Oxley Nature Center, Water Park, swimming, and an end of summer ice cream party. Here's a look at some of the fun.I always make the kids pose for a picture. My mom friends have just come to expect it and accept it! lol! We made this photo collage and gave one to everybody at our ice cream party. I'm thinking we need to make tshirts next summer! Kind of sad it has come to an end. But, during the school year, we do Fun Fridays which are usually the 2nd Friday of each month. We'll miss having Eli this year ( he's sad about missing Fun Fridays, but I assured him he would be having lots more fun in Kindergarten).

On another note, I bought these light up shoes for Caleb this week on clearance for $20. He rarely gets new shoes because he wears Eli's hand me downs, so he was so, so excited! We put them on and he stomped, danced, and ran around the house chanting "I gnash my feet and stomp around!" So worth the $20!

Eli starts Kindergarten tomorrow - pretty sure I will be a teary-eyed mess.

Tara