First Day of School!!

My handsome guys started school today. They were both super excited! Andrew started kindergarten. We requested that he have the same teacher as Connor had last year. We loved her and she taught him SO much. I walked Andrew into class, helped him to unpack his backpack and then said goodbye. I didn't think I'd cry since he was in preschool 5 half days a week last year. He goes the full day this year though and it's such a HUGE milestone to start Kindergarten. I totally teared up when I walked out and it took all I had not to blubber like a baby.

Connor is a big 1st grader. I'm SO proud of him and he's proud of himself too! I thought I was going to walk him into his class this morning and nobody was there. Before school the kids put their backpacks in their lines and then walk out to the playground.....the big kid playground......all by themselves! I was so not ready for that but he was! He ran right out onto that playground and found his friends from last year. That's one thing about Connor, he's so outgoing that he's always got friends. That makes me feel good about the person I'm raising. He super social and super confident. Those two qualities will get you far in life!

While the boys were away at school, I took Taylor to see the summer movie. We made it through half (it wasn't a cartoon) and then we went to Babiesrus to buy diapers and ooohh and awww over the baby stuff. Then we came home and had lunch, did some laundry, took a nap and it was time to pick the boys up!

They boys were both SO happy to tell me about every detail of their day. Andrew made some new friends, bought his own lunch in the lunch line, did a craft and had his first homework assignment! He really loves his new class! Connor bought the exact same thing Andrew got for lunch (they thought this was cool since they actually have a lot of options for lunch at school), he has an actual DESK to put his things in, he loves his teacher and has lots of friends, new and old, in his class. So proud of my kids.

Pregnant!!!

So happy to finally share the news that we are expecting! I'm 17 weeks and 2 days.....not that I'm counting! LOL! We get to find out on August first what the sex of the baby is. I can't wait! I can honestly say that with this pregnancy I don't care either way, boy or girl, I just want a healthy baby! We weren't going to find out at all but changed our minds pretty quickly. Bryan and I are way too excited to wait, plus, I NEED to shop! LOL! If it's a girl, we already have most everything. If it's a boy, we need clothes, bedding and a new stroller! Either way, I don't care!

I'm so in love with him/her already. I've been feeling the first little kicks for a few weeks now. SO early, I know but this is my 5th baby and it's true, you feel those kicks earlier and earlier with each pregnancy. The movements are getting much stronger now. I don't have to wait hours between kicks, I pretty much feel them every hour at least once or twice. At night, much more! I think the baby flipped sometime last week. I was feeling the movements higher in my belly and now I'm feeling distinct little jabs to the cervix/butt. Bizarre feeling. It almost feels like a small electric shock. It startles me!!

The kids are super excited as well. They are all hoping for a girl. The boys LOVE their sister. Plus, they won't have to share toys! LOL! Taylor wants a sister to play with but I think she would be happy (and extremely jealous) either way. They talk and sing to my belly. All three of them are very curious about this whole pregnancy thing. Taylor goes around saying that SHE has a baby in her belly. If you try to correct her, she get's really mad! LOL! She's so funny.

Everyone at work has been really positive and happy for me! I was worried considering I just started working there. I must work in the right place! Labor and delivery is very baby friendly! I am slightly scared about having my 3rd c-section though. I circulate in the operating room and have seen c-sections first hand. Not pretty when they cut into you and then use their hands to rip the rest of your belly open. Grosses me out every time. Oh, well. At least I get an awesome gift at the end!

I'll post an update once we see the baby next week! Can't wait!!

Connor's field trip

I got to volunteer to go on Connor's last field trip of the year. They went to The Children's Museum of Phoenix. One of my favorite places! I was responsible for Connor and two of his little friends. I love kindergartners and I love seeing Connor interact with his friends. I'm so glad he's so social and makes friends easily.

His favorite room was the grocery store and his favorite part of the field trip was going on the bus! LOL! He made me take a picture of him on the bus. Sorry, you can barely see him through the tint!

It's all worth it!

I often question myself if my job is "worth" all of the sacrifice I am making, simply because I am stubborn and refuse to work a job that I don't like. I am gone 2-3 days per week in Yuma, working in Labor and Delivery. This was the only hospital that I was able to find that was willing to train a new grad to work in a specialty area as risky as L&D. I'm not going to lie, it's been one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. Leaving my family totally sucks. I cry at night because I wasn't there to tuck them in or say goodnight. In the end though, it will be worth it!

I am 3 weeks in to my "labor" orientation. I was working in post partum and occasionally floating to other departments like the NICU until last month. Labor has been scary but really awesome. Last week one of the doctors let me deliver my patient's baby. I had her start to finish. I was there from 1 cm to 10cm. I encouraged her through her epidural and through pushing. The doctor stood right behind me and gave me instructions. I delivered her baby and placenta, collected the cord blood, everything. What a rush! What an awesome experience to deliver a baby and place her on her mother's belly. My job is SO rewarding.

I'm hoping to start just working 2 days a week. I will have more time with my family and still gain the experience I need.

I love my little girl!

Just wanted to start off by saying I LOVE having little boys. Love them more than anything in the world but I also LOVE that I have the opportunity to experience having a girl too! I took her for Starbucks and pedicures! So much fun! She's my mini me! My little best bud!

Easter 2011

Easter was a blast as usual, especially for all of the kids. It was bittersweet this year though. We celebrated at my sister's park next to her house and this was the first Easter since her step-son, Josh, was killed in a motorcycle accident. We all had a heavy heart that day but we did manage to enjoy being with our close family and friends.

The night before we colored eggs. The kids woke up early and to get their goodies left by the Easter Bunny. Later in the morning we went over to my sisters to set up for our fun family day. We have a potluck every year and we all bring games and activities to do. This year we brought a humungous pinata to celebrate all of the Spring birthday in the family. We had silly string, bocci ball, bean bag toss, a train ride, over 300 water balloons, squirt guns, etc. At the end of the day, we even had a sand volleyball tournament. My boys talked about playing volleyball with their cousins and all of the adults for days afterward.

Making fun memories with friends and family is what holidays are all about. Easter has become one of my very favorite days of the year. Thanks Hil for making it so much fun for everyone!

Weekend Getaway

We had a blast in Vegas! We arrived on Saturday afternoon, after a short 45 minute flight. We are never ever driving to Vegas again. Saving 3 hours of drive time was well worth the airfare! The hotel was beautiful, our room was perfect. We upgraded to a suite. We could have had our entire family stay in that room comfortably! It was huge. I highly recommend the Paris hotel. Very nice, great location and a good price!

Funny story- Our bathroom had a bidet...you know, those cool sink-like things that you sit on in the bathroom....the hiney cleaner. Anyway, I turned on the water to warm it up and try it out! Bryan was standing right there of course. Totally sprayed myself in the face with the bidet water. Then I got images of some nasty herpes infected person sitting on it. Ewwww! I hope those maids disinfected that thing! It was pretty funny though, Bryan was rolling.

We spent two days alone together going to fancy restaurants, walking the strip and gambling. Bryan is a table kind of guy whereas I would prefer the slots. Bryan is always really lucky. He won quite a bit. I, on the other hand, am not so lucky. I lost his winnings. We make a great team!

The highlight of our trip was eating at the Eiffel Tower Restaurant. Very fancy. It's at the top of the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel. They sat us in the window facing the Bellagio Fountains at sunset. Very romantic. The menu was all french dishes and our waiter even spoke french. The food was delish. We both ordered Filet Mignon, shared scallops and croquets. For dessert we had the chocolate souffle. Mmmmm, my mouth is watering now. It was well worth the money to have a once every 5 year kind of dinner with my husband.

By the time Sunday rolled around, I was ready to get back on that plane to see my babies! I missed them like crazy but had such a wonderful time away. Every couple needs to get away alone once in a while!