april happenings

It's been a pretty standard month, and we are continuing to make preparations for our sweet baby boy and scheduling our lives around OB appointments, full-time jobs, and two very active kiddos.  Sam did have a little fever at the beginning of the month that made us adopt a slower pace for a couple days, but other than that everyone is healthy and happy.  We spent this month playing outside more, celebrating Uncle Ray and Aunt Sarah's birthdays, celebrating Easter, and spending time on Wednesdays with the Childers kiddos.  I can't remember if I've mentioned already that for this whole spring semester my sister's kids have been spending Wednesdays with us for their homeschooling.  It makes for very long days because I work every Monday and Tuesday night, then spend the whole day awake with 5 kids.  However, it's actually easier to be awake with more kids around than with just my two.  Plus, it means I get to have dinner with my sister and her family in the middle of every week, which has been a pretty awesome bonus. All that being said, between the pregnancy and our crazy schedule, I'm really looking forward to getting more rest on my maternity leave!

Since I've already included some of the cute things the kids said/did this month in my maternity posts, I only have a few funny things from this month from my facebook mommy journaling:

4/28/14

Yesterday, my husband was wearing this shirt that my brother brought back from Hawaii. Noah noticed it and asked Matt what the guy's name was. "I don't know, what do you think his name is?"

Noah thought for a minute before giving his response. I expected him to give a name of a friend or family member. .. nope.
He replied, "Nipples."

I lost it!

4/19/14

Me: Noah, please finish putting your cars away. You forgot one over there.
Noah: mom, this isn't a car. .. It's a CAMARO.

4/17/14

Noah isms in the last 24 hours:
1) He brought me a toy and said, "The question is, how do we get all this stuff to fit in here?"

2) Matt was asking me how to cook something and asked, "what do you cook it on?" Noah responded for me, "Mommy cooks it on Fridays! "

3) Sammy got upset and Noah slapped his hands over his eyes and said, "I just can't watch her cry!"

Love that kid, but where does he get this stuff?

 Here are a few more pictures from this month:

getting good and dirty in the sandbox -- you can't even see all the sand in her hair!

running a fever :(

and fever snuggles with mommy

playtime during homeschool hours

a picture of the rare blood moon -- I got to see it at work on April 15th!

Sam let me braid her hair for the first time :) 

Noah thought he should try on Sam's little hat

I can't tell if this means she's enjoying her new bed or not...

 Celebrating April birthdays:

the birthday guy & girl with their kiddos and desserts

Sam enjoying some cake from the party....

....maybe a little too much!

enjoying some time outside

the reason our computer is now locked....

in preparation for baby: we moved Noah into a big kid booster seat (so Sam can use Noah's car seat and the baby can use Sam's infant carrier seat).

Noah trying out the new seat :)

34 weeks

34 weeks and getting closer to meeting this boy all the time!  My schedule continues to be demanding, but I work with understanding co-workers who understand my need to eat and take bathroom breaks frequently ;)  The kids are a little less understanding, but this week I think Noah has really started to understand the whole "we're having a baby" concept.  He now frequently tells me that "Your tummy is big, mommy! You've got a baby in there!"  I think it helps that we've already had two of our close friends deliver their babies and Noah has had the chance to meet the newborns (Yay for baby Alexander and baby Ellie!).  I'm not sure how Sam will respond, but she seems to do well when we are around our friends' babies.
The cutest thing this week was that I was telling Noah that we are getting ready to go to another appointment (tomorrow) and Noah was excited.  He tells me that "We are going to see the midwife at the birthday center for the mommy and baby to get a check up."  When he was talking to Matt about it, Matt told him that he wasn't going to be able to go because he had to work.  Noah protested and told him, "NO, daddy! It's our turn to see the midwife! You can't go to work!"  Awww, sweet boy wants the whole family there :)
Weekly stats: baby weighs around 4.75 lbs and is about 18 inches long!

maternity quiz
sleep: no notable changes
best moment this week: The conversation between Matt and Noah described above and getting to spend time with our friends and their babies on Friday! 
cravings: chipotle! steak burrito bowls are excellent!
what i miss: sleeping on my stomach
what i'm looking forward to: planning on getting some yard work done so i can sit back and enjoy the outside this summer while i'm nursing a baby every 3 hours.  i'm not looking forward to the work, per-se, but the end result should be nice! 
weekly wisdom: relax, and trust God.  he knit this baby together in my womb, and he is ultimately in control of when he arrives and how the labor/delivery/etc goes 
milestones: we're getting closer and closer to not requiring a NICU stay if this baby boy decides to show up early ;)

Easter 2014

We celebrated Easter in the usual fashion -- food, candy, drinks, and partying at my mom & dad's house.  Everyone had a great time and the weather cooperated for an outdoor Easter egg hunt.  It was especially fun to watch the kids this year, since both were old enough to chase down some eggs.   It's a little crazy to think that by this time next year we will have another one wanting to collect Easter eggs! I hope everyone had a Happy Easter! 

Jared mixes up some margaritas

Hanging out before the egg hunt

Someone learned to blow bubbles while waiting to hunt eggs...

he thought it was totally hilarious :)

Noah was extra prepared!

The Proctor kiddos with their game faces on ;)

The egg hunters

Ready, set, GO!

Quality time with Papa John and Daddy

trying out some of the candy

It's exhausting to be a parent during any holiday...

33 weeks

Nothing too special to report this week (and that's okay!).  We did celebrate Easter with the family on Sunday and I couldn't help but think about the fact that by this time next year we will be keeping up with an extra Easter basket and such next year :)  It's a pretty sweet thought!
This week baby is supposed to be about the size of a pineapple (more than 17 inches long and around 4 lbs)! My biggest struggle is that we haven't been able to settle on a name for this kid.  Nothing seems "just right" when we talk about it, unless you ask Noah.  He will tell you -- every time -- that this sweet baby boy's name is Jonathan.  Does this baby seem like a Jonathan?  Or is he someone else?  I guess we have a few more weeks to figure it out ;)

maternity quiz
maternity clothes: yup.
sleep: I definitely can't sleep on my back at all anymore, and I *have* to have a pillow between my knees to sleep on my side. 
best moment this week: enjoying time with Sam and Noah before we add another boy to the mix
cravings: chocolate.  
what i miss: having a larger wardrobe to choose from ;)
what i'm looking forward to: getting more and more excited about meeting this little boy!
weekly wisdom: remember that this baby is a miracle from God, enjoy the awesomeness of that fact!
milestones: another week behind us and that much closer to full-term.

32 weeks

8 months!?  Indeed, we're already there!  I'm continuing to enjoy my pregnancy, but still feeling tired a lot of days.  Now I'm convinced it has a lot to do with my crazy schedule and very active kiddos.  I wouldn't trade a minute of it, but I wouldn't mind just a *tiny* bit more sleep sometimes ;)
According to the birth websites, baby boy now measures about 16.7 inches long and weighs somewhere in the neighborhood of 3.75 lbs.  He is also sporting toenails, fingernails and some peach-fuzz hair.  Sounds like a cutie :)


maternity quiz
maternity clothes: yup
sleep: still enjoying it
best moment this week: hmmm...being told that baby boy is (still) head-down at our appointment.  let's keep it that way, little guy!
what i miss: it's getting warmer, and i would love to enjoy a beer or a strong margarita in the hot-tub!  
cravings: chocolate pudding!
what i'm looking forward to: meeting this little guy and enjoying the summer with my three kiddos
weekly wisdom: this might be my last pregnancy (we still haven't decided if this is the last little King or if we might try for one more), I feel like I need to really cherish it in case it is!
milestones: 8 months along! 

31 weeks

Another week gone by, another week closer to full-term! Yes, my fears about a pre-term baby have officially set in.  Thanks to my little early-arrival-first-son, my two pregnancies since have been a little less care-free toward the end.  While I hear most women walking around wishing their pregnancy would "just be over" or whatever, I pray every night (and most of the day) that my sweet little babies will hang out as long as they can until they are at least 37 weeks.  Sam was compliant, hopefully this baby will be too!

Not much special to report this week, just the typical week around here and trying to get things ready for the baby.

Measurements for this week are around 16 inches long and about 3.5 lbs.  He is *very* active in there these days and I'm curious to see how big this little one is relative to his siblings when he's born.  He seems to take up more room than I remember his brother and sister taking up.  He also seems to have a hand somewhere down near his face, which makes for some weird movements on occasion.

maternity quiz
maternity clothes: indeed.  looking to purchase some new maxi skirts to wear during and after the pregnancy.  gotta love versatile clothing.
sleep: no notable changes
best moment this week: just enjoying the movements of this sweet little boy
cravings: nothing specific right now
what i miss: mobility. this bump, while awesome, makes it difficult to get on the floor and play with the kiddos and such.
what i'm looking forward to: scheduling some maternity photos for this sweet baby bump
weekly wisdom: i need to remember that not *everything* has to be done around the house/yard/etc. before this baby arrives.... but i'm having a hard time believing that when i tell myself!
milestones: just happy to be one week closer to full-term!