Feb-July 2013 To Do List

So, Friday is when it will all begin.  February 1st 2013 I'm getting my life together (in my home that is). 

With baby number two quickly coming sooner than later, Roger and I want to get started on some unfinished buisness around the house.  I want to participate as much as possible, so I'm going to be proactive and start before I get a little lazy around the edges.  First off, I have a confession to make.  I'm the biggest contributor to the problem.  I once thought the problem was resolved when Roger and I got our own bathrooms.  I had no reason to pick up clothes that's been lying on the floor all week, or to move my shampoo of the basent or to gather the loads of nail polish that crowded my tooth brush.  Roger has his bathroom on the second floor and I have mine on the third.  Gabrielle simply gets in where she fits in.  Her things are in a little bit of both places, then the kitchen, oh and the hallways and I cant forget the stairs.  Oh let's not talk about the stairs please. Well with that being said, I really need to get some order in places besides the bathroom.  Everything looks okay, but the higher you go  in my home you start to see where I loose control of our space.  I know complete control is impossible, but I have to start somewhere and while I'm at it, get started for the arrival of the new kid on the block. 

Some reasons why I want to STAY with a clean house!

1. To make a good example for Gabrielle.  Oh, yes she pays attention.  If my shoes are by the door that's where she will put hers.  If my shoes are where they're supposed to be (the closet) then she will be hers where it's supposed to be.
2. Have more time together as opposed to Roger handling the first and second floor, while I hanlde the third floor and gather laundry.
3. I'd rather us have a warm inviting feeling of entering our home before company does.  I hate to come home and let out a VERY long sigh that ends with "I have to clean this mess up".
4. Having a clean home makes me so much more grateful than a dirty home.  I love walking through the house when its clean, candles are lit on each floor.  It's simply called order, peace and tranquility.  I feel like I can do so much more in a clean environment. 

Some reasons why we cant stay on top of things are:

1. Me
2. Gabrielle drops it were ever there's space and so do I
3. I hate to walk up three flights of stairs just to take of my clothes, jewelery, hair supplies etc.  Why not just put it on the stairs and walk past it 4-5 times before I bring it up

Now don't get me wrong, there is one VERY clean person in the house............shhhh I dont want to blow his head up.  And he tries so very hard to clean up after me.  In fact that's all he does and it spoils me to pieces, I'm rotten to the core.  I wont have this anymore, lol.   I'm going to tackle this list starting Friday Feb 1st.  That is after I pick up roll dog Shaniece for a little R&R weekend.  Give her some food, movie, peace and quite from her siblings and the guestroom and she's in all the way.  To bad the boys are coming!

1. Complete Gabrielle's closet w/curtains for closet nook
2. Start on painting master bedroom and ordering TV stand and chairs
3. Keep and create a new snack closet for Gabrielle.  Bottles an formula will soon take over hers.  And for our sake it cannot be eye level with the girl or it's on like donkey kong.
4. Reorganize guestroom closet for new baby AND Gabrielle's belongings
5. Get masterbedroom closet under control (goodness gracious) I meant myside of the closet
6. Post baby shower, either gather and give away Gabrielle's old clothing or gather, wash and store Gabrielle's clothing for a sister
7. Post baby shower maybe mid June put up crib, changing table and wash rocking chair cushsions
8. Coat and sneaker closet under control.  Gabrielle is in the running with 7 pairs of  Jordans, 3winter boots, church shoes, slippers, EVEN water shoes.  And half she hasn't even wore yet, thanks Uncle Tucky.
9. For goodness sake clean and clear out my kitchen cabinet draws.

Granite, these things probably occur once in a blue moon, but it just never stays that way.  Today, no not today, I want to go home and relax since there's no class tonight.  Friday, Feb. 1st I make a vow to Roger, myself, Gabrielle and the company who will have the ability to stop by without a time frame for which I can tiddy up a bit that I will keep our home a happy clean place.  My motto for this 6 month trial period is 'Do it before later, don't walk past it, pick it up, walk a couple of feet to put it in it's perspective place, and if I take it out, to put it back'.  



17 Week Fun Photo Session

My famous photographer decided to have some fun with the blackberry phone last night.  This blue scrub outfit is so comfertable because the top is huge.  It must've swallowed me without a belly, which is why I barely wore it until now.  I sure can appreciate it now because we're not so comfy in the scrub that i'm typing in now, geesh.  Anywho, all is well and I can't complain besides the sleeping.  It's either on the right or left side that I can sleep from here on out, my back and stomach are off limits.  I've offically inherited an outty for a belly button and it sticks out of my shirt and SCRUB top, now that's a hot mess. 

17 Weeks

I think I'm hiding this thing pretty well.  Not purposely of course, but just because that's what it is.  This was my last time wearing this dress, that's a size 4.  It's a leather waist with a zipper, but flows at the bottom.  The trick to this wearing the waist on my belly.  It pretty much looked like a Steve Urcle dress because it was pretty pulled up, but not to the point that it messed up the look.  The jacket is not able to close anymore, but I still was told that I have such cute maternity clothes.  And I'm like, "no doll this is pre-maternity and farewell for this outfit for now". Nothing major going on this week beside some movements and lots of it.  Oh and I can't forget my 12 pounds.  Let me not live that down please, although this time around the pounds are packing on a little to fast.  Not that I'm SOOOO worried about my skinny figure benefiting from a few  pounds, I just want them to be healthy pounds.  Well that's all for now, I'm in the middle of creating a Mission Statement for my home and my to do list before I get to far along in the pregnancy.  Wish me luck with that one!

Decision Made

A problem of mine, well I'm not really sure if it's a problem or not, but I never like to put myself in situations that I know I cant handle, espeically on the financial side.  We moved to North Carolina to own a home because I knew we could handle it.  We chose to start a family with Gabrielle because I knew we could handle it.  We also put her in daycare because we knew financially we could handle it. Roger and I have also made some other decisions because we knew we could handle it.  What we felt we couldn't handle was another child in daycare. 

What I'm beginning to realize is that these are all things that we prayed for and the Lord allowed it to come to past with such great ease for us.  When I thought it, it happened.  The Lord really gave us the desires of our heart.  I feel as though the Lord trusted Roger and I with this numerous blessings.  Gabrielle, some material and even things that we probably didn't need we asked and the lord provided.  I always put my trust in Him, but I'm realizing that if the Lord trusted me with these things, I need to trust him now more than ever.  Why I say now more than ever, is because this pregnancy was of course not planned.  I felt in the beginning not in control of this situation.  Like I said before, if I put myself in it, then I would know how to handle it.  When I found out that we were expecting another child, I felt so lost and as if  I didn't have a game plan or control of the situation.  I mean I stayed with a game plan. I purposly put everything behind me for the holidays to enjoy them.  Just beginning to think of how, when and with what money made me physically sick. 

For the new year, I didn't scramble things in my mind as I always do.  I didn't try to concote some plan for how adding to our family was going to work.  I soley relied on the Lord to show me the answers.  It wasn't until I took myself out of the equation to realize that I wasn't relying on the Lord fully with our decision making.  It was sort of like I was contradicting myself, because I would say that I'm depending on the Lord, but when I didn't have a plan, I felt totally hopeless.  But If I was depending on the Lord all along, then I wouldn't have felt totally helpless, (past tense of course).  My plans are either not his plans, or they are the plans that God has for me.  I so had it planned that we would not try again until Gabrielle was out of school, because that's when we could afford to send the next child there.

Those plans were clearly more beneficial for me, rather than my family as a whole.  Things will turn out so much better now that we are adding to our family now rather than later when I'm in my thirties.  Just looking down the road, I can see all the negatives that I thought would be the case turning into positives right before my eyes.  I will list them if all I didn't want to say is that Gabrielle's brother or sister will be joining her in daycare Sept 2013, after maternity leave is over.  We put her name on the sibling list.  My big girl will be joining me for maternity leave this summer, but that's a whole other post in itself people. 

Breakfast at Gabrielle's

Lemon 7 Up Cake

1 Cup of 7 Up Soda
Yellow or White Cake Mix
4 Eggs
Dry Yellow Pudding Mix
1/2 Cup Oil
Cook for 45 Minutes

Cream Cheese Frosting
1 Pack of Philly Cream Cheese (room temp)
1 Stick of Unsalted Butter (room temp)
1 Cup of Sugar
2 Spoons of Vanilla Extract

Back in Time

16 Week Fetus and a Fibroid!

What the World! I've been feeling this pain on the left side of my stomach that's been driving me crazy.  After my appointment today, it was confirmed that I indeed have a fibroid.  I knew that I've had it for a while now, but it really didn't effect me to the point where something needed to be done.  Now that I have a growing uterus, the two are colliding with each other.  I was told nothing much could be done, but take the pain and  wait it out until after the pregnancy.  This is fine by me since it wont interfere with the pregnancy at all. After the pregnancy, they will remove it laproscopically.  Other than that, I've felt lots of movement.  Nothing strong, which is due to he/she's bones not being that hard yet; but enough to know that it's a party going on.  Speaking of party, I REALLY don't think I can hold out until May 2nd. I may have to rethink this whole shower thing for an earlier date.  The scan is in 2 weeks and my mind is already going crazy. We've already come up with a FULL name for a boy and the family all agreed.  This is big considering I've thrown out 100 options and when I put this together, it was like "ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, nice, yeah that's it".

16 Weeks