Band-Aid Victory

We enjoyed a wonderful Easter!

 Except for the time it snowed and cancelled the Easter egg hunt... 

We ended up doing one inside to make up for it. 

I'm trying hard to soak in Trevin's last month of being three. I have no idea what happened but I'm not taking it well. I'll go ahead and blame that on the hormones too, because, why not? 

+Trevin has always had a fear of band-aids. I think one might have got ripped off when he was really young. For years he's been happy with bleeding out instead of putting on a band-aid, because he thinks those things are evil. He had a nasty wagon crash this month and was bleeding in several places, some pretty badly. Yet, through the tears, he refused a band-aid. I had an idea to cut off the sticky part of the band-aid and just use the pad to cover the wound. Then I taped it on. Apparently that was different than a band-aid, so he allowed me to do it. As we replaced the bandages each day I slowly convinced him that it was the same thing as a band-aid. I'm happy to report that we have finally overcome the fear of band-aids. I'm calling it a mom-win! You might not be that impressed, but this was a 3 year battle and I have come out victorious. All the glory to God. "You armed me with strength for battle; you humbled my adversaries before me." (Psalms 18:39) Amen and Amen.

The Paw Patrol obsession is in full swing. 

+We're still reading through the Bible during breakfast and it seems like we've been in Psalms for about 7 years now. We finally made it to Psalms 150, the very last chapter. I told Trevin we were on the last chapter and read it to him as usual. It ends with, "Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord!" After I read it, he looked at me with a straight face and said, "Praise the Lord it's over." I laughed for days over that one. 

+One day Trevin and I were eating lunch at Freddy's. He was studying the lady in the booth next to us and then he said to me, "Mom, she didn't pray for her food." I explained that it was ok, thinking he'd let it go. Nope. He turned around to her and said boldly, "You didn't pray for your food." My cheeks grew nice and red. I turned to apologize, but she must not have understood what he said because she started talking to him about french fries. Then I shoved a bunch in his mouth. That's how I handled it. 

Celebrating Luxy's 2nd birthday! 

+I really can't even handle his vocabulary. This isn't where I brag to you about how my 3-year-old uses the word ambiguous or exponential, because that's not real life. But he daily uses terms like winch, crops, GPS, trench, and compost. I can't take credit for any of that. I can take credit for his dance moves when Uptown Funk comes on and knowing that Guns N' Roses sings Sweet Child of Mine... He is going to be well-rounded. 

He's getting lots of practice with the new swing. He'll be a pro by the time his sister gets here. 

+His current obsession is about his teeth falling out. He has several cousins in that stage of life and it's freaking him out. He asks about it often and we've tried to explain that new ones will grow in, but it hasn't put him at ease. Today he asked me, "So when my teeth fall out I won't be able to brush them?!" He is so concerned. 

+His honesty is certainly something that we've um... appreciated... It's no secret that I'm almost 35 weeks pregnant and sometimes it's a struggle to get my clothes on.  One morning I was in a predicament with my pants. I must have been huffing, puffing, and grunting more than usual because Trevin walked by, stopped, looked at me and said, "They don't fit, Mom." Then he kept walking. Guess what happened next? My hormones took it to heart and I cried a little. He was right. 

My sweet friends threw me a baby shower to help us celebrate our little girl. It was fun to take a morning to talk everything baby and add a little pink into this house of tractors.  They all love me so well and I'm extremely grateful for each and every one of them. Life is much more fun with them in it. 

+Cravings: Cuties (oranges) and Andes mints 

+I'm measuring right on track and have one more biweekly appointment before starting weekly appointments. 

+Baby girl has turned! Shortness of breath and increased bladder pressure are the norm. 

+We're officially moved in upstairs! I'll share transformation photos when we're completely settled. I'm so grateful for a short walk to the bathroom, because apparently that's 3 times a night now. We still need a nightstand and to finish the closets. Oh and we still don't have a door. (It's a long story, and I don't want to talk about it.) Curtains just went up in both rooms, but our clothes are all sorts of everywhere. The nursery is 90% done, just needing a few finishing touches. My nesting has slowed down, thanks to the progress. I've gotten to a point where I suddenly care a lot less about the to-do list. 

+The biggest low of the month has been dealing with SPD (Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction). When you're pregnant your body produces a hormone called relaxin that causes the ligaments holding the pelvis together to loosen, to allow for a larger birth canal. Sometimes there's too much of this hormone produced too early, causing the pelvis to be able to rock back and forth without being held in place. A couple weeks ago I started feeling a strange pain, but I thought I pulled a muscle or just overdid it. It got worse with each day. I had pain whenever I did something that caused my legs to split, such as putting on pants, rolling over in bed, and climbing stairs. Even walking was hurting. I took my symptoms to google and came across SPD, but wasn't positive that it was what I was experiencing. As the symptoms got worse, I started to realize that it was probably the reason for my pain. One day I was folding a sheet on the floor and went to step to the side of the sheet, my foot slipped and I went into a partial split. Horrible pain shot through my pelvis and I could hardly walk the rest of the day. I'm experiencing pain daily. I'm scheduled for acupuncture, chiropractic adjustment, and a massage. (The massage is courtesy of my sister. She's really nice to be willing to massage my undercarriage. You should all think very highly of her.) Hopefully that can help with the discomfort. My doctor said some women have bad pain for a couple weeks and then have relief from it, but others have it through the rest of the pregnancy and into recovery. Obviously I'm hoping it's short-lived. After my appointment this week, my doctor confirmed my suspicion and said I had self-diagnosed accurately. I called James after the appointment and told him, "The doctor said that I have SPD." James heard, "The doctor said that I have an STD." Needless to say he was concerned and confused. It was a strange conversation, but thankfully we got that straightened out. 

We're looking forward to celebrating Trevin's birthday this month and maybe even bringing a baby home. I'm cherishing these last few days with Trevin as the only child, but look forward to seeing him thrive as a big brother. 

Finally accepting that my pants don't fit, growing on the farm...

Angry Baby

Believe it or not, my family has never really been on a family vacation all together. The closest thing we had to it was a ski trip 18 years ago with some of our cousins. Granted, we took trips growing up, but Brooke had already graduated, and soon after, so did Ryan. This meant only part of the family went, never the whole gang. My mom has been wanting to have one for years, and we finally decided it was time. We spent a long weekend in Lead, SD. We stopped at Wall Drug (a Travel Camp favorite!), drove through the Badlands, spent a day skiing, tubed down the mountain, went sight-seeing, and spent many fun hours in the cabin. 

Badlands

Wall Drug

Our plan was to let Trevin try skiing if he was up for it. The thing about a 3-year-old is to never have your heart set on plans. We knew there'd be chance that he'd be thrilled and love it. We knew there was a chance that he'd try it and cry down the mountain, like his mom. We knew there was a chance he would absolutely refuse to try it and later say he wanted to do it. He chose the last option. We couldn't even get the ski boots on him. We definitely caused a scene. The next day he said he wanted to go skiing. 

Trevin and I hung out in the lodge watching our crew come down. My sister, Brooke, broke her pinky a couple weeks ago and was on the no-ski list, too. So it was nice to have company! 

See that weird, cloudy spot on Trevin's face? Found out my lens is scratched, right in the center. I was pretty bummed, but I'm hoping to replace it before long.

Everyone seemed to have a great time, but it came with plenty of soreness the next day. 

We were lucky enough to stay in this 5-bedroom, 3.5-bath cabin right on Terry Peak. Joey's parents own it and they were generous enough to let us enjoy it. 

The foosball table was a hit. Tournaments and pick-up games all weekend long. Ashton and I are terrible. Trevin LOVES foosball. Anytime he finds a foosball table, I can guarantee he'll come ask you for quarters. Thankfully, this one was free. 

We played cards every day. I felt like I was fulfilling my purpose. I will never tire of card games. 

These sweet kids had so much fun. Trevin is pretty lucky to have such cool cousins. I sure hope baby girl can hold her own when it comes to these crazy boys. 

Trevin fought pictures all weekend long, but when the Marshall's wanted a family picture, he was quick to volunteer. 

James brought his drone along, (don't worry we brought toys for Trevin, too). He captured some awesome videos of the Black Hills National Forest. He may have lost it once, but let's not talk about that. 

Tubing was a hit! Trevin jumped right in a tube and didn't look back!

They had so much fun, definitely the highlight of Trevin's trip. 

Trevin got hot, (shocker), so he went without a coat and hat. I didn't even question it. He goes from comfortable to boiling in 0.07 seconds. Then he screams. It's just life. 

We had a great trip, and look forward to more down the road. 

When the toddler insists on taking a picture with a toy plane and a large stick, you just roll with it. 

My to-do list seems to be growing, not shrinking. I think I've been nesting for about 3 months. I'm desperate for some normalcy in our house. We're getting there, people. Both bedroom floors have been sanded and are in the process of being stained. The trim is in the garage ready to be painted. Walls are painted, lights are in. I still have doors and furniture to paint, curtains to make, and about a million other things to do, but sometimes life happens and you've just got to go with it.  

This means we've continued to be basement dwellers. James and I have become quite comfy sleeping in the basement, but it's certainly caused some problems.  For starters we don't have a bedroom door. (This isn't going where you think it's going.) I'm a fairly light sleeper, I've always heard Trevin before he would come into our room. But without a door and being in close proximity to the furnace in the basement, I'm a sitting duck. One day I was in desperate need of a nap, so I laid Trev down in his room for nap time and I ended up fast asleep in my bed in the basement. Soon after I heard the pitter-patter of tiny footsteps in the hall above me. I figured I should get up to check on him, but I was only half-awake. I laid there with my eyes closed falling in and out of sleep. I finally convinced myself that I had enough strength to get out of bed. I turned over and opened my eyes. There stood Trevin, his face 12 inches from mine. I screamed, peed my pants, and started crying. (All in about 3 seconds.) My reaction startled him. I tried to get myself together and explain that he scared me. Once he understood that, he thought it was funny.  My 3-year-old seriously made me pee my pants. I suppose he and his sister are already working as a team since she's the one to blame for my poor bladder control in the first place. I don't even know where to go from there. I have a long life of motherhood ahead of me...

Just a couple days later James and I had gone to bed, long after Trevin. James fell asleep quickly and I tossed and turned to find a comfortable position for this beach ball of a body. I started hearing a quiet shuffling sound. Our temporary bedroom is right next to our unfinished storage room. The place where I imagine that mice have their raves.  I tried to pass off the noise as the sounds of an old house, but the rustling continued. I was convinced that it was mice. I tried to make myself ignore it. (Yeah, right.) But the shuffling became faster. Suddenly the noise was right next to my bed. I froze. The room was pitch-black except for the small red light of the space heater switch next to my bed. I slowly leaned over the bed and saw this massive thing move in the glow. I shot over to James' side of the bed and whisper-screamed, "There's something in here! Something big, like a raccoon!" I was practically on top of him waiting for the raccoon to jump on our bed and start mauling me. James turned on his phone light and looked over the edge. I was peeking through my fingers, not wanting to know what it really was. James said, "It's just Trevin." He was less than amused at my reaction. Sure enough, that little punk jumped up. He had crawled across the basement, up the hallway, and next to my bed. We've had several stern talkings since then about announcing yourself when you come into the room. He is seriously going to either give me a heart attack or put me into early labor. I would guess that there's no way of getting around high-blood pressure at this point. 

 Obviously life with Trevin is exciting. Remember how I always tell you all the weird stuff he does? I've got another one for you. Recently he's started baby talking. Maybe he's practicing for when little sis comes. He started out doing a sweet "goo goo gah gah" bit. Adorable. And then one day something changed and in the creepiest batman-type voice he said, "ANGRY BABY! GOO GOO GAH GAH!" So that's his thing now. James took him to a farm sale and the lady at the window said to Trevin, "Aren't you so cute!" He stared her dead in the eyes and did the angry baby, "GOO GOO GAH GAH!" Her eyes got big and all she could manage to say was, "Oh my!" This is real life. 

Loving the nice weather! We took our buddy, Uzziah, on a walk. Looking forward to this view all summer long.  

I must confess, I'm extremely naive. You all know that we told Trevin immediately when we found out I was pregnant, and shocker, he spilled the beans. You think I would have learned... We told him baby sister's name. We've been using it around the house on a daily basis. We thought that it would help Trevin grasp the reality of the baby and make the transition a little easier.  Our name is no longer much of a secret. He likes to share the information with anyone and everyone. A couple days ago, I heard him have a conversation with someone and they asked, "Are you excited for a little sister?"  His response, "Yes. Do you want to know her name?"And then blurted it out. He's not exactly a lock-box. I suppose it's my fault. I trust him. He's my best friend, the person I spend every day with, the person who sees me at my worst, and... he's three... I just feel like we share a special bond and I'm always surprised when he betrays me. Lord, help me, I'm in trouble. 

I turned 23 last month and feel more blessed than ever before. 

Paul and Dori took a vacation in February, so we hosted a brick oven pizza party in their house. (Not many people welcome you to use their house while they're gone. Seriously, they are so sweet!) 

We had 20+ friends show up and sent about 30 pizzas through this beauty. We love the people God has placed around us and wanted to use this as an opportunity to show them how much we appreciate them. 

+I've hit my 3rd trimester! It's been an obvious change; each day gets a little harder and a little more uncomfortable. 

+I'm nesting hard-core. I feel like I have to tackle everything on my to-do list in the next week. 

+My face swelling, cheek pinching fear has come true. Trevin has started pinching my cheeks daily, without being prompted. It's a sad reality. 

+Baby Girl hasn't turned yet, so she's still stretching all the way across my stomach. This caused me to measure a week behind, but should catch up once she's turned. She turned momentarily, or partially, last week. Instantly, I couldn't catch my breath and had pressure high and low. But it was short-lived, and she's back to being sideways. 

God is working hard in our lives right now. It's been a week of constant prayer, processing, and grace. We don't know what the future holds, but we know who holds it. He has been faithful and we continue to trust Him. 

Sledding into spring, growing on the farm...