Pumpkin Carving Time...

Last night we decided we should finally carve our pumpkins before Halloween passed us by. So out came the pumpkin carving tools and spoons to clean out the pumpkins. We set up the table in our kitchen complete with a plastic table cover to catch all the mess and started carving and cleaning and making our jack-o-lanterns. We thought Sophia would go crazy and make a big mess with the seeds and pumpkin gunk, but she surprised us both and took one pumpkin seed out of the pumpkin at a time. Her pumpkin was way too tiny to carve so she helped Jeff clean out his and then I drew a little face on hers. She was so content just sitting there holding onto her little pumpkin while she watched me and Jeff carve our faces on our pumpkins. I think she thought her pumpkin was a toy, rather then a decoration, lol. After we finished with our pumpkins, we cleaned up and put candles in the inside and set them out on the front porch. We took a quick "pleased with ourselves" look, before realizing how cold it was and hurried back inside to sit on the couch and watch "Charlie Brown and The Great Pumpkin." By the time the TV special was over, Sophia was yawning and pooped out from all the activity. It was off to bed for her, but she seemed like she had a very fun evening! Jeff and I both had alot of fun with our little girl too! It was fun to have her experience "pumpkin carving" for the first time to actually dig in and be a part of it all! We are having so much fun making memories with her more and more! I just can't wait until Christmas!!!!

Daddy, Mommy, and Sophia's pumpkins before carving

Jeff and Sophia posing with their pumpkins

Sophia showing off her itty-bitty pumpkin

Sophia helping daddy clean out his big pumpkin

All she would say was "ewww" when she saw the pumpkin gunk

She was very meticulous and took one seed out at a time

Finished Product

This one was taken without a flash so you could get the full "jack-o-lantern" effect

6 months and going strong!

Yesterday Jeff and I went in for my 6 month check-up and to discuss with a different doctor, whether or not I should get a c-section this time around. The doctor looked at my chart and without any hesitation said I most definitely will need a c-section and that there is too great a chance of me tearing again to risk a vaginal birth. She explained that the scar tissue from my last tear is actually weaker than regular tissue, so it is pretty likely I could tear again over my original tear, which in the long run could cause some serious physical problems. I am SO glad we got a second opinion, because I was all ready to go ahead and do it vaginally if my first doctor thought I would be okay to do so.

The doctor explained that I couldn't lift Sophia for 4 weeks or drive for 2 weeks, so I will definitely be needing help from my family! Jeff will be taking some time off to help the first week, but once he has to return back to work is when the challenge will begin. Sophia is pretty self sufficient these days. The only times I usually have to lift her is to get into her highchair for lunch, into her bed for nap time, and onto the toilet for potty training. My mom had a great idea and suggested we get her a few lightweight stools to put in her room and in the bathroom so she can learn to climb up on her own. I thought this was a great suggestion and will be going to get a couple plastic stools to start the process, so she's used to it by the time the baby comes.

I asked the doctor if they were limiting visitors due to the swine flu epidemic, and she said yes. No one under the age of 12 can come into labor and delivery, which means Sophia and my triplet siblings wont be able to see me or the baby until we get home from the hospital. Not being able to see Sophia while I'm in the hospital or introduce her to her new baby sister right after she arrives, is going to be the hardest part for me for sure! Sophia is my little buddy, my heart, and not having her there to share in this moment is going to kill me. I know it is for both my health and our new little girl, but it will definitely be a bit of a struggle for me emotionally. I know I will be so excited to see her when we bring the baby home!

Over half way there and only 3 1/2 more months to go, I am seeing the light at the end of the tunnel! Yes, pregnancy has been pretty easy compared to most, but I am getting to that point where things are harder for me to do and I can't wait to get back into shape and be completely self sufficient once again! We will be scheduling the c-section at my 8 month check-up and it will probably be around Feb. 7th, give or take a few days. It would be kind of funny to have our daughters birthdays be 7/11.

The following pictures are just some cute pics I took of Sophia in the bath tub, that I thought I would share with you:)

Pickin out a pumpkin...

Thankfully the weather cooperated on Sunday and we were able to take Sophia to the pumpkin patch as planned. Last year she was only 8 months and could barely stand on her own. This year she had so much more fun! We were joined by my parents and siblings and Jeff's parents, and we all met at Olson's Farms in Damascus. I had never been there, but it turned out to be a really cool pumpkin patch! We took a horse drawn hay ride out to the big pumpkin patch to pick out our pumpkins. When Sophia saw all of the different sizes and shapes of the pumpkins, she couldn't decide which one she wanted. She just kept going from pumpkin to pumpkin picking them up and wanting to hand them to me and Jeff. After finally deciding on a pumpkin, we walked back to the main area to take a group picture and pay for the pumpkins. They had a huge 500lb pumpkin that we took a picture of Sophia sitting on, and they also had a guy dressed up as a stuffed scare crow that would pretend to just be sitting there, and then jump and scare everyone! It was hilarious to see people's reactions, however, Sophia didn't really know what to think about the scare crow. She didn't seem to like him too much, lol. We had such a wonderful time and were blessed with such a beautiful day to enjoy the pumpkin patch! I can't wait until next year when we will have two little pumpkins of our own to enjoy!

Different the second time around...

Today, after dropping Sophia off at Grandma's, Jeff and I enjoyed a day off together. We enjoyed a delicious lunch at Olive Garden and then headed over to Target to register for the baby. We filled out all our information and then went to the baby section to start scanning items to put on our list. As we were going down the isles, we realized we weren't needing to scan very many things because we already have them because of Sophia. It was nice because it didn't seem to take us very long to register and we only put on the items we really needed this time. Mostly our list consisted of smaller, more affordable items such as diapers, some outfits, and BPA free bottles (that we didn't have with Sophia). The only large, somewhat expensive items were our crib and dresser set, which is what we need the most out of anything! We love how Sophia's crib turned into a day bed when she started crawling out of her crib, so we decided to go with another convertible crib for our next little girl. For her room, Jeff really wanted to go with a Classic Pooh theme, so we will be decorating the room in yellow, green, and tan, and then accenting it with a Classic Pooh picture frame, stuffed animals, and pictures that we already have. And I am so excited because Barbara offered to make the crib bedding again, just like she did for Sophia! I am so excited because it allows me to customize the bedding and make it how I really want and she can keep it with her as she gets older! I am so thankful and blessed to have such a talented mother-in-law that can offer to do that for us!

It seems like every time another month rolls around, I find myself saying, "I can't believe I'm already __ months along. But it's true! Next week I will be 6 months and it literally seems like yesterday that Jeff and I were wondering, "is this going to be the month we get a positive pregnancy test!?" And now we are over half way there and starting to think about how we are going to decorate her room and prepare for a second child. She continues to get more active and is getting so strong, you can almost see her moving in my stomach now! I feel myself bonding more and more with her as she moves around more and as my stomach gets bigger and bigger. I am still feeling really good physically and have quite a bit of energy. However, it is getting increasingly harder to bend over to put on my shoes or pick stuff up off of the floor.

My cravings have seemed to change, and I am once again craving sweets like I did with Sophia. And what do you know, just in time for the holidays, lol. I have been in such a baking mood lately, except for the fact that I need more people to give the goodies to once I bake them, or I will just end up eating them all! But Jeff seems to like it and eats them all, so I won't, lol.

I am so excited for the holidays and can't wait to see Sophia's eyes light up when she see's all of the Christmas decorations and lights this year! She's at the age where she is understanding more and we are so excited for her to experience the holidays this year! If the weather holds out, we are hoping to take Sophia to the pumpkin patch on Sunday (keep your fingers crossed)! I'll be sure to post the pictures after we go!

Well, got to go put my little dearest to bed. Hopefully I didn't ramble too much :)

Little Parrot...

Sophia has been so expressive recently and chatters away as she plays and will even sing along with us when we sing her to sleep. We are also teaching her animals sounds such as what a dog, cat, cow, chicken, and lion say. She is really good at saying the cow and doggy sound and concentrates so hard on how her lips are supposed to be shaped to make a "mooooh" sound. It's so cute! She also mimics every gesture we make. Like if I laugh and cover my mouth because something is funny, she will imitate me and do the same thing. She had me and my friend, Kristen cracking up the other day, because everything I would do, she would copy me. It's like having a "mini-me". She is so much fun at this age!

Growing little girl...

The other day I had to take Sophia in for a check-up and another group of shots. These doctor appointments are getting increasingly harder to go to, just because of the fact that Sophia is getting older and knows when they are going to poke her with the needle. This time I was prepared with some treats after wards in hopes that it would make the pain go away faster and bring a smile to her face through all the sad tears. The stickers and fruit snacks did seem to help and though she cried, her tears faded a lot faster and by the time we were on our way to the car, she had stickers on both hands and a mouthful of fruit snacks, and was only sniffling a little bit. I was so proud of her!

Sophia is growing like a weed and is in the 92 percentile for her height and 27 percentile for her weight. She hasn't gained any weight since her last check up, but the doctor said that as long as she seems to be eating good and frequently, than there is no cause for concern. I was pretty surprised, because to me, when I hold her, she feels so heavy and at times it's as if we can't fill her up! I have a feeling she will be built like her daddy and be a little bean pole, lol. I definitely wasn't as tall as she is at this age, so I'm thinking she's going to pass me right up!

She is continuing to develop her vocaubulary and is now adding two-syllable words, such as "bubbles" and "balloon". She has an increasing interest in letters and loves to play with a puzzle my sister-in-law got for her that spells out her entire name. She puts it together and then dumps it out, and does it all over again ( a million times, lol). She also carries on little conversations with herself while she plays and has grown more interested in dolls and stuffed animals lately. We are trying to show her how to hold her baby dolls, and kiss them and rub there backs. She is quite the little mommy. I am so excited to see her with the new baby! Sophia also helps me with chores around the house such as dusting, dishes, and laundry. She LOVES to help! I will give her a little bundle of laundry out of the dryer to go put on the couch so we can fold it, and once she sets it down she comes back to me with open arms and says "more". You can tell she is so proud of herself when she knows she's helping us.

Sophia vacuuming the couches

We are so blessed to have such a wonderful little girl! I love her more and more everyday and can't imagine my life without her! It has been so much fun getting to stay at home with her these past two months and I feel so lucky to get to be there for all those "little moments", that I feel I would have missed had I been working. God truely designed me to be a mom, and I absolutely LOVE it and wouldn't change a thing!