Camping with Daddy!

Jeff took the boys camping this weekend! They had a super fun time building a fire, telling ghost stories, roasting marshmallows and hotdogs and going fishing! (I'm a little biased, but I think they have the best Dad ever!!) And I enjoyed a quiet night and a day to get some stuff done before Baby Lulu gets here in 2 weeks!

(Tyler had to wear his camouflage outfit to go camping!)

Busy with the Baby Room!

I've been working hard to turn in my office/craft room into a baby friendly nursery! The hard part was taking an overcrowded room that already had 2 purposes and adding another one! I seriously have been organizing and downsizing for months now and I finally have some clean spaces for baby stuff! Last weekend I did laundry, this weekend Jeff built the dresser and there's finally enough room for the clothes, diapers, wipes and accessories (and baby girls need lots of accessories!!!)
We picked out the bedding fabric months ago and my good friend Melissa is making it for us! I am loving all the purple and birdies throughout the room. It's the perfect combination of whimsical yet sophisticated! And I can't wait to see the bedding done!!

My other super talented, friend Christine is making us a baby doll with this bottom fabric as the skirt- and also a birdie mobile!! I'm SO excited!

This is the dresser we picked out during our 4 HOUR Ikea trip!! With 3 kids and 3 adults, it was quite the adventure! I also fell in love with this lamp! Where the changing table is will actually be the crib and I have three pretty white picture frames (also from ikea!) to put up on the wall.

The boys helped me paint this purple shelf, I'm getting a vinyl birdie on a branch that I'm excited about for the middle part. My good friend Alissa got this beautiful watercolor of the Salt Lake Temple! And we think our baby's name will start with an L! The boys have been calling her "baby Lulu" from the very beginning! I probably should've waited to buy it, but at the time we were pretty sure- now we are talking about other names too, but there are a couple L names we love. So we will see!

And this is kind of embarrassing, but I have to show the closet (Since this is where I have spent 80% of the work!) I have so much craft stuff that the whole top shelf is lined with boxes of ribbons, flowers, buttons, paper, paint, and other supplies! Oh and also the drawers at the bottom- filled with fabric and more craft stuff! There's barely enough room for this little girl's clothes to hang in between at the craftiness!!!

We are getting so close to being done and with every step I get even more excited! I don't know why a girl's room is even more fun than a boy's room, but it definitely has been!! More pictures coming soon! 4 weeks to go!

35 WEEKS!

Only 5 weeks to go! Wahoosers.
I saw this questioneer on a friend's blog and of course she is good at record keeping and does it each week, but I thought it would be fun to document this pregnancy before it's over. Here we go!
Total Weight Gain: 24 lbs. My doc gave me a little grief about a month ago for only gaining a lb in 4 weeks. That was about 10 lbs ago! Come on, I have no appetite and have to chase two little hoodlums around all day!! But at the last appointment, he said my weight gain was good. So all those cupcakes and ice cream sandwiches did the trick!
Maternity Clothes: This is probably my favorite part of being preggers. Although I am starting to outgrow some of the shirts I was able to wear all pregnancy last time! My favorite outfit is Jeff's Batman shirt that I stole from his drawer. This is very confusing to the boys, but oh so wonderful for me :)
Sleep: I've actually been sleeping better this week than last. Every once in awhile I wake up really hot and nauseous. But for the most part, when I wake up to help the boys go potty or put the stupid cat out, I can go right back to sleep. Tylenol PM is my new best friend!
Best Moment of the Week: Doing baby laundry on Saturday! I was seriously smiling like a giddy little girl as I washed, folded and hung all the darling clothes we got from the baby shower. Everyone was SO generous and kind and I won't have to buy an outfit for this girl for at least a year!
Miss Anything? I miss being able to sleep on my stomach! That and bending over, picking up the boys, being able to tie my shoes/put socks on (luckily its summer), oh and my brain- where did that go? And I really hope it comes back when this baby gets here.
Movement: So much movement! Especially at night and first thing in the morning. At night she is so busy that I almost feel sick like something is constantly squirming around, kicking and punching my insides! But I love every movement and the reminder that she is alive and well inside of me. The funny thing is I only remember Tyler moving around this much-- Jackson was a much calmer baby (in utero and out-- in fact when I was pregnant with Jackson I freaked out cuz I didnt' feel any movements and went in to get monitored. No worries with this baby!) She is going to be spirited and energetic like Tyler- lovely!!
Food cravings: This week I have watched Cake Boss a lot and I crave a delicious layered cake with lots of cream filling, and maybe some raspberries!
Anything make you queasy or sick? I'm back to the eat every 3 hours status like in the beginning, and if I get too hot I feel sick. Raw meat or the smell of greasy food makes me feel yucky too.
Labor signs: I've had tons of Braxton Hicks contractions with tons of pressure and tightening all the way around my belly/lower back. They come especially hard at night after a busy day, so I've tried to take it easy and sit as often as possible. I've learned that the second I sit on the couch the kids love to run over and attack me. Good to know. How am I going to sit and nurse a baby without being brawled?! Seriously?
Gender? This baby better be a girl. That's all I can say! When I asked my doctor to double check the ultrasound right before my baby shower he told me to have faith (and didn't double check.). We have tons of pink, purple and frill! If I didn't know she was a girl even before the proof, I might be worried.
Symptoms: achy body pain- especially in my lower back and upper legs. Some heartburn and nausea. And that horrible round ligament pain! I keep reminding myself that my symptoms are way easier than c-section recovery so I should be enjoying this!
Happy or Moody? If you ask me, I'll say happy. If you ask Jeff or my boys, they may tell you otherwise!
Looking forward to...? Finishing the birdie themed nursery! We are so close to being done. Can't wait for it to all come together.
Realization of the week? This just came today: I keep thinking how ready I am to hold this baby and dress her and cuddle her. Today it hit me that I really need to enjoy this last month. I will never be able to go back to only 2 kids, having my hands free to cook or sweep or take a shower when I need to. Being able to sit up without pain, sleep most of the night, get in the car without buckling somebody. So I am going to stop saying I am so ready and enjoy this last month!!

Happy 4th of July!

We had a fun day on the 4th- We started out at my Mom's to swim with some friends. The kids had a blast together and it was nice to sit in the shade and visit with other Mom's.

Jackson with one of our favorite friends, Olivia! Who moved away a couple days later :(

Then when Jeff got off work, we headed to Lanie and Papa's for some family time- swimming and BBQ!

The Wrides brought a flag and their awesome camera for some family pics!

 My back started spazzing on our way over there, and I felt pretty crummy from that point on. I was having contractions and back pain and my body was hurting. Sadly, I went home to take a bath and go to bed early instead of watching fireworks :(

I love these pictures!!! And I love 4th of JULY! SO happy to be a part of such a beautiful and free country, and thankful for our rights daily!

Lake Mead & Vegas Fun!

We had such a fun trip to Nevada! It's so nice that Tommy and Melonie live much closer now! We love to visit and the kids have a blast together. We went for a week, and enjoyed a few Lake Mead days and a few other relaxing days. Here the boys are on Grandpa's boat!

 I'm not sure what's up with this face, but it's Jackson's famous :)

 Me and little Lily

 Lily and Tyler are best friends! It's so nice that the boys have fun with their cousins on both sides! We are so lucky to have lots of nieces and nephews!

 Me (7+ months pregnant!) Jeff, Tommy, Mom and Baby Samantha

Tommy and Mel's family on the tube!

 Katie and Randy

And as much as I HATE this picture, I have to include it- it portrays so well how I felt! Hot, exhausted, huge... I was on the verge of heat exhastion/dehydration. It was 110+ degrees on the lake, so I jumped in any chance I had! I couldn't clip up the life jacket, never took my hat off, and stayed in the shade!! 

6 weeks to go!

One day, we stayed in Vegas and enjoyed watching BRAVE and going to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay. It was a nice relaxing day, but still SOOOO hot outside, so it was nice to be inside!

 

Swimming Lessons!

The boys had a great time doing Swimming Lessons! Jackson was in level 1 and Tyler was in level 3. Jackson had a super hard time last year, but I knew he'd do better this year. He LOVES swimming at Grandma's house and took off his life jacket a couple weeks earlier. His confidence level has grown so much now, he never wears it and can swim really well! His teacher was really awesome, sang songs and did cute rhymes to keep them happy!

 He LOVED jumping in,

 Always had his tongue out or mouth open!

and even started floating on his back.

 Tyler learned his swim strokes and enjoyed his class, but not as much as Jack did. (Waving next to diving stand #3)

 Here he is swimming to his teacher, in the middle of the pool- deep end!

 Here are the boys with their certificates, and they got otter pops on their last day!

Tyler's Preschool Graduation

Tyler had such an amazing time this year at his Nursery School. He never complained about going and every morning asked if it was preschool day.

 This is Mrs. Davila, his fabulous preschool teacher. He talked about her like she was his long lost best friend. He is SOOOO sad to not have her as a teacher next year.

 Our biggest fans!

 Me and my boys!!

It was actually my birthday, and the best way to spend it! I get so much joy from celebrating my children and their special accomplishments. Here's to many more graduations!

Botanical Gardens

When my grandparents came down to visit us, we planned a trip to the Botanical Gardens. We did this with them last year, too, and also visited the butterfly pavilion. But this year they had a bunch of giant bug sculptures. They were all made out of different types of wood and super cool looking!

My cool sister and me

 Grandma and Grandpa Boucher on their 53rd wedding anniversary that day!

 Praying Mantis sculpture! SO cool!!

 Ha! I love this picture! I think Katie might have been sick of me taking pictures?

 The boys were having a BLAST identifying the bugs and finding them on their maps.

 Another one of my favorites of my grandparents!

 Tyler was dying to get a butterfly to land on him. He even wore a green shirt to look like a plant!

 Can you tell we were all scared of the giant spider?!!

And this picture is solely to remind me that I don't like being pregnant and really shouldn't do it again anytime soon.

Preschool Open House- Kenya!

Tyler's preschool does an "It's a Small World" theme, so each classroom gets to study a country. Tyler's class was Kenya, which was perfect since all his favorite animals are African safari animals!! But, like the Halloween program, Tyler was sick the day of the open house so we had to miss it (yes, I am still sad about missing both of those events!). They learned songs and had a program and walked through the classroom to see all their projects.
So, we had our own open house at home! We invited Grandma to come see his projects and hung them all in the playroom. Tyler greeted her at the door with his safari hat and said, "Welcome to Kenya!"

    

 

I'm so proud of Tyler and all the work and projects he has been doing. He absolutely LOVES his preschool and his teacher. He is so sad that he only has a couple weeks and has told me he doesn't want to go to kindergarten because he will miss Mrs. Davila. :( I've tried to tell him kindergarten will be just as fun, but he'll have to find that out for himself! It's been a wonderful year, and I'm so happy we found a preschool that was just perfect for him!