New Friends

I have to admit, this has been the best move in terms of feeling welcomed. The ladies from church immediately helped to include me and Dylan in their group. We go to a weekly play group, have been invited to family dinner, a couple play dates and a few ladies have been generous enough to offer babysitting so I can go to my Dr appointments without a 3 year old in tow.

My new friend, Julie, insisted on throwing me a baby shower. I will admit, I felt very awkward at first and even tried to decline (graciously, of course). But, she wasn't taking no for an answer. So, last night was my Virginia Beach baby shower. It was a lot of fun...chocolate fondue with fruits, cookies, and pound cake, good conversation and more gifts for Lena. I really lucked out.

Thanks for a fun evening, Ladies! Very much appreciated.

Just so you know

3 WEEKS!

Just thought I'd draw your attention to the fact that I'm having a baby in 3 weeks...MAX! (I'm not excited or anything, lol)

Dylan Talk

Dylan and I have had a rough couple of months. I think the combination of the move, pregnant mommy, and terrible 3's has caused us to be very discontented with each other. Dylan has spent most days whining/crying to get anything and everything he wants and I have spent many days in tears because I'm just at a loss for how to correct the situation. I'm miserably uncomfortable and hormonal and Dylan is just bored out of his mind and trying to be so independent.

That being said, he is still a pretty funny kid. I really need to be better about documenting all the funny things he says and does throughout the day. So, while I'm thinking about it, here are some of his more recent funny moments.

As Mike leaves for work each morning, Dylan has to stand at the front door to wave him off. The other morning Dylan says to Mike, "Don't hit any trees, Dad. Have a good day." Ummm, should Mike take this as a sign he needs to drive extra careful?

Mike typically will give me a hug and kiss as he's leaving for work and then he'll give Dylan the same. This morning he was running pretty late and failed to do the hug and kiss routine. Dylan was standing at the front door and before the storm door closed all the way he yells to Mike, "Daaaaad, you forgot my hug and kiss! I need them to have a good day." Mike came back inside, looked at me and said "How am I supposed to ignore that?" Dylan got his hug and kisses and all is now right in his world.

All of a sudden, Dylan is beginning to be fearful of different things. For the past couple of months, it's been the dark. Originally we just had to turn his nightlight on when he goes to bed. It has now turned into having to leave his bedroom light AND nightlight on each night. How the child can sleep with all the light is beyond me. But, hey, whatever helps him sleep through the night. His new 'thing' is monsters. I have no idea where he learned of monsters because I'm pretty good about monitoring what he is watching and reading because I think he's still too young for certain things (ie monsters). Monster, however, have somehow crept into his life. Yesterday morning we spent a good 45 minutes hiding under the covers and then trying to 'scare' the monsters out of our house.

Dylan is also a fan of bathroom talk. Meaning, he likes to talk about pooping and peeing anytime, anywhere, to anyone. AWESOME! Well, not really. It can be pretty mortifying in most situations. The other day while exchanging some things at Gymboree, he decided to tell the salesperson that he had a big, brown, mushy poop.

We have been trying really hard to explain the whole 'baby sissy' thing to Dylan. As birth day is approaching, I have started talking about the baby more and more. Dylan talks like he understands what is going on, but I have a feeling that once she's home he'll be wondering when she's going back to where she came from. He currently thinks that my belly button is actually baby sissy. Whenever he lifts my shirt to talk to her or see her, he goes straight for my belly button. It's cute, but I hope he's not forecasting what she'll look like!

Catching up

Mike and I always seem to be a step behind when it comes to owning the most current electronic devices. We have been wanting a camcorder since Dylan was born, but other things always need our money first. Mike finally received one for Christmas and we have had fun learning how to use it. I finally uploaded some of the videos we have taken in the past couple months. I'm sure there will be lots more to come when baby girl arrives in mid-April.

Here is a short clip of Dylan and his little bff's the night we loaded up our moving truck in North Carolina. They had a great time running all over the house and trying their hardest to make sure we were all worn out by the end of the night. And I have to admit, I hadn't watched these videos since we moved because I knew I would get all teary eyed. Sure enough, I cried...we are doing just fine here in VA Beach, but Dylan and I really really miss our friends.

Dylan and I are off to Raleigh this weekend because my friends are throwing me a baby shower. I'm so excited to see everyone, including my mom, sister and nephew. I'm sure there will be lots of pictures to post next week. BTW, in case you're not up with the Facebook world...C-section is scheduled for April 15th!!!

Trying to get settled

Anyone who knows me well knows that I cannot stand clutter. The only time you will see many knick knacks around my house is at Christmas time. Even Dylan's toys are 'clutter' in my eyes (I have learned to quickly glance past them, lol). Now that I've made that publicly known, the boxes and clutter that occur as a result of moving...drives...me...crazy!

This is a peek at our dining room/living room the day after we moved in. While the room has cleared out significantly since last week, there are still boxes to be unpacked and stuff that needs to find a home within our new home. I'm hoping that by the end of this weekend, we will have things mostly in order. I'm ready to get to the fun stuff - getting ready for baby/setting up the nursery.

Dylan has been a trooper through this whole move. I know the child is bored out of his mind, but he has been so so good. He set up camp in a little alcove amongst the boxes. He plugged his travel dvd player into the wall, put in a favorite dvd, grabbed some snacks and just sat on the floor watching a show. After a week and a half of this, however, I think he's almost over it. Good thing we've already met some people from church and they have a weekly play group on Wednesday mornings. We weren't able to go this week because we're both sick, but at least we have one thing to look forward to during the week.

The week before we left Raleigh, we had a nice snow/ice storm come through. The first year we lived in NC, it did not snow at all and barely got below 40 degrees. Of course, that year I went all out and bought Dylan snow pants, a winter coat, hat, gloves, the works. Last year, I bought him a couple winter vests (you know, the big ol' puffy ones) and a hat/mittens. It snowed about 7 inches overnight and that lasted about a week. Other than that, Winter was pretty mild. This year, I bought him nothing that could be considered snow/Winter gear. This was the year that Winter decided to actually descend upon NC! It was freezing cold and the snow/sleet/ice just kept coming. Luckily Dylan's hat and mittens from last year still fit him. Other than those, we had to make do with piling on the layers so he could go play outside in the white stuff. He sure didn't seem to mind.

All in, we are surviving. Mike and I have moved plenty of times in our short marriage, but this one has really taken it's toll on all of us. We are adjusting and I'm sure we'll be just fine here in Virginia Beach, it's just going to take some time.

The Big 3-0

Just wanted to say HAPPY 30th BIRTHDAY to Mike. What a crazy way to ring in the next decade...loading a moving truck in the freezing cold, pouring rain!

At least you know you're loved, Michael!

Life Happens Fast

Why is it that time flies by when you want it to drag out? This is my last week living in North Carolina and it is going by WAY too quickly for my liking.

Mike started his new job on February 1st and left me and Dylan behind to finish the packing. He'll be back on his birthday (this Friday) to load up a moving truck and then we'll all drive to Virginia Beach on Saturday morning. Luckily, my mom was in town all last week helping me pack and it's mostly finished. Dylan and I have spent the week (so far) playing with our friends. I'm holding up okay, but I know that Friday evening I will be a complete wreck. I'm trying to hold the tears in by reminding myself that I get to come back the first weekend of March for my baby shower. But, it's just not the same. We spent the morning at a playdate and all I could think about on the drive home was how much I am going to miss being able to hang out with these ladies and their little guys any time I want to. A 3 1/2 hour drive takes a little more planning. I really need to get this all out of my system so I can start our new life in Virginia Beach with a positive attitude.

And can I just complain for a moment about how annoying it is to try and switch OB's when you're 29 weeks pregnant? Our insurance changed as of Feb 1st and I can no longer see my Dr in NC and have it covered. I was able to fit in one last appointment with her last Friday. Took my 1 hour glucose test and had a regular checkup. Baby is still doing fine and all my stats look good. However, the nurse called me on Monday to inform me that my blood sugar levels were a bit high (probably due to stress) and now I need to take the 3 hour glucose test. The same thing happened when I was pregnant with Dylan, so I'm well aware of how the 3 hour test works. The annoying part is that I need to take it as soon as possible, but I have to find a new Dr first. A new Dr who will accept me this late in my pregnancy AND can fit me in next week. Technically I should be taking the 3 hour test this week, but since I haven't moved yet that's not exactly feasible. After calling 6 different practices today, I finally found one. But man, that was irritating telling my 'interesting' situation to 6 different receptionists. Go figure the nicest one was the last one I called.

Blah. Okay, now that my venting is out...Dylan and I have had fun this week. Tonight we're going to dinner with our playdate friends. Tomorrow we'll play some more. Friday morning we will go to breakfast with some other friends. By lunch time, Mike should be here (I do not do the single mom thing very well). Friday evening, we are ordering pizza and my two good friends are bringing their husbands to help load a truck. Their little guys can keep Dylan busy. What a great way for Mike to ring in his 30s, huh?

I do have some new pictures to post, but that's going to have to wait a week or two.