Old Pictures

Corbin and Katie playing at Triangle Town Center

Katie's First Day of School

Matching Pj's

Watching The Muppet's with yummy popcorn

Climbing with Corbin at Jumping Beans

Climbing and sliding at Monkey Joe's

 

Quick Baby Update

We had an ultrasound and doctor's visit this morning.  Things seem to be right where they are supposed to be.  Katie's sister is growing nicely at around 5 lbs. 7 oz.  I was told that she is NOT a big baby, at least not for now.  The technician told me I looked small, so I love her!  Baby girl already has an inch of hair on her head AND relatively big feet.  Also, I think her heart rate is around 143 bpm.  So, so far so good.

They actually checked to see if I was dilated at all since we're headed into a weekend of hurricanes and tropical storms.  I think he said I was something like less than half a cm.  She is not engaged, but she is head down, so we still have time before she makes her move.  This news was a little disappointing for me, but I guess I'm not entirely ready for her to arrive even though I'd like her to stop making me so uncomfortable.

We couldn't get a picture of her face because she was not cooperating, imagine that.  We'll just have to be surprised, I guess.

Corbin's Birthday Party

     

These are Corbin's 3 girl cousins and Katie.  He was the only boy at his party (besides his dad)!  He didn't seem to mind, especially when he started opening presents...  even though Katie was right in the middle of all the action! 

     

     

     

This Lightning McQueen remote control car was from Katie...  she wanted to steal it immediately! 

Badge of a Bad Mother

I'd have to say that this last week has taken its toll on me physically and emotionally.  I can't exactly pinpoint when it all started, but it has beaten me down and worn me slam out.

There is a chance that my frustration began about the time my newest nephew was born.  Katie's preschool had its open house that morning and, without skipping a beat, Katie was completely out of control.  She hit a boy for getting in her way, she stole puzzles from other children, she pulled a chair out from a little girl trying to sit down, and she defiantly told her new teacher "No Way!" Instead of growing resistant to the idea of sending her to preschool, Jimmy and I resolved that Katie NEEDS preschool; this will be a good experience for her in the long run.

Additionally, I spent most of the day wondering if Kristine had given birth to a "Joey," and I don't mean baby kangaroo.  We had toyed with the idea of naming our future little one, set to arrive October 10, Josephine Maria in honor grandmothers on both sides of our family.  We wanted to call her Joey.  Since I kept this idea a secret, it obviously backfired on me and so we were back to the drawing board as to the name of our unborn child...  this process is certainly not an easy one, but I think we'll pull through on top.

 

Since the open house, Katie has been all over the place.  Her lack of napping during the day and/or very early morning wake up times (before or around 6 a.m.) is completely wearing us out. I went to bed on Thursday night with a very sore throat and woke up with a very stuffy nose.  This nasty cold and horribly swampy weather has contributed to my bad mood and lack of productivity.

Finally, it all came to a head on Sunday afternoon, just before nap time.  I had had my fill of Katie's clinginess, whininess, and "only mommy can solve my problems" attitude, especially since her father was present and very capable of getting her a glass of milk in her McQueen cup. I had to go to the bathroom, so I told her to leave me alone so I could go in peace.  She heard the word "bathroom" and darted toward the master bath.  I quickly outwitted her and went to the guest bath and immediately locked the door.  I sat in there for a while debating if I should just spend the rest of the day in there, but sadly hadn't planned it out...  I should have brought some crafts, a book, maybe a small TV, etc.  After a short while, I could hear her wandering the house trying to find me.  She disappeared into the guest bedroom and shut the door.  I got nervous that she might get into something dangerous since I've torn that room apart trying to get it organized for baby #2. I reluctantly exited the bathroom to check on her.  When I saw that she was OK, I started to think of other ways to hide from her.  Jimmy finally came to my rescue (kinda) and told Katie it was time for her nap.  She freaked out and started throwing a tantrum.  I tried to hide in my bedroom so that he could handle the situation.  I heard her little footsteps racing towards the bedroom, and since closing the door never seems to work, I dove onto the floor behind the bed so she couldn't see me.  In doing so, I gave myself a pretty bad rug burn on my left knee.  As I sat there scrunched down in pain, I thought, "What the hell am I doing?"  Guilt set in, so I got up.

I walked out of the bedroom and Katie came running toward me.  We sat on the couch for a few minutes.  I held her because of the guilt factor.  Then, Jimmy rounded the corner, saw us together, and suggested that she lay down with mommy in bed...  I thought, "huh?"  But, I took her to bed anyway, we lay side-by-side, I read her a story, then we both passed out.

You'd think I would have arose rejuvenated...  not so much.  We had "planned" to take Katie to Pops in the Park in Cary that night to listen to a free NC Symphony concert and see "fire fire works."  Katie was so excited, Karla was so excited, Jimmy was not so excited.  Needless to say, Jimmy and I got into a huge fight the whole way there due to fatigue from those early wake-up calls, lack of planning on my part, and a threat of thunderstorms.  Despite all of our bickering, we actually had a nice time, and the "fire fire works" were "totally awesome, dude!"  Plus, it never rained!  

When we got home and finally got Katie to sleep, I spent some time thinking about the whole day. If I wasn't pregnant, tired, or sick, would I have handled the day differently?  Should any of that even matter?  I'm a mom.  It is my job to look after my daughter and love her unconditionally, not dive across the floor trying to hide from her when the going gets rough.  I think Katie has forgiven me for my lack of judgement, but I'll wear this little badge of poor mothering on my knee as a reminder of how not to behave...  at least until I find myself locked in the bathroom again....