27 weeks quizaroo.

How far along?

27 weeks.
Total weight gain/loss:

15
Maternity clothes?

Oh yes.
Stretch marks?

Nope. I never got even one with Theo and am hoping to be lucky again. So far, so good.
Sleep:

Not well. I have pretty bad reflux which makes me wake up choking and coughing. My hips and back also get sore.
Best moment this week:

Getting lots done in Lucy's room.
Movement:

She moves quite a bit. Lots of punching down low.
Food cravings:

Nothing specific.
Gender:

Girl
Name:

Lucinda Katherine "Lucy"
Labor Signs:

No, which is good since it's too early for her to be born. I have a fair amount of Braxton Hicks, especially when I overdo it, which is often.
Belly Button in or out?

In and flat.
What I miss:

Feeling good. Between horrible morning sickness, sciatica, restless leg, pelvic pain and reflux, I have felt sick and/or in pain every moment for the last 6 months.
Weekly Wisdom:

REST. Ask others for help.
Milestones:

Third trimester!

And, here was today's cryfest.

Loving Two

I walk along holding your 2-year-old hand, basking in the glow of our magical relationship. Suddenly I feel a kick from within, as if to remind me that our time alone is limited. And I wonder: how could I ever love another child as I love you?

Then she is born, and I watch you. I watch the pain you feel at having to share me as you’ve never shared me before.

I hear you telling me in your own way, “Please love only me”. And I hear myself telling you in mine, “I can’t”, knowing, in fact, that I never can again.

You cry. I cry with you. I almost see our new baby as an intruder on the precious relationship we once shared. A relationship we can never quite have again.

But then, barely noticing, I find myself attached to that new being, and feeling almost guilty. I’m afraid to let you see me enjoying her, as though I am betraying you.

But then I notice your resentment change, first to curiosity, then to protectiveness, finally to genuine affection.

More days pass, and we are settling into a new routine. The memory of days with just the two of us is fading fast.

But something else is replacing those wonderful times we shared, just we two. There are new times – only now, we are three. I watch the love between you grow, the way you look at each other, touch each other.

I watch how she adores you – as I have for so long. I see how excited you are by each of her new accomplishments. And I begin to realize that I haven’t taken something from you, I’ve given something to you. I notice that I am no longer afraid to share my love openly with both of you.
I find that my love for each of you is as different as you are, but equally strong. And my question is finally answered, to my amazement. Yes, I can love another child as much as I love you – only differently.

And although I realize that you may have to share my time, I now know you’ll never share my love. There’s enough of that for both of you – you each have your own supply.

I love you – both. And I thank you both for blessing my life.
Author Unknown

Big boy!

Well, we did it. We bit the bullet and put the little guy in a big boy bed. I think I took it the hardest, surprise, surprise. He wasn't climbing out of his crib or anything, but we will be needing it for Lucy in 3 short months. He starts preschool in September, so we are trying to space out all the big changes. We didn't do the toddler bed thing since it just seemed like one more thing to store when he outgrew it, so we just went straight to a twin with rails.

Initially, the plan had been to move him into the smaller bedroom and keep his room the nursery for Lucy (so we could sleep in there, too) but in the end, I didn't have the heart to make him give up his room or paint over all the hard work we did making it his nursery. The bedding I picked happen to match the current paint job perfectly, which was a bonus. A few weeks ago, we moved our furniture back upstairs and practiced sleeping up there, which we haven't done since he started sleeping in his crib. It was hard, but the video monitor really makes it seem like he is right next to us and we leave our door open. Our house is the size of a shoe, so we can be down 12 steps and into his room in no time flat if we need to (but we haven't needed to).

So, yesterday we (ok, I, but Susan went along with it) decided to finish up the big switch and go for it. We moved the crib, changer and big chair into Lucy's new room and set up his new furniture in his room. We changed a little of the decor and had it ready roughly 5 minutes before his bed time. So, he didn't really have much time to get used to it. He really likes all the monsters - he walks into the room and says "CUUUTE!" and points to the ones on the wall.

Last night went pretty well, I think, for a first night. I laid him down and he seemed scared and unsure and cried, so I sat down in his little green chair and did our Sleep Lady shuffle. Once he knew I was there, he just quietly looked around and seemed like he was going off to sleep but then seemed to catch a second wind. Singing, clapping, talking, counting. He never cried and never tried to get out, so that's good. He did keep crashing his head into the headboard, so I ended up putting his crib bumpers on around the top and down the sides of the bedrails. It looks silly, but it seemed to help. He's really used to sleeping cuddled up next to them, so I think he missed them. After an hour, I got Susan to switch with me. Finally at 8:30 he passed out. He slept all the way until 5:00 and then Susan couldn't get him to settle so she hopped into his bed and he slept until 7:30 (!!) which is a record. He had his tumble class today and I just put him down for his first nap in the big bed. He kind of fussed for a second, so I decided to walk out and see how it went. He was happy before I even got out of the room and he just explored around the bed a little and then just laid down with his Mr. Monkeys and went to sleep! All by himself!! Only took about 10 minutes and I didn't have to stay with him. All in all, it's going a lot better than I thought it would.

His bedding is from Garnet Hill. The headboard was a Carigslist score and the wall decals I found on Etsy. I made the art behind his bed and his new wall letters that spell his name - all with stuff from the scrapbook store. The blue furniture is from WalMart, believe it or not. The bookcase is something I've had forever and he got the anywhere chair for his birthday from Pottery Barn Kids. Curtains are from Target. Putting all his books on that bookcase next to his green chair has worked out well as he now grabs a book and sits right down in the chair to read it.

I can't believe he is out of the crib already. He looks so small in that big bed, but I guess I can't keep him a little baby forever (although, I try!). This past week he just seems to really be growing and developing like crazy and becoming less and less of a baby. :( This growing up thing is so much harder on the parents!

Lucy's room is coming along too, but won't be done anytime soon. I'm trying to pace myself because doing too much in one day really makes a mess of my body (like I discovered this morning). I'll get pictures up as soon as it's done. You can see pictures of Theo's room by checking out our Flickr stream above.

Things I hope Theo never grows out of.

You know how your baby says certain things the "wrong" way and you don't correct them because you secretly hope they will say it that way forever? I have a few of those. And a few other random things that I will just be sad when I don't see every day.

1. How he calls the dogs "Donna" and "Tuna" instead of by their real names.

2. How he says "pee ooo" when you are changing his diaper or cleaning something off the floor.

3. How his little voice sounds when he says "Mama."

4. How he says "wa wa!!" with big excitement when he sees water.

5. When he says "bedina", which might mean "banana" and might mean "snack" and might just mean something else entirely that he doesn't know the name of.

6. When he says "walk a dah", which means - well, we have no idea what it means, but he says it a lot.

7. How his little fluffy cloth diapered heiney looks in his PJs.

8. How his little feet sound when they run down the hall.

9. Seeing his little heiney in the air when he is asleep in his crib. And, seeing him asleep in his crib, since he is getting a big boy bed in a couple weeks.

10. How he snuggles with me every night before bed. That one I will miss most of all. I hope he doesn't grow out of that for a really long time.

The days may seem long, but the years are so short.

Happy 4th of July!

What a difference a year makes.