19 April ~ Killing time...

sailer's mimi and i headed up to the botanical gardens this morning to let sailer play at the park. i tried to walk a little bit to help this baby along while they swung... clearly that didn't work.(=

sailer and i had a little painting party tonight... of course, she loves to finger paint just like any kid. but today, i taught her to paint with her toes. i'll likely regret this at a later time, but we had so much fun getting our little toes all gooey and then pressing them to the paper to make butterflies.
wanting to show off her creation to her daddy:
toe painting:


painting mommy's toenails (black):

18 April ~ Golf Lessons from Daddy


As many of you know, Mark is an AVID golfer and is completely chomping at the bit for Sailer to turn 3 b/c she can officially start golf lessons up at our club. (Good lord, I hope she likes it or his poor little heart is going to be broken.) Anyway, we did VERY little today since I felt like a train had run over me and back.... but you know what, it actually turned out to be a wonderful family day together. Sailer and I talked Mark into driving to BFE to go to Marble Slab (I've only got a short while where I can use the pregnancy craving card), and then, came home and played out in the yard together. Sailer rode her bike, we swang for what seemed like forever, and then, daddy came out to hit some chip shots, but ended up having a little golf lesson with Miss. S.

17 April ~ My day from h*ll (there's no better description)....

On Friday, I started having contractions about 1am (hallelujah), and of course, I got up, timed them, ate some toast thinking I wouldn't get to eat pretty soon at the hospital, and waited... About 7am, they were about 8 minutes apart, and I was getting anxious to leave, but again waited.... I did NOT want to be the girl they sent home. So about 9am, they started to taper down to about every 20 minutes. Not good. But then came the back pain. WOWZA is all I can say. I have NEVER felt anything like it, and it just wouldn't ease. The contractions were now about 30 minutes apart, but I was worried about this back labor business and how you quantify or check that, so I called my doctor who proceeded to direct us to go into the L&D and have it checked out. {Insert side note: I didn't want or think I needed to go in at this point but thought I should trust the person with the medical degree and who wants to chance things with a baby on the way.} So Mark & I loaded up and headed to the hospital where I was admitted and given the weirdest nurse on the planet. Seriously she was beyond crazy and talked to me like I was a 2-yr-old (story to follow), which is not smart when the recipient is a 9 month pregnant woman with contractions and back spasms (and a silver tongue like me). Anywho.... they tied me down with the monitoring strips. Lincoln was going crazy but he was doing well so that's all that mattered to me. I was contracting every 3 minutes, but not the "good" kind, so they decided to just watch it for awhile. About 30 minutes later, crazy woman came back in and said she'd talked to my doctor and they were sending me home (duh) but wanted me to take some vicatin for my back. She then, and I kid you not, told me to touch my nose (I obliged), then, touch my chin (I obliged with a look of WTH), and then, she told me to touch my forehead. She then, condescendingly explained that if my so-called contractions felt like the first two, ignore them. If, however, my belly felt like my forehead, then, I should count them. That lady is SOOOOO lucky I didn't pop her in the nose (or chin or forehead)! Because I really, really, really wanted to. But I was very nice b/c it would be my luck to be readmitted later and she's who I'd get. Moving on...

I took the drugs (happily) and hobbled as fast as I could away from the deranged nurse (did I mention she has a lazy eye that swiveled around like the character in Harry Potter). About 10 minutes later, my head is bobbling and my eyes can barely stay open. We arrive at Sailer's Nana's house (because they have a great tub and Sailer is there and I didn't want to mess her around anymore). I try to eat...fail. I try to get in the tub... fail (or more so, Mark thought I was going to sink into the water on accident). So I got in bed and passed out. I was out for awhile, but would invariably try to wake up and get out bed. The final time (about 11pm), we or more so Mark was determined to get home. So we load up, start to pull out of the driveway, and OH CRAP.... I have to fling open the car door and proceed to vomit uncontrollably. To add insult to injury (and because I am now soooo passed vanity or modesty), I pee all over myself. The combination of baby directly on the bladder and the heaving clearly were not very compatible. At this point, I just want to crawl into a hole, curl up, and well, not die, but at least pretend that this day had never happened.

So I am still pregnant. Still not really making progress (so the nurse with the one good eye) told me. And am about 2 steps outside the nuthouse door. (=

Someday I will think this was all funny.... but definitely, another day.

About Sailer.....

A few of you have recently done posts about your kids' favorites and/or letters to them about where they are in life right now. I think that's so special not to mention they'll love to read it later! So in that spirit and since the last few weeks have pretty much revolved around Sailer turning 2, I thought it would be a perfect time to document hers.

*You can count pretty much to 10 (though for some reason 3 & 4 are randomly left out sometimes).

*You can draw an "S" for Sailer and a "M" for Mommy.

*You ask me for a bow almost every morning b/c you don't like your bangs in your face (I happily oblige)... we, then, proceed to have our morning tea party with your little silver tea set that sits on your ottoman.

*You finally are getting the hang of colors. This is such a relief as I was terrified a few months ago that you were color blind (crazy mommy) because when asked what color something was, you always replied "blue." Now you've pretty much got them all down, thank goodness.

*You like to collect... I should say, you require a collection. You're not really a fan of one of anything. You like to stockpile and have as many of one thing as you can. For example, though you only can suck on one paci at a time, you must go to bed with all that you can hold. That way you can have one in your mouth, one in each hand, and have several laying on your pillow within your direct line of sight.

*You have more words than I can count, and speak in more sentences daily. You are certainly a sponge that retains everything! Your newest sentence is "that'll make it better," which you learned from your nana yesterday at the movies when we were trying to get you to wear your 3D glasses because it would make the movie better.

*You also said your first curse word last week (which almost made your mommy cry and of course, made your daddy laugh). Your daddy hurt himself and slipped and said "sh*t," which you proceeded to imitate with perfect inflection. Luckily, you surprisingly have not repeated it again. I've been waiting every Tues and Thurs for your teachers to pull me aside to discuss what you've taught your class...

*We started time out with you last week, and I'm fairly certain it's just as torturous for me as it is for you.

*You love "school." And talk about your friends, especially Jack and Kali, all the way home. I love that.

*You absolutely LOVE to be outside... it doesn't matter what you're doing! You are instantly happy under the rays. You especially love the swing set in our yard and going to the park, which you'd sit and let someone swing you for hours!!!!

*Your favorite foods are bananas, blueberries (this is new), the nasty vienna sausages/mystery meat thingies that make me want to yak, mac & cheese, french fries, yogurt, crackers & cheese packets, turkey slices, and any and all cookies!! Healthy living at the James house as you can tell.

*You also love to be sung to... when you're fussy or upset and refuse to calm down, I can sing "Goodnight Sweetheart" to you and it always seems to quiet you down.

* Your favorite candy is suckers, but you refuse to just eat one at a time. You require at least 2.... which I allow b/c you never even finish one.

*Your favorite TV show/ movie/ really anything.... is without question Mickey Mouse. Everything is about "Mouse." You've known all of their names for many months, but you call all the males by what they are (ie Mickey = "Mouse", Donald = "Duck," etc.) and the girls by their names (Minnie & Daisy). I have no idea why?!?!?

*Your favorite books are the Fancy Nancy series and Baby Bear (but will pretty much listen to anything b/c you love to be read to).

*You LOVE lipstick and to powder your nose with mommy. And will patiently sit and endure me curling your hair just so you can get to the hairspray part.

*You adore any and all animals! After your b-day party, you talked non-stop about the baby pig that you wanted to come back. After having some pictures taken at Nash Farm recently, you were obsessed with sheep. You are always obsessed with Camo, our dog, and now Hope, your nana's kitten. I will say that you're not always that gentle with the kitty despite your utter adoration for her.... but she endures your torture when most wouldn't.

*Your favorite stuffed animal right now is this lamb (which you call "sheep") but also love all of your Mickey characters (especially Minnie). We have several of each of the characters b/c they get "icky" and once they've become "icky" you don't want to touch them until they're cleaned off. This is somewhat perplexing to me as you have no problem eating off the floor and HATE for me to wash off your mouth/face.

*You're obsessed with washing your hands right now. I swear you must have the cleanest hands in America.

*One of the highlights of my week is when I pick you up from MDO on Tues and Thurs because you just glow with excitement to see me and throw your arms around me. I hope I can always remember that unadulterated love and joy from you, as I know you will likely hate me in about 10 years.

*You do not want a baby brother to come live at your house. You are adamant about this right now, though I just know you'll be a great big sister and the two of you will be the best of friends eventually. Even if the universe sadly has to include one other individual besides just you.

*Your favorite toys are legos (you love to build skyscrapers and then knock them down with your Papa), puzzles, your baby dolls & their accessories especially the stroller, your kitchen where you concoct all kinds of interesting combinations from your play food and real food (snuck in without mommy's knowledge).

*You're an arts & crafts fanatic (no idea where you could've picked up this gene)! You LOVE to draw, color, paint and adore stickers! We have stickers on pretty much every surface in our house right now. The poor cleaning ladies have to unstick stickers every Wednesday from doors, tables, you name it! But they think you're so cute, they don't mind.

*Speaking of drawing, you know almost all shapes. Your favorite, however, is a circle because you've figured out you can make a Mickey face with 3 of them. When you con someone into drawing a Mickey face for you, you then, direct them to add a bow and eyelashes.

*You have the best laugh!! You're just like your daddy... completely infectious! When you laugh, it's the kind of laugh that requires a smile all the way to your eyes and a sound that makes anyone around you who hears it, smile themselves.

*I'm not sure if you have a favorite color per se yet, but you do always seem to gravitate towards pink. Some might think it's because it's all you've been exposed to since birth, but I think not!

*You are NOT a good sharer right now... everything is "mines" or "Sailer's"! (A rude awakening is coming soon.)

*You are incredibly advanced with technology for your age. You've been able to work an iPhone since about 14 months (unlock it, make calls, text, find pictures, expand and close them, load applications, etc.), and your newest conquest is the computer where you go to the Disney website and the universal remote (2 things that even I struggle to master).

I'll have to keep thinking on this list.... but Sailer bear, you are my best God-given gift in this world, and I hope that I can give you even just an ounce of the happiness back that you give me. I never knew how incredibly bright this world was before you.

Life's Moments

I'm sad to admit that I'm not a very good e-mail forward reader.... I usually will delete before reading (sorry). But today, I received a forward and this was the crux of it. I thought it was so simple yet so right on.

"Life is a series of problems: Either you are in one now, you're just coming out of one, or you're getting ready to go into another one.

The reason for this is that God is more interested in your character than your comfort; God is more interested in making your life holy than He is in making your life happy. We can be reasonably happy here on earth, but that's not the goal of life. The goal is to grow in character, in Christ likeness."

SO in the......

Happy moments, PRAISE GOD.
Difficult moments, SEEK GOD.
Quiet moments, WORSHIP GOD.
Painful moments, TRUST GOD.
Every moment, THANK GOD.

More peeks

Alyssa posted a few more peeks on her website last night of Miss. S.... and although most of you know, I am a huge girly-girl, and pray Sailer becomes one as well.... I am also from Cowtown where boots are essential for every little girl. Sailer will be no different, so I, of course, had to have her pics done in her little 'ole boots! And what's funny- she now wants to wear them ALL the time. Serves me right, when I was her age, I refused to wear anything but my red ropers (with EVERYTHING!) What comes around, goes around, I guess.

And of course, the obligatory tutu photos.... for the "cherry" on top. Ha Ha (that joke reminds me of you, Jules!)

Mommy moments with Sailer...

In keeping with my post yesterday, Sailer and I have "parked" it, done more crafts than my back porch ever wanted to see, etc. Yesterday, we hit up the movies to see "Monsters v. Aliens" with her Nana (who had to hold up her glasses for most of the time since Mommy didn't know it was all 3D). But she loved it.... and sat mesmerized by it for the entire movie except for about the last minutes when she decided to sit in my lap. Of course, I had to get a pic of her in those hideously cute glasses of hers. I'm sure the other patrons loved a picture flash during their movie, but hey, who's gonna yell at a pregnant lady?
Then, we met up with the rest of the gang and Sailer got to experience her first hibachi grill. Of course, the chef completely catered to her, and she ate up every second of it. Mark and I actually got to help "cook" some of our meal... luckily, I had the camera so I can save you from a whale picture of me but I did grab one of the big man. All in all, the day went by fast b/c we did have so much fun. Now what am I going to do today with my time????

The "Baby [is] Stuck"

When Sailer was asked where the baby was, she told us he was "stuck." She has no idea how right she is.... I went to the doc yesterday, and there was absolutely NO progress!!!! I couldn't believe it. I've had so many contractions and just FEEL like it's "time" with every passing day. Oh well. He'll come soon, right??

In the meantime, I've decided to take a sweet friend of mine's advice... "just look at this time as somewhat of a gift. you get a few more days to just enjoy sailer and mommy time alone. it won't ever be just the two of you again like this so value it" (and believe me, this is so not easy for me to do with my toes starting to swell, my lower back feeling like it's been hit by a baseball bat, and my pelvic bone feeling like it might shatter at any moment, but who's counting). But that's what I'm going to really, really, really try to do.

Sailer's 2 year photos sneak peak.....

.... and yes, I know she looks like a cupcake, but a pretty darn cute one! Thanks, Alyssa!!! I know she was REALLY easy to shoot... right! Will post more when I get them.

12 April ~ Easter 2009

What a blessed day.... today Sailer's nana & papa hosted everyone at their house with a full spread of wonderful food, great family time, and the Easter bunny even made a quick visit to drop off some eggs for Sailer and her cousin, Gavin, to hunt. My little one employs a take-no-prisoners theory when it comes to egg-hunting... she tried to grab as many as she could. Luckily, sweet Gavin got the hang of it and started grabbing as many as he could.

my sweet little princess dressed up in her Easter's finest...





eating lunch at the kid table... as you can tell it was a contest who could push it back and forth the hardest!!

the kiddos hunting eggs:








opening her eggs to see her goodies:

the nana's famous bunny cake:




and just a few glimpses of our crazy family:



Happy Birthday Kick Ball Head!

After church, we dropped off all the kiddos, and headed to Truluck's with Jason & Sherry to celebrate Jason's birthday. It was AWESOME! But I was so sad that I couldn't eat the yummy oysters I always love there. Oh well... it'll only be a few more days (or hours hopefully). Here are a few shots from the night... they're not that great (I hate my point & shoot camera!) Anyway, I have no idea why Mark & I both look drunk in our picture... I clearly wasn't and he surprisingly wasn't either. (=


Easter Service 2009


Although we're still church-shopping (SO HARD), Mark & I still like to go back to Fellowship for holiday services. They're always so well done and over-the-top. Although the crowd was pretty overwhelming, we finally found seats (a true feat). While my favorite Easter service there is still from 3 years ago, it was a good service. Sailer, of course, loved it b/c she and her BFF Hope got to be in the same Sunday school class. Here are the two princesses in their Easter finest showing off the crosses they made in class.

11 April ~ the Easter Bunny makes an early stop


The Easter Bunny came a day early to leave Sailer a little treat this year... since mommy & daddy have a double date tonight, she's going to spend the night with her nana & papa (where the Easter Bunny will also hit up), I didn't want to miss out on that fun tradition of opening her basket to see her fun treats!!

Another measuring stick at our house...

I think I posted pics of it awhile back, but in Sailer's playroom, I had the muralist paint an old strong man contest weight bell, so that I could use it as a measuring stick for my kids as they grow up (kind of like what your grandparents did on the back of a door). Anyway, we waited until she turned 2 to do her first measurement. She thought it was SO cool to be able to draw on the wall, so I'm hoping she forgets about it very soon!!