The journey of the ears.

Hello darling readers! I feel like I have so many posts to do in order to do an adequate update (especially considering that I have not even completed a Christmas post yet....oh dear it's February). In short, the last couple weeks have been full. Scarlett and I went on a lovely trip to Kentucky to visit family and friends at the end of January... my tummy is growing a lot...Scarlett is changing so much every day (she literally read her bedtime story to US last night).... and today we are doing something as a family that I have dreamed about for a LONG time... Let me explain.

In December of 2009 on a trip with two of my precious friends from college I purchased these pink Mickey Mouse ears while I was 23 weeks pregnant with Scarlett. Especially at that time it was the neatest feeling to look at her little name embroidered on the back. 

sorry for the fuzzy picture! 

For almost 3 years now they have sat on her "special things" shelf in her room where we would take them down from time-to-time for fun. In only a matter of hours these ears will adorn her sweet head as we enter Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom for the first time as a family. Eek! I might sound fanatical, but if you've ever been to Disney World then you know how truly magical it is. 

I am looking so forward to making special memories together over the next couple days :)

M-I-C-...see you real soon. K-E-Y-...why? because we like you.  M-O-U-S-E... Mickey Mouse!!! 

Wordless Wednesday

16 weeks.

Well, I knew I would miss a week here and there (eh hmm...15 weeks) but not this soon out 

of the gate :) Anyhow, moving right along to 16 weeks, praise the Lord! 

Pregnancy Highlights...

How Far Along: 16 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby is the size of an avocado. 

Maternity Clothes: All regular with the exception of some maternity leggings, but I am not doing very well at keeping them up!

Gender: Hoping to find out in February :) -- Scarlett is still convinced it's a girl. 

Movement: I think I am starting to feel some flutters... Best. feeling. ever. 

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty good!

What I miss: Having energy so that Scarlett and I can just get up and go. 

Cravings: BLT with potato chips. Cantaloupe and cottage cheese. 

Symptoms: Tired and some lower back pain.  

Best Moment this week/Looking forward to: Well, we had a doctor's appointment today and my doctor had told me she would be willing to do an ultrasound and that she would most likely be able to tell us the gender.... wouldn't you know that this sweet babe was sitting indian style with the umbilical cord between his/her legs. Ha! So that was a no-go, but it was still wonderful to see this precious life growing inside me. 

Something for a little extra weekend energy.

Back when we had just moved here for Mitch to work at Parris Island, Scarlett and I went to a playgroup for Officer's  wives that was hosted in a sweet girl's home. She made a nice little breakfast spread and it included these really yummy granola balls she had homemade. I sort of forgot about them until I was searching for a really yummy, healthy snack. I am not sure if this is the exact recipe, but it is certainly just as delicious. 

I thought I would share it incase anyone else might be looking for a little boost :) 

Granola Energy Balls

Ingredients:

2 cups of oats *I used extra thick rolled oats because they have 2g more protein per serving than regular oats

2 cups coconut flakes 

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup ground flax seed

3/4 cup chocolate chips

2/3 cup honey
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon

I found whole flax seeds (at the military commissary, shocker!) and used the dry blade on my vitamix to grind them. You could even use a coffee grinder. 

 I have to include a few shots of my very helpful, very lovely assistant! 

Basically, all you do is combine all the dry ingredients in one mixing bowl and all the "wet" in another. Then combine the two. I tried to mix it by hand, but that was not working. So, just use your mixer. 

Roll into balls and place in fridge to chill for a couple hours. I think I made about 2 dozen. It all depends on the size you roll them into. 

Have a great weekend! 

I had a precious friend of many years who said there is a girlfriend of hers who is waiting to get pregnant and that she was able to read my short response about the struggle of waiting. I don't know specifically what her situation may be, but I know that the wait can seem long and lonely. I empathize with her and many others I know who are experiencing the very same thing. One of my very best friends just recently experienced the devastation of loss. Miscarriage or infertility can come into your life as a scorching desert. A time where you feel like your prayers are not heard. Where no one understands your trial. Or maybe your desert has nothing to do with this subject that is so near to my heart. It may be something that I will never understand. But it is a desert just the same. 

I heard this song for the second time today and it captivated me. It's words are almost verbatim from scripture. I remember feeling like I didn't know what to do during my times of waiting. This song has the answer of what you are to do. In every season. I hope these words fall as sweetly on your spirit as they did mine. 

Butter.

This girl melts my heart. Like butter. 

 When she comes down the stairs in the morning after she has "put my clothes on by MYself" it cracks me up to see what she thinks she needs to be wearing to be ready for the day. In this case, she was ready for dancing. And we do a lot of that around here!

Scarlett, you have such a sweet heart. Your prayers at lunch and dinner lately... they are simply beyond precious. Here is what you said at dinner last night: "Jesus, thank you for my family. Thank you for brining my Daddy home from work today. Please give me a happy heart for my Daddy. I love you, Jesus. I miss you. Amen" Your Daddy and I LOVED every second of listening to you as you had your little hands folded and eyes closed. 

You also talk a lot about how you want to marry your Daddy. It's really cute. And, I can tell your Daddy loves it ;) 

Among other cute things that come out of your mouth... 

- "Mommy, I grow up. Go to college. Live with my friends. You come with me?" (clearly I talk fondly about my college days!) 

- "What are my mommy and daddy's names?" (she loves to call her Daddy "Mitch" a lot) 

And then there is your sassy side. Oh dear. You love to talk really crazy and really fast and then look at me like, "what are you gonna say mommy?" And then when I ask you where you learned to talk like that you say, "Uncle Chaz." Actually, anything remotely "inappropriate" you say you learned from Uncle Chaz. Which is probably 100% true. 

You are SUCH A JOY to us.

(I really hope it was just my camera angle that is making SJ look so tall. My baby is growing up!)

Speaking of butter. I made THIS Paula Dean recipe tonight. Yummy. We ate it with kettle cooked sweet potato chips. And, please...What is it about bacon? It tastes so good sometimes.

And, you can see in my picture here the apple "donuts" in the background. This is a really fun way to "spruce up" an apple for your kids. You just take the core out of the apple and slice it thinly and voila! A whole new way to enjoy an apple :) 

14 Weeks

 

When I was pregnant with Scarlett, I was still trying to figure out the whole blogging thing (still am!) and so I didn't do weekly updates. I SO wish I had. Thankfully, I did one at 14 weeks with her, so I have a little comparison for this week. The biggest difference I feel in this pregnancy is that I am just SO exhausted. I worked full-time (outside the home) through my whole pregnancy with Scarlett, but it is very different from chasing a busy toddler all day. Otherwise, the pregnancies seem to be pretty similar. I remember feeling sick until at least 15 weeks with Scarlett, and I still feel pretty queazy most days.  

Pregnancy Highlights...

How Far Along: 14 Weeks

Size of baby: Baby is the size of a lemon. 

Maternity Clothes: Not yet... :)

Gender: Hoping to find out in February! 

Movement: Not yet

Sleep: I'm sleeping pretty good...

What I miss: Having energy. 

Cravings: Grilled cheese with a side of pickles, french fries and a chocolate malt from Dairy Queen. All natural Cheetos. Cherry popsicles. (Yes, I have indulged in all of these cravings... Oh boy, I sound like the object of health, ha!) 

Symptoms: Tired and Hungry. 

Best moment this week: Listening to Scarlett talk about having a “baby sister” (which we do not know what we are having yet, but she is set on a sister. Yikes!) So sweet. 

Looking forward to: Possibly taking some mommy/daughter pictures this weekend if the weather is pretty.