Now that I have a little bit of time, I'll try to update just a bit. No WAY I can really truly update you since Halloween, but we'll hit some of the highlights. OK?
Thanksgiving: We had a nice Thanksgiving. I can't remember what we did or where we went, but I'm sure it was great. I especially enjoyed the food....and the family, of course! :)
Christmas: Christmas was nice too. Thomas seemed to "get it" more this year and really enjoyed opening presents. We started a new family tradition of heading to the Raleigh Rescue Mission on Christmas Eve to donate various items - some new stuff, some gently used stuff, and a few bags of groceries.
Big News: Most of you already know, but we're expecting baby number two in late July. My due date is July 28, so I'm thinking this little one might have an August birthday like his/her mommy. We had been trying for a little while so we were thrilled when we found out that I was pregnant. I had a feeling I was but I was trying to be patient before taking a million pregnancy tests. Well, I caved one afternoon and decided to give it a try. Well, it turned up positive so when I picked Shawn up at work, I had some good news that day! Since this is the second time around, we didn't wait long to tell our family and friends, in fact, we didn't wait at all. Our family found out the next day and most of our friends found out within the week. We thought we were just a tad farther along than we really were. Turns out, we told the world we were pregnant at about 5 weeks. Oops! Thankfully, everything has gone well so far. I'm now 18 weeks pregnant and we have our big ultrasound this Thursday. So, we'll be finding out whether Thomas will have a baby brother or a baby sister. SO excited to find out!
Like I said, all is going well, but this time has been a little different than last time. A little more nausea and of course it didn't take long for my belly to pop out. I'm naturally more active this pregnancy than my last. Instead of sitting in a chair in front of a computer all day, I'm bending, moving, up and down, picking up a 30-some pound child, in and out of the car, playing, racing or running up and down our hallway (although I've convinced Thomas that now Mommy needs to "speed walk"). So, I'm hoping that will serve me well.
Thomas is so excited to be a big brother. We had him call his grandparents and inform them that he was going to be a big brother. He enjoyed sharing the news because of the reactions, but I'm not sure he knew exactly what was going on. Now that Mommy has a belly that is growing by the day, he "gets it" more. He regularly kisses my belly and talks to the baby. He says things like "Hey baby", "I love you baby" and he often tells the baby what we're doing "on the outside" and tells baby what he/she has to look forward to - things like throwing the football or basketball and playing trains.
Speaking of Thomas, he is growing up to be such a big boy. He is becoming more and more self-sufficient. He loves to play trains and play with his cars. He also loves to play with his basketball, football and soccer ball. Nearly every day, he is eager for Shawn to get home so they can race up and down the hallway! I think if we let him, he would race continually for an hour or more! He's quite talkative these days and has hilarious things to say. He keeps me laughing, that's for sure. Some of the cute Thomas-isms that I can think of now are:
"Oat-me-meal" - what he calls his oatmeal in the morning; "Ohhhh, thaaaat's riiiight" - he says it like he's grown; "That sounds like a good plan" - if he approves of something I've said or suggested; "How was business today, Daddy?"; "I wish I could go to that Bojangles with Mr. Lucas"; "Hey Mommy, that food is going to go down into your belly and say 'Hey baby, nice to meet you baby'"
Well, those are some of the updates that were on the top of my mind. Hopefully, I'll have really exciting things to share with you going forward. Maybe the really exciting stories and wonderful writing will keep you interested, even without pictures. :\ ??
