Tackle it Tuesday and More (the Wednesday edition!)….

Being the week before Lydia arrives and Spring Break, I am trying very hard to manage all of the tasks on my to-do list plus make time for plenty of fun.  Yesterday Mackaylan and I decided to stay in the house and we tackled quite a few projects which made me very happy.  Here are some of things that got accomplished:

• Mackaylan and I packed up her winter clothes, tried on spring hand-me-downs and organized everything in her closet.
• Laundry…. 3 loads. Need I say more?
• I unloaded the dishwasher and washed the remaining dishes so the sink would be empty.
• I ordered Mackaylan’s “Big Sister” present.
• Mackaylan and I made cookies, played Uno, built a block castle, caught up on last week’s American Idol, and made some jewelry.

Mickey was able to come home for lunch and that was a very nice surprise.  We enjoyed a nice lunch of potato skins and a salad.  Before he had to head back to work, I snapped this adorable shot:

Last night we spent the evening with some of our best friends- the Sparks and the Adkins.  It is always a lot of fun when our families get together.  We don’t get to do it often, but they are the type of friends that we are able to pick up right where we left off the last time we were together.  Before we left, we all gathered together and spent some time in prayer for this precious baby that will arrive in just a few days.  That part of the evening was very special to me. 

By the way, be sure to keep an eye on Alyssa’s blog for the recipe for this DELICIOUS coconut cake.  She has lots of other recipes that I know you will enjoy as well. 

Hope you are having a great week!

Two Peas in a Pod

See these two?
They are two peas in a pod!
Mackaylan becomes more and more like her daddy each and everyday.
And, yes, that is a wonderful thing!
They make me smile, my heart swell with pride, and my love tank full!
It's hard to imagine that in just a few days our second little blessing will arrive.
At times I still think this is all a dream.
From marrying the man of my dreams to anticipating the birth of our second daughter.
I am blessed!

37 Weeks!

Size of baby: Baby O weighs around 6 lbs and is about 19-20 inches long.  The doctor did tell me at my appointment last week that he thought I was “growing a big baby” because I was measuring a little ahead.  I am not sure if that is the case or not because they thought Mackaylan was going to be big and she was only 7.8 lbs.  However, I do feel like she is a lot bigger than Mackaylan.  We are both growing like crazy.  It’s amazing how much my stomach has grown in the past few weeks.

Gain/Loss: ? I'm trying to avoid the scale :) However, after looking at this picture I am beginning to think that maybe it isn’t all “just baby weight” like my friends/family keep telling me.  Oh, the joys, of pregnancy!

Maternity Clothes: Oh, yes! I can actually still wear quite a few of my pre-weight loss tops from Lane Bryant, but the pants have to be maternity.  

Gender: Girl!  Her name will be Lydia.   

Movement: Yes! She is a very active little girl, and I love it! However, I do think she may be running out of room because she doesn’t seem to be practicing her tumbling quite as much!   Her movements are more just shifting.  I guess we are both to the uncomfortable stage! She is most active in the afternoon and at night.

Sleep: Sound sleep is slowly becoming a thing of the past.  It feels like it takes forever to roll over and I am trying to sleep on my side instead of my back and that is hard for me.  I have also found that when I wake up in the middle of the night my mind starts racing and it is hard to get back to sleep.  I guess it is just my body’s way of preparing for the sleepless nights ahead, right?!

What I miss: Nothing but my ankles! My feet are and ankles are swelling BIG TIME!  Flip flops have become my best friend so I am so happy that the weather is warming up. 

Cravings: Lately I haven’t really had any cravings so to speak, but I have developed an aversion to chicken and/or white meat unless it is disguised in a casserole or fried!   

Symptoms: I have definitely been more emotional with this baby, but some will argue that has nothing to do with pregnancy! *wink*wink* 

Best moment this week: Last Sunday a few of my friends and family threw me another baby shower.  It was so much fun! We are so blessed to be surrounded by people who love us so much!   

Update/Extra information: I go back to the doctor this coming Wednesday.  I can’t believe I am already on a weekly rotation and Lydia Avanelle will be here in just a few weeks.  Now we are in the last stages of preparation and making sure everything is in order for her arrival! 

Terrific Tea Party

Today we had Mackaylan’s 6th birthday party. We decided to go ahead and do her party today just in case Lydia Avanelle decides to make her debut into the world a little early.  We let Mackaylan decide what she wanted to do for her party and she chose a Tea Party.  She also decided the agenda for the day.  She wanted to make jewelry boxes, a bracelet, play a few games, open presents and eat cake! It sounded easy enough for me so we took the idea and ran with it.

Here’s the table all set with my grandmother’s china:

This was the craft/cake and ice cream table:

Leave it to my daughter to make her own “to-do” list for the party:

A few shots of the girls:

Craft time:

Presents:

And now for the cake:

One of the items on Mackaylan’s birthday wish list was a canopy:

I found the perfect one on Ebay and it arrived yesterday!  She was ecstatic about it and asked her daddy to hang it right when he walked through the door.  Of course the prince agreed and now this princess is living happily ever after!

Lifting up Lainey!

One thing I love and appreciate about the blogging community is the support it provides to others during a difficult time.  Most of the blogs I read are family-focused and many of my blogging friends are also mothers.  Tonight I am writing with a heavy heart on behalf of one of my best friends in the whole wide world and her little girl, Lainey, who will be 2 in 10 days!

Just a few short weeks ago, life at the Caldwell house was normal.  Or as normal as normal could be with 3 kiddos under 5!  Reisha and I were talking on the phone one night planning a double date for that weekend and the next night she and her husband Andrew were in the ER with little Lainey,  That trip to the doctor’s office and ER was just the beginning of a whirlwind of doctor visits, tests, surgeries and other various procedures. 

At the risk of passing along misinformation I am not going to go into the details of Lainey’s condition and diagnosis.  However, the family has set up a CaringBridge site to keep everyone informed (http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/laineycaldwell)  and I urge you to read about Lainey’s condition and leave the family a comment to let them know you will be praying for them.

Specifically you can pray for…..

• Andrew, Reisha and Lainey as they prepare for their trip to Illinois next week.
• Reisha’s strength (emotionally and physically) as she cares for her little girl and continues to be a mommy to her 2 little boys at home.
• Andrew as he continues to be the leader of his household as a husband and daddy.   Pray that he continues to look to Christ for strength, discernment, and direction.
• Owen and Gray (Lainey’s brothers) as they continue to adjust to “the new normal” for right now.
• The Caldwell and Tounzen family as they support Andrew and Reisha during this difficult time.
• For the surgeons, doctors and specialists as they work together to devise the best path of treatment for Lainey.
• That Lainey’s body will respond to the treatments and she will be 100% cured!
• And that through it all CHRIST will be exhalted!

      

                  

Luck of the Irish!

The good thing about having the last name of O'Shields is you don't really have to wear green on St. Patrick's Day! :) However, keeping with tradition, all 3 of us are wearing green this morning to celebrate the day. Now, Mackaylan loves any type of holiday so we worked together to make this decoration for the Irish man we love the most! This will definitely go into the keepsake drawer once it comes off of the refrigerator.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

To: Dad

Love: Your Cinderelly(his nickname for her) and Mom

May the Luck of the Irish be with each of you!

Friday Funny

I have so many posts running around in my head, but lately I am having a hard time getting them out into cyberspace.  However, I just had to share this….

Let me set the stage with the writing that Mackaylan wrote yesterday in her journal while we were riding in the car:

This is me!  My name is Mac.  I am pretty.  I am smart. etc….. 

Now, fast forward to this morning….  I went to get her up out of bed and she was very reluctant to starting the day.  This is very unusual for her because she is like me when it comes to being a morning person so I was a little surprised.  After a few seconds she finally looked up at me and the conversation went something like this:

KK- Mama, do I have to go to school today?  I just want to go ahead and leave for Daddy’s 4-wheeler race.

Me- Yes, we have to go to school.  If we don’t go to school then we won’t be able to go to the race. 

KK- But I am already smart.

Me- I know you’re smart, but going to school makes you even smarter.

KK- But my smarts wrap all the way around the house.

As you can see, we are not lacking in self-confidence around here! haha

Have a great weekend!

Sunday Snapshots

This past week Mackaylan had the pleasure of meeting a real author/illustrator- Jonathan Miller.  He visited with our K-2 students and shared two of his books.  He also explained to them the importance of writing and all of the hard work that goes into the book making process.  Mackaylan was so excited about her new book that she even took it outside to share with our neighbor’s dog, and as you can see, he was a very captive audience! PRICELESS!!!

#1

See this face?

This is the face of a champion!

Mick had his 1st race of the season on Sunday and walked away with his first 1st place finish!  We were all ecstatic!  He has been racing for about 5 years and all of his hard work and perseverance is finally paying off.  We all enjoy going to the races, but it definitely makes it a lot more fun when you’re the wife of a winner!

After the race, Mickey took Mackaylan on the “Victory Lap” ride and we enjoyed a delicious dinner at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants.  It was definitely a fun evening as we all celebrated this momentous occasion together!

Congratulations, Mick!  We love you!