Job #1: Raising a 2-year-old and growing a baby. I know, I know...I don't get paid for it, but it sure does take a lot of time and energy, so I count it. Because I can.
Job#2: Editing papers for a Social Work graduate student that I used to work with in California. Sometimes I get one paper at a time, sometimes 3. She also passed my info on to a few other people and I have had the opportunity to help edit their work as well. It is something I can do fairly quickly and during Asher's nap time. I also enjoy the topic and have always enjoyed editing writing.
Job #3: I drive two girls from their school to their soccer practice. It used to be two afternoons, then it turned to one. Now it is three. The timing is perfect, as I don't leave until 3:30, which is generally after Asher's nap. I think I've only woken him once or twice. And then I'm done before 6, which is pretty good timing for dinner prep. Asher loves the girls (who are 9 and 13) and they love him! It is an easy job that makes pretty good money and requires minimal energy and effort on my part.
Job #4: I have watched my friend's 6-month-old daughter once a week as needed. It was a little rough at first as we figured out schedules, and she got used to us and our environment. But we have a pretty good rhythm down. It is good practice for Asher to be around a baby, and it is good practice for me to learn how to juggle two of them ;) I'll admit I had a meltdown the first time I did it because nothing was going right and I was convinced that I could never again handle two children ever in my whole life. I'm better now.
Job #5: Thursday mornings I do childcare at a church for a Community Bible Study (CBS) in my area. It is usually me and a helper with 7-8 kids, 1.5-2 years old. I enjoy it because I can bring Asher with me and he gets to socialize. Sometimes I wish I was actually attending the Bible study, but it is a pleasant environment and I'm glad that I can help with the kiddos so the mom's get some good time working on their study.
Overall I enjoy having my time filled, although some weeks can get a little crazy. As I progress in my pregnancy, I definitely notice the toll it takes on my body and energy level. So I try to take advantage of downtime to rest my body as well.
Side note: I have been doing an online exercise program recommended to me by my midwife. It is for pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and postpartum. I am using it specifically to strengthen my core and my pelvic floor to assist in labor/birth and recovery, but I've learned so much more and get to do so many more things with it. It is so helpful and easy to fit into my day. Along with the exercise videos (about 30 minutes each), they provide tip videos regarding alignment, posture, breathing etc... They follow your pregnancy and create a plan that helps during specific times in pregnancy. It is called One Strong Mama, and I highly recommend it! It is about $200, but once you purchase it, it is yours to keep and use any time. My other option was to go see a specialized physical therapist. It would get to be equally (if not more) expensive and they would focus on one specific area, not a holistic approach to my whole body, so I found this to be a more conducive option for me. (Not being paid to advertise that...just FYI)
On to Asher's life. He has been saying the craziest things lately and I find myself chuckling at him. Thought I'd share a few here.
*He is running his little shopping cart around the house and crashing into furniture and yelling CRASH!*
Me: Asher, no more crashing the cart please.
Asher: Okay! *runs the cart, barely slows it before hitting the furniture, and yells BAM!"
Me: Asher, I said no more crashing.
Asher: I'm not crashing. I'm doing BAM!
He was asking for bites of my toast.
A: More bread please!
M: Sorry buddy, it's all gone
A: *pause* Can I see it?
M: See what?
A: See bread all gone
(He got smart and asks for proof so he doesn't miss out...)
He loves starting conversations. His favorites so far:
"How's your day/morning?"
"How was your trip?" (even if you haven't taken a trip)
"How's your friends doing?"
"Hey MOMMY! MOMMY!! WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" (all. day. long.)
He has to ask what every song is called. Every song. And then he attempts to repeat it.
Consistent vocab quirks:
Oatmobile (Oatmeal)
Adding "es" on the end of any already pluralized word to make it truly plural, in case you missed it the first time. (i.e. cars-es, tractors-es)
If you mention his baby brother, he starts right in on convincing you it is a baby sister. He is adamant for some reason. I also had a dream last night that the baby was born and we were shocked to find it was a girl. I mean the ultrasound was pretty clear...but hey, stranger things have happened.
On that note, we CANNOT settle on a name. Not because we don't agree, but because nothing is grabbing us. And we have perused hundreds of names. We have considered the most bizarre options. We have a few boundaries we are trying to stay within (no top-30-ish names-which is funny since Asher is like top 10 now-,name meaning matters, would prefer it doesn't end in -er/ar like Asher, generally avoiding D names so it doesn't sound too rhymey with Dill, and also names that have "l" sounds at the end that cause a bit of a tongue twister with Dill-like Gabriel). Maybe we are too picky. But there HAS to be a name out there that fits those parameters. We have a few options that have gotten the response, "I mean, yeah that's doable" from both Ben and I. So we are still mulling. And taking suggestions.
On to a few pictures, then I'll be done.
This was from the fall. We went to Kansas for a wedding and stayed with friends who had some pretty cool stuff on their farm!
This was the moment right after we found out we were having another boy! Asher didn't know what to do with all the exclaiming and excitement! He was fascinated by the blue dust that came out of the balloon we popped! Poor kid kept saying, "Baby sister! A pink one!" And we had to remind him that we just got a blue one and it was a baby brother...
First snow! Oh the glee!
Love these boys and their love for winter and snow!
Kind of a creepy shot of baby's face.
Potty training and painting.
Excuse the messy post-dinner table. We got this fantastic book called "Home" from our friend Daveana. Asher LOVES it and requested it so many times in a row he had it pretty much memorized. This is him "reading" it to me.
20-something weeks. They all blur.
28 weeks.
Because you definitely need two bump pics in a row.
Took Ben out to a Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra concert for his birthday! We had a delicious dinner at a fun place downtown and enjoyed the music together! It has been a while since a date night of this caliber, and it was fun. Sitting through a concert wasn't super comfortable for me, but hey, comes with the territory of baby growing, I suppose.
29 weeks!
Hey, at least I split up this one from the other two. =)
I love bump pics and feel like many moms-to-be just don't post many. So I'm over-posting so you get as many as you wish to look at!
That's all for now!
back to online christmas shopping and getting my christmas cards mailed!
au revoir!
