Brain Dump

Nine weeks left & nesting has arrived. For the last three days, I have been bouncing from project to project, tying up loose ends. Just saying "loose ends" makes me laugh. I've got basically nothing done that needs to be done to prepare for this little Miss so, we're more along the lines of "starting from the beginning". 

That's me: last minute Alisha. 

I suppose nine weeks is a little more time than last minute, but if you think about it terms of I had 40 weeks, well....

I'm tired, which is normal for me but it seems like with this little Miss, I'm much more tired; which could be one of two things: I'm older & I weigh more. Bleck. You can't win'em all. The morning sickness isn't as bad anymore so, yay! Winner, winner, chicken dinner! 

I had a ton of ideas to write about and none of them are coming to mind right now. Nope, not a one. 

Lots has been going on. The Lord has blessed my little home business. I'm super excited about that. It challenges me to create more. The boys are both playing baseball this spring, which is exciting to see them have  a good time practicing for upcoming opening day. 

We're making some home improvements, slowly but surely. 
My oldest was out sick from school a few weeks ago & he turned on the show Flip or Flop  & it made me want to start ripping out walls. How great is that show? We've got a few small things to get done & we've got a few large things that need done, as well. No big rush, really. I'm sure Andy would prefer later, rather than sooner. I would like to tackle a few of the smaller projects before little Miss gets here but it's a whole lot less work for me and a whole lot more work for him, at this point in the pregnancy. We'll do what we can do and the rest will wait. He tackled replacing some damaged area in our kitchen floor over the weekend & I get to choose what floor covering goes back! So, I get my little design time.

We've basically skipped Winter & Spring here in Southeast Georgia, and darted right toward Summer. Yay. Do you hear the enthusiasm? If you ever think Climate Change is wrong, well, I beg to differ. It was ninety-one degrees at one point yesterday & it's April. Yep, I'm already getting the pool ready & that usually doesn't happen until May. 

I'm beginning to think that I am writing just to unload my brain so there's room for more. I'm rambling on and on. Who am I kidding? That's what I always do. It just seems to happen more frequently for me during pregnancy. It's funny, they have a laundry list of questions to ask at the doctor, but they never ask, "do you feel more and more nuts as the days pass?" If you've been there, you know. If you haven't, move along, there's nothing to see, hear, or read here. 

I've been making silly, hormonal videos. I don't know why really. It's basically just another brain dump. It helps. Admission is the first step to recovery, right? Well, maybe it's the first step back toward sanity, too. We'll see.

Oh look, shiny!

You know what else I have discovered? OILS! I was up until one a.m. this morning reading my Essential Oil Pocket Reference, which is super cool! All I can think of is all the help I can give my family! 

That's pretty much all I've got for now, except for the fact that I'm in the middle of this great study: All Things New study. I haven't actually made it to class yet, but I'm doing the study from home and it is phenomenal! I'll leave you with these scriptures:

16 Therefore we do not give up. Even though our outer person is being destroyed, our inner person is being renewed day by day. 17 For our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory. 18 So we do not focus on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.

2 Corinthians 4: 16-18 (HCSB)

Too Blessed to be Stressed!

Sugar & Spice

I had this idea in my mind for months. I even searched Pinterest to make sure no one else thought of it already. My husband & I have two gorgeous boys & we're adding a girl in June of 2017. 

The "photoshoot" didn't turn out exactly  as planned; it never does. You should see the outtakes. No, I won't go there. 

I keep saying that I don't know what I'll do with a girl. I've pretty much been a tomboy my whole life. I wore makeup in high school, but that's about as far as it went. I'm low maintenance. I prefer to spend my time elsewhere. Not that there's anything wrong with anything else, I just stick with what works for me. 

The more I think about having a girl, the more excited I get. I get to play dress up & wear a tutu, too. Yes, I will be dressing up too, so if you see me in public dressed as a princess, don't let it shock you. 

A girl won't be any different than my two gorgeous boys. We'll cherish her, too. Children are gifts. It hurts my heart to know that they're not all treated that way. That they're not all cherished. Some children are treated as burdens & are basically left out to fend for themselves. Children should be seen & heard & believed!

My oldest & I have been having a hard time lately. I'm praying it's just a stage. I'm praying that we move to the next scene sooner than later. 

Parenthood is overwhelming at times; a lot of the times, it seems. That's what people don't want you to know. That parenting, or life, for that matter, isn't always rainbows & moonbeams. It's not. 

Sometimes it's hard & I want to throw in the towel. Nope. God's got me covered. He's taking care of things, if I just let Him. But I have to consistently let Him. Taking back problems from God's care doesn't do any good. I'm an expert on that. 

So, for all of you who wished & prayed for us a girl, your prayers have been answered. My prayers are for a healthy baby, whether it be a boy or a girl, it will be loved & cherished.

For this child, we prayed.

- Samuel 1:27

Nothing is Too Big for God

I'm not actually sitting beside this lovely water right now, the picture is for attention. On average, I'm blogging once a month now. Again, 1,000 ideas & not enough time to make posts happen. Okay so, I'm telling stories. There are twenty-four hours in every day, it's how I choose to spend each day & in recent months, there's been no extra time allotted for blogging. And, I'm terrible about posting. I think of something to post & I talk myself out of it. This feels like deja vu. I've said this before. Repeatedly. 

The water is the marsh by my Gramma's house, where she lived before she died. I miss her terribly. When I found out I was pregnant a few months ago, she was the first person I wanted to call. BOOM! The cat is out of the proverbial bag on social media. Other than a #prenatalyoga hashtag I used on Instagram a week ago, I've not actually made it official just yet. All five of you who read my blog probably already know so technically, the cat is in the bag still. 

Geez Louise, I get sidetracked so easily. Look----SQUIRREL! My Gramma would've said a little something like, "why? What were you thinking, Alisha??" Yes, she was dedicated to her harshness & that's putting it mildly. That doesn't make me miss her any less though. I loved that woman so much, I still do. She taught me so much about life, about choices, about what to do, what not to do. I pray everyone has that person that's able to make an impact on their life like that. She was not biologically my Mother, but she sure enough stepped in & played the part that I needed all my life. 

My last doctor's appointment, I drove up and sat by the water & had lunch & it, of course, was gorgeous. I'd like to think she was there with me. The vibrant her that could spend hours walking on the beach & picking up shells. 

Her apartment building overlooked the marsh & she had the best view that I have ever seen. It was breathtaking. God, I wish I could lay on her couch and nap again. I love her so much. Yes, I'm hormonal & I am absolutely no nonsense at this point. There is no extra space for foolishness in my life right now. Andy said I was psycho with Evan (our second child) & he's right, I was. It's elevated to nut-ward-worthy with our third; promise. 

For the last two Sundays, I've teared up at church. Okay, I've pure ugly-cried. Yep, I have. I can't control it. I have no control, whatsoever, over my hormones. I would like to believe I'm not a bumbling basketcase but..... if the shoe fits. 

There are so many things happening in this world & so much that is bigger than me. However, nothing is too big for God.

Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. - James 5:16(KJV)

M.O.M.

Throughout this pregnancy I have said over and over that I am going to buy a can of Mace and start spraying these people when they ask me if I'm having twins. Sadly, I would probably be locked up for spraying someone. When in reality, they should be locked up for being so rude. I mean, really people? I'm unsure of overall statistics for pregnant women & I can't vouch for everyone, but I know me and pregnancy are rather emotional together, with lots and lots of lovely little mood swings. 

M.O.M. = Mace or Manners PEOPLE!!!!!!!

At the present, 20 (yep, I said 20) folks have asked me if I'm having twins. The number continues to grow, the bigger I get... 

Today makes 16 days left until the arrival of our enormous sugar lump. I'm anxious to see what he weighs and to see if he looks like his big brother, Owen. Wouldn't it be funny if he only weighed six pounds? NO, it would not be. Sure, I've only gained half of what I gained with Owen, but it still wouldn't be funny. 

I look forward to getting back into my daily exercise routine. I miss it. You're probably thinking, why did you stop exercising? Well, it was a choice between exercise and breathing like I should be. I chose the latter of the two. It just made more sense to me. 

We're last minute this go 'round. His room isn't finished, but it is in the works. It's looking wonderful & I'm excited to see the outcome. Andy doesn't agree with the color I've chosen for the walls, but hey, when do we ever agree on decorating? NEVER. 

As a matter of fact, we can't even agree on a name. We agree that we can never agree though. That's a start, right? The morning we went to have Owen is when his name came about. 

It won't be long now...

Miss Piggy

The time is here. The dreaded "D" word has arrived. GASP! It seemed like it was far off until Krispy Kreme and I got reacquainted . Oh Krispy Kreme, let me count the ways my thighs have a distaste for you.
I'll have to assume that you know what the "D" word is and we'll move forward. Chances are, if you're anything like me, you've dieted for most of your life, only to discover that diets ultimately do not work.
In 2010, I started working out to rid myself of the rest of the 100 lbs. I gained with our first little (okay, not so little - 9 lbs. 15 oz.) bundle of sugar. I continued to eat what I wanted (do you think I'll ever learn?) and got to a point where I wasn't losing anymore. 
So, I changed my routine up. I started riding my bicycle. At first, I couldn't ride a mile without being winded. I graduated to almost 13 miles! Yay me! After that, I incorporated Zumba. That's an excellent workout. I love, love, love it! It really tones, tightens & makes your core super strong. 
I then, adding running. That's where I found my obsession. I wasn't able to run real fast or real long, but I was working at it. I ran my first 5k in 37 minutes, which I thought was excellent for my first time. I started mapping out all 5k's I wanted to participate in, started running regularly and joined the YMCA.
After about 3 weeks of the YMCA, I found out I was pregnant. Again, yay! We'd been trying for 10 months off and on; let me explain (it just sounded odd when I read it again). Four months into deciding we wanted another child, my love proposed. After 10 years together, we got married.
Obviously, after gaining 100 pounds with our first little bundle of sugar, I didn't want a growing body in a wedding dress, nor did I want anyone thinking that's why we got married. 
Well, I was (and still am) so obsessed with exercise, I wanted to continue with everything I was doing.Then along came morning sickness and exhaustion. NOPE, no exercising like I was; no matter how much I wanted to, my body wouldn't let me. I continued to walk as much as I could, but no running, no Zumba and I slacked off at the YMCA.
Moving on (slowly, I know)...
I told myself in the beginning of this pregnancy that I would gain 50 pounds MAX. At 40 pounds, I would cut out sugar. Well, it didn't quite happen that way. AT 40 pounds, instead of cutting out sugar, I upped the sugar. Sadly (and also, fortunately), it makes my heart beat incredibly fast so...out it went. I actually wrote this blog entry on Feb. 4th, but it didn't get finished until today. 
I now eat minimal sugar (going on 5 days) and drink no diet sodas (it's been about 10 days and I did have one Sprite Zero). I haven't been feeling like I was before. Thank goodness. I am eating around 1,800-2,000 healthy calories a day and baby is growing well, but I'm not! At 49 pounds gained, I look forward to getting back to my routine of daily exercise, but am no longer overwhelmed by the weight gain. 
I am going to do my best to continue this healthy eating (I prefer those words over diet any day). I've attempted healthy eating in the past and have had phenomenal results. Unfortunately, I always fall back into my Miss Piggy eating habits.

Time to make it happen!