{ So Unprepared }

I am feeling totally unprepared for this baby. I came to the conclusion yesterday after the Woman's Conference & after holding my friend Gail's new baby girl that my reason for feeling with way besides our extra room will not be done, is that I have nothing & I mean NOTHING ready. I have always had the crib and stuff set up with my other kids at least a month before they arrive.

Sure I have been shopping for things here and there but her clothes haven't been washed, I need to paint her dresser and crib the list goes on...

So guess what I did LATE last night while contracting?

I painted her dresser black which now I need to do a little distressing to because I gotta make it more shabby chic, & the drawer pulls need to get put on.

After that, I proceeded to paint the crib. No, not the whole crib but the arch part that was stained a navy blue color, it is now black as well. So I need to dig out all my onesies and little bitty socks, clean the car seat, wash and put away her clothes and set up her crib.

So I think just getting those things out of the way I will be feeling a little better about her impending arrival & maybe it will make it seem more real that she IS actually coming. Because at this point it's not a matter of IF she is going to arrive it's WHEN.

{ I Would Blog But... }

But... it's Thursday night and it's season premiere week and my shows are on. I love, love Greys Anatomy Hello McDreamy! 

I'm so glad I have a DVR.

Tomorrow I promise to blog (fingers crossed). :)

{ My Splurge! }

Here is my latest baby purchase I was going to try and make this, but it ended up being 10 times cheaper just to purchase it thanks to eBay, 
plus I don't have to sew. 

It has 9 pieces total so when figured out with shipping each piece only cost $7.33. And I know for a fact that you can't make a chenille/toile bumper pad for 7 bucks. And yes for all of you trying to add up how much I spent it was $65.98 & this was a total splurge but I think worth it & looking around the internet I found that this set retails for $170.00 so I think I got a pretty good deal.

And if this baby is going to be in my room for a while I want something cute to

look at-- besides the baby. :)

The 9 piece set includes

~Crib Quilt
~Crib Bumper
~Fitted Sheet
~Crib Skirt (Dust Ruffle)
~2 Window Valances
~Diaper Stacker
~Toy Bag
~Decorative Pillow

And as I was watching A baby story on TLC tonight after the kids went to bed (yes I know I am lame but I'm trying to mentally prepare myself for labor yeah--still not ready) and I saw this exact bedding being used in the baby's room it was so stinking cute! So now I am excited to get it. It is expected to arrive on Thursday via a lovely FedEx truck.

The only thing I am not crazy about is the little black bows on the quilt and the pillow so they most likely will get clipped off. But I love the set & am excited!

Sigh... I love toile and chenille..... :)

Bad Blogger! I know!

Yes I know I am a bad, bad blogger. I should have posted SOMETHING by now. But haven't found it in me to do it. I promise to get back on the wagon really!

{ No-Bake Cookies }

I know 2 posts today! I am on a roll. But I figured I would put on my "good mom hat" and make the kids a snack for after school. Plus this recipe was requested by a friend so here ya go.

These are so good. I have a couple friends that don't like No-Bake Cookies but they do like these. They are worth the 10 minutes to make them.

And you don't have to use an oven, there's a plus for me. :) Enjoy!

No-Bake Cookies

2 cups sugar

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup margarine (I use butter)

1/4 cup cocoa

1/2 cup peanut butter (creamy)

1 tsp. vanilla

2 3/4 cups oatmeal (I put in 3 cups)

1/2 cup coconut (I don't add)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over medium heat mix together: sugar, milk, butter, & cocoa. Cook until well blended, DO NOT LET BOIL. Remove from heat and add peanut butter, vanilla, oatmeal & coconut. Mix well. Spoon onto wax paper & chill. Tasty-O!

Dr. Appointment Update!

Well I went in for my Dr. appt this afternoon and everything looks good. I have NOT gained any more weight so HIP HIP! Still holding at 13 pounds.

I told him about my day o' contractions on Sunday, he said he thought something was up when he saw me leaving before sacrament, he said if I can keep things quiet (uterus wise) until 34 weeks then he'll be happy. Hello 34 weeks is next Thursday. So basically if I did go into labor he would be fine delivering this little chicka! That's a little freaky if you ask me. I have always been early with my babies so we will see. Watch this will be the one baby I am overdue with......

Oh and speaking of overdue my friend Gail (she was due on the 11th) is up at the hospital as I type having their 1st baby. Good luck Gail can't wait to find out if you have a boy/girl! I'm thinking of you today. :)

AND Good Luck Laurie! She is due tomorrow with her 3rd a cute little boy (her kids are so cute) can't wait to hear from you! Man it's baby central right now. So cool.

I've Been Tagged!

1. Who is your man? Lloyd Berry
2. How long have you been together? a little over 13 yrs.
3. How long did you date? 3 months
4. How old is your man? 37
5. Who eats more? Lloyd
6. Who said "I love you" first? Don't remember how sad is that.
8. Who sings better? Uhhh ME!
9. Who is smarter? Lloyd for sure I have pregnant mom brain
10. Whose temper is worse? ME!! ME!!
11. Who does the laundry? Again, me
12. Who does the dishes? 80% me 20% Lloyd
13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Lloyd
14. Who pays the bills? Me
15. Who is better at the computer? Lloyd
16. Who mows the lawn? Me
17. Who cooks dinner? Me
18. Who drives when you are together? We both drive. I drive for most long trips though.
19. Who pays when you go out? Me
20. Who is more stubborn? Me
21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Lloyd
22. Whose parents do you see most? Lloyd's
23. Who kissed who first? It was mutual
24. Who asked who out? Never really was asked out, just hung out as friends and singled ourselves out.
25. Who proposed first? We talked about it first at the drive-in. He asked the next day I believe
26. Who is more sensitive? Lloyd & me only when it's that time of the year.
27. Who has more friends? Hello! Me At least I like to think that. But considering I am Saddam? (see post below)
28. Who has more siblings? Me 4 brothers, 1 sister
29. Who wears the pants in your family? We each take a leg. But I like to think I have control over how tight the belt is :)

There you have it I've been tagged thanks Summer!

If you feel the need to share in this tagging go ahead and post this on your blog:)

What Famous Leader am I? A Personality quiz? Hmmmm

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Yup this is the leader I am suppose to be most like. Nice huh? I wouldn't necessarily call him a leader though. I guess it's all good considering I have been a raging ball of hormones with lots of nasty contractions.

But I have to say that I agree with what the description says. "You are not afraid of confrontation". That says it all.

So I guess this means that me and Saddam will be shoveling coal together one day. Thanks for the test Melissa, my day is complete. . And I had a good laugh about it!

But where may I ask is the woman side of this, why do we have to have the personality of a man? Things that make you go Hmmmm.........

{ Happy Birthday Lloyd! }

Picture taken in Mexico 2/23/2007

Yesterday we celebrated Lloyd's 37th birthday! I keep reminding him that 40 is just around the corner. :)

We went out to eat at Cinco de Mayo for dinner (yummy). Then we came home and he opened his gift, we bought him an Aroma Ice Cream Maker. These things are so nice. Plus, when you have an ice cream-a-holic for a husband you can't go wrong with a homemade ice cream maker.

Then we had ice cream cake (thanks to Dairy Queen). I was going to get him a Cordless saw he has been eyeing, but of course I couldn't find it anywhere and it was sold out online. But he will order it anyway one of these days so no worries there. Hope you had a great day honey. Your the best. I love you!

{ I Hate Contractions & I Mean It! }

So we went to church this morning and attended all but sacrament meeting. I was having some lovely contractions along with a lot of swelling in my feet/face/well everywhere. I apologize for those of you who saw me at church I am pretty sure I didn't look very pleasant, but I was having my fun pains literally every 2-3 mins.

I was told by Lloyd when we got home that I needed to look at myself in a mirror as my face was the same face that I make while in labor. Basically PAIN! So I was able to lay down for about 4 hrs and now that I am up the contractions have slowed, I am still having some just not as many. THANK GOODNESS. I know a lot of you are saying but they are only Braxton Hicks... Well this being my 5th pregnancy Braxton hicks are no longer Braxton hicks at this point most of these puppies hurt. So that's my Sunday in a nutshell. We are having baked, I mean microwaved potatoes for dinner as our oven is still awaiting its heart transplant.

Hope everyone has a great week!

Oh, and Gail if you're out there reading this, Good luck! I am sooooo sending contractions vibes your way! Can't wait to meet your new little one this week! :)

{ I Feel like Fall }

Yes, I already have my Fall/Halloween stuff up. I know totally jumping the gun but I was feeling blah & wanted to look at something cute. Plus I love fall.

photo from 2017, I had to replace my lost picture but it's missing in my photos! EEK!! Literally...
But the Witch is the same. And yes, still broken. 

And speaking of love I LOVE my little witch she has the best wrinkles and you gotta love a witch with a wart, although she looks like she has been through a war or been jinxed by Harry Potter and one of his spells (my boys have broken some of her fingers. I need to fix her but haven't bought any clay. I made her with my Aunt Jean about 6 years ago. I love her face, my aunt made her face --I can't take credit for that one. This same Aunt makes the best Santa's. They are made like the witches only 10 times the detail and stuff. SO CUTE! Aunt Jean you're so talented!

Great now I feel the need to decorate my porch, but my darn contractions make it hard to do too much. Hmmm, maybe I can enlist Lloyd to help me.

So much to do, so much to do. Happy Fall!

{ RANT #2 }

First if you make it through this post I will send you cookies pending oven fixing. :)

Our Mid Columbia Bus Company.....

I understand their policy of keeping our kids safe BUT there have to some exceptions. They like to have all kindergartner's picked up at the bus stop by their parent. I think it's great, thanks for watching out for my child. But I'm sorry I'm not walking out to the road everyday to wait for Brinley & walk with her down our driveway, especially when this baby gets here.

I never had to meet the boys when they were in kindergarten and I am not starting with Brinley. I told the bus driver with both the boys that if my car is here I am here. Never had a problem

This year we have a new afternoon bus driver and she told me I needed to send a note saying that it was ok for Brinley to cross the street and walk down our driveway without me. So I sent a note saying that. So she got off the bus today without any problems and not 2 minutes later I get a phone call from the Mid Columbia Bus guy saying he has Brinley on one of his buses and she has a note to cross the street. I was like NO she is standing right here in my house and the bus is gone.

Well he basically started arguing with me on the fact that I am not present when Brinley gets off the bus. I told him I never did it with the boys and she is smart enough to walk from the end of the road to our house in fact she runs when she gets off the bus and is in the house in like 45 seconds. So I told the guy that I don't have a problem with her walking I can see her from inside the house and am not worried about her getting kidnapped. He then proceeded to tell me that when she does get kidnapped that they are not liable for anything because they have my note. I told them YUP that's right! Hey Mr. Man- don't get in this pregnant woman's face. I do not tolerate being spoken to like that & so I gave him a piece of my mind, as any good pregnant woman would. There was a lot more to the conversation but this post is already too long.

Here is the revised note I typed up after our little kidnapping chat.

(and yes it is on the sarcastic side but apparently they don't understand it any other way)

Brinley Berry has our permission to cross the street to walk down our driveway after getting off the bus at our house on.........rd. La Grande, OR 97850

I make sure I am home every morning as I know Brinley is coming home from School. If my white Ford Excursion or our grey Ford Pickup is in the driveway I AM HOME OR MY HUSBAND IS.. If it is not in the driveway I have picked her up from school & therefore she will not be on the bus & does not need dropped off.

Thanks,

Seriously do I have to spell it out in detail for them... It's like talking to a 3 yr old. Did I mention that we live on the slowest most non-traveled road in town? And I watch as my kids get off the bus from my house as I can hear the bus from inside the house. I sent the note as they asked so WHAT IS THE BIG DEAL? There's the question of the year.

Oh and we talk to our kids about stranger danger and all that stuff.. Hello these little people are smarter than we give them credit for. And I don't see the difference between a kindergartner and a 1st grader getting off the bus. They didn't make me go outside when my first graders got off the bus.....

And really if they are old enough to go to school in the first place I do believe they are old enough to cross the street when the bus driver instructs them to do so.

Sorry for the RANT again.

This is SO FRUSTRATING & STUPID all at the same time!

And yes I know I should be more Christ like & I know I am totally worked up about this but COME ON!

I'm blaming it on the hormones.

{ What I Would Give For Homemade Baked Anything....... }

So I have to rant for a few minutes......

Brace yourself, Effie.....

My stove, my lovely BROKEN Maytag not worth what I paid for it stove is down. AGAIN!
Here's the story not even a year ago I was broiling some garlic bread for dinner when my stove started shooting electrical sparks and then proceeded to catch on fire and burnt out the broiler element and killed the digital circuit board. And of course this happened -- I kid you not right after our warranty had run out. So I called Maytag & at first, they said there was nothing they could do for me... That is until the word "fire" came out of my mouth I was then immediately transferred to some big wig Maytag woman- they ended up replacing the parts for free but we had to pay a licensed Maytag repairman to come fix it. Nothing like paying a man 70 bucks for 20 minutes worth of work but hey, we now again have a working stove.

Then 8 days ago no... now it's almost 9 I was baking some dinner after church and I hear the magical noise of electrical sparks and saw fire as my baking element burnt itself out I was like OH COME ON SERIOUSLY! (can we all say lemon here?)

So now I am without baking ability & EVERY blogging buddy I know has been baking up a storm - bread, muffins, pizza, desserts the list goes on & on. All the while I can't bake a darn thing.

This should make it fun as Lloyd's birthday is on Saturday & I usually bake his cake, Ummm yeah not so much this year. I hope you all enjoy your yummy baked bread and everything else that is tempting calorie wise but is out of my reach. Someday my new part will come. Sigh......

I am now officially a devout Kenmore fan because the Maytag man is always on siesta----as is my stove. Moral of rant:

You don't know how much you use & miss

something until it's broken.

Rant over thanks for listening.

{ Our Mini Nephi's }

It does me good to know that my son listens in his primary class. There are days I do wonder. But on Sunday Jentry's teacher spoke to them about Nephi and when his bow broke while traveling in the woods & instead of complaining he went and made himself a new one..... Well, I believe at this point in the story Jentry stopped listening and started thinking of ways he could make a bow of his own just like Nephi had.

So he came home and I swear this kid is sooooo his father's son. He drew out on a post-it note how the bow should look, how the string should get attached and so on & so forth. Then he set out looking for a proper sized stick with the help of Parker. Well needless to say he made himself a bow, mind you the bow will never work & he knows that, but I'm just glad to know that he is listening and getting at least something out of his Sunday lessons even if it turns into a daydream of making a cool bow just like Nephi.

Hence our Family Home Evening tonight we ended up reading 1st Nephi chapter 16 the story of Nephi & his bow and giving the kids a better explanation of what happened. So yeah! 
Here's to kids listening in church. :)

{ Riding the Tooth Fairy Cash Express! }

So I now have a holey little girl. Her 1st tooth officially fell out yesterday mid-morning.

And boy was she excited.

I was hoping that this tooth would stay in until school pictures, yeah I know total wishful thinking on my part but the scrapbooker in me HAD hope.

I have a love/hate relationship with my kids losing their teeth.

1. Hooray, I love that you're growing up.

2. (The hate) now starts the phase where they just look a little funny as the teeth that are coming is are ALWAYS bigger than the ones that just left, so they start looking a little gawky (my own opinion).

All I can say is man I'm glad that you can accessorize girls with cute hair bows and clothes - helps to minimize the gawk effect.

She was very unlike the boys with her tooth falling out. The boys would work their loose tooth all day long to try and force that puppy out. Brinley, on the other hand, told us it was loose and wiggled it once to show Lloyd & I and then just left it alone. Talk about patience.

Good for you Brinley Boo & your still pretty darn cute hole & all! :)

{ Dress-Up? }

So maybe it's a good thing that Brinley is going to be in school every day. This is what she did to Corbin this morning! lol This is one of the mild pictures before I grabbed my camera he was sporting a lovely pink tiara and Brinley's church shoes while walking around holding his basket full of plastic fruit in one hand & a pink star wand complete with feathers in the other.

Poor little boy looked like a girl...... 
Just looking at him makes me want to break out into song. 
Well a Cinderella song at least.

{ So I Lied }

I forgot about these pictures of Corbin. I decided to snap a couple of pictures of Corbin while we waited for Brinley to get out of class. Corbin was sooooo excited to see his sister. I took enough pictures of the older kids so I kinda need to include Mr. Corbin into the back to school mix. :)

There now I'm done till next year. Seriously.

{ First Day of School }

There was a little girl who had a crooked smile.

Well, we survived Brinley's first day. I held it together extremely well as she got on the bus, I'm pretty sure I got all my eyeball water leakage out last night. She had fun and can't wait until Monday when she starts going every day.

Corbin was as I expected-wondering where in the heck Brinley was. He kept saying all morning "where brinwey" (brinley). I'm pretty sure he's not that impressed having me as a playmate. It's a good thing she is home by 11:00. :)

I promise not to post anymore beginning of school pictures. At least until next year that is.

And yes I get these kids looking at the bus shot every year. 

Sorry about posting yet another one, but I had to get one with all 3. I'm a mom it's my job.

{ Tomorrow She's Off }

Pre-school picture September 11th 2006

Gosh 2 down 1 to go!

My little girl is going to kindergarten & she is so ready, she has packed her backpack with her snack for her class, picked out on her own her outfit (usually my job) and has everything stacked in a neat little pile ready for 6:45 a.m. It's funny for me to think that she will be in school every year from here on out.

I think I have always thought of her as being home with me and helping me out in her usual mini mom shadow kind of way. I know she is ready to be out there with other kids her own age & is extremely excited to "really" be in school.

And yes I know that I have been saying for a while now how nice it's going to be to have 3 out of 4 of my kids in school but in a way it's suddenly hard for me to let her go. She is after all my first little girl.

Oh me oh pregnant my, I am getting all teary eyed just typing this (dang hormones) I am so going to be a wreck putting her on the bus in the morning. Yes, she wants to ride the bus with her brothers rather than have me take her for her first day. Well, at least I get to pick her up.

Brinley, I love you, I hope you have an exciting day!

{ Baby Dr. Appt. }

I had a Dr. Appointment this morning and found out that I have gained another 5 pounds! Holy helmet! How is that possible in one month?

I have gained a total of 13 pounds with this baby.

Oh, the Horror! :(

I know some of you are totally laughing at me right now or just saying shut up, but when your already overweight & as big as a freight liner to begin with adding anything extra completely stresses me out. I suppose I should get my butt back on my elliptical. But oh the tiredness I feel doesn't make me want to "work out". Even though I soooooo know I should. I just need to make myself do it, I could always nap later, right?

Doc said that everything looks good and if I could give him 4 more weeks without any more bleeding problems then we can breathe a sigh of relief as the baby would be far enough along that if I did go into labor he would be ok with delivery her. And I have officially moved into the every 2 weeks Dr. visits so this pregnancy is coming to a close sooner than I would like. I still feel really unready to be a mom to a newborn again.

I sure hope that changes when she comes out. I was talking with my cousin Donna at the park on Saturday and we both saw a mom walk by with a newborn in a car seat. My cousin was all--Oh Rachel your gonna have one of those pretty soon. And I was like HELLO!! SO NOT READY! I don't have that please let me hold your new baby syndrome. What is wrong with me?

Well, that's my update. Oh & I passed my glucose test with flying colors. Hip Hip for me. Yes, this post is a total Debbie Downer... I know... I know.....

{ 1st Day Of School..... }

Ahhhh...... Need I say more? :)

{ School Time! }

First day of school 2005 Jentry 2nd grade

Parker Kindergarten

Tomorrow marks the first day of school for Jentry & Parker. They are excited & I am beyond ready to be back into a regular routine. I know every mom says it but really I can't believe that I will have 3 kids in school this year! Jentry in 4th, Parker in 2nd, & Brinley in kindergarten.
Brinley's first day of school really isn't a first day in my book because she is going to school for testing, they like to see where each child is at educationally and doing it in a small group helps the child get to know the classroom without ALL the kids being there and maybe help them not be so overwhelmed.
But as of next Monday, she goes with her brother's on the bus Monday-Friday. Poor Corbin is going to go through withdrawals not having Brinley around in the mornings, he's her little buddy and she is a little mother to him. He will have to adjust but it shouldn't be too bad he won't be alone for too long. :)

Well, I'll post more tomorrow. Wish us luck!

{ A Little Visit To The Labor & Delivery Ward }

picture via the inter-webs ;) 

I got a little surprise today (no not the baby) but I had gone to the bathroom to pee for the 75th time today & saw blood on my liner. I have never had this happen with any of the other kids so it kinda freaked me out just a tad. Now I had to call my Relief Society President to talk RS bulletin board stuff and figured I would casually ask for her husband who happens to be my OB/GYN & who is the OB on call this weekend, and he said I needed to go up to Labor & Delivery to get checked & monitored.

So I did as I was told and when I got there the nurse basically did a pap smear & swabbed me so they could do some testing to make sure I wasn't going into labor & then she checked for blood which there wasn't anymore, just a little pink skiff-.

I am not dilating but was told my cervix is nice and soft. Then she strapped me to the monitor and watched as I had one contraction after the next and monitored the baby's heartbeat. Everything looked fine & my test results said that I am not going into labor. Thank goodness. But the way she said it was kinda strange, she said your test results are negative so you shouldn't be going into labor in the next 2 weeks... What???? Huh? Did I miss something?

So I was sent home with the instructions that I am supposed to take it easy. Ya much easier said than done with 4 kids roaming around the house. 
But I will try. Good thing it's a long weekend.

But on the upside of things Lloyd got all the electrical ran for the outlets & light fixture and he installed the new door in our new room! Things are happening! We still have a way to go but I can actually see the room finished in my head. I just need to find some cute bedding and curtains. Any suggestions?