Christmas for Dad

We are planning ahead this year because of my due date:

me: Carolyn, what should we get Dad this year for Christmas?
Carolyn: huh?
me: A present. What kind of present do you want to get Papa?
Carolyn: uh....to come home.

Luckily for Carolyn, Jeremy has the month of December pretty much off to welcome the new baby.

Happy Halloween

We carved our pumpkin today right before we left for the trunk-or-treat. Here's Carolyn checking out his candle.


I think this has been Carolyn's favorite holiday so far. She really got in the spirit of saying "trick or treat" and "happy Halloween." Jeremy took her house to house and he said she was having so much fun she was running between houses. I just think she's the cutest ladybug I've ever seen.

He's growing up

Lucky me, my doctor was worried that the baby wasn't growing enough, so she requested an ultrasound for that day! The baby was just in a totally weird position, and is actually a little larger than my due date would suggest. Here are pictures of the growing boy.
This is his little face kind of turned toward the camera. You can see his forehead, eye, and cheek at the top of the frame.

Profile shot.

Carolyn dresses herself these days

Pumpkin Patch

Jeremy so often misses these activities because of work, but I missed two chances this week to go out to this farm and really wanted to make it. They have cute cows there, or so I've heard.

And cute sheep, but the rooster is suspect.

Is this our pumpkin? Nope.

Not this one either. Still looking.

I found it, Mom! I found it!

We must have walked that whole field twice until Carolyn was willing to call a pumpkin her own. Who knew she could be so picky. We thought she wasn't going to pick a single one, but when she saw her pumpkin, she just knew.

It's over

Carolyn started swim class four weeks ago. I have wanted to do this with her for over a year, but it never worked well. Being due in two months, this was kind of a now or never sort of situation, so we signed up for the Mommy & Me swim class. I am so glad that we did this together. She loved her time in the pool, and the whole way there each day, she would tell me all the things we would do: songs, wash arms, bubbles, etc.

It was a tough four weeks because whoever made the schedule for the classes never had toddlers, or at least had them long enough ago that they forgot how hard it is to mess with nap or meal times. My two options were 12:20-12:50 or 5:20-5:50. Seriously? Those are my options?! Every Monday and Wednesday, Carolyn turned into a ticking time bomb. We would try to time lunch so she ate right before class and wasn't asking for food. Then we would rush out of the water at 12:50, get dressed, have a snack in the car, and try to get her in bed before 1:45. At least half the time Carolyn was yelling at me the whole way home about one issue or another. It was exhausting. Add in the extra fetus I've been toting around, and I think I was more tired than Carolyn ever was after going to class.

But her face after riding this giant water slide? Totally worth the whole thing.

It must be real...

In order to have room for a baby in a few months, we transitioned Carolyn into her big girl room yesterday.

Her whole room. Ignore the sheets at the window. I have yet to get a shade to darken her room.

Her bed (I just want to point out to her Uncle Scott that Bob (rechristened Littlefoot after Carolyn saw The Land Before Time) sleeps next to Carolyn's bed now at her request).

Wall thingies I painted and put together for her.

Lamp on the wall

This was actually in her old room. Now it hangs above her closet. I just like it.

We actually had to move quite a few things around to get her room ready. I took over our extra bedroom sometime in July because I couldn't sleep in our bed anymore with my hip pain. We finally took some furniture out of the master bedroom and that left room for my air mattress. It's nice to be back in my old room. Sharing a wall with Carolyn was not easy.

I just can't believe it's time to move her. This means a baby is really coming. It's no longer "things that should be done someday," but "if this doesn't get done, Baby and Carolyn will share a crib come December."

Cousin Fun

I was upstairs minding my own business instead of Carolyn when Gordon caught Carolyn and Chandler indulging in a little fun. Catch the video on Rachel's blog!

Elmo-wears!

Carolyn has shown numerous signs that she is ready to potty train. I really didn't want to start the process because of things like my giant belly, my aching hips, my extra sensitive nose.

The process started months ago when her cousin potty trained. She was fascinated watching him climb up on the toilet and would periodically ask to do it herself. We got a kid ring to go in our seat, but I never tried to get her to go. I finally decided that she was ready though when she messed a diaper, took it off herself, and climbed on the toilet to finish. Sorry if that's too much information for you all, but most of you are parents.

We went to Target to pick out underwear, and, surprise, Carolyn picked out Elmo ones. She actually calls them her elmo-wears. It is her favorite part of the day to pick out which Elmo design to wear.

She is doing fantastic. We've had accidents sure, but I never thought it would be this easy. It's been four days and two of those are accident-free. I know there's a lot more to do with nap time and night time, but she likes the potty so there just isn't the fighting I thought would happen.


She gets an m&m with each success we have, but this evening, she decided she wanted a Tums. Isn't it sweet she sees her mom eat them like candy right now and just thinks they are so delicious? When she asks for them, I give her the nasty green ones. Fewer of them for me to eat.

A Little Catch Up

We got a replacement AC cord so I can finally take the time to blog. I hope this one lasts longer than 2.5 months.

Carolyn has started swimming lessons at the pool. She loves it. I go in the pool with her and help keep her afloat. I didn't realize how heavy I was feeling from this pregnancy until I got out of the pool the first time. I really noticed the return to full gravity. Her lesson is right before nap time, so we always have a made dash to get her home and in bed before she turns into a beast. I don't think we've made it yet.

We've been to the zoo a lot in the past month. We got a membership pass, which was one of the best choices we made. Carolyn would go to the zoo every day if we let her, especially now there is a newborn elephant. We hear about him quite a bit. Although walking the zoo just about kills my hips and wears me out, it's worth it for Carolyn to take a good nap afterward.

Other than that, it's mostly survival until the baby comes. Unfortunately that's like 12 more weeks away! I think I forgot how big and awkward pregnant ladies get. Or I didn't really notice the first time because I wasn't trying to wrestle a two-year-old girl into a diaper. She is surprisingly strong while I have no core strength whatsoever.

Carolyn has done some adorable things lately, but I can't remember any of them at the moment. Here are the most recent pictures we have. They are over a month old from when Jeremy's parents were here for a visit. Apparently, while I couldn't blog, I also was not motivated to take pictures.

Busy Month

I'm not still in Utah. I made it back without all the drama of flying out there. But since then, Jeremy's parents were here and then my little sister. While she was here, our AC cord went out again for the laptop, effectively curbing my computer time. We are waiting for a replacement, and when we get one, more recent pictures of Carolyn will go up.

Quick Carolyn story before I try to get some sleep:
We were at a friend's house last night watching football when Carolyn climbed up on my lap to take a breather from playing. I asked her if I could have a kiss. She looks at me and thinks about it and tells me no. She then wiggles off my lap, goes over to her 3-year-old friend Mason, takes his face in her hands and plants one on him.

I thought traveling without a child was supposed to be easier!

I can thank my sister for actually amassing enough credits to graduate for my first solo trip. That means without Jeremy and without Carolyn. I love having Carolyn with me, but not the plane rides it takes to get places. The child does not sleep in public. She stopped sleeping at church at 4 months. She rarely falls asleep in cars. And planes, forget about it.

I was looking forward to a nice, leisurely flight down to SLC. I even packed a book in my carry-on to read on the plane.

We left with a little more than two hours until flight time. For those not in the area, that would have put me at the airport with an hour before my flight if we hit rush hour traffic. We didn't hit rush hour traffic. We hit a freaking accident that stopped all eastbound traffic on the freeway. Once we saw ambulances heading toward the site, we realized this was not going to clear up anytime soon. We were close to a light rail station, so Jeremy pulled off the freeway to put me on the MAX. No big deal. I should still get to the airport with 30-40 minutes to spare.

I don't want to bore all you outside Portland with the details, but apparently there is construction on the steel bridge going over the river that has thrown all the light rail lines out of whack. This means instead of getting directly on the Airport line, I would need to board one rail to go to the edge of downtown, hustle my pregnant booty off that rail to a shuttle to take me to the Rose Quarter where I then wait for the line that will take me to the airport. All of this changing meant I watched my buffer zone whittle away. At the Rose Quarter I had to wait 12 minutes before the airport line showed. I know 12 minutes doesn't seem like much, but when it looks like you might miss a flight, it is a long stinking time.

My flight was scheduled to leave at 5:50. The airport line showed up at 5:10. I was told it takes 30 minutes to get to PDX. Argh! We actually arrived at 5:37. Have you ever seen a 5-month pregnant woman booking it through the airport carrying her suitcase?! Well, it isn't very graceful. I managed to be at my gate at 5:47. Out of breath, with my calves cramping (I think the last time I ran was 5 weeks pregnant before the puking took over my body), I called Jeremy to tell him I actually made my flight. Last person on the flight. Was seated for two minutes max before the flight departed.

I will admit that I did pull my book out once I caught my breath twenty minutes into the flight.

Hallelujah for not trying to carry a two-year old through this ordeal! I optimistically believe the rest of this trip will go smoother.

Solo Prayer

Carolyn insisted on saying our family prayer without any assistance. This isn't verbatim, but it's pretty close:

Dear Father,

Thank you for dolly, water, blanket, pillow, Chan Chan, Papa, Baby, Aidan, Ethan, water, dolly. Jesus, Amen.

Saddle Mountain

Jeremy had the great idea to go camping last weekend. He also worked it out so I could plan and pack the whole thing while he just showed up to go after work on Friday. How convenient! We invited my brother's family and had a great time.


The kids were impatient for dinner and the trail mix ended up spilled on the ground. That didn't stop them from snacking. I believe the m&ms were eaten in about 5 seconds flat.


Once dinner was ready, it was delicious. This was my very first dutch oven cooking experience, unless you count girls camp when I was 11. It turned out great!


Ethan, after enjoying some s'mores.


This is Carolyn pretending to sleep in her sleeping bag. Trust me, it was not this easy to get her to bed. She thought the tent was the coolest thing ever and couldn't stop exploring. Jeremy ended up sleeping on the ground in Carolyn's assigned spot, while she joined me on the air mattress. And I ended up on the very edge of the mattress by the time the night was over. She definitely needs a crib to keep her confined while she sleeps!

Daddy-Daughter Bonding Time