"Lilliana-isms"

Here is a list of a couple conversations Lilliana and I have had recently, they are too cute to forget so I wanted to make sure I wrote them down ....

While we were driving to eat dinner the other night she told Clay and I; "look at all those crape murdles (myrtles)"
now every time we drive by one she will point them out, which is a lot!

She is constantly talking about her birthday and asking when it is going to be here, I told her everyone in our family that was going to have birthday before her and she actually remembered.

When we were playing dress-up the other day, she ran into the TV stand and bumped her toe, she started to cry and came over for me to hold her. We had plans to go to a birthday party that evening so I asked her if she thought her foot would be better by then or if she thought we just needed to stay home. I was told that, "mom, cake will make by boo boo better, cake makes everything better!" I agree little love :)

While I was preparing lunch the other day, Lilliana was playing on her table and coloring some pictures in her coloring book. I saw her drop her entire baggie of crayons and markers and then she proceeded to say, "my Dadda is going to come in here and say, Lilliana Elise Burchett, you better clean that up right now, he's going to tell me, Lilliana Elise Burchett, you have to the count of 5." I guess she does listen to us at times, whether she minds or not!

When we were at storytime last week she was such a hoot. She was singing all of the songs and would say, "big finish" just like Mrs. Marjorie does at the end of certain songs. She knew just when to raise her voice in "The Itsy Bitsy Spider" and used all the right fingers for "Where is Thumpkin". Everyone was laughing at her and I just wish I'd had my camera with me that day. What a site I could have caught!

Then today, when we were at storytime, I asked her why she wasn't singing and dancing around like last week and she told me, "Mom, there are too many kids here today, I can't move around like I like." She was right, the place was packed!!

I bought her a new Dora book called "Dora's Big Sister" well, to say she loves it would be putting it mildly. I think we have already read it front to back at least 20 times. There is one part in the book where Dora says to practice rocking your baby and Lilliana always imitates her with her hands. Then she will sing, "Rock A Bye Baby". She decided she wanted to try this out on Maggie the other night and it was just precious. Of course, Maggie was fighting her most of the way, but Lilliana was determined to rock and sing her 'sister' to bed.

I know there are probably a thousand more things she has said recently that I just can't recall but she has just become so animated these days. I love her soooo much!!

GTT

Today was my glucose tolerance test. Oh, how I really dislike this test and hope and pray I pass because I can't imagine having to sit there for 3 hours feeling that yucky! But, I am so thankful to have made it this far and still on my feet and able to work. Here's hoping to good results in the next 3-5 days because sugar has become one of my favorite foods!!

Otherwise, things are going well, I have finally, I hope, slowed down on weight gain. I got worried for a bit there because I gained 4 1 /2 pounds in 2 weeks! Yes, you read that correctly. I am only about 11 pounds away from the amount I gained with Lilliana. I know that all I want is a healthy full-term baby but come on. I have started having more frequent back pain at night and I am sure it's because of all this weight gain. Here's hoping that since I didn't gain any weight in the past week I can keep that up.

The test dog

On Tuesday while Lilliana was napping, I decided to make a trip to Babies-R-Us to pick up a few things for "Baby Larry". I had received a gift certificate from my mother in law to purchase some things for the baby so decided to go ahead and put it to use. I was pleasantly surprised to run across the G cloth diapers I had been researching online and was able to purchase a few to try. I also got some disposable inserts along with the washable inserts that go with them. I also picked up a miracle blanket, new unisex Boppy cover and a new bathtub. Overall, it was a successful trip and I was pleased with the amount of items I was able to get with my gift certificate.

When I got home, I found the sweetest sight. Clay had gone in to check on Lilliana and they were actually both sleeping peacefully in her bed. It was so precious. Unfortunately when I tried to get a pic they both woke up, but at least it was time for them to go ahead and get up.

Lilliana was excited to see what I had purchased for the new baby so we decided to try some of the new items out on Maggie. This is actually something Clay and I have done for a while now. Before we had Lilliana, we tried out most of her new things on Maggie too! I know, poor dog, but she is a pretty good sport. I couldn't resist getting some pics of her, she is such a good dog to put up with all we do to her!!

Where a kid can be a Kid!

Last night Lilliana and I headed to Chuck E Cheese to meet up with some friends for my friend Sonya's little boys birthday party. I was a little leery at first because I haven't ever taken Lilliana anywhere like that and I wasn't sure how she would do but she had a great time. She had so much fun playing all the games and riding on the little "rides". Of course I was armed and ready with my travel size Clorox spray and antibacterial hand wash because ya know, you can never be too careful! :)

After playing all the games we headed to the party area and enjoyed yummy pizza and the Chuck E Cheese mouse came out to sing to Joshua and wish him a Happy Birthday. I wondered how L would do and besides the fact that she initially told me she was ready to go and that she didn't like that weird looking Mickey Mouse, she settled out. I just put her on my lap and she ended up giving him a high five before he left. She is such a silly little girl! We had such a fun night, I may even have to take her back one night with just the family!!

Lilliana and her "sister"

Lilliana just ADORES Maggie, (our little yorkie). She wakes up from her naps and in the morning and calls for her. I am pretty sure the feeling is somewhat mutual although I know Lilliana drives Maggie crazy at times. Ever since we put Lilliana in her big girl room, she is always asking Maggie to come play with her in her pink room. She wants to rock her in the rocking chair, and read her bible stories on the bed. She is just too funny. I can only hope and pray she will adore her little sibling this much in the years to come. This is actually a relationship that has really come full circle in the last few months because before that time, Maggie didn't want much to do with Lilly. She would run from her and hide when she would call her name. I think she has recently realized that she is here to stay and that she is just going to have to learn to deal with her demanding ways! :)

Lilliana loves to play dress-up and put hair bows in Maggie's hair and place all of her beads around her neck. We recently took Mag's to get her hair cut and Lilliana was so worried about leaving her "baby sister" as Lilliana calls her at Miss Vesta's house for her hair appointment. I really thought she was going to cry when we left but I was able to get her mind off of the fact that we left her pretty quickly. She did ask where she was about a hundred times before we picked her back up though.

I just love this little inside look on how life is going to change in the near future. How fabulous would it be if the new baby would just be as easy going as Maggie is, unfortunately I think it's only because this one is unable to talk back!!

Maternity Pics

Our fabulous photographer Elizabeth posted a sneak peek of our family / maternity pictures today at Memorial Gardens. I think they look great so far and I can't wait to see the rest! Head on over to her blog to check them out!

Another week down ...

Here we are almost into my 7th month of pregnancy and I just can't believe it. When I think about the time I have left I get so emotional because although it seems like forever for a worried Mommy to be counting each day, I can't help but think about the short amount of time I have left with just me and my little love. She has been struggling a bit lately with her new room and asking to sleep with Clay and I in our big bed. I know she loves her new room because she talks about it non-stop and tells everyone she sees about her new pink room. I think some of it is just a lot of new transitions at once. I am genuinely worried about how she is going to handle everything and just pray that she doesn't resent me. I love all the special little times that we have together and just hope we are able to continue some of those. I want to try really hard not to put blame on the new baby for the many changes that are coming.

I have watched so many moms of 2 or more children and heard many conversations that go something like this; "sorry but we have to go home because your sibling is crying" or "I'm sorry we can't do that, baby needs to ____". I know that there are going to be times that our routine is going to be interrupted and there will definitely be adjustments to be made. But, I don't want Lilliana resenting her sibling and feeling like they are the ones to blame for the many changes. I hope I don't have a false sense of what life will be like with 2 but I know it will be all worth it.

Today I had a hair appointment and MD appointment with Dr. W so Lilliana spent the afternoon with GiGi. She had a great time swimming and playing in her 'room' there but did not take a nap. I get so frustrated when she does this because if she is at home, there is no doubt she will get a nap. It just seems like when her schedule is overly interrupted these days, she really fights her sleep. Of course, we had plans tonight to go to a Redbirds Game but we just sent Daddy on to the game with Uncle Eric. I will say, it's nice to be sitting inside enjoying the air conditioning because I'm pretty sure they are burning up by this point!

Things went well at my appointment. "Baby Larry" is still measuring about 2 weeks ahead and weighing a whopping 2 lb 12 oz.!! I was really surprised that it had grown that much in the last couple weeks. Another surprise was that I gained another 2 1/2 lb. I have a feeling I am getting a little out of control!! Dr. W just laughs at me and says not to worry but I'm only about 12 pounds away from when I delivered Lilliana and I am not a fan of all this weight gain!! Not sure what I'm going to do considering I'm starting to grow out of my maternity clothes!! Dr. W did give me some hope when she decided we would discuss our birth plan. I really wanted to try and avoid another c-section this time if at all possible. Of course, I will do whatever needs to be done for a healthy baby but the reason I had a section with L was because she was breech. When I asked her in the very beginning she told me we would not discuss those options for a while so it really caught me by surprise when she brought it up today. She told me she is willing to let me try a VBAC as long as there aren't any complications and that I am progressing like a normal pregnant lady. We will just see, I am just glad we talked about it. I go back next week for my glucose test and I am not looking forward to that, but I am thankful that we are to this point in my pregnancy because I feel like it is a milestone.

Here's hoping and praying for at least 11 more weeks!!

Wednesday

This morning, Lilliana and I headed out to Collierville to meet up with Nana and watch "Charlotte's Web" at the movie theatre. It was so much fun although L didn't sit nearly as still as she did for "Alvin and the Chipmunks" but I'm pretty sure she wasn't the only restless little one in the theatre. :) Afterwards, we headed to Chick-fil-A for some yummy lunch and then played in the play area for a little bit before heading back home.

After naps, and a linen change on Lilliana bed secondary to some tee tee during naptime, we got a bath, ate dinner and headed to church for biblestudy. We have been trying to take advantage of the many activities Memphis has going on during these hot summer month's that involve staying inside, especially since the high was over 100 degrees today! So miserable, combined with the humidity and one pregnant Momma who already needs to be drinking a lot of water and not getting dehydrated! I would love to spend more days at the sprinkler park or outside in the pool but it is just too hot at this point. Hoping we will have another little cool off in the next few weeks so we can take advantage of some of these fun activities.

I didn't take any pics today but I will try and get some pictures of Lilliana's new big girl room we have been working on in the next couple days. It is pink and she absolutely loves it, the reason she has been praying and thanking Jesus for it! :)

We have another busy weekend with maternity pictures with the fabulous Elizabeth Wiggs and then a birthday party for a friends little boy on Monday at Chuck-E-Cheese. I've never taken Lilliana there before and me and my germaphobic ways are going to have a difficult time allowing her to run free and have fun while we are there but I plan to stay close by armed with my little handy travel clorox spray and antibacterial wipes!!

Hope everyone is having a great week so far.

Lilliana's prayers

Everynight before going to bed, I rock Lilliana, we say our prayers and sing some songs. Well, recently she has been wanting to pray on her own in addition to my prayers and they are just too cute for words. Today while we were rocking at naptime, she asked if we were going to pray. I told her we were able to pray whenever she wanted to. Her precious little prayer went a little like this; "thanks you Jesus for Mommy's baby in her belly, my baby, my new pink room, my new bed, new rug, my pillow, my kitchen, my books, my Dora doll, my clothes, my Donald, my Minnie Mouse mommy and her baby, my pink room, my new rocking chair, my new room, my blanket, Amen!

I think it's safe to say she's pretty excited about her new room and especially the fact that it's pink!! I love her so much and just can't get enough of her loving spirit. I think I could really learn a thing or two from her every now and then. She has one of the kindest hearts I have ever met and just loves with her whole being. She is my little love and I can't imagine a single minute without her!!

Happy Birthday Rebecca!!

Happy Birthday to You!
Happy Birthday to You!
Happy Birthday to Rebecca!
Happy Birthday to You!

Last week was Rebecca's official birthday so Lilliana and I called to wish her a Happy Birthday and my little love just sang her heart out to her little friend. It was so precious and I was actually surprised that she really sang when we called her!

Then on Saturday, we headed to Build-A-Bear for her birthday party with friends. Lilliana had such a great time making her bear and dressing her in a fun little pink dress. After Build-A-Bear, we had a fun ride on the carousel and then enjoyed cupcakes at the food court.

Such a fun day spent with our little family and friends!!



the birthday girl stuffing her bear



Lilliana's turn to stuff her bear



failed attempt at a group picture :)



My little love with her new bear all wrapped up to go



walking with Dadda to the carousel



waiting for her turn on the carousel, posing with Dadda



now with Momma, had to get proof I was there too :)



riding on the carousel with Dadda

Why do I do this???

I allow myself to just sit and think ... and worry! After working last night, I didn't really feel any difference in my contractions while there so I came home and showered and went straight to bed. I woke up just after 11:00 because Lilliana had a birthday party to attend and I actually was feeling pretty good. We headed to Build A Bear and I was probably on my feet for a little over 2 hours total. I sat while she rode the carousel with Clay and then while we were eating cupcakes but by time we left, I was feeling kinda crappy. I just felt like I over did it some and I am sure a lot of that had to do with the fact that I worked last night.

On the way home, I went ahead and took my daily dose of Procardia but starting allowing my mind to wander. I started feeling a little more contractions and then got my self so worked up I was almost ready to head to L & D. We decided to head home for naps since it was long past L's naptime anyway and I laid down myself and took another short nap. I woke up form my nap feeling pretty crummy. I guess what worried me, was whether or not I was feeling crappy from the meds or was it because there was something going on that I needed to address.

I think one of my biggest fears this go around, is what I will do without my Lilliana if I have to be admitted to the hospital. I have never been away from her for more than like 12 hours when I go to work and I just can't imagine how sad I would be if I had to get my mom or mother-in-law to watch her all the time if I had to be admitted long term. I genuinely can't imagine a single minute in life without her and don't know what I would do.

Time for meds ...

Well, today I headed to my scheduled appointment with Dr. W. We started with an ultrasound and the US tech told me everything looked great. I didn't get a measurement this time because she was super quick and never mentioned it. We also took a look at the baby and it was measuring about right on for dates and weighing approximately 1 lb. 10 oz. Then, I headed in to see Dr. W and she asked about the frequency of my contractions lately. I had noticed that for the past week they had been a little more frequent and just consistently at least 1-2 every hour. This was a change from 2 weeks ago so she asked if I wanted to go ahead and start a terbutaline pump. I told her I really wasn't ready for that yet, of course unless we have too. I have no problem doing what is best to keep this little babe in my belly. But, we agreed to try some by mouth Procardia once a day to see if that would help calm my uterus some. She went ahead and placed me on a monitor in the office for a non-stress test and Baby Burchett did fabulously. They were moving all over the place and had a great rhythm strip. I did have 2 small contractions while on the monitor so she just wants me to rest when I'm at home during the week and we are going to do an FFN test next week to make sure the contractions are just Braxton Hicks and not anything that could be a sign of true labor. She was unable to do it today because of the US I had before seeing her. It could have given us a false positive which would have just made me nervous so we both agreed to wait till next week.

So, I started my Procardia tonight and so far not sure if I notice a change in how I feel. I am at work though so I am busier than I would be if I was at the house resting. Hopefully I will be able to continue to work for atleast the next month or so but I am not going to push things. We really don't want this baby coming out until October!!

Bible verses

Today over at Kellys Korner, she is hosting "Show us your life" - favorite bible verses. Well, it is hard for me to pick just one so I will list a few of my favorites for you.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding, and in all your ways, acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Proverbs 3: 5-6

This is one of my all time favorites. It has been since I was a little kid and I remember singing it as a song when I was young. I know sing it to Lilliana every night when we are rocking and she is starting to pick up on it. I have to remind myself of this verse sometimes multiple times a day. I have nothing without Him and I must trust in His guidance. Sometimes easier said than done. :)

"Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6

This verse had gotten me through some very difficult times. I am such a control freak about so many things in life and I have to remind myself constantly that He is in control. I don't really want to be the one in control but sometimes it is also much easier said than done. I just have to give it all over to Him and realize that He is not going to give me more than I can handle!


"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful,I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place.
When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body.
All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be." Psalms 139:13-16

This is by far my favorite "Mommy" verse. It just speaks volumes to me and has also been there for me to recite through some rough times. After the death of Cooper, I had a lot of anger and hostility toward God, but I continued to go back to this verse. It wasn't meant for him to live an Earthly life and how thankful I am for that now looking back. It would have been spent in and out of hospitals and with lot's of painful procedures. I know that God knew his days, before he was even conceived. He knew how much I could stand and promises time and time again that we will not be given more than we can handle. Then with my subsequent pregnancies, I realize what a gift these precious children are. They are not taken for granted and I count my blessing each new day.

More July 4th Festivities!

On Monday, we headed to the Cuuntry Club with our friends the Mefford's for their 4th of July fun. We enjoyed Corky's bar-b-que, swimming, and a great fireworks show. I was a little worried that sassy pants wouldn't really care for the fireworks this year but she seemed to have a great time with her Bobby! She did have a little moment where she said she didn't like them and wanted me to hold her but overall she did great. She ended up sitting in either my lap or Clay's the whole time but by the end she was oohing and aahing at the bright lights. We had such a fun and very late evening that ended with a very sleepy little girl.

4th of July Parade

On Saturday morning Nana came over and met us and we headed to our neighbor parade. This is the first year we have participated as last year, we just watched from the side. Lilliana and I had worked on decorating her wagon earlier in the week and she was super excited leading up to it. It was all I could do to keep her out of the wagon before the day of the parade in order to keep her from tearing up the decorations! She asked me every morning if it was time for the parade or not. She doesn't forget anything!!

It was a hot morning so I was so glad the parade started at 9:30. It was packed with tons of neighborhood kids and I think she had a great time. She just sat in the wagon and took it all in. I was surprised she didn't want to get out and walk at any point but she was just content to let her Dadda pull her around.