I Almost Can't Stand the Wait

IKEA here we come!!
Mom & I are making this an annual February trip and my heart is beating faster just thinking about Thursday's all-day trip. I LOVE IKEA. It makes me smile, feel endless possibility, and a little bit frugal. How can there be so many great ideas in one place? Do you ever feel the third floor headache? A dull pounding which comes on once you've made it through the first two floors and you ascend to the top where everything becomes a blur and you wonder how the hell can there be more? (It's best to stop at the Cafe and eat before you get on the escalator for the third floor.) Or, what's worse is when you grab someone else's cart, get to the check-out and realize it's not your stuff at all and you have no idea where the switch happened and you can't bear to retrace your steps or even try to remember what was even in the cart before you lost it. This happened to me and I decided I couldn't walk anymore:) I usually spend way less than what my shopping list would first indicate. I'm going down with a hefty shopping list....I'm not getting my hopes up, but I hope we can fill the car. Our house is looking great since the entry/stairs/hallway got finished; complete with the most fabulous IKEA pendant hanging in the center of the stairs. You've gotta see it...it's 3ft of suspended fabulousness! I think the editors at IKEA are telling me something from the cover's headline, "A home doesn't need to be big, just smart." Aaaahhh...just what I needed to hear. I'll let you know how we make out. Wish us luck!

The Greatest Gift

It's funny how fast things change when you have kids. The house is suddenly crowded, sleep loss, no "me" time, and the topic of conversation has changed to be all about them whomever you talk to....especially with the grandparents.
Me, "Hi Mom-what are you doing? Mom, "Not much-How's Kit?"
See? You too?
It's been all about her and now it will be all about the new baby + Kit.
I realize now that Kit is one of the luckiest kids on the planet to have such loving, thoughtful, generous grandparents who want to spend time with her and want her to know most of all that she is one of their FAVORITE people. (How lucky she is to be loved as I was by my FAVORITE people.) I am thrilled that she gets to grow-up with them and even though parenting me may have been hard, they get to do it over with her and I don't want to get in the way of that relationship. It is theirs and theirs alone. She is our greatest gift to our parents and I am proud that we can do it all over again.

Little Momma

This is Kit's baby Ellie. She goes all over with her. To Kris', Grandma's, in the car. She is well taken care of. Kit has been practicing being a big sister for awhile now and she didn't even know it.
PS: (I got my clothes put away. It took a whole 20 minutes. I was proud of myself. The smallest achievements are making me feel good lately:)

Pot Roast Tonite

Tonite is the first nite in a long time that I have actually cooked. (The slow cooker is doing a lot of the work and Troy just called to say he will be doing the mashed potatoes---Thank you.) Since finding out that I'm pregnant I have had no energy...for anything. No cooking, no cleaning, and barely any laundry. Kit, however, is taking baths. My suitcase still sits unpacked in our bedroom from 3 weeks ago. And, it's a big one...the kind that hurts when you run into it with your big toe in the dark. Which is what I did last night and I have promised myself I am going to clean-up that big ole' thing TONITE. Before my husband screams mutiny and Kit wonders why we have to eat pizza for the third night in-a-row. I AM SO TIRED. I was sleeping in my car at lunch today and hit the snooze button on my phone six times. I feel like such a slug....the second trimester is very much welcome at our house.
We told Kit on Sunday that she was going to be a big sister; that she was finally going to get her wish for a little brother or sister. Her reaction was very anti-climactic. No jumping up & down, no hurrays, no big smiles. Until, the next day when she couldn't stop asking questions and already has a substantial list going for what we need to buy for the baby. We have already been asked, "When will my little brother/sister be here?"....like 50 times. SERIOUSLY. NO JOKE. Only 6+ months to go.
We have also decided to get our house finished and get it on the market by summer. When baby comes we will have a full house and we're at a point where we can see the end in sight on the renovations of this house and would like to start over somewhere new...and easier....and bigger. We need more space to play and spread out, to have family over and not feel like we still have no place to go. Thank God we bought this house, we would never have figured-out what we are really looking for. I hope when the time is right this one will sell and we will find the best house for how we want to live.
Big News right? 2012 is shaping up to be a busy one full of family, change, and possibility....and a beautiful baby and my favorite 6-pack of Spotted Cow waiting for me at summer's end. It will all be worth it. I'm looking forward to the next few months....this is the kind of stuff that makes us who we are and I hope we can slow down and take it one day at a time.