6 days...5 days...4...

Baby number two, come on!!!!! Although she is not due for another six days, there are oh, so many good reasons why Audrey should come out right now and not a moment later. Mark really wants to get out of work and start his leave since there is no reason to work hard to hit goal as he has no chance to hit goal this month. I am nervous about having a gigantic baby. I mean Nora was big enough at 9lbs 4 oz, but second babies are often bigger, and I just don't know how much baby I can push out...without getting too graphic. Also, my labor last time was NOT what I had in mind as I wanted to go all natural. I went past my due date by 6 days and was told I had to be induced because of a low level of amniotic fluid. I am really afraid of that happening again. If I have to be given pitocin again, I am just going straight for the epidural. I feel that with the evil intensity of pitocin contractions, it is absolutely necessary. I'm not gonna try and do that again. No point. After 8 hours of Hell last time I needed the epidural anyway to get my body to relax enough to progress, so just forget it. Also, my mom has come out to give a hand. She got here from Atlanta yesterday morning, and while she is extremely useful with Nora, I don't want her to wait too long to help with the new one. I want to maximize her usefulness you know. And then of course we are all excited to meet the little bugger.

I really think Nora has a pretty good idea of the extremity of the change about to take place. I had thought she would be clueless, but she is very much out of whack right now. She is getting over a little bug that gave her a fever for a few days, but she has become so whiney and clingy with me, I really think she knows something big is happening. I guess even an 18 month old can see that I can only grow so much bigger before I explode! I mean it's just logic!

Well, last night I noticed my first regular contractions. It was probably a good couple of hours of them being 7 minutes apart. So that was just thrilling...except that they didn't even hurt. It's probably all for the best because the last few days I was having an intensely sore throat, and yesterday, in particular, I did not feel up to going into labor. That would have been awful. But today, I'm feeling quite a bit better so COME ON LABOR! How did I ever get to be so impatient? It's pathetic. I should be content if I have a healthy little girl and that's all. Don't get me wrong--I do want that. I just want other stuff too = )

Well maybe this will be the weekend. Right now, I'm off to go drink some raspberry leaf tea and do some labor-inducing yoga! Wish me (us) luck!

OK, ok, ok I know...a month between blogs is bad blog etiquette. So sue me. I find myself having a hard time finding the energy to take a nap many of these days...blogging is not the first thing on my list. Cleaning my house, taking care of my off-the-walls one year old, or ya know feeding my family often end up coming first these days. I had really forgotten how tired the last trimester can make you. I seriously take a 2-3 hour nap most days and Nora wakes me up at the end of it. Yeah, I sleep about as much as a one year old baby. She's almost 17 months now, and HOLY COW has the separation anxiety phase gotten bad...It's all about mama these days. I have started to go to a mothers' meeting at my neighbor's church twice a month where they watch your kid for you, and last time I could hear her for a full hour screaming MAMA! MAMA! down the hall. NOT relaxing. Made me want to tear my fingernails off and eat them. eww. What did I just say?

We are all gearing up now for the newest Mayer to come along within the next 5 weeks (hopefully). We have had our shower, which was quite beautiful. Thanks to everyone who came and helped. I am having contractions ALL THE TIME now, and many of them are beginning to hurt. We will have an ultrasound next friday which will tell us if she's hangin out in there the wrong way or if she's another baby elephant like her older sister. Judging by my lack of self control lately when it comes to carbs and sugar, I'm gonna say she's probably HUGE. Those are the two things my OB said to limit to help keep her a bit smaller...yeah, it's pretty much all I want. mmm, cinnamon chip muffins......I'm digging my own grave. Yet I am still feeling very hopeful about this birth. I am planning, yet again, to try and do it as naturally as possible. And If I have a medical need to be induced like last time, I'm taking the epidural hand in hand with the pitocin. That stuff is EVIL. EVIL, I TELL YOU. I want to know what it's like to go into labor on my own. Apparently the contractions aren't anything like the mind-numbing pitocin contractions. So I'm gonna give it a shot. And maybe, since Nora is working me so hard, I'll go into labor early...and not have a 10 pound baby! Nora was 9lbs 4oz. I had to push for a LONG time with her. I'm hoping for a quicker pushing experience this time. Anything 9lbs or less sounds like a breeze.

Speaking of breeze, life is really looking up around here as the AZ fall weather has set in. It's about 2pm here and I have doors and windows open! I LOVE that. Nora and I can go for a walk to the park pretty much any time of day aside from like 3-430pm just because the sun is so hot. And let me tell you, she is a much happier kiddo this time of year. She was driving me crazy asking to go outside just before October hit. Now the highs are in the 80s and the dry air really feels cool all the time. It's a whole different world now. Good time to have a baby, I'd say. Just a couple weeks ago, Mark and I drove up to Payson and did a bit of hiking up there. That was gorgeous. A great way to kick off fall. I know the highs will probably fly up into the 100s again sometime soon for the last time, and I'll want to kill people again, but for now, I'm content. I can almost imagine the leaves changing color when I close my eyes (when they're open, the cactus-covered desert landscape throws me off). Man do I miss the southeast. Oh well. Maybe we'll be back to the land of FOUR seasons someday soon. Until then, I'm gonna try and enjoy the loveliness here and work this little rib-boxing-champ out of me. Nora's up and making some bizarre sounds in there...I'll try to add some shower, preggo, and payson pics...

Nesting time...

Yeah, I'm officially really bad at keeping a blog. Sorry I can't seem to be very regular about this. Things are getting exciting around here. We're looking for the cooler weather, we're getting strict about out budget, house cleaning and setting up for the second Mayer princess. We are so excited to meet her. Well, I'm excited to meet her...I think Mark is more excited about the time off. Haha JUST KIDDING. No, we are both really jazzed about the new baby. Nora is growing in leaps and bounds. She is figuring out more words and improving on old ones. For instance, now she's beginning to say "daddY" and "doggY" rather than "dadA" and...well, just barking to refer to a dog. Man does that little girl love animals and babies. She's always pointing to my belly and saying BABA (for baby) and giving it hugs. She has not a clue what's in store for her I'm sure.

And as for me, I am going nuts with my nesting instincts. I can't seem to satisfy this urge to set up for our new little girl. Of course it's hard because we really don't have a nursery for her. We have only one crib and that's Nora's. She's not ready to move out of there yet. All we have is our pack n play with the bassinet level for the newby to sleep in, and that's not set up yet. We got some diapers and some clothes and a hand-me-down dresser...but other than that, this kid has nothing. I wish we could do for her all the things we did for Nora, but we're totally out of money and not even sure where we will be living in 6 months so ya know...it's a little tough. We are having a baby shower next saturday...so after that maybe we will pull out the pack n play and the infant swing and get serious about set-up. We are also doing a refresher childbirth class at our doctor's office so maybe that will make things feel a little more 'for real'. The only real sign of this little one that I notice is my ever growing torpedo-shaped belly. Yeah, I feel like I already look full term. I shudder to think of what I will look like in the end with this one. It was out of control with Nora. Here's a taste of what I looked like toward the last days:Oh, and notice the swollen head and ankles. Not fun times for Meggy.

So Anyway, that's me with a nine-pounder in my belly. What will this pregnancy bring? Who knows? Here are some pictures of Nora at Grandma C and Grandpa Hal's for your entertainment...

I have to sit down and put my feet up out of the San Diego sun from time to time anyway, so I figured I may as well post a blog while I'm at it! We're having more and more fun each day we're out here. Yesterday (Monday) we went to the San Diego Zoo. It was amazing. We toted Nora around in the wagon the whole time...well except when She wanted to get out and push it. I was tempted to jump in and take advantage of her kindness, but thought that might look a little wrong...well, and...not...work. So I wanted to post some good zoo photos, as there are many. I think the only animal we didn't see was a giraffe. We see those at the Phoenix Zoo when we go though so that's not too big a deal. OK, here they are: One happy kid at the zoo...





We also went to the beach a bit yesterday morning and made a few good memories. So I am posting a couple pictures of that. We've been having great breakfasts at this cute place called Cafe Mono. Sooo good. They make this fresh 5 dollar breakfast wrap that we just can't get enough of, until we saw the tiny breakfast cafe on the boardwalk that had COCONUT BANANA PANCAKES with MAPLE SYRUP. Hubba Hubba. So that's where we went this morning (Pics should be posted tonight or tomorrow). Nora chose to eat sand instead. Here's yesterday morning's pics to leave you with. You'll love the shot of Nora punching my lights out. Enjoy!

Nora at the Beach

I'm sorry to everyone (if anyone) who has been expecting a blog for a long while now. I'm sure that's poor "blog etiquette." Please forgive me in my tired busy pregnant-ness...= ) Mark, Nora and I are in San Diego right now. We are on a family vacation for the first time in way too long. I haven't been to a beach in about 5 years, and I've never been to a Cali beach, so this is quite exciting to me. We are having a blast!

We arrived last night around midnight after a six hour drive with a one-year-old who doesn't approve of sleeping anywhere but in her crib. The drive was a little rough, and the parking was even worse. It took us an hour to park. Yes we have a garage in our cute little beach house, but we decided to borrow Mark's folks' minivan so we could fit all Nora's "gear" we wanted to bring, and it didn't even remotely fit in the garage. What a long night that was. Then, to make matters worse, Nora screamed probably 45 minutes after we put her down in the pack-n-play...I didn't sleep well.

But this morning we woke up to the sound of the Pacific Ocean waves and beautiful cool foggy weather (at the earliest 7AM I can remember in a while). We walked down the street to a cute little cafe with great coffee and very fresh breakfasts then strolled back on the beach. So life is good again. And later today after a good lunch, we took Nora to the beach, only about 100 feet from our cute little red front door. She had a blast. Loves sand. Cold ocean water not so much...but we did get some great photos. She was towed around like the Queen of Sheba in her red wagon, ate her first whole apple (not a fragment went to waste), hugged some poor random sleeping guy she thought was Dad, and helped build--and destroy--her first sand castle. It was great. Now she's sleeping after all her accomplishments, and we're just kicking back having a beer or gestating a fetus, depending on which one of us you are talking about. Good times.

Oh, and I'm finally 3rd trimester--28 weeks and change now. I feel like I am looking huge again already, and am rocking the contractions many times a day. Maybe this kid isn't going to wait a week after her due date like Nora. Eh...we'll see. For now, I'm just going to thing about the sand in my toes and my lovely family. How's that?
First WHOLE apple ever (sand, seeds and all)...
Queen Nora...
giving baby sister hugs....
Our cute little "red door" beach house we're renting...

Just another day in paradise...

Nora's sleeping so I'm blogging and cooking. She seems to be getting back into her two-nap schedule after a few weeks of only one a day. She was sleeping in until almost 9AM, but now she's up at 7 or 7:30 daily. I, myself have been unbelievably tired these last few days. I slept through her entire 2 hour first nap today, and I'm tempted to lay down now, during her second. She's been out an hour and a half now though, so I'm sure she'll be up soon.

Mark and I just can't believe how much she is growing up. She does sign language now very consistently for "more", "I'm hungry", and "please". Usually "I'm hungry" is the first thing she tells me when she wakes up. She's a good eater, what can I say? She's always poking my tummy now, saying "baba", which I'm pretty sure is nora for "baby", and when I tell her to give the baby hugs, she lays her head on my belly and pats it. It's gotta be the cutest thing ever. I need to get pictures of that. Most of the time she runs around saying DADA, and I know she knows who Daddy is, and that that is what that means, but she likes to say it all the time too. She'll say MAMA when I encourage her to, but DADA is definately her favorite word-ish thing.

Mark had the day off yesterday so the three of us spent the day together. We cleaned and cooked and got the car serviced for almost 3 hours, and it was PARADISE! I love the time we spend together. MArk was saying the other day that we are lucky because we have a lot of those moments that you just long for when you're bored or having hard times, but really just about every time we are together ends up being one of those times. I love seeing him with our little girl, and I absolutely can't wait to see him with our newest little girl (due now in 14 weeks). We are so lucky to have the relationship that we have, and our daughters are so lucky to have parents this much in love. I thank God often for this.

I am so excited. We are going to San Diego on the 22nd. I haven't been to a beach in 5 years and it's killing me! We got a great deal on a beach condo, and we are going to the San Diego Zoo. I've not been to California since I was to young to remember, so it will be very exciting. I hope Nora enjoys the ocean. I'm thrilled that we're gonna have a chance to kick back and make some good memories together.

Back to life

We are officially back into the swing of things here in the desert. The wedding was beautiful, and EXHAUSTING. But watching Kristen and Chris so in love and having the time of their lives together and being a part of it all was so worth the work. I'll put up some wedding pictures when I get some. I couldn't exactly manage to take pictures while juggling my baby girl and my matron of honor duties.

Kristen was absolutely stunning. The rehearsal dinner at Wisteria downtown was a blast. It was so nice to have some time with Mark after all that time apart. And man did he look handsome! I love this picture my aunt took of us outside of Wisteria. How I got through the night in those heels I still can't figure out. I will say, it was not very graceful. I felt like a Goodyear blimp in stilettos. My toast that night to the happy couple was nothing like what it was supposed to be. Strange things kept coming out of my mouth. I think I said something about not being a "toaster" and how I "don't even like toast much." Well, give me the floor when I am nervous and I just start making stupid jokes. I just hope Kristen and Chris heard a small fraction of what was on my heart, which was how overwhelmingly happy I am for them.

The trip to GA was slightly surreal. I'll say it had me and Mark into another bout of really wanting to live there again. The weather was so inviting and it was just amazing to see our old dear friends like Toby and Angie with their little boy, Patrick. Here's a picture of the little cutie bug. He just turned one, and I was SO lucky to have been in town for his birthday party. His mommy and daddy threw a heck of a party. Nora and I had a blast--even though she was WELL overdue for a nap. He and Nora has several "dates" at the pool and playground while we were in town. We miss them so much.

Another great memory from the trip was Nora's first taste of chocolate. Mind you the timing was not of my choosing. My dad and I were in the kitchen working on wedding stuff of course when I noticed Nora had gotten awfully quiet in the next room over. My dad went to check and found her completely covered in chocolate. She had found a low-lying dish of wrapped truffles for the wedding. She was eating her fourth when he brought her into the kitchen to me. OH MY GOSH, I had to get some pictures. It was hilarious. Th poor thing got so nervous because we were laughing at her for so long and taking pictures that she started crying. Here's a few we took...showing the progression...
Is it bad for a mommy to think a picture of her baby crying is hilarious? Oh well...It cracks me up.

So now back to life here in Arizona. Mark and I are celebrating our 3rd wedding anniversary this week. We went out Saturday while his folks watched Nora, though it's actually the 29th of July, which is this wednesday. But of course he works until 8 and I have to go to vocal rehearsal anyway that night at church. Saturday was very nice. we went to Gordon Biersch and sat under the misters on the patio, looking out over Mill Avenue then we walked a bit till my ankles started to swell (UGH) then we got frozen yogurt and went home before ten. That's about as romantic as it can get anymore. Although after his folks left he gave me my anniversary gift...for the second time ever, he wrote me an AMAZING song. I love it. No one can hear it yet. Just me. That's cuz it's my song and I can do that. It's so good. You're gonna love it one day when you hear it. The guy is good. Here's a picture of us out on Mill Ave...


Here's a cute shot of Mark playing guitar with Nora climbing all over him. We got a cute family. I like these two...



Until next time...

Ahh, the blushing bride...

Today, I saw my sister in her wedding dress for the first time. I know she's had a lot of anxiety about getting the dress to work out for her, but I must say...

She was exquisite!

I am so excited for her. She's just so beautiful, and I'm flattered that she wants to use my veil. This wedding is going to be just breathtaking. My sister's attention to details and type A personality are really going to show. Her colors are great. I wish I'd thought more about my own wedding colors now that I see all she has done with color. Her brides maids are all over everything. I just am amazed at the work they are all doing for her. She's got some really dedicated friends. She's a lucky girl. And I'm pretty certain that Chris is a lucky guy. I wish them all the best. I hope they have all the kids they want, and all the success in the world.

I am so excited that it will only be a week before Mark flies in to GA. I love it here and everything is just perfect--even the cloudy days--except that the thing that I am most passionate about, my husband, is not here. It is so hard to sleep at night without him, and so boring to wake up alone. I love that these times can show me how much I love him, but I am feeling ready to show HIM how much I love him. I wanna be next to him again so badly. I actually found myself saying today that being a bride is fun and exciting, but I am so much happer just being married now. I think a lot of people just want to be a bride and get married for the wedding, overlooking the years and dues of marriage. I know I didn't do that. I am so happily married and I never doubt that I found the perfect guy for me...well maybe when I can't get him to clean...no I'm kidding. I couldn't imagine a better match for my spirituality, my musicality, my mind, my heart, my body. We see eye to eye on finances, parenting, even style. Usually. =) I think I am the luckiest lady I know.

I wish the same joy for my sister. I pray that her marriage brings her frequent moments of looking at her husband and wondering how she ever deserved such a blessing. For me, Mark's love for me is proof that God knows my heart through and through and wants the absolute best for me. Everyone needs love like that. Everyone deserves it.

Just another day in the ATL

Hello friends...I just put Nora down for bed an hour earlier than she has been going down as of late. A whopping 8 o'clock! I think she is enjoying her stay here in Woodstock. My dad and I took Nora and the dogs for a good three mile walk. Wow! I forget how tough it is to climb all those hills. And last time I was here doing that regularly, there were no babies involved and I was in MUCH better shape. It did feel good tho to kick my own butt a little and sweat.

Well, last night my dad and I were driving through the neighborhood running an errand, and we noticed a toy ride-on car sitting in a drive way on the curb for the garbage men. Ya know the big yellow and red plastic kind you drive around with your feet pushing you along like the flinstones? It looked like it was in perfect shape so we stopped the car and snatched it right up. No, I'm not above dumpster diving! We have no shame I suppose. Oh well. We cleaned the thing up and wow, Nora LOVES it. It's in perfect condition! I don't know why someone would want to throw suck a thing away. We got some good pictures, shown below...

trying to honk the horn...

I am missing Mark so much and I know Nora is too, but she definitely has found a strong attatchment to her Grandpa since she's been here. She is always running to him and pulling on his shorts to pick her up. It's cute. Maybe she is just looking for a daddy figure. Maybe he'sjust really good with her. I think he is. And Grandma has been giving her baths every night. I hear the two of them laughing up a storm and squealing every night before bed time. She is a happy girl. She has even been playing around with her Aunt Kristen and soon-to-be "Uncle Chris". I think Chris's bald head throws her off a little, but she's started to warm up to him. She has a blast with Kristen though, who is just plain good with kids. Here are some more pics...

Bonding with Grandma...

asking Grandpa to read to her...Aunt Kristen's lap...And considering playing ball with Uncle Chris...And then there's Cousin Bear...

Y'all come back now, ya hear!

My girl can SLEEP!

So I'm here in GA on the fourth of July, and the redneck neighbors across the street are setting off some REALLY expensive, REALLY loud fireworks right in front of our house. Nora Went down for bed about 30 minutes ago and I am SHOCKED, but she has not made a peep. What a good girl.

Now the airplane ride, however, that was a different story. We gave her a good dose of Benadryl, and ran her around the airport for an hour. She fought. And fought. AND FOUGHT. She was rubbing her eyes, and getting fussy, and laying her head down a few seconds at a time. She was sooo not gonna fall asleep though she was drugged and way overdue for a nap. Finally, she could not take it. She dosed off on Grandma Rox's chest. AW so sweet...until 3 minutes later they announced, "we are now approaching our initial decent into the Atlanta area." UUUGGHH, Nora! She slept right through the bumpy landing and woke up when everyone was exiting the plane. So that day, she got a 20 minute nap. Whoopdee doo. She is one strong willed little girl. I still like her though.

We are missing our man back at home very much. Mark misses us too I know, but man it's not showing at the office! He is ROCKING the SOCKS OFF of the sales floor! In the last three days he has sold 24 policies, which DANG! If he can keep that up, we're getting a heck of a paycheck this month. Maybe we can actually afford the trip were planning next month to San Diego! What a novel idea. Hehe. We're proud of our big strong man.

We are working hard to get things ready for Kristen and Chris's wedding. It's coming up soon: July 18th, about 2 weeks! She's driving her slave labor team efficiently. Last night I was glueing labels until midnight. Oh pooh, it's 11:30pm now! I'm just glad Nora's been sleeping till 9 or 10am. Well I'm off to bed. Until next time...night y'all!

Leavin' on a jet plane...

All my bags are packed. I'm ready to go.
I'm standing here outside Nora's door.
I'm not gonna wake her up till it's time to go...

Ok, that was a lost cause. Anyway, we're essentially all packed to leave for our 20 day trip to Georgia. I'm starting to get a bit nervous too. And I'm pretty sure Nora was picking up on it tonight as my mom and I were getting her ready for bed. She was so upset. It was a bit of a scream fest. She has a tooth popping through right now, which isn't helping, and she didn't want to eat much tonight. Chicken chunks and sweet potato pieces! What baby doesn't want to eat chicken and sweet potato??!?! I just hope the flight goes smoothly tomorrow. I'm planning on using a dose of Benadryl, bring snacks and books, and my buddy Donna lent me a portable DVD player. Those things should help a great deal I think.

I just need to chill. I'm not a great flyer in my own right. It used to be worse, but I do still get nervous on a plane. I'm sure if I'm calm, she won't be any trouble.

It's been very nice having my mom around these last few days. Nora has had the time of her life. Going to the mall, wagon rides, seeing ducks during a yummy outdoor dinner by a lake, riding in the kid car on the front of the shopping cart at Fry's, eating half of an In-n-Out burger...and just getting tons of attention from her adoring public.

Poor Mark is already missing us. He's pretty bummed about the 20 days away from us, and I know he wants to be in Georgia. He will stay here and take his class and work his call center job in the intolerable desert heat while I'm seeing old friends, eating great food, getting ready for the party of the century (My sister's wedding), and playing with our little girl. Though I know I will miss him too.

In further news, I saw my OB this morning. My blood pressure is still pretty good: 120 / 66, and baby girl's size is right on track. I measured 20 cm. Nora was 9lbs, 4 oz, so ya gotta understand, I'm a little nervous about the size of baby number 2. I'm sure God won't give me anything I can't handle with His help. Well, I suppose I should pack our carry on bags...I always get carried away with that part, packing 40 items, using about five of them. Please send us your prayers, for our sanity, that of the other innocent bystanders on the plane, and of course for Nora.

These are a few cute Nora pics. Playing with the wagon, the baby pool, her new toothbrush, Daddy, and other things. I think she's kinda cute.

My Next 20 Weeks

Alright! So we finally have our very own family blog. Hmmm...what to write...We are all doing quite well. Poor Mark is in a permanently overwhelmed state. Stuck in the middle of a dull full-time job selling insurance AND being a full time student, trying to finish his degree from Ottawah University hopefully next February. I'm doing the full-time stay-at-home mommy thing, caring for our BEAUTIFUL 13 month old daughter, Nora Josephine. She is everything we coud have ever wanted in a baby girl. A bit of a wild child (just like mom and dad), and she LOVES music. No surprise, her being our daughter and all.

Mark and I have been married almost 3 wonderful years. We are so blessed to have our lovely healthy daughter...and SURPRISE! another baby girl on the way! I'm 20 weeks pregnant with our second daughter now. Halfway through! Though I hope to be able to cherish these last few months with just the three of us better than I have been. I've felt, since the moment I found out I was pregnant, that I just want to be done. I'm still sick of being pregnant with Nora. I was still nursing her when I got pregnant with the second one, and I just feel like I never got to feel like myself again. Regardless, here we are with a second, so-far healthy baby on the way. What can I say? We're fertile! That is a blessing right there.

What I am learning is that we have something beautiful in this house of ours. The three of us, soon to be four, are so lucky to have eachother. I think for my next 20 weeks, I am going to try and be aware of that. I want to cherish this precious time of the "three of us." I want to be more positive, more excited about the present, not just the future. I hope that I can see what I have, and not what I want.

And I also hope I can keep this blog interesting ;-)