Busy but not getting much done

I know I am not the only one that has days like this. We are less than one week away from moving and I am trying to get things organized for the moving crew. This weekend will be devoted to packing clothes for the next couple of weeks, sorting toys & books to bring on the trip and some misc. tedious tasks. Monday is the pack up and Tuesday is the move out day. YAY!!! I am hesitant to get too excited considering the last experience I had, but the closer we get the more excited and relieved I am.
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Today I took advantage of Martin being home and escaped for a few hours during nap time. I had a yummy lunch in peace and quiet. No one asked me to share my food or have a sip of my drink. Sound greedy? It was so nice. It also made me realize that once baby number 3 arrives it will be that much harder to have these afternoon outings. Sigh. I love being a mom, but I also love having time to myself. I will have to find a balance. While I was out I found the girls some real panties. They have a choice of Dora, Hello Kitty, and The Little Mermaid. They are washed and folded and waiting for tomorrow morning. I haven't showed the girls yet. They are going to love them. The girls are doing great with the potty and they are much further along in the process than I had anticipated.
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Lastly, I am looking for a single serve coffee maker and was hoping that someone may have some advice. I have only looked on the Linens & Things website and the two that appeal to me are the Tassimo & Keurig. Both look very indulgent. I can check out a consumer best site, but thought I would throw the question out here as well. Hope everyone is enjoying summer!

Pig-tails and the morning walk

We typically do our outside play time before 11 am or after 5pm. Otherwise it is too hot to enjoy much. This morning we were ahead of our normal schedule and took a neighborhood stroll. The first photo is my pregnant shadow. 17 weeks now. Martin usually does the photography and with the first pregnancy we took a monthly photo. So far I have two photos this time around. This one doesn't even really count because it looks distorted to me, but it will do for now.

The girls have pig-tails for the first time. I love them. They like them too. They were shaking their heads & laughing because the hair was tickling them. I have a feeling Dad will be a fan as soon as he sees the new hair-dos too.

These are just fresh-faced babes. Sweet and cooperative. For a short time anyway.

"Cheese"

No boo-boos or bike wrecks this morning. Nice and peaceful. I am hoping this sets the tone for the rest of the day. Wishing a nice and peaceful day for you all too.

Family

I have some butter beans simmering on the stove which made me think of my oldest sister which made me start feeling very nostalgic & sad. I am the youngest of three girls. My sisters are 16 months apart in age and I am 12 & 13 years younger than them. I grew up feeling like an only child for the most part. Once I hit my 20's and started thinking more adult-like I realized how great my sisters are. I still think they are great and the older I get I realize how lucky I am to have them. They are both my favorite sisters but in different ways. We all three live in different cities and the oldest in a different state (NY). This past March we were all three together for over a week which is such an oddity and so much fun! Pam, the oldest, is an avid reader. She has three children and a great husband. She is completely non-judgemental and I have never seen her envious or jealous. She hates hot weather and gets very grumpy when she is even a tiny bit hot. Kim, the middle daughter, has a great head for numbers, she is very level headed, she has two Cocker Spaniels, she loves to run and can be amazingly laid back which is rare in my family. I love 'em both. Pam is unable to find butter beans in NY so whenever she visits FL we have them a couple of times so she can get her fill. Tonight I will be thinking of my great sisters and wishing they were here to help finish off all the beans!!

Monday kick-off

This morning I had an early appointment with my OB. 8:25 am. Sure, we get up early but I am never out of the house before 9 am. We have slow mornings around here. I was nervous about it last night since I know how doctors can keep you waiting, and since I was bringing the girls with me to the appointment I really wanted to be on time. Everyone showered last night, had a good night sleep and the morning went great. We were out the door by 7:30! Yah!!! I am 16 weeks now and everything is going well. The girls watched as the lab tech. took my blood and were very excited that I received a bandaid. Erika kept tapping my hand and asking if I was okay. It was sweet. They also listened to the baby's heartbeat but they didn't quite get what the noise was and where it was coming from. They just don't understand yet. We spent the time between the OB visit & lunch at a local park/ rose garden. The girls have spent many a Saturday in this park since it is adjacent to the Saturday morning farmer's market. I love a good farmer's market.

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Yesterday afternoon I did this during nap time :

There really wasn't much I had to do other than string the beads. I thought about embellishing it with beads from my collection but decided it was cute as-is. I have a few color combinations that I really like, and this is definitely one of them. The paper beads are from Martha Stewart's new line at Michaels. I really love the colors. I am sure the necklaces will end up in the girls jewelry box, but for now they are perched on my dresser as eye candy.

Happy Birthday Jessica

Jessica's mom and I met at the gym. Yesterday was Jessica's birthday party which we attended. This was the girls' first birthday party they attended that wasn't there own. This morning at breakfast they asked if they could go back to Jessica's house for more birthday parties. I think they had fun.

I was leery of going since I am on my own and attending the party meant the girls were going to miss their nap. We had a busy afternoon scheduled after the party and I wasn't sure how the girls would handle it, but not surprisingly they did great. Sabine (Jessica's mom) did a great job and we all had fun. The remaining afternoon was busy but not fun. We had people in and out of the house from 3pm till 6:45pm in preparation for the closing. The girls were a little cranky but it was manageable.

This was them at 7:30 pm. Sound asleep (in the wrong bed, but that's okay).

Outnumbered

I feel outnumbered often. My energy level is decreasing while Erika & Ainslee seem to be gaining energy by the hour. They are good girls, but they are 2 1/2 years old. They think they can do everything by themselves and often make a huge mess trying. The photo below was shot on mother's day. We had taken my husband to the airport, stopped to eat lunch, and headed home for a quiet afternoon. My MIL was still in town (that's her reading the paper). She was a huge help and she is always great company. I am looking forward to being closer driving distance once we move.
And then yesterday . . . .

This is what I mean by doing things themselves. I had left a purse on the closet floor. I thought it was empty, but the girls found a tube of long forgotten lipstick in a pocket in the purse on the floor. I was on the phone with my husband sorting out some tedious details and didn't notice how quiet it was. My mistake!! They thought they looked great with their "lips" on and didn't understand why I immediately grabbed a wipe to clean them up. Oh my. It was definitely a day when I questioned what I was going to do with THREE little ones. I guess phone calls lasting more than 90 seconds will be out.

Busy May

Here we are going into our second week of May and I am mentally stuck in April. I feel like time has stood still until I see the date on my cell phone or a calendar. My MIL is in town and we have been busy doing our normal stuff and then some. We have had some really yummy dinners, fun outings, a couple picnics and today the grand finale was a day at the beach.

Martin heads out to TX tomorrow for another two weeks and my MIL leaves on Monday. It will seem very quiet in the house for a few days, and I know the girls will miss all the special attention that they have received from Grandma.