Stat Time. 30 Weeks.

 I hit 30 weeks this last Sunday, and since I've just found my little girl preciously napping in MY bed, I thought I'd skip my nap and head for the computer. I'll regret this one in about an hour, I'm sure!
 

How far along? 30 weeks, 4 days

 
Total weight gain/loss: Loss? Ha! I've hit the 20lb marker - hoping to slow things down a little.

Stretch marks?: I'm going to say it out loud and totally jinx myself.  NONE to account for yet! I'm keeping fingers & toes crossed very, very tightly! You've got no idea how much I would love to pop these kids out without a single piece of evidence I ever did. =)

Maternity Clothes: My mom wanted to pick me up maternity clothes as soon as we found out I was pregnant. I told her to get ALL small, because I didn't get big with Gracie, so why would I THIS time. Well, those smalls are getting pretty dang small right about now. I've got two Old Navy shirts that I pretty much live in, and I've got a good amount of bottoms to pick from. If I'm at home though, I'm generally in my jammies. I'm making no plans on buying any new purchases.

Sleep: I can't break the habit of sleeping on my back. I wake up at least 6 times a night on my back. Aside from that & how ridiculously painful it is on my legs getting out of bed to pee at night, I'm sleeping alright. 

Best Moment Of This Week: My husband telling me that even pregnant and all, he still finds me incredible attractive, and then me actually believing him. 

Movement: Too much? Is that possible? This kid doesn't sleep. It's comforting to see and feel all the movements, but sometimes I'm like 'you've showed off enough for one day, take a break!'

Gender: His penis... well ya, it's still there. 

Labor Signs: Nothing much, a few braxton hicks here and there, that's about it.

Food Cravings: It's something different ALL the time. Usually snacks/sweets. With Gracie it was hot/spicy all the time.

Belly Button In or Out: It's about leveled right now. But on top of the belly button where my piercing was, it kind of protrudes out a little bit, which appears to resemble that of an outtie outside my shirt.

What I Miss: My higher energy levels, laying on my stomach, and having an icy old beer paired with bar food. 

What I'm looking forward to: Not being asked by men constantly when I'm due... at the gas station, at the grocery story, while taking Grace for a walk in her wagon, ect. 

Weekly Wisdom: Just enjoy the 'easiness' of being pregnant before that little dude needs my attention around the clock. 

Baby Brain Moment of the Week: Not being able, for the life of me, to think of easy everyday words, such as 'Garage'. A couple days ago this was me... "Jason, open the... that... you know... well you know what I mean... that button thing... OUTSIDE!... where you put the cars and junk... HOW DO YOU NOT KNOW WHAT I'M TALKING ABOUT!!!???" (And that, my friends, was NO exaggeration!)

Enjoying the Small Things., Ed 2

It's Saturday morning, & I'm sitting with my laptop on the couch next to an open window listening to the faint sounds of birds outside. (Yes- if you know me, you know I despise birds, but a couple tweets in the far distance is working out fine this morning.) If I wasn't currently 'with child' right now I'd be sipping on a hot, strong coffee- with way too much vanilla creamer mixed in. I'd probably be on cup number three...

This morning that I'm-so-blessed-in-my-life feeling is coming on strong. I'm just enjoying the small things right now...

Eating an ice cream drumstick five minutes before bed last night, then again this morning at 7am.

Board games late at night with the husband that involve heavy flirting & really bad fake accents.

Gracie getting excited for me to do her hair; getting to pick ponytails or piggy-tails. 

Grace telling me that 'her new car' is smiling at her.

One crafty banner I made waiting to be hung up on my daughter's wall.

A partial pay paternity leave request for my husband, excepted!!

And still the anticipation (yet perfectly content waiting) to meet our little dude in just two months.

Happy Saturday!

Summing It Up, Thus Far.

Someone nominated my blog at Circle Of Moms under the Top 25 Pregnancy Journals. I'm not sure who it was, but I took a look today and I'm actually in the running at #23. So if you'd like to take a quick second, click here, mossy on down the list a tad, and vote for I Should Be Doing Laundry... that would be neato. Thanks!

So since, apparently my journal has anonymously been named a 'pregnancy journal', I thought I'd sum up my experience carrying baby #2 (Levi) this time around, thus far.

First Trimester:

I spent most of these weeks in the fetal position on the couch while praying that my almost-two-year-old at the time could pretty much fend for herself. Morning sickness my buttocks! It was all day sickness, every single day sickness. The smells, tastes, and even the sight of some things left me running for the bathroom dry-heaving (which is way worse than actually vomiting to me.). I experienced a little sickness with Gracie, but nothing like this. (Everyone, their mother & their cat at this point was convinced I was having a boy. Apparently Old Wives Tales NEVER die).

Second Trimester:

I'm feeling Ahhh- MAZING!!! at this point. I could stay pregnant all my life if needed be (I jumped the gun a little bit). I felt great. I'd seriously forget I was even pregnant until my growing belly got in the way of something/someone, or when people had to remind me to 'not pick that up!!'. I'm a very do-it-myself kind of girl. I don't like that feeling of being handicapped from doing something I can normally do on my own.

Third Trimester (My Armageddon?):

I am soo over it. This is my last pregnancy, and at first I was a little sad I'd be experiencing all this for the very last time. Yea. That feeling is now out. the. window. I feel fat, I feel tired, I feel like I'm 80 years old. At night I try and hold my bladder as long as I can to keep from having to get out of bed. I'm not sleeping well, and I've got one (going on two now) pinched static nerve, which at times makes it hard to even sit still. I am convinced that if I was not a SAHM right now, I'd have to go start my leave of absence right now. And my doctor says my tummy is measuring bigger than average. BUT! Aside from the pain and extreme low-self esteem I'm experiencing this trimester, feeling those kicks and tumbles that my little dude in there is doing... makes all the pain worth it. Remembering what it's like to hold Grace for the first time, and now actually knowing how it's like to see your child and love them unconditionally at first sight... yep. All. Worth. It. I would do it a million more times for Grace if I had to. And I know I'll feel the same way about my little boy.

Snacking > Packing

I don't just find myself procrastinating when I've got something I need/should be doing. No. I tend to go out of my way to make sure I procrastinate. (Hence, my blog title.) Today hasn't been much different.

After I packed, oh say about... 1/3 of one box today, I remembered that I told myself to make a habit of finding a way to exercise at least once a day. That's when I had a brilliant plan start to form in my head. Gracie loves being in her stroller now. I love walking (easiest form of exercise). And I love food! Snack food lately, to be specific. Genius plan? Walk to Target and pick up...

Stuff to make Rice Krispy Treats!!

So I got my exercise in for today, but now I know I'll be finding myself eating Rice Krispy Treats all day with my daughter. Oh, and on the way home we passed a Subway, and that's when another craving started setting in... Bacon Ranch Sandwich.  

Where did my willpower go?  

So It's almost 2pm, and I've almost got 3 boxes packed for today.

Are those elves on the Kellogg's box for hire??

I'd settle for a slow down...

In between packing, calling insurance companies - dropping & adding different policies, turning on new utilities, hunting for free boxes (I refuse to ever pay for a box with nothing in it), scheduling final walk through, scheduling document signings, scheduling moving truck, scheduling grandmas' to watch little one during Operation: Move In One Day, making it to early doctor appointments, getting jury summoned AGAIN, multiple trips to drop off items at Goodwill, dealing with a toddler that won't go to sleep & is hitting her terrible twos at mach2 speed (the speed of sound... doubled- DUH!), calling escrow company over & over to confirm final settlement charges, annnd hitting my 3rd trimester (phew!)...

Let's just say I'm feeling a little bit overwhelmed and a lot-of-bit stressed!

I try to take my job (family manager/stay at home mom) very seriously. After all, Jason does bring in ALL the money to provide for us in every financial sense, so it's silly for me to not be the one taking care of  just about everything else. I've been blessed to have a husband who constantly wants to help me out on top of going to work each week, but at the end of the day, these are all things I want to be responsible for. All because I love my husband oh so so much!

Anywho! Today we're going to do a final walk through of the house (make sure it's still in the same condition it was last time we saw it before we sign papers), tomorrow we're going to the title/escrow company to sign documents & write checks, and then between Thursday and Friday our loan gets funded and the keys are placed in our hands.

Here's our cookie-cutter-typical-run-of-the-mill Arizona home. =) A first home, not a dream home!

Happy Easter!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter Weekend. Aside from an epic toddler tantrum in the car twice this weekend & Grace kicking daddy out of bed last night to sleep with me (the wind scared her to death - and only an already-sleep-deprived mommy would do!), we had a great weekend with family & friends.

Grace sure enjoyed herself!!

While having kids does make the holidays a little a lot more stressful, it's so much more fun with them! Seeing my daughter light up with joy at the thought of opening presents or hunting for eggs... that's awesome. She will continue to ask me to hid eggs around the house for the next week, and I gladly will!

Today (woops, yesterday - I wrote this last night, and not posting it until this morning!) I am thankful that Jesus died for our sins, and that his resurrection day came soon after, but I'm no more thankful today than I am ALL 364 other days of the year. Through prayer everyday He knows this. He is Alive for us every single day, and it doesn't take Easter to remind me of this.

Enjoying the Small Things., Ed 1

...Today I'm especially enjoying the small things...

Pigtails that don't get pulled out all day long & little polka dot dresses.

Coming home to a mess, because I've got a place to call my home.

Alfredo sauce stuck to the side of my face after finishing a whole dinner at Olive Garden for the first time ever!

Watching my daughter share cookies with friends.

A body massage from Jason that almost never ended.

The first few minutes in the morning when I'm the only one awake in the house.

God's Grace in my life, though His son Jesus.

Hope ya'll have a blessed Easter Sunday!

Summer in April.

The AC is running, seat beats are leaving 2nd degree burns, and little tan lines are starting to form.

We are super thrilled that it's hot enough outside now to enjoy some a lot of days by the pool! It's got to be one of Gracie's favorite things to do, and I'm definitely not opposed to spending an hour or two in the sun!

Pancakes & Home Loans.

If I get incredibly large this time around, I'm blaming my 2 year old. Every single day when she wakes up she runs into my room and the first thing out of her little mouth, "Pancakes Momma!!" So every morning I drag myself out of bed and make a batch. She eats a coupe of small pancakes, but there's usually a bunch left over, so I make myself some ginormous pancakes to feed my own cravings. My cravings by the way, are getting way out of control, but my weight hasn't...yet! We shall see! I'm in the market for another round of ZERO stretch marks. 

Anyways, it seems our house hunt as finally ended! We found a cute cozy little house in Peoria, AZ. I use the words cute, cozy, and little because it's the one of the smallest houses we looked at. Weighing in at just 1322 SqFt. It's a house that will do until my two children reach a pre-teen stage probably, IF that long. We offered $10,000 more than the bank was asking for (because we know how the banks play their 'games') and didn't ask for any help with closing costs. (which means as of next month we are completely flat on our butts BROKE!) We ended up beating out THIRTEEN other offers. Our loan hasn't gone in underwriting yet, and our ten days don't actually start until next week, but I'm keeping an optimistic attitude. You pretty much have to or you'll go crazy! In today's market the banks/loans are demanding so much from you. Even with a FHA loan & only 3.5% down, you still need at least ten grand in the bank after closing costs and everything, and that's for a house under a hundred grand! Everything costs a pretty penny!

A-Z

Side Note: It's super weird to find out people have searched my name in Google's search bar, but then it's even freakier to find out just today someone actually did an image search on my name, found a picture of me, and then ended up here.  Hey, creepster, what's the deal? Nothing better do to?

Anyways, here's a fluffy post A-Z, all about me. =)

A. Age: 25- soon to be 26. I still feel pretty young, until I hear 21 year olds freaking out about 22!

B. Bed spread color(s): Earth tones, and I can't wait to upgrade! I hate them.

 
C. Chore you dislike: It's probably the most simple one, but I hate doing laundry! You'd think it would be the kitchen & bathroom, since that is something I clean every single day, or every other day. Can't stay a dirty kitchen or bathroom. Clutter is one thing, hygiene is another!

D. Dogs: Currently no. Since we're buying a house right now, we've recently played around with the idea in the future, but I'm not sure if I'm ready to take on another potty trainee so soon!

 
E. Essential start to your day: BIG glass of water, Gracie smiles, & a waffle. When I pop this baby out, coffee will be back on my list!

F. Favorite color: Don't have a favorite.

G. Gold or silver: I'm big on silver. Not a fan of gold. Slightly OT: We actually own around 100 oz of silver that we bought when it was only 12/oz. If you're up to speed on the stocks... that's cha-ching-ching in our pockets!

H. Height: 5′ 7”

I. Instruments you play(ed): I played the violin, moved to the flute, and stopped with the piano. Don't ask me to play any of these instruments today- I couldn't read a page of music if my life depended on it.

J. Job title: Family Manager

K. Kids: Gracie Jo- 2 yrs old. Levi- Coming Soon!

L. Live for ______: God, Jason, & my children.

M. Most embarrassing moment: I've been pretty darn lucky to not have any worth remembering.

N. Nicknames: Dee, but most people just call me Deena or Deena Jo.

O. Overnight hospital stays: Just when Grace was born. I've been an out-patient twice, and I've got a couple overnight stays coming up & one more out-patient procedure planned in the very near future.

P. Pet peeves: When people don't shut cabinet doors & when people don't use or forget to turn off their blinkers. I've got a lot more, but I don't like to be negative.

Q. Quote from a movie: I’m not a big movie person.

S. Siblings: I have a 'little' sister, who is only 16 months younger than me, most people guess she's older, even though I'm the one whose been married, had kids, and I'm the one that doesn't still live at home! Hm.

T. Time you wake up: When Gracie wakes up, which is usually 8am. I love it!

U. Ultimate vacation spot: I want to go on a cruise so bad, I've never been!

V. Vegetables: Asparagus, broccoli, and corn on the cod!

W. What makes you run late: Having babies. I use to be early to everything!! I'm usually still on time, but I'm occasionally late, and I can't stand that feeling!

X. X-rays you’ve had: On my teeth for the usually cleaning/checkup, and one of my chest; but I don't remember why.

Y. Yummy food you make: My dad taught me to bake a great cake!

Z. Zoo animal favorites: Tigers.