Mwuah!

James is the sweetest kid I know!

MERRY CHISTMAS!

Happy Boy!

James was pretty excited that Santa came!

Needless to say, I've been just a little busy. These boys sure keep things interesting! We had such a great Christmas. It was special to spend Christmas morning together as a family. I'm excited that we are starting our own family traditions.

I love Sundays

Just being lazy, laughing at James, watching football, seeing Brad in his Namath jersey, watching James be a crazy toddler, cuddling with my sweet Blake, not caring what we have for dinner- just totally enjoying life and my wonderful family. We had such a great day!

Oh, and we got a BlendTec from Costco today! Yay, I'm excited to make all sorts of healthy smoothies, juices, and soups for us. We even used it to make ice cream tonight!

I just can't get enough

CUTE boys!

I sure am a lucky gal!

Family of 4!

Yay! Blake Stephen Ward is here!!! I have a family of 4 now, and couldn't be happier. He is just perfect, like an angel. I'm SO blessed. He was born 11/9/11 at 4:11pm. I went to the hospital at 7am to be induced, and 9 hours later he was here! Labor and delivery went really well, after my dr broke my water at 1pm, I progressed really fast, and had no trouble delivering him. Except the small fact that my epidural started to wear off at the last minute... that was scary, but the extra doses of anethestic worked, thank goodness. I'm so thankful that Blake is a healthy boy, he eats like a horse and is probably going to a little chunk like his big brother. I love my boys so much, I didn't know it was possible to love this much!

38 weeks and counting

Oy, is he here yet??!!?? Jeez, I can't wait, these past couple days have been rough! I'm scheduled to be induced on Nov 9th, but please- PLEASE baby Blake, don't wait that long! I need you here already :)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

We had so much fun last night! Went over to Mandee's for dinner, then the guys took the kids trick or treating. It was so cute watching James in his costume with his little pumpkin bucket. When they got back to the house, he was so excited to show me all his 'nan nan' or candy!

Poor baby

Poor James was up sick all night, throwing up and a fever of 103. He never gets sick, so it REALLY broke my heart to see him like that. I've never seen him be so still. His whole body was bright red, and even his little hands were burning up. We gave him some tylenol, lukewarm bath, a popcicle, and a couple episodes of Mickey Mouse- which all seemed to do the trick. I feel so helpless, I would do anything to switch places with him. Thankfully he's taking a nap now, I'm hoping he will catch up on sleep. Thanks Stacie for the advice!

Ooh baby!

34 weeks and counting the seconds. I'm SOOO ready to meet this little dude, I'm so excited! And, quite frankly, I'm kinda over being pregnant. I really hate to say it, because everything has been so enjoyable up until now. My back is killing me!! I must have tweeked it a couple days ago, because I'm now walking hunched over like a little old lady. Thank goodness it's the weekend and Brad is home to help me. Here is a pic we took last night:

This is me pregnant with James at 34 weeks: Blake is catching up!!

Just love this guy!!

Enjoying my last few weeks with just James! I love him to pieces...

Happy Birthday to me!

I'm convinced I have the best husband in the world. Brad is SO good to me, I couldn't ask for a better man. We had fun celebrating, he took me out to get a message, dinner, movie, and an overnight stay. The message was amazing, it's been too long since I've had one. My lower back has been very sore from carrying this big baby around. We ate dinner at Roosters, and they brought me caramel bread pudding with ice cream for dessert. This is hands down my new favorite dessert, I enjoyed it SO much, especially because I've been so strict on my new diabetes diet. Then we went and saw the new Brad Pitt movie, Moneyball. Really good movie. It was nice to go back to the hotel and relax, such a good night. Yvonne was in town, she watched James while we were out. He just loves her, I'm so thankful.

Suprise for me when we got back to the hotel

My Handsome Hubby

Just got back from the doctor's office. Blake is measuring right on track, a little on the big side. Which really doesn't suprise me! We did an ultrasound today, he weighs 5 1/2 lbs! James had an appointment too, with his pediatrician. He weighs 27 1/2 lbs and is 34" tall. He had to get TWO shots :( I hate seeing him cry like that, it breaks my heart :( :( So the verdict is I have gestational diabetes... I have to prick my finger 4 times a day to measure my blood sugar, write down EVERYTHING I eat, and count carbs. So much for completely enjoying this pregnancy! It hasn't even been a week, I'm craving chocolate SO bad, especially chocolate fudge donuts... yummy! I think that'll be my first treat after Blake is born :)

Canning

I must say, I have suprised myself. I actually canned this year! Sometimes I feel like I'm turning into my mother, which is really scary. :) I did stewed tomatoes, salsa, peaches, and peach jam. Spaghetti sauce is on my list for next week. It's a lot of work, mostly time consuming. It's also exhausting, especially when you're 7 months pregnant. But I'm so glad to have all these extra goodies on hand for the winter time.

PEACH JAM

SALSA

TA DA!

Lately...

Just some recent pics! 27 weeks now and really feeling good. My dr. says I need to watch my sugar intake :( Kinda depressing. I need to go in for more blood work to determine my risk of gestational diabetes. Only 13 more weeks to go!

17 months...

And he's figured out how to fart... SUCH A BOY! He thinks it's the funniest thing, and quite frankly, I do too LOL.

Oh how I miss showing!!!

I'm still pooped from the region 4H show yesterday! It was a long long HOT day, in the dust, in the sun... no shade! However, I'm SO proud of Bailie!! She did such a great job! Lots of blue ribbons. It's so fun to watch her. Gent was such a good boy, he just loves being a show horse. He really loved the fact that he got to eat half of my lunch, he's such a begger, just like a dog. I love him so much, and I'm thankful he's still here with our family. I'm SO glad he was never sold, not that I ever considered it. Wish I had pictures to post! It was a great day!

Stud Muffins

I'm a lucky gal! I have a house full of cute boys! (not to mention the adorable one on the way!)

Almost there...

Been working hard on James' room. It's almost finished! I made these really cool hanging blocks for his wall.

This is the valance that Yvonee made!

Sometimes I miss being a kid! I remember how fun it was to run thru the sprinklers with my friends, now I'm watching James do it. I loved listening to the giggles as they all ran thru the water, so much fun for a him, especially because all his girlfriends were there!

23 weeks along! On left: pregnant with baby #2; on right: pregnant with James. At this point, James was measuring a little more big!

My first harvest

Anyone for some fresh green beans?! YUM, I LOVE having a garden!!

Miss Crafty...

This is as crafty as I get. I painted some airplanes to hang on the wall in the baby's room. I'm SO excited to decorate this room! I'm going to re-do James' room too, with a sports-ball theme. Will post more pics soon!

BEFORE and AFTER: