Some summer-ish pictures...for your viewing pleasure :-)

Summer is a magical sort of time for kids....I appreciate it, but we all know I'm a fall-ish kind of girl :-). Seeing it through the eyes of my child makes me savor it so much more. Playing at the park, playing in the sprinkler/pool, popsicles, bike rides, hot dogs :-).......its all pretty great...especially in the eyes of a three year old. We've been pretty negligent in taking pictures this summer....but here are some of the best so far. Enjoy!

Late Post: 26 Week Check Up and what I have learned

BB2 and I are doing just fine. We had a check up on Monday, June 28 and I am happy to report that all is well. My blood pressure still looks good (which is great because this is the point in my pregnancy with Owen where I had to go on procardia to help lower my blood pressure) and I've put on a total of three lbs so far. I'm so, so happy that I've been able to gain slowly like I did with Owen. Since this is "probably" our last baby (don't ask me, ask Josh!) I was hoping that I wouldn't be faced with a gigantic amount of weight to loose. It came off easily enough after Owen was born thanks to breastfeeding...and honestly, I'm really looking forward to getting that jump start again and being healthier all around now that my thyroid is under control! YAY! Anyways, nothing real exciting to report on that end...just everything is good and my next visit is my glucose test. Oh...please, please keep your fingers crossed that I will pass. :-) Thanks!

I've been thinking a lot about natural childbirth and how I can have a less interventions with the birth of this baby than I did with Owen. Obviously, a healthy baby and a healthy Momma are the most important thing, so I'm not willing to compromise on that, but I do think there are some ways to avoid the snowball of interventions that I had to have with Owen. I've come to the conclusion that it all starts with induction. If I can get my body into labor on its own, I THINK I can avoid a lot of other interventions that became necessary at Owen's birth. Praying that because this is my second baby my body will get into the groove easier and I won't need to use any drugs for induction. Josh and I took a natural child birth class last week and it was pretty entertaining. I DID get my back rubbed for about a half an hour (nice!) and learned some interesting things about breathing and moving around that will help labor progress.

Ah. :-) So. We will see. P.S. A friend asked me for some natural induction advice a few days ago because she had passed her due date on Friday, she tried some of the things I had read up on...her water broke that night and her baby was born the next evening! There is SOME truth to these remedies FOR SURE! :-)

Because before we know it, Josh will be back at soccer practice and school again, we got all of our baby stuff out of the attic today. The cradle is down, infant car seat, papasan seat, etc. All in all, our stuff is in pretty good shape. I'm thankful for that! We decided to toss our old diaper genie---because really---who wants to clean THAT?! :-) Owen has been having fun playing around with all the stuff we got down and is asking me if the baby is coming out soon. Well. No. Soon enough, but not really SOON. :-)

Lastly, I've been thinking about a whole bunch of stuff...life...mothering...relationships....my expectations on what my life will look like and God has really been showing me how little control I have over anything! Shocking, yes?! We were talking in small groups last night about what kind of things God uses in our lives to rebuke us and reform us...and I have to say that I've learned a lot about being obedient because God has removed things from my life. More than anything, I've learned that happiness doesn't come from my fulfilled expectations. I am not entitled to anything, nor I am I promised a single thing. God HAS promised to give me everything I need to live a life of godliness, but this does not always include giving me exactly what I think I want. Thank goodness, because I am a selfish wretch! :-) Sometimes I feel like we are rocking the boat....asking God to give us another healthy child....but I come back to the knowledge that these babies are not mine, they belong to God and He will use them and do what He wants with our lives in spite of my wants and expectations. Although it is a sobering thought, I find a lot of grace and comfort in knowing that the lives of my babies are completely dependent on God's perfect plan for our lives. I'm so thankful that I don't have to stress and worry about what is best for me (for us), because God already knows and has known the number of our days before we even took our first breath. I'm praying for contentment, because so many things take my eyes off the prize of knowing Jesus and being complete in him---there is always something to have and be had: better cars, bigger/nicer houses, stuff for the house, clothes, etc, etc! I made it my goal long ago to live simply and to love well....and I'm praying that God will show me how to do this...not easy in this world! Sorry for the rambling run on sentences and thoughts. Its one of those days. I've been way too introspective!

Owen and I are going to go play in the sprinkler...so I'll catch up with some pictures on blogspot later. Happy July everyone!