Birthday Party

Today was Jude’s birthday party. We had a great day and it was worth spending all day preparing for the event. I thought it would be fun to have a dachshund themed birthday party, so I made cupcakes with little dachshund outlines traced in chocolate. I also made a dachshund pinata that we dubbed the “Lim-yata” and the kids got “doggy bags” to take home.

Here are pictures of Jude hanging out with the other kids. All the kids got to pull a string on the pinata to open it up (instead of hitting it blindfolded), but I didn’t design that part very well, so I just had to rip it open to release the candy and toys.

Present time was fun. Jude would get so interested in the different things that he saw. Of course, his Mimi would say “Oh, he really wants to play with that” and get the toy out of the box for him. The other kids thought Jude’s Cozy Coupe was pretty cool.

We sang happy birthday and Jude really did not want to eat his cupcake at first and cried. But, after a sweet kiss from his Daddy and a taste of frosting he changed his mind. He even posed for a picture with his parents, grandparents, and cousin Jason. Then he realized, “I hate wearing party hats!”

It was fun to see our family and friends, and Jude managed to stay in good spirits until the end, when he was ready for his nap. Thank you to our friends and family who came from near and far and took the time out of their day to spend it with the Mitchells. I know a one-year-old’s party is not the height of excitement. For those who were not able to join us today, we missed you and Joe and I ate your cupcakes for you : )

 

Summer Reading

Well, now that we are heading into the summer months, I finally get to do some summer reading. I love reading, but it seems hard to make time during the year for recreational reading. This year in particular, with being a new mom, I didn’t get to read too often. But with lazy days and vacation, I plan do much more. Traditionally, in the summer I reread some of my very favorite books, such as the Life of Pi and the Harry Potter series. In addition to those books, here is my list of what I want plan on reading this summer:

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Son of  a Witch by Gregory Maguire

Happy reading!!

 

Showers to Sun(burn)

So, I’ve been a little wiped out by everything…pregnancy, heat, and work make for a powerful sleep cocktail. So, I’ve been lazy about blogging, but I will catch everyone up on the past week.

Last Saturday: My Shower

Last week was my very fun (but thankfully last) shower, hosted by my friend Courtney and two of Joe’s aunts. It was so nice to get to spend time with everyone and I got a lot of useful and lovely gifts. It was also nice to have other people organize my house. It was like the shower fairies came and made everything look nice for a party and then it was all cleaned up. (Usually I spend the whole time we have guests over cleaning as I go). Liam was actually very good, even with all those people in the house. He kept trying to get in photos and sat underneath the bench as I was opening gifts.

The only downside that day was that midway through the shower, our thermostat went out. We didn’t realize what had happened until Joe came home and a lot of people had left. We have a digital thermostat, and it was the second time that week that it just blanked out. I knew it felt warm, but my body temperature gauge is off, obviously. So, after everyone left Joe fixed the thermostat…which required us and our friends, Steve and Courtney (plus their two girls) to sit a very hot house for 2 hours since the electricity had to be turned off. But, he got it working, and that is what counts.

I was really fearful that I would go into labor, because it seems like those labor stories always start with some big event, like, “It was the 4th of July and the air conditioner went out. Then we got a flat on both the cars and I went into labor…” Luckily, no labor. But, since Joe had family in town, everyone came back over to the house (once it was cooled down) for some pizza and Wii bowling. By midnight, I was exhausted. I wanted to stay up and hang out with our friends Steve and Courtney (since it has been a while since all 4 of us were together), but someone has to be the first to fall asleep. Which is okay with me, because they stayed up until 4:00 am, and eventually had to break down the reality of childbirth for Joe. But, Joe didn’t seem scared.

Tuesday: What the thermostat broke again?

That’s right folks, the thermostat went out again. Believe me, pregnant Christy who spent all day sweating at the zoo was not the Christy who wanted to come home to an 84 degree house. Joe put fans on me in order to cool me off and cool my tempers. He rewired it and I am proud to report, no more indoor heatwaves!

Thursday: Trip to Bastrop State Park

Work went as it usually does. I have been busy with taking my summer camp kids on field trips. Thursday, we went to Bastrop for fishing and swimming, and just a little sunburning on my part. All my coworkers were surprised I was “still kicking.” To be honest, I woke up that morning and did not feel like myself. My stomach hurt like it was really full and pushing down on my uterus and I just didn’t feel like myself. But, floating in the pool definitely helped.

We had family night at our house that night, where Joe’s family came over for dinner. After they left I told Joe, that I really didn’t feel like myself and that tonight may be the night. His eyes lit up like he had found a golden ticket. “Really!” I told him, I didn’t know when it was going to happen, but to just be prepared. I said, if it is going to happen, I am going to bed now because I am exhausted. Joe was truly excited, but I have to admit I was really nervous, as the reality approaches ever closer.

Friday: It Didn’t Happen…That’s Fine with Me 

Friday, nothing much of anything happened. The doctor said that I am still at 3 cm and 75% effaced. She said the baby is at a -1 station, so a cm away from being truly engaged. She said that I could go into labor in two days or two weeks. So, we wait.

 

Father’s Day

So, Father’s Day was our official last trip out of town before the baby’s birth. My dad insisted that we didn’t have to come visit, but it was also his 50th birthday on Wednesday, so I figured big deals like that only happen once in a while. So, we went to Waco to take my dad out to eat for a Father’s Day/birthday celebration. It was nice to get to spend some time with my dad. Plus, this weekend I got both my parents to tell me about my birth. It puts those stories into a new perspective when you are getting ready to have a birth of your own child.

We also got to visit with Joe’s sister and brother-in-law briefly. Their little girl is over a year old now and she is adorable. Walking and everything. She is the spitting image of Joe’s sister. I have a feeling the baby is going to look a lot like Joe. I hope he gets that dark curly hair that I love.

So, now I am 36 weeks pregnant, which makes me 9 months. By Sunday, I will be medically “to term” and the baby will have developed everything he needs. When he decides to make his appearance will be up to him. So here I am, after the worst night of sleep in my mom’s very hot guest bedroom. But, this picture was prior to Joe and I building a piece of furniture, which took a good two hours, and significant amount of grumpiness on my part.

 

Dear Summer

It’s official…my summer is over. Just like ever other kid who is returning to school, I too will write about the minutia of my summer as my first assignment of the year.

Dear Summer,

I am so glad that I got to meet you. I was hearing a lot about you all year. I had a really good time hanging out with you, but it was really too short.

I wish that we had a chance to do more together, but I was pretty broke this summer. I enjoyed the movies we watched (Pirates 3, Transformers, Harry Potter, The Bourne Ultimatum) and getting to stay up really late, pratically every night. It was also pretty fun taking Liam to the dog park, where I learned there is always a weirdo anyplace you go that believes himself to be the expert about that place, including the dog park.

I have to say, it was a little uncomfortable with your changing moods, though. First you kept raining and I couldn’t walk my dog or go anywhere without slipping because of my flip flops. It got dreary there, but my lawn looked great. Then you got really hot and I started to miss all that rain. You made Joe’s car seats really hot and uncomfortable to drive anywhere for the first 5 minutes.

You gave Joe and I a lot of great ideas for home improvements. I am happy to report that we at least completed a few of those projects. Remember when we had that birthday party for Joe and how I kept cleaning the house all night. Good times!

I wish that I could remember all the funny jokes we told and the secrets that we shared. We ate a lot of good food and our fair share of really crummy food. I really liked getting my Harry Potter book at midnight. Joe couldn’t stop talking about the “nerds” for days.

I am really sad that it’s time for me to go back to work. I was quite enjoying my lazy days. Promise that you will write me so we can be friends forever.

Your friend,

Christy