This morning was not a glamorous start to the day. My body was pretty angry by the end of yesterday, and for whatever reason, it didn’t reset overnight. So not only did I wake up from vivid dreams of bad things happening to loved ones, and dreams reminiscing the ultrasound where we found out we lost Jamin, but from body pain and things popping out of the places where they belong. It was a rough start.

We had plans to hole up for the day. Maybe watch a movie. Brady talked about taking the kids to play outside. Cabin fever is very real over here. Unfortunately, the day started rough for the kids, too, and it was clear we needed a change of scenery. As it happens, we’ve been doing a lot of shopping at Costco recently but have been very much neglecting what needs buying at Superstore and Walmart. So, I slapped on my pelvic support belt and made it work!

Thank goodness for these parking spots! I already feel like I’m not far from asking for a handicapped parking pass, so when these spots are free, we jump at them!

Walmart was first, and as you can see, we have a new method of cart pushing, lol! At Walmart, the carts only have a seat for one rider, so unlike his usual, Rowan ends up walking. This way, Brady pulls the cart, but the three kids “push” it, therefore all holding on, and “helping.” Its a pretty cute sight, in my opinion.

We had a very quick lunch and everyone was energized enough to make it through Superstore without too much struggle. Solly is a bit of a loose cannon, and is very screamy some days, especially when he’s tired, and we got to Superstore riiiiight at nap time. But he made it! They all did 🙂 Crisis-free grocery shop!

They’re so cute!

Half the group napped on the way home, and one continued to sleep in his room once we got there. I made my way across the street and helped our forever-generous neighbours with their fresh cinnamon bun overload problem. We are SO helpful 😉 And also SO thankful!

We are now all home, one kid is sleeping, the other three are having some quiet time watching Netflix, Brady put away all the groceries, and I am blogging (obviously) and giving my body and break from the crazy belt. I’m so thankful for it, and it saves me from all kinds of pelvic pain, but its ineffective unless its ridiculously tight, and that on its own gets irritating and sore after a while. Must. Rest. Body.

I anticipate a quiet, slow moving evening! Maybe we’ll have cinnamon buns for breakfast. Thats ok, right? Yum.

I’m not sure how much I’ve talked about it on here, but Brady’s had a pretty interesting slump in work for the last several months. While, in a lot of ways, it was timed out perfectly, and he’s been home when I’ve REALLY needed him, the reality is that income was getting pretty iffy. Its been hard to have him back at work recently, but we are both THRILLED and RELIEVED that his schedule is full to bursting, and work is heavily upon him! Its truly amazing that we aren’t further behind than we are!

However, we are now in a position where we can’t really turn much (if any) away. We need it ALL. And that means Brady is working Saturdays :/ Not necessarily every Saturday for the foreseeable future, but he’s working the next few. I miss him. We all do. Saturday feels strange without him. But today, I’m putting in a stronger effort to make the best of the day! And things are getting done!

With my pelvic pain, my mobility is pretty limited, but save for a few situations that have left me breathless and folded over in pain, the last week or two has been pretty seamless! So today, I challenged myself to get a few things done, and its feeling really good!!

I caught up on dishes, as in the hand washing stuff, too! Usually the stuff that can’t go through the dishwasher sits on the counter for a looong time, but I took care of it today. Counters are as clear as possible. Even the majority of the island is cleaned off! My planner and water bottle live on the island, but I’m not sure what to do with Dekker and Laela’s bags of valentines and treats yet. So they also live on the island.

I did a quick wipe down of the bathroom because it smelled SO BAD! How do they dooo that?!

I threw absolutely everything into the laundry and sorted it out. I’m on the third load, currently. By “everything,” I mean the things that are usually worn more than once, and are folded up and put back for another day. Its hard to keep track of how often those things actually get washed, unless they come home stained or covered in something. So, ALL jeans and hoodies went into the laundry! We’ll see how far I get into laundry today, but I washed the small load of delicates that tends to get left about as long as the hand-washed dishes. I may not get all the way through it, as I have two big hampers full of bedding that I’d love to pretend I don’t see, but it’ll depend on how fast time goes and when Brady gets home.

I thought about baking, but lost that gumption when the kids made themselves very comfortable (wait for it) making cards for each other at the island. My gosh, they’re sweet! So I wasn’t about to kick them all off of the island so I could bake, and I didn’t want to mess up their cards, and I REALLY didn’t want both messes mixed together and then the cards abandoned and the struggle of clean up and all those good things. So, baking can wait for another day.

I made yummy real iced tea! I so rarely do that, but I am just desperate for a pick me up these days, and my tummy doesn’t necessarily love coffee these days :/ So I tried my hand at iced tea. As long as I don’t set foot outside and freeze my bones, an iced drink should do the trick!

I made a few small lists of what else could be done, but nothing too scary or ominous. I love lists, but I hate how often they just sit and grow and never ever get completed.

Another load of laundry should be ready for folding any minute now, and I have an en suite that is crying to be tidied, so I’ll probably head upstairs and get a few things done soon here. Dekker is happily playing Lego, and the other three are quiet in their rooms, either sleeping or believably faking sleep. I’m good either way. Putting them down was so peaceful today, with lots of snuggles and jokes. This is NOT always the case, and its so refreshing when it works out!

I’m truly enjoying how today is playing out. Hopefully my body agrees and doesn’t scream at me later!

Thank you, all, for reaching out to me in your different ways to encourage me about today’s appointment with my new student doctor. The appointment probably couldn’t have gone smoother! Praise the Lord!

A few things went really really well in my favour!

Thing number one: Dr. Guselle tag teamed with my new doctor, just this first time, to make sure I was comfortable and that he knew all the appropriate history. They had clearly discussed my “case” beforehand so nothing was too shocking. He knew of my losses and I didn’t have to rehash them. He had just a few standard questions, and he and Dr. Guselle together answered my questions.

Thing number two: My ultrasound had gone smoothly for the most part, but there was a small section of the spine that wasn’t completely visible, and it was recommended I have another scan in 2-3 weeks. I confessed my nerves about going from weekly appointments to monthly, and Dr. Guselle spoke up right away and said she wouldn’t put me in that position, and encouraged me to book that scan, and to just speak up along the way for what I need. I’m SO relieved that she said these things around my new doctor, just so he knows where we stand and what kind of leeway I’ve been graciously given. YAY for that!

Thing number three: There was just so much laughing through our appointment today, which left me feeling completely at ease. Dr. Guselle laughed so hard at once point, she ran out of air and came up gasping. It was SO funny, and SO comfortable! The two of them would try to locate some information but he didn’t quite know how the system worked, and she did, but it was too small for her to see! They were a super funny pair 🙂 I liked it a lot.

Thing number four: Both doctors measured my uterus and came out with the same numbers, which feels like a good sign. When the time came to listen for Bambina’s heartbeat, he seemed a little tentative, as one would expect with him being a first year. I pointed to the spot where she usually hangs out, and sure enough, she was RIGHT where he placed the doppler! Heart rate was at 156 bpm, nice and quick. Dr. Guselle scoffed at how hard she’s had to hunt of the baby in the past, and how uncooperative she often is, lol! I guess she’s just being generous to the new guy.

Thing number five: As a group of three, we discussed labour and delivery! Just the readers digest version, but just the fact that I am induced a week early, why that is, and he literally said “I’ll just come early and bring a book. I’ll be there!” I LOVE that!!! He is on board, and seems happy to be part of my care. Last time around, while I really loved our student doctor, I remember asking her if we could finally discuss some labour and delivery details at 36 weeks, and she gave me the speech about “usually we let women go 7-10 days over…” and I remember feeling so discouraged that we were this far in and she didn’t know my history and why we do it like we do. I already feel more comfortable.

I say again, praise the Lord!

Dr. Guselle was so happy to hear that I’ve been feeling movement, and that we can all breathe a little easier. I feel comfortable with our plan to see each other in a month or so, with one scan in the middle. Its a good plan, and its only going to get a bit easier as time moves on, baby’s kicks get bigger, and we get further along, closer to the point where even premature delivery feels safe-ish.

It was a good appointment 🙂 I’m content, and relieved. Thank you for praying, those who did. I’m positive I wouldn’t even be standing if not for the amazing amount of prayers and support I’ve been on the receiving end of! I am so fortunate, and so grateful. Its almost unbelievable just how loved this little girl already is!!

Tomorrow is my first appointment with the student doctor who will be following me through the rest of my pregnancy. Dr. Guselle set it up for me to be with a first year resident, so she is required to be part of the appointment, so no matter what, I will see her every time. I’d far rather this than to be put with someone who is more experienced, because I’d never see my doctor again! I agreed to this program, and I’m fine with it as long as I am still in contact with my doctor. But up to this point, I’ve JUST seen Dr. Guselle, which has been really nice. Tomorrow it all starts new.

I admit, I’m a bit nervous about it all. I want to say that I DO understand that people need to learn, and I’m ok with being part of the process! Full support from me! But I’m a bit hung up on certain aspects of it. I saw a student doctor through my pregnancy with Solly and while she was very sweet and was a good listener, I felt a bit left to my own devices. I felt very un-doctored, and the majority of concerns that I expressed were met with “Well, this is your fourth baby…” So, with that in mind, I’m nervous for a few things.

I’m already nervous for my appointments to drop off so quickly. I have tomorrows appointment, and thats supposed to be it for a month. This is normal for a lot of people, but will be a HUGE shift for me, and I’m not sure I’m ready for it. But, so far everything looks good, so I know I’ll be reassured that I have nothing to worry about :/

I’m nervous I will be given the statistics again on how likely it is that I won’t miscarry this pregnancy, because I already lost two in a row.

I’m nervous they’ll tell me the second trimester is the safe zone. Its not.

I’m nervous I’ll be brushed off because I have a laundry list of things that scare me. I’m nervous that my history won’t count for much, because in my experience, anything outside “the book” isn’t really relevant when people are learning. I need my history to be considered.

I’m just nervous it won’t be a good fit. I don’t want to be a pessimist, but I’m scared that my student doctor will be kind, and caring, and do all the right things, but that I won’t feel taken care of because I don’t fit the mold. It doesn’t make sense for a woman who has been pregnant seven times to need so much hand holding and reassurance. I get that. But I also NEED that hand holding.

I guess we’ll know more tomorrow. I’ll fill you in.

I would normally post a bit of a sappy post on Valentines Day about how much I love my husband. However, I feel like I do that often enough, and anyone who has read for a while or knows anything about us knows how we feel about each other 💏 I thought I’d mix it up and share with you guys some general “wins” for Brady. Things that make him feel happy and fulfilled. A bit of a “get to know Brady” post.

The first thing Brady loves is washing the van. Not even kidding. We don’t do it nearly often enough, but that is because the boy simply cannot contain himself and the prices wracks up SO FAST! But he suuuper loves it, and anytime we’re taking someone somewhere or the weather permits, he petitions for a car wash 🙂 The kids also love being in the van as their daddy wand washes the heck out of the windows and makes faces at them. Its a win for everyone. But mostly Brady.

To branch off of this one, Brady LOVES a road trip. He is happy to pack our tubs, bags, high chairs, playpens, hampers, etc. Tetris-style into the van. He loves navigating new ways to get to our destination, singing with us all in the van, buying special meals and snacks along the way, and as is SO often the case, discussing baby names with me 🙂 Seriously, why is planning for a baby so much more fun on a road trip?? Most of our babies have been named while we’re on road trips. He is a VERY happy traveller.

This second picture just cracks me right up, hahaha! Great minds think alike??

Brady loves music. If you’ve EVER been around him, you probably already know that 😉 Music in many capacities. He likes learning complicated guitar parts, getting to play drums in church from time to time, leading others in worship, and singing to our kids. He love the opportunity to buy new albums, and iTunes gift cards are NEVER a cop out gift for him! At any given point, he has a handful of albums he can’t wait to get his hands on!

This one might sound a bit strange, but Brady loves being really solidly productive. When a day goes faster than expected, or he hits a new “record” at work, he is so pleased! That translates to home, too. If he gets a lot done around the house, that also counts. He is NOT a man who is above household stuff, so a day where he willingly does ALL the laundry, or catches up the dishes when they’re days behind, is a rewarding, successful day. Same goes for errand days in the city. He is a willing participant in the busyness of our life, and not JUST at work, and I am SO thankful that he is that guy. Who loves to help and work without any bitterness towards his family <3 Not too many of those men floating around these days. Bonus points for productive tasks that include the necessity of buying a new tool 😉

One of the biggest ones, obviously, is that Brady LOVES being a dad. He so often picks the floor over the couch, and will lay down there, with all the kids piled on top of him. We don’t do a ton of wrestling, but there are LOTS of kids being tossed in the air, hung upside down, and tickled until they pee (or poop, haha! But thats another story) He is a hands-on, loving, involved dad.

** Bonus one! Brady loves new underwear, lol! Whether they’re fancy or not, he’s a big fan of a new pair! Which is convenient, because thats what he got for Valentines Day this year, haha! Wife win? Probably not so much, but he still loves me 😉 Thats another important one <3

I love you, Brady Born! But thats not new 😉 Miss you today!

The other day, I pulled out clothes for the kids to wear to my parents, and ended up picking a few new items. Some actually new, and some just new to us. The kids always feel pretty good in new stuff, and it seemed like a good photo opportunity. Brady and I made a joke about how high the likelihood was that they wouldn’t cooperate, but figured it was worth a try.

At first, it really wasn’t worth the try.

Rowan and Laela were both crying. Rowan had a few tangles in his hair and hadn’t appreciated having them brushed out, and Laela was just angry, but she wouldn’t say why. Flat out refused. Brady tried to jump around and tease the kids into laughing, and it worked beautifully on the boys, but Laela is one determined little girl. She aaaaalmost cracked once, and it actually made for a cute picture, but only one!

They’re all SO stinking awesome!

We did our best, and then headed out to the van. The kids were so happy to be at my parents place, and played happily, ate happily, and only had a few struggles. Can’t ask for perfect!

But then we got it anyway.

I feel like Laela and I are at odds a lot these days. The power struggle is real, and neither of us are going down easy 😉 But I love her to death, and I know she loves me too. She wrapped up the evening by telling me I’m the best, and that she wants to keep me forever. You’ve got it, girly!! It even poured over into today, which is always a good sign, lol!

And the happy faces were after I put a ponytail in her hair!! It would appear we’re making progress! Our attempts at cute posed group shots were ok, but these weird candid selfies almost always win 😉

I’m pretty sure I said it multiple times last on last week’s series post, but this all feels quite surreal. I haven’t been 19 weeks pregnant in a long time, and it feels pretty unreal. And amazing. I’m SO thankful to be carrying another pregnancy so far in. Hopefully it will continue on much further, and ideally we won’t have say goodbye to her the day we meet. I am pleased to say that, thanks to the technology of my fetal doppler, I KNOW that Bambina is alive and wiggling TODAY! Praise God! I even took a video of it this time. That novelty will NEVER wear off.

Size Comparison: I like today’s comparison a lot! Apparently Bambina is roughly the size of a gameboy!! I was never cool enough to actually have a gameboy, but I am obviously familiar with them, and I think its a cute comparison. Perhaps, more accurately, we should say she’s the same size as a gamegirl. That makes more sense. More seriously though, she’s apparently roughly 6″ long, from head to butt, and at our ultrasound on Thursday, she weighed about 8 oz!! Half a pound of baby already! Or, a cup, if you want to go the way of volume.

Appointments: We had an ultrasound last week where we FINALLY got pictures of her little face and profile! If you missed that post, that’s a bummer, and you should check it out. She’s lovely! She was very wiggly, which is already refreshing and reassuring to see. Our tech always measures her little head, and even when we were just seeing the very top of her head, she was looking back and forth the entire time. Busy little girly in there. I LOVED that ultrasound. One of the best ones, for sure. We also were able to confirm her gender! Our tech is SO careful not to say too much, even with gender, so she told us “There’s a little bump, but no mountain!” Lol!

How am I feeling emotionally: Honestly, as things continue on, I’m feeling better and better in this area. All hope is not lost, but all grief is not lost either. More often than not, I feel hopeful and excited and like this might actually happen! We might actually get to bring this little one home, in a car seat, to her eager siblings. None of this suspicious white box in a velvet bag business. I want to hold her, and I think I might actually get to! But there is the other side – the other extreme – where its hard to go there completely, not knowing how I’ll ever stand up again if we lost her, too. Its hard to have one emotion without the other, but in the moments where I’m just happy and excited, I never want it to end. They are SUCH good moments.

How am I feeling physically: I am kind of surprised to say that I have had slight relief from my pelvic pain. It is NOT all gone by any means, and maybe I’m just following the rules better than I ever have, but I’m so happy to not be in excruciating pain day in and day out. I sleep a specific way, sit a specific way, stand a specific way, and I can’t ever push it. I depend on my soak in the evening, and even if its a late night, we never skip it. If and when I do go out and about, I’ve swallowed my pride and embraced that stupid looking belt, because I pay dearly when I don’t use it. And its paying off. As for other physical feelings, I’m completely off diclectin and would say I’m about 95% nausea-free! I still have one plugged ear but in just the last week, I’ve become super congested and snotty, though I’m not sick. Yay for pregnancy congestion! So at least I can now piece together the congestion and the plugged ear, and know that likely one will clear with the other, whenever that is.

Wish Lish/Purchases: If you read this weekend, you know Brady took me away for a night where we finally bit the bullet and did some baby shopping. We bought her a few shirts, jeggings, a hat, a pair of shoes, and a sleeper or two. It felt SO good to scratch that itch, finally!! This shirt is my favorite one we have for her so far!

I don’t know why I love it so much but I dooooo!!

On a separate note, though, a friend gave me a BEAUTIFUL gift yesterday. 

If you haven’t heard of this before, its called a harmony ball necklace. Or sometimes its called an angel caller. It has a few different titles. The ball in the pendant has this beautiful soft little chiming bell in it, and its such a long necklace that the ball hangs right on your tummy. You wouldn’t hear the bell yourself unless maaaybe you had mad hearing skills and were listening for it. Its a pretty little soft song for the baby. And I LOVE that!!! This friend was gifted the necklace, wore it through her pregnancies, and passed it along to me just yesterday. I am so touched, and VERY excited to wear it and play music for my baby in the womb already. What an incredible gift! And for the record, the pictures don’t do the colors justice. Its many different shades of purple, not blue like it appears. You guys know how much I like purple 😉

Pictures: My ever-lovely friend, Cher, popped by this morning to take pictures of my belly, so they’d be as fresh as possible! 

Things usually start out pretty weird, but we got it together eventually 😂

We convinced her to eat breakfast with us first, and she snapped some awesome pictures of Brady and the kids.

Brady is home for just another day or two before he is SLAMMED busy for several weeks. We are cherishing these home days. ❤

How are the kids feeling: The kids are so happy 🙂 They seem SO in the know, and SO aware, and then randomly someone will ask if Bambina is coming home tomorrow 🤔 I really, really hope not!! Its a good reminder that they’re still little, and somewhat ignorant of whats actually going on. But they talk about the basics a lot. Who will get to feed her, who will play with her on the floor, and the thing they argue about the most – who will get (yes, GET) to throw away her diapers. Lol! They really like our new diaper pail, so I think thats where that comes from 😉 Weirdos.

Getting to know the baby: I’m quite certain these days that I can, in fact, feel the baby move. Its incredibly refreshing when it happens. With that being said, I can tell you the baby likes her active time in the evening, for sure. Also when my bladder is full, she is MUCH more active. I get that she’s tighter in there in that moment, but seriously, its only going to get more so, girly. Save your kicks. And while I’ve only worn the harmony ball necklace once, she perked up and poked around a lot while I was wearing it, so I’ve decided she’s musical. Or, at the very least, she likes music. I think she’ll fit in pretty well around here. 

The BEST part of being pregnant: The BEST part of this last week, without question, is Brady feeling Bambina move!!! 😭 You KNOW its real when someone else can feel it. Its not in your head when someone else can vouch for it. Its easy to question baby movement and wonder if its maybe just gas, or indigestion, or whatever else. I don’t know about you, but my bowels don’t reach out and poke me. Its definitely a different feeling as she’s getting stronger. The moment Brady felt it, he KNEW it. Its a feeling that isn’t easy to forget, and it was irrefutable. Baby MOVES. On the outside, even! FINALLY! 

Favourite thing: Brady and I had the luxury of spending a night in a hotel this weekend, and while it was SUCH a treat, and was very comfy and warm, I really really missed my pillow! So often, hotel pillows are the pits, but this hotel had really nice pillows! However, they don’t even touch our pillows level of awesomeness. Brady and I use the cooling pillows from Costco, and they are truly magical. While I don’t like memory foam on my mattress, I do love it in my pillow. The cooling aspect of the pillow is lovely, but to me, the weight and texture of it outweighs the novelty of temperature. We’ve probably already had these pillows for way too long (because I hear pillows get icky on the inside after a while) but the shape of our pillows has not changed. They are just as wonderful as they were when they were brand new! Folks, hear me. Cooling Costco pillows. Look into these. And you will never lose, because if you hate them (unlikely) you can bring them back! Because Costco. 

Its been an exciting week, seeing baby girl again, feeling her move more, having Brady feel her move, and actually having a pretty sizeable belly to show her off with! There is not question now whether I look pregnant or not! I feel like I didn’t until just recently, and now BOOM! There she is! And I love that! Keep growing, little girl!

If you’ve been around here long enough, you’ll probably be tired of my recap posts, if you’re not already. But its good for me to remember and look back and see how far we’ve come.

Four years ago, Dekker had his eye surgery.

If you’ve known our family for the last 5+ years, you know some of the struggles we went through. Dekker went from being shy and cautious to straight up fear of people. Not only people, but changes in the ground, weather, CROWDS, everything. I am so pleased with our decision to have his eyes and vision repaired when we did, because it was time for him to have some relief.

Straight out of recovery, his eyes looked awful and bloody. But they were STRAIGHT! Bang on straight!

What a time that was. SO many feelings.

As lots of you know, his surgery was successful and a huge win, but he was more terrified than ever. We believe that being taken from us and hauled off into the ER was really traumatizing for him. For about a year after his surgery, we barely took him out. It was unbelievably hard to take him from place to place, where he would just scream at anyone who made eye contact with him. He was so so scared, and it was SO hard to be his mama in those moments. My heart hurt so badly for him, and I didn’t know how to help. We finally gave him a reprieve and just didn’t take him into crowds for literal months. And when we finally did again, he was still shy and quiet, but he was done screaming. He was just a little bit older, and a little bit more comfortable.

Four years later, you would never have known he was the way he was at age 2.5. He is social, snd brave. He reads, and participates well in school. He is no longer afraid of the big groups at school, and confidently performed in his school’s Christmas concert choir in front of bright lights and a big crowd. When people speak to him in stores, he answers. When people mosey around the church to greet each other, he wanders out from the safety of our bench and finds people to shake hands with. Best of all, when he goes to his eye doctor, he sits in the chair on his own, cooperates with his tests, and no longer requires bribes, snacks, toys, and incentives to get through the appointment. He used to struggle from the moment his ID bracelet went on to the moment we were in the elevator on our way out. These days, its just so so different.

Dekker is a whole different boy than he was four years ago. Lots of things play a role in who we become, but I am so pleased with our decision to go through with his surgery! What. A. Change. He is sure footed and strong and confident!

Keep doing what you’re doing, Dekker! We are SO proud of you!!

I almost decided to save blogging yesterday for the evening instead of the afternoon, and I’m SO glad I didn’t! Jerilee showed up mid-afternoon and I was told to go pack for a night away! Woot woot!

We got on the road around 4:30 and checked into our hotel room downtown. Brady had booked us a beautiful jacuzzi suite on the 10th floor in a fairly new hotel. It was a really nice room! We had way more space than we knew what to do with, and even some kitchen appliances. It was more than enough! We didn’t hang around too long, because the promise of baby shopping had been laid out and I wasn’t about to miss my chance!

Off to Preston Crossing we went! We hit the Gap outlet, Carters, and Old Navy, and I’m proud to say that we practiced some pretty serious restraint and only purchased things that we couldn’t imagine leaving behind. Even though we made great time without having to put kids in and out of car seats, time still passed, and we were hungry. We headed to the Cactus Club for supper and scored rockstar parking.

We were served WELL, and everything was delicious. I had chicken smothered in mushrooms and a yummy glaze, with mashed potatoes and asparagus. We were even gifted a little sweet treat at the end.

Once we were done eating, we had about a half hour before the mall directly across the parking lot closed, so we moved the car and ducked into the Gap, to see if they had any of the beautiful new things I’ve been eyeing online. To my dismay (and possibly Brady’s relief) they had such a small baby section, and none of the items I’ve been pining after. So that was that. Definitely not a loss 🙂

We were at our movie an hour early, but that was our norm when we were dating, so it was kind of funny and reminiscent 🙂 Time went by faster than I expected it would, and soon previews were going, the lame trivia games were under way, and the theatre began filling with a few more people. I’ve got to say, NONE of the previews looked interesting to me! A Wrinkle in Time, I honestly can’t take seriously. A Black Panther is just not our type of movie :/ Last time I went to a movie, the previews actually looked fun! Game Night, Pitch Perfect 3, Downsizing. I’d see any and all of those! But hey, that was last time.

Coincidentally, it was the same movie.

Yup, Brady and I went to The Greatest Showman – the movie I watched with Jerilee last month. Guys, it is just SUCH a fun movie, and I’ve been talking about it and pumped the soundtrack since that day, so I was completely thrilled that we were going to see it together!!! (Sorry you weren’t along, Jerilee <3 We LOVE you!!) As I suspected, it was just as awesome seeing it for the second time, and I wholeheartedly enjoyed it. I admit, I may have sang along to most of the songs, but no one was close enough to us to notice 😉 The songs are so dang catchy!!

We got out around 11:30, which felt late for us old folks, but we survived 😉 We hit up a nearby 7eleven for snacks and headed back to our hotel for the night. We had a nice long bubble bath in the big tub and devoured most of our snacks. I died out first, and slept like a rock!

Brady and I took our time this morning, having coffee and the rest of the snacks in bed. We packed up and headed out on time, and made our last shopping runs before heading home. We hit both Value Village locations in search of baby clothes and came out with a really decent haul! We got Laela new snow pants and a winter jacket for next year, and Dekker got boots to start using now, as his are getting tight. Mid-season, of course. But these are nice and big and strong, and should last into next winter, for sure! We got Brady some work shirts, and Laela some tshirts to transition into spring, since she has GROWN, that girl, and literally none of her tshirts or tank tops fit. I repeat. None. Dekker got some tshirts too. The nerve of our children to all size up at weird times, so they need a whole big load of new tshirts and a load of long sleeved shirts and hoodies. Couldn’t just size up right at the beginning of a season, huh? Nope. But Bambina had a pretty good haul herself, getting a few cute little diaper shirts, a sleeper or two, and the CUTEST shoes!!!

I hope we can actually fit her chubby little feet into them!

So she got a few new things, and a handful of second hand things, and we had a really nice time shopping together, holding hands, talking about her by name, and just daydreaming about our life, what its been, and how it will continue to change and grow. I love our life. It feels so good to step back once in a while and really appreciate it all.

That handsome husband of mine is currently getting supper on for our beautiful brood while I type this up, so its time to bow out and see if I’m needed. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!!

I’m not entirely sure what is going on with the baby this week. As far as I’ve heard on the app so far, its nothing too terribly crucial. I mean, everything is crucial and exciting, but hopefully you know what I mean. However, over the last several days, my limbs feel like they weight 50 lbs. Each!! Its like they’re just dead, and useless to me.

I know its totally and completely socially acceptable for me, and my body, to be tired. At least I think it is! Hopefully no one is judging me on it, anyway. But even now, as I sit in bed typing this, with my legs bent up at the knees, I just want to sink back down and let my legs and arms rest, with no responsibilities. Lucky for me, Brady is home today, and is being incredibly involved and helpful so my weird heavy limbs can take a load off.

Naturally, I’m blaming the person who can’t defend themselves – the baby. My body is happily working overtime to cook her up juuust right, but whatever its focused on this week must be some hefty stuff, because WOW its tired!

Since hubs is home, one kid is at school, and the others are napping, I’m keeping today’s post short so I can justify the resting of the body and just be lazy. Its Friday! Why not relax if given the opportunity??

And I have been given that opportunity, so I will take it. I am not the only tired one around here, either.

He feels how I feel.