Too Busy!!

It's been a crazy couple of weeks. Too busy to blog. I barely have time to check email on my iphone. It's too hard to type for a blog on your iphone. My finger muscles aren't use to that yet. :) So, here's what has been happening at our house. 1. Halloween (my kids didn't get any Milk Duds! can you believe that?!) 2. Wedding shower for my brother and his fiance Ashley. 3. Patrick had strep throat (for a week). 4. Miss UCA pageant. (I'm on the board of directors so I was gone a lot the week of the pageant. Thanks to Patrick for taking care of our precious girls.) 5. Birthday lunch for Patrick's brother and Granny. 6. Chloee 3 month pictures (after she turned 4 months old) How backward is that?!

Needless to say, we are all well at the moment. Patrick is going hunting this weekend, so we are having a girls night at my house Friday night. Me, Sydnee, Chloee, Ashley, and my Mom are all going out to eat then relaxing at the house. Fun!!!

FLU

Well, I guess one of my kiddos is a pig! Syd had the flu last week. I took her to the Dr. on Monday thinking she had strep throat, but the test was negative. So, we watched her and she still had fever on Thursday so I took her back, yep the flu! So, after exposing my entire family, Sydnee is feeling much better today. Chloee is still not showing any symptoms. Hopefully we kept them far enough away from each other. Patrick and I have been lucky also, no symptoms.

So, we will be celebrating Halloween this weekend. Sydnee is going to be an astronaut and Chloee is going to be a strawberry. They look so cute. Pictures soon to come.

Homecoming week

I just finished my second week back at work. Whew, this is hard to get back into the groove. I love being the mother of two girls. They can be so sweet! We will see if that's still true during the teenage years.

This was homecoming week at Perryville. Like a lot of smaller schools, they have junior escorts to caring the crown, flowers, and football. This year Sydnee was selected as one of the Kindergartners to participate. She was so excited. She did great. It was fun to help her get dressed up. She even got her hair fixed at the salon. She carried the crown. She said, "It is very breakable, but I didn't drop it!" We had lots of fun, but it made for a long day.

Here is Kamryn Hogan, Tate Jones, and Sydnee Sims. Homecoming 2009.

I have lots more to talk about. It has been hard to get everything done after working all day. I don't have time to even look at the computer. Tune in next blog to see Patrick as Robin Hood (without the tights). :) It was part of Homecoming week. Tell all about it later.

Farm Girl

Well, it's time for the Perry County Fair. The Kindergarten classes at Perryville went to see the farm animals at the fairgrounds. They could dress in cowgirl attire so Sydnee wanted to get out her Mustang Overalls I made her. Needless to say, I think I need to add a second ruffle to the bottom of the overalls. She has grown about 4 inches since last year. I made these for the Perryville Homecoming last year. This years project is Razorback overalls for the rehearsal dinner at my brother's wedding (it's a tailgate theme). Now I am getting the itch to start them. I have two pair of overalls to do this year! One big pair and one tiny pair. I'll let you know how they are coming.

Cradle to Crib

Well, it's the end of an era at my house. Last night, Chloee slept in her crib in her own room all night. Until now, she has been in the cradle beside our bed. My baby girl is growing too fast. Sydnee was in her crib in her room at 8 weeks. Chloee is 10 weeks. I had a hard time letting go this time. I don't know why. Maybe because I wasn't alone the whole time during my maternity leave. I had Patrick and Sydnee here to keep me company; when Sydnee was first born, no one was around b/c everyone worked and it was Feb/March/April. I was chomping at the bit to have adult interaction. This time, I don't necessarily want to go back to work, but the cash flow is getting too close to zero. I like to spend money and I can't unless I work. Therefore, I will start back to work on Monday, Sept. 21.

Time Saver

Okay all you busy moms out there. Here is a great time saver I have discovered. If you eat a lot of food that calls for cooked ground meat, buy several pounds at once. (we combine ground beef, and ground turkey to be healthier) Brown all the meat together in a large skillet, then divide into storage containers and freeze. Then, when you need a pound of cooked ground meat, just pull it out of the freezer, defrost in microwave and use as the recipe calls for it. When you do this, you avoid having to thaw the meat, then cook it. It even eliminates some planning ahead. So try this and see if it works for you. Patrick just put 5 containers in the freezer for me.

I am trying to get organized and have some meals in the freezer for when I go back to work in two weeks. I bought groceries this week and ended up with TWO, yes two carts on the way out. Man my pantry is stocked!

Addiction

Have you ever watched the show Intervention on A&E? I think I have an addiction to Sonic drinks. Do you think they put something in their ice? Especially when it's Happy Hour. Yummy! I even ask for Sonic Cards at Christmas! These are my favorite drinks from Sonic: Coca-cola Classic, Coke with Cherry, Cherry vanilla diet Dr Pepper, Root Beer, Lemon-berry slush easy on the berries, and Cherry Limeade! I could go on and list every drink except Ocean Water, but I won't bore you. It would be really nice if they would put floats and shakes on special.

I think I might get Patrick a Sonic Card for his birthday. Then, he can buy me Sonic! :)

First Tooth

Sydnee got her first tooth when she was 7 months old. (the bottom right of the middle). Today, 5 yrs 6 months old, she lost her first tooth. The exact same first tooth! How ironic. This tooth has been loose for about 4 weeks. Today, it needed to come out. We were afraid she would swallow it when she was eating. Looks like our house will soon be visited by the tooth fairy! My baby is growing up!

First Day of Kindergarten

It's Sydnee's first day of Kindergarten. Here she is at her seat. She was so excited this morning. I hope she has lots of fun. It was a little sad for Mommy, but I didn't cry like many other moms that were there. I watched as her class lined up and went inside from the playground. She didn't even care that I was watching. She was concerned about the little boy who was crying for is Mommy. How sweet.

More about her day later. I'm sure she will have lots to talk about tonight.

Anticipation

It's the night before the first day of school. Can you believe my little girl is going to Kindergarten?! The clothes are pressed, backpack is packed, and lunch money ready. I think I have more butterflies than Sydnee does. She is cool, calm, and collected. Looks like I'll be the only one with teary eyes in the morning.

Mini vacation

This past weekend we took a "mini" vacation. With a 6week old, we didn't venture too far from home. We took Sydnee and Chloee to Magic Springs on Friday, then we stayed in a cabin on Lake Hamilton for the night. This is Sydnee feeding the geese Saturday morning. We stayed in the cabin b/c Syd wanted to go camping in a tent! I told her this was as close to camping we could get with a baby. (I don't think she realizes what camping in a tent involves. Nor will she ever with me!) I will camp in a camper, but not a tent. I've done it several times as a child and don't plan to as an adult. Anyway, back to the vacation.....

On Saturday we took the girls to the Alligator Farm downtown Hot Springs. It was a feeding day so we were able to see them eat chicken. Very interesting place to go. If your kids like animals, take them there. This is a picture of Sydnee feeding a 3yr old gator some chicken on a stick. She also fed a deer fawn, and goats. We also saw several different animals (wolf, mountain lion, lemur, peacock, turkey) We stayed at my parents house and went shopping on Monday. It was quite a little adventure, especially with a new baby.

Arby's

So we went to Arby's this past Sunday, and guess what, 5 for $5 is back. The sign said Sat. and Sun. only, 5 Arby's roast beef for $5, *limit 250. When we ordered, Patrick asked if they had reached their limit for the day. (thinking they would sell 250 per day for that price) The person on the intercome kind of laughed. He said, "No sir, that limit is per person."! Really! Who orders 250 Arby's roast beef?! If I order 251 will they turn me away?

So, if you need food for a lot of people, say 250, go to Arby's on Sat. or Sun. By the way, the lady at the drive thru window said to call ahead if we needed more than 50. DUH!

iPhone

It's really amazing how tech savy kids are these days. Patrick and I upgraded to iPhones recently. (the $99 one, not the $200+ one). My five year old knows more about the phone than I do! She can take photos, play the games, and if you tell her who to call, she calls them and puts them on speaker phone. She even bought an app from the app store (on accident)! Luckily, it was a $1.99 game and not $5. Needless to say, I had to change my password. It used to be SYDNEE! Make a note if you have an iPhone, don't make your iTunes password your child's name. They might have the phone and type their name when the pop up to buy something comes up! Oh well, Live and Learn.

Bad Blogger

I am a bad blogger. I haven't been very good at keeping up with things. A new baby brings new priorities and blogging is not one of them. Especially since Patrick and I got iphones. I can do all my internet surfing on the phone. But, iphones are not blogger friendly at least to me. Trying to type a lot of stuff on the phone is not easy. Texting is easy, not paragraphs. So, I apologize. Let's see, the past ten days have been busy. We got Chloee's newborn pics made. She did so good. Sydnee even got in on the pics. Now I am in debt to the photographer!

I had a birthday. We won't talk about the number to go with that. I did get breakfast in bed, beautiful earrings, candy, and lunch at the restaurant of my choice. Thank you Sydnee and Patrick. My mom and dad also cooked me dinner, and I got a cool necklace with Sydnee and Chloee's name on them. My mom said it is really popular thing right now. My brother and Ashley took us all out to eat and I will be getting a photo framed at Hobby Lobby.

This weekend we took our first overnight trip with two kids (to my parents house). Chloee did really well. She went to church for the first time and did great there too. Sydnee stayed at my parents. She will be there until Wed. I am so scatter brained right now. I forgot to pack her any pajamas! Oh well, Memaw bought her some new ones and we will be leaving them there for future slip ups by me!

Making weight

Well, today we had our two week check up. The doctor wanted Chloee to be back to birth weight by today. She was 9lb at birth and last Mon. weighed 8lb 5oz. Today, she weighed 9lb 5oz! She gained a whole pound in one week. I told you she was part of the family! (We know how to eat) So, now I don't have to wake her up every four hours during the night to feed her. We will try every five hours tonight. I can't complain. She has been a very good baby so far. I have knocked on wood several times every time I say that. :)

Motherhood a second time.

Today Chloee is 10 days old. So, for the past ten days, I have been a mother of two! It has been an adjustment to have a baby in the house. Sydnee has had a bit of a hard time to adjust. She has been at my Mom and Dad's for 3 days to get some well deserved attention without Chloee there. She doesn't understand why Chloee gets to sleep in Mom and Dad's room and she doesn't. I told Patrick we should let her sleep on the floor one night and see that we aren't having a party without her. Knowing her, she would sleep through the whole night. :) Chloee has been doing great through the night. I feed her twice in the night. I think she would sleep 6 hrs at a time if I let her. I wish I could, but we have to "make weight" on Monday. That is our two week weigh in and the doctor wants her weight to be back at 9lbs. I'm sure we will make 9lbs. Chloee is definetly part of our family. She loves to eat!

Chloee Ruth Sims has arrived!

Chloee Ruth Sims born June 29, 2009 at 2:54 pm, 9 lbs, 20 in long.

Yes, it says NINE pounds! Can you believe she is that big. I wasn't supposed to give birth for two more weeks. I had no idea she would weigh that much. She is beautiful and has a full head of hair. We are doing well. I am doing much better this time than when I had Sydnee (I had a respiratory infection.). Coughing and stitches weren't fun. We are remembering what to do with a little one. It's been five years, so some of that has been wiped from my memory. :)

Sydnee is so excited about being a big sister. She wants to wear her shirt everyday. Here is a pic of Sydnee and Chloee in their matching outfits.

Date Moved Up!

Well, my Dr. Appt. went OK. My blood pressure is all over the place so she suggested we move up my induction date. So, if Chloee doesn't come by Monday morning, I will be induced. Monday, June 29. I have been given strict instructions by my Dr. to rest all weekend. Thankfully, Patrick and I have been working like hired help to get everything done. The plan was to pretty much relax this weekend anyway. Saturday is our 11 yr anniversary!

I have been having contractions since yesterday. They are still 1 hr to 45 min apart and not getting closer yet. We will see if I make it to Monday. If I do, we will have birthdays on the 27, 28, and 29 in my family of four. Syd - Feb 27, Patrick - Aug 28, and Chloee June 29. Mine is July 22. Not quiet in order but still in the twenties!

checklist

I don't know about you, but I'm a list maker. This weekend, we got a lot of our "list" done.
* belly cast - done
* lampshade for Chloee's room - done
* all the polka dots put up in Syd's room - done
* hospital bag packed - done
* take home outfit washed and ready for baby - done

One thing still on the list:
* HAVE THIS BABY!

Eleven days at the most!

Well, my Dr. appt went well. I am on the list for July 1st. It was supposed to be the 2nd, but my Dr. is off on Thursdays in July. So, we will definitely be parents by July 1st! Patrick doesn't think I will make it to July. We will see. I will definitely let everyone know when the big day is here.

Big Girl Hair

My baby is growing up! She has been telling me she wanted to get her haircut, so today we went and got a new hairdo. She looks so grown up. Her hair is in a bob at her shoulders! I can't believe it, but that's what she wanted. I will post a picture after she suprises the rest of the family on Father's Day. It's really cute and she needed that much cut off. It looks so much healthier. You Go Syd! (She is more brave than me. I haven't had my hair that short since I was four yrs old!)

Well, tomorrow is my Dr. appt. We will see how my BP is doing and if I get to be put on the "LIST" for July 2nd. I will update tomorrow.

36 weeks and counting

We are getting ever so close to having a baby. I went to the Dr. on Thursday. My Blood Pressure was somewhat elevated and I am retaining water (like I said "BLUEBERRY-ISH). I have to check my BP twice a day. Hopefully, it won't be up. I go back this Thursday. I am going to ask to be put on the induction list for July 2. With Sydnee, I was put on the list for March 3 and she came on Feb 27. So, we will see if Chloee makes up her mind and wants to come out before induction.
Sydnee was at my parents this past week for VBS. She loved it. She is still singing the song "Boomerang Express". It was a cute song. Some of the lyrics are, "On the Boomerang Express it all comes back to Jesus", I thought that was pretty clever.
Patrick is a little freaked out about how close we are. He is currently putting the infant carrier in the car. He doesn't want to have to do it in a hurry he said. :)

Getting ready for Baby.

My list is very long of things to do this week. Sydnee is at Memaw and Granddaddy's for the week. She is going to VBS with my Mom. So, this week Patrick and I should be home by 4pm everyday and need to get the house ready for the new arrival. Sydnee got her new furniture last week, so I have to finish the room. Chloee's room is mostly ready, but needs decluttered and things put in the right places.

I am not used to pregnancy in the heat. I feel like the little girl on Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. I think her name is Veruca Salt. She eats a piece of candy and blows up like a BLUEBERRY! It just so happens I have to wear blue scrubs to work and I am retaining fluid so I feel very Blueberry-ish! :) Some of my co-workers don't think I will make it to July. We will see. I am to the point I don't care. Just as long as Chloee is healthy. Enough about that. I have to go shopping. (And decorate.)

Baby Shower

My sorority sisters had a baby shower for Chloee and myself. It was really fun. I am so lucky to have such great friends. I got some really cute outfits, burp cloths, socks, washcloths, and a travel bed. And, these great sooo cute ladybug shoes. You can never have too many ladybug items. Especially at my house. To all my sisters, thank you again.

Three day weekend

It's Memorial Day weekend, and I'm on call! :( I was suppose to be on call July 4th, but I switched to Memorial Day b/c my hope is to have a baby by then. We'll see. I will probably still be pregnant on July 12. (July 11 is my due date.) We have been very busy at the Sims' household. We had Mother's Day, which was nice. We went to Magnet Cove and saw my Mom, Patrick's Granny, and my Grandma. I had my first swelling of the feet. It was weird. Never had that with Syd. I got two new pearls on my necklace and some great Yellowbox sandals.

The next weekend we took a small family vacation. That was our only chance to take Sydnee anywhere before the baby is born. We went to Branson. Silver Dollar City was fun for Sydnee. She is tall enough (45 inches!) to ride all but three of the rides. She is fearless and loved all of them. We ate at Lamberts in Ozark, MO. If you haven't been, you need to go. Lot's of great country cookin' and they throw rolls at you! YUM! Sydnee remembered that we went there when she was 2yrs old, so we promised we would go back. She has a memory like an elephant! We stayed at Welk Resort which has an indoor pool/water slide. It was nice to be able to swim when it was raining. Sydnee went down the slide many, many times. I hope she had fun. It was fun to watch her and Patrick do things. I was the official picture taker, since I couldn't ride rides.
On Monday, May 18, Sydnee had a graduation picnic for Montessori. She was so proud to get her certificate. She said, "Mom, now I can go to Kindergarten." I think she wanted to go to Kindergarten on Tuesday! I was a happy, but sad moment for me. My baby girl is growing up.

Now we are preparing for our new baby girl. We are cleaning up and cleaning out. Washing clothes, dusting off toys and carseats. It won't be long. less than 7 weeks!

Kris Allen ROCKS!

So, who would have thought an American Idol top 3 would be from Conway, AR?! Our town is a buzz getting ready for tomorrows parade and concert downtown. I asked Patrick if he wanted to go. He said, "NO WAY, do you know how many people are going to be there?" He gets kind of paranoid in large crowds. I would like to go, but I have to work until 4:30pm and I'm on call. I don't think I could explain that one if I got called in. "Sorry, I'm at the Kris Allen concert and can't get out of this crowd." I guess we better not go.

You should see all the people trying to get Kris Allen t-shirts. I went to ACE hardware looking at plants for Mother's Day. They were said to have them, but they were sold out. The manager was standing at the door telling everyone in a frenzy, "We don't have any Kris Allen shirts, come back tomorrow, we open at 8am." I bet she said that 40 times while I was in there. Hang in there ACE lady. It will be better Saturday, maybe!

9 1/2 weeks

That is all the time left until baby Chloee gets here. I had a good report at the Dr's office today. I even lost a pound. Can you believe that?! The nursery is coming along and Sydnee's room is getting closer to being finished. We ordered her furniture and should get it in 4-6 weeks. Our house is still a little upside down, but it's getting there.

My next mission is Mother's Day gifts. I have no idea what to get my Mom this year. My mind is not in that mode. If anyone has any ideas, feel free to let me know.

TOAD SUCK DAZE

Bad weather put a huge damper on TSD this year. I feel bad for all the people who planned to make money. Especially the scholarships for the students. We went on Friday and it was nice. We planned to do everything on Saturday: Race a toad, eat food, ride rides, and buy some things I saw Friday that I wanted. But then, the rains came. And it rained and rained and rained. They cancelled TSD for Saturday. We went back on Sunday and most everything was gone. We did get some good food and kettle corn, but didn't get to race a toad b/c it started to rain again and sweet sugary people melt, so we had to go! HA!HA! Unfortunatley, I didn't get to buy the merchandise I wanted to get. Sunday the vendor was gone. Now I have to find some other gift for Mother's Day. Oh well. Maybe next year will be better.

Redecorating

We made it through the week eating at home. But by Friday, we had to go out. Turns out it was Fourshe River Days in Perryville. (think 1/1000 of Toadsuck Daze). So, Patrick wanted to make an appearance with his adorable daughter and larger than life pregnant wife. We went for a little bit. Had a corn dog, hamburger, and funnel cake. It was okay, but I'm looking forward to Toadsuck this weekend. Lrg bag Kettle Korn PLEASE!!! (Note to others: I DO NOT SHARE!) Sorry, I have to be stingy sometimes and this is one of those times.

We've also been redecorating everything so our house looks like it has the stomach virus, HA HA! All the toys are in the new toy room/office/guest room, all Sydnee's room stuff is in Chloee's room, and all the baby stuff I washed and cleaned this weekend is in the den. Patrick painted Sydnee's room and is touching up tonight. Hopefully, we will have this all put back together by Saturday. Who knows. Sydnee's new room is coming together. It is purple, and pink polka dots. We will be getting new furniture soon. I have to make a decision about that very soon. I'm not good at long term decisions when pregnant. When I was pregnant with Sydnee, we bought a new car. I wanted to take it back after 2days. My poor husband, he was actually going to take it back for me. Needless to say, I kept the Camry and we still have it today!

28 1/2 weeks and counting

How time flies! In less than 12 weeks, we will have a new baby at home! I went to the Doctor today. Everything is going well. She weighs almost 3 pounds which means another 8 pounder! At least she will fit in Syd's baby clothes. :)

Patrick and Sydnee are at swimming lessons and I am cooking dinner. My goal for the week is to eat at home for 4-5 nights. We started last night with smoked turkey sausage sauteed with peppers and onions, mac and cheese (blue box of course), and green beans. Sydnee wanted to pick dinner tonight, so we are having baked Tilapia, mashed sweet potatoes, and broccoli florets with a sprinkle of cheese! Can you believe she picked that. It is one of her favorite meals. My mom would say she is a five year old with a sophisticated pallet! Whatever it takes for a variety.

STRESS!

Wow, how stressful things can be! I haven't had time to blog lately b/c I volunteered to be in charge of the concession stand for Special Olympics Track and Field day. At the time 12 months ago, I wasn't thinking that I would be 28 weeks pregnant and super tired all the time. Oh well. I am done with that project. Luckily it did not rain until around 2pm this past Saturday. The games were wrapping up and noone got too wet. Someone asked if I wanted to do it again. I have too much other stuff to think about. I get back to you in September!

Now I can really concentrate on having this baby. Lots of people have been asking where we were registered. I wasn't going to register since it was our second child, but it has been five years and there are some neat baby gadgets that have been invented! Well see.

Next thing on my list, find Sydnee some new furniture. The baby is getting her furniture and she is getting new, big girl furniture. Right now she has her bed and an old chest of drawers in her room. She is having withdrawl from not having a mirror in front of her bed (on her dresser). Such a diva!

Mommy's bragging

Well, I have to brag just a minute. My five year old is so smart. We have been talking about putting letters together and making words. So, she goes to her easel and grabs the chalk and writes D O G. Then says, "Mom, do you know what that says?" Then she says, "It says dog!" Then she erases the D and writes the letter L and proceeds to say, "That says log!" I praise her and go on cooking dinner. Then she says look mom. She has written across the chalkboard the following: DOG LOG HOG : She says, "Dog, log, hog, all those words rhyme."

Pretty smart kid if I do say so myself :)! Takes after her Mom. Or maybe a little of her Mom and Dad!

My Handyman Husband

Wow, a week has gone by and my husband has been busy. After he returned from NYC, he finished painting the nursery, and put up the crib (with some help from big sister). We have been cleaning out, throwing away, and finding new places to store everything that was thrown in the "Toy Room" aka the new nursery. Needless to say, we are not even close to being finished.

Then, a cog was thrown into the works, our garbage disposal stopped working. We tried to get it to work, but no success. So my handyman husband stopped by Lowe's on his way home and installed a new garbage disposal by himself in less than one hour! I was very impressed. And he upgraded to the better garbage disposal. "This isn't the Sunday dinner at Grandma's only version," he said. This is the "cooking everyday, use it all the time disposal,". So, maybe we won't need a new one anytime soon. I guess I better cook something tomorrow for dinner so I can use the new disposal!

Hubby is in NYC

Patrick made it to NYC in one piece. I get a little nervous when he travels without me. I don't know why. He called and said it is C-O-L-D there. The high was 37 degrees today. Ouch. I don't think that fleece jacket is going to cut it. Oh well! I will let everyone know when his group will be going to a morning show. I don't know if it will be GMA or the TODAY show. (FYI: He is chaperoning a tour group of students/adults from his school.) Hope he has fun and doesn't get too cold.

Hope you wore GREEN!

Hope everyone had a great St. Patrick's Day. At our house, it is just Patrick's Day. Too bad my hubby had to work all day and evening. He had parent teacher conferences until 8pm. :( So, Sydnee and I celebrated without him. We had sandwich wraps with green garlic and herb tortillas and green colored vanilla pudding for dessert. It was a fun.

23 weeks and counting

So I really threw Patrick for a loop this weekend. I told him, "You know, if I go a full 40 weeks in this pregnancy, I only have 17 weeks left." He freaked out. He went on and on about getting everything ready. So on Sunday, we went to Home Depot and picked out a paint color. Then, we proceeded to remove all of the toys from the toy room (which is the new nursery) and moved them to the office/guest bedroom. We will be ready to paint this weekend. Well, I should say Patrick will be ready to paint this weekend. I will be the pregnant supervisor and only point out touch ups, etc. We'll see how it goes.

Beautiful Weather

I love the 70-80 degree weather. This weekend was wonderful. I wanted to get out all my summer clothes. (I didn't have time, but it's supposed to be 50 by Wed.) This weekend we had lots of fun. Saturday we braved FREE DAY at the ZOO! Tons of people were everywhere. But, if you didn't stand in line for food or the train, it wasn't so bad. All the animals were out, the weather was great, and we didn't have to take a stroller or anything. (That won't be the case for long.)
We also went to Magnet Cove this weekend. Sunday we celebrated my Grandma's 84th birthday. Cake and Ice Cream with 3 screaming kids. It was great.

Now I am feeling the affects of the time change. Losing one little hour is killer! I'm glad it will be daylight longer, but do we really have to lose an hour?

The Nursery

Well, I was having second baby syndrome issues and convinced my husband to let me buy new baby bedding. He said if I could keep it under a certain dollar amount then OK. So, this is the new nursery bedding that I won on an ebay auction. Ebay can be a pain or a real bargain. Sometimes you have to work the system. It took me a while to figure that out. I got nine pieces for a great deal. It should be delivered tomorrow or Friday. I can't wait. Then I get to pick the wall color. (Some shade of lime green). Now I just have to find Sydnee some new bedding and we will be good to go. (We promised her a new bedroom for being a big sister and her birthday.)

Second baby syndrome: The second child of same sex gets all hand-me-downs from the older sibling and never has anything new. (I know this would not happen to my child b/c we have so many grandparents to spoil them rotten.) Don't get me wrong, hand-me-downs are great and I will definitely use them, but I wanted something new for the baby and I am happy now.

Oh No, SHOTS!

What a bummer. All the excitment of turning five and going to kindergarten has been forgotten b/c we went to the doctor. Kindergarten doesn't seem so fun now that Syd knows you have to get FOUR SHOTS to go to school. The drama queen made an appearance today after the shots. It's over now and we are home, but I am still hearing about the shots. I know it hurt and her arms will be sore for a few days. I said I was sorry as many times as I could, but that didn't help. We went to subway and got her favorite sandwich. That helped a little until she realized her band-aids were coming off. Then, the drama started again. Hopefully we will make it through the week! :)

Happy 5th Birthday Sydnee!

Well, my baby girl is officially five years old! On Friday, Feb. 27, she had her birthday. The morning started with breakfast in bed. Daddy did it up right with pancakes, bacon, and eggs. Next, we went to Chucke Cheese. (birthday girls choice of course). Then we went to Merle Norman and got Sydnee's ears pierced! Patrick and I told her that when she turned five, if she wanted earrings, she could have them. I would show you the video, but its a little traumatic. She did great until it was all over. Then she cried for about 20min. After realizing that it was over and her ears weren't hurting that bad, she was fine.
Then, on Saturday, we had a birthday at Playworld. 10 kids, lots of cake, and the play maze. It was a great time. I think we are birthdayed out around here. Thank goodness my new baby girls birthday will be in the summer.

Teaching

Just want to wish my husband a great day tomorrow. Patrick is being observed tomorrow for his Praxis 3. This is the final stage for his standard teaching license. I know he will do great. He is in the home stretch for finishing his non-traditional license. I am so proud of him. He is really enjoying being a teacher. (Lord knows I couldn't do it!)

GOOD LUCK BABY! YOU ARE #1!

Finally better

There hasn't been much action on the blog lately b/c I got the bug from Patrick. Saturday morning I was doing terrible, so a not so well Patrick took Syd to my parents house. We are finally eating real food again. It's amazing how much toast and chicken soup you go through when two people are sick for 5 days total. I had real food for lunch today and it was great. I was more scared having the bug while pregnant than anything. I'm sure it didn't hurt me to not eat for two days. I have gained back all the weight I lost for those 2 days. Too bad my Dr appt wasn't Monday so I would weigh less. Ha! I go for my 20 week appt and ultrasound on Thursday. Then, on Friday, my baby girl turns 5! Can you believe it.

Stomach Bug

Currently Patrick is battling a stomach bug and the bug has been winning. I don't know what is worse, him being sick or me being a single parent at the moment. I think I could handle it if I didn't know any different, but I DO! Being pregnant doesn't help either. All I can say is I am doing everything in my power to keep me and Sydnee from getting sick.

One funny thing about this sickness: Men do not know anything about medicine! I guess they always have some women, whether it be their Mom or Wife or some other women in their life, to tell them what to take and when. It's like keeping up with a child's medicine. I asked P when he took Ibuprofen last, he said, "I don't know, whenever you gave it to me." The funny thing is, I hadn't given him any all day, I was at work! I guess he was delirious. Hopefully we will be back to normal very soon!

Why are we in the Dark?

For Valentine's Day dinner, I cooked Chicken Giardino from Olive Garden. This dish is Patrick and my favorite dish and Olive Garden took it off the menu! That would happen to me. Luckily, their website has the recipe on it. And what do you know, I made it and it tasted just like Olive Garden! So, once I followed all of the recipe (it took almost 1 hour to prepare), we had candlelight dinner. Chicken Giardino, salad, cheesy bread, and double fudge chocolate pudding with whipped cream and strawberries on top.

I turned out the lights and lit the candles. Sydnee says, "Mommy, why are we eating in the dark?" I replied, "It's romantic to eat by candlelight. It's Valentine's Day, so we are being romantic." "Oh!" she said, "Can I blow out the fire when we are through with dessert?"

Roses are Red.......

Here is the Valentine box Sydnee and I made for her Valentine's Day party at school.

Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, My hubby sent me roses to say I Love You! Thank you sweetie for the roses and candy! I love them! It's so sweet to get flowers at work. Everyone is always envious!

The Valentine Box

We finished the Valentine box ahead of schedule. I have to say we are on top of it this week! Hope you like it. Sydnee and I worked really hard on it.

Happy Valentine's Day!

It's Valentine's Day central at my house right now. Sydnee has 4o Valentine cards to write her name on and a box to make for her cards she receives. She has written her name 30 times so far! And it actually looks like Sydnee. She is getting better and better. 10 more will be done tomorrow night. The box is taking shape. It is called Sydnee's Lovebug! The paper mache' ladybug is drying at the moment. Tomorrow it will get the final touches. Hopefully, it won't take too long to finish the projects. We are going to make heart shaped sugar cookies tomorrow also. I love doing crafts and baking with Sydnee. I try not to let my inner perfectionist come out when we are doing things together. I have to remind myself she is only 4 (about to be 5 this month!). If it's messy, she loves it even more. I have to figure out what exactly to get my hubby for V day. Thank goodness it's not until Saturday! Happy Valentine's Day to all!

TGIF

Whew! I didn't think I would make it to Friday this week. I will be more thankful when Patrick gets home tonight. He has been in Houston at NASA for a teacher workshop since Wed. I can honestly say I have the best husband in the world. I know that, but it becomes much clearer when he isn't here and I am a "single parent" for a while. It was fun though to have personal time with Sydnee. She says the funniest things.
She is a walking infomercial. I don't know why they play those infomercial commercials on the cartoon network and Disney channel. Lately she has been quoting SPACE BAGS, AQUA GLOBES, AND BENDAROOS. So, if you need to know about these products, I could probably as Syd.

Pregnancy tastebuds

Sorry I haven't been blogging. Really busy around here. Patrick is glad to be back at school after the ice. I thank God we don't live in Northeast AR. I had my 16 week Dr. appointment last week. Everything is going well. I wish they didn't make you weigh though. That is tough. I can't help it if food tastes even better when I'm pregnant. I had a wonderful patient today that brought me a piece of coconut pie. How sweet! So, I had to eat it. It was soooo good too. It was from Holly's in Conway. Homecooking at its finest. I don't ever get to eat there. They are only open Mon-Fri 11-2. (And I've been told if you don't get there at 11, you may not get a seat.) So if you are ever in the mood for home cooking, go to Holly's.

Currently, Sydnee and I are working on a Valentine's box. At her preschool, the student and parents decorate a Valentine box to put the valentine cards in at the party. Sydnee wants a ladybug, so we are trying to make one with paper mache. That stuff is messy! But fun! If it turns out I will show you a picture.

Rain, Rain, GO AWAY!

Yuk! I don't like cold rainy days. Just give me a little snow, please.
No ice in Conway today. The temperature is hovering at 33 degrees just taunting us that ice is near. Tonight, it's supposed to get down to 23. We'll see. Last night it was cold, but no blankets on my bed! Pregnancy brings the HOT out in me. I had to change into shorts in the middle of the night, and we didn't turn up the heat. I don't know if I'll ever sleep with a blanket again.

Speaking of pregnancy, I go to my monthly Dr's appointment tomorrow. I dread having to weigh. I have really been trying to watch what I eat. This baby loves to eat dairy products. Cheese, milk, cottage cheese, and yogurt. I don't think that is bad, do you? I'm sure those little bones need lots of Calcium. Tomorrow I'll either be crying or jumping for joy and eating at El Chico to celebrate low LBs.

Icy weather, Chili for Dinner

Ice is on its way, and the weather man says it will be BAD! Hopefully no power outages. The weather man is predicting bad enough weather for Patrick to be out of school for two days. Patrick would rather go to school than have to go longer in June. But, if the ice is 2 inches thick, buses don't do so well. The only thing about me working at a hospital: Hospitals never close! Therefore, if there is bad weather, I am expected to go to work. Oh well, comes with the territory I guess.

Since it's so cold, we had chili for dinner. We like chili with lots of beans and tomatoes, and a little meat (ground turkey). Toppings include sour cream, shredded cheese, and crackers. I love to use Williams chili seasoning. Yummy.

Hope everyone stays warm and cozy; and have plenty of comfort food to eat while stuck inside. :)

Miss America

The Miss America pageant is on TLC Saturday at 7pm. I love to watch this pageant and now that I am on the Miss UCA Board (which is a prelim to Miss Arkansas), I actually know a little bit about our current Miss Arkansas.

I've never been a big pageant contestant. I never had the figure for that. But, I love to go to Miss Arkansas and watch. I have gone since I was about 11yrs old. My mom took me the first 6 yrs I went. Miss Arkansas is in Hot Springs , so it was really close to where we lived. Those were some really fun times. Trying to pick the winner, and seeing the same girls go back many times and finally win. This year I don't know that I'll make it to Miss Arkansas. :( I'm due the Saturday before the pageant starts. But, I will keep up with it through my friends.
It's amazing what kind of pageant tips there are out there. This is one you'll love: To keep the bathing suit from riding up while walking, contestants spray adhesive to their back side! To make the adhesive stop sticking: baby powder! Crazy huh.

Maternity clothes

Well, it's that time in my pregnancy when I have to get out the maternity clothes. Luckily my cousin gave me all her clothes after her second child was born. I am very fortunate. I have been unpacking and washing the three boxes of clothes. It is sad to see those large pants and know in the back of my mind they are going to fit in about 4 months! I haven't actually put any maternity clothes on yet. I'm holding out as long as I can. Although, this past Sunday I wore some regular black pants to church. Let's just say they were pretty tight in the baby belly area. :) I'm glad I get to wear scrubs to work. They can be pretty forgiving if you don't get them skin tight. Well, I'm off to do more laundry.

Feeling Better

The munchkin is much better these days. Antibiotics are wonderful! She isn't quiet 100%, but getting closer everyday. We visited family in Magnet cove this weekend. I am so tired from shopping on Saturday. We only went to 3 stores in Hot Springs, but each one took some time. I did get some bargains. I love those. One thing we purchased was a Christmas outfit for the baby. We had an ultrasound this week at my work. We are having a GIRL! We are so excited and Sydnee is ecstatic about a little sister. We will be holding off on purchasing paint or furniture for the nursery until the 20 week ultrasound to make sure nothing grows between now and then! :) I'm pretty sure it's official, but for all those doubting Thomas's we will wait.

Strep Throat

My little munchkin has strep throat. She complained of a sore "neck" last night, then woke up at 10:30 pm with a fever of 102. So, mommy got to stay home and play nurse. After a Dr. visit, and the pharmacy. We are home and recuperating. I knew she didn't feel good when on the way home from the Dr office she didn't even want to stop at Sonic. Poor thing. I hate to see my baby girl sick.

Let's hope no one else in the house gets sick!

Boy or Girl?

So, Patrick and I (and pretty much everyone else) have been trying to figure out what sex our baby is. Wednesday morning we are going to have one of my coworkers scan me to see if we can tell what it is. Patrick and I have no preference. We just want to know so we can work on the name. That is really creating a problem for us. Nothing stands out or is different enough, etc. If you have any ideas, let us know. BUT, be aware, if you suggest something that you might want to name your future child, it could be my child's name too! :)

Sleeping in

Does anyone get to sleep in anymore? Patrick and I used to take turns sleeping in on the weekends while the other got up with the little one. Now, our little one should be able to get up and watch Television without one of us in the room. Does this actually happen? NO!! She comes in and wakes us up. "Mommy, is it morning? It's time to get up!" We have tried the stay up late and hope she sleeps in, but that doesn't work. We've tried making the room as dark as possible, that doesn't work. I guess my child will always have an internal clock set for 7am! This is always the case on the weekend, but come Monday morning she doesn't want to get up! Go figure.

Junk Mail

Okay, I know every company is trying its hardest to get there sales up, but seriously! Do we really need three Victoria Secret catalogs in one week? Especially the pregnant woman! I mean, Come On. I know from personal experience there are mailing lists out there. (My husband worked for A*****.) So when a woman finds out she is pregnant, don't you think the lingerie/skinny person catalogs should stop mailing for a while (12 months or so). I know there are ways to find out when a person is pregnant. I think marketing companies know before the family does HAH! Okay, I'm done venting on that subject. Can you tell my clothes don't fit anymore and I am going to move in to maternity stuff earlier than the first time. It doesn't help to lose weight one winter before you get pregnant. :)

Sassy Sugarbear

Okay, my daughter is just four right? Read this conversation she had with Patrick this morning: Syd "Daddy, I want to wear my Tinkerbell panties from my stocking."
Patrick "The tinkerbell ones are dirty, wear some other kind."
Syd "Well maybe that's b/c the dirty clothes are overflowing!"
Patrick "You know mommy has a baby in her belly and she is tired and hasn't had time for the laundry." Syd "Daddy, that baby has been in her belly since before Christmas!"

Can you believe that! I don't know where she gets her sassiness (spelling?). I am currently doing laundry. The panties will be clean tonight, along with all the other laundry that has been piling up. Hope everyone has there laundry done too.

I'm a blogger!

Well, I finally did it. I have a blog now. Bare with me as I am a newby at this. I have been bitten by the blogging bug for a while now and decided there was no time like the present. We are having a great week at the Sims household. At my 13 week of pregnancy, I can finally cook again. Morning sickness is rare! YES! I visited my friend Mon. today. She is having Sloan on the 15th. I am so excited for her. My sugarbear (Syd) has come up with some new names for the baby as of today. She said if it's a girl, name her Holly. If it's a boy, name him Sam. She is so cute when she talks about the baby. Last time we talked about the baby, she said, "Mom, that baby is just going to cry all the time!" She's probably right!

Changing the subject: I love Sonic. I have the best husband in the world. He called me today and asked what I would like to drink from Sonic (Happy Hour no doubt). I love Coca Cola Classic, but I have become fond of Diet Dr Pepper with Cherry and Vanilla in it! Delicious!
If you haven't tried it, happy hour is 2-4pm every day! :)