Today I am 30 weeks pregnant!

Lucy’s Development

 

At 30 weeks pregnant stage, the baby’s approximate weight is about 1.5 kg or 3 pounds and approximate length from head to toe is about 14 to 17 inches or 36 to 38 cms. The baby becomes quite sensitive to the surroundings and is aware of the happenings around. The baby starts having definite sleep and waking patterns and the expectant mother is able to identify these. The baby’s and mothers sleep cycles need not necessarily match. The baby has become so big by now, that it is occupying nearly the entire uterine cavity. The baby moves and plays quite vigorously now. When the baby is not moving, it will generally be in a sitting position with the head in upward direction. Now is the time, when the baby starts positioning itself for exit by easing and resting the head on mother’s pelvic bones.

 

The baby’s brain is developing very fast during this period. The brain trains the eyes for opening and lungs for breathing. The baby is able to see the happenings in the uterus and can differentiate light and darkness and is capable of tracking a light source. The baby reacts to outer lights. The baby has fully grown eyelashes and eyebrows at this stage. The baby is adding on fat and gaining weight. The baby’s lengthwise growth may slow down now. Baby has fully developed and functional digestive tract and lungs during the 30 weeks pregnant stage.

In other news, we are still having a fun time in Michigan. Joey is still doing awesome with his broken arm, and it is causing him no pain--  he goes back to the Dr. on Wednesday to have a re-check.  On Thursday Sophia and Joey and Jake and Salone all had a sleep over at Uncle Greggie and Aunt Nicole's house- they had a really fun time, and Uncle Greggie was the super Uncle. He made them dinner, played games with them and made breakfast the next morning. He did confide in me that he was glad he didn't have kids yet- I told him that it was much easier when they are your own children!

Chris is doing well back in Hawaii. He has been working a lot but has accomplished a lot on the "List" I left him. He has fixed my treadmill, cleaned out the kids rooms, washed baby Lucy's pile of clothes, changed the oil in the cars and bought the kids almost everything on their "school supply" list- all except the 8oz bottle of Elmer's glue - it HAS to be Elmers brand , and is sold out all over so Chris says he is just going to keep looking for it. 

We start our official "camping" at Perkins Pond on Monday! Today was spent grocery shopping and preparing salads for the big camping week!

Make sure your volume is turned up to listen to Sanctus Real's "Lead Me".  This song was written by MAtt Hammit, who said this about writting the song: "  I think the challenge for me in the song, and hopefully for other men as well, is every time I hear it, every time I sing it, I ask myself, "what kind of man am I?" Not yesterday, not tomorrow, but what kind of man am I today? Have I invested in my family emotionally, spiritually the way that God has called me to reach out to them and to lead them?" 

I have posted this in dedication to all the fathers and husbands who are living their lives for  God and their family. Those men who give all they have without complaining. - I am so blessed to be married to one of the most wonderful men in the world who gives all he has day after day for me and our children. No matter how many hours we works or how tired he is when he gets home, he always has time for us. I go to bed every night thankful that I married my soul mate, and feeling like the most loved woman in the world. I  wake up every morning knowing he will always be there for me and our kids. I know he would die for us because his love is that deep. God gave him to me for a reason and I want him to know I love him more than anything and I am so grateful he is the leader of our family.  I love you, Chris!


Sanctus Real - “Lead Me”

I look around and see my wonderful life
Almost perfect from the outside
In picture frames I see my beautiful wife
Always smiling
But on the inside, I can hear her saying...

“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”

I see their faces, look in their innocent eyes
They're just children from the outside
I'm working hard, I tell myself they'll be fine
They're in independent
But on the inside, I can hear them saying...

“Lead me with strong hands
Stand up when I can't
Don't leave me hungry for love
Chasing dreams, but what about us?

Show me you're willing to fight
That I'm still the love of your life
I know we call this our home
But I still feel alone”

So Father, give me the strength
To be everything I'm called to be
Oh, Father, show me the way
To lead them
Won't You lead me?

To lead them with strong hands
To stand up when they can't
Don't want to leave them hungry for love,
Chasing things that I could give up

I'll show them I'm willing to fight
And give them the best of my life
So we can call this our home
Lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Father, lead me, 'cause I can't do this alone

Deuteronomy 6:4-9

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.  These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children.Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie then as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on your door frames and on your gates.

Ephesians 5:21-29

And further, submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. For wives, this means to submit to your husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. As the church submits to Christ, so you wives should submit to your husbands in everything.

For husbands, this means love your wives, just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God's word. He did this to present her to himself as a glorious church without a spot or wrinkle or any other blemish. Instead, she will be holy and without fault.  In the same way, husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself.

It is amazing how quickly little kids heal. Joey is doing SO much better today! The first night home he needed his medicine every 4 hours. The day after that only a couple times and last night he didn't need it at all. He slept all through the night with no pain. His fingers are no longer swollen and he can do more and more everyday.  He was even able to play with the play station with his Uncle Vachel today and push all the buttons that he needed to with his broken arm hand.  It is interesting to see how he figured out how to do things with only one arm! I make sure to dress him in elastic waisted pants because there is no way he could button anything.

We are all still having a great time on vacation, we are not going to let one little broken arm get in the way of fun! Yesterday Papa Perkins bought a Golf Cart for Joey to drive around at the pond!!! We found it on Craigs List and took the kids over to test drive it. Joey fits it very well and can drive all around with no problems. I call it the Joey-Mobile. He was so excited to get it , he has been talking about it non-stop!!  And don't worry, it doesn't go that fast and he is supervised by an adult at all times.  I have been much more paranoid about the kids getting injured lately (gee, I wonder why?) Any time one of them so much as trips I almost jump through my skin. I am constantly telling them to "BE careful!!" I can't take any more injuries!! 

Saturday started out as such a fun day! The kids were swimming and playing with their cousins all day. We had just finished dinner when Joey came up to me to ask if he could go down the trolley- I said I wasn't sure he was big enough yet so I went over to supervise him. Salone helped him grab the handle and off he went down the zip line and into the pond. (the trolley is a 8 ft tower that you climb up to grab a handle bar  that is attatched to a cable /  zip line that goes over the pond, and is attatched to a pole on the opposite bank. Half way out, you let go and drop into the water. My dad built it at least 23 years ago and we have used it every year with  no injuries...) 

 Joey had a great ride and was so excited to be able to do it.  He came back and wanted to do it again. This time I wanted to video him, to show Chris when we got back home.  I was video taping when he lost his grip and fell right away onto the bank/shallow water. I screamed, dropped the camera and ran over to him. I immediately saw his arm- which was deformed above the wrist and yelled that he broke his arm. I am sure I was screaming at this point, as I was very upset and basically freaking out. Thankfully my whole family was there so everyone helped out. My brother Greggie carried Joey to the car and he and his wife Nicole drove us to the Alma hospital 20 miles away (which was the LONGEST 20 min of my life!)  My sisters Diana and Krysti took all the kids back to Krysti's to give them baths and to watch the girls there for me.  Dad, his fiance Kathy and Salone followed behind us to the hospital.

 Joey was so brave and strong. I layed his arm on a pillow and covered it with a towell so he couldn't see it. He kept saying how much it hurt, but he never cried.  We arrived at the hospital and again Uncle Greggie carried Joey in for me. They got us into a room within 2 min of arriving. Joey was shaking at this pont and in A LOT of pain. They were thinking he was starting to so into shock.  Greggie and Nicole went back with Joey while I filled out the paperwork. Dad, Kathy and Salone arrived and waited in the waiting room and I went back to be with Joey. The nurses were great. They gave him some morphine and once that had a chance to work they cut off his swim shirt. They they took X-rays.  He ended up breaking both bones in his wrist and would need to be put under general anesthesia the next morning to set his arm. They couldn't do it that night because he just ate dinner. Greggie and Nicole stayed with Joey and I raced home wo get him some dry clothes, his blankie and cothes for me so I could spend the night with him.  Before we left Dad and Salone came back to see Joey and to give him a hug.  They were both very upset and had tears in their eyes.

I got back to the hospital right after Joey was in his new room on the 4th floor (which coincidentally was the same floor my mom was on last summer and all the nurses remembered me, they are the greatest nurses in the world!) They were able to wrap Joey's arm up but it was still painful for him. He was able to get morphine a couple times during the night and he was able to sleep for a few hours. I also was able to sleep a few hours in the recliner chair next to him.  I was unable to get ahold of Chris all night- he worked late and then his phone went dead. I finally got a hold of him the next day when we were home from the hospital.

The next morning Dad and Kathy came to be with us at the hospital at 7:30am. They wheeled Joey into surgery at 8am. The Dr. was great, he was able to set his arm perfectly. On the new x-ray you can hardly tell it is broken. The Dr. said in a year you won't be able to tell at all he broke his arm, it will heal perfect. Joey picked out a blue cast. I could tell after his arm was set he felt a LOT better. After surgery he had to hang out for a couple hours to make sure everything was okay. We got back to grandpa's at 2pm.

I bought Joey a fishing pole, some marbles and some pokeman cards. I am trying to think of things he can do the next couple weeks since he can no longer swim. His cousins came over to see him last night and Joey jumped right up and played with them- I know he will be fine but I still feel so bad for him. I keep seeing him falling in my mind! 

Last night was his first night at home. He slept in my bed. I gave him Tylenol with codeine every 4 hours. I could tell when it was time for his medicine because Joey would start moving around a lot, and couldn't sleep. I also got some ice for his arm around 3am because his fingers were swelling. I will have him keep ice on his arm all day today.  Last night I helped him with his bath, we put a plastic bag around his arm to make sure his cast stayed dry. 

He should get a short cast (below the elbow) in about 2 weeks and then get the cast off in about 6-8 weeks. 

I posted about our flight- read below--- and fell asleep while typing, I will update what has happened since then-- the kids and I went to bed around 8pm the first night we were here. They were very upset because it was still light out- I had to let them know that here in Michigan it stays light until 10pm. They were still not happy. The next morning I was planning on taking them all to Vacation Bible School at 9am. Well, I didn't even wake up until 9:30!  Sophia woke up at 11:30am! Joey slept until 12noon. The first day was a bit of a mess- Joey and Sophia were BOTH sick and puking. Sophia puked when she woke up and I thought it was maybe because she was so hungry- none of the kids ate much the day before- She ate breakfast and seemed fine. Around 1pm Joey was finally up and I wanted to take all the kids and my dad to the restaurant to eat a good lunch- I was starving. I grabbed a Tupperware bowl just in case Sophia got sick again. Well, she got sick again in the driveway. Still, we continued on our way to the restaurant. On the way TO the restaurant JOEY had to use the "puke bowl". I thought maybe it was car sickness--- but then they BOTH had to puke INSIDE the restaurant. Thankfully I had my Tupperware bowl. We ended up getting our food and going back to Papa's house to eat- well, Vangie and I ate- Joey and Sophia fell asleep again on the couch. later that day the kids made a miraculous recovery and were jumping on the trampoline, I took them to the pond and they were so excited to see the pond and go swimming with their cousins.  I will post more later!

We are here in Edmore, MI! (finally!) It has been a LONG trip. We left Honolulu yesterday around 4:30pm. The three Schmittlings and I took up most of the whole middle row. Joey had a nice lady sitting next to him who I am surprised didn't run screaming when she saw who she was sharing her row with. Our row was right next to the restrooms so the kids could go by themselves.  Once on board the kids were immediately STARVING. Thankfully as soon as we were up to cruising altitude the flight attendants began offering the meal (which of course you have to purchase now) and so the kids and I ate dinner. Then we settled in for 6 more hours

. They showed two movies and I slept through half of the second movie. The girls slept about 3.5 hours of the flight. Joey was on a mission to stay up All. Night. Long. He was so proud of himself when I woke up from my 1.5 hour nights sleep and he was still wide awake. We had about 2 hours left of the flight and I had to MAKE him close his eyes and fall asleep. He finally fell asleep half in his chair and half on the floor. I was sitting between Vangie and Sophia and had both of them leaning on me asleep. I was fortunately able to weasel my way out between them to walk up and down the isle every hour or so with out waking them up.

We got to Chicago after our 7 hour flight and the kids, despite only sleeping a few hours, were WIRED during our two hour lay-over! I don't know WHERE they got all their energy, because I was exhausted. We waited in Chicago for 2 hours and then boarded for a very short flight to Grand Rapids. Once in Grand Rapids my sister Diana was there to pick us up and load all our luggage.   *******this is where I could no longer stay awake so I quit typing and fell asleep********

I have been packing for our trip last night and I finally finished up this morning. I am trying not to "over pack". This is tough with 3 kids. We have 4 suitcases total- one suitcase is filled with nothing but souvenirs for the family back home.  Chris just ran to the store for me to get me some last minute items- gum and pull-ups for Vangie.  Each of the children has a backpack that they will carry on with them. They are each bringing their DS and a coloring book, and their "blankies".

Chris will take us all to the airport at around 2pm today and help us check our luggage. And then we will be off to start our Michigan adventure! 

Last night around dinner time I started to feel really "weird". I wasn't hungry but knew I needed to eat, my stomach felt all tight and I just felt "out of sorts". Chris asked me if I was okay and I said "You know, I feel really odd and I don't know why..." He said "Maybe because you are flying to Michigan in 48 hours!!" Well, duh! I can't believe I didn't realize that! I felt better knowing WHY I was feeling anxious, but I still felt anxious all night. I know that once I am on the plane I will be fine, but I am definitely dealing with some anxiety today! I would appreciate all your prayers that our flight and trip to Michigan go well. I know it will, I think just being 7 months pregnant is adding the most to my anxiety- My pregnancy is going great, and I have had no issues so the odds are everything will be fine. If something ends up happening then I will deal with it then! 

Today Chris is home AGAIN! We have not spent this much time together since Christmas and it is so nice to have him around. The kids are loving it. Last night the girls went to bed around 8:30 and I went to bed around 9. I told Chris and Joey to enjoy their "man time" together, playing "Contra" an old-school video game from Chris's youth. Chris was SHOCKED that I never played Contra as a child. I guess it was THE video game for our generation. He even remembers the "famous password " for 30 extra lives: up, up, down, down, left, right, left, right, B,A,B,A, Select, start. And he remembers this 17 years later???  I woke up at 11:30pm and they were STILL downstairs playing the Contra!I guess they beat the game twice.  I had to yell down and say it was time for bed- I didn't want a grouchy Joey in the morning.  Now it is almost 9am and Joey is still sleeping, no doubt dreaming of slaying aliens.

Yesterday we went to the Swap meet and bought souvenirs and ate lunch at the Kona Brewery in Hawaii Kai. And let me tell you, It was AWESOME. We got the Hummus platter and it was soooo good I ate most of it myself! Here is a picture of the kids outside the restaurant. We got to eat out on the patio with views of the mountains and bay. It is moments like that where I almost need to pinch myself and I think How did a farm girl from Edmore, MI end up married to the man of her dreams and living in Hawaii?? Life is good!

Today we are running errands and packing for our trip.  We actually leave tomorrow from Honolulu at 4:11pm, fly all night and land in Chicago at 5:15am... leave Chicago 7:26am and land in Grand rapids at 9am. My wonderful sister Diana will be there to pick us all up and we can't wait to see her!

Today is our SECOND day together as a family!!! Chris got home yesterday morning at around 10am and we took the kids to "open gym" for an hour at the gymnastics center. They loved running around and playing on all the equipment. Then we went to the movie theater to see The Karate Kid. This is my review on the movie: It was okay, and very long. The kids had fun.  Nothing that special.

Right next to the movie theater is a school supply store. I was able to get a few more school books for the kids- we are really sticking to our schedule and working about an hour a day on school work. I really enjoy this time with the kids. I love seeing them learn new things and improve in writing, reading and math. Sophia, in particular has already improved in her reading skills SO MUCH this summer. I think being able to read well is very important- you use reading to do everything!!! I love to read, and my mom loved to read so I hope that my kids love to read too.

(Before I forget, I uploaded a new video on the VIDEO page of Vangie and Stella dancing together.)

Today I woke up and felt nauseated, tired and grouchy. I realized getting on the treadmill asap was very important for myself AND the family! I put my workout clothes on and went straight out into the garage and got onto the treadmill. It was about 7:30am and the kids and Chris were still sleeping (Vangie managed to weasel her way into bed with Daddy). About 20 min into my run the garage door opens. It was Sophia
"Mommy, can we have breakfast?"
 "Go tell your Daddy!" I told her.
"Daddy's Home??" She was shocked- Chris is usually home one day a week and that is it. The door shuts and she scampers off.
About 10 min later the door opens again and Sophia says "Mommy, Vangie is sad because she pooped in her pull-up."  I had to laugh to myself as I answered "Go tell your father....." Bahahahahahw. It was a good morning for Chris to be home. About 20 min later the garage door opens again and all three little schmittlings walk out. "Daddy's taking up to get donuts!!!"  That must be Chris's answer to breakfast!! But I don't care, I am just happy to spend the day with him.

Today we are getting ready to go to the "Swap Meet". It is like a big flea market at the Aloha Stadium and THE place to buy cheap souvenirs for the family back home. -We leave for Michigan in 2 days!

Tomorrow marks the beginning of my 3rd and final trimester of my 4th and final pregnancy. I have been down this road 3 times already but honestly this pregnancy has been the hardest. By Far.  It seems to have gone by soooooo slowly!! Maybe that is due to the fact I was very, very ill for 21 weeks. (the longest my morning sickness has ever stick around) thank God for Zofran and an understanding husband!  I was soooo tired and sick and gained a ton of weight as soon as I got a positive pregnancy test which left me bloated and depressed.

Once I hit 21 weeks I began to feel normal. I longed to feel like my old self-- or at least a tiny bit like my old self, I longed to feel energetic and positve!  So I laced up my running shoes and I started running again everyday. (with the occasional day off to recover.)
 
Over the past 6 weeks; from week 22 weeks pregnant to 28 weeks pregnant;  I have run 250.5 miles. That is the equivalent to running around Oahu 2.23 times. I average 43 miles a week and 6 miles a day. I have 86 days left until my due date- 12 weeks-- my goal is 350 more miles.  (or, an average of 4 per day.)

Thank God for my treadmill! I get on tired, sore and  moody and an hour plus later I get off positive, limber and with a sense of accomplishment!  My pace has been about 9-10 min miles, but the last couple days has gone up to about 10-11 min miles. This is fine, I don't run to hit a certain pace - I listen to my body and once I am warmed up running feels as close to happiness as anything I can think of. 

So here is to the 3rd trimester! To  feeling baby Lucy's kicks get stronger and stronger. To charting new running territory and seeing what my body is really capable of. Oh,  and for gearing up mentally for another all-natural, no pain medication labor and delivery. (yikes!)   And if your interested, check out my Running Pregnant page for a breakdown of my daily runs.

Last night I awoke in the middle of the night because Chris was yelling for Joey in his sleep- seriously yelling while fully asleep- how does someone DO that?? So I was wide awake and suddenly I started to think about our flight to Michigan in 5 days--- or rather what if my flight CRASHED and we all DIED??? 

I started to get all panicky with visions of a burning fuselage and the plane plummeting into the ocean in my head. Then I tried to reason with myself--- the odds are you will be fine!! Flying on a plane is way safer than driving in a car... But then I thought maybe these thoughts I am having are a WARNING that this particular flight is doomed and I should just not get on!!  I finally fell back to sleep. But as you can see, I have a secret fear of flying that only comes out in the middle of the night or upon take-offs and landings (especially landings, those really scare me!)  I am planning on sleeping the whole way and the kids to occupy me for the rest of the time so I don't think about it.

Also, another confession: I am HORRIBLE at taking my pre-natal pills. I probably average taking 3 a week. Not good. There just so gross and big and who wants to swallow something like that? Especially when you are feeling nauseated to begin with??

And now to the baby name.... I have received lots of emails inquiring about this new name... and I don't think it's going to happen. I told the kids I was changing Baby Lucy's name and they told me they HATED the new name. They said it was horrible and they baby's name was LUCY. They were adamant. They were defiant. There was no reasoning with them.  I had a mutiny on my hands.  

This is a conversation that I had with Evangeline:
ME:         "Vangie, can Mommy change the baby's name?"
VANGIE:  "No! The baby's name is Baby Lucy!"
ME:         "Can I name her anything else???"
VANGIE:   (deep in thought): "Hmmmmm. You can name her Baby Emily OR SANTA CLAUSE!"
ME:          "I am not going to name her Santa Clause."
VANGIE:     "Oh please, please, please can we name her Santa Clause!!!!????"

soooooo...... this is what I am dealing with. The baby's name will most likely STAY Lucy. Because even if I change it to anything else the kids won't call her that anyway.

I spend my days talking to kids. Kids in various stages of development, and  its pretty funny most of the time.  Yesterday's breakfast conversation between the kids and I centered around Last Names. It started off because we were talking about our upcoming trip to Michigan and camping at "Perkins Pond". " You can only go if your a Perkins or you're invited!" Said Joey "It's a private Pond."  I told him " you're right Joey. Did you know that Mommy's last name used to be Perkins before I married Daddy?" This was very exciting news to the kids.
 
Joey then told me he thought that when you married someone you both just picked a new last name. - like oh, we like the last name Thomas, that's our new last name! I said "No, our last name is Schmitt because that is Grandpa Barney's last name and his Daddy's last name-- the boys KEEP the name, the girls change theirs when they get married--- (but you don't HAVE to change it...I had to throw that in in case one of the girls becomes very liberal or independent!)   That led to discussing everyone's last name the the chance it will change.... Cousin Jakob will forever be a Perkins, Cousin Salone will most likely get married and change her name one day....One can really talk for hours about last names with small children.

Sophia's hair is getting LONG. She is very good about combing it when I ask her too but she HATES wearing it pack in a pony tail. The problem is when she eats her hair falls into her food--- I can STILL remember my own mom yelling at me for my hair being in my food and making me wear my hair back at meal times!) So The law has been erected that Sophia MUST pull her hair back at meal times.  I bought her some cute hair bands to wear around her wrist to have just for that very occasion. I still have to remind her, she still throws a fit--- but she does it and I can breath again because I don't have to look at her hair falling into her food.

I swear, sometimes I feel like life here at the Schmitt house is like a sitcom.  About 7 months ago I bought a large 4 pc sectional couch from the Marine Corps Furniture Store. I LOVED it. Then they delivered it and I noticed some things about it that I didn't really "love". For instance- the cushions are NOT reversible! What??? So if yo spill something on one side, you don't have the automatic "save" of flipping it over. And it is not the most sturdily built- the fabric is already starting to fray in several places. Sigh. At this point it is more noticeable to ME because I know where all these places are, but this couch will be retired after we move away from Hawaii- And I would never buy furniture from the Military furniture store again--- it may be cheaper, but for some things it is worth it  to pay for quality.

So I have been dragging the kids to all sorts of furniture stores the past couple days on the look out for some furniture for the baby's room. Chris commented on how my nesting instinct must have kicked in because for a while there I didn't want to buy ANYTHING. "What? the Baby?? It can sleep on the floor- but it's clothes in a laundry basket!"  Seriously,   It's our 4th kid- I DO NOT want a crib or a changing table or anything else "baby".  That stuff lasts about 18 months and they it's useless. The baby will be sleeping in the pack-n-play for now until maybe I see a crib on craigs list for super cheap. And I just want regular dressers that the kid can use for years to come.
 
So, since we NEEDED some dressers or something to put all the baby clothes in (because the smaller the human the more STUFF it has!) I have been making many  trips to several different  furniture stores. Furniture here in Hawaii is EXPENSIVE. And I don't want to pay an arm and a leg for something unless 1) I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it and 2) It is going to last a loooonnnggggg time. We finally found a dresser set at Homeworld (a popular Hawaii furniture store) that actually matches almost perfectlyour wicker guest day bed! (Key word here is WICKER) I thought perhaps it was a but too matchy-matchy. Too much of a good thing,  Like someone would walk into the room and feel like they were being assaulted by wicker and run screaming the other way. (the dressers are not ALL wicker, it is just inlayed  on each drawer face...but still!) But Chris LOVES things to be matchy-matchy. He hates mis-matched furniture, he says it reminds him of his childhood and everyone giving his mom their "old" furniture and so nothing EVER matched...so he was really routing for the wicker.... and when Chris wants something he can be VERY persuasive, just like when he really doesn't want something and I DO, he will find a way to make me hate it. - He is so good at Jedi mind tricks. 

I should point out that the kids were definite "over" furniture shopping. At this point it was past 8pm, they were on there 4th furniture store of the day and were more than ready to go home. As we were talking to the sales lady we would occasionally see the top of Vangies blond curls as she rode down the escalator. Finally we restricted the kids to sitting in the massage chairs. This kept them occupied for a while.

I caved into Chris bought the matching furniture (so our guest/baby room now has a complete, matching "look!"  and on the way to pay for it spotted a sectional that we LOVED. It was so nice, and soft and comfy looking...... and on SALE! But sadly.... still not something we should buy at this point in our lives so we stared longingly at it and walked away. But one thing we took with us was the NAME of the sectional....(you know how furniture these days has human names)  which is now the NEW name for the baby. Yes, baby lucy has a new name and it is NOT lucy.  It is totally different but something Chris and I both  loved the minute we heard.  Any guesses??  I am not sure if I will tell you all or keep it a secret. I WILL tell you that Lucy will most likely be the baby's MIDDLE name.....

Today is Saturday.... and Chris will be at work until tomorrow morning. SO, I am going to pretend that it is Friday! To think it's Friday means it's just another work day, so we'll stick to our schedule and the day will go by. To think it's Saturday and Chris is working is just depressing.

So, what will this Saturday, I mean Friday hold for the kids and I?? We are all going to go to the Swap Meet- which is a huuugggeeee flea market held at the Aloha stadium parking lot- you can get any type of Hawaii souvenir there for about 1/2 the cost of buying it in Waikiki.  We have 10 days left until our trip to Michigan and we need to get some souvenirs to take back to our family and friends.

And also Baby Lucy is 27 weeks gestation today!  My belly has definitly started to feel suddenly bigger this week. Baby Lucy is moving around all over now and Chris can easily feel her by putting his hand on my belly. Aside from my NIGHTLY nausea I am feeling pretty good- i am still running 40 plus miles a week (check out my running pregnant page for my workout schedule!) and it is helping to keep me energy and stamina up. Trust me, there are MANY days when I just want to crawl onto the couch and stay there ALL DAY. ( Is that even possible with 3 kids at home.... no!) After I make myself get on the treadmill for an hour I feel 100% better, more energy, better mood- and physically less stiffness and soreness.

Week 27

How Big is the Baby at 27 Weeks Pregnant?
Your baby at 27 weeks weighs slightly under 2 pounds. Your baby's total length is close to 14.4 inches. Your baby is now a perfectly formed albeit very tiny human being, but of course, he will continue growing as you continue your pregnancy week by week .

Your Baby's Growth and Development
Your baby's systems continue to mature during pregnancy week 27 and your little one even starts accumulating some weight in the upcoming weeks.

Up until the 27th and 28th weeks of pregnancy, your baby's eyelids were fused together. After this week or next, they will open. The retina, the light sensitive portion of the eye, typically starts maturing at about 27 weeks of pregnancy. The layers that form in the retina will allow your baby's eyes to receive light and transmit the information it is receiving to the brain to form images. This basic process is referred to as "sight". Imagine that, at 27 weeks pregnant, your baby is a tiny, seeing human being!

The majority of yesterday was spent at the beach. We arrived there around 10:30am with all of our "beach gear" which includes:  a large mesh bag of sand toys goggles and fins, a bag of towels and various sunscreens, a cooler with our lunch, a couple large water bottles, an umbrella to block some of that Hawaiian sun, a chair for me to sit in, Joey's boogie board, Sophia's float, Vangie's tube and the kiddie pool.

Whew. Lets just way that you can see us coming from a ways away! BUT, we do it all in ONE trip from the van. I put my little minions to work and make them carry as much as they can. Then we set up camp down by the water and settle in for a nice sunny, relaxing afternoon.   We headed home around 3pm when everyone had had there fill of the sunshine. Once home the kids were starving and inhaled two peanut butter and jelly sandwiches each. Here is a picture of Vangie's sandwhiches when she was finished on the right. I think I can safely say that she does NOT eat the crusts. At least she is neat and stacks them all up for easy disposal!

Here are a couple pictures of the kids at the beach yesterday-


Joey met some friends he knew from school and when he wasn't boogie boarding or diving into the ocean he was busy building a sand fortress with his buddies.








Sophia and Vangie spent a lot of time paddeling threw the water together on there floats.  They also played in the sand and in the kiddie pool that I brought and filled with water.  As of now (almost 8am) the kids are STILL sleeping, so I know they burned off a LOT of energy yesterday. Today looks a bit overcast, I am not sure WHAT the day will bring, probably just relaxing here at home and working on our school work together. 

I thought I would start this post off with this picture of Chris and Joey. Yesterday morning before work Chris had Joey over at the dry erase board teaching him the fundamentals of Algebra. Joey was doing pretty well! He was discovering the joys of finding the value of "x". Not bad for a 7 year old.

My morning yesterday was pretty exiting. I had to go to the medical clinic and take my pregnancy  glucose test. It is where I drink a sickeningly sweet drink and sit for an hour and then they draw my blood to check the glucose levels. I have not been looking forward to this at all. We left the house a little after 8am and the drive SHOULD have taken us 5min. However, I got on the wrong road (the H-1 instead of Kamehameha Hwy!) which is VERY easy to do and suddenly I was stuck on the freeway going the wrong direction. We eventually got to our destination, 25 min later. During the drive Joey was starting to feel car sick. I threw him a large ziplock bag and told him "if you're going to spew, spew in this!" He was able to hold on. We arrived at the clinic and we were all walking down the hall to the Lab. I looked behind me and only saw Sophia... were were Joey and Vangie?? Suddenly Vangie tears around the corner, full speed "Mommy, Joey Puked!!!"  I followed her back around the corner and sure enough, there was Joey with puke around his feet... then he had to puke again and tried to catch it in his hands.... "Just puke on the floor!" After his episode he washed his hands and face and was as good as new.  And since we were at the medical clinic I am sure they were no strangers to cleaning up kids vomit.  We went to the Lab, I drank my drink and for the next hour the kids and I did school work. Joey is mastering the art of crossword puzzles and Sophia how to count and add change. 

On Tuesday the kids and I went to the garden center- the flower garden we planted months ago needed some more soil and some different flowers. The kids had fun helping me pick out what kind of flowers we should get and then helping me plant them when we got home. Now our garden looks REALLY awesome!