The Belly

I realized the other day that I really have no pictures of me pregnant. Not just this time, but every time. I guess there are some, but I am usually sitting down holding a child on my lap so you can't see much of the belly. I figure my posterity needs one picture of me really pregnant so here it is. (As you can see Andrew has none of my camera avoidance).
I am due the 28th but my babies have been between 10 and 4 days early so I am hoping this one breaks the record and comes a full 2 weeks early. Hey I would even be okay with 3 weeks early-but I try not to get too optimistic.

Why you shouldn't let a cat sleep on your head

Last night, amid the noise of the basketball game on TV, Greg and I heard the sound of someone crying. Usually if our kids are crying at night they are already on their way down the stairs to tell their dramatic tale; so we waited. Nothing for a while - then more moaning. Greg went up to check it out and found Andrew in bed covered in blood. His ear was bleeding and while we cleaned him up we asked him what happened. No response. The kid kept falling back to sleep only waking up when I touched the gash in his ear. He had two little cuts and one big one - and we had no clue what could have happened. I taped a cotton ball in his ear and let the poor kid go back to sleep.

After some discussion we have determined that Gimli, our cat, must have been sleeping on Andrew's head. When he jumped off the bed his back claws must have ripped up poor Andrew's ear. Luckily, Andrew has no idea what happened because it would break his heart. He loves Gimli sleeping with him. At bedtime he calls to Gimli and waits for Gimli to lay down next to him. They really share the pillow every night. But maybe letting a cat sleep on your head isn't the best idea.
This is what it looks like this morning - poor cat lover.

My Light Weights

Well most of you know my kids are small - like they don't register on growth charts because they are that far below average. In contrast my sister Val's kids have always been well above average. For sometime we have been wondering if her 2 year old outweighed my 6 year old. So The other day we were all at Val's house and finally satisfied out curiosity and weighed each of our kids. Here are the results in order heaviest to lightest.

Natali (8)-----------46 lbs.
Abby (4)------------38 lbs.
Mack (6 1/2)-------37 lbs.
Luke (2)------------34 lbs.
Andrew (5)---------32 lbs.
Kate (3)----------- -24 lbs.

We had a good laugh at the extremes of both of our kids and I decided to post it so that someday they too can look back and laugh.

The Adventures of a Girl Named Kate

Kate has suddenly come into her own- personality that is. She has transformed from my easy going, quiet, joyful child, to the kid that makes me want to pull my hair out (or hers). The role of biggest boss has been transferred to Kate as each of the other kids give into her every whim rather that listen to the screaming. After a few talks with the other kids they are starting to defend themselves by actually telling her no. Which means she now spends a lot of time in her room screaming to herself, or on the porch screaming for the neighbors to hear (but at least I can't). With the baby coming soon I think she is just testing the boundaries and sadly I really don't want to rise to that occasion (because I don't like getting up at all) but I am trying to nip this in the bud before the baby comes. For the sake of all who plan to watch Kate when I have this baby I hope she gets over this adventure quickly.

The adventure of potty training has also begun. I read the Potty Training in a Day book that has been such a success with my sisters kids and was determined that I would do this by the letter and thus have overnight potty training success. I'd like to say I am joking, but I really thought that Kate would have this all figured out within three days. Well she did great the first day - only 2 accidents. Then we hit the bump- she stopped using the potty. The next three days were a discouraging blur of wet undies and wet eyes. I was ready to return to diapers, but then suddenly she started using the potty again and had 2 days with no accidents, followed by one a day for the last three days. Maybe it worked; I'm not holding my breath.

However, not all of her adventures have made me cry. We can't help but laugh at some of her latest interests. She learned about Harry Potter from Natali and has taken to calling herself 'Miney' like Hermine Granger. I probably call her Miney as much as Kate - she insists. She also refers to me as 'Lily', Andrew has become 'Potter', Mack is 'Ron', Greg is 'Potter's Dad', and Natali is either 'Buckbeak' or 'Miney's Cat'. It cracks me up that my 2 year old has embraced the Harry Potter world so entirely. She has even named the baby in her tummy Miney (you did remember she was pregnant, right?).

Kate has also taken it upon herself to name our baby. She has been sure the baby is a girl for the entire pregnancy but in the last month she has started to call the baby Pananunu. I have no idea where this name came from but she consistently refers to the baby as Pananunu. I hope she isn't too disappointed if this baby is a boy or if we don't choose Pananunu (Greg hasn't rejected it yet...trying to find a name for this baby is another story).

She is still my bouncy, fun, little blondy, but she's got a little more sass and we are all adjusting to the change. This post is an effort to convince myself that this is part of the adventure not just torture.

Pink Hair

Kate is pretty good recognizing most of her colors and like most 2 year old girls, has a special affinity for pink. Recently, when she was asked, 'What color is your hair?' she answered pink. I thought this was pretty funny. However, over the last month I have realized that she will also consistently tell you that Mack, Andrew, and Cinderella have pink hair. She says that Natali and I have brown hair. So it appears that Kate thinks blonds have pink hair - lucky for them.

My Favorite Reads from 2009

In the back of my journal I keep a log of all the books I read each year. This year I even rated each book to help me remember how much I liked them. I was killing time the other night and was going over my reading lists from the last few years. Each title reminded me of my circumstances while reading that book and the different things I learned. I love books. I love the way they look on bookshelves. I love the way it feels when you see how far you have progressed through a 600 page book. I love getting wrapped up in a good story or being amazed at the skill of writers who can make economics fascinating. I love watching my Natali stay up way too late reading Harry Potter because she just can't wait to find out what happens. I love learning about places and people far away. I can go on and on but instead I will just post my favorite reads of 2009.

The Book Thief - Juvenile Fiction about a girl living in Germany during WW2 and how books influenced her life. Captivating. Wonderful insight into the power of words.

Screwtape Letters- A fictional account of how devils tempt their assigned people. C. S. Lewis is amazing. This was a quick reread for me filled with reminders of how I can be more aware of Satan's attempts on me.

Long Walk to Freedom - The Autobiography of Nelson Mandela. Very long and slow at parts but considering 27 years of his life were spent in jail it was fascinating. His self mastery and commitment were inspiring.

Outliers - Non-Fiction. A statistical study showing patterns in the lives of people that succeed. Sounds boring, but if you haven't read anything by Gladwell give it a try. You'll be surprised at how interesting numbers can be.

Other good reads from the year: David Copperfield, The House At Sugar Beach, Hot, Flat and Crowded, A Room with A View, Confessions of an Economic Hitman

The Boy and His Hat

If any of you have seen Mack lately you may have noticed the permanent new addition to his wardrobe. I knitted this hat in high school. It was an experiment that didn't turn out well because is was too big for mostly everybody. When we pulled out the winter clothes this year Mack's old hat had disappeared and he claimed this one as the replacement. I figured it wouldn't last long because it really is huge. Not only does he wear this hat whenever he goes outside but he wears it all the time - seriously - he even wears it to bed. I hope his teacher makes him take it off in the class room, but other than that possibility he only takes it off when he prays, bathes, and goes to church. Who would have guessed that he would love it so.