Today's Craziness

So, today was one of the craziest days we've had in a long time. Every day has a dash of craziness thrown in, but today was just insane.  If you follow me on Twitter, you read most of it.  But, I wanted to do a little recap for the blog.  I know one day I will look back on this and laugh. I actually laughed a lot today - mostly out of disbelief something else was happening. 

The morning started off weird b/c everyone slept in!  That was great!  Then it just went crazy from there.  Crews and Warner started fighting in the hallway while I was doing laundry. I hear Harper scream and say Oh No!!! She is quite dramatic. Crews had somehow busted Warner's lip and he was bleeding everywhere.  I got him cleaned up. No big deal. 

Then, before lunch we were listening to Christmas music and coloring.  Everyone was doing so well.  I was fixing lunch while it was so peaceful.  When I go to deliver plates to everyone, Maverick is sitting there chomping away on a red crayon.  He had already eaten half of it!  Guess he didn't want to wait for lunch!  Lol!  It was disgusting though, red wax all in his teeth and red drool all down his shirt.  Definitely looked like a vampire. 

The boys were constantly fighting today.  Crews wound up in time out more times then I could count!  He has always been passive with the other two, but boy oh boy, the last two weeks his little fighter has come out and he is quite aggressive. 

Once naptime arrived I thought I was going to catch a break.  Well, Harper went to the bathroom and called me to come help her.  Right as I got there, she told me she was going to spray some bathroom spray.  Before I knew it she was screaming like crazy.  She had sprayed it right in her eye!  The next 20 minutes were quite crazy as she was crying and crying.  i know that had to hurt!  I flushed her eye with water, much to her dismay, and that seemed to help some. 

She went down for her nap, and I finished some laundry and then got to lay down for about 15 minutes before she was screaming from a dream.  She slept for a total of about 45 minutes.  Oh well. 

Once the boys were up, we had snacks, and everyone was happy.  I started dinner, and Harper helped me make some oatmeal raisin cookies.  Some how between putting cookies in the over & managing dinner, Maverick finds the trash and helps himself to an egg shell!  Awesome!  I am praying praying praying that he does not get salmonella!  At this point Chris gets home!  Yay!  Back up!!

We eat dinner, then the boys go upstairs to play.  Chris was busy doing something & I hear an awful cry.  I run upstairs and Maverick is bleeding everywhere!  He had busted his lip!!!!  I laugh at this point - REALLY!?  

Finally it is bedtime for the boys and some relief is in sight! Chris takes Harper's bedtime routine and I get in the bath!  Aaah!! And, for my children to know one day, I am not complaining when I write this!  I wouldn't have wanted to spend today anywhere but here - even if I did feel like I was losing my mind! :-) I just really want to record these details so I can tell them stories about the stuff they did when they were little!  hah! 


Here's to an easier tomorrow!


PS... Baby girl just kicked so hard she made my tummy jump!  Chris, also, got to feel a good hard kick tonight! Grow little one, grow! 21 weeks

Boy or Girl???

So the orignal post "Boy or Girl???" was supposed to go up this morning while we were at the ultrasound place.  Blogger did not go by 'my instructions.'  So, I'm starting with the original post, and adding our 'results' at the end of this post.  (go ahead, scroll allll the way down to watch the video :) I KNOW you want to!)

Original post:
I thought I would record what I think this baby is going to be & old wives tales.  Hoping baby cooperates tomorrow!  I'm a little reserved about finding out the sex of the baby as I have read about 2 different people (blogs I follow) having been told the wrong sex recently!!!  I'm going to have the ultrasound tech point out everything to us tomorrow!  ha!

Okay, so here we go:

My Instinct: From about week 9 or 10, I've thought this baby is a girl more than I've thought its a boy.  This pregnancy reminds me sooo much of my pregnancy with Harper - but, I know each pregnancy is different.  I've also had days where I am convinced this is a boy.  But, if I have to go with my 'gut' instinct, I would say it's leaned more toward girl than boy.  Girl

Dreams :  So, I've heard both sides - if you dream it's a girl, then you will have a boy/ dream boy, you will have a girl.  But, I've also heard what you dream is what you get.  This one helps a whole lot - huh?  However, I never once had a dream about a boy baby when pregnant with Harper, and never once dreamed about a girl baby when pregnant with the boys.  Weird, huh?    In the beginning of this pregnancy, I dreamed another boy was added to our family, but it wasn't really vivid.  3 nights ago I had the most vivid dream that I gave birth to a little girl who looked just like my sister.  She had auburn/brown hair that was curly, and weighed 8lbs 1 oz.  ha!  We'll see how true this holds up, I guess.  Oh, and my mom has had some dreams and they have always been that this baby is a girl.  I'm going to go with my super vivid dream & say this points to a Girl

Cravings:  More like food aversions. If I had to say I craved things it would be fruit (lemons, apples, pineapple).  That leans more toward girl. 

Heart Rate:  Has been 135 & 138.  Old wives tales say if its less than 140, it means boy, so I would say boy for this one.  ( I don't remember Harper's heartrate or the boys' heartrates at all) Boy

Shape of Belly:  Once again, no help. I have extra skin (gross, I know) from my pregnancy with the trips that throws this belly shape thing out of whack.  Watermelon?  Basketball?  I have no idea.  I haven't really gained in my hips or thighs, though, so I guess I would say boy

Hair on Legs:  grows faster than before pregnancy = boy.  My leg hair seems to have slowed down! So girl

Ring Test:  getting ready to do this with Harper when she wakes up from her nap. I will see if I remember to update this one later. :-) This one has always been confusing to me though! ha!

Side I rest on:  In the beginning of this pregnancy, it was always my left side.  But now, I always wake up on my right.  So, once again - no help!

Morning Sickness:  Oh good gravy - all day sickness.  Even yesterday I was sick & feeling awful (20 weeks, people!)- girl.

Nose:  If your nose seems to have grown wider = boy.  My nose has not grown wider (yet).  I must say it did with the boys!  Soooo, I guess girl.

Chinese Gender Chart:  says girl.

Girl: 7
Boy:2

Hah!  Well, looks like its a girl going by all this stuff.  We will see. You may be wondering what I 'want.'  Of course a healthy baby (what mom isn't going to say that?!) When I first found out I was pregnant, I really wanted another girl.  I wanted Harper to experience having a sister because my sister is so precious to me (my brother is, too, but it's just different).  I voiced my concern to Chris, and he made a very good point.  He said, Harper may not need a sister.  The path that God has planned for her, Warner, Crews, & Maverick may need a little brother.  He also said, if baby #5 wasnt a girl, it would just make my relationship with Harper all the more special - we'll be the only girls!  After talking to him, my heart really was put at peace with having a boy or a girl!  I am praying that baby is healthy, and that the tech can get all the measurements right away.  I hope to find out if baby is a boy or girl, too!  I'm going to take some sweet tea with me to get baby moving if I need to!  ha!

Can't wait to update tomorrow!  Little baby is moving around like crazy in my tummy right now!  Oh, and we felt the baby kick from the outside for the first time 2 nights ago!  I sooooo love this part about pregnancy!!!

One more note:  Harper only refers to this baby as 'she/her.'  I told her it might be a baby brother, and she says very seriously, 'But Mommy, it's a baby girl, not a boy.'  I've tried to tell her we don't know yet, but she is very convinced (and has been from the beginning) that it is a girl. 


Update:

Baby is healthy and very active!  My due date is right on track for mid-December (18th)!  Baby weighed in at 14 oz.  We wanted Harper to be the first one to know.  Chris and I did find out in the ultrasound room because I needed the girl to show me all the parts to know if it was a boy or girl!!!  :-)  We got an awesome DVD of the entire ultrasound! 



Edited to add:  The ladies in the video are our precious Jean & Debbie!  They have kept the boys & Harper since the boys were 5 weeks old. They come every Thursday to help out with the kids and to let me get out of the house :-)  We were sooo happy they were able to celebrate the big news with us!  They were sooo excited that they scared the boys - lol!  Harper is over the moon to have a sister on the way, and the boys are clueless!  Although, Crews will point at my tummy, then point at his.  Lol!

Summer Vacation: Travel Home

We were ready to be home after 2 fun and eventful weeks!  My Dad was so awesome to make the trip back with us!  The trip home was a bit more eventful than the trip there.  I think we were all just exhausted, but we survived and have great stories to tell!!!  We flew from Myrtle Beach to Charlotte, then from Charlotte to Nashville.

The first flight went well. Everyone was excited to be on a plane again. We had fresh snacks, toys, coloring books, etc.  And, the flight was only 45 minutes.  Smooth as can be...other than Maverick pooping. :-)  But, that was at the end of the flight, so we waited until we landed and I could change him easier. 

We had an hour layover in Charlotte & lots to do.  On my list - change the boys, let Harper potty, get something to eat for everyone, and let the boys run/stretch their legs for a little bit.  Well, as soon as we got there, we changed the boys.  Then we found our gate and plopped our 5 bags, 2 double strollers, 4 tired kids, and 3 hungry adults down.  I went to find a potty with Harper.  When we returned, Chris had scouted out some food places at the food court.  The only thing appetizing to this crowd was Burger King.  He had checked out the line & there was a 20 minute wait on food.  I sent him to order as our tiny natives were growing very very restless.  Once the order was placed, he came back and got Harper and Maverick - to take them on a little walk.  I told Dad to stay put with the stuff, and i would take Warner and Crews.  Looking back, I should have sent my Dad with Warner and Crews, but oh well. 

The next 10 minutes could easily be described as my most humiliating public mothering experience to date.   (Note: we don't go out in public very much).  I grabbed Warner and Crews' little hands (they had just started to hold hands & walk like civilized little people the previous week or so).  They were so big and cute laughing and smiling while they walked through the airport.  I must say I did have a proud Mama moment as they were doing so well! (Doesn't the Bible say pride comes before the fall?!?)  We walked through the food court, and a bit further down the terminal until we came to to the moving sidewalk.  I knew better than to even attempt that, so I said okay boys, we need to turn around now.  Oh dear - bad choice of words!  We started to make the u-turn, but Warner and Crews wanted NOTHING to do with it.  They both threw themselves on the ground, pitching royal fits.  Two babies turning beet red and screaming at the top of their lungs.  We were the center of attention.  I tried to grab their little hands and pull them up, but I couldn't.  I was trying to get them to stop - to no avail.  My attempts were just making them more mad! Neither Chris or my Dad were anywhere in sight, so I had to do this alone.  I grabbed Warner like a sack of flour, then mustered up all my energy & said a prayer for the baby in my tummy and grabbed Crews like a sack of flour - both up under my arms.  They were still flailing, kicking, and screaming.  We had to walk back through the terminal, then through the food court (did I mention it was LUNCH time?!), then through more terminal, and finally to our gate. I was sweating and red as could be by the time we made it to the gate.  I also really wanted to cry, but I didn't.  I'm sure that I had many ' oh bless her heart' looks.  As well as, many people thinking, ' she has twins and one on the way!'  (haha - little do they know!!) 

Anyway, we were all spent by the time Chris returned with the food.  We had to sit at the gate with all the passengers (who I'm sure were dreading the flight by now) and eat hamburgers.  The boys were just done & so was Harper.  I scarfed a hamburger down while trying to feed the others.  There were some very gracious passengers nearby that made me feel much better.  It's just amazing the people the Lord places in your path.  One elderly lady had had a singleton (one baby) and shortly after had twins.  She was very sweet and telling me to enjoy these days!  Another lady, who was pregnant, came up to ask where I had gotten the boys bags (they were gifts).  I asked her how far along she was & we were both due in December, and both self concious about our bigger than average bellies - ha- this was her 3rd baby!   I was calmed down after the tantrum fun, and we were soon boarding the plane.

This plane ride was 1 & 1/2 hours, and not nearly as nostalgic as the first plane ride.  Poor Dad had Maverick who decided to get his tantrum in while we were on the plane.  (Hey, at least the other 2 got their's out on land, right!?)  I had Crews & Harper again. Crews slept for about 45 minutes on me (precious boy!)  & Harps was very good - a little fussy, but good.  Once Crews woke up, I traded babies with Dad.  Maverick came back and rode with me & Harper.  We were all so excited when we landed! 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The man's arm with the blue shirt, right across from Chris has 4 kids - 1 girl & 3 boys - 2 boys are identical twins!  He was very encouraging and so kind!  So cool the people God placed in our path!

We were at the very back of the plane :-)

My travel buddies

My dear friend, Arica, was waiting for us at the airport!  She had driven our van, and then helped us load the luggage and kiddos.  She then had a  friend pick her up.  She is so precious!  Dad walked us out to the car, helped us load carseats, luggage, babies, etc. Then he walked back into the airport and flew back to Myrtle Beach!!!!  I'm sure he was exhausted by the time he made it back to the beach - however, I bet those 2 plane rides back were the calmest and quietest he has ever had - lol!

Arica & me

Chris & my Dad - precious.  Love these two men!

Me and my sweet Daddy

As we drove out of the airport, this was the view in the back seat. 

So happy to have visited with family! So happy to be home!

And that is our trip!  I can't believe I blogged the whole thing!  lol!  Stay tuned tomorrow (Wednesday)... we find out if Baby Blanton is a boy or girl!!!  Pray for us at 10 AM (CST) - for things to go smoothly and for baby to be healthy!  Will report back tomorrow!  WooHoo!

Summer Vacation: Myrtle Beach

We drove to Myrtle Beach with the help of Aunt Nancy and Uncle Will. We stopped at Chickfila and the boys did such a great job!  Nean, Matt, Mom, Nancy, Will, Me & Chris were all there to guide the little ones while they ate.  I guess anything would go smooth when you have 7 adults to 4 children - hah!

The drive was a little crazy. Nancy and Will had Crews and Harper in their car, and Chris and I had Warner and Maverick in our rental car. Nancy and I would text back and forth - 'is your car as loud as our car?!'  Usually while one car was hollerin', the other was sleeping.  We stopped at a Burger King about an hour before we got to MB to play on the playground.  Everyone had such a good time despite it being a 100* in the play area.  (at least it felt that way to me!)  Harps even crawled up and through once, but the second time got stuck.  We had to send a little girl up to rescue her.

Once we arrived at the beach after a 3 1/2 hour drive, we unloaded the car and got settled.  We then went down to the pool.  I was so excited as I thought everyone would love it!  WRONG again!  It was a shallow pool with sand covering the bottom.  The boys got in and freaked out!  Harper adored the water, and spent most of her time in this pool.  Maverick had fun being swirled around in his baby float, but Warner and Crews were less than thrilled and let everyone in North Myrtle Beach know it!  We ordered pizza and ate poolside - which again was a teensy bit stressful because everyone was tired and cranky from no/small naps that day.  Nancy and I looked at each other & she says 'my pizza is lodge right here (pointing at her chest) because I'm a little stressed.'  That cracked me up as my pizza was stuck there too!  We were all tired after that and very thankful that bedtime was right around the corner!

The next day, we went to the Splash pool which was a lot of fun!  The boys still had a tough time with all the water, but we had enough adults to carry & guide them through.  It was some work, but I think everyone had fun.  There were lots of slides, sprinkler things, and a lazy river (I could have stayed there alllll day!)  After a snack and a little more play time, we ordered lunch.  There is something about sitting by the pool, eating a hamburger, and having the sun on your skin that brings me back to my childhood.   I wish we could have stayed longer, but we had to leave due to thunder.  We all went inside and napped.  Nancy, Will, and I went for a walk on the beach and then came in and read. 

One evening before Nancy and Will left, we decided to attempt the beach. It was a good thing we had extra hands to help!  The boys had fun running on the beach, but once they got into the water - just up to their knees, they screamed and screamed.  It stung their eczema so bad! Poor little guys!  We ran them up to the hoses and washed them off.  I loved the sand between my toes and watching my kids play. 

 

 

The Blanton Family 2011- Crews, Mama (baby in tummy), Harper, Maverick, Daddy, Warner

The Whole Gang

It sounds like the boys had  rough time with everything they did - well, kind of - it's just the age we are at right now.  But, they did also have fun just being with family!  One thing we could always count on them LOVING to do - RUN the hallway!! :-)

After a few nights of fun at the condo, Chris and I went out on a date night!   It was so fun!  We went to my favorite restaurant Chesapeake House.  All I could think about was crab legs for the last few weeks!  (Just a side note:  when I was pregnant with Harper, all I could think about was crab legs, too.)  It was sooo wonderful.  I'm still thinking about those crab legs.  yum!!  After dinner, we walked around Barefoot Landing.  I was exhausted by about 9pm, so we went home.

Also included in this collage is pics of our celebration of the boys' 2nd birthday (July 16th) and my Dad's 61st birthday (July 10th)!  Leslie had made a cookie cake for all the boys.  The boys were so funny and would cover their ears when we sang to them.  :-)

Our beach trip was lots of fun and lots of work.  Just like the Lake, we look forward to going to the beach with our family when we can see Harper and the boys enjoy it more.  It was sooo good to get out and visit family, though, and I am so glad we went to visit!

Thank you ALL so much for your help and hospitality! We hope we weren't too much trouble!  We had lots of fun and look forward to coming back!

Love!