I am so excited about my Florida baby shower that's coming on SUNDAY!
By the way, if you didn't get an invitation, please let me know and don't be offended. I am a really super crazy insane forgetful person lately. And maybe Alicia just made a huge mistake and forgot to send you one! I'd love to see as many people as possible.
I love parties, especially when I'm the center of attention. I know that makes me sound really selfish. But it just makes me feel loved when others gather around for some life event of mine.
I'll never forget my favorite birthday. When I turned 21, my housemates at Muskingum College had a surprise party for me. I kind of caught on and knew something was happening, but I was SHOCKED when I saw how many people were there. That definitely made me feel special.
I really don't like surprises, though. So no one throw me any surprise parties. Besides, nothing will ever compare to that night. Thanks Kendra, Veronica, Kari, Crystal and Lindsay!
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
Summer Fun
This is me 33 weeks pregnant with only about 7 weeks to go! Not too bad, I'd say.
This is the pool!
Tracing Will's face with a wipe-off marker on the shower door. Such laughs.
The clubhouse I put nails in the wall to make happen.
John and I played Connect 4 with Maddie for an hour. She won twice. She's quite determined.
Monday, July 28, 2008
New links!
I added some new links! Now you can check out some of my friends' blogs. Many of my friends have stopped blogging, but here are a few for now. If you want to be removed or added, let me know :)
Nesting.
I've heard the word plenty of times, especially recently. When asked about the state of our baby's nursery, I've been replying, for the past seven months, "I've done nothing with it!" And this is still the case. We're in the final weeks and I am not, definitely not ready for a baby to live here.
John was a little more on the ball than me, and has constructed the crib. I went through and sorted her clothes, removed all the tags, laundered them, and folded them. But only because I had to. I didn't have a job or anything else to do.
Women keep saying, "Wait until the last month and you'll go into the nesting phase!" And her husband nods to John with wide eyes of warning that would send shivers down most soon-to-be fathers' spines.
Well, Saturday I woke up at 6:15 am, alert and enthusiastic, ready to decorate the baby's room. I did some research online, drew up a plan, figured out what colors we need, and I am ready to go. I even got John to go thrift shopping with me, since I can't do much with any of the clothes, toys and blankets we've received when all we have in the nursery is a bed and I'm a little bit freaking out about not having a rocking chair. Where will I put the rocking chair anyway? Everything seems more complicated with a two-story house.
I just found out that next week I will not be babysitting. So I think it will definitely be painting week. PLUS my Florida baby shower is this weekend and that means I'll have more fun stuff to go through. I'm so excited.
John was a little more on the ball than me, and has constructed the crib. I went through and sorted her clothes, removed all the tags, laundered them, and folded them. But only because I had to. I didn't have a job or anything else to do.
Women keep saying, "Wait until the last month and you'll go into the nesting phase!" And her husband nods to John with wide eyes of warning that would send shivers down most soon-to-be fathers' spines.
Well, Saturday I woke up at 6:15 am, alert and enthusiastic, ready to decorate the baby's room. I did some research online, drew up a plan, figured out what colors we need, and I am ready to go. I even got John to go thrift shopping with me, since I can't do much with any of the clothes, toys and blankets we've received when all we have in the nursery is a bed and I'm a little bit freaking out about not having a rocking chair. Where will I put the rocking chair anyway? Everything seems more complicated with a two-story house.
I just found out that next week I will not be babysitting. So I think it will definitely be painting week. PLUS my Florida baby shower is this weekend and that means I'll have more fun stuff to go through. I'm so excited.
Friday, July 25, 2008
Happy Birthday
Yesterday was John's birthday. It went by hardly recognized because we've been so busy this week. Instead of going out for a special dinner and such, John chose to go to our Childbirth Education class.
My husband is the most godly, the most amazing man I have ever known or ever could have dreamed. I take the time to lift him up today because he doesn't nearly receive the recognition he deserves. He doesn't preach in front of crowds every Sunday, but his knowledge of the Bible and dedication to reading God's Word exceeds most others'. He doesn't write books, but his thoughts and interests are as complex as the several books he's read in the last year about swimming, running, history, theology...
John wakes up very early to be sure he can get in plenty of work hours to support our family. He'll do little things around the house like start the dishwasher even though it's five thirty and most of us would be brain dead at that time. And he never forgets to kiss me goodbye and say he loves me.
John is a leader of quiet strength who teaches me and holds me accountable but has almost never hurt my feelings or made me feel inadequate. And trust me, I am very susceptible to those feelings. I call him when I'm lost on my way to the mall and he doesn't laugh at my idiocy, despite that I have been there dozens of times.
After a long day at work, he will come home and run anywhere between 5 and 10 miles. Then he will help make dinner or sometimes make the entire thing.
John knows and remembers every little thing about me, like that I don't like to be frightened. So he'll make sure I know he is home and he won't jump out from any corners or try to come up behind me unexpectedly. This seems silly, but it means so much to me, to feel safe in my own home.
He doesn't torment me with disgusting guy things, like putting his armpits in my face (I hate armpits) and the other nasty things a lot of men do. Use your imagination for that one.
John truly loves me as Christ loves the church (see Ephesians 5:25-33) and I feel he gives himself up for me daily, loving me as he loves his own body and making me feel radiant.
Though John's discipline, strength, and his love for me isn't near the depth of Christ's, these qualities in John have been a concrete model of Christ in my life and His love for me. Because I am so overwhelmed by the grace God has shown me by giving me such an incredible lifelong best friend, I am better able to understand the unsurpassing love of Christ. I thank John for teaching me that, not with his words, but with every action he takes.
John, you are a blessing to me, an example of Christ and the grace of God, because I know I've done nothing to deserve this life. I truly thank God for you every day.
My husband is the most godly, the most amazing man I have ever known or ever could have dreamed. I take the time to lift him up today because he doesn't nearly receive the recognition he deserves. He doesn't preach in front of crowds every Sunday, but his knowledge of the Bible and dedication to reading God's Word exceeds most others'. He doesn't write books, but his thoughts and interests are as complex as the several books he's read in the last year about swimming, running, history, theology...
John wakes up very early to be sure he can get in plenty of work hours to support our family. He'll do little things around the house like start the dishwasher even though it's five thirty and most of us would be brain dead at that time. And he never forgets to kiss me goodbye and say he loves me.
John is a leader of quiet strength who teaches me and holds me accountable but has almost never hurt my feelings or made me feel inadequate. And trust me, I am very susceptible to those feelings. I call him when I'm lost on my way to the mall and he doesn't laugh at my idiocy, despite that I have been there dozens of times.
After a long day at work, he will come home and run anywhere between 5 and 10 miles. Then he will help make dinner or sometimes make the entire thing.
John knows and remembers every little thing about me, like that I don't like to be frightened. So he'll make sure I know he is home and he won't jump out from any corners or try to come up behind me unexpectedly. This seems silly, but it means so much to me, to feel safe in my own home.
He doesn't torment me with disgusting guy things, like putting his armpits in my face (I hate armpits) and the other nasty things a lot of men do. Use your imagination for that one.
John truly loves me as Christ loves the church (see Ephesians 5:25-33) and I feel he gives himself up for me daily, loving me as he loves his own body and making me feel radiant.
Though John's discipline, strength, and his love for me isn't near the depth of Christ's, these qualities in John have been a concrete model of Christ in my life and His love for me. Because I am so overwhelmed by the grace God has shown me by giving me such an incredible lifelong best friend, I am better able to understand the unsurpassing love of Christ. I thank John for teaching me that, not with his words, but with every action he takes.
John, you are a blessing to me, an example of Christ and the grace of God, because I know I've done nothing to deserve this life. I truly thank God for you every day.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Lessons Learned
This may not interest most of you, but I know some of you haven't had the pleasure of being pregnant yet but would like to be someday. So this is partly for you. It's also to remind me of how to do things better next time.
BEFORE getting pregnant...
I am going to do squats with two fifteen pound dumbells at least three times per week.
I am going to strengthen my back.
I am going to save money to visit the chiropractor more often.
I am going to become a great swimmer so that I can actually swim while I am pregnant, not just do strange exercises in the water that probably aren't doing anything. The pool is the ONLY place I feel absolutely comfortable. So this would be a great way to stay fit.
Everyone says "You need to walk while you're pregnant!" Walking is like slow and steady torture. Not only is it boring, hot and--boring, it hurts absolutely every single inch of my body. So I mostly just work out in the pool and do various Pilates kinds of things. And if you have anything to say about it, you can...
...sorry, pregnancy hormones must be surging right now.
:)
BEFORE getting pregnant...
I am going to do squats with two fifteen pound dumbells at least three times per week.
I am going to strengthen my back.
I am going to save money to visit the chiropractor more often.
I am going to become a great swimmer so that I can actually swim while I am pregnant, not just do strange exercises in the water that probably aren't doing anything. The pool is the ONLY place I feel absolutely comfortable. So this would be a great way to stay fit.
Everyone says "You need to walk while you're pregnant!" Walking is like slow and steady torture. Not only is it boring, hot and--boring, it hurts absolutely every single inch of my body. So I mostly just work out in the pool and do various Pilates kinds of things. And if you have anything to say about it, you can...
...sorry, pregnancy hormones must be surging right now.
:)
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Summertime...
When I was little, my mom would pack ham and cheese sandwiches on white bread, some fruit (usually watermelon, plumbs or peaches), little Hugs drinks and soda, and we would go swimming all day at a place like Caskey's, which was a pond where little guppies swam near the shore.
I tried to recreate this wonderful memory a little bit by buying ham and cheese this week, along with some peaches and watermelon. But this never quite works for us because we get ham that has no preservatives and Publix doesn't cut it like Beuhler's does and the bread is always wheat and I never use mayonnaise anymore. The watermelon here never has any seeds and therefore is NOT the watermelon I grew up with and does not taste nearly as juicy and scrumptious. And I certainly don't drink little Hugs or soda. AND I definitely don't go swimming around in ponds in southwest Florida for obvious reasons. And I don't have a cute little cooler to carry everything in, either.
I can't even walk in the grass in my sandals, much less bare feet because of fire ants, prickly grass, and weird pesticides.
So I guess I'm a little homesick because summer in this place doesn't feel quite right. I don't want my baby to experience summer this way.
I tried to recreate this wonderful memory a little bit by buying ham and cheese this week, along with some peaches and watermelon. But this never quite works for us because we get ham that has no preservatives and Publix doesn't cut it like Beuhler's does and the bread is always wheat and I never use mayonnaise anymore. The watermelon here never has any seeds and therefore is NOT the watermelon I grew up with and does not taste nearly as juicy and scrumptious. And I certainly don't drink little Hugs or soda. AND I definitely don't go swimming around in ponds in southwest Florida for obvious reasons. And I don't have a cute little cooler to carry everything in, either.
I can't even walk in the grass in my sandals, much less bare feet because of fire ants, prickly grass, and weird pesticides.
So I guess I'm a little homesick because summer in this place doesn't feel quite right. I don't want my baby to experience summer this way.
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Crying
I had a crying episode today. Don't worry, everything is fine. I'll probably write about it tomorrow. If I write about it right now, I might cry again.
But it made me think of how easy it used to be to cry. We cry when we're little, and then we're done. Now I cry and my face gets horribly splotchy, my eyes swell up, my nasal passages become incredibly congested, I get a headache, and when the whole episode is over I have to wash my face and apply makeup to restore some sense of decency in myself. Crying has led to this whole embarassing, uncomfortable fiasco. So I try to do whatever I can NOT to cry (for instance, NOT seeing P.S. I Love You would have been a great idea).
The little girl I babysit cried today, too. But she managed to stay lovely and beautiful as she cried, like a little princess. Then she stopped and everything was fine. No stuffy nose, no headache, nothing.
Why does this happen to us as adults? What is the purpose?
But it made me think of how easy it used to be to cry. We cry when we're little, and then we're done. Now I cry and my face gets horribly splotchy, my eyes swell up, my nasal passages become incredibly congested, I get a headache, and when the whole episode is over I have to wash my face and apply makeup to restore some sense of decency in myself. Crying has led to this whole embarassing, uncomfortable fiasco. So I try to do whatever I can NOT to cry (for instance, NOT seeing P.S. I Love You would have been a great idea).
The little girl I babysit cried today, too. But she managed to stay lovely and beautiful as she cried, like a little princess. Then she stopped and everything was fine. No stuffy nose, no headache, nothing.
Why does this happen to us as adults? What is the purpose?
Saturday, July 12, 2008
What a relief.
I officially have the soon-to-be mom jitters. One of the things that jitters me most is the temperature of our house, especially at night. John and I both get very hot during the night, so we keep our house between 71 and 72 from 8:30 pm-7 am. I have been worried that this would be too cold for a baby because of what other people tell me. But all the while I'm thinking about people up north who I know do not keep their houses at 75 degrees all winter. That would be insane. Also, I am absolutely positive that if we were to keep the temperature at 75, I would NOT sleep well. I would not get used to it, either.
So being the internet person that I am, I did some research of my own. I looked at FIVE good websites and this is basically what they all said:
"Baby sleeps best when the temperature is consistent and cool. 'Most moms actually keep the nursery too warm,” says Ryan. Try to keep the room temperature between 68 and 72 degrees. Putting your crib in the right spot is also essential. “Pick a location that isn’t in the direct pathway of your air conditioning or heating vents,” says Herman. Sudden temperature changes will startle and disturb baby. Also, keep the crib away from windows to protect baby from drafts and outside noise."
So there! I was right and, to all the rest of the people telling me otherwise: you were wrong!
So being the internet person that I am, I did some research of my own. I looked at FIVE good websites and this is basically what they all said:
"Baby sleeps best when the temperature is consistent and cool. 'Most moms actually keep the nursery too warm,” says Ryan. Try to keep the room temperature between 68 and 72 degrees. Putting your crib in the right spot is also essential. “Pick a location that isn’t in the direct pathway of your air conditioning or heating vents,” says Herman. Sudden temperature changes will startle and disturb baby. Also, keep the crib away from windows to protect baby from drafts and outside noise."
So there! I was right and, to all the rest of the people telling me otherwise: you were wrong!
Friday, July 11, 2008
I can't wait to hold you, baby.
Today is July the 11th and we are about two months away from meeting our baby girl face to face. She is having a great time making herself known right now, though, by poking out her little body parts like a poltergeist. It's incredible to feel where her head is, and then think, "Oh, that's definitely an elbow," or an arm, a leg, a foot.
In the childbirth class, we are learning about pain management. One of the most interesting things Phyllis, the teacher of the class, said, is that we'll probably be in labor how we are when we are sick. So this is me when I am sick, all in a very whiny voice:
"Leave me alone!"
"Can you get me some water?"
"I want my mommy."
"Will you rub my head/back?"
So John definitely has a lot to look forward to.
We also found out that John is allowed to actually "catch" the baby, which he may or may not decide to do. But I think that would be an amazing story to tell.
In the childbirth class, we are learning about pain management. One of the most interesting things Phyllis, the teacher of the class, said, is that we'll probably be in labor how we are when we are sick. So this is me when I am sick, all in a very whiny voice:
"Leave me alone!"
"Can you get me some water?"
"I want my mommy."
"Will you rub my head/back?"
So John definitely has a lot to look forward to.
We also found out that John is allowed to actually "catch" the baby, which he may or may not decide to do. But I think that would be an amazing story to tell.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Disturbed
I am so angry and disgusted right now.
It is really disturbing and heartbreaking to see teenagers' myspaces with borderline or actual pornographic images or language on them. Especially when I remember those teenagers being 3 years old.
If my 12-18 year old daughter was posting things making light of disgusting sexual encounters, she would be off the computer for life. But you know, there will be other consequences for their choices if their parents don't provide consequences for them. And there will be consequences for the parents, too.
It is really disturbing and heartbreaking to see teenagers' myspaces with borderline or actual pornographic images or language on them. Especially when I remember those teenagers being 3 years old.
If my 12-18 year old daughter was posting things making light of disgusting sexual encounters, she would be off the computer for life. But you know, there will be other consequences for their choices if their parents don't provide consequences for them. And there will be consequences for the parents, too.
Tuesday, July 08, 2008
Adventures in Babysitting
Day two of my adventures in babysitting is over, and I must admit it's a pretty easy job. If I can do this instead of teaching, I would be a happy camper. Yesterday we stayed at our house all day besides a trip to the neighborhood swimming pool. That caused some stir-craziness and the kids really started to get on each other's nerves. But today we went to a free movie at the theater, the library, and the ice cream shop and things went much more smoothly.
If I were a stay at home mom...
I know that babysitting for 10 hours each day isn't like being a stay at home mom, but from this experience I can predict some obvious things that would be benefits and drawbacks. I'm thinking the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks.
One big thing that I wasn't looking forward to was the extra mess and my house looking like a day care, but I have found it remarkably easy to keep things clean. Now this has a lot to do with the kids being older, but even so I think I could keep the house fairly clean. While I was teaching, however, not so much. If I went back to teaching with a baby or with any aged child, I can promise you our house would be a disaster Tuesday through Saturday.
Now about having my ideal four children...
I can not believe how much these siblings fight. It really drives me nuts. I am trying to teach them how to communicate a little better and work out their own problems instead of tattle taling, screaming and retaliating. Ha! If I had to deal with all the fighting during all the waking hours for at least a few years of my life, I would absolutely lose my mind.
I'm thinking if we have four children, they will be spaced apart a bit more. And definitely not three. The same little girl always gets left out.
Saturday, July 05, 2008
4th of July
This Florida 4th of July actually turned out to be a nice one. I wish I had taken more pictures. Sorry about that. My camera doesn't take night pictures very well, and I forgot to take them while it was still light. On Thursday, we went to an outlet mall where they had food, a waterski show, and fireworks. We met our friend Bethany and her two kids there, Jaxon (3) and Jovie (about 3 months old). So here you see me and Jaxon, both with uncertain looks on our faces.
On Friday, we went to a friend's house, who lives near the Naples Pier, on a canal. So here you see a very fuzzy picture I tried to take of the hotel across the canal. I'm sure that though the picture isn't great, you can imagine how beautiful it was with fireworks.
Thank you Alicia and Bethany for entertaining us!
Wednesday, July 02, 2008
Pleasure Me Pink
Next week is Pig Week in the Erdman house! It's a great way to kick off my little summer day care for three kids, all siblings. You wouldn't believe how excited I was to get on the computer and make plans for the week and a menu. It probably isn't normal. It's probably pretty scary. And that's why I am going to tell you about it.
We're going to make pigs in blankets and read the books Pigsty and If You Give a Pig a Pancake. We're going to re-enact the Three Little Pigs in a silly version and we're going to make Three Little Pigs houses out of straws, pretzel sticks, and blocks.
I think I'll just die of pleasure.
We're going to make pigs in blankets and read the books Pigsty and If You Give a Pig a Pancake. We're going to re-enact the Three Little Pigs in a silly version and we're going to make Three Little Pigs houses out of straws, pretzel sticks, and blocks.
I think I'll just die of pleasure.
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