Party of 6 please!!: Blogging Slacker

Yes, I have been slacking on the blogging...but in my defense...well...I got nothin'. I'm just a slacker. However, I do have a baby coming in just 10 days - less than that if you count by hours! This morning has consisted of cleaning up the old car seat, swing, baby bath, etc...all that lovely baby stuff that is all HUGE and takes up most of my new living room. I'm getting close to being ready for the baby to be here - now I'm mostly just getting nervous for the c-section. You kind of forget about all the little things that go along with major surgery - similar to natural child birth I suppose - (or do you not forget those contractions??) I don't know how the recovery is going to work with having two kids...hopefully I recover quickly like I did with the first two. Shawn's parents will be here while I'm in the hospital, then my mom is taking a week off to stay with me and then Shawn's parents are coming back for the next week. I'm sure Austin and Ashlyn will be sweet little angels the whole time! Ha!!

I thought you might enjoy hearing our weekly routine before it gets all changed around with Baby T3...

Monday - playgroup day! This is always the day we have playgroup with SGC - every Monday we go to some one's house and play all morning. Always a good time!

Tuesday - Scripture study day - we go up to church where Ashlyn and Austin go play with their friends and mommy gets to go to a scripture study class for 2 hours - it's a wonderful break for me, the kids have a great time playing, and I even get to enrich my spiritual life at the same time. I always walk away feeling refreshed and happy.

Wednesday - Mom's Time Out!!! This is my favorite day of the week (well, every 3rd week it's not...) Three of my friends, Callie, Kim and Emily and I have formed an MTO. Each week someone watches all the kids while the other moms get the day off. It's 7 kids to watch, but they are actually really good - we always have a great time and makes for some hard naps in the afternoon. And if you are having a rough day when it's your day to watch all the kids all you have to tell yourself is, "I get the next two weeks off!!" Yup, Love Wednesdays!!

Thursday - Every other Thursday I have MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers). This is a great group of moms. We always have brunch and then have some sort of speaker or activity that helps us learn to be better moms and gives us some time to relax and rejuvenate. The kids always have a blast here too - the people who watch the kids are so great.

Friday - You never know what Friday will bring...could be Target, Walmart, Groceries, stay at home and watch a movie day...or go play at the park if it would ever warm up so the snow would melt!!

And that's a typical week here for me...Oh wait - left out a few things...I change diapers a million times, clean the house every day, do laundry, work for the textbook company, cook dinner every night (well, except for the nights we eat at my parents), hang out with my wonderful hubbie (who by the way got me TWO DOZEN roses for V-day :) and every once in a while I even shower!! I just love being a mom - wouldn't change it for the world - except last week when Austin took his diaper off two days in a row and pooped all over his room. Why won't he leave his clothes on???

We have been faithfully watching our favorite TV show 24 - actually it's the only one we watch besides K-State basketball. Every Monday night mom and dad come over and we have dinner and then wait for the show to come on. (mom and I have to nap after dinner so we can stay awake for the whole episode). We have a pretty complex way of watching it though - since the kids don't go to bed until around 8 we have to have 2 VCRs set up to tape it - that way once everyone is happy and in bed we can stop one VCR and watch it, then when it ends we watch the other tape - we like to call it the "poor man's DVR". Pretty clever huh? If you don't watch that show I highly suggest you do - quite a thriller!!

Austin is still having trouble keeping his clothes on - loves to strip naked at night...other than that he is doing great and has been telling me lately to "take that baby out mom". I guess he's ready to be a big brother again!!

Ashlyn is doing great too - finally starting to talk - has the most ornery smile in the world that is just irresistible (especially to her daddy). She is an awesome sleeper - sleeps through the night like a champ (I'm sure I just jinxed myself) and takes a great afternoon nap. She loves to play with Austin - their latest playtime even that they enjoy is wrestling - you'd be surprised! Even though Austin weighs 40 pounds and Ashlyn weighs 20, she wins every time!! That's my girl!!

I'll leave you with some pics...and keep checking back for some baby pics soon!! (c-section is Feb 28 at 9:30am!!)

Here's Austin having a Popsicle that Papa Settle brought him when it was snowing outside...perfect treat for a below-zero day!! He insisted he needed his sunglasses to eat it...

And here's my belly at 37 weeks - the baby has definitely dropped which is extremely uncomfortable - and yes, that thing that looks like a big button is my belly button - it seems to have popped!