Nana came, this morning, and took Max to the playground so I could get some things done around the house and he could get some fresh air. He was so excited to see her! Here are a couple of pictures as they are leaving...
Deciding who should drive
One of my favorites!
You'll rarely hear me say this, but sometimes it's good to give in to your child's pleadings. A couple of weeks ago, while Max and I were taking a walk to get the mail, he begged me to go to the pool. He saw a little girl and wanted to go say hello. She was with her parents and we quickly struck up a conversation. Mike and Olya were so nice and so easy to talk to. I found out that they had just moved here from Greenville, because Mike was transferred. Olya is staying at home with her almost 2 year old daughter, Megan, and is pregnant with a second daughter, due in November. While we were talking, Max and Megan played together, and when it was time to go Max started crying. Megan was sweet enough to hold his hand and walk him out. It was such a sweet gesture!
Olya and I decided to set up a playdate for Max and Megan. They had lots of fun playing together today...maybe a little too much! Here are some pictures from their time together...
Megan brought Max a balloon...so sweet!
So cute!
Drawing together
Smiling at Olya
Taking a walk together
First kiss!? The funniest thing is that when I showed him this picture, he started making kissy lips and started laughing!
Well, we're getting closer to meeting Babytwo, every day! Monday, of this week, he was considered full-term, although I don't think he's ready to make his debut yet. I officially can't see the scale anymore...actually, I haven't been able to for a while.
Unfortunately, my back is still causing me a lot of pain, and despite modifying the way I do things with Max, lifting him is unavoidable in some situations. I'm really hoping that once the baby is born, that my back will instantly feel better, but I'm not sure it will.
I have tons of contractions every day. Some are very intense and Thursday I had crampy contractions all day. I was starting thinking it was the beginning of labor. I had that type of contraction for about a week before I had Max. When I put Max down that night, however, and took a hot shower, they went away.
This week my mom was a Godsend! She helped me run errands 2 days and we knocked out the to-do list! Max was such a good sport, too! It is such a relief to have the errands done! I feel much more prepared for Babytwo, now.
We still have some things to do around the house to prepare for him, but the most important thing on our list still remains...finding a middle name! Travis is still sticking with his favorite, Titus, and I keep looking...hoping to find the perfect one that we both love. We are running out of time, though...
Travis and I have been searching for the perfect take home outfit for Babytwo. We finally found one! It's the same brand as Max's but it's a transportation theme like his room. It has helicopters, cars and airplanes.
My appointment was very routine this week. My blood pressure is still good. I spoke with Sherry about a couple of things I would like to do differently this time around, if possible. I told her that I didn't feel ready to push, when I was told to, and that I would like to wait for the urge, if it's safe, this time. I also said that the water level in the tub was too high for me to feel like I had leverage to push. She told me there is actually a built in tub, in L/D Room 1 that has more back support. The only issue would be that there is less room for people to be around me. I think we will ask if it's available, when I'm admitted, and if it is, I'll see what it looks like. I'd really love to be able to do a full water birth this time, if possible. I also gave her a copy of my birth plan to review..
Travis has been working long hours with his current contract. Most nights he doesn't get home until 9pm but one night, he didn't get home until midnight. It's hard on all of us...and some days Max doesn't see him at all. I am so proud of him though, and appreciate how hard he works for our family. He's been able to make some good overtime and even won a little contest yesterday for most test cases executed. He won 50 points, the equivalent of $50.
Max turned 17 months old today, and he is growing and changing so fast! He's come so far from the breastfeeding 9 month old he was when I found out I was pregnant. The thought of having another baby was overwhelming at that point, but as time has passed, he has become so much more mature. I think he's going to be a great big brother and Mama's helper.
Here is a video from our trip to find a gift from him to his baby brother. He found a doll that Nana said was his baby brother. Pretty funny...as long as he doesn't do this to his brother for real!
Here are some pictures I took with my phone from the past two weeks...
We are excited to see what the next few weeks brings! Life is about to get a lot more exciting and exhausting. We feel very blessed, though, and can't wait to be a complete family of 4!
Today we visited Burt's Pumpkin Farm. This is our second year going...a fun Minton Family tradition! This year we decided to go much earlier than we did last year...partly because of my due date and partly due to the nice weather this weekend. We had considered going in November, after Babytwo is born, but decided that was a bit too ambitious.
Last year, Max was 6 months old on the dot, and it was our 6th anniversary...
He's changed and grown so much since then...and it was a lot harder to keep up with him this year! He had so much fun climbing on the pumpkins (which is against the rules) and running everywhere. He loved the hayride...so much so, that he tried to get on a second time when the started loading up again.
It was also more of a challenge for me this year...almost 9 months pregnant and limping around with a hurt back. Travis didn't think we should go, but I desperately wanted to keep the tradition up, and didn't see us going any closer to my due date. I'm glad we did! We had a great time! Here are our pictures from today...
On our way! Max with his new big boy Scout doggie
Managed to stay awake until we were about 15 minutes from Burt's
Our little drummer boy
Escaping from his pumpkin corral
So many pumpkins to see!
Running to Mommy
Running past Mommy
Daddy and Max
Max and Mommy (He looks like he's up to something)
Our little family...soon to be expanding!
Max driving the tractor all by himself...Daddy was close by
Max and Daddy
Love his little toe head and ears from the back
Showing the rock, he found, to someone
He hung on to that rock until we were in the car on our way home
His first reaction to the tractor starting up
He was excited when we started moving
Our family September 2011
Although Babytwo is technically in this picture, he can't be enjoying his cramped quarters as much as we are enjoying this hayride. We are looking forward to our trip to Burt's next year, when he's 1 and Max is 2 1/2! They are going to have so much fun running through the pumpkins together! I hope they run in the same direction so I can get photos of both of them!
