My Rasberry-Baby Shank 8 Weeks

Baby Shank @ 8 Weeks

Baby Shank is doing great. Kale and I went to our first "baby" appointment yesterday together. What a great experience for the both of us. I was overjoyed that Kale was able to take off work and be with me all day. We went to our appointment, went out to lunch, and browsed baby furniture for fun. It was a great day for both of us.

Mommy Update:

I am 8 weeks and 2 days pregnant

Weight : I have gained 3 pounds

Maternity Clothes: My jeans are tight around the waist and very uncomfortable. I am leaning more towards bloating than the weight gain or baby 

I have the feeling that shopping for the next size up is seriously right around the corner. I am feeling a little uncomfortable in everyday jeans. I have a pair that are loose and comfy but they are my "house" jeans I do not wear out. This is going to be interesting being my 3rd pregnancy.

Sleep: I am sleeping like a baby now with the occasional get up and pee in the middle of the night. Up until 4 days ago I was tossing, turning, and just couldn't sleep.

My favorite moment:  was spending the day with Kale. He held my hand throughout the day and I am really enjoying growing closer to him through this experience.

I really miss: being tan. I was a tanner before I got pregnant. I am now pasty pale white which is so much healthier than fake baking. I guess I have grown to love myself either way.

I also miss: running and working out the way I am used to. Now I have to monitor my heart rate and not get too hasty trying to be fit. I think I have come to the realization that I would rather gain a few extra pounds than to put baby at risk.

What I don't miss: is smoking. I was a smoker for a long long time. I knew eventually Kale and I would decide to have a baby together. I finally was able to quit actually before we conceived baby. I am very thankful that I didn't have to quit while pregnant. Knowing the effects it would have on baby. I feel healthier and my pregnancy will be healthier as well.

Our milestone: together ( Kale and I) was seeing Baby Shank for the first time. We also got to see and hear his heart beating. What an amazing feeling to see your unborn child so small and tiny but so alive.

Baby Shank Update:

Baby Shank is doing great

We got to see baby's tiny little body on sonogram and it was amazing

Baby is growing normally and is the size of a rasberry

Baby's heart rate was at 178 bpm.

The nurse said that my pregnancy is healthy and baby is growing and looking good.

Daddy Update:

Kale continues to be there for me everyday. He checks on me constantly asking me how I feel and how my day is.

He keeps calling baby a she still. I think a she is in our hopes. We don't care if it's a boy or girl as long as baby is healthy.

He sat with me in the sonogram room and when baby first popped up on the screen I could see the joy in Kale's eyes. When we heard the heart beating he did get teary eyed. I knew he would. No tears but they wanted to come. 

He is doing more than ever around the house to help me out. He did laundry a few days and he continues to make me a very happy wife.

His first buy for baby was Saturday. I told him earlier that morning that we would need pamper swaddlers, I didn't exactly expect him to purchase them. I was seeing how good he would be at purchasing the "right" item. He bought them and did great!! 

Our First Baby Buy

We will probably be making a priority list for baby here in the next month or so. We have saved baby money already which I am so thankful for. It helps when you have the financial part of this plan down pat. It will be exciting to go shopping with Kale when we find out the gender. We did some browsing yesterday and saw a lot that we loved. We are still waiting for a call back on the Pottery Barn Wall Unit that we want to have custom built for the baby's room. If the price is too much we will settle for other furniture of course.

I am totally planning on buying a Chiefs outfit for Baby Shank. I thought how adorable would he/she be in Kale's favorite team outfit.

Our next sonogram is scheduled when Baby Shank is @ 18 weeks. Then we get to find out the gender. I have a while to just be healthy and enjoy this pregancy. My baby bump is slowly coming. It's not noticable to anyone but me yet. But each morning I wake up I can feel the tiny little ball right above my cesarian scar. It's a wonderful experience all together and having such a loving husband by my side throughout this entire pregnancy is the Best part of all.



Easter Sunday @ The Shanks

Happy Easter!!

We had a great Easter this year with the boys! We had a lot of fun filled projects, lots of candy, and special treats for the boys.

My 64 cent Easter Basket! I used a box I purchased at Walmart for 64 cents. The rest of the items such as the glue, construction paper, marker, and staples I already had at home. What a neat but inexpensive do-it-yourself. I needed something big enough to fit all the surprises in as well. This was the perfect basket. It was fun to make and so easy. I just had to bring out my creative side.

The boys enjoyed getting a little something extra for Easter this year. Instead of the usual "just candy", we decided to buy them something they would enjoy after the candy was gone.

Colten was in need of a bigger baseball glove. So we purchased him a new 12.5" baseball glove for his baseball season. It fits him perfect and will allow him to catch more baseballs than his other glove would.

Tyler is in love with Toy Story's Woody (the cowboy). We always hear him playing in his bedroom reciting the movie as an actor. I found a belt with two gun holsters and pistols. It closely resembles the one the "Woody" has from Toy Story. Tyler loves his new Guns.

We also made Easter Egg Pizza and Easter Bunny Cupcakes Courtesy of FamilyFun.com

The goal was to make pizza the shape of an Egg and decorate it the way you would if it were an Easter Egg.

Kale's

Colten's

Sharin's

Tyler's

These Pizzas were actually very good. The crust was made from buttermilk biscuit dough. Then we just chose our own toppings and decorated our Pizza. Good Eats!

Recipe found here.

For Desert:

We created Easter Bunny Cupcakes. This was a ton of fun. The kids decorated their own bunnies. Then we ate them. The coconut made the bunnies look really fluffy. Not everyone likes coconut so Kale ate a plain confetti cupcake with cream cheese frosting.

Sharin's Bunny

Tyler's Bunny

Colten's Bunny

These bunny cupcakes were delicious.

Full Recipe found here.

Peanut Butter Lovers

Home Made Peanut Butter Cups

I had originally found a recipe for homemade peanut butter cups. I couldn't find it on the internet when I went to make them. So I created my own recipe:

12 tablespoons of peanut butter

1/4 cup powdered sugar

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Paper Baking Cups

I mixed the peanut butter and powdered sugar together

Melted the chocolate chips

Set the baking cups on plate and coated the bottoms with melted chocolate

Put in Freezer to harden

Put about 1 tablespoons peanut butter on top of hardened chocolate

then covered the peanut butter with chocolate and put back in freezer to harden.

YUM!!

Easter was a lot of fun this year. The boys are at the age where doing projects like these are easy for them. They both love to help me cook, so creating their own pizza and cupcakes were a lot of fun for both of them. Colten slipped his baseball glove on several times throughout the day. Tyler had daddy help him with his guns ( we forgot to purchase the caps that go with). I am glad we didn't now. I think we would have developed a headache from listening to them pop.

Well, Happy Easter!!

GO TEAM TULEY

Colten's First Babseball Game was great. I am so proud of him. Kale couldn't be there because he was working but I video taped it for him to watch when he gets the chance.

My little player getting ready for his first game!!

Colten scores his first point of the season

This is What I love about Sundays

Well, I was a very sick mommy this morning. I couldn't get out of bed. Kale was at work and without his help and me holding my stomach to even get around the house, we missed church. I managed to talk the kids into watching a movie in my bed with me for about 2 hours this morning. When we finally made it out of bed to eat some lunch, I found out that I wouldn't be joining them. Yuk! I just couldn't eat yet.

 We then went back to my bed, laid down, and watched August Rush. Then the boys got very restless. I had to smack myself in the face to get it together. We went downstairs and I was able to put a little something in my stomach. We got dressed and I took the kids to the park.

I basically sat there just watching them play their little hearts out for hours. I really missed chasing them around or playing tag. 

 When we went to leave and these 3 kids caught a HUGE catfish. I mean it was HUGE. The boys got all crazy about the fish and begged me to take them fishing.I thought to myself, it's either listening to them complain and torture each other or go fishing.

 So we went home, grabbed up our poles, and went fishing. It was frustrating. Both kids had some major issues casting the reels which I knew but forgot. They also couldn’t bait their own hooks which I knew but forgot. They also got their lines caught in trees, branches, logs, and everything else imaginable. As sick as I was, I had no choice but to run between the two boys every 2 seconds "FIXING" whatever it was that allowed them to fish for another 5 seconds.

 I know that they had a lot of fun but for such a sick mommy to be all I can say is WHAT A DAY!!!! I really know how much I need Kale after a day like this!



Here's our boys with a smile on their faces though:

Hope this post doesn't make it look like I'm complaining about being a parent..:) I am simply getting my butt kicked without Kale!! This pregnancy is completely different from my other two. It's probably another boy but it's still different. I'm sicker than a dog and can't wait to get past this phase in pregnancy! But I love being pregnant. It doesn't make any sense does it?

My Sweet Little Boy

TO

MOMMY

LOVE

TYLER

When I went to pick up Tyler from school yesterday, he was running around playing with his little friends. He also had a bunch of flowers in his hands. When I walked out to the playground he ran up to me telling me "Mommy, I love you". He presented the flowers to me he had picked from the field. I thought how sweet is my little one. The teacher later told me that he picked the flowers for his mommy then played for about half an hour holding onto the flowers. What a sweetheart he is!!

My Newest Love

Well, for about a year, I have been eagerly wishing for a new sewing machine. On my birthday and Christmas last year I hinted to Kale that I really wanted a new sewing machine. I have been wanting to make curtains for our house since we moved in. Tyler's room could use some new fabric decor along with his remodel. I thought a sewing machine would be great right now. I have some experience when it comes to sewing but not much so this should be interesting.

About a month ago, Kale and I split the cost of my new sewing machine. I was so excited.

I haven't used it yet. We spent what we had set aside for the sewing machine and I couldn't buy the things to go with it. So, a little surprise from my mom came in really handy...

I just got this in the mail..Its got basically everything I need to get started with my sewing adventures! I call them adventures because the only things I have sewn in the past are:

1. Boxers in some sewing class in high school
2. Curtains for my bedroom
3. Made a summer dress once for myself
4. A blanket

I believe that's about it. So this should be fun and interesting...

I am hoping that before the baby comes along, I can sew well enough to make the babies crib bumper, sheet, and blanket. I found some adorable (girl) and adorable (boy) fabric at JoAnn Fabrics. I can't wait!

Our Other Little Baseball Player!!

Tyler is also playing baseball this season. We are so happy to see both of our boys doing something they both seem to enjoy...Here's our little player in action:

Eye on The Ball

Swing...and miss

Swing!! and miss

"Elbow up, eye on the ball little man"

I see you mommy!

And he hits and it's good...run to first base RUN

He made it to second base! Go Tyler

Tired and Hungry!

Mommy Update:

Well, I have had this crazy obsession for BLT sandwiches lately. I have made myself at least 6 over this last week. I have never in my life eaten this many BLT's before. It's sort of comical. I open the fridge to make myself something to eat and voila. A BLT is my own suprise. Then I giggle a little because I just realized how many I have eaten in a week.

Just looking at this sandwich is making me want another :)

School:

I am feeling more and more tired lately. I still have yet to get sick PRAISE THE LORD!! I have found that napping during the week just won't work. I have 5 weeks left of this spring semester and need to finish up all my assignments. I have excellent grades right now and pray that I can keep them that way. I find myself doing math homework on the computer and every once in a while I will daze off into sleepy land. I keep praying for the strength I need to finish this semester. I am relying on Kale a lot right now to take over most of my wifey duties so that I can complete this semester with my desired grades.

Baby Shank:

Kale and I had a little fun last night. It's a little early but being pregnant is so much fun when it comes to picking out nursery furniture. We have a baby Shank account already but the reality of the cost of new baby has definitely kicked in. We went ahead and chose furniture for a baby girl, and then chose furniture for a baby boy. If it's a girl, I want white furniture and if it's a boy I want espresso colored furniture. I am sure when the time comes to purchase I might change my mind. But this is just for fun.

 My favorite piece of furniture which is from pottery barn kids is too tall for our upstairs ceilings. I was really bummed out last night when we discovered this. So, Kale brought up the great idea of having someone custom make it for us. Here it is:

copyright: photo is from pottery barn kids.com

It's a combo of dresser, changer, and storage. This is so ideal for our space and it's so cute!! I am really hoping when the time comes that someone can make this within the dimensions of the baby's room if we choose this piece of furniture.

We are also talking about taking a small trip to a larger city in Indiana to go browsing. We just want to get prices and dimensions for the day we find out the gender!! I am so excited. Am I moving too fast?  I am just soo thrilled.  This is such a magical little experience for Kale and I and the boys too! We have been so blessed !!