Riverfest

Okay, I'm a little behind in my blog.
These pictures are actually from two weeks ago when Lily and I enjoyed a Saturday morning at our little town festival! Despite all the years that we have lived here Joe and I have never made it to Riverfest (I guess it's just a busy time of year for us). But this weekend Joe happened to be out of town on a weekend trip for Lifelines and so I thought Lily and I would go. So I bundled her up and trekked on downtown for the parade. And yes, I walked downtown with her. Let's just say my body and my ankle were screaming at me by the end of it (but it's not too far and I figured it just wasn't worth the trouble of trying to find parking). And let me tell you, I was amazed at how many people showed up for this little town festival. At one point I looked around the parade and wondered if there are even this many people that live in my town. Apparently there are. Lily really enjoyed the parade- especially the fire trucks at the end. She was a little frustrated because the bigger kids standing next to us kept getting most of the candy thrown out during the parade (and let's just face it, I wasn't very fast at diving for it with my bad ankle and big belly). But don't worry- we managed to get her a few tootsie rolls. After the parade we headed down to the actual little festival where I watched my little girl become totally torn in two regarding her feelings towards the bouncy house. She so badly wanted to go in and jump (she LOVES to jump), but at the same time there were tons of kids in there and she was totally scared. Twice she did muster up the courage to go in- and then plastered herself against the inflatable wall until little boys ran into her, knocked her over, and she clutched for me-screaming-to lift her out. Poor thing. Such a bummer too because if there had only been a few kids in there she probably would have jumped for an hour! Maybe next year!

33 Weeks and Couting...

I've been asked by a few of you for an updated belly picture- so here it finally is! It took a while, but what can I say- there was a rough month in there involving crutches that kind of pushed everything else back!

So, here I am at 33 weeks pregnant (almost 34 weeks now)! Less than 7 weeks until our little man arrives (hopefully)!! Even though it feels like I've been pregnant forever it still seems kind of hard to believe! So, as you can clearly see I look MUCH more pregnant now. Just in the last few weeks people I don't know are asking me about the baby- so apparently there is just no hiding it anymore!:) As anticipated I've rebounded nicely from the early months of my pregnancy when I wasn't gaining any weight. Other people may have been concerned, but not me. Apparently my body just prefers to gain all the weight in the last 4 months!:) People everywhere I go continue to tell me how small I look. I'll take the compliment, but to be honest I went to the doctor yesterday and my belly is EXACTLY the size it should be at 33 weeks- the exact number they are looking for. This leads me to two conclusions: When people tell me how small I look they are either just trying to be nice (as in lying) or the way I'm carrying the baby makes me look smaller than I am. To make myself feel better I'm choosing to believe the later!
Everything with our little guy checks out great and we are both healthy. My ankle, while still a little sore, is doing considerably better. The rest of me, however, feels like it's falling apart- you know- sore back, leg cramps- all that fun pregnancy stuff. And if you look at the bags under my eyes in the picture you may have guessed that my nights of good solid sleep seem to be over. I'm pretty tired to be honest, but I know it's all worth it. So there you have it- the 33 week pregnancy update. Maybe, if you're lucky, I'll be brave enough to do one in another month or so!

Apple Of My Eye

A couple of weeks ago now we went to do some apple picking. Joe somehow had a Sunday off and we enjoyed a beautiful fall day in the orchard at Mainely Apples. And as you can see Lily was well dressed for the ocassion! In August I had a fun girls day spending the whole day outlet shopping with my friend Laura in New Hampshire. When I saw this little apple hat and shirt while we were shopping I just knew I had to have it. I can't help it- in her little apple hat Lily is just too cute for words! Anyway, she was quite the hit at the orchard! In fact, one of the workers asked me if I would send them a picture- and now Lily is front page of their website (check it out at http://www.mainelyapples.com/)!

Not only was she cute while we were picking apples, but she was actually VERY helpful. Apparently all the cold weather we had at the beginning of the summer did a number on the apples this year and Mainely Apples lost close to 75% of their crop. As a result they were pretty limited. The day we went they were only picking Macs- and let me tell you that there weren't very many to choose from. To get anything of decent size you had to be able to reach way up into the trees. This is where Lily was very handy- Joe would lift her up and she would pick the apples. Not sure how we would have done it without her! A few times though I would just hear her laughing and Joe telling her over and over again to grab the apple- apparently she thought it was funny to let her daddy hold her up there forever! With my ankle still being weak (and dangerous apples to trip on everywhere) I didn't do a whole lot of picking (I couldn't really reach them anyway)- but I had a great time watching Joe and Lily!

A week later Mainely Apples began picking Galas (one of my favorite kinds)- so Lily and I decided to head back out there all on our own! Joe said I was brave. I was determined. We went the first morning they were picking and it was wonderful! The apples were pretty small, but there were tons of them- and so low to the ground that Lily could pick them all on her own! Lily and I picked two buckets full in the same amount of time it took all 3 of us to pick one bucket the time before! And do you know what is even more amazing? I chose to leave my camera at home this day! I know- it's shocking! But I figured between a bad ankle, big belly, and chasing after a toddler in an orchard (all while trying to pick some apples) I had enough to manage! And what would you know, at one point Lily actually sat down, posed, smiled, and asked me if I was going to take her picture!!! Are you kidding me?!! This is the child who looks away whenever I bring the camera out...and she chose the one day I didn't have my camera to be photogenic! Go figure!

All in all apple picking was a success this year and as usual was one of my favorite fall activities! Maybe I'll go enjoy one right now!

It may be a few days...

Just wanted to let you all know that we are alive and well...but totally exhausted, very pregnant, and a little bit overwhelmed. I promise that I do have some fun blog posts coming up (including apple picking, my newest belly photo, and more)- but it may just be a few days before I can find the time to get them up! We leave tonight for Joe's parents house- and tomorrow is our cousin Hilary's wedding!! I am super excited to put my camera to good use and have my first shot at photographing a wedding (alongside the paid photographer)! You'll hear from us in a few days. Now if I can just find the energy to get out of this chair...

Random Act of Kindness

This afternoon Lily and I were coming home from a playdate at the park and I needed to stop for a few things at the grocery store (some friends are coming for dinner and I needed to pick up a few last minute items). I told Lily as soon as we left the park that we would be stopping and she was greatly looking forward to the free cookie our grocery store gives out to the little ones. So, when I realized half way home (and to the store) that I forgot to bring my wallet- well, things got ugly. Lily was very upset. I wasn't thrilled either because I wasn't sure when I would get a chance later in the day to make it to the store. And then right after Lily calmed down I remembered that while I didn't have my wallet I did have my checkbook in my bag! I could go to the store after all (because I don't think our grocery store has ever, once, asked me to see identification)! So I stopped, picked up the few things I needed, Lily got her cookie and we headed to check out. Everything was great- our two bags of groceries were loaded and in the cart, the check was written and we were ready to go...until the cashier asked to see my license (or any form of identification). I explained the situation and added that I had never been asked to show anything there before. Apparently the computer only calls for ID every now and then- go figure! The cashier was very nice and offered to hold my order until I could come back, but I told him that he didn't need to do that, apologized, and he voided my check. I was ready to walk away empty handed when the very sweet lady behind me handed the cashier some money and told him that she wanted to pay for my groceries!!! I was totally shocked- and quite honestly tried to talk her out of it. I assured her that I was fine and could indeed afford my groceries. But she insisted. So I let her pay, but tried more than once to get her to give me her name and address so I could send her the money. But again she insisted that she had been in my situation before and that somebody had helped her- and that now she wanted to help me! Isn't that incredible!!! Thank you sweet little lady from the Hannaford- my little family (and our friends coming for dinner) have been blessed by your kindness today!

P.S. For this random act of kindness I thought I would include a random picture (our pup, Indy, and Lily's pup becoming friends)!

Lunch Conversations with Lily

Today at lunch:

Lily: "Mommy, you getting bigger?"

Me: "Yes, I sure am. Do you know why?"

Lily: "Because baby Eli is pushing out your belly."

Me: "That's right!"

Lily: "Why?"

Me: "Because my belly is a safe place for him to grow. When he's big enough he'll be born and he'll come live with us."

Lily: "Will he drive here?"

Me: "Not exactly honey."

Bed

This is my bed.

Simple and Cozy.
I was going to work on the nursery.
But this prego mommy is really tired.
So, I'm going to go to this cozy bed for awhile.
Do you think Lily will nap as long as me?
Here's hoping.