I love when Valentine’s Day falls on a weekend because you can really make a day of it and I LOVE a day with my little family.

We exchanged a few presents in the morning and then made breakfast; Joe got me an OPI nail polish from their San Fran collection since we went there for our anniversary, I got him some tools and a cheesy card, and we got M some side walk chalk, a mermaid towel, a new coloring book, and a few other practical goodies.  We made some pink and red chocolate covered pretzels with sprinkles and M was a big help.  She went to town on the chocolate and then it hardened all over her.  :)

The rest of the day we piddled around the house, ran a few errands and then went on a date to Pei Wei.  Joe took me to Pei Wei and a movie on our first Valentine’s day 10 YEARS AGO!!!!!  We ended the date with some mint chocolate chip ice cream which M calls icing.  It was such a fun day full of love, which is what it’s all about!!

Happy Valentine’s Day!!

M is talking so much right now and I want to remember the precious ways she says certain things.  Here are a few things we hear several times a day:

“Planes, are you?”-when she hears a plane or is outside looking for one.

“dooning”=What are you doing?

“sosion”=lotion which she loves to put on her hands and belly every night after her bath.

“HaHaaaaa”=Yeehawwww

When you ask her what her name is she says “Maddie” and sometimes she’ll add on “Velek”

“Bilk”=milk

“lub you”=Love you

“sip some,” or “see some” is when she wants what we are eating or drinking

“High pies”=High Fives, one time at church we were giving a blessing so everyone had their hands extended to the front and M insisted that she give the row behind us high fives!

“hold you”

“pianos”-for some reason piano is always plural

“ghetti”=spaghetti

She remembers and talks about things that scared her like the car wash and the pinata.  She will literally bring them up throughout the day and tell me all about them over and over.

When she wants to read Go Dogs Go, she says “GogogoGoGo” and “Ebber” is when she wants to read I’ll love you Forever.

Her tiny little voice is the greatest and I cannot get enough.

30 weeks along now and another week closer to holding our little man!

So far so good!  We are measuring on schedule for an Easter due date and my belly is growing very quickly.  I feel little kicks here and there but this guy is pretty chill compared to his sister and mostly likes to stretch.  I especially love when he gets hyper at night when I eat ice cream on the couch:)  Remind me to stop that habit after he comes! Ahh the joy of having a baby right before swim suits.

I have really enjoyed being pregnant over the winter months instead of summer.  Only a little swelling has occurred and my maternity wardrobe consists of maternity tees and sweaters, ahhh so comfy!

Cravings have included ranch dressing, chalupas, and cookies although I crave cookies even when I’m not pregnant.  These days I just get hungry for a certain restaurant and crave it until we go there.  Weird, but today it’s Popeyes red beans and rice, Haha!!

We finally picked a name and decided on Joseph Charles which is very special because 1. it’s Joe’s name and 2. it’s our grandfather’s middle names combined.  I’ve been calling him baby Joe Joe and so has Madeleine.  Can I call him that forever???  We’ll just see what he thinks when he gets here!!

We are stocking up on diapers and boy clothes, Gymboree made a killing off me last week, and getting the room ready.  Just like with Madeleine, my favorite thing to buy are shoes, and I know they are so impractical, but my oh my they are tiny, precious, and irresistible.

We are in the process of getting Madeleine’s big girl room ready but not quite ready for her to actually sleep in the bed so right now the plan is this: Have the room ready and move over all of M’s clothes and nick nacks, move Joe Joe into the nursery  but keep M in the crib until the time is right.  We shall see.

The theme for M’s nursery was Famers Market and we are tweaking it just a little for J to become a Farm theme.  Think cow print crib sheet and stay tuned for a nursery post.

Dishes, laundry, raking, pushing, you name it…M is such a big helper! My everyday chores are whole lot more fun when she’s around.  Sometimes it may take us twice as long but you just can’t resist a “help you.” Thanks for being my right hand man Madeleine:)

We rang in the new year with a road trip to Dallas to visit our friends and watch the Baylor Bears in the Cotton Bowl.  We hadn’t been to Dallas since our baby shower, and this time we had her with us!  We chatted and caught up, ate some pizza, and ring in the new year with a champagne toast just us 3.

It was an early day game, the Cotton Bowl should really rethink this after New Years Eve, but we made it to the stadium with diapers in our pockets, no diaper nags allowed, and had a blast watching a great game.

We were nervous about a 5 hour drive with Madeleine but she did awesome and we read Go Dog Go, a lot.

Kate and Greg have the most comfortable couch I have ever slept on!  M liked it too:)

Our Christmas holiday was magical!  We had celebrations with each of our parents and grandparents and even one for our own little family.  I loved everything from how our home felt all decorated for the season, to watching loved ones open the gifts we gave, to our mass celebrations of Jesus’ birth.  Some of my favorite traditions include coffee and christmas light driving, matching cousin pj’s, fake snowball fights and singing for presents.

Christmas as a kid is awesome but Christmas with YOUR kids is even better.  There is just SO many new things to do and activities to try during the holiday.  M had, and loved, her first cup of hot chocolate and kept saying “sip it” and she was really into opening her presents, “open it, open it!” We watched Christmas movies and read nativity books, we baked cookies, and made fires in the fireplace.  Like I said before it was magical!

There were a couple of sad moments as this was the first Christmas Joe and I had without our Grandpa and Popo. We had the opportunity to visit each of them at the cemetery to display a wreath and sing a carol and these were some of the most precious moments of my year.

I feel incredibly blessed with such a wonderful life and family, and I love the feeling of a new year and the goals of improving my faith, my relationships, and loving more.  Thank you Lord for Christmas time and your sweet birthday!

Here are some photos from our holiday!