1st Bump Blog Post

This was last Sunday, about 13 1/2 weeks. I don't ever really take "selfies" so I know I look a little awkward. 

 

A bare belly shot (which there likely will not be many of this go round) would certainly reveal more.  I'm showing EASILY a month ahead of where I did with Carson.

 

The cute border is to attempte to hide our disastrous closet...Not sure it worked. :-)

 

There is lots of cropping involved, but this was right at 14 weeks (bathing suit is not as bad as bare belly, right?... Carson and I were headed to the pool.)  You can DEFINITELY see the bump here.  I don't know if it's the rouching or what, but I look VERY pregnant here!

 

 

 

Memorial Day Weekend

Memorial Day always holds a special place in my heart because it remembers those who gave their lives in service to our country.  It remembers those who gave the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.  My mom never met her dad because he was killed serving in Korea 5 months before she was born.  I still just can't even imagine what my grandmother went through.  She was a newlywed and got pregnant pretty much right away and just months into her marriage, her husband left for Korea and never came home.  She was in her early 20's, a widow and pregnant.  I get emotional just thinking about it.  He was a West Point graduate and loved shooting, hunting, and fishing.  I wish I could have known him.

My grandfather, 1st Lt. John Olin Bates, Jr., US Army

 

 

In Korea (second from right)

 

So many good men and women have died serving our country and protecting our freedom.  They should never be forgotten....

 

*******************

Purposely, we didn't really do much in terms of travel for Memorial Day weekend.  Traffic is usually terrible, so we really wanted to take it easy and stay close to home.  

Thursday night backyard 4-wheeler riding...

 

Saturday, we went to Baytown for Lottie's 2nd birthday.  Carson stayed at Wannie and Papi's on Friday night and hadn't taken a nap yet, so this is how the group pic turned out.... such a drama queen.

 

 

 

Luckily, he wasn't in a crabby mood the whole time....

 

Flying kites with Vivi is fun!

 

So is riding in the golf cart with Khaki and Taylor!

 

Blaise likes kites too!

 

The kid loves popcorn!

 

Happy 2nd Birthday, Lottie!

 

 

Cake!

 

Wannie helping... he will be 18 and still not wanting to use a fork!

 

He was OUT before we even got back on I-10... going to bed that night was a different story.  He has been HORRIBLE about bedtime lately which is so unlike him.  Ugh.

 

Carson (and Mommy) took a SUPER long nap after church on Sunday, then it was off to Daddy's work to throw rocks and fish...

 

 

Fishing was TERRIBLE.  Didn't catch one perch.... how do you NOT catch a perch with worms??

 

Chasing a rabbit...

 

The boat/tractor barn might just be his favorite place on earth!

 

 

 

Daddy's old work truck had two flat tires (it's rusted to pieces and waiting to go to auction).  Carson is OBSESSED with flat tires thanks to Mickey Mouse Clubhouse.  We went to the shop to get the "Mouseketools"... He got a "weeench" to fix the flat tire.

 

 

Done with the wrench, time to go look for the "tire pump"... There was no tire pump but we did find one when we got home and he LOVES to play with it!

 

Monday we headed to Academy to get a pool for the backyard...

 

Could NOT get him out....

 

 

Mommy was in there too in her pregnant glory.  It was actually nice to wear a bikini with my stomach hanging out!  No sucking in necessary!  I'll probably be much more modest in public!  haha

 

Love my little water baby!

 

Daddy made my favorite... smoked ribs!!

 

GREAT weekend {mostly} at home!  We're always gone, so it was nice to just relax at home for once!

 

 

Reflection

Wednesday was a day that I wasn't sure how I was going to feel.  This past Wednesday, May 22nd, was the due date of our little one that we won't get to meet until we are in Heaven.  After I miscarried, that was the day that I was sure I would really struggle with.

With all that's been going on around our house (fairly major remodel that I will someday get around to posting pictures of), the day really did sneak up on me.  It's actually really hard for me to even comprehend that I could have a newborn right now.  That just almost seems unreal.  They are still working on our house, and with busy season at work, I have no idea how we would have put a nursery together and still be sane.  I know it would have happened, but it's still just a little hard to comprehend. 

Surprisingly, it really wasn't as hard of a day as I thought it would be, and I have a feeling that's because we are rejoicing in knowing that God has given us another chance.  I hit the 2nd trimester mark within 1 day of our little one's due date.  I certainly think that getting pregnant again has really helped in the healing process.  But, if you've read any of my other posts lately, it has also led to a lot more fear and anxiety this time around.

I did take a few moments on Wednesday as I was driving to Houston to reflect and think about it and there was a little sadness, but as I said before, I know that His timing is perfect, even if we don't understand it.  Some day we will get to meet our other child, and won't that be a joyful experience!

My cousin Michael and his wife Rebecca were also expecting at the same time we were last fall and their due date was within days of ours.  I am THRILLED to say that she gave birth to a BIG, healthy baby boy on Monday.  What a joy to have another Morgan great-grandbaby boy!

Our Valentines Day... a LOT late

In trying to FINALLY get caught up on my blog posts, I stumbled across our Valentines Day post that was still in Draft form... yeah, I realize it's 3+ months late.  Better late than never!  I posted an actual Valentines Day post, but failed to finish the one about what we did the following weekend.

We met up with Wannie and Papi on Saturday morning at Al-T's for breakfast (boudain omelet... yes, please!!!! oh, and extra bacon!).  Minus the biscuits, I pretty much downed the whole plate.

 

Carson took care of the biscuits...
 

Wannie and Papi took Carson back home and we were able to go fishing together for the first time in a really long time.  The fishing was terrible, but at least I had the best looking guide on the water!

 

Andrew and I have this "tradition" of attending non-traditional concerts together.  Well, it's not really a "tradition", but I guess it's starting to become one.  I'm primarily a Texas Country, Country Legends, Classic Rock, Contemporary Christian, and Old School Rap (hey...brings back fun high school and college memories... the "hip hop" today is just terrible for the most part) kind of girl, certainly not an "angry music" or "heavy metal" type of person, but for some reason, I've been to two Sevendust concerts and actually really enjoyed them.  It's not the kind of music I will just listen to at my desk or in the car, but the energy at the concerts is pretty cool.  I have to say that Sevendust is one of the only bands that falls into this "loud" category that I will actually listen to and not complain.  The lead singer actually sings versus screams, which I think is the difference.  I can NOT take "music" that is screaming.  Yuck.

Anyways... Sevendust was coming to Beaumont, so Andrew really wanted to go, and I agreed.



I had never been to Crockett Street, so I was happy to check it out finally.



Not my typical scene, but certainly a fun time!






 

 

We thought it would be easiest to have a "stay-cation" and get a hotel in Beaumont at the Elegante and just take a cab home from the concert.  They had a shuttle that was able to take us there.  Getting there was pretty convenient, getting home was another story.  Let's just say cab service in Beaumont is a JOKE.  I think there was one, yes ONE, cab going back and forth from Crockett Street (one of the cab companies is called La Una Taxi... makes sense now). We got beat to the first one we saw, which we found out later was going to our same hotel.  How did we find this out... because nearly 45 minutes later when the 2nd cab FINALLY showed up, it was the same cab driver that we missed the first time and when we told her where we needed to go, she was like, "Oh, you should have just jumped in earlier."  Pretty sure I would have if she hadn't bailed out as I was waving her down to make sure she was coming back.  It was COLD, and I was seriously nervous we weren't going to be able to get back.  Apparently the cab driver at the other company was sick.  What a mess!  Anyways, I won't even go into the cab driver's personal story, of which we heard the whole thing.  Let's just say her story is a big reason as to why this country has problems.

 

Anyways, we were happy to be back at the hotel!  We enjoyed a big the next morning and then headed to church.  Fun stuff!  It was fun to have an evening to ourselves and actually get out and do something.  Those days are certainly few and far between!