color schemes

Last night my mom and I finally sat down to finish one of the projects I really wanted done before Lexi was born.   When I had Ethan she made me burp cloths with towel backing.   Absorbency to the maximum.   I knew I wanted some for Lexi . . . but you know, the color scheme is so different for a baby boy and a baby girl.   I am definitely using a lot of the boys' stuff for her like the blue pack & play and the blue bumbo.   But burp cloths are like a fashion statement.   And my baby girl will have fashion, ahem.   So we went with these cute fabrics.  

 

Could you just die?

 

That is only four of the six we used, but it was so, so, soooooo fun to be able to use Minnie Mouse and all things girly to make her burp cloths.

 

Here is my mom sewing away.

 

 

I was the cutting machine and she sewed all the peices together.

 

I just picked up a couple towels at Walmart for 2 or 3 bucks and we used that as the backing.

 

It doesn't get much simpler (or cheaper) than that.

 

 

We even put a little curve in the side, so it would fit over the shoulder better.

 

I know these babies will be getting plenty of use in the months to come, and I am grateful to have one more thing crossed off my list.

 

Now . . you may be wondering how we could be so productive with the wild two year old running around.

 

Another key player in this process was my dad, aka "The Babysitting Machine."

 

 

So thanks to both my parents . . . couldn't have done it without you!

 

Adding to the Brood

One of the biggest changes coming our way is the big jump we are making from four Bettelli's to five.   Yesterday was our last day spent together as a family of four.  

(I would have been on that train too, but no pregnant women allowed.  Dumb.)

 

Each time I have been pregnant, the last week or so is bittersweet.

 

I am so, so, so excited to have a new baby join our brood, but the huge change causes some anxiousness.

 

I know how we work now.

 

Before we had George, it was just Tim and I.

 

We enjoyed the freedom and the time to get to know one another (considering we only dated 9 months total before our wedding day).

 

Then George came into our world, and we literally could not imagine life without him.

 

When I got pregnant with Ethan, I could not imagine how I could love him the way I loved George.

 

I remember crying in the hospital just hours after I had him (could have been hormones) because it would never be just George and I again.

 

Now as we are days away from bringing Lexi into the family, while I am so excited to see her and dress her and love her, I can't help but feeling a little sad that we will never have this family dynamic again.

 

It will never be just Mommy, Daddy and the boys.

 

With this new beginning comes an ending.

 

I enjoy change, always have, but knowing I can never get this time back makes me stop and reflect on the family dynamic we are giving up this week.

 

Lexi will be a part of us forever.

 

She is a permanent addition to the Bettelli clan.

 

Things will never be the same.

 

Weekends

Since it is the weekend I have been thinking about writing a post on the change in our weekends over the last few months.   In our current situation (with Tim and George in Fort Myers for work and school) we only get to be together as a family on the weekends.  

    It is a really hard transition because . . .   Well, number 1 - I miss them like crazy and so does Ethan.   Number 2 - I have to be a 9 month pregnant, single mom to a crazy 2 year old Monday thru Friday.   Number 3 - It is a really difficult to transition between having the house responsibilities to myself for five days and then sharing them for two.   It is definitely not ideal, and one of the worst parts is that we don't have an end date.   We don't know when we will all be together.   We can't find a permanent place in Fort Myers until we sell our house here.   And at this point we are no closer to selling than we were on August 1st when Tim started the job.   I don't want to complain because I know there are plenty of people who deal with much worse on a daily basis.   I want to be thankful despite my circumstances.   Thankful that I have two healthy, thriving little boys and adding a little girl to the mix in the very near future.   Thankful Tim loves his job.   Thankful George is absolutely dominating kindergarten.   Thanksful for parents and in-laws who are willing to do so much to help.   Thankful for Jesus and His shoulder to lean on.   Thankful for a roof over our heads.   Thankful that we do get to be together on weekends because some don't even get that.   I want to keep that perspective minute by minute because usually I am wallowing.   It is very unbecoming.   I know "this too shall pass."   And I am praying it will pass quickly:)   

Obsessed

I have a confession.   I have an obsession.   With Pumpkin.   With the change in season comes my favorite flavor of anything ever.   This is my list of treats that I savor from September until Christmas (which is usually when places stop carrying it).  

 

Pumpkin Coffee.

 

Iced . . . Decaf (most of the time) . . . cream only.

 

I could kiss it.

 

 

Pumpkin Cookies.

 

Favorite. Dessert. Ever.

 

I make the recipe times 4 and freeze a million to have on hand at a moments notice.

 

I should give them away, but . . .

 

They are my favorite and all.

 

 

Pumpkin Bread.

 

Moist, delicious, and chocolate chips.

 

This is my first year making this, but I can assure you it won't be my last.

 

 

 

And last, but certainly not least, pumpkin ice cream.

 

Again, this was a new one this year.

 

Pumpkin flavored ice cream with chunks of pumpkin pie and crust mixed in.

 

Seriously?

 

Yes, seriously.

 

Beat Clemson

As of 36 weeks pregnant my doctor said no more traveling.  

 

Ethan and I had been in Fort Myers with Tim and George for the three weeks preceding that, so we came home to stay until Lexi would be born.

 

But . . . that very same weekend was the FSU vs. Clemson game in Tallahassee, and my brother's best friend said he could get me into the President's box.

 

 

 

So I went.

 

36 weeks pregnant and all.

 

And we all made it back in one piece (although my dad probably asked me 300 times if I felt ok . . . I think he was nervous my water would break in his nice car).

 

The game was AWESOME!

 

 

But to say I didn't enjoy the food spread almost as much would be a lie.

 

They had so many delicious choices, and since I am eating for two and all that, I got to be a total pig without anyone questioning my sanity.

 

Win, win.

 

My brother and his wife live in Tallahassee while he is in law school, so while Peter and my dad used the season tickets in the stands, Whitney came with me to sit in the box.

 

 

Yes, she is lovely and skinny.

 

And yes, my belly protrudes right into hers.

 

And then there is John, Peter's BFF and the angel who got us in.

 

 

He was my year book editor when I was the advisor way back in my days of teaching high school.

 

He is such an awesome guy.

 

Even more awesome now that he allowed me this special treat and last hurrah before baby number 3 comes into our lives.

 

Thanks, John.

 

And "GO NOLES!!!!"

 

 

Small Changes

We are going to start small in this whole "processing change" thing.   Ethan now owns a Kindle.  His very own.  

    My parents decided he needed an electronic toy, so they bought him the new kindle for his 2nd birthday.   He loves it.   I, on the other hand, find it a little frustrating because I don't know what games to download.   He pretty much switches back and forth at this point between Angry Birds and Counting Apples.   It is pretty pathetic.   Anybody know other preschool games that I can download for free or cheap???   Help a sister out.   Sidenote:  George isn't here during the week, but on the weekends he loves to "share" the Kindle with Ethan.   And surprisingly, Ethan is usually pretty happy to oblige.   On Sunday morning last week George brought a whistle into the bathroom to show me that he had found it in the toy box because he had never seen it before.   I told him that Nicole gave that whistle to Ethan a few days before while George was still in Fort Myers.   His response (verbatim), "Man, Mom, Ethan got a Kindle tablet and a whistle.  He sure does get a lot of stuff while I am gone."   Perspective.   Of a 5 year old.

31 days of change

I don't want to have to start this post with "It's been a while," but . . .   IT'S BEEN A WHILE!!!!   I still read certain blogs almost daily even when I am not writing, and I came across a really great idea over at The Nesting Place the other day.   She is hosting a "linky" party where bloggers pick a topic to write about for the next 31 days of October (well, now it is actually 29 days because I am late to the party, but whatev).   I have been wanting to write more on all we have going on, but it is so overwhelming to try to express it all in one post.   Not to mention the fact that no one would ever be able to get through it because it would be so long.   All this to say . . . I have decided to dedicate the month of October to change.   I am going to try (very, very hard) to blog everyday.   I want these posts to piece together all that is going on in our lives, what we are learning, and how I am feeling.   I really want documentation of this insane time in our lives because I know (KNOW, KNOW, KNOW) God is teaching us so much, but sometimes I just don't have a way to actually process it.   I want to process it.   What better way than writing it out to have for all time.   So . . . bear with me as I share our life with you the best way I know how throughout the month of October (all 29 days that are left of it).