Big Sister Photoshoot! -We are having another baby!

BIG SISTER!
Yes! Alicia is a big sister!

We are so excited to share our news and ask for you to please keep us in your prayers! 

I had a feeling, even before we knew for sure, that there was another sweet baby growing inside of me.  I was so sure in fact, that I took these photos more than a week before finding out! 

I have been trying to get some fun photos at the beginning of every month. I'm definitely no pro, but I hope to get better over time, and, I LOVE doing it ;D So, these pictures are in fact, Alicia's 5 month photos. These two sweethearts will be 14 months apart, and we couldn't be more thrilled. 

I am hoping to be better about week-by-week photos (I think I started being consistent with Alicia at about 4 months in), and I am really wanting to write a little "bump journal" as well. I think it would be such a precious keepsake.

happy sigh...It is all still sinking in.  I am not sure if miscarrying our first is making me cautious about letting it sink in, or if the fact that I am still waiting for the dreaded morning sickness to set in that it is making it hard for me to fully grasp that another sweet baby is growing inside of me.

We talked about whether or not to let others know this early in the pregnancy, but, whatever God has planned for this little one, we decided we want to let others know about the blessing of this sweet soul and celebrate his/her life from the very beginning. 


Early Days...

So far, I've had random nausea spurts- mostly when I'm uncomfortably hot, and when there is nothing on my stomach...so I've been snacking, a lot... ;-)

The most noticeable changes have been a super heightened sense of smell (even more than with Alicia), constant hunger, occasional nausea spurts, and my belly isn't going down like it was before ;-). I was just a few lbs away from my pre-pregnancy weight when we found out :P :-)

 I plan on trying to exercise more this round (hoping and praying). Getting a routine down seems to be the hardest thing for me. Any of you mommas have a few good tricks to staying in shape during pregnancy? What things did you try and make sure to get in everyday? What exercises did you find helped with back pain? (I can tell mine is already starting)

Thank you for all your best wishes and prayers! We truly appreciate each and every one!

Find your spot, stop, and breathe!

I've been in a brain freeze the past week. Just too much going on inside my head and I haven't been able to organize it all.  I have projects that I want to do for myself, projects around the apartment, and projects for my almost 5 month old. There's cleaning and organizing from kitchen to my bedroom closet that I need to do, boxes that still need to be unpacked and sorted through, and then there is the  slightly overwhelming task of learning HTML & CSS that I have undertaken. 

I love my carseat canopy cover I bought(left), but it is a little too warm for the TX heat and I decided to make a summer one(fabrics on right). Will show finished project & tutorial soon!

  With all of these I have been finding it hard to remember to sit down and just enjoy my blog. Blogging might seem like one more thing on my list, something to put aside and maybe allow myself one less thing to worry about, but, in the stress of everything else, I have found that it is a terrific outlet.  I love being a stay-at-home-mom (Ok, I beyond love it, I feel like I'm the luckiest girl in the world being able to be a stay-at-home-mom) and I love all my little tasks and duties, OK, maybe I don't love dishes and laundry, but I really do love having a clean apartment.  But, with having a sanguine/choleric temperament I just have to get out sometimes, and, instead of actually going out and driving somewhere everyday, I can save the money on gas and the temptation of shopping and simply sit on my sofa with a cup of tea or coffee and unwind a bit by writing on my blog.  

My blogging buddy- Aja (pronounced like Asia)

  Now I wouldn't say that the learning HTML & CSS part is exactly relaxing...I would actually say that that part it is down right frustrating.  No, the fun and relaxing part about blogging is that it makes me sit down and collect my thoughts. Even if I make myself sit for just a few minutes it helps all the ideas that have been buzzing in my head to start to untangle and I can begin to put them into some kind of order. Sometimes I simply create a bunch of titles for future blog posts from the ideas that are swirling around in my head. Even if I've only had 10 minutes to work on something and then the baby starts crying (which has been the story of late with her teething) I can start into my tasks again feeling just a little bit refreshed and just a little bit more sane. It's like a mini-meditation, only on the corporal needs instead of spiritual.   Both are important!

On a regular day at home if I don't get my morning prayers in it will bug me all day and I won't feel settled or at peace until I say them. Just one rosary and a spiritual communion. That is all I need to feel like I can do anything...cause hey, I then have Mary the Mother of God and Christ in my corner...watch out dust and laundry, you shall be conquered! (or, something)

Besides the Indulgences attached to the Rosary, Our Lady revealed to St. Dominic and Blessed Alan de la Roche additional benefits for those who devoutly pray the Rosary.  Our Lady's 15 Promises for those who pray the Rosary

  Even if I don't get all the cleaning done, or I sleep in and have to get ready to leave for some reason and I don't have time to get my prayers in, I try to make myself remember to say one or all of the following throughout the day, "Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make my heart like unto thine.", "Jesus, I trust in you.", "Jesus and Mary I love you, save souls.".  

  Whenever I am frazzled or frustrated I try to pull out one of these. I just say it silently to myself. I know I have a temper at times and I know that these have held back my anger and made me more reasonable more than once.  Just give it to God, ALL OF IT, all of life. I know I can't do it all and if I try it will end in tears, but, if I give it all to God then I know he will fill in all the areas where I fall short.

Couldn't resist. :-)

I have realized, especially in this past week or so, that I need to allow myself this little outlet of blogging. I've been pushing it aside in order to accomplish more of my other projects, but, I've been feeling the need to stop and breathe.  I stopped in the middle of some sorting to write this post. I feel so much better already!

I am a new mom, haven't been at it long, my daughter is just 4 1/2 months old, but I know that I need to form habits now that I will be grateful for later, especially as our family grows. I have a tendency to over do it. Over plan, over think, and overwhelm myself. That's the story of my life, and I need to learn to balance (do you ever figure that balance out?).  I have found that blogging is my spot, it's where I sort my ideas and organize my thoughts. So I'm making a new commitment.  I'm going to be a better blogger! I want to improve my writing, share my love of crafts, baking, etc. and the joy that I find in practicing my faith. And, with all of that, I hope to encourage other young mothers, bloggers, ladies,..all souls in whatever way I can through this blog as well.

If you are a young wife and mother and want to know what to get from this post...find your spot to take some time to breathe, and shoot out a little prayer to heaven out of love now and then, not just prayers of need. Start the hunt for balance now, I will be hunting for it with you! Know that you are not alone in your daily struggles, and what you are doing, as long as you do it with love, is enough.

From one of my favorites, Fulton Sheen.

Have a good week! God bless!

A Little Belated Father's Day Post

AMDG

This post is a little late in getting out, but I wanted it to be perfect and our plans last week got turned upside down more than once and I wasn't able to put it together in time for Father's Day. But, here it is! Finally!!

My thoughts this Father's Day.
 
Sadly I was not able to spend Father's day with my dad since we live on opposite sides of the country 

My dad.  My dad and I have always been close and I have been missing him A LOT.

It is hard to know where to begin. I have so many favorite memories, but, I will focus on just a few.

  I have always been a bit of a daddy's girl.  I love that his nickname for me when I was little was "princess". He truly made me feel like one. As I got older it became "girly" and "girlio", and I somewhere along the line started calling him "daddio".  :-) To me they have always been special, and I've always loved the bond I feel when we use them.

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Some of my favorite memories. 

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"dodadodododo"

For as far back as I can remember my dad has loved singing.  He has a little trouble with staying on key, but that has never stopped him from singing his heart out.  I cannot say that my siblings have always appreciated this quality, seeing as how he liked to wake us up to one of his favorite old songs (usually was 'On top of old smokey') each morning. And I'm not sure that his mixed up, totally off lyrics helped either (although that was always my favorite part. You never knew what was going to happen On top of Old smokey! ;-) ).  There would be moaning and groaning as he turned on the lights and sat next to one of the boys, singing away.  I remember hearing it from my room and just smiling.  I liked his morning ritual.  I would wait under my covers for him to make his way to my room for my turn.  If I was really tired I would just lay there with a smile on my face as he sung to me, like he was serenading me and putting me back to sleep, but most mornings I would join in and help him with the new story of what happened 'On Top of Old Smokey'. For some reason at the end of (any) the song, when we didn't know what else to say, it would usually end in, "dodadodododo", and we would both end laughing... and then we would start into the day. 

~~~

Chess...

Chess has been one of our favorite things to do together for many years.  I cannot remember what year it began, but from quite a young age my dad taught us the game of chess.  My dad was the reining winner for quite a while, as we were all young and just learning the game, but one by one each of us got better and reached a point where we could beat him.  To beat my dad in chess was a big deal! It made us feel sooo good! And my dad was always so proud!

  I remember the seeming never ending streak of losing to my dad. I think I even remember the day I first beat him, although I cannot remember how old I was.  I just remember being so excited and my dad being really proud of me.  I am so grateful that he always (from a reasonable age for us) played to win.  He didn't give us the game or play half into it, he played his best so that we could learn from him.  It worked! And one by one we all beat him. 

Once we were all about the same level we had a few chess tournaments. We are all pretty competitive and enjoyed all sorts of family tournaments over the years - chess, ping-pong, putt-putt, mario-cart, poker (Nothing like a fun family game of Texas Hold'em). Just a regular family game night at the Carter house. :-) 

   But Chess, well, this pastime came and went for most of my brothers, but it became an almost everyday event for my dad and me.  In my teen years it became our habit right before bed.  There were many times after lights were out and I was snuggled in bed that my door would open and he was ask, "ya coming?", and we would quietly play a game (or three) before calling it a night.

~~~

Paperclips and Paperdolls

"Dad is going to office depot.", someone would say, and I would reply, "Can I go?!".  haha.  Yes, from a VERY young age this was one of my favorite stores.  Why so cool for a tiny kid, you might wonder? They had EVERYTHING in my mind.  Stuff for drawing, coloring, organizing, it was so full, clean and neat! And if you know me, anything to do with crafts and pretty ways to organize was the BEST! (you can imagine what how excited I get when I make a trip to Joann Fabrics now! haha)

  I remember one year for Christmas my dad wrapped an unopened stack of regular white copy paper and put it under the tree.  I still remember the look of, "Paper?", on my siblings faces as I went, "YES!" and my dad roared laughing.  Oh the possibilities of what I could do with that stack of paper! Stories, art, crafts! And it was alllll mineeee!!! lol.  Believe it or not, I still get excited what I see a stack of unused paper, or even a stick of glue! My mind goes crazy thinking of all the things I could do with them! 

So, when my dad needed to make a "boring" trip to the store, I was his little buddy.  We always had a blast. We would turn on old hits and sing together, laughing at how terrible we sounded or at the words we were getting wrong. And if the weather was nice it was windows down and radio up!

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Not only is my dad the hardest working man I've ever known, but any sacrifice to do or make something better for us was never too great.  And with all of that, he still spent quality time with us every chance he could.  

I am so grateful for all of these priceless memories, but, there is something about my dad that tops all of these.  My dad loves his faith.  He LOVES our Catholic Faith.  If there is something that each of my six brothers and I have taken with us as we have grown up and started on each of our own paths it is the faith that my parents have instilled in us. 

When my parents were tired and worn out (OK, flat out exhausted) they still did everything they could to show us the importance of our Faith.  From morning and night prayers as a family, praying the rosary as a family, and bible/theology trivia and the dinner table. 

They wanted us to know that God loves us and wanted to set an example for us through their hard work, patience, and constant sacrifices. And they did an amazing job.

I think that each of us had our harder teen years ;-), our growing pains and little rebellions, but no matter what we always knew our parents loved us. We always knew that we could go to our parents when we needed them. We always knew that if we had a question with our faith that, even if they didn't know the answer off the top of their heads, they would help guide us to finding the answer.  

I think I can say for all of my siblings that all of us are constantly learning and growing in our faith. And that we have the love for our faith and that foundation of Christ's Truth through His Church to help us learn and grow BECAUSE of our parents patience and faithfulness through the years.

I cannot thank my dad enough. I simply can't.

My parents have set an example that is hard to match. So, to end, thank you, dad. Thank you more than I can ever say.

Your

Girlio

P.S. Slim-Jim is in the mail ;-)