A nameless Cake

I’ve said it before, I love a tradition.  I think they’re fun and important.  When Ford was a baby I bought a gingerbread man cookie sheet.  Every year we make and decorate a little man, and for the last few years I have been sending them to school.  Here are the boys hard at work making the dough for the gingerbread man.  They BOTH needed to help which can prolong the cooking at least twice as long!

 I think honesty is the best policy and I’m all about telling it like it is.  I detest hunting season.  Sorry, Trey.  It’s true.  I didn't grow up in a hunting family so all this deer slaying has come in the last 12 years since Trey and I have been together.  He takes it VERY seriously, like it’s his job, especially during the rut.  The rut = the husband hunts about 5 times a week.  Well, I am PLEASED to announce that the representative finally killed a deer that met his standards and has been home more this week!

The boys with the prize….

 

My boys are obsessed with coloring lately.  I’m very glad that John Brantley has taken up this new activity because it gives me a few moments of peace each day.

 The concrete trucks have been out at our house.  I thought the boys should leave their mark.

 Back porch

 The Presbyterian Church has an arts ministry class that I have been going to lately.  The first class we used clay to make a fish.  I took both kids to this event and quickly learned my lesson.  The night of class 2 I left Bitty with his Daddy!!!

We made shaving cream painted bowls.  It was big fun!!

 My bowl

 Ford's bowl

Ford's Christmas list:

Police suit
Fireman Legos
Ninja Turtles costume, weapons, and mask
Octonauts

Pregnancy Update:

She’s still in there, growing, kicking, and is still nameless.  I’ve gotten to the point where I will take suggestions on names.  Please submit your entries ASAP!!!  Here’s the problem, people… the names aren't jiving together like they did for the boys.  The female options aren't as good.  I’ll be glad to share:

JILL’S SIDE:

Me- Jill Suzanne Anthony
My mom, Gran- Suzanne Hamm (she had no middle name)
My grandmother- Guy Nelle Slay
My great grandmother- Buella Stevens
My great grandmother- Ruby Opal Cole
My grandmother- Lessie Waudine Brantley
My great grandmother-  Aileen Sistrunk
My great grandmother-  Jessie Beeland

TREY’S SIDE:

Trey’s mom- Cathy Ann Hannaford
Trey’s grandmother- Bobbie Jean Bowden
Trey’s great grandmother- Annie Velma Rodman
Trey’s grandmother- Sarah Evelyn Wooten
Other options: Mattie, Bertha, Lillian Belle, Lou Ollie, Mary Estelle, Myrtle

I’ll be 29 weeks this weekend.  The misery is starting to set in.  I am carrying Cake very low which makes simple tasks a little more difficult: bending over, tying shoes, getting off the floor, getting in my bed, shaving my legs, bathing, etc.  The other night I got in bed before 8:00 because I was in such pain.  She manages to get on my sciatic nerve and I am almost paralyzed at times because moving is so painful.  I still have an uneasy feeling that she will come early.  I’m due February 28^th, but I will be satisfied if she stays put at least until Valentines.  Last weekend I was having so much pressure I thought my water might break.  This all boils down to the fact that I need to rest more.  Sounds simple enough… I just don’t sit still too well.  Prayers that she stays put for two more months!!!

Ford's 4K school picture...Ohhh the cuteness!!!

Me touch Effie

Sitting still?  Nah, that’s not what I do best.  Just ask Trey.  I am constantly on the move, whether it’s around the house or around town.  Today could have been a nice morning to relax in our pajamas, but I opted on breakfast with Santa.  I mean why not?!?!?  This time only comes once a year!

 My boys were both excited about going to see The Big Guy.  And in case you were wondering, no, John Brantley wasn't scared a bit.  He was a tad bit shy at first, but he warmed right up.

Ford was telling Santa the things he thinks he "needs".

 I had to prompt Bitty to tell Santa he wanted "BIG trucks and tray trays" (big trucks and trailers).

 There's my little guy at his finest... wrinkling that nose!

 I hope he doesn't forget to come see us in a few days!!!!

We, along with millions of other insane American families, have an Elf on the Shelf.  This little creature is also known as, “Extra work for the mother”.  No, our elf doesn't do anything naughty or elaborate, yet he just appears in random places every day.  Today, Elfie, original… I know,… is in the mixer.  But two days ago he was in Ford’s room on a lamp shade.  Now I should have known better.  Ford is a HUGE rule follower and wouldn't dream of touching the elf, but John Brantley is the complete opposite.  And on this very day Elfie was a tad bit too low and too close for his little hands to reach. 

I was in my bedroom folding clothes and I could hear Ford getting heated with John Brantley over something.  The argument got more intense and in just a minute I heard screaming.  Apparently Bitty had climbed on a riding toy and was trying to grab the Elf.  Ford knows that’s a major “no no” and wasn't thinking of letting such happen.  He had man handled Bitty.  He picked him up around the neck and was bringing him to me.  All the while John Brantley is kicking and screaming, “Me touch Effie”.  Ohhhh the joys!

NEW BLOG BELOW....

Building a house

People are so curious about our hectic life right now.  We've got a child on the way with no name and we’re building a house.  Both of which, make my head spin at a rapid pace on a daily basis, might I add.  It’s been a while since I blogged and put up in house pictures, but that’s because it’s hard to tell what’s been going on.

There are so many steps in this process that have taken a long time: plumbing, electrical, insulation, sheet rock, trimming, etc.  I knew building a house had lots of decisions, but this is borderline ridiculous.  Thank goodness Trey likes to be involved or I would have jumped ship in the summer!!!!!

Front of house.  

 Outside we still have to put on the doors.  This activity hasn't been done because we have to decide on a stain color we like.  We also need shutters.  Sounds simple?  Nah!!!  That decision includes: wood type, design, color, length, width…blah blah blah!  We also have to stain our front porch and get steps built going up to the porch.  Who knows if we will ever have bushes or concrete??!!??!!??

 View from inside standing at the front door.

Here is my dining room.  I opted to paint the ceiling a darker color than the walls.  I’m excited about my light fixture that will hopefully be hung in a few weeks.  Other than that, this room will probably house a lot of boxes until they are all unpacked.  We sold our dining room furniture when we moved 8 months ago.

 The Study

Who knows if we will ever even use this room???  I do know that several years ago we got a beautiful desk for this room and have been excited about it for a while.  We haven’t had room for it so I will be glad to see it displayed in a few months. 

 The foyer....Looking back towards the front door.

Hallway...  Looking from the kitchen.  On the right side is the dining room and study.  On the left is windows looking into the backyard.  

 Hallways from other end of the hall.

Kitchen… it looks into the front yard

 View from the kitchen into the living room.  Still waiting on the wood for the ceiling to arrive.

 Another living room shot.  The small door on the right is a playroom off of the living room.  Genius idea!!!  My kids are always right under my feet

 There is the "man cave" behind the living room for all of Trey's critter.

View from back porch

Back porch

And upon discussion of building a house I had TWO things I wanted for sure.  #1 a large pink closet and #2 real brick floors in my kitchen.  #1 is coming along.  My closet is a nice “L” shape.

View from bathroom door.

 View angled from bathroom door

 Near the broom there will be a tall shoe rack.  The other blank wall now has built in dresser and tall shelf cabinets.

 Some walls have double hanging rods, some have single hanging rods.  No, I don't have enough clothes to fill up this entire closet.  BUT I am SUPER excited about my pink closet and I can't wait to hide in there when life gets crazy.  I did spend hours online researching just how I wanted it to look!!!

I don't have any other pictures because they aren't too exciting.  We are still getting trim done, doors hung, and things painted.  Ohhh the joys of building!

A liberating lunch date, alone...

Pregnancy Update:

Have you ever been pregnant?  If you’re a dude then I seriously hope you answered, “NO!”  I’m speaking to the women out there actually.  Okay, so we have some takers on being preggers, right?  Right!  Let’s bond together and discuss some commonly heard phrases by those who are “with child”.

“What are you having?”  “When are you due?”  “How are you feeling?”  “Does she have a name?”  “When are you going to name her?”  “Do you have any other children?”  “What are your other children (boys/girls)?”

Again, I think I have the goggles on (See blog titled “TheBeast” for explanation of goggles) and people can’t tell that I’m pregnant.  Who am I kidding?  I am pushing 28 weeks pregnant and it’s obviously no secret anymore.  Well, today I had to go to Target to exchange something and the lady at Guest Services befriended my preggo self quickly.  I was interrogated and asked all of the questions above.  She was deeply disturbed that I haven’t named “Cake” and decided to help. 

Her first question was: “What is your mom’s maiden name?”  I responded with, “Hamm”.  She frowned and said, “Well, we might need to get creative.  I know, you can name her Hampton as a tribute to your mom!”  

Okay people, I never have nor never will claim to be a rocket scientist, but how in Sam Hill does Hampton show tribute to my mom?  I don’t have much of a “poker face” so I kind of looked oddly at her.  I thanked her for exchanging my item and began to walk away.  I was a good 10 feet from the counter and she’s still hollering out at me.  As if Hampton weren't enough she wanted to hear some other options.  I told her not to worry that I would just have to get creative!

After leaving Target I went to Motherhood Maternity for some much needed items.  While I was in the dressing room a young child whipped the curtain open and joined me!!!  It was “my day”!  Y’all should all be jealous of my shopping experience today.  After leaving there I went to…….

And not only did I go there, but I dined inside ALL alone!!!  It was very liberating. 

 All of you health food fanatics just calm down!!!  I had good reasons for going to eat at Krystal burger!!!  Here are my reasons: 1.  Guest services lady at Target did me in.  2.  Kid at Motherhood saw all my pregnant glory.  3.  I had to get my glucose/diabetes test done at the doctor.  And 4.  I was at or under my weight goal. 

Real Pregnancy Updates:

I’m almost 28 weeks pregnant.  I have now gained a total of 20 pounds.  That means I gained SIX pounds since last month.  I was disappointed… I felt like I had gained 4.  The nurse did say the other office location’s scale weighs you lighter.  I should have gone there!!!

I have started to get uncomfortable.  Unless I sit up with great posture then it makes my belly hurt!  The “beast”, my hernia, is still an ever present enemy.  I am waking up a lot to go to the bathroom.  I’m up anywhere from 2-4 times a night to potty and I usually get disturbed by Bitty at some point.  The child won’t sleep!!!!!!

I really do like order, cleanliness, and a tidy house.  I promise my house is “clean”… it’s just always a train wreck!!!  See Exhibit A….

This is my bedroom.  It always looks like this.  I quit making up my bed.  That would also explain why there is a mound of pillows on the floor.  The tub at the end of my bed is full of maternity clothes and the hanging rack on the right is full of maternity clothes too.  Why?  We are slap out of closet space.  But the real reason for this picture is to let y’all know that this bed is very difficult for my big ole self to crawl into now.  I understand the elderly so much more now that I am unable to do simple tasks easily at this stage in my life.

Despite my crazy daily activities I still have all of this to look forward to…

The decorating of our tiny tree (which the lights only worked on for 2 days).

 Present wrapping

 Coloring

 Time out

The annual Christmas chain!!!

 But this year we made TWO!!!  Ford and John Brantley each have one in their rooms!

 And hugs goodnight from Daddy!

And two photos never posted from The Ole Miss vs. Presbyterian game.

 I.  Love.  These.  Babies!!!!