Big Fun

*side note: I have another post all typed up but I'm not going to post it until tomorrow morning. I'm ready to hit the hay, long day!
The first big event that happened to us since leaving Virginia was that Blossom turned 6 years old. I can barely remember her as a baby but at the same time it seems like it was just yesterday that we were bringing her home from the hospital. The time really does fly by with your kids. She just keeps growing and growing, though I guess that’s better than the other way around.
We did a Strawberry Shortcake theme for her party. It was my first time doing my Berry Poke Cake at a two layer, we had a snag or two but I think it came out great. Blossom loved all her gifts and we a very thankful birthday girl. We had a family dinner of KFC, mmmm! Here are a few pics from the day… Our next big thing was our first weekend in Hawaii. We went to Hanauma Bay, it was beautiful. For those who don’t know, Hanauma Bay used to be a crater formed by a volcanic eruption. Over time it filled with water and reefs formed (you can see them great in the first picture) and the wild life flourished. You can snorkel amongst the fishies and if you go out far enough you may even see a turtle (though DaddyMac didn’t). We had a great time with our friends, the Piersons. We did learn a very valuable lesson on this day…SUNSCREEN! We learned to always use sunscreen when at the beach. This was never a problem in Virginia, maybe because we never stayed out that long there since it was so muggy and humid, I don’t know. We were at the Bay for at least 5 hours and we paid for it over the next few days. I felt (and still do) like a terrible Mom, I don’t know why it didn’t occur to me. ARGH! I am in fact still peeling from it. Here are two shots of Blossom’s and my sunburn (DaddyMac had one too but I didn’t get a picture of it).
Owies, huh?! Lesson learned. I’m adding one more picture to this post, it was taken the same day as the sunburn pics and I think it’s one of the most beautiful pictures I’ve ever taken of Blossom. She has the biggest, prettiest brown eyes I have ever seen. She really is our Brown Eyed Girl!That’s it for this post. Are your eyes crossed from all the reading? Hee Hee!

And the winner is...

Josefine Mae
To be honest, Brenna Josefine is still my favorite, but I have been out voted by Blossom & DaddyMac. We'll just keep my choice in reserve for now. I'm getting all my OB stuff transferred over here...in doing so, I found out that I'll get another ultrasound, a 3D one at that. Woot! Can't beat that! You know I'll post the pic, unless it's super creepy looking, then maybe not. =) Things are going well. Everything is falling into place faster than we thought, we're taking this as a good sign. All we really have left to do is to move into our new place, register Blossom for school and get the dod decals for the car. Oh and I have to change our address just about everywhere. That'll be fun! Actually, I should prolly start on that now while I have the time. Be back soon!

Name Options...

So, we're in Hawaii and we're trying to get everything straightened out (i.e. getting housing taken care of, getting Blossom enrolled in school, getting our finances figured out so we know which housing to take). Things are going alright. It's beautiful here, but both DaddyMac and I are in the nervous about being in a new area and getting everything taken care of. I'm sure we'll start to adjust soon. Just wanted to give a little update before I go into the real nature of this post. We've decided to use Josefine for sure for Seedling...though we've yet to decide if it will be a first or middle name, and if a middle name...what the middle name will be. We only have on option with it as the first name. So, here are the choices:
Josefine Mae
Lena Josefine (Lena is DaddyMac's gma's name)
Brenna Josefine
Gia Josefine
Those are the options we're playing with right now. Let me know your opinions...

24 down, 16 to go....

Here are the new pics. I did them a day early so my sissy could see.

24 weeks

20 weeks, for comparison
I guess there is quite a bit of difference. Enjoy!

Front Runner

So, we seem to have a front runner in the whole baby name thing. I can't promise anything but it looks like we're heading toward Josefine. It's a name that we ALL like.
DaddyMac likes the family meaning of it.
Blossom likes that we would prolly use Joey as her nickname, just like a baby kangaroo.
And I like it because it's my favorite character in the book Little Women.
Also, an added bonus... it means God shall add, which is just what he did for our family.
So, nothing is definite...but it looks like this might be it. We'll still use Mae for the middle name and we'd either call her Jo or Joey.

Movie Fun! (now edited)

So, I stole this idea from my little sister. I thought it would be a fun post to do. I did 8 instead of 7, thought it might be easier to figure out because it's on her list too. So here we go...
Okay, here's how it goes. First, I thought of seven of my favorite movies . Then, I went to IMDb and found the plot keywords for those movies. I'm going to list the keywords below, and you have to try to guess what the movies are. You can leave a message in the comments section with your guess.
As you guess the correct answers, I will post them in a different color.
#1: Audition / Ballet / Bulimia / Dance Studio / Homosexual
#2: Gymnastics / Bloopers during Credits / Championship / High School / Plagiarism
#3: Mafia / Murder / Chicago Illinois / Drag Queen
#4: Male Female Relationship / Enemy / Heroine / Comic Opera / Gilbert & Sullivan
#5: Christmas / Concert Scene / Dance / Choreography
#6: Beautiful Woman / 1960s / Sequel / Bomb Shelter / High School
#7: Monster / Dracula / Horror for Kids / Mummy / Vampire
#8: Contract / Military / Appliance Store / Drummer / Folk Song / Push Ups
Ok, let me know what you think they are...I'm sure they'll be pretty easy to guess. I like this game, even though I sucked at it with Boo's. In my defense I didn't see it until a few days after it was posted and I saw Dani's answers before I had formulated my own. Okay, enough is enough...bye!

Without a name...

Well, DaddyMac and I have been talking a lot over this last week. You all know that I wanted to use Brenna for the baby's name and DaddyMac said that he was fine with that. But last night when talking to his brother I heard him say this was going to be our last one...which I am totally fine with. But it got me thinking about how important it was to him that we use the name Joseph (it's his and his father's middle name and I think it was his paternal grandfather's too, not sure if it was his middle or first name though) had this baby been a boy. I asked him last night before bed if he wanted to use Josefine as a first or middle name if this was going to be our last child. He said he wasn't sure and that he'd think about it. There are lots of options we could do with using this name. We could use Josefine instead of Brenna and have her name be Josefine Mae. We could keep Brenna and have it be her middle name, Brenna Josefine (though I'm not sure about this, I feel like it's really long). We could use it as a middle name for a completely new first name, I like Lena with it...Lena Josefine, which happens to be his paternal grandmother's name. So the list could go on and on.
We have a lot to discuss and figure out. So, I cannot now say what Seedlings name is going to be. I have a feeling we will be discussing it up until we have her. I have enough of a wishy-washy decision making problem normally, add pregnancy hormones to that and it's a whole new ball game. I just hope we have it figured out before she gets here.
Stay tuned, Friday will be the 24 week belly pic. I'm sure you're all dying to see it, ha ha!

SURPRISE!

So, last Monday the family threw me a surprise baby shower. I kind of figured it out a little ahead of time but I did my best to act surprised. I got some great stuff and I really appreciated it. it was nice to hang out with the family, eat good food and open presents (I had three little hands that wanted to help with this). It was a fun time and I thought that I'd share some of the gifts we got.

We got the Rainforest Jumperoo, an electric baby food processor and the $$ to buy the Rainforest High Chair. We got lots of onesies, which I think this baby will just about live in it's first year. I think it's going to be so warm that it's really all we'll need. We got one newborn size, two 3month size and one 6month size. All are packs of 5. I think I need one more newborn, one more 6month, and a few 9 & 12 month packs and I'm golden.
We also got lots of bedding for Seedling. We got two great blankets, 4 or 5 crib sheets, the dust ruffle & bumper. I can't wait until it's time to set everything up in the new place. We also got a few things that aren't pictured. Some washcloths and towels...things of that nature. Everyone was so generous and we couldn't be more grateful. All this stuff is going to help out so much. Now, if I can just figure out how to get it all to Hawaii....

You asked for it...

So, I'm getting used to the new do. I'm still not totally in love with it but I don't hate it either. It'll be good in the Aloha State, while I'm getting used to different climate and it can grow as I acclimate. Hahaha!
I know it's kind of a cheesy picture, but what else do you expect from me?!

Mirror Mirror...

GET AWAY!!
So I went and got my hair cut. Blah!! I'm not sure if I don't like it or if I'm just not used to it yet. I mean, it doesn't look bad...just different. I think it's mostly that I feel even taller when my hair is short, I forgot that...I hate being tall! I'm hoping that as it grows out a little in the next few weeks it'll settle in a little more. Both DaddyMac and Blossom love it...so I guess that's saying something. She actually just came up to me and said, "Do you know why I love you so much? Because I like your hair." Kids! =) I have a feeling that I'll be staying away from the mirror for a bit, well as much as possible. It was so weird taking a shower and not having my tons of hair to wash through. WEIRD!! So, as is my usual custom, I will prolly start to grow it out again. HAHAHAHA! My BF didn't want me to cut it at all so I made her a promise that if I did cut it that I would only get trims the whole time we're in Hawaii. So it should be nice and long by the time we're back to the mainland.
Side note: DaddyMac and I were eating lunch today...and we were talking about some stuff and being happy with life, stuff like that...very profound for chicken sandwiches and fries. He asked me if I was happy. After clarifying that he meant with our life together and family I told him that I was in fact happy...but that I'd be happier if he'd let me name the baby Brenna. He chuckled and said, "Sucks for you!" You have to know him, he said this jokingly with a huge smile on his face. It's quite possible that he is going to give in. Both Blossom and I prefer this name and he knows that I basically give (and have given) him everything he wants, so maybe this time he can. We shall see.

Double Dilemma

So, I'm having some conflicting things going on with me right now. Nothing life altering, just little things that I'd like to figure out.
First, I'm thinking of cutting my hair. I know they say you're not supposed to do things like that while you're pregnant...but it's not as if I've never had short hair. I don't hate my hair short, I don't hate it long. I've been thinking about it for a while. I have a tendency to grow my hair out then cut if off, then grow it out then cut it off. It's just on of my things. And this time I would have my bangs with it which I think would look cute. So I'm setting up an appointment. Regardless of whether I cut it or not, I need a trim at least. So I gotta figure this one out before my appointment comes up, I'll figure that out tomorrow.
My second dilemma is that I am having iffies about the name Evelyn again. It's not that I don't like the name...I do. I like the nick name too. But I LOVE LOVE LOVE the name Brenna. I don't know why...maybe is because it sounds so Irish to me. I know that DaddyMac loves Evelyn, but I've never been as into it as he is. Do I just give it to him? I feel like things like this always go his way...but darnnit *stamping my foot* I want mine!! That was me throwing a tiny baby fit. Please excuse. I haven't really brought it up to him yet. Not sure if I should. I don't know what to do...I just thought I'd throw this out there and see if anyone can tell me anything that would help.
On another note, our vacation is going very well. We're calling about getting our plane tickets changed tomorrow so we can fly out of a closer airport. Please say a prayer that it's doable and affordable. Blossom starts her day camp tomorrow and is so excited. It's all she can talk about. I remember the first year we took her she didn't want to go. She's growing up so fast. We did a little shopping and got some good deals on some summer stuff for her. We've loved hanging out with the family and will miss being able to see them on a semi-regular basis. I really hope that people can come visit us while we're there. Maybe it'll make living on an island so far away from family a little more bearable if I have visits to look forward to. We had a lil good news...DaddyMac will be around for Seedlings birth. Woot! he will be leaving for a month of training shortly after the expected due date, but shouldn't be heading out until early '08. This is such an answer to prayer. My MIL may come out when we have the baby which would be do helpful, especially with helping make sure Blossom doesn't feel left out. My SIL pointed out that maybe his leaving for training could get me induced a little early so that he'll be around for sure for a little bit before he leaves. I am all for reasons to have the baby a little early. I had Blossom 2 weeks early and I really can't picture going full term...plus I'm already having trouble breathing. I get out of breath so quick and I'm only 22 weeks, I can't imagine how it will be toward the end.
Alrighty, I'm starting to ramble and Seedling is apparently getting sick of me sitting up as she is kicking the crap out of my waistband.
"Ooohhh, she's gonna be a socca playa!" Movie, Name It!?

A Father's Love...

DaddyMac loves his baby girl and he can't wait to have another. Most Dad's want a little boy to carry on the name, or what not...but not my man. He loves his girls and he totally has the heart for it. He's been ready for a girl since before Blossom was born. When I was pregnant with her we were at my Mom's visiting. I was sitting on the couch with a few of my sisters and one of them leans over and whispers, "You so need to have a little girl." I look over and there is DaddyMac trying to braid the hair of a Barbie doll while one of my nieces watched. It was the cutest thing you have ever seen. I knew then he would be the BEST Dad!
We've taken many a road trip since Blossom was born and on the last few she's complained about her rear hurting after the hours of driving. DaddyMac remembered this little tidbit and decided that she needed a custom made pillow for her booster seat for our ride up to the fams next week. So he made her a little pillow last night out of some memory foam and a couple of his old cami blouses. Pretty much all by himself...I helped with a little bit of sewing but he planned it all out. Not a lot of men would go to this trouble, they'd just tell the kid to suck it up, stuff like that. Not DaddyMac...he can't stand the thought of his little girluncomfortable for so long a period of time.
We picked her up from the birthday party she was at and showed her the pillow, she sat right down on it. She loves it!! I heard her in the shower this morning. DaddyMac had gone in to wash her hair and she said, "I really like that pillow you made me Daddy." He says, "Oh yeah? You like that?" I could just hear in his voice the pride and the joy that he made her happy, that he took care of his little girl. He has such a giving and loving heart. I have to be the luckiest woman in the world to have him and her.

Dear...

Readers...(haha, like I have a ton of readers)
I've switched up the blog a little, as you can see. I loved this quote I found (at the top) so I found a blog that would work with it. I don't know what it is, but I need to change things up every once in a while. As one of my sisters once said, maybe it's from moving around a lot as a kid while my Dad was in the military. Not that I was old enough to remember the moving around part, but that's the excuse I'm using and I'm sticking to it.
The man of the house will now be knows as DaddyMac (like Macintosh, doesn't the name just fit him). My eldest will be Blossom, as in the apple blossom. She's past the seedling phase, but she's not yet a fully ripened apple. The soon to be will be called Seedling. I know she's not here yet, so she's technically still a seed, but she is growing in there like a seedling does.
So, this ends our explanation part of our blog...continue.
Pink Lady (my favorite apple)

Last two scrap pages...(updated)

So, I went and scrapbooked with some very cool ladies today. I wish we had gotten together more while we were here. I did two pages, well, I did one and started another. The first is a growth chart that I lifted off another person's layout the second is off the PencilLines sketch for this week.

I really like how this one turned out. It has a fresh feeling that I like. I'll add WonderEvie's name to it once we have her, just to be safe. You all know how we are and changing our minds. ;)
Updated: Okay, I finished it. The journaling says-I love you more everyday! That's been our saying since we were dating and it couldn't be more true. When we got married 7 years ago I didn't think I could possibly love you any more, boy was I wrong! Everyday I find something new or a new way to love you. You make me laugh, you make me smile, you love me. I can't imagine how much I'll love you in the 7 more years. I can't wait...

I'm not sure what else to do with this one. I know it needs something, I'm just not sure what. So any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

This will prolly be my last time scrapping until we get all our stuff in Hawaii. We found out we'll be flying in on the 16th. SO EXCITING!! We mostly likely won't get our furniture and house stuff until mid-August, so today was very nice, a sort of last hurrah before setting aside one of my favorite hobbies for a month or so. I'll just spend that first month there scouting out scrapbooking stores...

Big Sis Page!

So, I got this sketch off of the Pencil Lines blog. I've never done one of those and I really enjoyed it. So here is the page (I've posted the sketch below)...

The journaling says:
You're so lucky to have Rye as a big sister!
She likes to sing to you in my tummy.
She gives you hugs and kisses.
Ryelie is so excited to meet you!
It was fun, something I'll definitely try again.

WonderRye

I just had to post these pics of WonderRye. She is such a ham and so beautiful, inside and out. She's trying to toughen up and be more obedient and we couldn't be more proud. She also is trying new foods!! This is huge for her. She now takes bites of whatever we're having for dinner. We're still working on the gagging noises and icky faces, but we've come a long way.
Tell me she isn't the prettiest thing in the whole wide world! I know you can't really see it, but those are hearts, start and skulls on the shirt. She loves doing the skull stuff, especially since Daddy is so into the skull stuff. Anything to be like Daddy! They've been inseparable since he came home on Monday. It's a beautiful thing to see.

20 week pic...

16 weeks (for comparison)

20 weeks
Things are going well. I've been becoming short of breath very easily which is rather annoying for me. This little girl likes to kick and push out my belly until I am very uncomfortable. That u/s picture of her sticking out her long ol' legs, I think she's doing it in there. It feels like this picture..


But I'll handle it. =) I'll post another post soon about some of the stuff I have picked out for WonderEvie. It's all so cute! Oh, quick question...which spelling is better, Evie or Evey? Just wondering...

We have a name...

I'm not sure if I should post her name on here or not. So, I'm not going to put her full name on here, better safe than sorry. I will be emailing friends and family our little girls name. I will be now refering to the girls as WonderRye (my eldest) and WonderEvie (the baby). So, that's a bit of a hint.
In other news, WonderRye lost her second tooth today. She actually pulled it out at school. I think she did it for the sole purpose of getting the sticker and little box that the school nurse gives out in such cases. Anyone who knows her she's a little too girly to be pulling out teeth normally. So now she has a cute little pink Tooth Saver treasure chest. She was very excited.
Another funny little thing. Yesterday we were at the ER for 5 hours! Mr.Wonder had a bug bite that had made his arm swell up. Something about the bugs down in NC just don't agree with him. When we were waiting for him to get his Benadryll shot WonderRye was quizzing us on various animals & dinosaurs. She said the funniest thing when approaching the dinosaur subject. She goes, "Way back in the 1980s...when dinosaurs walked the earth..." Mr.Wonder and I could not stop laughing. I still start to chuckle when I think about it. I'm glad I remembered to share it on here so I'll never forget it (I seem to forget quickly these days).
That's it for today. Much love to all!

We're Tickled Pink...

Well, we had the ultrasound today and it was great. Wonderkid had such a good time, though she did have a little trouble when she found out that WonderBun was going to be a little sister. She really wanted a brother. I told her that maybe in a few years we'll try for a brother, but even then it wouldn't be for sure. I think it'll take her a little bit to get used to the idea. So the the heartrate was 150...and the tech said everything looked perfect. She started out curled up in a little ball, then she'd stick her one leg out real far, like WonderKid used to do when we'd change her diaper. It took a few minutes before we were able to figure out she was a little girl, but it was very clear once we did. I can already see that she has her sister's stubborness, she kept wiggling away from the tech and trying to kick at it. It was very fun to watch. So the due date is still the 2nd or 3rd of November and everything looks right on track. So without further ado, here are the newest pictures of our baby girl...

Already a modest girl, Daddy will be so proud!

She's found her thumb already, smart girl...

Looks like a girl!

Girl Power!

No ultrasound is complete w/o a skeletor picture!

This was one of the best ultrasound I have ever had. I wish Mr.Wonder could have been there. We go to see her sticking out her tongue and yawning, WonderKid really loved that. I can't wait to hold this little girl in my arms.

New Scrap Page

Well, I've had this page planned out for a while. I've tweaked it a little and added a little to make it a two page layout instead of just one page. The page on the left has a bunch of old wives tales and what they predict that we're having. The right, the predictions of family members. Obviously the tales and predictions were printed on the color paper that corresponds with gender (pink for girl, blue for boy). I think it turned out pretty well and it will be a great addition to the baby's scrapbook (though I haven't gotten around to buying that yet, even though I have a whole list of pages I want to do for it). I wanted to get it done before Monday, when we (hopefully) find out what we're having.
Looking at it now, I probably should have been smiling in that picture. I didn't realize that my face would be in it. Oh well...we'll call it a moment of deep thought. ;)