Still here

So much time has passed since I've blogged. I've had lots to say but also so much to do and I haven't taken time to write. I have been reading all of my favs faithfully. It is my sanity break. I can't really pinpoint what I've been up to but I feel like I haven't slowed down in weeks and there is no end in sight. I think I may be in a nesting mode. I don't really remember that with my first daughter but if I had the instinct it was much closer to my due date. This time around I am tearing apart all of my closets and reorganizing, trying to organize the garage, cabinets, you name it. This morning I came home from dropping Madison off at school and opened the freezer to take out something for dinner and decided that I could just absolutely not take one more minute of the mess it there and just started pulling everything out until the whole thing was empty. I must say that some of these projects, especially the little ones like the freezer this morning, are giving me a great sense of accomplishment and a feeling of peace for some reason. Some of the other big projects are bringing me a lot of anxiety especially as we get down to the wire with this baby. There is so much I want to do. With Madison I pained murals on her walls - scenes from Beatrix Potter's Tales of the Flopsy Bunnies. They came out amazing I must say. I was just shocked as I didn't know I had it in me. This time around I don't think there will be any murals although I am toying with an idea for a tree with butterflies that I say in a pregnancy magazine the other day at the doctor's office. I am leaning towards painting a couple of canvases because the walls in our house are textured (YUCK! - Hate them) and I think it could be problematic for me. I am leaning towards a Teddy bear tea party theme and have some ideas in mind. Thankfully the bedding I had made for Madison's nursery is in excellent condition and so I will be able to use that again. It's pink and green and I think just lovely. I was not pleased with anything I saw when I was pregnant the first time and then we went to Charleston one weekend and I found some beautiful Laura Ashley fabric that I fell in love with. Thinking that my sewing skills were much better than they were I ordered the fabric, bought a pattern and planned to make the bedding myself. Reality set in and I came to my senses so I asked my mother to make it for me as she used to sew when we were kids. She said yes and then realized she was in over her head and hired someone to do it for her. In the end it was quite an expensive set of bedding but so very beautiful for a preppy little baby and I am happy to be able to use it again. The crib is white and will arrive today or tomorrow. I am going to have my husband paint the walls green I think. Madison's room is very pink and they are down the hall from one another with the bathroom between them so I think it will look nice from the hall too. So now I just need to find an armoire and a dresser and a rocker and I will be set. Until then, I am fretting about it. I cannot find what I want. With Madison we wanted antique white and distressed - took two years to find - now it is everywhere and of course we want pure white this time to match the crib we bought. I do not want kids furniture because the last time we used it for two years and then wanted to replace it with something she can use throughout college and then keep if she'd like. I'd like to just eliminate the baby stuff this time around but I am not finding what I want and I am running out of time. I have also been planning a Big Sister Party for Madison and her friends. We are going to invite all of her girlfriends who are big sisters (most of them) and celebrate being a big sister - no presents just a celebration. We have some games planned - diapering races, the baby food game and a game that Madison made up where the girls will go around the circle and tell the best and worst thing about being a big sister. At the end the girls will vote and the one with the most votes wins a price. We're going to have a chocolate fountain (her request after having one at the Father Daughter Dance) and some cupcakes and other goodies. For favors we will have a candy table set up with baby bottles to fill with the candy. Should be lots of fun. Our color theme is pink & green and I am looking for cute invitations and paper goods now and finalizing our date. Everyone has a different spring break so it's hard to work around that. My baby shower is in the works. One of my dear friends (and co room mom last year) is hosting it for me at the Tampa Club so that should be lots of fun. We're not going to play games or anything like that just have a nice lunch and get together. So I am looking forward to that but it is not until May 1st. We are also planning Madison's 7th birthday party and we are going to do that in May too. Her birthday is the same week as my c-section so I am glad I convinced her to move her party up a few weeks. I also convinced her to have it out again this year so that will be so much less work for me. It will probably be the least fabulous party she has ever had as I have set the bar pretty high in past years but it is the best I can do this year and the Big Sister party will be pretty fabulous so I think she'll live. Other than that just trying to keep up with day to day craziness. Madison's school auction was a few weeks ago - lots of fun but an expensive night! We did get some great things though - the best being grand stand seats at the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Grandparents Day at her school was last weekend so we had the grandparents here visiting for several days which was nice. Father Daughter dance was in Feb and very cute. I'll have to upload pictures. I think my next post will just be all the pictures I have been meaning to upload. Next week they are doing the Oscars at her school and the parents are also encouraged to dress up - that should be interesting. Had lunch a couple of weeks ago with some other moms from her class and they all had presents for the baby,etc. It was a surprise sprinkle which I thought was so thoughtful. Mostly fun stuff going on although we have been having some concerns about Madison lately and have been meeting with her teacher and school counselor. We have an appt next week with a psychotherapist. I had noticed a difference in her and wanted to see if the school was seeing the same. It's a long story and definitely something to write about another day but it has been hard and I just wish I could make it better for her. Hoping it turns out to be nothing serious. So, that is a quick recap of the last couple months of my life in case you were wondering. I'll try to be more regular with my posting from now on!