Getting closer!

It's the last day of my seventh month, so I made sure to have Matt take a picture of me TODAY since we haven't taken any other ones this month! Oops!

That means I'll be 32 weeks (entering my eighth month) tomorrow, which means I only have eight short weeks until my due date! It's funny though, when I had 14 weeks left I was panicking thinking that it would just fly by and there was no way I could get everything done, there was so much to do, oh my goodness etc, but now that I'm closer I feel like it's starting to drag by! Rhett's room is a total mess of decorations laying in his crib, and extra furniture has been stashed there until we can find them a new home. Not to mention we need to get all of the baby items (swing, bouncer, bath tub, receiving blankets, bassinet, bottles) back out!

I know I'll hit another nesting streak soon and feel like there isn't enough time again, but until then I'm enjoying being lazy and cuddling with my little guy. :)

September came and went like that. I can't believe we are in the last week of the month, and I only have a couple more Doctor's appointments until they start seeing me EVERY WEEK!

Baby Rhett has been kicking and punching me like a little crazy man. He's too big to do somersaults now, so now he's just streeeetching and making my belly do some serious gymnastics. He's also VERY fond of kicking and punching my bladder! Oh my!

Websites say that baby Rhett is about 3.75 pounds now, and around 16.7 in long. The next two months will be when he (and I) will be packing on the pounds so he'll be ready to make an appearance! We're curious to see if he will be early like his big brother, or if he will make us wait until or past his due date on November 23!

 On another note, Mr. Case man will be attending his very first day of "school" on Thursday! It's a Mother's Morning Out Program, only a few hours but I am so excited for him! We went to visit today and he dove right in and played with the cars and stacking blocks. I think he'll do great! They have a drop in program where I can take him whenever I need to or would like to instead of enrolling and paying monthly. (Which is so nice!) I'll definitely be taking advantage of this for Doctor's appointments (like this Thursday) and to let Case have some play time after this newborn rocks his world!

Can't wait to see how he does on his first day, and can't wait to hear that sweet heartbeat again on Thursday :)

Things to Remember

We had our second year appointment for Case, and besides the stats I started thinking about how I want to remember the little things about this age forever. 

So here it goes...

He is 34 1/4 inches tall, and a whopping 25 1/2 lbs. Doctor said he is perfectly on track with his height and weight since birth, and that he will be long and lean.

We asked about his sometimes picky eating habits and his vocabulary, and our pediatrician assured us that the eating was very normal and that he was healthy and doing great. He told us Case wasn't leading the pack in his word development but wasn't behind either. He said to watch it for the next several months, and if we were still a little concerned we could address it then.
His vocabulary has already started to expand. He's starting to repeat more and more and say two word sentences more often. I think he'll be fine. :)

He has excellent fine and large motor skills, he has some serious eye and hand coordination going on, and we are pretty sure he's going to be a lefty.(Daddy's pretty excited about this because the boy LOVES baseball...and football...and golf...and basketball)

He is still very cuddly, in the mornings and the evenings when he's a little bit sleepy he will cuddle up with us on our laps forever. I am cherishing every moment of this because I know it won't last forever!

He loves to say "Bye bye, See ya!"

He gives Mommy and Daddy kisses all of the time, and he's getting pretty good at hugs. 

I catch him telling himself "Good Job" when he's playing. :)

His favorite toys right now are matchbox cars, trucks and blocks. 

He loves to read before bedtime, and he's very particular about which books. He wants to pick them out himself :)

He loves to brush his teeth, but hates getting his hair washed. 

His new favorite movie is Shrek. He got it for his birthday and we have watched it probably about 20 times since the party! He laughs at the funny parts, says "Ohhh Noooo!" in the scary parts and dances with the music. It's so cute!

He loves watching Football with Daddy.

He loves to play and explore in the park. 

He says thank you. 

He holds our hand when we are out, and when getting things out of the car he waits right next to me with his hand in the air, waiting for me to take it.

He hates when Gunner tramples over his toys or licks his face while he's busy playing. 

He loves when Daddy comes home, and sometimes during the day he will look for Daddy all over the house- those are the days we call Daddy and talk to him for a few minutes. :)

He loves his family, he gets so excited when he sees them and knows everybody's names. (This includes his favorite "Aunts and Uncles")

Some of his favorite foods include: Spaghetti, Pizza, Turkey, Cheese and Sweet Potatoes. 

He runs and romps, and is so tough. Several times this summer we found a bloody knee or elbow after the incident because he rarely cries when he falls down!

He is still a champion sleeper. He goes to bed between 8 and 8:30pm and wakes up around 7:30 to 8am. He's still napping 2-3 hours a day.

He tests our limits, and we've had a few "time outs" but so far he is a very good listener. :) (Yes, I'm savoring that for as long as it lasts too!)

He's a pretty awesome kid, with the sweetest heart. He's growing up so fast!

Sorry for my sappy post, but I'm pregnant and emotional so I'm allowed :)

Happy 2nd Birthday Little Man!

Happy Birthday Sweet Boy!

The last two years with you have been absolutely amazing, Daddy and I have loved every single second of it, and can't believe you are already two years old!

We celebrated his birthday party with family and close friends, it was a full house but so much fun!

On his actual birthday, Wednesday September 22 we went to Boyd's Orchard. I'm not sure who loves that place more, Case or Mommy! We walked through the pumpkins, found a "Choo choo", pet the animals, went for a ride in a wagon, and even got to take a hayride!

Look at this sweet two year old!

I'm TWO!

That night after dinner, Matt and I surprised him with our gift, a big wheel bike! 

Mommy sat with him on the couch while Daddy pushed it into the living room. His eyes got SO big and he kept saying "Bike! Bike!" It was priceless!

 You are the best little guy with such a sweet heart. Thank you for making our last two years so much more amazing.

Love you little man!

Big Boy Room!

Our little man is officially a big boy now!

We were so excited about switching Case to a big boy room, and I had so much fun painting, and putting everything together last week. I still have some pictures to print to put in the frames, and a few more decorations to put up here and there, but other than that it is finished!

Case was so excited when he saw the bed set up for the first time, he kept shouting "Bed! Bed!" and jumping up and down on it :)

Case did SO well the first night in his big boy bed! Matt was bowling that evening, so I was tackling the big change all by myself. I gave him a bath, and read to him and rocked him for a few minutes like we do every night, turned his fan on, then literally just laid him in his big boy bed said "Good Night Case, Mommy and Daddy love you so much" and slipped out the door.

I stood there for a few minutes listening, to see if he would crawl out and start playing with his toys or something, but it was completely quiet. Then I ventured downstairs, but I was so anxious! I just knew he would start crying, fall out, or I would hear him playing with his toys since he had all of this freedom now. None of those happened though, he slept soundly the entire night, and the next morning before Matt left for work we heard him talking a little bit, and went ahead and opened his door...

He has his eyes closed, but that's what I get for taking a picture with a flash at 7 in the morning! Poor guy!

 

He's looking at me like I am crazy because I'm making SUCH a big deal that he slept all night in his 

BIG BOY BED!!!

 I was so happy that he had a successful first night, but was still worried about nap time. He did so well though, he went right down and slept for two hours. I knew he was awake and ready to play when I heard knocking on his door! It was so cute!

However, Day #2 didn't go as well as Day #1. 

He woke up twice the second night, absolutely terrified. I'm not sure if he fell out, crawled out then got scared or what, but I ran quickly in around midnight and 5am. Then when nap time rolled around, I had to be very firm and lay him back down three times and say "It's nap time now Case, you need to stay in your bed" He eventually settled down and took a pretty good nap, but it was a struggle.

Day #3 was as successful as Day #1, and we haven't had any problems since! (Knock on Wood) Our sweet neighbor was cleaning out her garage and found a very tall bed rail that she let us have. We put that up after the second night, and we lay his pillow sham up next to him on the other side. I think that has helped him to feel a little more secure in there.

We're so happy the transition went well, and that he will be very settled in his room before baby Rhett comes!

We are so proud of our official big boy!

 

Big Boy Room Update:

I've added a few pictures, and a shelf! I was going to sit down and paint a few things for Case but as soon as I sat down to do it I lost all motivation. So, instead of painting my reference pictures I had looked up, I had Matt print them out at work in 4x6's and it worked out perfectly! 

 Seems a little bit more finished now, and Case is still doing fantastic in his big boy room!

Last Weekend

Case and I have been traveling machines! 

We went to Ashland for Labor Day weekend, and to my Granny's house this past weekend. Both weekends without Daddy! Matt has his review classes on Saturdays and couldn't make it. :(

The trips were very successful, we got to visit with family and we took care of a few things on the to do list! 

1. Taking the Gun Cabinet back to Ashland for Storage (Thanks again Mamaw and Papaw!)

2. Take Mr. Max to Kelli so he can have a new toddler free life with his new Mommy Kelli! 

3. Pick up Case's Big Boy Bed for Case from my Granny's House

4. ...and of course go shopping in Granny's Basement and Barn :)

Granny's house was so much fun as always, Avery caught a frog with her own two hands and literally brought it into the house like that! We're pretty sure she was braver than her older brothers! She kept it in an old ice cream tub that her Dad cut holes in the entire weekend. So cute! She let the little thing go on Granny's water fountain the last day. :)

Granny has been in the process of clearing out the barn and basement for a while now, and Amy and I love an opportunity to go "shopping"! We found two sweet little end tables for Case's room, Amy took home a gorgeous black trunk of Granny's, some tables and I found a really pretty cream and green pitcher.

All the sorting through led to Granny wanting to find her Wedding Dress, and we got to see some GORGEOUS dresses that she had worn or borrowed over the years. They were so well made and so classic.

Here's Granny holding up her wedding dress! They are both so beautiful :)

...and then Avery and Case got to eat ice cream out of a tub...

LOVE IT! :)

...and the next morning they snuggled...

How unbelievably sweet is this?

We love spending time with all of our family, it was so nice to be able to visit two weekend in a row!

Labor Day Weekend

Our lives have been pretty hectic lately! 

We were thankful for the long weekend, Case and I went to visit Nanny, Poppy, Mamaw, Papaw and Kelli this weekend while Matt stayed behind and studied without a little toddler running around :)

We wish Matt could have joined us, but he hopefully had some valuable time to soak in all that engineering stuff. ;) 

 Pregnancy brained Liz forgot the pack n play, and since we haven't switched Case over to a big boy bed yet - I was very worried about how the first night would go in Ashland. Case is such an amazing sleeper, but it's because he has a routine, black out curtains, a box fan and a safe comfortable crib to climb into and drift to sleep! We weren't sure how or where or what we were going to do! We eventually came to the conclusion to try and let him sleep with Nanny and Poppy. He was quiet going down, so I thought all was well. He woke up once crying but seemed to settle back down quickly. Well - I could tell in the morning by the look on Nanny's face and the coffee pouring as quickly as possible that they didn't get much sleep! Apparently Case likes to sleep horizontally and he was pushing both of them to the very edge of the bed. Not fun! 

Nanny and Poppy thought it would be a good investment to go ahead and get a pack n play to keep at the house for all the future babies, that way everyone wouldn't have to haul their portable cribs while visiting. I'm so so so thankful they did that! We ran to Wal Mart and picked up a nice one, Case took a nap like an angel as soon as we set it up, and we all had an amazing night of sleep that evening!

We are also so thankful that Mamaw and Papaw allowed us to bring back Matt's gun cabinet so we could store it there instead of in our two year old's room! (Which had served as a guest room until now) Mama just wasn't too happy about having hunting guns (even though they were safely stored) so close to her curious little boy.

We also brought our dog Max to Kelli, he has a new Mama and a new home in North Carolina! Matt and I are sad to see him leave, he's such a good boy! It's just that Mr. Max does not care for Case so much. Whenever Case is around, or trying to pet him or get near him Max growls and sinks behind a chair or table warning him not to come any closer. He has had to spend his days upstairs or outside and not around us during the day because of this. Then Gunner came along, and Gunner just drives him crazy. They would play outside together, but other than that Max was so over the big puppy wanting to lick his face. Kelli told Matt that he did great on the ride home, we know he will love the one on one attention and will be such a great dog for Kelli! Plus, we'll get to see him on holidays!

We drove back to Lexington early Monday afternoon, we wanted to come spend the day with Daddy :) I made the mistake of telling Case we were going to go see Daddy that morning and he ran to the front door saying "Daddy! Daddy? Daddy!" looking for him! We knew it was time to go home!

We had a relaxing weekend, and now I am ready to "nest" again! 

This week I am planning to clean out the guest room, reorganize the things we had stored in that closet, and start painting! We picked out a beautiful light, stormy, gray blue color for Case's room. I can not WAIT to piece everything together! We are picking up his big boy bed from Granny's this weekend! Then I can start setting up Rhett's room as well! So exciting!

Will also be getting ready for Case's birthday party, we decided last night that we are just going to have it here again. Matt promised me he would help me clean, so I can handle it now :) We're deciding on the menu and looking forward to having our family and close friends celebrate with us! I can't believe it's only a couple of weeks away!