Misc.

Today the kids and I went to the mall.  First Son needed a new pair of sneakers and there is a store there that has great prices.  What a proud Mama Moment that was as my 12yo paid for his own sneakers out of his Living Expenses money that he had been saving all summer from his mowing jobs.  We use Doorposts' Stewardship Street to teach the kids money management.  It has been a great resource for our family.

I was also able to get some nursing bras while we were there.  What a monkey off my back that is!  LoL  I have been stressing a bit over a few dangling issues that still need to be taken care of before Second Daughter is born, and this was one of them.  Check!  All done.  :-)

The mall has a great indoor playground for kids.  First Daughter said, "We want to take "Third Son" onto the playground.  We're too big to play, but we'll just stay with him."  Yeah, right.  I saw right through that one, but they only had to be reminded once to focus on their real mission, which was to keep Third Son from being trampled by the 20,000 other kids who were also playing at the playground.

As I sat sprawled out on the cushioned bench in all my pregnant glory, I was taken back in time when it was just First Son and me.  There were tons of first-time moms there with their sweet ones.  They all were so careful and attentive, and followed their children around, ready to protect them from falls onto the 10-inch thick matting.  And if they happened to make eye contact with another mom, their conversation totally centered around their children and the things they said or did.  I remember all that!  Do you?  I used to climb up into the tunnels of McDonald's with First Son.  That stopped after we ended up sharing one part of the tunnel with a baby girl who had a stinky diaper.  Eeeeewwww!  There is NO ventilation in those tunnels, and that poor girl followed us everywhere we went. 

But I remember being a first-time mom.  What  a new world that was back then.  Everything that First Son did amazed me.  And while we are still mightily impressed with Third Son and his antics, we have seen and been through many of the same situations with the other kids that we now find ourselves in with Third Son.  That's not a totally bad thing.....First and Only Husband and I definitely have more of a handle on things than we did way back then.  But still, it's fun to think of the newness of life as a parent.  To wonder, and marvel at all we were learning, and have learned since then.  The really neat thing is that I doubt we are through learning.

On another note, a friend loaned me four of her brand new, unopened! Drive Thru History DVDs to use after Second Daughter is born.  I am not usually very quick in the recovery department, so I try to have some things on-hand to keep the kid's minds at least halfway working while I snooze on the couch.  After Third Son's birth, we went through all the Moody Science DVDs.  Man, those were worth every penny.  We'll probably go through those again, as well as the Drive Thru History DVDs and other things that we already have around.

But not only did my friend bring the DVDs for us to use, but also some Pumpkin Bread.  It was SO good, and saved me from having to make biscuits to go with our dinner tonight.  That was the biggest blessing of all, because standing in the kitchen making dinner wears me out these days.  So thank you, Friend!  Please send the recipe.  :-)