Our camping excursion

Last year we traveled down to Disneyland after tax season ended and decided it was the perfect time for a much needed family vacation. So before tax season got too busy this year we decided to plan another trip. We thought about Disneyland again but William had been asking to go fishing and camping a lot, so we decided to do that instead. And, as much as I looooove Disney, camping ended up much better for me this year. I can't imagine walking around the park for 3 days straight!!!

After my day to myself on the 16th we headed down to 'lake' San Antonio on the 17th. We had plans to stay for 2 nights and come home Saturday in time for Easter Sunday. 

The draught has really dried up the lake and it was pretty sad to see the markings of where the water levels had been before. But it was still beautiful and we loved that we were the only people around our site.

Austin and William went fishing first thing while I got camp ate up and food settled. And rested ;)

I'm pretty sure the boat entrance to the lake is supposed to be where this cable is! Sad :(

William was primarily excited for 2 things: fishing and s'mores. So we went back to the fishing area twice a day, sometimes a third time. We didn't catch anything but he didn't care. He thought it was a blast!

He liked sitting by the fire and toasting marshmallows. It was a little frustrating because he liked for the marshmallows to catch on fire, but he only like s'mores with perfectly golden marshmallows. So someone ate a lot of burnt marshmallows. (Someone is not me)

Our site was right by a playground which was awesome. Anytime we were cooking he was able to climb and play and we could still watch him.

We learned that a homeless family was living nearby at the site by the showers. They had 2 kids, a second grader and kindergartner, and the kids loved playing with William. It was really sad for us to see and we were reminded what a fortunate child William is. The 5 year old girl commented multiple times how she wished they had a tent like ours because she's tired of sleeping in their car. :( we shared some food with them and William shared juice boxes a lot, but the parents very clearly didn't want help or handouts and didn't quite seem to either accept their current place in life or see anything wrong. So, we did our best to respect their authority as the parents and didn't give too much to the kids. (Just enough)

Overall we had a great time. The weather was absolutely gorgeous - even though I had to reacquaint myself with temperatures above 75 degrees :) and the most important mission was accomplished: mission relaxation.

Isn't the bark worse than the bite?

So I had my hospital tour last night. Didn't quuuuuuuite go as I'd imagined it in my head.

When I booked the tour I almost felt silly - who needs a hospital tour for a second pregnancy? Well, a military wife does for sure because I didn't even know how to find the front entrance to the hospital. So it was a good thing I hadn't put that off until labor.

Beyond needing navigation directions I thought I'd kind of be a veteran on the tour. Instead I found some glaring and disturbing differences between me and the 4 tiny barely pregnant (yet 7 months pregnant) women walking the halls hand in hand with their husbands.

Wanna know the main ones? Sure ya do.

#1 I haven't flashed my left hand more since I acquired my engagement ring in 2006. I needed the other tour participants to know that while I was the only person there flying solo, I did in. Fact have a partner in this journey called pregnancy. Why wasn't my partner there? Well, kids can't go on hospital tours. For the life of me I can't imagine why! But that's the rule, so Austin had to stay home with William while I learned my way around the hospital all by my lonesome. 

Well, my lonesome and the 4 petite women I already mentioned. Which leads me to #2

#2 it's not a lie when people tell you that you're bigger in your second pregnancy. I found out that all of the other newbie moms were also due in June except it looked to me like they were due in July,'or even August, while I could be due next week. Would you believe one of these...women...had on non-maternity blue jeans AND a belt? At 7 months pregnant!!! Really lady, no one likes a bragger.

#3 apparently first time moms are much more educated than second time moms. Or maybe I just live under a rock? As the nurse took apart the labor and delivery bed and I fought the urge to have the most frightened face in the room, I suddenly heard these young guns asking questions with words and phrases of which I've never heard. Last time I checked a squat bar was something in a gym and something I very much look forward to reacquainting myself with this summer. In a delivery room???? Uh???? I'm missing something. And ropes? And tied up sheets? What are we here for again????

#4 and quite possibly the biggest: either I have the worst poker face in the world or I was by far the most scared woman in the room. The only one who has actually given birth, I was more squirmish than a kindergartner one hour before Christmas break. Everyone else? Nice a relaxed, sitting back, enjoying the talks of exercise balls and back labor and pushing and bodily fluids and other items I'll leave out. Not me, I wanted to run for the doors and go screaming down the streets.

Apparently being a veteran means nothing. And apparently knowledge isn't power cause I know what labor is like and I was far more frightened than anyone else in the room. Suddenly June 17 seems way, way too soon.

Timothy Thursday

We are just about out the door for our camping trip. William is SO excited to go sleep in the tent, have campfires and go fishing. He's been asking for months to go and when Austin bought him a tackle box last week his face beamed with pride.

So before we go I'll just give you a quick little story about the perspective of a child.

Tax season wasn't easy - no a tax season was hard for William. I'm not sure why this year was harder than other busy times, but I'd guess its a combination of feeding of my heightened stress and knowing a baby is coming. Either way, it was a struggle especially toward the end. Austin and I worked a lot with him and his teachers to make things as exciting and stable as possible and kept using our camping trip and other things as focal points for him to think of when he was struggling. I also told him that I'd take him to a special breakfast on Wednesday before school to celebrate the end of tax season.

In my mind, a special breakfast meant going to a sit down restaurant. Being served by a waitress. Unlimited (decaf) coffee, pancakes, eggs, maybe some sausage -- the works. 

But for William? A special breakfast just meant going to breakfast with mommy because clearly the location isn't what made it special. He picked einsteins.

So, before my relaxing day off, complete with shopping, a massage, lunch with Austin and a little crafting, William and I had breakfast at einsteins. 

He loved it, and that's what mattered.

A Prince's Suite

Princess Kate of ... Ok I don't know where she is from or what she is 'of' - Wellington? Cambridge? Who knows. Anyway, she's busy making over their palace and their royal apartment. Or something. I think I saw a headline on people. Ok my story is losing strength.

Princess Kate is making over their living quarters and designing Prince George's living quarters. Meanwhile, halfway around the globe, Prince Charles is having his suite designed as well.

Suite may be a stretch, but we'll go with it. It's almost a suite. It's a room with a closet...and it has a bed (crib) and a couch. So it's kind of like a suite right?

We haven't been busy worker bees like we were with William but hey - I've been a crazy insane worker bee with tax season and we have still been busy bees with William, so I'd say the fact that Charles has a mini-suite in the making at all is quite successful. If it were a third child (ahem...like me...) it'd be lucky to have a place to lay its head. :)

So - some updates for ya.

Austin refinished our/his/cici's old nightstands. Candace told me she bought them sometime around 1984, so they're about as old as me. She passed them on to Austin when they moved in with his step dad, and Austin took them when he moved into his first non-barracks place. We had them in our Denver house up until the last year or so and then we moved them to our guest room where they've resided ever since. They were constructed very well and the quality is great, so it was hard to ever imagine getting rid of them, they style just wasn't quite right for us. (Me) 

When I first pitched the idea to Austin I heard some grumbles so I thought I'd drop it. Next thing I knew he bought some sand paper and pitched some ideas right back at me! A few marital lessons along the way (amazing what you can learn by refinishing furniture) and hours of Austin's love poured in, we have a finished product!

Here they are in the first few stages of construction. It's hard to tell but he actually used his router to make the edging different than it used to be - has a softer feel to it, I like it a lot! Nice subtlety.

We found out halfway through the project that the top drawer was fitted for 3 inch handles and the bottom 2 was fitted for4 inch handles. This made hardware shopping challenging because there are very few matching handles of different sizes at local hardware stores. We finally found some we liked, then found out they really were fitted for custom handles...2 7/8 inch handles and 3 3/4 inch handles. Soooo back to the store we went to get wood filer and single knobs.

In the end - I like them much better with knobs as opposed to drawer pulls!

Today after one of the most stressful days of tax season I found some release in sorting through and organizing some of Charles's stuff. Not done at all but I like how the nightstands are working out - we need new lamp shades and I have an idea of what will actually belong on this one ultimately, but for now I'm enjoying the view of the cute gift basket and my sweet baby bear!

When Prince Charles's suite is complete, what do you think the odds are that Austin will go for my pitch to make this his next project?

And I think we've established what prop we will be using for Charles's monthly photos...

Horsie (big horsie not yellow horsie whose head moves on its own in a freaky way) came from a sweet sweet friend at Charles's baby shower. Shower you ask? Why yes - and I promise to write more on that. Someday.

Little People - Timothy Thursday

Sometimes in the midst of raising a toddler I've wondered when you stop being a broken record about things like potty, picking noses, sitting at the table and eating, and so on. But then like most life transitions one day it seems you just wake up and think to yourself, 'wow I didn't say potty one time yesterday'.

That's where we are - I think we have been transitioning from having a toddler to actually having a little person. It's not pain free and it's not 100%, but our little boy is like a little person now. And it's tons of fun!

One of my favorite 'little person' things he does is say that he wants to go play ball. I'm not sure where he learned the phrase but he loves to go play ball outside. We have a little grassy area next to our house where we set up 'bases' (tennis balls) and he hits home runs and runs the bases. He's getting pretty good with hitting the ball - more so when Austin throws it than me. Apparently I'm not the best at throwing it in the same spot repeatedly :)

He's also hilarious. As always, and as most kids this age tend to be. The things he comes up with crack me up. On Sunday we were talking about upcoming holidays and when we talked about Father's Day in June he said 'that's when Charles archer will be born! God will PUUUUUSH him out of your mouth!'

Uhhhh yes. Yes something like that.

He's very excited to be a big brother but I think right now he's more excited for April 15th. He can't articulate that, but tax season has been especially hard for him and I know he's ready for our normal lives back.

You know, until a crying baby brings us a new normal :) guess one day he'll see the earth and the sun and all that are in between don't revolve around William Timothy Wallis. Who knew?? :)