You Will Be Missed, Grandma

My last remaining grandparent, Grandma Drake, went to her new home with the Lord early yesterday morning.  While our hearts are very sad, we are also rejoicing knowing that Grandma's body is now healed and she is able to walk and talk again without pain.  I am thankful for all the memories I have of her, including all the weekend fishing trips we took together over to the pond on the farm, the yummy homemade meals she spent hours in the kitchen preparing, especially her noodles and pies, the stories she told about the days she and Grandpa ran the dairy and she drove the milk truck around town delivering milk, and many, many more.  She will be remembered by all for her spunky personality and wit and I am thankful she was able to keep her fun-loving spirit up until her final days. 

I am glad that she didn't have to suffer too long after her two strokes because I know that is not the way she wanted to live.  I will never forget the last two times I visited her because while she couldn't speak to me, I know she knew who I was and I was able to share a few last laughs and smiles with her.

I am also thankful that Makenna was able to meet her because I never knew any of my great-grandparents and Makenna will carry a few memories of her as well, especially the rides Grandma took her on in her Jazzy chair. 

We love you, Grandma and look forward to seeing you again someday.  Until then please watch over us and keep us in line just like you did down here!

 Grandma and me 

The entire family except Aunt Sue

A picture I will always cherish--it was the first time Grandma met Makenna 

We Made It

I know if you are reading this you are wondering what the title of this post means.  Well, it means we made it to October, so our little man will definitely be born sometime this month.  This has been a bit of a joke between Justin and I because of my Mother's Day gift from him this year.  A month AFTER Makenna was born he bought me a beautiful garnet ring, which is her birthstone.  He had plans of doing this for each of our children, but not until after each child was born.  Being the jewelry fanatic I am, I began casually looking for a ring of Baby #2's birthstone.  Naturally since Baby #2 (at the time we didn't even know the gender) was due in mid to late October I looked at October birthstones.  Which, as a side note, did you know there are 4 different birthstones for this month?  Crazy, huh?  Anyways, I found a few opal rings I liked and Justin knew which ones they were.  He thought it would be a nice Mother's Day gift for me so he purchased my favorite ring in May (and I might add he got an AMAZING deal on it) and it never occurred to him that there was a possibility that the baby wouldn't be born in October. So, since then I have teased him that if the baby came early he would just have to get me a sapphire ring.  But I guess that won't be the case, which is fine with me. 

Another funny thing about the above story is that Justin didn't even know of the great deal he got on the ring.  After he gave me the gift, he gave me the receipt in case we ever needed it.  He always does this because I am better at putting things in places where they can be easily found if needed.  He gave me the receipt and my jaw immediately dropped.  He asked if something was wrong and I asked him if he realized what he paid for the ring.  He said no, I just handed them my card--typical man.  At this point, I would have given him my lecture about always looking at your receipt and knowing what you have paid before leaving the store, etc., but I was too amazed at the price he paid for the ring.  I guess the ring was on sale plus Justin had received a coupon in the mail for his next purchase at this particular jewelers that they let him us.  Needless to say, that with additional amount for the protection plan on the ring, Justin paid 1/3 of the original price of the ring.  I still laugh about this story to his day because Justin had no clue the deal he got on the ring.  But I am very grateful that I now have two rings, each one that represents my two children.  Makenna likes looking at the rings.  She knows that one is "hers", one is "Beckham's", and she tells me my wedding rings and bands are "Daddy's."  I guess she is right and I wear all three proudly to remember the wonderful family God has blessed me with.

Week 37

Today I am officially full term, which means Mr. Beckham can come at any time.  YIKES!  It seems like we have so much more to do and so little time to do it.  I have gotten some things accomplished this week, but it just seems like I add two more things to the "to-do" list when I mark one off.

At my doctor's appointment today I found out that I tested negative for the Group B Strep, which I tested postitive for with Makenna.  That means I won't have to have antibiotics give through an IV this time which I am pretty excited about.  Beckham is also head down which we are also very happy about--that greatly lessens the chance of having a C-section.

Also, Makenna is now calling her brother Beck.  It is difficult for her to say Beckham correctly (instead she says Peckham) so Justin and I have told her she can call him Beck and that will be her special name for him.  She really seemed to like that idea.

Finally...

I finally found Beckham a take-home outfit so that is one thing I can mark off our list.  I think it is super cute and I can't wait to post pictures of our little one in it. I know it will look cuter on our little baby then it does on the hanger. :)  It is sad when I have his Halloween costume before I have his take-home outfit. 

Justin also began painting the nursery yesterday and just has one more coat to do and them we can get everything put in order.  We are officially only 1 month away from my due date so we are coming down to the wire.  Hopefully I will have pictures of the nursery to post very soon.

The End is Near

That's correct.  The end is near.  The end of my pregnancy that is.  But that just means the beginning of all sorts of things.  It is hard to believe that Beckham will be here in about a month and we have so much more to do.  The nursery needs to be painted and decorated, but my darling, wonderful husband has promised he is going to get going on that this weekend.  We also need to purchase Beckham's take home outfit, but I just haven't found anything I am too crazy about.  Things are so much different with your second child because at this point with Makenna we had everything ready to go.  Hopefully I will have some nursery pictures to post soon and maybe a link to a take home outfit.

Yesterday, I had another doctor's appointment and everything still looks great.  Dr. Williams said that I am carrying Beckham really high--duh, that would be the reason it has been difficult for me to breath--and he also said that if he drops it will be very obvious.  We shall see.

We have a lot to do this weekend, but hopefully we can find a little time to relax.  In between baby preparations, my school's annual fall festival is Saturday afternoon and evening and unfortunately there is another event many of my co-workers and I will also be attending.  One of our school secretaries, Tammy, passed away of cancer on Sunday night.  She battled the disease on and off for around 10 years and we are rejoicing now that she is pain free spending time with her Lord in heaven.  She was an inspiration to us all and she will be greatly missed by all who knew her. 

Hopefully I will have some pictures to share in my next post.  Have a great weekend! :)

A Day of Celebrations

Just wanted to wish all grandparents out there a very happy grandparents's day.  Our family has been truly blessed with wonderful grandmas, grandpas, nanas, papas, etc. You all are very special and we love you.

Today, our church also celebrated our 5-year anniversary.  Although Justin and I weren't going to that church from the very beginning we are considered "founding members" because we joined within the first year and we have been very blessed by this body of believers.  We can't wait to see what God has in store for our church in the years to come.

Just had to share...

A few nights ago Makenna asked me to take her picture and this is how she posed.  You can't tell in the picture, but she put her hands of her hips and did a type of "beauty pageant" stance.  It was quite funny.  I can't believe how grown up she looks in the picture!

I had another doctor's appointment today and everything still looks great.  I can't believe Beckham will be here in about 7 weeks.

Exhausted and Glad It's the Weekend

After the first full week of school I can say that I am just plum exhausted.  The first few weeks of the new school year usually wear me out, but this year seems to be worse, but at elast I have a good reason.  Hopefully I can rest up over the weekend.  Makenna has a birthday party to go to tomorrow afternoon, but that is really all we have planned.  It isn't completely finished yet, but Makenna is loving her new room.  I will post pictures as soon as we get some things up on the wall.  She loves her big bed and she now understands that her crib is going to be Beckham's.  Our next task, or should I say Justin's next task is to get Beckham's room painted.  Pictures to come..stay tuned.  Have a great weekend.

The Beginning of Another Year

I can't believe that tomorrow I will begin my sixth year of teaching.  I am excited to meet my new students, but I am sad that summer is over.  However, I just have to remember that in about two months I will get to spend some extra time at home with my two precious children--that really sounds crazy to say two--so the anticipation of that will get me through the first part of the year.  This is also the last year for about 18 years or so (excluding college) that I won't have a child beginning school.  This time next year Makenna will hopefully be starting pre-school.  That is so crazy to think about, but at least it isn't kindergarten yet. :)

I also had a doctors appointment today and everything is still going great.  Dr. Williams even commented on how active Beckham seems to be because he was moving and kicking around like crazy.  We just pray that everything continues to go smoothly and that we have a healthy baby in about two months.  And just FYI, my prediction is that Beckham will arrive on October 24th.  Justin predicts Oct. 17th.

In addition to tomorrow being my first day of school, Makenna also has a big day--she is going to the state fair with her nana.  She is super excited to see all the animals and I heard there might be some plans to ride a few rides as well.  I will report on how her experience was and what all she say about it.  I am sure she will come up with some funny things to say.

Makenna Says the Darndest Things

I just had to post about what Makenna said today--if for no other reason so that we wouldn't forget.  I need to write these in her baby book because quite frankly, they are some of the funniest things she has ever said.

First off, we were getting ready to leave the house this evening.  Justin and Makenna were in our master bathroom when Makenna pointed to one of the toothbrushes and said, "That is Jesus' toothbrush."  Earlier today after singing Jesus Loves Me, we had a discussion how Jesus/God lives in our house.  I guess she thought since He lived here he needed a toothbrush.

While driving home tonight, Makenna was whining that she wanted to watch TV.  I explained to her that when we got home it would be time to go to bed, which just upset her more.  She kept the little fit going and finally Justin told her that if she didn't quit she wouldn't get to watch TV for a while.  She quickly responded, "No, I am talking to Mom.  Stop it Dad!"  It was all Justin and I could do to keep from laughing.