But I find now since my recent problem with The One Who Shall Not Be Named, that I am beginning to censor what I write.  That is a drag for a free spirit like me.  PISH POSH!

Anyway, home from work, boobs swollen to GIANT mountains, must pump.  Just had to get that out there.

Happy final note for tonight - grateful for loving family and wonderful friends.  Peace to all and good tidings.  :)

Sam at school for her Easter Egg Hunt.  We colored our own eggs.  When Sam got to school that day, she showed everyone the paint on her hands beaming with pride.  Most parents bought the plastic eggs.  I think they lost out on some really nice bonding time with their child.  It did not take long to make the eggs and it gave Sam such a sense of pride.  It is the little things sometimes that are just priceless.

My sweetest boy at the Easter Egg Hunt watching his big sister.  He was SOOO pleased when she shared some her goodies with him.  Everyime she squealed with delight, so did he.  Kit adores his big sister and imitates everything she does, all the time - often driving Sam nuts, lol.

Little Miss Susanna smiling at her mommy while I was taking her photo.  She had just pooped, so this is not gas!  She really smiles and it is a smile that just melts my heart.  Every time.

Yesterday started off niceley when Ben and I were actually able to find 5 mins to do the deed, acting like married people.  But then later in the day I got peed on by both Kit and Susanna.  Even later in the day, I got spit up profusely by Susanna - twice!  The only one who did not leave their mark on me was my sweet Sam.  How many times in one day can Wendy shower?  LOL.

Samantha is getting sweeter every day.  She is so adorable with her new little sister.  She is always going over to her saying this like "I love her SOOOO much" and "She is soooo cute, she is as cute as me!"  When we were at the bday party on Sat., she sat by the 1 year old and helped her open all her presesnts.  She made sure to hold everyone for the baby to see.  Sam has a gentle heart.

Kit is becoming more and more boy every day.  He runs, falls and gets up again, he runs, falls and gets up again... FEARLESS and on the go, go, go!  He is also beginning to talk up a storm and FINALLY we can understand what he is saying!  He is also completey potty trained (not night) and sleeping in his big boy bed.  We let him fall asleep first, Sam falls asleep in our room and then we move her over.  Whenever we let them try to go to bed together, they stay up and cause trouble.  Any words of wisdom out there for getting kiddos to share a room?

Susanna is growing like a weed.  I weighed her yesterday and she is now 12 lbs!  Altho she spit up all over me again today.  This is a new thing and I am not loving it.  I am hoping it is short lived.  She is also beginning to coo and smile on purpose.  Ben thought I was crazy cause it is too early, but then he saw it too.  The girl smiles!  And she smiles a lot.  She is such a good baby... it a makes me afraid that there will be a nasty payback when she is a teenager, lol.

Ben and I are good, but very tired.  We are almost at the 3 month mark tho and that always seems to be when things settle down.  Altho I am beginning to sleep in my bed again for a few hours each night!  WOO HOO!  It is soooooo nice.  It's not that I do not love my big brown chair, but a bed is really nice!

Ben made me all the cool things for my blog!  What do you think?  Check out my book if ya want an easy read.  :)

Weight wise, I am so sick of this pg weight.  With the diabetes, I always balloon out at the end - sad but true.  Now with bf I can not lose weight too fast (wanting good breast milk and all...).  Some woman lose really fast with bf.  Well not me!  I lose a 3rd of it and then my body CLINGS to the weight until we start solids.  So right now I am trying very hard to just make sure I am eating very healthy.  I lost 3 lbs so far this week and I am excited.  I only have 5 billion more to go.  I am not a fat person on the inside and I do not like looking in the mirror and not recognizing who I see looking back.  Granted, I just had a baby 7 weeks ago, but I do not want it to extend to 7 months to 7 years and so on.  I really am ok with never being a size 8 again, but I want to see my feet and waist and neck (where oh where has my neck gone?) on a regular basis.  I also want my kids to have a healthy mom as a role model.

Well, the troops are rammy, so I am off!  Have a great day everyone!

I occasionally check my old blog for traffic.  Ben was talking to me tonight cause this weekend we are supposed to go to a relations for a kids bday party and The One Who Must Not Be Named may be there.  He is afraid she may try to start some crap.  I am like, "Oh no, it will be fine..."  After he went to bed, I checked my tracker over there and guess who has been by several times recenty.  In fact, the links go straight to her stupid blog!  And then I noticed all these notices about my photos trying to be linked from outside and that B******** does not allow that.  So then, I went thru and deleted any pics I had posted of me and the family.  But I feel really violated and invaded.  It is like she is completely obsessed and a bit Single White Female.  I am completely uncomfortable now.   I really enjoy the rest of my relations and the kids have a blast... but... I don't know.  In my opinion, this person REALLY has some mental issues and I seem to be a focal point.  BLECH! 

What to do? 

Sunday:

This morning we had an Easter egg hunt for the kids outside and when they came in we had the candy on the table for them.  Sam is convinced that is how it works cause she saw it on Max and Ruby.  (The one where they hunt for the eggs and Max eats the choc chicken...)  Later we went to see In the Wild as a whole family.  We packed a beach chair so I could sit in handicap seating with it and nurse Susanna.  We packed lunch, boosters, the boppy and drinks and were set!  In the past, the kids have always LOVED going to the movies and we figured how crowed could it be on Easter. 

Let me tell you, the movie was rated G, but the theme was really dark.  Basically the Bores no longer want to be the bottom of the food chain, so they are going to eat the Lions and their friends so that they can be carnivores.  Maybe most kids do not know what that means... well Sam does and she got really upset.  They made the Bores very sinister as well.  I was rather appalled that such a dark theme could be rated G!  Anyway, Kit was bored and spent most the time outside with Ben.  Then Sam got scare.  I asked her if she wanted to go and she said yes, so we left and went to McD's play gym instead.

We came home, took a family nap, took a family walk and then made pizza.  It was really nice.

Saturday:

My sister and her husband came over for the day.  They recently have moved much closer.  I made lunch, the brought and awesome cherry pie and we hung out for the day.  It was really fun.  The kids LOVED having them around to play with.  It is going to be nice having them closer in proximity.  :)

The got Sam a lady bug purse with hair clips and bracelets.  She was in her glory.  Kit was equally happy with his drum and paints.  Susanna was too little to know what she got, but I will enjoy dressing her up in her new Gymboree dresses. 

Friday:

Mom came up for the day and we went to a Passover Seder at my friend's mom's house.  It has been awhile since I have been to a Seder.  When I was a kid, my Great Grandmother did them, but now many of my relations are dead or scattered around.  It was really nice being with a lot of people on Passover.  My friend and I have been friends since Sam and her oldest (who is on month younger than Sam - exactly.) were babies, so I have known her for a bit.  The Seder was very kids centric and it was really nice.  It is easy to forget little things that are traditional when you do not do them, but when you see them/hear them, like the Seder, it sparks something in you.  It makes me glad that I am raising the kids reformed Jewish.  I want my kids to know the same things I did.  And like I was raised, we still will have Christmas and Easter only for us, they are family days that focus on the man in the red suit and the bunny, lol.

The kids were VERY well behaved.  I was VERY proud of them.  Sam was truly interested in the Seder and sat thru it and participated unlike her friend, lol.  We did not get home til midnight.  Granted, it was an hour and a half drive.

Things to come:

This week is the Susanna's naming on Friday.  Looking forward to it.

Sat. we will be going to our cousin's/friend's kids bday party.  It is down the shore, so will be a 3 hour hike.  Ben is taking the day off, so I will have help.  The one who will not be named will be there, so hopefully she will just ignore me and that will be fine.  *fingers crossed*

Ate too much Easter candy today, so will be watching what I eat this week.

Random thoughts:

Very happy with the addition of Susanna.  My family feels so complete now and I am so contented.  A bit sleep deprived sometimes, but it is all good.  I have not been making presence much on line and I hope everyone does not think I am a jerk.  It is just really busy now and I am adjusting.  I am getting done all the things I have to and need to but it is not giving me much time for me.  Especially cause the little muffin LOVES to nurse so much.  She is beginning not to like the sling so much, so that limits me much more.

Pain in the back:

Re-injured my disk/back.  Shooting pain and my leg is giving out again.  I am calling my doc tomorrow.  I am guessing they will want me to have another MRI since it has been a year since I last went in and being that I have had another baby.  I have pain med for it, but it is a class C and I am not comfy taking that while nursing and with Susanna being so little.  So for now, Motrin is my friend.

Also on med now from an infection related to my c-section.  Joy!  But at least not painful.  So not too bad.  I just keep forgetting to take my medicine, lol.

Thoughts of well wishes:

To all my friends who need it.  Looking forward to Tiff giving birth soon.  By the end, you feel like such crap, but it is so exciting.  Being that I am not the one 35 weeks right now, I just get to be excited for her.  :)

Congrats to Michelle on her new house.  And Gabe looks SOOO cute in his new glasses.

Wish we could go to Columbus this year, but I think it is too far to drive with a newborn.  I wish it was in Pitts again.  *Sigh*

Hey Susan, Ben talks in his sleep too!  Half the time it is a mix of past and present.  But sometimes he almost seems lucid, so I decided to suggest things to him when he was in that state.  Once I told him that he should get his wife flowers cause she is great and the next day he came home with flowers for me!  I asked him why and he said he just felt like it.

Hope everyone had a great Easter!

1. Susanna had her month check up and I now know why she remained at 9 lbs for so long... my baby girl has grown THREE inches in one month!  She went from 20 inches at birth to 23 inches.... WOW!  And she finally has gained weight, she is now 10 lb 10oz.  I guess she had to stop stretching before she could pack on a pound.  I feel much better now about that.

Sam had her 4 year check up too.  My big girl is 41.25 inches tall and 45 lbs.  The questions they asked about what she could do were so basic.  Kit can do most of them.  Can she identify shapes, can she count to 10, does she know a few letters, does she know colors, is she potty trained.  Um, yes to all the above!

2.  Lack of sleep can make Mom and Dad argue about EVERYTHING.  It is amazing how much more human everyone feels after a nice, long family nap, lol.  Ben and I were like two small yippy dogs until our nap yesterday.  Then we both woke up after the family napped and suddenly were like normal again.  :)

3.  Going back to work is actually kind of nice.  I miss being with the kids and my boobs feel like two heavy bricks by the time I get home, but it is nice getting a break and making some cash.  I really like the cash part, LOL.  I was able to get us a pool pass for the summer and now Sam will be able to go to camp for 5 days a week.  Yeay!  She LOVES camp in the summer.

4.  Pumping is a PIA.  I feel like a cow sometimes and it is always a worry that I have to make enough bottles for when I am at work.  Luckily I make enough milk and boy can I tell you, the Medela (sp?) electric pumps are GREAT!  I have a mini that I got for 7 bucks on ebay and it is SOOO much easier than my Baileys that I paid 100 bucks plus for.

5. Took the kids to a bday party on my own over the weekend.  They had a blast and I was able to keep people from poking the baby.  God love the sling.

6.  Life is super duper busy, but my family feels so complete with the addition of Susanna.  I am so glad I got pg for the 3rd time.  I finally feel like everyone is here.  It is the first time there is no longing to be pg again.