Lil' Ri's Real Name

How many of you have been waiting to hear the name hubby and I have chosen for Lil' Ri?

It wasn't hard because we have both loved this girl name for quite some time, but actually revealing it makes me anxious. Every person has different ideas of what is a beautiful name, a perfect name, and so on. Here is Lil' Ri's beautiful, perfect name...

(meaning: to strive, excel, or rival)

Mommy thinks she is going to strive to do her best at everything, excel at many things, and be a little competitive (like both her parents).

Her middle name is our one little secret until her birthday. Partly because we are still making certain of it and the other part because we want to have some suspense during this pregnancy.

Has anyone thought of her initials yet? So far, they are E.R. Where did Emily put mommy twice in the 1st trimester? Oh! That's right...the E.R. (emergency room). Again, back to the meaning for her name...she strived to survive and we love her dearly for her efforts. Love you Lil' E! Thanks for hanging in there. BTW...I come from a nickname for every thing family, so Emily already has a handful or more of nicknames.

Kick Me, Kick Me

Who would actually want to be kicked? Well, I can't speak for all mommies-to-be, but I have been dying to be kicked by my baby. My wish finally came true on week 20 as you know. Since that day, Lil' Ri has been kicking (or hiccuping) daily. She has a schedule too. The times I notice and feel her most is at around 4pm and late at night when I lay down for bed. She will be awake somewhere between 8pm-11pm. It all depends how long mommy stays awake and if I eat a snack before bed she is definitely movin' and groovin'. Right now as I'm typing this post, she is moving. I love knowing her schedule! I've even been able to see my tummy pop outward as she moves. I'm not quite sure how to determine if she is hiccuping, so if anyone knows that answer let me know.

Full Time & Preggers

This week I had to work full-time again because I hosted a book fair at my school. The students and their families seemed to really enjoy it especially the family breakfast Wednesday. I woke up SUPER early for that too. Then, Thursday, I stayed SUPER late for a family night.

I bought Lil' Ri four books, but none were her first book. I think I forgot to post the title of her first book, it is "Guess How Much I Love You?" I love her to the moon and back.

Below are the pictures of my book fair. It was also Red Ribbon Week (drug awareness), so Thursdays theme was Put a Cap on Drugs. That explains my hat in the last picture.

The Way to a Woman's Heart

One of the ways to a woman's heart is flowers. Another way is expensive jewelry, and a third is sweets. Hubby gave me two out of three this week. Guess which one wasn't included? LOL! Hubby has given me lots of beautiful expensive jewelry, so I have no complaints.

You need to know the story of how it came to be that he brought me roses and chocolate (Kit Kats to be exact) last night. Last week, I bought two small to moderate sized bags of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups and Kit Kats as Halloween candy. Naturally, I placed them in a festive container by the front door. It has now been established that hubby lacks total self-control when it comes to sweets and junk food. So Sunday, out of all the small chocolate bars, there were only six Kit Kats left. I told him that the rest were off limits to him and went up to bed. Monday, I went to work, came home, ate some healthy snacks, and then had a little sweets craving. Remembering the Kit Kats, I walked to the container. To my surprise, there was one Kit Kat placed perfectly in the center of the container. He ate FIVE Kit Kats that night!!! I was so disappointed. So, I texted him my disappointment and we played a little back and forth game. He said, "It took all my will power to leave you that last one." That was cute at least. However, I should have known better than to leave the candy out, but I thought he would control himself. He made a big stink about how he has no self-control and that I need to hide all sweets in the future.

The next day (yesterday), I was cooking dinner when he walked in the door with a gorgeous bouquet of red roses and a huge bag of Kit Kats. My heart melted at the gesture. Needless to say, the first thing out of my mouth was "Thank you, I love you, babe!" He replied, "You're welcome, now just hide those from me." LOL!!

These are the insignificant yet meaningful moments in a marriage you can't help but cherish.

Love you, Hubby! Thanks for keeping life playful and romantic.

P.S. Kit Kats not in picture because I had to hide them before it was too late.

The Sweetest Day

If you keep up with all the hallmark holidays, you knew that yesterday was The Sweetest Day. I was out with my friend yesterday who is a card fanatic, and she reminded me that it was The Sweetest Day. We were in the card aisle, and I was reading thru some of them. I found the perfect one for my hubby and bought it.

Last night, The Sweetest Day couldn't have ended more perfectly. While laying in bed watching TV to unwind, I felt Lil Ri' kick me for the first time. Now when I say first time, I mean this was no-doubt-about-it a growing baby kicking from the inside out. She did it eight times, and I was yelling for hubby to come into the room before it stopped. He got there in plenty of time to feel her, and his eyes lit up. I could see it in his face that he was thinking, "Mommy isn't crazy and fabricating ideas in her head anymore." I wrote my card to hubby after the eventful evening, and wrote our memory in the card. I left it on his pillow, and all I remember is waking up to a really late night kiss and an "I loved your card." Today has been a wonderfully relaxing day as well. I love when our love is rekindled. Our daughter-to-be adds to our love for one another each day. It's so incredible!

All in a Days Work...

Today, Lil' Ri has made me incredibly tired to start and then gave me a surge of energy tonight. Let me share...

It was incredible hard to wake up this morning. I made it to work, had a half day with the kids and managed to see 8 classes in 3 1/2 hours. BTW, it usually takes 6 hours. Whoooooo! Then, I had a dentist appointment, had to buy a birthday card for a co-worker (I also bought a little Halloween candy and a present for Hubby just to tell him I love him). Then, I came home to bake a dark chocolate bundt cake, make meatballs for sandwiches for dinner, ate, listened to 90s music that made me cry a few too many times (hormones again), and then made icing from scratch to drizzle over the cake. To top it all off, I washed all the dishes. Whooooosh! I'm spent! Now to fold some laundry, lay down in bed, and watch a TV show to unwind before lights out.

I'm so delighted to go to bed with a clean kitchen and a full tummy. Praying I make it thru tomorrow considering my legs have been aching since this morning and are throbbing now. Going to put them up.

Like I said, "All in a days work." What we can do when we set our mind to it.