Nanny to Mommy

I am not a 'yard saler'. You know those people who no matter what they were doing the night before will get up at 6 am every Saturday during the Spring and Summer to make sure they don't miss any good deals. I know people who are. And they score some pretty amazing finds...they also bring home a lot of junk.

I am having my FIRST yard sale. My husband works at a Kroger store, as most of you already know, and every year they donate to Children's Miracle Network. Well, this year they are having a yard sale in the parking lot! For only $25 you can buy a parking spot (all proceeds go to Children's Miracle Network). PLUS there is a Good Will in the shopping center. So once the sale is over, you can get a tax deduction by making a donation there. :)

I am very excited to get my spare bedroom back. There are mounds are baby clothes. I am very fortunate to have so many people in my daughter's life who are willing to buy things for her and that hand down their hand-me-downs.

I am also excited about getting my garage back. I miss parking in my garage. Especially on those cold mornings or when it's raining. And this Georgia heat is terrible for my paint job.

The issue is, I only have until June 2nd to get everything together. JUNE SECOND! I have 5 days! I have already started although I only found out earlier this week. Here are some pictures of my progress:









(I know, not very accomplished...YET! :] )

So if you would like to get a parking spot of your own, go to the Griffin Kroger and make a great donation for only $25. You can get rid of your unwanted stuff and make some money of your own in the process. And if you don't want to buy a spot, still drop by and see if there is something that you could use. :)

I was going through my Facebook feed and I follow babycenter. They posted an interesting blog, so I thought I would share my views. :)

"I always knew that the moment I held my baby in my arms for the first time I’d feel love like never before. What I didn’t know was that with great love, comes paralyzing fear and massive guilt. Wasn’t quite prepared for that." - read more posted in Honor of BabyCenter's Guilt-Free Parenting Week. So here are the things I won't feel guilty about as a new mom:

1. Making Mistakes. (At least I'll try not to feel guilty.) This is my first baby so I'm going to make mistakes. Example: We took Sweet Pea to the park on Sunday. It was windy and sunny. We forgot a sun hat. I rocked her to sleep on the swing, making sure to cover her face, and then I put her in her stroller so the wind and sun would be off her. As they say, 'You live and learn.'

2. Breastfeeding. Sometimes I have to nurse in public. My baby doesn't take a bottle from me. And I am a terrible pumper (or it could be my pump). Why would she when mommy is so close by? She is also already developing a stranger anxiety with people she doesn't see often (I didn't know they developed it this early but apparently they do). So please explain to me what I'm suppose to do? I cover up and it's the most natural thing in the world. All mammals do it. If it makes you feel uncomfortable, don't look.

3. Passing her off to Daddy when he gets home from work. Two reasons this doesn’t bother me: One, being the only caregiver all night and day is tiring, and I am appropriately exhausted by the time someone else walks in the door, and two, I know daddy misses his baby time as much as Sweet Pea misses her daddy time. :]

4. Not Doing Housework. I won’t feel guilty about putting my baby before my housework. Some things are more important in life. She will only be this age once, the housework will still be there.

5. Letting her be a Kid. I will not feel guilty about her watching TV or eating out every once in a while when she gets older. I did when I was a kid and so did my husband and we are capable, functioning adults. I will raise my kid and not have the TV do it for me. I will not feel guilty about letting her get dirty and be a kid. Jumping in puddles is dirty and fun. And as I said before they are only this age once.

6. Co-sleeping. Nursing has been great for us so far but I was completely incapable of sitting up to nurse at 12, 2, 4, and 6 when she was a newborn. We figured out the side-lying nursing thing and haven’t looked back. Now she doesn't sleep in our bed the entire night like she did when she was a newborn but I enjoyed every minute of it when she did and I actually miss it now.

7. My Birth Story. Lastly, I was induced because of my blood pressure, I had an epidural because I'm a wuss. I only wanted my husband in there with me because no one was there when we created her. I love my birth story and no one is going to make me feel guilty or try to steal my joy about it one way or the other. And that is that.





So mommas or soon-to-bes, what are some things you refuse to feel guilty about?

Now, I would just like to point out the fact that I love my husband and my dog very much. With that said, today was a rough day, I didn't get alot of sleep last night, there were many new chores to do at work because the kids were going to their grandparents' house, plus I have been sick. So when I got off early, I was very excited and thinking I'm going to go home and take a well deserved nap.

My dog has been acting out lately by going to the bathroom on the floor and getting into the trash. I think he knows something is different with me. Wait until this baby comes, his whole world is going to change. But since he has been doing this, we have been putting him up when we're not here. Well, my husband forgot today so the dog got into the trash. I wish I had a picture of the mess he made, it was ridiculous. And thing is, my husband had pulled it out and tied it off to take it out and dog still got into it. I knew something was up when I saw him lying in his pin on his own (he knew he had done something wrong).

Well then to make matters worse, my husband had made lunch/dinner for himself but left me with the mess. This is also the same man who cleaned out his car and put everything in the middle of the living room floor. It wasn't trash, just clothes and such but guess who had to clean it up. There is still some stuff that I didn't know where to put, so he 'organized it' by shoving it up against the wall.

I think this is one of the biggest things we fight over. Cleaning up after yourself. I feel if I was a stay at home wife that I would do more because I would feel like that was my job but I have a full time job already. I agree he works more but some things are just ridiculous. When he needs a pair of clean pants, he informs me instead of doing it himself. Really?! Like he doesn't have two hands.

And what am I doing now? Making lausage so he has lunch for next week because he's on vacation. How messed up in the head am I?

So the idea is to cross off something from list each week until the baby comes. I'm sure I'll add things to the list as time goes on but for this week I'm going to try and get a contract on the house for an exterminator. I'll let ya know if I get that done.

As of yesterday I am 21 weeks along. If you know anything about pregnancy they say you are pregnant for 9 months but they also say you are pregnant for 40 weeks, and that's more like 10 months. So that's why I (and most others) count by weeks.



How far along? 21 weeks and 1 day (as of today)

Total weight gain: about 10 pounds which they say is normal at this time in my pregnancy but I'm going to try and keep it as low as possible since I was over weight before.

Sleep: I've been having so much trouble sleeping in my bed that I've been sleeping on the couch alot.

Best moment this week: Finding out our little girl is developing PERFECTLY!

Movement: She is moving NON stop! I love knowing she is in there. Greg hasn't felt her yet but I'm not sure other people can yet.

Gender: ALL GIRL!! :]

Belly Button in or out? It's still in.

Milestones: Sleeping comfortably in my own bed would be nice....

Favorite Moments: Greg kisses me goodbye and baby Lizzie everyday. :]

Since I get to have my the little ones here, I'm going to do a few things while they are napping.

1. Mop the floors in the kitchen and bathroom.
2. laundry (if I don't put it here, it won't get done)
3. dishes (which makes me think, it's almost lunch time.)

There are also a few things that need to be done before the baby comes. Hopefully I'll plan one each month and they will all get done. :]

1. Finish painting the spare bedroom and hall way. (I mean it's been almost 3 years!) I'm not sure yet if we are going to use this as the nursery or not. Whichever room we choose we need to put a ceiling fan in. But I want all the painting done!

2. get a contract on the house for an exterminator

3. clean carpets or get them cleaned

4. fix dish washer or buy new one

5. fix laundry room doors. (They are off their hinges and need a part to be put back on.)

6. clean garage (this may be a multiple day project)

I'm going to start to try doing this:







Seems like a good idea and maybe can help me get off my butt and get things done! :]