7 months along... but who's counting?

Why is it that fix six months of this pregnancy just FLEW by and, all of a sudden, time stopped???!!

I have just been feeling heavy and slow as my belly is popping out. The grunting has officially returned. Geoff has been so good to me this pregnancy. He gives me alone time, he doesn't complain when I don't have a real dinner prepared, he tries to make me feel beautiful and continue to laugh.

I can feel this baby girl move all the time, but especially at night between 8:30 and 10:30. It's like she's decided to do her aerobics then! Geoff bought me a treadmill off craigslist last week when I asked if we could get one. I've done it a few times and I can't get to 2 miles yet, but I will. Wow, does pregnancy make you sweat!! I've got 2 fans on me and I was drenched within minutes just walking, holding my belly up... What a sight! Good thing I'm walking in the privacy of my own room.

The next couple of months will be busy. I'm still RS president and I'm trying to get everything situated before I get released. The bishopric are pushing for me to hold on till the end of September, but I don't think our presidency can hold up till then. One is on shots to prevent preterm labor, another is due in the middle of Sept while the only non-pregnant member of our group is moving to another ward at the same time... I feel like I'm trying to fight the tide eroding my sand castle... Perhaps the change will come once summer is officially over.

I'm also starting a little home preschool with a few friends. I will get teach during the months of Sept and Feb and just enjoy taking Katherine to their houses the rest of the year. We decided on 3 days a week, 3 hours a day like regular preschool. We bought a curriculum from the Mailbox and are going all out with field trips and experiments and themes... I'm very excited. It will be a lot of work but I'm glad for the opportunity to try my hand at teaching little ones and excited for the year of growth in Katherine. These kids are going to love it!

Life is good. We have a pretty calm, stable routine around here and it's awesome. We think of you and pray for you daily. Hope you are happy and good. We love you!

What am I going to do with her??!

There once was a girl 

Who had a little curl 

Right in the middle of her forehead

And when she was good

She very very good

And when she was bad

She was horrid!!!

 There are no truer words put to pen! When she wants to, Katherine is the sweetest, most fun person around. I took her to my neighbor's baby shower and she charmed the pants off everyone, talking with every guest, helping Julie display all the gifts, getting them to play hide & seek with her, even sharing & initiating games with the other kids...

 Her strong opinions tend to conflict with my own strong opinions very often and our conversations often spiral into power struggle. This picture above is what she chose to wear to church one Sunday. I didn't want her to wear the hat or the sweater, given that it was 108 degrees that day... Little did I know that she just insisted on wearing the sweater because every young women that sits around us in the chapel also wears a cardigan because the air conditioning is so cold in parts of the building! She wanted to be just like them.

 I find that our worst arguments occur when she is hungry, tired or bored. Once I figure out which one it is, I can usually diffuse the situation, but there are nights when I put her in bed, turn off the lights and close the door and wait until it's safe! Her latest methods of getting at me have been to say she's not my daughter anymore!... she doesn't like me anymore!... claiming that I called her a name (like freak or idiot) or that I hit her when I never do... saying I hurt I feelings when I all did was tell her no... or when she  ignores what I'm asking her to do and flips it around and starts counting in a parent-style I'm being patient with you kind of voice to try to get me to give in... It drives me crazy. I keep thinking that I can reason with her, but as more time goes by, I am quicker to put in time out instead of giving her warnings. It seems to change her attitude quicker. The 3yr-old attitude gets on my nerves.

Fortunately, there are many more good times than bad even at her worst. I love our morning routine whens he comes to wake me because she is usually at her best, happy and loving to snuggle. I hear a lot of "Okay, Mom, I understand..." when I give her instructions. She loves to spend her time drawing, dressing up, pretending to be a dog or a horse that live in a tent or cooking up some food. We got a book of nursery stories from the library and loves to reenact Jack and the Beanstalk and The Three Little Pigs. Another game and she Geoff started is taking turns telling each other a short story, starting with "Once Upon a Time..."

Another latest milestone is that Katherine can now swim across the pool because she has learned to how to come up for a breath. It has reduced my anxiety tremendously. She never asks to wear floaties anymore and just wants to play with the big kids. It's awesome. I want to go swimming all the time these days because it makes me fell weightless. I'm just glad that Katherine usually obliges...

Artwork

Yes, I'm really another proud mom... I can't believe how much her drawing has developed in the past month. Just comparing to how how she was drawing a few weeks ago, she has improved so much! Isn't it amazing to watch someone grow and mature?!

 Dinosaur

 A family portrait with baby sister - note: dad has no hair and all the girls have pink hair because Katherine has been begging to dye her hair pink since Ella Shay dyed hers at the beginning of the summer....

Her first flowers - I almost fell over when I saw them. I think I'm actually going to frame it, I'm so proud...

I know, I know - Let the eye rolling commence! But you feel the same way about your kids, admit it!

July scripture

The Family: A Proclamation to the World, the end of paragraph 3 -

"Sacred ordinances and covenants available in holy temples make it possible for individuals to return to the presence of God and for families to be united eternally."
I am so grateful that Katherine is learning these essential truths that lead us back to Heavenly Father. We have been memorizing the scripture of the month assigned by her Primary class. She LOVES primary! She sings the songs about the gospel all the time. She even likes to play Primary where she stands up in front of the class and leads a game as she teaches a song. One day, I was visiting a friend in the ward who just had emergency surgery on her gall bladder and Katherine had us in stitches as she suddenly started teaching us the song Praise to the Man  and made us take turns hiding a paper she used as a teaching aid. It was hysterical! If the Primary ever needs someone to substitute leading singing time, I will tell them that Katherine is their girl!