Big Sister Class

Yesterday afternoon we took our future Big Sister to the Big Brother & Big Sister Class at the hospital. A friend at work told me about it, and I would recommend it to any siblings out there! She got to wear her "Big Sisters ROCK" t-shirt, so she was loving life. They gave us scrubs for the kids to wear, but she wouldn't cover up her "I'm a big sister shirt" as she said.

First, she made a birthday card for Kate.

Then she was presented with her own baby to practice with- a HUGE hit!

They learned about bottle feeding and burping, talked about breast feeding and what you could do to help your mom when she is feeding the baby

They got to change a diaper

And all throughout the baby time, the instructor was talking about their new babies, and all sorts of things I haven't thought about teaching her. Like, always wash your hands before you touch the baby, only kiss on the forehead or feet, don't share your toys with the new baby because they need special baby toys they can't swallow (Whoops, guess I have jumped the gun on the sharing lectures!), and even about the clamp/umbilical cord stump they will have.

They got to practice swaddling the babies

And then they got a special tour of where their new baby brother or sister will be born. Sydney was so independent during the class and skipped ahead of us the whole time.

Taking a peek at the nursery where Kate will stay while we are in the hospital, and they brought a real baby over to the window so they could see her bracelet and umbilical cord stump. (They talked about this a lot, so I guess it is a scary looking issue for kids that I hadn't even thought about)

They got to see the birthing rooms, hospital beds, talked about IVs and baby monitors and what their mommy would have on, looked at the incubators and felt warm blankets. Then we went to the rooms where their mommy and baby would stay for a couple nights and they all got to practice moving a hospital bed and calling the nurse. Someone remind me to NOT let Sydney near my call button or bed controls :). Afterwards, they all got cookies and juice and a certificate for being ready to be a big brother or big sister.

And we came home and enjoyed the wonderful weather outside! Overall, it was fun for Sydney, and of course my prayer is that it helped her feel a little more prepared for Kate's arrival and our stay in the hospital. Speaking of, I am 35 + weeks, so she will be here soon! I could see every bit of October, but I have a feeling she might come a little early. My official due date is October 2 though!

Rhea Lana's little helper!

Friday morning Sydney had the opportunity to help Mrs. Rhea Lana on Good Morning Arkansas. Rhea Lana always asks a couple of managers kids to help wear clothing and play with toys from her amazing sale, and Sydney loved getting to participate this season! I was nervous that she would enjoy it, behave, and not have crazy hair ;) but overall she had a blast.

Waiting backstage with Sam and Amelia who were on the show also.

This was one of my most nervous moments- the show is live and they went ahead and moved us onto the stage while they were filming another segment. Sydney managed to turn on a loud piece of the exersaucer but I think it was ok.

Then it was our turn. Sydney plopped herself up on the couch next to Rhea Lana with her baby doll and a bottle. A couple of funny things- while Melinda was interviewing Rhea Lana, Sydney said "I want a snack Mom", and she looked right into the camera/monitor for the first minute or so. They asked her what her baby's name was, and she froze until they started talking again and then answered "Kate" which you could just barely hear.

After a minute or two, she climbed down and played with Sam and Amelia, who climbed into the bouncy seat.

Here was another funny moment, Sydney started bouncing Amelia in the bouncy seat so hard that Melinda reached down and was gripping on the back so Amelia didn't hit her head. I am pretty sure at the end Melinda said to Sydney "OK that's good!". Tee hee hee. After our segment, she got a laugh that Sydney is going to be a big sister in less than 5 weeks. So, we'll need to be watching the bouncy seat!

Then it was over! Thanks Rhea Lana for asking us to join in on the fun!

Kate's Baby Sprinkle

Erin and Corbin hosted not a full blown baby shower, but a baby sprinkle last Sunday and it was so wonderful to be surrounded by close friends from my hometown and their moms. Great cupcake cake styled after the tree in Kate's room, along with lots of other yummy snacks!

The guests had the chance to make onesies or shirts for Kate, and there was tons of fabric and templates to choose from to get the creative juices going.

A few of the adorable projects!

Mom and I

Look at all of these adorable things!!!
Sincerely thank you girls!!!

Kate Emerson- 33 weeks

Here is Baby Kate at 33 weeks, and Sydney wanted to show her tummy too. I am much bigger than this picture implies, but that is the only one Brent snapped this morning before church and I have to use it ;). Her room is coming along, of course once she is here I know it will be brimming with more baby stuff than I will know what to do with, but I do need some "fluff" and a few more necessities.

So I will remember (ha ha how could I forget?!?), this was the headline from yesterdays paper "Near-record hot yet? You bet." and it went on to say that "this summer is on track to go down in the record books as among the hottest in the Little Rock area. It has even been hotter than the summer of 1980, and the record holding 1954. As of Friday, this year's average summer temperature in Little Rock was 86.09 degrees, with 15 days (add 2 more for yesterday and today) of tripe-digit temperatures. If that holds through the end of August, 2010's summer will be the hottest recorded since the weather service began keeping records in the area in 1877."

I have NO DOUBT that Kate is God's baby and her birth was on his mind at the creation of the world, but WOW. I haven't cold since March, and I am NOT exaggerating one bit. I mean, I don't remember the sensation of being cold. I am starting to fear that I may never be cold again!!!!! Please pray for Kate's healthy development, and for me as I start back to traveling around to 10 different schools to do therapy. I would appreciate it! Oh, and if you wanted to throw in a prayer or two for cooler weather, that would be icing on this melted cake!
Hope you are staying cool too, and I highly recommend a Summer Breeze sno-cone. It is peach, strawberry and watermelon in a rainbow pattern. YUM!

Curly Hair and a Big Girl Room

So, where do I begin with the curly hair?!?!? Basically, the baby hairs around her face started curling in May and while we were in Florida her hair got crazier and more curly- from the roots!! It is the strangest thing I have ever seen! I am NOT kidding, it started looking like cow licks all over her head and now has about 2-3 inches of curl, then it goes straight. I prayed for her to have Brent's curls, but I never imagined that they would come in so late! Anyway, I took her to Allison who cuts my hair for some hair intervention, and we chopped over half of her straight end hair off. It is still defiantly a work in progress and will probably take several more months and another serious haircut before it looks all over curly. It does match her personality at least- a HOT MESS!!!!

Sydney and I cleaned and organized her room this afternoon and Brent hung her new picture above the bed, so I thought it might be a good time to document her big girl room at 3 1/2 years old. Her favorite things are books, music, Dora, baby dolls, and dancing- in random order depending on the day.

Please notice this beautiful canvas that my very talented friend Keri Boyd made for her. I have her blog and business blog linked at the side- please check out her stuff at Patty Cake Designs!!
I have 3 or 4 canvas paintings, plus a dance bag and step stool we LOVE!!!
"Let them praise His name with dancing!" Psalms 149:3

Tomorrow's goal after church is to snap a few of Kate's room and I'm going to make myself take a belly pic update for her scrapbook. I am 33 weeks and I haven't taken a pic since 24 weeks- whoops!

Lunch with Birthday Twin Jackson

We loved getting to eat lunch with Jackson last Saturday. I can't believe that the birthday twins are almost 3 1/2! They had a blast playing at the Chick and eating yummy yogurt at Orange Leaf. Jackson is going to be a big brother in December, so probably the next time we get together we will have 4 kids. Crazy!!!

This is a random pic I snapped of Sydney in her pool on the back porch.
Oh my- the HEAT. Kate is literally cooking along- 32 weeks tomorrow!!!