Is it A Boy or A Girl?

We're expecting our third child in early June! We've always talked about one day having three kids. And now here we are: two healthy, beautiful sons and another little munchkin on the way. At first I really wanted the gender to be a surprise. My husband on the other hand has been in suspense since I announced the pregnancy. So, we've been in disagreement about whether or not we should find out the sex at the ultrasound, which is scheduled for today around noon.


Last night as I sat in the car waiting for our older son to be dismissed from CCD, I stared up at the cross atop the parish center and asked God to help me decide what we should do. To find out the sex or not to find out the sex: that was the question. I asked him to give me a sign that would help me know what the right thing for us would be.


When you have two sons and you're expecting another baby, there's a lot of pressure to produce a daughter. A lot! Well-meaning friends and family root for a girl, or try to "think pink" for you, but at the end of the day, its gender has already been determined for quite some time. Like every other fetus, it's just waiting to present itself to the world. Of course, my husband and I would love to have a daughter since we already have two sons. So what if the news we are given today to share with our friends and family when we get  home is, "It's another healthy, beautiful son!"? The truth is, the reception will be different than if the announcement is, "It's a girl!" Not bad necessarily, but different. Likely, happiness but with less enthusiasm. But we know that a third healthy child is a blessing in and of itself, regardless of gender. We are very aware of how lucky we already are. But still, we can't help but hope a little.


Anyway, when my son got into the car, I switched the radio station and on the next station was the Beatles' "All You Need is Love." It was the part where John Lennon sings,


"There's nothing you can know that isn't known.
Nothing you can see that isn't shown.
Nowhere you can be that isn't where you're meant to be.
It's easy.
All you need is love . . . "


Was this the sign I had asked for? I'm still not sure. It could have been coincidence; it's only one of the most popular songs in the world, so while it wasn't a miracle that it was playing on the radio, maybe the timing of the lyrics was the miracle. Maybe God was trying to tell me: 
"You may not know right now what your baby is, but I do. It is what it is. 
And whether you choose to see it today or wait to see it at the birth, it doesn't matter.  
The type of reception you may get from others doesn't matter. 
And the type of gift I've given you doesn't matter because what I've given you is what's meant to be. 
All that does matter is the love your family has and the additional love I'm giving to you with this baby. It's easy."

Friday, 1/13/12, 9am
Well, we had decided we'd ask the tech to write the gender down on a piece of paper and seal it in an envelope. So yesterday, we brought the envelope to the bakery, asked them to open it, read it and decorate a cake for a boy or a girl. We'd be back after lunch to pick it up, take it home, begin preparations for our son or daughter, and enjoy some cake!  We drove home, placed the box on the dining room table, and opened it to read "It's a girl!" We are very happy and feel very blessed. But pink or blue, we are one very grateful family. And more importantly than what the cake read, it was fresh and delish! ;)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4p8qxGbpOk

Camp or No Camp . . .That is the Question

I decided not to enroll the kids in summer day camp this year. We're in a tough economy, and to be truthful, I feel like I need a break! Between packing lunches, running to the bus stop (while your youngest locks you out of the house), racing against all the other SUVs and mini-vans for a parking spot at preschool, and field day coaching, I thought it might be nice to live without a schedule and so many obligations for two and a half months. Well, we certainly didn't lose the obligations. All joking aside, I've already attended three graduation parties, not including my son's own kindergarten ceremony, and all four were within four weeks. Ugh! Can someone give me a friggin' Saturday please?! And those envelopes could have paid for day camp! Our month of schlepping to these celebrations, as not one was less than two hours away, made my husband and I decide our kids will not be getting one. We expect them to graduate high school. Why celebrate it? They'll get a party after graduating college. That's a little more deserving of a party.

So anyway, back to the decision not to send them to day camp: I might have made the biggest mistake of my life, or the second biggest mistake next to thinking raising two kids would be easy. Their behavior is SCREAMING boredom. Today, coloring lasted five minutes. Stamping lasted three. Then we ate ice pops outside . . . they inhaled them quicker than they could say, "Mom, can you set up the slip-and-slide?" How long did the slip-and-slide last? Not long enough to cook a pasta dinner with leftover sauce. Did I mention we bought them one of those elaborate swing sets just last year, which boasts a clubhouse, telescope, swings, a slide, monkey bars, see saw . . . the whole nine yards? I think they each made one trip up the ladder and one trip down.

And when I said to my 5-year-old: "It's going to be a loooong summer," he replied, "Duh, I want it to be a long summer." And apparently, they both also want it to be a loooong night because as I sit here writing, they're wide awake upstairs . . . and I kicked off bedtime an hour ago.

So, they're starting floor hockey classes next week.

There Should Be a Special Pill Just for Us

Botox? Not interested. Plastic surgery? No thanks. Special facial creams to help tighten my 30-something skin? Well, maybe, but what I'm really interested in is something that has yet to be developed, and I've already got the perfect name for it: The Magic Mom Pill. I'd take laugh lines and a sagging chin in stride if a reliable pharmacist approached me with The Magic Mom Pill, because although I'd still look 30-something, I'd be guaranteed to never catch another cold or stomach virus again until my kids are in college. Because as far as I'm concerned, there's only one thing worse than feeling under the weather, and that's being a mom who's feeling under the weather. When you're a sick mother, there's no time to take care of yourself or opportunity for rest. There's no benefit plan offering sick days on this job. It's as if NO ONE in the universe even recognizes you're ill and in need of help. You just have to forge forward and disregard your 101.5 degree fever, runny nose and aching body. You may have been vomiting every 15 minutes since 10pm last night, but that school bus is still going to arrive at 8:27am. So, we just hurl it up, suck it up and conquer the day, white as a ghost and frail as a hair. And my favorite comment when I'm sick is: "Awe, you should go to the doctor." What a genius idea! I have all the time in the world amidst packing lunch, mommy-and-me class, diaper changes, spills, sibling rivalry, homework and bath time. Come on people! In all sincerity, I barely have time to visit the medicine cabinet and pop a Tylenol when I'm sick let alone wiggle my nose to make childcare appear, allowing me to visit a doctor's office. What I'm getting at is, we should just never get sick . . . am I right? It should be a right of passage the minute you give birth. Please. . . give me a pill, a syrup, a shot, an ointment . . . anything! Just don't let me get sick again till they're 18.

Walmart Woes

As any smart mom of two kids knows, the place to go when you have a totally random shopping list is Walmart. Because why would you drag two little ones to four different stores when you can visit just one?

So the other day when I needed the most random of items: children's sunblock, underwear, water shoes and food, that's where we headed.

The underwear was for my future sister-in-law's bachelorette party. You may have heard of the panty poem that many of today's bridesmaids are using for their brides-to-be? It's an adorable poem about panties for every stage of the marriage. I was responsible for getting the "blue" panties to represent a possible baby boy in their future and a pair of "granny" panties...enough said.

As the cashier scanned my items, she came across the granny panties, which were priceless in more ways than one. They were missing a price tag, so a price check was needed to finish the transaction. She tried paging someone to get on it, but nobody came. She tried figuring it out on the computer, but no luck. As a line began to form behind me, she held up the size 10, full coverage, horizontally-striped granny panties for every customer to see: "You might want to get on another line sir (because of course they had to be men)...I need a price check on these."

I bet this wouldn't have happened if I had just gone to Victoria's Secret.

Hello Cupcake! Giveaway

My son was about to graduate...preschool, that is. If you're a parent, you're painfully aware that there is a ceremony for EVERYTHING your kids will accomplish. It reminds me of a funny line in "The Incredibles" that always stuck in my head for some reason: 


Helen says she can't believe Bob won't be at their son's graduation. Bob replies with,
"It's not a graduation. He's moving from the 4th grade to the 5th grade." 


Helen says, "It's a ceremony." 


Bob says, "It's psychotic. They keep thinking of ways to celebrate mediocrity."


Anyway, we were set to appear at my son's school for an "end-of-the-year show," which was really a line of approximately 14  3 & 4-year-olds singing (some not...including mine). Okay, I have to admit I got a little choked up watching my little chubby-cheeked first-born up there. If you don't have kids yet, be prepared to be a lot more sensitive than you ever were before once you do. . . 

My Picky Eater Even Ate It!

I'm in an informative mood. No complaining tonight :) Just in the mood to share, a recipe that is. My toddler even ate it, and he is super picky. It's got your grains, it's got your greens...so go for it!

3 cups brown rice
1 can cream of celery soup
frozen spinach thawed and drained
celery
onions
salt
pepper
grated Romano cheese
butter

Boil the rice. While it's cooking, saute the onions in butter. Add the celery and saute. Throw in the spinach. Dump the can of soup in. Mix. Sprinkle in the salt, pepper and grated Romano. Mix it up. Make sure all your veggies are soft. When your rice is cooked, pour the mixture in and mix it up. Now it's serving time!

Easy right? When have you not been able to count on me for a recipe that doesn't have you slaving over the stove for hours? Hope you enjoy. Feel free to let me know how it goes...and if your kids like it.

Happy Birthday, Or Not?

My son has been invited to countless birthday parties this year. I don't mind; it's something social for him to do, right? Well, although a party of any kind should be social before anything else, children's birthday parties are often anything but. Having frequented several kiddie parties recently, I'm beginning to realize that the social aspect of the celebration depends heavily on the venue. . .