Recent Family Outings aka “We LOVE Spring”

Each year I cannot wait for the weather to warm up enough to spend as much time outside as possible – beach, pool, walks, park, or any other excuse to get out in the sun!

Here are a few things we have been up to lately…

ZOO DAY!!

Collin LOVES the Jacksonville Zoo, so we decided to surprise him with an early BDay present – an annual pass to the zoo!!

Checking out the new dinosaur exhibit with daddy

Petting zoo with mommy

For some reason he wouldn’t ride on the carousel by himself this time, but he still wanted to stay on – just not on the tiger :)

PENSACOLA TRIP!!

One of Collin’s favorite things to do is “play daddy car” – where he stands in daddy’s car and pretends to drive :)

His first beach day of the year – so pasty pale just like his mommy :)  Give us a few more weeks & we will get there!

He loved playing with cousin Jaeden’s sand toys

He also now has a passion for digging holes in the sand – so cute to watch him work so hard at something.

36 Week Update

WOW!!  Where did this pregnancy go??  I feel like we just found out we were pregnant the other day, but we will be holding our precious baby girl in just a few short weeks!  I still have so much to do before I feel ready, but thanks to some major help from the hubby on cleaning & finishing Collin’s room, I would be okay if she came today – well, maybe at least a few more weeks :)

I still haven’t finished her room, but we have the major items in there & ready.  Still to do: paint pink border around ceiling, finishing touches on quilt, cover rocking chair, and hang curtains.

Today I had my 36 Week appointment & my first “check” - no progress as of yet.  Of course the doctor says it could happen any time, but I really don’t like it when they tell you that because I get excited & anxious, then nothing happens.  Oh well, I am perfectly happy with her staying right where she is until she decides she is ready!

Here are the stats :)

How far along? 36.5 Weeks

Heartbeat? Holding steady around 150

Total weight gain? +22 lbs

Maternity clothes? Yes, please!  Although I did find a cute dress from my “Sprinkle” in the regular section of Old Navy :)

Sleep?  I feel like I am going backwards here – it was getting so much better, but now I just can’t seem to get comfortable.

Best moment? We had a small scare a few weeks ago since my weight gain had basically stopped & she was measuring a few weeks behind.  It was a nervous few days, but we got to see her sweet face on the ultrasound again & were reassured that everything was fine.

Cravings?  Not really – although for the first time in our 5 years of marriage I finished my carton of ice cream before Son did!!  This is big – we always take advantage of the BOGO deals on ice cream at Publix, each picking out our own flavor.  Son always finishes his off in a few days & I savor mine for weeks – not this time!!

Gender? It’s a GIRL!!!!!!  Grace Anna Vuong

Labor signs? Nope.

What I miss?  Right now I am so thankful for Collin & Grace that I am just enjoying every minute.  Although it would be nice to sleep again :)

Looking forward to?  Being able to say that her room is “finished” and holding that sweet baby girl.  

Milestones?  Less than a month to go!!

And since I hate to do a post without any pictures…here are the boys helping mommy in Grace’s room!  They each had their own drill & step stool to patch holes, repaint, and hang the curtain rod – so cute :)

We’ve Been Sprinkled :)

We have had the sweetest “Sprinkles” over the past few weeks & our house is finally starting to look like a baby GIRL is arriving thanks to all the wonderful PINK things from sweet family & friends.  For those who may be wondering, a “sprinkle” is a small version of a baby shower when it is not your first child :)

A few of my sweet friends in Jacksonville hosted a Sprinkle in the beginning of March for Grace & we had a great time! 

  Me with the hostesses (Whitney, Cherie & Angela) – thanks girls!  It was lovely :)

Yummy food & adorable decorations!

I forgot to take a lot of pictures, guess I was too busy having fun & chatting with the girls – usually when we get together we are distracted by dirty diapers, fussy toddlers, and temper tantrums!  It was so nice to just get to relax, enjoy some great food & talk :)

We did snap one group picture at the end, but most people had already left.  (Laura, Swarna, Me, Mrs. McNeil, Casey & Susan)

Thank you again to Whitney, Angela & Cherie!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Also, a few months back on our last trip to Pensacola before Grace arrives, Son’s family threw the sweetest surprise Sprinkle for me :)  We had a blast & everything was so beautiful!

Yummy Vietnamese food – everything was pink & green!!  Son’s mom made my favorite – spring rolls with peanut sauce!

The cake was so yummy with strawberry filling and said “A Baby is A Precious Gift” – so true!  And my SIL Kim made this adorable diaper cake.

We played the “guess how big Julie is” game – always a good laugh!

Then it was Kim’s turn – she is due the first week in July.

Lilo had fun helping me open Grace’s presents – she really liked this stuffed frog from our cousin Tam.  It was one of my favorites too – so soft & cuddly :)

Adventures in Potty Training

My sweet, precious, too-good-to-be-true Collin decided a few weeks ago that he was ready to “pee-pee potty”.  I didn’t really think he meant it, but I held him up over the regular toilet & sure enough, he did his business!  So, even though I had decided not to attempt this until after Grace’s arrival, I went ahead and did some research, then went out and purchased a potty seat.

When we got it home he started using it about once a day, so we bought a treat jar and filled it with candy (Peanut Butter M&M’s currently).  Ever since then he has gradually increased how many times per day he wants to “pee-pee potty” & now averages about 3-4 times per day.  Mommy & Daddy are so proud!!

This may be TMI, but it is usually just #1 that he does, but today he sat down & went #2.  I could tell there wasn’t as much as usually ends up in his diaper, so I had him sit back down for a few minutes & kept asking him to try more.  I could tell he was trying, but he kept saying he was “all done”.  I had a feeling there was more to come, but I cleaned him, gave him his candy, and let him run in his room to play (naked) while I cleaned to potty – not fun, by the way.

Sure enough, I hear him in his room say “pee-pee potty” and so I tell him to hurry back.  He comes running in the bathroom with #2 all down his legs & leaving a nice trail behind him all the way into his carpeted bedroom!

I am now considering sending him to college in diapers.  Potty training is not as glamorous as it sounds!

Vuong Family Massive Update Post

I love blogging, the problem is finding the time to do it!  And then the longer I wait, the more I have that I want to record, so it gets overwhelming to think about…and then I procrastinate even more.  It’s a vicious cycle :)

So, instead of trying to write about 10 posts that I want to do, I am just going to summarize what we’ve been up to lately (with a few pictures too) so that at least I can have it down.  So much has happened since my last post, which was IN JANUARY!!!

Probably the highlight of the month of February was our Valentine’s date night :)  Our sweet friends, Brad & Whitney, are in the same situation we are with no family in town…so we will trade off date nights.  So, Friday night I went over to their house to keep their boy, Max, and Saturday night Whitney came over here to keep Collin.  We went to one of our favorite places, Barbara Jean’s, then did some shopping & stopped for ice cream.  It was a great date night & much overdue – we hadn’t been since September when we were in Texas!!

Here is a “30-week baby bump” picture of me from that night…I am bummed that I forgot to get one of me & Son together!

Now for the kiddos’ updates:

We had a little scare with Grace last week…I went into my regular 32-week appointment & the doctor was a little concerned because apparently my measurements & weight hadn’t changed in 4 weeks.  She had me schedule an ultrasound to check on Grace’s size & make sure everything was okay.  I asked her what could be the problem if there is a problem, and she says she just wants tot check to make sure the placenta is working and that Grace is still measuring on time with my due date. 

Of course she says not to worry, that everything is probably fine…but I was really scared.  I had to wait 3-days for the next available ultrasound appointment, and of course I spent that time doing terrible things like Googling “problem with placenta” and “baby born at 32 weeks”.

We had so many sweet friends & family praying for her that I know God was watching over our family that week.

It turned out that everything is fine, she is just small – about 4lbs now, but all of her measurements are right on track with my due date.  In the end it was nice to get a late ultrasound & be able to see her again, but not worth the stress!  Oh, and let me tell you, baby girl has some HAIR!!  We could see it on the ultrasound – soo precious!!

That week while I had convinced myself that she was coming early, I decided that I needed to get the bedding situation finalized.  I decided that I wasn’t in love with the first set I bought, but that I didn’t have time/energy to make something…so after spending many hours shopping & online, I finally splurged & ordered a set that I had really fallen in love with a few months back.  It’s a new pattern from PBK called “Petite Paisley” and for now it is online only.It came in today & I LOVE IT!!!

Up next…a post on all things new with Collin James & our last family road trip with only 1 car seat :)