8 Months Prego & Changing Station Solution

 8 Months & Counting... 

Well, I am officially feeling all the lovely symptoms that pregnancy has to offer and am extremely uncomfortable. I don't ever remember having Trenton hurt me when he moved at this stage. I mean, I remember him being big and moving a lot, but he did more tumbles and she does more kicks and rib punches. Her little feet legitimately look like they are coming out of me and really get stuck up in my ribs. ouch! Im having a hard time breathing and bending over every time Trenton needs something or throws something on the ground. It's unbelievable that we have only weeks left before we meet our baby girl but it will be a long, tough last month or two. The hospital bag is packed for me, some stuff for Shaun, Tayt's bag is packed and Trenton's overnight bag is ready for throwing in the car at a moments notice. 

It will be interesting to see how it all goes down and when it does. As it is, if she is a week late like Trenton was, she will be born exactly on Trenton's bday. If not, they should be just days apart. Not sure what that will mean for Trenton's second birthday, it could very well be spent eating ice-cream in the hospital. The plan is to leave Trenton with my parents overnight and only stay in the hospital one night if all goes well and everyone is healthy like last time. It will be really hard leaving Trenton and having all of us be somewhere else without him. I am already not looking forward to that part. 

It makes me a little sad to think about the days of just Trenton and I hanging and playing are numbered. I hope I can always remember this special time I have had just me and my little boyfriend. It will just get better, i know, but will forever be different. I have already been feeling guilty for being so tired and not giving him the energy and attention that I used to but I just physically can't. It is probably a good transition for him to get used to since he has no idea what is about to hit him and all the changes our routine is going to go through. He is so used to having us at his beckon call and having everything go his way, in the same order everyday that little Tayt is really going to rock his world. I guess I went through it and don't remember so it couldn't have been that horrible but as a mommy I want to give both my babies my all, at all times, and I just won't be able to which will be a transition for me as well. 

It will be the most incredible feeling to see my babies interact, learn, grow and bond together. I just cannot wait for them to have a relationship and a playmate for life. Furthermore, I am more than excited to see how this little girl morphs Shaun. He is already such an incredible, loving father and loves his son beyond anything in our world but it will be so neat to see him form a bond with our baby girl. It will be equally as special and strong but different.. and I can't wait for that. He is going to LOVE it. And, she is going to have him wrapped so tightly around her finger, it will be so sweet to watch. 

 I mean, how cute is that?! I just can't get enough of my handsome hubby and cute lil' man. Ahh!

I have been pinching myself and counting my blessing daily... i just never knew life could be this good. On my birthday this year (the big 27!) i said that I can honestly say this year i have everything that i have ever wanted, dreamed of and more. Having all of my life dreams come true at 27 is a pretty big accomplishment to me and I am so content at where I am in life and who i have become. I know so much good is yet to come and life is going to even get so much better with our little girl and our future as a family but right now, in this moment, I am SO happy and I want to live in this moment and remember this feeling forever. I wish I could bottle it up and visit it whenever I needed a reminder. All that said, there are hard days and financially its tough some months but I wouldn't trade any of it. We are so blessed. 

I just painted a big painting in our living room that says "When you love what you have, you have everything you need" and that couldn't be more true of how I feel right now in my life. We are so rich with love and life, how could we ever want anything more! All the money couldn't get us what we have and make us feel how happy we are right now and that's a great feeling.

CHANGING STATION....

So my solution was to create a little station in Tayt and Trenton's closet so this is the progress.. we will see how it actually works for us daily as we use it but i think it should do the trick! 

  

...and this is just a funny picture that Shaun obviously took.. of me in awe of how large my belly looked when I caught a glimpse in the mirror and Trenton dancing nakey in the mirror on his bed after bathtime. He is ever so tastefully covered up though don't you think? ha! 

I hope this post finds you all well and just as happy in your lives, no matter which path you are on today. 

Hugs, 

(big) Momma T

Room Sharing?

So, we have a 3bd 2ba house and right now we are loving having a dedicated playroom/office. We can shut the double doors and not look at all the toys and everything has a place. Trenton can go sit in his tent, turn on his little light and read stories, pull from all of his toys and color or build blocks on his little table without ruining the whole house. 

Thus, we are going to try to get the baby and Trenton to share a room. If all goes as planned, Tayt will be in our room in a bassinet for the first couple of months anyways until she starts sleeping more, i'm doing less night feedings and until she gets on more of a schedule. This way, by the time we move her into the crib, hopefully around 4/5 months old, she will sleep soundly enough that her and Trenton can get a good nights sleep. 

Trenton seems excited about it. We moved him into a 'big boy' twin bed a couple months after we found out we were pregnant. We thought we would try it asap so he could have time to adjust. He took to it great, even with the crib still in his room. He has since then figured out that he can get out of bed and likes to climb in our bed at 2am. Then he proceeds to squirm and kick us until he wakes up at 6:30a on the dot every morning, requesting his 'dodo' (coco/ovaltine & milk) and tunes (cartoons). Other than those (too often lately) visits, he is good about sleeping in his big boy bed and doesn't seem to mind not being in the crib anymore at all. So thats the plan, for now. We will see what the kids think of it when the time comes I guess. I sure hope we wont have to loose our office/playroom and make it into a nursery but I guess we are blessed to have another room as an option. 
Here's a look at the current set up...

                            
                 

The Kids Room... 

 

 

































(Nursery: DIY'd all wall art, crib skirt, storage ottoman, glider-from trenton, headboard,crate night stand, crib mobile. Office/playroom: DIY'd crate/faux fur seats, wall art, play tent, large chalkboard)


Yikkees! Don't mind Trenton's grimy mirror! Dirty little hands end up everywhere around the house! 

The only obstacle about this whole sitch is that we don't have room for the changing table in the kids room anymore. We have been using the crib to change Trenton and can continue to until Tayt moves in there but eventually we will have to move our spot. Most times we change him on the bed or on the floor but it is nice to have the diaper cream, powder, diapers, wipes and extra supplies all in the same, easy to grab place for when they are squirming with poop all over and you only have one hand to hold them while the other is frantically reaching for things to get the job done (especially in the middle of the night). Alas, I think I have an idea... more to come on the new changing station! :) 

Any insight/comments on room sharing with a toddler and a baby are welcomed!

7.5 months//Baby Girl Name//Trenton's New Discovery

Good Morning! Quick update on life 'round the 'Engle Nest' :-) 

Trenton news... he has a new found interest in the POTTY! He is now telling me when he needs to go and asking to take his diaper off.. all incredibly exciting advances for a mom, haha. Oh, how things have changed. I know, he is very young and not quite there yet, but as long as there is interest and another baby going to be in diapers within weeks, you can bet i'm going to introduce him to the idea. He has gone successfully a couple of times, and actually done better than expected.  I wouldn't quite say we are 'potty training', in the locking ourseleves in for consecutive days and throwing out the diapers sense, but we are definately making progress which is great. The treats & pennies are his incentives to make it more fun. He LOVES putting money in his giraffe (piggy bank- THANKS KRISTIN S! He loves it, such a great gift) and he obviously will eat a lolly pop ('poca' as he calls it) every minute of the day if he could so that is very exciting to him. If we can get him out of diapers in the next 10 weeks, it would be quite exciting and helpful on our wallet. Wish us luck & send us potty prayers! :-) 

He is becoming such a little person, we are just loving it. He is talking more and more each day, showing more interest in doing things independently and really starting to understand more about our world. Each little discovery through his eyes is so incredible to be apart of.  

Baby/Pregnancy News... we are 30 weeks! whooohooo 10 +/- weeks to go. So exciting. Making a baby is hard work and we are SO ready for her! I am starting to wash the clothes we have thus far, the bassinet bedding, getting down the old bassinet, car seat and baby swing from the rafters  (CRAZY). We sure didn't think those things would be coming back down so soon, I feel like we just stored them away. Everything is getting cleaned, organized and ready. I am nesting like crazy and probably doing a little too much than i should be physically but when i get an ich to get something done I can't wait. I have had to have shaun rub my hips with icy hott almost every evening just to be able to sleep and relieve some of the pain. He wishes i would just rest and sit during the day but he also knows im not capable of such a lifestyle :) 

In other news... for those of you we dont get to see often, i think we have chosen her name! She will be named Tayt Elizabeth Engle. Elizabeth is after MY great grandma (more commonly known as Mom-mom) which is Trenton and Tayt's GREAT GREAT GRANDMA! Isn't that incredible! So special. Love you Mom-mom! Cant wait for you to meet your second great grand baby! Elizabeth is also my sister's middle name.. the best aunty a sister could ask for. She is so loving, patient and beautiful.. couldn't think of a more perfect, special person in our lives to share the name with our baby girl. It has been the name I have had in my head since before she was conceived, so when we found out we were having a girl... everything just felt right and confirmed. I knew it was Tayt inside me from the beginning and couldn't been more excited. It was so meant to be.

Hope you are having a great week! 

Hugs, Momma T