Gestational Diabetes

I learned about two weeks ago that I've got gestational diabetes this go-round. I guess it shouldn't have come as a surprise, here are some of the risk factors:
1) Family history of type II diabetes (check)
2) Previous baby weighing greater than 8.5 pounds (check.... kind of. J was 6.6 lbs almost 6 weeks early).
3) Overweight prior to pregnancy (check.... shocking I know).
4) Maternal age great than 25 (check).

So yeah, I suppose I should have seen it coming..... the thing is.... I DIDN'T. I have been so much more careful about weight-gain this pregnancy and over all I FEEL so much better... this was kind of a punch in the gut. I barely failed, which means that they believe they can control it with diet alone but it means sticking my fingers four times a day and trust me, between this and the Progesterone shots, I feel like a human pin-cushion (and I'm not ALL that fond of needles anyway).
Ok, enough with the whining. There is SOME good news in this. They sent me to a nutrition class and I actually learned a lot, so I feel a lot more empowered about this whole thing now. I will be going to the doctor every week now, and they will NOT let me go until my due date, so now we know that Miss Kennedy will be joining us some time prior to June 25 (hopefully not too much prior). And at my check up last week they were VERY pleased with my numbers and said I was going a fantastic job! And the best thing..... this goes away after delivery. It was a bit of a wakeup call though and I'm trying to make long term changes to the way we eat, so that we don't have to deal with this again down the road. One diabetic per household is plenty!

WARNING: The Following Post contains shamless bragging....

Ok, I get that every parent thinks their kid is smart so you all will have to bear with me for a minute while I brag on Jaydan. Let me start by saying he will be three at the end of May. At this point, he can count to 10 by himself and knows his alphabet by sight at LEAST up to "T" and know the sounds that about 1/2 of the letters make. He knows that Jaydan starts with "J", Mama starts with "M", Daddy and Dog Dog start with "D" and Horse starts w/ "H". He can tell you that Granny and Grandpa live in "I-ho" and Nana and Pop live in "Fyowida". And he's two! I actually think that this is where we run into trouble sometimes w/ his behavior! Next up.... we continue to wage war on diapers and then.....dressing himself!

Jaydan's Night Away

Jaydan's Nana and Pop came for a visit from Tallahassee this weekend and asked if he could spend Friday night in their hotel w/ them. He was so excited to go and told his Daddy and me, more than once, that we "can't come". He helped pack his bag w/ some favorite books and a bedtime buddy and off he set. We met them for dinner Friday night and they took off from there.... so bittersweet to have your sweet baby wave you off w/out a second thought!! On the one hand I'm sooooo grateful that he's independent enough that its not a problem for HIM, on the other..... could you act like you like us a little, kid? They stayed at a hotel on the Georgia campus and had all kinds of fun. The Georgia Spring Game was on Saturday and they went to that, or the first half anyway. They said he about jumped out of his skin when the audience erupted after the national anthem, but from the on he kind of knew the routine and would clap and cheer when the crowd did! We all met back up on Saturday, where we retrieved our tired but happy Little Man. I think EVERYONE had a great time and it was a nice break for me. Thank you, Nana and Poppers for a fun weekend!

Easter!

Easter at the Little House was pretty quiet. It was spent just the three of us and actually it was more like 2 1/2 because Jeff ended up coming down with a stomach bug. Jaydan got up early and hunted Easter Eggs (not an area in which he's particularly skilled, it turns out) and check out the loot the Easter Bunny brought. He looked so handsome for church that this post will mostly be pics from that..... too cute!You can kind of see Miss Kennedy in the pic of Jaydan and I.... we took a bunch that morning, but somehow I ended up looking H-U-G-E so you don't get to see those!

Spring has Sprung!

Oh my, its been a long time since I've updated..... I fear that this may not bode well for once there are TWO kiddos at the Little House! Our lives are crazy and busy, but happy.... just not much time for blogging these days!
Jaydan is of course, growing like a weed. He has quite the little personality and we vacillate wildly between thinking he's the funniest thing ever and being absolutely horrified by some of what he says and does! For the most part, he is super sweet and seems to be VERY smart.... we are going to have to stay on our toes to keep ahead of him! We are in the throws of potty-training... some days I think we're close and some days I feel like we're barely past go. He's been known to inform me that he's "clapped in his pants" (I told you he can be horrifying) but shows very little interest in performing that particular function on the potty. I KNOW he's smart enough for this, so its a little frustrating that he refuses to do it.
Friday night was the Flashlight Eater Egg hunt at the church. He had a lot of fun with that.... he scored lots of eggs and they had inflatable jumpers for the kids. That was all fun and games until the big kids took over and got really rowdy. He screamed for everyone to "STOP THAT, YOU GUYS" and when that didn't get the desired result, he sat down and cried. Its better than swinging on everyone in there though, so that is progress!!
Obviously, a big event looming overhead is the upcoming arrival of Miss Kennedy. We are working hard to get ready for that and Jaydan has been a big helper so far. He's even gone through his toys and books and picked out some stuff he would like to share with "his Ken-dee". Hopefully that trend continues. Over this past weekend we did have an issue of him getting very upset when I would tell him she was kicking.....he would point his little finger at my belly and say "you stop that". I tried to explain that it doesn't hurt me and that she isn't doing it on purpose, but I don't know how much he's buying it! I'm happy to report that I feel great at this point and with the exception of some third trimester narcolepsy, don't have too many complaints! Granny has booked her ticket to come mid-June and we are praying that little missy cooperates so that Granny can be here for her birth!

The Fun Part of Our Trip

Despite our trip getting off to a shaky start, we managed to have a good time. Ty and Priscilla and the girls were able to stay all week so we got a lot more time with them than we would have otherwise. Because of the outpouring of love from family and friends, we were able to see a lot of people we wouldn't have and even in those circumstances its good to catch up with old friends!
We did Christmas as we were able and that worked out pretty well... the kids weren't overwhelmed and enjoyed playing with their things as they came across them. Jaydan had talked for months about building a snowman with Grampa, so despite the fact that the snow was kind of "yucky" the kids, Grampa and "Munca Ty" managed to put one together. One snowy night we built a bon fire and even poor Granny was able to venture outside for a few minutes to enjoy a roasted marshmallow and some winter fun! The kids played well together and enjoyed some good, MOSTLY quality time and we enjoyed getting to know "Laila Bug", the newest member of the family and the sweetest baby EVER! Jaydan was soooo good with her, that I have hope for when our baby gets here! He and his "Munca Ty" developed a pretty special relationship over the course of the week and even though some times "Munca Ty" gets a little carried away, as far as Jaydan is concerned, its clear that they adore each other! We all were grateful to still have each other and I think "family" probably means a little more to us all these days!