A New Adventure: Precious Time

      I absolutely love photographs of sleeping children. A sleeping child is the most peaceful, beautiful thing and sleeping next to them or with them on you is even better. We've been taking more naps on the couch together as we get closer to baby-time. I'm soaking in the sweetness of having one child, while looking forward to adding to all of our lives and completing our family with baby #2!
     In the past month or so, Jeffrey has grown up and "come out of his shell!" I have tried to stay extremely busy with him and keep him as active and social as much as I can. He now needs more than this pregnant, slow gal can give and will be starting a preschool program on Tuesdays and Thursdays beginning next week. He is so excited. When we went for a tour, he jumped right in and played with the kids in his future classroom, went to "movement" class with them and visited the playground. We talk about it a lot and he told me this morning that he is "so excited!"
     Jeffrey really wanted to go to Bo and Lainey's school, but I told him he can't wear diapers there! We're working on it. At times, I think he's getting it and that it may click. Other times, we just give it a rest and see what happens. No rush. He did take off his dirty diaper today while I was making our lunch and it got everywhere! I had to clean it all up, start a load of laundry and give him a bath before we got to lunch and naptime. No biggie. He'll learn!
     I've had some really rough nights, not sleeping at all because my hips hurt so badly. I go from bed to recliner to couch and back to the bed some nights. I fell badly on a walk in our neighborhood last Friday evening. I have a deep cut and bruise on my knee and bruised hand, but didn't land on my belly. I had Braxton Hicks contractions more and more throughout the weekend. It scared me, but after a non-stress test at the doctor on Monday, all is well and my mind is at ease! They did tell me to take it easy, not worry about a clean house and not to lift Jeffrey. Ha! I'm trying!

Precious thoughts from J-bird lately:

Every once in a while he'll say, "It's just YOU and ME!" I don't know where it comes from, but I must have said it at some point!
If I have no shirt on or am at any point of being naked, he says, "Are you make-ed, Mama?" or he'll say, "I'M MAKE-ED!"
There was an impoverished person in a wheelchair on a diagonal corner from the light where we were stopped. I was telling J about the wheelchair and how some people must use them and so on, (we are constantly talking!) J said, "Look! He crashed in to that truck!" I thought it was interesting that his viewpoint was that he crashed, but I explained how he rolled behind the truck and we watched to see him when our light turned green.
For a while, Jeffrey wasn't sure he wanted his big-boy bed. One day he said, "I think the baby will sleep in my little bed." From then on, he's said, "That's my baby's bed."
We see a friend, Solomon, once a month when we eat at Chick-fil-A. This man is incredible. He is from Nigeria and has a very strange voice and accent. At first, I thought he had special needs. He mainly cleans tables and refills drinks and he is one of the most Godly men I have ever met. He has three extremely successful children, (two went to ivy-league schools, one went to Baylor.) He told me that Psalm 1:1-3 is what his family lives by, focusing on God. Another time, he told me about what happens right before the water breaks, "God says, 'My creation is complete'" Every single time we visit with him, he inspires me and brightens our day. I need to take a picture of him with Jeffrey and post it so we can remember him.
Jeffrey loved Halloween, but no skeletons. I had a few skeleton decorations around the house and for a week or so, he'd turn them around, push them back or stuff them in the corner of the couch. Finally, he told me, "I no like them," so we put them away for good.
He asked Uncle Mark and Bo to take their skeleton masks off, "Can you put them off?"
On the way home from Gigi's Halloween party and trick-or-treating, "Can we do it again?"
A HUGE rock, (bigger than a baseball and smaller than a bowling ball) hit our windshield on the highway one morning on the way to Play and Learn. It only left a scratch. God was truly watching out for us.
He heard Mom and I talking about meeting Ken, Mom's new friend. Later, out of the blue, he asked he if we were going to meet him and if he was a boy and if he had a Lightning McQueen. Later, he told me he thought Ken would be a boy so I showed him a picture. I said, "So, is he a boy or a man?" "A man." "What do you think about that?" "It's good."
After the meeting Ken conversation, J spent the night with Gigi, which is apparently the place to meet people because he told me on the way, "Lambie will get to meet Winnie-the-Pooh!" (Mom still has John's old Pooh and other great stuffed animals.)
Before bed Jeffrey and I have the sweetest conversations. It seems I am always going in to tell Brant what sweetness was said. He lists out loud who and what he is thankful for during our prayers. I was explaining a song that was about God's love and then I said, "God loves you and Mama loves you and Daddy loves you," and he said, "and the baby loves me."
He often prays for Aza at the dinner table and in bed. It doesn't matter how long since we've seen her, he seems to always be thinking of her and loves her so much. She always makes him feels very special. She is very special to us both.
One of his greatest desires is to go to Bo's house to play. I tell him Bo is at school or give whatever timely possible answer there is and he'll say, "No, I think he's done now." He even tried to tell me he left a certain missing toy over there and we need to go get it!
I am so glad I've warmed him up to many different, safe situations because I really think he will enjoy preschool. We are both excited and I hope it stays that way!