So much to say, so little time

We have had a lot of change in the last month. We are ready to have this baby so we can slow down! We are still scheduled for a c-section on March 5th, but we will have to see if she comes early. I feel like I can't grow anymore, so she's got to come earlier, but I could be totally wrong!
We have made a lot of changes in and to our home. We have been trying to simplify, getting rid of things and starting a huge garage sale pile in the home. We (Brad) have been learning that just because something is a perfectly good "thing" doesn't mean it is perfect for our family to keep. If we don't use it, it has to go. We have a lot of things that we haven't used in the 5 years we've been married and it's time to let go! Brad has pointed out that I have not used my wedding gown in 5 years and that it does take up a lot of closet space....true, but, ladies back me up, THAT is different.

Will is getting more and more settled in his new room. Here are some pics of it now. We have a few more things to add to it, but for the most part it is finished.

We also finished the Girl's room and only have a few more things to hang on the wall. It is so girly. I didn't realize how much fun I was going to have setting up this room.

We used the Armiore that was in our living room in Will's new room. Brad and I were able to find a new entertainment center with some storage space. The new furniture is fun, but I was most excited that the whole process was quick...we found something we both liked and felt good about it. I like to make quick purchases and Brad wants to look at everything and find the very best deal. Our shopping styles can be frustrating for both of us. Me, because I'm impatient, and for him, because I'm impatient. :o)

The next big changes happened this last weekend.

The first one we knew it was coming because we really made the decision about a month ago. Our sweet, cute, hyper Barney left us to be with a new family. This decision was years in the making. We only had him for a little over 3 1/2 years, but he has been a handful. Many of you have heard my sob stories about all of his issues and our emotional rollercoaster about whether to keep him or not. The time had come. We managed him with 1 child, but I just could not imagine him with 2. He wasn't getting the attention he needed and we wanted him to have an owner that would be better suited for him. We are relieved he is gone, and can now laugh about the memories we had with him...here are a few:

Things Barney destroyed or damaged:

Chewed off a corner of our brand new area rug

Destroyed a water hose

Removed the gutters on the sides of the house

Removed newly installed termite monitoring stations in the backyard

Removed our lighting system in the backyard

Dug up the control wiring for the sprinkler system

Chewed through the air conditioning wiring outside ($200+ to fix)

Destroyed 4 pairs of shoes (Amy - 2, Brad -1, Amy's Dad 1)

Almost completely destroyed our backyard landscaping

Put several rips and tears into Brad's grill cover

Tore our down comforter twice resulting in a "feathering" of our bedroom

Destroyed many fence boards

Mamed many of Will's stuffed animals, little people figures, and other toys

Added many scratches to our wood flooring in the entry way
Destroyed one throw pillow and put holes in 3 of our couch cushions

Here are some miscellaneous high maintenance happenings of Barney:

times darted out of the gate running into the street - too many to count

getting friendly with our legs, visitors and the coach cushions - too many to count

almost pulling our arms out of the sockets while walking him - too many to count

paying for very expensive vet procedures trying to find out what is wrong with his ears, skin and hair - too many (atleast $2000 worth, one of which was an allergy test to find out he is allergic to wheat, barley, rye, beef, turkey, cats, ragweed, many grasses, and many trees)

Foods we tried that he wouldn't be allergic to - atleast 5

Pest control service to rid our home of ticks - 1 time, but $400+ dollars later

Times we cleaned up Barney's throw up in our car - about 20

Dinners/lunches/snacks we lost to Barney's super fast counter surfing abilities - too many to count

Times he stole rumballs off of the counter at Christmas time and had a tummy ache afterwards - 1

Times we went to dog training and the trainer told us the problem wasn't Barney, but his owners - 1

Well, I will stop here, although I know there are more memories of Barney. He really will have a special place in our heart. We hope the Golden Retriever Rescue finds the perfect home for him.

And, the last thing is that we bought a minivan! I can officially be a soccer mom now!

Sleep Deprivation

Pride comes before the fall. Those 3 nights I bragged about Will staying in his boy bed were the last nights that getting him in bed and staying in bed went well. We have tried all sorts of techniques using tips from toddler sleep experts, and we have tried the things they tell us NOT to do just because we are desperate for a break and some sleep ourselves!

Brad was diagnosed with Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea this year, so now he's trying to sleep with a CPAP machine(...which is very sexy, btw.) It's been a hard adjustment and we are still waiting and praying that it will work.

On top of that, the bigger I get, the louder I snore and the more I roll around trying to get comfy is keeping Brad up.

So, if you think about it, say a prayer for our family for good sleep!!! We need it desperately!

And while I'm talking about sleep deprivation, I wanted to update you on Baby Girl's arrival. The c-section is now scheduled for March 5, 2008 at 12:30 pm. This was due to a request from Brad to have a later time so we wouldn't have to get up at 4:30am, and a request I made for the 5th. It's a numbers thing. 3-5-08 is a better number than 3-6-08. You number people will understand why.