RAK Experiment: Day 2

It's Thanksgiving week!!  Usually, my parents come to our house for most of the week and we prepare a feast much too large for 4 people.  This year, they weren't able to take much time off work, so we decided to do Thanksgiving the weekend before. 

The one dessert they request every year is pumpkin cheesecake.  It's award winning, and my dad will not hesitate to tell you so!  I won 2nd place a couple of years ago in the Benton Old Fashioned Day Festival Cake Contest.  I have the little mini trophy in a drawer in my kitchen as proof!  It's the little things in life.....

The cheesecake itself is not difficult, but takes alot of time since it's made from scratch.  You have to cook it for a little over an hour, then transfer it (roasting pan and all) to a rack for 45 minutes, then take it out of the springform pan and let sit for 3 hours, and so on and so on! 

Thursday night was my night with the baby since Jared and I alternate so that it's fair since we both work full-time.  Luckily, Tucker has slept straight through the night since about 6 weeks old, so really it just involves getting up a little earlier than usual since he seems to be quite the morning person!  So I had been up since 4:15 am.  Had gone to work all day, gone to pick up Tuck from daycare and then come home and made dinner while I "single-mom"ed it until about 8pm when Jared made it home from work and my parents arrived from out of town.  So naturally, what do I do then?  Go to sleep, take a hot bath, relax?  Nope! RAK #2-make my parents their favorite Thanksgiving dessert for our huge feast! 

I missed today since we were home cooking, preparing, eating and cleaning!  So tomorrow is two RAK's in one day!  Stay tuned!

RAK Experiment: Day 1

What is a RAK?  It's a Random Act of Kindness.  Through Junior Auxiliary, I met a friend named Karla.  She has three little ones (and another on the way) and would always post things on Facebook showing her and the kiddos doing RAK's.  It is amazing!  What a powerful lesson to teach your children: giving back.  It's a lesson I want Tucker to learn 100%!  When he gets old enough, I'm going to have him go with me when I volunteer at various places.  I want him to not only help others, but be excited to do so and seek out ways of doing so. 

So Karla inspired me!  I thought, "I need to do more RAK's for people".  Just simple ways to brighten someone's day.  So today I began 30 Days of RAK's!  I will do one each day and post them on the blog for you to enjoy!

Each month, we have a department head meeting at work.  It's bright and early at 8am and for alot of people, it means rushing to work a couple of minutes early to get in there before it starts, maybe not grabbing breakfast before you leave for work.  So today, I picked up two dozen Krispy Kreme donuts to take! 

Trashy Update

Whew, looks like it's about time for an update! 

Our sweet baby boy, Tucker Stewart Simpkins, arrived on June 12, 2012 via c-section.  20 1/2 inches long and 8 lbs 7 ounces of perfection!  He is our everything!  He is amazing and watching him grow and change each day is awesome.  He is constantly smiling and laughing and is just a generally happy baby.  When Jared and I aren't with him, we are talking about him or sharing pictures of him or wondering what he is doing at the moment.  We are obsessed with this sweet boy!

And all in all, life is really and honestly awesome right now.  Work is going great for the both of us, we have seen our families tons since June since now they have a super cute reason to come visit!, and we are still active and try to stay involved as much as possible. 

This blog got put on the back burner almost a year ago, so I'll try to do better!  :)

It's a.........

BOY!!!!!

We found out on January 18th that our sweet little baby is a boy! We knew from the very day we found out we were expecting that we felt it was a boy. I don't know what it was, just call it a mother's intuition!

We went back to the ultrasound room and the tech turned on the screen and little baby was staring right at us! Not a profile view or anything like that, full on face! It was amazing to see him kicking and stretching his little arms. She measured everything on the baby (all is 100% perfect according to the doctor!) and then said that we might not be able to tell the gender because a) I was moving too much. I'm really ticklish and that jelly on my belly was all I could take! b) The baby was moving too much. I was afraid that he wouldn't cooperate so on the way to the doctor's office I had a Mt. Dew and he seemed to be all jacked up on caffeine! and c) The baby was head up. She said when they are situated that way, it's hard to tell the gender. As she was saying that last part, she went underneath the baby and bam, we all knew what we were seeing then!

When she said it was a boy, I looked at Jared and yelled "I knew I was right!" and he had the biggest grin on his face and squeezed my hand so tight. He has been nothing short of amazing this entire pregnancy. I think he's the most excited father-to-be I have ever seen! He loves shopping for the baby, loves talking about the baby, rubs on my belly all the time and is just in heaven when you mention his little boy. Not to mention how awesomely he has taken care of me this entire time. I cannot wait to see him be the amazing father that I know he is going to be!

So with a definite gender, we needed a name! And we already had one! Tucker Stewart is already the 100% choice and as a true Southern lady, my first order of business was to get some monogrammed baby items!

Everything has been great with this pregnancy so far. Blood pressure perfect at every visit, I've lost 18 pounds since the first visit, no swelling and the doctor says everything with me and the baby looks perfect and right on track! He kicks me constantly and every time I feel connected to this little baby boy in such a special way. We have a 4D ultrasound in March or April and we are so anxious to see this sweet baby's face!

Now I'm just ready for registering this weekend, since we have two wonderful showers coming up!

Christmas Traditions

When you think of the holidays, you instantly think of those memories and traditions that you grew up with and remind you of home. I think of laying out cookies and milk for Santa, various Christmas mornings with presents and enjoying being the only child at home! and big family gatherings. Next Christmas, we will have a little baby to share the special day with and I am excited to see how it will bring back the magic of Christmas! Once you get to the age where you don't believe in Santa and get old enough to get practical gifts, the magic is pretty much gone. It will be wonderful to have a little kid to buy for and start our own family traditions with!

I already know I want to buy a special "Cookies for Santa" plate. I'm drawn to these when I see them at stores and definitely want one! I also would really like to do the new pajamas every year. When I was a kid, I was allowed to open one present on Christmas Eve night. This could easily be new Christmas PJ's each year! Gotta look good for those Christmas morning pictures! :)

But then there are some traditions that I've heard of lately that have me thinking. One lady at work was saying that she doesn't even introduce the idea of Santa to her children. She explained it by saying that "why should I do all of that work and let him believe in someone that didn't even do anything?" I do see her point, I really do. But on the other hand, believing in Santa and the joy that comes with it are some amazing perks of childhood. Also, what's going to stop her child from going to daycare or school and ruining it for the rest of the class?

One tradition someone mentioned recently was to take your child Christmas shopping but instead of buying gifts for friends and family, you pick from the various Angel Trees and shop for kids in need. I thought this was an awesome idea. I definitely want to teach our child how important it is to give back and to give to those in need. I want him/her growing up thinking of Christmas as a time to give and be thankful, not just about how many presents you receive.

I hope everyone has a very Merry Christmas celebrating with family and friends! And I hope you continue or start some amazing traditions!

Playing Catch-Up!

I have to be the world's worst blogger. Ever. But here are a few random thoughts and sentences from the past few weeks to sum everything up!

1. I thought I would hate it, but I love being called "mama" by my friends. Especially Brittney who will scream it out at Junior League meetings from across the room. :)

2. Speaking of which....alot of people think Junior League ladies are stuck up and snotty. That is the furthest from the truth! I have met some of the nicest, sweetest, kindest and funniest people through Junior League and I am so thankful that I decided to join!

3. Still debating on the gender reveal party next month. Most of our family and some of our closest friends live too far away to realistically be able to come, but I still have always wanted to have one. Especially when I look online at some of the amazingly adorable ideas out there!

4. I LOVE Christmas cards! Getting them, sending them, displaying them. Every day checking the mailbox is so fun now and Jared just sits back and laughs each night as I review with him the cards we received that day. It's just about the only holiday thing we did this year. We didn't put up a tree, we didn't put up any other decorations. It's the last year we have a choice in the matter and we decided to exercise our right to choose! My boss said she did the exact same thing the year before their daughter arrived, so at least one person out there understands us!

That's just about all right now for what's happening here! We go back to the doctor in 2 weeks for our monthly check-up and then 2 weeks after that, find out if we will have sugar and spice and everything nice or snips and snails and puppy dog tails!

100% Scientific Research!

Hello, long time no blog! Things have been going really well around here! Just counting down the days until the little one gets here! We went to the doctor for a check-up and the heart rate was picked up on the Doppler, sweetest sound I've ever heard! We should find out whether Baby Simpkins is a boy or a girl in just about 5 weeks and we cannot wait!

In the meantime, I've done some totally scientific research. :) You've probably heard some of the wives tales on predicting what gender your baby is before it's time to actually find out. You know-wedding ring hanging over your belly, Drano test, heart rate. Well even though Jared tried to convince me to just be patient and let the doctor do his thing in January, I was curious and thought it would be fun to see what these things said! Hey, it's a 50/50 shot, right?

Test: Heart Rate

The studies that I've read about say that anything below 140 means a boy, anything above means girl. The rate at 7 weeks was 149, and at 12 weeks was 145. Looking at the rates, you would say girl. Our doctor said the heart rate was in a boy range, but that was so inconclusive to not think one way or another!

Result: Girl/Boy depending on who you talk to!

Test: Ring Test

You get your wedding ring, tie it to some string and hang it over your stomach. If it moves in a circle motion, it's a boy or side to side is a girl. We did this about 5 times just to be sure and every time it was a circle.

Result: Boy

Test: Drano

The idea of dealing with chemicals that would "fume up when combined" not only scared me, but made me feel like some kind of weird scientist. I opted out of this one!

Test: Intelligender

I got this test at Walgreens and the checkout guy said that it worked when he and his fiance did it, so I at least had one testimonial to justify my purchase! On their website, it seemed about as reliable as any method, and I figured it would be fun, so I went ahead and bought it! All you do is pee into the cup and if it changes to orange, it's a girl and green is a boy. After 5 minutes, I checked and it was green!

Result: Boy

Test: Chinese Gender Chart

You simply chart the month you conceived with the age you were at conception. This is one of the most talked about methods and there are some people who swear up and down by this one!

Result: Boy

Test: Random statements via internet

If you're feet are colder than before you were pregnant, it's a boy. Check! If you add up the number of the month you conceived (September) with your age at conception (27), and it's even then it's a boy. Check! If you dont' have early pregnancy morning sickness, it's a boy. Check! I had some sickness around week 11, but that was it.

Result: Boy

Test: A mother's instinct

I have felt this entire time, from the moment we found out I was pregnant, that we are having a boy. I even had a dream last week that we bought blue bottles!

Result: Boy

So it looks like all in all, the tests say boy. But as most things in life go, that probably just means it's a girl. :) Either way, all we really want is a healthy baby! As with most wives tales and things you find on the internet, you have to take everything with a grain of salt and pretty much just use for entertainment purposes. So it's not like I'm painting the nursery blue this weekend based on this! Although, I wouldn't put it past me.....