Chick-fil-A Interim Manager

Michael began a new job with Chick-fil-A Inc. in November. He went to Atlanta for 3 weeks of training, came home for the week of Thanksgiving, then we moved to our first location on the 29th. All these changes happened really fast but we were ready to get the ball rolling on this thing! We had been praying to get into this program for the last year. We sold our home back in April in good faith that he would get this job and we'd then be off on this adventure. He interviewed September 30th, found out he was selected a few days later to begin in the January 2014 class, then on our way down to the beach for our little vacation got called up to the November 2013 class! We made the decision to go ahead and start 2 weeks later. The babies and I missed him a lot for those 3 weeks of training but it is all worth it knowing that we are finally on the path to store ownership. We are so excited and this adventure is a little scary since we move from place to place with only a handful of our things and little to no heads up of where we're going next. But Michael is awesome at this job and we are ready to support him for however long it takes till we get to settle down again and eat chicken nuggets for the rest of our life.

We Had a Baby

 Brooks Logan Daubert

August 2, 2013

8lbs 11oz 

20 1/2 inches

He is awesome! We loved him from the first moment we saw him! 

Big sister got to meet her beloved baby brother. She couldn't get enough.

She got to open her present from Brooks that afternoon.

He was a sleeping, eating and alert champ right off the bat. I was so thankful.

First full day at home, Carmen fell asleep holding Brooks. One of our favorite moments as parents so far. 

Love how little his head was compared to that pacifier.

So darn cute. 

His labor was from about 7:45am to 12noon, then I pushed for a long hour (I was defeated and totally exhausted). But it worked and he finally made his way out at 1:15pm that Friday! Happy, healthy and big! Again, my doctor was the best ever and I loved my nurse even more than the first time. If we aren't in the area next time this happens, I don't know what I'll do without Dr. Wolf. But anyway, Brooks is our precious, precious little boy and is the perfect addition to our family. We can't get enough!

Summer 2013 Photo Recap

After a much needed blogging hiatus, I am back with some updates and another round of posts.  A lot has gone on since May of this year and, at the same time, not much has gone on. 

We moved into my generous parent's home and have been basement dwellers ever since selling our house. I have only seen 2 spiders and 2 mice. Praise be to God, that's pretty good for 6 months. One of the first things we did was set up for the new baby. Here's my handy husband putting up the crib (notice it's at the foot of our bed. Little House on the Prairie style)

   

Here I am getting really fat with this baby boy. I'm not having a pity party, just being honest.

 It's what summer pregnancies do.

We spent a lot of time outdoors. Well, no, other people did. I tried to avoid the outdoors from the above mentioned pregnancy. Carmen loves, and I mean LOVES, to run outside. If it's possible for a toddler to be considered athletic then she is.  

I put this blurry image in here because she looks identical to me when I was this age.

Getting the spa treatment at her first haircut. Stephanie has styled my hair since I was 15 years old. 

It really just reshaped her mullet. 

We spent the 4th of July at home and it was lovely. Michael was asked to help out with a store transition for Chick-fil-A up in Philadelphia for two weeks. We spent 2 long weeks apart but it was worth it because he ended up getting the job later on (more on that). Luckily I didn't go in to labor while he was gone.

This was the extent of trips to the pool for me and Carmen. 9 months pregnant mommy wasn't quite ready to bare it all at the baby pool. 

Then finally, here we were on August 1st going through the last bedtime routine as a family of 3. We spent an extra long time with her that night and cherished seeing her as our little tiny girl.

Aaaand it's done

Our house went under contract within 6 days of being on the market. Everyone has stories of how fast their homes sold in the past but I didn't count on us being one of them. Fortunately, we had a lot of interested buyers and more than one offer so when this one in particular looked good, we took it! We are very thankful and will miss this house so much.

Now to begin the big time packing. I have a hard time bending over with my baby belly, get fully exhausted  after climbing 2 sets of stairs and notice that my feet start swelling with the smallest standing tasks so this should be fun. I also need to determine where everything we own goes - does it stay with us packed in light suitcases? Does it get fully wrapped and sealed and put into long term storage? Does it get thrown out/donated/given away? Thankfully, there isn't a whole lot going on right now besides planning my best friend's (!!!) bridal shower - which I love to do. If anyone loves to pack or watch one of the world's cutest little girls let me know.

In this season of major changes for our family, I've also noticed how incredibly overwhelming the world we are living in is. I feel that this is my time to simplify and reduce the worries. Everyone has something to say about your health care, your hobbies, your parenting style, your diet, the car you're driving, the household organization your using, etc. I cannot keep up. And I'm OK with that. I fully understand that these are folk's opinions or honest to goodness attempts at seemingly bettering the lives of others and I'm very thankful for our incredible outlets of social media that allow us to do this. But I find myself needing to draw back. There is no place for guilt in my life right now. We are trying to be the best stewards of what we've been given and I can't put outside pressure on myself. What does this mean? Well, I buy Cheez-its and let my daughter eat them. I can't always afford the non-GMO/all organic/artificial flavor-free treats.  We eat at Chick-fil-A a lot and I get Carmen 4 count nuggets, the fruit cup and chocolate milk every time. I don't feel guilty. I drive an SUV and use a lot of gas. So be it. I don't keep labeled clothing bins or organized cleaning product baskets (some day I will!). I don't Purell Carmen's hands unless I'm completely grossed out with where we've been. I usually forget to even wash her hands. She has eaten a handful of topsoil straight out of the bag - literally - and swallowed it all. We just washed it down with water, because, what else could we do?! I don't have the energy or desire to meal plan above and beyond the following check list: Are we getting protein? Are there good nutrients in it? Will it fill our bellies? Is there cheese in my future? And there we have it. Thankfully we have no reason to cut out certain food groups and take on the anxiety of all that - that would be too much for me right now. All I'm trying to express here is that, if it fits for you, living intentionally yet with no fads to follow can be acceptable and, in my case, burden-lifting. The comparison game is exhausting and not the way the Lord calls us to live. I have to actively release the guilt I feel when I read a snippet of someones recommendations for doing something better. I'm picking my battles cautiously these days and training my mind to be set on things above. It's the only way I can live. I'm probably in a small minority of northern VA minds, but I'd rather be here. I'm so grateful for God's gifts in my life and my intention is to approach each day with thankfulness in everything.

Selling Our Home

 We have no real updated news yet other than the fact that we put our home on the market a few days ago. It's bittersweet for us. We're excited about the prospects but a little sad to say goodbye to our first official home. We are planning on staying in the area until we know more about where Michael's job may take us in the future. It's all unknown, but that's alright with us. We're trusting and trying to patiently lean on the Lord for his timing and provision. 

Our house sure is pretty! You know how staging and organizing makes you look at your rooms in a whole other way? Well, our space looks great and we, of course, wish we hadn't waited so long to rearrange a couple rooms. If you know our address you can google it and see the official listing and check out a few more pictures that I didn't take. Our patio, flower beds and grass are so pretty now too! Michael does a great job gardening and caring for our yard. We plan on soaking it all in until the time comes to move out. 

Here are some pictures I snapped as I was leaving it ready for a showing. If anyone needs to buy a perfect family townhome, act quickly! It's a great one. 

The Name

Our baby boy is 

Brooks Logan Daubert

We love his name and cannot wait to see his sweet life. 

Back before Carmen was born, Michael latched on to the name "Brooks" and I grew fond of it too. We're not sure where he got the idea from. We don't know anyone named Brooks other than a pro-hockey player and a pro-baseball player, but they weren't the original source of liking that name. We just do. "Logan" is a given because one: it's awesome and two: it's Michael's middle name. For the past two years we've talked about little Brooks. We always knew we'd have him but didn't know when we'd get to meet him - until now!

Michael mentioned him by name during the gender reveal ultrasound and it seemed right. Sweet Brooks, we think you'll just be the cutest darn thing we've ever seen! (Your older sister has won out for the most beautiful thing we've seen.: )) 

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

BOY! 

We got an early surprise at my 17 week visit when we found out that baby #2 is a little boy. Michael and Carmen came into the room with me (the nurses were so amazing and totally let me switch rooms to be in the  ultrasound room) and it took Dr. Wolf about 5 seconds to find that it is, without a doubt, a boy. We were both so surprised. Mostly because this is only our second baby and we were only pulling from the experience of having found out Carmen was a girl. My pregnancy has been relatively the same as the last so I had no reason to suspect something was different. Carmen was absolutely uninterested in the whole ultrasound and just sat twirling her hair in Michael's lap. She was too cute. Oh big sister. 

This is me at 18 weeks pregnant.

I feel very, very pregnant already. I know I'm not super huge yet, but my body feels like it skipped the whole 2nd trimester phase and went straight to being near impossible to climb stairs and bend over. I'm being dramatic. It's not that bad. I can still wear normal clothes, but maternity is definitely more comfortable. 

I first felt baby boy move at only 15 weeks. I feel him all the time and it's so cool. I first felt Carmen at 17 weeks along. 

It's so weird to me - baby boy?! He has nothing to wear. I only have pink. And a pink boppy. But I love pink and won't be getting rid of it any time soon. But he won't be wearing it.  

So here we are, 1 Girl and 1 Boy! What a blessing.