Do You Ever Feel Like

Do you ever feel like there is a HUGE rain cloud following you where ever you go? Or what about like you're finally reaching the summit of a gigantic mountain and then you slip, bounce a few times on the rocks and plummet to the bottom again? I am seriously having one of those kinds of weeks - and it's ONLY Wednesday!

It all started last Thursday when my tooth started to hurt. By Sunday, it was pretty uncomfortable and I was waking in the night and taking tylenol every 4 hours on the dot. Monday morning I went to the dentist and the news was NOT good. I needed atleast 1 root canal, possibly 2, and if it was only 1 root canal, then I needed 2 fillings. Oh, and there are other problems that we also need to address later. Bear in mind that I NEVER had a cavity in my life until I first got pregnant. If having dental work wasn't bad enough, I needed to go to an endodontist to do the root canal. Then it got worse...

I had to go into the consultation room to discuss the billing for ALL of these procedures... My out of pocket portion for the dentist is ONLY about $1000. They also let me know that the root canal at the endodontist would probably run about $1200, but hopefully I'd only have to pay about $400 of that cost. Did I mention that dentists and endodontists don't have payment plans and that all of these treatments need to be completed and paid for in the next few days? All I could think about is that $1400 is about what it would cost to buy the new flooring for the boy's bedrooms and the nursery or almost half of a pretty good vacation this summer or any number of more fun things we could spend our money on.

Well, I had the root canal yesterday. The good news is that the endodontist was very nice and good and what he did. I honestly didn't feel anything and my tooth is feeling much better. Then, today happened.

Today, after parking in the very last available parking spot at the school, when I backed out... I hit the metal railing with the front end of my car. STUPID. My blinker light is busted and there's a huge dent. The grill is messed up. Seriously, we were probably going to get a new car by the end of the year, but WHY???? Why today? Joel was obviously not thrilled about it. His exact words were, "I'm not going to get that fixed. Can you please do something that won't cost me money?" (In his defense, he just called to tell me that he wasn't mad about the car.)

So, tomorrow morning, bright and early I'm off to the dentist to get my crown and 2 more fillings (oh, and pay $1000) and HOPEFULLY I won't somehow fall off a mountain top on my way there.

**Just as a disclaimer, I KNOW that my problems could be WAY worse and that lots of other people in the world have much more serious issues going on. Oh, and yes, I know I am whining, but I just needed to vent!!

Baby Update

Isn't that just the sweetest profile! Seriously, the first thing I thought when I saw it was that it looks just like Gavin!

I went to have my 12 week screening ultrasound on Tuesday and honestly, I still kind of had this sense of fear going in. What if there was a little blob that hadn't grown without a heartbeat? It was a strange feeling, but I was so relieved when I saw a little face, hands and feet and especially a heartbeat. The heartbeat was good at 141 bpm and all of the fluid measurements for downs syndrome were well within the normal range. I'm still waiting on the blood work to confirm that we are super low risk, but I'm not really concerned.

We told the ultrasound tech that we had 3 boys and were anxious to know the gender of this baby. She told us that she and the other ultrasound techs had a non-scientific way to guess what the gender would be at 12 weeks. She said the actual doctor wouldn't have any part in this "guessing" but she would let us know what she thought if we wanted her to. The theory is, since all of the genitals are on the outside right now anyway, a little boy part will be pointing up and a girl will be pointing down. Of course we had to know what she thought, so, her best guess.....

It's probably a BOY!

I can't say that I'm surprised or disappointed, I just hope that all of our family and friends that are pulling for a girl won't be disappointed! We'll see if she's right in about 6 weeks!

Since I have never taken photos of my belly during my other pregnancies, I figured I'd better this time since this will be my last! It's a little blurry since it was taken by Keaton, but it will work. I've gained 7 pounds so far, so here's my little baby bump at 12 weeks.

Growing

On Tuesday when I went to get Gavin from preschool his teacher approached me and asked, "Are you um..... fine?" I was a little confused by the way she was asking but answered, "Yes, I think so. Shouldn't I be?"

She goes on to tell me a story about how they were discussing things that grow in circle time, plants, trees, butterflies, kids, etc. and Gavin chimed in with, "My mommy's belly is growing." She said that she told him that his mommy's belly was pretty small and she really didn't think that it was growing. Then he told her, "My mommy's belly is growing because she's growing a baby!"

So, I had to confirm that my sweet little child was telling the truth and we are indeed "growing" a baby.

Can't wait to see how this little one is growing on Tuesday!

More Acting

Since Jacob finished his play, the director asked if he would like to be involved in a special film project. He, of course, said yes and so the filming has begun and will last for the next 2 months.

Mr. Seabolt is working on getting his Masters of Fine Arts in Directing, so he has to produce an original film. It's a very unique opportunity for Jacob and gives him the chance to experience acting in a different way - improv as opposed to scripted and on film as opposed to live. We're excited for him and he is beyond excited for himself! The coolest thing about it is that this film will be entered into South by Southwest Film Festival, Austin Film Festival and several other Texas and out of state film festivals.

Who knows, maybe one day we will see "Jacob McCullough" in lights!!

Football Season!

Yes, it's football season here at our house. Keaton, our boy we thought least likely to want to play football, is playing flag football! His team is called the Wild Cheetahs and he is LOVING it!

The games are WAAAAYYYYY too early - we have to be there to practice at 8am and play a game at 9am - but the joy that football brings him is worth the loss of sleep. Keaton has played in 2 games and has successfully pulled the flags off 3 kids on the other team and has even caught the ball! He's especially enjoying the jersey that is blue on one side and flips inside out to be white on the other. For some reason that is super exciting for a first grader. It is so much fun to see your kids doing something they enjoy!

Pictures coming soon!

Introducing.....

Our much anticipated, wished & prayed for, very loved fourth child.

I guess since all of our family knows and our boys know, it's time to post about it! After quite a long journey in trying to get pregnant and 1 miscarriage, we are very excited but cautiously optimistic about this little child. Joel is certain it is all going to be fine, but I am still not 100% sure that this will all end in a positive outcome. Coming from someone who had 3 pregnancies that ended with perfect babies, miscarriage absolutely taints the innocence of pregnancy.

I am trying to be positive and have had nothing but good bloodwork, doctor visits and sonograms so far. We saw the little heartbeat last week, had a good appointment today and I've gained 5 pounds, so I'm starting to feel like we just might have a baby in October!

It's All Over....

I can hardly believe it! Months of work and it's over in a blink of an eye! Jacob performed as Charlie Brown this weekend in "You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown." We were SOOOOOO incredibly proud of him! He truly was the perfect Charlie Brown, and really, I'm not just saying that because I am his mommy!

As we watched all four of his 2 hour performances, all the dialogue, singing and dancing, we couldn't help but marvel at his natural talent and ability. And, I'd have to say it was one of the highlights of my mommy life when I heard people around us commenting on how "wonderful that kid who played Charlie Brown was" and how the kid that was chosen as Charlie Brown was "perfect for the part!" We just stood around listening to the audience comments, basking in the glory of our son's performance without letting on that WE were his lucky parents.

I am SO grateful that Jacob had this opportunity. He's a kid who in real life, is actually much like Charlie Brown. He lacks self-confidence, no matter what we do or say. He's great at so many things, but really, he doubts pretty much everything about himself. When he stepped on the stage, all of his insecurity melted away and he was a child that I have NEVER seen before. He was confident, he was excellent and he was proud of himself. He never waivered, he was never scared, didn't miss a beat. A new child was born this weekend, a child who is confident, proud of who he is, stands tall and is sure that he is worth something. Our star was born and ironically, it was thanks to Charlie Brown.