Some pictures from lately

 First, Willa LOVES to watch Baby Einstein on the computer. She also recently became adept at climbing up on the computer chair by herself. After we go running in the morning, I carry her upstairs and then run back down to get the stroller and bring it up. A few days ago, when I got back with the stroller, she had climbed up and started Baby Einstein all by herself! The photo makes me laugh, but I also get a little nervous about how addicted she is!

The famous and well-loved rain boots, worn here stylishly on the opposite feet as she tries to beg a snack.

I couldn't get her to look at the camera, but she just had a warm chocolate chip cookie. Having consumed a large portion of the bag of chocolate chips before I ever added them to the cookie dough, I was surprised that there was enough chocolate to make such a cute messy face and fingers.

And, I suppose I should list something I am thankful for.

* I am thankful for sonograms. I got the big sonogram on Monday and everything is looking well. I'm grateful that sonograms can tell you what you're having - we are now 100% sure that this baby is a girl. I'm grateful that they can identify potential problems - the placenta is sitting a little low, hopefully it moves upward before d-day. This whole pregnancy has been a bit of a blur for Ryan and me. Every time I go to the doctor, it is almost shocking to see a real baby swimming around in there.

"Oh my goodness, there is a baby in there. When did this happen? That baby is going to come out sometime! Uh oh, it looks bigger than at the last appointment. Time is a tickin' way too fast!"

I'm not sure if it's just because it's the second baby, or if it's more related to our instability in life right now, but being pregnant and actually having a baby seems so surreal. Maybe it's a subconscious coping mechanism so that we don't have nervous breakdowns just thinking about the upcoming months. Still, it's not all bad. Seeing the baby also helps me feel a little more excited to realize that we're getting a new baby and growing our family. It should be an exciting and joyous time.

On one of the ultrasounds, it looked like the baby was sucking her thumb. I really hope this is the case. I would love to have a thumb-sucker. It's a built-in soothing mechanism for less crying and longer naps!

On two different occasions the doctor and then the ultra-sound tech both said that this is an active baby. The first time was while the doctor was trying to tell the gender. It took him forever to get any type of good view because that baby kept flipping and flipping around. The second was during the sonogram. An active baby worries me. I feel like during Willa's ultrasounds she would just calmly lay there like she was laying on a big float in a swimming pool. This baby must be part of some pre-natal water aerobics class.

Other than that, the pregnancy is going well. I'm still running and feel great during the run. The rest of the day, however, I often feel like a 90-year old woman. We are paying cash for this baby. Texas doesn't require private insurance to cover maternity costs, so none of them do. Basically, the self-employed who are less-likely to be able to afford things like private insurance and saving for retirement (15% since there is no employer to match or double) - are also the ones who have to pay a premium price for the services. We have budgeted and saved to have another baby, so I don't want people to worry about us. It just annoys me that life has to be this way, that something as natural as having a baby has to be so expensive. Life is what it is, though, as my mother-in-law would say, and we really don't have too much to complain about in the overall scheme of things.