Baby Names

Yeah, you can only beat a horse to death so many times before it gets old. This will be brief.

I found the perfect baby name book for me! The Baby Name Wizard by Laura Wattenburg (link to cool website, not actual book) is cool. It goes beyond what a name means, and talks about what makes it popular, and what names are similar. I loved reading it. There are so many cool names out there. I have decided to only keep a Top 3 list of potential names for Junior. No, I will not divulge exactly what those three happen to be, as I must first meet the little guy before assigning him his life-long moniker. I'd hate for y'all to get too attached to one, only to switch it at the last moment. (I hate this responsibility of parenthood. Esp. for a boy.) Anyway. The book was cool, the sites are cool...go check out your name and find out how cool you are!

Overheard

The other night, I was in the kitchen when S was rounding up the children to come in from outside. His request didn't go over too well, since this is what I heard from a very angry little boy.

"How rude is that, to ask a five-year-old to come in from outside?"

Apparently, we have been using the "rude" word too liberally at our house, and my little man, who just had a birthday, has aged two years instead of the usual one. Hmm. Needless to say, the four-year old did come in for bed, and I didn't laugh in front of him.

Tomato Trauma

So. I'm not the most ardent of tomato lovers. In fact, I'm somewhat lukewarm when it comes to the round red fruit (or veggie, whatever). However, I have been craving various forms of fresh produce as of late...and I happened to pick up some lovely tomatoes last week. Who knows what I was planning on using them for?!? I succumbed to the succulent shiny redness and took them home with me... Tonight I decided to dice them up in an omelet. Then DH S came home and informed me that red tomatoes should be off my menu because of the salmonella scare. What the?!? I NEVER buy a tomato, and then the week that I do, they've got salmonella? (How in the...? Is raw beef the new fertilizer? I mean, I've heard of beefsteak tomatoes, but really...) So, my dreams of a juicy tomato filled omelet, and a BLT sandwich evaporate. Poof!

Then I investigate.

My tomatoes are perfectly (well, probably at any rate...) safe to consume. They're from Canada (yeah! eh?) and they were on the vine! Not the type with all the hype. I think I just might go rescue them for tomorrow...a BLT sounds really good now....

What's in a name?

...a rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet.

I tend to overthink about some things. Naming babies is one of them. My darling husband thinks I'm crazy sometimes, which I blame on the current instability of my hormones.

I have two idea routes for baby names. The first is alphabetical. I have an A, skipped B, have a C, so if I skip D, I need an "E" name. The second is literary. I have two names from the "Twilight" series by Stephenie Meyers, so I should just look for the next one from there....

One or two syllable names tend to be better with our last name...and names that end in "n" tend to be awkward. Also, I have sort of old-fashioned names so far, so something trendy won't really fit with the family.

Names I can't/won't use: (some of these we really like, I just don't like with our last name, for various reasons that I could explain if you really wanted.....but they're overthought and boring and/or silly according to some people who shall remain nameless.)

Cooper
Christian
Christopher
Dave/David
Harrison
Emmett
Hudson
Tanner
Treydon

Anybody have any suggestions? (Oh, and Scott may be the middle name.)

Cycle Time!

Yesterday daddy asked A if she wanted to take the training wheels off her bike and learn to ride it without them. Her face lit up with excited apprehension. Off came the wheels. On came many trips up and down the driveway with daddy coaching and holding onto the back of the seat. I was amazed that after an hour of practice she could start the bike herself and ride up and down the driveway. She was so determined and never gave up. I think this was the first time in her life (that she could remember) experiencing this type of success. We were so proud of her! And of course, we spent the evening cheering and clapping and not taking picturs. I'll have to get one later.

drumroll please.......

....it's a boy! =)

(no, I'm not posting pictures!)

Sharing the Joy

As the belly grows, so does the frequency and intensity of the kicks and wiggles from my little "renter". I really love this part of pregnancy. I marvel at the miracle taking place and feel reassured that things are on the right track with every bump. I could be happy just to sit all day and watch and feel my belly move. This is also when my sweetheart can feel the baby and be more a part of what is happening.

This is a new experience for my kids too. Sweet A has been so excited and anxious to feel the baby move, she keeps asking if it's big enough. Well, today she got to feel the baby for the first time. She placed her hand on my belly and her sweet little pixie face lit up when she felt the wiggles under her hand. So cute! She tried to get her brother over for a similar experience, but he was too interested in trying to convince me that he needed cookies for dinner to pay attention. Not to worry, little man, there's still plenty of time left to capture an experience. =)