Thankksgiving Surprise!

Unfortunately I don't have a picture to go with this! We had Thanksgiving dinner at my sister Natalja's last Sunday---first time ever not having it at Mom's or my Mother-in-Laws! Well, before we said grace Jason asked if anyone wanted to share a special thanks this year and a couple shared and then Jason whispered in Alexandra's ear to share hers...."I'm thankful for the baby in mommy's tummy!" I knew it......I knew they weren't done! About a year after Alex was born I told Tal that I just had this strong feeling that they would have two more and they would come after Alex was around 4 yrs old! Her due date is a few weeks before Alex's 4th bday! Well, I'm no prophetess...but I was right on....at least about there being one more. Oh and just for the record...I said that they would be about 2 yrs apart, one boy and one girl....either order, no strong feelings either way! Tal said this is it though! That would drastically change their car situation...they have a dodge Durango now that will seat 7. I'm so excited for them....now I have a reason to save all my baby clothes.....since we have gone through with the vasectomy--Kenny went back to work this past Monday but he said he is extremely sore!

Look-a-like(s)

Ezra--3 months

Ben--left Elijah--right at 3 months old

We basically keep reproducing the same child.....why mess with perfection, eh? haha . If only I could perfect their behavior!

My Diabetic Diet

During my pregnancy with Ezra I was diagnosed with gestational diabetes and it was a blessing, really! For the first time ever I dropped all of my pregnancy weight and it happened 2 weeks after delivering Ezra! Not only that but I also only gained 23 lbs (I basically lost weight the last 6 weeks of pregnancy). With Ben I gained 44 lbs and with Elijah 35 lbs and I never fully recovered from them...so now my goal is hopefully get to my pre-parenthood weight! I don't usually like to share my weight (naturally, does any girl?) but I have been pleased with my unexpected changes and now feel Ike my goals really are possible. I now weigh 159 and wear a size 12, my goal is to get down to 135 (I will settle for 140) and wear a size 8...........I hope my body hasn't changed too much, I know I will never wear a size 6 again! I have pretty much plateaued since Ezra's 1 month checkup - he is now 3 months. Since he was born the plan was to stick to the diet and slowly but surely I have veered from that and polluted my body with sweet, delicious, tasty, sugary treats! Therefore the diet has stopped working wonders for me, Ugh! Guess I am gonna have to actually work at this, nothing comes easy, at least not for long! Well, I still refuse to buy a scale so I will just continue to weigh myself at Ezra's well check-ups...the next one is Dec 27. Some of you have asked for the diabetic diet plan that I followed so here it
is:

Breakfast---------- 1 Carb(dairy/milk) 2 Protein 2 Fat

ie: Cheese omelet(1 whole+ 1 egg white) with 1 oz cheese melted on top cooked in a little butter plus 1 cup of milk........turkey bacon/sausage are a good protein if you get tired of eggs

Morning Snack---- 1 Carb 1 Protein

ie: 2 tsp peanut butter with 4-6 low sodium crackers and water...or 1 cup light yogurt + 3 graham cracker squares....or 1 oz cheese (I liked string cheese sticks) with Kashi crackers

Lunch-------------- Carb(2 bread, 1 fruit, 1 dairy, 1 veggie) 2 Protein 1 Fat

ie: Sandwich with 2 slices 100% whole wheat bread, 1oz lunch meat, 1 slice of cheese( I liked provolone) ,1 tsp mayo (mustard is free) 1 cup raw carrots, 1apple and ice tea/water......or a chef's salad with a whole wheat roll 15 grapes and milk/water

Afternoon Snack-- 1 Protein 1 Fruit

ie: 2 tsp peanut butter and an apple....or 1/2 c. cottage cheese and peaches (1/2 c. if canned)...or a handful of almonds and an orange

Dinner-------------- Carb(2 bread, 1 fruit, 1 milk, 1 veggie) 2 Protein 1 Fat

ie: 1 Chicken breast, small baked potato with 1 tsp. butter and 1T. light sour cream, 1/2-1 c. cooked broccoli, 1 small dinner roll, 1 med banana, 1 c. milk.....or 1/2 c.cooked spaghetti with 2/3 c. spaghetti sauce with ground turkey, 1 oz fresh grated Parmesan cheese + small side salad and fat free dressing, 3/4 c. mandarin oranges, milk/water/decaf coffee/tea

Evening Snack----- 1 Carb 1 Protein

ie: same as afternoon snack.....sometimes I ate 2/3c. Kashi cereal with 1c. skim milk...and sometimes even 1 scoop vanilla bean ice cream with a little drizzle of melted peanut butter! I warn you though...it is hard to eat only 1 scoop, it is almost torture!

ONCE YOU GET THE HANG OF THE COMBOS AND THE TIMING--EAT EVERY 2-3 HOURS--IT'S A CINCH!

Kenny is getting "fixed"

Kenny is scheduled to have his vasectomy Thursday(tomorrow)! We went to his consultation last Friday and the doctor decided it would be in Kenny's best interest to have the surgery performed at the hospital under anesthesia instead of the office....I will spare you all the details..ha! I'm glad for Kenny because he was nervous, naturally, and this way he can sleep through it but I'm bummed that it is gonna cost more now! Oh well, it would cost us more to have another unexpected pregnancy (we just paid off the hospital bill on Elijah and now we are working out payment plans for Ezra). I'm happy that we are doing this but I do have to say that the finality of it caused me to be a little emotional! I really, really know that we are done having kids but permanent is permanent! The nurse told Kenny to be ready for a recliner, remote and bag of frozen peas for 3 days! Lucky him...three days of rest.....when I bore his children did I get 3 full days of rest? I'm sure that comment will be up for debate!

My Mom

My mom usually stops by for a visit on Mondays after her class (around noon) and stays long enough to enjoy a board game with Benjamin after she pics him up from school at 2:35. I really enjoy spending time with her and I love seeing her with the boys. There is just something so special about witnessing the relationship between a grandparent and your kids. It is sobering really and usually allows me to see past all the hardships of being the day -to-day responsible parent! The kids look forward to their time with Nonnie so much...Elijah is ecstatic when she comes through the door and Ben is always expectant the moment he walks out of the school. I can't wait to see how her relationship with Ezra blossoms. The times she hasn't been able to be here is a BIG disappointment to Ben and to the rest of us, including her! I am so proud of her accomplishments! She is well on her way to becoming a great Surgical Technologist....she is living out her dream. The last two weeks have left her looking forward to the rest of her clinicals, she has already assisted in several surgeries and now she no longer speaks English but rather "medical textbook"! I'm so excited for her, to see her enjoying her new found passion.

Halloween

I know that I am late getting these posted and truth be told, I actually took some of these three days after Halloween...I just didn't capture too many good shots as we were trick-or-treating!
These are some of my favorites, enjoy!


Arrrr!

Kenny can always get him to smile :)

I can fly, I think I can, I think I can!