Lots of changes coming soon...

Things are moving fast around here.

Baby Stuff

I'm 26 weeks pregnant. Only about three months left to go. We still need to finalize our baby boy's name. It's funny how we had Austin and David's names chosen before we even knew if they were boys, but we just aren't in as big of a hurry to choose a name this time around.

The pregnancy is going well. I'm following the same baby aspirin regiment that I did with David, so hopefully I won't have the preeclampsia issues that I did with my first pregnancy. Speaking of that, I only have three weeks until I am at the point where I had Austin. (29 weeks gestation) Crazy, right?

At this point in my pregnancy with David (who is now just over 3 years old), we were gearing up for Austin's spinal surgery to release his tethered cord. That was a hard time!

Compared to my last two pregnancies, I guess this one is going very well indeed!

Buying a House

We are in the last stages of buying our first home. Very exciting! I'm looking forward to having a place of our own to raise our three boys. Apartment living with kids is a very stressful thing to deal with, especially as they have gotten older (and noisier). I'll post more about our new home once everything closes and we get settled.

Schooling

As much as I have been an advocate for the public school system here in Louisville, it seems that our time with JCPS may be closing for a season. For mostly academic reasons, we are likely going to pull Austin out after this year and homeschool. Surprisingly, for one who has never wanted to teach my child at home, I am actually looking forward to it. Austin needs some individual attention that the public school system is not able to provide, and I am confident that he can succeed once he receives that individualized instruction at home. (I must note that I have always worked part-time, so homeschooling hasn't really been a good option for us. After I have this baby, though, I intend to leave my secretary job and stay home permanently. This will make homeschooling a much more successful option for our family.)

I'm glad Austin was able to go to school for Kindergarten and First Grade. It has been good for him in so many ways, and we may end up sending him back to school someday. However, I am grateful that the Lord has softened my heart and given me a true desire to homeschool- not because that is what all my friends do or because it is what is expected- but because I want to do it and because it is what is best for my child.

Lots of changes

Like I said, lots of changes in our future with a new baby, a new house, job changes and schooling changes. Very busy and exciting times for the Gould family!

Glad tidings of great joy...

I know my last post was a downer, so I promised the next one would be full of good news. I'm not one to disappoint, so here's the news:

We are having another baby!

Yep, Baby #3 is set to arrive by late June 2013. I am currently 10 weeks pregnant, and it's no joke when they say you start showing earlier with each baby. Here's what my baby bump looks like today. Now that the news is out, I can actually start wearing clothes that don't hide my growing figure!

10 weeks

For those who are wondering whether we were trying for another, I'll just say that this one was a gift. Call it an early Christmas present. It's definitely going to shake things up around here, but we are excited. I had a doctor checkup today and got to see the baby moving around on an ultrasound. He/she already has little arms and legs and was squirming around.

Happy weekend, ya'll!

Austin's Birthday- 6 years old- Pictures from Conquer Chiari Walk

Austin had a birthday a few weeks ago. He is six years old! We celebrated with family and friends by participating in the Conquer Chiari Walk in Louisville. After our walk along the riverfront, we shared cupcakes and let the kids climb on a statue of Abraham Lincoln. It was a fun day.

Austin's 6th Birthday

Conquer Chiari Walk- There were 25 of us who participated, including kids.

Joseph's parents, along with my mom and sister, were able to celebrate with us.

David waiting for a cupcake.

Abraham Lincoln Memorial. 

Austin and his friends. 

Austin is 5

Playing with his new train set

My firstborn son is five years old. He has matured in so many ways over the years. Here are a few things I remember from his birthdays past:

Birthdate- September 23, 2006: Austin was so tiny (2 1/2 lbs), yet perfectly formed, at birth. We used to call him our little peanut. (Here's a pretty good synopsis of the week leading up to his delivery at 29 weeks gestation.)

First Birthday- 2007: We had a party outside at the seminary, and it was sooo hot outside. Both sets of grandparents came, and we invited two friends from church. Of course, the first birthday is mostly for the parents anyway. (old blog post here from Austin's 1st birthday, and here is a post I wrote right after we brought Austin home from the NICU.)

Second Birthday- 2008: We didn't have a party, but Joseph's parents came up to celebrate. (see old blog post here) It was at this time that we were able to stop "correcting" Austin's age. Up until this time, the doctors would subtract 2 1/2 months from his birth age when determining if he was meeting his developmental milestones. He seemed to be all caught up, which was a great blessing considering how early he was born.

Third Birthday- 2009: Austin had a party at a local park, and lots of kids from church and from our apartment came. (see blog post here) It was fun, but at the same time we had a lot of serious worries on our minds. Austin had been diagnosed with two neurological conditions- a tethered cord and chiari malformation. I was also 20 or so weeks pregnant and already starting to feel contractions. Praise be to God that he persevered us through the months that would follow as Austin had a successful spinal surgery  (see here) and as our second son David was carried to full term the following January.

Fourth Birthday- 2010: (see old blog post here)We had just a few friends over to our apartment for a playdate lunch out on the lawn. Austin got some Sonlight preschool curriculum from my mom, so we spent a great deal of time reading and learning at home last Fall. At that time I really expected to be homeschooling for kindergarten, but here we are....

Fifth Birthday- 2011: Austin got lots of great toys this year, and I think he is finally at an age to appreciate a good birthday party. Austin had three friends over along with their families (and his adoped "Uncle Adam" of course) for a Super Mario birthday party- pictures to follow in a separate post.

I'll close with this humorous picture of Austin biting his toenails. You may think I'm cruel for posting this, but hey, if he's silly enough to bite his toenails, he's got to face the consequences. Ha!

Austin has a nail biting habit, but he doesn't stop with his fingernails...

A relaxing and stressful weekend

Austin made it through his first full week of school with flying colors. I had a chance to speak briefly with his teacher on Friday, so I asked if Austin was having any behavioral issues or problems. She said that he was doing great, having no problems and was "staying on task." This is great news! Austin has been telling me all week that he has been good, so it was a relief to confirm this with his teacher.

Daily happenings

Komodo dragon exhibit at the Zoo

Austin has been going to VBS this week at a nearby church. Since he will be starting kindergarten in August (and since I've never left him anywhere besides with family or friends), I thought it would be a good idea to give him some practice at being in a new place without his parents. He's on his third night at VBS and seems to be enjoying it. It's been kind of nice for me, too, to have a few hours in the evenings to unwind, do the dishes and get David put to bed before picking Austin up.

I've been trying to work with Austin on his fine motor skills lately. We've been working on cutting and pasting, coloring in the lines (or at least attempting to color specific things with specific colors.... aka- not scribbling), connect the dot pictures, etc. We are still reading; I just need to make a summer reading wrap-up blog post to list the rest of our 100 books. Sometimes, during David's naptime, I will let Austin choose an activity from the closet. Yesterday, we played a few memory matching games. Joseph even joined in.

Chocolate? Nope- It's black beans. This kid loves beans!

I can't begin to describe how active our youngest son is. He is 17 months old, but he seems so much older to me, I think because Austin was still catching up developmentally at that age. David can climb on just about anything- the couch, chairs, the kitchen table, bookshelves (yikes, I know!). He can reach his foot up over the ledge of his playpen, so I know it is only a matter of time before he climbs out. I tried laying him in the toddler bed to sleep last week, but I realized very quickly that he wasn't ready for that. We'll just keep using the playpen for a bit longer.

David is pretty athletic. He's got a football player's build even though he is only 23 pounds. It's funny how chubby his little tummy is. He loves his big brother. They have a constant conversation going throughout the day. Sometimes I hear David squawking at Austin because he wants a toy. Other times I hear Austin telling David no about something. A lot of the time, they are just laughing and playing together and having a big 'ol time. David loves to play chase. He makes the cutest faces and expressions. He has a conscience and will listen to reprimands (sometimes :). One of the things that makes me the happiest is that David will hold my hand and walk with me when we are outside. He doesn't try to pull his hand free and run off. I love it! This is great because he is starting to get heavy, and now I can put him down and let him walk part of the way.

Austin has less than two months until kindergarten. After leaving him at VBS this week, I can tell that I am going to be a nervous wreck those first few weeks of school. I've always been in charge of my own kid and have been right there to correct his misbehavior or to address any needs he may have. It is a strange and sickening feeling to leave your child with strangers and have to trust someone else to discipline and care for him. Every night this week, I've had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when I pick him up worrying that his teacher will give a negative report or that Austin will have been sad or had some sort of issue. He's been fine, of course, but it will definitely take some getting used to on my part.

We've been trying E-Mealz for the past few weeks. Have you heard of it? Dave Ramsey talks about it on his radio show. I've got a link on the side of my blog if you are interesting in it. Basically, they give a mealplan with recipes and a shopping list for each week based upon a certain store. We are doing the Low-Carb Walmart Family Plan. Some of the recipes are weird since it is a low-carb plan, but several have been keepers. I'm so proud of Joseph- He's lost 35 pounds in the past few months by eating low-carb and switching from regular cokes to "zero" products- mostly Cherry Coke Zero and Mello Yello Zero. I figure it is a good idea for me to learn how to cook more low-carb foods because of my various health issues anyway. Since I've been a grown-up, I've mostly cooked pasta, soup, and casseroles. Since it isn't exactly soup weather, my recipe repertoire is a bit limited if I'm wanting to cook low-carb (casseroles and pasta dishes aren't exactly figure friendly, you know :) That's where E-Mealz has been helpful. I've cooked with new ingredients the past few weeks that I've never used before- red onion, curry powder, feta cheese (love it!). Basically, the mealplans revolve around fresh meats and vegetables/ fruit. I pretty much have shopped around the outer rim of the store these past two weeks and have spent very limited time in the convenience food aisles. We may switch to a different meal plan in a few weeks, but for now I'm learning some new recipes and styles of cooking.

Well, I'm off to pick Austin up from Bible School.

Our New Apartment

		Our New Apartment VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

We had the opportunity to move to a bigger apartment last weekend, and we are loving it!
These are just a few pictures so you can see what it looks like. Hopefully I will post more once we start hanging pictures on the walls. The living/dining room is painted “Mellow Yellow.” (which happens to be Joseph’s favorite soft drink.) His office is a blue gray color. Our bedroom is light brown (sorry, not picture worthy yet).
The boys room is decorated in a batman theme, which is really cool for the boys. Austin also got a new twin sized bed. We took down the crib, and David is sleeping in the playpen for a few months until he is ready to move into the toddler bed.
Some perks to the new place- Rent+utilities should be comparable to our old place; We only moved one building over, so our address is the same except for the apartment number; we have the same apartment management/owners so they just transferred our old deposit; Austin is still close to his neighbor friends; we are still in the same public school cluster (no news yet as to where he has been assigned, but the move shouldn’t affect his placement);
Did I mention we painted the walls? It’s amazing how happier I feel having color on the walls. I have a full sized washer dryer in a separate laundry room instead of a half sized portable washer/dryer unit; We have a bigger linen closet and a coat closet, which we never had before; Joseph now has his own office, so my living room walls are no longer lined with shelves. Correction, Joseph now has his own “game room,” so our closets are no longer crowded with video games and equipment . We have like-new carpet; our bathroom sink has more counter space; more cabinet space in the kitchen; a scenic view of the “woods” out our windows (quite a luxury in the city, mind you); We have a long hallway, which will serve well as a drag racing strip for the boys (and maybe it will keep them out of my kitchen, which has only one doorway now- our old apartment had two entrances to the kitchen, so the boys were constantly running through.)
In summary, we moved to a new apartment. We like it better. Life is good.

Big News! New Church!

We've got great news! 

Joseph has been called as Associate Pastor with emphasis in Children's Ministry at Farmdale Baptist Church in Frankfort, Kentucky. He will direct and oversee the children's programming which includes Sunday School, Children's Church and Sunday Night Praise Factory. 

The position is part-time and works perfectly with Joseph's UPS schedule and my job at the law office. It is a Sunday only position so we will just stay in Frankfort all day and come home after church in the evening. The pastor, Steve Weaver, and his wife have graciously opened their home as a place for us to rest on Sunday afternoons, and since they have five kids (with another on the way), Austin couldn't be more pleased with the accommodations.


In school news...


I turned in Austin's kindergarten application this morning. The process for enrolling a child in school here is not as easy as signing up at your closest school. There are 14 schools in my "cluster/neighborhood" to choose from. I pick my top 4 (2 from good schools in the area and 2 from not-so good schools). Then I am able to pick 2 more from a list of about 3 dozen magnet schools/programs across the whole city (some of the schools choose students by a random drawing).

JCPS is going to be cranking the results for the next few months, and  we should know where Austin is assigned to attend by May 1st. The student assignment plan here in Louisville has caused quite a stink among many local parents as some students end up being assigned to a school far from their home or in a bad part of town. We can only hope that the system will work in our favor this year.

Home schooling is always an option if we don't like our school assignment, and actually very popular among the Christian community here. However, the idea of Austin being in a classroom setting is appealing to me. He does very well in Sunday School- volunteers answers in class, is attentive and very outgoing. That being said, there are benefits to teaching your child at home, so we are keeping our options open.

About the baby...

David is so funny. He is walking probably 75% of the time now and gaining more personality every day. This morning, Joseph turned around and realized that he had climbed up onto the couch and was sitting in a pile of laundry! He's only 12 months old, but it seems that he is already a good climber.

He and Austin are the best of friends, and they keep each other entertained all day long. It's nice that I can let them play in their room along together and not worry so much because Austin is certain to sound the alarm if David starts getting into trouble.

One Year Checkup Stats- tall and skinny:
29 3/4 inches tall (above average)
20 lb 1 oz (below average)

The most interesting thing about me these days...

I've started exercising with my new Wii Fit, and I actually enjoy it. Anybody who knows me is aware that I've never been one to exercise, and I've never had any motivation to start since I have always been so small. However, you can be small and still be out of shape, have poor cardiovascular strength and not be very strong.

I am proud to say that I have exercised 17 out of the last 21 days for at least 30 minutes (usually more)! The Wii Fit is so much fun because it gives you  points and it keeps track of your time, the calories burned, etc. Plus, I don't have to leave the house to exercise. It's kind of relaxing to pull out the balance board and do some yoga before the boys get up or after they go to bed. Austin has even been playing some of the games, and he especially enjoys boxing. It seems to be helping his coordination and motor skills, which is excellent since he has always been a little behind in those areas because of his prematurity. 

..............

Well, I just caught David fishing in the toilet (yuck!), so I guess it's time to wrap up this post.

David is walking a little farther every day.

David has been taking steps for several months already,  but he hadn't really took off walking until this weekend.

Baby's First Christmas

 David was at such a great age for his first Christmas.

We even got to spend Christmas in Tennessee since it fell on a weekend. 

(Joseph usually works Christmas Day night)

 David loved playing with the bows and wrapping paper.

 I don't have as many pictures of Austin because, as you will see in a later post, he was not exactly feeling his best on Christmas morning.

6 Year Wedding Anniversary

Photos taken by Angie Gambill Photography

David Standing Up

Check-Ups

Austin's Four Year Check-Up:
- 5 shots
- Finger Prick
- 33 pounds; 39 inches tall
- around 25% for his age, which is normal for him

David's 9 Mo Check-Up:
- 2 shots
- 18 lb, 6 oz; 29 inches long
- 25% for weight; 75% for length- He's getting taller and thinning up, which is normal for an active crawler. 

Austin is 4 years old

These are just a few pictures taken over the past few weeks of Austin and his friends. He's growing up into such a big boy. 

Isn't it great to see brothers playing together in harmony?

Austin was so excited to open his birthday presents.

Austin riding a buffalo at the zoo.

Austin blowing out his candles. We just had a few friends/neighbors over to play in the yard and have cupcakes. Austin had a blast.

Jaylin went to the zoo with us. What a thoughtful face!

Austin playing with his friends Iain and Kimberlyn at the church playground.

I'm so proud of Austin. We started teaching him his letters this summer, and he recognizes most of his uppercase and some of the lower case. He also knows their sounds thanks to The Letter Factory, a DVD made by LeapFrog. I would definitely recommend it for all you mothers of preschoolers. You can check it out from the Louisville Library for free.

My Mom bought Austin some preschool home school curriculum from sonlight.com, so we have been reading a lot lately. We also bought some basic workbooks, so I hope to start working those into our day in the next few months. It's definitely a challenge for us to develop a schedule. With Joseph working at night, me working part-time and having a new baby (I know, David isn't exactly new anymore, but he is still a lot of work.), each day looks a little different for us. Austin has never been on a very rigid schedule, so having a more predictable routine is something I hope to work on this year. We may or may not home school Austin in the future, but I guess you can say we are home schooling for preschool this year. We will see how it goes this year at home and weigh our options are when it comes time for Austin to go to Kindergarten.