Journey to and Through Motherhood: Lily's 33rd Week (10/12/09

Rachel missed school on Monday and Tuesday due to her long weekend spent with her mom in South Carolina. Unfortunately, the timing of her trip meant that she missed the first day of the MEAP test which is pretty important so she had to miss another day of class later in the week to make up the test. Paul got out of work early to pick up Rachel from the airport on Tuesday and the two of them got home fairly late that evening. It was good to have Rachel back home.

Wednesday was a pretty busy day for me. Paul dropped Lily off at Kirsten’s in the morning because I had a dentist appointment before work to get fitted for a retainer. I had my braces many years ago when I was in middle school to fix the gap between my two front teeth. When I was in college, the gap opened back up so I had my two front teeth bonded. Now the gap is opening up yet again which makes me extremely unhappy so my dentist recommended getting a retainer to help guide my front teeth back together then keep them that way. The idea of sleeping in a retainer again makes me feel like I am back in high school but I will do anything because I cannot stand the gap! After work, I hurried home and had about an hour of family time then I had to leave again to get a haircut. I have been wearing a ponytail almost every day since Lily was born due to the fact that she loves to pull on and hang from my hair. I was sick of ponytails and they are more of a sign of laziness than a fashion statement so I decided that I needed something new. I wanted to get my hair cut to at least shoulder length but wasn’t looking for anything shorter than that due to the lasting trauma from my "Anthony Incident" of second grade. My hair ended up an inch and a half shorter than shoulder length when it’s dry and has a lot of layers that are much shorter than that. It doesn’t even fit into a ponytail anymore. It took me a while to get used to it but I like it and enjoy the fact that I can wear my hair down again. It is also really quick to wash and style. Lily still tries to pull it when she is nursing but she can barely get a grip before it slips out of her hands. Since I was getting more than just a trim, I went to my trusted stylist that I used to go to all the time before money got tight. The last time I saw her was before I got pregnant so we had a lot of catching up to do.

We were supposed to go to Uncle John’s Cider Mill in St. Johns with the Berry’s on Saturday but when I talked to Amy to confirm the plans on Friday, she informed me that some of her family was going to be in town from Arizona and they could only get together on Saturday. We had planned on holding Sunday open in case of rain on Saturday so she wanted to know if we could just go on Sunday instead. That posed a bit of a problem as I had made plans to attend a baby shower on Sunday once I learned that the forecast for Saturday was clear. However, we made plans with Amy and Wynn first so I called and politely bowed out of attending the shower and sent my gift with my mother. Paul spent Saturday working in the yard while I hung out and played with Lily and Rachel played with the neighbors. On Sunday morning, Amy called to tell us that they couldn’t go to the cider mill with us after all because Austin was sick. That was a disappointment for us and a bummer for poor Austin, too. I felt torn because I wanted to go to the baby shower and felt that I should because our plans with the Berry’s fell through but Paul and Rachel really wanted to go to Uncle John’s Cider Mill and that was the only day that we could go before Halloween so we ended up going anyway. It was a beautiful sunny day in Brighton but unfortunately, it was windy and overcast in St. Johns. Lily had a bit of a runny nose all day and was a bit fussy, especially on the car ride. She always calms down when I sing ‘Old MacDonald Had a Farm’ so we had quite the sing-a-long in the car. It was really busy at the cider mill. We got cider and donuts, rode on the tractor out to the pumpkin patch and picked out our pumpkins, got snacks, then went on the train ride. By the time we were done we were all tired and very chilly so we headed home. It ended up being a nice day but we missed sharing it with our friends.

Here are some pictures from this week.

My goofy Lily chewing on the butterflies that she ripped off of her play-yard on Tuesday evening:

A self-portrait that Rachel took of herself and Lily goofing around on the floor on Thursday evening:

Rachel also took this picture of Lily playing with Paul:

My ladybug at Uncle John's Cider Mill on Sunday:

Lily and I in line for cider and donuts:

My happy girl:

Lily hanging out in the squash bin:

Rachel and Lily rode the 'Cool Bus':

Lily warmed up inside Paul's jacket as we waited for our ride to the pumpkin patch:

Lily, Rachel, and I on the wagon ride to pick out our pumpkins:

Lily loved the wagon ride:

Rachel, Paul, and Lily posed as ghosts. Paul was trying to hold Lily out as far as he could so both of them barely fit through their cut-outs:

Lily and I with a giant pumpkin in the pumpkin patch:

Getting ready to ride the orchard express train:

All aboard:

Lily and I on the train ride. Rachel loved this ride when she came here when she was four. She made us ride it about six times before we finally dragged her away. I anticipate this happening again with Lily: