A well-compressed leg, and other tidbits

My house isn't that messy anymore.  Now that I'm feeling better, I've been able to at least cook and keep up with laundry and dishes.

Do you want to hear something I'm so excited about that I just have to blog about it?  I found some compression stockings that are not only maternity style, but also compression 22-32 mmHg!  That may not mean much to you, but my vascular clinic doesn't carry maternity hose in that compression-- they issue15-21 mmHg, which is just a little tighter than the compression hose you buy at a store, and which is helpful but not preventative.  Not that 22-32 is wonderful to wear. . . it's thick and ugly, but it's worth wearing when the pain is bad enough.  I'm planning on getting the open-toed version for the hot summer months.  I can't wait to see how big a difference they make in those last huge months! For only $55 each, they're also bargain for medical-grade compression hose.   See what I mean here.

Watching She-Ra via Netflix.

I'm 14 weeks along, now, and feeling much better.  We've decided not to find out the sex of the baby until he's born, but I can tell you with a degree of confidence that this is going to be a boy.  The pregnancy is too similar to the General's in that I felt much better by 12 weeks, and I have evening sickness (which is subsiding)-- both of which carry a lot of weight considering I didn't stop vomiting until after 16 weeks with the girls.  However, in two small ways this pregnancy is similar to my girls' in that I've craved hot foods (Tabasco and jalepenos, anyone?) and have had strong aversions to leftovers.  So maybe it is a girl?  I guess that's where the fun comes in!  Honestly, I will be happy with either; we have a name picked out for both.  I totally want to use a Russian name. 

For now we call him/her Johnifer.

The General is 21 months now, which seems to be the landmark month when my kids' vocabularies really take off.  He's still sticking to one word exclamations, but he's picking up almost a word a day.

My favorite repeat conversation usually occurs after he has just put a jacket on:
 "Mom. Mom. Mom! MOM!"
"Yes?"
 Tugging at my hand, he sweetly responds, "Go."

"Go" is his favorite word, particularly when his sisters try to drag him around.

Ever laughing, he thought it was funny to wear a bow.  No, his hair's not really this red.

He can bark and neigh (nay? like a horse) and *pop pop pop* like a fish.  He says cheese, milk (pronounced "owk"), home, egg ("et"), cake, cute ("toot"), up, and help.  I'm sure there are more.  It's just fun hearing what he says.  He always talks like he knows what he's saying, and with such confidence.  All I have to do is acknowledge what he said and he's happy.



He loves to have a lullaby before bedtime, usually Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star; All the Pretty Little Horses; or Rock-a-by Baby.  He always tells me what to sing as I cradle him, and to be honsest, I never understand him.  I'll ask which one he wants until he says, "uh-uh", which means "uh-huh"/"yes".  If I've interpreted correctly, he'll smile contentedly as I sing; if I haven't, he tries to correct me, until I either figure out which song he wants or just give up, laughing.  I love this time with him.  He's a snuggly, soft, kissable, little guy, and he loves to give me, and his Daddy, and his sisters kisses (especially when they're crying-- cute?!).

In other news, Briar Rose is finally deciding she can read!  She's now sounding out words and sentences all the time.  Hooray for that!  Boy, it's been a bit of a battle.

Eating raw Brussels Sprouts while playing "Sample Table."

A flaming disaster

This is what most of my house looks like lately.

Isn't it lovely? 

Not really, but I just thought I'd show you.

I blame the kids.