Life with a toddler... and gestational diabetes... and a garden...

For the sake of time... yours and mine... I'm going to put some of our recent updates into an (unranked) "TOP 5" list.

1.  I've figured out a way to better describe Bethany... at least it helps me to better understand her. Here it is: she always has an agenda. I have to admit, she comes by it naturally - it is very hard for me to ever slow down and just "be" without a to-do list flowing through my brain or some urgent something calling me away. But Bethany's agenda, unlike mine, almost always includes someone else - usually ME. "Mommy, sit down! Play tea party, Mommy! Mommy, I wanna go outside. Listen to music, Mommy?" And on and on it goes. It is actually much, much easier to get the dishes done or the house picked up if we have one of Bethany's little friends over to play - because then there is someone else involved in Bethany's agenda besides me. I should enjoy being the center of her world, but it takes a conscious choice... especially when I have my own agenda pulling at me, too.
2. I am experiencing [slightly] the world of a diabetic. Yup. I beat the odds and became one of the 4% of pregnant women with gestational diabetes! :-) It has forced some good habits on my and my little family - for one thing, we have taken a walk together (at least Bethany and me, if not Todd) almost every day since I was diagnosed almost a month ago. And I have cut down on my sweets intake... although recently my sweet tooth has been killing me, so I have had to find a few splurging opportunities! I have to check my blood sugar (yes, by pricking my finger) four times a day and follow a low-carb diet, but I have to say that it really hasn't been as bad as I expected. Annoying, yes, but I can live with this modified lifestyle for another month! (Just feel free to send chocolate along with baby gifts when this little girl decides to make her appearance... ;-)
3. Yes, I am enjoying my job! And yes, it is still a balancing act between family, work, and "running the house." The "house" part of things often gets the short end of the stick, which bothers me a lot. I just can't think straight when there are socks and stickers and cracker crumbs all over the floor! But there isn't time for everything, so sometimes they just have to lie there. Let's see... it's only about 14 years until Bethany can run to the grocery store for me - but she already enjoys doing the dishes.... maybe I should be taking advantage of that more often?
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5. I can't wait to meet Baby   - ooh, I almost gave her name away! This pregnancy isn't quite as mysterious and exciting as the first one (I can only imagine that it gets worse the more kids you have), and I have been getting anxious to meet this little girl for the past month or two. I had a bad case of pre-partum blues before Bethany was born - I was nervous about becoming a mommy and grieving the loss of my "freedom". But so far with this one I'm just excited and impatient! Maybe because I don't have much "freedom" left to lose. ;-)
6. We are officially gardeners this summer! (Although some crazy frost has been trying to kill our corn and tomatoes the last few nights). We planted plenty of perennial flowers and bushes in Pittsburgh, but we didn't try any vegetables. But the Seminary Village has fenced-in 15x20 garden plots for seminary students to use, so we decided to give it a try this year! I'll keep you posted on our spaghetti & butternut squash, peas, green beans, lettuce, corn, tomatoes, and herbs... it will be a fun experiment! And if you live nearby, you may be able to taste some of the "fruits" of our labor.
7. Oops, I said this was a top 5 list. Oh well, make that 6. Since we are on a quarter schedule here (not semesters) Todd still has 4 weeks left of school. He will be taking a couple of distance courses over the summer, but hopefully he will be able to take something of a brain-break... he has been working hard all year, and has had an especially hard quarter this spring. It's about time for a rest!