Tis The Season!

I've been working very hard the past few days on getting some items ready to take to the studio to start selling. It's hard to get things done with Gabe home. My little man has a fascination with the needle on the embroidery machine... which ultimately means that he likes to try to stick his little fingers in it all of the time. Luckily, I've set up my machine in the kitchen for now- Once we get all of our Christmas decor up and everything moved to the basement I will be moving it into our porch/sunroom area! Anyway, as I was saying... it's much easier to work when Gabe is not home. So, yesterday Gabe got to spend some quality time with Mama and I got to work ALL. DAY. LONG! I'm pretty proud of my creations so far... I'm getting better everyday! Here's some pics of what I worked on yesterday and last week! I also made Emeri a birthday shirt (which I forgot to take a picture of!) I'm a little upset since it turned out sooo cute! :) 

16 Weeks!

Yes, I know... I've been slacking in the baby updating area. However, I am bound and determined to update you all every week beginning now! As of today, I am officially 16 weeks! Can you believe it? We are 4 weeks away from being half-way done! Whew! Now, if only we can stay on track and not develop complications... we will be on a roll. I don't have a belly picture to post tonight- but I promise I will have Jesse take one in the morning. So... here's the info on Baby Schiff. 

- Weight Gain: I've actually lost about 12 pounds since Jesse and I found out that we are expecting. I'm definitely trying to gain a few (the healthy way) but it's just not happening since I've been sick every day. I'm hoping that the sickness will go away very, very soon! With Gabe, I was done being sick by week 16! So fingers crossed that it happens soon with Baby #2!! On the other hand... my belly is starting to look more like a pregnant belly which I am very happy about. I'm ready to look less fat and more pregnant! haha. 

- What I'm craving these days: caffeine! which is bad! lol. So, I've definitely been trying to cut back and drink lots of water. I crave pizza a lot and mozzarella sticks from Arby's and Sonic! YUM! However, I have been sick every single day- so nothing really ever sounds good!  


- How I'm feeling: Tired! Very, very tired! Pregnancy along with keeping up with Gabe all day wears me out. I wouldn't trade it for anything... but I must say that a nap while my boy is napping is always nice! 


- What I don't like:  Being sick EVERY. SINGLE. DAY!! Oh & the headaches. I've been getting awful headaches throughout the day... they are NOT fun at all!!  If I have any aversions to food it would probably be vegetables at the moment. For some reason, the thought of veggies makes me cringe these days. I'm trying to overcome this since I know that veggies are good for me! I'm a work in progress! 


- Sleep: Strangely, I have been sleeping very well. We all know I like to sleep on my stomach and that is getting harder to do. Since I'm always tired...sleep comes a lot easier these days! 


- What I'm looking forward to: Our Reveal!! We have exciting plans for revealing Baby Schiff's gender! I can't wait to find out what we are having. Of course, I would like a girl... but I will be happy as long as our baby is healthy and strong! 


- Size of Baby Schiff: Right now, Baby is about the size of an avocado. Around 4.5 inches long and 3.5 ounces. 

- Baby Schiff's development this week: Baby's legs are much more developed and his/her head is more erect than it has been previously. THey eyes are moving closer to the front of the head and ears are close to their final position. He/She has even started growing toenails! 


-Message to Baby Schiff from Mommy: You were definitely a little surprise my child... but a very, very good surprise! I can't wait to meet you and I'm so excited that Gabriel will have a little brother or sister soon! I know that he will be the BEST BIG Brother anyone could ever ask for. I pray that you grow healthy and strong and that you enjoy your little home inside Mommy until your due date! :) Know that you are already very much loved and we are all so excited to meet you soon! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Well, for those of you who know me- you know that taking the high road isn't always my style. However, lately I've found myself keeping my mouth closed and not telling someone exactly what I think. Much at the request of my husband. Because in his words... "you don't want to be responsible for her crying her eyes out every night." Well, I guess that is true but there are days when I so desperately want to speak my mind. So today, I'm thankful for this scripture: 

Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: "It is mine to avenge; I will repay," says the Lord.

--Romans 12:19 

I'm thankful to know that revenge is taken care of through God. Though there are times when I just want to scream at the top of my lungs, I can rest assured in knowing that all things will be properly handled according to Jesus. 

Seeing that today is Thanksgiving I'd also like to say what else I am thankful for. I am thankful for our family and friends. For the support that we always get. I'm thankful for the one person who tries to convince Jesse to divorce me... you have only made our marriage stronger! I'm thankful for my 2 handsome boys who keep my life interesting and busy! I'm thankful for all of the new life that will be coming into our families next year! I'm thankful for peace within my little family. I'm thankful for our health, job, and home. I'm thankful for all of the blessings that continue to come into our lives. I'm thankful for the struggles because they have only made us stronger today. 

Hope Everyone has a Great Thanksgiving and a fun-filled Black Friday!!! :) 

Just an update!

Well, it's been a few days since I've posted...so here's the latest scoop on the Schiff family! :) 

I won't lie- part of the reason for my delayed post has been because I seem to have somehow gotten like 3 tiny blood blisters on my middle finger on my left hand. It hurts... and to make it worse, I have no idea what happened to cause them! OWIE- as Gabe would say! But tonight, I'm pushing through and posting anyway... even though every hit of the button with that finger sends a slight sting through my fingers. 

I've been busy the past few nights getting things ready for the shop I'm opening up with Amber. I've decided to HOPEFULLY have enough things ready to open OFFICIALLY the first week of December! So far, I LOVE my new embroidery machine! It's going to take me a few more tries to get everything perfected- But I am very confident and excited! 

Gabriel is getting busier and busier every single day. I can't believe the new things that he can discover in just 24 hours! A few days ago, however, we did have to have a very long talk about bedtimes and wake up times. You see, Mommy needs her rest and waking up before 8:00 a.m. is not acceptable. And leave it to my favorite little boy to wake up just before 8:00 on most mornings. So, we had a little discussion about not waking until after 8:00! haha. And you know what!? He listened! haha. My boy didn't wake up until 8:07 the next morning! Mommy was SO proud! haha. 

This week is going to be very, very busy and relaxing for us. Gabe has a follow up appointment at Cardinal Glennon this week (he will continue to have appointments there until he is 2). And then it's time to celebrate THANKSGIVING! YAY! Jesse only has to work 3 nights this week and then he's off! So that means that we will get Wednesday, Thursday, and the whole weekend together! Our only plans are to celebrate Thanksgiving with my family on Thanksgiving Day and then relax, relax, relax! I'm going to buy some more materials this week for making things... so that is also on my list of things to do. Oh & putting up our Christmas Decorations!!! Can't forget that! I'm sooooo excited!!! 

Alright friends, that's about it for tonight. Baby updates will start this coming week as well! Can you believe that we will be at 15 week already!? Where has the time gone!? Have a good one!

Thankful

So, I was going to post on how amusing it is to Jesse and I that only he and Gabe got invited to his mother's house for Thanksgiving. Instead, I think I'll rise above and post about some things that I am grateful for. 

I'm Thankful for: 

• God- he's always shown up for us exactly when we needed him.
• My husband, Gabriel, and our future child. These guys make me laugh and smile everyday... as well as lose sleep! haha. 
• My parents- without them I don't know where Jesse and I would be today and I don't know what Gabe would do without them. 
• Jesse's dad and Stepmother- They've shown me nothing but love and kindness and have always loved all of us without question. 
• All of our brothers, sisters, sister in laws, brother in laws, nieces and nephews (and future nieces and nephews). 
• The removal of a certain person from our lives. Jesse and I finally have peace and happiness in our lives and Gabriel now only has 2 sets of grandparents that will always love him unconditionally without question. 
• Our friends. 
• Our Grandparents- for always loving us and loving our child. 
• Having a roof over our head and food in our fridge. 
• Late nights and early mornings with Gabe. 
• Being able to stay at home with my baby boy. 
• My husband being able to provide for us. 
• The shop that I will be opening with a good friend in a few weeks.  
• The future- because I know it can only get better. :) 

The Good, The Bad, The Hospital!?

The Good:: 

We have some very exciting news! I will be opening up a shop with my good friend (and our photographer), Amber Joiner. I will be selling custom items that I make with my embroidery machine as well as hairbows, tutu's, and more! I am SO excited. Jesse and I decided to start out by doing a 3 month "trial" period... I guess that's what you would call it. We want to make sure that I will be bringing in more money than we put it. However, it is the perfect timing- since it is Holiday Season- and I'm so looking forward to it! We have prayed about this decision a lot and feel like taking this chance is the best way to go. Keep you fingers crossed and say lots of prayers for us! :) 

Also- we will be entering our 2nd trimester this Tuesday!! Can you believe it? Time is FLYING! Only about 6 more weeks until we can find out what we are having. And OH I can't wait to tell you all the plans we have for our reveal! It's going to be great! :)) 

The Bad:: 


Let me first start by saying that even though I find pregnancy to be a miraculous, beautiful thing... It is absolutely KILLING me this time around. I mean, seriously! If you all remember my last pregnancy, then you might remember all of that morning sickness that I had. It was miserable. Especially since I was working full time then... it wasn't easy being sick all day while working. I'm thankful that this time around I'm lucky enough to get to stay at home all day...However, I have been sick EVERY SINGLE DAY. I'm not lying... literally- every day!! At first it was all day, every day. Here lately, I've been mainly getting sick in the late afternoon/evening. Regardless, it's not fun... at all. It's definitely not easy, especially since I have my favorite little man to keep up with all day too! Needless to say, I'm EXHAUSTED by the end of the day. Like now for example, I could literally lay down right now and pass out. Pregnancy does not treat me well. With that said, I did see our doctor this week- so keep you fingers crossed that this pregnancy goes better than the last. He said that my chances of developing pre-eclampsia this time around  drastically decrease since this is my 2nd pregnancy. Though, I am at a much higher risk than most since I did develop it previously. Ugh! Can you say nervous? We definitely can't afford for me to be put on bedrest or in the hospital this time around!! So we're saying lots and lots of prayers that it will not happen!! 

The Hospital?:: 

Yep, you guessed it- we had to make a trip to the hospital this week! Let me tell you- it was NOT fun. My little man was playing at McDonald's on Thursday with his cousin, Emeri. They were heading up to go back down the slide (something they had done plenty of times before). Well, my little man was walking up the stairs when he slipped and fell. I ran over to them and picked him up. I thought he had just bumped his head- until I saw blood coming out all over my hands. He had a big cut right on the bone under his eyebrow! It was terrible. I got some cold, wet napkins and ice to put on it- but as you can imagine, keeping them on there was a whole other story. Gabe did not like it at all.   There was a lady in the playland area that was a nurse or something and she said that the doctor's would probably just glue it or put a butterfly band-aid on it with some neosporin. So, I walked over to Kmart and bought some bandaids and neosporin. We put it on- but it wasn't working. Gabe started playing again- but the cut would not stop bleeding. Mom and I decided that we better take him to the doctor. I took Gabe to the walk-in clinic in West Frankfort. The doctor came out and looked at it before we even signed in- and told me that I needed to take him to the hospital because he probably needed stitches and he didn't have the correct stitch there. So, we packed up and headed to the ER. Boy, was that fun! The doctor tried to tape his little cut so we could avoid stitches. That didn't work. So, we had 2 options after that. Stitches or not to anything. Both had risks. But not doing anything carried a greater risk for an infection and a bigger scar. So, stitches it was! I'm sure all of you mothers out there who have had to watch your children get stitches can agree with me that it is absolutely terrible. I hated every single minute of it. I think it's harder on me since I'll remember it and Gabe probably wont' remember it at all. Anyway, he did great. He screamed the entire time...but when they were done he blew the doctor and nurses a kiss and told them BYE! He was READY for them to leave him alone! haha. So now, we have 3 stitches and some really awesome Mickey Mouse Band-aids! His little eye is still bruised but it looks so much better. He doesn't even act like it bothers him at all...Thank Goodness! (I want to also say that accidents do happen all of the time with children. I almost didn't blog about this event- because I know that it will give some an advantage to talk badly about my parenting and to find some way to somehow use it against me. Sad, I know...but it is the truth.  However, I want to be honest in my blog and I want Gabe to have every memory recorded- the good and the bad. So please, don't judge my parenting...every child has accidents and when you have a baby boy as active and on the move as mine- you will see how these things can happen. That is all.) 

Anyway folks, that's the latest update in the Schiff household. Now, it's time for this Mommy to go to bed. I'm exhausted. 

Haircuts and Doctors and Shots...Oh MY!

Well, today is voting day! I'm currently glued to my tv watching the election results. My little man decided to go to bed at 7:00- which most likely means a very early wake up call for Mommy! So, I figured I'd get my post in early tonight since I'll be heading to bed early! haha. Anyway, I want to give you all a little update on my favorite little man! 

On Friday, we headed to the doctor's office for a check-up and shots. Since we haven't had insurance for a few months, we've held off on getting his shots. However, now that we have insurance we figured it was time to get caught up! We saw our doctor's P.A. on Friday. I'm VERY happy to report that Gabriel is 99% on Target for his age! How amazing is that? My little man who was 10 weeks early and had such a rough start isn't behind at all! I'm so very proud of my little man! The only thing that he isn't doing so well on is being weaned off of his bottle. However, I must say that we are making progress since our visit to the doctor!

Next, we had to get some shots! My little man was soooo good during them too! He cried when they gave him the shots and then when the nurses were done he blew them a kiss!! Who knows- it very well could have been goodbye kiss too! haha. Gabe had 6 shots to get- however, we decided to only give him 3 that day. He will get the other 3 (or 2) in about 6 weeks. We are still debating whether or not to give him the MMR shot right now. {I'm well aware that some might not agree with this decision... but as parents, we feel that we are making the best decision for our child and family}

Moving on, yesterday, November 5, Gabriel got his very 1st haircut. He no longer has a little pony tail in the back...Thank Goodness! haha. However, a few of his little curls in the front are gone.. and this has made Mommy & Daddy very, very sad. He does look much better though! 

Also, a little update on Christmas! We are FINISHED buying for our little man! Can you believe it? I've never been finished with anyone this early! We still have a few little things to get- and we have to finish getting his books and some things for his "Christmas Eve" box... but all of his BIG gifts are finished! Whew! I can wipe that off of my to-do list! 

Alright friends, that's about it for tonight! I'm going to finish some laundry, finish cleaning the kitchen up, and then watch the election results! Have a good one! 

Words & Favorites!

Today I want to do a little update on my favorite little boy! As I've said before, I want this to be like a baby book for Gabe. We are going to turn this blog into a book soon, and I want all of his "milestones" documented for him to look back on. So today, I'm going to list all of the words that my baby boy says these days as well as a few of his favorite things! :) 

Words: 

1. Mama
2. Papa
3. Momma
4. Dada
5. Duck
6. Stop
7. Go
8. Up
9. Fan
10. Oh (for UH-OH) 
11. It
12. Ba-Ba (for bottle) 
13. No

Favorites: 

• Book: Guess How Much I Love You
• Toy: Scout
• Time of Day: Bath Time! 
• Drink: Apple Juice
• Food: Macaroni
• Snack: Popcorn!

Credit, Credit, Credit

Let's get serious for a moment! Today, I want to talk a little about credit scores. Does anyone else find credit scores absolutely annoying? Isn't it just plain ridiculous that almost everything is based off of your credit? It's like, you can be a good person, pay all of your bills on time, and still not have good credit- only because at one point you experienced a rough time. 

Now, let's get a little personal, shall we? A year and a half ago, I had a GREAT credit score. A 750 in fact. Actually, I was very proud of this score- at 22 years old I felt like this high of a score was some sort of accomplishment. Enter a whirlwind of unforeseen obstacles that would come our way. Obstacles such as hospital stays, totaled cars, more hospital bills, cars blowing up, snake bites, and the list goes on and on and on... Now, I know it's not an excuse but while Gabe was in the hospital for those 2 months our credit card bills were the furthest thing from our mind. I know, I know... some of you are probably sitting there right now saying to yourself... "Oh my goodness, are you crazy?" and then some of you are probably sitting there thinking "yeah, I would have done the same thing." But still, regardless of any thoughts or opinions, I can tell you that this was the worst move we have ever made. 

So since then, it has been a constant battle of getting caught up and raising our credit scores. I'm happy to report that we are on our way to having good credit scores again. I was thrilled when I looked at my credit score tonight and found that it was 150 points higher than I thought it was. WHOA! 

I know it's going to be a very long process to get both of our scores to that "Perfect" level that we'd like to be at. But hey, at least we're taking the steps to get well on our way. Our first steps have been to cut back on our spending and setting up a weekly budget. I write down all of the bills that are due each week and each month. We have a BIG calendar hanging on our fridge along with our budget plan for the week. That way, we both know what we have to pay and what we can spend for the week. Once we spend our allotted amount of "spending" money, we don't spend any more. I must say, for me, this was hard...because we all know how much I LOVE to shop. But, it's like Dave Ramsey says, "If you can live like no one else, later you can live like no one else." So, that's what we are trying to do. I won't lie, it hasn't been an easy transition and we struggle all the time with this. But I keep reminding myself that this will be worth it in the end. We have also started tithing to our church each week. We don't tithe 10% right now but we do what we can. I'm a strong believer in the fact that if you tithe to the church then you will be blessed. Though I know that these are only small steps that we have taken- I feel like they are steps in the right direction. 

So, my dear friends, I invite you along on this wild ride of credit scores. My goal is to have our credit scores in the "good" range within 6 months and the "great" range within 1 year. Let's see how this goes... 

The Blunt, Honest, Kinda Hilarious Truth about Motherhood

So, motherhood brought on a totally new and life changing experience for me. I took everyone's advice and prepared myself the best that I could with all of the stories I was told. BUT, what about the stuff people don't tell you about? Here's what I've learned since becoming a mother {the Blunt, Honest, Kinda hilarious truth!}

1. You will never be able to use the bathroom alone... again. 
2. Showering in peace is a thing of the past. 
3. All doors, drawers, and toilet seats must remained closed. 
4. "Climbing" will have a whole new meaning with a toddler. 
5. Sleeping past 8:00 a.m. no longer exists. 
6. You will also not need an alarm clock anymore. 
7. Peaceful shopping trips will be few and far between. 
8. People will always tell you their opinions on your parenting... whether you ask for them or not. 
9. Always hide your remote & keys- unless you want to hunt for them. 
10. In order to be on time, you must prepare and leave an extra 20 minutes early. 
11. You will have to pull all-nighters... whether you want to or not. 
12. A toddler doesn't care if your pregnant or not... be prepared to still go at warp speed, sick or not. :) 
13. The bathtub is no longer just a tub... it's a play land! 
14. If you have a boy- you are bound to get peed on at least once... if not more. 
15. They will poop their pants...even if you just changed them! 
16. The price of toys doesn't matter... 
17. Sometimes, a cup is more impressive to your child than a $50 toy! 
18. As a mother, you will learn every Fisher Price and Little Tikes song ever invented. 
19. You will learn to recite these songs, word for word, while driving in the car! 
20. Kids have a sixth sense when it comes to technology... they prefer your iPhone over a toy phone... any day! 
21. Your toddler will know more about an iPad than you ever will... 
22. You will learn to speak "jibberish" to the best of your ability... 
23. If you leave it out... be prepared for it to get thrown on the floor, torn up, put in the mouth, or lost. 
24. And FINALLY, be prepared to LOVE more than you could ever imagine possible! It's a crazy ride- but well worth it! :)