Since I’ve made the big (and ever so official) facebook announcement, I suppose it’s safe to post my announcement here.

I’m pregnant! Again! I will be 7 weeks pregnant tomorrow, and it’s been several weeks of nerves. It’s been hard for me to relax, considering our recent loss, but I am feeling very confident in this pregnancy. I feel this baby is an answer to prayer. And I am continuing to give this baby to God, and carry this baby, nurture him/her and love him/her no matter how long God blesses me with.

I’ve been posting pregnancy updates in a different blog here: http://christiansbaby.blogspot.com/

I haven’t posted much there, but I’m using that blog as a way to keep far away family and friends updated on the goings on of this pregnancy. It won’t get updated much until things start really happening, though!

Well… I should probably also mention Easter. I feel like such a bad Catholic, today. I didn’t do well with my lenten sacrifices, and I didn’t really give as much attention and dedication to the season as I should have. Doug says it’s like our sophomore album as Catholics. We were so excited about becoming Catholic last year, and everything was new and exciting and we put our whole hearts into it. This year we both kind of got lazy, and both of us feel really bad about it. Not that we don’t recognize the importance of Easter, but that we didn’t honor the sacrifice Christ made the way we should have. We have vowed to put our whole hearts into next year, and to raise our baby to value and treasure his or her Catholic faith. We have to start by leading by example, though, so that’s what we will do.

So now we have double the dog duty (and doodie), two leashes, two dog beds, two wet noses poking us for attention, two bowls of food and water and eight long greyhound legs. We couldn’t be happier with the new addition to our family.

I find the longer I am made to wait, the better I am at coping with the pain, but the longer the wait, the more impatient I feel.

Waiting for something like a baby is extremely painful. I know the wait is worth it, but it still hurts a lot.

Patience is not a virtue I excel in by any means. But maybe by the time I have a baby in my arms, I’ll be patient enough to deal with the trials and tribulations that come with motherhood.

This year, I’ve decided to sacrifice something that has a big hold on me: the internet. I spend so much time online in my free time, that I have noticed I spend all my free time with the computer, and not with my husband. It will be a big sacrifice for me to drastically reduce my computer time, for sure. I am only going to spend one hour of time online on work days, and two hours on days off.

I think that is plenty of time to check my e-mail, read some blogs, check facebook, write a blog or livejournal entry and move on. This is going to take some discipline, though for sure!

Hopefully I will come out of the lenten season a new person, closer to God and closer to my husband (who is making a similar lenten sacrifice). Hopefully my unhealthy internet habits will change over this Lenten season.

-Even when I’m covered in drool and my makeup is smudged and I feel dead-tired, when the 4 year old tells me I’m beautiful, I really feel beautiful.

-When I’m sad, the best thing to do is take a tiny hand in mine and do a little dance, or to tell the kids I need a hug. Also, the smell of a clean baby is therapeutic.

-It’s okay to be weird. Actually, weirdness is preferred.

-the difference between a plain old bedroom and a giant castle complete with a king and queen is just a couple paper crowns and a blanket or two.

-There aren’t enough answers in the world for the questions kids ask.

-I am going to be one heck of a mama bear. I feel a growl roaring up when someone makes an off-color comment, and these kids aren’t even mine.

-It doesn’t take long to fall in love.

-It is possible to have a family you aren’t related to. I often refer to my “employers” (though they’d prefer I refer to them as their royal highnesses, or something like that), as “my family”.

-Bribery isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

-My hips were made to carry children. I have mastered one on each hip. I thank God for these hips… they sure come in handy.

-I’ve never felt as confident as I do when I’m with the kids. Pre-nanny I would often feel insecure, inadequate, self-conscious. As a nanny I feel confidence from who-kn0ws-where. I rarely look halfway decent as a woman, but I still feel good about myself.

-Sticky faces are not gross. They’re adorable. Boogers are still gross, though.

-A sugar high is the best way to end the day. Nobody is upset when eating something sweet, and I get to go home before the crash.

-Adult conversation has so much value. It is so nice to not have to use my nanny voice!

-I was meant to be a nanny to these three kids. I have never felt more fulfilled (or exhausted) in a job. I love the family I work with, and every day is a joy.  During the week I get tired and I long for the weekend. By Sunday I’m ready to see the kids again. I’ve never been MORE excited about becoming a mom than I do when I’m working.

-It is entirely possible to get a concussion from a plastic giraffe. Trust me.

-Everyone has bad days. Even nannies. Thank goodness for TV because sometimes I just need twenty minutes to myself.

-Kids are weird (or maybe just the ones I care for), but in a good way. I often wonder what kind of people they will grow up to be. I hope I’m around to find out.